Gnome/Metacity is tweakable, y’all.
I hear/read it a lot. Gnome/Metacity is not as configurable as other Desktop Environments (DE). That's not entirely true. It's not as EASILY (read GUIfied) configured as other environments.
Wait! Which environments provide a GUI configuration for all of the tweakable desktop elements like title font, window border, button shape, size and/or placement?
I can think of 2 that allow such fine-grained control in a GUI:
I prefer Gnome for all its "bloat" and "size." Again: Why is this? On a modest system (Intel Celeron 2,2GHz, GeForce 8400 GS, single 21" display via DVI and 2GBs of RAM running the latest Arch Linux 64-bit version), I can enable the built-in compositing in Metacity without noticeable impact to my desktop performance. 3D performance drops dramatically, but I turn off the compositing if I really need 3D performance, like when playing games or playing games.
Gnome is very configurable, however. Like with other DE/WM combinations, you'll have to get "under the hood" and "get your hands dirty." This means that a few config files have to be tweaked, you WILL need a command prompt and the changes may not be permanent. It's Linux, not OS X or Windows.
I've modified the default icon theme, changed the background of the panel and other tweaks that make my desktop:
- Unique (Like every other alternative-OS-running-mofo's desktop. Is that ironic?)
- Personal (That's what PC meant originally, right? No reason it should mean anything else now.)
- Functional (By adding this myself, I can be more productive. Can be, but I'm not)
I like the customization freedom I have with Gnome. Is it as easy as in other DE/WM combinations? No, not really? Do I care? Nope. Not enough to remedy the situation.
Adding new hotkeys using the rarely-used "Windows" key.
I abhor using that word to describe that key and I'm too lazy to replace the keymap with a "penguin" or a "mudflap girl" or whatever else it could be. For now, it remains the "Windows", "Super" or even "Mod4" key.
One of the best uses of that key, however, is as a modifier for personal Keyboard shortcuts. Gnome doesn't clobber keyboard shortcuts that use these keys. Your DE/WM may vary.
For example, I've added some questionably convenient shortcuts for myself:
Linux…why I run it
and why I don't really give a rat's ass why you run what you do
Arch Linux defines simplicity as 'without unnecessary additions, modifications, or complications', and provides a lightweight
UNIX-like base structure that allows an individual user to shape the system according to their own needs. In short; an elegant, minimalist approach.
What this means to me is that my ArchLinux installation will be radically different from another ArchLinux user's installation. This highlights the versatility of a Linux system. This is one of the key reasons I prefer Linux and specifically distributions that give me real freedom: the freedom to run the software I'd like to run. Nothing more, nothing less.
Another reason that I believe ArchLinux maintains the spirit of Linux is their adherence to Code Correctness over Convenience. This is the notion that upstream developers (those that actually write the software) should correct their code rather than the have the distribution apply patches (Gentoo, Ubuntu. That means you). If the distribution patches the code that you're writing, the experience you're having with your computer is going to be specific to that distribution. While this can be a benefit for many, I believe that by allowing upstream developers to maintain their software, anyone running ANY distribution of Linux can experience the same thing. This is one way that Linux can have a consistent look and feel.
I only claim to have experience with the distributions that I've run. I define "run" as: Used as my primary desktop distribution for a period consisting of greater than six months. This rules out distributions I tried but left for some reason. Ubuntu, Fedora, SuSE (and OpenSuSE) fall into this category. I have tried each of them, but I always fell back to Debian, Gentoo, or most recently, ArchLinux.
During that time, I have read the arguments (flamewars and not-so-flaming-wars) about which Operating System or distribution is "the best." I would argue that there is no such thing. There is what was best for you and your needs. Then, there's best for someone else's needs. I don't care if you run Mac OS X, Windows or Linux. If what you run helps you get what you want out of your computer, then stick with it.
I no longer evangelize about Linux with the same fervor that I once did. My passion has been tempered by experience. My only preaching now consists of sharing my firsthand experiences with free software and alternative operating systems.
In fact, I am going to delve into Ubuntu one more time, having downloaded the latest beta release of the distribution and installing the live image to my USB thumb drive. This will allow me to try it out with installing over my current installed base.
I am OS agnostic in the sense that I don't give a rat's ass what you run. If it works for you, wonderful. But don't try to convince me that it's the best.
KDE 4.1 delivers a next-gen desktop Linux experience
ars technica has a review of the just released KDE 4.1 and they heap nothing but praise upon this "next-gen" desktop.
KDE 4.1 delivers a next-gen desktop Linux experience
I suppose if you have next-gen hardware, you can experience that next-gen desktop. I know that my now four-year old desktop hardware couldn't handle half of what KDE 4.1 wanted to deliver. Thus the reason I'm back to using the beautifully lightweight XFCE. If KDE 4.2 runs like KDE 3.5.9 did on my hardware, I'd consider switching back to KDE.
Taking a chill pill.
I don't know that I'll be contributing to Ubuntu by way of Kubuntu for a while. language-selector's been ported to PyKDE4 and is awaiting a wrapper to integrate Python applications into System Settings as control modules, so my part's done. That being said, I think I'm going to have to leave Kubuntu behind.
You see, I don't have a snappy new computer with loads of RAM and a dual-core processor. I have a nearly 4-year-old setup with 1 gig of RAM and an older NVIDIA card. I can't continue to run KDE4 as, even with Desktop Effects turned off, the desktop runs so sluggishly as to almost render it unusable.
Thanks to KDE 3.5.9, however, I've lost my irrational bias for QT applications. In fact, I've found a wonderful cross-platform IRC application: Quassel. It runs a core process, that maintains connections and communicates with the actual IRC server, and a client that makes IRC requests through the core. This gives the benefit of being able to remain connected to IRC from anywhere through one core.
So, for now, I'm giving Xubuntu a shot since I've played with the lightweight XFCE desktop environment in the past and loved it. Compositing in X works fine, Firefox doesn't crash when visiting certain websites (this did happen in KDE4 w/Desktop Effects turned on) and overall, my machine feels responsive.
Linux has always had the reputation of making older hardware perform better than in it would in Windows. KDE4 seems to run contrary to this, however. Hopefully, by the time 4.2 is released, I'll be proven wrong. If I were interested in purchasing new hardware to keep up, I'd already be running Windows or Mac OS X.
Finally giving something back…
Thanks to a co-worker, I am now a KDE user. I run Kubuntu 8.04 as my primary operating system. Kubuntu is a derivative of Ubuntu Linux which uses KDE as it's desktop environment. Having been a long time Gnome user, it was with great trepidation that I even begin using KDE as my primary desktop. (If I've already lost you, it's ok. *You* have not yet fallen prey to the seductive wiles of a free OS or you run proprietary hardware that prevents you from doing so.)
Ever since I started using KDE 3.5.9 and actually spending the time to configure it to my tastes, I was hooked. Advanced Window settings allowed me to pin an application to any one of my four active workspaces. My keyboard shortcuts were considered global so that meant that an application couldn't override the keyboard shortcuts *I* wanted to use. KDE was the word and the way.
Backtrack to 7/3/2008: A few Midori sours and I logged into #kubuntu-devel, the Kubuntu Developers channel on IRC. I asked if there was some way that a longtime Linux user with moderate Python abilities could help out with Kubuntu's future. Jonathan Riddell, founder of Kubuntu, responded with a yes: Help us port Ubuntu language-selector to PyKDE4. I agreed and I am happy to contribute to Kubuntu in whatever way I can.
As wonderful as the experience of modifying and committing code has been, the KDE4 experience hasn't been all that glorious. Here are some of the low points:
- Clicking on an application in the taskbar causes that application to minimize if I'm already on that desktop. In other words, if I attempt to use the taskbar to switch applications that are on the same desktop by clicking it's icon in the taskbar, the application I want to use gets minimized.
- Turning on Desktop Effects (aka Compiz for Gnome users), causes my computer to run like it's powered by hamster wheels.
- Most of the icons in my menus and for the plasmoids (widgets, gadgets, et al) are the standard box with a -?-
- The taskbar at the bottom will sometimes show corrupted graphics
- Kopete can't connect to Google Talk securely without crashing
Good points:
- KDE 4.1 is really pretty.
- KDE 4.1 implements a "dashboard" layer where the plasmoids are separate from the desktop.
- Konqueror is MUCH improved - faster, cleaner looking
- Dolphin has column view. Ah, how I missed that.
Still, I'm glad to be helping what I believe to be the best operating system. I hope to continue contributing to Kubuntu for some time to come.
In the meantime, I'll be using KDE 4.1 extensively and exclusively. When I remember, I'll post my experiences working with it here. Currently, I'm giving KMail a once-over. I'm a long-time Thunderbird user and I'm not pleased by the preliminary looks of the KDE 4.1 equivalent. It's been one night, though, so we'll give it some time and see what happens.
Taking the bitter and the sweet.
This is a sad day. LugRadio is coming to an end.
I can't say I've been a fan since show one as I didn't even become aware of LugRadio until Season 2. After hearing one episode, however, I was immediately hooked. Many a night providing support for a nameless media player was spent with headphones on, listening to the gents debate and discuss the "finer" points of being a Linux user.
When the LugRadio crew embarked on what will now be the only U.S. showing of LugRadio Live, I made sure to attend. The show was wonderful and there was great enthusiasm about Linux that I know I'll be a Linux user for years to come.
Hats off to LugRadio. Thank you for a wonderful run. You'll always be the best Linux podcast.
No virtualbox kernel driver after kernel upgrade.
During a recent Ubuntu update, the kernel version was bumped from 2.6.24-17 to 2.6.24-18. However, some kernel modules didn't get updated. I'm using the hardy-proposed repository and presumably this is how I got the updated kernel. This caused some additional work to get my system running normally again. These are the joys of early adoption in Linux.
One of the kernel modules that I use was for VirtualBox OSE. VirtualBox is a virtualization tool similar to VMWare but released under an open-source license. I use it to fulfill my Linux installation fetish without having to repartition or wipe out hard drives. I was even able to run the Live version of OpenSolaris virtually when it wouldn't recognize my deck's network card.
Back to the point: The latest kernel upgrade left the vboxdrv module in the dust. Solution: build it manually. Thanks to this launchpad bug, I was able to get it working again.
Here's the steps to follow to get the vboxdrv module up and running again:
sudo apt-get install virtualbox-ose-source
sudo module-assistant update
sudo module-assistant prepare
sudo module-assistant a-i virtualbox-ose
sudo /etc/init.d/vboxdrv restart
After I ran those steps in a terminal, the vboxdrv was loaded and VirtualBox runs without error.
The Weekend!
The weekend is over and the glow is starting to fade as I come back to work and resume the daily grind. LugRadio Live USA 2008 was a blast and I look forward to another one next year.
I have some photos from the event and some things to share. There were a lot of great exhibitors with innovative, open ideas.
I'll post more later when I get the chance...and I have the photos.
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