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Why doesn't ifixit promotes linux too?

It’s well known that Microsoft set the bar too high on PC requirements on Windows 11, where even some PC who were made less than 4 years ago(Ryzen 1) aren’t compatible without using an external TMP2 module where they are quite powerfull even today.

I’m asking this because in a lot of ifixit videos, like the one on the framework laptop, they say things like “and it comes with an usb flash drive so you can install windows on it” or something like this and because Ifixit is a pro-repair and sustainability company I think they should call out on microsoft on Windows 11 too

Whenever I see that discussion on other foruns I see a lot of people saying, things like: “Microsoft will support windows 10 until 2025” or other excuses.

The problem with those excuses is the same with a lot of apple fanboys, that the defended the bad-pratices of the company and nowadays you can’t replace a screen, jack and more without the DRM on the T2 chip freaking out. So microsoft could began(and it probably will) to soft-lock hardware on their plataform where Intel, Nvidia, AMD and more thinks are “old”

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Part of it for me at least is popularity. I've actually tried to make Linux guides before and they do not get the traffic a normal guide gets, if that makes sense - to an extent it IS expected since it’s a weird thing only people who know computers really use, but it’s really low interest in some cases. For me I've come to accept it just isn't a high view subject so I choose not to cover it outside of maybe an exceptional circumstance where the views to work ratio make sense.

That being said there's a chance with Win11 people with somewhat recent laptops from the 4/5th generation with Intel (AMD equivalent as well) - which are still older, but they're not unusable which will never get a shot at running Win11 may be given consideration as future Linux boxes - to be blunt, a lot of these are eWaste which is walking on thin ice like my Lat E7440 (4th gen HSW*/TPM 1.2 - NO 2.0 UPGRADE OPTION/DDR3L) so a lot of these are scrap once they croak in a expensive way. I’m still going to keep my E7440 alive until the end if possible in SOME WAY, but as soon as something major breaks, it’s officially eWaste since it’s 7-8 years old, in addition to the above mentioned issues, previous audio problems (Windows reinstall was the only fix) and a tired battery (64% health). Due to the new requirements, Microsoft turned it into eWaste earlier then I hoped due to the CPU/TPM requirements despite the i7-4600U enduring so well other then M.2 not being natively supported with stupid mSATA being natively supported :-(. WTF Intel? mSATA was a crappy bridge format, not long term! For these machines, I’m not opposed to making a Linux guide to give these machines one more chance at life, but I would want to see proper views on others Linux guides first.
*Apparently my motherboard isn’t as reliable as the i5 board according to the internet, but mine has been fine.

On the other hand with the newer machines, there’s a chance the idea may have a little more interest now but I still think the views will still be low. However, since Microsoft may buckle under the pressure of the internet for 6th/7th gen (with 8th gen being strongly recommended) I think we’ve got a chance there - but the odds of them buckling on TPM 2.0/pre Skylake? Press X for doubt. The issue is older machines will be more troublesome with performance problems - which were already beaten up by Meltdown/Spectre patching as-is!

It's beyond disappointing with Win11. Yes some features will kill the performance but if they're so concerned about security then disable those features permanently on systems which have limited options on what you can do, or where the performance hit will be painful. I can't upgrade or switch the Dell TPM firmware to 2.0 like you can with the HP Commercial lineup with Skylake or newer (likewise you can downgrade to 1.2). I do not know if this is due to the TPM Dell selected or just because they don't want to offer it, but on their newer machines from 2016 or so when they were forced to use 2.0, they now ship that way. I also understand Covid changed the rules on system replacement due to Zoom school and shortages for average users whereas I’m keeping my “normal” limits in place (1-5 primary, start shopping at 5 years, 5-7* secondary, 8-9 semi retired, 10+ retired/saved for fringe cases). The Lat E7440 is between semi retired and EOL, where I’m keeping it in service until it has a major issue I do not have parts to correct in stock, unless I can reuse it. I plan to change them out ~1 year before the time I’ve decided to keep it in primary service so I can shop around. It comes down to depreciation vs. HW failure risk to a point - I simply cannot get parts at a price that makes sense after 5 years a lot of the time.

*I can extend this to 5-8 years based on the spec too. Ex: I may call it at 6 on a i5 (7 years partial retirement), but bring a i7 to 7 (8 years semi retirement).

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Great question, @mateusfmcota!
We do use linux operating systems internally. Several of our developers use XPS’s with Ubuntu. As a website, we focus almost exclusively on hardware repair. Because of this, operating systems don’t get so much screen time from us–we don’t, technically, promote the use of Windows or iOS either. When we do happen to talk about software, it’s usually software that is preinstalled on the devices we’re using/repairing, i.e. Android, Windows, MacOS, etc.

I’d say that it is not that we choose to not promote Linux—we just don’t currently have a good reason to do so.

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Also a lot of the hardware people want to run Linux is old and when it dies, it's now eWaste due to repair costs :(. Maintaining laptops like my E7440 into eternity isn't viable. As I said in my response, it's not out of the question if it makes it to that day I do the migration but I don't have a lot of reason to cover it - the views make it more realistic to run it to the ground, and then hope Microsoft lets me run 11 on 6th gen+NVMe since it runs just fine right now (I'm testing it on a 6300U with NVMe). Some of the machines people are complaining about are beyond their expiration date anyway, so good riddance - others are a total WTF like 6th/7th gen Intel, and equivalent AMD. On one hand, Microsoft isn't going to let you run your HSW TPM 1.2 machine from 8 years ago into the ground forever with new software! I already feel the hit when I do my CD ripping on the E7440 - I can rip something with only a few tracks like The Love Club EP quick (4 track release), but if you put something like Live At The BBC (Beatles/34 disc one, 35 disc 2) it takes 15+ for one disc so you're looking at 30+ minute rip times.

In some cases, I need to cut the 1-10 year usage cycle down to 5 years OR LESS with some machines (Ex: E6440/6540 if the AMD GPU is equipped, and acts up in any way, shape or form) as well due to common time based HW issues there is no fix for. As an example, once the AMD 6440/6540 starts to act up and RAM doesn't help, bad GPU, and the machine needs replacing.

On one hand the early retirement of anything pre 6th gen is kind of sad (especially since some of them have quite a bit left to give as BS machines, with most being borderline dead end), but on the other hand 8th gen is really good with 4C/4T 15W(!!!) ULV laptops. I'd love to get this 840 G5 with the 8th gen i7 fixed (BIOS password), but I need a flash tool that can handle the 256Mbit Winbound flash, or locate compatible SW. I also need a new screen and it's not one I can drop in (40-pin HP Privacy panel, made by IVO only and it's NOT CHEAP so my odds hinge on unlocking the BIOS). 1st-3rd gen Intel/AMD equivalent suffers due to Spectre/Meltdown patching as anything from Intel pre 4th gen lacks high speed patching, and it wasn't until 6th gen they made the hit negligible.

Since I almost got to the 10 year mark on my E7440, I'm happy to say goodbye now, and retire it 2 years early, or if it makes it until 2025 and the performance issues don't get unbearable, 2024. My 840 G3? Not yet.

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