Bonum Certa Men Certa

Links 17/04/2009: A Lot More Support for Mobile Linux, New NetworkManager



GNOME bluefish

Contents





GNU/Linux

  • Open-source server distro builds on Ubuntu
    Zaragoza, Spain-based eBox Technologies announced the availability of version 1.0 of its Ubuntu Linux-based eBox server distribution.The open source eBox 1.0 features LDAP, DHCP, NTP, DNS, and email servers, among other features, and provides a new development framework for building add-on modules, says the company.


  • Linux Delivered Your Way
    No more troubleshooting a demo version of your software-no more endless hours of support calls only to find out that your customer is missing a critical dependency — and no more "your mileage may vary" disclaimers because you've removed all the variables. It's your application in an environment that you've created. You know it works. All the customer has to do is power it on.


  • Desktop-Linux Can Shape Enterprise Cost
    As enterprises are actively moving their business into remote cloud model, only standard interfaces are required on the desktop to access the data in the cloud. This can potentially open a window (pun not intended) for the IT department to train its employees in free software such as Linux, with the double benefit of adding expertise to its employees and slaying unnecessary IT investments.


  • Linux in Trying Times: Growth Predictions Start to Materialize
    Depending on extraneous factors, one or two hundred dollars might not be a substantial enough difference to opt for a Linux machine, especially if you've never used Linux before. Even if half of those sales that make up the 61% revenue increase are attributable solely to a lower price point, it means the other half were spurred by something else.

    Personally, I paid for the convenience and powerful hardware. The fact that the software platform onboard was free and could do everything I needed reliably and quickly? That's not without value. This is where "cost-effective" steals the limelight from merely "inexpensive," and where open source has the real edge.




  • Internet

    • You will upgrade to NetworkManager 0.7.1
      This release fixes more than 50 bugs, including 17 from Fedora, 22 from GNOME, 6 from Ubuntu, and 3 from Debian. Packages are already in updates-testing for Fedora. If you don’t use Fedora, and your distro doesn’t have 0.7.1 soon, then you need to harrass them until they get it :)


    • Groupware and bulletin board for Linux
      Version 7.50 of the Citadel open source groupware for Linux has been released.








  • Multimedia

    • Can Open Source Songbird Compete with iTunes?
      The developers promise further tools in the near future. They say they'd like to expand device support, which right now does not include Apple iPhones, iPod Touch, and Microsoft Zune devices.


    • The List: The Top 5 Media Center Programs for Linux
      I though I would share my thoughts on my exploits with the popular Media Center Solutions for Linux. While none of them are perfect some come very close. Please keep in mind these are my opinions and you do not have to agree with me, but I feel my points are pretty spot on as of 4/09 , the current month and year. Some of the points made are with my personal experience with the program while one is based off a review, as I had trouble installing it. Please feel free to comment or use the “Contact Us” page at the top of the site.








  • KDE

    • Kontact: To-do (KOrganizer)
      Welcome again. This is going to be a small overview, since the "To-Do" is in fact part of KOrganizer, which was mostly seen on the last article. It's just going be fast view at the main interface, the changes to the interface remain the same as on Calendar.


    • fewer magical appearances
      It doesn't work with QWidget based popups yet, though there's no reason it couldn't; Plasma::Dialog just doesn't have the logic for it yet. That means that things like kickoff or the device notifier still behave a bit magically.








  • Distributions

    • BSD

      • PC-BSD 7.1 Galileo Edition Review
        I love FreeBSD and I tried really hard to like PC-BSD but I'm sorry to say that I don't. I like the concept of the BSD desktop but I feel its still a few years behind the Linux desktop in hardware support and you're likely going to have more luck there.






    • Red Hat

      • Fedora 11 Leonidas - King of Spartans
        You may be wondering why I chose the particular title for this article. Well, you will learn soon. Today, we are going to test the latest (beta) release of the RedHat-based Fedora, version 11 named Leonidas, slated for release in mid-May.






    • Ubuntu

      • Jaunty Jackalope release candidate unleashed
        Jaunty Jackalope has sprung a step closer, with the release of final pre-production code for Ubuntu 9.04 Desktop and Server, and Ubuntu Netbook Remix edition.

        The Ubuntu 9.04 release candidate was kicked out Thursday afternoon. The Ubuntu team behind it has reported that the release candidate is "complete, stable, and suitable for testing by any user", but that it does provide the caveat that there are still a few known bugs.


      • Ubuntu 9.04 Release Candidate Is Here
        The Release Candidate version of the upcoming Ubuntu 9.04 (codename Jaunty Jackalope) was uploaded a few minutes ago on the official mirrors. As usual, we've downloaded a copy of it in order to keep you up to date with the latest changes in the Ubuntu 9.04 development.


      • The five best, new things in Ubuntu Linux 9.04
        Overall, I'm sold on this new Ubuntu. Good solid features and better performance makes for a winning package. Try it yourself. I think you'll agree.


      • PC, Server Makers Prepare for Canonical’s Ubuntu 9.04 Launch
        First, the pure facts: Small Ubuntu proponents — such as PC maker System76 — plan to begin offering Ubuntu 9.04 on systems starting April 23, with shipments beginning the following week. But this is more than a PC push. System76 will preload the new Ubuntu on servers, desktops, notebooks and event a forthcoming netbook, according to System 76 President Carl Richell. Oh, and by the way: System76’s revenues are growing fast thanks to its focus on Ubuntu.

        Meanwhile, Dell continues to test Ubuntu 9.04 on selected desktops, notebooks and netbooks — though it will be a few months before Dell moves its Ubuntu product lineup to the latest operating system release. In the meantime, roughly 30 percent of the company’s netbooks are sold with Ubuntu 8.04 pre-installed, according to one Dell insider.


      • Shuttleworth: Oracle a Litmus test for Linux, Ubuntu
        Shuttleworth added that he expect that Oracle will eventually certify on Oracle, in his view it's just a matter of time as Ubuntu gains momentum. In my opinion, while certainly Oracle has its own Linux now, they are also a very customer focused organization.

        So simply put, if enterprises want Oracle certified to run on Ubuntu, they should start asking for it.












Devices/Embedded

  • Networking giant switching switches to Linux?
    The switch from Wind River's VxWorks to an unnamed Linux distribution should come by early next year, says an InternetNews.com story, attributing the comments to Minka Nikolova, senior product manager at Alcatel-Lucent.


  • RP retailer goes for Linux-based system
    Local retailer Puregold is deploying a Linux-based point-of-sale or POS system, as it looks to cutting down costs on security while expanding its network of stores.

    Puregold has ordered more than 2,000 licenses of TPLinux software, according to Paderborn, Germany-based Wincor Nixdorf, which sells niche solutions for banks and retail firms.


  • One of the Philippines Leading Retailers to Use Linux-based System




  • Phones/Portables

    • Panasonic, NEC unveil Linux phones
      NEC and Panasonic will unveil nine new cellphone models running the open source LiMo operating system, wireless Linux foundation LiMo said at the Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona.

      The focus of the cellphone market has been shifting to software development since Google and Apple entered the mobile market in the past two years, with phone vendors and operators increasingly looking for open source alternatives like LiMo to cut costs.


    • Japan takes Android beyond phones; Nokia may respond with Maemo
      Android may only be available in one handset, but it could soon appear in a wide range of devices from set-top boxes to netbooks, as the Japanese consumer electronics sector shows rising interest in Google's Linux-based system. However, it will not have the show to itself - not only is the LiMO Foundation holding on in the mobile space, but Intel is opening up its Moblin Linux platform and Nokia looks increasingly likely to put Linux further towards the center of its strategy, building on its Maemo-based offering.


    • Taiwan's Asustek to use Linux in new smartphone
      Netbook PC pioneer Asustek (2357.TW) will use a Linux-based operating system in one of its first two smartphones, a senior company official said on Friday, in a boost for the system's developer.




    • Sub-notebooks

      • Death of Linux on netbooks greatly exaggerated
        Initiatives like the Moblin project, which will make it easier for hardware vendors to deploy Linux on netbook devices, can help ensure that the open source operating system remains competitive in the netbook market.












Free Software/Open Source

  • First beta of PostgreSQL 8.4 released for testing
    The first beta of version 8.4 of PostgreSQL, the free object-relational database system, developed under the umbrella of the PostgreSQL Global Development Group, has been released. After fourteen months in development, the new release contains hundreds of patches and dozens of new features.


  • Why should schools use open source software?
    Awareness of open source software amongst teachers, technical staff and students is certainly far greater now than even a few years ago, thanks to projects like Moodle, Firefox and Audacity leading their respective fields. For schools, the appeal of open source is that it's free. But 'free' is about freedom at least as much as it's about price: Liberté rather than gratuite as the French would have it. The free software movement have identified the four freedoms underpinning open source software, and these offer compelling reasons for educators to look seriously at this software.


  • 6 Must-Have Firefox Extensions for Enhancing the Apps You Use Most
    There has been a general trend among Firefox extensions toward extending the way the browser helps you get more out of the applications that you use all the time. In this post, you'll find six of the best examples of these app-helper extensions, which you can grab and install in minutes.




  • Voting/Security

    • Open Source SSL Acceleration
      Nginx once again has shown that it is a versatile open source project. For the cost of a server and a few hours work, any system administrator can increase the capacity of their existing server farm by building an Open Source SSL Accelerator. Reducing the complexity of certificate management, reducing the number of certificates needed and reducing the overall load per request on the existing server farm, this solution offers a cost-effective way of breathing new life into an existing server farm.


    • On open source vs. disclosed source voting systems
      On Tuesday, the Election Technology Council (a trade association of four major American voting system manufacturers) put out a white paper on open-source and voting systems. It's nice to see them finally talking about the issue, but there's a distinctive cluelessness in this paper about what, exactly, open source is and what it means for a system to be secure. For example, in a sidebar titled "Disclosed vs. Open: Clarifying Misconceptions", the report states:
      ... taking a software product that was once proprietary and disclosing its full source code to the general public will result in a complete forfeiture of the software's security ... Although computer scientists chafe at the thought of "security through obscurity," there remains some underlying truths to the idea that software does maintain a level of security through the lack of available public knowledge of the inner workings of a software program.
      Really? No. Disclosing the source code only results in a complete forfeiture of the software's security if there was never any security there in the first place. If the product is well-engineered, then disclosing the software will cause no additional security problems. If the product is poorly-engineered, then the lack of disclosure only serves the purpose of delaying the inevitable.


    • Open-source misperceptions live on
      The enterprises, vendors, developers, analysts, and journalists I speak with regularly are mostly pretty savvy about the basics of open source at this point. Even if they're not licensing geeks or otherwise expert in all the minutiae and subtle implications of open-source development, community, and usage, they generally have the important basics down.








  • Business

    • Open source = market development
      It is such a simple model, and so effective. The only thing preventing more software vendors from changing to the model is years spent cheating customers on an anomalous 20th-century proprietary model. That model is dead: just look at what VCs are funding. The dinosaurs of the proprietary world will be with us for many years to come, but the new companies being born are open-source and SaaS (software as a service). That is the future.








  • FSFE

    • The professionalisation of free software
      The structures described above were among coders, and represent the creation of an organisational chart among them. What we have seen more recently is something rather different: the rise of professional managers who are not generally programmers, to oversee the day-to-day running and future development of the larger projects. The first instance was Mitchell Baker at the Mozilla Corporation in 2003, and Stormy Peters at the GNOME Foundation last year.






  • Government

    • Will the U.S. follow UK into the open source market?
      The ‘Open Source, Open Standards and Re-Use: Government Action Plan' released last month praises the benefits of non-proprietary technologies. In a statement accompanying the report, Tom Watson, Minister for Digital Engagement, said that open source was a great example of how people working together can come up with products to "rival and sometimes beat those of giant corporations."






  • Licensing







Leftovers

  • Impeach Bezos for Amazon's Kindle Swindle
    We hope he gets the message that he's swindling his customers and in the process undermining important fundamental freedoms to read and share. Amazon seems to understand this message when it comes to music -- why don't they get it when it comes to the Kindle?


  • Time Warner halts metered billing tests
    Time Warner Cable has put the brakes on a trial that was testing its new "consumption-based billing" system for its broadband service, the company said Thursday.




  • Copyrights

    • TOC 09 "Digital Distribution and the Whip Hand: Don't Get iTunesed with your eBooks" -- Cory Doctorow
      Cory Doctorow (craphound.com) is a science fiction novelist, blogger and technology activist. He is the co-editor of the popular weblog Boing Boing (boingboing.net), and a contributor to Wired, Popular Science, Make, the New York Times, and many other newspapers, magazines and websites


    • Shepard Fairey Counterfiles in Associated Press Obama Poster Conflict
      Attorneys for the recently-legally-beleaguered artist Shepard Fairey have filed a countersuit against the Associated Press over claims Fairey violated intellectual property rights in creating the iconic Obama poster. Fairey and his supporters argue that his work falls squarely within the boundaries of transformation and fair use. PDFs of the counterclaim documents below, at the bottom of this blog post.


    • UK dons dunce hat on copyright law
      Copyright reform in the UK has 'stalled' as the Government has caved in to the 'vested interests' of the content industry, the head of a digital rights activist group has said. The view comes as the UK 'abjectly fails' a test of its copyright laws.

      The international umbrella body for consumer rights organisations, Consumers International, has surveyed the copyright laws of 16 countries and has concluded that the UK's is the worst for protecting users' rights.


    • Of RMS, Ethical Visions, and Copyright Law
      As RMS emphasises again and again, at the heart of free software lies an ethical vision of sharing and mutual respect. Although open source blurs that vision somewhat thanks to the glasses of pragmatism that it wears, the basic idea is still there. And yet we talk relatively little about that ethical aspect, which is a pity, because it is both important and interesting.










Recent Techrights' Posts

[Meme] 9AM Meeting at Brett Wilson LLP
Brett Wilson LLP in space
 
Links 19/07/2025: Kapo-berg Settles, Software Patents Challenged
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, July 18, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, July 18, 2025
Links 18/07/2025: Peace With PKK and Connie Francis Dies
Links for the day
Gemini Links 18/07/2025: Alhena 5.1.8 and Bornhack 2025
Links for the day
How to Top Up a "Limited Liability" With Even More Limitations (Dodging Accountability in the UK)
Some people call it a "shell game". Sometimes it's done for tax evasion purposes.
Free Software Foundation, Inc. (FSF) Inches Towards 75% of Fund-Raising Target
Will the cutoff date be extended again?
Gemini Space (or Geminispace) Grows, But Usage of Certificate Authority Let's Encrypt Drops Further
Ideally, all Gemini capsules should use self-signed certificates
Links 18/07/2025: More Microsoft Layoffs in Activision, The New Stack (Sponsored by Microsoft) Complains About Openwashing
Links for the day
Gemini Links 18/07/2025: OCC25 Gnus for Reading Usenet and RSS Feeds, Small Web Updates
Links for the day
Listing as Staff People Who Left the Company More Than Six Years Earlier
There are apparently no laws against that
Brian Fagioli Shovels Up LLM Slop (Plagiarism) Onto Slashdot, Then Uses Slashdot for Affirmation or as Badge of Honour
Notice how some of his latest slop is presented ("as featured on Slashdot")
Social Control Media Productivity
Snapping photos of the bone
The Law Firm SLAPPing Us For the Microsofters Lost 72% of Its Tangible Assets in the Past Year, According to Its Own Reports
That might help explain why they're willing to tolerate serial stranglers from Microsoft as clients
Slopwatch: LinuxSecurity.com Slopfarm and Slopfarms Propped Up by Google News
"As LLM slop is foisted onto the WWW in place of knowledge and real content, it now gets ingested and processed by other LLMs, creating a sort of ouroboros of crap."
Links 18/07/2025: Weather Events and Health Hazards
Links for the day
Microsoft's All-Time Low in Finland
Microsoft is in a freefall
Security: Shane Wegner & Debian statement of incompetence
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, July 17, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, July 17, 2025
Gemini Links 17/07/2025: "Goodreads for Gemini" and Defence of "The Small Web"
Links for the day
Links 17/07/2025: Anger and Morale Issues at Microsoft, Wars and Conflicts Get Digital
Links for the day
CALEA / CALEA2 is the Real Problem, Not Chinese Operatives Exploiting CALEA / CALEA2 (as Any Other Nation Can)
CALEA / CALEA2 is more of a front door than a back door
99.99% Uptime in First Half of 2025
Since January there was only one noticeable outage
Nils Torvalds and Anna "Mikke" Torvalds (née Törnqvis) Hopefully Use GNU/Linux by Now
"Torvalds Family Uses Windows, Not Linus’ Linux"
Attack of the Slopfarms
FUD-amplifying bots with slop images, slop text (LLM slop)
When People Call a Best/Close Friend of Bill Gates a "Serial Rapist"
Good thing that the Linux Foundation keeps the "Linux" trademark ("Linux Mark") clean
Not My Problem, I Don't Care
Context/inspiration: Martin Niemöller
Honest Journalism About the European Patent Office Ceased to Exist After SLAPPs and Bribes to the Media
The EPO is basically a Mafia
Microsoft Bankruptcy in Russia, Shutdown in Pakistan, What Next?
It seems possible that in 2025 alone Microsoft will have laid off over 50,000 workers
Life Became Simpler When I Stopped Driving and I Don't Miss Driving When I See "Modern" Cars
Gee, wonder why car sales have plummeted...
Why I Believe Brett Wilson LLP and Its Microsoft Clients Are All Toast
So far our legal strategy has worked perfectly
EPO Jobs Are Very Toxic and Bad for One's Health
Health first, not monopolies
Response to Ryo Suwito Regarding the Four Freedoms
the point of life isn't to make more money
Microsoft's Morale Circling Down the Drain
Or gutter, toilet etc.
What Matters More Than "Market Share"
The goal is freedom, not "market share"
Tech Used to be Fun. To Many of Us It's Still Fun.
You can just watch it from afar and make fun of it all
Links 17/07/2025: "Blog Identity Crisis" and Openwashing by Nvidia
Links for the day
Greffiers and the US Attorney of the Serial Strangler From Microsoft
The lawsuit can help expose extensive corruption in the American court system as well
Credit Suisse collapse obfuscated Parreaux, Thiébaud & Partners scandal
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
The People Who Promoted systemd in Debian Also Promote Wayland
This is not politics
UK Media Under Threat: Cannot Report on Data Breach, Cannot Report on Microsoft Staff Strangling Women
The story of super injunction (in the British media this week, years late)
Victims of the Serial Strangler From Microsoft, Alex Balabhadra Graveley, Wanted to Sue Him But Lacked the Funds (He Attacked Their Finances)
Having spoken to victims of the Serial Strangler From Microsoft
Links 17/07/2025: Science, Hardware, and Censorship
Links for the day
Gemini Links 17/07/2025: Staying in the "Small Web" and Back on ICQ
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, July 16, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, July 16, 2025