Linux Desktops Send NASA to Mars

  Submitted by Vautnavette Linux 46 Comments
NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab is using Linux extensively... on the desktop! "At the JPL, it is common to see Red Hat Inc., SuSE or Mandriva Linux running on users' desktops alongside Windows.". On a side note, they don't trust Linux on the server: "Our personal view is that Linux, period, is only for the desktop. We don't run our main servers on Linux, because there are too many flaws in main Linux kernel," he said.
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Longhorn Datacenter Server will Have No Virtualization Licensing Costs

  Submitted by Alessandro Perilli Windows 4 Comments
Today virtualization is expensive for licensing. Microsoft asks people to license every OS installed on virtual machines, even if powered off. But something is changing. Since the release of Windows Server 2003 R2 Microsoft started approaching a per-use licensing model instead of a per-installation model. So that now Windows Server 2003 R2 Enterprise Edition owners can run up to 4 virtual machines with same OS at no additional costs.
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U.S Patent Office Awards FAT Patents to Microsoft

  Submitted by Derek Newhall Microsoft 161 Comments
After 2 years of examination the U.S Patent and Trademark Office has reversed its two earlier unofficial decisions and decided that Microsoft's File Allocation Table file system constitutes a "novel and non-obvious" system enabling it to be patented. This coupled with Microsofts plans to charge licensing fees for use of the system could cause many problems for open-source operating systems that implement the file system, or even to mp3 players. Elsewhere, APCMag.com has an interview with Microsoft's "open source point man" Martin Gregory.
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Opinion: Windows is Not Linux

  Submitted by ishmal Rumors 59 Comments
"This article fairly eloquently expounds some of the reasons why Linux's job is not to become increasingly Windows-like, nor is it Open Source's duty to merely provide free duplicates of every Windows-user's favorite program. The issue has never been anything about Elite Snob vs. Concerned Newbie. It is simply a misunderstanding of what the Linux and the Open Source world is all about. Linux is not about repeating Windows with its features and flaws. It is an opportunity to experiment with new and wonderful alternatives", says OSNews reader Bob Jamison.
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AMD Ships Dual-Core Gaming CPU

AMD 37 Comments
AMD has released its first dual-core Athlon 64 FX processor, the FX-60. The Reg puts it through its paces, and concludes: "AMD Athlon 64 FX-60 is the best consumer processor AMD has ever produced. With effectively a pair of FX-55s sat in the same socket, sharing an efficient memory controller, it's close enough to FX-57 in single-threaded apps that the multi-threaded advantage makes that slender gap moot. Targetted at the well-heeled enthusiast, the new dual-core processor should be a shoo-in for those with FX-57s already, and those with the required readies to drop on the latest and greatest."
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Novell Open-Sources Major Linux Security Program

Novell and Ximian 14 Comments
"On Tuesday, Novell announced the creation of the AppArmor project, a new GPL open-source project dedicated to advancing Linux application security. Novell's AppArmor is an intrusion-prevention system that protects Linux and its applications from the effects of attacks, viruses and malicious applications. AppArmor is based on technology that Novell acquired from Immunix, a leading provider of Linux host-based application security solutions, when it purchased the company in May 2005."
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How to Configure, Use LIRC

  Submitted by raoulsland Hardware 1 Comment
"LIRC is basically a small server which can decode or transmit infra-red signals. This is a tutorial about how to set up the LIRC server and how to use it in order to control your system or specific LIRC-enabled applications with a remote control. Examples of simple or more complicated setups are also provided."
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New Batch of WMF Flaws Flagged

  Submitted by Resolution Windows 46 Comments
Just when you thought the insanity was over, researchers claim that two new WMF exploits (along with proof of concept code) have been identified in the wild. This news comes just days after Microsoft released an 'out of cycle' patch for a newly discovered WMF exploit. The new flaws affect fully patched versions of Windows 2000, Windows XP (SP2 included) and Windows Server 2003.
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Review: WindowBlinds 5

  Submitted by Michael Muchmore Graphics 14 Comments
"The new version 5 of WindowBlinds adds features like per-pixel alpha blending, as well as the ability to change toolbar icons, progress animations, and the hue and saturation of the Windows interface. WindowBlinds runs as a Windows XP extension to the Themes feature, so it doesn't require any additional program to run on your PC to work. It also takes advantage of your graphics processor to display its interface eye candy, so that your CPU won't slow down. In fact, the company claims that repainting, resizing, and moving windows will be noticeably quicker as a result of this use of video acceleration for the UI. The Hyperpaint feature even lets you adjust the degree of hardware acceleration. Hyperpaint uses the extra video RAM on your video card to buffer windows, which makes moving them faster."
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OpenVMS Cluster Achieves 10 Year Uptime

  Submitted by Kenneth Farmer OS News 21 Comments
"According to George Cook of WVNET this cluster has been up for over 10 years. WVNET is the West Virginia Network, a dynamic service organization providing telecommunications and computing services within West Virginia. WVNET was created in 1975 to provide central computing facilities and wide-area network communications linking its 'central site' computing resources in Morgantown with the campus computing systems at most of the colleges and universities throughout the state. The cluster consists of an Alpha 4100 (with four 533Mhz CPUs) running VMS 7.3-2; a VAX 6000-630 running VMS 7.3; and four DEC 3000 workstations running VMS 7.3-2."
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Java Environments for Linux on POWER Architecture

  Submitted by anonymous Java 1 Comment
"This article provides a brief overview of the currently available Java Development Kits and Java Runtime Environments for Linux on POWER. It covers the Linux distributions running on the IBM eServer iSeries, including eServer i5; eServer pSeries, including eServer p5; eServer BladeCenter JS20; and eServer OpenPower."
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Samsung Prepares Linux Phones

  Submitted by tuxtops Linux 2 Comments
Samsung developed a new UI on top of Linux for their new line of touchscreen-based high-end phones. The phones sport QVGA touchscreens, Bluetooth, 2 MP camera, microSD storage and TV-out. For more information, pictures and links have a look at TuxTops.com.
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Hell Freezes Over: Fedora Core 5 to Include Mono

  Submitted by a little bird via IM Mono 66 Comments
Red Hat was the main opponent against the inclusion of Mono on their products or Gnome's core. But this is all past now and Fedora Core 5 will include Mono and some of its front row applications like Beagle and F-Spot will be too. My Take: After I got tipped on Saturday about this, I talked to Mono's founder, Miguel de Icaza, but he seemed to be genuinely unaware of the latest happenings on Rawhide. The great news will hopefully expand Mono and make GTK# the new recommended toolkit for future Gnome applications (although this is just a personal wish at this point).
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