Linux

I didn't read the documentation so I didn't know you weren't supposed to use sudo with yay.

-Ss can be added to pacman to search for packages. Pretty useful if you don't want to DuckDuckGo them every time.

As for applications one neat one I don't see recommended very often is xkill. You can use it to kill applications kind of like you would with the task manager in Windows. htop is probably a closer comparison to the task manager in general though.

There are a lot of Arch-based distros that are incredibly easy to install if you want a very easy setup process that doesn't involve a lot of terminal work.

So many tips, let me add mine.

• btop - for monitoring and process management
• pacseek - terminal UI for installing, searching packages (uses yay)
• chaotic aur - repo for prebuilt binaries that are generally ok

When installing use the archinstall the first time, unless you really want to go into the deep end and use the normal install.

Use btrfs with snapshots. Verify you know how to boot into snapshot after a failed update and repair the system. This is the most important thing and lets you experiment much more freely.

Be aware that some apps will install fine from the arch repo but some others will be better installed from flatpack (e.g. inkscape) or directly as an executable (e.g. Godot).

On steam you may need to specify your video card if you run an AMD card using the DRI prime command. Some games will require -vulkan to use vulkan rather than game settings.

Note: experience may vary by compositor (xorg/wayland), desktop environment, drivers, system hardware, and your willingness to dive into details.

Make sure you put "by the way I use arch" at the end of all your posts

I wish I new how to easily install an AUR package manager when I first started.

Step 1: go to the AUR and choose a package manager. I recommend paru, but there are plenty of others.

Step 2: install git using pacman

sudo pacman -S git 

Step 3: copy the git clone URL for paru and pull it

git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/paru.git

Step 4: CD into the new directory

cd paru

Step 5: install paru

makepkg -si

Now when you find a package from the AUR you want, you can easily install it.

paru -S [package]

Also, when you update your system, you only need to run paru -Syu. You don't need to run both pacman -Syu and paru -Syu.

• ALWAYS avoid partial upgrades, lest you end up bricking your system: https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/System_maintenance#Partial_upgrades_are_unsupported
• The Arch Wiki is your best friend. You can also use it offline, take a look at wikiman: https://github.com/filiparag/wikiman
• It doesn't hurt to have the LTS kernel installed as a backup option (assuming you use the standard kernel as your chosen default) in case you update to a newer kernel version and a driver here or there breaks. It's happened to me on Arch a few times. One of them completely borked my internet connection, the other one would freeze any game I played via WINE/Proton because I didn't have resize BAR enabled in the BIOS. Sometimes switching to the LTS kernel can get around these temporary hiccups, at least until the maintainers fix those issues in the next kernel version.
• The AUR is not vetted as much as the main package repositories, as it's mostly community-made packages. Don't install AUR packages you don't 100% trust. Always check the PKGBUILD if you're paranoid.

Start from the install guide on the wiki. It'll branch out fast and just follow all the links and read. If something goes wrong, check if you missed something on the wiki. It's an amazing resource.

Also, look up your hardware on the wiki before you start.

Print out the install guide on paper and have it with you while you go. If you fuck up networking, you'll have the directions there to get it back.

Install slackware instead! But if you must, yay.

For starts, read the wiki. Specifically, read the installation guide at least twice to get a feel for how it works and what the Arch vibe is like. This is also your chance to figure out just what you want to do. Do you want to use GRUB or UEFI? Which sounds like a better fit? What filesystem? What do you want to run? mdadm or not? A little bit of planning and reading is better than reinstalling half a dozen times (ask me how I know...)

Must-have applications? Screen or tmux. SSH. Whatever shell you're comfortable with (bash is how I roll, but you might be a fan of fish).

be patient. read thoroughly. be open to a learning experience

I wish I knew then that debbie does the trick for me

Make backups of your important files, or use a separate home partition. When I used arch, more than once I had a bricked install after doing updates. The last straw for me was when after updating my network completely went out. I switched to fedora and haven't had issues for 2+ years. Also, (this goes for every distro, but more so arch than others) NEVER update if you don't have at least some time in front of you in case something happens. Arch was definitely a good learning experience and it was fun at first tweaking everything, but the drawbacks in stability got a bit old after a while. The AUR is a godsend and it's the best thing ever, you should also be using an AUR helper like Yay to make your life easier.

The archinstaller script is pretty good if you're just needing a basic setup. Ive been really happy with a btrfs partion from the recommended disk layout, then using btrfs snapshots + grub bootloader to load from snapshots. You can also create a hook on pacman so that you create a snapshot when you upgrade packages.

Since you didn't mention your experience, id recommend looking at the various desktop environments so you know which one to pick during install. You can ofc change later.

And read the arch docs. They are very good and have a lot of time invested into them. If you find you don't have the patience to read them then you're probably going to want to look at a different OS. Good luck!