bioneural.net » ubuntu

Virtual Ubuntu 6.06 on the Mac

Bruce — Fri, 02 Jun 2006 11:54:01 +0000

The principle characteristic of a good installation process is that it "just works" with no more than a few basic on-screen instructions. No pre-preparation. No manuals. No helpline. And no more than one cup of coffee. I'm pleased to report that such a characteristic is possessed by Ubuntu 6.06 Desktop edition. Things didn't go quite so well when I tried to install the Server edition onto my Intel Mac mini. Compared to the previous incarnation (5.10), 6.06 certainly looks dapper (as in Dapper Drake). As Ken commented, the GUI is now more Mac-like than Windows-like—most especially the default desktop background! However, I was more interested in exploring the recently announced Server edition to: ... set up a standardized, certified, and supported LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP) server with a single command. I've installed Apache, MySQL, and PHP before from the command line under OS X using Terminal, and this isn't for the faint-hearted. A MAMP-like experience using Ubuntu would be most welcome. I enthusiastically downloaded the .iso image for the Server edition and the installation (although different from the Desktop edition) completed apparently without a hitch, using Parallels Desktop (virtualization software for Intel-based Macs). However, on rebooting I could go no further than the command prompt: It seems I am not alone in experiencing this installation issue. Good: I don't like it when it's just me!

New Ubuntu version coming

Bruce — Mon, 29 May 2006 07:51:46 +0000

From bioneural.net:

Ubuntu upgrade: The Server Edition of the June 1 Ubuntu release will include a mechanism to set up a standardized, certified, and supported LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP) server with a single command.

Virtualization: so cool it hurts

Bruce — Fri, 19 May 2006 17:11:49 +0000

From bioneural.net:

How do you make a computer nerd happy? Give him three (or more) operating systems to play with at once on the same machine. But seriously, virtualization software is a real boon for web developers with an interest in cross-platform testing their designs. Boot Camp is great and the undoubtedly the best choice for playing PC games or where "total immersion" is required (e.g. without the distractions of Mac Mail, NetNewsWire, etc.) When I'm tweaking my CSS I'll have Transmit (my FTP client) open, and edit my code "live" with BBEdit (a text/ HTML editor). I then refresh Safari and Firefox to check the changes. But rebooting the Mac into Windows just to do the same in Internet Explorer, then rebooting into Mac to re-edit (repeatedly) is no fun. Parallels Desktop for Mac lets me test the effect of the changes in Windows (without rebooting) as easily as I can with the Mac browsers. The same can be said of Ubuntu: 3 operating systems running simultaneously on the same machine sharing the same hardware and broadband connection, all with decent performance: Download a full-size screen capture showing bioneural.net open in Safari, Firefox (Mac), Internet Explorer 6, and Firefox (Ubuntu). The image is a 940 KB .png file.

Boot an Intel Mac into Ubuntu Linux from iPod

Bruce — Wed, 17 May 2006 20:04:03 +0000

From bioneural.net:

So you want to explore Linux, or create a LAMP environment for web development without having to re-partition your internal drive or try some flakey Boot Camp hack to triple-boot your Mac? Can it be done? I decided to find out... Limited for time? Read Installing Ubuntu step 10 first. The ingredients 1 x good-for-nothing first generation 5 GB iPod with a dud battery; 1 x Ubuntu 5.10 for PC install CD-ROM; 1 x Intel Mac mini with Tiger 10.4.6 and Windows XP (via Boot Camp) installed; 1 x Firewire cable. Preparing the iPod Connect the iPod via Firewire. Enter Disk Mode: hold down the Menu and Play keys and, when the Apple icon has appeared, immediately hold down the Rewind and Forward buttons. Open Disk Utility, select the iPod and choose Partition. Choose 1 Partition as the Volume Scheme; name the volume; choose UNIX File System and then Partition. Installing Ubuntu Insert the Ubuntu install CD into the Mac. Restart the Mac, holding down the letter "C" to boot from the CD. At the boot prompt press Return for a default installation. Work through the standard Ubuntu installation screens. When you get to the "Partition Disks" screen, make sure your iPod is selected and press Return. At the warning hit the left arrow key then Return. Sit back and enjoy the creeping progress bar, then work through user configuration. A few more progress bars later the Mac will spit out the CD. Hit Return to "Continue" and hold down the Option (Alt) key as your Mac restarts. You should see a Firewire disk icon, oddly labelled "Windows". Select it ...

Experience with XP on an Intel Mac mini

Bruce — Sat, 08 Apr 2006 20:56:02 +0000

From bioneural.net:

With the release of Boot Camp Apple have openly facilitated users running Windows XP on their Intel Macs if they need do. This is a good thing for everybody. Apple gives "switchers" a reason to choose Macs without betting the farm. Microsoft gets to sell copies of Windows to Mac users. Mac fans get to work in OS X and boot into Windows when they must (e.g. I occasionally need to run Access, install PC-only software for hardware configuration, test how my website looks using Internet Explorer, etc.) Running Windows step-by-step The installer and instructions provided by Apple are crystal clear: it couldn't be easier—it just takes time. For me the process involved: Deauthorizing iTunes on my Mac (It's easy to forget this step, but you might run out of machines authorised to playback your music if you don't!); Backing up the entire contents of my Mac to an external hard drive; Using the Mac OS X 10.4.5 installation disk to run Disk Utility and erasing the entire hard drive (This was necessary since I had previously had a crack at the OnMac hack which involves partitioning the drive; Boot Camp insists you start with a single HFS partition); Reinstalling OS X; Reinstalling the Mac OS X 10.4.6 update; Applying the Mac mini firmware updater; Installing Boot Camp; Burning (via Boot Camp) a Macitosh Drivers CD for use by Windows XP; Creating (via Boot camp) a partition onto which Windows XP would be installed (It amazes me you don't loose any Mac data when doing this; you can even non-destructively re-size ...