OS

In VirtualBox at the moment, I have three virtual machines:

• Ubuntu 9.04
• Ubuntu 9.10, and
• Xubuntu (also 9.04).

The last of those is my most recent, after I started doing a bit of reading on Xfce, which in turn was prompted by the combination of Gnome getting more and more embedded with Mono apps/libs (and therefore infected with Microsoft cooties) and also the UI direction Gnome is headed for in version 3.

Both of these things can be “undone” on a case-by-case basis by uninstalling Mono folderol or enabling old UI bits, but I’m reluctant to put that much work into making a desktop usable and then having to monitor it all to make sure it doesn’t keep happening. Also, this recent brouhaha creeped me out about Gnome.

In trying to decide what exactly I’m switching to next year (or next month possibly), I’ve been experimenting with a few options. In addition to the above, I’ve tried out Kubuntu, a Debian install, a Mint install, and a GUI-less build this year.

KDE’s interface just felt entirely too clunky — like what I imagine a Windows user would want if they didn’t want to use Windows anymore but still wanted to feel comfortable. [Shudder!] There are a lot of great apps available, but naturally those are available on other desktop environments if I don’t mind the library overhead.

Debian was fine, but there were enough moments where things didn’t just work (or just didn’t work) where they did in Ubuntu that I decided to leave Debian aside for now. In switching operating systems, I will have enough to adjust to without worrying about fundamental OS pieces not working. However, I will revisit it in the future.

Mint, while pretty to look at, didn’t really add much value for me to consider it an improvement over Ubuntu or, indeed, Debian.

The GUI-less server install I will be using quite a bit as I switch servers from Mac to Linux, but I’m not going to go completely CLI with my initial desktop/laptop changeover. See Debian above. Maybe some day. ;)

So…more on this later, but at the moment I suppose I am actually trying to decide between Ubuntu 9.04 and Xubuntu 9.04.

I have been in the process of planning out switching to Linux in 2010 for my main development computer (a laptop), as well as for various web and database servers I am responsible for at work.

I’ve been making good use of Sun’s awesome (and free) VirtualBox program, which allows me to create any number of virtual computers to experiment on. I’ve had a couple of CLI-only server versions running (Debian and Ubuntu), as well as what amounts to a desktop system for the last three Ubuntu releases: 8.10, 9.04, and the just-issued 9.10.

My User has information that could… that could make this a free system again! No, really! You’d have programs lined up just to use this place, and no MCP looking over your shoulder.

I’ll cover the whys and wherefores of switching in the future. For now, suffice to say that the ever-increasing commercialization of Mac OS X, with accompanying restrictions, has been grating on me for some time now. I am also attracted to the notion of software freedom (having been a huge fan of the original Tron movie ;) and of course the cost savings can be dramatic. And since I work primarily in education, I think we would be neglecting our duty by not exploring the open-source world.

All that is visible must grow beyond itself, and extend into the realm of the invisible.

One of the first and ongoing steps is compiling a list of application equivalents to programs I am need of.

• Mail -> Evolution
• iCal -> Evolution
• Exchange -> Evolution \m/
• MacJournal -> Zim or RedNotebook or Lifeograph
• iPhoto -> filesystem + gThumb (still need EXIF editor: JHead?)
• iTunes (music) -> Rhythmbox
• iTunes (podcasts) -> Rhythmbox (audio ok, testing vidcasts)
• OmniFocus -> Getting Things Gnome (GTG) or spreadsheet?
• Adium -> Empathy
• Quicksilver/Spotlight -> Deskbar-Applet
• iFlash -> Mnemosyne
• NetNewsWire -> Liferea or Gregarius
• Tweetie -> Gwibber
• VoodooPad -> Zim
• MarsEdit -> Drivel, BloGTK, or Gnome Blog?
• Dictionary.app -> Gnome Dictionary
• RPG -> see http://www.shell-fu.org/lister.php?id=885
• Black Ink -> Xword
• Desktop Pictures rotation -> Wallpaper Tray (Gnome panel)
• GarageBand/podcasting -> Audacity + LMMS
• OmniGraffle -> Dia
• Minuteur/ApiMac Timer -> Timer Applet

Still looking:

• Time Machine (backup) -> roll-my-own or manual?
• Bluetooth File Exchange -> built into Gnome?

Stuff that exists in both places:

• Firefox
• MacVim -> Gvim
• Audacity
• GIMP
• VirtualBox
• ClamXav -> ClamAV
• VLC
• MySQL Administrator and Query Browser
• NeoOffice -> OpenOffice
• Google Earth
• MacNikto -> Nikto

If you’re looking into switching as well, or just are looking for new apps to try out whatever your platform, check out AlternativeTo, which provides alternatives for Linux, Mac, and Windows programs.

Note: Written before the current cold whacked me in the head and upper respiratory tract. Bits are incomplete. Suggestions are welcome.

End of line.

While the options for Mac OS X’s Spaces are set in System Preferences, you won’t find them stored in the ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.systempreferences.plist file.

Spaces are part of the Dock subsystem (like the Dashboard), so that’s where you need to look: ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.dock.plist

Unfortunately, those Apple .plist files aren’t just text any more, so you’ll need to open it the Property List Editor found in /Applications/Utilities although you can just use the Terminal like this:

open ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.dock.plist

to bring it up automatically. You’ll find Spaces referred to as “workspaces”:

• workspaces
• workspaces-app-bindings
• workspaces-cols
• workspaces-rows

How do I reset Spaces preferences?

To reset a particular item, delete the appropriate row, then save and close the .plist file. So, for example, if you wanted to clear out all the apps you have assigned to various Spaces, delete the “workspaces-app-bindings” row.

Once you’re done deleting stuff, you could log out and back in to reset the Dock process and thus Spaces, or you can geek out on the trusty Terminal again. First, find the process number of the Dock:

ps ax | grep dock

You’ll see something like this:

134 ?? S 4:44.40 /System/Library/CoreServices/Dock.app/Contents/MacOS/Dock

That first number, in this case “134,” is the process ID number for the Dock. Use this command to “kill” and relaunch it:

kill -HUP 134

Enjoy!

I always forget about the system_profiler command in Mac OS X. It gives you an exhaustive list of hardware and system details for the machine you’re on — or a remote server if you’re logged in via SSH.

It’s the CLI equivalent of selecting “About This Mac” under the Apple menu, then clicking on the “More Info…” button. With that in mind, you’ll probably want to pipe the command to a pager like less, so you can go screen-by-screen with leisurely space-bar taps:

system_profiler | less

will do the trick. Or, if you have a GUI editor that includes a CLI command (like TextMate),

system_profiler | mate

Of course you could always save the details directly to a text file with

system_profiler > profiler.txt