Tag: linux
- Two years later, the reasons for Microsoft's Github acquisition still remain a mystery (28 Jul 2020)
More than two years have passed since I shared my perspective on Microsoft’s Github acquisition in this blog post earlier, and the point still stands today. Why did Microsoft decide to acquire a startup company much smaller in size which had no viable and long term revenue/profit generation model? If... - Linux DIY: How to identify your MTP file-transfer device (such as smart-phone) in Bash (27 Oct 2019)
In the good old days, USB file-transfer between your laptop and smart-phone used to happen through the much easier “mass storage” mode which works just as if you had inserted an external pen-drive. But these days, most smart-phones and tablets have shifted to the MTP (Media Transfer Protocol). Unlike a... - How to enforce conventional commit messages using git hooks (14 Jun 2019)
Conventional git commit messages are not just nice to have but great to have. In fact, once you get to know them, you’ll start feeling that they are essential in any serious programming project. Consider the difference between following two commit messages for instance: git commit -m "added social login... - Docker trick: Running containers efficiently using a bash script (14 Sep 2018)
One of the basic problems with running a docker image is that its too easy to spew up multiple instances or containers of the same image. Consider running the following container for instance: docker run -it -e AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID="test" -e AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY="test" \ --net=host "prahladyeri/testimage:latest" /bin/bash This will start a fresh container... - Performing a little usability tweak on the XFCE window recycler in greybird theme (11 Sep 2018)
Xubuntu is my favorite distro, hands down and the default Greybird theme is just wonderful! There used to be a time when I liked Ubuntu-MATE too, but not so much since they took the road to GTK+3! Coming back to the topic, XFCE works great but it has a small... - Linux DIY: Creating a multiboot USB drive with ISO images of multiple distros (11 Sep 2018)
Though I’m not a distro-hopper exactly, I keep trying live versions of popular linux distros like debian and ubuntu every now and then, and while I generally use the “dd” command which works right out of the box, today I thought that instead of burning a new ISO image each... - XFCE panel indicator plugin background fix (21 Jul 2018)
The indicator plugin in XFCE panel has been a very useful but also a very controversial plugin! The reason is that its the only plugin on the XFCE panel developed in GTK3 (whereas rest of the panel is developed in GTK2) and this causes some theming issues. Specifically, only those... - How to make your Xubuntu 16.04 desktop look and behave like Ubuntu-MATE (18 Jul 2018)
Xubuntu is one of the most popular among the “lighter” distros as it hardly consumes 200MB when idle and even older machines are able to run with acceptable performance. Ubuntu-MATE which is based on MATE Desktop (a GNOME-2 fork) is also a similar competing distro though its debatable whether its... - Microsoft's Github acquisition - A perspective (08 Jun 2018)
As someone who has worked on Microsoft tooling since the days of Foxpro 2.6 to Visual Studio 2010 in IT career, and yet ditched them all for PHP, Python and open source years later, I think I am qualified to offer a somewhat neutral or objective perspective on this acquisition.... - How to use Bash+rsync to automate your periodical backups on Linux (04 Mar 2018)
Linux is all about simplicity. Simple and time-tested tools like iptables, netstat and rsync can be called for help for basic tasks instead of untrusted third-party tools as happens in case of Windows. If you are a desktop user, then taking frequent backups of your data to a pen-drive or... - Tux Drive - A Command Line Tool to Access Google Drive from Linux (20 Sep 2017)
One of the most boring things we need to perform in life is using the Google Drive. On one hand, so useful is this tool provided by Google (so many cloud GBs for free, yay!) but on the other hand, the web interface to access those files is not quite... - How To Make Your Ubuntu Desktop Faster (19 Sep 2017)
The usual advice you get when seeking a more resource conserving distro is to use a lighter spin-off such as Xubuntu, Lubuntu, etc. However, not many people know that even a “heavy” distro such as Ubuntu LTS with the default Unity Desktop could be made much lighter by uninstalling some... - Ubuntu 17.10 (Artful Aardvark) - An Objective Review (16 Sep 2017)
Today, I installed the Daily Build of the upcoming Ubuntu 17.10 in VirtualBox and gave it a try. This was supposed to be the first one that replaced Unity Desktop with GNOME. After having used 16.04 LTS for a long time, I felt that this version is quite stable but... - How to install Debian+LXDE on ANY Android Tablet (05 Jul 2017)
Running a linux distro on android devices is a hot topic these days, and why not? After all, android is already based on linux kernel, but a pretty much locked-down and dumbed-down version of it. The OEM doesn’t give you root and in most cases, not even an open source... - How to create a screencast in Xubuntu using ffmpeg (19 Jul 2016)
In this article, I’m going to describe how to create a desktop screencast recording with or without audio in Xubuntu 16.04. With little changes, however, it should work on other distros too. The first thing to do is to ensure that your headphone microphone is enabled in Xubuntu audio settings.... - How to deal with frequent disconnects of 3G USB Dongle on Linux Desktop (28 Jun 2016)
One of the major issues on linux desktop these days has to do with 3G USB dongles/modems. In many countries like India, a USB dongle still remains a major way to access the Internet. The latest versions of network-manager has solved most of the issues relating to the basic recognition... - Ten useful LibreOffice Macro Recipes (26 Feb 2016)
Macros are a great way to automate tasks in Spreadsheet applications, be it the good old Microsoft Excel or the equally efficient FOSS alternative, LibreOffice Calc. The best thing about macros is that they are often written in a very easy to grasp language called Basic (though Calc also supports... - How to assemble a fast and minimal Debian Desktop using Openbox (16 Feb 2016)
Being a web developer, one of the nagging things to do is keeping your hardware in sync with your performance requirements. In the good old times, a P4 or even a Celeron based PC or laptop was enough for programming. But with changing times, the required investment to get a... - Linux Desktop Survey Project - Feb/2016 (07 Feb 2016)
I will start this post by thanking the kind folks at the Reddit’s linux subreddit and Voat’s linux subverse who wholeheartedly participated in this survey. Here are the results and they are pretty insightful. For a developer who builds apps targetting the linux platform, it helps to know what are... - Are your Firefox addons really that safe? - An Insider Story (09 Nov 2015)
Firefox is one of the most competitive FOSS browsers out there, there is no denying it. Mozilla also has strict guidelines regarding what goes into their repos. And in the spirit of all things open source, you may naturally tend to believe that developers who have written your coolest new... - How to add HTML tag highlighting to Geany (07 Nov 2015)
Ever since I bid farewell to Windows after they introduced that horrible Metro interface in Windows 8, I had been on the lookout for FOSS Linux alternatives that can run easily on my ubuntu 14.04 machine. One such lookout was a replacement for Notepad++ as I always need a handy... - 4 Ways to share your mobile internet with a PC/laptop (20 Dec 2014)
The one thing I like about the world of Linux in general and also Android is the great number of options. Unlike Windows phone, where there is only one way to perform a task (if at all there is!), android provides a richer user experience in all departments. Suppose you... - 9 Optimizations to make your Linux Desktop fly like a Rocket! (28 Jun 2014)
This article is the result of notes I’ve prepared during tweaking, twisting and optimizing ubuntu variants over the last few years. In case you use any other distro, some of these settings may not be applicable to you. For best results, these changes must be done on top of a... - How to make your ubuntu machine thank you for its battery life! (21 Apr 2014)
Ever since I bought my Toshiba Dual-core Notebook and installed ubuntu on it, I was disappointed by the fact that how quickly it used to heat up and the battery started draining. Add to the equation, the Indian summer of 40 degrees Celsius plus, and you soon have your fans...