Ubuntu Security Notice another win for Linux.

What is that I say, a win for Linux? Look now that all the nay-sayers, pundits, and critics  have had a chance to chime in lets look at the big picture. The openssh vulnerability is not something to take lightly and I’m not it’s just I think allot of noise was made for something I think was handled much better than any Microsoft vulnerability ever has. Notifications were sent from multiple sources, Canonical made sure Launchpad was protected, and the forums (Ubuntu, Mint, Debian) went into over drive letting everyone know what to do. If it was a Debian based distribution it was made perfectly clear you needed to install the security updates. Friends, family, and colleagues let me know, my local Ubuntu LoCo, and other LUG’s were all over it too. Once it was known, the openssh vulnerability was  was fixed. I’ve never seen Microsoft handle anything they way this was. This issue did not make me think Linux was less of a system on the contrary I now know the decision to move to Linux was the right thing to do. Again it’s the community that really makes Linux shine, we care about each other, or at the very least Linuix users really do believe in if you scratch my back I’ll scratch yours. Yep, I’d call that a win.

Is Splashtop the future of computing?

So just what is Splashtop? It’s an embedded version of Linux that can be contained on a flash-based chip somewhere on the motherboard or on a special partition on your hard-drive.  The  goal is to have you up and doing things seconds after you push your power button.

Sounds like a great idea and it looks like ASUS is starting to ship motherboards with this technology today.

I sure wish they had a Live CD or something so we could play around with it. It really is a great idea, another one of those why didn’t I think of that products.

Back from vacation at Disney World and Tux Racer is all over.

So I’m back form vacation and what did I see Tux Racer at every Arcade in the Parks. That’s right an Arcade version of our favorite bird….and it sure was fun to play.

Does Trent Reznor get it? Or how to piss off the RIAA.

Well it’s been all over the place today the new Nine Inch Nails record the slip was made available by Trent Reznor, the creative force behind NIN made the post on dig himself after all. This is just the latest in high profile artiest (like radiohead) that have started to experiment in new forms of distribution for their works. Don’t forget you can still pick up free tracks from Trent’s work ghost as well. So is this guy out to change music distribution single handed, or has he just made all the money he needs and feels like thumbing his nose at the establishment. I mean come on this is NIN we’re talking about.

I’m not really sure where all this is going, I do know however that times are a changing and I’m sure not the first person to say this, but licensing like creative commons covers everything from books to movies and even graphic art. People still need to make money but they are doing it in new and creative ways. How we get paid for the products we produce will change. Will everything we own be covered in ads, will you get services along with your product, free music with that concert ticket that happens to be encoded holographic memory. Who knows. I’d say 90% of the software I use is open source, I pay for my use of open source software by promoting it with the zeal of an evangelist on the pulpit (and when I can a donation or two). I can see fans of NIN having more money to spend on tickets for that concert tour that was announced just a day before the release of the free record today, what can I say Trent sure knows how to market and piss off the RIAA.

Trent just encase you ever read this I like 1,000,000 and Discipline… Oh and thanks for the free music you rock.