Use old version of Windows instead of Linux, says teacher
By Davey Winder in Editorial
File under: what the bloody hell is that all about then? It would seem that the silly season is upon us already as we hear of a Texas teacher with her knickers in a twist over Linux in the classroom.
The founder of the HeliOS Project, Ken Starks, was on the receiving end of an irate email from the teacher after she discovered one of her students giving a demonstration of the Linux distro on his laptop. She says “After confiscating the disks I called a conference with the student and that is how I came to discover you and your organization” and continues “I cannot either support your efforts or allow them to happen in my classroom.”
Why ever not, is the school sponsored by Microsoft do you think?
Possibly, but the teacher is concerned as she is “not sure what you are doing is legal.” What? A quick double-take reveals she did just say that, yes. In fact, she goes on to insist that “No software is free and spreading that misconception is harmful. These children look up to adults for guidance and discipline.”
Let’s hope they do not look up to her for guidance about the legality, or otherwise, of open source software then.
It gets better once you get past the legal misconception, as the teacher really does seem to have a bee in her bonnet and her knickers in a twist, or maybe even a bee in her twisted knickers, about Linux. “I along with many others tried Linux during college and I assure you, the claims you make are grossly over-stated and hinge on falsehoods.”
So there you go, Linux is pants, why not just admit it. Indeed, why not do what the teacher suggests: “I am sure if you contacted Microsoft, they would be more than happy to supply you with copies of an older version of Windows and that way, your computers would actually be of service to those receiving them…”
ROFL.
Perhaps she read the story about Linux being worth USD $10 billion and took it all a little too literally? Perhaps she used to work at the BBC when they lost 97200 Linux users? Perhaps she should focus on other classroom problems such as Facebook usage at school instead of getting so excited about nothing? Or maybe she should read IT Pro and learn a little more about Linux…
Rated: 86.67% (3 votes)
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IBM promises a Linux-based virtual desktop to rival Microsoft
By Davey Winder in Editorial
That’s what IBM says with the announcement of a Linux-based, security-rich desktop solution that has been developed along with Virtual Bridges and Canonical. The concept is simple enough: save money by ‘amplifying’ Lotus collaboration software and Ubuntu to a larger user base, and do it using the power of virtualisation.
Running open standards-based email, word processing, spreadsheets, unified communication, social networking and other software to any laptop, browser, or mobile device from a virtual desktop login on a Linux-based server configuration (excuse me while I come up for breath) the virtual desktop solution looks for all intents and purposes like any traditional one. However, with many virtual Linux desktops hosted on a server, looks can be deceptive.
What this solution provides is the Virtual Enterprise Desktop Environment, also known as VERDE, from Virtual Bridges. That comes with the Canonical staple Ubuntu and IBM throw in the Open Collaboration Client Solution software based on IBM Lotus Symphony, IBM Lotus Notes and Lotus applications.
“When we look back several years from now, I think we’ll see this time as an inflection point when the economic climate pushed the virtual Linux desktop from theory to practice,” said Inna Kuznetsova, director, IBM Linux Strategy. “The financial pressures on organisations are staggering and the management of PCs is unwieldy. Today’s virtual desktop is delivering superior collaborative software, an innovative delivery method, and an open-source operating system that is demanding clients’ consideration.”
Maybe. All this comes just as the server market has taken a tumble and is looking at its worse in terms of revenues since 2005. This caused by the credit crunch and a cut back in IT spending in Western Europe. Saving money is important under such circumstances, so how do the cost savings add up as far as the new IBM venture is concerned then?
Well, there is the licensing to start with, and IBM reckon this amounts to a “cost avoidance” of
Rated: 100% (2 votes)
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What chance the Microsoft-free desktop in the real world?
By Davey Winder in Editorial
Posted in Blog, Linux, Lotus, IBM, Microsoft on
The big news from the LinuxWorld Conference in San Francisco this week has got to be the IBM partnership deals with Canonical, Red Hat and Novell. IBM has, quite plainly, gone on the offensive and stated that in combining its Open Collaboration Client Solution software suite (with Lotus Notes, Symphony and Sametime) with Ubuntu, Red Hat and Suse Linux distros it can convince its customers to make the move to a Microsoft-free desktop experience.
With Canonical already confirming that Lotus Symphony will be distributed via its Web services programme within a couple of weeks, the other players in this trio will most likely follow with similar announcements real soon.
Now, according to various online sources, the fourth largest maker of computers is looking to get involved. The Chinese-based company that acquired the IBM laptop business some years back, Lenovo, is apparently involved in ‘active discussions’ with regard to bringing out a series of systems with a Microsoft-free desktop running the Linux/Lotus combination.
Should Microsoft be worried? Well, truth be told, probably not. After all, IBM has been pushing the Microsoft-free desktop thing in Europe for some months already to no great effect as far as I can see. Why it should make any bigger an impact in the US is beyond my ken.
Throwing Lenovo into the mix could be interesting, but again I doubt that it will win too many converts. There is, to be fair, enough choice of Microsoft systems out there in the market and while the Linux market share continues to grow slowly, the emphasis is on slowly.
Just as Firefox has eaten away at the Internet Explorer userbase, so Linux will claw at the Windows market. But as with the web browsers, Microsoft will still be left with the lion’s share and then some. Convincing the business market to switch from a Microsoft desktop to a Linux one is going to be a lot harder, as their is already much more invested in both financial and cultural terms, than simply switching a web browser client.
Even allowing the for the credit crunch argument of businesses being strapped for cash so looking more favourably at the open source sector does not really hold water when push comes to shove. Buying new hardware does not save money, it costs money. Those businesses are far more likely, surely, simply not to upgrade and therefore not spend a budget they do not have.
The only possible chink in the stick with Microsoft argument comes with the number of enterprises which are not upgrading to Vista, leaving a slight possibility that they might look elsewhere when the time does come for new hardware…
Rated: 40% (4 votes)
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Windows blade runner shares big Swedish stage with Linux
By Davey Winder in Editorial
Posted in Blog, Linux, Windows, IBM, Microsoft on
IBM has built what could well be the largest ever dual booting Windows and Linux HPC blade system, comprising some 5376 Intel Xeon quad-core processors each of which is running at 2.5GHz and which will be able to reach a sustained 46 teraflops worth of processing power. Running Windows HPC Server 2008 (Beta) the high performance computing system has been built at the Umea University in Stockholm, Sweden and forms part of a resource used by a number of academic research groups.
In itself the system is sufficient enough of a powerhouse to lay claim to being one of the top 50 most powerful computers on the planet, which should be enough for any geek to get excited about. However, I suspect that the bit of the announcement that will get the most coverage will be that this one has been built around Linux and Windows rather than Linux alone. Heck, look at the statistics and it appears that around 85 percent of such HPC systems are running exclusively on Linux and Windows cannot even claim to scoop up the remaining 15 percent but instead sits somewhere around the 2 percent mark at the most (if you use the latest available Top 500 list as your metric anyway.)
This could all change when the latest Top 500 list is released later this week, Microsoft is certainly hoping to start making a bigger impression and has been investing heavily in the HPC market of late. I don’t think that the Linux fanboys have too much to worry about though, as it would take something of a seachange in the HPC world to shift even to the point where half the machines were dual-booting let alone Windows exclusive. I’m not sure I am even convinced by the argument that as people using Linux-powered high performance computers more often than not will be using Windows-powered desktops or laptops at home or outside of the research lab so there is a ready made market for the dual boot option.
Rated: 100% (1 votes)
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Two years of compromised Linux security exposed
By Davey Winder in Editorial
Posted in Blog, Linux, Security, Internet, e-commerce on
A recently revealed vulnerability with Debian OpenSSL cryptographic libraries, covered in detail within the Debian Security Advisory DSA-1571-1, allows secure web sessions to be potentially decrypted by an attacker. In fact, the vulnerability impacts on Debian children distros as well, but that is almost by the by. What isn’t is the reasoning for the vulnerability to exist in the first place. Now you might be assuming that, like most of these things, a bit of unintentionally sloppy and insecure programming during development was to blame. While the words sloppy and insecure certainly still spring to mind, unintentional most certainly does not.
You see, according to an excellent piece of analysis at Dark Reading it appears that the programmer was “using Valgrind to debug applications in an effort to prevent security flaws. But two lines of code from the OpenSSL libraries caused Valgrind to complain, which prompted the programmer to take them out after an inquiry and short discussion on the OpenSSL development mailing list.” Amazing as it may seem, this simple act resulted in “two years’ worth of weakened cryptographic key creation (both SSH keys sand SSL certificates) on Debian-based systems.”
In effect, the work-around meant that every single one of the 32,767 cryptographic keys could now be generated ahead of time and that means a brute force attack becomes, pretty much, child’s play.
In his Dark Reading analysis, John Sawyer claims that this means “All communications that had been perceived as “secure” for the past two years — and into the unforeseeable future — could now be compromised if their encryption was based on the flawed keys and certificates.”
Sure, the developers concerned were only trying to make something more secure, and there was certainly no malicious intent involved here. But the irony is that it proves Linux can be just as insecure as Windows in some regards, perhaps even more so. More so, why so? Well, the perception is that Linux is secure, period. Working from that basis, users are perhaps more inclined to think less about the security and privacy implications of their online sessions. In the case of Debian users that could have devastating implications.
And the moral of this tale? Be it Linux or Windows, the user should always treat security seriously and never expect the OS to be a virtual fortress…
Rated: 100% (1 votes)
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From Linux Foundation to Microsoft Director
By Davey Winder in Editorial
Tom Hanrahan, best known within the open source movement for his recent role as Director of Engineering at the Linux Foundation, has been confirmed as the new Director of Linux Interoperability at, wait for it, Microsoft.
The role would appear to have been created to take the helm at the Microsoft/Novell Interoperability Lab, in an effort to ensure that the Linux and Windows operating systems will be able to run successfully side-by-side on enterprise systems. Whether the move will be successful in deflecting the huge explosion of online criticism over the Microsoft and Novell deal, not least because of the patent provision aspect, remains to be seen.
One thing is for sure, it is a clever move to bring in such a well respected Linux veteran with a proven track record in the open source movement. Sam Ramji, who runs the Open Source Software Lab at Microsoft, and to whom Hanrahan will report, must be hoping the appointment cannot do anything to damage the credibility of Microsoft in its new Linux friendly (ish) phase of life.
All we need now is someone to oversee the mouth of Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to prevent him making more comments about the need for the open source movement to
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Linux PC on a stick brings security to Windows users
By Davey Winder in Editorial
Miniaturisation is a wonderful thing. I mean, how long ago would I have been beaten soundly with the silly stick for suggesting you could easily fit a couple of dozen Linux based computers into your trouser pocket? Exactly, probably no more than last year I guess. Even today the people who watch me type (they do exist, honestly Doctor) are guffawing away as they read this first paragraph.
OK, this will shut them up. The Yoggie Pico is a USB thumb drive no bigger than any other bog standard USB thumb drive. The Yoggie Pico is far from being bog standard, unless the standard bogs you frequent come replete with a full security suite of no less than 13 applications pre-installed and ready to run directly from the memory stick itself. Damn, they are still laughing. Did I mention that it also runs Linux 2.6 courtesy of the 520MHz PXA270 Intel processor on-board? Hey, it has gone quiet now.
I am used to seeing a lot of thumb drives which promise to solve the data security problem of taking your information with you on the move and accessing it on any old computer, any old where. Most of them are the same old same old. The Yoggie Pico is refreshingly different because it takes the route of solving security problems by offloading all your security applications from the PC onto the Little-Linux-Computer that it is instead. This means that all Internet traffic is screened before it can execute on that PC or lappy, and even then only once it has been given the thumbs up and passed fit for inspection. It is not meant to be a portable data device, it is a portable security device instead.
It
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