Showing headlines posted by dave

In many ways Linux can be so much more graceful than Windows. The KDE project and the commercial desktops based on Gnome (Ximian, Sun JDS etc.) demonstrate this. And for daily use, I enjoy KDE more than I enjoy XP, period. It makes more sense to me. But the initial configuration and the gotchas that I have outlined above will continue to stunt the growth of large scale adoption. It's not that the learning curve is too high, it's that this entire generation of computer users has learned how to use computers the Microsoft way. Flaws and all. And unlearning all of that baggage is the biggest factor in "figuring Linux out."

Microlite Corporation is pleased to announce immediate support for the new Iomega REV drive for use as a backup and disaster recovery storage device under the Linux operating environment.

THE ABC's New Media and Digital Services wants a new Content Management System, but has placed strict rules on parties wishing to win the contract with an open source program. In calling for expressions of interest, it says "submissions from consultants aggregating third-party software, including open-source software will not be considered".

Downloading Lindows 4.5 via P2P file-sharing application BitTorrent cuts the cost in half.

Via Tobias Schlitt, Alexey Borzov kicked off a huge debate on PEAR quality and standards, part inspired by another discussion that raises a number of very valid issues related to PEAR (Sitepoint Forums regulars will spot a familiar name or two).

Linux clustering was touted as the next big thing by many vendors last week at ClusterWorld Conference & Expo 2004. But supercomputer vendor Cray Inc. scoffed at the notion of putting Linux clusters in the high-performance computing (HPC) category. In fact, Cray showcased a system -- Cray XD1 with Active Manager -- that will compete in performance and price with some Linux clusters upon its release..

Eirik Eng, CEO of Trolltech, and Matthias Ettrich, founder of the KDE project and CTO of Trolltech were interviewed by Philippe Fremy, KDE enthusiast. This interview was conducted in August 2003. The interview was made possible by Laurent Rathle, who is maintaining the KDE France website. A french translation is however available on KDE-France.

FUD hit embedded Linux this week, when Green Hills Software CEO Dan O'Dowd said Linux is a national security risk. The open source process should rule it out of defense applications, he claimed, because anyone can contribute, even developers in Russia and China, who might disguise their identities and slip in some subversive code. His company sells a competing proprietary RTOS.

The Microsoft Corp. program known as WiX isn't a particularly large piece of software. It would probably never be the subject of a splashy advertising campaign. In fact, most computer users wouldn't even know what to do with it. But the program caused a serious stir in the technology world last week, setting online forums abuzz with speculation and inspiring entire articles on tech-news sites.

It's time for some elements in the Linux community to grow up and chill out before they do more harm than good.

[ Editor's note: GTA is the "Greater Toronto Area". I looked it up for you. :)] Net Integration Technologies Inc., headquartered on Warden Ave. in Markham, offers an operating system called Nitix — a Linux-based program that can be loaded onto servers that then run a company's computer network and handle all the applications its workers use.

Casey Palmer had planned to run both Windows and Linux on his home computer, but the machine had other ideas at first. After he partitioned the hard drive and installed MandrakeSoft's Linux Discovery 9.2, he couldn't figure out how to get Windows running again.

Linux, having established itself as a worthy rival to Microsoft in the server market, is maturing on the desktop as well. It's much simpler to use. It can perform most of the basic tasks of a Windows-based system. It's also being backed by the likes of IBM, Hewlett-Packard and Sun Microsystems, ultimately making customers more comfortable with the technology.

The cost of deploying and running Linux vs. Windows has been a hot topic lately, fueled by a number of high-profile Linux adoptions and evaluations by government entities in Europe, Asia and the U.S., and Microsoft's own licensing woes.

Is there a future in NetWare? I was planning to pursue a CNE, however, I'm not sure if it's worth it.

This is an article about my experiences with Slackware 9.1, a distribution of Linux that I find enjoyable, along with programs that I find useful and enjoyable.

If your program is free software, it is basically ethical--but there is a trap you must be on guard for. Your program, though in itself free, may be restricted by non-free software that it depends on. Since the problem is most prominent today for Java programs, we call it the Java Trap.

"It looks as if Mono is going to get a lot more manpower," writes Dennis Hayes. "If this translates into more code, Mono could be entering a whole new era. Novell's acquisition of Ximian has been very good for the project, and Novell seems to be true to their word about keeping open source open," he adds, before discussing Mono's 0.30 release System.Windows. Forms (SWF) implementation changes, and some other ways that Novell has helped Mono and open source.

There were 22 security alerts issued last week:

• 4 from Debian
• 12 from Gentoo
• 2 from Mandrake
• 4 from OpenPKG

This guy has given himself the Dutch label; a 'hardcore béta', he's focussed on writing his thesis, can't stand bad and rude behavior on IRC, amuses himself with Algebra and his most successful and recent accomplishment is contributing to the compilation of a new project, a baby girl named Mira! This week we sync up with KPilot's Adriaan de Groot!