I’ve been reading more complaints by the day, primarily from bloggers (some of whom I suspect are not even full-time Linux users) that KDE 4 was a complete mistake and should be scrapped. Some have likened it to Windows Vista. Others have even suggested that KDE should be forked so that the KDE 3.5 line will remain alive.

As someone who has been using KDE 4.1 (a Beta version mind you) on my production system for quite a few weeks now, I am wondering what the big fuss is really about. No doubt, I agree with some in that KDE developers should have not called a “work in progress” “4.0″. That is misleading. Heck, Google keeps things in Beta for years. The word “beta” is in fashion to the point where they could just always have “Beta” after any KDE release and it would probably attract users.

Therein lies the problem. This time around, “still in development” was a literal warning not a modest display of humility. The KDE developers warned everyone that 4.0 was not ready for production. Certain distributions, such as Kubuntu, took heed and left KDE 3.5 as the main desktop, offering 4.0 as an option.

If a distribution left KDE 4.0 as the only option, that means KDE 3.5 applications were no longer available. There is no question that certain apps are much further along than others. Dolphin, the file manager, for example is very stable and feature-rich, whereas most of the KDE-PIM applications are still under heavy development.

With both desktops still installed, one can use KDE 4.0 as the desktop and still use some KDE 3.5 apps without any decrease in performance and with no difficulty. That is drastically different from an operating system upgrade. There is no problem with compatibility between 4.0 and 3.5 apps. Therefore, comparing it to Windows Vista carries little weight.

I think those who hate KDE 4 can be placed into four categories:

1. Those who just dislike the new features (plasma, krunner, etc). That’s fine. Everyone has their opinion.

2. Those who actually did not use KDE anyway and are just making noise for the sake of making noise.

3. Those who are not very patient and/or not very good at making things work for them (They were used to using KDE 3.5 which “just worked” out of the box — KDE 4 will eventually reach that stage, but it is not quite there yet).

4. Those who miss their favorite component fromKDE 3. Some people especially miss the “kicker” (KDE’s desktop panel), but a lot of them miss it for the strangest reasons. For example, someone mentioned that he did not like that plasma does not have the various options for different types of secondary panels. My response to that is, how any people actually used any of those secondary panels? I’ve seen plenty of KDE desktops and have seen very few, if any, who used the “Mac OS” menu bar or any of the other available features. Having a feature only for the sake of having it only leads to bloated software.

I for one think KDE 4 is coming along nicely. I’m in love with plasma. However, I will be the first to admit that it has some way to go, as did KDE 3 when it was first released.
The truth is some people just hate change, but change is going to come with or without them. That is the nature of this world and is certainly the nature of technology.

There are many things to love about the new KDE and the new Firefox. I’ve personally always preferred Konqueror for most of my web browsing for simple things like dragging an image from the browser to the desktop. It was not that I wanted to leave an image file on the desktop. It’s just a quick way to grab something and use it for whatever I need.

With previous versions of Firefox, dragging an image to the KDE desktop produced an empty clipboard text box and no image. Now, icons on the KDE desktop are essentially gone, replaced with the Folderview plasmoid. Firefox 3.0 also allows for perfect dragging and dropping. I can drag an image not only into folderview or one of folder icons but also directly into Dolphin (file manager).

It just keeps getting better and better.

Other cool plasmoids:

1. Prayertimes plasmoid
2. Weather plasmoid (I’ve been waiting for this one)
3. Quick Access plasmoid (just so useful).

The only proper and truly “American” way to celebrate our independence is to trivialize it with rock and roll music, flag waving, and random images of patriotism. And few have accomplished that the way that the following man has. So, this one’s for you, America:

Oh yeah, and it never hurts to head butt the flag of a communist country now and then.

I was reading an article today about an MIT project to create solar powered textiles. One idea they’ve developed is solar powered curtains. But it got me thinking. The other day I saw a solar powered bra (yeah, like that’s practical). Wouldn’t it be more useful to have solar powered clothing you wear on the outside?

Imagine going to the beach in a solar powered swimsuit. (Obviously you’d want to avoid diving into the water with your electric power pack on — but still). You spend the day there absorbing the sunlight, which is collected into your stylish power pack.

When you’re finished, you have two options:

1) Go home and deposit your power into your personal home “power cube”.

2) Before leaving the beach you stop at the “power exchange machine”. You attach your power pack to the machine, which extracts the energy. It then pays you for the amount of energy deposited in cash (or more likely change).

If you’ve downloaded the latest Firefox 3.0, you’re probably loving it and very impressed with the new features.

Here is just one word of caution. In the past, if an SSL certificate was expired, not verified, or not recognized, Firefox would initiate a pop-up window telling you this. Now, it takes you to a very scary error page that, if you are like many Americans who don’t bother to read such pages, will make you think the page could not be reached.

In order to view the page (and there are many self-signed certificate pages that you will want to view), you’ll need to add an exception by clicking the “add exception” button at the bottom. The next time you visit the page, you will have no problems.

Once again I managed to beat Imam Zaid Shakir to the punch with my article about Obama’s love affair with the AIPAC, but that is probably only because he took the time to ponder over it and write something much more elqouent and powerful. His article is certainly worth a read.

When I first saw the release of Google Gadgets for Linux, my first reaction was “What’s the point?” when we already have gdesklets for Gnome and Superkaramba/Plasma for KDE.

Then, I read this. Whoever you are, Tiger, you rock.

Macaroni ma-cheese = Macaroni and cheese

Circle Soup = Spaghetti O’s

Tindo DS = Nintendo DS

Doll waffle = Waffles with pictures of Barbie on them

Brooming = Sweeping the floor with a broom (actually makes sense)

smacks = Gummy snacks (I pretend to smack her when she asks for it)

There are many more. I’ll post them when I hear them again. Keep in mind, she knows how to say all of these correctly. She just prefers her way and will violently oppose you if you try to correct her.

On this first morning of my summer vacation, I watched the sunrise. Check.

In their 2006 working paper The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, University of Chicago professor John Mearsheimer and Harvard University Kennedy School of Government professor Stephen Walt accuse AIPAC of being “the most powerful and best known” component of a larger pro-Israel lobby that, they say, distorts American foreign policy. They write: “AIPAC’s success is due to its ability to reward legislators and congressional candidates who support its agenda, and to punish those who challenge it. … AIPAC makes sure that its friends get strong financial support from the myriad pro-Israel PACs. Those seen as hostile to Israel, on the other hand, can be sure that AIPAC will direct campaign contributions to their political opponents. … The bottom line is that AIPAC, which is a de facto agent for a foreign government, has a stranglehold on the U.S. Congress. Open debate about U.S. policy towards Israel does not occur there, even though that policy has important consequences for the entire world.”

Cited on Wikipedia