What Jerks…
Okay, so I read on Slashdot (is a link really necessary?) that Microsoft has put up a program called FlexWiki under an Open Source license… a real OSI-approved license, not just some evil license that they’re calling Open Source. Well, you don’t see that every day, so I head...
The Open Road: Ethereal
This month, I’m going to wrap up discussion of network troubleshooting tools. So far, I’ve covered netstat, tcpdump, and ngrep and sniff. This month, I’ll discuss Ethereal, a tool for browsing network traffic interactively and analyzing network traffic. To put it more emphatically, Ethereal is the all-singing, all-dancing, packet-inspecting...
Jargon mumble synergy!
How is it that companies that spend millions on product development seem incapable of hiring someone who can write clear, concise product descriptions? Been working on a project for the past week that involves churning through tons of product descriptions from various companies. I can say with authority that...
The Open Road: Linux System Performance Tools
This month, I’ll present a few system tools that can be helpful when trying to diagnose your Linux system’s health, improve performance, and so on. This installment is intended for users who are newer to Linux, and who might not be familiar with, or aware of all the utilities...
Tool of the Month: cdargs
This month, I’ll discuss cdargs, a tool that simplifies using the command line. cdargs is a handy little utility that provides browsing and bookmarks for cd. Installing and using cdargs I just recently dicovered cdargs, but it’s already proved to be a great application and big time-saver. It’s also...
Perl history and plans for the Parrot next-generation interpreter
Change can be scary, especially for those who have grown accustomed to the status quo over a period of several years. And in the programming world, sweeping change is brewing. Perl 6 is a fairly ambitious redesign of both the Perl language and the Perl interpreter, so Perl 5...
Perl history: A look at the plans for Perl 6 evolving from Perl 5
Perl is somewhat unique among programming languages, largely because its inventor, Larry Wall, wanted his creation to resemble a natural language. For the most part, he has succeeded; Perl has evolved quite like a natural language since its inception in 1987, adapting to changing circumstances and a growing developer...
What Python Can Do for the Enterprise
With all the attention focused on Java and C#, companies may be missing out on a programming language that might be better suited to their needs. That language is called Python. In technical terms, Python is a high-level, open source programming language that promises rapid development and a low...
Nuclear winter? More like global warming
Is mainstream acceptance for Open Source a “nuclear winter” for the software industry? I certainly hope so. Some argue that Open Source and Free Software are best left as a niche market, and that widespread acceptance of software without license fees will harm the economy. Certainly, widespread adoption of...
Things that don’t happen in Star Trek
I’m pacing myself… 🙂 This list is obviously pre-Enterprise. (How many folks in the audience watch “Enterprise” faithfully?) 1. The Enterprise runs into a mysterious energy field of a type it has encountered several times before. 2. The Enterprise goes to visit a remote outpost of scientists, who are...