This page permanently redirects to gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2022/10/11/wordpress-6-1-rc1/.

● 10.11.22

Gemini version available ♊︎

● Links 11/10/2022: WordPress 6.1 Release Candidate 1 (RC1) and New KDE Plasma

Posted in News Roundup at 8:37 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

GNU/Linux

Server

=> ↺ Kata Containers 3′s marriage of virtual machines and containers continues | ZDNET

• This version of Kata Containers also features a newly written Rust runtime implementation and an optional integrated Rust hypervisor. This makes the program even lighter and easier to manage.

• It all supports Kubernetes and container runtimes such as CRI-O, Containerd, cGroup v2, and OCI v1.0.0-rc5.

• Underneath all this, Kata Containers has its own Linux kernel. The kernel in Kata Containers 3.0.0 is v5.19.2.

• Users are already happy with these new developments. As Treva Williams, OpenInfra’s technical community manager, said, “There’s a lot of excitement in the Kata Containers community around how the improved hypervisor support in Kata Containers 3.0.0 expands compatibility with a number of popular environment configurations and hardware technologies, such as GPUs.”

=> ↺ Cloud-Native Computing is Good for the Environment

=> ↺ Can Your Kubernetes CNI Do These Three Things?

• As a cluster architect or operator for large enterprises or telco clouds, relying on a basic container network interface (CNI) for advanced cloud networking is like using hand tools for construction; they are accessible and practical for small-scale workshops, but they lack the efficiency for largescale projects. If cluster sprawl, multi-cluster networking and complex security rules have outpaced your staff, what do you do when ‘basic’ just isn’t good enough? In this article, we’ll review CNI fundamentals with a focus on key areas that push networking beyond the basic CNI to require a full Kubernetes SDN.

Audiocasts/Shows

=> ↺ This Linux Kernel Was Killing Laptop Screens!! – Invidious

• Do you want to bring some fun and danger back to running Linux, well Linux kernel 5.19.12 was completely borked on 12th gen intel laptops and in some cases was even killing the screens.

=> ↺ Top FreeBSD Desktop Apps 2022 – Invidious

• Well, 2022 is coming to a slow close, and it’s time to reflect on our favourite applications we use everyday…. this list is made up of subscriber comments, requests, my favourites and coolness In no particular order, the Top 10 FreeBSD Desktop Applications of 2022!

Kernel Space

=> ↺ eBPF and the Service Mesh

• Stories about eBPF have been flooding the cloud-native world for a bit, sometimes presenting it as the greatest thing since sliced bread and sometimes deriding it as a useless distraction from the real world. The reality, of course, is considerably more nuanced, so taking a closer look at what eBPF can and can’t do definitely seems warranted – technologies are just tools after all, and we should fit the tool we use to the task at hand.

• One particular task that’s been coming up a lot recently is the complex layer 7 processing needed for a service mesh. Handing that off to eBPF could potentially be a huge win for service meshes, so let’s take a closer look at that possible role for eBPF.

Graphics Stack

=> ↺ Mike Blumenkrantz: New Era

• For those of you who weren’t present, Super Good Code took over XDC last week.

• The recording of The Talk is finally sliced, diced, and tuned to perfection thanks to the work of Arkadiusz Hiler. Watch it for the first time all over again to catch all the technical details and workout tips you missed.

• Additionally, the slides for the presentation are available for benchmarking.

Applications

=> ↺ 10 Best IPTV for Linux/Ubuntu System in 2022

• That said, most Linux-based softwares have a separate fanbase, and thus every Linux distro has softwares dedicated to it. So, if you are looking for such IPTV players for Linux in general, you are exactly in the right place. We will get to it right away. Keep reading to explore!

• Perhaps you are tired of streaming services and are looking for something more secure. Whichever you want it for, you can rest assured as we meet your needs by exploring the best IPTV for Linux below.

=> ↺ VirtualBox 7.0.0 released [LWN.net]

• Version 7.0.0 of the VirtualBox virtualization system is out. Changes include support for fully encrypted virtual machines, a new performance-monitoring tool, improved theme support, and a number of new devices.

=> ↺ VirtualBox 7.0 is out with their DirectX 11 support using DXVK | GamingOnLinux

• Well this was an interesting one entering the GOL inbox recently. VirtualBox, the general-purpose full virtualizer has a big new release out and even they are now using DXVK.

• DXVK is the Vulkan-based implementation of D3D9, D3D10 and D3D11 for Linux / Wine that’s used in Proton. There’s also DXVK-Native, designed for running apps and games that have Linux Native builds (like VirtualBox itself in this case). It’s quite incredible to see how this amazing open source tech is being used in more places, just goes to show how essential and performant it has become.

=> ↺ VirtualBox 7.0.0

• VirtualBox is a powerful x86 and AMD64/Intel64 virtualization product for enterprise as well as home use. Targeted at server, desktop and embedded use, it is now the only professional-quality virtualization solution that is also Open Source Software. Presently, VirtualBox runs on Windows, Linux, Macintosh, and Solaris hosts and supports a large number of guest operating systems including but not limited to Windows (NT 4.0, 2000, XP, Server 2003, Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10), DOS/Windows 3.x, Linux (2.4, 2.6, 3.x and 4.x), Solaris and OpenSolaris, OS/2, and OpenBSD.

=> ↺ VirtualBox 7.0 Features Full VM Encryption, Better Support for Windows 11 + More

• VirtualBox, the hugely capable open source virtualisation software, is now even more capable.

=> ↺ VirtualBox 7.0 Releases With Secure Boot and Full VM Encryption Support

• A big upgrade for VirtualBox. This release is pretty interesting because we haven’t seen a major update in recent years.

• For those unfamiliar with VirtualBox, it is a virtualization software developed by Oracle.

• With the launch of VirtualBox 7.0, many new features have been added.

• Let’s take a look at some of the most crucial ones.

=> ↺ VirtualBox 7.0 Boasts Linux Secure Boot Support, New Interface

• VirtualBox 7.0 is a major update that could change the way Linux works in virtual machines.

• Oracle has released a new version of its popular cross-platfhypervisor, VirtualBox 7.0, with a significant change to the support of Linux virtual machines. The new version now supports OSes that use Secure Boot.

=> ↺ Oracle VirtualBox 7.0 released • The Register

• VirtualBox 7.0 is the latest version of the FOSS hypervisor that Oracle cquired along with Sun Microsystems in 2009 – barely more than a year after Sun acquired VirtualBox’s developers Innovision.

• The new version adds remote control of VMs hosted in the cloud and support for encrypted VMs too – although for now, that is only available from the command line. The GUI has been streamlined, with better integration of help and error messages and the ability to easily tweak settings such as the number of CPU cores during VM creation.

• Some other changes in its integration with host OSes are less visible but should prove useful. On macOS, it no longer uses kernel extensions, relying entirely on the OS’s built-in hypervisor tools – necessary as macOS 11 and later deprecated support for third-party kernel extensions. There’s also a preview version for Apple Silicon-based Macs. However, although version 7 will happily install on macOS 10.14, it won’t run on it: 10.15 or newer is needed, so watch out if you still use Mojave.

Instructionals/Technical

=> ↺ How to Create Symlinks in Linux – Linux Nightly

• Symbolic links (also called symlinks or soft links) act as shortcuts to other files or directories on Linux. Usually, they are just used as a matter of convenience. Sometimes, they’re also used to create links to files whose paths frequently change. For example, it’s easier to update a single symlink than it is to update 10 Bash scripts with the new location of a file that they all use.

• In this tutorial, you will learn how to create and delete symbolic links in Linux. We’ll also cover some important things to keep in mind about the capabilities and limitations of symlinks.

=> ↺ Create and Upload Custom Linux Image into OpenStack – kifarunix.com

=> ↺ How to Create a Linux Server in the Cloud Using AWS EC2

• When you want to quickly spin up a Linux server in the cloud, AWS EC2 is your best bet.

• Hosting web servers on the internet can be very challenging for a first-timer without a proper guide. Cloud service providers have provided numerous ways to easily spin up servers of any kind in the cloud.

• AWS is one of the biggest and most reliable cloud-based options for deploying servers. Here’s how you can get your Linux-based server running in the cloud with AWS EC2.

=> ↺ How To: Generate an ed25519 SSH key – Invidious

• SSH public/private key pairs are a must-have in Linux world – you can use them for securely accessing remote servers via command line (SSH), to copy files (SCP/SFTP) and to pull and push code from Github (also via SSH). Learn how to generate a modern key pair in just a few minutes.

=> ↺ Use sshpass for Non-interactive SSH login In Scripts – OSTechNix

• In this guide, we will learn what is sshpass utility, how to install sshpass in Linux and FreeBSD systems, and how to use sshpass for non-interactive SSH login in shell scripts in Linux and Unix.

=> ↺ Deploy ownCloud with Persistent Storage Using Docker | TechRepublic

• Jack Wallen walks you through the process of quickly deploying the ownCloud file-sharing and collaboration platform with the help of Docker.

• ownCloud is a powerful cloud-based file hosting and sharing suite of tools. It is also an outstanding option for collaboration that features data access, syncing and sharing, versioning, encryption, drag-and-drop uploading, and theming. ownCloud is enterprise-ready and supports open standards.

=> ↺ LFCS – Firewalld

=> ↺ Setup a Rust Environment in Linux – Invidious

• In this video, we’ll focus on setting up an environment to start learning the Rust programming language

=> ↺ How to install Intellij Idea Ultimate on Linux Mint 21 – Invidious

• In this video, we are looking at how to install Intellij Idea Ultimate on Linux Mint 21.

=> ↺ How to Create a New Project in Redmine | TechRepublic

• Redmine is an outstanding, open-source project management platform that brings to the table multiple project support, flexible role-based access control, issue tracking, Gantt charts, calendars, news, documents and file management, feeds and email notifications, per-project wikis, and per-project forums. Even better, this can all be kept within your LAN, so you don’t have to worry about your projects being hosted on a third-party platform where sensitive information could be at risk.

=> ↺ How to boot Ubuntu Linux OS?

=> ↺ Enable rsync for users on CloudLinux | Linux Webhosting blog

• CloudLinux servers are built to be far more secure than traditional CentOS servers, especially with the addition of CageFS. However, sometimes you might want to allow your users access to some of the commands that are disabled by default. In our example we needed to enable rsync.

=> ↺ Sysadmin basics: Create hard links in Linux | Enable Sysadmin

• A hard link looks like a new file but points back to the data in the original file.

=> ↺ How To Install Mesa Drivers on Linux Mint 21 – idroot

• In this tutorial, we will show you how to install Mesa Drivers on Linux Mint 21. For those of you who didn’t know, Mesa Drivers is an open-source implementation of OpenGL, Vulkan, OpenGL ES, OpenCL, and other API specifications and system for rendering interactive 3D graphics.

• This article assumes you have at least basic knowledge of Linux, know how to use the shell, and most importantly, you host your site on your own VPS. The installation is quite simple and assumes you are running in the root account, if not you may need to add ‘sudo‘ to the commands to get root privileges. I will show you the step-by-step installation of Mesa Drivers on Linux Mint 21 (Vanessa).

=> ↺ How to Install SendEmail in Linux – TecAdmin

• This tutorial will help you to install a command line utility for sending emails from SMTP servers.

=> ↺ Find Command in Linux With Regex [5 Examples]

• The find command is a powerhouse for searching files based on a number of criteria.

• You can enable the beast mode in the find command by using regular expression (regex) for searching.

• But before jumping to the examples part, it is crucial to know some basic regex tokens and syntax.

=> ↺ Easiest Way to Open Files as Root in GNOME Files

• In Windows, you generally get an option to open a file or folder as “Open As Administrator” in the right-click context menu.

• That feature is part of the File manager, i.e. for Windows; it’s part of Windows Explorer. However, it is executed by the operating system and its permission control modules.

• In Linux distributions and file managers, the situation is a little different. The different desktop has their way of handling this.

• Since modifying the files and folders as admin (or root) is risky and may cause a broken system, the feature is not easily available to users via the GUI of file managers.

• For example, KDE Plasma’s default file manager Dolphin recently added this feature so that when a root privilege is required, it will ask for you with a PolicyKit KDE Agent (polkit) window – as shown below. Not the other way around. You want to open/execute something via root from the file manager.

=> ↺ File-based Kafka Connect scenarios with end-to-end encryption

• The first article in this series explained the need for client-side, end-to-end encryption for data passing through Apache Kafka. The article also introduced the Kryptonite for Kafka project, which integrates with Apache Kafka Connect to achieve automatic encryption and decryption with no changes to application code.

=> ↺ How to install Nitrux 2.4.1 – Invidious

• In this video, I am going to show how to install Nitrux 2.4.1.

=> ↺ How To Install Plex Media Server on Rocky Linux 9 – idroot

• In this tutorial, we will show you how to install Plex Media Server on Rocky Linux 9. For those of you who didn’t know, Plex is a free, open-source, and full-featured media server that allows you to stream your photos, video, and audio files on your PC, tablet or phone from anywhere. The software organizes your files and content into categories, making it easy to find and use. In addition, the Plex Media Server provides security and privacy features that allow you to control who can access your content and when.

• This article assumes you have at least basic knowledge of Linux, know how to use the shell, and most importantly, you host your site on your own VPS. The installation is quite simple and assumes you are running in the root account, if not you may need to add ‘sudo‘ to the commands to get root privileges. I will show you the step-by-step installation of the Plex Media Server on Rocky Linux. 9.

=> ↺ How to Create a Bitcoin Lightning Node in Linux – Make Tech Easier

• One of the biggest pain points when using Bitcoin is the long transaction times. This can be frustrating to new users that are just getting into this digital currency. One of the easiest ways to improve this is to use a secondary payment layer such as Bitcoin Lightning.

• Bitcoin Lightning is a system that uses custom Bitcoin transactions to move assets quickly outside of the regular blockchain process. In this regard, Lightning is similar to the Tor Network where it uses TCP/IP as its backbone when routing anonymous connections.

Games

=> ↺ Fall Guys: The 4 Minutes install: Try it out, it’s Free, and Works Great on Linux! – Boiling Steam

• I’m not typically the guy who recommends to use the Epic Games Store, but this will be an exception, as Fall Guys is now exclusive to it on PC, while still a very good game, that works well on Linux – and now free-to-play. Free is good, especially when it’s not pay-to-win, which is not the case here. The only reason why you would spend money in Fall Guys is to buy new cosmetic attributes (costumes, accessories) to make your character look a little more fun, but it’s not necessary at all to enjoy it. They seem to be however very successful at convincing many people to purchase such digital goods. In Fall Guys, you play in the first stage with 60 other players, and a good majority has purchased something to make their character look more unique.

• [...]

• Fall Guys has moved to a new season recently, with space-themed levels, and some of the new levels are terrific (and difficult) – I really like the level where there are invisible bridges over the void, and you need to refer to a map that updates in the horizon to check where is your next safe path.

Desktop Environments/WMs

K Desktop Environment/KDE SC/Qt

=> ↺ Akademy 2022

• This year, I had the amazing opportunity to attend Akademy in person (@ Barcelona) for the first time!

• For context, I first started contributing to Plasma Mobile in 2020, right around when easily testable hardware (ex. PinePhone) was taking shape. I originally started with some contributions to some applications to learn Qt and C++, but have since then taken more responsibility with tasks from all around the software stack.

=> ↺ An awesome KDE Akademy is over. Hello Thessaloniki!!! | iBlog Efstathios Iosifidis

• This year, I had the amazing opportunity to attend KDE Akademy in person for the first time! The host city was Barcelona. It is my second time visiting the city but it was my first time to attend KDE Akademy. Actually it was my first KDE event.

• For KDE friends who don’t know me, I mainly contribute to openSUSE, GNOME, Nextcloud, ownCloud and GNU Health. I have fewer contributions to Fedora, Ubuntu and ONLYOFFICE and a few here and there to FOSS projects.

• Question. Why did you attend KDE Akademy? Two were the reasons. The first and main reason was to see the organization of the conference from the inside, since my University will host the next KDE Akademy. The second reason was to “introduce” myself to the KDE community, since I contribute to other projects. Actually, I know a person from the KDE board but community is not only one person.

• The only familiar person I could meet was openSUSE’s community manager. Unfortunately he couldn’t attend, so he asked me to represent openSUSE. The duties were to have a booth and present something openSUSE related for 3 minutes. I had an idea to propose my friend George to do his first presentation to an open source conference and start his open source journey. He was very excited and he did it.

=> ↺ KDE Plasma 5.26 Dazzles With New Widgets, Desktop Enhancements

• The latest ersion of the popular Linux desktop features new widgets, wallpapers, and a TV interface. How will it compete with GNOME?

• The KDE Community has released the latest version of its flagship Plasma Linux desktop, version 5.26. This release touts some new desktop widgets and enhanced customizability.

• [...]

• The theme of KDE Plasma 5.26 is its desktop widgets. The official announcement page even says that it’s “all about the widgets.”

• “The clock and calendar in your panel, the notifier, your KDE Connect monitor, the volume control; these are all widgets, and all can be added elsewhere, moved around, removed and, in true Plasma fashion, modified to an extreme degree,” the announcement page said.

=> ↺ Plasma 5.26 Is Here but Don’t Expect Too Much from This Release

• Resizable panel widgets, animated wallpapers, and some changes to System Settings are among the significant improvements in KDE Plasma 5.26.

• KDE and GNOME are the two leading desktop environments, so each new release is met with great anticipation and excitement.

• However, the newly released KDE Plasma 5.26 brings a few interesting functional improvements but will probably not cause another “wow” effect among users. And that is, of course, completely normal.

• KDE, as we all know, is about unlimited options for customization. So, let’s take a look at another dosage of those that Plasma 5.26 brings us and give our honest thoughts on them below.

=> ↺ KDE Plasma 5.26 Is Here with New UI for Smart TVs, Improved Wayland Support, and More

• About four months in the works, KDE Plasma 5.26 is packed with many exciting new features, starting with a new user interface for smart TVs called Plasma Bigscreen. KDE’s new Plasma Bigscreen interface runs on top of either postmarketOS or Manjaro Linux and promises to turn your TV or set-top box (STB) into a fully hackable device.

• Plasma Bigscreen features Aura Browser as a new web browser for a fully immersed “Big Screen” experience, as well as Plank Player, a multimedia player for playing local files, both of them being fully controllable with the remote control of your TV or set-top box. Under the hood, Plasma Bigscreen runs on top of Wayland.

=> ↺ KDE Plasma 5.26 Arrives with Animated Wallpaper & Goodies

• The 28th version of the KDE Plasma desktop environment was released today, named Plasma 5.26, with many user-centric features and goodies.

• Coming up since the prior release early this year, KDE Plasma 5.26 is based upon Qt framework 5.15.2 and KDE Framework 5.98, which brings the latest suite of KDE technology and application.

• Let’s take a look at the new features of Plasma 5.26.

=> ↺ How to Upgrade to KDE Plasma 5.26 from 5.25

• KDE Plasma 5.26 is the 28th edition of Plasma desktop that brings significant changes that include animated wallpaper, dark themes and dark wallpapers switchers, resizable widgets, intelligent KRunner and many more.

• If you are running an earlier version of KDE Plasma via KDE Neon Linux Distribution, this is how you can upgrade to the latest version.

=> ↺ KDE Plasma 5.26 is out now | GamingOnLinux

• The KDE team have done it again! Giving us a fresh new Plasma desktop with plenty of upgrades and Plasma 5.26 is out now.

• KDE say it’s “All About the Widgets” and they’re not wrong. When it comes to Widgets, they’re referring to almost everything you see around the main Plasma desktop from what you add directly to the desktop, to the various icons and features on the bottom Plasma panel. With this release, you can now even resize those from the Plasma panel too which is quite a useful change.

• Lots of Widgets saw upgrades too like the Dictionary allowing more than one dictionary definition or translation, the Sticky notes, User switcher and Media Player were all given new features too.

=> ↺ Plasma 5.26 is All About the Widgets – Kockatoo Tube

• Even with a bare-bones installation, Plasma lets you customize your desktop a lot. If you want more, there are always widgets. Widgets add features and utilities to the Plasma desktop and today you can find out all the stuff you can do and what’s new with the widgets shipped with Plasma 5.26.

• Widgets are not the only thing to look forward to in Plasma 5.26: check out all the new stuff landing in the desktop designed to make using Plasma easier, more accessible and enjoyable, as well as the two new utilities for Plasma Big Screen, KDE’s interface for smart TVS.

=> ↺ Plasma 5.26

• Even with a bare-bones installation, Plasma lets you customize your desktop a lot. If you want more, there is always Plasma’s vast ecosystem of widgets. Widgets add features and utilities to the Plasma desktop and today you can find out all the stuff you can do and what’s new for widgets in Plasma 5.26.

• Widgets are not the only thing to look forward to in Plasma 5.26: check out all the new stuff landing on the desktop designed to make using Plasma easier, more accessible and enjoyable, as well as the two new utilities for Plasma Big Screen, KDE’s interface for smart TVs.

=> ↺ KDE Plasma 5.26 Released, This is What’s New

• KDE Plasma 5.26 is out, serving as the latest update to this hugely popular free and open source desktop environment.

• And make no bones about it: Plasma 5.26 is a bountiful bug-fix bonanza of a release. There are, as always, a few “blingy” new additions to peruse, prod, or play with, but also a bucketload of refinements that touch nearly every part of the Plasma desktop experience.

• Quality matters, and with the KDE user base ballooning in size (thanks to devices like Valve’s Steamdeck) taking some time out to double-down on improving what’s already been built is healthy in the grand scheme.

• So let’s recap the changes.

=> ↺ KDE Plasma 5.26 Released! To Land in PPA for (K)Ubuntu 22.10 | UbuntuHandbook

• KDE Plasma desktop 5.26 was released today. Here’s the new features and PPA for (K)Ubuntu users.

• In the new release, it supports for resizing system tray indicator menu. Just like resizing an app window, open date & time, notifications, or any other menu in bottom right system tray area. Then move mouse pointer to the edge of the menu, and drag resizing when cursor become double-arrow.

=> ↺ KDE Plasma 5.26 Adds Animated Wallpapers, New Widgets, and Big Screen Apps

• KDE Plasma is one of the most powerful desktop environments out there, which has been evolving at a very fast pace.

• With KDE Plasma 5.26, many new features are being added to the desktop environment.

Distributions and Operating Systems

Screenshots/Screencasts

=> ↺ deepin 20.7 Quick overview #linux #deepin – Invidious

• A Quick Overview of deepin 20.7

BSD

=> ↺ In Other BSDs for 2022/10/08

=> ↺ Meet the 2022 FreeBSD Google Summer of Code Students: Koichi Imai

• The FreeBSD Project is proud to have participated in the Google Summer of Code program since its inception in 2005. At the completion of the 2022 season, the Foundation asked a few of our GSoC students to share more about themselves and their experience working with the Project.

SUSE/OpenSUSE

=> ↺ More API Endpoint Documentation for Project and Package Sources

Fedora Family / IBM

=> ↺ Weekly status of Packit Team: October 2022

Debian Family

=> ↺ Ben Hutchings: Debian LTS work, August-September 2022

• I have continued to work for Freexian on Debian LTS. In August I carried over 21 hours from July, and worked 13 hours. In September I was assigned an additional 17 hours, and worked 16 hours. I will carry over 9 hours into October.

Canonical/Ubuntu Family

=> ↺ What is confidential computing? A high-level explanation for CISOs | Ubuntu

• Privacy enhancing technologies and confidential computing are two of my favorite topics to talk about! So much so that I am writing this blog post on a sunny Saturday afternoon. But wait, what’s that I hear you murmuring? “What is confidential computing? And how does it affect me?” Those are two very good questions.

• Before we get into the details, let’s imagine you are the chief information security officer of Palabs, a leading genomics company which specialises in sequencing the DNA of curious citizens who are willing to spit into small containers and ship them across oceans for analysis. In exchange, your company provides them a data-driven and science-backed report of probabilities detailing where their ancestors might have come from (sorry grandma, you’re not from Italy! You might wanna go easy on all that pasta now).

=> ↺ Why You Should Attend the Ubuntu Summit In-Person | Ubuntu

• The Ubuntu Summit will be packed with discussions and events you won’t want to miss! Learn more about why you should join us in Prague on November 7–9th.

• [...]

• The Ubuntu Summit is a hybrid event, with both remote and in-person participation. When joining remotely, you will get a cross-section of the event. However, there are many more sessions to explore when you join us in Prague.

=> ↺ Design and Web team summary – 23 September 2022 | Ubuntu

• The Web and design team at Canonical runs in two-week iterations building and maintaining all of the Canonical websites and product web interfaces. Here are some of the highlights of our completed work from this iteration.

• During this iteration, the team met in London for a team workshop. It was the first time a lot of the team got to meet together. We covered topics such as team culture and focused on what motivates us.

=> ↺ Canonical works with NVIDIA and BT to unlock infrastructure scalability for data scientists, technical and creative professionals – PCR

• Ubuntu KVM has extended its reach to AI/ML applications and graphics-intensive applications with native support for NVIDIA virtual GPU (vGPU) software products, including NVIDIA Virtual Compute Server (vCS) and NVIDIA RTX Virtual Workstation (vWS). Canonical has been working closely with NVIDIA to ensure frictionless integration and a best-in-class user experience. This allows all Ubuntu users, from those in data science to those working on high-end professional graphics, to benefit from powerful GPU performance across the entire spectrum of cloud infrastructure.

=> ↺ Canonical works with NVIDIA and BT to unlock infrastructure scalability for data scientists, technical and creative professionals

• Ubuntu KVM — an industry-leading hypervisor — extends its reach to AI/ML applications and graphics-intensive applications with native support for NVIDIA virtual GPU (vGPU) software products, including NVIDIA Virtual Compute Server (vCS) and NVIDIA RTX Virtual Workstation (vWS). Canonical has been working closely with NVIDIA to ensure frictionless integration and a best-in-class user experience. This allows all Ubuntu users, from those in data science to those working on high-end professional graphics, to benefit from powerful GPU performance across the entire spectrum of cloud infrastructure.

• “By processing data closer to the end device, edge computing has the potential to minimise the amount of data that must be transported across our core network.” said Paul Veitch, Senior Manager of Software Based Networks Research at BT. “However, we must avoid cancelling out these network cost savings due to additional operational complexity. The introduction of NVIDIA virtual GPU support in Ubuntu means that we not only can consistently and cost-effectively leverage the same monitoring and maintenance tools in core and edge deployments, we can also unlock differentiated services for our customers”.

Devices/Embedded

=> ↺ DIY Raspberry Pi LapPi 2.0 Laptop Kit Is Coming Soon | Tom’s Hardware

• SB Components has announced an upcoming crowd funding campaign for a new DIY laptop kit made just for the Raspberry Pi dubbed the LapPi 2.0. This kit is designed to be modular, offering users a variety of built in components with plenty of room for flexibility. Right now information for the laptop is limited but it shows us a few ways the new kit stands out against previous Raspberry Pi PC/laptop kits we’ve reviewed in the past including the CrowPi and Pi Top kits.

=> ↺ Tiger Lake embedded Box PC offers V-by-One and eDP Interfaces – CNX Software

• Distec BoxPC Pro NPA-2009 is an embedded Box PC powered by a Celeron 6305E, Intel Core-i3 1115G4E, Core i5-1145G7E, or Core-i7-1185G7E Tiger Lake processor that offers both V-by-One and eDP interfaces to connect to high-resolution displays.

• The system supports up to 64GB RAM, NVMe stoage, dual Gigabit Ethernet, and optional WiFi and cellular connectivity, and is suitable for info terminals, medical equipment, and transportation applications.

Open Hardware/Modding

=> ↺ Create vector video art with an Arduino | Arduino Blog

• Unless you’re very young, then you probably remember watching a CRT (cathode-ray tube) television. Those work by directing an electron beam very quickly along row after row while pulsing power to create raster images. But it is also possible to create vector images by directing the electron beam along paths instead of scanning, which you might notice is what an oscilloscope does. Trevor combined these two ideas and made a video explaining how you can create vector video art with an Arduino, a handful of resistors, and an oscilloscope.

=> ↺ The Smart-Badge recognizes kitchen activities with its suite of sensors | Arduino Blog

• We all strive to maintain healthier lifestyles, yet the kitchen is often the most challenging environment by far due to it containing a wide range of foods and beverages. The Smart-Badge project, created by a team of researchers from the German Research Centre for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), aims to track just how many times we reach for the refrigerator door or drink water using machine learning and a suite of environmental sensors.

• The wearable device itself is comprised of a single PCB that houses a pair of microcontrollers, an NXP iMXRT1062 for quickly gathering complex data, and an Arduino Nano 33 BLE Sense for collecting more basic samples. Whether it’s the digital gas sensor, the accelerometer, an IR thermal array, or an air pressure sensor, each reading is compiled into a single stream which updates at 6Hz and can either be stored locally on an SD card or sent via Bluetooth® to a phone.

Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications

=> ↺ Android 13 is fixing the battery stats page

=> ↺ AAWireless wireless Android Auto adapter gets first discount

=> ↺ MFE Inspection Solutions Announces New 640 x 512 Handheld OGI Camera with Android-based User Interface | Business Wire

=> ↺ Google’s Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro Pack New Android VPN and Tensor G2, Titan M2 Chips | WIRED

=> ↺ Warning for Android users as Google confirms it’s shutting down important feature | The US Sun

=> ↺ Tuya “T6E” is a 4-inch Android touch control panel & Zigbee gateway for OEMs

=> ↺ These Android Apps Are Terrible For Your Phone’s Battery Life

=> ↺ Best Solitaire Games To Try Playing On Android

=> ↺ Best video chat apps on Android

=> ↺ 5 Unique Features That Make the Pixel 7 Different From All Other Android Phones

=> ↺ 6 Best Ways to Improve Battery Life on Android – Guiding Tech

=> ↺ Gboard finally updated with Android tablet layout

=> ↺ Latest Gboard beta brings new layout optimized for Android tablets

=> ↺ How To Set Up Your Android Phone’s Hotspot

=> ↺ How To Record Videos With Screen Off On An Android Phone

=> ↺ YouTube Music’s Android 13 media player updated with thumbs-up

=> ↺ Samsung Galaxy Z Fold – Z Flip 4 may get the Android 13 update

=> ↺ Lava Yuva Pro is an affordable Android 12 phone with a microSD slot and 3.5mm jack – GSMArena.com news

Free, Libre, and Open Source Software

=> ↺ Carlafox, an open-source web-based CARLA visualizer

• Self-driving cars have the potential to change the paradigm of transportation. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation National Motor Vehicle Crash Causation Survey, 93% of all vehicle accidents are influenced by human error. Eliminating those accidents would be a giant leap forward, a safer means of transportation.

• However, developing autonomous driving systems requires a tremendous amount of training images, usually collected and labelled by human labor, which is costly and error-prone. To make things worse, gathering such a vast amount of real driving images is challenging because we cannot artificially make unusual corner cases or peculiar weather and lighting conditions.

• Over the past years, synthesized datasets from 3D game engines are gaining wide acceptance as a viable solution to tackle the problem. Besides these advances, monitoring and validating the data generation process is often still time-consuming and challenging.

=> ↺ Cryptpad Review: A Google Docs / Forms Alternative and a Self-Hosting Bliss

• CryptPad as a software is free/libre open source software licensed under GNU AGPL developed by the France-based company Xwiki.

Web Browsers/Web Servers

Mozilla

=> ↺ I finally got around to submitting a Web Compatibility problem report on ComEd (the Illinois electric company) to Pale Moon Forum. (Microsoft-related) | BaronHK’s Rants

• I finally got around to submitting a Web Compatibility problem report on ComEd (the Illinois electric company) to Pale Moon Forum.

• The next time someone says Microsoft loves open source, remind them that Microsoft doesn’t even use open standards. This is Chrome/Webkit nonsense.

• According to Mozilla documents, it would seem at least one of these problems is occurring because Microsoft is using -webkit-autofill when there’s been an unprefixed version of this for years and “For the best browser compatibility use both” the Webkit prefixed version and the unprefixed version of “autofill”.

• Microsoft’s sites are usually very poorly coded (like Outlook WebMail) and when the Illinois electric company, ComEd, switched to Microsoft Azure, they got this mess.

• It’s amusing that Mozilla took Microsoft and Google bailouts to keep MDN going and then it points out that Microsoft’s behavior defies “best practices” when it comes to Web development. Of course it does. This is the company that brought you Windows.

=> ↺ Protect your privacy and your phone number with Firefox Relay

• When you share your personal phone number with anyone outside your circle of family and friends, it essentially gives them permission to call you anytime of the day. This can mean robocallers at lunch and dinner, not to mention spam text messages throughout the day.

• Think about it: How many times have you shared your number without giving it much thought? Take those retail loyalty programs that promise big discounts and hot deals. When you sign up and accept the terms of service, you’re also agreeing to share your personal information like your phone number with those companies – plus all their third-party partners. Having your data shared across multiple companies increases the chances of your information getting leaked. Before you know it, your number has landed on a spam caller list.

• Since launching in 2020, Firefox Relay – a privacy-first product that hides your real email address to help protect your identity – has blocked more than 1.3 million unwanted emails from people’s inboxes while keeping true email addresses from trackers across the web. For Firefox Relay users, privacy protection doesn’t stop there. This Cybersecurity Awareness Month, we’re excited to announce a new user-requested feature to protect personal phone numbers.

=> ↺ Need Help With Thunderbird? Here’s How To Get Support

• We understand that email and calendaring can be a vital part of your work day, and just as important to your personal life. We also realize that sometimes you’ll have questions about using Thunderbird. That’s where the amazing Thunderbird community enters the picture. Whether you need tech support or just need a simple answer to a question, here’s how to find the help you need. And how to help the people who are helping you!

SaaS/Back End/Databases

=> ↺ PostgreSQL: Initial release of pg_enquo, a queryable encryption extension for PostgreSQL

• The Enquo Project is extremely pleased to announce the initial release of pg_enquo, an open source PostgreSQL extension that enables the secure and efficient querying of encrypted data stored in a PostgreSQL table.

• Strong encryption is one of the best ways of preventing data leaks. However, when encrypted, data becomes difficult to query, removing many of the benefits of storing it in a database. With pg_enquo, however, you can encrypt data, store it in PostgreSQL, and still query it. All encryption and decryption happens in the client application, meaning that an attacker with access to the database server or its contents can never decrypt the data.

=> ↺ NocoDB is an Open Source No Code Database System and Airtable Alternative

• NocoDB is a self-hosted open source Low and No-code platform that can be an ideal alternative to Airtable.

• Unlike other similar No Code and Low Code platforms, NocoDB offers several and clean installation methods, and it does not consume your server resources as it runs.

• [...]

• The NocoDB is an open-source that is released under the AGPL-3.0 license.

Productivity Software/LibreOffice/Calligra

=> ↺ LibreOffice QA/Dev Report: September 2022

Content Management Systems (CMS)

=> ↺ 4 Best Free and Open Source OCaml Static Site Generators

•  LinuxLinks, like most modern websites, is dynamic in that content is stored in a database and converted into presentation-ready HTML when readers access the site.

• While we employ built-in server caching which creates static versions of the site, we don’t generate a full, static HTML website based on raw data and a set of templates. However, sometimes a full, static HTML website is desirable. Because HTML pages are all prebuilt, they load extremely quickly in web browsers.

=> ↺ WordPress 6.1 Release Candidate 1 (RC1) Now Available – WordPress News

• This is an important milestone in the 6.1 release cycle. “Release Candidate” means that this version of WordPress is ready for release! Before the official release date, time is set aside for the community to perform final reviews and help test. Since the WordPress ecosystem includes thousands of plugins and themes, it is important that everyone checks to see if anything was missed along the way. That means the project would love your help.

• WordPress 6.1 is planned for official release on November 1st, 2022, three weeks from today.

=> ↺ Blog To Speech – In My Voice – Alan Pope’s blog

• There exists online, a synthesized version of my own voice, built into mimic3 (licensed under the AGPL v3) by MycroftAI.

Programming/Development

=> ↺ Happy Ada Lovelace Day! Here are our favorite tech books for kids | Opensource.com

• Tech is everywhere! And it’s important to remember, everyone is a beginner once. The industry is continually growing, looking for new folks to add valuable perspectives. How do we inspire our next batch of tech contributors?

• [...]

• From hands-on programming tutorials to fictional adventure novels, our contributors share their favorite books for programmers who are just starting out.

Perl / Raku

=> ↺ Perl Weekly Challenge 186: Zip List and Unicode Makeover

Python

=> ↺ A Beginner’s Guide to Web Scraping Using Python – KDnuggets

• This article serves as a beginner’s guide to web scraping using Python and looks at the different frameworks and methods you can use, outlined in simple terms.

Shell/Bash/Zsh/Ksh

=> ↺ Using functions in bash to selectively run a group of Linux commands

• Using a function in bash allows you to create something in Linux that works as if it were a script within a script. Whenever the data being processed matches a set of conditions, your script can call a function that does further processing.

Leftovers

Hardware

=> ↺ Deep Dive On Google’s Exascale TPUv4 AI Systems

• You will note that the TPUv4i inference chip is pretty hefty in its own right, with a single TPU core with four 128×128 MXUs, running at a very respectable 1.05 GHz but only taking up 400 mm2 of area.

Security

=> ↺ Tenable Announces New Research Alliance Program for Vulnerability Intelligence Sharing

• This new intelligence sharing initiative aims to reduce the window of opportunity threat actors have to exploit newly-disclosed vulnerabilities, allowing security teams and system administrators to address attack paths before hackers can take advantage. AlmaLinux, Canonical, CIQ, GreyNoise and TuxCare [the new brand name for CloudLinux Enterprise services] are the five inaugural members of this growing network.

=> ↺ CISA Releases Three Industrial Control Systems Advisories

• CISA has released three Industrial Control Systems (ICS) advisories on October 11, 2022. These advisories provide timely information about current security issues, vulnerabilities, and exploits surrounding ICS.

=> ↺ Announcing Istio 1.14.5

• This release includes security fixes in Go 1.18.7 (released 2022-10-04) for the archive/tar, net/http/httputil, and regexp packages. This release also includes fixes to improve robustness. This release note describes what is different between Istio 1.14.4 and Istio 1.14.5.

=> ↺ Istio / Announcing Istio 1.15.2

• This release includes security fixes in Go 1.19.2 (released 2022-10-04) for the archive/tar, net/http/httputil, and regexp packages. This release contains bug fixes to improve robustness. This release note describes what is different between Istio 1.15.1 and Istio 1.15.2.

=> ↺ Istio / Announcing Istio 1.13.9

• This release contains a patch for CVE-2022-41715 and bug fixes to improve robustness. This release note describes what is different between Istio 1.13.8 and Istio 1.13.9.

=> ↺ iTWire – Microsoft fails to fix Exchange zero-days in October Patch Tuesday release

• Microsoft has released patches for 84 vulnerabilities in its products on its monthly Patch Tuesday, but failed to deliver fixes for two zero-day flaws in versions of Exchange Server that were reported publicly on 29 September.

• The Security Response Team at Tenable said in a blog post that the 84 CVEs which were issued included two critical flaws.

• Microsoft issued a statement, listing security updates for vulnerabilities in Exchange Server 2013, Exchange Server 2016 and Exchange Server 2019.

• As iTWire reported, based on tweets from British security expert Kevin Beaumont, the two zero-days are similar to the ProxyShell vulnerability for which updates were issued by Microsoft in May and July last year.

=> ↺ Microsoft Releases October 2022 Security Updates | CISA

• Microsoft has released updates to address multiple vulnerabilities in Microsoft software. An attacker can exploit some of these vulnerabilities to take control of an affected system.

=> ↺ CISA Has Added One Known Exploited Vulnerability to Catalog | CISA

• CISA has added one new vulnerability to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, based on evidence of active exploitation. This type of vulnerability is a frequent attack vector for malicious cyber actors and pose significant risk to the federal enterprise. Note: To view the newly added vulnerabilities in the catalog, click on the arrow in the “Date Added to Catalog” column, which will sort by descending dates.   

=> ↺ Security updates for Tuesday [LWN.net]

• Security updates have been issued by Debian (connman, dbus, git, isc-dhcp, strongswan, and wordpress), Fedora (rubygem-pdfkit and seamonkey), Red Hat (gnutls, nettle, rh-ruby27-ruby, and rh-ruby30-ruby), SUSE (libgsasl, python, and snakeyaml), and Ubuntu (graphite2, linux, linux-aws, linux-aws-5.15, linux-azure, linux-azure-5.15, linux-gcp, linux-gke, linux-gkeop, linux-hwe-5.15, linux-kvm, linux-lowlatency, linux-lowlatency-hwe-5.15, linux-oracle, linux-raspi, linux, linux-aws, linux-bluefield, linux-gke, linux-gkeop, linux-hwe-5.4, linux-ibm, linux-ibm-5.4, linux-kvm, linux-oracle, linux, linux-dell300x, linux-kvm, linux-oracle, linux-raspi2, linux-snapdragon, linux-hwe, linux-oracle, openssh, and pcre3).

=> ↺ Living off the Cloud. Cloudy with a Chance of Exfiltration | Pen Test Partners

• Unless default settings are changed, typical Office 365 (O365) licences come loaded with various services that are all usable by end users without special permissions. Power Automate can be used maliciously by compromised users or insider threats to systematically capture and exfiltrate data without having to contend with network safeguards.

• [...]

• Power Automate is an O365 service that is included with common place such as Office 365 E1, E3 and E5 that are commonly used by organisations. Power Automate can also be used with a free licence suitably named “Microsoft Power Automate Free”. Both versions come with plenty of capabilities, known as connectors. This service is a visual scripting service that allows users to automate different activities and duties to streamline processes.

• The below image demonstrates the visual layout of this service, which allows you to create flows (cloud-hosted scripts) with all the typical scripting concepts such as loops, if statements, declaring variables, etc. The below example flow generates a spreadsheet with trending documents for everyone in the target group. Please note that you can only see shared documents.

=> ↺ Imperceptible and blackbox-undetectable backdoors in compiled neural networks

• Early backdoor attacks against machine learning set off an arms race in attack and defence development. Defences have since appeared demonstrating some ability to detect backdoors in models or even remove them. These defences work by inspecting the training data, the model, or the integrity of the training procedure. In this work, we show that backdoors can be added during compilation, circumventing any safeguards in the data preparation and model training stages. As an illustration, the attacker can insert weight-based backdoors during the hardware compilation step that will not be detected by any training or data-preparation process. Next, we demonstrate that some backdoors, such as ImpNet, can only be reliably detected at the stage where they are inserted and removing them anywhere else presents a significant challenge. We conclude that machine-learning model security requires assurance of provenance along the entire technical pipeline, including the data, model architecture, compiler, and hardware specification.

=> ↺ ML models must also think about trusting trust | Light Blue Touchpaper

• Our latest paper demonstrates how a Trojan or backdoor can be inserted into a machine-learning model by the compiler. In his Turing Award lecture, Ken Thompson explained how this could be done to an operating system, and in previous work we’d shown you you can subvert a model by manipulating the order in which training data are presented. Could these ideas be combined?

=> ↺ Cybersecurity Awareness: 4 Steps to Improve Your Security Online

• According to CISA, this initiative is focused on the “people part of cybersecurity, providing information and resources to help educate CISA partners and the public, and ensure all individuals and organizations make smart decisions whether on the job, at home or at school.”

=> ↺ Tachyum Runs Native Security-Enhanced Linux to Ensure Protection of Critical Infrastructure

=> ↺ Tachyum Runs Native Security-Enhanced Linux to Ensure Protection of Critical Infrastructure

• Tachyum™ today announced that Prodigy, the world’s first universal processor, successfully runs Security-Enhanced Linux (SELinux), the security architecture for Linux systems that allows administrators to have more control over who can access a system. This latest success of Tachyum’s software team helps satisfy customer requirements in many of its key markets.

=> ↺ XSAs released on 2022-10-11 | Qubes OS

• The Xen Project has released one or more Xen Security Advisories (XSAs). The security of Qubes OS is not affected. Therefore, no user action is required.

Privacy/Surveillance

=> ↺ EU watchdog probes Frontex & EEAS support to non-EU states to develop surveillance

• The EU’s watchdog has opened investigations into the bloc’s border and diplomatic agencies over concerns they might not have carried out necessary human rights risk and impact assessments before supporting third countries in the development of surveillance capabilities.

• Ombudsman Emily O’Reilly opened her investigations into Frontex and the European External Action Service (EEAS) last week following complaints from NGOs including Privacy International, Access Now, Sea-Watch, BVMN, Homo Digitalis, and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).

• O’Reilly called on Frontex to clear up whether it carries out any due diligence assessments or human rights risk and impact assessments before it decides to transfer surveillance capabilities to non-EU countries.

• These include capacity building and training in surveillance techniques and the transfer of surveillance equipment.

• She also specifically referenced a training exercise the border agency has provided to the Libyan General Administration for Coastal Security (GACS), demanding to know whether an assessment of human rights risks was made prior.

Monopolies

Software Patents

=> ↺ Patent clouds for the Opus codec [LWN.net]

• Now a company called Vectis (“a premier full-suite IP licensing and consultancy boutique”) is collecting patents that are claimed to read on Opus as a way of demanding royalties on its use. “The planned Opus program will focus on hardware devices and will not be directed towards open-source software, applications, services, or content”. (Thanks to Paul Wise).

Copyrights

=> ↺ How copyright absurdity rules over J. R. R. Tolkien’s ‘The Rings of Power’ – Walled Culture

• J. R. R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” is one of the best-known and best-loved modern works of literature, not least thanks to Peter Jackson’s films based on the cycle. Given that popularity, it’s no surprise that there was interest in creating adaptations of other Tolkien works. The result is “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power”.

=> ↺ Fungi Collected in Shropshire and Other Neighbourhoods (1860–1902) – The Public Domain Review

• Bound into three exquisitely colored volumes, Fungi features hundreds of species, collected across 42 years by a female mycologist named M. F. Lewis.

Gemini* and Gopher

Personal

=> ↺ CGHYRUO Wordo: INNER

Politics

=> ↺ Tax the rich

• We need more taxes, everywhere, and most of all we need progressive – prohibitively expensive! – taxes on carbon usage. That is to say: if you’re poor and you need to heat your home or drive to work, that’s regrettable but you can’t help it so this doesn’t need to be punished by high taxes. If you fly by air plane and this is not a medical emergency out of a war zone or inaccessible mountain regions or something of a similar scale, those taxes should start making an impact. And if you’re super rich, you just need to stop fucking with the environment. Just stop it.

• [...]

• This is why I vote for the melon green party in Switzerland: green on the outside, red on the inside. We need to drastically decrease inequality and save the planet at the same time.

Technical

=> ↺ A kiosk computer running OpenBSD

• Let’s have fun doing OpenBSD kiosks! As explained in a recent article, a kiosk is a computer dedicated to display things or to be used interactively without being able to escape the current program.

• I modified the script surf-display which run the web browser surf in full screen and run various commands to sanitize the environment to prevent users to escape surf to make it compatible with OpenBSD.

Internet/Gemini

=> ↺ Some Weaknesses of Gemini

• I believe that all people have a fundamental right to privacy and a freedom to associate how they choose. I also believe in the right for all people to speak freely and express themselves how they wish, even if what they say is untrue or unpopular. I suspect many of my fellow Geminauts feel the same. To these ends, I’ve long been interested in censorship-resistant technologies, tools that enhance privacy, and secure communication systems.

• A core pillar of free discussion is a strong do-it-yourself attitude, which is pervasive on Gemini. As such, the Gemini community (as well as Gopher and other small Internet protocols) is an open and friendly place, willing to have serious discussions without outright vilifying each other. However, that does not mean Gemini itself is a perfect protocol to facilitate this kind of discourse.

Programming

=> ↺ Forth Progress: ARRAY and CRC32

• I’ve been a bit distracted lately with my astronomy studies, but I have still been working with Mecrisp Stellaris Forth here and there. I asked in the #mecrisp IRC channel if anybody had a software implementation of the CRC32 checksum algorithm available for Mecrisp Stellaris. They told me no, but that it would be a great idea for me to make one and contribute it. So, I did.

=> ↺ How the repos on this capsule work

• Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It’s like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter. Share in other sites/networks: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. Permalink  Send this to a friend

=> Techrights

➮ Sharing is caring. Content is available under CC-BY-SA.