#Tag
Yesterday I visited the computer games museum 🕹🎮👾 in Berlin. It was a flashback in so many ways; I really enjoyed it.✨️ The highlight was my very first computer, with which I learned my very first programming language, #gwbasic. The Schneider CPC with its quite exotic 3-inch floppy disk drive. 💾
Hands up, who knows GW-BASIC and maybe even used it?
Reminder: If you're on #Windows10, and you can't upgrade to #Windows11, and you either
A: Only really use a web browser or
B: Have open source alternatives to software that you use and are willing to try them out,
You do not need to junk your #computer and upgrade to Windows 11! Instead you could try #Linux!
My recommendations would be either #LinuxMint or #PopOS as those are generally regarded to be great distros for people new to Linux.
Before you decide to dive in and commit to Linux, some suggestions.
1: If you have an external hard drive or are willing to buy one, please put any and all important stuff you do not want lost on that drive. Cloud could work but I think best practice is to always have local copies.
And if you do install Linux, just in case, keep your external hard drive disconnected from your computer so that you don't accidentally overwrite it. It's easy not to overwrite your backup files but I would consider it best practices.
2: You don't necessarily have to commit to Linux the second you read this post. I do think you should try before you buy, as it were. Most mainstream versions of Linux let you live boot the distro before you actually install it on your computer, that way you can test things out and get an idea of what you like and don't like, and you don't have to figure out how to make a virtual machine to do it. (I recommend using BalenaEtcher or Ventoy to make your liveboot USB and you should be able to find plenty of tutorials for both.)
3: If you DO decide to install Linux, but you want a desktop environment that feels familiar in order to help you warm up to it, you can either try Cinnamon, or Plasma. A desktop environment is a graphical way to interact with your computer. Think the start bar and menu in Windows. Plasma and Cinnamon have a similar look and feel to Windows. But that doesn't mean Gnome is by any means bad.
After, you've tried it and you're sure you could see yourself using it, then you can decide whether or not you want to install it.
Linux is at a point where you can easily game on it. The only real concern on that end tends to be multiplayer and isn't really an issue of Linux itself so much as game devs.
There's lots of great open source alternatives to a number of apps. In my case I mainly use art and office software. I have not used proprietary art software in years. What's more, you don't need Linux to try these software out as pretty much all of it is available on Windows for you to try!
Installing Linux itself is as easy as installing Windows software, at least the stuff where you have to download an executable, run it, and hit next a bunch. Just read things carefully and it's a pretty painless process.
And if you heard that Linux requires you to use command line, I assure you, you probably won't need to use it any more than you did in Windows. I mainly use it to run OS updates but that's just the way I prefer to do it. This is stuff that can be done through GUIs these days.
Either way, depending on your needs, you can get years of use out of your computer that you wouldn't if you junked it and bought a Windows 11.
And even if you DO get a Windows 11, maybe installing Linux on your current PC will let you find another use for it
Reminder: If you're on #Windows10, and you can't upgrade to #Windows11, and you either
A: Only really use a web browser or
B: Have open source alternatives to software that you use and are willing to try them out,
You do not need to junk your #computer and upgrade to Windows 11! Instead you could try #Linux!
My recommendations would be either #LinuxMint or #PopOS as those are generally regarded to be great distros for people new to Linux.
Before you decide to dive in and commit to Linux, some suggestions.
1: If you have an external hard drive or are willing to buy one, please put any and all important stuff you do not want lost on that drive. Cloud could work but I think best practice is to always have local copies.
And if you do install Linux, just in case, keep your external hard drive disconnected from your computer so that you don't accidentally overwrite it. It's easy not to overwrite your backup files but I would consider it best practices.
2: You don't necessarily have to commit to Linux the second you read this post. I do think you should try before you buy, as it were. Most mainstream versions of Linux let you live boot the distro before you actually install it on your computer, that way you can test things out and get an idea of what you like and don't like, and you don't have to figure out how to make a virtual machine to do it. (I recommend using BalenaEtcher or Ventoy to make your liveboot USB and you should be able to find plenty of tutorials for both.)
3: If you DO decide to install Linux, but you want a desktop environment that feels familiar in order to help you warm up to it, you can either try Cinnamon, or Plasma. A desktop environment is a graphical way to interact with your computer. Think the start bar and menu in Windows. Plasma and Cinnamon have a similar look and feel to Windows. But that doesn't mean Gnome is by any means bad.
After, you've tried it and you're sure you could see yourself using it, then you can decide whether or not you want to install it.
Linux is at a point where you can easily game on it. The only real concern on that end tends to be multiplayer and isn't really an issue of Linux itself so much as game devs.
There's lots of great open source alternatives to a number of apps. In my case I mainly use art and office software. I have not used proprietary art software in years. What's more, you don't need Linux to try these software out as pretty much all of it is available on Windows for you to try!
Installing Linux itself is as easy as installing Windows software, at least the stuff where you have to download an executable, run it, and hit next a bunch. Just read things carefully and it's a pretty painless process.
And if you heard that Linux requires you to use command line, I assure you, you probably won't need to use it any more than you did in Windows. I mainly use it to run OS updates but that's just the way I prefer to do it. This is stuff that can be done through GUIs these days.
Either way, depending on your needs, you can get years of use out of your computer that you wouldn't if you junked it and bought a Windows 11.
And even if you DO get a Windows 11, maybe installing Linux on your current PC will let you find another use for it
Well I guess one of the benefits of the #windows11 #upgrade is the mass availability of refurbished PCs. Why buy a new one when you can get a reasonably decent one dirt cheap? Perfect for #Linux and #FreeBSD.
https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/17/windows_10_upgrades_lifts_global_pc_shipments/
Well I guess one of the benefits of the #windows11 #upgrade is the mass availability of refurbished PCs. Why buy a new one when you can get a reasonably decent one dirt cheap? Perfect for #Linux and #FreeBSD.
https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/17/windows_10_upgrades_lifts_global_pc_shipments/
Developer of 32+ years for #SAMCoupe #computer - #hardware, #software and magazines. Plus #Retrocomputing hardware for #RC2014, #ZXSpectrum, #Soundchip.
Recent releases: (⭐ newest!)
➡️ #SAMCoupe 🌐 https://www.samcoupe.com
⭐ Quazar Surround 2024 Editions
⭐ VIC-20 Cartridge Interface (new batch available)
⭐ SAM Revival 9 revamp (with Manic Miner!)
SAM Revival 11 revamp
SAM Revival issue 26
Mechanical Keyboard
Trinity Ethernet Interface v1.2 (+SD storage)
➡️ #RC2014 + Compatibles 🌐 https://2014.samcoupe.com
⭐ SAA1099P Soundchip Interface
SID Soundchip Interface
ZX True Tone (ZXTT)
Graphic OLED
➡️ #ZXSpectrum 🌐 https://zx.samcoupe.com
ZX 2 Way
ZX-RC2014 Bus Interface
ROM Slot + Flash Cart
Gardener
Which version do you prefer?
#ascii #asciiart #art #bbs #c64 #commodore64 #computer #computerart #demoscene #digital #digitalart #petscii #petsciiart #retro #retroart #text #textart #textmode #textpunk #8bit #8bitart #skull #garden #gardener #monochrome #colored
Developer of 32+ years for #SAMCoupe #computer - #hardware, #software and magazines. Plus #Retrocomputing hardware for #RC2014, #ZXSpectrum, #Soundchip.
Recent releases: (⭐ newest!)
➡️ #SAMCoupe 🌐 https://www.samcoupe.com
⭐ Quazar Surround 2024 Editions
⭐ VIC-20 Cartridge Interface (new batch available)
⭐ SAM Revival 9 revamp (with Manic Miner!)
SAM Revival 11 revamp
SAM Revival issue 26
Mechanical Keyboard
Trinity Ethernet Interface v1.2 (+SD storage)
➡️ #RC2014 + Compatibles 🌐 https://2014.samcoupe.com
⭐ SAA1099P Soundchip Interface
SID Soundchip Interface
ZX True Tone (ZXTT)
Graphic OLED
➡️ #ZXSpectrum 🌐 https://zx.samcoupe.com
ZX 2 Way
ZX-RC2014 Bus Interface
ROM Slot + Flash Cart
“#Language is thus a palimpsest of tacit, embodied #sensemaking, and #computer hardware simply cannot mean in the way a human person can.”
In Avalon (2001), a woman spends her days immersed in an illegal, high stakes virtual reality game. Players can only exit the game by completing its missions, but some never return. Then she hears rumors of a hidden, more advanced level and she sets out to uncover its secrets.
#2000s #scifi #movies #videogames #virtualreality #dystopian #aesthetic #computer #terminal #userexperience #mamoruoshii #futurenoir
Support-Ende für Windows 10: Millionen PCs betroffen
Mitte Oktober stellt Microsoft die regulären Sicherheits-Updates für Windows 10 ein. Erstmals können auch Privatnutzer an einem offiziellen Verlängerungsprogramm teilnehmen. Experten empfehlen dennoch ein Update. Von Jens Eberl.
Ordering Numbers, How Hard Can It Be?, https://orlp.net/blog/ordering-numbers/.
Well. Ordering numbers from different types (like i32 and u32) can be error-prone and not that trivial.
Debian 😻
New #laptop #computer at work, which will replace my > 12 yo Lenovo Thinkpad X220. It's a #Framework#Laptop13.
Installed #Debian 13 #trixie. So far looks good, only #hibernate did not work at first. Had to switch off #SecureBoot.
And this is the good news of the day: #DebianInstaller by default keeps a RAM-size #swap partition again, which is needed for #hibernation. This was broken for ≈ two Debian releases, but finally fixed.
OK, I have a computer question... I have a mini PC with an M.2 SSD as its main drive running Windows 11.
I would like to take out that drive, put a new one in, and install Linux Mint.
Should that work? Is there anything I need to check first? Is there a realistic chance that swapping the SSDs back would not let me use the PC as it is now again?
A space for Bonfire maintainers and contributors to communicate
