Linux Tablet?

BuzzPCSOS

I quite like using tablet PCs. The ones with no keyboard, not the ones where the keyboard just folds behind the screen because they are too heavy.
Android and Apple are too restricted and Windows is too slow on this kind of hardware. Unfortunately there does not seem to be much Linux support for Atom processors or cheap Chinese hard drives. To be honest there is sparse Windows support for most of them.
I would like to know if anyone on the forum is using a tablet with Solus (or another distro) on it. What works and what doesn't, any issues you have had and how you fixed them.
Much appreciated 😊

Axios

BuzzPCSOS I got a asus with detachable keyboard which you could use as a tablet had to put Fedora
on it because of 32bit efi
But fedora works good stopped using it to damn small screen..lol
I got yoga you fold back display to tablet I tried it but I dont like how linux does the onscreen keyboard stuff and all
its not like apple.

I got 2 old apple Ipads be cool if linux could go on one them..lol

Just info not much help.

inkbug

BuzzPCSOS
While probably no help at this point, you might find this interesting:
https://www.davidrevoy.com/article976/lenovo-yoga-370-on-gnu-linux-technical-companion-article

David Revoy is an illustrator and Linux enthusiast. An insipirng rarity in the world of digital art.

BuzzPCSOS

Axios I remember you asking questions about setting up the Asus a while back. What flavour of Fedora did you end up using?
I have been looking at Manjaro Plasma and Solus Plasma (obviously) as not limited to 32bit boot but have noticed that both did not have out of the box Virtual Keyboard support for tablets. Even the Virtual Keyboard button on the login screen does nothing apart from moving up the password dialogue box to make way for the keyboard that does not appear.
I wonder what your mileage has been here, or maybe your choice has been to keep the optional keyboards connected.
I have found fixes for the virtual keyboard issue but I would still be interested to hear about your own experiences.
At present WiFi is still being accessed from a USB adaptor. That is going to be my next project.

MetaNorm

I use this one (https://de.starlabs.systems/pages/starlite) and it supports everything.

BuzzPCSOS

@Axios and @MetaNorm Thank you both for your replies. I had great hopes for Fedora after reading a tutorial on how to put it on a 10" Linx tablet. I got myself a Linx 12x64 to try out but Fedora will not see the hard drive for some reason. The Linx tablets are very cheap and so the quality of the hardware is pretty poor too, there seems to be a history of driver updates breaking various functions. On Linux the WiFi needs tweaking to make it work although I have not had any success here. Solus installed and ran on it quite well but with no battery status indication and no WiFi it was a bit of a deal breaker. Maybe more work required here.
The Starlabs tablet certainly offers plenty of choice, I will be taking a better look at what they have to offer later. I was hoping to get something second hand that I could fiddle with, which is always fun. This is mostly going to be for reading books at night and as a lightweight computer to travel with so not really looking for a powerful machine because I need long battery life.

WetGeek

BuzzPCSOS This is mostly going to be for reading books at night

I use a 10.1" Android tablet for that task. I bought two of those from Walmart for very little. (Around $80 each, if I remember right..)

The Nook app is free and fantastic, and I have about 3,600 Nook books on it. But it will also display epub generics, like those from Gutenberg Press, and possibly others that I've never tried.

I'm not sure how useful it would be as a computer, though. No experience using it for that purpose.

BuzzPCSOS

WetGeek I have been doing similar for a few years on an unlocked Kindle Fire running DivestOS which gets the job done as far as book reading and light browsing goes but it lacks most of the abilities that a PC can offer. I would also like to be able to boot from a USB stick so that I can use different OSs and utilities and ideally have Wine installed. Being able to use desktop sites in my browser and not some kind of mobile optimised thing is high on my wish list too.
Figured it was time to move on from Android.

Axios

BuzzPCSOS I think it was Fedora 34 maybe have it all set up gnome extensions
and at the time some the extensions would not work on the new version so I didnt update.
What ended up with it is I just use it for Kodi I can wonder around sit outside and watch movies
off my server dont need keyboard for that and if I need do something heavy just plug it into the keyboard.

Seems like a waste of hardware but it works and I use it.

I see they added another virtual keyboard app in Solus repo I Might have check that out sometime.
Dunno Solus always seems to run decent on the lighter hardware if it would work prob use that I like
the way solus updates for most part been pretty trouble free.
Only thing that I could not get working with fedora was the cam it was so off the wall thing.

BuzzPCSOS

Axios Unfortunately for me I could not get the battery status or WiFi to work with Solus, pretty much two essentials for a tablet.
Everything on Manjaro worked with minimal fuss except for the WiFi so that is where I will be staying if I can get the WiFi to work. At the moment I am using a USB adaptor for wireless but that means I have no spare ports for external storage.
In fairness the built-in wireless adaptor is a Broadcom job that is very picky about what driver it uses. Numerous Windows installations messed up the WiFi when the OS updated the stock drivers. The original manufacturer no longer has a web presence so I might have to be happy with what I have got.

inkbug

I bought a used Microsoft Surface Pro 6 about a year and a half ago, and installed the basic Fedora on it.
I used it mostly for digital drawing with Krita, and it worked smoothly - but when Fedora 39 came out, the upgrade process could not continue because the EFI partition was too small.

I haven't really used it much since, but I have plans to try PureOs on it.

The Surface requires a kernel patch from https://github.com/linux-surface/linux-surface to enable the touch and stylus, and since they have ready patches only for Debian/Ubuntu, Fedora and Arch, I haven't considered installing Solus on it - compiling my own kernel patch feels beyond my skill set.

BuzzPCSOS

inkbug I was initially quite tempted by MS Surface tablets but discarded them due to how difficult it seemed to get them working on Linux and strangely on Windows too.
I probably need to look closer at computer companies that also offer Linux installed OSs and drivers.
Part of my idea for using Linux is to be able to stay on a stable platform that gets updated regularly and keeps my hardware viable. Perhaps too much to ask for.

Axios

BuzzPCSOS Nothing like repeat offenders is their. (aka wifi)
My t420 didnt have wifi rummaged around in my stash found one but it was wifi
only but geez it screams in the t420 my point the only broadcom that ever worked above expectations for me.

I dont know why its always the common things that hiccup.

Dunno if this be of help
https://github.com/brazenwinter/linx12x64archlinux
https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2450187
This may be of use the wifi section

Just killin time and relaxing..lol

BuzzPCSOS

Axios Thanks, I have already been there! Installed all the files and watched the WiFi turn on! And then nothing, wireless password would not accept. I could see all the networks but could not connect to any of them. After a reboot still no connection and performance seemed a bit (more) laggy. Wiped and tried using the restore media to return it to Windows. Two and a half hours of blank screen and I had wiped it again and gone back to Manjaro.
Hoping I might get as lucky as the guy on the video, I have shouted out on the Manjaro forum to see if anyone there has the answer.
It has got to be said that Solus and it's forum makes me feel more like someone is holding my hand. Maybe it's just familiarity, I don't know.

Axios

BuzzPCSOS If you do sudo lshw -C network what do you get

BuzzPCSOS

Axios Thanks for your suggestion.
After I installed it, I ran the suggested command. Some details flashed up on the screen too fast to read and then it just jumped down a line waiting for the next command without displaying any information.
Maybe I should try installing the GitHub drivers again, do a reboot and scan again.

Axios

(sudo lshw -C network) Nothing fancy about that command its saying it doesnt like something
if you got enuf screen should just display.
Guess it doesnt like something we knew that thought it would help us out abit.

You got secure boot turned off right I dont think it will load that wifi with it turned on?

BuzzPCSOS

Axios I installed the GitHub driver and rebooted. Can see networks but security password will not accept. When I shut down the tablet it hung. I will take a more detailed look at that later.
Also took another try with sudo lshw -C network and now have an output. I will post that up later as I don't have access to my computer right now.

BuzzPCSOS

Axios Somewhat later...
Tried tablet again, startup and shutdown are both fine. Results of sudo lshw -C network with GitHub drivers installed.
*-interface:0 description: Wireless interface product: 43455 vendor: Broadcom physical id: 1 bus info: mmc@2:0001:1 logical name: mmc2:0001:1 logical name: wlan0 serial: 36:00:1f:1a:11:99 capabilities: ethernet physical wireless configuration: broadcast=yes driver=brcmfmac driverversion=7.45.234 firmware=01-996384e2 multicast=yes wireless=IEEE 802.11
Still can't connect because it will not take my password, all very frustrating.

Axios

BuzzPCSOS Lets see if its enabled (nmcli radio)

And (rfkill list)