SchmonfyWell, at least they have drivers for the best version of Windows... Linux. I wish that was a joke, I literally selected "Linux" as a Windows version (what???) and got drivers.
And now that bug was gone. But I swear "Linux" showed up as a version of Windows I could choose. As well as every Mac OS.
Apparently the drivers only support Windows 10. What in the what.
Trev@onf Windows 8+ shouldn't even require driver installation for a given printer. I thought "Windows handles everything for you" 🙃
@trevdev I wouldn't know anyway, but it's certainly an option on the driver site.
@onf Seems to me the only hardware guaranteed to cause compatibility struggles is a printer, regardless of the system. Hurray!
@trevdev Ironically I've used the Linux driver and guess what... zero problems. 
@onf Not surprised. My house runs on Linux mainly because I can always figure stuff out. I am extremely biased, though.
@trevdev Ah. All I need is... like, $1000, and then I can give up Windows for everything but retro computing.
@onf Why the big expense...and why no retro computing? Are you trying to run MS-DOS?
@trevdev Big expense is to replace old and decaying (and some incompatible with Linux) hardware. What I'm saying about retro computers... modern Linux distros don't run so well when you have less than 1GB of RAM. And you won't be able to play many of your favourite retro PC games. (And anyway, the ones that do work on Linux usually work well on modern PCs too.)
@onf Usually the older the hardware, the better Linux runs. I'm surprised! My current Linux runtime is around ~228MB. It's the software that runs on it that goes way beyond the 1GB cap. Just opening chrome immediately consumes a gig. Depending on how old the game is, you can still dos-box it. Linux has a way to go before it runs all the things, for sure. Totally not trying to sound righteous - I promise! I've stopped supporting software developers who exclude Linux to create hope for more later.
@trevdev I'm considering the opposite... if I ever get good enough at programming, write something UNABLE to run on Windows. Maybe it could be a killer app...
Yeah, running some simple stuff usually works for a bit, but running modern software is right out. Dosbox and similar programs usually run just fine on Windows 98 actually! And many of these computers don't even need Dosbox...
I have considered running Linux as a server OS on an old computer, but I'd be afraid of breaking it.
@onf Haha awesome! Stick it to 'em! Though, you would have to share a few examples of "modern software" with me - I'm curious. Anything I truly need runs well. Steam, flatpak and staps are starting to fill holes in our empty hearts. No, I won't be running Fallout 4, but Bethesda won't bilk me for it either. #votewithmywallet
Give it a try! Especially if you have a secondary machine to experiment with. If you break it, you can fix it or start over. It's how I've learned :)
@trevdev Modern software on a modern PC (with appropriate driver support) = win. But on a PC with a Pentium III CPU? You better like waiting. Even with every compiler optimization enabled it's useless.
And I don't have any hardware I can just experiment with. I need everything... I do want a Raspberry Pi (or several) one day though.
@onf Honestly, I'll humbly admit I can't speak to this challenge well enough to give useful feedback. I'll just have to take your word on it. Raspberry Pi's are fantastic, though. I'm getting my hands on one very soon.
@trevdev Yeah, I think even if certain things are technically possible, some are too hard and limiting to be worth it in 99% of situations. That's why I tell everyone, only buy Nvidia if you buy new GPUs every year.
@trevdev That said, ATi is just as bad. It might be hard to imagine now, but in the 2000s they blocked Linux developers from supporting Radeon.
@onf I vaguely remember this in my first days of running Ubuntu in 2001/2...but being a kid I couldn't afford anything fancy, anyway...so I stuck to FOSS drivers xD
@trevdev What Foss drivers were there in the 2000s before Intel started making integrated GPUs and AMD decided Linux was worth supporting?
@onf Good question. I'd get back to you on it, but lets be honest - it's been a lot of years. Who knows if I'm even remembering this properly. I just know I got the laptop working well and playing Star Wars: Dark Forces.
@trevdev I've read anecdotes from the few people playing games on Linux in the 2000s. They all say Nvidia was literally the only option at the time for playing games. Besides solitaire.
@trevdev Oh, here's something I forgot though. Some older hardware did get left behind in the proprietary dust. In particular a ton of GPUs in the 2000s.
@onf You can cherry pick your kernel version for those unique cases - and use older nvidia versions. That being said, this process is more hands on than the average/mean user is willing to take on.
@trevdev I'm aware that's possible. In fact I did try using a version of CentOS from the 2000s. But it was too out of date. NOTHING written in this decade would run. I don't think I even managed to compile anything recent.
@onf Aw, super sad. Here I thought legacy hardware was a proudly supported thing.
@trevdev Unfortunately the support doesn't just self-materialize. It requires someone who understands the hardware to write good free code for it. What is supported works great! You can make some weird hardware configs that wouldn't otherwise be possible.
@onf Fortuantely Linux is still a growing community. I'm mostly concerned with Web Development, but I'm learning C/C++ on the side. Watch out!
@trevdev Well, here's the thing. Support for a lot of current hardware is crap enough so people are focusing on making current stuff work so Linux is attractive for an average user. Who would develop a driver for a GPU discontinued 10 years ago?
@onf 
....probably not. I mean, not unless I'm the one trying to use it.
....probably not. I mean, not unless I'm the one trying to use it.@trevdev If you want to improve support for obsolete hardware then go for it! Otherwise... I mean, I probably would pay someone to write free drivers if I could afford it.
@onf If you could afford to pay a developer to write drivers, you're probably better off just updating your system, methinks.
@trevdev Yeah, that's very much the case. Still, certain unsupported hw's a thorn in my side that I'd love to work anyway.
@trevdev In particular the Avermedia capture card I have. There's a paid 3rd party driver but they won't even sell it to an individual.
@onf Uuuugh...wouldn't even buy hardware from shits like that. I feel you - who likes dirty surprises like that?
@trevdev It wouldn't have been a surprise if I cared at the time I bought it.
@onf *eyes a dusty windows only AC USB wifi adaptor he replaced recently* yeeeeep....
@trevdev Unfortunately just knowing to check for support doesn't get you all the way. Linux compatible hardware can be quite hard to find. Also, honesty isn't ALWAYS guaranteed...
@trevdev Oh and yeah WiFi is notorious. At least I got "lucky" and have Intel WiFi.
@onf
Panda wireless usbs work well on my machines thankfully.
Panda wireless usbs work well on my machines thankfully.
@trevdev Never heard of em but I guess that's good to know.
@trevdev But I mean, try getting an HDMI capture card working on Linux. Or component. Or even worse... VGA. I mean, VGA capture barely even works on Windows.
@trevdev And actually, that does make me wonder. Avermedia does bad VGA capture, but is it because the hardware is bad at capture, or the driver? If how it works was understood this could at least be determined.
@onf
Yeah totally never tried using capture cards. Any capturing I've done has been straight off my desktop
Yeah totally never tried using capture cards. Any capturing I've done has been straight off my desktop