Linux And Geocaching

Posted on July 2, 2010 by Collin

Every couple of years (literally!) I get the hankering to play with Ubuntu. With version 10.04 LTS having been released in April (so I just found out), that hankering is back again.

My desktop PC is running Windows Vista. Vista has actually been pretty good to us with no major issues until a few week ago when it started grinding to a halt. I say no major issues, this doesn’t include regularly losing a hard disk from the disk management – all my music – or the hard disk with all my photos on.

I thought I might take the opportunity to throw more RAM at the machine (which is actually pretty good except for lacking memory) and put Windows 7 on it. It will have to be Windows going back on there due to a few things:

  • My good lady wife is used to Windows and I would prefer not to stress her out by changing OS
  • iTunes and Spotify. More on this in a moment or three.
  • Last time I tried Ubuntu on this hardware I never got the wireless working properly.

So, Windows 7 goes on the desktop PC. I am reluctant to give Microsoft any more money for licences and I have a legal version of 7 on my laptop. This means that I could transfer the licence to the desktop PC and then install Ubuntu on the laptop.

Still with me? Good!

So, why am I writing a post on this and not getting on with it? Well, barring the fact I am not at home and the PCs are, there are a number of reasons why.

The most important to me is that I have Windows software for iTunes (supporting my iPhone), Spotify and various pieces of Geocaching software (GSAK, Cachestats and others) installed on the laptop. I also have all the audio files for the UK Geocaching Podcast on the laptop (yes, they are backed up!)

That makes for a huge task to either transfer support for the iPhone and Geocaching (Spotify is not so important) to the desktop PC which also makes them tethered to the machine, stuck upstairs in the study. I spend vast amounts of time researching for the podcast and without GSAK I am sure I would be massively stuck!

If you have an iPhone then you’ll know how easy it is to get the unit to sync to a new PC!

On a much lesser scale of importance, I cannot stand this screen:

Ubuntu Default Desktop

See, told you it was trivial! Why the hell do they insist on making the default desktop brown? This hasn’t put me off using the OS, and yes, I know it’s as easy to change the theme as it is in Windows. I wonder, however, how many of the less computer savvy users in computer land have heard of Ubuntu and been put off by that desktop?! I can point you towards at least one person I know.

So, without a decent solution for iTunes and GSAK (don’t bother mentioning Wine, the GSAK implementation under Wine is unreliable and has crashed more than it has run when I have tried) then, unfortunately it looks like I am stuck with giving Microsoft yet more of my hard-earned for a licence for Windows 7. It’s “only” £81 at Novatech, so I might just bite the bullet and do it.

And no, I don’t want an unlicenced ripped version before anyone suggests it. I have worked bloody hard to get legal (Hello OpenOffice!) and am not going to spoil it now.

Posted in Misadventures in Geocaching, Words, iphone, ubuntu | 1 Comment

The Internet – More Than Just Porn

Posted on June 29, 2010 by Collin

I realise that this may come as a shock (no, not the fat I’m writing something, although that does seem to be unfortunately rare these days), I want to share a fact with you. Ready?

There’s more than just porn on the internet.

Yeah, I know. But, it’s the truth!

There are a few websites that have this effect on me whenever I find (or, more accurately re-find) them:

  • 28 Days Later. All about “Urban Exploration”, I have written about this site before. Although that post doesn’t have the photos on it anymore, it has still got all the links through to the appropriate threads on 28DL. That post then drags me around 28DL looking at the latest “Urbex”. I have never done any of that myself, I get the screaming heebie-jeebies in abandoned buildins at night. Hell, I can’t even walk round Fort Fareham at night and that’s publicly accessible (at least, the industrial estate is)!
  • Portsdown Tunnels Website. Again, I’ve written about this before. A fascinating website that always hauls me in whenever I go looking at it.
  • Geocaching. Hardly surprising that this one’s in my list though eh! My main obsession, outside work, Scouts, the Mini Club…. If you don’t know what this is from being here previously then you should look at the archive for the Misadventures in Geocaching Category, then go to the Geocaching website and go play. Just don’t hide any caches using an iPhone to get the coordinates!!

Well, now there’s a new one to add to the list. It’s grouped with the Portsdown Tunnels and 28DL group as it’s all about the abandoned and disused stations on the London Underground (LU). Quite simply named Underground History I really don’t know why I have a fascination with underground sites, but LU has always caught my attention and, like the Portsdown Tunnels website, I have spent a good couple of hours looking round and reading the site this afternoon.

Well written and clear, the website has detailed information about many of the stations as well as other bits and nuggets of information about the history of the underground in general.

Of course, in clicking around this website, there are links to other related sites. One of which I have just found is http://www.abandonedstations.org.uk/.

I must just mention that all things will, eventually, lead back to Geocaching. How so here? Well, I was reading a thread in the Geocaching Forum about Geocache pages in other languages. This led to a quip by one poster about Geocaches in Welsh. A reply was to check out Eclectic Penguin’s profile. EP is a well known Welsh cacher who is on the committee for Mega Wales 2011. I clicked through to his profile (in a somewhat voyeuristic moment) and noticed the link to the Underground History site. Turns out that EP (AKA Hywel) lived near London for some time and developed the UH website.

Oh, I also have three of the Geocoins that EP has produced…

Six degrees of separation?

Posted in Misadventures in Geocaching, Words, web | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Upgrade time

Posted on June 17, 2010 by Collin

SO, I thought it would be better to upgrade this blog first, before doing MiniMiniMini and UKGCPodcast. Jeep yer fingers crossed!

Posted in This Blog | Leave a comment

The Scary Auto Complete In Google

Posted on May 17, 2010 by Collin

So, many people by now that when you start typing phrases like “how to” or “how do I” into the search box in Google, it will suggest the common questions. Most of the time these can be really tame, lame or even boring.

This one though? It just scares the crap outta me!

I was going to search for “how to artificially age metal” for an “evil micro” cache hide. I got as far as “how to artifi” and the search suggestions appeared. Take a look:

Yep, you read that right. “How to artificially inseminate at home”. Yes, I did click the search and it came back with 101,000 results. Including (apparently) “the turkey baster method”.

There’s also “how to artificially inseminate yourself”. I am not even sure that I want to know that method, but I am fairly sure that it will have something to do with the turkey baster…

Posted in Misadventures in Geocaching, WTF?, web | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

How About A UK Geocaching Podcast?

Posted on May 4, 2010 by Collin

I have been mulling over the idea during the last several months of creating a UK PodCast about Geocaching.

Why? Well, simply, there isn’t one! Is that enough reason though? I think so.

We have the excellent podcasts from the likes of Sonny and Sandy with the Podcacher Podcast, and the Cache-a-Maniacs PodCast to name but two. I listen to both of them regularly and they really are fantastic listening.

But. While they are keen to mention UK and European cachers, these two podcasts are, by the very nature of their location (and the location of the hobby) US biased.

Initially I am thinking of a monthly podcast, to be released on the 1st or the 2nd of every month. That way I/we would be able to get the latest information on events to the listeners as well as the latest news from the previous month.

So, my initial questions to you my dear Geocaching infatuated friends:

1. Would you listen?
2. Would you participate? Email? Voice?
3. Would you make suggestions for future podcasts?
4. Would you given constructive criticism to make the podcast better?
5. Where would you like to see the podcast available? iTunes? Website? Elsewhere?

I will set up a brand new website specifically for the podcast, separate to this blog, to save either being infected by the other.

I am serious about this. I have the equipment available to me right now to be able to record and upload. And yes, it would be free to download/listen!

I would like to hear your thoughts on this.

Thanks in advance for reading and taking the time to consider this.

Posted in Misadventures in Geocaching | Tagged , , | 6 Comments