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Ubuntu Linux Operating Systems

hey there! .... After doing some research on customizing and playing around with Microsoft® Windows 7 and its stuff, I've decided to share with you a Desktop Operating System which most of you've not heared of --- or if you are a Computer Geek and most of you don't feel like friendly being around it.Yes im talking about free Linux based Operating system.In every person As a Geek there lies bug inside of you, it tickling inside you so that you when you play with your gadgets,laptop and PC and you reach at some point where the device has usually stopped working or you come out with something extra ordinary.I am not talking about Cell phones or Gadgets or going Off topic,But bulk of the matter is that you have to taste the different flavors of the Operating Systems in which your computer can be cooked.But that depends on the level of your Geek-ness .For e.g if you're a Networking Software designer,Computer or Computer aided Technology Professional you will feel comfortable being with it sometimes you may use both Mac and Linux or even windows.So its all depending upon what type of person you are?.

windows on a penguin ,a penguin in an apple mac.

The Most nice thing about ubuntu and any other linux flavored OS is that it is not a proprietary software ,it is basically an open source where all together Software programmers and designers around the world have contributed to its development hence its not just one.

Yes the penguins made it all by themselves

Interface and Ease of Use:
ubuntu has some eye candy built-in visual effects in sense that it does not require high profile hardware capable of providing enhance and rich graphical visual effects.But regardless of user interface with eye popping effects is not only the requirement as far as End-User is concerned.The GUI is is easy to use but if you want to install things and you get stuck in ,then if you lack software hardware administrator and some programming skills than it is really going to annoy you.Although there are lot of software in Linux Community,so there will surely find way around to use even windows programs like Software,Utilities ,IM clients and Graphics Applications.

Windows 7 Tweaks and Visual effect Customization

This section is divided into two parts The first part is mainly focused on Windows disk space tweaks for people with low System Specs.The Second portion consists of visual enhancements Which would require systems with higher specs.So before starting with first section i would like to give an Overview of what and why i was up to it.


Overview

For the first time when i had a a chance to grab a copy of Windows 7, Only few hours where involved before i could warm up myself with this new release from Microsoft.So i decided to customize my windows the way i wanted.First of all the most important thing to consider is if you want to deploy or upgrade your PC with Windows 7 is to take look at your system specification.The minimum system requirements which you can see at Microsoft website.
When i started to use Windows 7 it was my Refurbished Dell optiplex Gx270 ,a 8 Year old PC equipped with unsupported 96MB Integrated Graphics and 512MB of Memory which was insufficient to handle Capabilities such as Aero transparency and visual Effects, applications like Windows Movie Maker Live.Therefore i really suggest you should have at least A 2.0Ghz pentium 4 Processor , 1GB of Memory, Atleast 128MB pixel shader 2.0 supported Builtin Graphics Chip and 60 -160Gb Hard drive depending on your Need.
Nowadays Prices are too low you can get a refurbished desktop version of Pc rather than building up your customized PC ,with configuration like
dual core processor 80GB Hard drive and 1Gb of RAM around 7000 to 12000 Rs depending on brand.But if you are hardcore Gamer you can build your own Customized Unbranded PC.

Lets take a look at some Tweaks for improving performance and changes we can do for extra look and feel.Before doing anything with your windows you should always backup your system restore point using system restore.


Create System restore Point: http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/create-a-restore-point-for-windows-vistas-system-restore/

Restore System to previous State : http://www.windows7news.com/2009/09/25/how-to-use-windows-7-system-restore/

System Tweaks:


I will begin with safest and simplest form of tweaks for increasing space and performance which you don't need any additional program or extra windows feature to installed separately



1.Disable windows Hibernating Feature

if you have hard drive with less than 80GB of space your windows alone will occupy around 10 -13 Gb of space depending on your installation so if you are too worried about space .disable it.

goto Start menu in search Box type command prompt in search results above right click Command Prompt and click on run as administrator (if it asks you for password you have a admin password.) Type the following in command prompt powercfg.exe /hibernate off.

you will see you have some extra space probably equal to your installed RAM is free now.



2.Remove or Turn off unwanted Windows Programs

You may not want Windows Built-in Features such as Windows Media center and Dvd maker unless and until you have hardware that is capable of handling these features or you want to consider using them in future.

Goto Start then click Control Panel and then Program and Features click on turn Windows features on and off and expand Media Feature uncheck Windows DVD maker and Window Media Center.You can also uncheck Tablet PC component unless if you dont have Hardware capable of doing stuff like for it such as touch screen.



3.Set the paging File in Windows

Paging is Managed by windows itself on all drives pre configured windows 7 default configuration.to set your windows paging file and use it on single partition.

click on Start menu and then right click on Computer then click on Properties click on advanced System Setting in the Advanced Tab you will see Performance field click on settings and than in Advanced tab under Virtual Memory field click Change uncheck Automatically Manage paging file size for all drives and then click on C: drive and click on Custom Size radio button and set initial size(MB): 512 and write in Maximum size (MB): 1024. and click on Set and OK , Restart windows.
This option is not recommended by Microsoft if you have Hard drive with least 120GB because performance will be degraded but you will probably have Free space on other partitions.

These are just few glimpse of what you can do to free up space and reduce windows 7 size from 7 to 5 GB if you are more smart in googling and a computer GEEK!!.





VISUAL Enhancements and Addons For Windows 7:

Although it is not supported or recommended to add more visual enhancement to your windows unless and until you have more than 1GB of RAM and Powerfull 256MB or 512 MB graphics card that supports WDM (WINDOW DRIVER MODEL) and Pixel shader 2.0 feature.

you have to download these each Addons and then do things you want, you will need to create restore point before doing anything.



1.Add a new Start Menu Animation

Download the File from following link:

http://oo-mrhigh-oo.deviantart.com/art/Startmenu-Animation-2-149024877

use 7zip program to unzip downloaded file it and run program startmenu Animation.exe

(note) After changing screen resolution or sometimes it happens you will not get animation you have to delete the cache folder inside the folder you installed the program.
you have to do this every time you change your screen resolution which is unlikely to happen in some situations.



2.Windows 7 Start Button (orb) Changer

Download the file called W7SBC.zip from following link:

http://www.thewindowsclub.com/windows-7-start-button-changer-released

unzip and run Windows 7 Start Button Changer v 2.6.exe and change the orb by clicking on select and change start button orb in program and select the desired button.

to download more ORB buttons..you can search on google or visit following link



3.Make your Desktop Background ALIVE (Dreamscene)

Download the Dreamscene file from following link:

http://www.techknowl.com/use-dream-scene-in-windows-7-and-all.html

After downloading unzip files in folder run the windows 7 Dreamscene activator patch and it will install and update the registry files.

just right click on wmv or mpg Video files and in context menu click on set as desktop background.

Note: have to do is to download (.mpg) and (.wmv) extensions for video files that dreamscene currently supports.you have to also consider the video resolution when downloading file that your monitor supports .otherwise some part of the background will go out from screen ,hence you will be unable to view complete background video.



4.Extra visual effects for Windows.

Stardock WindowsFX 4 is a windows utility software that lets you add extra windows visual effects such as minimize ,maximize ,close and restore. It also provides with more extra special effects such as blur of background desktop and dark circling of background when you open a window to move your focus towards active window rather than inactive window.

as you can see in image below ,the background is blurred and dark circled , shows how it focused on active window


The downside is its not free.but its worth to see your windows with new visual effects and use it for 30 day trial.after that you might will to purchase the full version.

STARDOCK website also has designed utilities to do the above mentioned windows enhancing techniques some of STARDOCK softwares can do more than these.Only because they are not free and that is why this makes it not FOR FREE!.






Thats it ! your done.

There are many other utility software designed to give you extra things.such as windows performance tweaks, look and feel.Some of them freeware and some of them not.some of them include all the required things you need others will include specific products each of which will only be dedicated to customize the part of operating system.

KNOWLEDGE AND ITS ISLAMIC CONCEPT

Definition Of Knowledge

According to religious terminology and usage in Qur’an and Hadith, knowledge is only that which Allah has sent down through His Prophets for the guidance of mankind

Another benefit of seeking knowledge of Islam is that it will, by the permission of Allah, remove ignorance about the religion from amongst our selves. A Muslim cannot remain in a state of doubt and confusion about how to worship Allah, because this will prevent him from worshipping Allah correctly. However, acquiring knowledge of this will eradicate the ignorance.

Imam al-Aajurree (d. 360H)said:
"worship is not possible without knowledge, so seeking knowledge is compulsory and ignorance is not a good state for the believer to be in, so he seeks knowledge to remove ignorance from himself and to be able to worship Allah in the way Allah has commanded".

Also acquiring sound knowledge of Islam enables one to counter the attacks upon it from disbelievers and innovators and all others whose wish is to either destroy or corrupt it. So equipped with certain knowledge one can be in a better position to defend the religion

Warnings from the Prophet (S.A.W)
Many actions can be and are done for the purely worldly gains, to seek personal gain or benefit. As we know, this should not be the reason behind the actions and sayings of a Muslim. To seek the pleasure and reward of Allah should be our sole aim. To make this is easier for us, the Messenger of Allah, (S.A.W), warned us against doing actions for other than the sake of Allah and specifically against seeking and acquiring knowledge for the wrong reasons, with incorrect intentions.
He, (S.A.W), said: "Whosoever learns knowledge by which is to be sought the Face of Allah, but he does not do so except to goal of this world, he will not smell the odor of Paradise on the Day of Resurrection." In another narration the Prophet warned us by saying: "Do not learn the knowledge to amaze/stupefy by it the scholars, nor to delight against the foolish by it, nor to possess the gatherings by it. Whosoever does so, then the Fire, the Fire?"
These two Hadith are extremely clear in their warnings against acquiring knowledge with other than the correct intention. Knowledge of Islam is sought to teach our selves and others, but most importantly to act upon as Allah, the Highest, revealed:


"It is only those who have knowledge amongst His slaves that fear Allah." [35:28].
And as some of the scholars of the past used to say: "Knowledge is not narrating much, but knowledge is fear of Allah."
It should not be sought for reasons of fame or status, which are goals of this world. We should be fearful of not falling into this category, since as the Hadith state the consequences are severe - Hellfire. We must therefore constantly check our intentions to ensure sincerity and purity of action, especially those in the forefront of da’wah, calling people to Islam; since it is easier for intentions to become tainted whilst standing in front of an audience or group of people. Shaitaan "Satan" is also constantly at work trying to ruin our good deeds in whichever way he can
So let us be careful and anxious about why we are seeking knowledge of Islam and ask Allah to save us from being included with the likes of the first to be judged by Him on the Day of Judgment, about whom the Prophet, (S.A.W), warned us: "...So the first to be summoned will be a man who learned knowledge and taught it and read the Qur’an. He will come with it and favors to him will be made known to him and he will recognize it. It will be said: What have you done by it? ‘He will say: ‘I studied the knowledge and taught it and recited for You the Qur’an. It will be said:
‘You have lied. Rather you studied the knowledge so that it would be said of you: ‘a scholar’ and you recited the Qur’an so it would be said of you: ‘a recite.’ And that was said. Then he will be commanded and would be dragged on his face until he is thrown into the Fire..."May Allah - the One free from all imperfections - protect us from this

Muslims Contribution to Science

Learning is obligatory for both men and women. Moreover, education is not restricted to religious issues; it includes all fields of knowledge, including biology, physics, and technology. Scholars have the highest status in Islam, second only to that accorded to Prophets

Islam urges people to read and learn on every occasion. The verses of the Qur'an command, advice, warn, and encourage people to observe the phenomena of nature, the succession of day and night, the movements of stars, the sun, moon, and other heavenly bodies. Muslims are urged to look into everything in the universe, to travel, investigate, explore and understand them, the better to appreciate and be thankful for all the wonders and beauty of God's creations. The first revelation to Muhammad (S.A.W) showed how much Islam cares about knowledge.

Almost from the very beginnings of the Islamic state Muslims began to study and to master a number of fields of so-called secular learning, beginning with linguistics and architecture, but very quickly extending to mathematics, physics, astronomy, geography, medicine, chemistry and philosophy. They translated and synthesized the known works of the ancient world, from Greece, Persia, India, even China.

Before long they were criticizing, improving and expanding on that knowledge. Centuries before the European Renaissance there were Muslim "Renaissance" men, men who were simultaneously explorers, scientists, philosophers, physicians and poets, like Ibn Sina (Avicenna), Umar Khayyam, and others

Astronomy:

Muslims have always had a special interest in astronomy. The moon and the sun are of vital importance in the daily life of every Muslim. By the moon, Muslims determine the beginning and the end of the months in their lunar calendar. By the sun the Muslims calculate the times for prayer and fasting.It is also by means of astronomy that Muslims can determine the precise direction of the Kiblah, to face the Ka'bah in Makkah, during prayer. The most precise solar calendar, superior to the Julian, is the Jilali, devised under the supervision of Umar Khayyam

These references, and the injunctions to learn, inspired the early Muslim scholars to study the heavens. They integrated the earlier works of the Indians, Persians and Greeks into a new synthesis. Ptolemy's Almagest (the title as we know it is Arabic) was translated, studied and criticized. Many new stars were discovered, as we see in their Arabic names - Algol, Deneb, Betelgeuse, Rigel, Aldebaran.Astronomical tables were compiled, among them the Toledan tables, which were used by Copernicus, Tycho Brahe and Kepler. Also compiled were almanacs - another Arabic term. Other terms from Arabic are zenith, nadir, albedo, azimuth
Muslim astronomers were the first to establish observatories, like the one built at Mugharah by Hulagu, the son of Genghis Khan, in Persia, and they invented instruments such as the quadrant and astrolabe, which led to advances not only in astronomy but in oceanic navigation, contributing to the European age of exploration

Geography:
Muslim scholars paid great attention to geography. In fact, the Muslims' great concern for geography originated with their religion. The Qur'an encourages people to travel throughout the earth to see God's signs and patterns every where. Islam also requires each Muslim to have at least enough knowledge of geography to know the direction of the Kiblah (the position of the Ka'bah in Makkah) in order to pray five times a day.Among the most famous names in the field of geography, even in the West, are Ibn Khaldun and Ibn Batuta, renowned for their written accounts of their extensive explorations. In 1166, Al-Idrisi, the well-known Muslim scholar who served the Sicilian court, produced very accurate maps, including a world map with all the continents and their mountains, rivers and famous cities. Al-Muqdishi was the first geographer to produce accurate maps in color
It was, moreover, with the help of Muslim navigators and their inventions that Magellan was able to traverse the Cape of Good Hope, and Da Gama and Columbus had Muslim navigators on board their ships.

Medicine:
This was strong motivation to encourage Muslim scientists to explore, develop, and apply empirical laws. Much attention was given to medicine and public health care. The first hospital was built in Baghdad in 706 AC. The Muslims also used camel caravans as mobile hospitals, which moved from place to place.
Since the religion did not forbid it, Muslim scholars used human cadavers to study anatomy and physiology and to help their students understand how the body functions. This empirical study enabled surgery to develop very quickly.
Al-Razi, known in the West as Rhazes, the famous physician and scientist, (d. 932) was one of the greatest physicians in the world in the Middle Ages. He stressed empirical observation and clinical medicine and was unrivaled as a diagnostician. He also wrote a treatise on hygiene in hospitals. Khalaf Abul-Qasim Al-Zahrawi was a very famous surgeon in the eleventh century, known in Europe for his work, Concession (Kitab al-Tasrif).
Ibn Sina (d. 1037), better known to the West as Avicenna, was perhaps the greatest physician until the modern era. His famous book, Al-Qanun fi al-Tibb, remained a standard textbook even in Europe, for over 700 years. Ibn Sina's work is still studied and built upon in the East.
Other significant contributions were made in pharmacology, such as Ibn Sina's Kitab al-Shifa' (Book of Healing), and in public health. Every major city in the Islamic world had a number of excellent hospitals, some of them teaching hospitals, and many of them were specialized for particular diseases, including mental and emotional. The Ottomans were particularly noted for their building of hospitals and for the high level of hygiene practiced in them.

Mathematics:

Mathematics:It is interesting to note that Islam so strongly urges mankind to study and explore the universe. For example, the Holy Qur'an states:


"We (Allah) will show you (mankind) Our signs/patterns in the horizons/universe and in yourselves until you are convinced that the revelation is the truth." [Qur'an, 41:53]

This invitation to explore and search made Muslims interested in astronomy, mathematics, chemistry, and the other sciences, and they had a very clear and firm understanding of the correspondences among geometry, mathematics, and astronomy. The Muslims invented the symbol for zero (The word "cipher" comes from Arabic sifr), and they organized the numbers into the decimal system - base 10. Additionally, they invented the symbol to express an unknown quantity, i.e. variables like x.
The first great Muslim mathematician, Al-Khawarizmi, invented the subject of algebra (al-Jabr), which was further developed by others, most notably Umar Khayyam. Al-Khawarizmi's work, in Latin translation, brought the Arabic numerals along with the mathematics to Europe, through Spain. The word "algorithm" is derived from his name. Muslim mathematicians excelled also in geometry, as can be seen in their graphic arts, and it was the great Al-Biruni (who excelled also in the fields of natural history, even geology and mineralogy) who established trigonometry as a distinct branch of mathematics. Other Muslim mathematicians made significant progress in number theory.