12th June 2013

There is a certain cross-over between the -Debian Edu / Skolelinux -project and the Edubuntu -project, and for example the LTSP packages in Debian are a joint -effort between the projects. One person with a foot in both camps is -Jonathan Carter, which I am now happy to present to you.

- -

Who are you, and how do you spend your days?

- -

I'm a South-African free software geek who lives in Cape Town. My -days vary quite a bit since I'm involved in too many things. As I'm -getting older I'm learning how to focus a bit more :)

How to fix a Thinkpad X230 with a broken 180 GB SSD disk

17th July 2013

Today I switched to +my +new laptop. I've previously written about the problems I had with +my new Thinkpad X230, which was delivered with an +180 +GB Intel SSD disk with Lenovo firmware that did not handle +sustained writes. My hardware supplier have been very forthcoming in +trying to find a solution, and after first trying with another +identical 180 GB disks they decided to send me a 256 GB Samsung SSD +disk instead to fix it once and for all. The Samsung disk survived +the installation of Debian with encrypted disks (filling the disk with +random data during installation killed the first two), and I thus +decided to trust it with my data. I have installed it as a Debian Edu +Wheezy roaming workstation hooked up with my Debian Edu Squeeze main +server at home using Kerberos and LDAP, and will use it as my work +station from now on.

+ +

As this is a solid state disk with no moving parts, I believe the +Debian Wheezy default installation need to be tuned a bit to increase +performance and increase life time of the disk. The Linux kernel and +user space applications do not yet adjust automatically to such +environment. To make it easier for my self, I created a draft Debian +package ssd-setup to handle this tuning. The +source +for the ssd-setup package is available from collab-maint, and it +is set up to adjust the setup of the machine by just installing the +package. If there is any non-SSD disk in the machine, the package +will refuse to install, as I did not try to write any logic to sort +file systems in SSD and non-SSD file systems.

+ +

I consider the package a draft, as I am a bit unsure how to best +set up Debian Wheezy with an SSD. It is adjusted to my use case, +where I set up the machine with one large encrypted partition (in +addition to /boot), put LVM on top of this and set up partitions on +top of this again. See the README file in the package source for the +references I used to pick the settings. At the moment these +parameters are tuned:

I'm also an Edubuntu contributor and I love when there are -opportunities for the Edubuntu and Debian Edu projects to benefit from -each other.

- -

How did you get in contact with the Skolelinux / Debian Edu -project?

- -

I've been somewhat familiar with the project before, but I think my -first direct exposure to the project was when I met Petter -[Reinholdtsen] and Knut [Yrvin] at the Edubuntu summit in 2005 in -London. They provided great feedback that helped the bootstrapping of -Edubuntu. Back then Edubuntu (and even Ubuntu) was still very new and -it was great getting input from people who have been around longer. I -was also still very excitable and said yes to everything and to this -day I have a big todo list backlog that I'm catching up with. I think -over the years the relationship between Edubuntu and Debian-Edu has -been gradually improving, although I think there's a lot that we could -still improve on in terms of working together on packages. I'm sure -we'll get there one day.

- -

What do you see as the advantages of Skolelinux / Debian -Edu?

- -

Debian itself already has so many advantages. I could go on about -it for pages, but in essence I love that it's a very honest project -that puts its users first with no hidden agendas and also produces -very high quality work.

- -

I think the advantage of Debian Edu is that it makes many common -set-up tasks simpler so that administrators can get up and running -with a lot less effort and frustration. At the same time I think it -helps to standardise installations in schools so that it's easier for -community members and commercial suppliers to support.

- -

What do you see as the disadvantages of Skolelinux / Debian -Edu?

- -

I had to re-type this one a few times because I'm trying to -separate "disadvantages" from "areas that need improvement" (which is -what I originally rambled on about)

- -

The biggest disadvantage I can think of is lack of manpower. The -project could do so much more if there were more good contributors. I -think some of the problems are external too. Free software and free -content in education is a no-brainer but it takes some time to catch -on. When you've been working with the same proprietary eco-system for -years and have gotten used to it, it can be hard to adjust to some -concepts in the free software world. It would be nice if there were -more Debian Edu consultants across the world. I'd love to be one -myself but I'm already so over-committed that it's just not possible -currently.

- -

I think the best short-term solution to that large-scale problem is -for schools to be pro-active and share their experiences and grow -their skills in-house. I'm often saddened to see how much money -educational institutions spend on 3rd party solutions that they don't -have access to after the service has ended and they could've gotten so -much more value otherwise by being more self-sustainable and -autonomous.

Which free software do you use daily?

Set up cryptsetup to pass TRIM commands to the physical disk + (adding discard to /etc/crypttab)

My main laptop dual-boots between Debian and Windows 7. I was -Windows free for years but started dual-booting again last year for -some games which help me focus and relax (Starcraft II in -particular). Gaming support on Linux is improving in leaps and bounds -so I suppose I'll soon be able to regain that disk space :)

Set up LVM to pass on TRIM commands to the underlying device (in + this case a cryptsetup partition) by changing issue_discards from + 0 to 1 in /etc/lvm/lvm.conf.

Besides that I rely on Icedove, Chromium, Terminator, Byobu, irssi, -git, Tomboy, KVM, VLC and LibreOffice. Recently I've been torn on -which desktop environment I like and I'm taking some refuge in Xfce -while I figure that out. I like tools that keep things simple. I enjoy -Python and shell scripting. I went to an Arduino workshop recently and -it was awesome seeing how easy and simple the IDE software was to get -up and running in Debian compared to the users running Windows and OS -X.

Set relatime as a file system option for ext3 and ext4 file + systems.

I also use mc which some people frown upon slightly. I got used to -using Norton Commander in the early 90's and it stuck (I think the -people who sneer at it is just jealous that they don't know how to use -it :p) +

Tell swap to use TRIM commands by adding 'discard' to + /etc/fstab.

Which strategy do you believe is the right one to use to -get schools to use free software?

Change I/O scheduler from cfq to deadline using a udev rule.

I think trying to force it is unproductive. I also think that in -many cases it's appropriate for schools to use non-free systems and I -don't think that there's any particular moral or ethical problem with -that.

Run fstrim on every ext3 and ext4 file system every night (from + cron.daily).

I do think though that free software can already solve so so many -problems in educational institutions and it's just a shame not taking -advantage of that.

Adjust sysctl values vm.swappiness to 1 and vm.vfs_cache_pressure + to 50 to reduce the kernel eagerness to swap out processes.

I also think that some curricula need serious review. For example, -some areas of the world rely heavily on very specific versions of MS -Office, teaching students to parrot menu items instead of learning the -general concepts. I think that's very unproductive because firstly, MS -Office's interface changes drastically every few years and on top of -that it also locks in a generation to a product that might not be the -best solution for them.

To answer your question, I believe that the right strategy is to -educate and inform, giving someone the information they require to -make a decision that would work for them.

During installation, I cancelled the part where the installer fill +the disk with random data, as this would kill the SSD performance for +little gain. My goal with the encrypted file system is to ensure +those stealing my laptop end up with a brick and not a working +computer. I have no hope in keeping the really resourceful people +from getting the data on the disk (see +XKCD #538 for an explanation why). +Thus I concluded that adding the discard option to crypttab is the +right thing to do.

+ +

I considered using the noop I/O scheduler, as several recommended +it for SSD, but others recommended deadline and a benchmark I found +indicated that deadline might be better for interactive use.

+ +

I also considered using the 'discard' file system option for ext3 +and ext4, but read that it would give a performance hit ever time a +file is removed, and thought it best to that that slowdown once a day +instead of during my work.

+ +

My package do not set up tmpfs on /var/run, /var/lock and /tmp, as +this is already done by Debian Edu.

+ +

I have not yet started on the user space tuning. I expect +iceweasel need some tuning, and perhaps other applications too, but +have not yet had time to investigate those parts.

+ +

The package should work on Ubuntu too, but I have not yet tested it +there.

+ +

As for the answer to the question in the title of this blog post, +as far as I know, the only solution I know about is to replace the +disk. It might be possible to flash it with Intel firmware instead of +the Lenovo firmware. But I have not tried and did not want to do so +without approval from Lenovo as I wanted to keep the warranty on the +disk until a solution was found and they wanted the broken disks +back.

- Tags: debian edu, english, intervju. + Tags: debian, english.

@@ -152,103 +133,49 @@ make a decision that would work for them.

Fixing the Linux black screen of death on machines with Intel HD video

11th June 2013

When installing RedHat, Fedora, Debian and Ubuntu on some machines, -the screen just turn black when Linux boot, either during installation -or on first boot from the hard disk. I've seen it once in a while the -last few years, but only recently understood the cause. I've seen it -on HP laptops, and on my latest acquaintance the Packard Bell laptop. -The reason seem to be in the wiring of some laptops. The system to -control the screen background light is inverted, so when Linux try to -turn the brightness fully on, it end up turning it off instead. I do -not know which Linux drivers are affected, but this post is about the -i915 driver used by the -Packard Bell -EasyNote LV, Thinkpad X40 and many other laptops.

- -

The problem can be worked around two ways. Either by adding -i915.invert_brightness=1 as a kernel option, or by adding a file in -/etc/modprobe.d/ to tell modprobe to add the invert_brightness=1 -option when it load the i915 kernel module. On Debian and Ubuntu, it -can be done by running these commands as root:

- -

-echo options i915 invert_brightness=1 | tee /etc/modprobe.d/i915.conf
-update-initramfs -u -k all
-

- -

Since March 2012 there is -a -mechanism in the Linux kernel to tell the i915 driver which -hardware have this problem, and get the driver to invert the -brightness setting automatically. To use it, one need to add a row in -the -intel_quirks array in the driver source -drivers/gpu/drm/i915/intel_display.c (look for "static -struct intel_quirk intel_quirks"), specifying the PCI device -number (vendor number 8086 is assumed) and subdevice vendor and device -number.

- -

My Packard Bell EasyNote LV got this output from lspci --vvnn for the video card in question:

- -

-00:02.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: Intel Corporation \
-    3rd Gen Core processor Graphics Controller [8086:0156] \
-    (rev 09) (prog-if 00 [VGA controller])
- Subsystem: Acer Incorporated [ALI] Device [1025:0688]
- Control: I/O+ Mem+ BusMaster+ SpecCycle- MemWINV- VGASnoop- \
-    ParErr- Stepping- SE RR- FastB2B- DisINTx+
- Status: Cap+ 66MHz- UDF- FastB2B+ ParErr- DEVSEL=fast >TAbort- \
-    SERR-  [disabled]
- Capabilities: 
- Kernel driver in use: i915
-

- -

The resulting intel_quirks entry would then look like this:

- -

-struct intel_quirk intel_quirks[] = {
-       ...
-        /* Packard Bell EasyNote LV11HC needs invert brightness quirk */
-	{ 0x0156, 0x1025, 0x0688, quirk_invert_brightness },
-       ...
-}
-

- -

According to the kernel module instructions (as seen using -modinfo i915), information about hardware needing the -invert_brightness flag should be sent to the -dri-devel -(at) lists.freedesktop.org mailing list to reach the kernel -developers. But my email about the laptop sent 2013-06-03 have not -yet shown up in -the -web archive for the mailing list, so I suspect they do not accept -emails from non-subscribers. Because of this, I sent my patch also to -the Debian bug tracking system instead as -BTS report #710938, to make -sure the patch is not lost.

- -

Unfortunately, it is not enough to fix the kernel to get Laptops -with this problem working properly with Linux. If you use Gnome, your -worries should be over at this point. But if you use KDE, there is -something in KDE ignoring the invert_brightness setting and turning on -the screen during login. I've reported it to Debian as -BTS report #711237, and -have no idea yet how to figure out exactly what subsystem is doing -this. Perhaps you can help? Perhaps you know what the Gnome -developers did to handle this, and this can give a clue to the KDE -developers? Or you know where in KDE the screen brightness is changed -during login? If so, please update the BTS report (or get in touch if -you do not know how to update BTS).

Intel SSD 520 Series 180 GB with Lenovo firmware still lock up from sustained writes

10th July 2013

A few days ago, I wrote about +the +problems I experienced with my new X230 and its SSD disk, which +was dying during installation because it is unable to cope with +sustained write. My supplier is in contact with +Lenovo, and they wanted to send a +replacement disk to try to fix the problem. They decided to send an +identical model, so my hopes for a permanent fix was slim.

+ +

Anyway, today I got the replacement disk and tried to install +Debian Edu Wheezy with encrypted disk on it. The new disk have the +same firmware version as the original. This time my hope raised +slightly as the installation progressed, as the original disk used to +die after 4-7% of the disk was written to, while this time it kept +going past 10%, 20%, 40% and even past 50%. But around 60%, the disk +died again and I was back on square one. I still do not have a new +laptop with a disk I can trust. I can not live with a disk that might +lock up when I download a new +Debian Edu / Skolelinux ISO or +other large files. I look forward to hearing from my supplier with +the next proposal from Lenovo.

+ +

The original disk is marked Intel SSD 520 Series 180 GB, +11S0C38722Z1ZNME35X1TR, ISN: CVCV321407HB180EGN, SA: G57560302, FW: +LF1i, 29MAY2013, PBA: G39779-300, LBA 351,651,888, LI P/N: 0C38722, +Pb-free 2LI, LC P/N: 16-200366, WWN: 55CD2E40002756C4, Model: +SSDSC2BW180A3L 2.5" 6Gb/s SATA SSD 180G 5V 1A, ASM P/N 0C38732, FRU +P/N 45N8295, P0C38732.

+ +

The replacement disk is marked Intel SSD 520 Series 180 GB, +11S0C38722Z1ZNDE34N0L0, ISN: CVCV315306RK180EGN, SA: G57560-302, FW: +LF1i, 22APR2013, PBA: G39779-300, LBA 351,651,888, LI P/N: 0C38722, +Pb-free 2LI, LC P/N: 16-200366, WWN: 55CD2E40000AB69E, Model: +SSDSC2BW180A3L 2.5" 6Gb/s SATA SSD 180G 5V 1A, ASM P/N 0C38732, FRU +P/N 45N8295, P0C38732.

+ +

The only difference is in the first number (serial number?), ISN, +SA, date and WNPP values. Mentioning all the details here in case +someone is able to use the information to find a way to identify the +failing disk among working ones (if any such working disk actually +exist).

@@ -261,16 +188,163 @@ you do not know how to update BTS).

Third alpha release of Debian Edu / Skolelinux based on Debian Wheezy

10th June 2013

The third wheezy based alpha release of Debian Edu was wrapped up +

July 13th: Debian/Ubuntu BSP and Skolelinux/Debian Edu developer gathering in Oslo

9th July 2013

The upcoming Saturday, 2013-07-13, we are organising a combined +Debian Edu developer gathering and Debian and Ubuntu bug squashing +party in Oslo. It is organised by the +member assosiation NUUG and +the Debian Edu / Skolelinux +project together with the hack space +Bitraf.

+ +

It starts 10:00 and continue until late evening. Everyone is +welcome, and there is no fee to participate. There is on the other +hand limited space, and only room for 30 people. Please put your name +on the event +wiki page if you plan to join us.

+ + + Tags: debian, debian edu, english, nuug. + + +

+ +

The Thinkpad is dead, long live the Thinkpad X230?

5th July 2013

Half a year ago, I reported that I had to find a +replacement +for my trusty old Thinkpad X41. Unfortunately I did not have much +time to spend on it, and it took a while to find a model I believe +will do the job, but two days ago the replacement finally arrived. I +ended up picking a +Thinkpad X230 +with SSD disk (NZDAJMN). I first test installed Debian Edu Wheezy as +a roaming workstation, and it seemed to work flawlessly. But my +second installation with encrypted disk was not as successful. More +on that below.

+ +

I had a hard time trying to track down a good laptop, as my most +important requirements (robust and with a good keyboard) are never +listed in the feature list. But I did get good help from the search +feature at Prisjakt, which +allowed me to limit the list of interesting laptops based on my other +requirements. A bit surprising that SSD disk are not disks according +to that search interface, so I had to drop specifying the number of +disks from my search parameters. I also asked around among friends to +get their impression on keyboards and robustness.

+ +

So the new laptop arrived, and it is quite a lot wider than the +X41. I am not quite convinced about the keyboard, as it is +significantly wider than my old keyboard, and I have to stretch my +hand a lot more to reach the edges. But the key response is fairly +good and the individual key shape is fairly easy to handle, so I hope +I will get used to it. My old X40 was starting to fail, and I really +needed a new laptop now. :)

+ +

Turning off the touch pad was simple. All it took was a quick +visit to the BIOS during boot it disable it.

+ +

But there is a fatal problem with the laptop. The 180 GB SSD disk +lock up during load. And this happen when installing Debian Wheezy +with encrypted disk, while the disk is being filled with random data. +I also tested to install Ubuntu Raring, and it happen there too if I +reenable the code to fill the disk with random data (it is disabled by +default in Ubuntu). And the bug with is already known. It was +reported to Debian as BTS +report #691427 2012-10-25 (journal commit I/O error on brand-new +Thinkpad T430s ext4 on lvm on SSD). It is also reported to the Linux +kernel developers as +Kernel bugzilla +report #51861 2012-12-20 (Intel SSD 520 stops working under load +(SSDSC2BW180A3L in Lenovo ThinkPad T430s)). It is also reported on the +Lenovo forums, both for +T430 +2012-11-10 and for +X230 +03-20-2013. The problem do not only affect installation. The +reports state that the disk lock up during use if many writes are done +on the disk, so it is much no use to work around the installation +problem and end up with a computer that can lock up at any moment. +There is even a +small C program +available that will lock up the hard drive after running a few +minutes by writing to a file.

+ +

I've contacted my supplier and asked how to handle this, and after +contacting PCHELP Norway (request 01D1FDP) which handle support +requests for Lenovo, his first suggestion was to upgrade the disk +firmware. Unfortunately there is no newer firmware available from +Lenovo, as my disk already have the most recent one (version LF1i). I +hope to hear more from him today and hope the problem can be +fixed. :)

+ + + Tags: debian, english. + + +

+ +

The Thinkpad is dead, long live the Thinkpad X230

4th July 2013

Half a year ago, I reported that I had to find a replacement for my +trusty old Thinkpad X41. Unfortunately I did not have much time to +spend on it, but today the replacement finally arrived. I ended up +picking a Thinkpad +X230 with SSD disk (NZDAJMN). I first test installed Debian Edu +Wheezy as a roaming workstation, and it worked flawlessly. As I write +this, it is installing what I hope will be a more final installation, +with a encrypted hard drive to ensure any dope head stealing it end up +with an expencive door stop.

+ +

I had a hard time trying to track down a good laptop, as my most +important requirements (robust and with a good keyboard) are never +listed in the feature list. But I did get good help from the search +feature at Prisjakt, which +allowed me to limit the list of interesting laptops based on my other +requirements. A bit surprising that SSD disk are not disks, so I had +to drop number of disks from my search parameters.

+ +

I am not quite convinced about the keyboard, as it is significantly +wider than my old keyboard, and I have to stretch my hand a lot more +to reach the edges. But the key response is fairly good and the +individual key shape is fairly easy to handle, so I hope I will get +used to it. My old X40 was starting to fail, and I really needed a +new laptop now. :)

+ +

I look forward to figuring out how to turn off the touch pad.

+ + + Tags: debian, english. + + +

+ +

Fourth alpha release of Debian Edu/Skolelinux based on Debian Wheezy

3rd July 2013

The fourth wheezy based alpha release of Debian Edu was wrapped up today. This is the release announcement:

New features for Debian Edu 7.0.0 alpha2 released -2013-06-10

New features for Debian Edu 7.1+edu0~alpha3 released +2013-07-03

This is the release notes for for Debian Edu / Skolelinux 7.0.0 edu -alpha2, based on Debian with codename "Wheezy".

These are the release notes for for Debian Edu / Skolelinux +7.1+edu0~alpha3, based on Debian with codename "Wheezy".

About Debian Edu and Skolelinux

@@ -291,90 +365,80 @@ than 60 educational software packages and more are available from the Debian archive, and schools can choose between KDE, Gnome, LXDE and Xfce desktop environment.

This is the third test release based on Debian Wheezy. Basically +

This is the fourth test release based on Debian Wheezy. Basically this is an updated and slightly improved version compared to the Squeeze release.

Software updates

Iceweasel was updated from 10 to 17. (DSA 2699-1) -
Updated libxv (DSA-2674), libxvmc (DSA-2675), libxfixes (DSA-2676), libxrender (DSA-2677), mesa (DSA-2678), xserver-xorg-video-openchrome (DSA-2679), libxt (DSA-2680), libxcursor (DSA-2681), libxext (DSA-2682), libxi (DSA-2683), libxrandr (DSA-2684), libxp (DSA-2685), libxcb (DSA-2686), libfs (DSA-2687), libxres (DSA-2688), libxtst (DSA-2689), libxxf86dga (DSA-2690), libxinerama (DSA-2691), libxxf86vm (DSA-2692), libx11 (DSA-2693), chromium-browser (DSA-2695), gnutls26 (DSA-2697), wireshark (DSA-2700), krb5 (DSA-2701), telepathy-gabble (DSA-2702) and subversion (DSA-2703). -
Switched xrdp on thin client servers to use tightvncserver instead of xvnc4. -
Now install software oscilloscope xoscope by default. -
Now install music tools gtick, lingot and pianobooster by default. - +
Dropped ispell dictionaries from our default installation.
Dropped menu-xdg from the KDE desktop option, to drop the Debian + submenu. It was not included with Gnome, LXDE or Xfce, so this + brings KDE in line with the others.
Dropped xdrawchem, xjig and xsok from our default installation as + they don't have a desktop menu entry and thus won't show up in the + menu now that menu-xdg was removed.
Removed the killer system to kill left behind processes on + multi-user machines, as it was no longer able to understand when a + X display was in use and killed the processes of the active users + too.
Dropped the golearn (from goplay) package as the debtags in wheezy + are too few to make the package useful.

Other changes

The subnet-change script is now able to change all files needing a change on the main-server when changing the IP network used. -
Updated translation of the installation. -
New Romanian translation. -
Fix security problem causing root and first user password to no longer show up in /var/cache/debconf/templates.dat. -
Fix roaming workstation setup (Closed in libpam-mklocaluser/0.8, libpam-mklocaluser/0.8~deb7u1: #706753: libpam-mklocaluser: Fail to create local user during first login). -
Made roaming workstation setup more robust in non-Debian Edu environments. -
New script debian-edu-bless to transform a Debian installation to a Debian Edu profile. -
Adjust Iceweasel setup to improve performance when $HOME is on NFS. -
More testsuite tests. -
Make automatic proxy configuration more robust. -
Adjust GOsaÂ² GUI configuration. - -
Update thin client and diskless workstation setup to work with -LTSP in Wheezy.
Diskless workstations now run out of the box -- no need to set -them up with GOsaÂ².
Update IMAP server setup.
Fix login into Skolelinux Backup Tool (Closed in -slbackup-php/0.4.4-1: #700257: slbackup-php: Fails to submit correctly -entered password).
Updated artwork matching http://wiki.debian.org/DebianArt/Themes/Joy +
Multi-arch i386/amd64 USB stick ISO available.
Got rid of ispell/wordlist related debconf questions that showed + up for some language options.
Switched to using http.debian.net as APT source by default.
Fixed proxy configuration on Main Server installations.
Changed LTSP setup to ask dpkg to use force-unsafe-io the same way + d-i is doing it.
Made sure root and user passwords were not left behind in the + debconf database after installation on Main Server installations.
Made Roaming Workstation dynamic setup more robust and added draft + script setup-ad-client to hook a Roaming Workstation up to a + Active Directory server instead of a Debian Edu Main Server.
Update system to install needed firmware packages during + installation, to work properly in Wheezy.
Update system to handle hardware quirks (debian-edu-hwsetup).
Corrected PXE installation setup to properly pass selected desktop + and keymap settings to PXE installation clients.
LTSP diskless workstations use sshfs by default, allowing them to + work without adding them to DNS and NIS netgroups for NFS access.

Known issues

DVD binary and source images are not yet ready.
No mass import of user account data in GOsa (ldif or csv) -available yet (Open in gosa/2.7.4-4: #698840: gosa-plugin-ldapmanager: -missing import feature).
Missing artwork for the KDE desktop (and probably a few others).
KDE Debian submenu lacks icons (Closed: #502192: menu-xdg: invents -own icon names instead of using existing). This will remain -unfixed.
No mass import of user account data in GOsa (ldif or csv) + available yet (698840).
Artwork not enabled for all desktops.

Where to get it

To download the multiarch netinstall CD release you can use

ftp://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~a3-CD.iso
http://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~a3-CD.iso
rsync -avzP ftp.skolelinux.org::skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~a3-CD.iso .

ftp://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.0+edu0~a2-CD.iso

- -

http://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.0+edu0~a2-CD.iso

- -

rsync -avzP ftp.skolelinux.org::skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.0+edu0~a2-CD.iso .

The MD5SUM of this image is: 2b161a99d2a848c376d8d04e3854e30c +
The SHA1SUM of this image is: 498922e9c508c0a7ee9dbe1dfe5bf830d779c3c8

To download the multiarch USB stick ISO release you can use

ftp://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~a3-USB.iso
http://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~a3-USB.iso
rsync -avzP ftp.skolelinux.org::skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~a3-USB.iso .

The MD5SUM of this image is: 27bbcace407743382f3c42c08dbe8178 -
The SHA1SUM of this image is: e35f7d7908566cd3075375b3721fa10ee420d419

The MD5SUM of this image is: 25e808e403a4c15dbef1d13c37d572ac +
The SHA1SUM of this image is: 15ecfc93eb6b4f453b7eb0bc04b6a279262d9721

How to report bugs

http://wiki.debian.org/DebianEdu/HowTo/ReportBugs +

http://wiki.debian.org/DebianEdu/HowTo/ReportBugs

@@ -387,33 +451,116 @@ unfixed.

Is there a PHP expert in the building? Debian Edu need help!

5th June 2013

Here is a call for help from the Debian Edu / Skolelinux project. -We have two problems blocking the release of the Wheezy version we -hope to get released soon. The two problems require some with PHP -skills, and we seem to lack anyone with both time and PHP skills in -the project: - -

It is impossible to log into the slbackup web interface - (slbackup-php) using the root user and password. This is - BTS report #700257. - This used to work, but stopped working some time since Squeeze. - Perhaps some obsolete PHP feature was used?
It is not possible to "mass import" user lists in Gosa, neither - using ldif nor using CSV files. The feature was disabled after a - major rewrite of Gosa, and need to be ported to the new system. - This is BTS report - #698840.

- -

If you can help us, please join us on IRC -(#debian-edu on -irc.debian.org) and provide patches via the BTS.

Automatically locate and install required firmware packages on Debian (Isenkram 0.4)

25th June 2013

It annoys me when the computer fail to do automatically what it is +perfectly capable of, and I have to do it manually to get things +working. One such task is to find out what firmware packages are +needed to get the hardware on my computer working. Most often this +affect the wifi card, but some times it even affect the RAID +controller or the ethernet card. Today I pushed version 0.4 of the +Isenkram package +including a new script isenkram-autoinstall-firmware handling the +process of asking all the loaded kernel modules what firmware files +they want, find debian packages providing these files and install the +debian packages. Here is a test run on my laptop:

+ +

+# isenkram-autoinstall-firmware 
+info: kernel drivers requested extra firmware: ipw2200-bss.fw ipw2200-ibss.fw ipw2200-sniffer.fw
+info: fetching http://http.debian.net/debian/dists/squeeze/Contents-i386.gz
+info: locating packages with the requested firmware files
+info: Updating APT sources after adding non-free APT source
+info: trying to install firmware-ipw2x00
+firmware-ipw2x00
+firmware-ipw2x00
+Preconfiguring packages ...
+Selecting previously deselected package firmware-ipw2x00.
+(Reading database ... 259727 files and directories currently installed.)
+Unpacking firmware-ipw2x00 (from .../firmware-ipw2x00_0.28+squeeze1_all.deb) ...
+Setting up firmware-ipw2x00 (0.28+squeeze1) ...
+# 
+

+ +

When all the requested firmware is present, a simple message is +printed instead:

+ +

+# isenkram-autoinstall-firmware 
+info: did not find any firmware files requested by loaded kernel modules.  exiting
+# 
+

+ +

It could use some polish, but it is already working well and saving +me some time when setting up new machines. :)

+ +

So, how does it work? It look at the set of currently loaded +kernel modules, and look up each one of them using modinfo, to find +the firmware files listed in the module meta-information. Next, it +download the Contents file from a nearby APT mirror, and search for +the firmware files in this file to locate the package with the +requested firmware file. If the package is in the non-free section, a +non-free APT source is added and the package is installed using +apt-get install. The end result is a slightly better working +machine.

+ +

I hope someone find time to implement a more polished version of +this script as part of the hw-detect debian-installer module, to +finally fix BTS report +#655507. There really is no need to insert USB sticks with +firmware during a PXE install when the packages already are available +from the nearby Debian mirror.

+ + + Tags: debian, english, isenkram. + + +

+ +

The value of a good distro wide test suite...

22nd June 2013

In the Debian Edu / +Skolelinux project, we include a post-installation test suite, +which check that services are running, working, and return the +expected results. It runs automatically just after the first boot on +test installations (using test ISOs), but not on production +installations (using non-test ISOs). It test that the LDAP service is +operating, Kerberos is responding, DNS is replying, file systems are +online resizable, etc, etc. And it check that the PXE service is +configured, which is the topic of this post.

+ +

The last week I've fixed the DVD and USB stick ISOs for our Debian +Edu Wheezy release. These ISOs are supposed to be able to install a +complete system without any Internet connection, but for that to +happen all the needed packages need to be on them. Thanks to our test +suite, I discovered that we had forgotten to adjust our PXE setup to +cope with the new names and paths used by the netboot d-i packages. +When Internet connectivity was available, the installer fall back to +using wget to fetch d-i boot images, but when offline it require +working packages to get it working. And ad the packages changed name +from debian-installer-6.0-netboot-$arch to +debian-installer-7.0-netboot-$arch, we no longer pulled in the +packages during installation. Without our test suite, I suspect we +would never have discovered this before release. Now it is fixed +right after we got the ISOs operational.

+ +

Another by-product of the test suite is that we can ask system +administrators with problems getting Debian Edu to work, to run the +test suite using /usr/sbin/debian-edu-test-install and see if +any errors are detected. This usually pinpoint the subsystem causing +the problem.

+ +

If you want to help us help kids learn how to share and create, +please join us on +#debian-edu on +irc.debian.org and the +debian-edu@ mailing +list.

@@ -426,140 +573,138 @@ irc.debian.org) and provide patches via the BTS.

Debian Edu interview: CÃ©dric Boutillier

4th June 2013

It has been a while since my last English -Debian Edu and Skolelinux -interview last November. But the developers and translators are still -pulling along to get the Wheezy based release out the door, and this -time I managed to get an interview from one of the French translators -in the project, CÃ©dric Boutillier.

Debian Edu interview: Victor NiÈu

17th June 2013

The Debian Edu and +Skolelinux distribution have users and contributors all around the +globe. And a while back, an enterprising young man showed up on +our IRC channel +#debian-edu and started asking questions about how Debian Edu +worked. We answered as good as we could, and even convinced him to +help us with translations. And today I managed to get an interview +with him, to learn more about him.

Who are you, and how do you spend your days?

I am 34 year old. I live near Paris, France. I am an assistant -professor in probability theory. I spend my daytime teaching -mathematics at the university and doing fundamental research in -probability in connexion with combinatorics and statistical physics.

- -

I have been involved in the Debian project for a couple of years -and became Debian Developer a few months ago. I am working on Ruby -packaging, publicity and translation.

I'm a 25 year old free software enthusiast, living in Romania, +which is also my country of origin. Back in 2009, at a New Year's Eve +party, I had a very nice ~~beer~~ discussion with a +friend, when we realized we have no organised Debian community in our +country. A few days later, we put together the infrastructure for such +community and even gathered a nice Debian-ish crowd. Since then, I +began my quest as a free software hacker and activist and I am +constantly trying to cover as much ground as possible on that +field.

+ +

A few years ago I founded a small web development company, which +provided me the flexible schedule I needed so much for my +activities. For the last 13 months, I have been the Technical Director +of FundaÈia Ceata, which is a free +software activist organisation endorsed by the FSF and the FSFE, and +the only one we have in our country.

How did you get in contact with the Skolelinux / Debian Edu project?

I came to the Debian Edu project after a call for translation of -the -Debian Edu manual for the release of Debian Edu Squeeze. Since -then, I have been working on updating the French translation of the -manual. - -

I had the opportunity to make an installation of Debian Edu in a -virtual machine when I was preparing localised version of some screen -shots for the manual. I was amazed to see it worked out of the box and -how comprehensive the list of software installed by default was.

- -

What amazed me was the complete network infrastructure directly -ready to use, which can and the nice administration interface provided -by GOsaÂ². What pleased -me also was the fact that among the software installed by default, -there were many "traditional" educative software to learn languages, -to count, to program... but also software to develop creativity and -artistic skills with music (Ardour, -Audacity) and -movies/animation (I was especially thinking of -Stopmotion).

- -

I am following the development of Debian Edu and am hanging out on -#debian-edu. -Unfortunately, I don't much time to get more involved in this -beautiful project.

- -

What do you see as the advantages of Skolelinux / Debian +

The idea of participating in the Debian Edu project was a surprise +even to me, since I never used it before I began getting involved in +it. This year I had a great opportunity to deliver a talk on +educational software, and I knew immediately where to look. It was a +love at first sight, since I was previously involved with some of the +technologies the project incorporates, and I rapidly found a lot of +ways to contribute.

+ +
My first contributions consisted in translating the installer and +configuration dialogs, then I found some bugs to squash (I still +haven't fixed them yet though), and I even got my eyes on some other +areas where I can prove myself helpful. Since the appetite for free +software in my country is pretty low, I'll be happy to be the first +one around here advocating for the project's adoption in educational +environments, and maybe even get my hands dirty in creating a flavour +for our own needs. I am not used to make very advanced plannings, so +from now on, time will tell what I'll be doing next, but I think I +have a pretty consistent starting point.
+ +
What do you see as the advantages of Skolelinux/Debian Edu?
-
For me, the main advantages of Skolelinux/Debian Edu are its -community of experts and its precise documentation, as well as the -fact that it provides a solution ready to use.
- -
I would add also the fact that it is based on the rock solid Debian -distribution, which ensures stability and provides a huge collection -of educational free software.
- +
Not a long time ago, I was in the position of configuring and +maintaining a LDAP server on some Debian derivative, and I must say it +took me a while. A long time ago, I was maintaining a bigger +Samba-powered infrastructure, and I must say I spent quite a lot of +time on it. I have similar stories about many of the services included +with Skolelinux, and the main advantage I see about it is the +out-of-the box availability of them, making it quite competitive when +it comes to managing a school's network, for example.
+ +
Of course, there is more to say about Skolelinux than the +availability of the software included, its flexibility in various +scenarios is something I can't wait to experiment "into the wild" (I +only played with virtual machines so far). And I am sure there is a +lot more I haven't discovered yet about it, being so new within the +project.
+
What do you see as the disadvantages of Skolelinux / Debian Edu?
-
Maybe the lack of manpower to do lobbying on the -project. Sometimes, people who need to take decisions concerning IT do -not have all the elements to evaluate properly free software -solutions. The fact that support by a company may be difficult to find -is probably a problem if the school does not have IT personnel.
- -
One can find support from a company by looking at -the -wiki dokumentation, where some countries already have a number of -companies providing support for Debian Edu, like Germany or -Norway. This list is easy to find readily from the manual. However, -for other countries, like France, the list is empty. I guess that -consultants proposing support for Debian would be able to provide some -support for Debian Edu as well.
- -
Which free software do you use daily?
- -
I am using the KDE Plasma Desktop. But the pieces of software I use -most runs in a terminal: Mutt and OfflineIMAP for emails, latex for -scientific documents, mpd for music. VIM is my editor of choice. I am -also using the mathematical software -Scilab and -Sage (built from -source as not completely packaged for Debian, yet). - -
Do you have any suggestions for teachers interested in -using the free software in Debian to teach mathematics and -statistics?
- -
I do not have any "nice" recommendations for statistics. At our -university, we use both R and -Scilab to teach statistics and probabilistic simulations. For -geometry, there are nice programs:
- -
- -
drgeo and -kig to do -constructions in planar geometry +
As usual, when it comes to Debian Blends, I see as the biggest +disadvantage the lack of a numerous team dedicated to the +project. Every day I see the same names in the changelogs, and I have +a constantly fear of the bus factor in this story. I'd like to see +Debian Edu advertised more as an entry point into the Debian +ecosystem, especially amongst newcomers and students. IMHO there are a +lot low-hanging fruits in terms of bug squashing, and enough +opportunities to get the feeling of the Debian Project's dynamics. Not +to mention it's a very fun blend to work on!
+ +
Derived from the previous statement, is the delay in catching up +with the main Debian release and documentation. This is common though +to all blends and derivatives, but it's an issue we can all work +on.
-
kali -to discover symmetry groups (the so-called wallpapers and frieze -groups), although the interface looks a bit old.
+
Which free software do you use daily?
-
+
I can hardly imagine myself spending a day without Vim, since my +daily routine covers writing code and hacking configuration files. I +am a fan of the Awesome window manager (but I also like the +Enlightenment project a lot!), +Claws Mail due to its ease of +use and very configurable behaviour. Recently I fell in love with +Redshift, which helps me +get through the night without headaches. Of course, there is much more +stuff in this bag, but I'll need a blog on my own for doing this!
-
I like also -cantor, which -provides a uniform interface to SciLab, Sage, -Octave, etc...
-
Which strategy do you believe is the right one to use to get schools to use free software?
-
My suggestions would be to
+
Well, on this field, I cannot do much more than experiment right +now. So, being far from having a recipe for success, I can only assume +that:

-
advertise the reduction of costs when free software is used.
+
schools would like to get rid of proprietary software
-
communicate about the quality of free software projects, using - well known examples like Firefox, ThunderBird and - OpenOffice.org/LibreOffice.
+
students will love the openness of the system, and will want to + experiment with it - maybe we need to harvest the native curiosity + of teenagers more?
-
advertise the living and strong community around the project.
+
there is no "right one" when it comes to strategies, but it would + be useful to have some success stories published somewhere, so + other can get some inspiration from them (I know I'd promote + them!)
-
show that it is not more difficult to use than any other - system.
+
more active promotion - talks, conferences, even small school + lectures can do magical things if they encounter at least one + person interested. Who knows who that person might be? ;-)

+ +
I also see some problems in getting Skolelinux into schools; for +example, in our country we have a great deal of corruption issues, so +it might be hard(er) to fight against proprietary solutions. Also, +people who relied on commercial software for all their lives, would be +very hard to convert against their will.

@@ -572,436 +717,131 @@ get schools to use free software?

Ãpent mÃ¸te pÃ¥ onsdag om bruken av Microsoft Exchange ved Universitetet i Oslo

3rd June 2013

Jeg jobber til daglig ved Universitetet -i Oslo, en institusjon som lenge har vektlagt verdien av Ã¥pne -standarder og fri programvare. Men noe har endret seg, og for en -liten stund tilbake annonserte USIT at dagens fungerende e-postsystemet -basert pÃ¥ fri programvare skulle byttes ut med Microsoft Exchange og -at Microsoft Outlook skulle bli den best fungerende men antagelig ikke -eneste stÃ¸ttede e-postklienten. Annonseringen har fÃ¸rt til flere -protester og en -underskriftskampanje, initiert av Diana Santos, der sÃ¥ langt 253 -personer har signert. Prosjektet -NIKE (Ny integrert -kalender/e-post) ble initiert for Ã¥ se pÃ¥ mulige lÃ¸sninger med -utgangspunkt i at en kombinert epost/kalenderlÃ¸sning var pÃ¥krevd, og -prosjektet -NIKE-implementasjon -er igang med Ã¥ rulle ut MS Exchange ved Universitetet i Oslo.

- -

For kun kort tid siden ble det annonsert at det blir et Ã¥pent mÃ¸te -med ledelsen hos universitetet i Oslo med disse planene som tema:

- -

Tid: Onsdag 2013-06-05 kl. 10:00 -
Sted: 9. etasje i Lucy Smiths hus (admin-bygget)

- -

Det kan vÃ¦re en god plass Ã¥ stille opp hvis en som meg ikke tror -valget av Microsoft Exchange som sentral epostinfrastruktur er et -heldig valg for Norges ledende forskningsuniversitet, men at en er mer -tjent med Ã¥ selv -beholde -kontrollen over egen infrastruktur.

- -

Saken har fÃ¸rt til endel presseoppslag sÃ¥ langt. Her er de jeg har -fÃ¥tt med meg:

Debian Edu interview: Jonathan Carter

12th June 2013

There is a certain cross-over between the +Debian Edu / Skolelinux +project and the Edubuntu +project, and for example the LTSP packages in Debian are a joint +effort between the projects. One person with a foot in both camps is +Jonathan Carter, which I am now happy to present to you.

Who are you, and how do you spend your days?

2013-05-29 - Forsvarer - nytt IT-system - Universitas

I'm a South-African free software geek who lives in Cape Town. My +days vary quite a bit since I'm involved in too many things. As I'm +getting older I'm learning how to focus a bit more :)

2013-05-23 - UiO - innfÃ¸rer nytt epost- og kalenderverktÃ¸y - Uniforum

I'm also an Edubuntu contributor and I love when there are +opportunities for the Edubuntu and Debian Edu projects to benefit from +each other.

How did you get in contact with the Skolelinux / Debian Edu +project?

2013-05-22 - Protestgruppe - vil stanse IT-system - Universitas

I've been somewhat familiar with the project before, but I think my +first direct exposure to the project was when I met Petter +[Reinholdtsen] and Knut [Yrvin] at the Edubuntu summit in 2005 in +London. They provided great feedback that helped the bootstrapping of +Edubuntu. Back then Edubuntu (and even Ubuntu) was still very new and +it was great getting input from people who have been around longer. I +was also still very excitable and said yes to everything and to this +day I have a big todo list backlog that I'm catching up with. I think +over the years the relationship between Edubuntu and Debian-Edu has +been gradually improving, although I think there's a lot that we could +still improve on in terms of working together on packages. I'm sure +we'll get there one day.

What do you see as the advantages of Skolelinux / Debian +Edu?

2013-05-15 - UiO - mÃ¥ ha kontroll over sitt eget epostsystem - Uniforum

Debian itself already has so many advantages. I could go on about +it for pages, but in essence I love that it's a very honest project +that puts its users first with no hidden agendas and also produces +very high quality work.

I think the advantage of Debian Edu is that it makes many common +set-up tasks simpler so that administrators can get up and running +with a lot less effort and frustration. At the same time I think it +helps to standardise installations in schools so that it's easier for +community members and commercial suppliers to support.

What do you see as the disadvantages of Skolelinux / Debian +Edu?

- - - Tags: norsk, standard. - - -

- -

Educational applications included in Debian Edu / Skolelinux (the screenshot collection :-)

1st June 2013

Included in Debian Edu / -Skolelinux, there are quite a lot of educational software. -Created to help teachers teach, and pupils learn. We have tried to -tag them all using debtags use::learning and role::program, and using -the debtags I was happy to be able to create a collage of the -educational software packages installed by default, sorted by the -debtag field. Here it is. Click on a image to learn more about the -program.

- - - -

field::arts

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

I had to re-type this one a few times because I'm trying to +separate "disadvantages" from "areas that need improvement" (which is +what I originally rambled on about)

field::astronomy

- - - - - - -

The biggest disadvantage I can think of is lack of manpower. The +project could do so much more if there were more good contributors. I +think some of the problems are external too. Free software and free +content in education is a no-brainer but it takes some time to catch +on. When you've been working with the same proprietary eco-system for +years and have gotten used to it, it can be hard to adjust to some +concepts in the free software world. It would be nice if there were +more Debian Edu consultants across the world. I'd love to be one +myself but I'm already so over-committed that it's just not possible +currently.

field::biology:structural

- -

I think the best short-term solution to that large-scale problem is +for schools to be pro-active and share their experiences and grow +their skills in-house. I'm often saddened to see how much money +educational institutions spend on 3rd party solutions that they don't +have access to after the service has ended and they could've gotten so +much more value otherwise by being more self-sustainable and +autonomous.

field::chemistry

- - - - - - - - - -[viewmol] - -

Which free software do you use daily?

field::electronics

- -[gpsim] -

My main laptop dual-boots between Debian and Windows 7. I was +Windows free for years but started dual-booting again last year for +some games which help me focus and relax (Starcraft II in +particular). Gaming support on Linux is improving in leaps and bounds +so I suppose I'll soon be able to regain that disk space :)

field::geography

- - - -

Besides that I rely on Icedove, Chromium, Terminator, Byobu, irssi, +git, Tomboy, KVM, VLC and LibreOffice. Recently I've been torn on +which desktop environment I like and I'm taking some refuge in Xfce +while I figure that out. I like tools that keep things simple. I enjoy +Python and shell scripting. I went to an Arduino workshop recently and +it was awesome seeing how easy and simple the IDE software was to get +up and running in Debian compared to the users running Windows and OS +X.

field::linguistics

- - - - - -

I also use mc which some people frown upon slightly. I got used to +using Norton Commander in the early 90's and it stuck (I think the +people who sneer at it is just jealous that they don't know how to use +it :p) -

field::mathematics

- - - - -[geomview] - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Which strategy do you believe is the right one to use to +get schools to use free software?

field::physics

- - -

I think trying to force it is unproductive. I also think that in +many cases it's appropriate for schools to use non-free systems and I +don't think that there's any particular moral or ethical problem with +that.

field::TODO

- - - - - - - - - - -

I do think though that free software can already solve so so many +problems in educational institutions and it's just a shame not taking +advantage of that.

In total, 61 applications. 3 of them lacked screen shots on -screenshot.debian.net. If -you know of some packages we should install by default, please let us -know on IRC, #debian-edu -on irc.debian.org, or our -mailing list -debian-edu@.

- - - Tags: debian edu, english. - - -

- -

How to install Linux on a Packard Bell Easynote LV preinstalled with Windows 8

27th May 2013

Two days ago, I asked -how -I could install Linux on a Packard Bell EasyNote LV computer -preinstalled with Windows 8. I found a solution, but am horrified -with the obstacles put in the way of Linux users on a laptop with UEFI -and Windows 8.

- -

I never found out if the cause of my problems were the use of UEFI -secure booting or fast boot. I suspect fast boot was the problem, -causing the firmware to boot directly from HD without considering any -key presses and alternative devices, but do not know UEFI settings -enough to tell.

- -

There is no way to install Linux on the machine in question without -opening the box and disconnecting the hard drive! This is as far as I -can tell, the only way to get access to the firmware setup menu -without accepting the Windows 8 license agreement. I am told (and -found description on how to) that it is possible to configure the -firmware setup once booted into Windows 8. But as I believe the terms -of that agreement are completely unacceptable, accepting the license -was never an alternative. I do not enter agreements I do not intend -to follow.

- -

I feared I had to return the laptops and ask for a refund, and -waste many hours on this, but luckily there was a way to get it to -work. But I would not recommend it to anyone planning to run Linux on -it, and I have become sceptical to Windows 8 certified laptops. Is -this the way Linux will be forced out of the market place, by making -it close to impossible for "normal" users to install Linux without -accepting the Microsoft Windows license terms? Or at least not -without risking to loose the warranty?

- -

I've updated the -Linux Laptop -wiki page for Packard Bell EasyNote LV, to ensure the next person -do not have to struggle as much as I did to get Linux into the -machine.

I also think that some curricula need serious review. For example, +some areas of the world rely heavily on very specific versions of MS +Office, teaching students to parrot menu items instead of learning the +general concepts. I think that's very unproductive because firstly, MS +Office's interface changes drastically every few years and on top of +that it also locks in a generation to a product that might not be the +best solution for them.

Thanks to Bob Rosbag, Florian Weimer, Philipp Kern, Ben Hutching, -Michael Tokarev and others for feedback and ideas.

- - - Tags: debian, english. - - -

- -

How can I install Linux on a Packard Bell Easynote LV preinstalled with Windows 8?

25th May 2013

I've run into quite a problem the last few days. I bought three -new laptops for my parents and a few others. I bought Packard Bell -Easynote LV to run Kubuntu on and use as their home computer. But I -am completely unable to figure out how to install Linux on it. The -computer is preinstalled with Windows 8, and I suspect it uses UEFI -instead of a BIOS to boot.

- -

The problem is that I am unable to get it to PXE boot, and unable -to get it to boot the Linux installer from my USB stick. I have yet -to try the DVD install, and still hope it will work. when I turn on -the computer, there is no information on what buttons to press to get -the normal boot menu. I expect to get some boot menu to select PXE or -USB stick booting. When booting, it first ask for the language to -use, then for some regional settings, and finally if I will accept the -Windows 8 terms of use. As these terms are completely unacceptable to -me, I have no other choice but to turn off the computer and try again -to get it to boot the Linux installer.

- -

I have gathered my findings so far on a Linlap page about the -Packard Bell -EasyNote LV model. If you have any idea how to get Linux -installed on this machine, please get in touch or update that wiki -page. If I can't find a way to install Linux, I will have to return -the laptop to the seller and find another machine for my parents.

- -

I wonder, is this the way Linux will be forced out of the market -using UEFI and "secure boot" by making it impossible to install Linux -on new Laptops?

- - - Tags: debian, english. - - -

- -

Skolelinux-intervju: Nirosan Thiyagalingam

24th May 2013

En ting -Skolelinux-prosjektet har -hatt mye glede av er studentprosjekter. F.eks. er -stillbildeanimasjonssystemet -Stopmotion resultat av et studentprosjekt i Skolelinux. De siste -mÃ¥nedene har en ivrig student veiledet av Marius Kotsbak i -FRiSK testet hva en -kan fÃ¥ til med en datamaskin til NOK 400,- (antagelig 1700,- med -skjerm, tastatur og mus) nÃ¥r det brukes i Skolelinux. Jeg spurte han -om et intervju.

- -

Hvem er du, og hva driver du med til daglig?

- -

Jeg heter Nirosan Thiyagalingam. Jeg er 24 Ã¥r og studerer -dataingeniÃ¸r studiet ved HÃ¸gskolen i SÃ¸r TrÃ¸ndelag. Interessen for -data har siden ung alder vÃ¦rt tilstede og jeg har i tillegg alltid -vÃ¦rt glad i Ã¥ lÃ¦re nye ting. Med teknologi som endres svÃ¦rt hurtig er -det alltid noe nytt Ã¥ lÃ¦re. Noe som igjen har gjort det svÃ¦rt -interessant Ã¥ fÃ¸lge med pÃ¥ utviklingen. Jeg valgte dataingeniÃ¸r -studiet grunnet Ã¸nske om Ã¥ lÃ¦re enda mer om programmering og utvikling -av store systemer.

- -

Hvordan kom du i kontakt med Skolelinux-prosjektet?

- -

Skolelinux prosjektet hÃ¸rte jeg fÃ¸rst om i media. Men det var fÃ¸rst -nÃ¥r jeg skulle velge bacheloroppgave at jeg fattet mer interesse for -prosjektet. Et enkelt sÃ¸k pÃ¥ nettet fÃ¸rte meg til skolelinux sine -hjemmesider. Informasjonen jeg fant der gjorde meg enda nysgjerrig og -jeg valgte derfor en oppgave som gikk ut pÃ¥ Ã¥ fÃ¥ en -Raspberry PI. AltsÃ¥ en -ultra-billig datamaskin til Ã¥ kjÃ¸re Debian Edu pÃ¥ lik linje med -vanlige datamaskiner. I lÃ¸pet av prosjektet ble det gjort mye -forskning pÃ¥ nettet. Det var mye jeg mÃ¥tte forstÃ¥ rundt hvordan -operativsystemet Linux fungerte fÃ¸r jeg kunne angripe -problemet. PrÃ¸vde fÃ¸rst Ã¥ finne ut hvordan man kunne transformere en -vanlig installasjon av Skolelinux til Raspberry PI, men dette var -altfor vanskelig Ã¥ jeg endte opp med mer spÃ¸rsmÃ¥l enn svar. Det ble -videre opprettet kontakt med Skolelinux utviklere pÃ¥ IRC der jeg fikk -diskutert hvilken retning jeg burde gÃ¥ for Ã¥ fÃ¥ til en fullverdig -lÃ¸sning. Det ble bestemt at jeg skulle gÃ¥ for Ã¥ fÃ¸rst installere -Raspian. Dette er et -operativsystem basert pÃ¥ Debian spesiallaget for Raspberry Pi sin -maskinvare. NÃ¥ som Debian var installert pÃ¥ datamaskinen gjenstod det -Ã¥ installere de nÃ¸dvendige Skolelinux pakkene for Ã¥ fÃ¥ til et -fullverdig system. Disse pakkene ble installert manuelt i fÃ¸rste -omgang, men ble senere installert automatisk via et script som Petter -Reinholdtsen laget. Dette scriptet er sÃ¥ enkel Ã¥ bruke at man er i -gang med installasjonen i lÃ¸pet av bare 5 minutter. Ikke nok med det, -alt skjer helt automatisk. Alt i alt er jeg veldig fornÃ¸yd med -resultatet av installasjonsprosessen. Raspberry Pi er en veldig svak -maskin og det merkes godt nÃ¥r man har installert Skolelinux pÃ¥ -den. Video og 3D-rendering fungerer utrolig dÃ¥rlig, men nettsurfing og -kontorprogrammer fungerer godt. Det kan derfor konkluderes med at -datamaskinen er egnet for enkle oppgaver. - -

Jeg syns det er viktig pÃ¥peke at dette kun er startfasen av en slik -lÃ¸sning. PÃ¥ markedet finnes det nÃ¥ maskiner som har bedre hardware enn -Raspberry Pi. Det er store muligheter for at man kan klare Ã¥ -installere Skolelinux pÃ¥ disse ogsÃ¥, og da forsvinner nok mest -sannsynlig ytelsesproblemene med Video og 3D rendering ogsÃ¥.

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Det ble ogsÃ¥ prÃ¸vd med en lÃ¸sning som gjorde at Raspberry Pi -fungerte som en tynnklient. Denne lÃ¸sningen hadde langt bedre ytelse -med tanke pÃ¥ hastighet og brukeropplevelse. Men ogsÃ¥ her var video og -3D rendering dÃ¥rlig. Det ble brukt en liten Linux distribusjon kalt -BerryTerminal for Ã¥ fÃ¥ til -dette.

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Hva er fordelene med Skolelinux slik du ser det?

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Fordelen med Skolelinux er mange. At det er gratis er en stor -fordel, men at det er sÃ¥ mange som er med pÃ¥ Ã¥ utvikle det og -vedlikeholde det er en enda stÃ¸rre fordel. Allerede fÃ¸r jeg startet -med prosjektet sÃ¥ jeg mange fordeler, og nÃ¥r jeg nÃ¦rmet meg sluttfasen -sÃ¥ jeg langt flere. At prosjektet skulle inneha en sÃ¥ hÃ¸y kvalitet -hadde jeg aldri trodd. En vanlig Skolelinux installasjon har de -nÃ¸dvendige programmene og funksjonen som bÃ¥de smÃ¥ og store skoler i -tillegg til organisasjoner kan klare seg med. At prosjektet tilbyr en -sÃ¥ komplett lÃ¸sning er en kjempefordel. Installasjonen er knirkefri -og det er svÃ¦rt enkelt Ã¥ installere og komme i gang.

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Hva er ulempene med Skolelinux slik du ser det?

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Ulempene jeg ser med prosjektet er ryddigheten av websidene. Selv -om websidene er enkle og konsise er det allikevel ikke appellerende i -like stor grad som for eksempel -Ubuntu sine sider. Deres side -tilbyr, i tillegg til godt design og presentasjon, en nettbasert -emulator av deres operativsystem. Dette er en stor fordel slik jeg ser -det. Bortsett fra dette ser jeg absolutt ingen ulemper med -Skolelinux-prosjektet.

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Hvilken fri programvare bruker du til daglig?

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Til daglig er jeg en flittig bruker av det Ã¥pne media -sentersystemet XBMC. Det enorme -samfunnet rundt dette prosjektet har gjort dette til et program som -dekker alles behov. Man kan tilpasse det akkurat slik man vil bÃ¥de med -tanke pÃ¥ utseende og funksjoner ved installere plug-ins eller -scripts.

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Hvilken strategi tror du er den rette Ã¥ bruke for Ã¥ fÃ¥ -skoler til Ã¥ ta i bruk fri programvare?

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Strategien som burde brukes sett fra mine Ã¸yne er -markedsfÃ¸ring. Jeg er sikker pÃ¥ at om flere skoler fikk et lite innsyn -i hvor bra Skolelinux er sÃ¥ ville de ikke nÃ¸lt med Ã¥ gÃ¥ over fra noe -annet som koster de store summer. At skolelinux til de grader tilbyr -en sÃ¥ komplett lÃ¸sning bure komme frem. Enten via reklamekampanjer -eller ved Ã¥ sende ut folk til skoler for sÃ¥ Ã¥ la skolenettverk -ansvarlige fÃ¥ teste ut hvordan Skolelinux fungerer i praksis. Om det -i tillegg ble utviklet gode websider og en emulator for Ã¥ la brukere -prÃ¸ve operativsystemet ville nok dette ha styrket inntrykket -betraktelig.

To answer your question, I believe that the right strategy is to +educate and inform, giving someone the information they require to +make a decision that would work for them.

- Tags: debian edu, intervju, norsk. + Tags: debian edu, english, intervju.

@@ -1029,7 +869,9 @@ betraktelig.

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@@ -1179,9 +1021,9 @@ betraktelig.