If are still not using Linux, now it is a good time to start

[mediatechnology]

This might make a good PC for Linux experimentation:

https://www.amazon.com/Beelink-Desktop- ... B0C8MGT16R

$179.00 US

[AnalogJoe]

This might make a good PC for Linux experimentation:

https://www.amazon.com/Beelink-Desktop- ... B0C8MGT16R

$179.00 US

I love the "CLR CMOS" aperture in front of it

[AnalogJoe]

So, apparently things are weirder than I thought. As promised, "Recall" does seem to be an integral part of Windows in the 24H2 update, but it seems to be dormant. Meaning, it is there, but you can't really access it, uninstall it, and it doesn't seem to be taking snapshots.

My best guess is that Microsoft received a lot of user backlash and decided no to go full-on Orwellian on us YET. So they just left it there for future use. They have done this several times in the past. They announce a new Windows "feature", the public hates the idea, Microsoft recants the offer, but in future updates, without you even noticing, the "feature" suddenly becomes active in the background and there is nothing you can do about it. I think it is just a case of the proverbial boiling of the frogs slowly.

Here is a short vid explaining what is going on: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jW6b4ObnYMY

As I mentioned earlier, I have been using Linux Mint for the last days. To be honest, I no longer even notice the change. And by that I mean that I haven't experienced that something is lacking or that I miss Windows (no separation anxiety, if you may), on the contrary, my PC runs smoothly and I love it. My brother used to be a huge Linux buff a decade ago or so (I was a Linux buff back in the late 90's using Linux Mandrake and Slackware. Oh boy, life is short), but as usually happens, he had to switch back to Windows due to Linux being impractical for everyday life. I mentioned to him that I switched to Linux, and he didn't love the idea of switching to Linux himself. That was until he gave my PC a try and noticed the big differences between the current versions of Linux and the ones he used back in 2013 or so. The way I see it, Linux has made things a lot easier for users to switch from Microsoft to Linux, however, it is not 100% there yet, but good enough for me.

[mediatechnology]

I haven't received the 24H2 update yet.

So other than the CMOS reset switch on the front panel how well do you think the budget Beelink Mini S will run Mint?

Are there registry entries for Recall?

[AnalogJoe]

8 GB is a bit low for my taste, but I've noticed that Linux Mint is very, very light, both on RAM and hard disk. I think it will run very well. The way I installed Mint involves mounting an iso image into a bootable USB. When you boot the PC with that USB it goes into Mint, the whole thing is portable and ready to use. Once inside Mint you click on "Install" and it installs the OS to the HDD or SDD. The entire installation was fast, 5 minutes, maybe 10 min tops.

I have a tablet-PC with 8 GB of RAM which is currently running Windows 10. Windows 10 will no longer be updated in October 2025. Also, it works ok but I can definitely feel the 8 GB of RAM and the lack of processing power when doing some stuff. I will install Mint in it soon and report back.

I am not sure about recall having registry entries, but it seems to be much more ingrained in Windows than just switching a registry flag to zero and be done with it.

[mediatechnology]

I just noticed that they have a 16 GB with 512 GB SSD which at the moment is $10 less at $169.

https://www.amazon.com/Beelink-Desktop- ... TQ1YF?th=1

[AnalogJoe]

I don't know how good are those Intel processors with weird part numbers intended for mobile applications. I have a tablet PC which has a similar type of processor, although much older. In my experience, these processors get the job done, but one shouldn't expect too much from them. However, you can't beat that price. It is around the same price range of a full-fledged Orange Pi or a Raspberry Pi.

Around 10 years ago I had one of the first generation Raspberry Pi's, which I used mostly as a streaming/video server. Call it a poor man's Fire Stick.

For what do you intend to use that mini PC? I mean, what will be the application?

[mediatechnology]

I was originally looking at one of the small form-factor Asus or Beelink machines to run test and measurement software on the workbench mostly AudioTester, REW etc under Win 11.

But then I found the Lenovo laptops which were lower cost than the Asus PN52/PN53 and replaced two ageing "big iron" machines: viewtopic.php?t=1406

I miss the Ubuntu machine I had and thought why not try the lower-cost Beelink for experimentation.

[Tubetec]

For years I was trying to create a quiet or near silent pc for basic audio recording jobs ,
not just quiet in terms of audio performance but also accoustic noise .

It really wasnt possible until SSD drives emerged , at thats stage I had an small intel atom based dual core nettop box , which only opperated 32 bit XP .
it was more than enough to do the job , the combination of new SSD drive with old OS was quick as lightening ,
It of course had certain memory limitations associated with 32 bit processes , but that certainly wasnt a deal breaker for me ,

As computer hardware has advanced , the complexity of the software has kept pace , video and audio drivers nowadays can run into hundreds of Mb's or Gb's ,yet a basic windows compatible driver to get the job done is only a few Mb's at most , you wont have the fancy graphics GUI and maybe if your into heavy processing/rendering or display some higher functions wont work , but for basic everyday use , no problems at all .

So why do computers now need several hundreds of Mb's of software for an internal audio device ?
Because its involved in processing data ,its most likely a speech to text module for Cortana , to make your computer better of course ,
better at stealing your thoughts out of your head and better at marketing back to you on the basis of that .

To some extent every driver does that ,even back in the old days , do you remember hearing your computer attemping to get dial up internet after new software was installed, without your permission ? I do . Of course now with always on internet your just another resource to be mined for all its worth .

Over the years Ive always extraced the inf drivers from the running PC , archived them safely ,then did a fresh bare bones install , then added the inf drivers back as I needed them , WITHOUT using the manufacturers supplied driver install package and without automatically allowing Windows choose which compatible driver versions are used . Some manufacturers do give easy access to INF drivers ,some dont , more and more they want you use the system management app included with your computer .

I wont use a fully fledged win 10 or 11 install online at all , no way ,
too intrusive .Instead I have a version of Windows thats a bit like a Jack in the box , it boots off USB directly into system memory on the host PC, everything written to the X: or Ramdrive is volatile , it gets wiped back to square one each time you boot but as long as you have it set to store your files on a real hard drive in the system its absolutely fine . the one downside is I have to load and configure the USB audio drivers for my interface each time I boot up ,

[AnalogJoe]

For years I was trying to create a quiet or near silent pc for basic audio recording jobs ,
not just quiet in terms of audio performance but also accoustic noise .

It really wasnt possible until SSD drives emerged , at thats stage I had an small intel atom based dual core nettop box , which only opperated 32 bit XP .
it was more than enough to do the job , the combination of new SSD drive with old OS was quick as lightening ,
It of course had certain memory limitations associated with 32 bit processes , but that certainly wasnt a deal breaker for me ,

As computer hardware has advanced , the complexity of the software has kept pace , video and audio drivers nowadays can run into hundreds of Mb's or Gb's ,yet a basic windows compatible driver to get the job done is only a few Mb's at most , you wont have the fancy graphics GUI and maybe if your into heavy processing/rendering or display some higher functions wont work , but for basic everyday use , no problems at all .

So why do computers now need several hundreds of Mb's of software for an internal audio device ?
Because its involved in processing data ,its most likely a speech to text module for Cortana , to make your computer better of course ,
better at stealing your thoughts out of your head and better at marketing back to you on the basis of that .

To some extent every driver does that ,even back in the old days , do you remember hearing your computer attemping to get dial up internet after new software was installed, without your permission ? I do . Of course now with always on internet your just another resource to be mined for all its worth .

Over the years Ive always extraced the inf drivers from the running PC , archived them safely ,then did a fresh bare bones install , then added the inf drivers back as I needed them , WITHOUT using the manufacturers supplied driver install package and without automatically allowing Windows choose which compatible driver versions are used . Some manufacturers do give easy access to INF drivers ,some dont , more and more they want you use the system management app included with your computer .

I wont use a fully fledged win 10 or 11 install online at all , no way ,
too intrusive .Instead I have a version of Windows thats a bit like a Jack in the box , it boots off USB directly into system memory on the host PC, everything written to the X: or Ramdrive is volatile , it gets wiped back to square one each time you boot but as long as you have it set to store your files on a real hard drive in the system its absolutely fine . the one downside is I have to load and configure the USB audio drivers for my interface each time I boot up ,

Well, that sounds like a solution to get Microsoft off your back. However, for the amount of trouble, I would just rather have Linux and get over with. I've been using it for a week now without any problems whatsoever. Sometimes it is painful to install something or to configure it, but once it is up and running it is a smooth ride.

As I have said before, I have almost forgotten that I am not using Windows anymore. The Linux GUI is so similar to Windows and has improved so much over the years that I do not feel like anything is lacking. My PC also runs wonderfully and the CPU fan rarely turns on, which is a relief, since it was on at full speed most of the time when I was using Windows. Microsoft imposes on the user lots of crap that the user doesnt need nor is even aware that it exists, however, these processes are running in the background, draining resources and power.

It is funny, because in the energy tab in Windows it is always advising you to turn on different "features" to "lower your carbon footprint", claiming that Microsoft is environment-friendly. Yet, the amount of power Microsoft drains with stupid stuff is staggering, while Linux is extremely efficient without the virtue signalling. It is just more of the same ridiculous rhetoric. Billionaires flying in private jets telling you that you need to ride a bike to work because your are destroying the planet. And make sure you eat the bugs on your way to it.