CNN reports that Hewlett-Packard co-founder William R. Hewlett died Friday morning, of natural causes, in Palo Alto, Calif. He was 87.

ITworld takes a look at the next major release of the popular Apache Web server. The new version will include threaded process modes for request handling, something UNIX Apache users have been wanting for quite some time.

As always, the latest Slashdot interview begins with you. FreeBSD core developer and TrustedBSD member Robert Watson has agreed to answer ten questions from the Slashdot community.

At LWN.net: “It has been an interesting time in the world of Midgard. After a lot of
work, by a lot of people, 1.4 is stable and released. There is concrete
movement towards 2.0 and Ami Ganguli has pretty specific requests for help
and a good timeline marking out where and when we should see pieces along
the way.”

CNet writes that “Borland’s InterBase database software contains a “back door” that allows anyone with the appropriate
password to wreak major havoc with the database and the computer it’s running on.”

From Reuters: “An industry trade group representing rivals of Microsoft Corp.
(NasdaqNM:MSFT – news) said on Friday it had hired former Whitewater prosecutor Kenneth Starr to help
support the government as the antitrust case against the software giant moves through the appeals process.

Starr, whose credentials include a stint on the U.S. Court of Appeals that is hearing the case, has been engaged
by Procomp, an organization that includes AOL Time Warner (NYSE:AOL – news), Sun Microsystems Inc.
(NasdaqNM:SUNW – news) and Oracle Corp. (NasdaqNM:ORCL – news).”

Layoff are hitting the online news world, detailed at a Wired.com story. Among the layoffs: New York Times Digital and News Corp., but new media companies such as Red Herring and Fast Company are handing out pink slips, too.

Reauters (on ZD Net) reports on a device code named “Ginger,” which millionaireinventor Dean Kamen is touting as bigger than the Web. Harvard Business School Press has supposedly paid $250,000 for a book detailing Ginger.

Reuters (on ZD Net) reports on a device code named “Ginger,” which millionaire inventor Dean Kamen is touting as bigger than the Web. Harvard Business School Press has supposedly paid $250,000 for a book detailing Ginger.

CNet reports that Turbolinux, a Linux distributor, and Linuxcare, a Linux support and service company, are in merger talks. The deal “would unite two established Linux
companies that missed the prime time to go public.” Also, read what Slashdotters have to say about the merger.