Hashtags like #techdirt are not only an indispensable part of Twitter, but are also increasingly to be found elsewhere as a handy way of flagging up key topics in a compact and recognizable way. Given the monopoly-mad world we inhabit, it's something of a miracle that they weren't patented. Business Insider points out that Chris Messina, the former Google employee who came up with the idea in the first place, has explained precisely why he didn't try to patent them. The first reason is practical:

Vincent Hardy is Adobe's Director of Engineering for the Web Platform. He uses CSS to power projects that improve open standards for the web. He says there's nothing he hates about CSS—though the lack of variables and scoping bugged him for a long time—and is particularly enamored with the way CSS has organically developed into a robust technology. Sun Microsystems is where Vincent Hardy got his start in web standards and open source. In this interview, he tells me what lessons he learned there and how open standards are growing at Adobe.

The multiple monitor experience on Linux traditionally was very arcane and difficult; it would involve editing text configuration errors, trial-and-error, picking the right Linux GPU driver, and various other steps to get a working multi-monitor desktop. Since then there's been RandR 1.2+ and major improvements to all of the important Linux desktop graphics drivers -- both open and closed-source. How is the Linux multi-monitor now when using a modern distribution and the latest graphics cards that can drive four monitors simultaneously? Let's find out! Up for testing today are NVIDIA and AMD graphics cards using both the open and closed-source drivers while using DVI, DisplayPort, and HDMI displays.

Amahi is an open source software that runs on a dedicated PC as a central computer for your home. It handles your entertainment, storage, and computing needs. You can store, organize and deliver your recorded TV shows, videos and music to media devices in your network. Share them locally or safely around the world. And it's expandable with a multitude of one-click install apps.

Over 280 attendees representing 177 mentoring organizations gathered for a two-day, code-munity extravaganza celebrating the conclusion of Google Summer of Code with the annual Mentor Summit held at Google in Mountain View, California.

The most dramatic outcome of the Oracle v. Google trial in spring 2012 wasn't anything the jury said; it was US District Judge William Alsup's finding that programming APIs can't be copyrighted. That sweeping ruling made the trial a total win for Google, and Alsup's opinion (PDF) is strongly supported by app developers who don't want to face legal threats for using simple "declaring code."

Not everyone sees it that way, however. Today it appears that Google's victory may be in danger. Oracle has appealed the case, and initial reports from both Bloomberg and Reuters on the oral arguments held this morning suggest the three-judge panel may be leaning against Google's position.

So this is nothing spectacular, but the thing about this, is that all the tools needed to pull this off are available for free. In fact, the SkyJack software, written by Samy Kamkar, is hosted on GitHub.

Newly anointed Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler said this week that it would be OK for Internet service providers to charge Netflix and other companies for a faster lane to consumers.

Wheeler's stance is surprising given that it appears to contradict the FCC's Open Internet Order, passed under his predecessor in 2010. That order, which sets out the country's network neutrality rules, says that fixed broadband providers may not "unreasonably discriminate" against any type of traffic. The order specifically calls out pay-for-play arrangements as being potential violations.

Nagios is one of the most powerful network monitoring systems, which is widely used in the industry. It can actively monitor any network, and generate audio/email warnings and alerts when any problem is detected. The check types and alert timers are fully customizable. This tutorial explains how to install and configure Nagios on Linux.

Back in May 2012, Judge William Alsup (yes, he's popular today) issued a very good and very thorough ruling explaining why APIs could not be covered by copyright. Alsup, who claimed he learned to program in Java to better understand the technical details of the case, went into a fair bit of detail in his ruling, which looked like it was clearly designed to explain basic programming concepts to an appeals court who would surely be hearing the case -- and almost certainly with judges who had less (if any) programming knowledge. The appeal was officially heard by the Federal Circuit appeals court (CAFC) today and there are some reports suggesting that the judges are skeptical of Alsup's ruling and may be leaning towards overturning it.

Tiny Core Linux is a very small (10 MB) minimal Linux desktop. It is based on Linux 2.6 kernel, BusyBox, Tiny X, FLTK graphical user interface and JWM window manager, running entirely in memory. It is not a complete desktop, nor is all hardware completely supported; it represents only the core needed to boot into a very minimal X Window desktop, typically with wired Internet access.

A case that went before the Supreme Court yesterday has a very long history. Lexmark sued Static Control Components in 2002, arguing that SCC shouldn't be allowed to reverse-engineer its printers and help others create replacement toner cartridges, because of copyright law. In 2004, an appeals court ruled in favor of SCC, and that ruling has become a cornerstone of DMCA-era copyright law.

Not exactly gaming news but still interesting and it can impact Linux gaming in the future, Valve (and others) has joined the Linux Foundation.

Several security issues were fixed in the kernel.

On December 3, Ubuntu 12.04 LTS received a major kernel upgrade that fixed twelve vulnerabilities discovered in the upstream Linux 3.2 kernel by various developers (eight of them were discovered by Kees Cook).

Elder Sign: Omens is a digital version of the popular board game by Fantasy Flight Games. Build a team of unique investigators and fight to keep an all-powerful Ancient One from invading our world! Explore museums, oceans, deserts and more for the arcane Elder Signs that will help seal the Ancient One away.

Oracle has announced a few days ago that its Oracle Linux operating system has reached version 6.5, bringing lots of new features, updated packages and several improvements over previus releases.

Today in Open Source: iBuyPower's Steam Machine priced at $499. Plus: Android eyewear computer ships, and get a job by contributing to open source.

Valve likes Linux. Linux now likes Valve. So Valve is now actively contributing to the Linux Foundation by joining Clodius Systems and the HSA Foundation as new members

Not even Mighty Big Blue can stop a hurricane. But. IBM and Marist College are testing a new cloud computing innovation that could help prevent disruptions in voice and data communications services caused by hurricanes and other natural disasters.

Starbound the game I have probably been most excited about this year is due to drop into public beta in less than an hour, are you ready to rock?

The latest open-source Linux benchmarks out of Phoronix is a six-way Linux laptop performance comparison featuring laptops/ultrabooks from Lenovo, Hewlett-Packard, ASUS, and Apple...

Explain Shell is a free service that breaks down Linux commands .

We are happy to publish an interview with Niki Kovacs, the developer of a very interesting project called Microlinux. Enjoy!

If you want to play with what the KDE developers are working on, Project Neon 5 has been the way to go. Now it’s even easier, because an ISO installation image for the daily builds has been released.

HAMMER2 file-system improvements have landed hot on the heels of the exciting DragonFlyBSD 3.6 release...

Valve has joined the Linux Foundation, making Steam Machine prototypes looking more and more like serious competition for Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4.

Greg Kroah-Hartman has just announced a few minutes ago, December 4, that the third maintenance release of the Linux kernel 3.12 is now available for download.

Nowadays we see beautiful design everywhere in our daily life. The digital world is no exception. Many of the websites we visit and the desktop and mobile apps that we use started to be so beautifully designed, that user perceptions on design started to change. As a result, everybody is becoming more design savvy. Users who didn’t care about contrast, button color or responsiveness in the past now critique companies whenever they make a user interface or experience update. Do you remember the user reaction after several Digg re-designs? Why don’t you use GIMP over Photoshop even though as an average user you won’t need most the extras Photoshop has? There are hundreds of other examples where you will see design and user experience having a great impact on product adoption rates and continuity. Open source software always has the advantage of offering a free alternative to mainstream solutions, but it doesn’t guarantee user adoption.

A month or so ago, a PR person sent me a ridiculously misleading (to potentially dishonest) Forbes piece by Ev Ehrlich, former undersecretary of commerce for President Bill Clinton, arguing against net neutrality. The piece was so ridiculous that I asked the PR person whether or not Ehrlich, in his current job as a consultant/think tank person, was working with any broadband providers. The PR person said he didn't know, and I figured I'd just ignore the piece. However, having now listened to a radio debate on KCRW about net neutrality that included Ehrlich making the same basic argument in a discussion with Tim Lee from the Washington Post, Harold Feld from Public Knowledge and Alexis Ohanian of Reddit, it seems worth highlighting just how confused and, well, wrong, Ehrlich is.