this post was submitted on 01 Aug 2025
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A friend of mine has an old macbook air. It still works, more or less, but the OS isn't getting any updates anymore, and updating to the latest OS seems dicey.

Has anyone had experience installing linux on an old macbook? From a quick internet search it looks like you can just make a bootable USB and have at it. Thinking mint because it's popular and my friend is a pretty basic user. The laptop will be mostly used for like youtube/netflix and basic web browsing.

Edit: a little extra context: I am moderately comfortable with Linux. I ran mint for a while on my desktop, and I've done software development for a job. I can install docker and start a python project fine, but I'd use a GUI for like partitioning a hard drive.

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[–] Bob_Robertson_IX@discuss.tchncs.de 2 points 1 day ago (3 children)

I just installed Pop!OS on my 2012 MacBook Pro and it's amazing. No matter which distro you go with, you will likely need to manually update and install the WiFi drivers. You'll need an Ethernet connection, which might mean you'll need an adapter.

[–] jjjalljs@ttrpg.network 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Good to know. I had some trouble a couple months back getting wifi and Ethernet working, and learned my phone can provide Internet over USB.

[–] Bob_Robertson_IX@discuss.tchncs.de 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Oooh, I'll have to keep that in mind. I had to go on the hunt for a USB dock with Ethernet and my phone was right there the whole time.

[–] Vittelius@feddit.org 1 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

The feature is called "WiFi Tethering" and is available on most Android systems (sometimes OEMs or carriers disable it)

On iOS it should enable automatically if you've got a hotspot active and connect your device to your computer via USB

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