Open Source OS's Part 3: OpenSuse

Welcome to Part 2 of the Open Source Operating System mini-series. Today's focus is OpenSuse, a sponsored OS by Novell.

Introduction

The OpenSuse website says this about the project: "The openSUSE project is a worldwide community program sponsored by Novell that promotes the use of Linux everywhere. The program provides free and easy access to openSUSE. Here you can find and join a community of users and developers, who all have the same goal in mind — to create and distribute the world's most usable Linux. openSUSE also provides the base for Novell's award-winning SUSE Linux Enterprise products." The fact that Novell is behind the development of this software is interesting because it adds an element of more professionalism to the applications. It doesn't really make it better than other distro as big companies are behind other distros but Novell has done a great job with their Suse project. The OS is based on GNOME which is the GUI that a lot of Linux distros are based upon.

Features

Desktop: The look and feel of the OpenSuse desktop is similar to Ubuntu and XP. An interesting feature that OpenSuse has that Ubuntu does not is a virtual desktop - basically that means that you can seperate your open windows onto different windows and even go through them in a unique way. It also has a lot more desktop effects than other open source OS's like when you grab a window to move it, it kind of of sways with the way you move the cursor. The start menu is really intuitive on OpenSuse: it tabs between documents, applications, and network places to make searching fast, easy, and clean. (see last screen shot - the blue one)

Audio: OpenSuse uses Banshee audio player which I like a lot. It is actually pretty similar to the iTunes format. It also seperates into 3 different windows for artists, albums and songs so that you can sort your music really easily. Playback is typical. Banshee links to online stores so that users can purchase music and play them like on iTunes and other popular audio players. (see center shot for a look at the layout)

Visual: The graphics and video playback are what you would want and expect out of an OS. The graphics are slightly better than Ubuntu but only because the OS includes desktop effects that are pretty fun to play with. A reader pointed out on the Ubuntu post, however, that modifications can be made to the OS's to create better visual effects in Ubuntu (which is true of many Linux distros). Check out his page for an idea of how the GUI's can be modified to have a better look and feel. This is a great demonstration of how users can get MORE out of Linux based OS's because the code is not fenced in and closed off from third party modification. Linux is based on the ability of users to develop ways to customize their user experience and get more out of their machines. The problem is the technical know-how that is required to get these results.

Support Forum: OpenSuse has one of the larger support forums for users out of the Linux distros. This is a plus for users that want a free OS but also need some support and help learning how to use it. I will also note that Ubuntu has a large support forum as it is truly the Linux operating system (in my opinion) that has done most to actually make a system that is user friendly and aimed at ordinary, non-IT savy people.

E-Mail: OpenSuse uses Evolution (like Ubuntu) which interfaces with some e-mail accounts (Google in particular). This is like having Outlook on an XP. Evolution is even easier to use in my opinion.

Takeaway

Well, OpenSuse is probably the best Open Source OS out there with a large corporate sponsor. I think it is the most intuitive, the most in line with what consumers want, has the best features, is the sleekest, easiest to customize desktop OS that is free. Be warned, there is a costly one that is even better but it costs something like $80. A lot of companies buy the liscense becasue it is a stable, virus-free environment for their desktop users - and they get professional support from Novell, the company that backs the development of the OS. In the next post, I am going to tell you how you can play with these Linux distributions without having to format your computer or virtualize the OS through the use of Live CD's and Live USB's.

Open Source OS's Part 2: Ubuntu

Welcome to Part 2 of Open Source Operating Systems. If you missed Part 1, click here. Today we will focus on Ubuntu. I really like Ubuntu. It was the first Linux distro that I used and I really think it is intuitive and very similar to Windows XP. This is how I will break down each exploration of the operating systems featured in the mini-series: Basic Introduction (background, history) and then Basic Features (userability and how it compares to Windows). The breakdown will be pretty simple but hopefully give you enough of an introduction to understand how you could benefit from it.

Introduction

Ubuntu says this about themselves: "Ubuntu is a community developed, Linux-based operating system that is perfect for laptops, desktops and servers. It contains all the applications you need - a web browser, presentation, document and spreadsheet software, instant messaging and much more." It was made by a develpoment team (and a community of open developers) for developers and for the use of an everyday Joe like me. So the intimidation factor is really a non-issue when you consider that this product was made for a wide spectrum of users, you included. Ubuntu is an operating system much like Windows actually. It has many of the same characteristics. Using VMware Fusion (click here for info on that little gem of technology) I installed Ubuntu on my computer. I don't use it primarily as I have no need to. The OS, however, is definitely usable as a sole operating system. In fact, I would wager that it could substitute for any mainstream OS.

Features

Accessories: Ubuntu has all the basic accessories you would expect from an operating system like a calculator (advanced one even), desktop sticky notes, dictionary, text editor, bluetooth, wireless technology software interface, screenshot taker, disk analyzer, and anything else you could need. If the basic package does not come with a specific accessory that you need or want, you can get it very easily on the internet. All those things are really limited use and luxury items but Ubuntu has them. It doesn't do anything better necessarily than Windows in this arena although it does have a sticky note applicataion that is pretty cool.

Install: Easy shmeezy... Using a virtualization software, simply load up the ISO and go for it. If you are formatting and installing Ubuntu, boot from CD and follow the instructions. Its pretty step-by-step but if you need assistance, contact me.

Internet: you can use whatever open source web browser you want with Ubuntu. My preference is Firefox (on all platforms really) and it works beautifully with Ubuntu. The internet experience is basically the same as on Windows although some websites interact differently with Firefox than with Internet Explorer. (I took a screenshot of Firefox for y'all - see right)

Instant Messenger: Ubuntu comes standard with an instant messenger that interfaces with a variety of different e-mail accounts, Gmail most importantly.

E-Mail: the application interfaces with Google and some other e-mail services but does not work with Exchange accounts. I also loaded up Thunderbird (which I will feature in later posts) and found it to run delightfully.

Office Applications: Ubuntu comes with Open Office. Learn more about it here.

Audio: Ubuntu comes with an application called Rythmbox Music Player. Playback is great. I like the way it organizes the music. It has a window for artist, album, and songs. It also has access to music stores similar to iTunes. The OS also comes with a CD burner, CD ripper, and sound recorder. You can see the player to the right with a little chess going on in the back.

Visual: The graphics and general user interface are great. You can see in the scren shots I have taken and appear throughout this post that it has a pretty cool look. Of all Linux-based operating systems, I have found Ubuntu to be the most basic but easiest to use. In this arena, think of Ubuntu as XP. It is really quite similar. Video playback with Ubuntu is great. There is an aplication called Movie Player that plays DVD, AVI, MPEG4, etc. It also comes with a graphics editor and photo manager that both are easy to use and pretty cool actually.

Games: the OS comes with basic puzzle and arcade games (more than XP and a better variety too) but you cannot play games that you purchase from the store as they are not made (typically) for Linux-based OS's.

Takeaways

Basically, Ubuntu is a great OS for anyone looking to surf the web, listen/download music, watch movies, and produce any kind of office document (spreadsheet, document, presentation, database). It does all the basic things you would expect from an OS and with style. If you think about it, it is pretty amazing to get those applications without costing you a penny. Truthfully, I think Ubuntu has done a huge thing for the Open Source community by really making OSS OS's usable by the everyday person. Other distros are doing similar things which is execellent. The OSS movement really needs OS's like Ubuntu because they standardize and drop the level of skill required to use them. So check it out. The live CD is really good.

Virtualization Bonus: Virtualizing Disk Drives

Well, today's subject (bonus subject mind you) is potentially a little confusing. But, here we go anyway.

The past 3 days we have talked about virtualization. We focused on vitualizing operating systems. If you don't know what I'm talking about, go back and read the posts from the last few days. Today's subject is also virtualization, however, not in the context of virtualizing whole operating systems but in the context of virtualizing a simple CD/DVD drive. So lets start with a few definitions and then get into the practical application of the glorious concept.

Virtual Drive: a virtual drive is a psuedo-drive that appears to be a CD/DVD drive on your computer. For example, when you have a virtual drive going (we will talk about how later) it appears as another disk drive in "My Computer" or Finder or whatever. The important and obvious thing here is that the drive is not real. There is no where else to put an actual CD or DVD but your existing, physical drive. Virtual drives deal with disk images, not actual disks. So what is a disk image?

Disk Image: simply, an image of a disk... wow, what a definition. Really, a disk image is like a copy of a disk (be it CD,DVD, hard disk, whatever) that is placed on your hard drive in the format of an image (i.e. ISO). Think of it as an archive (place where information is stored) of some disk.

ISO: a specific file format of a disk image. For example, all files on a computer have a specific file format. Microsoft uses .doc or .docx for Word documents, .exe for executable files (files that do something like install or run a program), etc. So, ISO (.iso) is the file format of a disk image.

Mount: a verb (to mount) related to the loading of a disk image onto a virtual drive. (used in a sentence: "I mounted the image using Daemon Tools")

Daemon Tools: a specific program (FREE) that creates virtual drives on your computer (only compatible with Windows - Mac does not need this as it is already integrated into the OS). Click here to download.

Okay, so how does this all jive together and help us out. Well, sometimes you can obtain certain programs in the form of an image. You can't just double click these images and run the program or install the software or watch the movie or whatever. You need something that will "mount" the image onto a drive. You could just burn the image to a disk (using Nero or something, although that uses an actual disk which is a waste) or you could simply use a virtual drive. Daemon Tools (previously defined) is a disk virtualization software that creates up to 4 number of virtual drives and allows you to mount disk images and run them. Just last week I downloaded a free, open source operating system. I downloaded it as a disk image and I installed it as a disk image, I didn't have to even burn it. It saved me time and effort. I love it.


Left: see the number of CD/DVD drives I have. Only one of those is an actual physical drive.

Right: You can see the same disk drives window, and also the Daemon tools on the tool tray.

Daemon Tools is free software for Windows only. I like it more than any other one so try it out. Any virtualization software like VMware also uses virtual drives but does not require supplemental software.

I will have more in the future that will hopefully help you see the practical application of virtual drives.

Virtualization Part 3: VMware Fusion

Welcome to Part 3 of our Virtualization mini-series. Today's feature is VMware Fusion. If you didn't read Part 1: Basics of Virtualization or Part 2: VMware Workstation, you can follow those links to the posts. This post will wrap up our discussion of virtualization and I hope that it wasn't a total bust. I hope it was interesting for y'all to read.

VMware Fusion is basically the same thing as VMware Workstation only made specially for Mac. Wait Windows users, before you stop reading, this is important for you to know because this is how you can run both Mac and Windows OS's without even a hiccup (when you buy a Mac). Fusion allows you to run any OS (Vista, XP, Linux, even Windows 95, 98, ME, 2000, whatever!) just like Workstation. In Part 2, I explained how the virtualization software works on the surface. Basically, it sets up fake hard drives in normal file folders and uses those folders to install the OS. Fusion is the same as Workstation in that regard. Pretty much, although there are many differences, the two software suites are basically the same. The big difference (as far as I can tell) is a single feature: Unity Mode.

Unity Mode allows you to run an operating system (I will be using XP for my examples - its way better than Vista) as if the operating system wasn't actually running (just so you know, my computer is a Macbook with a 2.4GHz Intel 2 Duo and 4 GB of DDR2 RAM). So what does that mean? Well, basically it hides the actual Fusion window and makes it appear as if the OS weren't running. You can, however, load any Windows program as if it was part of the Mac. So, if you were considering getting a Mac (because they are sweet), but were afraid that you wouldn't be able to run those Windows programs you love so much, don't worry about it. You can run them without problem. Here, take a look at some of these screen shots from my own computer:

You can see here, XP running inside Mac. Look at the top title bar and notice that it says VMware Fusion.

This is Fusion running XP which is running Firefox

The Unity icon that switches to Unity mode (from this point on, the shots will be in Unity mode)

This is Unity Mode with the Windows Task Bar. You can see that the desktop is my Mac desktop and the Task Bar is XP's.

This one is Unity Mode without the task bar. You can open programs using the Fusion bar on top, selecting applications, etc. All the programs on that list are from XP.

Unity Mode running My Computer. Notice the bottom icon that says, shared folder on .host(z). That is the network connection between my virtual XP and my Mac.

Lastly, Mac Spaces demonstrating XP in fullscreen mode running its own, autonomous space from the rest of my Mac computer.

Whew, thats that. Well I hope you have enjoyed this mini-series on Virtualization. My hope is that you learned something and have a desire to either experiment or learn more about it. Make comments if you have questions and I will answer them. Thanks for reading!

Virtualization Part 2: VMware Workstation

Welcome to Part 2 of the virtualization mini-series. If you didn't get a chance to read Part 1: Virtualization, you should read it before going on (I wrote it so it must be good, right?).

VMware Workstation is a software suite that allows you to virtualize in a desktop environment. It is software that allows you to run multiple operating systems within your native operating system seamlessly. Lets begin with a scenario:

Lets say you were reading a really cool blog about cool internet sites and software when you learned about an operating system (OS). You would really like to try out the OS on my computer but it seems complicated and you think you would need to format your computer. Not so! All you need is a virtualization software. It is actually quite simple and requires little know-how. You won't even need to format. You can simply download the trial version of VMware Workstation (definitely not a free software package, although free ones exist) and try it out... FREE. All you need to do is load up Workstation and follow the steps (I have them ready to go for you right here). So now you can try out the OS without messing up your current system. Better yet, you can run both operating systems at the same time.

How does it work? Basically the software sets up a pseudo partition on your hard drive. It creates a file folder somewhere on your drive (you choose the spot - it defaults to a folder called virtual drives, or something) and allows for that file folder to be formatted (according to the file system of a particular OS) and an OS put on it. You determine the size and everything. You can even set it up so that the partition is only the size required by the OS and then anything you want to install using on that OS, you put on your native drive using the network connection that is automatically set up when you install. VMware powers up and runs the operating system and it runs like any other application. You must also (when setting up the partition) determine the memory allocation, processor allocation, etc. The beautiful thing is that both operating systems run together like two friends... and you get to hang out with both of them (wow that was a nerdy metaphor). Just know that you cannot run a Mac OS on VMware Workstation without some tweaking. The tweaking process is not easy. If you want to try it, find a tutorial via Google.

Screenshots anyone? (Left: XP running Vista. Right: Vista running XP)















Try It Free (the full version costs moneys)

3 Part Series: Virtualization

This is the first part in a 3 part series on Virtualization. Today's part is an explanation on virtualization and the next 2 parts highlight two specific products that I feel are the best. I hope you like the information. I realize this post will be highly "information dense" but the next 2 will be more product/site based. Enjoy!

Virtualization. This is a very important word for the future of computing (business computing especially). Virtualization (in the terms we are talking) is the creation of psuedo-partitions on a hard disk upon which an operating system can be installed (virtualized) and used. Basically, it is the creation of an operating system that runs within an existing operating system through some application (i.e. VMware, Virtual Desktop, etc). It really isn't a very complicated idea from this standpoint. For example, I run Mac OS X and I virtualize Windows XP, Windows Vista, and most any Linux distro on my computer so that I can use some of the programs that only run on Windows and play with Linux.

So why is virtualization important for corporate computer needs? Great question. Think about what it takes to run a corportate network. There are lots and lots of computers and monitors, each computer has its own hard drive and is attached to the network where some central storage exists. Think about a big company like Google. They require A LOT of storage space for all of their computers AND their business processes. They offer online storage as a service to people like me, but also they have to keep records and store a lot of stuff. Where do they get their storage space? They have to buy it from third party vendors. This is a costly proposition when you consider the amount of storage needed (petabytes, someday exabytes). If a company like Google can save on the amount of space their operating systems take up on storage, they can save a lot of clams. The Solution: virtualize data and virtualize storage. Google can (and does) buy software that virtualizes storage drives in one storage drive for many operating systems at once. Check out the diagram. Each box represents a physical storage volume. Can you see how the numerous OS (operating system) volumes are combined into one, centralized disk? Now, rather than 3 volumes you have 1. Think of this on a LARGE scale: rather than thousands of volumes, you have a few.

Further, virtualization software is able to centralize key components of each operating system (i.e. the kernel - the basic building block of the operating system) and share it over the operating systems. This DRAMATICALLY cuts down on the amount of storage needs. I have heard that through proper vitualization, firms can save up to 90% storage space (from a very knowleadgable source that works for NetApp - a storage company). That is huge when you consider the amount of dollar savings associated. As Harry Caray would say: "Holy Cow."

So how does virtualization affect you and me? I use virtualized operating systems everyday (as I mentioned) so that I have further functionality on my computer. Truthfully, though, it doesn't have to affect us unless we want it to. If you are a part of a major corporation, chances are they are using virtualization to some extent. If you just like to play with stuff like I do, then virtualization is fun. If you would like to learn how to use other operating systems to expound your horizons, virtualization is an easy way to do it. Its great. Even better, if one day you will own a major company or corporation and be making millions of dollars and want to make more dollars, you will be using virutalized storage and software. If you want to know if your company utilizes this technology, ask your IT guy or gal. They would probably love to talk about it, and you might impress them with your newfound knowledge.

That's it for this post: a very, VERY basic description of virtualization. The main type of virtualization we will talk about in Parts 2 and 3 are operating system virtualization and we will focus on specific products of VMware (i.e. Workstation and Fusion). If you want more information about read this, this, or this... or watch this.