.:pushbutton:.

Tips and tricks on installing CentOS 5.3 x86_64, Vmware 2.0.1, eRPTS on an IBM X3400.

2009-06-30T15:10:00.003+07:00

I was in Binalonan last weekends to help my friend Bryan setup his electronic Real Property System on his brand new server. This is to share what we basically did...

Specs: Intel Quad Core 2.0 with Intel VT, 3 x 250 SATA HDD (hot swappable), 8Gb RAM DDR2

For RAID configuration, please refer to documentation as provided by the IBM supplier.

In our case, we did a RAID 1 on the first 2 HD, while the remaining HD was configure as a hot spare.

Get CentOS 5.3 x86_64 from http://centos.org. Best download speed is via Torrent. Make sure you get the x86_64 to maximize your machine.

Install CentOS. For best results, allocate partitions for the following /boot, /, swap, /tmp, /usr, /var, /home, and a separate partition for the vmware machines (e.g. /vmware).

On selecting packages to install, make sure you check on the Development Libraries and Development Tools and try to prune other packages that you may not need at all (e.g. openoffice, gimp, etc.). As a server, you may also opt to put a password on your boatloader.

Upon installation, configure network first to a static IP (e.g. 192.168.10.200) and make sure it will connect to the Internet.

Update your CentOS installation

$ yum update

Reboot after update.

Edit /etc/fstab. On the options concerning ext3 partitions, put noatime after defaults as an optimization.

/dev/sda1 /boot ext3 defaults,noatime 1 1

Then edit /etc/sysctl.conf to add the following lines at the bottom:

vm.swappiness = 0
vm.overcommit_memory = 1
vm.dirty_background_ratio = 5
vm.dirty_ratio = 10
vm.dirty_expire_centisecs = 1000
dev.rtc.max-user-freq = 1024

You must also turn off some services that your host server won't need during boottime like cups, etc.

Reboot for the new optimizations to take effect.

Install VMWare 2.0.1. Check documentation for installation instructions. Actually you can accept almost all the defaults except for the location of the virtual machine which you must set to the partition you intended solely for erpts (e.g. /vmware).

After installation, edit /etc/vmware/config:

If your CPU was 2.0 then its

host.cpukHz=2000000

Then add the following lines

host.noTSC = TRUE
ptsc.noTSC = TRUE

Access Vmware with your web browser via http://localhost:8222, with root as admin user.

Edit host configuration as desired.

We may now create a virtual machine where we will install eRPTS.

Tips: When adding a virtual disk, put a check on Allocate Disk Space Now and Split into 2Gb files. Under policies, select Optimize for Performance. We allocated 40 Gb of disk space for this VM.

Allocate at least 2Gb of RAM and use only single processor. No need to add floppy disk and USB controller. Configure NIC to Bridged.

You may now proceed with the installation of erpts. You may also partition your drive into /boot, /, swap, /tmp, /usr, /home, and /var. Take note that /var should have the biggest allocation, perhaps not lower than 20Gb for it will store the database files. Partitioning on this case will ease down I/O traffic.

Configure network to a static ip that is in range with the static IP of the host machine. (e.g. 192.168.10.100). Apply erpts patches as instructed during the trainings. Update the database into 57 tables.

Time again for some optimizations in the eRPTS Guest Machine...

Edit /etc/fstab and add noatime on /var line...

/dev/sda5 /var ext3 defaults,noatime 1 2

Download the following kernel packages (optimized kernels for vm guests)

http://people.centos.org/tru/kernel-vm/4/RPMS/i386/kernel-vm-2.6.9-78.0.22.EL.i686.rpm
http://people.centos.org/tru/kernel-vm/4/RPMS/i386/kernel-vm-devel-2.6.9-78.0.22.EL.i686.rpm

Install the kernel and development libraries with the –-nodeps option

rpm -ivh -–nodeps kernel-vm-2.6.9-78.0.22.EL.i686.rpm
rpm -ivh –-nodeps kernel-vm-devel-2.6.9-78.0.22.EL.i686.rpm

Edit /boot/grub/menu.list. Make sure the default is set to 0.

And add the following at the end of the kernel line of kernel-vm-xxxx

noapic nolapic acpi=off clocksource=acpi_pm elevator=noop

Save and exit.

Edit /etc/sysctl.conf to add the following lines

vm.swappiness = 0
vm.overcommit_memory = 1

Then remove unnecessary services during boot time like cups, smb, etc. YMMV

Reboot guest machine for settings to take effect.

On the host machine, edit the .vmx file of the just created virtual machine. Its located where you put the virtual machine itself.

Add the following lines at the bottom

MemTrimRate = “0″
sched.mem.pshare.enable = “FALSE”
MemAllowAutoScaleDown = “FALSE”

Optional!

It is possible to install the latest phpmyadmin on eRPTS. Get phpmyadmin on their website.

You may also install the mysql 4.1 package from eBPLS with instructions to be posted here soon.

Use with caution though and as always, YMMV. :)

Wait! No USB? Well now that you are a linux sysad, try using the scp command to transfer files from your host machine to the guest machine. Syntax is as follows:

scp sourcefiles root@ipaddressofguestmachine:/specific/path/of/target/folder

And how did this installation fare? We chose a certain page at eRPTS where it usually takes them around 60 to 80 seconds to open. With this setup, it now opens in only about 3 to 8 seconds.

Not bad, aye?

That's all for now, I hope this helps!

Faceoff: PCLOS 2009.1 vs LinuxMint KDE CE 6

2009-04-15T11:57:00.000+07:00

In the past few days, I was lucky to be able to test drive two wonderful Linux distributions that both promises to work "out of the box" -- PCLinuxOS 2009.1 and LinuxMint KDE Community Edition 6.

My rig is only a Lenovo G400, with 1Gb of RAM, 120 Gb SATA HD, Built in Video (‎Mobile 945GM/GMS, 943/940GML Express Integrated Graphics Controller) and Sound (82801G (ICH7 Family) High Definition Audio Controller), NetLink BCM5906M Fast Ethernet PCI Express as NIC, and BCM4311 802.11b/g WLAN for Wireless.

Before using trying out these two distros, I was happily using Ubuntu 8.10 on this laptop.

PCLOS and Mint KDE share many similar characteristics. They both use the K Desktop Environment. They are both derivatives from "bigger" Linux distros. Both promised an excellent "out of the box" experience thus loaded with the necessary plugins and codecs needed for every average user to enjoy his/her everyday computer use. Both distros are using the Synaptic Package Manager for software management. Development of both distros are being led by one guy namely Texstar for PCLOS, and Clem for LinuxMint.

But the similarity ends here.

PCLOS is based on Madriva Linux while LinuxMint KDE CE is based on Ubuntu. PCLOS is a meta or rolling distro, Mint is not. PCLOS is true to its promise of being able to play almost all types of media files, with LinuxMint KDE, I don't have sound on some .3gp and .mp4 files.

Although both uses Synaptic, PCLOS uses rpms while Mint uses debs. PCLOS uses KDE 3.5.10, while LinuxMint is now using KDE 4.2.

Installation with both distros on this rig is a breeze as I didn't encountered any problems at all with both distros using easy to use wizards.

On hardware support, I had varying results.

PCLOS was not able to activate my Fn keys at the start (I had to install Keytouch), while LinuxMint was able to activate almost every key right after installation. I also have this feeling that LinuxMint KDE 6 handled power management for this laptop better than PCLinuxOS but then again, both were able to suspend my laptop well and that what matters most.

Network management is way too easy with PCLOS than that of the KNetwork Manager installed on LinuxMint KDE 6. To make matters worst for Mint, I can't seem to make my wireless work. It was so easy with Ubuntu 8.10 but a no go with Mint (this was the ultimate deal breaker for me). With PCLOS, I didn't had to install or download anything. I simply configured it with the wizard incorporated on its Control Center. No fuss or whatsoever.

Built in sound just works, the same thing with the video as both can use Compiz with it.

More softwares are installed by default with PCLOS. However, I had problems with Frostwire which I had to do a "killall" command before I can kill it. HDDTEMP and POWERTOP aren't working well on PCLOS too. HDDTEMP on PCLOS says that it doesn't support my drive but hddtemp on Mint can. PowerTop on PCLOS doesn't work on my Lenovo, but powertop on Mint just works.

However, perhaps its because of KDE 4.2, I had stability problems with LinuxMint KDE 6. Random crashes and slowdowns. I can't use the wireless card with it. Mint doesn't even have a GUI for connecting with PPPOE. And as compared with KDE 3.5 and the PCLOS Control Center, Mint doesn't offer as much tools to work onas PCLOS does.

And personally, I don't like Amarok 2 on Mint as much as I love Amarok on PCLOS. Kaffeine on PCLOS is able to play almost everything, unlike VLC or DragonPlayer on Mint which can "play" some videos but with no sound. Where is the joy in that?

After an update using mintUpdate, I found myself wondering why I can't hear anymore any sound with Youtube videos with Mint. Did I just broke something with that update? Along the way, I also unknowingly broke my Mint system as some widgets (which I love so much) suddenly ceased to function. I didn't know what happened. I just installed some apps using mintInstall then after a reboot, some of my widgets aren't functioning anymore much to my dismay.

And with Mint, sometimes when I try to restart or shut it down, sometimes it will turn off or restart, sometimes it just sits there doing nothing.

PCLOS is much more stable. Almost every app from the repos works well except for the three apps I mentioned earlier. And I haven't ever experienced breaking my system after an update.

One thing I like more about PCLOS is that it has its very own repository of applications unlike in Mint where I still see some Ubuntu lines on their /etc/apt/sources.list file.

And the mklivecd script simply rocks with PCLOS along with RedoMBR and other utilities which Mint doesn't unfortunately have. (Or perhaps they some equivalent but still mklivecd works better than the others)

My verdict?! Obviously, after installing PCLOS then wiping it out for LinuxMint, here I am again with PCLOS. So how was I able to restore my PCLOS installation so easily? Good thing that I used mklivecd to create my very own PCLinuxOS, loaded with my fave goodies and with all the updates.

I simply reinstalled the whole thing using my custom PCLOS and everything were back to its proper places. :)

Make no mistake about it. This is not an anti LinuxMint or anti KDE 4.2 post. I love LinuxMint especially its main Gnome edition. I love how KDE 4.2 looks and still fancy plasma, plasmoids, widgets or whatever you want to call them. (Hey, I miss the Picture Frame widget!!!)

But I have a life to live and a choice to make.

Perhaps someday when the Ripper Gang is finished with their KDE 4.x rendition, I won't hesitate to install and use KDE 4.x on this laptop knowing that it is finally stable to let me get my job done.

IpKungfu NAT + DHCP server + Transparent SquidI

2009-01-26T11:17:00.005+07:00

For 2 months and a half, I forced myself to believe that an appliance router would be enough to share our (measly) internet connection within our local area network.

Well, it was actually enough to share the internet connection but not enough to control how it shares the connection and speed it up. Since it was configured as a DHCP server, we are having a hard time monitoring what PC is viewing this and that. We also cannot effectively filter out "undesireable websites" via the appliance router.

So I had to go back to my old setup... NAT + Squid + Built-in Filter and now plus DHCP server. We were using Ubuntu 8.10 and I thought it would be easy after all this time I am configuring such setup. It was actually easy, except for one thing... NETWORK setup on Intrepid.

Okay, here is the setup. I have two NICs, eth0 and eth1. eth1 is connected to the Internet with a dynamic IP while eth0 is connected to the LAN and to be configured with a static IP.

I tried to use the built-in Network Manager but there seems to be a bug on it. It won't save static IP configuration after a reboot. So, eventhough I have configured eth0 with an IP of let's say 192.168.2.1... after a reboot it would still and again ask for a dynamic IP.

Darn!

Perhaps, there could be other better solutions out there for static IP to work on Network Manager but I did it on a way that I am comfortable... get my hands dirty on /etc/network/interfaces. Here it goes!

1. Disable Network Manager

sudo update-rc.d -f NetworkManager remove

1.1 Open and edit /etc/network/interfaces (dynamic eth1, static eth0).

gksu gedit /etc/network/interfaces

My /etc/network/intercafes looks like this:

auto lo eth0 eth1
iface lo inet loopback
iface eth0 inet static
address 192.168.2.1
netmask 255.255.255.0

iface eth1 inet dhcp

Reboot

2. Install and configure DHCP

2.1 Install

sudo apt-get install dhcp3-server

2.2 Configure DHCP to provide reserved IPs to specific computers.

2.2.1 Open DHCP conf file, edit to provide ip range 192.168.2.0/24 plus reserved IPs for specific PCs.

gksu gedit /etc/dhcp3/dhcpd.conf

Copy, paste, and edit the following configuration according to your LAN settings (leave out the comments),

default-lease-time 600;
max-lease-time 7200;

option subnet-mask 255.255.255.0;
option broadcast-address 192.168.1.255;
option routers 192.168.2.1; # This should be your Squid/NAT server
option domain-name-servers 208.67.222.222, 208.67.220.220; # These are OpenDNS settings
subnet 192.168.2.0 netmask 255.255.255.0 {
range 192.168.2.160 192.168.2.169; # Edit accordingly
}
host linksys {
hardware ethernet 00:21:29:65:7a:66;
fixed-address 192.168.2.170;
}
host ecenter1 {
hardware ethernet 00:07:e9:01:b5:dc;
fixed-address 192.168.2.171;
}
host ecenter2 {
hardware ethernet 00:07:e9:01:bc:be;
fixed-address 192.168.2.172;
}

Of course, we have more PCs but I have to cut it to three. :) To get the MAC address of each PC, issue the ifconfig command (ipconfig /all for Windows PC).

2.2.3 Restart dhcpd for the settings to take effect.

sudo service dhcpd restart

3. Configure NAT via Ipkungfu (transparent redirection will be done later)

3.1 To save space, Please just read my blogspot on this at LINK . Additional info at LINK, which was actually partially based on my blogspot too. :) Don't forget to reboot thereafter.

4. Configure squid with minimal configuration. I just lifted and edited accordingly my previous post on this:

First install squid via apt-get or synaptic:

sudo apt-get install squid

After installation, edit Squid's configuration file:

sudo gedit /etc/squid/squid.conf

In the /etc/squid/squid.conf file, search and edit the following options/tags:

#TAG:http_port
http_port 3128 transparent

#OPTION WHICH AFFECT THE CACHE SIZE
cache_mem (1/4 of the your RAM) MB

(e.g. assuming your RAM is 1Gb then its "cache_mem 250 MB")

#LOGFILE PATHNAMES AND CACHE DIRECTORIES
#cache_dir ufs /var/spool/squid 100 16 256
cache_dir diskd /cache (capacity of your /cache in MB) 16 256

(make sure /cache already exists)

#RECOMENDED MINIMUM CONFIGURATION
acl netxxx src xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx/xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx

(specify your network and netmask e.g. "acl mynet src 192.168.0.0/255.255.255.0)

# AND FINALLY DENY ALL OTHER ACCESS TO THE PROXY
http_access allow netxxx

(e.g. "http_access allow mynet")

#TAG:Visible_hostname
visible_hostname (yourserver name)

At the terminal, change the ownership of the existing /cache folder:

sudo chown proxy:proxy /cache

Then create swap directories at /cache:

sudo squid -z

Then fireaway squid!

sudo /etc/init.d/squid start

5. Enable transparent redirection via IpKungfu

5.1 Open and edit /etc/ipkungfu/redirection.conf.

gksu gedit /etc/ipkungfu/redirection.conf

Uncomment the line that has 3128 on it.

tcp:80:3128:internal # transparent squid proxy

5.2 Restart IpKungfu for settings to take effect.

sudo /etc/init.d/ipkungfu restart

My squid configuration was actually configured to filter out undesirable websites and that will be tackled on my next blogpost.

Till then!

Hardy Heron on Lenovo 3000 g400

2008-05-31T15:28:00.001+07:00

Ahhh finally! A laptop issued to me by the LGU of Paniqui, Tarlac.

Ta Da! Its a Lenovo 3000 G400. The specs are on the Lenovo website .

It was bought from Computer Zone in Tarlac City (beside the Tarlac Cathedral). As you already saw the price at the link I gave you... does this mean that a local store would sell it higher?

Surprisingly, it didn't. It was priced almost just the same plus a free webcam and mouse... not to mention the gorgeous bag that goes with it.

It only has MSDOS as its Operating System which is actually a PLUS for me. First, it saved us money from MS licenses and secondly, even if they will give me a laptop with a copy of licensed MS Windows on it, I will still reformat it in favor of Linux.

Installing Ubuntu Linux (Hardy Heron) on it was a breeze. Everything was auto detected, including the wireless card. However, it seems that it won't work at first. Some googling around brought me to a simple how-to by Invaleed .

Luckily for me, the how-to worked seamlessly.

Next step is to install various codecs and plugins essential for daily work and surfing needs. I first edited the /etc/apt/sources.list file to enable all the software repositories on it. It simply involves uncommenting a few lines.

Then I also included the Medibuntu repos with the following commands:

sudo wget http://www.medibuntu.org/sources.list.d/hardy.list -O /etc/apt/sources.list.d/medibuntu.list
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install medibuntu-keyring && sudo apt-get update

Then I installed everything I need with this command:

sudo apt-get install build-essential avant-window-navigator linux-header-$(uname -r) ubuntu-restricted-extras audacious vlc k3b wifi-radar grip acidrip aptoncd

After about two hours (internet connection at the office is crappy at the most) everything got installed. I then proceeded to http://gnome-look.org to get some icon sets, gdm themes and wallpapers for some eye candy.

All in all, my laptop now looks like this: Click Here

The dock at the bottom is avant-window-navigator which will only work when compiz is activated. Good thing I have Intel as video so I don't any problem enabling compiz on this laptop.

Almost every key on this laptop works with Ubuntu except for the orange NOVO key. The weight is just right for me although some say it looks kinda bulky. I love the screen and the keyboard layout. My hands just fit in. Suspend and hibernate works without a problem.

I haven't tested the internal modem but no I have no problem with that. Earphones are working, including the integrated mic. Battery applet indicates that the battery would last 2 hours and 55 minutes when fully charged. CPU scaling seems to work out just fine. CPU temperature is from 42 to 57 degrees Celsius.

And oh, when I installed the wireless drivers.... I suddenly noticed that when I started working on it, a scratching sound blurts out.

I desperately tried to trace everything to the point that I wanted to reinstall everything.... only to find out that the sound was caused by my palm movement over the integrated mic on my left. Stupid me! All it takes is for me to mute the mic.

One thing I don't like?! The touchpad. It doesn't feel as responsive as the other touchpads that I have used. Its a good thing that I always have my USB retractable mouse with me.

All in all I am very much impressed with Lenovo 3000 g400 and with Ubuntu Hardy Heron. I love the simple black Lenovo design that looks cool and sturdy which is complemented by the stability and responsiveness of Ubuntu Hardy. If ever I'll have money to buy a laptop of my own, I won't hesitate to buy the same laptop.

Low priced laptop + free open source software = Best Everyday Computing ever!

Me, Avant, and my Wallpaper

2008-04-22T12:52:00.004+07:00

Just two screenshots showing avant-windows-navigator with a nice green wallpaper on LinuxMint Daryna.

Screenshots taken out of boredom waiting for Hardy (which I'll be using for server purposes) and Mint 5.0.

Green is cool with Mint, aye?!

Arno's Iptables Firewall on my Ubuntu Gutsy

2008-01-04T13:43:00.000+07:00

Ipkungfu is acting weird on Ubuntu Gutsy box lately. It sometimes locks the machine from the other PCs in the LAN (I can't ssh or vnc to it) and even disables the transparent proxying for Squid :(. I can't seem to find the problem so every time it locks the server (which acts as squid proxy, router, gateway, dhcp, and vmware server host) I simply reinstall ipkungfu and it works again but then after a few more days, the server got locked up again. :(

So what I did is to try find another easy to use firewall script... and that is when I came upon Arno's Iptables Firewall. To quote from its freshmeat.org entry:

"Arno's IPTABLES Firewall Script is a secure stateful firewall for both single and multi-homed machines. It supports NAT and SNAT, port forwarding, ADSL ethernet modems with both static and dynamically assigned IPs, MAC address filtering, stealth port scan detection, DMZ support, protection against SYN/ICMP flooding, experimental IPv6 support, multi-interface/aliased-IP support, and extensive user definable logging with rate limiting to prevent log flooding. It has plugin support to add extra features (like SSH Brute Force protection and (Racoon) IPSEC support). It is easy to configure and highly customizable. A filter script that makes your firewall log more readable is also included."

To install it on ubuntu, fire up synaptic then look for and install the arno-iptables-firewall package. It will also install the following packages: gawk and lynx.

After the download it will run a simple wizard that will also questions like what is your internet and external interfaces, what ports should be allowed, etc. After answering the questions, it will be installed and is ready to run.

To enable transparent proxying, open with your favorite text editor the file "/etc/arno-iptables-firewall/firewall.conf" and then search for the term "3128" and then simply uncomment the line pertaining to it.

To reconfigure your firewall, simply do a "sudo dpkg-reconfigure arno-iptables-firewall" and an easy to understand text-based wizard will come up. To make it run on boot, do a "sudo invoke-rc.d arno-iptables-firewall start" command.

So far its running great on my machine. Remember when I blogged about ipkungfu kicking firestarter out of my machine? Now it seems arno is ready to kick ipkungfu, but let me find out first after a series of tests.

For the FAQ on arno, read here.

VCDGear and WinFF on Ubuntu Gutsy

2007-11-09T10:57:00.000+07:00

I once had this challenge on how to convert a .dat file on a VCD to mpeg. After scouring the web, I stumbled upon VCDGear which has a GUI version built for Windows and a Console version for Linux.

Unfortunately, its not at the repositories but its easy to install. Simply download the file from this page and then double click on the deb file and easy does it.

Execute it by typing vcdgear at the terminal and you'll see the options and command syntax to follow. For more info, visit http://vcdgear.com.

Another app I love is WinFF. I first saw it at PCLOS repos but its not included at the Ubuntu repos. Simply download the deb file from here and double click on it to install.

WinFF is a cross platform batch GUI for FFMPEG. It will convert most any video file that FFmpeg will convert. WinFF does multiple files in multiple formats at one time. You can for example convert mpeg's, flv's, and mov's, all into avi's all at once.

Great for converting flv's downloaded from Youtube to 3gp's to be uploaded to cellphones. :)

For more info, visit http://biggmatt.com/winff/.

Enjoy!

A Hit and a Miss in a Day

2007-11-08T15:23:00.000+07:00

HIT: Mark, my officemate, can't synchronize his iPod shuffle on Windows PC. iTunes spew an error that it won't sync because there is a missing disc. Duh?!

So what I did is that I tried it on Ubuntu Gutsy... iPod Shuffle was automatically detected, Rhythmbox came up and I simply drag and drop the songs he wanted and it worked flawlessly!

MISS: I tried my Ubuntu Gutsy for a presentation... actually to play .dat movies on a VCD... plugged on an LCD Projector. Wow, the resolution is very good! Sound is working.. but hey it won't play the VCD that we wanted to play.... no applicable codecs, no suggestion to download... ubuntu-restricted-extras but still no go. :(

In short, I was embarrassed.

Now I am using Automatix2 to install the necessary codecs and see if it works. Dang!

Gutsy or PCLOS

2007-10-24T17:46:00.000+07:00

I have enjoyed Ubuntu in the past but suddenly got turned off by Feisty. Now that Gutsy is out with a slew of improvements... my heart is torn into two.

Gutsy or PCLOS?!

PCLOS = KDE, codecs and plugins already installed... with excellent control panel...

Gutsy = I just love Gnome!!!

Oh well, abangan na lang... bugbog na naman sa install itong PC ko.

eBPLS on Asus P5K Mobo Intel Pentium Core2 Duo

2007-10-08T16:07:00.000+07:00

We at the LGU of Paniqui, Tarlac is currently testing the deployment of the Electronic Business Permit and Licensing System or eBPLS software that came from the NCC thru its joint project with the LMP and CESO (a Canadian group). The eBPLS is on Fedora Core 4.

The biggest hiccup that came along the way is that we weren't (at first) able to install it on a new server PC with an Asus P5K Mobo, Intel Pentium Core 2 Duo, 2 sata drives, one dvd drive, and 2 Gb of RAM.

The install CD will boot until the time it looks for a driver (or module in *nix terms) for the DVD drive (or might be the sata drives). We tried all the selections but it was in vain.

Until I discovered something that can make it work by putting an incantation at the boot parameter... and its as simple as "linux all-generic-ide"!

And it installed although it only recognized our sata drives as IDE drives which we can live for now. One other problem that is it won't recognize the DVD drive upon boot but still we just simply USB drives which came in handy. Got any solutions for this? Comment it!

And yes, no sound and no ready detection of NIC... so we simply inserted one edimax NIC and it works. I don't have to deal with the sound coz its a server PC after all.

And for those using eBPLS on a Intel Core 2 Duo machine, install the smp kernel to maximize your processor. The default kernel will only use one cpu. :(

For now, we are happy that the server is now up and running. We have installed Yum to ease the installation of other applications if ever we need them. So far so good!

WinFF converter!

2007-09-12T15:56:00.000+07:00

I am soooo busy! And quite frankly, I am too lazy to blog about anything and I don't know where to start!

Oh well, here's a small post.

Are you looking for a free open source movie converter with a simple and easy to use interface?

Look no further, we have WinFF! WinFF is a frontend for FFMPEG that runs on Windows and Linux. The project will convert most any video file that FFmpeg will convert.

WinFF does multiple files in multiple formats at one time. You can for example convert mpeg's, flv's, and mov's, all into avi's all at once.

I've tested WinFF on my PCLinuxOS box converting a .flv movie to .mpeg, .mpeg to .3gp, and other conversions and it just works.

For more info, check it out on its homepage.

How a hospital opted for SimplyMepis...

2007-06-28T13:27:00.000+07:00

"What?! The last time you're on PCLOS 2007 and now you're using yet another distro?! "

Ok, that's a bit exaggerated but that's what my friend told me when I told him that I am using yet another new Linux distro.

Its SimplyMepis 6.5.02! SM 6.5 is an Ubuntu based Linux distro being led by a certain Warren Woodford. Its official site is at www.mepis.org... other relevant sites are its Wiki, Guide, and Community Forum.

Its KDE based much like Kubuntu and PCLOS. Why SimplyMepis for me?! Here's what happened...

A hospital here in Tarlac sought my services thru my friend Jag Talon. They will migrate to OpenOffice, while half of their PCs will be installed with Linux. Actually, they would want to install Linux in all their PCs if not for an already developed hospital system they are currently using... oh well, that's another story.

I was supposed to install PCLOS 2007, but along the way the installer seems to fail in some machines... to the point of not being able to boot up to its live installer. And then I asked them if they would want to try on Ubuntu but they said that they would like to have something that looks close to Windows XP without much modifications... which is KDE of course.

I need Kubuntu! But I don't have one at that time. I only have PCLOS, Sam Linux, Xubuntu, Bayanihan Linux 4.0, Ubuntu Feisty and of course SimplyMepis 6.5.02.

Sam and Xubuntu are good but I don't think they will work well for these Linux newbies. PCLOS was my first choice, but alas, it won't boot right on a nice PIII 256 RAM ATI Video Card laptop owned by their boss. It seems to have problems detecting its screen, thus, it won't boot on a Live CD environment.

Down goes PCLOS 2007 :-(. And so I tried SimplyMepis... it flawlessly booted. It even detected the correct screen resolution plus the wifi card.

They were actually sold with SimplyMepis but I still insisted to try on an Ubuntu Feisty Live CD. To my embarrassment, Ubuntu Feisty took *years* to boot... a far cry from how fast SimplyMepis Live CD booted on the same laptop. And besides, they don't really like Gnome.

To make the story short, 17 PC desktops at Ramos General Hospital are now on SimplyMepis 6.5... and so is my office PC so that I can relate to what I am teaching them.

They even requested me to customize Mepis so that it would look as closest as possible with Windows XP and so here is my best imitation of Windows XP desktop look:

I am now compiling a few newbie KDE tips that I plan to post here when I have the time. Some of them are really simple but are often overlooked... and may already constitute as an annoyance to many new Linux users.

So far, Ramos General Hospital is happy and contented to migrate to Linux and OpenOffice.org. It saved them around P350,000.00 and are already looking forward to the development of custom FOSS solutions in the future.

Which makes me ask... anyone interested to develop an accounting software (FOSS of course!) for them? Email me ASAP!

A cool object dock for KDE

2007-06-04T07:21:00.000+07:00

One thing that "amazes" me on a MAC desktop is its object dock wherein the icons actually zoom in a parabolic way when you hover your mouse pointer on it. I thought it was exclusive for MAC then so I didn't bothered looking for a Linux equivalent.

Now that I am on KDE, I found out that there is ksmoothdock. Ksmoothdock is a cool desktop panel (like KDE's kicker) for KDE 3.2 and above with smooth zooming (2 modes: normal & parabolic). Its aim is to provide a cool alternative/complement to kicker. As it is intended for KDE/Linux, its behavior will be like that of kicker.

Here's are screenshots:

Neat! I am using the Aqua Fusion Icon Theme the Baghira window decorator. Perfect for Linux (KDE) enthusiast who would want a MAC twist to their desktop look. :)

TIP: Undo wrapped text on your KDE desktop icons

2007-06-01T09:39:00.000+07:00

An initial bad impression I had on KDE is that it wraps the text under a desktop icon that sometimes it even automatically shorten the text... it looks darn ugly to me:

I've tried searching the KDE Control Center for a solution only to get zero results. I later found out that the solution is really simple. Right click on your desktop (not on an icon), then hover on the word Icon and then left click on Align to Grid. You may also right click on Lock in Place to prevent accidentally messing up your desktop icons.

And dyaran...

No more wrapped texts under desktop icons while icons are neatly aligned. Simple does it!

Another distro hop - PCLinuxOS 2007

2007-05-29T18:25:00.000+07:00

Again and again, a new Linux distro is installed on my office PC... and for a change, its not Debian or Ubuntu based.

It's PCLinuxOS 2007, a three year old Live CD distro based originally on Mandriva and is developed by a rpm packager known as Texstar.

Actually, my first distro is rpm based... Bayanihan 3.0. Then my 2nd distro is also rpm based, Mandrake 10.1. And then I got hooked on Ubuntu primarily because of Synaptic which makes software installation a few clicks away.

Now here comes PCLinuxOS, an rpm-based that actually uses Synaptic to install applications. Huh?! But it amazingly works! No rpm hell or whatsoever!

As of now, I am pretty much impressed with this distro. Essential (some say evil) codecs and plugins are already installed out of the box... to the point that any multimedia format I threw on it played without problems (I'm starting to like KMplayer).

The PCLinuxOS Control Center (that is actually ripped from Mandriva) is fantastic. Samba is installed by default which makes file sharing with Windows PCs on a network an instant. Beryl and Compiz are installed by default, while installation of Nvidia graphics card via Synaptics is a breeze.

One thing I don't like about this distro is the menu layout. Its like a "chopsuey" of applications that sometimes it is difficult to find this and that (or maybe I just got too used to playing around with Ubuntu Gnome). And oh, another thing is that it doesn't have any game installed by default but a lot are listed at the repositories via Synaptic.

PCLinuxOS by the way uses KDE.

The community is not as large as that of Ubuntu but I am already trying to blend in with the crowd of PCLinuxOS users.

But hey, I still do like Ubuntu. Its just that somehow I just felt that PCLinuxOS offers a better out of the box experience than Ubuntu. If someone will ask me to install Linux on his laptop or desktop PC with no internet connection, PCLinuxOS would be my choice coz I don't like my friend wondering why he can't play his 3gp or MP3 files out of the box... which is already a showstopper to many to some degree.

PCLinuxOS 2007 is good for PC users who are thinking of migrating from Windows to Linux and even to those who are not so technically adept (like me!) who would want to promote Linux to their friends.

Don't just imagine there how it feels like to use PCLinuxOS on your PC, grab a copy now!

Pahabol: Our LGU here in Gerona, Tarlac will launch an FOSS IT Skill Enhancement Program thru our Community eCenter. Our goal is to promote FOSS to the local constituency. Trainings, fora, and seminars will be launched along with free internet use on Linux boxes (PCLinuxOS 2007 maybe used instead of Ubuntu). Mabuhay FOSS!

Three snapshots of my PCLinux OS:

Yakuake on PCLinuxOS in action

Wobbly windows courtesy of Beryl which is installed by default

Multimedia playback are out-of-the-box... I'm playing a .FLV file with KMPlayer.

Mintified Edgy!

2007-05-02T09:18:00.000+07:00

Last weekends, I suddenly felt like installing LinuxMint over Ubuntu Edgy on the PCs in our Community eCenter. However, I realized that all I need is the theme (not including the Biana usplash theme which IMHO sucks) and the mint tool namely mintMenu, mintDisk, mintDesktop, and mintConfig.

And then I realized that LinuxMint is in fact around 95 percent Ubuntu Edgy so why waste my time again doing a fresh install when all the codecs and plugins I need are already installed? So I did a few research and I theorized that Ubuntu Edgy can be easily mintified, so to speak.

How?

To be able to install the mint tools, you have to add the LinuxMint Bianca repository at the /etc/apt/sources.list file.

Open /etc/apt/sources.list

$sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list

and then add the following line at the end of the file...

deb http://www.linuxmint.com/repository bianca/

Please take note of the "/" after the word bianca. Save and close the file and then update packages...

$sudo aptitude update

Time to install mint tools. To make this a lot easier, simply open the Synaptic via Administration --> Synaptic Package Manager. Then search for the word "mint" (Ctrl + F then type in the word mint). Scroll down until you see the following packages: mintMenu, mintDesktop, mintConfig, and mintDisk. Select there four packages, right click then choose Install. Then click on Apply and then wait till installation is done. (You may also want to install the Bianca theme and mintWifi if you like.)

To use mintMenu, right click on a panel then Add to Panel, then scroll down to click on LinuxMint Menu. After selecting it, click on Add. You may change the word Bianca by right clicking on the mintMenu then Preferences. When a dialog opens, double click on applet_text and input any word you like.

You can now also access mintDisk via Administration. mintConfig and mintDesktop are at Preferences.

Here are some screen captures at Flickr....

I am still using the orange Human icon set but opted to use the linuxmint wallpaper plus the layout of its panel.

mintMenu, a replacement for the Gnome menu which is inspired by SUSE's Slab and based on USP.

mintDisk and mintDesktop, both imported from the Linuxmint repositories.

Beryl in action!

By the way, I had a chance to try on Envy and on Beryl. As you can see at the screencaps, it still looked yummy even only on 64 mb Nvidia video card.

Obviously, I am trying to keep myself busy to forget my disappoint not being able to install Ubuntu Feisty. Poor me!

P.S.: Thanks Dom and Chin for the Ubuntu Feisty Fawn installer!

Feisty'ng Yawa, stucked and getting to know LinuxMint

2007-04-28T16:24:00.000+07:00

It seems Feisty has installation problems that were reported here and here that both unfortunately bugged me on my attempts to install Feisty on two different machines. More Google results on the said problem are here.

I had no problems installing the Dapper and Edgy versions of Ubuntu on the same machines so I just thought why waste my time on a version that won't properly install on PCs where previous versions can (without any glitch!). Sorry for me, no upgrade this time until they resolve the bug.

But then, thanks to LinuxMint 2.2 (Bianca) which somehow satisfied my itch to upgrade my office PC.

The purpose of this Ubuntu-based distribution, according to its website, is “to produce an elegant, up to date and comfortable GNU/Linux desktop distribution.” There is support out of the box for numerous multimedia codecs, encrypted DVDs, as well as the latest Flash and Java plugins. (Yes, I know its illegal in some countries. :-> )

Installation is almost exactly the same easy way as how you install Edgy Eft (in which Bianca is based) on your PC. I had no problems installing LinuxMint on a PIV 1.7 Ghz 512 MB Nvidia VC and on a PIV 3.0 Ghz 256 MB built-in VC.

The initial interface is much like Vista or XP if you wish. It uses a menu system that works like SLAB in Suse. I kinda like the menu system but when I right clicked on an item in which I am trying to find an option to add it on the desktop or panel... the only option is to Add to Favorites. I always use that option so I was a bit disappointed not to see it. I hope someday they could add that feature on this gorgeous menu system.

It doesn't have a workspace switcher by default on the panel. Beagle search is the default desktop search engine. No games included. No Gimp.

Despite being without workspace switcher, games, and Gimp... it has all the necessary codecs and plugins to play movies and music. No problems playing a movie at YouTube, or using Chikka JavaLite. I can play 3pg, mp3, and other formats by default. I can also play .flv but I have to install VLC media player coz other media players installed (Totem and Mplayer) doesn't play it properly (no sound). I also installed RealPlayer which is best for .3pg playing.

No problem detecting USB flash drives and sound. I installed nvidia-glx for the Nvidia VC the same way I once installed it on Dapper and Edgy and it just works.

Honestly, I don't like any interface that resembles Windows XP anymore. So, in an instant I modified the panels and everything to make it look like Ubuntu. I don't like the default theme and wallpaper. I went to System -> Preferences -> Theme and chose the pre-installed the Bea theme which is a blue tango inspired theme. I also used the simply blue Bea wallpaper. I love it.

I tried Beryl which installed and works flawlessly on LinuxMint but I uninstalled it soon afterwards since I am not really a fan of eye candy. You may also use Automatix with LinuxMint.

Other than codecs, what does LinuxMint have that its parent Ubuntu doesn't? It has mintDisk, mintDesktop, and mintConfig. With mintDisk, you easily mount NTFS partitions with read and write powers, mintDesktop is much like the desktop options in Windows OS, while mintConfig is its customized Control Center.

Oh yes, on your home directory... there are already folders like Documents, Videos, Projects, Network, Pictures, etc with the appropriate emblems. Pretty neat.

I inspected /etc/apt/sources.list and it actually uses the same Ubuntu and MediBuntu repositories plus a one line LinuxMint repository (in which I think where you can get the mint tools).

Although I am not sure if Bianca will stay on my PC for a long time, I'll surely keep its installer handy especially for installations on internet-less PCs (less hassle).

Next upcoming version is Cassandra which is most likely based on Ubuntu Feisty. I do sure hope that Cassandra already has the fix for the above reported bug... more reason for me to keep LinuxMint longer on my PC.

For the meantime, I must say that I am disappointed with Feisty... I hope not for long.

To do with Feisty!

2007-04-22T11:07:00.000+07:00

I am yet to install Feisty on my PC but here's already my short list of to-do's, to wit:

Install VMWare and learn how to install different OS's.
Install IE4Linux, just for fun.
Install and setup a working LAMP.
Get an account at DynDNS.com to acquire a static domain.
Setup my PC so that I can ssh (or VNC) to it when I am out of the office.
Install and play with Beryl!

That's all for now. I just thought that I have been using Desktop Linux for two years and its about time that I experiment with other things than I can do with Linux (other than fiddling with proxy servers and iptables all the time).

This forever linux newbie is getting excited!

Paying it Forward

2007-04-22T10:18:00.000+07:00

Dom promised to send me a copy of the latest Ubuntu (Feisty Fawn) installer. I haven't met Dom in person or even online. He's from Dumaguete.

The only thing he asked me in return is free beer when he visits Tarlac. (But I read from a comment on his blog that he doesn't really drinks beer!) But then, what the heck... I am a beer drinker so no problem with free beer.

Pay it forward or paying it forward refers to repaying the good deeds one has received by doing good things for other unrelated people.

Just like Dom, I am paying his kindness forward... (of course, I am still reserving that free beer for him)... anyone who would want to have a free Ubuntu Feisty Fawn delivered thru mail, just email me your mailing info at daveasuncion@gmail.com. No fancy CD here, just works.

And if you can bring your laptop or PC here at my humble office (which looks like a bodega sale for PCs) at the Local Government Unit of Gerona, Tarlac... I may even help you install Ubuntu Feisty Fawn... for free!

There's one condition though: you have to promise me that you'll burn the installer CD (at least) into three copies and then give it to your friends, or just about anyone who would want to have an Ubuntu Feisty Fawn installer.

Deal?!

Of course, free beer shall also be greatly appreciated :)

Addendum: Oh yes! I'm also waiting for a CD from Chin who also promised to send me one :)

IPKungfu, Squid Screwed on Edgy... Nah!

2007-03-25T10:43:00.000+07:00

Whew! I almost thought that I could no longer use my trusted combination of IpKungfu and Squid for a transparent proxy setup on our local intranet here at the Community eCenter of Gerona.

Yesterday, I upgraded our router/squid/samba/printer server from Ubuntu Dapper to Ubuntu Edgy Eft via a fresh install.

To my horror, as I tried to run ipkungfu from the terminal... it won't run leaving several lines of error warnings! I did some research with Mr. Google in which I find out that I only have to open /usr/sbin/ipkungfu...

sudo gedit /usr/sbin/ipkungfu

and change the first line to...

#!/bin/bash

and then my IpKungfu started to work flawlessly.

Then next is Squid. When I tried the same configurations I used on this blogpost, Squid won't start with matching errors (again!).

After a few seconds Googling the net, I found out that I no longer have to setup the lines below on Squid version 2.6 (Dapper uses the older version)...

httpd_accel_host virtual
httpd_accel_port 80
httpd_accel_with_proxy on
httpd_accel_uses_host_header on

Instead, all I have to do is to change the http_port tag at the squid configuration file from "http_port 3128" to "http_port 3128 transparent" and that's it!

Now Ipkungfu and Squid works well hand in hand (and a bit zippier!) on my Ubuntu Edgy Eft box as if it was configured by a pro. :)

Online Resources: Transparent Caching on Squid 2.6 and Ipkungfu on Edgy Eft.

My basic Squid Proxy configuration

2007-03-16T11:38:00.000+07:00

A certain Albuemil asked thru a comment on this blog on how I configured my Squid proxy. So here I am sharing what I learned via PLUG mailing list (special mention to AC Perdon for his excellent instructions) on how to configure Squid proxy. Warning: I am no computer expert and so I welcome additional information to enrich my Linux experience.

First install squid via apt-get or synaptic:

sudo apt-get install squid

After installation, edit Squid's configuration file:

sudo gedit /etc/squid/squid.conf

In the /etc/squid/squid.conf file, search and edit the following options/tags:

#TAG:http_port
http_port 3128

#OPTION WHICH AFFECT THE CACHE SIZE
cache_mem (1/4 of the your RAM) MB

(e.g. assuming your RAM is 1Gb then its "cache_mem 250 MB")

#LOGFILE PATHNAMES AND CACHE DIRECTORIES
#cache_dir ufs /var/spool/squid 100 16 256
cache_dir diskd /cache (capacity of your /cache in MB) 16 256

(make sure /cache already exists)

#RECOMENDED MINIMUM CONFIGURATION
acl netxxx src xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx/xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx

(specify your network and netmask e.g. "acl mynet src 192.168.0.0/255.255.255.0)

# AND FINALLY DENY ALL OTHER ACCESS TO THE PROXY
http_access allow netxxx

(e.g. "http_access allow mynet")

#TAG:Visible_hostname
visible_hostname (yourserver name)

#Then i just add these lines after the last lines of the configuration file

ie_refresh on
httpd_accel_host virtual
httpd_accel_port 80
httpd_accel_with_proxy on
httpd_accel_uses_host_header on

Save the file and then close.

At the terminal, change the ownership of /cache

sudo chown proxy:proxy /cache

Then create swap directories at /cache:

sudo squid -z

Then fireaway squid!

sudo /etc/init.d/squid start

You may now follow the instructions on this blogpost for a transparent proxy using Ipkungfu.

To check if its working, open a web browser on a PC in your LAN and then do the following at the terminal :

sudo tail -f /var/log/squid/access.log

Enjoy Squid!

P.S.: I am using Ubuntu LTS on a Pentium IV 1.7 Ghz 1Gb RAM 120 Gb HB PC.

Have I died and gone to Linux heaven?

2007-02-26T13:34:00.000+07:00

Once upon a time, I had a blog entry on how to share a printer from an Ubuntu box to other PCs within a Local Area Network. Back then, I have to hand edit a few configuration files here and there...

But now, printer sharing on Ubuntu Edgy has been made way much easier than it is used to be that you won't even have to open a terminal. The steps are:

Install printer.
Go to System --> Administration --> Printing --> Global Settings then click on Share Printer.

That's it!

On the Ubuntu Edgy box where you have to share the printer, simply go to System --> Administration --> Printing --> Global Settings then click on Detect LAN Printers then wait for a few seconds and there you see the shared printer automatically detected and installed.

Ain't that sweet?!

Problems moving from Linux to Windows

2007-02-14T14:49:00.000+07:00

Since I can't think of anything to write about my Linux experience in the past few days, I just thought of sharing this comment posted at page.

I had a fun time reading this comment and I hope you'll enjoy it too. :)

I do have some sympathy for the poster that had problems moving from Windows to Linux. I had the same problem trying Windows.

I decided to try it after some friends who use it all the time told me it was great.

I went to the MS site to download it but it wasn't available. I got really frustrated as I couldn't work out how to download it. In the end I had to ask a friend who told me I had to buy it.

I got in my car, drove to PC World and asked one of the sales guys for a copy of Windows. He asked me which one, I said I want the most complete one please and he said that's £149.99 please.....I said a rude word then I drove home empty handed.

One of my friends gave me a copy of Windows XP but said I had to be very quiet about it. I thought that was odd because I always burn copies of Ubuntu for anyone that asks me and tell them to pass it on to anyone interested when they've finished. Anyway, I popped it in my CD tray and waited for it to boot into the 'live' CD desktop. It didn't work. It just kept asking me if I wanted to install it. I got on the phone to one of my friends in case I was doing something stupid but he told me, XP cannot run a 'live' desktop from the CD.

I thought I would try installing it. I followed the prompts but got nervous when it didn't ask me about other operating systems. When I installed Ubuntu it recognized I had Windows on my machine and asked me if I wanted to create then install Ubuntu on another partition. Back on the phone my friend told me that Windows will overwrite any other OS it finds when it installs.

I backed up all my stuff then took the plunge and installed it. The install was pretty straightforward apart from when I had to enter some letters for a serial code. I had to call my friend again but he got quite flustered came over and entered it himself. He told me to keep quiet again??

After I powered it up I had a look around.

I was shocked when it let me changed system configurations without asking for root access. My friend was getting a bit p**sed off when I called him again but came over. He told me that root access was given as default. I immediately made another account as a user and used that. I started getting confused when I tried to make changes but it didn't ask for access but he told me I had to log out as user then log back in as administrator. I started to understand why so many people run as root all the time and it made me shiver.

Enough of the playing. I had some work to do. I went to start > programs so I could open a spreadsheet I needed to complete but couldn't find any spreadsheet software. My friend told me Windows didn't come with any and I would have to download some. Oh I thought, a barebones distro. I went to add/remove programs in the control panel, (just like Ubuntu) but it didn't have any programs to add. It would only let me remove programs. I couldn't find the button to add applications. My friend told me I had to go and find the applications myself. After much googling I figured it out, downloaded and installed Open Office.

To be honest I had a torrid time with Windows. I didn't understand a lot of the terminology...why do they have an A drive, then a C drive, where is the B drive? I thought the distro is way too barebones, it ships with no real productive applications and it is very confusing to find any. My friend told me I needed anti-virus and anti-adware software but Windows didn't come with any.

I think it is difficult, confusing and too much hard work for me. It might be OK if you are a techie like my friend but I'll stick to Ubuntu. Thanks.

Who said this?!

2006-12-14T08:48:00.000+07:00

I am not a Windows hater. Its just that I already love using Linux on the desktop and still wishing that I could learn someday how to use Linux on the server.

But I kinda like how the following quote sounds, to wit:

"Windows - a 32 bit extension and a graphical shell for a 16 bit patch to an 8 bit operating system originally coded for a 4 bit microprocessor, written by a 2 bit company without 1 bit of sense."

Any idea of the original author?! I even forgot where I got it.

Ahhh, no more GoogleBot... I hope!

2006-11-17T15:06:00.000+07:00

To my surprise, the bandwidth for our website at www.gerona.gov.ph is almost spent. :(

Upon inspection of log statistics with AWSTATS, I was surprised that it was no other than GoogleBot that has been churning our bandwidth. All the while, I thought that the culprit was the Gallery and all the photos on it.

So with my limited knowledge on this webserver stuff, how do I stop GoogleBot from eating our bandwidth?!

Ironically, Google itself provided the answers. I did this search and this search wherein I learned that I have to place a robots.txt at the accessible root (e.g. http://gerona.gov.ph/robots.txt) of our website.

So what are the contents of the robots.txt file?! I find this link very helpful. Even more helpful is this link where it automatically gives you the correct content of the robots.txt file to block specific bots. This webpage is also a good source of information.

As of this writing, I haven't tested if its working but I'm keeping my fingers crossed as GoogleBot is threatening to eat all of our site's bandwidth.

The question is, why is it doing that?! Is it being used by malicious spammers, some sort of vehicle?! I hope to be enlightened. Anyone?

Update: It works! GoogleBot and Inktomi is no longer eating my bandwidth :)

Joomla! did it for LMP

2006-11-13T16:29:00.000+07:00

The office of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines thru Mr. Norio Alumno asked me if I can develop a website for them. Since I had no time to do such, I then offered them to try Joomla wherein I can help them learn it.

The TASK: Help three people who don't have any much idea on web publishing, HTML and website design to create a website for a national organization of municipalities in two days... impossible?! Not with Joomla! -- a free open source content management system and the first FOSS I've ever used. Its the software that made me ask "WTF is open source?!"

To make the story short, this is their website after two days of coaching them (with me just talking and them doing everything else): www.lmp.org.ph. I am proud of these guys for the interest and enthusiasm they showed during the training (or is it just coaching?!). They have Sir Norio, the amiable chief of the Research and Information Management Office, Sir Herbert who is an all around go-to guy, and of course my good friend Joseph who managed to create a banner for their website in just a few minutes.

For other government agencies and/or local government units who would like to learn the basics of Joomla!, I am just an email away at daveasuncion[at]gmail.com

Setting up your OOo default page

2006-10-20T09:14:00.000+07:00

Some PC users are too accustomed with the MS Word default page setup (8.5" x 11" page size, 1.25" margin on right and left sides, etc.) that sometimes they get annoyed by the default page in OpenOffice... A4 page size, .79" margins on all sides...

Also, I also found that not all new users to OpenOffice.org knows howto change their default page so let me share my way. I guess there are other means to do this and if you have one, just share it here. Here it goes:

Open OpenOffice Word Processor. You'll notice that the side margins are smaller than the default margins in MSWord. First, you have to format the page by clicking Format --> Page. Then click the drop down beside the word Format to choose Letter. The height and width settings will change accordingly to 8.5" x 11".

Change the left and right margins to 1.20". Personally, .79" top and bottom margins are ok for me. Click OK.

Now you have to save the page as a template. Click File --> Templates --> Save. Give a name to your template, let's use LetterDefault. Click OK.

Now we have to set it as default. Click File --> Templates --> Organize and then double click My Templates. There you see the template you have just saved (named LetterDefault), right click on it then left click on the Set as Default Template. Click Close and that's it!

Close OpenOffice Word Processor (you don't have to save the document you are using). Open it again to see if it works. I hope this helps.

Firefox humor video at YouTube.com

2006-10-04T08:28:00.000+07:00

I just found about this a few days ago and I just love watching it...

Have fun!

Ang kulit!

2006-10-03T14:35:00.000+07:00

Once upon a time, I met this high school student to whom I introduced Ubuntu Linux... and the rest was pure "pangungulit".

He kept sending me emails on a daily basis on anything and everything he learned about Linux. The last time, he now uses Sabayon Linux... Gentoo-based.

He is already becoming a spam to me. One more thing is that it seems all he wants is eye-candy (he is inloved with XGL - Compiz), emulation of Windows software, and downloading viruses then running it on Linux.

Hay, kids.

A matter of choice, then what?!

2006-09-16T09:32:00.000+07:00

A lot has been said about the proposed FOSS bill in the congress especially at the PLUG mailing lists where everybody seems to have his or her idea of what the bill should be...

Of course, I have something to say also but I choose to blog it here as it seems there are some members of the mailing lists who are really way too passionate about their beliefs that in the end you'll get tagged by certain terms... especially when you don't agree with them.

Oh well...

I believe in FOSS. I believe that we all should have a choice, and that includes the State or the Government.

Yes, it is a matter of choice... so what's next?

A choice has to be made -- a choice that is based after carefully weighing the scales of reason and that is beneficial to the one who is making the choice.

If ever the proposed FOSS bill will be legislated, then it only means that the State just made its choice. Is there anything wrong with that? FOSS (including open standards and all) will or may be chosen by the State because of reduced cost, interoperability of government information systems will be ensured, assurance that the public may be able access public information to the infinite and among other reasons why other country governments has chosen to adopt FOSS.

As what I understand, the proposed FOSS bill is intended ONLY for the government. If the government wants to use FOSS, so what's wrong with that?

Unless you are a government employee, then you don't have to use any FOSS all. You can CHOOSE to use propriety software in your homes, at the internet cafes, in your schools, or wherever you wish. If you are working in a private company that uses propriety software, the government won't compel you to use FOSS simply because the proposed bill doesn't cover that.

So what's with all the noise?

If you are software developer who doesn't believe in GPL or dislike it, then offer your software to private companies who can afford or prefer your software. That's the company's choice and the government won't even stop that company from choosing propriety software or you from offering your software.

I don't really see how the proposed FOSS bill would take out my, yours, or their freedom of choice. As per the proposed bill, the government must choose FOSS because it thinks that FOSS is good for the government but will not compel you as a private citizen to use or develop FOSS. It is clear that YOU still have your choice.

Let the government choose, the same way it allows us as private citizens to choose what we want or what we see is good for us.

You may choose for yourself but the government can't?! That's scary, ever heard of anarchy?

P.S. I hope they scrap Section 8 of the proposed bill, it doesn't make sense... but nonetheless I hope and pray for its passage.

Sa wakas nakapagBLOG!

2006-09-07T16:18:00.000+07:00

Warning: TAGLISH

Wow, super busy ako ng mga nakaraang linggo kaya halos wala na akong time na makapagblog man lang. Pero ok na rin kasi sobrang daming nangyari at dami ko ding natutunan...

Last week, nag-attend ako sa isang Advanced Linux Training Seminar na sponsored ng National Computer Center at ng aming office para sa eLGU project. Ginanap ito sa NCC mismo sa UP Diliman. Gaya ng sabi ko, isa lang akong everyday Linux desktop user kaya napakabasic pa lang talaga ng mga alam ko kaya excited akong umattend.

Ilan lang sa mga natutunan ko ay ang mga sumusunod: mga bagay-bagay tungkol sa Logical Volume Management, Software Raid, sa Xserver at Xorg, sa Cron, booting process, troubleshooting at marami pang iba. Ang gamit pala namin sa training at RHEL 4 kasi tiga Touch Solutions ang nagturo.

Mayroong binigay na parang troubleshooting test nung last day (tslocal, tsnetwork, tsboot). Ang sabi ng instructor eh, iyong last at tanging trainee na galing sa isang LGU daw na nakatapos ng lahat ng mga exercises na iyon eh sa batch the past year at inabot daw ng alas-siyete ng gabi. Weee! Natapos ko lahat before 5 pm! At ako lang nakatapos sa batch namin! Yabang?! Oo, pero happy lang ako kasi ako lang ang hindi computer engineer o kumuha ng computer related course sa batch namin eh...

Nag-attend din ako ng Basic Linux Training conducted by the Development Academy of the Philippines kasi requirement sa Community eCenter project namin. Para akong tanga, at ang masakit.. ung mga batang instructor namin eh tinuring kaming lahat na tanga.

Oh well, I don't question their proficiency pero siguro they should consider na hindi lahat ng magiging estudyante nila eh pare-parehas na first time Linux user.

May itinanong ba naman ako dun sa isang instructor na nagkataong katabi ko... tapos hindi ako pinapansin pero after mga 3 times ako nagtanong... sinagot ba naman ako ng pabalang na "makinig ka sa nagsasalita sa harap para matuto ka ng Linux".

Dang! Puede naman siguro akong napagsabihan ng mas maayos di ba? And besides about Linux din naman ung tanong ko. Oh well, siguro magaling na talaga sila... pero still, I was offended kasi if I was in his case... hindi ako mambabastos ng estudyanteng nagtatanong.

Nasanay kasi ata ako sa Touch Solutions na kapag may naitanong ka eh sinisikap pa rin nilang sagutin kaya dami ko natutunan. Different people, different strokes.

At sa aking obserbasyon, base na rin sa training module na ibinigay nila... mukhang kulang ung training o hindi ito akma para magamit ang mga kaalamang ipinamamahagi upang magamit ito sa isang Community eCenter. May mga puntong may mas madali pang paraan na puedeng magamit upang madaling ma-absorb ng mga participants ang paggamit ng Linux sa desktop o puede ring kulang talaga ang dalawang araw para sa lahat ng topics na dapat pag-aralan.

Ang resulta? May balita ako na marami na sa mga Community eCenter sa iba't-ibang munisipyo ay nagpalit na nang piratang Windows sa kanilang mga PCs. Talagang nakakalungkot kasi pagkakataon na sana ito upang maimulat ang tao sa FOSS.

Ah basta kami sa Gerona, we'll push on with Kubuntu and Ubuntu para maimulat ang aming kababayan sa isang alternatibong mas ligtas gamitin, kadalasang legal na libreng gamitin at magdaragdag sa kanila ng ibayong kaalaman sa computers.

Balik sa Ubuntu, nakainstall ako today ng GyachE Improved. Hanep, deb package na siya. Isang Loell sa ubuntuforums.org na tiga-Davao ang nagpackage nito. Madali siyang install sa aking Ubuntu Dapper at may mga dagdag na features tulad ng puedeng irecord ang webcam session, etc. At mukhang hindi siya buggy hindi tulad ng Gyach Enhanced na kung saan kinuha ang project na ito.

Pero sana matapos na ang Gaim 2 kasi meron na din daw siyang webcam at voice capability, mas masaya na naman yun!

Sarap talaga ng Linux at Open Source, dami taong makikilala at daming bagay na puedeng matutunan.... hindi ka mauubusan!

Camorama, DoTA and Kubuntu

2006-08-16T09:40:00.000+07:00

Yesterday, I had my first try to use a webcam on Ubuntu Linux. It was a Logitech QuickCam Messenger ( ID 046d:08f0) issued for our LGU's Community eCenter. As I am keen on installing *buntu on the PCs they gave us (with FC4 preinstalled), my first daunting task is how to make its webcam work.

Ubuntuforums.org came to my rescue as I learned that I needed to get a file at http://home.mag.cx/messenger and run it so that the webcam would work. Unfortunately, the link is dead and so as the site. I searched it thru Google and I was lucky to find the driver (qc-usb-messenger1.1.orig.tar.gz - not the latest) from a certain location I already forgot.

I first had to apt-get build-essential and linux-kernel-header-uname plus camorama (for testing). I then simply ran the .quickcam.sh file in it (as root as it was required) and did a "sudo modprobe quickcam".

And here's my camorama snapshot:

It works nicely with Gyach-Enhanced.

Another thing is that a friend asked me if I could try to ran DoTa in Ubuntu. I, of course, used Wine. DoTA ran as if its a native game in Linux and I'm starting to love it.

I wanted to use Edubuntu on the PCs for our LGUs Community eCenter but the installation borked as it seems that monitor (brand: Giant) has a low frequency thingy... something I am not familiar. Too afraid to tinker with /etc/X11/xorg.conf.

And so I tried the Kubuntu Live CD and it had no problems with the monitor. I copied the archived debs from my Edubuntu PC to the /var/cache/apt/archives of the Kubuntu PCs, edited /etc/apt/sources.list to enable and add the required repositories.. and then did an update.

I only had to download 40mb out of the 170mb but it still took too long as my internet connection is really, really slow. Hint: DIAL-UP.

My first impressions of Kubuntu?! I love Kaffeine and Amarok. Codecs and extra fonts were installed via Automatix = the only installation process I use Automatix nowadays (Too lazy!).

I get to love Konqueror as it works as a browser for files and for the net. System Settings is also OK.

I hate Adept. It sucks. The updater sucks more. I had to install synaptic package manager, easier to use and better interface.

Ahhh... using a webcam, a nice game like DoTA, and the likable interface of Kubuntu makes me somewhat think about the other OS I used to tinker not too long time ago... an OS that is not part of my PC anymore. :) Do I miss it?! Nah, not a bit!

Of Edubuntu Install CD and Irssi

2006-08-06T13:49:00.000+07:00

I must admit that I was quite disappointed when I got my order of Ubuntu and Kubuntu CDs. Although the packaging still impresses, I was disappointed that each package only has the one CD... the Live CD.

I am not a fan of Live CDs and besides all I want is an installer CD coz I am already sold with the idea that I want to install Ubuntu on a PC. So when my Edubuntu packages came, I just put it on my bag and left there for days.

Then this morning, I happen to read the carton paper package of one of my Edubuntu CDs and OMG! I was actually amused to find out that it was the Edubuntu Install CD! Oh well, the lessons are 1. Read First and 2. Don't assume too much.

Another thing I learned on a Sunday (at the #ubuntu-ph channel at irc.freenode.net) is about irssi -- a command line IRC client.

Simply type "irssi" at the terminal and then press Enter. To connect to a server e.g. irc.freenode.net, type /server irc.freenode.net and then to join a channel e.g. #ubuntu-ph, type /join #ubuntu-ph and that's it!

Now I know irrsi and loving it. :)

Discoveries...

2006-08-03T09:39:00.000+07:00

Yesterday, I found out that when you right click a folder it already has an option to share the folder over the network. Neat. :)

This morning, I found out that my former student now has blog about Linux and he even has his own how-tos. Congrats Jag!

And thru his blog, I also learned that there is an IE4Linux project. However, I don't use IE anymore so I opted not to install it. But then, for those who would like to try it (or it may help run Gunbound on Linux).. here is the link.

Ahhh, the beauty of learning Linux... there are so much to learn that you'll always be a newbie. I love that.

LMP IT Officers Unite!

2006-07-31T11:00:00.000+07:00

Last July 27-28, 2006, I attended a "Forum on eGovernance Capability Building" sponsored by the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP), The Asia Foundation (TAF), and the British Embassy at the Astorias Plaza Hotel in Ortigas.

The League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) in partnership with The Asia Foundation (TAF) held the forum as it is their common support for the use of Information and Communication Technology to improve services and operations in the municipalities.

Aside from being a participant, I was also made to talk to introduce Joomla! for the easy creation of dynamic content rich websites.

The forum was also a way for the organizers to organize IT officers in municipalities in the country in one organization under the auspices of the LMP. It is tentatively known as the LMP Association of eGovernance Advocates. The organization was established to promote eGovernance among LGUs and to its constituents and pursue the formulation of a national policy that will ensure the success of local ICT projects.

And to my surprise, I was elected as National President (unoppose and to think that it was my first time to meet the other participants). Personally, I was at the most gunning for the PRO position but I guess they must saw something in me that I wasn't able to.

For starters, we talked about convening all national government agencies concerned and ask them to push for the standarization and interoperability of their info systems (READ: open source), encourage mayors to fully support ICT, push for a enabling law that will allow the creation of permanent ICT positions even if the LGU's allocation for salaries is already over the prescribed limit, and among other concerns.

I am now doing a website for the organization using Drupal (my first try), and has already created a mailing list for the organization at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LMPeGov.

I was also able to distribute Ubuntu and Kubuntu installer CDs during the event and was able to discuss about our LGU's experience on using Linux on the desktop with my peers. Some of them in fact have signified their intent to ask me for assistance for possible Linux desktop migration.

Personally, I hope I could encourage more LGUs to adopt free open source softwares in their respective LGUs thru the organization. Other than that, I hope I could keep up with the challenge of being the President of the organization. I am excited, obviously.

I have high hopes yet I don't want to push it too much. I don't wanna give my fellow ICT officers too much undue pressure yet I don't wanna waste the momentum and their enthusiasm.

I'll go with the saying "THINK BIG, START SMALL" and so God help me.

Doing the Samba without the Terminals

2006-07-20T16:06:00.000+07:00

Assumptions: You're connected to a Local Area Network and your NIC has already been configured with the proper IP and subnet. Of course, basic mouse skills will help. (Addendum to assumptions: You just want a simple share, meaning you just want everybody in the LAN to view, copy, and edit the shared resource.)

Install the samba and smbfs packages with the Synaptic Package Manager. Open Synaptic (System -> Administration -> Synaptic Package Manager) and search for the samba and smbfs packages. Right click on it and then choose install. Click apply. Close Synaptic when finished.

Create a folder in your home directory. Click Places -> Home. Ctrl+Shift+N to create a new folder and name it SharedFolder.

Change its permissions to 777 (or read-write-execute permission to User/Group/Others). Right click on the folder then Properties then click the Permissions tab then make sure all the read write execute check boxes have checks on it.

Now to share the folder... click System -> Administration -> Shared Folders. Click Add. At the Path selection, click the up and down arrows then choose others to browse your home folder.

Now as you see the SharedFolder folder that you just created, make sure you double click on it and not single click. Click Open. Put something on the Name field (like SharedFolder) then also put a check on the Allow Browsing Folder option. Click on General Windows sharing settings. Put anything on the Host Description field, then put your LAN's workgroup at the Domain / Workgroup field (in my case is MYGERONA). Click OK.

For the settings to take effect, you should do something at the terminal but for the sake of avoiding the terminal... just restart your PC. :)

That's it. Tried and tested it with two PCs and one laptop.. all fresh installed with Ubuntu Dapper.

I hope it works for you too. :)

Automatix and just being me...

2006-07-16T10:56:00.000+07:00

I remember then when I started using Automatix for Ubuntu, someone told me that I should not use Automatix coz its a badly written program (it was said to use the --force-yes option but according to the developer, it ain't true) and it won't help me learn Linux the right way.

My take? I guess that someone forgot about the fact that not everyone who migrated from Windows to Linux wants to learn Linux. Some jumped in to Linux because they just got tired of viruses, spywares and other malwares while some got hooked with the ideals of GPL... and for so many other reasons but in the end they just want a "just works" Linux box.

Some people want to learn before they use something, but for some people like me, we prefer to use something first and then learn the details later. What drives people like me to learn something is how that something did great for us.

Now, if something doesn't work for me at the onset, why would I even think of learning it? But that is just me...

That is why Automatix helped me a lot on my migration. Remember, I am no developer... and WAS a sucker for the other OS. When I first started Linux, I must admit that I got intimidated with the menu of command lines just to get my Linux box play music and movies or install useful apps.

And no matter how you say it that it was too easy to do this and that, believe it or not, lots of newbies find it hard... yeah, its easy for you to say Linux guru.

Why can't we just let them use tools like Automatix and EasyUbuntu so that they could enjoy their PCs first and then encouraged them later to understand the details? Well, of course, it would be a different view if we are talking about programmers and developers.. but I am talking about myself -- a none programmer who just want to use Linux.

About Automatix as a badly written program, I guess I am too lucky coz I haven't had any problems with it. Never.

Nonetheless, I still thank those who warned me against Automatix. At least, I have been warned of risks and that I appreciate. If I choose to use Automatix and for that you call me an idiot or pathetic then fine with me! But hey, its NOT your PC that I am using, right?

I took my choice... and choice is what open source and Linux is all about.

Now let's all go get a life.

Kubuntu: I want to try!

2006-07-13T08:33:00.000+07:00

Sir Chin Wong of the Manila Times issued a challenge to Linux developers that has something to do with providing an easy GUI on SAMBA (network file sharing) and CUPS (printer installation). He uses Ubuntu, by the way.

Wait! I do remember when I was using Mandrake 10.1, there was a nice GUI interface for SAMBA setup and I had no problems sharing my printer on the network. Unfortunately, no more Mandrake 10.1 for me to try on.

But then, I realized that there is Kubuntu which is KDE based just like Mandrake 10.1.

How I wish I could help Mr. Chin Wong by developing such GUI but then I am no developer or programmer so I had to try help him in other ways I can.

And so I will try to install Kubuntu any time this week and share my experiences thru this blog. I hope to get something out of it although quite honestly, a year of using Ubuntu (Gnome-based) has already made me a stranger to KDE. (I really pray that I'll have time to do this.)

By the way, Jon has a very nice how-to on transparent Squid proxying with iptables. Do read it and enjoy.

IpKungfu kicks Firestarter out of my Ubuntu box

2006-06-27T12:56:00.000+07:00

For the longest time I'm using Linux, I have been trying to make transparent squid proxy work. I had no problems setting up Squid proxy along with the lines I need to add on squid.conf to make it work but what pains me is how to forward port 80 requests to the squid proxy.

Although I found a few helpful tips and preconfigured iptables-based firewall scripts with Google, I am always baffled by the fact that I don't know how to make a certain script run on bootup with Debian/Ubuntu... and sometimes those scripts don't work or it must be me who doesn't understand those scripts...

Iptables?! No, not for me. Even the tagalized instructions of Jond3rd won't go thru my thick skull. I just don't get it. :( Firestarter only works for me as a firewall and router, but the option to setup a transparent squid proxy doesn't work... any way I do it.

IpKungfu to the rescue! IpKungfu was the first ever firewall I used during my Mandrake 10.1 days. However, as I shifted to Ubuntu it was unfortunate then that it was not available then at the repos (from warty to breezy) so I had to use Firestarter. Good thing that it has finally reached Debian Stable (I think!) and now its in the universe repo of Ubuntu Dapper.

So how did I do it? Here's my how-to for newbies and wannabees. :)

Install IpKungfu (make sure you have the universe repositories enabled)

$sudo apt-get install ipkungfu

Edit /etc/ipkungfu/ipkungfu.conf according to your needs.

$sudo gedit /etc/ipkungfu/ipkungfu.conf

I edited the contents to look like this...

# Please read the README and FAQ for more information

# Some distros (most notably Redhat) don't have
# everything we need in $PATH so we specify it here.
# Make sure modprobe, iptables, and route are here,
# as well as ordinary items such as echo and grep.
# Default is as shown in the example below.
#PATH=/sbin:/usr/sbin:/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/local/sbin

# Your external interface
# This is the one that connects to the internet.
# Ipkungfu will detect this if you don't specify.
#EXT_NET="eth0"
#EXT_NET="eth1"
#EXT_NET="ppp0"

# Your internal interfaces, if any.  If you have more
# than 1 internal interface, separate them with
# spaces.  If you only have one interface, put "lo"
# here. Default is auto-detected.
#INT_NET="eth0"
#INT_NET="eth1"
#INT_NET="lo"

# IP Range of your internal network.  Use "127.0.0.1"
# for a standalone machine.  Default is a reasonable
# guess.
LOCAL_NET="192.168.1.0/255.255.255.0"

# Set this to 0 for a standalone machine, or 1 for
# a gateway device to share an Internet connection.
# Default is 1.
GATEWAY=1

# TCP ports you want to allow for incoming traffic
# Don't add ports here that you intend to forward.
# This should be a list of tcp ports that have
# servers listening on them on THIS machine,
# separated by spaces. Default is none.
# ALLOWED_TCP_IN="21 22"

# UDP ports to allow for incoming traffic
# See the comments above for ALLOWED_TCP_IN
#ALLOWED_UDP_IN=""

# Temporarily block future connection attempts from an
# IP that hits these ports (If module is present)
FORBIDDEN_PORTS="135 137 139"

# Drop all ping packets?
# Set to 1 for yes, 0 for no. Default is no.
BLOCK_PINGS=1

# Possible values here are "DROP", "REJECT", or "MIRROR"
#
# "DROP" means your computer will not respond at all. "Stealth mode"
#
# "REJECT" means your computer will respond with a
# message that the packet was rejected.
#
# "MIRROR", if your kernel supports it, will swap the source and
#   destination IP addresses, and send the offending packet back
#   where it came from.  USE WITH EXTREME CAUTION! Only use this if you fully
#   understand the consequences.
#
# The safest option, and the default in each case,,  is "DROP". Don't change
# unless you fully understand this.

# What to do with 'probably malicious' packets
#SUSPECT="REJECT"
SUSPECT="DROP"

# What to do with obviously invalid traffic
# This is also the action for FORBIDDEN_PORTS
#KNOWN_BAD="REJECT"
KNOWN_BAD="DROP"

# What to do with port scans
#PORT_SCAN="REJECT"
PORT_SCAN="DROP"

# How should ipkungfu determine your IP address? The default
# answer, "NONE", will cause ipkungfu to not use the few
# features that require it to know your external IP address.
# This option is good for dialup users who run ipkungfu on
# bootup, since dialup users rarely use the features that
# require this, and the IP address for a dialup connection
# generally isn't known at bootup.  "AUTO" will cause
# ipkungfu to automatically determine the IP address of
# $EXT_NET when it is started.  If you have a static IP
# address you can simply enter your IP address here.
# If you do port forwarding and your ISP changes your IP
# address, choose NONE here, or your port forwarding
# will break when your IP address changes. Default is
# "NONE".
#GET_IP="NONE"
#GET_IP="AUTO"
#GET_IP="128.238.244.16"

# If the target for identd (113/tcp) is DROP, it can take
# a long time to connect to some IRC servers. Set this to
# 1 to speed up these connections with a negligible cost
# to security.  Identd probes will be rejected with the
# 'reject-with-tcp-reset' option to close the connection
# gracefully. If you want to actually allow ident probes,
# and you're running an identd, and you've allowed port
# 113 in ALLOWED_TCP_IN, set this to 0. Default is 0.
#DONT_DROP_IDENTD=0

# Set this to 0 if you're running ipkungfu on a machine
# inside your LAN.  This will cause private IP addresses
# coming in on $EXT_NET to be identified as a spoof,
# which would be inaccurate on intra-LAN traffic
# This will cause private IP addresses coming in on
# $EXT_NET to be identified as a spoof. Default is 1.
#DISALLOW_PRIVATE=1

# For reasons unknown to me, ipkungfu sometimes causes
# kernel panics when run at init time. This is my
# attempt to work around that.  Ipkungfu will wait
# the specified number of seconds before starting, to
# let userspace/kernel traffic catch up before executing.
# Default is 0.
#WAIT_SECONDS=5

# This option, if enabled, will cause ipkungfu to set
# the default policy on all builtin chains in the filter
# table to ACCEPT in the event of a failure.  This is
# intended for remote administrators who may be locked
# out of the firewall if ipkungfu fails.  A warning to
# this effect will be echoed so that the situation can be
# rectified quickly.  This is the same as running
# ipkungfu with --failsafe.  Default is 0.
#FAILSAFE=0

I only changed the following: Gateway, Local_Net, Block_Pings. I simply uncommented Suspect, Known_Bad, and Port Scan settings to DROP. The ReadMe and FAQ can be found at /usr/share/doc/ipkungfu.

To forward port 80 requests to the squid proxy server port, I opened /etc/ipkungfu/redirect.conf:

$sudo gedit /etc/ipkungfu/redirect.conf

...and changed the line "#tcp:80:3128:internal # transparent squid proxy" to "tcp:80:3128:internal # transparent squid proxy" without the apostrophes of course.

To start ipkungfu everytime the computer boots up, I opened /etc/default/ipkungfu:

$sudo gedit /etc/default/ipkungfu

... and change the line "IPKFSTART = 0" to "IPKFSTART=1".

Fire away ipkungfu!

sudo ipkungfu

I tested the firewall with the ShieldsUp test at grc.com and it passed with flying colors.

I also tested transparent squid proxy by taking a peek at /var/log/squid/access.log...

$sudo tail -f /var/log/squid/access.log

...and there I saw all PCs in our LAN browsing the net, without them knowing that they were actually proxied.

That's it! I have a firewall and router, I was able to forward port 80 requests to the squid proxy server, and I was able to make ipkungfu ran on bootups!

Now, for linux gurus... this must be a piece of cake but for someone like me who does have not any idea about iptables, netfilters, and among other things.. this is already a slice of heaven.

IpKungfu kicks hard! Eeyah!

P.S.: I must say that I have already configured squid proxy and dhcp to work long before I tried on ipkungfu. So if there is anyone interested on my dhcp.conf and squid.conf, I'm glad to share.

Oh my Tangerine!!!

2006-06-23T08:42:00.000+07:00

I am done with Vista-like or iMac-like Ubuntu desktops! So here is my Ubuntu Dapper Tangerine desktop for a change...

I love the icons... plus a touch of transparent panels...

Whoa, I am using a wallpaper entitled Uplifted by marko cavka...

Transparent Gnome-Terminal with an orange-skinned XMMS. :)

Dapper at Last!

2006-06-21T14:11:00.000+07:00

Finally, I am on Dapper! I used the Edubuntu Dapper Live CD sent to me by someone I don't even personally know... Wendy Acetes from Daly City. Wendy was the first one who offered to give me Ubuntu CDs after I pleaded thru this blog. Thanks Wendy!

Unfortunately, I accidentally scratched the CDs given by Charo when I placed them on my motorbike's compartment. Sayang!

My first impression on Dapper?! One word: FAST! Two Words: Really FAST!

I like how they were able to make it boot faster... and shutdown a lot faster too than Breezy. I also like the default theme - the colors and icons and all those stuff.

However, it seems that they streamlined it to the bare necessities so gone are the other applications you see on Breezy.

My first attempt to update my Dapper box (which I named TEQNIX after this blog) was last Monday. Although not continously, I was able to finish the download of 90 plus updated deb package this morning... including the kernel updates. I am still using dial-up, remember?!

Other applications I have installed were the following (with some help from ubuntuguide.org, automatix, and easyubuntu): Etherape, Firefox plugins (java, flash, mplayer), FrostWire, Gaim 2.0 Beta, gFTP, Gnome-PPP, Java, GnomeBaker, XPad, MS Core Fonts, MPlayer, XMMS, Simple Backup and Restore (ala System Restore), Boot-Up Manager and of course, the much-needed Audio Video Codecs... oh yes, I almost forgot Squid HTTP Proxy, Firestarter, SAMBA and DHCP3-Server which I had no problem setting up as I used the old .conf which worked like a charm.

I had no problems with NVidia Video Card, sound card, my external modem, and war-torn HP printer. No problem too with my dial-up connection setup.

As with the installation itself, its a great idea to have Live CD that has a nice GUI for the installation process but somehow I still prefer the text-based installation on *buntu install CDs. The bottomline, both are good but I prefer text-based.

So far, everything is bliss... as in heaven for me with my Edubuntu Dapper box. Oh well, mababaw lang ang kaligayahan ko eh!

Now, if only someone can give me *buntu InStALL CDs... and that's another story. :)

How do I update an internet-less Ubuntu box: a Repost!

2006-06-01T16:47:00.000+07:00

Perhaps the fastest way to update an internet-less Ubuntu box is to bring the CPU to an internet shop, connect it to the Local Area Network with a shared internet connection and then do the “sudo apt-get update”. I guess that’s what Zak has been doing…

But in Linux, it is almost always that there are a number of ways to do things for your PC and this is my way of updating an internet-less Ubuntu box.

On an updated PC where I configured it not to delete the downloaded (and updated) deb packages located at /var/cache/apt/archives, I copy the contents of that folder to a folder on my home directory, thus:

$ sudo cp /var/cache/apt/archives/* ~/Desktop/updeb

I then burned the contents of ~/Desktop/updeb folder to a CD(s) with GnomeBaker or any CD Burning app of your preference.

Now going to the internet-less PC, copy the contents of the CD containing the updated deb packages to a folder at the home directory of the internet-less PC.

$ sudo mkdir ~/deb

$ sudo cp /media/cdrom/* ~/deb

Now go to the directory where you copied the packages

$ cd ~/deb

Do this while in the said directory to create Packages.gz:

$ sudo dpkg-scanpackages . /dev/null | gzip -9c > Packages.gz

Open and edit /etc/apt/sources.list to add the local folder as a repo…

$ sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list

Insert the following line at the end of the file…

deb file:/home/username/deb/. /

Save and close the file. Update and upgrade with Synaptic or at CLI!

$ sudo apt-get update

$ sudo apt-get upgrade

P.S.: Make sure you have installed the dpkg-dev package on the internet-less PC from the Ubuntu CD Installer before anything else.

$ sudo apt-get install dpkg-dev

I hope this helps!

Ubuntu Release Party!

2006-05-24T08:30:00.000+07:00

Its Ubuntu Dapper Release Party on June 3, 2006 at 3:00 pm at the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf at Green Belt, Makati! I may attend for pressed Ubuntu Dapper CDs maybe given away plus of course meeting fellow Ubuntites in the Philippines.

Ealden's email announcement regarding this is here.

Now where in the world is my brown shirt?!

Lazy Unmount

2006-05-19T11:19:00.000+07:00

Have you ever had this problem of unmounting your CDROM that comes with the error that the device is busy or whatever?!

Now, what you want is to force it to unmount so you do a "sudo umount -f /media/cdrom0".

It won't work. Try to do a lazy unmount instead:

$sudo umount -l /media/cdrom0

and most of the time, it will work. :) It may also work on other devices.

Cheers!

P.S.: If everything else fails, press the CPU OFF button then pull out your CD during boot-up! Now that's lazy unmount! :)

Apt-Get Easter Egg

2006-05-17T19:42:00.000+07:00

I was PMed by one of my students (who is now actually better than me) and asked me to do a "sudo apt-get moo" and said that "may lalabas na kalabaw". He must be kidding, right?!

Do it yourself at the terminal. :)

(__)
(oo)
/------\/
/ | ||
* /\---/ ~~ ~~
...."Have you mooed today?"...

Neat.

Dapper CD Please!!!

2006-05-15T14:09:00.000+07:00

Dapper CD Please!!!

For the love of Ubuntu, please send me a cd of Ubuntu (or Kubuntu) Dapper (Beta is fine).

I'm still on dial-up that's why I can't download it on my own. My mailing address is at:

David T. Asuncion, Jr.
c/o Office of the Mayor
Gerona Town Hall
Pob. 3, Gerona 2302, Tarlac.

Please! Im dying to have one!

Webserver Down, I Repeat...

2006-05-10T09:48:00.000+07:00

Aaarrrrgghhhh!!!

Our webserver for www.gerona.gov.ph is under attack by some bot that eats up our bandwidth...

That is why in only ten days, our 2 Gb bandwidth is gone.

I have to do something but I have to wait for 20 days more. Inis. I will really work hard to transfer it to Joomla or any other open source CMS.

Any suggestions?

Ubuntu Printer Sharing: a Repost

2006-05-02T15:28:00.000+07:00

This is a re-issue of my blog post on my previous pseudo tech blog... and its my personal favorite coz it has been a "bestseller". I hope it helps!

I want to share my HP printer (old) to other computers (Ubuntu and Window$ boxes) in a LAN.

There must be some other ways to do it but this is how it worked for me (learned it with Mr. Google):

Backup your /etc/cups/cupsd.conf:

>> sudo cp /etc/cups/cupsd.conf /etc/cups/cupsd.conf.backup

Edit /etc/cups/cupsd.conf:

>> sudo gedit /etc/cups/cupsd.conf

Delete everything in the file and replace it with the values below (replace 192.168.0* appropriately with your LAN configuration):

DefaultCharset notused
LogLevel info
Printcap /var/run/cups/printcap
User cupsys
Group lpadmin
RunAsUser Yes
Port 631
Include cupsd-browsing.conf

BrowseAddress @LOCAL
SystemGroup lpadmin

<Location />
Order Deny,Allow
Deny From All
Allow From 127.0.0.1
Allow From 192.168.0.*
</Location>

AuthType Basic
AuthClass User
</Location>

<Location /admin>
AuthType Basic
AuthClass System
Order Deny,Allow
Deny From All
Allow From 127.0.0.1

</Location>

To enable, do a:

>> sudo /etc/init.d/cupsys restart

On the Ubuntu or Linux boxes where you want to share your printer, open to edit /etc/cups/client.conf:

>> sudo gedit /etc/cups/client.conf

And add the following:

ServerName hostname (hostname or IP of the printer server)

Once this is all setup, you should be able to go to: System -> Administration -> Printing and in the top tool bar you'll see: Global Settings You'll want to make sure the following is checked:

Detect Lan Printers

On the Windows boxes, just add the printer server as you normally do.

To make your printer browsesable in a LAN network, edit your /etc/cups/cupsd-browsing.conf:

>> sudo gedit /etc/cups/cupsd-browsing.conf

Simply replace the word "Off" with "On" (without the ""), don't worry...that file has only one line so you won't ever have difficulties finding it. I guess you have to do a "sudo /etc/init.d/cupsys restart" after this. :)

So that's it! Everybody happy printing their stuff on your HP or any other installed printer on your PC!

UPDATE: To share your printer with Windows PCs, in the add printer wizard there is a step there when you'll have to enter the following lines:

>> http://ip_address_of_server:631/printers/share_name_of_printer

Voila! That's it mama!

Bayanihan: From RPM to Deb?!

2006-05-02T09:29:00.001+07:00

Bayanihan Linux 3.1 was my first ever Linux distro. I got my first every Linux distro CD from ASTI office wherein I also bought BL 3.1 black tshirts. I was an instant Linux fan.

It was based on Fedora Core then but it has now switched to Debian thus my excitement! Well, I have nothing against Fedora. I just felt that I will be more "at home" using the new Debian-based Bayanihan Linux as I am currently using Ubuntu Linux... where every installation is only an apt-get away. :)

The following is the annoucement post made by Rage Callao at the Philippine Linux User's Group (PLUG) mailing list, to wit:

Hello everyone,

Bayanihan Linux, a project of the Advanced Science and Technology
Institute of the Department of Science and Technology, has released
the first beta version of Bayanihan Linux 4.

This beta/testing release features:

- Debian Sarge/stable 3.1 based core
- graphical installer
- updated kernel to 2.6.16
- KDE 3.5 desktop
- OpenOffice.org 2
- Firefox 1.5
- Imendio Planner, Kile, KMyMoney2 and Scribus
- GIMP 2.2.10 and Inkscape for graphical editing
- XMMS and MPlayer for audio and video playback
- Guarddog Firewall and Synaptic Package Manager
- Smb4k browser

To download, please visit: http://bayanihan.gov.ph

We welcome suggestions that will help improve this release and
encourage everyone in the local linux community to contribute. If you
would like to participate in its ongoing development please feel free
to contact us at the below email address or visit us at:

ASTI Building, C.P. Garcia Avenue
U.P. Technology Park, Diliman
Quezon City

email: bayanihan@asti.dost.gov.ph

or call: 426-3572

Following is a preliminary to-do list for those who are interested to volunteer:
* testing/patches/bugfixes/
* a working text based installer
* government forms and permission to include these forms in BL
* wallpapers, graphics, themes
* wine tweaks for apps and games

I know this is not as big as Ubuntu but hey, this is our very own! ASTI has also released its CENTos based Bayanihan Server edition. I am already prodding my friend to download them for me. I'll keep you all posted :).