See also: last week's Linux in the news page.

Linux in the news

• Feed Magazine is doing a big special on open source software, consisting mostly of discussions with various developers and other interesting folks. Not all of the pieces are there yet, but you can see the introduction, a discussion with Richard Stallman, Eric Raymond, and Eric Allman, and a comprehensive list of related readings. (Thanks to Phil Austin).

• Linux gathers critical mass needed to compete with NT says Network World Fusion. The article is a roundup of business activity around the system. "If you've been trying to convince your management that Linux is the right technical choice for a server platform, perhaps it's time to play the business angle trump card. Linux is inexpensive to acquire, can be purchased from multiple sources, has a growing number of applications, is endorsed by the industry's major technology players, has ready sources of technical support and is preferred by technology managers around the world." (NW Fusion is a registration-required site; "cypherpunks" works as usual).

• The next time somebody says that Linux developers are an unruly bunch, point them at this PC Week article about the difficulties in getting Windows NT together. It mentions Linux as a problem, but points out that most of the difficulties are internal. "Further complicating matters, Windows 2000 contains 35 million lines of code and requires 64MB to 128MB of memory -- which doesn't make for a nimble consumer operating system, developers note."

• Here's an article in the Orange County Register about the city of Garden Grove and its use of Linux. "Garden Grove's public works department became the guinea pig. Linux passed that test. Then came the Police Department, your basic round-the-clock operation that doesn't suffer frozen computer screens well. Police brass wanted a new $100,000 system. [City engineer] Shingledecker said Linux could do it for $2,000. Guess who won out?" (Thanks to Christopher Pereda).

There was a resurgence of introductory articles this week, and the quality was generally better than usual. Even experienced Linux folks may want to give some of these a glance.

• The "Daily Yomiuri" has put out a lengthy introductory article with a strongly positive bent. "...perhaps most importantly, Linux remains largely untested as a platform suitable for so-called mission-critical applications such as managing bank transactions, airline reservations and others. But then again, so does Windows NT."

• Here's an introductory article in Scientific American. "...if text-editing software built by hackers for hackers (such as Emacs) is any guide, average consumers and programmers may have almost antithetical ideas of what elegant, useful programs and documentation look like. If the current stylistic distinctions between open-source and commercial software persist, an open-software revolution could lead to yet another divide between haves and have-nots: those with the skills and connections to make use of free software, and those who must pay high prices for increasingly dated commercial offerings."

• Another highly positive introductory column appeared in Information Week. "Sure, [Linux is] a utopian, communal, hippie kind of idea. But it's one that makes business sense. How much of a competitive advantage has your operating system given you lately? How much more of a competitive advantage would you have had if you had spent money on hardware, applications, or more developers, instead of on operating system licenses? It's thoughts like those that make the most hardened capitalist into a hippie."

Quite a few business-oriented articles, as usual:

• PC Week has an article about SuSE's new cluster systems. "S.u.S.E.'s clustering technology should be ready next month in Europe; however, it could be several more months before it's rolled out to the U.S."

• Wired News coversthe rollout of LinuxCare's support program. "LinuxCare will also support major software distributions, including Red Hat Software, Caldera Systems, Debian, LinuxPPC, Linux-Mandrake, Pacific HiTech, SuSE, and Slackware Linux." (Thanks to "llornkcor").

• Here is an InfoWorld article which is also about the upcoming launch of LinuxCare. "Perceptions of Linux as a rebel at the gates may be receding soon, with the March 1 launch of LinuxCare, a comprehensive, diagnostic, Linux support organization."

• ComputerWorld has put out an article about the use of Linux in Jay Jacobs stores. Here's a quote for the "no comment" section: "Because Linux isn't burdened with a graphical interface, its performance is often faster than that of Windows NT on low-end hardware, said William Peterson, an analyst at International Data Corp..."

• Nathan Cochrane's Openline column in The Age this week is about the increasing business interest in Linux. "But the nature of open source means that once it permeates a company, elements of previous proprietary intellectual capital are likely to leak back into the community. This may result, in SGI's case, in enhanced open source graphics and visualisation tools to complement the likes of GIMP, a free competitor to Adobe's cash cow, PhotoShop." (Found in LinuxToday.

• Folks wanting Quicken under Linux will be disappointed, according to this ZDNet article. "The maker of Quicken financial planning and tax preparation software, Intuit, currently has no plans to port its applications over to the open-source platform, says a company official." Since a number of Linux ports have been preceeded by an official denial (i.e. Oracle, Lotus), the cynical among us might plan on Quicken sometime around early summer... (Thanks to Joerg Fehlmann and an anonymous tipster as well).

• This article in News.com is about the recent surge in corporate-oriented Linux offerings, and about Pacific HiTech in particular. "Pacific Hi-Tech will announce the Enterprise Server Edition at the LinuxWorld conference March 1, along with a less expensive, freeware-oriented little brother called the Server Edition , Miller said. The Server Edition will cost about $199; pricing for the Enterprise Server Edition hasn't yet been set, but will probably be more than $2,000."

• PC Week tells us that the big PC vendors will not be making Linux desktop systems anytime soon. "The problems, they say, are the lack of customer demand for the Linux desktops, the dearth of desktop apps for the open-source operating system and a less-friendly user interface."

• Maybe Linux should be your next desktop OS says CNN in an article reprinted from PC Week. It's actually mostly about VA research. "Does [VA Research President] Augustin's mother use Linux? 'Not yet,' he says. Still, he's optimistic: 'Intuit's looking to port (Intuit) Quicken,' he says."

• ZDNet evaluates Microsoft's "Linux defense." They are not impressed. "If Microsoft really believed Linux would knock them off their perch, why wouldn't they be rushing to move their applications to Linux? They'd have the advantage of being first to market that way." (Found in Slashdot).

• Yet another VA Research article can be found in Internet Week. "With the forthcoming release of new servers based on the new Linux 2.2 kernal, released last week, Augustin believes Linux is ready for prime-time corporate use."

• CPU Review has put together a detailed review of Red Hat 5.2. It's almost entirely positive, with occasional suggestions for improvements.

• InfoWorld reviews DB2 for Linux and finds some glitches. "With its beta issues resolved, IBM DB2 Universal Database 5.2 for Linux -- together with the Linux kernel update Version 2.2 -- looks promising as an enterprise-grade database solution."

• Jeff Alami at 32bitsonline has started up a new daily Linux column called "Linux Journeys." The first column is a light overview of personal finance software.

• Also in 32bitsonline: a detailed comparison of several Linux distributions.

Just in case anybody hasn't seen enough "Windows refund" articles yet:

• Here's an index (in French) to a bunch of Linux articles in Le Monde; there is an emphasis on the Windows refund. Babelfish translation available here. (Found in NNL).

• Here is a lengthy article in the San Francisco Examiner about open source stuff, with an emphasis on the Windows refund, VA Research, and a couple of other topics. "It's pretty clear that Linux users and Linux-oriented companies mean business. It's also clear that individuals and businesses that buy Linux systems from VA Research won't have to participate in Windows refund day because the price tag on VA Research machines includes no fee for Microsoft software licenses." (Thanks to Michael Wittman)

• The Raleigh News & Observer ran a longish "windows tax" article. "Computer vendors such as Gateway and Dell, hyping choice, allow users to pick features from monitor size to processing power. But when it comes to the software that will run it, the choice is Windows 95 or Windows 98 -- Microsoft or Microsoft." (Thanks to John Thacker).

• There is an article (in French) in Libération about the Windows refund activities in France. It mentions a French law which prohibits the forced coupling of products which could bolster the case of people seeking refunds in that country. (Babelfish translation available here). (Thanks to Stéfane Fermigier).

• See also: ABC News, the (Christchurch, NZ) Press, or the Detroit News.

And here's the rest of the press:

• MSNBC has put out a personality piece on Linus, seemingly based on a reading of linux-kernel messages. "Dozens of messages reveal a 'legend' who is accessible to anyone, as long as you're willing to share a snippet of code that might improve Linux. But that doesn't mean he'll be polite about it."

• Linus Torvalds is interviewed by the readers of Libération (in French). There are some interesting questions. Also readable in English (sort of) via Babelfish. (Found in NNL).

• Nicholas Petreley has handed out his 1998 Down to the Wire Awards. "The award for the Most Effective Promotion of Linux goes to Microsoft..."

• Here is a ZDNet UK story about an Irish ISP (connect.ie) that got shut down by politically-motivated crackers. Their solution to the problem? Replace their servers with Linux machines. (Thanks to David Killick).

• A note (in French) was sent out on the NNL list pointing to this lengthy hatchet job (also in French) one the site of one Daniel Martin. It's an impressive read. One can only echo the words of NNL author Jerome Kalifa: "90% de ce qui est ecrit est parfaitement faux (difficile de ne pas laisser echapper un hurlement d'indignation toutes les dix lignes)..." (Editor's poor translation: "90% of is written is completely false (it is difficult not to let out a scream of indignation every ten lines)." The document is far too long for Babelfish, unfortunately; it just laughs if you try.

Next: Security