Nando Media has a feature on the merging of TV with the Internet. “There are some emerging alternatives for interactive, Internet-based TV that might appeal even to the
critics. A company in Santa Ana, Calif., called Ch.1 (http://www.ch1.com) is working with TV set
producers such as Princeton Graphics and Sylvania to hook high-definition, digital TVs directly to the
Internet.
The Ch.1 TV sets offered now run a modified version of the open source operating system, Linux. Ch.1 is
using Linux in the hope it will lure designers to write applications for example to transfer data to Palms
and other hand-held computers, and embedding certain kinds of video and audio formats in the system.”

The Register reports that Red Hat is used by 77.2 percent of Linux developers, according to a recent survey. SuSE and Mandrake are next, but Debian makes a good showing, too. Which of these distributions are “forgotten,” we’re not sure.

Reuters reports that heavy metal band Metallica is complaining to the U.S. District Court in San
Francisco that Napster has failed to block access to its music as ordered under the
court’s injunction.

– by Tina Gasperson –
There is a ton of software designed for use by chemists and other scientists, that runs on Linux. I’m not kidding. OK, maybe not a ton. But if you put it all on CDs and weighed it, it’d be quite substantial. How’s that for scientific?Linux and Chemistry isn’t the only site of its ilk — but it is the most logically done and easy-to-read-and-navigate that I’ve seen. Here, the selections are sorted according to their function and then alphabetized. There’s biology, computational, database, graphics, molecular, spectroscopy, and the catch-all “other.”

Each section has summaries and links to dozens of titles. In the “molecular” section, for example, there’s DOCK — it explores ways in which two molecules, such as a drug and an enzyme or protein receptor, might fit together. Sounds like it would be fun to play with.

Being a visually-oriented person, I found several good goof-off time candidates under the graphics section. Like CACTVS, a visualization package for chemists, with a full-featured 2D structure editor — whatever that is. That, and Cn3D, a 3D molecular structure viewer that allows you to “visualize and rotate structure data entries.”

Then there’s Chemtool, which is a program for drawing organic molecules. Reminds me of seventh grade when I had a fascination with organic chemistry and would sit around sketching out molecule structures when I was supposed to be listening to the teacher talk about … well, I don’t know what he was talking about because I wasn’t listening. Anyway, now I can relive my fascination digitally.

Under database, something called GeneMine caught my eye. It says that its the “first expert bioinformatics data mining system to automatically query independent sources.” Hmm. Is that the scientist’s version of NewsVac? Unfortunately, when I tried to visit the site, it was just a placeholder page.

Even though Linux in Chemistry is the best site of its kind that I’ve found, it is not without faults — bad links is the worst one. Someone needs to go through and weed out the 404s. It is disappointing to find what looks like an interesting, download-worthy application, click on the link, and get nothing.

Another shortcoming is the short list of chemists under the chemists section. There’s only one, Mathieu Didier, with just a couple of sentences and a link to an email address. Come on! If you’re going to create a section especially for chemists who use Linux, make it worth looking at.

The links section is short also, and the first one I clicked on, “Steven’s Linux Home Page,” was a “not found” one.

To end on a good note, the site is searchable, so if there’s a scientific application you’ve heard of but can’t find anywhere, Linux and Chemistry might be a good place to look.

If you know of a great site you think we should review, share it with us.

NewsForge editors read and respond to comments posted on our discussion page.

Our friends at The Register have a story asking if Be is planning to Open-Source the BeOS. The evidence: Be has registered the domain name openbeos.com.

ZDNet has a column about Linux’s presence at the German technology show. With Linux booths scattered through the show, you didn’t have to look far to find it. And SAP had a large penguin across the aisle from a Microsoft booth.

The Economist has a story comparing the three recent releases. Eazel’s “idea is that when an update to a particular piece of software becomes
available, Nautilus allows the user to download and install it with a single click.
Security and bug fixes are thus installed quickly, and each upgrade is small and
painless. This is a radically different approach to most software updates, which
aggregate lots of fixes into infrequent, large and painful upgrades.

Windows XP and Mac OS X are, in comparison, the software equivalents of
baroque cathedrals: vast, complicated edifices built by thousands of workers over
many years. But though its approach may be more elegant, Eazel must show that
its business model, as well as its technology, will work. That will not be easy. Many
software firms that are trying to make money from Linux are struggling, and Eazel
recently announced layoffs of its own.”

From a press release at LWN.net: Today, SuSE Linux, the international
technology leader and provider of Open Source solutions, announced the
upcoming release of SuSE Linux 7.1 PowerPC Edition in early April. SuSE
supplies the latest Linux operating system and more than 1,000 assorted
applications for Mac users on 6 CDs. With SuSE’s optimized Kernel 2.4.2
SuSE Linux 7.1 PowerPC Edition boasts a greatly enhanced USB support.
SuSE Linux 7.1 PowerPC Edition also features the support for the sound
system ALSA (Advanced Linux Sound Architecture) for PowerMacs.

The announcement is posted at LWN.net and the kernel is available at ftp://ftp.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/people/alan/2.4/.

“It’s open, so anyone can grab it, whip it, and beat it into whatever shape or function they desire.” “It” is Linux, and anyone can experience the passion, pleasure, and joy of this operating system in one place with Prima Tech’s newly released The Joy of Linux, A Gourmet Guide to Open Source.

For those living the Linux life, those who want to live the Linux life, and even bystanders, The Joy of Linux answers the “why’s” of Linux and provides insight into communities vital to Linux. With chapters such as “The Penguin on Top,” “The Joy of Toys,” and “The Linux Sutra: Resources,” and cartoons by Nitrozac and Snaggy, readers will be entertained and treated to useful information. In brief, The Joy of Linux is a cultural history book, a field guide, and a love song.

“Linux is, ultimately, all about putting control in the hands of the user,” write authors Brian Proffitt and Michael Hall. “The true driving force seems to be the chance to make something really special with our hands and minds. In the old days, we’d be the ones whittling or writing in a journal. Today, we play with computers.”

Proffitt, contributing editor to Linux Today and a professional author and computer consultant whose works include Install, Configure, and Customize Corel Linux; Sun StarOffice 5.1 for Linux; and Install, Configure, and Customize Red Hat Linux for Prima Tech, has developed more than 50 computer books and provided technical editing for dozens more. Hall was bit hard by the UNIX bug before discovering Linux. He divides his time between writing for Linux Today, playing with Linux, “sneaking Linux onto laptops where it doesn’t belong, and maintaining a really mauve database.” Illustrators Nitrozac and Snaggy are the creators of GeekCulture.com, a high-tech humor website and online community for geeks and geek wannabes. GeekCulture.com is also the home of their hilarious daily webcomic The Joy of Tech, and the remarkable cartoon epic After Y2K.

The Joy of Linux complements Prima Tech’s popular and trusted Linux series, which was launched in 2000 in response to the growing needs of the Linux community and is designed to meet the specific requirements of all Linux users. Divided into four categories-Programming and Development, Networking and Administration, Installation and Configuration, and Applications-the series provides quality information to Linux users of all levels on topics ignored by other publishers.

Published and upcoming Linux titles by Prima Tech include PHP Essentials; Integrate Linux Solutions into Your Windows Network; Install, Configure, and Customize Corel Linux; VMware 2 for Linux; DocBook Publishing for Linux; Run Your Office with Applixware for Linux; Emacs for Linux; and The New XFree86.

Prima Tech, a division of Prima Publishing, publishes advanced and comprehensive reference books for programmers and other computer and business professionals as well as tutorials on popular software applications. Prima Tech, which has offices in Indianapolis and Roseville, Calif., delivers up-to-date coverage of operating environments, desktop applications, Internet and desktop publishing, programming, networking, and enterprise resource planning.

Prima Publishing, one of the country’s largest independent book publishers, was founded in 1984 and has its headquarters in Roseville.

Submitted by Jennifer Breece

Contact: Jenni Breece, (317) 488-4338; jenniferb@primapub.com