Switched to Linux
This probably won’t come as a surprise to anyone who reads this blog on a regular basis. To those who don’t, it may…I don’t know. Anyhow I am switching cold turkey to Linux. I have been a Windows guy for years but I along with many others have become frustrated with Windows in general. I was also looking for a change because, as a tech, I work with Windows machines all day long and quite frankly, by the time I get home, I am fairly sick of them.
Right off the bat I realized that the switch was going to be painful. As someone who has spent years as a Windows power user, I have hundreds of programs that I have grown to rely on that I no longer have the ability to use in a new OS. This has actually become a really good thing though because I have been able to take stock and eliminate a lot of the Windows programs I needed.
The first groups of software that I realized I wouldn’t need were the anti-virus and maintenance software that Windows relies on. I have no need to clean out junk files or my registry, I don’t have to worry about viruses, and really don’t have to do much maintenance at all. This not only takes one more task off of my plate but it also offers a substantial performance increase because the software that was running all the time, scanning files in real time, and monitoring network traffic is no longer there.
The next thing I had to think about was finding replacements for software that I still needed. This was actually easier than I expected. By default, most distros of Linux come with software that covers all of the functionality that we have come to expect in Windows. I had already switched to Google Docs for word processing so I didn’t need software for that but for those who do, OpenOffice.org is a great alternative. I have managed to find software for pretty much everything except for video editing. There are several good editors for Linux but nothing that I have found in the Fedora repositories. My one complaint as far as the basic system goes is the fact that samba, as a server, does not generally come preinstalled. Networking with non-linux computers can be a bit of a pain for beginners.
Now for my big problem and the reason that I left my Windows partition alone. None of my games will run correctly in Linux. The problem is most likely due to a driver issue but nonetheless I have been so far unsuccessful in my attempts at running Windows only software. The good news is that between virtual machines and dual booting, I have a temporary fix for the problem while I work to get it actually resolved.
My Kindle
Recently I have recieved several recommendations that I purchase a Kindle. For those who don`t know, the Kindle is Amazon’s ereader. Honestly, I was rather skeptical as to the usefulness of a greyscale, non-touch device in a world populated with devices like the iPad and ots Android and Windows phone equivalents. I have been pleasantly surprised, however with the performance of this device in my rather demanding workload.
That said,there are a few things that I find frustrating. The most annoying thing about the device to me is its lack of number keys and common punctuation keys on the physical keyboard. For these keys,you must navigate through a symbols menu. It is understandable though when you consider the fact that its intended use is as an ereader and not a web browser. I am also having to get used to moving a mouse with arrow keys rather than a moue or touch pad. My only real beef with the device is the fact that the screen takes a split second to render an image in greyscale. This is only a mild annoyance.
My very favorite feature and my reason for purchasing the device in the first place is the fact that every Kindle 3G comes with free 3G for life. This is a very useful feature for someone like me wo is consantly in need of an internet connection werever I am. I do have to note though that the bilt in browser is very simple and has no flash support. that really isn’t a problem though considering the device uses 3G.
That’s about it for this post. If you didn’t already guess, this post was entirely on my Kindle on my free 3G.
Windows and Linux…A Conglomeration of Thoughts.
What follows are a few of the Linux related thoughts that have been buzzing around in my brain. They should probably be broken up but oh well. We’ll figure that out lated. WordPress has been updated btw…
Topic 1: Sluggishness
Over the past months I’ve been using Fedora 14 Linux on both my laptop and my work laptop and thus the majority of my computing. Honestly I haven’t missed windows at all. With the exception of a few games and possibly some of my video software I have all of my applications or their equivalents and am really missing nothing. What I am missing (if you could call it that) is the sluggishness. Right now I am typing on a netbook with 2GB of ram and an atom processor that is moving much more quickly than my tri-core desktop with 4.5GB of ram running windows 7.
The interesting thing is that graphically, the way I have gnome configured, it’s actually looking just as good if not better than Windows. In fact, the only GUI element I miss is the snap feature in Windows 7. Fortunately for me, gnome 3 includes window snapping by default and thus eliminates this problem.
Topic 2: Linux in the Home
Now I know that over the years linux has been the OS for nerds and those who know their way around a computer at a level above the average user so I decided to do a little testing. Over the last months I have reccommended Linux Mint to any client that is still using Windows XP. This is really a win win considering Microsoft wants XP dead as much as I do. To this date, I have not had a single client refuse this trial. First let me say that Linux Mint is one of the most polished Linux distro as far as having most important settings in a GUI. It also has a menu that is similar to the Windows Start Menu. What I have found is that these clients, most of whom are elderly and could barely function with XP are really enjoying Mint. There have been a few minor problems with finding things in the GUI but these were easily resolved. On the other hand there have been quite a few MAJOR problems that have been eliminated by the switch. These clients are no longer plagued by malware, update notifications, sluggishness, and general rot that they had to deal with before.
The bottom line is that Linux is ready for the home. It will take some getting used to but I would highly reccommend that Windows XP users seriously consider the switch. So far, everyone to whom I have gived Linux Mint has loved it. I hope you will find the same to be true for you and your friends. If you would like to download Mint go to http://www.linuxmint.com/ I would reccommend Mint debian because it is a tier two rolling distro meaning that it is very close to it’s parent, Debian, and will never have to be upgraded manually.
Please be advised that Mint is not the only distro that is very user friendly. openSUSE Linux is also very user friendly with a start-menu like interface. For those coming from the mac world, Ubuntu with it’s Unity Interface might be a beter choice. Also if you prefer the KDE environment Pardus is also a viable choice. I would caution, however, against the Linux distros that claim to/attempt to emulate the Windows GUI. Most of these are completely useless and very difficult to use.
Topic 3: KDE vs GNOME: Which GUI can I taaaake?
There are two main desktop environments for the average Linux user. These are Gnome and KDE. There are several differences between the two which I will attempt to outline.
Gnome: Gnome is by far my favorite desktop environment for Linux. The recent release of Gnome 3 has made some major changes most of which will be appealing to new users. As far as implimentation goes, I could see both Windows and Mac users happiy using Gnome. It’s pretty simple. The only problem I have with Gnome 3 is the fact that it is very graphically intense meaning that there are alot of visual effects, which translates to efficiency lag if you are someone who is used to moving extremely quickly through the old Gnome 2 style drop-down menu interface. Luckily there are still plenty of ditros using Gnome 2.
KDE: KDE takes a much different approach to the desktop environment than any of it’s competitors. It is entirely module based meaning that instead of one desktop folder, you may have many folders in modules on what could be considered the desktop. You can also have gadgets similar to Windows. This might be a bit of a shock at first but after getting used to it, this method of approaching the desktop can actually be quite useful. To give a general idea, folders on the desktop are treated similarly to the way the Windows program, Fences, handles desktop organization.
Whichever way you go there will be things to get used to but overall both desktop environments have alot to offer and are very easy to master for beginners and experts alike.
If you have any questions feel free to contact me. I am always glad to be of service.
Been a long time…Going too far
No I didn’t forget you. Actually quite the contrary. This blog has been nagging at the back of my mind for some time now but alas the time has been absent. School is wrapping up and with that comes the hoard of end of the year projects. Interestingly enough I have been swamped in my tech life as well with three new computers to fix, all of which have very complex problems. So I take my few minutes between work and home to ponder a few things.
My recent thoughts have focused around the year end awards show in theatre. Essentially it is a night of comedy and parodies of the shows that we have produced throughout the year as well as the mannerisms of some of the people in the class. Honestly the show has quite a bit of potential but sadly all that seems to have been wasted.
What started out as a good show, in my opinion, has morphed into a perverted monster. What once was funny has now been turned to absolute chaos and foolishness. Notice that there is a difference between fun and foolishness.
At this point I would hate to hear what my principal will think the night he comes to watch. He certainly won’t see any of the professionalism that we claim to possess or even a shred of composure.
What really bothers me is the mean spirit in a lot of the jokes being told. Honestly, I don’t find it funny to openly bash a person in such a public fashion. Now I’m not saying that a little picking is bad as long as it is fun for everyone but what I’m talking about is straight up bashing. That should never be allowed. The sad thing is that the teacher, the authority figure that should be reigning in the wildness of less mature high school students, is right at the forefront.
So with all that said what’s the moral of the story. It is simply this. Joking is one thing. Bashing is another. Be very careful not to cross the line and if you notice someone who is crossing the line, take them aside and make them aware of it. A good amount of people do not even know that they are being offensive.
So Bin Laden is dead…
I have been thinking recently about the death of Al-Qaeda leader, Osama Bin Laden. Most of my thoughts have revolved around the reaction that we Americans have had to his death. Honestly I’m glad he’s dead in that He was the heartless killer of many and likely many more in the future and yet deep inside myself I feel a kind of sadness. This sadness stems from the fact that no matter what he did in life, he was a human being who I as a Christian am called to love. Christ died for his sins just as much as he died for mine and never did He make me judge of the sins of others.
All that said, I am by no means saying that his death was unwarranted or that our soldiers were wrong in killing him. He had to be killed because he would not cease in his mission to harm those who didn’t agree with him. He had to be removed to protect those around him. What I do believe is wrong is the attitude of vengeance that I and those around me seem to possess. Even as I write this post I have had to change wording multiple times in order to avoid communicating a sense of superiority and vengeance. Yes he deserved to die but that is not my place to say as a fellow sinner who deserves to die just as much as he did.
I leave with this thought. What degree of sin is to be accepted as good enough to get by. Who is to say who does and does not deserve a given consequence. The bible says hate is the equivalent of murder. That is a heavy concept to process.
Rich Mullins…
I’ve been listening to alot of Rich Mullins music lately and thought I would share. This is one of the few Christian artists who I believe actually get it. So many, it seems, have been caught up in the secular aspect of music. Enjoy! This is the first of a series that covers the entire concert.
God does not work in our time table…thank goodness…
Before I start, yes I’ve been a bit busy lately with end of the year projects and TAKS (don’t get me started). I fixed the DNS issue affecting the domains collabablemedia.com and external-life.net so hopefully no problems on the server side for a while. Anyhow now to the post…
The state of Texas has recently been in a drought. It has gotten to the point that our governor has requested that everyone pray for rain. My family gladly complied and recently we have had torrential rains in the Dallas area. Interestingly enough, a few days later we were praying for the rain to stop because my father was going to be riding his motorcycle home. This got me thinking about the sheer volume of requests that we throw out at God on a daily basis and what would happen if He began saying yes to every request.
One of the first things that we learn about people is that, in a group, it is impossible to make everyone happy. Those who try usually end up running themselves into the ground. Fortunately, God’s focus is on taking care of our needs, not making sure that every little want is satisfied. Let’s face it. Things like rain will always be inconvenient for someone, but it is a vital process in the survival of mankind. Unfortunately, all we seem to see from our very small view is the effect it has on us.
All that said, I’m not saying that we should all just quit praying because there’s just no point. Far from it! Prayer is a vital part of Christian life and an incredibly powerful tool against the enemy. I would encourage, however, that we stop treating God like a genie who’s sole purpose is to fill our every desire and rather treat Him as the glorious, powerful King of the universe that He is!
Using file structure that makes sense…
I was working on backing up the files on several computers today and I ran across an annoyance that has really bothered me in the past. This annoyance is, of course, the use of illogical file structure. Thus I will lay out the ideal file structure after making a few notes on some of the reasons people use non-standard file structures. Please note that I assume you are using Windows Vista/7. Windows XP structure is slightly different but the same basic principles apply. I will be using a tree view to diagram any structure that I show. Here is an example:
C:\
-Sub-folder
–Sub-sub-folder
Files paths will be shown as follows:
C:\sub-folder\sub-sub-folder
First a few notes:
Security by obscurity: This is not security. Making your folder structure highly confusing just doesn’t work unless you’re trying to hide things from your baby brother. If you are that worried about the security of your files just encrypt them. It’s easy and also free although depending on your skill level those two may not coexist. One of the best free encryption programs is TrueCrypt.
Lack of time: I have heard a seemingly endless number of people over the years tell me that they just don’t have time to maintain a logical file structure. To an extent I can relate. The only thing I have to say (and this applies to me as well) is that there is really no time not to. I use a program called Fences that essentially allows me to dump massive amounts of files on my desktop. This is good in that I’m not dumping it in random folders around my computer but bad in that my desktop (or specifically my catch all fence) becomes so cluttered that I find it difficult to find any of the files stored within. The real question here is do I have the time NOT to keep my files in order? Every few months I am forced to look through the several places I dump files and spend several hours organizing them. This is a serious waste of time that is generally unnecessary. A few extra seconds every now and then could easily avoid those hours of searching/cleanup.
I need to have everything right there: To put it bluntly: no you don’t. There are many ways to keep a logical file structure and keep things accessible at the same time. This can be achieved by the use of shortcuts, quick launch, and a dock (all in moderation). If you are looking for a full featured dock check out rocket dock.
I am artistic. Leave me alone: Honestly it is much easier to work in a clean space. A good deal of the people using this excuse are also using software that functions much better when using a logical file structure. I constantly see the artistic people in my life carrying around project files to show off that are full of broken links to files on another computer that didn’t get copied because they were in a different directory. The bottom line is that if you use multiple computers, a logical file structure is a must.
All that said on to the structure:
By default all user files are stored in C:\Users\[username]. It is broken down further into Desktop, Documents, Pictures, Videos, Music, and Downloads. This is a nice foundation for our structure. It should be self explanatory what goes where. If you have a massive amount of files you may use a home server but that is beyond the scope of this article. If you work with projects that require a lot of files, take up a good amount of space, or can be archived I would recommend an external hard drive to store old projects.
As a general rule of thumb I set up my project directories in the following tree:
Documents
-[project name]
–Source Files
–Project Files
–Final
This allows me to separate files by type rather than dumping them all in one directory. This is especially useful when working with media. The same structure is fairly universal although some folder names might change. Note: If you do not have an external hard drive, an archives folder may be in order. That would look something like this:
Documents
-Archives
–2010
–2009
–etc…
If you have files that really don’t belong with any other files, do NOT just dump them in the Documents root. Instead create a Misc. Folder. That way hundreds of random documents don’t obscure your view of the folders that actually matter.
Final note:
On the desktop: The purpose of the desktop is to offer quick access to a select few items that you use very often. I tend to approach this concept with three columns of icons that, when full, tells me that it’s time for a cleanup. This allows me to see a clean and concise list of the icons I use every day and isn’t too busy to allow for quick access of folders. Just remember that when you finish a project it no longer belongs on the desktop. Move it to your documents or your archive folder.
Organizing Pictures/Videos: Your media player of choice will likely organize your music for you but Pictures/Videos you will have to create a useful file structure. I find it best to sub divide into categories based on location, then specific event. For recurring events a date is probably in order. The same rule applies here when dealing with misc. items.
I’ve been sick…well I still am…oh and some server updates…
In case y’all have been wondering where I’ve been lately I’ve been sick. In fact I haven’t left my bedroom since Friday. At this point I’ve got a decently bad cough but all other symptoms seem to be clearing up. Anyhow enough of the boring stuff.
In the last few hours I’ve been working on a some new server features as well as repairing those that broke during the Verizon debacle. I have repaired the mail server so that it can send and receive emails again and have added a web-mail client for all domains, located at http://mail.tragicstudios.com.
By the end of this week I hope to add survival minecraft server to [FOB] as well as real-time web maps for both. At some point I will be converting the minecraft classic server over to McForge simply because McForge has a far better method of traveling between worlds and quite a few anti-griefing features that do not exist in f-craft. In brief testing it also seems to have a performance advantage.
I hope to be back to my regular posting schedule sometime soon depending on my workload in the coming week or so.
We’re back…
Well that was fun. Tragic Studios and thus all of our hosted sites just came back from a serious outage. Verizon made a nice little billing mistake which ended up in the temporary disconnection of my internet. W00t! Anyhow everything is back up now and I have learned a valuable lesson in paying close attention to the companies I rely on. Have a great day everyone!