Sean Michael Kerner

Building a Linux distribution can be a challenging process, especially when it comes to applications. Different Linux vendors use different packaging systems for application delivery, which can make distribution difficult for developers and software vendors. That’s where Novell’s openSUSE Build Service 1.0 comes into play. The offering aims to make it easier to build packages […]

From the ‘why get something for free when you can pay for it‘ files: Go to just about any open source conference and you’re bound to see free (as in Beer) Ubuntu Linux CDs being distributed. It’s also available for Free by simply downloading it online. Ubuntu also has a Free shipping service where they’ll […]

Yes I’ll admit that I’m a citizen of the Colbert Nation (that being the rabid fans of Comedy Central’s The Colbert Report). Colbert has long argued that anyone or thing that comes on his show gets a ‘bump’ in popularity. Now Mozilla has proved that the bump is real by looking at their server logs […]

It’s not often that multiple vendors are involved in a single security patch. Then again few technologies are as widely used or as critical as Domain Name System, or DNS , the core Internet protocol that translates domain names into IP addresses. Security researchers today sounded the alarm, warning DNS server users to update to […]

From the ‘2+2 =?‘ files: Mozilla is working on an effort to figure out a new way of measuring how secure Firefox actually is over a period of time. While I think on the surface that it’s a good idea I also have serious doubts about the value that the actual metric will have in […]

Linux distributions often live and die on the strength of their respective communities. Such is the case with the Gentoo Linux distribution, which canceled its last release in 2007 but has now emerged in 2008 with a new release. Tanned, rested and ready? Developers are hopeful that the 2008.0 release will put Gentoo back on […]

Ubuntu is out with its first update point release for its  ‘Hardy Heron’ (8.0.4) Linux distribution with the  8.0.4.1 release. The update comes just over two months after 8.0.4 was officially released. As is typical with Linux distribution point updates, the 8.0.4.1 release is really just a roll-up of updates that everyday Ubuntu users have […]

From the ‘just trying to do the right thing‘ files: Microsoft is apparently serious about its efforts to adhere to the letter of the Open Source Definition and is now set to relaunch its Sandcastle effort as a result. Nearly a month ago Microsoft pulled the Sandcastle project from its CodePlex site because it was […]

The U.S. government operates one of the largest technology infrastructures on Earth, and it’s all supposed to be IPv6-ready. At least, that was the plan. A three-year-old mandate for IPv6 usage, put into place by the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), went into effect June 30. That order required all government agencies […]

From the ‘I still use Firefox 2.x’ files: It has been over two weeks since Firefox 3.0 was released, but the vast majority of Firefox users are still on Firefox 2.x. Mozilla is out today with a new version Firefox 2.0.0.15 that fixes at least 12 different security issues four of them marked as critical. […]

From the ‘be afraid, be very afraid files‘: Regular readers of InternetNews.com know that browser vendors (Microsoft, Mozilla, Apple and Opera) routinely update their software in response to security vulnerabilities. But what about those that don’t update? According to new research published by Computer Engineering and Networks Laboratory (CSG), ETH Zurich, Google Switzerland GmbH, and […]

Linux vendor Linspire is being acquired by fellow vendor Xandros in a deal that will bring the two Debian-based distributions together. Xandros CEO Andreas Typaldos confirmed the deal in an e-mail to InternetNews.com today. The acquisition ends the independent run of Linspire, the company known formerly as Lindows, which had once proved a thorn in […]