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THE little known open source relational database management system FirebirdSQL is finally gaining momentum and recognition. This database system sprang forth when Borland's (called Inprise then) InterBase 6 sources were opened to the public in 2000.

Microsoft may have raised eyebrows when it announced its intentions to turn Windows into a "trustworthy" platform, but the open source Linux is set to support trusted computing, among other enhancements, in its next release. Speaking at Linux Australia's annual Linux conferernce, Linux.conf.au, in Canberra last week, Colorado-based Linux kernel developer Jonathan Corbet said predicting kernel development is hard but is "possible".

A small Auckland company is proof that it is unnecessary to stick to Microsoft-based software to run a viable IT services business.

Have you ever wondered how many people are scanning your server looking for weaknesses? One way to find out is to install the Port Scan Attack Detector (psad), is a collection of three lightweight system daemons that alert you to suspicious network activity by analyzing iptables log files.

This introductory article summarizes the benefits of using Open Source software in an educational environment, where budgets are often tight and staffing support is minimal. Using a Linux "thin-client" configuration, the author shows the stark contrast between a Microsoft based lab and a Linux lab.

Guiding a major software operating system is not often a democratic act, even within the open source movement. But Debian GNU/Linux is an exception. Branden Robinson was recently elected by Debian developers as the new Debian Project Leader (DPL) and issued his first report yesterday. In it, he discussed the progress and challenges of the much anticipated next release.

Orion Multisystems, Inc. is shipping the 96-node deskside Cluster Workstation, a personal supercomputer that fits under a desk and the company says is the highest performance general-purpose computing platform that can be plugged into a standard power outlet. The launch follows the introduction last year of Orion's 12-node desktop Cluster Workstation. The company targets high tech market segments, including life sciences, geosciences, engineering, manufacturing, financial analytics, media and entertainment.

A campaign has kicked off to get the source code for some old operating system, named OS/2, levered open. Spods at OS2 World, the "Internet's premier community resource for OS/2" have launched the petition, worried to the high teeth that tales forecasting the demise of the dazzling OS may turn out to be true.

Horst Knorr released a new test version of Knoda. With this release Knoda is the first KDE database frontend reading MS Access databases natively and is getting closer to its goal to be a full replacement for MS Access. Knoda is a database-frontend for KDE. Besides tables and queries Knoda comprises forms and reports, which are scriptable via Python.

The release of Libranet 3.0 continues a tradition that dates back to 1999. Like previous versions, Libranet 3.0 offers one of the easiest approaches to Debian available, providing an easy installation and a wide array of current software. Setup support is available from a small but obliging team, with more general help available from an active discussion forum or an on-line manual written by volunteers. Currently available as a download for $90 for new users and $65 for existing users (with CDs available at the end of May), version 3.0 continues the Libranet tradition of correcting the perceived weaknesses of Debian and making Debian accessible -- but it is not without some flaws.

A new "hack for the dole" scheme will allow unemployed people to meet their mutual obligation requirements by working on open-source software projects. Linux Australia has gained approval for the scheme being launched as part of its CommunityCode.org project to encourage software development. It is trying to attract skilled enthusiasts to work as mentors.

The open-source movement has received another boost with an announcement from the South African Revenue Service that is will migrate its SAP system onto Linux. SARS has awarded the server platform portion of its tender to Novell/SuSE Linux, which will run on Dell hardware in terms of a pre-existing hardware supply contract. The support and maintenance part of the tender has yet to be awarded, says SARS CIO, Ken Jarvis, but this will go to a local Novell partner.

Forthcoming government report to pave way for greater OSS use in UK schools Becta, the Government's lead agency for ICT in education, is set to release a new report which will say that schools could save significant sums by switching to open source software, eGov monitor can report.

In founding Friendster, Chairman Jonathan Abrams sought to create an online network through which friends could connect with friends. When it launched, the service was powered by a Java back end running on Apache Tomcat servers with a MySQL database. That original architecture was soon crushed by the coming load of traffic.

A rift over development procedures has exposed fractures at the highest level of the Linux community and raised questions about the future direction of the open-source operating system.

How one professor designed a class on Linux system administration--and how you can follow the class along on-line.

Security administrators put in considerable time setting up e-mail quarantines and checking on threats that have been cordoned off. But that's too much work, according to senior vice president of Sendmail Inc., John Stormer, and J.F. Sullivan, Sendmail's director of product development. In this FYI interview, Stormer and Sullivan provide an introduction to the aspects of commercial Sendmail that could make the traditionally time-consuming quarantining process much easier for administrators.

School is almost out, and before you know it Duke’s Unix computers will be as well. This summer, the Office of Information Technology’s division of Academic Technology Services will be at work replacing the machines that run with Unix—an operating system commonly used in scientific fields—in labs around campus, including the engineering lab in 106 Teer Library. The current crop of Sun Ultra 10s and Sun Blades will be replaced with new Dell hardware. These new machines will run CentOS 3.3 as supported by Linux@DUKE. CentOS is a distribution of the popular open-source operating system Linux.

Andrew Morton, one of the main developers of the Linux kernel, pointed out some structural problems in the kernel development at Linux.conf.au 2005 in Canberra, Australia. He believes that not enough attention is paid to testing during the development of the kernel. New functions, he claims, are not tested enough because testers do not receive any thanks - much less money - for their time-consuming work. He feels that errors will thus find their way into the kernel.

Beehive is a new Apache project that simplifies Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EE) and Web services programming. This article shows how to get started with Beehive and offers a sneak preview of Pollinate, an Eclipse plug-in that creates Beehive applications.