this post was submitted on 06 Feb 2026
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Linux
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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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Not sure if you've seen but there is a custom kernel for surfaces that you can install which should get most stuff working: https://github.com/linux-surface/linux-surface?tab=readme-ov-file
They have a feature matrix so you can see which features should work depending on the model. However I haven't tried installing it yet because the surface go is so old everything except the camera seems to work with the standard kernel.
Thanks! I’ve heard of the kernel, yet never had any chance at testing. It’s great to know the old devices are upstreamed, as I might want price over everything else. I’m looking for a laptop that I’d be able to do some tasks, but not everything. I have no idea whether it’s a good idea to get Surface, but it looks quite good.
Yeah Linux is great at resurrecting obsolete devices! This one was in the trash pile because it can't run Windows 11. I can't really comment on whether it's a good idea to buy one though since I got this one free and I've not done much with it yet. It's missing the keyboard cover and pen as well so I'm using it as more of an iPad/Android tablet alternative than a laptop.
I understand, I’d see if I can get one for cheap, I’m not hurrying. I’d love to learn whether it’s good as a tablet, would be pretty great to have a tablet running Linux!
Feel free to ask me in a few weeks and I'll let you know! I'm going to try Waydroid as well, then it's basically an Android and Linux tablet in one