Linux and Open Source Blog

Category Archives: linux/unix/os distros

Puppy Linux Review for 2012

Posted on by Posted in linux/unix/os distros, other distros .

Puppy Linux is usually a tiny distribution that is certainly geared towards more aged PCs and providing them with a second lifetime. Puppy Linux is usually run from some sort of Live CD or maybe USB (intended for faster performance) or merely install it onto your system.

The software programs which come part of Puppy Linux are people that are specifically picked out to make certain resources are definitely not wasted while giving a productive unit. The programs which might be part of Puppy you won’t need to usually find using a distribution such seeing that Linux Mint or Ubuntu which might be geared towards more sophisticated systems but it does not mean they usually are any less practical.
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Top 5 fastest boot Linux Distros for 2012

Posted on by Posted in linux/unix/os distros .

You might not exactly have to reboot Linux usually. But when one does, these peppy distributions can have you working in just seconds.

Reboots usually are rare with Linux. Normally, they’re due to your kernel update as well as an environmental matter. But regardless in the reason, it’s crucial it revisit life quickly. One issue surrounding Linux of late is boot occasion. Some distributions have got a key attribute to attract consumers. Some have perhaps succeeded in hitting that magic 10-second variety. But which distributions start fastest? Let’s look.

NOTE: Console logins tend not to count.

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Install Apple Safari Browser On Ubuntu Linux 7.10 With PlayOnLinux

Posted on by Posted in applications/software, browsers, debian/ubuntu based, guides, how to, mac/osx .

Version 1.0
Author: Falko Timme <ft [at] falkotimme [dot] com>
Last edited 01/18/2008

This guide explains how you can install Apple’s Safari browser on Ubuntu 7.10. As there is no Linux version of Safari, we will run it under Wine. We will use a tool called PlayOnLinux to install Safari under Wine. With PlayOnLinux you can install lots of Windows games and some Windows applications (such as Office 2003, IE6, MS Money, etc.) on Linux. Installing Safari on Linux is good for people such as web designers who have switched to Linux but still need to test their web sites in other browsers.

I do not issue any guarantee that this will work for you!

1 Installing PlayOnLinux

Open Firefox and go to http://www.playonlinux.com/en/download.html. Click on the link reading Click here for the .deb package:

In the Firefox download dialogue, select Open with GDebi Package Installer (default):

Click to enlarge

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Install and Configure TrueCrypt With GUI On Ubuntu 7.10

Posted on by Posted in applications/software, debian/ubuntu based, guides, how to, howtoforge, security .

Version 1.0
Author: Oliver Meyer <o [dot] meyer [at] projektfarm [dot] de>
Last edited 12/18/2007

This document describes how to set up TrueCrypt with GUI on Ubuntu 7.10. TrueCrypt is a free open-source encryption software for desktop usage.

This howto is a practical guide without any warranty – it doesn’t cover the theoretical backgrounds. There are many ways to set up such a system – this is the way I chose.

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Enlightenment on Ubuntu

Posted on by Posted in debian/ubuntu based, desktop environments, review/preview/tests .

Many Linux distributions try to be visually appealing. Some use Beryl-Compiz for cool 3-D effects on resource-laden boxes, while others turn to desktops like Enligtenment for a little bit of gloss at the expense of functionality. Geubuntu is a new distro that combines the best of those two worlds, equipping Enlightenment with bits from GNOME and Xfce on top of Ubuntu.

Geubuntu 7.10 “Luna Nuova” is only the second release of the distro, which seems to trace Ubuntu’s release cycle. As the version number suggests, Geubuntu 7.10 is based on Ubuntu 7.10, from which it borrows the kernel and user conveniences like the restricted-drivers management utility.

Geubuntu is an installable live CD, but it can also be installed on top of an existing Ubuntu distro by installing specific packages from the Geubuntu mirror. Currently there’s only a 32-bit ISO available. To run Geubuntu on 64-bit hardware you’ll have to take the longer route of first installing a 64-bit version of Ubuntu and then getting Geubuntu packages that are compiled for 64-bit platforms.

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Configure OpenLDAP + Samba Domain Controller On Ubuntu 7.10

Posted on by Posted in debian/ubuntu based, guides, how to, howtoforge .

Preface

This document is a step by step guide for configuring Ubuntu 7.10 as a Samba Domain Controller with an LDAP backend (OpenLDAP). The point is to configure a server that can be comparable, from a central authentication point of view, to a Windows Server 2003 Domain Controller. The end result will be a server with an LDAP directory for storing user, group, and computer accounts. A Windows XP Professional SP2 workstation will be able to join the domain once properly configured. Please note that you do not have a fully comparable Windows domain controller at this time. Do not kid yourself, this guide only gets you a server with LDAP authentication. Of course this can be expanded to include slave servers to spread out authentication over multiple networks. Please also note that it took me approximately two and a half weeks to compile this information and get it working. The same functionality can be had in Windows in less than four hours (and this includes operating system installation). In my humble opinion the open source community will need to work on this side of Linux in order for it to be a true alternative to Windows.

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Syncing your BlackBerry on Linux, a howto guide

Posted on by Posted in guides, how to, information management, linux and open source blog, linux/unix/os distros, news .

If you use Linux on your desktop, and you also happen to have a BlackBerry handheld device, you’re probably aware that Research in Motion, the company that develops the BlackBerry platform, offers nothing in the way of support for its devices on Linux — but the intrepid geeks in the free software world do. Thanks to to the efforts of the Barry and OpenSync projects, I just finished syncing my BlackBerry 8800 with my Evolution contacts on my Ubuntu 7.10 desktop.

Blackberry

If all you want to do is share data between your Linux box and the BlackBerry, no sweat. The 2GB Micro SD storage I inserted in my 8800 is available to my Linux system just like any other USB storage device. When I connect the USB cable to the BlackBerry, I simply say yes when Ubuntu asks if I want to enter Mass Storage Mode, and I can copy music and photos to the phone. I have run into a problem getting the audio for videos that were created with Kino to work correctly, but other than that, moving data back and forth between the PDA and the desktop “just works.”The Barry and OpenSync projects aim to provide a little more functionality than just moving data. According to its home page, the Barry project “is a GPL C++ library for interfacing with the RIM BlackBerry Handheld. It comes with a command-line tool for exploring the device and a GUI for making quick backups. This project’s goal is to create a fully functional syncing mechanism on Linux.” Release 0.11, which I’ve been playing with the past week, goes a long way toward meeting those goals. With it, you can explore, backup and restore, and — with a little help from OpenSync — sync databases. There is, however, some assembly required.

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Shopping: openSUSE Store

Tango Theme on Your Symbian60 Mobile Phone

Posted on by Posted in linux and open source blog, linux/unix/os distros, news .

Wanna have Tango theme on your mobile phone?! This project is a theme for Symbian60 enabled phones/devices following the Tango Style Guidelines and using the Tango Icon Theme.

Features:

  • Symbian60 2nd and 3rd Edition support
  • Portrait support (Landscape soon)
  • Most Icons are replaced by Tango equivalents
  • Contains Icons for 3rd party applications
  • Custom graphics using the Tango color palette
  • Total replacement of all widget elements such as popups, tabs, scrollbars, clock fonts and others
  • Music Player Skin (Not on 3rd party music players bundled with some phones)
  • Free to download and use
  • Free Open Source Software

Grab the .SIS installer from Martin’s website and have fun. Since I am a Windows Mobile 6 Pro user I cannot run it, but would if I had a Symbian S60 mobile. Also check out the openSUSE theme for your Symbian mobile here.

OpenID – Open Source Identity Management

Posted on by Posted in linux and open source blog, linux/unix/os distros, news .

OpenID was originally developed by Brad Fitzpatrick of LiveJournal (now owned by Russian media company, SUP), and, as the term states, the Light-Weight Identity, Yadis, Sxip DIX protocol that was proposed at IETF, and XRI/i-names. The OpenID Foundation was formed to assist the open source model by providing a legal entity to be the steward for the community by providing needed infrastructure and generally helping to promote and support expanded adoption of OpenID.

OpenID has arisen from the open source community to solve the problems that could not be easily solved by other existing technologies. OpenID is a lightweight method of identifying individuals that uses the same technology framework that is used to identify websites. As such, OpenID is not owned by anyone, nor should it be. Today, anyone can choose to be an OpenID user or an OpenID Provider for free without having to register or be approved by any organization, being not proprietary and completely free. OpenID eliminates the need for multiple usernames across different websites, simplifying your online experience.You get to choose the OpenID Provider that best meets your needs and most importantly that you trust. At the same time, your OpenID can stay with you, no matter which Provider you move to.

For businesses, this means a lower cost of password and account management, while drawing new web traffic. OpenID lowers user frustration by letting users have control of their login.For geeks, OpenID is an open, decentralized, free framework for user-centric digital identity. OpenID takes advantage of already existing internet technology (URI, HTTP, SSL, Diffie-Hellman) and realizes that people are already creating identities for themselves whether it be at their blog, photostream, profile page, etc. With OpenID you can easily transform one of these existing URIs into an account which can be used at sites which support OpenID logins.OpenID is still in the adoption phase and is becoming more and more popular, as large organizations like AOL, Microsoft, Sun, Novell, etc. begin to accept and provide OpenIDs. Today it is estimated that there are over 160-million OpenID enabled URIs with nearly ten-thousand sites supporting OpenID logins.Currently work is underway developing OpenID Authentication 2.0, which will use the Yadis service discovery protocol. OpenID is now developing into a much more complete framework that will support other identity services besides authentication and is been made a high priority in Firefox 3 browser.

Here are some places you can visit to see where you can use your OpenID to log in today:

I am quite sure that Web 3.0, if I may say so, will include OpenID as it’s authentication and ID management backend. So, then what happens to IBM and Novell backed Higgins … or are they collaborating?