Posts by Martipar

When it comes to Linux distros, one person's molehill is another's mountain

Reasons to use Linux.

1. It's free - So is Windows it's came with the PC I bought.

2. It's easy to use - Can you just turn the PC on and it's there? No you have to backup your data, install it, create a login then put your data back on your PC, once that's done you can use it.

3. You can use some of the applications you are used to - "Some" why not all? Well there are alternatives but you can learn the differences as you go along.

4. It's good for gaming. - "Excellent, I've just bought this latest game, will it work?" Not yet but maybe, you'll have to wait and some older games may need a bit of persuasion to work.

So I have to take my perfectly good PC, spend time backing up the data, install Linux, put my data back, install applications that may or may not do what the standard Windows apps do and if i'm lucky they'll be compiled binaries. I will have to hope that the game I want to buy works and I need to learn the differences as I go along?

This is the typical thought process of everyone I used to to tell about Linux, i used Linux, for me it was fine but for someone who want's to buy a PC, work on a PC and play on a PC Windows is the easy, free and most compatible option.

Until there is 'A' Linux, the one true distro, then there's little to no hope of Linux ever being adopted as a serious desktop OS. other distros can, and should, exist but The Linux Foundation needs to set some rules such as a standard desktop environment, standard package manager and a set of standard applications. Everything else will be an unofficial testing ground for potential alternatives.

Nvidia faces lawsuit for melting RTX 4090 cables as AMD has a laugh

So, as Apple would say, they are inserting it wrongly? I, and i'm sure many of us, have built computers over the years, our first one will have been, to put it bluntly thrown together with cables and cards plugged in without much care. A fire shouldn't occur because someone wasn't using a torque meter,a set square and a spirit level to ensure the PC was put together with with precision.

If a cable burns becasue it's not been put in just right that's not the users fault it's a problem with the design.

This maglev turntable costs more than an average luxury electric car

Re: Egoteric?

>but high end audio is so full of quackery, lies, and bullshit that I really can't stomach it.

Two recent Techmoan youtube videos featured a CD shaver and a CD de-magnetiser. Luckily Techmoan is above such things but gave them a fair attempt before giving them the derision they deserved, it's fun to watch someone who knows something is bollocks use a product as directed only to reinforce the view that it's bollocks.

BOFH: Tech helps HR investigate the Boss's devices

Re: Inspirational!

I totally agree, I was contracted somewhere and one my way home I got lost and ended up in HR, I asked them if they had any permanent jobs available and they said "I don't know, check the website" I made a point of making sure it was definitely HR then made my way to the exit making a mental note to never apply for a job there if HR were so useless they weren't aware of any vacancies.

Sick of Windows but can't afford a Mac? Consult our cynic's guide to desktop Linux

Re: Control Your Own Upgrades

I had a minor epiphany recently, Linux is not a replacement for Windows but vendors definitely market it that way waht with a heavy focus on Wine and Libreoffice and MS Office compatibility. However what Linux really is is a MacOS replacement, if you have an old Mac and want a replacement but can't afford a new Mac but can afford a new Windows PC then Linux is ideal.

The games compatibility is largely the same because both MacOS and Linux are "serious" operating systems - all work and no play. You can create art, music, documents and spreadsheets on a Mac and Linux but if you play games and have fun with your computer then Windows is what you need.

Linux will keep your server up and running for days without incident but if you have Linux on your desktop too then there's not much you can do to take advantage of all that extra free time, Windows on a server will keep you entertained by having a problem that needs solving every so often and if you also have Windows on your desktop you can play a game while waiting for a fix to install.

The best of both worlds is to run Linux on the server and Windows on the desktop unless you're a lapsed Mac user then the experience will be much the same if you run it on the desktop as fun is not on the agenda.

The end of the iPod – last model available 'while supplies last'

Re: Can't forgive, won't forget

You can also get iTunes Match if you want to have CDs you've ripped available across all your devices. (At $25US per year, it's one of the cheapest useful subscriptions out there.)

Sorry. $25pa to listen to CDs i've already bought is cheap? $0 is cheap, anything more is a double charging, rip off. I have never bought into the Apple multiverse, i've always preferred generic MP3 players, right now I use my Android phone and PowerAmp media player. I still buy CDs, I rip them using Winamp and have all the files on various computers and the Micro SD card in my phone, if i lost my phone it takes a short amount of time to transfer all my file across to my new Micro SD card and i'm away. There's no way i'd pay to listen to music I already own especially if the annual price is the same as the one off cost of a decent sized Micro SD card.

Only Microsoft can give open source the gift of NTFS. Only Microsoft needs to

Re: Microsoft Bashing

I agree in full. I have used Linux on and off for 20 years or so and every time I think "Linux should be able to do that." I either find it can if I use 3 different programs or it can't unless I install WINE and run the program I want.

IT managers also know this, they know they can just buy some hardware, some Microsoft OS and it'll just work and it'll be compatible with every other company as they likely use Microsoft software too. If Linux worked and worked well it would be adopted but there's so much fragmentation that outside of the server side of things it's not worth the hassle. In 2012 I decided to run Linux (and only Linux) on my PC, normally I dual booted, ran a live system or had it on my secondary PC never my main one. I decided to buy a PCI wireless card, on Windows that's easy, look at the specs and the price, work out which one offers the best VFM and buy the one I want. On Linux it's find one I like, then spend ages trawling through technical documents to find out what chipset it uses then finding out if that chipset is compatible with Linux and that's just one piece of hardware.

I still have trouble with one of my laptops showing a black screen if I want to run Linux live on it unless I switch to the safe graphics mode because Linux does not do what Windows does and show a reduced graphics mode automatically.

I have a laptop connected to my hi-fi, all it has to do is store my music. play them and show visualisations I have used Winamp for 20+ years because it's awesome, and the media library is perfect I spent hours, easily 5, trying out every Winamp alternative on Linux and other media players only to find the only one that had a library I liked Quod Libet - didn't support visualisations, i then spent more hours compiling a visualisation program from source because Linux devs are allergic to compiled binaries, listing where dependencies can be found and the make command can't list all the missing dependencies in one go rather it lists each one as it comes across them.

Needless to say the visitation program didn't work, it was at this pint about 4am and I took a deep breath, reached for my XP CD and wiped the drive and regretted spending 30 minutes transferring my music to the HDD.

I could go on but I won't for fear of writing a novel about the whole thing, I like the idea of Linux but often in practice it does not do what i want and all I want it to do is function properly. One day i'll find a reason to use it over Windows but for the last decade I've happily bought Windows because i'd rather buy Windows than have Linux for free.

Intel says costly 10nm ramp will counter PC slowdown

Is this the beginning of the end for Intel?

I'm getting memories of Rover rebadging old tat as new and claiming it would save the company, I know the problems have been accumulating a while but this feels like the first real big step towards the writing being on the wall.

Why the Linux desktop is the best desktop

Re: "Linux Desktop"

Windows+R type control hit enter. I've been using that since XP, in fact I use the run box for a lot of stuff. Devmgmt.msc, compmgmt.msc, lusrmgr.msc, services.msc, regedit and more.

The UI changes are largely irrelevant to me though on Windows 10 I spend a few minutes removing the search bar, the tiles from the start menu, the weather app and a few other bits to get the desktop tidier. However I do the same on Linux, removing the desktop switcher, changing the look of it and tidying that up too.

Re: One reason to stay with Windows - Outlook

I agree on everything apart for Inkscape. I have used Inkscape and Illustrator and while i'm certain there will be some quirky feature in Illustrator that cannot be be done in Inkscape for my casual needs Inkscape is a breeze to use. I do not doubt for a second there is a "Linux wall" in Inkscape but unlike in GIMP or in LibreOffice I haven't found it. I use Inkscape on Windows though because of the Linux wall in many other programs I use.

LibreOffice, for example, is every bit as good as Microsoft Office

Bollocks, mail merge in LibreOffice is a right pain compared to MS Office, in fact most Linux alternative programs have some quirk or another.

I recently bought a cheap laptop (a HP 6710b running XP) for my hi-fi (it's got a 500GB HDD, a large screen and a disc drive, it was also a lot cheaper than a HDD based media player, hi-fi CD player and visualiser). I initially felt Linux would be ideal but the Winamp alternatives in Linux may support Winamp skins but I use the Winamp classic skin and have done since day one (about 1999 IIRC) the library feature is invaluable. One of the Winamp alternatives I used claimed to have a library but really just dumped all my files in the playlist.

The closest I found with a decent library setup was Quod Libet but it didn't support visualisations and so after a few hours of testing all sorts of media players I gave in and used XP and Winamp.

Gimp is another example "it can do what Photoshop can do" is trotted out occasionally but in reality it's a mess of convoluted processes that in Photoshop are easy and intuitive and I've not been trained in either so it's not a case of being "used to" Photoshop.

I use LibreOffice but If I did serious office work , like mail merging, i'd pay for MS Office though I mostly use it for spreadsheets. I'[ve often said that over 905 of the text documents i've created could've been done in WordPad and it's true, most could be done there. In fact it probably extends t most people.

The only 2 open source programs that I love are Scribus and Inkscape, I love using them and they feel much better to use than Microsoft Publisher and Gimp/Adobe Illustrator but as both are available for Windows these are not reason enough to use Linux for day to day desktop use.

I like Linux and for servers it's great but for the desktop it's a solution looking for a problem. I used to recommend Linux to people when I was younger but I got fed up with saying "Well it's not X, it's a bit like X but free." Because often people would come back to me and ask how they did something in their FOSS program i'd recommended and find out that it was either not there at all or available in a separate program and have to spend time learning about this obscure feature in a paid for program that is done in a couple of clicks but in a Linux program is a series of hoops that includes compiling from source.

What is it with the FOSS community being allergic to compiled binaries?

BOFH: You say goodbye and I say halon

It used to be set in New Zealand but BOFH moved to London in the early 2000's (IIRC) Simon Travaglia hosts the archive on his site and the rest from 2001 onwards are on The Register

Opera browser tries to make sweet music for the ears of Chromebook users

Re: integrated WhatsApp, Telegram, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook Messenger.

The only exist in the optional sidebar. I have a few distant friends who use Facebook and having the messenger in the sidebar is really useful. Opera GX has Twitch in the sidebar and i'm seriously considering giving GX a go just for that. I've used Opera for about 15 years now and having a built in adblocker and VPN is really quite useful, the VPN is about as basic as it gets but it works for most of what I need one for (watching region locked Youtube videos posted to Reddit mostly) I'm sure people who actually need a VPN would find it lacking in features though.

Mayday! Mayday! Microsoft has settled on a build and Windows 10 21H1 is inbound

Re: Settings......

I've just checked my power settings and they are exactly as they were before the update. The only problem was that 'News and interests' crap but I disabled taht and everything is back to nmormal.

Re: Shouldn't they be calling it Windows 11 by now?

I think it's testament to how stable Windows is these days. between 1994 and 2001 Microsoft released NT4, 95, 98,, 2k, ME and XP. Which is an average of about 1 a year, without including the service packs and server operating systems. it's a lot of releases but there was a lot of instability, Windows 10 is by far the most stable OS I've used.

I used to like Linux but on this PC every time I updated the kernel I had to manually update the graphics drivers via the command line, it was frustrating as I didn't like having the choice of using an old kernel or having the PC boot to the desktop when I wanted it to.

Microsoft demotes Calibri from default typeface gig, starts fling with five other fonts

Re: Microsoft’s new default font options, rated

The 'e' looks the same in all of them. Tenorite reminds me of 'Look and Read' but it's the one i like the most but on the whole they all look largely identical.

Zorin OS 16 beta claims largest built-in app library 'of any open source desktop ever'

Re: Beware Zorin

Yep, I always unplug my Windows drive before a Linux install, install Linux shutdown, reinsert HDD, bot up then rebuild GRUB. It's a PITA but the only way to ensure that it doesn't mess with Windows/

Cracked copies of Microsoft Office and Adobe Photoshop steal your session cookies, browser history, crypto-coins

Re: Ah, warez

The warez scene affected legit copies detrimentally though. I have a few old games that refuse to run because they detect I have a program for creating virtual drives installed. As if there isn't a legitimate reason for using a virtual drive. Luckily it's not many and it's on my XP gaming machine which is only used for LAN RTS gaming my mate when they visit.

Re: Open options

I take it you've never tried to mail merge in LibreOffice? In MS Office you can just insert a CSV file, LIbreOffice requires you convert the CSV into a database then insert it and even then it doesn't work very well.

I use LibreOffice for spreadsheets, presentations and opening MS Office file formats but for serious work MS Office is better. I can't think of any 'advanced' feature that's easier in LibreOffice.

ReactOS hits a milestone – actually hiring a full-time developer. And we've got our talons on the latest build to see what needs fixing

Actually i can see Microsoft hitting the same problems as SCO vs Linux. If they don't actually copy any code i don't see why there would be an issue.

If there's a lesson to be learned in these torrid times, it's that civilisation is fleeting – but Windows XP is eternal

Re: Not the successor to Windows Me

Technicall Xp 64-bit was actually a rebadged Server 2003 (it even only took Server 2003 updates and not XP ones) So really it goes 2000, XP, XP-64bit, Vista, 7, 8, 10. As the differences between XP and XP-64bit were as great if not greater than the difference between 2000 and XP.

Sony reveals PlayStation 5 will offer heretical no-optical-disk option. And yes, it has an AMD CPU-GPU combo

Re: What's with the vertical consoles?

The PS2 was shown upright http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/445933.stm as was the PS3 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4807858.stm and the PS4 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/technology-22852723/playstation-4-launch-gasps-as-price-unveiled I'm pretty sure this one can lie down to

Did nobody tell them about the lockdown? Logitech releases new 'luggable' mechanical keyboard for LAN parties

Re: No numpad

All my keyboards have numpads and fit in both my average rucksacks - i agree no numpad no sale, i use it far too often.

The longest card game in the world: Microsoft Solitaire is 30

I still use Windows 3

The 3.11 WFW version on my DOSBox installation. I have heard it is possible to install Win 95 on DOSBox too, though i've not tried it.

DirectX comes to Linux (via WSL2): Microsoft unveils tricks needed to flash a GPU at a penguin

Are Microsoft planning go back to their roots and create a new Xenix which is Linux based?

I'm not saying they should or shouldn't but Microsoft do like their backward comparability though they have said that Windows 10 will be the last Windows: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/07/31/rising_and_ongoing_cost_of_windows/

Maybe we misinterpreted it and they are ditching it in favour of going back to their roots? I like the name Xenix, it's definitely cooler than Windows and Linux style performance in gaming is attractive.

The end really is nigh – for 32-bit Windows 10 on new PCs

Re: Probably just as well, given how much RAM it uses..

Well i did try that and it failed, it wouldn't allow me to upgrade to the 64-bit version. Maybe it was because i upgraded in the Win 7 environment rather than starting a fresh install but i assure you i did give that a go.

Re: I honestly thought it never existed

I run Win 3.11 on this PC under DosBox (well technically that's a lie as i need to reinstall DosBox but it will) couldn't you, if they ever upgraded to 64-bit, install DosBox and in it's equivalent of Autoexec hava a line to boot windows and in the Autoexec.bat open the dictionary so they only have to click the DosBox icon (or a custom icon taken from the dictionary directory) and they get the dictionary loaded?

It's a bit of a janky solution but it'll get the job done and you get the nostalgia hit of installing Windows 3.11.

Re: Amazed it took them this long

To add to your point there is no reason why chip manufacturers should still be producing consumer 32-bit processors. I'm not old enough to remember but surely they had stopped producing 16-bit desktop processors at this point in the 32-bit era?

Re: Probably just as well, given how much RAM it uses..

Have you tried turning on PAE in Windows? On this PC (which was running Win 7 32-bit which got upgrade to Win 10 32-bit during the free upgrade period) I followed the steps to enable it, it failed, i ran a 3rd party PAE fix program which only runs on certain builds and mine was already above that build, However there was one for my build available but i had to compile it from source (as a part-time Linux user i've done this sort of thing before) so I download Visual Studio community, download 4-5GB of libraries compile. Halt. Need other program which also needs compiling then compile PAE program. No go, it failed.

I gave in, went on Amazon and purchased Win10 64 bit OEM. On Linux you can install either the standared or PAE kernel from the package manager, why on Windows can't there be a nice big button with PAE On/Off on it? PAE is nice in theory but turning it on in Windows is a right PITA.

I spent a full day fiddling, tweaking, compiling, downloading and nothing worked - it was a complete waste of time and yet i know this processor supports PAE, it's run Linux PAE without issue and it shouldn't be a exerciser in hoop jumping to get it running on Windows.

What do you call megabucks Microsoft? No really, it's not a joke. El Reg needs you

Some suggestions

Monopolysoft.

They who shall not be named.

Failsoft.

Android 11 Developer Preview 3 allows your mobe to become a router via USB Ethernet – if you can get a decent signal

Re: Hasn't it been able to do this for ages?

No. https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2018/10/three-uk-quietly-removes-tethering-caps-from-4g-mobile-plans.html

Fright at the museum: Bored curators play spooky Top Trumps on Twitter over who has the creepiest object

A few years ago in Cornwall

I spotted a 2 headed piglet in ajar, apparently it didn't live long, i was fascinated my vegan friend wasn't

Vivaldi browser to perform a symphony of ad and tracker blocking with version 3.0

Re: It's not bad

I agree, Opera has had built in ad blocking for ages - It's new FB messenger sidebar is excellent and adequate compensation for the removal of their email client.

This is grim, Vim and Neovim: Opening this crafty file in your editor may pwn your box. Patch now if not already

Just switch to EMACS

No worries, it's just the same

Cray's found a super scooper, $1.3bn's gonna buy you. HPE's the one

Regarding the Cray 1

How easy would it be to build a miniature working replica? I'd love a model Cray 1 i could put on a shelf but also plug it into some form of terminal and run original software on it.

RIP: Microsoft finally pulls plug on last XP survivor... POSReady 2009

Re: ReactOS (as the new XP)

What tosh, i first heard of ReactOS in about 2007, I was excited, i was still vaguely interested in 2010 by 2015 i'd lost all hope and interest. ReactOS may be ready for release before I expire but i doubt it greatly.

BOFH: The current value of our IT ASSets? Minus eleventy-seven...

Re: Gilbert Murray

I use Bill gates and email: [e-mail] it works for most sites that require an email address but no confirmation.

BANGKOK-BLOCKED: Thailand's dictators 'ban dictator sim Tropico 5'

re: Junta

Junta: Viva El Presidente comes with a pair of sunglasses, it's a much shorter game designed for a slightly younger audience though.

The cute things they say

Title pending

So you're not in the UK then? Over here you can be sued for libel even if it's true.

ZEPPELINS to replace Goodyear blimps in American skies

Re: Blimp.

It's an aonomatopœia it's sound it makes when you slap one.

Psssst. Don't tell the Bride, but BBC Three is about to be jilted

Re: How much does..

20% of 60 != 20 minutes 20 minutes is 1/3 of an hour

Boffins build electronic tongue that can distinguish between BEERS

Re: American beer rocks (Just not Bud, etc)

Isn't most craft beer just overly hopped expensive keg? or is that just the ones we get over here.

Reading this headline? You and 9.47 million others

Congratularation!

All the base are belong to you, hail all RegEl conquereror of planets!

KC engineer 'exposed unencrypted spreadsheet with phone numbers, user IDs, PASSWORDS'

Re: Passwords ?

Because none of us on this tech news site knows anything about MAC addresses, ISP MAC codes, broadband, the internet or anything because we're all dumbasses, FFS man this is El Reg not the other place.

PS-PHWOARRR: We review Sony’s next-gen PlayStation 4

Re: Ho hum

Forgotten about the Pippin already? For shame!

One of last few iPhone 5Ss STOLEN from within MASSIVE POLICE CORDON at Apple Store

Re: Clearly

just goes to show that nicking the slogan from a bureaucratic dystopian government works. Even though said government had problems with Buttle and Tuttle.

The IT Crowd returns to Channel 4 for a final episode

Re: Chris O'Dowd...is now a bona fide Hollywood star?

Frequently asked questions about time travel, nuff said really.

Look ma, no plugins! Streaming web video with just JavaScript

Re: Awesome..

Surely you're getting Javascript confused with the similarly named but completely different Java?

Leaping hedgehog probes planned for Martian moon Phobos

Doctor Who

I've seen enough Doctor who to know what they are.

One in four don't clean their stinky old browsers - especially Firefoxers

Well I use....

Opera and i's version 12.20, the only thing is as it's free but closed source it's not in any software repository so I have to update manually. Failfox has too many add-ons required for it to do the job of Opera (No-script, ad-block, Thunderbird etc.) Chrome is ok but about 3x the install size of Opera and I can't work out where the bloat is or why.