Search for the perfect Linux distribution for my NotePad is over

Finally I found the perfect distribution for my Asus EeePC 1101HAB. Ubuntu 11.04 was performing kind of ok there, though a tad bit slow. But when I upgraded to 11.10, the hell broke loose. First, my NetBook won't boot to gnome 3, then I downgraded it to gnome 2, it would boot to text version where manually I had to start lightdm. Unity made it very slow and I started thinking of buying a new

Linux lesson for newbies: Don't install a linux distro within 3 months of release

Yesterday I learnt a lesson, now I would not upgrade my linux distro within 3-4 months of release. Normally a new release would have definitely scores of bugs and things get fixed within 3-4 months. Ubuntu community would have by that time addressed all the common problems once can face while installation and running. Therefore, it makes more sense to install a somewhat "matured" distro.

Like

[SOLVED] Ubuntu 11.10 throws a purple screen of death when updated from 11.04

The temporary solution is rooted here http://mylinuxexplore.blogspot.com/2011/11/temporary-solution-ubuntu-1110-bug.html

I found out after a lot of experimentation that Linux kernel 3.0.0-13-generic won't load into my system due to hardware limitations. So, in previous post I tried the next best alternative - go back to the previous linux kernel and use "text" boot to avoid plymouth.

Now, I

[TEMPORARY SOLUTION] Ubuntu 11.10 bug: Kernel panic with Purple screen of death

Last night, again I tried to update my Ubuntu 11.04 (Natty Narwhal) to 11.10 (Oneiric Ocelot) and landed

Precise Pangolin - Ubuntu 12.04 CD images are out

You can download Ubuntu 12.04 beta from here.


But the CD image is over 700 mb (which the developers claim is a bug) and hence, needs to be burn in a DVD or a Pen drive to try it out. Further, it is a long term version.

I am eager to try it out next week. Unity would be there along with Gnome. Though I prefer LXDE for speed but definitely I would try it out and put a few snapshots of the beta

[SOLVED] How to fix the black background of Cairo Dock?

To be honest, I am a big fan of Cairo Dock. It makes my desktop look more beautiful than what it would have been without Cairo Dock.

I was using it from the beginning of my Linux journey, in Ubuntu 11.04. Of course, I am a newbie to Linux, just started using it couple of months ago. And it has been a real learning experience. I used to hate Windows from the beginning - since Windows98 but

[SOLVED] Hate Gnome/Unity? Here's how to integrate XFCE / LXDE desktops to your Ubuntu

I know many users who dislike Unity interface. I too personally prefer the classic view with a Cairo dock - Unity 3D is very heavy for my Asus EeePC 1101HA. I had installed Ubuntu 11.10 on my machine as an upgrade from 11.04, which I removed later as I never liked the Unity menu bar. I like the classic view more.

Later I tried installing Lubuntu 11.10, Kubuntu 11.10 and Xubuntu 11.10 - each

[SOLVED] How to reduce video size in Ubuntu to post in YouTube?

I faced this particular problem yesterday. We had the Annual fest of HSBC Analytics @ Bangalore, where our friends and colleagues gave some enthralling performances. I captured dozens of videos in my 14 megapixel Nikon D-90 with the hope that I'll upload them to YouTube for others too see. But, to my horror I discovered that each video is over 300 mb (4-5 min. of run time each). A particular

[SOLVED] Ubuntu doesn't shutdown properly or hangs at shutdown?

One issue I finally solved. Ubuntu 11.04 works like a charm for my desktop (1 GB DDR RAM and Pentium 4). No issues with either desktop configuration or shutdown. 

However, with my Asus EeePC 1101HA, from the beginning itself there were different issues. It has 1 GB DDR2 (probably) RAM and Intel Atom processor. I had issues with the default desktop configuration (4:3) which made everything

[SOLVED] Is your desktop stretched in Ubuntu? How to install Intel EMGD drivers in Ubuntu?

One problem I faced with my Asus EeePC 1101HA was adjusting the screen resolution. Things would appear really stretched when I installed Ubuntu 11.04. The Display option would have only one option for me (4:3). A little research on the topic and I found the following commands to actually install the Intel EMGD drivers which would give me enough options to choose from:


sudo add-apt-repository

[SOLVED] Sify disconnects often in Ubuntu: What to do?

Once I started using Ubuntu OS, my biggest headache was Sify broadband connection. The Linux client provided by Sify would disconnect on and often. Normally every night I download movies and that gives me the mental peace that I'm utilizing my unlimited connection to the fullest extent.
However, I could not do so for past few days. And I'm no programmer.
Finally after much searching for a

[SOLVED] How to make Ubuntu the default OS in dual boot installation?

I faced the same problem initially. I prefer my computer to start in Ubuntu, but Windows XP being the preferred choice by default, many-a-times it would start Windows. Making Ubuntu the default option is very easy - you can do it from the terminal but I prefer the Windows approach.

Go to Control Panel -> System -> Advanced -> Startup and Recovery  and press edit. You can choose Ubuntu to be

How to install Ubuntu in dual boot? Beginner's talk

A lot of my friends requested me to write on the process of installing Ubuntu OS. So, here I am.

The process is relatively simple if you want to install it from internet. Just download the Ubuntu version ISO file from the Ubuntu site
http://www.ubuntu.com/download/ubuntu/download

Generally we use a 32 bit machine - so choose that option. Now you have 11.10 released! Every 6 months Ubuntu

Install essential softwares in Ubuntu

Ubuntu 11.04 comes with a lot of default softwares but there are certain other really essential softwares that you may like to install. You can choose them from the Ubuntu Software Center or install it through the terminal.



The names of the essential softwares, a brief review and the installation codes are provided below:




VLC Media Player: The best media player available and much better

Mac theme for Ubuntu using Cairo Dock

I tried a couple of popular docks like Docky and Cairo dock; simply put I am very much impressed with the Cairo dock. Docky doesn't give the 3D view in my Asus netbook with Intel Atom processor. However, Cairo dock simply gives a mind blowing 3D view as you can see below.






Adding Cairo is very simple from the terminal. Just type the following commands sequentially:

1. sudo

Exploring Ubuntu: How to run Sify internet client on Ubuntu?

Very recently, in one of my old PCs, Windows crashed. I was left with only Windows XP SP1 bootable CD, which I got from HP when I bought my computer way back in 2003. And I had no office. Buying a new Windows and Office CD would be expensive to my pockets (if you are in India, you can appreciate that!). Moreover, my old PC hardware won't support Windows 7, even Office 2003 used to crawl in

How to obtain the flash videos in Firefox 4

Flash videos were stored in /tmp/FlashXXXX and i was able to copy them to another place like cp /tmp/FlashXXX ~/Desktop/new.video.mpeg.

Since Firefox 4 i thought for a moment that everything changed and my happy days were over but i was wrong, i remembered that with Linux there are no sad days.

How to obtain the flash videos with Firefox 4:

When the video already finished loading in the browser (being Youtube or any other), do this:

ps -ef | grep libflashplayer.so | grep -v grep

walter   20040 19812  9 11:52 ?        00:53:34 /usr/lib/firefox-3.6.17/plugin-container /home/walter/.mozilla/plugins/libflashplayer.so 19812 plugin true

Now, with the PID, inspect what it is opening:


root@talento:~# lsof -p 20040 | grep Flash
lsof: WARNING: can't stat() fuse.gvfs-fuse-daemon file system /home/walter/.gvfs
      Output information may be incomplete.
plugin-co 20040 walter   16u   REG        8,2  1249930 21708868 /tmp/FlashXXQANNm2 (deleted)
root@talento:~#

You are interested in the file descriptor id, these are the file descriptors from that process:


root@talento:~# ls -la /proc/20040/fd/
total 0
dr-x------ 2 walter walter  0 2011-04-30 21:12 .
dr-xr-xr-x 7 walter walter  0 2011-04-30 21:06 ..
lr-x------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 0 -> /dev/null
lrwx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 1 -> /home/walter/.xsession-errors
l-wx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 10 -> pipe:[18679239]
lr-x------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 11 -> pipe:[18679240]
l-wx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 12 -> pipe:[18679240]
lrwx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 13 -> socket:[18679243]
lr-x------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 14 -> /home/walter/.mozilla/firefox/2te1hj2x.default/cert8.db
lr-x------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 15 -> /home/walter/.mozilla/firefox/2te1hj2x.default/key3.db
lrwx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:15 16 -> /tmp/FlashXXQANNm2 (deleted)
lr-x------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:16 17 -> pipe:[19890054]
l-wx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:16 18 -> pipe:[19890054]
lr-x------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:16 19 -> pipe:[19890055]
lrwx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 2 -> /home/walter/.xsession-errors
l-wx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:16 20 -> pipe:[19890055]
lrwx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:16 21 -> socket:[19890059]
lrwx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 22 -> socket:[19338003]
lr-x------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 23 -> anon_inode:inotify
lrwx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 3 -> socket:[18679123]
lrwx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 4 -> anon_inode:[eventpoll]
lrwx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 42 -> socket:[18679124]
lrwx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 5 -> socket:[18679236]
lrwx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 6 -> socket:[18679237]
lr-x------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 7 -> pipe:[18679238]
l-wx------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 8 -> pipe:[18679238]
lr-x------ 1 walter walter 64 2011-04-30 21:12 9 -> pipe:[18679239]

What is of our interest if the Flash process, displayed in the previous lines.

Now, you can copy the file to a safe place, because, if you close Firefox, those files are released and lost.

cp /proc/20040/fd/16 ~/Desktop/A.Movie.mpeg

Now if you want to put everything in a script:

root@talento:~# cat saveflash.sh
#!/bin/bash

PID=`ps -ef | grep libflashplayer.so | grep -v grep | awk '{print $2}'`
FD=`lsof -p $PID | grep Flash | awk '{print $4}' | sed 's/u$//'`
cp /proc/$PID/fd/$FD "$1"

And remember, you can "invite me a coffee" :)

Yahoo KDD Cup

In a few days starts the Yahoo KDD Cup, i'll participate in this one.  It is an interesting task where the rate of users has to be predicted.  The prediction task is based on previous users behaviour, finding patterns and common music/artists/genre and profiling new customers based on the music they do like.  I hope i have fun during this competition and keep learning from these experiences.

If possible, i would keep doing all my mining/machine learning scripts in perl, so i will share the solutions for the problems i had to face during this experience.

I wanted to search an id inside an array, to do this i did:

open TODO, "todo" or die $!;
my @todo = ;
close TODO;
@array = ();
foreach (@todo) {
   my ($id, $type) = split(/\t/);
   chop ($type);
   $array[$id] = $type;
}

my ($id, $rank, $day, $time) = split(/\t/, $linea);