this post was submitted on 02 Sep 2025
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Linux

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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

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[–] yardratianSoma@lemmy.ca 0 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

ehh, tried using it . . . and a

failed to create network winboat_default: Error response from daemon: all predefined address pools have been fully subnetted

happens. I'll create a github issue, but at this point, I could have installed a full windows vm in less time than I spent troubleshooting this issue . . . so there's that

[–] Cainas@lemmy.dbzer0.com 24 points 4 days ago

For some reason I read it as WinBloat at first. Cool none the less, will make it easier to make my friends transition.

[–] spaghettiwestern@sh.itjust.works 32 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

On my Linux Mint laptop Winboat installed quickly and allowed me to install and run the one program I use that requires Windows. This biggest issues were with that same app's windows when they were rendered on the Linux desktop. They sometimes couldn't be moved, resized or closed, however the same app ran just fine on the Winboat Windows Desktop itself.

The latest version is identified as an alpha release on the UI, so these problems aren't surprising. What is surprising is how well so much of this works for an alpha release, particularly how polished the installation process is.

Looking forward to using Winboat when it progresses to the beta.

[–] atzanteol@sh.itjust.works 52 points 4 days ago (2 children)

The developer explains it should run basically everything unless "it requires strong GPU acceleration or kernel-level anticheat".

That is a lot of use cases people have for Windows only applications.

[–] normalexit@lemmy.world 38 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (9 children)

I imagine this is more for productivity apps, where gamers are going to use proton or wine.

[–] bzxt@lemmy.ml 11 points 4 days ago (3 children)

Isn't wine meant for non-gaming apps too?

[–] Matriks404@lemmy.world 8 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

It is, but most modern software doesn't work at all in Wine. I have 2 apps (Paint.net, and SketchUp Make 2017) which don't have any real alternatives (or they suck) for Linux and they don't work in Wine.

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[–] zbyte64@awful.systems 9 points 3 days ago

I wonder how well this runs AutoCad and adobe

[–] HelloRoot@lemy.lol 38 points 4 days ago (4 children)

Didn't we already have this same thing with a different name? https://github.com/winapps-org/winapps

[–] RmDebArc_5@piefed.zip 72 points 4 days ago (2 children)

From their FAQ

With WinApps you do the bulk of the setup manually, and there's no cohesive interface to bring it all together. There's a basic TUI, a taskbar widget, and some CLI commands for you to play with.

WinBoat does all the setup once you have the pre-requisites installed, displays everything worth seeing in a neat interface for you, and acts like a complete experience. No need to mess with configuration files, no need to memorize a dozen CLI commands, it just works.

[–] yardratianSoma@lemmy.ca 1 points 1 day ago

for the record, it doesn't "just work". After setting up the prerequisites, it failed on my first attempt create the docker container.

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[–] warmaster@lemmy.world 9 points 4 days ago (2 children)

I've tried both. WinBoat is on a whole different level of easy. You just download it, click next about 3 times and you have a working Windows VM providing Windows apps that run alongside your native linux apps.

It doesn't get any easier than this.

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[–] fmstrat@lemmy.nowsci.com 11 points 4 days ago

Hey, I made that. Fun 😆

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[–] anamethatisnt@sopuli.xyz 33 points 4 days ago (5 children)

Instead of running compatibility layers, it runs a real copy of Windows using Docker and KVM under the hood.

I take it that it requires a Windows license then, I'll stick with wine.

[–] Truscape@lemmy.blahaj.zone 57 points 4 days ago (1 children)

I'd imagine a pirate's license will work too.

[–] anamethatisnt@sopuli.xyz 59 points 4 days ago

True, they did call it a boat after all.

[–] princessnorah@lemmy.blahaj.zone 30 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (2 children)

I'm assuming it's using the dockur/windows image* the same as WinApps, which seems to be pre-registered ime.

[–] anamethatisnt@sopuli.xyz 22 points 4 days ago

dockur uses the generic keys, f.e. VK7JG-NPHTM-C97JM-9MPGT-3V66T for Windows 11.
https://gist.github.com/rvrsh3ll/0810c6ed60e44cf7932e4fbae25880df

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[–] Agent641@lemmy.world 18 points 4 days ago (1 children)

I'll just get a license from the gettin' place like I always have.

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[–] Fuckwit_McBumCrumble@midwest.social 14 points 4 days ago (3 children)

You can always just not activate windows. Nothing is stopping you from using it that way.

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[–] ILikeBoobies@lemmy.ca 5 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Weird to compare it to Wine instead of Cassowary

https://github.com/casualsnek/cassowary

Since both are just running Windows in a VM

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[–] foremanguy92_@lemmy.ml 20 points 4 days ago (1 children)

How it is different from WinApps?

[–] RmDebArc_5@piefed.zip 34 points 4 days ago (1 children)

From their FAQ

With WinApps you do the bulk of the setup manually, and there's no cohesive interface to bring it all together. There's a basic TUI, a taskbar widget, and some CLI commands for you to play with.

WinBoat does all the setup once you have the pre-requisites installed, displays everything worth seeing in a neat interface for you, and acts like a complete experience. No need to mess with configuration files, no need to memorize a dozen CLI commands, it just works.

[–] solarvector@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 3 days ago

But if it isn't dependant on the command line is it really Linux?

(This is an awesome project, thanks for sharing)

[–] EveryMuffinIsNowEncrypted@lemmy.blahaj.zone 13 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (11 children)

Listen, I only need to know one thing: can it run Paint.\NET?

Because pretty much all my needs are met but

GOOD GOD THE SELECTION FOR GENERAL-USE RASTER EDITING SOFTWARE ON LINUX IS BALLS.

 

 


(inb4 anyone says anything: Krita = painting not editing; GIMP = sucks balls; PhotoGIMP = sucks less balls; Pinta sucks balls ever since they switched to GTK4; and pretty much all other options are MS Paint equivalents so also all suck balls.)

[–] aliceblossom@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

I'm with you. I love paint.net. For me it's not even necessarily the feature set, but the fact that it starts up instantly unlike others. Most of the time I'm using it to make a quick meme and having to wait for something like GIMP to open makes me feel like it's not worth making.

[–] RmDebArc_5@piefed.zip 8 points 4 days ago (2 children)

Have you tried Photopea? It’s browser based but very good

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[–] hellmo_luciferrari@lemmy.zip 10 points 4 days ago (5 children)

Can I ask you what "sucks" about GIMP?

[–] EveryMuffinIsNowEncrypted@lemmy.blahaj.zone 26 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (1 children)

Okay, so, please forgive me ahead of time for the following rant. To be blunt, you did ask. 😛

  • It often doesn't use common UI/UX conventions found in most other editors
  • It has no polygon tools.
  • The Lasso tool is called "Free Select" instead of, you know, "Lasso" like every other software under the sun calls it. (Though I admit this in itself is merely a nitpick, it is indicative of the larger trends.)
  • The text tool is so bad. Honestly, I don't even know how to put how it's bad into words, but just using it is...painful...in comparison to Paint.\NET, Pinta, or even MS Paint back on Windows. Other people can probably word the problems with it better than I can. Sorry I can't be more descriptive.
  • It doesn't have Lanczos resampling for resizing images (tbf neither do many others but still Paint.\NET does and so that's a point against it. (If you don't know, Lanczos is visibly superior in maintaining fidelity when downscaling an image, compared to linear, bilinear, cubic, etc.)
  • The currently active layer seems to randomly change, so that one minute you're doing something and the next nothing is worked, you wonder "what the hell" and then finally after 10 minutes of searching you find out it's because the layer has changed and now you need to go click on this one obscure option. (I don't remember what it is. Select > Select None maybe? Anyway, I've had it happen where the option doesn't even do anything.) It completely throws my whole game off and I've never once, even once had it happen until I started using GIMP.
  • The default UI/UX is very rough around the edges. Just to make it minimally usable for me, I had to install PhotoGIMP over GIMP and spend 20-30 minutes customizing the layout and keyboard shortcuts. Speaking of...
  • The default keyboard shortcuts are kinda wacko. For example, Zoom In, Zoom Out, and Fit Image in Window (basically zooming in/out but to see the whole image in your window) is +, -, and Shift+Ctrl+E, respectively; while most other programs have it as ctrl++; (and/or ctrl+=), ctrl+- (and/or ctrl+NumpadMinus), and ctrl+0 (and/or ctrl+NumpadEnter). Also, you cannot use tab or ctrl+tab to move to the next or previous tab, respectively, because tab is a excluded key for keyboard shortcuts. (I think I was once told it has to do with a limitation in GTK, but that's ridiculous as Pinta has been able to do it for years.) There are countless other inane defaults for the keyboard shortcuts as well, frankly.
  • You cannot use LMB or RMB to switch between the primary and secondary colors selected. You have to use X.

These are only a few of the most severe frustrations, annoyances, and hair-pulling-out moments for me with regards to GIMP. I'd never have even tried it out if Pinta hadn't made the ass-backwards decision to move to the stupidly minimalistic and less functional GTK4 adwaita UI and if Paint.\NET worked. (I can't remember why it doesn't wanna work; I think it has to do with a dependency. I know it's not the .NET framework since that could be handled by Mono IIRC.)

[–] hellmo_luciferrari@lemmy.zip 5 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Hey valid complaints. As someone not in the need for professional editing tools i felt I'd be better to ask than to assume! Thank you for sharing

[–] EveryMuffinIsNowEncrypted@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

It's no trouble! I'm happy to explain! ^_^

[–] ProgrammingSocks@pawb.social 5 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

90% of the complaints I've heard about GIMP are just because its UI and workflow are different from whatever tool they're used to. I like GIMP just fine because I learned on it. I don't even like using Krita because I feel like it's 50% gimp with a skin lol

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[–] matdave@lemmy.ml 2 points 3 days ago

I use Pinta and it's amazing for an easy paint replacement.

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[–] Henson@feddit.dk 4 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Could we get something similar to windows?

[–] oplkill@lemmy.world 3 points 3 days ago (2 children)
[–] hakunawazo@lemmy.world 4 points 3 days ago
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