2025-02-22

Apple to Linux Journal - First Days

Note, I started writing this at the end of my first day with Linux Mint but have been adding to it over the subsequent 4 days of use. I expected I'd publish it here but it's sorta written as note to myself.

The first day with Linux went fairly well. Downloading, creating a bootable thumbdrive and install was easy. And by easy I mean almost anyone with some experience using and maintaining a computer would likely understand those first few steps and be able to accomplish them. That said, the resulting install was not perfect. There were two issues both of which required basic tech that some may not have immediate access to:

1. Bluetooth on the Mac Mini is mostly non-functional. I've tried 4 keyboards and none work. If they connect at all it's temporary and at no point can I actually use them to type. Luckily I had a wired keyboard and mouse so that I could continue the installation. For the forseable future I'll be using a Keychron keyboard plugged in via USB. Far from a deal breaker but is an example of something not working out of the box. An old logitech mouse with unifying usb reciever working great thanks to the third party Solaar app. I'd suggest having a wired mouse and keyboard handy when getting started!
2. Out of the box wifi may not work. Perhaps this is more of an issue with older hardware. This was the case for the Mac Mini, wifi did not work out of the install. I had watched a few Linux Mint videos before hand and this issue was mentioned so I was ready with an ethernet connection and was prepared to look for the driver which was found and easily installed.

What I've got set-up thus far:

• I've used my domain name based accounts to set-up email, contacts, calendar and tasks in Thunderbird. I've set these up on my Apple devices as well. I'll copy all my iCloud contact, calendar and tasks data to these accounts. I'm not sure what I think of Thunderbird yet. It's interesting to have Contacts, email, tasks and calendars all in one app. It's working well enough.
• FileZilla for remote website updates via ftp.
• Firefox syncing with iPads.
• Accessing the M1 Mac Mini from Linux Mac was easy so I've got my websites copied over to an attached hard drive as well as most of my iCloud documents. That drive is backed up via rsync to another drive.
• Trying text/code editors: Sublime Text, Kate, VSCodium, Text Editor (included the default text editor). More below on this topic.

Still to sort out:

• Do I need an RSS app? I'm likely to just keep reading RSS on iPad.
• I'll need to learn how to use Sublime Text. The basics are easy of course so the usual html edits are no problem. But I'd come up with a really helpful, automated process using Textastic and Shortcuts on the iPad. More on this in below notes on text editors.
• Less immediate to basic function but a problem that I'll need to get sorted, I've not been able to get filesharing from the Linux Mac to work. I can see the Linux Mac from the iPad and have selected folders to share but cannot actually access any shared folder. A quick scan of the internet and I've found others having the problem. Will come back to it later.

A few of the things I'm loving:

• System settings. Yes, this seems funny. It's not like I hang out in this app but being new to Linux I appreciate that the layout is easy to navigate. Thus far I've had no problem finding the things I need to get everything sorted.
• I stay in Dark Mode full time and the default theme is very easy on the eyes. Generally appreciate the visual design of the OS/Desktop. And because it's Linux there are lots of additional theme options to choose from. I'll stick with this one for the moment as I'm enjoying it.
• Window Snapping! On the iPad Pro I bounce between Stage Manager and the old Split Screen multitasking. I appreciate that with Stage Manager I can have 3 to 4 windows open. But I like the ease of use of Split Screen. Linux Mint has offers multiple modes together. I can pull a window to the edge of the screen: top, bottom or either side and it will snap and fill half of the screen. Meanwhile I can have freely sized windows elsewhere in the same space. It's still sort of free form, but easier to manage. Oh, and it tiles into quarters too.

Text/Code editors

• Text Editor is the default preinstalled text app and has built in support for Markdown- imagine that! Not something you'll find on a Mac. That said it's missing some of the features common to iPad Markdown editors such as export to other formats like pdf or html. Nevertheless, it still seems very solid, easy to use without being overwhelming. It has no problem accessing network folders and files which is important as I'll be working from a network folder. Handles the One Big Text File(OBTF) via the network with no problem. Bonus: tabbed browsing and unlike most text editors on the iPad, it has 'Change Case' right there in the contextual menu.
• Sublime Text is another option. It's excellent but at a cost of $100. Handles network files/folders with no problem. That said, it lacks sorting of files/folders in the sidebar!?! What?? I've only begun to dip into what's possible with the app though. Hoping there are ways to automate my blogging process.
• VSCodium is a free option similar to Sublime Text. But this seems like a no go from the start because there seems to be no way to open folders from the local network. UMMMMM, what? WHAT? Honestly, wtf. How can I not be able to open up a folder from the local network in the sidebar?? After further investigation I'm seeing that this may be a problem with the "flatpack" install presented in the Software Manager. Will come back to it.
• Kate was the first I downloaded, similar to VSCodium and Sublime Text. I deleted it because while it seemed to see and handle networked folders it kept crashing.
• Ghostwriter is a dedicated Markdown app but only saves local files. When I access files on the network it errors on saving and I've not found a fix.

Third party apps

The Software Manager for finding and installing new, apps is easy to use! Keyword or app name searching with a one click install. Many apps require that other components be installed and a pop-up alerts the user to this so, technically a second click is required to proceed with the install after that pop-up. It's been a seemless process. I noted above though that it's not perfect. The VSCodium install from teh Software Manager seems to be different from what one might get via a different install process. Investigating.

• Shortwave Oh my, this is going to be a favorite. An app for playing internet radio and right off I'm finding some fantastic LOFI which I've been listening to a lot the past year. Discovered via this video on one of my favorite new YouTube Channels, Veronica Explains.
• Liferea for RSS. Seems to work pretty well.
• For photos, I've installed Digikam but have not used it and have no idea how well it works to manage or edit photos. Worst case scenario I can keep using my Mac for photos. The key thing is to pull them out of iCloud so I can downgrade that plan. The long-term goal is to migrate out of the Apple ecosystem.

General impressions thus far

Going into day five of using Linux Mint and I'm already finding myself feeling fairly comfortable. Another few days and I think I'll feel fully at home. A common perception people seem to have is that Linux is difficult and I'm guessing years ago this was certainly more true. And I may yet discover that it is more difficult than I currently realize. After 4 full days and a bit of looking around I've still have not found the bluetooth fix. (I'm using the most recent version of Linux Mint (22.1) on a 2012 Mac Mini. While Bluetooth does show up as active and working, when I try to connect to any bluetooth keyboard the connection is not stable. If it connects at all it will then disconnect seconds later. It will continue to connect and disconnect.)

On the surface though using Linux Mint should seem relatively familiar to anyone who's used Windows or Mac. It's probably closer to the Windows experience as it has a generic, default task bar at the bottom with a start menu that has a search bar and lists installed apps and functions like shutdown and restart. And, like Windows each window has it's own menu bar. That said, most Mac users should have no problem adapting.

From Mac to iPad to Linux!

After using macOS for 25 years I switched to the iPad because I enjoyed and appreciated the simpler experience that still let me get my work done. It enables me but also stays out of my way. The Mac and Linux offer sharp contrast with a seemingly endless list of options to use and organize windows. The default Cinnamon install of Linux Mint has 4 workspaces. I'm familiar with Spaces from the Mac and even the iPad with Stage Manager has a similar though more basic implementation. But I'm not at all certain these are helpful for me. I'm finding myself drowning in windows that seem to be breeding on their own. lol. I'll either come up with a better way to organize them or I'll stop using the feature. I'm not sure which way it will go.

I'm open to new (or new old) features and methods for working. Over the past four months I'd created my own blogging system based on iPad apps, namely Shortcuts and Textastic. I like to bend and roll, I'm flexible and enjoy the mental exercise of learning new features and creating new workflows. Now I'll add the toolset available on Linux. It may be that I'll blend my iPad blogging/publishing workflow with Linux. The iPad is ready to be used in a stand next to the screen I'm using now. With a flick of a switch on the keyboard I can switch over to carry on the process from the iPad workflow.

Long-term Goal

The long-term goal is to eventually drop all Apple devices and services but that is a long way off. As I mentioned in the post a couple days ago I'll be using an iPad Pro and Affinity apps for at least another 5 years, perhaps longer if the world has not collapsed (only half joking). Other proprietary file formats I'm invested in include Numbers and Pages, both made by Apple.

My immediate goal is to move everything else I do to a more open, crossplatform process which will let me work on any device without encountering too much friction. And going forward I'll seek to use file formats that are either cross platform or are easily transferrable. I'm thinking here about Libre Office and how well that works with both Apple and Microsoft files.

I've been spoiled by remaining in the Apple ecosystem where everything works so well together. No doubt that going forward there will be bumps and required work arounds. I'm okay with that because my priority has shifted away from that convenience and towards flexibility and openess.

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