Posts from September 2011

I don't want to install wine and PDF XChange viewer just because it has some odd behaviour on linux. Scrolling does not work well at all. I wish the GNU PDF project would speed up and release the GNU Juggler

The code-named GNU Juggler will be a full-fledged PDF viewer and editor making use of the GNU PDF Library. Right now we are busy in the development of the library and the GNU Juggler is not even started.

I don't know why there isn't a decent PDF annotation program for linux yet. There just isn't. It's very odd. Evince 3.0 has note-taking but no highlighting and the developer told me he has no time to work on it anymore. Jarnal/Xournal/Mendeley etc. have fake highlighting where the annotation does not show up in other PDF readers and is not saved in the PDF file itself. Okular is fine but require installation of too many KDE components, is resource-hogging and kind of buggy as well.

Though linux has some really good PDF tools, sadly PDF annotation is not among them.

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PS: I keep double clicking the post to edit it like in i2 and then I realize, I am not on i2! hah

Just so I can keep track of the configuration changes I am making that messes up my system, I am going to post a running list here. Starting from a brand new install:

Started with crunchbang for 64 bit systems:

• Downloaded google chrome beta and installed it
• Windows Manager Tweaks: turned compositor on
• Terminator
• changed keybindings for copy and paste (ctrl-c & ctrl-v)
• checked use system fixed width font
• Orage
• made clock fonts bigger.
• Removed stuff:

sudo aptitude purge chromium-browser chromium-browser-inspector firmware-ipw2x00 firmware-iwlwifi firmware-ralink fortunes-min gftp gftp-common gftp-gtk heybuddy gdm avahi-utils avahi-daemon fortune-cookie-db conky

• Checked if google chrome is the default

sudo update-alternatives --config gnome-www-browser

• Set google-chrome in preferred applications
• Cleanup old kernels and configurations

sudo apt-get --purge autoremove
sudo aptitude purge ~c

• In /usr/games/fortune, deleted the fortune executable

gedit ~/.config/xfce4/autostart.sh

-- Comment out these lines

cb-fortune - have Statler say a little adage
(sleep 120s && cb-fortune) &
conky
cb-welcome
cb-setxkbmap live &
cb-bad-nautilus &

sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list

gpg --keyserver pgp.mit.edu --recv-key 381BA480
gpg -a --export 381BA480 > jranke_cran.asc
sudo apt-key add jranke_cran.asc

sudo gedit /etc/apt/preferences

Package: *
Pin: release a=squeeze-cran
Pin-Priority: 991

• R-check

apt-get update
apt-cache policy r-base

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get dist-upgrade

• added myself to the fuse group.
• Copied apt archive files from my external harddrive

sudo apt-get install texlive r-base ghostscript subversion

• Installed the following from .deb packages
• R-studio
• Mendeley

• In R

install.packages(c("rms", "Hmisc", "ggplot2", "haplo.stats"))

• Make a file /usr/local/sbin/autologin with

#! /bin/sh
/bin/login -f myusername

sudo gedit /etc/inittab

• Changed

1:2345:respawn:/sbin/getty 38400 tty1

to

1:2345:respawn:/sbin/getty -n -l /usr/local/sbin/autologin 38400 tty1

• Commented out

3:23:respawn:/sbin/getty 38400 tty3
4:23:respawn:/sbin/getty 38400 tty4
5:23:respawn:/sbin/getty 38400 tty5
6:23:respawn:/sbin/getty 38400 tty6

sudo gedit /etc/bash.bashrc

• Make xfce4 start automatically after login

if [[ -z "$DISPLAY" ]] && [[ $(tty) = /dev/tty1 ]]; then
startx
logout
fi
    

• Expand size of bash history

export HISTCONTROL=erasedups
export HISTSIZE=10000
shopt -s histappend

gedit ~./inputrc

"\ep": history-search-backward
"\en": history-search-forward

• Changed xfce menu

gedit ~/.config/menus/xfce-applications.menu

I am at a weird point right now. Everything seems pretty unsorted in my life. I can't say that if I died tomorrow, I would be happy with the choices I made. That is not a nice place to be.

This needs to change, today and right now. I want to just take this weekend off the tracks and stop doing the same old things I do and the experience the same old panic. I want to start off anew.

I am promising myself that this weekend will be the most productive of any weekends thus far. And no other future weekends will end with panic ever more because they will all be better managed from now on.

Did you know that:

In 1752, the British Empire adopted the Gregorian calendar. In the British Empire that year, September 2 was immediately followed by September 14.

We will see how sorted I manage to be by September 14.

Seriously, I can't seem to catch a break with my linux troubles. It's been hardly 14 days since my fresh install and things are already starting to act up with Crunchbang.

The stylus goes on insane object and text selecting sprees on its own and randomly refuses to be controlled. The bash history no longer takes orders from ~/.bashrc and never remembers even a line of history (even though I have set it to remember 10K lines). E4rat is installed and running, but applications have been slowing down.

I am SO sick of having to do fresh installs every fortnight. It borders on the illogical and for this reason alone windows XP seems rather appealing. Its rock solid and just as fast even after 1.5 years after a fresh install. Why OH WHY can't my favourite distro come even close to that kind of stability and consistency??

I wish this shoe didn't have such hideous heels and were more of a flat Mary Jane instead. I would get it in an instant.

Well... maybe not this instant but most likely after a couple weak lopsided debates with my rational self on the complete insanity of shoe-hoarding. But those heels are the best safeguards against any impulse buying.

This massive hurricane is headed directly to NYC, Long Island and New Jersey. I am more than a bit worried. My brother is in zone A - categorized as the most flood and storm-prone in the city and likely faces evacuation this weekend.


Baruch College 155 E. 24th Street, HS of Graphic Comm. 439 W. 49th Street and John Jay College 445 W. 59th Street are the nearest evacuation centers. His building has already sent out an emergency preparedness notice.

All this is making me really nervous. I am desperately hoping that this hurricane changes direction and is somehow deflected well away from the whole NYC region. :(

Get better soon!

A chain of rants in @metalpeter #55007 make me want to throw down this self-improvement challenge.

I am ready to
a) give up salt for however long it takes
b) start doing push-ups all over again everyday for however long it takes

if someone else wants to give up something or take up something with me and be accountable for that here. It has to be something that is causing you harm or is damaging your life or is negatively influencing your life to some extent.

Too much salt and not enough muscle definitely are negative influences on mine.

Who is up for this little last-quarter goal-setting?

This is it! @matthew, you need to enter the André Rieu photography contest!


Sign up on Rieu's site.

DO it now!!
Think of all the glory if you are picked!!

I felt it and I thought, wow the wind must really be picking up in Buffalo. Guess it was really an earthquake and not just the building showing its age and resonating with the wind.



LOL@ this comment on the story:

Soon to be former Buffalo schools superintendent James Willians was seen jumping up & down in a temper tantrum b/c he could not get anyone to help pack his belongings...

Seriously, do people stalk the Buffalo news site just to post stuff like this? Hahah