Looking to dip my toes into Linux for the first time. I have a 2016 Intel MacBook Pro with pretty solid specs collecting dust right now that I think I’m going to use. Research so far has indicated to me that the two best options for me are likely Mint or Elementary OS. Does anyone have any insight? Also open to other OS’s. I would consider myself decently tech savvy but I am not a programmer or anything. Comfortable dipping into the terminal when the need arises and all that.
I’ve been running Linux on my 2015 MacBook Pro for years, as well as my older Mac Mini which I still use.
I’ve tried all the distros and my recommendation is this:
Don’t use Ubuntu or Fedora because they’ve been giving the community a hard time lately and are becoming too corporate.
Use opensuse, Debian, PopOS or EndeavourOS. They all offer the Gnome desktop which you’ll choose when installing.
Gnome also looks the most like macos if you want to retain that familiarity.
It comes in two versions: Linux Mint which is Ubuntu based and LMDE (Linux Mint Debian Edition) which is Debian based. I use LMDE 6 because I want to move away from Ubuntu, but either is fine. As a new user I’d recommend LM with the Ubuntu base.
Your iSight camera won’t work because it needs a proprietary driver which Apple doesn’t supply. There is a reverse engineered driver on GitHub over here: https://github.com/patjak/facetimehd/wiki
I’ve not tried it but apparently it works.
When installing whichever distro you will use, it’s important that you are connected to the net via ethernet cable. Because Linux will have to search for the proprietary WiFi drivers and install those either during install or post install. So your WiFi likely won’t work post install and you’ll have to tell Linux to install the Broadcom drivers.
LM and LMDE (and I think PopOS too) make this easy because they have a driver manager GUI which will identify the driver and let you select it using a radio button. At which point it will install it and you’re good to go.
On opensuse, Debian and Endeavour (Arch) you’ll probably not have that tool and will have to find the driver in the software repo. You might have to use some commands to look up your WiFi Broadcom hardware and then search the net to find out which driver will work.
It sounds tricky but it’s not too bad, there’s normally lots of info online. Plus with Linux there are times when you will need to look up stuff, commands etc. It’s the Linux way, being a slightly more hands on OS.
Avoid Elementary OS. They are Ubuntu based but trying hard to be like Apple and sadly adopting some of Apple’s anti-libre practices like limiting what software you can install and charging money for apps. As well as trying to get Devs to make apps only for Elementary which all use the same design guidelines and therefore can’t be used on other Linux distros… It’s a disgusting and disgraceful blotch on the FOSS community because GNU/Linux is all about User Freedom and interoperability, whereas Elementary are the opposite and shouldn’t exist.
A bit lengthy but I wish I knew this at the beginning. Would have saved me a lot of pain.
I really struggled between deciding to up- or to downvote. I disagree strongly with most you wrote, but I decided for upvoting, since you put a lot of effort in your reply.
I don’t see much difference between Ubuntu, Fedora, OpenSuse and PopOS. They are all “Corporate” (owned or backed by a private company).
That fact alone doesn’t matter much for the end user. What matters is how fair they treat their userbase and how sustainable the company is. Fedora for example is a community project, backed by RedHat. So, the community decides pretty much everything and RH gives us devs and $$$. This symbiotic relationship ensures stability and enough manpower. I’m anti-capitalist myself, but find this concept not bad. Still, you’re partially right. They are independent on paper, but in reality dependend on RHs money and devs.
If one dislikes this, we can always use and support independend distros like Arch or Debian.
Even Ubuntu isn’t as bad as everyone says, even though I wouldn’t recommend or use it myself.
No, Gnome looks like Gnome. They do their own thing and don’t copy other UIs. I would recommend KDE (maybe with some themes and two bars) instead if you want it to look familiar to MacOS.
But I would honestly recommend exactly this: Gnome. It works different UI wise, and this unfamiliarity gives the new user the hint “You shouldn’t do it like you used to, this is another OS that works different”.
On Mint for example, people often download their apps through the browser, since it looks and often works exactly like Windows.
They don’t limit you in any way. You can always install Flatpaks and everything else, they just offer their own repo with curated software, developed by themselves and optimized for their best UX, by default.
The option to support the devs financially is a revolutionary idea in the Linux world. Flathub also decided to copy that idea.
And I like the centralized tipping-system. I always wanted to support the devs, but don’t have 1000 payment options. I want to appreciate the work they do and don’t mind spending a buck or two for their great app I enjoy using.
The apps are all FOSS. You can rebuild or get them anytime you want.
if I could give you two up votes I would, you summarized all my thoughts better than even I would’ve