Linux in the news

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Group tackles OpenOffice desktop spec (News.com)

News.com reports on the formation of a working group to develop an XML file format specification for the OpenOffice project. "The working group is trying to develop a standard data format for the creation of content such as text, spreadsheets and charts. The goal is to develop an interface between the office software and other applications using XML (Extensible Markup Language)."

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Is Open-Source Software Less Secure? (TechWeb)

TechWeb jumps into the debate about the security of open source vs. closed source. "A recent analyst report claiming open-source software surpassed Microsoft as the major source of severe security flaws has rekindled the security debate over open source versus proprietary software. The Aberdeen Group says open-source software, including the popular Linux OS and a wide variety of applications, has pushed aside Microsoft as the "poster child" for security problems."

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Free-software gadfly takes on Net group (News.com)

News.com reports on Bruce Perens' idea to pack the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), a key Internet standard body. "Free-software advocates have until March to rally their troops to the IEFT front. The group holds its spring meeting in San Francisco from March 16 to 23, at which time it will decide whether to recharter the existing group to weigh a switch to a royalty-free policy."

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AMIA Announces Open Source 'Exploratory Initiative' (LinuxMedNews)

Linux Med News covers an initiative by the American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) to explore open-source software. "The American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) has announced five task forces, among them an 'exploratory initiative' for Open Source: 'Open Source is currently an important topic throughout the computer software community and has implications for health care information systems. The purpose of this initiative is to explore the feasibility for AMIA to assume a leadership role in promoting and coordinating Open Source activities in the interests of health care system development."

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Companies

SuSE, Mandrake Linux name new CEOs (News.com)

News.com covers the appointment of new CEOs at SuSE and MandrakeSoft. "Both companies are selecting new leaders after completing months-long restructuring operations. SuSE has solidified partnerships with software and hardware companies, joined the UnitedLinux collective, and put an emphasis on selling through business partners such as IBM. MandrakeSoft has returned to its roots, selling a desktop version of Linux."

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Business

FedEx Freight delivers with Linux Web server migration (Network World)

Network World covers a FedEx migration to Linux. "The large-volume trucking division of FedEx recently installed 15 Red Hat Linux 7.2 and 7.3 servers running Apache Web server to act as a front end to its customer service application, used by businesses that hire Freight to deliver multitruckload shipments of goods across the country." Thanks to Peter Link

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Linux for the Rest of Us (Business 2.0)

Business 2.0 has run an article on desktop Linux. "In place of familiar Redmond brands like Outlook, Excel, and Explorer (for e-mail, spreadsheets, and Web browsing), [Zumiez] technology director Lee Hudson has store clerks and managers tooling around on programs called Ximian Evolution, Gnumeric, and Mozilla. The names might sound like Zumiez's myriad skater brands, but they stand for something a tad more radical: the possibility that, at least in some markets, Linux is finally becoming a viable alternative to Microsoft products on commonplace PCs."

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Open-Source Applications--Not Only for Auxiliary Tasks (Linux Journal)

Linux Journal looks at Linux use in Poland. "Comprehensive migration to open-source software is rare. In Poland, a well known exception is the implementation of Linux and StarOffice in the Jan III Sobieski hotel (alongside commercial software for hotel management). The Orbis hotel network also uses Linux, although they do not emphasise it."

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Legal

Major test of copyright law set to start (News.com)

News.com looks at the Elcomsoft trial, which is ramping up again now that the defendants will actually be allowed into the US. "Burton, the ElcomSoft attorney, argued that in order to convict the company of wrongdoing, the jury should have to find that company representatives were acting with an 'evil-meaning mind' or for a 'bad purpose,' not just helping people crack copyright protections. He also argued that the jury should be instructed on what constitutes 'fair use,' a legal theory under copyright law that allows some copying of material for education, criticism and other purposes. But [Prosecutor Scott] Frewing disagreed. 'Fair use is irrelevant and improper,' to bring into the instructions, he said."

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Court blocks state DVD-cracking suit (News.com)

News.com reports on a California Supreme Court ruling. Texas resident Matthew Pavlovich can't be sued in California for posting DVD-cracking code online. "The narrow decision overturns earlier rulings that had been widely criticized in the Internet community. Lower court rulings allowing Pavlovich to be sued would have created "universal jurisdiction" that would let any Web publisher be sued in California, critics contended."

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Japan Weighs Linux For Government Use (TechWeb)

Here's a TechWeb article about a Japanese study into the possibility of using open-source software such as Linux at the government level. "Concerns about costs and security from heavy reliance on Windows have been growing here. Ruling party politicians have been urging the government to consider other operating systems, which may offer lower costs and better security."

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Is it time for a GeekPAC? (News.com)

News.com covers the efforts underway to resuscitate the dormant League for Programming Freedom (LPF). "In its heyday, the LPF focused on software patents and user interface copyright, including the Lotus v. Borland lawsuit over the design of the Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet. Software patents are as problematic for today's programmers as they were a decade ago, but new threats such as the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) have since emerged."

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Interviews

The Boston Globe on Eben Moglen

The Boston Globe reports on the work done by Free Software advocate Eben Moglen. "But why so generous? Because Moglen is one worried guy. Even though the free software movement has generated a host of major products -- the Linux operating system, the Apache Web server, the Emacs text editing system -- Moglen thinks the movement faces a struggle for survival, with scarcely a dime in its war chest. "We're a small organization running a big revolution," said Moglen, "and we have big adversaries.""

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Film Gimp - Lights, Camera, Linux! (DesktopLinux)

DesktopLinux.com interviews Robin Rowe about Film Gimp, a popular open source tool used in films like Harry Potter, Stuart Little, Scooby-Doo, and many others.. "Film Gimp is a tool for retouching motion pictures frame by frame. A typical application is removing dust marks after film is digitized. Scanning the negative is the first step in post-production, and the scans must be cleaned up to remove dust and scratches. Film Gimp also is used to eliminate wires when actors are being flown in wire rigs."

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Codewalkers interviews Michael "Monty" Widenius

Here is a Codewalker interview with Monty Widenius, designer and lead programmer for the MySQL database. "His database software programming dates back to 1978 and his work with TCX DataKonsult AB, to 1981. Since 1995, Monty has been the primary force behind MySQL, devoting his time to product strategies, software design, and the development and reviewing of MySQL source code."

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Resources

LinuxDevices.com Newsletter for Nov. 21, 2002

Here is the LinuxDevices.com's Embedded Linux Newsletter for November 21, 2002, with a wrapup of embedded Linux news over the past week.

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Miscellaneous

Fire devastates Dutch Internet hub (The Register)

The Register covers a fire at the University of Twente in the Netherlands, which destroyed one of the fastest computer networks in Europe. Although it is not mentioned in the article, this network was home to an important Debian server, security.debian.org (aka satie.debian.org). Security and other Debian services will be disrupted until they can be moved. Things could be getting back to normal today, as new servers take over for satie. See this Debian announcement for additional details.

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