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Over at Tux Machines...

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Mar 30, 2024

Happy bees dipping into apple blossoms

Updated This Past Day

  1. Ubuntu Team-Kodi PPA Officially Retired
    The Linux world is shifting slowly to packaged deployments and containers
  2. Canonical to manually approve new Snap package names
    Part of the problem is that these apps look legitimate to casual inspection

    New

  3. Red Hat Warns Fedora Linux 40/41 and Rawhide Users About Critical Security Flaw
    A backdoor was discovered in the upstream xz/liblzma package leading to SSH server compromise and other GNU/Linux distributions are affected as well.
  4. today's leftovers
    a mix of topics, mostly GNU/Linux
  5. today's howtos
    only 3 more for now
  6. Ubuntu 24.04 Swaps Cheese for GNOME Snapshot and Ubuntu in the Wild
    Some Ubuntu news
  7. Programming Leftovers
    some develoment news, some Linux too
  8. Open Hardware: Purism, Raspberry Pi, NES
    Some hardware news
  9. Debian vs. Arch Linux: Which is Better for You?
    So, if you need a rock-solid OS with years of support down the road, Debian just might be what you’re looking for
  10. Security Leftovers
    Security related stories and updates
  11. Samba 4.20.0 Available for Download
    new release
  12. WordPress 6.5 Release Candidate 4
    Delay
  13. coreutils-9.5 released
    This is to announce coreutils-9.5, a stable releas
  14. Latest LWN Articles Outside Paywall: Kernel and Programming Focus
    4 out of 5
  15. today's howtos
    many howtos
  16. Podman 5.0 Release and Red Hat Puff Pieces (or Purchased 'Coverage' in Media)
    Red Hat leftovers
  17. A backdoor in xz
    Andres Freund has posted a detailed investigation into a backdoor that was shipped with versions 5.6.0 and 5.6.1 of the xz compression utility
  18. Openwashing and Microsoft's Awful Security
    Lots of TCO stories
  19. Android Leftovers
    5.5G networks are here, and so are the first Android phones to support it
  20. Databases: PostgreSQL, MySQL, and MariaDB
    Some FOSS DB news
  21. Tor Browser 13.5a6 is Out and Mozilla is Rogue
    privacy pretector and abuse
  22. Free, Libre, and Open Source Software Leftovers
    FOSS leftovers
  23. Programming Leftovers
    lots of R
  24. today's leftovers
    5 assorted stories
  25. Open Hardware: Arduino, Raspberry Pi, SparkFun, and More
    7 hardware stories
  26. IPFire Location: On getting more data for your byte
    IPFire Location is a classic Geolocation database
  27. Games: Scary Picks, Triple-i Initiative, and More
    half a dozen postss from gamingonlinux
  28. The Fairphone 4 Camera Refresh: Before and After
    “Fairphone is known for its sustainable and repairable phones that are built to last
  29. Orange Pi Developer Conference 2024, upcoming Orange Pi SBCs and products
    It will run Ubuntu, Debian, or Android 13 with Linux 5.15
  30. The 6 Best Alternatives to SketchUp for Ubuntu
    This article explores the top 6 SketchUp alternatives available for Ubuntu
  31. Top Free and Best Free Open Source Podcasts and Crystal Web Frameworks
    Only free and open source software is eligible for inclusion here
  32. today's howtos
    only 5 foor the time being
  33. Today in Techrights
    Some of the latest articles
  34. Fedora 41 to Adopt Next-Gen DNF5 Package Manager
    A change proposal for Fedora 41 aims to bring DNF5 package manager, replacing dnf.
  35. Samba 4.20 Released: Enhancements for Seamless Integration
    Samba 4.20 Released with Improved Active Directory Compatibility and New Utilities.
  36. Microsoft and Plagiarism (in Your Face)
    More "AI" agenda
  37. Security Leftovers
    more major incidents reported
  38. KDE Plasma 6 Experience: A Practical Review
    A detailed and user-centric review of the KDE Plasma 6 desktop in terms of basic usage, first time experience and a few deal-breakers.

    The corresponding text-only bulletin for Friday contains all the text.

    Top-read articles (excluding bot/crawler visits):

    Span from 2024-03-23 to 2024-03-29
    1273 /n/2024/03/23/Openwashing_GitLab_Censorship_Without_Challenge_Redis_and_More.shtml
    1179 /n/2024/03/23/Wine_9_5.shtml
    987 /n/2024/03/26/Canonical_Extends_LTS_Support_to_12_Years.shtml
    875 /n/2024/03/24/Linus_Torvalds_Announces_the_First_Linux_Kernel_6_9_Release_Can.shtml
    844 /n/2024/03/25/today_s_howros.shtml
    800 /n/2024/03/26/Fedora_40_Beta_will_be_Released_Soon.shtml
    746 /n/2024/03/26/Orange_Pi_Neo_Linux_handheld_gaming_PC_to_sell_for_499_and_up.shtml
    746 /n/2024/03/24/today_s_howtos.shtml
    734 /n/2024/03/21/Usage_of_Plasma_6_s_Global_Themes_May_Pose_Serious_Risks.shtml
    725 /n/2024/03/24/Security_Leftovers.shtml
    712 /n/2024/03/25/today_s_howtos.shtml
    710 /n/2024/03/26/Android_Leftovers.shtml
    705 /n/2024/03/23/today_s_howtos.shtml
    705 /n/2024/03/25/Programming_Leftovers.shtml
    704 /n/2024/03/23/Programming_Leftovers.shtml
    696 /n/2024/03/26/FIREBAT_T8_Plus_Mini_PC_Running_Linux_Introduction.shtml

Other Recent Techrights' Posts

Maintenance Reminder
We'll carry on publishing
EPO "Cocaine Communication Manager" - Part VIII - Mobbing and Silencing of Dissenting Staff
that's the very cornerstone of functional democracies with real opposition parties
Reader Shares Recent Memes on Slop and 'Coding' by LLMs
"just some funny memes I thought were relevant to current coverage."
Invitation to General Assembly After 1,200 EPO Workers Participated in the Demonstration 3 Days Ago
"the strike of 19 March was also very well followed."
SLAPP Censorship - Part 17 Out of 200: A Long Track Record of Online Abuse, Then Choosing a Low-Cost Law Firm to Muzzle People Who Have Illuminated This Abuse for Over a Decade
Censorship by targeting ISPs and webhosts isn't unprecedented
 
Never Trust People Who Write Their Own Wikipedia Pages (Vanity Pages About Themselves) or Ask Friends to Do So. Also: Jono Bacon is Married to Microsoft.
We'd hardly be the first to point out Wikipedia isn't what it seems
No Tolerance for Attacks on Family Members
Being a Free software activist ought not lead to "collateral damage" like attacks on family members, including doxing
Sirius Open Source is Just a Zombie Firm With Shell Entities
Many companies fake their health and their size
Communities Can Only Survive When Trust Prevails
PCLinuxOS is still a vibrant and authentic community
Techrights Was Always a Community Site
The harder we're attacked, the more people participate in the site
Behind the PR Smokescreen and Microsoft-Sponsored Chaff, Microsoft Layoffs in "AI" Alleged This Month
In an age when ~1,000 simultaneous layoffs aren't enough to receive any media coverage, what can we expect remaining publishers to tell us about Microsoft layoffs in 2026?
Bluewashing at Confluent: Some Workers to Leave Within 3 Months (IBM Mass Layoffs)
Is the "era of AI" an era when none of the media will mention over 800 layoffs? [...] There's a lesson here about the state of the contemporary media, not just IBM and bluewashing
Microsoft OpenAI, Drowning in Debt and Forced to Make Significant Cuts (as Reports Reveal This Month), Does Hiring Disguised as "Takeovers" to Fake Value or Alleged Potential
Remember what happened to Skype last year
Slop Does Not Replace Art, It Contaminates Everything With Reckless Nonsense
many Computer Scientists do not want programs to get contaminated by slop
Coders Don't Just Reject 'Vibe Coding' Because They're "Luddites", They Just Know the True Cost of Slop
if some programmer says slop sucks, don't rush to assume selfishness or defence of one's occupation
When Nobody Else Covers the News
There's an obvious "media blackout" regarding the mass layoffs
Links 21/03/2026: David Botstein Dies, Slop as Censorship Apparatus
Links for the day
Links 21/03/2026: Metastablecoin Fragmentation and Crescent Moon
Links for the day
Gemini Links 21/03/2026: Historic Ada Docs; The Lurking LLM on the SmolNet
Links for the day
HSBC the Latest Failed Bank Using Slop as Excuse for Its Financial Failure
"HSBC is planning on cutting as many as 20,000 jobs in the near future as the company allies with AI revolution."
A/Prof Susan G Kleinmann, Enkelena Haxhija & Debian-private risk to MIT
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, March 20, 2026
IRC logs for Friday, March 20, 2026
Plagiarism in "Linux" Clothing (LLM Slop in linuxiac.com, LinuxTeck.com, and linuxsecurity.com)
The net effect of those slopfarms is very negative
Links 20/03/2026: Facebook Weaponised Politically, Openwashing by LF and NVIDIA, Encyclopedia Britannica Sues Microsoft Proxy for Plagiarism
Links for the day
The EPO's Local Staff Committee Munich (LSCMN) Explains to the Administrative Council (AC) How Bad Things Have Become at Europe's Second-Largest Institution, Biggest Patent Office, and Corruption/Cocaine Hub (Jobs Sold to Friends)
We'll say a bit more tomorrow
IBM's Red Hat Diversity: Only 3 Women (Out of 11 Leaders)
For comparison's sake, the FSF is about 50% female
Symptom of Publishers Dying: They Move to Adopt Slop. Symptom of Software Companies Dying: They Move to Adopt Slop ('Vibe').
It'll always fail. It's hype. It's a bubble.
Under IBM, Red Hat Replaces Code With LLM Slop, Fedora is Slopware
Not even hiding it, those things are in plain sight
Gemini Links 20/03/2026: Depictions of Culture and The Social Smolnet
Links for the day
SimilarWeb Was Never a Reliable Yardstick for Traffic
5RB may need some "house-cleaning"
Strangulation, suffocation, Jonathan Carter & Debian toxic culture confirmed
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Reports or Hearsay Suggest Ogilvy Broke Up With IBM and Insiders Report Mass Layoffs in "Infrastructure" (Might Impact Red Hat Entrants)
hearsay in Social Control Media
Scheduled Server Maintenance Tomorrow Night
Starting 9PM
None of the Above (NotA) & Debian snubbing Sruthi Chandran
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 20/03/2026: Cryptography Pioneers Win Turing Award and BMG Sues Anthropic for Copyright Infringement
Links for the day
Even Uganda Understands That Journalists Never Belong in Prison
"Ugandan authorities must respect the spirit of this ruling and abandon any measures that seek to jail Ugandans for the free flow of ideas."
Inaction Helps Your Enemies
Without freedom, there's nothing else left
Windows Down From 99% to ~50% in Republic of Seychelles (République des Seychelles)
Windows fell by a lot
"systemd is essentially a corporate IBM/Redhat project and corporations of course will comply"
Microsoft and IBM care about users' freedom like Cheeto Lump cares about the US Constitution
Confluent Insiders: IBM Laid Over Over 800 at Confluent, Not Just 800
For the record, the layoffs at Confluent won't be over. After the bluewashing there will be "IBM RAs" impacting Confluent folks, aside from PIPs
The Layoffs at IBM Carry on (Shades of Enron)
Is IBM another Enron?
"IBM boss Arvind Krishna... financial package valued at $38 million in calendar 2025 - equivalent to the average collective pay of 765 Big Blue workers."
continues to ruin the company to enrich himself while pretending he has a strategy
Gemini Links 20/03/2026: Digital Identity Bifurcation and a "Return to Gemini"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, March 19, 2026
IRC logs for Thursday, March 19, 2026
SLAPP Censorship - Part 16 Out of 200: Detailing the Actors and Explaining Techrights' Own Internet Relay Chat (IRC) Network
For those who have not followed our story
Microsoft "hiding behind bigger news of war, Epstein, other companies' layoffs"
They know what's coming, they just don't know when
Joerg Jaspert (Debian Account Manager/DAM) personally approved Raphael Hertzog's wife Sophie Brun
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Letter 'A' prohibited by Code of Conduct extremism
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Spoiler: Diversity & Debian means different things to different people
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) Admits Failures and Criticism of Inaction on SLAPPs
many if not all solicitors and solicitor firms in the UK are in effect unregulated
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
Links 19/03/2026: Culling Deepfakes of Artists’ Music and "Age Verification Isn’t the Answer"
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
People Who Decided to Boycott Novell Over Its Microsoft Alliance Should Also Boycott Canonical
As an associate put it, "selling out further, due to Microsoft moles inside Canonical"
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
What People Impacted by the Bluewashing Layoffs at IBM Confluent Say (While the Media Says Nothing at All, in Effect Burying the News)
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)
In the past, such things were typically referred to as "media blackout"; now it's just "the norm".
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"
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, March 18, 2026
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