Easy Tech Talk: What made you decide to get into open source projects?
Angel Leon: Ever since I was in school in Latin America, I always felt that we could do a lot more by sharing our knowledge instead of hiding our code. Then the whole open source movement got more and more advocates, and I started using a lot of it to solve day to day problems, and also being in a position as a student  that couldn’t afford to buy expensive software licenses it was a great option having all these projects available for free with such high quality standards.

ETT: How did you get into programming?
A.L.: From a very early age I was using computers and video game consoles, it was mostly the inspiration of video games that got me to write very simple programs in Basic on my old Apple //c. Back then I had no manuals or connectivity of any sort, so I’d learn the syntax by listing the code of existing programs that came with the apple. Then the web came, and I learned HTML, JavaScript, and then in Computer Science school we started with Haskell, Modula, Pascal, C, C++, Java, PHP, … and so on.

ETT: Why did you choose the frostwire project?
A.L.: After leaving limewire I still wanted to somehow keep in touch with the code and learn more Java. The frostwire project was almost dissolved at some point and I was invited to contribute to it.

ETT: Since open source usually makes very little money, what else do you do to make ends meet?
A.L.: I’m a software engineer with over 7 years of experience in web development, I used to work full time for a company, but now I’m an independent consultant and a full time funding partner at MyBloop.com (We’re looking for investors!)

ETT: Do you think that P2P programs encourage more people to pirate software?
A.L.: I don’t think P2P encourages pirating, what encourages pirating is the lack of access to software. Some people do it because they really have no choice. Does the CD burner on your computer encourage you to pirate? I don’t think so, but it could certainly serve you to pirate. Does having a car encourage you to run over people on the street? P2P is just the next technology out there to distribute media, there were also crusades against the VCR’s, Tape Decks, The printing press and so on, it’s just part of the growing pains of evolution in media distribution, eventually big media will open their eyes and work side to side with projects like FrostWire to make their content available to as much people as they can.

ETT: What other projects are you working on?
A.L.: I’m currently working on MyBloop.com, a website that wants to offer free unlimited file storage to the world. I’m also trying to form an internet video game company with some friends, I’m very interested also in learning a lot about the Android platform.

ETT: How long have you been on the frostwire team?
A.L.: Hmm, I believe since the end of 2006, I’d have to see the repository to see when I first started doing commits.

ETT: What can you tell people out there who are interested in getting into software development?
A.L.: The best way to learn is by creating something, don’t just read about developing, actually try to get yourself to build something, the problems you’ll solve will teach you a lot. If you’re trying to pick a language to start, I’d recommend Python, it’s simple to learn and it has a lot of power.

ETT: How did you become the lead developer on frostwire?
A.L.: After the initial java developers left, we sort of divided responsibilities, managing the site, the builds and most of the code changes are some of the things I do when I work on FrostWire. My previous experience with java and software packaging pretty much put me on that role, it’s something I enjoy very much doing, and it allows me to be creative in ways I probably can’t be in my day to day job where development and decision making are more strict.

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• Speed up your PC
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Creating a strong password is a fairly simple process that most people seem to skip over for the convenience of having an easy password to remember.  Now your password should be pretty easy for you to remember but it should be hard for someone to guess.  You should stay away from making your password something that can easily be found out about you such as your address or birthday.  Passwords are supposed to protect your information so it would be in your best interest to make you password something that someone can’t just type in because they know you and guess the correct password.   So here are a few things you should consider before making your password or changing your already existing password.

Use a combination of upper and lowercase letters in your password.  Thes should be spread out and not follow the normal way that grammar teaches us.  Put a capital letter in the middle or end of the word to spice things up.

Use numbers in your password as well.  You should put numbers in the middle of your password, not at the beginning or end.  This will make it more difficult for someone to guess whatever word you use for your password because the number in the middle will throw them off.

If the website you use allows it you should also put a symbol somewhere in your password.  Any symbol will do as long as it is allowed by the site.  These can be placed near the end of your password as an extra step in making sure you’ve got a strong password.

A good rule for strong password creation is to use numbers as letters and to add the letters of the website you’re using to ensure that you can remember what site each password is for.  You can use a similar password for each site you use, just make sure to change the letters relating to the site for each password.  For example, if you were to make a password for this site, you could do something like “t3Chn0logy!Ett” or “e@SyTecHt@lK”, notice how both passwords have upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols in them.

Also, you should make sure that you don’t keep your passwords with your login information written on post-its next to your monitor or keyboard.  That’s just making it too easy for someone to know all the information they need to get into your account.  If you are going to write the login and password on something, try to write them in random locations on the bill of the site you need them for, or write them in an address book under the letters of the website they correspond to.

Remember that your password should be easy for you to remember but hard for someone to guess.  If you are going to use something like a pet or car, try to mix up the letters so you password doesn’t resemble the original word.  You can check out this site for random password generation.

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When you save files to your computer, it simply stores the data where ever it can at the moment as long as you have free space.  When the files are spread out out of order, it’s known as fragmentation.  It’s like throwing things in your room at random and leaving them lying around, sooner or later you’re not going to know where things are until you search for them.  That’s what your hard drive goes through when it isn’t defragmented often.  This clogs up your hard drive’s ability to find what you want and slows down the performance of your computer.

You can defrag your computer simply by using a defrag program.  Windows comes with a built in defrag utility program but I find that it doesn’t do a good enough job.  There are many programs out there that defrag your hard drive but the one I recommend is Auslogics’ Disk Defrag, it’s free and very efficient.

Now simply running a defrag program might work out for you but there are some things that you want to take into consideration before running a disk defrag program

First off, make sure you have at least 15% of your hard drive’s total space free.  This is very important to remember.  This ensures that the defrag program will have enough room to move all the data around.  Think about cleaning a room in your house, if you pile everything in the room and then try to clean it you won’t do a very good job.  But if you leave enough space to put things temporarily before moving them into their proper place, then you’ll do a much better job, and that’s why you want to have space available for the defrag program to do its work.

Secondly, you’ll want to avoid using any programs during the time that the defrag is taking place.  This will make sure that no program tries to place data on the hard drive while the defrag program is trying to move data around.  It will only cause more data to be fragmented and you’ll have to run the defrag program again.

The third thing to consider is how often to run a defrag program.  This depends on how often you save files and add new files or programs to your computer.  If you work on your computer everyday, then it might be a good idea to schedule a defrag every few days.  If you only use your computer to browse the internet and save pictures from trips you take, then you can safely defrag your computer a little less often, about once every few weeks.

So the next time you feel that your computer is running slow, take the time to run a defrag program and get your files back in order.

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The most obvious and recent event that I can think about is the 1 laptop per child program. This non profit organization is striving to provide laptops to children in developing countries as cheaply as possible so the children of the region can learn with the benefit of a computer. Having a laptop is scarcely seen in these regions especially in the classroom since not a lot is spent on education in these third world countries and other areas where children have little education. There are several ways that you can get involved in this program and you can learn about them at the 1 laptop per child website

Although not directly related, I believe that poverty around the world has sparked companies’ interests in making computer more affordable to those who otherwise wouldn’t be able to buy a computer or laptop at the current price. This spawned the making of the Eee PC by Asus who created an affordable laptop that has all the basics one would need in a computer.  Making computers more affordable allows more people to experience new things with the use of their computer. Research can be done on the internet which beats going to the library and sifting through hundreds of pages before finding what you need. This also allows people to work more efficiently and provides them with the knowledge on operating a computer if they’ve never touched one before. You can read more about the Eee PC and compare the different models over at Asus’ website here

Poverty is unavoidable in certain areas of the world but if we can all take a little time and donate a laptop or cell phone or even some spare cash we could start a chain reaction that one day would alleviate some of the burden felt in areas where technology and education are scarce.  To read more you can go to Blog Action Day’s homepage.

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• Addressing an issue

As of right now, all full power television stations are providing their service over the air as an analog signal and through cable companies as a digital signal.  The analog signal can be received by any TV using an antenna (rabbit ears) similar to how your radio works in your car, while the digital signal can only be received by a TV with a digital tuner or through cable / satellite service.   The DTV 2009 switch will require all analog signals to be stopped and only digital signals will be provided. This means if you only use an antenna to receive your TV stations, you will lose this service unless you sign up for cable / satellite or get a DTV converter box.

Now the government is providing 2 coupons each worth $40 towards the purchase of certified DTV converter boxes.  These boxes will simply convert a television signal coming into your house into a digital television or DTV signal.

The reason the government is requiring all stations to switch over to an all digital signal is to clear the airwaves for emergency services and provide television viewers a clearer picture on their TVs.  This will ensure that emergency responders have a clear signal to use in case of a disaster.

The DTV switch is causing a lot of confusion and hopefully this will clear that up.  You do not need to buy a new TV or even sign up for cable as long as you get a DTV converter box from your local retail store.  Make sure you check out the government’s web page on DTV 2009 and make sure you get the correct DTV converter box.  You can visit the DTV 2009 site here.

Do you still use an antenna to receive your TV stations? Leave a comment and tell us what you think of the DTV switch.

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