Who am I ?
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As if anybody cares !
Well, I am just an ordinary person who likes
freedom and worships liberty. I don't like keeping birds in cages, or
seeing golden fish in a glass balloon. And, I don't like being pushed
around by greedy bullies, who want me to take whatever rubbish they
dish out, tie up my hands with invisible strings, and also make me pay
for all that torture !
I saw my best ideals being supported by the
FOSS movement.
So, I thought I should become part of the FOSS movement. Over the years, I grew up
to become an admirer, practitioner, promoter of FOSS/Linux. I have even been branded as an "eternal learner".
Ever since, I have strictly followed a
zero tolerance policy
towards Microsoft (and other restrictive, proprietory software products).
And, I also became an adherent of
Libreplanet .
I never miss an opportunity (this website
is an example) to warn my friends, colleagues, and students of the perils of following the crowd and falling prey to restrictive, propreitary software products like Microsoft .
I do my little bit to share my knowledge by giving live lectures and publishing tutorial material tutorial material on Linux.
All my publications are licensed under a
CC-BY-SA license. The complete legal document
is here.
If you really want to know more about me (but, why should you ? ) .
You can visit my
profile page. And, you are also invited to visit the
homepage of Algologic
Research & Solutions -- an innovative and leading-edge
enterprise which I started some years ago.
Look, who's talking !
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Look, who's talking !
This is the story of how curiosity turned into passion, and grew to become an obsession
.
Humble beginnings + endless striving
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What exactly is free software ?
Find out why free beer is not really free !
Addiction
I am incurably addicted to the Free Software Movement (FOSS) and
its flagship product: GNU/Linux (aka Linux). I am allergic to proprietary and
blackbox software. I get violent convulsions when I am exposed
to proprietary and blackbox software (read Microsoft). My favourites are
Open Suse and , Ubuntu
distributions
although I am
not very uncomfortable with other distributions of Linux .
This particular choice of favourites gives me access to:
- A distro (Open Suse) which supports rpm based packages and repositories. I use this
distro with KDE as the default.
- A distro (Ubuntu) which supports deb based packages and repositories. I use this
distro with GNOME as the default.
This approach helps me to help and assist anyone who wishes to
master these two distributions. When asked to install Linux, I
choose one or both of these distributions. I have created a concept of
"twin boot system",
for this purpose. Of course, I never
create the rubbish called "dual boot system" which often involves
Microsoft. That is why. the systems on which I install Linux, are
called ULB (Unpolluted Linux Box). I am of course proud of my
addiction. There are many things I have to learn still, but I do
not give up so easily.
How it all started
Humble beginnings + endless striving always help.
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Technical contributions
Taking the world by storm :
I do my bit, to make Linux a little more enjoyable for all my
colleagues. I contribute to the Linux efforts in several ways.
Contributions to IEEE's POSIX Standard:
I grew up with Unix, the predecessor of Linux. My
association with Unix started several years ago, when the POSIX
standardisation efforts started (198x). I was the only Indian (based in
India), to contribute to, and be acknowledged in
the first Draft Standards of POSIX
developed by IEEE(USA).
Contributions to LDP: My
contributions to the Linux
Documentation Project have been found very useful, and are
appreciated by many Linux users worldwide. In fact, these
contributions are available as part of almost all major Linux
distributions, worldwide.
Support services :
Algologic Research & Solutions, a Consulting company started
by me, provides a wide range of support for your Linux installation.
Algologic can also offer you tools to assist you in installation, configuring,software
development, Sysadmin, housekeeping, troubleshooting, shell scripts.
- The Linux Pre-installation
checklist is an innovative (and very popular) checklist for those planning to
install Linux on their own machines (or for others). This document is
listed as a "mini-HOWTO" by the
Linux Documentation Project (official agency for Linux
related development work), and is very popular amongst Linux users.
The Linux Pre-installation checklist (Nov. 2000)
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This document has been
translated into Japanese
- This document has been
translated into Dutch.
- This document has been
translated into French
- This document has been
translated into Turkish
- This document has been
translated into Russian
- This
document has been translated to Spanish
- This
document has been translated to German
-
This document has been translated into Czech
.
- This document has been translated into Bulgarian language.
The number of translations is an
indication of the popularity and usefulness of this document !
In fact, the number of translations could be much more. Only the above
translated versions have come to our notice. If you know about
versions, in any other language, please let us know.
(Warning : These documents are not updated now. So they may be outdated.)
- Well begun is half done : The
ideal sequel to the Linux Pre-installation checklist, is the
Linux Post-installation procedures (June 2001). This
is one more extremely potent and useful contribution to the Linux
community, from Algologic. This document is listed as a "mini-
HOWTO" by the Linux Documentation
Project (official agency for Linux related development
work), and is very popular amongst Linux users.
(Warning : This document is not updated now. So it may be outdated.)
This document is now supplemented by a growing number of shell
scripts (and tutorials) to make troubleshooting and repair of Linux systems easier and pain-free.
- linusability : This project is a serious introspection of the usability
aspects of Linux. Details of this project are
available at:
http://drpartha.org.in/linusability.htm Suggestions and contributions welcome.
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Helpful resources
- Get started now : The best place to start exploring Linux
- STOP misunderstanding free software
- OSTechnix has all the answers : A very well organised and informative resource for all things FOSS. You can also subscribe to their newsletter (use the subscribe button on their home page) for regular announcements and updates.
- Full circle magazine Full Circle Magazine is a free, independent, monthly magazine dedicated to the Ubuntu family of Linux operating systems. Each month, it contains helpful how-to news and reader submitted stories. There is also the Full Circle Weekly News. A short weekly podcast giving just the news. No chit-chat, no banter, just FOSS/Ubuntu/Linux news.
- Linux Hand book -- LHB
Linux Handbook (LHB) is dedicated to improving your Linux knowledge with easy-to-follow tips, tutorials and courses. Subscribe here, to get LHB for free, by email, regularly.
- Ask a gangster !
Dr. Partha (the author of this webpage) is a member of
The Answer Gang (TAG), promoted by
Linux Gazette.
Linux Gazette is a free (gratis) web based journal.
He and his co-gangsters
are waiting to help you enjoy Linux better.
Just ask ! You
can also browse the entire archives
of earlier queries posted by people like you.
- Download and learn and share: Take a look at some downloadable tutorial publications on Linux
- Talk to a guru
T Shrinivasan is the Chief animator of the Linux Users Group, Chennai, India.
He publishes a very informative blog which discusses Linux/FOSS related matters. He also happens to be my Linux/FOSS/Tamil guru. I discovered that he is younger than my son.
A sample post from his wordpress blog.
- Publications, seminars, and presentations, to help you
understand Linux better
Articles (in pdf format)
Presentations / Tutorials
You can get a whole range of
lectures/seminars done at
your institution/organisation. Get Dr. Partha to make live presentations of his
seminars on Linux and
FOSS, in your
institution. Your institution can get complimentary copies of
all his
Linux CDROMs. You can make copies and distribute them to all
the participants freely. This is an excellent way to shun slavery, and learn
how to live in complete freedom and liberty, like Dr. Partha
himself.
All these presentations, lectures, seminars and demos are done using FOSS tools only.
Internships and Project Work : Or, you can do a
FOSS/Linux based internship ptoject with Dr. Partha.
Having fun with Linux
The hall of shame for the shameless
You can always undo the mistake you made |
Protect your sanity
Make a begining today !
Try this today !
Or, try
10 ways to get started with Linux
Support to local users' group
Celebrating the Tenth Anniversary of GNU/Linux, at
the Linux Users Group, Hyderabad (Aug. 2001). I was the
main Convenor of the local Linux User group for nearly two years, and
managed to bring some stability to this hyperactive group.
I assist and encourage educational institutions and individuals who are sincerely interested in adopting FOSS/Linux.
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With Richard M Stallman, founder of
the Free Software Foundation (FSF), and Rajeev Sangal (back to camera), Director, IIITH.
FSF is the force behind the phenomenal popularity of GNU/Linux
(and a whole lot of other utilities).
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Meet Dr. Partha
Learn Linux
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Ever wondered what is the most enjoyable way to
understand Linux ? Join the "Linux in a teaspoon"
course, designed and conducted by me. You can ask for this course to be
organised in your own institution or organisation. You can also choose from a
range
of lectures/tutorials by the guru.
Or, you can download tutorial material on
Linux, and teach yourself at home, at your own pace,
and without spending any money.
Or, get some CDROMS (listed below) created by this guru.
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Why Linux ? (Linux starter kit on a single CDROM)
CDROMs from the guru
The "teaspoon" CDROM
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My tutorial
introduction to Linux comes in the
form of a CDROM. You can browse this CDROM at your own pace and in
your own home or office. The CDROM
carries all the 100 issues of The Linux Gazette, plus a whole lot
of new features and articles to make you a guru of Linux. This CDROM has
been appreciated by many users in different countries.
You can
see a press review which appeared in a very respectable newspaper
in Pakistan.
Take a look at the top-page of
the "teaspoon" CDROM.
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Why is Linux good for me ?
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This is a single CDROM starter kit for those who are
keen on entering the wonderful world of Linux.
Here is the : Top page of the
CDROM "Why is Linux good for me ?"
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Shell scripting
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Success in the Linux arena depends on how well you can write and
understand shell scripts. Keep this CDROM handy. This CDROM gives you a lot of
material on Bash shell scripting. It also gives hundreds of examples
for you to hack and learn shell scripting.
Here is the :
Top page of the CDROM on shell scripting
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Catalogue of educational CDROMs by Prof. Partha
Need (free) help ?
Do anything, ask anybody except Dr. Partha. We are actually
overwhelmed by general enquiries about Linux. Although we would very
much like to, we really do not have the resources to answer all
general queries about Linux. There are many places on the web, where
you can post your queries.
Follow some basic rules of decency when asking for help. |
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Need (paid-for) help ?
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If you need help with Linux (and will pay for the help), you can count on us. Algologic has a rich experience in
installing, configuring and trouble-shooting in Linux. We can assist you as your (paid)
Consultants for your Linux related activities. In addition, we have a wide range of services
we can offer. Just
get in touch with us, today. |
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^
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Search this site, or search the entire WWW, using this special search
facility
If you still don't find what you want, please
ask Dr. Partha
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