Stupidoo!!!

I googled this: [the difference between ls and dir] intending to find what are the differences between the command “ls” and “dir”. Okay, I admit this is a stupid question. But look at the answers, they are not that smart either.

The top one result returned is Ubuntu Forums (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=488842) the answer to the question is:

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type ls –help and it will show you a lot of options on how you can use ls
dir is just plain, ls is more powerful, it provides more detail
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What a good way to promote Ubuntu/Linux.

Okay, this question is too stupid for the smart professionals. I’ll answer it my stupid way:
I am using Ubuntu 9.04 Desktop and I went to the terminal and did [ls --help] and [dir --help] and guess what I got about the options? Exactly the same. I copied them to a text editor and took 2 screenshots.

The screenshots show totally the same results except for the commands. Well, when you really use them, ls gives you color filenames and dir gives you black fonts. So somewhere someone has to work on this tiny detail instead of just copy the content for both commands. (Huh? They work for free? What can I say?)

The result of "dir --help" command

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The result of "ls --help" command

If you are running Ubuntu 9.04 and are having problem with the lovely Adobe Reader asianfontpack (which none other PDF application can replace yet), give yourself a break, just uninstall acroread (Adobe Reader 9) from Synaptic package manager and install Adobe Reader 8.04 by downloading it from Adobe.
I fought for a while and finally came to realize this is the least painful solution. Try it.

I am using Ubuntu for all of my computers with Windows on virtual machine on couple of them and one parrallel installed. The reason to keep Windows is when I miss my old friend Bill Gates…yes, I am kidding. I use Windows when I need to deliver PowerPoint documents which the stupid Office 2007 or even 2003 excel.

Recently I am playing Bejeweled on facebook and it’s really fun for passing time. The only problem I have is Ubuntu seems to have problem with driving the sound card. It was giving me the login nice chime but then would lose audio totally. You know how it is to play the lovely Bejeweled without audio. (Try it if you don’t know. I bet you would switch operating system right there)

Well, I didn’t lose my loyalty to Ubuntu (yes, I am kidding again. I am not loyal to either Windwos or Ubuntu but I am pro Linux). I tried to find a fix and I found it: HERE.Thanks to the contributor, the instruction works for me.

If you visit that link, you’ll know how ridiculously complex it is. Think: in an office, how would a technician support an operating system like this? S/he has to do all the search and follow the lengthy (and vague) instruction to make a stupid sound work. How productive it is?

Here’s the short solution if your sound suddenly disappear. I run this every other day when the sound gets lost. Don’t ask me why. I did try-and-error.

Go to Terminal and run:
sudo alsa force-reload

If you ask me who’s not the smarter one between the Ubuntu people and the OpenOffice guys, the OO guys would have my vote. Not that I think I am smarter than either of them, but I’ve switched to Ubuntu and hence using OO for quite a while.

Unlike those Ubuntu fans who claim they “never look back,” I differ in several occasions:

- when I need to use my iPhone: which is like everyday or at least once a week that I would like to sync or back up my contacts (–no, I don’t even listen to music. You can see I lead a simplistic life);

- when I need to do my tax: my dear government released a Linux version of the tax filing software which would take 100 more steps than Windows + IE if you are lucky, I of course tried the first 15 steps and felt like either my government or the opensource community owe me the time (anyone paying?)

- when I need to creat PowerPoint presentation. –Yes, you got it right. “PowerPoint” presentation. I believe that the MS Office guys are extremely stupid but they probably got one or two betrayers from the opensource side (or maybe simply out of sympathy) and give PowerPoint a lot of eye-candies. Okay, back to the basics, I just can’t figure out why I can’t move to next slide in a normal view by arrow down. I have to use the navigation slides on the left to do that. Any point? I see none. So when I am in a rush to send out a presentation, I’ll have to kneel down to Microsoft, which I dislike, okay? Now that Sun is aquired by HP, I don’t know if OO still (if ever) has a future.

Okay, three is a charm. I am done with the occasions to look back to MS (which means showing my back to Ubuntu).

I know my friend Bill Gates wouldn’t like it but I have stepped into the realm of Ubuntu several months ago and it looks like it’s a good of no return. ( I might take a turn — which is not a return — to Mac or who knows what, though.)

If you ask me what I have missed from Windows, I’ll say there’s a few. This is where the Ubuntu people need to work on. (Huh? You want to work on them? Seriously? No, I mean, “Seriously?”) The interface is an issue. For example, the package managers (Applications Add/Remove and Synaptic Package Manager) put “Apply” changes at different places, which can be confusing to new users. Colors, for example, are always greyish in Ubuntu, unlike in Windows, where you can see real colors.

Don’t blame me. I am not loyal to Ubuntu (although I’ll be with it for a while). Why should I? Ubuntu is a freeware, right? It is free and it frees me out of the Windows devil. I am glad and am gracious to those who have contributed.

Well, as a user, I want to be dumb. Huh? Do I have to be smart to use Linux? What? Too late? …but I didn’t know I was too smart to stay here. Geez!

I was trying to upgrate Ubuntu 9.04 to 9.10 (I know, it’s 9.06 now). No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get the Update Manager to run. It always sat there keeping quiet. I check the System Monitor and it told me “inet_wait_for_connect”. Good, so I worked on my proxy and all the network setting stuff (not too many, actually, told you I am not smart). At the end, I was smart enough to try the download server in the US of A and it worked. …geez, why did I not know to use the main server instead of the domestic server? I think I need to get smarter to use Ubuntu on my 4 computers (now all running Ubuntu). Or, the Ubuntu people need to get smarter, so I don’t have to.

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So I got the Update Manager to work for me. Now it came to run for like 5-10 minutes giving me those step by step pleasure. ( I have to admit it: I am addicted to those virtual sense of achievement. It makes me feel like I am handling something…) Anyway, after the suspending excitement the Update Manager to me I need some hundreds more MB’s. …can’t you tell me at the beginning?

Now I am going to take VirtualBox away…it’s a nice work by the nice people in Sun Microsystems…wait, the Oracle people soon-to-be or already. The Disk Usage Analyzer says VirtualBox is usring 4.5 GB but I take a look and it should be using only 2…where are the other 2.5?

Sigh…there are so many things I don’t understand about computers…

After the installation of Avant Window Navigator, I have wanted to add the applications (Programs in Windows term but Applications in Ubuntu). To add the applications to AWN doc will free me from the top panel (I like it, actually) and the doc panel looks so great with some turning and spotlighting effects…call me easy to please but AWN is really great eye-candy.

So I was playing with Applets and hoping to add the applications into there. Didn’t work, of course, since Applets are the nice-looking ones brought by the extra installed themes.

I don’t know what’s got into me lately (local beer, or aging?), but I should’ve just googled and find out. I was playing around and finally got into the Launcher’s section and added a couple of applications. Later on, I got lost again and spend a good reasonable amount of time re-discovering Launchers in AWN.

This time, I guess I’d better write a blog about this to remind dummies like me or the dummie-2-be’s (raise your hand?):

Step 1. Click on the AWN Manager (or Applications –> Accessories –> AWN Manager) icon to open it
Step 2. Click on the Launcher section then Add button to add new launchers. You will see the Launcher Editor there.
Step 3. Fill in Name/Description and click Open to choose an APPLICATION to be LAUNCHED.
(Now here’s the hard part: where are the “Program Files” in Ubuntu? You may navigate to File System –> usr –> bin and find the applications there. But don’t ask me which one to choose when you have firefox and firefox 3.0 listed together. I chose the short ones. The road that Ubuntu is freeing us from Microsoft is not an easy path, I tell you.)