Does Flash suck or not?
Mar 21
As a long time Ubuntu user (my first version was Feisty Fawn, I think… That’s over 3 years ago), one of my biggest issues has been Flash. If you use Windows, you might wonder why, but if you use another OS, like Mac OS or any Linux distribution, you know the problem.
In the beginning days of YouTube, when you wanted to see a video ‘fullscreen’, the video just opened in a new, bigger window instead of doing like it does now. That update was very handy, but for the users of Linux and Mac that update came MONTHS later – Windows got it a long time before us.
Another thing is the speed and resources it uses on a Linux and Mac machine: it’s very slow. Try doing some Farmville on it, you’ll throw your PC out in a few minutes. And another issue I have with Flash on Ubuntu is that it uses another standard font than it has on Windows, which renders certain movies or animations unreadable on Linux (or certain games). That really sucks.
An even worse thing is, there isn’t a native AMD64 (64 bit version) of Flash for Linux, so we have to use a back way to get it. And that’s even SLOWER!
So, to be honest, I’m glad there is something like HTML5 video, but I don’t think it’ll replace Flash completely, because Flash is a handy thing, but it’s being abused for advertising goals. That’s why my favorite Firefox add-on is FlashBlock..
I’d like a good version of Flash though which runs properly on Linux. It’s not that we don’t want it that much… We got a decent Java, we got decent browsers (the same as on Windows, mostly)… but no Flash…
Adobe, you’ve got work to do.
Google Chrome for Linux… really neat!
Dec 10
Like many of you already know from reading this site, I run Ubuntu.
I’m open for lots of things, and always looking the new, and that’s why I am running Ubuntu now, just like I ran Windows 7 months before it’s release.
One of the new things I had to try was the new Google Chrome for Linux, and it’s neat. It installs and updates easily, the skins fit good in my (dark) theme, it’s awesome. The addons are handy too, though only one could be installed without working (CoolIris). The other 2 are just awesome ( a GMail notifier and Twitter notifier), and fit very well in the browser. And the GMail icon is nicely animated too!
The twitter addon even lets me shorten my URLs in it, and gives me the option of which service I’d like to use. I generally choose tr.im, and not bit.ly, so this is nice 
… Now I finally have a twitter tool! (Adobe AIR doesn’t run on my Ubuntu box yet 
)
I would recommend strongly to try this browser, if you’re like me and always looking for new things. Or you just are tired of Firefox and Opera, or want a speedy browser. Well, I got like tons of browsers now… Need to clean up… see ya later guys!
Note: Hearst pointed out a very neat site, containing the top 10 Chrome add-ons. I’ve accidently removed his comment (though I still know what is in it – Firefox back function rocks 
). You can check the site he mentioned on http://www.pcworld.com/article/185744/top_10_chrome_browser_add_ons.html
Slow internet on Ubuntu 9.10?
Dec 09
Well, over the last few weeks I’ve had slow internet on my Ubuntu as long as I can remember. That started when I switched to 9.04, and the issue was still there in Ubuntu 9.10.
Something you need to know though is that I live with my girlfriend for a few months now, and ever since I live here, I had the problem. So I found a few posts on the Ubuntu Forums that gave me this solution: using OpenDNS.
So if you have slow internet on Ubuntu, try OpenDNS. It’s free and handy. For example, when I type vampiretrix.cm I still get here, not on some cheeky not found page. Awesome.
Information and Ubuntu instructions: https://store.opendns.com/setup/operatingsystem/ubuntu and https://store.opendns.com/
How to get the old Packagemanager of Ubuntu back (before 9.10)
Nov 18
Well, after my last post, here’s a follow-up 
I don’t like the new packagemanager in Ubuntu 9.10 at all, so I’m going to tell you how to get the older one back, in only a few steps!
First of all, open your Ubuntu Softwarecenter
Then, choose System Utilities
Type in Add/Remove
Double click Add/Remove Software
Press Install
Well, you now got it back. You can find it under System => Manage => Add/Remove Software
I hope this helps someone
Kevin
Ubuntu 9.10 first thoughts
Nov 18
Oh my word… You’re going to shoot me… 8 days, how do I dare.
Well, I’ve been running Ubuntu for a while now, and I thought I’d review the newest version 9.10, Karmic Koala.
First of all, this version of Ubuntu should boot up faster, but on my PC, which runs the AMD64 version, it’s hard to notice any difference at all. Ofcourse I didn’t use a timer though to measure it.
One of the first things you’ll do when you just installed Ubuntu, is opening up your default browser, which is still Firefox, though updated to Firefox 3.5 (as I type this, it’s version 3.5.5). You don’t know how much of a hassle it was to get it on 9.04 running.
I had some slight problems though with my internet, as my connection percentage dropped, but it’s managable now, and I only have temporairly problems now taking about a minute maximum.
What you’re also likely to do is using your IM-client. In this new Ubuntu version, you’ll notice that Pidgin has been replaced by Empathy, something that doesn’t really bother me, as I usually left Pidgin for what it was and used Emesene, but I’ve tried Empathy, and it looks a lot neater than Pidgin because of it’s great skins you can easily install (well, not that easy, but it shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes).
Also, if you try to install Emesene, you obviously notice that the package manager is replaced by the Ubuntu Softwarecentrum (don’t know the exact translation, sorry). Seems it’s modern, nowadays.
The software centrum looks “easier” and more basic than the previous one, but I’m starting to miss the previous one already. Not that this one is harder to work with, but it really feels too simple, and I miss those handy features that the previous packagemanager had, like selecting which programs to install. The previous manager would also say when other packages are getting installed, but this new softwarecenter doesn’t do this, it seems.
Also, this softwarecenter isn’t fitting in easily in the Ubuntu GUI if you customize it a bit. I run a very black skin, and well, the background of the softwarecenter is pale blue. Not really nice, but then again… nothing to be mad for.
Overall, I would say only one thing: bring back the previous packagemanager, as it was a lot easier to use for more people than this new one. It’s too basic, lacking a lot of features, where you have to dive into Synaptic, now.
Well, I’ll let you know more soon
Kevin
Back on my Ubuntu
Nov 08
As you might have noticed (because of my club Ubuntu, probably), I am a fan of linux.
Especially Ubuntu, because that was the first, and till today, the only flavor of Ubuntu I’ve ever run.
I tried Debian and consorts though on servers, but on my own PC’s, I only used Ubuntu, and that has got a simple reason: it’s fantastic.
Ofcourse, the colors are ugly, but for the rest it’s okay. And, it’s easier to customize than Windows is. I’ve ran Windows 7 since the first beta’s, liked it, but Ubuntu does it better.
I’ve installed the final version of Ubuntu 9.10 now, and I’ll keep you updated about it in the next few days.
Kevin
