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Posts Tagged ‘ Linux ’

Why Linux on the Desktop Is Dead

By Fei on March 27, 2012

By Tony Bradley
March 27, 2012

SAN FRANCISCO – Linux is awesome. It’s a powerful, capable, flexible operating system with tremendous potential. But, it’s never going to be a factor on the desktop, so don’t even waste your time considering it.

On the server side, Linux is kicking ass and taking names. An IDC report from 2010 claims that Linux made up more than 20 percent of the server market. I’ve seen some estimates claiming it could be significantly higher than that today. Recent reports claim that Amazon alone is using as many as half a million Linux servers in data centers around the world to power its cloud services–a strong indicator of just how established Linux is.
That’s great, but on the desktop side of the fence Linux is a non-issue. Compared to Microsoft Windows, even Mac OS X has trivial desktop market share, but it’s enough to put it on the radar, and Mac OS X has been growing strong in recent years. Linux, on the other hand, has never really been more than a rounding error. It is up slightly, but it generally makes up about one percent of the desktop OS market.
I spent a month experiencing Linux as a desktop OS. What I learned from the 30 Days With Ubuntu Linuxexperiment is that Linux is, in fact, capable of being a desktop OS. But, the whole 30 days felt like I was swimming upstream–constantly tinkering and finding workarounds to get everyday tasks done. Using Linux as a replacement for Windows takes more effort than it’s worth, and in the end I was still left with a poor substitute lacking tools I rely on like Microsoft Office, or native syncing for my iPhone and iPad.
Granted, Linux is not entirely to blame. Microsoft or Apple could certainly step up and make products available and that would solve the problem to an extent. But, they haven’t, and they won’t because Linux is not a big enough player in the desktop market to warrant the attention.

To its credit, Linux has a phenomenal support system, and loyal, knowledgeable users willing to help guide you through the murky waters. Of course, it’s often difficult to find them through the sea of self-righteous flamers who berate you for not knowing what you’re doing.

Linux is an awesome server OS. If you’re replacing or adding servers at your company I highly suggest you look closely at Linux as an option and consider the benefits of Linux servers. But, if you’re in the market to refresh or replace your desktop OS, stick with Windows and Mac OS X. Linux will be more headache than it’s worth.

I know there’s an army of dedicated Linux hobbyists who will no doubt unleash a barrage of flames and tirades as a result of this article. They’ll tell me all the ways Windows sucks, and all the reasons Apple is evil, and make exalted claims about how wonderful their lives are since they made the switch, and how they’ll never go back.

Let me preemptively say, “That’s great. I’m happy for you.” It doesn’t change the fact that you’re part of a negligible market segment. It doesn’t change the reality that Linux is not as intuitive or user friendly as it’s rivals, or that it lacks the third party hardware and software support of its rivals, or that using it requires a learning curve and the dedication to dive into forums and learn to tinker. It’s great for hobbyists and hackers, but not for an average user at a company.

So, move on. There’s nothing to see here. The dream of Linux becoming relevant in the desktop market will never be realized. The desktop OS market is a two horse race between Windows and Mac OS X.

Besides, we live in a post-PC era where even Windows and Mac OS X are being supplanted by mobile platforms like iOS and Android. Android is a Linux variant so Linux fans can claim that as a consolation prize for the lack of success on the desktop.

10 Reasons to Switch to Linux in 2012

By Fei on January 4, 2012

By Katherine Noyes

January 4, 2012

SAN FRANCISCO – The past year was a tempestuous one in the world of desktop operating systems, it seems fair to say, with big changes occurring in just about all of the major contenders.

Most notably, we saw a raft of mobile-inspired features being brought onto the desktop, sometimes to a chilly reception among users.
If you’re wondering–or perhaps even fearing–what other changes 2012 will bring to your desktop, this may be a good time to take matters into your own hands and choose a system that puts you in control.
The system I’m referring to, of course, is Linux. It’s probably already on your phone. Here are just a few reasons you should give the free operating system a try on your desktop as well.
1. It’s Diverse

Detractors like to refer to Linux’s diversity as a “fragmentation problem,” but in fact it’s one of its greatest strengths. Users have countless Linux distributions to choose from, whether it’s one like Mint or Ubuntu that puts usability at the forefront, or one like Fedora with numerous enterprise-focused features and extra security. There are even flavors focused on specific industries and niches. There’s something for everyone in the world of Linux, and it’s increasingly cross-platform as well.
2. It’s Customizable

Not only can you choose the particular Linux distribution you use, but one of the hallmarks of Linux is that it’s also highly customizable. Don’t like Ubuntu’s new Unity desktop or Mint’s GNOME 3? No problem–there are many others to choose from, and your pick can be easily installed. There’s no vendor lock-in here to dictate how you must use your computer.
3. It’s Open Source

A big part of Linux’s flexibility, of course, derives from the fact that it’s open source software. That means that no other entity controls the code–any developer or user can see and modify the code as they see fit. A world of custom tweaks and apps is before you, in other words.

4. It’s Free

Linux doesn’t cost anything, it’s true, unless you choose a commercial option with paid support. But it’s also free from patents and other restrictions that determine how it can be used. Free and open source is a really good combination, because it means you’re in control. The free price is really just icing on the proverbial cake.

5. It’s Reliable

There’s a reason Linux has such a stronghold in the server world — many, actually — but one of the biggest is its reliability. When you’re on Linux, you won’t even remember all those hours of productivity lost to crashes and downtime.

6. It’s Fast

Linux tends to require much less in the way of hardware resources than other operating systems do, and there are even distributions designed with a small footprint as a primary goal. The result is that it’s generally really fast — even on older hardware. Will you miss the hardware-upgrade treadmill? Didn’t think so.

7. It’s Secure

Windows is the most targeted operating system for viruses and other malware, thanks primarily to the fact that it’s still the one that’s most widely used. No operating system is perfectly secure, of course, but in the Linux world malware is a rarity for many reasons, and there are extra-secure distributions available as well if that’s a priority for you.
8. It’s Well-Supported

Besides all the many paid support options for Linux users today, there are also countless ways to get help for free through the active community of users and developers that surrounds most distributions. Ask and ye shall receive, as the saying goes.

9. It’s Always Improving

Along similar lines, the communities that tend to surround Linux distributions also tend to keep improving them continuously, both with new features and by zapping any vulnerabilities quickly. No more waiting months for patches to come your way.

10. It’s Compatible

Not only does Linux tend to be compatible with users’ needs, but it tends to offer much better interoperability than proprietary operating systems do. If you ever collaborate with people in other companies or parts of the world, your best bet is an operating system committed to supporting international standards rather than proprietary ones.

The Linux world has seen its own share of upheaval over the past year, primarily due to the new desktop environments that have been introduced. What people sometimes forget, however, is how easy it is to bypass those changes and simply install what you want.
No operating system is perfect, of course, but when it comes to giving users control of their computing environments, Linux takes the proverbial cake.

iPhone, Android, Windows and Linux: Microsoft now manages them all

By Fei on March 25, 2011

By Jon Brodkin
March 25, 2011

FRAMINGHAM – Microsoft hates when customers buy products that weren’t built in Redmond, but Steve Ballmer and crew aren’t going to miss a moneymaking opportunity, even if that means managing iPhones, iPads, Androids and, yes, even Linux computers.

“When are you going to manage devices other than Windows?” is one of the most frequent questions Brad Anderson, Microsoft corporate vice president for management and security, gets from customers, he said at the Microsoft Management Summit in Las Vegas Wednesday.

Enemies of Redmond: Microsoft’s top 12 rivals

That’s why Microsoft said it has added support for iPhones, iPads, Android and Symbian devices (in addition to Windows Phone 7) to the second beta of System Center Configuration Manager 2012, which was made available online Wednesday. There was no mention of BlackBerry, with Microsoft perhaps figuring that Research in Motion has the market cornered in managing its own mobile platform.

Adding support for non-Windows phones will make it easier for IT managers to set policies on passwords and wipe phones when they’re lost, although Microsoft still doesn’t have the ability to manage personal and corporate data separately on the same phone. (See also: “At Microsoft, don’t forget your password or your phone gets wiped.”)

To be sure, Microsoft doesn’t extend all of its management capabilities to non-Microsoft devices and software. Microsoft’s Windows Intune Web-based desktop management system went live on Wednesday, but seems to be focused on Windows PCs only. The System Center management suite, additionally, can manage the Windows Azure cloud service but not competing clouds such as Amazon EC2.

But System Center is extensible enough that Microsoft can manage Amazon EC2 later on if it chooses, and the on-premises management suite already can handle both Windows and Linux. In an interview, Anderson said Microsoft works with Novell to ensure support of Novell’s enterprise SUSE Linux distribution. Microsoft is also able to manage Red Hat Linux, even though it doesn’t cooperate with Red Hat itself. “Several partners” have helped Microsoft add support for Red Hat servers and clients into System Center, Anderson said. System Center’s supported platforms also include Solaris, HP-UX and IBM AIX, according to Microsoft. Debian is not on the list.

On the virtualization front, System Center has been able to manage VMware’s hypervisor for several years, even though VMware is a competitor to Microsoft’s Hyper-V virtualization platform. Just this week, Microsoft announced System Center Virtual Machine Manager support for Citrix’s XenServer, making the product capable of managing all three major hypervisors, Hyper-V, VMware and XenServer.

On the other hand, a new ability to virtualize server applications, while it works with multiple hypervisors, only applies to Windows Server applications, and not Linux. (See also: “Next level of virtualization unlocks Server OS, applications.”)

Anderson acknowledges there are limits to Microsoft’s management of competing products, but says Redmond genuinely wants to provide parity between Microsoft and non-Microsoft software.

In the case of Hyper-V, “there are certain things we build inside System Center that are specific to Hyper-V, just like VMware builds vSphere that manages their underlying hypervisor,” Anderson said. But “if you believe most customers are going to be hybrid in using multiple clouds and using multiple hypervisors, your strategy has to be that they’re all first class citizens,” he said.

Anderson boasts that two-thirds of enterprises with at least 500 PCs use System Center, and says Microsoft manages more Windows servers than any other vendor, even the ones in the Big Four.

But he also says nearly 20% of customers who use System Center Operations Manager to oversee Windows implementations are also using it to manage non-Windows servers, predominantly Linux.

“If we’re going to come in and were going to deliver value on a platform, we want to deliver the same amount of value on that platform as we do on Windows,” he said.

Target, a Microsoft customer that uses Hyper-V to virtualize Windows and also has a small SUSE Linux deployment, says it’s relieved that Microsoft is ramping up support for multiple operating systems.

“They now seem to really understand that their customers have very heterogeneous implementations, different operating systems, and they are changing System Center to be able to manage endpoints that are running non-Windows operating systems,” said Target’s Brad Thompson, director of IT infrastructure engineering. “It’s nice to know that over time, as our footprint of devices in the stores evolve and there’s the potential to have non-Windows operating systems, that our management suite is extensible enough to manage those as well.”

But while Anderson noted that customers are using “multiple clouds,” so far System Center manages only Azure, although it does so in a way that lets customers manage internal Windows Server deployments side by side with cloud-based Azure deployments.

Anderson says Microsoft is “not seeing the demand” for support of Amazon EC2, but System Center, however, is “architected in a way that we can literally plug in a provider for any cloud. It’s just a matter of prioritization.”

Clouds that use VMware on the back end can easily slide into System Center, he also said. “VMware’s working with Google and Salesforce on public clouds,” Anderson notes. “The majority of the work we’ve done to incorporate VMware into System Center will be applicable to those environments.”

10 Ways Linux Is Making Life Better

By Fei on March 23, 2011

By Katherine Noyes
March 23, 2011

SAN FRANCISCO – Linux has long played a leading role in the world of servers, due in large part to its stability, security and lower total cost of ownership (TCO). What many don’t realize, however, is just how ubiquitous it’s becoming in other parts of life as well.

Not only are distributions like Ubuntu helping Linux make great strides on the desktop, but the open source operating system is now quietly powering myriad innovations that many of us take for granted.

Where can Linux be found today? Let’s count just a few of the many places it’s making life better.

1. Android

First and foremost, of course, is Android, Google’s Linux-based mobile operating system. Well-poised to relegate Apple’s successful iPhone to the realm of niche devices, Android is giving the popular iPad a run for its money as well. By putting Linux in the hands of countless mobile consumers around the globe, Android is arguably Linux’s greatest mainstream success to date.

Then, too, there’s also Chrome OS, which will reportedly figure prominently in a low-cost notebook PC coming from Asus this summer, among other devices.

2. WebOS

Packed with perhaps as much potential as Android is HP‘s recent decision to use WebOS on pretty much all its desktops and laptops, not to mention tablets and phones as well. WebOS is, of course, a Linux-based operating system originally developed by Palm. With HP’s new strategy, Linux will land on the desktops, laps and hands of countless more consumers as well, giving it another huge boost toward mainstream ubiquity.

3. Niche PCs

Even aside from all the many consumer PCs already running Linux, we’re also starting to see the operating system powering niche PCs as well. Take the recently debuted KiWi PC, for instance. Targeting senior citizens, the Ubuntu-loaded machine uses Linux to make computing stress-free for senior citizens. “KiWi PC is powered by an Ubuntu operating system, which generates visible and easy navigation from startup to shutdown,” as the device’s Web site explains. “The Ubuntu operating system creates a user-friendly desktop, allowing senior citizens to have immediate access to their email and the Internet hassle-free.” So much for the myth that Linux is harder to use.

4. Set-top boxes

Though it’s not typically visible to the user, Linux is often at the heart of the ubiquitous set-top box that so many of us use for streaming content, for example. The Ubuntu-powered Neuros Link is just one example.

5. ATMs

Windows really isn’t secure enough for banking, as many experts have been warning for years, so it’s no great surprise to see Linux increasingly used in automated teller machines instead. A project at Brazilian bank Banrisul, for example, has received considerable fanfare.

6. In-Vehicle PCs

Another recently announced Linux innovation is a series of PCs designed for agriculture and construction vehicles. Built for rugged conditions and harsh environments, the Grayhill devices offer a choice of Linux or Windows CE.
Linux has also popped up previously in vehicles including Mavizen’s award-winning TTX02 electric motorcycle. Then, too, there’s the fact that car companies including both Toyota and Peugeot are using Linux as well.

7. Wikipedia, Google and More

If you’ve ever used Wikipedia, then you’ve benefited from Linux, at least indirectly. In fact, Wikipedia is now using Ubuntu after years on Red Hat and Fedora. Wondering about scalability? At Wikipedia Ubuntu now reportedly powers some 10 billion page views a month.

While we’re on the subject of corporate applications, Google, Amazon, Cisco, IBM, the New York Stock Exchange and Virgin America are all renowned users of Linux, too.

8. One Laptop Per Child

Aiming to create devices that can be distributed to millions of disadvantaged children around the world, the One Laptop Per Child project has built its XO laptops to take advantage of the many freedoms of Linux.

9. Government

In the United States alone, the U.S. Postal Service, the U.S. Department of Defense and the FAA are all among the high-profile governmental users of Linux. Then there are all the many governments around the world that have made similar decisions, including France, Spain, Germany and Switzerland.

10. IBM’s Watson

Last but not least, the Watson supercomputer that wowed the world with its performance on Jeopardy recently runs on none other than Linux.

Those, of course, are just a small sampling of all the many places Linux is to be found. Still, taken together, they make a pretty convincing argument for the power of the open source operating system. No wonder more and more businesses are seeing past the myths and switching to Linux themselves.

3 Good Reasons To Buy an Open-PC

By Fei on March 7, 2011

By Katherine Noyes
March 7, 2011

SAN FRANCISCO – For many small business users, all the rational arguments for using open source software like Linux make a great deal of sense: It’s free, customizable, compatible, and it’s free of vendor lock-in, to name just a few.
When it comes down to the wire at purchase time, however, many fall prey to one or more of the frequently perpetuated myths out there, and vague fears of incompatibility or a lack of support or something else drive them right back into Redmond’s waiting arms.

One way to make the notion of a Linux-based computer less worrisome for such users is to buy hardware preloaded with Ubuntu, Canonical’s version of the open source operating system. That can go a long way toward ensuring that everything “just works” out of the box, and I’ve already discussed good ways and places to do this.

As of December, however, another option emerged that’s well worth checking out–it’s even better, in fact, from the perspective of software freedom. It’s called the Open-PC, and it offers “a PC for everyday use built by the Linux community for the Linux community,” in the project’s own words.

With three models to choose from–two built and sold in Europe and one through ThinkPenguin in the United States–the Open-PC has several key advantages that could make it the right choice for your small business. Here are just a few to consider.

1. It’s Entirely Free

You know how when you use proprietary software like Microsoft’s, you tend to have to agree to an end-user license agreement that restricts with an iron hand what you can and can’t do with the software? Well, the Open-PC more or less does away with that.

Only free software is used in Open-PC devices, and that includes those rascally drivers, which can on occasion cause a problem when you least expect it. All software was chosen by the Linux community through a series of surveys, in fact.

In Europe, Open-PCs reportedly use the OpenSUSE Linux distribution, according to Free Software Magazine, while the U.S. version uses Ubuntu. Either way, KDE is the standard desktop. The most important point, of course, is that you’re free to alter and customize the software to suit your business’s needs.

Also worth noting, though, is that–as with any instance of Linux–you’re also relatively free from viruses and malware. That kind of freedom may just be worth even more, in fact.

2. It Just Works

Specs on the Open-PC sold in the United States by ThinkPenguin include a 1.6GHz Intel Atom processor, up to 4GB of DDR2 SDRAM, Intel GMA 3150 Accelerated Graphics, Realtek RTL8103EL Fast Ethernet and 4 USB ports, for example.

Perhaps even more important, however, is that–similar in many ways to a preloaded Ubuntu machine–energy-efficient Open-PCs are preconfigured to your specifications and arrive customer-ready. Only fully documented hardware is used–chosen, once again, through surveys of the Linux community–and it’s designed for ease of use, even by novices. Gone can be all those fears about getting everything up and running smoothly.

3. Support Is Included

Adding further to that peace of mind is that if, by chance, you do encounter a problem, telephone and email support are included in the Open-PC’s price. For those reluctant to entrust support to the community–excellent as that resource tends to be–that extra reassurance can be significant.

Bottom line? With prices starting at $249 in the United States, the Open-PC’s price isn’t insignificant. On the other hand, if you factor in the inclusion of support, the “just works” factor and an included donation to the KDE project, the Open-PC could be a compelling choice.

Overclock Your Smartphone, If You Dare

By Fei on January 6, 2011

By Keir Thomas
January 6, 2011

SAN FRANCISCO – WARNING: Overclocking is not for the faint of heart. Do not attempt to hack your phone unless you understand and accept the risks of turning it into a useless “brick.”

The Android v. iPhone debate will continue for some time, but there’s one area where Android wins every time: hackability. iPhone users might discuss jailbreaking, which allows–wow!–unauthorized software to be installed.
However, Android phones typically allow everything from overclocking the processor for speed boosts to installing entirely different operating systems.

We have open source to thank for such cell phone hacks; the fact Android is built on Linux allows people to view the code and make modifications entirely legally, albeit without the blessing of handset manufacturers.

Of all the tweaks, overclocking–which involves tweaking the phone’s processor to run at a higher clock rate than its maker intended–seems to offer significant rewards. A previously laggy phone can be turned into a truly responsive handset and for a zero-dollar outlay.

But is it wise to overclock a phone that cost several hundred dollars and is tied to a lengthy and expensive contract?

The question might seem to answer itself, but the real-world issues to consider are heat generation and decreased battery life between charges. After all, some phones struggle with these problems at stock speeds set by manufacturers.

In reality neither issue is necessarily a game stopper, but could become annoying.

Although warnings are always given about possible hardware damage arising via overclocking, most PCs get away with it provided adequate cooling is provided. Essentially, the faster a chip runs, the more heat gets generated.

Mobile phone processors are no different, although they rely on passive cooling, which is to say, heat dissipation through the cell phone case. Often the phone is cleverly designed to get rid of heat, but phones aren’t guaranteed to do so when the processor is running at over capacity.

In most cases you can set upper and lower clock speeds for your phone, and the phone will scale between the two extremes depending on user demands. It’s even possible to under-clock to stretch out battery life, although the phone may be punishingly slow to use.

To overclock an Android phone, you’ll need to install a custom firmware (sometimes referred to as a custom ROM). The chief thing this usually provides is root access to the phone, allowing hardware tweaks, although sometimes getting root access needs to be done manually. Search via Google using your phone model for more information.
The custom firmware files are usually based on the latest Android system files, but with modifications to also allow overclocking. Which firmware you need depends on your phone; generally speaking, looking through the XDA-Developers forums for your phone model should provide answers. Additionally, a recent thread on the Reddit social bookmarking site could provide clues. Lots of people use the Cyanogen mod firmware (to find out more info, visit the Cyanogen wiki).

However, while overclocking presents risks, they’re nothing compared to installing a custom firmware. If anything goes wrong there’s a real chance your phone will become little more than an expensive paperweight. For obvious reasons this is known as “bricking” a phone. You upgrade at your own risk, and should only do so with the power lead attached to the phone. Double and triple-check to make sure you have the correct files for your make, model, and perhaps even hardware revision of phone, if applicable.

You might lose any data stored in the phone, such as text messages and contacts, so perform a backup beforehand.

Once the firmware has been updated, use the Android Marketplace to search for and install the SetCPU software. It costs just $2 and is designed to make overclocking extremely easy. The Max and Min sliders set the maximum and minimum clock speeds, and the changes take effect straight away. The Scaling dropdown refers to the power profile and it’s probably best to leave it at “Ondemand,” which will ramp up the processor speed when needed.

The Profiles section of the app lets you set CPU speeds for various phone modes. You can set the phone to always run overclocked when the charger is attached, for example, or ramp down the speeds when battery life goes below 50 percent. Many users claim they’ve even extended their battery life by setting very low CPU speeds for “Screen Off” periods, when the phone goes into hibernation mode after it’s been slipped into a pocket or bag, for example.

When overclocking watch out for the heat issue, which might take a few minutes to show after the change has been made. Try doing processor-intensive tasks, such as browsing Websites with a lot of content, for example, or playing video files.

If you decide overclocking isn’t for you, it should be possible to perform a factory restore by resinstalling your phone’s original firmware. Visit the phone manufacturer’s Website for details.

The Linux Alternative To Microsoft Windows MultiPoint Server 2010

By Fei on December 12, 2010

December 12, 2010

Userful Corporation, the global leader in Linux desktop virtualization, today released a Beta version of it’s Linux alternative to Microsoft Windows MultiPoint Server 2010. The software, named Userful MultiSeat Linux 2011, turns 1 Linux computer into 10 high performance independent computer stations. It offers the same features as Microsoft Windows MultiPoint Server 2010, plus some additional features MultiPoint lacks such as hundreds of free educational software applications, and a suite of tools for managing classroom computers. Userful MultiSeat™ also has higher video performance than Microsoft Windows MultiPoint Server 2010, and at just $59 per seat (education pricing, commercially available Q4 2010), and with no server licensing costs, it is also a lower cost alternative.

Userful MultiSeat enables schools to quickly deploy large numbers of computer stations for a very low cost, whether in the classroom, computer lab, or school library. It is easy to set up, use and maintain, and provides teachers with the tools they need to give their students a high quality computer-based education.

With Userful MultiSeat, schools can deploy twice as many computers for the same cost. It reduces hardware costs by up to 80%, and reduce required infrastructure (power plugs, cabling, etc.) by a factor of 10 as compared to a traditional PC-per-seat solution. It also reduces energy costs by up to 90%, enabling schools to recover the cost of their computers through electricity cost savings over a few years. On average, Userful’s education customers report saving 60% in up-front costs, and 80% in annual power savings as compared to their previous PC-per-station solutions. That’s why more than 30,000 schools in 100 countries are using Userful to provide millions of students with computer access.

“I recommend the Userful MultiSeat solution because having many user stations from just a single host computer is a better use of that computer”, said Sergio Castellanos, Project Coordinator, Wintel Mexico. “With Userful we can learn, work, have fun and teach within a group without worrying about configuration, or viruses in the computers. It is an excellent way to start the Linux experience.”

Each student individually controls his or her own station and applications. To the students, it seems like they each have their own dedicated PC, but in reality they are all sharing the resources of a single host computer. Set up is Plug-And-Play — simply plug USB MultiSeat devices into the host PC, plug a monitor, keyboard, and mouse into each USB MultiSeat device, install Userful software, and the system is ready to support multiple students using different applications at the same time from one computer, each with their own monitor, keyboard, and mouse. Userful MultiSeat supports both HP t100 and MCT MWS 8820 USB MultiSeat devices.

Since Userful MultiSeat is Linux based, the operating system (OS) and application software is all free! Dozens of free, open source, end-user and education-specific applications are included, such as: Edubuntu OS, iTALC classroom computer management tool, OpenOffice.org office suite, Firefox web browser, and applications for subjects including astronomy, chemistry, languages, mathematics, planning, and more. Hundreds more free applications can be installed with a single click through the Ubuntu Software Center (it’s like the Apple App
Store, but everything is Free!). Teachers can use free open source software to further lower costs, easily tailor curricula to individual students, and monitor and control the classroom computers. Students can develop digital skills that will help them with their school work and prepare them for jobs in the future.

With the included classroom computer management software teachers can centrally manage and monitor the computer stations with ease. For instance teachers can see what each student is doing on their station, send students messages, remotely take control of a student’s station, share files with and between students, create or delete student accounts/change passwords, and add a new application to all computer stations by installing it only once on the host computer, among other control features.

“Userful MultiSeat Linux 2011 enables governments to extend computer based education to more children using existing budgets”, said Beverley Gallagher, VP Strategic Partnerships at Userful. “Digital inclusion is a very important opportunity, and this Beta brings us closer to bridging the digital divide throughout the developing and developed world. It’s opportunity, multiplied.”

How to Buy a Computer Preloaded With Ubuntu

By Fei on December 3, 2010

By Katherine Noyes
December 3, 2010

SAN FRANCISCO – If you’ve ever paid attention to the market share statistics for desktop operating systems you probably know that Linux is most frequently pegged at about one percent.

That’s a dramatic underrepresentation, of course, due largely to the fact that Linux is free. Whereas Microsoft, for example, keeps careful count of each and every copy of Windows it distributes, in the case of Linux there’s typically no vendor keeping count. Rather, users simply download, share, and enjoy the open source operating system to their heart’s content without any official monitoring.

Functionally this works just fine for users. The problem is that it makes it too easy for software and hardware vendors, makers of device drivers, and critics of all kinds to discount Linux’s importance in the marketplace. That, in turn, makes it less likely that new software will be ported to Linux, for example, or that key drivers will be created for the operating system; in short, it slows Linux’s growth.

What can you do about it? Well, if you use Linux already, you can make it known at DudaLibre, which maintains its “We are more than one percent” Linux counter to prove that the operating system accounts for more than the standard estimates suggest.

Next time you’re in the market for a new machine for your business, however, another way to help prove Linux’s market worth is by buying the distribution you choose preloaded. Not only will it save you the trouble of installing it yourself, but it can also help make sure everything “just works” out of the box, with support for any glitches that may arise.

Perhaps even more important, though, is that since there is a vendor keeping count, your purchase is sure to be included in the next batch of market data.

There are a number of very good vendors that will preload a computer with Ubuntu or other Linux distributions. Here are some of the best Linux-friendly vendors to check out.

1. System76
Specializing in Ubuntu-powered laptops, desktops and servers, Colorado-based System76 is particularly notable because its success has just recently prompted it to start serving the United Kingdom as well. With a commitment to the ideals of open source software, System76 aims to help make it easy for consumers, businesses, schools and governments to make the transition to the world of open source software through world-class hardware, software and support. System76 ships to the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

2. ZaReason
California-based ZaReason will install a variety of free and open source operating systems on its laptops, desktops and servers, including not just Ubuntu but several of its derivatives along with Debian and Fedora. International shipping is available.

3. EmperorLinux
Based in Atlanta, EmperorLinux has been supplying Linux laptops since 1999 to corporate, government, academic, and individual users. Customers can choose the hardware, the Linux distribution, and even the partition setup on their machine, which will be ready to use out of the box with full hardware support under Linux. International shipping is available.

4. LinuxCertified
Also specializing in laptops, California-based LinuxCertified offers a variety of installation, customization and training services as well, with support for a variety of Linux distributions including Ubuntu, Fedora, and openSUSE. International shipping is available.

5. Los Alamos Computers
With a long list of high-profile customers, New Mexico-based Los Alamos Computers offers both workstations and laptops with the customer’s Linux distribution of choice preinstalled, though it recommends Ubuntu, Debian, and gNewSense in particular. International service is available.

6. Dell
Though it has a somewhat mixed history with regard to Linux, it would be remiss not to mention Texas-based Dell, which has been offering Ubuntu preloaded on select machines since 2007. As of this writing, one minitower and one Inspiron laptop are listed on the company’s U.S. site preinstalled with Ubuntu.

Many other vendors ship computers loaded with Ubuntu and other Linux distributions, of course. For more comprehensive lists of such vendors around the globe, visit Ubuntu’s Community Documentation page or similar lists available on TuxMobil and LXer.

Wherever you end up, though, know that your purchase will not only get you a powerful machine loaded with what’s arguably the best operating system on earth; it will also help create some long-overdue realistic market statistics.

5 Awesome Free Tools For Small Businesses

By Fei on November 15, 2010

By Keir Thomas
November 15, 2010

SAN FRANCISCO – These are frugal times for business, and an organization starting out might have very little money to spend on IT. Even if you’re part of an established business, you’re probably feeling the pinch.

Here are five extremely useful computing resources that are free of charge for small business users–unlike some “free” services you might see that are only for home users. These choices have few if any restrictions, and are established services unlikely to shut up shop anytime soon.

1. Google Apps For Business

If your organization has under 50 employees, then Google Apps for Business (formerly called Google Apps for Domains) is for you. It offers free e-mail under the umbrella of your own organization’s domain name (You can pay Google $10 to reserve a domain name, if you don’t already have one). You can also have your own private Google Docs system along with your own Google Calendar system.

In use, the e-mail system looks and feels just like regular Gmail, except that your own organization’s e-mail addresses are used rather than a Gmail one (such as, bob.smith@yourdomain.com, rather than something like bob.smith1964@gmail.com). One nice touch is that the e-mail address book is shared automatically amongst your users.

It’s all hosted on Google’s computers, so you won’t need your own mail server computer. You’ll benefit from almost zero configuration and maintenance, plus a promised 99.9 percent uptime guarantee. Put simply, Google takes care of everything for you. The spam filtering is the same excellent system as Gmail, which is to say your employees just won’t be bothered by anything dodgy.

There are some limitations on the free version. As well as the 50 user limit, each user account can send e-mails to only 500 recipients per day. This won’t be an issue for most of us, but it’s easy to imagine an enthusiastic sales person hitting that ceiling now and again. You also can’t send attachments larger than 25MB, although this will only be an issue for those working in the media industries who have to ship around large photographs or video files.

Even if you have to pay to upgrade to the Premier Edition, which allows unlimited users and a host of other benefits, it’ll only cost $50 per year. Who can argue with that kind of value?

Some service providers, such as Dreamhost, offer free-of-charge one-click configuration of Google Apps for any domains you have registered with them.

2. Dropbox

Dropbox is a sync and backup tool that makes use of the cloud to remotely store files. Once the Dropbox software is installed, you’ll find a new Dropbox folder on your hard disk. Anything stored in this folder is instantly transferred to Dropbox’s cloud storage system. This is done invisibly, and using the Dropbox folder is just like using any other folder on your hard disk.

The benefits are that you can then install Dropbox on another computer and, using the same login details, recreate your Dropbox folder. Anything saved in the folder on computer A will automatically appear in computer B’s Dropbox folder, and vice versa. Indeed, you can add-in computers C, D, E, and so on, and even mobile devices can get in on the action. There’s a Web interface that allows access to files, too.

Perhaps the chief benefit for business is that, should a notebook get stolen or lost, restoring its files is as simple as installing Dropbox on a new computer, entering the username, and letting it sync the contents (provided your employees have been trained to always save their files in the Dropbox folder, of course).

Dropbox offers free 2GB of storage per user, which is enough for hundreds of modest office documents, and I couldn’t find any restrictions on business users signing-up for free accounts. All you need is to download the client software and sign up during the installation process, using your e-mail address.

Before you ask, yes, it’s massively secure. SSL connections are used to make the transfer of data to and from the cloud, and all data is stored using AES-256 encryption. Even if a stranger were to somehow pull your data from the cloud, it would be gibberish.

Each user can make the leap to 50GB of storage for $10 per month, or 100GB for $20. This isn’t a huge amount of money, although it could add up once your organization starts to grow.

My colleague Rick Broida discussed a similar new service called SugarSync, which offers 5GB of free storage – 3GB more than Dropbox. However, my personal preference is to stick with the long-established Dropbox.
3. Microsoft Security Essentials

License fees for antivirus software are taxing for those who use Windows. We’d rather not pay, but there’s no way of getting around it. Most free antivirus products, such as AVG, are free only for home users.

However, Microsoft has recently opened-up its Security Essentials software for free small business usage (It was previously free only for home users.). Alas, the license agreement states you can only use it on up to 10 computers in a corporate environment, but this is still better than nothing. If nothing else, it means that you’ll have 10 fewer antivirus licenses to pay for. (For larger organizations, Microsoft offers its Forefront product range, which has various licensing systems.)
The new Security Essentials looks good. It’s certainly good at spotting viruses, although it can be a little slow when scanning compared to competitors. However, considering the $0 price tag, I’m sure we can all live with this. Security Essentials is available for all recent versions of Windows, from XP up.

4. Linux

Don’t worry. I’m not going to advise you switch to Linux on your desktop computers. From a purely financial standpoint this has rarely made much sense for smaller businesses, considering they usually pay for Windows licenses without any choice when they buy a new PC.

Instead, I’m going to recommend Linux for your file servers. This avoids the need to pay for expensive Windows Server licenses. If you go with something like Ubuntu, the most popular form of Linux, you’ll pay nothing at all for an installation serving an unlimited number of client computers.

Ubuntu’s other chief advantage is that, as a popular form of Linux, support is never far away. Googling any problem will almost certainly reveal somebody else who’s had the issue, or you can head over the hugely popular Ubuntu Forums to ask for help.

In terms of technology, Ubuntu offers Samba, which can effectively recreate a modest Windows-like file and printer sharing setup. Both Macs and Windows computers will have no problems connecting, and will be unaware that they’re not connecting to a Windows server.

If you have an old PC you can mess around on, try downloading Ubuntu Server and giving it a try. You might have to reach back into your memory to remember those Unix 101 classes, but there’s a wealth of free documentation out there to help you get started.

5. Go-OO office suite

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years, you probably already know about OpenOffice.org, the open source (and therefore free-of-charge) office suite. This keeps getting better with each release and is now a definite contender for lighter-weight office tasks. If you haven’t looked at it recently, it’s well worth a trial.
I find it very useful for those upgrading from an older version of Office and who are confused by the ribbon-based user interface, found on recent releases of Microsoft Office.

However, it’s been a busy time in the world of OpenOffice.org, and Oracle’s acquisition of Sun–owners of OpenOffice.org–has dropped a bomb from which the dust is still settling. The LibreOffice project has picked-up the reins but is still in beta testing stage, so at the moment I recommend the existing version of Go-OO as the best free-of-charge office suite around. Based on OpenOffice.org with some useful tweaks here and there, its chief advantage is support for Microsoft’s newer XML-based file format (such as the DOCX, XLSX, and PPTX file extensions), which is the default in all recent releases of Microsoft Office.

Fix a Windows Infection Using Linux

By Fei on October 27, 2010

By Katherine Noyes
October 27, 2010

SAN FRANCISCO – If you use Linux on your company’s desktop or server computers, you’re already familiar with many of the security advantages the open source operating system offers over its Windows and Mac rivals. What many people don’t realize, however, is that Linux can also be used to rescue a computer that has been crippled by malware.
Malware is a frequent occurrence in the Windows world, in particular, and it can be devastating. When a Windows virus strikes, not only can it become difficult or even impossible to continue using the affected machine, but it can be dangerous as well, since prolonged use can further the infection.

That’s where Linux can be a life-saver. Without ever having to install the free alternative, you can still use it temporarily on a PC to get rid of any infection. Here’s how.

1. Get a LiveCD or Live USB

LiveCDs and USBs are a wonderful thing in the Linux world because they let you boot a machine directly from the CD or USB stick without ever having to access the computer’s boot records. Not only are they a great way to take Linux for a test-drive, but they can also be put to work when Windows can’t.

By far the fastest way to get a LiveCD or USB is to download the .iso file of the Linux distribution you’d like to use and then burn it onto a CD or USB stick. Since Ubuntu is the most popular distribution out there, I’ll go with Maverick Meerkat–the latest version of the software–for this example.

Ubuntu can be downloaded from the project’s Website for use on a LiveCD or USB; download links for other distributions can be found listed on FrozenTech. UNetbootin is another nice option if you want to go the USB route, which tends to run much faster.

Of course, to take either of these options you’ll have to have a working, Internet-connected computer. If you don’t, or if your Internet connection is slow, you may want to order a LiveCD or USB via snail mail. OSDisc and LinuxCD both offer a variety of options; pricing is about $2.

2. Boot into Linux

Once you’re equipped with a Linux LiveCD or USB, you’ll need to make sure the infected computer is turned off, and then turn it on again with the CD or USB installed. This will boot the computer into Linux, completely bypassing Windows and its infection. Again, nothing has been installed — you’re simply using Linux to get the machine running reliably again.

3. Get Antivirus Software

Next it’s time to get the Linux-based ammunition you’ll need to wipe out the malware: antivirus software. I’m going to use ClamAV, my favorite, via ClamTK, which provides a nice graphical front end.

From the main Ubuntu desktop, then, go to “Applications” and then “Ubuntu Software Center.” Choose “Edit” and then “Software Sources.” You’ll be presented with a box entitled, “Downloadable from the Internet,” and you should be sure all four boxes are checked before you click on “Close.”

Next, from the main Ubuntu Software Center page, click on the “Accessories” icon and type ClamTK into the search box. It will be shown as “Virus Scanner,” but if you click on “More Info” you can verify it’s the right package. Click “Install” and wait for it to download.

Once installation is finished, you should launch ClamTK by going to “Applications” in Ubuntu’s main menu, then “Accessories” and “Virus Scanner,” which is how the software will still be shown.

4. Run a Scan

When the ClamTK window opens, click on the “Scan” tab and select the option for a Recursive Scan. Next, you’ll need to tell the software which drive you want to check for viruses, which in this case is the one that includes Windows. Scanning may take some time, but once the infection is found you’ll get the usual options for what to do with it, including quarantine and removal.

5. Return to Normal

Assuming the infection has now been removed, your computer should be clean once again, making it safe to remove the LiveCD or USB and boot back into Windows as usual. As you enjoy your malware-free machine once again, remember that it’s all thanks to Linux. It’s also not a bad idea to keep your LiveCD or USB handy so you’ll be ready for the next time.

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