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I use Wine from time to time, because some vendors (especially hardware vendors) still expect you to have Windows for silly reasons (eg. to write an update file
by Arkanosis 7y ago
I use Wine from time to time, because some vendors (especially hardware vendors) still expect you to have Windows for silly reasons (eg. to write an update file on an USB key for a car GPS — I'm looking at you, Renault — or to unlock a phone bootloader — I'm looking at you, Xiaomi). That's a life saver in such cases and I can't state how grateful I am for Wine to exist.
And no, I won't run Windows in a VM as I refuse to pay the “Windows tax”.
(Also for games, I still rely a lot on Wine — even if mostly hidden behind Lutris these days.)
- toomuchtodo 7y agoYou can grab free Windows VMs that Microsoft provides for browser testing. They expire after 90 days, but they are usable for the purposes you mention (except gaming). https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/tools/vms/ https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/tools/v...
- yjftsjthsd-h 7y agoOkay, I'll be that guy this time: Why the downvotes? This is a bit hacky and only allows temporary systems, but it appears to be functional, free-as-beer, and works fine for these random one-off cases.
- toomuchtodo 7y agoDon't worry about the downvotes friend, they are merely silly internet points. Someone might come across the comment in the future and find it helpful, and that's all that matters.
- Arkanosis 7y agoWell said. As the person you replied to, I find your answer helpful. Thank you!
- q3k 7y agoPer the license terms [1]: You may use the software for testing purposes only. You may not use the software for commercial purposes. You may not use the software in a live operating environment. [1] - https://az792536.vo.msecnd.net/vms/release_notes_license_terms_8_1_15.pdf https://az792536.vo.msecnd.net/vms/release_notes_license_ter...
- deng 7y agoApart from this being essentially an EULA an therefore not necessarily binding in your country, I don't think that doing the stuff described in the OP would violate these terms.
- samb1729 7y agoAnd if it does violate the terms, let's remember we live in the real world and absolutely nothing will happen to them as a result
- asark 7y agoUsed this to run some Windows-only NES Classic / SNES Classic "hacking" program thingy (hakchi2? Something like that) to add more games to those two devices. Worked great. Wine was a no-go because the program itself did some stuff with (Windows) drivers when needed. VirtualBox. Worked great. I have a Win10 license and could have dug it out but this was easier.
- makomk 7y agoAmusingly enough, all of the low-level hardware access stuff in hakchi2 seems to be done through Windows ports of various Linux-based libraries and tools. The Windows drivers are just there to emulate the normal Linux APIs for low-level USB access. In principle, it would be possible to just chop out all the layers of emulation and drop in the original Linux USB access library using the actual Linux APIs (compiled as a Wine-style DLL so the Windows code could use it) and everything should work fine.
- Wowfunhappy 7y ago> some vendors (especially hardware vendors) still expect you to have Windows for silly reasons (eg. to write an update file on an USB key for a car GPS — I'm looking at you, Renault — or to unlock a phone bootloader — I'm looking at you, Xiaomi). Does this kind of stuff work in Wine for you? I generally need to use a VM, because if it needs to talk to another device drivers are involved.