[ale] Remote Desktop for Everything?

Elmer Masters elmer at teknoids.net
Wed Oct 24 08:01:31 EDT 2012


On Tue, Oct 23, 2012 at 8:27 PM,  <ale-request at ale.org> wrote:
> Date: Tue, 23 Oct 2012 19:08:31 -0400
> From: Pablo Ordonez <pablo.f.ordonez at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [ale] Remote Desktop for Everything?
> To: Atlanta Linux Enthusiasts <ale at ale.org>
> Message-ID:
>         <CAOb8oZDtXvto5o2q2xGNhiyrC2NsQmDEy2dShC43bOekRrJBLw at mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> Have anyone tried http://owncloud.org?  I haven't, but it looks promising.
>
> Pablo
>
> On Tue, Oct 23, 2012 at 3:46 PM, Jim Kinney <jim.kinney at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Yeah. But if the cloud was my own and the tablet was truly mine (i.e.
>> rooted and reinstalled with my choice of binaries), I could see how
>> this could be useful. Puts the backup needs in one space.
>>
>> On Tue, Oct 23, 2012 at 3:39 PM, David Tomaschik
>> <david at systemoverlord.com> wrote:
>> > So, being the security-conscious (paranoid) guy I am, I would not
>> > trust most cloud providers with all my data.  Plus, the OS on tablets
>> > is too restrictive unless you root and do CM or something.
>> >
>> > David
>> >
>> >
>> > On Tue, Oct 23, 2012 at 11:43 AM, Vernard Martin <vernard at venger.net>
>> wrote:
>> >> On 10/23/2012 02:06 PM, JD wrote:
>> >>> Has anyone else attempted this?
>> >>> * Setup a Linux desktop "in the cloud"
>> >>> * Remote desktop into the cloud-desktop, as needed
>> >>> * Use ssh whenever possible
>> >>> * Use a tablet as your primary interface
>> >>>
>> >>> Here's a story
>> http://yieldthought.com/post/31857050698/ipad-linode-1-year-later
>> >>> about a guy doing just that for almost all his desktop needs.
>> Interesting read
>> >>> for the Linux crowd.
>> >>>
>> >> I do this right now for a few of my clients at work. We have Linux
>> >> servers on Amazon EC2 and they use NoMachine Client so that we can
>> >> connect and disconnect to the server and leave the desktop intact. Works
>> >> pretty well except for when they need to move terabytes of data into and
>> >> out of the server....
>> >>
>> >> Several of them found that the tablets were a bit restrictive for the
>> >> work they were doing due to low resolution size. Most of them use 15"
>> >> Macbook Pros instead.
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> _______________________________________________
>> >> Ale mailing list
>> >> Ale at ale.org
>> >> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>> >> See JOBS, ANNOUNCE and SCHOOLS lists at
>> >> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > --
>> > David Tomaschik
>> > OpenPGP: 0x5DEA789B
>> > http://systemoverlord.com
>> > david at systemoverlord.com
>> > _______________________________________________
>> > Ale mailing list
>> > Ale at ale.org
>> > http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>> > See JOBS, ANNOUNCE and SCHOOLS lists at
>> > http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> --
>> James P. Kinney III
>>
>> Every time you stop a school, you will have to build a jail. What you
>> gain at one end you lose at the other. It's like feeding a dog on his
>> own tail. It won't fatten the dog.
>> - Speech 11/23/1900 Mark Twain
>>
>> http://electjimkinney.org
>> http://heretothereideas.blogspot.com/
>> _______________________________________________
>> Ale mailing list
>> Ale at ale.org
>> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>> See JOBS, ANNOUNCE and SCHOOLS lists at
>> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo
>>
> -------------- next part --------------
> An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
> URL: http://mail.ale.org/pipermail/ale/attachments/20121023/f7c9e168/attachment-0001.html
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 4
> Date: Tue, 23 Oct 2012 20:21:35 -0400
> From: Jim Kinney <jim.kinney at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [ale] Remote Desktop for Everything?
> To: Atlanta Linux Enthusiasts <ale at ale.org>
> Message-ID:
>         <CAEo=5Py7Aj6kysAnC+FwxDij27ZPF=LOuDGSq8JMsRjBKkj0nw at mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
>
> Not yet. It's on my list of tech to tinker with.
> Using cloudmin now for web admin of kvm machine. Same author as webmin.
> Pretty good. Designed for virtual hosting providers .
> On Oct 23, 2012 7:10 PM, "Pablo Ordonez" <pablo.f.ordonez at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Have anyone tried http://owncloud.org?  I haven't, but it looks
>> promising.
>>
>> Pablo
>>
>> On Tue, Oct 23, 2012 at 3:46 PM, Jim Kinney <jim.kinney at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Yeah. But if the cloud was my own and the tablet was truly mine (i.e.
>>> rooted and reinstalled with my choice of binaries), I could see how
>>> this could be useful. Puts the backup needs in one space.
>>>
>>> On Tue, Oct 23, 2012 at 3:39 PM, David Tomaschik
>>> <david at systemoverlord.com> wrote:
>>> > So, being the security-conscious (paranoid) guy I am, I would not
>>> > trust most cloud providers with all my data.  Plus, the OS on tablets
>>> > is too restrictive unless you root and do CM or something.
>>> >
>>> > David
>>> >
>>> >
>>> > On Tue, Oct 23, 2012 at 11:43 AM, Vernard Martin <vernard at venger.net>
>>> wrote:
>>> >> On 10/23/2012 02:06 PM, JD wrote:
>>> >>> Has anyone else attempted this?
>>> >>> * Setup a Linux desktop "in the cloud"
>>> >>> * Remote desktop into the cloud-desktop, as needed
>>> >>> * Use ssh whenever possible
>>> >>> * Use a tablet as your primary interface
>>> >>>
>>> >>> Here's a story
>>> http://yieldthought.com/post/31857050698/ipad-linode-1-year-later
>>> >>> about a guy doing just that for almost all his desktop needs.
>>> Interesting read
>>> >>> for the Linux crowd.
>>> >>>
>>> >> I do this right now for a few of my clients at work. We have Linux
>>> >> servers on Amazon EC2 and they use NoMachine Client so that we can
>>> >> connect and disconnect to the server and leave the desktop intact.
>>> Works
>>> >> pretty well except for when they need to move terabytes of data into
>>> and
>>> >> out of the server....
>>> >>
>>> >> Several of them found that the tablets were a bit restrictive for the
>>> >> work they were doing due to low resolution size. Most of them use 15"
>>> >> Macbook Pros instead.
>>> >>
>>> >>
>>> >> _______________________________________________
>>> >> Ale mailing list
>>> >> Ale at ale.org
>>> >> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>>> >> See JOBS, ANNOUNCE and SCHOOLS lists at
>>> >> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo
>>> >
>>> >
>>> >
>>> > --
>>> > David Tomaschik
>>> > OpenPGP: 0x5DEA789B
>>> > http://systemoverlord.com
>>> > david at systemoverlord.com
>>> > _______________________________________________
>>> > Ale mailing list
>>> > Ale at ale.org
>>> > http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>>> > See JOBS, ANNOUNCE and SCHOOLS lists at
>>> > http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> --
>>> James P. Kinney III
>>>
>>> Every time you stop a school, you will have to build a jail. What you
>>> gain at one end you lose at the other. It's like feeding a dog on his
>>> own tail. It won't fatten the dog.
>>> - Speech 11/23/1900 Mark Twain
>>>
>>> http://electjimkinney.org
>>> http://heretothereideas.blogspot.com/
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Ale mailing list
>>> Ale at ale.org
>>> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>>> See JOBS, ANNOUNCE and SCHOOLS lists at
>>> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo
>>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Ale mailing list
>> Ale at ale.org
>> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>> See JOBS, ANNOUNCE and SCHOOLS lists at
>> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo
>>
>>
> -------------- next part --------------
> An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
> URL: http://mail.ale.org/pipermail/ale/attachments/20121023/501bcb11/attachment-0001.html
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 5
> Date: Tue, 23 Oct 2012 20:27:26 -0400
> From: JD <jdp at algoloma.com>
> Subject: Re: [ale] Remote Desktop for Everything?
> To: Atlanta Linux Enthusiasts <ale at ale.org>
> Message-ID: <508735EE.1040604 at algoloma.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
>
> On 10/23/2012 03:46 PM, Jim Kinney wrote:
>> Yeah. But if the cloud was my own and the tablet was truly mine (i.e.
>> rooted and reinstalled with my choice of binaries), I could see how
>> this could be useful. Puts the backup needs in one space.
>>
>> On Tue, Oct 23, 2012 at 3:39 PM, David Tomaschik
>> <david at systemoverlord.com> wrote:
>>> So, being the security-conscious (paranoid) guy I am, I would not
>>> trust most cloud providers with all my data.  Plus, the OS on tablets
>>> is too restrictive unless you root and do CM or something.
>
> I migrated my normal desktop, which has been a VM the last 3-4 yrs, into a KVM
> server last week.  Locally, I've been accessing it over GigE, but during a class
> over the weekend, I did all the normal programming, debugging and testing
> through a wifi connection about 20 miles from the house for about 3 hours. The
> lag was minimal.
>
> NX is the protocol used. It is much more efficient than the alternatives, but
> there isn't a production level Android version available, so a netbook or laptop
> is still needed. There are Free Windows, OSX and Linux NX clients, but I've only
> seen F/LOSS Linux servers (neatnx or freenx, I believe).
>
> I'm sold on NX when compared with RDP or VNC. It is THAT much quicker and uses
> an ssh connection for all traffic combined with PKI. No need to trust some SSL
> cert that a government can spoof.  A client/server cert + password gain access.
>
> On my netbook, I've encrypted the HOME directory but don't really have anything
> else loaded besides the NX client.  Email, web surfing, etc all happen on the
> remote machine.  If the netbook is lost or stolen, I'm confident the data is
> safe, back at home.  That's how it should be.
>
>
> I looked at owncloud a few months ago.  There was something about it that I
> didn't like - perhaps their servers needed to be in the middle? Sorry, I don't
> recall the details now.  I can run a server at home and open a port for ssh.
> Anything less secure concerns me.
>
>
> I used to think that Android was really restrictive, until I discovered
> "Terminal IDE" - it brings many of the things we like about Linux CLI to
> Android. No need for separate apps for ssh, rsync, bash, .... those are all part
> of it.  If your device has been rooted, "su -" gain root access.  It has 4
> terminal sessions built-in so hopping between servers is easy.  Anyway, with
> that app AND a physical keyboard, I don't mind being on Android nearly as much.
>
>
> Seems really strange to see a google employee imply that android and cloud
> providers are not being trustworthy.  Say it ain't so!
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> _______________________________________________
> Ale mailing list
> Ale at ale.org
> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>
>
> End of Ale Digest, Vol 57, Issue 71
> ***********************************


More information about the Ale mailing list