2. The link to the Japanese mirror site hosted by Mat3Impex for Baishakhi Linux download has been removed from NLTR website. The Japanese mirror was *way* faster as the NLTR.ORG website (the only site to download anything from) as presently hosted in the US is at least 6 times as slower as far as downloads are concerned. (this could become a point of concern though unless this is looked into soon)

I too, has used the SNLTR Forum as later on also suggested by Prof. Anupam Basu of IITKGP and Director, SNLTR, for requesting information as to where I can get the sources from - http://nltr.org/snltrforum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=8

My enquiry was short and simple -

বৈশাখীলিনাক্সের ISO‌-র সোর্স কোড কোথা থেকে পেতে পারি?

Postby ইন্দ্রনীল on Wed Sep 10, 2008 3:52 pm
$SUBJECT-য়েই এই পোস্টিংর সার বক্তব্য

ধন্যবাদন্তে
ইন্দ্রনীল

or

“Where from can I get the Baishakhi Linux ISO’s sources” followed by “$SUBJECT says it all”

So far, that question went without any answer - mails to their devel mailing list via the web-based feedback form (done after I had received the invitation for the inaugural program) or the forum (done yesterday) and the only thing close to an answer was Prof. Basu’s reply yesterday evening -

“The release was on the 8th of September and it was planned to make the source code available upstream, within a few days as is expected of open-source activities. Please keep your weather eyes open on the SNLTR site.”

I was away from Kolkata since morning and now on coming back, I found this “reply” waiting for me in the Forum by one of the developers.

নমস্কার
বৈশাখী লিনাক্স ১.০ সংস্করণটি Ubuntu 8.04 এর উপর ভিত্তি করে তৈরী করা হয়েছে ।
Ubuntu এর মতই এর CD কে মাউন্ট করে সোর্স কোড পাওযা যেতে পারে ।

নমস্কারান্তে
তারক নাথ

meaning “Namashkar! Baishakhi Linux version 1.0 is based on Ubuntu 8.04. Just like Ubuntu the Baishakhi Linux CD can be mounted to access the source code”

/me is presently pondering on what should be state of his mind be

Reached the college, the final 120 meters had to be trudged on foot as the road was all dug up, courtesy a sewage project under implementation. Dipanjan and a few others from the local RCCIIT LUG (which is called a SLUG or Students’ Linux User Group for some reason). There was a power-cut and we were late in starting off the “show”. There were about 85 - 100 students, mainly from the 1st year and a few from the 2nd and the 3rd years, as well as a few teachers. I went up first, it was more of a general introduction to Free & Open Source Software and how it pervades all aspects of computing - from super computers to embedded applications like mobile phones and everything in between. Susmit was up next and he spoke about the Fedora project and how to start using and contributing to it. Finally with time running short, Sayamindu went up with a short but lively talk about the OLPC project.

In about 2 hours time, we tried to give these young students an overall idea about FOSS - using and contributing, trying to share with them the excitement from multi-dimensional perspectives. By the time it was over, the heavens had opened up. So we sat down and finished off the packets of snacks that the organisers had arranged. We ended up discussing with our young hosts what they could do next. Around 1:45 PM, already getting late for a proposed meeting with Tamal-da, we decided to call up a taxi and leave. Dipanjan our principal host volunteered to venture out in the torrential rains and get a cab as we were anxious not to get our equipment wet.

Dipanjan disappeared for 15 minutes and then suddenly came back thoroughly drenched. He informed us that the cab was there, but then very apologetically added that we would have to cross the sewage-cum-storm water canal over a foot bridge as the taxi can’t come to this side (college side) of the canal as the roads were all dug up.

The rains had by then dropped down to a drizzle but the roads were flooded. So, we jumped across large pools of water using slippery bricks as toe-holds and hoping not to skid and to get our gear across as dry as possible. The footbridge turned out to be standard issue rickety construction made of bamboo, over a hyacinth covered water body that looked poisonous in color. We crossed it in a single file and they even charged 50p (about 1 cent) per head as “toll”, finally clambering up the slippery slopes covered with slush from what-nots and finally we got into the cab waiting there for us.

By then it was already late and the spectre of the TMC road blocks looming large and ominous we decided to cut out proposed trip to Tamal-da’s office short and headed into the China Town for some much needed food and a place to hangout for next 3 hours so that we could “ride out” the crazy road blockade enforced traffic snarls.

We decided to go to our regular joint - Kafulok. But on reaching there we found the place’s to remain closed between 4 - 6 PM (we had never come at this time of the day before)… baah!!!!! Having left our taxi, it was now left for us to trudge back through the slushy lanes overflowing with the effluents from the tanneries…. nice touch… even nicer with Sayamindu detailing an even more worse Lake Market during the monsoons… YUCK!!!! suddenly our present situations looked a lot better.

We ended up going to the Hot Wok (very imaginative name indeed . Since Susmit is a teetotaler, it was left to Sayam and me to polish off a pint of Vodka and a couple of Bloody Marys while Susmit nursed a plain water and a Virgin Mary. That the excitement was far from over was pointed out by Susmit - the label of our bottle of White Mischief vodka

By 7:45 we decided that we should be able to get transport and get back home. And so we got on the 2nd cab we found and headed home without any further incidents.

FWIW, Dr. Sthanapati, Director, BITM (Birla Industrial & Technology Museum, Kolkata) has proposed a series of camps with funding from Dept. of Science and Technology, Govt of WB. Comet Media Foundation will be the ICT program partner in that endeavor and as such we are supposed to be developing the program outline. The backward district of Purulia will be the pilot site.

Based on the brief discussions yesterday, there are plans to involve Pragati, Intel and others in the initiative. The deadline to get everything in place is November 2008.

So this is basically a call for help and volunteers… any takers so far?

I’m looking forward to the event to see where OLPC goes from here on.

On a related note, yesterday Kushal had punched in the panic buttons saying the Bijra School’s LTSP system was not working, so I had asked Subhodip and Arindam to do a site visit today and fix the problem. They reported back that it was a dusty and loosely seated RAM problem on the server, which they managed to fix.

Which reminds me that we need to hold a fresh re-orientation workshop at the school soon.

DISCLAIMER: THIS IS *SO* NOT MY IDEA!!!!

Today, Ms. Robbin Wilber (potentially my future mom-in-law) demanded that I find out about the cost of renting a trained Indian Elephant for the purpose of wedding that is likely to be held in Kolkata sometime next year (2009), with everything else remaining equal.

The aforementioned elephant should be trained to carry both the groom and the bride to the wedding reception, should not smell too bad and the elephant agency should preferably accept American credit cards. Those were her stipulations. If any one has an idea about elephant rentals, please drop a line of comment.

Apparently its the Bollywood movies that has done this harm. Arghhhhh!!!! I’m wordering if I can get out of this one by saying that we have a Pre-nuptial Agreement which stipulates “NO ELEPHANTS”

Thanks
-IDG

PS. I do not know what it is about Americans and Indian elephants… if someone does please leave a comment to enlighten me.

thanks again guys… it means a lot to both of us!

I wish there were simple answers… but life isn’t like that…