Google SketchUp 8 for Linux - get your fix here...

My nephew Mason told me he was having issues running SketchUp 8 on Linux... I replied "They support it on Linux now? Seriously?". I have to try this...

I grabbed Google SketchUp 8 from the download site, saw that it runs in wine, and proceeded to run the install. Like Mason, I got the following error:

SketchUp was unable to initialize OpenGL!
Please make sure you have installed the correct
drivers for your graphics card
Error: ChoosePixelFormat failed


I found the solution in the Ubuntu forums. SketchUp defaults to setting a HW_OK registry key to 0, but wine really cannot probe the OpenGL subsystem to query if OpenGL is installed... The solution? Set the value to a "1" and SketchUp will skip the hardware check... The file you want to modify is user.reg in your .wine subdirectory [$HOME/.wine/user.reg]

[Software\\Google\\SketchUp8\\GLConfig\\Display] 1290153021
"FIRST_TIME"=dword:00000000
"HW_OK"=dword:00000001
[change 00000000 to 00000001]

SketchUp fired up great on the next try. This is going to be soooo cool.
;-]

Official Google Blog: The goats are baaaahk!

Ok, the gang at Google are truly geeks. Who else would solve a lawn mowing problem by hiring a bunch of goats? Don't know whether to laugh, or be impressed. Methinks I do both...

Official Google Blog: The goats are baaaahk!

Official Google Docs Blog: A new Google Docs

Christmas already? Google announces lots of improvements to Google Docs, making them faster and adding in a collaborative drawing tool. How cool is that going to be? I'll try it today. Collaborative flow charts and diagrams? This could get fun.

Official Google Docs Blog: A new Google Docs

Whats New Official MySpace Profile

First they add @myspace.com email beta, and now they update a bunch of sharing options. I need to start talking to family with myspace more... I am friggin' hatin' facebook these days... fb guys, make up your minds on the privacy stuff already... sheesh! ;-]

Whats New Official MySpace Profile

KEXP 90.3 FM - where the music matters

Going on right now... "The Death and Life of American Journalism:"

http://kexp-mp3-2.cac.washington.edu:8000/listen.pls

KEXP 90.3 FM - where the music matters

Now in Production: The First Google Android Car

Now in Production: The First Google Android Car

I bet you cannot buy a car equipped with an iPhone... How cool is this? From the article:

"The 2.1 version of Google Android — the same that Google used in the Nexus One and Motorola Droid — is installed on the vehicle’s GPS computer. You can use the computer for directions and traffic reports just as you can with many other GPS devices."

[hat/tip -> Alice Grey for the link... ;-]
--egrep

Alternative Radio : Vandana Shiva : Shakti: Feminine Power for Change

Alternative Radio : Vandana Shiva : Shakti: Feminine Power for Change

kexp.org is broadcasting the March 16th Alternative Radio show. This is a continuation of the "Soil vs Oil" battle being waged around the world. She speaks of how women can get behind it.

Plug this stream url into your media player for the live broadcast of this talk.

http://kexp-mp3-2.cac.washington.edu:8000/listen.pls

--egrep