The Wind(ow) s of Change

So, Microsoft has finally decided to draw a line in the sand and announce final cut - off of technical support for Windows XP, and let's be fair, they've gone far and above the call of duty on their most popular OS to date.  But, it's time to move on.  Which leaves a bit of a dilemma for a number of consumers.  Their older hardware won't run Windows 7 or Windows 8. If they are unwilling, or unable, to purchase a new machine, then they are stuck with an aging OS the won't receive any more security updates. Or are they?

Most machines can gain new life if XP is replaced with Linux.  If you have a lower end machine with 2GB of RAM and a Core Duo or Core 2 processor, then I recommend Lubuntu - the Ubuntu operating system with the LXDE desktop environment.  It's interface is reminiscent of Windows XP, will run quicker and smoother than XP ever could on such hardware, and no more worries about viruses.  If you have 4GB or more of RAM and a powerful graphics card, then I recommend Kubuntu - Ubuntu with the KDE desktop environment. It's interface is much like Windows 7.

Changing from Windows to Linux is very difficult.  You have to get used to the fact that most of your Windows programs won't work.  Try to find alternatives in the software repository.  Frequently, these programs can read and write popular Windows file formats. If there is a Windows program that simply doesn't have a satisfactory alternative, then the use of WINE is recommended.  However, since basic WINE is very difficult to use, I recommend CrossOver which makes installing Windows software on Linux a but easier for the new Linux user.

Repurposing the Blog

I think that I'm going to repurpose this Web log. I mean, I just can't inform people about my goings on in the dead of night. Mostly when there's a related investigation to a particular crime I'm involved in bollixing. So, from now on, I'm going to talk about my other love. Computers and their trappings.

So, I am the first to admit that it's a Microsoft World out there. Which really sucks because it stifles innovation. Microsoft doesn't innovate, they steal and reverse engineer. Even Windows Vista/Windows 7 is riding the coattails of MacOS X. They haven't come up with anything original...ever. Even their first OS, MS-DOS was a redesign of PC-DOS which was ripped off of CPM which was ripped off of UNIX. Geez, everybody was stealing from everybody else.

The reason I bring this up is that since it's a firmly entrenched MS world, you need to adapt to it. One of Microsoft's biggest issues is cruft. When a hard drive writes a files, it doesn't write out that file in a single straight piece from beginning to end. Of course not. That would actually make sense. What it does instead is break up the file into tiny bits and writes it all over the drive in between bits from other files. The end result? After a while of use, your computer starts to slow down because it has to spend most of its time hunting for file pieces to put back together.

Well, I have the perfect solution for you. Defragmenting the drive. Now, Windows comes with a built-in defragmenting program. It's okay, but you have to either religiously run the program manually, or schedule it to run when you are not using the computer. I don't know about you, but if I'm not using the computer, then the computer is usually off. Those electric bills add up, you know.

Now, there are many other defrag programs out there that you can use. A number of them are free. But the one I want to talk about is JKDefrag. JK are the initials of the programmer Jeroen Kessels. He has a few other useful little do-dads on his site, but JKDefrag is far and away the best. I use this on my Windows based Acer Extensa. As with most defragging programs, you can run it manually, but this baby has one ace up its sleeve that the others don't. You can set JKDefrag as your screen saver. You heard right. When your computer times out to the screen saver, it starts defragging. You have this running on a daily basis, and your disk will be regularly defragged. The speed improvements have been stellar since I started using this software.

I'll probably be back later and review other software I like. If you can't tell, I have a soft spot for FOSS (free open source software). I mean, com'on. Nothing says welfare of the commonweal like free software that any programmer with the right skills can update or improve without taking credit for the program other than the changes made. I call that community oriented, and that's what I'm all about. :-)