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TheOpenCD 1.4 Released
Lykos writes "From OpenCD's website: 'TheOpenCD is a collection of high quality Free and Open Source Software. The programs run in Windows and cover the most common tasks such as word processing, presentations, e-mail, web browsing, web design, and image manipulation.' This is a great little package to leave lying around your friends' workplace to convince them to go opensource. =) Lots of quality programs in one convenient package."
but just in case...
torrent
Karma: Can there be a void?
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already slow... here's the cd list...
Office & Design
OpenOffice.org, AbiWord, PDFCreator, GIMP
Internet & Communication
Mozilla, Miranda IM, FileZilla, TightVNC, WinHTTrack, PuTTY
Multimedia & Games
Audacity, CDex, Tux Paint, Crack Attack!, Sokoban YASC,
Neverball, Celestia, Really Slick Screensavers
Utilities & Other
7-Zip, SciTE, WinPT, NetTime
previous coverage here and here
..at GNUWin II, a similar project.
Like this?
Karma: Can there be a void?
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Poor webserver is already bending over backwards. Find your mirror here.
I sell OSS on ebay, and we are not taking advantage of the uninformed. I like to think we are providing a service to all the poor modem users out there who cannot download a multi-cd set of software. Besides I only charge a small "media fee" and shipping.
The days of the digital watch are numbered.
The Ultimate Boot CD
This CD and the Open CD are about all you need to get your friends computer working in tip top shape.
http://ubcd.sf.net/
Saskboy's blog is good. 9 out of 10 dentists agree.
No, I'm talking about people who sell programs like OpenOffice under some other name, and do not mention at all that it is free. I'm talking about sellers like this.
...
http://public.www.planetmirror.com/pub/opencd/
I use free-av.com. Best virus app I've seen, and it's 100% free for personal use. It's updated almost daily, and it doesn't cause problems like Norton & McAffee.
Introduction
The Open CD project aims to introduce users of MS-Windows to the benefits of Open Source Software. We include only the highest quality programs, which have been carefully tested for stability and which we consider appropriate for a broad audience. We provide a description and screen-shots of each program, so you can get an idea of what it does before installing. All these applications install and un-install cleanly, so you can be comfortable testing them with the knowledge that they will not adversely affect your system. The programs on this disk are all distributed under an Open Source License (OSI approved), which allows you to freely use and distribute them.
Open Source Software
Open Source Software (OSS) is provided with a license that gives the end user the right to use it freely for private or commercial use. You also have the right to inspect and even modify the underlying source code. You can give away or sell the original version you received or one with your modifications, provided that you then in turn pass on the modified source code so that others can benefit from the changes you have made. This last clause protects the developer's work from unfair exploitation by others, while allowing the source code to be released to the community. You are not required to pay royalties to previous developers, but you are still permitted to charge money for the sale of OSS. This disk may have been given to you by a friend; or sold to you for a small fee, and both are permitted.
If you have no interest in source code, you may ask why the availability of this matters. One answer is that the release of source allows external observers to inspect the true functioning of the program, which means that you can be confident that the program treats your private data with respect. A real problem with proprietary software can be that your data is locked in to a software's proprietary file format, which means that you may eventually be forced to upgrade to newer versions of that software to retain access to your data. This does not happen with OSS, because when the source code for opening and saving files is available, a third party can easily write an import filter for the next generation of software, ensuring that your data will always be available. Finally, the release of source code has in some cases spawned large communities of volunteer developers who have in turn provided the world with highly useful, and entirely free software such as Linux, OpenOffice, and Mozilla. These are then available free of charge to schools or anyone else who may not have a large budget available for software. So, you can see that the freedom of software is important for everyone, not just software developers.
The Open CD project
There is a staggering number of OSS projects out there. A typical source (Freshmeat) lists over 30 000 projects. There are also numerous of Shareware and Freeware programs available that you can freely download from the net. However these do not qualify as OSS, because you do not have the right to modify the underlying source code. Usually you are not even able to inspect the source code, and often restrictions are placed your use of the program, such as non-commercial use only.
Enter TheOpenCD project. We have made a small collection of only the highest quality OSS for Windows, easily available on a CD. When you insert the disk into your computer it automatically launches a browser which will guide you through the contents of the disk, presenting the various programs, and allow you to easily install them. The programs are carefully selected to ensure stability, ease of use and a clean install and un-install from your computer. This CD is intended as a first introduction to the world of OSS, but it is our hope that you will later go on to explore other projects, and at some stage you may even want to try a whole new operating system such as Linux. In the Further Resource section of this disk we provide a list of other major OSS projects with links to their web pages. There is also a selection of essays about Open Source which should give you some more insight into the history and philosophy of OSS.
The problem is that most people don't know about open-source alternatives. Outlook, IE, etc come with their computer, most people (well, not as many anymore) don't know about Mozilla, haven't even heard of it. In several cases, open-source IS superior to payware. You just have to let them know that it exists.
eD2K Link: TheOpenCD-1stEdition.iso
ClamAV runs on Windows.
For the command line users.
http://www.sosdg.org/clamav-win32/index.php
If you want a frontend for easy, graphical usage.
http://clamwin.sourceforge.net/
Cheers,
AC
Looks kind of like this
ClamAV has a windows version, and an OE plugin.
It doesn't do continuous scanning, but I usually switch that off, on the basis that if I'm scanning everything as it comes in I'm not likely to have written a virus to file in the first place.
Nice easy installer, and everything. http://clamwin.sourceforge.net/
455fe10422ca29c4933f95052b792ab2
Yes, it would for people who are already interested enough to follow through with the effort it would take. The cool thing about the CD is that it's portable, easy and cheap to reproduce, and most important: it's very convenient.
I'm using Linux for most of my computing because somebody handed me a throw-away Knoppix CD. If he had told me, "Hey, there's this cool Knoppix thing that lets you try Linux with no hassles. You can download all 658 Megs for free!" I'd probably still be using Win98 exclusively.
The Dalai LLama
...LLam's LLaw: If x is the amount of bullshit someone has to wade through to try something new and y represents the likelihood that they will actually do so, then the value of x is inversely proportional to the value of y ....
My sig could be your sig!
OpenOffice, and a slew of other X11 based apps will indeed run on OSX without to much work. There's some issues with that, tho.
Speed is the number one thing. X11 apps just don't compare to Aqua apps in terms of responsiveness and speed, so they feel slow when used side by side with 'native' Mac apps. Also, launching X11 apps, OpenOffice in particular, is pretty slow. You have to launch the X11 server, if it isn't already running, and then launch whatever app you are trying to use after that. On my (admittedly slow) iBook G4, it takes something like 20-25 for OpenOffice to start.
The interface is another issue with X11 software on a Mac. It looks like you are running it on a KDE desktop. Nothing wrong with that, except that it doesn't gel well with the generally very nice looking Aqua apps it is running next to.
To answer the original poster, there really isn't a GREAT open source office suite available for the Mac at the moment. OpenOffice will get the job done, no doubt about it, but it really doesn't even come close to MS Office for Mac (where I prefer OOo to MS Office under Windows). They are saying it will be a couple of years before we see an Aqua native version of OOo.
Which reminds me to head over to the OOo site and see if there is anything I can do to volunteer.
Windows XP hides details of file permissions, opting for a basic "share" or "don't share," with an option to allow write access, and only at the directory level. Disabling simple file sharing and permissions allows full group-based permissions for specific files in directories just like Windows 2000 (and Unix).
Better than revert to the classic theme: Disable the "Themes" service. In addition to de-uglifying your desktop you'll get back some memory and cpu cycles. Even if you have plenty of both, it is one less process that can potentially crash/be hacked.