A new version of the Lazarus IDE is available for download and
review.

Lazarus is a RAD Object Pascal Development IDE for use with Free Pascal. Version 0.7 has many more features available then the previous release. It now uses the latest release of SynEdit. The use of SynEdit is an indication of the ability of porting Delphi code to Lazarus.While many aspects of the product are being fined tuned here is a list of some of the things found in the IDE.

Form Designer

Object Inspector

Editor Options

Compiler Options

Environment Options

Project Options

Code Completion

Syntax Highlighting

The IDE is built with the Lazarus LCL (Lazarus Class Libraries) which is analogous to the Delphi VCL. The LCL is designed to be widget independent so it can be built and run with different API widgets sets. Currently most development work is being done using GTK+ and the IDE can be run in Linux and to a certain extent in Win32. The problems with Win32 are related to the GTK+ version for Win32. Interfaces for the native Windows API and Qt are also under development. In the future interfaces for KDE, Gnome and other libraries will be available. The widget set used is determined by which one you compile and link against. No changes to your source code are required.

Lazarus is designed to work with Free Pascal. This means that any platform where Free Pascal can run you can build and use Lazarus. To date version of Lazarus have been built on Linux, Win32, and FreeBSD. The IDE looks and operates in much the same fashion as the Delphi IDE. If you are familiar with Delphi then you will immediately understand the Lazarus IDE. A screen shot of the IDE can be seen here. Unit information is saved in .PP files and Form layouts are saved in .LFM files. The .LFM files are similar to the .DFM files found in Delphi. The only difference is that the .LFM file needs to be first turned into a .LRS file before compiling the code. In the future this step will be incorporated into the IDE itself. This step allows the Form data to be streamed into the code.

The documentation for the source code is built nightly and you can download nightly builds of the Linux version of the IDE. ftp://lazarus.freepascal.org/lazarus/lazaruslinux.tar.gz. We would appreciate any and all help with development or testing of the IDE.
While the ability to use the IDE itself is limited the mere fact that the IDE can be built and run at all indicates the level of the LCL and the ability it provides to write Delphi like applications for Linux.

Zack Brown posts this week’s topics from the linux-kernel mailing list. Covered: “Hot-swapping CPUs in 2.4.1” … “Kernel debugger in 2.4.x?” … “Video drivers in the kernel,” and of course, much more.

LinuxSecurity.com wraps up this week’s Linux security updates and advisories: “This week, advisories were released for pgp4pine, vixie-cron, ssh, CUPS, glibc, bind, and sendmail.  The vendors include Immunix, NetBSD, Mandrake, Red Hat, SuSE, TurboLinux.  It is critical that you update all vulnerable packages.”

In a press release at LinuxPR, Rauch Medien announced the release of their new high availability clustering product today. The RM HA Cluster consists of rack-mounted servers running Red Hat Linux with “RM enhancements.” Load balancing and the Piranha GUI (for remote administration) are also included.

Alan Cox posts details of the latest Linux kernel update. This third release of the 2.4.2 kernel adds documentation for the FB interface, a work around for the APIC disable_irc hardware bugs, and a few tulip updates and merge bits from 0.92. There are a few other new items, too.

Wondering what to do with those extra function keys at the top of your keyboard? You’re in luck: Linux.com’s Josh Boudreau outlines an easy way to put those extra buttons to work. All you need is the scancode of your keyboard, the use of the xev program, and… well, you get the idea. It’s easier than it sounds.

Linux developer Command Prompt, Inc. announced today that it has signed a deal that will provide managed Linux server services to theKompany.com. Among other duties, Command Prompt will assume the administration and management of theKompany.com’s dedicated Web server. Read the press release at LinuxPR.

In a press release at LinuxPR, SuSE Linux announced the launch of its Consulting Services group in Ireland and the United Kingdom. The new group aims to provide IT consulting that leans toward enterprise application of Linux and Open Source technologies.

ZDNet reports: “Congress is growing more responsive to calls for online privacy legislation, but a major conflict looms that could hurt efforts this year to enact consumer safeguards against prying Web sites.”

Dan Marlin writes “Projectmayo.com has just released the DivX4Windows 4.0 Alpha 48 Core Codec. The Windows version has been significantly improved by using a DirectShow filter on the decoder. The visual quality has also been improved in scenes with fades and cross fades. This new version is definitely worth downloading.
The key piece is DirectShow, with a good video card it plays back great and is now 100% MPEG-4 compliant. They are looking to crush some of these DirectShow bugs as it is the latest addition to the codec. So do some testing and give them some feedback.”