Enterprise / Open Source News

Thursday, October 04 2007

Heroes of Linux and FOSS: Ken Starks, AKA Helios

http://lxer.com/module/newswire/view/93551/index.html (20071005 00:03)

LXer Feature: 04-Oct-2007

This was originally going to be a comment attached to Build 'em Right, Build 'em Strong, Build 'em Linux. Then it grew and grew, and I decided that Ken deserved his own feature. And then I realized that there are a lot of unsung heroes of FOSS, so watch this space for future installments. I encourage all of you fine LXers to write your own "Heroes" features- there are a lot of people out there who deserve some recognition.

Webkit powers lightweight Web 2.0-compliant browser

http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS6750053334.html (20071004 21:00)

This article introduces the Origyn Web Browser (OWB), an open-source browser based on Apple's Webkit rendering engine and targeting consumer devices such as phones, portable media players, and set-top boxes. The paper was written by Jean-Charles Verdie, CTO of OWB maintainer Pleyo.

Debug tool supports Linux on DaVinci CPUs

http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS9852768341.html (20071004 20:28)

Austrian hardware tools vendor Ronetix has released a new firmware update for its combo JTAG/BDM emulator and flash programmer. The update brings support for "all DaVinci CPUs with an ARM926 core" to the company's PEEDI ("powerful embedded Ethernet debugging interface") device.

IBM attacks HP's dwarf blade with muffler

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2007/10/04/ibm_muffled_bladecenters/ (20071004 19:54)

Ship the box. Stop the violence

IBM has joined HP in the race to flog short, stumpy blade servers at small- to medium-sized businesses.…

EMC buys into online backup via Berkeley Data Systems

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2007/10/04/emc_mozy/ (20071004 19:45)

Mozy Osbourne

Storage giant EMC branched further into the security market with the acquisition of on-line backup firm Berkeley Data Systems. Financial terms of the deal, officially announced Thursday, were undisclosed but a suggested price tag of $76m was cited when rumors of the pending union first surfaced a fortnight ago.…

Linux shops navigate the nuanced support landscape

http://www.linux.com/feed/119629 (20071004 19:00)

The world of Linux support has changed considerably since the days of Slackware and other early Linux distributions. In many ways, as the subscription-based models of Red Hat and Novell have proven, it's been for the better. Support has become more consistent and effective with these commercial models. But easily accessible, affordable Linux support tailored to users' specific technology environments remains elusive. And those users who have found successful alternatives still warn that it's important to ensure a maximum return on your support investment. It pays -- literally -- to be aware of the subtle nuances and obstacles that remain, users say.

Linux-friendly hypervisor targets multicore ARM

http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS5504828094.html (20071004 18:53)

Trango is demonstrating its virtual processor technology running on multicore ARM11 processors, this week at ARM's developer conference in Santa Clara. The Trango Hypervisor will ship for ARM11 MPCore multiprocessors early next year, followed in Q2 2008 by support for ARM's new multiprocessor-enabled Cortex A9 processors,

The top 10 reasons Web sites get hacked

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2007/100407-web-site-vulnerabilities.html?fsrc=netflash-rss (20071004 18:41)

Web developers are practically ignoring the 10 most common security flaws that put customers at risk.

Linux-to-Unix migrations: Why, when and how to make the move

http://www.linux.com/feed/119627 (20071004 18:30)

Most of the time, when we refer to Unix and Linux migrations we are talking about moving from Unix to Linux. But what about the reverse scenario, moving from Linux to Unix? This raises a few questions: Why would someone want to port to Unix from Linux? What are some of the technical challenges in doing this kind of port? Where do we start?

Undocumented Bypass in PGP Whole Disk Encryption

http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/165326121/article.pl (20071004 18:06)

A non-mouse Coward writes "PGP Corporation's widely adopted Whole Disk Encryption product apparently has an encryption bypass feature that allows an encrypted drive to be accessed without the boot-up passphrase challenge dialog, leaving data in a vulnerable state if the drive is stolen when the bypass feature is enabled. The feature is also apparently not in the documentation that ships with the PGP product, nor the publicly available documentation on their website, but only mentioned briefly in the customer knowledge base. Jon Callas, CTO and CSO of PGP Corp., responded that this feature was required by unnamed customers and that competing products have similar functionality."

Linux group calls Microsoft's bluff

http://www.linux.com/feed/119628 (20071004 18:00)

The head of the Open Invention Network (OIN) has dismissed Microsoft's claims that Linux violates over 200 of its patents.

Red Hat grows fat on the profits of open source

http://www.linux.com/feed/119622 (20071004 17:30)

Open source software provider Red Hat has seen a sharp rise in year-on-year second-quarter profits thanks to increased revenues from its Linux operating system subscriptions.

Announcing openSUSE 10.3 GM

http://digg.com/linux_unix/Announcing_openSUSE_10_3_GM (20071004 17:30)

openSUSE 10.3 just got announced. Download now :)

Apple announcements brewing for late October

http://digg.com/apple/Apple_announcements_brewing_for_late_October (20071004 17:10)

Apple Inc. has begun preparatory measures for significant announcements to take place during the last full week of October, AppleInsider has been told.

Novell punts world's most expensive Linux distro

http://www.linux.com/feed/119620 (20071004 16:30)

One of the favourite public refrains of the FOSS movement is that Windows is too expensive, and that Microsoft swindles consumers, governments, taxpayers, penguins, and orphans.

Xen Security Issue Patched

http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/165326123/article.pl (20071004 16:27)

An anonymous reader sends in word of a privilege escalation security issue identified in the open source Xen hypervisor. Xen has issued a hotfix and urged all users to install it. The problem was disclosed by Secunia last week. A user of a guest domain with root privileges could execute arbitrary commands in domain 0 via specially crafted entries in grub.conf when the guest system is booted.

What Every Programmer Should Know About Memory, Part 1

http://osnews.com/story.php/18722/What-Every-Programmer-Should-Know-About-Memory-Part-1/ (20071004 16:23)

"Ulrich Drepper [the gnu libc project leader] recently approached us [LWN] asking if we would be interested in publishing a lengthy document he had written on how memory and software interact. Memory usage is often the determining factor in how software performs, but good information on how to avoid memory bottlenecks is hard to find. This article is the first in a serie of articles (the original has over 100 pages) that will get published on LWN weekly. Once the entire series is out, Ulrich will be releasing the full text."

Symantec seeking product management umbrella

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2007/100407-symantec-product-management.html?fsrc=netflash-rss (20071004 16:03)

Orlando — Symantec is looking to bring its storage, backup, security protection, configuration and patch-management tools under a common management umbrella that will lead to better IT policy and compliance reporting, a company executive said Wednesday.

Sweet Symphony is out of tune with OOo

http://www.linux.com/feature/119596 (20071004 16:00)

Last month, just one week after IBM announced it would help with OpenOffice.org's development, the company released Lotus Symphony, an office suite based on OpenOffice.org code. I found a lot of slick features in Lotus Symphony, but I worry that Symphony could affect the OpenOffice.org community adversely.

Building A Solaris 10 Recovery DVD

http://www.linux.com/feed/119618 (20071004 15:30)

There was a lot of interest generated by my last article titled "Build a (Very) Inexpensive Solaris 10 Workstation". Several topics were brought up in this feedback, among which these two questions "what tools does Solaris have for backups?" and "is it possible to make a restore DVD for Solaris?" struck me as particularly important. For reasons of my own, which I divulge in the Purpose section, I decided to pursue these questions and write an article.

Apache virtual hosts quick and easy

http://lxer.com/module/newswire/ext_link.php?rid=93623 (20071004 14:04)

Virtual hosts are used to run more than one web site on a single machine. Virtual hosts can be "IP-based", meaning that you have a different IP address for every web site, or "name-based", meaning that you have multiple names running on each IP address. You can also run your web pages on different ports like 8080 or 8090. The fact that they are running on the same physical server is not apparent to the end user. This workshop describes the different setups based on an OpenSuse 10.2 server.

Verizon's LG VX10000 Voyager Revealed and Groped (with Gallery)

http://digg.com/tech_news/Verizon_s_LG_VX10000_Voyager_Revealed_and_Groped_with_Gallery (20071004 13:40)

Though images have leaked here and there, not much was known about the LG VX10000 from Verizon Wireless. Sure, when open, it looks like the QWERTY-obsessed LG enV, but when closed, it's got way more of a Prada—or dare I say iPhone?—vibe. More details and full gallery after the jump.

BT aims to make UK a Wi-Fi kibbutz

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2007/10/04/bt_fon_wifi_kibbutz/ (20071004 13:18)

Hold the FON

BT unveiled ambitious plans today to create the world's most extensive Wi-Fi network by persuading consumers to share access to their home router.…

ARM finds friends for mobile Linux

http://lxer.com/module/newswire/ext_link.php?rid=93613 (20071004 12:30)

ARM today flexed its mobile muscle by revealing a fairly broad coalition focused on developing a version of Linux well-suited for future smart phones.

New iMacs plagued by interface freezing issues

http://digg.com/apple/New_iMacs_plagued_by_interface_freezing_issues (20071004 12:10)

A growing number of users have reported that Apple's aluminum all-in-one computers suffer from a flaw that locks up the interface, rendering the system all but inert until a reboot.

UK start-up tackles PIN fraud with patterns

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2007/10/04/pin_fraud/ (20071004 12:03)

Bye-bye shoulder surfing

We all know that the weakest link in almost any security system is the user. We puny humans are prone to errors, and so we tend to write down complicated passwords, or choose ones which are stupidly easy to guess.…

UC Berkeley First to Post Full Lectures to YouTube

http://digg.com/tech_news/UC_Berkeley_First_to_Post_Full_Lectures_to_YouTube_2 (20071004 10:50)

YouTube is now an important teaching tool at UC Berkeley. The school said it will continue to expand the offering. The topics of study found on YouTube included chemistry, physics, biology and even a lecture on search-engine technology given in 2005 by Google co-founder Sergey Brin.

German watchdog opposes Google purchase of DoubleClick

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2007/10/04/google_doubleclick_privacy_warning/ (20071004 10:28)

Double trouble for privacy

The proposed $3.1bn merger of search giant Google and online advertising company DoubleClick would lead to "a massive violation of data privacy rights", a German privacy watchdog has warned.…

Can Linux save the UMPC from extinction?

http://lxer.com/module/newswire/ext_link.php?rid=93607 (20071004 10:08)

UMPC has hardly set the world on fire as gadgets go, can Linux fan the flames?

Networking 2.6.24 Merge Plans

http://lxer.com/module/newswire/ext_link.php?rid=93596 (20071004 09:17)

"I'm a bit behind after investigating the TCP performance issues that turned out to be HW specific problems. It's a bit of a disappointment, I thought maybe there was a cool bug to fix in TCP :-)" explained David Miller, posting hisnetworking merge plans for the upcoming 2.6.24 kernel. He noted,"I merged in Jeff Garzik's and John Linville's latest and I'm running the current tree on my workstation most of today with good results so far." David added,"I plan to commit my Neptune driver in it's current state, and that's the last new feature going in."

The Next Leap for Linux

http://digg.com/linux_unix/The_Next_Leap_for_Linux (20071004 09:00)

Until recently, major PC makers shied away from Linux. Now the industry is watching as Dell is selling two Linux-equipped desktop models and a notebook PC.

Comfortably Debian

http://lxer.com/module/newswire/ext_link.php?rid=93603 (20071004 08:25)

After futzing around with the $0 Laptop for the past week or two, I'm tired. So I left the damn thing in the car (it's running Xubuntu 7.04 after display issues made me give up on Slackware 12). I don't quite know what to run on it. I'll probably put Ubuntu 7.04 on it in anticipation of 7.10. So I fired up the converted thin client -- the Maxspeed Maxterm with VIA C3 1 GHz and 256 MB RAM -- and ran Debian Etch. It's like a comfortable, old shoe.

Holonyx Releases RESTORE Backup and Recovery Software into Open Source Community

http://prweb.com/releases/2007/10/prweb558439.htm (20071004 08:12)

Holonyx Inc. has released RESTORE, a Linux-based enterprise network backup and recovery solution for Windows, Novell NetWare, Mac OS X, Unix and Linux systems as an open source project. (PRWeb Oct 4, 2007) Post Comment:Trackback URL: http://www.prweb.com/pingpr.php/TWFnbi1JbnNlLUhhbGYtVGhpci1UaGlyLVplcm8=

Pluggable Schedulers vs. Pluggable Security

http://lxer.com/module/newswire/ext_link.php?rid=93600 (20071004 06:19)

In a continuing discussion about the difference between pluggable security and pluggable schedulers,Linus Torvalds added "the arguments that 'servers' have a different profile than 'desktop' is pure and utter garbage, and is perpetuated by people who don't know what they are talking about." Regarding the comparison between pluggable schedulers and pluggable security, Linus stated: "Really - not only is the whole 'desktop scheduler' argument totally bogus to begin with, quite frankly, when you say that it's the 'same issue' as with security models, you're simply FULL OF SH*T."

Setting time the right way, the Linux way

http://lxer.com/module/newswire/ext_link.php?rid=93604 (20071004 05:22)

"Does anyone really know what time it is? Does anyone really care?" It's a fine song lyric for Chicago, but when it comes to computers, the answer is, "Yes, we really care. We, really, really care that our all are computers' servers logs, e-mail date and time stamps, and our backups agree on the date and time." How do you do that, though? The usual answer on SOHO (Small Office/Home Office) networks is to have each PC call in over the Internet to a NTP (Network Time Protocol) server. That's fine, but it does waste a few bits of network bandwidth and with any modern Linux you can set up your own personal NTP server for your PCs.

Salesforce.com Eyes Data-Sharing Service

http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/cio/feed/solutions/1375/~3/165233002/Salesforce.com_Eyes_Data_Sharing_Service (20071004 05:00)

Salesforce.com is considering plans for a new service that would allow customers to share sales leads and other data directly with other companies using its on-demand CRM (customer relationship management) software.

Data Strategy at the Department of Defense

http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/cio/feed/solutions/1375/~3/165238848/Data_Strategy_at_the_Department_of_Defense (20071004 05:00)

Michael E. Krieger, director of information policy for the Department of Defense, discusses how the DoD's Net-Centric Data Strategy is enabling the transition to an enterprise service-oriented architecture.

U.S. Gov't E-Mail Server Turns into Spam Cannon

http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/cio/feed/solutions/1375/~3/165188062/U.S._Gov_t_E_Mail_Server_Turns_into_Spam_Cannon (20071004 05:00)

Subscribers to a U.S. Department of Homeland Security daily e-mail bulletin were inundated with dozens of e-mails on Wednesday due to a glitch with the mailing list.

Apple's Not 'Bricking' Hacked IPhones for Revenge

http://digg.com/apple/Apple_s_Not_Bricking_Hacked_IPhones_for_Revenge (20071004 03:20)

Many people seem to think Apple is deliberately "bricking" hacked iPhones with a software update as payback for users having the temerity to hack the devices.

Source: iPhone "SDK" will remain web-based for the foreseeable future

http://digg.com/apple/Source_iPhone_SDK_will_remain_web_based_for_the_foreseeable_future (20071004 02:00)

Apple is planning to add a number of features to its mobile Safari that will allow developers of web-based iPhone apps more face time on the iPhone, but those apps will remain just that: web-based.

Bugtraq: FreeBSD Security Advisory FreeBSD-SA-07:08.openssl

http://www.securityfocus.com/archive/1/481440 (20071004 01:32)

FreeBSD Security Advisory FreeBSD-SA-07:08.openssl

IBM and HP objects of x86 server customer desire

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2007/10/04/gcg_survey_2007/ (20071004 01:32)

Sun and Dell get tepid marks and ire

Customers still have a crush on IBM and Hewlett-Packard as x86 server vendors while Sun Microsystems and Dell continue to receive lukewarm satisfaction, according to a new survey.…

Planned Features For X.Org 7.4, 7.5

http://digg.com/linux_unix/Planned_Features_For_X_Org_7_4_7_5 (20071004 01:30)

Last month at the X Developer Summit in Cambridge, Eric Anholt, Adam Jackson, and Daniel Stone had talked about the future of X.Org releases for the next year. Over the weekend, Daniel Stone had updated the XDS 2007 Notes at X.org with the latest plans for X.Org 7.5.

Stratavia adds predictive analysis to IT automation platform

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2007/100307-stratavia-data-center-automation.html?fsrc=netflash-rss (20071004 01:18)

Data center automation vendor Stratavia updates its Data Palette 4.0 software with features designed to further remove manual labor from day-to-day IT operations tasks.

Wireless carrier association warns against buying into WiMAX hype

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2007/100307-gsma-wimax-hype.html?fsrc=netflash-rss (20071004 01:18)

The GSM Association says that businesses and investors who found themselves dazzled by the recent WiMAX World convention shouldn’t buy into the hype, since WiMAX is still in its developmental stages, while High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) is delivering high-speed mobile broadband right now.

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