At SCALE 6x in February, one of the first things on the expo floor to grab my attention was the scaffolding of a large telescope jutting up towards the ceiling in the far corner of the room. The device belonged to the Linux Astronomy project, which built the entire system from scratch.

I am tired of hearing and reading that Gnu/Linux is not ready for the "regular" or "normal" user. Self proclaimed experts and pundits insist that these users can not, or will not, use Gnu/Linux.

I am honored to have had a chance to interview two of the most dedicated Freedomware and GNU/Linux advocates. Ken Starks and Larry Cafiero answered a number of questions about Lindependence 2008, an ambitious, multifaceted new advocacy project they have started recently. So, let's get right down to it!

The Programmers Guild disputes that more H-1b visas would benefit "U.S. global competitiveness," and they would represent undue competition for Americans seeking jobs in this recessionary job market.

Maybe some of us wizened old Linux geeks have forgotten what it's like in Windowsland. It's ugly. It's smelly. Exploring your system does not reward you with a deeper understanding of how it works, first of all because "works" is only superficially accurate- it limps along, barely. Exploring your system only reveals more and weirder hazards the deeper you go.

If you’re a Linux enthusiast like me, you’ve probably tried to convert a few people over to Linux from another operating system. Even though you succeed many times, there are always a few ‘geniuses’ out there who need some real persuading to switch over to Linux.

Brilliant Brainstorms will be a weekly-ish summary of some of the best brainstorms from the Ubuntu Brainstorm site. In the beginning it may not always come exactly once a week or on the same day, but, if it becomes popular, it should become more regular.

"M6-IT, a Community Interest Community in the UK, are part way through a project to equip socially excluded families with computers running Xubuntu. I was recently able to interview Richard Rothwell of M6-IT about this project and its progress..."