The big one I see across most distros is: Pipewire needs better default minimum quants.

I see so many complaints about crackling audio and it’s almost always that pipewire defaults to using a tiny buffer for lower latency and system load (like gaming) can cause the buffers to empty resulting in crackling.

If this happens, you can fix it temporarily (it’ll last until you reboot):

pw-metadata -n settings 0 clock force-quantum 256

Increase the 256 to 512 or higher until the crackling goes away (it doesn’t need to be a power of two, any integer will work). It’ll take effect immediately you don’t need to restart pipewire.

Yeah, I completely understand. I bounced off Linux desktop several times and I’m a sysadmin.

It’s only the last few years where there have been rapid and significant improvements to get gaming so it “just works*” and both of the popular desktop environments, KDE (Windows-like) and gnome (Mac-like) have had a heavy focus on fixing all of the little fiddly annoyances that turned people off.

It’s not perfect and it can be annoying, but its dramatically better than it was 5 years ago while Windows keeps moving in the opposite direction.

I’m not trying to sell you on it really, Linus doesn’t pay me commissions. Windows isn’t THAT bad and learning a new OS is a big ask.

I’ve just been impressed by the state of things and enjoy yapping about it.

I’ll legit look into this tomorrow.

The answer is generally: Proton/Steam. There was a patch to WINE or Proton recently that made it much easier to use mods that require custom DLLs.

The core weird trick is understanding that there’s a directory for your game (once installed/setup in Proton) that’s essentially the C: drive. As far as your game is concerned, it’s running on Windows where it is the only non-system software installed.

So, any mods that are just scripts/plugins where you copy them into a folder then launch the game (anything without DLL, basically), you install the same way… But you use the directory, that contains the “C drive” for that specific game.

It sound complicated but once you do it once or twice it’ll feel familiar. You just now have a unique “C drive” directory for each game.

You can install/run multiple applications in the same bottle (basically what WINE calls the fake-c-drive-using windows environment). For example, when I play PoE2, I use a third party program to make trading easier. I just run that program inside the same bottle as the game and they think they’re both running on the same computer.

For basic things like installing and playing games on Steam it’s all handled automatically. You click the install button and then click the play button. Installing workshop mods is also exactly like in Windows. Steam just knows how to use WINE/Proton.

I don’t think they’re running Windows

Fair.

There are about 30 different ways to do any single thing and whatever way you choose is guaranteed to provoke 17 neckbeards into writing essays on why you’re wrong and, while they’re at it, you also picked the wrong distro.

On the other hand:

• the clocks just tell time
• your user directory isn’t stored in a data center 1500 miles away
• the update process understands the concept of consent, and;
• you can create a local user account during install without … whatever this is.

Clinton, maybe

We here in the US are simply working towards phasing out very cold temps entirely.

Hello, this is the Linux comment

Ah. Well, we shouldn’t look for details about the story in the comments, or by reading the headline.

Often, as is the case here, the headline is misleading or completely wrong.

This is a sarcastic rhetorical response but, like, in a chill vibes kinda way.

But the guy at the phone store told me it was practically indestructible, I used it practically and it destructable’d.

I’m starting to think this whole ‘phone’ thing is doomed to failure.

I’m basing this entirely on a single anecdotal evidence and all of the other evidence that I’ve selected which confirms my worldview on the topic. I have done my own research (but not with a phone).

There’s a minimum crew requirement

I hid the answer to your question in the text of the comment that you replied to.

No, it doesn’t apply to chatting in public Discord channels it would only apply to DMs. The text says: communicate directly and privately with such minor.

The headline is just flat out incorrect.

You have to read past the headline to find out the answer:

https://legislation.nysenate.gov/pdf/bills/2025/S4609

[Removed unnecessary legalistic verbiage for readability]

[…]the attorney general may bring an action to obtain restitution, disgorgement of any profits, damages caused directly or indirectly, civil penalties of up to five thousand dollars per violation, and any such other and further relief as the court may deem proper, including preliminary relief.

TL;DR: The bill does not ban anyone under 18 from chatting online. It requires age verification and then requires that children not be allowed to be viewed, DM’d, tagged or sent money by anyone not connected to them (on their friend’s list). It requires the site to allow parents to opt out of this feature.

This article was posted 3 hours ago and it doesn’t seem like any of the commenters here have read past the headline. Everyone is reacting to the headline and the headline is flat out wrong.

This bill does not ban anyone under 18 from chatting online.

It does require age verification, however:

§ 1510. Privacy by default. 1. No operator shall offer a covered platform in this state without conducting commercially reasonable age verification to determine whether a user is a covered minor. The attorney general shall promulgate regulations identifying methods for commercially reasonable and technically feasible age verification

If a person is determined to be a minor then:

operator shall utilize the following settings by default for covered minors, which shall ensure that no user who is not already connected to a covered minor may:

(a.)communicate directly and privately with such minor;

(b.) view the profile of such minor;

(c.) tag such minor in posted content; and/or

(d.) engage in a financial transaction with such minor.

3.) A parent of a covered minor may override the default privacy settings provided in subdivision two of this section at such parent’s discretion.

4.) An operator shall notify a parent of a covered minor whenever such covered minor attempts to change the default settings provided in subdivision two of this section. The parent may then either approve or deny the request to change the settings for such minor.

The bill makes it so that strangers can’t DM children, tag them in photographs, or send them money. It allows parents to choose to opt out of this feature and it requires that sites not use Dark Patterns to interfere with the opt-out process.

It does not, in any way, prevent children under 18 from chatting online. It prevents people from DMing children and sending them money.

Violations allow the AG can sue the company for damages and a $5,000 fine per occurrence.

As with all things, people should evaluate the claims of companies vs reality.

If it seems to good to be true, it probably is.

There’s pills promising to improve my love life also, I don’t believe them either

I tried to build a deck with my smartphone, it couldn’t drive a single nail.

My bad, social media reflexes are hard to break :)

I was referring to people calling it staged.

Yeah, I understand. I did think it was odd how they were wording their statements, it made me think it was friendly fire as well.