At last count, I have 32 extensions installed on Firefox. Needless to say, re-installing every time I set up a new version of Firefox on a machine is major PITA. When I first heard about the Firefox Extension Backup Extension (FEBE), I was really excited. This puppy not only backs up all your extensions, but also "will actually rebuild your extensions individually into installable .xpi files". Slick. Then I found about the same dude's Compact Library Extension Organizer (CLEO), which "works with FEBE to package any number of extensions/themes into a single, installable .xpi file." Holy mackeral! Now THAT is uber-useful! Gimme some of that!

Unfortunately, the dang thing only works on Windows, which is nice for the Windows users, but just sucks completely for Linux & Mac OS users. C'mon ... we're beggin' you! Get this thing working on the other, cooler operating systems!

(Check out all of our posts on Firefox.)

The Wall Street Journal published an article today by Mark Golden, a reporter who tried to switch from Windows to Linux. He had problems with the switch, which he wrote about in "Out the Window" (it's free, so go check it out). Don't flame the guy, please. Yes, he made some mistakes that a knowledgable Linux user wouldn't make - like trying Fedora Core, for instance (*snicker*) - but he's complimentary of the OS, and he seems to really want to like it. I wrote him the following email, which I hope helps him.

<begin email>

Mark, I enjoyed your article on Linux. I'm a die-hard Linux user myself, and the author of three books on Linux & open source software, but I certainly understand the problems newcomers to the OS will have.

I myself use K/Ubuntu on all my machines; in addition, my wife - who's a lawyer, not a computer person - also uses it, with my help. If you have the time & inclination, you should give it a try as well. It comes in two flavors - Ubuntu, which is based on the GNOME GUI, and Kubuntu, which is based on the KDE GUI. Many of the distros you were using (SUSE, Xandros) were KDE-based, although some were GNOME-based (Fedora). KDE is far slicker, IMHO, as well as more "Windows-like". Because of those reasons, I'd recommend Kubuntu.

http://www.kubuntu.org

The current version of K/Ubuntu is 5.10; sometime this June, the next version, Dapper Drake, AKA 6.06, will be released. I'm running the beta, & it's really good. When it comes out, download it, or go to the web site & request a free CD to be shipped to you, and give it a try.

Thanks for trying Linux, & thanks for being patient. It's developing quickly, and it really does get better every six months!

Scott

</end email>

Go read his article, and if you have some nice, constructive advice, send it to him. If you're just going to flame him & make Linux users look like hotheads & jerks, please don't bother.

Stuck on Windows? Want some good free software (free as in beer, not necessarily freedom)? Neowin has a great page at "Neowin's Freeware Alternative List" that is the answer to your prayers. Now, many of the apps on this page are in fact open source, but many are not. But most of them are worth checking out. Go have fun installing!

(Check out all of our posts on Windows.)