Linux for Hams
 

In finding the cure for Vista, I've installed Ubuntu Linux on my laptop.
It is turning out to be a tremendous OS, and it addresses one of my
major complaints of most flavors of Linux - that being whenever you try
to install a program, it takes you back to 1985 computing.

Any Linux lovin' hams here that have any advice or suggestions on good
programs, such as logging, propagation or the other apps we like to have?


- 73 de Mike N3LI -

Linux for Hams
 

"Michael Coslo" wrote in message
...
In finding the cure for Vista, I've installed Ubuntu Linux on my laptop.
It is turning out to be a tremendous OS, and it addresses one of my major
complaints of most flavors of Linux - that being whenever you try to
install a program, it takes you back to 1985 computing.

Any Linux lovin' hams here that have any advice or suggestions on good
programs, such as logging, propagation or the other apps we like to have?


- 73 de Mike N3LI -

Try AC6V's site
Linux For Hams URL:
http://ac6v.com/software.htm#LIN

73 Lamont

Linux for Hams
 

"Michael Coslo" wrote in message
...
In finding the cure for Vista, I've installed Ubuntu Linux on my laptop.
It is turning out to be a tremendous OS, and it addresses one of my major
complaints of most flavors of Linux - that being whenever you try to
install a program, it takes you back to 1985 computing.

Any Linux lovin' hams here that have any advice or suggestions on good
programs, such as logging, propagation or the other apps we like to have?


- 73 de Mike N3LI -


Also see Logging prograns use CNTRL F - Search for Linux
http://ac6v.com/logging.htm

Lamont

Linux for Hams
 

Michael Coslo wrote:
In finding the cure for Vista, I've installed Ubuntu Linux on my laptop.
It is turning out to be a tremendous OS, and it addresses one of my
major complaints of most flavors of Linux - that being whenever you try
to install a program, it takes you back to 1985 computing.

Any Linux lovin' hams here that have any advice or suggestions on good
programs, such as logging, propagation or the other apps we like to have?

The "Linux Hamradio Applications and Utilities Homepage" at
http://radio.linux.org.au/ is probably the most comprehensive
directory of Linux ham software. It's actively maintained and
contains over 400 different software packages, sorted by
categories like "logging", "morse", ...

I'm using Linux (and FreeBSD) for all my ham radio needs, which
is mainly logging (YFKlog for normal QSOs, YFKtest for contests)
and (very rarely) some digital modes (gmfsk, fldigi).

For some eyecandy, I am using xplanet to show me a world grayline
map on my desktop background, with markers for all DXCCs (colour
indicating cfmed/worked/needed). Of course, it's automatically
generated by my logging software.

Furthermore I have a small script running on my workstation here
which automatically check for new mail and send me the subject
line and sender in morse code if something arrives.

There are very many little neat things you can do in an Linux/Unix
environment with a short Perl/Python/Shell script, which is almost
impossible under Windows.

I started using Linux as my main OS about 4 years ago. Since
then, a lot has changed, both with Linux in general as an
operating system becoming more and more available for the
masses, but also in availability of decent ham radio
applications. And I am a little proud that I made my own, small
contributions to this. By making my own software available under
a free license and by submitting bug reports, patches and
suggestions to the numerous authors of excellent Linux ham radio
software.

73,
--
Fabian Kurz, DJ1YFK * Dresden, Germany * http://fkurz.net/

Linux for Hams
 

"Michael Coslo" wrote in message
...
In finding the cure for Vista, I've installed Ubuntu Linux on my laptop.
It is turning out to be a tremendous OS, and it addresses one of my major
complaints of most flavors of Linux - that being whenever you try to
install a program, it takes you back to 1985 computing.

I'm afraid you will find that when you start installng many ham radio apps,
you are still back to 1985. One of the reasons I'm kind of a fan of Fedora
is that a number of ham related apps are part of the distro, and so install
easily like those on Ubuntu. Those apps, tho, aren't your loggers and such,
they are more the design apps that I happen to be interested in.

It doesn't have Ubuntu's eye candy, though, and unfortunately, Fedora is
intended to be the "bleeding edge" distro, so about as soon as you get it
installed it goes out of support. On the other hand, after many attempts,
they have heavy-duty security that is pretty painless. It took them quite a
few releases to get there tho, and the other distros haven't even started
down the path yet.

...

Linux for Hams
 

xpyttl wrote:
Fedora is
intended to be the "bleeding edge" distro, so about as soon as you get it
installed it goes out of support. On the other hand, after many attempts,
they have heavy-duty security that is pretty painless. It took them quite a
few releases to get there tho, and the other distros haven't even started
down the path yet.

I disagree: any Linux distro can be made secure, and just because Redhat
has chosen "secure" defaults in Fedora doesn't mean that other distros
can't be set for security.

Security is always a compromise between useability and effectiveness,
and while Ubuntu may have chosen to set less secure defaults to obtain
easier installation (or networking, or... ), the _capability_ to set
them is always there for anyone to use, not only in Ubuntu but in all
the Linux distributions.

--
Bill Horne

(Remove QRM from my address for direct replies.)

Linux for Hams
 

"Michael Coslo" wrote in message
...
In finding the cure for Vista, I've installed Ubuntu Linux on my laptop.

Its about the only current operating system that will work properly on a
laptop.
Vista requires too much memory to work properly on a laptop.
We use Linux on all our business laptops now.

I would recommend trying the K desktop (distributed as "Kubuntu") because
the K programs can handle DVD's and other things more easily.
You can run K and Gnome and switch between them.

Linux for Hams
 

"Bill Horne" wrote in message
. ..
xpyttl wrote:

I disagree: any Linux distro can be made secure, and just because Redhat
has chosen "secure" defaults in Fedora doesn't mean that other distros
can't be set for security.

I think you miss the point. Fedora/Red Hat have chosen to use a new
security model called SELinux that is far more secure than the old Linux UID
based model, but a LOT harder to make work without really getting in the
way. Most of the other distros have this model available, but getting it
configured so it isn't a major PITA is a pretty big deal.

The system is a lot more granular than the legacy system, which means, among
other things, that an attacker gaining root privileges still has very
limited access to the system. With the old system, any sort of privilege
escalation and its game over. That granularity means that there are a lot
more things to twiddle, and a lot of thinking about what gets in the way and
what doesn't.

Fedora bit the bullet back in FC3 (seems like ages ago), and finally by FC6
it had reached the point where it could be fully turned on and not be
constantly getting in the way.

The thing about SELinux is that the compromise between useability and
effectiveness isn't quite as stark as it is with the old UID system. You
can have the system configured to be quite restrictive, and never notice
that those restrictions are there. Getting all the policies set that way is
no small project, however.

Of course you could turn it on with Ubuntu, but you would spend months, if
not years, getting it configured so it actually provided protection while
not raising it's ugly head every time you tried to do something. Red Hat
has spent three or four years sorting out all those settings, and the
default settings for Fedora are now pretty good.

...

Linux for Hams
 

xpyttl wrote:

It doesn't have Ubuntu's eye candy, though, and unfortunately, Fedora is
intended to be the "bleeding edge" distro, so about as soon as you get it
installed it goes out of support. On the other hand, after many attempts,
they have heavy-duty security that is pretty painless. It took them quite a
few releases to get there tho, and the other distros haven't even started
down the path yet.


Late flash - I found some other Ubuntu repository, and theere are a lot
of Ham Radio Apps there. I've installed a few, and so far so good.

Linux for Hams
 

On Thu, 08 Nov 2007 11:17:33 -0500, Gordon Hudson wrote:

"Michael Coslo" wrote in message
...
In finding the cure for Vista, I've installed Ubuntu Linux on my
laptop.

Its about the only current operating system that will work properly on
a
laptop.
Vista requires too much memory to work properly on a laptop. We use
Linux on all our business laptops now.

I must agree. My new laptop is no slouch, but at times I felt that I was
operating with a 286 machine under Vista. My average time from boot to
actually doing something was as much as 30 minutes, as all the programs
accessed the web, looking for updates, and many of them crashed. At least

half the time, I have to hard kill the machine to turn it off. This is
the fifth laptop I've tried with Vista. None have actually worked.

During Field day this year, we had tried to use N3FJP's software for
networked logging with Vista. It failed most spectacularly (Vista failed,

the logging software itself works wonderfully on XP machines. Apparently
Vista occasionally "loses" an IP address, and the cure is to reboot. Not
a very good situation in the middle of a multi station logging effort.

My laptop has performed flawlessly since the OS change.

The Ubuntu repositories have a lot of apps, There are Ham specific ones,
such as loggers, digital mode software (linux even has AMTOR/PACTOR
transmitting software) there are antenna modeling programs, even a Smith
chart program. Lots of developer apps too.

There are quite a few electronic apps, such as transmission line
calculators, and a whole lot of other stuff that I am just finding out
about. More Hams need to check it out - I think the whole Operating
system is in line with "Ham Spirit".


I would recommend trying the K desktop (distributed as "Kubuntu")
because the K programs can handle DVD's and other things more easily.
You can run K and Gnome and switch between them.

I'll probably give that a try


--
-73 de Mike N3LI -