I spend a lot of my day in heavy development tools such as Eclipse1, but often for editing simple XML I just want a quick tool to make fast changes. If I use the CLI (or Linux) it’ll be Vim, if I’m on Mac it’ll be Textmate but on Windows it’s Notepad++. I haven’t found an editor on Windows as clean as Notepad++ (if you use a tool professionally, you get to know it’s quirks pretty fast) for editing text of any kind. ...
The very first slot on Athlone Community Radio. Aired November 2011 on ACR 88.4FM in Athlone, Co. Westmeath, Ireland. Topics Covered: iPhone 4S Samsung Galaxy S Discussion of Windows Phone 7 Hosts: Patrick Russell & Neil Grogan Subscribe: Your browser does not support the audio tag. Download Link: Episode 1 - ACR 88.4 Technology Show
I just tried Herd 5 of Gutsy Gibbon, a beta release which will be Ubuntu 07.10 released in October. Obviously it is still early stages and a lot of things aren’t working quite as they should, but it looks very promising. Here’s some new stuff which should hit the final release: Compiz Fusion - Pretty Graphics that leave you in awe… Bullet Proof X - Making sure you’ll never see a terminal prompt not of your own choosing, basically the graphics server should be ‘bulletproof’ Appearance Manager - Making it easier to change yourbuntu’s look and feel Better Driver Support - More of those restricted drivers to make sure you can see your screen and use your wifi card Simplified Codecs install - It will now be painless, install ubuntu-restrictedcodecs (or kubuntu-restricted codecs) and you can see Youtube in all its glory, play a dvd, watch that porno WMV file (just kidding but I think thats all WMV is used for) and other such niceties of the propreitry world we have to put up with Firefox Codecs Plugin - Firefox will be hooked up to the package manager and prompt to install Flash/Java if you haven’t got it already, much the same way it prompts to get a codec when you throw a file at it that it cannot play in the movie player. The free software Gnash replacement for Flash will come as standard and can play Youtube Vids. Dual Screen Glory - If your like me you have a nice and small portable laptop, but that screen just won’t do all of the time, thats why I personally have a 19" to plug my 13" MacBook into. With Gutsy I should be able to plug and play over DVI. These are just some of the features that are being worked on for the final release. Probably not all of them on the list will get into Gutsy final, but lets hope they do! Gutsy+1 (slated for release April 2008) has been announced as “Hardy Hereon” and should be a long term release (5 years server and 3 years desktop updates and patches). ...
As many of you know I am a Linux and Mac aficionado. For my Linux machines, all of them are Dell. I have been always pleased with Dells prices, how their machines work with Linux, their customer service and the fact they are made in Limerick, Ireland (I am from Ireland). I politely emailed Dell (well got up on my high horse), heres my first mail: I would like a refund of Windows XP since I am installing Ubuntu Linux on the computer when I get it. When I turn on the computer I am going to decline the EULA, and I am within my rights to request this refund (as part of Irish consumer laws). This also applies in Britian, see here: ( http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6144782.stm ) ...
I recently read a very insightful article on 7 factors every company should seriously consider about Microsoft Windows, here they are summarised: Licensing Costs Everyone in the IT industry today knows that proprietary operating systems and the applications that run on them will cost you a lot of money on licensing fees. According to a recent Forrester study, U.S. companies overall are expected to spend $100 billion on software maintenance in 2007. ...
After reading a nice article written by Jeff Jones, a security researcher for Microsoft. He says he isn’t biased, saying he worked over 75% of his career outside Microsoft, using Slackware Linux, Unix, HP Unix etc. He claims Windows Vista has less security holes than popular versions of Linux, such as Ubuntu (he also compares Red Hat, Novell, Mac OS X). First let me say why his facts are distorted, and why he knows his facts are distorted. His facts do raise an issue of slow patching of vulnerabilities across the software Industry, but Linux performs the best consistently because anyone can audit the code. Here’s why his comparisons are uneven: ...
Hard to believe really, Mr.Gates lists Windows Vista ‘innovations’. Now Apple has been shipping everything he mentions since 2005, and I have tried Vista, it doesn’t even surpass Apples’ attempt at the software (which should be his aim). Some things have been around for years, but it’s how well your software can do it is the key. Personally I wouldn’t tout features that another competitor does better, but thats just me. It seems irresponsible and unbelieveable the head of a public company can say and get away with this - not knowing the competition that is. I wouldn’t trust my money to anyone who does not keep up with the latest and greatest trends in the industry. ...
Well as I write this it is a few days after Vista’s launch, and it has yet to set the software market alight. But this is nothing new, it happend with XP. How do you convince people the latest and greatest is worth the money? Microsoft is in a tough position due to stiff competition - old, working, fully-compatible windows machines don’t disappear into thin air. There has been a lot more FUD (Fear Uncertainty and Doubt)abput Vista already from the Free and Open Source camp. Some of the harsh critiscims will be justified, others probably not. Regardless this will not hurt Microsofts marketing whatsoever, the average user doesn’t share concerns over digital restriction/rights management - yet. Microsoft say it will be on 100m PC’s by years end. I don’t think it will be as fast as Microsoft would like, due to: 1) People wait for service packs. 2) People don’t upgrade PC’s as fast now. Most things people identify their computer with is increasingly online, a worrying trend if I were Microsoft, this creates platform independence for the average user, granted not the gamers, or other highly specialised software vendors. ...
I use Linux, I also use Windows. I see the merits of the two, as they are different. Most people don’t see this distinction, that although the two OSes do many of the same functions, they remain lightyears apart. I have to admit I preach Linux to the hilt, I shouldn’t, but I do. I get skeptical Windows users who ask me what Linux does better, and I am stuck for an answer, as it does a lot of tasks better. ...