Open Document Format Support by Microsoft

Hi All - those hesitating to move to OpenOffice/LibreOffice - here is some heartening news!! Microsoft seems to have had a change of heart and is supporting the 'Open Document Format" ODF which is the heart of OpenOffice/LibreOffice. Thats is documents made in OpenOffice/LibreOffice or any other Open Source Office Suite will seamlessly work on MS Office. Microsoft is infact sponsoring the next ODF-Fest in Apr 2012!! Check out this site http://www.odfplugfest.org/2012-brussels/

"Join us in Brussels The ODF plugfests are an ongoing series of vendor-neutral events, bringing together implementers and stakeholders of the standard. The goal is to achieve maximum interoperability by running scenario-based tests in a hands-on manner and discuss new and proposed features of the ODF specification.
The eighth ODF plugfest will take place in Brussel (Belgium) on April 26th/27th 2012 hosted by Microsoft Office and organised by OpenDoc Society. So mark your calendar!"

So guys - instead of using pirated MS-Office suites in your home/office PC - go ahead and buy the MS-Office suite or download your free office suite from http://www.libreoffice.org/download - which runs equally well on your Windows Machines as well as Linux.

Protect your online banking accounts

Most of us have heard of 'Phishing Attacks' where innocent enthusiastic banking online users find themselves on the receiving end of criminal attacks by having their online bank accounts compromised/swindled. Though most are aware of the dangers, there are some who believe in their online immortality - that is 'It just cannot happen to me'!!! These are the guys I want to alert!!

Check out this detailed explanation of an online banking swindle attack targetted at Indian Banks (this is specifically for Reserve Bank of India accounts).  Just to alert you on the methodology and maybe, for you - it is seeing (by example) is believing!! And hope you never become a victim.

Check out this website of a reputed anti-virus/cyber security company called F-Secure.

Hope this example helps to convince you take necessary care!!

Software Protection Initiative

Food for thought for our Defence Forces whose IT Security awareness/implementation needs a big overhaul considering the massive dependence on IT today!!
Check out the US Air Force 'Software Protection Initiative' and specifically the 'Lightweight Portable Security' Linux OS - which is the need of the hour. This one (LPS) has made it to my CD utility box!!!


Extract from the Software Protection Initiative Site of the US Air Force:

"Lightweight Portable Security (LPS) creates a secure end node from trusted media on almost any Intel-based computer (PC or Mac). LPS boots a thin Linux operating system from a CD or USB flash stick without mounting a local hard drive. Administrator privileges are not required; nothing is installed. The ATSPI Technology Office created the LPS family to address particular use cases. LPS-Public is a safer, general-purpose solution for using web-based applications. The accredited LPS-Remote Access is only for accessing your organization's private network.

LPS-Public allows general web browsing and connecting to remote networks. It includes a smart card-enabled Firefox browser supporting CAC and PIV cards, a PDF and text viewer, Java, and Encryption Wizard - Public. LPS-Public turns an untrusted system (such as a home computer) into a trusted network client. No trace of work activity (or malware) can be written to the local computer. Simply plug in your USB smart card reader to access CAC- and PIV-restricted US government websites.

LPS differs from traditional operating systems in that it isn't continually patched. LPS is designed to run from read-only media and without any persistent storage. Any malware that might infect a computer can only run within that session. A user can improve security by rebooting between sessions, or when about to undertake a sensitive transaction. For example, boot LPS immediately before performing any online banking transactions. LPS should also be rebooted immediately after visiting any risky web sites, or when the user has reason to suspect malware might have been loaded. In any event, rebooting when idle is an effective strategy to ensure a clean computing session. LPS is updated on a regular basis (at least quarterly patch and maintenance releases). Update to the latest versions to have the latest protection. "

Debian is the champ - 2011

Great post on Linux distros at Tuxradar

Of course Debian is the champ :)

Where is the doubt??????????

PGP vs S Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions

Came across an excellent and lucid blog on PGP/MIME and S/MIME - a choice many of us struggle with. Thanks Aaron Toponce! A small relevant extract from the blog is posted below for quick brief


PGP/MIME

1. Uses the OpenPGP RFCs and standards.
2. The “signature.asc” detached signature is in plain text.
3. Flexibility in algorithm choice for encryption, signing and compression.
4. Relies on a distributed trust model.
5. Not as widely deployed in MUAs as S/MIME.
6. Public key must be distributed separately from the signature.
7. Trivial to integrate with webmail providers.
8. Can only be used with signing documents.
9. An expiration date does not need to be set on the public key.
10. Free.

S/MIME

1. Based on a number of RFCs and standards.
2. The “smime.p7s” detached signature is in a binary format.
3. Generally, the Certificate Authority (CA) chooses the algorithm and key size.
4. Relies on a centralized trust model.
5. More widely deployed than PGP/MIME
6. Public certificate distributed in each detached signature.
7. Difficult to integrate with webmail providers.
8. Can be used for both signatures and encryption.
9. Generally, the public certificate expires once per year.
10. Some CAs provide certs free for personal use, but most if not all CAs charge for professional use. As low as $20 per year, depending on the CA.

Unix/Linux mastering source - great compilation

Came across one of the most comprehensive Unix/Linux command site - an easy to follow/try listing that would definitely make even a new user a master of Linux (of course - you have to spend time in the exciting command line :)

Those interested, do try! And bet even if you learn 10% of the commands - you would be a Linux Zen master!! :)

Check it out at : http://cb.vu/unixtoolbox.xhtml

And this: http://floppix.ccai.com/labs.html

Free and Open Source Software listing

A great list of Free and Open Source Software

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_free_software_packages

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Open_source_network_management_software

Easiest Linux Distro for N?ewbie

A nice discussion on 'easiest Linux distro' at Slashdot - some of the comments are must read. Check it out.

Good to know my favourite for newbie 'Linux Mint' has quite a lot of support!

http://linux.slashdot.org/story/11/07/06/2149258/Ask-Slashdot-Easiest-Linux-Distro-For-a-Newbie#comments

Stitch PDF files togather

Many a times I had to face the issue of sending multiple PDF files for official/personal reasons - either by email or for backing up. What bugged me was I had to multiple attachments or references - specially when one had to send a multi-paged invoice or bills - which has been scanned as PDF (each page).

Linux provided a simple solution - using the inbuilt 'Ghostscript' program. Just run it in the command line and presto, we have an output PDF combined file. (ofcourse - you have to have pdfwrite installed - by a simple apt-get install command)

gs -dBATCH -dNOPAUSE -q -sDEVICE=pdfwrite -sOutputFile=finished.pdf file1.pdf file2.pdf

where:

• gs -- starts the Ghostscript program
• -dBATCH -- once Ghostscript processes the PDF files, it should exit. If you don't include this option, Ghostscript will just keep running
• -dNOPAUSE -- forces Ghostscript to process each page without pausing for user interaction
• -q -- stops Ghostscript from displaying messages while it works
• -sDEVICE=pdfwrite -- tells Ghostscript to use its built-in PDF writer to process the files
• -sOutputFile=finished.pdf -- tells Ghostscript to save the combined PDF file with the name that you specified

Proud of my Grandfather

Proud of my Grandfather!
Quoting an EMail from Shri Gurbir Singh to my cousin sis - Rita Mahapatra and brother-in-law Brajendra Mahapatra. Thanks to the diaries preserved by my uncle Shri N Gantayat!

====EMAIL From Shri Gurbir Singh==

Paralakhemundi.

22.3.11

Smt. & Sri Mahapatraji,

         

Thank you very much for writing that wonderful E-mail to me, which was very much intrinsically imbued on with feelings of great understanding, love and admiration for a family patriarch and great soul, who had contributed so much to the making of a great familial lineage by being a great human being with so much of a sensitive side to him ( I personally treasure this aspect more than anything in a human being), of course, besides his enormous contributions to the royal household of Paralakhemundi and to the latter cause of  including the PKD Zamindari to the approved boundary of the Orissan State. 

This I feel inclined to write because when I first met Sri N. Gantayet Babu, I was overwhelmed with his dedication and love for his father; to find him having preserved the old diaries (even of the very young days of his father that described his hostel life and high school days) with so much care and devotion was like seeing a small sensitive, adorable, spiritual charisma. This I admired much; this I find in this E-mail itself. The diaries which I read with so much interest, the diaries which allowed me a journey into the mind of a sensitive young man that was filled with enormous dreams and concern for the society he lived in, the sensitivity I found in him, I found dominant in the successive family trees as well. He must be a happy man in heaven to see this intellectually sensitive side predominantly running in his family.

I am no scholar, no researcher, no publication craving contributor. I wrote what I meant and I meant what I strongly felt. There was so much to write; the diaries had so much in them, maybe the haste of writing the piece to keep the deadline did make me leave out some other aspects of this unacknowledged, great man of Orissa. I am sorry for that. At a personal level, I found it highly satisfying to read the entries in the diaries, and it was also quite energizing to write that piece. Mentally I have been enriched by the mind of the young man who felt so much, whose feelings unfortunately remained unknown, so much like his valued scribbles which have remained obscure till date, though very well preserved and read by a small inner circle of family acquaintance.  

I strongly feel that he could have become a chronicler par excellence, besides contributing politically to the state and the nation post independence, if he had not been God’s favourite in dying young.  But as you have rightly affirmed in your E-mail that he had left behind a legacy of quiet dignity, perseverance and high moral conduct as the goal for all of us to strive and achieve, I am sure that the throbs that still beat in the hearts of those diaries will definitely make many more readers like me rededicate themselves to strive to become better human beings. One day, he surely will get his due mention as one of the architect in shaping the minds of those were acknowledgedly at the helms of affairs in carrying forward the struggle of independent statehood of Orissa.

Thank you once again for writing.

With warm regards!

Gurbir Singh

Internet Security - Parental control setup

With the easy access to the Internet Broadband to everyone in the family, the need for parental controls has never been felt more. 

There is a need to prevent access to dangerous sites at which family members unwittingly land up with, or to control the usage hours etc. 

Check out these useful websites (rated safe!) for setting up parental controls easily.

For Windows 7 user: http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/10524/how-to-use-parental-controls-in-windows-7/

For Ubuntu/Mint Linux Users: http://productivegeek.com/articles/how-to-create-a-family-friendly-ubuntu-setup/

NASA Open Source summit

Well, just to show that Open Source is something to reckon with, 

NASA is going to host an Open Source summit on 29-30 March

http://www.nasa.gov/open/source/
"This event will bring together engineers and policy makers across NASA and respected members of the open source community to discuss the challenges with the existing open source policy framework, and propose modifications that would make it easier for NASA to develop, release, and use open source software"

Wish someone sponsors my trip there ;-)

Jokes apart, its high time our Govt (or its parts like the services) convene a similar summit - 'coz I see a lot of decisions taken based on personality and experiences and not on a collective thinking or future implications. 

"Open source brings numerous benefits to NASA software projects, including increased software quality, reduced development costs, faster development cycles, and reduced barriers to public-private collaboration through new opportunities to commercialize NASA technology. This inherently transparent, participatory, and collaborative approach is revolutionizing the way software is created, improved, and used.

Although open source release has already provided numerous benefits to NASA, the full benefits of open source can only be realized if NASA is able to establish the processes, policies, and culture needed to encourage and support open source development. This will require expanding open source activities beyond releasing software only after completion and finding new ways to support two-way collaboration with an open development community throughout the entire software lifecycle."

Open Source and Linux Economics

The usual question that many ask and suspect - 'How come Linux is given away free? And how do these companies - like Ubuntu - survive?'

I always have a difficult time answering that - and most of the time can make out that the audience is not convinced. Those in the government and decision making chain instead of being thankful that we have a great software available free of cost - do tend to feel there is some ulterior motives (who gives away things for free now-a-days??) or just don't believe it!

Came across a great blog by Mark Shuttleworth - the Owner/Creator of Ubuntu (his company is called Canonical) - wherein he explains some of the free and Open Source Economics. Check it out here
(of course - make it a point to check out the fair comments at the blog site too! Pretty interesting debate!!)

Mark is a 'billionaire' by the way, and the second 'self-funded' space tourist - check his Wikipedia site here

Extract from his blog:

The bulk of the direct cost in creating the audience of Ubuntu users is carried by Canonical. There are many, many indirect costs and contributions that are carried by others, both inside the Ubuntu community and in other communities, without which Ubuntu would not be possible. But that doesn’t diminish the substantial investment made by Canonical in a product that is in turn made available free of charge to millions of users and developers.

The business model which justifies this investment, and which we hope will ultimately sustain that effort for the desktop without dependence on me, is that fee-generating services which are optional for users provide revenue to Canonical. This enables us to make the desktop available in a high quality, fully maintained form, without any royalties or license fees. By contrast, every other commercial Linux desktop is a licensed product – you can’t legally use it for free, the terms for binaries are similar to those for Windows or the MacOS. They’re entitled to do it their way, we think it’s good in the world that we choose to do it our way too.

Office suite freedom with LibreOffice 3.3 release this Republic Day

A special gift this 62nd Republic Day 26 Jan 2011 for all those who value their 'Freedom' - the release of 'LibreOffice 3.3' - a solid replacement for MS-Office Suites and OpenOffice (bought over by Oracle) on 25 Jan 2011.

Check out: http://bit.ly/eNnh09

Though MS-Office is indeed a great software with loads of features, it is mired in licensing requirements and proprietary formats! More so when such a great 'can do nearly all our office work' suite like 'LibreOffice' is available for free, why bother with MS-Office? Moreover, MS-Office is not available for Linux (you can install MS-Office using Windows emulators like Crossover etc! but why bother?)

Just try out LibreOffice - and checkout what you can do with it. ITs FREE after all!!! And yess, LibreOffice can open all your doc, ppt etc formats of MS-Office - so no sweat there.

Download LibreOffice for Windows/Mac/Linux from: http://www.libreoffice.org/download/

For Linux users those who are using Ubuntu or Mint, its pretty easy to install. Follow this steps:-

(a) Start a terminal window and issue these commands (you’ll be asked for your password):

                sudo add-apt-repository ppa:libreoffice/ppa 

        sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libreoffice

(b) To complete the integration to Ubuntu (Gnome) or Kubuntu (KDE), you will also need to either

      sudo apt-get install libreoffice-gnome

                or

      sudo apt-get install libreoffice-kde

Thats it - as easy as that !!
If you are adventurous enough and want to add on more features, get the 'extensions' for LibreOffice available from the OpenOffice extensions repository at : http://libreplanet.org/wiki/Group:OpenOfficeExtensions/List

Enjoy!!