The Newest Member Of the Family

Any suggestions for a clever nickname?

At the risk of sounding excessively geeky, for the past month, I have been basking in the glory of a minor accomplishment.

I have always been an advocate for open source software solutions, using it for e-mail, browsing, podcasting, and media playing. However, I always felt that if I were to really practice what I preached...I needed to take the next step and actually use an open source operating system.

About eight months ago - while I was gainfully employed - I had purchased a used Panasonic CF-29 Toughbook via eBay. Although I ordered it knowing it had no battery or CD/DVD drive, I had no idea that the hard drive had been wiped....and therefore, had no operating system.

A month ago, deciding that I had the time (and more importantly, having failed to revive a 7 year old desktop), I decided to download Ubuntu and install via USB. This had great potential for disaster, dear reader - my dad used to attempt household fix-it projects with no workable handyman skills. My non-techie approach to revive a dead laptop may have had similar risks.

Only 25% of 40 GB used - go me!

For a few weeks, after installing the software onto USB, I found myself able to boot an initial menu, but with hours of blank screen. Thankfully, a few quick Google searches led be to Unetbootin, software which allowed me to create a USB drive that could boot Ubuntu. Once I had done that, I was able to install the software in about 30 minutes. (And that may be a slight exaggeration - I doubt it really took that long).

I've written on my non-profit blog, Metroshrink, about how it appeals to my sense of community-mindedness...but in terms of overall use. It's actually very easy (in fact, I'm writing this blog post on my Toughbook as we speak, my Hewlett Packard laptop taking a nice rest). Ubuntu has a built-in software download center (making it really easy), and although there is a slight learning curve for changing wallpapers, etc, it is quite cool. (Although I will still need to get a battery and CD/DVD drive once I have the cash...)

I initially changed the desktop to a Winston Churchill motivational poster, but decided to go for something a little more personal - and generic. So after Ubuntu boots, here's the sight that (very quickly) greets me:

Thankfully Ubuntu also has wi-fi, torrenting, etc - it's a pretty good all-in-one package. But the coolest thing for me has been, in the midst of a job search where there's often little return, there's a huge ego boost in turning a large, electronic paperweight into a working computer.

At some point, I will need to buy the latest Windows laptop - if I'm planning to consult, having some proprietary software would be beneficial. But as a guy who is both community-minded and - more importantly - cheap, using Ubuntu, a very user friendly operating system, is probably one of the best moves I've ever made.

So now, I only have two things to decide: what kind of clever nickname can I give the Toughbook; and more importantly - should I bring it to tonight's Net Tuesday meeting on open stewardship?