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Filed under: Windows, Linux, Open Source, Browsers

Midori - a lightweight Webkit-based browser - lands on Windows

While I like Google Chrome, there are plenty of Webkit-based alternatives out there. One I enjoy using on my Crunchbang system is Midori - an efficient and highly customizable browser that made the jump to Windows just a couple months ago.

It's important to note that Midori is still in the alpha stage - recently hitting 0.1.10 on Linux and the Windows binaries now on 0.1.8. If you're after absolute stability, Midori might not be your thing. I experienced the occasional crash while playing with the interface, though it was plenty stable while surfing and utilizing web apps.

With the same six tabs open in Midori and Firefox 3.5.3 - including GMail and two javascript-heavy web apps - Midori used about 80Mb less memory, peaking at about 99Mb total. The browser doesn't quite have Chrome's rendering zippiness, but it's still respectably fast.

So what else can Midori do? Apart from the expected features like tabbed browsing, and bookmark and history management it's got support for Userscripts, Userstyles, the Netscape plugin architecture, and extensions. Search options can be customized as well and you can assign a token (i.e. preface with g to search with google).

Want to learn more about Midori yourself? Check the FAQ over at XFCE.org or download it yourself and take Midori for a spin!

Filed under: Weekend Review

Download Squad Week in Review

Download Squad logoStill trying to figure out if you want to raise your bid for Yahoo! or if you'd rather just buy Jerry Yang some flowers, apologize, and then see if Google is busy Saturday night? Well then, you've obviously had so much on your plate that you might have missed a few other stories this week. So without further ado, we bring you some of our favorite stories from the past 7 days:

  • Shady business practices work: Apple dramatically increases Safari users
    Apple got a lot of bad press a few weeks back for bundling the Safari web browser with its software update utility for Windows. Many PC users who thought they were just updating Quicktime or iTunes found themselves with a new web browser they never asked for. But you know what? It looks like it may have worked, because Apple tripled the number of Safari users on Windows.
  • Flipping the Linux Switch: Xfce, the hidden gem of desktop environments
    Sure, GNOME and KDE get all the attention. But that's because they hog the limelight, while unassuming little Xfce toils away in the background doing what needs to be done. Xfce is a simple desktop environment for Linux that includes everything you need, and nothing you don't.
  • Digsby adds support for Facebook Chat
    Facebook recently launched a chat service that lets you communicate with other Facebook users in real-time -- but only when you're visiting the social network's web site. Now you can use desktop chat client Digsby to chat with your Facebook contacts whether you're on the web site or not. You can also use it to keep up with your AOL, MSN, Yahoo! AND Google Talk contacts.
  • Gramlee - Website for people who can't write good
    If the automated spelling and grammar checking features in your word processor aren't enough to make your text readable, Gramlee can help. The web service is staffed by real people who will whip your prose into shape. Just remember, submitting your crappy 10th grade English paper and paying someone to rewrite it for you is wrong. Easy, but wrong.
  • Michael Dalesandro, CEO of Where I've Been - DLS Interview
    "Where I've Been" is both a popular Facebook application and a popular web site that lets users share their travel experiences, find travel tips, and plan future trips. We caught up with CEO Michael Dalesandro to ask him a bit about the site's success.
  • TypeRacer: Competitive typing test - Time Waster
    TypeRacer could be the best online typing test ever. The web game turns the typing test into a game, and pits you against a handful of other players. Sure, it's not particularly accurate. The tests are too short to properly gauge how many words you can crank out in a minute. But you'll be amazed how quickly you can type when you see another player hot on your tail.
  • Wrongcards: e-cards for the insensitive
    If you're the sort of person who always has a hard time finding Hallmark cards that adequately express your feelings, you might want to check out Wrongcards. The site specializes in e-cards that are just... wrong. But funny. But oh so wrong.
  • Del.icio.us releases Firefox 3 beta plugin
    Firefox 3 beta has been making the rounds long enough now that we know many Download Squad readers have started to use it as their primary browser. But there are a ton of useful plugins for Firefox 2 that don't yet work with Firefox 3 beta. And up until this week, the popular del.icio.us plugin was one of them. But you can finally cross that one off the list of incompatible plugins, because it's back, and it's better than ever.

Filed under: Features, Linux, Open Source, Unix

Flipping the Linux switch: Xfce, the hidden gem of desktop environments

Xfce DesktopIn the beginning, we talked a bit about the holy war that wages onward between KDE and GNOME. Some of you aptly pointed out that there is a third desktop environment out there. It was never our intention to slight this desktop (we actually use it regularly). Like a mouse dodging to avoid the crashing footsteps of the desktop environment giants, Xfce is often included in discussions as an afterthought.

So apologies if the fact our current discussion of Xfce supports the "afterthought" theory. It wasn't our intention, and hey, we offer the consolation that if it really is an afterthought, and least it's going to be detailed.

Xfce indeed, is the third major desktop environment. It's kind of like the fifth Beatle. People know it's there, but... What's it called again? What's it do?

That, friends, is totally unfair. Xfce is one of the fastest and easiest desktops out there. It balances pretty and functional without any extraneous annoyance getting in the way. It isn't most people's first Linux desktop environment. But it very well could be.

Read more →

Filed under: Windows, Linux, Freeware, Open Source, Beta

Run Linux apps in Windows with andLinux

andLinux
If you have to use Windows for your day job or for a few must-have applications, but you're a penguin at heart, have we got a program for you. While you can run Linux inside of Windows using virtualization software like VirtualBox or VMWare, andLinux goes a few steps further and essentially installs Linux on top of your Windows operating system, allowing the two to exist side by side and even interact with one another.

In other words, once andLinux is installed, you can launch native Linux applications almost as easily as any Windows program.

AndLinux comes in two varieties the moment. Both are based on Ubuntu, but one installs a full KDE system with all the programs that normally come with Kubuntu. The other version basically installs Xubuntu, which uses the light-weight XFCE desktop environment and packs fewer bells and whistles.

Since andLinux installs a full operating system, you'll need to make sure you've got quite a bit of free space on your hard drive. The KDE version eats up more than 4GB of space while the XFCE version takes about 2GB. If all you want to do is run a single Linux application like Amarok, Ardour, or Cinelerra, you might be better off checking out KDE for Windows and waiting for the developers ro port your favorite applications. But if you want to be able to run any Linux application you like without rebooting, andLinux is worth checking out. Keep in mind, this is beta software, so you might run into issues like applications failing to start

[via Lifehacker]

Filed under: OS Updates, News, Linux, Open Source, Beta

Zenwalk 5.0 beta is available for testing

ZenwalkWe have a confession to make. We are secretly, deeply, head over heels in love with Zenwalk Linux. Zenwalk is a Slackware-based distro. It's lightweight, it's modern, and though it may not be the easiest distribution to install, we've certainly had worse experiences.

Zenwalk 5.0 beta was released for testing yesterday. The 5.0 release has some major changes: the use of HAL in place of its own hotplugging system, updates to the Xorg X servers, and the Wicd wifi-browser. Zenwalk still uses Xfce (4.4.2) as its default desktop environment, along with the Icedove email client and Iceweasel browser (both Thunderbird and Firefox compatible).

We've been playing with Zenwalk 5.0 beta for a day now. It's everything we've come to expect from Zenwalk, the speed and stability, the flexibility, and the nice interface. There were a few little problems at install (needed to boot with the "noapic" kernel parameter to avoid a panic) and beyond (video card driver installation is hardly ever fun). These little issues aside, the beta bugs seem minimal.

Zenwalk may not be the best choice for a first Linux distro, but we'd highly recommend giving this beta a try if you're comfortable with a more text driven install process. Meanwhile, our hearts are pounding and our palms are sweaty, waiting for the final release of Zenwalk 5.0. Love is so hard.

Filed under: OS Updates, Linux

Ubuntu tip: Turning Ubuntu into Kubuntu or Xubuntu

Installing Xubuntu
So now that Gutsy Gibbon is out, you've decided to try out Ubuntu. But you can't decide which version of the popular Linux distribution is right for you.

Ubuntu's main system has a toolbar at the top, a brown color scheme, and comes with Firefox preloaded. But Kubuntu has a nice calming blue feel, a Windows-like taskbar and start menu, and comes with a powerful new file explorer called Dolphin. And then there's Xubuntu, which has simple, streamlined look and uses the XFCE interface that's designed for quick performance on older, slower machines.

Well, it turns out you don't have to choose. Sure, you could pick one, download it and burn it to a disc and then install it. But you can also install all three desktops. After all, they're all pretty much running on top of the same operating system.

  1. If you've installed the default Gnome version of Ubuntu, just open a terminal by hitting Alt-F2 on your keyboard and typing "gnome-terminal"
  2. To enable Kubuntu, type "sudo apt-get install kubuntu-desktop," enter your password when prompted, and answer yes to any questions that pop up.
  3. To enable Xubuntu, type "sudo apt-get install xubuntu-desktop"
  4. If you're already using Kubuntu or Xubuntu and want to enable Gnome, type "sudo apt-get install gnome-desktop"
The next time you logoff or restart your computer, you can change session types at the logon screen.

Filed under: Fun, Utilities, Open Source, Unix

FreeSBIE 2.0 - FreeBSD live CD hits major milestone

FreeSBIEReleased on January 15th, FreeSBIE 2.0 is a FreeBSD live CD for those looking to experience FreeBSD without making any commitment. Version 2.0, based on FreeBSD 6.2, is the result of almost 2 years of work by the FreeSBIE team (the last release was Dec 6th, 2004). FreeSBIE includes many popular desktop packages such as Gaim, Firefox 1.5, AbiWord, The Gimp and others (including MP3-playback codecs). I like that it also includes Wireshark and NmapFE, both handy tools for troubleshooting network issues and anomalies.

By default it features Xfce as its desktop environment and alternately Fluxbox. Both are not as popular as the obvious picks Gnome or KDE, but both are perfectly usable and are a nice change of pace. If you decide to do some actual work you can save and restore it from FAT32, UFS2 (Unix File System), ext2 (Linux) or ReiserFS disks or "slices" (partitions), including USB thumb drives - just use the mountdisks cheatcode at boot.

While not as mature as comparable Linux live CDs, FreeSBIE 2.0 is a big milestone for the team and good step forward for the project. If you are curious about the Unix-world beyond Linux, FreeSBIE is a great and easy way to get a feel for FreeBSD.

[Thanks, Dolores!]

Featured Time Waster

The World's Hardest Game 2.0 - Time Waster

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do. Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game. The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

View more Time Wasters

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