BIOS LEVEL

Contributed to Ubuntu Hardy torrents

Colin — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 19:35:41 +0000

BIOS LEVEL contributed quite healthily this past week to the release of Ubuntu Hardy. We seeded more than 100 GB for the torrent! Our web server sacrificed a little bit of speed this week to serve up more than 75 of those GBs, and our staff served up at least another 25 GB. While the web server is taking a break from seeding Ubuntu to possibly seed the first release of SymphonyOS, our staff and users are still seeding.

If you’ve not tried out Ubuntu Hardy, please, give it a try!

Review Issues

Obsidian — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 16:07:22 +0000

StarTech.com, who sent us the 750W 80PLUS power supply, also sent us two other interesting products. One of them will be revealed this week in an upcoming review, but the other is giving us a little trouble. The product in particular bridges a PCI-Express x1 slot to a dual-profile ExpressCard interface. While the product resides in a PCI-Express slot, I believe it only uses the slot to draw power. Reason being, there’s also a USB interface for the card.

There are two options for the USB interface: motherboard headers, or USB A-to-B cable that would plug in the front or rear of your case. No matter which interface I opt for, no changes appear in Vista, XP, or Linux, and I’ve tested the card on two different Intel machines. My last option is try it on my AMD machine, but I don’t think it’ll help, either.

LEDs on the card come on when a card is inserted, but no visible hardware changes are made in software. The adapter is simply not detected. I’m going to try the card on an AMD-base machine, but if anyone has any experience with such an adapter, help would greatly be appreciated.

Why is it so difficult to bridge PCI-Express to ExpressCard without the USB support?

Without Linux!

Obsidian — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 03:53:05 +0000

Since I replaced my aging Asus Z71V notebook with a Macbook a month or so ago, I’ve been without Linux. My desktop is set up more for gaming than regular usage, so naturally it’s running Vista. This has become an issue over the last few weeks while trying to review some of the fantastic products we’ve received. BIOS_LEVEL’s primary focus is Linux compatibility and performance, so how is that to be measured without Linux?

I’ve contemplated setting up virtual machines on either the MacBook or Desktop, but Linux wouldn’t have direct control over the majority of the hardware, so it’d be useless in most cases. We’re waiting on a new motherboard from EVGA to put together a new Core2 Duo machine that should solve this problem, adding another box to our lines (dedicated to Linux).

My temporarily solution has been to use Knoppix for all the minor hardware we’re received, such as mice and headsets, but for an upcoming review, I’m going to have to set up a full install on a machine to get certain things working. Wish me luck!

Using revver for videos

Colin — Tue, 25 Dec 2007 20:59:05 +0000

We’ve chosen Revver as our primary video host instead of YouTube. Why? By default, Revver licenses videos with a Creative Commons license, a sort of open source license for artistic creations like music, video, and prose. I’ve also found that its player works better on Linux than YouTube’s. Should a viewer be at a computer that doesn’t have Flash installed, he or she will another format in which to watch it, since Revver has a QuickTime version available too.

We may put a video on YouTube here and there for greater exposure, but we’re confident in our decision to choose Revver for the majority of our videos.

Though it doesn’t support it officially, Revver’s engine does seem to work with Ogg, a particular favorite container around these parts.

Be sure to check out BIOS LEVEL videos on Revver.

BIOS LEVEL fan page on Facebook

Colin — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 20:59:02 +0000

We’ve started a fan page on Facebook.

BIOS LEVEL fan page

Fan pages allow sites to send updates via Facebook’s message system. It’s a great way to stay updated if you don’t like using our newsfeeds.

Slideshows from Ontario Linuxfest

Colin — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 18:43:16 +0000

As I get permission from the various presenters, I’ll post slides here. If the presenter has the full slideshow available somewhere, I’ll link to it.

Stay tuned.

Ontario Linuxfest: The trip

Colin — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 01:39:23 +0000

The trip up was fortunately uneventful. Neither Jonathan nor Pat have been to Canada, so crossing the border was a new experience. We exchanged some dollars for loonies at the Duty Free, and got through the booths quickly. The hotel, Radisson, is cool, and our suite is flippin’ sweet. Pics later.

We’re off to the pre-party sponsored by Lullabot, and then to get some late-night grub if none is provided. We’ve not eaten since about 2 p.m.

Heading to Ontario Linuxfest

Colin — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 17:00:07 +0000

Jonathan, Pat, and I will be heading to Ontario Linuxfest in Toronto for the weekend. I’m excited to go to Canada for more than an evening for the first time since I was five.

Expect a report next week

Happy Birthday, Obsidian!

Colin — Sun, 07 Oct 2007 06:43:20 +0000

One of BIOS_LEVEL’s founders, Sean “Obsidian” Potter, is 21 today.

PRAISE HIM ON THE ANNIVERSARY OF HIS SPAWNING.

Ohio Linuxfest 2007: The Review

Colin — Sun, 07 Oct 2007 06:41:47 +0000

The full article has been posted. Check it on on the main page!