The Linux Advocate
by Scott Dowdle
dowdle@icstech.net
ICQ UIN: 15509440
Linux Advocate
Column #50
June 11th, 1999
LOGIN:
Lots of news this week. I downloaded RealPlayer G2 and
Adobe Acrobat Reader 4 for Linux recently. Sure, those have
been available for Windows and the Mac for some time, but
better late than never, right? Onto the news section...
NEWS:
Item #1: KOffice: The Killer App of 2000 - KOffice has
been maturing over the past year but admittedly, it hasn't
gone production yet. ext2 online magazine takes a look at
where KOffice is currently. Makes for interesting reading so
check it out at the following URL: http://www.ext2.org/99/05/reviews/050499-review4.shtml
Item #2: Red Hat attempts to go public: I think I ran into
two dozen stories that all say the same thing... announcing
the fact that Red Hat Software has filed with the SEC in an
attempt to go public. Below you will find Red Hat's press
release, a story from news.com reiterating the press
release, and then Salon magazine doing a little better job
of providing more info beyond the press release. Then of
course there is the Linux Weekly News feature and lastly, is
one man's bleak prediction that it'll all be a big failure.
What does that guy know anyway, huh? Oh, look, and one
rebuttal already. Check them all out: Red Hat Software site
- Press Release http://www.redhat.com/corp/press_ipo.html
news.com - Red Hat files to go public http://www.news.com/News/Item/0,4,37422,00.html
Salon Magazine - The really new economy: Red Hat's IPO http://www.salon.com/tech/log/1999/06/09/red_hat/index.html
LWN Feature - Red Hat's IPO filing http://lwn.net/1999/features/RedHatIPO.phtml
Jack Bryer - The Charity Case for Red Hat http://www.andovernews.com/cgi-bin/news_column.pl?332
Linux Today - Rebuttal to "The Charity Case for Red
Hat" http://linuxtoday.com/stories/6656.html
Item #3: Microsoft and Linux - I must say that Nicholas
Petreley has done it again. I can't wait for his follow up
column on this. Microsoft keeps re-iterating they that they
are not going to make MS Office for Linux. Microsoft also
keeps bringing up Linux in court saying it is a competitor
for them. Then there are rumors that MS _IS_ working on
Office for Linux. I don't know what to believe. The
government doesn't seem to be buying that Linux is
competition but then again, what is the timeframe the case
is supposed to be covering? Check out all of these
interesting links. I'd recommend printing out the first one,
reading it, and passing it around!
Nicholas Petreley - When the system is free, Microsoft
can't win - http://www.linuxworld.com/linuxworld/lw-1999-06/lw-06-penguin_1.html
IT Director - Is Microsoft Taking out Linux Insurance? - http://www.it-director.com/./99-06-04-1.html
Washington Post - Witness Rejects Microsoft Claim http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1999-06/04/095l-060499-idx.html
PC World - Linux Issue Seen as a Ploy http://www.pcworld.com/pcwtoday/article/0,1510,11245,00.html
Netscape CEO's Testimony Is Re-Examined by Microsoft http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/99/06/biztech/articles/04soft.html
Item #4: More talk about IBM and Linux - Remember all of the
IBM and Linux stuff from last column? Well, here's some more
for this week. Read up: Vengeance: How IBM is coordinating a
full frontal assault on Microsoft - http://www.osOpinion.com/Opinions/MarkRadulovich/MarkRadulovich1.html
IBM puts its technology behind Linux http://www.zdnet.co.uk/news/1999/22/ns-8362.html
Item #5: Compaq, Red Hat push Linux, Unix rapport -
Following the news item from last week about Compaq ignoring
threats from Microsoft regarding Compaq's deployment of
Linux on their hardware comes a story that Compaq is
furthering their Linux efforts on multiple fronts. Want to
know more? Of course you do so you'll click the link: http://www.news.com/News/Item/0%2C4%2C37492%2C00.html?sas.mail
Item #6: Java Out, Linux In - Wyse (ever hear of them?)
decided to drop Java as the basis of their Winterm 5000
series and to replace it with Linux in a 32MB of FlashRAM.
Interesting: http://www.wired.com/news/news/technology/story/20015.html
Item #7: SuSe growing in the US - Not to be out done, SuSE
is trying even harder to make a dent in the US market by
coming up with new deals. I only wish I could find time to
check out the latest SuSE Linux 6.1 (or someone to be a
guide for me) before a few months pass and a new release
comes out. Anyway, check out to see what SuSE is up to: SuSE
rolls out its latest version of Linux http://www.infoworld.com/cgi-bin/displayStory.pl?99063.pisuse.htm
SuSE Launches Business Partner Program http://linuxpr.com/releases/55.html
Item #8: Corel and Linux - Corel continues to work on their
distribution of Linux and they are being public about it.
After reading their FAQ on the subject I am glad to report
that I believe Corel is headed in the right direction... and
that their distribution will be welcomed by me since they
appear to be focusing on a useful direction. Want to find
out what I'm talking about? Well then, read their FAQ for
yourself: http://www.corel.com/news/1999/may/may_1999_faqs.htm
LOGOUT:
I got my hands dirty working with ISDN this past week. I
still have a bit of a ways to go before it is where I'd like
it to be (on a friend's system, I'm still at 33.6 at home).
I need to learn about USB support in the 2.2 kernel so I can
get both 64K channels going on his external ISDN Terminal
adaptor (his serial port tops out at 115K) but I haven't had
time.
Also, last Friday I was the receiver of four free DEC VXT
2000 X Window System Terminals circa 1991. I haven't had
time to play with them yet but rest assured, I'll get
around to it sometime this summer. They should work
similarly to the Sun SparcStation ELC setup I mentioned some
time ago. The VXT 2000 is basically a network computer with
no storage... lots of I/O connections for various devices
including several flavors of network connectors from which
to boot their OS over. I actually know someone who has
gotten these things up with Linux as the server so I'm sure
it'll be yet another learning experience.
As always, thanks for reading, and any comments or
questions are welcome!
Scott Dowdle
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