Here is an update on the status of Mandriva Linux 2008 Spring development, including the publication of the release schedule and the technical specifications for this release. Highlights include PulseAudio, a switch to the fork of RPM that SUSE and Fedora are using, a parental control tool, mail import support for the Windows migration tool introduced in 2008, and automatic repository configuration via geoip.

Recently, Gmail added IMAP support, giving the powerhouse email host the ability to interact better with third-party clients. And Google, being the friendly neighborhood do-gooder that it is, provided instructions on how to use IMAP with a variety of third-party clients. However, it forgot one popular client: KMail, the email portion of the KDE Kontact personal information management suite. Google also neglected to mention that several of its other services, such as Google Calendar and Google Reader, can work well with Kontact. Here's how you can integrate them.

The N810 is the latest addition to Nokia's Internet Tablet lineup. The Linux-based mobile device offers an assortment of new features and drops some of the familiar functionality found in the previous model, the N800. The N810 also ships with Internet Tablet OS 2008—the new version of Nokia's Internet Tablet operating system—which is built on Maemo 4.0.

The Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment (LXDE) resembles a classic Unix project -- it's partly constructed out of pre-existing programs, its emphasis is on speed, and its configuration requires taking time in a text editor.

It has taken more than two years, but the One Laptop Per Child initiative has finally released its much-anticipated laptop: the OLPC XO-1. The XO-1 costs $200 each to donate, but for a limited time — until Dec. 31, 2007 — people can avail themselves of the "Give One, Get One" promotion to give a $399 donation ($200 of which is tax-deductible).

Money management. It’s generally not very fun, but it’s something we all have to deal with. There are several open source applications for finance management, GnuCash being one of the most well known and a very strong contender. Over on the KDE specific side, we have KMyMoney, currently at version 0.8.7.

This document describes how to set up, configure and use Pybackpack on Fedora 8. The result is an easy to use backup system for desktop usage. Pybackpack creates incremental backups which can be stored locally or remotely (SSH) - the usage of removable devices is supported. You have also the option to burn the backup(s) directly on a CD/DVD.

PCLinuxOS Magazine, December 2007 (Issue 16) is available to download.

Some highlights include:
Multibooting using 2 harddrives
Camera Review
ndiswrapper howto
How to open .docx files
Syncing The Repos
And more...