Links: Linux News (SSHFS, Drivers), Applications, Instructionals, Unigine Game, and Distributions
- Dr. Roy Schestowitz
- 2010-07-21 16:06:25 UTC
- Modified: 2010-07-21 16:06:25 UTC
Summary: Accumulation of Linux and GNU news including a Zenwalk 6.4 review
Graphics Stack
Last month we reported on the status of kernel mode-setting with the Glint driver that's being done as a Google Summer of Code project to provide KMS support for the ancient 3Dlabs Permedia 3 and Permedia 4 graphics cards and to better document the Linux KMS/DRM driver writing process. As part of the Glint KMS discussion, it emerged that an independent developer (James Simmons) happened to hack together a 3dfx DRM driver. This was interesting as the work was never published or accepted into the mainline kernel, but today we finally are able to lay our eyes on this open-source 3dfx driver for the Banshee, Voodoo 3, and Voodoo 5 graphics cards.
Userspace file systems are one of the coolest storage options in Linux. They allow really creative file systems to be developed without having to go through the kernel gauntlet. This article presents one of them, SSHFS, that allows you to remotely mount a file system using ssh (sftp).
Applications
Most Linux users are familiar with the top command. Top shows you a list of processes on your system and provides a ton of useful information such as their CPU usage and owner. Unfortunately, this isn’t always enough data and many people don’t know where to turn next. This article covers three performance monitoring applications that show information top doesn’t tell you, and can greatly help in troubleshooting bottlenecks or just finding out more about your system. These utilities are iftop, iotop, and pv.
digiKam is undoubtedly a powerful application for processing and managing your photos, but there are situations when you need something lighter. For example, I use my netbook when I'm on the move to off load photos from my camera and quickly go through them. For this, I use Geeqie, a lightweight image viewer that offers a slew of nifty features that make it an indispensable tool in my arsenal.
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Instructionals
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Games
Earlier this month the developers behind the Unigine Engine shared their latest update on this advanced 3D engine that's fully supported under Linux. With the latest work on this game engine, there are significant performance optimizations to UnigineScript (the developers say these optimizations are "HUGE"), volumetric light shafts, optimized rendering of meshes in non-instanced mode, optimizations of the Unigine math library, and a note there is a new terrain system on the way, among other changes. Unigine Corp also dropped their first public confirmation of a new strategy game they are developing.
Desktop Environments/WMs
This time around, in our Alternative desktops series, we’re going seriously old-school Linux with Fvwm. Although using Fvwm will make you feel like you’ve gone back in time, it still has it’s place in today’s world. Where speed and simplicity are the single most important desire on a desktop, you really can’t go wrong with Fvwm. The only problem with this wonderful little desktop is getting used to the configuration.
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K Desktop Environment (KDE SC)
Most of you probably haven't heard about Clementine before. But every linux music enthusiast must be aware of Amarok 1.4, which for many like me, was the best open source music player for Linux. Even though it was KDE app, I used it as my default music player in Ubuntu Gnome. It was that good. But everything changed once KDE developers decided to rewrite Amarok.
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GNOME Desktop
I can't stand the default menu Ubuntu comes with and I only keep it because I have to know under which submenu the user can find an installed application when posting on WebUpd8. This wouldn't be needed if people used a menu with a search function but anyway. Also, since I install quite a few applications, half of it requires scrolling and makes it almost unusable.
There are gazillions of people on this planet right now. Not all of them will ever care to build their own flavor of Linux. But Linux gives you the ability to choose how YOU want things, and then share it with the world. I’ve talked before about where you can go to build your own version of Linux. It’s not as difficult as you might think it is… so what are you waiting for?
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Reviews
It’s been a long time since I last took a look at Zenwalk. I’ve always had a sweet spot for it, though I haven’t had a chance to really give it a full spin in quite some time. Although I am primarily a KDE user, there’s something about Zenwalk that always keeps my attention: It’s simple, fast, and gets the job done. Not only that, but its one of the best lightweight distros around.
Zenwalk uses XFCE as it’s desktop of choice (though other versions are available) and from the past times I’ve used it, it appears to be focused on allowing your system to run free, rather than bog it down with unnecessary eye candy and bloat. Zenwalk manages to pack a punch with a large variety of useful applications preinstalled, without slowing you down in the process.
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Red Hat Family
Red Hat Enterprise Linux now comes with built-in virtualization (KVM) but is Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization (RHEV) about to go to the virtual mat with VMware? If you look at their RHEL video, you'll come away with a resounding 'Yes' to that question.
Red Hat purchased Qumranet in 2008 to acquire their KVM-based virtualization solution and SolidICE product based on the SPICE protocol.
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Fedora
As Ian and Ryan already blogged, the Fedora Design Team is evaluating new branding fonts: Comfortaa for headings and either Cantarell or Droid Sans for body text.
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Debian Family
After ten editions in nine countries spanning four continents, and for the first time in the US, the Debian project is holding the annual Debian Developer conference, DebConf, at Columbia University in New York City on August 1.
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Canonical/Ubuntu
I believe such a philosophy, like Ubuntu’s code of conduct, is important and every project should have one.
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Flavours and Variants
Huzzah! So, the official (and huge) ISO for the second release of Netrunner is up, out and available right now! (torrent)
Here’s the distrowatch announcement.
Moving to KDE
The biggest change in this version is moving to KDE for the desktop.
Something important to understand about that: when I say “KDE for the desktop”, that doesn’t mean Netrunner is running all KDE apps. There are a lot of GNOME (and other) apps in there, because we are trying to present the best selection of applications and for some reason some people like some of the non-KDE apps better.
Recent Techrights' Posts
- [Video] Leaving Microsoft Behind for the Sake of National Security
- Threats to "National Security" aren't some users with an Android phone but Microsoft at the root of things
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- Microsoft Layoffs and Closures Now Reported in Africa
- Microsoft Uninstalls Nigeria as it closes African Development Centre (ADC) in Lagos
- Links 08/05/2024: Android Malware and "AI" Hype
- Links for the day
- [Meme] Technical Committee With People Who Are Not Technical
- the computing/computer industry being occupied by people who lack suitable background
- The Demise of Computer Science Education
- Education is essential for the future; without it, whole nations will perish
- [Video] Prisons for the Minds and for Tech Workers
- Today's video talks about what happens to workforces (across disciplines) in recent years
- [Meme] Struggling to Leave Its Nazi Past Behind
- digital arson
- Microsoft Declines to Talk About How Many People It Has Just Laid Off
- Hours ago in IGN: "Microsoft did not say how many staff will lose their jobs, but significant layoffs are inevitable. IGN has asked Bethesda for comment. Microsoft declined to expand further when contacted by IGN."
- Microsoft Windows in South America: From 99% to 87%
- the latest from statCounter
- It's Rather Obvious Why They Try to Silence Richard Stallman, Eben Moglen, and Daniel Pocock
- Some of them already sent physically menacing messages to Daniel Pocock
- IRC Network of Techrights Turns 3 (or 16 if We Count the Freenode Days)
- In a few months IRC turns 36
- Sedating Oneself (and Shareholders) With Fuzzy Buzzwords and Pointless Acquisitions
- IBM trying to buy time
- Clickfraud Spamnil Ran Out of Clickfraud Budget, Apparently
- sooner or later charlatans and frauds run out of steam
- Techrights Gets Under the Skin of Bad, Corrupt, Immoral People (That's a Good Thing)
- Journalism is the lifeblood of democracy and free societies
- Companies Do Not Shut Down Offices and Lay Off Staff en Masse (Morale and Reputation Issue) Unless They're in Deep Financial Trouble
- Microsoft has been faking its financial performance for years
- IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, May 07, 2024
- IRC logs for Tuesday, May 07, 2024
- Over at Tux Machines...
- GNU/Linux news for the past day
- GNU/Linux and ChromeOS Now at 6% in France, According to statCounter
- numbers from statCounter
- Gemini Links 07/05/2024: Music Spotlight and Network Knobs
- Links for the day
- Only Weeks After Microsoft Closed Offices and Studios It is Closing Several More (Many Layoffs, Still Deeply Debt-Saddled)
- When the sad news writes itself
- Bolivarian Republic Of Venezuela: GNU/Linux Reaches 9% (ChromeOS Included)
- Venezuela must have lost interest in some American proprietary software when users were locked out of their own data (Adobe) and the costs could no longer be justified
- [Video] Microsoft is Like Big Oil, Big Tobacco, and Other Perpetrators of Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt/Fear-mongering
- openwashing, Microsoft lobbying, and Microsoft subsidies (e.g. bailouts in the form of 'defence' contracts)
- Security & Debian: Urgent: New Feed URLs after another WIPO censorship
- Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
- World Press Freedom Day: WIPO censors Debian suicide cluster
- Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
- Gemini Links 07/05/2024: Smashing Windows (Moving to GNU/Linux) and Mastodon Time-wasting
- Links for the day
- Links 07/05/2024: Pulitzer for Supreme Court Expose, New Threats to Media Reported
- Links for the day
- Links 07/05/2024: Cheap EVs and Cloudflare Layoffs
- Links for the day
- Berlin police declined to investigate FSFE Nazi comparisons
- Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
- [Meme] Communities Governed by Parasitic Elements and Girlfriends (Who Can't Understand Those Communities)
- Karen Sandler and Molly de Blanc present at DebConf18
- [Meme] You Can't Kill an Idea (or Facts)
- Thankfully, in Western societies, there's still due process, rule of law etc. You don't just hire assassins or imprison critics
- [Meme] Software in the Public Interest (SPI), Inc, Values Articles of Daniel Pocock at ~$5,000 Each (and Fails to Hide the Facts)
- we are laughing, not grieving
- IRC Proceedings: Monday, May 06, 2024
- IRC logs for Monday, May 06, 2024
- Over at Tux Machines...
- GNU/Linux news for the past day
- [Meme] About 2,564 Internet Sites Now at Risk of Hostile Takeover by Microsoft-Sponsored Software in the Public Interest (SPI)
- WIPO censors Debian suicide cluster
- Links 07/05/2024: Burning Plastic Waste, Facebook Censoring Politicians
- Links for the day
- Gemini Links 07/05/2024: Smashing Windows (Microsoft Losing Users to GNU/Linux), Sixty Years of BASIC
- Links for the day
- Southern Asia is All Android (Majority) Now
- It's looking better (almost) every month
- Windows Already Down to 1% "Market Share" in Some Countries
- it is a dying breed
- Tesla Has Become a Ponzi Scheme or a 'Meme Stock'
- They tell us Tesla is "worth" almost twice as much as a company that sold about 30 times more cars
- For People at Red Hat "Job is at Risk"
- Red Hat is consulting some notorious firms to implement cuts
- Linux.com Became Mostly Dead, de Facto Marketing Site of "Linux" Foundation Products (Unrelated to Linux)
- what has happened to the authoritative domain Linux.com
- Microsoft GitHub: A Hair Salon Where You Get Awards for Nothing (NFT Vanity)
- People aren't defined by some private (proprietary) database and Microsoft does not universally "score" developers
- In Europe, Android is Bigger Than Windows (Android Now Measured at 45.1% Worldwide)
- Right now in statCounter...
- Links 06/05/2024: Al Jazeera Raided, Wildfire Season Coming
- Links for the day
- On Character Assassination Tactics
- The people who leverage these dirty politics typically champion projection tactics
- Links 06/05/2024: Scams and Politics
- Links for the day
- Gemini Links 06/05/2024: Reading and Computers
- Links for the day
- United States Entering the $100 Trillion Debt Trap, We Compare GAFAM Debt
- Google's debt is about 6 times less than Amazon's
- GitLab's Losses Grew From $172,311,000 to $424,174,000 Per Annum
- Letting this company have control over your (or your company's) development/code forge may cost you a lot in the future
- statCounter's Latest: Android Bouncing to New All-Time Highs, Windows Down to Unprecedented Lows
- Android rising
- Can't Bear the Thought We're Happy and Productive
- If someone is now harassing online friends, attacking the wife, attacking my family (not just attacking and defaming people I know online) there are legal ramifications
- IRC Proceedings: Sunday, May 05, 2024
- IRC logs for Sunday, May 05, 2024
- Over at Tux Machines...
- GNU/Linux news for the past day
- Erinn Clark & Debian: Justice or another Open Source vendetta?
- Reprinted with permission from disguised.work