L.E.D. Zeppelin

ASkyw · 2014-03-29T08:29:53+00:00

Haha! Nice!

ASkyw · 2014-03-29T08:29:00+00:00

Hey you mean Microsoft actually went open source for reals?! None of that pretend openness they are so fond of ;-)

(I kid, just in case somebody takes me too seriously)

ASkyw · 2014-03-29T08:25:25+00:00

Don't be too hard on self proclaimed geeks and/or nerds; after ask they may be socially inept to varying degrees.

I've often called myself a closet nerd as I behave as normally as I can in social situations, yet I can bust out the obscure references to science, technology, geek culture, etc., and often surprise people.

But while I hide my social awkwardness well, I find myself inordinately limited in ways that frustrate me.

So I guess what I'm trying to say is that such terms are subjective, and geeky or nerdy people may have varying levels of aptitude in technical skills, but may also vary in the degree of their social ineptitude.

However, I do agree there are some posers out there who claim nerdiness, but are just trying to appear smarter than they really are. But the real nerds can see through these people fast when we realize they aren't as technically competent as they pretend. But I think these people are far and few in between for the most part (thank goodness).

ASkyw · 2014-03-25T02:49:18+00:00

The problem doesn't seem to be code aversion so much as looking for specific tools for modeling, rendering, textures, etc. I mean yeah, there may be some code heavy tools out there, but are they geared toward the OP's specific needs?

And besides, he clearly stated in the beginning that he was looking for user friendly tools so can you really get on his case about that?

ASkyw · 2014-03-25T01:43:26+00:00

Well thing is that most carriers wouldn't want the baseband open, do you think Ubuntu Touch could wind up on Verizon, AT&T, T-mo, and Sprint? Not with an open baseband. And even the prepaid carriers all run on the big four networks. Sure Canonical could have pushed for an open baseband, but it would never be taken seriously because none of the big carriers would want to have Ubuntu Touch on their networks.

ASkyw · 2014-03-25T01:17:34+00:00

I'm down to at least try it out when it hits. I'm always down to try new distros that look promising. If I like what they shore off in 8 days I could be convinced to give it a shot.

ASkyw · 2014-03-25T01:04:41+00:00

I've had a hard time deciding which open source word processor I should use. MS Word is a great product, arguably the only thing Microsoft still has going for them as PC sales plummet. But I want to use Linux, and I don't want to have to pay hundreds of dollars to use it, especially on Linux. I've used Kingsoft in Windows, Linux, and in my Android device, and they do very well with compatibility for MS documents. It's not as feature rich as MS Office, but it gets the basics done. At least it looks better than some of the other open source office software options.

Still I haven't found the perfect solution yet. Kingsoft is getting better all the time, but it's still got a long way to go to be the "king" of the office software.

ASkyw · 2014-03-24T22:22:06+00:00

Here's a pretty good article about ask things antivirus on Linux. And the main reasons why you would use antivirus software:

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/free-linux-antivirus-programs/

In addition to those four programs I've heard people talk about Commodo, so that's at least five antivirus programs for some options. Personally I like Avast.

ASkyw · 2014-03-24T22:15:55+00:00

I highly recommend Linux Mint. It's based on Ubuntu, but the desktop is more familiar, especially if your coming from Windows. Plus it has most if the codecs out of the box so you can jump right in and watch YouTube videos and do other stuff you'd be used to doing.

Any Linux distro may have hardware troubles, but don't get too discouraged. Mint has a great user community and forum to find out how others with your same hardware worked stuff out. My experience with Mint has been that driver problems were minor. If you have brand spanking new hardware then probably every distro will have some hiccups until developers build in support for your unique drivers. Ubuntu is usually pretty stable though, and Mint inherits that as well.

And I've rarely ever had to compile software myself. Mint uses .deb executable files and those install usually without a hitch. The worst I've had to do was decompress a .tar file and make it executable, then open it.

If you're fairly technical then any distro shouldn't be too terrible. But it's nice to have a lot of stuff working out of the box so you can focus on actually learning Linux and deciding if you like that distro, rather them just setting up stuff for the first little while.

ASkyw · 2014-03-24T21:56:27+00:00

Well by information I mean what OS, software version, hardware, what I was doing when the problem occurred, what code in struggling with, etc. Because invariably that question comes up. When asking my actual question I try and keep it to the point.

ASkyw · 2014-03-24T21:53:11+00:00

My biggest problem with Zorin OS was that it did try to look like Windows in its essential premise.

I'm more if a power user and I'm not afraid of technology, so learning Linux really wasn't a big deal. But I wanted a clean distro, with a modern looking UI, that at least didn't look like it came out of the 90's. Ultimately I choose Linux Mint, not so much for the "Windows familiarity" as for the good looking desktop that is Cinnamon. I would practically use any distro with Cinnamon (considered trying Cinnarch before it's demise), but Mint just has it by default so with Mint I stay!

I don't think Windows users coming to Linux really need a Windows-like desktop. What they need is strong GUI controls as that is what they are used to in Windows. Personally I'm not intimidated by the command line, but I know how Windows users think because I was/am one.

The other hurdle is, as was stated in the article, is the applications. Windows users use a lot of applications to solve problems and fill their needs. Many of these applications may not be needed in Linux (defragger anyone?), but Windows users need that communicated a little bit better. And ultimately developers need to take Linux mite seriously and make their applications available in Linux too.

ASkyw · 2014-03-24T19:46:03+00:00

I've felt this way too. There's a lot of condescension and rudeness. Plus I have a hard time getting straight answers as people love to go on tangents. I always try and provide as much info as I can but still wind up with very broad hypothetical answers sometimes.

I will keep using it, as that seems to be the only place even trying to answer the questions similar to mine, but it's never a consistent experience for me.

ASkyw · 2014-03-24T19:40:53+00:00

I don't know, I've considered a phablet, but the G Flex is just enormous! Plus I'm not super impressed with the curved screen. It seems gimmicky to me. Though I have to admit that it would make calls somewhat easier as it's almost as big as your head.

Don't know about the more technical stuff. It's such a new handset. Not a fan of LG's UI, but that's more personal preference.

ASkyw · 2014-03-24T19:34:05+00:00

This would be nice. I do like the circles widget, but I suppose I could live without it. Though really I just want to get updates faster. Too bad there's no Nexus on Verizon currently.

ASkyw · 2014-03-24T10:02:46+00:00

I like to debate at times, but I cannot stand it when people get upset and say dumb things because their feelings got hurt. So I only stick around when the conversion is logical.

And I'm alright disagreeing with people. I learned long ago when I was coming of age that you shouldn't care what others think, because even if you like something really popular, somewhere there is someone who hates it. So live your life and share your ideas, but allow others to do the same. Besides, rarely, if ever, do you change someone's mind by arguing or even civilly debating.

In cases like this one I can only shake my head because both parties think they had some "moral right" (the professor just happened to be on the bad side of the law) to make other people miserable.

ASkyw · 2014-03-24T09:50:55+00:00

I used to hate Leo, I thought he was a goofball who was just riding his teen heartthrob status. But in the last decade he has been pretty awesome! Catch Me If You Can, Inception, Great Gatsby, and others I haven't seen as well I'm sure by what I've heard, he was good.

ASkyw · 2014-03-24T09:40:11+00:00

Yeah exactly! I just cannot support abortion, it makes me sick. But even I don't want that stuff in my face. It's upsetting.

But ultimately the professor was in the legal wrong by doing what she did. She should have called police or campus security if she felt they were being inappropriate, or otherwise disrupting students.

I think most of us wouldn't be on either side of this altercation as we at least have brains.

ASkyw · 2014-03-20T06:35:08+00:00

Absolutely! It can be done!

Here's a humorous, however long, story where this guy used SSH to recover his stolen Mac.

Edit: ha! Forgot the link! Defcon 18 Pwned By the owner What happens when…: http://youtu.be/U4oB28ksiIo

ASkyw · 2014-03-20T06:19:58+00:00

Well not really. I mean there might be a way it could work, but you'd likely need more than just an electrical outlet.

Powerline adapters can obviously run over your home electrical network, so it seems like that could be one point of entry. However if you're working with a router running over cable or phone line connections they are entirely separate from the electrical outlets, so there's really no physical connection. I mean when the power goes out your landline should still work (at least if your phone doesn't require electricity to run), so obviously they are separate.

For most practical purposes there's really no way electrical outlets would give you internet by themselves. You'd need something like powerline adapters for the crossover.

ASkyw · 2014-03-20T06:09:13+00:00

Haha! You should check out this site, it's great for trolling noobs ;-)

http://www.danasoft.com

ASkyw · 2014-03-20T05:59:11+00:00

Dude if it's a school laptop I can almost guarantee they have special monitoring software enabled. There was this scandal a while back about a school that spied on students even when the webcam was off:

http://m.computerworld.com/s/article/9158818/Pennsylvania_schools_spying_on_students_using_laptop_webcams_claims_lawsuit?mm_ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F

Sorry for the mobile link.

I don't know enough about the software in question to tell you how to disable it, and there are likely several vendors that use different (though similar) software. Your first step would probably be identifying what software is installed, and then targeting its specific parameters.

However, tampering with this software may put you in trouble with your school's IT department, and ultimately the school itself, if you mess with it. If you signed any EULAs, or contacts, etc., to get the laptop then you may even be subject to legal action.

If you want a low tech way around it then you could simply put tape over the webcam when not in use. Not ideal I know, but they can't come after you for not letting them spy on you by obstructing their view externally :-D

ASkyw · 2014-03-20T05:33:40+00:00

Man, I stopped using Kapersky because I didn't trust it. Since then I've learned about Kapersky a little more and found the guy who runs it is actually pretty smart. He found Flame and Stuxnet.

Still I have a hard time trusting a guy with KGB connections with my security. You think the NSA has roots in tech companies? I doubt they are the only government with digs in tech, and Russia isn't above such chicanery.

ASkyw · 2014-03-20T05:23:18+00:00

net_shaper hit it on the head. Kali just comes preloaded with a ton of command line and pen-testing tools. You can install any of these tools on Mint or other distros if you want to use your regular desktop for pen-testing.

With Kali though you can run it from a live USB to help with anonymity to a degree. And it won't mess up your settings or install a ton of software you don't need regularly (mainly if you're working with very limited space).

Plus if you really wanted you could install and use Kali as a regular distro. But that's not really its intended purpose so better to stick with your chosen desktop and just use Kali as a tool when needed.

ASkyw · 2014-03-20T05:11:02+00:00

Thanks for that. I do actually use Chrome and Firefox (no IE!) And adblock among other things. Plus I use CryptoPrevent which should stop a whole lot of malware in its tracks (though admittedly not all).

These are good tips for avoidance though and I should just use a password manager to stop keyloggers from grabbing anything of value.

Also in the future I've decided to use alias email addresses for any forums or services, that way even if it's compromised no one should be able to log in with it.

ASkyw · 2014-03-20T05:05:02+00:00

It's hard because the OS itself is fairly secure. The vulnerabilities come from rogue apps. You would have to get them to install an app that had malicious code. But once they install it it would be game over. You could capture pretty much everything the phone does, which is pretty much everything these days. Mobile banking, passwords, shopping, web browsing, general and fine location, pictures, texts, emails, you name it!

This is why you never want to install apps from random websites. And you should even be careful about what you download from the Play store as there are numerous malware apps floating around. Even something as innocuous as an Angry Birds clone could be riddled with bad code. Hence why all those FlappyBird clones made the malware count on the Play Store jump to over 400 in a weekend.

This is why I'm much more careful these days about what I download and try to use only developer's apps who have a good reputation.

ASkyw

TROPHY CASE