Fedora 11: Why i wish i hadn't downloaded it..

I sometimes think i might be really unlucky with some Linux Distros but I know at least one other person who has had some issues with Fedora 11. Firstly I tried the live CD, as always i try it first in Virtualbox, just to check it downloaded OK and have a quick spin. It booted OK but i was unable to get it to install, crashing out on me. OK I thought maybe it is just a VB issue, so I tried it on a spare PC, a socket-A Athlon, (2GHZ/512MB ram, 40GB x2 HDD). I tried the default partition layout: no dice. I then downloaded the DVD (32 bit version) thinking this might be better. I still had trouble installing either in Virtualbox or on my test machine. I searched some forums and tried several different partition layouts but still no luck. This is the buggiest distro I've tried in a long long time! A friend of mine tried the 64 bit version but had similar problems but did manage to get it installed. His major gripe was apparently PulseAudio sets all applications' volume stupidly loud by default, not helped by Gnomes default Pulseaudio mixer which has really been dumbed down so much. On Ubuntu 9.0.4 I have actually installed the old mixer as it allows greater control, especially on line-in and Mic-in. Somehow all of the reviews of Fedora 11 I've read online have been positive, and I can't figure out why!

Anyway, I always like to try out various distros every now and then just to reinforce why i chose my favourite - Ubuntu :) I've also I've just been trying out a nice lightweight, easy to use distro called Nonux. It's a Dutch Slackware based live CD with the Gnome desktop which makes a great combination. It has an installer and gparted (partition editor) is installed so it's good for rescuing PCs and for installing on old PCs.

Imitation is not always the sincerest form of flattery

Monstrosity: Windows 7 Theme for Linux

I've occasionally seen a red Fiat Coupé with Ferrari badges all over it. It looks pretty tacky and unconvincing, yet on various desktop customisation pages such as Gnome-Look, Stardock and others, I've seen countless themes that emulate the complete look of another operating system.
Why would you want Linux to look or work like a hideous bloated and buggy closed-source operating system? I've also seen Ubuntu brown themes for Windows, whilst it's nicer to look at than Windows XP and Vista default themes, why not just use Ubuntu, at least in dual boot? I also find the lack of themes on OSX to be a little irritating, what if i don't like brushed metal? The only feature of Mac I emulate in Windows (on the rare occasions I boot into it) and Linux is the dock. For Linux I use Cairo Dock and for Windows I use Object Dock. This is only because I like the way it works and keeps all my favourite programs close to hand. I just don't want my whole desktop to look like or work like OSX, the Starbucks of OS's, or the Mcdonalds of OS's, Windows.

Ubuntu 9.0.4 The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Following on from my previous article on 8.10, I thought I'd repeat the process with the latest Ubuntu release - 9.04 codenamed Jaunty Jackalope.


The Good...

The Integrated Brasero for CD/DVD burning is nicely implemented and everything generally feels more speedy, and the boot-time is quicker and neater, I like the new splash screen. Dual desktops worked straight away after I installed the Nvidia drivers, unlike in 8.04, which took a little jiggery-bodgery. I also like the new Remote Desktop applet that shows available remote desktops with one click of the icon.

The Bad...

Kubuntu has abandoned Amarok 1.4 before version 2 is ready and fully featured, although you can still install 1.4.10 using this repository. Last.fm still didn't work for me in Amarok 2 and the gui feels cluttered. As with 8.10, I still don't like the default network manager although I have now found out than you can still install the old one. More annoyingly to please newbies, Ctrl Alt Backspace is disabled. This is an Xorg change rather than Ubuntu specific, and it is fairly easily changed.

...and the Ugly
The default brown theme looks a little better and though I'm still not keen on it, it is easily changed (and is the first thing i change!) Also in the latest Gnome, it is missing two of my favourite themes - Glossy and Clearlooks classic.

overall I am pleased with 9.04, much more than 8.10, and I'm running the 64bit version (I've not noticed any 64bit specific bugs as of now) on my main desktop machine.

Ubuntu 8.10 - the good the bad and the ugly: first impressions

The latest Ubuntu release, Intrepid Ibex is out now, but is it any good? Well, my first impressions are a mixed bag.

The Good...

Hardy Heron's Samba problems seem to have been sorted I think and Ibex ships with the latest edition of Firefox. The new Guest user is a great new feature that i've been wanting for ages, and encrypted folders are a good thing. Nautilus now has tabbed browsing at last, now it just needs split pane like konqueror...

The Bad

A friend of mines Lexmark Z1380 printer still doesnt work, even the PDF print feature doesn't work either, this seems to be a CUPS problem. I don't like the new network manager, I accidentally left a test machine without a network connection because it was so tricky to set up (although i could edit /etc/interfaces manually...), maybe I'll get use to it in time...

..and the Ugly

The new brown theme is not much of an improvement over the old one so it's still the first thing I'd change on a new install, unless you like brown.

The Second-Hand Mac Keyboard Experiment

For a week I thought I'd try an Apple keyboard on my PC with Ubuntu Linux and Windows XP, as I have just acquired one for free, it's not a new silver one though, but an old white one from 2005.


On Ubuntu 8.0.4 (and other Gnome using distros), it's easy to set up with the gnome keyboard tools (System → Preferences → Keyboard). Choose Apple under Models and add 'Apple United Kingdom' (or whatever your locale is) to the layouts. Also it is useful to select 'Press right control for third level chooser' under Layout Options, so you can access unusual keys like copyright symbols and double inverted commas etc. I set up F14, F15 and F16 as Previous, Play/Pause and Next track, but you can choose whatever you want them for in System → Preferences → Keyboard Shortcuts. I also set up F13 as Print Screen but I kept hitting it accidentally whilst aiming for backspace, so I set it to Alt + F13. Apple's help key is Insert, and the equals key is unassigned, and I gave up trying to assign it.

On Windows XP I had problems with the Apple keyboard. The volume keys worked straight away, perhaps because I had the Microsoft keyboard tools installed. I could set up F14, F15 and F16 for
Previous, Play/Pause and Next track but only with Winamp (with the RMX plugin which can also use joysticks and remotes) The eject key did not work straight away. To actually reassign keys its tricky, although possible with third party freeware. I tried Sharpkeys and Autohotkey but I almost messed up my Windows install using them. It was much more difficult to set up in Windows than in Linux.

On using it for awhile I liked using it with Ubuntu, the volume controls and eject shortcuts I like and the look of it, but I'm switching back to my Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000 as its much less strain on my fingers. Perhaps because it's old, the Apple keyboard needs more force to press the keys, and the key travel is too long. I hope the new Apple keyboard is better for the sake of Apple users, I now realise why a lot of Mac users use non-apple keyboards.

Another Reason Why I Love Linux!

Recently I built a 'new' PC from various bits and pieces: a Foxconn socket 939 board i had lying about, with 2.4ghz single core CPU; 2GB of ram (made up of four 512MB modules running in dual channel mode) and I put in an 80GB drive for Windows. Of course, I had to do a fresh install on it as it has a different chipset than my old machine (Nvidia as opposed to SIS on the old Asus board) though both machines use Athlon 64 bit CPUs (2800+ socket 754 and 3800+ X2). So once I had afresh install it came to thinking about how to transfer all my settings and things for Ubuntu. Instead of the tedious approach of reinstall then re-downloading all my programs, I decided to risk just moving the hard drive straight into it, and just repairing Grub with Super Grub Disk Imagine my surprise when it worked perfectly without any problems! I'm writing this on it now. Now you can't do that with Windows without a whole lot of messing about, I didn't even have to uninstall anything!

Having successfully transferred the Ubuntu system between desktops, I wondered whether it would work with other mixed systems. the opportunity came when I repaired a HP nc6000 laptop, and on having a faulty DVD drive, and not having a spare I used an unorthodox method of getting a working system on it. I installed the Ubuntu 8.0.4 live CD on the hard drive connected to a USB/mini IDE converter to my pentium 3 750mhz test-bed machine, then put the drive back in the machine when the install had completed but before the reboot to the new system. On booting up in the laptop it worked fine, with no problems! I wonder what would flummox a Linux install! After installing the ATI drivers and adding another 256MB of ram, Compiz works great on it.

Steve Ballmer and The Grim Reaper - the likeness is uncanny!

Steve Ballmer and The Grim reaper (as portrayed in Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey)