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To Ubuntu or not to Ubuntu; that is the question.
vtsteam:
It was SmallTalk that was the first to introduce the whole package together -- it was Xerox. I think they might have used some of the concepts of Turtle Logo. I remember reading about it in Byte at the time. Then Apple came out with the Lisa that used Smalltalk I believe.
Interestingly one of the principal philosophies of SmallTalk besides the mouse, etc. was to absolutely get rid of "modes."
Modes occurred according to the originators, when a keyboard for instance re-mapped keys under certain circumstances. Edit mode, Graphics mode, that kind of thing. Keys suddenly did something different depending on the mode. This was proven to be problematic, and error producing, and required memorization, varied between programs, and slowed throughput and intuitive use of a program.
While computer OS designers were quick to adopt from SmallTalk the physical aids of modern, GUI's they often didn't understand the problem of modes, or forgot that part of the original design concept. So we had a rapid return to program, keyboard, and even mouse click modes, sometimes simply dressed up as menu items in dropdown lists, but modes nonethless. This is particularly apparent in CAD's -- probably some of the most conservative programming of any type.
vtsteam:
--- Quote from: DavidA on May 21, 2014, 08:15:09 AM ---Pete.
You just (single) click on the 'browser' icon and you are in a place very similar to Firefox. Bookmarks etc are all very similar.
I'm still marveling at the speed this system boots up.
Dave.
--- End quote ---
It's fast because all the bloat has been removed from programs and OS -- enough so that everything can be loaded into memory at once at boot-up. Memory is hundreds of times faster than a hard drive. So instead of constantly reading program segments from your HD, it's already in memory. This is why if you're running off of the CD, once Puppy Linux loads up, you can remove the CD. It doesn't need it any more. Or you can use the CD drive for other things, like playing music or watching a movie.
There are MANY extremely innovative and interesting things about Puppy Linux that make it unique, even in the Linux world. I spent a couple years just exploring and appreciating the innovations it can provide and the flexibility you have with it. It's a brilliant creation by one Aussie, Barry Kauler. You don't need to study it to use it normally, but if you do get interested in it, it's pretty fascinating how it works, and what it can do.
I once wrote a version called MediaPup for older computers -- kinda outdated now, but It was keyed toward editing videos, DVD authoring, music, and graphics. The idea was you just popped it into any computer, ran off the CD and had a full media studio suite f programs. When done editing Take the CD back out and continue on in Windows, Linux, whatever.
These days I like running Cinelerra for video editing on Linux. I often boot into Precise Puppy to do that (my computer can boot into any number of Puppy Linux varieties as well as Win 7 -- with a frugal install, a version of puppy linux takes up only 100-150 megabytes of HD space, and they can all be booted to -- so you could have 25 varieties of the OS in under 3 gigs of HD space -- not that I'd want to!!) The ubuntu version of Cinelerra seems to run the best -- and the Precise Puppy can access and use Ubuntu repositories and programs.
DavidA:
Something related to this subject.
A I mentioned, I have a broadband cable straight into my computer.
Now, I need to run three computers of the incoming line, but I don't like the idea of using a radio hub. So I suppose the other rout is to set up my computers on a LAN. Taking out the single broadband LAN cable and swapping it around is not a good thing to do.
I have never had anything to do with LANs, but I believe that you set up one computer as a server and this machine has to be running all the time you wish to use the others.
Is this correct, and has anyone done it ?
Dave.
mattinker:
I have several outputs on my DSL box, not enough so I have an additional hub.
TV and up to five computers all running of the same line. I rarely need more than three computers at the same time, but I never unplug anything!
Regards, Matthew
vtsteam:
David, you need a router. -- Or you can use a computer as a router, as you are suggesting.
Basically you set up a local network to the router (a LAN), and the router connects to the Internet (the wide area network or WAN).
The router (or computer acting as a router) makes the connection between the LAN and WAN -- basically passes information from one to the other. The router looks like a single computer (address) to the Internet. The Local area network has a large number of addresses (well as many as you have devices on it). The computers in the LAN can communicate with each other directly over the LAN. The router can also have a firewall in it to protect the LAN from attacks over the WAN.
Many wireless cable modems actually consist 1.) a modem to receive and decode signals from the WAN 2.) a router that connects a LAN to the WAN, 3.) a firewall to protect the LAN, and 4.) a wireless transmitter receiver to communicate with wireless devices connected to the LAN.
And many actually have several slots for wired devices on the LAN, not just one -- so they can accommodate several computers that don't actually have wireless capability. So it's often possible to hook up several computers via network cables and ignore the wireless capability.
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