Friday, April 18, 2008

GNU/Linux offers no packages for Women??

We have all variety of packages in GNU/Linux which are no gender specific and anyone can use them in home computing . But then we have games for kids and adult males.

I was wondering why can`t or don`t have some special packages on every or at least the major GNU/Linux distributions which are more feminine oriented ?

I have seen Window$ tools for pharmacists,homeopaths,traditional medicine practitioners and so on. Why can`t we have some packages for women on Linux?

I am clueless , would you people like to generate some ideas? !

PCLinuxOS 2008 Minime Tour on Webcam !

Dr.Hassan Sajid Kazmi is an old friend and colleague of me . He used to be a Window$ and GNU/Linux GURU years back but then the medical private practice and professional life took him away from these " extra curricular,extra professional " hobbies unlike me as I keep myself absorbed in OSS and GNU/Linux world after my professional duties time.

He met me online and we chit chatted about different things including my Linux blog page. I decided to take him on a tour of my PCLinuxOS through my webcam so that he can see how things got changed and improved when he left using Linux years back.

Kopete works out of the box for my little Chinese made webcam and when Dr.Sajid witnessed the first view of my PCLinuxOS desktop he was shocked at its beauty: "what Linux is this? " was his first question.

I ran Compiz-fusion and the different 3D effects on it and despite the fact that he was watching it through the small lens of my webcam he was amazed and he said "is this part of this OS or some kind of add-upon" ? I told him this is Compiz-fusion.

Then I opened shell and ran apt-get commands for him and he liked how shell worked flawlessly. He asked me where and how will I get different packages and I ran Synaptic for him and installed Abiword for him and when he saw his typed name on Abiword page he said " this is great" !

Then I played few videos for him from my multimedia collection on KMPlayer, Caffeine and VLC and he was thoroughly impressed.

Tuxpaint, Tuxcart, frozen bubble and many other games were a delight for him to see and he said "nice graphics".

He asked me how and from where he can get this Linux and is it a 700MB CD? I told him that he can get the mini 2008 ISO and can make a custom system from that exaclty as I have done. He was glad as did not want a big Iso file to download. I told him how he can remaster his custom made system with a simple tool called "mklivecd".

He was worried that this Linux might need some kind of super fast computer and I told him that it runs well on my Pentium IV 2.HT and he was delighted as his PC is superior to mine.

I am so glad that I have reincarnated an old Linux user and convinced him to try PCLinuxOS once after years of self induced surrender to Window$ and this magic worked through a small tour through my webcam!

I call it another good day in my GNU/Linux life, another Window$ victim rescued!