On Ubuntu based distros I had to install a specific package from the ubuntu-studio distro, where it reconfigures pipewire to play right on 24.04. Without it, for example, I wouldn’t get audio on linux mint (based on 24.04), on some daw apps. Can’t remember how it was called, but search for ubuntu-studio packages, and something about pipewire fix.

The only OS that was solid as a desktop OS back then, with good usability, was BeOS. Both MacOS and Windows had stability problems (although NT/2000 were much better, but lacked app/game compatibility), and Linux was a nightmare to update and run (lots of compiling too). So the OS of choice back then for me, was BeOS. I could do everything I needed with it too.

I use Debian-Testing. It’s very stable, more so than most other distros IMHO (despite being -testing), and it has the latest packages.

That is a waste of time. I emailed the company a few months ago and they replied that they won’t port to Linux. Not that they don’t have plans to currently do it, but that they won’t. Clear as day.

Get a supported usb wifi stick, it costs about $7.

No, forget anticheat games. It’s not possible to create a “fake” rootkit. If it was possible, they would have done it for Windows too, and it would defeat the purpose of anti-cheat. So, just don’t run these games. They don’t worth your security.

I find the looks of Cinnamon just fine with a bit of optimization, eg… using the new theme and using cinnamenu instead of the default menu. Here’s mine: https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/537/970/191/106/160/original/2bfb19edd50e248f.jpg What i like from mint is that it’s clean looking.

As a first linux I’d suggest Mint, not suse or anything else. I’m a debian-testing user myself (rolling release), but for new users, use mint. All the problems you mention don’t happen on mint.

For the CPU fans there’s not a good answer, but for the GPU, it should be with the driver’s of the card. It should just have worked. Maybe you got a bug.

If the fan doesn’t work correctly out of the box, it means that it needs driver or kernel support for the specific system. That’s why for example, Tuxedo computers have extra drivers for the fans of their laptops. Back in the day, this wasn’t an issue, as fans were kinda simple, and they were working on their own. These days, are software controlled, so it requires OS support.

I personally buy refurbished. Lately I got a Lenovo X280 thinkpad, for $160 with 8 GB of RAM, 1080p screen. Worked fine, Linux flies on it.

I like Cinnamon, stacked on the right (vertical bar) with the third party cinnamenu start menu. Simple, and it works.

No one is making 10" models. You’d need to buy a used netbook from 2010 to get a 10" screen. Get a normal laptop please.

I’d suggest you go with companies that offer Linux laptops, e.g. System76, Tuxedo, Framework, and a couple more. Failing that, get a Thinkpad of 1-2 years ago. Failing that, get a DELL from 5 years ago (before the new intel webcams). Just make sure the screen has enough resolution, and you get 16 GB of RAM. Anything else (e.g. cpu, gpu) is enough for Linux to work adequately. Just give it RAM.

I wouldn’t suggest you buy a random new laptop, because even if they might “mostly” work, there will be parts that probably don’t, e.g. the fan controls, the webcams etc. Linux can’t support the latest and greatest, unless the manufacturer made sure of it.

Qemu/kvm is the default way of running a VM on Linux. Virtualbox or winapps or vmware are secondary options.

Onlyoffice is a newer kid on the block compared to libreoffice/openoffice. Yes, it’s web based but it operates as if its a native app. It works well, and it has very good Ms office compatibility. So definitely download its .appimage and try it out. You don’t lose anything to try it out. It’s super easy to run: you download the appimage, you right click on the file to go to its properties and make it executable, and then you can run it. Test it with your files to make sure it supports them well.

Either use qemu to run Windows in a VM, so you can run Office there, or use OnlyOffice, which is a free office app that has the best compatibility with MS office formats (better than libreoffice’s). Wine, winapps etc won’t work well.

I do too (endeavour os), but I prefer Mint. It just works, and it doesn’t break as easily. All my laptops are mint, all my desktops are debian-testing (the most stable rolling release around), and I have one laptop where I play around with other distros for fun.

If you use Linux Mint, it has its own redshift implementation in the new release 22.1.

I bought an A-series Intel card (A310, bought for $110), and I’m very happy with it. Very good drivers that work perfectly with Wayland, and its recent OpenCL drivers now work with Blender and DaVinci Resolve too (despite Resolve saying that it only works with nvidia or amd, the new drivers make the dedicated intel cards work too). Gaming is not too bad either, but I don’t game much.

I like it, but the microphone doesn’t work. They were supposed to make it work last summer, but the work hasn’t began for it yet. Without it, I can’t do calls to my mom, so I don’t use it anymore.