2005 February

Linux on your iPod, can it be done? Yes, and apparently it is pretty cool to boot! I am interested in seeing something like this come to life and would love to see some other cases where this has been met with equal success. Having said this, is it worth it? I think it is [...]

As many people have pointed out in the past, Linux is still not for everyone out there. Having said this, I believe that distros like Linspire, Xandros, and Simply Mepis prove that it is ready for the home user, today. Once you get past the proprietary software hurdle, there just isn’t much that Linux can’t [...]

This is a great article that helps to calm the new user and explains to them what they can expect as they venture forward into this brave, new world. Linux can be a scary thing if you are not familiar with it. Believe me, I know!

Speaking personally, Gimp leaves me wanting to go back to Photoshop. The proof that closed source software is just as important to me as Open Source is drawn very clearly here in the virtual sand. In this article from NewsForge, we learn that Gimp is in fact at a cross roads and also could use [...]

OK, I’ll admit it. I am hopelessly hooked on Linux. After falling in love with Xandros for the fact that it just works, I wanted to look into other distributions. Here recently, I decided to give Simply Mepis a very serious look. Besides the fact that it is both a live CD and capable of [...]

O’Reilly’s OSDir.com is hosting a series of KDE 3.4 screenshots taken from a Klax Live CD. There are 52 in all, so I think the reviewer went a little overboard. The first several really don’t tell you a whole lot.

Ah ha! So Microsoft admits that they have been targeting Wine users! The funny part is that Wine devs are thrilled to hear it. The reason why is that this proves that MS sees Wine as a real threat. I suppose it is safe to say that this means Wine is doing its job then, [...]

Everywhere I have turned, I have been hearing amazing things about SimplyMEPIS. With version 3.3 coming out, I suppose I had better set aside a little time to actually sit down and try out this marvelous distribution. Have you tried it? If so, what are your thoughts?

Um OK, so is Lineox really just a another way to say Red Hat or am I missing the boat here? It is always fun to hear about a new Linux distribution to try out, even in the enterprise world. But if this distro is built from source RPMs for the recently released Red Hat [...]

What a creative way to expand on the knowledge that Knoppix can provide students. When I read that Ming Chow was offering his students a Knoppix CD to experiment with, I had to admit I was impressed. What a cool way for kids to get their feet wet with Linux and still be able to [...]

Kmail, the only email app that actually made me reconsider my Linux use of Thunderbird. The Kmail client is quite frankly amazing and can take its share of abuse. Equipped to handle multiple forms of spam filtering and virus detection as well. I think you will find that going back any email other app is [...]

OK, this distro looks interesting. But I am not sure what Frugalware can offer that any of the other distros are not. Maybe people are wanting to do this project because existing distributions are lacking something that Frugalware can offer. I would be interested in finding out.

To me, this news about the new Linux kernel really shows just how advanced this OS really can be with the right support. It’s totally true, folks! In addition to support for all of the stuff we already enjoy in Linux, the 2.6.11 kernel will also be supporting InfiniBand as well. Read more about it:

I understand that moving to a new OS is a scary experience if you are not used to that sort of thing. But fear not! Those who are just not ready to fully take the plunge ought to consider the power and simplicity of the bootable Knoppix CD. Simple and much more pleasant that installing [...]

Thought that this was an interesting, if not pointed view at Microsoft versus the Open Source movement. Techwhack.com explains that the reliance on Microsoft products is not only silly, it is beginning to be counterproductive.
They go on to express that they feel that Bill Gate’s charitable givings have been little more than something for the [...]

The folks from the Linux side of the fence have the urge to merge, according to News.com. It seems that Mandrakesoft has decided to acquire Brazil-based Conectiva in a sizable stock purchase. While this will not likely mean much in the US, it will give Mandrakesoft a really nice reach into some new markets.

Not really sure why the Linux world would find the Bill and Melinda Foundation giving a donation to charity humorous, but it seems to stem from the mess surround the past with Joel Klein. He was tied up with MS over the whole anti-trust bit and is now on the receiving end of the donation [...]

Sometimes, everything in Linux is not as cut and dry as we might want it to be. Take booting from a USB thumbdrive for instance. For those that have never done this before, it can be annoying to fumble around with, much as Taran from the Linux Gazette discovered. Luckily he found the article from [...]

Perhaps tech jobs are not as few and scattered as we once thought. As I read through this article from the IT Manager’s Journal, I see a pattern developing that I had suspected was coming about for some time. Linux jobs are on the rise. When people ask me what segment of technology to get [...]

I swear, this is almost freaky. At one point I had written an article that I never released as to what would happen if Microsoft decided to offer their own version of Linux. Then I came across this article from PCMag stating something very, very similar in subject and idea. Personally, I think it would [...]