Red Hat delivers test of 2.6 kernel Linux, Feb 14, 2004

Red Hat has released a test edition of Fedora Core 2, a version of Linux that incorporates the new 2.6 kernel at the heart of the open-source operating system.

The first beta of Fedora Core 2, introduced on Thursday, also includes new versions of two popular Linux user interfaces, Gnome 2.5 and release candidate 1 of KDE 3.2, Red Hat said. The 2.6 kernel the "test1" version is based on adds support for more powerful servers, a better ability to handle multiple software tasks simultaneously and other features.

A day after Sun Microsystems CEO Scott McNealy said open-source software is his company's friend, a prominent advocate of the collaborative programming philosophy has called upon the server maker to open the code of Java.

Eric S. Raymond, president of the Open Source Initiative, said in an open letter Thursday that Sun needs to choose between controlling Java and seeing it spread as widely as possible.

"Sun's insistence on continuing tight control of the Java code has damaged Sun's long-term interests by throttling acceptance of the language in the open-source community, ceding the field (and probably the future) to scripting-language competitors like Python and Perl," Raymond said in the letter.

Webmaster's note: Here's another article on Xandros

Linux distributions which target the desktop user are growing in number and if some bigger names have left the field there are plenty of smaller, worthy successors to take their place.

Xandros has been one of the desktop players for some time, ever since it took over what was once Corel Linux, and put out version 1.0 of the Xandros Desktop. Version 2.0 of its Deluxe Desktop confirms the promise it showed and provides a mature desktop ready for use at work or at play. Those looking to make the switch need look no further.

Installing Xandros is painless; one boots from a CD and four clicks are all that are needed to complete the set-up. Xandros lives happily with any version of the Windows operating system; NTFS partitions are recognised and set up for browsing without any user intervention. Those who have itchy fingers can choose the custom option and tweak things as they wish.

Open-source software is picking up steam in European businesses, and Novell is joining in on the trend--perhaps to the extent of releasing some of its own products under open-source licenses, according to the company's top European executive.

Richard Seibt, who was chief executive of SuSE Linux before its takeover by Novell and then briefly the head of Novell's SuSE business unit, became the head of Novell's European operations this month. In an interview Thursday, he said the biggest demand from customers is coming from server consolidation, standardization on the Linux operating system and security--specifically, identity management.

Linux is free, or nearly so, if you do not buy a packaged version gussied up to be familiar to Windows users and bearing CDs and a manual, as Xandros is. It is incredibly stable. And, because its code is openly published, it morphs quickly to shed bugs and acquire new capabilities.

After using Xandros' version of Linux for several days, I can understand why Microsoft is feeling Linux's hot breath on its neck.

For much of its existence, Linux has been an operating system only for companies with IT departments capable of understanding and managing it.

Now, however, iterations such as Xandros Desktop 2 are coming very, very close to turning Linux into a product for the home computer user.

Indeed, this could be the start of something big. After a long gestation period -- and against all odds -- Linux is finally gaining a toehold in Microsoft's backyard, office desktop computing. Market researcher IDC expects to announce within weeks that Linux' PC market share in 2003 hit 3.2%, overtaking Apple Computer Inc.'s Macintosh software. And the researcher expects Linux to capture 6% of this market by 2007. That's still tiny compared with Microsoft's 94% share. But it's clear now that Linux is becoming a viable alternative to Windows on desktop and laptop PCs for companies willing to put up with the trouble of switching.

Linus then went on to explain how, in his view, OSDL functions.

"No, you should think of OSDL as two different kinds of entities (and first off, you should realize that I do not officially speak "for" OSDL in any form what-so-ever--I'm a developer, and that, and only that, is my job):

"A go-between and contact point for different companies. Neutral ground, in other words, for companies to try to figure out what their common needs are, and how to document them as a guide for developers. This is the side of OSDL that does things like the DCL drafts, but it also ends up doing a lot of "unofficial" networking between companies that all have slightly different needs and wishes. And that's the side that I'm not really affiliated with, although it's useful to me too: the documents end up being a somewhat more organized way of knowing what different people end up actually wanting.

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