Microsoft is developing versions of its Windows operating system with only a subset of the Windows code base, designed for specific server tasks, in a move that could reduce maintenance costs for customers and create products that are less vulnerable to attack. Elsewhere, Ballmer gave an interview about the new digital style of life.

Trove, an open source Java collection package, provides an efficient alternative to the core Java collection classes, especially for implementing collections whose keys or values are primitive types.

Linux handles the machine independent/dependent layer in a unique way, making page table management a bit tricky. Mel Gorman gives you the skinny on the process in this sample chapter.

A free technology preview for Windows XP Embedded with Service Pack 2 (SP2) is available for download and testing. Enhancements coming in Service Pack 2 include stronger default security settings, advanced remote device management, and additional networking and multimedia features that enable further device innovation. Microsoft also announced today Windows Embedded for Point of Service, a new standardized software platform for POS terminals, which will be based on Windows XP Embedded with SP2.

The much anticipated release of NetBSD 2.0 is getting closer and closer.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer says the task of trying to stay one step ahead of virus writers and hackers will be a never-ending battle.

This story lists a number of problems with IE and suggests to switch to Firefox. Elsewhere, Neowin interviews a member of the Firefox team.

Solaris Systems Programming is the latest release by Sun Press. This is an essential guide to systems programming on any UNIX platform that finally has taken Stevens' Advanced Programming in the UNIX Enviroment off my desk. Read a full review of the book. Both SA's and developers will be very interested in check this book out.

Just came back from a conference with guest speaker Bill Gates. Gates touched a number of subjects and we quickly report and comment on them below.

As Apple strives to complete the development of Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger for a potential launch in early 2005, several system utilities are being revamped and rejuvenated.

Novell plans to launch its first Linux desktop offering, which incorporates technology it acquired from German Linux vendor SuSE last year, within the next month. The vendor says it is combining its own proprietary technology with open source software in an “enterprise-ready” desktop operating system that will be a low-cost alternative for most organisations.

September was the busiest month in the Syllable project's history, and developments are summarized in the latest newsletter. Highlights include the 0.5.4 release, driver updates, and software enhancements. Also, a Flash demo of Syllable in action is now available, illustrating some of the new desktop features.

Mepis is making the transition to a full-fledged easy-to-use desktop and general-purpose Linux distribution. The following is both an overview and review of this excellent new Linux distribution.

There are several ways to package a Java/SWT application on Mac OS X. However, if you want your application to look and feel like a native Mac OS X application, you will want to opt for creating an application bundle. Read more to learn how to bundle your Java/SWT application.