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While it may not produce as bloody a match as the once-epic struggle between Microsoft and Sun did, JBoss Inc. and Gluecode Software Inc. are squaring off for a tussle over which of their open-source alternatives is more superior to proprietary J2EE-based middleware from IBM, BEA Systems Inc. and other vendors.

Five years ago, I.B.M. established a Chinese software development lab, which today has 500 engineers working on Linux projects alone. (I.B.M. is the leading corporate supporter of Linux, a free operating system that is an alternative to Microsoft Windows.) Warning: this is a business article looking at this corporation's global goals and methods, where Linux plays a decidedly subsidiary role!

Analysts from the Yankee Group said that corporations using Linux in their IT environment should review the terms and conditions of each of their individual licensing contracts with legal counsel to determine if they have adequate indemnification coverage. In the absence of indemnification or specific indemnification provisions, corporations could be the target of an intellectual property lawsuit - forcing them to use their own money and resources for their defense.

Firefox and Thunderbird represent that I call "transitional applications", Linux programs that run on other operating systems (eg: Windows) thereby offering an equivalent for users who haven't yet switched to Linux. Let's face it, change is difficult for people. As with any dangerous addiction, quitting cold turkey isn't easy which is why there are products like nicotine gum and the patch -- these are a smoker's transitional applications. So it is with moving from Windows desktops to Linux desktops. Quite honestly, a move to Linux isn't nearly as difficult as some would have you believe and most people will find themselves at home very quickly, but sometimes it helps to pave the way by introducing some Linux familiarity to the Windows desktop . . . and saving yourself a small fortune in the process.

Last week, Part 1 covered the basic configuration for a Debian FAI (Fully Automatic Installation) server. Today we'll configure the client installations--network server settings, what software is going to be installed, and the client boot methods. FAI supports network booting, which is fast and easy when it works. FAI also supports booting the clients from FAI boot diskettes.

Novell is lighting a fire under its desktop plans to face off against Microsoft's next generation of Windows in 2006. According to documents viewed by CRN, Novell plans to ship version 10 of its Novell Linux Desktop during the first half of 2006. The company plans another upgrade in 2007.

The EU Council is accused of 'last-minute manoeuvring' as it considers passing the EU software patent directive within an environment or fishery meeting.

A row has broken out in the Netherlands over a government proposal to install Microsoft software on 245,000 desktop computers.

Technical errors and already out-of-date advice mar the usefulness of this guide to wireless protocols.

Setting up an electronic greeting card site for your own purposes is easier than you think. There are at least two respectable well-maintained open-source-licensed applications that can help you get your holiday e-cards to friends, family, co-workers, or customers this season. Sendcard and Penguin Greetings can give you the bragging rights to say you run your own e-card service.

Perhaps I was over-zealous in my praise of Richard Stallman and the Free Software Foundation (FSF) in Part One of this article, “Free as in Freedom: GNU/Linux.” That would be unfair to many major corporations and the state of the world they’ve created. Lots of people, especially “successful” Americans, like the world just the way it is. Oh well. It was a history of “GNU beginnings,” the start of a movement that, unlike anything we’ve thus far seen, said “No!” to the corporate-defined order and created an alternative to corporate rule by “copyright,” and an operating system that challenged the way certain corporate monopolies have defined our desktops and how we use them (or go directly to jail).

Three versions of open source Solaris 10 are in the works, as Sun Microsystems Inc prepares to convert its entire middleware portfolio to a pay-per-use, open source stack.

For the past couple of weeks in the "NetWare Tips" newsletter, I've been talking about the soon-to-be-available (or maybe not) NetWare client for Linux. This is something that fans of NetWare and Linux have been kvetching about for at least the past half-dozen years.

MySQL announced the general availability of a set of graphical query and administration tools for its popular MySQL open source database. MySQL Query Browser, a toolset for creating and debugging MySQL database queries in a graphical environment, gives users an easy way to access and analyze information stored within MySQL database servers.

Sun Microsystems says there is growing interest among governments around the world in deploying open source software, particularly in Europe where the European Union has legislated that file formats must be open and interoperable.

If you ask Scot Melland, it's a good time to be a Linux professional. IT jobs across the board are picking up, but Melland, the CEO of Internet career site Dice, says Linux knowledge is a particularly hot commodity. Job postings on Dice for Linux professionals are multiplying at a much faster rate than any other skill set.

An updated Linux vs Windows TCO study has found that a 250-seat company can end up saving 36 percent if it were to equip its users with the open source operating system and applications that run on it.

The latest major release of Mandrakelinux, 10.1 Official, is now available for public download! Empower yourself with all the new and stable 10.1 features.

Mandrakelinux 10.1 comes with a great selection of software which we have covered at OSDir in our wide selection of screenshots of this distribution. Our screeshots include Installation, Desktop, Taskbars, Menus, and Configuration on the default KDE. We've also grabbed some shots of the GNOME, WindowMaker, and IceWM desktops for your viewing pleasure.

Sun's open-source license proposal for Open Solaris will surely be unpopular.

What if you need to run your legacy Windows application on a Linux box, a Mac, or a Solaris-based workstation? To make the equation even more interesting throw in a few requirements -- add transferring old legacy accounting data over the network, or using the backed-up data from a CD-ROM. And yes, you want to keep the costs to a minimum. An open source project called Bochs may be your best option.