Anonymous Reader writes “LinuxDevices reports that embedded linux vendor Lineo has caved in to Victor Yodaiken
and become the first software company to publicly announce the licensing
of Yodaiken’s patented process for running a general purpose operating
system (such as Linux) as a task under a real-time kernel (such as RTLinux or RTAI). There’s a special
report at LinuxDevices … There’s an interesting quote where Yodaiken claims his patent will
help open source.”

Interactive Week: “Seasoned open source code developers are concerned that an effort
to produce an open source alternative to Microsoft’s .Net development
platform may be held hostage by the software giant, if the endeavor
ever gets off the ground.

Open source critics of Microsoft said the company would have the
opportunity to strangle an open source project by demanding a
licensing fee and royalty payments each time an open source version of
its patent was implemented. They fear developers will flock to the new
initiative, code-named Project Mono, only to find themselves trapped
in payments to Microsoft later. A requirement for a volunteer developer
group to pay license fees or royalties would be enough to end many
open source projects, its advocates said.”

From a press release at PR Newswire: “Lineo(R), Inc., a leading innovator
in embedded systems software and real-time solutions, and FSMLabs(TM) Inc.,
the creators of RTLinux(TM) today announced a license agreement for Lineo to
provide OEM customers with high performance, real-time embedded solutions
integrating FSM’s patented techniques of adding real-time support with the
Lineo Embedix(TM) embedded operating system platform.”

Wired: “At the demo scene’s big gathering in Finland, the excitement is generated by addictive computer graphics, tapping into the network and pizza. Wired News’ Steve Kettmann reports from Helsinki, Finland.”

MSNBC: “For most consumers buying a personal computer is as
much fun as visiting the dentist. Combine that with a shaky
economic climate and you’ve got tough times for the PC
industry. After months of brutal price wars, the slumping PC
industry may be looking for a new marketing message.”

CNET: “Sun Microsystems has only just started delivering its UltraSparc III processor, but already
the company is touting the split-personality of its upcoming UltraSparc V chip.

The UltraSparc V will be able to switch between two different modes depending on the type of
work the computer is doing, said David Yen, general manager of Sun’s processor group. One
mode will be good for heavy-duty calculations, the other for business transactions such as
recording or retrieving information in a database.”

DallasNews.com: “Li Xiguang got his first taste of the Internet five years ago, during a yearlong fellowship in the United States. E-mail and surfing quickly became staples of his daily life. But when the Tsinghua University professor returned to China, he was dismayed that the cyber-revolution still hadn’t reached his homeland. These days, China is making up for lost time.”

CNET: “The Justice Department opened an antitrust investigation of the online music
business, focusing on two new joint ventures backed by five major record labels, the Wall
Street Journal reported on Monday.

The probe, which is in a preliminary stage, is looking into possible anti-competitive problems
posed by the joint ventures, lawyers close to the case said Friday, according to the report.”

IDG: “In a move to improve the quality of Internet
connectivity in China, Asia Internet Holding
Co. Ltd. (AIH) plans to upgrade the capacity
of its Japan-China Internet backbone lines to
a total 90M bps (bits per second) by the end
of August, the company said Monday.”

BBC: “Surfing outdoors is taking on a new meaning with the
launch of the world’s first internet-enabled park bench.

The cyber-seat, installed in public gardens in Suffolk,
UK, allows up to four people to log on to the web at the
same time.

The bench, created by Microsoft’s MSN service, will be
free to use during the three-month pilot period.”