Posts with tag ubuntu
Posted Oct 11th 2007 5:00PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: Internet, Linux, Open Source
Canonical is set to
release Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon on October 18th. The following week, the Ubuntu Community is hosting an
Ubuntu Open Week, which is essentially a series of online workshops for anyone who's ever had a question about the popular Linux distribution and how its community works.
You can talk to some of the project's key developers, engage in a Q&A with founder Mark Shuttleworth, and learn more about the Ubuntu community. If you want to learn more about a particular Ubuntu project or if you'd like to find out about becoming a developer or tester, this is a great way to get started.
The sessions will all take place on IRC. You'll need to visit the #ubuntu-classroom channel on irc.freenode.net. If you need a refresher on how to use a Windows or Linux IRC client, the organizers have even put together
a handy page explaining how to join the chats.
Ubuntu Open Week runs from Monday, Oct 22nd through Saturday, Oct 27th.
Posted Oct 8th 2007 8:30PM by Dolores Parker
Filed under: Business, Linux, Yahoo!, Open Source, Canonical
If you have an opinion about the next open source master of the universe software company(ies) for 2008, you can
vote for them and make your voice heard at
Linux Magazine's annual top 20 companies to watch edition. Last year,
Zimbra, (recently acquired by Yahoo for $350 million) XenSource (enterprise virtualization bought by Citrix for $500 million) and Canonical (think Ubuntu on Dells) made huge breakthroughs.
Nominate your favorites by October 30 and the finalists will be revealed in January.
Posted Oct 5th 2007 3:00PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: Utilities, Windows, Linux
UNetbootin is a tool that makes installing Linux about as easy as it can be. Like
Wubi, you can install UNetbootin on a Windows partition to get started. Unlike Wubi, the end result with UNetbootin is a dual-boot machine that can boot either into a Windows partition or a Linux one.
So why use UNetbootin instead of downloading and burning a liveCD? Well, if you don't have a spare CD-R writing around, of if your computer doesn't have a CD burner, UNetbootin uses a network-based installation technique. Just select the flavor of UNetbootin you want to install, reboot your machine, and follow the on-screen instructions. This would be an awesome tool for anyone who has one of those super-portable laptops that don't come with optical disc drives.
You can use UNetbootin to install Debian, Arch Linux, Fedora, Mandriva, OpenSuse 10.2, and Ubuntu 6.06 - 7.10. There are Linux and Windows-based installers available which means you can use UNetbootin to add Ubuntu to your Windows PC or to ad Mandriva to your OpenSuse machine. Windows Vista isn't currently supported, but an update should be coming in a few weeks that will allow you to use UNetbootin with Vista.
[via
Howtoforge]
Posted Sep 28th 2007 7:00PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: OS Updates, Linux, Canonical, Beta
With Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon due out in just a few weeks, Canonical has
released the first beta of the next generation of the popular Linux distribution.
We told you about most of the new features in Ubuntu 7.10 when discussing
the alpha release. But the beta label implies a bit more stability as well as a few new enhancements. Here are a few updates since the release of Ubuntu 7.04 Feisty Fawn:
- Read/write support for NTFS partitions
- Lower power consumption
- Improved thin-client support
- Graphical interface for adjusting monitor settings
- Automatic printer installation
- Improved Firefox plugin finder
- Desktop search
You can download
Ubuntu 7.10 as a LiveCD or you can
upgrade from Ubuntu 7.04. We'd probably recommend holding off on the upgrade option until the full release on October 18.
Posted Aug 29th 2007 6:00PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: OS Updates, Linux, Open Source, Canonical
Dashing the hopes of thousands of children of the 80s, the Ubuntu development team has announced that Ubuntu 8.04 will not be named Hungry Hippo. The alliterative Linux distribution is always named after an animal and an adjective. Thus, Ubuntu 7.04 is Feisty Fawn, while 7.10 will be known as Gutsy Gibbon.
8.04 will be Hardy Heron.
While Ubunty 7.10 isn't even out yet, there are a few details we can share regarding 8.04. It will be the next "long term support" version of Ubuntu, which means it will be supported with security updates for three years on the desktop and 5 years on the server. That makes Hardy Heron both an appropriate name and a good choice for businesses seeking a Linux distribution that will be supported into the future.
Hardy Heron is scheduled for an April 2008 release. As one
Digg commenter points out, there's still hope for a Hungry Hippo distribution. After the ZZ version of Ubuntu is released in another 7 or 8 years, perhaps Ubuntu will move to a three word naming cycle, and one day there could be a "Hungry Hungry Hippo."
Posted Aug 25th 2007 10:30AM by Brad Linder
Filed under: OS Updates, Linux, Open Source
The Ubuntu team has released
Gutsy Gibbon Tribe5. Essentially that means this is the 5th Alpha release of the next version of Ubuntu.
This is an Alpha release, so it's recommended for curious early adopters, not for people who need a fully functional bug-free system. But if you can't wait to see some of the features that will included in Ubuntu 7.10, here's some of what Tribe5 has to offer:
- New graphics configuration utility for X that let you easily set up dual monitors, change the default resolution for all users, or change your monitor's refresh rate
- Ubuntu's version of Firefox includes a new Apt-Enabled plugin finder wizard and extension manager
- Ubuntu automatically creates a virtual PDF printer that lets you "print" files to PDF
The printer management system has also been changed to make it easier to configure printers.
[via
Digg]
Posted Aug 8th 2007 6:47PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: OS Updates, Linux, Open Source
Freespire 2.0, the free version of Linspire, is out. And unlike previous versions of Linspire and Freespire, which were built on Debian, Freespire 2.0 is built on top of Ubuntu. (Which, for those keeping track, is based on Debian).
But that doesn't mean Freespire will look or act just like Ubuntu. Freespire 2.0 uses the KDE desktop, which looks a bit more like the Windows and Mac desktop interfaces. Of course, you can also install
Kubuntu, a version of Ubuntu that uses KDE, but Freespire's got a few other tricks up its sleeve:
- Proprietary software like Java, Flash, and Adobe Acrobat are included.
- Proprietary drivers are included for graphics, WiFi cards and other hardware.
- Proprietary codecs for listening to MP3s, Windows Media, and other file formats are included
- The CNR Plugin provides free access to open source and commercial software.
Open source purists may want to steer clear of Freespire 2.0 for its liberal use of closed source, proprietary software. But it looks like the operating system may hit that sweet spot between free and functional.
[via
CyberNet]
Posted Aug 6th 2007 2:00PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: Hardware, News, Linux
Dell's
doing it. Acer's
kind of, sort of doing it. Now Lenovo has announced that they too
will begin selling laptop computers pre-loaded with Linux. While Dell has gone with the popular Ubuntu Linux distribution, Lenovo plans to offer Linux software provided by Novell (we assume that means
Suse).
It's not clear which Lenovo laptop models will get the Linux treatment. But they should be on sale during the 4th quarter of 2007, and will be available to business and home users.
Pretty soon we're going to stop reporting every time a mass market computer manufacturer announces they'll
be distributing Linux PCs, because it's starting to get commonplace. Well, unless you count the possible scammers over at
Medison that claim they'll be releasing a Linux-based PC for $150 using commonly available computer parts. That's not exactly commonplace. But it also looks like a case of too good to be true. We all know Microsoft Windows costs a lot of money, but picking up a fully functional PC for less than the price of Microsoft's operating system? That's probably just too good to be true.
Posted Jul 31st 2007 12:20PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: Hardware, News, Linux
Acer appears to be following
Dell's lead and is installing Ubuntu Linux on at least one notebook PC. The Acer Aspire 5710Z with Ubuntu is only available in Singapore,
where it's advertised for SG$999. That's about $660 US dollars.
This PC's specs would seem to indicate that it's targeted at budget-minded consumers, and the omission of Windows XP or Vista probably helps drive down the price. But while you could only run Windows Vista Home Basic on a computer with just 512MB of RAM, your money gets you a full version of Ubuntu Linux with all the bells and whistles.
Of course, you could just buy a laptop and load your own copy of the free operating system onto it. But we assume Acer have tested Ubuntu on the 5710Z and ensured that all the appropriate drivers are loaded. That alone makes these systems with Ubuntu preloaded worth their weight in gold for the new Linux user.
No word on whether Acer will be offering Linux laptops in the US anytime soon.
[via
Engadget]
Posted Jul 27th 2007 2:30PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: OS Updates, Linux
Not happy with the PCs Dell is selling with Ubuntu preloaded? According to Ubuntu's Mark Shuttleworth, Dell's been pleased enough with sales of the Linux machines that it
plans to offer more models.
Currently Dell is selling three PCs running the Ubuntu Linux distribution, including a model that can be appropriately configured to
sell for exactly $1,337 (hacker for "leet" or "elite").
Dell will neither confirm or deny Shuttleworth's comments, but a spokesperson does say that the company is happy with the response it's been getting to its PCs running Linux.
[via
Engadget]
Posted Jul 20th 2007 11:30AM by Grant Robertson
Filed under: Linux, Canonical
Oh sweet Ubuntu with your rapid development cycle and sexy logo, will you ever slow down? The
third alpha release of Ubuntu 7.10 (due out for real in October) is ready and available for download.
The new version includes the super rap Compiz Fusion 3d desktop, which should make the Gutsy Gibbon rather attractive indeed. A whole slew of other improvements come along for the ride as well.
Be warned, it's alpha software. Still, it's some exciting news for the Ubuntu addicted.
Posted Jul 13th 2007 1:00PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: Windows, Linux
How much does it really cost to buy a computer with "free" software? Dell recently began selling PCs
preloaded with Ubuntu Linux. While initial reports suggested that a laptop loaded up with Ubuntu was selling for $50 less than one with Windows, it turns out that Dell
was not offering Linux users the free 2GB RAM and 160GB hard drive upgrade that was available for Windows users. That's a $275 value, meaning an Inspiron 1420 laptop actually cost $225 more if it was running Linux.
Now Dell is saying that the
omission was a mistake and that the prices have been fixed. Since the hardware is identical, there really was no good reason for Dell to offer the free upgrade to Windows customers and not Linux buyers. It's not like Microsoft was subsidizing the cost of the upgrade.
Posted Jul 12th 2007 10:00AM by Brad Linder
Filed under: OS Updates, Linux, Open Source
Love
Ubuntu, but concerned that the open source Linux distribution isn't open source enough? One of the great things about Ubuntu is that it has broad support for a wide variety of hardware and software. But that's partly because it uses proprietary drivers and plug-ins.
Responding to complaints from some in the free software community, Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth has
announced the launch of Gobuntu, a version of Ubuntu with no proprietary components.
The first image is
available for download, but as with all things Ubuntu, it will be under constant development.
This is great news for those interested in free (as in speech) software. But most users who see Ubuntu as an alternative to Windows or Mac OSX are likely going to want to stick to the varieties of Ubuntu that include graphics driver support and software like Adobe Flash player.
[via
Ars Technica]
Posted Jun 20th 2007 1:30PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: OS Updates, Linux
It seems like just yesterday that the Ubuntu team released Ubuntu 7.04 Feisty Fawn. But Ubuntu has a 6 month release schedule, so you can expect a new version in October. Last night, a message was sent to the Ubuntu development mailing list outlining the
planned feature set for Gutsy Gibbon.
In a nutshell, Ubuntu 7.10 will use the 2.6.22 kernel, and include GNOME desktop 2.2 or KDE 3.5.7 for Kubuntu (with packages for KDE 4.0 release candidate two for anyone who wants to check it out). This should be the first Ubuntu distribution to include the recently merged Compiz and Beryl 3D desktop manager.
Ubuntu 7.10 will also be the first release to include a
mobile/embedded distribution for mobile phones and handheld devices. We'll be interested to see how it stacks up against the existing
Linux ports for PDAs and
handheld computers.
Since Ubuntu is released on a time-based schedule, rather than a feature-based one, it's possible that some of these features might not make it into Gutsy Gibbon. But it's also possible that the final release will include features not mentioned in the plan.
[via
eHomeUpgrade]
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