RICKVAUSE.COM

The new Ubuntu Software Centre is really great, and I often explore it to find the awesome packages that are available to install. One thing that bugs the hell out of me, however, is that in recent versions of Ubuntu .deb files (ie when you download a deb package and manually install it) open in the Ubuntu Software Centre and the process is incredibly SLOW.

I have dealt with this and just accepted it, instead using the command line (dpkg) instead to avoid using the Ubuntu Software Centre, but I occasionaly forget and just double click the deb file to launch it. Today I decided to solve this problem for myself, so here is how I did it.

Tip: How to give the old deb installer it's place back in newer versions of Ubuntu (instructions are assuming use of pcmanfm, if you are using nautilus, you should start using pcmanfm, it's better - otherwise the process is much the same in nautilus) 

First

sudo apt-get install gedbi

This will get gdebi installed. Next find a .deb file you wish to install with your file manager, right click it then select "Open with..."

In the "Custom Command Line" tab enter the following

gdebi-gtk %f

Click the checkbox next to "Set selected application as default...blah" and finally click "Ok".

The deb should load up with gdebi and double-clicking .deb files in the future should fire up gdebi instead of Ubuntu Software Centre.

Again, Ubuntu Software Centre is great for discovering and installing software that is available in the Ubuntu repos but I just think it should be keep out of the loop if I found the software else where.

So I noticed my partner's younger brother (13) gets asked questions like, "Are you on the computer again?" and other naggy-like comments as he will spend a lot of time at the computer playing video games. I don't think there is anything wrong with this, he is engaging his brain, socialising and having some fun at the same time. 

This got me thinking as I experienced the same sort of nagging when I was a child at home living with my parents. They would complain about the amount of time I spent at the computer and the amount of time I invested in video games - in fact they still do this. This is totally understandable, as hacking around on a PC and playing video games isn't for everybody so I wouldn't expect anything else. I feel the same way about TV; I do not understand the draw it has and wonder how people can sit and watch so much television.

So from whatever age I was when my parents first brought home a games console, and brought home a PC I was hooked on hacking, learning and gaming. As I grew older, I spent a larger portion of time at my PC learning new skills and leveling up - and this has continued right up until now. I don't regret any of it, not one bit.

So here is a list of some of the stuff I learnt and did whilst not watching TV (in no particular order)

• Learnt GFA Basic
• Played Final Fantasy VII three times (possibly one of the best gaming experiences ever)
• Learnt how to make visualisations for Winamp
• Learnt Python (£££ this now pays my bills)
• Learnt PHP (this does not pay my bills)
• Learnt to write Javascript and later use awesome libraries like jQuery
• Learnt about servers, how to build websites and services (£££)
• Discovered loads of awesome music using last.fm
• Played with and discovered many distributions of Linux including Fedora, SuSe, Debian, Ubuntu, Gentoo
• Maintained and improved a private Bit-Torrent tracker website
• Learnt to use CVS
• Learnt to use Git :)
• Learnt how to configure, maintain and modify various game server software
• Played Chess with Chinese people
• Learnt how to build a computer from a set of components
• Learnt about disk partitioning - sounds boring but incredibly useful
• Learnt to administer Linux and Windows systems
• Leartn to compile from source (used to be very important a few years ago, almost never do it now)
• Played Phantasy Star Online (maybe the first MMO on a console?)
• Played Crazy Taxi (a lot)
• Learnt how to sample, create waveforms, tempo match, and use a tracker to create music
• Improved my questionable guitar skills by downloading tabs
• ...

There is loads more, but this is the stuff at the top of my head. Of course I have learnt a lot and done a lot of other stuff whilst away from the computer in this time but I am just writing to say I am sooo glad I didn't watch TV and beer is good.