Linux in the news

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Meet Linux's New Public Enemy No. 1 (ZDNet)

ZDNet is carrying an interview with Darl McBride, CEO of SCO Group, in which McBride comments: "IBM took the same team that had been working on a Unix code project with us and moved them over to work on Linux code. If you look at the code we believe has been copied in, it's not just a line or two, it's an entire section -- and in some cases, an entire program."

Comments (10 posted)

Major Internet Standards Group Working On Fast Plan To Can Spam (TechWeb)

TechWeb covers the efforts of the Anti-Spam Research Group, an affiliate of the Internet Engineering Task Force. "The ASRG expects quick results, with initial technologies that will take a big bite out of spam being deployed within months, and other key technologies being deployed in one to two years."

Comments (3 posted)

Commentary: IBM will nullify SCO's Linux threat (News.com)

Forrester Research predicts that IBM will build a consortium to pay off SCO--or buy it outright, according to this News.com article. "Enterprises should not stop their Linux plans. Why not? Three reasons based on a risk/benefit analysis. First, the cost-benefit of migrating high-priced Unix on RISC servers to low-cost Linux on Intel servers is highly positive. Second, the risk that tiny SCO can muster the resources to effectively litigate against even one or two of the 1,500 companies it has threatened is low. And three, IBM will further dilute that risk by intervening to eliminate the threat of legal action."

Comments (10 posted)

Novell challenges SCO's Unix claims (CBS MarketWatch)

CBS MarketWatch reports on Novell's challenge to SCO, and quotes SCO CEO Darl McBride as asserting that SCO owns the Unix copyrights. "McBride added that unless more companies start licensing SCO's property, he may also sue Linus Torvalds, who is credited with inventing the Linux operating system, for patent infringement."

Comments (18 posted)

Companies

Dell may join HP in Linux laptop drive (News.com)

CNet covers the overwhelming demand for Linux laptops in Thailand. "HP is producing the low-cost "people's notebook," which is loaded with Linux TLE, the Thai-language version of the Linux operating system, to support a Thai government drive to increase computer ownership, reported the Post earlier this month."

Comments (8 posted)

CIO Update: What You Should Know About IBM's Linux Strategy (ZDNet)

ZDNet has the latest Gartner Group pronouncement on IBM's Linux strategy, complete with lots of pretty diagrams and the "Midrange Server Magic Quadrant." "Gartner estimates that IBM can trace to Linux about $1.2 billion in revenue in 2002 (hardware, software and services), and we project strong overall revenue and profit for IBM from Linux during the next five years."

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EU institutions test alternative to Microsoft (EUobserver)

The EUobserver reports that the EU signed a contract with Microsoft after testing Linux. "While IT-experts recommended the Linux system and said it was as good as Microsoft, the institutions decided to sign a new deal with Microsoft, sources inside the institutions told the EUobserver."

Comments (7 posted)

SCO quits German Linux group (ComputerWorld)

ComputerWorld reports that SCO Group resigned its membership in a German Linux association. "SCO today said it resigned from LIVE Linux-Verband eV, a Dusseldorf-based association that promotes the interests of Linux users and software developers in Germany, after the group notified the company in a recent letter that it might revoke the membership of SCO's German subsidiary, SCO Group GmbH." (Thanks to dododge)

Comments (1 posted)

More articles about SCO (Telepolis and TechWeb)

It seems about every online tech site is running multiple articles about SCO, even though there's really nothing new to report. Here are just a couple more:

TechWeb picks up a CRN interview with Linus Torvalds "In an e-mail response to CRN, Torvalds, widely considered the father of Linux, said he is awaiting judgment until SCO identifies the Unix code IBM allegedly misappropriated and handed over to the open-source community."

Telepolis has this article (in German). "The further development of Linux will most probably be rather untouched by this. Of course, some important developments of the last years have been founded by companies like IBM or SGI. But, if many companies go out of Linux business, this would just be the end of another hype, similiar to the dotcom bubble. Regardless of the law suit's results, it will in no way mean the end of Linux or even just a noteworthy obstacle." (Thanks to Dirk Hillbrecht for the link and the translation.)

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Legal

ESR: You can help stop the SCO-vs.-IBM lawsuit

Eric S. Raymond is looking for people who have had read access to proprietary Unix source code without a non-disclosure agreement as part of an effort to fight SCO's lawsuit against IBM.

Full Story (comments: none)

Bunner DVD case goes to the Supreme Court

The Electronic Frontier Foundation has sent out an update on the Bunner ("California") DVD case. The DVDCCA is appealing the previous Appellate Court decision that restricting Mr. Bunner from publishing the DeCSS source was a violation of his free speech rights; the hearing will happen on May 29. Lower court rulings on the publication of code as a free speech activity have been mixed, to say the least, so it will be interesting to see what the Supremes have to say.

Full Story (comments: 5)

Landmark DVD Piracy Case to Test Free Speech (San Jose Mercury News)

Here's a San Jose Mercury News article on the Bunner DVD case, which goes before the California Supreme Court on Thursday. "Four years later, DVD makers, while still fighting numerous legal battles to prevent copying, have been forced to concede their secrets are out the Internet's barn door. However, their case against Bunner lives on and has been transformed into a precedent-setting conflict between the First Amendment and California's tough trade-secret protections."

Comments (1 posted)

Interviews

The ponytail versus the penguin (Economist)

The Economist talks with Sun's Jonathan Schwartz about the company's approach to Linux. "Some software users have started to realise that even Linux is not as free as it appears: for instance, it has to be maintained and upgraded. 'Linux is like a puppy - in the beginning it's great, but you also have to take care of it,' says Mr Schwartz. He hopes that firms will opt for Solaris, because it requires less care."

Comments (13 posted)

The XML.com Interview: Steven Pemberton (O'Reilly)

O'Reilly has published an interview with Steven Pemberton. "At the top of the HTML hierarchy stands Steven Pemberton, chair of the HTML working group of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). A lover of language, a writer, and an editor, as well as an organizer and a leader in the web community, he has had both subtle and profound influences over the Web, not only in HTML standards, but in concepts that permeate the Web. He has been at the center of the forces that have been guiding the Web for over a decade."

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Resources

AirTraf security (IBM developerWorks)

L. Victor Marks writes about conducting a wireless site survey with the open-source AirTraf utility. "One of the things to pay attention to with wireless security is the usefulness of a site survey. Here, Victor Marks talks about conducting such a survey without having to buy a horrendously expensive software package, and getting immediate feedback and the most effectiveness."

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Open Source Content Management arrives (IT-Director)

IT-Director looks at a recent CIO survey on open source content management systems. "[A]s these software applications mature and lose their uniqueness, they become candidates for the open source movement. In the case of content management, a number of open source contenders are emerging but Bricolage, in particular, stands out in terms of capability."

Comments (3 posted)

Polishing Your Linux Laptop Setup (Linux Journal)

Linux Journal takes another look at Linux laptops. "In my past laptop oriented articles, I talked about procedures for installing a base Linux system and setting up GNOME 2.2. This time around, I discuss a few odds and ends that did not quite fit those other two articles but definitely deserve further attention."

Comments (1 posted)

Reviews

From PlayStation to supercomputer (News.com)

News.com looks at a new supercompter made from Sony PlayStation game consoles. "Perhaps the most striking aspect of the project, which uses the open-source Linux operating system, is that the only hardware engineering involved was placing 70 of the individual game machines in a rack and plugging them together with a high-speed Hewlett-Packard network switch. The center's scientists bought 100 machines but are holding 30 in reserve, possibly for high-resolution display application."

Comments (1 posted)

Linux Networx Cluster System Speeds Development of Disease Diagnostic Products (LinuxMedNews)

LinuxMedNews takes a look at a Linux NetworX Evolocity II cluster that speeds gene analysis. "Diagnostics help detect the presence of certain diseases so proper medical treatment can begin in the early stages of the disease. The Linux Networx system analyzes DNA and protein sequences to locate specific disease targets. The targets are then used to develop diagnostic products for diseases that are typically difficult to detect at an early stage, such as ovarian cancer."

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Bits and pieces: Short Linux and computing notes (NewsForge)

Robin 'Roblimo' Miller goes shopping for a laptop in this NewForge article. At least, that's how it starts. Here are some comments about the command line. "Yes, it's nice to learn the inner workings of your software, just as it's good to know how your thyroid gland regulates many of your body's functions, and it's nice to understand the torque convertor in your car's automatic transmission. But most people get along without knowing much about their thyroids or torque convertors, and they can get along without knowing why this or that happens when they click a CD icon to use their CD drive under Linux."

Comments (1 posted)

MySQL (Database Journal)

Database Journal reviews MySQL, with a look at 4.0 (current), 4.1 (alpha) and what to expect in 5.0. "MySQL has come along by leaps and bounds, and the new version 4.0 is barely recognizable when compared with its earlier siblings. I first started using MySQL 3.22, when it was very much a toy, used version 3.23 extensively for websites, but version 4.0 and beyond promises much more. This article is a roadmap showing you the new features already implemented, and those still to come. If you have ever rejected MySQL as a product lacking in required features, maybe it's time to take another look."

Comments (4 posted)

Miscellaneous

Network security tailored to SMBs (IT-Director)

IT-Director is running a Bloor Research pronouncement which looks at secure Linux systems for small businesses. "An alternative to Trustix is Guardian Digital's Linux Lockbox, another Open Source network server appliance designed to serve as a complete secure Internet solution. Like Trustix Secure Linux, Lockbox offers secure Web management and is delivered in a way that requires little in-house Linux expertise, though it is light on the VPN and mail security side."

Comments (none posted)

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