My Linux Laptop Evolves

Back in December I gave a brief description of my diskless laptop that was, at that time, running Xubuntu linux. And it ran pretty well… for a while.

Unfortunately, it started suffering from intermittent but frequent siezures that lasted for 30 – 60 seconds, especially when online.

Reading the Ubuntu forums, I tried a variety of things, including cleaning out the CPU ventilation system (which I should have done at the outset!). While this reduced the duration of the freezes, it didn’t eliminate them.

So, I figured I had two possible issues: 1) a hardware problem; or, 2) Xubuntu doesn’t “like” my laptop. Being unable to isolate a hardware issue (but not for lack of trying), I decided to try yet another linux distro. Enter Linux Mint. (http://www.linuxmint.com/ )

Mint is an Ubuntu/Debian-based system, which includes Firefox, OpenOffice (2.4), and GIMP, just to name a few. It also seems to contain sufficient codexes to handle most of the multimedia stuff on the ‘Net.

Installing to the USB drive was not difficult at all. I followed the advice of PenDriveLinux ( http://www.pendrivelinux.com/linux-mint-6-flash-drive-install-via-cd/ ) and everything seems to be running smooth again.

Let’s see if I can stick with this one! (Or do I have a hardware problem??)

stay amused.

Windows 7 Hits the Wires

Our heroes in Redmond have released a beta version of Windows 7 for our testing pleasure.

Freely available for download (after you register), burn onto DVD, install and enjoy [?].

Caveat: System “expires” in August, 2009, requiring you to reinstall a [prior] version of Windows.

Caveat II: BEWARE: this install will wipe your prior hard drive content, so BACK EVERYTHING UP!! Also, make sure you’ve got reinstallation disk(s) to put your system back together after August.

Not advised to install on your primary system. Better to be doing this with a spare that has (at least!):

• Processor: 1 GHz 32-bit or 64-bit processor
  Memory: 1 GB of system memory
  Hard drive: 16 GB of available disk space
  Video card: Support for DirectX 9 graphics with 128MB memory (in order to enable Aero theme)
  Drive: DVD-R/W drive
  Internet connection (to download the Beta and get updates)

  Note: Some product features of Windows 7, such as the ability to watch and record live TV or navigation through the use of “touch”, may require advanced or additional hardware.
  “

• (above from http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/dd353205.aspx)

Reports indicate W7 is faster and less of a resource hog than Vista. A few brave souls are trying it. Some report it’s far superior to Vista, while others claim it’s just a re-dressed Vista. I guess there’s only one way to find out.

After some glitches this past weekend, MS decided to allow an unlimited number of downloads until mid January (24th), instead of the 2 1/2 million limit they originally imposed.

So, if you want to experiment, and you’ve got the tech know-how, go for it!

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/beta-download.aspx

or, scope out the FAQ:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/beta-faq.aspx

Let us know what you think!

Computer Overnight – leave it on? shut it down?

Do you leave your system running all night, or do you shut it down? Which is better?

Shutting down has the following advantages:

• Saves electricity = greener = cheaper. Shutting down every night means that, at least for 8 – 10 hours (almost half a day), the system is drawing minimal power. Unplug it to get 100% savings.
• System is protected during that time from software threats. If it ain’t running, it can’t get infected with spyware/malware/viruses.
• Might extend the life of the electronic components. Since it’s only running half the time, it should put only half the mileage on the various parts that make up the system – and, after all, accumulated mileage is what tends to cause systems to fail. However, more stress can be incurred during power-up sequences of the system, and now you’ve doubled the number of reboots (per year, let’s say) that you’re subjecting your system to.

In cleaning out some trojans from systems lately, I’ve noticed that there are traces of activity at specific 12-hour intervals (like at 5:30 AM and 5:30 PM), the times of which appear to coincide with times when the owner is least attentive to his/her system (like sleeping or leaving work). This argues for shutting down, to help cripple any crapware on your system, thereby slowing down the corruption process. If the system’s down, the crapware can’t download more stuff in the background.

On the other hand, I can’t use remote access (VNC or remote desktop) to a system that’s powered off, so if I’m on the road, I need to leave the system on or carry a lot of data with me. This is the only exception I can think of to shutting down, and it need only affect the system when I plan for it.

So, at this point, I’m pretty convinced that leaving the system off overnight is the best choice. Unless, of course, access requirements dictate otherwise.

[ http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies-archive.cfm/1071288.html ] coincidentally ran a poll in October 2008, and the various comments at this site represent a fair assessment of the pros and cons of leaving systems on vs. shutting them down, if you want more information.

[edit]

http://itknowledgeexchange.techtarget.com/itanswers/will-we-really-save-money-having-users-shut-down-computers-at-end-of-day/ dating back to 2005 generated a significant volume of discussion, including a bit of history of the debate.

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