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Another Milestone Achieved: Run Linux Apps on a Chromebook

Linux apps now can run in a Chromebook's Chrome OS environment. However, the process can be tricky, and it depends on your hardware's design and Google's whims. It is somewhat similar to running Android apps on your Chromebook, but the Linux connection is far less forgiving. If it works in your Chro...

The Future of Open Source

The Linux desktop has yet to find a home on the majority of consumer and enterprise computers. However, Linux-powered technology has long ruled the Internet and conquered the cloud and Internet of Things deployments. Both Linux and free open source licensing have dominated in other ways.

Android Apps Riskier Than Ever: Report

Widespread use of unpatched open source code in the most popular Android apps distributed by Google Play has caused significant security vulnerabilities, suggests an American Consumer Institute report. Thirty-two percent -- or 105 apps out of 330 of the most popular apps in 16 categories sampled -- ...

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Enlightenment Has Limits in Bodhi Linux

Bodhi Linux is an alternative to traditional Linux OSes that can change your desktop user experience. It is one of a very few Linux distros using Moksha, a forked version of the Enlightenment desktop. Enlightenment is a Compositing Window Manager and Desktop Shell. It is radically different from oth...

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Quirky Linux: Pleasingly Peculiar

Quirky Linux is a classic example of what makes Linux such a varied and useful operating system. Puppy Linux developer Barry Kauler earlier this month released Quirky Xerus 64 version 8.6, which comes packed with the latest innovations for doing Linux stuff differently. This latest in the "Xerus" se...

New LibreOffice Version Offers Fresh Take

The Document Foundation has announced the availability of its second major release this year, LibreOffice Fresh 6.1, with enhanced editing on Desktop, Cloud and Mobile platforms. One of its most significant new features is Notebookbar, an improved experimental user interface option that resembles th...

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Pinguy OS Puts On a Happier GNOME 3 Face

Pinguy OS 18.04 is an Ubuntu-based distribution that offers a non-standard GNOME desktop environment intended to be friendlier for new Linux users. This distro is a solid Linux OS with a focus on simple and straightforward usability for the non-geek desktop user. If you do not like tinkering with se...

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Peppermint 9 Offers Some Cool New Options

Peppermint 9 accomplishes something most other Linux distros don't: It melds the best components from other desktop environments and integrates them into a solid operating system. The latest release nearly completes a process begun several upgrades ago, using more Xfce elements and fewer LXDE compon...

What Microsoft’s GitHub Deal Promises to Programmers

Microsoft sent tremors through the open source world last week, when it announced that it would acquire the popular developer platform GitHub for $7.5 billion in company stock. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of the calendar year. GitHub, one of the world's largest computer code repo...

Vulnerabilities Abound in Popular Android Apps: Report

About 20 percent of the most popular Android Apps available through the Google Play Store contain open source components with known security vulnerabilities that can be exploited by hackers, according to a report Insignary will release next week.

LG Offers Open Source webOS to Spur Development in South Korea

LG has announced a plan to release a new open source version of its webOS platform as part of a deal with South Korea's government to encourage startup initiatives. LG entered an agreement with NIPA, the agency that is responsible for technology sector development. The company plans to solicit propo...

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Endless OS Helps Tear Down Linux Wall

The Endless OS is a distro with its own adapted desktop environment based on Gnome 3, and with an even simpler and more streamlined user experience. Although it looks and feels a lot like an Android shell running on a PC, Endless OS is a fully functional Linux distro designed to be easy to install a...

New Open Source Mobile OS Puts Privacy Front and Center

A renowned Linux innovator has developed a new mobile OS, called "Project eelo," in an effort to provide a level of data privacy that traditional Android and iOS devices fail to offer. Eelo will allow mobile phone users to regain control over their personal information at a price they can afford, sa...

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SoftMaker for Linux Is a Solid Microsoft Office Alternative

SoftMaker Office could be a first-class professional-strength replacement for Microsoft Office on the Linux desktop. The Linux OS has its share of lightweight word processors and a few nearly worthy standalone spreadsheet apps, but very few high-end integrated office suites exist for Linux users. Ge...

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