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Do a presentation at NTLUG.
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(Two Column)
- [$] Page allocation for address-space isolation
Address-space isolation may well be, as Brendan Jackman said at thebeginning of his memory-management-track session at the 2025 Linux Storage,Filesystem, Memory-Management, and BPF Summit, "some securitybullshit". But it also holds the potential to protect the kernel froma wide range of vulnerabilities, both known and unknown, while reducing theimpact of existing mitigations. Implementing address-space isolation withreasonable performance, though, is going to require some significantchanges. Jackman was there to get feedback from the memory-managementcommunity on how those changes should be implemented.
- [$] Better hugetlb page-table walking
The kernel must often step through the page tables of one or more processesto carry out various operations. This "page-table walking" tends to beperformed by ad-hoc (duplicated) code all over the kernel. Oscar Salvadorused a memory-management-track session at the 2025 Linux Storage,Filesystem, Memory-Management, and BPF Summit to talk about strategies tounify the kernel's page-table walking code just a little bit by makinghugetlb pages look more like ordinary pages.
- Rust 1.86.0 released
Version1.86.0 of the Rust language has been released. Changes include supportfor trait upcasting, the ability to index multiple elements of HashMaps andslices mutably, and a number of stabilized APIs.
- Security updates for Thursday
Security updates have been issued by AlmaLinux (expat), Debian (chromium, commons-vfs, firefox-esr, php-horde-editor, php-horde-imp, and thunderbird), Fedora (corosync, firefox, nextcloud, and suricata), Mageia (curl and upx), Oracle (emacs, fence-agents, freetype, kernel, libreoffice, libxml2, nginx:1.24, podman, python-jinja2, and tigervnc), Red Hat (firefox and python-jinja2), SUSE (assimp, ffmpeg-4, firefox, ghostscript, GraphicsMagick, libxslt, and tomcat), and Ubuntu (linux, linux-aws, linux-aws-5.15, linux-gcp, linux-gke, linux-gkeop, linux-ibm, linux-intel-iotg, linux-kvm, linux-lowlatency, linux-lowlatency-hwe-5.15, linux-meta-raspi, linux-nvidia-tegra, linux-oracle, linux-oracle-5.15, linux-raspi, linux, linux-azure, linux-azure-5.4, linux-bluefield, linux-gcp, linux-ibm, linux-kvm, linux-oracle, linux-oracle-5.4, linux-xilinx-zynqmp, linux-fips, linux-fips, linux-aws-fips, linux-gcp-fips, linux-hwe-5.15, and linux-realtime, linux-intel-iot-realtime).
- [$] LWN.net Weekly Edition for April 3, 2025
Inside this week's LWN.net Weekly Edition:
Front: Calibre 8.0; Fedora reproducibility; OpenWrt One; 6.15 Merge Window; LSFMM+BPF coverage including BPF in GCC, Rust merging process, and more. Briefs: Ubuntu namespaces; New FPL; PorteuX 2.0; Firefox 137.0; GCC Rust; Rockbox 4.0; Rust specification; Thundermail; Dave Täht RIP; Quotes; ... Announcements: Newsletters, conferences, security updates, patches, and more.
- [$] Catching up with calibre
Saying that calibre isebook-management software undersells the application by a fairmargin. Calibre is an open-source Swiss Army knife for ebooks that canbe used for everything from creating ebooks, converting ebooks fromobscure formats to modern formats like EPUB, to serving up an ebooklibrary over the web. The most recent major release, calibre 8.0,brings a better text-to-speech engine, a tool for creating audiooverlays when authoring ebooks, support for profiles in the ebookviewer, and more.
- [$] An update on GCC BPF support
José Marchesi and David Faust kicked off the BPF track at the 2025 Linux Storage,Filesystem, Memory-Management, and BPF Summit with an extra-long session on whatthey have been doing to support compiling to BPF in GCC. Overall, the project is slowly workingtoward full support for BPF, with most of the self-tests now passing usingFaust's in-progress patches. However, the progress toward that goal has turned upa number of problems with how Clang supports BPF that needed to be discussed atlength to find a path forward for both projects.
- Thunderbird plans "Thundermail" email and other services
Ryan Sipes has announcedefforts to expand Thunderbird's offerings with web services to"enhance the experience of using Thunderbird".
The Why for offering these services is simple. Thunderbird loses userseach day to rich ecosystems that are both clients and services, suchas Gmail and Office365. These ecosystems have both hard vendorlock-ins (through interoperability issues with 3rd-pary clients) andsoft lock-ins (through convenience and integration between theirclients and services). It is our goal to eventually have a similaroffering so that a 100% open source, freedom-respecting alternativeecosystem is available for those who want it.
The planned services include hosted email, appointment scheduling,a revival of Firefox Send,and (of course) an AI assistant based on a partnership with Flower AI. The AI features will"always be optional for use by people who want them". Sipes ismanaging director of product for Thunderbird's parent organization, MZLATechnologies Corporation. LWN covered hisGUADEC 2024 keynote last July.
- Introducing Fedora Project Leader Jef Spaleta
Outgoing Fedora Project Leader (FPL) Matthew Miller has announcedhis successor, Jef Spaleta.
Some of you may remember Jef's passionate voice in the early Fedoracommunity. He got involved all the way back in the days of fedora.us,before Red Hat got involved. Jef served on the Fedora Board from July2007 through the end of 2008. This was the critical time after FedoraExtras and Fedora Core merged into one Fedora Linux where, with thelaunch of the "Features" process, Fedora became a truly community-ledproject.
Spaleta will be joining Red Hat full time in May and Miller will beformally handing off FPL duties at the Flock conference inJune.
- PorteuX 2.0 released
Version2.0 of PorteuX, a distribution based on Slackware Linux, has beenreleased. This release adds the ability to test experimental Waylandsessions for the Cinnamon, LXQt, and Xfce desktops. PorteuX 2.0updates the Linux kernel to 6.14 and includes many package updates andbug fixes. Users have the choice of PorteuX stable or its rolling releasecalled current. See the install.txtfor instructions on installing PorteuX to disk.
- [$] Approaches to reducing TLB pressure
The CPU's translation lookaside buffer (TLB) caches the results ofvirtual-address translations, significantly speeding memory accesses. TLBmisses are expensive, so a lot of thought goes into using the TLB asefficiently as possible. Reducing pressure on the TLB was the topic of Rikvan Riel's memory-management-track session at the 2025 Linux Storage,Filesystem, Memory-Management, and BPF Summit. Some approaches wereconsidered, but the session was short on firm conclusions.
- Rockbox 4.0 released
For those of you who still have dedicated audio players: version 4.0 ofRockbox, a replacement firmware for many players, has been released.This release brings support for a number of new devices, updated codecs, anumber of user-interface improvements, some new games, and more. (LWN lastreviewed Rockbox in 2010 — and looked atthe ill-fated Android port that year aswell).
- Security updates for Wednesday
Security updates have been issued by Debian (firefox-esr, jetty9, openjpeg2, and tomcat9), Fedora (dokuwiki, firefox, php-kissifrot-php-ixr, php-phpseclib3, and rust-zincati), Red Hat (kernel and pki-core), Slackware (mozilla), SUSE (apparmor, atop, docker, docker-stable, firefox, govulncheck-vulndb, libmodsecurity3, openvpn, upx, and warewulf4), and Ubuntu (inspircd, linux, linux-aws, linux-gcp, linux-gke, linux-gkeop, linux-ibm, linux-lowlatency, linux-lowlatency-hwe-6.8, linux-oem-6.8, linux-oracle, linux-oracle-6.8, linux-aws, linux-aws-5.4, linux-aws-fips, linux-azure-6.8, linux-hwe-6.8, linux-raspi, linux-realtime, nginx, phpseclib, and vim).
- [$] Slab allocator: sheaves and any-context allocations
The kernel's slab allocator is charged with providing small objects ondemand; its performance and reliability are crucial for the functioning ofthe system as a whole. At the 2025 Linux Storage, Filesystem,Memory-Management, and BPF Summit, two adjacent sessions in thememory-management track dug into current work on the slab allocator. Thefirst focused on the new sheaves feature, while the second discussed a setof allocation functions that are safe to call in any context.
- Dave Täht RIP
From the LibreQoS site comes the sadnews that Dave Täht has passed away. Among many other things, he bearsa lot of credit for our networks functioning as well as they do. "We'reincredibly grateful to have Dave as our friend, mentor, and as someone whocontinuously inspired us – showing us that we could do better for eachother in the world, and leverage technology to make that happen. He will bedearly missed".
Searching through LWN's archives will turn up many references to his workfixing WiFi, improving queue management, tackling bufferbloat, and more. Farewell,Dave, we hope the music is good wherever you are.
(Thanks to Jon Masters for the heads-up).
- Introducing Fedora Project Leader Jef Spaleta
Hello everyone! Current Fedora Project Leader Matthew Miller here, with some exciting news! A little while ago, I announced that it’s time for a change of hats. I’m going to be moving on to new things (still close to Fedora, of course). Today, I’m happy to announce that we’ve selected my successor: long-time Fedora friend […]
- GNOME & KDE Plasma Wayland Sessions Outperforming Xfce + LXQt On Ubuntu 25.04 For Linux Gaming
Last week I posted some initial GNOME 48 and KDE Plasma 6.3 desktop gaming benchmarks on Ubuntu 25.04 beta for looking at the performance of those two leading desktop options for this upcoming Ubuntu Linux release. Both GNOME and KDE under Wayland were outperforming KDE on X11 (and GNOME on X11 wasn[he]#039[/he]t even working due to bugs). Some Phoronix readers questioned though whether the Wayland advantage on GNOME/KDE was due to those desktops losing focus on X11 support or if they are just too bloated. So for adding some additional context, here are some graphics/gaming benchmarks on the same system hardware/software when adding in the Xfce 4.20 and LXQt 2.1 X11 desktops.
- Many KVM Updates Merged For Linux 6.15
This morning's Intel TDX update reminded me that I still hadn't gotten around to digging into the Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) changes merged last week for the ongoing Linux 6.15 kernel merge window. Here is a look at the KVM changes this cycle that continue to be particularly heavy on Intel and AMD virtualization improvements...
- Built together: How Firefox fans help shape the browser
If you’ve ever wished Firefox had vertical tabs or an easier way to share links on your phone — and you left a comment somewhere asking for it — there’s a good chance someone saw it. And not just someone. The actual people building Firefox. That’s the magic of Mozilla Connect. It launched in 2022 […]
- Linux 6.15 Further Improves AMD P-State Driver, Intel Dev Tackles A ~50% SPEC Regression
Linux power management and ACPI subsystems maintainer Rafael Wysocki last week sent out the assortment of ACPI/PM material for the new Linux 6.15 kernel cycle. The AMD P-State driver continues to be heavy with its code churn and there have been various other optimizations and code clean-ups. The CPUIdle Menu governor also received some performance tuning worth mentioning...
- How to Optimize Database Performance With MySQLTuner
If you use a MySQL/MariaDB database, you know it can become slow or consume too many resources if not properly configured. To help with this, there’s a tool called MySQLTuner, which analyzes your database. It analyzes how MySQL/MariaDB is performing and provides tips to make it faster and more efficient.
- Enhancing Your Python Workflow with UV on Fedora
This article is a tutorial on using UV to enhance or improve your Python work flow. If you work with Python you most likely have used one or all of the following tools: Why do you need another tool to manage your Python packaging or install your favorite Python tools? For me, using uv was […]
- Wayland Is On Track For A Very Exciting 2025
While the first quarter is coming to an end, there has already been immense progress this year to the Wayland protocols and compositors along with associated Linux desktop software for embracing this alternative to legacy X11/X.Org. From HDR color management seeing much adoption this quarter to Wine Wayland becoming more viable and the large number of Wayland compositors maturing, it was a pretty incredible quarter...
- NV8600-Nano AI Kit: Jetson Orin Nano Super Mode + 4x GbE, CANBus, MIPI
AAEON’s UP brand has introduced the NV8600-Nano AI Developer Kit, combining an NVIDIA Jetson Orin Nano module with Super Mode support, an expanded I/O carrier board, and a preinstalled AI software package designed for embedded and computer vision developers. The kit features the 8GB Jetson Orin Nano module, delivering up to 67 TOPS of AI […]
- Mozilla is rolling Thundermail, a Gmail, Office 365 rival
Thunderbirds are Pro: Open-source email client to get message hosting, appointment scheduling, moreThunderbird, Firefox maker Mozilla's open-source email client, is aiming to reinvent itself as a more comprehensive communications platform.…
- Climate Crisis On Track To Destroy Capitalism, Warns Top Insurer
The climate crisis is on track to destroy capitalism, a top insurer has warned, with the vast cost of extreme weather impacts leaving the financial sector unable to operate. From a report: The world is fast approaching temperature levels where insurers will no longer be able to offer cover for many climate risks, said Günther Thallinger, on the board of Allianz SE, one of the world's biggest insurance companies. He said that without insurance, which is already being pulled in some places, many other financial services become unviable, from mortgages to investments. Global carbon emissions are still rising and current policies will result in a rise in global temperature between 2.2C and 3.4C above pre-industrial levels. The damage at 3C will be so great that governments will be unable to provide financial bailouts and it will be impossible to adapt to many climate impacts, said Thallinger, who is also the chair of the German company's investment board and was previously CEO of Allianz Investment Management. The core business of the insurance industry is risk management and it has long taken the dangers of global heating very seriously. In recent reports, Aviva said extreme weather damages for the decade to 2023 hit $2tn, while GallagherRE said the figure was $400bn in 2024. Zurich said it was "essential" to hit net zero by 2050.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Climate Firm That Partnered With Meta, Microsoft Goes Bankrupt
Climate startup Aspiration, which boasted a roster of celebrity backers and arranged carbon credits for Meta Platforms, Microsoft and other large companies, filed bankruptcy weeks after its co-founder was arrested on fraud charges. From a report: CTN Holdings, as the company is now known, has about $170 million in debt. The goal of the bankruptcy is to sell its assets as quickly as possible in order to repay creditors, chief restructuring officer Miles Staglik said in a court filing. The pool of potential bidders is small and the nature of the CTN's ventures will likely require more cash and "long term horizons before any potential value could be realized for creditors," Staglik said. The bankruptcy was filed after co-founder Joseph Sanberg was charged by federal prosecutors with conspiring to defraud two investor funds of at least $145 million, according to a US Department of Justice announcement earlier this month. The charges involve his personal conduct and don't implicate CTN or its affiliates "in any criminal activity," said Staglik, a managing director at CR3 Partners that's been hired as CTN's restructuring adviser.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Intel Refreshes Iconic Brand
Intel has unveiled a refresh of its iconic brand identity, introducing the slogan "That's the power of Intel Inside" to reconnect with consumers and highlight the chipmaker's role in modern computing. The new campaign resurrects the familiar "Intel Inside" theme that helped transform the company into a household name in the 1990s, when Intel's marketing strategy directly targeted consumers rather than system designers. Brett Hannath, Intel's chief marketing officer, said the message reflects the company's belief that its products can unlock potential for employees, customers, consumers and partners. The original "Intel Inside" campaign, launched in 1991, revolutionized tech marketing by making processors a key selling point for PCs with its recognizable sticker and five-note jingle. The strategy helped Intel differentiate itself from competitors like AMD and Cyrix during the PC market explosion.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- AV1 is Supposed To Make Streaming Better, So Why Isn't Everyone Using It?
Despite promises of more efficient streaming, the AV1 video codec hasn't achieved widespread adoption seven years after its 2018 debut, even with backing from tech giants Netflix, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and Meta. The Alliance for Open Media (AOMedia) claims AV1 is 30% more efficient than standards like HEVC, delivering higher-quality video at lower bandwidth while remaining royalty-free. Major services including YouTube, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video have embraced the technology, with Netflix encoding approximately 95% of its content using AV1. However, adoption faces significant hurdles. Many streaming platforms including Max, Peacock, and Paramount Plus haven't implemented AV1, partly due to hardware limitations. Devices require specific decoders to properly support AV1, though recent products from Apple, Nvidia, AMD, and Intel have begun including them. "In order to get its best features, you have to accept a much higher encoding complexity," Larry Pearlstein, associate professor at the College of New Jersey, told The Verge. "But there is also higher decoding complexity, and that is on the consumer end."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Schrodinger's Economics
databasecowgirl writes: Commenting in The Times on the absurdity of Meta's copyright infringement claims, Caitlin Moran defines Schrodinger's economics: where a company is both [one of] the most valuable on the planet yet also too poor to pay for the materials it profits from. Ultimately "move fast and break things" means breaking other people's things. Or, possibly worse, going full 'The Talented Mr Ripley': slowly feeling so entitled to the things you are enamored of that you end up clubbing out the brains of your beloved in a boat.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Microsoft Pulls Back on Data Centers From Chicago To Jakarta
Microsoft has pulled back on data center projects around the world, suggesting the company is taking a harder look at its plans to build the server farms powering artificial intelligence and the cloud. From a report: The software company has recently halted talks for, or delayed development of, sites in Indonesia, the UK, Australia, Illinois, North Dakota and Wisconsin, according to people familiar with the situation. Microsoft is widely seen as a leader in commercializing AI services, largely thanks to its close partnership with OpenAI. Investors closely track Microsoft's spending plans to get a sense of long-term customer demand for cloud and AI services. It's hard to know how much of the company's data center pullback reflects expectations of diminished demand versus temporary construction challenges, such as shortages of power and building materials. Some investors have interpreted signs of retrenchment as an indication that projected purchases of AI services don't justify Microsoft's massive outlays on server farms. Those concerns have weighed on global tech stocks in recent weeks, particularly chipmakers like Nvidia which suck up a significant share of data center budgets.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Microsoft, Amazon Execs Call Out Washington's Low-Performing 9-Year-Olds In Tax Pushback
Longtime Slashdot reader theodp writes: A coalition of Washington state business leaders -- which includes Microsoft President Brad Smith and Amazon Chief Legal Officer David Zapolsky -- released a letter Wednesday urging state lawmakers to reconsider recently proposed tax and budget measures. "I actually think it's an almost unprecedented outpouring of support from across the business community," said Microsoft's Smith in an interview. In their letter, which reads in part like it could have been penned by a GenAI Marie Antoinette, the WA business leaders question whether any more spending is warranted given how poorly Washington's 4th and 8th graders compare to children in the rest of the nation on test scores. The letter also laments the increase in WA's homeless population as it celebrates WA Governor Bob Ferguson's announcement that he would not sign a proposed wealth tax. From the letter: "We have long partnered with you in many areas, including education funding. Despite more than doubling K-12 spending and increasing teacher salaries to some of the highest rates in the nation, 4th and 8th grade assessment scores in reading and math are among the worst in the country. Similarly, we have collaborated with you to address housing and homelessness. Despite historic investments in affordable housing and homelessness prevention since 2013, Washington's homeless population has grown by 71 percent, making it the third largest in the nation after California and New York, according to HUD. These outcomes beg the question of whether more investment is needed or whether we need different policies instead." Back in 2010, Smith teamed with then-Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and then-Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to fund an effort to defeat an initiative for a WA state income that was pushed for by Bill Gates Sr. In 2023, Bezos moved out of WA state before being subjected to a 7% tax on gains of more than $250,000 from the sale of stocks and bonds, a move that reportedly saved him $1.2 billion in WA taxes on his 2024 Amazon stock sales.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- ESA's New Documentary Paints Worrying Picture of Earth's Orbital Junk Problem
The European Space Agency's short film Space Debris: Is it a Crisis? highlights the growing danger of orbital clutter, warning that "70% of the 20,000 satellites ever launched remain in space today, orbiting alongside hundreds of millions of fragments left behind by collisions, explosions and intentional destruction." Inkl reports: The approximately eight-minute-long film "Space Debris: Is it a Crisis?" attempts to answer its conjecture with supportive statistics and orbital projections. [...] The film also mentions that the kind of Earth orbit matters when discussing whether we're in a space junk "crisis" -- though unfortunately, orbits at risk appear to be those with satellites that help with communication and navigation, as well as our fight against another primarily human-driven crisis: global warming. Still, the film emphasizes that solutions ought to be thought of carefully: "True sustainability is complex, and rushed solutions risk creating the problem of burden-shifting." You can watch the film on ESA's website.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Amazon Set To Launch First Operational Satellites For Project Kuiper Network
Amazon and United Launch Alliance will launch 27 full-scale satellites on April 9 as part of Amazon's Project Kuiper, marking the company's first major step toward building a global satellite internet network to rival SpaceX's Starlink. GeekWire reports: ULA said the three-hour window for the Atlas V rocket's liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station's Space Launch Complex 41 in Florida is scheduled to open at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) that day. ULA is planning a live stream of launch coverage via its website starting about 20 minutes ahead of liftoff. Amazon said next week's mission -- known as Kuiper-1 or KA-1 (for Kuiper Atlas 1) -- will put 27 Kuiper satellites into orbit at an altitude of 280 miles (450 kilometers). ULA launched two prototype Kuiper satellites into orbit for testing in October 2023, but KA-1 will mark Amazon's first full-scale launch of a batch of operational satellites designed to bring high-speed internet access to millions of people around the world. [...] According to Amazon, the Kuiper satellite design has gone through significant upgrades since the prototypes were launched in 2023. Amazon's primary manufacturing facility is in Kirkland, Wash., with some of the components produced at Project Kuiper's headquarters in nearby Redmond. The mission profile for KA-1 calls for deploying the satellites safely in orbit and establishing ground-to-space contact. The satellites would then use their electric propulsion systems to settle into their assigned orbits at an altitude of 392 miles (630 kilometers), under the management of Project Kuiper's mission operations team in Redmond. Under the current terms of its license from the Federal Communications Commission, Amazon is due to launch 3,232 Kuiper satellites by 2029, with half of those satellites going into orbit by mid-2026.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Vibe Coded AI App Generates Recipes With Very Few Guardrails
An anonymous reader quotes a report from 404 Media: A "vibe coded" AI app developed by entrepreneur and Y Combinator group partner Tom Blomfield has generated recipes that gave users instruction on how to make "Cyanide Ice Cream," "Thick White Cum Soup," and "Uranium Bomb," using those actual substances as ingredients. Vibe coding, in case you are unfamiliar, is the new practice where people, some with limited coding experience, rapidly develop software with AI assisted coding tools without overthinking how efficient the code is as long as it's functional. This is how Blomfield said he made RecipeNinja.AI. [...] The recipe for Cyanide Ice Cream was still live on RecipeNinja.AI at the time of writing, as are recipes for Platypus Milk Cream Soup, Werewolf Cream Glazing, Cholera-Inspired Chocolate Cake, and other nonsense. Other recipes for things people shouldn't eat have been removed. It also appears that Blomfield has introduced content moderation since users discovered they could generate dangerous or extremely stupid recipes. I wasn't able to generate recipes for asbestos cake, bullet tacos, or glue pizza. I was able to generate a recipe for "very dry tacos," which looks not very good but not dangerous. In a March 20 blog on his personal site, Blomfield explained that he's a startup founder turned investor, and while he has experience with PHP and Ruby on Rails, he has not written a line of code professionally since 2015. "In my day job at Y Combinator, I'm around founders who are building amazing stuff with AI every day and I kept hearing about the advances in tools like Lovable, Cursor and Windsurf," he wrote, referring to AI-assisted coding tools. "I love building stuff and I've always got a list of little apps I want to build if I had more free time." After playing around with them, he wrote, he decided to build RecipeNinja.AI, which can take a prompt as simple as "Lasagna," and generate an image of the finished dish along with a step-by-stape recipe which can use ElevenLabs's AI generated voice to narrate the instruction so the user doesn't have to interact with a device with his tomato sauce-covered fingers. "I was pretty astonished that Windsurf managed to integrate both the OpenAI and Elevenlabs APIs without me doing very much at all," Blomfield wrote. "After we had a couple of problems with the open AI Ruby library, it quickly fell back to a raw ruby HTTP client implementation, but I honestly didn't care. As long as it worked, I didn't really mind if it used 20 lines of code or two lines of code." Having some kind of voice controlled recipe app sounds like a pretty good idea to me, and it's impressive that Blomfield was able to get something up and running so fast given his limited coding experience. But the problem is that he also allowed users to generate their own recipes with seemingly very few guardrails on what kind of recipes are and are not allowed, and that the site kept those results and showed them to other users.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Open-Source Tool Designed To Throttle PC and Server Performance Based On Electricity Pricing
Robotics and machine learning engineer Naveen Kul developed WattWise, a lightweight open-source CLI tool that monitors power usage via smart plugs and throttles system performance based on electricity pricing and peak hours. Tom's Hardware reports: The simple program, called WattWise, came about when Naveen built a dual-socket EPYC workstation with plans to add four GPUs. It's a power-intensive setup, so he wanted a way to monitor its power consumption using a Kasa smart plug. The enthusiast has released the monitoring portion of the project to the public now, but the portion that manages clocks and power will be released later. Unfortunately, the Kasa Smart app and the Home Assistant dashboard was inconvenient and couldn't do everything he desired. He already had a terminal window running monitoring tools like htop, nvtop, and nload, and decided to take matters into his own hands rather than dealing with yet another app. Naveen built a terminal-based UI that shows power consumption data through Home Assistant and the TP-Link integration. The app monitors real-time power use, showing wattage and current, as well as providing historical consumption charts. More importantly, it is designed to automatically throttle CPU and GPU performance. Naveen's power provider uses Time-of-Use (ToU) pricing, so using a lot of power during peak hours can cost significantly more. The workstation can draw as much as 1400 watts at full load, but by reducing the CPU frequency from 3.7 GHz to 1.5 GHz, he's able to reduce consumption by about 225 watts. (No mention is made of GPU throttling, which could potentially allow for even higher power savings with a quad-GPU setup.) Results will vary based on the hardware being used, naturally, and servers can pull far more power than a typical desktop -- even one designed and used for gaming. WattWise optimizes the system's clock speed based on the current system load, power consumption as reported by the smart plug, and the time -- with the latter factoring in peak pricing. From there, it uses a Proportional-Integral (PI) controller to manage the power and adapts system parameters based on the three variables. A blog post with more information is available here. WattWise is also available on GitHub.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- NaNoWriMo To Close After 20 Years
NaNoWriMo, the nonprofit behind the annual novel-writing challenge, is shutting down after 20 years but will keep its websites online temporarily so users can retrieve their content. The Guardian reports: A 27-minute YouTube video posted the same day by the organization's interim executive director Kilby Blades explained that it had to close due to ongoing financial problems, which were compounded by reputational damage. In November 2023, several community members complained to the nonprofit's board, Blades said. They believed that staff had mishandled accusations made in May 2023 that a NaNoWriMo forum moderator was grooming children on a different website. The moderator was eventually removed, though this was for unrelated code of conduct violations and occurred "many weeks" after the initial complaints. In the wake of this, community members came forward with other complaints related to child safety on the NaNoWriMo sites. The organization was also widely criticized last year over a statement on the use of artificial intelligence in creative writing. After stating that it did not support or explicitly condemn any approach to writing, including the use of AI, it said that the "categorical condemnation of artificial intelligence has classist and ableist undertones." It went on to say that "not all writers have the financial ability to hire humans to help at certain phases of their writing," and that "not all brains have same abilities ... There is a wealth of reasons why individuals can't 'see' the issues in their writing without help." "We hold no belief that people will stop writing 50,000 words in November," read Monday's email. "Many alternatives to NaNoWriMo popped up this year, and people did find each other. In so many ways, it's easier than it was when NaNoWriMo began in 1999 to find your writing tribe online."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Five VPN Apps In the App Store Had Links To Chinese Military
A joint investigation found that at least five popular VPN apps on the App Store and Google Play have ties to Qihoo 360, a Chinese company with military links. Apple has since removed two of the apps but has not confirmed the status of the remaining three, which 9to5Mac notes have "racked up more than a million downloads." The five apps in question are Turbo VPN, VPN Proxy Master, Thunder VPN, Snap VPN, and Signal Secure VPN (not associated with the Signal messaging app). The Financial Times reports: At least five free virtual private networks (VPNs) available through the US tech groups' app stores have links to Shanghai-listed Qihoo 360, according to a new report by research group Tech Transparency Project, as well as additional findings by the Financial Times. Qihoo, formally known as 360 Security Technology, was sanctioned by the US in 2020 for alleged Chinese military links. The US Department of Defense later added Qihoo to a list of Chinese military-affiliated companies [...] In recent recruitment listings, Guangzhou Lianchuang says its apps operate in more than 220 countries and that it has 10mn daily users. It is currently hiring for a position whose responsibilities include "monitoring and analyzing platform data." The right candidate will be "well-versed in American culture," the posting says.
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- Anthropic Launches an AI Chatbot Plan For Colleges and Universities
An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: Anthropic announced on Wednesday that it's launching a new Claude for Education tier, an answer to OpenAI's ChatGPT Edu plan. The new tier is aimed at higher education, and gives students, faculty, and other staff access to Anthropic's AI chatbot, Claude, with a few additional capabilities. One piece of Claude for Education is "Learning Mode," a new feature within Claude Projects to help students develop their own critical thinking skills, rather than simply obtain answers to questions. With Learning Mode enabled, Claude will ask questions to test understanding, highlight fundamental principles behind specific problems, and provide potentially useful templates for research papers, outlines, and study guides. Anthropic says Claude for Education comes with its standard chat interface, as well as "enterprise-grade" security and privacy controls. In a press release shared with TechCrunch ahead of launch, Anthropic said university administrators can use Claude to analyze enrollment trends and automate repetitive email responses to common inquiries. Meanwhile, students can use Claude for Education in their studies, the company suggested, such as working through calculus problems with step-by-step guidance from the AI chatbot. To help universities integrate Claude into their systems, Anthropic says it's partnering with the company Instructure, which offers the popular education software platform Canvas. The AI startup is also teaming up with Internet2, a nonprofit organization that delivers cloud solutions for colleges. Anthropic says that it has already struck "full campus agreements" with Northeastern University, the London School of Economics and Political Science, and Champlain College to make Claude for Education available to all students. Northeastern is a design partner -- Anthropic says it's working with the institution's students, faculty, and staff to build best practices for AI integration, AI-powered education tools, and frameworks. Anthropic hopes to strike more of these contracts, in part through new student ambassador and AI "builder" programs, to capitalize on the growing number of students using AI in their studies.
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- India Set For $100 Billion Startup IPO Surge By 2027
According to Bloomberg, India is set for a surge in tech startup IPOs valued at around $100 billion by 2027, with major players like Flipkart, PhonePe, and Oyo preparing to go public. From a report: A report from Indian investment bank The Rainmaker Group suggests that the new wave of IPO hopefuls is in a stronger financial position than their predecessors. Many of the startups that were listed during the 2021-2022 boom struggled post-IPO, with fintech firm Paytm losing roughly 63% of its value and beauty retailer Nykaa slipping 4% since going public. "The financial health of companies set to list in the next two years is significantly better than those that went public earlier," said Kashyap Chanchani, managing partner at Rainmaker. He noted that two-thirds of the firms eyeing IPOs are already profitable and have improved transparency, making them more attractive to investors.
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- Mediatek wants to make Chromebooks more like Copilot+ PCs
Arm-based silicon to help Google hardware muscle in on territory of Microsoft's own Arm-based PCs
MediaTek is bringing out a new chip for Chromebooks that blurs the boundary with Copilot+ PCs, sporting an 8-core CPU cluster and a neural processing unit (NPU) rated at 50 TOPS.…
- Why is someone mass-scanning Juniper and Palo Alto Networks products?
Espionage? Botnets? Trying to exploit a zero-day?
Someone or something is probing devices made by Juniper Networks and Palo Alto Networks, and researchers think it could be evidence of espionage attempts, attempts to build a botnet, or an effort to exploit zero-day vulnerabilities.…
- EU: These are scary times – let's backdoor encryption!
ProtectEU plan wants to have its cake and eat it too
The EU has issued its plans to keep the continent's denizens secure and among the pages of bureaucratese are a few worrying sections that indicate the political union wants to backdoor encryption by 2026, or even sooner.…
- Heterogeneous stacks, ransomware, and ITaaS: A DR nightmare
Recovery's never been harder in today's tangled, outsourced infrastructure
Comment Disaster recovery is getting tougher as IT estates sprawl across on-prem gear, public cloud, SaaS, and third-party ITaaS providers. And it's not floods or fires causing most outages anymore - ransomware now leads the pack, taking down systems faster than any natural disaster.…
- UK government told to get a grip on £23B tech spend
Former official also points to processes driving up the cost of IT investment
The UK government does not have a clear picture of what it is spending on digital technology, and its approach to buying associated services and products drives up the cost of investment, MPs have heard.…
- On the issue of AI copyright, Blair Institute favors tech bros over Cool Britannia
Think tank report backs data mining for machine learning, leaving artists and rights holders behind
Opinion Former UK prime minister Tony Blair became famous for standing shoulder to shoulder with allies, even though the fallout from the Iraq war forever sullied his reputation. Nonetheless, the institute that bears his name makes it clear who it stands with when it comes to using copyrighted material to fuel the expansion of machine learning into every human domain.…
- Wikipedia's overlords bemoan AI bot bandwidth burden
Crawlers snarfing long-tail content for training and whatnot cost us a fortune
Web-scraping bots have become an unsupportable burden for the Wikimedia community due to their insatiable appetite for online content to train AI models.…
- Americans set to pay more on all imports: Trump activates blanket tariffs
Tech slugged with higher duties, broad base 10% hike, semiconductors avoid retaliatory levies for now
US President Donald Trump has imposed a base ten percent tariff on all imports into America, and higher levies on goods from major producers of digital tech, such as China, South Korea, and Taiwan.…
- Crimelords at Hunters International tell lackeys ransomware too 'risky'
Bosses say theft now the name of the game with a shift in tactics, apparent branding
Big-game ransomware crew Hunters International says its criminal undertaking has become "unpromising, low-converting, and extremely risky," and it is mulling shifting tactics amid an apparent rebrand.…
- Oracle's masterclass in breach comms: Deny, deflect, repeat
Fallout shows how what you say must be central to disaster planning
Opinion Oracle is being accused of poor incident comms as it reels from two reported data security mishaps over the past fortnight, amid a reluctance to publicly acknowledge all of the events as well as allegedly deleting evidence from the web.…
- Qualcomm set to move in on UK chip IP biz Alphawave
Has until month end to make an offer for semiconductor design and licensing shop
Qualcomm has confirmed its interest in buying high-speed connectivity module designer Alphawave Semi, a move that could see yet another major British tech operation swallowed up by a foreign business.…
- Specsavers takes off the Oracle glasses, sees better ERP options
£5M in savings? Should've gone to third-party support
International optometry company Specsavers has paused the global standardization of its Oracle ERP system and moved to third-party support, saving £5 million ($6.5 million) that can be reallocated to the business.…
- Speech now streaming from brains in real-time
Boosted human-computer interface promises better communication for patients who lost ability to speak
Some smart cookies have implemented a brain-computer interface that can synthesize speech from thought in near real-time.…
- Apple belatedly patches actively exploited bugs in older OSes
Cupertino already squashed 'em in more recent releases - which this week get a fresh round of fixes
Apple has delivered a big batch of OS updates, some of which belatedly patch older versions of its operating systems to address exploited-in-the-wild flaws the iGiant earlier fixed in more recent releases.…
- Mozilla is rolling Thundermail, a Gmail, Office 365 rival
Thunderbirds are Pro: Open-source email client to get message hosting, appointment scheduling, more
Thunderbird, Firefox maker Mozilla's open-source email client, is aiming to reinvent itself as a more comprehensive communications platform.…
- UK threatens £100K-a-day fines under new cyber bill
Tech secretary reveals landmark legislation's full details for first time
The UK's technology secretary revealed the full breadth of the government's Cyber Security and Resilience (CSR) Bill for the first time this morning, pledging £100,000 ($129,000) daily fines for failing to act against specific threats under consideration.…
- Isar’s first orbital rocket crashes into sea – CEO calls it a 'great success'
What counts as failure in New Space?
Comment Yet another rocket exploded over the weekend and – you guessed it – its CEO called the test flight "a great success." This raises the question: what even counts as failure anymore in the world of so-called "New Space" – the VC-fueled and risk-friendly private rocket sector?…
- Asda's tech separation from Walmart nears £1B as delays mount
Lenders told of £175 million project top-up for 2025, four years after buyout
The UK's third-largest supermarket has seen the expected costs of its tech divorce from former US owner Walmart rise to nearly £1 billion ($1.3 billion) after news broke that the project is now expected to run into calendar Q3 of year four, overshooting its original three-year timeline.…
- Security: Why Linux Is Better Than Windows Or Mac OS
Linux is a free and open source operating system that was released in 1991 developed and released by Linus Torvalds. Since its release it has reached a user base that is greatly widespread worldwide. Linux users swear by the reliability and freedom that this operating system offers, especially when compared to its counterparts, windows and [0]
- Essential Software That Are Not Available On Linux OS
An operating system is essentially the most important component in a computer. It manages the different hardware and software components of a computer in the most effective way. There are different types of operating system and everything comes with their own set of programs and software. You cannot expect a Linux program to have all [0]
- Things You Never Knew About Your Operating System
The advent of computers has brought about a revolution in our daily life. From computers that were so huge to fit in a room, we have come a very long way to desktops and even palmtops. These machines have become our virtual lockers, and a life without these network machines have become unimaginable. Sending mails, [0]
- How To Fully Optimize Your Operating System
Computers and systems are tricky and complicated. If you lack a thorough knowledge or even basic knowledge of computers, you will often find yourself in a bind. You must understand that something as complicated as a computer requires constant care and constant cleaning up of junk files. Unless you put in the time to configure [0]
- The Top Problems With Major Operating Systems
There is no such system which does not give you any problems. Even if the system and the operating system of your system is easy to understand, there will be some times when certain problems will arise. Most of these problems are easy to handle and easy to get rid of. But you must be [0]
- 8 Benefits Of Linux OS
Linux is a small and a fast-growing operating system. However, we can’t term it as software yet. As discussed in the article about what can a Linux OS do Linux is a kernel. Now, kernels are used for software and programs. These kernels are used by the computer and can be used with various third-party software [0]
- Things Linux OS Can Do That Other OS Cant
What Is Linux OS? Linux, similar to U-bix is an operating system which can be used for various computers, hand held devices, embedded devices, etc. The reason why Linux operated system is preferred by many, is because it is easy to use and re-use. Linux based operating system is technically not an Operating System. Operating [0]
- Packagekit Interview
Packagekit aims to make the management of applications in the Linux and GNU systems. The main objective to remove the pains it takes to create a system. Along with this in an interview, Richard Hughes, the developer of Packagekit said that he aims to make the Linux systems just as powerful as the Windows or [0]
- What’s New in Ubuntu?
What Is Ubuntu? Ubuntu is open source software. It is useful for Linux based computers. The software is marketed by the Canonical Ltd., Ubuntu community. Ubuntu was first released in late October in 2004. The Ubuntu program uses Java, Python, C, C++ and C# programming languages. What Is New? The version 17.04 is now available here [0]
- Ext3 Reiserfs Xfs In Windows With Regards To Colinux
The problem with Windows is that there are various limitations to the computer and there is only so much you can do with it. You can access the Ext3 Reiserfs Xfs by using the coLinux tool. Download the tool from the official site or from the sourceforge site. Edit the connection to “TAP Win32 Adapter [0]
- Literally Windows on arm: here is Windows running on the Pixel Watch 3
Right off the bat, there is not that much use for a Pixel Watch with Windows on it. The project, as the maker says, is for shits and giggles! and more like an April Fools joke. However, it shows how capable modern smartwatches are, with the Pixel Watch 3 being powered by a processor with four ARM Cortex A53 cores, 2GB of DDR4X memory, and 32GB of storage. Getting Windows to run on Gustaves arm, as you can imagine, took some time and effort of inspecting a rooted boot image, modifying the stock UEFI to run custom UEFI, editing the ACPI table, and patching plenty of other files. The result of all that is a Pixel Watch 3 with Windows PE. ↫ Taras Buria at Neowin More of this sort of nonsense, please. This is such a great idea, especially because its so utterly useless and pointless. However pointless it may be, though, it does show that Windows on ARM is remarkably flexible, as its been ported to a variety of ARM devices it should never be supposed to run on. With Microsofts renewed entry into the ARM world with Windows on ARM and Qualcomm, I wouldve hoped for more standardisation in the ARM space to bring it closer to the widely compatible world of x86. That, sadly, has not yet happened, and I doubt it ever will it seems like ARM is already too big of a fragmented mess to be consolidated for easy portability for operating systems. Instead, individual crazy awesome people have to manually port Windows to other ARM variants, and that, while cool projects, is kind of sad.
- FreeDOS: history, legacy, and a valuable resource for old machines
FreeDOS is a free and open‐source operating system designed to be compatible with MS‑DOS. Developed to keep the DOS experience alive even after Microsoft ended support for MS‑DOS, FreeDOS has grown into a complete environment that not only preserves classic DOS functionality but also introduces modern enhancements. Its simplicity and low resource requirements have made it a cherished resource for retro computing enthusiasts and a practical tool for embedded systems and legacy hardware. ↫ André Machado A short but useful overview of what FreeDOS is. One of my favourite stories about FreeDOS will always be not just that HP offered it as an option on some of its laptops supposedly because it couldnt sell laptops without an operating system preinstalled but also just how convoluted this preinstalled copy of FreeDOS was set up. They shipped several FreeDOS virtual machines on top of a minimal installation of Debian, in a complex web of operating systems and VMs.
- Nova Custom: this weeks sponsor
Nova Custom, based in The Netherlands, makes laptops focused on privacy, customisation, and freedom. Nova Custom laptops ship with either Linux, Windows, or no operating system, and theyre uniquely certified for Qubes OS (the V54 model will be certified soon), the ultra-secure and private operating system. On top of that, Nova Custom laptops come with Dasharo coreboot firmware preinstalled, which is completely open source, instead of a proprietary BIOS. Nova Custom can also disable the Intel Management Engine for you, and you can opt for Dasharo coreboot+Heads for the ultimate in boot security. Nova Custom offers visual customisations, too, including engraving a logo or text of your choice on the metal screen lid and/or palmrest and adding your own boot logo. They also offer privacy customisations like removing the microphone and webcam, installing a privacy screen, and more. A small touch I personally appreciate: Nova Custom offers a long, long list of keyboard layouts, as well as the option to customise the super key. Nova Custom products enjoy 3 years of warranty, as well as updates and spare parts for at least seven years after the launch of a product, which includes everything from motherboard replacements down to sets of screws. Nova Custom laptops can be configured with a wide variety of Intel processor options, as well as a choice between integrated Intel GPUs or Nvidia laptop GPUs. Thanks to Nova Custom for sponsoring OSNews!
- The 32bit RISC OS needs to be ported to 64bit to survive, seeks help
RISC OS, the operating system from the United Kingdom originally designed to run on Acorn Computers Archimedes computers the first ARM computers is still actively developed today. Especially since the introduction of the Raspberry Pi, new life was breathed into this ageing operating system, and it has gained quite a bit of steady momentum ever since, with tons of small updates, applications, and new hardware support, including things like support for wireless networking. This development has always been a bit piecemeal, though, and the pace has never been exceptionally fast. Now, though, time really is ticking for RISC OS: popular RISC OS platforms like the Raspberry Pi are moving to 64bit ARM only, and this poses a big problem for RISC OS: most of it is written in pure 32bit ARM assembly. As you can imagine, the supply of capable 32bit ARM boards is going to dwindle over the coming years, which would put RISC OS right back where it was before the launch of the Raspberry Pi: floundering, relying on old hardware. This is obviously not ideal, and as such, RISC OS Open Limited wants to take a big leap to address this. Since 2011, ROOL has successfully delivered dozens of community-funded improvements through its bounty scheme. While this model has enabled steady progress, it is not suited to the scale of work now required to modernise RISC OS. The Moonshots initiative represents a fundamental shift: focused, multi-year development projects undertaken by full-time engineers. The first Moonshot aims to make the RISC OS source code portable and compatible with 64-bit Arm platforms, a prerequisite for future hardware support. ROOL has already scoped the work, identified key milestones, and built cost models based on realistic employment and project management needs. ↫ Steve Revill in a ROOL press release Theyre going to need a dedicated team of several developers working over the course of several years to port RISC OS to 64bit ARM. Thats going to require quite a bit of money, manpower, and expertise, and considering ROOL has only collected about £100000 worth of donations over the past 14 years, I can see why theyre aiming to go big for this effort. All these giant technology corporations with trillion dollar stock valuations are currently relying on ARM technology, so youd think they could empty a few socks and cough up a few million to get this effort funded properly, but alas, we all know thats not going to happen. I hope ROOL can make this work. RISC OS is a ton of fun to use, and occupies a unique place in computing history. I would be incredibly sad to see technological progress leave it behind, when what amount to chump change for so many wealthy companies and individuals could save it.
- Microsoft makes it even harder to use a local account on Windows 11
Do you want to install Windows 11 without internet access or without an online Microsoft Account? It seems Microsoft really doesnt want you to, as it has removed a very common and popular way of bypassing this requirement. In the release notes for the latest builds from the Dev and Beta channels, the company notes: We’re removing the bypassnro.cmd script from the build to enhance security and user experience of Windows 11. This change ensures that all users exit setup with internet connectivity and a Microsoft Account. Let me blow your minds and state that I dont think online accounts for an operating system are inherently a bad idea. I would love it if I could install Fedora KDE on a new machine, optionally log into some online Fedora Account!, and have my customisations and applications synchronise automatically. It would save me some time and effort, and assuming its all properly encrypted and secured, I dont think the risk factors are particularly high. The keyword here is, of course, optionally. Microsoft wants every Windows 11 user to have a Microsoft Account instead of a local account, and would rather not make it optional at all. Of course, this is still Microsoft, a company wholly incapable of doing anything right when it comes to operating systems, so even making this script available again during installation is stupidly easy. It took a few nerds mere moments to discover you could just make some registry changes during installation, reboot, and have the script return to its rightful place. Oh Microsoft. Never change.
- Blue95: Fedora Atomic Xfce converted to a Windows 95 desktop
Blue95 is a modern and lightweight desktop experience that is reminiscent of a bygone era of computing. Based on Fedora Atomic Xfce with the Chicago95 theme. ↫ Blue95 GitHub page Exactly as it says on the tin. This is by far the easiest way to get the excellent Chigaco95 theme for Xfce set up and working in a polished way, and it also contains a few different application choices from the regular Fedora Xfce desktop to improve the illusion even further.
- Microsoft releases Windows 11 roadmap tool to help make sense of Windows 11s development
Ive complained about the utter inscrutability of the Windows release process for a long time, with Microsoft seemingly using channels, build numbers, code names, date-based version numbers, and so on interchangeably, making it incredibly hard to keep track of what is being released when. It turns out even Microsoft itself started losing track, because its now released a roadmap for Windows 11 development. In the roadmap tool of course its a tool you can select a platform, which isnt x86 or ARM, but Windows PC or Copilot+ PC, a version (23H2 or 24H2 for now), a status (In preview, Gradually rolling out, or Generally available), and a channel (Canary, Dev, Beta, or Retail), after which the roadmap tool will list whatever features match those criteria. Do you now see why people might want such a tool to keep track of what the hell is going on with Windows? Anyway, as the date-based version numbers 23H2 and 24H2 may already make clear, this seems more like a roadmap about where developments been than where developments going. The problem for Microsoft, of course, is that it maintains several different Windows variants with different feature sets and update schedules, and users, too, can of course opt to stick to certain versions before moving on. The end result is this spaghetti, which makes it hard to untangle when youre getting which feature. Anyway, if youre elbow-deep in the Windows spaghetti, this tool may be of use to you.
- US governments attack on free speech, science, and research is causing a brain drain
How do you create a brain drain and lose your status as eminent destination for scientists and researchers? The United States seems to be sending out questionnaires to researchers at universities and research institutes outside of the United States, asking them about their political leanings. Dutch universities are strongly advising Dutch researches not to respond to the questionnaires, and warn that they are designed to stifle free speech and independent research through intimidation. Universities of the Netherlands (UNL) has also warned researchers about the questionnaire. The USGS questionnaire asks, for example, whether the researcher’s organisation works with ‘entities associated with communist, socialist, or totalitarian parties’, whether the research project has taken ‘appropriate measures’ to ‘defend against gender ideology’ and whether the project has ‘measurable benefits for US domestic industries, workforce, or economic sectors’. ↫ Universiteit Leiden Researchers trying to enter the United States are also facing intimidation tactics, with the United States government going so far as to refuse entry to scientists critical of the Trump regime: A French scientist was denied entry to the US this month after immigration officers at an airport searched his phone and found messages in which he had expressed criticism of the Trump administration, said a French minister. “I learned with concern that a French researcher who was traveling to a conference near Houston was denied entry to the United States before being expelled,” Philippe Baptiste, France’s minister of higher education and research, said in a statement on Monday to Agence France-Presse published by Le Monde. ↫ Robert Mackey at the Guardian Being denied entry is one thing being arrested and sent to a string of prisons is another, like this Canadian woman: Our next stop was Arizona, the San Luis Regional Detention Center. The transfer process lasted 24 hours, a sleepless, grueling ordeal. This time, men were transported with us. Roughly 50 of us were crammed into a prison bus for the next five hours, packed together – women in the front, men in the back. We were bound in chains that wrapped tightly around our waists, with our cuffed hands secured to our bodies and shackles restraining our feet, forcing every movement into a slow, clinking struggle. ↫ Jasmine Mooney at the Guardian If youre a scientist or researcher planning on going to a conference in the US (or, say, a developer wanting to go to a tech conference), you should reconsider. Even if your papers are in order, you could end up on a plane to a concentration camp in El Salvador before you can even call a lawyer while being told that any judge standing up for your rights should be impeached. The United States war on free speech, science, and research goes far beyond intimidating individual scientists and researchers. The Trump regime is actively erasing and deleting entire fields of science, most notably anything involving things like climate and gender, and openly attacking and cutting funding to universities that disagree with the Trump regime. Almost immediately after being sworn in as president on 20 January, Trump put his signature to piles of executive orders cancelling or freezing tens of billions of dollars in funding for research and international assistance, and putting the seal on thousands of lay-offs. Orwellian restrictions have been placed on research, including bans on studies that mention particular words relating to sex and gender, race, disability and other protected characteristics. ↫ Nature US President Donald Trump’s latest war on the climate includes withdrawing support for any research that mentions the word. He has also launched a purge on government websites hosting climate data, in an apparent attempt to make the evidence disappear. ↫ Corey J. A. Bradshaw at The Conversation The Trump administration has fired hundreds of workers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa), the US’s pre-eminent climate research agency housed within the Department of Commerce, the Guardian has learned. “There is no plan or thought into how to continue to deliver science or service on weather, severe storms and events, conservation and management of our coasts and ocean life and much more,” he said. “Let’s not pretend this is about efficiency, quality of work or cost savings because none of those false justifications are remotely true.” ↫ Dharna Noor and Gabrielle Canon at the Guardian Intimidating current scientists isnt enough, either the scientists of the future must also suffer: US President Donald Trump has signed an executive orderto dismantle the Department of Education, fulfilling a campaign pledge and a long-cherished goal of some conservatives. In its statement, the American Federation of Teachers said: No-one likes bureaucracy, and everyones in favour of more efficiency, so lets find ways to accomplish that. But dont use a war on woke to attack the children living in poverty and the children with disabilities.! ↫ Ana Faguy at the BBC But what about intimidating university students who dont fall in line with the regime? Well, we cant forget about those, now, can we? After immigration agents detained Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil over his involvement in pro-Palestine protests on campus, President Donald Trump promised it was just the beginning. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has since arrested at least two more students who are in the country on visas — one of whom had recently sued the Trump administration on First Amendment grounds. ↫ Gaby Del Valle at The Verge A Cornell University PhD student earlier this month sued the Trump administration seeking to stop the president’s order aimed at foreign students accused of “antisemitism”. Days later, lawyers at the justice department emailed to request that the student “surrender” to immigration officials ↫ Maanvi Singh at the Guardian These are just a small selection of stories, and I couldve picked a dozen more still if I wanted to. The point should be squarely (roundly?) driven home by now: the United States government seems to be doing everything in its power to scare off the very people an economy based on science,
- KDE developers show off SDDM replacement
KDEs login manager, SDDM, has its share of problems, and as such, a number of KDE developers are working on replacement to fix many of these long-standing issues. So, what exactly is wrong with SDDM as it exists today? With SDDM, power management is reinvented from scratch with bespoke configuration. We cant integrate with Plasmas network management, power management, volume controls, or brightness controls without reinventing them in the desktop-agnostic backend. SDDM was already having to duplicate too much functionality we have in KDE, which was very frustrating when were left maintaining it. ↫ David Edmundson On top of that, theming is also a big issue with SDDM, as it doesnt adopt any of the existing Plasma themes, wallpapers, and so on, forcing users to manually makes thse changes for SDDM, and forcing theme developers to make custom themes just for SDDM instead of it just adopting Plasmas settings. The new login manager theyre working on will instead make use of existing Plasma components and be brought up like Plasma itself, too. For now, the SDDM replacement is roughly at feature parity with SDDM, but its by no means ready for widespread adoption by distributions or users. Developers interested in trying it out can do so, though, and as it mostly looks like the existing default SDDM setup, you wont even notice anything in day-to-day use.
- Google moves all Android development behind closed doors
Up until now, Google developed several components of Android out in the open, as part of AOSP, while developing everything else behind closed doors, only releasing the source code once the final new Android version was released. This meant that Google had to merge the two branches, which lead to problems and issues, so Google decided its now moving all development of Android behind closed doors. What will change is the frequency of public source code releases for specific Android components. Some components like the build system, update engine, Bluetooth stack, Virtualization framework, and SELinux configuration are currently AOSP-first, meaning they’re developed fully in public. Most Android components like the core OS framework are primarily developed internally, although some features, such as the unlocked-only storage area API, are still developed within AOSP. Beginning next week, all Android development will occur within Google’s internal branches, and the source code for changes will only be released when Google publishes a new branch containing those changes. As this is already the practice for most Android component changes, Google is simply consolidating its development efforts into a single branch. ↫ Mishaal Rahman at Android Authority This brings up a very old debate: if development happens entirely behind closed doors, with only the occasional code drop, is the software in question really open source? Technically, the answer is obviously yes theres no requirement that development take place in public. However, Im fairly sure that when most people think of open source, they think not only of occasionally throwing chunks of code over the proverbial corporate walls, but also of open development, where everybody is free to contribute, pipe in, and follow along. Clearly, this move makes Android more closed, not less so, and it follows in a long string of changes Google has made to Android that make it ever harder to consider AOSP, the Android Open Source Project, a capable, modern mobile operating system. The Android fork of the Linux kernel will always be properly open, of course, but I have my doubts Android in and of itself will remain open source in the narrow definition for much longer, and even if it does, you have to wonder how much value it will have. I mean, Darwin, the open source base underneath macOS and iOS, is technically open source, but nobody cares because Apple made it pretty much worthless in and of itself. Anything of value is stripped out and not only developed behind closed doors, but also not released as open source, ensuring Darwin is nothing but a curiosity we sometimes remember exists. Android could be heading in the same direction. My biggest worry are Android ROMs, most notably for me personally GrapheneOS. I honestly have no idea how this will impact such projects.
- How NixOS and reproducible builds could have detected the xz backdoor for the benefit of all
Some more light reading: While it was already established that the open source supply chain was often the target of malicious actors, what is stunning is the amount of energy invested by Jia Tan to gain the trust of the maintainer of the xz project, acquire push access to the repository and then among other perfectly legitimate contributions insert – piece by piece – the code for a very sophisticated and obfuscated backdoor. This should be a wake up call for the OSS community. We should consider the open source supply chain a high value target for powerful threat actors, and to collectively find countermeasures against such attacks. In this article, I’ll discuss the inner workings of the xz backdoor and how I think we could have mechanically detected it thanks to build reproducibility. ↫ Julien Malka Its a very detailed look at the situation and what Nix could to prevent it in the future.
- Playing multimedia with Dillo
What if you want to use a web browser like Dillo, which lacks JavaScript support and cant play audio or video inside the browser? Dillo doesnt have the capability to play audio or video directly from the browser, however it can easily offload this task to other programs. This page collects some examples of how to do watch videos and listen to audio tracks or podcasts by using an external player program. In particular we will cover mpv with yt-dlp which supports YouTube and Bandcamp among many other sites. ↫ Dillo website The way Dillo handles this feels very UNIX-y, in that it will call an external program mpv and yt-dlp, for instance to play a YouTube from an Open in mpv! option in the right-click menu for a link. Its nothing earth-shattering or revolutionary, of course, but I very much appreciate that Dillo bakes this functionality right in, allowing you to define any such actions and add them to the context menu.
- The seL4 microkernel: an introduction
This whitepaper provides an introduction to and overview of seL4. We explain what seL4 is (and is not) and explore its defining features. We explain what makes seL4 uniquely qualified as the operating-system kernel of choice for security- and safety-critical systems, and generally embedded and cyber-physical systems. In particular, we explain seL4’s assurance story, its security- and safety-relevant features, and its benchmark-setting performance. We also discuss typical usage scenarios, including incremental cyber retrofit of legacy systems. ↫ Gernot Heiser Some light reading for Monday.
- ReactOS 0.4.15 released
Its been over three years since the last ReactOS release, but today, in honour of the first commit to the project by the oldest, still active contributor, the project released ReactOS 0.4.15. Of course, theres been a steady stream of nightly releases, so its not like the project stalled or anything, but having a proper release is always nice to have. We are pleased to announce the release of ReactOS 0.4.15! This release offers Plug and Play fixes, audio fixes, memory management fixes, registry healing, improvements to accessories and system tools including Notepad, Paint, RAPPS, the Input Method Editor, and shell improvements. ↫ ReactOS 0.14.5 release announcement Theres a lot in this one, as the long gap between releases indicates. Thanks to the major changes in the plug and play subsystem of the kernel, ReactOS now supports more third party drivers, and it can now boot from USB and chipsets with EHCI, OHCI, and UHCI controllers. The open source AC’97 driver from the Windows Driver Kit has also been ported to ReactOS to enable sound on VirtualBox and old motherboards. The open source FAT driver from the same WDK has also been ported, which is a massive improvement over the old one. ReactOS can now also make use of custom IMEs, ZIP archive support has been integrated into the shell, and a new default visual style has been chosen. Theres a lot more in this release, though, and since it was branched over six months ago, there are a lot of improvements from since that time that are not yet part of this release, like a graphical installers, UEFI and SMP support, new NTFS driver, and a ton more. In other words dont let the long time between releases fool you; theres a lot going on in the ReactOS world.
- Nvidia Linux GPU driver ported to Haiku
Nvidia releasing its Linux graphics driver as open source is already bearing fruit for alternative operating systems. As many people already knows, Nvidia published their kernel driver under MIT license: GitHub NVIDIA/open-gpu-kernel-modules: NVIDIA Linux open GPU kernel module source (I will call it NVRM). This driver is very portable and its platform-independent part can be compiled for Haiku with minor effort (but it need to implement OS-specific binding code to be actually useful). This is very valuable for Haiku because Linux kernel GPU drivers are very hard to port and it heavily depends on Linux kernel internals. Unfortunately userland OpenGL/Vulkan driver source code is not published. But as part of Mesa 3D project, new Vulkan driver “NVK” is being developed and is functional already. Mesa NVK driver is using Nouveau as kernel driver, so it can’t be directly used with NVRM kernel driver. NVK source code provides platform abstraction that allows to implement support of other kernel drivers such as NVRM. I finally managed to make initial port NVRM kernel driver to Haiku and added initial NVRM API support to Mesa NVK Vulkan driver, so NVRM and NVK can work together. Some simple Vulkan tests are working. ↫ X512 on the Haiku forums Incredibly impressive, and a huge milestone for the Haiku operating system. It supports any Nvidia GPU from the Turing architecture, which I think means Nvidia RTX 20xx and newer, since they have a required microcontroller older GPUs do not have. Of course, this is an early port and a lot of work remains to be done, but it could lead to huge things for Haiku.
- SoftBank acquires Ampere Computing
SoftBank Group Corp. today announced that it will acquire Ampere Computing, a leading independent silicon design company, in an all-cash transaction valued at $6.5 billion. Under the terms of the agreement, Ampere will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of SoftBank Group and retain its name. As part of the transaction, Ampere’s lead investors – Carlyle and Oracle – are selling their respective positions in Ampere. ↫ SoftBank and Ampere Computing press release Despite not really knowing what SoftBank does and what their long-term goals are I doubt anyone does I hope this at the very least provides Ampere with the funds needed to expand its business. At this point, the only serious options for Arm-based hardware are either Apple or Qualcomm, and we could really use more players. Amperes hardware is impressive, but difficult to buy and expensive, and graphics card support is patchy, at best. What Ampere needs is more investment, and more OEMs picking up their chips. An Ampere workstation is incredibly high on my list of machines to test for OSNews (perhaps a System76 model?), and itd be great if economies of scale worked to bring the prices down, possibly allowing Ampere to developer cheaper, more affordable variants for us mere mortals, too. I would love to build an Arm workstation in much the same way we build regular x86 PCs today, but I feel like thats still far off. I have no idea if SoftBank is the right kind of company to make this possible, but one can dream.
- How to List Groups in Linux Like a Pro
by George Whittaker
In Linux, groups play a central role in managing user permissions and access control. Whether you're an experienced system administrator or a curious new user, understanding how to list and analyze group information is a fundamental skill. This guide explores everything you need to know about listing groups in Linux, using a variety of tools and techniques to get exactly the information you need.
What Are Groups in Linux and Why Do They Matter?
Linux is a multi-user operating system, and one of its strengths lies in the fine-grained control it offers over who can do what. Groups are a way to organize users so that multiple people can share access to files, devices, or system privileges.
Each group has:
A group name
A Group ID (GID)
A list of users who are members of the group
Types of Groups:
Primary group: Each user has one primary group defined in /etc/passwd. Files the user creates are associated with this group by default.
Secondary (or supplementary) groups: Users can belong to additional groups, which allow access to other resources.
How to List All Groups on a Linux System
To see every group that exists on the system, you can use the following methods:
getent group
getent group
This is the preferred method on modern systems because it queries the system’s name service switch configuration (NSS). It includes local and possibly remote group sources (like LDAP or NIS).
Example output:
sudo:x:27: docker:x:999:user1,user2 developers:x:1001:user3
cat /etc/group
cat /etc/group
This command prints the content of the /etc/group file, which is the local group database. It’s simple and fast, but it only shows local groups.
Each line is formatted as:
group_name:password_placeholder:GID:user1,user2,...
compgen -g (Bash built-in)
compgen -g
This command outputs only the group names, which is helpful for scripting or cleaner views.
How to List Groups for a Specific User
You might want to know which groups a particular user belongs to. Here’s how:
groups username
groups john
Outputs a space-separated list of groups that john belongs to. If no username is given, it shows groups for the current user.
id username
id alice
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- EU OS: A Bold Step Toward Digital Sovereignty for Europe
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A new initiative, called "EU OS," has been launched to develop a Linux-based operating system tailored specifically for the public sector organizations of the European Union (EU). This community-driven project aims to address the EU's unique needs and challenges, focusing on fostering digital sovereignty, reducing dependency on external vendors, and building a secure, self-sufficient digital ecosystem.
What Is EU OS?
EU OS is not an entirely novel operating system. Instead, it builds upon a Linux foundation derived from Fedora, with the KDE Plasma desktop environment. It draws inspiration from previous efforts such as France's GendBuntu and Munich's LiMux, which aimed to provide Linux-based systems for public sector use. The goal remains the same: to create a standardized Linux distribution that can be adapted to different regional, national, and sector-specific needs within the EU.
Rather than reinventing the wheel, EU OS focuses on standardization, offering a solid Linux foundation that can be customized according to the unique requirements of various organizations. This approach makes EU OS a practical choice for the public sector, ensuring broad compatibility and ease of implementation across diverse environments.
The Vision Behind EU OS
The guiding principle of EU OS is the concept of "public money – public code," ensuring that taxpayer money is used transparently and effectively. By adopting an open-source model, EU OS eliminates licensing fees, which not only lowers costs but also reduces the dependency on a select group of software vendors. This provides the EU’s public sector organizations with greater flexibility and control over their IT infrastructure, free from the constraints of vendor lock-in.
Additionally, EU OS offers flexibility in terms of software migration and hardware upgrades. Organizations can adapt to new technologies and manage their IT evolution at a manageable cost, both in terms of finances and time.
However, there are some concerns about the choice of Fedora as the base for EU OS. While Fedora is a solid and reliable distribution, it is backed by the United States-based Red Hat. Some argue that using European-backed projects such as openSUSE or KDE's upcoming distribution might have aligned better with the EU's goal of strengthening digital sovereignty.
Conclusion
EU OS marks a significant step towards Europe's digital independence by providing a robust, standardized Linux distribution for the public sector. By reducing reliance on proprietary software and vendors, it paves the way for a more flexible, cost-effective, and secure digital ecosystem. While the choice of Fedora as the base for the project has raised some questions, the overall vision of EU OS offers a promising future for Europe's public sector in the digital age.
Source: It's FOSS
European Union
- Linus Torvalds Acknowledges Missed Release of Linux 6.14 Due to Oversight
Linus Torvalds Acknowledges Missed Release of Linux 6.14 Due to Oversight
Linux kernel lead developer Linus Torvalds has admitted to forgetting to release version 6.14, attributing the oversight to his own lapse in memory. Torvalds is known for releasing new Linux kernel candidates and final versions on Sunday afternoons, typically accompanied by a post detailing the release. If he is unavailable due to travel or other commitments, he usually informs the community ahead of time, so users don’t worry if there’s a delay.
In his post on March 16, Torvalds gave no indication that the release might be delayed, instead stating, “I expect to release the final 6.14 next weekend unless something very surprising happens.” However, Sunday, March 23rd passed without any announcement.
On March 24th, Torvalds wrote in a follow-up message, “I’d love to have some good excuse for why I didn’t do the 6.14 release yesterday on my regular Sunday afternoon schedule,” adding, “But no. It’s just pure incompetence.” He further explained that while he had been clearing up unrelated tasks, he simply forgot to finalize the release. “D'oh,” he joked.
Despite this minor delay, Torvalds’ track record of successfully managing the Linux kernel’s development process over the years remains strong. A single day’s delay is not critical, especially since most Linux users don't urgently need the very latest version.
The new 6.14 release introduces several important features, including enhanced support for writing drivers in Rust—an ongoing topic of discussion among developers—support for Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite mobile chip, a fix for the GhostWrite vulnerability in certain RISC-V processors from Alibaba’s T-Head Semiconductor, and a completed NTSYNC driver update that improves the WINE emulator’s ability to run Windows applications, particularly games, on Linux.
Although the 6.14 release went smoothly aside from the delay, Torvalds expressed that version 6.15 may present more challenges due to the volume of pending pull requests. “Judging by my pending pile of pull requests, 6.15 will be much busier,” he noted.
You can download the latest kernel here.
Linus Torvalds kernel
- AerynOS 2025.03 Alpha Released with GNOME 48, Mesa 25, and Linux Kernel 6.13.8
Image
AerynOS 2025.03 has officially been released, introducing a variety of exciting features for Linux users. The release includes the highly anticipated GNOME 48 desktop environment, which comes with significant improvements like HDR support, dynamic triple buffering, and a Wayland color management protocol. Other updates include a battery charge limiting feature and a Wellbeing option aimed at improving user experience.
This release, while still in alpha, incorporates Linux kernel 6.13.8 and the updated Mesa 25.0.2 graphics stack, alongside tools like LLVM 19.1.7 and Vulkan SDK 1.4.309.0. Additionally, the Moss package manager now integrates os-info to generate more detailed OS metadata via a JSON file.
Future plans for AerynOS include automated package updates, easier rollback management, improved disk handling with Rust, and fractional scaling enabled by default. The installer has also been revamped to support full disk wipes and dynamic partitioning.
Although still considered an alpha release, AerynOS 2025.03 can be downloaded and tested right now from its official website.
Source: 9to5Linux
AerynOS
- Xojo 2025r1: Big Updates for Developers with Linux ARM Support, Web Drag and Drop, and Direct App Store Publishing
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Xojo has just rolled out its latest release, Xojo 2025 Release 1, and it’s packed with features that developers have been eagerly waiting for. This major update introduces support for running Xojo on Linux ARM, including Raspberry Pi, brings drag-and-drop functionality to the Web framework, and simplifies app deployment with the ability to directly submit apps to the macOS and iOS App Stores.
Here’s a quick overview of what’s new in Xojo 2025r1:
1. Linux ARM IDE Support
Xojo 2025r1 now allows developers to run the Xojo IDE on Linux ARM devices, including popular platforms like Raspberry Pi. This opens up a whole new world of possibilities for developers who want to create apps for ARM-based devices without the usual complexity. Whether you’re building for a Raspberry Pi or other ARM devices, this update makes it easier than ever to get started.
2. Web Drag and Drop
One of the standout features in this release is the addition of drag-and-drop support for web applications. Now, developers can easily drag and drop visual controls in their web projects, making it simpler to create interactive, user-friendly web applications. Plus, the WebListBox has been enhanced with support for editable cells, checkboxes, and row reordering via dragging. No JavaScript required!
3. Direct App Store Publishing
Xojo has also streamlined the process of publishing apps. With this update, developers can now directly submit macOS and iOS apps to App Store Connect right from the Xojo IDE. This eliminates the need for multiple steps and makes it much easier to get apps into the App Store, saving valuable time during the development process.
4. New Desktop and Mobile Features
This release isn’t just about web and Linux updates. Xojo 2025r1 brings some great improvements for desktop and mobile apps as well. On the desktop side, all projects now include a default window menu for macOS apps. On the mobile side, Xojo has introduced new features for Android and iOS, including support for ColorGroup and Dark Mode on Android, and a new MobileColorPicker for iOS to simplify color selection.
5. Performance and IDE Enhancements
Xojo’s IDE has also been improved in several key areas. There’s now an option to hide toolbar captions, and the toolbar has been made smaller on Windows. The IDE on Windows and Linux now features modern Bootstrap icons, and the Documentation window toolbar is more compact. In the code editor, developers can now quickly navigate to variable declarations with a simple Cmd/Ctrl + Double-click. Plus, performance for complex container layouts in the Layout Editor has been enhanced.
What Does This Mean for Developers?
Xojo 2025r1 brings significant improvements across all the platforms that Xojo supports, from desktop and mobile to web and Linux. The added Linux ARM support opens up new opportunities for Raspberry Pi and ARM-based device development, while the drag-and-drop functionality for web projects will make it easier to create modern, interactive web apps. The ability to publish directly to the App Store is a game-changer for macOS and iOS developers, reducing the friction of app distribution.
How to Get Started
Xojo is free for learning and development, as well as for building apps for Linux and Raspberry Pi. If you’re ready to dive into cross-platform development, paid licenses start at $99 for a single-platform desktop license, and $399 for cross-platform desktop, mobile, or web development. For professional developers who need additional resources and support, Xojo Pro and Pro Plus licenses start at $799. You can also find special pricing for educators and students.
Download Xojo 2025r1 today at xojo.com.
Final Thoughts
With each new release, Xojo continues to make cross-platform development more accessible and efficient. The 2025r1 release is no exception, delivering key updates that simplify the development process and open up new possibilities for developers working on a variety of platforms. Whether you’re a Raspberry Pi enthusiast or a mobile app developer, Xojo 2025r1 has something for you.
Xojo ARM
- The Future of Linux Software: Will Flatpak and Snap Replace Native Desktop Apps?
by George Whittaker
For decades, Linux distributions have relied on native packaging formats like DEB and RPM to distribute software. These formats are deeply integrated into the Linux ecosystem, tied closely to the distribution's package manager and system architecture. But over the last few years, two newer technologies—Flatpak and Snap—have emerged, promising a universal packaging model that could revolutionize Linux app distribution.
But are Flatpak and Snap destined to replace native Linux apps entirely? Or are they better seen as complementary solutions addressing long-standing pain points? In this article, we'll explore the origins, benefits, criticisms, adoption trends, and the future of these packaging formats in the Linux world.
Understanding the Packaging LandscapeWhat Are Native Packages?
Traditional Linux software is packaged using system-specific formats. For example:
.deb for Debian-based systems like Ubuntu and Linux Mint
.rpm for Red Hat-based systems like Fedora and CentOS
These packages are managed by package managers like apt, dnf, or pacman, depending on the distro. They're tightly integrated with the underlying operating system, often relying on a complex set of shared libraries and system-specific dependencies.
Pros of Native Packaging:
Smaller package sizes due to shared libraries
High performance and tight integration
Established infrastructure and tooling
Cons of Native Packaging:
Dependency hell: broken packages due to missing or incompatible libraries
Difficulty in distributing the same app across multiple distros
Developers must package and test separately for each distro
What Are Flatpak and Snap?
Both Flatpak and Snap aim to solve the distribution problem by allowing developers to package applications once and run them on any major Linux distribution.
Flatpak
Developed by the GNOME Foundation
Focus on sandboxing and user privacy
Applications are installed in user space (no root needed)
Uses Flathub as the main app repository
Flatpak applications include their own runtime, ensuring that they work consistently across different systems regardless of the host OS's libraries.
Snap
Developed and maintained by Canonical, the makers of Ubuntu
Focus on universal packaging and transactional updates
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- Boost Productivity with Custom Command Shortcuts Using Linux Aliases
by George Whittaker Introduction
Linux is a powerful operating system favored by developers, system administrators, and power users due to its flexibility and efficiency. However, frequently using long and complex commands can be tedious and error-prone. This is where aliases come into play.
Aliases allow users to create shortcuts for commonly used commands, reducing typing effort and improving workflow efficiency. By customizing commands with aliases, users can speed up tasks and tailor their terminal experience to suit their needs.
In this article, we'll explore how aliases work, the different types of aliases, and how to effectively manage and utilize them. Whether you're a beginner or an experienced Linux user, mastering aliases will significantly enhance your productivity.
What is an Alias in Linux?
An alias in Linux is a user-defined shortcut for a command or a sequence of commands. Instead of typing a long command every time, users can assign a simple keyword to execute it.
For example, the command:
ls -la
displays all files (including hidden ones) in long format. This can be shortened by creating an alias:
alias ll='ls -la'
Now, whenever the user types ll, it will execute ls -la.
Aliases help streamline command-line interactions, minimize errors, and speed up repetitive tasks.
Types of Aliases in Linux
There are two main types of aliases in Linux:
Temporary AliasesExist only during the current terminal session. Disappear once the terminal is closed or restarted.Permanent AliasesStored in shell configuration files (~/.bashrc, ~/.bash_profile, or ~/.zshrc). Persist across terminal sessions and system reboots.
Understanding the difference between temporary and permanent aliases is crucial for effective alias management.
Creating Temporary Aliases
Temporary aliases are quick to set up and useful for short-term tasks.
Syntax for Creating a Temporary Alias
alias alias_name='command_to_run'
Examples
Shortcut for ls -la:
alias ll='ls -la'
Quick access to git status:
alias gs='git status'
Updating system (for Debian-based systems):
alias update='sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y'
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- Essential Tools and Frameworks for Mastering Ethical Hacking on Linux
by George Whittaker Introduction
In today's digital world, cybersecurity threats are ever-growing, making ethical hacking and penetration testing crucial components of modern security practices. Ethical hacking involves legally testing systems, networks, and applications for vulnerabilities before malicious hackers can exploit them. Among the various operating systems available, Linux has established itself as the preferred choice for ethical hackers due to its flexibility, security, and extensive toolkit.
This article explores the most powerful ethical hacking tools and penetration testing frameworks available for Linux users, providing a guide to help ethical hackers and penetration testers enhance their skills and secure systems effectively.
Understanding Ethical Hacking and Penetration TestingWhat is Ethical Hacking?
Ethical hacking, also known as penetration testing, is the practice of assessing computer systems for security vulnerabilities. Unlike malicious hackers, ethical hackers follow legal and ethical guidelines to identify weaknesses before cybercriminals can exploit them.
Difference Between Ethical Hacking and Malicious HackingEthical Hacking Malicious Hacking Authorized and legal Unauthorized and illegal Aims to improve security Aims to exploit security flaws Conducted with consent Conducted without permission Reports vulnerabilities to system owners Exploits vulnerabilities for personal gain The Five Phases of Penetration Testing
Reconnaissance – Gathering information about the target system.
Scanning – Identifying active hosts, open ports, and vulnerabilities.
Exploitation – Attempting to breach the system using known vulnerabilities.
Privilege Escalation & Post-Exploitation – Gaining higher privileges and maintaining access.
Reporting & Remediation – Documenting findings and suggesting fixes.
Now, let's explore the essential tools used by ethical hackers and penetration testers.
Essential Ethical Hacking Tools for LinuxReconnaissance & Information Gathering
These tools help gather information about a target before launching an attack.
Nmap (Network Mapper) – A powerful tool for network scanning, host discovery, and port scanning.
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- Ubuntu Home Automation: Building a Smart Living Space with Open Source Tools
by George Whittaker Introduction
Home automation has transformed the way we interact with our living spaces, bringing convenience, security, and energy efficiency to our daily lives. From controlling lights and appliances remotely to monitoring security cameras and automating climate control, smart home technology has become increasingly accessible.
However, many commercial home automation systems come with limitations: high costs, privacy concerns, and restricted compatibility. Fortunately, open source software solutions, combined with the power of Ubuntu, offer an alternative—allowing users to create a customizable, cost-effective, and secure smart home ecosystem.
In this guide, we will explore how to set up a home automation system using Ubuntu and open source tools. Whether you're a tech enthusiast looking to build a DIY smart home or simply want more control over your automation setup, this article will provide a step-by-step approach to achieving a fully functional, open source smart living space.
Understanding Home Automation and Open SourceWhat is Home Automation?
Home automation refers to the integration of various smart devices, sensors, and appliances that can be remotely controlled or automated based on predefined conditions. The primary benefits of home automation include:
Convenience: Control lights, temperature, and appliances remotely. Energy Efficiency: Optimize power usage with smart thermostats and automation schedules. Security: Use smart locks, cameras, and motion detectors for enhanced safety. Customization: Tailor automation workflows to match your lifestyle.Why Choose Open Source Solutions?
While commercial smart home platforms such as Google Home, Amazon Alexa, and Apple HomeKit provide convenience, they often come with drawbacks:
Privacy concerns: Many proprietary systems collect and store user data. Device lock-in: Some platforms limit device compatibility. Subscription costs: Premium features often require ongoing payments.
With open source home automation, users can enjoy full control over their smart home environment while leveraging the flexibility, security, and community-driven innovation of open source software.
Essential Hardware for Ubuntu-Based Home Automation
Before diving into software, let’s discuss the necessary hardware components:
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- Building Immersive Virtual Realities with Ubuntu
by George Whittaker Introduction
Virtual Reality (VR) is one of the most revolutionary technologies of the 21st century. From entertainment and gaming to healthcare and education, VR has opened up new avenues for immersion, interaction, and engagement. By allowing users to step into virtual worlds, VR has the potential to reshape how we experience digital content.
When it comes to developing VR experiences, developers have a wide array of tools and platforms to choose from. However, in recent years, Ubuntu, a powerful, open-source Linux-based operating system, has emerged as an attractive option for VR development. Ubuntu Virtual Reality Studio, a suite of VR tools designed to run on Linux, allows developers to create immersive experiences with the flexibility, stability, and performance that Linux is known for.
In this article, we’ll dive into the core features of Ubuntu Virtual Reality Studio and explore how it empowers developers to create cutting-edge VR experiences. From the unique advantages of using Ubuntu for VR to the best tools for development, this guide will help you understand why Ubuntu is quickly becoming a go-to platform for VR creators.
What is Ubuntu Virtual Reality Studio?
Ubuntu Virtual Reality Studio is an ecosystem of software tools, libraries, and utilities tailored to creating Virtual Reality experiences on Ubuntu, a popular Linux-based operating system. It integrates a variety of open-source and proprietary VR tools to help developers design immersive environments, interactivity, and graphics rendering.
Ubuntu's strong performance, security, and compatibility with various VR hardware make it a powerful platform for VR development. The Virtual Reality Studio package enables developers to utilize Ubuntu’s open-source environment to create high-quality virtual experiences for everything from games to simulations and VR training modules.
Ubuntu Virtual Reality Studio provides a flexible, customizable platform, making it an ideal choice for both independent developers and large studios. It includes powerful graphics rendering APIs, integrated support for VR hardware, and compatibility with industry-standard VR engines.
Ubuntu’s Advantage in VR DevelopmentStability and Performance
One of the primary advantages of Ubuntu for VR development is the platform's stability. Linux-based systems, including Ubuntu, are known for their reliability, especially when running complex, resource-intensive applications like VR. For VR to function optimally, developers need a system that can handle large datasets, high frame rates, and real-time rendering without crashing. Ubuntu offers an environment with minimal bloatware, ensuring better performance and stability during development and testing.
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