FSF Campaign Against Secure Boot

The Free Software Foundation (FSF) has started a signature campaign to make people aware of the perils of an upcoming feature in PC hardware namely - Secure boot.
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World's First Solar Powered Desktop PC

How would you like to own a Desktop PC that runs on solar power ? A solar PC that can work upto 3 - 4 days without sunlight ? A PC that helps you reduce your carbon footprint thus helping you contribute your mite in saving the environment ? And - drum-roll please - one that comes pre-loaded with Linux ?
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Would You Use A Chromebook If You Got One For Free ?

Google has unveiled the Chromebook - a laptop that runs on Chrome OS. The Chrome OS is a cloud based operating system which means that all your data (or most of it) will be stored on a remote server rather than on the local hard drive. Another way of saying it is you can literally rip apart and destroy your Chromebook (assuming you have deep pockets) and still get a good night's sleep because your data is safely backed up somewhere on the net.

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Home Computer - Green, Palm Sized Computer For Rs 5000

elLoka Techsolutions Pvt Ltd a Hyderabad based product design and manufacturing company that delivers Ultra Low Cost Computer Platforms(ULCCP), has come up with a palm-sized computer that is very cheap and consumes very little power.

The computer is on display at the Rambagh SMS Convention center in Jaipur, Rajasthan where a three-day Commonwealth and information technology meet is on.

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Google Unveils Chrome OS - A Browser Based Operating System

Google unwraps its much awaited Chrome OS - a browser based operating system, which the Google CEO Eric Schmidt has termed "a viable third choice" over the popular traditional OSes Microsoft Windows and Apple OS X.

Chrome OS which runs on a customized Linux kernel banks heavily on the concept of Cloud computing. All your data and the applications reside on a remote server and not on your machine.

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World's first 80 dollar laptop which can run Linux

After the $100 laptop OLPC project, it is the turn of the $80 laptop. You heard me right, this laptop costs only $80 if the video review that follows is to be believed.

The $80 laptop branded EasyPC is one of the products rolled out by a Chinese laptop manufacturer - MENQ Group.
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Noise and disk latency

I just ran into this interesting video by Sun's Brendan Gregg which shows how a sufficiently high noise produced in front of a disk rack can cause an observable spike in disk latency. It may seem a geeky thing, or maybe it's just the dinosaur in me which sweetly remembers the good ol' days when you even had to park disk heads in the landing zones if you wanted to move it safely. Nowadays I confess that I still have certain respect when working at my workstations and never, ever, produce much vibrations on the table where they're laying.

Interesting. Something to hold in due consideration.

Sun drastically reduced the availability of x64 workstations

I just realized that, after abandoning the line of SPARC workstations, another two Sun Microsystems' workstations have reached their end of life: Sun Ultra 20 M2 and Sun Ultra 40 AMD-base workstations aren't on sale any longer. The only workstation left (whichever its CPU architecture) is the Sun Ultra 24. I have bought some of them and, despite some Solaris 10 bug, I'm happy with these Intel Core2 {duo, quad}-based machines. I was going to order another set of Ultra 20 M2 when I realized of their departure. I think I'll miss those workstations: AMD-based, two NICs by default and a maximum number of 8 disk drives, against the 4 allowed on the Ultra 24, whose default configuration is more like a powerful PC than a workstation.

Google portable device runs Debian Linux

The portable device I am talking about is the T-Mobile G1 Android cellphone. Android is a software stack for mobile devices that includes an Operating System, Middleware and key applications. Presumably, the T-Mobile G1 contains an ARM EABI architecture which is supported by Debian.

So a group of people (hackers) set out to install Debian on their T-Mobile G1 Android phone. The end result, at the least, is quite interesting. They have succeeded in running a full fledged Debian OS on their G1 Android cellphone at the same time, retain all the features which allow it to function as a cellphone such as receiving and making calls.

Read a detailed writeup on the steps needed to install Debian on a TMobile G1 Phone at the following website. AndroidFanatic.com has released a Debian installer script for your Android cellphone which you can download here.

Also watch the following video which shows Debian running on the Android G1 cellphone.

Kingston unveils 32GB Linux friendly USB drive

Recent advances in storage technology has made it possible to literally carry all your data in your pocket. Kingston - one of the major global players in the USB storage and memory market with more than 2,000 memory products in its offing, has unveiled a 32GB USB flash drive called "DataTraveller 150".

It has a dimension of 3.06" x 0.9" x 0.47" and is Linux friendly. Kingston offers the DataTraveller 150 with a 5 year warranty. It is priced at around USD 100.

Full Specifications of DataTraveler 150

• Capacity – 32GB
• Dimensions – 3.06" x 0.9" x 0.47" (77.9 mm x 22 mm x 12.05 mm)
• Operating Temperatures – 32º F to 140º F (0º C to 60º C)
• Storage Temperatures – -4º F to 185º F (-20º C to 85º C)
• Convenient – Pocket-sized for easy transportability
• Simple – Just plug into a USB port
• Practical – Stores cap securely on end of device to prevent loss of cap
• Guaranteed – Five-year warranty
• Operating systems - Windows 2000, Windows Vista, Windows XP, Mac OSX and Linux.
  

A small form factor Linux PC for the Marines

A regular reader of this blog would be aware of mini Linux PC's which fit on the palm of your hand and which is targeted at end users. Now what would you say if I told you that there exists a miniature Linux PC which is targeted at the Military ?

No Kidding! There is indeed such a PC and its name is "Engineering Development Kit" (EDK) which is a 7-10 pound computer that targets small ground, naval, and air vehicles. And believe it or not, it has a whooping 100 Gigaflops of processing power. The PowerBlock 50 measures 4.1 x 5.3 x 5.8 inches, with a seven-pound shipping weight, and a weight of less than 10 pounds fully configured, says Mercury.

Linuxdevices.com has the full scoop on this story.

HP 2133 sub-notebook powered by Linux

When Asus rolled out the eeePC, it received rave reviews. Now it is the turn of HP to jump into the sub-notebook market. HP has unveiled a laptop with 8.9" high resolution WXGA display, 92% full size QWERTY keyboard and touch pad. It comes with an optional solid state drive, weighs just 1.19 KG and is just 1.05 inches thick.

HP 2133 Sub Notebook Specification

• VIA C7-M ULV processor
• 512 - 1 GB 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM
• 120 - 160 GB SATA hard drive
• USB 2.0 ports - 2 Nos
• VGA External monitor port
• Audio in/ Microphone Jack
• Audio out/ Headphone Jack
• Express Card 54 Slot
• SD Card slot
• RJ-45 network jack
• 1 AC Power connector
• Kensington Lock slot
• VGA webcam (Optional)
• Stereo speakers and
• Stereo microphones and
• is wireless enabled
  

It's all aluminium case makes it sleek, sturdy and lightweight. HP has targeted this sub-notebook at the education segment namely the students and it will compete directly with other sub-notebooks such as Asus eeePC. The HP 2133's price starts at US $499.

A video of HP 2133 Sub-Notebook - Courtesy: Notebook.com

But the one thing which excites me the most is that HP sells this sub-notebook with SuSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10 as an option.

Xavier has written an indepth review of this eye catching notebook with plenty of pictures to supplement his narration.

Asus EeePC - the consumer friendly laptop with Linux preloaded

Asus is a Taiwan based hardware manufacturer which is known the world over for their superior motherboard designs apart from many other products they manufacture. It has been ranked No.1 by the Wall Street Journal Asia for best quality products in Taiwan. Recently Asus grabbed the news headlines when it unveiled what is now known as the EeePC, which is a 7" screen laptop notebook with a slew of technologically advanced features built in. But what is most important and exciting is that it is pre-loaded with a customized version of Xandros Linux. The three E's in EeePC stand for "Easy to learn", "Easy to work" and "Easy to play".

You can choose between 4 models of EeePC depending upon the size of hard disk and memory. The EeePC feature a built in card reader, an integrated web cam (this depends upon the model), speakers and microphone which helps clear up a lot of wire clutter. It comes with a shock proof design. Has a standard 4 cell battery (replaceable by the user of course) which gives anywhere between 2 to 3.5 hours of uptime depending upon the model you choose. It has a built-in WiFi 802.11 b/g that automatically detects and connects to the internet at any hotspot. As far as its storage space is concerned, it has a solid state hard drive in sizes of 2GB, 4GB and 8GB. The EeePC also comes with either 512MB or 1GB memory depending upon the model you choose.

Fig: Left side of EeePC contain an ethernet port, firewire port, a USB port and interfaces for voice in and voice out.

Fig: The right side contain a card reader, two USB ports and a VGA port.

Because there are no moving parts, there is less chance of data corruption when moving around and it is dead quiet when in use.

Fig: Specifications of the EeePC laptops

As I said earlier, the EeePC comes loaded with a heavily customized version of Xandros Linux desktop. It has a specially designed intuitive graphics interface which makes use of tabs. The interface is very cleanly laid out with pretty icons. You can also switch to a traditional KDE interface if that is more to your liking.

Fig: EeePC comes preloaded with a variety of games.

The applications bundled with the EeePC are an eclectic collection of open source software which allows the user to do just about any thing he or she intends to do on a PC. For instance it has the latest Firefox, OpenOffice.org, a plethora of games, Skype to make calls from your laptop, WebCam software and much more. Check out the screenshots of the EeePC GUI below to get a fair idea about what to expect.

Fig: Internet tab of EeePC GUI

Fig: Play tab of EeePC GUI

Fig: Settings tab of EeePC GUI

Fig: Work tab of EeePC GUI

Lastly we come to the most important criteria when choosing a laptop namely the price. It is surprising that with all these features (hardware and software) included, the EeePC ships with a price tag in the range of $299 to $450 which is very cheap when you compare the price of an average laptop. It weighs a measly 0.92 Kg and can be comfortably handled while on the move. Having seen its specifications and the fact that there is a waiting time to get your EeePC laptop when you order online due to heavy demand, one can correctly deduce that laptops with this form factor and with such rich features have a huge demand in the market and Asus having made the plunge is already reaping its benefits.

There is also a rumor floating on the net that Asus has plans on the anvil to unveil an 8.9" EeePC laptop sometime this year (2008).

Here is thumbs up for a people's laptop.

Neuros OSD - ushering in fresh air to the term Open Source Hardware

Simply put Neuros OSD is a device which allows you to digitize and playback all your media - be they audio or video from a variety of sources such as VHS tapes, DVDs, home movies or TV shows. What is noteworthy about this product is that the full documentation of the hardware specifications for this product has been released by the company (Neuros Technology International) as open source. This opens up avenues for skilled users to customize the device and pass on the improvements to other users. What is more, OSD is powered using Linux.

The main functions of the Neuros OSD are as follows :

1. Video Recorder - Record video in standard MPEG-4 formats from any device with standard (i.e. not High Definition) video outputs such as DVD players, Satellite receivers, Cable boxes,VCRs, DVRs, etc. to virtually any USB storage device (external hard drives, iPod™, PSP™, etc),any major memory card (SD, MMC, Memory Stick; Compact Flash, microdrive), or directly to your computer or network attached storage.
2. Video Player - Play recorded, downloaded, and streamed video (including YouTube) on your TV from USB storage devices, memory cards, computer/home network, and the Internet.
3. Music/Audio Player - Play music, podcasts, and other audio files directly on your stereo from your from memory cards, USB devices (MP3 players, external hard drives, etc), computer/home network, and the Internet.
4. Photo/Image Viewer - View photos and other images on your TV from USB devices (external hard drives, digital cameras, etc), memory cards, computer/home network, and the Internet.
5. Audio Recorder - Record audio in standard MP3 and AAC formats from any audio source to any major memory card (SD, MMC, Memory Stick; CF, microdrive), virtually any USB storage device (iPod™, external hard drives, PSP™, etc), or directly to your computer/home network.
6. Charging/Docking Station - The OSD will charge most USB devices that are plugged into it, so you can use it as a docking station for your iPod™ and other portables even while recording to or playing back from them.
7. Sharing - The OSD has features to make it easy for you to share non-copyrighted content from the comfort of your living room.
   

Fig: Neuros OSD side view

Fig: Another view of Neuros OSD

Note: Internet photo viewing, Audio recording directly to your computer and sharing of content might require a firmware upgrade which is automated if the device is connected to the internet.

The Neuros OSD doesn't have any storage option so you will have to use compatible storage media such as SD cards, compact Flash drives, micro cards, external hard drives and the home network to store your recordings.

But on the plus side, Neuros OSD is portable, does not require a computer to play back the recorded media - just plug in the storage device and you are ready to go, and its functions can be extended by third parties as it is based on an open platform.

The New York Times has a nice writeup about this device which sells for sub $200.

An in depth look at gOS

I had recently written a post on the gPC running gOS. Now here is an in depth review of the gOS which is honest,

Despite not being created by Google, the focus of gOS is Google's online applications such as GMail, Google News, Google Maps, Google Calendar, YouTube, etc. It's a neat concept for a Linux distribution.

funny,

... there seems to be no "recycling bin" available on the desktop. I looked in the FAQs and found that apparently the recycling bin is still in development—somewhat ironic given the nature/green theme of gOS.

and quite focused.

The downloadable version of gOS doesn't include what's necessary to play DVDs and MP3s. For that you need to install it yourself or get gOS by buying a gOS-based computer.

Written by Jim Lynch at Extremetech, this review gives a very good insight into what you can expect from gOS without taking it for a spin. Has a couple of screenshots too. Read the whole review.

gPC - $199 C7 powered PC at Wal-Mart running gOS

In this day and age when each and everyone of us are to be affected by the adverse effects of global warming, it definitely makes sense to bring necessary changes to our lifestyles and make it more environmentally friendly. And a good way to take a positive step towards being more green is to conserve the power or energy you consume at home.

And talking about power consumption, did you know that an average desktop PC is a major source of power consumption ? And if you consider many households now a days owning more than one PC, it definitely pays to buy energy efficient computers; those which consume less power.

This is where gPC or "Green PC" comes into the picture. Everex's TC2502 gPC is the first mass-market sub $200 PC which comes installed with gOS which is a customized version of Ubuntu Linux running Enlightenment window manager. The specifications of gPC are quite modest but acceptable. The TC2502 is powered by 1.5GHz VIA C7-D processor, 512MB DDR2 RAM, 80GB IDE hard drive and a CDRW/DVD combo drive. Apart from that it also comes bundled with a keyboard, a mouse, speakers and microphone though no monitor. The gPC consumes modest power when compared to other desktop PCs running the same operating system which gives it the name Green PC.

Fig: Sub $200 Everex gPC

Fig: gPC contains a variant of the 17cm x 17cm Mini-ITX motherboard

Now gOS the OS powering the gPC is a unique OS. While I said it is a customized version of Ubuntu, the word 'customized' is an understatement. gOS highlights and encourages users to use web applications instead of the traditional software for their day to day computing tasks. Google applications have a heavy presence in the gOS such as the Google Docs, Gmail, Gtalk, Calendar, Maps, Youtube, Blogger and so on and they can be accessed right from the desktop with the click of a button (assuming you are connected to the net). So it can be safely said that gPC aka Green PC runs gOS aka Google OS.

Fig: gOS aka Google OS

But Google applications are not all that you will find in gOS, there is Facebook, Wikipedia, Skype and many more web applications. Of course you will also find traditional software like OpenOffice.org, Gimp and so on installed with the option of installing any software you want which will run in Ubuntu which makes it pretty exciting.

Fig: gPC also can be bought with 1 GB RAM and 80GB SATA Hard disk for $100 more.

At present the gPC is marketed exclusively by Wal-Mart and can be bought from here. Those of us who live outside America need not be despondent because the gOS has been made available as a free download by the team behind this customized Ubuntu Linux distribution - Think gOS.

I think this is a very bold but positive move to eventually shift all computing to the internet thus giving a strong push to the term "Network is the computer" and in the process giving new life to energy efficient devices thus perhaps saving tons of energy.

OLPC - Give one get one scheme

It has been an interesting journey for the OLPC aka One Laptop Per Child project aka $100 laptop. Right from its inception by its visionary Nicholas Negroponte who is a professor at the MIT, this project has continuously been able to grab the mind space of countless people as well as stir up interest from numerous governments around the world.

Over the 2 years it took to convert an idea into substance, the OLPC has gone through numerous changes. The cost of the laptop went up from the targeted $100 to something closer to $200 - partly (I suspect) owing to the slide in the value of the US dollar. It also received ramped up hardware with improved specs. While some countries did not jump on to the OLPC bandwagon, it did succeed in making a rear door entry into countries like India.

Now here is another news hot off the press. OLPC has brought out a scheme where in you can own an OLPC laptop or buy one for your loved ones provided you are prepared to sponsor one for a child living in the third world country. This scheme is open to only American citizens for the time being but I don't see why it should not be extended to other developed countries. In effect this is OLPC team's way of telling you - if you want to buy a unit for your child, it is fine with us but you have to also buy one for a poor child in the developing world.

So if you are one of those Americans with a philanthropic bend of mind and with sufficient cold hard cash lying around, then you should seriously consider buying an OLPC for your loved ones and at the same time have the satisfaction of knowing you provided to the well being of an under privileged child in a poor country. Believe me, it is much much much better option than queuing up for costly gadgets (like the iPhone) which at the most will help fill the coffers of a couple of billionaires.

You can buy an OLPC from the official site.

Motherboard guide - Motherboard fundamentals

I can say with certainty that almost all the people reading this blog display a degree of knowledge in using a computer. But how many of us have actually opened a computer and tried to figure out and correctly identify the different parts in it ? Not all of us I believe.

So for those who are in the dark, here is a crash course in understanding the architecture of a motherboard. This relatively old article explains the different parts of the motherboard and in what way each part contributes in the overall working of a computer. The article written by Jon Stokes starts from the basics and gradually move into relatively technical jargon such as northbridge and southbridge, the different buses, their protocols and bridges.

Fig: The motherboard layout

While this article is nearly two years old and I am sure, the technology has moved forward a great deal in this time, nevertheless, it gives an insight into what comprises a motherboard in a computer.

Read the article to find out more.

OLPC makes its entry into India - finally!

When the OLPC first made news, a prominent official in the HRD ministry of the Indian government had gone on record snubbing the OLPC project ($100 laptop), even making a preposterous claim that work was under way to create India's own $10 laptop. But as things have worked out, OLPC has already made an entry into India in the form of a pilot project in a rural primary school in a village in the state of Maharasthra.

The OLPC is currently being field tested at the Khairat primary school. The smiles on the children's faces indicate that this is going to be a very successful project if implemented judiciously - ie making sure the long tentacles of corruption do not touch the project.

Fig: Group study in progress

Fig: A student proudly displaying her XO laptop

Fig: Another student with her XO.

Carla Gomez Monroy who is overseeing this project being implemented in India has provided a detailed writeup of the day-to-day functioning of the Khairat school, how the OLPC is put to use by the one and only teacher and the students in the school, the bond formed with the villagers and so on. A very fascinating read.

High end Lenovo and Dell laptops for sale at 40% discount

Would you like to acquire a sufficiently high end brand new laptop sporting upto 1 GB memory (RAM), an Intel dual core processor, 120 GB hard disk et al manufactured by a company like Dell or Lenovo for just around 60 % of its street price ? Well you could, provided you are living in the Indian state of TamilNadu and more importantly you are a bona fide student enrolled in a school or college in TamilNadu.

The scheme is the brain child of Electronics Corporation of TamilNadu Limited (ELCOT). ELCOT is a wholly owned Government of TamilNadu Undertaking, registered under the Indian Companies Act(1956). It is the nodal agency for Information and Communication Technology projects for the Government of TamilNadu.

Now this news coming from TamilNadu, I am not the least surprised. TamilNadu government (doesn't matter which political party is ruling) are famous for rolling out people friendly schemes. To list a couple of them which come to my mind, there is

• The Free bicycle scheme for all students studying in 12th standard
• Distributing 20 KG rice per month for just Indian Rupees 2/KG which in US dollars is equivalent to 5 cents per KG of rice.
• Distributing Free Colour television sets [Link]
• And now high end branded laptops at a hefty discount. Wow ... make that double Wow.
  

So people in TamilNadu are getting a fair deal from their government as far as the number of free schemes are considered. Perhaps the the respective state governments in the rest of India should take a leaf from the government of TamilNadu and roll out such people friendly schemes. For example, we could have a scheme of providing $25 computer desktops free of cost for all school students on the lines of the $100 laptop project (er... is it still called the $100 laptop?). But I digress here.

Coming back to our story, ELCOT purchases these laptops at their market price of $1100 each (Indian Rupees 44000) and then is selling it at a massively subsidized discount rate of less than $800 (Indian Rupees 29000 to 32000). Additionally you also get $140 worth extras like a 3 year international customer carry in warranty, an adapter and a carry case. The discounted laptops are available only to the students living in TamilNadu and enrolled in a government recognized school or college there.

Guess what the laptops will be running ? Full marks to you if you guessed it right. It will be running what else but Linux of course. The laptops will be loaded with OpenSuSE Linux and will be fully Linux compliant with all the Linux device drivers made available at their website. Do check out the specifications of the laptops on offer. And here is a list of the software pre-installed on each laptop.I bet you will surely be tempted to accept domicile in TamilNadu and then enroll your children in a school or college there just to lay your hands on the laptops at such a bargain price.