original image: https://www.reddit.com/r/ChainsawMan/comments/16deb7d/i_drew_angel_devil_one_of_my_fav_characters/#lightbox
So my Windows errors rage has brought me to unexpected tech enlightenment. Now my main operating system is NixOS with CachyOS kernel, and it’s totally nuts, I’m on my PEAK, the APEX of computer experience!
Here’s my notes and ideas how I want to use computer for the next decade.
On 28 August 2025, my monitor died on Windows. I didn’t know what caused it, I tried troubleshooting the drivers over and over but it still failed. But when I switched to Linux, the monitor worked smoothly. That induced wrath, I diligently checked my system’s wellbeing with care, but it still stabbed me from the front and back. I feel like I was betrayed by old friend.
In August, I was already dual-booting Windows and CachyOS. CachyOS is pretty, just like a Linux Mint experience on steroids with Arch on the backend, blazingly fast, the pinnacle of default performance you can get right now. I loved using it, and slowly I made configurations to behave like my Windows system.
Once my Windows monitor broke, I went back to CachyOS and decided to make my workflow smooth. As I GPU poor AMD 6700 XT, still, there should be open-source AI that can run locally, whether it’s large or small language, image, audio, and vision models. I had to set up the latest AMD ROCm to push my GPU more efficiently. I had to set up my Python virtual environment to run it, install a bunch of AI and creative software.
And guess what, CachyOS broke. Since it’s based on Arch, I couldn’t roll back or whatever, all I could do was reinstall or make a backup with disk backup tools like Clonezilla or Btrs snapshot. Like crap, even AUR helpers like yay and paru couldn’t make it work; I had to be the maintainer all the time. My experience with the computer was at the highest level of cortisol and stress.
And next, I chose the YOLO route: pivot to NixOS. Before that, I’d tried declarative approaches like NixOS and Guix back in March, and then I was thinking “Wow, cool concept, but I don’t want to waste my time to configmaxx.” but now I’m remodeling my approach and philosophies.
So I have triple boot on my system: Windows, CachyOS, and NixOS. When I was installing, I felt like I was pointing a gun at myself, partitioning a triple OS without backup with my important life data. I was on Russian roulette. Then formatted the Windows EFI boot partition, like blocking an ex. I definitely feel something.
Luckily it done without crash, hufts…
When I tried NixOS this time, I had to make it work without breaks. if it breaks, I just roll them back. So in order to do that, I use KDE to make it as Windows-like as possible, made a configuration shortcut from /etc/nixos/ to my desktop home directory, then used LLM to vibe together. Since now open-source GLM from Z AI has cracked the function call benchmark.
I just learned the fundamentals of NixOS, how the functional language Nix works, Nix Flake, Home Manager. I need setup with speed and flow in mind. I’m asking the clanker for “Make config to install this and that packages, make this behave like this,” and oh bois, it works. If there’s an error, I can just roll back and roll back.
Audio works, drivers work, tablet works, smooth af, even it can run local models with my AMD. Since it’s Linux, I can move Python Virtual Environment wherever I want and sudo mount —bind with the same direction as before, without reinstalling the dependencies. A bunch of AI models run on my system without worries about breaking my machine.
Slap packages declaratively, even if it’s Flatpak, if I want to experiment, just use nix-shell command and do it imperatively like other bunch distro but without anxiety. I feel like I’m not configuring, it just works as I intended.
Am I just doing the very definition of ‘vibe computering?’
I can run Windows programs with Wine or sandbox with Bottles or just virtualize it, so what’s the point of going back to Windows? Windows now settles on my computer as test and backup grounds.
And cherry on top, I slapped my NixOS with the CachyOS kernel, since someone has already built it on Chaotic-Nyx repositories, and it becomes NixOS on turbo mode (I call that Nixcachy lol).
Now, I just make it as my main operating system. I’m not some technical expert, I just like to create, tinker, and experimenting. It wins my very soul.
In the scope of Personal Computer: it’s your personal data, your very sacred place. My philosophies are based on stability, sustainability, security, privacy.
Now it comes to ideas:
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Immutable OS + local model capabilities is changing the paradigm of personal computer.
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The future of operating systems is within the declarative approach.
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Today the only choices: NixOS and Guix.
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I like Guix, but the ecosystem is still slow and not as broad and usable as NixOS, but Guix still fun to tinker and play with.
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Right now, NixOS is not only the best operating system for dev or server: it becomes the best personal computing OS.
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Not only that, it becomes the best for creative work as well. It can run things like Blender, Krita, ComfyUI, and run Windows programs on top containers.
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And with the CachyOS kernel, it becomes fast for gaming too.
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Who said NixOS has a steep learning curve?
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NixOS becomes the easiest operating system when you work with LLM and give it context on your machine, even to the deep kernel level.
2025-11-25Nope it’s still hard.
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Nowadays with open-source LLM, you can skip that and just straight up use it.
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Someone already building NixOS-MCP and NixAI.
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Imagine using it with a local model to become your Jarvis: you use computer with your clanker at system level, if it behaves silly, just yes, roll back them out.
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If you don’t understand, just ask your beloved clanker. All on your sacred personal computer.
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You better connect it on git, so it become safer and easier to maintain.
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Just don’t waste your time configuring.
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Don’t fall into the rabbit hole like as second brain or whatever.
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Just make it work. Slap and rebuild, slap and rebuild.
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Improvements on your system can incrementally happen over time.
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What you put in the actual works is the only thing that matters.
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There are no perfect systems, but there are good philosophies that encourage incremental improvements.
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Sustainable improvement can only happen in an immutable system.
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For further concept: ‘File over App’ philosophies like what Obsidian has to offer, you can put it within those systems. Creating the holy-grail-like personal experience.
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Still, automate backing up your configuration and backing up your data before big experiments is the safest bet.
My OS journey was like: Windows 2000 → Windows XP → Windows Vista → Ubuntu → Windows 7 → Linux Mint → Windows 10 → Debian → (Many Linux Distro) → NixOS. So yeah, I’d shift into new paradigm for the long term good.
What a five days. Thank you Windows for injecting rage into my veins.