PicarOS Diego 2015: My Impression so far

PicarOS Diego, a derivative of GalPON MiniNO aimed at children, is simply the best system for kids.   It is packed with all kinds of tools for education and leisure, and it also works as a full production system for adults.  I've used it countless times in my classes and my students are always amused and impressed by the visual design of this friendly OS.

My only two problems so far:

1.  VLC refuses to display .srt subtitles.

I've tried all I've read on the Internet to no avail.  I think it is a bug in the specific version of VLC that PicarOS comes with.  Fortunately, SMPlayer solves the problem, so I'll be using SMPlayer for the time being.

2.  There is no lockscreen feature.

To me, this is a very necessary function.  I know that I can always leave my session, but that is not useful if I am working on something and I have to leave my computer on while leaving for a moment.

Fortunately, I could solve that issue.  The steps for enabling Screenlock were not difficult, but they were quite a few.  I'll post the method later, when I get to my PicarOS system.

Apart from those two issues, I must say that I'm very happy and satisfied with this OS.  PicarOS is an impressive system!  

Linux for Children at Its Best: PicarOS Diego 2015 Is HERE!

Great news! PicarOS Diego, a special remix of GalPon MiniNo aimed at children, is here in its version 2015!

The changes have been many.  You may read them here.



I cannot say much right now because I am downloading it.  The ISO is 3.2 GB so it will take a bit.  For the time being, this part of the novelties caught my eye:

• Updated launcher to create our own custom PicarOS LiveDVD with just one mouse click.

• It includes a program to recover deleted files from memory cards, USB flash drives or hard drives damaged or accidentally formatted files. It is very easy to use and very powerful, because you can use three different engines and merge results.

Who says this OS is just for children?  I've found it extremely powerful (and now I'm eager to try those new features above)

Later on, I'll be posting again.

Thanks a lot, MiniNO and PicarOS devs!  You are the best!

Multiboot Fun!

I bought yesterday the Humble Bundle 15 because all its games are available for Linux.

The problem was that while trying to install one game, my system warned me that I was running out of space.

Fortunately, I have a lot of unallocated space on that hard drive...at the end of my seven partitions.  (Yes, seven!  And I use each one of those systems!)

I decided to move some of the unused space to my gaming partition, but to do that I had to move 5 partitions to the right...and among those was the partition that loads GRUB.

Last time I did something similar, I messed up GRUB and my laptop would not boot; thus, I tried to be more careful.  I replaced my current GRUB with the one of the first partition. Then, I moved the empty space to the left, one partition at a time, until it was next to the partition I wanted to enlarge.  I then resized the partition, but I did not use all the unallocated space (just in case).  Finally, I replaced GRUB with the one I had before starting the whole experiment.

Fortunately, everything worked.  I understand that was a risky operation and that seasoned users would have a lot of much better methods.

Well, even if I am not so experienced, I could find a way to do it, and that makes me happy!  :) 

For Those Who Love Market Share...

September's market share numbers are out.  According to Netmarketshare, these are the figures:

It is very interesting to see that Linux has surpassed Vista.  But where are the "tech journalists"?  Why nobody has mentioned it so far?  Whenever a new version of Windows climbs over Vista, these journalists always blow their trumpets...

Windows 10 climbed from 5.21% in August to 6.63% in September.  A 1.42% gain for an OS that is virtually pushed to most computers does not seem quite good, at least to me.  I'm sure that Windows fans and Windows-friendly tech journalists will see it differently.

Still, Windows 10 must make twice its marketshare if it wants to equal XP's current one.  It seems that the adoption rate of Microsoft's new Trojanwarhorse has not been as fast as they would have expected.

How did I Spend Software Freedom Day?

The answer to that question is one word:

FREE!!

Free from viruses
Free from surveillance
Free from malware
Free from local-file gobblers
Free from keyloggers
Free from atrocious license prices
Free from pirated software
Free from crackers
Free from restrictive, non-inclusive document formats
Free from backdoors

ODF Is Becoming more Visible in My University!

My university has approved ODF for institutional use.  Still, resistance from the administrative staff, educators and students has become an obstacle in the generalized adoption of the open format.  Their reluctance to embrace ODF comes mainly from laziness and ignorance, not from a real advantage of using MS Office or its format.

Something that really bothered me was that, in spite of the university's position toward ODF, an online application for filling out our schedule affidavit only exported the data to .xslx, .docx or .pdf.

Apparently, many workers had trouble with that application and that resulted in a hiatus of the system while it was revised and improved.  Meanwhile, we were asked to download a file, print it and fill it out manually.

When I clicked on the link directing me to the file, I was surprised.  Instead of .xslx I saw .xsl AND .ods!

I also noticed a box for sending suggestions and complaints to human resources. "Well...It's time to say something!", I said to myself.  I sent a short message congratulating the ones in charge for making .ods available and also asked them to include that format in the new version of the online application, pointing out to the compatibility issues of .xslx.

Today, I received an e-mail from human resources.  The person in charge thanked me for my suggestion and said that they are working to "provide the appropriate tools for the university community."

Hopefully, that means that .ods will be available for exporting our data when we use the revised application. The fact that the current files for download are .ods and .xls instead of OOXML could mean that.  Let's see.

Little by little, ODF is becoming more visible in my university!

Methods to Activate Windows 10...

As several said before the release of Windows 10, the OS was not quite ready for prime time.  Some even say it's of alpha/beta quality and that MS is treating Windows 10 users as beta testers.  Others just realized Microsoft wants to do some massive data mining and now think of Windows 10 as a sophisticated keylogger with a GUI.  Well, the EULA stated that, didn't it?

All the privacy concerns aside, a new "feature" of the new OS seems not to accept the activation code.  That's a big problem if you need to activate your software to use your computer, say, for work...especially if you have deadlines to meet.

Now, the articles about the issue pretty much say the same: you must go back to your previous OS, then perform a clean install, and then cross your fingers.  Do they expect every regular user who experiences this to do all that?  And just how much time will that take?

Another solution: waiting.  It's so funny that first MS urged everyone to download and install the update (it is not an upgrade) and now they tell them to wait. How can people put up with all that?  Where are the Linux detractors who said that Linux was hard to install and work with?

I have the gut feeling that when Windows 10 malware hits, it will do it in a way we can't imagine (and there are even those who already call Windows 10 malware!) 

Although the information for activating Windows 10 in the articles is the same, the comments provide more information and are not to be missed.  Some of them will surely make you laugh...unless you are experiencing the bug, I guess.

Some users suggest the most amazing methods to activate your Windows 10 license.  They are worth trying.  Here are some I collected from Softpedia:

Something I thank Windows 10 for:  It has apparently made some Windows users recover their sense of humor! (and maybe the world will be a better place after so many people develop the patience of a saint!)

Good luck!