Computerweekly.co.uk says, “The demand for Java has reached such a crescendo that one recruitment agency plans to place part-qualified Java developers
two to three months before they are ready to hit the workplace.”

LinuxMonth: “In this article I will explain how to make your Linux box secure by taking basic security measures. This article will enable anybody to tighten the
security of a Redhat Linux box.”

LinuxToday has this story: “Upon introduction Transmeta’s Crusoe processor has generated much interest with its promises of strong performance and
long battery life. This, in combination with announcements from well-known manufacturers that they will incorporate
Transmeta’s processors in their notebooks, has led many people to believe that we’ll see substantial improvements in
price/performance levels for these devices. “

From Information Week: “Despite a lack of marketing resources, more
businesses are discovering and deploying
open-source software in their back offices. Support
has improved, and capable tools quickly become the
standard by which commercial products are measured.”

“When most people talk about open source software, technologies such as the Apache Web server, BSD and Linux tend to dominate the conversation.

But open source software is starting to make its presence felt beyond Web servers and operating systems, showing up in a host of key enterprise
network products from network management suites to remote access offerings, including VPNs.” From ITWorld.com.

What a concept! This Seattle Post-Intelligencer story touts the idea that “pure” online retailers who serve obscure niches overlooked by the giants (either online or off) may have a better chance at success than companies that try to be all things to everyone. Sometimes all you have to do is stick to your guns (and your niche) and what was a hot idea, then pooh-poohed, gets hot again. Think about it: NewsForge is a niche news site. We work to cover Open Source like a second skin (with a little bit of other stuff to keep from getting boring) but we do not try to be all things to all people. It’s nice to see this “new” business model finally catching on with the ecommerce crowd, too.

Just in time to whine about misplaced, undelivered or broken holiday gifts, MSNBC tells us (with a story that originally appeared in The Washington Post) about half-a-dozen Web sites that help customers complain about — or compliment — businesses with which they have dealt.

If you have the dialog, gnupg or stunnel packages installed, please check the appropriate security advisory at LWN.net. All three were submitted by Debian’s Wichert Akkerman, but they are not Debian-specific problems.

“North Americans celebrating Christmas might not have much luck
hunting for the Star of Bethlehem in the night sky – but they could
catch sight of something just as dramatic,” says BBC News.

– By Grant Gross –

Open Source news doesn’t only revolve around falling stock prices, the technology media decided this week. Indeed, there were stories that could be considered good news, like a TechWeb story about Open Source software creeping into large corporations, often from the bottom up.

NewsForge’s business columnist Jack Bryar wrote that large corporations seem to have an all-or-nothing attitude about Open Source products, with IBM investing billions of dollars, and Corel ready to dump its Linux products. Who’s right?

The mainstream tech media can turn good stories into bad ones, as evidenced by Sm@rt Partner’s followup story on IBM’s decision to invest more than $1 billion in Linux. The story caught one Linux company executive griping that “Linux helps IBM sell things, but IBM doesn’t really help Linux companies.” The executive didn’t explain what he expected IBM to do for its potential competitors.

NewsForge’s editor in chief Robin Miller responds by saying IBM’s investment will be good for smaller hardware manufacturers. “A rising Linux tide lifts all boats, and large ships make waves big enough to swamp small boats, but skillfully-handled small boats can catch and surf the waves created by the big ships,” he writes.

Score one (finally) for Linux

Sick of Microsoft getting all the games and hardware support first? Score one for Linux, as Intel’s upcoming high-end Itanium chip will be available for Linux first.

Linux overwhelming to users?

Linux must “become less overwhelming in order to capture the desktop,” so says a column from ZD Net, which wonders if Linux is ready for widespread desktop use. “Linux is too bountiful for most computer users,” says the article. Gee, too many applications is a bad thing? It’s like having 157 TV channels — just ignore the ones you don’t care about.

The writer of one story published this week thinks Linux is overwhelming in a different way, installing the darned thing. The writer, who says he or she has user experience with DOS, MSDOS, Unix, and Windows, puts it this way: “As of this morning, I have not been able to *ever* successfully install a USEABLE Linux system.”

Nearly everyone covered the story this week that Sun plans to adopt Eazel’s Nautilus desktop environment for Solaris. If it’s good enough for Linux, it’s good enough for Sun.

New in NewsForge

A Linux user has organized a petition protesting British Telecom’s decision to sue over its claim that it owns a patent on hyperlinks.

If you’re hoping for all the latest desktop games to be available for Linux, don’t hold your breath, say gaming enthusiasts and Linux fans. Most think desktop gaming parity with Windows is still a couple of years away.

News editor Tina Gasperson reviews the Linux Knowledge Base. There are some parts to recommend, including but not limited to the fully clothed woman in the logo, but the site is tough to navigate.

NewsForge editors read and respond to comments posted on our discussion page.