Creating a Linux appliance - 2

Ok. I installed PCLinuxOS (pclinuxos.com). I followed the steps located at Pendrivelinux.com. This distro is much more elaborated than DamnSmallLinux...lots of eye candy. It has many GUI features for configuration and administration. It detected all my hardware, and though it shows me all the wireless networks available, I have not been able to connect to any yet.

It even has a feature, via GUI, to make what is called a "Persistent Home". This is, to have a space on the USB to store all the things you do while using the system. You know, you're booting from an USB drive, which uses RAM drives to decompress the OS and use it. Everything's done in 'short term' memory, so when you shut down, you loose changes. Well, with this, you have your own storage space, which is available every time you boot. The step-by-step guide is here.

I have to say that I really like this one.

Still playing with it. Will report back.

-R

Creating a Linux appliance

I'm obsessed with the fact that Linux is an operating system that can run almost anywhere. I have different projects, which may benefit from this feature.

I recently found out, that there are Linux distributions that can even boot up from an USB drive. I did know that there where LiveCD's, which are distributions that you can boot up directly from a CD, without having to install a single program on your computer, but using an USB drive has even more possibilities...for instance, you can save preferences...you can't do that on a CD.

Anyhow, I'm doing an experiment with a distribution called "Damn Small Linux", or DSL (damnsmalllinux.org). I bought a 2GB USB drive for $32, and follow the instructions on http://pendrivelinux.com/2006/03/25/putting-damn-small-linux-dsl-on-usb/.

I have it running, and I'm very impressed....I mean, it's like having a computer inside an USB drive. For instance, I can have a computer without hard drive and CDRom, and can still boot from my USB, browse the Internet, read email, use OpenOffice, etc.

I'm still trying to configure my Wireless card. I'm also thinking on trying out PCLinuxOS, another small distribution, which looks sexier.

-R

A cool new Firefox 2 feature I found

You know that you can go to Google and type a math operation and get the results, right? Well check this out. Go to your Firefox's Google box, and type a math operation there..say 14.99 * .07, and you'll instantly see the results as a Google suggestion, in this example, the 7% Puerto Rico sales tax for a pizza from Domino's.

I know, the calculator is a Google feature, but notice how nicely and seamlessly it gets integrated into the browser.

Anyhow, I think it's cool.

Which antivirus software to use

I'm writing this entry from Borders at Plaza las Americas, San Juan Puerto Rico. Iwas looking at technology books, and I started listening to the conversation between two gentlemen beside me. The were debating about which antivirus software is better. They related stories about Symantec, then Norton, Avast, Panda. I really wanted to jump in...I had something to ask them.

First off, this is gonna sound like some fan boy shit, but trust me, it´s not about that. I wanted to ask them, what´s the origin of the viruses they´re so afraid of. Do they come from infected floppy disks? Don´t think so. Infected files on CDs or DVDs? Maybe. Or, perhaps malware and spyware from emails and websites. Most likely!

Now, the mandatory question: which browser and email software are you using?

Got to go now, but more on this later.

It's all about standards. Why don't people get it?

Today, I was listening to LifeOnline, a Podcast hosted by GoDaddy's CEO Bob Parsons, and they mentioned a site called GoodFortunes.com. This site sells fortune cookies, which you can order, and supposedly, you can specify the messages you want inside of them. Many wicked ideas came to mind, so I decided to give it a look.

As soon as I type the URL and hit "enter", I was welcomed by the most offensive message box I've seen. The message read: "You are not using Internet Explorer Please call 1-800-644-9474 between 8:30 - 5:00 PST to place an order."

Why don't people get it already? When will this whole browser wars end? Why don't people just develop websites following open standards, thus making sure that it runs on ANY browser? Why use features that are proprietary to Internet Explorer, or any other browser for that matter? What is it in IE so special that it's not available in any other browser? Is Microsoft giving you anything back...money, publicity?

Those, and many other questions come to mind every time I browse into a website that explicitly says that it is "best viewed in Internet Explorer". There's even a website I once saw that said: "This site is optimized for Internet Explorer, the internet standard".

COME ON!!!