LXer Weekly Roundup for 20-Apr-2008

LXer Feature: 20-Apr-2008 In this week's Roundup we have lots of Linux and Open Source news including how Sun has started working on a free video codec, Ken Starks comes "back from the mountain", The missing five-minute Linux manual for morons, A new spin on Xfce and the one place Novell can beat Microsoft along and other MS related articles. Plus, we have Blue Jeans Cable's response to Monster Cable, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Linux Users and in our FUD section we have Seagate killing Linux support, Linux wanting to destroy things and how Open Source is costing the IT vendors $60 billion. Enjoy!

In this week's Roundup we have lots of Linux and Open Source news including how Sun has started working on a free video codec, Ken Starks comes "back from the mountain", The missing five-minute Linux manual for morons, A new spin on Xfce and the one place Novell can beat Microsoft along and other MS related articles. Plus, we have Blue Jeans Cable's response to Monster Cable, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Linux Users and in our FUD section we have Seagate killing Linux support, Linux wanting to destroy things and how Open Source is costing the IT vendors $60 billion. Enjoy!

AstroMenace 1.2 - Real Gaming in Linux: While changing to a great OS like Ubuntu , I had to make some sacrifices , one of them being : less gaming. I'm not seeing I ended my gamer " career" , buy i start to look for smaller web games , or testing the big LINUX games that everybody was talking about. ( Tremoulos,Quake Wars,Nexuiz,Battle For Wesnoth).

Sun Tackles Video Codec: Looking to boost the Web, Sun is working on a royalty-free and open video codec and media system, company officials said Thursday afternoon. "The main benefit is that you don't have that now and there are markets, key markets like the Web, that are in need for the Web 2.0 experience a foundation of royalty-free for the media element," for audio and video, said Rob Glidden, global alliance manager for TV & Media at Sun.

Back From The Mountain: Linux Advocate and Open Source Business owner, Ken Starks attended the Second Annual Linux foundation Collaboration Summit in his home town of Austin Texas this year. It was his first invite and what he comes away with may surprise many...and yes, those are real sharks.

The missing five-minute Linux manual for morons: It is time to wake up and smell the elephant in the room. Vista is struggling to achieve escape velocity. Microsoft finds itself the butt an international joke, but does not seem able to get a grip. The issue of choice of platform is once more up for grabs. Of course there is an alternative; a popular computing platform whose design attracts universal admiration. But although we all look forward to literally punching in the numbers, the Wii does not yet quite hack it (use of a dread phrase coming up) 'in the enterprise'.

Users fight to save Windows XP: Microsoft Corp.'s operating systems run most personal computers around the globe and are a cash cow for the world's largest software maker. But you'd never confuse a Windows user with the passionate fans of Mac OS X or even the free Linux operating system. Unless it's someone running Windows XP, a version Microsoft wants to retire.

Here Comes IPv6... Guess Who is Not Ready: In about 100 days, the United States Federal Government will be required to be running large portions of their systems on IPv6. Now, for the few non-technical in the crowd, it means that the address your PC uses to connect to the Internet, in most cases, is IPv4.

Run Windows and Linux without virtualization: Linux does everything that many users want it to, but some people have tasks that require Windows applications. You can dual-boot both operating systems, or run Windows in a virtualized environment on Linux. Alas, virtualization makes the guest OS almost useless for processor- and RAM-intensive tasks like editing videos and playing games. Now, a Ubuntu-based distro called andLinux takes cooperation with Windows to a whole new level.

Review: A New Spin on the Xfce Window Manager: Xfce isn't for everyone, but for servers or minimal desktop systems, it's just what the doctor ordered. Rather lightweight in Window Manager terms--weighing in at around 63MB--Xfce arrives with a full complement of applications from Abiword, gnumeric, and pidgin to CD/DVD burning software (Brasero), Thunar File Manager, and a host of administrative applications. For this article, I am reviewing the Xfce Fedora Spin based on Fedora 8 and Xfce4.

Blue Jeans Cable Strikes Back - Response to Monster Cable: Not a Linux article, but on a topic near and dear to our hearts -- An attack by an IP holding company. In this case, Monster Cable's lawyers sending a Cease and Desist letter to Blue Jeans Cable. Too often, FOSS folk, bless their hearts, panic at the word "patent". This letter from Blue Jeans President and former litigator, Kurt Denke, gives some idea why real companies -- companies with valuable businesses and assets to protect don't just go out and routinely drop "patent bombs".

The One Place Novell Can Beat Microsoft: Novell SuSE Linux has reasonable momentum on desktops and servers. But the company's best shot at beating Microsoft is in an entirely different market.

With Vista's View Getting Dimmer, Should You Give Linux A Chance?: The geeks have been pushing it for years now. The nerds tout their penguins and tell you how much they hate Microsoft(tm). It's been all the rage in tech circles since its appearance on the scene back in 1995, after Linus Torvalds, a student in Finland, introduced a new, open source operating system to the world. It was aptly named 'Linux'. Torvalds had wanted an alternative to expensive and bloated Unix operating systems, but instead what he created was an inexpensive alternative to, well, everything. For years now, Linux has been known primarily only to people in technology fields. While average home users may have heard of it, it is still surrounded in a cloud of mystery for the majority of people. When people think alternatives to the Windows operating system, they usually think of Apple's Mac OSX, but is it time to take a look at Linux?

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Linux Users: Switching to Linux can be very daunting, most seasoned Linux users experienced that first hand. After all, at some point they were also “noobs”. However, the Linux community has excelled in making the switch for beginners as easy as possible by providing guides, howtos, tweaks, and general advocacy articles. When I first made the switch 3 years ago, I found the community welcoming me with open hands on forums, IRC channels, and E-mail, I was surprised how helpful these penguins were! For this, I feel obliged to give back to the community that has always been there for me. To pass down the torch to newer Linux generations. Over here I compiled a list of 7 habits that I feel someone has told me when I started out. I believe that getting into these habits will make the Linux experience more secure, convenient, educational, and ultimately more enjoyable.

10 common mistakes to avoid when you’re installing Linux software: Installing software in Linux is nothing like it used to be, but there are still some pitfalls to watch out for. If you follow this little guide, your Linux life will be made simpler and safer. Note: This information is also available as a PDF download.

Why I Quit Windows and Switched to Linux: It’s funny how some people react when I tell them I use Linux. Sometimes they express the sentiment that I must be very computer savvy. Other’s get caught up in all the brand loyalty hype and still some have never heard of Linux! I kid you not! The truth of the matter is that I switched partly because Windows no longer offered me any challenges and reliability became an issue. The most common question I get asked whenever I present a public speaking seminar is “Why did you switch to Linux?”Well… for all those who asked, here’s the long winded answer.

Creative Tries Again At Linux Drivers: Next to drivers for graphics cards and (Atheros and Broadcom) wireless chipsets, the Creative Labs X-Fi series is one of the most complained about pieces of hardware for its Linux support or there the lack of. The Creative X-Fi sound card series is a few years old, but it wasn't until a few months ago that open and closed-source drivers started coming about for this hardware. However, this sound card has still been left in a sorry state, but this week Creative Labs has finally pushed out another Sound Blaster X-Fi Linux beta driver. But does this driver correct their wrong doings from the past?

Ubuntu Hardy Heron release candidate flies: The Ubuntu development team today made available a release candidate version of the soon-to-be-released Ubuntu 8.04, codenamed Hardy Heron. The release candidate is the final testing release of Hardy ahead of next week’s final release. What we like: A better selection of default desktop applications, much-improved CD and DVD burning interface and much-needed audio improvements. What we don’t like: Boot speed is still a little slow.

Linux wants to... destroy the desktop?!?: I'll admit that I'm not a Marvel Comics fan (color me Vertigo), but this one's got me genuinely stumped: Iron Man is fighting the dark forces of Linux. That's direct from the writer's mouth, in fact.

Free Open Source Software Is Costing Vendors $60 Billion?: Talk about FUD. I came across a release this AM titled, "Free Open Source Software Is Costing Vendors $60 Billion," New Standish Group International Study Finds". This 'research' firm claims in its release that they've spent 5 years studying the Open Source market (funny since in the last five years I've never heard of the Standish Group). After all that 'research' they've come to a big conclusion and one that is obviously very debatable.

Seagate Kills Linux Support: It seems that Seagate has opted to forgo compatibility for anyone other than Linux users and that’s a real shame, as I have always been a satisfied Seagate user. And as you might suspect, based on where this article is appearing, I happen to be a full-time Linux user.