Windows vs Ubuntu

I used Ubuntu almost exclusively for... had to be at least a year. Then I bought a laptop that I specifically made sure would run Ubuntu well, and it had a clean install of XP on it. I decided to give it another try. There are things that didn't work ideally in Ubuntu, some programs that wouldn't work outside of Windows.

Here's the breakdown of things in favor of XP:

Skype
Just works. On Linux sound issues were not uncommon. I just need it to work. If I'm needed on a Skype conference not being on could cost business.

Flash
Just works. On Linux it's not always the most up to date version, and some things work and some don't.

Digsby
I really like this program, and it doesn't work on Linux.

Surprises
Sometimes clients want me to join on Webex or use their VPN software or something where I either really need Windows or it will take some cleverness on my part. Prefer to play it safe than try to be clever.

See what others are seeing
We make websites. The majority of people use Windows, particularly IE. I need to see what others see before they see it, not as a small percentage of cross browser testing.

Blackberry software
Doesn't run on Linux and allows me to backup and load stuff onto my Blackberry.

Games, Quickbooks, etc
Some software just won't run on Linux.

I certainly have experienced things that are not ideal in XP:

Development
Setting up a dev server is too complicated.

Command line
Being able to do a lot of work from the CLI in Ubuntu is just great, and you know stuff will just be there.

Installing software and updates
Installing software in Ubuntu is insanely easy and doing updates is similarly easy.

Rebooting
Ubuntu doesn't tell you it's shutting down and then boot you out, either.

Slow downs, viruses, trojans, failures
Ubuntu isn't perfect, but honestly, XP just has a plague of problems compared to Ubuntu. The system will slow down, you'll have to battle viruses and trojans, and most lately my trackpad and eraser pointer are occasionally not working.


Next Steps
I'm cleaning up the machine. Erasing all the unnecessary files I had. Then backing up data I needed. I'll install Ubuntu and put VMWare on it to run XP. I'd like to make an image of my current system so I don't have to buy another license. Will look into that.

Iran, elections and visibility

It's no great surprise that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the actual leader of Iran, came back to say that the recent election was legitimate, even after he and the others of the ruling council scrutinized it. If they had said otherwise they would have been saying that they had been complicit in any wrong doings, since they control so much of the electoral process. He ordered the people of Iran not to protest, and said it couldn't have been rigged because of the huge difference in votes. Apparently he thinks it's possible to rig a small number of votes, but not a large one.

The central issue to this whole situation is not who got elected. Even if your candidate doesn't win, life usually goes on. It comes down to visibility, reliability, believability. The people of Iran don't have confidence in the honesty of their government. They don't trust them. There are no checks and balances, just orders to obey.

The people of Iran are smart and resourceful. Even without the benefit of knowing anything else about them, about their thousands of years of history, the infrastructure they've built in their country, or the passion and intellectual curiosity of it's people, it's clear that they're willing to risk being beaten horribly or worse to have a voice and to know that that voice is really heard, not just manipulated.

Iran is on the verge of revolution, and it has nothing to do with Jewish people (despite Khamenei's accusation), or America or any outside influence. If your people are revolutionary, militarily or otherwise (and Iranians are both militarily and otherwise) you should expect them to cause revolutions. Not including them, treating them like children, trying to force them to accept things and telling them they asked for it, is a really bad move.

looks like another Facebook virus is out. Either that or ppl are a lot friendlier with me than I had thought.

Billshrink (http://ping.fm/eBDEs), promoted on T-Mobile ads. Anyone try it? Reliable? Made recommendations to me to save thousands.

The Palm Pre

The ignorance surrounding smart phones is pretty huge. Most of what people know is from marketing and personal experience, and that generally limits them to whatever phone they have, and whatever they've figured out themselves.

I saw a review today for the Palm Pre that was no exception. It essentially assumed that now there are two smart phones in the world - the Palm Pre and the iPhone. And it didn't question features of the Palm Pre that are strange on the iPhone. No where in the review did we hear if the Pre has a removeable data card. That's a really big deal either way.

It mentions an app store for Pre, but not if it's possible to get apps elsewhere, as is standard with most phones, and allows for a lot more freedom.

Removeable battery? no idea.

The screen size is smaller than the iPhone but the existence of a real life keyboard, which the iPhone doesn't have, was glossed over and mentioned in passing like it was an aesthetic bump on the phone.

It has GPS. Can you get turn by turn directions? don't know.

For the record, I have a Blackberry. It does have a removeable data card and battery, I can download apps from wherever I like (and in fact ones for Nokia and other phones written in Java typically work for me), the keyboard makes using it for im and email very possible. And being able to switch between applications, as mentioned as a plus vs the Pre in the article, is normal behavior. I can read through emails while on a phone call and swich to my calendar and back while doing so. No biggee. And I could sync to Exchange and I do sync with GMail and Google Calendar and Contacts.

Engadet's in depth review is a lot better (http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/03/palm-pre-review/). It looks like the Pre is a big step forward in a lot of respects. It has some improvements to make, but it's a solid contender alongside Blackberry, iPhone, Windows Mobile, Nokia and the other smart phones out there.

It's definitely not a one product market, and we can be very happy for that. Expect price drops and feature improvements as these phones battle for market share.