tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26190943730503983242024-03-12T22:27:57.190-07:00DIY UbuntuThis is my way of contributing to the Ubuntu Community, and to show that Ubuntu and Linux in general are not as complicated as some may think.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-54717152932794556882009-11-09T23:23:00.000-08:002009-11-09T23:50:39.672-08:00Ubuntu 9.10Well, its been a while, hasn't it? Since I last talked on here, Ubuntu 9.10 has been released. As some of you may know, there were some problems early on with 9.04 that sort of turned me off to Ubuntu. I've been running OS X on my Aspire one, and Puppy Linux 4.1.2 on my Gateway Solo. My desktop has always had Ubuntu on it, but it's become my shop computer, just being used for listening to music and looking at radio schematics.<br /><br />I hate to say it, but I was almost to the point of putting OS X on my desktop. :O<br /><br />But, since 9.10 came out, Ubuntu is back in my heart for good. One of my main problems with 9.04 was that the Pidgin developers caused issues with Pidgin, so that after updates, it no longer worked.<br /><br />9.10 has Empathy, which so far is beating Pidgin, hands down. I had a couple other issues that couldn't be resolved without compiling my own kernel, so they were left alone and lived with.<br /><br />A couple days ago, I decided to give 9.10 a try on my desktop. 9.04 had gotten so buggy that it was almost unusable. I barely was able to save everything before it went down for good.<br /><br />I'll just be honest about the initial boot of the LiveCD. I was completely amazed! I've never really been more that ok with any Linux Distro, let alone Ubuntu in stock for, but Canonical has outdone themselves. The look and feel of Ubuntu 9.10 is great! No more orange everything. Brown looks better, but as I always do, I'll be changing that soon on both my desktop and Aspire one.<br /><br />So far, all I've done on either is install Skype. On the desktop, Compaq AMD Athlon 64, the install went without a hitch, but on the Aspire One, had to manually install libqt4-core package. No big deal though.<br /><br />Well, that's all for now. Soon as I figure out some neat things to do with Ubuntu, I'll be sure to keep all of you updated.<br /><br />See you soon!Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-9090269868949664312009-08-06T11:10:00.000-07:002009-08-06T11:24:34.323-07:00RaLink RT2500This thing is a POS. It's supposed to work out of the box, but it's yet to do much of anything for me in my Compaq Presario desktop. I'm going to try compiling the driver myself, but I doubt it will help much. In my HP Pavillion desktop it worked fine in the same spot, but I had Ubuntu 9.04 on it, which may be the difference. Who knows. I'll figure it out though. Just felt like ranting before the fiance got home.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-15539483307809360882009-08-05T17:22:00.000-07:002009-08-05T17:42:56.473-07:00Closed minded peopleWhy is it most Windows users act like they have their head stuck up their ass? A now ex-friend, had her head so far up there, she could smell dinner from 3 nights ago. I showed her an article about how Microsoft is admitting Linux is becoming a threat. Her response was "I'm not afraid of Linux. Why would anyone want Linux anyway? It doesn't ever work, and you need to be a tech geek to keep it working. I like being able to just get on my computer and it work without having to work for it."<br /> She's obviously someone who has never touched Linux, and seems to think she can have an opinion about how bad it is. First of all, how is it even possible to have an opinion about something you know nothing about? That would be like me saying writing a program in C+ is hard. I've never tried, so I <span style="font-style: italic;">know</span> I can't say anything.<br /> Obviously Linux (Canonical and Redhat, to be specific) are becoming a threat to Microsoft. I may not be fond of Microsoft's practices, but I seriously don't think they would file a claim stating that, if they really didn't believe it to be so. To me, that's good and bad at the same time, but I'm not going to get into that right now. That's for another day.<br /> Well, I'm done. I'm going to end this before I put her name and IM name on here for everyone to see. If someone wants it, feel free to message me, though. :DAndy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-28229059092883055662009-08-04T19:41:00.000-07:002009-08-04T20:38:28.249-07:00 I don't really have much to say about Ubuntu today. I've been catching up with my Linux news all day, and there is a lot on my mind. I've seen a lot of Windows or Mac people talking trash about Linux. Also, Linux people talking trash right back. Notice I didn't group these "people" with their respective communities. <div> Let's start with the Windows people. I read on one site, someone (with 20+ years experience with a computer) saying with Windows it's click install, and go, but when they used Linux, it took hours to install a basic program. Because of that, Linux is a "geek toy". Ok, I have to somewhat agree there. Linux can be a geek toy. But for most it isn't. My fiance, who was an avid Windows user, and after installing Linux Mint on her laptop, she caught on rather fast. And she never really asked questions much different than she would using Windows. But why does the Linux community knowing it isn't that hard to do that, have to flame the fire? Just let it go.</div><div> If someone who is determined to use Windows, and Windows only, tries to say something about Linux, ignore them people. I've seen the same thing a thousand times in forums too. A person new to Linux joins, has a decent question about running a Windows program in Linux, but the community says there's a Linux program that does the same thing. The newbie is determined to run the Windows app., and people start to flame them.</div><div> How does this look for the community? I know of several people that have seen threads like that and thought the Linux community was like that if you weren't a Linux geek. I do mean that in a good way, BTW. I was one of those few in the beginning. When Vista crashed, I tried Ubuntu, but my Atheros wireless card wasn't supported then. I asked for help on the Ubuntu Forums, and got no help, was flamed for not understanding every word I was told. If I had the money at the time, I probably would have gone back to Vista. </div><div> But that's one of the many things that give Linux a bad vibe. I seriously believe that there would be more people using linux if it weren't for the bad things.</div>Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-73974082633313884862009-08-01T21:30:00.000-07:002009-08-01T23:44:40.865-07:00OSx86 & Ubuntu 8.10 on the Aspire OneWell, I finally did it. I'm running OSx86 and Ubuntu together on my Aspire One. It was actually rather hard, to be honest. There aren't any tutorials that really tell you much other than the software needed and to install the 2 systems. Anyway, it's much simpler than it sounds. Check out the Venera 7 tutorial for the software needed. Google "osx on aspire one" to find it.<br /><br />I used the Kalyway 10.5.2 disc to do all this. Start by booting your disc, and select english, the go to the Disk Utility. You'll need to partition your HD with 2 partitions. 1 in Mac OS extended Journaled, and don't use the other. Reboot, remove the disc, and insert your Ubuntu disc.<br /><br />Do your ubuntu install on the partition you left alone in the OSx86 installer. Do a 1GB Swap partition, and do the rest in EXT 3 and set it for "/". Let it do it's thing and then log into Ubuntu so we can get ready for OSx86. Once you are logged in, get the PC EFI you downloaded to your home directory. Open up Terminal and get ready to enter this:<br /><br /><pre>$ sudo mkdir /boot/pc_efi<br />$ sudo cp ~/boot_v8 /boot/pc_efi<br /></pre><br />Ok. Now, press Alt+F2. Enter "gksudo nautilus". This let's you browse your computer as a super user. Go to System>Boot and put the "boot_v5" file there, and clost the window before anything gets messed with.<br /><br />Next, open up a Terminal again. Enter "sudo gedit <code>/etc/grub/menu.lst". Enter this at the bottom of the file:<br /><br /></code><pre>title Mac OS X<br />root (hd0,1)<br />kernel /boot/pc_efi/boot_v8<br /></pre>Save it, and your done. Shut down, boot up the Kalyway disc, and go through the steps till you can click "Customize". <ul><li>Completely uncheck ‘Language Translations’.</li><li>Expand ‘Kernels’ and select ONLY ‘kernel_9.2speedstep’.</li><li>Expand ‘Graphics_Drivers’, expand ‘Intel_GMA’ and select ONLY ‘GMA950′.</li><li>Completely uncheck ‘Audio_Drivers’.</li><li>Expand ‘Networks_Drivers’. and select ONLY ‘RTL1000′.</li><li>Completely uncheck ‘Mobo_Chipsets’.</li><li>completely uncheck ‘Patches’.</li></ul>You can select some of the Thirds Apps. Get Adium, and Transmission at a minimum.<br /><br />Now click install, and skip the disc check so things will do faster. Now go grab a smoke, and find something to do for a while.<br /><br />Now that is finished, we get to have some fun. Open up a Terminal and enter this:<br /><br /><code>sudo vi /Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/com.apple.Boot.plist</code><br /><br />It'll show the file, press "i" to edit it, and under kernel flags, enter cpus=1 between the ><. Press Esc, and then hold Shift and then press "Z Z". That's done. Now run the Kalyway 10.5.3 combo update. DO NOT restart after it finishes. open the other installer you got with it and run it. Select the vanilla kernel, and install it. Now restart When you reboot, press escape to see the grub menu. Select Mac OS X and after that, let it go through that menu, then press F8 when you can. Type "update -v" and hit enter. It will reboot, and do thqt aagain. Once your back in OSX, Google Mac 10.5.4 and 10.5.5 updates. ONLY get them from the Apple site! the combo updates will brick your system! For the other 2 updates, before you run them in Terminal enter : <pre>$ sudo su -<br />$ while sleep 1 ; do rm -rf /System/Library/Extensions/AppleIntelCPUPowerManagement.kext ; done<br /></pre>leave that in the terminal while doing the updates each time. Press Ctrl+C to exit it to be able to reboot. Do that for both. After you do that, just follow any of the tuts for OSX on the Aspire One. BTW, there is a kext for the left SD card slot. Just Google it. Hopefully that will help out since every other tut I tried kept bricking OSX. If you have a question, message me at my new e-mail: andy@thevintageattic.net . Good Luck !Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-72317883106590447412009-07-14T11:07:00.000-07:002009-07-14T11:37:27.595-07:00I've got to rant a little...Well I've finally gotten around to catching up with my Linux news, and I'm not liking what I've been reading. Several things have gotten to me. There was an article on Linux Insider.com about a guy attempting to explain why Linux sucks. While some points are well done, some of them have no basis to a real Linux user. The one point I completely agree with though, is that Linux as a whole needs to be simplified. I'll probably get hate mail from Windows people for this, but Windows and OSX people ARE a bit less intelligent than a typical Linux user. I don't mean this in a derogatory way, but in a constructive way. Windows and OSX users<br />have been given dumbed down operating systems, so they don't have much, if any, advanced computer skills. Linux users need these skills to run their OS of choice. I'm not saying that cammand line use is completely necessary, but on occassion it is needed.<br /> Now, I've been using Ubuntu and various other Linux distros for around 3 years now exclusively. Before that, I used Windows 95, 98, Win2K, XP, Vista, and I learned computers back in the early days of Apple. Recently, I decided to try NOT using Terminal in Ubuntu and Console in Puppy. So far, I've been going about 2 months with out needing to type commands. I haven't even had the need to figure out how to do something with the GUI I would normally do in Terminal or Console. So when are these fanbois going to get a life and actually complain about something that is actually a problem in Linux?<br /> One thing I have a problem with is Wine. While it is a Godsend for those who use certain Windows apps, it need major work in my opinion. From my experience with it, there are still a lot of apps that just don't work with it. I like World of Warcraft, but without a decent amount of work, I can't play it in Ubuntu. I know it's possible, so don't start ranting yet.<br /> Next, software manufacturers need to get out of the grip of Microsoft and start porting software to Linux. If they could port to the major Linux distros, it could be made to work for nearly all of them. I have several friends that would be totally willing to switch away from Windows if they could get better software.<br /> Another issue I read in the previously mentioned article was noobs don't want to do kernel updates. Are you freaking kidding me? I know with Ubuntu, updates are constant, and can get annoying sometimes, but kernel updates are in there. So where is the issue of kernel updates? I'm not really seeing it. Something else is the need of simplicity. Honestly, Linux is more simple that Windows and especially OSX. If you have a problem with something in a Linux distro, look in their forum. If not there, there's probably a Linux blog explaining how to fix it. With Windows....ugh. If you Google the problem, you normaly get something like 20 million links to look at. Usually, the forums have stuck up IT guys in them, so not much help there. OSX is something I'm not going to go into, because after trying it, and feeling like I had no control over anything hapening. Plus, the last time I used it was a couple years ago.<br /> So when are Linux haters going to make true accusations instead of making up lies? I admit Linux may not be the better OS, but if you don't like it, go buy Windows. Noone is stopping you. But keep in mind, Windows has major downfalls too. I'm not going to go into them today. Maybe tomorrow.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-40875051147201605872009-06-16T12:10:00.000-07:002009-06-16T12:16:37.203-07:00GIMPAh, GIMP. How can one do any photo editing without it? Well, in my opinion it needs work. And a lot. I have heard that it is equal to or nearly equal to Photoshop, but the few times I've used Photoshop, it seemed much easier to use. I am trying to get a flyer made for my wood refinishing business so I can hopefully get some work. So far, I've used a picture I cropped of a sheet of veneer for the background, added my text, and left space for a picture of my work. I'm trying to make the background of an RCA Victor radio be transparent. It is far from easy. The closest I've gotten to doing that was a small border that was transparent. I don't know what I'm doing wrong, but I just can't seem to figure it out even with all the tutorials floating around the web. Well, I better get back to work on it. Wish me luck.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-75595348347136583592009-06-15T08:32:00.000-07:002009-06-15T09:22:15.096-07:009.04<p>After writing about Windows, you know I'm going to write about Ubuntu. Well, I'm back to using Ubuntu 9.04 even though it does have some shortcomings. Well, as of right now, on my One, I am using Vista, 7, and Ubuntu 9.04. Vista for my Xbox connection, 7 because it's neat, and Ubuntu for nearly everything. I was browsing the web last night, and figured out some neat and interesting things for Ubuntu. </p><p>First of all, Guake.This is a great little app for Terminal access. Once it's up and running, instead of going to Applications/Accessories/Terminal to do command line work, just press F12. It slides down from the top of the screen, and your off and running. Just like the standard Terminal program, you can have multiple tabs, and all the commands work.</p><p>Next up is Espeak. I don't know of much real use for it, but it is a neat program. In terminal type: <span><span>espeak: Hello. Ubuntu is a great operating system.</span></span> If it is installed (preinstalled in 9.04), and your speakers are turned up, it should speak it to you. If not, enter sudo apt-get install espeak, then try again. Like I said, not much real use that I can see, but neat anyway. </p><p>Emacs. There have been articles written about it before so I won't go into much detail. Basically, it's a text editor with extras. To get it, type in Terminal or Guake: sudo apt-get install emacs. It can be used like gedit, or any other text editor, but it can do more. One neat thing is the sudo therapist. Once you start emacs, press escape, and type xdoctor, and press enter. In comes the doctor. The "doctors" answers and questions can be very generic, but interesting indeed.</p><p>I decided earlier to make a list of useful command line commands for everyone. </p><p>sudo <em>command</em> run <em>command </em>as root</p><p>lsb_release -a get Ubuntu version</p><p>uname -r get kernel version</p><p>uname -a get all kernel information</p><p>apt-get update refresh all update information</p><p>apt-get upgrade upgrade all packages</p><p>apt-get dist-upgrade upgrade Ubuntu distribution</p><p>gksudo nautilus super user window manager (be careful with this!) </p><p>Those were just a few commands off the top of my head. I know their may be some that are more useful, but these seem to me, to be a few useful commands anyone could use. Hopefully they'll help you out sometime.</p>Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-83696022487659594822009-06-15T07:47:00.001-07:002009-06-15T08:32:11.387-07:00It's been a while..<p>Well, it's been a while since I posted last. Life has been sooo busy. I've modded my Xbox recently to run xDSL. That was interesting. It needs a memory upgrade from 64MB ram to 128MB of ram to do a lot, but it does stream videos, though. If anyone from Ubuntu Forums is reading this, then you know I've been trying to use Ubuntu on my Aspire One to bridge my wireless connection to my ethernet port to connect my Xbox to the web. That is one thing Ubuntu needs work on. I ended up installing Windows Vista since I had an install disc with the drivers on it. I have to give credit to the Windows developers for that feature. Just select 2 connections and select brdge connections. Very nice feature. Well, after all that, I had finally decided to try out Windows 7 on my One. </p><p>Well, I figured I'd Google it to find a torrent to download it, but the first thing that came up was a link to the Microsoft donwload page. Downloading it was abreeze since I have a 10MB connection, but I had an issue burning it to install. The first burn seemed to go ok, but when I booted from the disc, I had an error screen saying something about a usb device being unplugged improperly. Re-burned it, and booted no problem.</p><p>Before I go on, I just want to say, I obviously am an avid supporter of FOSS and Ubuntu. But, I do try to keep up with Windows and on ocassion Mac OSX. I just believe to say Ubuntu/FOSS is better in any way, you must know about the competition. Hence, the reason I am trying out Vista and 7.</p><p>Back to the subject. I, so far, am highly suprised with 7, even though it is still just RC1. Microsoft seems to have finally taken some good cues from FOSS/Linux. At first with 7, the installer is quite pleasant, and easy on the eyes, finally. Installing 7 is faster than previous Windows versions, but still needs work. </p><p>After the installation, 7 has a look similar to Vista. Once I saw that, I lost a little hope in it. But, it's far from Vista. So far, it typically takes 10% of the CPU and around 50-60% of the ram on my One. Not bad compared to Vista or XP. Using GTK+ themes was a head turner for me. Well, more to come as I use it. Download it and try it out.</p>Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-12748185665360301082009-05-11T19:41:00.000-07:002009-05-11T19:43:02.157-07:00Leaving Ubuntu 9.04It's fianl now. I'm leaving 9.04 and going back to 8.10. I've had too many issues to keep bothering with 9.04. My recomendation is to NOT use 9.04. Use 8.10 or 8.04 till 9.04 is better.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-38943107150060832062009-05-03T09:34:00.000-07:002009-05-03T09:48:01.140-07:00Ubuntu 9.04<div style="text-align: center;">Since I haven't posted in a while now, I thought I would tell my thoughts about 9.04. I downloaded it and installed it a few days ago on my AAO. I started out loving it, compared to the Beta version I originally tried, but then the issues started. At first, it was a buzzing when Pidgin would make a sound. That's something I can live with. No big deal. The problem I've seen was with Network Manager trying to connect to a Linksys wireless router.<br />My fiance works at a motel, and I was hanging out waiting for her to get off, so I was on my AAO at the motel. Well, with 8.04 and 8.10, no issues there. Network Manager say wireless connections, and would let me select them to try to connect. There were three that I could see, 2 of them wouldn't connect at all, and the motel wireless would connect, but no internet access at all, even though the girl at the front desk was connected without any problems. When she got off, and we got home, I had trouble connecting to my Netgear router. It would connect and disconnect randomly. To fix that, I downloaded Wicd to replace Network Manager. I replaced it, and so far, no problems. I guess I'll see when I go back to the motel tommorow.<br />If you've never heard of Wicd, Google it. Sorry for not posting a link, but I really don't feel like it right now. There's a Sourceforge page for it. I personally like it better than Network Manager, for several reasons. The major thing for me is that I have my home wireless set to auto connect, so when I boot up, it's already connected when I can use the desktop. Network Manager for 9.04 wouldn't seem to auto connet to anything for any reason. Why? I really don't know. Wicd seems to fix any problems I was having except sound issues, so it will stay, and I'll probably never worry about it. Like I said already, sorry for taking so long to post here again, life has been <span style="font-weight: bold;">VERY </span>hectic for me recently. Now, if I can find some work around here, everything will be back to normal. More to come when I find more problems with 9.04.<br /></div>Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-90528646716005905932009-04-14T19:48:00.000-07:002009-04-14T19:57:58.323-07:00I'm hooked on Moblin and Puppy<div style="text-align: center;">Well, I've been using Puppy 4.1.2 on my Gateway, and Moblin on my AAO for a while now. Puppy on the Gateway has brought life back to a computer that should have been trashed. Not much else to say about it really. Moblin deserves a site of it's own for nearly everything about it. Moblin has the fastest boot time I've ever seen. 12 seconds flat. I like Ubuntu more, but I'd like to see Ubuntu do that. Ubuntu 9.04 is a lot faster booting, but nothing close to Moblin. So far, I haven't found much to complain about Moblin. The only problem so far is no flash downloads. At least I haven't been able to find any or make any work.<br />Nearly everything about Moblin is fast. Internet seems faster, programs launch faster, and the boot times make not having flash worth it. I'm thinking about trying it on my Acer Aspire 4720Z whenever I can fix it and when Moblin is no longer in Beta testing anymore. Oh, if anyone has a spare keyboard and/or battery that will work in it, e-mail me at my new e-mail, <a href="andy@thevintageattic.net">andy@thevintageattic.net</a>. Anyway, I'm still learning commands for Puppy and Moblin so more later.<span style="display: block;" id="formatbar_Buttons"><span class="down" style="display: block;" id="formatbar_CreateLink" title="Link" onmouseover="ButtonHoverOn(this);" onmouseout="ButtonHoverOff(this);" onmouseup="" onmousedown="CheckFormatting(event);FormatbarButton('richeditorframe', this, 8);ButtonMouseDown(this);"><img src="img/blank.gif" alt="Link" class="gl_link" border="0" /></span></span></div>Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-22627780614039180462009-04-09T19:26:00.000-07:002009-04-09T20:13:36.080-07:00It's been a while...<div style="text-align: right;">Well, it's been a while since I've posted anything here, so I figured I talk about whats new. Recently, I tried Ubuntu 9.04 Beta. Wow. Seems to me Ubuntu is getting better and better. I tried the 64 bit version, for those who care, with very few problems. The only issues I had were the Pidgin icon on the top bar kept disappearing, and I had some trouble installing codecs. Besides that, I liked it. Unfortunately, right after reinstalling 8.10, the keyboard on my Acer Aspire 4720Z quit working. I guess I need to add that to the list of parts I need for it now.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">I also created a website since I last posted. It's <a href="http://www.thevintageattic.net">The Vintage Attic</a>. It's my first try at a web site, so I hope it lives up to everyones standards. It is mainly geared towards vintage tube radios and parts, but since I have unlimited bandwidth and space, I'll be hosting a couple different Linux OS that I try. Since I'm down to my trusty Gateway, it my take a while to upload everything, but feel free to check out the downloads section there.<br /><br />I actually started the site because of my fascination with vintage tube radios. I'm starting to amass and restore a small collection of them. If you have or know of anyone that's going to throw away an old radio, please let me know. I probably will want it. I can't afford much, but I could pay for shipping.<br /><br />Also, I got accepted to Tennessee Technology Center for Computer Networking and Repair. Unfortunately, with the economy the way it is, and me being jobless at the moment, I couldn't afford to take Linux classes elswhere, so I guess I'll be learning about windows again. Ugh. Oh, well. At least I have the opportunity to go to school for anything computer related.<br /><br /><br />.<br /></div></div>Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-29300494289813773882009-03-15T11:18:00.000-07:002009-03-15T11:32:02.311-07:00Ubuntu...I've been messing with Ubuntu for nearly two years now. It was my first step away from Windows, and with all the different distros I've tried, probably the best all around. But, I'm now getting sort of bored with Ubuntu. Not that anything is wrong with it, I just feel I need a change. I've been messing around with Puppy Linux lately, and I think, even though it's a very basic OS, I'm going to go with it for a while. My AAO and my desktop will keep Ubuntu and Ubuntu Server, but I think I'm going to learn about Puppy for a while. I honestly want to try a different OS because with all the customization that's possible with Ubuntu, I just don't feel comfortable with Ubuntu.<br /> I just feel that since there are so many different Puplets of Puppy, I could, after learning Puppy, create my own Puplet to my taste. Who knows. I may come running back to Ubuntu very soon, but I may stay with Puppy too.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-62429538867708496192009-03-06T12:48:00.000-08:002009-03-06T13:11:54.113-08:00Ubuntu 6.10 on an Apple iMac G3I got an Apple iMac G3 from a friend last night that couldn't get Ubuntu to install properly. Well, I tried last night, with no luck. If you booted from the disc (Ubuntu 6.10 alt. cd), the installer would go through the install, then ask to reboot. After rebooting, you would have the choice of booting from disc and Linux. It would choose linux automatically, and try booting, but never would get past loading the kernel.<br />Today, I decided to try again today. I connected it to my router, booted up the install disc and let it go. During the install, it went as smooth as it did last night. It never connected to anything during the install, which was odd, but it installed nicely. Well, it asked to reboot, and after the reboot, I thought it would do the same as last night. It booted up the kernel and Ubuntu started. So far the only problem with Ubuntu on the iMac is the resolution is off a litlle and the refresh rate seems slow. Hopefully, that'll be fixed soon.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-86187453565843560202009-03-03T23:05:00.000-08:002009-03-03T23:40:38.507-08:00Docks in LinuxI decided to re-install the Cairo Dock on my AAO, so I decided to talk about docks. There are several that can be used. First up is the Simdock. It's very basic, and from my experience, sorta user unfriendly. It doesn't need Compiz-Fusion, so it would possibly be good on lower end hardware. Next, is the Gdesklets Dock. Don't use this one. It has too many bugs to be usable at this time. Next is the Kiba Dock. I personally haven't used this one since it needs to be compiled from source. For most, it's not a problem though. Next is AWN. AWN is the Avant Window Navigator. I have used this before, with great success, but it seems to take up a lot of resources. It has several themes that are downloadable, and 2D and 3D looks. The next really isn't a dock, since you can't actually dock apps with it, but it's good none the less. This one is the Wbar. It is just a dock looking bar that has shortcuts to alot of different apps. goS has it preinstalled. I tried this one, but I was dissapointed with it after using goS. The Wbar in goS just seems more refined, like someone spent a LOT of time setting it up properly. I tried changing Wbar a bit, but it never had the feel of a good bar. So I deleted it almost as fast as I installed it. Lastly, is the Cairo Dock, my favorite. It needs Compiz-fusion to run, but doesn't take up a lot of resources, s it runs very well on my AAO. The Cairo Dock has a OS X feel to it, with many different themes that come with it. It has an autohide feature, which is very helpful with my limited screen space. In my opinion, I would recomend the Cairo Dock for most every one. Now, I know this isn't very in depth, but there is so much to talk about with all these, so I chose to keep it short. What I can say, is that if you have the time, try all of these. What I like, you may not. If you need help with any of these in Ubuntu, message me on Skype. My screen name is slammed87d21. Good luck!Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-40929676224556311522009-03-02T12:54:00.000-08:002009-03-02T13:05:00.891-08:00RedFlag LinuxI don't know if anyone has heard about RedFlag Linux yet. It's the Chinese Government version of Linux they are focing on internet cafes. Just <a href="http://www.google.com">Google</a> it, and you'll see what's going on. From what I've read was it's supposedly based off Red Hat Linux, and has an XP style and feel to it. I just went to the <a href="http://www.redflag-linux.com/en/index.php">RedFlag</a> page, and am downloading the ISO right now. The connection for the download sucks, because I'm only getting about 100 kb speed right now. Well, as soon as it finished, I'm gonna run it in Virtual Box, and let everyone know how it works.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-44037026609915495202009-03-02T08:15:00.000-08:002009-03-02T09:27:45.401-08:00Why do people think Linux (Ubuntu) is so hard?I was reading a thread in the <a href="www.ubuntuforums.org">Ubuntu Forums</a> just a little while ago talking about why people think Linux, or specifically Ubuntu, is hard. I think there were a lot of good explanations why. There are a lot of different reasons why Linux is considered hard. I have a few reasons for that but also a few reasons why Windows is a bit harder. I am excluding Mac OS from this, because I don't have enough experience with it to be able to give any information with and certanty.<br /><br /> Let's start with Linux. I got my first taste of Linux when a friend brought his laptop over to my house with Ubuntu Gutsy Gibbon on it. I thought it was cool, and would like to try it, but since I had 2 good working computers, I would stick with Windows. I found the Ubuntu Forums, and started looking around. Seeing all the problems kinda scared me. I forgot about Linux for a while, till I started having problems with Windows Vista. Big suprise, right? Kinda pissed me off since I spent over $600 on a new laptop that now didn't work. I remembered Ubuntu, when I started thinking about how much Vista was to purchase. I then hopped onto my desktop, and downloaded the new Ubuntu 8.04 ISO. Then I realized you can't burn an ISO like a music file.<br /><br /> Damn. I spent a week or so trying to find a program to burn it. Got it burnt, and was ready to try Linux for the first time. Installation wasn't bad. I kinda got excited then. The install went smooth, and when I rebooted, Ubuntu loaded. Once loaded, I realized, why can't I connect to my router? At this point, I had forgotten about the forum. So, I connected my ethernet cord, and started Googling. Saw someones blog saying to talk to people on IRC. Got on IRC, and started asking for help.Well, to keep this from getting too long, I said a lot of wrong things, got no help for a while, but finally got the help from someone and got my wifi working after a week.<br /><br /> So far, Linux wasn't too bad. I had the bright idea at some point to try editing config files with no knoweledge first. To say the least, I screwed up my Ubuntu install. Tried the forums this time, and Google to fix my wifi again. Ended up finding a post to set up wifi Saved it as a text file, and was good to go. Linux at this point was irritating, but still not bad. On that laptop, the longer I had Ubuntu, the more I learned and got working. A couple lights didn't work, but I figured out how to get everything to work. All that without any real help, or computer knoweledge. At that time, I was just a basic computer user. Now with Ubuntu I can do most anything on any computer. Not bad for being self taught, I believe.<br /><br /> I just wanted to tell you that, so you could see part of my experience with Linux. I have tried several distros with nearly the same amout of success. There are several reasons why people would think Linux is hard. Like getting help if there's a problem. I honestly thought that the forums, and IRC channels were for computer tech geeks, so it made me nervous to try. Command line work scared the crap outta me. I heard stories that'd scare off noobs in a heartbeat. Also, there are rumors that Linux is still command line only, which is true for a few Linux distros, but not alot. I know people that won't try Linux for some of the most uneducated reasons. My games won't work, I can't put songs on my Ipod, nothing is plug and play, Linux is for tech geeks, I'm just used to Windows.<br /><br /> Not all the excuses are bad ones. Most people won't and probably never will try Linux just for the fact that they've gron up using Windows or Apple computers and are just used to how they work. That's fine, but please don't make excuses or say it's more complicated than it is. Linux isn't really that hard. I personally believe Windows is a bit more complicated.<br /><br /> My reasons for thinking Windows is the harder or more complicated OS is that even though I grew up with Windows, I never could figure out much about it. Like with my Compaq desktop, when I reinstalled XP on it, the Compaq page didn't have the drivers I needed at the time. It took me weeks to find the proper drivers. Never found all of them really. When there was a problem with Windows that was major, all I could find to fix it was to reinstall it. How many people do you know that can edit config files for Windows? More to the point, how many tutorials are there to modify files to get something working? What about customizing Windows to suit your style? There are ways, but those are if you have a really good processor and enough memory to do it. What do you do if you get a virus? Either download or buy more software to fix that problem, but then you have more software using the processor or ram.<br /><br /> Don't get me wrong. Each different OS has it's uses and users. On occasion I use Windows, even though I haven't used Windows in 6 months or more now. Linux, or Ubuntu, does everything I could ask of it. I personally like the fact I don't have to worry about getting viruses from web sites, or e-mails. Also, my Ubuntu install is completely customized to suit my taste, and I run Compiz-Fusion no problem with only 1 GB of ram. Windows has it free software, but with Ubuntu, theres more software that I can use than I know what to do with.<br /><br /> In conclusion, nearly any OS will be hard to someone that has never used it. That's only if people will just try something new. Until computer manufacturers start selling computers with any Linux distro on them, people will always be scared to try Linux. Schools need to offer more training in Linux, but until most Linux distros have compatable commands, I don't believe Linux will be anything more than a niche OS like Apple OS. People will keep using Windows just for the fact it's the major OS on new computers, and people are just used to it. But that's fine by me though. If there were more Linux users than Windows users, the possibility of Linux viruses would skyrocket.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-85632352659342245682009-02-28T21:20:00.000-08:002009-02-28T21:29:00.899-08:00Gimp Tutorial No. 1Hopefully for the next while, I will be doing a few tutorials on GIMP. For those who don't know, GIMP is a GNU Image Manipulation Program. In Layman's terms, it's the equivalent to the Photoshop programs for Windows, but GIMP works on all platforms. I, myself, am learning GIMP at the moment, so if you see something I've done wrong, please let me know. Well, hopefully my first tutorial will be on here tomorow. Later.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-42562862612400016272009-02-27T08:08:00.000-08:002009-02-27T08:09:17.833-08:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifG-keTL8UnyKkGkqVBtCIr3Ig_Qnl5QkTVO-Ue0ttoDE0uEDbgHgx3sXPO8MFuh0hf3SISsY_KxKBRZPfBY5kLDnZ6-z0EG9o6GRWF40Eep92OFgjr1akhgxoIe-upfYJtD_ha9_O759a/s1600-h/Screenshot.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 187px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifG-keTL8UnyKkGkqVBtCIr3Ig_Qnl5QkTVO-Ue0ttoDE0uEDbgHgx3sXPO8MFuh0hf3SISsY_KxKBRZPfBY5kLDnZ6-z0EG9o6GRWF40Eep92OFgjr1akhgxoIe-upfYJtD_ha9_O759a/s320/Screenshot.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5307509897444783666" border="0" /></a>Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-20497845354528525662009-02-26T23:22:00.000-08:002009-02-26T23:33:31.571-08:00New theme for Ubuntu on the AAO<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiUbz-eB6rU1bcvmJqLmcXMulz6QBO0X_bzzmohmf3NTqDasLyjU8iQqLIEy94nYkTOzmM0mUtFMGSBDic3yLE2uliU1zg0s7sVwY7GVJYhnapzlP6UXNbh-xrhpNkaHX-dWvjSV-BjZJU/s1600-h/screenshot"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 187px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiUbz-eB6rU1bcvmJqLmcXMulz6QBO0X_bzzmohmf3NTqDasLyjU8iQqLIEy94nYkTOzmM0mUtFMGSBDic3yLE2uliU1zg0s7sVwY7GVJYhnapzlP6UXNbh-xrhpNkaHX-dWvjSV-BjZJU/s320/screenshot" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5307376905003028370" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);">I just finished installing the Jaunty Human Green theme from www.gnome-look.org. Kinda turned into a pain to get installed properly, but I almost have it set up. The only problem I'm having now, is that all text is white, so in browser windows, or app windows, unless the text is hilighted, you can't read anything. Hopefully I'll have that fixed sometime tomorow. Well, heres a screenshot.</span></span><br /></span>Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-48699051574878000692009-02-20T20:40:00.000-08:002009-02-20T20:52:50.700-08:00This isn't about about Ubuntu, but it's BULL****!Read <a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090221/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/lahood_vehicle_mileage_tax">this</a>. That's <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">BULLSHIT! <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Obama is a fascist! We, as Americans will soon be living in a fascist country if we let Obama do this. That just pisses me off.</span></span>Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-3231699951060694762009-02-14T22:49:00.000-08:002009-02-14T23:24:46.254-08:00Gateway Solo 2500I found a dock for the Gateway earlier. Kinda cool. It uses the stock power cord, and gives it an ethernet connection. I'm still amazed that this thing didn't come with an ethernet connection. Oh, well. The dock I found is <a href="http://www.mundocorp.com/shopexd.asp?id=238">here.</a> For only $9 , I plan on ordering it, since I just plan on blogging with it now. I guess tomorow, I'll explain a little more about installing Puppy Linux on a Solo 2500 and having everything work right.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-87578869934461919042009-02-14T12:48:00.000-08:002009-02-14T13:07:05.327-08:00Puppy Linux on the Aspire OneI finally got Puppy Linux on the One. The wireless is kinda quirky, to be honest. But, I am used to the ease of Ubuntus Network Manager too. So far, it's made my little A150 feel like it has a 4 Ghz processor in it, which is awesome. The version I installed has the Cairo Dock preinstalled and set up, so there's not much to do besides just use it really. It comes with most of the applications that need to be installed in most other distros. It's preinstalle web browser is Seamonkey, chat is Pidgin, several torrent programs, no OpenOffice though. To add applications is relatively easy and simple using Puppy package manager. Well, I'm gonna play with it some more and I'll let you kn ow when I learn more.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2619094373050398324.post-51539915203638204482009-02-13T20:10:00.000-08:002009-02-14T08:48:04.224-08:00Puppy LinuxWell, I decided to try another flavor of Linux today. I just finished installing the PupFluxLite version of Puppy Linux. The install was a bit different since I'm not used to the text style installers, but it went rather smoothly. I installed it on my fiances old Gateway Solo 2500 laptop, which is much faster now that Windows XP is off it. The GUI for the version of Puppy Linux installed wasn't bad, but I don't like the fact it didn't have a full taskbar. All it took was a right-click to access everything though. What was nice, andI didn't expect, was that the D-Link PCI wireless card worked out of the box. Now, I just finished downloading Puppy Linux. I'm installing it since it has a taskbar that's actually useful. Anyway, Puppy Linux is a great OS for older computers to bring them back to life, istead of ending up in the landfill. I highly recomend trying out the live CD and see what you think.Andy Howardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18366404441967240073noreply@blogger.com0