Links 23/3/2012: Commodore Linux, Iceland Moves to Free Software
- Dr. Roy Schestowitz
- 2012-03-23 09:21:20 UTC
- Modified: 2012-03-23 09:21:20 UTC
Contents
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Commodore USA has released the new AMIGA mini and the VIC mini, two small form factor PCs with a bit of retro styling, but very new and powerful guts
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Kernel Space
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Graphics Stack
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The Gallium3D compute infrastructure, which is the underlying work for supporting OpenCL over this open-source graphics driver architecture, is on approach for landing in the very near future. This has been one damn good day for open-source Linux graphics drivers following the earlier Nouveau surprise announcements.
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Soon, the kernel will support several AMD graphics cores that are used in recent Radeon graphics cards and in various upcoming processors. In systems with Intel graphics, using hibernation can cause memory corruption. The development of Linux 3.4 has started.
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Applications
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Instructionals/Technical
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Wine
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Desktop Environments
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K Desktop Environment/KDE SC)
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Jonathan Riddell, the KDE developer, recently announced that Canonical stopping funding the Kubuntu project and reassigning him in a new role. Looking at Canonical's focus on Unity, that's not a surprising move. I don't know how Canonical works, but looking at the new challenges they set for themselves with every release, I do think they need all the hands they can get. The result of that hard work is evident - Unity is shaping up really well.
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Have an old computer lying around that you’d like to use for some light web surfing, document editing, and other tasks? I mean like a PC with a 1999-era Intel Pentium III processor? It turns out there’s an OS for that… and it’s not Windows 98.
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In my last blog about Linux Live Environments, I mentioned REMnux, an environment specifically built for malware analysis. I'd spent a little time with REMnux when it first came out, but decided to take the latest version (3.0) for a test drive.
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New Releases
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Debian Family
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Derivatives
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Canonical/Ubuntu
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Canonical’s next long-term support release of its flagship Linux distribution, Ubuntu 12.04 is in late beta. This next release, due out on April 26th, is in beta now. I’ve been using it for several weeks now and so far, so good.
Indeed, the new Ubuntu is good enough already that I’ve it on my default Ubuntu system: a 2009-era Gateway DX4710. This PC is powered by a 2.5-GHz Intel Core 2 Quad processor and has 6GBs of RAM and an Intel GMA (Graphics Media Accelerator) 3100 for graphics. No, it’s not fast, but unlike Windows 8’s beta, you don’t need a fast computer for Ubuntu.
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From a pool of thousands, 15 photographic wallpapers have been chosen for inclusion in Ubuntu 12.04.
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With Ubuntu remaining uninterested in systemd, the Upstart init system continues to be developed. Released today was Upstart 1.5 with a few new features.
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However, while that beefed up version may be available at some point, costs and demand will likely hold it off for a while, the popular mini-computer's designer said.
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Phones
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Android
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NASA has made great efforts to get the public interested in their various projects and avenues of research using tools such as social media networks and their suite of mobile applications. Unfortunately, those applications have almost exclusively been iPhone exclusive. Of the over 20 mobile applications NASA has released, only a scant have made it over to everyone’s favorite open source mobile operating system.
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Sometimes it’s easy to forget that Android is open source and built on Linux. Fortunately for Android enthusiasts and independent developers, however, Sony has made life a little easier by releasing the open source archive for the Xperia S device. Of course, there are some catches. Read on for what this announcement means for the juncture of Android and free software.
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Sub-notebooks/Tablets
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Oracle/Java/LibreOffice
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The Document Foundation (TDF), which produces the leading open source office software suite LibreOffice, is on schedule for the release of a cloud version of its software next month.
The team released the last update to its 3.4 build on Thursday and is now focused on developing version 3.5 further, but the group is now also ready to go live for cloud services in April. That said, the team reserves the right to hold off on launch until the last few software fixes come in, TDF spokesman Italo Vignoli told The Register.
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Project Releases
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Public Services/Government
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OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE is finding favour on the Icelandic government scene with the announcement that all of its public administration organisations will adopt it.
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Iceland's push to move its public sector to open-source software has made some headway, with most of the shift seeing Windows swapped for Linux.
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Security
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Some words just seem to go together: "bread" and "butter"; "trial" and "error"; "Microsoft" and "security breach." The MS12-020 Remote Desktop Protocol vulnerability revealed last week shows once again that when it comes to data security, Microsoft is its own worst enemy and any "secure" system can be compromised.
Recent Techrights' Posts
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- we welcome whistleblower to tell us more and send us documents related to that
- What is a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA)? When Law Firms Become the Litigants.
- And the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) needs to be more serious about tackling this
- Brigading Against Women - Part XX - Attempts by Lozza to Deplatform Techrights and Tux Machines Only Days After I Sued Garrett and My Wife Also Sued Garrett (Shortly Before the Serial Strangler From Microsoft Joined)
- in 2024
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- Links for the day
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- Within a few years we'll probably not see many redhat.com addresses anymore; many became ibm.* last week
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- GNU/Linux Has Risen in France Since the Order to Adopt GNU/Linux (in Public Services)
- We can expect the same in countries like Denmark, Switzerland, Germany, and The Netherlands
- On Microsoft Hiring Freeze or No Permanent Jobs at Microsoft Anymore (Amid Many Silent Layoffs)
- Microsoft has changed what it can offer workers
- EPO's Central Staff Committee Asking The Council to Get Rid of Corrupt Campinos
- We'll be covering EPO scandals around the time of that meeting
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- Links for the day
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- Links for the day
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- It's Not a Linux Back Door If It's an Unpatched Device
- "Linux Backdoor" is a glaring misfit, a possibly 'obscene' term
- "SIRIUS CORPORATION LIMITED" as Evidence of the Financial Shell Games in the UK
- Rianne and I still have some fond memories of the time the ex-wife of the CEO treated us like human beings
- Lots of Silent Layoffs at IBM Last Week, Employees Explain Patterns of Those Impacted
- It wasn't just gossip, it actually happened even if the media chose to look the other way (as usual)
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- Links for the day
- Over at Tux Machines...
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- IRC logs for Monday, October 05, 2026
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- Last month GNU/Linux was measured at about 10% in Finland
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- Microsoft's layoffs are never-ending, they just try to keep them all secret.
- NVIDIA Buys the Media With Companies It Sponsors to Pretend to be Customers (Circular Funding Scheme)
- The media crisis worsens
- Discussion About Potential Sale of EPO Buildings and Enshittification of Europe's Largest Patent Office
- It's noteworthy that only one hour (or 70 minutes) was devoted to so many topics
- Brigading Against Women - Part IXX - Overreaction From Young Female Professional After Invalid Threats Made and Sent From an Incel in Another Continent
- Cowards who send threats after committing crimes online
- Stonewalling by Bots
- We'll now turn our attention back to EPO and other matters
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- Links for the day
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- Links for the day
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- Sirius no more
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- Links for the day
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- The volunteers of libera.chat ("staff") aren't working for free, they work towards an agenda
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- Later this week the billionaires will give a fake "Nobel" (in "Economics") to someone who parrots their preferred narrative and those same billionaires will use "Nobel" to bless the promoter of their latest pyramid scheme/buzzword
- GNU/Linux Market Share in North America 13% This Past Weekend
- It is perhaps not shocking that adoption of GNU/Linux is very high there
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- How much corruption can we tolerate before the European Union becomes another Russian Federation?
- Libera Chat's "Level of Control Might Make Sense for a Corporate Platform"
- IRC is not centralised
- Brigading Against Women - Part XVIII - Turning Censorship Attempts (Articles About Matthew Garrett) Into Mild Redactions
- What Lozza did two years ago
- Greenland Needs Digital Sovereignty
- the large icy island isn't moving to GNU/Linux as quickly as the rest of Europe
- Tracker of Internet Relay Chat Networks Out of Service (But Not Down) Since Thursday
- We should note that the number of unique networks they track has grown since we last checked
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- Links for the day
- Over at Tux Machines...
- GNU/Linux news for the past day
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- IRC logs for Sunday, October 04, 2026
- Secret Microsoft Layoffs and Maybe Another "Voluntary Exit Program at Microsoft in October"
- there's a morale crisis at Microsoft
- MIT Technology Review (MTR) Reinforces MIT's Role in Promoting Slop (Pyramid Scheme) in Exchange for Money
- MIT is a poster boy (or child) of institutional corruption, perverts, and corporate takeover
- Many Topics to Cover
- Drops in a big ocean
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- People who say slop in projects is inevitable or even desirable are usually cheaters with self-guilt
- Links 04/10/2026: “AI Torture Chamber” and "Aggressive Push to Integrate Hey Hi (AI) Slop Into Schools Is Turning Into a Disaster"
- Links for the day
- How Microsoft Hides Massive Layoffs From the Media (as Explained by Microsofters)
- "rewards" are not exactly rewarding
- Brigading Against Women - Part XVII - The Appeal
- more to be known towards the end of the year
- Gemini Links 04/10/2026: Peace in Outage, Pen Pals, and deGoogling
- Links for the day
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- Links for the day
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- losing one's job
- Over at Tux Machines...
- GNU/Linux news for the past day
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- IRC logs for Saturday, October 03, 2026