Imnebuddy

I was able to get some Linksys E8450 routers for cheap (~$40 each) on eBay a couple years ago, but they are more expensive atm (but $70 each, which is cheaper than a lot of other options). They require a bit of work to get OpenWRT installed, but it's not bad once the work is done (I have received nearly 400 Mb/s when I am close to the wireless connection sometimes, which is what my internet is capped at). I have used them as a mesh with one as a main gateway and the rest as access points with additional Ethernet ports. They do have the OKD issue fixed now, too, and they're also Wi-Fi 6. I'm looking into getting a Banana Pi BPI-R3 or R4, though I am not sure how well they are with mesh specifically, but have seen a few forum threads of people having some issues with mesh on these specific routers. I hope to switch to fast roaming (wired backhaul) eventually.

I hope there will be native Linux support, even if it comes a few years after it is released. CrossCode is supported on various platforms, and it even has a web version for its demo.

Windows: What is my purpose?

User: You are a bootloader to install Linux.

I would probably suggest Mint. When I first started Linux, I was adept with computers, but I still struggled using Linux for the first time. I tried Fedora around 2015 as my first distro, and I really struggled to install it. So I started with Ubuntu. I spent time doing some courses for Linux, and it was quite a journey for me to figure out this new environment. Then I would distro hop so much because I was dissatisfied with missing packages and issues with my new laptop (which wasn't running well on many distributions because it required a newer kernel), and then I landed on Kubuntu for a little while. Then Manjaro, which I don't recommend anymore for these reasons (plus I had to reinstall Manjaro a few times when it broke, especially due to NVIDIA driver issues, but today that shouldn't be as much of a problem, I believe). I was able to install Manjaro with Manjaro Architect at one point, which made it easier for me to figure out how to install Arch Linux. I was breaking my Linux machine so much when I was using Ubuntu because I didn't understand what I was doing, thus it is difficult for me to recommend a Linux distro to a new user with full 100% certainty they would not break their system if they wanted to do some tinkering or try to do any niche thing like gaming. I know you want to leave Windows ASAP, but it may be easier to first run Linux in a virtual machine. It's going to take a while to figure it out, and a virtual machine will help make the journey less painful so you don't risk wiping your drive or having periods where you are stuck without a machine when you need to get work done and you are sitting in front of your computer for hours trying to install and configure Linux or figure out why you are booting into emergency mode. For a tip, I really recommend not installing everything you want under the sun. This was the reason for 90% of the time I broke my Linux installations. Install only a few packages at a time, and backup your data.

There is a new Arch-based distro in town that is meant to be user friendly, which is Crystal Linux, but I haven't used it myself nor do I know if this is good to recommend to absolutely new users. The reason why I mention it is because I have had a lot of trouble with other distributions, and while Arch would break on me once in a while (which at that point in my Linux journey, I could fix Arch without needing to reinstall the entire OS)--usually for a specific package or two--as a noobish user it was a better experience for me working with the pacman package manager and having access to the Arch User Repository. I also had a better time working with rolling release distributions. With Crystal Linux, it gives you the option to install the Nix package manager and comes with a nice pacman wrapper called Amethyst, but I would consider yay the best pacman/AUR wrapper, imo. I haven't tried Amethyst, though.

Here's a video on Crystal Linux by DistroTube: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=Q_CXNtbsy74

Crystal Linux also has documentation on using a NVIDIA GPU with Wayland here: https://getcryst.al/site/docs/crystal-linux/nvidiawayland

Crystal Linux also uses the BTRFS filesystem utilizing snapshots with Timeshift, which if I had used this when I was first learning Linux, it would have saved me a lot of trouble.

Also, one last tip: when installing Linux or working with something you are unfamiliar with, take notes. It really helps to have something to look back at when you have to do the same task again and forgot the reason you did certain things.

This is not an Android phone, but I plan to get a PinePhone Pro and then maybe a flip phone for calls. I want to be able to tinker with Linux on my phone and have better access to Linux applications and utilities. It's not the most secure option, but for me, I don't need much from a phone, though it would be nice to have more freedom and capabilities with my device. Plus the physical keyboard accessory looks super nice. This may or may not help you, but I figured to share my thoughts just in case. I don't know how knowledgeable you are with Linux, but you will need to be an intermediate Linux user (or willing and able to dedicate the time and effort to learn) and be willing to accept the limitations of the device, especially since it is not really meant for normal users yet. It's meant for people that like to tinker and can contribute improvements and testing for the device. PINE64 makes a lot of cool tech, including the PineTime, Pinecil, PineNote, etc., and they are very focused on repairability as they sell individual parts for each of their devices and provide long-term support: https://www.pine64.org/

I have had a OnePlus 6T that I have installed LineageOS on and have replaced the battery even though it is "non-removable".

I have had this phone for about 4-5 years now. If I need Android for any reason, I plan to use this device for those purposes.

I also use a Unicorn Beetle belt holster case with the OnePlus 6T, and it's survived so many falls because of it. It's only around $10-20 on eBay (try getting an Otter for that price). You can still find a 256 GB model of the phone for less than $200 on eBay as well. I recommend any OnePlus phone up to the OnePlus 7T Pro. Their newer devices now have an encrypted battery, and the company itself sucks, but their older phones are good for rooting and custom ROMs and are pretty high powered and inexpensive for their flagship models, which is why I picked them when I was looking for a phone.

Finally, a pi good for 4K video! (Apparently Raspberry Pi 4 could as well, but I am assuming this is an improvement. I still have a couple of Raspberry Pi 3's.)

For me, it was around 2015ish when I first installed Linux after learning about it from someone that was detasselling in a corn field with me. Then around 2017-2020ish, I eventually became radicalized (2017 is when net neutrality was killed, even though around 80% of Americans supported it, which made me question our government and economy).

Backstory:

I came across one of their trucks one day on the road, which said APPLE on the back, and next to it was a logo similar to ArcoLinux, which is based on Arch. Today, I actually came across their site, so I decided to post this for shits and giggles.

I actually use Arch and Gentoo, btw.

Whistles casually

https://github.com/pluja/awesome-privacy#instant-messaging

https://github.com/pluja/awesome-privacy#teamworking-tools

https://github.com/pluja/awesome-privacy#video-and-audio-conferencing

https://github.com/awesome-selfhosted/awesome-selfhosted#communication---custom-communication-systems

https://github.com/awesome-selfhosted/awesome-selfhosted#communication---irc

https://github.com/awesome-selfhosted/awesome-selfhosted#communication---video-conferencing

https://github.com/awesome-selfhosted/awesome-selfhosted#communication---xmpp---servers

https://github.com/awesome-selfhosted/awesome-selfhosted#communication---xmpp---web-clients

https://github.com/redecentralize/alternative-internet#messaging

Referencing my buried comment with suggestions:

I don't remember and can't find a post I saw in the past recommending better video chat applications for more than two users. I believe one was Jitsi and another Wire. I just found another video conferencing application someone recommended online: MiroTalk. Different open source software excel in different areas.

Sorry, I just realized this post is about instant messaging platforms and not specifically their video chat features.

I like Element better because of its Markdown capabilities (though still very limited) and the ability to edit messages. I used element for my team coding projects in college, which worked very well and integrated nicely with our GitHub updates, but it sucked for video conferences. Signal barely holds up for two-user video chats, though that could be my internet or someone else's.

I also want to self host my own XMPP server someday.

There is Revolt. Maybe younger people will like that more.

I don't remember and can't find a post I saw in the past recommending better video chat applications for more than two users. I believe one was Jitsi and another Wire. I just found another video conferencing application someone recommended online: MiroTalk. Different open source software excel in different areas.

Sorry, I just realized this post is about instant messaging platforms and not specifically their video chat features.

I like Element better because of its Markdown capabilities (though still very limited) and the ability to edit messages. I used element for my team coding projects in college, which worked very well and integrated nicely with our GitHub updates, but it sucked for video conferences. Signal barely holds up for two-user video chats, though that could be my internet or someone else's.

I also want to self host my own XMPP server someday.

There is Revolt. Maybe younger people will like that more.