Time to Change

Windows XP's support is going to end this April. So if you are running Windows XP, it is time to go free. Free as in freedom. Here is a list of OS you can choose to get rid of the buggy, insecure XP platform.

1. aLinux

You won't feel that you have changed your OS apart from performance improvemnts, being virus free and less buggy. aLinux comes with KDE 3.5, Koffice(MS office replacement), GIMP(like Photoshop), mp3/divx/flash support, Clam-AV antivirus etc.

Get yours at http://alinux.tv

2. Lubuntu

So, this distro's look and feel is much like XP. It consumes less resources and feels great on old hardware. It comes with Abi Word, MTPaint, Xfburn (cd/dvd burning), Sylpheed (like Outlook). With 256 MB RAM, you get a perfectly working system.

More info: http://lubuntu.net

3. PC-BSD with Xfce

Ok, it may be boaring with too much Linux. Say hi to BSD with PC-BSD. Xfce gives you a classic XP like interface. AppCafe gives easy access for all packages you need and you will love its clean UI.

Check this out: http://www.pcbsd.org

4. Manjaro

Still in beta, from the house of Arch, Manjaro ives you rolling release with a wide choices of desktop environments. I suggest MATE desktop, which is both modern and traditional simultaneously. Manjaro comes with out of the box multimedia support and good hardware driver support. Only downside is, it needs bit powerful hardware.

Get your copy at: http://manjaro.org

5. Bodhi

”Enlightenment” comes here. You need 128MB RAM to run this distro. I won't say it has all tools you need, but it will meet your expectation. The lightweight UI looks so polished and you can fool your friends that yours is a latest PC with a latest OS ;-)

You can negate your bad karma here: http://www.bodhilinux.com/

Top 10 Distros

Well, I have been using Free Software based distributions from 2004 (that was when I got my first own PC). I have come across many distributions. Now, I will share 10 of the best distributions I recommend people and their target audience. The list is sort of a count-down. So let us start with 10.

10. PC-BSD

BSD is not Linux. It is a UNIX clone too. Its file system, partition management, working differs greatly from Linux based distros. But this is a very solid platform and provides a secure and robust system suitable for servers and research and development labs. If you are freaky enough, you can try to install it as a dual booting system along with a GNU/Linux system.

9. Puppy Linux

Do you have a very old PC? Or have you managed to assemble a PC from junkyard? Here is a distro that can fire it up to life. Puppy Linux requires very less memory and other requirements. Of course it lacks fancy GUI and powerful tools like office applications. But it works like charm in very old hardware. Puppy is derived from Ubuntu.

8. Lubuntu

This LXDE flavor of Ubuntu is Puppy Linux for bit newer hardware. Also this packs good driver support and adds option to install latest and greatest packages. So if you have a 10 years old PC and want it to perform fast like a new one, Lubuntu is for you.

7. Gentoo

For those who doubt pre-compiled binaries in repositories, Gentoo is the answer. If you have enough time and powerful hardware, you can do the entire compilation of your GNU/Linux system right on your machine. You may find the installation bit tough. But it is rewarding. You never need to upgrade the system. You only need to update it. This is called rolling release. Compared to Fedora in which you need to upgrade frequently, this is relatively simple. Suitable for BASHers. So install once and forget how to install. You can still complain that the stage-3 tarballs are tainted by NSA ;-)

6. Arch Linux

This is the one for those who are not afraid of command line interface. You have to set up this distro by executing commands. No GUI based installation.This is much like Gentoo minus compilation. Arch is awesome and has a very good community to support. If you search for generic Linux issues, Arch wiki is where you land.

5. Ubuntu/Linux Mint

These are derivatives of Debian. Mint comes with Mate desktop environment for those who hate GNOME 3 and Ubuntu comes with Unity interface. These distros ship with lot of proprietary drivers. The reason I recommend them is because they are suitable for lazy people who just want everything working out of the box. Especially if you have laptops with locked hardware, this will work out in most cases. But the better suggestion is to choose a more open hardware and go for a better distribution.

4. CentOS

CentOS is community supported clone of RedHat Linux. This is one of the most stable and well tested distro. But it lags a lot in terms of package versions. For example, current version of CentOS (as of 26th Feb, 2014) ships with 2.6.x kernel, while a uname -r in my machine spat out 3.13.3. But this has its own plus. All packages are well tested. Almost all bugs fixed and most drivers for bit older hardware are readily available. This makes it suitable for servers and workstations. Also this distro as of now lacks fancy desktop environments. So it uses less resources and perform well.

3. OpenSUSE

OpenSUSE is community edition of SUSE from Novell. Made in Germany. IT has good driver support and an active community to help you out. If you can switch to Tumbleweed channel, you can get a taste of rolling release like that of Arch. Yast makes the system management easy. So this is the distro suitable for home PCs with good hardware configurations. It ships with awesome desktop environments like KDE 4 and GNOME 3. Everything you need in one place!

2. Fedora

This the future version of Red Hat. What is today Fedora will become Red Hat one day. It is one of the most bleeding edge distro. This makes it a bit hard to use for people with proprietary hardware. As the kernel and other stuffs are constantly updated, it may impact the system sometimes. Mostly the stable releases won't have any problem. But don't ask me about why x or y is not working after an update. This is suitable for power users with good open hardware (without proprietary graphic cards, wi-fi chips, web cams etc).

1. BLAG/Dragora/Dynebolic/gNewSense/Musix/Parabola/Trisquel

These are all Free Software Foundation (FSF)  approved distros. They may lack some drivers, no flash,  they can't play mp3s. These are not so fancy and these are not meant for kids playing flash games or adults watching porn. But if you care about freedom, these are the distributions you should run. Especially gNewSense is the distribution that Dr. Richard Stallman himself runs. You can find more information about these distributions at http://www.gnu.org/distros/free-distros.html

Ethics of Eating

Once a German crew was caught by Cannibalistic Amazon Forest Dwellers. Only one among the whole crew knew the language of the tribe. So he tried to explain that they were just there for trekking. But the tribesmen ignored his plea and started to kill and eat the crew members one by one. As he spoke their language, his life was spared. 

On the new moon celebration, the tribal chief had a meeting with the German in his court. The chief shared his adventurous anaconda hunts. The German, who was an Army General of Nazi Germany, smiled and recollected his role in Hitler’s army. He told that the Army under his command killed nearly 20,000 “enemies”.

Taken aback, the tribal chief asked him “How you managed to eat such a large amount of  people?”. The German replied “We have something called civilization, and we won’t eat human beings.” The chief, with a even more surprised voice told, “If killing such a vast number of people without the need to eat is called civilization, then our tribe never need it!” The German hung his head in disgrace as he realized what he had done for the first time in his life.

Based upon a story I read somewhere....

Tamil Keyboard for Android

<<<Read this article in Tamil >>> 
<<<இந்தக் கட்டுரையைத் தமிழில் படிக்க>>

Now a days, everybody is having one or more Android device(s). Also there are lot of content in Tamil around the Internet. But the main hurdle we have is, how to search for Tamil content if we can't search in Tamil? Google, Yahoo, Bing, DuckDuckGo all index Tamil content. But how can we search it? Typing in English? At least in PC, we can use online Tamil transliteration sites or software for typing in Tamil. But in mobile or tablet?

Here comes a decent Android app to your rescue. AnySoftKeyboard with Tamil layout extension.

Please follow the below steps to get this awesome app in your mobile:

1. Check any Tamil website and ensure that you have proper Tamil font support. Most popular brands come with excellent Indic fonts support. But some mobiles have broken support (render Tamil letters incorrectly) or lack Tamil fonts (display them as boxes). To make sure, open this page in your mobile/tablet browser and check the below line.

தமிழ் எங்கள் மூச்சு

If the above line is rendered properly, you can proceed to next step without any issue. [Note: If the text is NOT rendered correctly, you need Tamil font support to proceed. This may need rooting your device. So it is up to you to research and do it.]

2. Download AnySoftKeyboard from this link (Google Play Store).

3. Download and install Tamil for AnySoftKeyboard from this link (Google Play Store).

4. After AnySoftKeyboard and Tamil layout for it, have been downloaded and installed, go to your phone's settings, and select "Language & keyboard"

5. In the next screen, enable "Any Soft Keyboard".

6. A dialog box will open and will warn you about possible key-logging attacks which can be done by this keyboard application. Note: This is a generic message, and will be shown when you enable any keyboard application.

7. Long press on one of the text input field (select input method from notification area in Android 4+). A dialog will pop-up. Choose AnySoftKeyboard

8. I suggest you to turn off auto suggestion in "AnySoftKeyboard settings" in settings menu or by long-pressing "enter" button. This improves Tamil typing speed.

9. Long press characters to get similar characters as a pop-up. For example, ஆ can be typed by long pressing அ. Similarly, தீ can be typed by first typing த and then long pressing இ and choosing appropriate compound letter.

Salient features:

1. Fully free and open source software. No ads, and the source is available at Github. Click here for source.

2. Tamil layout matches English QWERTY layout. So it is easy to remeber and type.

3. One touch toggle between Tamil and English layouts. So you can type Tanglish easily.

4. Works without internet connection. As said, no ads, no payment required.

5. Small size and pretty fast.

6. Main app is used by more than million users and Tamil layout is used by more than 100,000 users. Both apps are rated with more than 4 stars.

So why are you waiting! Install the app now and chat with your buddies in your mother tongue! Update your status in Tamil! Search the internet for Tamil words/phrases! Explore the world in your own language!

Please leave comments if you have any doubts in using this app. If you like this app, please give it a good rating and review at Play Store. Thanks for reading
:-)

Book Review: 20000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne

Get your self ready to dive in to the ocean with Captain Nemo and his electrical submarine Nautilus. It is a wonderful science fiction novel by French author Jules Verne. The story was narrated to me by my dad when I was a child. Later I got a paperback of the book. It was awesome and at one point, I was saying everyone that one day I will become a marine engineer [that didn't happen ;-) ].

The book opens with widespread fear about a sea monster. Professor Aronnax and his companions take up the task to solve the mystery. But they are captured by the crew of an electrical submarine (which was mistaken for a monster) headed by captain Nemo. The story is packed with adventures under the sea. From south pole to Mannar gulf near Tamil Nadu, the travel covers wide variety of locations and events.

Electric submarine may sound so common and you may wonder why this is called a science fiction. But this book was released even before electric bulbs became common. Written in 1870, the book has references to lot of technical advances which were still under research or not yet invented back then.

 There are hints in the book that point that Captain Nemo may be an Indian. But his crew consists of men from many other nationalities, who all are against oppressive regimes all over the world. In this aspect, Jules Verne touches the colonial oppression and imperialistic occupation prevalent those days.

In today's context, we can match this to corporates conquering our life and trying to control every aspect of our life. So, it is still relevant and you will surely love it.

The book is in public domain as the copyright has expired. So usually it is available for lesser price. You can also read it in Wikisource website for free, but I prefer printed books so that I can collect them after reading. Moreover, you can read them laying down, sitting at dining table or during travel without much strain.

February 23rd 2014 - Pulse Polio Immunisation Campaign

India is proudly Polio free for three years now. But the battle has just begun. With neighbouring Pakistan and Afghanistan still registering Polio cases, it is our duty to fight against Polio as Indian citizens. So, if you or anyone in your circle have a child below 5 years, please take them to nearest Polio vaccination centre set-up by government.

Vaccination @ a railway station

Points to note:

When? February 23rd, 2014. It is a Sunday, and no silly excuses!

Where? Nearby railway stations, bus stands, airports, primary health centers, Government hospitals, Government Schools and other places like places of worship, libraries, shopping malls. Check your local administrative office for more information.

Who? Children below age 5.

How? Take them to the center. Tell the medical staff/doctor there about your baby's current health, age, previous vaccination date and other details you feel important in this regards. They will decide whether to give vaccine or not (in some rare cases, it may be advised against giving, such as a very high fever or taking any other medication) The vaccine is offered free of cost by Indian government. So make use of it.

Trivia:

Jonas Salk - Inventor of Polio Vaccine

When Jonas Salk (inventor of Polio vaccine) was asked in a televised interview who owned the patent to the vaccine, Salk replied: "There is no patent. Could you patent the sun?"

Jallikattu

Jallikattu:

First, let me make it clear that I don't support or oppose Jallikattu. My opinion on it is neutral. I don't watch it and I don't participate in it. But still, I have some opinions on the same because it is singled out and criticized for no good reasons.

"Jallikattu", for those who are not familiar, is a traditional Tamilian sport where bulls are fought by young men. This is much similar to the bull fights of Spain (only foreign imports are "great" for our people). It is conducted in days following to Pongal celebrations (harvest festival of Tamils). These type of tradtions exists in almost all cultures.

But in recent years, there are voices against Jallikattu, and I also support some of the opposing views. For example, drugging the bull to increase it ferociousness, conducting the competition without safety measures and thus resulting in injury of audience. But none of these reasons can be used to stop the event itself. We can just regulate the practice. A government representative can inspect the bulls and other safety measures taken and give approval for Jallikattu.

But the other reasons these people give are silly and sometimes outrageous. Below are some of the claims and my refutation to the same.

1. Bulls are hurt in the sport
My Response: How many other animals are injured and killed everyday for various reasons? As far as I know, many other animals are treated worse. Example from lovebirds in your backyard to elephants in temples. These bulls are cared and maintained in good conditions and they live a better life compared to other bulls. I have personally seen the special treatment they receive.

2. Bull is an endangered species
My Response: This is also a lie. And even if there is a grain of truth, then stopping Jallikattu will result in extinction of bulls. As tractors had replaced the plowing and cars had replaced bullock carts, the need for bulls are just to impregnate cows. Only some bulls used in Jallikattu and bullock cart races are the only remaining bulls apart from those farm bulls. How can stopping Jallikattu increase the number of bulls?

3. Bull is a wild animal
My Response: Bull is a domestic animal. Even wild animals like elephants, birds like peacock are kept in temples. None is opposing those things. But when it comes to bulls, they claim that bulls are wild animals. Does that mean we all are drinking milk from forest?

4. Jallikattu results in death/injuries
My Response: So is the F1, bike races, martial arts etc also results in deaths and injuries. Indian government spent billions in F1 race but deny Tamils to conduct Jallikattu. Why? Where those protests against F1 and other races? I don't support people dying. But we have to ban all such sports. We should not single out Tamils and common people while allowing rich corporate sports like F1.

5. It is very old sport, time to move ahead
My Response: I don't have any problem in this view. But this not only applies to this sport. Some games like running race and swimming are even older. Don't we have them in Olympics now?

So in my view, there is no need to ban Jallikattu. Regulating the sport is sufficient. But the calls to ban Jallikattu seems to be plain discrimination towards Tamils.