Startup is noticeably smoother, and the new login screen is slick. I was really impressed by the new default visual look. For the first time since I’ve been using Ubuntu, the only visual element I changed right away was the background (and by the way, they include a lot of really nice ones in this release). The GTK theme, while still brown, is richer, darker, and much more elegant looking. The new icon theme also really adds to the visual appeal…it’s much more sophisticated than the old icon set. I love how the default tray icons for the volume, wifi, etc, are so minimalistic. Clean lines everywhere…it’s just great.

Performance-wise, it’s pretty much the same as Jaunty…reasonably snappy on my hardware, with some improvements on login speed.

I am really digging Empathy as the new instant messaging client over Pidgin…I love how integrated with the desktop it feels, and also how lightweight it is. The new Ubuntu Software Center is cool…and no doubt a boon for new users. It’s head-and-shoulders over the old “Add/Remove Programs” in my opinion. I’ll still be using Synaptic, of course, but the n00bs will really like how easy the Software Center is to use.

As something of a wannabe minimalist, I dig how minimal Ubuntu is out of the box in terms of its look and included apps, and I especially like how easy it is to configure it to work just how I want it to. The new GNOME and related apps are great, but I may still go back to Openbox, and with Ubuntu, it’s as easy as a few clicks.

Really, there’s not much else to say about the new Ubuntu. It’s solid, slick, functional, understated, elegant, and slightly less brown than before. Everything you want in an operating system.

From the website:

Our label represents bands and solo artists alike. We also represent a family of musicians. The vision of ASR is to bring together artists and producers who can work together and promote each other’s music productions.

A great thing about Matt and his vision for ASR is his emphasis on ASR as an open organization. An obvious commitment to open file formats, DRM-free monetization strategies, and free software (stuff like Audacity, Ardour, & GIMP) are all things that make me excited to work with ASR to promote my music and the music of others that have a similar vision.

Check out my ASR profile here.

So far I have yet to convinced that it’s the best of its breed, but I have to say I’ve really enjoyed reading from it. My understanding is that the goal of the NLT was to keep things simple, clear, and very easy to read. So you won’t find lots of big words, and you’ll find it a pleasure to read aloud. Unlike “essentially literal” (word-for-word, as much as possible) translations, Paul’s letters are modified to that the sentence structure makes a bit more sense to English speakers…and it makes a world of difference. While reading my ESV and NLT together, I immediately felt like I had a better grasp on what Paul was saying from the NLT. Part of that is because the NLT adds implied words, where as the ESV, being essentially literal, doesn’t. This is especially helpful in certain sections of Romans, where Paul is talking specifically to/about certain people groups. The NLT provides helpful headings and modifies some sentences with things like, “So, for the Israelites…” or “Remember, Gentiles…” This keeps things straight in your head…with an essentially literal translation, it can be easy to get confused by Paul’s giant run-on sentences and think that he is either speaking in a global sense to or to different group of people.

That being said, there are tradeoffs. After years of study with the NASB and ESV, the Pauline epistiles–while easier to understand–don’t sound like Paul to me. Many of his strongly phrased arguments and rhetorical devices get reworded in a way that seems softened. For example, the repeated exclamation “By no means!” (ESV) throughout Romans is translated “Of course not!” in the NLT. In Romans 9:20, the ESV states,

“….who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, ‘Why have you made me like this?’ “

The NLT renders the same verse like this:

“No, don’t say that. Who are you, a mere human being, to argue with God? Should the thing that was created say to the one who created it, ‘Why have you made me like this?’ “

While the essence of this verse is certainly intact, we also lose the sense of admonishon from the ESV and  the word-picture of God as potter or “molder” of our lives. I’ve noticed this about a few passages throughout the Old and New Testaments in NLT; the essence of the meaning is there, but some of the symbolism/word meanings are lost. This robs the scripture of some of its original and intended literary richness.

See how the venerable 23rd Psalm loses a bit of its grandeur…. Here’s the NLT rendering of  Psalms 23:1-4:

The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name. Even when I walk through the darkest valleys I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.

And the ESV:

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

The more formal language of the ESV is both more familiar and more meaningful to me. Phrases like “…paths of righteousness for his name’s sake” and “the valley of shadow of death” just seem more like the way Holy Scripture should be. Naturally, I recognize that in this specific case, my thoughts are highly subjective and based mostly on a certain set of aesthetic preferences.

One thing I really appreciate about the NLT is how it makes certain culturally awkward (or even incrompehsible) verses accesible to the English speaking crowd. Take Ps. 147:10 in the ESV, for example:

“His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the legs of a man…”

Okay, that’s awkward ;). Here it is in the NLT:

“He takes no pleasure in the strength of a horse or in human might.”

That makes a little more sense, doesn’t it?

Obviously, neither the ESV as an essentially literal translation, nor the NLT as a dynamically equivalent translation are  perfect. But, from what I can gather, they are both great translations each in their own right, and accomplish each of their very different goals well. So I’m very glad I picked up my NLT…I anticipate many blessings by using it alongside my trusty ESV, and I’m now more convinced than ever that both essentially literal and dynamically equvialent translations are needed and should be studied by all Christians.

Have you read the NLT? What are your thoughts?

Further reading:

• Who Translated the New Living Translation? (And More Thoughts on Advocating English Translations)

• Words in the New Living Translation (Thoughts about dynamically equivalent translation in the NLT)

Oh wait, it’s not there. Look, I know hope Tyndale is trying to do a good thing here…but this really rubs me the wrong way. Since when is the Bible about helping ourselves? I thought it was about God bridging the gap to himself for us, since, you know, we’re finite and sinful and all that.

I’m virtually certain that the materials inside (I couldn’t check, ’cause it was shrinkwrapped in the store) probably say something amounting to “we help ourselves by depending on God for help,” but there was nothing like this on the front 0r back cover. It just seems shady to me–what do you think?

It’s Software Freedom Day 2009! Many of you know I love me some open source software…and today is great day to learn more if you’re at all interested. From the official Software Freedom Day Website:

In an increasingly digital age, more and more of our everyday experiences depend upon software. Software influences how we interact with each other, enjoy different media, vote, get paid, and even navigate our roads. Software underpins our very way of life, our basic freedoms such as freedom of association, freedom of thought, freedom of choice and much more, yet many people do not realise the importance and influence of software and other technologies on their lives.

What do we mean by Software Freedom? Software Freedom is about a technology future that we can trust, that is sustainable, and that doesn’t negatively impact on the basic human freedoms we take for granted. Untrusted electoral systems can lead to civil unrest and a lack of trust in governing bodies. Spyware that watches what we listen to, our banking details and who we email can be installed on our computers without our knowledge. Region encoding of movies introduces an artificial barrier to the international content; where is our personal choice? Proprietary data formats can mean lockout to accessing our own information! Software Freedom can be maintained by transparent systems (such as Free and Open Source Software) that are based on open, secure and sustainable standards including data formats and communication protocols.

Software Freedom Day is a yearly celebration of Software Freedom and why it is important; our purpose is public education about these important issues.

If you’d like to learn about why I like free software and the free software that I use most, check out my Choose Freedom essay, and my Top 10 Reasons I Use Linux post. Did you know companies like Google and (gasp!) Apple leverage lots of free software to make their products? Google literally couldn’t exist without its vast computer farms running Linux, and Apple depends on free software for such basic functions as printing, networking, and web-browsing.

Here are some quick links to some my favorite free software projects:

• Ubuntu – a free operating system that can replace Windows or Mac OS
• MuseScore – a music notation editor that’s helping me complete my master’s degree in music theory and composition
• OpenOffice – the free office suite that has saved me lots of time and money!
• Firefox – the best browser around
• WordPress – the blogging software that is now the industry standard
• The Sword Project – Free Bible study software and tools

All of this software is available completely free of charge, runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux computers (even Ubuntu can be tested on a Windows or Mac computer without changing a thing about your existing configuration), and is free as in speech. Why not try some of it out?

Today is great day of celebration of how far free software has come…I hope you’re able learn something about the fun, power, and importance of free software. If you have questions or thoughts, feel free to leave a comment!

Ok, you can stop laughing now…those you that know me well know that I have no problem sleeping late…in my younger years sometimes ’till 2, 3, 4, or even 5 in the afternoon! I am not a morning person. But…I’ve been doing pretty good lately…I’m usually up before 8am. Now I want to take it to the next level. My goal is to be out of bed each morning by 6am, adding an extra two hours to my day. (I thought briefly about attempting polyphasic sleeep, but I quickly dismissed the idea ;)

What am I going to do with the extra time? Get my required tasks out of the way, that’s what. I’m certainly not going to fill it up with the hobbies I just cut out. No, I’m going to focus on doing what I’m doing now,  just doing stuff better. A bit of extra time composing, taking longer to really absorb the non-fiction I’m reading, giving myself permission to linger over dinner to enjoy my wife’s company–these are just a few ways I hope to make use of the extra time in my day.

I’m actually on day two of this exercise, and it hasn’t been easy. I’m following Steve Pavlina’s method (get up at the same time each day, go to bed when tired) and it’s definitely taking discipline. I’m sure it will take at least a couple weeks for my body to adjust, but man…it’s tough rolling out of bed! That being said, I’ve already been so much more productive during my morning that I really do think it’s worth it so far. Amber has committed to do this with me, so we’re trying to keep each other accountable.

Are you an early riser? Would the productivity/stress relief benefits of getting up early even be worth it to you? Let me know what you think in the comments.

Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/victius/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

My friend and I talked about the hard truth that there are only so many hours in a day, and sometimes you’ve got to give up things that you really enjoy–in his case sportswriting, in my case Linux blogging–for things that you know add more long-term value to your life. Of course, some people would give up their music hobby for their technology career, and that’s totally fine. I’m not saying that music has more intrinsic value than technology–so if you’re a tech buff, don’t get mad :) What I’m saying that is that for me, music and ministry are the greater passions, and so I’ve chosen to focus on those things in order to really give them my all. So I quit blogging about Linux. I cleared hundreds of Linux news RSS feeds out of Google Reader, and I unsubscribed the vast majority of software development mailinglists I was on.

It’s still tough though…old habits die hard. I still spend way too much time making sure I’m totally up-to-date on the latest and greatest news from the Free and Open Source Software world, and even though my computer works perfectly fine, I end up tinkering with it quite a bit…because, for me it’s just so fun! I have no desire to purge Linux or the enjoyment I get from using it from my life…on the contrary, I plan to remain a vocal advocate for Free Software, and I’ll probably always use Linux exclusively as much as I can. But I still really need to cut back, to care a bit less. Sounds kind of silly writing it out, but I’ve really built up some habits around my hobby that are–ultimately–huge time sinks that I do need to purge. Instead of endlessly fiddling with themes, scripts, and the latest-and-greatest web browser release, I should be tinkering with melodies, memorizing Scripture, and honing my ear training skills.

I don’t want to be a workaholic, but I do want some of my “leisure” habits to feed more naturally into those things I am most passionate about.

Have you ever had to scale back on something you really loved, to focus on things you love more? Did you find balance in the midst of it all, or did you have have to draw a hard line in the sand?

Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fixe/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

The following article was originally published in the HSU Brand

College students are tired of fakeness. A sad fact about current Christian culture is that it tends to foster hypocrisy within the family of God. In the southern American context especially, it seems like the appearance of living the perfect Christian life is more important that the honest sharing of spiritual struggles. Transparency is almost non-existent in many fellowships, and largely because there’s not even the chance to really share. Our gatherings consist primarily of being spoken to as a group (how many Sunday School classes do you remember that were really interactive Bible studies, rather than a mini sermon?) with little or no encouragement to share and help with real-world problems. I don’t think college students expect perfection…just some honesty.

College students need relevance. It’s not a question of worship style…I know many students that have been to the rock-band infused services springing up everywhere, and it doesn’t matter. It’s not that the traditional speaking and singing styles make it difficult to worship, and the problem doesn’t lie in the energy of young pastors or the beat of the new songs. It’s that no one takes the time to explain why we worship together and what worship really is, and why it matters in context of our daily Christian lives. This can happen in any local body, regardless of worship style or liturgical preference. We forget how to teach about the relevance of corporate worship, and we make things worse by acting as if worship is defined by what and how we conduct our services rather than the attitude with which enter into them.

College students want community. The current church culture sees community as a twice-weekly meeting. College students want more than that. Christian fellowship has to extend beyond pot-luck dinners and once-quarterly Communion…we have to really care for each other. It’s rare to find a church where members regularly check on the ones that weren’t there that week, and even rarer to find any interaction between members outside of regularly scheduled meetings. I think that for our generation to feel drawn to the global Christian community, those of us in the traditional church structure must begin to rethink how we approach relationships with our fellow Christians. Do we really care when they’re not at our worship meeting? Are we available to help each other in practical ways? Do we encourage each other when we fail, or do we simply use other’s shortcomings as gossip fodder?

College students are tired of politics. I believe that the 18-24 age group is yearning for a global church, that’s not concerned with petty denominational differences and that gives out grace in much larger portions than it deals judgment. I honestly believe that many college students simply want a worship family that really places the gospel of Jesus Christ above the building fund or the latest drama with the Flower Committee. How can we effectively worship together, when our business meetings are full of childish arguing instead of mature discussions on how to best use our blessings to build the Kingdom?

College students are self-absorbed. We go “church-shopping” like we’re buying a new piece of furniture. We ask, “How comfortable does this worship style make me feel?” “Do they have a group that will fit my needs?” How about, “How can I use my talents and gifts to minister here?” “What can I and existing church members do together to help build the college ministry?” I think it’s easy to forget that church exists to give God the glory while building up the Body. It’s not there to provide self-help seminars or give us our weekly warm-and-fuzzy fix.

College students aren’t committed. Many of us (myself included, sometimes) just want to remove ourselves from church, because of the way it is currently done. I think that’s fine…but instead of doing something better, instead of praying for our brothers and sisters in Christ, we watch TV on Sunday morning, or sleep late. We say we don’t like how church is done, but we’re not willing to do anything about it except give up. I don’t claim to have all the answers, but we could start by gathering together with others that have similar concerns to pray and seek God’s guidance. We could find constructive ways to begin to change what we think is wrong in the existing organized church. We could be bold and vocal in our desire for a Jesus-shaped Christian community.

The danger I see in the current state of Christian culture among young people isn’t the death of the traditional American church structure—that’s bound to change no matter what—it’s the decline of all Christian community in America. If, as a global body of believers, we don’t make serious changes in both how we currently do church and how we approach our dissatisfaction with it, we risk losing the blessings of Christian fellowship, corporate worship, and unified efforts to bring the Gospel to all those that need it.

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” Hebrews 10:24-25 (ESV)

Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/au_tiger01/ / CC BY 2.0

1) Freedom. Yeah I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times…freedom rules. Since Linux and most associated software is open source and free of charge, I can do what I want with it. Modify it, give it away, start a business, sell it, whatever.

2) Community. I love being part of something bigger than myself. Being part of the Linux community is more than a club of people that use the same the product…it is a group of individuals that combine to create something themselves and each other. I may be hippie for this, but I just love the idea of everybody pitching in to create something useful for the whole.

3) Security. No viruses. Frequent security updates. Easy-to-use encryption software. Out-of-the-box encrypted home folder on new Ubuntu installs. It doesn’t get much safer or more secure than Linux, folks.

4) Quality & breadth of software. Some of the best software in the world in birthed on Linux. Pro-quality audio? Got it. World-class office productivity? It’s there. Music notation and Photoshop-class image manipulation? Not quite there yet, but well on the way (with near replacements ready now). All free of charge, and with the opportunity to have your voice heard in the development process. Love it.

5) Ease of use. Yeah, Linux used to be power-users only…and I find nothing to be ashamed of there. But these days, it’s coming pre-installed by Dell, HP, and others, and is so easy for basic tasks that pretty much any one can use it. GNOME and KDE (the two main graphical interfaces) both provide great, consistent user interfaces that are easy to learn and use.

6) Constant innovation. New and creative ideas are constantly flowing from the Linux camp, from combining sticky notes with a personal wiki, to radical changes in the way we do computing, to unique ways of installing the operating system…it never stops.

7) Customizability. Almost anything can be customized on the Linux desktop…it works the way I actually want it to, not how customer panels and research groups think I’ll want it to.

8) Frequent release cycle. Improvements are happening all the time, and many Linux distributions release every six months. How long did you have to wait for a new Windows version, again?

9) It can be as light or as heavy as you like. Run it on 5 year old computer, or the latest in quad-core technology. It doesn’t matter…Linux can make pieces of junk valuable productivity machines, and make the latest hardware look awesome.

10) It runs most of the world’s super-computers. Need I say more?

Why do you use Linux?

Looking to get started with Linux? I recommend Ubuntu.