Category: Unix

The new year has started off right with more dedication to this site, including having some links ready for everybody to check out each week.

Have a link you want to see here?  Feel free to drop us a line in the comments, on any of our social networking places (linked to the left), via phone (660-474-0345), or by e-mail (thomash2@thenixedreport.com).

Unix

• Fedora Project: Sponsored by Red Hat, version 20 of this Operating System is the first stop on this year’s Distro Journey.
• Is Microsoft Grasping at Straws? (FOSS Force): Ken “helios” Starks asks the question of whether Microsoft is on their last legs regarding competition against Free and Open Source Software.  From mentioning the aQuantive buyout to Rockstar, Starks paints a picture of a company that has grown desperate.
• Razer’s Project Christine (MaximumPC): Those who are seasoned veterans when it comes to upgrading PC’s may have had their fair share of nicks and cuts on their hands and fingers.  Razer is apparently wanting to change all of that by creating a modular gaming system that lends itself to easier upgrades.

Overlooked Pop Culture

• The British Punk Band that Fooled Reagan, Thatcher, and the CIA (The Daily Beast): Crass, a British Punk Band conducted a prank in which a fake phone call between then President Ronald Reagan and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher caused quite a stir.  American intelligence blamed the soviets, while the British blamed Argentine spies.  The lead singer is disturbed to this day that governments were so easily fooled.
• On News Sources and Bias (Bonnie Kristian):  The argument is made that there is no way to get rid of bias in news or the media in general.  The blog post links to sources that they pursue on a regular basis.
• Decapitated Sex Toys Prompted Police Probe (The Smoking Gun): A Florida woman’s ex-girlfriend had apparently cut off the heads of a few dildos, prompting her to contact the police.  Due to lack of evidence, the case was eventually closed.  Of course it wouldn’t be Wednesday Weekly Links without something really weird like this.

First off, for those who missed it, here’s the latest episode of our podcast.

I’ve set up Fedora 20 on the HP Elite 410y Desktop, and it works so far.  Seeing as how it contains LibreOffice, I should be able to work with some documents while running this OS for about a month.

One of the things I’ve been wanting to do for some time is get down to the nitty gritty in terms of installation and how well the system works.  I don’t have a system that’s portable with NVIDIA graphics, because the Toshiba Tecra M9’s GPU is problematic (it hangs on the latest binary drivers).

Due in part to Bruce Byfield’s observations about distro reviews not quite having enough details (i.e. how smooth the installation is, etc… etc…), I figured I’d take a bit more time in terms of installation.  I’ve taken a few notes and made a few observations about some of the quirks of installing Fedora 20 from a Live DVD.

Some people donate to the Red Cross or volunteer at soup kitchens around the holidays.  During the 2013 season, Ken “helios” Starks conducted an outreach called the “12 Geeks of Christmas.”

Twelve geeks were sent reconditioned notebook computers to give to a child whose family couldn’t afford one otherwise.  On his blog, he wrote:

We send said Geek a reconditioned laptop with Linux on it and they locate a school-aged child in their community that wouldn’t normally be able to afford a computer in the household.  Deliver the computer and spend some time showing the parents and the child how to use it, and support them when they need help.

Yeah, I know…that’s asking a lot.  But 12 of you did it.

Richard Kapler is credited as one of those geeks who gave a computer to a child who is doing everything they can to make it into college.  There are currently plans to tell the story of more of these geeks.  Well done, helios.  Well done.

Out with 2013, and in with 2014.  No matter what this year brings, it won’t be boring.  With that said, here’s some links for you to check out this week.

Unix

• Getting Involved in FOSS (opensource.com): The Red Hat sponsored website has seven ways for people to get involved in various projects that share their source code and invite collaboration from others.  For those who can’t code their way out of a paper bag, there’s always writing documentation and creating digital art for the various projects, because good instructions and pretty icons can go a long way in making an application more attractive.
• Exciting Changes to 5.0 of the Phoronix Test Suite GUI (phoronix.com):  Though it was initially written in GTK2, HTML 5 is being used instead.  According to Michael Larabel, “This new GUI to Phoronix Test Suite 5.0 is being written as an HTML5 interface. This is being done for portability and network transparency with the Phoronix Test Suite commonly being used on embedded devices and servers where there is no connected devices — remote support for PTS 5.0 HTML5 GUI can be enabled, otherwise it’s only exposed locally.”  Work on the interface is currently ongoing.
• Now It’s Our Turn (Blog of helios):  Ken “helios” Starks has been through quite a bit over the years.  He decided to tell the story of how he is now able to give back to those who have helped him, starting with Randy Noseworthy.  It looks like the Reglue Project will be able to help bridge the digital divide more than ever.

Overlooked Pop Culture

• District Judge Rules in Favor of Warrantless Border Searches (Maximum PC):  The controversy continues over warrantless border searches as a Federal Judge declared that risk of seizure was insignificant, so plaintiffs have no standing.  It looks like it’s time to learn how to use encryption or data wiping techniques before traveling to other countries.
• Horrible Things Done to Male Sexual Organs (deadspin.com): In weird news, males have apparently hurt themselves in the no no parts in 2013.  Some of these entries will make you laugh, others will make you cry, and the rest will make you hurt down there.
• 14 Million Doses of Potassium Iodide Ordered (infowars.com):  The stuff that prevents radioactive iodine from being absorbed by the thyroid is apparently being ordered in an unprecedented quantity, according to this.  It is apparently related to the problematic Fukushima reactor.  U.S. Sailors have apparently come back sick after helping out in the area, and have sued the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO).  This tidbit may crop up again this year.

The final issue of the magazine for 2013 is available for popular consumption.  Here’s what’s covered:

• Social Networking Ads and How they may backfire.
• Linux Mint Debian Edition
• Google Drive being used on the construction of this year’s final issue as well as a preview of things to come in 2014.

The magazine may be downloaded here.  The clouds on the cover page courtesy of Kamil Porembiński via Creative Commons.

This week’s links involve a plethora of technology updates and some geek and movie culture.

Unix

• Fedora 20 Released (LXer): Carla Schroder talks about the new release of the OS sponsored by Red Hat.  What’s interesting to note is the improved support for the ARM architecture.
• Steam OS Review (Muktware): Swapnil Bharttiya takes a look at Valve’s new OS, currently in beta.
• HP Chromebook 11 Chargers Recalled (MaximumPC): While Chrome OS can be seen as stable, the hardware can be another matter.  Certain chargers for HP’s Chromebook 11 are overheating and as a result have been recalled.

Overlooked Pop Culture

• Lords of Salem SUCKED!! (Promises Are Kept): Mitchell Brown offers his take on Rob Zombie’s latest film.
• The Stone Tape, a 1972 film, reviewed (An American View of British Science Fiction): Stephen Kelley takes a look at a 1972 film from Nigel Kneale.  This is apparently the final script accepted by the BBC before he went to ITV.
• Tone Deaf NSA (Foreign Policy Magazine): This article offers insight into the thinking of those who work for the NSA.

As we head deeper and deeper into Winter, more people are going to stay indoors to avoid the cold weather.  Eventually, people will get bored and will start killing time on the Internet.  To make things a bit more pleasant for those who happen to be bored, never fear!

Our weekly links will have you laughing, crying, and cursing multibiollion dollar corporations all at the same time.  With that said, here’s this week’s links.

Unix

• KDE Desktop in Need of Desktop Search Overhaul (Blog of Helios): Ken Starks argues in favor of improving the search experience on the desktop so that files are found quickly and accurately.
• Valve Joins the Linux Foundation: Gaming was such a contentous issue on operating systems other than OS X and Windows until Valve came along to port their Steam Client.  The company that brought one of the most successful game distribution services is now an official member of the Linux Foundation.
• Samsung PR Move on Galaxy S4 Catching Fire Backfires (MaximumPC):  In an attempt to do damage control on a problematic product, the problems of said product go viral instead.  Remember kids, preventing one from suing and broadcasting the fact that defects in a product exist is not good PR.

Overlooked Pop Culture

• There are people who are here to help you poop: We aren’t making this up.  There is a product called Squatty Potty that helps the person squat instead of sit on their toilet.  Something about making it all come out easier…….
• Foolish users brick their XBOX One consoles (Daily Dot): Thanks to a convincing looking image via 4Chan, a number of uses enabled the developer mode on their XBOX One consoles in the hopes that they’ll be able to play their XBOX 360 games.  Unfortunately, the instructions rendered said consoles inoperable.  Remember, kids…. never follow instructions from an image board, and for crying out loud, stay out of /b/!
• Martial arts demo curating (The Stick Chick): A martial arts expert explains why it’s best to practice certain things in a dojo before demonstrating them to the public.

As the holiday sales season kicks into high gear, we learn about some cool things in the technology sphere as well as an update in regards to an earlier podcast episode.

Hopefully, this week’s links will help blast things off for the most intense part of the year.  For those who are studying for finals in college and/or going through finals week, we at The *Nixed Report wish you all the best of luck.  Happy studies.

Unix

• iBuyPower plans to put out their own Steam Machine (The Verge):  The current prototype has a 500 GB hard drive, multicore AMD CPU, a discrete Radeon R9 270 graphics card, Wifi, Bluetooth, and Valve’s Steam Controller.
• The City of Munich Has Walked Away From Microsoft (TechRepublic): An entire German city has walked away from Microsoft and is relying on free and open source software instead.  In the process, the city discovered that their IT infrastructure also needed an overhaul.
• Malware can spread via rogue networks utilizing the sound system of an OS for transmission, but Linux-based systems may already have a defense against it (Journal of Communications): Research done by Michael Hanspach and Michael Goetz indicates that creating a rogue mesh network may serve as an opportunity to spread malware in unexpected ways.  As it turns out, the Advanced Linux Sound Architecture (ALSA) and Linux Audio Developer’s Simple Audio Plugin API (LADSPA) may already have the ability to defend against such attacks via configuration of audio filters.  Yet another reason why Linux-based systems may be more secure than solutions from Microsoft.

Overlooked Pop Culture

• Bitcoin theft occurs in the dark web yet again (Layfield Report): Stephen Kelley talks about Sheep Marketplace and how bitcoins have been stolen from individual participants.  Though the marketplace has claimed that emergency procedures were in place to return the remainder of bitcoins to users, Kelley speculates as to whether it was a ruse by the site operators.
• Government chemist tampered with evidence in 40,000 cases (Filming Cops): Though this item of news isn’t entirely new, it’s here to serve as a reminder that though the justice system in the U.S. is by far among the most sophisticated, it doesn’t guarantee that cases will be 100% accurate, especially when evidence is altered.
• Dragon Con co-founder Ed Kramer Avoids Prison (The Atlanta-Journal Constitution): He will serve the remainder of five years confinement under house arrest.  For the remainder of his 20 year sentence, he’ll be on probation and must register as a sex offender for life.  He also has to pay $100,000 USD in restitution to the three individuals who claimed he molested and abused.  Furthermore, it appears that he will no longer profit from the Dragon Con convention.

This week is going to be hectic for those working retail, and with a recent decision in a lawsuit, things may be heating up in that sector.  This week’s links cover the thankfulness of old machines that can be brought back to life as well as a few other links worth checking out.

Unix

• Despite Prior Art, Newegg is Found Guilty of Patent Infringement (TechDirt): Despite industry experts testifying that the patent was invalid and explaining why, the jury found Newegg guilty of using a patent regarding e-commerce.  Newegg is appealing the decision.  Those who do any form of e-commerce may want to keep an eye on this case.
• Distros for Older Computers (Make Tech Easier): Have some older machines collecting dust?  You just might be able to bring them back to life using Wary Puppy, TinyCore, Bohdi, CrunchBang, antiX, and WattOS (just to name a few).
• Linux Mint Debian Edition: The distro that’s currently being run in the *NixedLabs at the moment and is the current stop for the DistroJourney of 2013.  It’s based on Debian Testing, with updates being bundled in packs to maintain system stability.  Though there are rough edges, the technology utilized is interesting, especially the live system installer, which is home grown courtesy of Clem, the lead developer of Mint.

Overlooked Pop Culture

• Dr. Who: The Day of the Doctor (2013) 50th Anniversary Special (An American View of British Science Fiction): Dr. Who is Growing in popularity, and Stephen Kelley relays his experience of watching the special in 3-D.  The movie trivia was replaced with Dr. Who trivia, and peoples’ minds were blown upon discovering that The Beatles made an appearance on an episode.  Over all, he found the experience to be favorable.
• Black Friday Deals for Gamers (VG Chartz): For you gamers out there, this is a list of some of the best places to go to get the best deals for Black Friday.
• Soon, Men May Be Able to Carry Babies (Modern Women Digest): Dr. Alfred Von Bauder has been working on a synthetic uterus for quite some time, and apparently has had some success in testing it.  This one’s worth reading, and may very well weird more than a few people out.  Arnold Schwarzenegger, eat your heart out.