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Charlie Bader's Software Page

Early Linux

A lot has happened since I first wrote this page. The biggest changes are in the Open Source arena with Linux reaching critical mass. Although Linux has been around for about 10 years, it was mostly text based in the beginning. This worked great for power users and for server applications. For the general masses who had become used to graphical user interfaces on the Apple Macintoshes and Microsoft Windows, this was a step backwards. I took a good look at Linux in 1997, even buying a copy of Red Hat. I chose not to pursue the software as I didn't want to give up the graphical interface and all the programs available for Windows.

Today's Linux

That was ten years ago and much has changed. Thanks to an army of thousands of Open Source developers, Linux has come of age. It's been a long road, but the path has been clear the whole way. Slowly chipping away at first the basic applications and protocols, the entire spectrum of Userspace is being filled with Linux applications. The most notable development is the graphical user interfaces available.

Free BSD vs. Red Hat derivatives

The main difference is in the way the software is loaded on a particular machine, ie. the way the distro is implemented. BSD uses a tree and Red Hat uses RPM files.

White Box

The 3-week course I took was based on White Box, although much of what we learned was pure Unix. During lunch breaks (I make my own) I was able to explore many of the included applications. These were primarily Open Office and KDE. White Box is essentially repackaged Red Box, as the RH Source was copied.

Distro Watch

Distrowatch- a very comprehensive database of virtually all Linux distributions available.
Take a look on the right side of the screen- Security Audit, Linux Training and Page Hit Ranking. Look under the Page Hit Rankings and find a distribution that you might be interested in. Click on the link. A page will open specific to that distribution. At the top will be a list of specific details and down below is a tabular listing of each distribution version with what is included. This is a great way to ensure that your distribution has the latest version of a particular application!

3/10/2005

I'm working on a series of programs for basic calculations. I'll start with things that I'm most familiar with, electronics, then I'll branch out from there.

windows installer window keeps popping up?

Here is another page that looks at internal combustion engines using computational flow dynamics. You can simulate all sorts of piping arrangements and combustion chambers. You can also add turbochargers and the like. Wave by Ricardo Inc.

here are some of my favorite links

Download.com

MAME - The official Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator site

Internet Traffic Report