Eugene Computer Geeks Blog

Below are the Top 10 Linux Distributions of 2012 sorted by popularity. Linux is a free Operating System and an alternative to Windows. There are many different types and flavors called “Distributions” or “Distros”.

1. Mint
Linux Mint is the most popular Linux distro for 2012 and is still rising in popularity.  Linux Mint is popular for a reason, because it’s easy to use, easy to install, and comes out-of-the-box with a lot of software / applications. Linux Mint is basically just a version of Ubuntu that is easier to install and use, and comes with much more. The DVD version comes with much more software than the CD version.  Mint can be slightly harder to properly put on a USB flash stick, and usually suggest burning to a DVD instead.

2. Ubuntu
Ubuntu is a solid distro, and was the most popular version of Linux for years. It’s been starting to lose popularity ever since they switched to the new Unity (Compiz) interface, which most people do not like. You can try a fully interactive online demo of Ubuntu here.

3. Fedora
Fedora is mainly used for servers and networking. Formely known as “Red Hat Linux”.  Fedora can still be used for desktop use, and is an excellent Linux distribution.

4. OpenSUSE
A German distro that is known for coming with lots of software and being excellent with drivers. Also has a reputation for being easy to use and versatile.

5. Debian
Debian is a lot like Ubuntu. (Ubuntu is actually based on Debian). Debian is known for having an excellent database of available applications and being lightweight.

6. Arch
Arch is more suited for the experienced Linux user, especially users that prefer to use the terminal (command line) and like to script with bash. Arch uses bash scripts to help easily configure and setup the system. Arch Linux is also known for  its FTP installation, and custom package manager called “pacman”.

7. Mageia
Mageia is basically the Mandriva Linux project, but developed by a non-profit community based organization.

8. CentOS
CentOS is developed by a community of contributors, which is based on the “Red Hat Linux” platform.

9. Puppy
Puppy Linux is a tiny distribution that is more geared for live use for computer repairs.  It fits very easily on a CD, and loads programs to the RAM instead of reading it off a disc, making it one of the fastest live copies of Linux.  Excellent for fixing a PC running Windows that won’t boot up.  Just boot to Puppy Linux which will bypass the password and let you easily back up your files.  You can even run Puppy without a hard drive.

10. PCLinuxOS
Known for it’s out-of-box support for graphics cards and wifi adapters, PCLinuxOS is an excellent choice for users that are transitioning from Microsoft Windows.

WHAT’S THE BEST LINUX DISTRO FOR A BEGINNER?

I highly recommend Xubuntu, which is a form of Ubuntu that is lightening fast and easy to use.  If you are installing Linux for someone that is used to using Windows 7, and wants to have a similar look and feel, Zorin OS is the Linux distro that looks the most like Windows 7.

WHAT IS THE FASTEST LINUX DISTRO?

There are several Linux distro’s that are very lightwieght and can run on very old systems.  Please see our article “The Fastest Linux Distro’s of 2012”

FREE LINUX SUPPORT

For any questions about Linux, please try our free tech support chat, a non-profit service provided by volunteer Geeks.  This article was written by Eugene Computer Geeks, offering computer repair services in Eugene, Oregon.  Eugene Computer Geeks is Linux based company that promotes open source software whenever possible.

China has the most restrictive Internet censorship program in the world. They have a huge firewall (nicknamed the Hungry Beast) that blocks all kinds of sites and keywords, but people have been using proxies to get around it. Watch the video below for more information called “The Great Firewall of China”

Personally I feel like Internet Censorship is one of the worst things for humanity. The world wide web has given users users freedom of information, and censorship kills the freedom for online education and obtaining knowledge.

There are 9 people in space right now. (June 28, 2012)

3 on Tiangong-1 China’s Space Laboratory
and
6 on the International Space Station

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“Inside the Mind of Google” – Full Length Video Documentary

Very well done film on Google by Maria Bartiromo.

Just when I thought I knew everything there was to know about Google, I watched this documentary and learned all kinds of new things.

Like them or hate, Google is still the best search engine, and personally I feel they are doing great things considering how large and powerful they are.

I remember the first time I encountered Google back in 2000.  After spending lots of time trying to find the perfect search engine(I thought Yahoo was the best search engines were ever going to get), I was sceptical to give Google a try. After my first time searching, I’ve been hooked ever since. There algorithm is flawless, and the search results were the most relevant I’d ever received from a search engine.

I love how they are Linux based and consistently provide excellent products which have almost always been totally free. The internet would be a totally different thing without Google.

Google has totally changed the way we receive and interact with information.

Highly recommend anyone that uses the internet watches this film. Discover the secrets behind Google, and how it became what it is today.

Need a computer nerd in Eugene, Oregon? Eugene Computer Geeks provides  in-home computer nerd services.

Our Computer Nerds are eager to provide top quality help, with low rates that everyone can afford. $30 an hour! Furthermore, we guarantee satisfaction. Problem fixed as we discussed, or you won’t be charged.  Free Estimates. Our nerds are on call for you. Call us at 541-357-7222

Computer Nerd in Eugene Oregon

Computer Nerd services include;

• Computer repairs (Windows, Mac, and Linux)
• Data Recovery
• Virus removal and Prevention
• Tutoring
• Networking (Home and Office)
• IT Services
• Upgrades
• Web Design, Internet Marketing, and Search Engine Optimization (Free consultations)
• Computer Maintenance
• Computer Setup
• Electronics Repairs
• Data Transfer
• IT Consulting
• Programming / Scripting
• Computer and Network Security
• Mac Repairs
• and more!

Whether its Computer Nerd, Geek, or Guru, we have them all at Eugene Computer Geeks.  Our Nerds believe in bringing services of the highest quality by professional and experienced technicians.

We are so confident you will be satisfied, we are willing to guarantee our service and your satisfaction and provide free estimates and evaluations to our clients.

Our Computer Nerds will come on-site to your home or business at no additional costs, as long as you are in the Eugene / Springfield, Oregon area.  All other locations in Lane County, a small service and mileage fee may apply.

Have a new computer or network that needs to be properly setup?  Need to speed up your computer? Have a serious virus and need a computer nerd in the Eugene, Oregon area to help you? No problem!

Most jobs take only 1-3 hours, and average around $45-65.

Rent a Eugene Computer Nerd, and you’ll see why we have the best option for computer nerd services in Eugene, Oregon and the surrounding area.

Visit the Eugene Computer Geeks Home Page  or call us now at (541) 357-7222

Email: [email protected]

Free Tech Support Chat: www.eugenecomputergeeks.com/chat/

Serving: University Of Oregon ($5 off to students), Downtown Eugene, Springfield, Thurston, Junction City, South Eugene, North Eugene, River Road, Whitaker, Gateway Mall, West Eugene, Lane County, and beyond.

Need computer help, advice, or tutoring?  Try Eugene Computer Geeks free tech support chat and start talking with a volunteer technician now! No registration, No hidden costs, and No advertisements.  Supported by volunteer computer geeks from around the world, our goal and mission is to help you.

We feel that people shouldn’t have to pay for live online professional help. Most of our volunteers are employed computer professionals that are looking to improve experience especially in the customer support field. We also have volunteers that are students, or just regular computer geeks that want to learn computers.

Have a computer problem? Need help or advice with a question? Would you like to learn more about computers or help volunteer to teach others that know less than you? We are always in the need of more volunteer computer geeks, and users are welcome to hang out in the chat to learn.

Connect to the live chat now, and you’ll see why we are the best free technical support chat room online.

Click here to chat with a computer geek for free.

Eugene Computer Geeks is a computer services company in Eugene, Oregon.

Chat With a Computer Geek For Free

Get FREE Computer Help by volunteer technicians in the Free Tech Support Chat, or any of the other free live chat rooms.    Have a computer question or problem? Want to learn more about computers or get free online computer tutoring?

Eugene Computer Geeks provides a 100% FREE tech support chat and message forum, that has NO registration, NO advertisements, and NO hidden fees.  Start Chatting Now with a volunteer technician or any of the other regular users.

You can also speak about off-topic subjects but the main theme of the room is Computers and Technology. There is also a free Computer Help Forum, where you can ask ANY question and be sure to get a good response.  Don’t have a computer problem or question? No problem. enter our free live chat room, and we can direct you to another free room right from the same chat box.  All the rooms have no registration and are 100% free.

Give us a try and you’ll see why we are one of the best computer free live chat rooms on the  web.   Please be sure to check the RULES page.

Open Source software is 100% free and has no viruses, spyware, or ad-ware of any kind. The following list has the top 10 Open Source programs that you need to know about. 

These programs can replace your expensive software like Microsoft Office, PhotoShop, 3D Studio Max, and AutoCad, which combined cost thousands of dollars. With open source software you get the same features of expensive programs for FREE and support a community of people around the world. Open Source software is maintained by the public and non-profit organizations.

Some of the best programs are open source. A good example being firefox or 7zip, which are better than the commercial rivals.

Top 10 Open Source Programs That You Should Know About

1. Libre Office- Office suite that can totally replace Microsoft Office.  Libre-Office lets you open and save in any format including Office formats, and is fully compatible.  You can use Libre Office for school or work, and nobody will have any idea that you aren’t using MS Office.  Has all of the same basic features including a replacement for Word,  Power Point,  and Excel.  It does not come with an e-mail program, in which case I recommend Thunderbird.

2. VLC-  VLC Player by VideoLAN is simply the best media player of all time. It plays EVERYTHING, well every type of video or audio format known to man including codec videos. Never again will you have to use multiple players to watch a video or play an audio file. It even plays DVD’s, Streams, audio cd’s, MP3′s and weird video formats you’ve never heard of.

3. Mozilla Firefox / Thunderbird -

Firefox: An open source web browser that you can use instead of Internet Explorer. Personally I think it’s much better than IE because it’s less prone to Viruses and Malware, faster, more secure, and less buggy.  It also is known for having the best add-ons and toolbars.  You really can’t go wrong with firefox, but if you happen to not like it, I recommend checking out Google Chrome.

Thunderbird: A full features e-mail client from the same organization that produces Firefox. (Mozilla)  Has all the features of Outlook or Windows Live, but is much more lightweight, and in my personally I think easier to use.  Also has excellent plugins and add-ons.

4. 7zip - 7zip is an essential program for any computer user because it opens, extracts, and creates archive files and handles all formats including zip, rar, 7zip, iso, cab,ntfs,and more.  7zip is much better than its commercial rivals WinZip or Winrar and I recommend to everyone, because almost everyone will encounter a strange archive file and need 7zip open it.

5. GIMP- An image editing tool just like Photoshop. Fully featured and handless a very wide variety of image formats.   I recommend even if you aren’t a graphics artist or don’t plan on doing photo editing only because it handles every type of image format imaginable, and if you have GIMP installed you’ll be able to open even the strangest of images. For Vector Imaging I also recommend you check out the open source program Inkscape, which is like CorelDraw and Adobe Illustrator.

6. Infrarecorder- Burn discs with infrarecorder a fully featured burning program that has all the major features commercial burning programs have.  Very lightweight and well done program.

7. Pidgin- Instant Messaging program that lets you communicate on all the top instant messaging protocols. Has ever instant messaging protocol you can think of including: AIM, Bonjour, Gadu-Gadu, Google Talk, Groupwise, ICQ, IRC, MSN, MySpaceIM, Yahoo, and more. Has excellent plugins and fully features. Talked on multiple instant message protocols at once.

8. Open Hardware Monitor-  Excellent program that detects various temperatures including CPU, GPU, and Hard Drive. Also shows CPU load time. Best temperature detecting program I’ve ever used including the commercial rivals.

9. VirtualBox- Virtualize an Operating System with Virtual Box. Install Linux or Mac inside Windows!  Really works, and is like installing a virtual computer within your computer.  Fully featured and works just like its commercial successor VMware

10. Blender- 3d Modeling Program just like 3D Studio Max.  Create 3d Movies or Video games. For an open source CAD program that is a lot like AutoCAD, try BRL-CAD.

Linux- Linux is not a program but a full open source Operating System. (An alternative to windows). Most of the open source programs from this list started on Linux  Linux is free from viruses and spyware, and almost all the software for Linux is free. It’s stable and easy to use. There are many different types of Linux to choose from, I recommend trying Linux Mint, Ubuntu, or Zorin OS.

Solid State hard drives are half the price they were a year ago!  Maybe now is the time to buy? You can find them for as low as $1 a gigabyte on sites like New Egg, Ebay, and Amazon Market Place.

If you want to speed up your computer, solid state hard drives are probably the best upgrade you can spend your money on.  SSD’s are much faster than normal hard drives and speed up load times on your computer.

I recommend having your Operating System (Windows or Linux)  and programs installed on a solid state drive, while you use a regular drive to store your larger files and documents such as movies, pictures, and large documents.

If you are an Apple fan, the new Mac Book Air uses a SSD, which makes it lightening fast considering it’s processor.

Watch the video below to see the speed difference of solid state drives compared to really hard drives.

Keep in mind that if you ever plan on donating a computer with a solid state hard drive, you need to take out the drive and physically burn it in a fire.  You can’t wipe the free space properly with a solid state drive like a regular hard drive.  A data recovery can be performed and a lot of the original data can be recovered.

HP offers totally free online computer classes in their learning center, for students of all skill levels and experience.  You can print out a certificate of completion and use for a resume.  It’s also a great way for businesses to train their employees without having to pay the expensive tuition for going back to school or getting certified.

HP’s Learning Center offers well over 100 different computer related classes that are always changing on a regular basis. Take advantage of this wonderful free service and learn Computer Science and other technology related topics.  Excellent for anyone looking for a job or wants to improve their computer skills for free.

Main categories of classes are:

• At Home
• At Business
• Business
• Business Basics
• Digital Entertainment
• Photography
• Home Office
• IT professionals
• Lifestyle
• Adobe and Microsoft Office
• Technology
• PC security and maintenance

To see a full list of classes, check the class list at http://h30440.www3.hp.com/learningcenter/Classes/ClassAll.aspx

If you have a question or stuck on a particular class, you can try our Free Computer Help Chat.