Tips & Tricks
5 ways to improve your linux gyan
0So you’ve been using Linux for quite some time now but you don’t feel that you are power-user yet. It’s OK. Here are ways to improve your Linux know-how and become a better Linux administrator.
1.) Go beyond Ubuntu : Chances are very high that you started with Ubuntu and it still is your favorite Linux distribution. We all Love Ubuntu but it is not the choice-distro for a power-user. You may want to Install a source based distribution like Gentoo where you will be compiling everything yourself. It may be time-consuming though and if you think Gentoo is an overkill – A better option is Arch Linux. The Arch base and all packages are compiled for x86-64 architectures, offering a potential performance boost with the added advantage of quick installation. Both Arch Linux and Gentoo Linux are rolling release systems, that means packages are available to the distribution a short time after they are released making sure that you have the most cutting-edge OS install.
You may also wanna try Linux From Scratch. LFS, (or Linux From Scratch) is not a Linux distribution but a documentation instructing you, how to obtain the source code for a minimal base package set for a functional Linux system, and how to manually compile, patch and configure it from scratch. On the other hand Gentoo gives you nearly as much control as LFS would, but with the advantage of having a userbase and documentation (the documentation is awesome) for if/when you get stuck.
You can also try Slackware. Slackware is the oldest surviving Linux distribution, and is known for teaching its users thoroughly – gentle, or not. It’s about as pure as Linux gets. There’s an old saying: “If you have a question about Linux, ask a Slackware user.”
2.) Make Troubles with Trouble-Maker : There are a lot of tools out there to make the system administrator’s life easier. However, no tool is a replacement for properly understanding the system and experience in troubleshooting unknown situations. This is where Trouble-Maker comes in but unlike other tools, It does not attempt to solve problems — It causes them. Set up trouble-maker, let it break stuff, and fix it again – it’s a great way to learn how to trouble-shoot a Linux system. Don’t wait to break the Linux system, break it yourself.
Download it Here: http://trouble-maker.sourceforge.net/
**Do Not install this on a production system**
3.) Join Forums : Join support and discussion forum for your specific Linux-flavor. In a forum you can:
a.) When google is not helping you can post your query in a forum to get help from users.
b.) Answer user queries thereby contributing to community and improving your Linux Gyan (Know-How) in the process.
c.) Learn about issues plaguing your preferred Linux distro.
d.) Get to know like-minded people.
Make sure the forum you are joining has a large number of active users or you’d be waiting for replies for days (sometimes weeks).
I would suggest joining one of the following forums:
- Arch Linux Forums :
Total number of registered users: 40,000
Total number of topics: 127,189
Total number of posts: 998,895
- LinuxQuestions :
Total number of registered users: 462,916
Total number of topics: 904,949
Total number of posts: 4,526,788
- Gentoo Discussion Forum :
Total number of registered users: 134,224
Total number of topics: 5,439,269
4.) IRC – Channels : IRC channels are somewhat like Yahoo! Chat-rooms but much more controlled. There are several Internet relay chat (IRC) channels on the freenode network. They have all the advantages of Forums I mentioned but it’s real-time.
You can get active on an IRC channel right now through Freenode’s web-chat client. Choose a nickname, IRC channel (For Example: #Linux, ##linux-in etc), Fill CAPTCHA and Click on connect button.
For chatting on any other network than Freenode, Try Mibbit.
5.) Read Linux News : Keep yourself informed with latest hip-n-happening in world of Linux.
My Favorite Sources include:
- http://distrowatch.com/
- http://www.linuxinsider.com
- http://www.linuxsecurity.com
- http://www.reddit.com/r/linux/
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What do you do to sharpen your Linux Knowledge? Leave Comments!
Spoof Status messages on Facebook – Funny Status
0
I recently came across a web app called ‘FunnyStatus‘ which allows you to post status messages to Facebook. The funny part is that in status’s “posted via” field you can select funny application names like iPhone 5, iPad, Nasa Satellite and even Toilet.
Here is the application in action:
Spoof Facebook Applications in Status
Here’s the application page: http://www.facebook.com/viaFunnyStatus
It’s just another useless Facebook application, but it’s fun anyway (and now you don’t need an iPad to post via ‘iPad”). 
Facebook Timeline : It’s Different
7Yesterday I was cursing Facebook for blatantly copying Google+ features. It copied Smart Lists feature from Google+ circles and the feature of Commenting From Sidebar. Today Facebook unvailed Facebook Timeline a new killer interface for your own profile. It provides a look at everything that has ever happened in your Facebook lifespan. With this feature Facebook is really like a Book – A book of your life on Facebook.
My words can not express it. Here are few screenshots of Facebook Timeline:
Facebook Timeline : Status Posting
Facebook Timeline: Friends and Likes
and finally the Full Page View:
Facebook Timeline : Full Page
This feature is only available to facebook developers for now (You need to be in developer mode). But there is a trick we can use to get an invite for it in 9 simple steps :
1. We go to our facebook page and log in.
2. Now we enable developer mode (If you are already a Facebook app developer – skip this), for this, type “developer” into the Facebook search box, click the first result (developer app), and add the app.
3. Go to developer app (usually Facebook it opens by itself when you add it).
4. Create a new app. Give your new app any display name and a unique namespace you see fit. Read and Agree to Privacy statement.
5. Make sure that you’re in your new app’s main settings screen. You should see your app’s name near the top of the page
6. Look for the “Open Graph” in Left Sidebar, and click the “Get Started using open graph” link.
Create a test action for your app, like “read” a “book”, or “eat” a “sandwich”
7. This should take you to an action type configuration page. click through all three pages of settings (Next Next Next.)
8. Wait couple of seconds
9. Go back to your Facebook Home-Page. An invite to try Timeline should be waiting at the top of the page
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You can follow above given procedure to get the timeline now or you can wait few weeks.
After getting the timeline, you will have the option to edit and publish it right then else your timeline will go public in a week.
Just after trying this feature for an hour or so, I’m simply in love with it. Facebook just did something innovative. Do try out and leave comments. Did you like it?
DeAuth Attack – Disconnect computers from an access point.
0Note: Do not perform this attack in a network where you are not the administrator. It is illegal.
First a little bit of info on what De-authentication is:
It is an attack through which we send disassociation packets to computers/devices connected to a particular WiFi access point. This will disconnect all connected computers from that access point (It won’t work if there are no associated wireless client or on fake authentications).
This attack is usually used for following purposes:
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Recovering a hidden ESSID. This is an ESSID which is not being broadcast. Another term for this is “cloaked”.
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Capturing WPA/WPA2 handshakes by forcing clients to re-authenticate
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Generate ARP requests (Windows clients sometimes flush their ARP cache when disconnected)
If those three point don’t make any sense, in simple words, this attack disconnects computers from an access point so you can have all WiFi bandwidth for yourself :p