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WLW2009: Part 4: Thoughts

Last updated: 25 Oct 2009 - 21:05

So it's all over and what do I think? Well it was fun. It always is good fun to meet up with other techie people and chat about Linux and software. The community that turns up to these events is such an amazing group of friendly helpful people that it's always a pleasure to spend time with them. Today has been a lot of work for a lot of people, something more apparent when you're on the crew but I would love to put in that effort again. I still got to watch talks, chat to fellow open source enthusiasts and ended up with a bag full of new mugs, books and a hoodie. I hope there will be another (fairly informal) Linux conference in the UK next year, and I hope I can go and help. It's been a great weekend and if anyone from LugRadio, LinuxOutlaws or Ubuntu UK Podcast get to read this - THANK YOU! Your effort in organising the weekend is appreciated.

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WLW2009: Part 3: OggCamp

Last updated: 25 Oct 2009 - 20:04

It's all over. I'm on my way back down to Bath on the train now. It was a bit of a rush in the end with Katie, and two others only making it onto their train back London-ward with only a minute to spare, but we made the most of the time here.

It's been a busy day, I've spent most of my day in Room 2 (of the three rooms at the hotel) helping change over speakers. The talks were really good in that room fortunately and a fellow crew member (NikDoof) was there so we could each wonder off for a bit without a problem.

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WLW2009: Part 2: LugRadio Live

Last updated: 24 Oct 2009 - 19:14

We're back at the hotel having had dinner now. It's been a really busy day but great fun. It was an early start for a Saturday so we could get breakfast before going over to the venue for doors opening at 9:30. It was a bit of a damp morning walking around the park to get to the Nothampton Arts Centre. We arrived just in time to here Ron telling us we could go in, people with the right change first. A potato stamp in the shape of a space invader replaced the lanyards and id tags last year. Then after a quick look around the stalls it was off to the first talk.

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WLW2009: AKA LRL and OggCamp, Part 1: Travelling

Last updated: 23 Oct 2009 - 23:20

It's arrived, after just over a year and 3 months, the promised return of LugRadio Live. This year it's a one day event on Saturday, but to fill the void the LinuxOutlaws and Ubuntu UK Podcast teams have joined forces to bring us OggCamp on the Sunday. Not wanting to show favouritism I've invented the name "Wolverhampton Linux Weekend" as a title to all the blog posts I may (or may not) write this weekend.

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The Great Paper Wars

Last updated: 15 Aug 2009 - 11:32

No one would have believed in the early days of the 20th century that paper supplies were in the depth of a great war. In stationery shops the world over the supplies of paper were warring amongst themselves over what line pattern was the true master race. The plain paper notebooks had taken an early lead with their free form and unpredictable style. The regimented order of the lined paper soon showed it's strengths though. Organised into coherent collected thoughts the lined paper suppressed the rough sketchings and doodles of the plain paper through superior numbers and tactics.

Neither of these forces could contend with the awesome might of the squared paper which blocked their every move with a contraption of such fiendish cunning. The grid allowed the squares to achieve the order of the lined paper, but it wasn't tied to the linear tactics and words of the lined paper.

This situation held sway for many years with the engineers and designers producing great wonders and designs on their squared note pads. The great order was shattered when the office printer was invented, and the creative thoughts that used to occupy paper, and the innovation was drowned in the flood of management documents, financial reports, and other lengthy and often unhelpful documents produced by committees.

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Kubuntu 8.10 on the ASUS EeePC 901

Last updated: 15 Dec 2008 - 22:41

So, ASUS announced that 2009 would bring an end to the Linux based EeePC variants, and all those versions with screens smaller than 10 inches. Well, I love my 701, and have used it a huge amount in the year that I've had it, but I did want the advantage of a larger screen, a bit more processing power and mainly more disk space. So I've got a 901 (in black of course) and within a few minutes realised how user friendly Ubuntu/Kubuntu are compared with the Xandros installed by default.

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Computing
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linux,
eeepc,
Ubuntu,
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901

Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex) on the ASUS EeePC (701)

Last updated: 03 Nov 2008 - 13:09

So, it's about 6 months since last time I wrote an article on getting stock Kubuntu running on the eeePC 701, and guess what - there's a new release with new bugs and work arounds.

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Computing
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Kubuntu,
eeepc,
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ath5k

Indiana Jones IV

Last updated: 22 May 2008 - 13:44

The long awaited 4th instalment of Indiana Jones was released today (22nd of May) in the UK. To let people in Bath see the film as soon as possible, our local Odeon ran a 12:05am screening of it this morning which I was fortunate enough to be able to attend! Action packed from the start, it was a really good film. There was no problem with Harrison Ford being too old, the action was still fast paced and humorous in all the best ways. The plot was a little suspect in places including some classic George Lucas fudges here and there to tie together some physically impossible things, but it made a good frame work for the action. Probably not as good as The Last Crusade but still a really good action adventure.

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Photos at Last

Last updated: 19 May 2008 - 22:09

I have finally got around to uploading some of the photos that I've taken in the last couple of months.

Whilst I was at home over Easter I was fortunate to find that the weather went from really quite stormy and rough weather at the start of the three weeks to gorgeous sunny weather at the end of the time. Add to this the fact that I spent quite a lot of time going around the island mapping it (see my article on OpenStreetMap), I ended up with a variety of photos of various interesting places.

Once back in Bath and more or less done with the coursework for a bit I had a go at taking some photographs of some of the wildlife on campus, with varying degrees of success. The more successful shots are available to see now.

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Kubuntu KDE4 on the Eee

Last updated: 05 May 2008 - 21:53

Hardy Heron is here. I was waiting for this release since I was home at Easter a few weeks ago and got my Eee a RAM upgrade. I've now got 2GB in there and really no need for a swap partition any more, so I wanted to do a fresh install and decided to wait until I could install Kubuntu 8.04.

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Computing
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Kubuntu,
eeepc,
asus,
Ubuntu,
KDE4