I now have 2 Linux installations on my daily driver Windows machine. Isn’t that an interesting sign of the times…
A few years ago I started learning how to manage my own VPS and became surprisingly more comfortable with Linux and the command-line. Fast-forward a few years and corporations are trying to shove AI into every port while trying to convince us we don’t really own the things we’ve bought. It really should make consumers more angry than they are but that might just be my opinion. All that is to say Linux is looking better with each passing year.
My aging Zenbook still works but with Windows 10 support ending in October 2025 I’ve been on the lookout for an alternative OS. The hardware will not support Windows 11 (which, sadly, does not stop Microsoft’s constant nagging messages) which means I have a good reason to install Linux Mint.
I’ve dabbled with desktop Linux before but this will be my first time really rocking it to extend the life of older hardware. I tried to do this before with my old Dell Inspiron (which is also still running!) by installing Puppy Linux but even that was too heavy for the system so I reverted to Windows XP (but took it off the network).
To ease myself in I’m currently running Linux Mint in a Virtual Machine on my Lenovo Ideapad Slim 5 Pro (which will eventually see an upgrade to Windows 11). The experience so far has been fine with the only issue I’m facing is Vivaldi not syncing my bookmarks.
The other Linux installation I have is Ubuntu running under Windows Subsystem for Linux. I’d installed it a few years ago but kind of forgot about it only to recently realize that if I wanted to continue self-managing Linux VPS’ the WSL is a really good way to play around with things. That I can easily transfer files between my Windows host and Ubuntu installation is going to be very helpful.
Given how I see “Big Tech” moving I think Linux will inevitably become where I do most of my work. Windows will still have a place because of MS Office and Steam; I’d rather not have to fight through system configurations to get those running.
Well, I say that now but give me a few years a who knows?