Linux for an x86 Tablet

Summary

In this video, the host explores the feasibility of running a Linux distribution on an x86 tablet, specifically the Surface 2 Pro. Initially, they attempt to use mobile device-specific distros like Ubuntu Touch and Plasma Mobile, but find compatibility issues with x86 architecture. They then test mainstream distros like Ubuntu, Manjaro, and Linux Mint. While facing touchscreen and on-screen keyboard challenges with Ubuntu and Manjaro, Linux Mint impresses with its pre-installed Onboard virtual keyboard, offering a smooth tablet experience. The host successfully configures Linux Mint on the tablet, achieving a functional setup without needing an external keyboard.

Takeaways

• 😀 The video is an experiment to determine if a Linux distro can be successfully run on an x86 tablet, specifically a Surface 2 Pro.
• 🔧 The goal is not only to get the hardware like touchscreen, Wi-Fi, and audio working but also to have a good on-screen keyboard experience similar to Windows 10.
• 🚀 The first approach tried is using dedicated mobile device Linux distros, such as Ubuntu Touch and PostmarketOS, but they only support ARM devices, not x86.
• 🔄 The second approach explored is Plasma Mobile, a KDE desktop version for mobile devices, which has an AMD64 ISO image that might work on the tablet despite being unmaintained.
• 💡 Another distro considered is Ying OS, a future mobile OS based on Linux, which has both x86 and ARM versions, although the x86 version is in an early 0.9 stage.
• 📱 Plasma Mobile was tested and found to have a working touchscreen but issues with the on-screen keyboard not appearing when needed.
• 🖥 Ying OS was also tested and had a working touchscreen, but like Plasma Mobile, it struggled with providing an accessible on-screen keyboard.
• 🔍 Mainstream Linux distros such as Ubuntu and Manjaro were then tried, with Ubuntu having a basic on-screen keyboard that didn't scroll well with text input.
• 🌟 Linux Mint was found to have a superior on-screen keyboard experience out of the box, with the pre-installed Onboard keyboard offering various layouts and themes.
• 🛠️ Despite some initial issues with positioning the Onboard keyboard in Manjaro, Linux Mint was ultimately chosen for its ease of use and better touch screen and keyboard support.
• 🔄 The presenter dual-booted Linux Mint and Windows on the tablet, but noted a future configuration challenge due to the lack of a GRUB menu for OS selection.

Q & A

What is the main objective of the video?

The main objective of the video is to experiment with running a Linux distribution on an x86 tablet, specifically an old Surface 2 Pro, with the goal of getting the touchscreen, Wi-Fi, audio, and on-screen keyboard to work effectively.

Why does the experimenter want to run Linux on a tablet?

The experimenter wants to run Linux on a tablet to have a good user experience similar to Windows 10, including the ability to easily access and use an on-screen keyboard with various keys such as letters, numbers, cursor arrows, control, and tab keys.

What are the two options mentioned for running Linux on a tablet?

The two options mentioned are: 1) installing a mainstream Linux distribution and tweaking it for tablet operation, and 2) installing a dedicated mobile device distribution.

Why couldn't the experimenter use Ubuntu Touch for the experiment?

The experimenter couldn't use Ubuntu Touch because it only supports ARM devices, and the experimenter's tablet is x86-based.

What is Plasma Mobile and why was it considered for the experiment?

Plasma Mobile is a version of the KDE desktop environment designed for mobile devices. It was considered for the experiment because it has an AMD64 ISO image that is said to work on non-Android Intel tablets, even though it is not actively maintained.

What issues did the experimenter encounter with Plasma Mobile?

The experimenter encountered issues with Plasma Mobile where the on-screen keyboard could not be brought up, despite having a working touchscreen.

What is Ying OS and why was it considered in the experiment?

Ying OS is a future mobile operating system based on Linux. It was considered in the experiment because it has both x86 and ARM versions, and the experimenter wanted to try out its x86 version despite it being in an early stage of development (version 0.9).

What problems did the experimenter face with Ying OS?

With Ying OS, the experimenter faced problems similar to Plasma Mobile, where there was no way to access an on-screen keyboard within the Chromium web browser.

Why did the experimenter choose to try out mainstream Linux distributions after the mobile-specific distributions?

The experimenter chose to try out mainstream Linux distributions after the mobile-specific distributions because they both had good reputations for tablet use and the experimenter wanted to see if tweaking them could provide a better on-screen keyboard and overall tablet experience.

What was the final decision of the experimenter regarding the Linux distribution for the tablet?

The experimenter decided to install Linux Mint on the tablet because it came with a pre-installed, high-quality on-screen keyboard called Onboard, which worked well with the tablet's touchscreen and provided a good user experience.

What challenge does the experimenter face after installing Linux Mint?

After installing Linux Mint, the experimenter faces a configuration challenge because the Surface tablet does not allow operating system selection via a GRUB menu, making it difficult to access Linux without using advanced startup options in Windows.

Outlines

00:00

🔧 Experimenting with Linux on an x86 Tablet

The video begins with the host introducing an experiment to run a Linux distribution on an x86 tablet, specifically a Surface 2 Pro. The goal is not only to get the basic functions like touchscreen, Wi-Fi, and audio working but also to achieve a good on-screen keyboard experience that mirrors the ease of use found in Windows 10. The host expresses uncertainty about the success of this endeavor but is eager to attempt it. Two primary options for running Linux on a tablet are discussed: installing a mainstream distro and customizing it for tablet use, or installing a dedicated mobile OS. The exploration starts with projects like Ubuntu Touch and PostmarketOS, which unfortunately only support ARM devices, leading the host to consider Plasma Mobile and Ying OS as potential candidates for the experiment.

05:00

📱 Testing Plasma Mobile and Ying OS on a Tablet

The host tests Plasma Mobile, a KDE desktop version for mobile devices, and Ying OS, a future mobile OS based on Linux. Despite Plasma Mobile not being actively maintained, it is chosen for its compatibility with non-Android Intel tablets. The host boots Plasma Mobile from an SSD and encounters issues with the on-screen keyboard not functioning properly. A similar problem is found with Ying OS, which has a working touchscreen but lacks a viable on-screen keyboard solution. The host then shifts focus to mainstream Linux distributions like Ubuntu and Manjaro, which have better reputations for tablet use, and notes the responsiveness of the touchscreen and the functionality of the on-screen keyboard in these distros.

10:03

🖥️ Exploring Mainstream Linux Distros for Tablet Use

The host evaluates Ubuntu and Manjaro on the tablet, noting that while the touchscreen works well, the on-screen keyboard leaves something to be desired in terms of functionality and usability. The keyboard in Ubuntu does not scale well, and typing can be obscured by the keyboard itself, which is not ideal for tablet use. Manjaro, with its GNOME desktop, offers a slightly better on-screen keyboard experience, with scrolling that does not cover the typed text. However, the host also considers Linux Mint, which comes with a pre-installed, third-party virtual keyboard called Onboard, providing a more comprehensive and user-friendly keyboard experience out of the box.

15:03

🌟 Successful Linux Mint Installation on the Tablet

After testing various Linux distributions, the host finds Linux Mint to be the most successful in terms of both on-screen keyboard functionality and overall tablet compatibility. The Onboard keyboard in Linux Mint is praised for its layout, features, and theming options. The host is able to complete the entire setup and configuration of Linux Mint on the tablet without needing an external keyboard. However, the video concludes with a mention of a configuration challenge due to the Surface tablet's limitation of not allowing OS selection via a GRUB menu, leaving the host with an interesting problem to solve for future videos.

Keywords

💡Linux Distro

A Linux distribution, or 'distro', is a version of the Linux operating system tailored to the needs of a specific audience. In the video, the creator is experimenting with running various Linux distros on an x86 tablet, specifically an old Surface 2 Pro, to determine if they can be successfully utilized on such hardware. The goal is to have a functional system with working touchscreen, Wi-Fi, audio, and a good on-screen keyboard experience.

💡X86 Tablet

An x86 tablet is a type of tablet computer that uses an x86 architecture processor, which is a family of instruction set architectures based on the Intel 8086 microprocessor. The video focuses on installing and running Linux distros on an x86-based tablet, which is a challenge due to the different hardware requirements compared to ARM-based tablets.

💡Ubuntu Touch

Ubuntu Touch is a mobile version of the Ubuntu operating system, designed for touch interfaces on mobile devices. In the script, it is mentioned as one of the projects dedicated to running Linux on mobile devices. However, the creator finds that it only supports ARM devices and is not compatible with their x86 tablet.

💡PostmarketOS

PostmarketOS is a Linux distribution designed for smartphones and other mobile devices. It is mentioned in the video as another project that the creator considered trying on the tablet, but it only supports ARM devices, making it unsuitable for the x86 tablet in question.

💡Plasma Mobile

Plasma Mobile is a version of the KDE desktop environment tailored for mobile devices. The video describes an attempt to install Plasma Mobile on the x86 tablet. Although it is not actively maintained, it is mentioned as a potential candidate due to the availability of an AMD64 ISO image that might work on non-Android Intel tablets.

💡Ying OS

Ying OS is a future mobile operating system based on Linux. The script mentions it as an option to try on the x86 tablet, with both x86 and ARM versions available. Despite being in an early version (0.9), the creator is interested in testing its capabilities on the tablet.

💡On-Screen Keyboard

An on-screen keyboard is a virtual keyboard displayed on the screen of a device, allowing users to type without a physical keyboard. The video emphasizes the importance of having a good on-screen keyboard experience when running Linux on a tablet, including access to letter keys, number keys, cursor arrows, control keys, and tab keys.

💡Ubuntu

Ubuntu is a popular Linux distribution known for its user-friendly interface and strong community support. In the video, the creator tests Ubuntu on the tablet, noting that while the touchscreen works, the on-screen keyboard's functionality and window management need improvement for a better tablet experience.

💡Manjaro

Manjaro is a Linux distribution based on the Arch Linux project but designed to be more accessible to newcomers. The script describes the creator's experience with Manjaro on the tablet, highlighting its better touchscreen support and the use of the GNOME desktop environment, which is icon-focused and potentially more suitable for tablet use.

💡Linux Mint

Linux Mint is a Linux distribution known for its simplicity and ease of use, often recommended for users new to Linux. The video concludes with the creator finding Linux Mint to be the most successful in providing a good user experience on the tablet, including a pre-installed and highly customizable on-screen keyboard called Onboard.

💡Onboard

Onboard is a third-party virtual keyboard for Linux that offers various layouts and themes. The video script describes how Onboard is pre-installed in Linux Mint and provides a better on-screen keyboard experience compared to other distros tested. It can be brought up and down using an icon on the panel and offers different layouts and themes to suit the user's preference.

Highlights

Experiment to run a Linux distro on an x86 tablet, specifically the old Surface 2 Pro.

The goal is to have a good on-screen keyboard experience with full functionality, including cursor arrows and control keys.

Two options for running Linux on a tablet: installing a mainstream distro and tweaking it or installing a dedicated mobile device distro.

Ubuntu Touch is a project for mobile devices but only supports ARM architecture, not x86.

PostmarketOS is a Linux distribution for mobile devices but also only supports ARM devices.

Plasma Mobile, a KDE desktop version for mobile devices, has an AMD64 ISO image that might work on an x86 tablet.

Ying OS is a future mobile OS based on Linux with both x86 and ARM versions, though the x86 version is in an early stage.

Testing Plasma Mobile on the Surface 2 Pro reveals a working touchscreen but no on-screen keyboard functionality.

Ying OS has a professional look and touch screen functionality but lacks an accessible on-screen keyboard.

Ubuntu and Manjaro are tested next for their reputations with tablet use, showing basic touchscreen and on-screen keyboard functionality.

Ubuntu's on-screen keyboard works but is not ideal for tablet use due to typing issues.

Manjaro's on-screen keyboard performs better with scrolling, but the touch screen support is not perfect.

Linux Mint is tested and shows a very good virtual keyboard and touch screen support out of the box.

Onboard, a third-party virtual keyboard, is pre-installed in Linux Mint and offers a variety of layouts and themes.

Manjaro with GNOME desktop and Onboard keyboard is tested, but the keyboard remains at the top of the screen, not ideal for tablet use.

Linux Mint is chosen for installation on the tablet due to its superior on-screen keyboard and touch screen support.

Linux Mint allows for all setup and configuration to be done without attaching a physical keyboard.

The video concludes with a dual-boot configuration challenge due to the Surface tablet's limitations with GRUB menu.

Transcripts

[Music]

welcome to another video from explaining

computers

this time it's a bit of an experiment

because i want to see if i can

successfully run a linux distro on an

x86 tablet

specifically we're going to be trying

out various options on this old surface

2 pro

and by running a linux distro

successfully on hardware like this what

i mean is not just getting things like

the touchscreen and wi-fi and audio

working those obviously have to work i

also want to have a good on-screen

keyboard experience so as here in

windows 10 i can flick up an on-screen

keyboard in linux flick it up and down

as required and have access not just to

the letter keys and the number keys but

also cursor arrows and a control key and

a tab key things like that

now as i shoot this introduction i'm not

certain this is possible but i'm going

to give it a try i would like to be

running linux on this tablet so

let's go

and get started

right when it comes to running linux on

a tablet there are two possible options

one is to install a mainstream distro

and to tweak it for tablet operation

meanwhile the second option is to

install a dedicated mobile device distro

and so i thought we'd start with that

already there are quite a few projects

dedicated to running linux on a mobile

device and the first one i came across

is ubuntu touch

this is based on a graphical desktop

called unity 8 which for several years

was developed and maintained by

canonical the publishers of ubuntu but

development at canonical ceased and the

project now resides with a ub port as we

can see here and if we click on ubuntu

touch and get ubuntu touch unfortunately

for me it only currently supports armed

devices so i can't run it on my x86

tablet i need to move on

the second thing i came across was a

this post-market os as we can see a real

linux distribution for phones and other

mobile devices although again sadly for

me this only supports arm devices at the

moment so again i need to move on

thirdly i came across this plasma mobile

which is a version of the kde desktop

for guess what mobile devices

and if we click on install here we can

see again it starts off with arms a lot

of arm stuff here but if we go right to

the bottom we do find this a neon based

amd64 iso image and although this has

got a warning to say it's not actively

maintained this should work on my tablet

it says here it can be tested on not

android intel tablets pcs and virtual

machines so i am going to be taking this

for a spin

and finally i've also come across ying

os future mobile os based on linux and

if we scroll down here we discover there

are x86 and arm versions although the

x86 version is currently in version 0.9

so we shouldn't expect too much but

regardless i want to try it out and if

we click on the download link we get to

a page all about the operating system

and there's a download link actually

here and i should just point out when

you click on this it does request

readers to scroll down a bit but you

enter an email address to get access to

a download of the iso i did this a few

months ago i've had no issues but i just

thought i should point that out

so let's now test out plasma mobile and

then yin 0 s

greetings i've now got the linux

distribution with the plasma mobile

desktop on it on this ssd as a live

image so i can boot this now on the

surface 2 pro to do that i have to hold

in the volume key over here and then

press the power button to boot from usb

and hopefully this will work oh there it

is look if you're wondering why it's a

bright red it's because secure boot is

turned off and here it's got to select

operating system i have got a keyboard

connected to the tablet right now

because if i don't i can't press the

button to select that obviously if this

was installed you wouldn't have to do

that you wouldn't have the problem but

there we are it's now booting into the

operating system which as we can see is

a version of ubuntu 2004 with the plasma

mobile kde desktop

and here we are arriving in the system

and if i just to flick things up we can

enter using a pin you can see we've got

an on-screen keyboard one two three

four i think is the default and enter

all good so far but uh now we're here

i've found there are some problems with

this we can get to two

applications come on there we are it

shows us what's on the system and flick

them down

like that so it does work we've got a

working touch screen here but i can't

get the on-screen keyboard to work if i

flick in the search i can get to a

little box come on and

i can't bring up a keyboard and if we

look in there the settings the various

settings here there's a system settings

and if here we go to uh input devices

and we look at keyboards the keyboard

selections here are clearly all physical

keyboards there is a virtual keyboard

option

which if it comes up there we always

says no virtual keyboard which is

obviously not very handy things are

working but i say

come on and get the right place tricky

to use on this screen but uh come on let

me out of it there we are and if we go

back into settings and we go to some

more system settings over here we can

also find virtual keyboard

down here but

nothing to help us get things working so

this was a long shot it's not a

supportive distribution as it made clear

on the on the website but i thought we'd

give it a go but uh it's not going to

work for me so we'll move straight on to

try ying o s

so

here we now are running ying o s which

is rather professional in terms of what

it looks like as you can see the touch

screen does work we can pull down things

to look at various features here we can

go into settings as we could previously

and that seems to work and there's

various gestures in play if i pull in

from the edge of a screen like that

it'll close things down

as you can see

but uh once again i've got problems with

having access to an on-screen keyboard

if i go into the the chromium web

browser like that which comes up and

there is no way to bring up a virtual

keyboard and again i've gone round and

round and round i can't find a way to do

it so i can close things down nice and

easily like uh go on like that other

side there we are that works but clearly

without a keyboard i've got a problem so

this is as i said earlier in version 0.9

on x86 hardware so this is very much

something with potential for the future

so now i'm going to move on to trying

out some mainstream linux distros and

tweaking them for tablet use

greetings i've now been trying out

ubuntu and manjaro because they both got

good reputations for tablet use and here

as you can see we've got ubuntu and as

you can see if i move my finger on the

screen drawing out a rectangle clearly

the touchscreen works without any

problems and i've also gone into

settings and turned on the on-screen

keyboard in accessibility here this is

the stock on-screen keyboard we're

running again from a live drive a live

ssd services nothing's been installed

here this is exactly what you get out of

the box as it were but it does work if

we go to uh for example libreoffice

writer you'll see a keyboard comes up

it's not a brilliant keyboard i can't

get it scaled bigger we've not got much

actually on it but it does work so for

example if i hold down the key and type

some w's they will come up on the screen

but the reason i want to show you lots

of w's is you can see what happens is

typing goes beneath the keyboard that's

not very effective for for good tablet

use but it does work

and the other thing i want to show you

having said that the touchscreen works

fine if i bring up a window for example

the file manager here showing the ssd

from windows which is still installed on

this tablet if i try and move this

window about

i uh i struggle doesn't work properly

there is a

stylus you can use with windows on this

tablet and works absolutely fine but if

you try and use a finger at best oh it's

looking a little bit better now but it's

a bit random whether that will work or

not so clearly

this is not ideal so a bit surprised

stylus works finger doesn't but anyway

that's a bit of an issue so let's move

on to try out manjaro

and by the magic of filmmaking here we

are running manjaro with a gnome desktop

and yes it's pronounced you know when

you're referring to a desktop

environment rather than the creatures

some people keep in their gardens and

gnome is potentially at least a good

desktop environment to use on the tablet

because it's very much based around

things like the dock very icon focused

rather than menu item focus compared to

other distros although as you can see

here things don't necessarily scale

terribly well

anyway here in manjaro i have turned on

again the stock on-screen keyboard you

can install other on-screen keyboards

and linux distros we'll be looking at

those very shortly but i'm using the

stock one here and again as we saw in

ubuntu if we open up a document i can't

open up libreoffice writer here because

it's not installed by default in manjaro

but if i click here to type you can see

that as we saw in ubuntu we get exactly

the same on-screen keyboard not a

brilliant one but it does work but here

if i use key just to keep going

downwards you'll see things do scroll

rather than going beneath the keyboard

space so that is better performance than

we saw in ubuntu at least with this

particular on-screen keyboard so let's

just close that down because i also want

to show you close without saving yes if

i open up a window for example a farm

manager again here i can move around

perfectly well with my finger and i can

also use the stylus if i want as well

this clearly has got better touch screen

support at least for the surface 2 pro

than we saw in ubuntu

and indeed i therefore thought what i

should do now is to take manjaro to

tweak it to add a better on-screen

keyboard if i can and use it on this

tablet

but i suddenly thought wait a second

i've got hanging around this which is a

usb drive with linux mint on it and so

before i commit to manjaro on this

tablet i think we should at least boot

up linux mint

well i'm now very pleasantly surprised

because here we are running linux mint

from the usb drive so again we're

running a live image nothing has been

added to this distro and it's working on

the tablet very well indeed

as previously i've gone into

accessibility and turned on the virtual

keyboard as you can see and here the

default virtual keyboard is very nice

indeed much better than we've seen

previously it's got the control key that

i always like to have it's got cursor

arrows etc rather nice keyboard

but here in linux mint we also have

pre-installed a third-party virtual

keyboard called onboard which i was

planning on trying out in manjaro and

ubuntu but it's here by default in linux

mint

and you can learn more about onboard on

its website over here as you can see

like that and if we turn on the onboard

keyboard

there we are as you can see a very nice

virtual keyboard and this i think

compares very well to what i have in

windows

there are various layouts for this

keyboard if we go into its

controls down here as you can see and go

into it controls that there there are

different layouts available so we go up

here to see what they are this is the

the compact one i quite like this one

but there's also a space efficient one

like that which still has cursor arrows

and things like that we've also got a

full keyboard if we go down here that's

obviously good if you want everything at

once and there's also a phone type

keyboard if you don't want quite as many

symbols and things available but uh

personally i think that the compact

keyboard is a very good

keyboard to use on the tablet and you

can also set there is themes here if i

go down to a theme like that this is the

default i quite like droid which is very

subtly different but there's also things

like typists which give you a very wacky

keyboard with all these colors on oh

look i could customize the theme

so i'm very impressed that it will go

back to a droid like that this is a very

nice virtual keyboard running here in

linux mint oh and as we haven't had a

look i'll just run up a libra office and

just show you once we start typing here

with this keyboard which obviously works

fine it does the proper scrolling thing

it's scrolling the top area of the

screen so things are working fine and

when we turn off the keyboard like that

we then see the whole screen

so this i think is a very good result

i'm very tempted to just install linux

mint now on the tablet but i'm first

going to experiment with the onboard

keyboard in manjaro

so i've now installed manjaro with a

gnome desktop on my test rig so i can

check out how it'll work with the

onboard virtual keyboard before doing a

more fundamental install on the tablet

and i've installed the onboard keyboard

using the package manager just searching

for it and installing no problems at all

and as you might have noticed i pinned

it to the dash if i click down here we

have the onboard keyboard with a theme

that kind of matches the desktop here in

manjaro

however i have got two problems the

first one is i can't flick the keyboard

up and down using the icon the button on

the dash the way i could using the icon

on the panel in linux mint

and more fundamentally the keyboard is

at the top of the screen and you're

thinking probably chris we'll just put

it at the bottom then but if i go into

the controls like this we can go into

window and a doctor screen edge we can

turn that on and off that's not a

problem but we're going to settings for

position oh look it's at the bottom

already and doesn't matter what i do

here it's always at the top of the

screen

and given that my use of a tablet with

an on-screen keyboard is mainly to write

in google docs i can't possibly have the

keyboard above my document so this is

not a viable solution and i have tried

all kinds of layouts of the gnome

desktop none of them stopped me having

the keyboard only at the top and so what

i'm now going to do on the tablet is to

install linux mint

so here i am back again and everything

is now working

so if i press the windows icon beneath

the screen on this tablet to my great

delight we get the main linux mint menu

here i can show you that the onboard

on-screen keyboard is pre-installed in

accessories there it is down there and

once we brought it up we can bring it up

and down using the icon on the panel and

as you can see i'm trying out a rather

wacky theme so things now look very

different to how we started out in

windows

here in linux i'm also running google

docs here it is this works perfectly

well we're going to scroll it around

with our fingers if we wish and

obviously type with the keyboard to add

to it and when we use the cursor arrows

you'll see that the screen scrolls

correctly things don't disappear under

the keyboard

so this i think is a very good result

and in fact after installing linux mint

i managed to do all of my setup and

configuration without attaching a

keyboard

this said i should note that right now

i'm dual booting linux and windows on

this device

which is not ideal as a surface tablet

does not allow operating system

selection via a grub menu so right now i

can only access linux using advanced

startup options in windows which leaves

me with an interesting configuration

challenge for the future

but now that's it for another video if

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[Music]

you