Bonum Certa Men Certa

Links 20/07/2023: MySQL 8.1 and WordPress 6.3 Release Candidate 1



  • GNU/Linux

    • Desktop/Laptop

      • Beta NewsFramework Laptop 16 now available for pre-order with Windows 11 or Linux

        The highly-anticipated Framework Laptop 16 is now available for pre-order, bringing desktop PC-level customization to a portable device. The sleek notebook is powered by the latest AMD Ryzen CPUs and Radeon GPUs and offers a remarkable degree of upgradability and repairability.

    • Kernel Space

      • LWNThe FUSE BPF filesystem>

        The Filesystem in Userspace (FUSE) framework can be used to create a "stacked" filesystem, where the FUSE piece adds specialized functionality (e.g. reporting different file metadata) atop an underlying kernel filesystem. The performance of such filesystems leaves a lot to be desired, however, so the FUSE BPF filesystem has been proposed to try to improve the performance to be close to that of the underlying native filesystem. It came up in the context of a session on FUSE passthrough earlier in the 2023 Linux Storage, Filesystem, Memory-Management and BPF Summit, but the details of FUSE BPF were more fully described by Daniel Rosenberg in a combined filesystem and BPF session on the final day of the summit.

        Rosenberg said that he wanted to introduce the filesystem, describe its current status, and discuss some of the open questions with regard to future plans for it. The goal is for a stacked FUSE filesystem to come as close to the native filesystem's performance as the FUSE BPF developers can get. In addition, they want to keep "all of the nice ease-of-use of FUSE", with its "defined entry points"; the idea is to keep the interface "similar to what you would see from the FUSE daemon".

      • LWNLarge folios for anonymous memory

        The transition to folios has transformed the memory-management subsystem in a number of ways, but has also resulted in a lot of code churn that has not been welcomed by all developers. As this work proceeds, though, some of the benefits from it are beginning to become clear. One example may well be in the handling of anonymous memory, as can be seen in a pair of patch sets from Ryan Roberts.

        The initial Linux kernel release used 4KB pages on systems whose total memory size was measured in megabytes — and a rather small number of megabytes at that. Since then, installed-memory sizes have grown by a few orders of magnitude or so, but the 4KB page size remains mostly unchanged. So the kernel has to manage far more pages than it once did; that leads to more memory used for tracking, longer lists to scan, and more page faults to handle. In many ways, a 4KB page size is far too small for contemporary systems.

      • LWNA pair of workqueue improvements

        Over the years, the kernel has developed a number of deferred-execution mechanisms to take care of work that cannot be done immediately. For many (or most) needs, the workqueue subsystem is the tool that developers reach for first. Workqueues took their current form over a dozen years ago, but that does not mean that there are not improvements to be made. Two sets of patches from Tejun Heo show the pressures being felt by the workqueue subsystem and the solutions that are being tried — with varying degrees of success.

        In normal usage, each subsystem creates its own workqueue (with alloc_workqueue()) to hold work items. When kernel code needs to defer a task, it can fill in a work_struct structure with the address of a function to call and some data to pass to that call. That structure can be passed, along with the target workqueue, to a function like queue_work(), and the workqueue mechanism will call the function at some future time. The call is made in process context, meaning that work items can block if need be. There is, of course, a long list of variants to queue_work(), and a number of ways in which workqueues themselves can be created, but the core functionality — call a function in process at a later time — remains the same.

      • LWNThe rest of the 6.5 merge window



        Linus Torvalds released 6.5-rc1 and closed the merge window for this development cycle on July 9. By that point, 11,730 non-merge changesets had been pulled into the mainline for 6.5; over 7,700 of those were pulled after the first-half merge-window summary was written. The second half of the merge window saw a lot of code coming into the mainline and a long list of significant changes.

      • LWNBPF iterators for filesystems

        In the first of two combined BPF and filesystem sessions at the 2023 Linux Storage, Filesystem, Memory-Management and BPF Summit, Hou Tao introduced his BPF iterators for filesystem information. Iterators for BPF are a relatively recent addition to the BPF landscape; they help BPF programs step through kernel data structures in a loop-like manner, but without running afoul of the BPF verifier, which is notoriously hard to convince about loops.

        In his remote presentation, Tao began with a quick overview of BPF iterators. They allow users to write a special type of BPF program that can step through kernel data structures in ways that would normally be handled with loops; instead, the BPF program contains callbacks that are made from the kernel in response to user-space reads of pinned BPF files. The callback is made for each new kernel object encountered in the data structure; the code in the callback can then present information from the object to user space in whatever format the developer wants.

      • LWNTesting for storage and filesystems

        The kdevops kernel-testing framework has come up at several earlier summits, including in two separate sessions at last year's event. Testing kernel filesystems and the block layer, not to mention lots of other kernel subsystems, has become increasingly important over time. So it was no surprise that Luis Chamberlain led a combined storage and filesystem session at the 2023 Linux Storage, Filesystem, Memory-Management and BPF Summit to talk more about testing, the resources needed for it, and what can be done to improve it. It was the final session for this year's summit, so this article completes our coverage.

    • Applications

      • LinuxiacVirtualBox 7.0.10 Released, Оfficial Debian 12 Repository Available
        VirtualBox, the renowned virtualization software, continues to evolve, offering users unparalleled versatility and functionality in managing virtual machines.

        Oracle has recently released VirtualBox 7.0.10, a minor update to its powerful virtualization software in the 7.0 series. Packed with bug fixes, it promises to enhance the virtualization experience for users across various platforms.

        So, let’s take a closer look at what VirtualBox 7.0.10 offers and how Debian 12 users can make the most of this new release.

      • Make Use Of5 Powerful Linux Tools to Discover Subdomains as an Ethical Hacker

        When it comes to web penetration testing, an essential aspect of the reconnaissance stage is the discovery of subdomains. Before diving into the actual pentesting, it's crucial to enumerate subdomains to gain a better understanding of the project's scope.

        You never know what interesting domains you might stumble upon that could uncover significant vulnerabilities. Here we'll explore some fantastic free Linux tools that can assist you in this subdomain enumeration process. So let's dive in and discover these resources that can enhance your web security assessment capabilities.

      • Linux Links8 Excellent Free and Open Source Mind Mapping Software

        Mind mapping is a fairly free flowing concept. This means you need software that is versatile, and can adapt to your requirements. Your idea of a neat and tidy mind map might be another person’s idea of bamboozling. A map can concentrate very complex content in a small space such as a piece of paper. It helps to use both sides of your brain: the logical side and also the creative side. It’s a technique to help organize the way you think and stimulate your creativity: It can help you by developing, sorting and helping to memorize your ideas.

        Mind mapping software therefore offers an excellent way of capturing your thoughts in a structured way, brainstorming new ideas. Move away from simple lists, and use this software to link ideas in different ways. By thinking creatively, not linearly, we can seize on our big ideas.

        In more advanced forms, mind mapping software can also be used to describe complex structures and concepts so an entire team can better understand them.

        Here’s our rating for the open source software featured in this article.

    • Instructionals/Technical

      • HowTo GeekWhat Is a Flatpak in Linux, and How Do You Install One?

        Flatpaks are a distribution-agnostic way to install applications onto your Linux computer. But if your distribution already has a native way to install applications, why would you ever bother to use Flatpaks?

      • Windows CentralHow to install Microsoft Edge on Linux [Ed: Microsofters are pushing (like drug dealers) malware and passwords stealer to GNU/Linux users]
      • Make Use OfHow to Clean Up Snap Packages and Free Up Disk Space on Linux

        One of the key benefits of Linux distros is their package management systems. Package managers on Linux allow you to automate software installation and get the job done with just a few commands.

        Unlike other package managers, Snap has good dependency management attributes. But there is a caveat, Snap packages tend to be very bulky and consume a lot of disk space. Fortunately, it's easy to clean up Snap packages on Linux.

      • How to Use Linux on Chromebook [Guide]

        Chromebooks, known for their lightweight design and cloud-centric approach, have gained immense popularity due to their user-friendly interface and seamless integration with Google applications. However, some users crave more advanced software and need the ability to perform complex tasks that go beyond the confines of Chrome OS. This is where Linux comes in, opening the doors to a wide variety of software, development tools, and customization options.

      • Network WorldHow to determine your Linux system’s filesystem types

        Linux systems use a number of file system types – such as Ext, Ext2, Ext3, Ext4, JFS, XFS, ZFS, XFS, ReiserFS and btrfs. Fortunately, there are a number of commands that can look at your file systems and report on the type of each of them. This post covers seven ways to display this information.

        To begin, the file system types that are used on Linux systems are described below.

    • Games

      • Battlebit Remastered anti-cheat update won’t break Steam Deck & Linux support

        The popular FPS Battlebit Remastered is set to introduce a new anti-cheat, and the development team has finally put Linux players at ease.

        For weeks now, Battlebit Remastered has been prepping to push an update that moves the game from Easy Anti-Cheat to FACEIT, an anti-cheat software best known in Counter-Strike circles.

        The move would have ended support for the Battlebit Remastered on the Steam Deck and Linux, which irritated fans. After the announcement, there was no clear messaging from the Battlebit Remastered team, leaving Linux players in the lurch.

    • Desktop Environments/WMs

      • GNOME Desktop/GTK

        • OMG UbuntuGIMP Dev Release Completes GTK3 Port, Adds Headerbar Option

          A new development version of GIMP recently released, and it’s a fairly notably one for a couple of reasons. Though not stable (i.e. expect bugs) this release gives us our best look yet at how what the stable GIMP 3.0 release will comprise of when it’s released later this year (a release candidate of GIMP 3.0 draws close, for those interested).

        • GNOMEChristian Hergert: GListModel as a file format interface

          One of the things I’ve done this cycle leading up to GNOME 45 is some rework on how we process *.syscap files. In particular, I wanted to really push the GListModel interface in GTK 4.

          That is a tall order at first sight because Sysprof capture files easily have hundreds of thousands of data frames. To create an object for each would be an enormous amount of overhead.

          However, GListModel allows you to create objects on demand, which means you only need to create them as necessary.

  • Distributions and Operating Systems

  • Free, Libre, and Open Source Software

    • SaaS/Back End/Databases

      • PostgreSQLpgEdge announces support for multiple Postgres versions, including PostgreSQL 16 (Beta 1) - Allows for zero downtime maintenance for Postgres version upgrades

        ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 27, 2023 – pgEdge, Inc. today announced support for multiple Postgres versions in pgEdge Distributed PostgreSQL, including the recently released PostgreSQL 16 Beta 1. pgEdge Distributed PostgreSQL is a fully distributed database optimized for the network edge and is both open (with source code available) and fully based on standard PostgreSQL. By allowing read and write traffic to be managed at multiple nodes on the network, pgEdge reduces data latency, addresses data residency and provides for ultra-high availability, which now includes zero downtime maintenance.

      • Release of MySQL 8.1

        This section summarizes what has been added to, deprecated in, and removed from MySQL 8.1. A companion section lists MySQL server options and variables that have been added, deprecated, or removed in MySQL 8.1; see Section 1.4, “Server and Status Variables and Options Added, Deprecated, or Removed in MySQL 8.1”.

    • Content Management Systems (CMS)

      • WordPressWordPress 6.3 Release Candidate 1

        WordPress 6.3 RC1 is ready for download and testing. Reaching this part of the release cycle is a key milestone. While release candidates are considered ready for final release, additional testing and use by the community can only make it better.

    • FSF

    • Programming/Development

      • Python

        • TecAdminArithmetic Operators in Python

          Python is a high-level, versatile, and powerful programming language that is popular for its readability and efficient code structure. This language uses a variety of operators, such as arithmetic, assignment, comparison, logical, and bitwise, to perform common mathematical and logical operations.

        • TecAdminComparison Operators in Python

          Comparison operators in Python are used to compare two values and determine their relationship. These operators evaluate expressions and return a Boolean value (True or False) based on the comparison result.

        • TecAdminBoolean Operators in Python

          Python, like other programming languages, employs Boolean logic, which is one of the foundations of computer science. This logic allows us to make decisions based on conditions. In Python, these are made possible by Boolean operators. This article will delve deep into the world of Python’s Boolean operators.

  • Leftovers

  • Gemini* and Gopher

    • Politics and World Events

      • Crying "woke"

        I'm not going to comment on the debate; this one has been rehashed ad nauseum in every social circle that I've known.

    • Technology and Free Software

      • Is Systemd-free really for me?

        I've been running Systemd-free distros for the past few years.

        When I first got into Linux in 2016, it seemed like all the "cool" Linux people used Systemd-free distros and hated on Systemd, but now it seems like this group is not held in the same esteem as they once were. More frequently I hear people more so making fun of this mentality and seeing it as overly dogmatic. By the time I had started using Linux Systemd was already ubiquitous so I ended up learning it in the process of learning how to use Linux.

        When I first tried out Void, I remember trying to start sshd and being utterly baffled when I got the message "command not found: systemctl" since on every other distro I had used, that was the way you started things. It wasn't until then that I finally understood really what Systemd was.

        I really like Void, it's certainly a bit less polished than others like Arch, and I wish there was a more standardized package naming convention, but nevertheless I find myself switching back to it every few months whenever I leave. It uses runit, its own init system which is probably as close to bare bones as you can get. Each "service" is made up of a directory with at least a shell script to start it, with additional scripts for other functionality. To enable a "service" you sym-link it to /var/run/runit and to disable a service you delete the sym-link. If all you are doing is enabling a few daemons like ssh and tlp, this makes the process very easy.

      • A New Firefox Workflow

        It feels like the web has really changed a lot over the past decades, but innovation in web browser workflows has been stagnant by comparison. For the most part everyone is still just doing the address bar and horizontal tab list at the top of their screen, and it's only been fairly recently that some browsers like Vivaldi and even Edge have started experimenting beyond that.

        I gave Vivaldi a try yesterday and really liked it. I had it set up with a vertical tab bar on the left and a side panel with various bookmarks at the right, a setup that I think makes a lot of sense since I can sometimes end up with dozens of tabs. Hardly any websites make full use of the available screen width anyway. I almost stuck with Vivaldi, but a couple obscure bugs with keyboard shortcuts had me coming back to Firefox in the end.

      • Golf Log Commands

        A perlrun(1) optimization would be the -l switch, which removes newlines from the input, and puts them back on for the output:

        [...]

        Next, there are five forks. "sort | uniq -c | sort -n" can be replaced with tally(1), which will be a little bit faster, or 158% by one random benchmark. tally(1) got itself written because "sort | uniq -c | sort -n" came up a lot when doing log searches.

      • Maybe MacOS Isn't That Bad?

        I get the impression that whoever's designing this OS has a mild hatred for people who use multiple monitors. When full screening a window on one monitor, it completely hides the menu bar on the other for instance.


* Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It's like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter.



Recent Techrights' Posts

Don't Use the Future Tense to Discuss the Slop Bubble
Wall Street does not react to reality; it reacts to panic, which is related to expectations
The Broken Window Industry and Its Ongoing Desires to Make Technology Less Dependable
Reliable computing is becoming harder to find
New XBox CEO Typecast in Social Control Media
Microsoft apologists will fall back on (or shuffle between) the "racist" and "sexist" angle
Sites Without JavaScript Deserve Your Visits
We're not arguing that the Web should be as simple or barebones like Gemini Protocol/GemText
EPO Strikes Are Already Working
Campinos is already going "into hiding"
 
IBM Layoffs Definitely Still Happening
Contrary to what some apologists try to say
More and More Projects Quit Microsoft GitHub This Year, XBox Will See the Same
Microsoft GitHub's embrace of slop as "strategic" gives us a clue of what'll happen to XBox very soon
Google "Intelligence": Despite Slam-Dunk or "Smoking Gun" Proof, Drug Abuse in EPO Leadership is "Unverified Allegations"
Google's slop (so-called 'AI') lacks intelligence
8,000 Pages/Articles Per Year
We're eager to maintain a good production/publication pace and illuminate the sinister attempts to interfere with Freedom of the Press in the UK
Gemini Links 22/02/2026: Okonomiyaki and Midcrunch Crisis
Links for the day
Freedom Means Accepting He or She Who is Different
In the Debian community we're sadly seeing some authoritarian overreach this month
Microsoft Windows Falls to Another New All-Time Low in Guatemala, It is a Bottomless Pit
Maybe users come to realise that Windows means back doors and those doors are open to a regime that ought not be trusted
"XBox" Will Become Slop After Mass Layoffs
When all else fails, "AI it"
Links 22/02/2026: Hardware Price Hikes Across the Board, "Microsoft Issues Statement on Potential Layoffs"
Links for the day
Microsoft "Layoffs Incoming"
This transition isn't about promoting games; it's about canning the console
Links 22/02/2026: "Bloat of Modern Fitness Apps" and Wikipedia Deprecates Archive.today
Links for the day
Our IRC 5-Year Anniversary (for Self-Hosted) is Fast Approaching
A week from now it's March already
Gemini Links 22/02/2026: Dream Job Gone and Slop in Taskwarrior
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, February 21, 2026
IRC logs for Saturday, February 21, 2026
GNU/Linux Grew a Lot in Nicaragua
We've not noticed until today
Techrights Has Over 1,000 Good Articles 'in the Tank'
Drafts, notes, and lengthy documents
New Article Challenges Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) for Choosing the Wrong SLAPP Cases to Investigate
The one point we can agree on is that SRA does not know how to correctly select the worst culprits/offenders
The Brand 'Watsonx' is a Terrible Name for IBM 'Hey Hi' (Chatbots) Because Watson Agreed With Adolf Hitler
Almost a century has passed and IBM still believes that selling "intelligence", chatbots in particular, should be done under the name "Watson"
Why IBM is Still Scary and Dangerous
Keep a distance from "Big Blue" Bully
Measuring the Growth of Our Mission and Community
Something between experiment and prototype
Richard Stallman in the United States - Part III - Georgia Tech Did a Fine Job Upholding Free Speech Principles
The real problem was social control media (toxic)
Debian's Master is Deleting Criticism of SystemD and Other Things (On-Topic and Published by Debian Developers), Resorts to the Excuse Messages Are "Too Long"
Censorship serves nobody except the masters that control this censorship
Digg's Latest Incarnation Already Failed, It's Infested With LLM Slop
Many submissions go to slopfarms and some get summarised by slop
Gemini Links 21/02/2026: Veganism and DeskPi RackMate T0
Links for the day
On The Web, XBox Already a Dying Breed
Down to about 0.05% on large machines, based on statCounter [...] Microsoft will never publicly admit or say how many billions it lost on the XBox
2026 a Year of 'Top-Down' Microsoft Layoffs (Management First)
Stay tuned for what comes next
Your "Likes" Aren't Yours and They're Mostly "Worthless Clicks"
Social hermits are not popular, irrespective of how many "Facebook friends" or "likes" they get
Waggener Edstrom/Frank Shaw Lied, There Are Definitely Microsoft Layoffs
Microsoft never issued a formal statement, it made allusions by proxy
Microsoft-Controlled Media With Embargo and Press Operatives
This won't be the last example of media manipulation for narrative control or face-saving "damage control"
Slop Hype Makes Our Core Technology Less Reliable and Far Less Resilient (We Pay for the Catastrophe That Follows)
Only slop-free projects can be trusted
Going for 1,000 (Days of Uptime)
universal records are vastly better
Firefox is No-Go in China, Not Even 1% "Market Share" Anymore
Given Mozilla's utterly rubbish marketing these days (politics over technical aspects), set aside the cheerleading for slop, there's hardly a chance of Mozilla Firefox reaching or exceeding 10% again
EPO "Cocaine Communication Manager" - Part III - It's in His Eyes
Workers are free to draw their own conclusions
Links 21/02/2026: Tensions Over Iran and Illegal Cheeto Tariffs, Presidential Approval Sags
Links for the day
Links 21/02/2026: "Moving Away From Cloudflare", Many Layoffs or Shutdowns in Games (Including XBox/Microsoft)
Links for the day
GNU Linux-libre is a Grown-Up Today
"before that, every distro that wanted to respect its users' freedom had to remove itself all of the binary blobs that were distributed as part of the kernel Linux's so-called sources"
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, February 20, 2026
IRC logs for Friday, February 20, 2026
Gemini Links 21/02/2026: "The Evil of Action" and Slop Bots Causing Great Harm Online (Not Just the Web)
Links for the day
Like a Shell
Overreactions can backfire
Not Only Leaders of XBox Got Sacked (Layoffs)
Phil Spencer and Sarah Bond got laid off
9PM on a Friday Night: Microsoft Says the Layoffs Are Not Layoffs
We've said for a long time that XBox is doomed this year
Gemini Links 20/02/2026: Misfin Server and Magic in Programming
Links for the day
Former Debian Project Leader Branden Robinson Cautions Against Cover-up and Censorship in Debian
Debian drama. Again.
analytics.usa.gov Reckons Windows "Market Share" Fell to Just 38%, Vista 11 Not Even a Third of Windows Users
This coming summer Vista 11 turns 5
The New Digg.com is Slop
Slop "summaries" and Serial Sloppers are drowning out the site with fake 'articles' (plagiarism)
Linus Torvalds: Bill Epsteingate Good Enough for Me to Wine and Dine With
Torvalds is more connected to Jeffrey Epstein than Richard Stallman ever was
Our Uptimes Are Always Better Than Any Site That Uses Clownflare
Clownflare as a company operates like a cult
GNU/Linux Apparently Rose to 6% in Uzbekistan
If accurate, this represents a new problem for Microsoft and a big win for Software Freedom
Sponsored Videos and 'Articles' in The Register MS, Stenography as a Service/Product
They should more accurately label these actors
It's Friday Again and Many People Leave IBM for Good (IBM Should be Reported for Illegal NDAs That Hide Layoffs)
we very seldom see anyone deviating a lot from the "template-like" narrative, let alone mentioning "layoffs" or "RA" or some other term that implies non-consensual departure
The Little Clique of Sloppers/Spammers About "Linux" Got Even Smaller
Thankfully there are still genuine and legit GNU/Linux sites out there
Links 20/02/2026: Microsoft Intentionally Kills Older Hardware, "The Story of XBox" Shows How Defective Microsoft Hardware Really Was
Links for the day
Turkmenistan One of Many Countries Where Microsoft Fell to Distant Third in Search
We expect many layoffs in Bing some time soon
Don't Wait for "Red Hat Layoffs" Because After Bluewashing They're IBM RAs and Don't Wait for "IBM Layoffs" Because They're Perpetual
IBM layoffs are silent and "forever" (small trickle that never ends and is widespread - after all IBM is a very global and ubiquitous firm)
Links 20/02/2026: Standards, Science, and Politics
Links for the day
What Do People Ever Buy From Microsoft Anyway (Not PCs)?
Microsoft sells two things these days: 1) vapourware/promises. 2) its stock.
Gemini Links 20/02/2026: "Mainstream Unix, Underground Unix", Slop Staging DDoS Attacks Against Small Sites
Links for the day
IBM Inclusivity: Red Hat Summit is for Rich Sponsors Like Microsoft and Rich Guests Who Pay $500 a Day
Nothing signals societal tolerance more than paying a large military contractor
GNU/Linux Adoption is Higher in Richer Countries
Is it because freedom is actually expensive - something that only privileged people can pursue?
Links 20/02/2026: Windows TCO Versus Deutsche Bahn, Europe Seeks More Independent Digital Future
Links for the day
IBM, Red Hat and Fedora: Don't Say "Master", It Offends People. Also IBM, Red Hat and Fedora: "Master Podman".
The hypocrisy at Red Hat and Fedora shows no boundaries
IBM Layoffs Aren't Just in IBM 'Proper'
Who is still using Lotus after the HCL move?
The Register MS Gets Paid by Gartner to Promote a Ponzi Scheme for Gartner, Microsoft, and Others
The credibility of that site will suffer because it tries to sell a major scam to its audience
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, February 19, 2026
IRC logs for Thursday, February 19, 2026