I happen to appreciate GPL v3

 After a long discussion the new GNU General Public License was released. It would be safe to say that version 3 has met far more discussion than version 2. The Jem Report even claims that GPL 3 could be the end of GNU.

I've no doubt that this is the beginning of the end for GNU, and it will prove the strength of the larger free software world. The Free Software Foundation has dumped a load of restrictions on us with GPLv3 and told us that restrictions lead to freedom and that it is good for us. That's a little too Bush administration-like for me. In fact I fully expect someone, somewhere, to claim that I "hate freedom" for speaking out about this abysmal license -- that would make the irony complete. That a license as restrictive as the GPLv3 should be mostly written by and wholeheartedly supported by someone who speaks out against the Patriot Act puts it a step beyond irony, and into hypocrisy. Further mimicking Bush political rhetoric, Stallman even claimed recently that restrictive software licenses are evil. So does that make him an "evil doer" for promoting a license that attempts to restrict hardware, software, software licensing, and patent licensing choices that should remain in the hands of software developers, or does that make people who are against it "evil doers" and "freedom haters" for not supporting it? If we aren't with you, Richard, are we against you?

Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols predicts an even worse fate for the GPL v3: to be ignored by most.

They need to work more on representing the needs of the majority of open source developers, not in following their own agenda and launching noisy pointless attacks on the iPhone.

This last statement kind of got my attention and I simply disagree with it. Why would the Free Software Foundation represent the needs of the open source developers? Maybe I am wrong but didn't GPL v2 pre-date the release of the Linux kernel and lot's and lot's of free and open source software? Isn't the GPL v2 not credited for setting down a vision of software development along the four freedoms?

When open source developers did and do not agree with the GPL v2 (or v3) they either designed or used other open source licenses. There are many different licenses from the very free MIT and BSD licenses to more limiting licenses, which could still be called open sources. Yet none of those licenses made a similar impact like that of the GPL. GPL never accomodated to the needs of the open source developers, it created the environment in which open source development could thrive.

GPL v2 is sixteen years old and it's vision has held up for all that time. In fact, the core principles have not changed. The Free Software Foundation felt it necessary to update the license to adress modern developments that -according to the FSF- threaten the fabric of the developement of free software.

One of those developments is called "tivoization"

One major danger that GPLv3 will block is tivoization. Tivoization means computers (called “appliances”) contain GPL-covered software that you can't change, because the appliance shuts down if it detects modified software.

In my own terms, GPL v3 wants to prohibit you from using free software,  modify it, say you can use it anyway you like, but then locking it in a big vault without the keys. You can do anything you want with the software, but taking the keys is illegal.

Richard Stallman is not convinced by the argument that in a properly working market the amount of competition should be enough to offer the user the necessary choices and prevent the vaults from becoming too big.

Freedom means you control what your software does, not merely that you can beg or threaten someone else who decides for you.

The FSF wants the consumer, the user to control the software, not the market place. And I happen to agree with that. The market place has never been and will never be working in the way economic theory describes it. There are always factors that prohibit free competition like import/export legislations, trade barriers, monopolies and "confuse-opolies" etc. etc.

The GPL v3 also wants to deal with the patent threats and Richard Stallman is honest about his intentions:

The explicit patent license in GPLv3 does not go as far as we might have liked. Ideally, we would make everyone who redistributes GPL-covered code surrender all software patents, along with everyone who does not redistribute GPL-covered code. Software patents are a vicious and absurd system that puts all software developers in danger of being sued by companies they have never heard of, as well as by all the megacorporations in the field. Large programs typically combine thousands of ideas, so it is no surprise if they implement ideas covered by hundreds of patents. Megacorporations collect thousands of patents, and use those patents to bully smaller developers. Patents already obstruct free software development.

The only way to make software development safe is to abolish software patents, and we aim to achieve this some day. But we cannot do this through a software license. Any program, free or not, can be killed by a software patent in the hands of an unrelated party, and the program's license cannot prevent that. Only court decisions or changes in patent law can make software development safe from patents. If we tried to do this with GPLv3, it would fail. (emphasis is mine)

Of course, the Free Software Foundation would like to have as many programs as possible to migrate to GPL v3, but won't enforce it on anyone. GPL v2 still remains valid. All the other licenses remain valid and can be used side by side.

Fortunately, license incompatibility only matters when you want to link, merge or combine code from two different programs into a single program. There is no problem in having GPLv3-covered and GPLv2-covered programs side by side in an operating system. For instance, the TeX license and the Apache license are incompatible with GPLv2, but that doesn't stop us from running TeX and Apache in the same system with Linux, Bash and GCC. This is because they are all separate programs. Likewise, if Bash and GCC move to GPLv3, while Linux remains under GPLv2, there is no conflict.

For the layman reader: Linux isn't a monolithic system, it is a wide collection of larger and smaller pieces of software. All those pieces come with their own license and can happily co-exist on your box. It becomes a problem when you are a developers that wants to merge or link two different programs into a new program.

Back to this quote from the Jem Report:

So does that make him an "evil doer" for promoting a license that attempts to restrict hardware, software, software licensing, and patent licensing choices that should remain in the hands of software developers, or does that make people who are against it "evil doers" and "freedom haters" for not supporting it?

What restriction is there? The vision to create a free software world is by definition restrictive to all attempts that block the realization of that vision. I was attracted to Linux about five years ago not because of it's technological superiority, but because of the ideological underpinnings of the GPL v2.

Free software is a matter of the users' freedom to run, copy, distribute, study, change and improve the software. More precisely, it refers to four kinds of freedom, for the users of the software:

• - The freedom to run the program, for any purpose (freedom 0).
• - The freedom to study how the program works, and adapt it to your needs (freedom 1). Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
• -  The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbor (freedom 2).
• --The freedom to improve the program, and release your improvements to the public, so that the whole community benefits (freedom 3). Access to the source code is a precondition for this.

In a world that I feel is sorely lacking true visionaries when it comes to fighting injustice and inequality, I find it refreshing that Richard Stallman and the Free Software Foundation continue on their own course and promote software freedom in any way they can. Yes, the GPL v3 blocks the freedom to lock yourself up or lock yourself out, but that restriction I gladly accept in exchange for the other freedoms that I get in return.

Is Microsoft turning open source friendly?

We already now that Microsoft has it's own open source software blog. We know that the Redmond Mogul is dipping it's toes in sharing open source software. And after the deals with Novell, Linspire and Xandros we also know that something is brewing at Microsoft headquarters.

But a Microsoft that is actively promoting the use of competitive open source software, I guess that is kind of new. Groklaw reports that the Microsoft Marketplace offered a download of Ubuntu Linux for a short while and that at least 10.000 users actually did that.

So, thanks to Microsoft we might have about 10.000 extra converts to Linux. If the majority are actually Dutch speaking our book could be a bestseller.

And the internet has more good news. Microsoft is a Gold Sponsor for the FOSS-ed for Windows convention in Sri Lanka. You can see the familiar logo at the bottom of the page. A quote:

While there is a trend in the industry moving towards GNU/Linux and Free and Open Source Software - FOSS - Microsoft Windows is still a dominating force. Many applications have been developed around it and many continue to do so. Most of this software is also proprietary and includes heavy license fees. Proprietary software may cost anything from a few hundred dollars to millions of dollars for licensing fees alone. As a developing country, most individuals and even companies cannot afford such prices and resort to using illegal copies of software. Pirated software may cost only a fraction of the actual price but the implications can be far greater.

So are there viable alternatives to be used in the Windows environment? The answer is YES! Alternatives that don't have exorbitant licensing fees and will not result in intellectual property violation lawsuits being slapped against you! Alternatives that do not involve high maintenance costs either, are customisable, regularly and quickly provide security fixes in response to feedback and also have community driven support. What are these wonderful viable alternatives? It's Free and Open Source Software that run on Windows too! A large and wonderful catalog of FOSS applications exist for Windows users today. From Web browsers and mail clients to graphics software and content management systems, it's all out there ready to download and use! If you want to know more come check out FOSS-ed for Windows: THE event for all you decision makers to find out how YOU can benefit from FOSS while still continuing to use Windows.

Yes, you read correctly. Microsoft is supporting a convention that wants to fight the piracy of (Microsoft) software by promoting the use of open source alternatives. Maybe my argument that Microsoft is no longer the evil company it once was has some validitiy after all. Next: Microsoft open sources Office 2007.

BSD revisited

It's been a few years since I dabbled in BSD. I was enthused enough about it to help out with a new project that aims at creating a BSD certification. Due to some health problems I had to let that go. But why is BSD appealing?

I am playing with Linux for somewhat more than five years. Soon after I ran into BSD as it was mentioned in newsgroups by some who didn't like Linux anymore, as it became too userfriendly and GUI-based. Led more by curiosity than by knowledge I dove into the world of BSD.

Linux has it's roots in Unix, but BSD is Unix (though it would be better to say Unix-like) and proudly carries it's torch. The hard work of a team of developers removed all proprietary code from the original Unix in the early 1990s. The BSD license differs somewhat from the GPL, which allowed for instance Microsoft to use parts in it's Windows operating system. Binary, closed source redistribution is allowed under the BSD license.

I also found the BSD playing field refreshingly simple. At that time you had three big names. OpenBSD with a very very high focus on security, NetBSD aiming at maximum portability and FreeBSD as the accessible BSD. OpenBSD is hardly a fringe OS as it is the backbone of a serious part of the internet infrastructure. In terms of security it is unparallelled.

At that time FreeBSD was the only one I could really do something with. I was still working mostly under Windows and was glad the then current Linux distributions had a graphical installer. FreeBSD had some features that made it "easy" to install, like the autopartition option and the exemplary FreeBSD Handbook, which is something Linux distributions might take a look at. Once installed it looked similar to your average Linux desktop, which should not be surprising since the KDE and GNOME desktops are available for yours truly.

A few years ago Distrowatch decided to incude BSD in it's listings. As I recall that didn't happen without some criticism as some were determined to focus more on the differences between BSD and Linux than on seeing two major open source movements with widely shared goals and methods. If you like to know more about the differences and similarities of BSD and Linux this article might interest you. A quick look at the Distrowatch website will also reveal that there has been some change in the BSD world. Currently it lists twelve active BSD versions of which FreeBSD as the highest ranking, followed by PC-BSD and DesktopBSD.

You won't find many articles or references in mainstream IT magazines and most of the Linux crowd wouldn't know where to start either. Two interesting starting points would be the BSD section of Slashdot or the BSD dev center pages with O'Reilly. Dru Lavigne, front woman for the BSD Certification Group, established author for books on BSD and BSD advocate keeps a blog at ittoolbox. Once you start digging you will find that BSD has very active and involved communities, an example of which can be found at BSDForums.

Back to the original question: "What makes BSD appealing?". First, it is firmly rooted in decades of Unix history, even more than Linux, with a very strong focus on security and stability.  In recent years FreeBSD tried to follow a more Linux-like release pattern resulting in more buggy and unstable releases. A nuisance and accepted custom in the Linux wolrd, but a mortal sin in the BSD world but the FreeBSD team seems to be back on the original track again. Second, many BSD features have found and are finding their way into Linux distributions. One example, the methods you can use to install software. FreeBSD offers two systems, via the ports collection (installing from source) and via packages (pre-built binaries). Gentoo's Portage ows much to FeeeBSD. And don't think you are restricted in your choice of software. At the time of writing there were 17.300 ports, which is slightly less than the Debian repositories.  This means that you won't miss much when you use FreeBSD instead of your Linux distribution. Third, BSD support various hardware platforms. NetBSD has perhaps the widest support, but FreeBSD is holding it's own with support for Alpha, AMD64, i386, IA64, PC98, PowerPC and Sparc64.  Fourth, it is highly educational to get acquainted with BSD. Digging into OpenBSD will definitely enhance your security awareness. Personally I learned some hardcore skills for Linux via Unix and BSD. Fifth, we all want to be geeks right ;-) . Within our own Linux circles you can enhance your standing by casually dropping into a conversation that you use BSD on your server. Some might not agree with your choice, but at least you are the centre of attention and carry geekdom one step further.

My next question would be whether FreeBSD is a good choice for the desktop or if one of the other BSD's might be a better choice? How do they handle the problems with codecs and drivers? And software management? Those questions will be dealt with in three articles, about FreeBSD, PC-BSD and DesktopBSD, to appear in the coming weeks.

Tags: BSD, Linux

Open Sourcing the ECDL/ICDL

One of the key elements in the Linux Proliferation Agreement is the availabilty of high quality e-learning materials. The European Computer Drivers License or International Computer Drivers License is a complete skill set that describe a good set of computer skills for end users. There is one big problem. Though the descriptions of the skill sets are vendor neutral, training materials and test centers are almost predominantly Microsoft oriented. Open sourcing the ECDL should not be complicated, but it does require some serious work. So I decided that this will be my next major project.

ECDL modules and how to open source them

The ECDL/ICDL consists of seven modules which encompass major end user skill sets:

Module 1 - Concepts of Information Technology (IT)

Module 2 - Using the Computer and Managing Files

Module 3 - Word Processing

Module 4 - Spreadsheets

Module 5 - Database

Module 6 - Presentation

Module 7 - Information and Communication

One of the first decisions to make is the selection of software that will be used to learn the skill sets. Modules 3, 4, 5 and 6 can be covered by selecting OpenOffice.org. I believe it is necessary to use software that is multiplatform and OpenOffice.org fits the bill. Module 7 deals with internet and e-mail and can be explained with Firefox and Thunderbird as foundation.

Module 1 is hardware and attitude oriented, so that shouldn't be a big problem. Module 2 will be the biggest problem. The general description is as follows:

This module requires the Candidate to demonstrate knowledge and competence in using the common functions of a personal computer and its operating system. The Candidate shall be able to adjust main settings, use the built-in help features and deal with a non-responding application.
He or she shall be able to operate effectively within the desktop environment and work with desktop icons and windows. The Candidate shall be able to manage and organise files and directories/folders, and know how to duplicate, move and delete files and directories/folders, and compress and extract files.
The Candidate shall also understand what a computer virus is and be able to use virus-scanning software. The Candidate shall demonstrate the ability to use simple editing tools and print management facilities available within the operating system.

It is not really a problem to translate the skill set as it applies to Linux, but the differences between Windows and Linux might make the transfer of knowledge somewhat more complicated. Nonetheless, module 2 can be open sourced as well.

A general roadmap

What is needed is to write and develop e-learning materials for these seven modules. That is quite an undertaking and a roadmap is needed to guide the whole project.

The first step is to translate each of the skill sets of the seven modules as they apply to Linux, OpenOffice.org, Firefox and Thunderbird. Nothing spectacular, but basic documents that describe the skill sets into end user interactions.

Then comes the work of writing e-learning materials based on these basic documents. These materials need to be based on solid didactical principles. The first set of books will be self-study materials that are made available as e-books and/or webpages. The second set of books need to be teacher's manuals for use in an educational context.

The third major phase will focus on developing rich content, multimedia e-learning materials. Instructional videos and interactive exercises. These materials will be made available on a live Linux CD/DVD thus furnacing the operating system, the software and the e-learning materials in one go.

Developing the materials is not sufficient. It should be a goal to get certified as a test center for the open source version of the ECDL/ICDL. The fourth major part is to develop an online test center with tests that objective test the skill sets and can verify the competencies of the candidates. Once the test center is complete and up to a level that can stand up to public scrutiny we will work towards the goal of becoming a certified center.

Projects and courseware site

Ambitious? Maybe. But as I pointed out in the article about the Linux Proliferation Agreement promoting the use of Linux and open source is not a short term endeavor. I am not a coder, I am a writer. I have been working in education as project manager and am adding to the Linux and open source community what I do best.

I have set up a projects and courseware site based on Moodle. This provides a fairly complete infrastructure to develop new materials in smaller teams with forums, chat rooms and wikis. Moodle is an e-learning CMS which means that it is perfectly suited for online courses and testing. This is the platform that I will use as a foundation for this project.

The development will take place in the open source way. The documents will be released quick and early awaiting the feedback from the community. They will be available for public scrutiny and public use. I will post updates regularly.

Should this remain a one man project? I hope not. Feel free to enroll in the projects and courseware site and send me a message on how you wish to participate. It is time to open source the ECDL/ICL.

Tags: Open Source, ECDL

Column: Sturm und Drang

It can never hurt to get yourself a Communications 101 course. I did get some more than that during my university years, but let's stick to a simple model of communication. You have a sender/transmitter, the message and the receiver. To make it somewhat more complete: also take the medium into account as the carrier of the message. Just keep this model in mind with basically all forms of communication and see how much the wiser you get.

Who could avoid the uproar in the Linux world in the last week. The Big Enemy from Redmond U.S.A., known in some circles as Microsoft -the near monopolist in desktop operating systems- went a bit "loco" in the head and accused Linux of patent infringes. 235 infringes! This was such a veil attack that forceful countermeasures were warranted. A how forcefully the responses were on numerous websites and weblogs. A real "Sturm und Drang" with a sprinkle of primal scream  here and there.

Back to Communications 101. The article that caused the uproar was an interview of Fortune reporter Roger Parloff with some Microsoft head hotshots Brad Smith en Horacio Gutierrez. What was the medium or carrier? The CNN Money website!. Indeed, the number one website for hardcore IT-news. Not! The message was never intended for the Linux world, but for Corporate America, to the CEO's and board rooms of the Fortune 500 companies (or the wannabe's and wanna-be-there's). In the U.S.A.. Why is this important? First, we do well to realize that litigation is an integral part of the business warchest of American corporate culture. It is an acceptable instrument and one no company will want to blunt in public. The shareholders accept nothing less than a company willing to do everything to legally protect their interests.

What was the message for Corporate America? The description of the Linux world is a tale in itself. Richard Stallman was presented as someone with a heartfelt loathing for patents -considered part of the life blood for companies and their R&D departments- and the look and lack of flexibility of and Old Testament prophet. The reporter makes a side remark about Eben Moglen that he is professor in the history of political economy. Short translation: Moglen is a Marxist. Stallman then appears as accommodating as Bin Laden. Since Fortune refused to comply with Richard's demand to be consistent in the use of GNU/Linux he did not cooperate in preparation for the article. And then the world of Linux itself. Ridiculous, it is an amorphous mass of developers and companies and nobody can be held accountable. No one is accountable!!! That must some communist ragtag band. The article really pulled out all old images of Capitalism versus Communism. Why did the reporter not present the CEO's of IBM, Canonical or Red Hat? Imagine, Linux might even appear "salonfähig" (to use another good German phrase) enough for the board rooms.

We -in the Linux world- really want to know specifically which Microsoft patents are violated by our favorite operating systems. Personally I am convinced that I violate one or more patents when I open my eyes in the morning, completely aware that some company had that action patented. Anyway, Microsoft came up with some numbers. Linux kernel: 42 patents, graphical user interface: 65 patents, OpenOffice.org: 45 patents, e-mail: 15, all others: 68. Only 45 infringes for OpenOffice.org? Gee. Maybe the boys and girls in Redmond need to take a closer look because there should me more. The complete OpenOffice.org interface and functionality is so Office97 that it hurts my eyes. Anyway, the accusation is nothing new and we still have the same information we had a year ago.

Is it all bluff? Or can the claims be substantiated? It is part of a poker game. Not with Microsoft and the Linux community as the key players, but with Microsoft and Corporate America who may thin migrating to Linux is a bargain. The majority of the patents appears to focus on the desktop side where Microsoft makes it's money through Vista and Office. At the same time it also the market place where it can not act too aggressively to push a small, minute competitor away. Now, the server market is a whole different ballgame. Microsoft is meeting tough and fierce competition from Linux and Unix derivates. Sun (with Solaris in the field) is buddy buddy with Microsoft. Novell is playing nice at well, at least for the next couple of years. It is fighting on a par with the other players to get the contracts for the Fortune 500 companies. Linux is not the underdog here. Now, it might not seem nice to present your competition as a group of fundamentalist communist thieves without respect for intellectual property, bit how often does the Linux world refers to Microsoft as some capitalist monopolistic robber baron. That's also not nice, don't you think?

Suppose for a moment that Microsoft is correct and that Linux infringes 235 patents. As far as I am concerned Microsoft can make a full disclosure tomorrow in exchange for a promise that we will stop using all code that is tainted. All of it, with no exceptions and no questions asked. No counter litigation. Nothing. I really believe we should deal with these threats by following two established traditions. One is the example set by the Debian project. There has been some criticism about the decision to remove the name and logo of Firefox and Thunderbird due to limiting copyrights, but it does prevent software with any limiting rights entering the repositories. The other example is BSD. In the early days of BSD the developers created a list of code that was not free and wrote new code to replace it. The didn't fight the position of the rights owner, but focused on making new, free code. How long would this take for the 235 infringes? I have no idea, but it didn't take the BSD team long when they had to do it and it only consisted of a handful of people. 235 problems to be solved by a worldwide community of hackers in cooperation with multiple big companies. It could take maybe two or three years but it would be done with the tide on our side. Endusers who know why we take one step back now will wait out this period.

Microsoft plays the game well. It's message was directed at Corporate America, a warning that Linux might be less cheap than some CEO's think. Maybe the Linux world should remember the Carly Simon song: "You're so vain, you probably think this song is about you, don't you...".

This column was originally written for the Dutch website Digiplace, a meeting place for Linux users.

Tags: Linux, Microsoft

Focus: Rhythmbox and Amarok

Rhythmbox is the default music player for Ubuntu/GNOME and Amarok for KDE. Both are 'everything and the kitchen sink' style programs and both are featured in our upcoming book. Why not revive the GNOME vs KDE debate a bit and compare these two programs.

Amarok: first preference
I am slightly biased towards Amarok. When I wanted to listen to Last.FM under Dapper Drake there was no Last.FM client available, but it was supported by Amarok. That, along with the context browser, made it my player of choice for the last few months. My previous experience with Rhythmbox were less positive. I used it to sync podcasts with my MP3 player, but that was more annoying than helpful.

Rhythmbox rematch
Maybe I missed it previously, but finding the plugin section was a pleasant surprise. Rhythmbox has plugins for lyrics and for three music sharing communities: Last.FM, Magnatune and Jamendo. When you like an artist served through Jamendo downloading the whole album is just a rightmousebuttonclick away. The Last.FM plugin doesn't seem okay, since it crashed Rhythmbox most of the time.
The three panel/left sidepanel layout is used almost consistently, though not enabled by default in the podcasts section. As we can expect from a GNOME application the interface is simple, smooth with few apparent bells and whistles. The preference option is easy enough and adding/managing your podcasts is no big problem either. Rhythmbox keeps an eye out for your music folder.
Synchronizing music and podcasts with your MP3 player is not there by default. The workaround for the podcasts is still the same: pointing the Rhythmbox podcasts folder to your device. One problem: when the device is not connected there is no option to queue the podcasts for later on.

Amarok again
As you might expect from KDE based program Amarok is packed with easily accessible options. There is always more than one access point to doing things. For me that makes for a cluttered and restless interface, which is not always pleasing to the eyes.
Amarok can keep watch over your music folder and does a good job at that. Browsing your collection isn't really hard (simple tree structure), but compared to the filters in Rhythmbox a bit awkward. Each albumfolder gets its own cover icon, but you have to search manually in the Amazon collection and select the right one. I have found this option less than perfect and somewhat below Rhythmbox's abilities to select the correct cover.
Magnatune has it's own tab and is easily accessible. Last.FM is a simple menu entry that just works. In combination with the context browser it's a great way to discover new artists.
How does Amarok handle podcasts and my MP3 player? Well, adding and managing your podcasts won't win first prices for looks and ease of use. Can anyone explain why the podcasts folder need to be red? It rings the wrong kind of bells. Anyway, the right mousebutton is your big buddy and from then on it is a matter of downloading your podcasts. Amarok does have a feature to queue episodes for the next sync with your player.
My player is a no brand generic one without a fancy name (nor the high price tag). When you plug it in Amarok recognizes an external device and asks whether you want to set it up for synchronization. From there you are just a Connect and Transfer away from adding the latest podcasts to the player. Or anything else you want to transfer.

What is lacking?
One feature I really missed, looked for and couldn't find is the option to rip CD's. Even the Windows Media Player has that feature and when you are designing the kitchen sink anyway. Besides this I have begun to develop a real fondness for Streamtuner and it's easy access to loads of radiostreams. To have that integrated in both players along with a streamrip option would be nice.

Conclusions
Amarok still comes out strong with the context browser and the way I can use my MP3 player with it. The interface could use some polish, but that is personal preference. Rhythmbox did climb quite a few places on my popularity list. It's simple and smooth. In the end I am still looking for the best of both worlds. Let's say a Rhythmbox with a better context browser and better synchronization, or a smoother looking Amarok with a few extras thrown in for the both of them.

Tags: Ubuntu, Linux, Amarok, Rhythmbox

8 reasons why Linux won't make it to the desktop

The Linux Proliferation Agreement is intended as a means to promote the use of Linux on the desktop and asks endusers to become structurally involved in making Linux visible in the public domain. Apart from the support there came a wide range of counterarguments of things that Linux would need to change before it would ever become a viable choice. Let's look into the counterarguments, summarized in the 8 reasons why Linux won't ever make it to the desktop. But do they stop the Linux Proliferation Agreement as well?

(1) Some programs are not available for Linux
Correct. No question about that. For the most part programs from the Adobe/Macromedia suites were mentioned, but no doubt there are more programs for which there is no suitable Linux counterpart yet. If you use these programs intensively on a day to day basis the migration to Linux is cumbersome. But let's not forget a few things. This problem is valid for a group of endusers, but hardly for all. Not everyone is a Dreamweaver or Photoshop power user. Most software has far more functionalities than are used from day to day or even regularly by the largest group of users. When promoting W2L migration we should focus on the functionalities actually used, instead of the programs as integrated packages. In those cases where the software is intensively used we have two possible solutions: emulation (which can not be called 'emulation', so maybe 'pretendization' is better) and virtualization. The mentioned Adobe/Macromedia suites are in one way or another supported by Wine and CrossOver Office. Virtualization through VirtualBox, Xen or VMware gives desktop access to a Windows installation and the software that requires it. Yes, it might require the investment in extra RAM, but that is hardly expensive in exchange for saving all other proprietary (and paid for) software by open source counterparts.

(2) Linux is not a platform for games
Correct as well, but should that stop the Linux Proliferation Agreement? Vista isn't really a gaming platform as well, but who is stopped by that? Gaming is used as a benchmark and it is a multibillion industry, but in the end it is only a part of day to day use of computers. And hardcore gaming only influences a niche of users, a niche that has people that won't mind paying € 600,-- for a new graphics card in order to play a game that will be released next month. No doubt an interesting group from the perspective of the hardware industry, but hardly representative of most endusers.
Now, there is something strange with the hardware requirements of PC games as well. I remember Thief 3. When it was released, it could be played (officially) on a very limited range of graphics cards (which, mind you, didn't bother the hardcore gamers). However, the xBox version had the same graphical effects on a console that has far lower hardware specifications. Is it strange when I ask myself how this is possible? Could it be that the hardware specifications and the OS limitations are more artificial than actual?
Anyway, the number of games released for Linux is limited in comparison to Windows. Cedega provides a limited solution for some of the most popular games. But should that stop us? Should this prevent the use of Linux in schools? Should we hold back in properly educating and empowering endusers because of it?

(3) Linux needs a unified desktop
Having used Windows for years I can understand the argument. Quite a few endusers panic when the icon is no longer in the same place. Endusers are trained in using the Windows GUI, but how many users are actually able to find the various system tools and use them? The majority can't and don't care.
Linux is different. Linux doesn't equate the GUI with the operating system. What you do and don't do with the GUI is a matter of personal preference, an expression of your personal identity. A unified desktop seems like a good solution, but it isn't. Proper education and training in the use of Linux is. It will provide the endusers with a choice and a freedom to use the computer as they see fit. As we see fit.

(4) Linux should drop the commandline stuff
I don't hope so. It would mean that the GUI has become the operating system and that my choices have become limited. Recently I gave a workshop "Installing software under Ubuntu Linux" to a group of about 20 endusers. They had little previous experience with Linux, but a substantial number had experience with DOS. We started the workshop with Install/Remove..., moved on to Synaptic and continued with apt-get and aptitude. The participants learned four ways to manage software on Debian-like systems. The commandline stuff could be repeated and understood more rapidly than than the GUI alternatives and most went home feeling empowered to move on with Linux. The commandline is less scary when properly explained. Understanding the commandline does prevent a lot of "it won't work anymore"s when the GUI is frozen.

(5) Linux needs better hardware support
It does. But did anyone install Vista recently? And, did it work? Did all of it work? Could you install all software? No, we couldn't. Yes, there is a need for improvement. There are too many accounts of monitorsettings not being correct out of the box, of wifi being hard to get working etc. etc. There are solutions for most hardware problems. In my early Linux days I had to buy a new external modem, since my winmodem wasn't supported. Before that I didn't even know a winmodem existed. My old iMac also gave me some headaches with x, but searching the internet provided the proper solutions. See, empowerment does help.
One thing should not be forgotten. When the number of endusers reach a critical mass this problem will be moot. We have to educate the endusers to buy the proper hardware, hardware that has "Linux compatible" on the box. The market forces will take care of the rest of the problem.

(6) Linux needs to get better first
It needs to and it will. But that doesn't change the basic skills we need to use and troubleshoot Linux on a day to day base, hence the basic skills we need to teach new groups of endusers. Besides, with a larger group of empowered and involved endusers we will see more and better bug reports which will aid the developers.
But what are the areas for Linux to improve? Which functionalities are now non-existent that make most applications unfit for day 2 day use? Yes, there are gaps, but those are not relevant to the largest groups of endusers. For some (even quite a few) lacking a decent Thunderbird- Exchange server connector is a serious problem. However, should this prevent us to promote the use of Thunderbird in all other organizations that don't use Exchange server?

(7) Linux is too splintered
The Linux world knows many, many distributions. Software needs to be offered in various shapes and sizes (RPM, DEB, tarball etc.) and we might want to keep our fingers crossed even then. Managing software through the distribution's own repositories won't cause too many headaches, but a little venture outside the trotted path gives us a serious migraine. The various communities are -alas- equally divided. With religious fervor users defend their own distribution, calling down heavenly fires upon the other distributions and ostracizing those from within who are not as 'pure'.
Honestly, I don't have much use for this kind of involvement. Endusers aren't bothered with distribution A of B, or with softwaremanagementtool X, Y or Z. They are doing their work and use programs to finish their tasks. Most of them hardly care whether the OpenOffice.org runs on Windows, Ubuntu, Fedora, Mepis or Mac OS X. It doesn't matter and it shouldn't stop promoting the use of Linux and open source software. We do need proper IT-education and that is exactly what the Linux Proliferation Agreement is about. Endusers can learn to deal with the choices Linux provide. Compare that to gaming. When was the last time hardcore gamers complained that a game could only be played on the xBox and not a Playstation 3. They don't (or at least don't stop gaming because of it), because they understand the system. Education it is.

(8) Linux is a philosophy
Fortunately it is. Linux is build around the principles of cooperation, transparency, participation and free distribution. Call me an idealist, but I can't find much of a flaw in these principles. When things go wrong in the Linux world it goes wrong when individuals or groups forget these principles.

In the end I appreciate the discussion and the arguments against the viability of Linux and/or the Linux Proliferation Agreement. Most likely there are more counterarguments and I look forward to hearing them. But one thing is clear to me as well: there is nothing seriously hindering the advance of Linux from a technical perspective.

Tags: Linux

The need for the Linux Proliferation Agreement

The year of Linux on the Desktop (May 1st, 2023)
"There is something brewing in the world of Linux, because this year really seems to become the year Linux makes serious headway on the desktop. For Linus Torvalds it is the addition of synchromatic memory support into the new kernel 6.4.12-28 as a serious and major step in the right direction. 'We now have support for voicecontrolled system at the kernel level'. In a few months time we will also see the first distributions with ext9 as the default filesystem, like MepubianSpire and Novell Red Hat. Mark Shuttleworth, the ever active CEO of MepubianSpire, is thrilled about the prospect. 'Wonkey Willy will be the most stable innovative distribution we present to our users and with another delay of Microsoft Himalaya at hand this is the window of opportunity to aggressively increase our market share on the desktop'."

So, when will it really happen? The breakthrough of Linux on the desktop is expected for years now and each year we draw the conclusion that it didn't happen. Yet. And 2007 looked promising. Windows Vista is way to expensive, requires a serious hardware upgrade and for what? Eye candy that was available for Linux 6 months ago! Well, it was available for that group of Linux hackers that could install the right drivers for their graphical cards and had no qualms adding the repositories for Beryl/Compiz. Linux mainstream will have to wait until Ubuntu 'Gutsy Gibbon', which may have that feature. Or not.

What is lacking in modern Linux distributions?
But let's step back for a moment and ask ourselves the following question. "What is missing from the current generation of Linux distributions which prevent a regular and day to day use of Linux, both at home as in organizations?" And -please- don't start pointing at your iPods. Why not? Because iPod is a relatively young technology and it is just a matter of time before support is added. It did take time for Windows and Mac OSX to properly support the new toy and every once in a while even Apple screws up an update. So, what is missing? Word processing? Calculation? Email and groupware? Access management for users in organizations? Multimedia functionality? Security? I am sorry, but I can't think of anything that would be needed before 90% of the current Windows userbase van migrate to Linux. In fact, I am even willing to state that Linux has been ready to breakthrough to the desktop for a few years now. But why is it not happening?

Now, all in harmony: "Yeah, but what do you expect. Every computer you buy has Windows pre-installed". That's correct. Even a staunch Linux supporter as HP sells desktop computer with Windows, not Linux. "Indeed", do the channel partners say, "but there is no demand for anything else". Which is correct as well. No demand, no supply. And, vice versa, when there is no supply it is hard to get any demand as well. When discussing the breakthrough of Linux it is usually a discussion between the technophilia. For them it makes sense, gadgets will sell themselves, right?.... Wrong!

The commercial disadvantage of Linux
Microsoft is not just a dominant factor when it comes to the supply chain, with or without serious discounts to the channel partners. The people in Redmond know exactly what to do to promote demand for Windows. Why do you think hardware suppliers and the store owners where elated with Vista? You think it was the alleged technological superiority of the new operating system? Think again. Vista needs at least 1 Gb of RAM, twice the amount of XP. Plus a graphics card with at least 256 Mb of RAM on board. And... Just add to your own list. Vista means dollars for producers and merchants. Oh, and the complaints of some softwarefirms had less to do with the alleged (lack of) quality of Vista, but more the fact that they didn't belong to the first tier partners at the Vista launch. They wanted their own spot on the Windows marketplace. Dollars....

And now Linux? Sorry, but hardly interesting in a commercial sense. Linux runs pretty well and very fast on yesterday's hardware. But that hardware is sold already. Linux doesn't bring a new revenue stream or an opportunity to increase prices for the same functionality.

But.. what about consumer demand? That could change things? In theory, yes, but only when there is a critical mass of users that request Linux. But consider the following:

- At teacher training colleges teachers have the opportunity to get certificates of the European Computer Drivers License (ECDL). Most text books only deal with Windows and Microsoft Office;
- For most children, the first experience with computers, at home or at school, is Windows, MSN and Microsoft Office;
- Users of internetcafés or e-centers sit down behind computers with Windows, MSN and Microsoft Office.

So, when do you think the critical mass of Linux users is reached to make a difference in the market place?

Moving towards critical mass
Let's make a few things clear. Right now there are more than enough distributions that can be used by endusers at home and in a business environment from day to day. The remaining problems with hardware and software can be fixed quite easily. For a small group those problems can be a good reason to postpone a wholesale migration. We don't have to, shouldn't wait for the next generation of new features in Linux. And it definitely is of no use to wait for the box builders to see the light and watch them exchange Windows for Linux. Linux will not breakthrough on the desktop because we wish it so. What do we need to do, other than wait until 2023, for Linux to make it to the desktop? We need to do more.

The development and distribution of Linux is mostly determined by two groups: the developers and the companies that use Linux as a competitive tool towards Microsoft. We can see some local and national governments contributing by 'demanding' the use of open standards and open source software. It's a start, but -again- we shouldn't wait for nor trust in it. More than one government reversed it's decision to migrate to Linux and who knows what happens after the next elections. As long as Windows is dominant in the public domain (education, e-centers, internetcafé's) we will hardly see a change in it's use. We - the Linux desktop users- are but a marginal group. Some of us try to convince friends, relatives and neighbors and we are almost jubilant when we have made a 'convert'. We almost 'live' in Linux forums and IRC channels to lend a hand to newbie users with problems. And please, keep on doing that.

To reach a critical mass of Linux endusers takes time. What we need is the establishment of an international community, a movement that is dedicated to the worldwide promotion and distribution of Linux as a system for endusers, analogous to the international developer communities that made Linux possible as a system. Why should it only be the hackers that altruistically devote their precious time and energy? Don't you think it is time for us - the early adopters- to follow their example in a structured and organized way? I seriously endorse launching a Linux Proliferation Agreement, a charter which will the basis for a pro-active promotion of Linux by qualified endusers.

The Linux Proliferation Agreement
What should the Linux Proliferation Agreement entail? In short: to make Linux ubiquitous in the public domain. This means establishing public e-centers, well maintained, with constant personal support and where people can get training and courses in the use of Linux and open source software. It means offering low level training and courses in community centers and on schools, for children, parents and professionals in branches other than IT. It means using all sorts of media to make Linux visible, in the local media and targeted media. No general purpose articles, but indepth articles providing Linux and open source solutions for real day to day problems in organizations. It also means developing educational tools for LPA courses and training, but also for use in schools. We need an ECDL that is completely build around open source and with which candidates can get certified.

The Linux Proliferation Agreement shouldn't be a rag tag band of volunteers, but should be organized analogous to the Debian Project. The LPA charter sets out a clear goal and purpose and quality should be first and foremost. The organization and it's reputation needs to be build in such a way that enlisting the help of an LPA volunteer is synonymous with getting a high quality endresult. To achieve this the LPA needs a system of internal training and coaching. Plus some form of certification. Organizations should have access to an online register of certified LPA volunteers. Branding is one of the key tasks of the LPA organizations, with the development of marketing kits etc. The quality and the network are required to attract funding and sponsorships.

Towards a roadmap
What does it mean for you and me? Well, maybe we are asked to assist in our local e-center a few hours each week. Or to provide an extensive training in OpenOffice.org in our local community center, on Saturday afternoon, for the next 20 weeks. One thing needs to be clear from the outset: joining the Linux Proliferation Agreement brings a new set of obligations. But is it different for the developers of Linux? When there is a serious problem with the kernel, don't we expect a solution or at least a quick fix within hours? I will work on a roadmap for the Linux Proliferation Agreement in the months ahead. Who will join me?

Tags: Linux, education, Linux Proliferation Agreement

Column: What's his beef with Linux?

"What's his beef with Linux?" I can imagine some people wonder if I have something against Linux. The first two contributions to Digiplace.nl were quite critical in tone. Well, to clarify one thing: I have nothing against Linux. On the contrary, I would take any opportunity to promote Linux among Windows users. On April 1st one of my online buddies deleted Windows from his harddrive, after receiving a step by step guidance through all the problems he encountered. After a demonstration, a church pastor recently started promoting the use of Ubuntu Linux among church members in order to reduce the use of illegal software. And in a few weeks time I will explain the joys of software installation via synaptic and apt-get to a group of novice users. That is how I contribute to the spread of Linux.

But, I am not blind and deaf during my promotional activities. At each event I hear real life problems and frustrations. I know there are solutions to most, if not all of them. The solutions start with the phrase: "you have to do a Google search for..", after which the majority of users is bombarded with a variety of possible solutions. Why? You have to know how to phrase the real problem, know what really is wrong.

Thanks to Microsoft and years of IT-education most users are unable to do that. "It just doesn't work anymore". When was the last time you contacted an IT helpdesk? I won't do that anymore. I'd like to get my assistance on my level of expertise and refuse to talk to a well-meaning assistant that first has to ask whether I plugged in the computer properly. Unfortunately, such questions are necessary for many other users and it helps the helpdesk to isolate the real problem step by step.

There are various methods to promote Linux. The first method -the least effective as far as I am concerned- is the RFTM approach. Let the users find their own solutions. An alternative approach is used by the likes of Ubuntu, Linspire and Xandros. They want to make W2L migration as easy as possible and simplify all management tools. Add closed source drivers and proprietary codecs in the mix and we have a first Linux experience that is not the cause of post-traumatic stress. Granted, this approach is more effective than the RFTM approach, but it is still not enough. Why not? Murphy's Law, of course! Something will go wrong and what do you do then? Besides, even these distributions require rudimentary skills with the commandline interface. And most W2L migrators haven't seen a commandline since Windows95.

If Linux needs to gain ground on the desktop, we don't need to wait for the operating systems and applications require a future level of maturity. The maturity is there. I would argue that it is no problem to migrate most home and business users right now. It might require the support of Wine, Cedega, Crossover, VirtualBox, VMware en/of Xen, but it is possible. Adding Click-and-Run to Ubuntu might look like a good idea, but it doesn't solve the real problem: bad IT education.

And this is where we -you and me- come in, to add effort where our mouth is. Sending around free CD's with Linux is good. Writing helpful How-to's is very useful. Offering tips and tricks in IRC and in forums, please continue with that. But we are talking proper education here, helping people to understand the operating system, teaching them problem-solving skills. No install fests,but educational programs about the how and why of Linux.

And we have to learn to listen in order to send back the problems and obstacles to the developers and distro builders. To help them build real solutions. Until those solutions have materialized I consider it my obligation to point out the shortcomings. Not out of spite, but out of love for Linux and it's scores of developers. Both of which deserve a better place on the computer desktop.

This column is part of a series that appears on Digiplace.nl, a Dutch weblog run by Jos Herni.

Tags: Linux, Ubuntu, Education

Column: What's his beef with Linux?

"What's his beef with Linux?" I can imagine some people wonder if I have something against Linux. The first two contributions to Digiplace.nl were quite critical in tone. Well, to clarify one thing: I have nothing against Linux. On the contrary, I would take any opportunity to promote Linux among Windows users. On April 1st one of my online buddies deleted Windows from his harddrive, after receiving a step by step guidance through all the problems he encountered. After a demonstration, a church pastor recently started promoting the use of Ubuntu Linux among church members in order to reduce the use of illegal software. And in a few weeks time I will explain the joys of software installation via synaptic and apt-get to a group of novice users. That is how I contribute to the spread of Linux.

But, I am not blind and deaf during my promotional activities. At each event I hear real life problems and frustrations. I know there are solutions to most, if not all of them. The solutions start with the phrase: "you have to do a Google search for..", after which the majority of users is bombarded with a variety of possible solutions. Why? You have to know how to phrase the real problem, know what really is wrong.

Thanks to Microsoft and years of IT-education most users are unable to do that. "It just doesn't work anymore". When was the last time you contacted an IT helpdesk? I won't do that anymore. I'd like to get my assistance on my level of expertise and refuse to talk to a well-meaning assistant that first has to ask whether I plugged in the computer properly. Unfortunately, such questions are necessary for many other users and it helps the helpdesk to isolate the real problem step by step.

There are various methods to promote Linux. The first method -the least effective as far as I am concerned- is the RFTM approach. Let the users find their own solutions. An alternative approach is used by the likes of Ubuntu, Linspire and Xandros. They want to make W2L migration as easy as possible and simplify all management tools. Add closed source drivers and proprietary codecs in the mix and we have a first Linux experience that is not the cause of post-traumatic stress. Granted, this approach is more effective than the RFTM approach, but it is still not enough. Why not? Murphy's Law, of course! Something will go wrong and what do you do then? Besides, even these distributions require rudimentary skills with the commandline interface. And most W2L migrators haven't seen a commandline since Windows95.

If Linux needs to gain ground on the desktop, we don't need to wait for the operating systems and applications require a future level of maturity. The maturity is there. I would argue that it is no problem to migrate most home and business users right now. It might require the support of Wine, Cedega, Crossover, VirtualBox, VMware en/of Xen, but it is possible. Adding Click-and-Run to Ubuntu might look like a good idea, but it doesn't solve the real problem: bad IT education.

And this is where we -you and me- come in, to add effort where our mouth is. Sending around free CD's with Linux is good. Writing helpful How-to's is very useful. Offering tips and tricks in IRC and in forums, please continue with that. But we are talking proper education here, helping people to understand the operating system, teaching them problem-solving skills. No install fests,but educational programs about the how and why of Linux.

And we have to learn to listen in order to send back the problems and obstacles to the developers and distro builders. To help them build real solutions. Until those solutions have materialized I consider it my obligation to point out the shortcomings. Not out of spite, but out of love for Linux and it's scores of developers. Both of which deserve a better place on the computer desktop.

This column is part of a series that appears on Digiplace.nl, a Dutch weblog run by Jos Herni.

Tags: Linux, Ubuntu, Education

Column: "But mine is free"

Didn't you ever drive behind one of those? One of those vehicles on four wheels that are legally considered cars, whose proud owner has a bumper sticker with the line: "Smile. But mine is paid". Before the Berlin wall came tumbling down there were proud owners of Eastblock produce. Lada, Skoda en Yugo. During my years on Curaçao I had the Lada sportsmobile, the Lada Samara. It was ideal! The thing was a tank with a platework so thick no rust could get a handle on it. And when someone drove into it, the other car had the damage. You only needed to paint it army green, put a cannon on the roof and the monster was ready for the Cold War.

But, what was the sales pitch for these cars from the workers' paradise? They were cheap, functional and robust. The owner were almost elated about the barren simplicity. These cars were so simple you could repair them yourself. You had to. The market value was zero point nothing and sales were less than sluggish. No, then the Japanese cars. More rust then metal. But sales were soaring, because they did have a deluxe shine with that metallic coat of paint. Hmmm, reminds me of an operating system I know.

Fast forward to the present. The workers' paradise is no longer behind the Iron Curtain. The communist continues life as a Linux hacker and the Communist Manifesto is transformed into the GPL. World domination is to be achieved via an operating system and applications. Do you know the main sales pitch? Linux is free, secure, stable and functional. Yes, you can, are allowed, no, even should look into the source code. Ha, you won't see that with those capitalist pigs from Redmond.

Yes, Linux even has a female spokesperson nowadays, a slender your woman who can tell you that Linux has 30 million users. Vista achieved 20 million in the first few months of it's existence. Okay... put yourself in the position of a hormone driven teenager with his modded gamerig. Neon, shining lights, black and chrome. Got that? Picture Suse on it.... Or worse, Debian Woody, default install, because it is developed by a group of bickering hackers bound to a social contract.... See the problem? A nice paint job still does miracles, even 25 years later. Yes, yes, I can hear some of you think: "What about Compiz and Beryl?" True, but by the time that has reached mainstream Linux Vista has sold another 20 million. We have to change that.

It didn't matter in those days for the average car buyer that the Yugo was a fine car for the money you paid for it and it doesn't matter for average computer consumer Linux is superior in terms of security, stability and price. To push it's way to the desktop, both in the business as at home, Linux needs a paint job. Free and reliable don't do well in a sales pitch. It might, for the nerdy sysadmin, but not for his boss who controls the budget. By the way, I can still see the IT professionals during the employment heydays, waiting to pick out their company cars. And no, there was no Lada to be seen. The boss knows what sells.

Oh, and for those who are interested, you can download this bumper sticker for your computer: "Smile. But mine is free"

 

Tags: Linux

This column is part of a series I write for Digiplace.nl, where it appears in Dutch.

Gaining attention in the Blogosphere

I am a content blogger these days. Last weekend I decided to write a first impressions article on Debian and send it to Ladislav Bodnar of Distrowatch. I like Distrowatch and found it a valuable resource to get information on current developments in Linux and BSD.

This time I was the first one to have a review about Debian Etch on Distrowatch. Completely by accident, but I enjoy every moment of it. As blogger you hope that someone actually reads what your write. With the many, many millions of weblogs every response you get gives satisfaction. The Debian review gives a lot of it ;-).

First, there has been a lively interchange in the comments themselves. Besides that, the article has reached some other websites like Tuxmachines, LinuxLookup, Debian News and Linux Today. Each website contributed to getting new visitors to my website, somewhat more than 5.000 in the first two days.

Well, I just made the screenshots of the various websites, as a reminder and an encouragement. Thank you Blogosphere.

Tags: Debian, Linux

Debian Etch: first impressions

Debian deserves some extra attention. The latest release is being distributed and I have no doubt that it will be installed on quite a few machines over the coming days and weeks. Personally I want to try it on the iMac Indigo and on a virtual machine under VMware. The netinstal images were a breeze to download and that was enough for now. I did not feel like downloading three DVD images or 22 CD images at the moment.

Who should give Debian a try? Besides all the geeks and nerds I think it would be a good idea for the Ubuntu, Mepis, Linspire, Xandros, Knoppix crowds to at least take a good look at the ditribution that makes their userfriendly distributions possible. Without the enormous work done by the Debian project their favorite distro's mind not have existed. You might compare it to various large see and land animals that swim or move around very lowly with little fish or birds picking the scraps from their skins or teeth. Debian is moving slowly (though it did have five or six intermediate updates of Debian Sarge), but the best pieces are picked away by the fast moving smaller distributions. Anyway, when such a hue animal crosses your path it is a grand and beautiful sight to behold. Maybe there is talk of extinction, but for now it still moves with grace and power and it deserves some quiet attention.

The install on the iMac went well, but I ran into the same problem as a few months ago: a completely frozen graphical user interface. To it's credit, Debian did have all the settings for xorg.conf as they should be (in contrast to Yellowdog and almost every other Linux distribution for the PPC I tried). For now, I will have to ask some questions here and there to see whether there is a solution (though last time I asked the solution should have been implemented by now). This article will only deal with my first impressions under VMware then.

Installing Debian Etch

I still remember the first time I installed Debian on a computer. I knew it had a reputation of being difficult, but I was confident enough to think I could beat the odds. Remember, back then -must be about five years ago- I was using Windows98 as my main operating system and was barely scratching the surface of Linux. The installer asked all kinds of questions I had absolutely no clue as to what they meant. Various distributions have improved the way Linux is installed and for most W2L migrators there shouldn't be any problem anymore. The Debian installer is still text-based with no new shiny live desktop to get you going. This isn't a bad thing, because it the Debian installer is fast and responsive (even on the old iMac). The questions speak for themselves: language, territory, keyboard layout (where I do miss American English International). Then it is on to the network. You give your box it's own name and tell it which domain it belongs to. In my case I left it blank.

The next step is to partition your harddrives. For me, it wasn't really a big problem, having created a new virtual machine specifically for this tasks. The user can choose between three guided options (use entire disk, with LVM and LVM encrypted) or the manual option. I choose the first option, just use the whole disk. You can select the proper disk (if you have multiple disks that is) after which you are asked to select a partitioning scheme. There are three options: one partition, a separate /home partition of separate partitions for /home, /usr, /var and /temp. The first one is recommended for new users, but a separate /home partition might have been better especially if you want to change distributions later on. However, this a matter of taste. The installer then gives you a summary of the partition scheme and you have to confirm your decision. The confirmation questions default to "No", a wise precaution.

The next step sets up the first two accounts (root and user) and their respective passwords. Since this is a netbased install you can select a network mirror in order to have more than a basic system. The installer gives you a choice of countries and servers in those countries. If you are behind a proxyserver, now is the time to enter the appropriate data.

Debian likes to know which packages you like and the next question is whether to participate in the popularity-contest, where each week statistics about the use of packages is send to the distribution developers. Why not, especially since it can only benefit you. The final step before the installer starts pulling down the packages is to select the predefined softwarecollections. The standard system and desktop environment are ticked by default. When you want to add a Web, Print, DNS, File, Mail server of a SQL database it is a matter of ticking the other boxes. The last selection is for laptop users. Then, you can sit back and wait until everything has been downloaded and installed. No questions will bother you during the next hour. Almost, because you do get a question about the resolutions the x server can use and about Grub.

Conclusion. The Debian installer is simple and straight forward. It might seem a bit more than the six step process under Ubuntu, but it is almost the same. I can imagine that old style Debian users miss an expert option, where you may have more control on what software to install. I guess experienced users will select to install only the standard system and proceed from there on. The current installer looks like a good balance and I like it.

Image gallery (can be found here)

First boot

If you are waiting for a great looking desktop, Debian is not really the place to be. With Debian Etch you do get a major update as far as Gnome , KDE and Xfce are concerned. The netinstall gives you the Gnome desktop. But, the developers at Debian did put some work in th bells and whistles. GDM actually looks like something to show off with and the default Gnome desktop is no longer plain and boring vanilla, but almost appears bright. The mirrors also have KDE and Xfce disks for those who don't want to boot into Gnome first. Still, I would recommend a visit to the gnome-look.org website to add some more shine to the desktop (personal preference, I know).

When you are used to Ubuntu this desktop shouldn't pose too many difficulties. Applications from the Mozilla family had an identity change (Iceweasel instead of Firefox, Icedove instead of Thunderbird and Iceape instead of Seamonkey). You will also miss the Install/Remove... menu item for easy access to install new software. Synaptic is the tool for that (or apt-get of course), where adding new repositories is a bit more of a challenge. One interesting thing I did find was a small window selector in the upper left corner. Very small, but nice as an alternative to ALT-TAB. The default webbrowser is Epiphany and Evolution is the center for your email. The rest of the usual suspects are present as well. OpenOffice.org, GIMP, GAIM,  Rythmbox and Totem. GnomeBaker for your burning needs.

Synaptic is there to expand your desktop. When you start up Synaptic during a session it asks your root password. Logical, but when you start it later again in the same session it remembers you already gave the password. Again, a small thing to make life and use a bit more enjoyable.

Overall, the default Debian install 'feels' fast. Firing up OpenOffice.org took only seconds and Abiword came up almost instantly. Synaptic, GIMP and Scribus also 'felt' faster than I am used to under Ubuntu.  The only downside was that it didn't add Scribus to the menustructure.  Feelings are not a good measure of performance, I know, but the impression stuck that the desktop is really fast.

Image gallery (can be found here)

Conclusions

It is too early to draw major conclusions about this new release of Debian. I like the installer and -having used Ubuntu and Gnome since August 2006- the default Debian Gnome desktop provides a familiar environment with well-known tools. No doubt there will again be discussions on how to reduce the time between the various releases. The good thing about the long cycles is that you have automatic long term support.  Stability isn't necessarily a bad thing then. The way Debian is developed does make it possible for young and shiny (like Ubuntu, Mepis and Linspire) to run ahead and push the unstable to the mainstream and on the desks of a growing number of users.

For now, I will just stand aside and admire the old mastodont passing by.

Tags: Linux, Debian, Ubuntu

Debian 4.0 Etch is released

Surprise, surprise. In the end it is only a few months late. The next big Debian release is available. The official release announcement can be found here and the various possiblities to download the distribution are found here.

The wide range of supported hardware platforms and the huge, immense collection of software packages do set Debian apart. When you are using Ubuntu or any other Debian-based distribution most likely there isn't much that is new or exciting. But with Debian you know that it works, that it is stable and that is has long term support out of the box. It won't look sexy, but that can be rectified by the tinkerer.

Personally I am curious whether I can get it running on my old iMac, because in this release the problems with X should be solved. But why should you try out Debian Etch? Plain and simple: out of respect for one of the biggest (if not the biggest) projects to develop Linux and open source software and the many, many hours that scores of developers have punt into making this happen. Installing Debian is a sign of respect for a remarkable legacy.

Tags: Debian, Linux, Ubuntu

Throwing away years of Windows

It's spring time. Nothing new there, but spring seems to be associated with cleaning. My wife wants to redo the bed room: walls, woodwork, floor and some new closets.  And -as most married men will know- when your wife wants something like this, it is better to get over with it. On the other hand, it is fun to spend time together and at the end of the day the bed room is a nicer place.

Getting in the spring cleaning mood I decided to take on our study room and fix that one as well. For the statistics: it is three by four meters with 30 meters of bookshelves on three walls, we have two desks in there and four computers, three of which are mine (not counting the laptop). All those cables! Twee meters of shelves were filled with zip folders packed with dozens upon dozens of CD's and DVD's gathered over the last six or seven years. I had bought some nice DJ boxes to compress the whole thing.

It was fascinating to see my IT history passing through my hands, remembering again why I stored a particular CD or why I bought a specific magazine. Some magazines don't even exist anymore. CD's and DVD's that accompanied the magazines were great in a time when the internet was only 56K6 away on dial up. I loved the UK magazines because they had real software, not just trial or demo version, but versions you could deploy and use for as long as you liked.

But after a while those magazines and their disks disappeared from the folders. I got broad band and discovered free and open source software. Plenty of stuff to play around with. I found the disks I used to write my first articles, back in 2002/2003. Besides that, Linux found it's way in my collection. First Suse 7.2 and then Red Hat 7.3. I can't even recount how many ISO files I downloaded from LinuxISO. The site doesn't even seem to exist anymore, but it was a great resource in a time that bittorrent still had to be invented.

From then on the collection branched in various directions. BeOS, BSD, Solaris, Netware. I sucked it all in. That must have been the time the book collection exploded as well. Some distributions still exist, others are gone, but I do remember the growth of Linux in the last few years.

And there they were, the CD's and DVD's with tons and tons of Windows based software. Program's for document management. But no longer needed. Accounting, likewise, no longer needed. Flow charters, long ago replaced. Security software for Windows, no longer valid or even up to the tasks required. I cherish the memories because those disks also represent part of my growth in knowledge and skills. But in the time of spring cleaning I had to ask myself if I would ever use those disks again? Some even dated back to the Windows 98 days, so the answer was no.

With a few exceptions 90% of the disks went into the trashcan. Which -now that I think of it- represents the balance between my current use of Linux  (based software) versus Windows (based software) quite well.

Tags: Linux, Windows

The OS that should have been

OSNews has a nice overview of the going-ons with the heirs of BeOS. The article says (for those not wanting to click away):

A lot of things have happened in the past few days concerning Zeta, BeOS, and Haiku. In order to create some order in the chaos, Eugenia and I have created a rough timeline of what happened the past 6-7 years. Read on for the timeline and some more thoughts on the matter.

So now, we can reconstruct fragments of the BeOS saga over the past seven years - with the help of Eugenia, that is. Eugenia is no new comer to the BeOS world (before OSNews she was running BeNews) and she has met Bernd Korz several times.

So. It's 2001. Be, Inc. is in talks with a German company (Koch Media, more here) to grant them distribution rights of BeOS 5 in Germany and the rest of Europe. Eugenia does not know if these talks were ever finished, nor does she know if anything finalized got signed (although some draft contracts could have been signed). Eventually, YellowTAB buys that contract from that company.

Not much later, Be goes belly up, and sells its assets to Palmsource.

Bernd Korz and YellowTAB start work on Zeta - something they are not allowed to do as far as the distribution rights go, since they only have distribution rights of BeOS 5, and nothing more. Debate immediately arises in the BeOS community about Zeta's legality. Especially the code leaked in early 2002 fuels speculation that Zeta is based on this illegal leak.

Now, Eugenia tells me that Bernd Korz went to America a few times to contact Palmsource but a number of times they not only declined to talk to him but he also became a running joke within Palmsource's ex-Be engineers and executives (who for some reason did not like seeing BeOS resurrected via another company -- some of them saw Haiku the same way too). Bernd eventually did meet Jean-Louis Gassee (who was a Palmsource board member at the time) to discuss the matter but we don't know what ever happened after their meeting.

In the meantime, Palmsource is acquired by Access. Access is now the owner of Be's IP.

In this role as owner, they say to have sent numerous cease and desist letters to YellowTAB, on the grounds that Zeta is "an unauthorized derivative work". Access does not contact any news outlet, nor does it give out any press releases. The cease and desist letters go unanswered.

In the meantime, YellowTAB starts pushing up the daisies as sales have been very poor. Magnussoft takes over development of Zeta. They provide Bernd Korz with 5 people, and some funding to develop Zeta. All seems well at this point.

On 23rd March this year, Bernd Korz and his team part ways with Magnussoft. A few days later, Bernd announces he quits Zeta development altogether.

Today, we have Access stating that "if Herr Korz feels that he holds a legitimate license to the BeOS code he's been using, we're completely unaware of it, and I'd be fascinated to see him produce any substantiation for that claim."

In a response, Bernd states on his weblog that he will be talking to his lawyer, and that a statement will be made soon.

This short timeline elicits a few interesting questions. Why did Palmsource decline to talk with Bernd Korz? Why did Palmsource never take any legal action against YellowTAB (that we know of)? Why has Access been so secretive about their actions against Zeta? Why did they choose a comments' section on a news site to speak in public about this for the first time? Are the recent talks between Access and Haiku a mere coincidence?

It seems that 6 years after its demise, the BeOS can still stir the operating system world up. Let us hope everything gets cleared up sooner rather than later.

BeOS was and still is one of the fastest multimedia operating systems you may ever encounter (30 seconds bootup time). It is the operating system that Apple seriously considered to buy, just before Steve Jobs was heralded back. Then it was considered as an operating system for Palm devices.

I played with BeOS 5 and the later Zeta releases and I still find it a great OS. The only thing lacking is the continuous development of solid applications across the board. Websites like BeBits continue as a gathering place for afficionados. 

But, in the end, BeOS/Zeta remains as a testimony that more is needed than a great, maybe even superb operating system with applications that make you cry with joy. The market is a ruthless place, as the timeline of BeOS/Zeta well shows.

Tags: BeOS, Zeta

Column: Cathedrals, Bazaars and Advocates

In "The Cathedral and The Bazaar" Eric S. Raymond tried to convince the world that the open source development model (the bazaar) was better and cheaper than the traditional -closed- model (the cathedral). Of course this it utter nonsense. When I think of a bazaar I remember the soukh of Marrakech or Casablanca. Narrow, dark corridors and small streets filled with dozens of merchants, pulling your sleeves, yelling at you and offering the same merchandise as their fellows.

Now, cathedrals are a different story. Yes, they were erected by exploiting poor farmers, who were squashed by a corrupt political and religious system which did not hesitate to call in the help of the inquisition to silence any sign of protest. But who remembers that when you walk through the front gate. "Wow!" is a most common exclamation. See, the guys from Microsoft understand that.

The almost religiously inspired followers of Linux can be compared to protestants. An old saying states, that when two protestants start to discuss a thing you have a schism. Put two open source developers in the same room and you have a 'fork'. Protestant churches are dull, functional to the max. Need I continue? To be functional is at the heart of the Unix philosophie. No "wow!" there.

One of the key problems of Linux is the lack of a proper advocate, it has mostly admirers. In his book "Vicars of Christ" the priest Peter de Rosa gives an honest and shocking account of the papacy. But, he states, 2.000 years later the institute still exists. With the cathedrals. Similar accounts were written about the innards of Microsoft by former and current Windows adepts in the last decennium. With all the real and alleged security leaks we might elect Windows XP to be thé most important peer2peer filesharing program. Yet, the "wow! is now" and sales continue.

This is what the Linux world lacks, the willingness to shoot the whole shebang to pieces. To be ruthless in exposing what is wrong, to put the finger on the sore spot and rub salt in the wounds. True, there is criticism but that comes from the outside, from those 'Windoze' users. No, Linux needs a true devil's advocate, an admirer. Someone who doesn't mind to give the bazaar a thorough cleaning. Someone with the looks, the office and the attractive staff of Al Pacino.

Now let's see where Jos put my office..

This is the first column written for Digiplace.nl, a Dutch website for Ubuntu users and friends, run by Jos Herni.

Tags: Linux, Windows, Digiplace

New avenues

Good news. My good friend Jos Herni is expanding the reach of his website Digiplace. He is into Linux for way longer than I am and his website is great resource for people who want to find real life solutions for problems end-users face. He loves Ubuntu and designates himself as a "Gnomer".

His website has reached the point that he can expand, both in content (hardware, serverbased solutions using Linux and desktop use of Linux) and in his team. Jos and I got to know eachother about a year ago and now he gave me a nice place in his team and on Digiplace: as a writer of opinion pieces. You can find a direct link at the top of this page, though you need to master Dutch to benefit from it.

Some people said to me that I talk like I am on a soapbox. Well, Jos gave me a digital soapbox to use to my hearts delight. Better close your ears ;-)

Tags: Linux, Ubuntu, Digiplace

Alienising my laptop

I used my laptop to write the annual report for the organisation I work for. And -since I had to be online constantly- I had to write it under Windows. See, I can not get the wifi running, not even with the Feisty beta. No problem, I checked online and my laptop is on the not-supported list. It's not a Linux problem, it's a hardware problem.

But when you work with Windows XP and use the default desktop you just get the urge to want to change it, to make it look more snappy. In my case, that also means not spending any money on it. The guys from Alienware came the rescue. On their website you can dowload a nice package with a few Alien themes, the AlienGUIse Theme Manager. That was an improvement, but not enough. My desktop was littered with icons and shortcuts. Most went to /dev/null and for the others I made a new taskbar at the top of the screen. Add a snazzy wall paper and a nice theme for Firefox and XP started to look nice.

You can see that desktop here

One big problem! When I went back to my default Ubuntu desktop, the decent Human theme, it was a bit.... How do I put it nicely? Boring. But to work with Linux is to customize, right? It was time for a visit to the Gnome Look website. Searching for dark themes and alien-like themes was easy enough and I downloaded a number of candidates. I think the biggest package was about 800 Kb, but the others hovered around 100 Kb. Way smaller than the multimegabyte AlienGUIse package.

Installing the packages was as simple as opening the Gnome Theme Manager and dropping them there. After that I tinkered with the settings, found myself another snappy wallpaper and enabled the desktop effects that come with Feisty.

You can see that desktop here

Is this practical? Of course not. It is way too dark and you don't want to spend hours and hours working on these desktops. Besides, I need the default Human Theme for all the screenshots in the book. The Windows XP desktop is not practical because it becomes too bloated, taking up precious resources. Adding AlienGUIse didn't make my previous XP boxes any more stable now that I recall. For Ubuntu it didn't change a thing performance wise. It's still fast.

Now let's see what else I can find on the Gnome Look pages.

Tags: Ubuntu, Windows, Gnome

Changing the look of Wine

One of the nicer things of Linux is that you have tons of thinkerers around. One of my online buddies who goes by the nick of Tripl showed this solution to change the default look of Wine (simply horrible) into the human theme of Ubuntu.

 

All the text bellow needs to be pasted bellow the line above in ~/.wine/user.reg that is your home directory .wine folder
"ActiveBorder"="239 235 231"
"ActiveTitle"="239 235 231"
"AppWorkSpace"="198 198 191"
"Background"="93 77 52"
"ButtonAlternativeFace"="200 0 0"
"ButtonDkShadow"="85 85 82"
"ButtonFace"="239 235 231"
"ButtonHilight"="255 255 255"
"ButtonLight"="255 255 255"
"ButtonShadow"="198 198 191"
"ButtonText"="0 0 0"
"GradientActiveTitle"="239 235 231"
"GradientInactiveTitle"="239 235 231"
"GrayText"="198 198 191"
"Hilight"="247 203 135"
"HilightText"="0 0 0"
"InactiveBorder"="239 235 231"
"InactiveTitle"="239 235 231"
"InactiveTitleText"="255 255 255"
"InfoText"="0 0 0"
"InfoWindow"="200 0 0"
"Menu"="239 235 231"
"MenuBar"="0 0 0"
"MenuHilight"="247 203 135"
"MenuText"="0 0 0"
"Scrollbar"="239 235 231"
"TitleText"="255 255 255"
"Window"="255 255 255"
"WindowFrame"="0 0 0"
"WindowText"="0 0 0"

 

Now I wonder.... could someone do this for Picasa as well?

Tags: Linux, Ubuntu, Wine

"But I use...."

Doesn't it annoy you as well? In a forum or on an IRC channel someone asks a question about a program in Linux. "How do I change the settings in xorg.conf? ". The answer is swift. "Open a terminal and type $ sudo gedit /etc/xorg.conf and....". After that it is a matter of time and someone will say: "Why do you use gedit for this. I use nano. Much better."

Next example. A user has a problem with adding podcasts to Rythmbox. Instead of helping he or she will get a list of alternative programs that are much better.

Another one. You try to explain the innards of GRUB to newbie users and -you could wait for it- there he is: "But I use lilo...".

What is wrong with all of these responses? Answer: they don't do a darn thing to bring the solution any closer. Is there really a difference between gEdit and nano for a simple editing? Why is Amarok better than Rythmbox? No no, I don't want to go there. Linux is about choice and for every application there is at least one alternative.  The issue is that if someone has a question about Rythmbox the answer should focus on Rythmbox as well.

Personally, I am a complete agnostic when it comes to applications. I consider all of them like a huge toolbox and I pick whatever I need to complete a task. I use Amarok because I want to listen to Last.FM and there is no Last.FM client for Dapper (last time I checked) and I like the link to Wikipedia for some extra artist information. However, I use XMMS to listen to my congregation's public talks or to any station that is available through StreamTuner. I also use XMMS to listen to my Tangerine Tree collection (a series of legal bootlegs from Tangerine Dream concerts), because they are in a lossless format called "shorten" and I only found a .SHN plugin for XMMS.  And that is just for music.

When it comes to writing text I alternate between gEdit, Abiword, OpenOffice.org Writer and Microsoft Word (yes, under Linux). Webbrowsing? Firefox, Swiftfox and Opera. Spreadsheets? Gnumeric and Excel.

To take it one step further: I hardly care about the operating system anymore. There are so many cross-platform applications that in day to day use there is no difference between Mac OSX, Windows XP, Ubuntu Linux or Windows Mobile 2003. As long as I can share my files between all of them I am a happy man.

That is why I am not impressed when a response to a question about management tools in distro A gets an answer like "But I use distro B, because their tools are much better". There is no one size fits all. Why do you think people keep thinkering with their Windows boxes?

My point: when users ask a question on solving a problem with a specific applications or function, they have the right to get an answer that is more helpful than the "but I use..." nonsense. Most of the times it is a matter of taste anyway.

Tags: Linux

Focus: BibleTime

I see dozens of programs these days. Writing a book on Ubuntu and more specifically the applications that are available forces me to look into them. I have been using Windows and Windows based programs for more than a decade, so that is always a logical point of reference.

 A program that won't make it into the book is BibleTime. Partly because we only have so much space to fill and partly because it is interesting for a small group of potential readers. Not to say there is no interest in this kind of niche. There is an Ubuntu version out there that caters to the needs of christians and last thing I heard there was a islamic version as well.

BibleTime is a Bible study program. I have used a few of these under Windows, but found them mostly cumbersome. They were memory hogs and the interface was unappealing and clunky. The amount of available information was astounding however, but one program did not differ greatly from the other. They all used the vast resources that are available in the public domain. One thing was highly annoying: adding most of those resources to the program, one by one. I was curious how the open source program would do against that.

BibleTime is a KDE based program, so installing that one on a clean Ubuntu will definitely bring up some dependencies as well. When you start the program up for the first time you are given the opportunity to install the resource files. The list of languages, bibles and publications is impressive. Nothing new but impressive nonetheless. The Dutch are limited to the Statenvertaling only since all the other Bible translations are not in the public domain. Anyway, you can tick of all the books you like and BibleTime installs them from it's own FTP server. There is a warning for those folks out there that live in countries where the possession of a Bible is illegal. From then on it is a matter of waiting untill your bookshelf is filled. Major improvement.

From then on you are free to use the software and when you are used to the Windows based programs there is nothing surprising here. The left pane contains the bookshelf and the main screen is your run of the mill multipane setup. Every publication you open gets it's own pane. With a click on the right button all panes synchronize when you go from scripture to scripture. I tried a few searches of phrases I new should be in either the bible version or the commentaries, but they turned up empty. What I didn't like is that the bookshelf doesn't use the full names of the publications and Bible versions. Insiders know the the meaning of MHC or ASV, but more casual reseachers wouldn't mind to see Matthew Henry's Commentary or American Standard Version as default. The speed of the program was fine, way better than the Windows-based counterparts.

In conclusion, BibleTime provides a decent interface to public domain bible study publications with a very easy process to add new publications to your library. What it shares with it's closed source 'brethren' is the other side of making things accessible. You have to make it appealing to start digging through it all. The screen layout should be inviting for non-scholars. The scholars are well taken care of, but shouldn't it be the purpose to reach the non-scholars? At least, that was the group Jesus mainly ministered to.

Tags: Ubuntu, Linux, BibleTime