News Bytes LG #61
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"Linux Gazette...making Linux just a little more fun!"
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Selected and formatted by Michael Conry
Submitters, send your News Bytes items in
PLAIN TEXT
format. Other formats may be rejected without reading. You have been
warned! A one- or two-paragraph summary plus URL gets you a better
announcement than an entire press release.
January 2001 Linux Journal
The January issue of Linux
Journal is on newsstands now.
This issue focuses on Multimedia. Click
here
to view the table of contents, or
here
to subscribe.
All articles through December 1999 are available for
public reading at
http://www.linuxjournal.com/lj-issues/mags.html.
Recent articles are available on-line for subscribers only at
http://interactive.linuxjournal.com/.
Vendors: Linux Journal's
2001 Buyer's Guide wants your product listings! Listings are
absolutely FREE of charge, however you must register your products by
January 15, 2001. The deadline is firm so make certain
to get your free listings in today. http://www.linuxjournal.com/bg/.
Distro News
Caldera
OREM, UT-December 19, 2000-
Caldera Systems, Inc.,
announced that they have contracted with Richard Sharpe of the Samba team to
create a client library that will make Linux and Microsoft integration
easier for developers. The Caldera-funded project includes the development
of library source code, associated reorganization and reuse of Samba code
and documentation of the library API.
The library and documentation will be available
under the General Public License (GPL). Caldera's engineering group will
work with the Samba team to complete the project by February 2001.
"Richard Sharpe is perfectly suited for this project," said John Terpstra,
vice president of technology and Open Source strategist for Caldera Systems,
"We believe this library built with Samba code will become the
standard for developers writing software that integrates with Microsoft
networks."
Developers interested in more technical detail on the project can
visit the
Samba Web page.
Mandrake
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, USA (December 4, 2000) -
Integrated Computer Solutions, Inc. (ICS),
the leading supplier of commercial OSF/Motif
products and support, and MandrakeSoft, publisher of the Linux-Mandrake
operating system, announced the immediate availability of Open Motif
optimized for the Linux-Mandrake operating system.
More details are available in the
press release
Open Motif optimized for the Linux-Mandrake 7.2 operating system is
available for free downloads at the MotifZone, ICS's Motif portal site
(www.motifzone.net). Open Motif is
also bundled with the Linux-Mandrake 7.2 PowerPack Deluxe.
Red Hat
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.--December 11, 2000--
Red Hat, Inc.
today announced that Cradle Technologies, Inc., is leveraging a broad set of
Red Hat's embedded technologies and services as part of its strategy to
supply a revolutionary silicon platform for stream processing applications.
The Cradle contract
includes consulting services and porting of Red Hat's GNUPro embedded
development tools, eCos and embedded Linux operating systems, to Cradle's
Universal Microsystem platform (UMS). Cradle's UMS platform will make it
possible for new embedded systems to be developed simply by redesigning
software, rather than by constantly rebuilding the entire chip hardware.
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.--December 13, 2000--
In further embedded Linux developments, Red Hat announces a deal with
Rymic Systems
that will put Red Hat Linux (uClinux) behind as many as 50,000
Army trucks and fighting vehicles. These vehicles will run a
next-generation Rymic appliance that assesses, in real time, the likelihood
of vehicle failure.
The device will monitor dozens of specific variables on an array of
military vehicles, and provide decision-makers with additional information
when considering which forces to deploy, which fighting vehicles to pull
back from the battlefield and which vehicles require immediate maintenance
and repairs.
For more information on Red Hat Embedded Linux please visit
www.redhat.com/embedded.
SuSE
Oakland, Calif., USA (December 1, 2000) --
SuSE Linux
announced a new strategic alliance with SGI.
Under the alliance agreement, SGI will make an equity investment
in SuSE Linux and will co-operate on the development, deployment and
support of the Linux operating system and infrastructure code.
Earlier this year, the companies successfully introduced Linux FailSafe, a
scalable and modular high-availability solution based on IRIS FailSafe system
software developed for the SGI IRIX operating system. Linux FailSafe offers
advanced clustering capabilities to Linux. SuSE, SGI and others also
cooperated in the highly regarded IA-64 Trillian Linux effort.
SuSE have also brought it to our attention that
there is integrated backward-compatible Pentium 4 recognition in the
standard Linux kernel 2.2.16 included in SuSE Linux 7.0.
A boot disk image of the kernel can be downloaded from
their ftp site
News in General
Upcoming conferences and events
SSH/SSL Vulnerability
There have been a few articles going around regarding possible security
risks associated with the use of SSH and SSL. Kurt Seifried has written
several times on this subject, as far back as
September 1999. More recently he has returned to the topic in
an article on
www.SecurityPortal.com, and a
follow up article responding to some of the feedback he got from
readers. This topic seems to have stirred up quite a reaction, and has been
further
discussed by the contributors to Slashdot.
Without wanting to repeat too much of the discussion that has gone before,
the issue basically boil down to one of key exchange and trust. The only
real risk to SSH security is in the initial contact with a machine when you
do not know whether it is in fact the host you think it is. This is not an
SSH problem, as such, but rather is a difficulty with any public key
encryption system. The trick is to find a secure way to distribute your
public key that does not inconvenience your users too much.
Also, the largest risk to security is not, in general, software problems. Many
problems actually originate from users who ignore or do not understand
warning signs that something is wrong. The problems with software
highlighted in these articles are the extent to which they leave themselves
open to poor use.
It is certainly worth pointing out that none of these links highlight any
NEW flaw in the SSH/SSL system or implementation. The main reason for the
recent focus on these issues is the release of a new piece of software:
dsniff, which makes easy interception of SSH traffic more convenient for
a wider number of people. This is not because it exploits any weakness,
rather it provides some handy tools to automate the interception process.
However, wide availability of these tools does increase the chance of casual
attacks on systems.
The take-home message is that the best way to keep a system secure is by
educating yourself your boss and your users about security. It is only by
understanding what is going on that you have any chance of keeping your system
healthy (hardly earth-shattering news, but true none-the-less).
Linux Clusters Powering Genome Research
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH, Dec. 14, 2000 -
Linux NetworX, Inc.,
a provider of large-scale clustered computer solutions
announced that the Lawrence
Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley Calif., has selected a Linux NetworX
cluster computer system for its Drosophila Genome Project.
Using the Linux NetworX cluster system with 40 processors, Berkeley Lab
is analyzing and sequencing the Drosophila (fruit fly) genome.
The Drosophila's 15,000 genes are similar to a human's 100,000 genes and
have been used extensively in the past as a model organism for research
studies.
"The Linux NetworX cluster is much more cost efficient than the systems
we've used in the past," said Erwin Frise, systems manager and biomedical
scientist, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Frise also explains that
because clusters are highly scalable, Berkeley Lab will in the future be
able to add additional compute modules to the system to keep it up to date,
something not feasible with a supercomputer.
New look for ShowMeLinux
Vancouver, British Columbia. December 1st, 2000 -
LuteLinux.com,
a Canadian-based Linux developer announces
the unveiling of
ShowMeLinux's exciting new look.
LuteLinux had previously announced the addition of ShowMeLinux to their
family of services, LuteLinux is hosting all future issues and has taken
over as publisher of ShowMeLinux.
The new look was created by Adam Puchalski, a welcomed new addition to
both LuteLinux and ShowMeLinux, as their Graphic/Web designer, and
co-editor of ShowMeLinux.
ShowMeLinux is published with the goal of helping readers develop an
in-depth understanding of the Linux movement through rich, beginner
friendly content. It explores practices for configuring, deploying and
maintaining the latest Linux technology.
HP and Sprint PCS Form Wireless Email Alliance
PALO ALTO, Calif. and KANSAS CITY, Mo., Dec. 19, 2000 --
Hewlett-Packard
and
Sprint PCS
announced an agreement to jointly market and sell
the HP Openmail Anywhere solution as part of the Sprint PCS Wireless Web for
Business. The solution enables business customers to wirelessly access their
corporate email on Sprint PCS Internet-ready Phones.
Openmail is HP's strategic business messaging and collaboration solution
for Linux and UNIX(R) systems, based on Internet standards. More
information about Openmail is available at
http://www.hp.com/go/openmail.
Linux based BizRelations Inc. Announces First Fully Functional Wireless Email in time for Holidays
Dec. 14, 2000 8:30am - BizRelations Inc.
(
WEB
and
WAP),
has announced Canada's first FULLY functional
and FREE Wireless Email system.
From any digital mobile phone equipped with wireless internet data
services users will be able
to Send and Receive emails, access their wireless
addressbook, check their email folders, and use the unique Quick
Reply Messaging function.
BizRelations have largely based their IT infrastructure on an Open Source
Linux foundation.
BizRelations has successfully been using the
Linux Virtual Server (LVS)
along with
RedHat's Piranha clustering tool
to provide high availability and scalability for web, email and SQL services.
Sybase ASE 11.0.3.3 for Linux was the SQL server chosen by BizRelations,
while the email solution chosen was qmail
Another core function is monitoring the
availability of systems and networks.
To fill this requirement
NetSaint was used.
"If there are any problems, an email gets sent to
the support cellphone stating the nature of the problem." says Patrick Petersen
(President of BizRelations).
After running with RedHat Linux for over a
year, even if Windows 2000 was a free alternative, BizRelations would
willingly shell out the money for Linux.
Linux Links
Salon take a look at free wireless TCP/IP networks in the US. The
originators see it as an extension of the Open-Source/Free-Software ethos.
ZD-Net take an in-depth look at running Linux on
laptops. (For anyone wanting to turn their shiny new toy into a real
computer!)
Newsforge comment on Bruce Perens' move to HP as head of the company's
Linux and open-source strategies. This is being touted as the first
Open-Source foray into the upper echelons of Big Business
East Bay Express looks at a life in a TelCo call centre. Makes you look
a bit differently at those frustrating periods on hold.
Some links courtesy of Slashdot:
- NSA Linux distribution is discussed in a
Slashdot article and in a different tone on the
official website where, incidentally, you can download it for
yourself. Look it up soon, though, because they still aren't 100% sure
they can continue to distribute it.
-
Linux 2000 timeline
- Turbolinux have demonstrated the use of a Linux cluster to crack
5-character NT passwords in just one minute. Read more
here.
(Please note, Turbolinux does not endorse breaking passwords,
they just like building good clusters!)
- A
look
at why UCITA is BAD. The issues are complicated, but this is a very
important issue to the future of software distribution and engineering.
The Duke of URL has some new
reviews that may be of interest to you:
- For those wanting to keep in touch with the BSD side of things, the
Duke of URL has a
review of
Free BSD 4.2 (even draws comparisons against Linux).
- The Finnish Software Engineering distribtion Best Linux
2000 R3 is out. Read the
review
and find out how good Linux is in the homeland.
The Linuxcare support Database is
available online if you have some problems you need solutions for.
OS Opinion take a look at the difficulties with complicated software, in
particular the ramifications of OSX's UNIX/BSD heritage.
Some highlights from Linux Weekly News:
-
If anyone is still in doubt what Linux IS, and would like a smile, check
out this
article.
-
Those of an artistic temperament should look at
Penguin Art.
- Also, courtesy of LWN comes this link to
Salon's round up of tech
stories and non-stories of 2000AD.
Finally, for the fashion conscious (or cold ;-),
Tuxwear has a range of Linux apparel
(perfect treat to cheer one up in the post-Xmas season!).
Software Announcements
KDE 2.0.1
KDE have announced release of KDE 2.0.1.
The official announcement is available
here.
There is also a KDE Beta available for
download.
XFree86 4.0.2
XFree86 have released XFree86
4.0.2, and the
Duke of URL has posted a
review .
Highlights include ATI Radeon support.
For the official news, refer to the XFree86
news section. Before you actually download or use this you will also
probably want to check out the
Release Notes
Smart Batteries
SoftTools Technology, Inc.
has announced their new Linux Smart
Battery System Software Suite (Linux SBS3). The Linux SBS3
is a complete software solution for Portable systems that provides support
for systems that incorporate Smart Battery System components under Linux. A
User Friendly applet with a GUI for multiple smart batteries and/or regular
batteries that read and provide accurate information to the user is also
available.
Free Download of Configuration Management System Elego ComPact
The establishment of elego Software Solutions GmbH has been announced in
Berlin. The new company specializes in software configuration
management (SCM), and offers a wide range of support, service, and
general consulting in the area of configuration management (CM).
Elego ComPact is a full-featured configuration management (CM) system
based on the well-known and reliable version control system CVS. Elego ComPact
extends CVS capabilities by adding new functions and concepts,
including build management and component model.
Elego ComPact may be used freely for all non-commercial purposes;
commercial users must obtain a license.
Elego ComPact claims to add missing features and concepts to the basic
CVS system:
You may download a current development snapshot of Elego ComPact
for evaluation purposes or free private use via FTP or HTTP from their
download page.
For more information see
www.elego-software-solutions.com
VMware Enters Server Market
PALO ALTO, Calif., December 5, 2000 -
VMware, Inc..
For the latest VMware press releases, check out:
www.vmware.com/news/.
VMware have made a number of announcements around two new server products:
- - VMware Enables Intel Server Customers to Scale
their Internet Computing Infrastructures Safely,
Reliably and on Demand
- - VMware Announces Initial Adopters of its
New Server Products - CenterBeam, Inc.,
eOnline, Inc., Merrill Lynch, and ProTier
- - Compaq, Dell, IBM and VA Linux are Founding
Partners in VMware's Preferred Server Hardware
Vendor Program
- - VMware Forms Professional Services Organization
and Announces New Offerings to Ensure
Customer Success
Rather than give all the details here, I will point you to the
news.
section of VMware's website where you can get the full stories.
WARP Aim to Improve Web Performance
NEW YORK, NY * November 1, 2000 *
WARP Solutions, Inc.,
providers of Web
infrastructure software for the area of optimum
performance of Internet applications, have launched the WARP Performance
Suite, initially consisting of WARP Intelligent Content Distributor, WARP
Global Load Balancer and WARP Load Balancer.
Additional products - - WARP Dynamic Content Director, WARP Cache Master
and WARP Secure - - are being rolled out on an individual basis during the
fourth quarter and early next year. This suite of modules aim to
enhance web-server performance with emphasis on "performance, reliability,
scalability, security, speed and interoperability".
WARP's initial launch will
run on Solaris, Compaq Tru64 and Linux platforms.
ACCESS Introduces Linux-based Browser Development Kit
MILPITAS, Calif./TOKYO, Japan - December 11, 2000 -
ACCESS Co., Ltd.
introduced a NetFront 2.6 Linux Software Development Kit (SDK) for the
worldwide market. This should speed the integration of ACCESS' popular NetFront
browser into Linux-based Internet appliances and other non-PC applications.
Since its introduction in 1995,
NetFront browsers have been shipped in over 18 million embedded devices from
40 manufacturers. NetFront is an ideal browser for Internet TVs, PDAs
(personal digital assistants), set-top boxes, car navigation systems, smart
phones, web/screen phones, vertical Internet terminals, video game consoles
and Internet kiosks.
The browser kernel
is less than 270 KB of code and fits in 1.3 megabytes of ROM and 2 megabytes
of RAM. It supports the full HTML 3.2 specification and selected portions of
HTML 4.0. It supports frames, JavaScript, cookies, web printing and
multilingual capabilities.
This SDK lets developers customize the user
interface to their desired look and feel and add plug-in applications
tailored for specific applications.
NetFront version 2.6 SDK for Linux will be available as a full source
code package. The SDK includes the NetFront version 2.6 browser kernel, a
sample user interface module and PIM suite, the Internet mail module, a
sample library for peer interface layer and graphics layer (GTK/SDL), and
documentation.
An SDK with five-seat development license is
available for $40,000 including three months support.
Linux-Based Intranet Broadcast Solutions
San Jose, CA-
2netFX,
a provider of streaming solutions for
intranet and broadband Internet media delivery, and
Zapex Technologies, Inc.
an industry leader of MPEG-2 compression
products, are in alliance to design and deliver innovative hardware
and software broadcast solutions to be used in the IP distance
learning market.
The first system offered by the alliance is a Linux-based server
solution, providing users a viable means to stream
broadcast-quality transmissions. It includes 2netFX's StreamRider
client and ThunderCast/IP server software and Zapex's ZL-330
encoder with Dolby digital audio and MPEG-2 video. It is the first
encoder of its type to achieve Dolby certification for Linux
operating systems, and it eliminates inherent lip-sync issues by
providing Transport Stream multiplexing within the Zapex encoder.
The ZL-330 produces high quality video images at low bit rates.
"The resulting low-bandwidth video stream from the ZL-330 permits
an unlimited number of users to access a multicast video," says
Gary Marsh, Zapex vice president of sales and marketing. "Coupled
with the 2netFX software, PC users can interactively select which
programming they wish to view, then capture and store the video
locally. Effectively, customers can select their own viewing
schedules, depending on application."
Linux2order.com
Eric Vogel has brought his new site
Linux2Order.com
to our attention. He describes it as "dedicated to
offering the largest collection of Linux applications available on the
Internet". A wide range of distribution methods are available. In addition
to the standard free download, the user can have a custom CD burned or
register for a priority download subscription.
Fox On Linux
Fox on Linux is a commercial Linux application, providing
businesses with a sophisticated, graphical software package to deal
with their core financial accounting needs.
Fox on Linux can be integrated with other corporate front-end
applications and comes with online support and training. Flexible in its
operation, multi-user, and with a 12KBS low bandwidth requirement it can be
accessed over the Internet. Installation is claimed to be easy, so a system
can be up and running in a very short time.
For further briefing or a chance to trial Fox on Linux software go to
www.foxonlinux.com.
Other Software
Steak: the Dictionary is an English-German translation program with GUI
dialogs. (GPL)
Anyone interested in Electronic Design Applications, you might like to check
out
yaEDA. It is available with
sourcecode.
PROVEN SOFTWARE, INC. have announced the release of their new internet
shopping cart for linux, eCHOICE. This new feature will allow easy
integration with PROVEN CHOICE Accounting Systems. Full details are
here, and an
evaluation copy is also offered.
Copyright © 2000, Michael Conry and
the Editors of Linux Gazette.
Copying license http://www.linuxgazette.net/copying.html
Published in Issue 61 of Linux Gazette, January 2001
