Jul 20, 2021 GMT
There is a virus going around. We thought we were winning the battle against it, but powerful forces and events have allowed it to raise its ugly head and cause unforeseen additional hardship.People thought that it was not so bad, they did not listen to reason and take the precautionary measures necessary to protect themselves. In letting down their guard they were unprepared and unprotected.After months of machines being turned off, software licenses (with their expiration dates never “dormant”) are up for renewal.Many companies, educational institutions and public buildings (like libraries) are turning on their Wintel PCs for the first time in over a year and finding that they need...Paw Prints: Writings of the maddog

Dec 19, 2019 GMT
Today I received a link to a news article from Brazili where first-term Parana state deputy Emerson Bacil of Jair Bolsonaro's PSL party is proposing to change a law that prefers Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) used by government over closed source, proprietary software. Mr. Bacil claims that this is necessary because the software is not “free”...it has maintenance and updating costs that have to be considered, and that free software vendors would not provide assistance at the level the government required. Mr. Bacil thinks that the software should be chosen on a case-by-case basis depending on what is needed, including security and confidentiality.The law, written in 2003,...Oct 29, 2018 GMT
IBM bought Red Hat Software.The world wide web is alive with the news, and many of the people who have worked and used Red Hat in the last 25 years are lamenting the “fall” of their beloved company and software.I understand how they feel. The first company I worked for, Aetna Life and Casualty is much smaller than it used to be through various economic reasons. The college I taught at, Hartford State Technical College, was merged with the state community colleges and is not even mentioned today. Bell Laboratories, renamed Lucent and broken off from the world's largest telephone company, purchased by Alcatel, then by Nokia. Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), once the second...Sep 19, 2017 GMT
I have been using the equivalent of “Open Source” since 1969. My entire time in the computer industry has been spent: writing software using software written by the companies that employed me (so I had access to the sources) using code freely written by others for their own use, then contributed to software repositories for others to use I have used software from the GNU project since the mid-1980s and since 1994, of course I used GNU/Linux.I have never personally used software from Apple or Microsoft either at home or (unless circumstances forced me) at work. I resisted using closed-source software of every type.During the last twenty-three (almost the magic...Dec 26, 2016 GMT
Some of my readers may know that I am the Chair for the Board of Directors of the Linux Professional Institute (LPI). Like many things I do, this is a volunteer job, and I could not do it without help from many other volunteers.Founded in 1999, LPI was created as a Canadian based non-profit to “certify users of computer software programs” and “facilitate the exchange of information between computer users”. Since that time LPI has delivered over 500,000 tests, and currently has over 200,000 certificate holders in over 180 countries.The certifications so far are on four major levels, known as “LPI Linux Essentials (LE)”, “Linux Administrator (LPIC-1)”, “Linux Systems...Nov 02, 2016 GMT
“Open Source” has been prominent in Brazil for over ten years. During that time Free and Open Source Software and Hardware (FOSSH) has become associated with the PT political party. However, the use of Open Source Software, Hardware and Culture is not a political issue, but an economic issue that benefits every Brazilian citizen, and therefore should be embraced by every Brazilian political party. This paper will outline why FOSSH should be a major policy of every Brazilian political party. While it is answering a particular current problem in Brazil, it can be used in almost any country.In the paper below, the term “end user customer” is the actual user of the solution,...Sep 21, 2016 GMT
"Microsoft Loves Linux." "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." – Inigo Montoya, "Princess Bride" Over the past year I have heard with increasing volume about how much Microsoft loves Linux. However, I would like to substitute another word for “love”, then tell you why I feel that way.I think that Microsoft "tolerates" Linux, and that “tolerance”, if used on someone who is supposed to be a loved one, would probably quickly cause a divorce. This is why I refuse to say “I do” to Microsoft, having fought for marriage equality I value real marriage and real love too much.I know there are people inside...Issue 268/2023
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News
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LibreOffice 7.5 has Arrived and is Loaded with New Features and Improvements
The favorite office suite of the Linux community has a new release that includes some visual refreshing and new features across all modules.
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The Next Major Release of Elementary OS Has Arrived
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KDE Plasma 5.27 Beta Is Ready for Testing
The latest beta iteration of the KDE Plasma desktop is now available and includes some important additions and fixes.
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Netrunner OS 23 Is Now Available
The latest version of this Linux distribution is now based on Debian Bullseye and is ready for installation and finally hits the KDE 5.20 branch of the desktop.
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New Linux Distribution Built for Gamers
With a Gnome desktop that offers different layouts and a custom kernel, PikaOS is a great option for gamers of all types.
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System76 Beefs Up Popular Pangolin Laptop
The darling of open-source-powered laptops and desktops will soon drop a new AMD Ryzen 7-powered version of their popular Pangolin laptop.
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Nobara Project Is a Modified Version of Fedora with User-Friendly Fixes
If you're looking for a version of Fedora that includes third-party and proprietary packages, look no further than the Nobara Project.
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Gnome 44 Now Has a Release Date
Gnome 44 will be officially released on March 22, 2023.
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Nitrux 2.6 Available with Kernel 6.1 and a Major Change
The developers of Nitrux have officially released version 2.6 of their Linux distribution with plenty of new features to excite users.
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Vanilla OS Initial Release Is Now Available
A stock GNOME experience with on-demand immutability finally sees its first production release.