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Links 8/6/2014: Valve Funds Mesa Development, SQLite 3.8.5 Released





GNOME bluefish

Contents





GNU/Linux





  • Kernel Space



  • Applications



  • Desktop Environments/WMs



    • K Desktop Environment/KDE SC/Qt



      • Diving into FOSS
        Before sometime I got in touch with KDE community and was overwhelmed by it. Then I became a member of this community and started exploring about open source environment. The most fascinating thing about KDE community members is how committed they are to open source technology. Through IRC I would be able to contact with genius coders all over the globe. It’s been quite a time that I am using open source software. It is very much important to aware people about open source. We can have access to all robust and efficient soft wares for free. After being a part of KDE it interested me to use open source systems and I am really enjoying this.


      • Plasma Active on Qt5/KF5: Wallpapers and Activities Configuration


      • The future of activity switching
        The new pretty thing that is taking away my time is the activity switcher which got a rather big revamp for the next release of Plasma.


      • Plasma mediacenter 1.3 beta on Arch User Repository
        As you already know, Plasma mediacenter 1.3 beta is released on 3rd June.

        Many distros like Fedora, openSUSE, KUbuntu have already packaged this beta in their repositories

        So to make life of Archers easier, I have uploaded PKGBUILD for Plasma mediacenter 1.3 beta on AUR.


      • GSoC 2014: KDE Games
        I am Anuj Pahuja(alasin), a Computer Science undergraduate from BITS Pilani, India. It is my first GSoC and I can’t thank KDE Community enough for accepting me as a student.




    • GNOME Desktop/GTK



      • Get Your Ubuntu to Look like Mac OS X with a Simple Theme
        Most of the themes that can pull this Mac OS X transformation work on desktop environments like GNOME, MATE, Xfce, and so on, but not all of them work in Unity. The designer of this particular version made it compatible with GTK 3.10 and it works in Ubuntu as well.

        “The goal is to keep it as close as possible to ambiance on the code base with the same look as the original cupertino. If that isn’t possible for an element I will prefer the look of cupertino,” said the designer on gnome-look.org.






  • Distributions



    • New Releases



      • Release Announcement: LinuxBBQ "Cream"


      • GParted Live 0.19.0 Beta 1 Gets New Debian Base Update
        GParted Live 0.19.0 Beta 1, a small bootable GNU/Linux distribution for x86-based computers that can be used for creating, reorganizing, and deleting disk partitions with the help of tools that allow managing filesystems, has been released and is now available for download.


      • Robolinux 7.5.3 OS Wants to Keep You Safe from NSA
        Robolinux 7.5.3 is a fast and easy to use Linux distribution based on Debian, and its developer thinks that it can be the solution for people who look to protect their privacy.

        If you remember from previous releases of Robolinux, the developer of this particular distribution came up with a working idea on how to move people from the Windows platform to Linux without them having to give up their favorite applications.


      • SparkyLinux 3.4 LXDE, e17, and Razor-Qt Distros Are Based on Debian Jessie
        SparkyLinux 3.4, a lightweight, fast, and simple Linux distribution designed for both old and new computers featuring customized LXDE, e17, and Razor-Qt desktops is now available for download.

        The SparkyLinux 3.34 "Annagerman" system is built on Debian GNU/Linux "Jessie" and is not all that different from the previous versions in the series, at least not in this particular aspect.




    • Screenshots



    • PCLinuxOS/Mageia/Mandrake/Mandriva Family



      • OpenMandriva Lx 2014 review
        OpenMandriva Lx 2014 is the latest edition of OpenMandriva, a desktop Linux distribution derived from Mandriva Linux. It is one of the distributions that rose out of the ashes of Mandriva Linux; the other being Mageia, and, to some extent, ROSA Desktop.




    • Red Hat Family



      • Apple Copies Ubuntu, Pimping Scientific, and 500 Steam Games


      • The ultimate Scientific Linux pimping guide
        Several weeks back, we reviewed Scientific Linux 6.5, a rather spartan incarnation of the legendary RHEL 6, which might be considered too boring and outdated for modern home use. Well, not so. Once long ago, I showed you how to transform CentOS into a home use beast.

        Today, we will do it again, with the most comprehensive guide on Scientific Linux pimping ever made on Planet Earth. Here, you get a bit of everything, and then so. Best of all? This guide is also relevant for CentOS and even Fedora, so make sure you keep it close to your heart. Let's go.


      • Fedora



        • Public Fedora Board Meeting — Monday June 9th 2014
          Matthew Miller just announced that fortnightly public Fedora Board meetings are starting up again. The first meeting will be on Monday the 9th of June at 17:00 UTC time. (Matthew notes in the email to fedora-announce that the command date -d ’2014-06-09 17:00 UTC’ is an easy way to convert this into the timezone on your Fedora machine.)


        • More fedora.next branding ideas
          We previously posted about some of the logo design ideas that Máirín Duffy was working on for the 3 products of fedora.next (Cloud, Server, and Workstation). Since that post, Máirín has also posted a bunch of other iterations, and I also entered the fray with a few ideas of my own. Now, Máirín has done another round of design ideas. Check them out, and join the discussion over on her blog.






    • Debian Family



      • Elive 2.2.6 beta released


      • Derivatives



        • Canonical/Ubuntu



          • Apple introduces Unity Scopes-like search and no one cries foul
            This week, Apple announced the new OS X Yosemite, and Linux users across the Linux-verse stood up and proclaimed "Oooo, I'd like to lay my hands on the lily-livered swab is writ that forgery!" Why so up in arms? Because Apple has done what Apple does -- riff on features from other platforms and claim they've recreated a wheel that will make your life far easier. What did they do this time? Let's chat.

            One of the big features of OS X Yosemite is included in the Spotlight tool. For those who don't know, Spotlight is the OS X search tool that, up until Yosemite, searched the local drive. As of Yosemite, anyone who has touched the Ubuntu Unity Dash will notice something very similar to Scopes.

            [...]

            When Ubuntu released Unity Scopes, a very large and very vocal group from the Linux community cried foul, that Scopes was an invasion of privacy, was insecure, and would probably steal their identity...

            ...maybe not that last bit. But there was plenty of backlash from the community (many of whom didn't even use Ubuntu).

            How will the Apple community react when they start using the Scopes-like feature in Yosemite? They'll love it. They'll realize how convenient it is to be able to, from one location, search their local drive, Wikipedia, Amazon.com, and countless other sources.


          • Ubuntu 14.04 - There has never been a better time to switch to Linux
            You would think that writing about the latest version of Ubuntu 14.04 would be easy but it is hard to write about one of the biggest Linux distributions without repeating everyone else's sentiments or covering the same ground that was covered with Ubuntu 13.10.

            With that in mind please don't be disappointed that much of what I will be writing here has been written before.

            There is nothing revolutionary about Ubuntu 14.04, especially if you have already tried Ubuntu 13.10, Ubuntu 13.04, Ubuntu 12.10 and Ubuntu 12.04. The improvements to Ubuntu have been slow and steady.


          • Meizu Will Present A Meizu MX3 Phone Running Ubuntu Touch, At The Mobile Asia Expo 2014
            Earlier this year, at the Mobile World Congress (MWC 2014) in Barcelona, Canonical has announced the first two phone manufacturers that will create Ubuntu Touch-based smartphones: Meizu and Bq.


          • More OpenSSL Vulnerabilities Found, Ubuntu OSes Get Patched


          • Flavours and Variants



            • An Ubuntu MATE Desktop Spin Might Still Materialize
              There's been much talk in the past about creating a spin/derivative of Ubuntu Linux using the MATE Desktop Environment fork of GNOME2. While no spin materialized for Ubuntu 14.04 LTS, talk of developing a new spin is again happening.


            • Ubuntu Might Get An Official Ubuntu MATE Flavor Soon


            • Linux Mint 17 Qiana MATE : Video Review and Screenshot Tour
              Linux Mint 17 Qiana is the latest version of linux mint that based on Ubuntu 14.04 LTS, it was released and announced by Linux Mint Developer a few days ago. Linux Mint 17 is a long-term support release which will be supported until 2019. In addition, The Linux Mint developers plan to use this package base until 2016.

              Linux Mint usually comes with four desktop editions: Cinnamon Desktop Environment, MATE Desktop Environment, KDE and XFCE, although currently, only Cinnamon and MATE editions are available, XFCE and KDE edition should arrive shortly.












  • Devices/Embedded



    • Phones



      • Your Android phone, now with NSA-grade security
        NSA-grade security is now coming to an Android device near you.


      • Tizen-powered Samsung Z smartphone with open source mobile OS
        The Samsung Z looks and feels very much like Samsung's Android smartphones. There's the tiles section at the top of the home screen, with some app icons at the botton, and there's the pull-down notifications and settings tray at the very top. You also get the hardware Back and Menu buttons, in addition to the main Home button. The Settings app looks almost identical to Samsung's Android version.








Free Software/Open Source



  • Open Source Lightweight Directory Access Protocol Solutions
    LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) is an application protocol for accessing directory services. It runs on a layer above the TCP/IP stack incorporating simplified encoding methods, and offers a convenient way to connect to, search, and modify Internet directories, specifically X.500-based directory services. It is an open, vendor-neutral, industry standard application protocol. LDAP utilizes a client-server model.


  • Nine Advantages of Open Source Software
    While it initially seemed revolutionary, open source software is actually rooted in traditional IT processes. Technology, after all, has always been about collaboration and continuous improvement. (In the early days of the ARPANET, for example, researchers established a "request for comments" procedure to improve the project.) Of course, there have been trepidations raised about open source. But the always-active open source communities are more than happy to address any concerns. As a result, more than one-half of the software acquired over the next several years will be open source, according to industry research.


  • SaaS/Big Data



  • Databases



    • SQLite 3.8.5 Arrives with New Features
      SQLite 3.8.5, an in-process library that implements a self-contained, serverless, zero-configuration, transactional SQL database engine, has been released with an impressive list of changes and improvements.

      Most of the SQLite releases are maintenance ones, but from time to time the developers make some important changes. The current update features a few new options, so an update is recommended.




  • BSD



    • FreeBSD 9.3 Beta 2 Is Now Available
      One week after FreeBSD 9.3 went into beta, the second beta update is now available.

      FreeBSD 9.3 is the next major FreeBSD 9 update due out that brings down some features from FreeBSD 10.0 like the Radeon KMS/DRM driver support, Xen HVM support, Apple MacBook trackpad support, disables hardware random number generators by default, and has a ton of other changes.

      FreeBSD enthusiasts can find out more about the forthcoming 9.3 update via the tentative release notes. FreeBSD 9.3 is expected to be officially released in mid-July.




  • FSF/FSFE/GNU/SFLC



    • GNUstep's position on Swift
      I wanted to make this post to make it clear to the community regarding GNUstep's position on the new Swift language. If the language is released as open source then GNUstep will fully support it. If it is, however, not released as open source then we will either take steps to create an implementation ourselves or provide any assistance needed to a group of people other than ourselves who are willing to take that on.


    • We're glad you liked Email Self-Defense. Let's take it even farther.
      Yesterday was a big day for defending our freedom and privacy on the Internet. The FSF and its supporters joined the ranks of thousands for Reset the Net, the biggest-ever day of action against bulk surveillance.


    • Theming and Style in GNUstep
      Not only the pixmaps and colours can be changed, also the style of the interface. This include the menu style (vertical, in-window or Mac OS style), the scrollbar position (right or left), the behaviour of contextual menus, popup list and pulldown list (so these can have similar behaviour of the gtk components). The Silver theme include an style that let users run GNUstep’s apps on, for example, Gnome without problems.


    • GNU remotecontrol: Newsletter – June 2014
      GNU remotecontrol relies on OS file access restrictions, Apache authentication, MySQL authentication, and SSL encryption to secure your data. Talk to us you want to find out how you can further strengthen the security of your system, or you have suggestions for improving the security of our current system architecture.


    • GNU Nettle 3.0 Cryptographics Library Released
      The developers behind the Nettle project are out with a new major update to their dual-licensed GPLv2 and LGPLv3+ cryptographics library.






Leftovers



Recent Techrights' Posts

IBM Firings (or Silent Layoffs) After Bluewashing; "IBM’s Employment History is More Troubling Than its Patriotic Marketing Suggests"
"It has zip to do with race but everything to do with the greed of the 1% who have been doing all they can to destroy the middle class..."
“Week van de Werkstress” and Work-Related Stress at the EPO, Where Staff is Bullied Into Granting Illegal Patents for Foreign Monopolists
"poor working environments, including discrimination and inequality, excessive workloads, low job control and job insecurity pose a risk to mental health"
Czech Republic: GNU/Linux Rises Above 5% in Desktops and Laptops
A year ago it was somewhere around 4%
Intercontinental Brigading - Part XXXXII - Running One's Mouth
British Police told me "making a false complaint to police is a crime" in relation to Lozza
 
The Decade Ahead, a Decade of Suppressed Stories
Our stories aren't discouraged or considered taboo because of racism or "toxic politics" or anything like that; they just hurt powerful people and corporations
Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) Inaction and Incompetence - Part V - "Reports Closed Without the Evidence Being Examined."
Totally what the SRA did regarding Brett Wilson LLP
Gemini Links 07/11/2026: Illusion Garden and Lagrange 2
Links for the day
Complexity is the Tyrant's Friend
Slop is for feeble minds and cheaters
EPO's Local Staff Committee The Hague Says Almost or About a Third of Staff Assembled to Organise at "a Time of Continued Social Unrest"
They speak of "circa 850 staff members in attendance" (in The Netherlands there are about a couple thousand)
Suggestions That XBox Will be Offloaded by Microsoft, Rather Than Shut Down, Make the False Assumption XBox is Profitable (It's Not, It's a Liability)
Microsoft has serious financial troubles
Which "Smart" "Phone", Which "Social" "Media", and Which "Cloud" "Storage"?
Let's take back control of the language
State of the (Linux) Slop, Late 2026 Edition
Google News (Gulag Noise) is a plagiarism booster
Year 21
It's 5PM here
Links 07/11/2026: "Flock Cameras Got Eviscerated by the Midterms" and Joshua Wong Shows China is Highly Repressive and Fully Controls Hong Kong
Links for the day
At The Register MS the Net Liabilities Doubled in One Year, Tangible Assets Down About 35% in One Year
signed off in 2026
Another 20 Years of Exposing Corruption
We'll focus on carrying on what we do
EPO Budget and Finance Committee (in Very Recent Meeting) Increases Bribes to People Who Vote on Campinos Reappointment ("Cooperation Activities")
Buying 'elections' to protect the cocaine-stained regime in Europe's second-largest institution
Links 07/11/2026: London's SLAPP Industry Now Targets Kirkenes (Northern Norway) at the Behest of Corrupt Thieves in Russia and Microsoft’s 'Buyout' Offer Crashes Microsoft Systems
Links for the day
Links 07/11/2026: "The Moon is Waning Crescent", Homeworlds, and "Can't Handle The AVIF!"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, November 06, 2026
IRC logs for Friday, November 06, 2026
IBM Compels Workers - Even at Red Hat - to Become "Retired-ish"
Who needs RAs (layoffs, which have been rebranded as "buyouts" like pink slips are generous "gifts") when workers can have their butts kicked every day and WARN Act reporting thresholds are never approached?
Links 06/11/2026: "XBox Is Closer Than Ever to Being Sold Off" and "BuzzFeed Stock in Free Fall"
Links for the day
Gemini Links 06/11/2026: Dao and Dreams
Links for the day
20 Years of Techrights
Celebrating 2 decades of abuses of power being watched (and looking back at key changes)
Linux (and Linus Torvalds) Sleepwalking Into a Binance-Level Catastrophe With Slop 'Code'
Someone should ask Linus Torvalds or his boss (Linux Foundation) if they deem slop, which nobody audits, trustworthy enough to add to every computer out there running the Linux kernel
Vitaly Orlov Weaponises Deep Pockets to Leverage High Court of Justice in London for Censorship and Punishment of Critics
reproduced in full for more exposure and to make censorship harder
Intercontinental Brigading - Part XXXXI - What I Told British Police About Lozza the Same Month Garrett Was Preparing His First Nastygram From 'Hired Guns' Brett Wilson LLP
Lozza and Garrett
Outsourcing at IBM
Cheapening of the workforce is hardly a new problem
The Register MS: Turnover Fell by Over a Million Pounds (About 20%) in One Year, Administrative Expenses Rose by Almost Half a Million Pounds, The Register MS Operates at a Loss
This is not a (commercially) healthy publisher
Links 06/11/2026: Slop "Companies Race to Lock Down Oil Clients" and Salon Shuts Down
Links for the day
Our Third Decade
Our anniversary is tonight at midnight
Freedom Is Not Free of Charge, Freedom Can be Very Expensive
Being someone's "slave" is the "default" when no resistance exists
Intercontinental Brigading - Part XXXX - Swatting by Proxy
Using imbeciles who lie to cops and then dox cops (and already have arrest record and court documents wherein they admit being stoned in front of the cops)
Intel Craters at Taxpayers' Expense (Bailouts for Failing Companies Simple Don't Work)
GOP, which did this, has lost many seats
Mass Layoffs at IBM, Also Outsourcing to India
What IBM does to itself it is doing to other entities as well
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, November 05, 2026
IRC logs for Thursday, November 05, 2026
During Strikes and Industrial Actions Lots of EPO Staff Organised Yesterday and Will Do the Same Next Week
There really needs to be a genuine election, not a reappointment
Gemini Links 06/11/2026: Hadestown and "Where Has the Electronics Shop Gone?"
Links for the day
Links 05/11/2026: Rule of Law Vanishing in Turkey, Joshua Wong Still Martyred by Chinese Regime
Links for the day
Gemini Links 05/11/2026: Classical Music, Politics, and Seeed Studio
Links for the day
Like Almost Every Slopfarm, UbuntuBuzz Seems to Have Thrown in the Towel
Linuxsecurity and Linuxiac (to some extent Linuxjournal) are still going, but for how much longer?
EPO 'Midterm' Elections Should Oust the Dictator
Tentatively a failure to secure another (unprecedented) reappointment before Christmas
Secret IBM Layoffs and Increase in PIPs (Silent Layoffs)
The media is failing to do its job
Links 05/11/2026: "Voice is Underutilized" and How Data Centres Lost the Midterm Elections
Links for the day
Intercontinental Brigading - Part XXXIX - Crime Numbers Regarding GGG (Americans) and Why Those Still Matter
Time does not undo the actions
Intercontinental Brigading - Part XXXVIII - Telling the Police About the Defamatory Blog Where Posts Targeted My Wife and I (From Across the Atlantic Ocean)
Two years ago we spoke to cops a lot
The Register MS is Losing Money Again, Based on The Register MS
Selling out didn't pay off for very long
There Are No "Layoffs" Anymore, Layoffs Got Rebranded
We're entering bizarre times when layoffs are said to be "down" (according to the regime that suffered a 'bloodbath' in the election) because companies quit using the term "layoffs"
Gemini Links 05/11/2026: Rivers of London, Soul Cakes, STMicroelectronics, and Slop
Links for the day
The Register MS Has Just Published Fake Article With "AI" 84 Times in the Page Because It Was Paid to Do This!
Astounding number of mentions of "AI" (84 in total)
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, November 04, 2026
IRC logs for Wednesday, November 04, 2026