MSNBC has an opinion piece about the DMCA and the arrest of a Russian programmer. “The old Cold War is over. Welcome to the new Cold War.
It’s not political. It’s corporate. It’s not ideological. It’s
pragmatic. It’s not martial. It’s digital. What’s at stake are not
lives. They are electronic books.”

IDG News Service reports on Transmeta’s loss of $17.8 million in its second quarter.

Slasdot has the interview with questions posed by readers, such as, “How do you plan on continually increasing your user base?”

The Ximian Evolution team is pleased to announce the availability of
the Beta 1 release of Ximian Evolution[TM], the integrated groupware
solution for GNOME desktops. The first of three beta milestones, the
Beta 1 preview release begins our countdown to the 1.0 release this
fall.

Now is the time for stress-testing and bug reports! To report a bug,
visit bugzilla.ximian.com or use the GNOME Bug Report tool, bug-buddy.

If you are upgrading from 0.10 or an older snapshot release you will
need to re-enter your Mail and Calendar settings.

From now until the launch, we'll hold a series of "Bug Days."  Every
Thursday between 9 A.M. and 9 P.M. Eastern Standard Time (US),
developers and users of Evolution will gather online to find, isolate,
and destroy bugs. To participate, open your IRC client and visit the
#evobugs channel of irc.gnome.org.

When we reach 1.0, we'll award the most helpful volunteers with prizes
like Palm devices and gift certificates to online stores.

And don't forget to submit your bugs at bugzilla.ximian.com!

* Availability

  If you use Ximian GNOME, you can install this version by
subscribing to the Ximian Preview channel in Red Carpet (System -> Get
Software).

  You can also get the Evolution source tarball here:

     ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/unstable/sources/evolution

  Evolution requires Gal (0.9.1), GtkHTML (0.10.1), Bonobo-conf (0.6),
Bonobo (1.0), OAF (0.6.5), ORBit (0.5.8), GNOME Print (0.25), GNOME
VFS (1.0).

        ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/unstable/sources/gal
        ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/unstable/sources/gtkhtml
        ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/stable/sources/bonobo
        ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/unstable/sources/bonobo-conf
        ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/unstable/sources/oaf
        ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/stable/sources/gnome-vfs
        ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/stable/sources/gnome-print
        ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/stable/sources/ORBit

* Changes since version 0.10

Shell:

  - Drag and drop handling (Chris T.)

  - Online/Offline operation (Ettore)

  - Numerous code cleanups and bug fixes (Ettore & Jason)

Mail:

  - Added ability to specify a charset in the composer and for the 
    Preview Pane.  (Jeff, Danw)

  - Auto-save messages during composition and composer 
    crash-recovery.  (Larry)

  - Better signature file handling.  (Radek)

  - File->Insert menu.  (Larry)

  - Address-completion in the composer.  (Trow)

  - Much improved PGP/GPG.  (Jeff)

  - Cut/Copy/Paste and Drag & Drop.  (Jeff)

  - Disconnected IMAP, IMAP filtering, and other IMAP improvements. 
(Danw)

  - Empty Trash On Exit.  (Jeff)

  - More informative Folder message counts (new/hidden/total).  (Peter)

  - Implemented "Select Thread".  (Peter)

  - Movemail fixes and improvements.  (Michael)

  - Improved/Configurable Forward/Reply functionality.  (Jeff, Trow,
    Danw)

  - Improved Message browser window.  (Jeff, Peter)

  - Load HTML images Sometimes/Always/Never.  (Danw)

  - rfc2184 conformance.  (Jeff)

  - Online/Offline modes.  (Ettore, Danw, Jeff)

  - HTML indexing.  (Michael)

  - Spool providers.  (Michael)

  - Many i18n fixes. (Jeff, Trow, Larry, Michael)

  - Fixed saving of html signature preferences. (Peter)

  - Cleaned up exiting by having remote stores sync folders (Peter)

  - Attached binhex files do not cause infinite loops (Peter)

  - Don't send BCC headers when sending via SMTP (Peter)

  - Let you show and hide attached message/rfc822's (Peter)

  - Implemented Create/Remove/Move Folder. (Jason, Jeff)

  - Many bug fixes all around.  (Michael, Jeff, Danw, Peter, Trow and
    others)

Addressbook:

  - Cut/Copy/Paste (Chris T.)

  - Improvements to address completion, matching and merging (Jon, 
Chris
    L.)

  - LDAP improvements (Chris T.)

  - Numerous bug fixing (Jon, Chris L., Chris T.)

Calendar & Tasks:

  - Timezone support (Damon)

  - Cut/Copy/Paste (Rodrigo)

  - Event/Task editor rewrite (Federico & JP)

  - Improved Printing (Damon)

  - Itip/Imip improvements (JP)

Importers: 

  - Fixes, bug fixes and more fixes. (Iain & Jason)

General:

  - New graphics/icons (Jakub & Tuomas)

  - UI Improvements (Anna & Taylor)

  - 'make distcheck' should hopefully be working again (Peter)

  - Have 'make install' work for non-root users in Camel, albeit
    with a large and important warning message (Peter)

My Evolution:

  - Completely new and prettier My Evolution (nee Executive Summary) 

  - Pretty graphics (Jakub)

  - Mail, Calendar and Task summaries to tell you what you need to do
    today.  (Iain)

  - Weather forecasts so you don't need to look out the window (I
    dunno, hackers seem to dislike looking out the window or
    something...).  (Iain)

  - News feeds so you don't need to go to websites to see what news
    articles you don't want to read.  (Iain)
        
  - Printing, you can print it out and make it look like you've got
    lots of stuff to do when really you're just trying to pass the 
    time by playing Aisleriot or GLine all day. (Iain)

Read around the huge ad in the left column to find a story by IDG News Service previewing the O’Reilly Open Source Convention next week. Apparently Open Source needs some regrouping. “With its footprint in nearly every corner of the Internet
and computing industry, the collaborative development
model called open source that spawned Linux and the
Apache Web server is on the ropes, criticized publicly by
its foes as unworkable, weighed down by internal strife
and bruised by a dragging economy.

But the latest troubles for open source have not
stopped its supporters from forging ahead to try to
make the model viable for large businesses.”

– By Dan Berkes –
The moment of truth arrived this week for a few Open Source and related technology companies this week, including Apple, with a 70% drop in profits; Sun Microsystems, losing ground for the first time since the ’80s; and plucky Borland, adding 20 percent to its bottom line. Also: Caldera and TiVo hit with class-action lawsuits, and just what will it take to make you love Red Hat again?Wall Street sent stocks of computer hardware and software companies lower this week, thanks to investor anxiety, created largely by the rash of mixed earnings estimates issued this week. With the exception of Sun Microsystems, every company listed in this week’s report experienced improved earnings for this quarter. In some cases — most notably Apple Computer — those earnings were still far lower than they were for the same reporting period just 12 months ago.

These companies also expect the economy to get worse before its gets better, but how much things will worsen has yet to be determined. In fact, Sun Microsystems refused to even provide an outlook for the second half of this year, stating that market conditions were just too unpredictable to give any kind of reliable forecast.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rang the bell on Friday at 10,576.65, down 33 points from yesterday’s close, but down by only 37 points from last Friday. The Dow hit its high note for the week on Thursday, when it closed at 10,610. Nasdaq ended the week at 2,029.37, down 17 points from Thursday and 55 points total from last Friday. The tech-heavy Nasdaq reached its high point for the week Tuesday, closing at 2067.32.

Four letters — MSFT — led Friday’s decline. Microsoft lost a bit of last week’s luster when the closed-source software maker pared down its earnings estimates. Investors and analysts expecting the company to record a profit near 45 cents per share on revenue of roughly $6.3 billion did not take kindly to news that actual earnings would be closer to 39 cents on revenues near $6 billion to $6.2 billion, and investors lowered the value of almost anything computer-related as a result.

Apple bests predictions, still loses ground
On Tuesday, Apple Computer released earnings for its third fiscal quarter, reporting net profits of $61 million, or 17 cents per share, $21 million and 6 cents better than it did during its second quarter. Apple credits strong sales of its revamped iBook notebook computer for the surge in profits, but the overall picture is far from rosy. Although third-quarter estimates beat analysts’ predictions, the numbers show a 70 percent drop in profits from the company’s previous third quarter, when it enjoyed sales of $200 million and earnings of 55 cents per share. On Wednesday, the first trading day after the announcement, AAPL closed at 20.79, down 4.31 from the previous day’s close (and recent record high for the stock) of 25.10, and ended the trading week at a lukewarm 19.98.

IBM discloses earnings, warnings
IBM on Wednesday reported slightly better net income for its second quarter: $2.0 billion, or $1.15 per share, compared with $1.9 billion and $1.06 per share for the same reporting period during 2000. Analysts were on the mark with their predictions this time, expecting $1.15 per share on average based on estimates that ranged for $1.08 to $1.22. Big Blue tempered the announcement by saying it expected a 19 percent drop in profits for the second half of this year, thanks to a slowdown in its chip-making business and a strong U.S. dollar that would cripple overseas sales. After-hours trading dropped IBM to 100 after the announcement, but rebounded to end the week at 105.70.

Sun stunner: First loss since ’89
Sun Microsystems reported its first quarterly net loss since 1989, and told analysts that the economy was simply too unstable to shine light, positive or negative, on whatever numbers it would end up with at the end of this quarter. On Thursday, the company posted a fourth-quarter net loss of $88 million or 3 cents per share, a stark contrast to from last year’s same quarter when it reported $720 million or 21 cents per share in earnings. Sun blamed its poor performance on a $78 million loss on investments and $161 million of amortization related to past acquisitions. While analysts remain upbeat on Sun’s future performance, many are revising their future earnings estimates for the company. Among their number Merrill Lynch, who lowered estimates from 46 cents to 39 cents per share for fiscal 2002. SUNQ ended the week at 15.03, down 0.61 from last Friday’s bell.

Borland: Now with 20 percent more revenue
Borland Software International on Thursday announced financial results for its second quarter and the six-month period ending June 30, 2001. Revenues for the second quarter increased by 20 percent to $56 million, compared with revenues of $46.7 million from the same period a year ago. Running the six-months figures, the company disclosed revenues of $107.7 million, up 16 percent from $93.2 million for the first six months of 2000. Borland cites increased demand for Java development and deployment tools in the enterprise channels for its improved condition, along with better than expected sales of its Delphi and Kylix rapid application development software. BORL was down 1.29 to 14.70 today, the first day of trading after making that announcement.

Dell fingers Red Hat
Right now, there must be at least one financial type over at Red Hat wondering just what the hell it will take to impress investors. Thursday’s announcement that Dell, the world’s largest manufacturer of PCs, is now shipping Red Hat’s Linux distribution on all of its servers and select desktop lines didn’t seem to dazzle anyone. RHAT closed out the week at 3.40, down 0.08 on the day of the announcement, with a week-long drop of 0.52.

More legal woes for Caldera
For the second time in as many weeks, Caldera International is the recipient of a class action lawsuit. This time around, the plaintiff class is represented by legal firm Cauley Geller Bowman & Coates LLP. The complaint alleges that Caldera and several major securities brokers knowingly filed a false and misleading prospectus that, among other things, did not disclose that some investors would be required to purchase additional shares of CALD at pre-set prices after the initial public offering. Last week, lawyers at Bernstein Liebhard & Lifshitz LLP announced a similar class action suit against Caldera. CALD continued its steady decline, entering de-listing territory at 0.92, down 0.40 from last Friday’s bell.

And TiVo, too
TiVo joins Caldera this week in getting smacked with the class-action stick. The company, which makes Linux-based digital television recorders and sells TV listing subscription services is being sued on behalf of the class by Schiffrin & Barroway LLP. Much like the suits brought against Caldera, Red Hat, and OSDN/NewsForge parent company VA Linux, this one alleges that TiVo’s prospectus was false and misleading because it didn’t disclose that any investors allowed to participate in the IPO would be required to purchase additional shares in the aftermarket. Whatever, said Wall Street, and TIVO closed up 0.79 from last Friday to 7.50.

Merlin conjures up a new chairman
Merlin Software Technologies this week announced the appointment of Hank Barber to the British Columbia-based company’s board of directors. Barber, the first independent director on Merlin’s board, has held various senior marketing positions at J. Walter Thompson, Warner Lambert, and McCann-Seattle. Shares of MLSW.OB closed the week at 0.26, down 0.05 from last week, but most likely due to investor scrutiny of its most recent quarterly report.

And finally, here’s how selected Open Source and related technology stocks ended this week:

Company Name	Symbol	7/20 Close	7/13 Close
Apple	AAPL	19.98	24.85
Borland Software Int’l	BORL	14.70	15.99
Caldera International	CALD	0.92	1.32
EBIZ Enterprises	EBIZ.OB	0.115	0.11
Hewlett Packard	HWP	26.42	27.98
IBM	IBM	105.70	108.53
Merlin Software Tech.	MLSW.OB	0.26	0.31
Red Hat	RHAT	3.40	3.92
Sun Microsystems	SUNW	15.03	15.64
TiVo	TIVO	7.50	6.71
VA Linux Systems	LNUX	2.15	2.75
Wind River Systems	WIND	15.17	16.18

“Your decision to boycott the ALS event is certainly yours to make, and I
deeply regret the situation that caused you to make it.

However, to chose ALS as the focus of your first message on this I feel is
a little unfair, particularly with the recent steps that USENIX has taken to
working with the EFF to defend the rights of University professors to publish
their research works around DCMA.”

Your very public message
Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2001 14:43:12 -0400
From: "Jon 'maddog' Hall, Executive Director, Linux International" 
To: alan@lxorguk.ukuu.org.uk
Cc: "Bryan C. Andregg" ,  maddog@linux.local,  ellie@usenix.org,  editor@lwn.net,  editors@newsforge.com,  gnu@eff.org


Alan,

Your decision to boycott the ALS event is certainly yours to make, and I
deeply regret the situation that caused you to make it.

However, to chose ALS as the focus of your first message on this I feel is
a little unfair, particularly with the recent steps that USENIX has taken to
working with the EFF to defend the rights of University professors to publish
their research works around DCMA.  These professors were threatened with suit
by various large companies, and through the efforts of EFF and USENIX, these
companies are now backing down from their suits.

Your wording around USENIX "choosing a US location" ignores the fact that
ALS has always been in the US, the same way that Linux TAG has always been
in Germany, and the Linux Kongress has (almost) always been in Germany, with
occasional visits to the Netherlands.  USENIX has co-sponsored in the past
and continues to co-sponsor non-US events.

Also I do object to your statements that the US Government "hates" eastern
european states.  I seem to remember much pressure from the US to
lower the Berlin wall, and to allow more freedoms for eastern european people.

I believe this to be a case where someone broke a US law from afar over
this global thing called the "Internet" and then tried to take advantage of a
US-based conference.  If this is the case, then it may be a mis-directed
legal system, but I doubt that it was fueled by "hate."  Your inference that
"hate" fueled this incident is distasteful.

As I said, your right to leave the ALS program committee, or even to urge
others to boycott US events is yours to make, and I support your right to make
it.  Your points about other developers (foreign or otherwise) who have
violated US laws in their coding is probably more than valid.

I do, however, ask that you direct your venom to those who deserve it.

Warmest regards and greatest respect,

maddog
-- 
=============================================================================
Jon "maddog" Hall
Executive Director           Linux(R) International
email: maddog@li.org         80 Amherst St. 
Voice: +1.603.672.4557       Amherst, N.H. 03031-3032 U.S.A.
WWW: http://www.li.org

Board Member: Uniforum Association, USENIX Association

(R)Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in several countries.


-- 
=============================================================================
Jon "maddog" Hall
Executive Director           Linux(R) International
email: maddog@li.org         80 Amherst St. 
Voice: +1.603.672.4557       Amherst, N.H. 03031-3032 U.S.A.
WWW: http://www.li.org

Board Member: Uniforum Association, USENIX Association

(R)Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in several countries.

The Register: “We’ve received anecdotal reports that the PGP icons and menus which are added
to Outlook no longer work once a user upgrades to OfficeXP. This happens
regardless of whether one upgrades with PGP already installed, or installs PGP after
OfficeXP.”

– By Grant Gross –
– Updated 9:27 p.m. EST –
A top Linux kernel hacker is calling for a boycott of technology conferences in the United States, but the Electronic Frontier Foundation is asking organizers of planned protests to put them on hold while it negotiates with Adobe for the release of Russian programmer Dmitry Sklyarov, who was arrested after speaking at Def Con in Las Vegas earlier this week.

The EFF was helping organize protests in seven U.S. cities and Moscow, Russia, but EFF online activist Will Doherty asked people on the free-sklyarov email list to postpone action while the EFF meets with Adobe on Monday. However, many list members planning protests Monday said they wouldn’t back off until Sklyarov was released from jail.

Check the BoycottAdobe rallies page for information on where protests are now planned. As of late Friday, the list had actually expanded from eight to 13 cities since the EFF had withdrawn its support earlier in the day.

If you’ve been following tech news at all this week, you know that Sklyarov was arrested for violating the United States’ Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which makes criminals out of those who create programs to circumvent copyright protections, even though no such law exists in his homeland. Sklyarov’s alleged crime was developing software that allows buyers of eBooks, the copyrighted digital book format created by Adobe Systems, to back up eBook files or view them on unsupported platforms, such as Linux.

Adobe alerted the FBI to pursue the case against Sklyarov and his employer, Russian software company ElcomSoft, according to news reports.

But Adobe has agreed to talk with the EFF Monday. “Please help us act in good faith and postpone the protest until we have a chance to negotiate with Adobe,” Doherty wrote to the list. “Of course, we can always rekindle the protest if Adobe does not agree to withdraw their complaint
to the U.S. Department of Justice regarding Dmitry Sklyarov and to refuse to pursue further prosecutions under the DMCA for cases that should be prevented
under fair use provisions of U.S. copyright law.”

However, dozens of members of the mailing list questioned that tactic, saying it’d look like activists are caving to Adobe, and the protest is losing steam, if the protests are postponed.

Doherty said the EFF will not cave on the issue, but Adobe only agreed to meet if the protests are postponed.

“If you still feel that you have to protest on Monday, you are of course free to do so,” he wrote. “However, it may be a more effective use of our collective energies to act in a coordinated way to get Dmitry out of jail. This is about sane negotiation to get a guy out of jail.

“We would like to believe that Adobe will be negotiating in earnest and it is not EFF’s
style to engage in punitive protests when there is hope of a negotiated solution,” he added. “If some folks go ahead and protest and antagonize
Adobe, that may escalate the situation, preclude Adobe withdrawing their complaint,
and keep Dmitry in jail. And of course, we will still protest until the government
no longer agrees to prosecute such anti-fair-use cases under the DMCA or until the DMCA is amended or judicially restricted so that such prosecutions can no longer occur.”

The staff of the EFF released a further statement late Friday, saying negotiations with Adobe “could be the fastest way” to get Sklyarov released from jail.

The EFF has a Web page set up to provide information about the protests, if they still happen.

Likely to be interesting is the protest planned in San Jose, Calif., at 11 a.m. local time on Monday. Protesters will walk from the snake sculpture, at the south end of Cesar de Chavez Park, at the corner of South Market St. and West San Carlos St., to the main offices of Adobe, two blocks away.

Not on the EFF list as of early this afternoon was a protest tentatively planned at noon on Monday in New York City, at Adobe offices, across the street from the New York Public Library. People from NYLUG were planning the protest.

Other protests over the arrest:

Cox calls for boycott of U.S.

Linux kernel maintainer Alan Cox has resigned from the USENIX Annual Linux Showcase committee and is calling for a boycott of U.S. technology conferences. He asks all non-U.S. citizens to stay away from U.S. technology conferences, and U.S. companies to hold their conferences elsewhere.

“With the arrest of Dimitry Sklyarov, it has become apparent that it is not safe for non-U.S. software engineers to visit the United States. While he was undoubtedly chosen for political reasons as a Russian, [this] is a good example for the U.S. public, the risk extends arbitrarily further,” Cox writes. “USENIX by its choice of a U.S. location is encouraging other programmers, many from Eastern European states hated by the U.S. government to take the same risks. That is something I cannot morally be part of. Who will be the next conference speaker slammed into a U.S. ail for years for committing no crime?”

Cox says he doesn’t blame ALS sponsor USENIX for the offending DMCA law, but the problem “must be addressed.” The fifth Annual Linux Showcase and Conference is scheduled for Nov. 5 to 10 in Oakland, Calif.

Ellie Young, executive director of the USENIX Association, released a short statement: “USENIX regrets to see that foreign scholars and researchers are being discouraged from participating in conferences in the USA because of the recent actions of the Justice Deparment in the Sklyarov affair,” Young said.

USENIX has no immediate plans to change the location of the conference, Young added. “Alan’s statement may actually help the Felten case, though, by showing
a First Amendment chill on the expression of foreign researchers, who
would otherwise come to the U.S. for conferences if it wasn’t for the
threat of the DMCA,” Young said.

However, Jon “maddog” Hall, executive director of Linux International, asked Cox to direct his “venom to those who deserve it.” In an email to Cox and the media organizations Cox sent his boycott email to, Hall says: “To choose ALS as the focus of your first message on this I feel is a little unfair, particularly with the recent steps that USENIX has taken to working with the EFF to defend the rights of University professors to publish their research works around DCMA … Your wording around USENIX ‘choosing a U.S. location’ ignores the fact that ALS has always been in the U.S.”

Another boycott, this one of Adobe

Reported by The Register and elsewhere, BoycottAdobe.com is calling for a boycott of Adobe products. “Adobe helps graphic designers turn ideas into art,” the Web site says. “Adobe also helps turn security experts into felons.”

The site asks concerned people to sell their Adobe stock, write Adobe, write their congressional representatives, donate money to Sklyarov’s defense, and use alternatives to Adobe products, such as Open Source products GIMP and the program formerly known as Killustrator.

At least one company has taken BoycottAdobe’s advice. Andrew Lawrence, president of the Toronto Web design firm Smoke & Mirrors said Friday he has banned the purchase of Adobe products at his company. “Adobe will always be infamous in my mind as the company that put ‘This
book may not be read aloud’ into the licensing conditions for a public domain
text,” Lawrence wrote to the free-sklyarov email list. “The prosecution of a Russian programmer, for an act that is perfectly legal in any country outside of the United States, has led me to
decide that [Adobe’s] business ethics are outside the bounds of those with whom I wish
to do business.”

Several protests are being planned on the free-sklyarov list, but a warning, it’s a very high-volume mailing list.

Also, as pointed out on Slashdot, Professor Dave Touretzky of DeCSS Gallery fame is looking for “remedies” to circumvent Adobe’s access control and encryption mechanisms.

Congressman: There should be no crime here

The Boston Globe is reporting that U.S. Rep. Rick Boucher, a Democrat from Virginia, is again questioning the DMCA after Sklyarov’s arrest. From the article: “He says there are legitimate reasons why an electronic book owner might wish to copy all or part of the text — to make a backup copy, or to include an excerpt in some other document. This concept, called ‘fair use,’ is well established in copyright law.”

Declaration for Dmitry

Chris DiBona, an employee of NewsForge owner OSDN/VA Linux, has posted a “Community Declaration of support for Dmitry and against the DMCA that bestowed upon the FBI the power to arrest him.” DiBona’s collecting signatures there, and the document already has support of Open Source leaders as Miguel Di Icaza, co-founder and CTO of Ximian; Bruce Perens, primary author of The Open Source Definition; Eric S. Raymond, president of the Open Source Initiative; Linus Torvalds, lead Linux kernel developer; and Bob Young, co-founder and chairman of Red Hat.

Version 1.5.0 of the GNOME Control Center, the GNOME Control
Center advanced capplets, and the capplet library is now available.
This
is a preview release in preparation for an upcoming stable version. It
still has many known bugs, as this represents nearly a full rewrite.

 * Availability

The new control center is available at
ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/unstable/sources/control-center/control-center-1.5.0.tar.gz

The advanced capplets are available at
ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/unstable/sources/control-center-plus/control-center-plus-1.5.0.tar.gz

The capplet library is available at
ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/unstable/sources/libcapplet/libcapplet-1.5.0.tar.gz

* What's new

This release features a major makeover for many of the capplets and a
shell facelift. The program has been split into two modules:
control-center, containing the shell, the new configuration archiving
system, and the core capplets, and control-center-plus, containing
capplets normally used only by advanced users.

The new features include:

* The shell has been given a makeover and now looks half-decent
(Richard)

* There is a new XML-based configuration archiving system, imported 
from
the Ximian setup tools (Bradford).

* A new bonobo-conf-based capplet architecture makes capplets much
easier to write (Bradford)

* The sound, keyboard, and background capplets now use bonobo-conf
(Bradford, Richard)

* The screensaver capplet has been given a UI facelift (Richard)

* The control center and libcapplet now use pkgconfig (Havoc)

* As always, numerous bug fixes (everyone)

* Installation instructions and prerequisites

This version of the control center requires the following packages in
addition to the GNOME 1.4 platform:

* bonobo-conf 0.8, available at
ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/unstable/sources/bonobo-conf/bonobo-conf-0.8.tar.gz

* pkgconfig 0.8, available at
http://www.freedesktop.org/software/pkgconfig/releases/pkgconfig-0.8.0.tar.gz

* gtkhtml >= 0.9 (0.10.1 preferred), available at
ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/unstable/sources/gtkhtml/gtkhtml-0.10.1.tar.gz

* gal >= 0.9, available at
ftp://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/unstable/sources/gal/gal-0.9.tar.gz

In addition, libcapplet must be compiled before control-center or
control-center-plus

Please download and try this out. If you have any questions or 
comments,
please consult gnomecc-list@gnome.org or #xst on GNOME IRC. Thank you.