Practical Technology

for practical people.

November 25, 2012
by sjvn01
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GNOME: Can this Linux desktop be saved?

Once upon a time, GNOME, along with KDE, ruled the Linux desktop. Then, in 2010, GNOME’s designers decided to ignore their users’ wishes and introduced a radically new desktop interface: GNOME 3.

Many users hated it. Not even two years later, even GNOME’s programmers were wondering if their interface was “staring into the abyss?” Now, GNOME developers have woken up and are offering a way for GNOME users to go back to a GNOME 2.x style interface.

But is it too little, too late? Will GNOME actually be offering a real, return-to-the-past desktop interface?

GNOME: Can this Linux desktop be saved? More >

November 23, 2012
by sjvn01
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Linux Foundation UEFI Secure Boot key for Windows 8 PCs delays explained

James Bottomley, Parallels’ CTO of server virtualization, well-known Linux kernel maintainer, and the man behind the Linux Foundation’s efforts to create an easy way to install and boot Linux on Windows 8 PCs with UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) Secure Boot enabled is sorry to report that “We’re still waiting for Microsoft to give the Linux Foundation a validly signed pre-bootloader.”

Despite the best efforts of Fedora, openSUSE, Ubuntu, and the Linux Foundation, booting Linux on UEFI Secure Boot Windows 8 PCs continues to be a problem . The easiest way to avoid Windows 8 lock-in is to disable UEFI Secure Boot from your system before it starts to boot. However, this option may not be available on all motherboard; isn’t available at all on Windows RT devices, such as the Surface; and is still troublesome even with Secure Boot disabled. So, it is that the struggle—and struggle it is—to create an easy to use, universal install and boot Secure Boot Linux installer continues on.

Linux Foundation UEFI Secure Boot key for Windows 8 PCs delays explained. More >

November 21, 2012
by sjvn01
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Best 7-inch tablets for Black Friday buyers

Many people love the full-sized iPad, but some of us, likes yours truly, prefer smaller, 7-inch tablets. Over the last few months, everyone, even Apple, has decided that small tablets are great. Since then, I’ve bought several of the latest and greatest and based on my own experiences here are my recommendations for what you should look for on Black Friday and, indeed, any other day of the year.

I prefer the smaller tablets because I find them to simply fit me better. For me, tablets are primarily for consuming data. I watch videos on them, I read books on them, I use them for Web-browsing, and I use them for e-mail. If you want to use a tablet for a work, you really want a full-sized tablet such as the iPad 4, Nexus 10, or a Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1. Me? I’ll use a laptop. For sheer enjoyment though give me a mini-tablet any day of the week.

Let’s get the bad news out of the way first. No one is really offering “deals” on any of the top 7″ tablets except for the Amazon Kindle Fire HD. For all the rest, expect to pay me full price. That said, you should look for bargains on such accessories as the microSD cards for more storage and cases.

Best 7-inch tablets for Black Friday buyers. More >

November 21, 2012
by sjvn01
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The Best Internet TV extender buys for Black Friday

There are Black Friday deals for Roku boxes, Apple TV, Boxee WD TV, and similar Internet TV media extenders, but guess what? They all list around $99 and, at most, their prices will be reduced to about $79 on Black Friday. Cutting your cable bill, however, will save you from $50 to $150 every month of the year. 

So, for the real money win, what you want to do is not focus so much on buying the cheapest device, but picking the ones that will give you the best service not just as a holiday present but all the year round. So, instead of wondering what in the world ever possessed you to stand in line at 4 in the morning in front of your local Best Buy or Wal-Mart, let’s work out the best way for you to cut the cable cord.

The Best Internet TV extender buys for Black Friday. More >

November 20, 2012
by sjvn01
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Linux Foundation support for booting Linux on Windows 8 PCs delayed

By design, Microsoft has made installing and booting Linux on Windows 8 PCs with UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) Secure Boot troublesome. Many of the major Linux distirbutors, including Fedora, openSUSE, and Ubuntu,  have proposed different ways of addressing this problem. The Linux Foundation, which supports all Linux, recently proposed a universal plan for addressing the UEFI Secure Boot issue. Unfortunately, it’s been delayed.

The plan was, as James Bottomley, Parallels‘ CTO of server virtualization and well-known Linux Kernel maintainer, explained on October 10th, 2012, to “obtain a Microsoft Key and sign a small pre-bootloader which will, in turn, chain load (without any form of signature check) a predesignated boot loader which will, in turn, boot Linux (or any other operating system).”

Linux Foundation support for booting Linux on Windows 8 PCs delayed. More >

November 18, 2012
by sjvn01
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What not to buy on Black Friday: Windows 8 PCs & laptops

I decided to take a break from Windows 8. I thought if I took a breather and then came back to Microsoft’s newest operating system on a brand new PC, an ASUS CM6830 with a 3.4GHz Intel Core i7 processor, NVIDIA GT 620 graphics, 8GBs of RAM, and a fast 7200 RPM 1TB hard drive, I might see something different. You’ll find this model, and dozens of others, at Best Buy and other retailers, for great prices on Black Friday. They all have only one problem: They’re all still running Windows 8 and it’s just as bad as  I remembered.

How do I hate thee Windows 8? Let me count the ways.

What not to buy on Black Friday: Windows 8 PCs & laptops. More >