Screw those Arrogant Linux Using Jerks

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I’ve been using Linux now for quite a while. I couldn’t even tell you when I first tried it. I can place a general time around 1997 or 1998. Probably 1997. So, if my math isn’t truly horrible, about 15 years with Linux. During that time, I’ve had many, many computers. I think Linux is amazing and right now, I wouldn’t use anything else, but I can say that it hasn’t always worked perfectly for me. When I’ve had troubles with it, I’ve done what every other person does when they have troubles. First, I Google. Second, I ask friends. Third, I go to the forums. I can’t think of a single negative experience I’ve had in the process.

Over the years, I’ve talked to many different people about Linux. Not all of them are fans. That’s just the way of humans. One thing that I’ve run into with some of the more…. let’s call them “unreasonable” people is the claim that “getting support from the Linux forums is a horrible experience. Linux users are rude, arrogant, condescending, blah blah blah.” Getting support for Linux is a really negative experience for them.

But here’s the trick.

Out of the people that I’ve seen make this claim I know a handful well enough to say, they’re dicks. Absolute assholes. Seeing them claim that the people on the Linux forums are big meanies just makes me wonder. Was the person hanging around the Linux forums just waiting to help out people that need a hand and receives no compensation other than personal satisfaction the rude, arrogant, and condescending one?

If you need to go to the forums and ask a Linux question, that’s fine. Be nice about it. These people aren’t paid to put up with your shit. Try to do a little research before hand and not just wade in expecting them to solve all your problems. If they have questions for you, that’s normal. I can absolutely guarantee you that no matter how much detail you put into your question, you missed something that might be important. If they start out with basic questions, don’t be offended. They deal with a lot of people, and not all of them are computer experts. They don’t know you.

Above all, show some respect. You’re coming to them for help. They don’t need anything from you. If you cop a ‘tude, expect them to ignore your whiny ass. It’s not because they’re rude, or arrogant, or condescending. It’s because you’re being a prick, and if you’re going to be a prick, you can fix your own goddamn problems.

Windows for Gaming

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It’s funny. For years, I kept around a Windows partition just so that I could play the few games that still appealed to me.

Back in 2000, I picked up a copy of Unreal Tournament. I’m not even very good at it. Anybody that’s played me in PVP will attest, I’m the human shaped red splotch. Despite that, I really enjoyed playing, and I’ve kept it installed on every computer I’ve owned since up until the last one. It came with Windows 7 on it, and unfortunately, the game just didn’t work anymore. I can understand that. The game is over a decade old, and these things just can’t last forever. Still, I was really disappointed to lose one of my old favorites.

The other game I played was World of Warcraft. I’d never been to much into RPGs, but some coworkers got me into it back in around 2005. I wasn’t in the first round, but I did make my way mostly through vanilla. I finally cancelled my account a couple months back just out of sheer apathy. It’s still a fun game to play, and I think I’ll reup when the next expansion comes out. I just don’t feel like paying to rep grind right now.

I didn’t really have any other games that I was playing other than Fruit Ninja on my Xbox, so the point in having a Windows partition was lost. When I installed Ubuntu 11.10, Windows went the way of the dodo. Good riddance in my book. I’ve since moved to Mint 12, which I really enjoy.

<img class="alignright" src="http://www losartan 50 mg.tooft.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Broken_Windows_by_Zickart3.jpg” alt=”” width=”277″ height=”221″ />A while back, I thought that I’d try out World of Warcraft in Linux. It was a snap. Didn’t require any special configuration or anything. The game just loaded like a dream in my Linux environment.  All the more reason that I’m happy without Windows.

In an odd twist of fate, I ran across my Unreal Tournament game this weekend. The thought crossed my mind that since World of Warcraft worked so well, maybe I could get Unreal Tournament working. It didn’t work in Windows 7, but that doesn’t mean that it won’t work in Linux. So, a brief install later, and some minor messing with WINE configuration to make it run in a Window instead of full screen, I have a working version of Unreal Tournament on my Linux box.

All those years of keeping a Windows partition just to play games were pointless. I can do anything and everything I’ve ever wanted to do on a computer on Linux. I don’t know that I’d recommend my configuration to a real gamer, but to a casual like myself, it turns out that Linux is probably just as good as Windows for gaming.

Now, if more people just knew that.

Open Source Linux has Nothing to Fear from Android

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Android has been exploding in popularity since it’s release to the public in 2008. Recently, it’s success has bred a new collection of rumors and FUD. HP’s new CEO Meg Whitman claimed that Google’s acquisition of Motorola would lead to Android being becoming closed source. It seems ridiculous, and is probably just an effort to bring herself more public attention, but there have been some people out in the real world that have also expressed concern. I received a tweet, saying “I am concerned that at the end Android kills the open source Linux community.” I don’t think that will happen. Here’s why.

Linux is open source. Now, this might seem like a great big “Duh” thing to say, but I think it’s important.

Even if Google were to close source Android, the source code is out there. Even Google doesn’t have the power to erase something from the Internet once it’s been put out there. I have yet to see anybody that does short of just throwing the power switch on the whole darn thing. Maybe some strategically placed EMPs covering the globe could pull it off. The Open Source community is far older than Linux, and the Linux Open Source community will exist as long as the community wants it to.

Let’s assume that Android takes off like nothing before it. iOS becomes a fading memory, the only thing left of OSX is the boxes used to prop opens doors and discs that get burned in the microwave for fun. Windows is relegated to a not-so-fond memory of a BSOD. Why would Linux disappear? The Open Source Community is a major contributor to the kernel that drives Android. Yes, there are many multi-billion dollar corporations that also contribute to the kernel, but if those corporations deviate from what the community believes is right, those changes just won’t get incorporated into the kernel.

Even assuming those corporations manage to mount a coup and take over the kernel completely, the Community doesn’t take that kind of behavior lying down. A good example is OpenOffice. When Oracle started being a too heavy handed in their management of the OpenOffice suite, the community rebelled, forked off of OpenOffice and created LibreOffice. Oracle tried to fight the community, but eventually had to concede (ie. they lost badly), donating the entirety of the OpenOffice suite to the Apache Foundation.

No, when it comes to Linux, we don’t have to worry that Android’s success is going to cost Linux in the long run. Meg Whitman can blather any kind of FUD she wants. The Open Source Linux Community is self sufficient. They manage themselves, and they will be around as long as they want to be around. In 50 years, will they still be working on Linux? No one can know for sure, but if they’re not, it’s because they’ve moved on to something they think is better, not because Android succeeded.

The Stupid Overwelms Me

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Today I read what I can only say is the most stupid explanation for why people choose Windows over Linux (or Mac for that matter). I couldn’t even think of a response.

Its like this question – if you take a baby girl and a baby boy and place them on a deserted island with just food and water, would they know how to reproduce. The answer is yes they will because it is part of human nature and is natural. As is Windows is natural to a PC. Linux and OS X no matter how good they are, just aren’t a natural choice.

I don’t usually dedicate a whole post to something like this, but the sheer magnitude of the stupid demands it.

If Linux was a car (Hater’s edition)

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Originally posted on October 23, 2011 by Michael Hall on Michael Hall’s Blog.

There have been several humorous variations of the “If Linux was a car…” theme, but a recent rant against Linux made me wonder, what would the stereotypical hater’s opinion be on our modern automobiles?  Here is how I imagine it would go:

I’m giving up on cars.  Every few years I test-drive a car, to see if they’ve reached the point where they are usable to every day people, and every time I am disappointed.  Sure, maybe coverall-wearing mechanics and uber-elite NASCAR drivers can figure out how to operate them, but they’re just too damned complicated for your average joe.

 

To start off, there are literally hundreds of different kinds of cars, and they’re all different.  How do car makers expect a non-expert to be able to select one?  Most manufacturers even make different “models” of their car, so it’s not enough to just say you want a Ford, now you have to decide which Ford you want.  I don’t know ahead of time whether I’m going to want to move furniture, go off-roading or cruise the Autobahn, why should I have to pick one?  Why can’t they just make one car that does everything?

 

And once you finally do pick a car, it’s nearly impossible to maintain.  You can’t even replace the air filter without opening the hood!  My Grandma isn’t going to open the hood. Even regular maintenance can ruin your car if it’s not done in exactly, EXACTLY, the right frickin’ way.  After test-driving the latest version of some Toyota, a light came on telling me it needed more fuel.  Okay, I thought, there’s a fueling station right down the block, this should be easy enough.  But no.  First of all, I don’t even know what side of the car the fuel opening is on, so I pull up to a pump only to discover it’s on the other side! (I later found out that there’s a nearly hidden message on the dash indicating what side it’s on, but it’s certainly not made abundantly clear).  After pulling around to another pump, I’m greeted by not one, not two, but four different kinds of fuel.  At this point I probably should have spent an hour reading the car’s manual to discover which of these mystery liquids is the right one, but I just want to drive, I don’t want to become a freakin’ mechanic!  So I pick the one with the nicest looking handle (a pretty green one called “Diesel”), and don’t you know it, the stupid thing doesn’t even fit my car!  Luckily the convenience store sells fuel containers, so I can at least pump five gallons at a time into that, then pour it into my car.  It’s a horrible user experience and an lot of work, but at least now I have a full tank right?  Well not so fast, evidently this fuel sucks, or my car sucks, or something, but it’s making an awful lot of smoke and driving slow.  Who’d have thought that something as simple as refueling could wreck this thing?

 

So that car is a lost cause, but I want to finish my review of automobiles, so I borrow one from a colleague who is always telling me that his works just fine.  Luckily for me it has a full tank already, so I don’t have to try and navigate that minefield again.  His car runs fairly well, but it doesn’t have much “bling” if you know what I mean.  I decided to install some features that I’ve seen on other cars, so I go to my nearest big-box store and immediately I’m hit with another huge list of options.  Seriously,  how many different CD players do we need?  I just want one that plays music.  I don’t really know which one is best, so I just grab the cheapest one they have only to discover that, yet again, it doesn’t “Just fit”.  This thing is about an inch too tall for my co-workers dashboard.  This time I consult The Google, and find a video tutorials for installing this thing.  So I grab mySawzall and some plywood, and follow along.  The end result isn’t pretty, and it has a faint burning-plastic smell when I turn the volume up, but at least I got somethingworking.

 

So now I am cruising around town with my Katy Perry blasting and the windows down (because that darn burning plastic smell makes me dizzy), only to be stopped by the “traffic police”.  What nobody bothered to tell me when I was looking at using a car was that evidently there are rules you have to follow.  There are so many rules, I later learned, that there’s an entire manual devoted to them.  And a test too!  Do people really expect that their parents will be able to remember all of these crazy rules?  Any why does my car even have the ability to go 120 MPH if I’m not even allowed to do it?

 

So that’s it, I’m giving up.  Cars are just too damn complicated for normal people to use.  There are too many choices, most of which will end up breaking your car.  There are too many rules, and by the time you follow them all driving it’s even fun anymore.  To top it all off, my brand new CD player ended up causing a small fire even though I followed every single one of the YouTube video’s instructions.  So I returned this smoldering pile of junk to my co-worker, and as he was muttering something about “theft” and “pressing charges”, I promised myself that from that point on I was sticking to my good old trustworthy horse and buggy.

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Frustration

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For those of you that don’t know, HP had a huge fire sale on their HP TouchPad back in August. Frankly, the devices weren’t selling, and HP decided to cut it’s losses and liquidate their inventory. Long story short, they started selling their $399 devices for $99.

Great deal right?

So, always interested in a deal, I ordered three of them from HP’s website.  That was the 22nd of August.

On the 7th of September, I received an email from HP telling me that due to the large amount of interest in the device, it would be six to eight weeks before they could ship my order. That puts my delivery date somewhere between the 19th of October to the 2nd of November. Long wait.

Miraculously, I received an email from HP on the 7th of October. “Good news – your order should ship out within the next 2 weeks with free ground shipping.” Excellent! That puts my delivery at the 21st of September at the latest!

The days roll by, and no notification of shipping from HP. Today, it’s the 21st. The last day in the window they’d given me for shipping. Then, the email comes today at 4:27PM.

“Good news – your order should ship out within the next 2 weeks with free ground shipping.”

This is not the email I was looking for. I realize that I’m getting a screaming good deal on these TouchPads. That’s not in question, but the way that HP has handled this fire sale is flat out ridiculous. I paid them when I placed my order. I have nothing to show for it, even two months later. I can’t even get a valid ship date from them.

I guess I have no other choice but to wait another two weeks and hope I don’t get another email with “good news” in it. It’s just really frustrating. At this rate, I feel like I should have just went and bought a GalaxyTab or a Transformer and brought it home with me same day. At least then I’d have gotten some use out of the money spent.

Five (Lame) Reasons for Windows 8 (A Linux Users Perspective)?

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Today I ran across an article by Preston Gralla titled “Five Reasons You’ll Want Windows 8“. I figured, why not read it? I could use a good laugh.

I didn’t even understand what I was getting myself into. These reasons are sad people. I thought I’d go through them for fun.

  1. Metro:  Seriously? Metro? I will grant that there is some functionality in Metro that is interesting, but damn is it ugly. I have Windows 8 running in a VM on my home computer, and I can’t get over just how ugly it is. Add to this, it just doesn’t seem practical in a non-touch environment. I can see where it would have it’s uses on a tablet or even a phone, but on a desktop computer, it’s terrible.
  2. Built-in apps: I don’t even know what he’s talking about with this one. The built-in apps that I’ve seen in the developer version I’m running are sparse and lame. They operate in a tablet mode (meaning taking the whole screen), and lack functionality that I think would make them useful. Tweet@rama is the example Preston used, and it doesn’t come close to comparing to Tweetdeck.
  3. Cloud integration: Is it 2009 still? Yea, Linux has been doing that since there was a cloud, and Microsoft’s version certainly provides no motivation to switch.
  4. It’s fast: So? Linux is faster. Try again.
  5. New Windows Explorer: This one I thought was the funniest of all of them. The “New” Explorer is virtually identical to the old Explorer, but now it’s got a ribbon! Keep in mind that this is a ribbon that takes up 1/4 of the window, and rarely needs to be used.
Seriously, these are the best reasons you can come up with to try Windows 8? Anyone that’s already using Linux will just look at this and shake their head in wonder. I’m reading it again because I still just can’t believe it said what it said. OK, moving on now.

 

Just a Little Common Sense Please?!?

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I’m going to start out by telling you right away, this post has very little to do with Linux. Virtually nothing in fact. There is a little bit of Linux in this one by way of Android, but it’s not specifically about Android or Linux.

OK, now that we’ve got that out of the way, we can move on.

This is something that’s been bothering me for a while now, and I’d just like to get it out in the open.

Can we PLEASE use a little bit of common sense when we’re reading things on the Internet?? PLEASE??

I’ve just been appalled at some of the crap I’ve been seeing lately where people just don’t check their sources. They just believe some random person on the Internet. I wouldn’t believe some random person on the street if they just walked up and told me something outlandish. Why should I believe someone on the Internet without at least verifying what they’re saying??

Examples:

Steve Jobs is Dead. First of all. No, he isn’t. <<This post was written before Steve Jobs actually passed away on October 5, 2011. Even then the news came from a reputable source.>>  That simple fact didn’t stop Twitter from overflowing with people talking about it. It all traces back to a CBS news show called What’s Trending (@WhatsTrending). They later apologized for starting this rumor saying (this is a direct quote here), “Apologies- reports of Steve Job’s death completely unconfirmed. Live on.” WELL THEN WHY DID YOU SAY THAT HE WAS DEAD?!? You’ve got no proof, no legitimate reason for believing that Steve Jobs is dead, yet you broadcast to the world this statement anyway??? What the hell are you thinking?

Ground Zero Attacked. No, it wasn’t. I checked my Twitter feed today only to see #groundzeroattacked trending all over the place. Oh my god planes down others not responding end of the world dogs and cats living together! It all traces back to a couple tweets from NBC News (@NBCNews). Sure enough, it says that Ground Zero was attacked right there. But it doesn’t say anything about it at http://msnbc.com. Hm, odd. If you look at the rest of NBC News’ tweets, if they’re talking about a news story, they always have a link to an actual article. These don’t. The first one even starts out with the line “This is not a joke”. Who the hell would think that was a joke?!? No one except the assholes who hacked the Twitter account and posted it under NBCs account. A legitimate news source actually reporting news of a huge catastrophe for the American people does not start out the notification with the line “This is not a joke”! That should have been the first sign that something was wrong. Instead, it spread like wild fire all over the Internet. Thankfully, cooler heads eventually prevailed and it was squashed, but DAMN people. Research first, talk later!

And now for something almost completely different. Actually, not really, but there’s a little bit of Android/Linux in this part.

Florian Müller. Just because his highness says something, DOES NOT MAKE IT TRUE. I can’t seem to find a single stinking source who legitimately questions what this man says. I saw an article over on The Droid Guy (http://thedroidguy.com/) calling Florian Müller’s site “one of the most trusted websites when it comes to researching patent issues going on in the world of technology today”. Why?!? I even commented saying “I’m still trying to figure out why anybody cares what Florian Mueller says. He’s just some guy with a blog with not even a laughable claim to impartiality who is often just flat out wrong in his claims.” I got a response back via Twitter from @thedroidguy himself saying “25 years in patents hes more than a blogger.” HE DOESN’T HAVE 25 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE IN PATENTS! The man is 41 years old! He did NOT starting working in patents as a 16 year old! When I pointed that out, I get a curt response pointing to Müller’s Wikipedia page saying that “this suggests he’s more than just a blogger”. I was honestly surprised that @thedroidguy was DEFENDING Florian Müller (I have the feeling he regretted it later). Ok, so let’s go look at the page. Blah blah blah, wrote articles in 1985, book in 1986 on programming the Commodore 64 when he was 16. Good for him. “From 1987 to 1998, he specialized on publishing and distribution cooperations between US and European software companies.” OK. Worked for Blizzard as “a consultant to and representative” involved in marketing campaigns. OK. Good for him. Co-founded an online gaming service which got bought out by another company. Advised the CEO of MySQL AB. How did he advise? Don’t know, doesn’t say. The reference link is broken so I had to look it up myself, and all it says is “Florian Müller, entrepreneur” under “Advisors”. Not especially informative. After that he campaigns against EU software patents, and fails. After that, he got into Soccer. Soccer as in the game that is. Fun. Next, he gets involved with Linux and Google and Oracle and such. Hm, in all that the only time he did anything patent related he failed, and that was in 2004. After that he played soccer (he didn’t really play). So where does this vast understanding of the Patent System come from? Certainly not from his college education. He doesn’t have one.

So, maybe the man doesn’t have the greatest credentials. His history doesn’t seem to point to any great successes that would warrant all this trust in his words. Maybe he’s just that good? Let’s look at what he says.

The article that finally got @thedroidguy all pissed was a recent publication where Müller claimed that he found proof that Google would favor Motorola. The “proof” that he would use is the image to the right. Müller highlighted the section that he found particularly damning. Wow, sure enough, it says give early access to the software to partners who build and distribute devices to “our” specification (ie. Motorola and Verizon). Ya, that looks pretty bad for Google doesn’t it. But wait, when was this document written? It was submitted in August, but there’s no date on the document. There’s no context either. What about the document itself? It’s obviously not been proof read. In the first stinking bullet point the author misspells “sheppards” (should be shepherds). In the last paragraph the author uses “ie” instead of “eg”, obviously failing to recognize that one means “essentially” and the other “for example”. Kind of a big distinction. Wait a minute, doesn’t that section Müller highlighted have an “ie” in it? Looks to me that when Google mentioned Motorola and Verizon, it was as an example. Google has given Motorola and Verizon special access in the past for the Nexus line of phones. It’s pretty damn apparent that this is what the document is referencing, not anything to do with the Motorola purchase by Google. Müller’s claims are flat out wrong. Painfully wrong. Obviously wrong.

So why the holy hell does this crap ass story spread all over the Internet like God himself came down from heaven to bless his sinning flock with his words of wisdom?!? Didn’t anybody bother to read the damn thing? Not from what I can tell. Everybody just said, “Hey, Florian Müller said something, let’s repost it!”

People, we need to check our sources. Just because some asshole in a suit says it doesn’t make it true. Just because NBC News or What’s Trending tweets it, doesn’t make it fact.

This frustrates me to no end.

OK, end rant. Maybe. Hopefully.

Oneiric Ocelot – Alpha 1

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So tonight I fired up for the first time Ubuntu 11.10, or what will become Ubuntu 11.10 here in a couple months.

It’s pretty much what you’d expect to see in any alpha release software. BUGS. Everywhere. I did manage to check on a couple things before I turned the machine off, and I see that LibreOffice is still the default office suite. The installed version is 3.3.2, but look for that to change before the release version, probably in alpha 2 since 3.4 is already available. Firefox is still the default browser, and of course, Unity is still the default interface.

I honestly didn’t see a lot of changes in the interface. There was some graphical changes to the icons and my default wallpaper didn’t come up at all. The title bar looked the same as it was in 11.04.

All in all, not a whole lot has visibly changed yet, but I do expect that to change before to very long. I’m looking forward to seeing what Alpha 2 has in store for us.