Quark: Another Windows 10 Look-a-like (TechRadar)

[Jason]

Has anyone played with this distro or would be interested in doing so? I'm thinking of trying it even though I have a low-end laptop but I'd rather somebody else did. Bare metal would be preferred but if somebody does it virtually, it could still be useful. Just be sure not to give it more than 4 GB of RAM, 3.5 GB would be better since I have crappy-onboard video so it won't have use of all the RAM. And dual-core which is what I have. Looks interesting. I know Fox is unlikely to try since it looks like Windows so much so that it even has tiles!

[fox]

I looked at the link, and apparently it has other themes besides Windows 10. But yes, any distro that advertises that it mimics Windows x doesn't interest me. I'm not saying it's bad to have these, though. If this is what it takes to move Windows users to Linux, I'm for it. Note: I'm not interested in distros/themes that mimic the Mac OS either; thus I wouldn't use Elementary or a Mac icon theme on any distro.

[buster]

Installed this in the morning. Noted that it has switched to Ubuntu as a base rather than Debian. Still it is Q4OS with face paint, and this version runs Kubuntu. It is amazing face paint though, and looks exactly like Win10, even to the tiles you can put it in the menu. It also has the same spot near the menu where you can type in a search for a program, like 'firefox'. Many users wouldn't notice they weren't in Microsoft if someone else did everything like updates or installing programs. The word 'Kubuntu' showing on the screen during maintenance might tip off those with more than 3 brain cells that this isn't the Win10 they were used to.

A bit of bias here - I think Plasma gets a bad rap as being bloated. Bloat gets noticed in virtual, and my Kubuntu runs as well as Xfce or Gnome. Whatever they have done, it's fairly quick, though a Trinity on Q4OS is definitely quicker.

If someone is running Win10, I can't imagine he or she would want to trade it in for something that would be clicked the same way, unless it's for security. And of course the desired card games and some software would be missing.

I'll play (but certainly not diddle!) with it for awhile and try to get back with some stunning insights.

[Jason]

Looking forward to your comments on it, Buster.

Regarding Plasma, I know it's lighter than Gnome (pretty much anything is) and I know it uses less memory than Xfce which is pretty amazing in itself. But I wonder if Plasma uses more CPU cycles and I wonder about Plasma apps, how good they are in terms of memory, etc. I was thinking of trying Plasma on my computer but I had previously tried Mageia with it and it was horrible. However, I installed several desktops with Mageia and couldn't see how to easily switch between them so there might have been something else going on there.

Maybe they don't look as good, but one area that Linux does have covered, AFAIK, is card games.

There are many other reasons to use a Linux distro over Windows besides what you've mentioned.

<begin rant>
You can control how and when updates happen and you can continue using the OS and programs while they're being updated in the background. No waiting while Microsoft updates some of which can take several minutes or longer. And we all know about updates affecting hundreds of thousands to millions that or cause the software to crash or hardware to not work or prevent the computer from being used altogether because of a loop in installing updates. I don't think I've ever seen a Linux update do that.

Another thing I hate is that you remove Windows included programs in Windows 10 (e.g. Candy Crush) it and a few updates later, it's put back on again. That so ticks me off.

There's also the privacy issue. Although it looks like you can turn off the features that send information to Microsoft, there is still some telemetry that you can't easily turn off as some experts have discovered. You can fix this but it involves registry hacks. And since they have an app store now, it notices what apps you use to figure out what you're interested in to advertise to you. The OS was likely given away for free for these many reasons.

And there are several, if not most, distros that are lighter than Windows. Windows telemetry can also kill the performance of your computer while it's happening.

I won't even get into the millions of viruses for Windows while Linux has a handful and most of those aren't in the wild or servers are vulnerable to them for a few days until a patch is released. Sometimes Microsoft won't even admit to vulnerabilities! For people like you and me, avoiding viruses isn't really a problem but for most Windows users it is. Some users buy new machines because they don't realize the reason their computer is so slow is that it's loaded up with viruses.
</end rant>

[Jason]

Btw, it looks like Quark comes from the same team that has produced Q4OS.

[buster]

Pretty sure but never checked it. (Snooze)

[buster]

"There are many other reasons to use a Linux distro over Windows besides what you've mentioned."

It's too easy Jason. When I wrote, with a grin on my face, that sentence about Windows, the only question in my mind was how many paragraphs you would write. (They do have to be written by the way, and I agree with you.) I had to stop doing this sort of verbal poking with my fiery wife because she can throw odd household things with accuracy. Apologies if I created real anger.

[buster]

By the way, if there are any readers other than Jason and myself, Quark appears to be a good candidate for those who would like a solid, quick and functional virtual machine inside Windows. Maybe it's the Q4OS underpinning or the way they have trimmed weight.

Install is long but easy. If you hit enter during the install, the blank page is replaced by slowly moving lines of text. You do nothing. And then it opens complete. 'Slow install' is worth emphasizing so you don't give up and scrap it.

I used 2g ram and two cores. About 40-50 for hard drive size.

Full screen worked out of the box, as well as drag and drop between Win10 and the pretend Win10.  I used VMWARE. Other virtual machines may not work as well.

Codecs installment a click on opening desktop. Playing Dave Brubeck at the moment in the default VLC.

And Marilyn suggested I amend my comment about her being fiery. She said she only reacts as an avenging angel when confronted by an uncouth, crude, rude and hostile husband. (And the rest I'm writing as she dictates.) Normally she is sedate, calm, affectionate, polite and serene, while spreading peace and calm to those around her. And of course I agree 100%.

[fox]

This is a paid political announcement.   

[Jason]

"There are many other reasons to use a Linux distro over Windows besides what you've mentioned."

It's too easy Jason. When I wrote, with a grin on my face, that sentence about Windows, the only question in my mind was how many paragraphs you would write. (They do have to be written by the way, and I agree with you.) I had to stop doing this sort of verbal poking with my fiery wife because she can throw odd household things with accuracy. Apologies if I created real anger.

Nope, no anger here. You just gave me a good reason to explain to anyone else who might come across this post why Linux is infinitely better. I should have realized you were saying that tongue in cheek, you hell-raiser.

Btw, this.... "the blank page is replaced by slowly moving lines of text"

Was it vertical green text scrolling on a black background? If so that was the screensaver that looks like the screen from the Matrix that shows the data that has created the virtual, coincidentally, world the characters live in. If you haven't see the Matrix trilogy, you're not a real geek. Go watch it now.

[Jason]

This is a paid political announcement.   

Did she pay for it, Buster? Or are you still waiting on that cheque?

[ssfc72]

So Buster's last sentence in the post below, brings up an image in my mind, of Buster sitting at his computer, typing out the words, while Marilyn holds one of those odd household items, in her hand. :-)

By the way, if there are any readers other than Jason and myself, Quark appears to be a good candidate for those who would like a solid, quick and functional virtual machine inside Windows. Maybe it's the Q4OS underpinning or the way they have trimmed weight.

Install is long but easy. If you hit enter during the install, the blank page is replaced by slowly moving lines of text. You do nothing. And then it opens complete. 'Slow install' is worth emphasizing so you don't give up and scrap it.

I used 2g ram and two cores. About 40-50 for hard drive size.

Full screen worked out of the box, as well as drag and drop between Win10 and the pretend Win10.  I used VMWARE. Other virtual machines may not work as well.

Codecs installment a click on opening desktop. Playing Dave Brubeck at the moment in the default VLC.

And Marilyn suggested I amend my comment about her being fiery. She said she only reacts as an avenging angel when confronted by an uncouth, crude, rude and hostile husband. (And the rest I'm writing as she dictates.) Normally she is sedate, calm, affectionate, polite and serene, while spreading peace and calm to those around her. And of course I agree 100%.

[buster]

I find Quark a bit quicker than Kubuntu, which I usually use, and it seems more pleasant to look at, including the icons. In my mind they have done a pretty good job. If you want Plasma, this is a good choice I think. Still using it.

[buster]

Well - this is a bit weird:

I poked at an icon bottom right bottom of screen to see what it was not long after the boot, and it turned out to be the Clipboard. And it had something on it. Nothing unusual so far, except the clip was something I had copied hours ago in the host Win10. At the time I wasn't near to booting the guest Quark. I knew I could copy paste while both were running, but this seemed like a theft taking place as Quark booted. It also stole all the passwords used in Firefox and recorded them in the Quark Firefox.

Quark is starting to sound a lot more like Windows.

[fox]

If you have a Firefox account, it will remember passwords across distros and even operating systems.