apt-get, up2date, yum, pkgtool, dpkg, rpm -- we have lots of ways to avoid compiling programs. For the most part, I don't think that it's because we don't like to compile programs, but rather because most of the modern package management tools take care of dependancies, versioning, etc.

Last year, I wrote about our school district's implementation of LTSP. In the article, I pointed out the significant limitations a thin client environment gives you. While I don't think my article was the reason the issues were addressed, less than a year later just about every limitation I highlighted has been eradicated.

In this second installment I'll profile Minicomputer, a subtractive synthesizer with some familiar aspects, unique characteristics, and terrific sounds. Let's take a look under its hood and see what makes the Minicomputer run.

BONUS: Video interview with Benjamin Mako Hill, and bragging rights if you can identify the birds twittering in the background... A couple weeks back, I headed down to Penguicon 6.0. It's a Linux convention, but also a Science Fiction convention. Really, it's like a geeky version of, "Hey your chocolate is in my peanut butter."

There are two kinds of Linux people in the world, those that will help people fix their Windows spyware problems, and those that will not. I land squarely in the former camp, and I think that it's important for us all to consider doing the same.

If you use sudo you can automatically re-start scripts that need to be run as root by adding a check at the beginning of the script and executing sudo if the script is not running as root:

In my next three articles I'll profile three native Linux software synthesizers (a.k.a. softsynths). I'll introduce their basic synthesis architectures and program operations, then I'll guide my readers briefly through the process of creating a new sound for each synth profiled. Our voyage begins with Nick Dowell's Analogue Modeling SYNTHesizer, better known as amSynth.

James Gray continues his review of desktop Geographic Information System (GIS) applications with an introduction to the concepts needed to get started with the user-friendly, open-source Quantum GIS. Going Deeper into GIS: an Introduction to QGIS

I remember when I was a Jr. Geek and could focus on one programming task at a time. Today, besides having all too many Linux-related tasks, I have an assortment of other things to deal with. This last week, one of my distractions turned into a new programming project.

As much as I know we need a project management system to build the Geek Ranch I will leave that discussion for another day. But, my current experience illustrates a case when project management software doesn't solve the problems. The first building we are going to construct is what I will call