tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4446682073857250843.post5386741100414948035..comments2024-03-27T23:42:36.619-05:00Comments on Mock Ramblings: A Promotion Within The FamilyMichael Mockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06233321050691782148noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4446682073857250843.post-55857155565166912712015-06-13T13:07:24.558-05:002015-06-13T13:07:24.558-05:00I toyed with a couple of Linux-variations (I think...I toyed with a couple of Linux-variations (I think one of them was called Zorin) to try to keep a couple of Windows XP-era laptops running when XP reached its end of life. I didn't actually get either of them to work, but the OS didn't seem to be the problem, and they both installed pretty easily. (On one of them, I got the thing up and running and the screen promptly died; on the other one, I could never quite manage to identify the WiFi adapter, and I'm not sure the hardware for that was working. They were both secondhand machines that my Dad had inherited, so no loss, really.) At least on the Linux versions would actually let you select which version of Windows you wanted the user interface to most resemble. And while I'm not a Linux nerd myself, I <em>do</em> have access to Google (and I'm old enough to remember using DOS, which the text interface for Linux seems to resemble pretty closely). So there are definitely options out there.Michael Mockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06233321050691782148noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4446682073857250843.post-81215166875298750162015-06-13T09:48:50.479-05:002015-06-13T09:48:50.479-05:00But if Microsoft is going to insist on making it h...<em>But if Microsoft is going to insist on making it hugely difficult to install their software -- as they are</em><br /><br />Huh, really? That and wider video-game compatibility were the main things they had going for them over Linux, and Linux has been improving their software-installation methods. I don't normally recommend Linux to people who don't have a minimum of one (1) Linux nerd they can turn to for help (preferably someone living in the same house), but "sometimes hugely difficult to install software that should be easy" is the reason <em>why</em> I recommend that, so maybe you <em>should</em> get NFBSKing Linux.<br /><br />I've got a Windows 7/Ubuntu dual boot, using Windows only for watching Discovery Channel video streams (Flash stopped releasing new versions for Linux a couple years ago, and Discovery is the only place I've come across so far that won't accept the last Linux-friendly version) and playing Mass Effect and Age of Empires, and it's been working out well for me. If you hate not having a Start menu, though, the Lubuntu variant would be better for you than standard Ubuntu: I've never used Windows 8 so can't directly compare, but apparently the menu system in standard Ubuntu is inspired by 8. (I was surprised by it at first when I switched from Lubuntu, but I adjusted quickly.)Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18034585577015417306noreply@blogger.com