The DRM timebomb

[Reece]

My XP is online and has been for years, I use Comodo firewall and Avira virus detector, haven't had any problems in years.

I might look into duel boot though my C-drive is in a removable cradle, I have spares so I might try a different system on that. Really need 2 drives the same otherwise I have to change the bios settings all the time.

I hope this DRM crap folds up but I don't see it happening!!

[Rockin Robbins]

A couple of things:

• I don't recommend sharing a single hard drive with dual boot. Gets in the way of Windows restoration programs. What you should do is install Linux on a completely separate hard drive and set your computer to boot to it. Linux will automatically install GRUB (GRand Unified Bootloader) which will automatically find Windows and put it in as a boot menu selection. The advantage of this is that your Windows install disk is entirely untouched and unmodified. Windows hates Linux and does anything possible to block it from usefulness on your machine.
• If you are just starting out with Linux, I'd start with an Ubuntu derivative: Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Lubuntu, Mint, Elementary OS, OzOs, Peppermint Linux, Linux Lite, you can get a more exhaustive list at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catego...m)_derivatives
• Remember, the more popular a derivative is the more help you can get. In practice you can go to the Ask Ubuntu or Ubuntu Forums and any advice you get there will apply to all the derivatives. Most of them have their own community help forums. The support is MUCH better than anything Microsoft provides.
• With Linux, you can avoid the DRM time bomb, which will first injure the customers of the companies that use DRM as the hammer, then the bomb will destroy the companies themselves. That means Microsoft, HP and other companies that are using the DMCA "hammer" are self-limiting. When they go their customers' property becomes unusable and worthless. Identify and avoid these companies (can you say Sony?) immediately. Consider any money paid to these companies a vote for the end of property ownership. Also consider that money wasted.
• I run Silent Hunter 4 with GFO, Borderlands 2, Counterstrike GO, Kerbal Space Program, Counterstrike Source, Kyodai Mah Jong, Firefox, Microsoft Office 2003, Thunderbird (Get rid of Outlook or Outlook express! This is better). I haven't tried Photoshop. Gaming is already great on Linux and Steam will make it much better.
• Linux is free. All software in Linux repositories are free. Commercial software is available if you want it. As compnies find that Windows 10 cannot be made secure because of unknown, encrypted data dumps to Microsoft servers for unknown purposes twice daily, business software will also migrate away from the evil empire. Linux is free from spyware, adware and malware. It isn't totally immune from outside sources of all three but it is much more resistant than Windows.

After Fall of the Rising Sun Ultimate Edition is published I look forward to cooperating with Skybird, Commander Wallace and others to make a "Get acquainted with Linux" thread.



Look: there's no reason to be intimidated by an alternate operating system any more. You probably already use Android or iOS. Windows tried to take over the cell phone market and snatched an awesome 3% of the market over three years. What does that tell you about being afraid of non-Windows OSes? People already love 'em! In a freely competitive market Windows loses 3-97. That's something of a landslide, isn't it?

Fall of the Rising Sun Ultimate Edition will be the very first Silent Hunter 4 mod put together on a Linux machine. Not only will you be able to play SH4 on a Linux machine but mod SH4 there and publish the mods from there, which will work on Windows machines also. I'm doing my part to ensure the Sun falls on Microsoft, HP, Sony and any other company which tries to build prosperity upon intimidating people with the DMCA and simlar thuggish acts.

[Skybird]

What Robbins said on dual boot on two HDs - just adding that you need to install Windows first and Linux second.

Why? - Linux recognises Windows file structures, but Microsoft does not want Windows to recognise Linux files. So if you install Linux first and then Windows, Windows may or may not overwrite parts or all of Linux, seeing empty HD space where there are Linux data - Linux on the other hand will recognise Windows data, and even can fully handle them, will not overwrite Windows that easily. You can even save data in Linux software in Windows-compatible data formats.

I did dual boot on two HDs for testing Linux for some months. I now use two platforms, one Windows game PC, and a Linux notebook for everything else.

[Commander Wallace]

Originally Posted by Rockin Robbins

A couple of things:

After Fall of the Rising Sun Ultimate Edition is published I look forward to cooperating with Skybird, Commander Wallace and others to make a "Get acquainted with Linux" thread.

I'm all for that and as you know, I will do what I can. As I said though, I'm sure you and Skybird and probably others know a lot more than I do regarding these OS systems. My thoughts were to work with these OS systems and see what programs work with them, including Simulations / games and then put post my findings here along with any procedures needed to implement these systems.

Hopefully this work will give everyone options they didn't know they had.

I have found our talks to be valuable Rockin Robbins and I thank you for taking the time out to talk with me and compare findings and results regarding these OS systems. I look forward to working with you.


Best regards.

[Reece]

I am used to running XP and as I understand it the computer boots only on drive C so if I install Windows on C then set it to D and install Linux on C how can the system boot Windows on D? (I haven't updated for many years)

[Skybird]

When you have Windows on C:, you do not want to install Linux on C: as well, but D:

If you have put in a scond HD into your PC tower, you may need to alter the booting order in BIOS. At least once you got Linux on D.

Linux will install its own boot manager. This should not overwrite the one of Windows. Because: If you remove Linux, then you have no booting manager for Windows. If however Windows boot manager happened to overwrite the Linux boot manager, you cnanot choose on system booting what OS you want to boot in, since Wndows boot manager does not leave such choice, only the Linux manager allows that.

If you are new to it, why do not test it first like this:

Linux Mint 16
https://www.computersnyou.com/2803/c...ows-linux-mac/

Or Ubunutu:
http://www.ubuntu.com/download/deskt...ick-on-windows

You simply need to google and download an ISO file for Mint 17.3 or 18.

What you get is a bootable USB stick that starts your system in Mint withoutn anything chnage don your HD at all. You can chnage and save working files on stick. You can test it all via stick. Stick needs toget booting priority in your BIOS. If you like it, you can install to hD from within the running Mint stick process, there is a button. But you may want to make sure you colelcted some info on that before youbstart it, regarding partition sizes and locations. Its not difficult, but some initial things simply must be known, there is no way around that.

If your system already is EFIS and not BIOS anymore, google for that, things may be different then, HD installation also works a bit different. I have not done that myself so far, so cannot comment on it by experience.

[Skybird]

I should make one thing clear: I am no expert for Linux. I have the experience of the past months since I installed and used it, and not more than that what I did myself in that time. That leads me - and others following in those steps - to where I am, and not further.

So, for more specific questions I recommend to post them in detail and precision at one of the two main forums that there are in English and German, it is here where you can find much more competent help in Linux so-called "terminal's" syntax and commands (the "terminal" is the command line interface of Mint that you sooner or later will run into). In these forums people usually will give you the needed magical spells that you can then just paste and copy into your own terminal window. I cannot provide anyone with that kind of magic, since I have not mastered it myself.

Note and save these links, and keep them easily available in your browser:

International/English forum:
https://forums.linuxmint.com/

German forum:
http://www.linuxmintusers.de/index.p...7&action=forum

And once you have installed Mint on HD, you may consider some of the steps in this list, and the lists linked in this:

https://sites.google.com/site/easyli...cinnamon-first

Mint is designed to be as save and reliable as possible. So if you are in doubt or do not understand one of the steps in these recomemndations list, then skip it and DO NOT DO it. Its no must, its just recommended, its just additional. Its not essential.

[Reece]

Thanks Skybird, I'm getting the general idea, booting off a usb stick is most intriguing!! I really like this idea as I don't need to change anything just plug in Linux, change bios boot priority and that's it!! Didn't know you could boot off a usb stick!!
Will have to figure out how to backup a usb drive then!!

[Skybird]

Just keep in mind that USB sticks should be understood as a relatively unreliable storage option. They have the nasty habit to stop working for unknown reason, just becasue they decided that now is the time to break. Have backups ready.

Ironically, hard drioves are the safest option to store data for long time. You often can retrieve important data, in parts or completely, even from malfunctioning or broken harddrives, specialist can do that. A broken USB stick is a 100% loss, so is a broken or malfunctioning DVD/CD.

Chose a good manufacturer and a good product, if you tend to make stick-based Linux your main option. Avoid cheap "sales" as well as superfast hjigh tech sticks - which tend to become very hot, and heat and USB sticks is no good combo. A provne, fast USB 2.0 stick is good enough. Also avoids any possible problems that there still are with USB 3.0 connectors not being recognised by your system, maybe. USB 3.0 still is not a ripe and proven standard after all these years!

[Commander Wallace]

Just a quick update :

I had installed a Linux based OS on the same hard drive that had been partitioned with the other side holding a Microsoft platform. The Linux OS was operating perfectly for the first few days. The computer was not online.

A few days passed and I booted back into Linux only to discover the desktop was now gone. Microsoft Windows apparently corrupted the new OS system. Rockin Robbin and Skybird had said it was not advisable to have a windows and Linux based platform occupy the same hard drive and they were correct. I had also said I believed Microsoft Windows may well infiltrate the new OS system. This has turned out to be the case.

The other Nasty surprise I received was My windows 10 was updated on another machine after which all of my settings were changed. I tried to initiate the roll back feature only to discover that Microsoft had disabled that too. I tried to initiate that same feature on a peripheral utilities program and that had been disabled by Microsoft as well.


This may well be an example of the malicious nature of Microsoft

I haven't tried having 2 Linux based OS systems in a partitioned hard drive . I really don't see any benefits of that anyhow. Take this for what it's worth as some of you may feel or believe that Microsoft is a benign entity working in your best interests. Others feel differently which has been well chronicled in the Subsim Forums.


Edit. The computer had been online from the partitioned Linux part. I was putting in a utilities program, office setup and other programs. Also, My Win 10 didn't come with a search feature so I manually installed that as well. When Windows 10 updated, it took that feature away- again.

[Reece]

WOW!! I'm starting to hate Microsoft!! The usb option seems the best for now so I might opt for that using good quality sticks.
Does anyone know if and how to backup a usb stick including "boot sector/partition" ? I always used Ghost in the past, will that work with usb sticks?

[Catfish]

The new major Win 10 update 1607 has been said to screw up a lot of things, however there is a patch out already.

AFAIK Only Win 10 screws up a double boot partition, up to Win 7 all should be ok. No info about Win 8.1 though.

Since with Win 10 you can no longer choose whether to update, or pick out and update certain objects, this all is really becoming a mess. And they do not even care to publish what the upcoming update changes, anymore - not that it would really help you lol.
It is really strange, and i wonder what the people at MS themselves think about it. I guess that is what happens when you let economical streamliners and marketing experts manage a company. They obviously fired all the people in charge for Win XP straight to Win8.1, with only a basic crew to "support" the few old contracts.

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by Reece

WOW!! I'm starting to hate Microsoft!! The usb option seems the best for now so I might opt for that using good quality sticks.
Does anyone know if and how to backup a usb stick including "boot sector/partition" ? I always used Ghost in the past, will that work with usb sticks?

Don't know, sorry. However, you may want to consider to backup only your work data files, pics, savegames etc, not the complete installation, since constructing a bootable Linux USB stick is easy, and if you do it new in case you need to, you then can use the latest Linux version available, also benefit from new Kernel releases within said versions. I would use the latest available stable Kernel for new installatio,n but I am hesitent to replace old Linux Kernels in an existing installation, this always comes at the risk of something breaking, or software incompatabilties, and if then you do not know how to maintain Linux and operate Terminal very well, you end up reinstalling everything anyway.

Keep it simple.

I als suggest to have all private data saved on external HD or USB sticks anyway, plugging them in also when I work on something. What is not stored on the PC, cannot be retrieved by an invader.

Rewritable DVD maybe also are worth a consideration. I know that years back I stumbled over the possibility to have them set up like a HD, reading and writing to them on the fly, during your work, as if it were a (slower) HD. Maybe somebody recalls the details.

[Catfish]

Is there a VM for Linux, in which you could run a Win 7 installation?

That would get rid of the dual boot...

[Reece]

Originally Posted by Skybird

since constructing a bootable Linux USB stick is easy

Can you point me to where I can find details how to do this? If I purchase a bootable linux usb can it be done from that? Sorry about all the questions, this is all new to me!!