On the pathway to opensource

StumbleUpon Guide To Discovering New Sites

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Wed, 19 May 2010 19:41:00 +0000

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

StumbleUpon Guide To Discovering New Sites

View more documents from Matthew Tommasi.

Stumbleupon

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Wed, 19 May 2010 19:36:00 +0000

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

Stumbleupon

View more presentations from SMASH Summit.

A Fresh New Look for Ubuntu

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 15:14:00 +0000

Ubuntu is making a switchover from its 'Human' theme which defined the looks of Ubuntu for the previous 6 years, starting from the time Ubuntu was born. The new style of Ubuntu will be driven by the theme 'Light'.
A comprehensive set of guidelines has been devised so as to reflect this change at every place related to the Ubuntu project. The new theme takes effect from the Ubuntu 10.04 LTS, which is slated for its release in April 2010. This new theme will define the looks of Ubuntu in all future releases.
The new style of Ubuntu is inspired by idea of 'Light'. and Ubuntu aims to be 'Light' in all senses. It denotes warmth, clarity, efficiency, lightness on resources, etc..

A display of the changes-
1)New Logo- Aims at reflecting the precision & engineering, that sits at the heart of Ubuntu, but not at the expense of the immediately recognisable circle of friends.

2)Community Logos-New logos have been made for the community sites related to Ubuntu.

3)New GTK Themes- I think this is the most important and a timely change for Ubuntu, that will go a long way in enhancing its popularity among the masses.

The Dark Theme

The Light Theme

4)New Bootspash- The theme change is complete with a new Boot Splash, that is absolutely eye-pleasing.

5)New website design- You can see a major change to the looks of the Ubuntu website-
http://www.ubuntu.com

6)New CD cover- The cd cover of Ubuntu 10.04 (onwards) will sport a new look.

Source:https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Brand and https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Brand2

NB:One thing which I disliked about this new theme is the placement of the Window control(Minimize, Maximize and Close buttons) at the left side of a Window's title-bar.

How to make Windows the default/first entry in your GRUB2 menu

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:43:00 +0000

I hadn't tried to understand the working of the GRUB2. One, day when my friend asked me how to make Windows the default entry in his GRUB menu, I didn't have an answer. I went to the Ubuntu wiki page on GRUB2. Its very comprehensive. Most of the general aspects of the working of GRUB2 is explained in it, including the changes, how to configure the grub.cfg file, etc..
Though not explicitly stated in it, the method to make Windows the default entry was pretty clear from it. Here is how you do it-

1.cd /etc/grub.d

2.sudo mv 30_os-prober 10_0s-prober

3.sudo mv 10_linux 20_linux

4.sudo mv 20_memtest86+ 30_memtest86+

5.sudo update-grub

Artha- The Best offline Dictionary for Ubuntu

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 05:07:00 +0000

I had done a lot of googling in the past to find out a dictionary that I could use in Ubuntu when I'm not connected to the internet. It yielded nothing, atleast not anything that is ready-packaged for Ubuntu.. Few days ago I was just going through the 'Ubuntu Software center' to find out any random software that may interest me. Well, I found something that interested me; 'Artha'.

Artha is a pretty decent dictionary which works with Wordnet 3.0 as its backend which is very comprehensive(atleast for common use, if not more). It has many features like 'relatives' of the word, which includes "Synonyms, Antonyms, Derivatives, Similar, Domains, Causes, Kinds(Hyponyms)". In my experience I found it very good and indeed comprehensive.

The best feature that I liked in it is its HotKey which is Ctrl+Alt+w. This is a very handy feature, you can just select a word in any software and press the Hotkey combination to invoke Artha, its notification/window will then come up with the meaning, as per your settings selection.(I like the Notifiaction feature)

The version of Artha found in Ubuntu 9.10(Karmic) repository is 0.8.0. But, Artha is available in version 1.0.1 for Ubuntu and many other Linux distributions. It has regular expression based search.You can find the download details for the new version for Ubuntu and other Linux distributions, at the following link:
Download Artha 1.0.1

I'm using BloGTK Editor 2.0 for blogging

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 10:46:00 +0000

As the GNOME-blog applet was faulty in showing the blog post titles, I searched for an alternative tool.. And this search ended up in the BloGTK 2.0 editor.. The official Ubuntu repositories, still have the BloGTK version 1.2, which I couldn't setup for my blogger.com account, i thensearched for its newer version. The 2.0 version can autodetect the settings for your blog once you enter the URL of your blog, and the service(blogger, livejournal,etc..) used. Hence, the account setup was a cakewalk...
Added to that BloGTK has the feature to show your old blog posts, edit it, re post it,etc... All this from your desktop itself... Isn't it cool?

You can get the BloGTK 2.0 in your Ubuntu OS, by adding its PPA from-
BloGTK PPA in Launchpad

Please make sure that you're choosing the correct version of your Ubuntu........

I'm now using the gnome-blog applet to post in this blog

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 09:43:00 +0000

I just found out the Gnome applet called "gnome-blog 0.9.1". Its the GNOME web-blogging applet.. It has a very simple interface... The drawback is that the only other options we get are "Bold", "Italic" text stylizing and adding links.... Anyways I feel that posting to your blog directly from the desktop is quite an useful feature, as we can avoid a hell lot many mouse-clicks, and page visits....

It can intearct with the popular blogging sites such as blogger.com, livejournal.com,etc...

Adding the title feature does not seem to work.. The title is found along with the blog content.... We just have to put up the title manually... Still you may find this tool useful...

My Ubuntu 9.10 Beta Experience

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 21:47:00 +0000

I have now upgraded to Ubuntu 9.10 Beta. Initially it didn't work out for me, a sI was getting only a white-screen when logged in. I thought Ubuntu was wrong in the release of such not ready beta. But on chat in IRC I found that I was wrong, and could correct it. The problem arose because I had replaced the original GCC with my own compiled version. It conflicted with the upgradation process. And there was nothing wrong in the upgradation, or the Beta, as such.
So, on usingb the Beta, now I find the following changes-

First and foremost, now the Mute button of my Laptop actually mutes the sound(for the first time). The sound preferences menu seems to have developed so much. It now has more useful options, which are easy to find and use.
The Default Ubuntu wallpaper and theme is cool, far far better than its counterparts in the older versions. Apart from this now Ubuntu provides a host of other cool wallpapers, which are very awesome, much like the cool wallpapers, that you find in either Vista or maybe Win7(ya I'm talking about Windows...)
All the communication software now comes under a link in near the date and time notifier in the panel. Its now really easy to access Empathy, Evolution,(and if you have installed it-)Pidgin, Gwibber Microblogging client.
If you have installed Gnome-Do, you would find that it looks more cooler now.
Firefox is the latest version-3.5.3, with Ubuntu Canonical branding. So, it supports HTML5.
The different folders like- "Music","Home", "Pictures",etc, in each users account has now an informative icon, denoting its content.
Empathy replaces Pidgin as the default chat application, said to be for the long term good. Hopefully so..
The Login screen is now more integrated, and designed more logically.
The Compiz-fusion effects run much better in my Intel Graphics card now, as the kernel version 2.6.31-14, has new MESA driver, which supports Intel GPU better.

Gnome 2.28 released

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:06:00 +0000

The newest stable version of the favorite linux desktop environment, GNOME 2.28 has been released.
Various new user-facing features have been rolled into the codebase, but also of interest is the stuff that's removed. As part of the progress towards Gnome 3.0, the developers have ripped out crusty old code - there are no longer any applications that depend on esound, libgnomevfs, libgnomeprint, or libgnomeprintui. You can see the full release notes here, or read on for a quick summary of the changes.

Epiphany browser has switched from Gecko to WebKit for better performance
New utility for managing Bluetooth devices
Empathy IM client has reorganised GUI
Media Player can navigate DVD menus and resume playback from last position
Cheese webcam app has "burst" mode for taking multiple pics in a row
Volume control supports channel fading
Menus do not show icons by default
Power Manager now supports laptops with multiple batteries

Source of review:http://www.tuxradar.com/content/gnome-228-released

New Features-

GNOME Bluetooth

GNOME 2.28 includes the first release of the GNOME Bluetooth module to help users manage their Bluetooth devices. GNOME Bluetooth supports hundreds of Bluetooth devices, including mice, keyboards and headsets. GNOME Bluetooth includes PulseAudio integration for Bluetooth headsets and headphones.

GNOME Bluetooth also includes support for Internet access through your mobile phone. After pairing your mobile phone with GNOME Bluetooth, NetworkManager will include an entry to use your mobile phone for Internet access.

Empathy Instant Messenger

GNOME's instant messaging and communication application, Empathy, built on the Telepathy communications framework, has gained a number of new and important features to help users communicate.

Users are now able to share their desktop with Empathy contacts using the GNOME Remote Desktop Viewer, Vino.

Geolocation support using Geoclue has been added for XMPP contacts, such as Jabber and Google Talk. You can view a contact's location by hovering your mouse over their contact name in the contact list, in the information dialogue or in the Map View.

Audio and video chats can now be made fullscreen, and if a contact does not have video, their avatar will be displayed.

Epiphany Web-browser

It switches to WebKit from Gecko for its rendering engine. With the exception of some performance enhancements, this change should be invisible.

Switching to WebKit also fixes a number of long-standing bugs in Epiphany due to the old Gecko-based backend.

Brasero

Brasero, the GNOME CD/DVD Burner, now supports the ability to burn data across multiple discs and has added a graphical display to show space used on discs before burning.

Courtesy-http://library.gnome.org/misc/release-notes/2.28/

About Ubuntu 9.10

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 14:57:00 +0000

The GNOME desktop environment has been updated to version 2.28 RC1 (2.27.92), the Linux kernel packages are now at version 2.6.31-10.34 and they are based on the final version of Linux kernel 2.6.31.
The KDE variant of Ubuntu, Kubuntu, has also had its KDE desktop updated to version 4.3.1 and has a number of updated applications and libraries incorporated.
This version incorporates an X-based splash screen as part of the faster booting enhancements and sees the first release of the Ubuntu Software Store application. The Ubuntu One file synchronisation service is also built in to this release.

Courtesy-
http://www.h-online.com/open/Ubuntu-9-10-Alpha-6-arrives--/news/114267
http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/1534043/ubuntu-releases-alpha

Ubuntu 10.04 announced.

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 14:52:00 +0000

Ubuntu 10.04 will be called Lucid Lynx and it's scheduled for April 2010 and it will be a LTS version of the operating system, i.e,you will have 2 years full of updates, without the need of installing all over again.
The first Alpha version will be available later this year.
Ubuntu 9.10, is slated for relese at October 29 2009. Its currently in Alpha 6, which is expected to be the last Alpha for this Ubuntu version.

Courtesy-http://www.clububuntu.com/2009/09/ubuntu-1004-announced.html

Know about two amazing Linux distributions-Debian and Ubuntu

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:05:00 +0000

Debian-
Debian is a free operating system (OS) for your computer. An operating system is the set of basic programs and utilities that make your computer run. debian uses the Linux kernel (the core of an operating system), but most of the basic OS tools come from the GNU project; hence the name GNU/Linux. Debian GNU/Linux provides more than a pure OS: it comes with over 25113 packages, precompiled software bundled up in a nice format for easy installation on your machine.
Debian has now decided upon a 2 year release cycle, i.e, a new version of Debian will come out every 2 years.

Latest stable Version-5.0.2

Kernel- 2.6.26

Courtesy-http://www.debian.org/

Also read the wiki @ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debian

Ubuntu-
(My OS)
Ubuntu is a community developed, Linux-based operating system that is perfect for laptops, desktops and servers. It contains all the applications you need - a web browser, presentation, document and spreadsheet software, instant messaging and much more. Its based on the Debian linux.

They issue a new desktop and server release every six months. That means you'll always have the latest and greatest applications that the open source world has to offer.

(I like this idea of new releases every 6 months, hence i'm sure i have the best)

Ubuntu is designed with security in mind. You get free security updates for at least 18 months on the desktop and server. With the Long Term Support (LTS) version you get three years support on the desktop, and five years on the server. There is no extra fee for the LTS version, we make our very best work available to everyone on the same free terms. Upgrades to new versions of Ubuntu are and always will be free of charge.

Courtesy- http://www.ubuntu.com/products/whatisubuntu

Latest Stable Version-9.04 [Jaunty Jackalope]

Latest Unstable Version-9.10 Alpha 4 (Version 9.10 [Karmic Koala] is planned to be released on October 29)

Kernel- 2.6.28-15 (See.. Ubuntu is more updated than Debian)

Ubuntu has been selected by readers of desktoplinux.com as the most popular Linux distribution for the desktop, claiming approximately 30% of Linux desktop installations in both 2006 and 2007.^[7]^[8]

Courtesy:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ubuntu_(operating_system)

Oldest existing Linux distribution - Slackware (present stable version-13.0, released 8 days ago)

Hope you find this interesting. I also wanted to brush up my linux updates...
Hey i would suggest you to use Ubuntu and a thing that'll surely attract you is that-

You can get it for free, right at your doorstep, how's that???

Just log onto

https://shipit.ubuntu.com

Create an account in it once, and then fill the form with your address and create your launchpad id, after that for every new release of Ubuntu, you can 'request for a free cd'. Then they'll ship the ubuntu cd, within 4-6 weeks to your address, and you will get it at your home in a neatly packed cover.

I have got with me all Ubuntu cd's from version 7.04, till 9.04(i.e,five versions) And hence i have clearly experienced how it has become more useful now. And more stable and useful too.. I suggest that all of you should get your hands on Ubuntu its simply superb. You'll surely, love it and throw away your Windows... I'm sure. Just try and see... There will be no turning back.

Ubuntu Rocks..........

Vi Commands

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 20:03:00 +0000

For this Purpose	Use this vi Command Syntax
To insert new text	esc + i ( You have to press 'escape' key then 'i')
To save file	esc + : + w (Press 'escape' key then 'colon' and finally 'w')
To save file with file name (save as)	esc + : + w "filename"
To quit the vi editor	esc + : + q
To quit without saving	esc + : + q!
To save and quit vi editor	esc + : + wq
To search for specified word in forward direction	esc + /word (Press 'escape' key, type /word-to-find, for e.g. to find word 'shri', type as /shri)
To continue with search	n
To search for specified word in backward direction	esc + ?word (Press 'escape' key, type word-to-find)
To copy the line where cursor is located	esc + yy
To paste the text just deleted or copied at the cursor	esc + p
To delete entire line where cursor is located	esc + dd
To delete word from cursor position	esc + dw
To Find all occurrence of given word and Replace then globally without confirmation	esc + :$s/word-to-find/word-to-replace/g For. e.g. :$s/mumbai/pune/g Here word "mumbai" is replace with "pune"
To Find all occurrence of given word and Replace then globally with confirmation	esc + :$s/word-to-find/word-to-replace/cg
To run shell command like ls, cp or date etc within vi	esc + :!shell-command For e.g. :!pwd

A Few things about 'Ubuntu Pocket Guide and Reference'

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Sun, 31 May 2009 07:35:00 +0000

Ubuntu Pocket Guide and Reference is currently in v1.1.

Everything about the Book

At just 5.25 x 8 inches and 166 pages, Ubuntu Pocket Guide and Reference is a compact yet comprehensive guide to everyday Ubuntu use.It's ideal for those who need vital information on all aspects of using Ubuntu, but who don’t have time to wade through thick documentation.

Each chapter of Ubuntu Pocket Guide and Reference tackles an aspect of Ubuntu.First, you learn about installation—getting Ubuntu onto your computer, after which you learn how to configure your computer's hardware.
Following this, you’re introduced to the Ubuntu desktop, and the tricks and techniques of efficient day-to-day usage. The book then describes the highways of the Ubuntu filesystem, and gives a full run-down of Ubuntu’s file manager.
Next, the command-line is tackled in-depth, after which software management is explained. Finally, system security is described—configuring the firewall, installing antivirus, and encrypting sensitive data. Appendixes provide a glossary of terms, and a guide to understanding technical documentation.
Written for anybody switching to Ubuntu, particularly former Windows users, Ubuntu Pocket Guide and Reference assumes zero Linux knowledge. It provides the wisdom of the expert user and concisely conveys core competencies.

Table Of contents-

Installing Ubuntu
Configuring Ubuntu
Getting to grips with the desktop
Users and the filesystem
Hands-on at the command-line
Software management
Securing the system

APPENDIX A: Glossary of terms
APPENDIX B: Learning more and getting help

Now what are you waiting for, my fellow Ubuntu users and prospective Ubuntu users. Get your hands on this amazing book at-

http://www.ubuntupocketguide.com/index_main.html

Devlisting.com-An interesting site for Web-developers.

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Sat, 30 May 2009 18:09:00 +0000

Devlisting.com is a very interesting sites, that lets you find out quality sites related to the web-development interest of yours. The links shown in this site have the certain guarenteed quality, due to their unique concept-

'Pin the good items, unpin the bad ones. Easy as that!'

I'm sorry but it can mostly help web-developing interests only, but lighter topics related such as firefox addons, etc. are also there. Now visit this interesting site, i'm sure you'll not be disappointed at all. And don't be surprised if you found out just the site that you were in search of.

Visit the site at-
http://www.devlisting.com/

Visit the following link for a very good collection of PHP related sites, all are quality sites, i'm sure (I guarentee it from my experience with it)-
http://www.devlisting.com/cat.php?c=7

PHPfront.com- A good PHP script Repository.

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Sat, 30 May 2009 18:01:00 +0000

This is good page to find useful PHP scripts. PHPfront is a depository of PHP codes and snippets. Learn PHP from these free codes or add them to your own scripts. PHPfront is 100% free to use and supported by its own users. If you would like to add a snippet of code to the site, you can do so on the submit page.
It aims to be one of the biggest free PHP script repositories, but being still in the infancy it needs more users to join and add useful scripts. So as a community it can be made into a very good repository. It will surely help PHP beginners. But, i found some really interesting scripts in its presently small collection of scripts.

See it for yourself at-
http://www.phpfront.com/

Afraid of trying Linux? No more..

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Fri, 15 May 2009 20:17:00 +0000

All the people out there who are afraid of trying Linux, just because you are very much used to the Windows, can now try it from within Windows, using some virtualisation technique. And the one I like among them is VitualBox by Sun Microsystems Inc.
Don't worry by the name of a company associated it is the only professional solution that is freely available as Open Source Software under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL). Using Virtual you can run almost any Linux distribution from within your Windows, never worrying about the consequences, as it will never affect the Windows host on which it is running. And it is a perfectly stable software.
Presently, VirtualBox runs on Windows, Linux, Macintosh and OpenSolaris hosts and supports a large number of guest operating systems including but not limited to Windows (NT 4.0, 2000, XP, Server 2003, Vista), DOS/Windows 3.x, Linux (2.4 and 2.6), Solaris and OpenSolaris, and OpenBSD.

Just try Linux, esp. Ubuntu or Open-SUSE, and i'm sure you'll like it and soon start loving Linux. You can download VirtualBox from-
http://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads

Now get your hands on a VirtualBox and start your journey to Linux and hence Open-source and know the joy and freedom you get in Linux.To know more about VirtualBox visit-
http://www.virtualbox.org

Improving the look of fonts in Linux

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Thu, 14 May 2009 20:20:00 +0000

Just save the following code, with the name- '.fonts.conf' and put it in your Ubuntu home-page , i.e, the home page of a particular user. Don't forget the period(full-stop) before 'fonts' in the name of that file!
The code is-

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<!DOCTYPE fontconfig SYSTEM "fonts.dtd">
<fontconfig>
<match target="font">
<edit name="autohint" mode="assign">
<bool>true</bool>
</edit>
</match>
</fontconfig>

This tip was got from the following page-
http://www.codejacked.com/greatly-improve-the-look-of-your-fonts-in-linux/
Please visit this page to clarify further doubts. It surely has some notable difference, i tried.

How to handle Compiz-Fusion errors.

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Thu, 14 May 2009 15:54:00 +0000

First of all find out why the Compiz plugin is not working in your system, using the wonderful script by Mr.Forlong. To get the script, visit the page-
compiz-check
And if even the results of the output of the script doesn't make you understand what the problem is, then report the error, along with the output of the script at the following thread in ubuntuforums.org-
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=799070

Please consider posting at the forum only as a last resort. Try some googling first.
Hope this will help you. Enjoy Your Compiz-Fusion.

Ubuntu themes and customizations

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Thu, 14 May 2009 07:54:00 +0000

Here are some links for the customization of Ubuntu in terms of Themes and Login-screens-
Themes-
25 Awesome and amazing Ubuntu/Linux themes
gnome-looks.org

Login-Screen Themes-
gnome-looks.org
15 beautiful GDM's

Also don't forget to download the compiz-fusion-plugins-extra package, it'll surely add to the beauty and flexibility of your desktop. Now get ready to amaze your friends and relatives with your very own Ubuntu.

Ubuntu 9.04 is awesome

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Thu, 14 May 2009 07:43:00 +0000

The Ubuntu 9.04 has an amazing startup, owing to the new ext4 filesystem, which has very high response times. The Compiz-Fusion makes Ubuntu simply irresistable. This coupled with a few customizations with the Theme(icon-packages+theme) makes my Ubuntu very beautiful. i'm using the 'Carbon-Gold theme'.

The new Ubuntu has a software called Computer-janitor which I found very handy, as it helps to remove unwanted packages.
Also i'm able to run Windows Xp fully within Linux, using the Sun Microsystems Virtual-Box. Believe me its an amazing virtualization tool.

How to add PHP tags to blogs

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Thu, 14 May 2009 07:39:00 +0000

Hey guys i've found out how to add php tags and hence examples to the blog. We just have to replace the '<' symbol in tags with a '<' statement, which will render the '<' symbol for us. Its as easy as that. The problem is that google or blogspot server supports the php and hence when i quote examples, they were actually parsing it, i.e, executing the php code. So in order to prevent that we'll render the '<' symbol in the other way, and presto it works. Also put the examples within a <pre> </pre>, it will show the examples as a code-fragment(i.e, in that style).
Now i'll quote more php examples in the blog.

Files related to mini-project

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 15:22:00 +0000

You can find the files related to my mini and main-projects at-
http://www.esnips.com//web/Miniandmainproject
I sincerely hope that atleast some of you'll find it useful.

You may create an account in the esnips site, it gives you the chance to download tutorials to many programming languages, and e-books of anything and everything that you would've ever wanted.
Join it and find everything that you wanted.

How to test the PHP installation.

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 15:44:00 +0000

I had forgot one important component in the PHP programming, the Editor. The editor is very important to help you in efficient programming, it can help you with code-assist, code-complete(tag completion), code alignment, etc..

So now get hold of a good PHP editor(I use Easy-eclipse for PHP), and type in the following code-

<html>
<head>
<title>PHP Test</title>
</head>
<body>

This is an HTML line
<?php
echo “This is a PHP line”;
phpinfo();
?>
</body>
</html>

This is arguably the most popular PHP code. The above code's output is the complete information about the PHP version you have installed and its modules..
Try it.

How to start with PHP Programming.

noreply@blogger.com (saji89) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 15:00:00 +0000

To start with the PHP programming one should have the following tools-

PHP- Goto http://www.php.net/downloads.php to find the latest version and download it.

Web-Server-As PHP is a server side language one would need a web-server to run the PHP code. I'm using the Apache web-server.

Database-One would essentially need one database for their website(in most cases). I would suggest MySQL, as it is a fully open-source.

***************************************************************************************

Instead of downloading all the above tools, one-by one one can easily download one of the Integrated packages, called a Stack, that suits ones needs. I'm using the LAMP stack which can be used in Linux, with Apache as the Web-server, MySQL the database and PHP. The Windows equivalent is WAMP.

Many other stacks are also available, mostly in open-source visit the following site to select the Stack that suits your needs-

http://bitnami.org/stacks

Guys, now what are u waiting for, get hold of the Stack of your choice and get going.