Articles about Linux

Using a Linux distribution as your desktop operating system can be hit or miss. Depending on your needs, it may work brilliantly or horribly. You see, most mainstream apps are not available, so you must depend on alternative software. For instance, for some users, GIMP is a passable replacement for photoshop and Libreoffice for Microsoft Office.

When it comes to photo management, there is really only one great Linux app -- Shotwell, by a company called Yorba. If you do amateur or professional photography and you want to organize your photos, there really isn't a better piece of software on Linux. Sure, there are alternatives such as F-Spot, but Shotwell is the definitive app. Sadly, it hasn't been getting the attention it needs lately, which was worrying to some users (myself included). As a result, Yorba has handed over development and the recipient is rather surprising -- the Elemenatary OS team.

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Red Hat Enterprise Linux is a wonderful operating system for commercial users. However, there is one major downside to it -- it costs money. Luckily, Red Hat provides the source code to the open-source community. This enables groups to use the code to build their own free distributions, such as CentOS. While these distributions are just as functional as RHEL, they lack support from Red Hat.

Even though the existence of CentOS can potentially take money from Red Hat's pockets, there never seemed to be any resentment or animosity. In fact, just yesterday, Red Hat surprised the Linux community and announced that it will sponsor that distribution going forward. In other words, CentOS is now owned by Red Hat Inc -- the father has officially adopted its illegitimate baby and Fedora has a new step-brother.

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As 2013 crawls towards the finish line, we can reflect on Christmas, the gifts we gave and received and for some people, the birth of Jesus. However, December contains another significant birthday, belonging to Linus Torvalds. Yes, the father of Linux was born this month.

His birthday is a great time to thank the man for his contributions. However, it also marks an appropriate time to reflect on the state of Linux. Was 2013 a good or bad year for the kernel?

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Android is Linux; it utilizes Linus Torvald's kernel. However, for many, it is looked at as a bastardization of Linux -- not a true distribution. I get that; after all, Google's own Android apps are closed-sourced and many of the devices have locked bootloaders. These hindrances, whether the fault of Android or not, are not exactly in the spirit of the free and open Linux community.

Many users crave more -- to have a full-fledged Linux distribution on their mobile device. And so, Canonical, owner of one of the most popular distributions, Ubuntu has been trying to answer the prayers of those dissatisfied with Android, with Ubuntu Touch. While the software has been promising, it is not yet ready to replace Android. Today, Canonical announces an interim solution -- the Ubuntu and Android dual boot developer preview.

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Many Linux users have been holding their breath in anticipation for the 20th version of Fedora Linux, codenamed Heisenbug. While not the most popular distribution overall, it is the distro of choice for one influential user -- Mr. Linus Torvalds, creator of the Linux kernel. Not to mention, many other users around the globe.

Sadly, version 20 has missed its deadline a couple of times. While those delays were disappointing, it was also appreciated. After all, you do not want a buggy operating system, do you? Luckily, Santa Claus came a little early to the Linux community -- the final version of Fedora Linux is here now!

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Anyone who fancies the idea of building their own gaming box can head over to the Valve website can grab themselves a beta copy of SteamOS. The Linux-based operating system is available for anyone to download free of charge and coincides with the shipping of 300 prototypes of Valve's Steam Machine devices to specially selected testers. The OS and boxes have both been designed with pure gaming in mind -- but the system requirements are quite specific.

The download weighs in at 960MB, and there are reports that the servers are struggling as legions of eager gamers hit the link. But before you rush over to the site and start the download for yourself, take a moment to check whether your rig is up to the task. You'll need a 64-bit processor, but both Intel and AMD will do the job equally well, and 4GB of RAM is also required.

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Fedora is my favorite Linux distribution. Sadly, the next release, version 20, has been delayed until later in the month. This news has ruined my holidays -- it is like Santa Claus gave my computer coal.

However, the owner of Fedora, Red Hat, announces some news to brighten my spirits with the first beta release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 7. IT professionals should stock their mini-fridges with Red Bull -- the future of enterprise Linux is now.

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It was only a month ago that Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.5 Beta became available. Apparently, the beta-testing went smoothly because today, Red Hat announces that the final version is immediately available. In other words, if you work in IT and your company uses RHEL, you had better buy some Red Bull.

"Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.5 is designed for those who build and manage large, complex IT projects, especially enterprises that require an open hybrid cloud. From security and networking to virtualization, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.5 provides the capabilities needed to manage these environments, such as tools that aid in quickly tuning the system to run SAP applications based on published best practices from SAP", says the company.

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When it comes to Linux, I am very flaky. You see, I tend to never settle on a specific distro. While I always seem to end up on Fedora, I do tend to cheat. Yes, I am monogamous for the most part, but I can be found canoodling with Mint, Netrunner and openSUSE from time to time. The latter operating system is well-known for being rock-solid and well-supported. My wandering eye is always keeping tabs on the chameleon-logo distribution and today, there is big news.

"Dear contributors, friends and fans: The release is here! Eight months of planning, packaging, adding features, fixing issues, testing and fixing more issues has brought you the best that Free and Open Source has to offer, with our Green touch: Stable and Awesome", says Jos Poortvliet, community manager at SUSE.

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While I love Linux, quality magazines about the kernel are few and far between. Over the years, my favorite has been Linux Format. I was attracted to the magazine by the quality articles and interesting content. However, the price of the magazine was particularly high in the USA, which often deterred my purchase (it is printed in the UK). After all, Linux is free but the magazine cost about $13/month at Barnes and Noble -- a tough sell. Not to mention, with the explosion of tablets, reading paper magazines feels a bit outdated (I still enjoy a hard-copy of Reader's Digest on my toilet tank though).

Apparently, it is not all roses at Linux Format as many of the employees have jumped ship due to creative differences and are trying to form a new magazine called Linux Voice. Of course, to get the project off the ground, the former-employees have turned to crowd-funding to turn their dream into a reality. The question becomes, is there a need for another magazine?

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Fedora recently celebrated a 10th birthday, but the Linux distribution is not done reaching milestones. Today, Red Hat announces that Fedora is launching the beta version of the upcoming 20th version of the popular operating system, dubbed "Heisenbug".

"Linux enthusiasts are encouraged to download the beta release of Fedora 20, take it for a test drive and help identify items that may need attention before Fedora 20 is generally available. With the beta release, the software is feature complete but may have some bugs. Real-world testing and reports from users are vital to help identify any new or undiscovered bugs so that they can be addressed before wider distribution", says The Fedora Project Team.

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When an enterprise is looking to utilize a Platform as a Service (PaaS), there are many options. However, one of the more popular options that emerged in 2011 is Red Hat's OpenShift (the enterprise-class public Silver tier launched in June 2013). Amazingly, the user base has grown 259-percent, while the application count grew by 322-percent year-over-year -- a remarkable feat to say the least.

Today, Red Hat announces that it is not content with this growth, as the company looks to take it even further. "Red Hat is expanding Silver tier availability to 14 new Eurozone countries, including Greece, Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Croatia, Slovenia, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Cyprus and Malta. With this expansion, Red Hat’s world-class technical support and additional platform resources is available for developers and application providers in more than 30 countries", says Red Hat Inc.

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Canonical, the team behind Ubuntu, finds itself the subject of criticism after contacting an Ubuntu related website and asking that the domain name be changed. Fix Ubuntu was created by Micah Lee to provide Ubuntu users with instructions about how to disable the web component of the desktop search tool. Lee was emailed by Canonical to request that he not only stop using the word "Ubuntu" in the domain name, but also refrained from using the logo.

The reason? Canonical's email suggests that the name and use of logo could cause confusion among Ubuntu users:

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People celebrate birthdays every year but the celebrations have expanded beyond humans. A search of YouTube reveals people baking birthday cakes and having celebrations for their pets. However, birthdays can be celebrated for anything, including Linux distributions.

Today, The Fedora Project (which is owned by Red Hat Inc.) celebrates 10 years of bringing open-source joy to the Linux Community. It is hard to believe that the operating system choice of the controversial Linus Torvalds is now 10 years old. That's like...a really long time in internet-years.

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Today, TeamViewer announces a new beta version of its popular remote control software for Windows, Mac and Linux PCs. The latest release, named TeamViewer 9 Beta, introduces new features aimed at businesses, developers and end-users as well as security improvements.

The most noteworthy security addition in TeamViewer 9 Beta is two-factor authentication. It allows users to add an extra layer of protection to their accounts by using security codes, that can be sent to their mobile devices and, alternatively, generated by dedicated mobile apps. On Macs, TeamViewer 9 also adds the option to increase the password strength in QuickSupport.

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