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Since 1998 I have used Linux mainly for checking email through Pine, running neural network software, and converting JPEG files to EPS in the GIMP. This year I bought a refurbished laptop (IBM ThinkPad A22m, 1 GHz, 256MB RAM, 30GB HD) on eBay that came without a pre-installed OS. I couldn't stand the thought of paying more for the OS and office suite than the hardware, so while my laptop was being prepared for shipping I started searching for options. I was surprised by the number of choices available. Since I'm writing a thesis for my graduate degree, I needed an OS that would let me install LaTeX and a nice front end. I instantly fell for SimplyMEPIS because of the wonderful reviews and its big community of helpful users.

"I really think 2006 is going to be the year of the Linux desktop," Russell Nelson, vice president of the Open Source Initiative predicted. "That's when people are going to start taking it seriously. You may not see too many installs," he continued, "but you're going to start to see people thinking about it."

A start-up called iRadeon Group Inc. is offering a new service that integrates three different open source applications through a dashboard-type interface for PC users. It's a software delivery model that could prove attractive to cost-conscious small businesses.

Personal growth occurs in many ways. Pushing yourself into a new endeavor is one of the most constructive ways to achieve such growth. So, why don't we see more of it? It's often easier to stay with what's comfortable. When you step out on the skinny branches, you put yourself at-risk and that's uncomfortable. Those who can handle the discomfort will find the experience rewarding.

Two South Korean govrnmental organizations, Korea Post and the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation (NACF) will migrate their banking activities to Linux, ending the complete dominance of Windows and IE in this sector.

Novell has a new CTO, a position that has gone unfilled for a while. In this article, Jacqueline Emigh finds out about Dr. Jeffery Jaffe and reports on what he is bringing to Novell--and what he thinks Novell will soon be bringing to the world.

In continuation of our previous piece entitled ATI AYiR 2005 (A Year in Review), where we looked at ATI's features implemented this year into their Linux drivers as well as thoroughly examining the frame-rate performance, today we have turned the tables yet again and are taking another look at NVIDIA's gains this year. In addition, due to popular request, and keeping with the standards set by the previous ATI article, we will also be comparing our results against that of the latest NVIDIA ForceWare Windows display drivers.

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This article provides an overview of Free and open source software (FOSS) concepts for both enterprise software clients and vendors that would like to be let in on the buzz resonating from the FOSS-related change in the software industry. I will address FOSS concepts in two parts. The first concerns the FOSS origin and rapid evolution as manifested in global customer demand trends. The second reviews reasons that enterprise clients and government organizations generate this demand as well as why it should push software providers to continue to meet it.

"It's time for Linux to "bust out." Many share the opinion that it's Now Or Never for Linux. Let me tell you why Now is not the time.

A new Trojan horse program was infecting PCs on Wednesday, exploiting a hole in Windows systems to sneak onto computers, then dropping adware or spyware or turning them into zombies, according to several Internet security companies.

The Trojan, dubbed Exploit-WMF (Windows Meta File), was rated a category 2 level risk, meaning it had the potential to continue to spread, said Dave Cole, director of security response at Symantec.

Michael Larabel writes "We at Phoronix have finished up another batch of Linux-powered hardware articles.

I decided to put up a decent site using a blogging-oriented CMS: my own instance of a CMS on one of my Linux servers. I know it's not everyone's idea of a fun way to spend the break between Christmas and New Year's, but hey, it works for me.

There's nothing like a good paradigm shift to get you out of bed in the morning, don't you think? The forces are massing for some big changes in IT industry dynamics. We need this. The tech landscape has been pretty dry these last few years. It won't be a year of epic events, but change that is already under way will accelerate. Here are my annual 10 predictions of what to look for in the next year:

We all owe Peter Quinn a vote of thanks. And some peace and quiet.

Column The contract metaphor is an effective way of approaching API design, says Kevlin Henney

In the latest in a series of moves aimed at getting Korean government institutions to move away from their reliance on Windows and Unix and adopt open source software, two state-owned financial institutions planned to launch the country's first Linux-based Internet banking services in December.

How would you like a PSP that would support not only games, pictures, music and video but also e-books and the ability to snag free emulators including MAME for most older gaming systems on the open source Linux OS? Oh yeah, all of the above for only $179?

  The last few years, there's been a lot of talk about this new Windows XP thing (to quote Bono at a 1984 concert: very, very too much talk!). What's all the buzz about, and how can you turn Windows XP to your advantage, if this is possible at all? Is MS Windows really that hard to install and manage, or is that story just the usual Red-Hat FUD? Your editor, though new to the whole Windows-movement, will try to figure this out for you today!

The entertainment industry has put itself on the fast-track to destruction, using well-proven tactics as explained in Preventing DVD Playback on Linux Like Prohibition in the 1920's. Are their heavy-handed tactics to lock up and control everything we touch signs of plain old human stubborness? Stupidity? Insanity? A bit of each? How else do you explain their inexplicable actions?

A year ago, Linux seemed poised to take on the living room, in the form of home media center PCs and systems. But last year's product announcements have not materialized into this year's Linux-based consumer systems.