Geek Anvil (currently geeking...)

[mh]

I'm upgrading SharePoint.

At home, over Citrix.
On Windows 8.

Does it get much better?

[markfiend]

New Rubik Cube personal best: 38.15 seconds.

OK it's not that impressive when the world record is 5.55 seconds (Clicky) but I'm improving. In May when I last posted about cubing, my PB was about 75 seconds.

[Nikolas Vitus Lagartija]

New Rubik Cube personal best: 38.15 seconds.

OK it's not that impressive when the world record is 5.55 seconds (Clicky) but I'm improving. In May when I last posted about cubing, my PB was about 75 seconds.

Very impressive. Never learned to do it myself. Kids today tend to use the 5x5 as if the 3x3 wasn't hard enough !

[markfiend]

Oh yeah I've got a 4x4x4 and a 5x5x5 too, and a dodecahedral megaminx. Takes me ages to solve them though. But the good old 3x3x3 is where it's at.

[Bartek]

MOOC about: Linux, Python and later Java, programing in general. Let's see if my brain is capable to learn something so out of my universe.

And here's the question to local geeks: which Linux distribution is the more newbie-friendly? Which Linux would you recommend someone who has been used Windows since last 15 years?

[lazarus corporation]

And here's the question to local geeks: which Linux distribution is the more newbie-friendly? Which Linux would you recommend someone who has been used Windows since last 15 years?

Kubuntu

[Quiff Boy]

The new Sony ZX2 Walkman

http://thenextweb.com/insider/2015/01/0 ... diophiles/

It's not cheap, and it's not pretty.

[markfiend]

It depends what you want... (And two posts have gone up since I started typing this!)

Most Linux noobs seem to use Ubuntu as their first distro, but increasing political and practical differences between Canonical (the company behind Ubuntu) and the rest of the Linux world make me slightly reluctant to recommend it or any of its direct offspring.

Linux Mint is a usually seen as a good all-round noob-friendly distro if you just want to run the graphical installer and get going within about half an hour. It's based off Ubuntu, with most of Canonical's insanity stripped out, and has a pretty good support forum.

No discussion of Linux can be had without mentioning the daddy of them all, Debian. There are older distros, but without Debian I don't think Linux would have had the success it has. (Ubuntu is based off Debian's testing branch) Downsides - the "stable" branch is very conservative, if you like your software to be the latest version available, Debian stable isn't the one for you! On the other hand there are the "testing" and "unstable" branches which, despite the names, are usually stable enough for home use.

Then there's the Fedora/Redhat side, which I don't have a great deal of familiarity with. Redhat tends to be used in enterprise situations (the Linux servers here at work run Redhat) and Fedora is (very roughly) to Redhat as Debian testing/unstable are to Debian stable.

All of these distros use a distinct release cycle; a new version is released only every so often (6 months for Ubuntu, others vary) -- your other option is the "rolling release" model, where a new release of each package is made as it comes in from its own development team ("upstream" in Linux jargon) and (in theory at least) any system can be upgraded to the most up-to-date possible state by issuing a couple of commands. The prime examples of the rolling release are Arch and Gentoo (although Debian unstable is also rolling).

Personally I use Arch Linux, One caveat: after a fresh install of Arch you're left with a bare-bones command-line environment with just the package manager and the system tools, and you build your own custom system from there (which can be very powerful, tailoring your system to your own requirements).

Gentoo is a distribution unlike most others; most packages are distributed as the source code only (although they provide binaries for some packages) so you can spend a lot of time compiling things. Gentoo is usually seen as the bleeding-edge distro, and probably too intimidating for the complete noob. Like Arch, once installed you're just left with a base system and build from there.

This style of minimal installation distros tend to attract the more experienced Linux user, but there is IMO a lot to be said for a newbie diving straight in. You certainly learn a lot more about how a Linux system is structured when you build it yourself from the kernel up than you do by simply running an Ubuntu-style graphic installer.

Choosing a distro is only the start though; there is huge choice in desktop environment (GNOME, KDE, XFCE, etc.) and almost any package will have two, three or more alternatives.

TL;DR version:
I would recommend trying out several different distros, and lots of different packages, in a virtual machine (VirtualBox is free for Windows) before actually installing on your real machine.

[lazarus corporation]

It depends what you want... (And two posts have gone up since I started typing this!)

Most Linux noobs seem to use Ubuntu as their first distro, but increasing political and practical differences between Canonical (the company behind Ubuntu) and the rest of the Linux world make me slightly reluctant to recommend it or any of its direct offspring.

Linux Mint is a usually seen as a good all-round noob-friendly distro if you just want to run the graphical installer and get going within about half an hour. It's based off Ubuntu, with most of Canonical's insanity stripped out, and has a pretty good support forum.

No discussion of Linux can be had without mentioning the daddy of them all, Debian. There are older distros, but without Debian I don't think Linux would have had the success it has. (Ubuntu is based off Debian's testing branch) Downsides - the "stable" branch is very conservative, if you like your software to be the latest version available, Debian stable isn't the one for you! On the other hand there are the "testing" and "unstable" branches which, despite the names, are usually stable enough for home use.

Then there's the Fedora/Redhat side, which I don't have a great deal of familiarity with. Redhat tends to be used in enterprise situations (the Linux servers here at work run Redhat) and Fedora is (very roughly) to Redhat as Debian testing/unstable are to Debian stable.

All of these distros use a distinct release cycle; a new version is released only every so often (6 months for Ubuntu, others vary) -- your other option is the "rolling release" model, where a new release of each package is made as it comes in from its own development team ("upstream" in Linux jargon) and (in theory at least) any system can be upgraded to the most up-to-date possible state by issuing a couple of commands. The prime examples of the rolling release are Arch and Gentoo (although Debian unstable is also rolling).

Personally I use Arch Linux, One caveat: after a fresh install of Arch you're left with a bare-bones command-line environment with just the package manager and the system tools, and you build your own custom system from there (which can be very powerful, tailoring your system to your own requirements).

Gentoo is a distribution unlike most others; most packages are distributed as the source code only (although they provide binaries for some packages) so you can spend a lot of time compiling things. Gentoo is usually seen as the bleeding-edge distro, and probably too intimidating for the complete noob. Like Arch, once installed you're just left with a base system and build from there.

This style of minimal installation distros tend to attract the more experienced Linux user, but there is IMO a lot to be said for a newbie diving straight in. You certainly learn a lot more about how a Linux system is structured when you build it yourself from the kernel up than you do by simply running an Ubuntu-style graphic installer.

Choosing a distro is only the start though; there is huge choice in desktop environment (GNOME, KDE, XFCE, etc.) and almost any package will have two, three or more alternatives.

TL;DR version:
I would recommend trying out several different distros, and lots of different packages, in a virtual machine (VirtualBox is free for Windows) before actually installing on your real machine.

This is kinda why I replied with a simple link to Kubuntu (especially when Bartek's post specified "newbie-friendly") - the sheer diversity of choice can be off-putting and make it seem over-complicated.

Bartek, my suggestion stands: install Kubuntu and play. When you no longer consider yourself a newbie then refer back to Markfiend's post (note: I'm still using Kubuntu after many years because I want an easy life and an OS that just works on a modern PC because staying up until 4am to build a custom version of linux or debug a missing dependency from the command line is NOT SOMETHING I EVER WANT TO DO)

Edit: everything that Markfiend says above is absolutely correct - I'm not disagreeing with anything he wrote, just that I don't think you need to know all of that as a self-proclaimed newbie. In the same way that you don't need to understand the intricacies of the Hypertext Transfer Protocol before posting stuff on the internet.

[markfiend]

Yeah actually I guess you're right. But I absolutely stand by this for anyone who wants to test the water with Linux before diving in properly:

I would recommend trying out several different distros, and lots of different packages, in a virtual machine (VirtualBox is free for Windows) before actually installing on your real machine.

[Bartek]

Thank you very much Mark and Paul.

Basic idea about playing/toying with Linux family OS, is to learn something about that because I stuck in Windows. Other, not-so-realistic, is to learn something new that would allow me to change branch of business (drastically change of job-field).
And another idea is to start specific site (barter transfer), so anything that would help to understand computer science and programming side of Interweb is very useful.
And since most of servers, cloud computing, app are Linux based getting to know about this OS is good (I think).
I'm aware that I'm a bit too old to become master in computer science, especially that is math based (I decided that I can't learn math in junior high, so I dropped that as something that I have to learn that careful).

I don't think that I'm gonna dig deep into Linux, although I'm now playing games, so it possible.

[rien]

The new Sony ZX2 Walkman

http://thenextweb.com/insider/2015/01/0 ... diophiles/

It's not cheap, and it's not pretty.

Ooooh, I've only just seen this. So maybe there is hope for me after my iPod classic has given up the ghost (which I hope it won't for a long time).
I just want a thing with tangible buttons and good sound and enough storage for listening to stuff comfortably while oot and aboot.

But yeah, it's fugly. And Sony. Hopefully someone else will see the potential and make a similar device.

[nigel d]

investigating usb - dmx and maybe midi - dmx

[Quiff Boy]

thread necro


Generate your own Dr Who-themed "lorem ipsum" placeholder text:

https://github.com/vickytnz/who-ipsum

Download the zip, unpack it, open index.html in your browser and choose your Doctor

eg:

What?! Come out. And don't touch anything! You're a clumsy, ham fisted idiot! The trouble with computers, of course, is that they're very sophisticated idiots. They do exactly what you tell them at amazing speed. Even if you order them to kill you. So if you do happen to change your mind, it's very difficult to stop them from obeying the original order. But not impossible. I might've been saying something important. I was saying something important! It seems you have a very large rat Brigadier—maybe you should employ the services of a very large cat?

Have a jelly baby. You may be a doctor. But I'm the Doctor. The definite article, you might say. What?! Come out. And don't touch anything! It may be irrational of me, but human beings are my favorite species. It seems you have a very large rat Brigadier—maybe you should employ the services of a very large cat? Come on! Are you listening to me? Well, of course I'm being childish! There's no point being grown-up if you can't be childish sometimes. Hello-o-o-o. Would you like a jelly baby? Shut up, K-9!

[markfiend]

I've switched my keyboard to Dvorak

I must be mad

[EvilBastard]

The new Sony ZX2 Walkman

http://thenextweb.com/insider/2015/01/0 ... diophiles/

It's not cheap, and it's not pretty.

Ooooh, I've only just seen this. So maybe there is hope for me after my iPod classic has given up the ghost (which I hope it won't for a long time).
I just want a thing with tangible buttons and good sound and enough storage for listening to stuff comfortably while oot and aboot.

But yeah, it's fugly. And Sony. Hopefully someone else will see the potential and make a similar device.

Did you ever get a new thingie? I've just bought a Cowon M2 (upgrade from the J3, which I loved) - plays anything you throw at it, extensive graphic equaliser function, battery is supposed to last 90 hours or something stupid. Highly recommended if you're on the lookout.

[rien]

The new Sony ZX2 Walkman

http://thenextweb.com/insider/2015/01/0 ... diophiles/

It's not cheap, and it's not pretty.

Ooooh, I've only just seen this. So maybe there is hope for me after my iPod classic has given up the ghost (which I hope it won't for a long time).
I just want a thing with tangible buttons and good sound and enough storage for listening to stuff comfortably while oot and aboot.

But yeah, it's fugly. And Sony. Hopefully someone else will see the potential and make a similar device.

Did you ever get a new thingie? I've just bought a Cowon M2 (upgrade from the J3, which I loved) - plays anything you throw at it, extensive graphic equaliser function, battery is supposed to last 90 hours or something stupid. Highly recommended if you're on the lookout.

Can't remember if I posted this before or after I went to Apple with my last one (something was broken, I forgot what happened this time. Probably dropped it once again), but they gave me a new one of the same model for about 160 Euros... probably the last one they had.

Does the Cowon have a slot for more memory? Because my current library is over 100 Gb and I don't want to delete stuff (too much bloody work).

Also, because geek: NEW STAR TREK SERIES OMG.

[EvilBastard]

Does the Cowon have a slot for more memory? Because my current library is over 100 Gb and I don't want to delete stuff (too much bloody work).

Yep - comes with 32gb native and a slot for a micro SD card up to 32gb. I tend to be picky about what goes on there so 64gb is plenty enough for me. It will also play video (although the screen is very small) so you've got that option as well.

[EvilBastard]

Currently feeling very proud of myself - managed to rescue my laptop after "cleaning" the registry (quick tip: don't do this, no matter how much applications like AVG says you should. It won't end well), clean Win7 install, managed to make my NAS visible again (kept disappearing - solution: reboot the router from the control interface), fixed the overclock issue (solution: restrict Chrome to a single core of the processor), and got the touchpad working again (wonky connection to muvverbored). Off to buy some more RAM to boost it to an anaemic 8GB.

Quite pleased since I spent most of yesterday pricing replacements. So there's $1500 I "saved"

[EvilBastard]

Currently feeling very proud of myself - managed to rescue my laptop after "cleaning" the registry (quick tip: don't do this, no matter how much applications like AVG says you should. It won't end well), clean Win7 install, managed to make my NAS visible again (kept disappearing - solution: reboot the router from the control interface), fixed the overclock issue (solution: restrict Chrome to a single core of the processor), and got the touchpad working again (wonky connection to muvverbored). Off to buy some more RAM to boost it to an anaemic 8GB.

Quite pleased since I spent most of yesterday pricing replacements. So there's $1500 I "saved"

[markfiend]

New Rubik Cube personal best: 38.15 seconds.

Down to 27.77 now.

[Alex66]

Does building an amp count? Well getting a board of the auction site and optimising the F out of it, cheapest way to get a PCB.

[Alex66]

Made some new desktop speakers, well the box is temporary made of scrap out of the shed.

[Pista]

CG Tonido

Like a personal cloud/ FTP server.
Could save a whole load of hassle with sites like mega & so on.

[Pista]

New year, new toy


Hoping for some decent gigs now