... It has been some time now since my last rant on computers. I was working up an estimate for a friend the other day and was once more slapped in the face with the cost of the operating system that Microsoft charges. The cheapest I found a full copy of WindowsXP Pro for was $189.00 plus Shipping and the best I've found Windows Vista Ultimate for is $360.00 plus the shipping. For less than $600.00 I can build a terrific computer complete with a dual core processor but if the person wants Windows on their unit the price automatically jumps by more that two hundred dollars and that is indecent.
... Because of my age and my status in the system I have ceased to charge folks for my labor and have began to push hard the Ubuntu operating system. Ubuntu operates with the same type of point and click system that Windows users love. The huge problem with the system is the cost, it is free and people do not like free. If it doesn't cost them money they do not trust it. The biggest advantage to the Ubuntu system is the fact that one need not run an Anti-Virus or a Firewall program. Being a security freak I run both any way. Another large plus is the fact that there are thousands of programs from a complete Office (Microsoft's costs over $600) and thousands of programs available for taking the time to download them and the office apps will even save in the Microsoft native formats plus these apps will open documents and such from the Windows machines. Not only that but if you are really hung up on the MS Apps you just point and click to download Wine and the install that app inside your Wine program and it runs as a native of Ubuntu.
... Are you afraid that you will not be able to test it? Maybe you have the room or another disk you can put it on but your not smart enough to set up a dual boot system so that you have your windows system for a safety net. Well, to just test the system all you need is a Live CD and to get that you can contact me at gods-servant@sbcglobal.net and I'll burn and ship you a copy for ten dollars labor and shipping cost, the software is free. Another method, even cheaper is to go to Ubuntu.com and download the .iso file and burn your own copy. Then you put the disk into your computer, do a restart and it should boot from the CD allowing you to test the system a reduced speed because it will not write to you hard drive. These Live CDs are also the complete system for the install if you choose to install it. And now, about that dual boot system, it is cover for you by the disk. If you already have Windows on your 'puter the Live CD will automatically set you up for a dual boot of both systems.
... I can do no more than to beg you to stop tossing your hard earned money into file thirteen at MS and give this OS a try, it will cost you nothing and will, over your life save you thousands of dollars.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Are you free?
... One of the things that is so very hard for the new Christian to get a girp on is their sinful nature and I believe that this has a great deal to do with why we see folks come into the church, make a profession of faith and then they are lost to us. Galatians is a book that these folks need to study a bit. It is only five short chapters long, so it is a quick read though a person can spend a life time in the study of this short book of the Bible.
... In this letter to the church there we see that Paul's work is being undone by the Jews trying to force the Christians to live by the Law and to forget God's grace. The very first thing I believe that every new Christian needs to understand is that they are free from their former life style. That means that we now have the option to refuse to sin and not that we will never be tempted. We will be tempted and there might even be a time that we slip because we become so distracted that we forget that we have the option to please God and by doing so, to please our selves without being ashamed of what we have done. I suppose the best way to say this is that we are now changed because we no longer plan to sin as we did, at least I did, before we were saved. And as we grow in our walk with Christ we will slip less and less.
... When we are saved we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit but early on we are not practiced at listening to that influence and it is easy to ignore. As we walk with God we are also chastised by Him when we fail to listen to the Spirit and through this process we become more attuned to what the Spirit is trying to tell us. This is exactly the way we were raised when we were youngsters and God has always been the Good Father. For example, if, when we were young, we lived beside a busy street or highway our mom and dad would forbid us to go into the street and if we did they would spank us to get our attention focused. We were not told to avoid the street because they did not want us to enjoy our lives, it was so that we would enjoy our life. It is exactly the same with God.
... From the Law we all learn that we are sinners but no one has ever been saved by following the Law. From the time of Abraham, salvation has been a product of grace and only by grace. This will never change and we in the church have got to stop killing the wounded and instead learn to give them a hand up. We are called, by God, to restore the fallen and when we learn to live our mission out we will stop scaring the new Christian away.
... In this letter to the church there we see that Paul's work is being undone by the Jews trying to force the Christians to live by the Law and to forget God's grace. The very first thing I believe that every new Christian needs to understand is that they are free from their former life style. That means that we now have the option to refuse to sin and not that we will never be tempted. We will be tempted and there might even be a time that we slip because we become so distracted that we forget that we have the option to please God and by doing so, to please our selves without being ashamed of what we have done. I suppose the best way to say this is that we are now changed because we no longer plan to sin as we did, at least I did, before we were saved. And as we grow in our walk with Christ we will slip less and less.
... When we are saved we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit but early on we are not practiced at listening to that influence and it is easy to ignore. As we walk with God we are also chastised by Him when we fail to listen to the Spirit and through this process we become more attuned to what the Spirit is trying to tell us. This is exactly the way we were raised when we were youngsters and God has always been the Good Father. For example, if, when we were young, we lived beside a busy street or highway our mom and dad would forbid us to go into the street and if we did they would spank us to get our attention focused. We were not told to avoid the street because they did not want us to enjoy our lives, it was so that we would enjoy our life. It is exactly the same with God.
... From the Law we all learn that we are sinners but no one has ever been saved by following the Law. From the time of Abraham, salvation has been a product of grace and only by grace. This will never change and we in the church have got to stop killing the wounded and instead learn to give them a hand up. We are called, by God, to restore the fallen and when we learn to live our mission out we will stop scaring the new Christian away.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
The State of the Union and the Christian
... I have been busy the past month trying to convince folks claiming the name of Christ that God really does care about who they vote for and since the election it has been my goal to get folks to pray for the President that our LORD has put into the White House whether they approve of the gentleman or not. Having pursued these ends that are well within the wishes of God I have been ignoring this blog. To any of you that are bored enough to care to read the ramblings of an old man, I apologize for ignoring my duty here. I will attempt to be more faithful in my rants and my attempts to teach the Gospel.
... Since I have noticed, at www.bibleforums.org, that so many folks today are not concerned with seeking after the will of God for every action they take I'd like to spend just a moment on that subject. God is concerned about every detail of your life. The Bible even assures us of this truth. (Luke 12:7) If God knows the exact number of hairs on your head at any given moment in time, could there ever be a single thing that you can do that God does not know? God has been so concerned about this servant that He has even sent folks to see that I recieve enough money in any given month to feed my wife and my daughter, even though I'll never be able to work another day of my life. Because I can't sleep at night unless I am proped up in an expensive hospital bed, God has provided me with just that. Because I have a drop foot because of the disease that is caused by my wounds and chemical exposure from the war, God has even provided a, just invented, special brace that is spring loaded and lifts the toe of my foot so that I do not take a header when I walk.
... To believe that God does not care about how one of His children votes is a very small box to try to put the creator of the universe into.
... Since I have noticed, at www.bibleforums.org, that so many folks today are not concerned with seeking after the will of God for every action they take I'd like to spend just a moment on that subject. God is concerned about every detail of your life. The Bible even assures us of this truth. (Luke 12:7) If God knows the exact number of hairs on your head at any given moment in time, could there ever be a single thing that you can do that God does not know? God has been so concerned about this servant that He has even sent folks to see that I recieve enough money in any given month to feed my wife and my daughter, even though I'll never be able to work another day of my life. Because I can't sleep at night unless I am proped up in an expensive hospital bed, God has provided me with just that. Because I have a drop foot because of the disease that is caused by my wounds and chemical exposure from the war, God has even provided a, just invented, special brace that is spring loaded and lifts the toe of my foot so that I do not take a header when I walk.
... To believe that God does not care about how one of His children votes is a very small box to try to put the creator of the universe into.
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