Bonum Certa Men Certa

Links 3/5/2010: Lubuntu 10.04 Released; Peppermint OS Reviewed



GNOME bluefish

Contents





GNU/Linux

  • Does free software create a challenge for Linux?
    These companies spend millions on staffing and paid programmers in the course of a year, so why couldn’t some of that money be set aside for some advertising. When was the last time we saw a commercial advertising Linux? And not on youtube but on actual television programming.

    You get what you pay for…?

    We have all experienced the truthfulness of this at one time or the other. Sometimes when you get something at a low cost it does not turn out to be a quality product. People need to see Linux in action. They need to see how well it runs and the many features that is available to linux users such as compiz fusion etc that are not available to Windows users. The truth is that some times the old you get what you pay for expression simply is not the case. Sometimes the best product is also the lowest priced. And this is something that many have not yet learned is the case with many versions of Linux.


  • Using Linux again - on an Acer Aspire 250D
    So, I wanted to use Linux again and decided to give it a try. I first tried to install Mandriva 2010.0 on it but it would hang on booting after the installation was successfully completed. Looking around I found many people having the same problem but no solution as it's a bug in this release. I found the hint of using 2009.1 instead and tried that and it worked.




  • Desktop

    • Linux On The Desktop?
      While Linux based systems drive some cell phones and can be found in ordinary PCs, the primary competition between Red Hat and Novell has been in the “enterprise space,” that segment of the software universe which focuses on linking business users to databases. Now, Red Hat has announced its intention to move into the “business desktop” market with a new series of adaptations. According to Red Hat, “This will be a more comprehensive offering that will target markets like the small and medium-sized business [SMB] sector and emerging markets. Part of this strategy is to get the desktop more to the masses than our existing client is getting today.”

      [...]

      It’s a great operating system, but plug-and-play functionality for home computers isn’t there yet. And neither Red Hat nor Novell have any intention of invading the home consumer “space.” For now, they’re content to battle it out by expanding their business-based products.


    • Austin Group Prepares for Linux Against Poverty.
      Lynn Bender called a meeting Saturday at the Triumph Cafe in Austin to begin organizing the Linux Against Poverty 2010 event.


    • Installing fresh operating systems, then updating them.
      I wonder why windows cannot, or does not do their updates in this manner. After all, as with most Linux distributions, all an update is doing is replacing one or more binary files with another. It should be a no brainer to just download the latest files, install them and be done with it. If a "hobbyist OS" such as Linux can do this simple yet important task then why can't a "professional OS" do this? What do you think?






  • Routing







  • Ballnux





  • Kernel Space

    • Phenom II X6 Performance Under Linux Below Expectations
      In testing the Phenom II X6, Linux Magazine noticed that AMDs new processor doesn't have the full performance under the current Linux kernel. A bug in Linux power management throws a wrench into the six-core processing.


    • Systemd presented as SysV-Init and Upstart alternative
      The main developer of Upstart, Scott James Remnant, commented on Systemd shortly after it was presented in his own blog. Remnant admits that Upstart is by no means perfect and that he cannot argue with the points of criticism that Poettering brings up. But now that Ubuntu 10.04 has been released, he says he plans to spend more time on Upstart and focus on a number of the criticised elements. He adds that it is too early to tell which of the two approaches will be better in the long term.


    • A Look at minit




    • Graphics Stack

      • A shout-out to nouveau
        They basically wrote a driver for an incredibly complicated piece of hardware, completely through memory trace dumps, with no help from nvidia whatsoever and can operate the 3D engine so well that one of the world’s most awesome pieces of software runs on it. So from now on, I will no longer be using the binary nvidia driver, but instead nouveau, since it offers exactly what I need + next gen linux graphics technologies such as KMS, XRandR1.2 and G3D. Win Win Win.


      • Is Windows 7 Actually Faster Than Ubuntu 10.04?
        What these results do show is that Ubuntu 10.04 LTS "Lucid Lynx" is very capable of being a comparable gaming platform to Microsoft Windows at least as far as the quantitative performance is concerned. This is good news as Valve's Steam client and the Source Engine come to Linux and the first of the Unigine Engine games (likely Primal Carnage) are released. The exception to this, however, is if using Intel graphics.












  • Applications







  • Desktop Environments

    • Lubuntu 10.04 is now available for download




    • K Desktop Environment (KDE SC)

      • Who is KDE part XXX
        The growing diversity in our community brings more fun and more creativity, so I welcome it. I'm awaiting a few GSoC students from Nigeria - after reading the final report from Ade about the conference there I have high hopes... But for now, I think we're looking at a very successful Summer of Code, and those who aren't in yet: you can join the Season of KDE project, where despite the lack of financial compensation you will get the same guidance and some cool (Kool?) gear! Lydia is also still looking for mentors, btw. If you would love to do KDE Promo things, I hereby offer my services as mentor!


      • Kobby: KDE collaborative text editor
        My series of articles covering text editors wouldn’t be complete without a collaborative tool. I have already covered (some time ago) Gobby (see my article “Collaborate in real time with Gobby“) and now it’s time to re-visit this topic from the KDE perspective. The KDE equivalent of Gobby is, to no surprise, Kobby. Kobby is a tool that allows users to to collaborate on text files either with another Kobby instance or even an instance of Gobby.


      • Ubuntu Makes Another Poor Technology Choice – Battle of the Movie Editors
        So why did Ubuntu do this? Either they are not aware of kdenlive and its capabilities – which can’t be true, because it’s available in their repositories, or they have an aversion to including anything in the default install that requires the KDE libraries. While I can understand that approach – there is only so much space on the CD – why substitute for a clearly inferior application. In my view this is both a poor technical and marketing choice. They would have been better leaving PiTiVi off the default CD rather than tainting user’s impression of the readiness or otherwise of Linux for the desktop. Whilst I’m not saying that video editing for Linux is as healthy as on other platforms, I am saying it is a hell of a lot more advanced that Ubuntu and PiTiVi would lead the average person to think.


      • KDE 4.4.3 reached Debian Sid, and its awesome
        Today, the 3rd of May 2010, KDE SC 4.4.3 has been uploaded to Debian Sid (Unstable). This is the first of the 4.4.x series that Debian has had (outside of the Experimental repository and an unofficial repository), and so far the whole of it is awesome.






    • GNOME Desktop









  • Distributions







  • Devices/Embedded



    • Tablets

      • We have an early Linux tablet video
        FUSION GARAGE has announced the availability of its Joojoo tablet in the UK, and The INQUIRER went along to the launch for a walk-through of the Linux handheld device and obtained an exclusive demonstation video.


      • Want an iPad? Get the Joojoo instead!
        Then there is multi-tasking. Yes. You can do more than one thing at a time on the JooJoo. Browse and listen to music simultaneously. It's up to you. It also supports high-def videos out of the box. Watch your favorite videos on the device in crystal clear high definition using the JooJoo player.








Free Software/Open Source



  • Mozilla







  • Databases

    • Apache Cassandra gets boost from Riptano (Q&A)
      A new company called Riptano recently launched to provide support and services for the Apache Cassandra project, a nonrelational open-source database designed for high performance that has a strong presence in Web shops like Twitter, Digg, and Reddit. I recently had the chance to chat with Matt Pfeil, founder of Riptano, and he provided some insight into the project and the new world of NoSQL database approaches.








  • Standards/Consortia

    • It’s time for Hulu to adopt HTML5 instead of Flash
      Seriously when I can’t even watch TV shows anymore online because I am using the “wrong” OS is when I draw the line. HTML5 … please like yesterday. Of course Adobe would have fixed it if it didn’t stream on “cancel or allow” Vista or Windows 7 or even OSX .. but no since it’s linux we get the shaft.








Leftovers

  • Top 10 science and technology writers
    A couple of weeks ago a stalwart of the IT writing business died. It got me thinking about the craft of writing and, after much gestation, we decided to come up with a list of the top writers who had explained and expanded our knowledge of science and technology, from a factual basis.


  • Benjamin Henrion tinkers with Belgabox hardware




  • Security/Aggression







  • Environment

    • BP's "Beyond Petroleum" Campaign Losing its Sheen
      Back in July, 2000, British Petroleum launched a high-profile, $200 million public relations ad campaign designed by Ogilvy & Mather to position the company as environmentally-friendly. The company introduced a new slogan, "Beyond Petroleum," and changed its 70 year-old logo to a new, cheerful green and yellow sunburst. To many, the "Beyond Petroleum" campaign has always been ludicrous.

      [...]

      Spill, Baby Spill

      Despite, or maybe because of, its history of fatal accidents, environmental disasters, fines and public deceit, BP is still trying to greenwash its image. Its Web pages are filled with bogus statements, like "We try to work in ways that will benefit the communities and habitats where we do business -- and earn the world's respect."

      [...]

      If they haven't already, BP's disingenuous words of support for developing low-carbon, renewable energy sources will increasingly fall on deaf ears as the country' attention remains riveted instead on the desecration of one of the country's most beautiful and valuable natural resources: the beleaguered Gulf coast.






  • Finance

    • Sunday Funnies 2010-05-02: "Brown Chip" Investing; Bubble Pricing in Vancouver


    • Goldman Sachs, Chess, and the Godfather
      Between the SEC charges and the congressional panels, the government is finally doing its job going after Goldman Sachs, right? And this last week in April ends with the Justice Department picking up the baton, which puts Goldman under threat of criminal prosecution. Things have suddenly gotten serious.


    • Merkel: $29.6 billion in aid for Greece planned
      Chancellor Angela Merkel's Cabinet approved legislation on Monday that would give Greece euro22.4 billion ($29.6 billion) over three years as part of a wider bailout, as the German government acknowledged that letting Greece go bankrupt could send the euro into a tailspin and hurt Germany's own economy.


    • Hedge funds get 'free ride'
      And one reason for that, according to Weissman, is a particularly well-connected group of lobbyists. More than half the 83 lobbyists registered last year to work for the industries’ two trade groups, the Private Equity Council and the Managed Funds Association, have served in government — from Capitol Hill to the Treasury Department.


    • Top Senate Democrat Questions Obama Foreclosure Program's Effectiveness


    • US GDP growth rate is unsustainable; recovery will fade
      The US turned in a fairly robust quarter in Q1 2010, with real GDP growth meeting expectations at 3.2% annualized. This comes on the back of a very robust annualized 5.6% growth in the previous quarter. This is the best growth two-quarter growth we have seen since 2003.


    • Financial Reform: Will We Feel Better the Morning After?
      There are many other issues in the financial reform bill, most of which will lead to improvements in the regulatory structure. However, without these three changes, the industry will not look very different the day after financial reform than it did the day before. Given what the industry has done to the country, it doesn't seem unreasonable to expect some serious changes. After the next couple of weeks, we will know what we get.


    • Blanche Lincoln Rambos Wall Street
      The financial services reform bill is on the Senate floor this week. The recently announced criminal investigation of Goldman Sachs, the bumbling testimony of Goldman's "Fabulous Fab" and the rocking Wall Street protest last Thursday show that momentum is with reformers.








  • Intellectual Monopolies









Clip of the Day



NASA Connect - MOAT - Aerosols (1/11/1999)

[an error occurred while processing this directive]



Recent Techrights' Posts

In Norway, Android/Linux Has Just Hit All-Time High (First Time Since 2020), GNU/Linux Already Very Prevalent
Despite its small population size, Norway gave us Qt and many other things
Microsoft's Mass Layoffs Very Wide-Ranging, Media Focused on Gaming Though Microsoft Mass-Firing Lawyers and "AI" Staff (Contradicting Its Supposed "Investment" in "AI")
Microsoft plans to fire almost half a thousand people in legal roles
2012 Article About the Free Software Foundation Blasting Canonical/Ubuntu Over Adoption of "Secure" Boot (Microsoft's Remote Control Over GNU/Linux Since PCs' Power-on)
By Katherine Noyes (article has since then became 404, not found)
Debian Can Dump Blind Users Because I am Not Blind
the sort of mentality we're up against
The European Patent Office Cannot Attract Proficient Patent Examiners Who Master Their Domain
They are enablers and facilitators of corruption
 
Gemini Links 19/07/2025: Git For Authors and Filtered Antenna
Links for the day
UEFI 'Secure' Boot Abuses by Microsoft to be Brought Up in the UK High Court in 3 Months
we'll seek compensation
Russia Set to Ban Facebook?
If WhatsApp is made to "leave", that means Facebook or "Meta".
Next Year It'll Be Half a Decade Since the Fall of Freenode (and IRC is Still Doing OK)
Our IRC network is still accessible using the exact same software that ran in Windows 3.x
Lupa Will Soon Know of 3,100+ Active Gemini Capsules
And some people in the "Small Web" try to tell us that Gemini is dying?
The Slopfarms Are Taking Real News Articles and Replacing Them With Lies Generated by Machines
Bluntly speaking, Fagioli is nothing short of an online scammer
Links 19/07/2025: Techtarget to Cull 10% of Staff, New Threats to Free Press in the US (Home of Dangerous and Violent Stranglers From Microsoft)
Links for the day
Gemini Links 19/07/2025: "Climate Justice” and Forking Programs
Links for the day
What Wayland and Microsoft/IBM systemd Have in Common
focus on what IBM (Red Hat) is pushing while running over critics.
Linux Already Has About 60% of the "Market"
"When mentioning the client side," opines an associate, "it is essential to recite the list of other markets where Microsoft is negligible or a no-show. It is repetitive to do so, but it needs saying -- often."
Finland (and NATO) Must Move to GNU/Linux and Dump Microsoft Even Faster
"Microsoft is not a technology problem, it is a staffing problem."
The Microsofters We Sued Helped Microsoft Make GNU/Linux 'Expire' This Year
"Linux and Secure Boot certificate expiration"
linuxconfig.org Joins linuxtechlab.com and Others, Becomes a Slopfarm With Fake Linux 'Articles' (LLM Slop)
They contain "linux" in their domain names, but they are just slopfarms
Links 19/07/2025: Microsoft Cuts in China and Wall Street Journal Sued for Reporting on Jeffrey Epstein
Links for the day
Fascistic Policies Got 'Normalised' in 'Public Office'. Let's Not Let the Same Happen in 'Tech'.
Political discourse typically guides what's "normal" and what "good citizens" should believe/feel
Yes, Your Mastodon Instance Will Also Shut Down
Few people run a one-person instance in the Fediverse
The Demise of GAFAM Necessitates Greater and Broader Awareness
Morale at Microsoft is really bad
Free Software Foundation Reaches 75% of Funding Goal
Not bad for this "Fosschild"
Slopwatch: 7 New Examples of Fake 'Linux' Slop Pieces (Plagiarism With Misinformation)
Serial Sloppers need to be shunned
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
[Meme] 9AM Meeting at Brett Wilson LLP
Brett Wilson LLP in space
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