How to Install Pydev for Eclipse on Linux

Many a times you are are faced with solving a problem and you turn to Python on a Linux box.
One of the easiest solution to developing on Python on a Linux machine is using the Eclipse IDE with the Pydev plugin.
There are many links on google which give you a step by step walk through of how to install Eclipse and Pydev.
Here is a link which explains in detail: The Easy Way

There are scnearios when you chose The Hard Way or when you can't go The Easy Way, and that is where this post is useful.

1. Manually Install Eclipse with the tar.gz file
Choose the one that is applicable to your machine

Transfer the tar.gz file to your install directory.

Untar the file with: tar xvfz

Ex: /home/user/install

2. Manually Install Pydev with zip file
Preferrably Download 1.6.5 or above

Download the zip file to the same install directory where you downloaded eclipse

Ex: /home/user/install

If you do an ls inside the install folder you should be able to see the Pydev zip file along
with folders like plugins, features, eclipse binary et al.

Now unzip the Pydev zip file and this will install files in plugins and features directory of eclipse.

3. Run Eclipse and make sure you can use Pydev features

Issue the command ./eclipse -clean from /home/user/install directory to make available Pydev features.

To ensure Pydev is correctly installed. Open eclipse, Click on Window > Open Perspective > Other . You should be able to see Pydev project, this means Pydev is correctly installed

Installing paramiko for windows

How to Install paramiko for Windows?

Recently, I came across a situation where I had to do some ssh related work on Windows.
Paramiko is a great option and honestly one of the viable options, besides of course, Twisted. I still haven't waded those waters in Windows but a tutorial on that is due in some time ;)

Please keep in mind to ensure you download the relevant versions matching your python installation and Windows version (32 or 64).
This goes without saying that you will need Python to be installed. Check this link: Download Python here

1. Download paramiko for windows. You get the zip file:
Paramiko for windows

2. To build it you need the dependency package pycrypto. Again keep in mind you will need a matching version of pycrypto for your Python. This is a built version of Windows so no install is required. Check here

3. You could do an easy_install by downloading setuptools but I ran into some issues so I chose to download MinGW tool. This is again an installation and no build is required. Available here

4. Once you have pycrypto and MinGW installed on your windows machine, just browse to the folder where you extracted the paramiko module from the zip file and issue this command:
python setup.py build --compiler=mingw32 bdist_wininst
TADA! You are all set to use ssh on your windows machine with Python.

For demo scripts check out the demo folder in paramiko or for documentation here: Click here

Cloud Storage and Cold Scrimmage

So Amazon draws first blood. Jeff Bezos has gone ahead and at the risk of infuriating the Music Goliaths who will be gunning for him, crying foul over the licensing issues, has launched the Cloud Drive with the Cloud Player. This indeed is really cool with 5 GB free space for everyone with an Amazon.com account and if you buy an album even worth 69 cents you will get a free 1 year upgrade to 20 GB. That indeed is cool. Speaking of which whaterver happened to Cuil, that which was supposed to give tough competition to Google.
Ok there are no parallels drawn here between Amazon and Apple but its nice to pitch giants against each other and see how it goes like India and Pakistan go head to head in semis tomorrow. But, I digress.

So, Apple have been since a really really long time pitching for cloud solution for Mobile Me users and an online streaming solution integrated into iTunes playing subscribers content. Steve Jobs with his persuasive power can indeed get the industries to change directions, in this case too maybe he will. But, with him gone on a leave looks like Apple has already lost that small edge they would have had in this scrimmage so to speak ;)

Comparing the Free options of cloud storages that we have today:
1. Windows Skydrive: It may not be that ubiquitous or feature packed but its got 25 GB, you just can't ignore such a huge number!

2. Google: Ofcourse, with its Gmail, picasa and Google docs offerings is a sizeable amount but its not at one place so you need to move from application to application which is again not that seamless

3. Amazon.com: Cloud Drive, offers 5 GB with a 69 cent upgrade to 20 GB for a year.
Just buy this after setting up your Cloud drive on Amazon for 20 GB upgrade til 2012 :)

69 cent Album to an easy upgrade :)

4. Apple: Hopefully Apple pitches in here or probably much above with more feature set with its North Carolina data center coming into action around fall this year...ofcourse, that's what the rumor is all about.

Just yesterday I was looking at this youtube video by Newegg where they reviewed the Seagate Go Flex drives with GoFlex Home and GoFlex TV options which pretty much uses your own drive hooked upto the net to be accessed on the cloud. So you are not paying anyone for space and its your own drive that is available on the net with security enable and you can pretty much not be restricted for space anymore.



Pretty cool! Huh?

Check out your options and upload away :)