Why NOT to Upgrade Your Linux System. Nathan Willis writes, over on NewsForge, "I'm not upgrading my Fedora Core 2 machine to Core 3, even though the new version has been out for a couple of months. There's not anything wrong with FC3 itself, it's just that system upgrades are both a blessing and a curse." Link via OSNews
True of every operating system out there, machines tend to build up cruft over a period of time, and a clean wipe-and-reinstall are called for. However, the incremental difference between FC2 and FC3 can be addressed by careful upgrades of only those applications you need, rather than a haphazard upgrade from one distribution to another, I think
6:33:38 PM comment []
A Journalism Giant Retires. Dan Gillmor's eJournal Notes "Bill Moyers has completed his last episode of NOW with Bill Moyers, a PBS program that looked in depth at critical issues... Moyers is a hero in journalism. He's not always right, but he's been asking the tough questions... He's been especially tough on the press, which in many ways has abdicated its public trust in recent years. We need more voices like his, not fewer."
6:29:21 PM comment []
Quick Review of OpenOffice 2.0 Preview Release. "The Sun-sponsored OpenOffice.org project based on open sourced StarOffice code has released a preview of the upcoming OpenOffice 2.0 product. This version touts better MS-Office loading and parsing, strict XML compliant output, a new database program that mimics Microsoft's Access, and much more. The Inquirer took it for a spin." Link via OSNews
The new version looks pretty sleek. Improved load times are welcomed. And I'll be interested in their OOBase, a database front end.
6:21:21 PM comment []
In one of his high-flying and far-ranging columns, Cringely offers his theory for the strategies and tactics of IBM's move to sell its PC business to Lenova, Microsoft's plans for xBox2 (is it true you need to develop the games on a G5-based Mac?), why Sun and Apple don't matter, and how Microsoft will take over the world:
With its continual need for more revenue, Microsoft will by then have already finished its destruction of the world software market, will have sucked all the profit out of the world hardware market, and will discard its hardware OEMs like HP and Dell and compete with them head-to-head.
Sometimes insightful, sometimes delusional, Cringely is always worth a quick read. And a large grain of salt.
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