Welcome to Jewels Web Graphics

Hello again,
Gosh, it seems like a very long time since we last spoke!
However, I have not been idle in my absence, keeping the wheels oiled behind the scenes of JWG, and beavering away at my BSc degree coursework. One of the modules I have recently completed, involved installing a Linux Operating System, and configuring all the networking to join Linux and Windows computers together, whilst also getting out onto the Internet.
I was so impressed with this task that I have now converted my main home computer to Linux, and only my laptop is still running Windows.
Therefore, I felt that now would be a good time to start sharing all this hard work and new experiences with you all, and have created a new Linux Tutorials section on JWG, acessible via the sidebar and sitemap —>
The first tutorial in the series is a step by step guide to installing a Linux Operating System on your computer alongside your existing Windows installation. All tutorials are complemented by plenty of screenshots, and are aimed at the complete beginner to Linux. Subsequent tutorials will involve networking both Linux and Windows computers, and discussing the relative merits of Linux and Windows in terms of total cost of ownership, ease of use, etc.
Tutorial 1 (Installation) is now available for your viewing pleasure, and others will be added over the coming weeks, as I get the time after finishing assignments and studying for exams, (and you thought being a student was easy!).
As always, comments or questions about the tutorials are actively welcomed and appreciated.

Is the text on this website a bit small and difficult to read?
If so, did you know that you can do something about it yourself?
It involves increasing the text size on your browser.
Read this article to find out how to do it:
Setting up your Browser

Are you a starving student? No?
Never mind, you can still take advantage of this great free CD, which contains a wide selection of free, open source applications for you to install on your pc. Apps include graphics, browsers, games, typing tutors, ftp and web development programs, and lots more besides. Many of these programs were originally developed for Linux, but this CD contains Windows or Mac versions.
You simply download the ISO (preferably using BitTorrent), and then burn image to CD.
Azureus is a popular BitTorrent client.

Further details and instructions are available on the download site:
SoftwareFor.org

“The Free Software Foundation (FSF), established in 1985, is dedicated to promoting computer users’ rights to use, study, copy, modify, and redistribute computer programs. The FSF promotes the development and use of free software, particularly the GNU operating system, used widely in its GNU/Linux variant.”

They also run the Free Software Directory, containing over 4000 free, software packages, many for use on Linux systems, although quite a few applications have a Windows version too - see below for a couple of examples.

(Free in this context is free as in beer or speech, with no licences or subscriptions to pay, and all with a completely clear conscience too! )

Interested in giving any of this a try? Continue reading »

Some people who are reading this, (waves to the three of you ) may be aware that I have been attempting to broaden my internet horizons for some time now. In fact, this journey probably actually began when I started my IT degree course in 2003, and realised that there was more to the web than just making pretty graphics to display on it. Yes, I know that is what JWG is known and recognised for (if it is known at all ), and the ‘web graphics’ in the site name is a bit of a give-away, but…….
I am very pleased that I can still be of help to those of you who are just discovering the joys of graphics, animation et al, but also hope to encourage at least some of my visitors to consider exploring other aspects of the web, and indeed computing in general. To that end, I have provided a blogroll, webnews, and bookmarks on the sidebar –> which contain a selection of interesting sites and feeds that, (in my ever so humble opinion), are well worth a read, and perhaps also subscribing to, on your own website/blog, newsreader. Many of these bloggers/writers provide us with considerable information and food for thought, about the ever-expanding world of technology. One such person that I want to draw your attention to today, is Robert Scoble. Continue reading »