"The Genie is out of the bottle"

[Joseph Meredith]

Greetings:

As always, it's remarkable how fast both high level programmers,
netork administrators and those affiliated with corporations and
institutions of various sorts have jumped on board. The pent up
demand for what we are involved in has confirmed what we have
all been contributing to becoming a reality for so long.

It seems as though some people are hedging their positions by
deversifying both by open source software adoption and the
partnership with TLD innovations like the GlobalDNA.org project.
This recent developement becoming a reality is proven by the
names and caliber of who is now using this combination. I for
one have been able to not only see the future possibilities but
have real time pragmatic demonstrations of what will now happen.

The corporations, learning institutions and private enterprises are
referring other people to load softward and change TLD services
at a rapid pace within days of it's availability. I suppose by next
week we'll be well on our way and discussing what's next of the
challenges to tackle.

A big thanks to those who are working diligently to
merge services to
collectively lead the way for global participation
of all types of
institutions, governments and countries without
the former roadblocks based
on old business practices and
policies overriding the concensus
of what we now know is destined to
happen quickly.

[IPB Corporation]

I perfect example of this amidst the OS upgrades from Apple and
Microsoft over the last few months, the Linux OS Ubuntu got a version
bump of its own.

Ubuntu 9.10, could be for the Linux community what the recently
released Windows 7 OS from Microsoft is to the Windows world. Of
course, this latest release that replaced Ubuntu 9.04 did not have as
much to do in bettering its predecessor as did Windows 7 had in
overcoming Vista.

Still, no operating system is ever flawless. This latest Ubuntu
release fixes some lingering problems and builds in several useful
enhancements. Its eye candy is tasty. Its performance is like a sugar
rush!

Ubuntu users with netbooks received a double benefit with the final
release.

The Remix version not only contains the Karmic code upgrade, but it
also has a revamped interface that better displays applications on 8-
inch to 10-inch LCD screens.

However, netbook users had better love this new interface, because
unlike the previous Remix versions, the desktop switch feature is
gone.

Almost every review of the new Ubuntu desktop release has spoken
praise for the upgrade. I too am in love with it . The few
shortcomings it has will no doubt be resolved with patches.

Installation on my desktop & laptop computer was smooth and quick.
This is a key accomplishment. Some previous Ubuntu upgrades required
wiping and repartitioning the hard drive to do a virgin install. But
this time, after the computer rebooted, the Gnome desktop was intact,
along with all of my pre-existing system and application settings.

Of course, the tougher upgrade will still have to be done if the
installed version is older than 9.04. From inserting the DVD to system
reboot took about two hours.

Much of the improvement built into Ubuntu 9.10 is found under the
hood. For instance, it runs on version 2.6.31 of the Linux kernel and
has the latest version of the Gnome desktop.

Happily, it also has the Firefox 3.5 Web browser. This temporarily
resolves one of my lingering annoyances with the Ubuntu OS. The Ubuntu
upgrade also includes version 3.1 of the OpenOffice.org suite as its
default office software.

A big disappointment in the Ubuntu 9.04 was the way hibernation and
suspend modes did not work. Depending on the hardware, you couldn't
get the machine to resume. Or if it did resume, it did so without an
Internet or network connection. So you had to restart the OS.

Version 9.10 has those problems solved -- now if only the code writers
could only achieve that goal in the Remix version so the battery
status icon did not show the battery as discharging when it was
running on AC.

This version of the free Linux OS makes it quick and easy to join the
cloud storage phenomenon. The Ubuntu One feature is a Web sync service
that provides 2 GB of online disk space and lets you synchronize notes
and contacts as well as share files between several computers. If more
space is needed, 50 GB only costs US$10 per month.
A new package called "Empathy" integrates Yahoo , Gmail, MSN, Jabber,
AOL, QQ and more. It also connects with email accounts and has an
address book and a calendar that rivals Microsoft Outlook. If you
where looking into an apple this feature alone should make you take a
look!!

Boot time is much quicker in this new version. The OS is available in
23 languages; over 2400 free, completely cool games that look
fantastic are available as well.

Perhaps the most significant enhancement for the typical Ubuntu user
is the new Software Center application its like the Apple Ap Store.
The previous software manager app, Add/Remove Applications, is still
available. You can also find thousands of free and open source
software packages using three or four other download engines once you
add them.

However, the Software Center gives more details on thousands of free
and open source applications. Clicking on a "next page" arrow opens an
install or remove option. Categories include Education, Games, Sound
and Video, Graphics, Programming and Office.

By far, the interface used in the Software Center is one of the
easiest systems available in Linux to browse software titles and
descriptions.

Clearly, this latest Ubuntu distribution is well worth the look. Long-
time Ubuntu users will not be disappointed. The Karmic Koala is snazzy
enough to make Mac and Windows users seriously consider switching.

So many more improvements are in the 9.10 code that the list is too
lengthy to include here. So here is a very brief highlighted
accounting of what else is new:

Revamped audio for improved sound control across multiple
applications
Disk encryption, stronger AppArmor system permissions, and cloud
service integration
A home directory encryption option at installation that lays on top of
the file system and targets specific system folders instead of
encrypting everything
New video driver technology boosts performance for Intel-based
graphics
And YES best of all this package is now natively compactible with you
guessed
It GlobalDNA

I'm very happy to report we even have a new DNS server that can
replace Bind9 that runs on it!!

Windows 7 and Ubuntu, despite their opposing missions, can get along
like best pals on a single computer. Here's how to set up a dual boot
system that lets you enjoy the best of both worlds in perfect harmony.
By default, Windows 7 takes over your boot-up process and wants to be
your only OS, and Linux treats Windows like a weekend hobby you keep
in a shed somewhere on your hard drive. But I've been dual-booting
Ubuntu and some version of Windows 7, and I've learned a lot about
inconveniences, annoyances, and file-sharing necessities, and now I'll
walk you through how to set up your systems to achieve a peaceful
union of your dual-boot OSes. (Both with Windows 7 already installed,
and with a clean system ready for a new dual-OS existence.)

Follow through this guide, and I'll explain how to rebuild a system
from the ground up with Windows 7 and Ubuntu, with either a backed-up
and cleaned-out hard drive (recommended) or Windows 7 already
installed. When we're done, you can work and play in either operating
system, quickly and conveniently access your documents, music,
pictures, and other files without worry or inconvenience, and boot
into either system without having to worry about whether Windows is
going to get mad at you. Plus, when Ubuntu 10.04 or Windows 8 come
along, you'll find it much easier to install either one without having
to start over entirely from scratch.

What you'll need
Windows 7 installation disc: For clean installations, either a full
installation copy or an upgrade disc is needed. If you own an upgrade
disc but want to start from scratch, there's a way to do a clean
install with an upgrade disc, though that's a rather gray-area route.
Then again, there's probably not a person on this earth that doesn't
have a licensed copy of XP or Vista somewhere in their past.
Ubuntu 9.10 installation image: You can grab an ISO at Ubuntu.com, or
hit "Alternative download options" to reveal a (usually very fast)
BitTorrent link. You'll want to get the ubuntu-9.10-desktop-i386.ISO
download for 32-bit systems, or ubuntu-9.10-desktop-amd64.ISO.torrent
for 64-bit on AMD or Intel systems (despite the name).
Blank CD or empty USB drive: You'll need one of these for burning the
Ubuntu ISO, or loading it for USB boot. If you're going the thumb
drive route, grab UNetBootin for Windows or Linux, plug in your USB
drive, and load it with the downloaded ISO image.
All your data backed up: Even if you're pulling this off with Windows
7 already installed and your media and documents present, you'll want
to have a fallback in case things go awry. Which they shouldn't, but,
naturally, you never know.
Free time: I'd reckon it takes about 2 hours to pull off two OS
installs on a clean system; more if you've got a lot of data to move
around.
Setting up your hard drive
If you've got nothing installed on your system, or you've got your
data backed up and you're ready to start from scratch, you're in a
great position--skip down to the "Partition your system" section. If
you've got Windows already installed, you can still make a spot for
Ubuntu, though.

(Only) If Windows is already installed: You're going to "shrink" the
partition that Windows 7 installed itself on. Before we do that, clean
out any really unnecessary applications and data from your system (we
like Revo Uninstaller for doing this). Also, open up "Computer" and
take note of how much space remains on your main hard drive,
presumably labeled "C:". Head to the Start menu, type "disk
management" into the search box, and hit Enter.

Windows 7 probably put two partitions on your hard drive: one, about
100 MB in size, holding system restoration data. We don't want to
touch it. Right-click on the bigger partition to the right, and choose
Shrink Partition.

After a little bit of hard drive activity and a "Please wait" window,
you'll get back the size you can shrink your Windows partition by.

If the space Windows offers doesn't jibe with what your Computer view
told you was "remaining," you might need to hit Cancel, then head back
and defragment your hard drive, and take some of the steps laid out by
the How-To Geek. Run the Disk Management tool again and try a Shrink
Volume operation again, and free up as much space as you can.

Partition your system: You're aiming to set up a system with three
partitions, or sections, to its hard drive: One lean partition for the
Windows operating system and applications running from it, another
just-big-enough partition for Ubuntu and its own applications, and
then a much larger data partition that houses all the data you'll want
access to from either one. Documents, music, pictures, application
profiles—it all goes in another section I'll call "Storage" for this
tutorial.

How do you get there? We're going to use GParted, the Linux-based uber-
tool for all things hard drive. You could grab the Live CD if you felt
like it, but since you've already downloaded an Ubuntu installer, you
can simply boot a "live," no-risk session of Ubuntu from your CD or
USB stick and run GParted from there. Once you're inside Ubuntu, head
to the System menu in the upper left when you get to a desktop, then
choose the Administration menu and GParted under it.

You'll see your system's hard drive and its partitions laid out.
You're going to create partitions for Linux and your storage space,
but not Windows—we'll let the Windows installation carve out its own
recovery partition and operating space. On my own system, I give
Windows 15 GB of unallocated space, and Ubuntu another 15 GB of space
right after it, with whatever's left kept as storage space. Then
again, I've only got a 100 GB hard drive and don't run huge games or
applications, so you can probably give your two operating systems a
bit more space to grow.

Click on the unallocated space and hit the "New" button at the far
left. In the "Free space preceding" section, click and hold the up
button, or enter a number of megabytes, to leave space for Windows at
the front. When you've got the "space preceding" set, set the actual
size of the Ubuntu partition in the "New Size" section, and leave
"Free space following" alone. Choose "unformatted" under file system—
we'll let Ubuntu do the format itself and hit "Add." Back at the main
GParted window, click on the space to the right of your two OS spaces,
hit "New" again, and set the file system as "ntfs." Give it a label
like "Storage," hit "Add," and at the main GParted window, hit the
checkmark button to apply your changes. Once it's done, exit out of
GParted and shut down the system from the pull-down menu in the upper-
right corner.

If Windows is already installed: If you've shrunk down its partition
for free space and booted into a live Ubuntu or GParted, click on the
"Unallocated" piece next to the two "ntfs" partitions that represent
your Windows 7 installation and system recovery tools. Create a 15(-
ish) GB unformatted partition, and give it a label like Ubuntu. If
you've got a good deal of space left, format it as "ntfs" and label it
something like "Storage." If you can just barely fit the Ubuntu
partition, you can just keep your media files in the Windows partition—
until you can remedy this with a full wipe-and-install down the line.

Experienced Linux geeks might be wondering where the swap space is
going—but don't worry, we'll create one, just not in its own
partition.

Installing and configuring Windows
Grab your Windows 7 installation disc—either a full copy or modified
upgrade disc, and insert it into your DVD drive. If your system isn't
set up to boot from CD or DVD drive, look for the button to press at
start-up for "Boot options" or something similar, or hit up your
system maker's help guides to learn how to change your boot order in
the BIOS settings.

Follow through the Windows 7 installation, being sure to choose
"Custom" for the installation method and to point it at that
unallocated space we created at the beginning of your hard disk, not
the NTFS-formatted media/storage space we made earlier:

Work your way through the Windows 7 installation, all the way until
you reach the Windows desktop. Feel free to set up whatever programs
or apps you want, but what we really want to do is set up your Storage
partition to house your pictures, music, video, and other files, and
make your Libraries point to them.

Hit the Start menu, click Computer, and double-click on the hard drive
named "Storage" (assuming you named it that earlier). In there, right-
click and create new folders (or hit Ctrl+Shift+N) for the files
you'll be using with both systems. I usually create folders labeled
Documents, Music, Pictures, and Videos—I could also see folders for
saved games and data files from big software packages. Copy your media
files into these folders now, if you'd like, but we've got a bit more
tweaking to pull off.

In the left-hand sidebar, you'll see your "Libraries" for documents,
music, pictures, and video. At the moment, they point to your Public
shared folders and the My Pictures-type folders on your main Windows
drive. Click once on any of the Libraries, and at the top of the main
panel, you'll see text stating that this library "Includes: 2
locations ...". Click the blue text on "2 locations," then click on
each of the folders below and hit "Remove" on the right-hand side. Now
hit "Add" and select the corresponding folder on your Storage drive.
Do the same for all your music, pictures, videos, and other media
folders.

Want to add another library for quick access? Right-click somewhere on
the desktop, choose New->Library, and follow the steps.

That's about it for Windows. Now get your Ubuntu CD or USB stick ready
and insert it in your system. Ignore whatever auto-play prompts
appear, and restart your system.

Installing and configuring Ubuntu
Restart your computer, this time booting from your Ubuntu Live CD or
USB boot drive. When your system boots up, choose your language,
select "Try Ubuntu without any changes to your computer," and you'll
boot into a "live" desktop, run entirely off the CD or USB stick. Once
you're booted up, try connecting to the internet from the network icon
in the upper-right—it helps during the installation process, ensures
your network is working, and gives you something to do (Firefox) while
the system installs.

Click the "Install" link on the desktop, and fill out the necessary
language/location/keyboard info (most U.S. users can skip through the
first 3 screens). When you hit the "Prepare disk space" section,
select the "Specify partitions manually" option, then hit Forward.
Select the free space that's after your first two Windows partitions
with ntfs formats, then hit the "Add" button at bottom. Your partition
should already be sized correctly, and the only thing to change is set
"/" as a mount point. Here's what your screen should look like:

Click OK, then finish through with the Ubuntu installation. If it
catches your Windows 7 installation, it might ask if you want to
import settings from inside it—you can, if you'd like, but I usually
skip this. Wait for the installation to finish, remove the CD or thumb
drive, and reboot your system.

When you start up again, you'll see a list of OS options. The only
ones you need concern yourself with are Windows 7 and the top-most
Ubuntu line. You can prettify and fix up this screen, change its
settings, and modify its order later on. For now, let's head into
Ubuntu.

We're going to make the same kind of folder access change we did in
Windows. Click up on the "Places" menu, choose "Home Folder," and
check out the left-hand sidebar. It's full of links to Documents,
Pictures, and the like, but they all point to locations inside your
home folder, on the Linux drive that Windows can't read. Click once on
any of those folders, then right-click and hit Remove.

You should see your "Storage" partition in the left-hand sidebar, but
without that name—more like "100GB filesystem." Double-click it, type
in the administrator password you gave when installing, and you'll see
your Documents, Music, etc. Click and drag those folders into the
space where the other folders were, and now you'll have access to them
from the "Places" menu, as well as any file explorer window you have
open.

Ubuntu won't "mount," or make available, your Windows 7 and Storage
drives on boot-up, however, and we at least want constant access to
the Storage drive. To fix that, head to Software Sources in the System-
>Administration menu. From there go to Applications, then the Ubuntu
Software Center at the bottom. Under the "Ubuntu Software" and
"Updates" sections, add a check to the un-checked sources, like
Restricted, Multiverse, Proposed, and Backports. Hit "Close," and
agree to Reload your software sources.

Finally! Head to the Applications menu and pick the Ubuntu Software
Center. In there, search for "ntfs-config," and double-click on the
NTFS Configuration Tool that's the first result. Install it, then
close the Software Center. If you've got the "Storage" or Windows 7
partitions mounted, head to any location in Places and then click the
eject icon next to those drives in the left-hand sidebar. Now head to
the System->Administration menu and pick the NTFS Configuration Tool.

You'll see a few partitions listed, likely as /dev/sda1, /dev/sda2,
and the like. If you only want your storage drive, it should be listed
as /dev/sda3 or something similar--just not the first or second
options. Check the box for "Add," click in the "Mount point" column to
give it a name (Storage, perhaps?), and hit "Apply." Check both boxes
on the next window to allow read/write access, and hit OK, and you're
done. Now the drive with all your stuff is accessible to Windows and
Linux at all times.

Adding swap to Ubuntu
"Swap" memory is a section of the hard drive that your system's memory
spills over into when it gets full and busy. Until recently, I'd been
creating a whole separate partition for it. Recently, though, I've
found that swap isn't always necessary on systems with a large amount
of memory, and that swap can simply be a file tucked away on your hard
drive somewhere.

Follow the Ubuntu help wiki's instructions for adding more swap, but
consider changing the location they suggest putting the swap file—/mnt/
swap/ for the place your Storage is held—/media/Storage, in my case.

Share Firefox profiles and more
That's about it for this guide to setting up a harmonious Windows and
Ubuntu existence, but I recommend you also check out our previous
guide to using a single data store when dual-booting. It explains the
nitty-gritty of sharing Firefox, Thunderbird, and Pidgin profiles
between Linux and Windows for a consistent experience, as well as a
few other dual-boot tricks.

You might also want to consider creating virtual machines with
VirtualBox for those moments when you're in one OS and need to get at
the other. Ubuntu is free to create as many instances as you want, of
course, and Windows 7 (Professional and Ultimate) are very friendly
with non-activated copies—not that either can't be otherwise activated
in cases where it's just a double-use issue.