Linux Experience in a Nutshell

My first Tamil and Sinhala New year Resolution is to have a long sleep after posting this.

My next new year resolution is related to the incident I discovered today.

Just today I went to drop a friend of mine to the airport and being new year we arrived at the friend's place in good time. Since I did not have a good night sleep yesterday (I was looking for various Linux gamers to download for the new year) I had a bath and had a little snooze on the arm chair.

I usually carry a book and gossip is not my pastime; I forgot the wine making book I fished out from a secondhand bookshop, unfortunately.

We had lunch and tea and all that but my friend and wife were taking an unusually long time getting ready and I was bit bored dropped into their daughters room to say hello, and found a computer and sat in front of it.

There was a glaring message saying that the hard disk is at risk and blah, blah.

Then she came in with another cup of tea before leaving and she told me that it is giving trouble and could not connect it to Internet.

I Looked at the router it was OK looking form outside (no evidence of hit by lightening) but not blinking properly and the outer panels were open pulled out the hard disk and the cable and she had another hard disk and fixed it as the slave and booted a Linux live CD (Peppermint with Google utilities) I had given him earlier.

It took a little time to configure first but in less than ten minutes with 256 RAM, I was up and running the Chromium browser and typed asokaplus and parafox.

So router part is OK and my friend was still not ready, I decided to boot the computer (XP, I believe a pirated copy vendor had installed) without the Internet cable not plugged in and I could not find any (I had given her Medi Linux disk, too but did not use it for virus check) problem and it was running well.

I booted again with Peppermint, to show how to use it, this time it quickly configured and it was up and running.

My diagnosis Microsoft secretly spying on pirated copies and infecting the hard disk and giving instructions not to recognize the router with the message I did not care to read.

Router is above the operating system and Microsoft has no right to fiddle it at that level but they are doing it on unsuspecting Sri-Lankans who are using pirated copies.

So my solution is get hold of a Linux live CD and boot it with it and go to Internet.

When using XP (pirated copies of course pull the Internet wire out, a very simple remedy).

I prefer DSL (Damn Small Linux-that is what I have given my wife) with less than 50 MiB which boots fast.

If you have enough RAM go for any Live CD I have listed in Linux 100.
The second message is to say do not use Microsoft for Internet.
Third resolution is to promote Sinhala Linux for the next 3 months and go into full hibernation so that Microsoft would not be be able to find a trace of me or my old testicles which are still producing enough testosterone to fight any villain against Linux.

If you have any brain take a few (5 enough) minutes a day and learn bit of Linux from a Live CD. It does not do any harm to your computer since it is running on RAM and there are enough forums to guide you through the early phase.

Down below is a note I sent to a Young newbie.

2 GiB is enough (not for graphic intensive windows games) for Linux except for games.

I have only one (1) GiB (4 GIB in my laptop which I use only for testing occasionally).

It is a waste of money going for more RAM with very slow Internet in Sri-Lanka.
I only use K-Torrents now and it is currently downloading at less than 5 KB/sec .
Solution is for having at least two computers.
1. For games and videos

2. Simple secondhand computer with Linux for Internet (can share with your sister or brother and family members).

3. Netbook with Android when you enter University (not now).
I have fallen out with Newtbooks and Tablets now.

Except my laptop and my daughters netbook all the computers at home are very good secondhand IBM computers (cost less than 20,000 with few updates with RAM but not graphic cards).

Secondhand desktops are good buys if you understand the hardware and look at inside before buying.

I test them with my Linux CD/DVDs before buying and there are lot of Linux utilities to test and Linux will work day and night for 10 years.

None of my computers broke down after I started using Linux (before that 3 new ones on Windows) except few graphic cards and RAM in the learning stage.

They work 24/7 schedule and the UPS battery is very important.
This is one reason I promote Linux and I do not fear viruses now.

Only down side is Games with Linux which I will probably concentrate when I retire and nothing else to do.

I have two game DVDs but I will not give it to anybody since Linux is for real and serious computing and not for games and leisure!

Never buy a secondhand laptop or netbook (I have written about secondhand laptops in my blog site).

Wait till new models come and with long battery life and you need it in the university and the government is unable to pay dons and do not expect them to help you with computers (not in Singapore though) when you eventually enter University.

Learning Linux is easy if you take one step at a time.

When I started there was nobody to guide me.
I used to read books (This is where English is important) and fast.

That is a technique (reading fast and also digesting the material) I developed on my own.

Give me any big book I will read (not from cover to cover) only what I want to solve a problem (in this case installing Linux) and pick up the important things in 3 to 4 days.

This is something essential in higher studies. One does not read for the sake of reading in science (reading in other fields including philosophy is different).

One focus on why one reads this or that and make one's own personal assessment in the course of the reading.

Early days I used to get bogged down in two or three days without any progress.

Then I take a break and think about the problem deep and somehow get to the point (D.I.Y- Do It Yourself) where I want to make progress.

It naturally comes.

We all have this natural ability but examinations do not make us better but show where we are weak.

After every examination we have to go for a higher level and a more difficult level.

Even though A Level is difficult we make life easy after the 1st year Examination.

Unfortunately 1st year examination is the most difficult for all and problem with English compounding the disability.

This is especially so in maths and IT.

Maths is difficult if one is not in it.

I was very good in my maths including applied mathematics and used to beat all in my class.

Then one day I decided to go for biology in particular (with my reading talent and the fast speed was a bonus) and without any help covered the syllabus myself (D.I.Y).

Rest was history and I never felt big but looked for the next challenge.

When you get bogged down in a mathematical problem do not try to solve it by somehow.

Think, analyze and look at the problem in a different way.

There is always several ways of solving problems and try to grasp the concept.

What I find in my teaching in the University is students struggle to grasp key points an concepts.

Not like our time.

I do not know why?

Other problem is they cannot read a manual and follow instructions according to the manual and instructions.

This is where reading is important.

So concentrate on your mathematics and English.

Rest will follow.

Linux take as a problem and a hobby to take a break from your studies.

Do not make it your first interest.

But keep trying and look at where you go wrong.

This talent is essential in IT.

There is something called fixing bugs.

This is where both mathematical concepts and programming merge.

Even though I do not write programs, I am good looking at bugs.

That probably has come from my analytical skills learnt from pathology.

Try to be a problem analyst.

The term in IT is system analyst.

If a server breaks down one has to find where and when and what has gone wrong?

Without trying to spoon feed I have given you a list or methods that I have used to solve my problem with Linux.

You try all and decide what is good for you.

One is enough at an examination but in teaching (as a teacher I have to cater for different type of students) one has to look at the global picture and focus on different aspects of a problem.

That is the difference between a student and a teacher.

It is sometimes very hard to become a good teacher.

If am given a chance I prefer to be a student.

That is where I always enjoyed.

But having to teach a brighter student is a blessing.

Linus Torvald, I like him the most because he showed that his professor was wrong.

There are many ways to solve a given problem.

Not one professors given method.

This is how the business world operate and there are Teams and not Lords