Ubuntu Snappy, a new era in containerized awesomeness?

Yesterday, Mark Shuttleworth announced the beta of Ubuntu "Snappy" Core.  At first, this is a confusing announcement, but I think that it shows insight into how developers are using linux to deliver solutions.
With the emergence of parameterized containerization tools like Docker, developers have the ability to control the creation of a linux machine with flexibility and specificity that was previously unimaginable.  Will it catch on?  Probably, but time will tell.

Here's the announcement:

Ubuntu Quickly - NEWLUG - July 2012

Ubuntu Quickly is an excellent application development platform for Ubuntu Linux. Recently, Tim Bolz gave a presentation on Quickly to NEWLUG. The video is here:
The slides that Tim used are also available:

Quickly programming from NEWLUG

Ubuntu on the Nexus One!

The folks at NexusOneHacks.net have released an impressive video showing people how to install Ubuntu side-by-side on a rooted Google Nexus One phone. Check it out:

Ubuntu 10.04 Released! Get Downloading!

Today is the day! Ubuntu 10.04 LTS has been released!

For a list of features, check out the Ubuntu tour here.

A brief listing of changes (from xtemu.com):

GNOME
Ubuntu 10.04 LTS RC includes the latest GNOME desktop environment with a number of great new features.

Linux kernel 2.6.32
Ubuntu 10.04 LTS RC includes the 2.6.32-21.32 kernel based on 2.6.32.11.

KDE SC 4.4
Kubuntu 10.04 LTS RC features the new KDE SC 4.4. For more information about new features in Kubuntu, see the Kubuntu technical overview.

HAL removal
This release fully removes HAL from the boot process, making Ubuntu faster to boot and faster to resume from suspend.

Major new version of likewise-open
The likewise-open package, which provides Active Directory authentication and server support for Linux, has been updated to version 5.4. The package supports upgrades from both the officially supported versions 4.0 (Ubuntu 8.04 LTS) and 4.1 (Ubuntu 9.10), as well as the likewise-open5 packages from universe.
Since this upgrade involves a lot of configuration file changes and in-place database upgrades, testing and feedback is appreciated.


New default open source driver for nVidia hardware
The Nouveau video driver is now the default for nVidia hardware. This driver provides kernel mode setting, which will give improved resolution detection. This driver provides hardware accelerated 2D functionality, like the -nv driver it replaces. The nouveau driver is being actively developed upstream and we anticipate this will enable faster bug fixes for problems encountered.

Improved support for nVidia proprietary graphics drivers
Three different NVIDIA proprietary drivers are currently available: nvidia-current (190.53), nvidia-173, and nvidia-96. Thanks to a new alternatives system, it is now possible to install all three of these packages at the same time (although it is only possible to have one configured for use at a time).

Social from the Start
We now feature built-in integration with Twitter, identi.ca, Facebook, and other social networks with the MeMenu in the panel, which is built upon the Gwibber project, which has a completely new, more reliable backend built on top of desktopcouch. Gwibber now also supports a multi-column view for monitoring multiple feeds simultaneously.

New boot experience
Multiple changes to look, feel and speed of the boot experience have been included in the Ubuntu 10.04 LTS Release Candidate.

New Indicators
The notification area now features more consistent user experience and design for communication, session management, and many other tasks. See the application indicators page for information on this change.

New Themes
The desktop has been beautified with the addition of two brand new themes, Ambiance and Radiance. New wallpaper and icons are also included.

Ubuntu One File Syncing
Select any folder in your home directory for sync, pick from your existing contacts when sharing folders. An updated preferences application has been added, with more features.

Ubuntu One Music Store
Millions of songs are available for purchase from your Ubuntu desktop, integrated with the Rhythmbox Music Player and using Ubuntu One cloud storage for backup and easy sync.

New features for Ubuntu Enterprise Cloud (UEC)
The Ubuntu Enterprise Cloud installer has been vastly improved in order to support alternative installation topologies. UEC components are now automatically discovered and registered, including for complex topologies. Finally, UEC is now powered by Eucalyptus 1.6.2 codebase.

This release will probably be known as "the one with the buttons on the left", as the default window buttons are moved from the upper right to the upper left.

Of particular note is the Ubuntu One Music Store, an iTunes alternative, which is being released with this version of Ubuntu.

For free Ubuntu downloads, click here! C'mon now, get downloading!

For those that have already downloaded the "Lucid Lynx", there are already tweaking guides or updates scripts that have been published, such as this one at WebUpd8.org.

Convert OGV files to AVI files in Ubuntu.

Hello!

If you use a desktop recording software such as gtk-recordmydesktop, you can make cool screencasts relatively easily. These screencasts are saved in the Ogg Video *.ogv container, with theora used for the video, and vorbis for the audio. 99 times out of 100, I think that it's awesome to use open formats.

The problem arises when you attempt to upload this video to a service such as Blogger, which does not recognize ogg video as a legitimate format. The video submission window looks like this:

For those of you that can't see images, the window says:

We accept AVI, MPEG, QuickTime, Real, and Windows Media, 100 MB maximum.

To perform the conversion, simply type this command:

mencoder -idx input.ogv -ovc lavc -oac mp3lame -o output.avi

Where "input.ogv" is the file you wish to convert, and "output.avi" is the file that you wish to convert it to. The original file is not changed or deleted in this process.

Here is a video that shows the process (note- this video was converted using this process):

Thanks to Ederico of the Ubuntu Forums for posting the solution on the Ubuntu Forums.

Other services, such as Vimeo, will do the file conversion for you. I did have to rename my *.ogv file with an *.ogg extension for it to be recognized for upload, but I didn't have to do any other conversion. The same video is shown below, in Vimeo:

Looking at both files, it appears that Vimeo is better at the conversion process than I am ;)

Phoronix releases Phoromatic 1.0!

Phoronix, ever on the leading edge of cross-platform benchmarking, announced today that they are releasing version 1.0 of Phoromatic, an innovative remote test management system used in conjunction with the Phoronix Test Suite.

Among the new features in Phoromatic 1.0:

• Generation of composite graphs (showing geometric mean, harmonic mean, and aggregate sum for all test data on a particular day).
• Narrowing down the graphs that are visible
• Viewing information about Phoromatic test systems in real-time
• Creation of an automatic RSS feed for test results
• Feature rich results tables
• Integrated system log viewers (such as this one).

Along with the announcement of Phoromatic 1.0, Phoronix has announced a partnership with Canonical, the company behind Ubuntu Linux, to provide daily updates on the performance of the most recent daily builds of Ubuntu packages (10.04 as of now). It is called the Phoromatic Ubuntu Tracker. Daily Ubuntu benchmarks are provided on three systems- a Core 2 Duo Mac Mini, as well as two Atom 330 NetTops. This automated testing and benchmarking will provide much-needed insight into the development process, as there will be a great deal of test data available when changes are made to packages in the Operating System.

To reinforce Phoromatic's focus on cross-platform benchmarking, they mention that this benchmarking is available on Linux, any of the BSD-based OSes, Mac OSX, and OpenSolaris. They are also working on support for Windows Operating Systems, as well.

For companies that are looking to perform internal benchmark testing, Phoronix offers PTS Commercial, which offers enterprise-level support to the benchmarking process.

For those of you with an eye towards the horizon, Phoronix is working feverishly on Phoronix Test Suite version 2.6, code-named "Lyngen", and plan to release version 2.6 in May of 2010.

Happy Benchmarking, everyone!

Ubuntu releases updated logo, theme, and wallpaper for Lucid Lynx (10.04)

The Ubuntu wiki recently released some images that reflect the new "Light" theme which will replace the current "Human" theme as Ubuntu's default theme. This change reflects the first major thematic change in Ubuntu's color palate since 2004.

Per the wiki page that announced this change, the explanation behind the change to the "Light" theme is described as follows:

We're drawn to Light because it denotes both warmth and clarity, and intrigued by the idea that "light" is a good value in software. Good software is "light" in the sense that it uses your resources efficiently, runs quickly, and can easily be reshaped as needed. Ubuntu represents a break with the bloatware of proprietary operating systems and an opportunity to delight to those who use computers for work and play. More and more of our communications are powered by light, and in future, our processing power will depend on our ability to work with light, too.

The default wallaper looks like this:


Here are two of the default logos:




The community logos will follow this new artistic style, encouraging a sense of unity and community amongst the related projects.








Here are the new GTK themes that are available. One has dark menus, and the other has light menus:




The boot splash screen has also been updated:


Here is a mock-up of the color palate that could be used in promotional materials and CD covers, providing a design that stands out from the other operating systems that are available.








The Ubuntu websites will also be receiving a face-lift in this update. Here are some images that show how the sites may appear in the future:



It should be fun to see the new color palate when Lucid Lynx is released. For those that cannot wait until the official release, OMG!Ubuntu! has announced that the new theme has already made its way into Ubuntu 10.04 Alpha 3. Feel free to continue following OMG!Ubuntu! for Ubuntu updates, as they are quite interested in Ubuntu, as their name suggests.

New Linux Journal Article: Using the Reconstructor Web UI

LinuxJournal.com has recently published another of my articles. It is concerning the Reconstructor Web UI.

I encourage you to see the article here.

In the meantime, here is a video from Youtube from another person using Reconstructor:

Phoronix benchmarks Ubuntu 9.10 vs. FreeBSD 8

Phoronix released some benchmarks of the upcoming Ubuntu 9.10, the Karmic Koala. The benchmarks compare it to FreeBSD 8. The Phoronix Testing Suite was used to develop the benchmarks. Although the official release date of Ubuntu 9.10 will not be until October 29th, these benchmarks show that the new version should be speedy and fun to use!

Warning! The Phoronix benchmark article is n i n e p a g e s long, so don't go to it if you aren't in the mood for clicking through ads to get to the article.