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Links 16/10/2010: GIMP 2.7 for Testing, Roktober Fundraiser at KDE





GNOME bluefish

Contents





GNU/Linux

  • Linux Applications Are Always Easier with Moxa IO Library
    Linux is an excellent operating platform in automation industry due to its open-source, reliability, stability, and security.


  • Short break and a clean slate
    The more I have played with Linux and added extra features or software, the more I think, “If I had a complete melt down, how easily could I get a new system up and running the way I like it”. Happily there are some quick answers to this from a preparation point of view. Linux Mint, which remains my system of choice to date, comes with a few handy “end of the world” features. The first of which is a general backup tool to back up the contents of your Home folder.




  • Kernel Space



    • Graphics Stack

      • QEMU 0.13 Final Is Ready With New Features
        QEMU, the processor emulator that can be used alone for running unmodified guest operating systems and can optionally take advantage of KVM (the Kernel-based Virtual Machine) for greater virtualization performance with Intel and AMD hardware, has finally reached version 0.13 after suffering from a few delays. As was reported by us back in January of this year, QEMU 0.13 would focus on bringing new features and with this release they have achieved introducing several new features.






  • Applications

    • 7 of the Best Free Linux Synthesizers
      A software synthesizer, also known as a softsynth, is computer software which creates digital audio. Computer software that generates music is not a recent arrival. However, with processors that offer multiple cores and faster clock speeds, software synthesizers can complete tasks that previously needed dedicated hardware. The advantage, of course, of software synthesizers is that they are less expensive than dedicated hardware, and simpler to integrate with other types of music software.


    • Wallpaper changer for Linux
      Wally is a Qt4 wallpaper / background changer, using multiple sources like files, folders, FTP remote folders, Flickr, Yahoo!, Panoramio, Pikeo, Ipernity, Photobucket, Buzznet, Picasa, Smugmug, Bing, Google, Vladstudio and deviantART images.


    • Gimp 2.7 released for testing and we are Impressed with the outcome!!


      The latest version of Gimp, version 2.7.1 has been released for testing purposes. Compared to its predecessors, it promises to include a host of new features that were previously unavailable. It seems that the developers of Gimp have finally started paying attention to the requests of the community about the serious need to include certain all important changes to the software, so that it can rival its nearest contender and the established benchmark in photo editing software, the almighty Photoshop from Adobe.


    • Instructionals/Technical





  • Desktop Environments



  • Distributions



  • Devices/Embedded



    • Sub-notebooks

      • Acer to Offer MS Windows and Linux on Netbooks


        Acer has confirmed it will include both Windows and Google Android operating systems on all its future dual-core netbooks. While the idea of a twin-system machine isn't new, this represents the biggest commitment yet by a manufacturer to the concept.








Free Software/Open Source



  • Databases

    • Strata Week: Army anomalies
      The US Army is vexed by the problem of troops who become disaffected and, by extension, a risk to the operations they're involved in. Through a DARPA-sponsored research project, the Army hopes to use big data analytics to identify individuals likely to pose a threat.




  • Oracle

    • Microsoft: Open Source Code is Too Expensive, Harms Students' Grades
      Microsoft attacks OpenOffice (and open-code in general) in a new testimonial-based ad

      Microsoft's has unleashed a somewhat surprising attack ad (video) against the popular OpenOffice suite, a free, open-source product from Oracle Corp-subsidiary Sun Microsystems according to a report from Information Week.

      The commercial begins with somewhat foreboding music and the text "Considering OpenOffice? Consider this..."


    • [libreoffice-marketing] US marketing list started
      I have just started the US marketing list for LibreOffice.




  • CMS



  • Education

    • Open Source Computing
      A number of interesting and accessible programming languages are essentially open source projects, in which source code for interpreters and compilers in the reference implementation is available for all under an open source licence, and where the standard build of the language includes open source libraries. The most obvious examples here are of scripting languages for web based applications such as Perl, PHP and Python, which represent a way in to software development for many who may not have studied academic computing.






  • Semi-Open Source

    • SugarCRM sees record third quarter growth
      Commercial open source specialist SugarCRM has announced that it has achieved record growth in the third quarter of 2010. Discussing the announcement, SugarCRM CEO Larry Augustin said, "The continued momentum we are seeing around the world is a testament to the fact that businesses of all types are demanding more flexible, intuitive and open solutions," adding that, "Businesses are smarter than ever, and understand the value of open solutions".




  • Project Releases

    • Cinelerra 4.2 Video Editor Released
      While OpenShot and PiTiVi are the two currently most talked about open-source non-linear video editing systems for Linux, that's not all there is out there. There's also Kdenlive, Kino, an open-source Lightworks is coming soon, and then perhaps the most advanced open-source video editor of them all: Cinelerra.




  • Openness/Sharing



    • Open Access/Content

      • Universities in an age of information abundance
        The current debate over higher education funding in the UK ignores the crucial point that information is becoming cheaper and easier to produce, challenging the monopoly of the university in public life.




    • Open Hardware

      • The FSF pushes free (as in speech) hardware
        FSF license compliance engineer Brett Smith said, “Every software component needed to produce endorsable hardware is now available. We have several GNU/Linux distributions that only include free software and are completely functional on the right hardware. We have the Linux-libre kernel that does not include non-free microcode. And we have cutting-edge mobile platforms like Android and MeeGo that are based on free software.








Leftovers

  • Eight Tech Signs the World really might be coming to an End
    2. Enlightenment E17 libraries reach beta. After ten years and several rewrites later of being defined as "alpha" software, E17 has finally reached a beta stage. It is yet to be seen if we will see a 1.0 release any time soon, but for the time being a beta release is a step in the right direction. If you would like to easily check out the E17 beta, take a peek at my Ubuntu E17 LiveDVD.


  • Why Twitter Is Massively Undervalued Compared To Facebook
    Twitter was valued at one billion dollars in its last round of financing, but we believe it may in fact be severely undervalued relative to Facebook because Twitter’s value proposition is less obvious.


  • Science

    • Science Blogs and Caveat Emptor
      If you are a science scholar, you hope that all scientific articles that you read are grounded in fact. There is a lot of background information to guide you, including statistical data on what professional journals are read widely, with papers therein that produce citations by other subsequent papers and in general, influence the direction of forthcoming new science. As scholars publishing in professional journals, we are schooled in the importance of factual reliability and impact of articles we read in science journals. In terms of impact, we know of various collective valuations of journals through metrics like the so-called “Impact Factor”. By extension, editors and reviewers reinforce the meaningfulness of Impact Factors by explicit attention to the reliability of submitted articles; if the Scientific Method has not been adequately followed, then there should be a downwardly adjusted evaluation of impact. The picture of scientifically grounded innovations feeding progress in science is well established. I firmly believe that this system has served science well and that the scientific literature has provided generally reliable information and vast benefits to society over the centuries to the present and will continue doing so into the future.




  • Security



  • Defence/Police/Aggression

    • MoD braced for painful weight-loss surgery next week
      The outlines of the situation are plain enough. Before the current economic crisis began, even before the Twin Towers fell, the MoD's plans for buying equipment had been allowed to escalate out of control. In essence, more expensive things were scheduled into the kit programme than the budget had provided for. This situation developed a full decade ago following many ruinous decisions taken in the 1980s and 90s. The current government's vehement assertions that the whole mess is Labour's fault are quite untrue - the previous generation of Tories should shoulder an equal share of the blame.




  • Environment/Energy/Wildlife

    • Unprecedented day of action to stop climate change on 10/10/10
      From beaches in South Africa where penguins were rescued, to parks in Moscow, where 3,000 kg of acorns were collected to replant trees in forests devastated by fires this summer, thousands of people got to work yesterday to stop climate change.


    • Princes responds to your letters with empty words
      As part of our campaign to save the oceans, Princes tuna, an industry leader in canned tuna products, has been receiving thousands of emails from people around the world raising questions about the sustainability of their tuna. Princes uses tuna fished with unselective methods that end up taking many sharks, turtles, skates, rays and often young tuna. So in addition to threatening endangered wildlife - Princes are also preventing the proper recovery of the fish stocks that they rely on.


    • Climate change apocalypse NOW
      The ASA ruled, in March of this year, that the ad was OK to air, dismissing claims that the ad was misleading because it presented human induced climate change as a fact, and had exaggerated the possible effects of climate change on the UK with its depiction of "strange weather and flooding".


    • U.S. Military Orders Less Dependence on Fossil Fuels






  • Finance

    • QE1 vs QE2
      Quantitative Easing, or QE, is a powerful monetary tool available to central agencies under fiat money systems. It is the art of "printing money" to buy assets. This creates asset inflation.

      The FED has done a first round of QE in march of 08, stabilizing the markets and sparking a market rally the likes of which not seen since the great depression. The FED has recently hinted it would do QE2.




  • Censorship/Privacy/Civil Rights

    • Bruce Schneier Calls Facebook Worst Privacy Offender
      A high-profile and widely respected security expert is not pleased with Facebook. Indeed, Bruce Schneier said earlier today at the RSA Security Europe Conference that he believes Facebook is the worst social network when it comes to respecting individuals' privacy.




  • Intellectual Monopolies

    • Apple Wins Trademark for 'There's an App for That'
      Heads up to anyone who wants to borrow "There's an app for that" or some variation thereon as an advertising slogan: Apple now officially owns the trademark on the phrase. Using it will cost you.


    • Copyrights

      • Pirate Bay appeal ends, verdict to follow late next month
        The Pirate Bay appeal hearing ended today, but the court’s verdict won’t be revealed until 26 November.

        Officials at the Svea Court of Appeal in Stockholm, Sweden, have confirmed that a separate hearing will take place for a defendant who has been absent during the re-trial.


      • Anonymous plants pirate flag on MPAA website
        Hacktivists used DNS cache poisoning to deface an MPAA website, according to security analysts.


      • French taxpayer to subsidise music buyers
        The European Commission has approved a French scheme to subsidise music downloads for 15-25 year olds. The taxpayer will contribute €25 per user per year to every "Carte Musique" cardholder, which entitles the user to €50 worth of downloads. The cardholder will stump up the other half of the cost of the card.


      • French to bankroll music-buying


      • Don’t Blame Piracy On Us, Say Google and Leading Russian Web Firms
        Some of the top web companies in Russia have published an open letter to the entertainment industries demanding that they stop blaming them for Internet piracy. Google, Vkontakte, Mail.ru and two leading search engines say that the responsibility for infringements lies with their users and are asking that legal action be directed at them. They are also urging lawmakers to update an outdated legal framework.


      • Ofcom UK Ready to Publish Final Illegal Broadband ISP File Sharing Code of Practice
        Communications regulator Ofcom UK has confirmed that its final Code of Practice for tackling "illegal" internet P2P (File Sharing) copyright infringement by customers of UK broadband providers, which is a requirement of the controversial Digital Economy Act 2010 (DEA), should be published sometime in "the next few weeks".










Clip of the Day



Ubuntu 10.10 Maverick Meerkat



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Credit: TinyOgg

Comments

Recent Techrights' Posts

IBM Effect at Confluent: Mass Layoffs and IBM's Business Conduct Guidelines (BCGs) Said to be Violated
For Confluent employees who survived the layoffs there will be "culture chock"
 
Archiving or Preserving Pages About IBM Layoffs
Layoffs at IBM and the media does not talk about these
ABC, the American National Broadcaster, "Now Publishes Slop"
If the "big media" absorbs slop, it'll no longer be trusted and therefore not read/watched by the public
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Links for the day
Gemini Links 19/03/2026: "Aktion GPT-4" and "Kill All Descendants"
Links for the day
"AI" 15 Times in Short 'Article' From The Register MS. And The Register MS Got Paid to Publish It.
gets paid to do this
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Links 19/03/2026: "AI Glasses" as Euphemism for Mass Surveillance and ABC (US) Has Begun Publishing Slop as 'News'
Links for the day
The European Patent Office, Europe's Second-Largest Institution, is on Strike Today
Lots more to come
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Worse yet, the mainstream media spreads lies about it right now
IBM Has Turned Red Hat and Fedora Into Slop
This is IBM policy
IBM is Being Robbed, Companies and Jobs Are Destroyed
Companies taken over by IBM will be exploited and destroyed to keep a bubble inflated for a little while longer
In Confluent Layoffs, IBM Vapourises a Quarter of Its Workforce (IBM Buys Something That It Destroys Already)
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Over at Tux Machines...
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IRC logs for Wednesday, March 18, 2026
Links 19/03/2026: LLM Fatigue (It Doesn't Work as Advertised), "Small Web Feeds"
Links for the day
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the basic facts (this has aged well, except the times/ages/numbers)
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Links for the day
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Red Hat under IBM is a total catastrophe
Arvind Says... Something Something "Hey Hi" (the State of Today's Media)
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New Post Has Just Explained How IBM Gets Robbed by the People Who Fail IBM
Their plan for IBM is a personal plan
Slop-Spewing GAFAM LLM That Knows Nothing and Understands Nothing, It's a Stochastic Parrot That Cannot Even Figure Out Tux Machines is a Community That Started in Tennessee 22 Years Ago
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coming from a generally RMS-friendly account
Gemini Links 18/03/2026: Librarians, Phone Anxiety, Growing 'Small' Net, and Slop Versus Software Engineering
Links for the day
Estimates That IBM to Lay Off Close to 10,000 Workers in 2026 (Not Counting People Pushed Out)
There's still chatter about Confluent mass layoffs
Smug Threat by Garrett to Put My Family and I in Prison Doesn't Prove We Did Anything Wrong, It Only Proves He's Truly Desperate to Stop Further Publications That Embarrass Him
his reputation is poor in the United States
systemd Increasingly Microsoft Project, Controlled by Microsoft and Slopware
Cannot allow choice
What IBM Meant to Red Hat: "Proprietary Bundling, Restricted Source Access"
Anyone or anything that joins IBM likely shortens its lifespan
IBM Thrashing Confluent Upon Arrival, Based on Rumours
We deem it a bigger issue that investigative journalism perished, not that one must rely on hearsay online or mere "rumours"
Slop Is Plagiarism, Not (Vibe) Coding, and It's Not Automated, It Doesn't Save Money
Reject misnomers, explain what's actually happening
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What is happening to Europe???
EPO Demonstration Happening Right Now, Later This Week Things Will Only Escalate Further
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Sophie Brun, Raphael Hertzog & Debian sexual conflicts of interest
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
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Links for the day
A Step Close to Shutting Down the European Patent Office (EPO)
Not going to work all month long
EPO Staff Demonstration Today
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Gemini Links 18/03/2026: Brazilian SYN Attacks and BGP
Links for the day
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It helps raise awareness of Software Freedom
Over at Tux Machines...
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IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, March 17, 2026
IRC logs for Tuesday, March 17, 2026
Microsofters' SLAPP Censorship - Part 14 Out of 200: Men Who Strangle Women (and Worse) Trying to Force Us to Write Public Apologies to These Men
For those who never before saw a SLAPP, they basically make many demands
Instant Bluewashing at Confluent: Mass Layoffs Alleged at IBM
So the main question is, did IBM just fire 800 people?
"Vibe-forking" and Why It'll Ultimately Fail (Hype on Top of Hype)
Code made with LLMs sucks; converting solid, human-tested code into slop only complicates matters and increases risk
Updates About Richard Stallman's Free Software Foundation
After all those years (a decade) and in spite of phony scandals many people out there still respect him
LLM Slop With "Linux" in the Domain Names
This is becoming a pain and a problem also in the arts and in software engineering
The EFF Has a Bug, Fixing This Bug is Likely Not Possible Anymore
"the EFF's continued existence impairs the arrival of a replacement organization, one which will actually champion digital rights."
Links 17/03/2026: Microsoft Windows Broken by Samsung, Afghanistan-Pakistan War Escalation
Links for the day
Gemini Links 17/03/2026: Newcomers and False-Positive 'Slop'
Links for the day
Héctor Orón Martínez & Debian shadow candidate pressure on Sruthi Chandran
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
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Links for the day
For Third Time in a Week The Register MS Runs Google SPAM That Paints Google as an Ally of Women (Which is False, They're Womanisers)
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British Justice Minister Sarah Sackman Blasts Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)
The "legal industry" is due for "some reckoning"
GAFAM Deprecating Old Videos ("Content") by Removing the Support for Their Format for No Good Reason
"Security" is not a valid excuse
Credit/Debit Cards Have Long Been Called Plastics, Over Time They're Becoming More Like Pure Plastics
They cost less than a dollar to manufacture
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The EPO's workforce was meant to be capable of speaking many languages and have extensive experience in the sciences
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Picking on old ladies because you don't like Free software advocates is never OK
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CentOS, unlike Fedora, was meant to be long supported and solid
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Over at Tux Machines...
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IRC logs for Monday, March 16, 2026