A tough lesson to learn, in regard to Ubuntu, that first there is often a reason certain updates are held back, usually unless you know how to fix it, you should try not to break it.
Tag Archive: Linux
It’s about darn time: Google has joined the ranks of tech companies relegating Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 to the archive tapes of history.
In a post to its official enterprise blog, Internet giant Google has announced it will begin phasing out support for Microsoft’s nearly decade-old Internet Explorer 6 Web browser. Beginning March 1, IE6 users will start to find Google’s Web based applications and services—starting with Google Docs and Google Sites—will stop working well with Internet Explore 6. Eventually, IE6 won’t be able to use the services at all.
via Digital Trends
For Far to Long has Internet Explore Six been the bane of a web developers existence, the one browser to many still use, even if it is as old as XP is now. A browser that never has followed standards, had been the one browser developers had to modify, every little aspect of their design just so that it could look right on this browser that should have been phased out a very long time ago.
With Firefox taking the lead, and Open Source becoming the standard, the time has finally come to be able to develop, based on standards, for the browsers of the market today, Chrome, Firefox, Flock and Others. Most if not all being based on standards, making development more straightforward and simple then ever. The next challenge seems to be that we need to step it up to move the browsers in the market today to HTML 5 to make things even more straightforward.
The sad thing is still many may not be aware of it being phased out, but these are also the same people who were happy just as long when the power was pressed, the computer turned on and they could browse the connected world, even if they were using an otherwise antiquated browser that is Internet Explorer 6. To many of those who buy computers today have no idea what they have on the system and in that selective ignorance have no idea that each time they are using this browser, that should otherwise be placed in the throngs of the history like DOS, Windows 3.1 and Windows 95 as something that does not and will not work in today’s world.
These are the same people who have to long kept it the same because they had no idea, at least with Google phasing out support perhaps more will realize that needs upgrades or like this quote puts it;
You can’t see anything from a car; you’ve got to get out of the goddamn contraption and walk, better yet crawl, on hands and knees, over the sandstone and through the thorn-bush and cactus. When traces of blood begin to mark your trail, you’ll see something, maybe. ~Edward Abbey
Though IE6 is not a vehicle it was a means to access the community based initiative that is the Interconnected Web, and the quote is proper in that if these users never step out and see what is outside of IE6 they are more likely to stick with this flawed browser. Literally slowing down the world-wide web, as still others need to recode specific aspects of a page just so IE6 can see it how it was founded.
With Google at least taking this step, more will recognize, at least hopefully that there are options, that there are upgrades if only they took the time to update their system, but the only way they will do such a thing is if more of those who Advocate Open Source, write-up their own views, and thoughts on what the Internet should really be about.
That the internet started as a collaborative medium, when it was still considered ARPANET the worlds first packet switching network and what the Global Internet started as, though there is more about the History of the Internet, it is important to recognize that it was a way to share information between professors and universities. Today it has not really changed even though Microsoft would have you believe otherwise, the internet that in this day and age is behind locked doors, at its roots is still community based, even blogging as a medium is community based. Why the logical future should be a world, of computers based on Open Sourced Ideas, on Linux, Firefox and others.
In closing it is beneficial that this step is being taken by Google, perhaps now that IE6 is being phased out can we truly grasp the possibilities and the potential long hampered by non standards based ideas that IE6 is the embodiment of.
Let us move forward, and take the steps in a new direction, nearly forgotten but recognized when a Giant of the Internet World are determined to break away from those false views and make the progress, that we have long needed, what do you think?
As I was talking with a good friend of mine, that I have known for so many years, she reminded me even if indirectly of the idea that to many still use Windows in Philippines, and other third world countries, partly because Microsoft was so happy to offer them a free version because they were third world, and at first it seemed a great act of charity. Once I started thinking about it though, really what Microsoft was doing is setting in place, the idea that Microsoft is the only Operating System. Which of course we who are in the states, are aware is not at all true though that is the truth Microsoft presents to the seeing eye of the public. The monopoly that was supposed to be long ago broken up, had already put a solid foothold in the market. The difference is that in time, Microsoft became to comfortable in fact they started becoming lackadaisical in updating there Operating System, as they thought theres was the only Operating System in the market so why not just update every now and again, once in awhile. In that decision, one of the worst ever made, hackers started realizing that this Operating System that has ended up on far to many systems, stopped putting focus on security, and since every was using Windows at the time became the perfect target, and so begin the spread of viruses, simple ones at first that over time became far more advanced. It took awhile for the Microsoft folks to catch up and in that time there system was compromised many times over
The point of that post was quite simple, there needs to be an increase in awareness and to do that people must unite together to help people become aware of Open Source Alternatives to Microsoft’s Proprietary Ideas and System full of Security Holes, so why not come join the cause help me help these countries recognize there are other options and through those other options better awareness of what could be. To expand their mind even a bit is the first step in a necessary direction.
By becoming part of this cause as it is mentioned in the referenced post we are each taking a step in a direction that has long been withheld and views that have been limited, with the improvements of Linux and Ubuntu Specifically, there is still a learning curve but it starts with getting this new operating system in the hands of those less fortunate. Through the understanding of community based initiatives such as Linux, countries across this world can see there is power in uniting, and putting forth every little bit of effort because every little bit helps.
MIT drops Open source software for Microsoft Exchange #linux http://tinyurl.com/lddfq9 (via @linuxalive)
Christine C. Fitzgerald, a spokesperson for IS&T, said, “We are running Exchange servers in order to offer Microsoft Exchange. This is an optional infrastructure solution for those departments who will benefit from an integrated e-mail and calendaring solution.”
As I read through this article found through twitter, I started to think about it, as I use Evolution as my own chosen Email client on a Jaunty Box, everything that is given as the reason they are making this change at MIT can also be done with a client such as Evolution, probably better with a cleaner interface. The ability to synchronize over multiple sources, to have an integrated calender also able to synchronize, so what could Exchange really offer that would make that big a difference? Or is it more specifically another ploy by Microsoft to be in the front lines of Technology based campuses?
Proprietary companies in a campus that is about the technology, why would Microsoft want to have anything to do with it? Proprietary and profit based, in the guts of a University based network which is often some of the largest in the world, the same campuses that will often educate the youth of the future, about the ways of Closed Source, why not make a change use a substitution? While MIT was initially basing the email system on an Open Source Option, at the very least these same students that are critical to the future of this United States, this world would be aware of the options that do not require a costly license, or have more holes in the security as a slice of swiss cheese. Why would a campus, specifically MIT want to go that direction? Perhaps similarly why University of California Berkeley, the original builders of the once Open Source Unix system so widely used today. No longer do they hold the exclusive license, nor can they modify the source code of a product they helped to build. The good news is though, they got smart, they escaped AT&T’s attempt to corner the market by taking what they knew about the Unix system in putting it together in the BSD (both FreeBSD & OpenBSD) based on an Open Source License, putting the creation of this next generation, and Linux of today in the hands of the bright minds who attend the universities.
Instead one of the most well known Technology based campuses are turning over the control of that aspect of the email system to Microsoft Exchange, citing many of the exact same features that Evolution can provide, which in it’s own right is probably updated more often then Exchange without the serious security holes that appear so clearly in anything Microsoft Based.
Even knowing this, or perhaps they are practicing Selective Ignorance, still the decision is made to go with a product that has been the bane of many a persons existence, that has more problems and has not been updated in so long, similar to most Microsoft Products, I guess on the one hand it will keep the Microsoft Troubleshooters busy in their own niche market, because it is a rarity that Microsoft is ever as solid as it should be. Even their browser now Internet Explorer 8 has only recently been updated and it is still full of problems, with it’s bits and pieces of proprietary code not based on standards except in Compatibility mode. Making the process even more involved to get it to actually work, so bravo to those who make it their life to fix Microsoft’s constant issues, but why put such a large system on something like Exchange?
On the idea of changing the spam filtration system to yet another proprietary brand, Symantec makes me wonder about some of the Open Source Alternatives, as they stepped away from SpamAssasin which is an integral part of the Apache Web Based System, and I am sure there are many just need to look around. Though to say something positive about Symantec, well they have been around a long time, I have not used them since I completely removed windows from my computer system, except for the #VirtualBox version that still exists on my system for testing purposes, and even that I have found either web based alternatives or just kept an eye on it myself as SpamAssasin seems to be working well for me though Evolution uses BogoFilter by default. Once again there are alternatives to the closed source version of similar things.
So in closing, it seems to me that this is more of a step back for MIT then a step forward, as they have made some good progress, but it could also be the springboard to another complete system wide revert to anything proprietary, lets hope for the best as each revertion back to more of a closed source idea even at University level, could not be the best of things. Surely Microsoft is Happy even though day by day they lose ground to the #OpenSource movement, at the very least now that MIT stepped back to a proprietary solution they will make their money. Sorry to say also that it is likely that Redmond will begin to offer more money to the university because they are using their problematic software. Perhaps that is exactly it, coming back down to the almighty dollar and the funding for MIT to continue to exist. What do you think? Share your views in the comments down below or join me on Friendfeed as Ubuntu101, and discuss it there. It shall be seen if it will make a real difference, hopefully more of the Universities will stick with Open Source, and if not you and I, the readers of this blog or the people who want to see more Open Source will need to mobilize to make it happen.
Perhaps Prism as a means to run specific internet sites in it’s own window has been around a long time. From what I have seen it has been part of the mozilla project for more then a few days, but for me I only just started using it and my guess is there are many who are doing the same and are only now just finding out how powerful albeit simple Prism can be as a way to run multiple processes in a singular window.
That works with most any site and is relatively easy to setup using a relatively simple prism setup, my experience has been good thus far even though I only started using it along with Gnome Do to streamline many of the mundane processes that are part of the entire package of taking the time to explore Ubuntu as the primary Operating System on a box that only has anything windows in VirtualBox as simply a virtual machine.
And in setting up Prism it is very simple, you close out any Prism processes you have running and then just as easily add any website, and choose to have navigation or not, as far as it seems to me it is based nearly entirely on Mozilla Web Suite so even add-ons should work with it but that is something I still need to try out.
So far I have been quite happy with Prism and the Streamline of Gnome Do as a parallel process makes things many times simpler, so why not give it a try? And if you have why not share your experiences in the comments down below or via Twitter @Ubuntu101 I look forward to hearing your experiences with this awesome set of programs.
by Rickford Grant
Ubuntu101's Blog 