Slackware is widely regarded as the oldest active Linux distributions. Right on time for Christmas, the distro, which once served as a basis for (open) SUSE, is available in a new version.

The second beta of Firefox 3.1 has arrived with a new JavaScript engine, data security mode and web worker threads.

Opera measures up. With a new, faster version of the Presto engine and a 100/100 score in the Acid3 test, the browser might easily get under its competition’s skin.

The feud between Minix inventor and operating system czar Andrew W. Tanenbaum and Linux Torvalds is legendary in the OS world. Before Linux there was Minix. Torvalds used to be a Minix user who set up his first Linux version in 1991 on Professor Tanenbaum’s operating system. Mr. Tanenbaum has now agreed to write a guest editorial for Linux Magazine. His opinion has not changed over the years: Linux (and Windows) are “unreliable.”

Moonlight is the name of Novell's Linux implementation of Microsoft's Silverlight 1.0 technology. Moonlight is now available in a Beta version for 32 and 64 Bit Linux systems, albeit only for Firefox users.

After many years of development, the Songbird open source software is finally released as version 1.0.

The OpenSolaris project has issued its second solid release with the Live CD 2008.11, which integrates subprojects such as the installer and package manager.

Mandriva's financial situation appears to be none too rosy. At the end of the year, the distributor will terminate the employment of two of its freelance workers, Adam Williams, effectively the Community Manager, and Package Manager Oden Eriksson.