I got bitten by the bling bug again. I listen to podcasts… It’s what I do. I’m a technologist, so many of those (read: most of those) podcasts are technology related. No, they aren’t all Linux related… I like to think I’m quite well rounded with my opinions. Sure, I evangelize Linux, but I can argue the pros to Windows, and the pros to OS X. When it boils down to it, you might as well be arguing Ford, Chevy, and GM… They all allow your average person to drive to work… It’s all preference.

So, I was listening to Windows Weekly on the TWiT network and they were talking about Vista. Specifically they were talking about whiny Windows users who moaned when OS X users got an accelerated GUI and they were still stuck in bitmapped boredom. Then when Windows ditched GDI for Aero, everyone’s moaning about the resource hog that it’s become… Well, all I could thing was, “Damn it! I’m stuck in bitmapped boredom, and I shouldn’t have to take it!” After all, I run Linux, and Linux is all about choice (usually at the sacrifice of ease of use)…

I didn’t like Beryl when I tried it, so this time I gave Compiz-Fusion a shot. As far as I can tell, there were two major projects, Compiz and Beryl, and they’ve “fused” to form Compiz-Fusion? … Don’t you wish sometimes, that you’d see something like that with Qt and GTK?

Anyway, I’m digging it so far. I’ve got my bling back! I did it because I was anticipating my buddy Kevin coming over to do some PHP shit, but he stood me up. :-P Well, at least I have my bling. :)

Well, I thought I had plugged this site before. I guess I didn’t, so I will do so now. Since moving back to Linux — and did I mention that it really feels good to be back — I have been setting up my keydrive to be my portable lifeline. Something that gives me all the tools I need to access the things I have at home. Things like an X Windows server, or an SSH client, or DOSBox for when I am bored, or OpenOffice, or Gimp, etc… You get the idea. Well, finding apps that were specifically built for portability (i.e. they don’t leave tracks in your registry) was a challenge.

But, as with most things in the computer world, if there is one certainty it is that you are not alone in your troubles. Enter Portable Apps, a great site that has put together a collection of popular apps that run portably on a keydrive. They even have a Launcher app to give you an interface right from the Systray. So, now, when I’m stuck on a Winders machine, as long as I have my keydrive, I’m not isolated from my box at home. :) YAY! Check em out!

Was surfing around tonight and Stumbled onto The Linux Alternative Project. Ever stopped to consider moving to Linux? Thought you wouldn’t find replacements for that oh so crucial app in Winders? Check out this website for a pretty comprehensive list of Linux alternatives.

Ahhh, Angband. Such a wonderful game of yesteryear. Back in the day, I played it when it was named Moria. I remember the most impressive thing about this game was it’s sheer complexity and size. One of its claims to fame was the fact that it used up ALL of your computer’s RAM to play it. That is, if you were lucky enough to have a computer with 640k of RAM.

My friends and I used to crowd around my computer and play this game for HOURS on end. We’d set a 30 minute timer and take turns. Usually there were three of us playing. This was the extent of most multiplayer games of the day, you took turns and watched others play — and watching someone play a game with ASCII graphics was damn entertaining!!

To this day, Angband holds its own against the Halo’s and Half-Life’s because of it’s complexity in game play. Something which I find all too often lost in the advanced games of today. It’s a sad tragedy to me that the current generation of kids won’t have the kind of imaginative experience that this type of game provides. You can bet my son will play this game before I expose him to Halo, or Neverwinter, or whatever.

Just as I thought, I finally turned Beryl off. Bling just gets in the way of work. Some would argue that this is a direct admition that Aero is superior. My counter to that would be something along the lines of, “idiot.” I still like the bling of Beryl far better than Winders Aero. But, the Viewports concept was annoying me and Beryl was not allowing me to set startup points for windows and apps, even though the functionality is there. I suspect this is a Gnome vs. KDE thing maybe? Dunno, at any rate, I still approve, but I don’t want the bling THAT bad.

Success!! Oh my god that was way more difficult than I thought it would be. I’d like to coin the Law of Multiple Linux Installs, but I can’t do the math to figure out the equation. It just seems that new Linux distros always require multiple installs before you get comfortable — inversely proportionate to the amount of distros you have used in the past… Or something like that.

Anyway, Mythbuntu lives! I finally got it running like a champ on the media center machine. I must say I love all the features it has in comparison to Windows Media Center… But, Windows Media Center was FAR easier to get goin. I’ll pay the price of a less user friendly install for the increased freedom I have, though. It’s nice to be able to rip DVDs into your media library just by clicking a button on your media center. Also, there is commercial detection, master/slave configurations for multiple frontends and backends, and best of all it was $0…

So, highly recommended if you are looking for a media center solution.