NewsFactor Network writes: “Back in late October when Apple’s new iPod MP3 player was first introduced, it was met with much fanfare, including a slew of positive reviews. Despite the high praise, anti-Apple naysayers still cast doubts on the success of Apple’s latest digital innovation. But strong iPod sales and other factors have proved the naysayers wrong. Now that a few months have passed since the iPod’s introduction, I thought it might be a good time to take a look at some of the data that is available and try to see who is right.”

Anonymous Reader writes: “My mom recommends this distro:
2-Disk Xwindow Linux System. Linux-2.4, Xwindows 4.1, VNC, rdesktop, web browser, xpaint, editor, other stuff. All on 2 floppy’s”

CNet reports that a fight has broken out between the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and a group of top-level domain administrators from Europe over fees the administrators are required to pay to ICANN.

Chris Wells writes: “Developed by the founders of NEXCESS.NET Web Hosting, Sys Admin Talk is a discussion forum tailored to System Administrators or anyone who uses Unix based systems on a daily basis. Get security advisories, software release information and discuss all aspects of system administration. Whether you are a complete newbie or seasoned Sys Admin we are sure you’ll find Sys Admin Talk a nice place to ask questions, get answers and spread knowledge about how a Unix system is administered (the right way ;))”

NewsFactor Network writes “Two separate outlets have posted information on the Web regarding the PowerPC G5. Albeit brief and unclear, these documents may hint at a product introduction that is right around the corner. Developer tool maker Absoft has posted a job opening that reads, “Absoft is actively involved in compiler development on all levels. A successful job candidate will take a leading role in developing … components of future compilers for Intel’s IA64 (Itanium) and IBM/Motorola PowerPC G4/G5 processors.” Epson posted a message to its Swedish Web site stating that its new line of laser printers is compatible with the “Apple iMac [and the] Apple G3/G4/G5/Cube (OS 8.1 or later).””

From O’Reilly Onlamp: “Michael Lucas shows what it takes for non-coders to contribute to BSD. This lament has appeared repeatedly on the BSD mailing lists since I started reading them in 1996, and probably far earlier. The standard response is silence. After all, if you’ve decided you can’t help, there’s really nothing for anyone to say. What many people don’t realize is that they can help, and in an important way — BSD is not a collcetion of computer code; it is both a community and a set of products.” This can be said of all major Open Source projects.

– by Tina Gasperson –

We get so much software with our Linux distributions, sometimes it
helps to check out a Web site that focuses on some useful niche. For
instance, you might not have known that typing “mc” in many Linux
distributions will bring up a nifty file manager called Midnight
Commander. Chuck’s Linux File Manager Page is your clue bus.When I stumbled upon Midnight Commander recently while researching a
bug fix for my laptop’s sound card driver, I was excited. Yes, I
know; I’m easily amused. Yet, here was the file manager I’d been missing
since the days of DOS, hiding there on my hard drive just waiting for me to use it. Ultra responsive, quick to use with keystroke
sequences, and bright, ANSI-like colors. OK, so the colors don’t matter
that much, but hey, they’re nice.

But if I hadn’t run across it randomly, I might never have found it.
Unless I had Chuck’s page to guide me. This is a nice, plain, easy to
read page that lists various file managers in a table, and links to
Chuck’s comments, screenshots of the program in action, and each
application’s official Web site.

And that’s about it. There’s nothing to complicate this page, no
news feeds or penguin graphics or silly polls — just good information that
unfortunately, tends to get lost in the billions of sites competing with
it for our attention.

Chuck writes that he was a biochemist when he
began the Linux File Manager page, and at that time called himself a
“wimp” because he preferred GUI file managers to cryptic command line
interface. These days, he writes, he uses the command line frequently in
his new career as a sys admin. But he still prefers the GUI file
manager.

With this collection, he’s chosen only the best file
managers, beginning with Midnight Commander, and progressing through
applications like TkDesk, Xplore, Northern Captain, and others.

Although there
were one or two Web site links that were unreachable when I checked, and although it was last updated in December 2000, Chuck’s Linux File
Manager Page is one of those sites that provide a valuable service. You’re going to enjoy checking out these useful but little-known applications.
It’s nice to find such an easy to use guide to the best file managers available for Linux.

ladislav writes “Sorcerer GNU Linux is not just another Linux distribution. It did not follow the tried and tested path of modifying a major Linux distribution and releasing it under a new name. Instead, the Sorcerer development team embarked on a completely unconventional way of putting together a unique distribution with features not found anywhere else. Once installed, it will be 100% optimised for your hardware, it will include the very latest Linux applications and it will allow an incredibly convenient way of keeping all software, even essential libraries, up-to-date. The full review of Sorcerer GNU Linux, as produced by DistroWatch.com.”

BSD Today reports on the progress of the Debian/NetBSD development effort which has now succeeded in running the Debian operating system on top of the NetBSD kernel with the help of chroot.

An Anonymous Reader writes “In this interview, LinuxDevices.com chats with Robert Love, the principal maintainer of an increasingly popular kernel-preemption patch that improves the real-time responsiveness of the Linux kernel. Love describes his role in the project, explains why the preemption enhancement is important to a broad range of Linux applications beyond just embedded/real-time (including end-users’ desktops), and shares his vision of the future of Linux in the embedded and desktop markets. Read the interview here.”