Sitedesign.net is a design agency specialising in web design and development of web based applications. Based in Oldbury in the West Midlands they are located in central England with excellent transport links.

They provide all the services you require to successfully run and maintain your business online including hosting, a domain name and e-mail.

They also offer a comprehensive choice of web services including brochure website design, ecommerce solutions, web based applications and expert search engine optimisation to name just a few.

Brochure Website Designs
Traditionally the term ‘brochure website’ is how people in the web design industry describe a website which is comprised of static content. It is also usually the least expensive solution if you are looking for a professional web presence on a budget.

Brochure websites are a cost effective solution for small businesses and individuals who are looking for a professional web presence. Brochure websites are mostly used for promoting a business, product or service. They can prove to be a valuable information resource point for your customers and a useful contact data gathering tool.

Ecommerce Solutions
Sitedesign.net produced many innovative ecommerce websites for businesses in the West Midlands and all over the UK. Our customers range from small family run firms and entrepreneurs to much larger global businesses.

When people think ecommerce Birmingham their first thought is usually Sitedesign.net. Tthey have been producing the highest quality websites for over 7 years and have been involved with delivering well over 300 web based solutions

Web Applications

Sitedesign.net have developed many bespoke web based applications to fulfil a variety of software requirements for our clients. Including web based CRM software that can be tailored to meet any company’s needs.

Search Engine Optimization

Sitedesign.net uses the latest SEO techniques to ensure you achieve the best possible natural rankings on all the major search engines.

Visit their website now at http://www.sitedesign.net

For those has just migrated from Windows to Linux but misses or like the Windows Desktop environment, this Linux distro is for you.

Xandros is both the name of a line of Linux distributions and Xandros Corporation, the company which creates them. Xandros Desktop is a distribution known for its focus on business and mainstream users, as well as its visual similarities to Windows XP. The name Xandros is derived from the X Window System and the Greek island of Andros.

Founded in May of 2001 by Linux Global Partners, the company is headquartered in New York City. Their distributions are based on Corel Linux, a Debian-based distribution which was acquired along with the development team behind the product from Corel Corporation in August 2001 after Corel decided to leave the Linux distribution market.Xandros is also a founding member of the Desktop Linux Consortium.

Xandros makes products for both the consumer and business markets. While the distributions include much free and open-source software, Xandros is criticized for inclusion of proprietary software developed in-house by the Xandros Corporation.

Commercial editions

Xandros Desktop Home Edition
This edition comes with a 30-day trial of Crossover Office. It also includes an “Applications CD” which includes extra programs which can be installed via Xandros Networks. As opposed to Home Edition Premium, the Home Edition does not include the photo manager, music manager, security suite, wireless profiles, or the ability to write to NTFS partitions.

Xandros Desktop Home Edition Premium
This edition comes with a full version of Crossover Office Standard Edition, and a second CD (the “Applications CD”) which comes with extra applications which can be installed via Xandros Networks. Despite its name, Xandros Desktop Home Edition Premium does not include a Xandros Networks Premium Membership. Xandros Desktop Home Edition Premium includes wireless profiles[citation needed] and an integrated security suite.
Xandros offers a 30-day trial version of Xandros Home Edition Premium as a free download for evaluation purposes.

Xandros Desktop Professional
Formerly known as Xandros Desktop Business Edition, this edition is basically the same as Xandros Desktop Home Edition Premium, but it includes the ability to authenticate to Windows PDC and Active Directory Domains, connect to wired and wireless networks, use PPTP VPN to connect remotely to the office, and use broadband wireless connectivity with 3G, GSM and UMTS support. Xandros Desktop Professional was officially released on November 28, 2006.
As with Home Edition Premium, Xandros also offers a 30-day trial version of Xandros Professional.

Xandros 4.0 was criticized for the addition of a product activation feature similar to the one found in Windows XP. However, unlike the Windows XP product activation code, which is required in order to use Windows XP after 30 days, the Xandros product activation code was used to authorize a copy of Xandros to download programs and updates from Xandros Networks, Xandros’ proprietary apt-based download tool similar to Linspire’s CNR. When the OS is first installed, Xandros Networks is disabled; it has to be enabled by using the product activation code. Users must contact Xandros Support for further activation codes after they pass a 10 activation limit. After much criticism over the product activation feature, Xandros released the Service Pack 1 update to Xandros 4.0 which did away with it; Version 4.1 of Xandros, which has the Service Pack 1 update integrated into the OS, does not have product activation

source: wikipedia.org

Plone is released under the GNU General Public License. Major development is conducted periodically during special meetings called Plone Sprints. Additional functionality is added to Plone with Products, which may be distributed through the Plone website or otherwise. The Plone Foundation owns and protects all intellectual property and trademarks. Plone also has legal backing from the council of the Software Freedom Law Center.

A good example of a website using the Plone CMS system is DabaweGNU, Inc. website.

Plone Website:http://plone.org

Q:I have just installed Ubuntu Linux. But, what is the default root password? I can only login as a normal user.

A. This is the mystery for most users – you didn’t set a root password, so what is it?

The root user can do anything as this a/c has full access to system. So using root account for daily work can be dangerous.

To be frank root a/c is locked by default under Ubuntu Linux. Therefore, you cannot login as root or use su – command to become superuser.

To run all administrative command use sudo command. sudo allows a permitted user to execute a command as the superuser or another user. Ubuntu setup your default account (the one created during installation) to run all administrative commands.

For example create a new user called bar, you need to type sudo command as follows:

$ sudo adduser bar

Password:

When sudo asks for a password, it needs YOUR OWN Password; this means that a root password is not needed.

Here are few more examples.

Task: Start / stop / restart services stored in /etc/init.d/ directory

$ sudo /etc/init.d/ssh stop
$ sudo /etc/init.d/networking restart

Task: Avoid typing sudo each and every time

Note that this is not recommended until and unless you are an expert and aware of what you are typing:

$ sudo -i

Above command will start /bin/bash as a root shell so that you can enter a root user command w/o using sudo.

SynFig Homepage

Ubuntu Studio is a special Linux distribution tailored to the needs of audio, video, and graphic enthusiasts or professionals. Because Ubuntu Studio is based on Ubuntu, you are not limited to this area, but can install any application that is available for Ubuntu, thus turning Ubuntu Studio in a normal desktop for everyday use.

The advantages are clear: you get a secure system without DRM restrictions that works even on old hardware, and the best thing is: all software comes free of charge.

You can visit UBUNTU STUDIO

Bayanihan is a Filipino term which roughly means community building and team spirit. Bayanihan Linux concentrates on ease of use and ease of redistribution.

Bayanihan Linux Server 2006 is a Linux distribution developed in the Philippines. It aims to be an easy-to-use GNU/Linux server for government agencies, school, and SMEs. It is designed specifically for novice computers users and non-GNU+Linux system adminitrators to ease the learning curve of running free software services while learning how to use it.

Bayanihan Linux 2006 Server is composed of free software services and a wizard configuration tool. The free software services consists of FTP, Samba, NFS, BIND, Apache Web Server, SSH, Postfix, Spamassassin, Dovecot IMAP, and Clamav.

http://www.bayanihan.gov.ph

The project was started by and sponsored by Linspire. Linspire hired Daniel Glazman, former Netscape Communications Corporation employee and CEO/Founder of Disruptive Innovations, to be lead developer.

Nvu is available for Linux, Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows, and it can be built successfully on any platform with the Netscape Portable Runtime.

Nvu may sometimes be spelled “N|vu” to simulate the line in the logo, much like CNET is often written as “C|Net”.

http://www.nvu.com

1. Firefox
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http://www.getfirefox.com/

Replaces Internet Explorer
If you haven’t switched to Firefox for your web browsing needs, do it now. It stops annoying popups and it has tons of amazing plugins that can make surfing the web even better. I could evangelize all day about Firefox, but one thing’s for sure: the first thing I do on any new Windows machine is run Internet Explorer just long enough to download Firefox.

2. Thunderbird
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http://www.mozilla.org/thunderbird/

Replaces M’zoft Outlook or Eudora
Thunderbird is an email client that has five big things going for it: it’s free, it’s full featured, it’s lightweight and runs quick, it has an unparalleled spam filter, and it protects you from those ridiculous phishing attacks by clearly indicating which emails send you to a bogus website. If you’re not already using a web-based email solution, Thunderbird should be your client.

3. Sunbird
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http://www.mozilla.org/projects/calendar/sunbird/

Replaces M’zoft Outlook’s calendaring functions
Might as well get the Mozilla trifecta out of the way by mentioning Sunbird, which is the Mozilla Foundation’s calendaring program. It’s extremely easy to use (I figured out everything I needed in a minute or two) and easy to share your calendar with others. I consider a calendaring tool to be essential if you’re using a laptop, and this is no different.

4. Abiword
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http://www.abisource.com/

Replaces M’zoft Word
Want a good word processor but find M’zoft Word too expensive? AbiWord is my favorite replacement for Word. It’s lightweight (meaning it runs quickly) and includes pretty much every feature that I use regularly in a word processor, plus it can save files in formats that you can exchange with Word and WordPerfect users, plus open any of their files, too.

5. OpenOffice
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http://www.openoffice.org/

Replaces M’zoft Excel and M’zoft PowerPoint
If you want to replace the rest of the Office suite, your best bet is OpenOffice. It includes very nice replacements for Excel and PowerPoint (and workable replacements for Access and other Office elements). In fact, I actually prefer their Excel and PowerPoint replacements to the real thing.

6. ClamWin
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http://www.clamwin.com/

Replaces Norton AntiVirus or McAfee
ClamWin is a slick anti-virus software that’s quite easy to manage and is unobtrusive while keep your system free of viruses. That’s pretty much all I want from a package, so why pay money for McAfee to keep bugging me all the time?

7. Gaim
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http://gaim.sourceforge.net/

Replaces AIM, Windows Messenger, etc.
This is a very clean instant messaging program that allows you to be on AOL Instant Messenger, Windows (MSN) Messenger, and Yahoo Messenger simultaneously with one program. There are other free packages that do this, but Gaim is stable and clean and simple.

8. BitTorrent
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http://www.bittorrent.com/

Original but essential
From their website, “BitTorrent is a peer-assisted, digital content delivery platform that provides the fastest, most efficient means of distributing, discovering, and consuming large, high-quality files on the Web. Our mission is simple: to deliver the content that entertains and informs the digital world.” In other words, BitTorrent allows you to download large media files and also use your bandwidth to help others download these files. Search for media files you want and download ‘em.

9. GIMPShop
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http://www.gimpshop.net/

Replaces Adobe Photoshop
This is a version of the GNU Image Manipulation Program that does a pretty solid job of imitating Adobe Photoshop – a regular user of Photoshop (like me) can adapt to it quite quickly. It’s very richly featured and runs quite well – in fact, I see no reason to ever go back, even if Photoshop were free.

10. Gnucleus
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http://www.gnucleus.com/Gnucleus/

Replaces LimeWire, BearShare, etc.
Sure, LimeWire and BearShare are free, but why not just get the same basic software without all of the spyware? Gnucleus is pretty much identical to those software packages – but without all that extra junk that slows down your computer.

11. VLC Media Player
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http://www.videolan.org/vlc/

Replaces Windows Media Player, Quicktime, RealPlayer, etc.
If you get tired of having tons of media players on your computer, get this package that runs pretty much every media type you’ll run across without breaking a sweat.

12. Juice
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http://juicereceiver.sourceforge.net/

Unique but essential
Juice lets you effortlessly subscribe to podcasts, organize them, and listen to them at your convenience. In conjunction with PodNova, I find it easier to use Juice to organize podcasts than using iTunes itself.

13. Audacity
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http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

Unique but essential (for some)
If you’re interested in recording your own podcast (or just want to make your own voice recordings for whatever reason), Audacity and a microphone are pretty much all you need to get the job done. I’m not much for podcasting (let’s just say I don’t have a radio voice), but I use Audacity for other voice recording purposes.

14. RSSOwl
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http://www.rssowl.org/

Unique but essential
RSSOwl is one of many open source RSS readers. In other words, it enables you to use one program to keep track of the content of a lot of different blogs; if you read a lot of blogs, it’s the only way to keep tabs on all of them without devoting hours jumping from site to site. If you have a laptop, it’s preferable to using sites like Bloglines, but if you’re on a desktop, a web-based feed manager might be better.

15. Filezilla
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http://filezilla.sourceforge.net/

Replaces WinFTP
Many people occasionally have a need to FTP files to other computers; if you ever have the need to transfer files in such a fashion, FileZilla will do the job slickly and quickly.

16. Keynote
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http://www.tranglos.com/free/keynote.html

Unique but essential
Keynote is basically designed specifically for the task of taking notes on a laptop. If you ever find yourself in a meeting or a presentation with your laptop open and want to jot down notes and organize them just a bit, Keynote is unquestionably the program for you. It’s not good at quality word processing, but that’s not the point. In my professional work, I find myself using Keynote almost as often as any other utility.

17. MusikCube
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http://www.musikcube.com/

Replaces iTunes
If you’re not already committed to downloaded music from the iTunes Music Store, then MusikCube is the best choice available for a music organizer and player. It organizes your mp3s, makes it really easy and really fast to find them, and allows you to make some incredibly clever smart playlists.

18. Handbrake
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http://handbrake.m0k.org/

Unique but essential
Handbrake enables you to stick a DVD in your DVD drive and have the contents of that film stored to your hard drive in a form that can be read by pretty much any media player. I often use it to put a few movies on my laptop for travel purposes, so I don’t have to worry about keeping track of DVDs while on the road.

19. X-Chat 2
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http://www.silverex.org/

Replaces mIRC
X-Chat is a free IRC client. For those unfamiliar with IRC, it’s a place for technical people (and, as my wife loves to point out, nerds) to meet and discuss topics in an open environment. I often find it very useful when piecing through difficult technical issues.

20. KeePass
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http://keepass.sourceforge.net/

Unique but essential
KeePass is a program that securely stores and manages the abundance of passwords we all use on a daily basis. I have literally hundreds of usernames and passwords spread out all over the place; KeePass keeps them all for me and keeps them safe.

21. TrueCrypt
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http://www.truecrypt.org/

Unique but essential
TrueCrypt enables you to convert a memory stick into a strongly encrypted data storage device, meaning that you can store personal data on it without worrying about losing it and having personal information get out and about. I use it to keep some of my most personal data off of my laptop and strongly secured, just in case.

22. PDFCreator
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http://sourceforge.net/projects/pdfcreator/

Replaces Adobe Acrobat
PDFCreator creates a virtual printer on your computer that, if you print a document to it from any program, creates a PDF of that document that can be read on any computer with Acrobat Reader on it. After installing PDFCreator, all you have to do is print like normal and out comes a PDF!

23. Freemind
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http://freemind.sourceforge.net/

Unique but Essential
Freemind is a “mind mapping” software program. In essence, it enables you to brainstorm and link together ideas quickly, creating “maps” of concepts similar to what you might do on a whiteboard. I find it incredibly useful when putting together ideas for new posts or planning small projects or assembling the backbone of a writing project.

24. NASA Worldwind
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http://worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/

Replaces Google Earth
WorldWind is very similar to Google Earth in that it allows you to browse the globe. While it isn’t strong for creating maps (but why not just use Google Maps for that?), it is utterly incredible for viewing three-dimensional landscapes of any place on earth.

25. Notepad2
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http://www.flos-freeware.ch/notepad2.html

Replaces Notepad
Notepad2 is a replacement for the traditional Windows Notepad that just adds a few sweet little features: multiple documents; line, word, and character counts; and some highlighting of tags. In fact, I’m using Notepad2 as I draft this post (after using Freemind to organize it).

26. HealthMonitor
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http://healthmonitor.zucchetti.com/

Unique but useful
HealthMonitor enables you to keep an eye on the health of your computer. It identifies slowdowns and other system issues quickly and lets you know (for example, it gives a popup if your system memory gets to a certain percentage of fullness, or if your hard drive has only 10 GB free). This can keep you out of trouble and also give you clues to problems your machine might be having.

27. Workrave
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http://www.workrave.org/

Unique but useful
Sometimes late into a writing session, my wrists get sore from too much repetitive movement. Workrave basically jumps in before this happens and locks down the computer for a while, preventing me from working too much and causing repetitive stress injury. Since I’ve started using it, it hasn’t significantly hurt my productivity at all and my wrists are thanking me!

28. GanttPV
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http://www.pureviolet.net/ganttpv/

Replaces M’zoft Project
If you do any project management (or have a need to dip your toes in the water), GanttPV does a brilliant job of managing the task quickly, easily, and freely. If you need to move to MS Project later, you can export from GanttPV to Project, but once you start digging into GanttPV, you’ll likely have no reason to use Project.

29. GnuCash
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http://www.gnucash.org/

Replaces M’zoft Money or Quicken
GnuCash is a slimmed-down version of the bloated M’zoft Money and Quicken packages, but it contains all of the features I want for managing my money. The interfaces are incredibly simple – it functions much like a checkbook ledger on your computer – but there’s a lot of meat hidden throughout the software.

30. True Combat: Elite
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http://www.truecombatelite.net/

Replaces Quake IV, Halo, etc.
After all this downloading, you’re going to need to blow off a little steam, and I’ve yet to find a more enjoyable free game than this one. It’s basically a third person combat game, but the graphics are spectacular and the game is quite engrossing.