When you look online for reviews of social media applications, Windows and Apple platform applications always dominate the list. Linux geeks, however, have a long history of using social media tools to discuss geeky and techie topics online. Until fairly recently, however, most large scale development around social media tools on Linux was virtually non-existent. Linux users were expected to follow their usual fare of bare bones interfaces and text based controls. With the growing interest of Linux on the desktop for the more general audience, however, many developers have started putting effort toward creating more user friendly applications for social media. While this of course is beneficial for newer users of Linux who came from the Microsoft and Apple platforms, using and contributing to these social media apps is also in the best interest of anyone who wants to further the Linux cause and gain more market acceptance for our favorite open source operating system.
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Article by Giuseppe Sanna
The mythology and history tell us of great struggles between sworn enemies. David and Goliath, Caesar and Brutus, Robespierre and Louis XVI are only a few. But for some years now in addition to this huge list we have two big names in the information technology! The multinational Microsoft and the GNU/Linux open source operating system. The struggles between the two never ends!
While Microsoft is trying by all means to keep under its control the market of the desktop, Linux itself in recent years is reaching incredibly important goals, mostly on the servers and embedded systems (Android ?). Despite the low blows of Microsoft, we can just take a look at the mythological UEFI chips, Linux does not give up though. Indeed, it always win a larger slice of users thanks to its distributions. Each of which, of course, choose a different path. Continue reading »
If you have not heard of the new Raspberry Pi yet, then you surely will soon enough. The new budget computer has just passed its Conformité Européenne testing, so now it can be stamped with the commonly seen CE mark and sold throughout Europe. A limited number of units were sold before the device was certified, and distribution was halted until the Pi passed the quality control tests. The distributors of the Raspberry Pi also took the time to make sure that the device meets all the regulations enforced by Australian, Canadian, and US supervisory bodies. So now the new Raspberry Pi, starting at the mere price of $25, is ready to be unleashed upon the world, but what does this mean for Linux users and developers?
Quite a lot actually, because the Raspberry Pi has been designed to use with Linux operating systems. The people behind the development of this cheap but powerful device always wanted it to be as accessible to the masses as possible. They knew an open source operating system was the only way they could keep the costs down, but there was a bigger reason behind their support of Linux. Their ambition with Pi is to get kids interested in computer programming again.
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