I've been using Ubuntu in one form or another since 2010 but I'm not as satisfied with it lately. It's pushing SNAP packaging on everyone and it's just as responsive as I remember. So after trying it out on some of my other systems I've switched to Linux Mint.

Instead of wiping my drive, I just installed a new one and did a clean install. I pulled some files from the old drive with a USB adapter but left a lot of cruft behind. I'll stash the old drive away as back up for the time being as SSDs are cheap nowadays. Installation was smooth and easy.

I like the Cinnamon desktop and the general layout and feel of the system. There's still some stuff I need to tweak but over all, it's been a good experience. If you're frustrated with Windows I recommend switching to Linux Mint.

... how do you know you're having fun?

For me, it was several hours keeping an eye on the laundry and breaking a new Windows XP install and updating an Ubuntu Studio install on another machine.

The washer 'danced' off its concrete platform once when it became unbalanced. We need to keep an eye on it. I've moved most of my computer experimentation to the basement so I'm not just sitting around waiting for the wash to be done.

I may try a fresh install of XP tomorrow from a different CD and re-install Ubuntu Studio from a fresh DVD burn. I've got more laundry to do tomorrow.

So... I've been looking into a different video editor: Davinci Resolve. It has a Linux version and it's free! It required a stiffer video card than the one I had (AMD 7700) so I bought a AMD RX 580 AU. It's a cut down version of the RX 580 but the performance is pretty close.

So I downloaded Resolve and followed the instructions.

And... nope, doesn't work.

Digging deeper Resolve only works with certain graphics cards and certain versions of Linux. That part *was not* mentioned on the website which is really dishonest. Picking through the forums some people have gotten it to run with Ubuntu (I'm running Ubuntu Studio) with Nvidia cards.

Deep breath. I can use the RX 580 on another build. I cruise E-Bay and got an Nvidia GTX 1060.

It arrived within a few days! And it's DOA.

Maybe the Universe is telling me to stick with Open Source software.

-m

Brief recap... Josh Dugger is fundy pedo who's just been nabbed for ... among other *new* things... owning child pornography. He's had a history of feeling up younger female family members in his youth. Eeeew.

From the news accounts I've been able to find (from the website Today for ... today) the feds found multiple password protected devices in his possession. That's no big deal - almost all my computers are password protected. You can tell that by the post-it notes with my password stuck on either the monitor or the case.

Hey, I own a lot of old computers. I can't remember all those passwords.

On his computer they found porno-sniffing software apparently written to detect the presence of porn on the machine. Josh's wife wanted to keep an eye on him I guess. Which suggests SHE DIDN'T TRUST HIM.

The FBI found a Linux partition on his computer. Now... it wasn't stated in the article that it was a *bootable* Linux partition but I'm guessing that it might be. This is dead easy to do since most Linux installs allow you to keep the Windows partition and operating system giving you a dual boot system. It's like two computers in one! Just don't try to run them at the same time.* Your grandmother could do this. Depending on the age of the computer, your internet speed and your install media - it would take all of 45 minutes to half an hour tops. That includes any upgrades although I'd allow another 15 minutes for the Nvidia drivers.

The problem with this is that when you turn on the PC it immediately shows a menu asking you which system you want to boot to.... a dead giveaway that you've been up to something.

On the *other hand* - if it was not a bootable Linux partition, Dugger could have been booting off a Linux boot USB or even a DVD - and just used the Linux partition to store his ill gotten goods. Again, all you need is a bootable Linux DVD or USB, create the partition and then run off the USB. When you're done - yank the USB and reboot the PC. It would boot normally into Windows so at first glance there's nothing amiss. The drive might appear smaller if you dug a little deeper but Windows can't really 'see' a Linux partition. Almost anyone could use that machine and have no idea what was on there.

Either way, I'm betting old Joshie boy would boot into Linux one way or the other - and download his smut from a TOR router - safe and invisible on his hidden partition.

Again, TOR routers merely allow you to surf (semi) anonymously. This is no big hacker feat. Download, install, surf anonymously. No hacking required. It's available in practically ever major Linux distro!

But the porn? Ah... he had to go looking for that. From the reports it was *cough* age specific.

So, no... Joshie boy is no L33t haXor... he's just a porn dog with a taste for puppies. Disgusting.

And he wants to be released to go back home to his wife and children. Yeah... no.

I hope they partition him from the rest of humanity.

-m

*that would be a Virtual Machine environment which is a whole different story

I've been an Ubuntu user for about 10 years... first with the older Gnome 2 desktop then I switched to Xfce desktop....

... because I *hate* Gnome 3. And I despised the Unity desktop which Ubuntu tried to shove down their user's throats. They tend to do that occasionally only to have parts of their user base up and fork off. That's why there is several distros based on Ubuntu.

(Which is based on Debian which was my original distro.)

But I'd like to try out some different distributions for a change.

I put together a pieces parts machine and started playing with Linux Mint. I really like the way they have things set up... but disabling Synaptic for snagging packages and programs made that a deal breaker. Restricting people to just their own program store is lame.

So... hey, Pop OS is popular with the Linux gaming community! Maybe I can play some Steam games....

(After the install)

POP OS IS GNOME BASED? WHY DIDN'T SOMEONE TELL ME?

****SEETHE****

Oh well, I might as well kick the tires on it and see what it's like. It installed quickly but the updates are taking awhile.

Awhile being maybe an hour over WIFI.... not DAYS over ethernet for Windows systems.

If I hate it I'll probably stick with Xubuntu. It's light, fast, and understandable.

-m

I installed Window 10 on my latest 'Curbside Attraction because... I can. Having a recent Windows system available is occasionally handy for those few things that demand Windows.

It installed relatively quickly. However even with the hardware upgrades the machine is pokey. It boots like a pig. I tried the Window 7 key... eh, that didn't activate it. No worries on that matter but it wanted me to set up a Microsoft account to even set up the system.

Eh, no.

And the interface - what a hot mess. I'm sure there's ways to set it up better but having *everything* in one big list instead of groups? That's a step backwards.

Then when I went to the MS Store to get VLC it wanted me to ... sign up for a Microsoft account - just to get free software.

Eh, no.

Registry hack done - now I can access the store without an account... but, why would I want to? I can get most of the software from the original vendors.

Linux has spoiled me. It boots faster, cleaner, the upgrades doesn't take as long and it isn't nosey poking me for my data. In addition, when you install a Linux distro you get *tons* of useful software preinstalled: music players, Libre Office, web browsers and graphic programs. Installing new software is a Snap (or an apt-get) although AppImage is popular. Most distros have software stores which are pretty good. Click on it, the program installs, done. You still get duds occasionally with some of the really old programs.

I'm thinking of dual booting with Kubuntu just to compare the two. The box could use a better graphics card but right now I can't be arsed.

-m