Installing OS, 10 years ago:
Windows: click a couple of buttons enter username and password
Linux: Terminal hacking, downloading shell scripts from github
Installing OS today:
Linux: click a couple of buttons, enter username and password
Windows: Terminal hacking, downloading shell scripts from github.
Link to video: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qKRmYW1D0S0
What's your recommended Linux distro for a Windows gamer to try?
Nobara 39.
Its easy and quick to set up, easy to use, and has a lot of ancillary tools and stuff preinstalled to make getting into the gaming easier.
I'm not gonna say its the second coming of christ, or all sunshine and rainbows, so to be upfront and honest... Dualboot at first, if you can. Its, presumably, your first time using linux, so you will run into more roadblocks to start simply due to lack of knowledge and experience on how to navigate things, but you'll get your baselines down quick and start getting into the windows-like usability and flow.
This is why I ask around! Haven't heard that suggestion yet
An extra suggestion is to put the /home mountpoint on a separate volume ( if you're comfortable doing so). This will make reinstalls easy, should you have need
Yeah I do this currently for my Windows installs. But Windows would freak out on OS updates and reinstalls.
I plan to redirect home on my next build
Sheesh! I'm glad I've been on Linux so long to have forgotten that. It just doesn't care, as long as you have it in fstab.
My /home partition is the same one I setup almost 12 years ago. It's been through multiple versions of Ubuntu, multiple Ubuntu reinstalls, a switch over to EndeavourOS, a reinstall of EndeavourOS, cloned to multiple drives as each one failed or was upgraded to a larger sized drive. But it's the same exact /home data.
Nobaras kinda a new distro, but its based on Fedora (the 39 indicates its based on Fedora 39) which is well established.
I've been using it, and the previous version of 38, and I've had a great experience with it. It also has a very active discord full of kind people willing to help.
Definitely Nobara, it's a distro optimized for making games actually work. On other distros I always had some games that wouldn't run, but never on Nobara. Zero hassle.
Linux mint is my favorite os been running it many years now no issues with running games. Its a bulletproof OS esecially with timeshift snapshots SteamOS is specifically a gaming os developed by valve for the steam deck but you can installed it on any system . The key is proton which is a windows emulator comparability layer fine tuned by valves Dev team to get most games running on Linux.
far as I've heard, Mint can be iffy fhen it comes to games, mostly because they use an outdated kernel. I can also recommend something like Endeavor if the gamer in question has any knack for tech, or Nobara, which is made specifically for gaming by GloriousEgg, maintainer of ProtonGE
Thanks, havent heard of nobara before but it being made by the dude who maintains protob GE is interesting and I will check it out.
Yep, Nobara should be the default choice for a gaming focused distro due to GE, since he knows exactly what hes doing and whats needed.
I hear you about the kernel. You can install newer ones or follow the HWE line (as I do) which gives you 6.5 last time I checked.
Bazzite made for gaming, and isos tailored to hardware