Gripes with Ubuntu

I don't use Ubuntu, I use Debian. I tried Kubuntu for a while but I was never really happy with it.

I don't want to be negative, but Ubuntu just doesn't cut the souce with me. When people ask why I don't use Ubuntu, I can come up with many reasons. I've decided to list them here and then perhaps the Ubuntu community can address them within the Ubuntu and related distributions, and win me over. But, I don't expect hat will happen since I am so happy with Debian Sid as it is.

Over all, I want to express that this saddens me. I'd love to see more Linux on the desktop, but I really don't want to suggest to people that Ubuntu is the way to go. I feel that KDE has more going for it and that Ubuntu has too many problems. Of course, I am just one person, but here are my main grips with Ubuntu.

(1) Ubuntu packages aren't compatible with Debian yet are called '.deb packages' — makes it very painful to find a Debian package some times, and it's not useful for new users to have two distro packages that are named the same but incompatible. Yes, Red Hat, Fedora, SuSE, and OpenSuse (and others, I am sure) all use the .rpm format, but they have this same issue and that doesn't make it OK. Please, rename your packages .ubu or keep them compatible.

(2) I really dislike Gnome desktop and feel its extremely limiting in what you can do with it and how the defaults are usually poor decisions, IMHO. As long as Gnome is the main focus of Ubuntu, I am not interested.

(3) Ubuntu it's incredibly unstable and has issues that no other Linux distro that I've tried has. Others may disagree, but in my experience the Ubuntu packages have many issues that don't affect other distros. Check this bug that has been open for over a year https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/119730

(4) as a KDE user, the Kubuntu is horrible; lots of KDE people feel this way. If you want to try KDE, don't expect to really get a feel for it with Kubuntu.

(5) KDE doesn't get much attention even though its claimed to be an equal desktop. Kubuntu also gets the short end when any new system tools are created by the Ubuntu devs or community. Free Software shouldn't focus on excluding a major DE from innovations.

(6) I've never once had a successful upgrade from one release to the next. This may be because I've installed 3rd party repos, but if needed apps aren't provided by the distro, what is a user to do? Once even without these 3rd party repos it still failed. I've never had this issue with Debian.

(7) Cananocal releases LTS versions with new software like PulseAudio, which has caused a lot of issues for people; a LTS should NOT have untested software.

(8) Bug reports go for a long time with out being addressed, and then the response becomes, "The next version of Ubuntu is out; upgrade to that and tell us if it is fixed". Bugs should be fixed in this release, not pushed off to the next. What if a user's environment demands that they stay at release 8.04LTS or whatever? Here is one example of many like this that have been responded to bug reports https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux/+bug/118842/comments/15

(9) Bug reports then get closed due to lack of attention, when its the developer's lack of attention that defines this, in my opinion and experience.

(10) I'll file a wish for newer versions of software, and the release team would respond with, "Too late for the next release, we'll get the one after that" — when (1) each release should have been synced with newer software already, but it's not happening, and (2) they'll then miss the software upgrade for the next release also. Here is a good example of this, with each comment promising it'll be available for the next release https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/kmediafactory/+bug/194438

These are only 10 of the issues that I've had with Ubuntu, but they're enough to keep me away. I am sure others have disagreements with me over some of these issues, and I would like to see Free Software and Linux succeed but it seems to me that Cananocal needs some major improvements.

Two wishes for Gran Canaria Desktop Summit

The KDE Desktop people and the GNOME Desktop people are joining forces this year for the Gran Canaria Desktop Summit. I have two requests which I am sure won't get addressed, but here we go anyways :)

1. Let the file picker dialog (Open, Save, and Save as) for any application bring up the DE file picker, not the file picker based on that toolkit. For example, if I use Handbrake (a GTK app), I want the file picker to use my KDE file picker on my KDE system. GNOME users should get their native file picker also when using the great KDE apps available to them.

2. Let 'single-click to open' or 'double-click to open' work (and be set) across desktops. In my KDE 4.2.4 (Debian Sid) I very much like my single-click policy, but when I use a Gnome app I have to double-click every file and folder to navigate anywhere (usually in relation to Wish 1, above). I am guessing there is a way to set GNOME to single-click but likely I would need to fully install GNOME in order to find the one-of-a-million config apps which does this.

What are your wishes for the joint desktop summit, my readers?

2.6.30 Kernel and Sidux

Sidux Linux, based on Debian Sid (the 'unstable' branch) and touted as being 'Debian Hot & Spicy!', has released their 2.6.30 kernel with a huge surprise.

If you read around the web about the release of this new kernel, nearly every article discusses increased performance and a large number of new drivers for the 2.6.30 kernel release. But within Sidux, the kernel developer slh has decided to remove all non-Free (Libre) firmware from the Sidux kernels. The result is poor hardware performance within Sidux 2.6.30 kernels, at least thus far according to rants on the OFTC irc network on the #sidux and #smxi channels.

On my own system, my ATi Radeon card has much worse performance (under the Sidux 2.6.30 kernel) with the XOrg radeon driver or the XOrg radeonhd driver, both of which were suppose to be improved with the 2.6.30 kernel. Perhaps my drivers need to be at a newer version for the improvement to be seen, but there shouldn't be a regression. IRC forums suggested that I download the firmware from the internet (providing a link for me, even) but performance didn't improve. Graphics are still choppy when scrolling, and my fan was running higher than ever -- until I rebooted back into 2.6.29 for now.

Removing the non-Free bits from a kernel does increase the "Free Software" aspect of a kernel, which I do appreciate and support. But at the cost of hardware functionality, for many users, without warning? Had I wanted to be that in tune with Free/Libre software I could be running gNewSense Linux. Debian has long been a promoter of Software Libre and had struck a balance with FLOSS and closed firmware within the kernel; Sidux was supposed to be as close to Debian as possible, and thereforseemed to followed the same 'binary bits' philosophy, but no more.

Debian itself isn't yet at the 2.6.30 kernel and I don't know what they will do. Sidux may fix this, perhaps by a seperate firmware package to install, or perhaps the pressure will force slh to put the firmware back in, or perhaps another kernel will be available in the repositories. If something doesn't happen, however, I see Sidux alianating many of its user base.

Frustrations with help for a newbie

I recently set some friends up with Debian Sid using the KDE4 desktop (4.1.0 i think; I am waiting to do their update to 4.2.2 and it may well be 4.2.3 or higher at that point!) and I got a call for help with the Gimp.

This user had used the Gimp on his Windows XP setup before but was never impressed with its strange* functionality. On desktop Linux, however, Gimp is king for photo editing, although Krita is coming along (and has some strange functionality of its own, IMHO).

His question: "How do I make a layer, or parts of a layer, transparent to 20%?"

Seemed simple enough to me, but a few moment of poking around andI had to confess that I didn't know. I walked him through firing up Konversation and got him on the #gimp IRC channel for some help. I joined the channel also to make sure things would work and to help him if needed.

He asked his question, "How do I make a layer, or parts of a layer, transparent to 20%?" and the response was, "Use a mask." Not, "Use a mask and go to the Layer menu and set transparency at ...." or "Here is a tutorial," just "Use a mask."

I followed along and added a mask to my own setup... and then I was completely lost. White? Black? Grey? What do these mean? Where are the tooltips? A google search of YouTube brought up a video showing how to somewhat blend one layer into another, but at no point was it clear on how to fade a top layer to let the bottom show through.

My friend said after a few minutes with little help, "I think i got it, thanks" and logged off. Maybe he did, but I sure didn't. I am not sure why he didn't stick around to wait for more assistance, but he left in a hurry. And the initial 'helper' never offered more help than, "I said, use a mask."

I am not saying that the Gimp is broken, but I would like to see it better. I am not saying that the help wasn't there, because an answer was provided quickly, if without depth. I am not saying my friend wasn't guilty of not RTFM, because he certainly didn't (nor have I).

But if we want people to use the software, we have to have the patience to walk someone through their issue until it is resolved, if we have this ability. If we don't have the knowledge or patience, then we shouldn't be offering help at all.

Am I wrong? Does someone have another take on this? Does someone have a concise answer to my friends' question?

*that is just how Photoshop users see it, no bones about it. I don't even use Photoshop now, and only used it a very little bit about 6 years ago, and I still find the Gimp painful and confusing. Its not holdover use patterns from another app, its just not how my brain works. Nor others' brains, by the common reactions that are out there.

GRUB Stage 1.5: Error 2 — HowTo fix

After moving my Debian Sid install from an older AMD Athlon XP+ to a newer computer with Intel Pentium D, dual-core setup, I also had a whole new kit to deal with. New motherboard, new video card (from NVidia to onboard ATi, and then to a purchased ATi card), and also some older parts made the move with me...

Anyways, after I did all of this and struggled with the ATi drivers (eventually giving up and just using the instantly-implemented XOrg drivers), my whole computer seemed kinda sluggish. Video playback was choppy especially...

So I decided to try Sidux, which is based on Debian Sid but has some 'enhancements'. Last night I installed it onto my ATA drive /dev/hda1 (so Debian used to call it), with my storage drives still being two SATA drives. When I booted the Sidux LiveCD it called my ATA drive /dev/sdc so I installed it there (yes I mounted the drive to be sure!) but when I rebooted, I got this:

Loading GRUB
Grub Stage 1.5

Error 2

Eventually I found that the drives were being called different things by the BIOS when booting from a CD than what they're named when booting from the hard drive (ODD!?) and so I just had to unplug my two SATA drives, boot and install to the only remaining drive partition (now labeled as /dev/sda1), and power down. Then I reattached my SATA drives and when I booted, everything worked perfectly.

The Sidux system is very snappy, and I have loaded KDE 4.2.2-2 from Debian Sid and all seems to be great so far! Still, I wonder about some of their changes, like why they chose to use Runlevel 5 rather than Debian's default Runlevel 2 for graphics and networking, and likely some others that I've not come across yet...

Happy to have a system that can be fully reinstalled in a few hours time with everything up-to-date and all of my devices working, but not happy how my BIOS handles its hard drives but whatever, its fixed!

Free 3D Video Drivers needed to spread the Linux Desktop

Desktop use of GNU/Linux is on the rise, and one of the factors leading people towards its use is videos such as these, showing off the newest KDE4 effects, the new Elive distribution with E17, or Compiz effects in Gnome.

However, to get these effects on a KDE or Gnome desktop, you must* use a 3D-accelerating hardware driver for your video card. Most video cards are produced by NVidia, ATi, and Intel, but of these three, currently only Intel has advanced Free/Libre/OpenSource drivers, used by Xorg in your system the moment X is installed.

If you have a computer with a built-in Intel video 'card', your 3D graphics and the effects that you see in those videos should work out of the box after installing a modern Linux distribution. Debian Sid with KDE 4.2 works great on my EeePC 701, for example, without any extra work on my part.

If you have an NVidia or ATi card, however, life isn't so easy. The *buntu people have Envy which assists with installing a closed, proprietary driver, but it's not perfect. As I am not interested in running *buntu, and it has failed for me in the past for Debian installations, I have to pass on this one.

The point is, installing these closed GPU drivers on one distribution or another is filled with occasional successes and (more often) failures. I have to say, NVidia seems to work a lot more often than ATi driver installations, and I maybe should have bought another NVidia card when I recently upgraded. I went with an ATi RadeonHD 3450, however, because of the lure of Free Software drivers....

Free Software drivers are in the works for both ATi and NVidia cards. ATi has released documentation since their purchase by AMD, leading to the FLOSS drivers 'radeon' and 'radeonhd'. My card, an ATi 3450 that I purchased with the express intent to use the radeonhd drivers, isn't yet supported for 3D but support for this functionality is in the works. See its progress here:
http://www.x.org/wiki/RadeonFeature

Unfortunately for all Free Software users, and especially for the developer himself, Novell has layed off Luc Verhaegen, so that is one fewer developer working on getting 3D Acceleration in the RadeonHD drivers. The RadeonHD page once said to expect 3D Acceleration in the RadeonHD driver in 2009 Q1, which is now; this has since been changed with the loss of a developer and the 3D support is in development.

Likewise, for NVidia cards there is a FLOSS driver being written, named 'nouveau'. This driver is expected to be the default NVidia-hardware driver in the next Fedora release, warts and all, while its developers try to iron out its issues. Red Hat recently hired another developer to work on this driver, which is excellent news.

This driver also has Feature Matrix of its progress, available here:
http://nouveau.freedesktop.org/wiki/FeatureMatrix

As Desktop Linux and Free Software both grow in use, open and unfettered hardware access for driver writers is essential. For years, FLOSS supporters have written and campaigned both NVidia and ATi hardware manufacturers to open their drivers, and for years we've been shot down. Now the Linux community, including Novell and Red Hat, are taking matters into their own hands by writing the Free drivers instead of getting the drivers Freed from the corporations.

Unfortunately, this lets NVidia off the hook somewhat. ATi released the documentation to assist with writing this driver, but NVidia will get great graphical performance on their cards without helping the FLOSS community in any way.

This is the reason that I bought the ATi card, even though I knew my closed drivers installation would be difficult (I've given up), I also knew the Free drivers were coming and I wanted to support the company that supports the community.


* Enlightenment DR16 and Enlightenment DR17 both do not need 3D-enabled Graphics drivers to do some of their amazing desktop work. However, using these window managers is less common than KWin, Metacity, or Compiz.

HowTo: Reset the XOrg configuration file in Debian

Here is a walk-through to resetting your XOrg configuration file (located at /etc/X11/xorg.conf if you want to see what you have now) to some very basic settings. This won't take into account, as far as I know, proprietary drivers nor touch-screen drivers and geometry, all of which can be added into this file in some way or another.

What is X you might ask? Back in the day there was a graphical 'windowing' interface named W for Unix systems. This allows graphics to be on the screen, the mouse pointer to do stuff, etc...The successor to W is... X, which does the same job of allowing graphics on your computer. Maybe some day there will be a Y and a Z?

Anyways, resetting that file:

In a terminal (I use Konsole on KDE), run as root:

shell# dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg

or as your normal user, if you have sudo access:

shell$ sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg

From here you will have a few pages to go through; for the most part you can accept the defaults, but here is a brief overview of each page and the settings that I've chose. This is NOT a graphical application, so your mouse won't work here — use the [Tab] key to move around to various fields and [Enter] to 'click' a button ([Space Bar] may work also).

Run the above command, and on Page X you'll see...

Page 1. Use kernel framebuffer device interface?
No

Page 2. Autodetect keyboard layout?
Your call, but US keybd select No; if you don't know if you have a US keybd or if it has a lot of odd buttons, select Yes. Note that selecting Yes will give MORE PAGES than what I have listed here.

3. Keybd layout:
us
Well, I've got a US keybd; if you have something else or selected Yes to the first question, this may be something else.

4. XKB rule set to use:
xorg

5. Page 5 is some info; hit [tab] to highlight and then [enter] to pick

6. Keybd model:
accept default (pc104 on my computer)

7. Users of U.S. English keyboards should generally leave this entry blank
Click OK

8. Keyboard variant:
I kept myne blank, as recommended in Page 7

9. Experienced users can use any options compatible with the selected XKB model, layout and variant.
[Tab] to get to and [Enter] to move forward

10. Keyboard options:
I prefer my [Caps Lock] key to function as another [Control] Key (although I've really modified it to be a compose key in KDE, and likely this can be done at this screen — anyone know how?) and my 'Windows' key the function as a Meta key. If you want these enter this info on this tenth screen:
ctrl:nocaps altwin:meta_win

That should be it to recreate your XOrg file, now located at /etc/X11/xorg.conf and the Terminal should also report where your previous XOrg configuration file is located (backed up), if there was one before.

To test your new XOrg configuration file, restart X from your KDE or GNOME login screen, or reboot the whole computer if you're a Windows user.