Please help a computer idiot transition

[BWT]

What photo editing do you do and other tasks besides web browsing?

I only say that because in the past when I’ve helped people there can be a bit of a learning curve.

Dell drivers should be easy to find as well. If you’re considering mint and Dell - I’d go out to Dell’s support site and find the drivers you need based on the model you’re considering. I’m unsure but getting drivers can be a bit of a manual process. Or atleast it was with RHEL years ago.

You could dual boot your system and repartition the hard drive, but honestly it’s a bit of a more specialized task and that requires software.

I’m going to go against the grain here and just ask what your tolerance for fidgeting is? Linux is a different operating system and it’ll require different software. Why I’m asking what tasks you do is you’ll have to be willing to find alternatives which may be really easy if you don’t have much you’re doing. Or there could be some application you use that is not supported on mint and you’ll need to consider alternatives. A bootable live usb drive will allow you to demo it without installing it.

My experience is dated on Linux and my time is limited in this regard so I don’t have much tolerance for testing.

Out of curiosity what format photos and videos do you use?

[Dov]

What photo editing do you do and other tasks besides web browsing?

I only say that because in the past when I’ve helped people there can be a bit of a learning curve.

Dell drivers should be easy to find as well. If you’re considering mint and Dell - I’d go out to Dell’s support site and find the drivers you need based on the model you’re considering. I’m unsure but getting drivers can be a bit of a manual process. Or atleast it was with RHEL years ago.

You could dual boot your system and repartition the hard drive, but honestly it’s a bit of a more specialized task and that requires software.

I’m going to go against the grain here and just ask what your tolerance for fidgeting is? Linux is a different operating system and it’ll require different software. Why I’m asking what tasks you do is you’ll have to be willing to find alternatives which may be really easy if you don’t have much you’re doing. Or there could be some application you use that is not supported on mint and you’ll need to consider alternatives. A bootable live usb drive will allow you to demo it without installing it.

My experience is dated on Linux and my time is limited in this regard so I don’t have much tolerance for testing.

Out of curiosity what format photos and videos do you use?

Yeah I've dabbled with Linux, but not comfortable enough with it yet to recommend to non Nerds yet, though if I ever get gaming working on Linux solidly I can say good riddance to Windows for any of my personal use cases other than helping others.

Honestly, I am OS agnostic I hate them all (at times anyway) but hate Windows more.

For average people I usually see if iOS or Chromebook will work for their needs and wants first because their respective warts I think they are the Glock & Ruger of computers. Most painless way for average people to have decent backup AFAIK.

[awp_101]

AFA photo editing, I just use the editor in Windows and GIMP. No video editing, just watching them on YT, etc.

I discussed the need for a replacement with the "CFO" yesterday morning. She ran the numbers and gave me the budget and this is what I ended up ordering: HP EliteDesk 800 G2 Refurbished Tiny Desktop Computers Mini PC,i5 Micro 32GB Ram 2TB SSD

It was more than I was planning on (but still within budget!) but when I watched the video in post 26 when @Dov posted it and started searching at that time, that one checked a lot of boxes.

Feel free to validate my purchase and tell me my baby is pretty...

@Sig_Fiend, no worries on not getting around to it sooner! The discussion was right at the holidays and I got so sidetracked that I didn't even think about it until you mentioned it again.

[Dov]

AFA photo editing, I just use the editor in Windows and GIMP. No video editing, just watching them on YT, etc.

I discussed the need for a replacement with the "CFO" yesterday morning. She ran the numbers and gave me the budget and this is what I ended up ordering: HP EliteDesk 800 G2 Refurbished Tiny Desktop Computers Mini PC,i5 Micro 32GB Ram 2TB SSD

It was more than I was planning on (but still within budget!) but when I watched the video in post 26 when @Dov posted it and started searching at that time, that one checked a lot of boxes.

Feel free to validate my purchase and tell me my baby is pretty...

@Sig_Fiend, no worries on not getting around to it sooner! The discussion was right at the holidays and I got so sidetracked that I didn't even think about it until you mentioned it again.

That looks good to me, serious amount of RAM and storage. Same machine I have except you've got lot more RAM and Storage than I do.

Only caveat is that CPU is not officially supported for Windows 11 and Windows 10 EOL (End of Life ie no more security patches) in 2025
https://www.pcmag.com/news/microsoft...25-for-a-price

There are various options, one is mentioned in that link you can get another 3 years of security patches for Win 10 for a yet to be disclosed fee.

Another option is there are hacks to get Win 11 running on machines not officially supported, though I haven't looked into those and don't have strong recommendation about currently.

Third option, which is what I would personally lean towards unless Windows was absolute requirement, I can't remember if you need Windows software or not, is Linux of some form.

You could just use this machine but keep it disconnected from internet, only real concern if not getting security patches is malware from outside getting on it.

[Dov]

Rereading thread looks like you are already thinking about Linux probably Linux Mint based on comments in this thread.

I don't have personal experience with Mint, but at least two of my non PF friends that are far more Linux savvy than myself use and recommend it.

And it's based on the same "family" of Linux I have been dabbling with (Debian).

GIMP which you already use is available for Mint or other versions of Linux so you should be good to go if you choose to switch to Linux.

And you have plenty of time before Windows 10 EOL so you can ease into Linux, though I honestly I wouldn't expect it to be as much headache as switching from Windows 10 to Windows 11.

Honestly once you have Linux setup you probably won't notice the differences, I've had gf who is very computer savvy but spent her career working with Windows have no problems using the Laptop I put Linux on when I asked her to test drive it when looking for economical options for her friends we provide free IT support for, and she didn't think any of her friends would have any problems using it as long as we set it up for them.

AFAIK drivers for Graphics cards are only possible speedbump for Linux you might run into, though thats far less of issue than it used to be in part IMHO because STEAM has been pushing Linux for gaming.

[awp_101]

Yes, a foray into Linux is in the future so I’m not hugely concerned about going to Win11.

Who do we like for free antivirus protection? I was using Adaware on the old machine but it looks like the only thing available now is a full privacy-feels-like-way-over-what-I-need-and-will-get-me-bombarded-with-emails-and-pop up-reminders package.

[gringop]

Who do we like for free antivirus protection? I was using Adaware on the old machine but it looks like the only thing available now is a full privacy-feels-like-way-over-what-I-need-and-will-get-me-bombarded-with-emails-and-pop up-reminders package.

I've been using Avast free version for years. Just realize that they are all fear mongering, "pay us for upgrades to Pro Version which will solve all your problems" shyster used car salesmen. I just turn off the core services I don't need, set it to silent mode, update and scan my systems once a month and enjoy the protection.

If you are asking for Linux, it looks like Avast is only payware/business license for Linux at this time.

Gringop

PS, I also use Free Malwarebytes and Spybot Search and Destroy, run manually one a month.

[Sig_Fiend]

Who do we like for free antivirus protection? I was using Adaware on the old machine but it looks like the only thing available now is a full privacy-feels-like-way-over-what-I-need-and-will-get-me-bombarded-with-emails-and-pop up-reminders package.

Whatever you do, avoid Norton or McAfee like the plague! They're resource hogs and generally decrease system performance and usability by a good 30-50% in my experience. You can have a 10-15y/o PC, with the right OS and hardware choices, that runs perfectly fast and usable. Add Norton or McAfee to the mix and things become extremely annoying and painful.

Malwarebytes is one option that's worked quite well for me for some time. Some others I haven't used in quite a few years, but at least in the past used to be good (not sure how they are now) are ESET and Kaspersky. Considering the current global conflict and Kaspersky's origin, I am unaware of whether there are current concerns over using their software or not.

Some or most of the above (except Malwarebytes) also work on Linux. That said, one app you'll see most frequently recommended for antivirus on Linux is ClamAV. It's free and open source, which is great. Only downside is it takes a bit of setup maybe a bit beyond what the average user might want to deal with.
Although some Linux distributions may be able to install it through the graphical package manager/app store, more commonly people install it through the terminal as it is a terminal-based app. There are some third party GUI apps for it but, this may be beyond the scope of what many here are willing to deal with setting up.

ClamAV is not quite the full-featured antivirus app like some of the others, so just be aware. It's mainly used for running scans of files already on your system. I don't believe it gets used for things like real-time scanning of traffic or some of the other real-time type protections like some of the other apps.

If you do like to tinker, simple tutorials are more than sufficient to get up and running with ClamAV in a few minutes. It is also available for Windows as well, though I've never used it on Windows and can't comment on that.

[Sig_Fiend]

Just for fun, showing what's possible. A few weeks ago, I installed Linux on an old Lenovo Thinkpad X200 I had laying around. Got it off eBay for ~$50 awhile ago. The X200 was produced in 2008, meaning this is a 16y/o laptop. I'm amazed people overlook stuff like this and assume it's trash because it's more than ~2 or 3y/o. Oh well, more for those of us who know!

Installed Linux Mint in ~15-20min. The Install went perfectly with zero hiccups. It just works and was actually an easier install than the last time I installed Windows. Despite the age, it runs pretty smoothly and is more than fast enough for my intended purpose (focused laptop mostly for writing).

As an aside, these little Thinkpads are awesome. The models prior to ~2012-2013 have actual full-stroke, proper key switches and key caps, so the typing experience is excellent! Not to mention the built-in RJ-45 connector for a wired connection as well as the hardware switches on the side of the laptop to disable the camera, WiFi, etc.

If you want to join this club, stuff to look for: X200, X220, T420, T520, W520, W700, plenty of others but these are some of the best bang for the buck. The **30 models (e.g. X230, T430, T530, W530) are a bit newer, faster, and better hardware, but they don't have the classic keyboard.

[Dov]

Whatever you do, avoid Norton or McAfee like the plague! They're resource hogs and generally decrease system performance and usability by a good 30-50% in my experience. You can have a 10-15y/o PC, with the right OS and hardware choices, that runs perfectly fast and usable. Add Norton or McAfee to the mix and things become extremely annoying and painful.

Malwarebytes is one option that's worked quite well for me for some time. Some others I haven't used in quite a few years, but at least in the past used to be good (not sure how they are now) are ESET and Kaspersky. Considering the current global conflict and Kaspersky's origin, I am unaware of whether there are current concerns over using their software or not.

Some or most of the above (except Malwarebytes) also work on Linux. That said, one app you'll see most frequently recommended for antivirus on Linux is ClamAV. It's free and open source, which is great. Only downside is it takes a bit of setup maybe a bit beyond what the average user might want to deal with.
Although some Linux distributions may be able to install it through the graphical package manager/app store, more commonly people install it through the terminal as it is a terminal-based app. There are some third party GUI apps for it but, this may be beyond the scope of what many here are willing to deal with setting up.

ClamAV is not quite the full-featured antivirus app like some of the others, so just be aware. It's mainly used for running scans of files already on your system. I don't believe it gets used for things like real-time scanning of traffic or some of the other real-time type protections like some of the other apps.

If you do like to tinker, simple tutorials are more than sufficient to get up and running with ClamAV in a few minutes. It is also available for Windows as well, though I've never used it on Windows and can't comment on that.

I haven't researched AntiVirus software in years, all I have been using is native/built in stuff on Windows and Mac.

If I felt I needed to use it I would vote for Clam or Malwarebytes based on what I recall from my old research into it.

I'm not certain it does any real good if you keep your system & software up to date on patches and have your brower(s) locked down (uBlock Origin, NoScript, & I like to also use Privacy Badger).

Beyond that having regular backups of critical data, I like to use multiple backup drives that I rotate so at least one backup is offline (totally disconnected) so even if hit with Ransomware I would have relatively recent backup I could restore from, provides fairly robust multple layers IMHO.

Cloud backup is great for a lot of things, I recommend https://www.arqbackup.com/ but I generally just use multiple external SSD & Time Machine https://support.apple.com/en-us/104984 on my Macs. I like the offline storage because thats about only solid recovery option if hit with ransomware.

All my Windows machine has on it is games which are I can reinstall from ether Steam or CD, and can do clean Windows Install from CD or thumb drive if needed, so I don't bother with any real backup of Windows machine.

On my gf's machines, M1 iMac and a Windows 10 laptop she uses a combination of Cloud backup supplemented with rotating offline SSD we use T7's https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0874YS2N7...ing=UTF8&psc=1 because they are very solid and if you have to actually restore from them they are so much faster than from HDD.

Not as cheap per GB as external HDD, but probably bit safer from data loss and restoring doesn't take much of a day or more like recovering from HDD does. I had to use a HDD Time Machine backup to fix some weird bug once on Mac and it took forever, like more than 8 hours. With SSD it would probably have been less than 90 minutes.

I also like how small the T7's are, eventually we plan to keep some T7 SSD backups in safe deposit box, and they are so small you can fit many in the smallest & cheapest safety deposit boxes.

On gf's ios devices we use iCloud backup as primary with copies of real important stuff also stored locally on her iMac so Time Machine backs it up automatically to the T7 SSD's.