BLOGical Thoughts

I am still not finished testing the soccer program. I keep finding bugs, then I have to fix them and test that part again. The latest bug is one of the tricky ones: if you come at the dialog from one direction, there is no bug. If you come at it from another direction, the bug is right out there. Since that one had to do with printing, I had not tested it in a while. Anyway, I hope to finish testing today so I can move on to my next project.

And my next project is a free cookbook of recipes from Camp-Cook.com. I have already finished gathering recipes for the Breakfast section and have moved on to the Main Dishes section. The problem with this section is that it is very big and many of the recipes in it aren’t necessarily main dishes. I found a breakfast recipe in there yesterday and put it in my Breakfast section.

I am also creating sub-sections in the main sections. The breakfast section currently has sub-sections of Breads and Such, Pancakes/Waffles/French Toast, Eggs, etc. and Other Breakfast Items. The Main Dishes section will have many, many more sub-sections. I hope the organization will allow users to easily find a recipe they are looking for.

For those of you without a clue: You do NOT pronounce Ubuntu with any U’s. It is pronounced Ooh-boon-too.

Silly sign of the day:

Free/Open Source Software

• MythTV Sees First Update In Nearly One Year
• ‘Lttle Dew’, Cute Zelda Like Action Adventure Game Coming Soon to Linux
• Nuvola Player Might Just be the Perfect Replacement for Banshee in Ubuntu
• Publish Photos with PhotoShow
• Katherine Noyes: I’m a Linux fan, and I enjoy helping to bring Linux to the forefront
• Linux Mint 13 gets back to desktop basics
• In Defense of Technology Lock-In
• Resize Linux storage with LVM
• Best GarageBand-like Apps For Android
• Ubuntu TV vs. Google TV: Battle of the Linux-based Smart TV
• Dualbooting Windows 7 And Linux Mint 12
• Thunderbird 9.0 Officially Lands in Ubuntu 11.10
• Vignette Lets Android Photogs Get Their Art On
• FOSS’ Factious Gender Divide

Well, I finally fixed the bug in the soccer program which has halted my testing. The cause of the bug was some code I had added to the games schedule dialog a while back. The code ensures that the edit boxes in the dialog accurately reflect the selected record in the team statistics table. The problem is that with a new database, there are no records in that table, so I was trying to convert an empty date and time to be displayed in the dialog. I fixed it by adding exception processing in two places. If an exception is thrown there (indicating it’s not a date), I supply the current date and time instead.

I can now proceed with the rest of the testing and with documentation of the source code.

I was listening to a Hacker Public Radio podcast yesterday that was talking about an application called TED. That is short for Television Episode Download, which is exactly what it does. It is a Java program which provides a list of television shows to the user. The user picks a show and the program determines whether it is actually available. If it is, TED invokes whichever bit torrent program your system uses as its default, and that episode of the show is downloaded. You may then play it on VLC or some other player. Pretty classy, even though the default windows on the program are way too big.

Our chinook should end tonight. Currently I have a skating rink for a driveway, and the private road up to the county road is just as bad. I don’t see any relief for that in the next few days, though. Even though the temperatures will be much lower, no snow is predicted.

Silly sign of the day:

Free/Open Source Software

• Gentoo-based Toorox Releases 01.2012 GNOME Edition
• Graphics hardware in $25 Raspberry Pi Linux box outperforms iPhone 4S GPU
• Will Linux Users Ever Be Able to Ditch Microsoft Office?
• 75 Open Source Apps That Could Improve Your Life
• With Clonezilla, Install Once and Clone Forever
• Best 60 Linux Applications For Year 2011 [Editor's Pick]
• Going Over The Good & Bad For UEFI On Linux
• Meet the Gentlemen Behind Gentlemint
• Moving Away from Menus: Is Ubuntu’s HUD Change We Can Believe In?
• On the Topics of Software, Average Users and User Friendliness
• FOSS’ Factious Gender Divide
• Some time-saving tips that every Linux user should know

While I was testing the soccer program yesterday, I ran across a very nasty bug. I have been trying to track down how it came about so I can fix it, but I am not having much luck. Needless to say, I haven’t finished with the soccer program testing.

I will be tracking down this bug today, finishing the testing and doing documentation.

Our snow has been melting for the last couple of days, and continues to melt today. Right now it is 37° F and the wind is blowing, so the snow should melt even faster. This means I can drive to the store with my car instead a 4-wheel drive snow plow.

Silly sign of the day:

Free/Open Source Software

• Linux / Open Source For Kids: A Feast of Riches
• Ubuntu’s HUD
• Linux Vendors Rush to Patch Privilege Escalation Flaw After Root Exploits Emerge
• A Short Trip Down Memory Lane
• Cinnamon 1.2: The New Linux Desktop Is Now Officially Stable
• Explore large files with Rowscope
• Essential network commands
• Megaupload Details Raise Significant Concerns About What DOJ Considers Evidence Of Criminal Behavior
• We will be heard now. Dodd Petition reaches 25,000
• Judge: Americans can be forced to decrypt their laptops
• Why OEM’s Should Avoid Not (possibly) Making It Harder To Install Linux
• Fotowall Has a Sharp Eye for Sweet Collages
• Simple But Handy Tips to Make Ubuntu Linux Run Faster

I got completely side-tracked yesterday. Instead of testing the soccer program, I spent the day working on a cookbook. This is just a speculative project; I need to get permission from a lot of people before I actually can release this to the public. I started doing this by doing the Breakfast section, and I haven’t even finished that yet. When it is finished, I will send it to the person who I need permission from, along with information about what I propose doing and what constraints I will operate under. If she gives me permission to continue, that will be fine. If she doesn’t permit me to continue, I may do it anyway for my own edification.

Today, though, I will finish the testing of the soccer program, as that has a higher priority. No more Dutch Baby recipes until that is finished.

Silly sign of the day:

Free/Open Source Software

• Why Don’t Other Linux Distros Use Unity? A Few Thoughts
• Introduction To Linux Commands
• 10 Things to Look Forward to in LibreOffice 3.5
• KDE vs. Windows 7
• Is MySQL usage really declining?
• Mandriva Decision Delayed Again
• From Zero to OpenVPN in 30 Minutes
• REMnux 3 review – a treasure chest for the malware-curious
• Cinnamon 1.2 Released With Desktop Effects, Multiple Layouts, More
• Moose
• Linux for migrants: Zorin OS
• Calibre And Project Gutenberg: Liberate Your eReader
• CyanogenMod App Store To Sell Root, Banned Apps
• Using Linux and Free Software to Bring Back American Innovation

I am still working on the soccer program. This weekend, I found a problem I could have sworn I had already fixed, so going through the test plan again is a good idea.

I should be finishing up with the testing today. I will then go back to documenting the source code.

We did get rain over the weekend, and the snow got about ten times harder to push with a plow. We are in pretty good shape out here, as I have been keeping up with the snow, and I have a neighbor who also does some plowing, even if it’s with a tractor blade.

Mike’s Hot Sauce #3

10 red chili peppers, roughly chopped
1 Serrano pepper, roughly chopped
2 large cloves garlic, diced
2/3 cup vinegar

Put all the ingredients in a small sauce pan. Heat to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer for 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.

Pour the result into a food processor and process until smooth. Refrigerate after you are done. The heating step helps to break down the peppers so they form a better sauce.

Silly sign of the day:

Free/Open Source Software

• Desura Game Client Open Sourced as ‘Desurium’
• The Linux Setup – Goblin, TechBytes/OpenBytes
• The 5 Best O’Reilly eBooks That Are Free To Download
• The making of open-source software
• 10 New Open Source Projects You May Not Know About
• Linux Programs (Apps) for Common Computer Tasks
• Windows 8 Might Block Linux From Loading
• Hold Your Horses – We’ve Only Won a Reprieve – SOPA/PIPA
• Explainer: How can the US seize a “Hong Kong site” like Megaupload?
• You Moved Mountains
• Pear OS Linux Panther v3.0 – Not impressed
• 5 Reasons Why KDE Is Better Than Unity
• 12 reasons to love KDE
• Lightweight Music Player ‘Xnoise’ ported to GTK3, Install from PPA
• New Tool Gives Greater Control Over GTK Theming in KDE
• Open-source software can be the answer
• PC-BSD 9 Review
• When Should Open Source Be Written Into Law?
• XBMC!How to turn your Ubuntu into the Media Center of your dreams.
• Windows 8 Secure Boot – or How Microsoft Is Riling Up the Linux Masses

I really like my Viewsonic gTablet and I use it to read books and do Sudoku puzzles all the time. The only thing I hate doing with it is typing. You would probably agree with me that an on-screen keyboard is no way for touch typists to interface to a computer. That is why I went to Amazon and got this:

As you can see, the tablet slides into the keyboard case and the interface is USB, plugged in to the side of the tablet. It also has a built-in kick stand, so it props up so you can read the screen at the proper angle. Of course, the real thing doesn’t have that logo on it – this is a publicity photo. All in all, I am very happy with it. I can now easily use the note taking application I have for the tablet.

Mother Nature really dumped on us yesterday. I plowed about 6 inches of snow yesterday morning, then turned around yesterday afternoon and plowed again. After I got back from the North Idaho Mineral Club meeting, I could have plowed again, but it was too late to do it. That means I will have more plowing to do this morning. It has to done, as we are expecting rain tomorrow.

The mineral club meeting was sparsely attended. Our speaker cancelled because of the snow and the roads were just nasty. Our private road out here was in better shape than the public roads. And the parking lot at the Lake City Center had about 8 inches of snow in it – unplowed. So only nine people showed up.

By now you must have heard of SOPA/PIPA. I say this because you are on the Internet and you may have tried to access a web site on Wednesday that was involved in the blackout. If you know of the blackout and want to know more, here are two links that say it all. The first is funny and scary. The second is a complete explanation of what SOPA could do, and it’s just scary.

• Jon Stewart Now Knows About SOPA/PIPA… And He’s Not Impressed
• Khan Academy explains SOPA/PIPA

Silly sign of the day:

Free/Open Source Software

• Why SOPA and PIPA are bad for open source
• Review: Aptosid (Install and First Impressions)
• Welcome to the world of open source domotics
• Why Android might just kill GNU/Linux. Quickly.
• Do Fewer Spinoffs Signal a Waning in Ubuntu’s Popularity?
• What Are The Best 10 Linux Desktop Apps?
• Michael Geist’s website went dark to protest U.S. restrictions on Internet
• Can you demand my name to give me a public link?
• NSA releases security-enhanced Android
• Entry-level thin client does HD video on dual displays
• Linux Foundation Report Shows Growing Linux Adoption Rates in the Enterprise
• How important is virtualization to commercial UNIX customers?
• SOPA a controversy against the Open Source world
• Review: Fuduntu 2012.1

I finished up the articles for the North Idaho Mineral Club web site. I have to keep on top of those, or it will take me forever to post them. I get them from our newsletter, and this time I had the last two newsletters to work with.

Well, I didn’t get around to the soccer program stuff yesterday. Instead, I worked on my laptop. Ever since I switched from the 64-bit to the 32-bit version of Linux Mint 10, I have had no sound. I found out why – there is a couple of lines that need to be added to the sound configuration file to get it to work. I have done that and I have recorded what I did in a text file for the next time I change distributions. I still have a couple of problems with the laptop – the camera doesn’t work and the DVD drive is intermittent. I think the only thing that is a real problem is the DVD drive. I think I may have another configuration problem with the camera.

The thing that made this fix so difficult is the fact that I can’t log in to the zaReason web site to ask questions. I don’t know what the problem is, but nothing I do works. I called them and got a new password, but that doesn’t work, either. I guess they go the way of Blue Moon Tea – if I can’t log in, I can’t purchase stuff. Too bad.

Silly sign of the day:

Free/Open Source Software

• Where are they now?
• 92 Open Source Apps That Replace Everyday Software
• 6 Useful Graphical Git Clients for Linux
• NASA looks to lower open source licensing barriers
• Who can NOT afford Open Source Software?
• Canonical backtracks on deleting Oracle’s Sun Java
• Get Ready For VLC Media Player 2.0
• Freedom for the masses: plug servers from FreedomBox
• Breaking down the gender divide in open source and open culture
• How ‘Post-PC’ could be good for Linux
• All Hail Debian, King of the Web Server World
• Linux should be like a window
• Meet Bodhi’s Bulky Brother: Bloathi
• Cheap Tabloid Tricks: The Truth About Linux, Open Source And The Media
• SSH: The VPN No One Remembers

The changes I made to the soccer program yesterday took a lot longer to make than I anticipated. part of the problem was that I underestimated the impact of the change. I was unaware of some of the areas the database change touched on. At any rate, I have finished making the changes and I will spend some time today doing testing of the program.

I will also be doing some more documentation of the program today. It is important that the program itself contain enough comments so a new person can come in and take up where I leave off.

I spent some time yesterday plowing, and I suspect I will spend more time doing that for the rest of the week. Instead of dumping on us all at once, the snow is coming down in 2″ to 6″ dumps. That makes it easier to clean up afterwards, I guess.

I also have to update the North Idaho Mineral Club web site with new how-to articles and make some more fliers for the club. Our monthly meeting is tomorrow night, so I have to get ready for it.

Silly sign of the day:

Free/Open Source Software

• The Ben NanoNote – The World’s Smallest Linux Laptop?
• Mandriva Delays Bankruptcy Decision
• ZevenOS – Does it recapture the flavor of BeOS?
• Linux should copy Apple on user rapport
• NSA releases ultra-secure open source Android derivative
• 8 themes for Cinnamon desktop and how to install them
• Who can afford Open Source?
• A company, zero to operational and profitable, in 5 days with free software – This link will be valid starting tomorrow
• Wintel tablets may cost $600+ because Microsoft and Intel are unwilling to take a pay cut
• Install Oracle Java (JDK) 7 in Ubuntu via PPA Repository
• Top First-Person Shooter (FPS) Games for Android
• Video, and More Details Emerge On the Tiny Raspberry Pi PC
• Linux for the ‘Longterm’
• Free Windows Tool Offers a One-Stop Shop for Linux
• LiVES: A Rich Video Editor With Layer Upon Layer of Features

“It’s Mine, and You Have to Pay (and Pay and Pay) For It”

I finished documenting the soccer program’s database. Along the way, I also made a major internal change to the database by adding a table to it and changing two other tables. I hope this will be the last major change to the database.

I started to delete one of the tables I thought was not being used, but it turns out it was a critical table having to do with planning practice sessions. So I undid the changes. I now need to go through the program and verify everything is working correctly and I haven’t messed up access to some of the tables.

I think winter has finally caught up with us. It is snowing as I write this and we are supposed to see up to a foot of snow in the next couple of days. I’m glad my truck and plow are working okay.

Silly sign of the day:

Free/Open Source Software

• People in Closed Source Houses Shouldn’t Throw Stones
• Making a case for excluding users from open source
• Breaking down the gender divide in open source and open culture
• AbiWord Review: A Lightweight Alternative To LibreOffice
• How to take screenshots in VirtualBox – Tutorial
• GRUB 2 Editor
• Linux Games: No Gravity
• Free Culture Pitfall: Bait-and-Switch Free Licensing
• Wikipedia to join reddit in SOPA blackout Wednesday
• Video editing with OpenShot: Capable, but lacks some polish
• Backup your data in Linux with Deja Dup

I went to the North Idaho Linux Users Group meeting on Saturday, and I gave a short talk on Calibre, the ebook manager and converter. It was well received, but we discovered that not all distributions have Calibre in their repositories. Specifically, we could not find it for Mepis Linux. Mepis is based on Debian and uses the Debian repositories, and that is a big problem. I got the program from the Linux Mint repositories, which are based on Ubuntu, which are based on Debian, so the program was obviously added by Canonical to the Ubuntu repositories. Since this is about the only program designed to convert ebook formats, it’s sad that it hasn’t got more coverage.

I have started documenting the soccer program. first up is documentation of its database. I haven’t finished with that yet. Have you ever noticed that when you start documenting something, you discover its deficiencies? The same thing happened to me in this process. I am going to add a new lookup table, remove a table, and change two fields in two existing tables. The program impact of this is fairly small and there will be no change in the look and feel of the program. The eventual impact will be big, though. Trust me.

Silly sign of the day:

Free/Open Source Software

• Ubuntu in the Corporate
• Linux in 2012: what to expect
• Perens: the FOSS fire still burns
• Ubuntu — Traitors of Linux, Open Source Software and The Community: Is Ubuntu Becoming Too Commercialized?
• Three Spins You May Not Have Heard Of
• Giving Unity Another Go
• 3 Nice Blender Made Games for Linux
• Ubuntu TV vs. Google TV: Battle of the Linux-based Smart TV
• Awesome Android Smartphones and Tablets Showcased at CES
• Microsoft blocks Linux from Windows 8 ARM hardware
• Kubuntu vs. Gentoo (round 1)
• The Surprisingly Juicy Desktop Linux Market Share Report
• Quickoffice Pro: Strong Cloud Connections, Dreary Look
• Open source writing tools