TuxReports does a quick look at the installation of the Icepack distribution.

Moshe Bar writes: “Today, I released openMosix 1.5.3 and 1.5.4 for Linux kernels 2.4.14 and 2.4.16.” For thousands of users Mosix has been a reliable, fast and cost efficient clustering platform. There are hundreds of Mosix installations in life sciences, finance, industry, high tech, research and government environments. The goal of openMosix is to give to these users a continued support and an up-to-date platform. openMosix is initially fully compatible with the last Mosix (1.5.2 for 2.4.13) kernel, but is now growing in its own direction.

The project is hosted partly on Savannah.gnu.org. Report any bugs to the Savannah bug tracking system.

The openMosix project page (and the kernel patches) is at openMosix.org.

Here are the changelogs:

openMosix 1.5.3

– upon entry into kernel we first check if it is a traced syscall before handling it as a bad syscall (for better debugging

– no need to check if somebody else faulted for this pte while we released the page table lock

– in the vm scanner, skip the tests for recently accessed pte, if page is active and do not replenish zones under pressure

openMosix 1.5.4

– fully merged with the ext3 file system introduced as of 2.4.15.

– fixed small reporting bug

– fixed bugs in MFS

– fixed race on SMP systems for arriving processes

– small changes in the page freeing algorithm,made it self-tuning

“

Hammer writes: “OSNews features an interesting article on the history of the Intel Itanium, the 64-bit CPU which cost HP & Intel 10 years of engineering, came out with lots of hype and credentials, and it is curently just one step before analysts call it a “flop”.”

Jon Danzig writes: “This new Libranet comes with a new installer, very up to date software and the openness that GNU/Linux users wish for in their systems. It is intended for a range of users, from home desktop computing to corporate workstations, file servers and development platforms. Those new to GNU/Linux will find a dazzling array of applications and sophisticated users will find the tools to build on without being hampered by a single corporate vision.”

Since beginning production of Libranet in 1999, the Libranet system, based on Debian, has slowly been inching upward in market share. This new release aspires to establish Libranet as one of the bigger players.

Libranet 2.0 has been built from scratch, including a brand new installer. While retaining the craftsmanship of its previous versions, this version builds on experience gained. This release includes very current software and the new installer carefully guides the user through the install while allowing a variety of optional choices to be made.

Jon Danzig, Libranet team member, says “Libranet wants to be more things to more people – a desktop packed with graphical applications and a selection of software to get developers and system administrators up and running fast. The new installer is a dream. If you know what a partition is, the rest is magic.”

The 2 CD set includes stalwarts such as Netscape and more recent additions such as Galeon. Libranet’s Adminmenu helps users perform system tasks easily. Sun Microsystems’ StarOffice office suite is included. Under the hood is the 2.4.16 Linux Kernel. KDE 2.2, GNOME 1.4 are in place and XFree86 4.1 drives the video. Users will find excellent and up to date software and window managers installed automatically on their desktop.

Libranet 2.0 can be purchased as a 2 CD set at Libranet’s web site.

Libra Computer Systems Ltd. is the producer of Libranet and is a privately held company based in North Vancouver, BC, Canada.

For further information, visit www.libranet.com

“

Excel Software writes: “Excel Software today announced the availability of QuickUML Linux, the first Linux addition to its suite of Macintosh and Windows software engineering tools. QuickUML is an object-oriented design tool that provides extensive integration and unmatched ease-of-use for a core set of UML models. An entire project is accessible through a tabbed window with smooth integration between use cases, class models, object models, dictionary and code. The project is saved as an XML file that is compatible with QuickUML Windows so design work can be shared between platforms.””

Use cases capture the essence of user-visible functions the system must perform. Each use case describes a named interaction in terms of actor inputs and system responses. Use case entries link to models, code, foreign files or other use case entries to provide a solid foundation for development. Designers enjoy easy navigation and two-way traceability between use cases, related models, code files and foreign documents.

Class models describe the types of objects in the system and various kinds of static relationships that exist among them. They may contain classes, interfaces, components, packages and other objects. Flexible presentation options allow different instances of a class to be presented with its full list of attributes and operations, compressed to show just the class name or selectively showing class members relevant to the context of a specific diagram. Projects may contain hundreds of diagrams accessible through a contents view that provides easy navigation and flexible diagram management.

Sequence diagrams illustrate how objects interact with emphasis on the order in which things occur. Horizontal operation connections are drawn between vertical lifelines under objects, modules and packages. A project dictionary is automatically produced as class and object models are drawn, but designers can also directly access dictionary entries. Changes made to an object in any model are instantly reflected throughout the project.

QuickUML contains advanced features for multiple language projects, design namespaces, UML stereotype extensions, flexible color support, custom detail fields and automated generation of class models from the dictionary. Diagrams can be exported as BMP, JPEG, PNG or XPM files. An integrated code manager enables the designer to navigate through code files linked to use cases and diagram objects.

QuickUML Linux is priced at $495. Site licensing information, product descriptions and online ordering are available at www.excelsoftware.com. Excel Software has over 15 years of experience in providing tools to thousands of Macintosh, Windows and Linux developers in over 30 countries.

Excel Software

Ph: (505) 771-3719

Fax: (505) 771-3718
Web: http://www.excelsoftware.com

Email: info@excelsoftware.com”

Steve George writes, “Daniel Veillard is a seasoned free software and GNOME contributor. Interviewed on www.gnome.org he touches on what got him into free software, his work on libxml and his views on the GNOME community. As one of the GNOME Board of Directors he has unrivalled access to the decison making process.”

InnerPeace Volunteers writes, “Norman Cousins is famous for his research on the value of laughter and humor. After a big push to release over 100 GPL’d programs last week, the development team at InnerPeace has taken some time to publish a little developers’ humor in the hope that it will inspire others to post some even better humor.”

– By Grant Gross –

Sun Microsystems this week announced new initiatives designed to embrace Linux, including, apparently, a Sun-produced Linux operating system. The details are a still a bit sketchy, but the initiatives would also “broaden the offerings of Linux on low-end Sun servers.”

One Sun exec (in the first link above) suggested the move was part of a “war against Microsoft.” On the other hand, Wired.com reported that Sun’s Solaris Unix-based operating system would still be the company’s top priority. It seems like Sun will continue to have an odd relationship with the Open Source community — embracing Linux and spearheading the StarOffice project, while at the same time pushing its own proprietary OS. Still, the company’s stock rating got a boost on its Linux announcement, and its stock rose more than 5% Friday, even though that boost wasn’t enough to recover losses from earlier in the week.

Public on Microsoft settlement: No thanks

For a company that has its products used by something like 90% of the U.S. computer-using public, Microsoft hasn’t fared very well in the public comment portion of its proposed antitrust settlement. About 15,000 of those who commented opposed the proposed settlement, while only 7,500 wrote in support of it. Another 7,000 comments or so were thrown out for not being pertinent or coherent enough. Now what kind of person or Web site would encourage the public to oppose the deal?

We’ll see what effect all these comments have on the Bush administration Department of Justice’s rush to settle the case. Don’t hold your breath, but a NewsFactor Network story suggested the comments may change the outcome of the settlement.

Which is more secure, Linux or Windows?

VNUnet.com and others reported statistics from SecurityFocus saying several Linux distributions had more vulnerabilities than Windows reported in the first half of 2001. Of course, Linux backers responded by saying that sometimes statistics lie.

In other news ….

A preemptable kernel patch proposed by MontaVisa Software has made it into the Linux kernel. Read more for an explanation of “preemptable.”

Professor Ed Felten and his research partners dropped their lawsuit against the music industry and U.S. government. Felten and crew were suing because music industry big-wigs had threatened to prosecute the research team under the U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act if the team published its research on anti-copying technologies.

The Free Software Foundation’s Richard Stallman and Ximian’s Miguel de Icaza conducted a very public debate based on reports that de Icaza says Gnome’s Mono project would be based on Microsoft’s .Net. The short answer from de Icaza’s long answer: The original report was a bit misleading.

Red Hat’s chairman Bob Young told ZDNet that Linux might never rule the desktop. Of course, there’s a bit more to the story than that; basically, Young was suggesting that desktops may not be all that important in the future, but the Internet will, and that’s where Linux and Open Source will rule.

New releases

Version 0.9.8 of the Mozilla browser was released this week.

Newly reviewed

NewsForge’s Tina Gasperson reviewed the Quasar accounting package for Linux and found it quite easy to use.

F. Grant Robertson wrote a fairly controversial review of the Fluxbox window manager, especially his comparisons to Blackbox. Check out the discussion.

We also reviewed the XFce desktop environment and liked it as much as KDE or Gnome.

Success story of the week

Further evidence of government support of Open Source: A South African government council praised Open Source and detailed the translation of the KDE project into the near dozen languages used in the country. Also, the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is funding an Open Source bug hunt.

New at NewsForge and Linux.com

Other stories that NewsForge and Linux.com reported first this week:

In a really fun read, Robin “Roblimo” Miller features John Weathersby’s Open-Source Software Institute and its efforts to win government contracts for Open Source projects.

Swedish lawyer and Open Source advocate Mikael Pawlo talks about how governments should encourage Open Source companies to bid on projects.

Russell Pavlicek describes how to use cheap Mailstations and Linux to provide cheap email.

Stock news

The Nasdaq ended the week at 1,818.88, down nearly 100 points from the Feb. 1 close of
1,911.24, and that’s even counting a 37-point rally on Friday. Our list of Open Source-related stocks didn’t do any better; of the 11, only MandrakeSoft posted a gain for the week, although most rebounded partially on Friday.

There wasn’t much news coming out of Open Source-related companies, but we thought it interesting that Borland joined the Business Software Alliance, which, among other things, goes after software users for license violations.

Here’s how Open Source and related stocks ended this past week:

Company Name	Symbol	2/1 Close	2/8 Close
Apple	AAPL	24.41	24.03
Borland Software Int’l	BORL	16.91	16.65
Caldera International	CALD	0.83	0.68
Hewlett-Packard	HWP	22.00	20.40
IBM	IBM	108.00	104.99
MandrakeSoft	4477.PA	e4.00	e5.20
Red Hat	RHAT	8.45	7.88
Sun Microsystems	SUNW	10.37	9.75
TiVo	TIVO	5.86	5.56
VA Software	LNUX	2.315	2.06
Wind River Systems	WIND	18.05	16.69

A week ago, an advisory body on IT to the South African Government advised to use open standards on all levels of Government. (see earlier submission). In his state of the nation speech on Friday, 08/02/02, President Thabo Mbeki declared Microsoft will be giving free software to all public schools of South Africa, and with a 90 % rebate to private schools and universities. Story: http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=1 3&art_id=ct20020208212507770G320799

Anonymous Reader writes, “The preemptible Linux kernel patch that was originally introduced by MontaVista Software and more recently championed by Robert Love has been merged by Linus Torvalds into the main linux development-kernel tree, beginning version v2.5.4-pre6. This adds a far greater degree of real-time responsiveness to the standard Linux kernel, by reducing interrupt latencies while kernel functions are executing. The LinuxDevices.com story includes comments by Robert Love.”