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About me

My posting summary

1 to 10 of 287

My comments

• I can say with confidence: If you can install and use Microsoft Windows, you can install and use Ubuntu.
  
  Even if you can't install and configure Windows from scratch, you are probably quite likely to be able to install Ubuntu.
  
  Ubuntu is not hard to use. On the whole, as easy as Windows (possibly easier - I've barely used Windows and I find it hard). Most hardware works out-of-the-box or can be made to work, and what doesn't work can usually be replaced with eBay for something that will.
  
  The only two barriers are that a lot of Windows users have made themselves dependent on proprietary Windows-only software, and a lot of people don't want to learn the differences between Ubuntu and Windows. Ubuntu does things differently to Windows and Macintosh; for instance, you find and install software with a package manager, not by surfing the web for software that will hopefully not contain viruses. Another example: Drives are not referenced by "drive letters" like C:\; they are mounted as part of the filesystem. You open a folder on the filesystem, and there's the contents of your drive.
  
  In short, Linux is different to Windows. You will need to do some learning. But it's been shown time and time again: If you can use Windows, you can use Linux. You just need to learn the difference. In reply to: "Ubuntu's new Linux tries getting cloud-friendly"

  October 27, 2009

  1 reply

• You do *not* need to install a driver for your graphics card if you are using an Acer Aspire One or any Atom-platform machine! Intel graphics drivers are open-source and come preinstalled on every Linux distribution under the sun. And come to think of it, I've never seen any resolution issues on my Aspire One - it all "just works" these days. Are you sure you didn't try Jolicloud on a different machine, like a full-size notebook with ATI graphics? In reply to: "Preview of Jolicloud: The social Netbook OS"

  August 18, 2009

  1 reply

• Have they fixed the bug that stops Opera Unite from working outside your local network? :-P
  
  I'm using Beta 2 and it seems to be pretty solid.
  
  Oh and yes, Opera Turbo is the difference between happiness and frustration when you're on mobile broadband. All the images are ultra-compressed so even graphics-heavy websites load quickly. In reply to: "Another beta bump for Opera 10"

  August 15, 2009

  0 replies

• Dan7637: What control system is more appropriate for an FPS?
  
  1. Aiming by using an analog joystick (PS3, Xbox 360)
  2. Aiming by aiming at targets on the screen with a gunlike apparatus? (Wii)
  
  I've tried both methods, using CoD World At War on PS3 and on Wii. The Wii's control system pwns. In reply to: "Is The Conduit the Wii's best shooter?"

  June 30, 2009

  1 reply

• Having used a Macintosh a number of times, I can testify that its desktop environment is not that good.
  
  In fact, Gnome 2.26 is ridiculously far ahead of OS X in terms of desktop features. KDE 4.2 is pretty far ahead (not tried 4.3 year).
  
  Moblin is not Mac-like, and that's a very good thing. In reply to: "Moblin makes the Linux 'desktop' more Mac-like"

  May 23, 2009

  0 replies

• Firstly, it bears much more resemblance to the ORIGINAL netbook - the XO; than it does to the Classmate.
  
  Secondly, why would a touch-screen "tax the Atom processor"? Touchscreens have been around since before processors hit the 500MHz mark. I also thought that touchscreens used their own hardware rather than piggybacking the CPU's power.
  
  Thirdly, why run Windows XP rather than the XO's operating system? The XO system has a number of features designed to enhance application security, prevent misuse of the laptops, roll out software to a large range of machines, share an internet connection over ad-hoc networking, and "killswitch" any machines that are stolen and don't report to the base station on schedule. In reply to: "Dell's Latitude 2100 brings Netbooks to schools"

  May 19, 2009

  2 replies

• I'll buck the trend and say good on Microsoft for issuing a timely security advisory before anyone is affected by the problem. In reply to: "Microsoft warns of new server vulnerability"

  May 19, 2009

  0 replies

• Flock is a brilliant piece of work. It really gives you integration between popular web services and your web browser; it's like what Mozilla might have been if it had continued along the course it was taking, rather than simplifying it all with Firefox. Even if this write-up of the new version doesn't tickle your fancy, I highly suggest trying Flock as it has some excellent features (photo uploading to Flickr and social networking sites, integrated blog post writer, and RSS feeds on your "My World" page. In reply to: "Flock 2.5 launches with support for Twitter, more services"

  May 19, 2009

  1 reply

• Google Chrome's default search engine is Yahoo. No, it's Google!
  
  Internet Explorer's default search engine is Microsoft Live Search.
  
  Switch computer-illiterate people away from IE and to Chrome, and you also switch their search engine. It's more permanent than merely telling people how to change their default search engine, as an update from Microsoft could switch it back to Live Search.
  
  And, of course, search (or rather, ads while you are searching) is what Google makes money from. In reply to: "Google Chrome ads coming to TV"

  May 9, 2009

  2 replies

• It runs in a separate instance, so is unaffected by your main browser crashing (and vice-versa). Your Prism will appear in the taskbar rather than in your set of tabs, so it makes the website appear to be more of a natural application than a website.
  
  A Prism definition can be copied between computers, too; so I can make a Prism shortcut for my home server's Transmission web interface, and chuck it onto my other two computers too.
  
  You can set a window size that will always be in use for that application, so your Meebo window will be the size of your buddy list and IM windows, and your Facebook instance will be larger to deal with the feed. It saves more than 30 pixels on browser chrome; it saves a lot of screen space because each application is in a window that's exactly the right size.
  
  Also, the people who can't see an advantage should READ THE ARTICLE!:
  
  an updated API that lets developers tack on Prism-specific features to their Web applications.
  
  tray icon notifications, application-specific settings, In reply to: "Mozilla's Prism hits 1.0, gets new goodies"

  May 9, 2009

  1 reply