1. Linux Mint, the Linux distribution that’s based on Canonical’s Ubuntu but free of all the things I dislike about Ubuntu. Thanks to Mint, which I adopted as my distribution of choice last winter, I can run a mainstream open source operating system without worrying about issues like Ubuntu’s Amazon.com search feature or Unity.
2. The OpenStack Foundation, which was established in September to promote open source technology in the cloud. The work of this consortium may reflect the business interests of the open source companies that comprise its most important backers, but it will also help to ensure that open standards prevail as cloud computing continues to develop. That’s good for all of us affected by the cloud — which, these days, means just about everybody.