Although VMware is not a supported Debian product and does not have a Debian package to install, it does have an automated installation routine. It interactively installs the application in the appropriate locations. It also determines if the soft-ware works with the kernel version on your system and then recompiles it to match the kernel. You can answer most questions using the default response.
Upon visiting the VMware Web site (www.vmware.com), you can find out how to download an evaluation version of the software. The difference between the evalua-tion version and the full version of the software is the license code file that you receive. The demos have a 30-day expiration, while the purchased versions never expire. Download the tarball and complete the registration form so that VMware can e-mail the license to your account. Extract the tarball using the following command:
tar zxvf VMware-2.x.x-xxx.tar.gz
Change into the newly created vmware-distrib directory once the file extraction is complete. Then execute the vmware-install.plPerl script to begin the installa-tion process. Answer the quesinstalla-tions concerning the installainstalla-tion locainstalla-tions by press-ing Enter. Eventually, you are asked to read and respond to the licenspress-ing terms.
Press the Spacebar as you read to reach the bottom where you must type yesto accept the licensing terms.
To complete the installation of VMware, you may need to install the kernel head-ers so portions of VMware can compile to match your kernel vhead-ersion. You can use apt-get install kernel-headers-2.2.xx to install the headers for the kernel version you run. If you are unsure of your currently running kernel version, run dmesg | more and look at the first line of resulting text for the kernel version.
After you accept the license agreement, the script tries to match VMware’s vmmon to your kernel. If the script fails to find a suitable one among the prebuilt modules, you need to compile one. In this case, you need the kernel’s source and a C com-piler installed on your system. Once the modules are compiled and installed and everything is configured, you’re ready to run.
The first time you run vmwarefrom your account, you get a notice that the license is not found. Place the license file in the .vmwaredirectory and make sure that it starts with the word license. Now, you will no longer be troubled with the mes-sage. You also are introduced to the virtual machine setup wizard that sets the parameters to the virtual machine you create.
Note
Figure 7-3: Install the entire operating system in a virtual machine.
Figure 7-3 shows Windows 98 being installed on a virtual machine. The environment looks and acts just like a machine to the operating system that is installed on it. If you click in the window, the mouse moves, clicks, and drags the components of that environment. When you press Ctrl+Alt+Esc, the mouse control returns to the Linux environment. The virtual machine has power on, cycle power, and suspend buttons to control the virtual machine. Even the network functions as if the virtual machine were a real machine networked to the real Linux machine.
Plex86
Does virtual machine software exist in the Open Source arena? The answer is an ambiguous yes and no. Yes, it exists in that a project is underway to create Open Source PC virtual machine software. This software will let the operating system and application software run natively as much as possible. What doesn’t run natively will be emulated through the virtualization monitor.
The other side of that ambiguous answer is that the software is not very far along in development. The last word on the progress was that Plex86 could run DOS 6.22 and FreeDOS. Work continues all the time on the development of this software.
The hope of the Plex86 organization is that the software will be capable of allow-ing users to migrate to a Linux platform and still hang on to their legacy Windows
applications a little longer. In some cases, a single application holds back the advancement to another operating system such as UNIX or Linux. You can keep up to date with the progress of the development at www.plex86.org.
Graphics Programs
For many years, the leaders in the graphics industry used graphical tools designed for the Macintosh platform (which are still used today). However, if your platform of choice is Linux, you can select from many excellent graphical tools. One of those tools is Gimp.
Gimp
Gimp is one of the more sophisticated graphics applications available for Linux.
Some programs only view images, while others can make simple changes to a photo, image, or graphic. Gimp enables you to make all types of changes to an exist-ing image — both simple changes and complex ones. Or if computer artistry runs through your veins, then you can compose your very own creation through the number of tools available with Gimp.
Installing and using Gimp
Gimp comes as a Debian package that you can easily install through the Debian package manager: dselect. After you install the package, the configuration takes place when you open Gimp for the first time (generating a .gimpdirectory in your home account). From there, you can completely customize Gimp to fit your needs.
Any change made to the gimprcfile takes precedence over the global file.
Figure 7-4 shows what the main Gimp control tool palette looks like. There are two menu options on the panel — File and Xtns. File gives you access to create new pic-tures, open existing ones, close the program, and more. Xtns gives you access to external programs such as Web browsers and scripts. Gimp also enables you to take snapshots of the screen in addition to creating/modifying pictures.
Figure 7-4: The core tool palette of Gimp
Table 7-2 lists all the functions of the additional button tools on the panel by row.
Each row reads left to right.