Review: Pardus Linux 2007, Jan 16, 2007

Having seen dozens of Linux distributions announcing themselves with great enthusiasm only to disappear at the sight of a first problem a few months later, I am not easily impressed by any new arrival on the Linux distro scene.

Local software vendor Squiz has re-licensed its MySource Matrix tool under the popular GNU General Public License (GPL), nearly two years after facing criticism the software's previous licence wasn't "open" enough.

Digital rights management and the General Public License cause a lot of 'hot air' to be exchanged but they are not a 'big deal', according to the creator of Linux, Linus Torvalds.

In response to the growing demand for proprietary multimedia codecs on the open-source Linux platform, multimedia software development company Fluendo has released GStreamer codec plugins that provide native support for a variety of proprietary media formats.

Sun Microsystems today announced a series of product and strategic updates to its Solaris operating system, adding new security and virtualization technologies in a renewed push into the x86 market and against Linux.

Figuring out the best Linux distribution depends entirely on one's intended use for the program. As open source, freely distributed software, Linux programs have been modified and redesigned in countless ways to fulfill as many needs. However, some versions have proven more popular than others.

Organisations could make big savings on upgrades and administrator time by running Vista on central servers instead of desktop PCs, server-based computing outfit 2X has claimed.

There are currently more than 140,000 active open source projects available for download. Some are just concepts, while others are enterprise-ready applications like Linux.

The European Commission has issued a ringing endorsement of open source software, producing a confidence-boost for businesses considering the deployment of Linux and other free software.

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