Unit 5 good times

This past week I used aptitude to install current updates (again), installed the IceWM desktop in ubuntu server, installed ubuntu desktop in VMFusion, installed some perl components to be able to install and run the webmin desktop.

Using the command line and webmin and the server desktop, I played around with adding users and groups. I understood what I was doing at the command line and I could even understand the /etc/passwd file. I get the r-w-x permissions for the various users. It helps that I've had to fight for some of those rights at my job so I could understand what they mean when you do have them and when you don't. Even though I am a program administrator at my job, I don't even have the rights to download updates to anything!! (Adobe, Shockwave, whatever) This is baffling to me. Our IT dept. is very un-user friendly. One thing I stuggled with was assigning the 3 digit numbers for group permissions. I get the concept, but again, I need the cheatsheet right next to me to remember anything.

I think one of my problems is the limited storage and retrieval capacity of my brain. I view and read some things and I think, "This I need to remember!" Other things (like the permission codes) I think, "Don't bother remembering this stuff. You can look it up if you need to." I think I applied the latter reasoning to the command line. I don't see myself spending much time there so I can just look it up when I need it. Getting the global idea is what's important.

I thoroughly enjoyed "The Cathedral and the Bazaar". That was something I could understand and I appreciate the philosophy behind the whole open source movement. All management types should read it.

Footnotes:
-Minor annoyance: I recently upgraded to Firefox 3 on my home computer and ecollege, where our course resides, won't open. I have to use IE.

-Minor disturbance in "the force": My Dell home computer is old and buggy. I've cleaned up some stuff and installed a wireless adaptor (and I think I'll need to install more memory). I'm toying with the idea of trashing Windows xp and using Linux as my OS. It would probably drive my family crazy. Would I have to let them use my macbook for their fun stuff or could we do it all on the Dell? Hmmmm? With a gui desktop I think they could handle it. I just need to look into it.