Κατηγορία: Technology (Σελίδα 10 από 15)

The perfect linux desktop (part 1): Distribution & Task Bar

01/08/2010 / Stratos Laspas / 0 σχόλια

It's been a few many years since I started using Linux exclusively, as a desktop OS at home. I started out with the legendary InfoMagic 5-CD set in December 1995. It included Redhat 2.5 and a version of Debian dubbed 1.0 (evidently prematurely so, resulting in the first official Debian project release to be named 1.1 instead of 1.0).

I first used Redhat, then Redhat with Enlightenment, then Mandrake (because it was Redhat with KDE), then Mandriva. I started using KDE as soon as it came out and stayed with it, but that changed with Ubuntu. I have consistently used Ubuntu with Gnome since 2006, actively participating in user support groups and mailing lists. And then, in 2010, I switched to Linux Mint, for which I also participated in the Greek translation project for release 9, code named Isadora (based on Ubuntu 10.04).

Linux Mint uses Ubuntu's repositories as a base, but it has some unique characteristics, which make it special. MintMenu is one, the package manager and also the Control Center are a couple others… add to that the look & feel, the choice of pre-installed apps, and the magic of the first impression you get when you boot this OS… Everything just works, and with a lot of finesse, at that! During the first half hour of use, I don't remember how many times I went "ah, at last, someone thought of that"! As an added bonus, you get a very involved and enthusiastic community of users. When you log on to the desktop, you get a pop up window with support links. One of them is on-line support. I only had to use it once, but still I was thoroughly impressed when I got a definitive reply in under 60 seconds!! Maybe it was just luck, but that sealed the deal for me…

So, this first post is going to be very simple. It's just about how to come to this starting desktop screen (click to enlarge):

First of all, go to the Linux Mint download page and download the version that best suits your system. If your system's memory is 4gb or more, then you may be better off with the 64bit version. Otherwise, go with the 32bit one, usually it runs more smoothly. Mind you, that goes for all distributions and it has to do with 3rd party vendor 64bit support, not Linux itself. And, just to be on the safe side, run the live version on your machine, before actually installing it. That way you'll know beforehand that everything will work after installation.

You'll notice that Linux Mint only has one taskbar, on the bottom of the page, with the amazing MintMenu embedded, which is a good thing. Having only one main taskbar saves some precious vertical space on wide-screen laptops, which is also a good thing. MintMenu is an intuitive, advanced, well organized, feature-rich and easy to use main menu, and you'll never go back once you've tried it (originally forked from SLAB, the Gnome main menu developed by Novell for Suse Linux Enterprise Desktop). As you can see, I have added a few items to the taskbar, such as "language indicator", "force quit", "tomboy notes", "system monitor", etc. I also removed the window list, since it is embedded in… what comes next:

Now, I do like how streamlined and smooth Linux Mint is, but I also I like my desktop to be just a little bit fancy, so I can't go without Cairo-Dock!! Cairo-Dock, or GLX-Dock, is the king of Linux docks. It started out along with all other similar projects in Linux, which imitated the functionality of… yes, the Mac OS X Dock! And why not? Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery! However, this one really surpassed them all, but that's just my own humble opinion.

So, we want both Mint's taskbar and GLX-Dock, together. GLX-Dock will not waste vertical space, since it auto-hides itself if the active window overlaps it. In the screenshot above, you see the Mint main taskbar on top and GLX-Dock on the bottom.

Second (group of) step(s) is:

Right click on Mint taskbar, hit "properties" and change its position to "top". That was easy.

Now, you can go to the GLX-Dock installation instructions page, on which you will also find some very helpful usage advice. You can spend hours and hours of experimentation and joy, fine tuning GLX-Dock and its plugins, themes and modules, using the very helpful in-line instructions. However, as I have come to realize, the standard setup is just fine. So, you can just follow the instructions to install it from the package manager, and you're good to go!

However, if you are, as I am, an upgrade freak, you can use the weekly repository, which is quite stable, but still cutting edge, so beware (use the instructions for Ubuntu and mind the note for Linux Mint).

Enjoy!

Update November 2010

Linux Mint 10, codenamed Julia is out. Mint continues to be my favorite distribution and Julia has been improved quite a lot. So, the post still holds true.!

Rockbox really rocks!!

16/07/2010 / Stratos Laspas / 0 σχόλια

: Image via Wikipedia

I own a Sansa Fuze (v.1) player, which is a great little device and really good value for money. However, I used to find the interface a bit limiting, having previously used an iPod for a few months (which I ditched for limited media support)…. Well, limitations are no more!

From Rockbox.org:

What is Rockbox? Why should I use it?

Rockbox is an open source firmware replacement for a growing number of digital audio players. It has been in development since 2001 and receives new features, tweaks and fixes every day to provide you with the best possible music listening experience. Rockbox aims to be considerably more functional and efficient than your device's stock firmware while remaining easy to use and customizable. It is a goal to not only offer a wide range of functionality, but where possible make sure that this functionality is presented in a consistent manner that is easy to learn and use. It is written by users, for users.
Another top priority of Rockbox is audio playback quality. Rockbox, for most models, includes a wider range of sound settings than that device's original firmware. A lot of work has been put into making Rockbox sound the best it can, and improvements are constantly being made. All models have access to a large number of plugins, including many games, applications, and graphical demos.
You can load different configurations quickly for different purposes (e.g. a large font for in your car, different sound settings for at home). You can even customize your While Playing Screen to display only and exactly what you want to see when your music is playing. In addition, Rockbox features a wide range of languages, and all supported models also have the ability to talk to you – menus can be voiced and filenames spelled out or spoken.

And here's a very comprehensive feature comparison table!

EU makes sure Fusion Energy Plant’s construction continues…

15/07/2010 / Stratos Laspas / 0 σχόλια

News posted on BBC about ITER (Latin for “The Way”, but also “International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor”):

EU member states agree on Iter funding shortfall

I’ll elaborate on this issue… it is my personal opinion that this project is of crucial importance to the future of mankind… after all, abundance of energy is a vital ingredient of a Post-Scarcity Economy (from WikiPedia):

Post scarcity or post-scarcity describes a hypothetical form of economy or society, often explored in science fiction, in which things such as goods, services and information are free, or practically free. This would be due to an abundance of fundamental resources (matter, energy and intelligence), in conjunction with sophisticated automated systems capable of converting raw materials into finished goods, allowing manufacturing to be as easy as duplicating software.

What would thermonuclear fusion power plants run on? Well, two Hydrogen isotopes, Deuterium and Tritium. Deuterium comes from plain sea water (therefore inexhaustible), while Tritium is produced within the reaction itself, by interaction with Lithium (a very common light metal). Future generations may run solely on Deuterium.

HowStuffWorks:

With current technology, we can only achieve the temperatures and pressures necessary to make deuterium-tritium fusion possible. Deuterium-deuterium fusion requires higher temperatures that may be possible in the future. Ultimately, deuterium-deuterium fusion will be better because it is easier to extract deuterium from seawater than to make tritium from lithium. Also, deuterium is not radioactive, and deuterium-deuterium reactions will yield more energy.

ITER.org:

In fact, a fusion reaction is about four million times more energetic than a chemical reaction such as the burning of coal, oil or gas. While a 1 000 MW coal-fired power plant requires 2.7 million tons of coal per year, a fusion plant of the kind envisioned for the second half of this century will only require 250 kilos of fuel per year, half of it Deuterium, half of it Tritium.

Deuterium can be distilled from all forms of water. It is a widely available, harmless, and virtually inexhaustible resource. In every litre of seawater, for example, there are 33 milligrams of Deuterium. Deuterium is routinely produced for scientific and industrial applications.

Fusion energy is also eco-friendly and safe (ITER):

In addition, fusion emits no pollution or greenhouse gases. Its major by-product is Helium: an inert, non-toxic gas. There is no possibility of a ‘run-away’ reaction because the conditions for fusion are precise – any alteration in these conditions and the plasma cools within seconds and the reaction stops. Fusion has the capacity to furnish large-scale quantities of energy, with a low burden of waste for future generations.

By the way, has anyone connected the dots with U.S.A.’s strategy?

On one hand, they continuously set obstacles in planning and funding the ITER (which is in the making since 1985). The first time, just when all the specs were finally in place, after the successful completion of the European JET project, Americans simply pulled the plug, by abandoning the project! It took the Europeans 20 years to come up with the needed funds, that U.S.A. had withdrawn. And in 2003, just as soon as EU did come up with the money (which meant that they could go ahead and develop the technology all by themselves), U.S.A. rejoined the project! But it did not stop there; for example, in 2008 they zeroed their participation on the budget on ITER (letter of the Under Secretary of Energy to the Director General of ITER), and so on, and so forth. This way, any development of ITER and research advancement towards materialization of thermonuclear fusion energy, has been “postponed” for well over two decades.

On the other hand, during the same period of time, U.S.A. has been busy, trying by all means to secure for themselves complete control over access to the world’s largest remaining oil reserves and distribution channels… Get the picture of the “power game”? When a foreseeable expiration date arrives for oil reserves, and fusion energy is not yet available, who’s gonna be in control?

Anyway, today’s news was the the EU is going to contribute an extra 1.4bn euros (USD 1.8bn) this year, just to make sure that the project keeps going:

Additional funds needed to construct the ITER fusion reactor will have to come from within the EU’s budget, member states have said. The French-based machine will prove the concept of harvesting energy from the fusion of hydrogen nuclei – the same process at the heart of the Sun. Iter has seen its baseline price tag rise dramatically since a consortium of nations green lit the project in 2006. The extra 1.4bn euros will cover a shortfall in building costs in 2012-13.

Update, July 2015

The Chinese seem to be getting tired of ITER postponements. They are going to invest billions into building their own version, which is supposedly going to be even bigger than ITER and it’s estimated to be ready by 2030.

China spends big on nuclear fusion as French plan falls behind

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The perfect linux desktop (part 1): Distribution & Task Bar

Rockbox really rocks!!

What is Rockbox? Why should I use it?

EU makes sure Fusion Energy Plant’s construction continues…

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