Ark Linux is a distribution developed primarily for new Linux users, although its developers say experienced users should find it powerful enough to use as well. I've tested it before and found the later claim a bit overstated. Would version 2008.1, released this month, be a change for the better?

For those of you who have used it, you'll know that Debian is a solid distribution of Linux. Like Fedora or OpenSuSe, it was developed with all users in mind.

Bug #1 for Ubuntu was the fact that Microsoft had a majority marketshare in the personal computer space. Mark Shuttleworth has now closed this bug.

With the news of Linspire's CNR coming soon to Ubuntu, and Automatix now offering a limited number of closed source, commercial applications, what possible consequences will this have on the Linux community and open source as a whole?

Wietse Venema created the open source Postfix mail system in 1997 and still maintains most the system himself. Venema talks to us about the unique structure of Postfix that gives it a leg up on security, “open” vs. “closed” code and thoughts for an advanced Scan project.

Increasing number of software applications are going the free/open-source way these days. Looks like more and more software companies and developers have seen the barriers of closed-source programs and have now fully realized the significance of freedom.

Any debate over open vs. closed systems has to touch on open-source software and the ways in which companies are attempting to build code as a community effort, while still profiting from it in some way.

The other night, a good question popped out of my head — How many of the geek teenagers wish to work on closed source technology today?

I read glyphobet's blog, itemizing frustrations he's had reporting bugs to Ubuntu. While I've not had frustrating experiences reporting bugs to Ubuntu, I've reported bugs to a lot of different open source projects, and had more than a few closed in a way I wasn't happy with, so I can definitely sympathize. I hope in Ubuntu these sorts of experiences are the exception, but certainly there's always room to improve.

In my own experience at having bugs closed in ways I thought were inappropriate or incorrect, while I was initially angry about it, after reflecting I realized in each case it was really a consequence that I didn't understand that particular project's bug philosophy and had filed the bug in a way that didn't adhere to their guidelines.