
Ubuntu is now available on the Windows Store - happy-go-lucky
https://www.neowin.net/news/ubuntu-is-now-available-on-the-windows-store
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skrebbel
Seems to me that the only thing here that's new is that you can actually
_find_ Ubuntu in the store.

If you're on the latest non-insider Windows 10, you can do the same steps
(enable "windows subsystem for linux" in the os features) and then just open a
command-line window and type "bash". That'll download ubuntu from the store
and set it up as a subsystem.

An extra thing I like about using WSL, that I hadn't foreseen when I started
trying it, is that because the Ubuntu environment is a bit separate from the
Windows environment. It feels a bit like working in a VM but then fast. For
instance, if you change .bashrc or apt install something, the host Windows
environment does not change. This is lovely because it allows me to
experiment. If I totally screw stuff up and make my Ubuntu unusable, I just
wipe the entire linux subsystem installation and start from scratch. For Linux
newbies like me this is very nice.

I guess Docker gives you even better freedom-to-fiddle on native Linux, but
it's a good step in the same direction for us Windows coders.

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goeric
Could have been an Onion article just a few years ago :).

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Analemma_
Note that this is the same WSL/Bash subsystem that has been available in
Windows for a little while now, it's just an easier way to enable it without
jumping through as many hoops.

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MichaelGG
Are there any really good terminal emulators for Windows though? I guess I
could run an X server then run a normal terminal app.

All the ones I see people recommending for Windows typically suck. They're
slow or "weird" \- I guess because Windows doesn't expose a first-class way to
implement your own terminal?

~~~
pjob
Cmder is a package of Conemu (already mentioned by ZenoArrow), Clink, and Unix
tools with a nicer theme. It's the best that I've tried on Windows.

[http://cmder.net/](http://cmder.net/)

Hyper also has a Windows port if you're into that kind of thing.

[https://hyper.is/](https://hyper.is/)

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canada_dry
[Slow clap] I trust their (MS) motives about as much as I trust any large
monopolistic for-profit organization. I.e. not at all.

In the long run their only goal has to be to get rid of competition.. ie: no
ubuntu, no linux.

So in my mind anything they do regarding linux is bad news.

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jostmey
This will be an awesome feature if done right--hopefully this will be as
simple as a few buttons.

I've switched from Macbook OS to Windows 10 and love it, but I need a *nix
type environment!

~~~
WorldMaker
You can use it today: switch the machine to Developer Mode and visit the
Windows Features settings page to enable the Windows Subsystem for Linux and
it will auto-install Ubuntu.

(It's getting added to the store to make it an easier choice between Ubuntu,
OpenSUSE, and Fedora user spaces in the Fall Creators Update.)

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xref
Don't cry, you can run bash on Windows 10 now

[https://youtu.be/PivpCKEiQOQ?t=169](https://youtu.be/PivpCKEiQOQ?t=169)

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fiedzia
Incidentally I was troubleshooting a new designer machine that uses our
dockerised Linux app. On Windows. The problem was that git converted all
newlines to Windows format, breaking... absolutely everything. For the first
time I've seen bash refusing to even look at my scripts.

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wasd
Does this change anything for people using Bash on Ubuntu on Windows? It seems
like they just added the ability to change distros and install through Windows
Store (but otherwise no changes), right?

~~~
WorldMaker
The MSDN blog post [1] says that it will download distribution updates much
faster and also support side-by-side distribution installs when installed from
the store (ie, you could have both Ubuntu and Fedora installed side-by-side).

[1]
[https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/commandline/2017/07/10/ubun...](https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/commandline/2017/07/10/ubuntu-
now-available-from-the-windows-store/)

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dec0dedab0de
I have an irrational urge to switch distros now. It's been a while since I've
used anything but Ubuntu or RHEL. Anyone have any recommendations? is Arch
still awesome?

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baq
Using Terminator on Windows is a pleasure :)

