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People want Answers and answers, they want more help and they want more distros on the disc.
Escaping Windows is always a great idea. I hope that your article persuades more people to take the Linux path. As usual though, there’s more to Linux and UNIX than meets the eye and the Escape Windows article is missing an important option where you say that there are three ways to run two or more command. A fourth can be added, namely using a single ampersand between commands.
Linux, as with the original UNIX, is a multi-tasking operating system and so you can easily run multiple commands concurrently. Building on your ‘cp’ example: cp source_1 destination_2 & cp source_2 destination_2
This would fire off the first cp and run it in the background, then immediately run the second cp at the same time, but in the foreground. Predictably, this method is best suited to command that don’t require user interaction.
Adding a second ampersand at the end: cp source_1 destination_2 & cp source_2 destination_2 & gives a variation on the first example and runs both commands in the background, returning you to the command prompt straight away. While cp source_1 destination_2 & cp source_2 destination_2 & wait will run both commands in the background, but wait until they complete before returning to the command line. man bash will provide all the details you need about the single ampersand and the “wait” option. Ian Hart as, via email Neil says: You can certainly do some startling things with the terminal. Our man John Knight is doing the Lord’s work with the Terminal column at the moment, but I think that suggesting beginners read the Bash Man pages is going to send them screaming into the night!
Route it yourself
With the widely publicised issues around weak default router passwords, it seems sensible to turn off the Wi-Fi on commercial routers and set up a separate Wi-Fi access point using open source software configured to meet one’s own requirements. I guess that many people would like to enable their guests to access the internet using a password, but would prefer tighter security, say twofactor authentication or certificates, for access to machines on their network. A subtle extension would be to permit guests to use a networked printer.
A Raspberry Pi or similar lowwattage device would seem a good starting choice. As Linux Fomat readers are likely to prefer “packing their own parachute”, how about a tutorial on this? Philip, via email, Location Neil says: It’s not just routers, but any hardware running Linux that we should be concerned about. We’ll be looking at LEDE – the successor to OpenWRT – next issue. Furthermore, you should consider Lineage OS for your mobile devices.
Faulty memory
Perhaps Neil was not part of the team then, but Zorin in different flavours has appeared on the cover DVD in issue 170 (May 2013) and Zorin 6 in issue 164 (December 2012).
As an active moderator for Zorin OS I tried Etcher when Zorin 12.0 came out and it didn’t work for me. I’d like you to cover MultiSystem as an alternative – it’s far easier and great for storing multiple images of different distributions on substantial memory sticks. It’s also superior to Unetbootin.
On the topic of dual-booting, I think for Windows users who want to have both OSes installed without tears there’s only one method in my book and that was the video created by Matthew Moore at www.youtube.com/ watch?v=x lT gaWs9BD 0.
Finally can you run Makulu Linux on the DVD? It still has some way to go on the Accessibility front – Trisquel 6.0 was the best ever produced in respect of it launching with the screenreader as the first option in live mode. Also, does it cost to have a LUG advertised? Sheffield Linux User Group meets on the first of the month at The Holt,
156, Arundel Street, Sheffield, S1 4RE. More details at www. sheflug.org.uk/indexpage. Swarfendor437,viaemail,
Neil says: In Neil Bothwick’s defence, he wasn’t actually doing the discs for those issues, so it’s understandable he didn’t realise it had already been featured. We’ll take a look at MultiSystem, but
Unetbootin is easily available for Windows, Mac OS and Linux, so it’s our preferred option to suggest to non-Linux users. We’ll take a look at Makulu Linux too, though getting specific distros on the disc is more to do with timings on releases. Listing your LUG in User Group is free, you just need to write in and let us know!