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One of the myths that are out there , is that Linux runs on "everything". Technically, this is true, Linux does "RUN" on even the smallest and most underpowered devices (Appliances like routers, your Tivo and some cellphones) and sure enough, geeks manage to run Linux on lighter computers like a 486, just to prove their point. The question is : What kind of "Linux" are they running on those machines. I mean : Linux is a very broad term when you think about it. It can range from command-line-Linux only, to a full desktop version with tons of apps and cool COMPIZ effects, to even a super cluster rendering the next pixar movie. There are many "variations" and "incarnations" of Linux, and depending on what you work with , they sure don't run on "everything". There is a difference between 'application-like bare minimum Linux versions' that do one thing and one thing well, there is the "mid range" that lets you do about everything as long as you are happy with the command line. Finally there is the "everyday Linux" that lets us live our life on the web inside a graphical user interface with common applications like Firefox, Flash etc. In the next series of articles I'll write up some personal experiences on working with these several "incarnations" of Linux. I'll show you what i used them for, and what my personal "record" is on lowest hardware requirements.
The Bare Minimum Linux Distro called ... FREESCO.
Sure , you can run Linux on a 468, if you only install the Kernel (the heart of the operating system) and a VI or Nano editor. What you have then is a glorified typewriter (that is if you add in some network support) and I've been known to use "light" versions of Linux like that to get stuff done. Back when I worked for the educational department was in need of some network printers. Most printers they had lying around came with a parallel port connector and where only useful when they where hooked up to a "local" computer. Pretty shitty if you wanted to use them as a network printer, so other students could print to that printer via the network. In those days people would "sneaker net" their files around using Floppy disks from computer to computer. I had to put and end to that and get those printers networked. Sharing out the printers on the local computers ? not done. (Systems would be shut down and printers would be unreachable). Network printers ? no money for that. Network-printing boxes ( Parallel to Lan adapter ) ? No money for that either. The only thing I had lying around in plenty of number where old 486 computers. Time for some Linux Magic : FREESCO A Linux based distribution that allowed you to turn an old computer into a router AND a print server. The only thing you needed was : 8 MEGAbytes of ram, one or more network cards, a parallel port an .. a floppy drive. No harddisk required. This baby booted completely off a floppy drive and had easy (command line) wizards to follow in order to setup your old box as a router, a firewall or a print server. So this meant all the old machines I had could be turned into network print servers ! The devices could be turned on and off at random without damage to the operating system (everything was stored on a floppy) I could easily backup the ENTIRE print server (all i needed to do was 'copy the floppy' AND the thing played "money money money" by Abba when it finished booting ! Bare minimum Linux to the rescue.
My lowest hardware record : 486mhz processor, 8 megabytes of Edo Ram, 1 PCI network card, 1 Floppy drive.
Freesco Linux. A router, Firewall and a print server using nothing but a floppy drive.
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I could say life has been getting in the way, I could say I have been busy with work, I could say I've been abducted by aliens. But only two out of those three statements would be correct. The truth is I've been getting a masters degree in procrastination and have been a bad bad blogger. So without further ado, lets kick back into rattling on the keyboard. Quite a bit has been going down the last few weeks, and you'll be pleased to know that i've been working on some new projects and some new technology to "tune into your way of life". Its not always easy to find 'new stuff' to talk / podcast / screencast about, but the last few weeks of silence have brought up some interesting topics that we can talk about in the upcoming weeks. For those of you who realy want their "Knightwise-Fix" to trickle into their digital vains on a daily basis you can always check out my twitter feed (that is very active) on www.twitter.com/knightwise
But before we kick off into the new series of articles and stuff, I want to take a moment to wish my good friend Dave Gray a " Get well Soon " from the heart. He's my long time digital friend and we've been co-hosting both the Global geek and the Aussigeek podcast for a few years now. He's had some serious health issues the last couple of weeks and all our hearts and thoughts go out to Dave and his family. So "Get Well Soon " buddy !
But since one picture is kinda dull, I decided to rally up some more Belgians to wish Dave Well . Its amazing how friendly, loving and caring all of them where. You can join in and send your own picture to the AGP Forums here .
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 A calm Sunday afternoon. The ideal moment to sit down behind my little Acer Aspire Net-book and punch out some of the thoughts and idea's that have been on my mind for the last week. A busy week I must say. A week filled with work and meetings and a lot of rushing about. Clocking up some more miles in the car and spending quite a bit of time being "out and about". The cool part about that is that you need to get creative when it comes to your "on-line life". Most of us have an on-line social scene that centres around the moments where we sit "behind" the computer. Werther at home or at work, our digital lifestyle is closely bonded with the keyboard and mouse that we are using at that moment. As soon as we step outside ( or even wander near the coffee machine ) small physical space represents the giant gap between our 'Analogue' (I refuse to call them "real") lives and our "Digital" Lives. Or does it really ?
To me that mobility started to fade away when I got my first smart-phone that had a GPRS connection (my good friend the Palm Treo). It was one of the first cellphones I owned until it , quite literally "died" and I was quite attached to it. Not because of the hardware (it was a decent piece of kit) but because of the fact it bridged the digital life I had behind the keyboard, with my real life when I was out and about in off-line-land. From that moment on, with slow GPRS pop3 pull-mail as my only lifeline, something fundamentally changed in the way I used computers and more importantly, in the way I experienced the internet.
Fast forward to last weekend, when I traded up my trusty Blackberry Curve 8300 for a Blackberry Bold 9000. A streak of luck would have it that I found a busy businessman with a taste for the newest gadgets who was going to buy a Blackberry 9700. In order to scrounge up some extra cash he put his Bold 9000 up for sale on the internet and I was the first one to call him about the offer. The cool little device was only 5 months old and came with a one-year warranty and plenty of extras. (Deluxe casing etc.). I was looking out for a BOLD because I had enjoyed my Curve very much over the last year but was itching to try out a new toy.
What I did NOT expect when I got my hands on the BOLD, was the fact that is was so radically different from any smart-phone I had owned prior. Ok, With the Blackberry Curve came the advent of Push-email (My Knightwise.com mailbox in my pocket) and that in itself meant the end of using my personal cellphone as a 'voice communicator'. Next came übertwitter on the Blackberry (another great step forward) and next came the Googletalk client. With these three applications I had a pretty firm tie to the internet, no matter WHERE I went. Downside was of course the poor speed (GPRS Only) and the limited data plan I have (100 meg's a month).
With the Bold however this changed. The device in itself is bigger and comes with a much better screen. Its a lot faster then the Curve, and upgrading the internal SD card from 1 to 4 gigabyte did give me a lot more storage. But what surprised me the most was the fact that this baby could run several applications at once (multitasking) and came with a Wifi connection. This last part (something that I had always scoffed at in a smart-phone, (Who needs wifi on a device with a numerical interface') turned out to be yet another killer feature for this device. What happened is that I started to browse the applications on the Blackberry Appworld and downloaded not only the Facebook app, Ubertwitter, GoogleVoice and Googletalk, but I also went for MSN messenger, Flickr uploader and some others. I had some of these applications on the Curve, but the combination of Wifi connectivity at home AND multitasking brought on a whole new way of "connecting" to my digital life.
Where at first I would have my Netbook next to me on the couch, with Skype, MSN, Twitter and Email open, these applications have now been permanently moved to the Blackberry. I no longer run an MSN/Adium/Pidgin client to manage my MSN, Googletalk and Facebook contacts. Those applications are now running on the Bold. 24/7. Suddenly these apps have been "liberated" from the computer and now permanently reside in my back pocket. Same with Twitter. When I'm behind the computer I'll probably fire up Tweetdeck, but only as an "extra" way of interacting with my Twitterstream. The combination of the screen real estate, processor power, multitasking abilities and wifi/3G connection of the Blackberry has turned the device in a full-blown "communicator" instead of a "phone with email". I don't really see the Blackberry as a "Phone with extras". I look at it as a "personal communicator" with the 'extra option' to make voice-calls. The application Nimbuzz (that I found thanks to @meon) now even ties all my major social "comlines" (MSN, Skype, Facebook and Googletalk) into one single IM application. As I find more and more applications on the app store I'm feeling myself become more and more independent of just not 'one computer" but 'any computer'. While finding new tools for the Blackberry (I've even found a stand alone podcatcher that will auto-download my podcasts over wifi and store them on the SD-card) I've pondered ditching the Ipod touch (and its need to "sync podcasts) every morning in favour of the Blackberry. But the drain on the battery is becoming the showstopper.
However, aside from it all, I'm amazed at the way we change the way we interact with the digital world now "devices" become more and more powerful. Pretty soon "classic phone-calls" will be a thing of the past and trees can grow without fear of being cut down to make "books" out of them thanks to ebook readers. But what about our computers ? Will we see a drastic change in the way we interact with our digital lives ? Will the Ipads and the Smartphones take over the communicational aspects and will a computer regress into an "interaction terminal" for tasks that require a bigger screen ? Or are down the path suggested by @thenos100 when he asked us the question : Would you use a Smartphone with an external keyboard, screen and mouse ? Its a valid question that requires some pondering.
Perhaps its time to say "bye bye computer"?
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Docu-Cast : DC005 "Configuring Ubuntu 9.10 and making it look Sexy."
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Ubuntu is a great operating system if you think about it. You can download it for free and it comes bundled with a whole lot of applications out of the box. Adding software is easy and the operating system is extremely versatile when it comes down to using it. You can run it on older hardware, use it a server or a workstation .. and stuff like that.
The one downside that there is to installing Ubuntu Linux from the CD is that it does not come with a LOT of software. Sure its very easy to point and click and get all of the stuff you need via the software center. However : Installing non-free software like MP3 and DVD playback ability, Some applications like for example Google Chrome and Skype is not always possible using this method. So we've pointed you to the right places to go in this manual.
But then you are still stuck with a "classic Ubuntu Interface" that does not really look all that sexy. Well , let's take care of that too then. We are going to take a "plain vanilla" installation of Ubuntu 9.10 and add all the extra software you require PLUS show you some tips and tweaks how to make it look ... Sexy. So if you want to take your installation of Ubuntu to the next level .. Follow along ! |
- A Vanilla install.
- Adding Repositories.
- Enabling DVD and MP3 playback, flash etc.
- Adding extra software
- Installing Picasa, Google Chrome,Skype etc.
- Configuring Cairo Dock.
- Making it look Sexy.
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Download the episode by clicking on the Icon. |
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