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Comment LXDE, XFCE are "a little too light-weight" ? (Score 1) 403

my whole workflow is based on the quaintly named "classic desktop model" where screens and windows don't magically resize and change position (...) I'd switch to LXDE or XFCE, but they're a little too light-weight for my taste

What does "a little too light-weight" mean? Something like JWM or icewm?**

LXDE has a useful set of features and it won't waste your time with unwanted "special effects". If you really are frustrated by the barkers at the KDE-Gnome-Mate-Cinnamon desktop carnival, I suggest that you try Debian LXDE or even Lubuntu.

The configurable simplicity of LXDE is the main reason to use it. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_X_window_managers)

One of the main reasons why the Debian folks switched from Gnome to XFCE was that they couldn't fit Gnome on a CD anymore. The fact that the market is abandoning optical disks in favour of USB/SDHC booting doesn't mean that I want KDE/Gnome bloat.

**Disclaimer: I use icewm on my Raspberry Pi(s). The icewm DE light, simple, and easy to understand. Oh yeah, and the R.Pi won't run much else very well anyway. (o;

Comment Recommend that you keep reading /. (Score -1, Flamebait) 165

"Due to being in a relationship with a comics geek"

This must mean that you are a girl who enjoys basement lodging. Therefore, your post is false and was either submitted by a program that won the Turing Test or by a CIA operative.

It's 2014 and Slashdot is full of Golden-Age Comics.

Comment Re:Depending on the platform, there are some optio (Score 2) 319

I use Seamonkey with Adblock Plus and No Script. I also block all third party cookies. I'm also considering adding Ghostery to the mix. This takes care of most of the trackers, cookies, ads, etc.

Not Ghostery -- it has a dubious mission and works by parsing lists that are growing longer by the week. Try the Request Policy extension for Firefox. Request Policy is simpler. It blocks off-site requests and shows you a list of what each site is requesting. You'll learn just how much tracking is happening and you may begin to avoid sites that you used to trust.

The latest Firefox has a "click to play" feature. Type "about:config" and search for "click_".

I have not used Linux on a desktop in years, and I am yet to touch Windows 8, so I can't comment there.

I prefer Linux on my desktop in every way. Just don't buy Nvidia and Broadcom hardware. Linux provides the tools that show exactly what your computer is doing. Debian 7 is excellent.

Windows 8, like ChromeOS, ties your computer to an e-mail account. Stay away.

Comment Agree with Free as in Libre. But I got an RP... (Score 4, Insightful) 246

We're in the golden age for software development. I prefer an "open" solution like the Beagleboard but I received an R.Pi v2 for free and have made it part of my low-power dev environment. I'll describe this environment for the amusement of ye 'dotters.

I installed a $10 hardware clock in the R.Pi and I power the it with a spare power cord from an Amazon Kindle.

I run Raspbian (Debian) with Icewm DE. I use the R.Pi for coding (Java, C++, Perl, Go) and I push Mercurial updates to a code repo on a Sheevaplug running Debian Wheezy. The Sheevaplug's power supply had failed (typical problem, melted capacitors) but I wired the mainboard to an AC adaptor from a USB hub.

I've overclocked the R.Pi to 900MHz. This isn't enough CPU to browse the Internet directly from the R.Pi with Iceweasel/Firefox, but Midori and NetSurf work well enough. On a Pogoplug V2 (running Debian, you see the pattern here), I have lighttpd and a Perl program that fetches and summarises RSS feeds for me. I can view the RSS summary from the R.Pi using NetSurf or Midori. (Dillo doesn't do tables well.)

When I need to do Web research that requires Flash or special plug-ins, I use rdesktop to connect to a VM instance of Firefox (M-Windows XP or Debian) installed on an AMD box running VMware ESXi server. ESXi server is free.

I have all this running with an APC battery back-up. The APC unit can run for some time with only the ARM kit to power. I have another APC UPS feeding my modem, router, and assorted switches.

It's a versatile dev environment and it didn't cost much. None of it would be possible without Linux. I'll say it again: this is a golden age for software developers.

Comment Re:It wont do much, but at least register interest (Score 1) 955

True. This isolated case would be a breach of privacy. But all of them combined (wars for oil, prosecution of foreign nationals in foreign countries, killings of civilians, etc) would certainly be enough to put them all in jail for life.

As for guns, your police and armed forces have more of them,

Not my police. I'm happy I'm not an American. There was a time (pre-9/11) when I thought the U.S. would be an awesome place to live. I even visited the MIT to check the place before taking a decision. Then 9/11 happened and your government used it as an excuse to invade some countries and become a police state.

I moved to Japan instead.

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