Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Untangle-30

Debian has emerged victorious.

Untangle has entered the fray.
It has released its White Label.
The OEM edition.
It is sleek fast and efficient.

It is the next generation of Mini Server one can carry in a mini DVD (currently CD with 444 of MiB),

No one can beat you.

Head start is on,
Enjoy it and make a contribution too
.


I give 250 points in my point scheme for OEM editions straight away.

With few more utilities a live CD based on OEM can top the 1000 marks!

Next Step-OEM Release

Linux has gone into the next stage of the development process that expands its rightful place and the wider audience.

I was waiting for the pocket solution.That is to carry the operating system in your pocket.

That is a reality now and most of the Light Weight
distributions incorporate USB stick use.I feel this should be mandatory to all distributions (Live / Desktop) and come as a the default.

The next most important thing is to penetrate all Original Equipment Manufacturers.
OEM should be mandatory within the next two years.
I can now list two of them.
One is Mint Linux other is Untangle.
I deal with Untagle separately but Mint I have already mentioned.

Come on guys / and girls make your presence felt in every little equipment from talking dolls to thermostat to Robots.

Then Microsoft cannot even catch your tail.

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Blessing In Disguise-nFLux-OpenBox-XBMC-

The Window Manager that produced the frenzy activity in the early days of Linux to produce something similar to Microsoft has now come to term with functionality instead of the the flashy looks.

nFlux is the one which has taken root with Slackware, Debian, Ubuntu and Arch Linux and it is much attractive than the the Openbox.

Openbox has its own virtues of saving valuable MB when making a live CD and its trigger happy mouse click activity that opens dialog boxes was a welcome change to heavy KDE but here comes nFlux with a bang.

The live wires of early Linux distributions Debian, Arch and Slackware adopting it to dispense the Light Weight Live CDs is not an accident but the next logical step.

I like all the distributions with nFlux and I hope there will be many more followers including PCLinux.

Writing about XBMC (Multimedia package) is inappropriate here but I have one reasoning that were not answered by both Sabayon and MonomaxOS.

Even though they have incorporated XBMC (which is good and encouraging to say the least) in their distributions XBMC drains a lot of resources for its functionality.

There is no coordination of mouse activity and XBMC and mouse often freezes.

The solution to this is to dispense XBMC as a live CD distribution with light weight window manager like Openbox or nFlux.

If it still has enough MiB left to fill a CD-700 MiB limit one can add some light weight games and abiword to push its boundaries for general use.

Adding general utilities should be a marketing strategy well worth investing with sportsmen in mind ( carrying laptops with Linux).

We missed the Football World Cup but we can come up with a Linux for the Cricket World Cup.

Players need to relax before an important game Laptop with videos and games and XBMC would be most welcome away from (this idea is free to exploit but you must send me a few Linux laptops to sell and make few bucks while U/I wait in between games) media men.

Since Linux is far behind in games this "games console" with video output is a blessing in disguise for developers to log onto.

Once they got the CD right, the next stage is to expand and make a DVD distribution with added load and functionality

That is my futuristic thinking.


Slow but sure we can close the existing gap and come out champions!

Hope Sabayon and MonomaxOS shows us the way if not Morphix, Arch or Debian!

Saturday, June 26, 2010

MonomaxOS-29

If one is fed up of Suse and Mandriva (I am fed up with both of them, both while being heavy and make a point to omit good utility packages that are in the commercial versions) this one is for you.

It has shed some of its weight to 1.7
and the slimmer versions provides what Suse and Mandriva keep as commercial packages.

It has XBOX (Multimedia) for which I give 250 points and
it's score is over 2000 (out of 3000 odd points which I give for a all inclusive heavy distributions).


It also has blender in it's official version and if they had put the same (blender) in the multimedia version I would have given 2500 points.

This is much better than Pardus which also come from Greece.

(I think Pardus is government sponsored and MomomaxOS is a free to make its own decisions).

Sabayon (Slakware) and Monomax (Ubuntu) are almost similar but I prefer Sabayon for its comparatively light weight strategy.

Pick is yours.

If a distribution cannot put its act together with 1.5 GB it is not worth the downloading time in this part of the world (Sri-Lanka).

Our downloading is pretty slow and servers hang up in the night!
Guys switch off the Server (Our Telecom) and go to sleep and that is the time unfortunately I download the Linux distributions for testing.

Sabayon-28

If one is fed up of Suse and Mandriva (I am fed up with both of them, both while being heavy and make a point to omit good utility packages that are in the commercial versions) this one is for you.

It has shed some of its weight from 3.5 GB to 1.7
and the slimmer versions provides what Suse and Mandriva keep as commercial packages.

It has XBOX (Multimedia) for which I give 250 points and
it's score is over 1500 (out of 3000 odd points which I give for a all inclusive heavy distributions).


Sabayon (Slakware) and Monomax (Ubuntu) are almost similar but I prefer Sabayon for its comparatively light weight strategy.

If they added blender I would have given extra bonus points!

It lives with it's promise the dream we believe on!

However, it should promote the Live CD much more vigorously than the heavy DVD version.

If a distribution cannot put its act together with 1.5 GB it is not worth the downloading time in this part of the world (Sri-Lanka).

Our downloading is pretty slow and servers hand up in the night!
Guys switch off the Server (Our Telecom) and go to sleep and that is the time unfortunately I download the Linux distributions for testing.

Kanotix-27

Kanotix is has come of age and its KDE is attractive.

Previous version I could not boot and that was one reason I did not write a review.
Now that it has resolved
hardware compatibility problem, it passes the 750 point barrier I have set for live CDs.

However, it is on the heavy side being a KDE derivative.

DreamLinux-26

Dream Linux is also going through rapid transformation and one of those very good utilities which is little talked about because of other common live CDs.
It should be within the first 20 but marketing strategy is not up to the mark.
It is above average and I would edit this page when the version 4 is up and running.

Peppermint-25

Peppermint, another Ubuntu derivative is going through a rapid transformation.

I had to figure out how to boot it when I first downloaded it but the latest version boots automatically without a hassle.

It is fast to boot and install and light weight.

Added Google Viewer and Documents in its package which is a welcome a change.
Gets over 800 points from me which is above average.
Good for a newbie.
The synaptic repository have enormous collection of extra packages.

It has given a new face to Ubuntu clones.

Go and enjoy it.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Leeenux-24

Leeenux has done a great job by producing a light weight Mobile looking attactive distribution that boots up fast (Ubuntu derivative) and connects to internet instantly.

In fact it even boots up with my desktop copmputer (which is IBM based and old) even though it is meant for eee PCs.

Hat's off to guys / girls at Leeenux.

Go download and enjoy the experience and if you have problems report to them with a donation.

This post was done on the fly on RAM (which I started doing when the going got tough) having experienced the interference to my web(old) site by politically inclined cowards and psychopaths during election time.

I used Leeenux for this activity (posting and editing).

Mind you this is not an invitation to undesirables but to people with free and independent voices like Linux guys / girls with good intent.

Saturday, June 12, 2010

IgLive-23

One of my basic grumbles about Linux from the early days was that the lack of games in Linux consoles.

 

This has been addressed by gamers from Berlin.

Ig Live CD and DVD (I cannot download even Knoppix Games in this Paradise Country with the slowest domestic paid Telecom Service) have addressed this void.

CD is good (I try my best to download the DVD-might take 2 weeks of continuous downloading) and enjoyed playing Pingus very much.

The game is topical.
Global Warming one of my favorite topics now.

I live in this hill city called Kandy for Kanda (in Sinhala it is the hill) with the range of temperatures was between 68 Fahrenheit to 78-80, 40 years ago.

Now it's temperature is well above 80 and topped 97 F recently
in my city (I checked the temperature when ever I can and record it with two digital thermometers with the date and time- I had to search well over 6 months to find an accurate thermometer).Which speaks volumes and need not have a Science Degree to understand.

Our politicians who enter (99% of them) the parliament with (bear) minimum of education want know how to read a child's temperature but runs the Ministry of Health and other important Ministries.

Some of them do not know how to operate a computer and we do not have a proper IT education in school curriculum.

Talking about Linux is like Greek to them (They only know Sinhala or Tamil but most of the Tamil can speak better English than Sinhalayas).
That is why I have to write this in a blog.Sorry for the diversion, I am a simple political animal with a vision for Science (visit my writing at www.writeclique.net) Education but IT and Linux is one of my aberrations!

So well done boys and girls in Berlin you are doing a wonderful job.

I have one suggestion foe you.If I were a kid I would have preferred what I going to say in a second.
Gamer's aradise
 

 Gamer's Paradise
Have compiz included in the distribution package with few other utilities Like abiword and scientific utilities.

I thick ARCH can very well do that!

So me the kid can switch the desktop from game to utility to fool my mum and dad who have an average working knowledge in Microsoft with only one desktop (like our politicians) in mind.

But don't do the mistake of QIMO but SHOULD have parental control over the Internet which leads to
many vices there.

If any one of you abroad can send me a
working games DVD (Including Knoppix) I can copy and distribute it in this god (84.000 of them) forsaken country.

Keep in touch with by email please.
I will write about XBMC (Linux Media Center) and Sabayon soon.
Dr.Asoka

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Elive-Revisited

Elive gets over 1000 points for may reasons.
Any penny donated to this site for development is worth its weight in gold.
It is innovative and only other two distributions that follow that path are YOPER and GOBO-Linux.

GOBO-Linux is slow in its development cycle which is invariably a good thing.
I am waiting to write about it but thinking that it's new release would come anytime and delaying that act.
In any case I am not even half-way to hundred and not even quarter it will eventually come. either my comments or it's new release.

Going back to ELive I like its new approach very much of asking a donation at the time of Installation which is the right thing instead at the beginning before downloading
(which is irritating to me).

The newbie has had the first hand feel when he/she is donating.
What is even better is its Demo with Cassius Clay with a Kid (promoting Linux) which is the way Linux people should learn how to market a good product.
Not the Greedy way of fortune 100 companies.
It's approach to Windows Manager is classic and in fact Linux on Fire and not Rome on fire with Nero not playing!

I have not seen the Compiz effects yet and even without seeing that I recommend ELive to newbies and groovies.

It brings a new life to graphic experience.
Go and download it and feel the pulse and send them a donation too.
Seeing it is believing!

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Why Mandriva Live (One) is not included?

Mandriva spring edition has done a poor remake of its Live CD.
I downloaded its 684 MB to see that it over shoots the CD by 32 MiB.
I cut a DVD and boots it to see it hangs Up in my desktop with adequate RAM.

Or is it this 64 bit version I am trying / using?

Try boot it with my Laptop.
Hangs up again!

Try download a new copy / iso image and after 684 MiB goes in to over shoot mode and even after 777 (it should be 007 of James Bond variety) it says unknown time of downloading.

I quit and write this nasty or in fact a Fact of Life for a newbie to order a copy (rather buy one).

This is a sad ploy by Mandriva becoming unbecoming!

I quit I have to test Dream Linux or Qimo and no more Mandriva please.

Same problem with Salix Live and Server breaks up!

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Element-22

Element is a wonderful Media Center and now HTDV enabled.

It easily gets over 750 points on my scale. If they incorporated abiword light or similar document viewer and improved its installation procedure by adding an icon on the desktop and a simple line in the command prompt to say how to boot it (re-user and password), I would have given 1000 points.

In fact it took three days for me to figure out how to sign up after the graphic prompt.

This is where an excellent distribution may be lost in the wild.
Linux Guys and Girls should learn how to market the product.

In any case it is an excellent distribution for media groovies and I give thousand (1000) and above now, expecting the guys to rectify the minor irritation (documentation to be precise) in the next release.

Why not add Skype too?