automaticable

Hey, a post!  I feel that this story deserves some internet coverage somewhere, so why not automaticable!  And maybe this will convince the others to post something, other than April’s Fools Posts.

So, as some of you may know, I have been working for a commercial printing company doing IT for about half a year now.  The company has been in the middle of a massive merge and building-consolidation process.  All-in-all, everything has gone quite well.  One server crashed, but everything was recovered from backups.  However, working in a small business during poor economic times means working with some painfully old devices.

Last week I was given a pretty simple task.  I needed to set up a networked label printer that had been moved from the old shop.  Easy enough, it should just grab an IP via DHCP, and I can log onto its web interface to set it up – no big deal.  I hooked up the printer and voila, 192.168.2.13.  It was set up.  Went into our router, changed the IP from dynamic to static, and headed out for the evening.  Seemed like everything had gone great.

Now fast forward to the next morning, the pressmen are just getting ready to pull the press data from the servers, and – oh crap.  The press computer is down.  This press prints out 16,000 sheets per hour, and each sheet has 2-3 pieces on it.  You can imagine how fast I got the phone call.  I went straight to the press when I got in to see an error about an IP Conflict.  Our presses are all assigned static IP’s, so I went in to the network config – the IP assigned was 192.168.2.13.  Sounds familiar.

Turns out this label printer (I won’t name the brand, but I can’t say I’m surprised by this faulty setup) does not quite understand the meaning of DHCP and IP conflicts.  When it booted up the BOOTP process assigned it any random IP, regardless of what else might be under that IP.  I quickly unplugged the printer, and the press came back online.  In the end, I hooked the printer up to a more manageable HP JetDirect, and avoided any more IP conflicts.

The ironic part of this story?

A desk label printer this small :                                                Shut down a printing press this large :

It’s always been an awkward question for me: “Mac or PC?”  The question is invariably focused on those two choices, completely leaving out the less-common option that I so devoutly use.  The Operating System I refer to –falsely described as ugly, difficult, and useless – is Ubuntu Linux.  For my entire two year relationship with Linux my answer to the Mac/PC question has almost always been followed by the even tougher question of “Why Linux?”

I have always responded to this question with some variation of it being productive for the computer-inclined, but more of a waste of time for those that don’t have the time to work out the kinks.  The recent Karmic Koala release has flipped this upside down.  The previous reasons to stay away from Linux have fallen by the wayside with this ground-breaking new release.  Faced with the new releases of Snow Leopard(Mac) and Windows 7, Karmic has come out with quite a large bit of competition;  I feel well justified, however, when I say that Ubuntu is the perfect alternative for those yearning to move away from the proprietary world.

The largest reason that I have always dodged the concept of migrating from Windows/Mac to Linux is the horrid hardware setup that I’ve always faced.  This has been completely wiped from my concerns with the Karmic release.  A clean install immediately recognized all of my hardware (which is quite the feat – my computer is a mismatch of scavenged hardware from old wrecks).  I continued to put Karmic through the test, as I installed a second video card with the hopes of setting up a dual monitor.  One BIOS change and one reboot later I was up and running on the second video card.

Another thing that has always scared people away from the Linux experience is the lack of software comparable to Windows/Mac.  Ubuntu specifically focused on this issue, and opened up the brand new Ubuntu Software Center(USC).  USC takes the great usefulness of the Synaptic Package Manager, and brings it into a more useable and comfortable GUI.  USC will offer a one-stop place to find software, read reviews, see and make ratings, and finally install.  Rumors also say that the USC has plans to become the breeding ground of an Ubuntu version of an app store.

My greatest worry withWindows 7 being released so near to the same time as Ubuntu 9.10 was that Windows 7 would come out on top in benchmarks.  My concerns turned out to be even greater after watching a Windows 7 demonstration (Windows 7 house party!) and noticing the very quick boot time.  Results have been published though, and www.techie-buzz.com shows that Karmic boots in near half the time of Windows 7.

With all the results in, I can confidently say that this is the Ubuntu release that I have been the most excited about.  With all three of the OS giants giving out the top of their game this year, I believe Ubuntu has finally released an OS that has the potential to break into the common household.  I am not saying that Ubuntu is the end-all to the OS war – Windows 7 and Snow Leopard are great at what they do – but it certainly is a valuable candidate when making your OS choice.   Prepare yourselves – soon the question may be “Mac, PC, or Linux?”

My recent changeover to Ubuntu Linux has had me searching for easy replacements for all of my Windows programs. The Linux community has made this a pretty easy task, especially with Ubuntu. Ubuntu provides you with Gimp (Photoshop), Firefox (Internet Explorer), Thunderbird (Outlook Express), and the OpenOffice Suite (Microsoft Office Suite). One thing they do not provide you with, however, is an easy replacement for Adobe Flash. Adobe Flash was one of my commonly used programs on Windows, because I do a lot of intro movies for my youth group. Not having a replacement for it was a major downfall for Linux.

Seeing this problem, for about two weeks I searched around for a good replacement for it. I ran across programs such as Flash-4-Linux and OpenLazlo. I heard good things about both of these programs, but found that the install was a bit difficult for a Linux newbie. Then I ran across a program called Synfig. It looked like it had good documentation, and a pretty easy install. All you had to do to install was open up a terminal and put in:

sudo aptitude install synfigstudio

After installing Synfig and opening it (Applications > Graphics > Synfig Studio), I found that I really liked the interface. The synfig interface is broken up into multiple windows, much like that of GIMP. This makes it very easy for me to customize it to my specific needs and project. I also noticed that it had a very easy tool selection menu. Choosing a brush, color, and all the other properties of the brush is very simple.

One of the main features I found in synfig that I have come to love is the different keyframe setup from Adobe Flash. Instead of having the keyframes, time, motion tweens, and everything else all bunched up onto a single window like Adobe Flash, synfig seperates all of these components. This means that creating keyframes is a much simpler process, and is much easier to get them at the precise moment you want.

The only downfall, however, is that Synfig is not made to do intense visual editing. Synfig only allows you to go about as complex as creating a simple gradient. Anything greater than that, such as opacity, blending, or even just adding text is not implemented. This means that if you want to make a very nice looking flash movie, you’ve got to couple Synfig with GIMP.

I would say that, if you are a fan of Adobe Flash, you should definately give Synfig a try. It is a great alternative for Linux, it’s got plenty of documentation, and the interface is very simple. Check out the website to get started, or use the terminal command above.

Yesterday I found myself at the Chicago Auto Show. I can’t say that I am extremely interested in cars, or the up and coming technology when it comes to them, but the auto show is definitely an experience. Car fanatics and people who just like to look can find themselves loving the experience.

For me, the coolest part of the auto show was probably the concept cars. Concept cars show me which car company has vision, and which one I should be looking at for my new dream car. The three cars that popped out at me were the Toyota A-BAT, the Jeep Renegade, and the Saab Aero X. Now, Toyota, Jeep, and Saab have never really meant anything special to me, but their concept cars showed me they are thinking in the right direction.

Let me get one thing straight, I’ve never been much of a fanatic for trucks. The Toyota A-BAT changes everything. It fits all the functionality of having that truck bed on the back, yet dosen’t make it appear as if the cab and the truck bed are two separate entities. I’m all about sleek looking cars, and if Toyota can make that happen while still giving me the storage space of a truck bed, they get my vote this year.

A main theme of the auto show this year was how to make every car environmentally fit. The Jeep Renegade is one of the best examples of doing this, while still making a very functional car. The Jeep Renegade boasts of 110 mpg, and it still holds all of jeep’s awesome perks. The Renegade’s lightweight design, matched with large tires make it very easy for all of your off-road adventures.

The Saab Aero gets my award for being the by-far best looking car in the auto show. The lack of windshield pillars gives the Aero a very smooth look, and at the same time gives the driver a full uninterrupted 180 degree view. The Saab Aero’s revolutionary design is sure to get second glances when seen cruising down the street.

Unfortunately, the Chicago Auto Show is now finished. If you still want to see what all of the concept cars, or any of the other cars, look like you can check out the website.

I’m sure that you have noticed that now-a-days almost everything can be found in an open-source version. Everything from software for your computer, to textbooks for school can be found free and open source. Now you can even get the awesome perks of open source on your very own iPod!

Rockbox is open source firmware for your iPod, or many other types of mp3 players. This means that everything is free, new, and extremely customizable. Rockbox has everything from awesome themes, to an iPod version of Doom. With Rockbox the limits of your pocket music player are endless!

Installing Rockbox on your mp3 player is fairly simple. You can either go the automated route, or the manual route. Personally, I went the automated route, even though it is not guaranteed safe. In most cases, it is still probably safer than digging around in your iPod’s file system. To get the automated installer go here. Then installing is as simple as running the file, choosing your player, and pressing go!

Upon starting up my iPod (4th Gen Grayscale, and uber old) I found that the Rockbox display was pretty bland. This was a pretty quick fix, though. Simply go to the settings menu and choose one of the many pre-made themes for your player. You can also choose from different sizes and different fonts in your settings menu.

The interface while playing music with Rockbox, although odd when first starting with it, is actually pretty great. It displays all of your track info, including artist name, song name, album name, next song, and other information about your kbps on the current song. By holding down the Menu button it takes you to an easy to use interface for choosing your shuffle, repeat, and other listening settings.

For all of you people that are not just contented by just listening to music wherever you go, Rockbox also comes with tons of games. You can play everything from dice, to chess, to Doom! Simply go to Plugins > Games and choose your favorite game. For most games, your music will continue to play while you play the games.

Open source things, although usually pretty good, are not entirely without flaws. Twice in my three days of using Rockbox, I found that it was saying I had run out of battery. After getting this message I would have to do a manual restart (menu + select for 6 seconds) and it would restart just fine. If you find that you can’t get Rockbox working, it is fairly simple to get back to the original firmware. Turn off your player, and turn it on. As soon as it turns on switch on the hold button and it should restart to the original firmware.

The Breakdown:
Pros:
- Open Source goodness ensures easy customization.
- Themes, fonts, and sounds for every personality out there
- Easy installation, and just as easy uninstallation
- Plenty of documentation on the website, if you get stuck

Cons:
- Having two seperate firmwares will use extra space
- Seems to have bugs telling how much battery is remaining
- Many themes have an odd number-based volume display
- Although it won’t break your warranty, you will not be able to get any support while you are running Rockbox

All in all, Rockbox is definately worthwhile if you want to get away from the crowd, and make your mp3 player very personalized. Easy installation, easy customization, and easy interface makes it a win win win decision. Check out http://www.rockbox.org/ to get started.