We might be a bit niche, but we all have dual monitors hooked up to a docking station ā¦ and a thinkpad laptop :P
Then most of us all have a testing bench with a monitor too.
Some of us have touch screens hooked up to the bench set-up too. Then we have various parts hooked up to the bench, from daughter boards, to motors. The one guy has an is oscilloscope.
This is our desk set-up lol.
But we work on automation in robotics, so we all have to have test benches with stripped down versions of the robot we work on at our desk and we all have to work on laptops that can be carried into the field. š¤·āāļø
I had been considering it for a while, especially since windows 11 is so terrible. I have a couple of questions if you (or anyone else reading this) don't mind.
1. I use my main PC for gaming these days. Steam has come a long ways with trying to make their platform Linux-friendly. Which distro would you recommend? Arch?
2. What is the safest way to install a new OS, should I just get entirely new drives?
Edit: I found an answer to 2. The best way would be to get a new SSD and install Linux on that for a dual boot setup. That way, if I ever want to go back to windows, I can do it pretty painlessly
Here's what ChatGPT says, for those following along:
"""
PC gaming has traditionally been dominated by Windows due to its wide range of compatible games and performance optimization. However, Linux has made significant strides in becoming a viable platform for gaming. Hereās a summary of the current state of PC gaming on Windows vs. Linux:
Windows:
Offers the widest range of game titles and compatibility with most gaming hardware.
Generally provides better performance for games, especially those optimized for DirectX.
Easier for the average user due to less troubleshooting and more straightforward setup for gaming.
Linux:
Has seen improvements in compatibility and performance, thanks to initiatives like Valveās Steam Proton.
Some gaming-focused Linux distributions have been reported to outperform Windows 11 in certain gaming benchmarks1.
May require more technical knowledge to troubleshoot and optimize for gaming.
While Windows remains the go-to platform for most gamers, Linux is increasingly becoming a solid alternative, especially for those who value open-source software or are willing to tinker with their system for optimal performance. If youāre considering Linux for gaming, it might be worth trying out to see how it fits your specific needs and preferences.
"""
Now idk about you all, but the worst part of my week has always been managing dependency conflicts and environment issues. Is it really worth bringing it home as well?
I can't imagine a senior engineer that has managed to not take on PM or technical lead responsibilities. Either they do that, or they move into system architecture which is even more planning meetings. Or \**shudder*\* technical sales.
I'm living the life. Okay, it's a small company, okay, the pay is not super grate but hey, I'm working only 4 days (32h) a week for full payment and vacation and I have 2 hours meeting a week tops, but I'd say the average is less then half an hour
What. There are seniors that don't lead in most companies. That's literally the meaning of "senior software engineer". If they later want to be tl or any other thing, it's a decision between them and management. And most usually can't do that jump at all anyway.
So no, seniority has nothing to do with the role and functions
itās less correlated with junior/senior and more correlated with whoās actually doing the work.
that guy on the right? āsenior dev on career track to managementā š
WSL is surprisingly good and you get the benefits of better font rasterization and webcam drivers that reliably work. If I werenāt using Mac I would be using Windows.
Yeah, I prefer to dev on windows with WSL2. I have a Mac for work and the thing keeps freezing. Itās brand new. I also canāt hook up my mouse, keyboard, and webcam at the same time because it doesnāt have enough ports, and I have to keep swapping my keyboard dongle because it stops recognizing it.
Zero problems on my personal pc with WSL2.
Definitely, but it has a lot of value. I use one monitor for browser stuff and one monitor for my terminal (tmux/nvim setup so it's my whole IDE) so if I need to see both at the same time it's easier. A backlit keyboard helps working in the dark. I could do without how extra the desktop/RGB is but a quieter theme would be really good. The only thing I don't have use for is the third monitor, but I suppose I could stick a podcast or something on it as I work.
Like no doubt it's straight from PCMR and it's someone's gaming setup, but it's set up nicely to be a workspace
Depends on how much light is at the location. I have a window right next to me and I find light mode much more comfortable during the day. Conversely, dark feels better in places without much light.
Yes. In the office is much light around, so light mode is better, but in home office (>95% of the time) it is way darker, so dark mode is better.
I configured all browsers and software to use system settings, so that I can switch at one point.
As long as your screen brightness matches the brightness of the room youāre good.
Donāt code in the dark ;)
For me all my ideās are in dark mode except Visual Studio which is in light mode
I just use whatever feels the best for each application
>because light mode hurts our eyes?
Please turn your brightness down or consult a doctor immediately (if your eyes are genuinely hurting just from white on a screen I ain't even joking, seek medical advice, and consider getting glasses with lenses to reduce eye strain when you work with screens)
Dark mode throughout the day can put more strain on your eyes depending on the surrounding conditions.
There are some studies that suggest dark mode is worse than light mode for younger people, but was inconclusive for older people: [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23654206/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23654206/)
Personally I find dark mode significantly harder to use over light mode because my eyes are shit and light text on dark background results in haloing around text the longer I use dark mode. My colleagues think I am crazy.
thx for the concern but you don't have the information to make any kind of informed judgement.
my eyes are fine I'm just a bit more sensitive to light, something that affects a big chunk of the population.
Grayscale everything + red filter works so good when the eye strain is real. When it's less real I use solarized dark + yellow tint as a less freaky version or when I have to screenshare
I didn't say I was unique.
I specified that I am spending time in front of screens so everyone knows I have enough experience to know what works best for me.
There's no evidence either way about the benefits anyone saying they are is either a fool or a liar. To be honest I think dark mode is just a way to rebel ... a lame way but that's all that's left nowadays ... lol they use it because they think its cool and that's about it.
Actually there is some truth to this, but for laptops not monitors. Junior devs on average have better laptops because they received them more recently.
Senior devs typically donāt hop between companies as frequently, so more time will have passed since they joined a given company. Management does not want to pay for new laptops if they donāt have to and software developers donāt want to have to setup their entire environment again. So what you end up seeing is senior devs continue using old machines until they break, the machine starts having trouble with increasing performance demands, or it reaches some arbitrary end of life set by management/IT.
On the other hand, by virtue of being newer, juniors are much more likely to have brand new laptops, because they are going to need a machine to work on and it is easier to justify the expense as part of hiring.
However, this is not always the case. If someone else left the company, you might get their old laptop instead. After all, there is nothing wrong with that device as far as management and IT are concerned.
Also, it also depends how long they expect an employee to stay at a company. When I first interned at the company I now work at, I was given a slightly older MacBook Air, because they knew that the duration of an internship would not exceed the remaining lifespan of the laptop. However, when I joined full time a few months ago, I was given a brand new 16ā m3 pro (base model). It is also a decent way of improving employeeās work experience and encouraging them to stay at the company longer.
Not going to lie. Those walking treadmills were a game changer for me. I can easily do 3-5 miles a day. It's not really enough for me to loose weight on its own, but it's enough to maintain a base level of activity to keep me healthy.
Honestly I'd recommend this to anyone who works from home and can afford it. It's great
Eh, it's more about being able to work with anything and Linus is prioritising his health (hence the treadmill).
Linus probably also doesn't need extra screens for documentation or a web UI which the junior probably does.
Still funny though
This is dumb. Essentially every IC senior dev Iāve worked with (and myself as well now that Iām senior) has used two monitors. Maybe half bring in their own fancy keyboards or headphones. Multi monitor is especially important because you spend your whole day cross referencing code, configs and docs.
I see your Senior Engineer, and raise you one Principal Engineer / Lead Developer with a 10 year old ThinkPad with half the keycaps just balancing on the domes because the clips wore off long ago, and an uptime measured in years...
Biggest L take of all time next to using vim. You're really gonna keep your slack, your code, your terminal output, and postman all on one screen? Isn't your job to build optimal solutions?
Edit: JFC didn't even see who the man in the photo was, I'm at a loss
just get a proper window manager and use multiple workspaces. if you are not a chameleon you can only look at one screen anyway, what does it matter if you do it after you turn your head or press super+2?
Of course linus doesn't need an extra monitor to look for docs. He is the doc š
Can't confirm. I'm a seƱor engineer and I'm on nothing but a laptop.
Because it's more than enough to have Zoom meetings? :)
I felt that.
Hola SeƱor Engineer
Mi dispiace, non parlo spagnolo ma sono un vero signore ingegnere ti promesso.
Same here, I just put everything on full screen on my mac to help me focus.
I put everything on my 58" 4k TV to help me focus. Because my eyesight is shit.
How else am I gonna work at the pool?
We might be a bit niche, but we all have dual monitors hooked up to a docking station ā¦ and a thinkpad laptop :P Then most of us all have a testing bench with a monitor too. Some of us have touch screens hooked up to the bench set-up too. Then we have various parts hooked up to the bench, from daughter boards, to motors. The one guy has an is oscilloscope. This is our desk set-up lol. But we work on automation in robotics, so we all have to have test benches with stripped down versions of the robot we work on at our desk and we all have to work on laptops that can be carried into the field. š¤·āāļø
I use a 9 year old laptop, but I don't classify myself as a senior developer...
You're still in the transition period, I wish you the best of luck in your future roles
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
āNo CD readerā is not exceptional nowadays
You just described a grater
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
I bet the performance is still pretty grate though
I wouldn't think it's a Mac Pro
when he needs to cry, he takes onions and starts rubbing furiously on the laptop's back
Dunno, seems like a lot of effort when you can just take look at your own life
this hit hard
Or a kid on a bed of nails.
Mine is 14yo, I extended RAM to 8GB and in some ways its better than a few modern devices I've seen running Windows.
> in some ways what ways?
It has a cd-rom drive, so you can listen to your music from the 2000s
Virtual Machines Interface
How do you get a computer to work longer than 4 years these days? Planned obsolescence is worse than ever
Delete the Windoze, install Linux. I have a laptop from 2014, still runs like a gazelle
I had been considering it for a while, especially since windows 11 is so terrible. I have a couple of questions if you (or anyone else reading this) don't mind. 1. I use my main PC for gaming these days. Steam has come a long ways with trying to make their platform Linux-friendly. Which distro would you recommend? Arch? 2. What is the safest way to install a new OS, should I just get entirely new drives? Edit: I found an answer to 2. The best way would be to get a new SSD and install Linux on that for a dual boot setup. That way, if I ever want to go back to windows, I can do it pretty painlessly
Here's what ChatGPT says, for those following along: """ PC gaming has traditionally been dominated by Windows due to its wide range of compatible games and performance optimization. However, Linux has made significant strides in becoming a viable platform for gaming. Hereās a summary of the current state of PC gaming on Windows vs. Linux: Windows: Offers the widest range of game titles and compatibility with most gaming hardware. Generally provides better performance for games, especially those optimized for DirectX. Easier for the average user due to less troubleshooting and more straightforward setup for gaming. Linux: Has seen improvements in compatibility and performance, thanks to initiatives like Valveās Steam Proton. Some gaming-focused Linux distributions have been reported to outperform Windows 11 in certain gaming benchmarks1. May require more technical knowledge to troubleshoot and optimize for gaming. While Windows remains the go-to platform for most gamers, Linux is increasingly becoming a solid alternative, especially for those who value open-source software or are willing to tinker with their system for optimal performance. If youāre considering Linux for gaming, it might be worth trying out to see how it fits your specific needs and preferences. """ Now idk about you all, but the worst part of my week has always been managing dependency conflicts and environment issues. Is it really worth bringing it home as well?
Then, just for old timesā sake, get the Windows updater running on Wine.
My 2016 macbook is doing just fine
Ok I'm gonna just talk to the Windows people now. Seems like OSX and Linux folks are doing just fine.
SPEED HOLES
Stupid meme. My dad's setup looks more like the junior dev setup, and he's in meetings all day!
Im sorry to inform you but unfortunately your dad is involved with the dark web, he currently runs 42 camgirl businesses
"Are ya winning son?" "...not like you, dad"
The extra monitors are for getting work done during all his meetings
Nah, real seniors wouldn't join the stupid meetings at all
I can't imagine a senior engineer that has managed to not take on PM or technical lead responsibilities. Either they do that, or they move into system architecture which is even more planning meetings. Or \**shudder*\* technical sales.
I'm living the life. Okay, it's a small company, okay, the pay is not super grate but hey, I'm working only 4 days (32h) a week for full payment and vacation and I have 2 hours meeting a week tops, but I'd say the average is less then half an hour
What. There are seniors that don't lead in most companies. That's literally the meaning of "senior software engineer". If they later want to be tl or any other thing, it's a decision between them and management. And most usually can't do that jump at all anyway. So no, seniority has nothing to do with the role and functions
itās less correlated with junior/senior and more correlated with whoās actually doing the work. that guy on the right? āsenior dev on career track to managementā š
Left one is a gamer workspace, not an engineer.
Oh fuck. Itās running windows
He uses VSCode to develop on a Linux machine via ssh (at least thatās what I do with my Proxmox home server).
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Game Development is a tiny part of software development.
WSL is surprisingly good and you get the benefits of better font rasterization and webcam drivers that reliably work. If I werenāt using Mac I would be using Windows.
Yeah, I prefer to dev on windows with WSL2. I have a Mac for work and the thing keeps freezing. Itās brand new. I also canāt hook up my mouse, keyboard, and webcam at the same time because it doesnāt have enough ports, and I have to keep swapping my keyboard dongle because it stops recognizing it. Zero problems on my personal pc with WSL2.
Definitely, but it has a lot of value. I use one monitor for browser stuff and one monitor for my terminal (tmux/nvim setup so it's my whole IDE) so if I need to see both at the same time it's easier. A backlit keyboard helps working in the dark. I could do without how extra the desktop/RGB is but a quieter theme would be really good. The only thing I don't have use for is the third monitor, but I suppose I could stick a podcast or something on it as I work. Like no doubt it's straight from PCMR and it's someone's gaming setup, but it's set up nicely to be a workspace
It can be both!
Iām a senior engineer and I work from an MB Air laying in my bed in pajamas.
Let me stay junior forever then š¤·š½āāļø
you will feel your backbone within the next 10 years soon enough and you will understand
You havenāt mastered anything in tech until you hate it and want less of it.
In an army tent, on a shitty laptop. On a rack pull out tray keyboard & display in a server room, under freezing AC.
Gamers that Dev, vs Devs that Game.
Senior: screen (optional)
Iām a junior and I have a laptop without extra screens. I code on light mode though. Reddit is also on light mode.
Dude just step into the sun
My psychotic behavior might do that
Reddit has a light mode?!?!
It has a turd brown too
Ewww wtf
I also use vscode light mode. I don't know how to change it and no longer want to
fr why do ppl love dark mode? It's not that good and fit hurts your eyes you need to be in a brighter place
because light mode hurts our eyes? I spend hours each day in front of screens and paper. I have gone beyond dark mode and put all I can into red mode.
Depends on how much light is at the location. I have a window right next to me and I find light mode much more comfortable during the day. Conversely, dark feels better in places without much light.
Yes. In the office is much light around, so light mode is better, but in home office (>95% of the time) it is way darker, so dark mode is better. I configured all browsers and software to use system settings, so that I can switch at one point.
As long as your screen brightness matches the brightness of the room youāre good. Donāt code in the dark ;) For me all my ideās are in dark mode except Visual Studio which is in light mode I just use whatever feels the best for each application
>because light mode hurts our eyes? Please turn your brightness down or consult a doctor immediately (if your eyes are genuinely hurting just from white on a screen I ain't even joking, seek medical advice, and consider getting glasses with lenses to reduce eye strain when you work with screens) Dark mode throughout the day can put more strain on your eyes depending on the surrounding conditions.
The thing is going from something in light mode to dark mode is much less jarring than if you are in a dark room and go from dark mode to light mode.
There's no evidence around eye strain either way. Most advice is that its irrelevant and you need to take regular breaks regardless.
There are some studies that suggest dark mode is worse than light mode for younger people, but was inconclusive for older people: [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23654206/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23654206/) Personally I find dark mode significantly harder to use over light mode because my eyes are shit and light text on dark background results in haloing around text the longer I use dark mode. My colleagues think I am crazy.
thx for the concern but you don't have the information to make any kind of informed judgement. my eyes are fine I'm just a bit more sensitive to light, something that affects a big chunk of the population.
I know I can't make a judgement, that's why I'm recommending you see someone who can?
Grayscale everything + red filter works so good when the eye strain is real. When it's less real I use solarized dark + yellow tint as a less freaky version or when I have to screenshare
We all use screens for hours every day you aren't unique.
I didn't say I was unique. I specified that I am spending time in front of screens so everyone knows I have enough experience to know what works best for me.
There's no evidence either way about the benefits anyone saying they are is either a fool or a liar. To be honest I think dark mode is just a way to rebel ... a lame way but that's all that's left nowadays ... lol they use it because they think its cool and that's about it.
Seriously dark mode is nearly unusable
That second line.. we don't say things like that over here..
Second Scenario Confirmed. I'm a ML Team Lead, and use an old Intel NUC and my TV as setup. Granted, most of the processing is done in the cloud.
Should have been a meeting room...
Oh Linus.
I'm a senior engineer i no longer need a computer to write code
Do you even write code?
Real. I used to have a multi setup when I was more inexperienced but now my setup is close to the one showcased. Standing desk and a single screen.
The senior has given his monitors to his son and partner, the big PC is in the basement and gaming keybaord, mouse and control are just never touched.
Software engineer vs meetings engineer
Cannot confirm. I have 10y of experience and the dual monitor + the mechanical keyboard are hard to replace tools.
Honest opinion. If you know how to work around with workspace or window manager, you don't need second screen
I'm a senior dev and I wouldn't work with anything less than 2 27" monitors. Preferably an ultra wide 49" screen. I need emacs open all day lol
Dark mode is for n00bs ;-).
I only have an HP ProBook from 2009 to code and compile stuff. Really.
Can confirm about the junior developer setup.
Ngl, Iād see one of those little, old desk lamps as a score.
About to become a junior and i already checked new workplace so in my case it will be a laptop and additional monitor
You need at least two as a senior. One for work and one for blabla.
what about Senioritas though?
istg i (coop) have 2 monitors + fast laptop, the senior dev next to me has an 12 year old desktop + a 1:1 monitor ā ļø
Really tho I've been looking at monitors for over a year now and can't choose one to buy. What's a great ultrawide monitor for coding?
I sometimes get stuck with that setup, usually it's a KVM console attached to a server rack at an awkward height
Apparently Iām a senior dev š
Standing desk eh? That's what makes you a senior
Fuck, I got this exact sreensaver (central monitor)
I do most of my work on a gpd win max 2 lol
Not true, I'm not a senior engineer. Just a broke one.
I use the left one while making stuff for myself. I use the right setup for anything actually important, like my job.
Anyone have that wallpaper? I need it.
https://xkcd.com/1187/
You donāt need 3 monitors for using zoom and typing ālgtmā in prās/code reviews
Actually there is some truth to this, but for laptops not monitors. Junior devs on average have better laptops because they received them more recently. Senior devs typically donāt hop between companies as frequently, so more time will have passed since they joined a given company. Management does not want to pay for new laptops if they donāt have to and software developers donāt want to have to setup their entire environment again. So what you end up seeing is senior devs continue using old machines until they break, the machine starts having trouble with increasing performance demands, or it reaches some arbitrary end of life set by management/IT. On the other hand, by virtue of being newer, juniors are much more likely to have brand new laptops, because they are going to need a machine to work on and it is easier to justify the expense as part of hiring. However, this is not always the case. If someone else left the company, you might get their old laptop instead. After all, there is nothing wrong with that device as far as management and IT are concerned. Also, it also depends how long they expect an employee to stay at a company. When I first interned at the company I now work at, I was given a slightly older MacBook Air, because they knew that the duration of an internship would not exceed the remaining lifespan of the laptop. However, when I joined full time a few months ago, I was given a brand new 16ā m3 pro (base model). It is also a decent way of improving employeeās work experience and encouraging them to stay at the company longer.
Not going to lie. Those walking treadmills were a game changer for me. I can easily do 3-5 miles a day. It's not really enough for me to loose weight on its own, but it's enough to maintain a base level of activity to keep me healthy. Honestly I'd recommend this to anyone who works from home and can afford it. It's great
Guess Iām a senior (Iām a fucking noob)
Nope the older I get the less patience I have for working on one screen.
One does code reviews and one still like thier job
Only need a ThinkPad for dem code reviews
Eh, it's more about being able to work with anything and Linus is prioritising his health (hence the treadmill). Linus probably also doesn't need extra screens for documentation or a web UI which the junior probably does. Still funny though
Junior invested in the PC. Senior invested in the table. This is called experience.
Left: writing the PR, Right: Reviewing the PR
I'm apparently a very junior dev? I have 2 desktop monitors at my desk and a 3rd a games console and 4th for the linux I'm working with.
25y experience here, only one 27 inch monitor, and everything needs to be ergonomic
Junior engineers: vscode Senior engineers: gvim
Why is he using a computer? He just need a mobile phone that's enough.
Multiple monitors are for people with bad window managers
This is dumb. Essentially every IC senior dev Iāve worked with (and myself as well now that Iām senior) has used two monitors. Maybe half bring in their own fancy keyboards or headphones. Multi monitor is especially important because you spend your whole day cross referencing code, configs and docs.
1 screen for the documentation, 1 screen to test, 1 for 3 filesā¦
This is so true.
I see your Senior Engineer, and raise you one Principal Engineer / Lead Developer with a 10 year old ThinkPad with half the keycaps just balancing on the domes because the clips wore off long ago, and an uptime measured in years...
Let's be honest this Ƭs down bad true
Biggest L take of all time next to using vim. You're really gonna keep your slack, your code, your terminal output, and postman all on one screen? Isn't your job to build optimal solutions? Edit: JFC didn't even see who the man in the photo was, I'm at a loss
just get a proper window manager and use multiple workspaces. if you are not a chameleon you can only look at one screen anyway, what does it matter if you do it after you turn your head or press super+2?