Archive

Sometimes the number of choices the Linux operating system provides can be overwhelming. I am starting to look at other options for my preferred desktop environment as GNOME 3 and KDE 4 go in directions that might be unsettling to my computing routine. One obscure yet interesting replacement candida...

Groklaw will stop publishing new articles May 16 -- exactly eight years to the day after it was launched. This is because its reason for existence is gone, according to founder Pamela Jones. "In a simple sentence, the reason is this: The crisis SCO initiated over Linux is over, and Linux won," Jones...

Occasionally listening to music files or watching videos with lightweight media apps the likes of Gzine, Alsaplayer or Gnome Player is fine if you are not ultra demanding of your listening environment. If you do not fall into that category, Banshee is a much better multimedia option. The Banshee M...

It appears that Sony is definitely planning to join the tablet wars: Its CEO Howard Stringer told the Nikkei newspaper that the company was planning to deliver a Honeycomb-based tablet no later than the end of the year, and possibly, according to some versions of his comments, as soon as this summer...

Having multiple choices of desktop environments is one of the Linux OS's strong points -- as well as its potential nemesis. This lack of a uniform desktop strategy means confusion for Linux newcomers and frustration for seasoned users. For example, the two most used desktop environments are GNOME an...

When Nokia and Microsoft announced a partnership last month, many systems and app developers interpreted the deal to mean Nokia was beginning to turn away QT Symbian and MeeGo platforms. In essence, Nokia would be dialing into Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 technology in the near future -- and, it was ...

Red Hat has by all measures hit the big time, providing validation of the open source business model that even the harshest critics will have a hard time brushing aside. In its fourth quarter, Red Hat's revenue reached $245 million, up 25 percent from last year. The Linux distribution vendor's fou...

Sometimes FOSS can be a confusing source of programs to feed my Linux passion. I confronted that confusion the last few weeks while settling into a preferred Alarm Clock app for my GNOME desktop. I found what I thought was a perfect solution for my need of a do-it-all alarm tool for my computers. A...

Its logo depicting a wily flame-colored fox encircling the globe suggests that nonprofit Mozilla aims to set the world on fire with every new version of its free, open source Web browser Firefox, released in its fourth incarnation Tuesday. Available for Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, Android and Maemo, F...

Adobe announced Monday that its Flash Player 10.2 update is now available on Android Market. The update's a production release for Android 2.2 and 2.3 but an initial beta release for Android 3.0.1. That news may impact the Motorola Xoom, as it runs Android 3.0 aka "Honeycomb." Android 3.0.1 is Honey...

The browser in Google's Android mobile operating system is more than 50 percent faster than the browser found in Apple's iOS, according to company Blaze.io. Blaze tested the embedded browsers in Android 2.3 and iOS 4.3. These were WebView and UIWebView, respectively. The tests were conducted agains...

Operating a small business or home office is always fraught with tasks based on creating and maintaining office documents. Often, entrepreneurs are stuck using different apps to handle each phase of record-keeping and pricing business proposals for each customer. Why stretch those tasks over multipl...

The Firefox Web browser is about to go where it has never gone before. Firefox makers are changing their developmental strategy. This new approach will warp Mozilla.org's flagship browser through several release generations in less time than it took to advance from Firefox 3.0 to the not-yet-release...

More than 70 percent of mobile applications containing open source code fail to comply with basic open source license requirements, OpenLogic claims. The company scanned compiled binaries and source code where available for the top paid and free Android and iOS apps in the business and consumer sect...

Android 3.0, aka "Honeycomb," took center stage at Wednesday's AnDevCon keynote address, and LinuxInsider joined about 200 Android developers in a small room at the Marriott Hotel in San Mateo, Calif., to listen in. Presenters Chet Haase and Romain Guy of Google explained some things about the Honey...