Last week I started a series of blog entries about my personal view of challenges and priorities for this year. That first entry was about open standards and today I’m going to look at free and open source (FOSS). Incidentally, the first item on this list was on the previous list as well.

"Yesterday brought the alpha release of Wikia Search, a new engine built on free software and free culture values. For Wikia co-founder Jimmy Wales, the release is a milestone in the realization of a long-held dream. However, as he tells Linux.com, Wikia Search is still a couple of years from maturity, with many of the details still to work out. «Philosophically, I'm a big supporter of free software,» says Wales..."

Lately I've been reading a lot of criticism about the number of Linux distros -- too many choices with too many interfaces and too much duplication in software application development. KDE, GNOME, Xfce, fluxbox, Enlightenment... it's all too intimidating -- too confusing for potential Linux converts.

There’s no denying that the widespread growth of Linux was due in part to the raw enthusiasm of advocates meeting together under the broad banner of a “LUG” – a Linux User Group. LUG members were pioneers and cowboys, early adopters and passionate hobbyists. Today, the LUG is different. With the rise of commercial backing, the ease of distro installation, and the omniscience of Google do LUGs still have any role to play in the Linux world?

FOSS Meet@NITC is an annual event on Free and Open Source Software at NIT Calicut. This event brings together open source enthusiasts from all over india. The 2008 edition of the event is being planned and is scheduled to be held from March 21st to 23rd.

If you are interested in participating in the meet, you will have to register at this site. Speakers may register at this site and post details of talks, workshop or bofs that he/she would like to conduct. They may also post polls to know the audience better. Delegates can post comments and vote on polls. We hope that this way the event can be molded by the participants themselves in the spirit of a true community event. Please feel free to inform us about your queries, suggestions and complaints.

Nearly every year for the last decade I've heard some pundit or vendor proclaim from the rooftops: This is the year of the Linux desktop. Yet, year in and year out, the proclamations don't materialize.

OLPC America plans to combat digital divide by distributing low-cost laptops to needy students in the U.S.