September 21, 2012
by sjvn01
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Ubuntu Linux adopts new UEFI boot problem approach

Windows 8 PCs will come with Microsoft’s UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) Secure Boot. This “feature” will make it much harder to boot Linux or other operating systems. Canonical, Ubuntu Linux’s parent company, is going to take a new approach to address this problem.

When Canonical first announced its plan on dealing with Microsoft’s Secure Boot in the next version of Ubuntu, 12.10, it ran into objections from the Fedora Linux developers and the Free Software Foundation (FSF). In an ideal world, the FSF wants PC vendors to not let users be locked in by Microsoft’s Secure Boot.

Failing that, the FSF dislikes both Fedora and Ubuntu’s plans on how to deal with Secure Boot because both require that a user trust in a Microsoft-generated key. With Ubuntu, the FSF also opposed Ubuntu dropping the Grub 2 bootloader “on Secure Boot systems, in favor of another bootloader.” A bootloader is the program that lets you boot your system and, if you have multiple operating systems, choose which one to boot.

Ubuntu Linux adopts new UEFI boot problem approach. More >

September 20, 2012
by sjvn01
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What went wrong with iOS 6 Wi-Fi

Yesterday was a big day for Apple iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad fans. The latest and greatest version of iOS 6, the operating system for late model Apple devices, was out. Millions of eager users upgraded… and then their Wi-Fi failed. What went wrong?

It was ironic. The update itself went amazingly well for many users. IOS 6 also fixed many security problems. And, most users were very happy with this update. Well, except for the ones that couldn’t connect with the Internet. They were none too happy.

Fortunately for them, Apple was able to quick fix the problem.

So what happened? A network configuration blunder? Some glitch in the code itself? Something odd in the IOS 6 default Wi-Fi setting? No, no, and no.

The problem turned out to be that when you turned your device on and you tried to connect with a Wi-Fi network, the first thing iOS 6 did was to try to connect to an Apple Web page. All that page does is return the word, “Success.” If the device couldn’t reach that page, it returned a 404 error. The Wi-Fi connection routine then presumed you must be behind a login page for a public or corporate Wi-Fi network, say your local coffee-shop or your office, and it then allowed the local login page to load.

What went wrong with iOS 6 Wi-Fi. More >

September 19, 2012
by sjvn01
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Red Hat plans to do for OpenStack what it did for Linux

In 2002, Linux was on its way to becoming a major business operating system, but it wasn’t there yet. Then, Red Hat dedicated itself to make Linux an enterprise operating system. Ten years later Red Hat was the first billion dollar pure play open-source company. Today, Red Hat announced a similar plan for the OpenStack cloud.

Just as with Linux, Red Hat knows there’s no way it can make OpenStack the de facto cloud software of choice for the enterprise by itself. In a blog posting, Red Hat’s OpenStack team wrote, “A huge community is contributing to OpenStack. More than 180 participating companies and 400 contributing developers have produced six software releases in just a little over two years. Some organizations will choose to leverage all that innovation directly by implementing, testing, patching and supporting community releases on their own.”

Others, such as Boris Renski of Mirantis, a major OpenStack system integrator, worry that new OpenStack member VMware will undermine OpenStack. Red Hat certainly has no love for VMware. In 2011, Red Hat declared VMware its biggest enemy. But, Red Hat isn’t worried. It has faith both in OpenStack and its plan on how to turn it into a profitable business as well as great software.

Red Hat plans to do for OpenStack what it did for Linux. More >

September 19, 2012
by sjvn01
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The high price of connecting with an Apple iPhone 5

While I prefer Android smartphones and tablets, I also like my iPod Touch and iPads. Like many iFans, I also own a variety of devices that work with them: a car FM radio adapter, a clock radio, and an attachment for my stereo system. I’d think about buying an Apple iPhone 5 except not a single one of those devices can work with the iPhone’s new Lightning interface.

Don’t take my word for it. David Pogue of the New York Times, the biggest Apple fan this side of Daring Fireball’s John Gruber, wrote: the “decade-old iPhone/iPad/iPod charging connector is everywhere: cars, clocks, speakers, docks, even medical devices. But the new iPhone won’t fit any of them.”

Still, that’s not too bad, right? All you need to do is buy a 30-pin-to-Lighting adapter… for $29. Hmmm… I don’t know about you, but I’m not happy with the idea of spending $87 just so I can use the iPhone 5 with my three old devices.

The high price of connecting with an Apple iPhone 5. More >

September 18, 2012
by sjvn01
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Intel’s new Clover Trail chip will support Android & Linux

When the “news” came out that Intel wouldn’t be supporting Linux on its new Atom CPU, Clover Trail, I didn’t buy it. This next-generation Intel Atom processor was always meant primarily for Windows 8, but with its Intel’s x86 instruction set it would also always support Android and Linux. We now know that Intel will officially support the popular open-source operating systems on the Clover Trial family as well.

In an e-mail from an Intel spokesperson, Intel said, “Intel has plans for another version of this platform directed at Linux/Android; however we are not commenting on the platform specifics or market segments that at this time. Stay tuned.”

Earlier this ear Intel had released a new low-power Atom processor, the Medfield, primarily for Android. These one-core chips are now being used in engineering samples running Android 4.1, Jelly Bean, and the just announced Motorola RAZRi.

The “problem” with Clover Trail for Android and Linux was that it had two cores. Intel has long been concerned with Android’s power and heating requirements for multi-core Atom CPUs for mobile platforms. There was never any difficulty with running Android or Linux on Clover Trail. The trouble was getting it to work efficiently with Clover Trail’s power management.

Intel’s new Clover Trail chip will support Android & Linux. More >

September 17, 2012
by sjvn01
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Windows 8 Tablets: Born to fail

It’s no secret that I don’t like Windows 8 on new or old desktops. I really thought it might have a shot on tablets though. But at these prices!? Windows RT and 8 on tablets is as dead as a mackerel.

I mean seriously. Asus, a mid-range computer vendor, wants $599 for a Nvidia Tegra ARM-powerd Windows RT tablet? The Windows 8 tablet with an Atom processor for $799? Oh, and if you want a keyboard for either one, it will cost you an extra $199!?

Come on!

Windows 8 Tablets: Born to fail. More >

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