at the end of my rope with this desktop

[JKelly]

Good morning,

I have a dell opti plex machine. I will post the photo of this sucker as an attachment. It came with windows 10 and while my college uses windows 11. but, I can run windows 11 in a VM with virtual box they said. NOPE!!!!!! lets just say I had to get a new NvME hard drive to recover the OS and then added more RAM. at this point my finals are this week. after that I want to switch fully to linux. can anyone give me any directions in where to go from here. Sorry, I am exhausted and tired and just overwhelmed.

What I need….. an IDE for python, Rust, Swift and SQL for now. there may also be a class in C++ next year. I do use PyCharm on my windows desktop and have the education pro of that. I am looking to see if they work with Linux. I also need a reliable VM for windows. I hate the OS but it’s one that I will need as I am taking Net + (which uses test out on the web. the lab stated chrome or firefox is best to use that), and AWS cloud infrastructure along with quantive mathematics. Quite frankly I would like to just use the test out system for windows as needed but I know they will set up labs and projects off the test out to see how much you have learned. so that VM is needed. my college uses outlook, I do check that email on chrome

but if there is a workaround let me know.

I am looking for stable and reliable linux as I can not afford to replace this desktop. I looked and the motherboard will not upgrade the CPU. I just have to work with what I have.

ps. had the BSOD and had to rebuild the system last week along with doing all my projects and class work.

J

thank you in advance for any and all help.

 

[The Duck]

That desktop will run most any version of Linux.

Just create a bootable usb drive using etcher and install Linux Mint and give it a test drive and see what you think of it.

Plenty of members on this forum run Linux Mint so plenty of advice is available.

Home - Linux Mint

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

linuxmint.com

All versions - Linux Mint

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

linuxmint.com

Documentation - Linux Mint

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

linuxmint.com

Welcome to linux.org forum.

 

[JKelly]

That desktop will run most any version of Linux.

Just create a bootable usb drive using etcher and install Linux Mint and give it a test drive and see what you think of it.

Plenty of members on this forum run Linux Mint so plenty of advic is available if needed.

Home - Linux Mint

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

linuxmint.com

All versions - Linux Mint

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

linuxmint.com

Documentation - Linux Mint

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

linuxmint.com

Welcome to linux.org forum.

for some reason I always default to ubuntu. let me look at mint as i have heard its great. I know brickwizard at one time told me that dells are workhorses for linux OS.

 

[The Duck]

If you are used to Ubuntu than stay with it.

I failed to catch that you have used Ubuntu.

I like Ubuntu.

I just suggested Linux Mint because it's a good distro to start with.

 

[f33dm3bits]

What I need….. an IDE for python, Rust, Swift and SQL for now. there may also be a class in C++ next year. I do use PyCharm on my windows desktop and have the education pro of that. I am looking to see if they work with Linux.

The community edition of Pycharm should be available in the default repos of most distributions. This is how it looks like on Arch for me.

extra/pycharm-community-edition 2024.1.4-1
    Python IDE for Professional Developers

I don't know what IDE's are use for rust and swift and SQL, but I went looking but it looks like Visual Studio Code supports Rust, Swift and SQL development and it supports dotnet as well. I don't think it's considered a real IDE but there are probably other options that work on Linux as well.

Visual Studio Code on Linux

Get Visual Studio Code up and running on Linux.

code.visualstudio.com

Rust in Visual Studio Code

Learn about Visual Studio Code editor features (code completion, debugging, snippets, linting) for Rust.

code.visualstudio.com

Swift Extension for Visual Studio Code

As Swift is deployed across more platforms, it is important that Swift can be developed on more platforms as well. The Swift Extension for Visual Studio Code provides a cross-platform solution for Swift development supporting macOS, Linux, and Windows.

www.swift.org

Transact-SQL in Visual Studio Code

Learn about Visual Studio Code editor features (code completion, debugging, snippets, linting) for Transact-SQL.

code.visualstudio.com

Using .NET in Visual Studio Code

Get started writing and debugging .NET apps with Visual Studio Code.

code.visualstudio.com

I don't think it's considered a real IDE but there are probably other options that work on Linux as well.

I also need a reliable VM for windows.

What kind of tasks will you need to be doing on that vm?

I would go with something you are already familiar with so either Ubuntu or something Ubuntu based like Linux Mint, Elementary, Zorin, Kubuntu, etc. otherwise you will have to figure out more than you are currently waning to invest in. And if you want to game on your system you might want to have a look at PopOS which is also Ubuntu based.

I haven't used this but you could try using outlook-for-linux to see if that is usable for you.

Install outlook-for-linux on Linux | Flathub

Unofficial Microsoft Outlook client for Linux using Electron

flathub.org

Install outlook-for-linux on Ubuntu using the Snap Store | Snapcraft

Get the latest version of outlook-for-linux for on Ubuntu - Outlook for Linux

snapcraft.io

I think it's the webclient wrappred in electron so the question is that good enough for you? If not I would probably just run that in your Windows vm because getting Office to run on Linux can be a pain even though it can be done with applications that make it easier which use wine under the hood.

 

[JKelly]

If you are used to Ubuntu than stay with it.

I failed to catch that you have used Ubuntu.

I like Ubuntu.

I just suggested Linux Mint because it's a good distro to start with.

That’s perfectly fine! I read over the post and realized I forgot to add that I used Ubuntu in the late 90’s to early 2000’s. then hubs and I switched to iOS. thank you!

 

[Brickwizard]

You should not have many problems changing to Linux, most [if not all] the applications you need will be available in the main distributions, your hardest choice will be which desktop you fancy using [you can get a good idea what they look like, in the post a picture of your desktop thread,]

Post a screenshot of your Desktop

OK, seeing as we're starting from scratch with the new Linux.org - I figured we may as well resurrect this classic thread in the Desktop section..... Simply post a screenshot of your Desktop! Here's my current desktop - dwm running on Debian testing, with a fairly vanilla conky config: NOTE...

www.linux.org

https://www.linux.org/threads/what-is-the-best-linux-distribution-which-should-i-use.43789/

 

[f33dm3bits]

It may also be helpful to know what type of desktop environment(DE) you like as in workflow and looks. That way you can pick a distribution that comes installed with that DE by default.

 

[JKelly]

The community edition of Pycharm should be available in the default repos of most distributions. This is how it looks like on Arch for me.

extra/pycharm-community-edition 2024.1.4-1
    Python IDE for Professional Developers

I don't know what IDE's are use for rust and swift and SQL, but I went looking but it looks like Visual Studio Code supports Rust, Swift and SQL development and it supports dotnet as well. I don't think it's considered a real IDE but there are probably other options that work on Linux as well.

Visual Studio Code on Linux

Get Visual Studio Code up and running on Linux.

code.visualstudio.com

Rust in Visual Studio Code

Learn about Visual Studio Code editor features (code completion, debugging, snippets, linting) for Rust.

code.visualstudio.com

Swift Extension for Visual Studio Code

As Swift is deployed across more platforms, it is important that Swift can be developed on more platforms as well. The Swift Extension for Visual Studio Code provides a cross-platform solution for Swift development supporting macOS, Linux, and Windows.

www.swift.org

Transact-SQL in Visual Studio Code

Learn about Visual Studio Code editor features (code completion, debugging, snippets, linting) for Transact-SQL.

code.visualstudio.com

Using .NET in Visual Studio Code

Get started writing and debugging .NET apps with Visual Studio Code.

code.visualstudio.com

I don't think it's considered a real IDE but there are probably other options that work on Linux as well.

What kind of tasks will you need to be doing on that vm?

I would go with something you are already familiar with so either Ubuntu or something Ubuntu based like Linux Mint, Elementary, Zorin, Kubuntu, etc. otherwise you will have to figure out more than you are currently waning to invest in. And if you want to game on your system you might want to have a look at PopOS which is also Ubuntu based.

I haven't used this but you could try using outlook-for-linux to see if that is usable for you.

Install outlook-for-linux on Ubuntu using the Snap Store | Snapcraft

Get the latest version of outlook-for-linux for on Ubuntu - Outlook for Linux

snapcraft.io

I think it's the webclient wrappred in electron so the question is that good enough for you? If not I would probably just run that in your Windows vm because getting Office to run on Linux can be a pain even though it can be done with applications that make it easier which use wine under the hood.

I am using pycharm and VS for now. Just looked up specs for both of those and will port over to linux. right now I have no idea what future tasks are going to be used on the VM. but this week we had to set up a p2p network and share files. over 3/4 of the class couldn’t get a stable working windows 11 in VM. inhales deeply.

I dont use windows office for anything. I switched to libra office and google docs on the desktop. everytime I went to use the office products last semester i had to re enter my details to get it out of read only mode. i gave up for the sake of time and just used alternatives.

thank you for that outlook link. i will look into it.

thanks!

 

[JKelly]

You should not have many problems changing to Linux, most [if not all] the applications you need will be available in the main distributions, your hardest choice will be which desktop you fancy using [you can get a good idea what they look like, in the post a picture of your desktop thread,]

Post a screenshot of your Desktop

OK, seeing as we're starting from scratch with the new Linux.org - I figured we may as well resurrect this classic thread in the Desktop section..... Simply post a screenshot of your Desktop! Here's my current desktop - dwm running on Debian testing, with a fairly vanilla conky config: NOTE...

www.linux.org

https://www.linux.org/threads/what-is-the-best-linux-distribution-which-should-i-use.43789/

Im taking a lunch and cat snuggle break! let me hop over there and look. your guidance with the laptop I had was beyond wonderful and I gave it away to another teen in my church as she needed one for high school and did not have the capability to get one.

J.

 

[f33dm3bits]

I have no idea what future tasks are going to be used on the VM.

Are you going to be running applications that require 3D graphics or games, if not you will probably be fine running those few applications in a Windows vm whatever they maybe in the future.

thank you for that outlook link. i will look into it.

I forgot to mention that I use Office 365 at work and I can access everything from within Thunderbird. I use an addon for that but it costs 10 euros/dollars a month, I am quite happy with it so I find it worth the money since it's not that much.

Owl for Office365

Owl connects Thunderbird to your Office365 email account

www.beonex.com

Owl for Exchange

Allows you to use your Exchange and Office365 email account with Thunderbird using Outlook Web Access (OWA).

addons.thunderbird.net

It works with mail, contacts and calendar.

but this week we had to set up a p2p network and share files.

You can run a web-server too on your computer to share files or setup samba to share files.

 

[JKelly]

Are you going to be running applications that require 3D graphics or games, if not you will probably be fine running those few applications in a Windows vm whatever they maybe in the future.

I forgot to mention that I use Office 365 at work and I can access everything from within Thunderbird. I use an addon for that but it costs 10 euros/dollars a month, I am quite happy with it so I find it worth the money since it's not that much.

Owl for Office365

Owl connects Thunderbird to your Office365 email account

www.beonex.com

Owl for Exchange

Allows you to use your Exchange and Office365 email account with Thunderbird using Outlook Web Access (OWA).

addons.thunderbird.net

It works with mail, contacts and calendar.


You can run a web-server too on your computer to share files or setup samba to share files.

no games and no high def 3D graphics. I will look into thunderbird. i did the web-server work around and ticked off over half the men in the online classes who brought their egos to the lab and they were the ones who couldn’t connect and get it to work in the first place. rolls eyes. they kept asking me for proof of my grades and I told them all thats none of their business. what they need to do is focus on their own work and not worry about mine.

 

[f33dm3bits]

i did the web-server work around and ticked off over half the men in the online classes who brought their egos to the lab and they were the ones who couldn’t connect and get it to work in the first place.

Technically bittorrent is p2p so I all you would have to do is host a torrent of those files of your system which they can then download using a torrent client. I haven't set this up myself but it should be possible. How were they accessing the files shared by p2p?

P2PFileSharing - Ubuntu Wiki

 

[JKelly]

Technically bittorrent is p2p so I all you would have to do is host a torrent of those files of your system which they can then download using a torrent client. I haven't set this up myself but it should be possible. How were they accessing the files shared by p2p?

P2PFileSharing - Ubuntu Wiki

snorts laughing….keep in mind I have worked in IT for years without certs and a degree and I am going back for the degree to advance in my career. they were doing it through the windows OS settings while opening their firewalls entirely. I knew better. plus husband is a fed security specialist so….yeah wasn’t inviting that traffic on my network. it was a bit difficult to set up as it was my first time doing this but I saw the specs of the project when class opened up 7 weeks ago and started researching back then. just had a few post on the student forum that they are panicking and asking if anyone has done this and what software they need? im like….did you read the module? the syabullus???? i kept my fingers silent as i am not volunteering as tribute to their last minute attempt to do the project. its due wednesday and we had 14 days to do this.

 

[f33dm3bits]

snorts laughing….keep in mind I have worked in IT for years without certs and a degree and I am going back for the degree to advance in my career. they were doing it through the windows OS settings while opening their firewalls entirely. I knew better.

Learning for a computer degree with no sense of computer security, lol that's funny! The easier solution to share files would then probably be create a separate user account for the files that you want to share and put them in a directory under that user account. And then open the ssh port when needed and have the service running and have them login through sftp(ssh over ftp) using that "guest account" so they can access those files and change the password each time. If they find using an ftp client too hard then they have no business trying to get a computer degree.

 

[Trenix25]

I really don't think an IDE is necessary for programming. A good text editor works just fine. I use tilde. I turned of the color mode though. gcc/g++ works quite well. You can use Code::Blocks if you want to for C and C++. Linux includes Python, if you install it. Many recommend Linux Mint. I have also heard many recommend Ubuntu. There are videos out there that talk about the different desktop environments, like Cinnamon, KDE, XFCE, and perhaps others. They are just a quick search away.

Signed,

Matthew Campbell

 

[JKelly]

Im taking a lunch and cat snuggle break! let me hop over there and look. your guidance with the laptop I had was beyond wonderful and I gave it away to another teen in my church as she needed one for high school and did not have the capability to get one.

Learning for a computer degree with no sense of computer security, lol that's funny! The easier solution to share files would then probably be create a separate user account for the files that you want to share and put them in a directory under that user account. And then open the ssh port when needed and have the service running and have them login through sftp(ssh over ftp) using that "guest account" so they can access those files and change the password each time. If they find using an ftp client too hard then they have no business trying to get a computer degree.

What I thought and brought up that concern in week 2. I was dismissed as being a paranoid female. I even told all of them my husband is one of the ones that works in cybersecurity and has his CISSP! because I’m female, older and deaf I find I am often dismissed. so, I do my work and let the chips fall where they may! They can’t say I didn’t warn them!

 

[JKelly]

I really don't think an IDE is necessary for programming. A good text editor works just fine. I use tilde. I turned of the color mode though. gcc/g++ works quite well. You can use Code::Blocks if you want to for C and C++. Linux includes Python, if you install it. Many recommend Linux Mint. I have also heard many recommend Ubuntu. There are videos out there that talk about the different desktop environments, like Cinnamon, KDE, XFCE, and perhaps others. They are just a quick search away.

Signed,

Matthew Campbell

That I did not know! through the classes I am finding that coding is easy for me overall. I am seriously looking at Mint right now. once classes end this wednesday I have 6 weeks off to play around with the system and get comfortable.

thank you for letting me know about the codeblocks. and tilde.

 

[Trenix25]

That I did not know! through the classes I am finding that coding is easy for me overall. I am seriously looking at Mint right now. once classes end this wednesday I have 6 weeks off to play around with the system and get comfortable.

thank you for letting me know about the codeblocks. and tilde.

You're very welcome. I'm glad I could be helpful to you.

Signed,

Matthew Campbell