SOT Office 2002 Available for Windows and Linux

"SOT Office 2002 is a free productivity suite for Windows and Linux. At SOT, we're committed to making sure that a free, commercial-quality office suite is available to all Windows and Linux users. Partly based on OpenOffice.org, SOT Office 2002 is the only office application you'll ever need. A full-featured, high-quality software suite, SOT Office is fully compatible with other major office applications. You can open and save .doc, .xls and all your usual file formats with SOT Office, so sharing documents with friends and colleagues is a breeze." SOT Office is an OpenOffice spin-off and it was released for both Windows & Linux recently. Update: On a similar note, Office NGO screenshots have been leaked.

SkyOS 3.7.5 Released

Robert Szeleney released today a newer version of SkyOS, which fixes a number of problems and adds new features. Our Take: Many people have reported problems with the PS/2 mouse (which I also experienced on my laptop, but works fine on my desktop PC), however my Voodoo5 fails to load the desktop with the included VESA driver. I wonder if anyone was succsesful loading SkyOS with a Voodoo3/4/5 card.

States Show Microsoft Judge a Variation of Windows

"Nine states seeking stiff antitrust sanctions against Microsoft showed the judge on Wednesday a commercial version of the Windows operating system that already has removable features -- similar to one of their key demands. Microsoft has said requiring a version of Windows that can be customized by computer makers and rival software companies would fragment the operating system, cripple Microsoft, harm consumers and hurt the entire computer industry." Read the story at Reuters.

Gates Says Microsoft Can’t Comply and Make Modular Windows

"Microsoft chairman Bill Gates says his company would be unable to allow manufacturers and consumers to choose which elements of its Windows operating system to install on their computers under sanctions being proposed to a federal judge.The issue stems from how different portions of Windows are reliant on each other. If one piece is removed, such as the part of the Internet Explorer Web browser that makes Web pages appear, other features like the Windows Help system would break." Read the rest of the story at Yahoo!News. You can also read the submitted Gates testimony as a PDF here. Our Take: Personally, I prefer products to be solid and in one piece, as they were designed to be. Recreating something like Linux's dependancy hell at all levels, is naturally something that does not benefit the consumer. Or my hot temper when dealing with it. What is needed IMHO, is restrict Microsoft's business practices, not its product line. Update: More about Gates on the stand.

Emulate This! with Bochs – Part 3

"Bochs is an emulator for the x86 hardware platform. In other words, it can emulate a PC of varying hardware configurations. When you boot into Bochs, it will appear as though you are booting another PC from inside your own PC, and in a way, you are. Bochs emulates the entire PC platform, I/O devices, memory and its own BIOS. What's even more interesting is that you don't have to be running PC hardware to run Bochs. It will emulate x86 hardware on any platform on which you compile it. By changing the configuration, it is possible to specify the type of processor (386? 486? 586?), the amount of memory and so on. Bochs is a box inside your box. In fact, Bochs is as many boxes as you want it to be. It even has its own power button." Read the third part of the emulation articles at LinuxJournal.

XFree86 Celebrates Its 10 Years

XFree86 has the proud honour of announcing that unlike other technologies that have come and gone, it is now officially 10 years old. What makes this particularly adventful is that it is fully backwards compatible; this is a true testament to the spirit of the original X protocol of which XFree86 is its finest implementation. "Yes there will be parties. Yes there is an international reunion, but sorry, by invitation only. You can wish us well at the xpert mailing list. And don't forget to ask for pictures." the site notes.

Microsoft PowerToys for Windows XP are Back

After two months of being offline, Microsoft releases new versions for the famous PowerToys for WindowsXP. You can now download the new versions for Open Command Window Here, Alt-Tab Replacement, Tweak UI, Power Calculator, Image Resizer, CD Slide Show Generator, Virtual Desktop Manager, Taskbar Magnifier, HTML Slide Show Wizard and the Webcam Timershot. In this release, Microsoft did not include some other popular PowerToys like the "Desk Menu tool" and "Extra Send to menu" and the Shell Audio player and ISO Burner.

Microsoft To Support AMD’s Hammer 64-Bit CPU

"Microsoft Corp. is finally expected to formally announce that it will support AMD's 64-bit "Hammer" line in future operating systems, sources said Tuesday. Sources within AMD, Sunnyvale, Calif., said that the company will announce the Hammer support in a press conference tomorrow at 4:30 PM, after the market closes. In a notice sent to press and analysts, AMD described the press conference as one where the company 'answers the 64-bit question'." Read the rest of the report at ExtremeTech. Update: Read more for a leaked memo. Update 2 AMD has renamed its "Hammer" 64-bit server line with the "Opteron" brand name.

Symbian Opens OS Source Code

"Symbian today said it will open most of the source code for its mobile operating system to third party developers, in its latest effort to encourage the creation of more software for the platform. The company also announced that German electronics giant Siemens has agreed to buy 5 percent of the company for more than 20-million euros ($17.8 million). The software company, which is co-owned by Psion as well as Sony Ericsson, Nokia, Motorola and others, already provides most of its code to its licensees, and will offer the same access to software developers through a new plan called the "Symbian Platinum Program". A number of third parties have already committed to joining the program, including Intel, AppForge, Texas Instr. and UK chip-designer ARM Holdings." Read the rest of the story at ZDNews.

Lineo Goes To the Block

"The Canopy Group and Egan-Managed Capital, two of Lineo's many investors, have been running a "notice of public sale" in a local Utah paper since April 8 apparently. It recalls the sheriff hammering a foreclosure sign on an Oklahoma farm with the butt-end of his gun during the dust storms of the Great Depression. As previously reported, Lineo has run out of money to the point of bouncing paychecks and having at least one of its offices padlocked by the landlord for want of the rent. Lineo has a pretty lustrous retinue of backers and burned through at least $65 million, maybe $20 million or $30 million more than that. It's reportedly never been profitable." Read the rest of the report at LinuxGram.

IBM Middleware for Linux CD Set Give-Away

The latest IBM middleware for Linux (DB2 Universal Database, WebSphere Application Server, WebSphere Studio Application Developer, and Lotus Domino) is being provided, at no cost, on a 2 CD set, along with Web Services technologies, Linux technical articles, Linux Redbooks, and the very popular Java battle-bots game Robocode. IBM is also providing a worldwide no-cost 2-day Linux workshop, which includes hands-on labs for installing and configuring Linux.

GCC 3.1 Pre-Release Almost Ready

Mark Mitchell, the GCC release manager posted at GCC's mailing list that a GCC 3.1 pre-release test version will be ready any time now, today or tomorrow. GCC 3.1 is the first "stable" version that developers were awaiting to base their projects on, as in some cases it delivers up to 30% faster executables than GCC 2.9x.x for the same codebase. GCC 3.x is a bit slower in compilation times than GCC 2.9x.x, but it creates faster executables, so it worth the extra time it takes in order to utilize the extra optimizations (a tip: compiling GCC 3.1 itself with the Intel compiler (which creates about 35% faster code than gcc 3.x), it would optimize GCC and it will make it require less compilation time). GCC 3.1 also has an extra flag for specific Pentium4 optimizations while it is more C++ compliant (lays out stricter rules for the C++ devs). Macintosh users should also await this release, as the new GCC seems to offer about 5% faster code than the previous GCC for the G3/G4 architecture. Apple has already switched internally to GCC 3.1.

A Top-Secret, One-of-a-Kind Mac

OSNews reader Henrik "rain" Petersson writes: "In a drafty shed in rural northern California is perhaps the rarest Macintosh ever made: an electronically shielded Mac used by a spy or military agency. The machine appears to be unique, and is so secret, no one knows anything about it." Part I and Part II of the article at Wired.

Connecting to IPv6 With FreeBSD

Linux Orbit contributing author and FreeBSD user David LeCount shows you how to connect your FreeBSD system with the '6Bone': "The next generation Internet that uses this protocol is called the 6Bone, and it's accessible from the current Internet. Now you may ask, "What are the advantages of getting on this 6Bone?" Good question. Some people just want to get an early start on tomorrow's technology. Some enjoy having a new toy to play with. Some may like the idea of owning a huge subnet of IP addresses for free. You may already have had your reasons before clicking on the link to this tutorial. Whatever the case, if you're interested in trying out this new internet and you have a FreeBSD machine connected directly to the internet, keep reading."

Review of Hancom Office 2.01 Standard for Linux

Hancom Office 2.01 is the latest version from the Korean company Hancom Linux, released only a few days ago. The company used to offer a Windows version of their product, but they have since completely focused on the Linux platform, even though their product is pretty portable as it is based almost solely in the Qt 3 tooklkit. In latest news, Hancom has canned their Professional version of their office suite (contained more applications in assosiation with TheKompany), and they now going with the Standard version, which is the version we review today. Update: From the Hancom press release: "200 Million Arabic Speakers Finally Have an Affordable, High-Quality Alternative to Microsoft - And Save 90% in the Process."

Microsoft Fears Hype and IBM, but not Sun

"Microsoft has admitted its biggest worry over the roll out of its flagship .Net strategy is the potential backlash from angry customers once they realise today's web services are mainly hype. And according to Charles Fitzgerald, global director of strategy for the .Net platform at Microsoft, his firm is also much more worried about IBM's Websphere than the widely perceived battle between .Net and Java." Read the rest of the stoy at Yahoo! News.