Road Safety: The last scene المشهد الأخير

اعلان رائع عن سلامة الطرق من اخواننا في السعودية، المشهد مؤثر جداً

A Saudi road safety ad. I think the video explains it all.

Khan Academy: Free Online Education

An amazing project called the "Khan Academy" by a dedicated person called Salman Khan. He's a Muslim American who gave up a lucrative career to pursue a passion to educate people. There are over 2000 videos to date and they're still growing. All this for free! He does not profit one bit from the lectures he puts online.

His lectures include subjects such as maths, chemistry, economics, history and much more.
I've included a sample of his videos below.

Please spread the word about his website. Many people can use his lectures to prepare for high school, college and university exams, or you can just use it as a great educational tool to learn things you wished you could have at school.

Mr Khan is also seeking help to translate some of his online lectures. Are there any Arabic speakers who have the skills to help? That would be great and beneficial thing to do to help Arabic speaking students.

Thank you Salman, may Allah guide you and give you grace for this tremendous thing you're doing.

His lectures can all be found here: http://www.khanacademy.org/

Anatomy of a muscle cell:

Adding and subtracting fractions:

The French Revolution (part 1):

Roger Waters - "We Shall Overcome"سوف ننتصر- روجر واترس End The Blockade of Gaza

A song by Roger Waters of Pink Floyd. It's heartening to watch the support of humans from all walks of life for their brothers and sisters in Gaza. Support has come from the very famous to the normal person on the street. It has come from Muslims, Christians, Jews and from people of all beliefs and nationalities including Israelis. Support which can even cost lives as we saw last week, when nine peace loving Turkish nationals bravely and heroically lost their lives for this most human of causes.
People have spoken up for the truth and against injustice and the suffering of the Palestinians. This is all against the backdrop of overwhelming misrepresentation and misinformation from the major world media outlets which have neglected and in many cases lied or at best remained silent about the plight and the suffering of the people in Gaza.

It's peaceful endeavors like this and the heroic and courageous efforts of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla that show us the beauty and unity of the human spirit and that divisions are only created by a few to meet their evil agendas but these divisions are not meant to be and they will be broken down.

It's voices like yours Roger that bring down the prison walls and artificial divisions, you have helped do that before in Berlin when its wall was taken down. The truth will set us all free. Yes, we shall overcome, justice always prevails, history has shown us this and will show us again.

Thank you Roger and may the voices of truth and morality prevail and unite us all for the common good of humanity.

Below is what Roger wrote in the description of the above video:

"Over the new year 2009-2010, an international group of 1500 men and women from 42 nations went to Egypt to join a Freedom March to Gaza. They did this to protest the current blockade of Gaza. To protest the fact that the people of Gaza live in a virtual prison. To protest the fact that a year after the terror attack by Israeli armed forces destroyed most of their homes, hospitals, schools, and other public buildings, they have no possibility to rebuild because their borders are closed. The would be Freedom Marchers wanted to peacefully draw attention to the predicament of the Palestinian population of Gaza. The Egyptian government, (funded to the tune of $2.1 billion a year, by us, the US tax payers), would not allow the marchers to approach Gaza. How lame is that? And how predictable! I live in the USA and during this time Dec 25th 2009-Jan3rd 2010 I saw no reference to Gaza or the Freedom March or the multi national protesters gathered there. Anyway I was moved, in the circumstances, to record a new version of " We shall overcome". It seems appropriate.

Roger Waters

Many thanks to G.E Smith: lead guitar and Thor Jonsson, drum programming and whatever. Thanks guys!!!

PS. 3rd June 2010

And now piracy!!!!!!!

The Terror of Road Accidents إرهاب حوادث المرور

A brilliant presentation from Saudi Arabia by a group called Mctoom Media Movies, headed by Ala'a Al Maktoum. I must congratulate them for their amazing efforts. I hope they continue to create these kinds of high quality videos. I also hope our Libyan youth can take this as a positive example and try to do something similar.
The video above talks about the problem of road accidents in Saudi Arabia, which according to the video has the highest rate of car accidents and deaths in the World, I am sure the Libyan road safety problem is also very similar. Please watch the video and remember that most of the information applies to Libya.
It's very sad fact that the Arab world is losing so much of its youth because of very poor road safety standards.
Drastic measures need to be taken as the video shows that the situation is getting worse.

You can follow Ala'a Al Maktoum on twitter here and the blog here.

Driving in Libya! قيادة السيارات في ليبيا

Above is a funny video by Bruno Bozzetto about driving in Italy. I think a lot of people who know the Libyan roads and driving attitudes would agree that it should be renamed: "Driving in Libya!". Actually in this case reality maybe even more bizarre!

Mobiles and Driving لا تستخدم الهاتف النقال أثناء القيادة

PSA Texting while Driving U.K. Ad (Youtube and Vimeo)

Texting While Driving: How Dangerous is it? - Car and Driver

Indian Ad Campaign about Mobile Phone use and driving

The first two videos are the same but in different formats (Youtube and Vimeo). It's a British campaign against texting and driving. Although the sad story told in the video is acted out, the reality is probably worse. what you see happens on a daily basis and sometimes in a more tragic and horrific way.

The second Video showcases an interesting study done to compare driving while texting and driving while under the influence of Alcohol. Although both are dangerous, the study found that texting was actually more dangerous.

The road safety poster ( ملصق أو بوستر سلامة الطرق ) above is an Indian ad effectively expressing the dangers of mobile/cell phone use while driving.

Please read this excellent article on Mobile phones and driving available on Wiki.

Unfortunately no Arabic version of it is available yet. Anyone care to translate the article? I wish I could, but I'd rather leave it to more talented Arabic speakers!

The main points in the article:

• Driver inattention is estimated to be a factor in between 20 to 50 percent of all police-reported crashes.

• Studies have shown that cell phone drivers exhibited similar or greater impairment than intoxicated drivers.
  
  

• Driving while using a handsfree cellular device is not safer than using a hand held cell phone, as concluded by case-crossover studies.The increased "cognitive workload" involved in holding a conversation, not the use of hands, causes the increased risk.
  
  
• Text messaging had the greatest relative risk, with drivers being 23 times more likely to experience a safety-critical event when texting. A study conducted found that drivers typically take their eyes off the forward roadway for an average of four out of six seconds when texting, and an average of 4.6 out of the six seconds surrounding safety-critical events.

Please see the full articles for the full information and references.

Driving while speaking on the phone or texting can increase your chances of having an accident by 4 times or more.

The best way to avoid accidents is NOT to use the mobile phone while driving. One effective and sure way to do this is to switch off the phone before embarking on your journey.

SWITCH OFF AND DRIVE OFF.

Please see a previous post of mine regarding this issue: Road Safety: Mobile Phones هواتف النقال

My New Video: Ubuntu (Sabily) and Arabic اوبونتو (سبيلي) واللغة العربية

I thought I'd make a video on Linux Ubuntu to showcase it, especially for those who use Arabic. There seems to be a lack of media on the Arabic part of Linux. I hope the video can give people more info on the subject. The above videos are the same but one is hosted on YouTube and the other in Vimeo.

The distro in the video is called Sabily. It's an Islamic Ubuntu, the version shown corresponds to Ubuntu 9.10. I've shown some applications and also Arabic text, mostly its rendering in web pages through Firefox and Chrome. For word-processing I showed the excellent OpenOffice. The video quality maybe a little off, for that I apologise, I'm new at this! You could try maximising the video if its unclear. The video is a bit long at 10 minutes but believe me, there is still plenty more to show in terms of applications etc.

Towards the end of the video, I also used a Quran reciter which comes pre-installed with Sabily.

As mentioned in my last post Ubuntu 10.04 is already out and is even better then the version showcased in this video. Regarding Sabily, it is an excellent distro, packed full of Islamic and educational software ready to use straight after installation. The next version of Sabily (corresponding to Ubuntu 10.04) is still pending.

If you want to visit the Sabily web page it's here and for the latest Ubuntu click here.
Please read my last post for more information on Linux and Ubuntu.

For those who may ask, the music in the background of the video is a form of Andalusian Muwashahat from Libya also called Ma'luf (a form of Islamic traditional music). It's a form of invocation.
The musical group in the video is lead by Hassan Araybi from Libya, who sadly passed away last year. The invocation is called "Ya Men Khalaqta Alwara Min Dulmat Al-Adami", can anyone translate that? In Arabic: حسن عريبي: يا من خلقت الورى من ظلمة العدم .
For Arabic speakers the words of the invocation are:

يا من خلقت الورى من ظلمة العدم

يا ذا البقاء و الغنى و الجود و الكرم
يا عالم الغيب يا من لا شريك له
ياذا العطاء و الندى يا بارئ النسم

يا سامعا لدعاء المضطر يا املي
يا واحد احد يا واهب النعم
انت العليم الهى و القضاء قدري فامنن و بارك و تب انى لذو عشم
فقد امرت بان ندعوك يا سندى و قد وعدت اجبنا ذا العطا العمم
يسر لسيري ايا مولاى مكرمة و العفو فى الدين و الغفران للمم

انت العليم الهى و القضاء قدري
فامنن و بارك وتب اني لذو عشم
ادعوك بالذات و الاسماء اجمعها
كذا الصفات و ما فى اللوح و القلم
ان تستر الحال منى دائما ابدا و فى الاقامة و الترحال للحرم
انت العليم الهى و القضاء قدري فامنن و بارك و تب انى لذو عشم
ثم الصلاة على المختار سيدنا محمد خير خلق الله كلهم
و الال و الصحب ما غنت مطوقة او ما حدا سائق الركبان بالنغم

Linux and Ubuntu Explained ما هو لينكس وما هو اوبونتو؟

This post is an attempt to explain what Linux means and also to talk about a popular Linux OS called Ubuntu. I will try to shed some light on this topic as much as I can. Although I think one post won't do Linux justice!

I first heard about Linux a long time back, but I never dared to try it out until about 4 years ago when I tried a CD which had Knoppix Linux on it. I wasn't impressed at the time, and I didn't try anything else until 2008 when I had a go at using Ubuntu, and the rest as they say is history.

So what is Linux?

An operating system (OS) conceived by Linus Torvalds from Finland in 1991. The name Linux is derived from Linus's name and the name of the UniX OS.

Borrowing this introduction about Linux from wiki: "Linux is a generic term referring to Unix-like computer operating systems based on the Linux kernel. Their development is one of the most prominent examples of free and open source software collaboration; typically all the underlying source code can be used, freely modified, and redistributed, both commercially and non-commercially, by anyone under licenses such as the GNU General Public License."

Linux can run servers where it is the predominate OS, mobile devices or desktops/laptops. In the desktop market, it currently has about 1-2% share, which is far behind Windows and the Apple OS X. However its share is steadily growing and is expected to be a major player in the future.

Linux is packaged in a format called a distribution or "distro". Distros have different flavours and because they are open-source many of the major ones have been modified and redistributed under different names. There are literally hundreds of distros out there and the numbers are growing by the day. The sheer number of distros and their variants can be confusing for many people new to Linux, but once the basic concepts are understood you'll find out it's not that complicated at all.

The major distros are: Debian, Fedora, Ubuntu (Debian Based), Mandriva, OpenSUSE and Linux Mint (Ubuntu Based). Each one has a certain flavour to it and is either backed by certain co-operations or is community based. Many have their own off shoots or variants.

Distributions have different desktop environments, the main ones are Gnome and KDE. To use an analogy, they are the two types of outfits or clothes that the major distributions wear when they show off their desktops. There are other outfits like xfce and LXDE. Ubuntu wears Gnome as its desktop environment, Kubuntu uses KDE. Don't worry if this confuses you, just ignore it for now.

So, why Linux ? (Advantages)

For more on this topic you can try the two website links below for further clarification. But basically for me, it boils down to the following points (in no particular order):

1-Support: Huge community, all helpful and supportive. There is no problem that can't be solved, all you need to do is search or ask.
2-Safe/Virus free computer use: The security of Linux is second to non! No more viruses, trojans, worms etc. You don't need an anti-virus!! Even banks are advising using Linux for online banking, paying bills etc. Check this link about personal banking and the use of Linux.
3-Free/No cost: You don't pay a penny for a first class operating system and no it's not pirated software.
4-Freedom: You tweak, change as much as you like. Upgrades are free with no hidden costs.
5-Speed: Your PC will run faster under Linux and no need for defrags! Boot up is very fast!
6-Rapidly developing: With regular free updates, and 6 monthly release cycles!
7-Ethical: You don't need to resort to pirated software and breaking the law or an ethical standard. There is literally thousands of free open source software alternatives you can choose from.
8-Stability: No viruses, well built software, less likely to crash and I have the experience to prove it. It's very reliable.
9-Educational: You learn a totally new concept and which you can teach others.
10-Applications: Excellent quality and free applications to cater for every need. Very easy to install contrary to popular belief.
11-Opportunity to do good: You can breath life into old computers by installing an up-to-date lighter distro. You can give old computers away to family members or friends or any body in need of a computer who otherwise can't afford one. Thus helping in the spread of computer literacy. The lighter distros have more than enough to get someone to use the Internet, use a word processor, watch a DVD etc.

12-Ready-to-use: Once you install the distro, most versions will have pre-installed applications/drivers/codecs that you need for 90% of your needs. And if you need to install anything it's very easy, done through a one stop software centre or package managers.This is not like windows, where after its installation it has virtually no applications thus you have install a lot of software in order for it to be fully functional.
13-Choice and customization: In Linux there is room for everyone. You can customize your Linux distro to function and look like anything you want. For example you can even make your Linux OS look like Microsoft Windows or the Mac OS X if you want! There is even a distro you can download based on Ubuntu that looks nearly exactly like windows XP! It's called YLMF OS.
14-Cloud computing: Many distros are already embracing the concept of cloud computing unlike other mainstream operating systems. This has the added benefit and potential to circumvent some issues related to lack of certain software on Linux. For example, on-line versions of popular applications which will be very similar to their desktop counterparts will soon be available, like Microsoft Office etc, which can be readily and fully accessible to Linux users very soon. These were not available previously on Linux. Examples of cloud based distros include Jolicloud, Peppermint OS and the much anticipated Google Chrome OS to be released later this year.

But please remember Linux is NOT windows, it may look similar, but don't fall into a common mistake made by many people. Linux is a totally different type of operating system and has many better things to offer compared to windows, but you need to learn how to take advantage of these offerings. Generally you can't run Windows software on Linux (although you can run some through a Linux program called Wine).

For more details on Why Linux is better please check the following:

Why Linux is better (Arabic)

Why Linux is better (English)

Very useful advice regarding mistakes that people make when moving to Linux:

10+ mistakes Linux newbies make

Disadvantages of Linux:

We have to be fair and mention a few disadvantages of Linux, which I hope will be rectified in the future. The major issues:

1-Driver problems: Although in most instances Linux works straight out of the box, a few may have problems with Linux recognizing their hardware. Resolving these issues maybe very difficult for the non technically oriented. Excellent support is available through forums and the distro maintainers, but hardware support and software bugs can be very difficult to resolve for a few. System freezes, graphics card issues, webcam and printer recognition problems are examples of issues that some people encounter while using Linux. The good news is that driver support is improving.

2- Software: Although Linux offers an impressive array of free software which is easy to install, some of the open source substitutes are not as accomplished as their commercial alternatives. Video editing software particularly lags behind in Linux. Another example is OpenOffice or the new derivative of this LibreOffice although an excellent application which is free to use in all platforms (Linux, Windows, Mac), Microsoft Office is still by far a much more superior product in my opinion.

3-Learning curve: Even though Linux is rapidly getting easier to learn and adapt, it is different to Windows and can be difficult for some people to pick up.

4-Arabic support: Again although improving, it is no comparison to Windows. Arabic text rendering and support is much better in Windows and looks superior.
5-Gaming: If you are into PC games, Windows is still way better than both the Linux and Mac platforms. Things are improving for Linux and you can still run some Windows based games through the Wine program, but Linux is not your best gaming platform. But many are abandoning PC gaming anyway in favor of consoles like the Playstation, Wii and the X-box etc.

What about Ubuntu?

Ubuntu is one of the major Linux distros. It's been the most popular distro for many years now due to its ease of use and wide support.
It's a debian based distro designed to be user friendly. The word 'Ubuntu" is from Southern Africa, it basically means 'Humanity to others', or 'I am what I am because of who we all are'. So it's an ethical concept. The likes of Nelson Mandela, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Bill Clinton often use this word to explain the importance of cooperation.

What does the "10.04 LTS" part mean?

The number 10 next Ubuntu means that it came out in 2010, The number 04 represents the fourth month (April). Currently Ubuntu distributions come out twice a year, in April and October (10). So the next Ubuntu will be called 10.10.
LTS means: Long Term Support (3 years of updates as compared to the usual 2).
More info about Ubuntu can be found on Wiki here.
Ubuntu also has another naming convention. Each version is also named after a wild animal, with subsequent versions taking on another animal in alphabetical order. Ubuntu 10.04 is also called Lucid Lynx, Ubuntu 10.10 will be called Maverick Meerkat.

What do I think of Ubuntu 10.04 LTS?

Well, I downloaded the distro, burned it on CD. The installation was easy and fairly straight forward. But by now, I have done this 10's of times over the last few years, and I think the process is getting easier and more safer with each new distro. Basically anyone can install Ubuntu and the good thing is that you can try the Live CD out on your computer first with no harm or change to your computer, and if you like it you can install Ubuntu alongside your existing operating system without effecting it.

After trying out Ubuntu 10.04 for a few days, I think it's the best version of Ubuntu I've used so far. The aesthetics are beautiful, it's slick, and the hardware detection was flawless on my computer.
My favourite and main operating system is Linux Mint which is based on Ubuntu, I just realised I haven't used it since installing Ubuntu 10.04! It's been that good, many people choose Linux Mint because it's more nice looking and functional, but this time Ubuntu will give them a run for their money! But somehow, I still think Linux Mint has the edge. I would especially recommend that people making a transition from Windows to try out Linux Mint first, failing that then you can try Ubuntu. The only advantage that Ubuntu has at the moment is that there is more Arabic support for it compared to Linux Mint.
As for me, I run both on my computer with no issues at all. I will definitely keep Ubuntu 10.04 LTS and will continue to use it alongside Linux Mint.

Other Ubuntu's

There are other Ubuntu variants, like Xubuntu (wears the xfce outfit) which is a lighter distro thus better for less powerful machines. There is also Edubuntu an educationally oriented distro and Kubuntu, a distro with the KDE environment.

How do I install Ubuntu?

I urge you to try Linux out, may be make it a weekend project! My only advice is to always back up your data just in case you do something wrong. For the first time I advice you to use a computer that you have nothing on for a clean install. This so you can get some experience.
Remember again, ALWAYS back up your data!!

For further clarification, please see the video below. The video explains how you can install Ubuntu alongside Windows.

The other alternative is to install the Ubuntu iso onto a USB and then boot from the USB flash drive to test the OS with out effecting your PC at all. You can install the Ubuntu or many other Linux distro iso's onto USB drives very easily in Windows via Pendrivelinux's universal USB installer. Click here to get more information and guidance.

Steps to install Ubuntu via a Live CD:

1-Download the latest Ubuntu ISO from here. I prefer the 32 bit Live CD version, even if you have 64-bit computer I would still use 32-bit as it's more stable and you can share the CD with more people as most will still have 32-bit systems. If you have more than 4 gigabytes of RAM then a 64-bit version has the advantage of being able to readily utilize this unlike 32-bit systems. Remember you can install a 32-bit OS on a 64-bit system, BUT you can't install a 64-bit OS on a 32-bit system. With a 32-bit OS you'll have less hassle with software compatibility and its software tends to be more stable.The 32-bit vs 64-bit issue is still controversial though. But stick to 32-bit for the time being if you are not sure what to do, there isn't a big difference in performance as of yet.

2-Burn the ISO on to a CD and restart your system with that CD still in the player.

Click here to see a video on how to burn an ISO using the free infraRecorder.

3-After loading Ubuntu from the CD you can safely view and try it out before installation. If you like it you can click on install and follow the steps (please see the video below for an explanation).

4-For Ubuntu, after installation, you need to install extra stuff to run flash, MP3's etc (codecs). You will need an internet connection for this.
The main things I would do after installing Ubuntu is to install the following (the links are for video tutorials):
1- Install Ubuntu restricted extras. Which you could also install through Ubuntu tweak.
2- Install Ubuntu tweak. An essential program to make tweaking Ubuntu and adding software very easy. Install by going to this website here to download.
3- Install Gnome Do (file/app launcher). Get it through the software centre.
4- Install Gimp and VLC. Also available on the software centre.
5-If you are an Arabic user see below to know how you can tweak the Arabic settings.
6- You can install and try out the beautiful Equinox theme/Faenza icon set. Go here for more information and installation instructions.

Here is another website that will also tell you what to do after you install Ubuntu:

10 things to do after installing Ubuntu 10.04 Lucid.

Please REMEMBER, Back up your data before installing any new OS.

How to install UBUNTU alongside Windows

Ubuntu/Linux and Arabic:

It's pretty good, but not as good as Windows yet I'm afraid. If you install the extra fonts, that will be enough to do most of your Arabic stuff. When browsing the web most Arabic pages run well, and with very simple tweaking you won't tell the difference between Windows and Linux. OpenOffice also runs very well and you can download some beautiful Arabic fonts. I am very happy with its Arabic functionality, but there is still a lot of work to be done for it to be on par with Windows and the Mac in this area.
Windows overall still edges out Linux in its Arabic rendering. Things are slowly progressing as there is more Arabic interest in Linux and open-source software. You can choose to install Ubuntu in Arabic and most major applications have been translated. I embedded below my own screen shot of some of the Arabic fonts available on Ubuntu.

There is a project called Arabeyes aimed at developing support for Arabic in Linux/Unix operating systems. The projects include translation of the major Linux platforms and software as well as Arabic font development for Linux. Their website is here.

One of the best Linux/Ubuntu websites in Arabic is a Libyan website called Ubuntu.ly. It has some excellent articles in Arabic on how to use Ubuntu and how to install and tweak some of its software. Click here to visit Ubuntu.ly.

Screen-shot of OpenOffice (Ubuntu) with the extra Arabic Fonts

(Click on picture to see larger version)

See below for method of installing these fonts.

How to install Extra Arabic fonts in Ubuntu:
كيفية إضافة الخطوط العربية في لينكس واوبونتو

To install the extra fonts shown above you'll need an internet connection and then you can do one of the following:
1-Via the Terminal: Cut and paste the following command into the Ubuntu terminal:

sudo apt-get install ttf-arabeyes xfonts-intl-arabic ttf-kacst

2-Via the point and click method: Go to system menu>Language Support>click on "Install/Remove Languages">new menu opens, scroll down to Arabic & click on the small box to mark>Then click on apply, proceed with the installation. The extra fonts will then download and will install in the system.

Adding Arabic Keyboard layouts:
كيفية إضافة تخطيط لوحة مفاتيح (كيبورد) عربية في اوبونتو

You can the Add extra keyboard layouts through the following steps:
Go to the System menu>Preferences>Keyboard> Got to layout tab and then click on "Add". A new menu pops out, choose the Arabic layout variant of your choice through this menu either via country or language. I usually click on the language tab and choose Arabic.
I also usually add another variant called Arabic Buckwalter as well as the Arabic letters in this layout correspond phonetically to their Latin counterparts on the keyboard making typing easier in keyboards with no Arabic markings on them.
Once added the indicator to change the keyboard layout should appear automatically in the default Ubuntu panel.

How to Improve Arabic text/font rendering in Linux and Ubuntu:
كيفية تحسين الخطوط العربية في لينكس واوبونتو

The way I do it is through the following:

1-Install Microsoft core fonts in Ubuntu or what ever Linux distro you use. Click here to read about how to do this in Ubuntu via the software manager and here if you want the instructions in Arabic via using the terminal. You can also search for these fonts in the synaptic package manager.
2-After installing the Microsoft fonts, in Firefox change the default Arabic font to Ariel. Do this by going to: Edit>Preferences>Content>Fonts>Advanced>Choose fonts for Arabic (default menu set to fonts for Western), then change to Ariel in both the Serif and Sans-Serif sub-menus, then apply the changes.
3-For the Arabic system fonts, through the appearance menu (right click on the desktop and click on the fonts tab to access menu). Here you can also set the default font to that of Ariel so Arabic fonts appear better on the system menus.

Other Linux Distros of note:

There are literally hundreds of customised distros. Go to distrowatch to learn about some of them. Here are a few well know distros, some of which I've used:

1-Linux Mint: My personal favourite and main operating system. This is because of it's beauty and functionality. The menu system is slightly similar to Windows when compared to Ubuntu, so many people advocate this distro for people who want to try out Linux for the first time, and I definitely agree with that. The other reason why people like it is because it comes ready to use, with no codecs etc. to download after installation.
There is a brief comparison between Linux Mint and Ubuntu here.

2-Sabily: Basically Ubuntu for Muslims. It's an excellent distro. After installing it, you will have all the perks of Ubuntu plus other Islamic software and resources. For example, you get the whole Quran, with different audio recitations from the popular reciters, Islamic prayer software, educational programs for kids, an excellent web filter and much more. The only down side is that the ISO you have to download is quite large, and you have to wait a few months after the new Ubuntu update for the new Sabily version to come through. I often use this distro and it's one of my favourites.

3-Puppy Linux: This is a beauty and it's only about a 100 megabytes! Basically designed for less powerful machines. It can breath life to old PC's collecting dust otherwise destined for the rubbish tip. I tried it on an old Pentium III lying around our house which hadn't been used for years and it worked like a charm with Puppy Linux. If you have an old machine, and you want to set it up to work again for someone to use for the internet and other basic stuff, this is the distro to choose. You can also run it from a flash drive, so it's handy for use in internet cafe's for more security. It's very fast and effective. The downside is that Arabic is not that well supported.

4-Pinguy OS: Addendum July 2010: A new distro also based on Ubuntu. It looks fantastic and once installed it's ready to use, with all the multimedia codecs already present. It also comes with an impressive array of software pre-installed thus saving a lot of time and hassle. I would definitely recommend this distro and it may become my favorite. The downside is that its a large download, its above a 1gb, thus if you have slow internet it's going to be a problem and you will need a DVD for it (there are ways around this though using USB drives). It can also be on the slow side and is probably better suited for faster computers.

5-YLMF OS: A relatively new distro from China based on Ubuntu which looks like Windows XP! It comes in an English and Chinese version. With this distro, you get the advantages of Linux in a windows looking environment. After installing, it's ready to use straight away, the sound/video codecs, flash etc are pre-installed along with an impressive array of applications. This is a great distro, especially for people making the jump from Windows and want something familiar to start with. Remember this is still a Linux distro and is not Windows.

6-PCLinuxOS: A very nice distribution. It used to be based on Mandriva. It's probably the most user friendly distro after Ubuntu and it looks impressive. It has a very friendly community. The advantages to this distro is that it is ready to use once installed and it's a rolling release, meaning you don't have to reinstall every 6 months, all you have to do is install the updates for a seamless upgrade. The downside is that Arabic is not very well supported. Its main version is KDE based, it is the best KDE based distro I've seen yet. It also has a Gnome version.

7-Arch Linux: This is a distro for more advanced users. It tries to be minimalistic and it requires the user to have more knowledge of the command line. If you only want to use point and click graphical interfaces, this distro is not for you. The advantages is that it puts you in complete control of your system and it has fantastic educational value. It is very stable and the Arch help Wiki is very well written. Like PCLinuxOS this is also a rolling release distro, meaning that you only install once and you install the updates to keep up with the most current version.

8-Jolicloud: An attractive Ubuntu based cloud centric distro. Excellent for netbooks. This gives you a user friendly and modern interface. The distro is designed with the internet and cloud computing in mind. You can easily install and remove cloud based applications. The distro works very well with netbooks but also for other computer formats. It's light on resources thus you can also try this distro on older hardware.

9- Qimo: Basically an Ubuntu for children. It has been redesigned to make the interface simpler and more child compatible. It's a very nice distro. I had to include their mascot as it's so nice:

Other useful Linux links:

1-DistroWatch: All the news of new distros and also the distro league table of the most popular and most downloaded Linux distributions.
2-Linux today: Daily Linux news.
3-Ubuntu.ly: As mentioned above. A great Arabic resource which I'm proud to say is from Libya!! Also the Tripoli Linux User Group.
4-SMUbunt's Video Channel: A channel by Libyan engineer who creates Arabic video tutorials about Linux, esp. Ubuntu based distro's. Very useful.

5-Foxoman (مدونة ثعلب عمان): An excellent Arabic website, which now has an accompanying Arabic Ubuntu journal called "Ubuntu Plus", you can download the 1st edition here [PDF], which contains a wealth of info including installation advice.

6-Linux Arabic Community مجتمع لينوكس العربي
7-Ubuntu in Arabic (3arbuntu): مدونة عن نظام التشغيل لينكس

8- Ubuntu Website List: A very useful list of some important and helpful Ubuntu sites.
An Arabic Program that helps to easily install Ubuntu. برنامج عربي يهدف الى تسهيل تنصيب اوبونتو

9- This Week On Linux: A great website and resource for Linux.

10-OMG Ubuntu: A great Ubuntu centric website, offering daily advice, news and software.
11-Webupd8: An Ubuntu/Linux blog similar to OMG Ubuntu, also a very useful website.
12-10+ mistakes Linux newbies make by Jack Wallen (Tech Republic).
13-Pen Drive Linux: Boot and run Linux from a USB flash memory stick.
14-Linux Apps & Tips.
15-AppStorm: An excellent website providing links, news and advice about online/cloud applications.
16-Alternative to: Find alternatives to software you are using, including open source apps.

I hope you found this post useful. I think it's my longest post ever. Please feel free to provide feedback by leaving a comment or if you have a question regarding the topic let me know as well.

Update November 2010: I've tried out Ubuntu 10.10 and it is much better than the already fantastic Ubuntu 10.04. I would recommend trying it out or alternatively trying out Linux Mint 10 which is similar and just as slick, if not better.
I will also keep updating this post to include new and better things.

Inspiration ....... إلهام

Some videos that inspire,,,,,
Hamza Yusuf:

Nick Vujicic:

One of my favourite moments in the "Pursuit of Happyness":

TAC Road Safety المخدرات والكحول وحوادث المرور

A shocking video about road safety made by the TAC. It shows the danger of reckless driving, especially when under the influence of alcohol/drugs. The REM song "Everybody hurts" makes it even more poignant. If you can't access youtube click here to watch it on vimeo.

The accidents you see in the video happen every day and countless people die, sadly children suffer just as much, if not more. Watch and heed, watch and learn to drive responsibly and make sure others do as well. Otherwise, God forbid, we can all be victims as much as the people in the video. See here (alcohol) and here (drugs) to get more information.

فيديو يكشف خطورة القيادة المتهورة ، وخصوصاً عندما تكون تحت تأثير الكحول و المخدرات. هذه الأحداث المروعة تتكرر كل يوم نتيجة لعدم مسؤولية بعض الأشخاص الذين يسببون المخاطر والموت لأنفسهم و لغيرهم.

Bloggers Against Hunger Campaign

Some facts from the World food program:

• Women not only cook food for their families, but also produce between 60 - 80% of food in developing nations.

• And yet, 60% of chronically hungry people are women and girls. We're asking people to send a message of solidarity at wfp.org/women

• This year, 60% of WFP beneficiaries will be women

• An extra year of education increases a girl's income by 10-20%

• Women produce 60 - 80% of food in developing nations

• When income is in the hands of the mother, the survival probability of a child increases by about 20 percent in Brazil.
  

• Experience shows that in the hands of women, food is far more likely to reach the mouths of needy children.

Get more facts at the WPF website, never underestimate your ability to help.

Did you know that by playing a simple online game called "Free Rice" you can feed the hungry at the same time? The game is very educational, it can improve your vocabulary and spelling. Try it:

Defensive driving دورة القيادة الدفاعية اوالوقائية

I left a comment on my previous post regarding defensive driving and its importance. When you have a dire road situation such as the one that we have in Libya, and when you try but you can't do anything about at, at least not in the short run, then you have to think of how you can help yourself, i.e. primarily by staying alive and healthy! The answer is Defensive Driving.

I first knew of it when I was chatting to a business manager who's company has an office in Libya. He mentioned that his employees who came to Libya and intended to drive, all had to attend defensive driving courses to avoid road accidents. I thought that was a great idea at the time and I wished there were such courses in Libya.
The great news is there now is! I just found out that a company runs a defensive driving course in Tripoli, Libya called ALOZONE:

شركة الأوزون للحلول التقنية

The ad for their Defensive driving course is on this link:

دورة القيادة الأمنة

There is also incentive for young people because the certificate from the course will give them greater prospects for employment, which is an excellent incentive to join the course, in addition to the very important reason of being more safer on the roads.
It's great news, and I hope it improves the road safety situation in Tripoli.

I plan to write about defensive driving some time in the future inshala, for now you can check out this wikipedia article. Please also watch the above video for some advice on how to drive defensively.

I've pasted parts of the Arabic ad from the above company below. The course will be held in Tripoli for 2 days (from the 24th April 2010).

Disclosure: I have no affiliation with the company at all, nor do I have any financial interest from this post!!

دورة القيادة الأمنة

الهدف من هذه الدورة التدريبية هو زيادة وعى السائقين وتوسيع مداركهم عن طريق إمدادهم بمفاهيم أفضل تمكنهم من الوصول إلى معنى القيادة الأمنة .هذا بالإضافة إلى توفير عدة نصائح متنوعة لتفادي الحوادث .

حيث تمنحك هذه الدورة أولوية العمل لدى الشركات و المؤسسات لما تمثله السلامة المهنية من أساسيات و خصوصا في الإدارات الحديثة و مجالات النفط و الغاز و المجال الصناعي.

الموضوعات الرئيسية :

• أهمية الأمن الصناعي والسلامة كسلوك يومي .
• كيفية تفادى حوادث السيارات .
• كيفية القيام بفحص السيارة.
• أسباب وقوع حوادث السيارات .
• الأساليب الفنية للقيادة الآمنة .

من هم المستفيدون بهذه الدورة التدريبية :

• جميع سائقي مختلف أنواع السيارات
• • المادة العلمية:

  1- العقل والإحساس

• الشكل العام .
• الملاحظة .
• التوقع .
• فهم المخاطر.
• التخطيط والتنفيذ ( السلوك)

2- حالة السـائق

• الإرهاق .
• المخدرات والكحوليات.
• الأدوية.
• حالة السائق الصحية التى يمكنها ان تتأثر بقدراته الابصارية .بأمراض ضغط الدم او أضربات النوم .

3- الأخطاء والانتهاكات الشائع حدوثها أثناء القيادة

• عدم القدرة على سرعة ملاحظة الاخطار .
• السـرعــة .
• إساءة تقدير سرعة الآخرين.
• العبور خلال الإشارات الحمراء .
• محاولات اجتياز خاطئة .
• موقع الطريق السيئ .
• عدم الوعي بالطريق وغياب الإشارات .
• استخدام الموبايل أثناء القيادة .

4- الظروف البيئية المصاحبة للقيادة بالموقع

• الإحصائيات القومية .
• إحصائيات الشركة .
• شروط الطريق العام .
• الظروف المناخية والبيئية .
• شروط السيارات المحلية .
• أسلوب القيادة المتعارف علية بالمكان .

5- شاهد وتعايش

• الإلمام بخصائص الطرق المستخدمة .
• استخدام المرئيات .
• الرؤية الخارجية .
• الاعتماد على جميع الحواس كالسمع والشم واللمس .

6- الخطة المتبعة أثناء القيادة

• التعرف على الخطر وتحديده .
• اختيار الأساليب الفنية الملائمة للوصول إلى القيادة الدفاعية .
• إدراك وفهم القيادة الدفاعية.
• كيفية تطبيق خطة القيادة .
• وضعية السرعة وبدال البنزين .

7- أنظمة الأمان للسيارة

• حزام الأمان .
• نظام الفرامل.
• الفرانتونة .
• كرسى الأطفال .
• جهاز التحكم في السرعة .

8- قبل القيادة (فورمه فحص السيارة )

• حالة السيارة اليومي وفحص أجهزة الأمان .
• الصيانة الأساسية.

9- التحكم في السيارة خارج الطريق

• بدال البنزين .
• تصريح /انتظار .
• استخدام ناقل السرعات ( الفتيس )
• الدركسيون .
• مواضيع الطريق .
• خط الموقع .
• الزاوية .
• موضوع المتابعة .
• موضوع التجاوز . .

أحضن الحياة، دائمًا ارتدي حزام الأمان

I couldn't resist coming back to post this. It's a beautiful poignant Road Safety ad. I hope every one of us can heed its message: "Embrace life, always wear your seat belt".

أرجوا مشاهدة هذا الفيديوالرائع والمؤثر جدًا عن أهمية ربط حزام الأمان. شعار الحملة والفيديو هو:"أحضن الحياة، دائمًا ارتدي حزام الأمان". إذا أردتم المزيد من المعلومات عن أهمية حزام الأمان ارجو منكم إتباع رابط ال-PDF من الموقع الجديد "شراكة الشرق الأوسط وشمال أفريقيا للسلامة على الطرق". لتنزيل ملف ال- PDF أنقروا هنا. دمتم في رعاية الله وحفظه.

WE WILL NOT GO DOWN (Song for Gaza)

Thank you Michael Heart for a wonderful song, God bless you. His website is here. You can download the above song (MP3) for free from Michael's site here.

Remember to donate to UNRWA and Islamic Relief or any charities that are helping the great and courageous people of Gaza.


This will be my last post ever, I will continue to leave the blog online. Thank you for visiting my blog and also for everyone's support.

The lyrics of the song:

WE WILL NOT GO DOWN (Song for Gaza)
(Composed by Michael Heart)

A blinding flash of white light
Lit up the sky over Gaza tonight
People running for cover
Not knowing whether they’re dead or alive

They came with their tanks and their planes
With ravaging fiery flames
And nothing remains
Just a voice rising up in the smoky haze

We will not go down
In the night, without a fight
You can burn up our mosques and our homes and our schools
But our spirit will never die
We will not go down
In Gaza tonight

Women and children alike
Murdered and massacred night after night
While the so-called leaders of countries afar
Debated on who’s wrong or right

But their powerless words were in vain
And the bombs fell down like acid rain
But through the tears and the blood and the pain
You can still hear that voice through the smoky haze

We will not go down
In the night, without a fight
You can burn up our mosques and our homes and our schools
But our spirit will never die
We will not go down
In Gaza tonight

Sit El Habayeb ست الحبايب

من أحلى الأغاني للأم من تلحين محمد عبدالوهاب وغناء محمد ثروت و عبدالهادي بالخياط

ست الحبايب ياحبيبه يااغلى من روحي ودمي
ياحنينة وكلك طيبة يارب يخليكي يا أمي
زمان سهرتي وتعبتي وشلتي من عمري ليالي
ولسه برضه دلوقتي بتحملي الهم بدالي
انام وتسهري وتباتي تفكري
وتصحي من الآدان وتيجي تشقري
تعيشي لي ياحبيبتي يا أمي ويدوم لي رضاكي
أنا روحي من روحك انت وعايشه من سر دعاكي
بتحسي بفرحتي قبل الهنا بسنة
وتحسي بشكوتي من قبل ماأحس أنا
يارب يخليكي ياأمي يارب يخليكي ياأمي
لو عشت طول عمري أوفي جمايلك الغاليه علي
أجيب منين عمر يكفي وألاقي فين أغلى هدية
نور عيني ومهجتي وحياتي ودنيتي
لو ترضي تقبليهم دول هما هديتي
يارب يخليكي ياأمي ست الحبايب ياحبيبة

Sir Ken Robinson: Schools killing creativity?

Further to my post from May of this year about creativity and education, in which I posted Sir Ken Robinson's very funny and inspiring TED lecture on this subject (click here to see). I post below a recent two part interview of Ken Robinson by Riz Khan on Aljazeera English.
An excellent interview, I hope people of influence on Education in Libya are willing to learn a few points.
The problem with the Arab world generally speaking and specifically in Libya is that we are slow to pick up on modern educational methods.
Children are asked to cram enormous amounts of mostly useless information, which they will probably never benefit from, and are then asked to regurgitate it at the end of the year. This "information" is then quickly forgotten during the summer holidays and the flawed education cycle starts again the next so called "academic" year. This is true for almost all of the Arab countries.
The established Arab way of teaching is through indoctrination. Creativity is neither encouraged or rewarded. Teachers are poorly trained and the ones that do their jobs well are very poorly paid and are not encouraged to develop and maintain their skills. Our kids try to learn in a backward and harsh system in which their creativity at best is stifled or ridiculed.
The result, (leaving oil revenues aside) the entire Arab world has the lowest economical and scientific development contributions in the world, barring Sub-Saharan Africa.
Oil for me doesn't count, it's not hard earned money and it's a finite commodity, the real worth is in well educated, hard working, skilled and creative populations. In fact, oil has probably been more of a curse than a blessing. History will probably prove this.
Education is the key to future prosperity, and we are always behind. When our faulty system does produce people who are creative, intelligent and productive it's mostly due to their inherent talent not through the education they get, and the sad thing is the economical system is not geared to retain these people.
The people who end up being creative and productive tend to barely survive the system rather than being a product of it. And if they do survive it, they either go abroad to thrive or stay and die a slow intellectual and financial death. Look across the board, across all the Arab countries and you will see 22 very similar pictures. And I mean across all the Arab world, whether oil rich or not. In fact, ironically non-oil rich countries tend to do slightly better in comparison despite their very limited resources.
One example to prove that people can bring more prosperity than oil will ever do, is that Spain's GDP is more than that of the entire Arab world's combined GDP! 45 million people produce more than 300 million people, oil revenue included!!
I apologise if I sound harsh, I'm sure there are small exceptions in the system, but most studies and opinions on the Arab world are more harsher and critical. I sincerely wish things were better.
Unless the Arab world realises and tackles these challenges, the future of the whole region will be very bleak indeed.


Part 1:


Part2:


References:
1- The Arab World: Let the Numbers Speak! UNDP, 2002.
2- BBC News: Arab education 'falling behind', 22 Feb. 2008.

TED Lecture: Understanding and Thinking

Brilliant lecture by Jonathan Drori called "Why we don't understand as much as we think". I hope you enjoy it as much as I have, certainly makes you think, or should I say understand!

"Colors" by Kira Willey

Lyrics:
Colors by Kira Willey

I am green today
I chirp with joy like a cricket song.
I am gray today
Gloomy and down like a morning fog.
I am orange today
Loud and messy like finger paint on the wall.
I am red today
Hopping mad like a playground ball.
I am black today
Strong and tall a great big bear.
I am purple today
Bright and happy like a butterfly in the air.

I'm a rainbow today
All the colors of the world.
I'm a rainbow today
All the colors of the world.
I'm a rainbow today
All the colors of the world are in me.

I am yellow today
I shine my light out like the sun.
I am white today
Soft and quite like new snow.
I am blue today
Calm as glass and cool like the sea.

I'm a rainbow today
All the colors of the world.
I'm a rainbow today
All the colors of the world.
I'm a rainbow today
All the colors of the world are in me.
All the colors of the world are in me.

Mahmoud Darwish 1941-2008 محمود درويش في ذمة الله

I just read the sad news that the Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish passed away yesterday, may Allah have mercy on his soul.

The video below is of Marcel Khalife singing one of his most beautiful and poignant poems: "My Mother", the translation of the poem/lyrics is below the video.

أحنّ إلى خبز أمي
و قهوة أمي
و لمسة أمي
و تكبر في الطفولة
يوما على صدر يوم
و أعشق عمري لأني
إذا متّ،
أخجل من دمع أمي!
خذيني ،إذا عدت يوما
وشاحا لهدبك
و غطّي عظامي بعشب
تعمّد من طهر كعبك
و شدّي وثاقي..
بخصلة شعر
بخيط يلوّح في ذيل ثوبك..
عساي أصير ***
*** أصير..
إذا ما لمست قرارة قلبك!
ضعيني، إذا ما رجعت
وقودا بتنور نارك..
وحبل غسيل على سطح دارك
لأني فقدت الوقوف
بدون صلاة نهارك
هرمت ،فردّي نجوم الطفولة
حتى أشارك
صغار العصافير
درب الرجوع..
لعشّ انتظارك

My Mother

I long for my mother's bread
My mother's coffee
Her touch
Childhood memories grow up in me
Day after day
I must be worth my life
At the hour of my death
Worth the tears of my mother.

And if I come back one day
Take me as a veil to your eyelashes
Cover my bones with the grass
Blessed by your footsteps
Bind us together
With a lock of your hair
With a thread that trails from the back of your dress
I might become immortal
Become immortal I will
If I touch the depths of your heart.

If I come back
Use me as wood to feed your fire
As the clothesline on the roof of your house
Without your blessing
I am too weak to stand.

I am old
Give me back the star maps of childhood
So that I
Along with the swallows
Can chart the path
Back to your waiting nest.