I'm starting to second-guess my switch to linux...

[HeyYou]

Windows 8.... If I wanted a tablet operating system, I would have bought a tablet......

Windows 10 and up.... (rumor has it 12 is coming in summer....) Yep, they collect a LOT of telemetry. I see them as spyware masquerading as an operating system. You can turn off a lot of it, but, there is other stuff that you can't turn off.  And some of the stuff that you *can* turn off, doesn't really turn off..... If you sign in with a microsoft account, it's even worse..... With a local account, at least most of the data is anonymous.

But, I like to play games.... and getting them to work on windows is a easiest. I tried various linux distro's, but, too many compromises to get my games to run. So, windows it is.

Linux IS user-friendly.... I just ain't one of its friends.

[zixi]

36 minutes ago, HeyYou said:

spyware masquerading as an operating system

Yes, I'm afraid that's where I reached.  I got 8 to run as if it was 7 but then the search mechanism (I've forgotten the name of the thing) got so it wasn't really possible to disengage it from the OS. Even 'disabled' it was still doing something in the background so at that stage I switched to Linux and vowed not to switch back whatever. I think you've used a number of OS HeyYou - I have too and I have to say that Linux has made me happiest though actually I liked VMS... it's sort of cuddly... I always found Unix a bit austere. 

[HeyYou]

6 hours ago, zixi said:

Yes, I'm afraid that's where I reached.  I got 8 to run as if it was 7 but then the search mechanism (I've forgotten the name of the thing) got so it wasn't really possible to disengage it from the OS. Even 'disabled' it was still doing something in the background so at that stage I switched to Linux and vowed not to switch back whatever. I think you've used a number of OS HeyYou - I have too and I have to say that Linux has made me happiest though actually I liked VMS... it's sort of cuddly... I always found Unix a bit austere. 

Yep. I go back to Novell.... Server O/S... and windows 3.1 (not to mention DOS 6.22.... the illegal version from MS. ) And up to win 11.... I did some unix scripting way back when, and that was FUN. Talk about a POWERFUL language. Holy Smokes..... But, at home, I still prefer windows, even with all its warts. :D

[zixi]

I think my first 'proper' OS must have been CP/M... I liked CP/M  (I ran it on an Amstrad) and I still think that locoscript was one of the best put together, easiest to learn word processors ever...

To return to the sheep - the first game I played on CP/M was The Pawn... It was text base - nothing moved at all... I can just imagine to hoots of derision if someone served that up now... 'The graphics aren't very good'  doesn't quite cover it really... 

You know that gaming on Linux isn't quite the challenge it used to be? Though there is still the sound issues (Alsa, Pulse etc etc etc)  if you get bored with the fact that the games are now playable...

[InDarkestNight]

I'm really thinking my stupid little linux experiment is over. I just uninstalled Skyrim, because like all my other steam programs it keeps randomly refusing to work. I'm also beyond sick of it downloading massive updates every single day hogging my internet for hours on end. I've barely been able to use the internet at all because of steam. Virtually nothing works ever, and what does work changes from day to day WITHOUT ME DOING A DAMNED THING. I'm sick of spending what precious little free time I have bashing my head against a wall just to get THINGS TO WORK THAT SUPPORT f*#@ING LINUX. Besides, they're probably going to drop support for linux soon anyway. They're dropping mac, which only makes up 1% of steam users apparently, and liinux only makes up 2%! If they're dropping mac, why not linux too? After that, I won't be able to get even steam to run. I can't get emulators to do s#*! outside of steam. I even tried to install skse through steam, and replaced the files with the current version, but even before or after IT REFUSED TO RUN SKSE INSTEAD SWITCHING TO RUNNING SKYRIM THROUGH THE DEFAULT LAUNCHER. So yeah, guess I'll never get to play Skyrim ever again. Windows 11 doesn't support it, and SE has been rendered unusable. I genuinely hope everyone who works for bethesda burns in hell for what they've done. Why destroy other people's work? What they've done is arguably worse than leveling Notre Dame. MORE WORK HAS BEEN PUT INTO SKYRIM MODS THAN ANY STRUCTURE ON OUR PLANET.

I doubt I can even get the games THAT ARE SUPPOSED TO SUPPORT LINUX to run. Guess my gaming days are done for, at least for the forseeable future. I'm also beyond sick of not being able to find help for anything. There is NO INFOR ANYWHERE ON THE INTERNET HOW TO USE LINUX, and when I do ask I GET LAMBASTED FOR BEING AN IDIOT. I am so god damned sick of all of this. I'm switching back to my windows 10 laptop for the forseeable future BECAUSE IT CAN RUN MORE THINGS THAN THIS THING CAN AT LEAST THE CHEAP LITTLE PIECE OF JUNK CAN ACTUALLY RUN THE PYTHON PROGRAMS I'VE MADE. f*#@ linux, f*#@ windows, f*#@ mac, is there such thing as a decent computer these days? Guess I'll be looking into one of those hobby computers like the x-16 again. Don't know if that will solve my problems, but there's clearly far better documentation for those things than LINUX. At least I can use the damned emulator for the x-16. In fact, thinking about it I'VE GOTTEN MORE USE OUT OF AN EMULATOR FOR A GLORIFIED MICROCONTROLER THAN I EVER HAVE OUT OF THIS THING SINCE INSTALLING LINUX. Fml. I'm half tempted to remove steam too a this point. Why bother with it? Nothing on it works, and its hogging my internet all day for no reason. Why bother keeping it installed?

[zixi]

I wouldn't suggest Linux to someone who primarily wants to game.   I game on Linux because a) I don't like the alternatives and b) I really enjoy the challenge of getting it all stable. But most people quite rightly just want things to work. 

 

[InDarkestNight]

Wow, steam on linux is great. It refuses to shut down if I tell it to. I have to open the terminal and tell it to 'kill' it, because END PROCESS CAN'T STOP IT. I've also found that its running a bunch of windows programs that obviously won't work on my computer. Half the time when I try to start Skyrim, it tells me it won't do so until MICROSOFT DIRECTX IS INSTALLED. Wtf is this? I have the right version, it opens and runs, but it keeps doing stupid random crap and won't work reliably from day to day. Also, my linux keeps throwing an error message but won't tell me what it is and its not getting fixed. I'm getting really sick of dealing with this program. I also removed winetricks, which I wasn't using (its one of the things I installed to fix my audio issues), but this windows crap is still trying to run on this computer! Can I not escape windows in any shape or form? Guess I need to ditch $400 for some retroclone computer THAT YOU CAN ACTUALLY USE. f*#@ modern computers. Too damned bad I would still need to use them to get replacement parts for a TRUE COMPUTER, BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO SELL YOUR SOUL TO THE DEVIL TO DO ANYTHING IN THIS WORLD ANYMORE. I can't wait for the internet to be abolished, which is inevitable btw, just ask anyone who works in tech, then maybe this world will finally start to turn around. The internet has done nothing but harm to our world. Conspiracy theories and delusions run rampant, our government is acting like f*#@ing China, everything is trying to manipulate you, AND GAME COMPANIES ARE DESTROYING THEIR OWN GAMES. I'll be the happiest person on earth when the internet finally dies and all its atrocities finally come to an end. Yeah, it won't solve anything, BUT ALL ITS DONE IS ADD MORE PROBLEMS AS IF THIS WORLD DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH ALREADY.

[InDarkestNight]

As for why I tried linux ITS BECAUSE I WANTED TO GAME. I HATE COMPANIES TRYING TO STOP ME FROM PLAYING OLDER GAMES JUST BECAUSE THEY DON'T WANT TO COMPETE WITH THEIR PAST SELVES. IF I CAN'T RUN WHAT I WANT ON LINUX THEN I CAN NEVER EVER HAVE WHAT I WANT NO MATTER WHAT. WHY DOES NO ONE TELL ME HOW TO EVEN USE THIS THING? THERES NO GUIDE AND YOU JUST GET DOGPILED BY TROLLS WHO NEVER OFFER AN OOUNCE OF HELP I'VE SERIOUSLY GOTTEN MORE HELP ON HERE THAN I EVER HAVE REGARDING LINUX WHAT DOES THAT SAY??????

[InDarkestNight]

Okay, I'd like to apologize. I've just been having a rough few days, and I haven't been able to relax due to my games not working half the time. Having steam tie up my internet all day hasn't been helping either. I'm just easily riled. I admit, I haven't had a very good life, so I tend to be overly sensitive. Guess that's why trolls like to target me. It f*#@ing sucks, but I can't do anything about it clearly. Sorry again, I did say that one troll was upsetting over and over, and here I am blowing up again. I am glad to be rid of that troll, don't get me wrong, but I clearly get triggered easily by just about everything. Probably doesn't help that I've been trying to get my car to work again over the past few days. I may have it fixed now, but it won't be until morning that I get to see if I succeeded finally.

[zixi]

I'm glad you're not typing in capital letters. I'm old enough to still feel that's shouting and personally I find it almost impossible to read. I'm really sorry that you're having a bad time and it's understandable that you get upset and being upset is easier to become more upset. We can't see your reaction so we can't adjust what we say. We're certainly not trying to hurt you. When I don't reply it's because  I think you're shouting (and I don't like that) or I fear I might make things worse. 

I hope the car is sorted! Each sorted thing is one fewer unsorted thing. And that's good! Sometimes focussing on positives is a way forward too.

I admire the apology BTW! 

Re Linux and updates - yes it does update frequently if you let it. It installs security patches on a very regular basis. If you have a slow connection (I have ASDL) it can seem a nuisance. However, you can switch off/schedule updates to your liking. Personally, I'd leave the security updates active (at a convenient time) but you can switch off anything else you don't want to update. Mine updates all the time and will shift to the latest OS version as soon as it's available because I like new things and flakiness doesn't bother me. I run a number of apps in beta because I like the excitement! My husband is an (ex) software engineer and he doesn't like anything to change without his say so - he thinks I'm reckless!