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If Canonical succeeds in making Ubuntu Linux widespread on phones and tablets, it will revolutionize the role of open source software in mobile computing. But in a sense, the company has already achieved some remarkably revolutionary feats with Mir, the display server it started developing several months ago. This may sound like something only geeks can appreciate, but it could actually become a huge deal for mainstream IT.

Rumors are swirling that Intel Hybrid Cloud (a small business server that ran Linux or Windows) has been discontinued. If true, this is the latest setback for small business customers that want on-premises servers rather than emerging cloud computing alternatives.

As Canonical works to "converge" Ubuntu, the massively popular open-source Linux operating system, across smarphones, tablets, PCs and cloud servers, it is also working to integrate the various parts of the Ubuntu Web ecosystem. So reports Canonical employee Alejandra Obregon in a recent update on the past, preset and future of Ubuntu.com and the role of the Ubuntu community within Canonical's Web presence.

Canonical, on its official blog, is promoting the latest release of the Ceph distributed storage system, titled Cuttlefish. Why is that noteworthy? Because the post doesn't mention Canonical's Linux distribution (Ubuntu) at all, and instead focuses in large part on what Ceph is doing for Red Hat. Is Ceph that important to the open-source and Big Data ecosystems that it can bring competitors so selflessly together like this?

What happens when next-generation networking, cash prizes and the open-source ethos converge? Answer: The Innovative Application Awards program, which is now accepting proposals from developers seeking to build open-source software that takes advantage of OpenFlow and Software Defined Networking (SDN) features. And there's big cash behind this endeavor to encourage investment in big-bandwidth networks, with winning proposals receiving up to $10,000 in funding.

How did Linux originate, where is it presently and in which directions is it headed for the future? These are the big questions that a longtime Linux user and developer named Brian Thomason seeks to answer in a documentary film, if he can secure enough funding through a crowdsourcing campaign on Kickstarter. Here's hoping he succeeds.

Rackspace (NYSE:RAX), the cloud services provider (CSP) and OpenStack proponent, delivered weaker than expected quarterly earnings results today. The big question: Is the growth of cloud computing slowing down -- or is Rackspace being squeezed by Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Windows Azure and other big-name public clouds?

Inktank, the company behind the Ceph distributed storage platform, is cuddling up close with Red Hat (NYSE:RHT) with the latest release of Ceph, dubbed Cuttlefish. The new version may better position the open-source storage system for Big Data partner opportunities.

Apple iOS and Google Android remain the dominant operating systems for smartphones and tablets. But alternatives like Canonical's Ubuntu and Firefox OS are hoping to disrupt the mobile market -- despite the stark reality that even Microsoft and Blackberry are having trouble gaining ground. So how do upstarts like Ubuntu hope to grab market share? Here's the answer.

Tristan Barnum, a former Digium leader, has joined Telcentris as VP of marketing. Barnum is well-known as a pioneer of Asterisk, the open source IP BPX, within business circles and the IT channel. So what is Barnum up to at Telcentris? Here are some educated guesses.

Juniper Networks (NYSE:JNPR) and EMC (NYSE:EMC) updated their respective Software Defined Networking (SDN) and Software Defined Storage (SDS) strategies today. One common thread: OpenStack cloud support.

Red Hat OpenStack, the open source company's next big product, will grab a massive spotlight during Red Hat Summit (June 11-14, Boston). For channel partners and cloud services providers (CSPs), the summit could provide new clues about when Red Hat OpenStack will actually launch, and which CSPs and enterprises will be among the first customers to embrace the new platform.

What's more important: Ubuntu's success in cloud computing or on mobile devices? The answer is both, according to Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth. During a quick conversation with me at the recent OpenStack Summit, Shuttleworth said Ubuntu must succeed both in the cloud and mobile worlds. Here's why.

So you think Samsung Electronics America is just a consumer brand? Guess again. Samsung has launched a B2B branding initiative to promote its laptops, Galaxy tablets, smartphones and management software into business accounts. For channel partners, the key opportunities could involve BYOD, mobile device management, vertical market applications and plenty more.

If IBM (NYSE:IBM) sells its x86 server business to Lenovo (as many reports expect) it's a safe bet that Lenovo will remain committed to supporting Linux (Red Hat and SUSE, in particular) and Windows Server across the hardware line. Here's why.

Is Oracle VM, built on the open source Xen hypervisor, a true market alternative to VMware vSphere and Microsoft Hyper-V virtualization? And will Oracle leap beyond virtualization to support Software Defined Networking (SDN)? Perhaps it's time to rethink those questions -- especially as a new Oracle Desktop Virtualization offering (called Oracle Secure Global Desktop) reaches the market. Here's the update, including an exclusive interview with Oracle Senior VP Wim Coekaerts.

Now that Ubuntu 13.04 has been released, Caonical has started work on Ubuntu 13.10 (code-named Saucy Salamander), CEO Mark Shuttleworth announced in his personal blog. The blog gives the Ubuntu community a preview of what version 13.10 will look like.

MapR, the Hadoop and Big Data company, has big European ambitions despite a mixed economic outlook in the region. MapR recently opened a new Paris office that will focus on operations in France, Benelux and southern Europe. The move follows the company's establishment of a European headquarters late last year in London.

Dell's (NASDAQ: DELL) not the only big-name channel partner with which Canonical, the company that develops Ubuntu Linux, has been forging closer ties lately. On Tuesday, as Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) announced the general availability of Windows Azure Infrastructure Services, Canonical was also playing up Ubuntu's seamless integration into the Azure cloud platform—a move that makes much more sense than it might at first seem.

There is some skepticism about whether vendors and channel partners providing Hadoop services are yet bringing in the revenue they need to make it a viable business case, but according to a new report from TechNavio, the big bucks are ahead. And not that far ahead, really.