Linux Adventure - Day 1

Things are not going quite as planned on this first step in my Linux Adventure. I didn't have a lot of time before the end of the quarter, so I ended up not having time to research and implement the Samba stuff in order to make Windows and Linux like each other. This is kind of a problem for me honestly, as I like to use my files, and they are all on the Windows machine.*sigh* Anyway, due to the fact that I wanted to listen to music tonight, I fiddled with settings in Win and Lin for a couple minutes, gave up and decided that using a bootable USB drive might be a better option as it should allow me to access the files on the main system, so I have it chugging away on that project while I write on the dedicated Linux machine.

To be honest, if I thought it would actually work with Orca, would allow me to boot from a pen, and used deb packages instead of rpm, I would just install Mandriva. That is by far the prettiest, and easiest Linux distro I have ever come across. Unfortunately I know that last time I played with it, Orca would not work, and it does rely on rpm, so I don't think it is likely to be for me. If I get desperate, I may try Fedora again. It does some pretty neat things all things considered, just once again, I love apt. It seems so much simpler than other package managers that I have come across.

Another reason that the first day of the Linux Adventure went nowhere fast is that honestly I did not want to see another computer screen, (or my own for that matter) after finishing my final project for Web Fundamentals. I underestimated the amount of work that would be involved, and really didn't start on it until about 10 the night before it was due. I finished about 9 AM on Wednesday, and wasn't really feeling particularly well when it was finished. I wanted nothing to do with computers, so I refused to do anything with my machine until about 7 this evening. I have been good, and other than trying to get file sharing going, everything I have done has been done on Linux, but I can't say that I am very happy about the lack of file sharing. Of course, this is invariably my problem, and not necessarily the fault of Linux, or even Windows, but it does make me just a bit cranky.

I do have a few other comments I want to make about the Linux Adventure though, and several of them are really quite positive. First, I absolutely adore a little program called Gnome-Do It allows me to open programs and files by hitting modifier(start) button and space, then typing the names of the program or file I want to open. I haven't actually tried that with Orca yet, but that can be easily mended. I will be right back. * grin*. Well, nuts, it doesn't work with Orca, but in my case that really is a fairly incidental issue. I don't need it unless I am editing a long document, or reading a long document or web page.

Orca isn't bad, but I may have to see if I can scrape up the cash to get the Linux implementations of the IBM ViaVoice voices, as these voices drive me nuts to be quite honest.

Open Office Writer works well enough for my purposes especially since it is free, and very full featured. Mostly I just wanted a spell checker for my journal before I posted it anyway. I will have to go back to the old copy and paste routine, but that is bearable enough.

Well, my dedicated Linux system seems to have a bit of a flaw in it. I don't seem to have enough memory to run magnification on the system. Everything bogs down to something slightly slower than a crawl. I'll see how it works on the pen drive in just a few minutes.

Also, I must say that I am thankful that OO writer has been kind enough to restore documents after system crashes as well as Microsoft does, or I would have lost this entire journal entry. I might have cried if that had happened. As you can see, I am quite a way into the journal, and I would be just a bit cranky if it refused to return. Oh well, I think I am going to go try to boot the pen, and call this a night.

Networking is Not Working (Anywhere it Seems)

*Sigh* I have just managed to prove that whole student in networking thing. I have been trying to get Windows, both XP and Vista, talking to Linux so that I can have my files when I have my "Linux Adventure" in a couple weeks. I am willing to forgo the known. I am not willing to forgo either my music, my books, or my documents for the experience. So far, I am not having a good go of it. I realized after fiddling for an hour or so that Samba had never been installed on the Linux system, so that was sort of a duh moment, but it also only took about 30 seconds to remedy the problem. I now have the Samba server installed, but I next need to configure it. I started that process last night, but I didn't get very far. I would have gotten farther, but every time I turned around someone was calling me. I had a call from 9 P.M until midnight, then my brother called three times, and finally I got another call at about one A.M. I am surprised by my popularity. So, long story short, when I am not doing homework, I will be spending a lot more time reading up on how to configure Samba.

Speaking of communications not working, my brother managed to damage his cell phone. I am not sure what he did to it, he called me three or four times last night, and all he could do to communicate with me was press the buttons to cause a beep. We spent a lot of time using the "beep once for yes, twice for no" system. It was pretty funny, but I didn't learn much of what I wanted to know. I know that he didn't drop it, but I couldn't figure out how to phrase the questions, or ask the right ones, to figure out what he actually did to it. He also said that he didn't need my help ordering a used one from anywhere, but that dad is not likely to help him get another one either. I think he said he is planning to get another one, but I don't know how he is planning to do it. Oh well, in the end, I don't so much worry about it, but I do have to laugh at it. It was terribly funny. I wouldn't entirely put it past him to have faked it, but the background was quiet enough that I am pretty sure he was telling the truth. I will keep you posted when I know more.

My experiences with social networking are also falling into this article. (It seems like a good catch-all, especially with that title.) First, I will admit, I am not the person I should be about social networks. I don't like most of the nonsense that surrounds them. I've never had a MySpace, and my Facebook has languished for the last six or eight months without my even bothering to check it, until last night. I have to say, Facebook has made an awful mess of the system. I could barely navigate that page visually when I got talked into going up there last night. I have no idea how my friends with screen readers are doing it. I know they have started using the mobile page, which doesn't bode well for the accessibility of the system. All I know is that it to me it looks clunky and overstuffed. It is difficult to navigate in order to find what you actually want, and it makes me cranky. I did add a bunch of new friends last night, so if you care about Facebook, go ahead and see if I added you. It is certainly a possibility. If I didn't, don't feel bad, just submit a friend request, and if I know you, I should have you added by oh, maybe next July.