Linux | Michael Mahaffey

Category Archives: Linux

Starter League Web Dev – Week Six and Seven

Posted on February 22, 2013

What is back-end development?

We have been learning lots of awesome things in class over the past two weeks like: database structures, table associations, validations, tests, user accounts, user sessions, cookies, passwords, account security, and Github.

Github is a code management network that simplifies Git, which is a free source code management system. (Git was invented by Linus Torvalds aka: the guy who invented the Linux kernel). Git and Github are absolutely awesome. Seriously though, it makes me happy to be alive. Github allows developers can easily upload their files and projects to store, share, and collaborate with other developers. If you are interested in Git and Github, I highly recommend Git Immersion, an awesome intro tutorial to get you started.

Database structures and table associations are the fundamentals of linking a database together to create functional web applications. Validations ensure that the information you enter is valid for a given data entry. You know those notices that tell you your username or password need one uppercase letter and/or one number? Those are validations at work.

Tests are written in applications to test the code to make sure it doesn’t break later on and result in a devastating error that scares all your users away. That being said, any popular app most definitely has lots and lots of tests to make sure it runs properly. There are actually tests called koans that allow programmers to learn specific programming languages. For anyone that is learning Ruby, I would definitely suggest Rubykoans.

User accounts and user sessions are all made possible because of cookies. HTTP cookies are small pieces of data sent from websites to be stored in the user’s browser. Authentication cookies notify websites of the their users’ previous activity, such as if a user is logged in to a specific account or not . Not all digital cookies are equal though. Tracking cookies and third-party tracking cookies can collect records of your browsing history, so we should still clear our browsers’ cookies from time to time. Why are they called cookies? The name cookie was coined by developers to think of a trail of cookie crumbs. The name stuck. But seriously, who doesn’t like cookies.

It’s crazy that week seven is already over. I’ve learned so much during this experience at the Starter League and at 1871! It’s crazy how the more you learn, the more you realize how much you don’t know. Time to go get some rest. There are apps to be built in the morning.

Goodbye Windows Hello Ubuntu

Posted on January 20, 2013

Are you a Mac or a PC?

After many hours contemplating the decision to buy a Mac, I’ve decided to install Ubuntu (a redistribution of Linux) so that I can run UNIX on my five year-old Dell XPS. With the Windows monopolistic hold on the PC market and the ever increasing popularity of Apple products, we sometimes forget that there is a third option in operating systems. As amazing as the new Retina display Macbook looks, I figured it would be better to bootstrap my old PC and force myself to learn a new operating system that so many hackers and programmers love.

Ubuntu has taken some getting used to. There was a good amount of troubleshooting during the setup process to get everything customized to the way our computers work in the Starter League classrooms, but the juice is definitely worth the squeeze. Using the terminal/command prompt has actually taught me a lot more about how computers function, plus there are countless tutorials online that teach Linux followers how to do pretty much anything they want. Linux distributions are very simplistic and require very little memory to run (You can dualboot on a Mac or PC and even boot a Linux redistribution from a CD or Flash Drive).

My favorite part of Linux is the philosophy behind it. As a huge fan of the opensource initiative, the donation-based business model, and laissez faire capitalism; I love that Linux stands for open collaboration and values problem solving over property rights. I watched this great video titled OS Revolution that is all about the history of Linux and the key actors behind its existence. Next time you think about getting a Mac or a PC, take some time to consider the third alternative.

Edit: Music is great and programming while listening to music is even greater. Unfortunately when I decided to run Ubuntu via dual-boot, I could only allocate 30GB of memory to the new operating system. Since 30GBs isn’t much space to hold essential files plus lots of music, Spotify seemed like the perfect solution. The perfect solution until I discovered the Spotify playback skipping… I must have spent over five hours trying to troubleshoot the problem by adjusting WINE (a Linux program that allows the user to run Windows programs) settings and testing commands in the terminal. I was crushed in defeat when I stumbled upon this tutorial that shows you how to install Spotify on Ubuntu in only three commands… I tried it. It worked. I was speechless. Over the past three weeks I’ve come to learn that there is always a way to get the computer to do what you want it to. You just have to find it.