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Linux in the news


Recommended Reading

Gnutella is Dead (ZDNet). ZDNet reports on gnutella's scalability problems. "But essentially, if user A makes a request for a file from user B, who is offline, the software sends a 'push' packet broadcast to all the other computers connected to user A instead of routing it back to where it came from. This lack of routing and pushing when the host is offline contributes to more than 50 percent of the total traffic on bad days."

Herbert Simon Dies (PG News). The PG News site is carrying a brief article on the death of Herbert Simon. Mr. Simon worked primarily in economics, but had a large influence on Computer Science and AI as well. Anybody who hasn't read The Sciences of the Artificial should go out and get a copy now...

Landmark Linux Tome Updated (Wired). Wired News has put up an article on the revised version of The Cathedral and the Bazaar. "Think you've read it already? You probably haven't. [Eric] Raymond has often said that the book is an ongoing project that will probably never be finished, and he's recently updated the book again with significant new material." (Thanks to Jay R. Ashworth).

Linux World

A walk on the Embedded side ... of LinuxWorld NY (LinuxDevices.com). LinuxDevices.com has put together a lengthy summary of LinuxWorld from an embedded systems point of view. "In fact, I'll venture a (self-serving?) prediction that this year is shaping up to be 'the year of Linux in Devices' -- with products like Linux-based PDAs, cell phones, web pads, and set-top entertainment systems hitting the market in growing numbers as the year rolls on."

Companies

Microsoft investigated for Corel investment (News.com). News.com has run a brief article on the investigation of Microsoft's investment in Corel. "One of the concerns of antitrust investigators is Ottawa-based Corel's decision to shed most of its Linux computer-operating system business since the investment..."

Microsoft's Linux 'message' (ZDNet). Here's a brief ZDNet article on Microsoft's approach to Linux. "Finally, the implication that software users need a company like Microsoft to provide innovation is just so much leftover spin from the DOJ trial. The fact is that a completely decentralized, noncorporate coalition delivered Linux as it stands today. Now that's innovation."

Microsoft looks for Linux inspiration (Fairfax IT). Fairfax IT looks at Microsoft's latest recruiting tactic in Australia. "An international recruiter from Microsoft's Redmond headquarters has approached Linux user groups in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide seeking software developers interested in joining the company's Windows core networking team."

Internet consortium to launch fee-based security alert service (NW Fusion). Network World Fusion looks at ISC's plans to set up a fee-based forum for BIND security information. "'ISC found that speaking to vendors through the CERT advisory process was somewhat awkward and made for extra work on both sides' [Paul] Vixie said. 'The next time we learn, through CERT or otherwise, that there is an attackable bug in code that we've published, we hope to have a direct and very private communications forum with the people who run the Internet infrastructure or who need lead time to prepare patches for their customers.'" (Thanks to Cèsar A. K. Grossmann).

Falling revenue spurs Turbolinux layoffs (News.com). News.com reports on events at Turbolinux. "However, the company has lost some of technical staff recently, including Samba programmer John Terpstra, who moved to rival Caldera Systems, and Peter Braam, a Linux file system programmer who along with former Turbolinux Chief Executive Cliff Miller founded Mountain View Data."

TurboLinux going through layoffs and restructuring today (NewsForge). NewsForge reports that it's Turbolinux's turn to go through layoffs, again. "Jerry Greenberg, senior marketing v.p., says, 'We built the company on the expectation of doubling every quarter. We're growing well, but not at that rate. We had to respond to it.'"

Linux seller SuSE slashes U.S. staff (News.com). News.com reports on the layoffs at SuSE. "It's been an era of belt-tightening as the evaporation of Linux hype forces Linux companies to adopt more down-to-earth plans for capitalizing from the software's popularity."

Another Linux love feast (ZDNet). This ZDNet article looks at Caldera's strategy with UnixWare. "Caldera executives say partners should expect a new product-branding strategy. Specifically, Caldera's platforms will be branded by functionality (database server, Web server, etc.) instead of by operating system. The partner push will involve cross-selling and cross-development between the UnixWare and Linux communities."

Business

Sun vs. Microsoft -- until when? (ZDNet). ZDNet attended a speech by Sun CEO Scott McNealy and was not impressed. "In this business, the only real open industry standard in the computer industry is Linux, which thankfully remains beyond the clutches of the moguls. Everything else is hokum designed to lock developers (and by extension, customers) into proprietary corners of the computing constellation."

Resources

Linux Audio Plug-Ins: A Look Into LADSPA (ONLamp). Here's an ONLamp article on the LADSPA audio plugin architecture. "LADSPA's design is based upon the extensive research that has already gone into applications such as Csound and other MusicV software synthesis environments. The LADSPA architects have provided a lightweight, flexible API based upon those long-established technologies and have created a plug-in architecture as useful for software sound synthesis and mixing as it is for modular effects processing."

Reviews

Assessing Linux's progress on the desktop (ZDNet). ZDNet looks at Linux on the desktop. "Evolution is nearly identical in look and feel to Microsoft Outlook, faithfully reproducing even the annoying Outlook Bar--something I hide in new installations of that Microsoft application even before I disable the hated Office Assistant."

Interviews

How SuSE Carries Its Big Stick (Linux Planet). Linux Planet talks with SuSE CTO Dirk Hohndel. "Now that recent events have seen a financial downturn for the Linux wave of hype, Hohndel explained, he is very encouraged by the fact that Linux has not gone away and that customer interest in Linux is going up. This, to him, is a sure sign that Linux is not just a fair-weather technology subject to the whims of financial and corporate hype."

Interview: Linux Disrupts The Status Quo (TechWeb). TechWeb interviews Red Hat CTO Michael Tiemann. "We're fundamentally trying to change the economics of the computer industry by putting power into the hands of users, which is something Microsoft and other members of the proprietary-system industry are not willing to do. We aren't going to butt heads with Microsoft because we're not really on the same path."

Miscellaneous

Netscape browser ratchets up to version 6.01 (News.com). News.com reports on the Netscape 6.01 release. "In a strange twist, AOL Time Warner faces potential competition from Netscape's open-source browser project--that is, if the operation can ever get a browser out the door. Mozilla.org has labored for about three years to deliver a next-generation browser, in an effort to demonstrate that open-source programmers from different companies can collaborate to deliver a viable commercial product."

Section Editor: Forrest Cook


February 15, 2001

 

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