GnuCash with PostgreSQL in Linux Mint

I've just got a new laptop, and need to set it up before I move to my next life. Because I have had bad experience developing in Windows with Spring Tool Suite (an Eclipse based IDE), and my next job will still require me to use Spring Framework a lot, I need an environment to explore.

The Eclipse based IDE usually getting slowed down after a Windows hibernate session and need to be restarted to get it to the right shape. Another big problem is that every so often, I have to restore the installation from a compressed file because it just crashed and irrecoverable.
I learnt that those problem doesn't show when running the IDE from Linux. Those at office, especially our department start converting their desktop to Linux but I wasn't able to do that as I still have to deal with some presales matters and WebEx.

I have decided that Linux Mint will be the main operating system I will be working on. Linux Mint is an Ubuntu derivative OS, so although it has its own repository, it also depends heavily on Ubuntu repository.

Just like in Ubuntu, installing GnuCash is just a matter of typing this command:

$ sudo apt-get install gnucash

I had a GnuCash running well on Windows, and I would like to use that in my Linux Mint without having to switch OS. When I install GnuCash the Ubuntu way (Linux Mint is a derivative of Ubuntu Linux), I was caught by surprise that it only supports the xml and sqlite3 format!
On my Windows 7, the GnuCash of the same version supports xml, mysql, and postgres.

It made me wonder, why should a GNU application not supporting PostgreSQL database in a GNU operating system, while it offers connection to the PostgreSQL database in Windows!

After a few days, scratching my head, Googling around, I finally found out that one library in Linux was missing, which is "libdbd-pgsql".

$ sudo apt-get install libdbd-pgsql

The command would just do the trick! Nice, I can continue using my GnuCash without having to restart and switch OS!

Tech Bubble in Causal Loop Diagram

I came to believe that the 2011 year tech startup bubble has formed. I believe the history of 90s has repeated itself. Some startups which has not made money at all went public. There is nothing inside but air.
Recently while taking the Enterprise Architecture Practitioner course with NUS ISS, I learnt how to use Causal Loop diagram.
I want to try composing the diagram on various topics. For today, it's the tech startup bubble.

The next SG GTUG Meetup

I have skipped some of the Google Technology User Group meetups, as our newborn baby Jasper still needed the daddy's attendance there. I tried at best to be able to support my wife during those first few 'challenging' months.
I looked at the website and wanted to see how far I have missed those meetups. One in March about SingPath (Chris' project). But he did explained to us on last Singapore Java User Group meetup. Android Honeycomb on February. January on Game Development. So much from August 2010 to March 2011.
No meetups on April and May.
So last time was the Google DevFest on June 2010. Can't believe it was one year. So what I have missed mostly were the Android stuffs.

Next meeting will be about AppEngine, stuffs I am playing with a lot. Ikai will be the speaker.
OK. Can't wait for the next meetup. Yipee!

Google Translate (Chinese --> English) read in Chinese dialect instead of translating to English

I am a fan of Google Translate. I use the tool quite often, and it helps me well on learning foreign languages such as Chinese (weird eh, but Chinese languages are foreign languages to me) and Spanish.

I came across this:

 Er, this loosely a 'Chinese' reading of the Chinese characters, but it's in Cantonese I guess, not Mandarin.
I expected that the translation was something like "Happy Chinese New Year", or "Happy New Year", instead it shows up in one of those dialects.

Meanwhile the same thing when you put the characters in English --> Chinese translation, they will put the same characters, along with the Mandarin pronounciation below (gong1xi2 fa1cai3).

It's a weird translation, but I guess a lot of source texts are just simply takes in "Kung Hei Fat Choi" as 'unofficial' English translation? 

Merry Christmas everybody!

Hi all,

Merry Christmas 2010!
Wish you a joyous Christmas, happy holiday!

Ubuntu Maverick Meerkat 10.10 on my laptop

Today I am doing a clean install of latest Ubuntu Maverick Meerkat 10.10 (the perfect ten!). This time I'm doing it from a USB drive, on Dell Inspiron 1420 (which unfortunately has always had problem for the WiFi device driver).

This time I won't get fooled around by installing the 32-bit version. This time it has to be the 64-bit kernel!
I followed the instruction given by PendriveLinux.com.

 It's quite straightforward and easy to install.

My wishlist for my blogger site

Now that I have my blog at Blogger/Blogspot, my wish list are:

• a good syntax highlighter, at least similar to SyntaxHighlighter by Alex Gorbatchev; I know at certain time people managed to have it run on their blogger sites, but most of the links I found in Google is a very old links that seems to no longer working at all.
• customize my own blog template
• put links to my other blogs (I think this one should be very easy)