Using FreeBSD as Desktop OS

[ProphetOfDoom]

stupid post edited

 

[Phishfry]

I’ve tried to make music on Linux and it’s like riding an angry camel, facing the wrong way, with your hands tied behind your back.

But what muscian "makes" music on their computer. I have been a musicians helper for over 20 years now and have watched as the gear interface moved from SCSI to MIDI for inputs. Exabyte storage to USB sticks.
The computer makes a great editing suite but I don't consider the computer an instrument.
https://forums.freebsd.org/threads/...d-audio-record-playback-to-my-computer.62993/

Also to counter this silly "I must use Adobe Suite" attitude we have direct replacements for the entire creative chain.
Photoshop=Gimp
Premiere=KDEnlive
Audition=Audacity
Illustrator=Inkscape
InDesign=Scribus

 

[Beastie7]

Also to counter this silly "I must use Adobe Suite" attitude we have direct replacements for the entire creative chain.

Except these aren't replacements; they're half-ass amateur projects that don't provide anywhere near feature parity. One main problem with open source "replacements" is that when shit breaks - you're on your own.

People who marginalize why people must use "X" commercial software - lack foresight of the cost and issues that come with switching. It's not silly.

 

[Phishfry]

Oh yea we gots to have our afterglow plugin.

Lord knows how we did it before Adobe came along. Plugings are the equivalent of an the audio autotune.
It just masks how creatively your talents are lacking and need editing or masking.

pablo picasso didn't need a plugin.

That seems to be the only difference to me.
Stienberg VSB or Audacity.
Both use a timeline and what else do they really need to do? Lay down a track?
Back to plugins as the advantage right?

Gimp as a drawing tool. Does it not draw for you??? Can you not hook up a digitizer tablet and make art?
I am tired of this cookie cutter world of plugins.

 

[ProphetOfDoom]

But what muscian "makes" music on their computer.

‘In 2017, Jonny Greenwood said he saw Radiohead as "just a kind of an arrangement to form songs using whatever technology suits the song. And that technology can be a cello or it can be a laptop. It's all sort of machinery when looked at in the right way."’
From https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiohead
Hi, I don’t mean to be disagreeable but a computer absolutely can be an instrument - it could even be seen as another musician. Computers are merging with people, it’s happening as we speak, they are collaborating with us on everything we do.
I know that if someone is classically trained they can make music without a computer, but not all of us are. The computer is a massive part of the creative process nowadays and tracks wherein a computer assisted come out sounding nothing like what the artist originally envisaged.

 

[Phishfry]

it could even be seen as another musician.

Yes like the looping that Keller Willilams does. But would you consider the device a musician?
Not I. It is a tool the musician is using as an instrument. Like a washboard. It can clean cloths and sound good.

Back to Adobe. Do you realize that Adobe Audition is nothing more than CoolEditPro or CoolEdit 2000.
They just bought it up and changed the name. It used to be shareware.
How creative of them.
Sounds like a 'mergers and aquisitions' shop.

 

[ProphetOfDoom]

Hmmmmmmmmm...
So, anyway, I was wondering if this groovy little ultrabook would run FreeBSD...

... this is only academic as I can’t afford one...

 

[drhowarddrfine]

they are collaborating with us on everything we do.

But to what price of quality are we losing? I think I've heard some very high end computing machines play as an instrument once but, even then, I could tell the difference. There's a lot of physics at play with musical instruments that computers, so far, do not emulate with music. There is a lot of thinking humans do that computers cannot emulate, too. Just like we haven't been able to make machines that replicate the abilities and mechanisms of some animals.

 

[Phishfry]

Except these aren't replacements; they're half-ass amateur projects that don't provide anywhere near feature parity. One main problem with open source "replacements" is that when shit breaks - you're on your own.

I would call them replacements. Granted not on parity with their commercial counterparts, I feel this 'half assed amateur' and 'created in someones basement' sentiment overblown. Very large companies donate manpower all over the spectrum of open source software..

I do understand the value of support. There is room for everybody.

 

[ProphetOfDoom]

Drhowarddrfine,
I thanked your post because it was interesting. I don’t think music quality has suffered as a result of technology. It’s not better or worse, it’s just different. But then, I don’t really like any music pre 1960ish so maybe I’m the wrong person to judge. There was a period in the 1980s when synths were embarrassingly unsophisticated-sounding.
When you say computers can’t represent certain phenomena in nature do you mean we’re not throwing enough processing power at the problem yet, or actually they literally can’t?
I would love to think that there is a whole class of “beautiful and intellectual things” that computers simply can’t do (a la “halting problem”). I’m preparing myself to be disappointed though. Because, I’ve never played “Go” but I know that the Go community used to say it was impossible for computers to play because it needed intuition. Google proved them wrong.
As for the acoustics thing, there is a program called Pianoteq which claims to use “physical modelling” (I assume that means it bounces imaginary waves against imaginary bits of wood). So this is just starting to be done.
I think computers are fundamentally stupid but they’re becoming increasingly good at hiding this fact.

 

[Alien72]

I know FreeBSD is a very stable OS . I want to use it as Desktop OS (with some GUI) . How do I do that..?

Reply is 1 of 3
May I suggest you first download and read the Handbook and install the base system by downloading
a suitable *.iso image, check your boot sequence in BIOS and boot from DVD and follow the prompts.

 

[Alien72]

2 of 3. Select Mate, Xfce, Gnome3 or KDE or other and boot up into the basic OS. Then check out several Youtube guides for your preferred Desktop Environment. From the Desktop Gui, you may not be
able to login as root so create a user (yourself) with password BEFORE installing your GUI. Do "visudo" and add yourself to the sudoers file. Ensure you are also in the "wheel" group.Then from the GUI, get into a terminal, login as root and make adjustments and install packages as needed. If you are coming from Linux make a note of your favorite programs and do a $pkg search programname to see it the FreeBSD repository has it. If it does, do a $sudo pkg install program to fetch your program. more>>>

 

[Alien72]

3 of 3. The desktop is added on top of the basic OS. Then install Xorg, Slim and your desktop. Tweaking info exists on youtube to get everything working desktop-wise. All in one install with basic OS and Desktop do exist like TruOS, GhostBSD and a couple more. I've tried them but they have their issues and the support community and documentation are sparser than FreeBSD. Good Luck!

 

[Deleted member 30996]

There was a period in the 1980s when synths were embarrassingly unsophisticated-sounding.

They tell us that
We lost our tails
Evolving up
From little snails
I say it's all
Just wind in sails

Are we not men?

 

[ProphetOfDoom]

LOL oh dear.

 

[knightjp]

Hullo again knightjp. I also endorse Linux whilst using macOS. I like the raw power and beautiful design of Linux. But sometimes it’s great to use something polished. You mentioned Apple’s “Pages” word processor in your blog post. That is a great example because when I first used it I was like “Wow, I can create an .epub without using the command line?!” It’s such a relief to just use your software instead of fighting with it.
I came to macOS by accident. I bought a MacBook Air with the intention of installing Ubuntu on it, but I thought “I’ll just play with macOS for a while and see what it’s like”... and I loved it.
Free software purists are like militant vegans inasmuch as they’re imposing something often quite horrible on themselves in pursuit of an impossible goal (being a self-determining computer user vs being harmless to animals).
(Not trying to offend vegans, I am one).
And you’re right, we should thank the Linux and FreeBSD developers... programming is really hard.

Hello Alexander.. Everyone likes the idea of "free"... I admit.. it's the best price to pay for anything..
I am not here to put down the idea of Free Software.. Maybe I am missing the point that Stallman has been trying to make all this time. Listening to Stallman talk about free and open-source software, you get the feeling that companies like RedHat & SUSE shouldn't even exist as they are making a profit of supporting FOSS. If they are making a profit, then it really isn't "free" is it?

Leaving the political debates of Linux, FOSS, etc.. I'm not a developer and perhaps there is a reason why FOSS philosophy is becoming prominent these days; even to the point that Microsoft gets involved. There should be benefits. Better auditing of the code for example... I just feel that most FOSS developers don't get the recognition and the payment for the hard work. So the idea of someone wanting to keep his/her code proprietary and believe that some form of payment should be made his/her way shouldn't be seen as evil.

For the most part, those who really would take advantage of good "free software" would rather enjoy the benefits of it all being free, but none would care to make any form of a contribution to the livelihoods of developers; unless they are compelled to.
In the Stallman Software Utopia probably they would, but more than likely, human nature says its an impossible dream. [/rant]

I feel that an operating system in the desktop space is only as good as the applications that run on it. You can have the best and most advanced system in the world. But if Windows has the application that will get the work done, you can be sure most people will be using that.

 

[drhowarddrfine]

When you say computers can’t represent certain phenomena in nature do you mean we’re not throwing enough processing power at the problem yet, or actually they literally can’t?

What I mean is computers and the associated hardware have not been able to emulate woodwind or brass instruments to the quality achievable by those musical instruments due to the complex vibrations generated. Maybe there are some things that are close but no cigar and I wouldn't pay to listen at any concert hall.
Dealing with live theater, as much as I have, I can always tell when the music is live or computer generated.

 

[knightjp]

Also to counter this silly "I must use Adobe Suite" attitude we have direct replacements for the entire creative chain.
Photoshop=Gimp
Premiere=KDEnlive
Audition=Audacity
Illustrator=Inkscape
InDesign=Scribus

I agree that computers aren't instruments, and a real musician would use it only as an editing tool. However there are a growing number of "artists" & DJs that like to create digital tracks and re-mixes and often rely on proprietary software to get the best results.
Can similar results be had using FOSS? Probably, Yes, but most of the time, No. I'm not a professional media content creator, but here are a couple of videos that will illustrate my point.

The software you mentioned aren't really replacements (with the exception of KdenLive). They're alternatives that will get most of the tasks done. But for even more advanced features, you will still find yourself wanting. Now amateur level content creators will be able to find ways to get things done using these tools and even some professionals as well. After all a "free" tool is a good tool to use if you can.

 

[drhowarddrfine]

knightjp I agree with you. Paid, competent developers focused on a project 40 hours a week can produce a better product. The only time that may not be true is when marketing guides it down the wrong path. Such as dumbing it down, marketing it to the masses instead of the specialist or technologist. Like audio production software for a professional versus a hobbyist in his bedroom.

 

[knightjp]

Whenever I see this guy's videos... I keep thinking, "Man! That's a great looking system. Perhaps I should switch."

For the most part, this is what I would like go have as my desktop.. Purely on aesthetics alone, I think that its doable on maybe OpenBox or KDE.

 

[knightjp]

Well.. was completely defeated by FreeBSD yesterday... Tried so hard to get it working using these links...
https://docs.freebsd.org/doc/7.3-RELEASE/usr/share/doc/en/articles/compiz-fusion/nvidia-setup.html
https://cooltrainer.org/a-freebsd-desktop-howto/
https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2018/03/29/freebsd-desktop-part-1-simplified-boot/
https://antumdeluge.wordpress.com/2014/07/19/how-to-install-freebsd/

The last one was a little bit more legible since I didn't have to use "startx" after it booted to get the GUI.
But the whole thing was inconsistent. I watched a video where these guys had installed freebsd and gotten fluxbox running within a few minutes. I spent a whole day... couldn't get FreeBSD working with Xorg, Openbox and XDM running.
By contrast, I had MacOS backup and running (with all my preferences) within 30 mins.

Another factor was that the system boot up was inconsistent. My system would boot up and then show a whole bunch of errors before loading on FreeBSD. Then it would stall half way. Press the reset button and it would boot up again the same then would stall at a line with the hostname stating that the hostname was too small. OK... I gave the hostname Albert. I call my computer Albert.. Don't tell me FreeBSD has a problem with that.
Press the reset button again and then it would restart and it would panic again in the middle.. Press reset again, it would boot to the login screen.
And then when finally I got it to login to OpenBox.. it would not recognize my keyboard. I have a Bastron Glass Keyboard.

I did this about 3 - 4 times, spending about 5 hours on it. Finally gave up and went back to MacOS.. I wish I had taken screenshots of the whole experience.
Once I was in OpenBox, I noticed that the default fonts and mouse pointers and I understand that these things are aesthetic.. They can be changed easily.. And there are other things that need to be setup.
The level control of FreeBSD is great... I just wish that I had a better grasp on it.

 

[Deleted member 30996]

Not to nitpick but I don't see my link listed.

https://forums.freebsd.org/threads/...-set-up-a-freebsd-desktop-from-scratch.61659/

You're surely not going to quit now. I don't know why your keyboard isn't being recognized or you're throwing errors but you've been at it too long to give up now.

Is your machine name Albert or albert? It may not make any difference but I've always used lowercase letters. The one I'm on now is onryo, my X61 is unagi and both have fewer letters.

 

[Deleted member 55181]

I start use (Mint, Ubuntu, Debian PC-BSD and) FreeBSD as desktop at 2013-2014. KDE4 rlz, rest of tool giving VirtualBox, but is no game, and mounting Memstick may be problematic, and data on it may be disapear but fck the NTFS. That's all.

 

[knightjp]

Maybe I should quit trying to build a GUI and then use KDE instead. I believe its completely configurable and has all the features that I would be looking for.

 

[ProphetOfDoom]

Yeah if you just follow the handbook and Google a few things you can have a working KDE desktop in half an hour. There’s a reason the mainstream GUIs are mainstream: they work!