deltaflyer's Blog

Is Windows really easy ??

Been to my local book-store this morning, looking for the latest WH40k books, helps pass the time when the kids go swimming. I perchance wandered over to the magazine section,just to browse. What i found struck me as pretty weird. I found 25 magazines, all about Windows & how to get the best from it,trouble-shoot problems, you get the gist...... In comparison, only 3 Linux magazines doing the same. Now, looking at these stats, i would presume that windows must be harder as there are more magazines referring to it than linux. Is my thinking a bit skewed or what ?

Andy

Re: Poll: How often do you backup?

I do weekly backups. As like hcvv, i back up /home,/etc & /srv.Backups are kept for 2 months at a time,which reminds me i need to do one this weekend.Backups are stored in a fire-proof container,which,apparently,can stand up to 840c

Andy

It happened to me !!!

For two days,now, i've been helping a friends neighbour get connected to broadband. I was referred as my friend ( who will remain anonymous, you know who you are Rick !! ) has had a few windows problems which i sorted, in the past. Now,back to the story. I have been trying to get this person connected to their broadband via a modem/router.They had been given this router by their son as a gift, so they could get online & stay in touch, as their son is going abroad.
Day one
No matter what i tried,the router would not connect. I asked if they had the correct password & username,they said yes.I checked the line & all was fine,checked firewalls,ok. checked antivirus,etc,no problems there.As it was late in the afternoon & i had to get the kids from school,i said i'd return the next day with one of my spare modem/routers which i know has no problems.
Day two
returned to these people with my router/modem,which i had checked before leaving home. Plugged it in,checked the settings,still nothing.No broadband, no internet.Very weird. thought it might be a windows problem,as their son had taken it away & put sp3 on it. Rolled everything back,still nothing.By now i was getting very frustrated & extremely peeved.So, i checked the line for a broadband signal & it was o.k. checked everything again and again.Then, on the off-chance, i asked them who their provider was & they said pardon ? I asked again which provider they had signed up with.They said they hadn't, they thought all they needed was the router which their son had provided !!!! GAAAAHHH 2 days trying to set it up & they hadn't even got a provider. Needless to say, i pointed out the necessity of having a provider & they looked at me rather sheepishly & apologised for wasting my time.So, by this time next week,they will have a provider & i will have them set up.
Moral of the story ? Ask first to find out if they have a provider !!

Andy

Re: Poll: How much Ram do you consider ideal?

i have 4 gb at the moment in my 64bit dual core system, my son has 2gb in his 32bit system, my two daughters have 1gb each & my eldest son has 1gb. All are running as smooth as necessary for what they do. My home server has 8gb which is necessary for the streaming video bit. My laptop has 1gb but never uses more than 600 odd mb.Now, going on my old p.c.'s, my p3 550mhz  has only 256mb  & runs Debian etch rather fast,much faster than my  laptop strangely enough.

Andy

Re: Why do people give up on Linux?

Personally i'm just sick to death of all the whingeing, that linux doesn't do this & can't do that.Also the "if linux could do this, i'd change" .Maybe it's just me,but, there are too many such incidences like this. If anyone is willing to change, they should read,listen & read some more,they should also be willing to put a bit of effort in to using/getting used to the differences.I am no technical GURU,but, i will read & experiment to get things sorted. If only others/newcomers did a bit of research & had the patience,they would find using linux is much like using windows ( except for BSOD's of course ). It has now been 5 years since i used windows ( except for school ), but i still get people come up to me & say windows has done this  or that & it annoys them, mention Linux & the automatic response is " oh no, i couldn't use that, there's no gui/tech support/etc " & i really get annoyed.

Anyway that's my tuppence worth

Andy

Re: Laptop problems < SOLVED >

Don't worry if there is a screw or two left over,you always get that when putting something back together

Re: Strange behavior from dvd rom drive

11.0 or 11.1 ? 11.1 has definitely still got a few problems with drive permissions. I too had this problem, after making sure i was a member of cd,drive & wheel as well as the usual groups, i also had to change amarok's sound engine from yauap to xine & all started to work normally

Andy

Re: My foray into ext4

Methinks i'll be waiting quite a bit longer before using ext4,due to the data loss problem

Andy

Re: Command References:Utilities That Display and Manipulate Files

If those are supposed to be links, i think you better check them as they reference something on your p.c.

Andy

Re: Increasing Frustration Levels

Ahh! frustration levels are still the same. I have had a few more arguments about some things. Such as they had not updated their Java on the p.c.'s we use.Subsequently, some of the coursework wouldn't run properly. I told them it needed updating but they said nothing was wrong, it must be something i was doing wrong. So, me being me, i bypassed the safeguards put in place ( windows log-in is like poking a hole in toilet paper ) and updated the servers version of Java & got it to push it down the line to the rest of the desktop's. Then there was the problems with Excel, referencing cells from different workbooks. Boy that was fun. It wasn't just a case of right-click,copy,link here.You had to click the formulae bar, select the workbook,select the cell,copy,select next workbook & paste.Sheesh!! MS products are sooooo stoopid, either that,or the teachers are getting anal

Andy

Re: ms giving win 7 away for free?

Even giving it away, i  have no use for it & will never have a use for it.You still need anti-spyware,anti-virus & all the other gubbins i don't need.Quite happy with what i have

Andy

Re: Poll: May: Do you run Virtual Machines and for what OS?

No multi-boot or VM here, just plain old linux.Even the children use it. The only Windows in this house are the one's you look out of

Andy

Re: Wireless speed management

Don't forget, if this needs to be permanent, you need to set that up,as, after a reboot the setting reverts back to normal

Andy

Re: OpenSUSE.us?

They've just been doing an update with phpbb, a few teething problems,but, if you clear your cache & cookies everything will be ok

Andy

Re: Laptop problems < SOLVED >

Sounds like the power connection plates inside the connector are worn.Just need a new connector to solder onto the motherboard & it will be good as new

Andy

Re: Best way to stress test a HD.

I've always used the tools on Ultimate Boot CD. work well for me http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/ has a plethora of tools

Andy

Re: Laptop problems < SOLVED >

Ahh! the 5160, easy to do,if you are doing it yourself,Main thing is, don't forget to unscrew the keyboard,as this will cause problems.the screws marked "p" are for the motherboard & the ones marked "k" are for the keyboard, undo these first & remove the keyboard. Done a few 5160's in my time

Andy

Re: Laptop problems < SOLVED >

As welan says,probably a bad solder joint.I have had this happen & repaired it myself with my trusty soldering iron
with no problems.Use a fine tip &you should be ok,if it's under warranty I'd ring up the manufacturer & see what the costs would be before attempting.

Andy

Re: Curious are there any deviant-artists?

Only dabbled in Bryce 3D a few years back ( about 8 years ago ), never been any good.Got some of my best here
http://stuntmanandy.no-ip.biz/3D%20pictures.html

Andy

Re: Looking for ideas.

AFAIK, most fora have a google searchbot, which helps index & then gives/passes to google. Dunno if this one has

Andy

Re: Font size is it just me?

Seems fine in good ole' SeaMonkey

Andy

Re: Poll: March: How many Hard drives do you run?

Yes, this can happen with SATA devices. Best thing to do,is use the short SATA data cables,e.g. 6 inch or 10 inch ones are the best. Also, look for the right-angled connectors as these put less of a strain on the cable

Andy

Re: OpenSuse 11.1: Broadcom bcm43xx Wireless Card. Painless installation in 2 steps.

Just run this:
/usr/sbin/install_bcm43xx_firmwareAfter it is done restart the network service.
/etc/init.d/network restartIt worked perfectly.

Just because this worked for me does not mean it will work for everyone.
But it's a place to start[image]

-welan

Andy

Re: Serial modem setup

You did make sure you were part of the dialup group ?

Increasing Frustration Levels

Well folks, today i walked out of my class in sheer frustration !! What, you may ask, has so frustrated the unflusterable DF ? Why, working with Microsoft products of course. I do not usually get so frustrated so easily,but this just had me silently screaming. Part of my course is changing documents & their contents.Now, imagine this, i have to alter x document so that it looks like y document with z's contents added, you would think having only 3 ( yes 3 !! ) documents open in MS office, things would be ok. NOT SO !! copy/paste was like wading through molasses, editing was sooooo slow i was continuously waiting for the cursor to catch up.Then to top it off, Office crashed 5 times, requiring a re-boot each time.
O.K.  i say, take a deep breath & start again.So i did.GAAAAH! inserting an image slowed it down again !!so i had to wait for it to catch up,good, now caught up. Change some text & wrap it round a graphic image.AAAAARGGHH !! p.c. crashes with a memory exception !! WTF, p.c. has a 2ghz processor,3gb ram & 200gb hdd, what's going on ?? So, i inform the instructor of what's happening,their reply, ? slow down, use only 2 documents at a time !! Ah crap, sod this for a lark, i'm off home, says me. Now i'm at home, i have 5 documents ( yes 5 ! ) open, i'm playing music & surfing the web ( not forgetting running BOINC in the background ). My p.c. has a 2Ghz processor,2Gb ram & 200Gb hdd, no sign of slow down or swap usage. Got to hand it to MS, they sure know how to frustrate someone

Andy