How to Boot Ubuntu Directly to Command Line
I’m in the process of setting up a dedicated machine for Dansguardian on my home network. I found a copy of Ubuntu 10.04 laying around, so I installed it onto the machine I’m intending to use. Obviously, I don’t need the GUI at all on the machine as it’s going to run headless anyway. It’s actually very simple to do this.
1. Edit /etc/default/grub with your favorite editor:
sudo vim /etc/default/grub
2. Find the following line:
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT=”quiet splash”
3. Change it to:
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT=”quiet splash text”
4. Finish up with:
sudo update-grub
Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Abort pclzip.lib.php : Missing zlib extensions error
I upgraded both my desktop and server to Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala from 9.04 last week. Today I came across an error uploading a zip file to be extracted using PHP:
Abort pclzip.lib.php : Missing zlib extensions
After some searching around (remember, in cases such as this, Google is your friend), I found a link to an ongoing discussion regarding this issue. Bottom line, there is a fix in the pipe to be released, but it’s still in “proposed” status. To get it you need to edit your sources list:
sudo vim /etc/apt/sources.list
Once you’ve opened the file, add the following two lines:
deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu karmic-proposed main restricted universe multiverse
deb-src http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu karmic-proposed main restricted universe multiverse
Save the file, then execute:
sudo aptitude update
Once you’ve done this, go to System->Administration->Update Manager, run the update, and viola, no more zlib error!
Now Is A Good Time To Switch From Windows
If you’re a prisoner user of Windows, now may be a good time to consider your options. Windows 7, as the successor to Windows Vista is currently called, is in various stages of beta testing. If you own new hardware, early tests indicate you should be able to upgrade with few problems from Vista to 7. However, if you’re like most individuals and businesses these days, you don’t have brand new hardware. You may even be like me, where most of your systems are still running XP. Five of the six machines I have running windows are still on XP. I do have one that’s stuck with Vista because it’s a cheap piece of trash laptop and the USB ports and DVD Rom no longer work due to heating issues. But I digress.
What are our chances of upgrading from XP to 7? Early tests indicate that they are not so good, regardless of Microsoft’s assurances that all will be ok. The “preferred” upgrade path from XP to 7, per Microsoft, is through Vista. Regardless of the obvious profit motivation for Microsoft to push this path, older hardware just doesn’t make the transition well.
So what do those of us with older hardware do? In this economy, very few of us can afford to invest in new hardware just to be ready for the latest version of Windows, and if history is any indicator, support for XP will be going away. We are either going to have to risk running an old (and soon to be) unpatched OS, or we’re going to have to invest in new hardware to run Windows 7. At least, these are the only options Microsoft wants you to have.
If you have the ability to invest in new hardware, it’s time to look at a Mac. I’ve never had the opportunity to own a Mac due to cost, but I have used one on occasion and it’s really nice. The underlying OS is rock-solid and the interface is user-friendly. If you can afford it, this is definitely the way to go.
But if you’re like me, new hardware just isn’t in the budget. What to do? In addition to the Windows machines, I also have two running Ubuntu Linux. It used to be that if you used Linux you were definitely a computer geek, because of all the gymnastics you had to go through to get it running. But these days it’s different. You can (legally) download an installation CD for Ubuntu Linux (or another distro, if you want) and boot from the CD to see how well it works with your hardware.
I have installed linux on several machines over the years, and the latest installations setup everything I’ve needed out of the box. Graphics cards, wireless, everything. Not only that, you also get several choices of office software comparable to MS Office. I sync my Blackberry Curve, watch movies, listen to music, basically everything I can do with Windows. All for the cost of a blank CD.
