Issues using Linux? - Week 3 of Using Linux

 

Week 3

  Welcome to the third episode of "My Linux Experience 2026" series. Today I will be telling you how this week went with the CachyOS Linux distribution, and then I will be showing you how to actually create a bootable USB to install CachyOS, for those who have been inspired to use it. Let's dive right in. 

  This week I have mostly been working on documents on my PC and on the internet for research. I haven't had any problems at all using Firefox. However, towards the end of the week, I was trying to configure the default mailing service app called KMail, and to be honest, I had a lot of trouble setting up IMAP for my gmail account, and at the end I didn't manage to resolve the issue (I gave up...). I ended up going with Thunderbird, which is from Mozilla, the developers of Firefox (the names have the same structure). It is working great, and I strongly recommend it to people who love free, open-source alternatives. So far I have only connected my Google account to it, but I would like to see how it turns out for my Proton Mail account as well (the Proton Mail app is actually available on Linux though).

  On the gaming side of things however, I am trying to resolve a small but non negligible issue with micro stutters. For those who don't know, micro stutters are short, irregular frame rate dips that most often occur when the rate of new frames doesn't exactly match up to the monitor's refresh rate (Source: PC Gamer). I have been having these micro stutters when playing Elden Ring, which is notably known for having this sort of issue even with premium hardware. I am looking for a solution, and it probably won't last long until I can fix it. As always, I will keep you guys updated. Speaking of keeping you guys updated, I haven't yet purchased the DisplayPort cable for the full use of my monitor's refresh rate. I mention this in last week's episode, which you can read here.

  How to create a CachyOS USB:

Equipment Preparation List

  • A working computer (can be laptop or desktop, Windows, MacOS, Linux, or even Raspberry Pi¸ with some workarounds) with no restrictions
  • A USB with a minimum of 8GB capacity (note that the USB will be wiped during the process, so it is recommended to move your important files to another disk)
  • An internet connection 
  • The target computer (can be the same one as point 1 if you are planning of switching the operating system) 
Note that your system will need the following specs in order for CachyOS to run: 
    • 3GB of RAM - 8GB is recommended
    • 30GB of storage (Solid State Drive or Hard Disk Drive) - 50GB is recommended
  1. For Windows/MacOS, go to https://etcher.balena.io/ and click "Download Etcher".
  2. The page will automatically scroll down, and you will be presented with several options. Click "download" beside the option that you represents your operating system.
  3. Open the .dmg file that has been downloaded, and Balena Etcher should be installed after a few straight-forward steps.
  4.  Open https://cachyos.org/ in your web browser and click the big, blue "Download" button.
  5.  You will be redirected onto a sub-page, where you simply have to select "Download Desktop Edition", and then easily click "Direct".
  6.  A .iso file will be downloaded onto your disk, and all you have to do is open Balena Etcher, which you previously installed, press "Select image" and select the .iso file (in my case it is called cachyos-desktop-linux-260124.iso, but it will be different for you if you are reading this post a few months after it was published).
  7. Plug in your USB drive into your working system and when it detects it, click "Select drive" in the Balena Etcher user interface. Choose your plugged in USB, and then press "Flash!" at the right of "Select Drive".
  8. Balena Etcher will begin "writing" the CachyOS ISO onto your USB drive, reformatting and wiping it in the process.
  9. When the process is complete, safely eject and unplug the USB drive from your system and plug it into the target computer. Open the BIOS of that computer, which is usually accessed by restarting and continuously spam pressing the Del/Backspace key.
  10. Inside the BIOS, select your USB drive from the options and choose it as your boot option.
  11. Restart your computer and you should enter your very own CachyOS install! While the setup isn't fully complete yet, you can still explore the system and the internet. 

This is the third episode of my Linux Experience 2026 blog series. Every week, I upload a post talking about my experience using this unique operating system! Sign-up with your email to receive a notification when a new blog releases, it's free! 

My PC Specifications:

  • AMD Ryzen 7 9800x3D

  • AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT

  • 32 GB DDR5 6000Mhz CL30 RAM

  • 2 TB NVMe 5.0 SSD 

 Other Components:

  • 27'' 2560x1440 320Hz 1ms Monitor

  • B850-Plus Motherboard (WiFi 7)

  • 850W Power Supply

  • Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE ARGB

  • 5x Artic P12 Case Fans

  • Phanteks XT Pro   

 

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