Monday, August 31, 2009

Are You Ready For Linux?

                If you are not yet running Linux then I urge you to read this post from Linuxlock by Helios. I don't think I have ever read a more compelling argument to use Linux or anything except what comes out of Redmond. I will say no more as I cannot do justice in commenting on the inspiring post.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

My Favorite Time Waster

We can't work all the time so I like to play Shisen. It is an easy to learn tile game in the same fashion as Mahjong with some slight differences. The object is to clear the board of the tiles in as little time as possible. Easy yes? Not always since the tiles must not be more than three straight lines apart and after staring at the board for a little while all the tiles seem to blend together. But I find it very challenging to try and complete the task quickly. My personal best is 4:18. This version is XShisen found in the Debian repositories. There are different variations out there and I have played a few. For me this one is the most difficult and challenging making it the funnest to play. Give it a try and tell us what your favorite time waster happens to be.

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Ubuntu 9.10 Alpha 4 Installed

Well it did not take the folks at Canonical long to release Alpha 4 for version 9.10. They must have read my rant on the lack of Firefox 3.5. Ha ha. All kidding aside they did include Firefox 3.5.2 and I am quite pleased. I have yet to do anything else with the system except to say Ubuntu continues to improve in the wireless connection arena. Again allowing me to connect with my Dlink 652 wireless card at very good speeds simply by entering my pass phrase. That is all I have for now. Have you installed Alpha 4 or Alpha 3 of Ubuntu? What kind of experience did you have? Post your comments or send me an email (email address is in the profile to hopefully cut down on spam) about your experiences with Ubuntu or any other Linux distribution..

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Linux vs Windows 7 Revealed

We are always comparing things when a new one comes around. Now with Windows 7 on the verge of official release comparing Linux vs Windows 7 seems like the natural thing to do. I have only installed a RTM version of Windows 7 to one machine and it was not the experience Microsoft would have wanted to promote. But the folks at TuxRadar have been putting Windows 7 to the test since it was released as a beta. Read their comparison of Linux to Windows 7 and judge for yourself which is the best for you. I personally will not be running Windows 7 on my hardware which is six years old and did meet the minimum specs from Microsoft. I found it much to slow and unresponsive on my hardware. So the bottom line for me is to stick with Windows XP and a couple of different flavors of Linux. If you have done your own comparisons let's here about them in the comments.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Parted Magic Updated To 4.4

Parted Magic version 4.4 was released on the 13th of this month. I carry the live USB version with me all the time since you never know when you will need the tools. Updating the USB drive was very simple process. After downloading the pmagic-usb-4.4.zip file (mirrors here) simply unpack the files to your hard drive. Copy the folders boot and pmagic to your thumb drive replacing the current files. That's it your done with an upgrade. If you do not yet have this on a USB key follow the instructions on the documentation pages. If you prefer a bootable cd Parted Magic has an iso for that too. I did test my upgrade and the boot was clean and quick. One of the additions I noticed was Super Grub Disk in the boot menu. Super Grub Disk is a great tool for editing the Grub menu. I have used it on more than one occasion when I had a non-booting machine with a Grub error. I think Super Grub Disk deserves a post of its own so let's get back to Parted Magic. For the complete list of updates visit the homepage and drop a donation in the author's PayPal button to ensure this great set of tools will continue to be developed.

Monday, August 10, 2009

New To Linux? Read This Now

I stumbled upon a post over at makeuseof.com highlighting five free books for Linux newbs. I have seen the Ubuntu Pocket Guide before but not the others. This is definitley something worth downloading if you want to learn Linux from a book versus the web only. Everyone has different learning styles and for some, myself included, reading a book is a very pratical way to learn. I know I am going to load up these tools to my thumb drive.

Sunday, August 9, 2009

Splitting the Blog This Week

I have decided to split this blog into two separate blogs. Techbits will remain focused on Linux. Windows information will be transferred to my new blog Working With Windows. Please join me in the discussions and posts dedicated to improving the usability and experience of Windows.

Saturday, August 8, 2009