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Things are changing fast for the open source database MySQL. On Tuesday at the kick off of the MySQL Conference & Expo, Sun's open source database division announced new plans to release MySQL updates on a more rapid basis. The first of those releases, MySQL 5.4, is available in preview today, with MySQL claiming it to be up 90 percent faster than MySQL 5.1 for certain types of queries. "MySQL is so ubiquitous it will transcend its ownership," Karen Tegan Padir, vice president of MySQL and software infrastructure at Sun told InternetNews.com. "We saw it as Sun acquired MySQL and we will see it as Oracle acquired Sun. Oracle will be a very good steward to MySQL because they must. If they don't try and choose to squash it out, they won't be able to as it would accelerate."

Even if the UK Government are not going to stop Phorm spying on Internet users on privacy grounds, it looks like some of the biggest brands on the Web will.

One of Oracle's top technology gurus has appeared at MySQL's annual conference to sooth concerns over the open-source database's future under Oracle. Ken Jacbos, vice president of product strategy in Oracle's server technologies division and known as Dr DBA, was apparently brought on stage at the show to highlight the history of fraternal collaboration between Oracle and MySQL. The message was clear: MySQL is safe under Oracle, so don't wobble and turn to Postgres or stop building the open-source database.

goplay is an interesting browser application that allows you to locate nifty packages for Debian-based distributions. It uses DebTags, the built-in descriptive categories used in the repositories, to locate new packages.

Ubuntu 9.04 "Jaunty Jackalope" will be out very soon. Here is a hopefully useful guide for enhancing a fresh new "Jaunty" installation. Try it out!

It's the Ubuntu release week (or Ubuntu "circus", as some prefer to call it), a major event in the calendar of many open source software enthusiasts. What will the distribution's 10th official release be like? And will the download servers cope with the expected heavy demand? We'll have to wait until Thursday to find out; in the meantime, read below for a quick tip on reverting to an older kernel under Ubuntu and visit Canonical's ShipIt service to order your free CDs. In the news section, Mandriva gains support for hardware database known as Smolt, Easy Peasy ponders a few ideas concerning the distro's default user interface, and Fedora's Ricky Zhou points out the importance of innovation in Red Hat's community distribution. Finally, don't miss our feature article which calls for an implementation of a centralised bug-tracking database for all open source software projects.

A good password has the problem of being difficult to remember. And sometimes you might need to get in to a system where the root password is long forgotten (or left with the system administrator before you). Luckily there are ways of getting access to systems without having the password. This is of course in a sense also a security risk. That's why you should always be aware that having unattended physical access to a computer system means the same as having root access to the operating system. Unless the information on a system is encrypted, it's only as save as the room it's in.

Oracle picks up SUN for $7.4 billion and gets MySQL in the bargain. Did the world's most popular open source database just get put on life support. Or have it's plug pulled?

Web servers are one of the many public faces of an organization and therefore are potentially an easy target. As a public resource, a Web server is like "shark bait" for some. But it doesn't have to be: Learn how a Web server can be public and safe at the same time.

So, if you’re like me and have voided the warranties of all the other electronics in your house, but have yet to sink your teeth into your poor little Western Digital MyBook World - likely cowering in the corner pleading for you to put down the screwdriver - here are some helpful resources on getting the most out this handy little NAS box that just so happens to be running BusyBox linux.

I had to read this story Lenovo analyst: Linux on netbooks is doomed" several times because I couldn't quite believe what I was reading. Was this really Lenovo's Worldwide Competitive Analyst saying things like "You have to know how to decompile codes and upload data"?

Sun Microsystems — and what would happen to it — has been in the news for some weeks, amid rumors, then negotiations, then rumors, again, concerning the flailing company's future. The now-infamous IBM purchase and its spectacular failure earlier this month exponentially increased speculation — speculation that was put to rest this morning when it was revealed that database-giant Oracle will be adding Sun to its solar system.

Both Monty Widenius, founder of MySQL, and Marten Mickos, former CEO of MySQL and until recently, VP of the Sun database group, have both commented on Oracle's acquisition of Sun Microsystems and MySQL. Observers had noted that Oracle may not be interested in pursuing development of MySQL, despite Oracle's announcement saying MySQL would join the ranks of its other database products.

It's tempting to speculate that Oracle's bid for Sun Microsystems is a convenient way to kill off open-source database wonder, MySQL. But MySQL's former chief executive, Mårten Mickos, sees things differently. If anything, Oracle badly wanted MySQL.

Why is it so hard to get governments (especially local government) to use open source software? Here are some ideas discussed during my keynote today in Oslo at GoOpen 2009 for practical steps various people, from citizens to policy wonks to representatives, can do to help get open source in actual use and delivering on its promise (and I know it's not easy):

The audio recordings from the presentations at SCALE 7x are finally available. The links for the talks are on the Conference Schedule. If there's no link for a session, it either means it wasn't recorded, or the recording wasn't usable for some reason.

Microsoft knew this day was coming. This was the reason it desperately wanted — no, needed — to take down Netscape in 1996. Netscape wasn’t just trying to build a program for reading text and photos across a network of connected computers. Netscape was trying to build a new platform - the ultimate platform - to run software and share information instantly and on a global scale. And no one understood that better than Bill Gates.

Highly-paid executives who led their financial institutions into failure get to keep their jobs and handsome paychecks, while the grunts who do the work get canned. Meanwhile, governments everywhere are reacting in their usual manner, by drafting galactic-sized reams of new rules and regulations. Which will supplement and not replace the old galactic-sized reams of rules and regulations. The burden of this record-keeping is going to fall on IT staff-- are you ready?

License proliferation has been a hot topic amongst the open source community for the past couple of years. I am happy to report that the Eclipse Foundation and IBM have collaborated to do our bit to help by superseding the Common Public License (CPL) with the Eclipse Public License (EPL). This means that the CPL will no longer be considered an active open source license.

Synergy. Total IT solutions. Some folks in the channel media are falling all over themselves calling the Oracle-Sun deal a “slam dunk” for solutions providers. Um, The VAR Guy begs to differ. Here’s why.