ubuntu

In open source or in product development generally, one of the biggest mistakes is to take on a deeply entrenched incumbent on its own turf. Almost inevitably, if you play someone else's game, even if you're a little cheaper/faster/better, you're going to lose. Inertia favors the incumbent, and there's a whole lot of inertia involved in switching vendors.

For this reason, I agree wholeheartedly with Bill Weinberg's suggestion that Linux's opportunity in Netbooks is to focus on the mobile side of the market, rather than bringing a traditional, personal computer bent to … Read more

Canonical has begun beta-testing a file-synchronization service called Ubuntu One for its Ubuntu Linux desktop operating system.

The closed beta test began Monday for invited members of the Ubuntu user community, with further testers able to sign up by requesting an invitation, Canonical said.

Ubuntu One offers file synchronization for systems running Ubuntu 9.04, code-named Jaunty Jackalope, and is intended to be available to the general public in time for the launch of Ubuntu 9.10, code-named Karmic Koala, in October, Canonical said.

The system is integrated into Ubuntu's Gnome desktop software via a downloadable client, and once … Read more

We learn that Donald is a one-man polka band, Twitter people are never satisfied, and it may be getting slightly easier out there for pimps. It's all tech related though, we swear.

Twitter users ticked off over feed settings tweak http://news.cnet.com/8301-13577_3-10239517-36.html

Intel hammered by EU, faces $1.45 billion fine http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2009/05/intel-hammered-by-eu-faces-145-billion-fine.ars

AMD gains market share from Intel as Atom slumps http://arstechnica.com/hardware/news/2009/05/idc-intel-and-atom-down-amd-up-in-first-quarter.ars

Ill. AG: Craigslist dropping ‘erotic services’ ads http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090513/ap_on_re_us/craigslist_attorneys_general… Read more

Google's still-nascent efforts to dominate the mobile market, already reeling from Apple's surging iPhone platform, were dealt another blow on Thursday when Intel and Novell announced that they will collaborate to promote Intel's Moblin operating system, a rival Linux distribution for mobile devices.

Whereas Google is initially targeting smartphones with Android (though an Android-based Netbook has apparently been released), Intel is targeting Moblin at Netbooks.

Additionally, Android and Moblin aren't simply two different Linux distributions, in the way that Red Hat Enterprise Linux and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server are. Android and Moblin use Linux in different … Read more

The latest Ubuntu release--code named Jaunty Jackalope--boots faster, shuts down faster, and includes numerous improvements that help it become even easier to use than before. If you like open-source software like Firefox, you owe it to yourself to see what an open-source operating system can do.

New features include Exchange-server support for e-mail client Evolution, a revamped program for disc burning, improved multiple-monitor support, a new notification pop-up style, and the ability to create customized hot keys. You can read the full list of changes here.

Microsoft has achieved something of a Pyrrhic victory against Linux-based Netbooks: it now claims 96 percent of the Netbook market, but its earnings continue to be battered by the lower revenues and profits that come with the low-end Netbook phenomenon.

Even as Microsoft "wins" in Netbooks, it loses, as ZDNet's Larry Dignan writes. Microsoft expects "the overall spending environment to remain difficult," but it may not yet appreciate just how much worse it can get.

After all, Canonical, which develops Ubuntu, the world's leading consumer-focused, Linux-based desktop operating system, on Monday released a Netbook-optimized … Read more

Here's what the official press release won't tell you about Ubuntu 9.04, which formally hit the streets overnight: its designers have polished the hell out of its user interface since the last release in October.

So much so, in fact, that I am starting to prefer using my Ubuntu "Jaunty Jackalope" desktop over the similarly slick Windows 7 beta (which I am currently running full-time on one desktop) and Mac OS X Leopard operating systems, which I also use regularly.

I left Windows Vista, XP, and even Debian lying bruised and battered by the roadside … Read more

Version 9.04 of the Ubuntu Linux distribution was made available for download on Thursday.

The latest iteration of the operating system, code-named Jaunty Jackalope, comes in three versions: desktop, server, and Netbook. Jaunty Jackalope is the first version of Ubuntu to come in a Netbook-friendly version from its initial release.

The previous version of Ubuntu, Intrepid Ibex or version 8.10, was released by sponsor company Canonical in October last year. The new version improves upon its predecessor by updating the Gnome interface, the Linux kernel, and the X.Org server, as well as starting faster and supporting ext4, … Read more

One of our listeners is stunned that you can buy a song from John Cage in the iTunes store that is 4 minutes and 33 seconds of silence. In other Apple news, Tim Cook thinks Netbooks suck. And Time Warner says, "Fine, if you don't want to pay our outrageous data fees we won't give you faster Internet. So there."

MySpace CEO to step down http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10225519-93.html

Microsoft in “much better place,” oversight extended to 2011 http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2009/04/antitrust-oversight-of-microsoft-extended-to-may-2011.ars… Read more