Linux News for Jan 29, 2009

• NVIDIA CEO: Atom Is Going to Hurt Software Industry (Jan 29, 2009, 23:33)
  OSNews: "Currently, NVIDIA is really missing out on the netbook market, which is dominated by all-Intel platform designs. NVIDIA has finally woken up to this reality, and the outspoken cofounder, president, and CEO of NVIDIA, Jen-Hsun Huang, has launched an all-out campaign to promote his company's Ion platform - and he isn't shy of flinging some poo to Intel and netbooks in general."


• Linux also affected by hole in Ralink's Wi-fi driver (Jan 29, 2009, 23:03)
  Heise Online: "The flaw discovered in Ralink's Wi-fi drivers for Windows last weekend also affects the Linux drivers -- as already suspected."


• Is Linux at the Precipice or at the Crossroads? (Jan 29, 2009, 22:33)
  Ken Hess's Linux Blog: "Those of you who follow the state of Linux may realize that Linux is now at the precipice or "jumping off place" as an operating system. Linux, to others, is viewed as being at the crossroads for success. What's the difference, for Linux, in teetering at the precipice and standing at the crossroads?"


• Debian Founder Murdock Now Sun's Cloud Strategist (Jan 29, 2009, 22:03)
  Linux Magazine: "Debian Linux founder and former OpenSolaris chief Ian Murdock is taking over the role of chief strategist for cloud computing at Sun Microsystems."


• Acer plans Linux, SSD version of 10-inch netbook (Jan 29, 2009, 21:33)
  ZDNet: "Acer has confirmed it plans to release a Linux version of its 10-inch Aspire One netbook, even though its initial announcement of the upcoming machine said it would be Windows XP-only."


• Google lets users search for Internet blockers (Jan 29, 2009, 21:03)
  WebTechGeek: "Google Inc on Wednesday unveiled a plan aimed at eventually letting computer users determine whether providers like Comcast Corp are inappropriately blocking or slowing their work online."


• Apache Basics, Visited (Jan 29, 2009, 20:33)
  Webreference: "The Apache Web server is a highly specialized software application used to serve billions of Web pages daily. The Apache Web server is the single most used Web server on the Internet today."


• How to Use BitTorrent in Linux (Jan 29, 2009, 20:03)
  Tech Source From Bohol: "Though file sharing is extremely widespread nowadays, it amazes me that lot of people still don't know how to use a BitTorrent client or perhaps don't know what to do with a '.torrent' file...Because of this, I decided to make a quick and easy tutorial on how to start downloading files via BitTorrent in Linux."


• The Net Net of Netbooks (Jan 29, 2009, 19:33)
  Open Enterprise: "The sample size is small (1,545) and the report short, but it contains some suggestive statistical nuggets. For example:
  Tight economy drives popularity for low-cost netbooks. The average price of the top 10 netbooks on PriceGrabber.com is $379"


• Moblin2 first impressions -- wow, does it boot fast! (Jan 29, 2009, 19:03)
  Desktop Linux: "A lot of notebooks and even netbooks these days run Windows, but also offer a minimalist Linux environment that boots in seconds. Now, with the Intel-sponsored Moblin project's alpha release of Moblin 2 Monday, it looks like insanely fast boots will become a standard feature of full-featured Linux desktops, too."


• KDE 4.2: Usability Makes a Comeback (Jan 29, 2009, 18:33)
  Datamation: "Linus Torvalds may have switched too soon from the KDE 4 desktop because of usability problems. Less than a week after he made his off-hand comments, KDE 4.2 has been released, adding many of the customization settings that Torvalds and others complained were lacking in the KDE 4 series."


• Antitrust: How Microsoft Schemed to Derail Dell GNU/Linux (Jan 29, 2009, 18:03)
  Boycott Novell: "As we've already shown, Microsoft's strategy has less to do with self improvement & development but more to do with targeted sabotage against attempts of competitors to... well, just to compete"


• Phenom II Breaks 6.5GHz, Enables New 3DMark Record (Jan 29, 2009, 17:33)
  Softpedia: "Soon after their official release at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, the processors were used in yet another demonstration, where one of AMD's Phenom II products was pushed to record clock levels and was used to break the Futuremark 3DMark05 record."


• Linux tablet emerges from blogosphere (Jan 29, 2009, 17:03)
  The Linux Newb: "Technology blog site TechCrunch has prototyped a WiFi-enabled tablet PC device that runs Linux. The "Crunchpad" is equipped with a Via Nano processor, 1GB RAM, 4GB flash, and a 12-inch, 1024x768 touchscreen, and appears to be aimed at Web-curious couch potatoes"


• Where are the Designed for Linux stickers? (Jan 29, 2009, 16:33)
  Toolbox for IT: "Lets face it, when it comes to marketing, microsoft is the best. They are the only company that I know of which has successfully marketed a product that would not pass the lowest quality controls of any other products standards."


• Bind Security: Transaction Signatures (TSIG) Configuration (Jan 29, 2009, 16:03)
  nixCraft: "How do I configure BIND9 name serves with TSIG (Transaction SIGnature) mechanism to secure server-to-server communication? How do I use secret key transaction authentication for DNS (bind nameservers)?"


• Migrating Away From Windows: It All Starts With Linux (Jan 29, 2009, 15:52)
  Whenever a person or business is thinking of migrating away from Microsoft Windows to Linux, or to FreeBSD, OpenSolaris, or some other FOSS operating system, the two most important considerations are:

  1. Take the long view. The idea is to build a sustainable, future-proof computing infrastructure.
  

  2. It all starts with the operating system. Sure, there are a lot of wonderful FOSS applications that run on Windows, such as OpenOffice, Firefox, Audacity, Pidgin, Thunderbird, Gimp, and many more. But that doesn't address the fundamental flaws of the Windows OS; it's like using more and better dung polish.



• CrunchBang is a Speedy, Dark-Themed Linux Desktop (Jan 29, 2009, 15:33)
  Lifehacker: "CrunchBang, an Ubuntu-based Linux distribution that sports a snappy, low-drag interface and is perfect for thumb drives, live CDs, or speed-obsessed Linux fans."


• Location-aware software comes to the Linux platform (Jan 29, 2009, 15:03)
  "Several powerful open source software frameworks aim to bring mapping and geolocation capabilities to the Linux platform. Ars takes a look at this emerging technology and how it is being used in several popular desktop applications."


• How To Choose The Best Linux For Your Business (Jan 29, 2009, 14:33)
  bMighty: "For IT decision makers in small and midsize businesses, Linux is all about choice. But the dizzying array of different distros, service, and support options can make the choice a challenge. This guide to understanding the differences will help you pick the distro your business needs."


• Eyeon Fusion for Linux makes its mark on several films (Jan 29, 2009, 14:03)
  Broadcast Engineering: "Two box office successes, "Twilight" and "Changeling" as well as "The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus," which is scheduled for a March release, relied on eyeon Fusion on Linux to provide a seamless workflow for facilities that have invested in the platform for render farms and other applications."


• Telstra says Android platform not robust (Jan 29, 2009, 13:33)
  ZDNet: "Google's Android mobile platform wasn't robust, Telstra chief executive Sol Trujillo said in an interview published yesterday, where he also disclosed he owns an Apple iPhone, among other handsets."


• Initial ext3 vs ext4 Results (Jan 29, 2009, 13:03)
  gmr on pgsql: "We've started to do some internal benchmarking of ext3 vs ext4 at myYearbook.com to see if what we've seen and heard about ext4 was really true."


• How Vista's total failure hurt Linux (Jan 29, 2009, 12:03)
  Cyber Cynic: "Once I got a good look at Vista, I knew desktop Linux was in for good times. Vista was, and still is, a disaster of an operating system. I was right too. When netbooks started coming out, it was Linux, not Vista, that ruled."


• A Primer to AGI: Asterisk Gateway Interface (Jan 29, 2009, 10:33)
  Packt: "Asterisk AGI enables an IVR developer to develop IVR structures that are sometimes, bordering on the absurd, as applications tend to become more and more complex by using AGI. However, there are some scenarios where common dialplan practices are no longer applicable, and the use of an external logic is a must. Enter AGI!"


• GNU/Linux ALREADY Kicks Windows to the Curb (Jan 29, 2009, 09:03)
  Boycott Novell: "Forty percent of servers run Windows, 60 percent run Linux..."
  --Steve Ballmer (September 2008)"


• Embed Lua for scriptable apps (Jan 29, 2009, 07:33)
  IBM Developerworks: "The Lua programming language is a small scripting language specifically designed to be embedded in other programs. Lua's C API allows exceptionally clean and simple code both to call Lua from C, and to call C from Lua. This allows developers who want a convenient runtime scripting language to easily implement the basic API elements needed by the scripting language, then use Lua code from their applications."


• 5 Things Mark Shuttleworth Has Learned about Organizational Change (Jan 29, 2009, 06:03)
  CIO: "Mark Shuttleworth is not your average IT manager. A few weeks ago, he posted a question on an Ubuntu list. Not an order. Not a policy decision. A question:"


• Beginner Linux articles posted (Jan 29, 2009, 04:33)
  Desktop Linux: "A relatively new website devoted to laptops has posted several articles that may interest beginning Linux desktop users. One offers advice on identifying malicious script commands, while another offers advice on installing software packaged in various different formats (deb, rpm, tar.gz, etc)."


• Sun Slows Losses Thanks to Strong Storage Sales (Jan 29, 2009, 03:03)
  Enterprise Storage Forum: "Sun Microsystems fared better than expected in the sharp fourth-quarter economic slowdown, cutting its cash burn by more than half as its open storage efforts continued to gain traction"


• Is KDE 4.2 the Answer to the Linux Desktop? (Jan 29, 2009, 01:33)
  InternetNews: "Is the Linux desktop ready for mainstream users? The developers behind the latest KDE Linux desktop release would probably say yes, that it lives up to the promise of the first KDE 4.0 release a year ago."


• V.i. Labs Announces CodeArmor Intelligence Support for Linux Platforms (Jan 29, 2009, 00:33)
  V.i. Laboratories press release: "Software Vendors can now Gather Piracy Intelligence and Recover Lost Revenue for Applications Developed in both Linux and Windows Environments."


• Set Up A Linux PlayStation 3 Media Server (CentOS 5.2) (Jan 29, 2009, 00:03)
  HowtoForge: "Although several other open source media servers exist, I chose to use Fuppes due to its ease of use as well as built in support for transcoding. By following this howto you will be able to create a server that will allow you to play digital media stored on the server via a DLNA capable device such as the Sony PS3, Nokia N95, etc."