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horneker.com is a collection of web resources that is about Linux with emphasis on the PCLinuxOS distribution, digital photography, commentary about technology issues that effect us, humor and satire, and most importantly, our digital freedoms, including freedom of choice, freedom of access, and freedom to collaborate.
Linux Solutions for Everyone is not just a tagline. It is a promise that I uphold to for everything that happens with this website.
These days, surfing the Web as we know it has changed. Mobile devices such as Android tablets and smart phones are increasingly becoming a popular tool for web browsing. Also, the integration of television and Internet makes another venue for web surfing possible. In the 1990s, we had WebTV, a set top box that allowed web pages to be viewed on analog television sets, and used a 56K landline modem for Internet access. Today's television sets that integrate Internet applications rely on broadband access to the Internet for some content.
This means that I will need to create a mobile version of the website collection. The standard XHTML content, however, will have to be adapted to accomodate mobile devices. It will be interesting to see how this website translates to a mobile version.
Of course, the standard web pages will continue to be available for standard laptops and desktops. We still need these devices to create Internet content as well as to create applications for mobile devices. Otherwise, what is the point?
A Bit of History
Back in July 1996, this website supported OS/2. OS/2 was a great operating system. It was a true 32-bit operating system with 16-bit compatibility (for DOS, Windows 3.x and 16-bit OS/2 applications). The problem was that IBM was not able to market the product effectively. IBM started discontinuing support back in 2002 for version 2.x and earlier. Version 3.0 (Warp) was discontinued back in 2004. Finally, in 2005, IBM pulled the product off the market. What is left of OS/2 is now called eComStation, sold by Serenity Systems.
eComStation is a commercial product, and unfortunately costs the same as Windows 7. The good news is that like Linux, it is not vulerable to malware, viruses, or other problems Windows 7 has. The bad news is that Microsoft's new UEFI specification threatens the existence of this operating system in the same way it does with Linux and other UNIX systems in general. Fortunately, the Free Software Foundation is taking action against this potential roadblock.
The Comdex event in Fall 1998 introduced the mainstream computing market to Linux (as well as Open Source software in general) and its benefits in the enterprise, as well as in the consumer market. The introduction of the General Public License to the mainstream changed the way that software was distributed. Linux was the first operating system for consumers where the cost for one installation is the same as the cost for a thousand installations. In other words, Linux itself does not cost anything to install, configure and use. What you pay for is the cost of the disks, and the labor to download and produce the distribution disks.
About Coffee, Jazz and Commentary
The commentary section did not come into being until the verdict (for the US Department of Justice) was rendered against Microsoft Corporation for violations of anti-trust statutes that were instituted during the Great Depression. The historical document, written in 1999 is my opinion on the verdict. During this redevlopment, I will make a decision as to where to place the PDF file.
As with most any website, horneker.com continues to be a work in progress, and will be for sometime to come.
Coffee, Jazz and Commentary, as it is today, is my blog hosted at Tumblr.com, and is linked to my horneker.com page on Facebook.
Why PCLinuxOS?
These days, I have been involved with the PCLinuxOS distribution (not just using it). While I may support other distributions, this website will emphasize Linux content on this distribution.
Of all the Linux distributions I have used, I find that PCLinuxOS is the best when it comes to hardware support, keeping the software updated, system configuration, ease of use, and suitability for the consumer market. What other distribution offers plenty of support options, including a downloadable magazine (in PDF format)?
If you are used to using Windows, you should be able to adapt to the original PCLinuxOS variant and its KDE desktop.
