Linux Survival Guide #3: GPU Drivers & Printing

[@VeryUsMumblings]

I'm not really a noob at Linux anymore, but I think these 'Survival Guide' videos are excellent!

[@cdl0]

Agreed, this channel is excellent. I used Unix and BSD systems of various sorts since long before Linux, but it is always good to keep up with the latest tips and tricks, and see how others explain it. It can't do any harm, and may do some good.

[@ShadowPriestBear]

His work is charmful

[@aw34565]

Thank-you for your video on 'Raspberry Pi Time Lapse Photography' which helped me to untangle myself in Kdenlive earlier today.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks for your support, most appreciated. And I am glad that you are untangled. :)

[@sleepywatcher3528]

Linus Tech Tips could make good use of this series.

[@ExplainingComputers]

:)

[@edwardharding5677]

Windows an linux are two very different operating systems. I have been a long time windows user and all the computers I have had are windows. I have found this guide, so far, to be very helpful with my transition to linux. Thanks for this.

[@call_me_stan5887]

They are very different. I hate it when people advertise Linux as a Windows replacement. It's not a replacement - it's an alternative. Everyone should be aware it is in fact a different beast that might appear Windows-like. But the experience is NOT the same. It requires A LOT more tinkering to get things work the way you are used to - and it is possible only to an extent. Ultimately, one has to learn the way it actually works to feel comfortable in it. It is a good alternative if one agrees to change habits and lose some functionality (individual, very specific devices and pieces of software are not supported - forget Adobe Suite, for instance).

[@smile768]

@@call_me_stan5887 Nah! It's tricky if Windows is all you've ever known, but is no harder to get your way around than any other operating system. The stranglehold of MS Office and Adobe can't last forever. It's just their short-sighted way of ensuring people won't venture out of the pen. The exponential growth of Unix/ Linux over the last decade due to mobile devices proves that the Windows monopoly is waning and that platform agnostic apps are available on anything. Almost all web servers are Linux. I am surprised that Windows/Mac OS still have the lion's share of the desktop world, but there's little to keep it that way.

[@call_me_stan5887]

@@smile768 I know what you mean and yes, I do agree that's due to Microsoft's monopoly. And there's MUCH to keep it that way - all the corporate world to begin with. Corporate world needs standards and uniformity, Linux DESKTOP can't give them that. Linux SERVER is a different thing entirely. It does not require any user interface apart from CLI. The familiar GUI, standards and support is what makes Windows what it is. Linux can't compete only in the first part - GUI of various DE's is getting there. But still - VARIOUS DEs and fragmentation. Linux desktop is going nowhere, unfortunately. It's the enthusiasts' gem. And don't get me wrong, cause I love it - but it won't just take off anytime soon.

[@VulpisFoxfire]

@@call_me_stan5887 Well, depends on what you're doing with it...for most use, Linux, esepcially Mint, pretty much *is* a Windows replacement. Nearly same GUI, the same or very similar apps, etc. Then again, I've been using this stuff way back on DOS and Amiga, so the differences just aren't notable to me.

[@call_me_stan5887]

@@VulpisFoxfire not a replacement, home alternative for sure. And I'm telling it as a 3 year+ Linux Mint user coming from Windows who still uses Windows for corporate stuff because there's just no way around it.

[@MrBC2]

As a recent subscriber (but long time viewer), I've taken quite a liking to your very unique and enjoyable style of videos and education. I think you're doing a really great job with the Linux Survival Guides and really wish these were around when I was jumping ship from Windows back in 2008 (never to return). Keep up the great work!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks for watching. :)

[@PC4D1986]

Happy New Year, Chris! I’m a Linux Mint user and a couple of months ago I purchased a Brother colour duplex laser printer, the Brother HL-L3270CDW. I’d recommend this printer. In Mint, it autodetected over wi-fi and the toner levels are visible on the printer’s in-built LCD touchscreen. Never going back to inkjet!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Happy new year! And thanks for this post -- always good to have recommendations about things that work. :)

[@jeffperkins7927]

Testing my printer under Linux was on my mind for a while, but put it off due to laziness. This video finally pushed me to try my Canon MP480 on Fedora Linux. Worked the first time. Thanks for another useful video :)

[@ExplainingComputers]

Fantastic. :)

[@lawrenceallwright7041]

So good to have a growing library of reliable Linux tips in one place, all explained in plain English without a big old kerfuffle or silly effects.

[@aaronperl]

I remember years ago, I got a laptop that I needed to also use for work, so I installed Ubuntu (instead of my preferred-at-the-time Slackware) because I needed everything to "just work", and I was delighted to see that the Live CD environment recognized the wifi adapter and connected to my wifi. After completing the installation to the HDD, though, the wifi was no longer recognized and I could never get it to work again. More recently, I discovered that two of my printers that have always been troublesome to get working on Gentoo Linux (one needed a Java application to control it for some reason, and the other was listed as not supported in Linux) were immediately recognized and "just work" in Linux Mint. So things have really improved over the years. I've always been lucky that I've generally had hardware that has been well supported by Linux (going all the way back to 1998), so I often forget to even consider Linux support when buying new hardware.

[@ivancho5854]

Avoid Canon!

[@aaronperl]

@@ivancho5854 Canon used to be a safe bet for Linux support, but yes one of my problematic printers is a more prosumer level Canon printer. I avoid HP printers like the plague. They barely even work on Windows 😁

[@tbone9900]

Printer drivers are much improved but still a work in progress for Linux. With Linux, it is recommended that you check for Linux drivers before acquiring any printer. I noticed that you did not mentioned Brothers printers. Here in the US, Brothers printers have great Linux drivers support.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks for this -- and great to hear of Brother printer support.

[@dwang085]

they're also fantastic printers!

[@karolisr]

I came to make the same comment. I specifically purchased a Brother DCP-L2550DW because, based on past experience, I knew it would work on Linux/Windows/Mac. Additionally Brother is pretty good at providing firmware updates and give a lot of configuration options through the network interface.

[@jamesdye4603]

This series is very helpful. I use Linux as my daily driver but getting full functionality out of it has been a bit of a struggle, but I muddled through it. Hopefully this series can fill in the gaps so future projects go smoother.

[@HEB901]

Thanks for doing these Linux survival guides. They were just in time for my switch from Windows to Linux and have given me the confidence to stay with it. Been using Linux Mint for over a month now on my main computer. Like you and others have said, you my need to "tinker" a bit to get everything running satisfactorily. My challenge was getting my NAS drives to wake up and stay on while my computer is on but I persevered and got them working!

[@LarryCarlin]

Great help reminding me to check for new NVIDIA drivers. Often, once I set up the system, I don't revisit the previous selection. Your on-screen examples are spot-on; I pause them as I repeat the example locally.

[@dominicjackson2498]

Yes please to a video on setting up network shares and printers in Linux. Especially modern wifi-enabled printers and all-in-ones. Another topic I’d love you to look at is the Webmin package for Linux which greatly simplifies h the process of administering a Linux box via a web interface. This includes setting up file shares and printers.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Noted! :)

[@clivewi9103]

@@ExplainingComputers Could this please be extended to include other packages for managing Linux other than webmin.

[@ExplainingComputers]

@@clivewi9103 Noted!

[@GamerBoy705_yt]

Just wanted to tell this. I've been binging your videos for 3 days now and the production quality (even though it looks simple) is excellent and the videos are really informative and accurate. I wish I could've seen this series a year ago when I switched to Linux. Thanks for the work!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks for watching. :)

[@AveryChow]

printer support was really easy for me! I just went to print something in firefox, and my printer was already there as one of the options! super awesome how easy auto detection has made it.

[@ablesentry7070]

Just got virtualisation/Parrot OS set up on Windows 10. Loving the Linux content as an advice and learning source, Chris. Thank you so much.

[@jeraldgooch6438]

Chris - you may be pleased to know that you have achieved notoriety as being “My Favorite Brit” in this Texas household. My wife and I refer to you as such as I sit down to enjoy a new episode. Cheers.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Great to hear. :)

[@AndrewAHayes]

I always had problems with my Epson inkjet printer when I was using Windows but Linux has had no such problems

[@allanvincent4450]

lucky - mine has not connected at all

[@addohm]

You need ink for your driver's to work.

[@robpet4424]

My Linux mint worked very well withy Brother laser printer, my Canon and Epson inkjet printers with no problems

[@waynebickell1793]

Great video for newbies. Brother printers are also well supported by Linux, especially laser printers. I bought a Brother wireless printer/scanner and downloaded an install script from their site and it prints and scans perfectly. You don't need to use the script to install drivers but you get more print/scan options if you do. I wouldn't touch Epson with a barge pole, but I do like Canon printers. The nVidia 495 driver works perfectly with my 4Gb GT-1050ti GPU too.

[@jimlynch9390]

Thank you for this series. I started with Linux at the 0.12 kernel back in 1992 but I still find I learn new things and this series has been part of that learning process. Keep up the good work.

[@ditzydoo4378]

Welcome to the New Year. Best wishes for the coming year.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Same to you. :)

[@Bassotronics]

Great video as always. I have no experience with Linux but it’s never too late to learn.

[@hreodbeorhtcheesewright4889]

Yay! Following these instructions I just got my Canon TS5150 working from Linux Mint. I had given up on it and was running it from an old laptop with Windows 7. This is much better! Thank you!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Result! :)

[@AndrewGulak]

Here's hoping you get a million subs in 2022! Keep up the great work, Chris!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks Andrew -- have a great 2022!

[@MyMy-tv7fd]

installing my Brother 2030 printer in Linux Mint was so fast it was like it was always there - which was good as I had been dreading it!

[@cromulence]

Great video - it might be worth doing a video on setting up a raspberry pi as a print server - I did one for my new printer to turn it into a wireless printer - saved me £40 over buying the model with the same functionality!

[@ExplainingComputers]

This I have thought of -- thanks for bringing it back to the front of my mind! :)

[@keithg6550]

@@ExplainingComputers that would be great! I've tried to set one up so that my parents can print from their iPads using CUPS but I never got it to work properly!

[@t8lucas]

Thank you so much for this video. You've cleared some doubts I had about Nvidia drivers (proprietary) when have the latest GPU. Thank you 🙏🏻

[@AnttiNannimus1]

Prolly everybody who's ever used a computer of any kind desperately needs this kind of advice and insight on a regular basis, and especially every time any change is made to any of our systems. In every computer system there are MILLIONS of different hardware and software components hopefully interacting properly together. It is almost never completely so, but whenever we can have wise and informed advice such as this how to proceed and work ourselves through it, there is nothing more valuable and worthwhile of our time. Thank you, once again, Dr. Barnatt, for guiding us through this wilderness.

[@datanomi]

This series has been very well put, everything is explained thoroughly out in way, that it is easy to understand. Well done!

[@ridefast0]

Chris - your content has helped me to build a new PC and emboldened me to use LM as my daily driver. Many thanks.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Great to hear!

[@RandyHouk]

I have been very pleased with how Raspian Buster and Bullseye have automatically installed the proper Pi4 and 400 drivers for our networked Brother MFC-9340CDW.

[@stephenelliott7071]

I haven't used Linux for a while so took the opportunity to upgrade my (Nvidia) graphics card drivers after seeing your video. Before you try and install a new graphics card driver you must check with Update Manager that all other updates have been installed first or you'll have problems. Anyway, I've now updated my graphics drivers no problem. However I have a network printer so not quite so easy to install (I couldn't get my Canon MG3200 Printer working in Linux Mint).

[@paulbillingham4594]

Hi Chris. I am a newish subscriber and have happily bought a Raspberry Pie 400 and changed my OS from Win 7 to Linux Mint on my desktop. I wish I did this years ago as things actually work. In my 50's PC's are still a learning curve, but easily use Linux Mint as my work and University have access to Office 365. We just have to get to it and Windows 10 or 11 is a very expensive way of doing this. Just put Bionic Pup 32 Bit on a flash drive for my partners very old HP laptop. Thank you for posting. Your videos are very helpful and unlike some American KZbin computer videos, you don't shout at the camera and assume we know what is being shouted about. Thanks

[@edsteenhorst6484]

I remember adding a Brother printer to Mint. I installed the driver, but the printer and computer would not talk to each other. The printer test pages were fine, when I printed directly from the menu panel on the printer. I was ready to give up and just thought I would switch usb sockets in case something had gone wrong with the one I was using. Turned out that the plug was halfway out of the socket. When I pushed it in Mint notified me I had added a new printer. I was embarrassed then but I can laugh it off now.

[@ivancho5854]

I was surprised when I started to read about problems with Brother printers as I had heard reasonable things about them and Linux. Also I've had good luck in the past with Mint and their support site is ok regarding Linux. Nice story.

[@linuxlover_8436]

@@ivancho5854 I use a brother printer scanner combo in peppermint OS and was amazed how great it's worked since we got it about 2 years ago.

[@bob-ny6kn]

Brother is a bother. Too many ways in - network, wifi, bluetooth. You have to fiddle with the network and maybe enable/disable other means of data transfer. A plus to these negative is, you can direct print from smartphones.

[@Myrulv]

I have been using LINUX for many years, also professionaly. I still find your videos use full. : )

[@NewAgeDIY]

Hi Chris, even though I have learned a lot from your past videos I found today’s video one of the best! As one of your many subscribers I’m excited to watch and learn. This is a great start for a new year.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Awesome, thank you!

[@PS_Tube]

Greetings Chris. I was busy setting up my Linux install, so missed when the video was posted. BTW, Happy New Year. Amazing first video of 2022.

[@joeg3950]

Excellent content and video. I’ve been playing around with varying OS on a Pi. We run Manjaro on an old Lenovo celeron laptop which runs well and has no compatibility issues. My preference is LM. It’s great for a daily driver and issues are easily resolved. Three years ago, I stopped using Windows (not everyone can forego it). As usual, you have excellent advice on trying out an Linux OS.

[@aaronbedell3753]

Thank you for these videos, I have a feeling I (and my family) may be back to watch them a few times as references. I used some of your File types, SSD formatting and cloning basics a few times. In a funny way these survival guide style videos are almost content for your second channel. Anyway thanks for another solid video. And Happy New Year!

[@ninline2000]

I remember having to use a firmware cutter on windoze drivers to get my Mepis Linux wifi working many years ago. Things are so much better today.

[@GraemeWant]

I am looking forward to see how you setup a Network Printer, a Printer that is connected to another Linux PC that is Shared via the Network. A Windows Printer that is Shared to Linux PC's. It is an interesting exercise depending which Distros you use.

[@srtcsb]

I found the printer section especially helpful. 👍 Thanks for another great video.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Greetings Steve! :)

[@geoffhalsey2184]

I've a reliable Brother scanner/laser printer which six years ago wasn't supported by Linux Mint but now is, except the scanner. I've also an older Canon scanner/inkjet printer on which the scanner still works fine, so using the pair I get the functionality required. A Jack Sprat situation you might say.

[@ronguin7062]

Thank you kindly sir! I believe you made this just for me. Trying to use and understand linux more every day and you are a great teacher for people like me.

[@daveseddon5227]

Thanks for this continuing series - it's definitely quelled any doubts I had about moving away from Windows! 🙂

[@richardmelville5973]

Thank you very much for this video. You have explained clearly many things that seem to difficult to discover from other sources.

[@chriholt]

These Survival Guide episodes have been great. I can't remember when I first tried Linux, but I remember that it was a major pain to install and configure. It has definitely come a *long* way! TurboPrint looks like an amazing bit of software - I won't be surprised if some distros add some of its features in the future. Happy New Year to you Chris!

[@jpsother1183]

I've had good luck with my Brother MFC laser printer and their linux support. First few times I had issues (Ubuntu, a lite install I forget the distro, and my first foray into Mint), usually after doing an update to the system, the Brother site helped nicely, though often it was just reinstall the drivers and it suddenl;y worked again, but a few versions back in Mint, this too (knock/touch wood) stopped being an issue.

[@richleyden6839]

Thank you for a very helpful episode. I've used Linux for quite a while but dual booting to Windows. Dual boot allowed me to mostly avoid driver issues. Now, it seems there are fewer reason to cling to a Windows safty net.

[@storetrollet404]

That was a great video! Hardware in Linux is for me the most difficult and annoying but you explained very well. I really love the way you give clear and good information. For other Linux survival guides I would like you to give tips about how to switch from Office and Word/Excel to LibreOffice and explain about e.g. setting up tables, making indexes and other more advanced topics. Having used Word and Excel for years I feel a bit lost when trying to do things in Writer or Calc. And I have never seen anyone explain how to use Base Database... ! And thank you again for your great videos and Happy New Year!

[@ralphups7782]

greetings master, good to see that you made it safely through the star systems to earth for our new year. :-) just the other day I put Linux on an old HP workstation after giving it a clean. thank you very much for your Linux series.

[@brentvalentine]

Thank you for this video. I am building a 'new' computer and I have been searching for a GPU. Nvidia is still in the running for the upgrade, pricewise. This video has come at the perfect time for me. Thanks

[@smada36]

It's funny that you shove talk about the nVidia Linux drivers today. I was investigating the ACPI BIOS errors that are thrown up on boot with my PC. Errors that I thought were a result of having a swappable boot drive, but actually seems to be display driver related. Anyway, in the course of troubleshooting, I saw that the 495 driver is the New Features Branch driver, whereas the 470 driver is the Production Branch driver. The 470.94 driver is the latest of this, however 470.86 is the one in the repository. Getting the 470.94 driver installed seems to be a bit of a mission at the moment, and explains that, far from solving any issues, may actually cause more. The general consensus was to leave well alone unless the OS seemed to misbehave. So 470.86 is a good choice for now.

[@RobA500]

I use turbo print on Mint for my Canon photo printer and it gives excellent results and full control including the CD print function, Canons own cups drivers didn’t even allow the full print resolution without manually editing scripts and suffered the same lack of ink monitor. I also have absolutely no problems with Nvidia’s drivers and have always preferred them over the many years using Linux as I have found other graphic systems very lacking and unreliable by comparison.

[@anthonymccarthy4164]

This is one I'm transcribing and studying and keeping. One of the most frustrating things about using any new operating system especially if you have a good printer several years old.

[@pioneersmokehouseschannel]

I am planning on doing some USB linux installs to see if I can get some old computers to work, maybe as a video server or just for fun. I plan on rewatching this series and figuring out the best linux version for this project. Thanks for your great channel!

[@TheNQb]

Tak!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks for your support -- most appreciated. :)

[@Reziac]

Really good overview! thanks for including so much detail; it's the little things that aid success. So (watchng as always on my PCLOS box) I'm following along trying out the various stuff... HP's gadget comes with my distro... I can set up the printer but hell if I can get it to see the printer attached to the XP system, even tho (weirdly, ever since connecting to an iPhone) it now agrees to routinely see the XP shared drives. The printer is shared and works from the other WinSystems, but not here! Network printing in a future video, for sure!! Meanwhile, XP running in VirtualBox has absolutely NO problem seeing and using that printer!!

[@Paasj]

Thanks for another great video! Looking forward to seeing more Linux oriented stuff and I really enjoyed the Pi Camera projects you did a little while back.. Happy New Year!

[@Lagrange_Point_6]

Excellent timing! I have a brand new Alienware x17 (spec maxed out) that I would like to put Linux Mint on. I have a bootable USB stick ready to go and am testing v20.3 on another laptop prior to installation. My main concern is wi-fi (I'm not a gamer). I don't mind leaving Windows on it if that's the best bet for now as I have a couple of other laptops I can still run Linux on in the meantime.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Good luck!

[@ravagingwolverine]

Good stuff as usual here. I wanted to share a recent experience that is related to the first topic here. I recently picked up a new laptop for my mom to replace her first-generation i3(still going strong). With mainstream laptops, it's hard to avoid anything but the latest generation of chips. I put my mom on Linux years ago and we both prefer it to Windows. I was hoping any driver issues with the 11th-gen line were worked out and things seemed okay at first, but Linux(Mint and Manjaro) was freezing on me with regularity. This reminded me of when I picked up an Ivy Bridge 3rd-gen laptop when it was new with Windows 8(the thing that drove me to Linux). Anyway, I suspected it was a kernel issue, specifically with the Iris xe GPU. I forget what kernel Mint 20.2 comes with, but even Manjaro's 5.13 kernel had problems. But I went back to Mint as I know it better and manually upgraded the kernel to 5.15, which I believe is the latest stable kernel, and that seemed to take care of that. It was not difficult to do and there are guides online. I just wanted to mention it because there are probably quite a number of people who just got computers with 11th-gen Intel chips that will run into this issue with popular distros, and maybe this comment can help someone.

[@rogerkoh1979]

Lots of device work with linux now. It is also easily done. Support for new hardware takes time. I think new linux user would benefit from this video.

[@OleMose]

Again I learned something new, Thank you Chris. One thing i have tried before is the manuel installation of printer drivers for a specific printer, like you did with the HP-driver. I am not at fan of this, since it seems impossible to uninstall the installed software/drivers, unless the vendor is supplying a script for that.

[@idowebwork]

Absolutely love this. The try before you install is great advice for anyone thinking of switching.

[@yootoob7048]

I've been referring to computer mice as "rodents' for twenty-five years. In IT cabinets I label mice storage boxes as rodents or rodentia which really confuses people.

[@ExplainingComputers]

I am very pleased to hear you have been doing this. Long may the trend spread.

[@call_me_stan5887]

In Poland we also jokingly call them rodents (gryzonie)

[@call_me_stan5887]

@Fluffy Hamster Yes, and wireless mouse is called a hamster :)

[@taidee]

This is a great series Prof, for everyone, new users and mature users alike.

[@garethroberts5861]

Another brilliant survival guide. Simple and easy to understand. Thanks for posting.

[@Tiger351]

Great video Chris, this is a really useful series for those of us considering the switch to Linux. These subjects in particular were a real concern for me given I've read some horror stories about driver support for some older HP printer series particularly HP photosmart 3000/5000 series. As you suggested I will be testing the printer functionality running several Linux distros from USB before settling on a preferred distro and final installation.

[@gaptastic]

I think I'm pretty good with Linux, but I'm not gonna lie, never knew you could use the browser interface for CUPS. Good to know, thanks!

[@jamesdinsmore9022]

Thanks!

[@dant5464]

My network-connected Brother HL-L8260CDW is auto-detected by Mint upon startup and works fine. However, I believe it's one of the new(ish) generation of printers which can use, but don't need "proper" drivers - there appears to be a standardised set of settings (colour/b&w, duplex, copies, page size, orientation, etc) and then the sending device throws over the pages in PDF (probably - why reinvent the wheel?). I can also print to it from Android devices on the same LAN. There I get the same set of standard settings, but I can install the Brother Print Service if I want additional settings present in the Windows drivers, eg eco mode.

[@ianstewart1188]

Thanks

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks for your support Ian, most appreciated. :)

[@sinjhguddu4974]

A happy new year Sir. I love these Linux tutorials. I never was Linux inclined till you got me interested. Thank you for that.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Happy new year! :)

[@GreggyMcfly]

The cool thing about setting up a printer on a Linux distro is sharing the printer with macOS, Windows, and iOS. It literally turns your PC into a free AirPrint server.

[@philipcousins548]

Thank you Chris, will look forward to Printing ( and Scanning) over a wired network in the promised future video. Happy New Year

[@MichelMorinMontreal]

A new episode of a brilliant series!

[@williamhorton9763]

Happy day after New Year's Day, once again, Professor Barnatt! And many more!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks -- and a Happy New Year!

[@rutkowskir]

Thanks again! I have a Raspberry Pi acting as a CUPS print server using and old Brother USB printer and newer Epson. Airplay also works great so we can print from our phones.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Sounds cool. :)

[@MicrobyteAlan]

Yup I’m back, I just imaged Zorin on a PC’s NVMe m2. Blistering fast. I was also able get my nvidia graphics card to work. Thanks 👍👍

[@ExplainingComputers]

I missed this before -- I imagine Zorin OS is indeed fast from an NVMe drive! :)

[@WaltBankes]

Yes please, in future, cover Network printer/scanner drivers and other network issues. Thank you.

[@peterthecoderd.1210]

Nice presentation. If you're going to do setting up a network printer, you might like to incude how to connect to a windows and/or other network.

[@Colin_Ames]

More useful information for those of us who might move to Linux. I recently tried running a distro in a virtual machine on my Win 10 PC and never could get my newish Epson printer/scanner to work. I should give it another chance, I guess.

[@adityapandey7798]

Wish you a very happy new year Christopher 🥳. Was not able to watch your videos nor comment due to piled up work.your videos require a proper watching. Gonna binge them now. 🤤

[@edumafra82]

Zorin OS is such a beautiful distro! I'll certainly give it a try!

[@mrflash6339]

I was wondering about drivers in Linux. Thanks Chris for another great video.

[@5argetech56]

Both my Epson XP-310 and HP scanner printer combo machines work 100% out of the box.. Zero configuration needed.. Even works wireless. Xsane works great as a scanner app as well. I Love Linux!

[@SomeOne-rh5so]

You make very usefull video for new Linux users - hope increase our community.

[@ShinobiDiabolik]

Hello, Christopher, I enjoy the Linux videos you make, not only the survival, but in general the Linux videos. I am using Manjaro Linux, and i am happy with it. I guess one day you can make a review about it. I do not mean to be rude, but i believe I spotted a small typo in the video. While your printer is Epson Stylus Photo 300 series, you typed the Epson Stylus Photo 3000 series series on Epson Web page. i believe this might be one reason, to make the driver detection of a driver on manufacturer's web page to fail. For some reason, i cannot shake away the thought that if you typed the correct series - 300 series, you might end up with a driver in your hands. Time stamps: 13:35 - shows the printer model as detected by Linux Mint - 300 series 14:40 - shows query about Epson Stylus Photo 3000 series Otherwise I enjoy your videos in general and i am happy to see a new video. Thank you for your effort, Christopher, it is most appreciated. Kind Regards

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks for this, and Manjaro is indeed a great distro. I must to a full review at some point as you -- so far I've only covered it (for x86) in video also lookin at PC Linux OS: kzbin.info/www/bejne/npTQnKpoZ8-Jask At c.13:35, in the search box I entered "Epson Stylus Photo R300", but the result showed the R3000 only, presumably as the closest match of available printers with Linux driver support.

[@bedfordcf24x49]

I wonder if you would consider continuing this series into slightly more advanced territory. In transitioning from Windows to Linux two main things tripped me up. 1. Mapping network drives and mounting them on startup. 2. Mounting drives in the user's Home so they are directly accessable by programs (e.g. adding folders to Plex Server libraries). I think a video on these might help others.

[@EcoHamletsUK]

The support for HP printers that's built into the kernel should be all you need. I've got an HP multifunction inkjet on my network, and whenever I connect a new PC running Mint, or a Raspberry Pi, the printer is just there and ready to use. I now don't even bother to check if it's installed, as I know it will be there when I want to print something! Installing it on my laptop that dual boots into Windows 7 involved wasting time downloading and installing stuff from HP!

[@NicolasChapadosGirard]

Many things to think about this video. Happy New year by the way!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Happy new year!

[@jo9732]

Really appreciate this Linux introductory series. I'm getting less and less interested in paying top dollar for windows or mac computers. its getting out of hand. Most of what I do online is youtube/websites and really the only thing I need a computer for is spreadsheets. Thanks. I would like to see some content about what kind of phones people who tend towards Linux use. Thanks.

[@junker15]

Things certainly have come a long way since 1995, when I installed Slackware from a whole load of floppies and then had to configure X manually. nouveau seems to work OK with older nvidia cards, but if your card is too new, you'll know it. I tend to always use the nvidia driver if I have nvidia graphics card. I get to use the included radeon driver for my AMD cards as they work well. For printing, CUPS was the thing that fixed most of the "I can't install this blasted printer" issues, and then Apple somehow acquired it. Hopefully Apple are giving their improvements back to the community on this underrated yet critical piece of software.

[@BartFlossom]

Lots of valuable nuggets here. Thanks! 👏

[@MM-zc6qv]

I've been distro hopping for a while. I think I'd pick either Mint (w/ Twister UI) or Zorin (as my friends recommended). But I like the auto-detect printing system for Linux. I wish they had that in Windows.

[@fattomandeibu]

You touch on not buying new graphics cards right away, but I find that this principle applies to almost any piece of technology. It doesn't matter whether it be a computer part, an operating system, a game console or even a new type of storage media. I find that, even if the originals aren't necessarily faulty, by the time of the public having them for about a year, the manufacturer will have made adjustments(whether by hardware revision or patch) that simply makes the experience of using them better. The greatest example of this is probably Windows XP, which arrived with so many problems that at times made it almost unusable, but by the time service pack 1 had arrived, it had morphed into one of the all time greats due to incremental patches. A great hardware example would be the laser mouse almost everyone uses today. Originally, they would only work on very specific surface types in specific colours, and even then they would be very unresponsive. As for media, look at SSDs, which have gone from strength to strength as even beating hard disks in reliability stakes, when original, their TBW was so low they could only really be used for scenarios where files would be read much more often than written. There are, of course, things that work fine on release day, but even then, you'll often find a year later there will be revisions made that simply improve an already good experience.

[@ExplainingComputers]

What you say is true as a general point, but this is not the point I am making about a new GPU and Linux, which is a very different cawe. Nobody releases a new graphics card (or APU) without a Windows driver being available. It may not be the best and optional driver, but a Windows driver will exist. But often with Linux there is simply no driver all. So this is not the same principle of early adopter beware -- wait until the wrickles have been ironed out, etc. Rather it is a case of, buy a new graphics card and install it in a Linux machine and there may be no driver at all and you'll simply have a black screen!

[@call_me_stan5887]

@@ExplainingComputers true that - my Ryzen 5 4500u is not fully supported even in the newest kernels. The sleep mode is not supported and the GPU cannot be braught back from sleep - black screen and fan spin. I had to modify GRUB entries to enable deep sleep although it is a dirty workaround.

[@claycoates5056]

The new room Sounds Good work in progress thank you

[@ExplainingComputers]

:)

[@effdpaul1815]

Even though I have invested heavily in learning the technology I use, I just want to use it. I think that hardware and software creators need to understand that point ... and that, that is probably true for the majority of computer users.

[@ptzzzs]

Thank you for this guide. I'll have to check which driver would work best with my Epson printer, whether its the autodetect ones or the one from the Epson support site that I already installed just to be sure and so I can use the scanner portion of the printer. Our family's previous Epson printer also had a Linux driver but if I remember correctly I had problems with getting it to do a head cleaning, but that was back with Ubuntu 16.04 years ago. Hopefully my experience this time is better. Update: Installed the actual printer driver (printer filter) package, the one I found on the epson site first was just the printer utility. Then setup the printer using a PPD. So the Printer portion works but the Scanner part has issues mostly due to the linux version of the epson scan software being bare of features and the open source alternatives having their own issues due to their reliance on the SANE library.