It's been a while since I've installed i3 window manager and this weekend is the first time I've got it installed in a way that I like it. I say it's been a while but last week I tried to install i3 on an Arch install, Arco Linux, EndeavorOS and then settled on just installing on a vanilla Arch base. I settled on Arch because something finally clicked and everything fell in place for me. Usually I just have to settle with what I have installed and not be able to customize it to where the OS works the way I want it to. Take something easy like the screen timing out and going black when you haven't touched your keyboard in 10 minutes, which makes a movie hard to watch if your screen goes blank every 10 minutes. In a desktop environment like Mate you just make a change in the settings, but in i3 there are no GUI settings manager so to cure this I wrote my first bash script without having to use something someone else had already done and posted on the internet. I'm sure it's been done before but everybody else's was more complex than I could understand, so I came up with a two line script. The only thing I haven't set up that I need is Bluetooth, but I don't really have to have that. If I lived in a world that I carried this laptop around I would need the power savings program installed to extend battery life, but all my laptops are old and the batteries aren't going to last long even with that.
I've got the i3blocks (the i3bar or the top panel) working with transparency, and the system is only 520 packages, with things like an office suite still needed to be installed, and my memory usage at idle is around 300MB but if I'm watching a movie on Amazon or another streaming service I'm only running around 1600MB, which is about 1000MB to 2000MB less than when I run Ubuntu Mate. Mate has to run Gnome in the background and that can be heavy on the resources and on my machines that causes them to start lagging after a day or two, Also on my memory usage I haven't had to use any swap usage which I like.
Now my next project is to install i3 on my main box, but use Debian instead of Arch. just to see if I can.
Last November I purchased a Dell INSPIRON 3181 11 inch 2 in 1 Chromebook and in January I started a wish list for the operating system. Probably the inability to drill into the file system and for programs to read my micro SD card that I store all my books and audiobooks on, just like on my Amazon Fire HD10, which I like a lot. I did have before that a Nook and a couple of Samsung tablets, with my son being the beneficiary of each upgrade. While losing some freedom after switching to the Fire HD10 I came to realize that anything I could do on my Samsung I could do it with my Fire HD. Not that the Fire HD could do all that the Samsung could do, but what I did could be done with either.
I did not publish my blog because even though I loved my new Chromebook it had one problem, which was that the blue tooth would drop out, going from my earbuds to playing out of the Dell speakers. Not a problem at home, but I really didn't want to be at work and have my book or movie sound bothering other people in the lunchroom. Not that they could care about that because my co-workers would just turn on YouTube and turn the volume up so everyone could share. I guess they think if it's good enough for them it's good enough for you.
I sent my Chromebook back twice to Dell and I think with the third motherboard (counting the original) they fixed my problem.
The problem with pre 72 build OS's is that programs that I use to read, like Moon+Reader Pro and Smart AudioBook Player could not find my micro SD card, so all files had to be copied to my downloads file, the only file you can actually use with ease on Chrome OS. Now with Chome OS build 72 these programs find my micro SD card and work just like my other tablets worked. No need to move files. I guess file syncing was made available with build 72, along with the chrome browser being better optimized for my touchscreen in tablet mode, and Google Assistant gets more functionality.
Now any day, hopefully, we upgrade to Chrome OS 73, which from my understanding will run Linux apps better, and with sound. One reason I chose the Chromebook was hopefully turning it into a 2 in 1 Ubuntu notebook but after a couple of months with Chrome OS and Play Store, do I really need Gimp. The only thing I really miss is not getting the .srt files to work with VLC, and I usually use my Ubuntu laptop for VLC anyway. I keep it connected to my TV, which makes it a very smart TV when I watch Amazon, Hulu, and Netflix.
*** I just read audio support for Linux is pushed back to Chrome OS 74, which I think is to be released April 30th ***
Speaking of release dates I don't know who pushes the releases through, Google or Dell. Chromium.org shows Chrome OS 73 release date as March 19th but no update for me yet,
Either way, for a computer this Chromebook has been my best and cheapest investment in a real computer. Get used to the idea, all OS's are going to be doing this, and while you are at it look at Stadia coming up from Google. They call it the future of gaming.
Sorry if some of this doesn't make sense, I'll check it tomorrow, it's past my bedtime.
I've got an old Acer laptop or notebook or whatever they're called and It is just dragging. Not only have I had it 8 years but it had probably been on the market a couple of years before I bought it. I've always dual booted my computers between the latest release of Ubuntu and Windows 10's developer version, using Ubuntu most of the time. But everything drags.
I always install the freshest release of Ubuntu and everything drags. It takes a couple of minutes to boot, then Firefox takes 30 seconds to load and all the other programs take a while, then when I get into Windows that just takes that much longer.
So I bought a Kingston 120GB SDD for $20.00 on Amazon and Ubuntu flies now, and Windows, well that has been an utter failure. I don't have a copy of Windows since it's on a separate partition on my old hard drive so for now, it's Ubuntu 18.10. Ubuntu boots in just under 30 seconds and Firefox starts in tow or three seconds. I quit using Chrome because it would seem to stall my computer, but this weekend when I redo everything I'll get back with Chrome. I'm not too worried about Google tracking me and there are a few things that Chrome does better.
This weekend I'll put my old hard drive in and follow some instructions I've found on Microsoft's website and I'll hopefully have windows working.
Until then it's Canonical all the way.
