People have been theming Linux to look like Windows for decades. The problem is, theming it doesn’t overcome the main sticking point, which is that Linux doesn’t run the software many people use for work. I use Linux for my main OS, but then I use Ableton Live, Capture One, the Affinity suite, Adobe Acrobat, Fusion 360, Visual Studio (for legacy .NET) and many people depend on other Adobe software and other professional software, none of which runs well on Linux. So I end up running both Linux and Windows. Theming just isn’t the main issue here.
Ableton + every VST I’ve tried works great in WINE. Can’t comment on the other stuff, although I think Fusion360 is on Linux. I know Autodesk ports some of their software to be natively available on Linux, like Maya. Not sure if Fusion360 is a part of that, though.
VS Code is on Linux. Probably not what you’re looking for when looking for a .NET IDE, though. Microsoft did make .NET core open source and available on Linux, though, along with the Mono project, which was originally a reverse engineering of .NET, so .NET development is possible on Linux, but I get why you use Windows for it, especially for legacy stuff.
IIRC Adobe software only has problems running due to the DRM they include. If someone perhaps found a way to run the software without the DRM, it could potentially work.
Thanks for the advice. I haven’t tried Ableton with Wine, but I’ll have to give it a go. I’ll be very happy if that works.
As for the .NET IDE, I can do most things in Linux quite happily using JetBrains Rider and VS Code. There are just a couple of problematic legacy .NET 4 projects with dependencies on old libraries that are only available in Windows, and some old T4 templates that will only run in Visual Studio. We’re on the way to retiring those but not quite there yet.
Note: installing some VSTs can be a tad janky, namely ones requiring Native Access and Serum in my experience, although it’s still possible to get them working. Native Access doesn’t work fully correctly, so manual downloads and installs of those plugins are necessary, and Serum requires a DLL override, but IDR which one.
I haven’t tried every VST, but I’ve tried a lot of them.
It’s a little frustrating that Ableton must have a Linux build of Live, since the Push 3 runs Linux, but they don’t release a Linux version we can install. Not that it would fix those plugin issues. When I have a bit of time I’ll see how far I get with it.
Bitwig has a native Linux version. Similar workflow to Ableton, but IMO better. It was my preferred DAW when I was still using proprietary software.
Zrythm tries to be an open source equiv to both Ableton and Bitwig. You might like it or you might not. Either way, Ableton should still work fine on WINE, and it has in my experience.
The Windows VSTs are the real sticker here. If using a native Linux DAW, you will need to use yabridge, Carla, or similar to bridge the Windows plugins to a Linux host using WINE. When using a DAW through WINE, you don’t need to use a bridge.
Thanks! I hadn’t heard of Zrythm. Good to know someone’s doing that; I’ll check it out. And I did try Bitwig but didn’t really have time to get into it during the trial period. Maybe I can install it on another machine and have another go.
People have been theming Linux to look like Windows for decades. The problem is, theming it doesn’t overcome the main sticking point, which is that Linux doesn’t run the software many people use for work. I use Linux for my main OS, but then I use Ableton Live, Capture One, the Affinity suite, Adobe Acrobat, Fusion 360, Visual Studio (for legacy .NET) and many people depend on other Adobe software and other professional software, none of which runs well on Linux. So I end up running both Linux and Windows. Theming just isn’t the main issue here.
Ableton + every VST I’ve tried works great in WINE. Can’t comment on the other stuff, although I think Fusion360 is on Linux. I know Autodesk ports some of their software to be natively available on Linux, like Maya. Not sure if Fusion360 is a part of that, though.
VS Code is on Linux. Probably not what you’re looking for when looking for a .NET IDE, though. Microsoft did make .NET core open source and available on Linux, though, along with the Mono project, which was originally a reverse engineering of .NET, so .NET development is possible on Linux, but I get why you use Windows for it, especially for legacy stuff.
IIRC Adobe software only has problems running due to the DRM they include. If someone perhaps found a way to run the software without the DRM, it could potentially work.
Thanks for the advice. I haven’t tried Ableton with Wine, but I’ll have to give it a go. I’ll be very happy if that works.
As for the .NET IDE, I can do most things in Linux quite happily using JetBrains Rider and VS Code. There are just a couple of problematic legacy .NET 4 projects with dependencies on old libraries that are only available in Windows, and some old T4 templates that will only run in Visual Studio. We’re on the way to retiring those but not quite there yet.
Note: installing some VSTs can be a tad janky, namely ones requiring Native Access and Serum in my experience, although it’s still possible to get them working. Native Access doesn’t work fully correctly, so manual downloads and installs of those plugins are necessary, and Serum requires a DLL override, but IDR which one.
I haven’t tried every VST, but I’ve tried a lot of them.
It’s a little frustrating that Ableton must have a Linux build of Live, since the Push 3 runs Linux, but they don’t release a Linux version we can install. Not that it would fix those plugin issues. When I have a bit of time I’ll see how far I get with it.
Bitwig has a native Linux version. Similar workflow to Ableton, but IMO better. It was my preferred DAW when I was still using proprietary software.
Zrythm tries to be an open source equiv to both Ableton and Bitwig. You might like it or you might not. Either way, Ableton should still work fine on WINE, and it has in my experience.
The Windows VSTs are the real sticker here. If using a native Linux DAW, you will need to use yabridge, Carla, or similar to bridge the Windows plugins to a Linux host using WINE. When using a DAW through WINE, you don’t need to use a bridge.
Thanks! I hadn’t heard of Zrythm. Good to know someone’s doing that; I’ll check it out. And I did try Bitwig but didn’t really have time to get into it during the trial period. Maybe I can install it on another machine and have another go.