Showing all newswire headlines

As of late, file-systems have been a popular topic among Linux developers and users. The EXT4 file-system was recently stabilized and it brings some modest performance improvements and is finding its way into modern distributions. While not yet stabilized, the Btrfs file-system was merged into the Linux 2.6.29 kernel and is poised as the Linux competitor to Sun's famed ZFS file-system. There is also open-source work underway in supporting Microsoft's exFAT file-system on Linux. On top of all of that, there is also the Tux3 file-system.

Learn how you can improve UNIX file system performance and security. The UNIX® operating system enables you to split up your disk data into multiple volumes. Knowing how to do this is only half the battle, though; to make effective use of this ability, you must understand how the files on a UNIX system are organized as well as why they're organized in this way. This article addresses the issue of why you should use multiple volumes.

Linux MCE is superior to windows MCE * Cost The number one reason for choosing Linux, people have reported building a Linux media center with $400 total cost. Top that! Of course if you have unlimited budget this is not an argument. On the other hand what can be defined as unlimited? With equal money you will always be capable of building more. That's why big movie studios use Linux. * A whole house media system build with cheap diskless hardware Have some old PC's laying around? You can use them as pxe bootable thin clients for your Linux MCE system, most cheap graphics cards support tv out for a while now. Make a pc pxe bootable over the network and use it as a media director. And you can have one master system serving media throughout the whole house.

I have something of a relationship with both Python and Django, the latter because I use Django more or less regularly to contribute my portion of an application (which shall remain nameless for the moment) that my company ("my" in the sense that I work there, not that I actually own anything) is developing. I'm already sold on the relative simplicity and power of Python based on my attempts to hammer away with the language, so this book, at least as far as the topic is concerned, is everything I could ask for. But can the same be said for the content of the book?

KDE 4.1, launched at the end of July 2008, became the first release we could heartily recommend as a replacement for the ageing 3.5, and a solid nine months of updates to 4.1 has created a stable and innovative environment that can only get stronger as 4.2 beds itself into 2009. But KDE is still KDE, and that means that many of its best features are undocumented and undisclosed. Which is why now is the best possible time for a feature crammed full of the best tricks we can find for getting the most out of KDE 4. It doesn't matter if you're a new convert, an experienced user, or a potential switcher, you'll find something in the following pages that will make you feel a micron of pride of what open source can achieve.

Almost two years after Etch, Debian is putting the much-anticipated Lenny release on the proverbial shelves. There are some pretty nice new features in this release. In this article, we’re going to cover installation, basic setup, disk encryption, and try out some of Lenny’s new moves.

The relationship between embedded system developers and the kernel community is known for being rough, at best. Kernel developers complain about low-quality work and a lack of contributions from the embedded side; the embedded developers, when they say anything at all, express frustrations that the kernel development process does not really keep their needs in mind. A current discussion involving developers from the Android project gives some insight into where this disconnect comes from.

You have to give Microsoft credit. They keep trying, even if what they are trying is copying Apple. This time they have announced they are going to open retail stores. Sound familiar? It should because it's what Apple has done so successfully with its Apple Store strategy.

The goal of this guide is to show people of all ages that Linux can be simple and fun, and used for all kinds of purposes. This guide was created as an overview of the Linux Operating System, geared toward new users as an exploration tour and getting started guide, with exercises at the end of each chapter.

Actually, there's a good reason, but saying that in the title wouldn't get anyone's attention. Today, we're going to look at DSCP (The Domain to Service processor Communication Protocol) and why it was introduced with the newer M series Enterprise servers from Sun. The first time I ran into it, I thought approximately the following: All right, here's something else that can make my life more complicated ;)

Ubuntu's upcoming 9.10 release now has a name: Karmic Koala. However, all of the news wasn't so cute and fuzzy this week in the FOSS blogosphere. One blogger posted a Linux virus how-to, which got quite a bit of attention. Turns out the vulnerability has been known since 2006.

In the last couple of days I've probably learned more than I ever wanted to know about BCDs, MBRs, boot sectors, boot menus, lilo, Wubi, and grub. When I complained that Windows 7 had trashed my grub menu on Thursday, I didn't know what a can of worms I was opening. I got lots of advice, and most of it was constructive. Nobody quite gave me the whole picture, but I've put it together.

This week we re-visit the minimal distribution install, this time with openSUSE 11.1. In the news this past week, Mark Shuttleworth announces details of the 9.10 Ubuntu release, openSUSE board members post a joint statement about the project's future in light of Novell layoffs, Red Hat signs an interoperability agreement with Microsoft, Debian project announces the appointment of a new Secretary, and NetBSD launches a desktop initiative that should bring more users to the popular cross-platform operating system. Also in the news, we introduce VirtualBSD, a FreeBSD-based desktop environment for VMware and provide a link to an animated video interview about FreeNAS, a BSD system for building network-attached storage devices. Finally, if you are an accomplished distro tester, but worry that you'll run out of new distributions to try, fear not - last week no fewer than eight new Linux distributions were submitted to DistroWatch. These include some really exotic fares, such as moonOS from Cambodia or Kongoni from South Africa.

I remember the first time I saw a Toshiba Libretto way back in 1999 or so. It was small and easy to lug around, and perfect for checking email and writing notes while on the road. But it cost nearly as much as a full-size laptop, so even though it filled an important niche, it was hard to overlook that for a little more money you could get a lot more computer.

The Linux Foundation (LF), the nonprofit organization dedicated to accelerating the growth of Linux, today announced that MIPS Technologies (NASDAQ: MIPS) has become a member of the Foundation. MIPS Technologies is a leading provider of industry-standard architectures, processors and analog IP for digital consumer, home networking, wireless, communications and business applications.

An Indian Web site has confirmed ASUS is developing a version of its Eee PC Netbook to run Google’s Android software. When I tested Asus’ Netbooks last year for my Linux Laptop series I found a lot of uncertainty within the company about distros. The company has not advertised which distro it favors, and the two units that arrived here ran different ones.

The conversation between them was personal. He was mentioning to Scott that before being laid off, he had been shopping for a laptop for his little girl. She's only 11 so it wouldn't have been anything fancy, just something that she could use for school and to help her learn how to do graphic art. She wants to learn how to do it on the computer. He was pretty bummed that he wasn't going to be able to do it for her. Fate. Sometimes I think She is mistaken for just being in tune to what is going on around you.

Mark Shuttleworth recently outlined development goals for Ubuntu 9.10 ( ”Karmic Koala”) set to be released in October 2009 as the successor to Ubuntu 9.04 (”Jaunty Jackalope”). The innovations planned for the Ubuntu 9.10 desktop look nice enough. But is this the time to be placing looks before function? Here's some analysis from WorksWithU.

The fourth extended file system, or ext4, is the next generation of journaling file systems, retaining backward compatibility with the previous file system, ext3. Although ext4 is not currently the standard, it will be the next default file system for most Linux® distributions. Get to know ext4, and discover why it will be your new favorite file system.

Remember last month when DaniWeb reported how some 1400 jobs were to be lost at Microsoft? These losses forming the first part of a plan to trim costs which would see a total of 5000 Microsofties facing the axe. Well now, in the most bizarre of twists, it seems that the axe is not good enough and some of those laid off workers are feeling the twist of the Microsoft knife as well.