Announcements
Non-Commercial announcements
EFF: 09 f9: A Legal Primer
The EFF has published 09 f9: A legal primer on the counterproductive attempts to suppress the spread of an HD-DVD decryption key. "Is the key copyrightable? It doesn't matter. The AACS-LA takedown letter is not claiming that the key is copyrightable, but rather that it is (or is a component of) a circumvention technology. The DMCA does not require that a circumvention technology be, itself, copyrightable to enjoy protection."
Volunteer opportunity: OLPC Nepal
For those who haven't made their plans for the summer yet: the One Laptop Per Child Nepal organization is looking for people to head over to the country and help get the project going. "Right now we have three full-time volunteer developers, all of them Nepali. We would love four (4) foreign volunteers to come work with us this summer in Kathmandu. We will pair each foreign volunteer with a Nepali intern. That should bring our content strike force to 11 people. That would really help us to advance OLPC in Nepal." When they say "volunteer" they mean it, though.
Commercial announcements
Allmydata, Inc. releases open-source distributed storage grid
Allmydata, Inc. has announced the first public release of their Tahoe secure, an open-source distributed storage grid system. "The source code that we are releasing is the current working prototype for Allmydata's next-generation product. This release is targeted at hackers who are willing to use a minimal, text-oriented web user interface."
Dell Joins Microsoft and Novell Collaboration
Microsoft Corp. and Novell Inc. have announced that Dell Inc. is the first major systems provider to join the business collaboration that was formed by Microsoft and Novell. As part of the agreement, Dell will purchase SUSE Linux* Enterprise Server certificates from Microsoft and establish a services and marketing program to migrate existing Linux users who are not Dell Linux customers to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server.JasperSoft partners with SugarCRM
JasperSoft Corporation has announced a partnership with SugarCRM. "JasperSoft Corporation, the market leader in open source business intelligence (BI), today announced Jasper4SugarCRM, a high- performance reporting and analysis BI solution optimized for use with the SugarCRM Sugar Suite. Jasper4SugarCRM delivers a set of standard prebuilt reports and dashboards, ad hoc query and report creation, OLAP analysis, a secure report management repository, report scheduling, report distribution, and integration interfaces for PHP, Web Services, Java, and C/C++."
Koobox.com celebrates 3 years selling pre-installed Linux PCs
Linspire, Inc. has announced three years of selling Linux PCs on Koobox.com. "Linspire, Inc., developer of the Linspire commercial and developer of CNR, a one-click digital software delivery service for desktop Linux programs, along with Mirus Innovations Inc., a leading North America PC manufacturer that brings innovative digital lifestyle products to consumer and small business customers with a focus on high-value and low-cost, today celebrate the Three Year Anniversary of Koobox.com selling Linux-only pre-installed desktop PCs to the mainstream consumer marketplace. An authorized Linspire system builder, Mirus pre-installed desktop Linux systems have been sold through various other mass merchant online retail stores over the years including Sears.com, Kmart.com, and HomeDepot.com."
Public Meetings on Future of Mozilla Customer Support Announced (MozillaZine)
MozillaZine looks at the topic of Mozilla customer support. "Starting next week, the Mozilla Corporation will be hosting twice-weekly meetings to discuss the future of customer support for Mozilla products. Several different support mediums will be discussed in the conferences, including knowledge bases, forums and real-time chat. The meetings, which are open to all, will be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays during the next three weeks. Notes will be published afterwards for those unable to make it."
Mozilla and eBay Launch Firefox Companion for eBay (MozillaZine)
MozillaZine covers the launch of the Firefox Companion for eBay, at this point, no Linux versions appear to exist. "Mozilla Europe has announced the release of the first beta of the Firefox Companion for eBay in France, Germany and the United Kingdom. The add-on for Firefox 2 offers a range of features to make it easier for users to participate in eBay auctions while browsing the Web. The most visible feature of the Firefox Companion for eBay is the eBay Sidebar, which lets users monitor items that they are bidding on, selling or watching, with details updated in real time."
NETGEAR(R) to Acquire Infrant Technologies
NETGEAR, Inc. has announced an agreement to acquire Infrant Technologies, Inc. "Founded in March 2001 and based in Fremont, California, Infrant is dedicated to bringing enterprise-level storage technology to small businesses and professional home users at affordable prices. Its ReadyNAS(TM) family of network attached storage (NAS) products implements redundant array of independent disks (RAID) data protection, enabling users to store and protect critical data easily, efficiently and intelligently. The ReadyNAS lineup is powered by Infrant's proprietary network storage processor, Linux-based RAIDiator(TM) operating system and patent-pending Expandable Protection (X- RAID(TM)) technology, which allows for automatic RAID volume expansion as additional drives are added."
Netscape Revives Navigator Brand for Netscape Navigator 9 (MozillaZine)
MozillaZine reports on the revival of the Netscape Navigator brand name. "The official Netscape Blog has announced that the next Netscape browser release will be called Netscape Navigator 9, reviving the name used for Netscape's earliest browser releases at the height of its popularity. Though many users have always referred to both the company and its flagship product as Netscape, the browser was officially called Netscape Navigator for its first three releases."
Sun Java Real-Time System 2.0 announced
Sun Microsystems, Inc. has announced the release of Sun Java Real-Time System 2.0 (Java RTS). "... a standards-based extension of the Java platform designed to help developers gain precise control over their Java software. This new release combines the power and scalability of the Solaris(TM) 10 Operating System (OS) with the flexibility of the Java platform to address a growing demand for predictable computing in industries such as aerospace, financial services and scientific research."
Sun Microsystems announces OpenID Program
Sun Microsystems, Inc. has announced a new OpenID Program. "Expanding its commitment to deliver secure web-scale identity management solutions, Sun Microsystems, Inc. today announced a new initiative around support for OpenID, a decentralized, web-friendly single sign-on mechanism that allows consumers to reuse a single login across different websites, tackling the "login explosion" problem. OpenID is currently limited to facilitating low-risk transactions such as blog comments."
Sun announces GlassFish Communications Application Server
Sun Microsystems, Inc. has announced a new communications application server project. "Sun Microsystems, Inc., today announced a multi-faceted collaboration agreement with Ericsson to jointly develop an open source, Java(TM) technology-based communications application server as part of the GlassFish(TM) community. This open source contribution means Java software developers, Independent Software Vendors (ISV), System Integrators and individuals will have access to telecommunications technologies and resources to help accelerate the development of multimedia, VOIP, IM and next generation applications."
Sun Unleashes Java Technology Innovations
Sun Microsystems, Inc. has announced a preview of their JavaFX Java technology-based products. "The first of these, JavaFX Mobile, is a complete mobile phone software system available via OEM license to carriers, content owners and consumer electronics manufacturers. JavaFX leverages the security and ubiquity of the Java platform and will support all content and applications currently available across the billions of Java technology-based devices in the world today. Sun today also previewed JavaFX Script, a new scripting language targeted at creative professionals, which will help to radically simplify the process of creating and distributing interactive content that spans all Java technology enabled platforms, from handsets to set tops, laptops to dashboards."
NetBeans IDE 6.0 preview release announced
Sun Microsystems, Inc. has announced the release of version 6.0 (preview release) of the NetBeans IDE. "etBeans 6.0 IDE extends support beyond Java and C/C++ by providing a rich set of features for the Ruby and JavaScript dynamic scripting languages, and continues to enable developer productivity with ease-of-use and support for the latest Java Standards. Today we are also announcing further enhancements to the NetBeans GUI Builder which include full support for new desktop technologies, such as Beans Binding (JSR 295) and the Swing Application Framework (JSR 296)."
Unicon Systems announces Linux mobile development kit
Unicon Systems has announced the availability of its Mobile Linux Development Kit. "MKitTM ($599) is the first and only unique mobile Linux development kit on the market. It gives professional developers and manufacturers the ability to create new handheld devices for industrial, security, educational and medical applications, as well as for various consumer electronics products. Unicon's patented, wireless, and mobile chip-on-film Linux computer is based on an ARM9 embedded CPU running full blown Linux 2.6 and attached to the back of a 3.5" touch screen. It is equipped with multiple connectivity options, including two 2.0 high-speed USB host ports and WiFi."
New Books
The Myths of Innovation--New from O'Reilly
O'Reilly has published the book The Myths of Innovation by Scott Berkun.Programming Firefox - O'Reilly's Latest Release
O'Reilly has published the book Programming Firefox by Kenneth C. Feldt.
Resources
Global summit of open source leaders releases free online report
The Organizers of Open Source Think Tank 2007 have announced a new paper on trends in commercial open source software. "The report [PDF], available online at no charge from Think Tank organizers Olliance Group and DLA Piper looks at how the fast-moving commercial open source industry has dramatically impacted business models, licensing and intellectual property issues, and adoption and usage models for open source software. Think Tank 2007 was supported by JasperSoft, Microsoft, NEC, Novell, OpenLogic, SugarCRM and Unisys. The summit was hosted by the Olliance Group, a leading open source management consulting firm, and DLA Piper, a global law firm with 3,200 lawyers in 24 countries and a leading advisor to the open source industry."
Contests and Awards
Novell Technical Support wins praise
Novell, Inc. has announced the winning of awards by its technical support program. "Novell technical support has recently been recognized by both customers and leading industry groups for its quality, scope, and timeliness. The Association of Support Professionals has just named Novell as a "Best Web Support" winner for 2007, while the Help Desk Institute has honored Novell with its "Team Excellence Award for External Support." In addition, an independent customer study indicates that Novell support for Linux bests Red Hat and Oracle in overall quality, timeliness, and addressing the needs of mixed-source IT environments."
Calls for Presentations
Netfilter Workshop 2007 in Karlsruhe, Germany
The Netfilter Workshop 2007 will take place in Karlsruhe, Germany on September 11-14, 2007. "The attendance is free but requires an invitation. You may consider attending if you are involved in any aspect of the Netfilter development. Please, send us an email to coreteam@netfilter.org before July 7th, 2007 (strict deadline). We have a very limited number of invitations!" A call for papers has also gone out for the event, submissions are due by July 7.
Upcoming Events
LinuxConf Europe 2007
LinuxConf Europe is a new development-oriented conference put together as a joint effort by the folks who did the UKUUG and Linux-Kongress events. It will be happening September 2 to 4 in Cambridge, UK, immediately prior to the kernel summit. The call for papers is out now, with proposals due by May 20.The O'Reilly Tools of Change for Publishing Conference
The O'Reilly Tools of Change for Publishing Conference will be held in San Jose, California on June 18-20, 2007. "Among the keynotes are presentations from John Ingram, vice chairman of Ingram Industries, Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia; Chris Anderson, editor-in-chief of Wired magazine; Brian Murray, group publisher of HarperCollins Publishers; Erin McKean, editor-in-chief of United States Dictionaries for Oxford University Press; Bruce Chizen, CEO of Adobe Systems, Manolis Kelaidis, Designer, Royal College of Art, and Tim O'Reilly, CEO and founder of O'Reilly Media."
Linux Installfest workshop in Davis, CA
The next Linux Users' Group of Davis Linux Installfest workshop will take place in Davis, California on Saturday, May 19.Events: May 17, 2007 to July 16, 2007
The following event listing is taken from the LWN.net Calendar.
| Date(s) | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| May 14 May 25 |
The Pure Data Spring School 2007 | Glasgow, Scotland |
| May 16 May 18 |
php|tek | Chicago, IL, USA |
| May 17 May 20 |
RailsConf 2007 | Portland, Oregon |
| May 18 May 19 |
eLiberatica Open Source and Free Software Conference | Brasov, Romania |
| May 18 May 19 |
FreedomHEC | Los Angeles, CA |
| May 18 May 19 |
BSDCan 2007 | Ottawa, Canada |
| May 19 May 20 |
The 3rd International Workshop on Software Engineering for Secure Systems | Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA |
| May 19 May 20 |
Rockbox International Developers Conference 2007 | Stockholm, Sweden |
| May 19 | Grazer LinuxDays 2007 | Graz, Austria |
| May 19 May 20 |
Make Magazine Maker Faire 2007 | San Mateo, CA, USA |
| May 19 | Linuxwochen Austria - Graz | Graz, Austria |
| May 21 May 23 |
International PHP 2007 Conference | Stuttgart, Germany |
| May 21 May 25 |
Python Bootcamp with David Beazley | Atlanta, USA |
| May 22 May 23 |
Open Source Business Conference | San Francisco, USA |
| May 22 May 24 |
Linux Days 2007, Geneva | Geneva, Switzerland |
| May 23 May 24 |
PGCon 2007 | Ottawa, ON, Canada |
| May 25 | Linuxwochen Austria - Krems | Krems, Austria |
| May 26 | PAKCON III | Karachi, Pakistan |
| May 29 May 30 |
Where 2.0 Conference | San Jose, CA, USA |
| May 29 May 31 |
European ADempiere Developers Conference | Berlin, Germany |
| May 29 May 30 |
I FLOSS CONFERENCE RESISTENCIA | Resistencia, Argentina |
| May 30 June 2 |
Linuxtag | Berlin, Germany |
| May 30 June 1 |
3rd UNIX Days Conference - Gdansk 2007 | Gdansk, Poland |
| May 30 June 1 |
Linuxwochen Austria - Wien | Wien, Austria |
| June 2 June 3 |
Journées Python Francophones | Paris, France |
| June 9 June 10 |
PyCon Uno - First Python Italian conference | Florence, Italy |
| June 10 June 15 |
DebCamp | Edinburgh, Scotland |
| June 10 | Pluto Meeting 2007 | Padova, Italy |
| June 11 June 14 |
Third International Conference on Open Source Systems | Limerick, Ireland |
| June 13 June 15 |
Linux Foundation Collaboration Summit | Mountain View, CA, USA |
| June 16 | DebianDay | Edinburgh, Scotland |
| June 16 | Firefox Developer Conference | Tokyo, Japan |
| June 17 June 23 |
Debian Developer Conference | Edinburgh, Scotland |
| June 17 June 22 |
2007 USENIX Annual Technical Conference | Santa Clara, USA |
| June 18 June 20 |
O'Reilly Tools of Change for Publishing Conference | San Jose, CA, USA |
| June 18 June 20 |
Advanced Workshop on GCC Internals | Bombay, India |
| June 20 June 22 |
IT Underground | Dublin, Ireland |
| June 20 | Open Source Showcase @ OpenAdvantage | Birmingham, UK |
| June 23 | Mozilla Developer Day | Paris, France |
| June 25 June 27 |
SOA World Conference and Expo 2007 | New York, NY, USA |
| June 27 June 30 |
2007 Linux Symposium | Ottawa, Canada |
| June 27 June 29 |
Summer School of Sound | Lancaster, UK |
| June 29 | NLUUG event theme innovation Enschede | Enschede, the Netherlands |
| June 30 July 7 |
Akademy 2007 | Glasgow, Scotland |
| July 2 July 6 |
Learning Programming with PHP | Redditch, Worcestershire, UK |
| July 6 | II WHYFLOSS CONFERENCE MADRID | Madrid, Spain |
| July 7 | Italian PostgreSQL Day | Prato, Tuscany, Italy |
| July 7 July 8 |
LugRadio Live 2007 | Wolverhampton, United Kingdom |
| July 9 July 11 |
EuroPython 2007 | Vilnius, Lithuania |
| July 9 July 13 |
PostgreSQL 8.2 Bootcamp at the Big Nerd Ranch | Atlanta, USA |
| July 10 July 11 |
The Linux Foundation Japan Symposium | Tokyo, Japan |
| July 12 July 13 |
IV GUADEC-ES | Granada, Spain |
| July 12 July 13 |
DIMVA 2007 | Lucerne, Switzerland |
| July 14 | UK Gentoo Meeting 2007 | London, UK |
| July 15 July 21 |
GNOME Users' And Developers' European Conference | Birmingham, England |
If your event does not appear here, please tell us about it.
Web sites
Mozilla Japan's Foxkeh Mascot launches English website (MozillaZine)
MozillaZine notes the launch of the new Foxkeh web site. "Mozilla Foundation international affiliate Mozilla Japan has launched an English language website for Foxkeh, its cartoon mascot for promoting Mozilla Firefox. The site has English translations of some of the content already available on Foxkeh's Japanese website, including introductory Firefox videos, monthly calendar desktop wallpapers and an amazingly detailed flowchart illustrating the history of Firefox."
quality.mozilla.org launches (MozillaZine)
MozillaZine has announced the launch of the alpha version of the quality.mozilla.org site. "The Mozilla Quality weblog has announced that an initial version of the quality.mozilla.org site has launched. Described as "pre-alpha", the quality.mozilla.org site (QMO for short) is intended to become a central portal for the Mozilla quality assurance community."
Page editor: Forrest Cook