Skip to Content

Submit your nominations for the Luxist Awards' Best in Decor
AOL Tech

Free Software Foundation posts

Filed under: Linux, Open Source

FSF-approved Trisquel Linux shows free software can stand on its own merits

Getting on the Free Software Foundation's page of acceptable Linux distros isn't the easiest task in the world. Stallman and Co. have very particular requirements about what can and can't be included. A first glance at the page might put you off -- there aren't any big name distros like Ubuntu, Suse, or Fedora.

Trisquel, however, is definitely worth a closer look. It's Ubuntu-based and ships with an excellent (and familiar) group of core apps - Firefox, Evolution, Pidgin, Transmission, OpenOffice, GIMP, Brasero, and several others - Elisa media center is even included. A liveUSB disk creator is also provided so you can easily roll your own portable Trisquel remaster. As per the FSF mandate, everything in the ISO is 100% free.

The distribution just reached version 3.0. A light version is also in the works and is set to drop in a few days. It will feature the XFCE desktop environment and lightweight apps like Epiphany, Sylpheed, and Abiword.

Even if you're not an adamant FOSS advocate, Trisquel is a solid Linux distribution and well worth taking for a test drive.

Filed under: Microsoft, Open Source, Op-Ed

Free Software Foundation throwing a hissy fit over Windows 7

Windows 7 SinsThe open source zealots over at the Free Software Foundation have left us here at Download Squad slightly speechless over a press release dropped in our never-ending pile of random crap from around the Internet. It would appear the FSF is pulling out all the stops in their new campaign (read: crusade) entitled Windows 7 Sins.

The folks over at the FSF have been known for some time now for their stances against proprietary and closed-source software. Their pent-up frustration toward large software companies has generally been channeled by pumping out lines of code and creating resources for free, open-source projects that provide alternatives to the payware already on the market. These free software initiatives are generally good for two things; providing software for people that don't need all the features and polish included in most commercial software packages, and keeping the open-source zealots occupied with relatively harmless work.

Occasionally, however, the zealots manage to escape their cages and enter the real world.

More after the break.

Read more →

Filed under: Business, News, Linux, Office, Open Source

HP - Linux for the desktop tipping point?


Well, it seems HP's order fulfillment for enterprise Linux desktop systems is so massive, (multi-thousand units) they are considering offering factory loaded Linux on PC's. The numbers may represent a trend that market demand and mainstream acceptance of Linux is here.

We previously reported evidence of this when the number one consumer comment on Dell's Idea Storm website was having Linux pre-installed on Dell PC's. Dell launched Idea Storm to get consumer feedback to help get its sales back on course.

Clearly, HP is attuned to the market demand for open source and attributes $25 million in hardware sales for its support of the Debian distribution in its Europe, Middle East and African market, (see HP: Debian Cha Ching!). It's never been a question of when brand name PC's come pre-loaded with Linux, but more a question of who will be the first to lead the way.

Read more →

Filed under: Windows, Macintosh, Linux, Apple, Microsoft, Open Source

Interview with DefectiveByDesign on TDMW

DefectiveByDesign protests at the Apple Store in Boston, MAThe Haz-Mat suited activists of DefectiveByDesign gained quite a bit of exposure when they waltzed into Apple stores across the country carrying signs and informing customers about the rights they give up when buying DRM controlled music from the iTunes Music Store.

Our sister site, The Digital Music Weblog (she prefers to be called TDMW for short) caught up with the crafty folks at DefectiveByDesign for an interview about Digital Rights Management. DefectiveByDesign is an offshoot of the Free Software Foundation, the non-profit organization that maintains and defends the GNU General Public License, better known for providing the legal framework under which the myriad Linux distributions exist.

If you have any concerns about your rights in a digitally encoded future, you should read this interview. The folks at DefectiveByDesign aren't alone when they predict a bleak digital landscape ahead, where the content providers and device manufacturers are able to lock you in, and keep you from buying competing products by holding your media hostage.

Featured Time Waster

The World's Hardest Game 2.0 - Time Waster

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do. Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game. The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

View more Time Wasters

Featured Galleries

Defective by Design, London: Protest Pictures
Livescribe Store
Microsoft Security Essentials
Chromium Pre-Alpha on CrunchBang Linux
Safari 4 Beta
10 Firefox themes that don't suck
IE8 RC1
Download Squad at the Crunchies After-Party
Download Squad at the Crunchies
WordPress 2.7
Cooking Mama: Mama Kills Animals
Windows 7 Hands On
Comodo Internet Security
Android First-look: Amazon.com MP3 Store
Android First-look: Twitroid
Google Reader Android
Android Hands-On
Twine 1.0
Photoshop Express Beta
Mozilla Birthday Cake
Palm stuff

 


Follow us on Twitter!

Flickr Pool

www.flickr.com

More Tech Coverage

AOL Radio