Bonum Certa Men Certa

Links 16/8/2011: Linux Mint 11 LXDE, Peter Brown and Stormy Peters in Software Freedom Conservancy



GNOME bluefish

Contents





GNU/Linux

  • Ryan MacDonald, New Director of Technology at A Small Orange
    MacDonald was previously the lead system and network administrator at a small hosting company based in Michigan. However, he is best known for his contributions to the Linux open source community. MacDonald has written and continues to maintain a number of popular software applications used by web hosts including Linux Malware Detect (LMD), Advanced Policy Firewall (APF), Brute Force Detection (BFD), System Integrity Monitor (SIM), and a half dozen other applications through his website, R-fx Networks (rfxn.com).


  • Desktop

    • Has Microsoft defeated Linux?
      I'm not saying that Linux will be number one next year or anything. However, I am saying that Linux is just as capable of taking on Microsoft as it has ever been. Probably fifty times more capable, and I don't see it weakening one bit.




  • Server

    • Toshiba Expands Its New IPedge Line
      IPedge accommodates multiple unified communications EP via a single Linux server. The new EP version is designed for SMBs, supporting 40 users per server.






  • Kernel Space



  • Applications



  • Desktop Environments

    • North Sea suffers worst oil spill for 10 years - video
      Shell says there have been two leaks at the Gannet Alpha platform, just over 100 miles east of Aberdeen. The first was discovered on 10 August, and has already spilled about 1,300 barrels of oil into the sea - more than the amount spilled across the whole of 2009. It claims that the first leak is 'pretty much dead' and the second is minor


    • K Desktop Environment/KDE SC)

      • Release Team Changes
        During the Desktop Summit in Berlin, we had a session in which we had a good look at how KDE’s release team performs, which points we can improve on, how, and who will implement these changes.


      • Wireless sharing with Plasma NM 0.9


      • Back from Berlin


        One of the highlights of the conference was the panel discussion about copyright assignment. It's a complex topic, but the panelists brought up good arguments and lot of food for thought. Mark spoiled his argumentation a bit at the end by introducing his generosity concept. This certainly has its place when talking about motivation in a community, but in the context of legal agreements with companies it's very questionable, if generosity should be a dominant concept. My takeaway from the panel and some other discussions I had at the summit is that KDE e.V. is in a very good position here with the Fiduciary License Agreement, we optionally provide for KDE contributors. This provides a good balance of the different interests and adds safety for contributors and community.


      • Installing Plasma Active on the ExoPC (“WeTab”)
        If you own an ExoPC, and you’re eager to know how to get Plasma Active, our new workspace and set of applications for consumer devices to run on it, this blog article will help you get going.






  • Distributions

    • PCManFM-Mod To Be In Parted Magic 6.7


    • Installing Linux on a 386 laptop


    • Debian Family

      • Debian GNU/Linux Still Growing Strongly


      • Derivatives

        • One time around the Bodhi Tree


          So bodhi is a Pali/Sanskrit work that loosely translates to "enlightenment". They seem to make heavy reference to this lineage in their artwork and as well as their naming. For example, they have two recommended software sets: Nikhila (meaning entire/all in Hindi) - their full featured software collection Pratibha (meaning light in Hindi) - their lightweight software collection

          Bodhi Linux itself is very new (first release, 1.0.0, was out March 2011). Version 1.0.0 was based off of Ubuntu 10.04LTS as was their update 1.1.0, which was released in May, but with the 2.6.39 kernel and Midori 0.3.6. According to their website, they are targeting only the LTS (long term support) Ubuntu versions, which come out every 2 years. They will have quarterly updates to keep their software fresh in between. I don't have much interest in bleeding edge, but 2 year release cycles are a bit much. I haven't even gotten anywhere yet and I'm already questioning my decision.


        • Canonical/Ubuntu



          • Flavours and Variants

            • LXDE edition of Linux Mint 11 arrives
              Linux Mint 11 LXDE has been released, offering a number of improvements in the UI, a faster update manager, better overlay scrollbars and more. The release comes just under three months after the release of the main version of Linux Mint 11. In the LXDE version, Mint 11's Software Manager has been made more visually attractive with larger icons and a better layout and the Mint-X theme works better with more applications. What's New in Linux Mint 11 has screenshots and details of these and other changes in the Ubuntu-based distribution.












  • Devices/Embedded

    • GENIVI Alliance Announces Fifth Compliant Offering
      The GENIVI Alliance, an automotive and consumer electronics industry association driving the development and adoption of an open In-Vehicle Infotainment (IVI) reference platform, today announced that the Linux Foundation's MeeGo IVI Project has been approved as GENIVI compliant.


    • Phones



      • Android

        • Motorola and Samsung unleash ruggedized Android phones
          Hot on the heels of news that it will be acquired by Google, Motorola Mobility announced a 1GHz, Android 2.3-ready "plus" version of a rugged phone it first released last year. The 3.7-inch Defy+ will go head to head with a 3.6-inch Samsung Xcover announced last week in Germany, since both handsets are said to offer IP67-rated resistance to water, dust, and scratches.


        • 5 Android Apps for Remotely Controlling Banshee, Amarok, VLC, XBMC, Boxee in Linux


        • Tablet and smartphone run on Android-based Grid OS
          Fusion Garage announced a 10.1-inch tablet and four-inch smartphone, both running an "Grid OS" operating system that's based on Android -- and said to run its apps -- but adds predictive features and a grid-like UI. Available for purchase now, the Grid-10 tablet features an Nvidia Tegra 2 processor and 1366 x 768-pixel screen resolution, while the Grid-4 smartphone due later this year offers a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor.


        • Will Google Build an Uber Android?
          One thing that's clear is that Google will obtain an impressive patent arsenal if its acquisition of Motorola goes through. Among the many things that aren't so clear, though, is what the deal could mean for the development of the Android platform. Will Google maintain a distance from Motorola operations? Or will it use the company's assets to closely supervise the design of an uber Android handset?


        • Android is still safe under the GPL










Free Software/Open Source



  • Web Browsers



  • FSF/FSFE/GNU/SFLC

    • Peter Brown and Stormy Peters Appointed as Directors of Software Freedom Conservancy
      Today, the Software Freedom Conservancy announces the appointment of two new members on its Board of Directors. The new directors, Peter Brown and Stormy Peters, bring even more excellent expertise to Conservancy's Directorship, which includes many substantially experienced non-profit and Open Source and Free Software project leaders.




  • Openness/Sharing

    • The future of management: Is it deja vu all over again?
      The likes of Linux, Mozilla, Google, Amazon, Netflix and eBay all grew up in an online world, and with a majority of Gen Y employees. As a result, they are managed in much more enlightened way than their traditional competitors. And this provides inspiration to others.




  • Programming

    • The Freelance
      Friend: Free software doesn’t cost anything, so they call it “free” Programmer: You’re wrong, young padawan… Programmer: Free as in freedom, not as in “Free beer”… But most people usually misunderstand… Programmer: For example, I did a freelance job in January, but I think they thought that was a “free”lance like “free beer”, because they haven’t paid me yet…






Leftovers



Recent Techrights' Posts

Gemini Links 23/12/2025: Hydraulic Pressure Balance and mercury://
Links for the day
Techrights as 'Regulator' Against Runaway Trains
"Runaway trains" never scared us because we know that they, unlike us, don't think rationally
Social Control Media is Bots (Fake Traffic, Fake 'Engagement')
As per FORTUNE, 76% of Twitter is alleged to be bots now
"Major [IBM] Reductions Will Take Place Soon in Rochester MN"
Maybe that's just the latest office gossip
 
A Good End for a Fine Year
Today we saw some pleasant news online about the growth of GNU/Linux and more perils impacting Windows and XBox
Serial Sloppers Lost Momentum, Sites With "Linux" in Their Name Barely Bother Anymore
Will 2026 be the year slopfarms jump the shark?
Gemini Links 23/12/2025: "The sun is shinning" and "problem in the Butlerian Jihad setup"
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Links 23/12/2025: "Over 8,700 News Articles Censored in Turkey in 2024" and "Photos Are Being Deleted From the Epstein Files"
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Links 23/12/2025: That ‘Satisfying Click’ and Security Lapses, Car Bomb Kills Russian Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov
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Links 23/12/2025: GNU Taler 1.3, US Regime Censors Television Again
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Steam is DRM
Over at Tux Machines...
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There are already talks about mass layoffs in January
"Generative AI Bubble Has Begun to Pop", Nvidia Rides “Circular Financing... a Strategy That Hearkens Back to the Dot-com Crisis”
For companies like Microsoft this may mean another 30,000+ layoffs next year
Microsoft-Connected Media Talking About XBox Division "Profit Margins" is Distraction From XBox Sales Collapsing 70% in One Year
The simple fact is, Microsoft's console is dead in the water
The Reality is "Vibe Code" (Slop) is That It's Worthless
“Confidently Wrong”
British Web Developers Can Probably Ignore Firefox Users (Based on US Standards)
Mozilla has managed to piss off enough people
On the 'Digital Gulag' of 'Secure Boot' and Microsoft Disguising Its Attacks on Users as "Security"
Dr. Andy Farnell has this new article
Slopfarms Can Only Survive in Google News, Which is Still Promoting Them
Google News promoted only 3 slopfarms today
Gemini Links 22/12/2025: Films, Creativity vs. Consumption, Slop in YouTube
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Microsoft XBox Losing Money, Layoffs and Studio Shutdowns (As Well as Price Hikes) Not the Solution
Microsoft does not quite talk about profits
Links 22/12/2025: Data Breaches, deterioration in Politics, and Geminispace
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Links 22/12/2025: North Korean Applicants Target GAFAM (Amazon), ‘Orwellian Climate of Fear’ of CPC (Even Outside China)
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More IBM Layoffs in India
It's not as simple as "laid off to be replaced by an Indian"
GAFAM Deeply Connected to Jeffrey Epstein, Richard Stallman (RMS) in No Way Connected to Jeffrey Epstein
people who hoarded all the capital get to decide what people think and say
Linus Torvalds Has a Birthday This Coming Weekend, Thankfully He Still Controls His Main Project
GNU and Linux should remain under their control as long as they live
Mozilla is Getting Attention for All the Wrong Reasons, Take a Look at LibreWolf
Just last week Mozilla added a new top-level manager who (as usual) came from a "tech giant"
When Conformism Means Capitulation and Defeat
In an age of injustices like these, we all have some kind of moral obligation not to be conformist.
Text is Still King
But the so-called 'industry' insists that we should download 10 MB of objects from multiple domains... even just to read 5-10 paragraphs of text
Links 22/12/2025: Facebook "Testing $14.99 Monthly Subscription Fee to Post Links" and "Middle East Petrostates as American Media Owners"
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Beyond the World Wide Web (WWW)
We continue to treat Gemini Protocol as a first-class citizen
Serbia: GNU/Linux Rises, Windows Down to All-Time Lows
According to statCounter
"Wrestling With Pigs"
"Never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty, and the pig likes it."
Productive Year and Better Access to Techrights' Archives Going Back to 2006
we've long needed and wanted native, local, independent search facilities
Linux Abandoned by Linux Foundation
It speaks for Microsoft and for so-called 'AI' companies
Microsoft Has Practically Given Up on XBox Already
Expect many XBox related layoffs when 2026 starts (Q1)
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, December 21, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, December 21, 2025
"Today's [Red Hat] is run by a cabal of vultures."
it seems safe to assume Red Hat too will languish away
Microsoft Layoffs in 2026 Can be Bigger Than 2025 Microsoft Layoffs (30,000+ Workers Laid Off)
"Is there going to be any reorg or Microsoft layoffs?"
Gemini Links 21/12/2025: Solstice, Chaos of CSS, and Program Interpreter Fun
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The Free Software Foundation (FSF) Represents People, Not Corporations
FSF isn't in the "business" of appeasing oligarchs
Why?
Why write articles?
Microsoft-Connected Publisher Spinning XBox's Death Spiral (It's Dying Fast) as a Strength and Something Deliberate
"Microsoft’s big gaming pivot"
Slop is Rare by Now
A year ago slop was so abundant that we did a whole series about it, and it was daily
Links 21/12/2025: U.S. Strikes in Syria, "Epstein Files Photos Disappear From Government Website"
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Gemini Links 21/12/2025: Labrador Retriever of Lagrange's Developer Dies From Cancer, Political Philosophy, and "Getting to Inbox Zero"
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IBM: We Can't Make 'AI' (Voice Recognition) Do the Work of a McDonald's Teenager, So Let's Try the Same on Saudi Planes
IBM is lost. It's truly lost.
Microsoft is Becoming Irrelevant: The Case of Georgia
Not Georgia Tech
Sirius Open Source is Now Imminently Dead (Struck Off)
compulsory strike-off
Dr. Richard Stallman, Invited by LibreTech Collective, is Giving a Public Talk in Georgia Tech Next Month (Scheller College of Business)
They can probably squeeze about 400 people into this room
25 Years of Activism for GNU/Linux
My passion for GNU/Linux brought a lot of contentment
Africa, Where Microsoft Used De Facto Slaves to Pretend to be "AI", Chatbots Usage is 0.2% of Measured Online Traffic
Judging by recent trends in Africa, many "Windows PCs" are being converted into GNU/Linux computers
New Drone Footage Shows IBM is Dead (Parts of It)
The people who participated in IBM when IBM actually mattered probably have boasting rights, unlike people who work for IBM today
Michael Larabel Adds Slop Category to Phoronix, Quickly Realises That It's Worthless
Phoronix nowadays gets carried away; it made a new category to talk about slop and it decided to call it "intelligence" with some caricature of a brain (that's misleading)Phoronix nowadays gets carried away; it made a new category to talk about slop and it decided to call it "intelligence" with some caricature of a brain (that's misleading)
After 35 Years the World Wide Web, HTML, and HTTP Are Proprietary
HTTP/2 added a lot of complexity (it's just a Google protocol, based on SPDY originally), many image formats are proprietary and patented, HTML got 'replaced' by Java-Scripts [sic], and many URLs (the URL system was created in the early 90s) are just long strings for proprietary 'webapps'
The General Public License (GPL) Inspired the Web's Original Openness/Freedom, According to Tim Berners-Lee
"During the preceding year I had been trying to get CERN to release the intellectual property rights to the Web code under the General Public License (GPL) so that others could use it."
Over at Tux Machines...
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IRC Proceedings: Saturday, December 20, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, December 20, 2025