LMDE3 1st install today

[mike acker]

I ran through my 1st install of LMDE/3 today

It looks to me like the MINT Team has done a lot of very beautiful work !!

The only part I had much trouble with was the disk partitioning. As soon as I started by simply deleting the existing partitions and committing each change, 1 at a time as I got them edited I managed to get through it and get the setup the way I wanted it: 32GB for root, 900GB /home and 28 GB /swap

after that the install went through quite smoothly. this is an older machine which I plan to farm out to my brother as an Introduction to Linux -- and hopefully, salvation for another good person still struggling with that other software.

the "older machine" seems to help for such folks: it gives them a machine to play on -- without risking anything considered valuable. In this case, perhaps a bit down the road a piece I'll get a request to build a Ryzen base machine with the o/s on a SSD! Apparently there are SSD available now that connect through a pci slot rather than on the SATA bus....... maybe add 2-4T drives in a RAID configuration.....

I've been 'Nixing now since 2012. First with Ubuntu, and later to MINT Std, and then to LMDE and LMDE/2. Today: Straight Debian 9.5

I like LMDE/2 a lot. I still have 3 operational LMDE/2 systems here only 1 of which is the primary o/s; the other 2 are alternates, Debian 9 being the primary for those machines currently. I moved ahead with the Straight Debian in order to get the updated Linux Kernel. I didn't get to the 4.14 kernel that I wanted, but I expect Deb9 will move on this in the near future: the new Ryzen chips need the updated kernel for optimal scheduling.

although I suspect it would be necessary to run a benchmark with something like Handbrake or Openshot to actually detect any difference. A sort of initial impression though is -- that on Straight Debian -- I feel more in touch with the actual Linux.... the LMDE feel much more guided -- if that makes any sense ?

still the guidance will likely be what's needed for a newb to get started

I'll confess here though -- I'm a FOSS, Stahlman and EPIC fan. Ubuntu originates with Canonical -- which is a Commercial venture. I shifted to the LMDE system mainly because I wanted to move away from the commercial world and be more of a FOSS fan. GPG is one of my favorite programs. I just wish people would figure out that the important aspect of GPG is ---- AUTHENTICATION. It's not easy to understand how the Trust Model is supposed to work though. I will note though that the Mint Signing Key specified with LMDE/3 authentication procedure -- checked against the key I have on file. GPG keys are only good if people check 'em; they ain't magic

[Penn]

I moved ahead with the Straight Debian in order to get the updated Linux Kernel. I didn't get to the 4.14 kernel that I wanted, but I expect Deb9 will move on this in the near future: the new Ryzen chips need the updated kernel for optimal scheduling.

I'm not entirely sure I understand what you are saying but the 4.14 kernel and some later kernels are available in Debian 9 backports.

https://packages.debian.org/stretch-backports/kernel/

Directions for backports https://backports.debian.org/Instructions/

[mike acker]

Some concern about application software

after loading LMDE/3 I began work on my list of application software. These are selected applications for which I wish to place the launcher in the tray, or panel.

Some of the application programs are more release-level sensitive than others.

Libreoffice was found at level 5.2. The current level is 6.1. I installed the .deb files for 6.1 -- but was unable to remove the 5.2 version using the usual apt-get remove libreoffice5.2* This means the 5.2 version will be available on the system in addition to the 6.1. This can work although it makes it necessary to reset the default program for .odt, .docx, .xlsx, and .ods. i did presentations as well. The issue here is that the 6.1 version of LibreOffice provides better compatibility with .docx and .xlsx format documents. For those of us who wish to move away from commercial software in favor of FOSS compatibility with the proprietary formats may be important. I would add as an aside: if you are sending a finished document use .pdf format whenever possible.

Firefox was found at 60.1esr; 61.0.2 is current although not of the "esr" (extended support release) variety. I wish I knew what this "esr" was all about; Debian uses it too. There are important new goodies coming for Firefox over the next few months; we'll want in on those. For Debian I downloaded Firefox 61 from their site and just run it off the download components; I didn't install it.

If software is packaged as .deb it's easy to install; F-Fox 61 wasn't packaged that way.

The Debian package doesn't show the "Update Needed" indicator in the tray as the MINT versions do; instead we are expected to use the apt update and apt upgrade commands in terminal to recover and apply software maintenance. This is perfectly satisfactory.

Darktable
I've not reviewed Darktable yet but it has been a problem right along. The issue is that Darktable contains lens profiles and camera base curves -- which have to be up to date if you are going to work with any raw images. In today's world this isn't often needed as the technology in today's camera chips moves much of the obsolete raw processing stuff forward into the camera.

the essence of these notes is that for some packages it may be important to recover and apply current updates -- which may not even be available through the backports.

[Bolle1961]

Libre Office 6.1.1 is in Debian backports
Newer Firefox is in the Mozilla Debian repos
https://mozilla.debian.net/

[mike acker]

A while back I had an LMDE/2 go into a re-boot loop. It would come up to the logon screen, and shortly after that it would re-boot again from the beginning.

To fix it I just re-installed the LMDE/2 system

The system was configure in 3 partitions IAW current recomendations: root, home, and swap.

I was thus able to simply direct the installer to use the existing partitions.

this worked, but with the expected consequences: I had to re-install the app software. After the re-installs -- everything still worked -- even the Oracle/Virtual-box Win8 guest machine. Interestingly I didn't run into any file permissions issues. I wondered about that. I had used the same user name and I wondered if the installer was clever enough to pickup on what I was doing.

hmmmmmmm,,,, now methinks this might be an update path for LMDE/3. There's one way to Find Out I've got 2 possible subjects.

[mike acker]

today i did a cold install on a virgin disk

on a machine that has a UEFI capable MoBo

my usual partitioning was refused; the installer demanded a uefi partition in FAT32 format and i had to set some kind of boot flag

I did all that and got past the installer.
However: on the first boot-up the system hung -- with the cursor in the upper left corner ( this is on an HDMI Interface ).

thinking I had botched things up I went back through the install again thinking I'd take the option to let the installer configure the disk for me. No Dice: because the partition table was already established I had to edit the partitions. OK, I got that done, creating their uefi ptn first this time

same result: on the first boot-up it acted like the system had hanged. I think it was trying to show GRUB option to select boot drive; dunno. But when I pressed enter -- on a dumb guess -- the system initiated. I'm typing on it now.

The MoBo on this -- Mobo: ASUSTeK model: A68HM-K v: Rev X.0x -- is set to boot either legacy, or UEFI. I suppose UEFI is the default ? any way to which method it's using ??

anyway -- so far -- so good.

This is one of 3 machines to be converted to LMDE/3. In this case the machine is of high-importance, so I put the new LMDE/3 on a new drive and left the older LMDE/2 drive connected. So it should be possible to boot either o/s using the GRUB option at boot.

[mike acker]

Amendment to above:

Interesting, ... when the machine boots up -- with LMDE/3 in SDA and LMDE/2 in SDB -- GRUB now doesn't detect the LMDE/2 system: in order to boot the LMDE/2 system from SDB I have to fish the BIOS menu and select SDB from the boot menu they have there.

I suspect this is because the new LMDE/3 disk has that uefi/boot partition. This isn't an issue for me: the LMDE/3 system is to be the O/S for the Guest machine as of today,...

[MrEen]

Hi Mike.

Just wanted to let you know, in case you weren't aware, you've been typing your notes into a forum.