Hi everyone, I’m planning on moving from w11 to kubuntu (lts release - 24.04). I’m a gamer at heart, a game designer by education, and wanting to get away from Windows. I could really use some top tips, best practices, and things to look out for. I have run Linux on a Chromebook, but never as my primary PC.
I’m preparing by copying tax info, critical documents, game prototypes, and D&D documents to a USB.
Then run Linus from a different USB on restart?
Thank you for your help, and any references to specific how-to’s 😅.
Use the package manager! I have a friend that is an amazing programmer he knows computer software well. But he said Linux is a hassle to use because of updates. I was confused then I found out he would download the .tar.gz and install software manually.
Just get used to using the package manager instead of downloading from the websites like on windows. It takes a minute to get used to but life will be much easier.
But he said Linux is a hassle to use because of updates … Just get used to using the package manager
Yeah, package managers are great… but also… for somethings… flatpaks from Flathub/Software Center are also great because those apps get automatically updated in the background, so you don’t even have to think about updating anything.
You know flatpak is also a package manager, right? You can use it just as you would apt/pacman/dnf/zypper…
Run a live version of kubuntu from a usb drive to confirm wifi/lan drivers work and you can access the internet.
Be careful using a USB drive as a backup, they are for temporary storage and fail over time.
Good call, there was a cloud recommendation. I’ll probably follow that route
don’t do kubuntu, it is a terrible place to start for beginners. I don’t think we should be recommending ubuntu at all, I think bazzite is objectively a better starting place.
The mere fact that bazzite and other immutables generate a new system for you on update and let you switch between and rollback automatically is enough for me to say it’s better, but it also has more up to date software, and tons of guides (fedora is one of the most popular distros, and bazzite is essentially identical except with some QoL upgrades).
How common is the story of “I was new to linux and completely broke it”? that’s not a good user experience for someone who’s just starting, it’s intimidating, scary, and I just don’t think it’s the best in the modern era. There’s something to be said about learning from these mistakes, but bazzite essentially makes these mistakes impossible.
Furthermore because of the way bazzite works, package management is completely graphical and requires essentially no intervention on the users part, flathub and immutability pair excellently for this reason.
theres also the fact that ubuntu ships very out of date software… among other things regarding privacy concerns, snaps being terrible, just don’t.
I have 15 years of linux experience and am willing to infinitely troubleshoot if you add me on matrix.
You… Are a solid dude. We need linux people like you that doesn’t fight other Linux users just because what distro someone else enjoys. But actually can explain why certain distros are good or bad in a logical manner. Even offering to assist. Fair play to you <3
Oh wow, this is a lot to parse, thank you! To be honest, I choose kubuntu because my brother started on it, and got his wife on it too 😅. I’ll check out fedora before I get started and make a decision 😁
I tbh would say, just go with Kubuntu. You can always switch afterwards when you end up not liking it, especially the fact that family members use it can be helpful.
I do what I want! 🤣
Check compatibility for all your programs before you move. Most Linux programs work on Windows but not vice versa. If you’re not in a rush, try switching to programs that have a Linux equivalent before you move so that you’ll have less of a culture shock. If you need any killer apps that don’t have a Linux equivalent you’re going to have to make your peace with that ahead of time, otherwise you’re just going to end up switching back.
KDE is a good choice, and Kubuntu should serve you fine; if you end up going with Kubuntu, I would recommend sticking with it for at least half a year or so before considering switching to something else, as that will give you time to really understand what you like and don’t like about how Kubuntu and KDE work.
Sounds reasonable to me! Thank you!
My biggest use apps are steam, obsidian, gamemaker, ue, and discord.
Do yourself a favor and use either the flatpak of Discord or just use the website since its an Electron app anyway. The *.deb install will force you to endlessly download and manually install new *.deb files to keep using it. A true pain in the ass, there was even a meme about it here on Lemmy recently.
Also looks like both gamemaker and UE have native Linux versions, although gamemakers is still in beta.
Steam, wine and dosbox with them, you can effectively play any game worth playing. Beyond that I never needed to know.
Really? Try installing Battlenet or Hearthstone with Wine.
Don’t have any games that require those. So never ran into that problem. But I can imagine there are potential games/apps people would want that can’t run on Linux. Windows VMs might be a solution but I don’t know as I never had to deal with that.
