03.31.12

Contents

• GNU/Linux
  • Distributions
  • Devices/Embedded
• Free Software/Open Source

GNU/Linux

• Audiocasts/Shows

  • Podcast Season 4 Episode 5

• Kernel Space

  • Qualcomm Clarifies Killing Proprietary Drivers

    Qualcomm has clarified their views today regarding the presentation of two of their Atheros developers proposing that all proprietary drivers be killed for good across all platforms and replaced with open-source drivers.

  • Btrfs In Linux 3.4 Kernel Has Big Changes

    As the latest work queued up for merging in the Linux 3.4 kernel is the Btrfs file-system pull, which Chris Mason describes as “pretty big, picking up patches that have been under development for some time.”

  • Intel DN2800MT CedarView Atom mini-ITX board power draw testing with Linux and Windows 7

    This board is certainly capable of single digit power draw, at least with certain specific setups. With Linux, running the latest kernel (at least 3.3.0) is recommended to achieve lower power consumption. MeeGo with it’s included proprietary xorg driver for CedarView Atoms shows that Linux can achieve similarly low power draw as Windows 7 with an optimized graphics driver. What remains to be seen is if the Linux kernel developers will have access to enough information about the PowerVR SGX 545 GPU core to enable them to incorporate all power saving features of this GPU into the Linux kernel DRM driver.

• Applications

  • Trelby: A Free Screenplay Writing Software For Windows & Linux

    Want to learn the art of writing a screenplay? Check out Trelby, open source screenwriting software you can try right now if you’re a Linux or Windows user.

    Whether you’re an aspiring writer or a planning on becoming a YouTube star, knowing how to write a script is an essential skill. It’s possible, of course, to write a screenplay using Microsoft Word, but using software built for screenplays saves a lot of time. Formatting for screenplays is very specific, so why waste time imitating it? It will just frustrate you, distracting you from your writing.

  • PDF Readers for Linux – which one is the best?

  • Top 10 News Readers for Ubuntu (Overview & Screenshots)

  • Instructionals/Technical

    • Build Instant Websites with Poole

    • How To Set Up WebDAV With Lighttpd On Debian Squeeze

    • Script to list all changed files in certain peroid

  • Wine

    • Wine 1.5.1 Likes Its Built-In JavaScript

  • Games

    • A Politically Incorrect game for Linux

      Do you want to play a game with extreme violence in a background populated with characters that are American Caricatures ?
      Welcome to Postal 2.

    • Me and My Shadow + Snuggle Truck – Review

    • Portal 2 soon for Linux?

    • Valve is looking for experienced Linux developers!

• Desktop Environments

  • K Desktop Environment/KDE SC)

    • Using KDE-Telepathy

      A few months ago I took a look at KDE-Telepathy from within Fedora Rawhide. I said I would check it out after upgrading to Fedora 16 and then I got busy getting ready for the arrival of my daughter. (my first kid) So I just kept using Kopete for my multi-protocol IM needs. It’s the only way I keep up with anyone on Gchat or Facebook chat because I refuse to have to keep any specific tab open on my web browser for chatting. Also, it tends to be more annoying to chat – instead of chatting in a small window that I can put off to the corner of whatever virtual desktop or activity I’m in, I’d need my entire web browser.

      But recently I came across this blog post in planet KDE that talks about what’s coming in KDE-Telepathy 0.4. I really like logging for my chats because it can be very useful to go back and look for a reference or a URL that someone mentions. So, even though there isn’t an easy way to view the logs right now, the fact that the logs are being saved was enough to allow me to over to KDE-Telepathy. I’m also really excited for the Gchat-like interface coming in 0.4. It’s mentioned in that previous link as well as here.

  • GNOME Desktop

    • 3 minutes with GNOME 3.4 built-in desktop recorder

• Distributions

  • Linux Tycoon: Design and Manage Your Own Distribution

    There’s a new simulation game in town and this one is aimed straight for the Linux user. With Linux Tycoon, you can design, build, and manage your very own Linux distribution and compete with other distros for users. “Basically take all the fun parts of building your own Linux Distro… and take out all the work. Bam! Instant entertainment!”

  • ShilaOS Screenshots

  • Red Hat Family

    • U.S. Stocks Fall in S&P 500’s Biggest Weekly Drop in 2012

      Red Hat Inc. (RHT) jumped 15 percent after the software maker forecast earnings that beat analysts’ estimates.

    • Interpretations Vary When it Comes to Red Hat’s Billion Dollar Moment

  • Debian Family

    • The Debian Project joins the OSI

      The Debian Project is pleased to announce that it is joining the Open Source Initiative (“OSI”) as an affiliate. The OSI was founded in 1998 by Eric S. Raymond and Bruce Perens, with the aim of explaining, advocating, and protecting the term “open source”. Debian shares the OSI’s desire to encourage Free Software. Debian’s Social Contract commits it to producing a system which is 100% free.

    • Derivatives

      • Canonical/Ubuntu

        • Linux Format now available on Ubuntu’s Software Centre

          A quick update: we’ve uploaded digital versions of the latest issue and our previous issue to Ubuntu’s Software Centre, and we’ll try to do the same for future issues as well.

        • Linux Format 157 On Sale Today – Linux Wins!

        • Best & Worst Case Power Usage On Ubuntu 12.04

          Depending upon your hardware, the power consumption when running Ubuntu 12.04 LTS can either be at its best or worst. Here’s a look at the two power consumption extremes of the Precise Pangolin.

        • Unity

          I’ve been an Xfce user since 2004, this post from last year documents my UI adventures. It’s been my Desktop Environment of choice for my whole professional career as a systems administrator and I’m very set in my ways configuration-wise at work. These days I help out with the Xubuntu team on marketing, website, release notes and testing. I really love Xfce and I’ll continue to use it and contribute to Xubuntu (we had our beta2 today too, and formal release of our new branding!).

        • Full Circle #59 is here for the taking!

        • Development Update

        • Ubuntu 12.04 LTS Precise Pangolin Beta 2 Released | What’s New

          Almost there! Day by day we are getting closer to the final stable release of Ubuntu 12.04 Precise Pangolin the long term support release. Today the second beta release is available to download for the testing purposes. So, let’s check the recent changes to Ubuntu Precise Pangolin highlights.

• Devices/Embedded

  • Ninja Blocks available for pre-order, Kickstarter orders shipping now

    The Ninja Block not only runs on open software, but it itself is open hardware, with designs available under Creative Commons. It also includes a 3D printed case. Prices start at $155 AUD ($160 USD, £100 GBP) for the basic device, with external sensors costing more. You can pre-order from the Ninja Blocks website.

  • Phones

    • Android

      • Convert Your Android Camera Into Joystick

  • Sub-notebooks/Tablets

    • Report: Google May Have Ambitious Android Tablet Plans

      According to a report in The Wall Street Journal citing “people familiar with the matter,” Google intends to go head-to-head with Apple’s iPad by selling co-branded Android tablets. Google, of course, has its hands tied with regard to its lofty goals to become a big player on the hardware scene, as it waits for its $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility to be approved. Is Google biting off more than it can chew with its smartphone and tablet plans?

Free Software/Open Source

• Apache Lifts Rave Mashup Engine to Top-Level Project

  The Apache Software Foundation (ASF) announced that Apache Rave, the organization’s open-source mashup platform, has graduated from the incubator to become a top-level project.

  The Apache Software Foundation (ASF) announced that Apache Rave, the organization’s open-source mashup engine, has graduated from the Apache Incubator to become a top-level project (TLP).

• Archiving Images with an Open Source Scanning Robot

• Web Browsers

  • Mozilla

    • Firefox 11 review: Firefox has jumped the shark

      Ever wonder where the phrase “jump the shark” came from? It’s dates back to the once wildly popular TV show Happy Days. It’s widely accepted that the show lost its way, and its audience, in an episode where the lovable hero “Fonzie” jumps a shark on water skis in a pathetic attempt to keep the audience’s attention. I wonder how if Firefox jumped the shark when its parent company Mozilla decided to put Firefox on a hyper-accelerated release schedule last summer. Today, five releases later, Firefox keeps falling farther behind Google’s Chrome in popularity, it’s not very stable, and it can’t keep up with Chrome in speed.

    • Reasons Why Firefox Could Become a Top Browser Again

• Public Services/Government

  • United States and India launch open government platform on Web

    The United States and India jointly launched a new Web portal to distribute an open source software applications to help governments manage and release their data to the public, according to an announcement on March 30.

    The “Open Government Platform” website will make available code, tools and processes to government agencies and to developers, analysts, media, academia and the public to make government data more transparent and useful, officials said in the news releases.

• Openness/Sharing

  • Open source sentry gun means guaranteed paintball victory