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The next-generation protocol, Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6), is becoming widely accepted as the future of the Internet and networking world. This acceptance has encouraged various IT companies to develop applications that support and talk with each other through the IPv6 address format. In this article, learn to configure the File Transfer Protocol (FTP) server for IPv6, and to communicate with FTP servers through a simple Java program that uses the IPv6 address.

Design patterns are just for Java architects -- at least that's what you may have been led to believe. In fact, design patterns are useful for everyone. If these tools aren't exclusive to architecture astronauts, what are they, and why are they useful in PHP applications? This article explains.

The Dutch municipality of Groningen (180.000 inhabitants) recently announced to migrate to OpenOffice.org. The municipality expects to save 330 thousand Euros, of which 160 thousand will be used for the migration. Groningen isn't ready to switch to Linux yet, but it is currently busy to make the applications it uses OS-independent.

Whole article in Dutch only

Embedded VAR (value-added reseller) Mistral Solutions is supporting Linux and other embedded OSes on a digital receiver PMC (processor mezzanine card) from Pentland Systems that targets high-speed analog data acquisition applications. The RAD-2 PMC features an unspecified processor and user-programmable FPGA.

Closed source drivers for video cards have been a vexing problem for free software enthusiasts for some time. Open source drivers for most video cards exist, but fail to take full advantage of the cards' ability, leaving users with a choice between free and high performance. The good news is that the Open Graphics Project (OGP) is making progress toward a completely open video card. The bad news is that it will still be a while before free software enthusiasts will be able to use a completely open video card.

The Linux Incompatibility List is an attempt to catalog and document hardware/peripherals of all kinds that do not work with the Linux operating system.

A WEE SPAT has broken out between virus-busters over the security merits of open source software.

While McAfee reckons open source's very openness makes it easy to fiddle with, rival Trend Micro reckons it's the openness that makes dodgy code easy to spot.

Thousands of wildebeest are making their way to Angola from Zambia in a little-known and expanding migration that is a sign of renewal for the war-ravaged African country.
[...]
"It is like nature reasserting itself, a really positive sign for Angola," said Boote.

[Kinda like that for GNU software, too. (Hey, we have to keep track of the mascots.) -- grouch]

Paying independent security researchers a bounty for responsibly disclosing vulnerabilities is not the best way to protect users, according to Microsoft.
[...]
Numerous companies offer a "bug bounty" including Firefox maker Mozilla.

[It's a matter of supply and demand. MS supplies so many vulnerabilities that no one could afford to pay more than pennies apiece to find them. -- grouch]

The first CCHIT certified EMR products have arrived with the announcementhere.'On July 18, 2006, the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT) announced the first ambulatory electronic health record (EHR) products to attain CCHIT Certified status.The following CCHIT Certified products have been tested and passed inspection of 100 percent of a comprehensive set of criteria for: Functionality...Interoperability...Security... Is this a good, bad or indifferent development?

IBM has announced that its portfolio of middleware and systems platforms will support Novell's new SUSE Linux Enterprise 10 offerings. The new SUSE Linux Enterprise offerings incorporate the open source Xen virtualization software to help businesses increase server utilization and lower management costs.

Some eight days ago, Joe Barr asked in Newsforge about Tremulous: The best free software game ever?

Today I stumbled upon a number of essays from Dominic Humphries. I found them useful, especially for new users of Free and Open Source software, and probably Linux (or any of the BSDs).

All documentation is handled by a team of five dedicated technical writers (of which I am one). Five sounds like a lot, but with 7000 pages of documentation across various versions of the manual (since we have separate manuals for the 4.1, 5.0 and 5.1 trees, not to mention the various other tools we also document) it's a lot of work :)

Becomes The First Linux-Based PVR/ Media Center To Offer Placeshifting And Wireless Media Extender Capabilities

[Posting this mainly to ask, what's it got that MythTV hasn't had for ages? -- grouch]

WiFi Radar is a handy tool for those who move from one wireless access point (AP) to another. My laptop regularly connects to a wireless AP on my home LAN, to a free wireless service in downtown Austin where we hold our weekly LUG meetings, and to whatever is available at airports and hotels when I'm on the road. WiFi Radar makes it simple to switch connections no matter where I am.

Fujitsu Computer Systems unveiled the PRIMEQUEST 500 series servers with Dual-core Intel Itanium 2 processors, providing performance improvements up to 2.5 times that of previous models. The PRIMEQUEST servers are built to meet the highest demands on reliability and availability in the data center.

Amnesty International upped its already-harsh criticism of Internet companies on Wednesday by accusing Google, Microsoft and Yahoo of violating their own principles in China.

SA Linux trainers Linux Holdings have launched a full range of LPI training courses that will be taught using online and correspondence methods. Providing the courses online with a mix of chat, forums and training materials will allow the company to keep their prices down as well as give students longer-term support.

"We love openSUSE, but we hate openSUSE's package management problems," Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols, DesktopLinux.com's resident Linux curmudgeon, reports from his vacation. But there's good news: a fix is coming soon, he says.