Weekly Photo Challenge: Patterns

Ubuntu 13.04 Review

Installing Ubuntu 13.04 is a breeze, even for someone with no experience in doing this. I installed the OS from a blank DVD, as I couldn’t install from USB due to the fact I have an old motherboard in my desktop. Throughout the installation process you are prompted if you want to install the updates during or after the installation. You also get asked if you want to sign in or register with the cloud storage Ubuntu One, which I think is 5 GB free.

When everything is done you are introduced to your new desktop. The first thing I noticed was that how much quicker Unity was. With 12.10, Unity suffered from being very slow and unresponsive, and on my system it tended to crash; something to do with my graphics card drivers I believe, but on 13.04 this problem has gone. Ubuntu boots up quicker than 12.04 as well, and the problems I had booting up have disappeared with this latest version. The desktop wallpapers are very nice, but if your like me you will probably have your own favourite pics you want to set as your wallpaper.

As with 12:10 you can synch up your Facebook, Twitter, Google+ accounts on the desktop, but this time the app Gwibber isn’t included – not really a loss to be honest. One the new features in 13.04 is the inclusion of Bluetooth support. Included with Ubuntu are the latest versions of Thunderbird, Firefox, LibreOffice, and there are plenty more choices of free and paid software to download via the Software Centre on the Unity Bar.

Conclusion

For the first time user, Ubuntu is a good introduction to the world of Linux if you want to move away from Windows or Apple’s OS. It is user friendly, and offers a good range of open source software for all your needs. Unity still remains a love/hate thing, and it will still keep the Ubuntu community divided.
All in all 13.04 is so much more stable than 12.10, but Unity makes Ubuntu feel rather enclosed, but you can change to a different desktop environment if you wish.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Culture

Apologies for the photo’s being a bit dull for this weeks photo challenge, I had intended to photograph some really great street performers/buskers, but they were nowhere to be seen.

This is the new(ish) cultural quarter of the city

Getting Back On Track

It’s seemed like ages since I posted here on WordPress – February to be precise, and I guess the real reason was that not much has happened in my life.  I decided that to get my house in order – as it were, I would get back into doing voluntary work again.

I was lucky that a charity which I used to volunteer for; Age Concern, were looking for new volunteers for a computer club for the over 50′s and needed people with experience.  I was welcomed back, and for the past two months I have been volunteering for two days a week.  So far I’ve taught pretty much everything from helping to set up their laptops properly to the more advanced spreadsheet techniques.  I even had a couple that booked their anniversary holiday for the very first time online.

Currently, I am looking at volunteering for another charity to help increase my chances, perhaps helping out with people with special needs, or even helping out people that have been unemployed for a long time and showing them the skills needed to do a job search; something that they are not even taught to do in a lot of areas.

What previously looked like a grim situation on the employment front, has now made me feeling positive for the future.  I’ll post how I got on at a later date.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Home

 

 

How about this for a home.  It is now a museum but during the middle ages there were people that lived there, but I think only the pigeons use this as a home.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Unique

I took this photo last year whilst hiking through the New Forest, it just seemed appropriate for this weeks photo challenge. 

From The Couch To Running 5K

I just recently completed the Couch to 5K running program, It took nine weeks for me to actually run a full 5K without stopping.  The program is relatively easy, each week gets a bit longer, so it pretty much eases you into running 5K.   The running sessions are done three times per week, so I would run Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Here is the program:

 Week 1:  5 minute warm up, 60 second run, 90 second walk repeat 7 more times, 5 minute cool down

Week 2:  5 minute warm up, 90 second run, 2 minute walk repeat 5 more times, 5 minute cool down.

Week 3:  5 minute warm up, 90 second run, 90 second walk.  3 minute run, 3 minute walk, repeat once more.  5 minute cool down.

Week 4:  5 minute warm up, 3 minute run, 90 second walk.  5 minute run, 2 1/2 minute walk.  Repeat once more, 5 minute cool down. 

Week 5: Day 1 – 5 minute warm up, 5 minute run, 2 minute walk, repeat twice more, 5 minute cool down.

Day 2 – 5 minute warm up, 8 minute run, 5 minute walk, repeat once. 5 minute cool down. 

Day 3 – 5 minute warm up, 20 minute run, 5 minute cool down.

Week 6:  Day 1 – 5 minute warm up, 5 minute run, 3 minute walk, 8 minute run, 3 minute walk, 5 minute cool down.

Day 2 – 5 minute warm up, 10 minute run, 3 minute walk, repeat, 5 minute cool down.

Day 3 – 5 minute warm up, 25 minute run, 5 minute cool down.

Week 7:  5 minute warm up, 25 minute run, 5 minute cool down.    

Week 8:  5 minute warm up, 28 minute run, 5 minute cool down.

Week 9:  5 minute warm up, 30 minute run, 5 minute cool down.

There is a wealth of information online about this program; stretches, running form, breathing etc.  So it is worth doing some research before you start.  I also find it easier to run when I have music playing, and there are some really good podcasts that specialise in this.

Enjoy