Puppy 2

The new version of Puppy Linux, Puppy 2, is quite sensational!

Download it from the site. 71MB ISO, to your HDD. Burn the iso to a blank cdrw. Put it in the CDRW (You can do things even better if you have a DVD writer too ). Make sure your CDRW is set to bootable in the BIOS.

Boot with the CD. You will be in the Puppy Linux desktop pretty quick. You will be asked for the type of keyboard (azerty) mouse and if you have a wheel mouse just before that.

Once in the desktop right click on the desktop, go to the multimedia section and click on Graveman. Click on “Other Operations ” and choose erase CDRW and erase the CDRW.

Click on the drives icon on the top of the desktop and mount the partition on which the iso was downloaded, and click mount. You will see the directories/Folders on that drive.

Right click on the desktop, go to Multimedia, choose Burniso2cd.

Choose CD (not DVD), choose the mounted drive, choose the iso file (/mnt/downloads/puppyxxxx.iso for example) click OK.

Click on Multi-CD and OK.

The ISO will be written to the CDRW. Takes some time. Once done, restart PC. It will bootup with the multisession version of the Puppy2!

Choose azertry keyboard, mouse. scroll mouse etc as you bootup and choose xvesa for now or start XORG and hope for some luck

Let us assume you loaded with xvesa. In the desktiop, choose the video resolution and click OK.

To setup internet connection click setup icon on the desktop. If you have an ethernet connection, choose cable ethernet, Load driver – auto probe. Success! OK!. Click Save button. In Interfaces click eth0 and choose Auto DHCP.

Network Configuration of eth0 successful!! will be displayed. Save the configuration? Yes.

Click the Browse button and go to Google to see if things work.

To get your bookmarks from the HDD, on the browser menu, Tools – Import and find the Bookmarks. html file on the Hard disk and you will have your bookmarks available to you!

Grab some folders and iles from the HDD that you will like to have with you and paste them on your CDRW home folder. Include a mp3 or ogg vorbis music file to test sound.

When you log out all the changes will be saved to the CDRW itself!

The safest way to go on the internet!

Have fun!

Grafpup

Grafpup is a live CD based on Puppy Linux created by Nathan Fisher. It has all the stuff for graphics artists wanting to use/try the software available on GNU/Linux systems. It is a 75MB download. It looks great and works quite beautifully.

You can write your changes back to the CD or DVD too!

Look at some of the stuff on it!

Gimp
Cinepaint
Inkscape
gtKam
XnView
LCMS
DcRAW
mtPaint

“There are utilities for importing photos from your digital camera for instance, and every application that has support for it is color managed without having to install any other software.
It’s package manager, Pupget, has an extensive list of extra applications that are available to extend Grafpup, with more being added on a regular basis. There are also other methods of extending it’s capabilities and easy installation of such major packages as OpenOffice2.0 and the KDE desktop environment.”

http://www.grafpup.com/

Rescued by a puppy

My hard disk, after surving me well beyond the guarantee period, coughed and collapsed. Since I had saved most of what I had there, it was not a problem. I was however, able to use my PC with a live CD of linux. But what about my bookmarks, files etc?

I thought this was as good a time as any to get that little puppy from down under, to help. Booting with the puppy multisession CD 1.0.6 in the CD writer, I simple copied everything I wanted from my USB pen and a CD, setup the connection to the internet, played around a bit, and logged off. I was asked if I wanted to save stuff, I said “yes” and logged off.

When I booted up again, everything was there including my beloved bookmarks, files and pics. This is so good, that I wondered if I ever would need a HDD! But there are some problems. Sound does not work. Not a big problem, but sad. The MPEGs cannot be seen. Multimedia is missing!!

All these are correctible according to the Forum. If I want to I can install by pup-get the Open Office 2.0 suite too, and log off and burn it to my Puppy. But I have held it at bay for now, as it gives me a chance to try out my Taprobane live CD to use Office apps.

Nevertheless, Puppy is quite wonderful. I must get multimedia going and add OOo and then it would be quite adequate for most days.

I do miss my Ubuntu install though It was growing quite well……

The rising tide

The tide rises insidiously, not suddenly and unexpectedly. Free open source software and GNU/Linux have been growing in stature, range, publicity, acceptence by non-geeks and the corporate world, in a somewhat similar way. It is 10 years since I got interested in linux, and when I look out there, the change is awesome!

When we see IBM, Sun Microsystems, Intel supporting this platform, and Nokia producing a new internet tablet based on it, it is apparent that GNU/Linux is now serious business. With mobile phones to ship with linux, and some computers selling with Linux pre-installed, embedded linux systems becoming well established, this is overwhelming evidence.

This is why, that, it becomes absolutely necessary, for developing countries in particular to adopt FOSS with a vengence. The advantages are clear, and to promote it to government is also easier. Indeed, it becomes suspicious, if those in the top IT hierarchy of a developing country, talks otherwise. The acceptence of FOSS and Prorietary on equal terms is a plus for FOSS, but not for the government. No government of a developing country can accept these on equal terms. They owe it to their citizens and for posterity, to take a stance for FOSS. They must take to a proprietary solution only if a FOSS solution is not available.

It is also necessary to remember that it is not only the cost that is important. FOSS gives the local software development platform a certain freedom and the government complete control of their data,
liberation from proprietary lock-in and security that is more assured.

Therefore, all deployment of proprietary software in government in a country such as ours, and the intentions of those who advocate them without reasonable explanation, must be questioned.

Even in the private sector, more knowledgeable share holders may well ask questions in the future when software costs are talked about in he sharholders meetings.

The tide is high…..