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In the earliest days of computers, just about everything could be considered free software. Computers were so large, unwieldy and difficult to understand that any reasonably well-written program would be passed around via punch cards or paper tape. Into that free software world Richard Stallman was born. In the 1960s, he programmed IBM System/360 mainframes in PL/I, a procedural language that itself is celebrating its 45th anniversary this year. In the 1970s, Stallman worked at the famous MIT Artificial Intelligence laboratory. Along the way, he saw software developers change their attitudes and move away from openness toward the proprietary. It was this shift in the hacker culture, as he called it, that eventually led him to strike out on his own in 1983.

Although the idea of using an application to manage your personal finances does make a lot of sense, not all of us have the time and patience to learn all the intricacies of tools like GnuCash or Money Manager Ex. In this case, you need Buddi, probably the most easy to use personal finance manager out there.

With 22 months of development now behind them, the Debian team today released Debian Gnu/Linux 5.0, codenamed Lenny. The release supports no less than 12 processor architectures and includes the KDE, Gnome, Xfce, and LXDE desktop environments. It also features compatibility with major standards including the filesystem hierarchy standard (FHS 2.3) and version 3.2 of the Linux Standard Base.

Novell has signed a cooperation agreement with China Standard Software Company (CS2C), the leading Linux firm in China. The two companies will promote the development and adoption of Linux in the country, and combine resources on distribution of technology and services for the Chinese market. "Together, we will drive the acceptance of Linux in the industry," said Qin Yong, CS2C executive vice president in a statement. "We are looking forward to closer cooperation with Novell in the future."

There's a bug in virt-install and virt-manager on Ubuntu 8.10 that does not let you run Windows XP as a guest under KVM. During the Windows installation, the guest needs to be rebooted, and then you get the following error, and Windows XP refuses to boot: "A disk read error occured. Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to restart". This guide shows how you can solve the problem and install Windows XP as a KVM guest on Ubuntu 8.10.

Green computing frequently makes the news either for its cost-saving potential to businesses, or as a way for eco-conscious consumers to reduce their environmental footprint. But UK-based Aleutia, Ltd takes a different approach, using green to produce ultra-low-power-consumption Linux PCs for classrooms and businesses in developing countries. The company's flagship product is the E2, a compact desktop system that consumes just 8 watts.

It has already become one of the most talked about, and most widespread, worms of recent years. But how do you go about catching the feckers behind Conficker? Conficker is that most typical of tech troublemakers: it relies upon the laziness and stupidity of Windows users. By not bothering to install the MS08-067 patch from last October, they left themselves exposed to infection.

Why does nearly every modern computer – whether it runs OS X, Vista or Linux – take considerably longer to boot than an ancient Amiga? With a hard drive, an Amiga could go from power socket to Workbench in around five seconds. With a modern multicore processor and a 12-month-old installation of Windows, you're lucky if your desktop is responsive before the kettle boils. Even a modern distribution of Linux can take a while. It seems like boot speed is the inverse of Moore's Law.

If you didn’t notice yet, I enjoy doing a lot of “thinking about the past.” Last weekend I walked into a Target and while browsing through their electronics section, I noticed that they were selling a version of the ASUS Eee PC 900. Priced at approximately $250 and coming with a version of Xandros Linux. For well over a year I have been reading of these new sub-notebooks coming pre-installed with GNU/Linux but I had never seen one in person. This notebook is probably the smallest I had seen (8.9 inch). I immediately wanted one but did not get it…yet.

A string is a fundamental part of programs all around us. Data exchange in many forms happens in strings (e.g. user input, command line arguments, web forms, text protocols and what not.) But most programs written in C are plagued by security issues because of their usage of unsafe functions.

Some of the advantages of running Linux on a sub-notebook are a smaller memory footprint, better security and tons of free applications right out of the box. So here are some Linux distributions I recommend you try out, because they are modified to work well with small screens and modest hardware.

All of the recordings from the X.Org meetings that took place during FOSDEM 2009 are now available on Phoronix. There were nine topics in total from RandR 1.3 to shader compiler optimization strategies. Novell's Matthias Hopf had explained RandR 1.3 with all of the work involved in this update to the Resize and Rotate extension for the X Server that now has panning support and other new-found capabilities. An RandR 1.3 demonstration was also done by Keith Packard. Later on, Matthias had provided a 3D understanding of the ATI R600/700 series.

While Puppy 4.1.2. runs quite well at first blush, I need to look closer at why I was so unsuccessful at getting Flash and Java to work. It should be easier than this.

If imitation really is the sincerest form of flattery, Apple must have a warm fuzzy feeling as Microsoft attempts to clone it's business strategy. Microsoft has announced plans to define locations and time frames for the opening of the first Microsoft Stores. Retail shops, Microsoft branded, Apple clones. Of course, it is highly unlikely they will be called Microsoft Stores, although your best guesses are welcome.

I have an announcement. The error of Microsoft’s ways is finally catching up and will cause the once-invincible juggernaut to kneel before that which is Linux. How is this? Microsoft started a tiny snowball when it released Windows Me. That snowball did nothing but gain momentum. There have been ups and downs along the way (XP being an up, for sure). But for the most part, the court of public opinion has steady lost faith in what once was considered the heart of personal computing.

3 Holiday's down; only a whole lot left to go ;)

When I think of SitePoint, I think about books on topics such as HTML, CSS, and various programming languages. I also reviewed a SitePoint book on project management, so I know they can step outside of their "sphere". On the other hand, what does a book on freelancing have to do with the technical subjects normally put out by this publisher?

Lightweight containers, otherwise known as Virtual Private Servers (VPS) or Jails, are often thought of as a security tools designed to confine untrusted applications or users; but as presently constructed, these containers do not provide adequate security guarantees. By strengthening these containers using SELinux or Smack policy, a much more secure container can be implemented in Linux®. This article shows you how to create a more secure Linux-Security-Modules-protected container. Both the SELinux and Smack policy are considered works in progress, to be improved upon with help from their respective communities.

During the X.Org meetings at FOSDEM, Stephane Marchesin had discussed what he and other open-source developers are doing by using a code compiler (LLVM) and interweaving it with the Gallium3D driver architecture. By strapping the Low-Level Virtual Machine to Gallium3D, developers are hoping they can use the power of this relatively new compiler infrastructure to provide advanced GPU shader optimizations. This is not exactly an easy task, but it is believed it can be accomplished with beneficial results and they are making progress.

The main features of the include native TLS and SQL support, support for the new syslog protocol and message-format standard developed by IETF, and the ability to segment and rewrite log messages.