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What do you do when you need to use Windows programs in GNU/Linux? You could look for free software alternatives to those programs, but in some cases -- such as with Macromedia's proprietary Flash MX Web development environment -- there is no suitable replacement in GNU/Linux. That's where CrossOver Office by CodeWeavers comes in; using this software you can run a number of Windows programs in GNU/Linux without any loss in performance or stability. Too bad it's under a restrictive proprietary license.

In another blow to Microsoft, a government agency in New South Wales, Australia, signs a deal with Sun to migrate 1,500 users to the company's StarOffice productivity suite and Messaging products.

An Internet portal devoted to providing free graphic resources has launched a program that pays developers for their software contributions. FlamingText says they use The Gimp as a back-end to create animated logos over the web. The site invites visitors to "create cool, custom images for free, to use on your website, or in your e-mail."

Place too much luggage on a plane and it won't fly. File too many people into an elevator and it might not go up. But if an organization that grants open source software licenses gives out too many approvals, will quality suffer? Open Source Initiative president Eric Raymond said in the future there will be fewer licenses, but one industry analyst believes licenses help organizations optimize their open source goals.

Lycoris has announced the immediate availability of Desktop/LX 1.4, the fifth release of its Linux desktop. The release is based on KDE 3.2.3, Bitstream's btX2 font rendering engine, and other new features.

Mozilla Japan to promote adoption of Mozilla products.

Users can now disable CSS via Use Style > None or a global preference. It is now possible to open a bookmark in a new tab with ctrl+click/middle click. See changelog for more updates.

Mandrake has launched a survey for feedback to be used in improving Mandrakelinux's user interface, Requesting feedback on the ergonomics of the desktop, Mandrakesoft is soliciting user opinions on usability. [Thanks to DesktopLinux.com for the link.]

Many users need access to an office productivity suite, and users of Linux on POWER are no exception. OpenOffice.org provides an open-source product that is multi-platform and contains many of the key applications that are needed by an office user. This article explains how to install and configure OpenOffice.org for multi-user Linux on iSeries and pSeries servers.

Managers of volunteers are often unrecognized authors. They develop policy manuals, job descriptions, newsletters, and training session handouts. Many never think about the ownership of the material they create. When asked, most managers willingly share existing materials with others, which is nice, but not always the most professional practice. Despite clear copyright notices, content is frequently misappropriated. Once something is published, it's hard to keep it under control.

PHP isn't exclusively for Web pages. You can use it like Perl for cron jobs and other tasks.

With more IT users switching on additional Linux servers — and evaluating the use of Linux on the desktop as well — VARs must start planning for a future in which the open-source operating system is a fixture.

UserLinux, an open source push for a freely available enterprise Linux, returns users to the roots of Linux. Project goals include making an enterprise-level version of Linux freely available to businesses. At a recent press conference at LinuxWorld, project leader and open source advocate Bruce Perens updated the status of the project, remarking that UserLinux would ensure that "Linux would be free again."

Local authorities will be the first beneficiaries of a revolutionary partnership between Microsoft and Newham. The council is working with the software company to develop a number of applications that could benefit other councils in the UK – although the creation of an open source model might stun some of Microsoft’s critics.