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● 03.18.15

● Links 18/2/2015: Bioshock Infinite for GNU/Linux, Makulu Unity Alphas

Posted in News Roundup at 12:29 pm by Dr. Roy SchestowitzContentsGNU/LinuxGNU/Linux

=> ↺ Seven killer Linux apps that will change how you work

• The sheer number of Linux apps available today is mind boggling and one category in particular has exploded over the last few years … productivity tools. While there are a few well-known apps such as LibreOffice and NeoOffice (both forks of OpenOffice), there are many more tools that will make your work easier. Here are seven killer Linux office productivity apps you may not know about … and note that many of them are also available for OS X and Windows, so if you have to hop between operating systems, you can keep at least a semblance of consistency.

=> ↺ Here’s how you turn a USB charger into a little Linux machine

• Remember Chris Robinson over at NODE? He was the guy who built the handheld Raspberry Pi-powered Linux terminal we wrote about back in January. Now he’s back with an even smaller Linux project for you to make – one built into the body of a USB charger.

Desktop

=> ↺ Black Lab Pup Is a Tiny and Powerful PC with Black Lab Linux MATE

• After announcing the unique, one-of-a-kind Black Lab Sphere computer, Black Lab Software was proud to introduce today a new device called Black Lab Pup, which is a mini PC powered by the MATE edition of the Black Lab Linux operating system. Despite its name, Black Lab Pup is not a Puppy Linux-based computer.

=> ↺ Is the Dell M3800 Linux workstation worth buying?

• Dell has released a new version of its Linux workstation. The Dell M3800 Developer Edition laptop is geared toward…you guessed it…developers. Ars Technica has a full review of the Dell M3800, and notes that the specs of the Linux version match those of the Windows version.

Server

=> ↺ HP Debuts Cloudline Servers from Foxconn Joint Venture

• In May 2014, HP and Foxconn announced a joint venture to build a new class of cloud servers. Today at the Open Compute Summit, HP and Foxconn publicly displayed the first fruits of the venture in the form of the new Cloudline server product family.

=> ↺ 7 Ways Docker Containers Can Change Enterprise Apps

• Docker is getting lots of buzz for its potential to improve application development and deployment – and deservedly so.

=> ↺ Docker Acquires SocketPlane for Containerization SDN Smarts

=> ↺ Docker’s Rise From Sleeper to Open Source King

• In December 2013, Google announced that its cloud platform was supporting a fledgling open source project called Docker. Outside of a tight-knit community of evangelical software developers, the news went largely unnoticed.

=> ↺ GTC 2015: Nvidia Digits DevBox is a Linux-powered mini supercomputer

• NVIDIA HAS ANNOUNCED Digits DevBox, a Linux-powered mini supercomputer, at its annual GPU Technology Conference (GTC) in California today.

Kernel Space

=> ↺ Linux-based bipedal robot endures kicks and dodgeball attacks

• OSU demonstrated its speedy, bipedal ATRIAS robot withstanding a barrage of kicks and dodgeballs. ATRIAS runs on ROS and a real-time Xenomai Linux kernel.

=> ↺ Linux and Linux 4.0 – the kernel column

• Linus Torvalds released the final 3.19 kernel roughly on cue, noting that “nothing all that exciting happened [since the 3.19-rc7 release candidate], and while I was tempted a couple of times to do an rc8, there really wasn’t any reason for it.” As mentioned in last month’s issue, the new kernel includes a number of exciting new features: support for Intel’s MPX Memory Protection Extensions (which we covered in detail previously), a new HSA driver for AMD GPU devices, enhanced RAID 5 and 6 support in Btrfs, and the final promotion of Android’s Binder IPC mechanism out of the kernel’s staging tree. As usual, KernelNewbies have an excellent summary of the various patches with links to commits.

=> ↺ Systemd Boot Process a Close Look in Linux

• The way Linux system boots up is quite complex and there have always been need to optimize the way it works. The traditional boot up process of Linux system is mainly handled by the well know init process (also known as SysV init boot system), while there have been identified inefficiencies in the init based boot system, systemd on the other hand is another boot up manager for Linux based systems which claims to overcome the shortcomings of traditional Linux SysV init based system. We will be focusing our discussion on the features and controversies of systemd , but in order to understand it, let’s see how Linux boot process is handled by traditional SysV init based system.

=> ↺ Torvalds isn’t always nice, but developers don’t care

Graphics Stack

=> ↺ Nvidia’s PhysX joins the free source party

• If I were a game programmer, I’d be salivating at the bounty of cutting-edge souce code that’s available free of charge. Unreal Engine 4 and Unity 5 are open books for anyone who wants to take a peek, and they’ve now been joined by PhysX. Nvidia has put the full source for PhysX 3.3.3 and its clothing and destruction components on GitHub.

• [...]

• In an apparently separate effort, the PhysX SDK has been expanded from its Windows roots to cover Android, OS X, and Linux. The SDK and source have been released through Nvidia’s GameWorks repository, as well. Instructions to gain access are available here.

Applications

=> ↺ [Older] MPV – A truly lightweight Mplayer based media player for Linux

=> ↺ MPV Video Player 0.8.3 Released, Fixes Nasty Mouse Cursor Issues on All Supported Platforms

• MPV, one of the trendiest video playback applications today, sees a new maintenance release that brings some important enhancements and repairs nasty issues discovered in the previous releases of the software. The third point release of MPV also updates the documentation and cleans up the source code.

=> ↺ [Older] A List Of Free And Open Source Control Panels

=> ↺ rTorrent – command line Bit Torrent client in Ubuntu Linux

• As a Linux system admin we love to download and upload larger files using bit torrent clients from command line or from terminal. This can be possible with the help of rTorrent, it is command line Bit Torrent client available on Linux like operating System.

=> ↺ Papyrus – Notes in a Stylish Fashion

• Linux doesn’t lack notes-taking applications at all, and Papyrus comes as a new addition to the large number of such programs.

=> ↺ Nautilus, Nemo And Caja Extension Folder Color Sees New Release

• Folder Color is a file manager extension available for Nautilus, Nemo and Caja, which until recently could only be used to change individual folder colors. The tool was updated yesterday with a new feature: you can now use it to easily change all the folders colors with a click:

=> ↺ [Older] GNOME Control Center Improves Support for Firefox Nightly Builds

• The development cycle of the forthcoming and highly anticipated GNOME 3.16 desktop environment continues with the second Beta version, due for release in the upcoming days. The GNOME Control Center component has been updated to version 3.16 Beta 2, a release that brings a number of fixes, a couple of enhancements, as well as updated translations.

=> ↺ [Older] Krita 2.9 Released with RAW Image Import and PSD Compatibility Improvements

=> ↺ Empathy 3.12.8 Removes Facebook Chat Support As the Service Will Be Closed

• The Empathy IM (Instant Messenger) client has been updated on March 16 with a handful of changes and improved translations. The most important change is the removal of Facebook chat support, as Facebook will shut down its integrated chat service in favor of the standalone Messenger app.

=> ↺ Announce: Entangle “Charm” release 0.7.0 – an app for tethered camera control & capture

=> ↺ ownCloud Accidentally Releases a Faulty 8.0.1 Version, ownCloud 8.0.2 Out Now

=> ↺ ownCloud Client 1.8 Has Been Officially Released with New Desktop Sharing Feature

• We announced the other day, March 16, that ownCloud Client 1.8 would bring some interesting features, as the first Release Candidate version was made available for download and testing to users worldwide on March 12, 2015. Today, ownCloud has just announced the immediate availability of the final version of ownCloud Client 1.8.

=> ↺ Joomla! 3.4 is Here

• The 3.4 release introduces new features into the CMS such as improved front end module editing, decoupling of weblinks, composer integration, Google new reCaptcha and security improvements by implementing UploadShield code which can detect most malicious uploads by examining their filenames and file contents. Please note: Due to technical reasons we have had to disable the Install from Web Service. We are working to get it back online as soon as possible. To find extensions please use the Joomla! Extensions Directory.

Instructionals/Technical

=> ↺ Bash tip: Extracting content from compressed files without the hassle

=> ↺ Installing NLTK and using it for Human language processing

=> ↺ How to access your Ubuntu 14.04 Desktop securely over the network with FreeNX

=> ↺ Making grep output easier to see

=> ↺ OpenVZ Web Panel: Managing OpenVZ Containers Graphically

=> ↺ Howto Configure PFSense Site-to-Site IPSec VPN Tunnel For Remote Access

=> ↺ How to Upgrade Mozilla firefox on Ubuntu?

=> ↺ IBM DB2 Installation on Red Hat Enterprise Linux

=> ↺ How to make your Unix prompts more useful and interesting

=> ↺ Easily Find Out Which Process Is Using Too Much Bandwidth in Linux

=> ↺ Record Screen as Animated GIF in Ubuntu with Byzanz

=> ↺ How to Create a RSS Scope for Ubuntu Phone

=> ↺ How to Manage KVM Virtual Environment using Commandline Tools in Linux

=> ↺ Understanding Linux CPU stats

=> ↺ How To Install And Configure Squid Proxy On Ubuntu And Debian

=> ↺ [Quick Tip] How To Re-enable Save And Quit Feature In Firefox

=> ↺ How To Install TYPO3 CMS On Ubuntu

=> ↺ QEMU QCow2 built-in encryption: just say no. Deprecated now, to be deleted soon

=> ↺ Minimal DevStack with OpenStack Neutron networking

=> ↺ Pulling Remote Word Documents from RAM using Kali Linux

• Really enjoyed the article on W00tsec about pulling RAW picture images from memory dumps and thought it would be cool if you could use the same process to pull information from a remote system’s memory using Kali – and you can!

• In this tutorial we will see how to pull a Word document from a remote machine’s memory, parse it for text and view it in Kali Linux.

Games

=> ↺ housenka.sh and others: Snakes on the brain

• Overall: A good version, mostly for its flexibility. The wallpaper is a nice effect. The only one I recall with the option for ‘bots, which is an interesting twist. Thanks again to archive.org for keeping this one around.

=> ↺ okiworld: Host-to-host turn-based text strategy

=> ↺ StarCrawlers Available in Early Access on Steam, 25% Off

• StarCrawlers is a role-playing game set in a futuristic space universe, in which you command a crew of renegades that work for various corporations, and can hunt bounties, sabotage rivals or conduct corporate espionage.

=> ↺ LEGO Minifigures Online Is Not Coming To Linux, Sadly

=> ↺ LEGO Minifigures Online Looks Possible For Linux

=> ↺ Isbarah, An Insane Action Platformer Released For Linux, Some Thoughts Thrown In

• The developers of Isbarah kindly sent in a testing key of their intriguing looking action platformer now it’s on Linux, so I took a look and gave it a run.

=> ↺ Executive Assault Blends FPS & RTS, Developer Planning For A Linux Version

• Executive Assault is a new blend of first person shooter and real time strategy, and the developer has openly said a Linux version will come.

=> ↺ Hero Of The Kingdom Still Plans A Linux Port

=> ↺ BioShock Infinite Released For Linux, Thanks To Virtual Programming

• To get this out of the way first; the port is done by Virtual Programming, so it’s using their “eON” technology. The argument for and against it has been done to death somewhat, so let’s leave that at the door please.

=> ↺ Bioshock Infinite Early Linux Port Report

• Now that Bioshock Infinite has been released for Linux, and we have taken a little time with it, we can release some thought patterns on it.

=> ↺ BioShock Infinite Is Now Available on Linux, Requires Nvidia/AMD Proprietary Video Drivers

• 2K Games promised at the end of 2014, on their Twitter account, that the awesome BioShock Infinite game would arrive on Linux starting early 2015. Today, we can confirm that BioShock Infinite is available on Steam for Linux, but it appears that the game only works with the proprietary video drivers from Nvidia or AMD. Intel video cards are out of the question for the moment!

=> ↺ Point-And-Click Adventure ‘The Inner World’ Makes Its Début On Linux In Humble PC & Android Bundle 12

• The Inner World is a traditional point-and-click adventure game that I’ve had my eye on since it released for Windows more than a year ago. It’s featured in the Humble PC & Android Bundle 12 along with indie classic VVVVVV and the popular Costume Quest and Shadowrun Returns, and three other Linux games.

=> ↺ Open source gaming in your pocket

• GCW-ZERO runs a version of open source Linux. It’s developed by the community so expect regular updates. There are about 70 games included with the GCW when you first power it up. These include original games as well as new takes on classic games. OpenSonic and MiniSlug are great examples of that. They are fun and simple. If you miss the days of “easy to pick up and play” Atari, Sega and Nintendo games, you’ll love what’s included on the GCW-ZERO.

Desktop Environments/WMs

K Desktop Environment/KDE SC/Qt

=> ↺ Scripting addicts, check the new kwallet-query tool!

=> ↺ Qt 5.5 Alpha Finally Released

• Digia / The Qt Company has finally managed to get Qt 5.5 into a shape for branching and as a result the alpha version is now available for early testing.

=> ↺ Farewell Pairs

• Last summer I worked on porting Pairs to KDE Framework 5, but since a lot of code was really depending on KDE 4 we needed to rewrite 60% of the code. Of course my two week of vacation weren’t enough for the job. I also had some simple Google Codein tasks to help me going, and then last month KDE-Edu ask me to join forces with GCompris and deprecate Pairs.

=> ↺ Release of KDE Frameworks 5.8.0

GNOME Desktop/GTK

=> ↺ 7 Leading Applications for GNOME

• The GNOME desktop may have declined in popularity, but GNOME technology remains more popular than ever. In fact, if you tally the number of users today on leading desktops, well over a third run applications designed for GNOME. Not even KDE, GNOME’s long-time rival, exceeds this popularity.

• Part of the popularity of GNOME technology is due to the GTK+ toolkit, one of the first and most mature for free software. In the last few years, KDE’s Qt toolkit has come to rival GTK+, but GTK+ remains a frequent choice for developers.

=> ↺ GNOME Shell Gets a Major Update Ahead of GNOME 3.16

• The release of the GNOME 3.16 RC (Release Candidate) desktop environment is imminent, with the final version being unveiled next Wednesday, March 25, 2015. Numerous core component, libraries, and applications of the acclaimed and controversial open-source desktop environment have been published in the last 24 hours on GNOME’s FTP site.

Distributions

=> ↺ A Linux distro for education: UberStudent

• Built on top of Ubuntu 14.04 LTS, UberStudent 4.1 “Epicurus” is a customized distribution designed for secondary and post-secondary education. A blurb on the UberStudent website describes the distribution as “Red Hat for education.” I was intrigued by this claim and wondered if some customization on top of Ubuntu could really do for education what Red Hat does for enterprise. So I gave UberStudent a try and was very impressed with what I found.

Reviews

=> ↺ Linux pre-release Testbed continued, adding LMDE 2 Betsy beta

• Installation was easy and uneventful, as is almost always the case with Mint distributions. The best news at this point is that this release is still not cursed with the UEFI installation problem that the Ubuntu-derived Linux Mint distribution has – namely that it uses the same EFI boot directory name as Ubuntu.

Makulu

=> ↺ Makulu Unity Drops a Bombshell Again !

• Another Makulu Bombshell ! – the next Makulu Unity Alpha 1.2 continues to push boundaries ! – Definitely a Must Watch :

=> ↺ Makulu Unity Desktop Alpha 1.1 Preview

=> ↺ Makulu Unity Alpha 1 Preview

=> ↺ Makulu Unity Desktop – Early Alpha

Screenshots

=> ↺ Linkat Edu 14.04 Screenshot Tour

=> ↺ Evolve OS Beta 1.1 Screenshot Tour

Slackware Family

=> ↺ 7 Reasons Zenwalk Should Now Be On Your Radar

• Seven years ago this operating system was among the top ten listed on DistroWatch; these days Zenwalk is relatively obscure at 113th place. So not many people noticed when, earlier this year, a new version came out – a prelude to the upcoming 8.0 release. The result is a lightweight Linux setup, compatible with SlackWare packages, that’s fast to set up and comes with a complete suite of software for everyday use.

Red Hat Family

=> ↺ Why You Shouldn’t Just Rely on the Open Source Community to Harden Code

• The U.S. Army alone has over 200,000 instances of Red Hat OSS deployed…

Fedora

=> ↺ Fedora Project Brags with GNOME’s Redesigned Notification System in Fedora 22

• As we’ve reported earlier this month, the GNOME Project is working hard to release the next major release of its GNOME desktop environment. Among the highlights of GNOME 3.16, there’s a redesigned notification system that has been integrated into the existing Calendar apple from the main panel.

=> ↺ Your chance to contribute in Fedora 22 development cycle through Test days

• Fedora 21 released in December, and the next day the development team started planning for Fedora 22 release including starting feature planning and scheduling, and the Fedora 22 Alpha was released on March 10th.

Debian Family

=> ↺ The Changing Face of Debian

• Like a rite of spring, the annual campaign for Debian Project Leader has begun. I’ve been watching these elections since 1999, and reading the platforms of the current three candidates (headlined, inevitably, as apt install dpl-install), I’m reminded about how Debian has evolved over the years.

Derivatives

Canonical/Ubuntu

=> ↺ Meet Sirius, the open-source Siri clone that runs on Ubuntu

• Sirius is an open-source virtual assistant, a bit like Apple’s Siri (pictured above), Google’s Google Now, or Microsoft’s Cortana. But unlike those well-known helpers—and like Linux itself—Sirius is an open platform anyone can use and contribute to, from universities to startups. It’s currently being tested on Ubuntu, and you can download and install it on your own Linux PC today… if you’re particularly adventurous.

Devices/Embedded

=> ↺ You can buy Pioneer’s Android Auto units right now

• Yep, Pioneer’s the first to bat with Android Auto products officially available. The line of in-dash units revealed at this past CES is available for boatloads of cash, depending on what you need out of your vehicle’s in-dash system.

Phones

Android

=> ↺ The Android upgrade conundrum: Who’s at fault

• Jack Wallen addresses how Lollipop perfectly illustrates how the Android upgrade process is broken.

=> ↺ Samsung Galaxy S6 Review: In Depth

• We review Samsung’s Galaxy S6, its most exciting flagship phone in years, rocking an all-new design, updated fingerprint scanner, awesome camera tech and a lot more besides…

=> ↺ Mir Now Supports Multi-Monitor With Android

• The latest development code of Ubuntu’s Mir display server now supports multiple displays when using the Ubuntu Phone/Touch Android base.

• If you’re running an Ubuntu Touch/Phone device where it’s running off Android/CyanogenMod, with a forthcoming update there will finally be support for using multiple displays on the devices that have a HDMI/display output.

=> ↺ OnePlus One Android 5.0 Lollipop release dates revealed

• If you haven’t had a chance to check out the early builds of Android 5.0 Lollipop on the OnePlus One, fret not: the official release is just around the corner. OnePlus recently revealed the release dates for Android 5.0 Lollipop for both its OxygenOs and CyanogenMod 12S versions of the smartphone.

=> ↺ Nexus 5 Android 5.1 Update: 5 Things You Need to Know

• Last week, Google started rolling out a Nexus 5 Android 5.1 Lollipop update to replace the device’s Android 5.0.1 Lollipop update. Android 5.1 Lollipop is a substantial upgrade for Nexus smartphones and tablets and today, we want to take a look at five things you need to know about Google’s Nexus 5 Android 5.1 Lollipop update.

=> ↺ 10 Common Nexus Android 5.1 Problems & How to Fix Them

• Google’s new Android 5.1 Lollipop update brings tons of enhancements and fixes to owners of the Nexus 5, Nexus 7, Nexus 6, and more. It also, according to Nexus users, brings some problems of its own. With that in mind, we take a look at how to solve some of the common Nexus Android 5.1 Lollipop problems we’ve seen in the days after its initial release.

=> ↺ Moto X (1st Gen) Android Lollipop Soak Test Begins, Update To Android 5.0.2 Imminent

=> ↺ ​Google fixes Android 5.1 memory leak – but when will users receive it?

• Google has fixed a troublesome memory leak issue affecting some Nexus devices that run the latest version of Android.

• Last week Google released factory images of the Android 5.1 update for its own brand Nexus devices and already device owners are piling on to Google’s Android bug tracker with complaints about a severe memory leak. The bug is causing some Nexus devices’ RAM to deplete over a few days of usage.

=> ↺ Sony Starts Rolling Out Android 5.0 Lollipop Update For Xperia Z3 And Xperia Z3 Compact

=> ↺ New video shows Android Wear accepting incoming iPhone call, no jailbreak needed

• Last month developer Mohammad Abu-Garbeyyeh managed to get an Android Wear-based smartwatch to display notifications from an iPhone, even though Google’s wearable OS doesn’t support Apple’s mobile devices (at least, not yet).

=> ↺ Apple Watch’s Watch OS vs. Android Wear – Which Wearable Operating System Is The Least Intrusive?

=> ↺ Super Mario Goes Mobile: Nintendo Leaps Into Android, iOS

=> ↺ Watch the stunning first footage of Mortal Kombat X on Android

• Even as phones and tablets begin to rival computers and gaming consoles in terms of graphics and processing power, we still have to deal with watered-down ports of popular game franchises. It’s an unfortunate truth of the industry, but NetherRealm Studios wants to break the mold with Mortal Kombat X on iOS and Android.

=> ↺ An Open Google Now Is About to Make Android Super Smart

• Google Now, the card-based dashboard that provides a custom overview of what’s coming up on your schedule, how hellish your commute will be, what news you might like to read and more, is an immensely helpful tool for Android users. Google is about to make it a whole lot more powerful.

=> ↺ The Neptune Hub Android smartwatch will power a whole suite of mobile devices

• Last month, we wrote about the upcoming Neptune Duo, a dual-device offering that included the Hub, a smartwatch capable of running Android Lollipop independently, and a phone-sized display accessory. The company is now offering a bunch of mobile devices to complement the Hub.

=> ↺ Yahoo will host an Android vs iOS Fanboy Smartphone Challenge at SXSW 2015 and I’ll be representing Team Phandroid

• On Monday, March 16th at SXSW in Austin, Texas, Yahoo is holding a Fanboy Smartphone Challenge. They’ll be putting an Android enthusiast and an iOS lover head to head in the ultimate fanboy showdown. Thanks to a little bit of luck and years of praising our Lord and Savior, Matias Duarte, I have been chosen to represent the Android faithful in glorious battle.

=> ↺ Moto X Android 5.0 Lollipop Update Details Emerge

=> ↺ Nexus Android 5.1 Problems: 5 Things You Need to Know

• Google’s brand new Android 5.1 Lollipop update for Nexus devices brings fixes for lingering Android Lollipop problems. It also appears to deliver some problems of its own. With that in mind, we take a look at five things you need to know, right now, about Nexus Android 5.1 Lollipop problems as we push further away from its roll out.

=> ↺ PSA: Pioneer Head Units With Android Auto Are Now On Sale, But Android Auto Isn’t Available Yet

• Android Auto is probably the Android platform of least general public concern, but it’s an exciting one, if you ask me – who doesn’t want Google Now in the car? Still, if you’ve not been paying close attention to Auto news in the past few months very closely, you might not have noticed that Android Auto is… not actually officially released.

Free Software/Open Source

=> ↺ The 11 people you meet on (nearly) every open source project

=> ↺ Open source gains traction as de facto choice for innovators — and IoT

• The second Red Hat Open Innovation Symposium (OIS) was recently held in conjunction with the Red Hat Challenge, a knowledge-based competition opened to tertiary students from Asia, tasked to develop and build their own applications using open source software. At the OIS, Red Hat also launched Fedora 21.

=> ↺ BaseX: Free, open source XML wrangling

• Currently the OS X version is stable (although you’ll need to use Homebrew to install it) as are Ubuntu, Archlinux, openSUSE, SUSE Linux Enterprise, Fedora, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, and Scientific Linux 7 (note that not all stable versions BaseX are available on all versions of target operating systems (e.g. openSUSE 11.4 can only run BaseX 7.9 while openSUSE Factory can run BaseX 8.0). Debian GNU is in development.

=> ↺ Node.js Fork JXcore Goes Open Source

• Oguz Bastemar, CTO for Nubisa (the company behind JXcore) announced the news in the blog post JXcore is now Open Source.

=> ↺ The Enterprise Effect Of Open Source

• Once primarily the purview of small businesses, educational institutions, and cutting edge start-ups, the entire spectrum of organizations — including the world’s largest enterprises — now are adopting open source solutions.

=> ↺ Layer’s open-source app messaging platform now open to everyone

• Start-up company Layer is ready to open its new messaging platform to everyone starting today. The San Francisco based company claims to offer the infrastructure and developer tools to bring “iMessage” quality messaging services into any third party app.

=> ↺ Google Perfkit: a ‘living benchmark’ for evaluating cloud

• Google has launched PerfKit (perfect software development kit – geddit?) an open-source cloud-benchmarking tool that.

=> ↺ Eclipse Foundation Launches Open-Source IoT Projects

• The Eclipse Foundation announced new releases of two open-source Internet of things (IoT) projects based on the OASIS Message Queue Telemetry Transport or MQTT standard protocol.

=> ↺ Effektif BPM Goes Open Source

=> ↺ Why we run an open source program – Walmart Labs

• These are great questions, and my point of view has probably changed in some ways over time. I have been involved in open source since the start of my engineering career, participating with great open source foundations such as Apache, and then seeing a prototypical example when I got to join Chris DiBona’s open source program office at Google. This is truly learning from the master. Not only is Chris on the list of “I would work for that guy again in a heart beat!” but he was fantastic at providing the frameworks that allowed engineers to get the most out of open source, while also helping the business.

=> ↺ Facebook releases open source ORC reader for Presto

=> ↺ Open Source Works. Just Ask Facebook

• Plenty of companies are now releasing open source projects in the hopes that other companies will help improve their software, but Facebook stands out because its projects actually end up being used by so many others. A startup called Datastax built an entire company to support users of Facebook’s database Cassandra, and now even Apple is exploring the use of Facebook’s ambitious server designs in its data centers.

=> ↺ Frontline and the missing middle mile

• Frontline is building open, configurable tools that make it easier to connect and translate systems using the world’s most distributed technologies.

Events

=> ↺ Three days of exciting talks at ApacheCon 2015

• This event marks a couple of important anniversaries for us. It’s been 15 years since the first official ApacheCon, which we held in Orlando in march of 2000. (There was an earlier ApacheCon, but the Apache Software Foundation hadn’t been incorporated at that point.) It’s also been 20 years since the initial release of the Apache HTTP Server, the project that started it all, and one of the most influential projects in all of the open source landscape. We’ll be celebrating that by having Brian Behlendorf, the instigator of Apache httpd, keynote. But although he might spend some time nostalgically looking back, he’ll be setting the tone for the rest of the event by mostly looking forward.

=> ↺ NFV Open-Source Group Schedules First Conference

=> ↺ OPNFV Project Launches New Conference to Advance Open Source Network Functions Virtualization

=> ↺ Standards remain challenge for NFV development

=> ↺ Obsidian to toast power of open source

• Open source software specialist Obsidian Systems has announced the next event in its ongoing networking and information series, or Free Beer Sessions, will take place on 12 March.

• The theme for the year will be: “The power of open source” (organisers have neither confirmed nor denied that it may have something to do with ‘Dutch courage’ and being able to handle… open source).

=> ↺ OpenDaylight Hosts First Forum in India for Collaboration on Open Source Software Defined Networking

Web Browsers

Chrome

=> ↺ Google Targets Digital Signage With Chrome Updates

• Google wants to make sure that embarrassing ‘blue-screen-of-breath’ in the shop window doesn’t have to be a thing anymore – it’s aiming squarely are replacing windows as a dominant platform in the digital signage industry, thanks to new updates that add to the Google browser’s single app kiosk mode. These include a new Chrome sign builder, an app builder for fully-interactive kiosk software, and new continuous reporting and rebooting tools for spotting errors in signage deployments and fixing them on the spot.

• [...]

• Chrome and Chrome OS powering digital signs may not seem like a huge deal in terms of most people’s daily usage, but it’s an angle on Chrome OS outside of education and consumer-focused hardware that may not be readily apparent, but that nonetheless could help push Chrome as a whole forward, and have implications for the consumer track later on.

Mozilla

=> ↺ Please welcome David Bryant, Vice President of Platform Engineering

• David was most recently at Nokia where he served as Vice President of Advanced Engineering and focused on leading the global hardware and software engineering teams to accelerate new mobile product development. He brings with him significant experience in mobile, software architecture and engineering management having held executive leadership positions spanning engineering and marketing at Nokia, Sun and Bell Labs.

=> ↺ Mozilla Firefox 37.0 Beta Out Now, Provides URL Highlighting in Reader Mode

• A few hours after we’ve reported that the final build of the highly anticipated Mozilla Firefox 36.0 web browser is available for download, Mozilla made the official announcement on the Firefox website. Now, we’re announcing the immediate availability for download and testing of the first Beta release for the upcoming Mozilla Firefox 37.0 web browser, due for release on April 7, 2015.

SaaS/Big Data

=> ↺ A Quick Update on OpenStack Congress

• OpenStack Congress, a project aimed at providing “policy as a service” for OpenStack clouds, is a project I’ve had the privilege of being involved in from very early days. I first mentioned Congress almost a year ago, and since then the developers have been hard at work on the project. Recently, one of the lead developers posted a summary of some pretty impressive performance improvements that have been made with Congress.

=> ↺ Google Kubernetes Lands in OpenStack via Mirantis

• The open-source OpenStack platform is all about enabling organizations to harness physical and virtual resources to enable a cloud deployment. The open-source Kubernetes project, which is managed by Google, is all about enabling clusters of Linux containers.

=> ↺ New Open Data Platform will push big data technology through open source, not sales

• When big names including GE, Hortonworks, IBM, Infosys, Pivotal, SAS, AltiScale, Capgemini, CenturyLink, EMC, Splunk, Verizon Enterprise Solutions, Teradata, and VMware announce a new alliance to create and push for big data technology using open source, it’s hard to ignore.

=> ↺ The future of big data can only be open source : Scott Yara, president, Pivotal

• Pivotal is one of fifteen leading vendors launching a major new open source big data platform to drive enterprise data innovation – president Scott Yara sat down with Information Age to tell us why

=> ↺ HP bolsters open source hybrid cloud with Helion updates

• Updates to HP’s Helion OpenStack and Helion Development Platform solutions, in addition to enhancements to HP Helion Eucalyptus, have been announced at this year’s Mobile World Congress.

=> ↺ Google: native C in Hadoop with MapReduce for C

• Google’s open source elves have released MapReduce for C (MR4C), an open source framework to run native C-language code in Hadoop.

=> ↺ Open source tools for big data: How Hadoop could transform your job and your business

• Hadoop is about to get a lot less complicated. A number of the largest big data vendors, including IBM, Hortonworks and Pivotal, have joined forces to standardise the base platform for the open source software.

Oracle/Java/LibreOffice

=> ↺ VirtualBox 4.3.26 Brings More Fixes for Linux Kernel 4.0

• Oracle has announced today the immediate availability for download and update of a new maintenance release of its VirtualBox 4.3 virtualization software for Linux, Mac OS X, and Microsoft Windows operating systems. VirtualBox 4.3.26 brings a number of improvements and fixes that have been discovered in the previous release, VirtualBox 4.3.24.

CMS

=> ↺ What’s New for You This March in Open Source CMS

• Is open source the next big thing? At least that’s what it seems, based on a burst of unrelated news in the past month. As CMSWire writer Miles Kehoe explained a few weeks ago, “Open source software has gone from quirky and free to mainstream for the enterprise.”

Education

=> ↺ Jefferson College To Keep Students on Track with Open Source Advising Software

• As part of its mission to promote student success, Jefferson College in Missouri is working with Unicon to implement Student Success Plan (SSP), open source case-management software that provides “a holistic coaching and counseling model for integrated planning and advising services.”

Business

=> ↺ We will pivot towards open source in wake of Alice, says Infosys IP chief

• Sikka was quoted in an interview with the Press Trust of India (PTI) last month describing patents as “a scourge on the software industry” and a “tremendous disservice”, adding: “You see the amount of undue attention that companies focus on these patents… I think the software industry and its strange fixation on patents is absolutely wrong and is actually not at all productive to innovation.”

=> ↺ Sikka bets on open source platform to tap new business for Infosys

• “We have to start these new themes, design-thinking, investments in the open-source platform. But, those are small today and will become bigger over time,” he said.

=> ↺ Nexenta Accelerates Market Adoption of Open Source-driven Software-Defined Storage at Its OpenSDx Summit Japan 2015

=> ↺ Leading European University and Research Institute Run on Nexenta Open Source-based Software-Defined Storage (OpenSDS)

=> ↺ WSO2 and Axiata Launch Radical New Open Source Digital Enablement Platform for Mobile Network Operators: WSO2.Telco

BSD

=> ↺ The Most Important BSD Distributions

• Berkeley Software Distribution, abbreviated as BSD, is a UNIX operating system derivative, developed and distributed at the university of California, Berkeley, from 1977 to 1995 by a group of programmers (Bill Joy, Marshall Kirk McKusick, Kenneth Thompson etc…) at the Computer Systems Research Group (CSRG).

FSF/FSFE/GNU/SFLC

=> ↺ The Return of SCO, a Debian Retrospective, & GNU is 30

• Last I heard SCO was all but bankrupt, but apparently five years later a claim against IBM for $5 billion is still pending. Elsewhere, Bruce Byfield discusses how Debian has changed over the years and if that was for the good. In other gnews, the GNU Manifesto turns 30 this month.

=> ↺ Richard Stallman’s GNU Manifesto is now 30 years old

• Three decades from that manifesto, the world of free and open source software has grown to include many hucksters and people who see only the dollar sign when they think of this genre of software. People have even started trying to undermine Torvalds.

Licensing

=> ↺ How 2 Legal Cases May Decide the Future of Open Source Software

• The days of open source software free lunches are rapidly coming to an end, and that means enterprises that fail to stick to the terms of open source licenses can expect to be sued.

Openness/Sharing

=> ↺ Vapor Building an Open Compute Server Chamber

• Since 2011, the Open Compute Project (OCP) has been building and proposing specifications to enable new classes of servers and data center gear. Cole Crawford has been a key figure in OCP, serving as the group’s Chief Operating Officer from 2012 to 2013 and as an executive director from 2013 to this month. Crawford is now taking his OCP experience and funneling it into a startup called Vapor.

=> ↺ Percepto adds an open-source app-controlled camera to existing drones

=> ↺ Print your own urban farm: AKER offers a full suite of open source urban ag kits

• These flat-packable kits are designed to boost urban agriculture, ranging from flower & vegetable production to worm composting to backyard chickens and beekeeping, and require no tools for assembly.

=> ↺ OpenBionics’ Open Source Robotic Prosthetic Hand can Execute 144 Different Grasps & Costs Under $200

• One of the biggest areas in which 3D printing is making its largest impact, is within the field of prostheses. Whether it is prosthetic leg sockets, custom prosthetic hands and arms, or even prostheses that replace missing parts of the human face, 3D printing is making huge advancements, not only in the technology available, but to the bottom line of patients’ bank accounts as well.

=> ↺ Technology alum launches Open Source Classroom

• Rob Martin’s hobby of building 3-D printers has grown into a business that sees the Department of Technology graduate working with educators across the state and individuals in the community.

=> ↺ Telefónica, Orange Among Companies Joining the FIWARE Open Source Community for Smart Cities App Development

=> ↺ Orange, Telefonica, others form Fiware open source community

=> ↺ Four global tech companies join new partnership to boost open source standards

• Telefónica, Orange, Engineering and Atos have announced a new partnership during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, to build and support standards for smart cities through the FIWARE Open Source Community.

Open Data

=> ↺ Open Data: national company register data now freely accessible

• Information about French companies, collected and centralised by InfoGreffe, will now be freely accessible. French Members of Parliament have voted in favour of article 19 of the draft Loi Macron (named after Emmanuel Macron, Minister of Economic Affairs, who supports the law). The article, which states that InfoGreffe information will now be available as Open Data, was approved in February.

=> ↺ Professor demonstrates open-source mapping software at lecture

• Developing more interactive, visual and user-friendly maps could help academic researchers better communicate their findings, according Suzanne Blier, a Harvard professor.

=> ↺ Open source tool maps global humanitarian responses

• The State Department marked the recent Open Data Day by touting the one-year anniversary of MapGive, an open data platform that provides its worldwide posts access to open source information and enhanced humanitarian preparedness via mapping and satellite imagery.

Open Access/Content

=> ↺ Why the Time has Come for an Open Access Foundation

• As that last point suggests, this report is very closely aligned with open licences and open access, and readers of this blog will find much to applaud in it (they will also be pretty amazed that such a report was presented to the UN at all.) About open access, it says:

=> ↺ Supporting Open-Source Textbooks

• A report publicized in The New York Times last week found that using electronic “open-source” textbooks can save college students hundreds of dollars during their college education. According to the report, the College Board estimates that the average cost of books and supplies during an academic year is between $1,200 and $1,300. In order to curb the costs of attending Cornell, we at The Sun urge faculty members to experiment with open-source books to facilitate wider adoption throughout the University.

=> ↺ Open-source textbooks make the grade

• Open-source textbooks are written through a collaboration between professors and experts under an open license. Students can download them for free or print them at a low cost, according to The New York Times. Compare that to the average cost for books and supplies per year at a typical four-year college — between $1,200 and $1,300.

=> ↺ Putting a Dent in College Costs With Open-Source Textbooks

Open Hardware

=> ↺ Pirx 3D Offers the Design for Their 3D Printer as Open Source Material

• The PIRX was released nearly two years ago and now the device is poised to reach a wider community with the announcement that they plan to give out the design in the form of a free and ready for non-commercial use set of files.

=> ↺ Sardauscan, the Sub-$30 DIY 3D Scanner — Open Source 3D Printable Files Released

=> ↺ PLEN2: An Open Source, 3D Printable Robot on Kickstarter

• The PLEN2 can carry small items, dance around, or play a game of soccer on your desktop and you can make it all happen via a smartphone or PC or a whole range of inputs like motion control, facial expressions, or, for that matter, your brain waves.

=> ↺ Pi Tank 3D Printed Open Source Smartphone Controlled Raspberry Pi Robot (video)

• Those luckily enough to own a 3D printer and enjoying building a Raspberry Pi robot, or would like to start, may gain more inspiration from this awesome Pi Tank robot.

=> ↺ Razer Nabs Ubisoft, Others for Open Source VR Platform

• Razer has announced a significant expansion of the Open Source Virtual Reality (OSVR) platform it unveiled at CES earlier this year. Several new companies are joining OSVR, bringing the total number of partners up to 50, spread among HMD and peripheral manufacturers, publishers, and developers.

=> ↺ More Developers Join Open Source VR Initiative

Leftovers

Hardware

=> ↺ AMD, ARM, Imagination, Samsung alliance publish official shared GPU-CPU blueprints

• An effort to tightly knit together graphics chips, processors and other hardware to boost things like video search on your desktop has taken a step forward.

Security

=> ↺ Tuesday’s security updates

Defence/Police/Secrecy/Aggression

=> ↺ FBI Pins ‘Terrorist’ Nametag On ‘Retarded Fool’ Without A ‘Pot To Piss In’

• The FBI’s preference for easily-investigated terrorism is well-documented. We’re routinely assured that all sorts of domestic surveillance tech and agency opacity is necessary to protect us from a whole host of threats, but for the most part, the terrorists “apprehended” by the FBI seem to be people who’ve had the misfortune of being “befriended” by undercover agents and/or confidential informants.

• When over 90% of the funding, idea generation, transportation and motivation comes from those saving us from terrorism, we have reason to be worried. While the FBI performs its predatory handcrafting of “extremists,” the real terrorists — who don’t need someone else to provide weapons, money and motivation — are still going about the business of terrorism.

Transparency Reporting

=> ↺ Obama Just Officially Decided White House Emails Aren’t Subject to the Freedom of Information Act

• Civil liberties advocates are adding another strike to the Obama administration’s record on transparency: on Monday, the White House announced that it is officially ending the Freedom of Information Act obligations of its Office of Administration. That office provides broad administrative support to the White House—including the archiving of emails—and had been subject to FOIA for much of its nearly four-decade history.

=> ↺ Swedish Prosecutor in Julian Assange’s Case Retreats; US Continues Espionage Investigation

• Michael Ratner says the real threat to Assange is the continuing espionage investigation against him and Wikileaks – March 17, 2015

=> ↺ After Swedish Prosecutors Back Down, Is WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange Close to Freedom?

• Today marks the 1,000th day WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has spent in political asylum inside Ecuador’s London embassy. For the first time, Swedish prosecutors have opened the door to Assange’s departure with a request to question him in London. Assange has never been charged over allegations of sexual assault, but has been holed up in the embassy since 2012, fearing a Swedish arrest warrant could lead to his extradition to the United States. We speak with Assange attorney, Michael Ratner, who says an interview with the prosecutor may result in no charges, and even if Assange were convicted of these allegations, “he has done all the time he would have to do… so the whole case is essentially a bogus way of keeping him in that embassy.”

Environment/Energy/Wildlife

=> ↺ ‘Reawakened’ faults could trigger big Okla. earthquakes

• They’ve been asleep since before the dinosaurs roamed Earth and now we’re waking them up.

• Long-dormant, 300-million-year-old fault lines across Oklahoma are being “reawakened” by recent small earthquakes that have been previously linked to fracking, scientists reported in a new study out this week.

Finance

=> ↺ If You Own a Pitchfork, You Will Grab It When You See This Chart

• This statistic provides a pretty compelling snapshot of the severity of our income gap: In 2014, Wall Street’s bonus pool was roughly double the combined earnings of all Americans working full-time jobs at minimum wage.

• That sobering tidbit came from a new Institute for Policy Studies report by Sarah Anderson, who looked at new figures from the New York State Comptroller and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The average bonus for one of New York City’s 167,800 employees in the securities industry came out to $172,860—on top of an average salary of nearly $200,000. On the other side of the equation were about one million people working full time at the federal minimum wage of $7.25.

=> ↺ Protesters, police clash near new European bank HQ in Frankfurt

• Anti-capitalist protesters clashed with riot police near the new headquarters of the European Central Bank (ECB) in Frankfurt on Wednesday and set fire to barricades and cars, casting a pall over the ceremonial opening of the billion-euro skyscraper.

• Nearly 90 police were injured by stones and unidentified liquids hurled by a violent minority from within the thousands-strong protest, police said. Some protesters said they were injured when police used pepper spray.

=> ↺ Germany riot targets new ECB headquarters in Frankfurt

=> ↺ George Osborne has presided over the slowest recovery in history

• “Britain is walking tall again” claimed George Osborne today, as he argued the British economy is now growing “faster than any other major advanced economy in the world”.

• However, while the pace of economic recovery has finally picked up, figures released by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) today confirmed that overall Osborne has presided over the slowest economic recovery in British history.

=> ↺ The Most Dangerous Woman in America

• Kshama Sawant, the socialist on the City Council, is up for re-election this year. Since joining the council in January of 2014 she has helped push through a gradual raising of the minimum wage to $15 an hour in Seattle. She has expanded funding for social services and blocked, along with housing advocates, an attempt by the Seattle Housing Authority to allow a rent increase of up to 400 percent. She has successfully lobbied for city money to support tent encampments and is fighting for an excise tax on millionaires. And for this she has become the bête noire of the Establishment, especially the Democratic Party.

• The corporate powers, from Seattle’s mayor to the Chamber of Commerce and the area’s Democratic Party, are determined she be defeated, and these local corporate elites have the national elites behind them. This will be one of the most important elections in the country this year. It will pit a socialist, who refuses all corporate donations—not that she would get many—and who has fearlessly championed the rights of workingmen and workingwomen, rights that are being eviscerated by the corporate machine. The elites cannot let the Sawants of the world proliferate. Corporate power is throwing everything at its disposal—including sponsorship of a rival woman candidate of color—into this election in the city’s 3rd District.

PR/AstroTurf/Lobbying

=> ↺ Mind-Reading NYT Columnist Should Stick to His Day Job

• Wow, so Leonhardt knows what Obama and Clinton really “consider,” “want,” “see” and “think.” That’s impressive, but readers may want to be somewhat skeptical. After all, most of us recognize that politicians don’t always reveal their true thoughts. We know what they say their priorities are, but only a mind-reader would try to tell us what they really think.

=> ↺ Clear Channel Tells FCC Covert Commercials Would Be ‘User-Friendly, Satisfying’

Privacy

=> ↺ Intelligence Reform & The French Government’s Disastrous Drift on Surveillance

• The information shared today by Le Figaro regarding the upcoming French Bill on Intelligence, ahead of its presentation before the Council of ministers on Thursday 19 March, only confirms earlier concerns. While this new law was announced as an important overhaul aimed at protecting fundamental rights, the securitarian instrumentalisation of the deadly events of January is bound to lead to an incredible drift in state surveillance practices. La Quadrature du Net calls on citizens and their elected representatives to oppose this bill.

=> ↺ Why can the NSA do what it does?

• Like most technical people, I’m not impressed but very worried about the erosion of our civil rights, through the NSA spying and in other ways. And I am sure I share with others the impression that if only politicians and the general public knew more about the problem, we wouldn’t make such bad decisions.

=> ↺ Tutanota, An Open Source Encrypted Gmail Alternative, Heads Out Of Beta

• Germany based encrypted email startup, Tutanota, is taking its service out a beta next week — after a year of testing and almost 100,000 users signed up to send and receive secure email.

Civil Rights

=> ↺ JUSTICE FOR SALE – PART 5: Rebellious Action in a Corrupt Time

• The series collectively argues that corporate media and political rhetoric have made Americans acquiescent toward corruption in the US legal system. This piece examines the corporate media’s coverage of citizen’s resistance to corruption and abuse in the US legal system.

Internet/Net Neutrality

=> ↺ Dot-Com Domain Turns 30 and Is Still Growing

• After 30 years, the dot-com (.com) top-level domain (TLD) continues to dominate the Internet, but now faces more challengers than ever.

Intellectual Monopolies

=> ↺ Lawmakers Say TPP Meetings Classified To Keep Americans in the Dark

• Democratic lawmaker says tightly-controlled briefings on Trans-Pacific Partnership deal are aimed at keeping US constituents ignorant about what’s at stake

=> ↺ What’s Going On In Obama’s Trade Meeting With Democrats? That’s Classified.

• As the Obama administration gives House Democrats a hard sell on a major controversial trade pact this week, it will be doing so under severe conditions: Any member of Congress who shares information with the public from a Wednesday briefing could be prosecuted for a crime.

=> ↺ House Democrats angry over Obama’s classified trade meeting

• House Democrats are criticizing President Obama’s administration for holding a classified briefing on trade with top administration officials, saying it’s an attempt to push a trade program in secret.

Copyrights

=> ↺ Parliament copyright working group too close to business say activists

• With the Digital Agenda being a key part of the Juncker commission’s drive for jobs and growth and Commissioner Oettinger promising copyright reform and an end of geo-blocking, a group of business and foundations have written to Jean-Marie Cavada MEP (ALDE, FR), the chair of the European Parliament’s Copyright Working Group demanding that he open up consultations to a wider range of stakeholders.

• New Europe has seen the letter.

• The French MEP is at odds with many parliamentarians and the European Commission, being supportive of the current scheme, which has come under sustained criticism from many quarters.

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