Linux Survival Guide #1: Distros & Drives
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- Опубліковано 7 лип 2024
- What is a Linux distro? Which distro should you choose? And how do drives and partitions work in Linux? This video explains, with a focus on users migrating from Windows to Linux.
The “Linux Terminal Introduction” video that I mention in this episode is here: • Linux Terminal Introdu...
And the second episode in my "Linux Survival Guide" is here:
• Linux Survival Guide #...
And the third episode (on GPU drivers and printing) is here:
• Linux Survival Guide #...
And some of the ExplainingComputers videos that detail different Linux distros, including their installation, are as follows:
Linux Mint: • Linux Mint 20: My Top ...
Zorin OS: • Zorin OS 16: Windows A...
Ubuntu: • Ubuntu 20.04 For Windo...
Ubuntu Studio: • Ubuntu Studio on Penti...
Pop!_OS: • Pop!_OS: Creative Linu...
Manjaro & PCLinuxOS: • Linux Distros: Manjaro...
openSUSE: • OpenSUSE: A Beautiful ...
The Distro Test website where you can try out different distros online is here:
distrotest.net/
More videos on computing and related topics can be found at / explainingcomputers
You may also like my ExplainingTheFuture channel at: / explainingthefuture
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
00:50 What is a Distro?
03:47 Which Distro?
07:20 Linux Drives
09:17 Drives, Partitions & Volumes
15:18 Wrap - Наука та технологія
EC videos are always so clear and thorough, so although I've learned to use Linux by trial and error and gone through all the stages presented here, I still learned something new and useful, and enjoyed watching the whole thing. Very much looking forward to the rest of this series, as well as any new videos by EC.
Hear hear!
Agreed
Please can I say to other boomers like myself not to be afraid of the change, it’s great fun learning. Christopher's video on the Linux Terminal is possibly the best one on UA-cam, it’s simple, logical and gives the important core instructions.
Hey, I'm a boomer, and I switched to Linux just before Windows 10 came out! I nuked windows completely and broke the installation disks! Not only did I hear about M$'s intentions, but I read the EULA, all 40+ pages, and was like "Hell no!". It didn't take me that long to learn Linux and have a stable worry free system, having no windows to fall back on forced me to get with the program: Best computing decision I ever made!
@@Bob-of-Zoid Was more gradual for me, but I see clearly what you mean. If anyone asked me to get back to Windows, I would really laugh for such an idea :D That would be like going back from a Tesla to Model T. It had it's time, thank you, but it is over.
Another fine example of your ability to articulate the intricacies of the computing environment in terms that most lay computer users should find understandable.
Yes indeed. An excellent presentation, thanks very much Christopher.
I agree it’s very straightforward
In a previous video, you detailed the steps necessary to convert an older Windows laptop with meager resources into a functioning Linux laptop. I followed your instructions and the result was a new Linux laptop.
Thanks so much for all your work.
Glad to hear that you've managed to breath new life into older hardware.
@@ExplainingComputers I managed to do something similar with a HP t620+ thin client
@Mehedi Hasan Some distros do a better job at setting up than others so you could try alternatives on usb and see how they perform. Besides that its basically a separate support process for every machine & distro to optimise graphics, so finding a support thread that is relevant to your hardware is the first step and often possible with a popular distro. In firefox about:config enabling gfx.webrender.all and gfx.x11-egl.force-enable can make a difference. My lowish powered Intel Haswell cpu&graphics laptop plays videos better in Manjaro KDE than Win10.
@Mehedi Hasan My main UA-cam machine is an HP Stream Netbook powered by an Intel(R) Celeron(R) CPU N3060 @ 1.60GHz. Running the Xfce version of Mint, it works very nicely for playing UA-cam videos from the Google Chrome browser.
@Mehedi Hasan It's not a universal thing, just like in windows you will need browser specific, and maybe even graphics card/CPU specific instructions. I would start at the user forum of whatever browser you are using.
I have a feeling that a lot of my clients are going to be switching to Linux as the end of life of Windows 10 gets nearer. If they need a primer on Linux I can send them here. Great video as always Chris.
I guess your clients do not like Windows 11 I assume then?
Yes, I added this to my "Intro to Linux" lesson plans
Windows 10 was originally touted as the last version of Windows, I believe. ;-)
My sense is that even Microsoft has come to realize that Windows as a product for the masses of general computer users is nearing its end of life. Permanently. Their actions seem to support that. Windows 11 can only be installed on severely restricted hardware. Windows 365 PC Cloud available for those who need only the occasional Windows-like experience, accesses through lightweight devices. Or Linux. And how can their exorbitantly overpriced Office suite, including annual rental, compete with Libre Office Which I now use exclusively, excepting occasionally for Office 4.5 from the 90's.
@@KameraShy I'd add that many 'mainstream' users are happy enough just using their smartphones for personal stuff. Microsoft pivoting to online services with a more corporate-oriented focus is a savvy move.
Oh, is LibreOffice's compatibility with MS Office documents 100% yet? I remember having a bunch of formatting issues when using it, although admittedly that was pre-DOCX.
I like this kind of videos encouraging people to switch to Linux
Testing linux distro is fun. Lots of different UI to choose from. Currently i am using Fedora 34 on my Raspberry pi 4B. A good introduction to linux for new user.
RaspbianOS is also a good introduction, with lots of tools pre-installed, like Python, Mathematica, Wolfram, Scratch, and other program learning tools, along with dozens (hundreds? thousands?) of educational websites to take you from knowing nothing, to well on your way...
I tried an actual distro on my pi4 (I think it was majaro xfce) and it felt really sluggish, it had some processes taking up 90% of the cpu for a long time so I ended up going back to rasberrypi os, it boots as fast as my main pc that has an ssd and is just silky smooth. really was put off testing other distros
@@Mmmm_tea The official Fedora pi version have the same sluggish problem. I download a modify version. So far so good. Audio is ok for steaming and playback.
You can actually install pretty much whatever desktop you want without changing distros. On my laptop I have pop_os as my distro which comes with it's own desktop, but I also installed Cinnamon for when I'm running with just the laptop monitor because I prefer that desktop manager sometimes, and when I'm plugged in at the office I'm hooked up to multiple monitors and use i3wm which is a window manager rather than a desktop manager (no menus or shortcut icons). You can change desktops just by logging out and logging back in under that desktop. When I installed linux for a young friend headed to college I installed linux Cinnamon plus 6 or 7 different desktops so she could play with each and figure out which she liked best.
I am very impressed by the Raspberry Pi 4. Works so well.
This is inspiring, keep this series up!
Windows 11 genuinely worries me. I will be moving to Linux on the day Windows 10 is no longer supported.
this video is very well timed indeed.
I've already moved to Linux Mint Cinnamon a few years back but my wife and both daughters are wanting Windows 11. My oldest sister already got the Win11 update on her laptop.
It genuinely worries me that a multi billion dollar company thinks its acceptable to have 3 settings windows (yes there are 3 now).
I tried Win 11 three times because once you sign up to the Microsoft bumf it's a pain to get out, When running 11 i had issues playing videos on youtube in HD(couldn't get above 480P) and was completly locked out of facebook(i like the marketplace), To get rid of the microsoft bumf(win 11 updates) i had to reinstall win 10,Linux mint look good to me but i will buy a cheap laptop or desktop to test it out on first.
No, you won't.
Thanks for supporting Linux, Chris. God bless you my friend. Keep up the great work 👍
Using Mint for years now and enjoying it.
Same!
Though I might try Zorin to see if it can really run Windoze programs without a lot of fuss.
@@fredashay what kind of issues? i have problems with delayed mouse reaction.
been testing 20.1 on an older machine.. and so far it's been flawless on the hardware. I have to say I'm impressed.. only one warning.. if updating the xfce version from 19 to 20 make sure you have no desktop customisations which WILL break your fonts.. nobody on the internet seems to have a solution.. look in your .config xfce files and where it says anything about fonts (xml files.. easy enough) make sure it says "empty" rather than any font being defined
i used fedora for some time in both kde and default de, then moved to mint, yes, is nicer, simpler and easier to maintain in my opinion
Mint is decent. But not the only one. I would strongly advise beginners to take Mint, yes.
Was struggling with Ubuntu after they went away from normal desktop, made some startup cluttering and the last drip was piece of garbage called Snap. They became the new Microsoft. Making my choice less, doing some stuff without my permission, making duplicates of unnecessary software take spaceon my disk, making startup of a browser on nvme like on a floppy etc. Now I am free again. My PC just works.
This series might be pretty important in the coming years as i suspect allot of people might want to jump ship considering how horrifc windows 11 is turning out and just generaly how windows has gotten worse over the years.
I kinda like Windows 10. In the end it became a pretty good OS.
Windows 11 however forcing you to constantly be online to access your computer is just straight up bullshit.
I've always used a local account and I will buy Windows 11 Pro if thats what it takes to do so.
I'm never gonna daily drive Linux either for that matter. I'm currently trying to learn as much as I can about Linux. And the more I learn. The less likely it is to be a viable option.
I think you're right MISTER FIAT. In many respects I think Linux is far superior to Windows version 8 onwards (they are horrible), but while Linux is fine on a great deal of hardware it is not as reliable as Windows on the majority. This is perhaps not the the fault of Linux but the hardware manufacturers not making driver info available. Having an abundance of distro's is nice for geeks, but for the general public it can be very offputting and less choice might encourage uptake. Only time will tell...it's a shame Windows 7 (not 10) wasn't the final version of Windows...oh yeah, that didn't work out did it, lol.
I'd love to see this channel test out that windows FX as that will be one I'm sure alot of people will flock to when switching over for the first time as it'll be most familiar.
@@shadowarez1337 You could be right though I haven't even seen it myself. To be honest, almost every Linux distro out there is as close to Windows 10 as Windows 11 is, Ubuntu possibly one of the furthest removed and even that is easy to get used to (even if you don't like it). The biggest issues with moving to Linux isn't the GUI front-end (they aren't massivly removed from one another or Windows), it's the different ways that you go about the same tasks (such as installing software) and Christopher nailed the first one because Windows users are so used to dealing with drive letters and considering them very different entities to one another. Thanks for the heads-up on Windows FX, I'll have to check it out!
@@watsoft70 for me it was wrapping my head around the address changes like /etc /home and getting Linux to be able to read NTFS drives that what threw me for a loop.
I kept going through Terminal as it felt like home to me.
4 years passed very quickly, I work in fields related to video games development and animation, the lack of empathy of win11 led the company I work to switch 80% to Linux this year-end (only the localization team is half out), predictions indicate a 7% reduction in monthly expenses. A part of the team worked with Linux for 2 years or more at this time. Anticipating the next 3 years with win11 wouldn't be strange that other companies consider the same. Your videos are a constant reference, thank you very much.
Very interesting to hear.
Maybe a tree analogy would have helped to convey the difference between Windows and Linux? Windows is like multiple trees planted next to each other while Linux is more like trees being planted on another tree.
Nice.
*DER RÜTTLER:* Yes, everything on Unix-like operating systems is represented by files that exist somewhere in or below the root of the filesystem. This is a crucial concept to understand when learning about Linux, etc.
I think that having a visual that showed the difference would have been valuable.
You know, "show, don't tell" and all that.
I've been using Linux for close to 10 years now and I have no idea what that analogy is supposed to mean.
@@jb888888888 Directories are trees in the computer science sense of the word: each directory either contains files (the leaves) or other directories (branches) that can lead to more files/directories.
On Windows you have separate volumes parallel to each other (thus trees next to each other).
On Linux you mount volumes somewhere on your root filesystem (thus trees on another tree).
I switched to Linux 10 years ago - never looked back and it's free (a donation is nice). All the best, Beamer.
Once again, you have absolutely demonstrated the clarity and learning value of your presentational methods. I have also been "mucking about" with Linux for years but your distinction of "mountedness" for volumes even gave me an "aha" moment, allowing something to fall into place mentally that I can myself hopefully now use to pass on a knowledgeable enthusiasm for Linux. Thank you! 👍
My nerdy side really looks forward to Sunday evenings, and another video from you. Thanks for another good one.
So wish this was available back when I first dabbled in Linux, finally getting a distro with hardware support I needed back in 2008. Looking forward to the rest in this series.
There has been no real problem with Linux hardware for more than a decade now, probably even longer than that.
Just for the record, there is a lot of older hardware (scanners, printers, etc.) that are no longer supported by Windows because they stopped making drivers back in the days of Windows XP or Windows 7. In most cases, that hardware will still work in Linux.
Nobody in the Linux community has ever said that Linux supports ALL hardware, it just happens to support MOST of it. So that's therefore on you to do your research, exactly as you would expect anyone to do when they waste money buying a Windows computer that Microsoft then "rents" back to them, and to find out if what you plan to buy is fully supported by the OS that you going to run on it.
Remember, Windows always has the advantage here because it's usually already the "parasite" OS that your computer comes with. If you're going to free yourself from your Microsoft abuser, you need to put in some of the leg work yourself - Google searches should tell you very quickly whether or not Linux supports a particular piece of hardware or computer system.
@@terrydaktyllus1320 We're talking circa 2003 so way more than the past decade (way back in the early days of Google even) 😀 But yeah, finally got away from Windows in 2008 for good and honestly have never looked back.
Yay, I'm here for another great video, I'm sure!
Greetings Leslie.
Your channel is one of the educational channels about computing on UA-cam. You give thorough explanations without getting too complex. Another excellent video!
Sir, I believe to have left my beginning days in Linux long behind me, but it’s still a pure joy to listen to your videos for the concise and well thought through information.
I love that you put this out right when Linus and Luke from LTT are doing a Linux challenge.
You are the second person to mention this, but I did not know!
@@ExplainingComputers Well the stars aligned on this. I think it will be super helpful to the influx of new Linux users.
ROFL... was thinking the same; they should have contacted you beforehands 😁
@@ExplainingComputers I wonder, Chris, have you ever watched Linus Tech Tips?
(Because, in case you haven't, that's the Linus and Luke that people are referring to. And, no, not "the other Linus" we're usually talking about with Linux.)
Basically, with the coming of the Steam Deck, there's been talk in gaming circles about Linux and Proton - will everyone be able to play all their games on Linux? - and this lead to them, in their "WAN show" podcast, deciding to do a "Linux challenge".
Both of them will attempt to use Linux as their daily driver OS and the first one who gives up will have to do a forfeit (don't know if they've yet decided what that forfeit will be). While Luke has previously used some Linux Mint (but quite a long time ago), Linus is coming at this completely fresh (well, they use some Linux for their servers, but he's never daily driven any Linux).
This is generating some buzz, as Linus Tech Tips has 14 million subscribers. It's one of the biggest tech channels out there - with a hardware and gaming focus - and they're going to be having a video series about their "Linux challenge", which'll be viewed by millions of people. It's going to be big exposure for the process of transitioning over to Linux, to a more general "gamer" audience.
Yes, Valve's Steam Deck is really generating a buzz around Linux, just exactly as Windows 11 is turning people off. This probably is the best time - Algorithm-wise - to be making content like this, as you'll possibly be getting some "recommendation" hits to your videos for this.
It'll be "the year of the Linux desktop" one of these days, I tell you. One of these days. ;D
@@klaxoncow Thanks for this. I do keep an eye on Linus Tech Tips, but had not come across their Linux challenge until it was pointed out yesterday, as there is no video with an associated title on the main channel. Interesting times for Linux indeed! :)
As a big Linux fan I love this idea for a series and this video is a great start.
As a Linux only user since 20 years i find this video very informative.
CB's mellifluous voice and confident presentation manner make it impossible to not click EC content; he's tamed a fair chunk of the internet (me included!). Another superior video. Thank you.
Yes, the distinct way of speech with specific pauses and slowdowns at start feels like strange. But when you get to the core, it is brilliant. And I have yet to spot any discrepancies :D The background work is superb. Looks like expert level knowledge over 10K hours. This is quality you don't get from paid courses.
Thanks, Chris - this is exactly the content that I need right now. I am beginning the transition from Windows to Linux (well not me but my PC!).
Look forward to the next video in the series. 😊😊
Good luck and happy Linux! Extreme Tux Racer is waiting for you!
I've been using Linux Mint for a number of years and I'm completely satisfied...
Very stable and has many applications...
Another great Sunday treat.. Thank you Chris
Just yesterday I really got fed up with windows and thought about actually moving over to Linux. Great timing!
Another great video, thank you Chris
Thanks Mark. :)
chatgpt suggested me this channel for linux and i was stunned by the clarity of explanation.
Great to hear that ChatGPT sent you here. :) There is indeed lots of Linux content -- there is a lot of all of my Linux videos on this page: www.explainingcomputers.com/linux_videos.html
I am so thankful you have begun this. I was thinking about such a series when you asked for input and I don't remember if I responded. I have put this off far too long. Sincerest thanks.
You make Sunday the best day of the week. Thanks Chris.
Thanks so much for making these videos! This household has been standing on the brink of the world beyond windows for some time now. Your explanations inspire courage to actually make the leap.
Just sent this to my manager. So he might finally understand what I've been talking about...
Thanks for the video, by the way.
Very few likes, strange, being such well prepared content developed in a ver professional lesson. Thank you!
I shall certainly recommend this series to those who've asked me about Linux, both those who have already tried it, and those yet to try.
Great video! I am so excited for this series. Thank you!
Great video, and the "Drives, Partitions & Volumes" section was especially helpful.
I wish I had this video 15 years ago. Like always well thought out. It took me a couple tries to understand drives coming from windows. Thanks for sharing!
Excellent! You are an absolute expert in describing things at a level that clears up questions and doesn't generate more. This video was a good initial topic to cover as it is one of the most confusing aspects of Linux for the Windows user should they need to move from the file explorer to the command line. Looking forward to each presentation in the series.
Great, looking forward to further episodes! Linux would be a 'wise' move for those who are concerned about privacy and security. I've been trying out Ubuntu Touch on a spare smartphone. Promising and slowly 'getting there'. The many Linux Distros are amazing. I installed Kali Linux on an older a ThinkPad T430 as a backup machine - just to experiment with the various tools and to teach myself something about Pen testing. Perhaps the single most amazing thing about Linux is the actual Linux community and the unparalleled generosity of those who provide this software , for the most part, for free. That alone blows my mind!
Yes! Wonderful! I am transitioning from Windows to Linux and this series is much appreciated!!! Thank you! Looking forward to all the future episodes.🙏🙏🙏
Excellent series Chris. Looking forward to the next installment. Linux has been my daily driver for over 20 years now, but I still like to see info like this. Thanks for another great video.
Aloha Chris. I wanted to thank you for help giving me the courage to make the jump to Linux a few years back when Windows 7 support from Microsoft stopped. I made the switch to Linux Mint Cinnamon, and used it up until a few months ago when I made the jump to Manajro. I wanted access to the AUR. I did not stay with Manjaro long though, as I found it troublesome for my workflow. A month ago I switched to EndeavourOS Cinnamon, and I have been very happy with it. Looking forward to the next in the series. When it is finished I plan on sharing it with a few friends who are currently on the fence about making the jump into Linux. Mahalo.
My introduction to linux was Raspian on a Pi 3B+. This gave me the confidence to try Mint on an old lap top. I now run Linux Mint Cinnamon as my main OS. I have been very happy with it.
I think a lot of people have gone this route -- the Pi provides a great "learn Linux without risking messing your PC" platform.
Thumbs up for this one. Looking forward to the mini series .
This was an excellent video and I was surprised to actually learn quite a bit. This series is going to be great! I cannot wait!
Love your work, and it's great to see Linux getting some more love from ya. :)
I've been using Kali Linux for quite some time and happy with the distro. Great content Chris!
Good Job! Waiting for whole series!
You know I have done IT work for 30yrs and I still enjoy watching your videos and then explanations you give. In the industry people no longer want to take the time to do that or for that matter to take time to listen about how it works. Thanks the video is appreciated
I think the next video should include difference between Desktop Environments and Window Managers, and universal package management options. :]
He did many distro already
Excellent overview. As a Linux "enthusiast" (nut). as well as a Raspberry Pi "enthusiast" (nut), (and a nut, er.. eccentric, in general), I always enjoy this kind of excursion as they usually include some nuggets of info that I can add to my limited body of "knowledge". This is the case here. Looking forward to the next installment. Thanks, Chris.
Thanks for another easy to understand video, looking forward to more.
Years ago I replaced my Windows 7 computer with a new machine.
I took out the HDD in the old computer and replaced it with a new drive,
in case I needed to go back to windows 7.
I loaded different distributions on the new HDD to learn about Linux.
I could keep my daily usage on the new windows machine and not worry
about breaking the old computer as I was learning how to use the different
distributions of Linux.
: )
I already switched to Ubuntu a week ago and I'm already reaping the benefits. Linux rocks!
I have decided that, unless MS removes the useless and HW vendor favoring restrictions on 11, I'm moving to Linux when 10 support ends. So, this is very useful and very helpful. THANKS Chris. Well done.
Probably a good idea to start a soft move already. I decided the same, and currently using only software that are Linux compatible. I don't think I will move to Win 11 even if they remove the arbitrary limitation. Linux is maturing fast.
It is so nice to hear someone who can properly pronounce the word "Linux". I hate it so much when people say "LeeNeex" or "LeeNix"!
You wouldn't like the way Linus Torvalds (the father of Linux) originally pronounced it then...
He changed the way he pronounce it to ease communication with developers etc. and he has explicitly stated that there are many ways to correctly pronounce it.
Your channel is one of the most informative and useful in all of UA-cam. Thank you for your content and the education you so clearly and expertly provide.
Whenever I need a bit of encouragement in my quest to learn about technology I watch your channel. It helps every time.
Thanks. Your kind feedback is most appreciated.
Top notch graphics. Always a pleasant viewing experience. Well done Mr. Barnett.
Be sure to give Mr. Scissors a raise. Your attention to detail pays off.
As I long time Linux user myself I couldn't have explained it to a newbie as well as you did, Chris! I always create a separate /home partition though so my settings and data don't get lost (fingers crossed) if I change distros or do an upgrade. I hope this video encourages more people to give Linux a try. Linux Mint Cinnamon is bang-on for a first timer to try, I wouldn't recommend vanilla Ubuntu though to anybody. Looking forward to the next video!
Exactly!
Ubuntu -
Mint Cinnamon +
Dear audience, first for the 25th time. Good sunday to everyone! Wonderful video about the loved linux system.
Wow. 25 is some tally! Another gold.
Thank you for a channel done with precision where every word counts. Well done and much appreciated for the respect for the viewer’s time
great series. Very excited to see more of these
Don't know what it is but this is like Sunday mornings back in day but for adults.
Nice video my dude, this will be helpful for me
Hope so!
Thanks Craig, very excited at this latest series 😀
As a full time Linux user, I still watch EC's videos just because of entertainment. Outstanding educational content for new users. Keep up the great work!
Although Windows, by default, mounts each drive (or each drive's volume) as a unique drive letter, you can configure any drive to be mounted Linux style (you can have Windows mount a drive to any location you choose, via Disk Management -- which requires administrator rights).
Although it is a simple process, it is not as simple as connecting the dots. You kind of need to know the Windows procedure.
Once your USB drive (for example) is plugged in:
You must first tell Windows (via Disk Management) to remove the drive letter. You then tell Windows (via Disk Management) to mount the drive via an NTFS mount point. That mount point must be an empty directory. Once mounted, that mount point (that directory) becomes an NTFS junction (pointing to some cryptic target, which I do not understand). But once set, your USB drive will now sit in the directory of your choice. When you go to that directory, you will be on your USB drive.
This might be handy for someone that is running out of drive letters, or...
this might be handy for someone that does not want to remember several drive letters, and would rather have directories that have meaningful names, where each directory is a different USB drive.
Cheers!
This was also useful to me running Windows Media Center on Windows 7. I didn't want all the recorded videos to be stored on the boot partition in case I had to re-install Windows. Making the "C:\Users\Public\Recorded TV" folder a shortcut to the video storage area didn't work, so I simply mounted my big (4GB) hard drive partition on top of "C:\Users\Public\Recorded TV".
Nice a new video as always I'm here Christopher have a nice week
Thanks! You too!
Mister Fiat is bang on the money. We learned to live with win10. win 11 is the last straw. I'm 'techy' enough to adopt Linux, but my wife isn't. So it is encouraging to see Linux distros stepping up to the mark for casual users. 3 years of further development before win10 eol, and I'm sure I can make it painless for her. Great job on this and all your videos.
Never saw such a clear explanation of topics ... thank you very much
Great video Chris! Please cover security in Linux and discuss firewall and AV options (and perhaps the circumstances in which they may be needed, particularly AV software). Thanks.
Good idea -- noted!
@@ExplainingComputers On the topic of security, perhaps an idea for a future episode....making a TRUE random number generator wich writes to xlsx-format??
@@Peter_Enis An interesting idea! :)
Thanks for the video Christoper i'm looking forward to the next videos, I like the look of Linux Mint Cinnamon but feel i need more info before making the change.
Thanks for demystifying Linux for those of us who want to migrate.
Great video as always Chris .. Eagerly waiting for the rest of this Survival Guide.. Keep it up dear 👍
I've been using Linux Mint ever since you first mentioned it ... And I love it! I've tried other distros, but always return to LM.
It's been my daily driver since around 7 .. if my memory works it was when Debian decided to mess with drive ID and the stupid boot order and dropped the stock xconfig. Squeeze?.. plus I swapped from Gnome2 (3 was imho awful and kde has never done what I want/need) to xfce and never looked back.
@@PaulaXism i really see your point, but in my heart will always be kde, xfce is light, simple and fast, but kde always make me go back
I switched to Linux after 25 years of using windows and the only thing I regret is not switching earlier.
Same here. Win 3.10 was my first Windows and Win7 was my last. I'm now using Ubuntu Mate, Debian and of course Raspbian OS on my PIs.
lol, isitched and had to switch back
while linux is great, it is not perfect in terms of hardware support, windows is not perfect either, but gives me less problems there, so, well, happy that some can stay on linux all the time
@@arch1107 I had problems but I could solved them.I had problems with some games, printer and even with keyboards but I could solve them all and I'm not an expert or anything I just look stuff up.
@@hungariancuman2835 you had my same experience then, but eventually i had hardware problems that i couldn't solve
and i realized that i was fighting a fight that i never had on windows, not with hardware, not like this
so for peace of mind and avoid hassle, i had to put linux as plan b, instead of being my plan a
i guess that all depends on the type of problems one encounter, and if there is or isn't a solution different to just buy new hardware
@@arch1107 I love Linux but I'm not pushing it I know its not for everyone but it's in a better and better state now.
I had so many problems with windows that I don't want to go back to it just thinking about it makes me a bit angry it was so bad.My main problem is solved by Linux and the other things are just minor.
I migrated to Linux Mint after watching some videos on this channel. And I have NEVER looked back. I will never go back to Windows. If I should absolutely need a windows software I can run Windows in a virtual machine. Thanks Chris for convincing me
Well, you can say no more than this! :)
Excellent video. I’ve been using Linux Mint for about 5 years now, and Arch for two. I just wanted to watch your video out of sheer curiosity, and as usual you have presented your content in both a logical and easy to understand fashion. Kudos to Explaining Computers for such a well done introductory Linux video!
Microsoft did some fantastic Linux advertising with Windows 11. I even heard a luddite political commentator I listen to saying he has to learn how to use it!
the way Linux handles drives kept it from being a daily driver for the longest time, I used two previous operating systems that were designed in the 80s that JUST mount valid drives automatically they both either assigned a drive letter or a drive name, its good that most linux distros are auto mounting now and putting it front and center in some cases, though I still miss the drive letters!
Windows drive letters used to annoy the hell out of me since it assign drive letters according to the sequence that the device is plugged in. On a standard Windows install, it is usually A, C, D and then whatever was plugged in next instead of the Linux way of showing the partition name, so E, F etc. can be anything.
You're not alone. Old habits die hard.
I switched to Linux 4-5 years back when I couldn't see any usefulness in all the telemetry etc. that Microsoft suddenly installed without notice.
I sometimes miss the paradigm of storage volumes represented by separate device icons each with their own directory structures inside their own root directory separate from everything else.
The Unix/Linux way of representing the system and it's drives is far superior in many ways for power users though.
Drive letters are a legacy thing that are just being dragged around by microsoft. Does anyone still use floppy drives A and B? Linux and Unix have had their file system arrangement for a long time and it has stood the test of time.
@@bertblankenstein3738 the Unix/Linux way will also become obsolete one day. At that time maybe drive letters see a new renaissance. Who knows?
@@tbone9900 the other operating system I used before microsoft stuff was amiga workbench in the late 90s (though it dates back to the 80s and has some unix roots afaik) it had drive names such as df0 for the first floppy drive, hd0 for the hard drive incrementing the number but it also had a command "assign" so you could do something like "assign system: hd0:" then you could access the drive under system: or its device name hd0:
that is what really got me hooked on driver "letters" the Microsoft version was inferior but still kept me in the habit
Thank you for giving a plain and clear explanation on Linux systems as i am currently studying computer support technician course and part of the course covers Linux. After watching this video i have got a good idea on what Linux is and which system to download and install.
This is surprisingly timely with Windows 11 coming out. Thank you!
Good basic info, deserving of a more upbeat title like “Guide to the joy of Linux.” (Yes, we yanks tuck our periods inside the closing quote mark.)
And I still like to use the "Oxford comma."
I too very much favour the Oxford comma, especially in technology writing where lists can have complex compound terms, even though it is frowned on by UK copy editors! :)
@@ExplainingComputers _et al:_ According to the OED, the Oxford comma is purely a matter of personal preference for British English, and compulsory for American English. Full stops do indeed go inside quotes, so Warren Gibson is correct. Another one is -ize versus -ise, where the rules for this are the same as for the Oxford comma. :-)
@@cdl0 The "z" spellings are easier for me -- I've published a lot of books that end up on the business shelves, where "organization" is more commonly used than "organisation" (very different to in economics publishing). And most of my book sales have been in the United States, so for a couple of decades no desk or copy editor has even attempted to argue for "s" based spellings. :)
@@ExplainingComputers Yes, '-ize' keeps Americans happy, while people using proper English don't care. ;-)
Well done, sir! It's strange to me that I've always been able to do multiple operating systems and computer languages, but not human languages.
Natural Language (the ones we communicate with) are usually very informal and assumes knowledge about concepts that might not be same as other natural languages due to various reasons.
On the other hand, machines and programming languages are very formal, predefined and shares concepts with usually the things they're inspired from.
But that doesn't mean everything natural language is different that you would be unable to comprehend them, for example english shares stuff with spanish and other romance languages, but not with something like korean.
Also many programming languages uses english keywords so it seems familiar. I suggest you to try Symbolic and Non-english programming (if possible).
BTW, Have a nice day. :]
Computer languages are logical constructs.
Human languages? Not so much.
I too am only programmed for one human language.
cringe
Thank you for doing this! I look forward to seeing the other videos in this series!
Very clear and well presented including the "mucking about" in terminal.
For me it was relay hard to choose a distro
There are so many options to choose from
Currently on debian 11 gnome
It's interesting. You try one and you can say immediately "nope, i can't work with it". The others "if i have to, then maybe". And the third "that's nice, i can stick with it".
I choose Kubuntu for my HP laptop because it knew the keyboard mappings for volume control 'out of the box', you know what Im saying? sometimes a glass slipper just fits!
@@stalinvlad I have found the same thing with Manjaro on older laptops.. and then Arch people go and break the usb ..
i hope you can eventually take a look at kde, lxde and other desktop environments, gnome is decent, but there are better nicer ones
i always heard that debian is too complex for beginners, right now mint is my beginners recommended distro
@@arch1107 i did take a look at all the linux desktops
Kde was good but too unstable on 13 year old hardware
Xfce 4.16 is horrible compared to 4.14
Lxde doesnt have enough apps for it
Patheon performs terribly on xorg(hope they move to wayland soon)
Again its mostly my horrible hardware and i will move to kde once i get a better pc
I use Mint as my main os for the past 6 years.
Exceptionally great video! Just what we need these days.
I already knew most of this stuff in theory, but the way you demonstrated and described the given information really has helped me to see the bigger picture of Linux systems.
Thanks for your kind feedback! :)
Awesome video. Even though I have been using linux for the past 6 months, I didn't know much about its file system. Normally I find it hard to stick around for more than 15 mins on educational videos but the pacing and organization of the content was exceptional. Glad to be a subscriber.
Back in the day, my favorite Linux distro was Red Hat. But then they went all "enterprise" on us and stopped doing distros that the average person could deal with. I guess Ubuntu would count as my go-to distro now, since they seem to have great support, at least so far.
Fedora is sponsored by Red Hat.
Thanks!
Thanks for your support, most appreaciated.
for some reason his video is so enjoyable even though he is just explaning how stuff works
Another great video, Chris! Also, very timely as I have just started investigating Linux! Looking forward to seeing more videos in this series. Thank you! 😀👍
The closest thing you can get to having drive letters in Linux is making a folder under the root directory labeled as a single letter and then mounting a drive to there
EC has always opened the door to computer knowledge. Today’s video has cleared up a lot of missing bits and pieces. I’m happy to see this new series and can’t wait to see what’s next!
as usual, a great, clear well explained video
A crucial concept for all Unix-like operating systems, including Linux and the BSDs, is that essentially everything in the system is represented by a file, with access granted or denied according to permissions. Thus, all operations ultimately boil down to reading and writing files.
A lot of Windows refugees will get all out of whack dealing with permissions and the tight security of Linux. Not having to deal with all that may just be the main reason Windows users hose their systems so often and easily, as well as the reason they have to deal with so much malware, viruses and attacks! They should get used to having and respecting that security, but also how to get around it if they need to.
If Windows 11 brings on a flood of new Linux users, we can expect the forums full of people complaining as if it's something wrong, rather than by design! As soon as some know how to take over as super user, then be prepared for a bunch of hosed systems! (
@@Bob-of-Zoid Well, the alternative would be a Mac . . . . which has a similar security model. Individuals will have to do some retraining and continuous professional development. It will look good in their annual assessment and on their CV. ;-)