Light Weight GNU/Linux for Old Laptops -> Suggestions?

[raymac46]

Usually with Acer F2 will get you into the BIOS and F12 gives you a boot order command. A Google search on the model number will usually give you the specs.

Edited June 8, 2023 by raymac46

[abarbarian]

4 hours ago, V.T. Eric Layton said:

Amazingly enough, the HP didn't have any malware/virus issues because it was using Windows Defender.

 

Defender is always suggested on another well respected forum I frequent, as good as almost any other offering.

 

3 hours ago, raymac46 said:

I think Erik has had good luck with MX-Linux on a thumbdrive.

 

Yup I have had a usb with MX with persistence sitting on it for years.

 

2 hours ago, V.T. Eric Layton said:

well, and some of the people, too, actually).

 

 

2 hours ago, V.T. Eric Layton said:

I also need to find out how to enter BIOS and how to boot from DVD on that machine.

 

Usually F2 or F8 or F12 at boot.

 

2 hours ago, V.T. Eric Layton said:

Once I have that command line, I can easily manipulate (using fdisk and parted), set-up, change, and wipe/format that hard drive.

 

Gparted for me. I am pretty  lazy.

 

I warned this woman that her accounts and private information is probably already compromised.

2 hours ago, V.T. Eric Layton said:

I warned this woman that her accounts and private information is probably already compromised.

 

Install Keepassxc. Help her to set up passwords for the sites she uses. Then she only has to remember one main password.

 

 

[V.T. Eric Layton]

2 hours ago, raymac46 said:

I've found that the easiest converts are the grandkids.

 

Yes, the younger they are the easier it is for them to learn to use something new to them. Old people are like cats... don't like change at all. They are the most difficult to deal with in my experience. Old being anyone over 30.

[raymac46]

When I blow off Windows on an older PC I generally am installing  LInux Mint. I just take the option to wipe the disk and install Mint as the only OS. That will take care of things regardless of whether the system in question has UEFI or Legacy as the setup option. That said it's always a good idea to check the Setup to find out whether you have EFI or legacy BIOS. If it's EFI I usually disable Secure Boot. Mint can handle this but some wifi solutions (Hello Broadcom!) require a module to be loaded and won't work if Secure Boot is enabled.

It's all supposed to be easy as pie but sometimes it isn't.

Edited June 8, 2023 by raymac46

[raymac46]

36 minutes ago, V.T. Eric Layton said:

 

Yes, the younger they are the easier it is for them to learn to use something new to them. Old people are like cats... don't like change at all. They are the most difficult to deal with in my experience. Old being anyone over 30.

I think anyone who grew up with iPads, iPhones, Android, Game consoles, Switches, Chrome OS is used to the idea that Windows isn't the only way to get online and do stuff. Introducing such a person to Linux is no problem at all. 

I can also understand how someone might be fixated on Windows - Lillian certainly was. But she adapted to iOS after a while. However I'll never figure out how someone could totally neglect security and end up with a viral honeypot.

[Hedon James]

On 6/6/2023 at 10:47 AM, V.T. Eric Layton said:

 

All my aunt and her husband basically do on this ol' Dell of theirs is check their email and pay bills on their bank's website. They not into "Internet" baloney like YouTube vids or such. (snipped) I'm trying to avoid any PITA for me. I have enough of my own PITAS already.

 

Ideally, if they (auntie) had the $, I would recommend a Chromebook, as I did for my pal Ron's mother a few years ago. They are basically bulletproof machines... VERY low maintenance required by family IT guy.

Right on...but at the risk of sounding like I know better than you (which i do NOT), they likely don't need the $$$ for a Chromebook.  Referencing my previous post about ChromeOS Flex, why not create a LiveUSB and see if their current devices work with ChromeOS?  It is, after all....FREE....and their current hardware is likely better-specced than any Chromebook they could purchase?!  The list of "supported" devices on the ChromeOS website is primarily made up of Dell, HP, Lenovo, Acer, and Asus machines.  Even if their specific device isn't listed, the fact the manufacturer is on the supported list so often indicates to me that their system will LIKELY run ChromeOS just fine.

 

As I said before, I installed ChromeOS Flex on a circa 2005 Toshiba Satellite laptop and 2 circa 2008-2009 refurbed Gateway laptops (none were on the list, BTW) and ChromeOS ran like a DREAM on those machines with 4GB of RAM.  I even installed Linux VMs through the ChromeOS advanced settings, which provides a Linux Terminal; from the terminal, I then installed LibreOffice, Firefox, inxi, and some other miscellaneous linux softwares.  Everything ran perfectly!  The systems updated themselves in the background and informed me when a reboot was required, but ran just fine while waiting for that reboot.

 

Based on MY experience, and coupled with YOUR comments above, the only reason I can think of to NOT put ChromeOS on those machines is that you've learned ChromeOS doesn't run very well on their machines from a LiveUSB media.  JMO...  So i'd like to remind you of that option and at least encourage you to try it out.  And with that said, I'll defer to your best judgement....anyone who can install, maintain, and troubleshoot Slackware for as long as you've been doing so is certainly capable of this simple project.  And good on you for coming to their rescue like this!

[V.T. Eric Layton]

19 minutes ago, Hedon James said:

Referencing my previous post about ChromeOS Flex, why not create a LiveUSB and see if their current devices work with ChromeOS?

 

@Hedon James... for starters, my aunt's laptop is an ancient 32 bit Dell laptop. There's not much that it will run. It's struggling mightily to run Ubuntu 18 (5+ year old OS). I upgraded the hardware (larger HD, max RAM) in that machine years ago. There's not much else I'm ever  going to be able to do with that thing. As, Ray mentions, I might try a lightweight browser at some point to improve things a bit, maybe.

 

The second reason I don't want to try to install unfamiliar (to me) OSes on any of these  systems is because it would require me to learn them. Not interested in extra work for me. I've gotten old and fat and lazy. By the way that Dell doesn't even have a CD/DVD on it. Anything I attempt to put on that thing needs to be bootable from USB.

 

If cousin's lady doesn't mind converting her ACER to GNU/Linux and letting auntie use that one, that would be much easier for all involved. I'd probably install Linux Mint because that machine is quite capable of running it and it's a 'Nix I'm familiar with and wouldn't have to learn from scratch.

 

But hey... things change from day to day. I haven't talked with my aunt or cousin's lady since Wednesday, so I'm not sure what the deal is yet. I'm going to probably call over there today and see what's happening. Then I'll know more about what going to be needed.

[raymac46]

If cousin's lady would let you install Mint for your aunt that will solve a lot of problems. The 32 bit Dell could benefit from a lighter OS like antiX and a lightweight browser but you are really near the end of the line with that machine.

Aside from having to set up Linux in a walled garden, I don't see too many disadvantages to Cheome OS Flex. If you don't like Google it'll be a problem of course. I use Google Docs and Google Drive all the time AND I have an Android phone so a Chromebook itself is a good idea for me (and the grandkids.)

[Hedon James]

3 hours ago, V.T. Eric Layton said:

 

@Hedon James... for starters, my aunt's laptop is an ancient 32 bit Dell laptop. There's not much that it will run. It's struggling mightily to run Ubuntu 18 (5+ year old OS). I upgraded the hardware (larger HD, max RAM) in that machine years ago. There's not much else I'm ever  going to be able to do with that thing. As, Ray mentions, I might try a lightweight browser at some point to improve things a bit, maybe.

 

The second reason I don't want to try to install unfamiliar (to me) OSes on any of these  systems is because it would require me to learn them. Not interested in extra work for me. I've gotten old and fat and lazy. By the way that Dell doesn't even have a CD/DVD on it. Anything I attempt to put on that thing needs to be bootable from USB.

 

If cousin's lady doesn't mind converting her ACER to GNU/Linux and letting auntie use that one, that would be much easier for all involved. I'd probably install Linux Mint because that machine is quite capable of running it and it's a 'Nix I'm familiar with and wouldn't have to learn from scratch.

 

But hey... things change from day to day. I haven't talked with my aunt or cousin's lady since Wednesday, so I'm not sure what the deal is yet. I'm going to probably call over there today and see what's happening. Then I'll know more about what going to be needed.

I understand about the 32-bit Dell.  No ChromeOS for that one, no matter what.  Mint XFCE is probably a good choice for that one.  I think Antix or Bunsen would be better choices (from a purely performance based perspective), but Mint is closer to the Windows paradigm, so that is probably the best choice for Auntie.  I agree with you.

 

But you said the other laptops are more recent 64-bit machines...an HP and an Acer.  They are almost certainly too old to be on the "supported" list of hardware, but considering how well HP and Acer is represented on that list, I'd be willing to bet that ChromeOS will run great on those machines.  And ChromeOS Flex is installed via USB, so that shouldn't be an issue.  It's practically identical to how we create LiveUSB media for Linux distros:

https://support.google.com/chromeosflex/answer/11552529?hl=en

I installed ChromeOS Flex on my old crappy laptops about 2-3 months ago and ran them and kept them updated for about 2 months before I set them back on the shelf and patted myself on the back for saving space in the landfill.  They were the closest thing to a "no maintenance" system I've ever had....just reboot on occasion, and I got to choose WHEN that happened, cuz ChromeOS doesn't force the issue NOW, like Windows does.  I wish we had this conversation 2 weeks ago...I would've sent them to you, just to help out a friend.

 

Sorry if it sounds like I'm pushing ChromeOS Flex...it's not my call.  But everything you've described indicates that it might be an option (LiveUSB will determinate for certain), and you yourself have indicated you would recommend a Chromebook for low maintenance ease of use.  I agree with your thoughts on that matter, but they don't need to spend a single $ to have that.  As long as they have you for the initial install and setup, they could have a Chromebook that is specced better than ANYTHING they could buy, but at no charge.  And if you have any issues whatsoever, I'm available, just as others have been available to help me.

 

My installation of ChromeOS Flex on my crappy old laptops was the easiest distro install I have EVER done.  In fact, I would even say that, as long as you prepare the LiveUSB for them, you could probably hand over that LiveUSB to them and say "have at it....plug this in, turn your computer on, and just follow the on-screen instructions".  FWIW...

 

But having said all that...if you think Mint is the way to go (for ALL, not just the 32-bit), I'm sure you have a good reason.  Just trying to help you provide Chromebooks to your relatives, at NO CHARGE whatsoever!  And from a maintenance perspective, I don't think you'll ever hear from them again!  LOL!

[V.T. Eric Layton]

Well, the word from Ada (cousin's ladyfriend) is that there will be NO conversion to Linux on either of her two Windows machines. She's even decided that she's going to take the Acer to a local repair facility to get it going again.

 

YAY! I wished her luck and advised her to have some $$$ available to spend on that old Acer.... because she's going to need it.

 

Aunt is happy that her little Dell is still working and doesn't want me to change anything on it... for now, anyway.

 

So... all's well. I'm finished with this non-project. Nap time!

[raymac46]

Not with a bang, but a whimper.

[Hedon James]

5 hours ago, V.T. Eric Layton said:

Well, the word from Ada (cousin's ladyfriend) is that there will be NO conversion to Linux on either of her two Windows machines. She's even decided that she's going to take the Acer to a local repair facility to get it going again.

 

YAY! I wished her luck and advised her to have some $$$ available to spend on that old Acer.... because she's going to need it.

 

Aunt is happy that her little Dell is still working and doesn't want me to change anything on it... for now, anyway.

 

So... all's well. I'm finished with this non-project. Nap time!

Problem solved!

 

For now, at least.  When she finds out that repair fees approach the cost of new machines, her calculus may change.  I still stand by analysis & conclusions, but it IS her machine, her money, & her decision.  Let her information catch up to what we already know, and the conversation will likely go a different direction.

 

Might wanna bookmark this thread, just in case?!  LOL!

[raymac46]

Yeah it's not over till it's over, and I have a feeling this one will circle back in the not too distant future. Then there's always that desktop system in the closet...

[abarbarian]

21 hours ago, V.T. Eric Layton said:

There's not much that it will run. It's struggling mightily to run Ubuntu 18 (5+ year old OS).

 

If it helps I am using MX on my 2007 ToughBook. It is very usable as long as you only have one program running at a time. I use FireFox on it to keep my bookmarks in sync which does run a tad slow though still useable. A lighter weight browser would probably be a better fit for it.

Point is it is Debian based so not too dissimilar to Ubuntu. I think it would run much better than Ubuntu.

 

[Hedon James]

38 minutes ago, abarbarian said:

 

If it helps I am using MX on my 2007 ToughBook. It is very usable as long as you only have one program running at a time. I use FireFox on it to keep my bookmarks in sync which does run a tad slow though still useable. A lighter weight browser would probably be a better fit for it.

Point is it is Debian based so not too dissimilar to Ubuntu. I think it would run much better than Ubuntu.

 

Depending on the desktop chosen, absolutely!  I was an Ubuntu user for about 10 years....LOVED it.  But Ubuntu proper is a resource hog and is the reason I switched to Lubuntu.  But Lubuntu only has 3 year LTS, while mother 'Buntu has 5 years.  So I was able to migrate sideways (some would argue upstream?!) to Debian, with an LXQt DE, and get that 5-year window.  Debian has been SUPREMELY stable for me, with very minimal hiccups.  If one was to install XFCE, LXQt, LXDE (still available in Debian repos!), or a Window Manager environment, Debian will ABSOLUTELY run much better than Ubuntu EVER did.

 

But if one was looking to the WM environments, I would suggest that MX and BunsenLabs are pre-mixed and polished versions of Debian WM distros....install one of those, IMO.  If one was looking for complete, but lightweight DEs, install Debian and choose your DE at installation.

[V.T. Eric Layton]

13 hours ago, raymac46 said:

Then there's always that desktop system in the closet..

 

Had to remind me, didn't ya'?

[raymac46]

BTW I downloaded the Chrome OS Flex ISO and am currently running on the Live environment. I tried it out on the tricky little HP 14 inch laptop that has the Broadcom wifi chip. Everything worked out of the box so Chrome OS Flex can handle these recalcitrant wifi chips very well. If it'll run here it'll work fine on just about any 64 bit laptop.

[V.T. Eric Layton]

Actually, since my cousin emptied out the house he was living in and brought all his, his ladyfriend's, and his two daughters' worldly possessions to him mom's (my aunt) little house, there is "stuff" EVERYWHERE... kitchen, living room, hallways, bedrooms, carport, driveway, backyard in tents, etc. It will probably be 2040-45 before anyone ever gets near that closet with the tower system in it.

 

Reminds me a bit of my buddy Gary's daughter and I cleaning out his hoarder home back in 2018. We took three 30 yd. dumpsters of crap out of his house. It was an amazing thing.

 

 

[securitybreach]

Jeez

[abarbarian]

2 hours ago, V.T. Eric Layton said:

Actually, since my cousin emptied out the house he was living in and brought all his, his ladyfriend's, and his two daughters' worldly possessions to him mom's (my aunt) little house, there is "stuff" EVERYWHERE... kitchen, living room, hallways, bedrooms, carport, driveway, backyard in tents, etc. It will probably be 2040-45 before anyone ever gets near that closet with the tower system in it.

 

Reminds me a bit of my buddy Gary's daughter and I cleaning out his hoarder home back in 2018. We took three 30 yd. dumpsters of crap out of his house. It was an amazing thing.

 

 

 

Ha looks a tad like some rooms in my house except my stuff is in big boxes in the main.

 

[V.T. Eric Layton]

First image below is another view of that living room from a different angle...

 

Keep in mind, every other room in this house (3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, kitchen) were just as bad or worse than this living room. My pal Gary had some serious depression issues going on for a decade or so... he hid it VERY well, but the hoarding should have sent off some warning signs to us. The problem was that he was ALWAYS a hoarder to a certain extent. I had known the man for 35+ years before he died in '18.

 

Second image below is a shot of his master bedroom...

 

 

[V.T. Eric Layton]

I only have one room in my house that looks even a little like that mess above... it's my living room storage area. It's mostly books (in bins and boxes), but there's also some unused furniture, a TV, my bicycle, shop vacuum, and other miscellaneous items in there. Saves on paying for a storage facility, right?

[sunrat]

Still looks pretty tidy compared to episodes of "Hoarders" I've seen on TV.

[securitybreach]

Nuts, I guess my house is spotless compared to this 

[Hedon James]

On 6/10/2023 at 10:52 AM, raymac46 said:

BTW I downloaded the Chrome OS Flex ISO and am currently running on the Live environment. I tried it out on the tricky little HP 14 inch laptop that has the Broadcom wifi chip. Everything worked out of the box so Chrome OS Flex can handle these recalcitrant wifi chips very well. If it'll run here it'll work fine on just about any 64 bit laptop.

Good to know!  Honestly, I initially started with the ChromeOS Flex install because I just wanted to wipe data....ALL DATA...from my old laptops.  And I could've done that in any number of ways, but I was also curious about ChromeOS Flex and it's differences with Chrome OS and Chromebooks.  So it was a "two for the price of 1" exercise for me.  I was AMAZED at how well ChromeOS Flex ran from a LiveUSB on those old laptops....circa 2005 and circa 2009 refurb....which were never really popular brands/models to begin with (not even sure if the Toshiba brand is still around, but Gateway was purchased by Acer at a later date).  I was always going to "install" and re-write the disk, but I wasn't prepared for the impressive performance on those old and decrepit machines.

 

After installation, I continued to tinker and learned that the lack of a Play Store on ChromeOS Flex was really no big deal.  Play Store is for Android apps, and there are very few ChromeOS apps on the Play Store anyhow.  As an Android user, this was a surprise to me, but no big deal, because I was more interested in the LinuxVM anyhow.  After enabling (simply flicking a switch in the settings), it set itself up.  Even though it's referred to as a VM, it isn't really a VM in the sense that we are used to....an OS running on an OS...it's more of a Linux sandbox, with Linux apps sandboxed on ChromeOS.  The Linux apps are currently drawn from Debian repos, and as a Debian user, it was quite easy to install apps from the Linux terminal with apt.

Quote

sudo apt install libreoffice firefox gimp pcmanfm inxi htop

and I was in business with about 80%-90% of the software I use on Linux....with the added bonus of being "outside" the Google services ecosystem!  And Linux apps run on ChromeOS with no noticeable difference in performance...keep in mind, they were running in a LinuxVM/sandbox, splitting 4GB RAM with the ChromeOS host, and running as if native.  The only downside that I could report, is that Linux apps don't follow the ChromeOS themes...they are vanilla GTK.  I COULD install "lxappearance" or another lightweight theme tool if I want, as well as theme packs (folders, cursors, etc...) and make Linux resemble Chrome, but it isn't that big of a deal to me.  In fact, I view that as a "feature perk" in that it provides me a visual reminder that I'm using Linux instead of a Chrome app.  The upshot of this little experiment with LinuxVMs on ChromeOS was that I learned I could almost completely avoid the Google app ecosystem, which is a big deal to me.  ChromeOS is 100% tied to Google apps & tools; but the LinuxVM allows you to bypass Google as much or as little as you prefer.  My biggest issue with ChromeOS was completely solveable, with an added bonus being that the old decrepit laptops provided better hardware-specced machines than just about every Chromebook on the market now?!!! 

 

The final kicker was that while I was tinkering, installing, and trying to find the limits of the machine and what I could or could not do, a notification popped up that "updates were downloaded and installed.  you should reboot to complete the installation."  ChromeOS had been updating itself in the background, silently, and was going to let me choose WHEN to finish that task.  Very nice....no more "stacked" updates.  Although the machine did update itself 2-3 more times before the LiveUSB image installed finally caught up to the "current" version, but each update was the same....silent in the background, with a very obvious notification to reboot whenever I wanted, while I continued working.  And the reboot takes about 5-10 seconds...very fast...no reason NOT to do it.  As the weeks & months have past, it looks like ChromeOS updates itself weekly....certainly every 2 weeks, and each time has been the same simple non-event.

 

As a fellow who doesn't like performing computer repairs or troubleshooting issues on OTHER peoples' machines, ChromeOS Flex is going to be MY recommendation to people going forward.  In today's world, about 85% of cell phone users are Android users.  ChromeOS looks and acts very familiar to them.  Most are fine with the obtrusive Google ecosystem, so it's no big deal to them.  Folks like me who have issues with Google and their privacy invasion data-harvesting tactics can mostly sidestep Google's tools of the trade....moreso than you can on Android, IMO.  Cheap Chromebooks can be purchased for $200-$400; but you can refurb their old crappy Windows machine for FREE, and have a better specced machine than the new Chromebook!  Knowing what I know now, the only reason I wouldn't recommend ChromeOS Flex to someone is IF it didn't run suitably on their machine.  But the fact that ChromeOS ran so spectacularly on those crappy old laptops of mine, gives me reason to believe that it's going to work way more often than not.

 

This lengthy post isn't meant to evangelize or convert anyone's opinions.  If you don't like or don't want Google offerings for whatever reason is important to you....then Chrome isn't for you.  I'm just speaking as a person who had curiousity with Chrome, but mis-givings about Google.  This is MY experience, issues encountered, and how it turned out for me.  I'll be your canary in the coal mine.  I was sufficiently assuaged about my Chrome concerns and will jump it to the TOP of my list of recommendations for others to refurbish their old hardware with.  Your mileage may vary...

Edited June 11, 2023 by Hedon James

[V.T. Eric Layton]

16 hours ago, sunrat said:

Still looks pretty tidy...

 

HAHA! You had to be there. It was un-effing-believable. And yes, his daughter and I used to laugh at episodes of Hoarders; some of those folks were just amateurs. My buddy Gary was a Pro-Hoarder.

 

 

[raymac46]

Right now I don't have YACL (yet another crappy laptop) to run ChromeOS Flex on the rails. I do have an actual Chromebook so I know how it looks and feels.

My daughter has an old AMD laptop at her home but she still uses it with Windows (why I don't know because she has a much newer and faster laptop.) Anyway when she is finished with it I'll turn it into a Chromebook for the grandkids.

I don't have a problem with Google as I use the Google Drive and Suite of apps for cloud computing and storage. I agree that Chrome OS Flex looks like a great solution. In fact I might never have gone with Linux per se had such a solution been around in 2007. Probably it is easier to get Windows refugees to go with Chrome OS Flex because they *may* be familiar with the idea of a Chromebook given you can actually buy one on Amazon. Any possibility of keeping a usable piece of equipment out of a landfill has got to be a good thing.

[Hedon James]

52 minutes ago, raymac46 said:

Right now I don't have YACL (yet another crappy laptop) to run ChromeOS Flex on the rails. I do have an actual Chromebook so I know how it looks and feels.

My daughter has an old AMD laptop at her home but she still uses it with Windows (why I don't know because she has a much newer and faster laptop.) Anyway when she is finished with it I'll turn it into a Chromebook for the grandkids.

I don't have a problem with Google as I use the Google Drive and Suite of apps for cloud computing and storage. I agree that Chrome OS Flex looks like a great solution. In fact I might never have gone with Linux per se had such a solution been around in 2007. Probably it is easier to get Windows refugees to go with Chrome OS Flex because they *may* be familiar with the idea of a Chromebook given you can actually buy one on Amazon. Any possibility of keeping a usable piece of equipment out of a landfill has got to be a good thing.

Hadn't thought about that, but I'm inclined to agree....I'd probably be a Chrome user IF that OS existed back when I was looking to migrate.

 

But with that being said....make no mistake...Linux is the right OS for ME.  I think all of us on BATL are tinkerers in some respect, and Linux is the right tool for most if not ALL of us.  But if I've learned anything in my Linux journey, it's that most folks are NOT tinkerers, or even curious....they just use what they're given and do what they're told, as long as it isn't too challenging or take too much effort.  They just want to USE their computers, like most folks simply want to DRIVE their cars.  Maintenance & repairs are for mechanics.  Most folks are DRIVERS.  Us folks here at BATL, we're drivers and MECHANICS.

 

I had/have issues with Google.  I don't see them as the "enemy", but I do see them as a parasite.  I'll use their tools (big fan of Google Drive), if I can keep the blood-sucking to a minimum.  That's a fair trade to me.  Knowing what I know about ChromeOS now, my biggest barrier/objection has been removed.  Now the trade-off is a fair one, IMO.  And with my ChromeOS Flex experience, I've realized that the overwhelming majority of computer users should be using ChromeOS, even if they don't know it (yet).  Best of all....once I get them setup and running, I doubt I'll ever hear from them again.  My mother was my worst "customer" for tech support.  She needed something from me EVERY damn week.  And I'd keep telling her the same things, over & over....you need to keep it UPDATED....if there's an update available, DO IT.  She just ignores that....Windows, Linux....doesn't matter.  PITA....she's not doing it.

 

So I bought her a Chromebook about 3 years ago and set her up, and moved all her data to a 256GB SD card, and gave her a quick demonstration on how to navigate Chrome.  I haven't heard from her since!  Not only that, she has persuaded and/or helped 2-3 of her senior citizen friends to purchase Chromebooks.  I didn't have to lift a finger.  That is a HUGE win, IMO.  Give me more of that please!

[raymac46]

Yes I think most of us have a lot of intellectual capital invested in Linux so it wouldn't make much sense for us to scrap it for Chrome OS. Besides I already have a Chromebook. On the other hand a new user from Windows wouldn't have to do much of anything to get started with Chrome OS Flex, if all they wanted was to surf the Web, get email, play a few videos. Horses for courses.

[V.T. Eric Layton]

Personally, I have no use for Google or Chrome OS. I do partake of YouTube (shame on me) and my Android phone is a Google OS, but it's been cleaned and stripped of most Google crud. Besides, I only use it for a phone, the occasional drunken text fest, and a look a the local radar during storms when my computer is powered down.

 

For non-mechanical "drivers" of computer systems, though, Chromebooks are handy-dandy ways to knock that family/friend IT burden to nearly ZERO. Works for me. I'm ambition challenged (read as "lazy").