𝕿𝖊𝖈𝖍𝖗𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙𝖘 Bulletin for Wednesday, June 23, 2021 ┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅┅ Generated Thu 24 Jun 02:40:31 BST 2021 Created by Dr. Roy Schestowitz (𝚛𝚘𝚢 (at) 𝚜𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚣 (dot) 𝚌𝚘𝚖) Full hyperlinks for navigation omitted but are fully available in the originals The corresponding HTML versions are at 𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔.𝒐𝒓𝒈 Latest in 𝒉𝒕𝒕𝒑://𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔.𝒐𝒓𝒈/𝒕𝒙𝒕 and older bulletins can be found at 𝒉𝒕𝒕𝒑://𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔.𝒐𝒓𝒈/𝒕𝒙𝒕-𝒂𝒓𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒔 Full IPFS index in 𝒉𝒕𝒕𝒑://𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔.𝒐𝒓𝒈/𝒊𝒑𝒇𝒔 and as plain text in 𝒉𝒕𝒕𝒑://𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔.𝒐𝒓𝒈/𝒊𝒑𝒇𝒔/𝒕𝒙𝒕 Gemini index for the day: gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2021/06/23/ ╒═══════════════════ 𝐑𝐄𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐁𝐔𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐒 ════════════════════════════════════╕ Previous bulletins in IPFS (past 21 days, in chronological order): Qmdp1J2cA6jPEX5t7cXe6PXCm6aj4n6m3ck2JEdoi75xs4 Qmb217FYPqyf5YeENZfJEneBy7C32dfcpBu4B2XYDVJx3B QmUJcn8AWpxosDPn74zfzdk9fmm2NfAiGE5A2FKhfEe7sN QmTLpCFhnZNUGtUUaydcHLKw8X8UtM9SVzGkdtC96nawfE QmSAQ3gHueMDVJvK7fqcUVfyPEJTatiEuv2MxnruZfCTbQ QmfV5LDX5WsaqFg9Nyo26N9JWemXAuUFwHXN6HQ3FLiNht Qmarn4LZt4SFbSrQ7aYMgXjrR6PSFowthNW7AL2sxHTbh2 QmcDA7FbLzad36FKCSkeVFEjFXPwpcrt1a9h9kg77mG1fr QmajwF31nmyxxm7e5imo4QUnrAmMGNU9jkY4beybcxWevv QmXeVCbTbi5P1GkGm1gYJnWmeN4nbuehzDpz7Egwwm6Zy1 QmVUBLf9g24CeTFZPr1KCBQh3mA5e5VvjUSi5aU6aj3q9y QmSQCUVKmy81pXTXH7aKYGdbdqZaC9MBduQNu8giufhpGC QmWUuHEZ2oaiCQvka8SLGahoMnqWoQAYEYcBWvmbUrf6Us QmTereeSs2vayhRxEgEKA8eGzkZmqyGmds18oLNaRM5Z9N QmbBtrgn5vZv4zAnCwEsSEbNfqZyMc1GXjrxGtjFJubZo6 QmSqJtaqrrXbzBF4sG3nBzauArR36q6YbF5P7htcHd5cDB QmWCc6UN8rXnBKmcnhPY7waCCSXzfsG1AbhZikKfdp3ymB QmQYQoMFrDMTXEe4NcPiv7amMCQS2ho3c6EaMHAU4SfMUe QmacoxEMNBvXGjkyn4JfrL8LyXBMaArcxAJPBaNoTymtHV QmW6B9kehxSBryvAexunPR3eXN8dZc1CHxSebKiiSDXTRh QmTuxFtDwey5L4ibxTM85bAhdiFUVzq9RQwjk5UqDBCmxH ╒═══════════════════ 𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐗 ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ ⦿ Shifting Back to Fundamentals and Basics of the World Wide Web (and Gemini) | Techrights ⦿ First I Came | Techrights ⦿ Links 24/6/2021: End of Akademy 2021 and Good News From SCOTUS (About PTAB) | Techrights ⦿ IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, June 22, 2021 | Techrights ⦿ Time for Linus Torvalds to Enforce and Protect His Brand From Misuse by His Employer, the So-called ’Linux’ Foundation | Techrights ⦿ How to Install and Then Use NetSurf as a Web Browser for the User-Centric Web, Not ’GAFAMNet’ | Techrights ⦿ Links 23/6/2021: WordPress 5.8 Beta 3 and More Openwashing by LF | Techrights ⦿ Links 23/6/2021: TeXmacs 2.1 and Blender LTS Support | Techrights ䷼ Bulletin articles (as HTML) to comment on (requires login): http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/back-to-basics/#comments http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/first-i-came/#comments http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/good-news-from-scotus/#comments http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/irc-log-220621/#comments http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/linux-foundation-and-linux-brand/#comments http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/netsurf-review/#comments http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/openwashing-by-lf/#comments http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/texmacs-2-1/#comments ䷞ Followed by Daily Links (assorted news picks curated and categorised): ䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 67 ╒═══════════════════ 𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐋𝐄 ═════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ (ℹ) Images, hyperlinks and comments at http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/back-to-basics/#comments Gemini version at gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2021/06/23/back-to-basics/ ⠀⌧ █▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁ 06.23.21⠀▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█ ⌧ ✐ Shifting_Back_to_Fundamentals_and_Basics_of_the_World_Wide_Web_(and_Gemini)⠀✐ Posted in Site_News at 10:08 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz Video_download_link http://techrights.org/videos/simple-web.webm Summary: Gemini protocol or simplified Web might be the way to go; it’s easier to maintain, secure, and it’s vastly better in terms of performance THE Web has become undoubtedly bloated. More and more people now come to realise it; after the reckoning comes the complaining. So, what can be done about all this bloat? Can the Web itself be redeemed? “Sometimes going back to basics is a positive move or a gradual move in the right direction.”One option is to just leave the Web aside and start afresh with a new protocol like gemini:// (which is not alone). The trust monopolies are another kind of issue, so Gemini allows self-signed certificates. It’s still gaining in popularity and Gemini use is definitely on the rise. Adoption increases as every month we see more unique IP addresses in our capsule. This video, partly conjured/inspired by this, gives an outline of some of our processes and the vision of where we’d like to be. Sometimes going back to basics is a positive move or a gradual move in the right direction. █ ䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 117 ╒═══════════════════ 𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐋𝐄 ═════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ (ℹ) Images, hyperlinks and comments at http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/first-i-came/#comments Gemini version at gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2021/06/23/first-i-came/ ⠀⌧ █▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁ 06.23.21⠀▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█ ⌧ ✐ First_I_Came⠀✐ Posted in Antitrust, DRM, GNU/Linux, Microsoft at 5:49 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇Why Did Amazon Web Services Shut Down WikiLeaks?⦈ Why Did Amazon Web Services Shut Down WikiLeaks? Because Amazon doesn’t care about Wikileaks, and moreover it does not wish to help_expose_the_crimes_of_the rich Summary: Time after time people will be reminded — or learn the hard way — that self reliance and avoidance of disappointment typically requires self-hosting, proper standards, free software, and simplicity, not outsourcing, large frameworks, and other kinds of unnecessary complexity First I came to ActiveX But Microsoft lost the Web wars, so my Web site stopped working Then I came to Flash But it was a security dumpster fire and total catastrophe, so it’s abandonware now Then I came to AMP But it didn’t accomplish anything useful, except spying by Google Then I came to ClownFlare But my Web site became unavailable at times, due to their systems, not mine Then I came to Twitter But my account got banned, for mentioning where Elvis Presley died Then I created a YouTube channel But it turned out my subscribers could no longer see my videos Then I joined a large IRC network But my channel was taken over by its true masters Then I hosted on Amazon But it turned out I_was_just_a_transient_tenant_to_them Then I created a GitHub account But it turned out that Microsoft could take it down without notice or due process Then I joined Google+ But I didn’t know I’d soon lose all my “friends” Then I joined the Fediverse But it only worked OK until the site shut down Then I got a Chromebook But everything I bought it for became unavailable after 24 months of system updates Then I bought some music But it stopped working when they shut down the DRM servers Then I wrote in Blogspot But the interface suddenly changed, without first consulting me Then I donated to the Open Source Initiative But later I realised they were sending_my_money_to_Microsoft Then I bought a fitness tracker But instead of improving my health it sold my data Then I decided to read e-books But Bezos decided to remotely delete some of them Then I bought a printer to print my e-books But HP remotely controlled my printer to curtail ‘unauthorised’ ink Then I downloaded Chrome But it turned out Chrome was downloading and uploading my data Then I bought a car But later it turned out it came with listening devices I was unable to remove or disconnect And then I bought a smartphone But it turned out the only intelligent thing about it is the_intelligence agencies Then I downloaded GNU/Linux But my ISP sent_me_threats_for_that █ ⣿⡿⠿⡿⣿⠿⠿⣿⠿⠿⣿⡿⢿⡿⢿⠿⢿⠿⠿⠿⣿⢿⢿⢿⠿⢿⠿⢿⡿⣿⠿⢿⣿⢿⣿⠿⡿⠿⠿⢿⣿⠿⡿⠿⠿⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿ ⣿⣇⣛⣇⣣⣛⣨⣛⣀⣛⣼⣘⣾⣗⣹⣚⣻⣨⣿⣸⣄⣌⣣⣜⣨⣸⣉⣻⣣⣜⣊⣹⣣⣜⡗⣊⣇⣙⣨⣹⣌⣆⣟⣓⣈⣹⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡇⡟⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣧⣀⣃⣀⣀⣠⣀⣄⣰⣠⣃⣔⣀⣠⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿ ⣿⡟⠛⠛⢛⠛⡛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⡛⢻⣿⣿⡿⡿⢿⡿⠟⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠿⠿⢿⢻⣿⡟⣿⣿⠿⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⢿⠿⢿⢿⣿⣿⠻⣿⣿⡿⠿⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿ ⣿⣇⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣈⣀⣁⣀⣸⣿⣿⣇⠀⡄⢀⠀⡆⢡⠘⢰⣿⠀⠷⢸⢸⠠⠄⣿⡟⢐⠘⡇⡄⢠⠸⢐⠈⠖⢰⠁⡆⡃⢠⢸⣿⡈⢠⠈⡈⢐⢘⠀⠄⣿⡧⠌⠐⠁⡂⡇⣴⠘⢠⠀⠁⡦⡃⡂⠁⢐⢸⣿ ⣿⣧⣯⣾⣭⣷⣤⣿⣤⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⠶⢷⠾⣶⣷⣎⣠⠿⣿⡶⠶⢿⣾⣶⣶⣿⣷⣿⣷⣷⣷⠾⡾⢶⠶⠶⠶⣷⡶⡷⢾⣾⣿⣷⣾⣶⡿⣶⣾⣶⣶⠿⢷⣶⣾⣷⣶⣷⣿⣷⣾⣶⣷⣶⣷⣶⣷⣶⣾⣿ ⣿⣇⣃⣯⣤⣸⣤⣬⣼⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡧⢌⠐⠀⡄⠁⢸⢠⠀⣿⡇⢸⠀⠁⡄⢁⠁⠘⢠⢠⠈⣿⡆⠃⠈⢠⠀⠀⠡⡇⡇⢸⣿⢀⠈⠁⠈⡇⠁⡆⡀⢱⡞⣠⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣶⣾⣶⣷⣶⣶⣶⣶⣿⣷⣶⣾⣷⣶⣿⣶⣷⣾⣾⣶⣿⣷⣾⣷⣾⣶⣶⣷⣶⣷⣶⣶⣶⣾⣶⣶⣶⣷⣶⣶⣾⣷⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿ ䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 249 ╒═══════════════════ 𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐋𝐄 ═════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ (ℹ) Images, hyperlinks and comments at http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/good-news-from-scotus/#comments Gemini version at gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2021/06/23/good-news-from-scotus/ ⠀⌧ █▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁ 06.23.21⠀▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█ ⌧ ✐ Links_24/6/2021:_End_of_Akademy_2021_and_Good_News_From_SCOTUS_(About_PTAB)⠀✐ Posted in News_Roundup at 7:04 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇GNOME bluefish⦈ § Contents⠀➾ * GNU/Linux o Distributions o Devices/Embedded * Free_Software/Open_Source * Leftovers * § GNU/Linux⠀➾ o § Desktop/Laptop⠀➾ # ⚓ Slimbook_launches_light_and_thin_14-inch_Executive_laptop with_3K_16:10_90_Hz_display_and_Intel_Tiger_Lake- U_processor⠀⇛ You know the demand for laptops is clearly on the rise when even Europe is seeing new OEMs popping up. Breaking into the global market directly with Windows-based models might be tough, so the new OEMs from Europe are also focusing on GNU / Linux systems. Just like Germany has the Schenker / XMG OEM with the Tuxedo subsidiary, Spain offers similar solutions through its relatively new Slimbook OEM. Apart from catering both for the Windows and Linux crowds, Slimbook also focuses to stay true to its name and deliver lightweight but powerful notebooks, and this can easily be seen with the new Executive models that feature Intel Tiger Lake-U processors packed in a 14-inch chassis that weighs only 2.2 lbs (1 kg) and is 0.59-inch (15 mm) thick. As with most slim and light models, the Slimbook Executive is geared more towards premium users. The magnesium alloy chassis appears to be made by Tongfang and is identical with those from Schenker Vision 14 and Tuxedo InfinityBook Pro, but the default price is noticeably higher. This is because Slimbook is including more advanced features like a 2880 x 1800 16:10 LTPS screen with 90 Hz refresh rate, 400 nit maximum brightness and 99% sRGB color gamut. It also comes equipped with the Intel Core i7-1165G7 CPU integrating an Iris Xe iGPU, which can be coupled with up to 64 GB of DDR4-3200 RAM and up to 4 TB of SSD storage through two M.2 slots. o § Audiocasts/Shows⠀➾ # ⚓ The_Brave_Search_Engine._Will_This_Be_The_Google_Killer?⠀⇛ Brave’s new search engine recently had it’s public launch. Brave, the makers of the Brave Browser, aim to provide a truly privacy-focused search engine that serves independent results rather than pulling from Google or Bing. # ⚓ FLOSS_Weekly_635:_KDE_Neon_–_Jonathan_Riddell⠀⇛ Jonathan Riddell, who created and leads KDE Neon, gives Doc Searls and Simon Phipps the fascinating backstory of the project and what makes it distinctive. Here’s a clue, it was inspired by surfing. The conversation also ranges across the past and future of Linux on desktops and laptops, KDE’s Akademy, OpenUK and its awards and much more. o § Kernel Space⠀➾ # ⚓ PipeWire_Under_The_Hood⠀⇛ The PipeWire project is slowly getting popular as it matures. Its documentation is still relatively sparse but is gradually growing. However, it’s always a good idea to have people from outside the project try to grasp and explain it to others in their own words, reiterating ideas, seeing them from their own perspective. In a previous posts I went over the generic audio stack on Unix and had a section mentioning PipeWire. Unfortunately, because at the time I didn’t find enough docs and couldn’t wrap my head around some concepts, I think I didn’t do justice to the project and might have even confused some parts. In this post I’ll try to explain PipeWire in the most simple way possible, to make it accessible to others that want to start following this cool new project but that don’t know where to start. It’s especially important to do this to open the door for more people to join in and follow the current development, which is happening at a fast pace. # ⚓ PipeWire,_The_Newest_Audio_Kid_On_The_Linux_Block_| Hackaday⠀⇛ Raise your hand if you remember when PulseAudio was famous for breaking audio on Linux for everyone. For quite a few years, the standard answer for any audio problem on Linux was to uninstall PulseAudio, and just use ALSA. It’s probably the case that a number of distros switched to Pulse before it was quite ready. My experience was that after a couple years of fixing bugs, the experience got to be quite stable and useful. PulseAudio brought some really nice features to Linux, like moving sound streams between devices and dynamically resampling streams as needed. The other side of the Linux audio coin is JACK. If you’ve used Ardour, or done much with Firewire audio interfaces, you’re probably familiar with the JACK Audio Connection Kit — recursive acronyms are fun. JACK lets you almost arbitrarily route audio streams, and is very much intended for a professional audio audience. You may wonder if there is any way to use PulseAudio and JACK together. Yes, but it’s just a bit of a pain, to get the PulseAudio plugin to work with JACK. For example, all of the Pulse streams get mixed together, and show up as a single device on the JACK graph, so you can’t route them around or treat them seapartely. # ⚓ Louis:_PipeWire_under_the_hood_[LWN.net]⠀⇛ For those wanting lots of grungy details about how the PipeWire system works, this blog entry from Patrick Louis should be of interest. # ⚓ AMD_PSF_Control_Support_Still_Awaiting_The_Mainline_Linux Kernel_–_Phoronix⠀⇛ It’s been three months since AMD published a security whitepaper outlining the possibility of a side channel attack with PSF. The Predictive Store Forwarding functionality is new to AMD Zen 3 (Ryzen 5000 / EPYC 7003 series) processors and as part of their security analysis they are allowing users the ability to opt-out of using this feature in the name of greater security but the feature still hasn’t been picked up for the mainline Linux kernel. While the security whitepaper mentioned Linux patches for allowing PSF to be disabled, it wasn’t until days after that when the PSF control patches were published. o § Applications⠀➾ # ⚓ Daniel_Almeida:_Adding_VP9_and_MPEG2_stateless_support_in v4l2codecs_for_GStreamer⠀⇛ Earlier this year, from January to April 2021, I worked on adding support for stateless decoders for GStreamer as part of a multimedia internship at Collabora. The following is a recap about the completed work. o § Instructionals/Technical⠀➾ # ⚓ How_To_Install_Askbot_on_Ubuntu_20.04_LTS_–_idroot⠀⇛ In this tutorial, we will show you how to install Askbot on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. For those of you who didn’t know, AskBot is an open-source question-and- answer forum written in Django and Python. It provides features similar to StackOverflow, including a karma-based system, voting, and content moderation. Currently, it is used by open-source projects like Fedora and LibreOffice. This article assumes you have at least basic knowledge of Linux, know how to use the shell, and most importantly, you host your site on your own VPS. The installation is quite simple and assumes you are running in the root account, if not you may need to add ‘sudo‘ to the commands to get root privileges. I will show you through the step-by- step installation of the Askbot on Ubuntu 20.04 (Focal Fossa). You can follow the same instructions for Ubuntu 18.04, 16.04, and any other Debian-based distribution like Linux Mint. # ⚓ Install_and_Use_Duf_Disk_Monitoring_Tool_on_Ubuntu_20.04⠀⇛ Duf also called “Disk Usage Free utility” is a free and open-source tool written in Golang. It is used to display disk usage of the system in a tabular format. It is an alternative to the df command and it can be installed on Linux, BSD, Windows, and macOS. It also displays the disk usage details in the JSON output. In this post, we will show you how to monitor disk usage with the Duf utility on Ubuntu 20.04. # ⚓ Linux_tee_command_explained_(with_examples)⠀⇛ When you run basic commands on the terminal the output is usually printed to the terminal i.e standard out. But what if you could also save the output in a file as well as print it out to standard out? This is what the tee command does. The Linux tee command reads from stdin ( standard input ) and then writes to stdout ( standard output ) as well as to a file or multiple files. # ⚓ How_to_Filter_or_Disable_Blue_Light_on_Ubuntu⠀⇛ For most of our waking days, we are surrounded by screens. While it’s not a big problem in itself, staring at screens well into the evening can result in a disturbance of the natural sleep cycle, which in turn, can result in health risks like insomnia, daytime fatigue, and more. The culprit behind this is the blue light emitted by these screens. This makes it pertinent that we remove, or, at the very least, filter the blue light from our screens. There are both manual and automated ways to disable the blue light on your Ubuntu system. # ⚓ How_to_Install_FreeIPA_on_AlmaLinux_or_Rocky_8_–_Linux Shout⠀⇛ FreeIPA stands for Free Identity, Policy, Audit and it is an open-source identity management solution based on an LDAP directory and Kerberos with optional components such as DNS server, certification authority, and more. It can manage a domain with users, computers, policies, and trust relationships. Isn’t it sounds like Microsoft Active Directory? Yes, it is exactly what it is all about. FreeIPA can also set up a forest-to-forest trust with existing Active Directory forests and even live in a DNS zone below a zone managed by Active Directory, as long as they do not overlap. It consists of a web interface and command-line administration tools. # ⚓ How_to_run_Linux_on_an_iPad⠀⇛ Do you use an Apple iPad as your primary mobile computer? Wish you could run Linux on it for development purposes or other stuff? It turns out, with a bit of work, it is possible to run Linux on an iPad via virtualization. Here’s how to set it up. # ⚓ How_to_access_a_remote_Linux_computer_from_an_iPad⠀⇛ Those who are Linux users who also happen to own an iPad may be wondering how they can access a remote Linux computer from it. Despite it being a mobile device, it is possible. In this guide, we’ll show you how. o § Games⠀➾ # ⚓ DOOM_Eternal_Gets_RTX_Raytracing_&_DLSS_Support_With_NVIDIA GeForce_Game_Ready_471.11_WHQL_Drivers⠀⇛ NVIDIA has launched its GeForce Game Ready 471.11 WHQL drivers which enable the RTX ray-tracing & DLSS in DOOM Eternal. Not only that but the driver also enables RTX support in a few other titles while offering support for even more G-Sync compatible displays. [...] To enable Proton through your GNU/Linux Steam application, and use NVIDIA DLSS in supported titles… # ⚓ Native_Linux_Gaming_Doesn’t_Matter_Anymore⠀⇛ Gaming on Linux is amazing and it’s so amazing that native Linux binaries no longer need to exist because of how well the translation layers like Proton and Wine actually work now o § Desktop Environments/WMs⠀➾ # § K Desktop Environment/KDE SC/Qt⠀➾ # ⚓ Akademy_2021_–_Wedneday_BoF_Wrap-up⠀⇛ Wedneday continued the Akademy 2021 BoFs, meetings, group sessions and hacking. There is a wrap-up session at the end of the day so that what happened in the different rooms can be shared with everyone including those not present. # ⚓ KDE_Plasma_5.22:_The_best_KDE_to_date⠀⇛ In other words, the developers of KDE Plasma have nailed it on every conceivable level. Does that mean I’ll be switching from my go- to Pop!_OS Linux? No. But that’s all about the perfect melding of hardware and operating system, so Pop!_OS has an unfair advantage. However, had it not been for the power of the Thelio, you can bet I’d be seriously considering a migration from whatever desktop I was using to KDE Plasma—that’s how good 5.22 is. What new features have the developers brought to light that makes this release so special? To be honest, the best thing they’ve done is a bit of code refactoring and take care of a laundry list of bugs. They’ve seriously improved the behavior and performance to the point where KDE Plasma can stand with the best desktop environments on the market—regardless of the operating system. Bug fixes galore make KDE pretty fantastic. But you’re not here to read about bug fixes, you want to know what’s changed and what’s been added. Let’s take a look. First off, I tested KDE Plasma 5.22 on KDE Neon (which, after a quick update, was running KDE Plasma 5.22.1). If you want to kick the tires of KDE Plasma 5.22, I highly recommend you go this route, as KDE Neon is a fantastic distribution for getting the latest version of the desktop. With that said, let’s get on with what’s new. o § Distributions⠀➾ # § BSD⠀➾ # ⚓ TrueCommand_2.0_Enables_TrueNAS_Clusters⠀⇛ iXsystems, the leader in Open Source storage, announced the general availability of TrueCommand 2.0, the second major release of the single-pane-of-glass management system that simplifies the monitoring and control of fleets of systems running TrueNAS CORE, Enterprise, or SCALE. TrueCommand 2.0 adds an array of new features to its existing ability to manage faults, configuration, access control, performance, and security. Chief among the key features enabled is the ability to manage clusters of TrueNAS SCALE nodes for high capacity (100+ PB) and bandwidth (100+GB/s) applications. It also adds real-time (per second) statistics and a storage navigator function to manage datasets and their snapshots. # § SUSE/OpenSUSE⠀➾ # ⚓ SUSE_Linux_Enterprise_15_SP3_[LWN.net]⠀⇛ SUSE Linux Enterprise (SLE) 15 SP3 has been released. “With the release of SLES 15 SP3 we now have 100% binary compatibility with openSUSE Leap 15.3 (our developer platform). That means that you can smoothly move workloads from development to production environments that run SLE 15 SP3 – and back again – with assured application compatibility.” See the release notes for additional information. # § IBM/Red Hat/Fedora⠀➾ # ⚓ Projects_and_the_advantages_of_Git_branching_–_IBM Developer⠀⇛ It took me a while to start to understand the power that Red Hat OpenShift brings to the Kubernetes world. As someone who is supposed to advocate for OpenShift, I first need to know why I would use the technology before I can advocate. This post explains one of the value adds that got me. OK, let’s get started! If you are someone who is encouraged or even required to move to the cloud-native ecosystem, running an application on Kubernetes (or OpenShift) can be overwhelming. If you visit the CNCF Cloud Native Interactive Landscape map and look at all the options you can plug into a vanilla Kubernetes, it’s safe to say that it’s intimidating. I am every time I look at it. One of the first advantages of OpenShift is that it’s an opinionated deployment of Kubernetes. Red Hat spent the time and effort to create a proper production-grade installation of a cloud-native platform and gave you the power to just “use it”. You no longer need to sift through all of the different options; OpenShift just gives you the choices to focus on the business value add and to hopefully get your features out faster than your competition. # ⚓ Open_the_possibilities_of_your_data⠀⇛ First software ate the world. Now Artificial Intelligence (AI) is eating software. You’ve heard all the adages. Something about every company being a data company. Data being the most valuable assets. A competitive differentiator, the corporate pundits call it. A game changer, even. We get it. Data has value. But the real questions are: does data contain intrinsic value irrespective of how well it is mined, how easily it is accessed, and how smartly it is secured? # § Debian Family⠀➾ # ⚓ There’s_no_‘Skype’_in_Teams:_Microsoft_lets_signing key_for_its_Debian_Skype_repository_slip_gently_into the_night⠀⇛ Microsoft’s inattentive approach to Linux has continued unabated, with reports that the signing key for its Debian Skype repository has expired. Last week we noted the dread 404 being returned to enthusiasts keen to do the apt- get fandango to grab some of Microsoft’s wares on packages.microsoft.com, but things seem to have been returning to normal of late. Sadly, for Skype, “normal” appears to be on the wrong side of bork for some Linux users as an expired signature left customers pondering how to get the chat platform safely down via apt. “This is not the first time that Microsoft has forgotten to renew an apt key,” muttered one user, “I’m guessing it won’t be their last time either.” Ouch. Far be it from us to suggest that we are perhaps witnessing an attempt by Microsoft to steer users toward Teams on Linux rather than that old Skype thing. Not satisfied with axing beloved features, the company didn’t bother to renew the GPG key. # ⚓ Louis-Philippe_Véronneau:_Hardening_Weechat_Relays Against_RCE_on_Bullseye⠀⇛ I’ve been using weechat to connect to IRC since late 2016 and one of its killer feature is relays. They let use other frontends like the Weechat Android app or the amazing Glowing Bear (packaged in Debian Bullseye by yours truly). Sadly, relays also used to be somewhat of a security risk: anyone with access to a relay1 could run scripts on the machine running weechat by using commands such as /exec or / script. Not great. # § Canonical/Ubuntu Family⠀➾ # ⚓ Ubuntu-maker_Canonical_will_support_open_source Blender_on_Windows,_Mac,_and_Linux⠀⇛ Blender is one of the most important open source projects, as the 3D graphics application suite is used by countless people at home, for business, and in education. The software can be used on many platforms, such as Windows, Mac, and of course, Linux. Today, Ubuntu-maker Canonical announces it will offer paid enterprise support for Blender LTS. How cool is that? Surprisingly, this support will not only be for Ubuntu users. Heck, it isn’t even limited to Linux installations. Actually, Canonical will offer this support to Blender LTS users on Windows, Mac, and Linux. Wow! o § Devices/Embedded⠀➾ # § Open Hardware/Modding⠀➾ # ⚓ 6_Best_Raspberry_Pi_Alternatives_For_IoT Development⠀⇛ Raspberry Pi is a good starting point whenever you want to build an app, device, or project for the IoT marketplace,. This credit card-sized device has changed the very concept of personal computing, and supports prototyping of every kind of new developer idea. It does have a few limitations though. Despite the excellent specs of Raspberry Pi 4, the single-board computer lacks important capabilities as an embedded engineering device. If you want higher performance, you need a device with far superior specs that won’t suffer Pi’s problems of overheating, lower memory, and unsuitability for industrial applications. Since so much of DIY syllabus is oriented towards Raspberry Pi, you should seek a close enough alternative when it’s time for you to “scale up”. We have listed some of these best alternatives which will give you a familiar feel to Raspberry Pi but with higher performance and more ruggedness. # ⚓ Olimex_ships_SoM_and_eval_board_based_on_STM32MP1⠀⇛ Olimex has released its first STM32MP1 SoC- based boards: The STMP15X-SOM SoM and the STMP1(A13)-EVB eval board. The eval board functions as a carrier for the STMP15X-SOM or Olimex’s earlier A13-based SoM. Bulgaria-based Olimex, best known for its open spec OLinuXino SBCs, has announced the availability of its first boards based on STMicroelectonics’ STM32MP1 dual-core Arm Cortex-A7/M4 SoC. The STMP15X-SOM is a system-on-module (SoM) offered in variety STM32MP1 SoC flavors and temperature ranges. The STMP1(A13)-EVB is an evaluation board that acts as a carrier for the STM15X-SOM and Olimex’s Allwinner A13 SoM. o § Free, Libre, and Open Source Software⠀➾ # ⚓ 13_Best_Free_Beat_Making_Software_For_Music_Production⠀⇛ This free software is inspired by FL Studio and is an open source DAW created by a group of programming volunteers. And over the years of its existence, LMMS has grown by leaps and bounds in terms of its functionality and user interface. LMMS is now among the best beat making software available out there for music enthusiasts to explore. Digital audio design and production was kept in mind by the makers of this software, which is why there’s no provision to record audio in LMMS. LMMS is known for its free 16 synthesizers that form the cornerstone of its functionality. # ⚓ Stanford’s_New_Open-Source_Software_for_Designing Sustainable_Cities⠀⇛ New technology could help cities around the world improve people’s lives while saving billions of dollars. The free, open-source software developed by the Stanford Natural Capital Project creates maps to visualize the links between nature and human wellbeing. City planners and developers can use the software to visualize where investments in nature, such as parks and marshlands, can maximize benefits to people, like protection from flooding and improved health. “This software helps design cities that are better for both people and nature,” said Anne Guerry, Chief Strategy Officer and Lead Scientist at the Natural Capital Project. “Urban nature is a multitasking benefactor — the trees on your street can lower temperatures so your apartment is cooler on hot summer days. At the same time, they’re soaking up the carbon emissions that cause climate change, creating a free, accessible place to stay healthy through physical activity and just making your city a more pleasant place to be.” # § Web Browsers⠀➾ # ⚓ From_I’m_feeling_lucky_to_I’m_feeling_Brave:_Browser maker_erects_web_search_engine_beta_•_The_Register⠀⇛ Having rebelled against Google’s web hegemony with a privacy-focused browser and a crypto token-based monetization system, Brave Software opened a second competitive front on Tuesday with the beta launch of Brave Search. Brave has managed to attract more than 32 million monthly active users to its alternative browser that’s similar to Google Chrome – being based on its open source Chromium foundation – but is still distant enough on the privacy continuum to avoid being overshadowed. “Brave Search is the industry’s most private search engine, as well as the only independent search engine, giving users the control and confidence they seek in alternatives to big tech,” said Brendan Eich, CEO and co-founder of Brave, in a statement. # § Mozilla⠀➾ # ⚓ Sławomir_Lach:_ProgressUI_with_Firefox integration⠀⇛ You can order your computer to turn of or reboot, when some tasks are done. Currently only Firefox’s download manager is supported. I wrote also some simple programs to demonstrate, how ProgressUI works, but only Firefox is big application integrated with my tool. Integration needs extra extension to be installed. # ⚓ Firefox_Nightly:_These_Weeks_in_Firefox:_Issue 96⠀⇛ # § FSF⠀➾ # § GNU Projects⠀➾ # ⚓ GnuCash_review:_The_best_free_desktop_budgeting software_for_small_business_owners⠀⇛ For small business owners, budgeting is necessary to understand your business’s financial health. While tracking your company’s expenses and income may seem time-consuming and complicated, there are a number of apps and software programs that make it easier for individuals and business owners to understand their finances. With so many different apps on the market, it can be hard to know which one is the best fit for you. Select compared over a dozen options when rating the best free budgeting tools, and we found that the most popular ones have nearly 5 out of 5-star ratings and thousands of customer reviews. We ranked GnuCash as the best desktop budgeting software for small business owners. GnuCash is a free software that uses a double-entry accounting method, making it a good option for small business owners trying to manage invoicing, bill payment and payroll. Below, we review GnuCash to give you all the details on its features, including the tools, perks, safety, pricing, availability and ratings so you can decide if it’s the right choice for managing your money. # § Programming/Development⠀➾ # ⚓ Enrico_Zini:_Transilience_check_mode⠀⇛ This is part of a series of posts on ideas for an ansible-like provisioning system, implemented in Transilience. [...] Unlike Ansible, with Transilience this is actually pretty fast! 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇;)⦈ # § Perl/Raku⠀➾ # ⚓ Perl_Weekly_Challenge_118:_Binary_Palindrome⠀⇛ # ⚓ gfldex:_Being_pragmat-ish⠀⇛ The question was raised if one can provide a custom pragma. As it happens, today I needed just that. API::Discord is a bit chatty. It is outputting debug and status info right to the terminal. Since I got the Discord bot now also being an IRC bot, the clutter got a bit much. My first thought was to wrap note and warn to filter messages out I don’t want. But there is also $*ERR.print in the mix. So I went and meta6 –fork- module=API::Discord. The goal is to use API::Discord::Debug; to change the behaviour of the module. That is what a pragma does. It changes the way how to compiler or the runtime work. I also want two subs to make the whole thing .wrap-able, to allow feeding the debug output into a Supply. # § Rust⠀➾ # ⚓ Rust_Compiler_April_Steering_Cycle⠀⇛ On Friday, 25 June, we will be having a meeting to review a document discussing the incremental compilation fingerprint issue that led to the emergency 1.52.1 release, and the steps the project is taking to prevent future occurrences of similar scenarios. (This date is a change in schedule from its original date that had been discussed in the planning meeting.) * § Leftovers⠀➾ o § Integrity/Availability⠀➾ # § Proprietary⠀➾ # § Pseudo-Open Source⠀➾ # § Privatisation/Privateering⠀➾ # § Linux Foundation⠀➾ # ⚓ Pulling_GitHub_into_the_kernel process [Ed: An attack_on_Linux_by Microsoft]⠀⇛ # ⚓ The_Linux_Foundation_dives_into machine_learning_with_Open_Voice Network,_dataset_licence_launches [Ed: Openwashing and Microsoft boosting using_the_“Linux”_brand]⠀⇛ # § Entrapment (Microsoft GitHub)⠀➾ # ⚓ Now_ready_for_Production:_Linux_IoT_Edge Modules_on_Windows [Ed: Microsoft’s Channel 9 is googlebombing “LINUX” again. Go away, we_know_what_you’re_up_to.]⠀⇛ # § Security⠀➾ # ⚓ A_Review_of_the_Linux_Kernel’s_Release_Signing and_Key_Management_Policies⠀⇛ The Linux Foundation sought a review of the kernel teams’ processes for release signing and for the policies and procedures for the handling of the signing keys. Working with OSTIF, Trail of Bits was selected to lead the project and a two person-week review was conducted. Unlike most OSTIF projects, this review did not cover code but was a policy and process overview to identify potential pain points in the key handling and key signing processes for one of the most critical pieces of infrastructure in the world. As such, there are no CVEs nor CIDs addressing vulnerabilities. Special thank-you’s go out to Greg Kroah-Hartman and Konstantin Ryabitsev for participating in the interviews that helped the reviewers clarify the documentation and setting aside time to discuss the researchers’ findings. Thank you to David A. Wheeler and Mike Dolan at the Linux Foundation for helping to facilitate the project. Thank you to Jim Miller, Mike Martel, Opal Wright, and Cara Pearson for their work in this review and for writing this assessment. And finally, a special thank you to Dan Guido at Trail of Bits for working with us to improve critical open source infrastructure. # ⚓ A_review_of_the_kernel’s_release-signing practices_[LWN.net]⠀⇛ At the behest of the Linux Foundation, a security-oriented review of the kernel project’s release-signing and key-management practices was done; the report from this work has now been published. # ⚓ Sigstore:_A_New_Tool_Wants_to_Save_Open_Source From_Supply_Chain_Attacks_(WIRED)⠀⇛ # ⚓ Email_Bug_Allows_Message_Snooping,_Credential Theft_|_Threatpost⠀⇛ Researchers warn hackers can snoop on email messages by exploiting a bug in the underlying technology used by the majority of email servers that run the Internet Message Access Protocol, commonly referred to as IMAP. The bug, first reported in August 2020 and patched Monday, is tied to the email server software Dovecot, used by over three-quarters of IMAP servers, according to Open Email Survey. # ⚓ What’s_that_hurtling_down_the_Bifröst?_Node- based_network_fun_with_Yggdrasil_0.4⠀⇛ Alexander described v0.4 as a “significant change” and highlighted the improved mobility performance due in the release (useful for nodes that move around or change peerings frequently) as well as opportunistic source routing, which should make for improved connection quality of sessions. Yggdrasil (the cosmic tree of Norse mythology) is a network routing technology that ditches the centralised design of traditional networks in favour of a globe-spanning tree, forming a scalable IPv6 encrypted mesh network, replete with end-to-end encryption of all traffic. A farewell to unwieldy routing tables in favour of something node-based. Version 0.3 is getting a bit long in tooth nowadays, having been originally released back in 2018. Version 0.3.13 arrived at the beginning of 2020. The “all-new protocol implementing an improved routing scheme” of v4.0 therefore represents a significant update. # ⚓ Preparing_for_Yggdrasil_v0.4⠀⇛ In the coming weeks, we will be preparing to release Yggdrasil v0.4. This is a significant change from the v0.3 branch with an all-new protocol implementing an improved routing scheme. # ⚓ Zephyr_OS_Bluetooth_vulnerabilities_left_smart devices_open_to_attack_•_The_Register⠀⇛ Vulnerabilities in the Zephyr real-time operating system’s Bluetooth stack have been identified, leaving a wide variety of Internet of Things devices open to attack – unless upgraded to a patched version of the OS. # ⚓ ‘Set_it_and_forget_it’_attitude_to_open-source software_has_become_a_major_security_problem, says_Veracode_•_The_Register [Ed: Proprietary software is even worse in that regard]⠀⇛ There’s a minefield of security problems bubbling under the surface of modern software, Veracode has claimed in its latest report, thanks to developers pulling third-party open- source libraries into their code bases – then never bothering to update them again. # ⚓ South_Korea’s_nuclear_research_agency_breached by_North_Korea-affiliated_cyberattackers,_says malware_analyst_group⠀⇛ South Korean officials have admitted that government nuclear think tank Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) was hacked in May 2021 by North Korea’s Kimsuky group. The Korean news outlet that broke the story has accused KAERI of a cover-up. Malware analyst group IssueMakersLab said in a report that it detected an attack on KAERI on May 14th. The attack saw incoming heat from 13 internet addresses, of which one was traceable to Kimsuky. # ⚓ Google_is_trying_to_overhaul_the_Bluetooth stack_on_your_Chromebook…_again⠀⇛ The Bluetooth story on Chromebooks is… weird. Wireless peripherals have been experiencing frequent stability problems for years now, multiple Chromebooks shipped with a buggy Bluetooth controller from Intel, and Google backpedaled on its ambitious efforts to rebuild Bluetooth from scratch to ‘fix’ its myriad issues. It’s hard to pin down what happened exactly, but on the bright side, Google has managed to resolve most of its Bluetooth issues via software updates — even adding some goodies along the way. It seems Google hasn’t given up on its plans for a broader Bluetooth overhaul, and it’s now trying again with another Bluetooth stack. # ⚓ Zero-day_vulnerabilities_in_Pling_leave_Linux marketplaces_open_to_RCE,_supply_chain_attacks⠀⇛ A pair of serious zero-day vulnerabilities in Opendesktop’s Pling could result in drive-by remote code execution (RCE) and supply chain attacks against Linux marketplaces based on the platform. # § Privacy/Surveillance⠀➾ # ⚓ APNIC_left_a_dump_from_its_Whois_SQL database_in_a_public_Google_Cloud_bucket_• The_Register⠀⇛ The Asia Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC), the internet registry for the region, has admitted it left at least a portion of its Whois SQL database, which contains sensitive information, facing the public internet for three months. Its Deputy Director General Sanjaya revealed details of the configuration blunder late last week. He explained the error occurred when staff were performing maintenance work on APNIC’s Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) service, which, ironically, is set to replace Whois. # ⚓ Final_guidance_on_Schrems_II_ruling:_Data from_EU_could_be_held_up_if_a_third_country lets_authorities_access_it_•_The_Register⠀⇛ The European Data Protection Board (EDPB) has finalised its guidance to businesses in how they should proceed following the Schrems II ruling which struck down the Privacy Shield data- sharing arrangement between the EU and the US. In its final version of the recommendations [PDF] on supplementary measures to accommodate the ruling, the EDPB said the transfer of data could be impinged on if legislation in a third country allows authorities to access data transferred from the EU, even without the importer’s intervention. # ⚓ Ex-NSA_bigwig_Chris_Inglis_appointed America’s_national_cyber_director_by Senate⠀⇛ # ⚓ UK_health_secretary_Matt_Hancock_follows delay_to_GP_data_grab_with_campaign_called ‘Data_saves_lives’⠀⇛ Following UK government’s U-turn on the deadline for grabbing GP patient data, under-fire Health Secretary Matt Hancock is launching a policy paper to convince the public of the benefits of sharing their medical data. Under the headline “Data saves lives”, the Department for Health and Social Care is publicising a raft of planned initiatives and apparent progress in the face of criticism over its handling of General Practice Data for Planning and Research (GPDPR) programme. # ⚓ UK_set_for_‘adequacy’_status_on_data sharing_with_EU,_but_it_all_depends_on_how much_post-Brexit_law_diverges_•_The Register⠀⇛ The European Union has formally voted for proposals to give the UK “adequate” status in its data protection laws, allowing data sharing to continue in the post- Brexit world. But the move could prove temporary if the UK were to move too far from the principles of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in its ambition to be a global tech juggernaut. Voting through the draft “Commission Implementing Decisions on the adequate protection of personal data by the United Kingdom”, the Committee on the Protection of Individuals with Regard to the Processing of Personal Data adopted the proposals for data sharing. o § Digital Restrictions (DRM)⠀➾ # ⚓ Apple_scrambles_to_quash_iOS_app_sideloading_demands_with ‘think_of_the_children’_defense⠀⇛ Apple, fearing regulators will force it to allow people to sideload whatever apps they like on their own iOS devices, has published a paper arguing about the importance of its oversight. The iGiant also sent a letter to US lawmakers warning of supposed harm if its gatekeeping is disallowed. The letter is directed at members of the House Judiciary Committee and its Antitrust Subcommittee, who on Wednesday held a markup hearing to amend and vote on the advancement of six antitrust bills intended to rein in Big Tech. o § Monopolies⠀➾ # § Patents⠀➾ # ⚓ Facebook_Filed_a_Patent_For_an_AR_Hat,_The_Latest_in its_Evolving_AR_Push⠀⇛ Forget AR glasses, according to a new patent registered by Facebook, The Social Network is developing an AR hat, which would expand the immersion of the device, and facilitate more advanced AR experiences within an isolated, standalone unit. # ⚓ Upcoming_conference:_Mannheim_IP_Forum_on_July_2_— top-notch_roster_of_speakers_from_judiciary_and academia⠀⇛ For those interested in the world’s most popular patent jurisdiction, I have a warm recommendation: on next week’s Friday (July 2, 2021), the Interdisciplinary Center for Intellectual Property (in German “Interdisziplinäres Zentrum für Geistiges Eigentum” (IZG)) will hold its annual conference at Mannheim Castle, just across the street from the Mannheim Regional Court–one of the courts that almost everyone involved with patent litigation has already been to. You can find the conference program on the IZG’s homepage. If you don’t want to settle for a simple HTML layout, a flashier option exists: the conference program flyer (PDF). You can attend physically or over the Internet, and the registration form is here, but be aware that the conference will be held in German. I’m going to report on parts of it. The primary organizer is Professor Lea Tochtermann. The first speaker–sort of a keynoter–will be Professor Peter Meier-Beeck, the Presiding Judge of an antitrust- specialized “senate” (division) of the Federal Court of Justice and previously a patent judge. He’ll discuss his court’s Sisvel v. Haier case law, which was the final one of the topics addressed by the podcast I published on Monday. One of my podcast panelists, patent litigator Dr. Christof Augenstein of Kather Augenstein, is also going to be among the Mannheim speakers next week. He’ll discuss the protection of confidential business information with a particular focus on standard-essential patent (SEP) enforcement. # ⚓ Meade_J_finds_Interface_Circuit_patent_invalid_– reminding_parties_not_to_be_resistant_during_the_pre- action_stage⠀⇛ As many readers will already know, two new full-time Patents Judges have been appointed to the English Court in the last 9 months – Meade and Mellor JJ. Despite the challenges that the global pandemic has brought, the English Patents Court has coped remarkably well and there has been no let-up in the progress of cases to trial or in the determination of case management issues. It came as no surprise to those who worked with Meade and Mellor JJ prior to their elevation to the bench that both individuals have adjusted well to their new roles. Despite the busy workload of the Patents Court, trials and other hearings are going ahead in a very similar way to the pre-pandemic position and, despite their busy workloads, the Judges are handing down timely and well-reasoned decisions. [...] One interesting aspect of the law in the UK concerning the common general knowledge is the so-called “mindset” of the skilled person or team. The relevant law stems essentially from the celebrated observations of HHJ Fysh QC in Dyson v Hoover ([2001] RPC 26) that the vacuum cleaner designing community was “functionally deaf and blind to any technology which did not involve a replacement bag”. It is often argued by a patentee that the relevant community involved in a given technical field had a prejudice against a particular developmental route and that the patentee made a technical advance by thinking outside of the box in this respect. Meade J took the opportunity in his judgment to remind readers that this is a high hurdle and that the test is usually that should be shown to be a prevalence in the community that something must or should not be done. [...] For many years English patent law has recognised a ground of insufficiency that the skilled person cannot determine the scope of the claim. This was originally called “ambiguity insufficiency” but was recently rebadged as “uncertainty insufficiency” by the Court of Appeal in Anan Kasei v Neo [2019] EWCA Civ 1646. In rebadging the concept, the Court of Appeal confirmed that a fuzzy boundary was not enough to succeed on this ground but nor would such an allegation fail if there was something within the claim was clear. Here Meade J found that this was not a situation where the patentee had “used nonsense language or set the boundary of the claim in terms of a comparison with something that cannot be identified.” This suggests that the Judge considers that the hurdle for the challenger to overcome in order to prove uncertainty insufficiency is a high one. # ⚓ Arthrex_Is_Here—What_Will_It_Mean?⠀⇛ Yesterday, the Supreme Court handed down its much-awaited decision—at least, much-awaited by people who care about patents and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB)—in the consolidated U.S. v Arthrex, Arthrex v. Smith & Nephew, and Smith & Nephew v. Arthrex cases. And while the multiple parties and multiple opinions might look complicated, it’s actually a pretty simple opinion when it comes to the patent world. (It might have wider-ranging impacts in other areas of law.) [...] In the second portion of the primary opinion, Section III, Justice Roberts is again joined by Justices Alito, Kavanaugh, and Barrett. However, Justice Gorsuch does not join this section of the opinion. Here, having identified a Constitutional problem, the plurality resolves the problem by finding a minimal remedy. Justice Roberts notes that in “every respect save the insulation of their decisions from review within the Executive Branch, APJs appear to be inferior officers—an understanding consistent with their appointment in a manner permissible for inferior but not principal officers.” Based on that Justice Roberts determines that Congress intended for them to be inferior officers and that, given the powers assigned the Director overall, the most consistent remedy is to provide the Directorial review required for the APJs’ exercise of power to be Constitutionally permissible. There’s four votes in this portion of the opinion for the remedy of allowing the Director to directly review inter partes review (IPR) decisions. But a partial dissent agrees with the proposed remedy, as described below. [...] So, summing it all up? Five Justices found the appointment scheme for PTAB judges to be Constitutionally impermissible. But seven Justices found the remedy—striking the three- judge requirement to the extent required to permit Directorial review of IPR decisions—to be the correct remedy. And only Justice Gorsuch would have set aside the IPR system entirely. IPR appears to be here to stay, with at most minor changes. What will it mean in practice? Well, as CCIA’s amicus brief noted, the Director already had tremendous power in practice to affect the outcome of individual cases. Enough power that the Chair and Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee’s IP Subcommittee asked the GAO to investigate whether that power had been abused. Given that power, it seems unlikely that there will be a significant number of cases receiving formal Directorial review that weren’t already subject to it in practice. After two years of Arthrex working its way through the courts, the biggest end result might just be that now the Director will have to be on record when they make changes, rather than doing it behind the scenes. And that, as Senator Leahy noted, makes the choice of the next Director all the more important. That means a Director who will enforce the law as written, not his personal preferences. As Senator Leahy stated, “ [w]hether an invention is patentable should not depend on who is President or who is head of the PTO.” # ⚓ How_the_doctrine_of_equivalents_impacts_patent protection_in_Europe [Ed: This whole nonsense about "fragmented way" is an attempt to expand the scope of patents and litigation to better suit lawyers and monopolists, at the expense of everybody else (e.e. UPC)]⠀⇛ Innovators experience different scopes of patent protection, and generic manufacturers different freedom to develop similar products, as a consequence of the fragmented way an important concept in patent law is applied across Europe. The ‘doctrine of equivalents’ can help patent owners achieve meaningful protection to stop products which differ immaterially to their protected original. Conversely, the application of the doctrine can make it harder for others to navigate patents with any certainty. In Europe, the doctrine of equivalents derives from long-standing case law developed by national courts and, since 2001, the Protocol on the Implementation of Article 69 of the European Patent Convention (EPC). However, national courts have taken different approaches to the doctrine of equivalents, causing a degree of uncertainty for businesses. New guidelines recently introduced by the European Patent Office (EPO) also have potential to impact on claims of patent infringement on the basis of the doctrine. # ⚓ Indian-American_Sumita_Mitra_Wins_European_Inventor Award_2021⠀⇛ Indian-American chemist Sumita Mitra has won the European Inventor Award 2021 in the ‘Non- EPO countries’ category. # ⚓ Indian-American_Chemist_Sumita_Mitra_Honoured_With Prestigious_European_Inventor_Award [Ed: Yet_more_paid- for_EPO_puff_pieces,_designed_partly_to_distract_from EPO_crimes_and_corruption]⠀⇛ # ⚓ Protecting_inventions_in_Africa [Ed: Trying to sell a Western protectionist system (protecting the colonisers, the occupiers) to people who don't need it]⠀⇛ When it comes to patenting inventions in Africa, apart from direct filings in the country of interest using the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, applicants can choose between two regional offices: the Organisation Africaine de la Propriété Intellectuelle (OAPI) and/or the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO). The filing of a patent application in a regional office has the advantage of encompassing several countries in a single application. However, in a continent with two different regional offices, some points should be considered before choosing one of them to protect your invention. OAPI and ARIPO do not share common member states, so the first point to be considered by applicants when electing a regional office to file a patent application is the territory where they wish to protect and explore their inventions. # ⚓ Oral_proceedings_before_the_EPO_only_on_Zoom [Ed: EPO proudly_declares_that_it_is_breaking_the_law_until further_notice.]⠀⇛ Zoom has proven to be a reliable and secure videoconference platform for conducting oral proceedings (OPs). This is confirmed by the positive experiences gained over the last months from OPs held via this platform, in appeal, opposition (entirely so since January) and in examination (dozens conducted since May). The EPO is grateful to those applicants and representatives who kindly agreed to the ad hoc conversion of their examination OPs to Zoom as part of our trial this spring. With effect from 1 October 2021, all OPs before the Receiving Section, the Legal Division and the Examining Divisions will thus be held exclusively by Zoom. The EPO has decided to decommission Skype for Business as of 1 October 2021. Any OPs already scheduled to take place via Skype for Business will thus be converted to Zoom as of that date. Users are therefore encouraged to take all necessary steps to adapt their videoconferencing tools accordingly, as this platform may also be used for personal consultations. # ⚓ German_patent_judges_predict_few_changes_to_automatic injunction [Ed: Patent law in Germany seems_to_be shaped_by_special_interests,_not_ordinary_Germans_with their_national_or_personal_benefit_in_mind]⠀⇛ According to Berlin’s political insiders, seldom has a new law in Germany seen so much lobbying and outside influence. Especially, they say, one which is so relevant to business. Finally, last week, the German Bundestag approved the new patent law. But in the end, many wonder if such focus was worth the effort. Over the past three years, the §139 reform – which sets out the automatic injunction in German patent proceedings – has inspired particular passion in stakeholders. It is a central pillar of the German patent procedure, which patent owners globally consider very attractive. Proponents of the reform left no stone unturned in their efforts to soften the automatic injunction. Opponents tried to prevent this by all-political means. Above all, supporters included automobile and telecommunications industries. On the other hand, SEP holders such as Ericsson, Nokia and large parts of German industry – but also many patent judges – claimed that everything should remain the same. # ⚓ FOSS_Patents:_German_patent_judges_dispel_any_doubts that_might_have_existed:_injunctive_relief_continues_to be_readily_available_to_prevailing_patentees⠀⇛ An international IP-specialized publication that I’ve mentioned on a variety of more positive occasions was totally off-base with the following headline on June 11: “Germany’s automatic injunction regime for patent cases looks set to end” That headline is just as wrong as Dewey Defeats Truman was back in the day. There was a procedural juncture last September when I thought the pendulum had swung against the automatic patent injunction regime, but that impression didn’t last long. By the time the German federal parliament held its final vote, we were long past the point at which one could doubt what the impact of the amended injunction statute (§ 139 PatG) would be. I’ve never seen a reporter from that publication in or near a German courtroom. That may explain this misconception. To be fair, the second sentence below the headline at least nuanced the fundamental misconception by noting that “[this] does not mean that major changes in practical terms are guaranteed.” That portrayal of the situation is not spot-on either, but a lot closer to accuracy than the headline. # ⚓ Transport_Zone_Update:_NPE_litigation_rate_has_nearly doubled_since_2019 [Ed: They ought to say patent trolls rather than "NPE"]⠀⇛ Since 2019, NPE-related Transport litigation has jumped from 41% to 77% overall in this zone. While the overall zone litigation is estimated to slightly decrease from 2020, NPE-related litigation has increased by 6% to 77%, reaching 2015 and 2016 levels. # ⚓ Former_Marks_&_Clerk_partners_set_up_new_IP_firm [Ed: Corrupt firm Marks & Clerk (yes, lawsuits over their corruption was successful) seems to be losing staff]⠀⇛ Former Marks & Clerk patent attorneys Stephen Blake (46) and Douglas Rankin (41) have founded their own venture, Matter IP. With a mixture of expertise between them, including hi-tech patents and oil and gas technology, the two-person team will expand its employee base over the coming year. Stephen Blake began his career as an avionics engineer in the Royal Air Force, before completing a PhD in electronic engineering. Following this, he joined patent attorney firm Potter Clarkson, before moving to Page White & Farrer. He later joined Murgitroyd & Company. In 2011, Blake joined Marks & Clerk as a patent attorney, where the firm made him partner in 2015. During this time, Blake was a member of council of the European Patent Institute, as well as the managing partner of Marks & Clerk’s Birmingham office. Douglas Rankin began his career in-house as a product designer at Motorola. In 2009, Rankin joined Marks & Clerk as a patent attorney in its Aberdeen office, where his role included expanding this offering in Scotland. During their time at the firm, both Blake and Rankin were members on Marks & Clerk’s UK board. [...] The departure of Stephen Blake and Douglas Rankin from Marks & Clerk comes as former principle associate Jo Bradley also leaves to join Kilburn & Strode. At the latter UK patent attorney firm, which Bradley has joined as partner, she will focus on life sciences and chemistry. Marks & Clerk’s UK managing partner, Simon Mounteney, says, “Our current practice is unaffected by these departures and our clients have not been impacted.” # ⚓ UV_(non)protection:_Commentary_on_EPO_decision_T 2275/18 [Ed: Profoundly corrupt 'law' firm Marks & Clerk (they break the law) won't tell you that those courts are stacked and controlled by those whom they rule on]⠀⇛ We all know that it is important to protect our skin from the sun, but can we obtain protection for our suncream? The recently published decision T 2275/18 from the European Patent Office considers the extent to which a method of using a composition that provides UV protection can be patentable. It is well established that methods of treatment by surgery or therapy are excluded from patentability in Europe. In this decision, the Board of Appeal consider whether a method of applying a composition that provides UV protection is always inherently therapeutic and therefore not patentable according to Article 53(c) EPC. The case concerns an appeal filed by an opponent against a decision of the opposition division to reject claim 14 of the main request of EP2934458. The patent in question relates to an active mixture containing butyl methoxydibenzoylmethane (BMDM), a known UVA screening agent. # ⚓ Supreme_Court_2021 [Ed: Patent litigation firms' operative Dennis Crouch hoping to somehow salvage something out of SCOTUS in pursuit of more fake patents, i.e. frivolous litigation]⠀⇛ We have one remaining Supreme Court patent case this term: Minerva Surgical Inc. v. Hologic Inc. (Supreme Court 2021) on whether the court will maintain the doctrine of assignor estoppel. # § Software Patents⠀➾ # ⚓ GE_Video_Compression_reexamination_request granted⠀⇛ On June 21, 2021, the USPTO granted Unified’s request, finding substantial new questions of patentability on all challenged claims of U.S. Patent 6,795,583 owned by GE Video Compression LLC (GEVC). The ‘583 patent is purportedly essential to the H.265 and AV1 standards and is part of the HEVC Advance patent pool as well as SISVEL’s video codec patent pool. # ⚓ IP5_focus_co-operation_on_initiatives_that benefit_users [Ed: EPO once again misuses buzzwords like "hey hi" to promote software patents worldwide. EPO needs to be stopped.]⠀⇛ The heads of the world’s five largest intellectual property offices (IP5) met virtually on 23 June for their 14th annual meeting. They took stock of major achievements in their co- operation initiatives over the past year and noted the significance of aligning practices to meet the needs of users, especially with a view to boosting economic recovery in the wake of the pandemic. # ⚓ Parus_Files_Second_Patent_Lawsuit_Against Google_for_Infringement_of_its_Proprietary_Voice- Browsing_and_Device_Control_Technology⠀⇛ # ⚓ Parus_Files_Patent_Lawsuit_Against_Microsoft for_Infringement_of_its_Proprietary_Voice- Browsing_and_Device_Control_Technology⠀⇛ # § Trademarks⠀➾ # ⚓ Khadi_v_Khadi_–_Khadi’s_Plight_in_the_EUIPO [Ed: EUIPO only_works_for_friends,_not_for_ordinary people]⠀⇛ Khadi is a cultural symbol and provides identity to Indian goods in the international market. # § Copyrights⠀➾ # ⚓ EU_court_rules_in_Telenet_copyright_case:_ISPs_can_be forced_to_hand_over_some_customer_data_use_details⠀⇛ Europe’s top court has ruled ISPs can be forced to hand over the details of customers who are alleged to have downloaded material illegally online – but only if they meet certain criteria. That’s the latest judgement in another case involving Cyprus-based Mircom International Content Management Consulting, and Belgian ISP Telenet. The complex case – which involves a number of legal arguments – appears to pivot on the balance between enforcement of IP rights and the data protection of the individuals accused of infringing them. ⠀⠀⠀⣀⣀⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣀⣀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⣀⣶⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣶⣀⠀ ⣀⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣀ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿ ⠛⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠛ ⠀⠛⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠛⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠛⠛⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠛⠛⠀⠀⠀ ䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 2217 ╒═══════════════════ 𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐋𝐄 ═════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ (ℹ) Images, hyperlinks and comments at http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/irc-log-220621/#comments Gemini version at gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2021/06/23/irc-log-220621/ ⠀⌧ █▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁ 06.23.21⠀▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█ ⌧ ✐ IRC_Proceedings:_Tuesday,_June_22,_2021⠀✐ Posted in IRC_Logs at 2:45 am by Needs Sunlight 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴_🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽_⦇H 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴_🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽_⦇HTML5_logs⦈_ #techrights_log_as_HTML5 #boycottnovell_log_as_HTML5 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴_🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽_⦇H 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴_🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽_⦇HTML5_logs⦈_ #boycottnovell-social_log_as_HTML5 #techbytes_log_as_HTML5 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴_🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽_⦇t 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴_🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽_⦇text_logs⦈_ #techrights_log_as_text #boycottnovell_log_as_text 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴_🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽_⦇t 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴_🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽_⦇text_logs⦈_ #boycottnovell-social_log_as_text #techbytes_log_as_text Enter_the_IRC_channels_now =============================================================================== § IPFS Mirrors⠀➾ CID Description Object type IRC log for  QmaRCUXVp62JtgK37juaiXi9WiEQspVq9iPUQ9gnLjsiM9 #boycottnovell 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇HTML5 logs⦈ (full IRC log as HTML) IRC log for #boycottnovell  QmaGuAUNT2JfWHwEYPfZSh87jvepgcXXhU5RKT78HkdC75 (full IRC log 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇text logs⦈ as plain/ASCII text) IRC log for #boycottnovell-  QmUrxso3GQrttuZa5HNXcZdMLkQYDFtSTS2vjBcVSN41gd social 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇HTML5 logs⦈ (full IRC log as HTML) IRC log for #boycottnovell-  QmfHPVeGKVUCJ7NP1So1Fi8LvZrVure43nRmzeUZd6penE social 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇text logs⦈ (full IRC log as plain/ASCII text) IRC log for  QmcQyVVe8do2si23BhPYoScGyPREqkwo762cmehZkMj6BX #techbytes 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇HTML5 logs⦈ (full IRC log as HTML) IRC log for #techbytes  QmRud4gUhpSfXMnx3cfpoEPL7prmaGtYiUpQofAjnHh99M (full IRC log 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇text logs⦈ as plain/ASCII text) IRC log for  QmcEqCHHrEZRx1PVmG4A8FpvHoGea3Sy385nYAi1pRbB8R #techrights 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇HTML5 logs⦈ (full IRC log as HTML) IRC log for #techrights  QmWjJJyCeEZGRC45BK9GmbTCFSzs8EQcpCtK8CnebrSHxw (full IRC log 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇text logs⦈ as plain/ASCII text) 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇IPFS logo⦈ § Bulletin for Yesterday⠀➾ Local_copy | CID (IPFS): QmTuxFtDwey5L4ibxTM85bAhdiFUVzq9RQwjk5UqDBCmxH ䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 2331 ╒═══════════════════ 𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐋𝐄 ═════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ (ℹ) Images, hyperlinks and comments at http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/linux-foundation-and-linux-brand/#comments Gemini version at gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2021/06/23/linux-foundation-and-linux-brand/ ⠀⌧ █▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁ 06.23.21⠀▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█ ⌧ ✐ Time_for_Linus_Torvalds_to_Enforce_and_Protect_His_Brand_From_Misuse_by_His Employer,_the_So-called_‘Linux’_Foundation⠀✐ Posted in Deception, GNU/Linux, Kernel, Marketing, Microsoft, OSDL at 2:43 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz Video_download_link http://techrights.org/videos/linux-foundation-entryism.webm Summary: The_gross_misuse_or_misapplication_of_the_brand_"Linux" is being highlighted in this video about the latest examples. It has gone too far; whether Linus Torvalds wishes to rock the boat that’s the so-called ‘Linux’ Foundation is totally up to him, but it might help if people contact him directly, especially longtime users and proponents of GNU/Linux. THE latest_Daily_Links contained a bunch of Linux_Foundation fluff, adding to last_night's_openwashing_garbage. The so-called ‘Linux’ Foundation is basically promoting Microsoft and listening devices, using the brand (or trademark) “Linux”. This is really bad. Under an hour ago (whilst uploading the video above) we also found “Linux_Foundation_Launches_Open_Voice_Network_to_Set_Voice Tech_Standards” (openwashing of surveillance and Microsoft). This is what people see then they search for “Linux” news, along with this_marketing_spam in PRNewswire. That was a few hours ago. It seems clear that the brand “Linux” is being co-opted. The video above shows another_new_example_of_this (the Foundation trying_to_change_its_business_model_because_of_the_pandemic), deals with this_new_pair of puff_pieces (antithetical to “Linux” as per the thing many of us advocates promoted for decades), and urges people to contact Linus Torvalds at torvalds@linuxfoundation.org (it’s still_a_valid_address) and bring such concerns to his attention. He_still_has_the_relevant_trademarks and he can likely do something about it (if so he wishes). █ ䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 2380 ╒═══════════════════ 𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐋𝐄 ═════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ (ℹ) Images, hyperlinks and comments at http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/netsurf-review/#comments Gemini version at gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2021/06/23/netsurf-review/ ⠀⌧ █▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁ 06.23.21⠀▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█ ⌧ ✐ How_to_Install_and_Then_Use_NetSurf_as_a_Web_Browser_for_the_User-Centric Web,_Not_‘GAFAMNet’⠀✐ Posted in Free/Libre_Software at 10:55 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz Video_download_link http://techrights.org/videos/installing-netsurf.webm Summary: Today we take a quick look at what it’s like to actually install NetSurf (some distros, like some Xfce-based ones, are bundled with it); we then take it for a spin Some months ago I began using NetSurf more and more. I fell in love. Suddenly the memory footprint of the Web browser just fell (decreased very sharply, almost tenfold), sites that I really needed still worked mostly fine, and NetSurf rarely bothered me with updates, crashes, and all sorts of other nuisance. “So many operating systems are supported.”Today, months later, I decided to do a quick and informal review, knowing that most people never even heard about NetSurf. It’s grossly underrated. As it turns out, installing it isn’t as simple as one might hope. I ended up surprised by the need to get Flatpak files (here it is in_Flathub). Nevertheless, eventually NetSurf installed OK: flatpak install flathub org.netsurf_browser.NetSurf Looking for matches… Required runtime for org.netsurf_browser.NetSurf/x86_64/stable (runtime/org.freedesktop.Platform/x86_64/19.08) found in remote flathub Do you want to install it? [Y/n]: Y org.netsurf_browser.NetSurf permissions: ipc network fallback-x11 wayland x11 file access [1] [1] xdg-download ID Arch Branch Remote Download 1. [✓] org.freedesktop.Platform x86_64 19.08 flathub 189.0 MB / 238.5 MB 2. [✓] org.freedesktop.Platform.GL.default x86_64 19.08 flathub 89.1 MB / 89.1 MB 3. [✓] org.freedesktop.Platform.Locale x86_64 19.08 flathub 16.7 kB / 318.3 MB 4. [✓] org.freedesktop.Platform.VAAPI.Intel x86_64 19.08 flathub 8.7 MB / 8.7 MB 5. [✓] org.netsurf_browser.NetSurf x86_64 stable flathub 2.3 MB / 2.3 MB Installation complete. One can then run: flatpak run org.netsurf_browser.NetSurf And off we go, I carried on recording after that: Video_download_link http://techrights.org/videos/using-netsurf.webm Details about download of the software can be found here. So many operating systems are supported. █ ䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 2471 ╒═══════════════════ 𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐋𝐄 ═════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ (ℹ) Images, hyperlinks and comments at http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/openwashing-by-lf/#comments Gemini version at gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2021/06/23/openwashing-by-lf/ ⠀⌧ █▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁ 06.23.21⠀▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█ ⌧ ✐ Links_23/6/2021:_WordPress_5.8_Beta_3_and_More_Openwashing_by_LF⠀✐ Posted in News_Roundup at 12:11 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇GNOME bluefish⦈ § Contents⠀➾ * GNU/Linux o Distributions o Devices/Embedded * Free_Software/Open_Source * Leftovers * § GNU/Linux⠀➾ o § Audiocasts/Shows⠀➾ # ⚓ LHS_Episode_#417:_The_Gang’s_All_Here⠀⇛ Hello and welcome to Episode 417 of Linux in the Ham Shack. In this episode, the hosts are all gathered together in one place for the recording for the first time. They cover Field Day, upcoming ARRL elections, SSTV from the ISS, the death of Freenode, the philosophy of Open Source, WSJT-X and much more. Thanks for listening and have a great week! # ⚓ DistroTube_Is_Wrong_About_Word_Processors!⠀⇛ Recently Distrotube made a video about why word processors are evil, this video was full of really odd arguments as well as some things that were just flat out wrong so I felt like I needed to correct a lot of the points he made. # ⚓ Minimalist,_open_source,_encrypted_Google_Photos_&_Google Docs_alternative?_We’ll_see_about_that!⠀⇛ Today, we’re going to take a look at a service that ticks a lot of my boxes for online storage: privacy-focused, encrypted, open source, and very, very minimalist. Let’s take a look at Cryptee! # ⚓ Taking_Ubuntu_To_The_Next_Level⠀⇛ In this lengthy video, I go over some of the changes I would make with Ubuntu (with GNOME) if I were using it as my daily driver. I don’t make drastic changes like swapping out the desktop environment. I just tweak some of the things that are already there. # ⚓ The_Best_of_Both_OSs_|_LINUX_Unplugged_411⠀⇛ Is it possible to have Arch’s best feature on other Linux distros? We attempt it and report our findings. Plus our reaction to NVIDIA’s beta Wayland support–is this the milestone we’ve been waiting for? o § Kernel Space⠀➾ # ⚓ A_study_of_the_Linux_kernel_PCI_subsystem_with_QEMU⠀⇛ The Linux PCI subsystem is one of the most significant subsystems of the Linux kernel. In this article, we introduce the usage of QEMU to emulate different PCI/PCIe configurations to help study the Linux PCI subsystem. This ability facilitates Linux administrators or developers, to study, debug and develop the Linux kernel, as it is much easier to customize the PCI/PCIe configuration with QEMU. For instance, in conjunction with SeaBIOS source code, it will be much easier to study PCI initialization and the probing process. In addition, it is also considerably faster to reboot a QEMU/KVM virtual machine compared to rebooting a baremetal server. For all examples in this article the KVM virtual machine is running Oracle Linux 8, the virtual machine kernel version is 5.10.0, and the QEMU version is 5.2.0. All examples run the boot disk (ol8.qcow2) as default IDE. Since the objective of this article is to study PCI/PCIe, we use virtio-scsi-pci HBA as an example and will not attach any SCSI LUN to the HBA. Please refer to our prior blog article for how to attach an SCSI LUN to virtio-scsi-pci HBA. The article focuses on the usage of QEMU with PCI/ PCIe. It does not cover any prerequisite knowledge on PCI/PCIe specifications. o § Intel⠀➾ # ⚓ Intel_Announces_New_Leadership_Roles,_Business_Unit_Changes [Ed: Well, Intel_is_collapsing] ⠀⇛ Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger continues working on restructuring the company and today announced some new leadership as well as business unit changes. # ⚓ Intel’s_Latest_CPU_Microcode_Update_Isn’t_All_That_Scary⠀⇛ While in the past we have seen Intel CPU microcode updates lead to measurable performance differences on multiple occasions, this month’s CPU microcode update doesn’t end up being all that concerning for real-world performance. Two weeks ago Intel published new CPU microcode with mitigations for a few new processor vulnerabilities. As usual, I ran benchmarks testing the new microcode against prior revisions to see if these CPU vulnerability mitigations led to any measurable performance hit. # ⚓ Intel_Lands_More_Open-Source_Vulkan_Driver_Changes_For_Ray- Tracing_–_Phoronix⠀⇛ Even though Vulkan ray-tracing support on Intel graphics hardware isn’t coming until Xe HPG avaiability, Intel’s Linux graphics driver developers have been preparing since last year. In preparation for the Xe HPG launch, Intel’s open- source talent have for many months already been preparing the Vulkan ray-tracing functionality wither another batch of code being merged today. Last year Intel began with the compiler-side work around ray-tracing and that has continued with other ray-tracing related prerequisites for their “ANV” Vulkan Linux driver. o § Applications⠀➾ # ⚓ Open_Source_3D_CAD_Software_for_GNU_Linux_for_3D_Printer Models⠀⇛ OpenSCAD is a software for creating solid 3D CAD objects. It is free software and available for Linux/UNIX, MS Windows and Mac OS X. Unlike most free software for creating 3D models (such as the famous application Blender), OpenSCAD focuses on the CAD aspects rather than the artistic aspects of 3D modeling. Thus this might be the application you are looking for when you are planning to create 3D models of machine parts but probably not the tool for creating computer- animated movies. OpenSCAD is not an interactive modeler. Instead it is more like a 3D-compiler that reads a script file that describes the object and renders the 3D model from this script file (see examples below). This gives you, the designer, complete control over the modeling process and enables you to easily change any step in the modeling process or make designs that are defined by configurable parameters. o § Instructionals/Technical⠀➾ # ⚓ How_to_install_LeoCAD_on_Deepin_20.2⠀⇛ In this video, we are looking at how to install LeoCAD on Deepin 20.2. # ⚓ Creating_an_app_with_QML:_a_heater_control⠀⇛ Last week I took the ICS course “Building an Embedded Application with Qt” and now it’s time to put the gained knowledge into action. I decided to create an application to (simulate?) a heater control. Why? Because I have a very basic one at home, and I always dreamed of getting something better. So time to implement it. # ⚓ Lisandro_Damián_Nicanor_Pérez_Meyer:_Firsts_steps_into QML⠀⇛ After years of using and maintaining Qt there was a piece of the SDK that I never got to use as a developer: QML. Thanks to ICS I’ve took the free (in the sense of cost) QML Programming — Fundamentals and Beyond. It consists of seven sessions, which can be easily done in a few days. I did them all in 4 days, but with enough time available you can do them even faster. Of course some previous knowledge of Qt comes handy. # ⚓ DMIDecode_Command_Guide_with_Examples⠀⇛ Finding information related to BIOS, CPU, or System Serial Number is easy if you are a windows user. But for Linux users, the story is a little bit different than the Windows user. If you are using Linux daily like me, then we have something more advanced and powerful tool. But before that, let me tell you a short story. Last night, I suddenly got some issues in my system, and after trying to resolve it on my own for a while in the end, I contacted the manufacturer’s support team. # ⚓ Wielding_Chef_for_system_automation_in_Linux_–_Linux Concept⠀⇛ The last automation framework we will explore is Chef. Chef is a slightly more hands-on and development-oriented automation framework than the previous ones, but powerful nonetheless. It has commercial backing by the similarly named company Chef. # ⚓ 13_Important_Privacy_and_Security_Settings_in_Ubuntu Linux⠀⇛ Everybody should be concerned about their privacy and security in this day and age. It is a common misconception that if you are running Linux you do not need to concern yourselves with privacy and security issues. Every operating system has risks and vulnerabilities that can be exploited and leave you exposed. In this article, you will learn about best practices that you can follow to avoid privacy risks and leaks. # ⚓ How_To_Record_the_Screen_with_OBS⠀⇛ This tutorial will show you how to record both your screen and audio with OBS Studio and save the file on your hard drive. Since the software is compatible with multiple operating systems, we included step-by-step instructions for each one. Keep reading to learn more about the fantastic free tool and its various screen recording settings. How to Record Screen With OBS? Since it’s open-source software, OBS Studio is entirely free for download. As mentioned, the program is compatible with different operating systems, including Windows, Linux, and Mac. It’s an advanced tool that offers a wide range of customizing options. Also, OBS automatically saves the recorded files in a folder of your choice. # ⚓ “Firstname_Lastname”_to_“Lastname,_Firstname”,_with complications⠀⇛ This particular reformatting task is one I’ve seen celebrated as easy-peasy with AWK. Do you want “Firstname Lastname” made into “Lastname, Firstname”? No problem… # ⚓ Linux_101:_How_to_clean_the_DNF_and_APT_caches_– TechRepublic⠀⇛ Both DNF and APT (the package managers for Red Hat and Ubuntu-based Linux distributions) store cached information to ensure the process of installing software is much faster and reliable. With these caches in place, neither package manager has to download the information every time you attempt to update, upgrade or install software. But, there are times when that cache information can become outdated or corrupted. When that happens, you might find DNF of APT doesn’t function properly. What do you do? You clean the cache, which will delete all of that information so you have a clean slate. # ⚓ Install_Vivaldi_Browser_for_Linux_Distros_–_Linux_Shout⠀⇛ One of the nice firefox and Google chrome alternative for Linux is Vivaldi Browser. Lightspeed, integrated email client, multiple layout choices are some popular features of it. Here we will learn how to install the Vivaldi browser on Linux distros such as Debian, Ubuntu, Pop!OS, Linux Mint, RedHat, CentOS, AlmaLinux, Elementary OS, and more… The interface of Vivaldi is also quite easy to handle. As we start, the welcome page will appear with an extremely tidy and usual tab view and the most important functions in the menu bar on the left. Bookmarks and quick selections can be created, managed, and clicked here. You can also access the quick selection when you open an empty tab. Also, open bookmarks, history views in the quick selection menu, and deletion of browser data individually or completely can be down from the left side panel. # ⚓ How_to_Convert_a_PDF_File_to_Text_Document_on_Linux⠀⇛ Unlike a text file, you can’t edit a PDF directly. There are multiple ways to generate PDF files using text. But what if you want to go the other way round and convert PDFs to text files? Luckily, Linux allows you to easily modify these files from the terminal. This article will demonstrate how to convert a PDF file to a text document on Linux. o § Games⠀➾ # ⚓ TI10:_The_International_for_Dota_2_may_not_happen_in_Sweden now_as_it’s_not_elite_enough_|_GamingOnLinux⠀⇛ The saga continues for the major upcoming Dota 2 tournament TI10: The International, with it now switching countries due to Sweden not accepting it. Delayed a while now thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, Valve had been working closely with Stockholm Live and Visit Stockholm who seemed to repeatedly assure Valve it would qualify and get the same exemptions as “other elite sporting events there received”. Sadly, that’s not been the case. o § Desktop Environments/WMs⠀➾ # § K Desktop Environment/KDE SC/Qt⠀➾ # ⚓ Akademy_2021⠀⇛ The Corona loads inside its scene QGraphicsWidgets objects called Containments, and manages views for each containment: every containment that is associanted to a phisical screen, will have a correspondece 1:1 with a view and views can be eother of Desktop type or Panel type Each Containment can contain many Applets, which will be either desktop widgets or panel components like the start menu, task manager and so on, and containment itself is a particular type of Applet, so it’s a subclass of it. Applets own a Package of files, together they form a Plasmoid. Plasma::Package was then splitted out of Plasma-framework and became the KPackage framework In this way is possible for the user to build its own perfect desktop ui out of a vast choice of pieces. In KDE4 times, Plasma supported a wide variety of bindigs, even if most of the applets were implemented in C++ We had pure javascript (before QML wasa thing), Python, Ruby and later we added QML support. In Plasma5 things changed quite a lot, as it was obvious that QML was going to be the future, and qgraphicsview was having huge performance problems (when resizing large applets it could go down even to 4-5 fps) So we went all with the QML scenegraph, having much faster and hardware accelerated things in the process. Corona, Containment and Applet are no more graphical objects but judt QObjects that manage only logic, not the visualization having a better separation On the downside that meant that the qml binding became the only way to write plasmoids, losing the possibility for using Python and Ruby, but all the binding infrastructure remained there, which became a significant overhead without a real reason. So now with KF6 coming: What parts of the Plasma architecture are still needed and mostly ok? what are kinda redundant and not necessary anymore? should we split something? how we can improve things in general? # ⚓ Akademy_2021_–_III⠀⇛ On Sunday, I made it to all but the last one of the presentations and talks I wanted to go. The session about porting applications to Qt6 was very interesting and I made a few notes that I may later turn into issues on KDE’s Gitlab infrastructure for the KMyMoney project. The talk on How we can solve the personal data problem was not so much related to KMyMoney and its use of the data but nevertheless interesting. Let’s see how this initiative evolves over time and which impact it can create. I added another talk on the fly that was again on Wayland and again presented by Dave Edmundson. Very interesting concepts which I am looking forward to see in distros hopefully soon. # ⚓ Akademy_2021_–_Tuesday_BoF_Wrap-up⠀⇛ Tuesday continued the Akademy 2021 BoFs, meetings, group sessions and hacking. There is a wrap-up session at the end of the day so that what happened in the different rooms can be shared with everyone including those not present. # ⚓ KDE_Plasma_5.22.2,_Bugfix_Release_for_June⠀⇛ Today KDE releases a bugfix update to KDE Plasma 5, versioned 5.22.2. Plasma 5.22 was released in June 2021 with many feature refinements and new modules to complete the desktop experience. This release adds a week’s worth of new translations and fixes from KDE’s contributors. o § Distributions⠀➾ # § SUSE/OpenSUSE⠀➾ # ⚓ A_Perfect_Partnership:_SUSE_Wins_HPE_Global Technology_Partner_of_the_Year_2021 [Ed: "Scratch my back and I will scratch yours"-type marketing and shallow endorsements]⠀⇛ We are delighted to announce that SUSE has won the Hewlett Packard Enterprises (HPE) Global Technology Partner of the Year 2021 Award! This award from HPE is an acknowledgement of our evolving partnership to help joint customers on their digital transformation journeys from monolithic infrastructure to a scalable, open-source foundation that will support them both now and in the future. In a longstanding partnership that has spanned more than 25 years, we have jointly delivered secure Linux, container management and a range of market-leading enterprise solutions to enterprises. # § IBM/Red Hat/Fedora⠀➾ # ⚓ Rocky_Linux_8.4_Available_Now_–_Download_DVD_ISO Images⠀⇛ After months of active development, Rocky Linux has finally got its first stable version 8.4 release, ready for a production system. If you don’t know, last year, Red Hat decided to drop maintenance of CentOS Linux 8 after 2021 to solely focus on CentOS Stream. Obviously, the decision made various people unhappy including CentOS project founder Greg Kurtzer. Hence, within a few days, Greg announced a new alternative OS called Rocky Linux, which is still under intensive development. # ⚓ Rocky_Linux_8.4:_First_release_of_the_announced CentOS_successor_available⠀⇛ The Rocky Linux development team has released version 8.4 (“Green Obsidian”), the first stable release of the new Linux distribution. Rocky Linux, which is binary-compatible with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 8.4, was created from the basic idea of ​​creating a follow-up project to the previous CentOS as a free RHEL clone. Rocky was launched by the original CentOS founder Gregory Kurtzer. After AlmaLinux, Rocky Linux is already the second CentOS successor project that was launched this year. The background to this development is Red Hat’s announcement in December 2020 that the 8.x version series of the free RHEL clone CentOS will only be continued as a rolling release from the end of 2021 without fixed version cycles. CentOS will then no longer be completely compatible with the RHEL model: From this point onwards, it will develop into a kind of harbinger of the upcoming RHEL version. The CentOS version series 7.x will receive updates until the regular end of support in June 2024. # ⚓ Utilize_LinuxONE_as_a_platform_to_build_open_source technology⠀⇛ Call for Code invites developers to build and contribute to sustainable, open source technology projects. Now, there is an opportunity for developers to use one of the world’s most reliable, sustainable, and cost- effective platforms – IBM LinuxONE – towards that end. While using the latest encryption technology, ultimate uptime, and the scalability of the IBM Z platform, LinuxONE can process your data efficiently and securely. Therefore, LinuxONE is a great choice to use for your Call for Code project. [...] IBM Hyper Protect Services are built on IBM LinuxONE technology running on IBM Cloud. These secure services offer technical assurance that only the authorized user — not even the cloud administrator — can see your data, personal information, or encryption keys. There are three services available: # ⚓ How_is_the_retail_industry_using_enterprise_open source?⠀⇛ Been doing a lot of online shopping lately? There’s a good chance enterprise open source is helping to power your favorite retailer’s website, based on findings we published in The State of Enterprise Open Source report earlier this year. We conducted interviews with 1,250 IT leaders worldwide to get a picture of how, where and why they use enterprise open source. They did not know the survey was sponsored by Red Hat and were not necessarily Red Hat customers. # ⚓ The_evolution_of_SDN:_What_service_mesh_offers telco⠀⇛ In the previous post we took a look at the evolution of Software Defined Networking (SDN) and the role it plays for communication service providers. We explored all the way up to the virtualization of network infrastructure, OpenStack, Open vSwitch (OVS) and more. In this post we’re going to look at networking, containers and container orchestration. Containers are not new. Depending on how you define “containers” they can date back to 2008 for LXC, or even further back if you consider things like Solaris Zones or good old-fashioned chroots a container. Containers are a way of isolating processes and applications from the rest of the system, therefore they are “contained” by a number of mechanisms we won’t try to go into in this post. “What’s a Linux container?” is a good read if you want to know more about the history, the technologies and the state of the art. # ⚓ Vim_vs._Nano_vs._Emacs:_Three_sysadmins_weigh_in_| Enable_Sysadmin⠀⇛ Three editors. Three experts. Which Linux text editor is right for you? # § Debian Family⠀➾ # ⚓ Neil_McGovern_&_Debian:_GNOME_and_Mollygate⠀⇛ More significantly, McGovern and Lamb are both personal friends. They live in the Cambridge region of the UK. McGovern gave a job to his mate’s girlfriend. [...] When we look at de Blanc’s vendetta against her old boss, Dr Richard Stallman, it is easy to see that any employer would sack her for this. GNOME Foundation is not any employer. As the Github records show, her boss, Neil McGovern, was a partner in crime. Therefore, de Blanc has been treated unfairly. She may have a case for unfair dismissal. The Github records are presented below, McGovern and de Blanc did this together. It appears that these three men, John Sullivan (previous boss), Chris Lamb (boyfriend) and Neil McGovern all engaged in the attacks on Dr Stallman. It is plausible that they all communicated about moving her from the job at FSF to the GNOME Foundation. It is plausible that two of these men and maybe all three of them envisaged using her as a weapon against Dr Stallman. # § Canonical/Ubuntu Family⠀➾ # ⚓ Ubuntu_Blog:_Ubuntu_in_the_wild_–_22nd_of_June⠀⇛ The Ubuntu in the wild blog post ropes in the latest highlights about Ubuntu and Canonical around the world on a bi-weekly basis. It is a summary of all the things that made us feel proud to be part of this journey. What do you think of it? o § Devices/Embedded⠀➾ # ⚓ JingPad_A1:_Linux-based_tablet_with_an_AMOLED_display_blows through_its_Indiegogo_campaign_goal⠀⇛ The JingPad A1 has finally reached Indiegogo, where it has already surpassed its funding target. According to Jingling, its manufacturer, the tablet amassed US$20,000 in funding within 15 minutes of going live on the crowdfunding website. As it stands, Jingling has raised over US$117,000 with 54 days of the campaign left to run. Jingling still has stock of its early bird pricing though, which it has set to US$549. This price includes an active stylus and a Wi-Fi version of the JingPad A1. The company is also selling a keyboard separately for US$149, or a bundle of the three products for US$699. To recap, Jingling has equipped the JingPad A1 with an 11-inch AMOLED display that runs at 2,368 x 1,728 pixels. The display has a 4:3 aspect ratio and supports 4,096 pressure levels. Jingling claims that the display reaches 350 nits and is TÜV certified, too. # § Open Hardware/Modding⠀➾ # ⚓ This_shield_brings_a_tic-tac-toe_game_to_your_Arduino Mega,_complete_with_an_AI_opponent_|_Arduino_Blog⠀⇛ Tic-tac-toe is a nearly perfect time-wasting game as it’s quick to play, easy to learn, and has a very small set of rules, which makes it ideal for implementation on a microcontroller. Michael Klements wanted to take it a step further and add a simple AI that can effectively play against a human opponent while never losing a single match. The device he came up with is a shield that fits onto an Arduino Mega and features a grid of LEDs and corresponding tactile buttons. A player can then choose from one of three different modes: easy AI, expert AI, or a human opponent. # ⚓ Adding_a_ChaCha_Cipher_to_Precursor’s_TRNG_«_bunnie’s blog⠀⇛ This is the second post of a two-part series on Betrusted/Precursor’s True Random Number Generator (TRNG). A bulletproof source of random numbers is a key component of any cryptosystem, so we’ve done an extensive, months-long characterization of Precursor’s dual, redundant TRNG sources, which consists of an avalanche noise generator and a ring oscillator. We’ve found them to produce passable raw entropy, but you don’t have to take my word for it. You can download our raw data and run your on analysis on it if you like (at least until our ISP cuts us off for serving multiple 10GiB files filled with random data). [...] After poking around a bit on the Internet, it seems popular to feed a seed of entropy into the ChaCha20 stream cipher (I refer to it as a “cipher” in this post, but I think more technically because of the way I’m using it, it should be referred to as a CSPRNG – Cryptographically Secure Pseudo Random Number Generator). This is done in the Linux kernel as well as by cryptech.is’s HSM and a few other implementations. The devil, of course, is always in the details. Cryptech.is takes the output of their TRNGs, hashes them with a SHA2 block, and then feeds it into a ChaCha20 stream cipher. Linux maintains an entropy pool that is collected from a variety of low- and-high-quality sources, blends them using some fast and slow techniques based upon the nature of the source, runs it through SHA1, and then into ChaCha20 to create the final stream. # ⚓ Arduino_rocks_babies_to_sleep,_gives_parents_a_break |_Arduino_Blog⠀⇛ If there is one thing for which babies are infamous, it is their complete inability to fall asleep and stay asleep. Rocking cradles can help them drift off, but they require a parent’s attention. Modern motorized rockers solve that issue, but they can be expensive. That’s why Peter Turczak used an Arduino to build an electromechanical rocker mechanism for cribs. Turczak kept the costs down on this project by using 3D printer parts. The frame, which attaches beneath an existing crib, was constructed from aluminum extrusion. The frame is in two parts and the top half slides on linear rails with bearings. A NEMA 23 stepper motor pushes the top half of the frame back and forth using a ball screw. Two reed switches act as end stops so that the motor doesn’t grind. # § Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications⠀➾ # ⚓ How_to_stop_robocalls_on_Android_–_Phandroid⠀⇛ # ⚓ Android_will_add_update_similar_to_iOS_to_find_your device⠀⇛ # ⚓ The_Android_12_Privacy_Dashboard_is_an_at-a-glance permissions_tool_–_TechRepublic⠀⇛ # ⚓ Universal_Electronics_Inc._to_Provide_Voice-Enabled Android_TV_Remotes_and_QuickSet®_Technologies_to_Claro Colombia_|_Business_Wire⠀⇛ # ⚓ OnePlus_Merger_With_Oppo_Could_Be_Big_for_Android⠀⇛ o § Free, Libre, and Open Source Software⠀➾ # ⚓ Jamie_McClelland:_How_to_Meet_Online_with_Simultaneous Interpretation⠀⇛ May First Movement Technology has been running a public Jitsi Meet instance since well before the pandemic to support Internet-based, video meetings for folks who don’t want to rely on corporate and proprietary infrastructure. However (until this week – see below), we haven’t been using it for our own meetings for one main reason: simultaneous interpretation. We’re an international organization with roots in the US and Mexico and we are committed to building a bi- national leadership with a movement strategy that recongizes the symbolic and practical disaster of the US/Mexico border. As a result, we simply can’t hold a meeting without simultaneous interpretation between english and spanish. [...] With the ability to control local volume via the Jitsi Meet API, I was able to pull together a very small amount of code to produce Jitsi Simultaneous Interpretation (JSI) – a way to run your Jitsi Meet server with an interpretation slider at the top allowing you to set the volume of the interpreter at any time during the meeting. # § Web Browsers⠀➾ # § Mozilla⠀➾ # ⚓ TC39_meeting,_May_25-26_2021_|_SpiderMonkey JavaScript/WebAssembly_Engine⠀⇛ Due to the recent changes on freenode, TC39 has moved to Matrix as its communication platform of choice. Read more here. The TC39 meeting in May, one of the shorter two day meetings of the committee, primarily focused on more mature proposals, and no stage 1 proposals were introduced. Object.hasOwn moved forward quickly, reaching stage 3 at this meeting. In addition, Top-level await and RegExp Match Indices both moved to stage 4. Resizeable ArrayBuffers and Growable SharedArrayBuffers advanced to stage 3, and implementation will soon start in major browsers. This proposal introduces growable and shrinkable memory which will have implications for web developers as well as other specifications such as WebGPU and WebAssembly. Realms, which is finally in a shape that browsers would be willing to implemented, was held back from stage 3 due to ergonomic concerns for certain use cases. # ⚓ Celebrating_10_years_of_Reps_–_Mozilla_Reps⠀⇛ Last week the Reps program celebrated its 10 years anniversary. To honor the event, a week of celebrations took place, with meetings in Zoom rooms and virtual hangouts in specially decorated Hubs rooms. During that week, current Reps and Reps alumni shared memories of the past years, talked about their current work, and discussed future plans and aspirations. The Reps program was created with a simple narrative in the mind of its founders (William Quiviger and Pierros Papadeas), to bring structure to the regional communities and help them grow. Throughout the last years, the Reps have served their communities, by growing them and mentoring them, supporting all Mozilla’s big projects and launches, and pivoting to be able to help where the organization needed them the most. From the 1 million Mozillians initiative to the Firefox OS days, and from the Quantum launch to the recent foxfoooding campaign, Reps have always stepped up for the challenge, giving a helping hand, organizing thousands of events, and amplifying Mozilla’s work and mission. And is that spirit that we wanted to celebrate during the last week. A spirit of giving and helping. # § CMS⠀➾ # ⚓ WordPress_5.8_Beta_3⠀⇛ WordPress 5.8 Beta 3 is now available for testing! This software is still in development, so it is not recommended to run this version on a production site. Consider setting up a test site to play with it. # § FSF⠀➾ # ⚓ What_happens_if_the_FSF_collapses? [Ed: "By By Bruce Byfield". Yes, bye bye, Bruce Byfield. Still attacking the FSF with loaded and misleading headlines: "What happens if the FSF collapses?" 2020: concern-trolling as 'news'. One modus operandi of the coup against the FSF since 2019.]⠀⇛ # § GNU Projects⠀➾ # ⚓ parallel_@_Savannah:_GNU_Parallel_20210622_ (‘Protasevich’)_released_[stable]⠀⇛ GNU Parallel 20210622 (‘Protasevich’) [stable] has been released. It is available for download at: lbry:// @GnuParallel:4 No new functionality was introduced so this is a good candidate for a stable release. # § Programming/Development⠀➾ # § Perl/Raku⠀➾ # ⚓ What_they_say_in_Java_is_just_as_true_in_Perl⠀⇛ # ⚓ An_Error_In_The_Roles_Article_–_LFlat,_The_Home of_Vrurg⠀⇛ The recently published article contained a factual error, as was pointed out by Elizabeth Mattijsen. I stated that named arguments do not work in role parameterization but it is not true. Yet, what I was certain about is that there is clearly something wrong about them. It took a bit of my time and wandering around Rakudo sources to recover my memories. The actual problem about named parameters is less evident and I dedicated a section of the article to explain what is actually going on. In this post I will share more detailed explanation of what’s going on for those interested in it. If anybody wish to follow me by watching the code open the src/Perl6/Metamodel/ ParametricRoleGroupHOW.nqp file in Rakudo sources. There we start with method parameterize. Remember in the meanwhile, that the code is NQP meaning it looks like Raku but it lacks many features of it. [...] But what happens when named parameters are involved? To make it possible to dispatch over them ParametricRoleGroupHOW does a trick: it takes the slurpy hash of nameds and uses it as a single positional argument which is appended to the end of @args array of positionals. To be consistent, if there are no nameds are passed in, NO_NAMEDS constant is pushed instead. # ⚓ Rakudo_Weekly_News:_2021.25_Small_Steps⠀⇛ Alexander Kiryuhin has again released a version of the Rakudo Compiler implementing the Raku Programming Language: the 2021.06 Compiler Release! # § Rust⠀➾ # ⚓ ISRG_and_Google_Back_Rust_for_Linux_Project⠀⇛ Bringing memory safety to the Linux kernel is a big job, but the Rust for Linux project is making great progress, says Josh Aas in a recent announcement from the The Internet Security Research Group (ISRG), which is the parent organization of Let’s Encrypt. The ISRG is formally supporting this development work by providing Miguel Ojeda with a one-year contract (made possible through financial support from Google) to work on Rust for Linux and other security efforts full time. Previously, Ojeda was doing the work as a side project. # ⚓ The_ISRG_wants_to_make_the_Linux_kernel_memory- safe_with_Rust⠀⇛ As we covered in March, Rust is a low- level programming language offering most of the flexibility and performance of C—the language used for kernels in Unix and Unix-like operating systems since the 1970s—in a safer way. Efforts to make Rust a viable language for Linux kernel development began at the 2020 Linux Plumbers conference, with acceptance for the idea coming from Linus Torvalds himself. Torvalds specifically requested Rust compiler availability in the default kernel build environment to support such efforts—not to replace the entire source code of the Linux kernel with Rust-developed equivalents, but to make it possible for new development to work properly. Using Rust for new code in the kernel—which might mean new hardware drivers or even replacement of GNU Coreutils—potentially decreases the number of bugs lurking in the kernel. Rust simply won’t allow a developer to leak memory or create the potential for buffer overflows—significant sources of performance and security issues in complex C-language code. # ⚓ The_ISRG_Wants_To_Make_the_Linux_Kernel_Memory- safe_With_Rust [Ed: Google lobbying via proxies like Mozilla, Linux_Foundation, and ISRG]⠀⇛ * § Leftovers⠀➾ o § Integrity/Availability⠀➾ # § Proprietary⠀➾ # § Pseudo-Open Source⠀➾ # § Openwashing⠀➾ # ⚓ Linux_Foundation_Launches_GitOps_Training [Ed: LF trying_to_change_its_business model]⠀⇛ # ⚓ Linux_Foundation_initiative_advocates open_standards_for_voice_assistants [Ed: Linux_Foundation_is_openwashing_Microsoft and_listening_devices. How appalling and antithetical to “Linux”.]⠀⇛ To support the evolution, the Linux Foundation today launched the Open Voice Network (OVN), an alliance advocating for the adoption of open standards across voice assistant apps in automobiles, smartphones, smart home devices, and more. With founding members Target, Schwarz Gruppe, Wegmans Food Markets, Microsoft, Veritone, Deutsche Telekom, and others, the OVN’s goal — much like Amazon’s Voice Interoperability Initiative — is to standardize the development and use of voice assistant systems and conversational agents that use technologies including automatic speech recognition, natural language processing, advanced dialog management, and machine learning. # ⚓ The_Linux_Foundation_Tackles_Safe_Open Standards_for_AI_Voice_Assistants⠀⇛ # § Entrapment (Microsoft GitHub)⠀➾ # ⚓ Daniel_Stenberg:_On_the_GitHub_ReadMe podcast [Ed: The curl dev, Daniel Stenberg. continues selling himself off to enemies of Free software [1, 2]]⠀⇛ On May 17, I joined the Kathy and Brian, the hosts of the GitHub ReadMe podcast on a video meeting from my home and we had a chat. Mostly about my work on curl. Today the episode “aired”. # § Security⠀➾ # ⚓ Unpatched_Supply-Chain_Flaw_Affects_‘Pling Store’_Platforms_for_Linux_Users_–_News_Nation USA⠀⇛ Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed a critical unpatched vulnerability affecting Pling-based free and open-source software (FOSS) marketplaces… # ⚓ Unpatched_Flaw_in_Linux_Pling_Store_Apps_Could Lead_to_Supply-Chain_Attacks⠀⇛ Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed a critical unpatched vulnerability affecting Pling-based free and open-source software (FOSS) marketplaces for Linux platform that could be potentially abused to stage supply-chain attacks and achieve remote code execution (RCE). “Linux marketplaces that are based on the Pling platform are vulnerable to a wormable [cross-site scripting] with potential for a supply-chain attack,” Positive Security co-founder Fabian Bräunlein said in a technical write-up published today. “The native PlingStore application is affected by an RCE vulnerability, which can be triggered from any website while the app is running.” # ⚓ Innovatrics_Optimizes_SmartFace_for_Linux_and NVIDIA_Jetson_Systems⠀⇛ Innovatrics has taken steps to increase the appeal of its SmartFace facial recognition platform. To that end, the company has optimized the platform for the Linux operating system, and for edge devices that run on NVIDIA Jetson technology. # ⚓ Open_Source_Utilization_in_Email_Security Demystified⠀⇛ Open Source is currently being recognized by more organizations than ever before for its ability to give rise to flexible, cost-effective and exceptionally secure software and technologies. Currently, over 75 percent of organizations worldwide are contributing to and consuming open- source software and products. The open- source community is expected to continue to grow and thrive in the coming years, which will further increase the overall credibility of Open Source and enhance the various benefits that open-source options are able to offer businesses and individuals alike. This article will explore why choosing an open-source email security solution can offer key advantages over proprietary alternatives including superior security, reliability, resiliency, flexibility and cost- efficiency. # ⚓ Top_Linux_OS_for_Cybersecurity_–_Hack_Ware News⠀⇛ When it comes to cybersecurity, the most recommended operating system to use is Linux. Yet not all distros are the same when it comes to handling security. Some distros are better than others. Below is a list of the top Linux OS for Cybersecurity. Kali Linux – always appears at the top of searches when looking for Top Linux OS for Cybersecurity. Why? Because this OS comes with over 500 pre-installed apps and tools used in cybersecurity for purposes such as hacking and penetration testing. These tools are always updated, and this distro can run on different platforms. Tails – stands for The Amnesiac Incognito Live System and is the official distro of the Tor project. It’s a very compact distro that can be run on USB or DVD on most computers. It lives completely in RAM and leaves no trace of activity after use. Like the others, connections are routed to Tor. Despite being compact, it still includes productivity tools such as LibreOffice, Thunderbird and GIMP. # § Privacy/Surveillance⠀➾ # ⚓ Your_phone’s_not_listening_to_your conversations,_you_are_likely_giving_it_the information_it_needs⠀⇛ o § Civil Rights/Policing⠀➾ # ⚓ Google_cans_engineering_diversity_training_scheme_after alumni_complain_of_abysmal_pay_packages⠀⇛ o § Monopolies⠀➾ # § Patents⠀➾ # ⚓ Thorsten_Bausch_(Hoffmann_Eitle)_on_Changes_to_the German_Patent_Act⠀⇛ The German Bundestag has adopted amendments to the German Patent Act. The changes introduce (i) a codified proportionality defense to injunctions in patent infringement proceedings, (ii) new confidentiality rules for patent disputes, and (iii) an accelerated timeline for nullity actions. While the Bundesrat still has to approve this bill, this is not believed to be controversial. Thus, the changes described below are expected to enter into force in a few weeks, except (iii), which will enter into force in spring 2022. The proportionality defense is the most heavily debated part of the amendments. Some stakeholders have even expressed concerns that this could weaken the attractiveness of the German patent system, although we think that this may be exaggerated. So, what are the changes about? Currently, a German infringement court will issue an injunction by default if it finds that the asserted patent is infringed or threatened to be infringed. The patent holder does not have to fulfil additional requirements to obtain an injunction. The new law will not change this. It is intended to merely codify a proportionality exception developed by the German Federal Court of Justice in the decision Wärmetauscher [heat exchanger] in 2016 based on the principle of good faith, which is generally applicable in civil law. The exception is now codified in Section 139(1) Patent Act and applies if the injunction would result in an undue hardship for the defendant or third parties that is disproportionate to the exclusive right granted by the patent due to special circumstances. The burden of proof lies with the defendant. If the exception applies, the patent will still be considered infringed and the patent holder is entitled to monetary compensation independent of its damages claim. It is expected that under the new law the courts will apply the exception only very rarely. The new law may however give more weight to the interests of third parties, which have not been considered by the courts so far. # ⚓ FOSS_Patents:_Legislative_intent_couldn’t_be_clearer: availability_of_patent_injunctions_not_compromised_by new_German_legislation⠀⇛ Two renowned German patent litigators stated in the podcast I published yesterday that patent injunctions would remain just as available as before the German patent “reform” bill that was adopted earlier this month by the Federal Parliament. Dr. Dietrich Kamlah of Taylor Wessing pointed to the high hurdle that “disproportionate hardship” represents. Dr. Christof Augenstein of Kather Augenstein highlighted that the legislation is merely meant to codify the case law of the Federal Court of Justice, a court that rejected a proportionality argument in the only case of this kind it ever decided (Wärmetauscher, or Heat Exchanger). In case you missed it, here’s the podcast again: Arguably, Daimler has lost that Heat Exchanger case–in which defended itself against an inventor–a second time by not achieving a German patent injunction reform that would make a practical difference. But perseverance sometimes pays off, and maybe they will succeed on a third attempt, if they and their allies figure out how to win a patent policy battle. # § Software Patents⠀➾ # ⚓ Parus_Files_Patent_Lawsuit_Against_Microsoft for_Infringement_of_its_Proprietary_Voice- Browsing_and_Device_Control_Technology⠀⇛ # ⚓ Parus_Files_Second_Patent_Lawsuit_Against_Google for_Infringement_of_its_Proprietary_Voice- Browsing_and_Device_Control_Technology⠀⇛ ䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 4027 ╒═══════════════════ 𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐋𝐄 ═════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ (ℹ) Images, hyperlinks and comments at http://techrights.org/2021/06/23/texmacs-2-1/#comments Gemini version at gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2021/06/23/texmacs-2-1/ ⠀⌧ █▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁ 06.23.21⠀▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█ ⌧ ✐ Links_23/6/2021:_TeXmacs_2.1_and_Blender_LTS_Support⠀✐ Posted in News_Roundup at 3:39 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz 🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇GNOME bluefish⦈ § Contents⠀➾ * GNU/Linux o Distributions o Devices/Embedded * Free_Software/Open_Source * Leftovers * § GNU/Linux⠀➾ o ⚓ Emulate_the_Atari_ST_home_computer_with_Linux⠀⇛ Emulation is the practice of using a program (called an emulator) on a PC to mimic the behaviour of a home computer or a video game console, in order to play (usually retro) games on a computer. Home computers were a class of microcomputers that entered the market in 1977 and became common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single non-technical user. Back in the 1980s, home computers came to the forefront of teenagers’ minds. Specifically, the Amiga, ZX Spectrum, and Atari ST were extremely popular. They were hugely popular home computers targeted heavily towards games, but they also ran other types of software. o § Desktop/Laptop⠀➾ # ⚓ Slimbook_Executive_is_a_Reasonably_High-End_Linux_Powered Laptop⠀⇛ Slimbook Executive is the new premium equipment of the Spanish brand, a laptop that comes to improve what has already been seen with the ProX series. The Slimbook Executive is one of the brand’s latest hardware offerings that’s targeted towards professional who required a powerful piece of equipment to handle their everyday workflow. It aims to compete in the segment of high-end ultrabook laptops, such as the Microsoft Surface or the ASUS ZenBook Ultralight, both in performance as well as in design and dimensions. This laptop comes as a new member of the family with enhanced features versus the Slimbook ProX. The Slimbook Executive has greater lightness, a more robust construction, higher screen resolution, a battery with more capacity for greater autonomy, and improvements in connectivity. o § Audiocasts/Shows⠀➾ # ⚓ mintCast_363.5_–_Incremental_Improvements⠀⇛ In our Innards section, we updated the livestream setup, so we’ll chat about that and the accessories to go along with And finally, the feedback and a couple suggestions Twitter. Discord. Telegram. Matrix. Reddit. o § Kernel Space⠀➾ # ⚓ Linux_5.12.13⠀⇛ I'm announcing the release of the 5.12.13 kernel. All users of the 5.12 kernel series must upgrade. The updated 5.12.y git tree can be found at: git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/ stable/linux-stable.git linux-5.12.y and can be browsed at the normal kernel.org git web browser: https://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/stable/ linux-s... thanks, greg k-h # ⚓ Linux_5.10.46⠀⇛ # ⚓ Linux_5.4.128⠀⇛ # ⚓ Habana_Labs_Driver_Drops_Default_Memory_Scrubbing_For Better_Performance,_Other_Changes⠀⇛ Intel-owned Habana Labs has submitted their set of driver updates to char/misc ahead of the upcoming Linux 5.14 merge window. Habana Labs driver continues to support their Gaudi accelerator for AI training workloads and Goya as their accelerator optimized for AI inference. Plus this open-source kernel driver continues to prepare for future Habana Labs hardware. # ⚓ Linux_5.14_To_Support_The_OpenPOWER_Microwatt_Soft_CPU_Core –_Phoronix⠀⇛ Announced two years ago was the OpenPOWER Microwatt as an FPGA-based soft CPU core. This open-source soft processor core complies with the Power ISA 3.0 instruction set and can be run on various FPGA hardware. Microwatt marks the first processor written from scratch using the open Power ISA 3.0 specification and serves as one of the organization’s reference designs. While a basic design and catered for FPGA usage, it’s going to see 130nm chip fabrication this year if all goes well. # § Graphics Stack⠀➾ # ⚓ Crocus_Gallium3D_Adds_Experimental_Intel_Gen8 Graphics,_Overlapping_With_Iris_Driver_–_Phoronix⠀⇛ Landing in mainline Mesa 21.2 development code last week was the “Crocus” Gallium3D driver for old Intel hardware spanning from the Intel 965 chipset days “Gen4″ up through Crocus supporting Haswell “Gen7″ graphics. The i965 to Haswell span has been the focus since the official Intel “Iris” Gallium3D driver already in Mesa supports the Broadwell “Gen8″ up through all current Intel UHD/Xe Graphics. But now Crocus with the latest Mesa code has added Gen8 support. # ⚓ Mike_Blumenkrantz:_Different_Again⠀⇛ It’s a screenshot of Portal 2 with the Gallium HUD activated and VSync disabled. But what driver is that underneath? Well, for today’s blog it’s RadeonSI, the reference implementation of a Gallium driver. And why is this, I can hear you all asking. # ⚓ Work-In-Progress_RadeonSI+Nine_Showing_Big Performance_Win_For_Source_Engine_Games_–_Phoronix⠀⇛ While Valve has been working on Vulkan-based rendering for Source Engine games by making use of DXVK for translating the game engine’s native Direct3D calls to the Vulkan API, with some yet-to-be-merged Mesa patches around Gallium Nine there is much better performance to see with Gallium Nine at least for the RadeonSI driver. Mike Blumenkrantz as the Valve contractor who has been working heavily on the Zink OpenGL- on-Vulkan has been hacking on some Gallium Nine related patches on and off the past week along with others involved with Mesa and Valve’s Linux graphics driver work. # ⚓ Left_4_Dead_2_Vulkan_Performance_With_Radeon_Graphics On_Linux_–_Phoronix⠀⇛ Last week Valve introduced Vulkan rendering support for Left 4 Dead 2. The L4D2 Vulkan support is similar to that of Portal 2 where DXVK is being leveraged for translating the Direct3D calls to Vulkan rather than relying on their OpenGL translations. For those wondering what this means for L4D2 performance on Linux with modern GPUs, here are some benchmarks of Left 4 Dead 2 when testing the OpenGL and Vulkan rendering options. # ⚓ More_Vulkan_goodness_arrives_in_Mesa_with_the_PanVK driver_for_Arm_Mali_Midgard_&_Bifrost_|_GamingOnLinux⠀⇛ Collabora has given word that another exciting development has been made for Arm Mali Midgard and Bifrost GPUs, as the new PanVK Vulkan driver has landed in Mesa. The work from Collabora (and others) has been a long road, getting basic OpenGL up to scratch on these Arm GPUs which they’ve blogged about quite a lot. Most recently their Alyssa Rosenzweig wrote about achieving OpenGL ES 3.1 on Mali GPUs with Panfrost. o § Benchmarks⠀➾ # ⚓ Benchmarking_TinyML_with_MLPerf_Tiny_Inference_Benchmark_– CNX_Software⠀⇛ As machine learning moves to microcontrollers, something referred to as TinyML, new tools are needed to compare different solutions. We’ve previously posted some Tensorflow Lite for Microcontroller benchmarks (for single board computers), but a benchmarking tool specifically designed for AI inference on resources-constrained embedded systems could prove to be useful for consistent results and cover a wider range of use cases. That’s exactly what MLCommons, an open engineering consortium, has done with MLPerf Tiny Inference benchmarks designed to measure how quickly a trained neural network can process new data for tiny, low-power devices, and it also includes an optional power measurement option. o § Applications⠀➾ # ⚓ Replace_find_with_fd_on_Linux⠀⇛ Many Linux programmers use the find command every single day of their career. But find gives a limited set of filesystem entries, and if you have to do a large set of find operations, it’s not even very fast. So instead, I prefer to use the Rust fd command because it provides sensible defaults that work for most use cases. As its README says, “fd is a program to find entries in your filesystem. It is a simple, fast, and user-friendly alternative to find.” It features parallelized directory traversal, so it can search multiple directories at once. It supports regular expressions (regex) and glob-based patterns. o § Instructionals/Technical⠀➾ # ⚓ Migrating_away_from_apt-key⠀⇛ This is an edited copy of an email I sent to provide guidance to users of apt-key as to how to handle things in a post apt-key world. # ⚓ What’s_a_UUID?⠀⇛ These names are almost certainly “Universally Unique Identifiers,” or “UUIDs”. There are RFC4122 and non-RFC4122 UUIDs. The four main types of RFC4122 UUIDs are: [...] # ⚓ How_To_Install_Parse_Server_on_Ubuntu_20.04_LTS_–_idroot⠀⇛ In this tutorial, we will show you how to install Parse Server on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. For those of you who didn’t know, Parse is an open-source Backend as a Service (BaaS) platform commonly used over the last few years. It is written in Node.js and can be used for any application running Node.js. Parse Server comes with a simple and easy-to-use web interface that can be used for data manipulation, to view analytics, and to schedule and send push notifications. This article assumes you have at least basic knowledge of Linux, know how to use the shell, and most importantly, you host your site on your own VPS. The installation is quite simple and assumes you are running in the root account, if not you may need to add ‘sudo‘ to the commands to get root privileges. I will show you the step-by-step installation of the Parse Server on Ubuntu 20.04 (Focal Fossa). You can follow the same instructions for Ubuntu 18.04, 16.04, and any other Debian-based distribution like Linux Mint. # ⚓ Controlling_access_to_rootless_Podman_for_users_|_Enable Sysadmin⠀⇛ Recently the Podman team received a Bugzilla report claiming that there was no way to stop rootless Podman from running containers. The reporter set up a user account with no entries in /etc/subuid and / etc/subgid and reported that rootless Podman could still run the hello-world container. # ⚓ How_to_Add_User_to_Group_in_Linux_Ubuntu_20.04_Complete Tutorial⠀⇛ Do You have added a user in wrong group, and want to add in right group? or Add new user in group, or want to add a user in multiple group? You will get reply of all questions from this article. Only reading full article gives you the complete guide on how to Add User to Group in Linux, I am using Ubuntu 20.04 Operating system but this operation will be the same on other Linux. You can perform this task on CentOS, RHEL, etc. # ⚓ How_to_Customize_Ubuntu_Touchpad_Gestures_|_Technastic⠀⇛ If you’ve ever used any modern Windows 10 laptop with a decent touchpad, or a MacBook, you know how touchpad gestures make using the laptop so much easier. In many ways, they make the touchpad even better than using a Bluetooth mouse. Unfortunately, Linux-based operating systems such as Ubuntu haven’t really caught up in that department. But Ubuntu is still Linux so, if you want something, you can have it with a little effort. Today we’ll see how you can customize Ubuntu touchpad gestures. # ⚓ How_to_Install_Anaconda_in_Linux⠀⇛ Anaconda is a popular tool among data analysts/ scientists and machine learning engineers. Why is it so popular? If you are working as a data scientist or machine learning engineer you will be working with Python. Python is a battery-included language so when you install python it will have a set of packages available to be used. These are basic packages and you will need a lot more packages when you work for data science like numpy, pandas, etc. # ⚓ How_to_Install_Kid3_Audio_Tag_Editor_3.8.7_in_Ubuntu_21.04, Ubuntu_20.04_|_UbuntuHandbook⠀⇛ Kid3 3.8.7 was released as the latest version of the KDE’s audio tag editor. You can install it easily in Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 21.04, Linux Mint 20 via PPA. Kid3 is a free open-source tool to edit tags in MP3, Ogg/Vorbis, FLAC, MPC, MP4/AAC, MP2, Opus, Speex, TrueAudio, WavPack, WMA, WAV and AIFF files. It can edit ID3v1.1 tags, all ID3v2.3 and ID3v2.4 frames, and edit tags for multiple files. As well it can convert between ID3v1.1, ID3v2.3 and ID3v2.4 tags. # ⚓ How_to_Install_Rocky_Linux_8.4_Step_by_Step_with Screenshots⠀⇛ Hello Techies, Rocky Linux 8.4 has been released officially by Rocky Enterprise Software Foundation (RESF). It is considered as the replacement of CentOS Linux. Rock Linux is community-based enterprise level operating system and compatible with RHEL (Red Hat Enterprise Linux). As CentOS 8 updates will not be available the after end of Dec 2021 and if you are looking for production grade operating system then Rocky Linux can be considered. In this guide, we will cover the installation steps of Rocky Linux 8.4. Before jump into the installation steps, let’s see the minimum system requirements for Rocky Linux. # ⚓ How_to_Install_SSH_Server_in_Ubuntu_20.04⠀⇛ SSH is a network protocol that allows you to connect to your Linux machine. If you are someone working in IT you know servers are present in data centers and to connect with the server you need to use SSH protocol. It is the responsibility of the administrator to install an SSH server and secure it from external intrusion. In this article, I will walk you through how to install the OpenSSH server in Ubuntu 20.04. Every Linux machine has an SSH client installed by default. You will connect to any remote server using this SSH client. I am having a fresh copy of the Ubuntu 20.04 machine, which is I am using for demonstration purposes. It is running with IP 192.168.1.7. If I have to connect to this machine from my host machine SSH server should be running. The SSH server will listen at port 22. # ⚓ How_to_Use_Port_Knocking_To_Secure_SSH_Service_in_Linux⠀⇛ Port Knocking is a nifty technique of controlling access to a port by only allowing legitimate users access to the service running on a server. It works in such a way that when the right sequence of connection attempts is made, the firewall gladly opens the port that was closed. The logic behind port knocking is to safeguard your Linux system from automated port scanners which prowl for open ports. In this guide, we examine how you can install port knocking and how you can configure it to secure SSH service. For demonstration purposes, we will use Ubuntu 18.04. # ⚓ How_to_get_system_configuration_alerts_on_RHEL_from_Red_Hat Insights_using_Drift⠀⇛ Drift, a set of capabilities within Red Hat Insights, can help manage and troubleshoot issues across many systems. In this post, we will explore how you can set up configuration alerts and better use the features available to Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) subscribers. Red Hat Insights is a configuration analysis service available as part of your Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) subscription. System administrators can use Drift with RHEL to compare configurations, define baselines, and ultimately perform root-cause analysis of issues during troubleshooting. Since system configurations tend to vary and drift away from initially defined standard operating environments, operators need to be able to check quickly to determine if a problem can be related to any differences from the recommended configuration. # ⚓ How_to_install_vtop_on_Linux_–_Unixcop⠀⇛ Vtop is a Linux Process and Memory Activity Monitoring Tool. A Command-line tools like “top” make it hard to monitor CPU usage and memory usage. That’s why we today introduce you to vtop – is a free and open-source, simple yet powerful and extendable terminal activity monitoring tool written in Node.js. It is designed to make it easy for users to view CPU usage across multi-process applications (those that have a master process and child processes, for example, NGINX, Apache, Chrome, etc.). vtop also makes it easy to see spikes over time as well as memory usage. vtop uses Unicode braille characters to draw and display CPU and Memory usage charts, helping you visualize spikes. Additionally, it group processes with the same name (master and all child processes) together. # ⚓ How_to_use_thc-hydra_for_Dictionary_attack_beginner’s guide⠀⇛ thc-hydra A very fast network logon cracker with a dictionary attack tool which support many different services. You can use thc-hydra tool for cracking the password. Many hackers love this tool due to its GUI and Cmdline interface. If you are new in ethical hacking and don’t know how to use thc-hydra, still you can use it easily due to the GUI interface. # ⚓ sudo_add-apt-repository_command_not_found_error_in_Linux Guide⠀⇛ Are you facing the problem at the time of adding a new PPA repository? I have seen the error “sudo add-apt-repository command not found” in Ubuntu or other Debian based operating system? This article has a solution of fixing error “sudo add-apt- repository command not found”. # ⚓ Parsing_config_files_with_Lua_|_Opensource.com⠀⇛ Not all applications need configuration files; many applications benefit from starting fresh each time they are launched. Simple utilities, for instance, rarely require preferences or settings that persist across uses. However, when you write a complex application, it’s nice for users to be able to configure how they interact with it and how it interacts with their system. That’s what configuration files are for, and this article discusses some of the ways you can implement persistent settings with the Lua programming language. # ⚓ Tuning_systemd_services,_logging,_and_device_management_in Linux_–_Linux_Concept⠀⇛ systemd is a core component of many Linux distributions. Since its birth in 2010, many distributions have gradually adopted systemd as the core init system, responsible for handling services and boot-up operations. o § Games⠀➾ # ⚓ Magical_comedy_point_&_click_adventure_Plot_of_the_Druid_is up_on_Kickstarter_|_GamingOnLinux⠀⇛ After a promising prologue demo a while ago with Plot of the Druid: Nightwatch, the full experience with Plot of the Druid that will support Linux is up on Kickstarter. Inspired, as many are, by classic LucasArts and Sierra games you can expect a modernised adventure that the developer says will be full of humour, magic and shapeshifting. The developer says to think of it like “Simon the Sorcerer meets Rincewind with a Monkey Island vibe”. Instead of the usual push, pull and pick up options Plot of the Druid is a little on the weirder side with shapeshifting, opening up more optionals like sniff, scratch and climb and according to the plan some areas will need animals that can see better in the dark or have better hearing. # ⚓ The_itch.io_Summer_Sale_is_now_live⠀⇛ Ready to pick up something weird and a little unknown? Or a couple of the top indie gems available on itch.io? Now is your chance as their Summer Sale has gone live. itch might not have some of the most popular games around, or AA/AAA games but it is easily one of the most developer-friendly stores around. You can find some really fantastic stuff on there and they even have a cross-platform open source client to keep it all up to date. # ⚓ Hello_Engineer_is_out_as_a_Stadia_exclusive_with_State Share,_Madden_NFL_22_pre-order_|_GamingOnLinux⠀⇛ It’s been a little while since we talked about Stadia so it’s time for another round-up of things happening for Google’s cloud gaming service. Firstly, we did mention earlier this month that Stadia was getting the popular Rainbow Six Siege was launching on Stadia. We also know now that it’s going to be cross-platform between Stadia, Windows and Amazon Luna which is good news for Stadia players since they will actually be plenty of people to join up with. Recently it was also announced that Life is Strange and Life is Strange: Before the Storm will be arriving on Stadia on September 30, plus both titles will be free to claim for subscribers of the optional Stadia Pro subscription. Even before that though, Life is Strange: True Colors will be launching for Stadia on September 10. # ⚓ Valve_releases_a_Team_Fortress_2_update_that_helps_somewhat against_bots⠀⇛ It seems Valve has not forgotten Team Fortress 2 exists and a fresh update is out now, which pulls in some new security measures and the Summer 2021 Cosmetic Case. TF2 has struggled for a long time now against bots. They’ve been going wild, ruining games, putting vulgar things in text and voice chat, changing their names to terrible things and plenty more. At times Valve has slowed them down but it’s never long before the bots are updated to overcome the new measures. # ⚓ Rail_network_management_sim_Rail_Route_is_now_out_in_Early Access_|_GamingOnLinux⠀⇛ If you think you have what it takes to build and manage a connect network of rail tracks, Rail Route is a game you might want to go and take a look at. Unlike the much bigger and more graphically impressive tycoon sims like Transport Network and Railway Empire, here it’s not about getting resources around. Rail Route pulls things back to the basic level of working with railway network lines and the management that comes along with it – the art of dispatching trains and getting them around on time. It’s almost like the Factorio of rail simulation. You constantly expand as you accept new contracts and build up an ever more complicated series of lines along with plenty of automation. # ⚓ The_absolutely_wonderful_shape-building_factory_game ‘shapez.io’_has_a_Puzzle_DLC_out⠀⇛ Out now is the Puzzle DLC for shapez.io, a wonderful Factorio-like game about slicing up shapes to make new shapes. # ⚓ Run_Prop,_Run!_is_a_fresh_take_on_the_Prop_Hunt_idea_now_in Early_Access_|_GamingOnLinux⠀⇛ Prop Hunt is a game mode that has been popularised in many mods for many games and now it’s a whole game. Run Prop, Run! from PlayTogether Studio has entered Early Access. Have you played the classic kids game hide and seek? Okay, so you know the basics. One person is “it”, the others hide. When caught, you help find everyone else. Here though, the hiders disguise themselves as various objects around the world. Run Prop, Run! takes it a little step further adding in platforming, ability skills and some pretty wacky game rules. # ⚓ Left_4_Dead_2_Vulkan_Performance_With_Radeon_Graphics_On Linux⠀⇛ Last week Valve introduced Vulkan rendering support for Left 4 Dead 2. The L4D2 Vulkan support is similar to that of Portal 2 where DXVK is being leveraged for translating the Direct3D calls to Vulkan rather than relying on their OpenGL translations. For those wondering what this means for L4D2 performance on Linux with modern GPUs, here are some benchmarks of Left 4 Dead 2 when testing the OpenGL and Vulkan rendering options. For those curious about the Left 4 Dead 2 Vulkan performance I ran some benchmarks on Ubuntu 21.04 with a few Radeon GPUs (RX Vega 56, RX 5500 XT, RX 5600 XT, RX 6700 XT, RX 6800, and RX 6800 XT) when using the game’s OpenGL and Vulkan rendering options. Mesa 21.2-devel via the Oibaf PPA and Linux 5.13 Git provided the very latest open-source AMD Radeon graphics driver support. o § Desktop Environments/WMs⠀➾ # § K Desktop Environment/KDE SC/Qt⠀➾ # ⚓ Plasma_desktop,_HD_scaling_&_snaps⠀⇛ I like the topic of HD scaling in Linux desktops. Like fonts, it’s one of the most neglected areas of user experience in the Tux space. By and large, Plasma is the only environment that does scaling well. The other desktops sort of get along with full-integer scaling, font DPI tweaks, and, if you’re lucky, some fractional scaling, with 25% increments and such. Things get extra interesting when you use Plasma with non-native applications, i.e., stuff that goes beyond the default Plasma set. I talked about this in my first article on HD scaling in Plasma, where I showed you a whole bunch of tweaks for software like Firefox, Chrome, old GTK2 stuff, and such. Now, I want to elaborate and show you how to scale snaps, in those scenarios where the scaling does not work well out of the box. Follow me. [...] While HD displays have been around for quite some time, the true problems of HD usage is still ahead of us. For example, if you have a sufficiently large monitor, you might never really feel that interface elements are too small to bother tweaking the scaling factor. But in those situations where you do need it, things sort of fall apart. It’s not just Linux – I had plenty of trouble with HD scaling in Windows, too. In this regard, Plasma is really ahead in this game. So far, when it comes to HD stuff, we covered a variety of browsers, we touched on several GTK2 and GTK3 apps. Hey, I even showed you how to change scaling and/or DPI for WINE applications, yup, yup. Now, we’ve covered snaps, too. At first glance, things may feel alien or complicated, but they aren’t really. Next on the list? Gnome, and then 4K devices. And also, this is where you come in. If you have any requests or questions or suggestions, do tell. There are tons of other frameworks and tools in the Linux world, and we gotta explore them all. Anyway, hopefully, this was a useful and fun exercise. See you around. # ⚓ KDE_plasma_desktop_updated_to_5.22.2.1_in_PCLinuxOS⠀⇛ KDE plasma desktop packages have been updated to 5.22.2.1 and shipped to the software repository. This update provides small but important bug fixes for the KDE desktop. # ⚓ Week_1_&_2_GSoC-Krita⠀⇛ After the coding period officialy began. I started the basic implementation for Pin Reference Image & Integrate Crop in Krita. I started addting the options in the UI file for both of these features . And then integrated the options with current reference image and layer .So the UI options will switch the visibility and the crop decorations with the active selections and vice versa too . These were implemented in Krita for some tools so i could take inspiration from them . After these Dmitry suggested to use the shape clipping functionality for cropping reference so the rendering part is already taken care of. That’s a huge help . # § GNOME Desktop/GTK⠀➾ # ⚓ Piotr_Brzeziński:_GSoC_2021:_Beat_detection_testing⠀⇛ The first thing I need to implement music- syncing functionality in Pitivi is a piece of software capable of analysing a given audio track and returning some kind of information about its beat timing. # ⚓ Tobias_Bernard:_Community_Power_Part_3:_Just_Do_It!⠀⇛ In parts 1 and 2 of the series we looked at how different groups inside the GNOME community work together to get things done. In this post we’ll look at what that means for people wanting to push for their personal agenda, e.g. getting a specific feature implemented or bug fixed. Implicit in the theoretical question how power works in GNOME is often a more practical one: How can I get access to it? How can I exercise power to get something I want? At a high level that’s very easy to answer: You either do the work yourself, or you convince someone else to do it. o § Distributions⠀➾ # § BSD⠀➾ # ⚓ [Old] OpenBSD:_the_proactive_Security_operating system⠀⇛ I will be talking about the OpenBSD operating system. OpenBSD is a Unix-like operating system and aims to be the number one in the industry for security. INFN CSIRT has based it’s core services such as Incident management and incident response, mail services over encrypted storage. More in general OpenBSD is used at INFN for implementing VPN solutions. # ⚓ TrueCommand_2.0_Features_TrueNAS_SCALE_Cluster_UI⠀⇛ iXsystems has announced the general availability of TrueCommand 2.0, the second major release of the single-pane-of-glass management system that simplifies the monitoring and control of fleets of systems running TrueNAS CORE, Enterprise, or SCALE. # § IBM/Red Hat/Fedora⠀➾ # ⚓ Rocky_Linux_8.4_is_here_As_First_Stable_Version. Release_Recap_and_Download_Details.⠀⇛ The Rocky Linux team announced the general availability of Rocky Linux 8.4 (Green Obsidian) stable as a CentOS replacement. We wrap up this very first release in this post. # ⚓ CentOS_replacement_Rocky_Linux_8.4_arrives,_and proves_instantly_popular⠀⇛ The Rocky Enterprise Software Foundation (RESF) has announced general availability (GA) of Rocky Linux 8.4. It’s an important milestone because it’s the first Rocky Linux GA release ever. # ⚓ Josef_Strzibny:_CentOS_8_free_alternatives⠀⇛ CentOS 8 EOL is around the corner, so it’s time to evaluate and try the alternatives. I prepared a small table for everybody with the basic overview. # ⚓ 5_IT_leadership_principles_to_live_by:_Miami_CIO_of the_Year_winners_share⠀⇛ A phrase or philosophy, passed down from a mentor or learned from experience, can help shape your actions and guide your decisions as a leader – and also serve as a helpful touchstone in times of uncertainty. We wanted to know – what are the useful pieces of advice that helped leading CIOs get to where they are today and sustained them over the challenges of the last year? We caught up with CIOs who recently won the 2021 Miami CIO of the Year ORBIE Awards to learn about the best advice they have ever received – the words of wisdom they lead by, and why they’ve been so impactful. The awards were presented by the Miami CIO Leadership Association, a professional community that annually recognizes CIOs for their excellence in technology leadership. # ⚓ Hybrid_work:_4_roles_to_assign_in_every_meeting⠀⇛ Have your remote meetings become stale and ineffective? Whether your organization is planning to implement a hybrid work model or some other post-pandemic strategy, remote meetings are here to stay. # ⚓ How_Red_Hat_is_helping_drive_telco’s_RAN_revolution⠀⇛ As 5G begins to weave its way into every industry across the globe, service providers are under more pressure than ever to evolve and scale with increased efficiency. At the heart of this transformation lies cloud- native, open source innovation that helps form the foundation for future connectivity from the core, all the way out to the edge – leveraging a ubiquitous, secure, common infrastructure platform. # § Debian Family⠀➾ # ⚓ Debian_Community_News:_Lucas_Kanashiro_&_Debian/ Canonical/Ubuntu_female_GSoC_intern_relationship⠀⇛ At least once every week we are reminded about the false accusations against one of Debian’s former administrators in the Google Summer of Code (GSoC). It is time to look at the facts. The allegations relate to the Debian GSoC 2018 program. The list of selected interns is here. There are three women on the list. All three women are from Kosova. All three women were invited to DebConf18 in Taiwan. They were all invited back again for DebConf19 in Brazil. They received cash from Google, training, significant travel and accommodation benefits, references and improvements to their career prospects. The administrator/mentor who was wrongly accused received an email on 13 June 2018 denying his request for travel funding to attend DebConf 18. He did not attend DebConf18. He did not attend DebConf19. As he was not there, it is impossible for him to be implicated in some of the allegations. The refusal to fund his travel appears unreasonable given the effort mentors put into GSoC every year. Let’s look at the stories of the three women. Elena Gjevukaj was married during GSoC 2018. The wedding was shortly before her travel to Taiwan. It seems unlikely that she had a romantic interest in any of the mentors. Here is a wedding photo. It is incredibly cruel to this woman and her husband to suggest that she might have been party to any other relationship. We congratulate them on their marriage and wish them a happy future together. # ⚓ Ditching_OpenPGP,_a_new_approach_to_signing_APT repositories⠀⇛ Over the past few years, it has become clear that OpenPGP is a major disappointment for repository signing, the interfaces around being the cause for multiple security vulnerabilities; and limited development speed and deprecation of algorithms and key sizes causing uncertainty about long term safety of LTS releases. This document outlines a new approach to signing repositories. For the time being, one algorithm is being used: Ed25519 with SHA512, also used by signify-openbsd, minisign, and OpenSSH (ssh-ed25519). # § Canonical/Ubuntu Family⠀➾ # ⚓ Ubuntu_21.04_Users_Get_Major_Kernel_Security_Update, 17_Vulnerabilities_Patched⠀⇛ The new Linux kernel security patch is here about a month and a half after Ubuntu 21.04’s first kernel update and fixes no less than seven security vulnerabilities (CVE-2020- 24586, CVE-2020-24587, CVE-2020-24588, CVE- 2020-26139, CVE-2020-26141, CVE-2020-26145, CVE-2020-26147) discovered by Mathy Vanhoef in Linux kernel’s Wi-Fi implementation, which could allow a physically proximate attacker to inject packets, decrypt fragments, exfiltrate selected fragments, expose sensitive information or cause a denial of service (system crash). The new Ubuntu 21.04 kernel update also patches a race condition (CVE-2021-32399) and a use-after-free flaw (CVE-2021-33034) discovered in Linux kernel’s Bluetooth subsystem and Bluetooth HCI driver respectively. These issues could allow a local attacker to cause a denial of service (system crash) or execute arbitrary code. # ⚓ Canonical_launches_Blender_LTS_support⠀⇛ Blender has partnered with Canonical to offer enterprise-grade support for the Blender LTS application suite. Blender is the free and open-source 3D creation suite for artists and media production experts. Canonical, the company behind Ubuntu, provides professional enterprise support and long term security maintenance for open-source software. Working together, the two organizations now offer a support path for teams and studios as Blender rolls out their LTS model focused on users at the enterprise level. “It’s a privilege to support Blender and the fantastic work of this remarkable community, its founders and leaders. Today’s announcement strengthens Blender with full- service Canonical support and long term security maintenance, and delivers the level of assurance that professional Blender content creators need, in partnership with the Blender Foundation” said Mark Shuttleworth, CEO of Canonical. # ⚓ Canonical_Partners_With_Blender_Around_Paid_LTS Application_Support⠀⇛ o § Devices/Embedded⠀➾ # ⚓ SiFive_Performance_P550_is_the_fastest_64-bit_RISC- V_processor_so_far⠀⇛ SiFive has announced two RISC-V “Performance” cores with Performance P550 that should be the fastest 64-bit RISC-V processor so far with a SPECInt 2006 score of 8.65/GHz, as well as a Performance P270 Linux capable processor with full support for the RISC-V vector extension v1.0 rc. # ⚓ Canonical_enables_Ubuntu_on_SiFive’s_HiFive_RISC-V_boards⠀⇛ With Canonical announcing Ubuntu support for so much new hardware, the announcement of Ubuntu ported to a new architecture can go unnoticed. But today, we have a big one. Working with the leading RISC-V core IP designer and development board manufacturer, SiFive, we are proud to announce the first Ubuntu release for two of the most prominent SiFive boards, Unmatched and Unleashed. # § Open Hardware/Modding⠀➾ # ⚓ LILYGO_Mini_E-Paper_Core_combines_ESP32_with_1.02- inch_ePaper_Display_in_3D_printed_enclosure_–_CNX Software⠀⇛ I could not find firmware or code samples specific to Mini E-Paper Core, so the company may not have released anything yet, but the Arduino code for T5 ePaper displays should be reusable, possibly with some modifications. # ⚓ Hackathon_winner_creates_portable_AI_inspection_demo kit⠀⇛ The Windows and Ubuntu Linux operating systems were used to test the machine vision software Velmay developed. # ⚓ Two_Arduinos_are_used_to_control_this_DIY_three-axis CNC_plottee_|_Arduino_Blog⠀⇛ We’ve seen a number of homemade CNC machines throughout the years, but Tuenhidiy’s build — made from some discarded materials — is no less impressive. This unique CNC plotter features a frame cleverly constructed out of two wooden wine boxes, which appear to be the perfect size with space for an Y-axis bed and an upright structure that actuates X movements. For the Z component, a pen is lifted using parts from a recycled CD player drive. Electronics-wise, the project is also quite interesting as it employs servos rather than steppers for its X and Y axes. Actuation is handled by an Arduino Uno with pre-installed GRBL firmware and a CNC shield, which sends commands to an Arduino Mega running custom firmware. The Mega — plus a custom adapter board and an L293D shield — takes care of PID control for the motors. # ⚓ Low_Cost_Open_Source_Hardware_LoRa_modules_based_on SX1276_are_now_in_stock!⠀⇛ 868 Mhz is the free band for LoRa in Europe and we have six basic modules for this frequency. # ⚓ The_digital_divide:_interactions_between socioeconomic_disadvantage_and_computing_education⠀⇛ # § Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications⠀➾ # ⚓ Xiaomi_Mi_11_Ultra_pops_up_on_Geekbench_running Android_12_–_comments⠀⇛ # ⚓ OPPO_A53_bags_ColorOS_11_(Android_11)_stable_update⠀⇛ # ⚓ How_to_check_Mobile_Data_Usage_and_WiFi_Data_Usage_on Android⠀⇛ # ⚓ Android_Auto_new_updates_make_messaging_a_breeze, invites_greater_customization_|_T3⠀⇛ # ⚓ 10_Best_White_Noise_Apps_for_Android_To_Get_Sleepy Instantly⠀⇛ # ⚓ New_Android_Messages_Update_Brings_Encryption—But With_Limits⠀⇛ # ⚓ Google_expands_general_availability_of_device management_service_Android_Enterprise_Essentials_– SiliconANGLE⠀⇛ # ⚓ Google_Chat_gets_new_search_filters_for_Android_app_– Android_Community⠀⇛ # ⚓ Google_Faces_Antitrust_Probe_From_CCI_Over_Abusing Android_in_Smart_TV_Market_|_Technology_News⠀⇛ # ⚓ itel_Likely_To_Launch_4K_Android_TVs_in_India_Next Month:_Report⠀⇛ # ⚓ If_you_buy_an_Android_smartwatch_on_Prime_Day,_it needs_to_be_this_one_|_Android_Central⠀⇛ # ⚓ Android_Enterprise_Essentials_expands_to_support_SMBs in_more_countries_–_SlashGear⠀⇛ # ⚓ SAP,_Nokia_&_many_others_use_Android_smartphones_from Nokia_Mobile_for_powering_their_workforce_| Nokiapoweruser⠀⇛ # ⚓ Why_android_is_the_OS_of_choice_for_emergency services_|_TechRadar⠀⇛ # ⚓ Android_12′s_Material_You_theming_system_has_been recreated_by_a_developer⠀⇛ # ⚓ How_to_Quickly_Disable_Camera_or_Mic_Access_in Android_12_|_Beebom⠀⇛ # ⚓ How_to_download_GTA_Liberty_City_Stories_on_Android in_2021:_File_size,_system_requirements,_download_link, and_more_revealed⠀⇛ # ⚓ Xiaomi_Redmi_Note_10S_Review:_Cheap_Android smartphone_is_water-_and_dust-proof_–_NotebookCheck.net Reviews⠀⇛ # ⚓ Top_10_Data_Backup_Apps_for_Android_Device⠀⇛ Creating a backup of all your data on your phone is essential as you never know what may happen to the electronic devices. Certainly, you may not want to fall prey to data loss therefore, backing up your phone now and then makes sense. o § Free, Libre, and Open Source Software⠀➾ # ⚓ How_the_Netherlands_group_grew_in_Covid_times⠀⇛ And than Covid came to the Netherlands, and we were forced to change our ways. We could no longer meet at the physical NLLGG location. There was an online NLLGG session we joined, but as expected the main focus was on the Linux users there and not on our overlapping FSFE group. Eventually in the autumn we just tried our luck with an online session of our own. Luckily the FSFE had just launched their conference server based on BigBlueButton, so the required freedom-respecting infrastructure was already in place. We held our first meeting on the 28th of October 2020, which we announced on the FSFE website, on our XMPP group and on the Netherlands mailinglist (contact details on our BNL wiki page). The first meeting was a bit rough. As can be expected with the hotchpotch of computer setups, there were various issues with audio and webcams. Still we had a nice meeting of about 1,5 hours to discuss various topics that were keeping our minds occupied. With everybody locked up at home, it was a welcome change to chat to the people with similar interest you would normally only meet by going to a conference or other community event. The format of the meeting was very much the same as at the booth, just to have a relaxed group conversation on free software related issues. We kept on doing the online meetings by just scheduling another one at the end of the meeting. We recently had our 9th online get-together already. The attendance varies somewhere between the 5 and 9 persons. In the mean time we have settled on the 3rd Wednesday of the month, so it has be come a regular thing with a regular attendance. Every meeting is somewhat of a surprise, because you just don’t know exactly what it will bring. Some new people might join, there might be some new and interesting subjects being tabled, and there could be a strong collaboration on an opportunity. The last meeting we started compiling a list of topics beforehand on an etherpad, so we can make an explicit decision which topics to spend time discussing. # ⚓ What’s_an_Open_Source_Software_Maintainer?⠀⇛ According to Mike Dolan, GM and Senior Vice President of Strategic Programs at the Linux Foundation, “the Linux kernel follows a model where Linus [Torvalds] oversees the final release details, but nearly all decisions are actually made by the respective subsystem maintainers, or subsystem group maintainers. All projects are inclusive, meaning anyone can contribute and participate in the technical community.” # ⚓ FOSS_for_the_Future:_Welcoming_Teckids_as_an_Affiliate Member_|_Open_Source_Initiative⠀⇛ We’re excited to announce that Teckids e.V. is joining OSI as an Affiliate Member. Teckids is an educational organisation based in Germany that focuses on providing Free Software resources and tools for students and educators. Teckids involves children and young people at all levels — from workshop preparation to website management, social media and the charity’s board. Teckids also holds events and workshops to raise awareness for teamwork and democracy. [...] Dominik George from Teckids e.V. says, “We look forward to continuing to raise the profile of Free Software in education and hope to make more connections with the international FOSS community through our Affiliate relationship with OSI.” Benedict Suska from Teckids e.V. says, “Our goal is to create a network of stakeholders, companies, teachers and studenta that bring Free Software into education under common standards. Through our membership in OSI, we hope to have strong partners in the FOSS community at our side to help us fulfil our mission.” # § Web Browsers⠀➾ # ⚓ Brave_Search_Engine_Opens_For_Beta_Testing⠀⇛ Search engines are the front page of the Internet. This is where internet users get most of the content including articles, tutorials, courses, and videos. You probably landed on this article from one of many search engines as well. # ⚓ Brave_Introduces_Private_Brave_Search_Engine⠀⇛ The Brave browser has been promising privacy to its users for a number of years. Now it’s expanding its product line – and its privacy. It was revealed this week that the Brave search engine is now in beta. It’s not relegated to just the Brave browser either – you can use it in other browsers as well. # § Productivity Software/LibreOffice/Calligra⠀➾ # ⚓ ODF_1.3_is_an_OASIS_Standard⠀⇛ The Document Foundation is pleased to announce that LibreOffice native document format – Open Document Format for Office Applications (ODF) 1.3 – has been approved as OASIS Standard with 14 affirmative consents and no objections. ODF is a free, open XML- based document file format for office applications, to be used for documents containing text, spreadsheets, charts and graphical elements. ODF 1.3 is an update to the international standard Version 1.2, which was approved by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as ISO/IEC 26300 (2015). The OpenDocument Format specifies the characteristics of an open XML-based application-independent and platform- independent digital document file format, as well as the characteristics of software applications which read, write and process such documents. It is applicable to document authoring, editing, viewing, exchange and archiving, including text documents, spreadsheets, presentation graphics, drawings, charts and similar documents commonly used by personal productivity software applications. # § FSF⠀➾ # § GNU Projects⠀➾ # ⚓ TeXmacs_2.1_released⠀⇛ This version of TeXmacs consolidates many developments that took place in the last decade. Most importantly, the interface is now based on Qt, which allowed us develop native versions for Linux, MacOS, and Windows. TeXmacs has evolved from a scientific text editor into a scientific office suite, with an integrated presentation mode, technical drawing editor, versioning tools, bibliography tool, etc. The typesetting quality has continued to improve with a better support of microtypography and a large variety of fonts. The converters for LaTeX and Html have also been further perfected and TeXmacs now comes with a native support for Pdf. # § Programming/Development⠀➾ # ⚓ On_the_Removal_of_toSet(),_toList()_and_Others⠀⇛ (Apologies for the clickbait in the post title! But I’d really like people who are searching for solutions to read this.) Between Qt 5.14 and Qt 5.15, my colleague, Marc Mutz, and I submitted a series of patches to Qt that added “range constructors” to the Qt containers. This brought Qt containers one step closer to…C++98 feature parity! # ⚓ Qt_for_MCUs_1.9_released⠀⇛ A new feature update of Qt for MCUs is now available. Download version 1.9 to create your applications on Linux systems and for new target platforms, get access to the new PaintedItem and font quality APIs, discover new demos and examples, and more. # ⚓ Qt_6_Reaches_Feature_Parity_with_Qt_5_–_the_Qt_6.2 Alpha_Released⠀⇛ We have released Qt 6.2 Alpha today. The Qt 6.2 is the first Qt 6 release which includes all widely used Qt add-on modules previously available in the Qt 5.15 release. Compared to Qt 6.1 the upcoming Qt 6.2 brings support to 13 additional modules totaling to over 50 modules supported with Qt 6.2. On top of this, Qt 6.2 is also the first release in the Qt 6 series to provide Long Term Support for commercial licensees. # ⚓ Qt_6.2_Alpha_Released_With_Many_More_Modules_Ported From_Qt5_–_Phoronix⠀⇛ The Qt Company has announced the debut of Qt 6.2 Alpha as it prepares for its September release with many more modules finally making the transition from Qt5 to Qt6. Qt 6.2 as the first Qt6 Long-Term Support release is aiming to be quite a worthy successor to Qt 5.15 LTS. But with Qt 6.0 and 6.1 having lacked many Qt5 modules, this was one of the big focuses for this cycle. New modules to Qt 6.2 include Qt Bluetooth, Qt Multimedia, Qt NFC, Qt Positioning, Qt Quick Dialogs, Qt Remote Objects, Qt Sensors, Qt Serialbus, Qt Serialport, Qt Webchannel, Qt Webengine, Qt Websockets, and Qt Webview. # ⚓ Program_on_FreeDOS_with_Bywater_BASIC⠀⇛ In the early days of personal computing—from the late 1970s and through the 1980s—many people got their start with BASIC programming. BASIC was a universal programming language that came built into most personal computers, from Apple to IBM PCs. [...] The Bywater BASIC website reminds us that Bywater BASIC implements a large superset of the ANSI Standard for Minimal BASIC (X3.60- 1978) and a significant subset of the ANSI Standard for Full BASIC (X3.113-1987). It’s also distributed under the GNU General Public License version 2, which means it’s open source software. We only want to include open source programs in FreeDOS, so Bywater BASIC was a great addition to FreeDOS in our early days. # § Python⠀➾ # ⚓ Miro_Hrončok:_Python_3.10_beta_in_Fedora Linux⠀⇛ The Python developers have already released three beta versions of Python 3.10.0. You can try the latest one in Fedora Linux today! Test your Python code with 3.10 early to be ready for the final 3.10.0 release in October. # § Rust⠀➾ # ⚓ Rust_Bringing_Greater_Safety_To_Linux [Ed: Loaded and promotional headline. There are caveats like_these and these]⠀⇛ Google is providing financial support to the Rust for Linux project which aims to increase Linux security by writing parts of the Linux kernel in Rust. This seems to be a worthwhile attempt to bolster the security of the internet and every device that uses it. Rust is certainly attracting a lot of attention at the moment. Last month we reported Facebook Open Source Joins Rust Foundation and the month before came news that both Google and Microsoft were jumping on the bandwagon with Rust For Android OS Development and Rust for Windows. All this good news and more, such as Amazon AWS Invests In Rust came in the wake of the layoffs at Mozilla where the language originated. Now we have news from from the Internet Security Research Group (ISRG), which is also the organization behind Let’s Encrypt, that Rust is being added as a second language for the Linux kernel in order to improve its memory safety. While the Rust for Linux project might seem to be the latest Rust story to emerge it in fact has been ongoing for several months and was first publicized at the Linux Plumbers Conference in August 2020 in a talk by John Baublitz, Nick Desaulniers, Alex Gaynor, Miguel Ojeda, Geoffrey Thomas, Josh Triplett. # § Java⠀➾ # ⚓ How_the_JIT_compiler_boosts_Java_performance_in OpenJDK_|_Red_Hat_Developer⠀⇛ Just-in-time (JIT) compilation is central to peak performance in modern virtual machines, but it comes with trade-offs. This article introduces you to JIT compilation in HotSpot, OpenJDK’s Java virtual machine. After reading the article, you will have an overview of HotSpot’s multi-tiered execution model and how it balances the resources required by your Java applications and by the compiler itself. You’ll also see two examples that demonstrate how a JIT compiler uses advanced techniques—deoptimization and speculation—to boost application performance. * § Leftovers⠀➾ o ⚓ How_We_Are_Treated_and_the_Feedback_Loop_of_Our_Dreams⠀⇛ For two days, I was treated like royalty. I had a young man as my personal assistant who kept offering to carry my backpack and get me anything I wanted. I had a hair and make-up artist by my side. Everywhere I went, I had a bathroom with a sign that indicated it was just for me. And if I was hungry, vegan food was special-ordered at the drop of a hat. o ⚓ Opinion_|_Planet_Earth_To_Outer_Space:_When_Bezos_Blasts_Off, Please_Keep_Him_There⠀⇛ o ⚓ Lift_Up_From_the_Bottom_and_Raise_Everyone_Up⠀⇛ West Virginia, a state first established in defiance of slavery, has recently become ground zero in the fight for voting rights. In an early June op-ed in the Charleston Gazette-Mail, Democratic Senator Joe Manchin vowed to maintain the Senate filibuster, while opposing the For the People Act, a bill to expand voting rights. Last week, after mounting pressure and a leaked Zoom recording with billionaire donors, he showed potential willingness to move on the filibuster and proposed a “compromise” on voting rights. Nonetheless, his claim that the filibuster had been critical to protecting the “rights of Democrats in the past” and his pushback on important voting-rights protections requires scrutiny. o ⚓ Janet_Malcolm’s_Provocations⠀⇛ This past spring, halfway through a course on writing biographies, I gave my students an excerpt from Janet Malcolm’s The Silent Woman, her study of Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath’s marriage and the challenges it posed to Plath biographers. During our discussion of the excerpt, we all paused on Malcolm’s description of the biographer, a description very different from anything we’d read previously in the course: “The biographer at work, indeed, is like the professional burglar, breaking into a house, rifling through certain drawers that he has good reason to think contain the jewelry and money, and triumphantly bearing his loot away.” The “transgressive nature of biography is rarely acknowledged,” Malcolm explained, “but it is the only explanation for biography’s status as a popular genre.” o § Education⠀➾ # ⚓ Culture_War_in_the_K-12_Classroom⠀⇛ When New Hampshire teacher Misty Crompton learned that she had become campaign fodder for a local school board race, she says, “I immediately thought of the California privilege teacher.” Crompton is referring to a third-grade teacher in Cupertino, Calif., who became a right-wing-media punching bag after a lesson she’d taught about white privilege went public. “I thought, ‘They’re going to try to tar me with that same brush.’”1 # ⚓ How_I_got_fired_from_my_first_tech_job⠀⇛ When I was 14 I had to deliver gold to a partner workshop, on the way, right at the beginning of Sulaymaniyah Street I noticed a large computer shop. Very beautiful, a lot of computers, laptops, hell, there was a gaming PC with 3 screens (That was the first time I saw a desktop with 3 screens!). After I delivered the gold, on my way back, I entered the shop, I got introduced to the owner. Turns out they were an official representative of companies like Dell, HP, Asus, etc. # ⚓ Do_Zoom_classes_confirm_our_worst_fears_about_human nature?⠀⇛ Here is where Gyges becomes visible. At times, my frustration with the Zoom class led me to pop questions to those invisible students – who, I assumed, were at least present. But there was often no reply. I later discovered that those black rectangles on my screen obscured students who were variously at work, on exercise bikes, in bed – or on Google trying to find answers to my questions. Unsurprisingly, the papers they handed in were unsatisfactory, but since the administration urged faculty to show compassion, I assigned D minuses rather than Fs. But it made me wonder: was Glaucon right? # ⚓ Universities_Are_Slashing_Faculties_and_Blaming_Covid⠀⇛ In May of 2020, the University of Vermont’s president, Suresh Garimella, issued an update on the school’s finances. Citing the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, Garimella put forth a bleak prognosis of lower enrollment, higher costs, and stagnant tuition rates necessitating reductions in salaries, benefits, and staff. In December of 2020, the dean of UVM’s College of Arts and Sciences, William Falls, followed up with his recommendation of terminating 12 majors, 11 minors, and four master’s programs, in order to close a $8.6 million deficit. But Helen Scott, a professor of English at UVM, points out that the school’s administrators have alternatives to such “draconian measures.” o § Hardware⠀➾ # ⚓ Intel_has_formed_a_new_graphics_team_with_Raja_Koduri leading_|_GamingOnLinux⠀⇛ It seems Intel are going to be betting big on their upcoming standalone graphics cards powered by the new Intel Xe architecture with the formation of a new dedicated team. Announced yesterday, amongst other typical organizational changes with people moving around and other groups forming, the one that caught our eye is the new “Accelerated Computing Systems and Graphics Group”. This will be lead by Raja Koduri, who is a huge name in graphics having worked for S3, AMD, Apple, and AMD again where Koduri lead the Radeon Technology Group with through the Polaris, Vega and Navi architectures. o § Health/Nutrition⠀➾ # ⚓ Sweden_Abruptly_Decides_Esports_Are_Not_Sports_When_It Comes_To_COVID-19_Exemptions⠀⇛ We’ve marked an awful lot of progress markers when it comes to the emergence of esports into the popular lexicon throughout the world. If there were a general theme to those posts, it certainly would be the progress esports has made in being considered a real, established sport, and not just a hobby that borrows that word with no validity. Progress, as I enjoy saying, is not linear, however. # ⚓ Key_Senate_Democrat_Applauded_for_Manifesto_on_Reducing Drug_Costs⠀⇛ Progressives pushing Congress and President Joe Biden to enact drug pricing reforms that lower costs applauded a two-page principles document published Tuesday by Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden. “It’s time for Congress to hold Big Pharma accountable for price-gouging at the pharmacy counter.”—Sen. Ron Wyden # ⚓ Big_Pharma_Companies_Have_All_the_Power_With_Families_Like Mine_at_Their_Mercy⠀⇛ We moved from the East Coast to San Diego for work when our kids were young. But insulin is expensive no matter where you live in the United States, even if you have insurance coverage like we do. Our sons’ insulin cost us about $200 per month, even with our employer-sponsored health insurance. Our insurance plan requires us to meet our deductible, $2,900 per person, before coverage kicks in. # ⚓ Congressperson’s_Town_Hall_Disrupted_by_Angry_Anti- Vaxxers⠀⇛ The town hall was a carefully planned effort to control not only the possibility of Covid infection, but the content of questions and the media presence. Shortly before the event, Huffman aides barred a television reporter from EnviroNews from entering, according to EnviroNews. They allowed a cameraman from Fox News KTVU to enter, however. This reporter had scored a seat online, and submitted a question asking Huffman to explain why he has banked more campaign funds from weapons manufacturers and agribusiness corporations than from environmental groups. But half of the spaced seats were empty and most of the attendees appeared to be eligible for Medicare. It looked to be a dull event. # ⚓ Florida_Governor_Signs_Law_Reforming_Program_for_Brain- Damaged_Infants⠀⇛ Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed legislation overhauling a controversial state program that provides lifelong care for children born with catastrophic brain damage, approving the most far- reaching reform in the program’s 33-year history. With DeSantis’ signature Monday night, parents who participate in the Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Association, or NICA, will get an immediate $150,000 cash benefit and the pledge of Florida lawmakers that they will no longer have to fight with administrators for wheelchairs, medication, therapy and other services for their severely disabled children. o § Integrity/Availability⠀➾ # § Proprietary⠀➾ # ⚓ Call_Center_Software_Firm_Aircall_Tops_$1_Billion Valuation⠀⇛ Aircall operates in Europe and the U.S., and also now has an office in Sydney. About half of the company’s revenue is generated in Europe. # ⚓ [Attacker]_allegedly_tried_to_poison_San_Francisco Bay_Area_water_supply [iophk: Windows TCO]⠀⇛ The attack took place on Jan. 15 and involved the person gaining access to the water treatment plant network by using a former employee’s TeamViewer account credentials. Having gained access to the plant, the person then deleted programs that the water plant uses to treat drinking water. According to a confidential report compiled by the Northern California Regional Intelligence Center and seen by NBC, the [crack] was not discovered until the following day. The facility subsequently changed its passwords and reinstalled the programs. “No failures were reported as a result of this incident and no individuals in the city reported illness from water-related failures,” the report noted. # ⚓ Nokia_to_deploy_5G_SA_Core_for_DISH_in_public_cloud with_AWS⠀⇛ As per an official statement, Nokia is providing its voice core, cloud packet core, subscriber data management, device management, and NetGuard network security, as well as end-to-end security services for DISH to help the latter deliver new 5G-era services while enabling it to manage its network with near zero-touch automation, and ensuring adherence to Service Level Agreements compliant to DISH Service-Based Architecture (SBA). # § Pseudo-Open Source⠀➾ # § Privatisation/Privateering⠀➾ # § Linux Foundation⠀➾ # ⚓ Linux_Foundation_unveils_new permissive_license_for_open_data collaboration [Ed: Linux_Foundation takes Microsoft bribes, then promotes non-reciprocal (aka ‘permissive’) licences.]⠀⇛ The Linux Foundation has announced a new permissive license designed to help foster collaboration around open data for artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) projects. Data may be the new oil, but for AI and ML projects, having access to expansive and diverse datasets is key to reducing bias and building powerful models capable of all manner of intelligent tasks. For machines, data is a little like “experience” is for humans — the more of it you have, the better decisions you are likely to make. # ⚓ Linux_Foundation_Teams_Up_with Major_Partners_to_Create_the_Open Voice_Network [Ed: This misuses “Linux” brand to promote_surveillance by_listening_devices]⠀⇛ # § Security⠀➾ # ⚓ Security_updates_for_Wednesday⠀⇛ Security updates have been issued by Debian (kernel and linux-4.19), Fedora (tor), Oracle (rh-postgresql10- postgresql), Red Hat (kernel), SUSE (ansible, apache2, dovecot23, OpenEXR, ovmf, and wireshark), and Ubuntu (linux, linux-aws, linux-aws-5.4, linux-azure, linux-azure-5.4, linux- gcp, linux-gcp-5.4, linux-gke, linux- gke-5.4, linux-gkeop, linux-gkeop-5.4, linux-hwe-5.4, linux-oracle, linux- oracle-5.4, linux-raspi, linux-raspi- 5.4, linux, linux-aws, linux-aws-5.8, linux-azure, linux-azure-5.8, linux- gcp, linux-gcp-5.8, linux-hwe-5.8, linux-kvm, linux-oracle, linux-oracle- 5.8, linux-raspi, linux, linux-aws, linux-aws-hwe, linux-azure, linux- azure-4.15, linux-dell300x, linux-gcp, linux-gcp-4.15, linux-hwe, linux- oracle, linux-raspi2, linux-snapdragon, linux, linux-aws, linux-azure, linux- gcp, linux-oracle, linux-raspi, linux- hwe, linux-gke-5.3, linux-raspi2-5.3, linux-oem-5.10, and thunderbird). # ⚓ Success_at_Apache:_Security_in_Practice⠀⇛ This post is about the Apache Software Foundation’s Security process and security mindset of the Apache Software project’s PMC put to the best use in practice. From this post you can learn why security practices we apply at our projects are important and how they work when they are applied correctly and when the right security-driven mindset is applied by the PMCs but also how important it is for the users of the Apache Software Foundation projects to keep their software updated – including latest security fixes. The idea of this article was triggered by a recent blog post of the security researcher Ian Caroll that has earned USD 13.000 on bug bounties by simply following up the results of Apache Security process applied by the Apache Airflow PMC. This saved quite a few businesses a lot of trouble, but it was only possible due to the foundations laid down by the ASF and the PMC of the project. Here is what Ian Caroll has to say about it: “This issue was a great example of how ASF’s transparent way of fixing and disclosing vulnerabilities worked to protect users of their software, and gave many organizations a wake-up call on ensuring they upgrade and protect their open-source software.” # ⚓ The_10_best_IP_scanner_tools_for_network management⠀⇛ When talking about network scanning tools, we refer to software that identifies and tries to solve various loopholes in our networks. Furthermore, it plays a significant role by safeguarding you from dangerous habits that may threaten the entire system. These devices provide the user with a diverse way to help secure their computer networks. Regarding safeguarding we talked about earlier, it denotes preventing someone who manages a wide range of computers and other devices from network vulnerability. When handling a lot of stuff, you probably have many IP addresses to keep track of, making it critical to have reliable IP address scanning and network management tools. With the help of these IP scanner tools, you can keep track of all the addresses on your network. In addition to that, you will have an easy time ensuring that all your devices are connected successfully. This also makes it easy for you to troubleshoot any arising conflicts in the network. There are various types of IP scanning tools that aid in providing a database of your IPs. This is a vital aspect to IP address managers as they ease their tracking job. # ⚓ Unpatched_Linux_Marketplace_Bugs_Allow_Wormable Attacks,_Drive-By_RCE [Ed: Overstating risk and blaming on "Linux" something that has nothing whatsoever to do with it. How typical...]⠀⇛ A pair of zero-days affecting Pling- based marketplaces could allow for some ugly attacks on unsuspecting Linux enthusiasts — with no patches in sight. An unpatched stored cross-site- scripting (XSS) security vulnerability affecting Linux marketplaces could allow unchecked, wormable supply-chain attacks, researchers have found. # ⚓ DarkRadiation_Ransomware:_Linux,_Docker_Cloud Containers_Are_At_Risk_of_Being_Infected–What Exactly_Happens_in_Your_System? [Ed: Blaming "Linux" for people installing malicious stuff on their systems]⠀⇛ The strain which is known as “DarkRadiation” has been seen as well on the popular chatting app Telegram. # § Privacy/Surveillance⠀➾ # ⚓ The_Conviction_and_Sentencing_of_Witness K⠀⇛ For those familiar with the case, there was nothing merciful in the finding.  A punishment had been levelled for exposing an unlawful operation against a friendly and fledgling state.  In 2004, Australia’s then foreign minister Alexander Downer authorised the bugging of the cabinet offices of Timor-Leste by officers of the Australian Secret Intelligence Services (ASIS). The surveillance of Timor-Leste’s negotiators was an act of economic espionage and fraud, intended to give the Australians the upper hand in discussions between the countries over their maritime boundary.  At stake were the oil and gas-rich deposits in the Timor Sea.  Unaware of the surveillance operation, the East Timorese went ahead to sign a treaty which distinctly favoured Australia: a 50-50 division of the Greater Sunrise fields. # ⚓ Please_Welcome_The_Los_Angeles_Police Department_(Brought_To_You_In_Part_By_A Generous_Grant_From_Ring)⠀⇛ Amazon’s doorbell-camera acquisition, Ring, has captured a large segment of the home security market. Part of its growth is due to its long list of law enforcement partnerships. Coupled with the rollout of its companion app, Neighbors, Ring has been handing out cameras to cops… who then hand out these complimentary cameras to local homeowners. # ⚓ Understanding_Amazon_Sidewalk⠀⇛ Much of the press about Amazon Sidewalk has said that it will force you to share your internet or WiFi network. It won’t. It’s a network to connect home automation devices like smart light switches together in more flexible ways. Amazon is opening the network up to partners, the first of which is the Tile tracker. Sidewalk can use the internet for some features, but won’t in general. If it does, Amazon is limiting its rate to 80 kilobits per second — or 8 kilobytes per second, which is only about 50% more than the modems we used in the old days. It is also capped at 500 MB per month, which is less than two hours of 80 kbps over the whole month. To be clear: it isn’t going to interfere with your streaming, video calls, or anything else. The average web page is over two megabytes in size, which would take over four minutes to download at that speed. Sidewalk is primarily a mesh network for home automation devices, like Alexa’s smart device features, Google Home, and Apple HomeKit. This mesh network can provide coverage where your home network is flaky. To build the ecosystem, people incorporate their devices into this mesh network.  # ⚓ A_Long_Overdue_Reckoning_For_Online Proctoring_Companies_May_Finally_Be_Here⠀⇛ Over the past year, the use of online proctoring apps has skyrocketed. But while companies have seen upwards of a 500% increase in their usage, legitimate concerns about their invasiveness, potential bias, and efficacy are also on the rise. These concerns even led to a U.S. Senate inquiry letter requesting detailed information from three of the top proctoring companies—Proctorio, ProctorU, and ExamSoft—which combined have proctored at least 30 million tests over the course of the pandemic.1 Unfortunately, the companies mostly dismissed the senators’ concerns, in some cases stretching the truth about how the proctoring apps work, and in other cases downplaying the damage this software inflicts on vulnerable students.  In one instance, though, these criticisms seem to have been effective: ProctorU announced in May that it will no longer sell fully-automated proctoring services. This is a good step toward eliminating some of the issues that have concerned EFF with ProctorU and other proctoring apps. The artificial intelligence used by these tools to detect academic dishonesty has been roundly attacked for its bias and accessibility impacts, and the clear evidence that it leads to significant false positives, particularly for vulnerable students. While this is not a complete solution to the problems that online proctoring creates—the surveillance is, after all, the product—we hope other online proctoring companies will also seriously consider the danger that these automated systems present.  This reckoning has been a long time coming. For years, online proctoring companies have played fast and loose when talking about their ability to “automatically” detect cheating. On the one hand, they’ve advertised their ability to “flag cheating” with artificial intelligence: ProctorU has claimed to offer “fully automated online proctoring”; Proctorio has touted the automated “suspicion ratings” it assigns test takers; and ExamSoft has claimed to use “Advanced A.I. software” to “detect abnormal student behavior that may signal academic dishonesty.” On the other hand, they’ve all been quick to downplay their use of automation, claiming that they don’t make any final decisions—educators do—and pointing out that their more expensive options include live proctors during exams or video review by a company employee afterward, if you really want top-tier service. # ⚓ Tackling_data_privacy_in_healthcare⠀⇛ HCOs handle a wide range of personally identifiable information (PII) and sensitive personal information), including electronic medical records (EMRs), electronic health records (EHRs), electronic patient health information (ePHI), clinical research patient information, clinical trial records, birthdates, current/past addresses and medical coverage information. The recent trend towards digitising these information has brought an enormous change in the healthcare industry. o § Defence/Aggression⠀➾ # ⚓ Building_the_World_Back_Better⠀⇛ Why the sudden bipartisanship? China. # ⚓ Time_to_Stop_Modernizing_America’s_Nukes_and_to_Start Negotiating_Peace⠀⇛ In his record-breaking $753-billion National Security Budget, $715 billion of which is for the Pentagon, is another $38 billion for the portion of the Energy Department budget that is devoted to nuclear weapons and weapons production. It’s a figure that is higher than what the proposed 2022 military budget of the outgoing Trump administration would have been and is a record in constant dollars that exceeds any year of the Vietnam or Korean Wars and is only topped by World War II spending when the US was fully mobilized in a global conflict. Bad enough that this obscene amount of spending — greater than what the next 10 nations of the world, many of whom are this country’s NATO allies, are spending on their militaries — is occurring at a time when the US is not actually fighting any wars, and that it includes money for expensive programs that are totally useless like the F-35 nuclear- capable fighter bomber, the world’s most expensive weapons system in history. But this humongous sum of money also includes almost $1.5 billion for ramping up the production of plutonium “pits.” # ⚓ Biden’s_New_Normal_Seems_Ominously_Heading_Toward_a_Revival of_Cold_War_Politics⠀⇛ “America is back” was President Biden’s mantra as he met earlier this month with the Group of Seven in Cornwall, NATO allies in Brussels and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Geneva. Biden earned widespread praise for leading a return to normality after Donald Trump’s reign of error. The question is, though, America is back for what? Biden’s emphasis in the European meetings was bolstering NATO allies for a new global face-off with Russia—and increasingly China. Despite existential threats posed by catastrophic climate change and a global pandemic, Biden’s new normal seems ominously leaning to a revival of Cold War politics. # ⚓ The_Missing_and_the_Dead_in_El_Salvador⠀⇛ Meanwhile, the government refuses to treat the issue of disappearances as a problem and its officials prefer to say that the country is a “cool” place to visit. “At last people no longer see El Salvador as the kingdom of war or gangs. Today they see us as the coolest country in Latin America,” said the head of the ruling party’s deputies Cristian Guevara in one of the sessions of the Legislative Assembly. “Given these delusions of progress and success by the government, it is likely that there will be no thorough or technical investigations to find missing persons in the country and new guidelines will be set up soon, in light of the actions by this ex-cop, to set up a criteria for witnesses and legal benefits. That’s why they have their own prosecutor, to hide the truth and support a permanent propaganda campaign”, said human rights expert Celia Medrano to the Americas Program. # ⚓ Disproving_The_Nonsense_About_The_FBI_&_Jan._6th_Would_Be Easier_If_The_FBI_Didn’t_Have_A_History_Of_Entrapping_People In_Made_Up_Plots⠀⇛ There’s a very, very dumb conspiracy theory making the rounds — and I want to be very clear on this — that has zero evidence to support it, that the FBI was actually behind the January 6th invasion of the Capitol. It was originally reported by a wacky extremist news organization that I won’t even bother naming here, and then got a lot more attention when Fox News made it a story via Tucker Carlson’s show. The underlying confusion is that a (former Trump admin official who was let go after attending a conference with white nationalists but then later appointed to a new job within the Trump White House) reporter completely misunderstood what “unindicted co-conspirator” means in various charging documents. # ⚓ How_the_Second_World_War_was_won⠀⇛ These wars about the war of 1939-45 revolve around technology as much as geography. In a conflict waged on land, sea and in the air – one that opened new frontiers in nuclear weapons, guided missiles and signals intelligence – there are many candidates for “the winning weapon”. Equally contentious is the question of what the war was really about. Answers have varied according to time and place. The defeat of fascism? The victory of communism? The triumph of American capitalist democracy? The start of China’s road to world power? Perhaps the deepest problem is that all- embracing label “the Second World War”. Does it foster a spurious sense of global and ideological unity? And does it blind us to the political and moral complexities of those years – with which we still wrestle today? # ⚓ Hitler’s_‘war_of_annihilation’:_Operation_Barbarossa,_80 years_on⠀⇛ One of the most striking eyewitness testimonies from this extraordinary outburst of militarised violence – in which some five million people were killed in 200 days – comes from German soldier Alexander Cohrs: “Two villages were burning in front of us. Civilians were completely taken by surprise; they didn’t have time to flee. The most horrific images was a three-year-old child lying in the middle of the road with half its head missing.” * Barbarossa shattered the infamous Molotov- Ribbentrop non-aggression pact between Nazi Germany and the USSR signed in August 1939. Stalin was shocked; he had received a plethora of warnings of an imminent invasion – notably from Winston Churchill, informed by British intelligence briefings. The communist dictator had refused to believe them. # ⚓ UN_Afghan_envoy_Deborah_Lyons_alarmed_at_Taliban_gains⠀⇛ The insurgents have taken more than 50 of 370 districts since May, UN special envoy Deborah Lyons told the Security Council, warning of “dire scenarios”. She said increased conflict “means increased insecurity for many other countries, near and far”. The US and Nato are still aiming for a complete troop pullout by 11 September. # ⚓ Taliban_insurgents_take_key_Afghan_district_amid_US_troop withdrawal⠀⇛ Taliban fighters took control of a key district in Afghanistan’s northern Kunduz province Monday and encircled the provincial capital, police said, as the insurgent group added to its recent battlefield victories while peace talks have stalemated. # ⚓ Afghanistan:_Taliban_touts_‘Islamic_system’_as_part_of peace_deal⠀⇛ The Taliban on Sunday touted “a genuine Islamic system” as the best way to end the war in Afghanistan and ensure rights, including for women. The Islamic militants made the comments in a statement that reaffirmed their commitment to peace talks with representatives from the Afghan government. # ⚓ Afghan_carnage_as_Taliban_storm_two_cities_after_Biden withdrew_troops-_‘Panic_everywhere’⠀⇛ Fighting has been intensifying across Afghanistan, raising fears of a Taliban return when US troops leave. # ⚓ Taliban_capture_Afghanistan’s_main_Tajikistan_border crossing⠀⇛ “Our Mujahideen are in full control of Shir Khan Bandar and all the border crossings with Tajikistan in Kunduz,” he told AFP. Amruddin Wali, another provincial council member, said officials “lost contact” with the area on Monday night. # ⚓ U.S._wants_nuclear_deal_done_before_Iran’s_new_president takes_power⠀⇛ Driving the news: Conservative judiciary chief Ebrahim Raisi, a close ally to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, is the clear favorite to win Friday’s presidential election in Iran. No prominent members of the reformist camp were permitted to run, meaning the more moderate President Hassan Rouhani will almost certainly hand power to a hardliner. o § Transparency/Investigative Reporting⠀➾ # ⚓ 40_Years_After_the_Pentagon_Papers_Decision,_Press_Freedom Still_Threatened⠀⇛ # ⚓ ‘Insulting_Erdoğan’:_Investigation_for_asking_‘missing’ Central_Bank_reserves⠀⇛ Underlining that “every citizen has the freedom to question the money at the Central Bank”, Başarır has said, “Every citizen has the right to criticize the current ‘One Man’ regie in our country. Enough is enough. The prosecutor must put aside being the prosecutor of the Palace and be the Prosecutor of the people. Those who govern the state must be open to criticism. There is no curse, no public insult. But the AKP Chair is so intolerant that we can understand it from the number of investigations opened for ‘insulting the President’ since he took office as the President.” # ⚓ Inside_the_Shadowy_Industry_Where_the_Uber-Rich_Pay Millions_to_Hide_Trillions⠀⇛ In a recent interview, Collins told Rolling Stone that there’s a bigger problem than untaxed wealth. That problem is the trillions of dollars that don’t show up on any tax return or financial statement, the “hidden” wealth of world’s wealthiest people. Helping those people hiding their fortunes is an army of lawyers, consultants, accountants, and more who get paid millions to help their clients hide trillions. Social scientists call this the “wealth defense industry,” and it’s a focus of Collins’ latest book, titled The Wealth Hoarders. Collins spoke by phone about the hidden trillions stashed on- and offshore around the world, the lack of transparency or oversight of all that dark capital and the people who get paid to hide, and why a wealth tax like the one proposed by Senator Elizabeth Warren isn’t enough to crack down on the wealth defense industry and drag all those trillions back into the sunlight. o § Environment⠀➾ # ⚓ Berta_Caceres’s_Murder_Trial_Will_Test_Biden’s_Central America_Policy⠀⇛ On her recent trip to Guatemala and Mexico, Vice President Kamala Harris drove home two points: that potential immigrants to the U.S. should “stay home,” and that the Biden administration will not tolerate corruption, which it sees as a major barrier to development in the region. # ⚓ US_farming:_Lessons_in_sustainability_from_the_Meskwaki Nation⠀⇛ When it comes to sustainable farming, Shadden believes a lot could be learned from Red Earth Gardens, which carries forward the regenerative approaches of their ancestors. The farm — which is situated on the Meskwaki Nation’s Settlement, an unincorporated community on land the tribe purchased from the government in 1857 — focuses on resilience and has adaptation to the climate crisis as a core concept. The farm combines a grounding in Meskwaki land use ethics with permaculture methods. # ⚓ Why_the_Arctic_matters⠀⇛ The Arctic is on the frontlines of a changing climate and is fundamentally essential to the regulation of the Earth’s fragile ecosystem. It even provides researchers with the means to almost predict the effects of climate change through polar amplification—the phenomenon where changes to our climate tend to produce more extensive changes near the poles than the planetary average—showing what the future will hold. The increased melting of Arctic sea ice and snow allows the darker ocean and land surface to be increasingly exposed, making it less reflective of the sun’s light, causing the Earth to warm further and faster. The continued loss of ice from Arctic landmasses compounds sea level rise and could affect the currents of the oceans and atmosphere on a global scale, with potentially devastating consequences, even to populations living far away from the Arctic. # ⚓ Let_nature_restore_itself_on_its_own_for_best_results⠀⇛ Don’t meddle: let nature restore itself on its own. Old forest will spread over nearby farmland. It’s cheap, and often best. # ⚓ GOP_Rejects_Green_Infrastructure_Funding_in_Face_of Historic_Drought_and_Heat⠀⇛ # ⚓ Planet_Earth_is_Heating_Up_Faster⠀⇛ In my article here, I will first quote the abstract of this paper (“Satellite and Ocean Data Reveal Marked Increase in Earth’s Heating Rate,” by Norman G. Loeb, Gregory C. Johnson, Tyler J. Thorsen, John M. Lyman, Fred G. Rose, Seiji Kato, 15 June 2021;, and then give my interpretation of the overall scientific conclusion, in plain English. Abstract from the AGU paper. # ⚓ ‘Moral_Red_Line’:_Legal_Definition_Unveiled_to_Put_Ecocide on_Par_With_War_Crimes⠀⇛ A panel of international lawyers on Tuesday published an official legal definition of the term “ecocide,” which for decades has been condemned by conservationists and climate action campaigners but which until now has not been recognized as a crime.  “This conversation is no longer falling on deaf ears and, indeed, it is actually gathering momentum at quite a pace.” —Jojo Mehta, Stop Ecocide # ⚓ ‘Should_Ring_Alarm_Bells’:_Study_Warns_of_Severe_Drying_for Amazon_Rainforest⠀⇛ Researchers at the University of Leeds in Britain published new research Tuesday—World Rainforest Day—showing that massive swaths of the eastern Amazon are at risk of severe drying by the end of this century if greenhouse gas emissions are not reduced. “Protecting and expanding existing forests—which absorb and store carbon—is of paramount importance to combating climate change.”—Jessica Baker, Leeds University # ⚓ Western_States_Face_Record_Heat_&_Historic_Drought,_But_GOP Rejects_Green_Infrastructure_Funding⠀⇛ As lawmakers in Washington continue to negotiate over an infrastructure bill that Democrats say needs to include major new funding to address the climate crisis, much of the U.S. is experiencing record heat, with many western states seeing record temperatures, drought and water shortages. “The climate crisis is here now,” says climate and energy researcher Leah Stokes, an assistant professor of political science at the University of California, Santa Barbara. “The climate crisis is really happening right now, and every single year we delay on passing a climate bill, the worse the crisis gets.” # ⚓ Social_Cost_of_Emissions:_‘One_of_the_Most_Important Numbers_That_No_One_Has_Ever_Heard_Of’⠀⇛ A new analysis shared with the Biden administration on behalf of the advocacy group Friends of the Earth highlights concerns about how the U.S. government will calculate the social cost of planet-heating emissions—official figures that can notably impact policy and spending decisions. The comment (pdf) sent to the Office of Management and Budget—authored by experts at the Applied Economics Clinic (AEC), a Massachusetts-based nonprofit consulting group—comes as the administration seeks input on determining the social cost of greenhouse gases (SC-GHG). # § Energy⠀➾ # ⚓ From_Black_Lung_to_BlackRock:_Striking_Alabama_Coal Miners_Protest_Wall_St._Financiers_of_Warrior_Met⠀⇛ More than a thousand coal miners at Warrior Met Coal are now in the third month of their strike in the right-to-work state of Alabama. The miners walked off the job on April 1 after their union, the United Mine Workers of America, called the first strike to hit the state’s coal mining industry in four decades. Workers are fighting for improvements to wages and benefits after they agreed to drastic cutbacks in 2016, when Warrior Met Coal took control of the mines after the previous company went bankrupt. Today a group of striking mine workers traveled from Alabama to Wall Street to protest the investment firms backing Warrior Met. “These are the companies that fund Warrior Met and allow Warrior Met to pay their executives millions of dollars a year, while the miners, the workers themselves who are creating that value, are struggling to get by on sometimes as little as $22 an hour,” says labor journalist and organizer Kim Kelly. # ⚓ More_people_are_flying_—_so_why_are_airlines_slashing flights_and_hiking_prices?⠀⇛ The airline industry received $48 billion in payroll support from coronavirus relief legislation. Airlines warned of steep layoffs if more support wasn’t forthcoming. They also issued layoff notices and then canceled them after receiving more support. At the time, the industry said it needed the relief in part to maintain employees so they could meet domestic flying demand after passengers came back. Despite these efforts, the industry is still scrambling. # ⚓ Helsinki_to_shut_down_coal-fired_power_plant_2_years ahead_of_schedule⠀⇛ Hanasaari’s closure is expected to have a significant impact on Finland’s carbon footprint, as it is the country’s third largest source of carbon emissions. # § Wildlife/Nature⠀➾ # ⚓ Australia’s_Great_Barrier_Reef_‘In_Danger,’_Says UNESCO⠀⇛ The Great Barrier Reef has deteriorated so rapidly it should be listed as a World Heritage Site “in danger,” a United Nations committee said Monday, echoing scientists’ warnings that climate change is destroying the world’s largest coral reef system. UNESCO, the world body’s educational, scientific, and cultural agency, said its recommendation to downgrade the status of the site is due to the ongoing impacts of unusually warm ocean temperatures along the reef that have left large swaths of the coral endangered or already dead. # ⚓ Australia_opposes_Great_Barrier_Reef_‘in_danger’ listing⠀⇛ The Australian government said on Tuesday that it would oppose a plan by UNESCO to downgrade the status of the Great Barrier Reef following years of damage caused by climate change. The UN cultural body wants to lower the World Heritage status of the natural site after warming waters led to the loss of half of its corals since 1995. o § Finance⠀➾ # ⚓ Can_We_Conquer_Our_Grand_Dynastic_Family_Fortunes?⠀⇛ # ⚓ By_Refusing_to_Tax_the_Rich,_GOP_Set_Terms_of_Bipartisan Infrastructure_Debate⠀⇛ # ⚓ California_Rent_Forgiveness_Shows_It’s_Possible_to_Shift Our_National_Priorities⠀⇛ # ⚓ Wealthy_Countries_Have_Left_the_Rest_of_the_World_Behind⠀⇛ Fifteen months ago, the SARS-CoV-2 virus unleashed Covid-19. Since then, it’s killed more than 3.8 million people worldwide (and possibly many more). Finally, a return to normalcy seems likely for a distinct minority of the world’s people, those living mainly in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the European Union, and China. That’s not surprising. The concentration of wealth and power globally has enabled rich countries to all but monopolize available vaccine doses. For the citizens of low-income and poor countries to have long-term pandemic security, especially the 46 percent of the world’s population who survive on less than $5.50 a day, this inequity must end, rapidly—but don’t hold your breath. # ⚓ ‘Having_a_Say_Can_Be_Transformative’⠀⇛ Janine Jackson interviewed Real News Network‘s Jaisal Noor about worker cooperatives for the June 11, 2021, episode of CounterSpin. This is a lightly edited transcript. # ⚓ China_Says_Banks_Must_Block_Crypto_Transactions;_Market Falls⠀⇛ The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) on Monday told the country’s major financial institutions to stop facilitating virtual-currency transactions, increasing the negative sentiment in crypto [currency] markets. o § AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics⠀➾ # ⚓ Sinema_Op-Ed_Defending_Senate_Filibuster_Slammed_as ‘Delusional’⠀⇛ On the eve of Tuesday’s vote to begin debate on the For the People Act, Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona published an op-ed defending the archaic procedural rule that Senate Republicans are expected to wield to tank the popular voting rights legislation. “Sinema’s argument amounts to an argument against the exercise of power at all since, if you use it, what happens when the other side does too?”—Jamelle Bouie, New York Times # ⚓ Liberal_Media_Propaganda Tells_the_World: America_is First⠀⇛ To give just one example: On Sunday, CNN anchor Dana Bash grilled Biden National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan on why the White House is not imposing yet more sanctions on Russia (and China) and why Team Biden was “giving in to Russia” on the gas pipeline to Western Europe. Sullivan was emphatic in insisting that sanctions had been imposed and more were on the way — boasting that Biden had grabbed even more presidential power to sanction Russia through an executive order. I’m old enough to remember the superiority complex behind the liberal media propaganda during the Cold War with the Soviet Union – while U.S. foreign policy, in the name of democracy, massacred millions of people of color, mostly civilians, across the globe . . . from Asia to Southern Africa to Latin America. # ⚓ ‘His_Silence_Is_Breathtaking’:_Biden_Under_Fire_for_Going Quiet_on_Voting_Rights⠀⇛ With Senate Republicans expected to successfully filibuster the For the People Act on Tuesday, progressive activists, lawmakers, and some prominent figures within the Democratic mainstream are criticizing President Joe Biden for failing to use his bully pulpit to publicly fight for the popular bill as the GOP assault on ballot access intensifies nationwide. “Our democracy is in crisis and we need the president to act like it.”—Rep. Mondaire Jones # ⚓ ‘The_Filibuster_Must_Go’:_Senate_GOP_Blocks_Debate_on Voting_Rights_Bill⠀⇛ Voting rights advocates on Tuesday condemned Senate Republicans for blocking debate on the For the People Act, a sweeping pro-democracy bill, in a widely anticipated 50-50 vote that bolstered progressives’ arguments for combating GOP obstruction by killing the filibuster. “Our democracy is under daily attack from Republican forces seeking to destroy it for their own political gain.”—Rahna Epting, MoveOn # ⚓ It’s_the_Iron_Collar_of_the_Corporate_State_Until_the People_Collar_the_Congress⠀⇛ Around the same time, the savvy corporate lawyer/ author, Adolf Berle developed his concept of “pension fund capitalism.” That is, fast-expanding worker pension funds would own large amounts of the shares of large corporations as investments and thereby have commensurate influence over them and over Congress. As the years passed, these two scholars came to realize that the stamina, resilience, and single- minded cohesiveness for maximizing sales, profits, and executive pay by corporate bosses overwhelmed the countervailing forces, including corporate shareholder-owners, not so singularly motivated. # ⚓ The_Real_Danger_of_Israel’s_New_Government⠀⇛ One, they want to get rid of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Check — that’s done. Two, given the unlikeliness of reaching agreement on any major policy changes, they all agree that the current situation of occupation and apartheid for Palestinians is quite sustainable for Jewish Israelis. For now, the status quo will prevail. And that’s a problem. # ⚓ Democrats_Introduce_Bill_to_Combat_Republican_Voter Suppression_Efforts⠀⇛ # ⚓ The_Republican_Party_has_Turned_Fascist_and_is_Now_the_Most Dangerous_Threat_in_the_World⠀⇛ When Donald Trump was in the White House there was much debate about whether or not he could be called a fascist in the full sense of the word, and not merely as a political insult. His presidency showed many of the characteristics of a fascist dictatorship, except the crucial one of automatic re-election. But Trump or Trump-like leaders may not have to face this democratic impediment in the future. It was only this year that the final building blocks have been put in place by Republicans as they replicate the structure of fascist movements in Europe in the 1920s and 1930s. # ⚓ 20_Attorneys_General_Urge_Postal_Commission_to_Reject DeJoy’s_Plan_to_Slow_Mail⠀⇛ # ⚓ Former_Trump_Lawyer_Facing_Sanctions_In_Michigan_Now_Saying The_Things_She_Said_Were_Opinions_Are_Actually_Facts⠀⇛ The Kraken is on the move! # ⚓ Majority_of_Americans_Say_GOP_“Election_Audits”_Are_Effort to_Undermine_Results⠀⇛ # ⚓ Want_to_Increase_Election_Turnout?_Lower_the_Voting_Age_to 16.⠀⇛ New Yorkers were headed to the polls Tuesday to cast votes in a Democratic primary that’s all but certain to determine the identity of the next mayor of the nation’s largest city. The turnout should be up from 2013, when less than 24 percent of eligible voters cast ballots in the city’s last vigorously contested Democratic mayoral primary. But the safe bet is that most eligible voters won’t participate in what is widely seen as a definitional contest for the future of not just of New York but urban centers nationwide, as they wrestle with issues of equity, policing, housing affordability, and post- pandemic renewal. # ⚓ How_Ranked-Choice_Voting_Can_(Partially)_Fix_Democracy⠀⇛ Here’s how it typically works: Instead of voters picking only one candidate, they will, as the name implies, rank (usually up to five) candidates in order of preference. If a candidate receives a majority of first-place votes, they’re the winner. Done deal. But if no candidate surpasses the 50- percent threshold, an automatic recount is triggered, in which the last-place candidate is eliminated, with all of their votes reallocated to whichever candidates those voters ranked second. The votes are then counted again. This process continues until one candidate surpasses 50 percent and wins. The impact can be significant. If the Floridians who voted for Ralph Nader had been able to make Al Gore their second choice in 2000, the Bush era may never have happened. We may have avoided Trump, too, if Jill Stein voters in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania were able to give Hillary Clinton a second-place nod in 2016. Those are just the big ones. There’s no telling how many state- and city- wide primaries RCV could have swung to better reflect the interests of the people. # ⚓ Appointing_Lina_Khan_May_Be_the_Best_Thing_Joe_Biden_Has Done⠀⇛ Unlike the ideological and abstract leaders of the Reagan revolution, Khan’s analysis is deeply fact- based. Often ignored in her profiles is the fact that she was a journalist for several years before she went to law school, and she always starts with the facts on the ground—an approach that echoes the work of Louis Brandeis, one of the most important anti-monopolists our country has ever known. We expect to see that same fact-based approach to define her work in the FTC. # ⚓ ‘Ferocious_Kitten’:_the_cyberspies_preying_on_Iranian_web users⠀⇛ The gimmick is just one of many ruses used by a previously unknown group of cyberspies to ensnare Iranian web users. Its secretive activities were revealed by cybersecurity firm Kaspersky in a report published on Wednesday and seen by FRANCE 24. Dubbed “Ferocious Kitten” by Kaspersky, the group has operated under the radar since at least 2015, deploying a host of techniques to implant its malware on targeted mobile devices and personal computers. Lures include pictures of anti-regime rallies which, once opened, allow the spyware to sneak into victims’ machines. “Ferocious Kitten” also designed copies of popular websites, such as Aparat, the Iranian YouTube, using them as vehicles for infection. It even circulated modified – and infected – versions of software typically used by Iranians to bypass the country’s internet censors. Once installed, the group’s MarkiRAT malware gives the cyberspies ample access to victims’ personal data. # ⚓ Erdogan_is_infiltrating_Europe_via_political_parties⠀⇛ Much has been written about how Turkey uses mosques, imams and associations to influence religious and cultural life in Europe. Not enough has been written on Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s plan to support emerging political parties in Europe. # ⚓ Bennett’s_Fragile_Hookup_with_the_Zionist_Left_Offers Little_Promise_for_a_Post-Apartheid_Israel⠀⇛ Jumaa Alzbarqa served as a member of the Israeli Knesset for two years. He heads the office of the National Democratic Alliance, or Balad, in the southern city of Bir Al-Saba in the Naqab. We met at his office and talked about current events and what was until recently the remote possibility of the so-called “Zionist Left” parties like Meretz going into a coalition with the leader of the neo- fascist “Right” party, Naftali Bennett. o § Censorship/Free Speech⠀➾ # ⚓ Trump_Wanted_Justice_Department_to_Stop_TV_Hosts,_“SNL” From_Making_Fun_of_Him⠀⇛ # ⚓ Coalition_of_200+_Groups_Call_for_Permanent_End_to ‘Neocolonialist’_Global_Gag_Rule⠀⇛ More than 200 international healthcare advocacy and civil society organizations on Tuesday issued a call for a permanent elimination of the global gag rule, the executive branch guidance which Republican U.S. presidents have used for nearly four decades to cut off access to reproductive healthcare around the world. Planned Parenthood Global and the International Planned Parenthood Federation organized the call by groups representing 88 countries and released the statement in Arabic, English, French, and Spanish to signify just some of the global communities which have been harmed by the rule since former President Ronald Reagan first announced it in 1984. # ⚓ Gag_clauses_‘becoming_the_norm’_in_Australian redundancies⠀⇛ Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) are becoming the norm rather than the exception in Australian university employment contracts, after making the jump from dispute resolution to standard termination arrangements. Times Higher Education has obtained copies of gag and non-disparagement clauses in employment termination documents, including a settlement agreement for a pandemic-related redundancy. The clauses forbid dismissed staff and their employers from disclosing the terms or the discussions leading to them. # ⚓ LinkedIn_Censors_Tiananmen_Content,_Again⠀⇛ When Microsoft’s LinkedIn launched a simplified Chinese webpage for Chinese users in 2014, it admitted it would follow Beijing’s censorship directives. It did so with a gusto that surprised even those who had engineered the policy—blocking content deemed illegal by Chinese authorities, much of it related to the anniversary of the Tiananmen protests, worldwide. Although it later backtracked from global censorship, LinkedIn has continued to block users’ profiles in China. In recent weeks, a number of academics, journalists, researchers, and others have received notices that their profiles have been censored—suggesting the company is stepping up content controls after being rebuked by China’s internet regulator in March. From Liza Lin at The Wall Street Journal, a report on LinkedIn’s latest censorship drive: [...] # ⚓ How_China_is_Shaping_American_Minds⠀⇛ The United States spends about $700 billion a year on military and defense to keep the country safe. For a fraction of that amount, China has been fighting a different war with great success: a war to change American minds from within. Today, media and entertainment are two major forces that shape the spirit of a society. They not only decide what we know but also how we think. In a sense, media and entertainment determine who we are as Americans and as America. But we have very little or no defense in these areas. In fact, if you look closely enough, you’ll find the deep infiltration of the Chinese communist regime. Through media and Hollywood, China has injected its standards and filters into the unsuspecting American minds and the minds of our children. # ⚓ Changing_Section_230_Won’t_Make_The_Internet_A_Kinder, Gentler_Place⠀⇛ Tech platforms, especially the largest ones, have a problem—there’s a lot of offensive junk online. Many lawmakers on Capitol Hill keep coming back to the same solution: blaming Section 230. # ⚓ NRB_Hosts_Forum_on_Platform_Censorship,_Section_230,_and the_Future_of_Social_Media_at_NRB_2021⠀⇛ In other words, Section 230 says that any online service provider that hosts third party speech cannot be held liable for statements that are made on the provider’s platform. This has allowed individuals to express their opinions on social media platforms. Section 230(b) expresses Congress’s intent to “preserve the vibrant and competitive free market that presently exists for the internet and other interactive computer services, unfettered by Federal or State regulation.” French explained the history of Section 230 and described it as “the rocket fuel for free speech online.” o § Freedom of Information/Freedom of the Press⠀➾ # ⚓ Press_Freedom_Advocates_Condemn_‘Reckless’_US_Shutdown_of Iranian_News_Sites⠀⇛ Press freedom advocates fumed Tuesday as U.S. authorities without immediate explanation reportedly blocked stateside access to numerous news websites owned by or linked to the Iranian government. “If a country did this to U.S. media outlets it would be seen as an act of war.”—Rania Khalek, journalist # ⚓ Algeria_Revokes_France_24_Accreditation_as_Pressure_on Media_Mounts⠀⇛ The move against the French state-owned news outlet earlier this month comes amid tensions between the government and press over coverage of the pro- democracy Hirak Movement. The announcement came the day after legislative elections in which 70% of the electorate did not vote, according to data from the Algerian electoral authority. # ⚓ Saudi_Arabia:_“It’s_high_time_to_free_Raif_Badawi”⠀⇛ On the nine-year anniversary of blogger Raif Badawi’s imprisonment, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) urges the Saudi authorities to release him without further delay and to lift the ban on leaving Saudi Arabia to which he was also sentenced. Badawi has completed nine of the 10 years in prison he was sentenced to for “insulting Islam.” # ⚓ ‘No_Money,_No_News’:_Asset_Freeze,_Arrests_Signal_End_for Hong_Kong’s_Pro-Democracy_Paper⠀⇛ Hong Kong’s last pro-democracy newspaper appeared one step nearer to closing Monday, as Apple Daily announced it was airing its last nightly news show and dozens of staff resigned. The announcements came as Apple Daily’s board members met to discuss the paper’s viability after police last week raided its offices and arrested five executives, and authorities froze the parent company’s assets. The Hong Kong government’s decision to freeze Next Digital’s assets, totaling a reported $HK18m ($2.3 million), has left the publisher unable to pay staff or vendors. # ⚓ Attack_on_journalist_who_reported_on_deficiencies_of_a public_hospital⠀⇛ Journalist İbrahim Akkuş, who reported on the deficiencies of a recently constructed public hospital in 19 Mayıs district of Samsun province, has been attacked inside the municipality building by the employees of the contractor company which undertook the construction. # ⚓ Story_of_the_last_tamarind_leaf⠀⇛ One is inclined to see the journalists under assault from the government as crucial to democracy, like the last remaining tamarind leaf was to Prem Rani. These journalists speak for all the troubled features of India’s democracy that Mr Modi didn’t tell the G7 about. # ⚓ Three_Indian_journalists_could_be_jailed_for_nine_years_for tweets_about_video⠀⇛ Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on the police of northern India’s Uttar Pradesh state to immediately withdraw the absurd charges, including “criminal conspiracy,” that they brought against three journalists for tweeting about a video of an elderly man being beaten up by other men. The accusation clearly borders on harassment, RSF says. # ⚓ Oaxaca_journalist_murdered_despite_protective_measures⠀⇛ Oaxaca journalist Gustavo Sánchez was murdered Thursday morning despite having protective measures that had been provided by the state’s Office for the Defense of Human Rights. Sánchez was killed in the community of Morros de Mazatán, located in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec municipality of Santo Domingo Tehuantepec. He had protective measures in place after he said he had been threatened by the Mayor Vilma Martínez. # ⚓ Saudis_who_participated_in_Khashoggi_killing_received paramilitary_training_in_US:_report⠀⇛ According to the Times, an Arkansas-based security company called Tier 1 Group provided training to some of the operatives, though the training was reportedly “defensive” and “devised to better protect Saudi leaders.” At the time, the unit was beginning a series of kidnappings, detentions and torture of Saudi citizens to crush dissent. # ⚓ Saudi_Operatives_Who_Killed_Khashoggi_Received_Paramilitary Training_in_U.S.⠀⇛ Four Saudis who participated in the 2018 killing of the Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi received paramilitary training in the United States the previous year under a contract approved by the State Department, according to documents and people familiar with the arrangement. The instruction occurred as the secret unit responsible for Mr. Khashoggi’s killing was beginning an extensive campaign of kidnapping, detention and torture of Saudi citizens ordered by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, to crush dissent inside the kingdom. o § Civil Rights/Policing⠀➾ # ⚓ ‘The_Zapatistas_Have_Invaded’:_Indigenous_Activists_Sail From_Mexico_to_Spain⠀⇛ Five hundreds years after an army led by the genocidal Spanish invader Hernán Cortés conquered the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán, a group of Indigenous-led members of Mexico’s Zapatista movement disembarked in Spain on Tuesday following a seven-week sailing journey across the Atlantic Ocean. “The Zapatistas have invaded Europe.”—Subcomandante Galeano, EZLN # ⚓ The_Law_of_Enlightenment⠀⇛ # ⚓ Report_Shows_How_DC_Statehood_Would_Be_Step_Toward_Racial and_Gender_Justice⠀⇛ “Lack of D.C. statehood creates healthcare disparities—worsening the twin pandemics of Covid- 19 and systemic racism, denying residents reproductive freedom, and creating real harm.”—Dr. Laura Meyers, Planned Parenthood # ⚓ In_Reply_to_Tim_Cook’s_“Speaking_Up_On_Racism.”⠀⇛ We, the black community, thank you for your feeling response. I began writing this letter —my own Open Letter to you—in spring, 2019, when you gave the Commencement speech at Stanford University. # ⚓ ACLU_Warns_Ruling_by_Trump-Appointed_Judge_Gives_Feds ‘Green_Light’_to_Attack_Protesters⠀⇛ The ACLU reacted with outrage—and warned of potentially major implications for the right to protest—after a Trump-appointed federal judge on Monday largely dismissed lawsuits accusing the former president and his attorney general of illegally authorizing a violent assault on peaceful demonstrators in the nation’s capital last year. “The blitzkrieg unleashed against civil rights demonstrators in Lafayette Square is a stain on our nation’s commitment to the Constitution.”—Scott Michelman, ACLU # ⚓ Supreme_Court_Ruled_Against_Enslaved_Children_Even_as_US Celebrated_Juneteenth⠀⇛ # ⚓ Sinema’s_Op-Ed_Defending_the_Filibuster_Is_a_Triumph_for Republican_Obstruction⠀⇛ # ⚓ Amazon’s_Investments_in_Israel_Reveal_Complicity_in Settlements_and_Military_Operations⠀⇛ On Prime Day, Amazon’s largest online shopping event, the company will be looking to beat its previous sales record of $10.4 billion. Increasingly, customers have grown critical of Amazon’s treatment of workers, union-busting activities, and partnerships with police and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, leading some to call for a boycott of Prime Day. What Amazon Prime members may not realize, however, is that Amazon is also aiding in the spread of military occupation abroad. # ⚓ Attack_of_the_Critical_Race_Theory⠀⇛ Support independent cartooning: join Sparky’s List—and don’t forget to visit TT’s Emporium of Fun, featuring the new book and plush Sparky! # ⚓ Filibuster_“Conversation”_to_Happen_If_GOP_Blocks_Voting Rights_Bill,_Psaki_Says⠀⇛ # ⚓ Republicans_Won’t_Even_Debate_“For_the_People_Act”_as_They Flood_States_with_Voter_Suppression_Bills⠀⇛ Senate Republicans are expected to use the filibuster to block debate on the For the People Act, a sweeping bill that would protect voting rights across the United States and improve ballot access. The Senate vote comes as Republican state lawmakers are passing sweeping measures to suppress the vote. According to the Voting Rights Lab, 18 states have enacted more than 30 laws to restrict voting since the November election. The For the People Act is “the most important voting rights bill since the Voting Rights Act of 1965,” says Mother Jones reporter Ari Berman. “It just goes to show you how afraid the Republican Party is of democracy that they won’t even debate legislation to make it easier to vote, let alone vote on the actual bill.” # ⚓ Pakistan_Leader_Imran_Khan_Blames_Rise_in_Sexual_Violence on_Women_Wearing_Small_Clothes⠀⇛ akistan Prime Minister Imran Khan doubled down in an interview aired Sunday on his recent statements blaming sexual assault on the way women dress. Khan told Jonathan Swan on Axios on HBO that it was “common sense” that provocative clothing would provoke sexual violence. # ⚓ Turkey_is_radicalizing_extremists_to_attack_Kurdish_women⠀⇛ Women have become key targets of Turkey’s extremist government in recent years. Videos increasingly show violence against women in the streets of cities, including women being beaten by men. Turkey, once a candidate for European Union membership, now stands accused of sending assassins to target women activists from Syria to France. Turkey’s pro-government media often portrays women as “terrorists” despite no evidence of them ever being armed or doing any “terrorist” activist. For the state and the ruling AKP party, women who struggle for LGBT rights, or student or environmental activists are “terrorists”; men who pose with weapons and support actual terrorists in Syria, are celebrated as heroes in Ankara. This confusing Orwellian situation has turned unarmed women activists, often on the Left, into a threat, whereas men linked to ISIS are seen as relatable in far-right media. # ⚓ Islamic_Migrants_Surveyed:_Westernized_Muslim_Women_‘Must Die_–_Stone_Them,_Use_a_Knife’_(Video)⠀⇛ Italian news channel LA7 interviewed members of the Islamic community in Rome to find out what they thought of the young Pakistani woman killed by her family. Many men were asked how they would act if their family member did not obey their commands or was “westernized.” The Islamic male migrant called for the women to be brutally murdered. The men justified their death threat by citing commands in their Qur’ans. o § Internet Policy/Net Neutrality⠀➾ # ⚓ Ohio_Republicans_Are_Using_State_Budget_Battle_To_Kill Community_Broadband⠀⇛ Frustrated by high prices, a lack of competition, spotty coverage, and terrible customer service, some 750 US towns and cities have built some form of community owned and operated broadband network. While not some silver bullet, studies have shown these networks often provider faster, cheaper, better service than most apathetic regional telecom monopolies. They also tend to put money back into the local community, as well as being somewhat more accountable given they’re run by folks with a vested interest in the community they live in. # ⚓ Midnight_Madness:_As_Canadians_Slept,_the_Liberals,_Bloc and_NDP_Combined_to_Pass_Bill_C-10_in_the_House_of_Commons⠀⇛ Given the woefully inadequate Canadian Heritage committee hearings with the exclusion of digital- first Canadian creators, technology companies, consumer groups, and numerous independent experts as well as the passage of amendments without debate, discussion or experts, Bill C-10 desperately needs a comprehensive review. If Parliament resumes in the fall, there will be an opportunity for that review in the Senate. If, as most expect, there is an election, Bill C-10 will die, providing a much-needed opportunity to start from scratch by developing forward-looking, balanced legislation that supports the creative sector, safeguards freedom of expression, and recognizes the risks of over-broad regulations overseen by the CRTC. # ⚓ How_the_Next_Layer_of_the_Internet_is_Going_to_be Standardised⠀⇛ For a while now, it’s been apparent that Internet and Web standards have stagnated at the ‘top’ of the stack. While the IETF has been busy revising HTTP and replacing TCP down below, a tremendous amount of innovation is going on up top, and it’s all in private hands. This is where most of the apparent value in the Internet now resides: when you ask people what is the Internet? they don’t say anything about end-to-end, reliable delivery, stateful resources, or the browser platform; they say ‘social networking, search and shopping’, or more likely, ‘Facebook, Google and Amazon.’ # ⚓ No_news_is…_a_sign_of_a_stagnating_Internet⠀⇛ So, as the ACCC, Parliament and many other authorities around the world try to figure out what to do about Facebook and other big platforms, it’s important for them to remember that the Internet itself is not a child of competition alone – it’s much more the product of cooperation on a global scale. By carefully harnessing those mechanisms and using their powers to require dominant undertakings to come to the party, we could kick-start innovation on the Internet that doesn’t place the rewards – or control – into a few privileged hands. o § Monopolies⠀➾ # ⚓ Tim_Cook_called_Nancy_Pelosi_to_warn_her_against_disrupting the_iPhone_with_impending_antitrust_bills⠀⇛ Tech giants have repeatedly said they would welcome government regulation — if it’s the right regulation, of course. But faced with five antitrust bills that could unwind what the House Judiciary Committee described as Apple, Amazon, Google and Facebook’s “monopoly power,” Big Tech is bringing out the big lobbying guns. # ⚓ Tech_Giants,_Fearful_of_Proposals_to_Curb_Them,_Blitz Washington_With_Lobbying⠀⇛ The calls by Mr. Cook are part of a forceful and wide-ranging pushback by the tech industry since the proposals were announced this month. Executives, lobbyists, and more than a dozen think tanks and advocacy groups paid by tech companies have swarmed Capitol offices, called and emailed lawmakers and their staff members, and written letters arguing there will be dire consequences for the industry and the country if the ideas become law. # ⚓ Tech_industry_pushes_for_delay_in_antitrust_legislation⠀⇛ The House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee is coming under pressure to hit the brakes on a legislative package targeting tech giants. Industry groups, major tech companies and centrist Democrats have called for additional time and hearings to weigh the five proposals before the panel moves ahead with Wednesday’s scheduled markup. The bills focus on Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google and build off the investigation the House subcommittee conducted last year that led to a blockbuster report alleging abuse of market power by the companies, who have all pushed back on the report’s findings. # ⚓ Congress_Wants_to_Put_the_Brakes_on_Runaway_Acquisitions_by Big_Tech⠀⇛ We’ve said before that increased scrutiny of mergers and acquisitions is the first step in addressing the lack of competition for Big Tech. Restraining internet giants’ power to squash new competitors can help new services and platforms arise, including ones that are not based on a surveillance business model. It would also encourage those giants to innovate and offer better services, rather than relying on being the only game in town. Big Tech’s acquisitiveness is well-known and has been on the rise. Analysis of Apple’s finances, for example, revealed that over the last 6 years, the company was buying a new company every three to four weeks. Not only do these sales keep startups from ever competing with incumbent powers, they also bring more data under the control of companies that already have too much information on us. This is especially true when one of the draws of a startup’s  service was that it provided an alternative to Big Tech’s offering, as we saw when Google bought Fitbit. The acquisition practices of the largest tech firms have distorted the marketplace. Mergers and acquisitions are now seen as a primary driving force to securing initial investment to launch a startup. In other words, how attractive your company is to a big tech acquisition is now arguably the primary reason a startup gets funded. This makes sense because ultimately the venture capital firms that fund startups are interested in making money, and if the main source of profit in the technology sector is derived from mergers with big tech, as opposed to competing with them, the investment dollars will flow that way. # § Patents⠀➾ # ⚓ Bad_Patents_Getting_In_The_Way_Of_A_Fun_Toy;_Or_Why_I Had_To_Teach_My_Kids_About_How_Patents_Ruin Everything⠀⇛ Last year I backed a very cool looking crowdfunding project for my kids. It’s called Makeway, and seems like the coolest ever possible marble run setup. Marble runs are already cool, but since basically everyone in my family will spend hours just staring at some of the more advanced marble run setups in museums (or building them in the more hands on museums, or much simpler ones with just home kits), this seemed like a really amazing project to be able to create a museum-level marble run in your own home. The project launched right before the pandemic went into full swing, and, like tons of crowdfunding projects, it’s had some difficulties along the way. Of course, unlike many such projects in which the creators go quiet and hide behind silence as they deal with the difficulties, the guy behind Makeway sends out incredibly and intricately detailed novella length updates, going deep into the challenges and (usually!) the solutions. # ⚓ Biden_Urged_to_Pressure_EU_to_End_‘Outrageous’ Opposition_to_Vaccine_Patent_Waiver⠀⇛ A diverse coalition of more than 130 labor, public health, and human rights organizations sent a letter Tuesday calling on U.S. President Joe Biden to pressure European nations to end their opposition to a temporary patent waiver for Covid-19 vaccines as the deadly virus ravages South America, Africa, and other regions that have struggled to obtain shots. “It is outrageous that the European Union and a very few other WTO members continue to oppose a TRIPS waiver even as more transmissible variants are fueling new waves of death and devastation.”—Letter # § Copyrights⠀➾ # ⚓ EU_Court:_YouTube_and_Uploaded_Are,_In_Principle,_Not Liable_For_Pirating_Users⠀⇛ The Court of Justice of the European Union has handed down a long-awaited copyright ruling that clarifies if and when online services such as YouTube and Uploaded are liable for pirating users. The Court finds that, in principle, these services are not liable under EU law. However, that changes when the services are aware of specific infringements. # ⚓ YouTube_Prevails_in_EU_Copyright_Suit_As_Regulators Reveal_New_Google_Ad_Probe⠀⇛ In the EU, authors have the exclusive right to authorize or prohibit the “communication to the public” of their works, with some exceptions. While the court acknowledges that YouTube is “indispensable” when it comes to the illegal sharing of copyrighted content, that’s not enough to classify it as a communicator under the law. YouTube doesn’t screen content before it’s posted, warns its users to comply with copyright laws and has procedures in place to report content that violates its terms of use. # ⚓ Filelinked_Made_‘Banned’_Piracy_Apps_Easier_to_Find But_Has_Now_Disappeared⠀⇛ An app that allowed users to find and install Android apps unavailable on official stores has disappeared in mysterious circumstances. The innovative ‘Filelinked’ tool allowed users to set up their own app stores, accessible by anyone with the relevant code. This made it a haven for people looking to download and share piracy apps, which could explain its apparent demise. # ⚓ Anti-Piracy_Lawyer_Officially_Secures_RARBG Trademark⠀⇛ Anti-piracy lawyer Kerry Culpepper has officially secured the RARBG trademark, a name that’s commonly associated with a popular torrent site. The move is linked to an anti-piracy initiative, where the lawyer uses brands of pirate sites and services against themselves. Culpepper says he plans to enforce the trademark, but what this will look like is unknown. # ⚓ SDG_Academy_–_Creative_Commons⠀⇛ Open access to knowledge has never been more important than it is today. The promise of connectivity and the democratization of knowledge has made it possible for anyone, anywhere, to learn. In an increasingly connected and complex world, society faces deep challenges across economic, environmental, and social spheres that require new ways of thinking.  ╘══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╛ ¶ Lines in total: 8150 ➮ Generation completed at 02:41, i.e. 71 seconds to (re)generate ⟲