After years of working with Linux and other open source software, Nigel Fortlage still calls himself a newbie -- albeit a "very much dedicated" newbie. Since his company first began using open source software eight years ago, Fortlage and his staff have not even considered going back to proprietary systems, even through upgrades and overhauls of the local area network and IT infrastructure.

Corporations spend billions building effective security protocols, but complacency and a desire for efficiency can soon lead to deviations from security protocols that workers gradually become accustomed to. The result is that small but potentially crippling holes develop in even the most effective systems, creating openings for attackers, including, potentially, insiders. Countering the insider threat requires a comprehensive, multi-tiered approach that includes physical controls, software access controls, and software protection/obfuscation.

Looking for an Adobe Photoshop replacement on Linux? If the GIMP doesn't cut it, maybe Pixel will.

As open source, especially Linux, makes its way into nearly every sector of the economy, one of the final frontiers is the military and aerospace market, where new applications must clear hurdles such as the FAA's rigorous DO-178B certification for aviation software. California-based LynuxWorks, developer of the LynxOS real time operating system and BlueCat Linux embedded distribution, has staked its future on the idea that open source and the military/aerospace market can not only coexist, but thrive together.

Invest Northern Ireland, an agency of the UK government, recently funded a whirlwind trip to Northern Ireland by a half dozen journalists in order to show and tell them about Northern Ireland's high-tech industry. In exchange for footing the bill, they hope to see stories favorable to the area to attract not only new high-tech investment, but offshoring work as well. I took advantage of the opportunity to get a better understanding of the state of Linux and free and open source software in Northern Ireland.

As the release of KDE 3.5 draws near, work is already underway at the Appeal project to integrate 3.5's major changes into the 4.0 series. Subprojects beneath Appeal's umbrella target simplified usability and progressive adjustments to the graphical user interface: The Tenor and Plasma projects will add functionality, while Oxygen and Coolness will enhance visual freshness.

After spending a year enhancing Berkeley DB, Sleepycat Software has released version 4.4.

You know how insecure 802.11x wireless networks are. In this article we'll create an OpenBSD-based secure wireless access point that prevents unauthorized access and encrypts every packet using a VPN tunnel. OpenBSD is one of the most secure operating systems available, is easy to use, and includes almost everything you need for this project in the base installation.

I'm that odd guy who puts Linux on virtually everything, and will take something apart just because I can. My Linksys WRT54G runs Talisman from Sveasoft, my iPaq runs Familiar, and even my TiVos (DirecTiVo and Series 2) have been hacked up a bit. So what does a guy like me use for software tools?

SAN DIEGO -- All good things must come to an end, and the 19th Large Installation System Administration Conference (LISA) is no exception. The conference wrapped up last Friday with a full slate of activities. At LISA, no matter how well you plan your schedule, the odds are good that you won't be able to attend all of the sessions that you're interested in.

Hardly a week goes by without Google introducing some new feature related to its search engine or email service. Google "hacks" are popular too, such as gmailfs, a mountable Linux file system that uses your Gmail account for storage, or simpler twists, such as Google cooking, where you "Google" your ingredients and the search engine delivers recipes. One of the latest hacks is G2G Share, a twist on traditional peer-to-peer networks. But the young creator of the service says he's not sure how long Google will allow it to remain active.

If you're new to Linux, the only the thing you may have to lead you along is the recommendations of those who already know about it. While Rickford Grant's book Linux Made Easy will help you set up Xandros 3 and give a spot-on tour of what you need to know, it's written for those who know far less about computers than they may think.

If you spend any time working at the shell, you probably use many GNU utilities. One thing that distinguishes the GNU versions from the classic Unix versions is that the GNU programs are rife with additional options. Some of these options are so useful you may want to create an alias so you can use them all the time without needing to do all the extra typing.

SAN DIEGO -- The second day of the LISA '05 Conference was full of interesting talks and after-hours sessions.

SAN DIEGO -- The second day of the LISA '05 Conference was full of interesting talks and after-hours sessions.

PHP has historically been a simple scripting language used for quickly developing small web sites with dynamic content. But newer features have given the language the structure and libraries for building larger applications. One such library is Smarty, a templating and presentation engine. Smarty helps developers build applications in modules by separating the presentation layer from the application code. This article covers some of the basic features of Smarty for developers.

PHP has historically been a simple scripting language used for quickly developing small web sites with dynamic content. But newer features have given the language the structure and libraries for building larger applications. One such library is Smarty, a templating and presentation engine. Smarty helps developers build applications in modules by separating the presentation layer from the application code. This article covers some of the basic features of Smarty for developers.

Microsoft and Google have engaged in a bit of role reversal when it comes to making it possible to search print books online. This time around, Microsoft and an open technology community are fighting against Google, a rival seen as aggressive, arrogant, and set on doing its own thing for the sake of its cause.

Microsoft and Google have engaged in a bit of role reversal when it comes to making it possible to search print books online. This time around, Microsoft and an open technology community are fighting against Google, a rival seen as aggressive, arrogant, and set on doing its own thing for the sake of its cause.

This week advisories were released for gdk-pixbuf, horde2, helix-player, Inkscape, horde2, Perl, Webmin, eagle-usb, spamassassin, mailman, xpdf, libc-client, and imap. The distributors include Debian, Gentoo, Mandriva, and Red Hat.