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Links 05/02/2023: Pakistan Blocks Wikipedia, Musharraf Dies



  • GNU/Linux

    • Desktop/Laptop

    • Audiocasts/Shows

      • Going LinuxGoing Linux #436 €· Welcome to Linux! Pt7 - How Can Linux Be Free?

        Question: I want to use Linux but it's free and I've heard, "'Free' is not a viable business model." How can I put my trust in a Linux operating system if the developers don't charge for it? Answer: Offering substantial products and services that provide value for free only becomes a financial problem when the developer has no other revenue source to support the free product. Here is how Linux accomplishes that.

        Episode Time Stamps
        00:00 Going Linux #436 €· Welcome to Linux! Pt7 - How Can Linux Be Free?
        02:16 The question: Free isn't a valid business model. How can open source software be provided at no charge?
        04:12 Microsoft's business model
        06:07 Google's business model
        06:32 The Killed By Google list
        07:40 Add-ons and 'crapware' to provide some missing features in Windows
        11:14 Offering free software is not unusual
        11:44 Examples of free Linux distributions backed by businesses with solid revenue models
        14:12 How open source software features are made available for other open source software to adopt
        17:13 Why Linux is not going away!
        18:53 Linux provides significant value to its users
        22:06 Not everything that's free is bad
        25:59 Switching to Linux is much like switching to macOS, Windows, or ChromeOS
        26:47 Linux fights planned hardware obsolescence
        28:29 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe
        29:30 End

    • Applications

      • PC LinuxExploring LXQt: A Basic Guide, Part 1

        Last year, I dabbled with LXQt on our old laptop (a secondary machine) but I had not taken an in-depth look at it until recently. I read the announcement about the release of LXQt version 1.2.0 -- on Nov. 5, 2022. Shortly thereafter, forum member daniel (Daniel Meiß-Wilhelm) created a Community LXQt 2022.11 .iso which incorporates the newest LXQt release. My curiosity was piqued, so I downloaded it, made a Live USB flash drive and installed the .iso on a spare partition of our Lenovo ThinkCentre M800 desktop computer. I would like to thank Daniel for sharing his remastering skills with the PCLinuxOS community.

        My knowledge has expanded since I have been using LXQt almost exclusively for the past month. Thus far, I am impressed by LXQt; I find it comfortable enough that it could become my sole daily driver. It is a lightweight desktop environment that is useful for older PCs with limited resources. LXQt is visually appealing, feels responsive and strikes a balance between lightness and usability. Another advantage for "set-it-and-forget-it" users is that LXQt lacks the sometimes confusing multitude of configuration options in KDE Plasma.

        If you are just starting with LXQt, I hope you will find these tips helpful and that they will save you some time as you explore the desktop environment.

      • PC LinuxRepo Review: SSVNC-Viewer

        Today I will talk about the lightweight and versatile VNC client, SSVNC Viewer, which is in the PCLinuxOS repos.

        SSVNC Viewer is the work of Karl Runge. Karl Runge worked on the LibVNCServer/LibVNCClient libraries and implemented a VNC server (the x11vnc) and the SSVNC-Viewer client.

        The author, Karl Runge, however, disappeared around 2011, and there is currently no news about him.

      • PC LinuxRepo Review: Koodo Reader

        Koodo Reader is a modern and feature-rich ebook reader powered by Electron. It offers support for Epub, Mobipocket, Kindle, PDF, HTML, and numerous other common ebook and document formats. It is also ideal for use in study work, as you can easily highlight and annotate text in any document.

        Sporting a modern and well designed user interface, Koodo Reader is quick and easy to use. It also has optional support for touchscreen gestures and usage. A dark interface mode can be enabled for reading books at night as well.

    • Instructionals/Technical

      • TecAdmin20 Basic Linux Commands for the Beginners (Recommended)

        In this tutorial, we’ll cover 20 of the most essential Linux commands that every system administrator should know. These commands are the building blocks of many common tasks, and with a good understanding of them, you’ll be able to accomplish a lot on your Linux servers.

      • Kushal Das: Using YubiKeys for your linux system

        You can use your Yubikey 4 or 5 for the rest of the tutorial.

        Why?

        If you mark your Yubikey presence is required to unlock your computer, then one not only needs your password, they will have to gain physical access to your Yubikey.

      • Linux CapableHow to Install balenaEtcher on Fedora Linux

        balenaEtcher is a popular and open-source tool used to create bootable USB drives. Its user-friendly interface is a preferred tool for many Fedora users. If you are new to Fedora, this guide will help you understand how to install BalenaEtcher on your system and get started with creating bootable USB drives. W

      • Linux CapableHow to Install WoeUSB on Ubuntu 22.04 or 20.04

        WoeUSB is a free, open-source tool that allows you to create bootable Windows USB sticks from ISO images. This tool is handy for those who want to install Windows on their Ubuntu machine or for those who want to create a bootable Windows USB stick for use on other devices.

      • Light Blue TouchpaperSecurity economics course

        Back in 2015 I helped record a course in security economics in a project driven by colleagues from Delft. This was launched as an EDX MOOC as well as becoming part of the Delft syllabus, and it has been used in many other courses worldwide.

      • Linux CapableHow to Install GIMP on Rocky Linux EL9 or EL8

        GIMP, also known as the GNU Image Manipulation Program, is a powerful and versatile open-source image editing software. It offers a range of features and capabilities that rival commercial image editing software such as Adobe Photoshop, making it a popular choice among graphic designers, photographers, and digital artists.

      • Linux CapableHow to Install OnlyOffice on Rocky Linux EL9 or EL8

        OnlyOffice is a comprehensive online office suite that offers a range of powerful tools for teams to collaborate and work efficiently. Its history dates back to 2010 when the development of OnlyOffice started with the aim of providing a better alternative to traditional office suites.

      • PC LinuxInkscape Tutorial: Design A Mandala

        I go on YouTube regularly to try to learn more about GIMP & Inkscape. Recently, I found another channel called IronEcho Design, and he had a couple of videos about creating a mandala. Mandalas are symmetrical geometric designs and are getting a bit more popular. They can be simple lines, or more complicated. I got these first two from Pixabay.

      • PC LinuxPDF Part 3B: Manipulating PDF Files, Command Line Style

        I began the series of articles about PDF files in the October 2022 issue. In that article, we talked about creating PDF files. Then, in the November 2022 issue, we talked about editing PDF files. In the January 2023 issue, we talked about how to use various GUI tools to manipulate PDF files.

        This article represents what I plan to be the last article in the series. In this one, we'll look at using some of the many command line tools available for manipulating PDF files. While I know that there are many users who avoid the command line like the proverbial plague, these command line tools are exceptionally easy to use. They are definitely the fastest way to manipulate PDF files, too. These tools follow the do-one-job-and-do-it-well philosophy that is so common for so many Linux utilities.

  • Distributions and Operating Systems

  • Free, Libre, and Open Source Software

    • Programming/Development

      • Geeks For GeeksMerge Sort Tree with point update using Policy Based Data Structure

        A Merge Sort Tree (MST) is a data structure that allows for efficient querying of the number of elements less than or equal....

      • Andrew HelwerTwo C++ bugs I wrote

        Here's a short post about two bugs I wrote while writing C++ code for the external scanner of my TLA⁺ tree-sitter grammar. External scanners use handwritten C or C++ code to parse the non-context-free parts of your language. I'll try not to dump on C++ too hard but both of the bugs are highly ridiculous and exemplify why I hope to write as little of the language as possible for the rest of my career.

      • Bryan LundukeFunny Programming Pictures Part XXII

        Ok. Not ALL of them are about programming...

  • Leftovers

    • The Straits TimesSixteen killed, dozens injured in China highway pile-up

      Nearly 50 vehicles were involved in multiple collisions along a highway in Hunan province within the span of 10 minutes.

    • The Straits TimesSouth Korea searches for missing crew after fishing boat capsizes

      Nine people were missing while three crew members were picked up by rescuers.

    • Ruben SchadeThe Independent Singapore’s “friend zone” article

      The Independent Singaporeposted a guest articleby someone offering advice for those caught in thefriend zone, a mental space where someone’s unrequited feelings are a source of resentment. Instead, it offers a cautionary tale.

      We hung out and things seemed to flow so naturally that when she mentioned that she needed a place to stay – I invited her in. I was, as they say, a helpless romantic. But once she moved into the flat, I got “friend-zoned.”

      If he wasn’t upfront with his feelings, she saw a friend offering help.

      However, she was troubled and while she did honour her two promises to me (This was back in the Asian Financial crisis and I lent her 2,000 GBP for her school fees and got her to promise that she would do well in her career. In fairness, she paid back what she owed and if the profile I saw was really her – she seems to have done well), she had some funny ideas of what friendship meant.

      This exposes the fundamental mistake friend zoners make.Love isn’t a transaction.

      Being an honourable, caring person can surface feelings, but they can’t magic them into existence. The truth comes out with empathy: would you develop feelings for someone you don’t feel that way about if they took you to dinner or bought you a nice phone? Would you… want it to work like that?

  • Gemini* and Gopher

    • Personal

      • I Can Smoke Weed Again!

        I was an off-and-on cannabis user from my mid teens through my early 30s. But then something changed. I couldn't smoke without becoming paranoid, jumpy, and emotionally distraught. It's possibly noteworthy that I was also well into a decade+ of severe untreated depression by then. So I quit. My body and psychology are obviously saying "don't do this", so I wasn't gonna do it. I tried a few times between 2013 and 2023, but I always had the same terrible experience.

      • 🔤SpellBinding: YILNPSD Wordo: BLUES

* Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It's like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter.



Recent Techrights' Posts

Confirmed in the Mainstream Media: A Lot of Microsoft "Workloads" Were Just LLM Slop (Helping to Fake Growth for Years, as Microsoft Had Paid "Open" "AI" to Become a "Client") and Demand is Rapidly Waning, Datacentres Canceled and/or Shut Down
Anything to facilitate further accounting fraud
Taiwan's Media Covers Closure of Microsoft's "AI" Lab, It's Time to Talk About the Gradual Death of Windows and Implosion of the "AI" Bubble
Earlier this week we showed that mostly Asian media had the 'nerve' to mention Microsoft silently shutting down its 'AI' lab
More Gains for GNU/Linux, Based on Web Surveys
the Steam site shows rapid growth for "Linux" this month
 
Gemini Links 04/04/2025: Decoupling Updates, Elaho as Gemini Client
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, April 03, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, April 03, 2025
Microsoft's Trouble in Africa and Asia
A new all-time high for GNU/Linux
Brett Wilson LLP Reported to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)
The saddest thing in all this is that law firms can maintain high standards shall they wish to
Links 03/04/2025: Tariff Pains and C.D.C. Cuts
Links for the day
StatCounter: Microsoft is Masking a Disaster, It's Way Behind DeepSeek Already and Interest in LLMs Has Waned
it turns out the money "raised" for "Open" "AI" may not even exist at all
Links 03/04/2025: SoftBank Money for Microsoft "Open" "AI" Probably Doesn't Even Exist, Wikimedia Foundation Blasts LLM Nuisance While Microsoft Admits Demand Has Shrunk
Links for the day
Gemini Links 03/04/2025: Patch Panel and Pictures
Links for the day
Islamic Republic of Iran: GNU/Linux at All-time High This Month, Windows Falls to 12%
Vista 10 is up this month despite being "end of life" (EoL) soon
Indonesia: All-Time Highs for GNU/Linux
What's noteworthy right now is the growth of GNU/Linux
statCounter Says GNU/Linux Usage is Up Again (Internationally)
some preliminary April data
Only on April 1st Can the Free Software Foundation Associate With Microsoft's Open Source Initiative (OSI)
We saw some pranks that day linking the FSF to Microsoft (e.g. "endorsing" Windows)
IBM Gets Rid of Kelly Chambliss as Mass Layoffs Reported in IBM Consulting, IBM Loses Key Contracts/Graft
IBM Consulting has been in disarray lately
Slopwatch: Anti-Linux Articles, Not Even Written by Humans
Why aren't Web sites more vocal about this problem?
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, April 02, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, April 02, 2025
Links 03/04/2025: Apple Fined Over Secret Surveillance, "Elegant Writer For A More Civilized Age"
Links for the day
Gemini Links 02/04/2025: Books and Cold Tea
Links for the day
Links 02/04/2025: More Layoffs, Nokia Again Takes Advantage of Illegal and Unconstitutional Patent Court With Nokia Staff as 'Judges'
Links for the day
Links 02/04/2025: Seizures and Returns to Windows of 24 Years Ago
Links for the day
LLM Slop Helps Obscure and Distort News About Layoffs (IBM, GAFAM)
It's hard to find accurate information
Links 02/04/2025: Microsoft Developers Are Threatening to Go on Strike, World Backup Day Noted
Links for the day
Gemini Protocol Has Growing Appeal (the Web Got Too Bloated and Full of LLM Slop)
For any "data plan" with bandwidth limits or "tiers" it would be cheaper to use/browse Geminispace
The Web Can Survive LLM Slop, But Only If We Collectively Shun and Discourage Serial Sloppers
Doing nothing ought not be a possibility
Amid Secret Shut-downs and Mass Layoffs at Microsoft (4 Waves of Layoffs in 3 Months of 2025) Some Microsoft Staff Expected to Go On Strike
workers going on strike
Gemini Links 02/04/2025: No more on Mastodon and Gemini Mention Script in Go
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, April 01, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, April 01, 2025
My Motion Disbarring or “Striking Off” Brett Wilson LLP for Enabling Violent Americans Who Try to Crush Microsoft Critics in the United Kingdom by Multiple SLAPPs
"Guns for hire" (for Microsoft people who received Microsoft salaries)
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Hijacked Again by Patent Litigation Industry, as President Cheeto Prioritises Aggressors
The "mafia" has taken over the "industry" and the Federal system (justice and constitutions trampled upon)
Ubuntu Slop and FUD Manufactured With LLMs and Funded (by Oneself) 'Studies'
Slop and FUD are ruining the Web