Thread: New Laptop Query.

Originally Posted by woodPixel

Just for the audience, use these:

O&O ShutUp10++ – Free antispy tool for Windows 10 and 11 -- kills off ALL windows telemetry (aka spying). YOU WILL BE HORRIFIED.
Windows Firewall Control -- boring looking, but VERY powerful and easy to grasp + use

Honestly Evan they can spy on me all they want as I don't have any reason to get hung up on it and if I was paranoid as some appear to be I would not use the internet. I have never to my recall ever had negative consequences from data collection but I can't positively say that because I don't know what I should be looking for.

Originally Posted by woodPixel

Just for the audience, use these:

O&O ShutUp10++ – Free antispy tool for Windows 10 and 11 -- kills off ALL windows telemetry (aka spying). YOU WILL BE HORRIFIED.
Windows Firewall Control -- boring looking, but VERY powerful and easy to grasp + use

1.1.1.1 — The free app that makes your Internet faster. -- an absolutely free proxy/filter/anti-gov spying VPN (of sorts)
Proton VPN: Secure and Free VPN service for protecting your privacy -- a free VPN with $$ upgrades. VERY GOOD
Trust.Zone VPN: #1 Anonymous VPN - Stop ISP from Tracking You --the cheapest VPN there is and rather good

I've used Trust.Zone for many years, but now use CloudFlare pretty much exclusively.

I'm somewhat paranoid myself; but honestly, y'all are overthinking it. Unless you personally are of direct personal interest to a government agency of some kind; the worst thing that will likely happen is that advertisements that pop up will seem strangely apposite to you.

If you are into politics or political activism of some flavour; that is a whole different set of problems and you should definitely be careful online.

There are bigger real problems that everyone is up against:
- Cryptoware
- Identity theft

Don't click on random email links. Keep backups. Manage your passwords and use two factor authentication (2FA) wherever possible. Use an anti-virus solution.

I had a thought while browsing the news.

Linux Mint with the Cinnamon desktop is out and certainly worth the look.

Linux Mint 21 hits beta • The Register

The reality is the average person can't even install Linux let alone use it.

Originally Posted by Chris Parks

The reality is the average person can't even install Linux let alone use it.

I'm in the less than 1% of people that can (software engineer of > 35 years) install and use it; and I frankly cannot be bothered.

Is installing linux still hard ?


I did my first install redhat 4 in the 90's. It came with a book which showed me how to write my own drivers. I didn't find it difficult but I'm not normal...


I would have thought by now they would have made the installer pretty much pnp ?


My min spec chromebook is astoundingly fast for web etc. I wasn't expecting that and it once again demonstrates just how much more efficient linux ir over windblows. I suppose that's why every common os is now unix based apart from windblows..


I have had to learn a few things as commands are different to or placed differently to windblows or the older unix flavours I am used to. This is pretty trivial though and overall I am very happy.


A brand new laptop for $150 delivered is pretty good...

Mint Cinnamon is designed for the ordinary man.

It has an ISO, that is downloaded and put onto a thumb drive. This is exactly the same as windows.

It finds everything, installs everything and guides one through the install in the same manner as windows. No arcane weirdo mumbo.... though its still there, just like Windows.

Here is an install guide, but I honestly don't think its necessary.

I personally believe the days of the OS are all but dead. The browser is now/soon the "operating system". The OS is merely the tool used to boot the computer to the point where the browser can be launched. This is both good and bad, but this isn't the discussion

I further believe that soon, the computer will simply boot into the browser (crazy fact, there are BIOS's available that have a browser in them). This is essentially the model of the Chrome OS. It is a "web machine". I think it has many good ideas (other than being Google, which is evil).


Ive been having a bit of fun playing with the new Mint Cinnamon in a virtual machine. Anyone can trial it.

A Virtual machine is where one installs the entire operating system in a "window". It is constrained and lives within that window and cannot bust itself out.... there are many good ones to choose from... I use Virtual Box, simply because its very easy and free

By installing the Mint Cinnamon (or any new operating system) in a VM one gets to play with it before committing to "the BIG install"

VM,ISO,BIOS,Linux all could be some sort of disease for all that the average user knows and try explaining will result in glazed eyes and a tendency to go to sleep before the explanation is finished.

Originally Posted by Chris Parks

VM,ISO,BIOS,Linux all could be some sort of disease for all that the average user knows and try explaining will result in glazed eyes and a tendency to go to sleep before the explanation is finished.

Maybe rather than trying to bottom-dollar a laptop, these people should buy an Apple?

Turn it on, it works. No thinking necessary.

I was only trying to offer an interesting alternative.

Originally Posted by woodPixel

Maybe rather than trying to bottom-dollar a laptop, these people should buy an Apple?

Turn it on, it works

...until suddenly it doesn't. Then you're up for fancy prices to replace a whole bunch of proprietary parts

I prefer a PC where I can fix/upgrade anything myself, using commonly available and cheap parts, without having to bow down to some Apple "genius"....lol

An excellent Apple spoof which some may enjoy...

The ArseStore - That Mitchell & Webb Look Series 4 Episode 6 Preview - BBC Two - YouTube

Originally Posted by woodPixel

Maybe rather than trying to bottom-dollar a laptop, these people should buy an Apple?

Turn it on, it works. No thinking necessary.

I was only trying to offer an interesting alternative.

I recently bought a sub $1,000 laptop and it works perfectly. The Apple eco system is brilliant but to fully utilise it you need to change all your computers, phones and whatever else you have and that is not a cheap exercise.

I have been using Linux Mint for a few years now.
I have a HP stream Laptop which only came with 32GB emc drive and 2GB of memory and Windows 10 installed.
It really struggled. I deleted Windows and installed Linux Mint and voila.
I also use Linux Mint on other PC's.

Linux Mint is simple to use and easy to install. You don't need to use Terminal Commands at all.
You can try it out by running it on a USB stick without installing it on your hard disk.
It also comes with an Office Suite installed.

The simplest way to try it out is to download a program called Ventoy and install it on a 8GB USB stick (NOT a portable drive).
Then go to the Linux Mint website and download the Linux Mint ISO file and copy this to the Ventoy USB stick.
You now have a bootable copy of Linux Mint.
Plug it into your PC/Laptop and boot from it. Select Linux Mint and run it.
After about 2 minutes you will be running Linux Mint from the USB stick. Nothing is changed on your hard drive.

If you want to install it on your hard drive you select the Install Button on the Linux Mint screen.
I would suggest you don't do this as you will have Windows and Linux installed on the disk. This is OK
but can messy if you want to get rid of Linux.

I would suggest you install Linux on a separate computer/laptop first to have a real play.
I have also used other options, which I can explain if required.

I have a question or 2 if I may. My needs are specific but simple.


If I had mint on a stick (see what I did there) would I be able to connect to a wifi lan ? and could I send jobs to my printer ?


I'd need those to evaluate it.


The boss used to be a sys admin as was I for a few years but she hates fiddling with computers now and I'm limited. Chrome does what it does well but as mentioned above it's all built around the browser. There are terminals but they are a little buried. I'm old. I must be, because there are times when I am more comfortable constructing a command line 2' long hitting enter and hoping I didn't make a typo


And I don't like spyware...