MinusIQ

multi session with Medit

Create three launchers, each for different purpose/session

Command examples:

medit -n --use-session=yes --app-name=notes_txt

medit -n --use-session=yes --app-name=source_c

medit -n --use-session=yes --app-name=web_php

Each of them will remember it's owned session (previously opened files and etc.).
Except for working directory in Pane "File Selector", bud you can make bookmarks and switch fast.

Install grub from live Linux Mint

 If You installing Windows on a HDD whare Linux already intalled.
There is not a lot of reasons for this, in general installing windows its not a good idea (my opinion)! But if You really want this! This is the way to do it!

After Windows installation is complete. Boot live Linux Mint from USB flash or from DVD-ROM... and open terminal.

If You tray something like this (this worked on Debian squeeze, and I believe it sill works):
$sudo grub-install /dev/sda

On Mint this is what you will see:
grub-probe: error: failed to get canonical path of /cow.
Path `/boot/grub' is not readable by GRUB on boot. Installation is impossible. Aborting.

To fix this, mount rootfs. You need to specifay not only device ,bud path to mounted rootfs.
Enter something like this:
$sudo grub-install --recheck --root-directory=/media/mint/ac61ecb9-7b20-4d94-b9e2-9b1ece015459/ /dev/sda

Grub-probe will still complain ... bud its not important, cause grub will be installed successfully.

Now reboot (remove live cd or flash). Now You will not see grub menu, and Linux will boot up.
So ,You need to update grub:

$sudo update-grub

Reboot again.

And now all OS available in grub menu!

Favorite Linux applications

Video Player: mplayer
               without skin 

Media Center: xbmc  (PC video on TV)
            This is the reason for baying HTPC not a player with embedded software inside...

Music Player: deadbeef
         Preferred  lossless audio (flac)

Mail Client: gnome evolution mail
          on Debian works better then on Mint or Ubuntu

Internet Browser: Firefox

Text Editor: Medit
          For those how like notepad++ on Windows, I think, Medit is the best choice on Linux

Torrent Client: Deluge

Calculator: Galculator
         for hex to bin & dec to hex ...


Disk & Partition Tools: Gnome disk utility
        Debian squeeze version only (bad update for Ubuntu or Mint)


Home server: lighttpd,proftpd


Communication: skype 2.2.0.35 beta
        I gonna use skype until this version works (updates not welcome!)
        Now tying to find free & so-so working voip client, no success jet.

USB Boot disk creator: unetboot

Development: Qt-SDK, Codelite-IDE

Linux hhd notifications before failure

Disk info can be read by:
# smartctl -a /dev/sda
sda   sda2  sda5  sda6  sda7  sda8  sdb   sdb1  sdb2  sdb3 
root@debian:/home/rolandas# smartctl -a /dev/sda
smartctl 5.40 2010-07-12 r3124 [i686-pc-linux-gnu] (local build)
Copyright (C) 2002-10 by Bruce Allen, http://smartmontools.sourceforge.net

=== START OF INFORMATION SECTION ===
Model Family:     Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 family
Device Model:     ST3750528AS
Serial Number:    9VP3P00T
Firmware Version: CC44
User Capacity:    750,156,374,016 bytes
Device is:        In smartctl database [for details use: -P show]
ATA Version is:   8
ATA Standard is:  ATA-8-ACS revision 4
Local Time is:    Mon Feb 25 13:52:23 2013 EET
SMART support is: Available - device has SMART capability.
SMART support is: Enabled

=== START OF READ SMART DATA SECTION ===
SMART overall-health self-assessment test result: PASSED

General SMART Values:
Offline data collection status:  (0x82)    Offline data collection activity
                    was completed without error.
                    Auto Offline Data Collection: Enabled.
Self-test execution status:      (   0)    The previous self-test routine completed
                    without error or no self-test has ever
                    been run.
Total time to complete Offline
data collection:          ( 625) seconds.
Offline data collection
capabilities:              (0x7b) SMART execute Offline immediate.
                    Auto Offline data collection on/off support.
                    Suspend Offline collection upon new
                    command.
                    Offline surface scan supported.
                    Self-test supported.
                    Conveyance Self-test supported.
                    Selective Self-test supported.
SMART capabilities:            (0x0003)    Saves SMART data before entering
                    power-saving mode.
                    Supports SMART auto save timer.
Error logging capability:        (0x01)    Error logging supported.
                    General Purpose Logging supported.
Short self-test routine
recommended polling time:      (   1) minutes.
Extended self-test routine
recommended polling time:      ( 174) minutes.
Conveyance self-test routine
recommended polling time:      (   2) minutes.
SCT capabilities:            (0x103f)    SCT Status supported.
                    SCT Error Recovery Control supported.
                    SCT Feature Control supported.
                    SCT Data Table supported.

SMART Attributes Data Structure revision number: 10
Vendor Specific SMART Attributes with Thresholds:
ID# ATTRIBUTE_NAME          FLAG     VALUE WORST THRESH TYPE      UPDATED  WHEN_FAILED RAW_VALUE
  1 Raw_Read_Error_Rate     0x000f   112   099   006    Pre-fail  Always       -       48739835
  3 Spin_Up_Time            0x0003   094   094   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
  4 Start_Stop_Count        0x0032   100   100   020    Old_age   Always       -       785
  5 Reallocated_Sector_Ct   0x0033   100   100   036    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
  7 Seek_Error_Rate         0x000f   073   060   030    Pre-fail  Always       -       12957032809
  9 Power_On_Hours          0x0032   094   094   000    Old_age   Always       -       5754
 10 Spin_Retry_Count        0x0013   100   100   097    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
 12 Power_Cycle_Count       0x0032   100   100   020    Old_age   Always       -       785
183 Runtime_Bad_Block       0x0000   100   100   000    Old_age   Offline      -       0
184 End-to-End_Error        0x0032   100   100   099    Old_age   Always       -       0
187 Reported_Uncorrect      0x0032   100   100   000    Old_age   Always       -       0
188 Command_Timeout         0x0032   100   092   000    Old_age   Always       -       716
189 High_Fly_Writes         0x003a   100   100   000    Old_age   Always       -       0
190 Airflow_Temperature_Cel 0x0022   069   066   045    Old_age   Always       -       31 (Lifetime Min/Max 31/31)
194 Temperature_Celsius     0x0022   031   040   000    Old_age   Always       -       31 (0 19 0 0)
195 Hardware_ECC_Recovered  0x001a   056   041   000    Old_age   Always       -       48739835
197 Current_Pending_Sector  0x0012   100   100   000    Old_age   Always       -       0
198 Offline_Uncorrectable   0x0010   100   100   000    Old_age   Offline      -       0
199 UDMA_CRC_Error_Count    0x003e   200   200   000    Old_age   Always       -       0
240 Head_Flying_Hours       0x0000   100   253   000    Old_age   Offline      -       178490250895066
241 Total_LBAs_Written      0x0000   100   253   000    Old_age   Offline      -       1548794144
242 Total_LBAs_Read         0x0000   100   253   000    Old_age   Offline      -       2626206228

SMART Error Log Version: 1
No Errors Logged

SMART Self-test log structure revision number 1
No self-tests have been logged.  [To run self-tests, use: smartctl -t]


SMART Selective self-test log data structure revision number 1
 SPAN  MIN_LBA  MAX_LBA  CURRENT_TEST_STATUS
    1        0        0  Not_testing
    2        0        0  Not_testing
    3        0        0  Not_testing
    4        0        0  Not_testing
    5        0        0  Not_testing
Selective self-test flags (0x0):
  After scanning selected spans, do NOT read-scan remainder of disk.
If Selective self-test is pending on power-up, resume after 0 minute delay.


Or graphical tool can be used for that (in terminal "palimpsest",program title "Disk Utility",under "SMART data"):








I don't know way it says "Good"?
There is definitely nothing good about that!
It generally means - make a backup fast!

Unfortunately I unable to find applet or tool to notify about this type of errors.
I have to periodically check my self.
In the future I will fix this inconvenience!

Linux Wine: Setting Windows/DOS environment variables & running bat files

Example how to add environment variable "PATH"

Example of running *.bat:

Content of bash for starting *.bat file:
--------------------------------------
#!/bin/bash
wine start ./dir.bat
--------------------------------------

Content of "dir.bat":
--------------------------------------
DIR
PAUSE
--------------------------------------