EVIATING from the a development branch, thus staying away from the regular updates cycle, is a step which is bound to have its problems, e.g. security and missed out extensions. I am fully aware of these issues and I made mistakes in the past nonetheless, particularly with Web applications. I am rather confident and comfortable with my choices to extend applications, but one must remember the pitfalls, as well as the very few advantages.

Rather than simply downloading pre-installed and/or pre-configured packages like Gallery, WordPress, a VPN client or PHP-Nuke, one can add a wee bit of ‘individuality’ to them. For example, with actual words and vocabularies that do not suit your way of speaking, you can instill some personality within the software — a beauty to be found most commonly in Open Source software. It gives a feeling of ownership, a sense of personal contribution.

Linux users are often inclined to hack software and customise it, maybe because they can. With some Linux distributions like Gentoo, people struggle to compile individual components and some have the odd habit of re-compiling the Linux kernel. Again, it gives an utterly unnecessary sense of achievement. That free platform, however, unlike other platforms, can be claimed to be one where very little intervention should be involved. With 5-CD installations, for instance, all the necessary software is in place, is well-integrated and simply works without any apparent conflicts. Somebody else took care of all the nasty installations and then burned some ISO to be distributed and put as-is on other people’s computers. So, we perceive a situation where there is a great deal of freedom, but at the same time that freedom is unneeded or even discouraged.

Change to existing packages is risky. It can bring an application to a fragile state. Attempts to exploit vulnerable (usually non-existent if the owner is fortunate) components are being re-directed to an unpleasant page at server level on this domain. I hope these can successfully deter a determined hacker. The only ones to come across such a page would be those attempting to sabotage (hence the rel="nofollow" in the link above).

When forking and choosing to no longer follow a development cycle, there is always some possibility of ‘flushing’ self-made components and starting fresh with similar, even identical data and an application belonging to the current generation, hence incorporating state-of-the-art technologies. Upgrades usually mean some loss of personal changes which are better off never lost. This may lead to feelings of regret due to waste. It also means hours of conversions, not to mention the laborious process that is involved in updates and getting accustomed to new interfaces. As it stands, I continue to fork, but do so cautiously.

I am still on vacation, but I would be sad to see the blog remaining static. The following are a few pointers that I have accumulated in recent days:

• Linux tablet – running fully-featured Linux on a modern tablet PC
• $100 laptop prototype – a proposal from MIT
• Why would a Linux device be as capable (or more) as any other platform which is expensive and bound to restrictions? See the Slashdot roundup of Web applications. The collection of links therein is makes an excellent proof of the emergence of AJAX in several major aspects of work, e.g. scheduling and spreadsheets. I mentioned this as a future possibility a few days ago and wrote a long essay about it on the plane just a day before coming across the item from Slashdot.

Did you know there was AJAX word processor, AJAX spreadsheet, AJAX calendar, AJAX presentation-building software, AJAX e-mail client, AJAX note-taking software and some other interesting applications, which, deployed on your local server, do not need installation and “just work” in a browser window?

S Palm form an alliance for their smart phone with their former rival Microsoft, many perceive the step as a damaging one to the Open Source community or advocates of open standards and inter-operability. Microsoft are already strutting about, showing off in their front page a Palm device while labelling it “Windows-powered” (a segment of the image is shown below). This image looks rather offensive since they go a rather long way in order to pass across the message: “the enemy is ours”. Sadly, Palm do similarly in their front page; maybe a reciprocal exchange?

This aggressive attitude is by all means nothing new. It comes after a great deal of trouble and distress at Microsoft. Windows Vista, for example, needed to be-built from scratch and there was recent loss of government support and trust, which in turn opted to move to OpenDocument. So, that “incompetent-at-best” move from Palm gives Microsoft a small victory among the many recent losses, ‘Google threat’ being the most prominent one.

How can Palm live with the shame? (from Microsoft’s front page)

In UseNet, several threads come up with misleading subject lines insinuating a complete Palm migration to Windows, which is evidently false. Then again, when will Palm complete their promised move to Linux? Is the recent Access-Palm takeover going to have an effect on strategic alliances? What if Palm carried on with Windows for their smart phones, as well as Linux in tandem, primarily for older-generation devices?

Looking at the users’ side, how would smart phone owners, whose data has been stored in line with Palm’s conventions, synchronise their data with a Mac or a Linux machine? Are they supposed to be swayed to change their desktop environments because of a PDA?

This move by Palm left me bitter and I am not alone in feeling somewhat betrayed. I came to witness a platform which I voluntarily supported (assisting many hundreds, if not thousands, of Palm users in UseNet) as it gave strength to an opponent — an opponent whose purpose is to destroy and cripple anything that is not Microsoft. I am beginning to investigate a migration to the Zaurus after many years of sticking and evangelising Palm. I truly hope that Palm prove that their commitment to Linux is true, thus keeping me ‘on board’. They will need to do that soon enough, or else rumours will grow wings and suggest that Palm(One) have become merely a hardware vendor and that PalmSource are history.

Cited by: PalmAddict

Bill Gates arrested in his younger days (photo in public domain)

As previously discussed, the admirable state of Massachusetts is able to recognise problems with closed applications and proprietary formats. It is now confirmed that Massachusetts will carry on and dispose of Office in a staged migration to OpenDocument, culminating in 2007.

With Microsoft’s OpenOffice XML the loser to OpenDocument in Massachusetts, the war of desktop formats is likely to spread to other governmental bodies, says one participant in the deliberations who sees the decision as a tipping point.

“In many ways it becomes circular,” said Doug Heintzman of IBM in an interview Friday. “It emboldens other entities. We are on the cusp of a big change.”

Immense perseverance at Microsoft did not help avoid this key loss of the Massachusetts ‘flagship’. Awakened interest in Linux recently emerged among African governments as well. Only last week, South Africa wished to ditch proprietary and get rid of hundreds of millions (USD) worth of licences. All the same, it is still worth reading the open letter from the KDE team to Microsoft.

Is this the beginning of the end for Office proprietary?

recently came across a fantastic Linux-based, pocket-sized machine which boasts several desireable features. The name of the device is the GP2X. It has a dual CPU and a 720×480 pixels display. It is capable of running games such as Quake, play music, and store photos, among other things. Overall, it sounds very promising and goes for the price of 125 British pounds (approximately $190).

As Palm have decided to migrate to Linux, I can’t wait to see what they have in store.

There has been a fair bit of fuss about Microsoft’s use of Open Source software. In the past few days, I have come across numerous articles describing how Windows relied on some BSD network components in the early nineties. Above all, the incorporation of Open Source software for Message Passing Interface (MPI) in their server software makes many among the Open Source community bitter.

In a move that shows just how far Microsoft Corp. has come, and how pervasive open-source software is in certain areas, the software powerhouse is, for the first time, including open-source technology in one of its shipping products.

Related item: Software Communists – referring to software patents

That’ll keep everyone away for a few hours

O anyone who wonders why I have not posted in 24 hours or so, I am working on a new Mandrake Linux machine at home (photo). The work primarily involves setup, customisation and data migration. The nature of my ‘disappearance’ is symbolised by the amusing picture above.

I have been settings everything up so that I can seamlessly work from all locations, including a Ubuntu machine (photo) at work and the SuSE machine (photo #1, photo #2)¹ at the University. In this state of affairs, I can handle data quite uniformly, keeping files and settings in a single place. I also need to work on installing some peripherals like scanner, digital camera and a Palm handheld. Linux on the desktop has made so much progress recently. Installation is, quite frankly, easier than that of Windows, assuming no prior experience with Windows. It is no wonder that Dell is beginning to ship pre-installed Linux machines, much as I predicted a several days ago and also mentioned briefly some months ago.

¹ I’d post pictures of my children when I am old enough to have a family. In the mean time, may computers be equivalent to kids ? I’ll take the risk making that perverse ,very sarcastic statement!