Maverick Meerkat Comes to My Notebook Computer

Ubuntu's latest semi-annual release is out. Version 10.10 (meaning 2010, October) is known as "Maverick Meerkat" although some people apparently were hoping for "Mighty Manx". I didn't have time to do the upgrade until the first weekend in December.

Something has to be disappointing, so let's start with that.

Gnome 3 was supposed to replace Gnome 2 in this version of Ubuntu, but development delays by Gnome mean that won't happen until next year (probably version 11.04 in April).

But there's a lot to be thankful for.

Lucid Lynx already booted in about one fifth the time required even by the faster booting Windows 7. Canonical says that the Maverick Meerkat is even faster and that does seem to be the case. Both startup and shutdown are far faster than with Windows.

Meerkat includes with Gnome 2.32, OpenOffice 3.2.1, Transmission 2.04, and Firefox 3.6.10. Some of the earlier updates made updating Firefox a painful process and that's unfortunate because most people who choose Linux will also choose Firefox. Photo-manager F-Spot has been replaced by Shotwell which allows users to post photos to Facebook, Flickr, and other services.

You can update from within version 10.04 via the Update Manager but you'll need to modify the Software Sources panel because 10.04 is a long-term-support (LTS) release. The process is easy enough. Visit System > Administration > Software Sources and open the Updates tab. Then change "Check for new distribution releases" to "Normal Releases". After that, you'll be presented with an option to install the new version.

Easy.

When you reboot the system following the update, you'll find new themes, icons, and default wallpaper (of course). You'll also see new typefaces ("The Ubuntu Font Family") that improve readability.

You'll also find some new sections in the Software Center, including a new package installation history. And, although Ubuntu is open-source software, you also have the opportunity, via the Software Center, to purchase some commercial software.

In the previous version, Canonical introduced the online Ubuntu One service. Users receive 2GB of online storage without charge, but now it's possible to upgrade for less: 20GB for $3 per month ($30 per year) and now there's a Windows client for Ubuntu One in case you need to use what Canonical calls a "legacy" operating system.

4 CatsBottom Line: Ubuntu 10.10

Maverick Meerkat is the latest, slickest version yet of Ubuntu Linux. This is an operating system that the average computer user can install to dual-boot with Windows—at least so long as that average user is willing to read the instructions and follow directions.
For more information, visit the Ubuntu website.

Your Own Domain?

I was recently involved in a discussion of domain names and suggested that anyone who's in business and uses a Yahoo or Gmail or AOL address is telegraphing a message to prospective clients. That message, I suggested, is "I'm not serious about business. I just play here." And that started a fire storm of protest from people who run their businesses from Yahoo, Gmail, or AOL accounts.

If you've read what I write for more than a few months, you probably know that I'm a liberal. But Karl Rove got one thing right when he said that perception is reality. If people perceive you as being serious about business, then you are (even if you really aren't) and if they perceive you to be just playing around, then you are (even if you are dead serious about your business.)

Perception is reality. Really. And there's nothing you can do about it.

When it comes to perception, people expect a business to have a telephone number. Some people may expect you to have a fax machine, although that's less important these days. They expect you to have business cards, letterhead, and a logo. They expect an e-mail address with a domain that matches the company name.

Companies register domains and set up e-mail servers because the people who run the businesses think that it makes sense. Deny that fact all you want, but the simple fact is that a real e-mail address conveys a certain gravitas. A panache. A style. A presence.

It's not expensive, either. Domain registrations cost $10-$20 per year and you can buy domain hosting with e-mail for $20 to $1000 per year. I've found plans in the $100-per-year range to be better bargains. You can find free hosting, but it's not something I'd recommend unless you're planning to host a hobby site.

I've talked about this before, but some people like to make changes at the beginning of a new year. Now's your chance.

This doesn't apply to just businesses, either. I had the foresight to register blinn.com, so I use that for my own address and for my wife and daughters. I have separate domain names for techbyter.com and for nLighten.us, a domain that I'll be launching in 2011. Each of the domain names requires a separate registration, but I can add them on to my basic account at my $100-per-year hosting service.

There's no shortage of domain registrars. Here are some of the better known registrars:

When it comes to hosting, my favorite is BlueHost, but there are other good hosting services:

Consumer Reports Readers Diss AT&T

A survey of 58 thousand ConsumerReports.org readers in the US suggests that AT&T doesn't provide a lot of satisfaction. Of all the carriers listed in the report, AT&T was the only one that scored lower this year than last. This is one reason that some potential Iphone buyers have stayed away: Apple's phone works only on AT&T's network.

According to the Consumer Reports blog, more than half of the AT&T users who responded have an Iphone and Iphone owners are much less satisfied with their service providers because they say that Web browsing and e-mail don't work well on the AT&T network.

In a significant turnaround, Sprint is about even with former top-ranked Verizon (now #2) in customer satisfaction. In recent years, Sprint has not performed well in the rankings. And US Cellular, which serves about half of the United States (mainly Midwest and South) actually beat Verizon in customer satisfaction.

The survey is part of the annual cell-phone report package. Although it's the January issue of Consumer Reports, the magazine went on sale this week. The ratings include city-by-city listings for 23 metro areas.

Short Circuits

Tracking Protection for Internet Explorer 9

Microsoft says that tracking protection is a new privacy feature in Internet Explorer 9, which has been out in beta since September. Tracking protection is intended to block third-party websites from tracking your browsing on the Web. A third-party site is one that's separate from the site you're visiting.

Tracking protection will allow consumers to filter a Web contact if it attempts to connect to off-site trackers.

Microsoft Vice President Dean Hachamovitch, head of Internet Explorer development, says that developers are trying to find the right balance between the real consumer benefits that can come from sharing, while providing the user choice and control regarding privacy.

Click for a larger view.Tracking protection allows individuals to indicate which websites they will share information with and those they won't. This is done by adding Tracking Protection Lists, and you can install more than one. By default, there are no lists included in IE9. By default, the feature is also turned off.

Some Web addresses can be placed on what's effectively a "Do Not Call" list, while others might be on the "OK to Call" list. Then the user needs to enable Tracking Protection.

Google is Being Investigated (Again)

Let's face it: Google is an easy target. Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal is trying to force Google to surrender the data Google says it inadvertently collected while operating its Street View service. Blumenthal, who will take a seat in the US Senate early next year, seemed miffed that Google won't show him what it got.

Blumenthal says the legal action is like a subpoena. He terms it a "civil investigative demand" and says that it's essential to verify what data Google collected to assure that there's no repeat performance.

According to the attorney general and senator elect, Google has already permitted international regulators to review the data, but they won't let him look at it. Google has admitted that it accidentally scooped up Wi-Fi data including passwords and, in some cases, e-mail messages.

It's not like Google was actively seeking out private or encrypted data. Anything the company gathered came from unsecured Wi-Fi networks. If you don't care enough about your data to install basic security on your Wi-Fi network and broadcast private data to everyone in your neighborhood, why is this a problem for Google?

Google says it was a mistake and says that it's sorry to have "mistakenly collected payload data from unencrypted networks." When the company realized what had happened, "we stopped collecting all Wi-Fi data from our Street View cars and immediately informed the authorities." Google says that it did not want and has never used the data and would like to delete it.

That's not possible, of course, until people like Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal stop demanding the right to look at it.