Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols

Xandros 4.0, the first new version of Xandros Inc.s desktop Linux distribution in a year and a half, arrived on June 20. Xandros 4 is based on Debian Sarge Linux, with LSB (Linux Standard Base) improvements courtesy of the DCC Alliances Common Core. It also includes the KDE 3.42 desktop interface. If you want GNOME, […]

According to a Novell confidential memo dated June 14, Novell will be slightly delaying its next release of both the server and desktop versions of SUSE Linux Enterprise 10 “to address final issues with our new package management, registration, and update system and also fix the remaining blocker defects.” SUSE has a new update and […]

Would you believe that The SCO Group, enemy of all things Linux, will be releasing a Linux distribution? Thats what a purported press release from an SCO-owned site in Germany, OpenLinux, claimed over the weekend. It was a fake. Before the truth was revealed though, it seems to have fooled at least a few people […]

This past Saturday, June 17, saw the arrival of the latest stable version of the Linux kernel: Linux 2.6.17. While this new kernel doesnt boast any earth-shaking additions, it does include numerous improvements to Linux for both users and developers. For many laptop users, the most important news is that Linux now includes built-in driver […]

Only a few weeks after releasing its first Linux application—the photo editing program Picasa—Google has released its second application for Linux: Google Earth for Linux 4. Unlike Picasa, however, which runs with its own bundled copy of WINE, an open-source implementation of the Windows API (application programming interface), Google Earth is a native Linux application. […]

Raza Microelectronics Inc. has agreed to acquire Advanced Micro Devices MIPS RISC architecture-based Alchemy processor line and business unit. AMD, meanwhile, will invest in RMI, and RMI will back AMDs recently announced “Torrenza” AMD64 ecosystem. Both AMD and RMI say they are committed to a smooth transition for current Alchemy customers. RMI plans to maintain […]

On June 15, Bill Gates announced that he would be retiring from Microsoft in July 2008, and everything changed. It may be two years away, but when a giant the size of Gates moves, the world moves with him. And, in that movement, in this period of change, Linux may have its best chance ever […]

Whats next? Dogs and cats marrying each other? It almost sounds like a joke headline, but there it is: a top Microsoft executive saying complimentary things about open source. Its not really all that different from what Microsoft has said before, but what makes it interesting is whos saying it. Bob Muglia, senior VP of […]

It turns out that Microsofts Genuine Advantage anti-piracy program is also keeping daily tabs on Windows users. Who knew? Well, until a few days ago, nobody outside of Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Wash., knew. According to an Associated Press report, David Lazar, director of the WGA (Windows Genuine Advantage) program, Microsoft was doing this as […]

Not everyone runs as many “personal” computers as I have—24, at last count—but many of us have both a PC and a laptop. One of the big problems, whether you run two dozen or two PCs, is keeping your Web browser bookmarks and other settings straight. And, when you run more than one operating system, […]

On June 8, The SCO Group reported results for its fiscal second quarter, which ended April 30. The news wasnt good. SCO, the Unix and wireless software company best known for its rounds of Linux and IBM lawsuits, showed revenue for the second quarter of $7.126 million. For the comparable quarter last year, the company […]

Say youre in the business of making PCs. And, you want to make money at this business. Its not easy. There was a time in the 90s when you could slap some cards into a motherboard, put a generic gray case around the electronics, stick an ad in Computer Shopper, and start cashing the checks. […]