Beware of KMail's Mailing List Management

Just last week, I unintentionally sent a very very personal email to Ubuntu-PH's Mailing List. Imagine my surprise when Ulinskie pointed this out... My first reaction was !@**$###%!! what the hell happened here. It was a very personal email and my friends was forwarded a copy and boy, I was way beyond embarassed with what happened. So anyway, I've been trying to determine what happened here, and it took me hours to find the culprit.. Oh yeah, it's KMail's Mailing List Management feature. Let's recreate that shall we.

So first open up Mailing List Management...

Then add an email address and OK out of that window.

Then select a message and click on Reply to All

And verify if it did add a mailing list email to the TO or CC field.

Yup, there it is.

KMail's Mailing List Management is very useful in specific situations, like you've filtered out incoming messages to go to a specific folder and wanted to  make sure that all emails you reply to on that folder gets forwarded to your Mailing List.

One word... Beware!

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HP NX9040 Notebook

My dad got himself an HP NX9040 Notebook. The first thing I always do is read the documentations while letting a new toy charge. I am pleased with my dad's decision to buy an OS-Free (actually Microsoft-Free) notebook and not let himself succumb to Draconian contracts and costly licenses. This is the first document that I read.

And according to this doc, there's no crappy microsoft software to deal with. It comes preinstalled with FreeDOS and if I want to install Linux, then I should first check out their "Certified Linux" (no Kubuntu though) page so I can choose a compatible distro... Ahhh, to hell with that, I'm really confident with  my Kubuntu Feisty even though its' still in beta. Why? I already have it installed on my desktop, the one where I'm typing this post in, and I can surely say that it's stable enough for everyday use (even server use) and the bugs that pop in and out are pretty trivial and once reported (and corrected, of course) it'll fix itself using the dist-upgrade manager.

Now, lets move on to the problem I have with this notebook...... the laptop is pre-installed with Windows XP Pro! Nope, no Serial, no Recovery Disc.... just the Driver disc. Damn! Anyway, my dad will be reporting this to proper authorities, so I guess I have to wait. Although I'm compelled to say that my dad is happy with this since he has Windows OS but without paying for it. Heh! I still don't like it. Anyway, I'll probably install Feisty once it's released to the public.... with my dad's permission of course!

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The most critical bug in Ubuntu

This is both humour and reality. This is the most critical Bug in Ubuntu, for the benefit of those who don't know: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+bug/1

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Linux Diaries' New Logo

I wanted to have a site logo so I decided to create one.

First, since this is a diary, I wanted to look for a diary image. Then, type in Linux Diaries as Courier (ahhh, typewriters).

Of course, since I can't integrate Kubuntu or Ubuntu's logo, I just decided to use Jucato's adaptation for Ubuntu-PH (mind you, this is not an approved nor authorized logo). Besides looking cool, it signifies our desire to use K/Ubuntu here in our country, as represented by the colors of our flag. Yeah, I did ask permission from Jucato, so don't worry.

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Flock: My newest Friend

My Firefox Add-ons now consists of:

• Adblock Plus
• Foxmarks Bookmark Synchronizer
• Gmail Space
• NoScript
• VideoDownloader
• and IE Tab if I'm in XP or 2000

Yup! As you can see, there's no more Performancing for Firefox and OakFlickr extensions installed because I got fed up of repeated parsing errors whenever I include the ampersand (&) anywhere (title or body).

Where do I turn to now? Flock of course (currently at v0.7.11 Beta). Yup, you read it. It's a beta software, but it's stable enough for me. Besides, it's still the same Mozilla Firefox that I love and also uses the same extension or add-ons.

Flock got a few "pogi" points for adding a blog editor, wherein posts could also be saved in your home directory, a newsreader (haven't tried that yet) and a Flickr & Photobucket upload featured on it. And once uploaded, you can just drag and drop the images to the blog editor. You could choose a large or small version and there's even BB Code integrated. But what I really love is the fact that I can resize the photos inside the blog editor. No more calculating ( Performancing for Firefox should take note of this). Plus the animation is cool!

So now I see Flock as a complete bloggers tool. My Firefox would have to serve its' intended purpose, as a research tool. Now that'll free up a few system resources and make my browsing faster. No more additional extensions to load when starting up. Nope, I'm not gonna ditch Firefox for Flock because I intend Flock to be just that, a bloggers tool.

Now, I hope Ubuntu would take note of this, since I wanted this nice piece of software in the repository... for convenience sake of course. The MOTU's might wait for a final version, so once I boot back to Kubuntu and Slackware, I'll be downloading and installing it there.

The praise: The developer's thought of everything. The wish: I wish they also include Picasa's Web Albums, that way, my blog is exclusively hosted by Google.

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Linux & Windows Drivers

If you're following my post, you'll know that my wife left me. So, what's a guy to do? My friends suggested a few things:

• Drink till I drop
• Go to a nightclub and knock myself out
• Get a hooker
• Party out of town
• Cry myself to sleep
• Find a pretty and alluring distraction
• Find a hobby
  
• and Tsongki!

Well, a conventional guy would just do the drinking and hooking but I decided to find a pretty and alluring distraction. So I bought an Intel D845EPI/D845GVSR motherboard, Intel Celeron 2.70GHz Processor, and a regular 266MHz DDR RAM upgrade which costs less then PhP 5,000.00.

So here comes the upgrade. First my Partitions:
hda1 - 13GB - Windows XP Professional
hda2 - 3GB - Windows 2000 Advanced Server
hda4 - 20GB - FAT Partition for my files
hda5 - 2GB - Swap Partition
hda6 - 13GB - Kubuntu 6.10
hda7 - 6GB - Slackware 11.0

Hey, you might ask why I still need Windows. I'm a C++ Programmer, and I got used to using MS Visual C++ 6. Microsoft... damn... hard habit to break. Although I rarely now boot back to XP. The Win2000 AS would be used to teach myself various Win Servers and their configuration as I have yet to get use to *Nix servers.

Kubuntu is my distro of choice and would be my near-future development workstation. Since I am currently unemployed, I might as well make good use of my time by teaching myself Java, Phyton, PHP/MySQL, XML, Joomla!, Eclipse, KDevelop, and of course, C++ in Linux. Unfortunately, most companies here in Baguio still requires Visual Basic 6 skills. I don't know where to go to or how to develop VB6 apps in Linux, but that's the least of my priorities right now... so I'll Google it out once I reached that point. For now, it's C++ in KDevelop and Java in Eclipse.

So first, I partitioned my 60GB HDD using Ranish Partition Manager packaged with Ultimate Boot CD. And then I install Windows 2000 before Windows XP, then Kubuntu and finally, Slackware.

I hit a few snags on Windows while I'm at it. Here's my list:

• Windows 2000 owned the C:\ drive. When I installed Windows XP, it was assigned E:\ and some programs I installed kept on installing to the 3GB partition (Windows 2000). I wanted XP to see itself as C:\ whenever it boots. So I have to run Ranish Partition Manager again and hide all the other partitions (highly recommended especially if you're going to install 2 or more Windows on 1 computer) and reinstalled XP. This workaround enabled XP to see it's home as C:\ and and assign 2000 to E:\. 2000 on the other hand, still sees itself as C:\
  
• Windows 2000 replaced the ntldr file on Windows XP and installed a dual-boot manager. The problem now was I can't boot to XP and the error kept on advising me to run the installation CD and recover it using the Recovery Console. No amount of fixboot and fixmbr, well, fixed it. This was fixed by replacing XP's ntldr with my other XP's ntldr file.
• Windows (both 2000 and XP) kept on deleting my ext3fs and swap partitions... that bitch!
• I have 2 Primary and 4 Logical Partitions. Windows kept on deleting my 3 other non-FAT and non-NTFS logical partition and made it into primary. I have to resize my Extended Partition using Partition Resizer (still using the Ultimate Boot CD) again and again.
• Both 2000 and XP kept on asking for drivers. Who would've thought that the installers only have the generic ones for video. I was surprised that I have to install the driver for ethernet since I assumed that both 2000 and XP has a generic 10/100 Ethernet drivers so all the other drivers can be downloaded via Windows Update (now Microsoft Update). In Kubuntu? I don't need drivers 'coz each and every one component already has a driver. So all I have to worry in Linux is install my free softwares.
  
• There is no such thing as batch install in Windows.... ever!
• Every single program, regardless of its' license (yes including the Open Source ones), would prompt a EULA page. I only encounter such EULA's in Linux when I install Flash, Java, and Opera.
• 2000 and XP almost always prompts you to "check on the FAT partition for consistency".
• An Intel "HardDisk Driver" (forgot the exact name) shuts down 2000 and XP... no prompts... just like unplugging the power cord from the back of the casing. Fixed by uninstalling Intel Application (or Program) Accelerator.
• Win32 Application installer don't know exactly where to install the programs. Is it the home (E:\) or the "standard" Partition (C:\). Hah!
• Windows 2000 Server took me around 6hrs to install the OS, install the drivers, install Firefox and Irfanview, and configure the desktop settings.
• Windows XP Professional took me a total of 24 hours (span of 2 days) to install everything (OS, Drivers, OSS Programs, MS Office 2003, VC++6, Corel Graphics Suite 11, etc.) and configure the desktop and Outlook 2003.
• While Kubuntu took me a total of 1 hour to install the OS and configure the desktop. 5mins to sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg (because Kubuntu 6.10 can't detect the make and model of my monitor which is AOC LM525 and should run at 60Hz). And around 2hours to install Firefox, Flash, Java, Opera, SANE, KDevelop and download & install time of security, application, and KDE updates. Another 5mins to configure KDE settings including user accounts and login convenience. Kubuntu install and configuration time: 3hrs and 20mins (That includes the download and install time of Picasa). (Beat that Microsoft!).

So... to wrap things up, you'll notice that, in Kubuntu, I only configured my monitor settings and installed SANE for my scanner (see previous post). The drivers for my motherboard/chipset, video, AC'97 sound, Genius Video Cam Express V2 and HP Deskjet 5160 didn't need drivers.

After install, I still have to worry about spywares, worms, viruses, trojans, etc. and the dreaded Blue Screen of Death lingering in your head. Not so in Kubuntu... ahhh peace of mind at last!

Performance? Please! Anti-Virus (AVG), Anti-Spyware (Super Anti-Spyware), and Firewall (ZoneAlarm) eats a lot of resources that my OS and apps should be using. I don't need all of that in Kubuntu (unless I run LAMP in which case I just download and configure FireStarter).

This is my personal experience in Windows and Linux. What do you think?

On a side note... Linux should have the "It Just Works!" motto while Microsoft should retain the "Who do you want to screw today?" motto.

Genius Colorpage Vivid4X on Kubuntu 6.10

This is a How-To on setting up Genius Colorpage Vivid4x scanner on my Kubuntu 6.10.

If you have a different brand of scanner, better check out the SANE (Scanner Access Now Easy) page located here:
http://www.sane-project.org/

Also make sure to read the ReadMe file located here:
http://www.sane-project.org/README.linux

If you have a different brand of scanner, check it out here:
http://www.sane-project.org/sane-backends-1.0.13.html

If you're a busy man, there's a few instructions that I myself used to get my scanner working here:
http://www.meier-geinitz.de/sane/gt68xx-backend/

Of course you need to download and install the following packages to make your Genius Colorpage Vivid4x work:
libsane (already installed in Kubuntu 6.10)
sane (the graphical frontend) and
sane-utils (SANE utilities)

You may install the above apps using Adept or Synaptic or Aptitude or you may download and compile them yourself.


As for the firmware, you will need to check on what firmware you need to use. Check the backends links above so you'll know exactly what you need.
As for my case, I need CCD548.fw located on the "C:\Program Files\ScannerU" (/media/hda1/Program Files/ScannerU). If you have the same exact brand of scanner and need the exact same file, please contact me so I can email it to you.

As you can see above, we have to copy the firmware file on the /usr/share/sane/gt68xx (You may do this via the command-line or by issuing the kdesu konqueror command since you have to be root to copy the firmware file on the /usr/share directory)

Next, run sane-find-scanner to check if your Genius Colorpage Vivid4x was detected by your system.


If it says No USB scanner found, then you have to make sure the scanner is connected properly and that it has a power light in front. Also try issuing the lsusb command and check if your system has detected it.

After all of this is done, you may now test your scanner. Since I'm using Kubuntu 6.10, I'll be using Kooka Scan and OCR Program. If you haven't launched Kooka before, then this window should appear prompting you to choose a device to use.


And I tested it out by scanning the front cover of Pugad Baboy 18.


So here's the output of Pugad Baboy 18 at a Resolution of 75

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Tux

These are two of the images that caught my eye while searching Google for Tux.

The Rose

This is us...



Yesterday, she told me she doesn't love me any longer....
and that she started to lose that love last December 2006 when they went on vacation at Romblon....
and that she doesn't know how she lost that flame...
and that she felt she no longer needed me in her life...

Hay!!!!

My daughter? We haven't decided... yet!

I still love her... but I have to let her go...
It's no use asking her to stay with me if she doesn't want to...

Free... as in choice!

Like the statement I love telling people.

Rose... you are free! And I will miss you dearly!

It'll never stop...

Regrets... a lot!
Promises... too many broken!
Forgiveness... too many to ask!

Be free!

You'll always be my Kubuntu, my Debian, my Fedora, and my Gentoo.
Quarrels... and Bickering...
No matter... it stops today.

Like the song I love playing in Amarok!
I'll Remember You and LFO's Girl on TV (the songs playing on our first kiss in my DJ's booth)

Metallica, Slayer, and Megadeth will rest for a while.

I'll convert them back from OGG to MP3 so I can play them in my S1 Mp3 Player.
So I can always bring them with me...

LOVE...

I hope my Kubuntu won't do the same thing!
Same old errors, something I can understand.
Not your enigmatic answers when you snap back at me!

No matter how hard it is for me, your Windows XP SP2 partition and your MS Office files will remain intact, with my love.
Permit me to access them using OpenOffice.
Permit me to convert your favorite GIFs and JPEGs to PNGs.
And please allow me to convert your favorite Mp3's to OGG so I can always play them and remember you.

Cry?
It's for the weak!
Emotions?
It's for the weak!
Pain?
It's for the weak!
Anger?
It's for the weak!

Time for me to accept this and move on...
Time for me to get over this shit feelings...

So I can compile my kernel
So I can compile my KDE
So I can install my ntfs-3g

During those long compile times... I will remember you.
I will see your face while cryptic messages scrolls up.
I will remember your kiss while booting my custom kernel.

Yes, that's how much I love you.
As long as I have my Linux, you will always be right beside me.

Goodbye... my lovely Rose! @>-,-'--

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Google Linux

I just read an article from The Inquirer.net

http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=37713

If this pushes through, I'll be having a ball. No, it's not Google making their own Linux that's making me smile right now... it's the code that they'll be contributing to the community.. and adopted to make a better OS. Picasa.... as far as I can remember, they gave away their code used to port a win32 app to Linux.

Commercial? Doesn't matter... as long as it works.

Google: The Next Microsoft.... no, they still listen to what people wants... and they're not obnoxious.

Incompatibility... no, I'm pretty sure that they will make sure it works. On the plus side, the code that will benefit the whole Open Source community. Virtualization... WINE... just imagine.

Instability... no, Linux is already notorious for being very stable and hardened. A little bit of an aesthetically pleasing OS would really serve the community at large.

Reputation... Yes! It's reputation has already influenced millions (probably billions) or users worldwide. A Linux distro from Google may be the only thing we need to make converts out of skeptics. Who would you believe? A billion dollar company like Microsoft or the computer guy next door? I'll believe in Google.

As far as I can remember, all its' services has never failed me. And I'm pretty sure millions would say "My sentiments exactly!"

Google OS... Converts... Microsofts' Downfall... I like!

On a side note, once they decide to make one, they'll make sure win32 apps also works. Who knows, Half-Life 2 running on Linux without emulations...

rambling again!

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New Books

Got new books to read...

Now I need to find time to read them..




The Joy of Linux
Linux Device Drivers (This was actually given as a gift)
Hackers Challenge: Test your Incident Response Skills using 20 Scenarios
Linux Bible 2005 Edition
Network + Study Guide
How to do Everything in PHP MySQL
ADSL DSL Technologies
Broadband Fixed Wireless Networks
Sams Teach Yourself C++ Linux in 21 Days
C++ Primer
and The C++ Programming Language 3rd Edition by Bjarne Stroustrup
and yesterday I bought;
Sams Tech Yourself XML in 10 minutes (yeah, I'll study AJAX)

EDIT (3 March 2007): just today, I bought Computer Networks 4th Edition & Introduction to PC Hardware and Troubleshooting

and I printed out:
Kernel in a Nutshell
Joomla! User Manual
Kubuntu Desktop Guide
GNU/Linux Command Line Tools Summary
The KDE User Guide
KDE Architecture Overview
Introduction to Linux: A Hands On Guide
KDevelop User Manual
The KDevelop Programming Handbook
Beginning KDevelop Programming
A couple of KDevelop FAQs and Tutorials

and a few more C++ Tutorials (been trying to switch from Visual C++ to C++ Implementation in Linux for weeks)

EDIT (3 March 2007): I also printed out:
The Ubuntu Packaging Guide
Ubuntu Server Guide
Ubuntu FAQ Guide (can't find the link)
The Linux System Administrator's Guide
Slackware Linux Essentials
and Linux Essentials

As you can see, I'm not just about Linux, I'm about technology.

EDIT (3 March 2007): I'll be printing out more eBooks over the course of 4 weeks (starting next week), depending on the ink of my HP Deskjet 5160:
Advanced Bash-Scripting Guide
Bash Guide for Beginners
The Linux Kernel Module Programming Guide
Guide to Managing Media and Public Relations in the Linux Community
Linux Dictionary
Linux Filesystem Hierarchy
Linux from Scratch
Securing and Optimizing Linux: The Ultimate Solution
The Linux Network System Administrator's Guide

Some Guides
QT Designer and KDevelop 3.0 for Beginners
How to Use KDevelop with KDE CVS
How to Implement "User Defined Settings"
SDL & KDevelop Mini-Howto
KDE Programming Tutorial using KDevelop
The KDevelop C++ KDE Templates Explained
A Few Articles from KDE Women Homepage

Some Bookmarks:
Free Programming eBooks
Free Programming Resources
Programming Tutorials
Programmer Tutorials
Sites of Interest to C++ Users Page
No Name FTP Site
2020ok.com
195 Free Online Programming Books
Computer Books.US
Text Files .com
The Online Books Page
Free IT eBooks
C++ Computer Books
Tech Books for Free (C & C++)

Ayt! So there you have it.... Those are the books I have, printed out, or planning to print in the near future.

EDIT (3 March 2007) My hard copies aren't really that expensive. I rarely buy a PhP 500 and up books. Those are either bargain or on sale and all my hard copies are bought from National Bookstore. Their online site are updated with regards to their retail price so if you want to save money, better make sure you go to their store in person and spend time browsing through each title and checking out their price. If you don't believe me, the only book (listed above) that cost me more than PhP 450 is the Introduction to PC Hardware and Troubleshooting at PhP 499. Next expensive is the Linux Bible at PhP 399. Patience is a virtue my friend... just keep on browsing whatever title catches your attention and you'll sooner or later find a bargain.

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1st things first on Kubuntu 6.10

I still use Kubuntu 6.10 and the first thing/s I do with it is to make sure I have all my apps I need to open, edit, and run my stuff.. mostly p0rn (heh).



And no, I don't believe in OSS-only preference. The people who keeps on flaming you at the mere mention of "mp3" or "wmv" should be hanged for hypocrisy since I believe they themselves have those kinds of files. Well, I myself don't use wmv and wma, but you can't prevent people from using them and posting them on their sites. Yes, most content/s online are either mp3, mp4, ra, rm, wma, and wmv and that is out of anyone's control. I can send them an email, but I don't think they'll listen especially if they assume/think that everyone uses Windows (Trust me, a lot of them will never believe you when you say that there's other OS besides Windows). Ok, I got a response from a friend... "DON'T VIEW PORN!!!!" Nice! Screaming your head off won't change a thing! That is until we influence them to, at least, post an acceptable file format.



I can understand that K/Ubuntu intentionally left out proprietary codecs from their distro due to license restrictions. But what I can't understand is why other distros has them working on your first install. What I can't understand is why won't a representative from K/Ubuntu (or any other distros) talk to the proprietor of those codecs and compromise on something. I know that you need to pay money for use of their codecs, but I don't think everyone will demand for money. Maybe they could strike a deal... Advertising their company name or logo ain't bad.... right? Placing a tiny Fraunhofer IIS Logo on the top-right or bottom-left of Amarok every time you play and MP3 ain't bad... right?



What matters right now is user-convenience. And you keep on asking why Linux still hasn't dominated the world. Just imagine... 500 people a day migrating to your favorite distro... Now that redefines the meaning of the word Dominance.



EDIT: Jucato just enlightened me on what K/Ubuntu stands for including licensing and philosophy. Yeah, already knows about those, but I'm still wondering why not make it easier for a user.



ANOTHER EDIT: Now this is what I'm talking about. No need to bother K/Ubuntu main, someone already created a fork... an ideal distro for migrants.

Please check it out here:

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Ubuntu-Ultimate-Edition-45644.shtml



Hmm, I may eat what I just said. Certainly I wouldn't want seeing Microsoft's Logo anywhere near my precious desktop. MP3's, AVI's DivX', Real logos are fine, but not Microsoft....



So, anyway, there's a few ritual/s I love doing that it became a habit over time. Here's my list;

1. I have an AOC LM525 LCD Monitor. So configuring my monitor is my first priority because I will stare at it all day long.
   
   
2. Add an updated Kubuntu Mirror on my sources.list (if Kubuntu has been out for a while now)
   
   
3. Use Adept Updater
4. Make sure I have read write access to my storage (VFAT) partition on /media/hda5
   
   
5. Install the latest Firefox release
6. Install my favorite extensions and use the theme I like in Firefox
7. Install codecs (for Amarok Kaffeine) and plugins (Java, Flash, etc.)
   
   
8. Test if the codecs and plugins work
9. Download and install VLC Xine, and XMMS.
   
   
10. Create, Open, Edit, etc. my presentation, spreadsheets, word, bmp, jpg, gif, png, svg, etc. files in OpenOffice or other derivatives.
11. Download and install GIMP
12. Compile the latest kernel, 2.6.20 in this instance
13. Make sure that everything works with my new kernel including my PS/2 optical A4Tech MOP-18 Mini Optical Mouse. I don't like using USB for my mouse because I'll have other hardware using it.
    
    
14. Download KDevelop 3.4 and other C++ Tools
15. Test out KDevelop
16. Install and configure my HP Deskjet 5160 printer
17. Install and configure my Genius Colorpage-Vivid 4X Scanner
18. Configure my Desktop and Windows Behaviour. Make sure its' pleasing to the eyes.
19. Install OpenSync because I have an Audiovox PPC4100 (Pocket PC 2003)
20. Make sure it syncs with Evolution and/or Thunderbird
21. Configure the mail servers of Thunderbird and download my GMail emails.
22. (Optional) compile KDE
23. Be Productive

My last post concerns setting up your box and I said that it will normally take around 2 days initially to configure everything that needs to be configured. Well, the list above is my todo list every time I install Kubuntu.



AOC LM525





Sources.list Update



I wanted the latest of what KDE (most specifically KDevelop) has to offer. So I have to edit my sources list.

 wget http://people.ubuntu.com/~jriddell/kubuntu-packages-jriddell-key.gpg

 sudo apt-key add kubuntu-packages-jriddell-key.gpg

then add this line:

deb http://kubuntu.org/packages/kde-356 edgy main

Source: http://kubuntu.org/announcements/kde-356.php



And if you want to download commercial applications like Real Player or Opera, then add this line:

deb http://archive.canonical.com/ubuntu dapper-commercial main

Firefox Extensions and Themes





Codecs and Plugins

Of course, I have to install everything there is to install... Efficiency!





etc. etc. etc.

Linux is Healthy for you

Here's a couple of reasons why Linux is healthy for you....

• Initial setup will take about a day or two (8-10 hrs a day). That will include compiling a custom kernel and configuring the behavior of your applications. On the third day, all you have to do is focus on your work, not your OS.
• You may be productive with Windows the moment you buy them, but you'll be spending the day worrying about viruses and malwares and intruders. And they say they have Peace of Mind? Yeah, right!
• Less Stressful... no need to worry about malwares. You don't even need an Internet Security Suite like Anti-Virus, Anti-Spyware, and even a Firewall. Now that's Peace of Mind.
• More time for you... no need to waste time searching for an application you need because we have everything you need in a repository.
• More choices for you... you don't have to stick with an OO Writer, we also have Abiword and KWord. Choose what you want... what suits you... and when you need it.
• No wasted time... 3-15 minutes of your time agreeing to a softwares' license agreement and pointing to what directory an application should install to can add up to hours a day. In Linux (Kubuntu 6.10 for that matter) can download and install it for you without asking unnecessary questions with a simple command sudo apt-get install
• No worries... No Registry here! If you fuck an application, you don't fuck the whole system!
  
  
• No worries... No Blue Screen of Death... And even if there is, there will always be a way to get back to where you at with a single command...
• No worries... No reboots necessary, even if you do a system-wide upgrade. You only reboot if you want to use another kernel.
• No stress... Learning curve isn't that significant... If you know how to navigate Windows, you'll know how to navigate Linux... Familiarization? Remember the time when you first used Windows XP? The Learning Curve in learning how to use and navigate Vista is just the same with Linux.
• No worries... No DRM! No Trusted Computing! What else can you ask for?
• No worries... No Codecs you say... Well same thing with Windows, you have to download them... XP Codecs Pack.. Real Players...
  
  
• No Crap to deal with! No Microsoft Office in Linux... Yeah! True! 'coz we don't need them!
• No worries... Business Apps only runs in Windows! Some, but not all. If you need those "some", then use Wine or Crossover. Sooner or later, someone will port them to Linux! It's just that there's too little demand for it, that's why it hasn't been ported yet.

Look at my pictures below:



Microsoft Windows XP days





As for Linux



Fedora Core 6 and Kubuntu 6.10





See!



In Linux, I have more time for myself and I used most of it by exercising. If I'm still using Windows, I'd have bloated by now since most of my free time would be wasted by scanning and removing malwares and trojans while munching on Piatos or Mr. Chips (hehe!).



I still look like shit though (even if I try putting on some decent clothes), but I did lose 60lbs just by using Linux.



This may sound impossible, but Linux really is healthy for you!



And as a side note, I did have more time for my family now! Woo Hoo! Just got laid mind you...

2.6.20 Kernel Compiled

So finally I got my kernel compiled and is working without any problems, except the mouse which has to be hooked up via USB.



Well doesn't matter, I still have this:





Yeah, that's my kernel, finally got it right at the 3rd compile. And my system is fast.... very fast.



So the reason for this post is to recognize How to Forge for hosting the How to Compile a Kernel - The Ubuntu Way which was written by Falko Timme



Yeah, some of you might say that my previous post is a copyright infringement, yes, it's still up to Mr. Falko Timme to decide on this. I will delete that post once he requests that I take it down.



Oh, and you may ask why I chose his howto over Seer Of Souls, which also contains a great howto on kernel compilation. Let's just say that I've been trusting How to Forge for months and Seer of Souls was only brought up when I informed my IRC friends that I am compiling a the 2.6.20 kernel.



Also, the post yesterday is my 3rd attempt on compilation and am a bit used to issuing the commands.



Ayt!

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Compiling 2.6.20 Kernel

It's been 9 months since I last compiled a kernel... 2.6.10 (I think) and I want to do it again, especially since 2.6.20 was released.

I'm pretty sure you've seen my screenshot yesterday, yes, it seems that 2.6.20 has ntfs-write support. So, for the purpose of visually documenting 2.6.20, I'll do it again for the 3rd time. The first time, I forgot to select inotify which prevented my kernel from booting up. The 2nd time, I couldn't get a PS/2 mouse support, just USB. I just hope I do it right this time..



My guide is HowtoForge:

http://www.howtoforge.com/kernel_compilation_ubuntu







Thanks Falko Timme for the guide!



Moving forward.



Create a root account that way, you don't have to issue sudo every time you issue a command, that will save us time. We can easily delete them later anyway.









Login as root





I will qoute Mr. Falko Timme here: "On Ubuntu 6.10, /bin/sh is a symlink to /bin/dash by default. /bin/dash seems to make problems when you compile software from the sources, at least I had that impression. That's why I make /bin/sh a symlink to /bin/bash instead."





Let's now install some packages needed to compile the kernel





This is the command, just in case:

apt-get install kernel-package libncurses5-dev fakeroot wget bzip2







Download the Kernel Source







wget http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v2.6/linux-2.6.20.tar.bz2















Unpack the, well, package using the following commands:



tar xjf linux-2.6.20.tar.bz2







ln -s linux-2.6.20 linux







cd /usr/src/linux





Next up is copying the configuration of the current kernel (2.6.17).

You may need to copy-paste the code below:



cp /boot/config-`uname -r` ./.config





It's now time to configure the kernel:



make menuconfig











Load the saved .config file











There are a few options we need to configure:

1. Code Maturity Level Options
2. General Setup
3. Loadable Module Support
4. Block Layer
5. Processor Type and Features
6. Power Management Options (ACPI, APM)
7. Bus Options (PCI, PCMCIA, EISA, MCA, ISA)
   
   
8. Executable File Formats
9. Networking
10. Device Drivers
11. File Systems
12. Instrumentation Support
13. Kernel Hacking
14. Security Options
15. Cryptographic Options
16. Library Routines

Then we have the:

• Load an Alternate Configuration File (that we already did above) and the
  
  
• Save an Alternate Configuration File

Code Maturity Level Options:





General Setup





Loadable Module Support





Block Layer





Processor Type and Features









Power Management Options





Bus Options (PCI, PCMCIA, EISA, MCA, ISA)





Executable File Formats





Networking





Device Drivers









File Systems









ATTENTION:

This is where I found out the NTFS-Write Support





Instrumentation Support





Kernel Hacking





Security Options





Cryptographic Options





Library Routines





BIG TIP: If you don't know what it's for, don't touch it. Leave it as is. Do not mess with it.

You've been warned.





And after configuring your kernel, go ahead and save it.





And then Exit out of it



Now it's time for us to build the kernel



Execute the following commands, copy-paste if you have to.



make-kpkg clean







fakeroot make-kpkg --initrd --append-to-version=-custom kernel_image kernel_headers

the --append-to-version=-xxx may be anything, but please don't forget the (-).







*****

Now's the time to go out and have lunch, or take your family for dinner.

This will take a while (around 2-4hrs depending on your system. I have a P3 733Mhz and it took me a little over 4hrs.)

*****



After compiling your kernel, it's time for use to install it, but you should be aware that you'll have 2 .deb files on /usr/src directory. One of them is an image, the other is the header. Mine on the other hand:





So now it's time to install my kernel by issuing the following commands



dpkg -i linux-image-2.6.20-dax_2.6.20-dax-10.00.Custom_i386.deb





and



dpkg -i linux-headers-2.6.20-dax_2.6.20-dax-10.00.Custom_i386.deb







And you're done, and if you check on your /boot/grub/menu.lst , you'll find another newer entry... yours!







so just reboot with that kernel and you'll be surprised at the speed and optimization.