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1

Minty Fresh on a Meerkat: My Latest Linux Setup

September 15, 2025September 10, 2025
2

My start with BASIC programming

September 12, 2025September 8, 2025
3

Read long lines with getline

September 11, 2025September 8, 2025
4

Rhythmbox is a great music player for GNOME

September 10, 2025September 8, 2025
5

Reading the command line with getopt

September 9, 2025September 8, 2025
6

How do I choose a Linux distribution?

September 5, 2025September 5, 2025
7

Using QGIS and MerginMaps for Geospatial Data Work

September 4, 2025September 3, 2025
8

Exploring GNU Algol 68: Formatting numbers as strings for output

September 3, 2025September 2, 2025
9

What you need to know when you buy a new computer

September 2, 2025September 2, 2025
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jhall

Jim Hall is an open source software developer and advocate. His first contribution to open source was in 1993 with a patch to GNU Emacs, but he is probably best known for his work on FreeDOS, the open source version of the DOS operating system, and for his work on usability in open source software. In addition to writing open source software, Jim also writes about open source software, including Both.org and All Things Open, and about technical writing at Technically We Write.
Command Line Fun

Play a fun math game with Linux commands

Use these commands to generate random numbers for a fun math quiz game.

Jim Hall
June 17, 2024June 18, 2024
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Code Programming

5 common C programming bugs (and how to avoid them)

Add a little extra code to your next program to avoid these common C programming mistakes.

Jim Hall
June 16, 2024June 12, 2024
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FreeDOS Linux

How to run DOS apps on Linux

With QEMU and FreeDOS, you can run your favorite DOS applications and games.

Jim Hall
June 13, 2024June 10, 2024
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FreeDOS QEMU

Running FreeDOS on Linux

Here’s how I boot FreeDOS on my Linux desktop machine using QEMU.

Jim Hall
June 10, 2024June 1, 2024
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FreeDOS History Linux

Why DOS only has 16 colors

Have you ever wondered why DOS text only comes in 16 colors and 8 background colors?

Jim Hall
June 8, 2024May 29, 2024
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FreeDOS Hardware

Running FreeDOS on legacy hardware

How I installed FreeDOS on a 386-SX micro laptop called the Pocket386.

Jim Hall
June 7, 2024June 5, 2024
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Command Line Linux

Using ‘awk’ to filter text

Here’s how to use awk to strip out sample code from a Markdown file.

Jim Hall
June 3, 2024May 29, 2024
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Information LibreOffice Programming

Digging into ODT file contents

All LibreOffice files are zip file containers with XML data and metadata.

Jim Hall
June 1, 2024May 17, 2024
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Command Line Fun Problem Solving

Use ‘grep’ to solve a 2-dimensional word puzzle

Regular expressions match patterns and help you solve problems.

Jim Hall
May 26, 2024May 22, 2024
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Curiosity History Programming

Comparing BASIC with FORTRAN 77

I applied what I learned about BASIC to learn the FORTRAN 77 programming language.

Jim Hall
May 25, 2024May 14, 2024
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Problem Solving Programming

A little programming goes a long way

It helps to know some programming to solve these little problems.

Jim Hall
May 21, 2024May 19, 2024
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Compatibility Hardware Linux

Linux desktops and laptops

How do you run Linux? We asked our community to find out.

Jim Hall
May 20, 2024May 17, 2024
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Fun History Opinion

My open source story

How I got started in open source, from GNU Emacs and installing Linux in 1993.

Jim Hall
May 19, 2024May 19, 2024
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Fun Programming

My first programming language

Apple BASIC was how I first learned how to write my own computer programs.

Jim Hall
May 18, 2024May 25, 2024
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Curiosity Programming Tips and tricks

3 ways to read files in C

There’s the simple way, and there’s the fast way. Let’s compare.

Jim Hall
May 17, 2024May 15, 2024
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Command Line Fun Linux

Using ‘grep’ to play a word game

You can use regular expressions to match letters and patterns, to help you play a letter game.

Jim Hall
May 13, 2024May 9, 2024
Read More

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Technology is dominated by two types of people: those who understand what they do not manage, and those who manage what they do not understand.

— Archibald Putt

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Links: Open Source Software

  • GIMP
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“systemd for SysAdmins” Now Available

May 13,2025

My latest book — a #1 New Release on Amazon — “systemd for Linux  SysAdmins” is now available from my publisher, Apress, and on Amazon.

2nd Edition now Available

All three volumes of this best-selling second edition of my Linux Self-Study course are now available from Apress and Amazon. See the details of this 3-volume self-study course.

Technically We Write — Our Partner Site

Our partner site, Technically We Write, has published a number of articles from several contributors to Both.org. Check them out.

Technically We Write is a community of technical writers, technical editors, copyeditors, web content writers, and all other roles in technical communication.

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