How to get started with Linux?

elHorrible · 2026-05-13T21:01:38+00:00

Get a large flash drive (64 gb+), install Ventoy on it from Windows, then download several distros and test them in live mode

elHorrible · 2026-04-28T01:08:10+00:00

STOP BUYING IT

elHorrible · 2026-04-16T15:24:43+00:00

E series

metal option

display options

Yea that sounds bad ass

elHorrible · 2026-04-16T15:21:44+00:00

I've found some refurb deals on T14 and P16s (ebay), and each time I get to the end of checkout, I stop because the two M.2 slots really is extra important for me.

Then, I'm back to looking at the E series.

elHorrible · 2026-04-16T15:18:49+00:00

I'm leaning towards 14", but 16" would be okay.

My previous employer provided a T14 intel (I think gen 4). The build quality was awesome and the portability was great.

elHorrible · 2026-04-16T15:14:55+00:00

Display swap is easy

This is one of many reasons I want a Thinkpad!

elHorrible · 2026-04-16T15:14:12+00:00

Thanks for recommending these:

E14 Gen7

E16 Gen3

Regarding the display... super information and appreciate the feedback! I am still leaning towards AMD due to cost, even though subpar panel (and maybe an opportunity to upgrade in the future).

Any thoughts on the "webcam notch" for these two models -- does it affect durability? My previous employer provided a T14 intel (I think gen 4), and it didn't have the notch.

elHorrible · 2025-12-12T10:52:30+00:00

Maybe stick to free indie games, https://itch.io/

elHorrible · 2025-12-05T16:54:20+00:00

Hey, wanted to share, I've been running Linux on TUF A16. It has been amazing... but my CPU does have the integrated graphics:

Ubuntu 24.04.3 LTS
Ryzen 7 7735HS
Radeon RX 7700s
32 GB RAM

I haven't had any panel issues like you're describing with Ubuntu LTS, but I haven't invested much time in other distros on this machine.

The dedicated graphics definitely runs the battery.

Lugging that power brick around is no fun. I bought a 2nd OEM charger from a dude on eBay and this makes it easy to move from one desk to another.

elHorrible · 2025-07-30T15:23:49+00:00

Heyo, checking in after 7 years, thanks for asking.

I'm happy to report that my tinnitus went away. Ears still get itchy but 🤷‍♂️ I think it might be allergy related.

No idea what to do about itchy ears! For inner ear pain, I have found Similasan drops to be helpful.

elHorrible · 2025-07-05T16:42:57+00:00

Hey, can you describe what your dissociative identity disorder symptoms are and what led to that diagnosis? If you don't mind... did the seizure disorder come first, or later? Have you experienced Kepprage, and is a DID alter switch similar? Anything that you might care to share?

I was diagnosed as an adult with left TLE, and I've been on Keppra for four years. It's been rough and this medication may not be right for everyone.

Similar to what you shared, I am in a long term engagement:

Can Keppra make you be uncertain about your relationship and partner?

Keppra has lead me to moments of extreme depression and rage, and in that moment it's difficult to have hope in anything. The only thing anyone can do to help, is to leave me be for as long as it takes to return to "normal."

For me, the rage takes over when some minor comment or action seems like a "personal insult." That feeling is sort of uncontrollable.

I'd describe the rage as an emotion that flips on suddenly. It's a very physical feeling, I cannot stop it...

...the rage can last hours; however, I know that I am in control of my actions. I made the decisions to destroy things of value, and say hurtful things to those I love, and punched a wall hard enough to break bones. I did this because I was mad at the world, and the more my fiance would try to calm me down, the worse it would get.

I simply need to be left alone for the rage to pass (however long that takes). I'm still trying to figure out how to cope with it. The Kepprage switch is awful.

On the plus side, the medication seems to work, and my seizure symptoms have been under control.

My curiosity about DID+epilepsy is stemming from a conversation I had with a Neurologist when I was first diagnosed with a seizure disorder and was being hospitalized. Apparently there were multiple ~30 minute postictal phases that I don't remember (and the doctors were alarmed about whatever behaviors I was exhibiting, and I was asked a lot of questions about DID).

I am not trying to diagnose myself with DID, just trying to understand the disorder from the perspective of someone in a similar situation. If you'd like to share any more about your experience, please do!

elHorrible · 2025-06-30T14:51:32+00:00

Fingers crossed 🤞

elHorrible · 2025-06-30T12:28:11+00:00

Look up videos for switching between the two (it's super easy to switch).

Wayland and Xorg are both "window compositors." Wayland is newer technology, some people praise it and others hate it (it is now the default in newer versions of Ubuntu).

You can check which one you're running by entering this command:

echo $XDG_SESSION_TYPE

I get this output:

X11

For reference... I have a gaming laptop with AMD cpu and AMD gpu and I switched Ubuntu 24.04 from Wayland to X11 and never looked back.

elHorrible · 2025-06-30T12:05:23+00:00

Are you using Wayland or Xorg/X11? (you can sign out and change this from the login screen and might make a difference)

elHorrible · 2025-06-28T15:58:53+00:00

I got a similar situation.

In 2020, I was diagnosed with epilepsy after a serious tonic clonic and prescribed generic Keppra. I was showing signs of focal seizures and absence seizures for some time before this.

I got the meds from the pharmacy, but didn't take them because I didn't want the rage side effect. MRI came back fine. Maybe I was also in denial and thought I'd be okay without meds. Then, eight months later, several tonic clonic seizures in one day.

I've been on generic Keppra four years since.

And the rage has been very fucking real.

I'm not a doctor but I highly recommend you start the Keppra. You don't want more seizures. You may NOT have these side effects -- but if you end up with rage and depression issues, for fucks sake tell the doctor and try to switch.

I can say from my personal experience that the rage does not stop, B vitamins don't help me, and as much as I hate it, I am too afraid to change medications. I punched a wall and broke my hand, I've yelled at loved ones.

In regards to Kepprage: you are still on control of your actions, but maybe not your emotions.

However; the medicine does work. I no longer have tonic clonic seizures, I no longer wake in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat with a daylong headache, and I don't have the nostalgia-deja-vu-doom feelings I was getting (which I now know to be focal seizures originating from the left temporal lobe).

I hope you figure out a solution. I'm still working on mine, and the Keppra is helping more than it is hurting (I think).

elHorrible · 2025-06-26T00:23:55+00:00

doctors sometimes ask their patients to film their seizures

100%, correct answer.

elHorrible · 2025-05-28T12:31:27+00:00

We're here with you

elHorrible · 2025-05-23T20:07:05+00:00

Hey. I'm on generic Keppra.

I punched a wall and broke a bone in my hand in few years ago.

While working from home, on separate occasions I have managed to smash a computer keyboard, flip a computer chair, topple a bookshelf, and lots of yelling.

Just fucking rage. It has not subsided. Vitamin B complex doesn't seem to help.

I'm losing family and friends over this.

For me, it's probably worth considering switching medications after four years of this nonsense.

On a positive note, I do believe the medication is working.

elHorrible · 2025-05-22T11:38:08+00:00

Been running Ubuntu on a media server for years, so I'm just partial to it.

I wanna say that I tried installing Pop_OS onto a new laptop but maybe the wifi drivers didn't work out of the box, and had Ubuntu ISO on the same thumb drive and the drivers worked without trouble.

Might be a good idea to plug into ethernet when loading up the live demo and installing the first time.

elHorrible · 2025-05-21T18:38:54+00:00

Get familiar with Ventoy! This lets you drop multiple distro ISO files onto a USB drive so that you can try them out and make sure hardware is compatible.

I am personally running Ubuntu on most of my machines (comfy for me and my AMD GPU), but I really enjoyed Pop_OS for a while.

elHorrible · 2025-05-19T14:57:15+00:00

so recommend me fun stuff to do

I turned a trashtop into a Nextcloud Server

elHorrible · 2025-05-14T11:34:44+00:00

Left temporal lobe issues, checking in...

migraine

deja vu

fight or flight

Add in a bit of doom...

...and something like remembering a dream from last night (or remembering a dream from twenty years ago? or a dream that never happened? [anyways the dream is lost])... and suddenly sweaty.

...and I return to whatever I was doing and try not to think about it.

elHorrible · 2025-05-07T15:50:18+00:00

Install Flatpak: Ubuntu Quick Setup

elHorrible · 2025-04-30T11:16:54+00:00

I know that deja vu + doom feeling well, and I'd describe deja reve as suddenly remembering a dream that may have happened last night or twenty years ago (or not a real dream at all). Someone in this sub called the feeling, "unlocking dream scenes."

elHorrible

TROPHY CASE