First add the docky private repository, update and install:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:docky-core/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install docky

Now you will need to make sure that it doesn’t autoload in anything other than Gnome. You don’t want docky to autorun in KDE as it will get annoying and in your way.

gedit ~/.config/autostart/docky.desktop &

Add this line to the end of the file:

OnlyShowIn=GNOME;

Excellent. Now, the final touch is to get rid of the hard links to firefox, rhythmbox and empathy. Don’t get me wrong, they are all good applications, but you want to be able to pin them and unpin them. By default docky insists that you have these icons all the time and you cannot remove them. This again is annoying. Run the gnome configuration editor tool:

gconf-editor &

Follow the following path:

/apps/docky-2/Docky/Interface/DockPreferences/Dock1

Double click on ‘Launchers’ and remove anything you don’t want. Also double click on ‘SortList’ and remove anything you don’t want from there too. Now quit docky (right click on the anchor) and reload from the applications menu. You have now removed the hard links and you can pin whatever you want on the dock to keep it there permanently.

At the terminal run:

gconf-editor

This will open up the gnome configuration editor.  The magnet url handler can be found at: /desktop/gnome/url-handlers/magnet.

Then set the ‘command’ string to launch the application you want. For example, the transmission command line would be:

transmission "%s"

The %s simply appends the link after launching transmission. You can change transmission to azureus if you want Vuze to run instead, or any bittorrent client of your choice.

Jupiter works on all laptops and despite being designed for Aurora OS (originally eeebuntu) works fine in Ubuntu to. To install, follow the steps below:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/jupiter
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install jupiter-support-eee jupiter

This will set you up nicely for controlling your EeePC.

First, make sure language support is correctly installed. From the desktop, click on System / Administration / Language Support.

If it tells you that the language support is not installed completely, click install.

Click on ‘Install / Remove Languages’. Select Japanese and then tick ‘Input Methods’ and ‘Extra Fonts’. Click on close.

Change ‘Keyboard input method system to ibus’. Click on close.

The correct files should now have been installed automatically. All you need to do now is configure the the input method. First, log out and then log back in again.

To enable the Japanese input system you have just installed, select ‘System / Preferences / Keyboard Input Methods’. Drop down, Japanese, Anthy, Add.

There should be a keyboard icon in the top right of your screen. You can click on it to change to Anthy (Japanese input) or use Ctrl+Space. Open a text editing program, change to Anthy and you can now type in 日本語。

If you want extra options, click on the keyboard (ibus) icon on the top right and select preferences. Then change the ‘show language panel’ to ‘When active’. This will pop up a further language bar that you can use to tweak Anthy.

Hotkeys don’t work out of the box, you have to add a kernel parameter to the grub config:

Run ‘sudo gedit /etc/default/grub’

Edit the line with GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT and add ” acpi_osi=Linux”.

The line should then look like -> GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT=”quiet splash acpi_osi=Linux”

Save and then run ‘sudo update-grub’

Reboot

My dongle is the ZTE MF112 and I had a few problems getting it to work in Ubuntu. Here are the easy steps to make it work:

1. You have to register it using windows as it needs to receive a text message so that it can be activated. Just plug it into a windows system and follow the instructions. Once it has been used once, it’s good to work in Ubuntu.

2. Boot up ubuntu with the device plugged in at boot. Install the usb-modeswitch package in the console as follows:

sudo aptitude install usb-modeswitch

3. Set up the config so that Ubuntu treats the dongle as an internet adapter and not a USB flash drive:

sudo gedit /etc/udev/rules.d/zte_eject.rules

4. Paste the following into the new file:

SYSFS{idVendor}==”19d2″, SYSFS{idProduct}==”0103″, RUN+=”/usr/bin/eject %k”, OPTIONS+=”last_rule”

5. Now open network manager (right click on the wireless icon at the top right of your screen and add a new device under the mobile broadband section. You just need to follow all the default settings. There’s no need for user names and passwords. Just stick with defaults.

6. Reeboot. You will now find 3 Internet as one of the networks you can connect to on the list in the same way as you’d connect to a wireless network.

In terminal:

cd /etc/default/
gksu gedit grub

Add the following lines:

GRUB_DEFAULT=saved
GRUB_SAVEDEFAULT=true

Then:

sudo update-grub

There’s an interesting article called 10 things Androd does better than the iPhone and so for convenience sake, I will set out my reasons below according to this list.

1 – Multitasking: This is indeed a big problem for me in my iPhone usage. I frequently read the news in MobileRSS on the train home, only to find a text message from my wife skips out of the application and I have to load the whole thing again. Why can’t twitter update itself without needing 101 push alerts bugging me every 5 seconds. Apple to promise to fix this in the upcoming OS4 though, so I will for now not use this as a reason to switch. Battery life is important here too. I don’t want all my apps running all the time, but I do want at least a choice.

2 – Homescreens and Widgets: The iPhone was clearly not designed to have hundreds of apps as in the beginning there were only a few. Apple never really solved this problem properly and although fanbois claim style superiority, most will agree the iPhone homescreen is badly in need of an overhaul. For me though it’s widgets that are key. I used to think the whole idea of widgets was crap. But increasingly there is information such as the weather, my tweets etc. that I would like to have displayed. I shouldn’t have to stop all the other apps and open a slow loading specific app just to get this. Further more, apple has even banned a legitimate widget like app just because it looked like a home screen. Is this a hint at what is to come. Better hope so or I will be disappointed.

3 – Apple has a better app market: This is true at the moment, but hardly a long term argument. The iPhone launched its app store long before Android did and also there are still many more iPhones out there. This will change as there are many more Android handsets being sold. Plus it is easier to develop for Android. Interestingly, Android phones used to be limited in the apps they can store by the internal memory. With FroYo Android 2.2 though, you can install onto the SD card. Because of this, expect to see much larger applications becoming available, especially games which were limited before. Finally… isn’t it nice that Android phones don’t have to use the google store. So Steve can’t stop you from installing things h doesn’t like. I jailbreak because I need extra functionality, so this is an important issue.

4 – Android gives you better notifications: Yes, as I mentioned above widgets and the lack of the huge iPhone popup that dominates everything and steals focus are definitely luring me in Androids direction. Again, apple has suggested this will change. We shall see.

5 – Android lets you choose your hardware: So does the iPhone, but then again there’s not much choice. I guess this is less of an issue for me as the iPhone format is quite similar to what I want in a phone. If I wanted something smaller then it would be a problem. Actually I’d like something a bit bigger and with a better camera and an FM or DAB radio please. Android can do that. Steve’s gonna have to pull something out of the hat on Monday to sell me over the HTC Desire.

6 – Availability on different networks: I think this is no longer relevant in the UK. Crap O2 performance will probably mean I leave for a better network though.

7 – ROMS: There is so much potential here. iPhone users can jailbreak, but Android users can run whole different version of the OS on their phone. Like SenseUI on a Nexus One or custom patched Androids that remove vendor customisation crap.  I think we’re going to see a lot of development here.

8 – Android lets you change settings faster: One thing that I completely rely on with my iPhone is the SBSettings by BigBoss. This allows you to quickly turn WiFi and 3G on and off. By default I keep everything off to save battery life and only turn on when I need it. This can be done quickly in Android but the iPhone requires you to go into settings and is very long winded. I think this could be solved quickly in the new OS4, but I somehow doubt Steve will bother. If I couldn’t jailbreak my iPhone to do this, I would probably have to bin it.

9 – Android does integration: This is a killer that might well clinch the deal for me. Apple are never going to allow other applications to integrate into their locked down systems. But sometimes integration is a really good idea. Why not have facebook and twitter integrated into the address book. Why not have the option to automatically upload pictures to flickr without having to run a whole new app and close everything else down. To me this is common sense. Unless Apple seriously rethink their entire paradigm on control, Android will keep biting them in the ass on this, over and over again.

10 – Price: The simple fact is Apple stuff is overpriced. Some people don’t care, but eventually it will matter. As Android phones are cheaper, more people will have them. When more people have them, the services on offer will be better. This is the current argument for buying an iPhone. Give it 12 months though and the tables will be reversed. I’m happy to be ahead of the game and spend my saved cash on a nice SD card that iPhones don’t support.

Beyond these key points I’d like to raise the general point of customisation and freedom. A friend said to me recently “I don’t care about open source. It doesn’t help me. I just like my phone to be easy to use and look good.” He had a fair point, but ultimately an open system that you can change and improve will look better and be easier for you to use. Why should I put up with what Apple have designed when a 3rd party can do better?

All this said, I’ll probably go out and buy an iPhone HD or whatever it’s called after Monday. But I will have high expectations. The slightest disappointment and HTC is already there for me. Go on Steve, impress me.

But apparently this is not the reason that the new PS3 has had its linux capability removed. According to this post on the official Sony linux site, by a Sony employee, the reason is that the hypervisor drivers were too expensive to maintain.

“I’m sorry that you are frustrated by the lack of comment specifically regarding the withdrawal of support for OtherOS on the new PS3 slim.

The reasons are simple: The PS3 Slim is a major cost reduction involving many changes to hardware components in the PS3 design. In order to offer the OtherOS install, SCE would need to continue to maintain the OtherOS hypervisor drivers for any significant hardware changes – this costs SCE. One of our key objectives with the new model is to pass on cost savings to the consumer with a lower retail price. Unfortunately in this case the cost of OtherOS install did not fit with the wider objective to offer a lower cost PS3.”

So there we go. Maybe in the future we will see this option return. Lets all keep our fingers crossed. In the mean time, lets all go out and buy XBOX 360s as they seem to offer better value for money with a larger range of games should we get no linux love from Sony.

Note to Sony: Linux would have made me buy a PS3 slim. Now I’m buying from your competitor.