The Linux Thread - The Autist's OS of Choice
- Thread starter tehpope
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- Joined
- Sep 18, 2017
pardon me if this is an obvious question, but what is the primary purpose of compiling software from source? I heard a lot about the concept, of course, and saw plenty about how to do it, but nothing ever about why to do it.
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- Jun 24, 2019
If you want to change it, or update the libraries it's built on, or set compile time feature flags, etc.
- Joined
- Sep 18, 2017
What Vecr said. Plus you can build it specifically for your hardware instead of generically for all x86_64 CPUs. You maximize performance this way. Many people will also build with -fomit-frame-pointer which will free up a register in the CPU at the cost of not being able to debug (another performance boost).
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- Joined
- Sep 18, 2017
I've used nVidia almost exclusively for many years because of their Linux support and superior drivers. However, modern AMD GPUs have excellent drivers in the kernel, so when I end up making a new desktop, I'll be going with AMD.
nVidia drivers for the kernel are a "blob" that many kernel devs hate, They are closed source. The open source alternative drivers for nVidia (nouveau) suck compared to the proper drivers. AMD's drivers are completely open source.
Coffee Anon
kiwifarms.net
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- Nov 8, 2019
Should I have installed Silverblue instead of the normal workstation version of Fedora?
Is OStree better than nix and guix?
Is OStree better than nix and guix?
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- Mar 17, 2019
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- Jan 28, 2018
The most interesting thing with self-compling these days is that you can, build configuration permitting, remove dependencies/features you don't need out of software you use. Gentoo's useflag system is very good for both configuring this on a system-wide level but also per package. It makes the binaries leaner and from a security standpoint it can reduce attack surface. (can't exploit a "feature" that doesn't exist in your local build) Most binary-only distributions tend to one-size-fits-all builds of software packages that often pull in a lot of unnecessary crap most people won't ever need. This also works the other way around with some software, were you can compile in features packages in most common distros usually don't have. All in all, you're less dependent on what the package maintainer thinks is right. With a source-based distro like gentoo, it's also easy to apply your own local source patches to the software running on your system. For example I once wrote a small patch for a program to switch the mouse buttons (for which there was no configuration toggle) and recompiled. Now that patch will always be applied to all updates to that software as long as it's compatible to the code. This would've been a mess to do in a binary distro in a distro-friendly way.
nvidia driver blobs used to be in the "just works" category and then gradually got worse and now the AMD drivers are a lot better, even for old graphics cards. Nvidia has also a "It doesn't work for you? well go fuck yourself" attitude both to the linux kernel and it's users. That being said, both drivers continually have random weirdness with X11, which also is to no small amount the fault of the x11 maintainers which almost seem to break stuff on purpose.
nvidia driver blobs used to be in the "just works" category and then gradually got worse and now the AMD drivers are a lot better, even for old graphics cards. Nvidia has also a "It doesn't work for you? well go fuck yourself" attitude both to the linux kernel and it's users. That being said, both drivers continually have random weirdness with X11, which also is to no small amount the fault of the x11 maintainers which almost seem to break stuff on purpose.
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- Joined
- Sep 18, 2017
The Verdict On systemd Is In
While the use of systemd by most Linux distros remains a subject of controversy, the recent vote by Debian members to support systemd while exploring other alternatives seems to indicate the init system is gaining acceptance.
While the use of systemd by most Linux distros remains a subject of controversy, the recent vote by Debian members to support systemd while exploring other alternatives seems to indicate the init system is gaining acceptance.
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- Mar 17, 2019
You are a great man. I installed the 'zram-config' package on my Ubuntu machine, left the defaults totally as is. Slight power level, but I only have 8gb of RAM- I now have a whole lot more leeway to leave browsers running with a few tabs for a little longer now. Absolutely fantastic.
- Joined
- Dec 9, 2017
I hope this isn’t considered too far off-topic, but I am very tired of using Kali and Parrot to perform internal pentests. Would you lot think lesser of me if I pitched the idea for a Core Impact license up? Does anyone have any extended experience with CI?
- Joined
- Sep 18, 2017
Personally, I don't trust tools like Core Impact to do the job properly or discretely. Each network or system will have its own quirks and you need to be careful WRT IDS/IPS. I can't justify the cost of Core Impact when there are so many free tools available that can do the job. However, if your company is going to pay for the license you might as well take advantage of it. Just never become dependent on a single tool.
With Nessus and OpenVAS I've come across a lot of false positives and so it's something to take into account. While you're able to analyze an entire class C network with a single tool, you will still need to verify all of the results.
I suppose the biggest advantage is that it is an all-in-one solution for pentesting, so it's easy mode. As for AV evasion, I'm not sure how good it is. I'll check my own exploits against Virus Total before launching them, I don't know if Core Impact will do the same.
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- Aug 21, 2019
Can anyone reccomend a good distro for a Macbook Pro 9,2? This is the last unibody model from 2012. Something where pretty well everything works out of the box without too much fucking around?
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- Feb 24, 2020
Best bet for you is Puppy Linux, possibly Manjaro with XFce shoved down its throat.
Citation Checking Project
Independent Journalist with a 10 year legacy
True & Honest Fan
kiwifarms.net
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- Dec 5, 2018
That model is just an Intel-based computer in a fancy body. (i-5/i-7) The fact that it's a Mac doesn't constrain you: any distribution that supports the x86_64 architecture will do. (or you can run it in 32-bit mode if you want, but I don't think there's any reason to nowadays) Regarding the "no fucking around part" I can't give an informed opinion because I fuck around with a passion.
- Joined
- Aug 21, 2019
I'm not putting puppy linux on it. It's perfectly capable of running a full blown desktop distro.
I didn't know if there was some weird obscure hardware buried in it that wasn't supported by the majority of distros, like some kind of Apple specific thing for which no linux driver exists or some shit. I'll just go with Mint which is my usual go to and use the live desktop for a couple days to make sure everything works before I install it.
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- Feb 24, 2020
>Asks for a recommendation that will run on 2012 hardware.
>Asks for something that can run right out of the box with no real setup.
>Just goes to linux mint after recommended a lightweight linux operating system that checks all those requirements.
What?
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- Aug 21, 2019