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Anyone have a guess how well Linux would run on such a beast? How are the driver issues these days? Could I likely get by without manually compiling drivers and

by drcode 8y ago

Anyone have a guess how well Linux would run on such a beast? How are the driver issues these days? Could I likely get by without manually compiling drivers and without putting magic incantations in config files?

CrazedGeek 8y ago
I'd guess reasonably well. Graphics card would work fine out of the box, Wi-Fi would work well (but probably requires Intel's nonfree driver). Probably the only issues would be the fingerprint reader (which don't seem to be particularly well-supported under Linux) and the screen DPI (1600p at 17" might be a little small for 1X and a little large for 2X, and fractional scaling under Linux is a bit messy).
appleiigs 8y ago
I have a 14” 2018 LG Gram and I run Pop!_OS on it with minimal config. The only thing I did was leave 100% scaling, but put on 1.5x font size (via gnome-tweaks). Might be different on a 17”. Haven’t found any issues at all, however my uses are quite pedestrian. Almost just terminal, Pycharm, browsers. Printer and wifi are all fine. I ran ElementaryOS on it but then I ran into a few things: 1) troubles getting audio out on HDMI instead of internal speakers (look Mom, no dongles!), 2) video in Chrome browser is broken, 3) some sort of high pitch, very loud tone at startup each time after updating system software. On Pop, I’m really happy with it. 14” is incredibly light and battery lasts all day for me. Keyboard is good - Ctrl button on outside left where it should be.
- kjeetgill 8y ago
  Huh. Pop and elementary are both Ubuntu based. I wonder why they gave such different experiences. Do they vary kernel builds by that much?
  - Canadauni 8y ago
    I think that the team at System 76 includes some additional hardware drivers and tweaks that might provide a wider range of compatibility.
  - ekianjo 8y ago
    Doesn't Elementary uses the LTS version of Ubuntu? That may explain differences in hardware support since it would use an older kernel.
pjmlp 8y ago
I have long given up on Linux on laptops, rather stick with virtual machines, or WSL nowadays. Even my netbook which was sold with Ubuntu Linux has been a mixed experience.
- rdbell 8y ago
  Same. The biggest issue I've had with linux on laptops is hidpi scaling problems. I always run into problems where some apps scale properly and others don't, or weird issues like the mouse cursor changing sizes depending on what window I'm hovering over. Trackpads are pretty hit-or-miss too, but some machines like the XPS 9370 feel ok. I recently switched to virtualbox on a macOS host and I've been much happier with how the linux desktop experience feels.

by drcode 8y ago

CrazedGeek 8y ago

I'd guess reasonably well. Graphics card would work fine out of the box, Wi-Fi would work well (but probably requires Intel's nonfree driver). Probably the only issues would be the fingerprint reader (which don't seem to be particularly well-supported under Linux) and the screen DPI (1600p at 17" might be a little small for 1X and a little large for 2X, and fractional scaling under Linux is a bit messy).

appleiigs 8y ago

I have a 14” 2018 LG Gram and I run Pop!_OS on it with minimal config. The only thing I did was leave 100% scaling, but put on 1.5x font size (via gnome-tweaks). Might be different on a 17”. Haven’t found any issues at all, however my uses are quite pedestrian. Almost just terminal, Pycharm, browsers. Printer and wifi are all fine. I ran ElementaryOS on it but then I ran into a few things: 1) troubles getting audio out on HDMI instead of internal speakers (look Mom, no dongles!), 2) video in Chrome browser is broken, 3) some sort of high pitch, very loud tone at startup each time after updating system software. On Pop, I’m really happy with it. 14” is incredibly light and battery lasts all day for me. Keyboard is good - Ctrl button on outside left where it should be.

kjeetgill 8y ago
Huh. Pop and elementary are both Ubuntu based. I wonder why they gave such different experiences. Do they vary kernel builds by that much?
- Canadauni 8y ago
  I think that the team at System 76 includes some additional hardware drivers and tweaks that might provide a wider range of compatibility.
- ekianjo 8y ago
  Doesn't Elementary uses the LTS version of Ubuntu? That may explain differences in hardware support since it would use an older kernel.

pjmlp 8y ago

I have long given up on Linux on laptops, rather stick with virtual machines, or WSL nowadays. Even my netbook which was sold with Ubuntu Linux has been a mixed experience.

rdbell 8y ago
Same. The biggest issue I've had with linux on laptops is hidpi scaling problems. I always run into problems where some apps scale properly and others don't, or weird issues like the mouse cursor changing sizes depending on what window I'm hovering over. Trackpads are pretty hit-or-miss too, but some machines like the XPS 9370 feel ok. I recently switched to virtualbox on a macOS host and I've been much happier with how the linux desktop experience feels.