Feb 23, 2017 GMT
Forks -- the splitting of one project from another -- are a natural part of free software. They are implicit in the Free Software Foundation's Four Freedoms, and I would no more attempt to deny the right of a fork to exist than I would attempt to insist that everyone use one Linux distribution or desktop environment. However, a few weeks ago, while preparing an article about the animosity between the Network Time Protocol and its hostile fork NTPsec, I came to the conclusion that there are forks that deserve support, and others that do not. The more I investigated, the harder a neutral presentation of NTPsec became. Increasingly, it seemed a fork made for most of the wrong...Off the Beat: Bruce Byfield's Blog
Feb 15, 2017 GMT
Last week, for the first time in a long while, a bug I filed saw action. I filed it over a year ago, and had almost forgot about it, which made the sudden activity around it especially welcome.I filed Bug 98993 for LibreOffice in March 2016, as I was putting the final touches on my book Designing with LibreOfice. As I was writing, I noticed that how LibreOffice Writer handled line spacing had changed some time around release 4.2. Before then, line-spacing could be set to one-tenth of a point. After that, however, any attempt to use decimals was automatically rounded off.If you never design documents, that change may seem trivial. After all, a point is a measurement equal to 1/72 inches,...Feb 06, 2017 GMT
A whole industry exists to encourage would-be writers. Magazines, websites, seminars, and reading services all support an entire sub-culture that for many becomes more of a social club than a means for members to realize their literary ambitions. Written in Java, bibisco is a free software contribution to this sub-culture: a database for planning everything in a novel from the characters to the setting and the plot. As a way to organize your ideas, it seems sensible enough, but whether it is actually useful probably depends on your work habits. Personally, as a very occasional fiction writer, I remain skeptical.The most useful feature of bibisco is its organization. It consists of a...Jan 27, 2017 GMT
The newly announced KDE Slimbook is not free hardware. All the same, it is an important step in bringing Linux and related technologies to a commercial audience. Unlike last year's Aquaris M10 Ubuntu Edition, the KDE Slimbook is a high end machine, with a mature desktop environment – KDE Plasma – that should show off free software to full advantage. Recently, I talked with Aleix Pol, the Vice President of KDE e.V, the governing body for the popular desktop environment, about how the project came about.According to Pol, the venture began in Madrid in April 2016 at Akademy-es, a Spanish gathering for KDE. "one of the presenters, Pol recalls, was Alejandro López, the founder...Jan 25, 2017 GMT
These days, support for various technologies under Linux can often be taken for granted. An exception is Bluetooth, whose configuration remains arcane, as I found when trying to add a Bluetooth speaker to my workstation. My efforts were dogged by outdated information, and sometimes lack of information, but the audio improvement added by a high-end speaker made the effort more than worth my time.As you might expect, the best time to add support for any Bluetooth device is during a fresh installation. However, adding Bluetooth after installation is also possible. It consists of four steps: enabling general Bluetooth support, pairing the speaker with the computer, configuring the computer to...Jan 18, 2017 GMT
In recent weeks, I find myself thinking about Ian Murdock, the founder of Debian and my former employee. Ian, you may remember, died a year ago after being beaten by the police. At the time, I described him as demonstrating "the modesty of a man who has nothing to prove." It's a description that applies to most of the best-known developers in free software.Not that as a non-programmer I haven't had my share of grief. Worse, I entered free software as a technical writer, so over the years I got used to being in a gunslinger scenario for the first few weeks of any contract.Part of the problem is that most developers have seen their share of incompetent technical writers. Far too...Jan 11, 2017 GMT
For over a year now, I have been watching the efforts to develop open hardware. I have been especially interested in the combination of open hardware and crowdfunding. Not only are the lists of open hardware campaigns like an adult version of a toy catalog, but the combination helps small businesses and is becoming a source of new businesses as well. Sadly, though, in my own experience, the resulting products have left a little to be desired.The Pi-Top LaptopThe first open hardware project I backed was Pi-Top. Its product was a do-it-yourself laptop running on a Raspberry Pi. I reviewed the Pi-Top enthusiastically -- to the point that I worried if I could discuss it impartially, but,...Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Linux Servers Targeted by Akira Ransomware
A group of bad actors who have already extorted $42 million have their sights set on the Linux platform.
-
TUXEDO Computers Unveils Linux Laptop Featuring AMD Ryzen CPU
This latest release is the first laptop to include the new CPU from Ryzen and Linux preinstalled.
-
XZ Gets the All-Clear
The back door xz vulnerability has been officially reverted for Fedora 40 and versions 38 and 39 were never affected.
-
Canonical Collaborates with Qualcomm on New Venture
This new joint effort is geared toward bringing Ubuntu and Ubuntu Core to Qualcomm-powered devices.
-
Kodi 21.0 Open-Source Entertainment Hub Released
After a year of development, the award-winning Kodi cross-platform, media center software is now available with many new additions and improvements.
-
Linux Usage Increases in Two Key Areas
If market share is your thing, you'll be happy to know that Linux is on the rise in two areas that, if they keep climbing, could have serious meaning for Linux's future.
-
Vulnerability Discovered in xz Libraries
An urgent alert for Fedora 40 has been posted and users should pay attention.
-
Canonical Bumps LTS Support to 12 years
If you're worried that your Ubuntu LTS release won't be supported long enough to last, Canonical has a surprise for you in the form of 12 years of security coverage.
-
Fedora 40 Beta Released Soon
With the official release of Fedora 40 coming in April, it's almost time to download the beta and see what's new.
-
New Pentesting Distribution to Compete with Kali Linux
SnoopGod is now available for your testing needs