Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols

Last Aug. 14, I predicted in our cover story “Linux Slugfest” that Caldera and Red Hat would be the only major Linux distributors left standing. Anyone still want a piece of that bet? I didnt think so. Since then, SuSE has nearly abandoned the North American business market. There will still be an English language […]

In computings mainstream, middleware, along with client/server computing, has always been fundamentally about small boxes working vertically with bigger boxes, or servers. Historically, there was always another choice: peer-to-peer (P2P) computing. P2P, the mainstay of such once-popular low-end networks as Artisofts LANtastic and Novells Personal NetWare, fell into disuse, as the greater speed, security and […]

You can use Exchange and Notes groupware functionality to power up mailing lists, but why bother? Mailing list managers (MLM) can do the same thing with less trouble and the users only need generic mail clients. While any mail server worth its salt includes some basic e-mail list features, if youre going to run serious […]

Im a big believer in making the most from the least. Take those simple instant-messaging programs, for example. Way too many people think that instant messaging (IM)— whether its ICQ, AOL Instant Messenger (AIM), or some other program—is just another way to waste time on the Net. I used to agree. With IM, you can […]

So, you think Judge Judy is tough? Get a load of Judges Ray McKoski and Edmund Bart of Chicagos19th Judicial Circuit Court. When theyre not busy cracking down on crime, theyre taking a gavel to cell phones and other annoying devices. If youre one of those wireless people who cant let go of a pocket […]

Linux 2.4.1, which will be available in the near term, will give the operating system its last missing piece: a journaling file system (JFS). This is expected to be the latest version of ReiserFS. Like any JFS, its journaling support will eliminate the need for file system checking after emergency shutdowns—making for faster and safer […]

Has the time come to suit up with Linux 2.4, walk into your enterprise customers office, and tell them its time for Linux? In our opinion, the answer is a yes—if you know Linux well. This Linux is as scalable as any enterprise system and has a low admission price that many customers will find […]

Do you want to look good—i mean Ricky Martin- or Jennifer Lopez-good—to your enterprise customers? Then try on Linux 2.4, the new look of enterprise operating systems. In the past, weve found that Linux makes an outstanding Web or file server. On the Web, armed with the Apache Web server, Linux 2.2.x machines have long […]

UnixWare stumbled under three previous owners. But its latest caretaker, Caldera International CEO Ransom Love, plans to show the operating system plenty of affection. Love is working to clearly articulate how partners will benefit, as Caldera builds more bridges between its flagship Linux products and UnixWare. Caldera acquired SCOs UnixWare business and professional-services organization in […]

Linux 2.4 sports improvements over previous versions, but youll only benefit from those improvements if youre looking for a business or enterprise server. If youre not, well, ah, theres not too much to get excited about in Linux 2.4. In my tests to date, Linux 2.4 works slightly faster on my Linux workstations running on […]