Top 5 iPod Alternatives for Linux Users Learning Ubuntu: "Why support a company that doesn't support what you use?
The iPod is a great MP3 player, but there are several other MP3 players which are better then the iPod, and support all of the major operating systems as well." (Nov 15, 2009)
Linux Today Features
Linux Today Sticky Page On this page we'll maintain links to important articles and documents that pertain to Free Software, Linux, and the tech industry. Please submit your suggestions to editors@linuxtoday.com. Thank you! (Jun 15, 2009)
Small Features
Editor's Note: Cloud is Just Another Word for "Sucker"
We might warn about privacy, security, and reliability problems in cloud computing, but it's coming and we can't stop it. So do we join the cloud party? Heck no. Nov 14, 2009
Kernel Log: Coming in 2.6.32 (Part 3) - Storage (Nov 20, 2009, 23:03 UTC) (71 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) Kernel Log: "The kernel development team have enhanced various aspects of Btrfs, one effect of which is to significantly improve the experimental file system's write performance."
Keeping score in test-driven development with Python, PyLint, unittest, doctest, (Nov 20, 2009, 20:33 UTC) (343 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) Free Software Magazine: "Programming is more fun when you keep score. The extreme programming (XP) development model popularized the idea of test-driven development (TDD) with professional programmers in mind. But TDD turns out to be even more useful for lone amateur programmers, because it provides much needed motivation in the form of more visible rewards for your work."
Heard at the Ubuntu Developer Summit: Goodbye GIMP, hello ... nothing (Nov 20, 2009, 17:33 UTC) (1340 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) Click: "The OMG!Ubuntu blog reports on the decision, however preliminary, at the Ubuntu Developer Summit in Dallas to remove the GIMP image editor from the 10.04 Lucid LTS release of the wildly popular Linux distribution."
Installing Google's Go Language on Ubuntu (Nov 20, 2009, 16:33 UTC) (958 reads)
(1 talkbacks)
(feedback) Experimenting with GNU/Linux: "GO language promoted by google is a new system programming language said to be expressive, concurrent, garbage-collected. The language is still very young and there is no ready made package available for ubuntu. You can install it and try out the features from the version control repository of go."
A tiny cloud in Android (Nov 20, 2009, 16:03 UTC) (763 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) IBM Developerworks: "Cloud computing minimally requires two components: the client software that runs on the portable device and the server software that normally runs on a network server. Put a tiny cloud in your Android handset and experience the usefulness of a local Web server."
10 Years of SourceForge.net (Nov 20, 2009, 13:33 UTC) (753 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) OStatic: "Most people think of SourceForge.net these days as another huge web site with lots of ads, but very few understand its humble beginnings or how challenging it was to even launch the darn thing without the powers-that-be at VA killing it off in a fit of well-intentioned hari kiri."
EVO Game Console Goes Live (Nov 20, 2009, 09:03 UTC) (1133 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) Envizions press release: EVO Open Source Game Console Goes Live: Game On
Nov. 20 streaming event: Derrick Samuels debuts the final version of EVO
Cooperative Bug Isolation for Fedora 12 (Nov 20, 2009, 07:33 UTC) (786 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) LWN.net: "We distribute specially modified
versions of popular open source software packages. These special
versions monitor their own behavior while they run, and report back how
they work (or how they fail to work) in the hands of real users like
you."
Linux Bug #1: Bad Documentation (part 2) (Nov 20, 2009, 03:03 UTC) (1058 reads)
(1 talkbacks)
(feedback) LinuxPlanet: "In Part 1 I talked about the messy state of Linux documentation, and how telling users to rely on Google is not documentation. Good documentation is equally important as good code. Today we look at the different types of documentation, from man pages to glossy books."
Ubuntu's Canonical and Google partner to create Chrome (Nov 19, 2009, 23:47 UTC) (2669 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) Cyber Cynic: "Some people may see Google's Chrome operating system as competing with existing Linux desktop distributions. Canonical, the company behind popular Linux distribution Ubuntu, isn't one of them. They're working with Google to make Chrome."
Liveblog: Google Chrome operating system arrives (Nov 19, 2009, 23:33 UTC) (2474 reads)
(1 talkbacks)
(feedback) Computerworld: "Today, November 19th, we're finally going to get a good look at Google's Chrome desktop operating system. Join me as I give a live overview."
What Does a User Cost? (Nov 19, 2009, 23:03 UTC) (825 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) OStatic: "Godin writes today about embracing the "lifetime value" of a customer. Open source projects may not have customers, but it pays to think about the lifetime value of users as well."
Freeing disk space with ">" (Nov 19, 2009, 18:03 UTC) (3479 reads)
(2 talkbacks)
(feedback) APLawrence: "I wrote this up after a forum discussion in which several posters didn't really understand why ">" can free disk space when "rm" cannot."
SECURITY: Fedora 12 lets unprivileged users install packages (Nov 19, 2009, 13:03 UTC) (1142 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) LWN.net: "Fedora bug #534047 contains an interesting Fedora 12 surprise: "PackageKit allows you to install signed content from signed repositories without a password by default. It only asks you to authenticate if anything is unsigned or the signatures are wrong."
Gerrit: Google-style code review meets git (Nov 19, 2009, 12:03 UTC) (1267 reads)
(3 talkbacks)
(feedback) LWN.net: "Gerrit, a Git-based system for managing code review, is helping to spread the popular distributed revision control system into Android-using companies, many of which have heavy quality assurance, management, and legal processes around software."
Fedora 12 LXDE Spin withdrawn (for now) (Nov 19, 2009, 07:33 UTC) (1182 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) LWN.net: "I have just asked the website admins to remove the Fedora 12 LXDE Spin
from the BitTorrent Tracker because we found a major bug that makes the
images unusable."
New to Java programming? (Nov 19, 2009, 06:03 UTC) (2152 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) IBM Developerworks: "New to Java programming? This page provides an overview of Java™ technology basics and explains how the technology fits into the context of contemporary software development."
The Birth of the SGIP (Live from Denver) (Nov 19, 2009, 03:03 UTC) (876 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) Standards Blog: "In a short while, an important vote will be taken in downtown Denver, Colorado. If as expected that vote is in the affirmative, a unique and important public-private partnership will spring into being."
Providing useful feedback (Nov 19, 2009, 00:03 UTC) (803 reads)
(1 talkbacks)
(feedback) Dissociated Press: "Release early, release often. That mantra has served open source really well because it provides an opportunity for developers to get in and provide feedback (and patches) through the lifecycle of a project, and not when something is completely finished and would require huge amounts of efforts to fix problems that could be caught early."
Doing "Notmuch" to fix Email (Nov 18, 2009, 22:04 UTC) (1719 reads)
(2 talkbacks)
(feedback) OStatic: "When two of the X.org folks get involved in writing an email system out of frustration, it's safe to say that email clients need a kick in the pants. Carl Worth, with some help from Keith Packard, have announced Notmuch, a search-based "email system" for handling large volumes of mail."
Samsung Sponsors The Development Of Enlightenment (Nov 18, 2009, 21:04 UTC) (1340 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) Phoronix: "For the uninformed, Enlightenment is a window manager that has been around since 1997 but doesn't receive too much mainstream love. Fortunately though it now has the backing of a major electronics manufacturer who is sponsoring its development."
Going Beyond Just Measuring Frame Rates (Nov 18, 2009, 20:34 UTC) (683 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) Phoronix: "Yesterday marked the release of Phoronix Test Suite 2.2 and it was the best version yet with the addition of many new exciting and useful features. While this release was gratifying, there are much greater plans for the Phoronix Test Suite going into the next decade."
Google Chrome operating system's first appearance scheduled (Nov 18, 2009, 19:34 UTC) (2609 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) Cyber Cynic: "While Google is remaining mum about all the details, I've learned that they will be demonstrating the new Linux-based Chrome desktop operating system on Thursday, November 19th."
Building On-Ramps on the Fedora 12 Highway (Nov 18, 2009, 17:34 UTC) (846 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) Datamation: ""It's all about building on-ramps," says Paul W. Frields, the Fedora Project Leader. “As a community, we tend to be oriented towards getting people involved in the open source process, rather than towards getting everyone to switch from whatever they're using now.""
Interview- Fedora Mini maintainer Peter Robinson (Nov 18, 2009, 13:04 UTC) (962 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) Moblin Zone: "By now, you've probably heard that Fedora 12 came out this morning, with a "Moblin Desktop Environment" option. In this interview, Fedora Mini Maintainer Peter Robinson discusses F12's Moblin option today, and what lies ahead for Moblin technology within Fedora."
kde4.4 coming out in feb 2010 (Nov 18, 2009, 12:04 UTC) (2402 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) CIO: "Unlike the anti-climax that was the first KDE 4 release, however, KDE 4.4's developers say this new version will actually deliver on many of the original promises of this next-generation desktop environment -- and then some."
LPI and UNDP/UNESCO promote Linux education in Middle East
(Nov 18, 2009, 07:04 UTC) (774 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) LinuxPR: The Linux Professional
Institute (LPI), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced that its affiliate, LPI-Middle East, had
signed an agreement with Ma3bar initiative to
promote the adoption of Free and Open Source software throughout the
Arab world.
Linux Bug #1: Bad Documentation (Nov 18, 2009, 04:34 UTC) (1692 reads)
(10 talkbacks)
(feedback) Linux Today Blog: "The Internet and Google enable laziness in FOSS development because they make it too easy to abdicate the job of proper documentation to "The community." Telling users and potential contributors to use Google, mailing lists, and forums is not documentation."
Fedora 12 Takes Aim at Linux Networking (Nov 18, 2009, 01:34 UTC) (2253 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) InternetNews: "While the latest installment of the Red Hat-sponsored community Linux distribution offers many new features, at the top of the list for users including Fedora's project leader, Paul Frields, are improved networking capabilities that raise the bar for mobile connectivity on Linux."
Bridging Enterprise and Community Collaboration (Nov 17, 2009, 19:33 UTC) (806 reads)
(1 talkbacks)
(feedback) Linux.com: "Open source software alone is not a magic wand for business. Organizations need to apply open technologies, processes, community participation, and innovative business models in order to get real change and positive results." Link fixed--ed.
Microsoft playing nicely with open source (Nov 17, 2009, 17:33 UTC) (1362 reads)
(1 talkbacks)
(feedback) Null Pointer: "Before the Microsoft-centric developer world goes completely gaga at the company's Professional Developer Conference in the coming days, it's worth noting a couple of open source milestones that may have slipped under the radar."
Fedora 12 released (Nov 17, 2009, 17:03 UTC) (2332 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) Fedora 12 Release announcement: "The Fedora Project is pleased to announce the release of Fedora 12 today. With all the latest open source software and major improvements to graphics support, networking, virtualization and more, Fedora 12 is one of the most exciting releases so far."
Exploring HTML 5's Audio/Video Multimedia Support (Nov 17, 2009, 15:03 UTC) (1415 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) DevX: "The audio and video tags were among the first features to be added to the HTML 5 specification. Find out how these elements enable the browser to work with both types of media in an easy-to-use manner."
Ubuntu One Music Store: A Real Business? (Nov 17, 2009, 09:03 UTC) (1547 reads)
(0 talkbacks)
(feedback) WorksWithU: "Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth hinted that Ubuntu may ultimately gain music and entertainment store capabilities — similar to offerings from Apple (iTunes) and Amazon.com. Fast forward to the present, and Canonical appears to be preparing the Ubuntu One Music Store. Here’s why."
