THE OPEN PITT What's cooking in Linux and Open Source in Western Pennsylvania =========================================================================== Issue 15 August 2005 www.wplug.org =========================================================================== In this issue: Ohio LinuxFest 2005 Preview July Roundup From the Editors: Software Freedom Day Bylaws Update --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Coming Events Sep. 10: General User Meeting. Topic: Linux on the XBox. 10am to 2pm, 1507 Newell-Simon Hall, CMU Sep. 17: Installfest. 10am to 5pm, 1507 Newell-Simon Hall, CMU Oct. 1: Ohio LinuxFest 2005. Columbus, Ohio: see for details Oct. 15: General User Meeting/Nomination Meeting. 10am to 2pm, 1507 Newell-Simon Hall, CMU (date tentative) Sep. 17: Installfest. 10am to 5pm, 1507 Newell-Simon Hall, CMU (date tentative) The public is welcome at all events --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ohio LinuxFest 2005 Preview When you examine the recent history of the Browns and the Bengals, especially when compared to the Steelers, the state of Ohio doesn't come out looking too well. But even if football isn't their forte, they certainly know how to put on a first-class Linux gathering. Now in its third year, Ohio LinuxFest continues to grow. Drawing from all over Ohio, the surrounding states, and Canada, it will take place this October 1st at the Greater Columbus Convention Center. The new venue was selected to handle the anticipated increase in attendance. What follows is a sampling of the speakers booked so far and their subject matter. Some of the details are subject to change, but this should be reasonably close to the final lineup. To get the most up-to-date information on speakers, the conference site, hotels, and how to register for the event, see the LinuxFest web site at . KDE Aaron Seigo of Trolltech and the KDE project will give an overview of KDE 3.4 and its applications oriented for the desktop user. He'll also uncover some of the hidden treasures of KDE, useful tools and applications you may have never heard of. There will also be a sneak peek at the upcoming version 3.5. Symphony OS The purpose of the Symphony OS project is to provide a more intuitive and easier to use Linux desktop experience. Project founder Ryan Quinn will discuss this distribution and its unique Mezzo Desktop Environment. Ubuntu Billed as "Linux for human beings," Mark Shuttleworth's Ubuntu project has rocketed to immense popularity in the span of less than a year. Jorge Castro will introduce the Ubuntu concept and distribution. He will also preview the new features and improvements in the upcoming Breezy Badger release, due out in October. Linux Terminal Server Project The Linux Terminal Server Project is one of the more mature systems for setting up a network of thin clients, where users' lightweight machines act as displays for programs running on a server. This arrangement allows great flexibility while retaining centralized control and management. Founder Jim McQuillan will share from his over twenty years of experience with UNIX and networking, ten of those working with Linux. High Availability Infrastructures David J. Coulson of N2Net will explain how Linux can provide high-uptime network services at low cost. He'll show how to maintain a fully redundant network environment, build a highly available IP router, and expand upon existing infrastructure with Linux devices. Virtualization Technologies Virtualization is a hot topic today, with software like Xen and VMware being used to create virtual machines for increased security, rapid provisioning, and maximizing server utilization. Ram Rao of Hewlett- Packard will discuss his work with Linux and open source solutions for mission-critical enterprise applications. AstLinux A brief introduction to AstLinux, an open-source telephone PBX built with the popular Asterisk software. Creator Kristian Kielhofner will be your tour guide as we explore its features, design, and how it can be used to solve interesting telephony needs. Mainframe Linux Scott Courtney of Sine Nomine Associates will cover how Linux runs in virtual hardware on IBM S/390 and z/Series mainframes. We'll investigate its features and benefits relative to other system architectures. He will also discuss some of the practical challenges of managing a virtual server farm. BatchLogin BatchLogin is a tool for managing connections to servers in a heterogeneous environment. Author Paul Ferris of Westfield Insurance (who also has over a decade of experience in the Linux community) will review its capabilities and how it can help overworked system administrators keep their sanity. Digital Forensics Detective Sergeant Michael Harrington of the Michigan State Police Computer Crimes Unit will cover the use of Linux for digital forensic investigation. Topics will include conducting investigations for presentation in a court of law and the interface of the private sector with law enforcement. Threat Management Linux is increasingly used in high-security applications. Alex Quinonez of Astaro Corporation will discuss applying a layered approach for complete perimeter security using Linux. This is done under a model of Unified Threat Management. Hula Growing out of Novell's Netmail project, Hula's goal is to be a fun and easy to use open-source calendaring and mail server. Joe Gasiorek, student at Western Michigan University and Novell intern, will explore its capabilities and progress so far. Deploying Open Source in Schools Kim Brand of Server Partners, LLC will share experience from successfully deploying file servers, mail servers and thin client solutions in public and private Indiana schools. Volunteers will learn where open source software makes the most sense and how they can help effectively. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- July Roundup Jul. 9 General User Meeting: Several WPLUGers delivered a series of presentations on various Linux and BSD distributions. Chris Ott gave a brief introduction, describing what a distribution is and the characteristics tending to distinguish them. Duncan Hutty covered the Gentoo Linux distribution. Its claim to fame is that users typically build it from source with the Portage system, resulting in the software being optimized for each particular machine. A demonstration of Mandriva (Mandrake) Linux was given by Vance Kochenderfer, showing off its package management and administrative tools. Jonathan Billings reviewed the fast- growing Fedora project, concentrating on its philosophy and its origins as an offshoot of Red Hat Linux. The many abilities of the Knoppix Linux live CD were discussed by Beth Lynn Eicher, from its use as a rescue tool to a convenient portable desktop system. Bill Moran finished up with FreeBSD, another UNIX-like system with roots nearly thirty years old. He went over FreeBSD's development process, the Ports system for installing software, and the differences in layout between it and a typical Linux system. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- From the Editors: Software Freedom Day September 10 is being celebrated worldwide as Software Freedom Day to educate the public about Free and Open Source Software. Organizers hope to spread the word about the benefits of running software that is not only zero cost, but is also "free as in freedom." You can get in on the action by demonstrating to your friends and relatives the power of Free operating systems. Live CDs like Knoppix and FreeSBIE are ideal for this purpose. If they're unwilling or unable to give up their proprietary operating system, TheOpenCD contains a high-quality collection of applications for Windows like OpenOffice.org and Firefox. It even has a mini version of the Ubuntu Linux live CD. You can get more details and download it from . Although not specifically a Software Freedom Day event, WPLUG will host a General User Meeting that day with a topic of running Linux on the XBox. You'll see how you can take this closed platform and turn it into one that runs Free and Open Source software. To get the latest scoop on Software Freedom Day activities, take a look at the event web site at . --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bylaws Update As reported in last month's Open Pitt, WPLUG's bylaws are undergoing revision. The timing of this transition has been altered somewhat, and this is the currently-planned schedule: October 15: Nomination meeting November 13: Election meeting Difficulties obtaining meeting space (see last month's issue) may force these dates to be shifted slightly, so check the WPLUG web site for the latest details. =========================================================================== The Open Pitt is published by the Western Pennsylvania Linux Users Group Editors: Elwin Green, Vance Kochenderfer Copyright 2005 Western Pennsylvania Linux Users Group. Any article in this newsletter may be reprinted elsewhere in any medium, provided it is not changed and attribution is given to the author and WPLUG.