Apple may open up its iPhone and iPod touch devices to third-party apps next month, but the chances that Linux users will get invited to the party are slim at best.

I have been covering the Linux operating system for a long time now. There are moments when I take it for granted that everyone knows the basic terminology surrounding this operating system. Because this is obviously not the case, I thought it might be a good time to stop and explain some of the terms that many Linux users toss about every day.

Over the years, the question “is Linux ready for the desktop” has been raised time and time again, and countless articles have been written about the strengths and weaknesses of this operating system. While desktop Linux adoption has yet to go completely mainstream, recent indicators show that a major change is underfoot.

In the history of computing there has never been a situation like this. This year, this time, is the first time a widespread and almost universally used operating system is on the verge of collapse. I think that Microsoft have been taken by surprise at the speed of Linux adoption and especially at how quickly it has matured.

Novell is to release new updates for its SUSE Linux Enterprise Real Time operating system next month.

On June 7, 2009, Swedish voters elected a member of the PiratPartiet (Pirate Party) to the European Parliament.
The Pirates made the copyright and patent concerns of the free software community part of public discourse for the first time anywhere, and did so using social media techniques that caught their opponents completely unaware.

After an excruciatingly long time, it looks like Linux is finally taking hold. But maybe we should rename it the Google Operating System because, clearly, the big Daddy Warbucks of search is the wind beneath the wings of Linux these days.

The free Linux operating system handles big tasks like running supercomputers and ATMs. Now Linux has a chance to finally crack Microsoft Corp.'s hold on computing's most visible domain — mainstream PCs — because of the rise of innovative, inexpensive machines.

The offer of pre-installed Linux by mainstream PC makers doesn't mean the open-source operating system is poised to sweep aside Microsoft’s; but while its cost advantages may never be compelling, finance departments must prepare to consider the merits of switching their own operations to Linux – and to hear a stronger case for its company-wide adoption.