Serenity Systems International is proud to announce the release of eComStation Version 1.2. Principal features include a new installation program jointly developed with IBM, enhancements to the desktop environment, additional Internet connection features, and improved device support.

YDL 4.0 RC2 was released today to ydl.net subscribers. A final release is now closer.

After a few days of work Thomas Weidenmueller and Filip Navara of the ReactOS project have developed a SkyOS Compatibility Layer that works under ReactOS and Windows.

Installation reports for Microsoft's new security-focused upgrade range from trouble-free to complete system failures. Our Take: I had one random reboot and one freeze since I installed SP2 this week. The _only_ other time in the past that my XP had crashed was when I plugged-in a SONY external DVD-+RW drive to a USB 1.1 port last month. Except that DVD-RW incident last month, my XP was crash-free for 2.5 years (which might have been a SONY issue, I give the benefit of the doubt to MS). But with the SP2, I had two crashes in 4 days. Unforgivable. SP1 was really solid, can't say the same for SP2.

With the advent of PearPC a large portion of the computing world was stunned as people watched OS X starting up on their very own x86 PCs. While this 0.3 release is not as ground breaking as the first it follows along the lines of the second with good speed improovements & complete fullscreen support.

ThinkSecret has the specs for the new iMacs, while Apple has filed for a European design trademark which may provide a tantalising glimpse of the company's long-awaited tablet computer.

Microsoft on Wednesday announced plans to launch the cheap, easy-to-use version of Windows XP in five emerging markets. In a report published this week, Gartner analysts Dion Wiggins and Martin Gilliland noted that missing features in the Windows XP Starter Edition would frustrate users. Also, Gartner has labeled Microsoft's upcoming version of Windows for developing countries as a product with good intent but poor execution.

Some, quite legitimately wonder if certain wording on the MySQL site might indicate the company is backing away from Free Software, and the GNU General Public License. OfB wanted to know, so Timothy R. Butler contacted MySQL AB, the FSF and others to find out; read what he found at OfB.biz

The new print path in Longhorn, called the NextGen print path, addresses many limitations of the current print path, which is based on the Windows GDI. The NextGen print path will also coexist with the GDI print path. This coexistence ensures applications and devices a smooth migration over time by providing critical backward compatibility.

Engineer Adhamh Findlay sent us in the first status report and screenshots of the Cocoa# toolkit community project: Cocoa bindings for the Mono runtime. Adhamh writes:

Mad Penguin has posted a three page review of GraphOn's Go-Global for Windows.. software which allows you to run published Win32 applications on Linux.

I manage computers running BSD variants every day, at work and at home. After many man page and RTFM iterations to support vital administrative aspects, a desire grew to understand what lay beneath my level of expertise. As eager as I was, I found the prospect of simply plunging into a lengthy code review unappealing.

With its low cost, growing catalogue of desktop software, and backing from business, Linux could finally pry the PC market from Microsoft's grasp.

I thought some users might be interested in the editorial I wrote on my blog about Icon Based Menus. A new idea for freshing on the menu system since MacOS 1984. The same site includes more UI articles.