DigitFreak

Tag: community

  • The World lost a Linux philanthropist: Ian Murdock

    The World lost a Linux philanthropist: Ian Murdock

    A very tragic news has been surfaced, revealing the loss of yet another gem in the computer industry. Dennis Ritchie, the founder of ‘C’ and Unix Operating system, and Ian Murdock, founder of Debian Linux and creator of apt-get, has always been stated as two faces of the same coin. The tragic loss of these great individuals in the programming world is bewailed and the reason for extended sadness in Linux community.

    The Docker Blog first put this news on the internet, which was then picked up by many communities worldwide as a shocking information. The death of Ian is questionable, as it appears to be a suicide. Ian claimed that he was involved in some police case and has been beaten by police while in custody. He later tweeted on Monday night that he would commit suicide. The followers of Ian Murdock on twitter assumed that his account was hacked, and no one actually believed that he would commit such action.

    On Monday at 2:13 PM Eastern Time, Murdock apparently posted:

    I’m committing suicide tonight…do not intervene as I have many stories to tell and do not want them to die with me #debian #runnerkrysty67

    ian murdock tweet

    Ian’s twitter account has since been deleted. Public records indicate Murdock was arrested on December 27, and released on bail by the San Francisco County Sheriff’s Department, but no details were available on the charges. The cause of the death is still unclear.

    Ian Murdock is responsible for forging one of the first Linux distros, a successor of Unix. Ian’s work has included many other parts of the free and open source community, including his role as CTO of the Linux Foundation, a lead of Project Indiana at +Sun, and a recent addition to the Docker team – among many other positions and achievements.

    As you all know I use Ubuntu, an open source Linux distros based on Debian, on all my computers; however, Debian (2.2 “woody” to be exact) was my first experience on Linux which made me switch from Windows XP and allowed me to dwell into this amazing world. It isn’t a surprise that I have some sentimental values for the Debian community. I followed Ian’s work very closely and have been a huge admirer.

    R.I.P. Ian.

  • What is public and private BitTorrent Tracker, and which one you should use?

    When you want to share files with someone else, or a group of people, where do you go? Odds are, you’re surfing torrent search engines. But, did you know that torrent search engines don’t always allow you the greatest selection of files?

    Some of them also host illegal content, and do nothing to sweep up the mess. You’re left to fend for yourself as a user – and that can get dangerous. Here’s where private trackers can help.

    Why Use A Private Tracker

    Companies, like Vuze or uTorrent+, restrict access to content, effectively putting up a “wall” between you and the files being shared. Some companies do this to effectively block or filter illegal content being shared on these networks. Others do it to protect the privacy of users. Sometimes, it’s a little bit of both. With a private tracker, you can also gain access to a larger variety of files, faster download speeds, higher-quality files, and strong communities that support you.

    What Does “Private” Mean?

    In this case, “private” doesn’t necessarily mean what you think it means. Mostly, “private” means that it’s an exclusive community. There are a lot of benefits, but there are also a lot of rules you must pay attention to. There are also guidelines you must follow or you’ll be kicked out of the community.

    A bittorrent tracker is a server that regulated the communication between those downloading and those uploading content. Private bittorrent trackers are selective about who gets to use the site and who doesn’t.

    Contrast this to sites to popular torrent search sites, that allow users to use the sites unregulated. When you’re on such a search engine, it’s the wild west. Files are unregulated and it is up to the user to know what kind of files, which may include spyware and malware, they download onto their machine.

    With private sites, there are rules regarding the ratio of uploads to downloads. You can’t just download torrents and then delete them. You need to spend some time seeding them too. Some sites will ban you if you have a low ratio, and others will just restrict what you can do on that site.

    There are also rules that restrict invites. The users you bring into the community reflect on you. If they harm the community, it can also harm your stance in the community. This is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it limits growth of the community. On the other hand, the members that are there are tight-knit.

    Finally, there are rules on uploading. If you upload files to the site, they need to be of a certain quality, format, or they must use specific organizational structure. Many torrent search engine sites carry a very disorganized system of files. Private sites, on the other hand, are all about quality and organization.

    There may be other rules too, like no illegal content, though these vary from site to site.

    The Benefits To You

    There are a lot of rules to follow with nearly every private site, but, what do you get out of it? Plenty. There’s usually a fantastic selection of torrents, high-quality files, really fast downloads due to seeding policies and fast internet connections of users, and some increased privacy.

    Should You Use A Private Tracker?

    Whether you use a private tracker depends on a few things. First, don’t use one because you think it affords you more personal privacy. That might be true in some cases, but it’s only a coincidence. Users on private sites tend to be very serious. Finally, this is a great option if you just want to join a small community and build relationships with other users.