Woo! Mint got me what Kubutu would not, an internet connection! Time to go from LiveUSB to install. After I get a proper HDD boot out of it, I'll go installing graphics drivers.
The MATE GUI looks like the bastard child of the Mac OS X and Windows GUIs, but that's fine by me.
It took a whole day to get something that works, but that's still cheaper than replacing my laptop.
EDIT: Sonuvabitch, I have to install the offical nvidia drivers from the test mode because the included nouvaeu drivers hate my GPU.
edited 24th Jul '12 4:42:47 AM by Balmung
To correct some misconceptions: the Direct X API is provided by Wine, which translates it into the appropriate Open GL calls. Native Linux (not mapped through Wine) games never use Direct X.
.tar.gz files are just the favored form of archive on Linux, like zips or rars. The double extension is because of the Unix each-tool-does-one-thing-well philosophy: a group of files are combined into a single archive via the tar* program, and then the archive is compressed by the gzip program.
By filesystem, do you mean the whole single-filesystem-your-devices-get-bolted-onto thing? Because I actually like that aspect. Linux has a lot of fun and powerful filesystem tricks.
Or do you mean the messy scattering of files among /bin, /usr, /opt, etc? I can agree that is messy, and wish GoboLinux wasn't semi-dead right now.
Do you highlight everything looking for secret messages?Both aspects of the file system, actually. Honestly, I have to say, after using the Mac OS, Windows, and Linux, I think if nothing else, Windows has the most readily navigable/least cluttered (at least looking/feeling) file system.
It looks like I should also be able to get SMAC/SMAX and VBA running, so that's more good news.
Now I just need to either get something with a USB 2.0 port or trick Linux into mounting an NTFS external HDD. If I can get something else with USB 2.0 ports, I can just (slowly) transfer my files from the external HDD to a regular flash drive and bring them back to my Linux machine that way. It'd be faster if I could manage to mount it, but the relevant systems can't seem to find it, and the other computer I have access to only has USB 1.1 ports.
Also, this thing asks for my password more often than Windows Vista/possible hyperbole
EDIT: Apparently, it's actually FAT 16, which explains why my attempts to mount an NTFS drive have failed.
edited 24th Jul '12 12:51:22 PM by Balmung
That has me wondering how an external hard drive is still formatted as FAT16 to begin with.
Also, while Windows does, on first glance, appear to have the least-cluttered file system layout, IMO it's only achieved thanks to lots and lots of hiding stuff. *NIX file systems only really hide files/folders with a . in front of the name, plus I like how stuff is usually separated into /bin, /lib, /usr/whatever, /home and so on. Feels more organized. I also like the idea of how external devices are treated as attached to the main one instead of each one getting a letter and its own root.
Actually, I think my Linux machine is just misreading the damn thing while our older desktop has issues reading/powering it with its old USB 1.1 ports. I'm just gonna wait until I can use my netbook and transfer the stuff via flash drives.
Speaking of flash drives, in the process of making a working Live USB, I wound up with a 16 GB flash drive that thinks it's only about 890 MB and I can't format it back to 16 GB. Any idea how to solve this?
edited 25th Jul '12 10:36:43 AM by Balmung
http://files.extremeoverclocking.com/file.php?f=197/
http://linuxguruz.wordpress.com/2008/09/23/restoreformat-usb-flash-drive/
are about the best I can come up with.
Hmm... audio could be a bug, or something involving ALSA settings, which are very poorly documented...
Anyways, the operating system sees each partition as a separate device on both Windows and Linux technically; you need to explicitly repartition the device to make the former-livedisc partition take yup the whole drive again. I think gParted is the usual Linux tool if you want a GUI, or there's the volume manager in Windows.
Again, warning that repartitioning usually wipes out all filesystems on the drive, though I don't think you care in this case.
Do you highlight everything looking for secret messages?Wait, there's a way to bypass flash player on youtube? Howwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww?
Fight smart, not fair.https://www.youtube.com/html5
works for some videos.
Just in case it hasn't been posted yet: one more really big reason to use Linux.
I don't think this will be a Windows-killer by itself, but it should be a huge bolster to the Linux population, especially after seeing the train-wreck that is Windows 8. (Note that I'm back on Windows for the time being, since Wine shat the bed and wouldn't allow me to use Steam. TF2 promos are serious business, yo.)
edited 30th Jul '12 1:48:14 PM by DemonSharkKisame

For? I have network drivers (both basic ones that come with Kubuntu and specific drivers) and starting with that, I should theoretically be able to get any other drivers I need from the internet.
I'm first gonna try a network install of Kubuntu tomorrow via the CAT-5 cable I found, and if that doesn't work, I'll try Mint.
edited 24th Jul '12 1:18:31 AM by Balmung