Sun Set to Move on GPL License for Open-Source Java

Sun has talked a lot about putting Java into an open-source license. Now it's ready to move. The company is very close to announcing that it will put the mobile and standard editions of the Java platform into the GNU General Public License, with the Java Enterprise Edition and GlassFish reference implementation (currently open-sourced under Sun's Common Development and Distribution License, or CDDL) to follow, several industry sources said.

Why Are Mac Users So Defensive?

"Yesterday, I read what I consider to be a provoking piece at ZDNet. It pointed out that while there is no question that Macs are not the malware targets that Windows machines are, they're most certainly not immune to an attack of the right variety. It went on to backup its point with a real world scenario in which a University of New South Wales Mac server had been hit by malware. Disturbingly, the server had apparently been running the latest updates from Apple and still managed to get hit. It mentioned that, in the author's opinion, Apple was 'misleading people' into believing that their OS was more secure than it really is. Whether or not that is true is frankly immaterial to me. It should be noted that no OS is 100 percent bulletproof, and I believe this is what it was driving home at. Unfortunately, some people within the Mac community felt differently."

Mozilla Released Fixes for Critical Flaws

Mozilla has released updates for its Firefox browser, Thunderbird e-mail application and the SeaMonkey application suite to fix 'critical' security vulnerabilities. The vulnerabilities affect 1.5 versions of Firefox and Thunderbird as well as version 1 of the SeaMonkey suite, Mozilla said in its security advisories. The bugs do not affect Firefox 2.0, the latest version of the browser released late last month.

Simple Xalan Extension Functions: Mixing Java with XSLT

The Xalan XSLT processor can invoke almost any method in almost any Java class in the classpath. Doing so can improve performance, provide features like trigonometric functions that aren't available in XSLT, perform file I/O, talk to databases and network servers, or implement algorithms that are easy to write in the Java language but hard to write in XSLT. Learn the basics of invoking Java code from Xalan.

Sylllable 0.6.2 Released

The Syllable team has just released Syllable 0.6.2. Highlights: "A new audio framework for the media server, with new and improved audio drivers and support for multichannel and digital audio; a new look, with new fonts, icons and wallpapers; a huge number of translated applications for non-English users; upgrades to important system components and a switch to GCC 4.1.1, which has yielded noticable performance improvements, and much more."

‘Novell Is Not SCO’

"Novell is not SCO. Novell is not the great anti-GPL. Get over it. I'm getting a little tired of the constant Novell-bashing. Do I think that Novell made a smart long term move by partnering up with Microsoft? No, I don't. For the record, the only software company that I can think of that has ever partnered with Microsoft and done well is Citix Systems. And, they did it by acting as if they were a branch of Microsoft. That is not, I repeat not, the case with Novell. What Novell is doing is a smart, short-term move. Novell makes a great Linux, but it's not been making great gains to go with it."

Charities Shun Open Source Code

The theory behind open-source software is that it avoids many of the pitfalls - including cost - of closed alternatives. But Steven Buckley, who runs Christian Aid's common knowledge programme, prefers to buy software from the likes of Microsoft. Is this not odd for a charity? "Open-source doesn't mean free," he told BBC World Service's Digital Planet programme. "Quite often, if you install open-source software within an organisation, you have a support contract that goes with it - it's an essential part of operating that software. Over time, that can actually cost more than having Windows on an enterprise machine."

Vista’s Last Mile

Each day, members of the Windows team gather inside the 'shiproom' to go over the bugs that remain, and to debate which of these can still be fixed in the days left until Vista is declared finished, a milestone that is expected any time now. The intense 'end game', as these final weeks are known, is a well-worn tradition inside the shiproom, which is on the third floor of the Windows development building. The small room, with its dated, dark wood conference table has been the war room for every Windows release since Windows 2000. In the meantime, Ars takes a look at running Vista on older hardware.

Apple Updates MacBook Line with Core 2 Duo Processors

Apple has updated its line of MacBook laptops, equipping them with Core 2 Duo processors. "At just one-inch thin, the new MacBooks are up to 25 percent faster than the previous generation and feature a built-in iSight camera for on-the-go video conferencing, Apple's MagSafe Power Adapter that safely disconnects when under strain, and the iLife '06 award-winning suite of digital lifestyle applications."

Novell-Microsoft: Financial Details Revealed

Microsoft will pay Novell USD 348 million up front, but Novell will return USD 200 million of that amount over five years. The specific numbers came in an a filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission made by Novell late Tuesday. "The financial commitments Microsoft is making as part of this agreement are significant," company CEO Ron Hovsepian said in a statement. In related news, Microsoft has denied that its patent deal with Novell is in breach of the GPL or will automatically spread Microsoft's patent protection to other Linux distributions.

How to Compile a Kernel – the Ubuntu Way

"Each distribution has some specific tools to build a custom kernel from the sources. This article is about compiling a kernel on Ubuntu systems. It describes how to build a custom kernel using the latest unmodified kernel sources from www.kernel.org (vanilla kernel) so that you are independent from the kernels supplied by your distribution. It also shows how to patch the kernel sources if you need features that are not in there."

Server or Desktop: Can Linux Companies Make it Work?

"Lately, I've found myself troubled with the changes taking place with Xandros. As many of you probably know by now, Xandros has gone through a reorganization that meant that they had to layoff roughly five employees. What's even more disturbing is that they are looking at letting go of their support for the desktop market and focusing on the server realm instead. Granted they'll still support their open circulation desktop to some extent, but the fact remains that I'm seeing a possible trend brewing within the Linux Desktop market that has me a little shaken up."

Review: Fedora Core 6

Yet another review of Fedora Core 6. "I'm through hoping that the next version of Fedora Core will fix all of the problems with the previous release. Fedora's identity has gradually eroded over six releases, finally ending up as a second class clone of Ubuntu. On the other hand, Red Hat Linux was never really all that easy to install, configure, and use, so I guess this is just the natural evolution of a product that was destined to be eclipsed by more complete distributions like Mandriva and more easily configured distributions like SUSE."