Acer Aspire One Cloudbook

In my previous blog post about how great the Acer Aspire One Cloudbook works as a thin client I need to add a few words about it’s operating system. The machine comes with Windows 10 Home 64 bit, version 1511. Problem with Windows 10 is that it auto updates, and there is no space left on the 32GB drive to update to version 1607 (the anniversary update). In my case it did try anyways, offcourse without any notice other than “install updates and shut down”. Next morning when I was going to use the machine it went ahead trying to update and was busy with this for a few hours. Problem is that when I want to use my machine, it cannot be busy with updating windows. Anyway, when done, it all crashed (I suspect due to hdd space), and after one more hour it had restored to the previous version 1511.

After this I realized how not in controlled I was with using this machine with Win10. I therefore went ahead installing Linux Mint 18 Cinnamon 64 bit. If you are doing this, remember to go into BIOS and turn boot from UEFI to Legacy mode. Also to get the touchpad working, set it from Advanced to Simple mode.

Now the machine is running Linux flawlessly and with less system resources. I can still use RDP and Teamviewer to reach my main machine, and the best is that I’m in total control over my Aspire One. It updates only when I tell it to.

Thanks Linux, you saved me once again…

Where a $199 laptop really shines

So I was looking for a laptop with long battery life, SSD disk and i3 or i5 Intel CPU. I was going to use it for some emails, programming and general surfing when I was away from home. I was tempted to buy one of those expensive ultrabooks, but thought it was too much money for my casual use.

When considering what to buy, it’s always a good idea find your real needs. The laptop was only going to be used when I was not in my home office. My main i7 with 16GB RAM is really covering all I need. A laptop would mean that files and software would be on two machines and I had to think of a cloud solution to share the files.
Then it naturally struck me what I really needed. I want to be able to work on my main machine from anywhere.
Obviously when working remotely I never needed a expensive ultrabook because that would just be a total waste of system resources.

So I ended up buying an Acer Aspire One Cloudbook at $199. It has a Celeron N3050 CPU with 2GB RAM and 32GB eMMC drive. Off course the machine is barely useful for anything else than Notepad or Calculator except my main use…. working remotely.

Having used this solution for some weeks now I have all good experiences:

  • The computer has a decent keyboard and a OK screen.
  • Machine is fanless and makes no noise at all (YAY).
  • It is lightweight and small (like an expensive ultrabook)
  • Build quality in general is actually quite good
  • It’s something odd to sit on a $199 computer and see you have 8 CPU threads, 16GB RAM and 3TB HDDs at your disposal.
  • Outstanding battery life (double YAY)

Long battery life was one of my original demands and this computer runs 14 hours straight!!!
Working remotely means even a Celeron CPU have very little work to do. CPU is around 2-10% busy, and memory is using around 1GB (win10), and still there is 1GB left -again good news for battery life.

What about the internet connection with lag and response time working remotely ?
It is (almost) like sitting at my home office. It works amazingly well using Teamviewer. One day I was even connected via 4G using my smartphone to make a wifi signal. It worked impressively well, and it didn’t use much battery either, neither on the phone or the laptop.

So a $199 laptop really shines…when being used as a thin client.

My first full year with Linux

For years I’ve been curious about Linux and have tested it on numerous occasions, mostly on virtual machines or on older hardware. That changed a year ago when I decided to go for Linux Mint on a new SSD drive on my main Quad Core i7 machine with 16GB RAM. It was a couple of months before the release of Windows 10.

So what is my first year experience with Linux Mint as my main OS ?
It has been just GREAT!!. No errors, controlled updates, no unwanted reboots. A intuitive user interface and fantastic performance!
I’ve found replacements of Windows software to fit all my needs and my appreciation for open source software has grown every day. It has not been free of charge. I have donated to a lot of projects to show my gratitude.

It’s fair to share that I’m a relatively conservative user. I think I’m a bit experienced over the years on what to do and what not do to avoid breaking systems. I have probably avoided some crashes just because of that.

A ground rule for keeping a system is to have backups. Naturally I have it for Linux also.
I have quarterly backups (full image) of my SSD using Clonezilla, and daily, weekly and monthly backup of my system installation using Timeshift.
My personal data files are mostly stored in the cloud (at least the important ones).
I have not needed to restore any backup yet, but it sure is a good insurance.

A Linux geek ?
Not at all…. I’m just a regular user of an operating system. If I can avoid using terminal, I will. Although some knowledge is gained around folder structures, terminal, ssh, sudo apt-get install, ls -l, mv, cp and let’s not forget htop.
My main argument is that Linux (as of 2016) is VERY user friendly. It just works….

I actually now think Windows 10 is harder to learn. Microsoft have made it even more difficult with its inconsistent interface having two ways to solve some of the same kind of tasks (old vs new convergence). And what’s up with the forced upgrade ? Many inexperienced users are now using Edge as their main internet browser and wondering, what did just happen ? where is everything ?

Don’t think Microsoft is the only OS. There is many good alternatives out there and most are free -unless you will donate to a good cause…

I will go for Linux Mint for yet another year!

When will Linux compete with Windows on gaming?

Linux is a free operating system and thousands of games are available…also for free. Even Solitaire games comes with no cost and with Windows 10 you have to pay for that.

When it comes to AAA games Linux falls short. Although many Windows titles will work through Wine, it often results in performance and compatibility issues. Even games that runs natively on Linux, often performs significantly worse than on Windows.

This all comes down to drivers and API’s. It’s been a while since Linus Thorvald’s “finger” to Nvidia. Now drivers (open and closed) are improving for both Nvidia and AMD for Linux.
I think Steam, being a major gaming platform is to thank for that. The Steam platform now offers 2590 titles (not free) for Linux and their most popular title DOTA 2 and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive runs natively on Linux. Valve’s Steam Box and SteamOS is interesting, but it definitely benefits Linux community overall.

Then there is OpenGL vs DirectX. Windows10 ships with DX12, and it looks VERY promising in favor of Windows. Devs will probably invest their time where the money is?

If you buy a PC in the store it will likely come with Windows 10 and since you have already paid for a Windows license I think there is no reason for you to install Linux instead (as a gaming platform).

Hardcore gamers on the other hand often build their PC’s with very specific components, and they may want to spend money on a SSD drive for the price of a Windows license. Specific games runs very well in Linux, so for some gamers Linux is really the best choice.

It’s exciting to see how games are improving on Linux, but for now you may want both in dual-boot….

After all, one of them is free