Okay I pulled out the OLD and reliable laptop and decided to give the HDD one last try. Would you believe it worked? Not only that Kubuntu reconfigured itself to work on the Video board built into the laptop. I can now say I am duly impressed. Never ever had any other Linux Distribution do that before.
So the old and slow but reliable Laptop is up and running. I have it on the wireless updating as I type this. Its installing packages. It already downloaded most of them will have to run the update one more time to get all of them. (Seems to just be the way it is.) Yes its SLOW but it works and I can get back to being a portable hacker again.
I lost the ability to use Beryl on the transition though but minor loss compared to other things.
So back in the saddle again.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Women in OSS deserve respect
Melissa Draper recently did something that took both courage and intelligence to do.
Her recent letter to the Open Source Software community (click on the title to read it) makes a clear and shocking statement. Here it is coming to the end of the first decade in the 21st century when equal rights, opportunities and acceptance for and of women should come without question.
I don't agree with all aspects of the sexual revolution, as it were, but I definitely feel that women have rights equal to any man. Among those is the right to be accepted for talent, ability and effort without being harassed because of gender.
Melissa, Celeste and other women I know of in OSS have my utmost respect as individual contributors. I certainly could not do some of the things they do, nor would I want to. Celeste is a interface designer. Uhm I'm surprised the poor lady isn't bald sometimes after reading some of her blog entries.
The point is these ladies work hard at what they do for the community. They should not have to endure sexist remarks and comments from those who can't see past their bust lines. (Sorry ladies I could not think of a better way to phrase it.)
I know its a males natural tendency to first see the woman. That's not the issue. It is however an issue when we men don't check our libido before we open our mouth or put our fingers on a keyboard and make rude, crude and in some cases obscene comments. The males in the OSS development community certainly should know better.
Yes men and women are different, thankfully. However, the differences go beyond the physical and women are able to see things in ways we men never will. Its those different perspectives we need in the OSS community for Linux, KDE, Gnome and whatever other projects you can name to stay fresh and growing. Matter of fact I would like to see more women become involved with OSS development and design.
The ladies deserve our utmost respect and acceptance. They do not deserve lurid comments and attitudes which lead to open letters like Melissa wrote. Hopefully, that will be the last such letter.
Her recent letter to the Open Source Software community (click on the title to read it) makes a clear and shocking statement. Here it is coming to the end of the first decade in the 21st century when equal rights, opportunities and acceptance for and of women should come without question.
I don't agree with all aspects of the sexual revolution, as it were, but I definitely feel that women have rights equal to any man. Among those is the right to be accepted for talent, ability and effort without being harassed because of gender.
Melissa, Celeste and other women I know of in OSS have my utmost respect as individual contributors. I certainly could not do some of the things they do, nor would I want to. Celeste is a interface designer. Uhm I'm surprised the poor lady isn't bald sometimes after reading some of her blog entries.
The point is these ladies work hard at what they do for the community. They should not have to endure sexist remarks and comments from those who can't see past their bust lines. (Sorry ladies I could not think of a better way to phrase it.)
I know its a males natural tendency to first see the woman. That's not the issue. It is however an issue when we men don't check our libido before we open our mouth or put our fingers on a keyboard and make rude, crude and in some cases obscene comments. The males in the OSS development community certainly should know better.
Yes men and women are different, thankfully. However, the differences go beyond the physical and women are able to see things in ways we men never will. Its those different perspectives we need in the OSS community for Linux, KDE, Gnome and whatever other projects you can name to stay fresh and growing. Matter of fact I would like to see more women become involved with OSS development and design.
The ladies deserve our utmost respect and acceptance. They do not deserve lurid comments and attitudes which lead to open letters like Melissa wrote. Hopefully, that will be the last such letter.
Monday, May 21, 2007
Laptop Is Dead
It died Sunday morning on a restart. I just wen over it. No way to save it, the cause. Power supply blew and spiked it. Its toasted nothing appears to be salvageable. Even the Hard Drive is gone and won't spin up. Not sure on the DVD burner but I'm not gonna count on it.
Setup Tower system again and like the good geek I am had all data backed up so I am rocking and rolling. Even have Beryl going but no longer portable.
Setup Tower system again and like the good geek I am had all data backed up so I am rocking and rolling. Even have Beryl going but no longer portable.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
The Look of Tux
When you work on the look and feel of your computer you just tend to want to show it off. So here it is.
The background is Crystal Tux.
The Icon set is Crystal SVG
Cursor theme is Fedora 6 set
Panel Wallpaper is Blue54
Using the SuSE Kickoff menu compiled for Kubuntu
The Launch Button is from the KDE@work KBFX button set modified to work with Kickoff.
The monitor panel is gkrellm2 with the Invisible Theme
Using Beryl and Compiz for 3D effects and features.
I call this theme layout Tux Blue.
Hope you like
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
My New Web Site Is Up
All my murking around in Linux is paying off. Check it out and get back to me.
--Shaun
--Shaun
Monday, May 14, 2007
Good Bye SUDO hope to never see you again
My biggest beef with Kubuntu has been the use of sudo to any damn thing. I have always and forever stated that Linux is not Windows and that the root (super user) account exists for a reason.
Well I finally found the answer. I can have Kubuntu, all its packages in the software repository, AND no more sudo. That's right boys and girls this happy camper has eliminated the need for sudo and now has a a root account with a password.
Next phase is to fix it so I can log into KDE as root. Not something I will do unless I need to fix some things trust me but that account needs to be there and it will be.
There are a lot of other issues to fix in Kubuntu as well but you know what, I will fix them. the answers are there they just have to be uncovered.
BTW I am not giving the answer on how to do this here. It will be on my Kubuntu Hacks web site when I get written out.
Well I finally found the answer. I can have Kubuntu, all its packages in the software repository, AND no more sudo. That's right boys and girls this happy camper has eliminated the need for sudo and now has a a root account with a password.
Next phase is to fix it so I can log into KDE as root. Not something I will do unless I need to fix some things trust me but that account needs to be there and it will be.
There are a lot of other issues to fix in Kubuntu as well but you know what, I will fix them. the answers are there they just have to be uncovered.
BTW I am not giving the answer on how to do this here. It will be on my Kubuntu Hacks web site when I get written out.
Friday, May 11, 2007
Menu Systems, Some Observations
The number one complaint I hear on Vista is the new Menu. Its a flat panel menu system and most people do not care for it. They would prefer to have the XP like Start menu. Okay it does organize the structure a bit better but it just doesn't sit well with users.
KBFX uses a flat panel menu as well but most people downloaded it to modify the launch button in KDE and set KBFX to use the default Menu. Why? Like Vista users linux users did not care for the flat panel layout. It was skinable though and that was a big plus in its favor.
Tasty Menu tried to be a bit of both and though conceptionally its a practical idea it just doesn't work as well. To many bugs and issues.
Now SuSE Kickoff I like. For a next generation menu system it has the right potential. I'm not saying it doesn't need work because it does. It should be made skinable and that includes its buttons. However, it functions much more intuitively than the others. The tabbed layout just makes a whole hell of a lot of sense. Yes it needs a lot more work but I really like it and want to see reach full potential. here is what I think Kickoff needs to have added:
Themes - If the developers add the ability to use themes in Kickoff I am sure its popularity will swell ten fold. People today want to customize the look and feel of their system. Making the menu customizable with themes would be a huge step to gaining popularity and thus more deployment by end users. Along those lines also set up an easy way to use and set different button sets like KBFX does. That was what made KBFX popular to begin with.
User Definable Tabs - The stock tabs are nice but it would be nice to have a couple of others as well like a tab for URLS. The favorites tab is a nice feature but it really isn't enough. Hard core users may want a tab that gives them instant access to a specific group and or combinatin of programs. Again the Favorites Tab doesn't fill that niche exactly and really shouldn't be used for that purpose.
Now how do you approach these? I know in some ways the look is kinda built into Kickoff but a bit of redesigning and re-coding can fix that. Kickoff 2, if you will, can easily be rewritten to allow for that, and a KCM can handle the issue of providing the interface for the user to select the themes and button sets.
User definable tabs can be added or removed with the checking or unchecking of a check box. The menu type can be drag and drop, user defined via a menu file generated by the KCM using data gathered from the users input, or it can be a url selector and all the user has to do is tell the KCM what browser he prefers the tab gets the bookmark data from. (Firefox, Opera, Konquerer, etc.)
Now of course you do have to set a limit on the number of tabs the user can add but I think three should be about right.
It might not be a bad idea to have a on/off togable Control Center module menu as well which allows the user quick and easy access to the KCMs.
Just some food for thought.
KBFX uses a flat panel menu as well but most people downloaded it to modify the launch button in KDE and set KBFX to use the default Menu. Why? Like Vista users linux users did not care for the flat panel layout. It was skinable though and that was a big plus in its favor.
Tasty Menu tried to be a bit of both and though conceptionally its a practical idea it just doesn't work as well. To many bugs and issues.
Now SuSE Kickoff I like. For a next generation menu system it has the right potential. I'm not saying it doesn't need work because it does. It should be made skinable and that includes its buttons. However, it functions much more intuitively than the others. The tabbed layout just makes a whole hell of a lot of sense. Yes it needs a lot more work but I really like it and want to see reach full potential. here is what I think Kickoff needs to have added:
Themes - If the developers add the ability to use themes in Kickoff I am sure its popularity will swell ten fold. People today want to customize the look and feel of their system. Making the menu customizable with themes would be a huge step to gaining popularity and thus more deployment by end users. Along those lines also set up an easy way to use and set different button sets like KBFX does. That was what made KBFX popular to begin with.
User Definable Tabs - The stock tabs are nice but it would be nice to have a couple of others as well like a tab for URLS. The favorites tab is a nice feature but it really isn't enough. Hard core users may want a tab that gives them instant access to a specific group and or combinatin of programs. Again the Favorites Tab doesn't fill that niche exactly and really shouldn't be used for that purpose.
Now how do you approach these? I know in some ways the look is kinda built into Kickoff but a bit of redesigning and re-coding can fix that. Kickoff 2, if you will, can easily be rewritten to allow for that, and a KCM can handle the issue of providing the interface for the user to select the themes and button sets.
User definable tabs can be added or removed with the checking or unchecking of a check box. The menu type can be drag and drop, user defined via a menu file generated by the KCM using data gathered from the users input, or it can be a url selector and all the user has to do is tell the KCM what browser he prefers the tab gets the bookmark data from. (Firefox, Opera, Konquerer, etc.)
Now of course you do have to set a limit on the number of tabs the user can add but I think three should be about right.
It might not be a bad idea to have a on/off togable Control Center module menu as well which allows the user quick and easy access to the KCMs.
Just some food for thought.
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
Ready For Work
When I had both my desktop and my laptop going but separate in many aspects I generally had a mismatch of information. Solution use only one of the two. The desktop is still a good system and I fully intend to make use of it in another capacity. (I need a server anyway.)
So with a my laptop now being used as my main and only system how do I handle the delicate balance between personal, business and private files. Not to mention the ever so delicate balance of privacy and non disclosure of information. Laptops just are at risk period. Physical security issues and general handling of things you don't want to take out in public for whatever reason. Welcome External Hard Drive Enclosures. I have two of them. (One is empty at the moment.) I bought both for work, and since I no longer have that job, as I quit, I have made use of one. I pulled the SATA drive from the desktop and put it into the enclosure that had the dual interface (either IDE or SATA.) The other drive is IDE only and the drive that was in it went back to the computer I finally setup for my son.
On top of all of that I have a CD-R/W backpack Drive as well that well for the moment is sitting there not being used. Right now the one external drive is where I keep my more delicate files and I maintain a minimalist set of data files on the laptop's hard drive. The files I need for whatever I need to do away from home.
So I keep portability, maintain a modicum of physical security and still have a system that can perform the work I need. Not a bad trade off all in all and to be honest I really do like having my more personal data files detached so that I don't accidentally access something in public I don't want someone to see.
Other things of Note:
Installed CAD for network layout design.
Installed all the productivity files I have ever used and will probably use again
Changed out the system default programs to others that either worked better for me or just plain suited my needs better.
Got the Anti-Virus scanner system going with Dazuko (Vital in that I work with other computers using Windows. Anything I can do to help those poor saps.)
Configured and got Beryl up and running. Not vital but I have to have some toys. Besides its a really cool way to show off Linux. Not entirely done setting it up but the base stuff I wanted it to do is going.
Got the Zire21 and Kpilot to fully sync with each other. Not just my contacts, calendar and to do list, but everything. (Looks like the Kpilot team fixed thos conduits.) So now the data flow between PDA and Kontact is functioning exactly as it should.
Setup my Brother MFC-210 to the laptop. I have full printing, FAX and scanner access to it using Linux (can we say that makes me very, very happy.)
I plan on organizing my Menu to be the way I want it so that's the next big push.
So with a my laptop now being used as my main and only system how do I handle the delicate balance between personal, business and private files. Not to mention the ever so delicate balance of privacy and non disclosure of information. Laptops just are at risk period. Physical security issues and general handling of things you don't want to take out in public for whatever reason. Welcome External Hard Drive Enclosures. I have two of them. (One is empty at the moment.) I bought both for work, and since I no longer have that job, as I quit, I have made use of one. I pulled the SATA drive from the desktop and put it into the enclosure that had the dual interface (either IDE or SATA.) The other drive is IDE only and the drive that was in it went back to the computer I finally setup for my son.
On top of all of that I have a CD-R/W backpack Drive as well that well for the moment is sitting there not being used. Right now the one external drive is where I keep my more delicate files and I maintain a minimalist set of data files on the laptop's hard drive. The files I need for whatever I need to do away from home.
So I keep portability, maintain a modicum of physical security and still have a system that can perform the work I need. Not a bad trade off all in all and to be honest I really do like having my more personal data files detached so that I don't accidentally access something in public I don't want someone to see.
Other things of Note:
Installed CAD for network layout design.
Installed all the productivity files I have ever used and will probably use again
Changed out the system default programs to others that either worked better for me or just plain suited my needs better.
Got the Anti-Virus scanner system going with Dazuko (Vital in that I work with other computers using Windows. Anything I can do to help those poor saps.)
Configured and got Beryl up and running. Not vital but I have to have some toys. Besides its a really cool way to show off Linux. Not entirely done setting it up but the base stuff I wanted it to do is going.
Got the Zire21 and Kpilot to fully sync with each other. Not just my contacts, calendar and to do list, but everything. (Looks like the Kpilot team fixed thos conduits.) So now the data flow between PDA and Kontact is functioning exactly as it should.
Setup my Brother MFC-210 to the laptop. I have full printing, FAX and scanner access to it using Linux (can we say that makes me very, very happy.)
I plan on organizing my Menu to be the way I want it so that's the next big push.
Monday, May 7, 2007
Kubuntu Finally Redeems Itself
Well I really have to admit that Kubuntu has grown on me. Don't get me wrong still want to se sudo get dumped. I think the Ubuntu team has the right idea but I really believe they went about all wrong. Anyway I digress.
What finally made me decide that Kubuntu was alright? Beryl, in a word. Beryl is a 3D theme manager that works with Gnome and KDE, probably with other windows managers as well, that really makes a difference in your desktop computing experience. As stated in my previous post I had eight virtual desktops. that was a bit much so I cut it in half to four. But where i had issues with either my network access being shutdown because KDE lost the pipe between it and the device isn't happening and I have all my multimedia and the system isn't broken, you get the picture. ALL THE COOL EFFECTS AND EVERYTHING STILL WORKS!!!
For that alone Kubuntu has redeemed itself for all the other headaches it has given me.
KDE4 and Beryl
Okay the Oxygen look is sweet but since its an alpha phase look on KDE4 there wasn't a whole lot. Some minor affects added but nothing like beryl.
Now Beryl is up and running on my laptop. I have 8 virtual desktops. all the really really cool 3D effects and of course previews and its worth everty bit of CPU power it consumes. This just makes Vista Premium look sick. There are similar effects but lets see Vista give you a 3D box (in my case octogon) you can move around with your mouse to select the desktop you want. And if you roll the mouse wheel on the desktop it switches them too. Vista doesn't do that and Beryl doesn't require the CPU or RAM vista does.
KDE4 Goes Live
http://home.kde.org/~binner/kde4-live-dvd/
I'm downloading it now will post comments later.
I'm downloading it now will post comments later.
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Weekend
Saturday I accomplished the following:
1.) Setup 80 GB External HDD using a case I bought for work. Used the HDD from the tower and installed into the case, formatted it and set permissions so I had write access to it. Now have a lot more space for my files.
2.) Rebuilt my son's computer. Not sure what caused it but when we turned it on this morning several key files were missing. CLI was non functional as was the X-server. So instead of bothering with looking into what caused it I simply reloaded Kubuntu. Did one thing out of ordinary. Setup Windows version of Firefox using WINE so I could get ShockWave installed for him. Since both Nick Jr and Noggin web sites use it. Not something I would normally do but hey this is my kid and he wants to use their games so i fixed it so he could.
3.) Played on my system settings and did a small bit of tweaking to get multimedia better setup. So far so good. more to do but my priority is business not play.
Productive weekend thus far.
Also did a beter job of setting up his programs. Not only is Tux Paint coming up as full screen, his preferred choice, also installed all the children and educational software I could find in Ubuntu repositories. Setup Dazuko and KlamAV as well
1.) Setup 80 GB External HDD using a case I bought for work. Used the HDD from the tower and installed into the case, formatted it and set permissions so I had write access to it. Now have a lot more space for my files.
2.) Rebuilt my son's computer. Not sure what caused it but when we turned it on this morning several key files were missing. CLI was non functional as was the X-server. So instead of bothering with looking into what caused it I simply reloaded Kubuntu. Did one thing out of ordinary. Setup Windows version of Firefox using WINE so I could get ShockWave installed for him. Since both Nick Jr and Noggin web sites use it. Not something I would normally do but hey this is my kid and he wants to use their games so i fixed it so he could.
3.) Played on my system settings and did a small bit of tweaking to get multimedia better setup. So far so good. more to do but my priority is business not play.
Productive weekend thus far.
Also did a beter job of setting up his programs. Not only is Tux Paint coming up as full screen, his preferred choice, also installed all the children and educational software I could find in Ubuntu repositories. Setup Dazuko and KlamAV as well
Friday, May 4, 2007
Kubuntu Issues
Okay one issue I had with feisty fawn was the inability to get my Palm Device to sync with KPilot. I am happy to now report that issue is resolved. I learned that the visor module was not being loaded so I had to add the following into /etc/modules file, 'visor' and then sudo modprobe visor which got it up and running. I was finally able to import my contact list into Kontact (Kaddress Book.)
Next step is seeing if I can get my schedule and to do lists to sync up.
For some reason I can't seem to get Konversation to use emoticons. I haven't done it in awhile and I seem to remember there was a minor issue with a capital letter being used in the KDE wiki that was errant and I'm trying to remember what line it was on but alas my memory is a bit fuzzy there.
However getting Dazuko (hence KlamAV) and Kpilot going is a good day of messing with things and I am very happy to see improvements happening in the direction i want and need them to go.
Also determined which applications actually worked and which ones didn't. Gyachi was a disappointment in the long run. It took to much memory and did very little compared to kopete, aMSN on the other hand is running very well and I honestly can't tell to much difference between it and the actual MSN Messenger, and my webcam works in it. Knemo is my network monitor program of choice. The others didn't seem to do as much or give quite as much information. Knemo will show both my Wired and Wireless connections and when they are inactive it doesn't annoy me with a network unplugged icon, it just doesn't show anything.
The power manager/monitor programs I tried were also a bit nowhere and though I got somewhat better reports from them they also didn't completely function as expected so I went back to the KDE default. I have also been able to lower my CPU draw by watching which programs were hogging it up and removing those from the startup as well.
My CPU draw goes from 4% to 25% when I'm doing simple things and when I do the tough stuff jumps to about 65% though when I run a scan or search it definitely jumps way up (99 to 100%)
Next step is seeing if I can get my schedule and to do lists to sync up.
For some reason I can't seem to get Konversation to use emoticons. I haven't done it in awhile and I seem to remember there was a minor issue with a capital letter being used in the KDE wiki that was errant and I'm trying to remember what line it was on but alas my memory is a bit fuzzy there.
However getting Dazuko (hence KlamAV) and Kpilot going is a good day of messing with things and I am very happy to see improvements happening in the direction i want and need them to go.
Also determined which applications actually worked and which ones didn't. Gyachi was a disappointment in the long run. It took to much memory and did very little compared to kopete, aMSN on the other hand is running very well and I honestly can't tell to much difference between it and the actual MSN Messenger, and my webcam works in it. Knemo is my network monitor program of choice. The others didn't seem to do as much or give quite as much information. Knemo will show both my Wired and Wireless connections and when they are inactive it doesn't annoy me with a network unplugged icon, it just doesn't show anything.
The power manager/monitor programs I tried were also a bit nowhere and though I got somewhat better reports from them they also didn't completely function as expected so I went back to the KDE default. I have also been able to lower my CPU draw by watching which programs were hogging it up and removing those from the startup as well.
My CPU draw goes from 4% to 25% when I'm doing simple things and when I do the tough stuff jumps to about 65% though when I run a scan or search it definitely jumps way up (99 to 100%)
Dazuko is Up and Running in Kubuntu
One thing I have always been having an issue with was getting something simple like installing dazuko to happen in Kubuntu. Well I got it up thanks to Brad Johnson and his AllYourTech.com article here: His article was the answer that wasn't even available at the Ubuntu/Kubuntu forums and though just a bit outdated on some things the core information is correct and I was able to get dazuko setup and loaded. Now unlike Brad I use ClamAV (with the KlamAV frontend of course) but since real time access is needed by both programs for active scanning his solution for AntiVir is the same as required by me.
Now unlike Brad I see only one need to have a Anti-Virus solution in Linux and that is to keep from passing on Windows based viruses. Linux viruses do exist but they really don't get all that far since they need root access to begin to even be effective. The few the briefly flourished were because of those who did not heed the warnings of not using Linux for day to day stuff as "root."
Anyway yet another milestone in getting Kubuntu to do what I need and want. Still fighting the day to day issues but I am winning as I learn.
Now unlike Brad I see only one need to have a Anti-Virus solution in Linux and that is to keep from passing on Windows based viruses. Linux viruses do exist but they really don't get all that far since they need root access to begin to even be effective. The few the briefly flourished were because of those who did not heed the warnings of not using Linux for day to day stuff as "root."
Anyway yet another milestone in getting Kubuntu to do what I need and want. Still fighting the day to day issues but I am winning as I learn.
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
Sometimes bad things lead to good things.
Yeah well first let me tell you what the bad thing was. I tried to install Kolab and it killed the command interpreter on my desktop. Hey stuff happens when you do what I do and you learn from it of course but....
It got me to put my laptop up as my main to use system. Why is this good? Well instead of running two separate systems which hold two sets of information but actually need to be combined for me to function I decided that it was best to take the desktop off-line and go strictly with the laptop. Yes I lost some files and more importantly some email but in the end this will make for a better organized Shaun.
It got me to put my laptop up as my main to use system. Why is this good? Well instead of running two separate systems which hold two sets of information but actually need to be combined for me to function I decided that it was best to take the desktop off-line and go strictly with the laptop. Yes I lost some files and more importantly some email but in the end this will make for a better organized Shaun.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Computing Freedom Has Sacrafices
Its no secret I am not a fan of Windows. In fact for going on nearly three years now I have been and will continue using Linux. However, this does not come without some cost to my computing abilities.
The reality is though I can perform any basic to high level function in Linux as I can in Windows there are just some things that Linux does not have access to. Shockwave among those. For those who don't know Shockwave is a Internet API that allows multimedia content, games and other things to be used on a web browser. Shockwave can be used on Internet Explorer, and nearly all Mozilla Gecko compliant browsers, provided you use windows. There are some work arounds such as using WINE for Linux but I don't want to have to load the Windows version of Firefox on my Linux system just for one API plugin.
There is no Shockwave for Linux (at least not yet) nor do I see one being developed by Adobe anytime soon. However, and this is important, if the Linux community would send requests to Adobe for a Linux compatible Shockwave Plugin they may consider making a port of Shockwave to Linux.
Okay so many Linux Veterans see Shockwave as a security risk and could care less if Adobe ever develops one for Linux. But with Vista already looking like it will be pushing up daisies sooner than MS expected many people are wondering if Linux might be a better choice. (Trust me all you people thinking about switching, its well worth the effort to do so.) Then support needs to be considered.
Despite RMS and his overbearing beliefs that all software should be open source, reality is it isn't and probably never will be. IF LINUX IS TO FLOURISH THERE MUST BE COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS. And the applications can be closed source as well. Adobe already has flashplayer available for Linux. The printer and scanner drivers I use for my MFC-210C from Brother are all closed source, and I could care less. They work and I can perform the functions I need to. That's the bottom line. Besides, because Brother went to all that effort in the first place I commend them for it. The reason I bought this particular Brother Printer/Scanner/FAX/Copier in the first place was because I knew that Brother had Linux drivers available for it. Closed source or not, they are there. Though not the easiest thing to get setup in Kubuntu I did so. (With some help from online resources.)
Trust me there are annoying aspects of the Linux community's mentality I dearly wish would disappear. No software should be a political statement. Closed source should be able to get along with open source, but alas, like all things there are extremists all over the place and such will always be a battle. Yet as long as there are enough people who have some legitimate common sense about things then we can keep on doing business in both worlds.
The reality is though I can perform any basic to high level function in Linux as I can in Windows there are just some things that Linux does not have access to. Shockwave among those. For those who don't know Shockwave is a Internet API that allows multimedia content, games and other things to be used on a web browser. Shockwave can be used on Internet Explorer, and nearly all Mozilla Gecko compliant browsers, provided you use windows. There are some work arounds such as using WINE for Linux but I don't want to have to load the Windows version of Firefox on my Linux system just for one API plugin.
There is no Shockwave for Linux (at least not yet) nor do I see one being developed by Adobe anytime soon. However, and this is important, if the Linux community would send requests to Adobe for a Linux compatible Shockwave Plugin they may consider making a port of Shockwave to Linux.
Okay so many Linux Veterans see Shockwave as a security risk and could care less if Adobe ever develops one for Linux. But with Vista already looking like it will be pushing up daisies sooner than MS expected many people are wondering if Linux might be a better choice. (Trust me all you people thinking about switching, its well worth the effort to do so.) Then support needs to be considered.
Despite RMS and his overbearing beliefs that all software should be open source, reality is it isn't and probably never will be. IF LINUX IS TO FLOURISH THERE MUST BE COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS. And the applications can be closed source as well. Adobe already has flashplayer available for Linux. The printer and scanner drivers I use for my MFC-210C from Brother are all closed source, and I could care less. They work and I can perform the functions I need to. That's the bottom line. Besides, because Brother went to all that effort in the first place I commend them for it. The reason I bought this particular Brother Printer/Scanner/FAX/Copier in the first place was because I knew that Brother had Linux drivers available for it. Closed source or not, they are there. Though not the easiest thing to get setup in Kubuntu I did so. (With some help from online resources.)
Trust me there are annoying aspects of the Linux community's mentality I dearly wish would disappear. No software should be a political statement. Closed source should be able to get along with open source, but alas, like all things there are extremists all over the place and such will always be a battle. Yet as long as there are enough people who have some legitimate common sense about things then we can keep on doing business in both worlds.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Feisty Fawn
I am not a fan of the Ubuntu/Kubuntu schema. the sudo and other aspects of the distro tend to leave me a bit flat. However it has the best software repository in Linux available, is well supported and it does multimedia very well.
That being said I do use Kubuntu as the issues with PCLOS and Mepis are at this time unresolved and I have business needs that have to be met. Since Kubuntu meets them I use it.
Feisty Fawn (Version 7.04) is the latest Ubuntu/Kubuntu release. The Kubuntu side has made drastic improvements in the user interface and actually stepped back on some things returning access of the root directory to the user in konqueror though if you do the upgrade option you won't see this.
My desktop system was upgraded over the Internet and for the most part it went very smoothly with only a few minor glitches. Nothing even a newbie can't learn to fix.
Still though my laptop came out better when I did a full system reinstall on it using the installation option of the CD.
Some aspects of the security features still prove to be a pain but thanks to the how tos I have been able to get CUPS up and running so now both my LaserJet and Brother MFC-210C can now be used by my Desktop system (local) and Laptop (network). I am still working out the saned setup to get Kubuntu to share the scanner part of the MFC-210C between the two and eventually with a Windows machine as well.
The print to FAX option is still being worked out as well.
Over all I have to rate Feisty Fawn an 8 out of 10. The improvements are well worth looking into.
One final note: Automatix2 is a must use in Kubuntu and there is a version for Feisty Fawn available.
That being said I do use Kubuntu as the issues with PCLOS and Mepis are at this time unresolved and I have business needs that have to be met. Since Kubuntu meets them I use it.
Feisty Fawn (Version 7.04) is the latest Ubuntu/Kubuntu release. The Kubuntu side has made drastic improvements in the user interface and actually stepped back on some things returning access of the root directory to the user in konqueror though if you do the upgrade option you won't see this.
My desktop system was upgraded over the Internet and for the most part it went very smoothly with only a few minor glitches. Nothing even a newbie can't learn to fix.
Still though my laptop came out better when I did a full system reinstall on it using the installation option of the CD.
Some aspects of the security features still prove to be a pain but thanks to the how tos I have been able to get CUPS up and running so now both my LaserJet and Brother MFC-210C can now be used by my Desktop system (local) and Laptop (network). I am still working out the saned setup to get Kubuntu to share the scanner part of the MFC-210C between the two and eventually with a Windows machine as well.
The print to FAX option is still being worked out as well.
Over all I have to rate Feisty Fawn an 8 out of 10. The improvements are well worth looking into.
One final note: Automatix2 is a must use in Kubuntu and there is a version for Feisty Fawn available.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
I Quit my job
At 5:30 AM CDT I awoke and got on my computer to file reports I was behind due to an overloaded work schedule. I have been run ragged and had no time for my son, myself or anything.
Lo and behold there is an email from the office manager stating I would only be getting HALF the pay I have earned because I was (with all good reason) behind on reports again. Meaning a $1500 to $2000 pay check was now $750 to $1000. Here I am over worked and highly stressed out and trying to keep it together to the next paycheck and there it is in my email telling me all that work I did was for nothing.
Here is the response from my boss:
The issue at hand is one of time management and expectations.
You've brought up multiple times you have no time for yourself, your son, or to do the required paperwork for the job...requesting off a day here or there would have resolved that.
I won't change the policy of needing daily invoices / deposits in order to qualify for a bonus. Your statement below indicates that you feel we aren't paying you your full pay, yet it's clearly stated and communicated that you earn 12.50 / hour for the 1st hour and 22.50 for each additional as your full pay. You can qualify for a bonus by following the daily procedures. I'm not making up "let's screw shaun rules" in fact for the last few pay periods I've let you skate by with a mere warning or at most a single call penalized because I knew you were working hard. Perhaps that was my mistake and I should have disqualified your bonus from day 1 of not following the daily close out requirements as laid out in your contract.
I've done multiple favors for you to help you out Shaun, even fronting your money before you've earned it. As I said, my mistake was letting you have so much leeway from the beginning because you came to just expect the bonus as part of your pay, rather than something you earn.
We will take you off the schedule immediately as per your rushed resignation, although even this action will only hurt you. For 1 you won't be making any additional money, and 2 as per your agreement it will further delay your paycheck in total until we receive all Rescuecom supplies back at our office, and have cleared the pay period waiting time to cover any possible warranty's for your work.
I'm truly sorry for it to end this way, I expected far more when I hired you originally.
Lo and behold there is an email from the office manager stating I would only be getting HALF the pay I have earned because I was (with all good reason) behind on reports again. Meaning a $1500 to $2000 pay check was now $750 to $1000. Here I am over worked and highly stressed out and trying to keep it together to the next paycheck and there it is in my email telling me all that work I did was for nothing.
Here is the response from my boss:
The issue at hand is one of time management and expectations.
You've brought up multiple times you have no time for yourself, your son, or to do the required paperwork for the job...requesting off a day here or there would have resolved that.
I won't change the policy of needing daily invoices / deposits in order to qualify for a bonus. Your statement below indicates that you feel we aren't paying you your full pay, yet it's clearly stated and communicated that you earn 12.50 / hour for the 1st hour and 22.50 for each additional as your full pay. You can qualify for a bonus by following the daily procedures. I'm not making up "let's screw shaun rules" in fact for the last few pay periods I've let you skate by with a mere warning or at most a single call penalized because I knew you were working hard. Perhaps that was my mistake and I should have disqualified your bonus from day 1 of not following the daily close out requirements as laid out in your contract.
I've done multiple favors for you to help you out Shaun, even fronting your money before you've earned it. As I said, my mistake was letting you have so much leeway from the beginning because you came to just expect the bonus as part of your pay, rather than something you earn.
We will take you off the schedule immediately as per your rushed resignation, although even this action will only hurt you. For 1 you won't be making any additional money, and 2 as per your agreement it will further delay your paycheck in total until we receive all Rescuecom supplies back at our office, and have cleared the pay period waiting time to cover any possible warranty's for your work.
I'm truly sorry for it to end this way, I expected far more when I hired you originally.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Feisty Up!
One complaint I had about Kubuntu disabling access to root level directory structure is now fixed. Though if you run the upgrade script you won't notice it. Feisty seems to be returning to the KDE concept a bit more.
I upgraded my desktop to Feisty over the Internet. I did a fresh install on my laptop. The new version of KB3 rocks.
I got a Multi-Function Center at Fry's. Normally I don't go in for all in one wonders but its a Brother and there are two qualities about it I dearly like immediately:
1. Brother has LPR and Cups drivers available for download. This allows the Printer to be used on a Linux system. They also provide drivers for SANE and print to FAX.
2. The Ink Cartridges are refillable.
I have setup the printer, fax (still not fully functional) and scanner locally on my clone desktop. I have the laptop printing to the printer over CUPS. I am working on setting up saned so my laptop, and a Windows system (not my computer) can access the scanner over the network.
I have read several how tos on saned but so far none have been all that helpful. Kubuntu is not particularly friendly about allowing saned to be run and accessible. I will eventually get it going though.
I upgraded my desktop to Feisty over the Internet. I did a fresh install on my laptop. The new version of KB3 rocks.
I got a Multi-Function Center at Fry's. Normally I don't go in for all in one wonders but its a Brother and there are two qualities about it I dearly like immediately:
1. Brother has LPR and Cups drivers available for download. This allows the Printer to be used on a Linux system. They also provide drivers for SANE and print to FAX.
2. The Ink Cartridges are refillable.
I have setup the printer, fax (still not fully functional) and scanner locally on my clone desktop. I have the laptop printing to the printer over CUPS. I am working on setting up saned so my laptop, and a Windows system (not my computer) can access the scanner over the network.
I have read several how tos on saned but so far none have been all that helpful. Kubuntu is not particularly friendly about allowing saned to be run and accessible. I will eventually get it going though.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Moral, Ethical and Personal Issues
Well today has taught me something. The company I work for isn't so great. They tried to get me to take a expedited call (a call where I have to be at the customers within an hour) fortunately the call was to far away for me to do that. However, they lied to me and said K asked them to see if I could do so. K however wasn't even working today due to a family emergency.
I have had to rethink my ethical beliefs on many things and I have determined the following:
Customers must give their credit card in advance now. They will be charged for the service call regardless. So even if I can't fix the issue (There is no such thing as 'Fix or Free' under the policies of the company) if I offer any solution, even telling the customer to call someone else, then they will be charged for an hour of service. This is morally wrong. I fixed nothing and the customer should not have to pay.
The company now has its own branded security suite, it will not guarantee any other product or service against viruses, trojans and spyware. This effectively ties my hands when it comes to offering the best solution for the situation. Again this is ethically wrong. Especially since I just checked on the package from the OEM of the software and found its not as well rated as I would like it to be. In other words its not all that good compared to the solutions I prefer.
Finally there is no such thing as a day off as I have learned these last two days. That's a personal issue with me. When I ask for a day off I want it off. I caved in for my first day I was supposed to have off but the second day I did not. Still they tried to assign me a job.
I will have to rethink this job.
I have had to rethink my ethical beliefs on many things and I have determined the following:
Customers must give their credit card in advance now. They will be charged for the service call regardless. So even if I can't fix the issue (There is no such thing as 'Fix or Free' under the policies of the company) if I offer any solution, even telling the customer to call someone else, then they will be charged for an hour of service. This is morally wrong. I fixed nothing and the customer should not have to pay.
The company now has its own branded security suite, it will not guarantee any other product or service against viruses, trojans and spyware. This effectively ties my hands when it comes to offering the best solution for the situation. Again this is ethically wrong. Especially since I just checked on the package from the OEM of the software and found its not as well rated as I would like it to be. In other words its not all that good compared to the solutions I prefer.
Finally there is no such thing as a day off as I have learned these last two days. That's a personal issue with me. When I ask for a day off I want it off. I caved in for my first day I was supposed to have off but the second day I did not. Still they tried to assign me a job.
I will have to rethink this job.
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