2 posts tagged “die die die”
Step 1: Go to Bloglines
Step 3: See the html source code from Firefox? _blank should open a new container of some sort (what was my setting in step 2 again?)
Step 4: See that tab? What's wrong with this picture? (Hint: refer to step 2).
Commentary: blogs like this one sing the virtues of tabs. I like tabs when they are a logically related group of items. When I click things in Bloglines they are often unrelated items that have come down my pneumatic info chute and they are not thematically related, therefore I want unrelated things in NEW WINDOWS damn it. That's how I do it, m'kay? Can't seem to get it by setting the preferences.
Die, Firefox, Die. (for being retarded and forcing tabs on me even despite settings in step #2). Grr. Actually I usually like Firefox, but this little bug/feature drives me insane.
. . . and honestly I hate washing dishes, but that is what I was thinking tonight when I was washing my dishes.
See I forget how painful it is to do anything at all in Linux, specifically Ubuntu. It looks glossy and pretty. I end up installing a new version or trying to do anything with it every few months, but that is when I remember why I should never, ever use it. I should know better by now.
Years ago it was configuring MythTV for weeks to months to get it working, but only to find out that it only recorded erratically before crashing. I even used it for 6 months but I never knew what kind of "legendary" stability it would have. ivyTV driver writers better not quit their day jobs anytime soon.
Then there was the fun of trying to get a Radeon dual head card working a while back. I can't even tell you how long that one little tweak took. 5 seconds in Windows for that, 5 days in Ubuntu. Productivity enhanced. Configuration uber alles. Configuration is king, forget about sensible defaults, lets have some nonsensical ones to make sure nothing works without knowing the guts of whatever program you wish to install.
So I had conveniently forgotten all my other past never-ending nightmares with Linux. I'm writing it down now so I won't forget even in a few months. Then I can spend that night doing something more productive like washing dishes, picking my nose, or fantasizing about what robots would look like wearing wigs. Seriously, anything is more productive than trying to configure anything in Linux.
Let me recount my wasted 5 or 6 hours. You machochistic, idealistic, free love, free software, sadistic open source weenies owe me 5 hours of my life that will never come back. I'd rather have my teeth drilled without anesthetic than even consider doing that again.
Let me recount the endless pain:
1) dig out wire since wireless doesn't work
2) download RT73 wireless driver
3) extract, 4) try to make driver, make not installed
5) download g++ and make
6) attempt again will not make
7) download kernel header and source
8) attempt make again
9) read endless readme's, web pages and configuration files in an attempt to figure out what the hell is going on
10) attempt variations on making driver but still erroring out
11) decide I'll just have to trip over network cable like a techno-dickwad for a while
12) go to get ruby
13) all versions are extremely old so must compile from source
14) download
15) extract
16) various make steps
17) install
18) download rubygems
19) try set up but with zlib error messages
20) screw around with various package managers to try and fulfill dependancies
21) think about just installing this stuff from a package manager, but everything is like 30 years old
22) read 300 web pages about people having problems and at least 300 different solutions
23) try a promising solution involving at least 8 to 10 discrete steps
24) feel screwed over when it doesn't work at all like it it supposed to
25) repeat steps 23 and 24 again
26) repeat steps 23 and 24 again
27) repeat steps 23 and 24 again
28) repeat steps 23 and 24 another huge number of times
29) read about ideological wars between debian and rubygems and how both pathetic tribal societies are trying to show they have bigger dicks by enforcing their own package manager directory structure
30) somewhere in there do updates and allow package manager to see other repositories
31) install, uninstall various packages, copy zlib files, compile zlib files from source, etc
32) run rubygems a few hundred more times (after each thing I try)
33) get extremely fed up and start banging my head against the wall
34) figure it will never work
35) restart the computer for windows while I go to the bathroom
36) come back after using bathroom to discover that my computer is obsessively doing some weird memtest WTF?
37) realize that GRUB loaded something weird
38) reboot and notice that Ubuntu installed yet another kernel version with the updates and pushed all the items in the boot menu down so that memtest became the default OS (f'ing brilliant)
39) boot back into Ubuntu to try and reset the idiocy
40) see a few more threads about rubygems being a mess and try a few more "solutions"
41) try to look around to remember where grub.lst went so I can fix my screwed up system
42) do a search since I can't find it right away and stick something in the microwave for an extremely late night dinner
43) wash dishes and contemplate how much more enjoyable washing dishes is than wasting 5 hours or more trying to get impossible things to work since washing dishes at least shows progress
44) finally find the correct folder in the mess of 3-letter folder names that Linux loves (what the hell is sqp, usr or ekj, or kgt?)
45) change the default OS back from being hijacked by grub and memtest
46) mourn the loss of my entire night when I could have been doing anything else and had a more enjoyable and productive time
46) vow never, ever, ever to boot into Linux ever again and waste 5 hours to get nothing, absolutely nothing done while having a torturous time.
(And I'm sure I forgot some things in here, this is seriously the abridged version.)
