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Linux in the news
Recommended Reading
Results from the 2006 Desktop Linux Survey (DesktopLinux)
DesktopLinux.com ran a web-based distribution popularity contest, and is now discussing the results. "After this, we come to what I think of as the first surprise in our survey. Gentoo took fourth place with a total of 9.6 percent. Gentoo, to me, is a Linux expert's Linux. I know many serious Linux users who work with Gentoo to better understand Linux, but almost no one who uses it as their first choice for day-to-day work."
Which Free Linux Desktop Is Best? (CRN)
CRN reviews the Freespire, OpenSUSE, and Ubuntu desktops. "Comparing these distributions head to head is no easy task. Each has its own idiosyncrasies and each is aimed at a slightly different audience, ranging from the corporate Linux diehard to the neophyte user. With that in mind, Test Center engineers focused on what aspects of a Linux desktop would most benefit system builders, including installation, setup, support, feature set and usability." They liked all three, but Ubuntu comes out on top.
Companies
Ingres Christens Project Icebreaker (webpronews.com)
webpronews.com covers the new Project Icebreaker from Ingres. "The open source database company Ingres teamed with another open source player to deliver Icebreaker, a way to place database services on a server with no operating system required. Ingres CTO Dave Dargo blogged about Icebreaker, which launched recently during the LinuxWorld Conference and Expo."
Sun releases open source single-sign-on code (NewsForge)
NewsForge reports that Sun has released the source code to OpenSSO (Open Web Single Sign-On), an identity management system. "OpenSSO is based on Sun's proprietary Java System Access Manager, and is distributed under Sun's Common Development and Distribution License (CDDL). CDDL is OSI-approved, but is not GPL-compatible."
Zend Raises $20 Million (LinuxWorld)
LinuxWorld.com takes a look at Zend fund-raising efforts. "PHP development and support company Zend Technologies Inc. announced today that it has raised $20 million in series D venture capital funding. Andi Gutmans, Zend's chief technology officer and a co-founder of the company, said in an interview Friday that top priorities for the new investment are Eclipse integration, the Zend Framework for web applications, and the company's services organization and European sales force."
Business
CBR's open source VIPs (Computer Business Review)
Computer Business Review has put up its "complete" list of open source VIPs. Interestingly, there's not a whole lot of active developers on the list. "Given his dislike of the phrase, one wonders what [Richard] Stallman would make of being an 'open source' VIP, but he is also indirectly responsible for the open source movement that created a more business-friendly approach to free and open software."
Linux at Work
Do-It-Yourself Robots with Linux (Linux Journal)
Linux Journal has an article from a high-school teacher whose students are making Linux-based robots. "Robots have been a passion of mine since I was a child, so imagine my excitement when I was given the opportunity to add a robotics class to our high school's computer curriculum! We recently celebrated our second year of offering robotics at Greater Houlton Christian Academy (GHCA), the school where I teach. During this time, we've produced three different robots, each based on a PC running Linux. We work with a tight budget, so we have to be creative in our design, use of materials and tools. This results in robots that any do-it-yourself hobbyist can build."
Legal
The GPLv3 process: Public consultation and private drafting (Linux.com)
Linux.com looks at the process of drafting the GPLv3. "How is the third version of the GNU General Public License (GPLv3) being written? Considering how much the revised license and its success or failure could affect the free and open source software communities, the question is almost as important as the final content. Yet, until now, the answer has been largely unknown."
Interviews
Interview with Mike Melanson, lead engineer on the Linux Flash Player team (ZDNet)
Ryan Stewart interviews Mike Melanson, the lead engineer on Adobe's Flash Player team, and one of the people behind the Linux Flash Player. "Can you give us a little bit of your background? How you got into Linux, how you came to be involved in the Linux Flash Player? I got into Linux when I wanted to use a free relational database called MySQL for a web project. I eventually went to Linux full time at home. Soon after, I realized I could not play Apple QuickTime movie trailers on Linux and wondered why. I started doing some homework and began contributing to, and occasionally leading, various multimedia-related open source projects and efforts, such as xine, FFmpeg, and MPlayer."
A conversation with Eben Moglen (Linux.com)
Joe 'Zonker' Brockmeier talks with Eben Moglen. "Eben Moglen is a man who wears many hats: professor of law and legal history at Columbia University, general counsel for the Free Software Foundation, and chairman of the Software Freedom Law Center (SFLC). Last week at the LinuxWorld Conference & Expo in San Francisco, I sat down with Moglen to get an update on the draft process of the GNU General Public License version 3 (GPLv3), his opinion on modified versions of the GPL, and the status of the SFLC."
Resources
Designing a book with LyX (NewsForge)
Corinne McKay and Daniel J. Urist work with LyX to do desktop publishing. "Self-publishing is becoming easier and cheaper, thanks in part to improved printing technologies and desktop publishing tools. If you've ever considered writing a book, you may have looked at the layout capabilities of OpenOffice.org Writer, AbiWord, KWrite, or other word processing programs. While these tools can produce adequate results for many types of documents, it's also worth considering LyX, an open source (GPL) desktop publishing application that, with a bit of work, can create a really professional-looking book that is indistinguishable from a book produced by a mainstream publishing house."
Making waves in the Ruby world (Linux Journal)
Pat Eyler looks at the methodology behind some successful Ruby language projects. "There are three projects in the Ruby world that really stood out this summer: JRuby, Mongrel, and Ruport. It's not so much what they've done in terms of development (though that's been impressive), but how well they've communicated. This is something that a lot of projects don't do as well, so I wanted to take a look at what they've done in hopes that more projects might follow their lead."
Ubuntu and Your iPod (Linux Journal)
The Linux Journal has posted a book chapter on working with iPods on Ubuntu systems. "A relative newcomer to the iPod file management arena is YamiPod. YamiPod, which also comes in Mac and Windows versions, looks like a cleaned-up version of gtkpod; YamiPod's layout is more straightforward, making it easier to use in many ways. It also allows audio-direct, helper-less playback (which gtkpod doesn't), and it is easier to deal with in terms of playlist creation and handling."
Reviews
Eclipse RCP: A Platform for Building Platforms (O'ReillyNet)
Wayne Beaton looks at the Eclipse Rich Client Platform on O'Reilly. "Where do you start when building a Java desktop application? All Java gives you by default is public static void main (String[]); it's up to you from there. Eclipse's Rich Client Platform (RCP) offers a tested design, commonly-needed widgets, a standardized component model, pervasive extensibility, and more. Wayne Beaton has an introduction to get you up to speed with RCP-based development."
Kalzium creator brings the periodic table to life (NewsForge)
NewsForge looks at Kalzium. "Kalzium was a originally developed as a simple interactive table of the periodic elements but has evolved into a full-featured application, complete with an equation solver and modified molecular calculator. Its database contains information on more than 100 chemical elements, and can be manipulated to show data in several ways, including mass, density, charge, and name origin. Kalzium even includes a timeline that allows users to sort data according to year of discovery."
DIY Linux home theater PC (LinuxDevices.com)
LinuxDevices covers a Linux-powered home theater system from LixSystems. "The installation DVD's Linux OS image includes a Fedora 5-based 2.6.16 Linux kernel, along with an extensive set of drivers as well as support for support for USB, card reader audio, a "fully configured LIRC" (Linux Infrared Remote Control) receiver that works with the included handheld remote control, and a set of HTPC-oriented applications."
Nokia 770: Portable fun, but still needs polish (Linux.com)
Linux.com reviews the Nokia 770 Internet Tablet. "The Nokia 770 Internet Tablet is a thin black handheld device with a Linux operating system and Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, but, unlike most Nokia handhelds, it's not a cell phone. Instead, it's a fun way to connect to the Internet. The latest version shows promise, but it's still not quite ready for prime time."
The Path to Linux Success (eWeek)
eWeek takes a look at rPath. "rPath has attempted to split the difference between the roll-your-own and one-size-fits-all Linux approaches by building, maintaining and supporting a distribution of its own. The result is rPath Linux, and ISVs can marry their wares to it to create ready-to-deploy software appliances."
Miscellaneous
FSF hires new GPL compliance engineer (Linux.com)
Linux.com covers the Free Software Foundation's newest hire. "The Free Software Foundation (FSF) has hired long-time volunteer Brett Smith as compliance engineer for the GNU Public License (GPL). Smith replaces David Turner, who has held the position for more than five years. Both Smith and Turner say they expect a smooth changeover, with continued development of existing policies."
OpenUsability funds student projects (Linux.com)
Linux.com looks at OpenUsability's student projects. "OpenUsability, the organization of software interface usability experts, has begun taking applications for the first in a series of funded student projects. Similar to the Google Summer of Code, selected students will be paired with mentors and set to work on projects to be completed over a three-month period, with a reward of $700 upon success. Students applying now will be competing for the first such position -- an opportunity to do interaction design for the GIMP."
The Portland project: No silver bullet for hairy problem of multiple desktops (Linux.com)
Linux.com has an editorial look at the Portland project. "The Portland project is an effort to unify the Linux desktop by specifying and implementing a common set of APIs that all applications can use, and by supplying tools to assist application developers. Its primary target is third-party independent software vendors (ISV), a group that the Portland project leaders describe as interested in deploying software on Linux, but held back by the fractious dueling-desktop-environment mess."
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