That Bear is Seriously High on Eucalyptus

Koala looks like it’s going to be a nice release, I’m looking forward to the final version with all the various buglets and glitches I’ve encountered all cleaned up. For those of you who like to be on the bleeding edge, definitely give the beta a whirl.

Click Here to read the rest of this article at ZDNet Tech Broiler.

Cue “Eye of the Tiger” and the Jaunty Jackalope DVD

The fight of the century? GNOME vs. KDE , the two titans of the Linux desktop. Sure there are welter and lightweights that shouldn’t be ignored, such as XFCE, Enlightenment and GNUStep/WindowMaker, but let’s face it, it’s the two heavyweights that rule the roost on all of the desktop Linux distributions that are getting the lion’s share of attention, that being Ubuntu, Fedora, and openSUSE.

Click here to read the rest of this article on ZDNet Tech Broiler.

Geeko needs some Quality Assurance, Novell!

From a pure technical achievement, openSUSE 11.1 is at package parity with the best Linux distributions available — such as Fedora 10 and Ubuntu Intrepid Ibex 8.10. In many ways it’s more polished, as clearly it has a lot of customization work that went into it to make it well-integrated, but at the same time, the distribution still feels like it was designed for people who know what they are doing, not for regular end-users. By trying to be a Server, Developer, and end-user Desktop platform at the same time, its target audience remains unfocused and its scope is too big. It’s now the Linux equivalent of the Swiss Army knife with 50 separate tools in it.

Click to read the rest of this article on ZDNet Tech Broiler.

Jason on Computer America Radio

Last night I appeared as a guest on Craig Crossman’s Computer America syndicated radio program, courtesy of Linux Magazine. Inevitably, the conversation shifted to food — the great unifier of all geekdom.

Click to listen to the first hour (MP3 format)

Click to listen to the second hour (MP3 format)

I plan to return once a month to discuss Linux and all things Open Source. Hopefully, my voice modulation and radio decorum will improve with time!

Can Senior Citizens Use Linux?

An Ubuntu 7.10 Linux desktop, modified for a 71-year old grandparent.

What if you gave Ubuntu Linux to your 71 year-old Father-in-law?