Linux

Automate KDE with DCOP and PERL

One of the great things about KDE is that it makes heavy use of DCOP.

The only Linux command you need to know

The only Linux command you need to know is apropos (pronounced app pro po) Yes, it rhymes.

How to make a Screen cast in Linux

There are many ways to create ScreenCast in Linux. Basically all of your options break down into two categories console tools and gui tools.
I have played around with a lot of different methods and think I have found a solution that works really well.

If you have a really powerful system you can do everything via ffmpeg. Make sure you compile ffmpeg with the --enable-x11grab flag.
Once you have ffmpeg compiled properly you can capture, scale and encode your screencast using something like.

Chromium in Ubuntu

Finally, Chromium works in ubuntu!

Chromium has been available for Linux for a while now, but until recently opening chromium in Ubuntu resulted in a blank browser screen. I just recently updated chromium and at last, it works!

There is still a ways to go, but this is wonderful. Chrome is my favorite browser in Windows and I can't wait for the day Chromium is as functional in Linux as Chrome is in Windows.
It is important to make the distinction between the two. Chromium is an open source browser project and Chrome is Googles browser based on the Chromium project.

How to move Windows to VirtualBox

So you finally got fed up with M$ and decided to try Linux. You set up a dual boot so you could run Windows and Linux and are finding that you like Linux better, and now after discovering VirtualBox you find that Windows runs great under Linux and want to convert you existing Windoze partition to a VDI. Note: If you want to create a VDI from a drive that only has windows on it you can pop the drive into a linux machine as a second hard drive.

How to get Comcast PACE DTA working in Myth in Ubuntu Hardy

Comcast recently shipped me 3 Digital converter boxes to support the upcoming switch to an all Digital Signal.
Unfortunately the digital signal requires using the new digital converter boxes to change channels. This is a huge inconvenience to anyone using a 3rd party DVR as well as for anyone who recently purchased a new digital TV which features like PIP as these features are likely not to work with the new converter boxes.

Luckily for those of us running MythTV, we just need to make some minor changes to get our Home-Brew DVR work with the new converter Boxes.

How-to switch from Windows to Linux.

Switching from Windows to Linux can seem a daunting task. Hell switching from any OS to any OS can seem daunting and invoke fear and frustration into anyone. This post is my attempt to minimize both the fear and frustration.

There are several things you will need to do in order to make a smooth transition from Windows to Linux. Many of these steps are equally important and of course importance changes based on individual taste / needs, so the order of steps presented here are simply my recomendation.

Test Vidcast 04 - My MythTV Setup

Another test in mpeg4/ mov
In This test I show of my MythTV setup and MyMote on the iPhone.

How to write shell scripts in Perl

First a really quick Perl tutorial.

What is Perl?

Perl is a great language for almost anything. The syntax is consice and Perl makes simple things simple and makes hard things possible or so the motto goes.
Perl is one of the best languages there is for manipulating text and also makes an excellent glue language because Perl allows you to choose your quote opperater, supports here documents, and has built in regular expressions.  Perl also has a bad reputation for looking like line noise for the same reasons listed above.

4 methods to backup remote files across a network

On linux there are several methods to backup remote files across a network.

Method 1: SCP (Secure Copy)

SCP is basically RCP with password support. This method is good for copying files or directories recursively so long as you do not need to use an include or exclude list. As far as I can tell SCP does not have support for exclude list. Still, the syntax is very easy to remeber making scp an easy way to securely copy files across a network.