Review: Quark 21.10.2

While working on this review of Quark, I ran into a rare case of writer's block. Which, as Tom Robbins would tell you, is just another way of saying the author is lazy or uninspired. This lack of inspiration is, I feel, a direct reflection of the Quark distribution. The whole experience feels unmotivated. According to the project's website, Quark has three distinct features: Q4OS utilities running on an Ubuntu base, easy access to the Trinity desktop, and Windows-like themes. The last point is certainly accurate, the distribution does ship with two optional Windows-like themes - mission accomplished.

IBM/Red Hat Leftovers

• Top SDS Object Storage Solutions and Why IBM Rarely Makes the List

  Early on, Cleversafe made a name for itself and started to win some very impressive customer deals. They also had an amazing patent portfolio. All of which eventually caught the attention of IBM. And by the Fall of 2015, the official announcement came, IBM was acquiring Cleversafe. The transition to Big Blue was pretty rough. That isn’t uncommon with acquisitions. The reason for the acquisition was immediately made clear: IBM was behind in the Cloud Computing sector and instead of building a solution from the ground up, they acquired an already established technology. Their focus: the Hybrid Cloud. They needed to catch up to Amazon, Microsoft and Google. What we did not know at the time was that prior to our acquisition, IBM did attempt building its own object storage solution but it either was not progressing quick enough or the project failed to achieve its goals.

• How to use Operators with AWS Controllers for Kubernetes | Red Hat Developer

  This is the first of two articles that show how to simplify the management of services offered for Kubernetes by Amazon Web Services (AWS), through the use of Amazon's AWS Controllers for Kubernetes (ACK). You'll also learn how to use an Operator to simplify installation further on Red Hat OpenShift clusters. Together, these tools provide standardized and familiar interfaces to AWS services from a Kubernetes environment.

• All about local and self-managed Kafka distributions | Red Hat Developer

  Apache Kafka derives great value not just from its technical features and performance, but from the ecosystem that surrounds it. This article is the first part of a two-part series describing the many ways to run Kafka, and the benefits of each. We'll cover distributions for local development, self-managed Kafka, Kafka as a Service, and "serverless-like" Kafka. The series ends with a summary of when to use each type of distribution.

• Digital exhaustion: Redefining work-life balance [Ed: This is the same IBM that said its employees are "IBM employees 100% of the time"]

  The hybrid workplace is here to stay, so let’s get our heads around it. In a recent report from Accenture, 83 percent of workers prefer a hybrid working model, where they can split time between the office and a remote environment. This trend is not surprising; with the world entering year three of the pandemic, many workplaces have shifted at least partially online, and the working world has adjusted to a radically different rhythm.

• Hybrid work: 3 new rules for enabling your workforce [Ed: But IBM is fighting against people whom it initially allowed to work from home]

  Prior to the pandemic, remote employees comprised six percent of the total workforce. In that office-centric era, those not physically working in the office often dealt with slow VPNs, cumbersome layers of security, limited access, and other factors that degraded their experience. The rapid adoption of remote work forced everyone into a digital environment and caused widespread compromise around security and human connection. A two-dimensional engagement model has enabled productivity but also brought screen fatigue and a lack of personal connectivity. The transition to hybrid work and returning to physical offices may actually accelerate these challenges – along with employees’ frustration levels.

today's howtos

• How to customize the search results in Gnome Shell

  Gnome Shell has a robust search feature that allows users to find everything from the weather to browser bookmarks, files, and more directly from the app menu. But did you know that you can add your custom search locations to Gnome? In this guide, we’ll show you how you can customize the search results in Gnome Shell to add custom search locations, turn search features off, and more.

• How to Resize Existing LUN/Disk on Linux

  In most cases, disk space can be expanded by adding a new LUN to the system. But in some scenario, you may need to resize the existing LUN in order to extend the file system. Extending the file system involves two parts, extending the corresponding logical volume and then growing FS over it. Adding, resizing or deleting the LUN on a Linux system can be done without restarting.

• How to create a bootable Windows 11 USB on Linux

• How to install Linux Mint Debian edition 5 “Elsie”

  Linux Mint Debian Edition 5 “Elsie” was released in March. With it come many excellent features and software improvements. Here’s how you can install LMDE 5 on your desktop or laptop.

• How to Hide Wget Command Output in Linux Command Line

  Wget is a GNU-based free software that has made it possible for numerous Linux-based users to non-interactively download files over the internet or any network without relying on graphical tools like web browsers. Its file download prowess is associated with network/internet protocols like FTP, FTPS, HTTP, and HTTPS. The primary objective of this article is directly associated with the last stated GNU Wget feature (handling unattended/background operations).

• Use Composer to require Git repositories within PHP projects | Opensource.com

  The dependency management tool Composer provides multiple ways to include Git repositories within a PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor (PHP) project. In many cases, repositories have been created on Packagist, so requiring them with Composer is very straightforward. But what do you do when a repository has not been created as a package on Packagist? You use Composer to require the package directly from the repository. This article explains how.