Category: General

I was recently given a copy of a new book, CUPS Administrative Guide, to read and review. My initial thought was, “There is an entire book about the Common UNIX Printing System? Why?” You see, I have never had a problem configuring or using a printer with Linux, but my needs are simple, and I have always done my research first to see if the hardware is supported before purchase.

I received the book this week. Not only is CUPS much more powerful and configurable than I previously knew, but the book’s author does a very good job of discussing the system and its options clearly. Anyone working in a business or computer lab setting would find the book useful and probably more enjoyable and easier to parse than using man pages and Google searches. I think this is especially true in a place with multiple workstations, several shared printers, and users set up with individual accounts and in specific user groups.

My favorite feature in the book is that for most configuration options, multiple methods of making the changes are discussed. There is information on using the command line, using the CUPS web interface. Also wonderful is the detailed description of the major options for configuration file settings, and a useful comparison between the language used for configuring the Apache and CUPS daemons.

Today’s interviewee volunteered to participate in the Ubuntu Community Interviews series some time ago. He is involved in some of the more technical aspects of the community, helping maintain and place packages in the repositories, working to keep Ubuntu up to date with security, and lots more. Enjoy!

1. Tell as much as you’re willing about your “real” life – name, age, gender, location, family, religion, profession, education, hobbies, etc.

I’m Nicolas Valcárcel Scerpella. I am a 24 years old male Peruvian student living in Lima – Perú with my parents, 2 sisters and a rotweiler. I’m coursing the 7th-8th period of systems engineering at the University “de lima”, working as Security Engineer in the OEM Solutions Group for Canonical. Before that i was Senior consultant in Aureal Systems, doing mainly sysadmin work on the client’s server (primary in Linux, but here was some other *nix like ones). I love adventure sports and outsides, i used to surf, skate and also played rugby at the university. While i was still at school i also used to row at the “Club de Regatas Lima” from 1998 until 2001.

2. When and how did you become interested in computers? in Linux? in Ubuntu? In computers?

Since i remember. When i was really young (4 years or so) my mother used to bring me to her work and sit me on a computer to play games all day long, i can’t remember any time of my life without a computer (well, only when i travel to outsides). With Linux i started late, in summer 2004 IIRC when read about this “OS for hackers” while i
was on the underground world of internet :P, then i tested a lot of distros until i found debian, after using it for a while Warty Warthog showed and i started using Ubuntu since then.

3. When did you become involved in the forums (or the Ubuntu community)? What’s your role there?

I’m not involved in the forums, but i started involving myself in the Ubuntu community on May 2007 when i sent my first patch ). Then it was a non stop road, slow at the beginning, until now that i’m a MOTU. Also i am part of the Peruvian LoCo team council, where we do a lot of advocacy. Now i’m focusing myself on bringing more people to the packaging world.

4. Are you an Ubuntu member? If so, how do you contribute? If not, do you plan on becoming one?

Yes i am! I contribute in the Server Team primarily.

5. What distros do you regularly use? What software? What’s your favorite application? Your least favorite? Distros?

Now only ubuntu, but on my previous work i use CentOS on servers for the clients due a company policy which i couldn’t change. For software i mostly use Firefox as a web browser, Evolution as mail client, Terminator as terminal emulator, Pidgin as msn messenger, Empathy as jabber client, python as programming language and a LOT of console tools.

6. What’s your fondest memory from the forums, or from Ubuntu overall? What’s your worst?

Well that would be my lovely mentors and sponsors. I have so much to thank them. When i give a talk i always remark how wonderful developers the ubuntu community have and how norsetto, persia and ScottK help me at
the very beginning. Also some people i admire (and always talk about them) are TheMuso and heno, who having real problems are so good at what they do, it’s just amazing, i really admire them. The worst? I don’t have any bad moment in mind (i haven’t had one or i have just forget them).

7. What luck have you had introducing new computer users to Ubuntu?

Really good, with the LoCo team we do a lot of advocacy and we have a lot of happy new ubuntu users.

8. What would you like to see happen with Linux in the future? with Ubuntu?

I really want to see more companies stop seeing linux as a hippies thing (or insignificant OS). I want to see more Hw manufacturers writing drivers for Linux, and more software being developed for it (as in propietary software migrating to linux [To think on them open his source is just craziness]).

9. If there was one thing you could tell all new Ubuntu users, what would it be?

Don’t quit, there is a wonderful world of amazing people and communities working behind the scenes for you to have this amazing product on hands. It’s hard at the beginning but really wonderful once you catch it.

No one is an island. None of us is able to survive, much less live, completely self-sufficient. Each of us need others. I am thankful for the many who have helped me during my life; family, friends, coworkers and colleagues, teachers, doctors, shopkeepers, assistants, the list would be very long indeed if I continued. It is important to take a moment on occasion and remember those who have been influential, helpful, or just plain loving, and say, “Thank you.”

So, to all of you reading this, “Thank you.” And may you have a very happy Thanksgiving (even if you are not an American celebrating the holiday with us, I would like to invite you to participate in something that gives me joy).

I had the privilege of contributing several articles to the Ubuntu 8.10 edition of Linux Identity magazine, along with one I co-wrote with a friend, Ryan Troy (aka ubuntu-geek in the Ubuntu Forums). I even got to write the editorial at the beginning of the issue.

Now, with a little bit of fear and no small amount of intimidation, owing to how incredibly much I respect so many of you in the overall Linux and FOSS developer and Ubuntu communities, I am letting you all know about the issue while I hope I got all of my facts and details correct in the articles.

Do you ever ask yourself questions like “Why?” and “What if?”

Do you enjoy reading and discovering diverse viewpoints, especially those to which you have not been exposed?

I do. Often. I love to explore options, delve into ideas, and pursue opportunities, if only in my mind.

What I discover when I do this is that there are perspectives and thoughts beyond those which I have previously known. These things stretch me. They enable me to better understand what others think and feel. They provide for me an opportunity to go beyond what I already know and hopefully better myself, my methods for doing things, and perhaps my world.

How many people are actually like this?

I’m not sure, but it seems to me that people who want to be aware of things outside of their personal circle of the known are quite rare. I wish that were not the case, but I’m convinced that it is. In other words, I am either wonderfully unique or exceptionally weird, depending on your personal perspective.

Most of the time we as a human species will listen to friends or radio talk shows, read newspapers and web sites, and watch television programs which reinforce the opinions we already have. Rarely will we endure, much less consider the opinions of “those others” with whom we disagree.

People who are willing to do so are scoffed as being “so open minded their brains leaked out” or as people who “think instead of act.” I disagree. I think people who are willing to listen to and truly consider viewpoints with which they may not agree are healthy. They certainly tend to make better decisions, decisions which benefit a wider set of people in more ways, and they usually show great deference and respect to others, which in and of itself is a rare gift.

What got me thinking about this today was a web page I stumbled across with an article by Steven Dutch from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay in which he asks the question Why is there Anti-Intellectualism? and explores a possibile answer that I find both plausible and kind of sad. I hope you read it, it’s worth the time and effort, because he says things I haven’t heard elsewhere, at least not in the same way.

The bottom line is that we tend to default to an attitude of “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it,” coupled with an innate distrust of what we do not know or understand, with a bit of “I need an answer that I understand” mixed in. We are not good with ambiguity, with not knowing, and listening to or seeking out ideas we have never had before involves getting past that discomfort and learning to be comfortable with not completely understanding something while exploring the options.

In this series, we have had the privilege of including a number of adults. In today’s installment, we are highlighting one of our younger forum members. Nathan Grubb (forum username: nathangrubb) is also a comparatively new Linux user, having joined the fun just over a year ago. He has a blog that you are invited to check out, and included a couple of screenshots with his interview, in which you will discover he uses wmii, which I have inserted below.

1. Tell as much as you’re willing about your “real” life – name, age, gender, location, family, religion, profession, education, hobbies, etc.

Well, to start out – my name is Nathan Grubb, I am a 15 year old male residing in eastern Washington state (Chewelah, Washington to be specific). I live with my 2 parents and I have 1 sibling. I am a freshman in high school, some of my hobbies include Linux, computers, reading, writing, and badminton.

2. When and how did you become interested in computers? in Linux? in Ubuntu?

I’ve been interested in computers since I was about 7, though back then it was mostly in gaming. My mother used to repair computers, which is likely the reason I became interested (and fluent) in them. I first became intrigued by Linux around July 20th, 2007. It was nice that I could check my email without worry of malware. The first Linux distribution I used was Damn Small Linux, Originally I wanted to download Ubuntu, but I was turned off by the 700 MB download size, which was quite a pain on 256 KiB/s ADSL.

Yeah, it’s blank.

3. When did you become involved in the forums? What’s your role there?

I joined the Ubuntu Forums on August 4th, 2007. At first I was primarily asking support questions, though I was quite interested in the cafe and cafe games for a couple of months. I haven’t given as much Linux support as some members on the forums. Though, if you want to count it as support, I help out at forum feedback and help.

4. Are you an Ubuntu member? If so, how do you contribute? If not, do you plan on becoming one?

I am not currently a Ubuntu member, and I do not have an interest in pursuing membership unless others urge me to. I do not believe I have contributed anything significant to Ubuntu.

5. What distros do you regularly use? What software? What’s your favorite application? Your least favorite?

As of now my distro of choice is Ubuntu. I’d be using Arch if I wasn’t having problems with Kernel panics and segfaults. I use 4 applications on a regular basis: Opera, Konversation, Gajim, and Pidgin. Of the 4, I have to say my favourite is Opera. My least favourite application would have to be gnome-terminal or Evolution. I’ve never actually gotten into using Evolution and have no use for it. I find Gnome-terminal to be slow.

With some apps open.

6. What’s your fondest memory from the forums, or from Ubuntu overall? What’s your worst?

I’d have to say my fondest memory from the forums is the “Finish the story thread” in Cafe games. It is what originally convinced me to stay for the long hall, and I met some of my best (internet) friends through that thread. I’d have to say my worst memory from Ubuntu Forums happened when I narrowly avoided an infraction, though that was within my first month of membership, I believe.

7. What luck have you had introducing new computer users to Ubuntu?

Besides introducing my younger sister to Ubuntu – none, really. I’ve been asked about it twice before, though each time I failed to introduce it onto said person’s desktop. I don’t feel a need to introduce others, though, unless they ask. I’d be a hypocrite if I started imposing on people.

8. What would you like to see happen with Linux in the future? with Ubuntu?

It’d be great if more manufacters made Linux drivers and/or supported Linux. Though I doubt it will happen, I’d approve if Ubuntu changed their release cycle to once every 8 months – it’d give 2 more months of bug testing, stability excersise, etc.

9. If there was one thing you could tell all new Ubuntu users, what would it be?

Linux is not all it’s cut out to be. If you can locate a Local LUG (Linux Users group), please do. Linux is much more pleasant to use for beginners when it is pre-setup for them by experts, as is Windows.

I am hopeful that the world is changing. Whether it is or not, it is obvious that American, and I believe much of the world society is. The days of “us” versus “them” are diminishing as communication becomes faster and easier and we all start to realize that we have more similarities than we have differences.

Those who seem to understand this best are the youngest among us, especially those under thirty or so, although that is not an absolute boundary by any means.

Those who seem to fear this most are generally those with the most to lose; those in power, those who are older and more established in their perceptions of others.

I have a message for a few different groups, segments of society who have intentionally labeled themselves based on what they think, believe, espouse, and so on.

It is time to stop accusing those who are different than you of being evil, malicious, unpatriotic, etc. You will not win people to your positions by doing so, but rather you will alienate those who disagree with you, turning them from merely indifferent to actively against you. Speak your mind, but do so calmly and respectfully without using extremist language or hateful tones. That is your best chance to be heard.

Politicians: it is time for you to stop being reactionary, divisive, and extreme in your tone. I find it telling that the generally accepted belief that the best speeches given in the political primaries and general election by losing candidates in the USA were also the most gracious and conciliatory in tone; that of Hillary Clinton and John McCain as they conceded defeat to a candidate who was consistently gracious, stable, and non-accusing in his tone and discussions of other candidates. Both Democrats and Republicans are guilty of this behavior, as well as members of other political parties. Stop it. Your adversary does not wish the destruction of the country you love, rather he or she wishes to see it prosper just as you do. You disagree on how that may best be accomplished, but neither of you has anything but the best of intentions and wishes. Start believing that about each other, and start talking to one another.

Religious adherents: it is time for you to focus on living your beliefs in the clearest and most consistent of ways and to stop trying to force others to follow them by force. It is definitely okay to discuss what you think or believe and allow it to influence your decisions in life and even dictate your involvement in society, including politics. It is not okay for you to demand that others believe what you believe solely because you think it is right. It is okay to begin a dialogue and calmly and lovingly (or at least kindly) give your reasoning and foundation for believing as you do, in the hopes that others will agree once they come to understand. This is true whether you are a Christian, a Muslim, a Hindu, or a follower of any other religion. If your intent is truly the betterment of yourself, your fellow human, your society, and your world, then start acting like it by treating one another better than you treat one another now.

Finally, for goodness’ sake, will you all please stop with the extremist rhetoric?

“Candidate X wants to eat your children, steal your house, or enslave the population” are utterly foolish arguments. So are, “Religion Y teaches everyone should hate others who believe differently” and “All members of religious groups other than mine want to rule the world through violence, oppression, and have at heart a plot to steal the souls of all who live.” While some sects in nearly every religion and philosophy have extremists, my experience has been that most people have come to their faith in an honest attempt to become the best people they can be, they want to live in peace, raise their kids, work and feed their families, and be left alone. Those who are looking for something better will look first to those of their friends offering a better life example, not to those who offer the most scary, apocalyptic vision of what will happen if you don’t follow their way.

I will not bow to the threat of a bomb. I will not cower before dire predictions of catastrophe. I won’t do it politically. I won’t do it in my choice of religion. I won’t force others to endure such extremism from me. I will offer a better way, with respect, or I will keep silent and let others be.

I have been playing around with Facebook for a while now. It is a fun place to connect with friends, and I have been able to find and reconnect with some that I haven’t seen or heard from in years.

Being a typical geek, I can’t leave well enough alone. I wanted to find out how to make this new toy do more. I wanted to personalize it, and see if I could make it do things it wasn’t originally designed to do. That’s where today’s short book review comes in.

I read through a copy of FBML Essentials by Jesse Stay. The book covers the Facebook Markup Language, which is similar to HTML and provides an easy way to create an application to run on Facebook. Knowledge of HTML is a real prerequisite, but only a basic knowledge. It would also be helpful if you have some knowledge of CSS and JavaScript, especially if you want to do anything really interesting in your application.

This book is a short, clear, and easy introduction to creating that app you have been longing to make, whether for a business, a non-profit entity or club, or just for fun. The information is presented in a very logical order and the descriptions of each item are clear and useful without being burdensome or boring you with too much detail. Anyone with some experience with web design and development (and some server space and bandwidth to host your app) can easily read through the book and get up to speed in an afternoon.

The book begins by walking you through a few basics, like how to set up a separate Facebook developer account, and then moves right in to creating an application and detailing a large number of useful tags. Anyone interested in having a little Facebook fun in your free time (or for a client…) would find the book useful and beneficial.

A while back, I was approached and asked to review a book that was still in progress. I read through it and made some specific comments and suggestions. Now, the final version of the book is complete and has been published. Not only were my suggestions taken, but I am privileged to have a quote of mine in use on the first page, just inside the cover. I liked the book when I read the earlier draft, and I like it even better now.

If you get a chance, take a look and see what you think.

He also has a website dedicated to tips and tricks for Ubuntu at ubuntukungfu.org.

Ryan Troy, ubuntu-geek of ubuntuforums.org, and I wrote an article about Ubuntu JeOS and VMware for the current edition of Linux+.