NamForum.com - Open Source

perl -e 'print "Happy 20th Aniversary, Perl!\n"'

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 13:57:56 +0100

Time flies - it's 2007, and the programming language Perl already turns 20 years old. Created by Larry Wall, the first interpreter became freely available exactly on todays date - 20 years ago, in 1987. It then took a long and sometimes agonizing 16 years before version 1.00_16 arrived - during that time it already got dubbed the "duct tape of the internet" (an expression coined by Hassan Schroeder, Sun's first webmaster), and since that first release it's also seen a much quicker release schedule than ever before (currently version 5.8.8 is commonly in use, still to be expected today is release 5.10).

Originally designed as a "replacement" for awk and sed, Wall tried to incorporate (at least in his view) "the best" of C, sed, awk and sh (a.k.a. "Bourne Shell", named after its creator Stephen R. Bourne).

Anyone wishing to celebrate this "round" birthday of Perl has been cordially invited by Perl developer Brian D. Foy to join the Perl forum - he hopes to make it a 24 hour global party, rolling through all the time zones in the world (which, at least in my calculation, would then obviously make it a 47:59 hour party - but hey, let's just party...).

The "Gutsy Gibbon" is here: Ubuntu 7.10 released

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 20:47:30 +0200

While the unusual codenames for the various releases of Ubuntu Linux probably keep putting a little smile on the face of every "corporate IT"-guy's face, the sheer stability and power of that popular Linux distribution will very quickly disperse that look with one of awe and respect.

The new 7.10 release is out for some days now - including the drivative Kubuntu 7.10, which I also just used to upgrade a machine here in my office.

The latest release uses Gnome 2.20 as its window manager (Kubuntu still uses KDE 3.5.8, but the new KDE 4 packages are already available), and on newer hardware automatically enables 3D desktop effects via Compiz Fusion. Also new is a desktop search applet that is now included in the default installation, fast user session switching without the need to enter your username and password all the time, AppArmor security framework, full read and write access to NTFS partitions, improved thin client (LTSP) support, and much more.

Kubuntu has added Dolphin as the new default file manager, and uses Strigi as the desktop search engine.

Both Ubuntu 7.10 as well as Kubuntu 7.10 also come bundled with the new Open Office 2.3 version, which comes with a large list of new features too. Since Open Office can also read and write MS Office formats, any Ubuntu or Kubuntu version basically can be used as a 1:1 replacement for Windows and Office - but at virtually no cost, save for the download bandwidth required.

I run both Kubuntu 7.10 as well as Ubuntu 7.10 on two older machines (Kubuntu on an Athlon 64 3500+ with 1.5 GB RAM and a PCI-Express graphics card with nvidia chipset, Ubuntu on an even older Intel Celeron D with 2.88 Mhz and just 1 GB of RAM), and as can be expected, the smaller machine running Gnome isn't really that much slower than the faster Athlon 64 running with a 3D desktop active - pretty impressive feat indeed. Tests on even smaller systems (only 512 MB and in one case only 256 MB of RAM) also show that Linux is still a good choice when it comes to "upgrading" older machines with a more powerfull operating system.

A new installation takes round about 45-60 minutes on a faster machine, upgrading the older machine directly from within Ubuntu 7.04 took about an hour. Thereafter you may wish to download the latest updates, depending on your available Internet bandwidth that step obviously varies in time, but I had both machines updated and running again after less than 30 minutes each (mind you, that's with a 16 MBit/sec DSL line - you will wait ages and then some if you still work via modem...).

So don't be afraid of the "Gutsy Gibbon" - he certainly won't bite

New mini-Linux Version: DSL 4.0

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 20:35:23 +0200

Damn Small Linux (aka. DSL) has just released Version 4.0 of it small-footprint Linux distribution.

Apart from some bugfixes, the new version also incorporates some new pieces of software, including tools for easier network configuration and printing.

The really cool thing about DSL is that it doesn't make a lot of demands on the hardware it runs on - an old 486DX-100 with just 16 MByte of RAM is already sufficient, plus it can run as a live distribution already from a credit card sized "business card CD" or optionally a USB stick / pen drive, so in essence you can take your Linux along wherever you go.

Since it's based on Debian Linux, which is also the preferred base for the Ubuntu Linux distribution, this small marvel proves to be a very stable "small scale" rendition of a Linux distribution.

You can download DSL here - just select a mirror close to your location, in Namibia that would probably be the fourth on the list: the FTP Server from Internet Solutions in South Africa.

The "feisty fawn" takes flight...

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 15:28:27 +0200

Just yesterday, the offical release of Ubuntu 7.04, codenamed "Feisty Fawn", has been made available from the website of Canonical Ltd., the commerical South African sponsor of this Linux distribution.

From their announcement on the above mentioned website:

Linux distribution for the desktop

Ubuntu 7.04 server edition

You can follow this direct download link to obtain the latest edition - or, if you already run Ubuntu on your machine, it's just a few clicks (and with a slow connection: a loooong wait for the download) through the system updater.

If you contemplate updating your PC to Vista, you might also want to have a look at the "Live CD" version of Ubuntu (you should use a fast CD/DVD-ROM though - these drives are still considerably slower than even the slowest of harddisks these days) - it may give you the idea that Windows isn't everything, and may also convince you to spend less on new hardware (which is most likely required when you update to Vista) and more on learning how to use a truly stable operating system.

Backing up Mozilla, Firefox, Thunderbird etc.

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 09:51:25 +0100

One major issue in a company is: how do you create backups of your vital data? With database systems, file servers and other software that's usually not nuch of a problem - but when it comes to EMails or bookmarks in your webbrower, how do you go about saving those profiles?

The answer is here, and it's a free solution too: Mozbackup from Pavel Cvrcek allows you to backup profiles under Windows from projects like Mozilla Firefox, Mozilla Thunderbrid, SeaMonkey, the Mozilla Suite as well as the Netscape browser.

Important to note is that Mozbackup can only backup the profile files if the respective program is not running - plus you do not have an ability to actually schedule your backups, as that feature will only be incorporated in version 1.5 (current version is 1.4.6, so that shouldn't take too long to be incorporated).

You can also specify a password to encode your saved profiles, so as to render the files useless to anyone trying to figure out what you have been receiving as emails or saved as browser bookmarks.

The program is still not completely bug-free, but the backup and restore functions operate as advertised and without a hitch - backing up your email data before you start some excessive "spring cleaning" is thus no longer a dream but easy to realise with this nifty tool - further enhancements are in the pipeline, and probably also dearly needed in a larger business setup, but this definately is a good start for smaller systems (any working backup is better than no backup).

Use OpenOffice as a plugin in Eclipse

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 08:46:23 +0200

One of the usual pains when creating your own software is to keep up with the documentation of it. It becomes such a major hassle, because virtually no office suite offers an integrated interface with the development platform you are using, so you eventually end up using your IDE for program development and your usual wordprocessor for the documentation, keeping files at different locations and sooner or later loosing out on synchronicity between your documentation and the actual progress of your development.

If your IDE is Eclipse though, you can now utilise the Office Integration Editor Plugin, and as from that day onward use the functionality of a full blown wordprocessor ("Write" from OpenOffice) to keep your documentation up to date.

Since you now keep your documentation within the development tree of your application, updating your CVS or Subversion repository with new versions of your documentation becomes a breeze - and that in turn allows you as well as your entire development staff to ensure the highest level of quality regarding your documentation too.

Integrate with OpenOffice instead of MS-Office

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 08:28:18 +0200

Many business applications these days invariably integrate their reporting functions solely with MS-Office. That in turn usually binds people using these kinds of applications to that specific office package too - despite the fact that there's actually nothing that would keep the developers from also providing a link to OpenOffice too, but they simply haven't catched on yet.

So what do you do, if you want to wipe MS-Office from your disk and still be able to use the "Office integration" functions of your (usually: closed source) business applications? Well, meet AutomateIT!, a tool that essentially replaces the OLE/COM objects found in MS-Office installations with similar working OpenOffice equivalents.

In essence that now allows you to click the "Export to Excel" buttons in your financial software - and instead of Mirosoft Excel popping up with the export result, you now have OpenOffice Calc pop up with the same data - one could only wish that the world would always be that simple.

Built by ApriorIT, a Ukranian company, this tool is still so new, it's only considered to be "alpha software", yet it already provides a good example of how you can indeed replace yet another Microsoft product with an open source equivalent without having to switch operating systems just yet - and thus allowing you to have a "smoother" transition from Windows to Linux one of these day.

Penguin for "open-sewers"

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 12:47:47 +0200

Free-Penguin.org provides us with the realisation that not only software can be open sourced - you can also do that with sewing patterns if you want to

The "hardware requirements" are obviously rather modest: a needle, a long thread, some black and white plushy fabric as well as yellow textile are basically all it needs for you to produce your own Tux to adorn your home - or office.

One could even create a little home based business out of this - there are plenty Linux fans out there, and with some small variations one could even think of producing a "Business Tux" or "African Tux" or whatever. Companies around the world usually resell such figures for a lot of money - why not try out how easily you can make money using "open source" like this? Obviously selling the stuff then on a Linux based e-commerce platform of course

Mark Shuttleworth on Ubuntu and Linux on the desktop

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Sun, 4 Jun 2006 12:25:21 +0200

Mark Shuttleworth, talking at WSIS 2005 in Tunis

The451group recently conducted an Interveiw with Mark Shuttleworth (founder of Ubuntu Linux and Canonical CEO) about the future of Ubuntu Dapper Drake, Linux on the Desktop and the adoption of Linux in the enterprise environment.

Ubuntu is a word from the Zulu language meaning "I am because we are; we are because I am" - in other words, it describes what we commonly refer to as a "community effort".

Ubuntu is a complete Linux-based operating system, freely available with both community and professional support. It is developed by a large community and they invite us to participate too.

The Ubuntu community is built on the ideas enshrined in the Ubuntu Philosophy: that software should be available free of charge, that software tools should be usable by people in their local language and despite any disabilities, and that people should have the freedom to customise and alter their software in whatever way they see fit.

These freedoms make Ubuntu fundamentally different from traditional proprietary software: not only are the tools you need available free of charge, you have the right to modify your software until it works the way you want it to.

Ubuntu is suitable for both desktop and server use. The current Ubuntu release supports PC (Intel x86), 64-bit PC (AMD64) and PowerPC (Apple iBook and Powerbook, G4 and G5) architectures.

Ubuntu includes more than 16,000 pieces of software, but the core desktop installation fits on a single CD.

OSISA - open up your society!

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Mon, 15 May 2006 16:01:13 +0200

OSISA stands for "Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa" and works to build and strengthen the values, practices and institutions of an open society throughout Southern Africa.

The area that draws my immediate attention is of course that of ICT - OSISA however is also operating in many other areas, this article however focuses specifically on the community work in regard to information and communication technology.

OSISA's vision regarding this topic is indeed very inspiring - they whish to achieve:

A region whereby citizens live equitably, free from poverty and the suffocating grip of underdevelopment and the control of information. A region where adequate access to information for development is secured by ensuring appropriate access for civil society to effectively participate in the Global Information Society (GIS).

They don't just stop at proclaiming a fancy vision though - their advice is pretty much hands-on, to the point and designed to get you going. No pussy-footing around issues - this is about work, not talk.

Continue reading "OSISA - open up your society!"

SuSE Linux 10.1 released

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Fri, 12 May 2006 12:19:46 +0200

With some two months delay, the OpenSuse project has finally released version 10.1 of the popular distribution. The delay was aparently caused by the new software management system which combines the administration of the packets, all updates and all patches into one single tool - previous versions had individual tools for each of these tasks.

Quite an eye-catcher ist the inclusion of Xgl that has just recently gone Open Source again. Xgl is an OpenGL based X-Server that allows rather stunning desktop effects, as can only be glimpesd at on this Xgl Screenshots library, which shows you Xgl in action together with its extension, the Compiz window manager.

As with all new distributions, you obviously also get more current versions of the other packages included: Kernel 2.6.16, glibc-2.4, gcc 4.1.0, KDE 3.5.1, Firefox 1.5, OpenOffice 2.0.2 are all included. However with Gnome 2.12 and Xorg 6.9 there are still at least two packages that could be more up to date, but that's the usual problem of every distribution: not everything will be the most current version.

Continue reading "SuSE Linux 10.1 released"

Torpark gives you a portable & secure web browser

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Wed, 10 May 2006 15:28:52 +0200

Coming back to my article on Sunday dealing with portable applications that you can take along on your USB stick: I've just stumbled accross another interesting idea that wraps together the power of the Firefox webbrowser and Tor (which is an abreviation that stands for "The Onion Router").

This combination gives you complete privacy on the road when surfing the Internet: meet Torpark which allows you to surf the Internet without any "nosy services" logging each and every step of what you are doing online.

Continue reading "Torpark gives you a portable & secure web browser"

Objectweb releases Celtix 1.0 open source Java Enterprise Service Bus (ESB)

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Wed, 10 May 2006 14:35:56 +0200

Gee, two days not at the computer, and a lot of really interesting things stand in the pipeline to be reported...

One of them is Celtix 1.0, the enterprise service bus runtime built on Java. The project only started in June 2005 and can now already boast the first "production ready" version, offering features like support for javascript based services, support for webservice callbacks, JMS transport based on Active MQ and much more, giving you all you need to truly integrate the applications in your enterprise.

To those not "initiated" to all this techno-babble: an enterprise service bus seeks to provide the conduit through which all the applications in your company "talk" to each other. Just like humans, they send out "messages" which get queued pretty similar to what your email program does for you, and the application that got the message will then answer, essentially sending another message which is termed "reply".

Continue reading "Objectweb releases Celtix 1.0 open source Java Enterprise Service Bus (ESB)"

Take your applications along - not just your data

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Sun, 7 May 2006 16:44:51 +0200

The problem is actually well known to anyone that ever tried to take a well prepared presentation along: unless you know absolutely for sure that you will have the exact same version of your software available at the place where you want to hold your presentation, you are bound to either live with life's usual surprises (usually manifesting themselves in a garbled show) - or drag your entire laptop along.

And if you're travelling, such a machine can also develop into a considerable "schlepp": apart from the fact that it's yet another bag to drag along, you're also bound to one day or another loose the machine - either because someone else has set an eye on it and deliberately "frees" you of your load, or because you somehow forgot about it in the hotel lobby or that nice restaurant...

Dreadfull scenarios - so let's introduce you to a concept that's unbeatable: instead of dragging big machines along, just only take the applications along!

Continue reading "Take your applications along - not just your data"

Become an ISP instantly - just add software

nospam@example.com (Gerard Jensen) — Fri, 5 May 2006 20:09:34 +0200

Getting a domain registered and with it some webspace allocated for your website can develop into a little nightmare - and if you are about to set up your own hosting company to allow for an easier registration process and automated quota allocation for your customers, you'll be adding a lot of technical problems to those administrative ones too.

Continue reading "Become an ISP instantly - just add software"