Ceci est une ancienne révision du document !
I’m not a fan of Chromebooks or ChromeOS, in general, and haven’t been since they first came out in 2012. What initially seemed like a good idea was greatly hampered by miserly specs (low RAM count, puny, dim screens, slow processors), goofy peripheral acceptance (fat chance your printer worked), and Google’s insistence that nearly everything, including apps, be internet based (cloud first, as some call it).
I figured they’d go the way of netbooks, but I was wrong. Guess there are some users that want a cheap laptop alternative.
Google added Android apps in 2016, but location oriented apps wouldn’t work because Chromebooks lacked GPS or other location services.
Not to mention Android apps are made for phone and tablets, not computer screens, although a resize function was later added to alleviate that issue to some degree.
Late last year, I discovered that Google added Linux apps to ChromeOS as far back as 2019.
Why the delay? Why didn’t I know this earlier?
Google is mum on the topic. Go to their website (https://www.google.com/chromebook/apps/) and you’ll see ads galore for Chromebooks along with the Android app pitch, but not a peep about Linux. Even Microsoft apps are mentioned, but nothing dedicated to Linux – odd given that ChromeOS is basically Linux geared to Google-preferred apps.
If I hadn’t been skimming a Linux magazine, I might never have found out.
Looking for a beater Chromebook to test, I came upon a discounted Asus for $120 (original retail, $299). New in box, never opened. Can’t buy a used Windows or Mac in decent shape for that price.
Past experiences made me hesitant, but this Chromebook was radically different from earlier models – 17.3 inch screen, 4GB RAM, 128GB eMMC, and a full size keyboard with numeric keypad. At 5.5 pounds (without the charger), this is no backpack buddy.
Unfortunately, some things never change – screen caps out at 200 nits (my tablet has 500), processor of choice is Celeron, RAM and eMMC are not upgradeable, and ChromeOS is still largely online based.
Before starting my experiment, I had to make sure this behemoth could run ChromeOS let alone anything else.
As I figured, no speed demon awards in the making. Google Workspaces is still a sometimes-it-works, sometimes-it-doesn’t mystery, and opening the Gmail app does nothing more than summon a web page.
Give it points for quick boots, though – often less than 10 seconds.
Back to the main topic – is it true that ChromeOS can handle Linux apps?
If the unit was manufactured after 2019, and doesn’t fall into the categories of educational or limited corporate models, you should be okay.
Only true way to find out is to fire one up, go to Settings, Advanced, and then Developers. Search for Linux development environment and then check the box.
You’ll see a note that the Linux environment is still in beta after 5 years. Really?
If I had to venture a wild guess, I’d say there’s no commission in free apps.
At this point, ChromeOS will pick a GB number to sacrifice off the hard drive for this environment. Standard is 10GB for my 128GB drive, models with just 32 or 64GB drives will see that number dip sharply. You can go higher or lower if you choose.
After a couple minutes grinding away, the Linux environment has been created.
Now the fun begins. Do you see a listing of apps? Is there a Linux software store? Does it give you any instructions?
No, nope, sorry.
Instead, you have your choice(s):
• Open the terminal and practice your best sudo apt install technique for each app you desire. Curiously, for all the Google security features touted in the Chromebook, it never once asked me for my password when using elevated privileges.
I installed Thunderbird, GIMP, LibreOffice, Inkscape, Firefox, FreeCAD and Dia, plus a boatload of games just for kicks. Quite a bit of keyboarding involved.
• Download deb files, and double-click to open and install. Chromebooks can handle deb files now.
Used this technique to install the Microsoft Edge browser. Yep, our friends at MS even have a Linux version. I chose this one just to see if Google would play fair and allow me to install it. They did.
• Download AppImages, and then right-click the file to allow for execution as an app. Worth noting, you’ll have to move these from the download area to files – no desktop icons allowed in ChromeOS.
ONLYOFFICE got this treatment. No arguments in allowing it to operate as an executable app.
• Several websites I visited even recommended installing Gnome Software Center and/or Flatpak, but those two come with a bit of drama – more on that later.
Should you forget what apps you installed, ChromeOS creates a new folder labeled Linux with everything conveniently parked there (with the exception of ONLYOFFICE which got its own listing – I would venture a guess and say ChromeOS doesn’t see AppImages as Linux).
Now on to the Gnome Software Center and Flatpak fiasco.
Flatpak installed and I was able to access potential apps at flathub.org, but everything I downloaded just disappeared. Somewhere in cyberspace my files are floating around awaiting a new home. Adopt one if you like.
Gnome Software Center was also a mess. Installation went smoothly but ChromeOS safety features keep it from loading in anything less than 50 seconds and once it did, clicking on an app to install created yet another backlog.
Worse yet, even though the software center has an entry for Flatpak apps, clicking on it resulted in a jam – like traffic going to a Taylor Swift concert.
Research showed these are common problems but there doesn’t seem to be an easy workaround. I eventually uninstalled the software center. It was just too slow.
Gave up all hope on Flatpak, too. I must have spent an hour or so adding extra terminal commands in a vain attempt to make it work.
My educated guess would be that ChromeOS saw Flatpak and the Software Center as unwelcome and busy intruders, and did its level best to shut them down.
Why? ChromeOS sandboxes every app so that if something goes awry, the whole system isn’t corrupted. While this is a great security feature, it appears preference is given to apps approved by Google. Everything else is suspect.
So, it was terminal apps, deb files or AppImages for me.
Did my successfully installed apps work?
Yes, but never with the operation you might expect from a Linux-only machine.
Less “busy” apps worked just fine. Thunderbird hummed right along, and so did LibreOffice Writer.
However, I made the mistake of attempting to open too many apps at one time.
In one instance, I had GIMP and Thunderbird working, and made the mistake of firing up LibreOffice Impress. Impress just locked up and took the rest with it. Mind you, I hadn’t done anything yet, I just had them open.
The poor power button got a workout because that’s the only way to do a forced reset here.
And it’s plain to see why, if you sit back and look at the system. A serious lack of RAM, mediocre processor, and a security-conscious OS, conspired to slow down “busy” apps.
And if you want a textbook definition of lethargic, fire up the Edge browser and set the main page to show news, weather, emails, cutesy videos, and whatever else it can dream up. If you haven’t seen this hodgepodge, there must be a couple dozen or more live-action news and video feeds cranking away at the same time.
Power button to the rescue, again.
Just to make sure, I did a RAM check with nothing but the OS active. Half of the 4GB RAM was occupied just keeping the machine running and, for unknown reasons, available RAM would dip down to around 1GB.
In short, you should have at least 8GB RAM to effectively run a Chromebook with Linux apps. Unfortunately, RAM is soldered on many Chromebooks, so you’re left with what you get.
Sensing I may have overplayed my hand, I did a powerwash (Google’s term for “factory reset”), and opted to eschew the known troublemakers. Ignoring the Gnome Software Center, Flatpak and Edge browser showed slightly better results but nothing to cheer about.
Would I recommend one of these cheap Chromebooks as a Linux box replacement?
Only if you can get one at a serious discount, and can live with the potential frustrations. Many are being deeply discounted to make way for the new Chromebook Plus series.
And just what is a Chromebook Plus, you ask? These models sport better Intel (i3 at the least) or AMD (Ryzen 3 or above) processors, 8GB RAM minimum, full HD graphics (1080p), and a 1080p webcam (double the previous rating). Drive capacities also increase to a minimum of 128GB, but I have yet to see one that goes above that.
Same old dim screens though, often capping out below 300 nits.
Along with the increased power under the hood, pricing also goes up to a starting price around $400 and peaking somewhere around $750.
Ouch, that’s baseline Windows laptop turf.
Even more bizarre are the various entries online that recommend ChromeOS wannabes invest in a used Windows laptop and install ChromeOS Flex, a version for computers not manufactured as Chromebooks (but you lose the Android or Linux capabilities).
As for me, I now have a digital sticky-note on my Linux laptop that states, “No More Chromebooks!”, and my $120 special has found a new home with a retiree who checks emails and watches cat videos, but nothing much else.