Technology Distro Wars - The Linux Menace

[mrttao]

I suggest linux mint, with cinnamon desktop.
Very familiar experience for windows user.
And they won't spy on you for biden.

Home - Linux Mint

Linux Mint is an elegant, easy to use, up to date and comfortable desktop operating system.

linuxmint.com

 

[Agent23]

I suggest linux mint, with cinnamon desktop.
Very familiar experience for windows user.
And they won't spy on you for biden.

Home - Linux Mint

Linux Mint is an elegant, easy to use, up to date and comfortable desktop operating system.

linuxmint.com

Yeah, tried it recently, it is Ubuntu without the dumb bloat.
Not having to purge garbage like snap, pin package versions and put in other effort to get normal, fast apps without that trash makes it worth it alone.
Also, we forgot to tell you about appimage and similar newfangled "package" management .

Use the fxce or MATE version, though.
Not that you can't switch later, but it will be a bit harder for a new user.

Edit: yeah, smells like we will have a TSLUG thread soon.

 

[mrttao]

Yeah, tried it recently, it is Ubuntu without the dumb bloat.

Yes, but it also has its own original desktop environment called cinnamon which is very familiar for a windows user

 

[Agent23]

Yes, but it also has its own original desktop environment called cinnamon which is very familiar for a windows user

I am pretty sure cinnamon was an independent project.
And that thing is a fork of GNOME3, which is bloated, slow shit.

Using xfce or MATE is better.

 

[posh-goofiness]

@Agent23 You don't like Snaps, Flatpaks, or AppImages? Or just Snaps and AppImages?

 

[Agent23]

@Agent23 You don't like Snaps, Flatpaks, or AppImages? Or just Snaps and AppImages?

I don't like snaps since they are huge and slow and because of the way Ubuntu pushed them on everyone.

I think I have had to use flatpack and appimage like twice.

I am skeptical about the whole containerization for Desktop apps tbh.

 

[Scottty]

I had the feeling you omitted it on purpose.
I am also shocked there are people here who never tried linux.

MS is part of the enemy. Not as evil as google, but still evil. And they have backdoors for the CIA to access your computer

Can you be certain that Linux doesn't?

I know it's possible to compile a Linux system such that you know it has no backdoors, but for many of the pre-built distros, some people are suspicious about why they all suddenly had to use systemd.

 

[Agent23]

Can you be certain that Linux doesn't?

I know it's possible to compile a Linux system such that you know it has no backdoors, but for many of the pre-built distros, some people are suspicious about why they all suddenly had to use systemd.

Systemd was a combination of megalomania and vendor lock in attempts.
And probably Puttering and his buddies trying to build a bloat ware project to justify their employment.

 

[mrttao]

Can you be certain that Linux doesn't?

I know it's possible to compile a Linux system such that you know it has no backdoors, but for many of the pre-built distros, some people are suspicious about why they all suddenly had to use systemd.

While I can't be 100%, the fact the code is visible to anyone means it is very difficult to get away with a widely distributed backdoor.
Every single windows OS install has confirmed backdoors.
While for linux it is a maybe with a history of foiling attempts.

Here are 3 documented foiled attempts to make a linux backdoor


Here is a case where the NSA slipped in a backdoor. and despite sitting there in plain sight, it went unnoticed for 10 years due to its obscure location.

This Linux backdoor went undetected for 10 years

Bvp47 malware was used in hundreds of attacks over the past decade

www.techradar.com

The anatomy of suspected top-tier hidden NSA backdoor

Bvp47 of yore said to have used BPF to conceal comms in network traffic

www.theregister.com

Once it was noticed it was removed.
This is the most successful backdoor attempt to date on linux.

But this was not a widespread "every single linux system" attack.
Rather it required intentional installation. Agents first need to compromise a system and then intentionally install a rare program. And then activate it manually. And then it had many many layers of obfuscation to hide it.
This all culminated in very few systems being infected.

Pangu Lab claims Bvp47 was deployed against more than 287 targets in 45 countries, including China, Germany, Japan, India, and Russia.

 

[mrttao]

That all being said... every modern computer has a hardware backdoor sitting in the bios nowadays.

Now you, too, can disable Intel ME ‘backdoor’ thanks to the NSA

Researchers discovered an undocumented configuration setting that can used to disable the Intel ME master controller that has been likened to a backdoor.

www.csoonline.com

in 2017 someone leaked the NSA code used to disable the backdoor in intel hardware. Something the NSA did on their own computers. So that their computers won't have a backdoor.

They since closed off this method of disabling it though.

 

[posh-goofiness]

Unfortunately I have an AMD cpu and no one's disabled it's "secure" co-processor.

 

[mrttao]

I suggest linux mint, with cinnamon desktop.
Very familiar experience for windows user.
And they won't spy on you for biden.

Home - Linux Mint

Linux Mint is an elegant, easy to use, up to date and comfortable desktop operating system.

linuxmint.com

My mother is in her late 60s and I got her to switch to cinnamon. and she honestly at times couldn't tell the difference. as in "I thought you said you changed it"

this is partially her inattentiveness as I can very clearly see the differences.
but just saying, this is really good.

Unfortunately I have an AMD cpu and no one's disabled it's "secure" co-processor.

They "fixed" the ability of commoners to disable the hardware backdoor on intel systems. So it does not matter which system you have nowadays, it has a hardware backdoor.

 

[Scottty]

They "fixed" the ability of commoners to disable the hardware backdoor on intel systems. So it does not matter which system you have nowadays, it has a hardware backdoor.

But what does said backdoor actually let them do?

 

[mrttao]

But what does said backdoor actually let them do?

Literally everything.
Even when your computer is shut down, if it hasn't been physically unplugged it can read and modify the files on your hdd. send files, receive files, and spy on everything you do, access anything encrypted, steal your passwords, the works.

It is in fact a seperate PC inside your PC that is running minix.

This discussion both lists the various abilities and has some links for sources

 

[Scottty]

Literally everything.
Even when your computer is shut down, if it hasn't been physically unplugged it can read and modify the files on your hdd. send files, receive files, and spy on everything you do, access anything encrypted, steal your passwords, the works.

It is in fact a seperate PC inside your PC that is running minix.

This discussion both lists the various abilities and has some links for sources

Colour me dubious that it can do any of that without any power to the machine, or any network connection.

 

[mrttao]

Colour me dubious that it can do any of that without any power to the machine, or any network connection.

I didn't say it can do it without power to the machine.
I said it can do it when the machine is "off" yet still plugged in to power.

Your computer is drawing power even when "off". You can set it to "wake up" on specific dates or when it detects certain inputs. Such as pressing a power button on your USB keyboard. the only way for it to truly be off is to unplug it.

And of course it does NOT work without a network connection.