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<title>News Bytes LG #103</title>
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<h1>News Bytes</h1>
<p id="by"><b>By <A HREF="../authors/conry.html">Michael Conry</A></b></p>
<p>
<p>
</p><center>
<table cellpadding="7"><tbody><tr><td>
<img src="../gx/bytes.gif" border="1" alt="News Bytes">
</td><td>
<h3>Contents:</h3>
<ul>
<li><a href="#leg">Legislation and More Legislation</a>
<li><a href="#links">Linux Links</a>
<li><a href="#general">News in General</a>
<li><a href="#distro">Distro News</a>
<li><a href="#commercial">Software and Product News</a>
</ul>
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<strong>Selected and formatted by <a href="mailto:michael.conry@softhome.net">Michael Conry</a></strong>
</center>
<p> Submitters, send your News Bytes items in
<font size="+2"><strong>PLAIN TEXT</strong></font>
format. Other formats may be rejected without reading. You have been
warned! A one- or two-paragraph summary plus URL gets you a better
announcement than an entire press release. Submit items to
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<p><hr><p>
<a name="leg"></a>
<!-- ========== -->
<center><h3><font color="green">Legislation and More Legislation</font></h3></center>
<!-- ========= -->
<P><hr><P>
<h3><img alt=" " src="../gx/bolt.gif">
<font color="green">European Software Patents</font>
</h3>
<p>
The subject of European software patents has returned to the news in
the past few weeks. As was reported some months ago, when the European
Parliament last looked at the question of software patents it included
several amendments to the original proposals. These amendments were
seen by many in the small-medium-enterprise and open-source communities
as representing a welcome move away from unfettered and universal
patenting of software. Now, however, the European Council of Ministers
has reversed many of the Parliament-introduced changes, <a class="external" href="http://swpat.ffii.org/journal/04/cons0507/index.en.html#reag">to the anger of many MEPs</a>.
</p>
<p>
For a while, it looked like <a class="external" href="http://wiki.ael.be/index.php/MEP-Position-Lobbying-Guide">hard lobbying</a> by members of the public and representatives of the Free and Open Source communities <a class="external" href="http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/05/17/patent_directive_vote_tuesday/">might succeed in luring the Council away from its new plan</a>. However the final Council vote <a class="external" href="http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/05/19/how_the_vote_was_won/">stuck with the proposals with just some minor alterations</a>.
</p>
<p>
This latest twist in the European patent saga is far from being the end
of the story. The common position agreed by the Council of Ministers
must now pass the law before parliament again for a second reading, <a class="external" href="http://europa.eu.int/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/04/659&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en">and only when both bodies agree on it can it be passed and become law</a>.
If any European readers have specific views on this issue, it is a very
opportune time to raise it with your MEP, and with the other candidates
running for MEP in your constituency (European Parliament elections are
on June 11th 2004). </p>
<!-- ========= -->
<P><hr><P>
<h3><img alt=" " src="../gx/bolt.gif">
<font color="green">Independent?</font>
</h3>
<p>
The Age has published an interesting article by Leon Brooks discussing the <a class="external" href="http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/04/05/1081017093699.html">"independence" of various policy think-tanks</a>.
For most GNU/Linux users and enthusiasts, these bodies only become
visible when they issue pronouncements on the undesirability of Free
and Open Source Software. Brooks makes insightful, and useful,
comparisons between these organisations' opinions on Free Software, and
on other issues of economic and social freedom. The facts behind the
rhetoric indicate that though the terms free trade and free market are
often invoked, the underlying ideology is one of protectionism and the
support of vested interests. </p>
<!-- ========= -->
<P><hr><P>
<h3><img alt=" " src="../gx/bolt.gif">
<font color="green">I Am A Lawyer</font>
</h3>
<p>
Slashdot published a very interesting <a class="external" href="http://interviews.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=04/04/05/1314228&mode=nested&tid=123&tid=126&tid=95&tid=99">interview with attorney, Mike Goodwin</a>. It covers a lot of themes related to what one might call "Cyberlaw".
</p>
<p><hr><p>
<!-- ========== -->
<a name="links"></a>
<center><h3><font color="green">Linux Links</font></h3></center>
<P><hr><p>
<p>
Chain of trust to help <a class="external" href="http://www.newsforge.com/article.pl?sid=04/05/24/1555237">avoid intellectual property claims</a> against Linux kernel.
</p>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://www.newsforge.com/article.pl?sid=04/05/24/1450232">Chrooting Apache</a>.
</p>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://www.onlamp.com/pub/a/onlamp/2004/05/13/distributed_cfengine.html">Introduction to Cfengine</a>.
</p>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://www.linuxstolescocode.com/">www.linuxstolescocode.com</a>
</p>
<p>
Novell will <a class="external" href="http://www.itbusiness.ca/index.asp?theaction=61&lid=1&sid=55516">start shipping Novell Open Enterprise Server, which combines both NetWare and Linux kernels</a> by the end of this year.
</p>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS4964141825.html">Ulterior motives</a> behind industry computer recycling (rather than re-use) initiatives.
</p>
<p>
What does <a class="external" href="http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1561831,00.asp">"Linux forking"</a> mean?
</p>
<p>
Behind the scenes <a class="external" href="http://www.cucy.net/lacp/archives/000021.html">at an embedded systems conference</a>.
</p>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://www.osnews.com/story.php?news_id=6627">Disaster and disaster recovery</a>
</p>
<p>
Are <a class="external" href="http://www.linuxinsider.com/perl/story/33301.html">IT Textbooks</a> for MBA students a bit light on Linux?
</p>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://www.onlamp.com/pub/a/bsd/2004/04/01/Big_Scary_Daemons.html">Mail Server Filtering</a>:
</p>
<ul><li>"putting a mail server on the Internet
without filtering is like covering yourself with barbecue sauce and
breaking into the Charity Home for Badgers with Rabies." </ul>
<p>
On the subject of which, you could always try
<a class="external" href="http://www.strangehorizons.com/index.pl?Contents=/2004/20040405/badger.shtml">installing Linux on a dead badger</a> (from /.)
</p>
<p>
Linux gaining traction in <a href="http://www.manufacturing.net/ctl/article/CA413458">industrial automation and control</a>.
</p>
<p>
Getting a job <a class="external" href="http://business.newsforge.com/business/04/05/04/1058254.shtml?tid=2&tid=36&tid=82&tid=85&tid=94">in open source software</a>, and how to
<a href="http://www.linuxinsider.com/story/commentary/33660.html">reflect your experience in your resumé</a>. Or you could be <a class="external" href="http://www.davefancella.com/index.php?mode=wiki&page=Making%20Money">a muffler man (or woman)</a>.
</p>
<p>
A look at <a class="external" href="http://www.linuxdevcenter.com/pub/a/linux/2004/04/01/warp_pipe.html">Linux on the Nintendo GameCube</a>.
</p>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://www.onlamp.com/pub/a/onlamp/2004/05/20/mail_filtering.html">An overview of email filtering strategies</a> at <a class="external" href="http://www.onlamp.com/">O'Reilly</a>.
</p>
<p><hr><p>
<a name="general"></a>
<!-- ========== -->
<center><h3><font color="green">News in General</font></h3></center>
<!-- ========= -->
<P><hr><P>
<h3><img alt=" " src="../gx/bolt.gif">
<font color="green">Connexions</font>
</h3>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://cnx.rice.edu/">Connexions</a>
is a Content Commons of free, open-licensed educational materials in
fields such as music, electrical engineering and psychology. Mostly
college level, but some content for younger students too. a place for
communities of authors and instructors to create, find, and share
content. </p>
<!-- ========= -->
<P><hr><P>
<h3><img alt=" " src="../gx/bolt.gif">
<font color="green">X.org</font>
</h3>
<p>
The <a class="external" href="http://www.x.org/">X.org foundation</a> has <a class="external" href="http://lwn.net/Articles/79302/">issued their first release of the X Window System</a>
since the formation of the Foundation in January of this year. The new
X.Org release, called X Window System Version 11 Release 6.7 (X11R6.7), builds on the work of the X.Org X11R6.6
and XFree86TM Project Inc. V4.4RC2 releases to combine many of the
latest developments from a large number of the participants and
companies working with the X Window community. </p>
<p>
To assure consistency with industry and community requirements and practices, it was developed from the X.Org X11R6.6
code base and the XFree86 V4.4RC2 code base, with the addition of bug
fixes and enhancements. These enhancements include: new IPv6
functionality, Freetype V2.1.7, fontconfig V2.2.2, Xft V2.1.6, Xcursor
V1.1.2, and Xrender V0.8.4, with corresponding changes in documentation
and notices. Additional source and binary releases are anticipated
during 2004. </p>
<p><hr><p>
<a name="distro"></a>
<!-- ========== -->
<center><h3><font color="green">Distro News</font></h3></center>
<!-- ========= -->
<P><hr><P>
<h3><img alt=" " src="../gx/bolt.gif">
<font color="green">Debian</font>
</h3>
<p>
Nice <a class="external" href="http://www.serverwatch.com/sreviews/article.php/3334021">overview of Debian</a>, from Serverwatch.
</p>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://lists.debian.org/debian-devel/2004/05/msg01431.html">Debian From Scratch</a> is a rescue/installer CD that can be used to do a Gentoo-like installation of i386-wood/sarge/sid and amd64-sid. (<a class="external" href="http://www.debian.org/News/weekly/2004/21/">From Debian Weekly News</a>)
</p>
<p>
As an alternative to the normal Debian CD downloading procedure, you can now use <a class="external" href="http://cdimage.debian.org/pub/test/deb-bt/debian-cd/torrents/3.0_r2/">the wonder of Bittorrent to</a> get Debian goodness onto your system.
</p>
<!-- ========= -->
<P><hr><P>
<h3><img alt=" " src="../gx/bolt.gif">
<font color="green">Gentoo</font>
</h3>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://www.gentoo.org/">The Gentoo Linux Release Engineering</a> team has proudly announced the release of Gentoo Linux 2004.1. You can download the new release <a class="external" href="http://www.gentoo.org/main/en/mirrors.xml">from mirrors</a> or <a class="external" href="http://store.gentoo.org/">purchase it in the online store</a>.
</p>
<p>
OSNews has published a <a class="external" href="http://www.osnews.com/story.php?news_id=6589">rapid Gentoo installation guide</a>.
</p>
<p>
Slashdot compiled a selection of links on recent <a class="external" href="http://slashdot.org/articles/04/04/30/0250228.shtml?tid=106&tid=185&tid=96&tid=99">Gentoo goings on</a>, including the departure of Daniel Robbins, and the possibility of a major push into the enterprise sector.
</p>
<!-- ========= -->
<P><hr><P>
<h3><img alt=" " src="../gx/bolt.gif">
<font color="green">Linux From Scratch</font>
</h3>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/">The Linux From Scratch community</a>
has proudly announced the release of LFS-5.1. This patch release
contains many bug fixes and package upgrades since LFS-5.0. In
particular, this release features the Linux kernel 2.4.26, GNU C
Library (glibc) 2.3.3 and the GNU Compiler Collection (gcc) 3.3.3. The
book's layout has also been improved, leading to enhanced readability
and improved clarity. </p>
<!-- ========= -->
<P><hr><P>
<h3><img alt=" " src="../gx/bolt.gif">
<font color="green">Red Hat</font>
</h3>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://www.redhat.com/">Red Hat</a> appears to <a class="external" href="http://www.vnunet.com/News/1154039">have reversed its decision to abandon the Linux desktop market</a>.
Customer demand has led to a company U-turn which will result in a Red
Hat desktop offering being made available in the coming summer. </p>
<!-- ========= -->
<P><hr><P>
<h3><img alt=" " src="../gx/bolt.gif">
<font color="green">SuSE</font>
</h3>
<p>
<a class="external" href="http://www.suse.com/">SuSE</a> has announced the release of <a class="external" href="http://www.suse.com/us/private/products/suse_linux/">SuSE Linux</a> version 9.1.
</p>
<p><hr><p>
<a name="commercial"></a>
<!-- ========== -->
<center><h3><font color="green">Software News</font></h3></center>
<!-- ========= -->
<P><hr><P>
<h3><img alt=" " src="../gx/bolt.gif">
<font color="green">vnc2swf</font>
</h3>
<p>
<a href="http://www.unixuser.org/%7Eeuske/vnc2swf/">
vnc2swf</a>
is a screen recording tool for X-Window (X11), Windows and Mac OS
Desktop. Vnc2swf captures the live motion of a screen through VNC
protocol and converts it a Macromedia Flash(TM) movie (.swf). </p>
<!-- ========= -->
<P><hr><P>
<h3><img alt=" " src="../gx/bolt.gif">
<font color="green">Mozilla</font>
</h3>
<p>
Mozilla 1.7 <a class="external" href="http://www.mozillazine.org/talkback.html?article=4559">is to become the new stable branch</a>, replacing 1.4 in this role.
</p>
</p>
<!-- *** BEGIN author bio *** -->
<P>
<P>
<P> Mick is LG's News Bytes Editor.
<!-- *** BEGIN bio *** -->
<hr>
<P>
<IMG ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="top" ALT="[Picture]" SRC="../gx/2002/tagbio/conry.jpg" WIDTH="128" HEIGHT="158" class="bio">
<em>Born some time ago in Ireland, Michael is currently working on
a PhD thesis in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, University
College Dublin. The topic of this work is the use of Lamb waves in
nondestructive testing. GNU/Linux has been very useful in this work, and
Michael has a strong interest in applying free software solutions to
other problems in engineering. When his thesis is completed, Michael
plans to take a long walk.
</em>
<br CLEAR="all">
<!-- *** END bio *** -->
<!-- *** END author bio *** -->
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Copyright © 2004, Michael Conry. Copying license
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<p>
Published in Issue 103 of Linux Gazette, June 2004
</p>
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