Going Linux

Not every Linux distro is the same, but many have very similar features and applications. In today's episode we review Ubuntu MATE from the perspective that it is a typical modern Linux distro for the average user. Episode 323 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #323 · Ubuntu MATE: A Typical Linux Distribution 00:15 Introduction 00:45 Ubutu MATE: A distribution for everyone 02:27 A typical modern Linux distribution 03:35 Modern and full-featured 04:07 Pre-configured, yet flexible 04:32 Security built-in 05:13 An official flavor of Ubuntu 08:26 Applications provided by the MATE desktop 09:00 File browser: Caja 09:34 Text editor: Pluma 10:08 Archive manager: Engrampa 11:08 Image viewer: Eye of MATE 11:30 Document viewer: Atril 11:50 MATE System Monitor 12:08 MATE Terminal 12:31 Control Center 15:45 Applications provided by the Ubuntu MATE distribution 16:11 Ubuntu MATE Welcome 18:51 Web browser: Firefox 19:10 Mail: Thunderbird 20:01 Office suite: Li

Our listeners ask about Wifi issues, Ubuntu's changes, trackball configuration and more. We get comments on a password manager and on installing Linux on an HP Stream. Episode 322 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #322 · Listener Feedback 00:15 Introduction 00:52 Episode Delay 01:43 Harold: Wifi problems 05:43 Greg: Password Safe and Dropbox 07:45 Ambrose: More wifi problems 12:52 Billy: How long will it take Ubuntu to get back on track? 16:27 Bob: The trackball, continued 19:29 Ambrose: Responds 22:36 Sebastien: Needs help 28:51 David: MATE Rocks! 32:19 App pick: Simplenote 34:44 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe 35:48 End

Bill has taken the time to review Sabayon Linux once again. He revises his score, gives some specific examples, plus and minus. Episode 321 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #321 · Sabayon Revisited 00:15 Introduction 01:46 Bill needs a new desktop computer: build or buy? 04:57 Larry's upgrade to Ubuntu MATE 17.04 07:36 Sabayon revisited 08:46 System resource usage is quite low 09:57 What is Sabayon? 10:53 Sabayon facts 12:57 Package Manager: Rigo 13:59 Pros and cons 15:30 Rolling release 18:45 System requirements 21:03 Sabayon community 21:59 Rant: KDE! 22:49 Replacing KDE with Cinnamon 23:44 5 Official versions 25:37 Recommendation 28:46 Applications available 31:37 Bill's new rating for Sabayon 33:14 Ubuntu MATE or Linux Mint still better for a new Linux user 36:37 Sabayon should give you a pretty good experience as long as you stay away from KDE 41:58 Ubuntu Gnome vs. MATE 44:00 Recommend a new machine for Bill 45:10 goinglinux.com, go

In this episode we have contributons from listeners on backup software for Linux, and questions on browsing networks, running Wine, setting up extra mouse buttons, buggy wifi, optimal partition sizes, and more. Episode 320 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #320 · Listener Feedback 00:15 Introduction 02:36 New computers? 05:23 Mario: Comment on Episode 319 08:30 Nicholai: Browsing a home network 10:56 Paul: Computrace? 15:24 Mike: Remote to Linux from a Surface 17:40 Bob: Using Wine 21:43 Bob: Logitec M570 mouse buttons 24:50 Rainy: Experience with Firefox Ubuntu Gnome 28:10 Daniel: Installing on a USB drive 31:05 Chard: Buggy Ubuntu wifi 34:05 Paul: Optimal home partition size 40:42 Jim: Lucky Backup 41:14 Bill's app pickLibreOffice 43:36 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe 44:52 End

Following our recommendations for strategies and methods of backing up your computer, we discuss an old tool, rsync, and it's graphical front-end, grsync. Almost all the options of rsync in a graphical form without the disadvantages of rsync. With the approaching release of the next iteration of Ubuntu and its derivatives, many of us will be looking to upgrade. Before making any major change to your system, a backup is an essential precaution. Episode 319 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #319 · Backups with Grsync 00:15 Introduction 00:45 Bill moves to New Mexico 03:40 Grsync 04:06 Backup before you upgrade 04:58 Backup hardware 07:44 Backup software 08:40 A graphical front-end for rsync 09:28 Grsync is cross-platform 11:35 Almost all the options of rsync in a graphical form... 11:53 ... without the disadvantages of rsync 13:53 University of Aukland NZ 16:08 Piero Orsoni's list of features of grsync 19:00 Why use an old program like grsync rather than the more modern

As always, we receive feedback on previous episodes, but this time we also receive feedback on our feedback on feedback. We have a word of caution for Windows users burning Linux ISO files with ImgBurn, questions on Linux drivers and the differences between distros, suggestions on getting Ubuntu MATE installed and a Gone Linux story. There is much more feedback in the episode than we can list here, so you will just have to listen. We know you will anyway! Episode 318 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #318 · Listener Feedback 00:15 Introduction 01:09 David: Feedback on feedback on feedback 02:30 Troy: A word of caution on ImgBurn 04:28 Benjamin: A familiar suggestion 05:08 Charles: Why are there no standard drivers for Linux, like on Windows? 16:32 Paul: Mint 18 or 17.3? 18:48 Mario: Congrats on 10 years! 20:56 Armin: Discovered Linux through BSD 22:29 Michael: What are the real differences between distros? 25:52 Amar: Congrats on 10 years 26:15 Michael: Does Mint MATE come w

At our listeners' requests, we provide a review of some non-Debian Linux distributions. Episode 317 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #317 · Linux Distros Reviewed 00:15 Introduction 00:59 Rain in the desert 02:03 A review of non-Debian Linux distributions 03:01 RPM vs. DEB 07:12 Sabayon 17:51 Scientific Linux 25:20 openSuSE 35:53 Fedora 43:01 PCLinuxOS 50:10 ArchBang 53:52 So... did Bill switch to an RPM distribution? 60:29 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe 61:29 End

Bill's frustration with SecureBoot on an Asus netbook nudges him toward a computer with Linux pre-installed. Michael needs help burning a Sonar LiveDVD on Windows. David provides a 3-part email. Tony is burning DVDs. Chandra would like to see more content on RPM distros. Episode 316 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #316 · Listener Feedback 00:15 Introduction 01:08 Will Secure Boot drive Bill to System76? 02:34 Cloud-based software enables Linux 04:41 How the cloud helps eliminate license fees for operating systems as well as applications 08:12 How cloud software improves data security 10:29 Michael: Burning a Live DVD in Windows 10 16:24 David: Installing and mounting additional drives 30:50 Tony: Burn YouTube videos to DVD 32:49 Chandra: More on Fedora, SuSE, and RPM-based distros 38:26 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe 39:21 End

We celebrate 10 years of the Going Linux podcast, and review some significant happenings for Linux in 2016. Episode 315 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #315 · 10th Anniversary Episode 00:15 Introduction 00:42 10 years in review 01:39 6 years of Computer America 02:57 The year of change for Bill 04:02 Ubuntu includes support for ZFS 04:59 Open source licensing 08:15 Creative Commons licensing 11:44 Linux kernel license 13:52 10 years of co-hosts 20:18 Another pay increase for Bill! 20:51 10 years of Larry 22:55 Notable accomplishments 25:14 2016 Review 25:53 Fedora is first to ship with Wayland 29:42 Firefox OS 31:56 Mythbuntu shuts down 34:00 Microsoft loves Linux 42:04 KDE turns 20 42:45 Linux turns 25 46:47 Bill's favorite Linux 48:30 Larry's favorite Linux 53:38 2016: A good year for Linux 55:19 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe 56:52 End

In our first episode of 2017 we read emails from listeners and answer their questions. Episode 314 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #314 · Listener Feedback 00:15 Introduction 01:12 Llewellyn: Screen sharing across platforms 04:47 Dion: Backups 06:39 David: Recommendations for multi-boot 09:49 Gone Linux: Nathan 11:27 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe 12:35 End

You can get help for your Linux computer in many ways. In this episode we provide some details about each kind of support. Many of the answers to your questions are available on your distribution's website. Often, the fastest and easiest way to get answers to your questions about how to use Linux and its applications is to ask in the distribution's community forum. Episode 313 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #313 · Getting Support for Linux Computers 00:15 Introduction 01:12 How to get help when you are using Linux 01:47 Use the F1 key for onboard help 03:14 Official websites 03:21 Community help 05:10 RTFM 05:53 Search in the discussion forums 06:40 Examples of communities you can browse for answers 08:23 You may find your answer in another distribution's forum 11:25 Using search engines like Google 11:42 Enterprise level support 12:59 Contract support for Linux 14:17 Support from your Linux computer manufacturer 15:11 Getting support for Open Source and Linux ap

In this episode, Bill and Larry discuss feedback about backups, partitioning, cron jobs, Scrivener, the Windows MBR, and more. Episode 312 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #312 · Listener Feedback 00:15 Introduction 02:14 Lyle: Test your backups! 05:39 Andrew: Partitioning and email 07:45 Jim: Launch Audacity in recording mode 10:09 Allan: Scrivener 13:58 Nathan: Converting others to Linux 18:31 Ambrose: MBR Filter 26:30 Application pick: Firefox 30:09 Application pick: Yelp 32:30 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe 33:52 End

Remote desktop technology for Linux has progressed since we first discussed it in 2010. Our recommendations have changed as a result. Now we recommend X2Go, which is more secure and more flexible. In this episode Larry describes how to install and use X2Go. Episode 311 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #311 · Controlling a Remote Desktop 00:15 Introduction 01:13 Connecting to, and controlling a remote computer using X2Go 02:32 Installing X2Go 03:03 Installing the X2Go Server 04:59 Installing the X2Go Client 06:35 Setting up an X2Go session 10:10 Using X2Go 12:18 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe 13:18 End

Bill and Larry solve the world's Linux issues... well the ones provided via our listener feedback anyway! From printers to ThinkPads and from marketing Linux to backups and processors, we discuss it all, and more. Episode 310 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #310 · Listener Feedback 00:15 Introduction 00:52 Larry needs more coffee 02:25 Snake: Partitioning a new hard drive 05:33 Tony: Email issues 09:24 JackDeth: Printers and Linux 14:46 Steve: ThinkPads on Linux 21:34 Marcio: New listener 22:18 JackDeth: 12-button mouse 23:58 Paul: Marketing Linux computers 30:42 Troy: Backups for small businesses 35:22 Ken: AMD processors and Linux 40:14 Eduardo: Securing backups 45:03 Madison: Gone Linux 54:24 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe 55:33 End

In today's world of Internet insecurity, it's more important than ever to maximize your safety and privacy, both on line and off. That's why we think that you should use a computer that runs Linux -- because it's safe. Well it's safer, at least, than the two other most popular operating systems, Microsoft's Windows and Apple's MacOS. In this episode we provide an overview as well as some specific recommendations. Episode 309 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #309 · Today's Security Technology 00:15 Introduction 01:38 Bill has AI overload 03:44 The area of security changes so fast 04:07 Why Linux is safer 04:53 By default, Linux users do not run as administrators 06:36 Get software from trusted sources 07:04 Super User vs. Root 09:16 Linux requires your password to install sofware 10:14 Updates on Linux are never installed without your permission and always require your password 11:23 Good passwords are important 11:59 If you share your computer, setup a guest account 12:4

Commercial software licenses are a total FRAUD! That's how our feedback starts this month. We get into the difficulties of installing Ubuntu on a dual-boot system with Win10, audio technical details, full-disk encryption, and much, much more. We even have a Gone Linux story. Episode 308 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #308 · Listener Feedback 00:15 Introduction 00:52 Bill is off 01:13 Charlie: Commercial software licenses are a total FRAUD! 07:09 Scott: Network manager shows only strongest access points 11:25 Bob: Is full disk encryption really encrypting the whole disk in a dual-boot system? 19:50 Richard: Dual booting with Windows 10 is not always easy 22:40 Paul: Building a new computer and looking for a Linux MOBO 25:16 Göran: Writing bash scripts 26:38 Nancy: Audio is perfect now 27:27 John: Thank you! VNC to Ubuntu MATE with VPN 28:38 Bruce: More in-depth on audio 32:41 Dylan: Gone Linux 36:35 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux,

We've talked about backups and backup software in at least three previous episodes, but it’s been a while. The last time we produced a full-fledged episode was in 2008! We take a fresh look at backups and some of the current applications and methods available today. Episode 307 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #307 · Today's Backup Technology 00:15 Introduction 02:03 Backup Technologies 02:56 How do I know what and where to backup 11:07 Backing up your computer is cheap disaster recovery 16:56 How often should I backup? 21:05 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe 23:08 End

This month's topics include Virutal Box on Ubuntu, remote into Ubuntu, installing netbeans, the dangers of rm, Mint vs. Ubuntu, wireless printing, network shares and feedback on past episodes. Episode 306 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #306 · Listener Feedback 00:15 Introduction 03:01 Galen: Feedback on 303 15:52 John: Asks about VirtualBox and Ubuntu 19:52 John: Audio issues 23:09 Joe: It's my co-worker's fault! I've gone Linux 25:18 Greg: Replies to a question in Episode 304 27:53 John: VNC to Ubuntu with VPN 34:55 Marlo: Netbeans on Ubuntu 16.04 36:48 Brock: The dangers of the rm command 41:31 Augustin: App suggestion CastBack 45:24 Richard: Mint vs. Ubuntu 48:31 Alec: Audio issues with the podcast 50:50: Nancy: More on audio problems 52:13 Paul: Wireless printing on Linux 55:12 Paul: Verifying the Mint 18 ISO 57:58 Dries: Network shares 60:40 Jeff: Feedback from Episode 305 62:07 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux,

We take a fresh look at gaming on Linux, including the state of Steam and some of the native Linux game titles. Episode 305 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #305 · Gaming on Linux revisited 00:15 Introduction 00:46 Billl's audio 04:11 Gaming on Linux 09:26 Gaming with Wine 12:12 Installing games with Steam 12:36 DOS gaming 13:57 No physical media 18:12 How difficult is it to install Steam on Linux? 19:06 Graphics on Linux? 20:56 Sound on Linux 25:41 Bill's favorite games? 25:53 Team Fortress 2 26:16 Flight Gear 27:51 vs. X-plane 31:27 Free software 38:01 Pokemon Go! 39:41 Some games you may not have heard about 43:56 Getting started with gaming on Linux 46:17 What else you should know about Linux gaming 53:14 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe 54:32 End

Bill completes his move and finds another cloud service. We receive a suggestion from Gus, and a correction from Angelo. We answer questions on TMP partitions and desktop selections. Steve lets us know about Wordpress. Episode 304 Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #304 · Listener Feedback 00:15 Introduction 00:53 Welcome to California 02:28 Gus: Provides a suggestion 04:01 Angelo: It's not political correctness 05:15 Paul: TMP file size too small 11:05 Darren: Which desktop? 13:41 Steve: Regarding Wordpress 19:15 Bill finds another cloud service 24:39 Gone Linux: Greg 29:07 Application Pick: Virtual Machine Manager 34:23 goinglinux.com, goinglinux@gmail.com, +1-904-468-7889, @goinglinux, feedback, listen, subscribe 35:16 End