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Sure, we all know that making regular file backups is an essential survival task for frustration-free computing. But backing up data and backing up computer systemfiles are not entirely the same things. Doing one without the other is like having an uninterrupted power supply that's not connected. Fo...

If you use Linux instead of Microsoft Windows, its free availability may well be a deciding factor. But the fact that virus and malware contamination are less likely to take down your Linux computers is no doubt an essential influencing factor as well. But does using a more popular Linux distro like...

The face of the Linux desktop is drastically evolving. While the Linux communities struggle to bring more business and home users to the Linux desktop, existing users face choices about adopting redesigned desktop shells or finding suitable replacements. The fallout might well be the start of a Grea...

Customers are demanding open source characteristics such as flexibility, customization, cost and time efficiency, and scalabilty, while vendors are doing their best to deliver it -- often based on support for open source components, languages, frameworks, databases -- and hypervisors.

A battle to set the model for cloud infrastructure is raging, according to Jim Whitehurst, president and CEO of Red Hat. "We're at a fork in the road," Whitehurst told a packed room of more than 200 people at the Open Source Business Conference Monday. "Now is the time that we're going to choose the...

My reaction to the latest version of Ubuntu can be summed up in just three words: Far from awesome! That impression largely results from the switch to the new Unity desktop. Canonical, the developer of the Ubuntu Linux operating system, released version 11.04, also known as "Natty Narwhal," on April...

Canonical is releasing its Ubuntu 11.04 suite of corporate and developer desktops and servers -- aka "Natty Narwhal" -- on April 28. New features include a technology preview for Ubuntu Server 11.04, which is downloadable through the Ubuntu software repositories. Ubuntu 11.04 for the corporate desk...

One of the endearing traits of open source applications for Linux distros is that they rarely look the same, unlike on those other desktop computing platforms. That is especially the case with GTimelog Time Tracker, a tiny application that tracks what you do and when you do it during your work -- an...

For some Linux adopters, exchanging Microsoft Office in Windows for the OpenOffice suite is a radical change in computing behavior. Swapping out OpenOffice for the LibreOffice suite may be a lot less traumatic. LibreOffice is a near clone of the OpenOffice modules. Yet it provides the potential for ...

The upcoming new Unity shell design for the next release of Canonical's Ubuntu 11.04 could change the face of the popular Linux desktop as we know it. Canonical creator Mark Shuttleworth is pushing the change to Unity while other Linux distros are rolling into GNOME 3. Linux Picks this week takes a ...

Canonical, which leads the Ubuntu project, has reportedly decided to switch from the OpenOffice productivity suite to LibreOffice in future versions of the popular Linux distribution. Version 11.04 of Ubuntu, also known as "Natty Narwhal," is expected to be the first release to incorporate LibreOffi...

It used to be that only hard-core film buffs carried video recording equipment on vacations. Unless your job required working with film, film editing software was not on most computer users' must-have list of tools. Maybe that is why until recently, few really useful film editing apps existed for th...

The very same corporations that are making small fortunes with Linux servers give short shrift to Linux Desktop, I argued in a recent article, setting off a spirited discussion. Many of you responded with counterarguments, siding -- surprisingly -- with businesses. Perhaps not surprisingly, I contin...

Capturing a screen image is a basic computing task -- so basic, in fact, that almost every computer keyboard has a dedicated key to grab a picture of what the monitor is displaying in the instant the key is pressed. Three Linux apps have proven very useful to me. I use Shutter, Gnome Screenshot and ...

Canonical has released version 10.10 of the Ubuntu Linux operating system, code-named "Maverick Meerkat." This will be supported for 18 months on desktops, notebooks, netbooks and servers. It's available in 37 languages. With Ubuntu 10.10, Canonical has begun focusing on consumers and mobile devices...

Lucid Lynx, Canonical's latest desktop release of Ubuntu, sports a new look and feel designed to attract new users, both in business and at home. No doubt the launch of a music store component for the Ubuntu One cloud service available through the Ubuntu OS will give consumers a reason to consider o...

Rhythmbox, an integrated music management application, was originally inspired by Apple's iTunes. This open source app works on the Gnome Desktop and is based on the powerful GStreamer media framework. If you have read recent Linux Picks columns, you know that the Linux world of apps gives you sever...

Canonical on Thursday released Ubuntu 10.04 LTS Desktop and Server Editions, the latest in its string of popular Linux distributions. Both are available for free download. The desktop version will be preinstalled on a range of computers from a number of manufacturers this summer. Canonical wants Luc...

I am an avid user of open source software and a firm believer in the benefits of FOSS. I have a choice of operating systems at my disposal, but I now cringe whenever I have to work in the Microsoft world. I much prefer the vast array of Linux apps. Why? They are bloat-free problem solvers. Take, for...

Chinese-language consumers unwilling or unable to pay the cost of a legitimate copy of Microsoft's Windows XP now have a new alternative: a clone of the operating system that's based on Ubuntu. Dubbed "Ylmf OS," the software is available from Rain Forest Wind Guangdong Computer Technology as a free ...