Tool/Software recommendations

Hello Everybody
I will start this thread, because I think everybody of you uses some good tools, software and techniques that probably can help others to, to learn and work better.

My goal is to start a list with usefull tools, techniques and software.

My first recommendation: Anki
This is a very powerfull tool to remember things better and build a strong memory. This tool is a spaced repetion software (flashcards software: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaced_repetition.
It is opensource, free and very powerfull. It helped me a lot to succesfully accomplish my exames as a polygrafic engineer and now I use it to ingrain the CLI commands.

You can find Anki here: https://apps.ankiweb.net/

Did they fix the Android app?
Used it on Linux a few years back, it worked ok. Then it stopped working on Linux so I couldn’t use it on the phone. It’s not working if you don’t sync it with the desktop app.
I think being able to build cards from scratch on the phone would be a much needed feature.

@io_io You can use the original, free and opensource Desktop Anki on Windows, Mac and Linux and BSD.
The App for iOS is also from Damien Elmes (the maker of the Desktop-Anki-App). But it is not free. The iOS App is the sole income for him, so it is good to buy it to support him, because this guy did a tremedous work!
I personaly used it in the past on Mac and Windows, now I use it on Linux, Android and iOS.

Ok, thank you, Didier.

Ok this, seems like an appropriate time to ask the million dollar question. What Operating System do you use. I see a lot of people writing code on GitHub for IoS and Linux. If you don’t have a budget to afford over price machines, Apples IoS produces, than you will be like me and find yourself in the situation where:

  • You are moving away from a very resource hungry but has become very stable (windows 7 and 10)

  • To a low resource system, like Linux distro’s, that can be loaded on to an old computer while functioning like a fairly new computer.

There are definitely issues. As much as Linux is great, it can be frustrating to learn. Never the less, I have tried Ubuntu had good and bad results. One I couldn’t dual boot it. Ubuntu doesn’t recognise Windows and then issues with swap files crashing, that has led me to feel that Linux is not really that cracked up to the hype.

Since then I have found Antergos installer that works on Arch Linux, which if you follow tech guys, Arch is there go to machine. I still have not, myself, unlocked this magically power. Yet, I really have reservation at loading it.

Basically I’d love to know what operating system you use and do you dual boot or do you run one op sys person computer? Love to hear your thoughts

@tcratius I’m coming from the graphis industry so I used Apple Products since around 1997. Then I switched to windows (for my private machines, at work I still use apple computers) because I wasn’t willing anymore to buy overpriced machines for home use and windows 7 was a good replacement for macOSX. This was arround 2011. In 2014 I begann to be interested in Linux and dual-installed Ubuntu on my Acer-Machine. I was very pleased and replaced the whole windows with just Ubuntu. This was great for about two years, then I got some issues with kernels and some broken packages. At this time I was on the search for a easy replacement for windows to put on my mothers pc (because windows ran really poorly on her old laptop). I thought Ubuntu was more a replacement for Mac-Users and not realy easy for a Windows 7 User. I tried Kubuntu, Suse, etc. but wasn’t very satisfied. Then I stumbled upon Linux Mint. I installed it on my machine and I was hooked. Since then I’m a very happy Linux Mint user. And my wife too! I bought her this spring a new HP Notebook with Windows 10 and she was very unhappy. I think Windows 10 is a very nice system but on her notebook it was soooo slow and my wife was embarassed by the nasty pop-ups and questions Windows and apps like Adobe Reader asks all the time. So I decided to put Linux Mint on her Laptop. It was a very good decision. No problems, no questions asked, just a great working notebook and a very easy to use OS.

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I typically use Bash on Windows 10 for messing around with stuff that I can’t do easily on windows. I had the luck to buy a bunch of computers/laptops at a great price when my previous employer went bankrupt so I have ubuntu on one desktop, Win 7 on a laptop, win 10 on my two primary laptops and just saw that you can get a free developer version of redhat linux so i might look into that and put it on my other pc box. I forgot about arch though, I might have to go play with that a bit. I also try to avoid dual booting simply because i’m lazy and don’t like to sit their and do it. Also i’m terrible at keeping stuff for a long time and will download different linux distros try them for a few days then go play with something else or run the OS of a flash drive.

I don’t use Ubuntu as my primary OS simply because outside of learning programmming stuff i’m a gamer and windows is still the easiest OS for gaming. If i didn’t game i would probably just use linux.

I have used MacOs’ but since it is/was harder to game on them I just never took the dive. Plus Its hard for me to feel happy shelling out Apple level money for a laptop or pc when I realistically won’t put it through the paces for what they’re best for music/video editing and creative design work. Just not my thing.

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Thanks for the reply @DiderCH, I think it’s great your mother uses computers. I tried with my mum and I and gave up, wasn’t a pleasant experience. Have you found any graphic programs like Auto360 for Linux Mint or do you purely keep your work and home life separate? By the way, I think Linux Mint is looking good as a contender as I’m having troubles with Antergos. :smile:

Hey @theminshew, I can totally understand you using windows for gaming, you really can’t go wrong. They definitely cornered the market there.

" I also try to avoid dual booting simply because i’m lazy and don’t like to sit their and do it"

I’m totally with you on that one. Probably a good idea, it can be extremely frustrating experience :slight_smile: well best get back to wiping windows. I normally forget to keep my stuff as well, this time I’ve put it on my raspberry pi. Great little investment.

Mate, just install Linux Mint, and it’s pretty damn good

I use Linux for everything I do. I built desktop pc and run Ubuntu and have IBM Thinkpad with CentOS. I also have a Google pixel phone and installed termux, which is a Linux command line emulator. I have a laptop for my wife with Window 7.

Hey @Cris.K, do think termux might work well with windows surface? Windows 8.1 is pathetic.

I’ve been wanting to mess around with raspi for a bit. Read an article about using one to indicate whether a bathroom was in use or not with an icon on your cpu and was in love.

Hmm, havent tried Mint. might need to give it a spin.

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Hilarious :rofl: I’ve scene them used on green houses to control humidity, fan, even heating in the soil. Pretty cool little device. I mainly use it no to VNC into it to store files before trying a new operating sys. Mints a bit buggy on coming back from hibernation other that, I’m really enjoying it.

I’d love to know an alternative to windows RT o’s, pretty crappy to work with.