Mint, Conky and #!
Before retiring an old computer that I had originally purchased second hand about four or five years ago, I used it an an experimental box to try out different versions of Linux. I kept it until I had my new ‘experimental box’ built. At any rate, I saved some screenshot of the desktop showing the last configuration it before its retirement: Linux Mint 8 and the latest version of #! (or Crunchbang Linux).
I have mentioned Linux Mint before and it has become my main Linux distro for the time being. I like it as much as Ubuntu and will follow its development for some time. Like versions of Ubuntu, it is very much oriented to a broad audience, including those that might be considered as casual users (those that don’t want to fiddle too much with their computer and want things to ‘just work’). In the screen shot, you can also see (in the top, right corner) a little program called Conky. (More on that in a bit… also, just to be clear, I don’t think the background image is from Mint, I think it is one I downloaded from a desktop wallpaper site.)
Installed next to Mint was the current version of Crunchbang… henceforth referred to as #! (just for typographical fun). #! is very different from Mint. #! is a small project that is based on Ubuntu/Debian and so has underlying resemblance to Mint. But as I mentioned previously, it has a sparse and minimal feel. It requires familiarity with using the terminal (command line) and so is intended for consideration by individuals with those skills. I also mentioned that #! is slightly beyond my skills. But I do really like the minimal aesthetic and how fast it is. Therefore, I installed it on my old laptop/netbook because for simple tasks like playing music and accessing the internet, it is both fast and quick. So, while I will not use #! for my main desktop needs (unless I become better at using the command line), I like it for those web-based purposes.
It too features Conky… and it is a default feature. Conky is a little program that can be (relatively) easily modified to sit on the desktop providing system monitoring and other information. I liked it so much when I saw it in #! that I installed/enabled it in my installations of Mint (Conky can run with most versions of Linux I think). While some people have installed scripts that can retrieve local/regional weather, I like using the simple functions like displaying information about your computer. It only took a little while to figure out how to modify the proper files (in Mint, I also had to install a script to get it to run 30 seconds after the system boots so that it would not conflict with the startup of another program). There is a lot of information online, including many excellent examples by other users. (It was in the Mint and Ubuntu forums where I learned about the script workaround just mentioned.) For the record, the modified version of Conky that you see running in the #! screenshot above is one I cobbled together from someone’s example that was shared with others in the #! forums.
I really find it useful to see the system resources being used. I could see that it would help with security (especially in terms of incoming and outgoing network traffic) but I really like it because it shows the usage or system resources like RAM, CPU, and the hard drive(s). I like it so much, I found a similar program for Windows 7 called RainMeter that I might install on my computer at work.
Anyway… when it comes to Mint, Conky and #!… I find all three to be really good open source software.
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