Ubuntu's planned Heads Up Display - Why I'll at least give it a try.

Several days ago, I was checking out a few technical websites when I found Russel Barnes' post on LinuxUser's site, "HUD to replace menus in Ubuntu 12.04 – a further kick to the hornet’s nest?" Having more or less successfully worked through two versions of Ubuntu's Unity interface and reached a working accommodation with the new features added in both Ubuntu 11.04 and 11.10, the title caught my attention. Without much other explanation, I played the YouTube video below. (You can also click through to the YouTube page for the larger HD version of both videos on this page.)

Based only on the video and brief description in Barnes' above post, the very first impression that could be printed on a family blog was, "We are NOT amused!"

Luckily, there was a link to the official announcement on Mark Shuttleworth's blog in the Barnes' article. For everyone's sanity at this point, Ubuntu users should first read Shuttleworth's original explanation of what may or may not appear in next version of Ubuntu, version 12.04. Read the full explanation of the Heads Up Display or "HUD" before the weak faint and strong men's heads explode. Yes, we're talking about a new twist on how to interact with a computer, but the new HUD builds on years of effort.
See: Mark Shuttleworth, "Introducing the HUD. Say hello to the future of the menu." markshuttleworth.com, January 24, 2012. Available online: http://www.markshuttleworth.com/archives/939

Now, after reading Mark Shuttleworth's more detailed and measured introduction of the Heads Up Display, he also says,

We’ll resurrect the (boring) old ways of displaying the menu in 12.04, in the app and in the panel. ...But hiding the menu before we had the replacement was overly aggressive. [Amen to that.-Ed.] If the HUD lands in 12.04 LTS, we hope you’ll find yourself using the menu less and less, and be glad to have it hidden when you are not using it. You’ll definitely have that option, alongside more traditional menu styles.

So if I'm reading this correctly, current menu-driven users will have their menus, and those who want to explore the new HUD system can enable that method for an unlimited "test drive." If people like menus they can still use them, but Shuttleworth and his developers are betting that some currently unknown fraction of Ubuntu's current and future users will adopt the new HUD. It sounds as if Ubuntu is seriously trying to build a bridge to the future.

While in the infantry, I've waded across shallow creeks, swam or floated across deeper rivers, even crossed one or two upside down hand over hand on a single rope. Believe me. Bridges are better, and more troops, or in this case Ubuntu users, can reach the other shore. In their haste to get ready for Gnome 3's clean slate approach, both Gnome and Ubuntu created changes that were deeper than the developers first thought. Some users were lost in their attempts to get the new interfaces to work for them - they didn't make it to the other side and were lost. More likely, some users had too much work to do to make more than one or two attempts and even switched to other flavors of Linux like Linux Mint, Xfce, or a host of others. That's why real change agents have to think about building a bridge.

In my own case, I found a way to get across without waiting for the bridge. I've used a program found in Ubuntu's Launchpad called Cardapio in both 11.04 and 11.10. Cardapio can be installed and updated from its own PPA. In 11.10, I changed the icon to one of my choice for the Cardapio launcher, placed it right under the big Ubuntu icon (BFB?) and fine-tuned the "Main Menu" (it's still there) to make all the various menus categories work the way I like to work.  Check out Ubuntu Vibes' very detailed article on the set up and uses of Cardapio. Ubuntu Vibes also posted the video. Click on the small video below to view a larger version on YouTube:

In addition to menus, I like multiple windows open on the same workspace and switch back and forth between windows frequently. I also don't like icons, menus or scroll bars to appear or disappear. I want them to be in the same darn place I left them and don't want to wait even a second while they reappear. I'm not sold on the dash where some icons show up now and maybe totally different icons show up later. I like consistency on my big dumb screen but so far I still have the option of making those changes that help me work "my way."

After those minor adjustments with Cardapio and other tweaks, HUD's promised voice commands and learning how we work certainly have the potential to become a useful addition and that could help a transition to HUD. I may even be able to teach my big hulking HP quad core desktop to understand Anglo-Saxon voice commands. Ubuntu users need a little time to adapt to new ways of working but it looks like all of us at least now have the promise of the bridge that has been missing in the last two Ubuntu editions. So in the meantime, I suggest we hold our ire, save Shuttleworth's original HUD post for further reference and try to keep an open mind as 12.04 moves toward beta versions.

For the record, I've used menus since my first 9" black and white Macintosh replaced my earlier Kaypro and Apple IIe's. I actually tried one of Jef Raskin's early interface ideas that Shuttleworth mentioned in his article on a plug-in card added to an Apple IIe. Back then and in today's environment, testing new interface ideas is a normal part working with technology as long as we can take back a step if things don't work out as the developers originally planned.

Thankfully Ubuntu remains a high quality free distribution and I'm actually encouraged Ubuntu developers are extending the interface with new ideas. I also believe users will try to spend some time with HUD IF the Ubuntu developers give all of us the option of making the software work "our way" or if we can easily back up a step or two while HUD is further refined. Otherwise, we can also reload and relearn KDE's desktop after an early "April Fools Day" on March 26, if HUD and Ubuntu's 12.04 release doesn't work as advertised.

Ubuntu's developers and its larger community have always provided options and choices. As to Shuttleworth's article, no harm, no foul, play on!

Jobs are hard enough to find. Employers use Facebook to weed out applicants...

Is Facebook becoming a "honey pot" for employers and personnel officers who want to keep from hiring people who might cause them problems after they're hired? Steve Johnson of The Mercury News thinks so in a January 16th article, "Those Facebook posts could cost you your job." What's worse, Facebook users don't have to cut their own throat, although many Facebook users do. There's always plenty of others - often your own friends - using their Facebook account to post that picture of you that you might not post yourself. What caught my eye in Johnson's report:

In a twist on the exploding use of online social media, employers in the Bay Area and nationwide are poring over the websites to weed out job applicants whose posts reveal that they use foul language, take drugs, associate with gangs or have other questionable characteristics. Some employers are even demanding that job candidates disclose their social network user names and passwords.  [Emphasis added.]

While Johnson says the legal and ethical implications have yet to be determined in court, would you want to be an employer trying to defend your company from a drunk driving lawsuit after the plaintiff's lawyer discovers several pictures on Facebook of your new delivery truck driver behind the wheel of his own car with a beer in his (or her) hand? Would you want to hire someone who trash-mouthed their former employer on Facebook? You can read the article for more examples at: http://www.siliconvalley.com/news/ci_19754451.

In the last month, when we're starting to see reports again of newspaper reporter's articles and blogger's posts being scanned and recorded by Homeland Security, is there any doubt that Facebook, Google+ and other social media sites have become the starting point for private firms, public organizations or even an inquisitive neighbor building a dossier on almost any employee, political opponent or anyone else for that matter?

Sure, go ahead and change your Facebook privacy settings.  [Feel better now.] That may work until the next time Facebook changes their mind about what portion of your personal content will be released to the next company willing to pay a good price for your information.

I'll admit it. I don't like Facebook nor am I fond of any of the social media engines that entice people to freely exchange their personal privacy for convenience or "being cool." But then I'm just an old codger who "doesn't get it." Yep, and I don't want it either!

LIfehacker: The best and best avoided software for Windows...

Over the weekend, I was talking with a friend about Download.com, add-on toolbars and malware in general. when it dawned on me that it would be a lot easier for new users and or even users upgrading their computers or just adding new software if they all knew what software to avoid first -- BEFORE they downloaded software that they'll regret and have to clean off their computer later.  To complicate matters, many new computers are sold with trial versions of antivirus or other software or even less capable versions of software in hopes that users will pay for expensive upgrade packages later.

Before you act like Admiral Farragut at Mobile Bay and go all "...full speed ahead," the smart move is to ask your technically inclined family members or friends first. But who do you ask when the children and grandchildren have finally gone home and it's time to figure out what software you want to add - or add back onto your new computer?

Windows Software Best Avoided
http://lifehacker.com/384545/superior-alternatives-to-crappy-windows-software (Published: 8/30/11)

It just so happens that Lifehacker.com has already asked and answered that question with a 17 item list of Windows software to avoid if possible. Those of us born when secretaries made multiple copies with a typewriter and carbon paper instead of a Xerox machine may prefer a more gentile title, but the title of LIfehacker's answer is both accurate and justified.

Some of the software listed is hard to avoid. You may already have a large folder of QuickTime movies of the kids (or grandkids), or your business uses Microsoft Office and you're trapped into using MS Outlook by shared calendars. I understand all of that. But like it or not, the software listed in the Lifehacker article has a substantial number of people who would rather use something else if they could. Most of the time there are alternatives. The article suggests other possible choices to the commonly avoided programs IF you're not already entangled and wish to try some something that might even be better.

Once you have some insight about what to avoid, Lifehacker then has two more articles to help new or replacement computer owners download what the authors and many others consider better or even the best software alternatives for Windows computers.


Best Windows Software

http://lifehacker.com/5826909/lifehacker-pack-for-windows-our-list-of-the-best-windows-downloads  (Published: 8/2/11)

Right away, in the second paragraph, readers have the option of downloading and installing the entire list of best Windows software in one click from Ninite.com. Ninite is considered one of the more ethical sites by some security-minded developers, but I'd still recommend you look at each piece of software listed and pick those you wish to try first. At the same time, I'd also recommend that you bookmark all three of the best and best avoided Windows software articles so that you can come back and download other applications if you later discover you need them.

Even a casual reader will quickly discover that a few software applications are listed in the software to avoid AND the best Windows downloads. Adobe Flash, Adobe Reader and Skype are on both lists. First of all, some basic software is hard (or irritating) to avoid. At least, the best windows downloads list links you directly to the developer's website and not to a 3rd party site that's larding up the download with toolbars you didn't ask for when you started and may even be difficult to remove. (See the Dec. 6 blog post "CNET's Download.com may download more than expected...")

Most Popular Windows Software
http://lifehacker.com/5867878/most-popular-windows-downloads-and-posts-of-2011 (Published: 12/13/11)

As the title says, this is a collection of the most popular software downloads and short articles or "how-to's" to help new or returning users avoid annoyances, learn new tricks or accomplish tasks that have been difficult using other software solutions. For example, the list includes two hints for Firefox version 4. I'm already using Firefox 8 and will update to version 9 soon, but annoyances can carry forward and several are easily corrected. For example, my Firefox 8 looks very similar to my old Firefox 3. I like my tabs just above the page I'm viewing. The point is that you can sometimes customize software to work the way you want it to work.

And finally, don't forget the Windows Security Baseline so that your new or existing computer stays as secure as possible in the shark and minefield infested waters of the Internet. (See: the Dec. 1 blog post "Getting a new Computer for Christmas?") And don't forget to use the automated software update programs to help keep your protected computer that way.

If you're wondering about all the nautical references to admirals, sharks and minefields, in my youth, I always felt more secure without the additional complication of staying afloat and I joined the infantry. I hope you and your computer stay safe and secure without any added complications during the New Year and that you enjoy your holidays...

CNET's Download.com downloads more than expected...

Brian Krebs, who writes the Krebs on Security website, points out Dec. 6th, that CBS/CNET's Download.com site now uses a downloader program that frequently includes the preselected option to install unnecessary "toolbars" or other "invasive or annoying" programs that many long time computer users frankly call "crapware." You can read the full article at: http://krebsonsecurity.com/2011/12/download-com-bundling-toolbars-trojans/

I've also recommended Download.com as a convenient and safe source for home users and seniors to download software. However, Krebs' testing found that some of the extra programs were tagged as malware by more than one antivirus program. At least one of the extras was difficult to remove. Krebs even included an explanation from CNET as to why extra programs are bundled with the program you actually requested.

New Christmas computers are a prime target for multiple downloads of games, and utilities after Christmas. But this Christmas, remember Krebs reexamination of one of the most popular download sites and carefully consider his advice:

"...In the meantime, it’s always a good idea to download software directly from the source whenever possible, and to pay close attention to the prompts during the installation process."

Very good advice indeed. And as an old-timer myself, I've been burned often enough that I now carefully look for the extra little check marks in fine print during installation process of any downloaded software. Just be cautious and do try to go to the original source of the software if you can.

UPDATE: 12/09/11- Insecure.org also has a news page with more information on the additional software and changes added by CNET's Download.com. You can find the executive summary, and a list of related web posts concerning the topic at: http://insecure.org/news/download-com-fiasco.html

Gordon Lyon, developer of NMap and other security projects, also suggests downloading software applications from their official sites or more ethical aggregators such as FileHippo, Ninite or Softpedia.