voodoo47 on 14/6/2024 at 20:17
so I've got a fairly simple task at hand, but as always, no matter how much I want to like linux, it just doesn't want to like me back.
anyway, this is a 32bit machine, so Xubuntu 18.04, the repositories are still up so you can get it up to date (as much as possible). and I also need the Chromium browser here, its hw acceleration feature makes internet browsing an acceptable experience. and that's it, this is all that's needed - easy, right?
well, no. the latest official Chromium version you can get from the software center for Xubuntu 18.04 (
https://support.google.com/chrome/thread/67845533?hl=en) is busted - you guessed it, hw acceleration doesn't work.
so I have to install it manually, either downgrading it just a little bit, or upgrading it, if this is even possible (I'm guessing newer Chromium builds may not be compatible with 32bit Xubuntu 18.04).
quick google search suggests this should be possible - so, any experience with this, anyone? thanks.
heywood on 15/6/2024 at 15:42
I have no answer for you, sorry. But I'm curious what hardware you're running on. A 20 year old PC?
voodoo47 on 15/6/2024 at 19:51
a tiny intel atom pc. the fun part is that should this turn out not solvable, it actually can run win10 32bit where there is no problem with the browser. windows may be slow, bloated, full of ads and other junk (and not free, but hey, five dollar licenses from aliexpress), but in the end, it does the job in three mouseclicks. and that's why it wins 99% of times (or whatever its current desktop os market share is), as much as I don't like to admit it. linux may be lightweight, sleek, free and whatever but all is for naught if it cannot do the one thing that needs to work on this computer.
also the fact that one completely busted build of Chromium is stuck in the software center as the official release for a couple of years now tells me they don't actually give a damn. not about the last 32bit build, anyway. which is kind of odd, because hey, here's a niche you could dominate - no, I'm thinking they are under the impression people are going to install linux on their gaming rigs. yeah, not happening guys, sorry.
WEI on 16/6/2024 at 12:29
No clue here, but I'd humbly suggest to at least try another distro if your patience runs thin.
Ubuntu is kind of mess tbh, at least that has always been my experience with it, be it Ubuntu proper or anything Ubuntu based, especially on old rigs, it's how I began my journey on Linux and gave up each time I tried, and since then there has been countless issues with weird canonical and package maintainers decisions.
If your rig can somehow run windows 10 I don't see why it could not run another distro (I would not presume to suggest one for you though).
I wish I had something less extreme to suggest, but it might still solve your problem since it seems to be an Ubuntu issue.
voodoo47 on 16/6/2024 at 13:00
I'm open to suggestions, but it seems like 32bit support has been killed off almost completely, no matter the distro.
WEI on 16/6/2024 at 13:37
Damn, seems you're right, it's more widespred than I first thought.
For all I know OpenSuse and Debian still support 32bit, since Ubuntu is based on Debian you might still face the same issue though (unless chromium is taken care of by a different maintainer). None of the two would be my first choice, they are not bad but they have their quircks and depending on your experience with linux I can't tell if it'll be a blast or a curse for you to use.
Yet with luck you could try them live without installing them and see if all that you need works well and is easy to get :)
(damn I just thought of that but have you tried installing a flatpak version of chromium ? Might be an easier fix no matter the distro (
https://flathub.org/apps/org.chromium.Chromium))
voodoo47 on 16/6/2024 at 16:03
just probing the waters currently, right now I'm trying to find out whether the Chromium downgrade is (still) possible, as that would be the fastest/preferred solution.
the last resort indeed seems to be to switch to Debian which still supports 32bit, but not really wanting to dip into that if there's another option. already posted this on the ubuntu forums, so hopefully I'll know soon.
WEI on 16/6/2024 at 17:21
well good luck then ;)
Linux can be a bliss when you are spared this kind of headache inducing oddities, so I hope you find an easy fix.
voodoo47 on 16/6/2024 at 17:38
that pretty much sums up my linux experience - very nice when it just works, but if it does not, well, heavens help you because nobody else will.
voodoo47 on 16/6/2024 at 19:28
turned out to be incredibly easy - got the latest 18.04 32bit Chromium build from (
https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/bionic/i386/chromium-browser) here, rightclicked to install via sw center (few complains about some fw not being available but it continued), everything completed ok and the browser works with acceleration enabled. adblock plus is not compatible anymore (probably abandoned 32bit support) but no matter, just installed the second most downloaded ad blocker (adblock ultimate) and looks like all is set and good to go.
there really is a first time for everything, huh.
