Linux Community Magazine

This post assumes a working knowledge of Windows and Linux, but if you're the family tech support guy, then you're probably good to go.

Whenever I build or rebuild a computer for my family I always plan ahead. I leave about 20 GB free at the end of the hard drive for a restore partition. What this restore partition does is allow me to image their newly installed (and clean) hard drive for future restore.

As you know, once that PC is out of your hands it will be infected with every virus and piece of malware known to man. If your relatives are like my parents, then every person who comes to their house must bring a CD or DVD full of infected software resulting in endless calls to me because "it's slow" or "the computer is acting weird".

Here is my Hard Drive layout.

Install Windows and Applications

I then go ahead and install the necessary software programs on the D: drive. Here's what I typically give them (in addition to the Antivirus software I already mentioned).

I use free software when I can. They brought me the PC because they are too cheap to pay to get it fixed so we all know there's no money coming our way. Ah the curse of being the family IT guy!

Once I get the extra software packages all installed (on the D: drive) I re-scan with Antivirus.

Linux Install (Dual Boot) aka restore partitionNow comes the fun part, I reboot off of a linux CD (typically Debian or Ubuntu) and install a "core" system on the partition I originally set aside at the very end of the hard drive.

Here's where the magic happens. I chose a core install so I do all of this via command line in a shell. After the install reboot and make sure that you have the grub boot loader options for linux and for Windows listed.

Once you are booted into linux log in and modify the grub loader to simplify it. I like it to have Windows listed first and as the default OS then below that have it say "Emergency Restore CAUTION" instead of "linux" or whatever it would have said before.

Install partimage and sudo packages with this command: "apt-get install partimage sudo"

Imaging and minor shell scriptingVerify your partition names with "fdisk -l". I have /dev/hda1 yours might be /dev/sda1 or some other setup. Make sure to use whatever your C: drive corresponds to instead of /dev/hda1.

create an image of the c: drive for restore purposes"partimage -b -z1 -c -d -o save /dev/hda1 /opt/Windows-image-file"

Now there should be a fairly large file in /opt called Windows-image-file (or whatever you called it)

I then create a script in /opt called partimage-restore.sh (again make sure to use your partition if it's not /dev/hda1)

#!/bin/shsudo partimage restore -b -z1 -f2 /dev/hda1 /opt/Windows-image-file

Make sure to "chmod +x /opt/partimage-restore.sh" so that the file is executable.

Here's where I like to run the script "/opt/partimage-restore.sh" in theory it should reimage the c: drive then auto reboot.

If it successfully reimages the windows partition and reboots, check out the Windows install and make sure it all works properly.

If all is well reboot, go back into linux.

Now the real test. Log out of linux, log back in as "restore" and the reimage should auto run and reboot. If not something is amiss, read this post again or Google that stuff. If it does work, return PC tonaiveend user, I mean "really great close relative".

Happy Ending to the Inevitable support callNow next time your relatives, friends, or other high maintenance support user calls you with "it's slow" or "it's just not working right", you can walk them through the restore procedure:

Since we backed up files, moved My Documents to D: and we installed all applications on D: there should be very little data loss.

This makes full PC restore a matter of minutes instead of a phone call that lasts for hours.

If you are a computer enthusiast and want to experiment a little with the Operating System of your computer or tired with virus, malware, adware or spyware you might consider an Operating System which is both secure, fast and at the same time free, try Ubuntu Linux. Ubuntu Linux which is just a distribution of Linux Operating System is available free of cost. You need to download the ISO file and burn it using your favorite CD/DVD burning software or if you have a slow internet connection but still want to try out the Operating System you can order for a CD from Ubuntu's home page. Ubuntu Linux is available for Desktop, servers and Notebook. Ubuntu Linux licensed by a UK based company Canonical Limited. This implies that anyone can reuse, study and modify the code and that the code is free and can be freely distributed or copied.

Ubuntu Linux was first released in the year 2004 October. After that Canonical does release a version after every six months and a LTS version (Long Time support) after two years. The LTS version was so called because Canonical will give support for this version for three years and five years for Server. The last LTS version was released in April 2010 and hence was called version 10.04. The naming convention is YY.MM. After six months in the month of October 10th 2010 the next version was launched by Canonical which was naturally 10.10. The next version will be probably 11.04 which should be released in the year 2011 in the month of April.

Before proceeding with features and other important aspects let's see how to install Ubuntu Linux. Some may have conception installing Linux is very tough and you need a UNIX conception if you want to install Ubuntu. But things have changed over the years and now loading Linux is very easy. For Linux set up support, you can talk to a remote computer support service provider. The full installation is GUI based where a click of mouse is sufficient for things to be done quickly. Further if you are extremely happy with your existing Operating System and you don't want to remove it you can use the installation CD of Ubuntu Linux as a Live CD.

This means that you don't need to install or create partition for trying out Ubuntu Linux. Just boot your computer by selecting CDROM drive as first boot device and you will get a screen where you will be given options of either to Try Ubuntu Linux or Install Ubuntu. Choose Ubuntu only if you are absolutely sure and backed up all your data. Or else click Try Ubuntu. In no time you will get the desktop with complete set of software like Open Office, Firefox browser, Movie Player and other software programs as well.

I have to tell you, the more I run Ubuntu, the more I love it.

Now, this is from a guy who has run too many OSes to count. I've used every single version of Windows, from 3.11 to Windows 7. I've dabbled in Mac OS, fro the mid-90's to today. I've tried them all, and I just find Ubuntu spectacular.

Why? Am I just a rebel? Some guy who just likes to feel superior? Nope. Ubuntu just works for me. The sound works, when I plug in my USB headset. The browser works perfectly. My wife logs in, and used my Ubuntu laptop without incident, the first time.

That, my friends, is why I love Ubuntu. On the rare occasion that a program freezes, all I have to do is open the console, check the process number, and kill it. It ends instantly. It doesn't ask if I want to help improve Ubuntu by reporting the crash. It doesn't try to fix the problem, while tying up my system ram and processor for an eternity. It just does what I tell it to do.

Ubuntu does what you tell it to do. Need an application? Tell it to download. Want to mess with your configuration files? Ubuntu figures you are an adult, and can deal with the consequences of your actions. It doesn't ask me whether I am sure 1000 times. It just does what you tell it to do.

I appreciate the fact that the machine is cognisant that it is a machine, and should be inclined to obey the owner. I love the choices that Ubuntu offers, as well. If I want a different window manager, all I have to do is download a new one. If I think that a feature is unnecessary, I can delete it.

Ubuntu (and Linux in general) offers you the freedom to make mistakes, and choose a different path. MAC and Windows don't allow me that option.

Now, there are a few things that people seem to really hate about Linux, but to be fair, many of them are the same things that people dislike about MACs:

1. Generally, Linux is not considered a gaming system. This is gradually changing, as independent developers continue to produce content, and broaden their purchasing base. Penny Arcade has released their latest game, at launch for the Linux OS. Like anything in the free market, the greater the purchasing base, the greater the chance that the game gets made.

2. Linux Driver Support: People consistently complain about Linux driver support, or a lack of support for their peripherals. With the latest release of Ubuntu, this practically became a non-issue. The only thing that I have to manually configure has been my built-in laptop webcam. I haven't done it, simply because I don't use it that often. That may be a deal-breaker for some. Other than that, driver support continues to improve, and in many cases, exceed Window's quality of support, with each release.

3. Sound - Hey, Linux has buggy sound. Ummm..not so much anymore. While the Pulse Audio server has created a few issues, the bugs continue to decrease with every passing day. Now, I have, in the past, found it annoying when Pulse didn't integrate properly with my apps, and I had to uninstall and add ALSA base, back in. That, too me, would be a dealbreaker if I was the average Windows user. As things stand, I'm willing to wait it out.

Is the future bright for Ubuntu? I think it is. In fact, I think Linux adoption rates will rise in the near future, thanks to the iPad. Why? Because Steve Jobs has demanded that HTML5 video support be made available for the iPad. Linux users are big on standards, and as more and more web apps are developed in HTML5, it really won't matter what OS you run.

Currently, Adobe has improved application usage for Ubuntu, via the AIR platform, and flash in general. AIR runs flawlessly on Ubuntu. Flash is buggy on Linux, and often suffers from frame rate issues, and general video bugginess. HTML5 will not have that problem.

Eventually, all of the problems people have with Linux will be solved via the delivery of applications via the web, or a cross-platform software API that is more robust than AIR. Games will be delivered simultaneously to all platforms at once.

This is when Ubuntu adoption will go through the stratosphere, as it becomes apparent that linux doesn't demand as many resources, as MAC and Windows do. Applications will be fast and secure, and we will see people move to open source software in droves.

In the meantime, I will continue to love and support the development of Linux and Ubuntu, even if it doesn't get the respect that I feel it does.

Ubuntu is the most used distro of Linux with more than 12 million personal computer users all over the globe. Ubuntu Linux OS is also the most popular open source OS for desktops and is based on Debian GNU Linux distribution. The first ever release of Ubuntu OS was on 20 October 2004 and after that new versions of Ubuntu Linux OS have been distributed almost every six months. Ubuntu is supported by the UK based firm Canonical Ltd. owned by South African entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth. Ubuntu is released to public as a free OS and the latest release of Ubuntu OS was Natty Narwhal which was released on 28th of April, 2010. The latest release focused on structuring the interface quite easy for users of the Windows Operating System and it has gained several reactions all over the globe. One of the problems of Ubuntu OS is that the backgrounds inbuilt into the Operating System are not that attractive and there are not many great backgrounds available either. So, in this tutoria l we will inform on how to install high quality background slideshow themes on your Ubuntu Operating System where the HQ backgrounds keep changing at definite intervals.

At the onset you require to download the Ubuntu Theme from a Gnome Art background site. High Quality Ubuntu Linux OS Background Themes are regularly released at UbuntuTheme.net and you can also download Background Themes from there. The Themes do not require any severe modification to the File System and are safe to be installed. In addition to Ubuntu Linux OS, the Ubuntu Linux Background Themes should work on any Linux distribution which supports Gnome Art backgrounds.

After you have downloaded the Ubuntu Background Theme to your personal computer, decompress it to extract the theme folder. Then you would need to transfer the background theme folder to /usr/share/backgrounds in your Ubuntu OS. But for that you would reqiure root permissions. So, open the terminal in your Ubuntu system and type:

sudo cp -R /home/YOURUSERNAME/PathToYourThemeFolder /usr/share/backgrounds

Replace YOURUSERNAME and PathToYourThemeFolder with the ones that are correct for Ubuntu OS setup on your PC. If you are not certain about the positioning of the decompressed theme folder then you can right-click with your mouse and see properties to derive an idea about the same. When you transfer the background theme folder you would be asked for the root password and you can type it and press enter. Then you need to browse to the /usr/share/backgrounds folder in your Ubuntu OS where you should the new Theme Folder if you have relocated it properly. If you see a cross mark on the theme folder or the backgrounds inside it and if permission is denied then please type the following command on your Ubuntu terminal:

sudo chmod 777 -R /usr/share/backgrounds/ThemeFolder

Replace ThemeFolder with the name of the background theme folder as you did previously.

Now go to System > Preferences > Appearance and click on Appearance to open the Appearance dialogue box. You can also open Appearance Preference by right-clicking on your Ubuntu desktop screen and then selecting Change Desktop Background from the right-click menu. You would then require to choose the Background tab in that box if it is not selected already. Now click on Add near the bottom right side of that tab to add the new background theme. A new dialogue box named Add Wallpaper would pop up where you need to browse to the /usr/share/backgrounds/ThemeFolder/ and choose the themefile.xml inside the ThemeFolder. You might need to select the file type at the bottom right of the Add Wallpaper window from images to all files {to be able|in order to view the xml file.Replace ThemeFolder and themefile.xml name with the actual theme folder name and theme file name. You would now see the new background on your Ubuntu OS desktop and it will alter every 15 minutes. The Ubuntu The me installation is finished now and once you get the hang of it, you should be able to install new Ubuntu background themes in less than 30 seconds.

HistoryAcer was founded by Stan Shih (), his wife Carolyn Yeh, and a group of five others as Multitech in 1976, headquartered in Hsinchu City, Taiwan. The company was renamed Acer in 1987. It began with eleven employees and US$25,000 in capital. Initially, it was primarily a distributor of electronic parts and a consultant in the use of microprocessor technologies, but over time it emerged as a PC manufacturer. Acer began its foray into laptops with the purchase of Texas Instruments' mobile PC division in 1997.In 2000, Acer spun off its manufacturing operations as Wistron Corporation, to focus on marketing of their core brand. Acer increased worldwide sales while simultaneously reducing its labor force by identifying and using marketing strategies that best utilized their existing distribution channels. By 2005, Acer employed a scant 7,800 people worldwide. Revenues rose from US$4.9 billion in 2003 to US$11.31 billion in 2006. Acer's North American market share has slipped over the past few years, while in contrast, the company's European market share has risen.On 27 August 2007, Acer announced plans to acquire its US-based rival Gateway Inc. for US$710 million. Acer's chairman, J.T. Wang, stated that the acquisition "completes Acer's global footprint, by strengthening our United States presence." In January 2008, Acer announced that it had acquired a controlling interest of 75% of Packard Bell.In 2009 Acer acquired: Eten (aziend), eMachines and 29.9% of Olidata. Operations AustraliaThe Australian subsidiary of Acer is Acer Computer Australia (ACA). The subsidiary was established in 1990, and is currently Australia's third largest personal computer vendor, behind Hewlett-Packard Australia and Dell Australia and New Zealand. Acer Computer Australia has Australia's highest overall market share in notebook PC and tablet PC sales. The company is also Australia's leading PC vendor in government and education markets. Acer Computer Australia has 48 0 employees as of 2006. IndiaAcer's subsidiary in India is Acer India (Pvt) Limited, and was incorporated as a wholly owned subsidiary of Acer Computer International, Ltd. in 1999. It is a notable vendor in key segments such as education, desktop computers and low profile notebooks for education purposes. Its headquarters are in Bangalore, India. Europe, Middle East and AfricaAcer sells laptops in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region. North AmericaAcer America Corporation, headquartered in San Jose, California, is a member of the Acer Group. Acer's R&D, engineering, manufacturing and marketing operations in the United States and Canada are handled by Acer America. In September 1990, Acer acquired Altos Computer Systems, one of the top manufacturers of multi-user and networked UNIX computer systems for commercial markets. In February 1997, Acer acquired Texas Instruments Mobile Computing business, including the award-winning TravelMate and Extensa notebook lines, making Acer the fourth-leading notebook manufacturer in the United States. Acer America's Canadian office, in Mississauga, Ontario, handles repair of Acer, Gateway, and E-Machine Notebooks and Desktop PCs for Eastern Canada. The repair facility in Temple, Texas handles many service oriented functions for North America. Acer owns Gateway, eMachines and Packard Bell brands in North America. Acer and LinuxAcer has stated that it will be pushing Linux aggressively on its new laptops and notebooks. They are already heavily promoting Linux for its low cost netbook range put out in late 2008, but senior staff have said that Acer will also push Linux on its laptops as well. Acer has already started selling Linux in its Media PC business. Linux support for older Acer laptops is still variable due to the use of a variety of unsupported chipsets.[citation needed] ProductsAcer Aspire 5600 NotebookAcer Aspire 3610 NotebookAcer Aspire 5520 NotebookAcer Aspire 4520 NotebookAcer Aspire OneD esktopsAcer Aspire seriesAcer Predator seriesAcer Veriton seriesNotebooksAcer TravelMate seriesAcer Gemstone seriesTablet PC seriesAcer Aspire seriesAcer Aspire Timeline seriesAcer Extensa seriesAcer Ferrari series (CPUs: Mobile AMD Turion 64)NetbookAspire OneFerrari OneNettopAspireRevoPersonal digital assistantsS Series of Palm OS PDAsAcer N SeriesAutomotive navigation systemsAcer e300 series Travel Companion, with Destinator and NAVTEQ maps.Servers and storageAcer Altos seriesWorkstationsAcer PICAComputer displaysDLP ProjectorsMobile phonesAcer LiquidAcer NeoTouchOtherDigital camerasLCD TVs BrandsAcereMachinesGatewayPackard BellE-TEN Sports AdvertisingAcer sponsored the BAR-Honda Formula One racing team in the year 2000. In 2001, Acer provided sponsorship to the Prost Grand Prix Formula One team, and the team's Ferrari engines were badged as Acers.Acer currently sponsors the Ferrari Formula 1 team. In 2003 Acer signed a Gold Partner sponsorship deal with FC Internazionale Milano (Inter Milan) Football Club. From January 2007, Acer has become Official Supplier of FC Barcelona. On 19 March 2007, Acer announced that they will sponsor the Factory Fiat Yamaha Team for the 2007 MotoGP World Championship season. From 2009, Packard Bell (a subsidiary of Acer) will be the sponsor of Fiat Yamaha MotoGP.Acer will be listed among the Worldwide TOP Partners for both the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games and for the London 2012 Summer Olympics. Other AdvertisingAcer Arena, at Sydney Olympic Park, NSW, is the largest indoor live entertainment and sporting arena in Australia. It was formerly named the Sydney Superdome.Designed and constructed by Abigroup Ltd in conjunction with Obayashi Corporation, the venue is acknowledged by experts as equal to the finest indoor arenas in the world today.One of the major venues for the Sydney 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Acer Arena hosted artistic gymnastics, trampoline, the basketball finals and wheelchair basket ball.The $200 millon complex was designed and constructed to set new benchmarks in urban design, access for people with disabilities, spectator comfort, operation efficiency and Olympic serviceability.The project comprises three subsites:Acer Arena, a 21,000 seat fully enclosed arena built under a 'Build, Own, Operate & Transfer' (B.O.O.T.) contract: $190 millon3400 space car park designed for high volume traffice entry and egress under a design and construct contract: $25 millionPlaza and external works covering over 32,000m2 under a management contract then converted to a lump sum: $25 millionAcer Arena was designed and constructed with very high environmental values and was awarded the prestigious national Banksia Award for Construction Practices in 1999.Officially opened by the former Premier of NSW, Bob Carr, in November 1999 with a gala performance by Luciano Pavarotti, Acer Arena has hosted events including Supercross, tennis, rock concerts, arena musicals, religious services, school spectaculars and banquets. See alsoMicroprofessor I Acer's first productBenQ formerly Acer CMALi formerly Acer Laboratories IncorporatedAOpen formerly AcerOpenACC (computer company)List of computer system manufacturersList of companies in TaiwaneMachinesGatewayPackard BellE-TENETEN operation systemLinpus Linux References^ "Acer, second largest PC manufacturer in the World". Gartner. January 13, 2010. /it/page.jsp?id=1279215. Retrieved 26 November 2009.^ "About Acer Milestones". Acer. /about/milestones.htm. Retrieved 7 July 2007.^ "Gianfranco Lanci is appointed President of Acer Inc., effective January 2005" (PDF). Acer. 1 September 2004. /press/New_President.pdf. Retrieved 27 April 2007.^ "PC market surged in 2005, will settle in 2006". cnet. 18 January 2006. /PC+market+surged+in+2005,+will+settle+in+2006/2100-1003_3-6028454.html. Retrieved 7 July 2007.^ 6:00 p.m. ET (27 August 2007). "Taiwan's Acer to buy PC maker Gateway - World business - MSNBC.com". MSNB C. /id/20458321/. Retrieved 7 April 2009.^ "Acer Buys 75 Percent of Packard Bell making it the 2nd largest computer maker in the world". Washington Post. /wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/31/AR2008013101390.html. Retrieved 7 April 2009.^ "Acer bets big on Linux". Vnunet. 4 June 2008. /vnunet/news/2218172/acer-pushes-linux-hard. Retrieved 31 July 2008.^ /timeline/home.html^ Products & Services PDA[dead link]^ About Acer News Release[dead link]^ About Acer News Release[dead link]^ "02.02.2009 Packard Bell sponsor of Yamaha Factory Racing Team: Changeover of sponsorship from Acer" (PDF). /NR/rdonlyres/841AAED9-A03E-43F4-812F-0B76FE4F387D/1061/pb_yamaha_sponsorship.pdf. Retrieved 7 April 2009. 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