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Tangent Quattro is a solid Internet radio

Lee Schlesinger

September 17, 2008 7:00:00 PM

For an entertaining example of how Linux can power home appliances, check out the Tangent Quattro Internet radio. This device combines Internet and broadcast radio with a media server client on an embedded Linux platform to give you a variety of audio playback options.

Boxee aims to shake up the home theater

Lee Schlesinger

September 12, 2008 4:00:00 PM

Boxee is a new entrant into the increasingly crowded open source media center space. The company's eponymous application is billed as a "social media center" -- melding a smorgasbord of social networking services into an XBMC-based media center designed for the couch-centric user. Boxee has bigger goals in mind, but you can take an early look at it now by applying for the invitation-only testing program.

Book review: Ubuntu for Non-Geeks

Lee Schlesinger

September 02, 2008 9:00:00 PM

Ubuntu has experienced its share of success, but it's still relatively unknown amongst non-technical people. Many aren't aware that an open source operating system actually exists, and those who are lack the education required to move comfortably from Microsoft Windows to a Linux-based desktop. Ubuntu for Non-Geeks: A Pain-Free, Project-Based, Get-Things-Done Guidebook, by Rickford Grant, introduces non-Linux users to the world of Linux and shows them how to be productive in a complete Linux environment.

XBMC's Linux port lacks impressive features

Lee Schlesinger

August 19, 2008 7:00:00 PM

Linux has no shortage of audio and video players, but if you want to devote your whole system to multimedia use, you need the XBMC (formerly Xbox Media Center). Although initially designed for the Xbox gaming console, XBMC has been ported to other platforms. The alpha version of the Linux port of XBMC that I use is quite usable, especially for video playback, despite the fact that not all XBMC features have yet been ported.

Using Windows, Xbox, and iPod as alternative MythTV front ends

Lee Schlesinger

August 15, 2008 7:00:00 PM

Digital video recorders (DVR) are becoming more and more mainstream. TiVo, in fact, has passed the truest test of any popular technology -- having its name transformed into a verb. MythTV, a free and open source application that lets you turn a computer into a DVR, burst on the scene a few years ago, and has found fans among Linux users. However, with a little effort, it's possible to run MythTV front ends on Windows XP, Windows Vista, Xbox, and even an Apple iPod Classic.

Roku's Netflix Player: a hands-on review

Lee Schlesinger

July 30, 2008 9:00:00 PM

It's small and silent, sports an array of ports on the back but only one tiny white LED on the front, and it can help you spend hours of time in front of your TV -- and it runs Linux. It's the Netflix Player from embedded device specialist Roku, and we got our hands on it for a review of the service and the hardware.

Building a glossier front end for MythTV

Lee Schlesinger

May 15, 2008 7:00:00 PM

Josh Stewart loves MythTV -- so much so that he is building his own front-end app for it as a drop-in replacement for MythTV's default. The replacement is called Gloss, and although it isn't ready for prime time yet (no pun intended), its OpenGL effects and GStreamer bindings show plenty of promise.

Play multimedia content with style using Entertainer

Lee Schlesinger

May 07, 2008 4:00:00 PM

Every major operating system has more than one media center solution for users who can't spend a day without watching a movie or listening to music. In Linux we're all familiar with MythTV and Freevo, two media center applications that are so appreciated they even have got their own distributions. Freevo is highly configurable, and Freevo 2 SNV builds look promising. MythTV has everything a personal video recorder needs, from scheduled recordings to weather plugins. The thing is, many people need a media center application just to watch Xvid files, listen to their favorite music, and watch family pictures on their television. If this is the case for you, give Entertainer a try.

Enhance your music player with Rockbox

Lee Schlesinger

March 18, 2008 3:00:00 PM

In order to carry samples of my audio and video work to tradeshows, I need to be able to play a wider variety of audio and video formats than is available on any of the pocket devices out there. Fortunately, the open source Rockbox operating system doesn't require sacrificing nifty features like FM tuning and recording or voice recording and playback. And format compatibility is not the only reason one might want to install Rockbox. In fact, Rockbox was developed primarily with another purpose in mind: improving sound quality.

Watch and explore outer space with Stellarium, Celestia, and Xplanet

Lee Schlesinger

March 17, 2008 6:00:00 PM

Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth spent about $20 million to go into space, and he never got farther away from Earth than a few hundred miles. Using three free software programs, you can look at and virtually travel to places millions of miles away without leaving your GNU/Linux desktop or paying a dime.

Linux crossword puzzle

Dean Henrichsmeyer

March 08, 2008 2:00:00 PM

We know our readers are a multifaceted lot, so when crossword puzzle author Myles Mellor offered to create a Linux-themed puzzle for us, we thought at least some of you would enjoy it. You can complete the puzzle online, but you must have Java enabled in order to see it. Let us know what you think with your comments.

Com One Phoenix Wi-Fi radio rises from embedded Linux platform

Lee Schlesinger

February 29, 2008 9:00:00 AM

Com One's Phoenix Wi-Fi radio is a home music appliance built on an embedded Linux foundation. Phoenix lets you stream music or play podcasts as easily as you can listen to a car radio, once you tell it what you want to hear. Its ability to play Internet radio is nice -- but is it worth its price?

Making music with M-Audio on Linux

Lee Schlesinger

February 15, 2008 7:00:00 PM

M-Audio has supplied hardware and software to computer-based musicians for 20 years. Its new "make-music-now" line of products, aimed at musicians just getting into computers or PC users with an interest in music, includes a microphone, speakers, drum machine, and DJ mixer deck. Unfortunately, its bundled software, called Session, is for Windows only. Our challenge was to try out this hardware -- specifically the KeyStudio MIDI keyboard and Fast Track audio interface -- with Linux applications. We were half successful.

Album Cover Art Downloader makes iPod a touch nicer

Lee Schlesinger

February 01, 2008 7:00:00 PM

When ripping CDs from my own collection or (shh) my friends', I didn't always bother to include the cover art. Personally, I never considered album art for my iPod all that important. That has changed now that we have an iPod touch in the family. If I'm missing a lot of album art, the experience of virtually flipping through my music collection, something Apple calls "cover flow," is diminished. iTunes doesn't always offer art for albums I didn't purchase from iTunes. Thankfully, a little GPL-licensed application called Album Cover Art Downloader (ACAD) solved my problem.

The original SimCity is now the open source Micropolis

Lee Schlesinger

January 31, 2008 7:00:00 PM

Think you're smarter than the meatheads on your local city council? Now you can prove it -- without running for office -- courtesy of the original city simulation game. Electronic Arts (EA) has released the source code to SimCity under the GPLv3. The newly freed game is dubbed Micropolis, and it is playable in most major Linux distributions.

Free software goes Hollywood

Lee Schlesinger

January 18, 2008 4:00:00 PM

As the Writers Guild of America's strike enters its fourth month, one of its key issues -- the sharing of profits from online distribution -- is encouraging the rise of new production companies that are exploring alternative methods of production and distribution. Along with Hollywood Disrupted and Founders Media Group, these new companies include Virtual Artists, whose goal is to bring free software developers and Hollywood writers together to experiment.

Linux.com's 2007 holiday gift guide

Lee Schlesinger

December 10, 2007 9:00:00 PM

Admit it -- you put off your holiday shopping this year and now it's crunch time and you don't know what to get everyone on your list. Because we feel your pain, we've put together a last-minute shopping guide with ideas for some of your geekiest friends.

Watch some TV with TED

Lee Schlesinger

December 06, 2007 9:00:00 PM

Has the television writers' strike left you with hours of spare time and no way to fill it? Well, put down that book and put the running shoes back in the closet, because TED is here to help. TED is the torrent episode downloader, an open source, cross-platform tool that simplifies the tedious process of searching for torrent files.

Get a daily dose of comics

Lee Schlesinger

August 30, 2007 9:00:00 AM

When I first started learning to read, my primary motivation was to gain the ability to read the comics in my local paper. I had no idea at that time that there were so many comics in the world. Now I know that there are comics all over the Web, but who has time to go to each site each day and read the latest strip? Thanks to the world of open source software, you can gather all your favorite comics on one page automatically, ready for you to read each morning.

Three MythTV Linux distros compared

Lee Schlesinger

August 28, 2007 9:00:00 AM

My Series 1 TiVo is getting old, so I am planning an escape route based on MythTV, a free software system that turns an old computer into a personal video recorder. This week I tested three MythTV-specific Linux distributions: KnoppMyth, MythDora, and MythBuntu. I found MythDora the best overall fit for my needs -- but there are important distinctions between the three that may lead you to a different decision.

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