Showing all newswire headlines

NEW YORK (AP) -- Budget constraints are forcing some FBI agents to operate without e-mail accounts.

Sony Online Entertainment is to replace some Oracle databases with software from EnterpriseDB in a vote of confidence for the open-source company.

The growth of free, open-source software presents developing countries with an opportunity to escape from technological dependence, United Nations University experts say. They say Linux represent a phenomenon changing in the information technologies world.

Early on, the scalability of the Linux operating system--or more precisely, the lack thereof--was a hindrance to the adoption of Linux as a strategic platform for enterprise-class applications that needed more than one or two processors. But over the years, the scalability of Linux has been stretched such that it can span much of the very scalable hardware to which it has been ported. But, there's always room for more, and that is why Red Hat last week put out an update to its Enterprise Linux 4 to extend SMP scalability even further.

A new tutorial that explains how to make GIF animations for the Web using the GIMP graphics application has been published on the GIMP wiki. The tutorial discusses how GIF animations are treated by GIMP, and then details how the GIMP Animation Package takes animation to the next level.

I don't make these things up. I just read the news, in this case a Reuters article about Bill Gates expressing disdain for $100 stripped-down, crank-powered laptops running Linux while pushing a Microsoft-sponsored "ultra-mobile computer" expected to cost between $599 and $999. While I -- like many others -- have doubts that putting $100 ultra-basic laptops in poor children's hands will solve the world's problems, I resent Gates's attitude. I'd like one of the "$100 machines" myself, even if it costs me $200 or $300.

As governments around the world increasingly turn on to open source software, the West Australian government has no choice but to play a leadership role if it doesn't want to be left behind.

A proprietary RTOS capable of running Linux binaries has been certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as a re-usable software component (RSC). LynuxWorks says LynxOS-178's RSC acceptance will enable greater software reuse among integrators and developers of safety-critical aerospace and defense components.

Nicholas Negroponte has become a household word in China today even though it is quite difficult for Chinese to remember and pronounce his name. This is not only because of his famous investment on Sohu.com but also because of his controversial best seller Being Digital and his unconventional and legendary life.

Professional Mortgage Partners in Downers Grove, Illinois, runs a technology consulting side business helping realtors set up office portals and inexpensively access the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) database through the use of open source software.

My question in a nut shell then is this: if those guys can do a podcast of Groklaw automatically, why can't the same mechanism be used to podcast anything in text a blind person wanted read, preferably in Ogg? Of course, a person on his own computer doesn't need a podcast, only the file.

[Got an account on Groklaw? Know something about screen readers? Accessibility is an urgent need.]

Linus Torvalds announced the release of the 2.6.16 Linux kernel. He noted, "not a lot of changes since -rc6, but there's various random one-liners here and there (a number of Coverity bugs found, for example), and there are small MIPS and PowerPC updates." You can download the latest kernel from your nearest Linux Kernel Archivemirror [story], and browse through all the changes using the 2.6 kernel'sgitweb interface.

The Linux Link is proud to present the first episode of a new podcast: LaGER (GNU/Linux and Games/Entertainment Radio). LaGER aims to explore the fun side of GNU/Linux focusing on FOSS and commercial game offerings along with other software that helps make GNU/Linux entertaining.

Open source applications have been pushing their way into the enterprise for years. A few retail chains, such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. sells computers with pre-installed GNU/Linux applications.

" I thought you'd be interested in knowing that the Wallace v. FSF case has been dismissed, with Mr. Wallace ordered to pay the Free Software Foundation's costs. Mr. Wallace's application to file a fourth Amended Complaint was denied and the Free Software Foundation's Motion to Dismiss was granted."

Easy to use laptop networking looking likely in next Ubuntu release

The Real-time Linux Workshop is soliciting papers for its eighth annual conference, set for October 12-15 in Lanzhou, China. Papers should present original work on general topics related to real-time Linux research, experiments, and case studies, as well as integrating Linux with other RTOSes (real-time operating systems), according to organizer Nicholaus McGuire.

Back in October, when the Windows-only Xara company tooted their plans to port its vector graphics flagship product, Xara Xtreme to Linux, I didn't quite believe them. Now I stand corrected.

It looks like both Fedora and SuSE end up using a kernel that is pretty close to this 2.6.16 release, so let's all hope it's good. Give it a good testing, please,

Linus

Dear Nick: You keep talking about Linux, but what is it? Can I run my regular programs on it? How much does it cost? What's the big deal anyway?

Answer: Linux is an operating system, like Windows is an operating system. Both let you run applications, interact with hardware such as cameras and microphones, and use disk drives. They both have windows, mouse cursors, right-click menus, on-screen clocks, utilities, cool toys ... pretty much everything you could expect.