Any Linux experts?

[SpuffMonkey]

Hi - I'm looking to build a Linux box for general desktop duties and light gaming - just wondered if anyone can recommend some kit for it?

 

I know it can be a bit fussy about drivers, so looking to avoid problems before I even start!

 

I usually build my own - so MB, CPU and graphics were my main concerns

 

Cheers

[bald_pig]

I haven't any compatibility issues for ages now, nvidia and amd produce their own linux graphics drivers, steam is available, the only issues I've seen recently was when using RAID on the motherboard, but my storage setup is a fringe case

[Danp]

It's been a long time since I ran into any driver issues.

[dhicks]

Hi - I'm looking to build a Linux box for general desktop duties and light gaming - just wondered if anyone can recommend some kit for it?

 

I use an Intel NUC6CAYH running Raspian as my home PC - £130 from Amazon, plus you need to buy RAM and storage separatly. It runs everything I've tried so far, which isn't really that much - you could get a version with a chunkier CPU for gaming. The case is small enough to mount behind the screen, so there's no big computer box taking up floor space.

[unixman_again]

As above. I stick to ASUS motherboards, as I know that there won't be any problems. I don't run anything other than the built in graphics card now, but as above nvidia work fine. Again, RAID can be a problem, which is something that I do use. I recently reinstalled by box from OpenSUSE 11 (getting a bit old) and I wanted to use FreeBSD. I couldn't get it to recognise my RAID, nor would PCLinuxOS or Slackware. I wanted a distro without systemd and ideally RPM based. I eventually gave in a went with Fedora - it has the pain that is systemd but my RAID works.

[SpuffMonkey]

Thanks for all of that- perhaps I've been a bit over cautious - its just I've been trying out all the stuff in a VM and it won't see my Ricoh colour laser printer and I started to worry that it was going to become a tricksy job!

[admars]

this may be of interest, something to be aware of

 

[h=1]Steam Won’t Support Ubuntu 19.10 and Future Releases[/h]

https://www.howtogeek.com/426068/steam-wont-support-ubuntu-19.10-and-future-releases/

Edited July 11, 2019 by admars

[Jamo]

this may be of interest, something to be aware of

 

Steam Won’t Support Ubuntu 19.10 and Future Releases

 

 

https://www.howtogeek.com/426068/steam-wont-support-ubuntu-19.10-and-future-releases/

 

I wouldn't pay much attention to this, Ubuntu backtracked on the decision so it's not a big deal, I don't believe Steam are dropping support now either, they were suggesting it was instead going to widen to support more distros

[Jamo]

So generally, driver support is fine, especially on desktop systems, power saving on laptops is the only annoyance I ever got and that is much better than it used to be.

 

Intel/AMD are both fine, (infact AMD's new chips are just awesome really full stop) - GFX wise, again nvidia or AMD are both fine, intel iGPU still suck really for proper gaming. Checkout Level1Techs/Level1Linux for some Linux focussed reviews of some of the hardware to see how far its come on.

[Arthur]

Checkout Level1Techs/Level1Linux for some Linux focused reviews of some of the hardware to see how far its come on.

Do you reckon it would be worth @SpuffMonkey trying the Ubuntu-based Pop!_OS? Both Linus Tech Tips and Wendell from Level1Techs praised it quite highly in recent videos.

 

It looks like there would be less stuff to do out-of-the-box compared to regular Ubuntu (especially for gaming) and it would offer a better experience. e.g. pre-installed 32-bit/64-bit Vulkan libraries, the NVIDIA ISO includes the faster (and potentially less problematic) proprietary NVIDIA graphics driver.

 

Pop!_OS and Ubuntu: What’s the difference?

 

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by Arthur

[Xellpnz]

Just my 5p worth of data here.

 

In sense of Hardware, I have not encountered much issues with majority of hardware, apart from nvidia now and again. Just remember, the more "newish" your parts are, more likely something "could" not work - till a driver set is released or alike. But 9/10 the big companies like AMD/Intel/Nvidia tend to chuck out good drivers quickly anyway. Plus, helps to have a distro that is more upfront with new changes like fedora and Manjaro. Just remember the timing of versions of packages in every different distro is based on the package maintainer of each distro, so its a hit or miss on how long driver packages pop.

 

Terms of Distros that myself have used for gaming;

 

For a Debian style Distro - Pop!_OS, clean, fairly up to date with kit, less bloat i feel out of the box - and gaming I feel had no real negative effects. Plus the APT / Debian community is rather large, so getting support is quite easy.

 

For an Arch Distro, Manjaro - found it great for many of my friends that needed a NIX System for gaming, upto date drivers, and the AUR is a wonderful tool. I did find gaming on Manjaro was great - plus if you check videos from "linus Tech tips" they had some great videos explaining the whole process.

 

To be fair, i think whatever Distro/HW route you take, it be a fun endeavor - and plus learning how NIX works to get it around a standard you want - is half the fun in my books =)

[Jamo]

re pop OS i've never really tried them, they are ubuntu based so pretty similar either way so don't think you can go wrong really.

 

Ive just updated to a ryzen 3000 series CPU with a b450 mobo, seems to be great so far, cpu speed is insane compared to my original i5. Play most games either native or using steamplay which is brill really

[mavhc]

The problem with all the minor OSes is when you have a problem there's a lot less information about it. If PopOS is based on Ubuntu, which is based on Debian, will the Debian fix work, or the Ubuntu fix, or do you need a specific PopOS fix?

 

Plus upgrading is way better tested on Debian/Ubuntu, so long term I'd stick with Ubuntu for desktop, Debian for servers.

 

Tried FreeBSD for a few years because it had ZFS, broke something every time it updated some software, nightmare.

[Jamo]

The problem with all the minor OSes is when you have a problem there's a lot less information about it. If PopOS is based on Ubuntu, which is based on Debian, will the Debian fix work, or the Ubuntu fix, or do you need a specific PopOS fix?

 

Plus upgrading is way better tested on Debian/Ubuntu, so long term I'd stick with Ubuntu for desktop, Debian for servers.

 

Tried FreeBSD for a few years because it had ZFS, broke something every time it updated some software, nightmare.

 

I'd say that depends on the level of customisation on the OS itself, BSD is completely different to linux so can't really be compared. I've personally always used Ubuntu for laptops / desktops, and definitely CentOS for servers where stablility is paramount.

 

All I'd say is have a play, see which you like best! There is a lot more choice than on Windows!

[Areku]

i've been using Mint on my personal desktop for a while.

I use crossover + DXVK for most my gaming needs (long live dxvk!!)

[mavhc]

Tried mint once, it annoyed me by not having a proper upgrade path, wipe and reinstall, like it's Windows 95 or something.

[Jamo]

So from this the take aways! There are loads of choices! Pick up which one feels best to you, customise it and it will feel like your own desktop again, something which I can not say about Windows anymore.

[mavhc]

Just pick one that will be upgradable so you don't have to re-set everything up again in a year or two. And one that's popular so it's likely someone will have already found a fix for that problem you have.