Anonymous Reader writes: “A buddy of mine introduced me to RedHat Linux back in 1996, on a CD. Until then I had downloaded different flavors across 28.8/33.6 modem, a rather painful experience. After that introduction I have been a loyal follower since. I have looked to RedHat Linux for stability, features, and ease of use. Read the full review at: LinuxLookup.“

Wired: “The music industry has seemingly gone into the business of suing peer-to-peer companies. But the technology isn’t going away, and one record label figures if you can’t beat them, join them.”

Paul Mecucci writes: “November 2001 — It might be hard to imagine increasing your computing
power and capability by up to eight times without also
having to knock down a few walls to add square footage
to your server room. But you don’t have to imagine it
anymore.”
RackSaver has created the ultra-thin RS-1200, the
first server chassis to house two complete dual CPU
systems. That?s two nodes per 1U. Stack 40 of these
units in a standard 7-foot cabinet and you?ve got
160 Intel Pentium III 1GHz+ processors or 80 AMD
Athlon 1.2GHz+ processors in just six square-feet
of floor space, with room left over for networking
equipment and PDUs. RS-1200 can also be configured
with the dual AMD Athlon MP and the Intel Pentium 4.

Density is a hallmark of the RS-1200 and an
absolute must for cluster computing. Each unit can
use up to two hard drives, even with CD-ROM or floppy
variations. The RS-1200 can use both single and dual
processor-based motherboards. Choose your networking
capabilities from Myricom Myrinet, Giganet, GigE
Copper and Fiber, or fast Ethernet. Each 1U is capable
of handling up to 8 GB of RAM. Software options
include Redhat 6.2, 7.0 or 7.1, Suse Debia Mandrake,
Scyld Beowulf, or Dolphin Scali. All are preconfigured
before installation, and turnkey packages are
available.

Each unit employs the highest quality fans and a
super-efficient cooling system that offers high
reliability.

Because the RS-1200 uses standard components,
RackSaver can keep prices low. Log on to
www.racksaver.com to get a quote for your specific
application.

San Diego, California,-based RackSaver is a leading
provider of low-cost, high-density servers and
clusters. The firm?s products are popular in the
Beowulf and ISP/ASP communities. RackSaver is a
Dolphin Partner, a Myricom Partner, AMD and Intel
Partners, as well as a Linux House, an IBM Partner, a
Compaq Partner, a Hewlett Packard Partner, and a 3COM
Networking Partner. Contact(858) 874-3800″

theHighlander writes: “The Microsoft antitrust settlement is a far cry from the earlier court order to split the company into two. Compared to that, Microsoft got off with little more than a slap on the wrist. On paper, the current agreement appears more restrictive, but does little or nothing to prevent Microsoft from hooking more competition-killing functions into Windows. Read on…“

Paul Mecucci writes: “There’s a first time for everything. But every once in a while, a breakthrough comes along that promises to change the way the game is played. RackSaver has achieved such a milestone with the first Intel Dual Xeon 1U server, a major breakthrough for density and performance that promises a lasting effect on cluster solutions. RackSaver?s RS-1100 is the chassis for this new 1U dual Xeon server. The 19-inch rack-mounted high-density server utilizes Rambus memory and can use up to two hard drives, even with CD-ROM or floppy variations. The RS-1100?s density allows up to 88 of the 1.7Ghz+ Xeon processors to be stacked in a standard seven foot cabinet. Each unit employs the highest quality fans and a super-efficient cooling system that offers high reliability. Exhaust ports can be designed to fit your situation.

The RS-1100 has a 64-bit/66MHz expansion slot and is ready for high-speed interconnects such as Dolphin SCI, or Myricom Myrinet.

When Intel released the Xeon processor in May 2001, it predicted users would see their processing power increase from 30 percent to 80 percent, depending on the application. That?s great news for those who use clustering to process large amounts of data and solve complex problems.

Because the RS-1100 uses standard components, RackSaver can keep prices low. Log on to www.racksaver.com to get a quote for your specific application.

San Diego, California,-based RackSaver is a leading provider of low-cost, high-density servers and clusters. The firm?s products are popular in the Beowulf and ISP/ASP communities. RackSaver is a
Dolphin Partner, a Myricom Partner, AMD and Intel Partners, as well as a Linux House, an IBM Partner, a Compaq Partner, a Hewlett Packard Partner, and a 3COM Networking Partner.

Contact: Paul Mecucci (858) 874-3800,

paulm@racksaver.com”

Jeremy Blanchet writes: “I found a great article about how Microsoft has been taking advantage of consumers. Those of you with a technical background have known this for years, but does the average consumer? “The truth of the matter is that while each version of Windows is more stable, we have nothing to compare it too except the previous version of Windows…”. Lets hope that an alternative solution to Windows comes out before all is lost.”

LinuxSecurity: “The FBI’s National Infrastructure Protection Center warned Friday of an increased threat of distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks on computer
networks. According to an advisory released at the NIPC Web site, the organization “has reason to believe that the potential for future DDoS attacks
is high.” The NIPC advised network infrastructure operators to “take a defensive posture and remain vigilant at a higher state of alert.”

Kelly McNeill writes “I believe the subject of jobs vs. life is the least underscored in the debate on globalization. As open source designers and programmers, we know what we do will create jobs, rebuild infrastructure and make money. Most of the proprietary models have failed us, and the IBMs and Road Runners of the business world are quickly wising up.”

– By Dan Berkes –
The Linux tribes are gathering this week for the Fifth
Annual Linux Showcase and Conference, taking place
through Saturday in Oakland, Calif. Event organizers are
hoping that free registration will attract a greater than
usual number of attendees to this year’s conference, and attendees were standing in line to get in Monday.The conference, called ALS for short, started life in 1996 as the Atlanta Linux Expo, a
smallish one-day gathering coordinated by the Atlanta Linux
Enthusiasts. In 1997, it became the Atlanta Linux Showcase,
jointly presented by ALE and Linux International (LI), and
expanded to two days. The USENIX Association joined ALE and
LI to help organize the three-day 1999 show.

In 2000, the name was changed to the Annual Linux Showcase
and the program was expanded once again, this time to five
days. In addition to offering an ambitious six days of
activities, the 2001 event is the first ALS to take place
outside of Georgia.

While the names, locations, and dates may change, ALS is
still known in Linux circles as being the serious
conference.

“What makes USENIX events in general the best conferences
around,” said ALS tutorial coordinator Dan Klein, “is
they’ve got good technical sessions, they’ve got good
invited talks, they’ve got a good exhibit floor, but most
importantly, it’s just standing in the hall and talking to
people.”

“If you’ve got a problem just start a conversation with
somebody. If they don’t know the answer, the person
standing next to you will. If they don’t, the three of you
will mull around for a while until somebody will walk by
and join the conversation and know the answer.”

“LinuxWorld Expo is where the marketers meet,” said one
person standing in line for registration, “but [ALS] is
where the community meets.”

If the Monday morning scene in the lobby of the Marriott
City Center Hotel is any indication, then a free
registration offer brought the community out in droves.

Twenty minutes before the conference registration desk was
scheduled to open, a small but patient crowd stood around,
watching a small army of volunteers finish their setup
duties. About five minutes after the official 8 a.m. start
time, about 30 people were waiting on line to pick up their
badges.

Until the last person registers on Saturday, organizers
won’t know for sure just how many people showed up for the
event. “It’s always difficult to tell with this
conference,” said Klein, “but we’re always surprised at the end.”

Responding to the ongoing economic downturn and the
changing security and political landscapes of North
America, ALS organizers decided to offer free registration
for the showcase and technical sessions.

“People have been leery about traveling and now they’re
discovering, ‘oh, it’s OK, nothing’s happening,’ and so
folks are making the last-minute reservations,” said Klein.

Those technical sessions and the vendor showcase will take
place this Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The tutorials
taking place through Wednesday, however, still require
payment.

Today’s tutorial session was a look inside the Linux kernel
with long-time kernel hackers Stephen Tweedie and Ted Ts’o. Tutorials taking place on Tuesday and Wednesday
focus on system administration and security. On Wednesday,
Willem Schreuder will present the tutorial on building and
using a personal Beowulf.

Business was quietly booming at the tutorial signup desk.
Like many participants, Pete Peterson was there to learn a
bit more about Linux in his position as a network
administrator for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

His division provides support for more than 700 users, and has
used Linux on a variety of application, network, and print
servers since 1998. “It’s getting much more polished,” he
said, “and there are a few individuals using it on their
workstations now.”

We’ll have more coverage of the Fifth Annual Linux Showcase
and Conference this week. Stay tuned.

Editor’s note: OSDN, of which NewsForge is a member, is one of the corporate sponsors of this
year’s event.

ZDNet Tech-update discusses what it calls the most secure operating system around, OpenBSD, and suggests to commercial operating system vendors that they try some of the same tricks OpenBSD uses to remain secure.