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Linux in the newsRecommended Reading Commercial Linux (InfoWorld)InfoWorld gives some suggestions on how to turn Linux into a successful desktop product. "Don't pull anything out of the OS to reduce intimidation. Don't rip out any capabilities for fear that a timid user will stumble over them and think Linux is some kind of Frankenstein. Instead, vendors should make the system's most-used capabilities more accessible and guide customers through the process of deciding what they need to learn at each stage of development and deployment."
Sitting for the RHCE (NewsForge)Here's a NewsForge article recounting one person's experience taking the Red Hat Certified Engineer exam. "To my knowledge, there are only two IT industry certifications that require a candidate to set up and repair an actual running system. Red Hat's is one of them; the other is a Cisco exam. There are no multiple-choice questions to answer; you spend the entire session repairing a broken system and then building a new one from scratch. At the end of the day, the things you've been asked to do either work, or they do not -- and you pass or fail on that basis alone. It's not as easy as it sounds. The failure rate hovers around 40%."
Fork in Linux Road? (eWeek)eWeek revisits Linux fragmentation fears, and finds them unfounded. "When Unix forked, each variant had a different kernel. In other words, the core code of each Unix system was unique, which often resulted in incompatibilities and difficult cross-platform application integrations. In contrast, the Linux kernel is tightly controlled by Linus Torvalds and some core Linux code keepers. As long as these people are around, there is little chance that the Linux kernel will fork like the Unix kernel did. The only differences among Linux distributions in terms of kernel is which version of the kernel each is based on."
Trade Shows and Conferences PyCon 2004: Making Python Faster and Better (O'Reilly)Kendall Grant Clark reports on the recent PyCon event in Washington, DC. "One of the issues Guido talked about during his keynote is the development of Python 2.4, which will feature real, hard-won performance gains, many of which are due to the fine work of Raymond Hettinger. Armin Rigo -- of Psyco and PyPy fame -- is also working to reduce the costs function calls by reducing the size of stack frames. The expected relative performance of 2.4 versus 2.3 was the first occurrence of the performance motif at PyCon; we'll see it return in the discussion of IronPython, Starkiller, and PyPy."
The SCO Problem SCO Loses Motion to Dismiss Red Hat Complaint (Groklaw)Groklaw reports that, as expected, SCO's motion to dismiss the Red Hat suit has been denied. That suit will go forward, but slowly: "The judge has also stayed any further activity in the Red Hat case until after the IBM case in Utah is resolved, unless things get bogged down there."
Companies Asian Linux goes into beta (Star TechCentral)The Star covers the release of Asianux 1.0 Beta. "The Asianux Certification Programme aims to help software vendors and hardware vendors certify their products through an application programme, access to a variety of resources, including the latest Asianux version, technical information and support, as well as early access to Red Flag and Miracle Linux products."
Sun plans Solaris subscription pricing (News.com)Sun Microsystems is working to counter competitive pressures from Linux, according to this article. ""I think we need to come up with a subscription price for Solaris that allows it to become a lot more transparently competitive with Red Hat," Schwartz said. The subscription plan will make it clear that Solaris costs less than Linux and will dovetail with Sun's argument that its version of Unix performs better as well. And Red Hat can't throw in a free server as part of a software promotion the way Sun can."
Tadpole to offer Linux-based Opteron notebooksThe market for Linux on laptop systems is, perhaps, finally beginning to develop. Tadpole has announced a forthcoming notebook based on the AMD Opteron processor and Sun's "Java Desktop" system. Availability is later in this quarter.
Linux Adoption Linux on desktop gaining in OS race (Mercury News)Dan Gillmor is rethinking his position on desktop Linux in this Mercury News column. "It looks like I'm going to have to reconsider something I'd been taking for granted -- that Linux on the desktop, and especially the laptop, was a non-starter in the operating systems race. While I wasn't paying sufficient attention, the proverbial tortoise has been playing some serious catch-up."
Desktop Guerrilla Tactics: a Portable Thin Client Approach (Linux Journal)Linux Journal looks at the process of rolling out a desktop Linux pilot project. "So, here was the challenge: how could we bring Linux quickly onto the desktop to penetrate the users' defenses? Just as importantly, how could we take Linux out of the environment in case the opposition proved overwhelming? We would have to take a guerrilla approach to conquering the desktop."
Legal House panel approves copyright bill (News.com)News.com covers more legislative fun, this time on the House side of the capitol. "One section that first surfaced last year punishes an Internet user who makes available $1,000 in copyrighted materials with prison terms of up to three years and fines of up to $250,000. If the PDEA became law, prosecutors would not have to prove that $1,000 in copyrighted materials were downloaded--they would need only to show that those files had been publicly accessible in a shared folder."For an interesting contrast, see this Globe and Mail article on a ruling by the Federal Court of Canada that ISPs cannot be forced to reveal the names of file swappers. "As part of his ruling, the judge found that simply downloading a song or having a file available on peer-to-peer software such as Kazaa doesn't constitute copyright infringement."
Triple setback for music giants' global jihad (Register)The Register reports on the general failure of the recording industry's efforts to shut down peer-to-peer music sharing. "The music industry's war on file swapping has suffered major three setbacks in recent weeks, and today's rebuff by a Canadian federal court is only the latest tactical defeat. We're now seeing indications that not only are the legal threats not working, but neither are the carrots of "legitimate" music download services, which even after a year of hype, comprise less than half of one per cent of the "illegal" P2P downloads every day."
Interviews The People Behind KDE: Wilbert Berendsen (KDE.News)KDE.News introduces this interview with Wilbert Berendsen. "I'm the webmaster of www.kde.nl and translated substantial parts of KDE 3.2 to Dutch. I also am a KDE user and occasionally report bugs :-)"
Interview with the author of KSirtet, Nicolas HadacekKDE.nl has an English translation of an interview with Nicolas Hadacek, author of KSirtet, a game that resembles Tetris.
OSDL CEO: Linux is coming and Portland is its capital (NewsForge)NewsForge talks with Stuart Cohen, chief executive officer of the Open Source Development Labs. "Fans of the penguin love to talk about their assault on Windows, but the worldwide growth of Linux and open source is coming at the expense of Unix, according to Cohen."
The XML.com Interview: Jeff Barr (O'Reilly)O'Reilly has an interview with Amazon.com's Jeff Barr. "As part of XML.com's ongoing series of interviews with personalities from the XML world, I talked to Jeff about XML, web services and Amazon."
Resources OpenOffice.org Off-the-Wall: Style Is Everything, Right? (Linux Journal)The Linux Journal has posted a guide to working with OpenOffice styles. "Most word processors offer character and paragraph styles, but OpenOffice.org also includes frame, page and numbering styles. Even more importantly, OpenOffice.org extends the concept of styles to other applications. Impress, for example, has a system of styles, whereas PowerPoint, its MS Office equivalent, has none. The same is true of OOo's Calc and MS Excel. Once you understand why you should use styles and when, you'll find OpenOffice.org's tools for managing and applying styles second to none."
Open Source Software: What Is It and How Does It Work? - By Dr. Ben Kremer (Groklaw)Groklaw republishes an essay by Dr. Ben Kremer on open source and the GPL. "The hardest conceptual problem about open source software is how to ensure people play by the rules. There are many models, but the most common is to require any person who redistributes an open source program (whether in its original form, or with any changes they have made) to also redistribute the accompanying source code."
Reviews Linux on the GameCube (O'ReillyNet)O'ReillyNet looks into a Linux port to the GameCube and talks with the developers. "The GameCube port of Linux works by transferring the code to the console's hardware via an exploit in the game Phantasy Star Online. Another method involves a hardware hack to the console, replacing the GC's serial BIOS chip with an Complex Programmable Logic Device (CPLD), to allow users to start a binary through the network adapter."
Linux on IPod: 2.4.24 Kernel Available (LinuxWorld)LinuxWorld Magazine notes the release of the Linux on iPod 2.4.24 kernel. "The project's overall goals are "to make a fully functional Linux from the iPod that will be able to play a greater variety of formats, have better features and even be compatible with external hardware like flash card readers so you can copy your camera photos directly to your Linux iPod.""
EmPOWERing the Linux developerIBM developerWorks covers various enterprise Linux distributions that run on POWER architecture. "With offerings from affordable two-way servers to vertically scaled super computers to the cutting-edge JS20 BladeCenter, POWER-based machines run the gamut of size and scale, always exceeding the expectations placed on enterprise-class hardware. The opportunity to run Linux or AIX, along with innovative configurations such as Dynamic Logical Partitioning, provides a unique platform for development and deployment of applications that feed on the POWER architecture's performance. This article will arm you with the tools and knowledge you need to make the most of your code and the POWER platform."
A taste of Wine (developerWorks)developerWorks looks at Wine and how to use it to run Windows applications. "Since Wine supports the running of Windows executables, it would be natural to assume that you can install a program from scratch using the program installer. Unfortunately, that is rarely the case."
Page editor: Forrest Cook |
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