Episode 066 – 9 Million Miles to Apophis
Podcast: Play in new window
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS
Downloads:
MP3 format (for Freedom Haters!)
OGG format (for Freedom Lovers!)
Total Running Time: 1:23:47
Un-edited Live session – http://youtu.be/6yIO4Vd-c7U
Contact Us:
show (at) smlr.us or the Contact us page
Summary
Kernel News: Mat
Time: 14:00
Distro Talk: Tony
Time: 17:25
Mary Distro Review
Time: 24:05
Tech News:
Time: 35:50
Is it Alive? – Mary
Time: 58:02
Listener Feedback
Time: 1:06:14
Mat’s Soapbox
Time: 1:12:27
Outtro Music
Time: 1:17:35
Intro:
Tony Bemus, Mat Enders, and Mary Tomich
Intro Sound bite by Mike Tanner
Kernel News: Mat
Time: 14:00
Kernel News
Release Candidate:
On Wed, 9 Jan 2013 19:21:23 PST
Linus Torvalds released kernel 3.8-rc3
Here is what he had to say about it:
“The holidays are over, and things are starting to get back to normal. Except for Greg, I suspect, who is probably still digging his way out of his email hole.
Anyway, another week, another -rc. A fairly normal-sized one. Most of the changes are in drivers, with the bulk of them being one-liners all over that just remove the last traces of __dev[init|exit]. But apart from that, there are real updates (GPU drivers stand out – mainly radeon and exynos), and some architecture work (arm, powerpc, mips, microblaze), filesystems (f2fs, gfs, cifs, nfs) and networking (netfilter and sunrpc).”
Mainline:
3.7
Stable Updates:
On Fri, 11 Jan 2013 10:13:16 PST
Greg Kroah-Hartman released kernel 3.7.2
With 140 files changed, 1279 lines inserted, and 748 lines deleted
On Fri, 11 Jan 2013 10:13:57 PST
Greg Kroah-Hartman released kernel 3.4.25
With 95 files changed, 992 lines inserted, and 486 lines deleted
On Fri, 11 Jan 2013 10:14:33 PST
Greg Kroah-Hartman released kernel 3.0.58
With 53 files changed, 406 lines inserted, and 154 lines deleted
Kernel Developer Quote:
“Ah, a real time operating system that supports USB and FAT for TI microcontrollers. Wait, I thought we already had one or two of those around here, for free, why would anyone want to create yet-another-operating-system?
So sad.”
–Greg Kroah-Hartmen
Distro Talk: Tony
Time: 17:25
- 1-6 –Chakra GNU/Linux 2013.01 – the fifth update of the project’s “Claire” series featuring the new KDE 4.9.5 desktop
- 1-7 – Fuduntu 2013.1 –
- 1-8 – Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.9 –
- 1-9 – OS4 13.2 “OpenDesktop” – Ubuntu-based Linux distribution with a customised Xfce desktop
- 1-10 – PelicanHPC 2.9 – Debian-based live DVD that makes it possible to set up high-performance computing clusters in minutes
- 1-11 – Tails 0.16 – Debian-based distribution with strong privacy and anonymity features while browsing the world wide web
- 1-12 – Untangle Gateway 9.4 – Debian-based network gateway with pluggable modules for network applications
Distro of the Week: Tony
- Bodi – 1633
- Fuduntu – 1658
- Ubuntu – 1762
- Mageia – 2159
- Mint – 3517
Mary Distro Review
Time: 24:05
No official distro review this week due to the short week, but I was able to check the newest version of Slax and successfully install on USB drive –and boot it successfully.
Tech News:
Time: 35:50
RHEL 5.9 Released
This marks the start of Production Phase 2. It reinforces Red Hat’s commitment to a 10-year lifecycle by introducing several new features which include, hardware enablement, security, standards and certifications, developer tools, virtualization, and more.
Vice President and General Manager of Red Hat’s Platform Business Unit, Jim Totton, had this to say about it:
“Our goal with each version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux is always to provide a highly flexible and extendable platform that continues to grow with the evolving needs of our customers, while allowing them to migrate to the next major release in their own timeframe. Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.9 is the perfect example of our commitment to providing customers with an extensive product lifecycle, one that strives to provide continued, unwavering support for today’s technologies and business needs.”
To download Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.9 visit here
For more information about Red Hat Enterprise Linux visit here
For more information about the Red Hat Enterprise Linux lifecycle visit here
Finally Fedora 18 Ready
The long awaited release of Fedora 18 is finally at hand. It was originally supposed to release in early November of 2012 but was delayed eight times. At the January 9th Go/No-Go meeting, it was decided that Fedora 18 is finally ready and will be available on 15 January. RC4 is likely to be the final release based on some final testing due to the late acceptance of bug #810040, a bug that causes it not to be able to be run in graphical mode when installed as a Xen guest. This will a short release cycle as Fedora 19, code named Schrödinger’s Cat, is planned for late May.
Major Java Zero Day In The Wild
An unpatched security hole in the most recent version of the Java framework is under attack, according to security researchers. Attack code exploiting the hole can be found in the following Black Hat exploit kits Blackhole, Cool, Nuclear Pack, and Redkit. Undesirables are useing these products to compromise websites to then quietly install keyloggers and other malicious software on unsuspecting visitors computers.
Kurt Baumgartner, Kaspersky Lab expert, had this to say:
“There appears to be multiple ad networks redirecting to Blackhole sites, amplifying the mass exploitation problem. We have seen ads from legitimate sites, especially in the UK, Brazil, and Russia, redirecting to domains hosting the current Blackhole implementation delivering the Java 0-day. These sites include weather sites, news sites, and of course, adult sites.”
Samba: Less Important Because Windows is Less Important
Super over abuse of the copyright system this clip is even mentioned by name by the US Copyright Office as an example of fair use.
“Buffy vs Edward” remix unfairly removed by Lionsgate
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/01/buffy-vs-edward-remix-unfairly-removed-by-lionsgate/
This is an excellent trick we use every day at work to assign up to 40 IP addresses to the same interface. You can assign as many as you want but at work the most we put on a machine is 40.
Configuring virtual network interfaces in Linux
http://how-to.linuxcareer.com/configuring-virtual-network-interfaces-in-linuxcareer
My plasma desktop meltdown…
Darpa Open Sources Code for Building Your Own Amphibious Tank
OK al you weekend DIYers– have I got the proejct for you! Build your own amphibious tank…
http://www.wired.com/wiredenterprise/2013/01/darpa-fang/
The Ubuntu smartphone (which no one will use) is a glimpse of the future
Ubuntu has long been a favorite Linux desktop operating system for open-source fanatics and those who like to tinker with their technology. Now it’s stepping out into a new frontier: mobile.
http://money.cnn.com/2013/01/02/technology/mobile/ubuntu-smartphone-linux/
Samba less important because Windows less important?
My Linux Book
It’s the name of a Linux-centric blog run by a team of Linux enthusiasts, as they call themselves. They wanted to share their knowledge of Linux andare committed to keeping this blog active and alive. According to the site, the name MyLinuxBook was chosen because they plan to fill this blog with so much Linux related information such that it symbolizes a big book on Linux which is open, free and accessible to everyone.
Debian Goodies
Small toolbox-style utility set for Debian and debian-based systems
apt-get install debian-goodies
dgrep – Search all files in specified packages for a regex
dglob – Generate a list of package names which match a pattern
.
These are also included, because they are useful and don’t justify
their own packages:
.
debget – Fetch a .deb for a package in APT’s database
dpigs – Show which installed packages occupy the most space
debman – Easily view man pages from a binary .deb without extracting
debmany – Select manpages of installed or uninstalled packages
checkrestart – Help to find and restart processes which are using old
versions of upgraded files (such as libraries)
popbugs – Display a customized release-critical bug list based on packages you use (using popularity-contest data) which-pkg-broke – find which package might have broken another
http://forums.debian.net/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=66545
http://www.serverwatch.com/tutorials/article.php/3936826/Get-to-Know-Debian-Goodies.htm
KDE
Workflow widget
This is an effort to create a KDE Plasmoid or KWin effect that integrates the main Activities, Virtual Desktops and Tasks Functionalities from Plasma Desktop in just one component.
The last stable version is 0.2.2 and you can find the following new features:
— window previews when the plasmoid is in the panel
— use the current activity’s icon in the panel (you can enable it from the configuration dialog)
— Tooltip for the plasmoid when used in the panel
— new zoom slide
http://opentoolsandspace.org/en/projects/development/plasmoid-workflow
Apper 0.8.0 Released
Apper 0.8.0, the KDE interface for PackageKit (aka KpackageKit), was released on January 8, 2014. Apper is able to manage packages, applications and updates in a cross-distribution way thanks to the PackageKit project. Providing Linux users a single application that they can learn and use in whatever distribution they are.
http://dantti.wordpress.com/2013/01/08/happy-new-apper-release-0-8-0/
http://kde-apps.org/content/show.php/Apper?content=84745
Internet Activist, a Creator of RSS, Is Dead at 26, Apparently a Suicide
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/13/technology/aaron-swartz-internet-activist-dies-at-26.html?_r=0
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5047325
Is it Alive (or is it Arch…)?
Time: 58:02
During this segment of the show, I challenge Mat and Tony to identify whether a Linux Distro is alive or dead? We twist the concept for this week’s show when I challenge Mat and Tony to decide if the named entity is or was derived from Arch. Extra credit will be given if Mat or Tony correctly guess whether the distro is alive or dead. The items for the January 12 show:
====================================
Foresight – Foresight Linux is a desktop operating system, based on rPath Linux, featuring an intuitive user interface and showcasing the latest desktop software.
http://www.foresightlinux.org/
MAT: 0
TONY: 2
VERDICT: No, Alive
====================================
CrunchBang – CrunchBang Linux is an Debian-based distribution featuring the light-weight Openbox window manager and GTK+ applications. The distribution has been built from a minimal Debian system and customised to offer a good balance of speed and functionality
http://crunchbang.org/
MAT: 0
TONY: 0
VERDICT: No, Alive
===================================
KahelOS is a Linux distribution based on Arch Linux. Its desktop edition comes with pre-configured GNOME as the default desktop environment, GNOME Office productivity suite, Epiphany web browser, GIMP image manipulation program, and other popular GTK+ and GNOME applications
MAT: 1
TONY: 1
VERDICT: Yes, Alive
===================================
Firefly Linux was a lightweight operating system designed with netbooks in mind. Based on Arch Linux, it came with the small and fast LXDE desktop environment, many popular applications, and out-of-the-box support for wireless networks, sound cards and graphics cards.
MAT: 2
TONY: 0
VERDICT Yes, DEAD
===================================
Draco Linux is an independently developed GNU/Linux distribution for i486 compatible computers, with focus on simplicity and flexibility.
http://dracolinux.sourceforge.net/
MAT: 0
TONY: 1
VERDICT: No, Alive
===================================
Parabola GNU/Linux is an unofficial “libre” variant of Arch Linux. It aims to provide a fully free (as in freedom) distribution based on the packages of the Arch Linux project, with packages optimised for i686 and x86_64 processors.
https://parabolagnulinux.org/
MAT: 0
TONY: 2
VERDICT: Yes, Alive
===================================
Mat: 3
Tony: 6
Listener Feedback:
show (at) smlr.us or 313-626-9140
Time: 1:06:14
Mat’s Soapbox
Time: 1:12:27
Outtro Music
Time: 1:17:35
This content is published under the Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.