After two weeks, I'm still not able to reliably network my linux box. It's erratic. Sometimes it works, other times it doesn't, and sometimes strange error arise, and if I solve the error, then another one crops up, and another, and another besides, and some of these are old errors I've seen before, and some are new ones. Sometimes Linux Mint gets into moods and when it boots, something is broken, for an unknown reason. It regularly forgets the proper screen resolution, 800x600, and bumps me up to 1600x1200, rendering the display very difficult to read. I don't know who thought Linux Mint was user-friendly, because I've been doing nothing but pouring over online tutorials on editing /etc/smb.conf using a text editor (the 1980's style of business) and I've gotten exactly nowhere. I would only recommend LM to someone that does not have a network and never plans on getting one.
I have about the simplest network in creation, all connected by wire. Linux has me spinning my wheels all week long trying to get Linux shares to show up in Windows. Always there is "Access Denied," if the shares show up at all. So Linux wins an A+ for security, an F- for usability. I think that a rock would be a better operating system for networking purposes, because I can throw the rock and hit another computer with it, but I can't get anything to hit Linux. I've followed at least twenty tutorials online and read so many forum messages that my eyes are burning, and nothing works.
My next project is to try OpenSuse, on the hypothesis that it has smoother networking capability than Linux Mint. If that doesn't work out for me, then it's back to Windows. I'd rather be programming than running back and forth between computers to see whether a share can be accessed or not. Bo--ring! Now I know why I went into programming rather than network administration.
Showing posts with label computers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label computers. Show all posts
Friday, November 2, 2012
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Patience
I've learned not to wrestle with ornery computer problems late at night, when my patience has ebbed. Just about blew a gasket yesterday trying to get my computers to talk with each other on the network. I'm much more patient about things like that in the morning and afternoon.
Yesterday around midnight, I was all set to kill my Linux Mint 13 Mate 64-bit install, sell the new motherboard, and fall back to my old motherboard and Windows XP 32-bit SP3. In fact, I had the case open and the old motherboard right there on the floor and a screwdriver in my hand, ready to take the new motherboard out. But oh, the thought of defeat, that rankled, the thought that I couldn't figure things out... call it nerd pride--I couldn't, I just couldn't. Besides, there were the forty hours I had already invested in configuring Linux and learning about it. In for a penny, in for a pound. One of the reasons I'm good at computers is I just don't give up, that's my ace in the hole, when every other sensible person would call it quits and cut their losses, I'm just too hard-headed, and I have confidence in my ability to see things through to a satisfactory solution. I'm not about taking it easy, I'm about maximum efficiency.
Today I learned more about Linux, and I think I do see light at the end of the tunnel, insofar as I'm getting better at things and there are fewer mysteries.
To be sure, Linux is much easier without a network to deal with. I would really rather not learn quite so much about networking as I am, but it looks like Linux is determined to give me a crash course. I find networking a bit boring, a matter of running around from hole to hole, knocking gophers on the head, and just when I think I've got them all another one pops up, and another.
Yesterday around midnight, I was all set to kill my Linux Mint 13 Mate 64-bit install, sell the new motherboard, and fall back to my old motherboard and Windows XP 32-bit SP3. In fact, I had the case open and the old motherboard right there on the floor and a screwdriver in my hand, ready to take the new motherboard out. But oh, the thought of defeat, that rankled, the thought that I couldn't figure things out... call it nerd pride--I couldn't, I just couldn't. Besides, there were the forty hours I had already invested in configuring Linux and learning about it. In for a penny, in for a pound. One of the reasons I'm good at computers is I just don't give up, that's my ace in the hole, when every other sensible person would call it quits and cut their losses, I'm just too hard-headed, and I have confidence in my ability to see things through to a satisfactory solution. I'm not about taking it easy, I'm about maximum efficiency.
Today I learned more about Linux, and I think I do see light at the end of the tunnel, insofar as I'm getting better at things and there are fewer mysteries.
To be sure, Linux is much easier without a network to deal with. I would really rather not learn quite so much about networking as I am, but it looks like Linux is determined to give me a crash course. I find networking a bit boring, a matter of running around from hole to hole, knocking gophers on the head, and just when I think I've got them all another one pops up, and another.
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Cautionary Note on the ASUS E35M1-M
I flamed the ASUS E35M1-M yesterday in an online forum, but then had second thoughts and deleted my post, because I just don't feel enough certainty to flame, especially when I am unable to find any claims online to back up my own. After all, it is possible that I had two defective motherboards. Defects do happen. And besides, what do I know? I know how to build systems, but my knowledge of hardware is not deep. I could be mistaken, and I don't like slinging mud at one of the few low-energy offerings for desktops besides Intel's Atom.
But here is my hypothesis, to those who are interested, and somehow I do not think I will be the only one.
I have three ASUS E35M1-M motherboards installed in desktop systems, and they have eaten a USB stick containing the OpenElec install, which I referred to an earlier post, as well as a name-brand keyboard and mouse. By "eaten" I mean these devices are no longer operable, will not interact with any of my other computers, are dead, no lights come on, and they are not detected by the BIOS. The cause of their demise was plugging and unplugging these devices into various USB ports on the ASUS E35M1-M. The reason I am suspicious is that three devices is an awful lot to die in the span of twenty-four hours for a small household like mine, and these young devices had been operating without any problems before. The BIOS version on each of the motherboards was 1502, and I notice that ASUS has in September of 2012 released two BIOS updates, with 1602 being said to "improve system stability and improve USB compatibility." Again, I'm not completely sure of what happened, but I do think the motherboard is the most likely culprit here. Stupid ASUS forced me to use USB ports because they only included one lousy PS/2 port. I have PS/2 mice and keyboards, but no, they demand their customers use a USB port, to save a couple pennies on the manufacture of a $199 board.
Needless to mention, I am upgrading all of my BIOSes to 1602 this morning. The ASUS E35M1-M boasts of the new UEFI BIOS, but I did not know how to get either Windows or Linux to install with it. Meanwhile, the manufacturer apparently hadn't worked all the bugs out yet, and so I got the disadvantages without the benefits. I can't recommend this motherboard anymore, but does it matter? AMD discontinued the E-350 chip, so the motherboard has been orphaned.
I think my next motherboard is going to be an Intel motherboard running an Intel chip.
But here is my hypothesis, to those who are interested, and somehow I do not think I will be the only one.
I have three ASUS E35M1-M motherboards installed in desktop systems, and they have eaten a USB stick containing the OpenElec install, which I referred to an earlier post, as well as a name-brand keyboard and mouse. By "eaten" I mean these devices are no longer operable, will not interact with any of my other computers, are dead, no lights come on, and they are not detected by the BIOS. The cause of their demise was plugging and unplugging these devices into various USB ports on the ASUS E35M1-M. The reason I am suspicious is that three devices is an awful lot to die in the span of twenty-four hours for a small household like mine, and these young devices had been operating without any problems before. The BIOS version on each of the motherboards was 1502, and I notice that ASUS has in September of 2012 released two BIOS updates, with 1602 being said to "improve system stability and improve USB compatibility." Again, I'm not completely sure of what happened, but I do think the motherboard is the most likely culprit here. Stupid ASUS forced me to use USB ports because they only included one lousy PS/2 port. I have PS/2 mice and keyboards, but no, they demand their customers use a USB port, to save a couple pennies on the manufacture of a $199 board.
Needless to mention, I am upgrading all of my BIOSes to 1602 this morning. The ASUS E35M1-M boasts of the new UEFI BIOS, but I did not know how to get either Windows or Linux to install with it. Meanwhile, the manufacturer apparently hadn't worked all the bugs out yet, and so I got the disadvantages without the benefits. I can't recommend this motherboard anymore, but does it matter? AMD discontinued the E-350 chip, so the motherboard has been orphaned.
I think my next motherboard is going to be an Intel motherboard running an Intel chip.
Monday, October 29, 2012
Linux Mint 13 & OpenElec 2.0 & Windows 7
I've been engulfed in a whirlwind of Operating System (OS) storms of late that all began one night when I attempted to install a refurbished 2.5tb hard drive I had snagged for $100. Little did I suspect that Windows XP would throw a major hissy fit over the drive exceeding the arbitrary 2tb maximum decreed by Microsoft. Windows XP was impossible, there was a mathematical boundary based on sectors and MS-DOS and 32-bit, so said all the divines that I consulted.
I probed around the cyber underground and finally found what seemed like a suitable bootleg Windows 7, but it wouldn't handle the large drive either, nothin' doin'. The cracker clown had deleted the EFI boot driver, you see, which is required for Windows to recognize the drive properly. I assume that the EFI driver had been deleted so as not to interfere with the cracker's key-logging, virus and trojan horse programs, because Avast flagged three of the files in the bootleg as being Potentially Unwanted Programs, which is bad news, a headache I don't need. I probed a bit and found that some of the instructions were written in Russian, and that was all I needed to know quite frankly.
Long story short, I wound up returning to an old flame of mine, where OSes are concerned that is, an OS that I have flirted with in the past though our love was never consummated by an actual desktop install. No, we had only experimented together, fumbling under the sheets in a hotel room, this OS and me, and now she was a few years older and wiser, updated and better in every way, and to my surprise, this time we managed to pull it off and have a baby together.
Linux Mint, "Maya", is the lady I'm talking about, my latest excursion into the wild lands beyond the Windows continent. After a mind-boggling ordeal I have finally taught myself enough rudiments to get by in the not-quite-so-friendly-as-media-pundits-would-have-it Linux world. Pundits say Linux Mint is the friendliest flavor of Linux around, and they're probably right about that, but Linux itself is not quite so friendly as Windows XP, not quite as easy to get things done, and I found a number of glitches and hard-to-understand points even in 2012. I think part of the problem is that Linux developers preach to the chorus, the already converted, the sophisticated technorati who make up the Linux userbase, rather than designing with non-techie novices in mind, as Microsoft does.
The biggest problem with Linux as I see it is also considered among the biggest virtues by the Linux establishment so to speak. What I'm talking about is security, which seems to be spelled with a capital "S" and put in bold and underlined everywhere these days. I understand the necessity for some users. But I'm just a weed growing on the side of a rock in the Atlantic Ocean, and I'm not quite as concerned about Chinese spies hacking into my computer. Maybe I should be, I don't know, but so far I have not suffered undue consequences, at least that I'm aware of, from my supposedly "unsafe" habit of leaving my Windows XP computers without pervasive password protection. All right, throw rocks at me and call me a dinosaur, but that's the way I see it. I think it is ridiculous to have to type in a password every few minutes to get things done in the operating system. I counted one day when I was shifting files around and modifying configuration files, and I must have entered my password a dozen times. A password is required to do just about anything besides sneeze and cough. The usual retort from Linux fans is that this makes the OS secure from nefarious Internet hackers. Yes, but I love my Windows XP that lets me get things done in the blink of an eye without typing in the same password over and over. I think somebody needs to give thought to devising a method of security that does not involve constant password input. The truth is that nine out of ten users are going to write that password down on a piece of paper and tape it above their keyboard. How secure is that computer, again? I think the big danger is that it will become secure from the user, not that somebody will burglarize my house and slip a virus into the works, although that is a disturbing thought, and I guess I have rebutted my own argument here.
On a regular basis, Linux Mint 13 Mate 64-bit forgets the screen resolution, which means that it boots up at a resolution of 1600 x 1200, so that the letter "a" looks like a tiny dot on my 800x600 monitor. I have to rely upon memory to find the ATI Catalyst Configuration Manager in the menu, and it is not easy, because I cannot read the text. When I click on the Configuration Manager, the resolution resets itself without explanation. This problem seems to be intermittent without rhyme or reason, sometimes arising and sometimes not. Also on a daily basis, Linux Mint forgets the network permissions for shared folders, which means that I have to set the permissions manually, which requires entering my password from 10 to 20 times. I am now thinking that the price of Windows 7 would be cheap at $10,000, based upon my experience with Linux.
Second problem I had with Linux Mint is that the screensaver kicked in every time I tried to watch a video, and that was funny the first three times it happened, but after that I lost my appreciation of the humor. It took me about three hours to sort that problem out, and the solution isn't really perfect either, but I suspect my hardware configuration is to blame, of which more is to be said.
Third problem is the fault of AMD, I suppose. The ATI video driver for Linux seems to be defective or inadequate from what I have read in the forums. Too many users report that they have a better experience watching videos on Windows 7 than in Linux. I had to tweak and massage and dial down the settings in VLC Player for hours before I was able to play most video files right, and that doesn't count the number of hours I spent getting the sound to output to all of my speakers. There was a steep learning curve, but then again can I say that there wasn't one in Windows XP? I cannot. Windows XP can also be a bear to a beginner. Perhaps I've forgotten some of the banana peels Windows XP dropped on the floor for me to slip on back in the days when I was a Windows novice.
Despite these problems, for the moment I am enduring Linux Mint, because I have this faint hope that once you get past the initial learning curve, you're on easy street, and I've already paid my dues, which amounted to about forty hours glued to the computer experimenting and reading tutorials, many of them outdated, mistaken or partly true. It takes a lot of reading to learn a little bit about Linux, because most sources on the Internet just divulge a tiny secret here or there, almost never the whole enchilada, but one can't look a gift horse in the mouth, because they certainly aren't getting paid to teach me anything, nor have I yet paid for Linux Mint. To find an answer to a question, typically I have to read six or seven articles. Part of the reason is that the OS keeps changing, each new release bringing a tiny incremental improvement.
I think it would be logical for all the distros to merge and all the developers to join as a team to focus on a single distro, one Ring to Rule Them All and In the Darkness Bind Them, you see. In chess, I have learned that in order to win one must focus firepower upon a single point. Again and again this is the path to victory, and so it is in other areas. Focus is the key. When developers are scattered about in different houses reinventing the wheel or spinning their wheels, then of course the player with the focused firepower, that is to say Microsoft, carries the day. But this is obvious.
The payoff for me is that Linux is free, which really matters to me, not because I need to save a hundred bucks, but because it gives me the convenience and flexibility of being able to install an OS on any computer at any time for any reason. That matters when one supports a network of computers, as I do, and occasionally makes builds or upgrades for friends. I seldom keep a motherboard for over five years, but am always on the move where hardware is concerned. No longer do I have to fret about whether Windows is going to work or not, whether I have to buy another license or worry about viruses in a bootleg copy.
Also, Linux handles drives that are greater than 2tb without too much difficulty. I was only able to partition my drive with MBR, which only supports partitions < 2 tb, despite having a UEFI Bios that supports GPT and thus > 2 tb partitions. Linux only gave me the option of slicing my drive up into different partitions, each less than 2tb, rather than having one big partition, which is what I wanted, although I recognize the utility of having a small partition of 60gb or so for the /boot partition.
Linux can do many of the same things that Windows does, it just takes a little extra elbow grease sometimes, and I've got plenty of elbow grease at the moment. I do think it is true that Linux is more secure, although I've taken big chances by connecting to unauthenticated repositories in an attempt to fix some of the problems I encountered.
The Community in Linux appealed to me, and I'm afraid I became so enthusiastic at first that I was just gushing, sharing my little novice insights and observations, until I realized I was talking to myself. At any rate, enthusiasm has its uses, and it fueled my learning. Who cares what strangers think of my lightly-informed postings? I am but one of a crowd of Linux novices and am sure the Linux gurus will ignore igor. I'm a tiny little pipsqueak among the multitude.
For the record, if one is determined to learn the rudiments of Linux, and only if that is so, I do recommend Linux Mint 13 "Mate" 64-bit. Hopefully, you will not have a network, do not plan to watch any videos, do not play any sound files, and do not have a drive over 2tb, and do not have an ATI graphics processor, and if these things are so, you will have less difficulty with Linux Mint than I did. The reason I encountered some of my hassles was due to this odd desire to do something other than enter passwords and troubleshoot random problems all day. It's just a quirk of mine, I'm sure.
Right at the moment, I'm a little burned out after my self-imposed "boot camp," when I was spending just about every waking hour studying and experimenting. Why do we programmers do that to ourselves? It is some kind of sickness. Balance, that's what a body needs. I get tunnel vision sometimes, want to know everything, do everything, fix everything. Oh well, that's just me, I like to be fast, efficient, correct. But now I have everything sorted, I think. I'll probably regain my enthusiasm later.
I tried Open Elec 2.0, oh did I try! I really wanted it to work, because the developers had kindly produced a version specifically for my processor, an E-350 AMD APU. What more could one ask for? It was as though they had made it just for me.
Open Elec proved a waste of time. In the first place installing it absolutely requires a USB stick, and I did not fully realize that until too late. There is no way around that requirement, as far as I can tell, and that was a huge problem for me, because I only had 1 USB stick on hand, and when I attempted to make an install drive for Open Elec, my motherboard fried it, I mean it is junk now, and I threw it in the trash can. I don't know how or why that happened, but the USB stick was a cheap freebie from NewEgg, so there you go.
Next I tried making an install drive out of an actual hard drive, trying to fool Open Elec into thinking the hard drive was a USB drive, but that didn't work either, Open Elec was too smart and refused to cooperate with my nefarious plan. Bad igor! Trying to install OpenElec without a USB stick!
Burning a CD was out of the question, didn't work. Finally I resorted to attempting to make an install drive out of one of my MP3 players, which I recognized after some reflection, is actually nothing more than a glorified USB stick, with an earphone jack and a primitive interface. This was my last-ditch try, and I tried this twice, but it didn't work either, and I don't know why. When I tried to boot, it got a little ways and then halted with a numeric error, which I researched and could not find any information about.
So after five hours of researching and experimenting and hoping and a dead USB stick, I came up with exactly nothing in my attempt to try OpenElec. The developers have a nice web site though, and I can only wish I had their design skills. I like the cool blue, smooth fonts. They are just too cool for school. But I noticed that the comment features on the web site seem disabled. It is impossible to leave any discussion on the wiki and it is impossible to leave comments on the blog, and I think I have surmised the reason why and it is not ultimately a technical reason, although an error is reported. I don't think the developers want to hear from people like me that are having problems, because I think they know full well that their version 2.0 is actually more like 0.2 beta-ware, not quite ready for prime time yet. Enabling comments would likely bring on an avalanche of "how do I's" and "can you help..." and they're not getting paid for anything as far as I can see and have better things to do then spin their wheels assisting the clueless. I think their payday is going to come from preinstalled systems and from business clients. The most an end-user like me can do is help them test out their beta-ware and for that purpose, they are glad to share an .iso, if I have the know-how and the hardware to deal with it, because if I can pull off an install then it is likely I can supply them with valuable feedback rather than clueless novice feedback.
Windows 7 is the OS my brother swears by and with good reason I am sure. He doesn't know about Linux, but is open-minded about it, just as I am. He is dead-set against Windows XP, though. He has been campaigning for me to abandon Windows XP and accept the inevitable, and after a series of debates over the past two years, I plan to accept his proposed Christmas gift of Win 7 Professional 64-bit, because I need to know Windows 7 in order to remain proficient as a techie. I do realize that and I hate being perceived as a dinosaur, even if I am with my useless COBOL and BASIC and Batch knowledge. I'm an unemployed, unemployable dinosaur, a loser that chose the wrong programming languages and paid the price, and some people, like my Father, think I'm lazy because I don't have a computer job, and that point of view irritates me, because I'm anything but lazy. All computer programmers have jobs according to this point of view. I don't expect to persuade critics of the sobering facts in the marketplace. Unless they have been out there looking for computer jobs, they do not know what they are talking about, but are basing their opinions on the marketplace during the boom time, the Clinton years, before the Bush calamity. Some people refuse to update their opinions, but remain frozen in time, living in a different era.
Right now I feel that Linux will succumb to format c: in the near future. I doubt it will be of use to my friends or family due to the steep learning curve when attempting to do even the most mundane and ordinary computer task, such as access a file over a network. The thing is, it is possible to do everything in Windows via graphical user interface, one that is highly refined, consistent, relatively bug-free, and very well documented in numerous web sites including Microsoft's. With Linux, even with the elegant Linux Mint, it remains necessary to resort to the command-line interface in order to do much of anything in regards to OS tasks. I cannot imagine asking my non-techie friends to learn all of the things that I learned through dozens of hours of experimentation and research. So for the masses I believe Windows will remain the OS of choice, and now I have a better understanding of why this is so, although I do wish things were different and I do hope things are different some day.
I probed around the cyber underground and finally found what seemed like a suitable bootleg Windows 7, but it wouldn't handle the large drive either, nothin' doin'. The cracker clown had deleted the EFI boot driver, you see, which is required for Windows to recognize the drive properly. I assume that the EFI driver had been deleted so as not to interfere with the cracker's key-logging, virus and trojan horse programs, because Avast flagged three of the files in the bootleg as being Potentially Unwanted Programs, which is bad news, a headache I don't need. I probed a bit and found that some of the instructions were written in Russian, and that was all I needed to know quite frankly.
Long story short, I wound up returning to an old flame of mine, where OSes are concerned that is, an OS that I have flirted with in the past though our love was never consummated by an actual desktop install. No, we had only experimented together, fumbling under the sheets in a hotel room, this OS and me, and now she was a few years older and wiser, updated and better in every way, and to my surprise, this time we managed to pull it off and have a baby together.
Linux Mint, "Maya", is the lady I'm talking about, my latest excursion into the wild lands beyond the Windows continent. After a mind-boggling ordeal I have finally taught myself enough rudiments to get by in the not-quite-so-friendly-as-media-pundits-would-have-it Linux world. Pundits say Linux Mint is the friendliest flavor of Linux around, and they're probably right about that, but Linux itself is not quite so friendly as Windows XP, not quite as easy to get things done, and I found a number of glitches and hard-to-understand points even in 2012. I think part of the problem is that Linux developers preach to the chorus, the already converted, the sophisticated technorati who make up the Linux userbase, rather than designing with non-techie novices in mind, as Microsoft does.
The biggest problem with Linux as I see it is also considered among the biggest virtues by the Linux establishment so to speak. What I'm talking about is security, which seems to be spelled with a capital "S" and put in bold and underlined everywhere these days. I understand the necessity for some users. But I'm just a weed growing on the side of a rock in the Atlantic Ocean, and I'm not quite as concerned about Chinese spies hacking into my computer. Maybe I should be, I don't know, but so far I have not suffered undue consequences, at least that I'm aware of, from my supposedly "unsafe" habit of leaving my Windows XP computers without pervasive password protection. All right, throw rocks at me and call me a dinosaur, but that's the way I see it. I think it is ridiculous to have to type in a password every few minutes to get things done in the operating system. I counted one day when I was shifting files around and modifying configuration files, and I must have entered my password a dozen times. A password is required to do just about anything besides sneeze and cough. The usual retort from Linux fans is that this makes the OS secure from nefarious Internet hackers. Yes, but I love my Windows XP that lets me get things done in the blink of an eye without typing in the same password over and over. I think somebody needs to give thought to devising a method of security that does not involve constant password input. The truth is that nine out of ten users are going to write that password down on a piece of paper and tape it above their keyboard. How secure is that computer, again? I think the big danger is that it will become secure from the user, not that somebody will burglarize my house and slip a virus into the works, although that is a disturbing thought, and I guess I have rebutted my own argument here.
On a regular basis, Linux Mint 13 Mate 64-bit forgets the screen resolution, which means that it boots up at a resolution of 1600 x 1200, so that the letter "a" looks like a tiny dot on my 800x600 monitor. I have to rely upon memory to find the ATI Catalyst Configuration Manager in the menu, and it is not easy, because I cannot read the text. When I click on the Configuration Manager, the resolution resets itself without explanation. This problem seems to be intermittent without rhyme or reason, sometimes arising and sometimes not. Also on a daily basis, Linux Mint forgets the network permissions for shared folders, which means that I have to set the permissions manually, which requires entering my password from 10 to 20 times. I am now thinking that the price of Windows 7 would be cheap at $10,000, based upon my experience with Linux.
Second problem I had with Linux Mint is that the screensaver kicked in every time I tried to watch a video, and that was funny the first three times it happened, but after that I lost my appreciation of the humor. It took me about three hours to sort that problem out, and the solution isn't really perfect either, but I suspect my hardware configuration is to blame, of which more is to be said.
Third problem is the fault of AMD, I suppose. The ATI video driver for Linux seems to be defective or inadequate from what I have read in the forums. Too many users report that they have a better experience watching videos on Windows 7 than in Linux. I had to tweak and massage and dial down the settings in VLC Player for hours before I was able to play most video files right, and that doesn't count the number of hours I spent getting the sound to output to all of my speakers. There was a steep learning curve, but then again can I say that there wasn't one in Windows XP? I cannot. Windows XP can also be a bear to a beginner. Perhaps I've forgotten some of the banana peels Windows XP dropped on the floor for me to slip on back in the days when I was a Windows novice.
Despite these problems, for the moment I am enduring Linux Mint, because I have this faint hope that once you get past the initial learning curve, you're on easy street, and I've already paid my dues, which amounted to about forty hours glued to the computer experimenting and reading tutorials, many of them outdated, mistaken or partly true. It takes a lot of reading to learn a little bit about Linux, because most sources on the Internet just divulge a tiny secret here or there, almost never the whole enchilada, but one can't look a gift horse in the mouth, because they certainly aren't getting paid to teach me anything, nor have I yet paid for Linux Mint. To find an answer to a question, typically I have to read six or seven articles. Part of the reason is that the OS keeps changing, each new release bringing a tiny incremental improvement.
I think it would be logical for all the distros to merge and all the developers to join as a team to focus on a single distro, one Ring to Rule Them All and In the Darkness Bind Them, you see. In chess, I have learned that in order to win one must focus firepower upon a single point. Again and again this is the path to victory, and so it is in other areas. Focus is the key. When developers are scattered about in different houses reinventing the wheel or spinning their wheels, then of course the player with the focused firepower, that is to say Microsoft, carries the day. But this is obvious.
The payoff for me is that Linux is free, which really matters to me, not because I need to save a hundred bucks, but because it gives me the convenience and flexibility of being able to install an OS on any computer at any time for any reason. That matters when one supports a network of computers, as I do, and occasionally makes builds or upgrades for friends. I seldom keep a motherboard for over five years, but am always on the move where hardware is concerned. No longer do I have to fret about whether Windows is going to work or not, whether I have to buy another license or worry about viruses in a bootleg copy.
Also, Linux handles drives that are greater than 2tb without too much difficulty. I was only able to partition my drive with MBR, which only supports partitions < 2 tb, despite having a UEFI Bios that supports GPT and thus > 2 tb partitions. Linux only gave me the option of slicing my drive up into different partitions, each less than 2tb, rather than having one big partition, which is what I wanted, although I recognize the utility of having a small partition of 60gb or so for the /boot partition.
Linux can do many of the same things that Windows does, it just takes a little extra elbow grease sometimes, and I've got plenty of elbow grease at the moment. I do think it is true that Linux is more secure, although I've taken big chances by connecting to unauthenticated repositories in an attempt to fix some of the problems I encountered.
The Community in Linux appealed to me, and I'm afraid I became so enthusiastic at first that I was just gushing, sharing my little novice insights and observations, until I realized I was talking to myself. At any rate, enthusiasm has its uses, and it fueled my learning. Who cares what strangers think of my lightly-informed postings? I am but one of a crowd of Linux novices and am sure the Linux gurus will ignore igor. I'm a tiny little pipsqueak among the multitude.
For the record, if one is determined to learn the rudiments of Linux, and only if that is so, I do recommend Linux Mint 13 "Mate" 64-bit. Hopefully, you will not have a network, do not plan to watch any videos, do not play any sound files, and do not have a drive over 2tb, and do not have an ATI graphics processor, and if these things are so, you will have less difficulty with Linux Mint than I did. The reason I encountered some of my hassles was due to this odd desire to do something other than enter passwords and troubleshoot random problems all day. It's just a quirk of mine, I'm sure.
Right at the moment, I'm a little burned out after my self-imposed "boot camp," when I was spending just about every waking hour studying and experimenting. Why do we programmers do that to ourselves? It is some kind of sickness. Balance, that's what a body needs. I get tunnel vision sometimes, want to know everything, do everything, fix everything. Oh well, that's just me, I like to be fast, efficient, correct. But now I have everything sorted, I think. I'll probably regain my enthusiasm later.
I tried Open Elec 2.0, oh did I try! I really wanted it to work, because the developers had kindly produced a version specifically for my processor, an E-350 AMD APU. What more could one ask for? It was as though they had made it just for me.
Open Elec proved a waste of time. In the first place installing it absolutely requires a USB stick, and I did not fully realize that until too late. There is no way around that requirement, as far as I can tell, and that was a huge problem for me, because I only had 1 USB stick on hand, and when I attempted to make an install drive for Open Elec, my motherboard fried it, I mean it is junk now, and I threw it in the trash can. I don't know how or why that happened, but the USB stick was a cheap freebie from NewEgg, so there you go.
Next I tried making an install drive out of an actual hard drive, trying to fool Open Elec into thinking the hard drive was a USB drive, but that didn't work either, Open Elec was too smart and refused to cooperate with my nefarious plan. Bad igor! Trying to install OpenElec without a USB stick!
Burning a CD was out of the question, didn't work. Finally I resorted to attempting to make an install drive out of one of my MP3 players, which I recognized after some reflection, is actually nothing more than a glorified USB stick, with an earphone jack and a primitive interface. This was my last-ditch try, and I tried this twice, but it didn't work either, and I don't know why. When I tried to boot, it got a little ways and then halted with a numeric error, which I researched and could not find any information about.
So after five hours of researching and experimenting and hoping and a dead USB stick, I came up with exactly nothing in my attempt to try OpenElec. The developers have a nice web site though, and I can only wish I had their design skills. I like the cool blue, smooth fonts. They are just too cool for school. But I noticed that the comment features on the web site seem disabled. It is impossible to leave any discussion on the wiki and it is impossible to leave comments on the blog, and I think I have surmised the reason why and it is not ultimately a technical reason, although an error is reported. I don't think the developers want to hear from people like me that are having problems, because I think they know full well that their version 2.0 is actually more like 0.2 beta-ware, not quite ready for prime time yet. Enabling comments would likely bring on an avalanche of "how do I's" and "can you help..." and they're not getting paid for anything as far as I can see and have better things to do then spin their wheels assisting the clueless. I think their payday is going to come from preinstalled systems and from business clients. The most an end-user like me can do is help them test out their beta-ware and for that purpose, they are glad to share an .iso, if I have the know-how and the hardware to deal with it, because if I can pull off an install then it is likely I can supply them with valuable feedback rather than clueless novice feedback.
Windows 7 is the OS my brother swears by and with good reason I am sure. He doesn't know about Linux, but is open-minded about it, just as I am. He is dead-set against Windows XP, though. He has been campaigning for me to abandon Windows XP and accept the inevitable, and after a series of debates over the past two years, I plan to accept his proposed Christmas gift of Win 7 Professional 64-bit, because I need to know Windows 7 in order to remain proficient as a techie. I do realize that and I hate being perceived as a dinosaur, even if I am with my useless COBOL and BASIC and Batch knowledge. I'm an unemployed, unemployable dinosaur, a loser that chose the wrong programming languages and paid the price, and some people, like my Father, think I'm lazy because I don't have a computer job, and that point of view irritates me, because I'm anything but lazy. All computer programmers have jobs according to this point of view. I don't expect to persuade critics of the sobering facts in the marketplace. Unless they have been out there looking for computer jobs, they do not know what they are talking about, but are basing their opinions on the marketplace during the boom time, the Clinton years, before the Bush calamity. Some people refuse to update their opinions, but remain frozen in time, living in a different era.
Right now I feel that Linux will succumb to format c: in the near future. I doubt it will be of use to my friends or family due to the steep learning curve when attempting to do even the most mundane and ordinary computer task, such as access a file over a network. The thing is, it is possible to do everything in Windows via graphical user interface, one that is highly refined, consistent, relatively bug-free, and very well documented in numerous web sites including Microsoft's. With Linux, even with the elegant Linux Mint, it remains necessary to resort to the command-line interface in order to do much of anything in regards to OS tasks. I cannot imagine asking my non-techie friends to learn all of the things that I learned through dozens of hours of experimentation and research. So for the masses I believe Windows will remain the OS of choice, and now I have a better understanding of why this is so, although I do wish things were different and I do hope things are different some day.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Another Way to Make Money
Of course, another way to make money is to save money. Maybe it is the computer programmer in me, always seeking greater efficiency, but I have become rather good at saving money over the years, although I made some mistakes along the way. My biggest mistake was buying a 46" Plasma television soon after it become available. I paid a whopping $1500, and the darn thing only has 800x600 resolution, which annoys me every time I watch Windows XP boot up. Today you can buy a 50" plasma with at least 1024x768 resolution for under $500. So clearly, enthusiasm has gotten the best of me where technology is concerned.
I made what I imagine to be wise purchases lately, replacing all of the motherboards and cpu's in my network for reasons that would have seemed strange to me a decade ago. My new motherboards and cpu's are not any faster. In fact, they are slower in most cases. Their chief virtue is low energy consumption. To put it in other words, they cost me less money. I know what I am talking about because I tested each of my computers with Kill-a-Watt, which has a .2w margin of error. Prior to the upgrade, my computers drained between 45 to 65 watts apiece, which may seem already low, but it is not low enough, so says Igor, when you are talking about a computer that stays on for eight, twelve, twenty-four hours a day. That wattage adds up over time and results in real monetary losses and for what? What purpose is being served by consuming excess electricity? Am I able to do more because the computer uses more power? No, not at all. The reality today is that more power does not mean a faster computer, not when one uses only the Internet browser and apps with similar modest requirements.
I have measured each of my computers after their latest upgrade. Their top power draw, including everything in the computer, is now just 24 to 28 watts apiece--much better, cutting electrical consumption by half or more. The next time I upgrade them, it will only be to cut their power consumption yet again. I would just like to add that motherboard and cpu are only part of the equation. The power supply is critical. Anyone using a ps that is not rated 80-plus or better is wasting money. I recommend Seasonic, although it annoys me that their stuff is manufactured in China, but everything is manufactured in China these days. How I would like to see "Made in America" stickers again!
The second benefit of my new computers is aesthetic. I like to exert control over sounds, colors and other sensory input (there is a fan in my room for a reason). My new computer is quieter. Not silent, but close. I think that is a good thing. The only noise producer in each of my computers is the little power supply fan. The cpu does not require a fan at all. A heat sink dissipates what little heat is generated by the cpu, and in combination with the power supply fan and generous case ventilation seems sufficient to maintain stability at around 50C.
I can tell you what I do with my old computer parts. No, I don't throw them in the garbage or donate them to Goodwill. I sell them on E-bay. In this way I recycle with maximum efficiency and offset the cost of my upgrade. My buyers tend to be happy, because most buyers just want the seller to be honest and reliable and are thrilled to find that this is the case. I never, ever lie in an auction, and I always allow returns. It is better to be painfully honest, and I will "tell it like it is" and get less money for something, than to ever, ever deceive. That is what the successful Ebay seller knows. In many cases I have gotten enough money to render my upgrade free or close to free. I don't know why, but the after-market for computer parts on Ebay is to the seller's advantage and has been for at least five years and I don't see this changing anytime soon. Therefore an easy way to make money for anyone that knows something about computer hardware is toupgrade downgrade their computers or at least their computers' electrical requirements. The savings will come every month in the form of a reduced utility bill, and the old parts can be sold on Ebay, because apparently not everyone has gotten the memo yet about energy efficiency.
Now wouldn't it be wonderful if we could sell old body parts on Ebay and replace them with new ones!
I made what I imagine to be wise purchases lately, replacing all of the motherboards and cpu's in my network for reasons that would have seemed strange to me a decade ago. My new motherboards and cpu's are not any faster. In fact, they are slower in most cases. Their chief virtue is low energy consumption. To put it in other words, they cost me less money. I know what I am talking about because I tested each of my computers with Kill-a-Watt, which has a .2w margin of error. Prior to the upgrade, my computers drained between 45 to 65 watts apiece, which may seem already low, but it is not low enough, so says Igor, when you are talking about a computer that stays on for eight, twelve, twenty-four hours a day. That wattage adds up over time and results in real monetary losses and for what? What purpose is being served by consuming excess electricity? Am I able to do more because the computer uses more power? No, not at all. The reality today is that more power does not mean a faster computer, not when one uses only the Internet browser and apps with similar modest requirements.
I have measured each of my computers after their latest upgrade. Their top power draw, including everything in the computer, is now just 24 to 28 watts apiece--much better, cutting electrical consumption by half or more. The next time I upgrade them, it will only be to cut their power consumption yet again. I would just like to add that motherboard and cpu are only part of the equation. The power supply is critical. Anyone using a ps that is not rated 80-plus or better is wasting money. I recommend Seasonic, although it annoys me that their stuff is manufactured in China, but everything is manufactured in China these days. How I would like to see "Made in America" stickers again!
The second benefit of my new computers is aesthetic. I like to exert control over sounds, colors and other sensory input (there is a fan in my room for a reason). My new computer is quieter. Not silent, but close. I think that is a good thing. The only noise producer in each of my computers is the little power supply fan. The cpu does not require a fan at all. A heat sink dissipates what little heat is generated by the cpu, and in combination with the power supply fan and generous case ventilation seems sufficient to maintain stability at around 50C.
I can tell you what I do with my old computer parts. No, I don't throw them in the garbage or donate them to Goodwill. I sell them on E-bay. In this way I recycle with maximum efficiency and offset the cost of my upgrade. My buyers tend to be happy, because most buyers just want the seller to be honest and reliable and are thrilled to find that this is the case. I never, ever lie in an auction, and I always allow returns. It is better to be painfully honest, and I will "tell it like it is" and get less money for something, than to ever, ever deceive. That is what the successful Ebay seller knows. In many cases I have gotten enough money to render my upgrade free or close to free. I don't know why, but the after-market for computer parts on Ebay is to the seller's advantage and has been for at least five years and I don't see this changing anytime soon. Therefore an easy way to make money for anyone that knows something about computer hardware is to
Now wouldn't it be wonderful if we could sell old body parts on Ebay and replace them with new ones!
Monday, September 24, 2012
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Why Firefox is Safer
Firefox is a safer browser than IE or Chrome primarily because of two add-ons, NoScript and AdBlock. NoScript uses a whitelisting strategy so that no script can run without the user explicitly allowing access from a specific site. AdBlock simply removes ads from view, which eliminates the possibility the user will accidentally click on an ad and be deposited on a malware or spyware site. I have installed these two add-ons on all of my desktops and consider them to be standard equipment for all computers that I provision.
I do not install Chrome on any machine. There is no reason to have two tools when one is better by every measure than the other.
There should never be one-click access to IE. Typing should be required. If I see IE on a machine, I delete the icon and remove it from the Start menu. IE should only be accessed by experienced users on an as-needed basis for updating Windows and nothing else. In Windows XP on my desktops, it can be accessed by choosing to run a program and then typing in "iexplore.exe". As soon as the necessary task is completed, IE is closed.
The reason IE is bad is an old one. It was true in the 1990s and it remains true today. IE is the browser with the largest market share, so it has "target" written on its forehead in bright red letters. Another problem is that it is the default browser in Windows, so the biggest number of clueless users will be using IE. Effort is required to install Firefox, though much less effort is required to install Chrome, because these days it is included by default in tons of applications from Avast antivirus to the kitchen sink. Google is paying software vendors to include Chrome in the installers. The result is that Chrome will be grabbing more of the clueless user population. The reason elite users stick with Firefox is they like customizing their browser and they have a deeper knowledge base that allows them to do so. All of these factors make Chrome and IE the top targets for black hats, who know quite well that clueless users make easier targets.
Among my friends, I have heard of many people getting hacked while using IE exclusively. They wind up spamming all their friends, losing money, losing their credit rating, or having to reinstall Windows altogether. I have not heard of many people getting hacked that use Firefox. Maybe it is because the people that use Firefox also take other precautions, or maybe there are other reasons involved, but I am sticking with Firefox until the bitter end.
I do not install Chrome on any machine. There is no reason to have two tools when one is better by every measure than the other.
There should never be one-click access to IE. Typing should be required. If I see IE on a machine, I delete the icon and remove it from the Start menu. IE should only be accessed by experienced users on an as-needed basis for updating Windows and nothing else. In Windows XP on my desktops, it can be accessed by choosing to run a program and then typing in "iexplore.exe". As soon as the necessary task is completed, IE is closed.
The reason IE is bad is an old one. It was true in the 1990s and it remains true today. IE is the browser with the largest market share, so it has "target" written on its forehead in bright red letters. Another problem is that it is the default browser in Windows, so the biggest number of clueless users will be using IE. Effort is required to install Firefox, though much less effort is required to install Chrome, because these days it is included by default in tons of applications from Avast antivirus to the kitchen sink. Google is paying software vendors to include Chrome in the installers. The result is that Chrome will be grabbing more of the clueless user population. The reason elite users stick with Firefox is they like customizing their browser and they have a deeper knowledge base that allows them to do so. All of these factors make Chrome and IE the top targets for black hats, who know quite well that clueless users make easier targets.
Among my friends, I have heard of many people getting hacked while using IE exclusively. They wind up spamming all their friends, losing money, losing their credit rating, or having to reinstall Windows altogether. I have not heard of many people getting hacked that use Firefox. Maybe it is because the people that use Firefox also take other precautions, or maybe there are other reasons involved, but I am sticking with Firefox until the bitter end.
Sunday, September 2, 2012
The Weaknesses of Chrome & Firefox
The weaknesses--and some of the strengths--of Firefox, as I see it, are in the add-ons. Java and Flash are the two major annoyances. It seems at least once a month some vulnerability comes about and an update to one of the two kludges is "highly recommended," killing 10 - 15 minutes of the end user's time, per computer. For me, that amounted to about twenty minutes killed this morning updating Java on two machines. I can't count the number of times Flash has updated, but I really don't like it because I don't know anything about Adobe or what it wants to do with my computer. Do I trust Adobe? Not really. I don't know anything about the company, but its product resides on my computer, apparently necessary because so many people watch videos on the Internet these days. We are moving to an illiterate society. Sun Oracle Java, for its part, wants to install the Ask! toolbar into my browser, and if I don't remember to un-check the box during installation, it will install that worthless piece of crap into my browser, which will necessitate another lengthy uninstall process. I hate Ask with a passion.
I can certainly understand why some users have abandoned Firefox in favor of Chrome, which has flash and java built-in rather nicely and which updates those two things in a comparatively transparent and fast manner. The main thing I don't like about Chrome is that it makes too many assumptions regarding the interface, which is far too minimal for my taste. I like a few buttons and an accessible menu at the top of the screen. Computers just are not smart enough yet to make quite so many assumptions or to start with a blank screen. Chrome wants to hide everything away, and I don't like that.
I know that idealistic young computer programmers wish things were different, but the reality is computers are as stupid as the day is long. This was true twenty years ago and it remains true today, and no amount of fancy marketing or design by Google or Microsoft will change the reality. The only thing that is going to change the scene is exponential advances in hardware. Then we can talk minimalism. Okay? Until that day, give me my damn buttons and menu options.
I also don't like Chrome's lack of add-ons such as Ad Blocker, which cleans the web of so much advertising clutter. The reason I stay with Firefox has to do with its design, which I feel is just about right, and its many add-ons, and its open-source nature. I just don't trust Google or Microsoft, because they are obviously looking for some kind of advantage to accrue from their browser, and that advantage might not be to my advantage, whereas Firefox, in theory at least, intends to create the best browser, without any dependency upon a particular vendor. Perhaps Firefox does take money from certain sources such as Google, but they are not bound to Google and could change tomorrow, whereas Chrome is inextricably bound to Google. Not that I have anything against Google, of course. But Google is, after all, a company in business to make a profit. I would use Chrome if the option were between Chrome and IE, but not while Firefox is still viable, and Firefox is still viable even with the annoyances I have described above.
I can certainly understand why some users have abandoned Firefox in favor of Chrome, which has flash and java built-in rather nicely and which updates those two things in a comparatively transparent and fast manner. The main thing I don't like about Chrome is that it makes too many assumptions regarding the interface, which is far too minimal for my taste. I like a few buttons and an accessible menu at the top of the screen. Computers just are not smart enough yet to make quite so many assumptions or to start with a blank screen. Chrome wants to hide everything away, and I don't like that.
I know that idealistic young computer programmers wish things were different, but the reality is computers are as stupid as the day is long. This was true twenty years ago and it remains true today, and no amount of fancy marketing or design by Google or Microsoft will change the reality. The only thing that is going to change the scene is exponential advances in hardware. Then we can talk minimalism. Okay? Until that day, give me my damn buttons and menu options.
I also don't like Chrome's lack of add-ons such as Ad Blocker, which cleans the web of so much advertising clutter. The reason I stay with Firefox has to do with its design, which I feel is just about right, and its many add-ons, and its open-source nature. I just don't trust Google or Microsoft, because they are obviously looking for some kind of advantage to accrue from their browser, and that advantage might not be to my advantage, whereas Firefox, in theory at least, intends to create the best browser, without any dependency upon a particular vendor. Perhaps Firefox does take money from certain sources such as Google, but they are not bound to Google and could change tomorrow, whereas Chrome is inextricably bound to Google. Not that I have anything against Google, of course. But Google is, after all, a company in business to make a profit. I would use Chrome if the option were between Chrome and IE, but not while Firefox is still viable, and Firefox is still viable even with the annoyances I have described above.
Sunday, August 26, 2012
ImgBurn is a Virus
ImgBurn is malware. After I installed it, without warning it replaced my home page and search engine and attempted to install an unknown add-on in Firefox. I immediately uninstalled ImgBurn. As far as I'm concerned it is no different than any other virus. I just wish my anti-virus program, Avast, had stopped it in time.
I think I have eliminated all of the changes it made. What an idiotic thing that Ask search engine is. I would never in a million years use such a search engine that behaves in such an obnoxious, intrusive manner. Not only did I remove it from the default search engine, I deleted it altogether from the list of search engine options, and if I ever see it on someone's computer, I definitely will recommend removing it. Ask is a search engine created by virus-writers.
I think I have eliminated all of the changes it made. What an idiotic thing that Ask search engine is. I would never in a million years use such a search engine that behaves in such an obnoxious, intrusive manner. Not only did I remove it from the default search engine, I deleted it altogether from the list of search engine options, and if I ever see it on someone's computer, I definitely will recommend removing it. Ask is a search engine created by virus-writers.
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
My Max Power Draw is 45W
I am proud to say I do not own a CPU or APU with a power draw greater than 45W. I think that in 2012 anyone who does is paying too much in electrical costs to maintain their computer--unless they have special needs or play some new-fangled video game. The trend in computers is to use less power, not more. I say that time and time again. Old school hackers don't believe me. Back in the day, the only thing that mattered was speed, because computers were too slow, and human beings hate to wait for a machine. Anyone who has been paying attention to processors knows that the situation has changed. Today's processors are fast enough for most tasks and in fact much processor potential goes wasted, with the primary exception of video games. If you don't play the latest video games--and I don't--then go green, ignore the "fastest processor" hype, and buy a motherboard/processor combination optimized for HTPC. Some of them today have a total power draw of 18W or less, which is extremely impressive. Processor power draws are getting down into Compact Fluorescent Light Bulb territory! What this means is that not only will we save money running our computers, we will also save on air conditioning costs (less power=less heat dissipation=less cooling costs) and enjoy quieter machines (cpu fans become optional with passive cooling becoming a possibility).
The chief disappointment I have encountered in shopping for HTPC motherboards is that motherboard manufacturers do not know what time of the day it is. They always include a parallel port and serial port without fail, both of which are completely useless to most users today. I disable these "features" on the BIOS of every motherboard I have. Typically, they cut the PCI expansion slot in favor of an unnecessary PCI Express expansion slot, ignoring the fact that their apu-provisioned motherboards do not require separate video cards (the usual consumer of a PCI Express slot). Also, most motherboards I have seen have Stone Age sound. They lack a SPDIF optical connection and suitable hardware HD sound support for a high-end surround-sound stereo system. Most motherboards also seem fixated upon HDMI, which I don't use--and I don't understand why anyone would use it unless they have a monstrously high-resolution monitor, in which case a little bitty green HTPC might not be indicated for their purpose.
The chief disappointment I have encountered in shopping for HTPC motherboards is that motherboard manufacturers do not know what time of the day it is. They always include a parallel port and serial port without fail, both of which are completely useless to most users today. I disable these "features" on the BIOS of every motherboard I have. Typically, they cut the PCI expansion slot in favor of an unnecessary PCI Express expansion slot, ignoring the fact that their apu-provisioned motherboards do not require separate video cards (the usual consumer of a PCI Express slot). Also, most motherboards I have seen have Stone Age sound. They lack a SPDIF optical connection and suitable hardware HD sound support for a high-end surround-sound stereo system. Most motherboards also seem fixated upon HDMI, which I don't use--and I don't understand why anyone would use it unless they have a monstrously high-resolution monitor, in which case a little bitty green HTPC might not be indicated for their purpose.
OpenELEC
I really admire OpenElec, but it's not for me. I like my computer to be able to do a wide variety of tasks and don't want any "one-note Charlie" that is only good for playing videos or music. However, even though OpenElec isn't for me, that doesn't mean I don't like it. I like the OpenElec concept for an important reason--my Mother. I think it would be great for her as an HTPC because it is easy to use and won't present any demands in terms of maintenance. So I am keeping OpenElec in mind as a potential solution for users with somewhat less technical knowledge than myself.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
AMD's APU
The best thing I've seen in computers lately has to be AMD's motherboard/apu combos. For about a hundred dollars, a consumer has an easy upgrade solution to replace both cpu and motherboard. This deal is sweet: an apu not only is the cpu, but also functions as the video card, one that is significantly better than most on-board video controllers. Better can be interpreted as faster and also more conservative in power consumption.
The APUs are much underpowered in comparison to the latest and greatest and most expensive processors from Intel and AMD. But the only folks who need mighty cpus are gamers, mostly. The rest of us get by just fine with a basic, below average processor. The sweetest part of the deal is that apus are green in comparison to other cpus. An APU might draw as much as 36W, while most cpus begin at 65 W and can go up to 125 W or more.
Now I have a system that runs 24/7, and while the difference in annual operating costs between a 36W apu and a 65W cpu could be substantial, my primary motivation for upgrading (or downgrading, actually, in terms of raw computing power) is that my old motherboard seems to have occasional, intermittent problems communicating with my modem. Such occasional, intermittent hardware glitches are the bane of computer technology and nobody really wants to deal with them. The easiest solution by far is to replace the hardware.
The APUs are much underpowered in comparison to the latest and greatest and most expensive processors from Intel and AMD. But the only folks who need mighty cpus are gamers, mostly. The rest of us get by just fine with a basic, below average processor. The sweetest part of the deal is that apus are green in comparison to other cpus. An APU might draw as much as 36W, while most cpus begin at 65 W and can go up to 125 W or more.
Now I have a system that runs 24/7, and while the difference in annual operating costs between a 36W apu and a 65W cpu could be substantial, my primary motivation for upgrading (or downgrading, actually, in terms of raw computing power) is that my old motherboard seems to have occasional, intermittent problems communicating with my modem. Such occasional, intermittent hardware glitches are the bane of computer technology and nobody really wants to deal with them. The easiest solution by far is to replace the hardware.
Friday, March 30, 2012
Testing
A common problem with small time gamer or forum sites is they have an inadequate test environment, typically little or none. Debugging should only ever be done on a test site, and the changes placed into production only after all possible (or rather, foreseeable) bugs are fixed. Those bugs that can't be foreseen are the only ones that production users, or customers in a business setting, may encounter. Unfortunately, small time web sites tend to make changes on the fly, with the result of inconveniencing some or all of their users. The best changes are slow ones done with care and deliberation and prior notice to users.
I think testing is the single greatest weak point in the software industry, encompassing all the security holes, bugs and failures caused by software that simply was not tested enough. The same could be said of hardware, of course. A web master with a track record of unrolling changes that are perfect for most users and approved by them is a real professional, and he must have a good team of testers.It is very difficult to attempt to anticipate every possible variable or even to identify all the variables at play. Much in computer science has always been assumed. One common and costly assumption was that the first two digits of any four-digit century would always and forever be "19" instead of anything else, like oh, say "20". Another assumption is that electrical power will always be available. What if it is not? Many programs have lost data due to something as simple and common as a power outage. The list goes on. Testing can become quite expensive and time-consuming depending upon the amount of thoroughness desired. The balance between cost and benefit depends upon the application.
I think testing is the single greatest weak point in the software industry, encompassing all the security holes, bugs and failures caused by software that simply was not tested enough. The same could be said of hardware, of course. A web master with a track record of unrolling changes that are perfect for most users and approved by them is a real professional, and he must have a good team of testers.It is very difficult to attempt to anticipate every possible variable or even to identify all the variables at play. Much in computer science has always been assumed. One common and costly assumption was that the first two digits of any four-digit century would always and forever be "19" instead of anything else, like oh, say "20". Another assumption is that electrical power will always be available. What if it is not? Many programs have lost data due to something as simple and common as a power outage. The list goes on. Testing can become quite expensive and time-consuming depending upon the amount of thoroughness desired. The balance between cost and benefit depends upon the application.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Sabu the Clown
That Sabu clown sounds like a real jerk. Worse than his hacking was his keeping the neighbors up all night with his muzak, selling smack and just plain old stealing from people. It is exactly that type of clown that goes around vandalizing web sites.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Sabu of Lulzsec
Turns out the leader of Lulzsec had no ideals and believed in nothing except himself, which is about what I expected out of that clown. Time to pay for all that cyber-vandalism, d00dz. Can anyone say "pwnd?"
When I read the details of how he was busted, I realized that all the talk of his skillz was hogwash. Facebook? Really? LOL!
When I read the details of how he was busted, I realized that all the talk of his skillz was hogwash. Facebook? Really? LOL!
Monday, February 27, 2012
Windows XP for HTPC
Windows XP is the best choice for low-cost and simple HTPC. I spent a lot of time trying to breathe life into various flavors of Linux, but Linux wants people to commit a lot of time in order to iron out all the hardware and software problems that arise with Linux. These problems are not fun and not interesting, and I don't have that much time to burn, so Windows XP is the only viable choice for me.
Windows 7 is nicer, but completely unnecessary except for hardcore gamers. Windows XP works just fine for those on a budget. I like games produced between 2001 and 2005, so I may never need to upgrade to Windows 7.
I found a great web site the other day for optimizing Win XP for HTPC.
By using many of that gentleman's recommendations for disabling unnecessary Windows services and by making educated deductions based upon his excellent information, I was able to cut the boot time of my HTPC from 3 minutes to 30 seconds.
Windows 7 is nicer, but completely unnecessary except for hardcore gamers. Windows XP works just fine for those on a budget. I like games produced between 2001 and 2005, so I may never need to upgrade to Windows 7.
I found a great web site the other day for optimizing Win XP for HTPC.
By using many of that gentleman's recommendations for disabling unnecessary Windows services and by making educated deductions based upon his excellent information, I was able to cut the boot time of my HTPC from 3 minutes to 30 seconds.
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Burning DVDs to Watch Movies
When someone tells me they need to burn a DVD to watch a movie, that is when I know I am talking with a technological moron. Anyone still using DVDs after 2007, let alone 2012, has not been paying attention. I imagine that they also rub two sticks together in order to make fire.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Linux
I figured out the Linux developer's game. They don't want Linux to be popular--ever. There's nothing in it for them. The way they make money is consulting with big companies. Linux is used for servers. So companies pay mega-bucks to developers with lots of Linux ability. The only thing the developers do is craft fancier bells and whistles in the OS. They never have, and never will, iron out the thousands of hardware incompatibilities, even ones that are ten or twenty years old.
I tried a variety of Linux OSes on three different machines, and my mileage varied. Some systems were silent. Some had no video. Some didn't boot. Some had no mouse. Needless to say, I forgot all about Linux and went back to the only working OS that works all the time and supports all hardware: Windows. Linux is crap and will always be crap because the developers don't want it to be anything but crap. It may, however, be feasible in certain niche applications such as a back-end server, where only a limited amount of hardware needs to be supported.
I tried a variety of Linux OSes on three different machines, and my mileage varied. Some systems were silent. Some had no video. Some didn't boot. Some had no mouse. Needless to say, I forgot all about Linux and went back to the only working OS that works all the time and supports all hardware: Windows. Linux is crap and will always be crap because the developers don't want it to be anything but crap. It may, however, be feasible in certain niche applications such as a back-end server, where only a limited amount of hardware needs to be supported.
Monday, December 26, 2011
What Does OKIDATA Mean?
I discovered what OKIDATA means. The English translation is: "Service Call, Fatal Error."
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Charter Cable Still Doesn't Get It
I received yet another letter from Charter Cable offering internet, tv, and phone for $60/mo. and deposited it directly into the trash can like the fifty previous letters before it.
Charter still doesn't get it, six years after I left them.
It's not the price.
It's not the features.
It's reliability.
With Charter, I went without Internet for days and weeks at a time because of unexplained technical problems on their side. That's something I remember. Refunds for those time periods were promised--only if requested--but never materialized. So I don't care if Charter offers the bundle for $30, I'm not biting.
They need to work on reliability, followed by reliability, and thirdly, reliability.
When Internet service goes out, they should refund the customer's bill for the Entire Month. If they had that policy and were consistent about following it, then I'd sign up again. Otherwise, no. I don't need Bozo the Clown as my Internet Service Provider.
Meanwhile, there's a landfill somewhere with all the crap Charter has mailed me over the years trying to woo me back.
Charter still doesn't get it, six years after I left them.
It's not the price.
It's not the features.
It's reliability.
With Charter, I went without Internet for days and weeks at a time because of unexplained technical problems on their side. That's something I remember. Refunds for those time periods were promised--only if requested--but never materialized. So I don't care if Charter offers the bundle for $30, I'm not biting.
They need to work on reliability, followed by reliability, and thirdly, reliability.
When Internet service goes out, they should refund the customer's bill for the Entire Month. If they had that policy and were consistent about following it, then I'd sign up again. Otherwise, no. I don't need Bozo the Clown as my Internet Service Provider.
Meanwhile, there's a landfill somewhere with all the crap Charter has mailed me over the years trying to woo me back.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)