this post was submitted on 18 Jul 2023
274 points (96.0% liked)

Linux

48051 readers
747 users here now

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

Rules

Related Communities

Community icon by Alpár-Etele Méder, licensed under CC BY 3.0

founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
 

I would like to share with you a very cool project that develops drivers for correct operation of Microsoft Surface devices on Linux. I myself use Surface Pro 6 with these drivers and everything works like a charm (battery life is good, cameras work, stylus, keyboard, touchscreen, screen). The developers are gods. From myself, I would recommend using Fedora Linux distribution, as I got the best battery life on it and didn't experience any additional bugs. If you don't like GNOME, you can try spins.

Links to project resources:

Awesome additional resources:

top 50 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] palordrolap@kbin.social 44 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Microsoft wants to give Linux a nice warm hug and then squeeze and squeeze and all the warmth disappears this is actually quite a high pressure oh that hurts Microsoft no ow are those needles coming out of your arms I think I hear bones splintering and screaming oh no it's me I'm screaming I'm hearing myself screaming I'm turning into

[–] Dirk@lemmy.ml 8 points 1 year ago

Very poetic description of EEE.

[–] FarLine99@lemm.ee 7 points 1 year ago
[–] OsrsNeedsF2P@lemmy.ml 24 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Fwiw, this is NOT an official Microsoft release, it's like Asahi Linux, where the community made it Linux-compatible

[–] FarLine99@lemm.ee 12 points 1 year ago

Yeah, I thought it was pretty clear because I talked about some "project" ❤️

[–] PipedLinkBot@feddit.rocks 22 points 1 year ago

Here is an alternative Piped link(s): https://piped.video/79Jj0jWXyWo

https://piped.video/6_EHEmz_j4o

https://piped.video/BreV6N0GApk

Piped is a privacy-respecting open-source alternative frontend to YouTube.

I'm open-source, check me out at GitHub.

[–] mogoh@lemmy.ml 15 points 1 year ago (1 children)

This is cool, but if Microsoft would <3 Linux, they would do this themself.

[–] FarLine99@lemm.ee 3 points 1 year ago

Trigger is activated 😏

[–] 20gramsWrench@lemmy.dbzer0.com 8 points 1 year ago (2 children)

oh lord that pic is unnerving

[–] Dirk@lemmy.ml 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

oh lord that pic is unnerving

Fixed!

[–] FarLine99@lemm.ee 3 points 1 year ago
load more comments (1 replies)
[–] tubbadu@lemmy.kde.social 7 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Cool! But why does the surface in the picture run windows?

[–] Mirrorgiraffe@kbin.social 4 points 1 year ago

Obviously emulated

[–] FarLine99@lemm.ee 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

It does (not) 😃

[–] privsecfoss@feddit.dk 6 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I applaud Linux on as many laptops as possible. But given Microsoft's history of EEE, bad security practices and multiple and on going privacy violations I would really not recommend using anything Microsoft. If you must use fx Surface I would recommend buying a used one. Or better yet a used Thinkpad or similar enterprise laptop used.

[–] FarLine99@lemm.ee 9 points 1 year ago (10 children)

Security? Maybe. Privacy? Too hard and nonsense to implement hardware tracking to spy on 1% of users without Windows.

[–] m88youngling@lemmy.world 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It sounds more like they are suggesting that you shouldn't buy a Surface as to not support Microsoft's stake in the market. But hardware level tracking does sound pretty spooky if they were actually able to pull it off and make it worthwhile. I'm with you though, I doubt it

[–] FarLine99@lemm.ee 1 points 1 year ago

It is not worth the hassle. And very easy to detect (network traffic f.e.)

load more comments (9 replies)
[–] kabe@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Surfaces are abysmal for repairs and upgrades, as well. They're literally glued together like a smartphone.

[–] Theophylaktos@lemmy.fmhy.ml 2 points 1 year ago

This is why I bought the Dell 5290 2-in-1. It can be opened and the battery and ssd can be replaced for cheap.

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] cupcakezealot@lemmy.blahaj.zone 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Change c:\Users\username to /home/username in Windows 12, Redmond.

[–] FarLine99@lemm.ee 3 points 1 year ago
[–] Baconsaur@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Using a Pro 6 with Linux (Arch now, but used Ubuntu and Fedora in the past). I wouldn’t say that camera works like a charm, far from that.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] Boleano@beehaw.org 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] FarLine99@lemm.ee 1 points 1 year ago

Really good project!

[–] rose@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 1 year ago (5 children)

I also recently got a Surface Pro 6. I got it used for $200, but it was in great condition, low battery cycles, and came with one of the keyboard covers. As you said, everything works. Gnome in Wayland is pretty good for touchscreen. I also got a third party pen for it that works great in Krita and xournal++.

I wish using it as a tablet was a bit better supported in Gnome or other DEs, and the battery life is only ... OK. Still, as a thin and light linux tablet I can carry in my bag to work on light tasks or look up content it's fantastic. The keyboard cover also makes it great for typing, programming, or opening remote shells on the go.

load more comments (5 replies)
[–] julianh@lemm.ee 3 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I wanted a small device to take notes on for school, but that I could also do development on for my cs classes. Got a surface go 3, put fedora (gnome) on it, added the surface kernel, and it's honestly a better tablet experience than windows. I use xournal++ for notetaking and the stylus and touchscreen all work great.

[–] FarLine99@lemm.ee 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It is awesome experience, agreed! You can try Rnote, Xournal++ in concept but way better UI. Xournal++ has better PDF support though.

[–] julianh@lemm.ee 2 points 1 year ago

Yeah I draw over a lot of pdfs so that support is pretty important. The UI isn't great but I can at least customize it, and I've gotten it to a place I'm happy with.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] gogozero@lemmy.sdf.org 2 points 1 year ago (4 children)

i run debian sid on a surface go and i love it. my daily driver, and one of my favorite PCs in a very long time.

load more comments (4 replies)
[–] Imhotep@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

I'm looking for a device to read comics (bandes dessinées, the taller A4 format), newspapers, rss feeds

I use an ipad for now, but I'd like to get rid of it

It needs high definition (at least 1440p) in a 12" or 13" screen. (11 too, less ideal), and to stay cool while reading/light browsing

I would love for this to be a Linux device.
Could this be it? What would be the cheapest option?

edit: a surface pro 3 at 200€?

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] Voyajer@kbin.social 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Aw, no Surface RT tablet support. Mine is a paperweight at this point Windows RT is almost nonfunctional.

[–] FarLine99@lemm.ee 4 points 1 year ago

Expected 🤷

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] Theophylaktos@lemmy.fmhy.ml 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I really like the Dell 5290 2-in-1. Not a surface but with 16 gigs of ram and an Intel i7-8650 CPU its a very capable tablet. It runs Linux well and everything just works. The downside is most DE's are not optimized for a tablet. I found KDE with the maliit-keyboard is the most usable combination.

[–] FarLine99@lemm.ee 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Awesome configuration. Also use Plasma with Maliit keyboard. Also found it the best configuration!

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] dingdongitsabear@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] Theophylaktos@lemmy.fmhy.ml 2 points 1 year ago

Looks like they do not work. After doing some online searches I see people asking but no solutions. You would need a stand alone USB camera if you needed that functionality.

[–] Dariusmiles2123@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

My Surface Go 1 is a really great Linux device with Fedora on it and I use the usb-c to have it displayed on a big screen when necessary. Sadly the cameras don’t work yet..

load more comments (2 replies)
load more comments
view more: next ›