Jim Lynch: Off the Top of My Head…

New release of a popular distro.
MEPIS has begun shipping the SimplyMEPIS 3.3 bootable CD. SimplyMEPIS offers a Linux that is easy to install and use. It should appeal to the beginner and expert alike. … By popular demand, the synaptic package manager is now recommended for new users. Also new in 3.3, SimplyMEPIS has introduced [...]

Very cool. I actually saw Gentoo running on a Mac mini at Linux World so it definitely can be done.

Apple’s Mac Mini is something which a lot of Linux users have been waiting for: An inexpensive, readily available PowerPC system in a small, quiet and attractive chassis.
Debian is very popular on Intel [...]

Haven’t used it but it might be worth checking out.
Zen Linux is a bootable LiveCD distribution. More than that it is a 100% compatible Debian installer. It boasts easy remastering for creating your own personalized versions. Most configuration is done automatically upon boot and requires no user interaction, things “just work”.

Good article by the CTZ about Linux gaming.
I think they cover most of the issues related to the current state of Linux gaming. After buying World of Warcraft for my powermac, I’m of the mind that I’d like to see all games have Linux/Mac/Windows clients all on one disc. WOW has the Windows and [...]

My review of Xandros 3 for PCMag is up. It’s a slightly abbreviated version of the one I did for ET.
Xandros Desktop OS makes the transition from Windows to Linux easy. This release includes an updated KDE desktop, updated applications, an easy-to-use VPN, and a firewall wizard designed to let users easily connect to [...]

New beta of gnoppix is out, I haven’t tried it yet though. I’m tempted to though, I may snag the PPC version and see how well it runs on my powermac.

The Gnoppix project presents the first beta of version 0.9.90 b1 of the Gnoppix linux live cd. Developers can be download the PowerPC, AMD64 [...]

Well if Microsoft is saying it, it must be true. :roll:
Nick McGrath, head of platform strategy for Microsoft in the UK, said that the myths surrounding the open source operating system are rapidly being exploded, and that customers are dismissing Linux as too immature to cope with mission-critical computing.
“The biggest challenge we need to face [...]

Bwahahaha! The guys at NewsForge have waaaaaaaaaay too much time on their hands! Priceless!

Out of the five Windows viruses I ran under Wine, not a single one was able to send email and propagate itself. When I went out of my way to be part of the Windows community by doing my part [...]

Interesting thread over at Slashdot, started by a Linux user interested in running BSD.
We got a similar question over at the ET forum not too long ago. Check it out if you’re interested in running BSD but haven’t gotten your feet wet with it before.

bargainPDA has a review. Looks like a slick machine. Too bad it won’t be released here in the US.
:cry:
I’ve been wanting to replace my Windows based Pocket PC for a while but, unfortunately, I need Avantgo and it only is available for Windows or Palm. And I’m too skeptical about Palm right now to really [...]

Good stuff.

Good review if you’re interested in using a Gentoo based distribution that’s easier to install than vanilla gentoo. Also check out the screenshots of Vidalinux in action.
I was going to do a review of this distro for ET but I’m waiting for it to mature a bit before I do. I was disappointed with an [...]

It’s actually ten ways to pay back the open source community but I like my title better.

You run GNU/Linux. You play games on it, surf the Net, write documents, and edit pictures, and all for free, thanks to the multitudes around the world who contribute to the open source movement. Now it’s payback [...]

Good review of the distrowatch site. If you need information on a particular linux distribution, distrowatch is an invaluable resource. Check it out if you haven’t visited it already.

My review of the new Xandros Linux is up on ExtremeTech now.
We frequently get the same question from our readers in the ExtremeTech forum: I want to get rid of Windows, so which Linux distribution should I try? Now we have a definite answer: Get Xandros. With the release of version 3, the Xandros [...]

It’s out if you’re interested. You can download it here.
Here’s some of what you get:
Linux Kernel 2.6.8 (and various fixes from 2.6.9rc)
Xorg 6.7.0
KDE 3.2.3
GNOME 2.6
Glibc 2.3.3, GCC 3.4.1
Apache 2.0.50, PHP 4.3.8
MySQL 4.0.18, Samba 3.0.6
Mozilla 1.7.2, GIMP 2.0.4
OpenOffice.org 1.1.3
More details on the features are available here.

For you brave souls out there, here are instructions on how to upgrade your Ubuntu Linux system to the latest, unstable release.
I don’t recommend that you do this but if you must, you now know how to do it.
Good luck! :mrgreen:

Ken Barber has some positive thoughts about Fedora Core 3.
If I were a movie reviewer, I would give FC3 a thumbs-up. It is a solid release with few problems, and most of those are specific to certain hardware. Its ease of installation and package management system make it an excellent choice for newbies who [...]

Ziff has bought DesktopLinux.com and a number of other sites in a recent acquisition. Very cool, glad the company will own more Linux related properties.

Wow. I envy him being able to play with that sucker! :shock:

The Zaurus SL-C3000 is one cool looking gadget. I fell a bit in love with it. White plastic and silver/chrome elements. The whole look is very iPod, a great look for a PDA. The twisting screen is great, but not new for [...]