OSnews - Exploring the Future of Computing - Page 1603

Mozilla 1.2 Beta Released

Submitted by regular reader 2002-10-19 Mozilla, Gecko 31 Comments

Mozilla 1.2-Beta and Phoenix 0.3 browsers were recently released. Additionally, Opera Software released beta versions of 6.1 for Linux, Linux PPC and FreeBSD. Also, the Dillo web browser's CVS seems to not have any check-ins for 3 months now, so if you want to code for a small and fast browser for Unix, here's your chance.

Cross-Platform UNIX Software Packaging with OpenPKG

Eugenia Loli 2002-10-18 Unix 9 Comments

In this article, SAMag will explore OpenPKG, a software development and packaging project initiated by Cable & Wireless, an international ISP. The OpenPKG project began in November 2000 and has grown into a collaborative software development effort managed and maintained by many. The project aims to create a modular and flexible UNIX subsystem for cross-platform software packaging and installation.

Playing Audio and Video Files with FreeBSD

Eugenia Loli 2002-10-18 FreeBSD 20 Comments

"In the last few articles, I've concentrated on configuring a FreeBSD system and various applications suited for multimedia. I'll wrap up that series today by tweaking a browser's plug-in support and installing some apps which can be either called by a browser or used on their own." Read the article at ONLamp.

Security Expert Gives OSes Poor Security Grade

Eugenia Loli 2002-10-18 Privacy, Security 36 Comments

Is open source software more secure? To most Linux enthusiasts, the answer is obvious: open source means more people can look for bugs and a faster dissemination of bug fixes. Obviously, yes. But noted security expert Gene Spafford says that this may not necessarily be true. According to the Purdue professor of computer science and co-author of Practical Unix & Internet Security, good security begins with good design and neither Windows nor Linux have much to brag about in that category.

ViaVoice and XVoice: Providing Voice Recognition

Submitted by rajan r 2002-10-18 Linux 9 Comments

Conversing with a computer has long been a staple of science fiction. Such conversations are still largely in the realm of fiction, but voice recognition technology has improved significantly over the last decade. A number of voice recognition and control products are available on various platforms. Many people don't realize, however, that it is possible to control the Linux desktop by voice, and it has been possible for some time. Read the article at LinuxJournal.

SuSE Linux 8.1 Professional Edition Review

Submitted by Reza Pakdel 2002-10-18 SuSE, openSUSE 20 Comments

"SuSE Linux 8.1 Pro is the latest Linux distribution release for the desktop and corporate users. With a wide variety of desktop applications, a sleek desktop, a dead easy to use control center and strong focus on security, this is one of the best Linux distros we've tried to date." Read the review at RatedPC.

Linux Mandrake 9.0-Dolphin: The Review

Eugenia Loli 2002-10-17 Mandriva, Mandrake, Lycoris 173 Comments

MandrakeSoft released Linux Mandrake 9.0 about three weeks ago. How does this version compares to the also recent SuSE and Red Hat releases? MandrakeSoft sent us the Download Edition over for a review and here is what we think about it.

Microsoft to Offer Passport Server for Linux and UNIX

Guest post by Ken Crandall 2002-10-17 Microsoft 21 Comments

Microsoft has struck a deal with Ready-to-Run Software to port their Passport server to Linux and UNIX. This would allow websites running Apache to utilize the single-sign-on feature that Passport offers.

BSD Network Stack Virtualization Experiment

Eugenia Loli 2002-10-17 FreeBSD 9 Comments

From BSDForums: Marko Zec has setup patches against FreeBSD 4.7 kernel sources, which provide the functionality of maintaining multiple independent network stack images within a single operating system kernel. No userland patches are necessary, except an additional virtual image management util.

Critics Say Microsoft Is Up to Old Tricks

Eugenia Loli 2002-10-16 Microsoft 67 Comments

As Microsoft awaits court approval of its landmark antitrust settlement with the government, the company has angered some competitors by tightly limiting the technical data it promised to release. Microsoft says the restrictions are normal for the software industry and do not violate the terms of the settlement. But competitors contend that Microsoft's actions are reminiscent of the behavior that led to the antitrust case and reinforce their claim that the entire settlement is inadequate.

Impressions of SuSE 8.1

Eugenia Loli 2002-10-16 SuSE, openSUSE 27 Comments

"A new SuSE is always interesting in the way that life-threatening sports are interesting. It might seem to be going along just fine, but in an instant disaster can strike. So it was with the usual wariness that I put Suse 8.1 on a machine here. Nor was it just any old machine -- it was the one my wife uses. " Read the review at LinuxAndMain. OSNews published recently a review of SuSE 8.1 PRO. In the meantime, SuSE posted a "live CD" version of SuSE 8.1 ready to be downloaded, burned and run by everyone.

KDE 3.1: The Best KDE Yet

Eugenia Loli 2002-10-16 KDE 47 Comments

"As most of you desktop users already know, the KDE Project recently released KDE 3.1beta2, which will be the final development release before KDE 3.1. The good news is, KDE 3.1 is scheduled for release in just a few weeks. KDE 3.1, the strongest KDE release to date, promises new goodies for just about everyone who gets to enjoy the full KDE desktop experience. Here is a sampling of what is in store for you:" Read the promotional article at promo.kde.org. In the meantime, KDevelop reached the alpha release of KDevelop-3.0 (Gideon). Changelog here.

Soup of CPU News on the Web

Submitted by Nicholas Blachford 2002-10-16 Hardware 19 Comments

"A Brief Look at the PowerPC 970" explains what the new IBM CPU is all about and how does it stand against the x86 competition today, and in a year from now (release time). Another article is titled "When is PowerPC Not PowerPC?". On ExtremeTech you will find "AMD Tips Opteron Benchmarks". Two articles at EETimes, "Intel describes billion-transistor four-core Itanium processor" and "Intel to debut 90-nm 'Banias' processor in 2H '03". Of embedded interest: "MemoryLogix to disclose '586 core' for SoC applications", a CPU to compete with ARM.

Mac Users Get the Goods! Yellow Dog Linux v2.3

Eugenia Loli 2002-10-16 Linux 15 Comments

Running open source software on a Mac is a different animal — almost like an x86, but not quite. Configuring new hardware has always been a problem in Linux; it is now compounded for the Mac user. Yellow Dog Linux (YDL) has built this port of Linux with the hardware of current Macs in mind, such as the iMac and the G4. YDL 2.3 is a treat to install and use on these machines. Read the rest of the review at UnixReview.

UNIX To Windows Code Migration Guide

Eugenia Loli 2002-10-16 General Development 30 Comments

This document illustrates guidelines and best practices required to port existing UNIX applications to the Windows environment, which can potentially reduce the time, cost, and risk associated with a traditionally painful migration process. This guide covers planning and practical issues involved in migration or co-existence between UNIX and Windows and provides a review of the different ways in which such a migration can be done. Ideal for both UNIX programmers as well as Windows programmers, this is a valuable source of information for anyone looking to take advantage of Windows.

If I Tell You That, I’ll Have to kill you: Red Hat Fights the DMCA

Eugenia Loli 2002-10-16 Red Hat 11 Comments

Red Hat has struck a small blow against the DMCA, by publishing a security patch which can only be explained fully to people who are not within US jurisdiction. The company's position here seems to be not altogether voluntary - according to a spokesman "it is bizarre, and unfortunately something Red Hat cannot easily do much about," but like it or not Red Hat has been recruited to the campaign to make the DMCA look ridiculous.

Interview With Con Kolivas

Guest post by Jeremy Andrews 2002-10-16 Linux 1 Comment

Con Kolivas, a practicing doctor in Australia, has written a benchmarking tool called ConTest which has proven to be tremendously useful to kernel developers, having been designed to compare the performance of different versions of the Linux kernel.

Robert Love Explains Variable HZ

Submitted by Jeremy Andrews 2002-10-16 Linux 9 Comments

Robert Love provides details at KernelTrap on a recent patch he's backported from the 2.5 development kernel to the 2.4 stable kernel. The patch allows one to adjust the frequency of the timer interrupt, defined in 2.4 with "HZ=100". Robert explains, "The timer interrupt is at the heart of the system. Everything lives and dies based on it. Its period is basically the granularity of the system: timers hit on 10ms intervals, timeslices come due at 10ms intervals, etc."

Wasabi Ports NetBSD to the SuperH 64-bit SH-5 Processor

Eugenia Loli 2002-10-15 NetBSD 12 Comments

Wasabi Systems, a provider of embedded BSD products and services, today announced completion of a port of NetBSD to the 64-bit SH-5 processor from SuperH, Inc., on the Cayman Development System. In June, Wasabi Systems became a founding member of the SuperH Partner Program for providing services to SuperH Licensees.

UnitedLinux Developing a Desktop

Submitted by Bjørn_Jørgensen 2002-10-15 Linux 26 Comments

UnitedLinux, the joint software development effort by four Linux distributors, is working on a version of its software for desktop computers, according to executive Gregory Blepp.