The Little Geeni

While many online casinos and poker rooms are beginning to make their software compatible with Macintosh operating systems, Linux compatible programs are still definitely in the minority and a little more difficult to find.

Linux is often forgotten in the world of online casinos but there are a few casinos online that are opening the doors for Linux users.

CasinoRoom (http://www.casinoroom.com), 888.com (http://www.888.com) and Online-Casino.com (http://www.online-casino.com) now offer software that is compatible with Windows, Macintosh and Linux operating systems.

Until recently, it was easier to play casino games on a mobile phone than on a Linux computer but no longer. Players won’t feel like they’re getting second rate quality, either, all of these versions are identical to the software available to the Windows users.

The trend is starting and this definitely won’t be the end.

CasinoRoom and 888.com even offer Linux compatible poker rooms with PokerRoom.com and PacificPoker.com.

Online-Casino offers two different types of Linux compatible software; a completely free flash games version and the standard program in which players can choose real money or practice money play.

Linux is a free source operating system. Unlike Windows and Macintosh, Linux software is free and available to anyone who wants to use, or modify, the code.

The market for Linux is steadily increasing and expected to continue its rapid upward growth. Conventionally, Linux users were technically oriented programmers. Today, though, the availability and cost of the software is leading it into mainstream markets. Many corporations have begun to convert their companies to Linux-based operating system computers.

Online casinos are seeing the growth and Linux-compatible software is also growing with the market. Casino analysts, like Mary Hughes, believe that Linux users will have no problem finding an online casino that is compatible in a few years.

“Now, Linux users don’t have much of a choice, although the options they do have are very high-quality and nice. In a few years, all of the casinos will have Linux-compatible programs, I guarantee it,” Hughes said.

Many online casino flash versions are currently compatible with Linux although they are for fun, and not real money play.

Like Linux, a few years ago there were no online casinos that were compatible with Macintosh operating systems. The market share and popularity of macintosh began to increase and the casino industry jumped on the bandwagon. Mac compatible online casinos are growing daily. Experts believe that Linux is the next frontier in the online gambling industry.

Linux Casinos, Linux, Online, Players

What is Linux?

Linux is an operating system created by Linus Torvalds during his days as a student at the University of Helsinki. Linux was created and meant to be used as an option or substitute to the other operating systems being used by computer users, like MS-DOS, Windows, Mac OSX, etc. Linux is not a program or a set of programs like a word processor of an office suite.

A Brief History

While studying at the University of Helsinki, Linus used a version of the UNIX operating system called ‘Minix’. Several requests for modifications and improvements for the operating system were being sent by Linus and other users to Andrew Tanenbaum, Minix’s creator, but he felt that they weren’t necessary. Therefore, Linus decided to create his own operating system; one that would take into account the users’ comments and suggestions for improvements.

A “kernel” is the focal point of any operating system. Without going into great detail, the kernel tells the CPU to do what you want the program or application that you’re using to do. An operating system would not exist without a kernel. However, a kernel is also useless without any programs or applications.

In 1991, two critical situations evolved that would serve as the starting point for Linux. A kernel was already created by Linus, but he had no programs to use; some programs were available from GNU and Richard Stallman, but they had no working kernel. So Linux was born by combining the programs from Richard and GNU in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with the kernel provided by Linus in Helsinki, Finland. It was a lot of ground to cover and far to travel, so the Internet became the primary method of getting Linus’ kernel together with the GNU programs. It can almost be said that Linux is an operating system that came to life on the Internet.

Not For Everybody at First

Other software companies will sell you software contained in a CD or a set of floppies, together with a brief instruction booklet, and in half an hour or probably even less, you could install a fully functional operating system on your computer. You only needed to know how to read and follow instructions in order to install it. This was what those companies had in mind when they developed their operating systems. However, when Linux was developed by Linus, this factor wasn’t initially considered. Later on, Red Hat and other likeminded companies made it their purpose to develop Linux to the point where it could be easily installed just like any other operating system in the market, by anyone who can follow simple instructions, and today we can definitely say that they have succeeded in this particular purpose.

Linux Today

Nowadays, there is a great deal of favorable reactions from computer users regarding Linux. The fact that Linux has proven to be impressively stable and versatile, especially as a network server, surely has played a big part in this popularity. Down-time is minor or insignificant when Linux is installed and used as a web server or in corporate networks. Many cases have been reported wherein Linux-powered servers have been functioning smoothly for even more than a year without needing to re-boot, and when it had to be taken down, it was only for a brief period for maintenance purposes. Its cost effectiveness has become to be one of its strongest selling points. Linux can be installed and run on either a home PC or a network server, without having to spend as much as it would be for other software packages. More reliability and less cost – it’s ideal.

Linux About, Linux

Most people purchase computers to run programs – whether it is to send email, browse the web, meet friends of girlfriends on msn messenger, do office work or just play solitaire.

People buy computers to use programs for their functionality not to run operating systems be in Microsoft Windows, the new Microsoft Vista product , the Mac Operations Systems or the various Linux Operating Systems – be they Ubuntu Linux , Mandiva , Knoppix or Debian.

At the heart of most computer users is functionality and usability. It is as simple as that. It is an interesting situation that the Microsoft Corporation controls the vast lion’s share of the computer operating system market. Indeed it even has a major share holding of the next player in line – Apple with the Macintosh OS (Operating System).

What are the issues?

1) Linux is not really free. Linux, in its various flavors or distros, is given free of charge, whether it is on a cd, DVD or downloaded. You can install the program on your own compute or various computers , at no charge to yourself whatsoever

This is in direct contrast to a commercial product such as Microsoft Windows or the new Microsoft Vista which you to purchase a boxed version or a valid license which comes with most computer systems purchased. This license which comes on most new computers as a matter of course could be referred to as the “Microsoft Computer Tax” and is not an option you can forego, to reduce the purchase of your new compute – whether or not you wish to use another operating system such as Linux.

Linux is given free of charge to install. This is not a shareware or time limited version of the product which requires a registration fee after a period of time.

If you require product support or training commercial organizations do exist which will charge you for support of that product or for training or both. Indeed it can be said that Microsoft itself charges for product support, Symantec the antivirus / security organization charges for basic support by product, subscription fees – sometimes automatic subscription fees and 900 phone number and charge card “Priority Support”.

Indeed you would not expect your local school or technical college to provide computer and compute software training free of charge.

2) Linux is complex and will force you to learn the Linux command line,

Not true simple as that. The various Linux distros all have GUI (Graphic User Interfaces) just like Microsoft Windows, Windows used to come as command line DOS. Windows users use pull down windows to operate the software. So can and do most Linux users

3) Compared to Windows , Installing Linux is Difficult

- The vast majority of computer users are computer neophytes and beginners.

These computer users purchase computers with the operations system Microsoft Windows or the Macintosh Operating System installed on their new computers. These people could not install the Windows Operating system and the device drivers necessary if their life depended on it. How the situation of a Linux is based computer any different.

It is only a matter of time until new computers come preinstalled with the Linux operating system. Imagine if Henry Ford had been told not to build new cars since there were few good roads available in America.

4) My Computer Hardware Just Works Under Windows

5) Again untrue in many cases and soon to be less of an issue as more and more computers will come preinstalled with a Linux operating system. Already Dell Computer (which was a Microsoft stalwart) is selling Linux based laptops. Interestingly the response to the Ubuntu Linux dell notebooks is quite positive, If you think Linux hardware compatibility is an issue try upgrading to the new Microsoft Vista from your previous Microsoft Windows product. You will find to your surprise that few if little of computer hardware are supported. You may have upgraded to the new Vista and found you have either no sound, good video or even internet connections via your network adapter device or wireless network adapter. And try undoing your upgrade to get back to your working windows version – it cannot be done.

Lastly you may say I run Windows since all of the programs I use are available only on the Windows operations system – since that is the dominant player in the market. You may well surmise that since Windows is the more than dominant player in the computer OS market that software developers write their product almost exclusively for the windows operations system and that market.

This is true. If you are using a specialized product for your job, industry, situation or preference you may well be locked in.

In the end most people buy and use computers for functionality and use. Most people use their computers for internet browsing , communication – whether it by email or messenger services (M.S.N. , Yahoo , Skype , Eyeball Chat) , downloading and burning music and in more than many cases for playing nothing more than computer games such as simple solitaire.

In these cases the functionality of Linux and its program base easily allows for this. Indeed many of the cutting edge programs and computer services come out of left field by computer software developers and enthusiasts whose preference of Computer Operating System is guess what – Linux in its various forms.

Linux Free, Linux, Microsoft, Only, Operating, System, Tell, They, Windows

Boot loaders such as GRUB (Grand Unified Bootloader), LILO (Linux Loader) etc. enable you to select to boot a particular operating system in multiboot or dual boot systems. After selecting the operating system (for example Linux), the booting process initially starts with the booting of Linux Kernel program. A Linux Kernel program is the central component of a computer operating system. It requires the corresponding drivers to access the device on which the file system is based. To avoid any conflict due to all imaginable drivers in the kernel, it uses initial ramdisk (intrd). The intrd is the temporary file system, which is mostly used for preparations before the real root file system can be mounted. Problems might occur when intrd gets loaded before Linux Kernel program. In such situations, the hard drive volume becomes un-mountable and the data saved in the hard drive becomes inaccessible. In such situations, you need to recover your data from the latest backup. In case, no backup is available or the backup is corrupted, you need to use efficient Linux Data Recovery applications to recover your lost data files.

Consider a practical example, when you attempt to boot Linux operating system, you encounter the below error message:

“Must load Linux kernel before initrd”

The above error message occurs each time you try to boot the Linux operating system on your computer. After the above error message appears, the data saved in the Linux volume becomes inaccessible.

Cause:

The above error message mainly occurs when the intrd gets loaded before the Linux Kernel program.

Resolution:

To resolve the above error and access the data, you need to remove the intrd from your computer. However, if you still encounter an error, then only option left is to access the volume by reinstalling the Linux operating system. A clean reinstall of the operating system will erase all previously stored data in the hard drive. In such scenarios, you need to recover lost data by using effective Linux Data Recovery software. These advanced recovery applications incorporate high-end scanning methods to recover lost data from a logically corrupted hard drive.

Stellar Phoenix Linux Data Recovery serves the purpose of providing reliable and easy Linux Data Recovery. This read only Linux Recovery software supports Ext2, Ext3 and ReiserFS file systems. It gets installed on Windows (Vista, XP, 2003 and 2000) and the affected Linux drive should be connected as slave.

Linux “Must, Before, Error, initrd”, kernel, Linux, Load, Message, Operating, Resolving, System

Law enforcement recently has been following the general tide of government and public service groundswell by seeking computing solutions in the Linux direction. Particularly in law enforcement, their needs match well with open source software. They have to work lean on a taxpayer’s budget, and open source is free or low cost. They need top security, and Linux is still the highest-scoring operating software in official government assessments. They need mission-critical reliability, and Linux is so stable, it doesn’t just outrank the competition in stability – it makes the competition disappear!

Some recent examples of law enforcement agencies finding a solution in open source:

* Kent Police have lowered the cost of running their major criminal investigations system by a factor of 90% using Novell Linux Open Enterprise Server. The migration to Novell enabled Kent to scale up their Holmes II investigation system to work on larger projects with a broader scope – something they’d never been able to do before. They were also able to run it on their cheapest hardware they could find, thanks to Linux’s light requirements. A new policing operating system, named Genesis, is now being tested for scalability on Linux servers.

* Delivery of the first Linux systems to the West Yorkshire police force could see police forces throughout England and Wales unanimously switching to Linux desktops in a new pilot scheme. The deployment is taking place under a contract awarded by the UK Police IT Organization. If successful, it will lead to over 60,000 desktops deployed. In West Yorkshire alone, the installed base is around 3,500, and a spokesman reckoned that the savings from this would be around one million pounds per year!

* The New South Wales Police department is currently undertaking a major upgrade to its information infrastructure, made necessary due to the increasing volume of data handled by the force, and they’re switching to Linux systems to handle the load. Because the Linux systems are proving so reliable, they are looking forward to the higher capacity network more efficiently archiving and transmitting data stored as evidence, such as surveillance videos and audio material.

* Scottish police forces have also developed a Linux-based system for ensuring that they comply with the Freedom of Information Act legislation, an act which is intended to facilitate ‘open government’ by allowing the public to request access to government data. Since open source and open information go hand in hand, the system has scaled easily and saved tons of labor. The force doesn’t have to worry about proprietary media formats interfering with the public’s ability to access the data, and the efficiency of the Linux system allows a lot of manual tasks to be automated where they couldn’t before. The system is literally returning officers to the streets because it has saved everyone so much work.

* Police in the city of Munich have switched 14,000 of their department computers from Microsoft’s Windows operating system to Linux. The motivation for the decision was to make the government less dependent on one information technology supplier, and to save money while increasing capabilities. One technology analyst even compared the break-through migration to the fall of the Berlin wall, referring to the oppressive requirements of dealing with a proprietary software company’s agenda.

That government feels friendly with open source should come as no surprise. Traditionally, the Internet has been 80% Linux and Unix-based systems since its creation. The first Internet services were started and maintained by government providers, who used Unix system’s built-in multitasking features and excellent speed to create a fast, reliable network. Linux, a modern version of that Unix ideal, has already established itself as the leading system for server-room deployment, but now the effects are beginning to trickle down to the desktop user level and workstation deployments, where they are discovering that Linux systems have workspace-ready features built in which other commercial operating systems are just now beginning to discover and implement.

Furthermore, Linux systems come with the guarantee that because they are open source, no commercial company can restrict their usage in the future. A platform ported to Linux can stay on Linux, without support dying out and constant upgrades creating problems down the road.

Finally, the inherent security of the Unix computing model guarantees the effectiveness of Linux without the worries over security problems. Because there are in effect no viruses which can infect a Linux system known, and no critical security exploits found in the systems even by government security standards, departments are also considering Linux as a measure to protect our national data under concerns over national security and the terrorist threat in our modern times.

Linux Career, Computer, Enforcement, Linux, Police, Systems

As a business consultant, web designer and photographer my technical know-how around doing system administration on my Microsoft desktop is limited and sometimes I do require the assistant of my computer engineering son to get it right. In a Microsoft Environment, keeping updated with respect to potential security breaches and patches is a constant vigil. The rigor of keeping current with OS updates, Norton updates and Spyware updates is time consuming. Valuable business hours each week are spend and lost on this task of self-administration dictated by the Microsoft Operating Environment.

So with the purchase of an IBM T40 (a tough notebook), increasing system administration time was not an option. This alone forced an serious consideration of Linux as an alternative operating environment. That was five years ago. Now an established Linux user, I can clearly profess the capabilities and benefits of Linux for small and large businesses, especially, when it comes to notebook deployment.

What Linux variant is best for small business and notebook deployment in your company?

As a small and medium business development manager with Sun Microsystems, exposure to Linux and the debate around its viability was a daily event. Questioning and challenging the virtues of Open Source (FREE) Linux versus Licensed Linux versions like Red Hat and Novell SuSE continues to this day . After years of personal use of Open Source (Free) Linux, I can never go back to running the Microsoft Operating Environment on my notebook. And once you can get Linux versions of Quick books, Quick Tax and Picasa (now available on Linux), there is no reason to stay in that perpetual administrative nightmare world of Microsoft.

Having successfully deployed two Open Source Linux variants on my IBM T40 notebook over the last 5 years, a compelling comparison can be made between Fedora and Ubuntu. Fedora, the Open Source version of Red Hat, required the installation expertise of some Linux gurus from Belleville Ontario. It worked fine, but required some Linux ninja system administration every 6-9 months. Administration items applied during these visits included upgrades to Open Office (the open source version of Star Office), Linux OS fixes and new peripheral drivers. This, again, turned out to be a drain on my scarce time for doing real business.

Now the Linux called Ubuntu is installed on my notebook. Ubuntu by Canonical is a full Open Source Linux based on Debian Linux. Ubuntu is now available on Dell systems and Federal Governments are adding this Linux operating environment to their list of standard available OS’s for all desktop and notebook computers.

Right out of the gate, Ubuntu was simple to install. You could even bring down a trial copy to experience exactly how it would behave on your notebook before downloading and committing the Ubuntu OS environment to your machine. But the best part is that Ubuntu continuously keeps on top of OS and all related application software updates. Ubuntu has an Update Manager that magically appears in desktop tool bar. And with a simple click (and password) you are kept current on the latest versions of Ubuntu patches, any Linux application software you have installed from Canonical and Open Office upgrades.

With Linux rebooting your machine after an update is nearly non-existent.

Oh, as an added treat with Ubuntu, Ubuntu boots up on your machine in less than a minute. I still go get a coffee when my Microsoft desktop is booting up. An additional benefit of Ubuntu: there is no requirement for installing ant-virus and anti-spyware software. Ubuntu inherently repels these vial scourges of the internet.

With Ubuntu your system administration life will become simple and painless. You can spend more quality business hours selling and marketing.

Want to cut hidden costs in your organization that manifest themselves as Microsoft self-administration by your end users?

Ubuntu is a must for you or your IT folks to consider. Seriously consider, test and deploy.

Linux Business, Computing, Desktop, Environment, Linux, Notebook, Prime, Time, Ubuntu

The Basics of Linux & Windows : Linux (and its close relation
Unix) and Windows 2000 (and its close cousin Windows NT) are
types of software (known as operating systems) that web servers
use to do the kind of things that web servers do. You do not
need to know any real detail of either to make a decision as to
which you need but here a few guidelines.

Just because you use a windows desktop PC doesn’t mean you have
to opt for Windows web hosting (and the reverse is true as
well). The operating system you use on your desktop has little
to do with your choice of web hosts. As long as you understand
how to use your FTP or web publishing software, your can use
either operating system.

But what is important is that you know what you want your
website to do and what you want to offer on it. This is what
will ultimately help determine the type of web hosting that will
work best for you. As mentioned earlier, interactive websites
usually rely on ASP, PHP, or Perl type languages.

Linux Web Hosting or Windows 2000 Web Hosting ? Make your Choice
!

When it comes to Web hosting, Linux has, for some time, been
widely considered the best OS for Web servers. It’s typically
found to be the most reliable, stable and efficient system and,
as such, it’s commonly used for the demanding environment of Web
and mail servers. Indeed,Most of the clients websites of aalpha
NET runs on the Linux OS precisely because of this traditional
stability.

The million-dollar question is what application are you looking
to use for your hosting? Consider the tools and scripting
languages you plan to use – if you use PHP, Perl or MySQL, Linux
is the way forward. If apps are Microsoft-specific, then Windows
is what you need.

If your site, like most web sites, is what might be termed
“brochure-ware” then Linux servers are ideal. By brochure-ware I
mean a site that offers the kind of information that in the past
might have been provided on paper in the form of brochures,
newsletters or data sheets. Brochure-ware sites will offer some
interaction through enquiry forms and can certainly incorporate
online purchasing and other routine e-commerce functions.

If however your site incorporates an online searchable database
or interactive chat facilities then Windows 2000 or NT will be a
better bet in most cases. It will cost a bit more but you’ll get
that back in reduced development time and simply better
functionality.

The following are the advantages of using Linux based web server
compared to Windows based web server :

Stable: Linux/Unix operating systems has traditionally been
believed to be very stable and robust. A web site housed on a
Linux operating system will have very high up-time (of the order
of 99.9%). Of course, other factors such as power supply,
network admin skills, and network load etc. also matter when it
comes to maintaining the system uptime.

Low cost of ownership: The Linux OS comes free of cost (or at
very insignificant cost, usually cost of distribution). Also, it
has full fledged server, and desk top applications that comes
free along with the OS. These server applications (such as FTP,
Web Server, DNS Server, File Server etc.) being free, are also
very stable.

Ease of use : When it comes to web hosting, it is easy to host
on Linux web servers. The process of uploading and hosting is
almost same for both Linux and Windows web servers. If you want
to use a Windows based tool such as Front Page for uploading a
web site on to a Linux based web server, make sure that the
Front Page extensions are enabled. This is only required if you
are uploading using HTTP feature (http://www.yourwebsite.com) of
Front Page. Front Page also makes it possible to upload a web
site using FTP. You need to select ftp://www.yourwebsite.com for
up loading using front page FTP option. Note that if you select
“Front Page Extensions” during web site design, you must enable
Front Page extensions on a Linux web server also. These days,
all Linux web servers are coming with installable Front Page
extensions, and this should pose no problem for hosting on a
Linux platform.

You can use almost all types of file extensions (or scripts)
when using Linux web server. Commonly, the following extensions
are supported: .cgi, .html, .htm, .pl, .php, .shtml, .xml, and
others. Basically it means that you can host web sites that use
different types of server side scripts including .cgi, .pl,
..php, and .asp (with plug-in).

Easy to move between hosts : A web site designed to be hosted on
a Linux based web server can be hosted on a Windows web server
easily, where as the reverse is not always true.

Most widely used : Linux/Unix based web hosting is most widely
used compared to Windows based web hosting.

Scalability : A web site is dynamic. Usually, a web site starts
with a few pages of html and grows over a period of time to suit
the customers requirements. It is preferable to design a web
site keeping this requirements in mind. A web site designed for
compatibility with a Linux/Unix based web server meets the
scalability requirement easily without making any site wide
design changes.

On the downside, Linux based web server is not fully compatible
with Microsoft technologies. If you are using any specialized
applications or VB for development of your web site, it is
preferable to host with a Windows based web server.

For more articles Please visit Articles at
All Web Hosts.

Thank You

Linux Domains and Hosting, Linux, Windows

Of course if you are used to Microsoft Windows you are familiar with the concept of files. This familiarity means you won’t have to start from zero to learn about Linux files. However, you will have to relearn several concepts and techniques to work with files in the Linux environment, whether using Damn Small Linux or other versions. You can do several great things with Linux files that you can’t do easily or at all under Windows. This could be just one more reason to switch from Windows to Linux.

Files have unique names. This rule is not as simple as it may seem. There is no conflict between a hard disk file named pay12june and a file named pay12june on your removable USB flash drive. In fact, be sure to backup all your important files. Don’t worry if your hard drive file is erased or becomes corrupted and illegible, simply access the one on your flash drive. You could also have two files named pay12june on your hard drive in different directories. Directories, collections of directories and files, will be discussed in the next article in this series.

Linux distinguishes between lower-case and upper-case characters in file names. Microsoft Windows does not. For example, Linux treats pay12june and Pay12june as two different files, as different as pay12june and heighho. Windows users will have to adapt to this major difference. Even though I am a Linux fan I don’t see any advantage in the Linux way of naming files. Maybe I have spent too much time in the Windows environment.

File names should be relatively short. The allowed maximum is 255 characters but working with long file names is no fun and in fact is asking for trouble. Linux file names may not contain the character / which has a special meaning. To avoid misunderstanding don’t include special characters such as $ and & in your file names. Doing so could cause confusion and lead to hard-to-find errors. For the same reason don’t call your files by special Linux names such as etc.

Linux sometimes applies file extensions; common examples include .c to indicate a C-language program and .htm or .html to indicate one type of web page. Savvy Linux users often avoid coding the file extension but rely on the file directory to indicate the file type. Don’t give a Linux file a misleading file extension.

Use an editor to create or modify a text file. The old fashioned vi editor has been replaced by more powerful, user-friendly editors. Most versions of Linux come with several editors. Damn Small Linux, a popular version that runs under Windows, includes several editors such as Beaver that come quite close to being intuitive.

Linux provides an enormous variety of commands for processing files. Many of these commands are mnemonic; for example the command cp is used to copy files. Many commands include a wide variety of options. Consider the ls command, somewhat similar to the DIR command in the Windows environment. This seemingly simple command is quite rich and offers dozens and dozens of options many of which have no equivalent in the Windows environment.

Linux commands can be thought of as verbs. Just like most English sentences include more than a verb (go, jump) complete Linux commands contain the command itself and one or more objects. To copy a file you not only need to specify cp but also What and Where. For example, the command cp pay12june backuparea means copy the pay12june file into the backuparea directory.

Linux syntax (grammar rules) is quite strict and does take time to learn. But mastering Linux and associated technologies can lead to employment. The next step is mastering Linux directories.

Linux Beginners, Concepts, Files, Linux, Number

Linux smart phones are user-friendly with advanced features of Linux operating system. Though there are many operating systems available for Smartphones like Symbian, Windows Mobile, Palm etc, Linux operating systems have been serving its users for many years. You may be interested to buy a Linux Smartphone as you have been used to Linux building-block functionality. Another reason is that you may want to experience new things and unique features available in this OS. Though Linux Smartphones are still in the growth phase, due its open source nature you have the freedom to write programs by yourself if you are familiar with programming. Linux Smartphones are not specially catering to casual and business users, but in the coming years it will have its own significant market share.

Most of the interesting functions available in Linux smart phone are due to the fact that it is operated by Linux operating system. Most of the Smartphone functions like Web browsing, Office documentation and editing, Media playback and instant messaging are available. Linux Smartphone permits you to download as well as compile various packages that you can fit in your phone. You can remotely control the PC by applying VNC and can also make free phone calls by using soft phone based on SIP. If you want to talk to somebody during movement, you can use 802.11b/g. You can write to yourself or use sourceforge and find if it’s already written by someone. All these are special advantages for Linux Smartphone users.

With all the functions similar to other smart phones, these phones are still in some ways a Pipe dream. Their existence is very minimal and when compared with other Smartphones, there are not many American providers offering Smartphones currently operating on Linux. But its getting improved as the next version of Palm operating system is going to be based on Linux. Other than supporting open source projects on Linux, it also compatible with established Palm Operating system applications and that is a boon to work on both platforms. There is going to be launch of Motorola Smartphones based on Linux platform in the future, as there is already one handheld device with certification from FCC.

There was great success in Smartphones running with Linux operating system on hardware designed for other brands of Smartphones. Palm Smartphone Treo runs quite nicely with Linux and so for other hardware also it won’t be that harder. Anything can happen in the future like that we may buy smart phones without any operating system and we can install our preferred operating system on our Smartphone. One of the obstacle Linux faces is its intercompatibility with the other Smartphones in the market    Linux Phone Standards forum (LIPS) plays a main role while the sender uses WiFi to contact you. Access formerly known as Palm source who are the makers of Palm operating system are contract members in LIPS and its next version will be Linux based. This does not imply that Linux Smartphones are not seriously supported. The most successful Smartphones in the market like Motorola, Samsung, Panasonic and NEC are running on Linux. The Latest Smartphone SCH-i819 of Samsung focused for Chinese businessmen offers special version of Linux for ideal input of Chinese characters and touch screen support. The additional feature BREW helps for most of the Smartphone downloads.

Linux Advantages, Linux, Phones, Smart

Maybe domination is too strong a word. Maybe not. The market conditions for Linux are as favorable as they have ever been. Apple and Microsoft have weaknesses that are either plainly evident, or will be revealed soon.

The general public is becoming more technologically savvy in general, and beginning to understand their options. There are just a few things that stand in the way of the general public’s adoption of the operating system, in my opinion. We’ll tackle Linux’s greatest opportunities and the weaknesses that can and do slow down its adoption as a mainstream OS.

Let’s start with the favorable environment: Microsoft is really hurting with Vista. I mean badly. They’ve made an operating system that has locked itself out of all but the new PC market. Then, it nags you like a small child each time you need install a program, or download something, or sync your mp3 player. The business market will hardly touch this. Now, they’ve hired Jerry Seinfeld to fix it all. Somebody needs to tell them that just because he idolizes Superman, doesn’t mean he is Superman. Microsoft looks tired. They should probably just release an OS called XPlus( for the uninitiated, that would be XP SP4.)

Apple, while gaining market share and shooting at Microsoft, is now worth more than Google. There are problems that lie down the path of growth. Apple has always bragged about security, and the fact that you don’t need anti-virus for their systems. My computer teacher( millenia ago ) told me it wasn’t needed for one simple reason: Crackers(known to the general public as “hackers”) didn’t find it very profitable to crack a MAC. The adoption rate was too low. Now that the adoption rate has increased, the prospect of savaging bragadocious fanboys is almost irresistible. What could be better than humiliating the arrogant, artsy crowd?

Then there’s the fact that Microsoft seems a kindly old grandfather when it comes to openness. Steve Jobs holds his cards ridiculously close to his chest. While this might not bother the average user, it will get on the nerves of those who want complete control of their system. Apple has tighter DRM than Microsoft, and has recently come under fire for their invisible software upgrades. It won’t take long for the more adventurous user to download another OS and find other programs to meet her needs.

Linux has made great strides because of one flavor of their operating system: Ubuntu. Talk all you want about how Debian, Fedora, and SUSE are the pure, unadulterated nectar of the Linux gods. Mark Shuttleworth’s Canonical has made Linux palatable for the average user. The install process is simple, it’s free, and adding programs is a snap using Synaptic. Wireless support is vastly better in this distro, as is printer support. Plus, it boasts the largest Linux community.

That community tends to write programs that solve extremely specific problems. They are also writing programs that meet or exceed closed source, commercially available software. This is the most vital thing for the continued growth of Linux as an operating system.

The security problems for Linux are almost non-existent at present time. It’s pretty air tight, not to say that it can’t be done, it’s just that it is far more profitable to hack internet communications than it is to hack a Linux box. Plus, the Linux community will track you down and make you eat your hard drive if you take out one of their PC’s. This may change as well, with broader adoption, but right now I am not worried about some Windoze script kiddie hacking my box.

If all this is true, then what stands in the way of further Linux adoption?

Sound. I bet you thought I was going to say “the command line”. We’ll get to that later. Linux sound is a pain to configure, and is really horrible if you want to run more than one program that requires sound output. There are a couple of different ways to implement sound in Linux. Some of them are stable, some are not. In 50% of all cases, one application’s sound will work, while another will not. Yesterday, I ran into a case where a sound server actually kept an entire application from running. Until Linux converts to a single, common sound architecture, then it will keep the average user dependent on…

The command line. You knew it was coming, I gave you fair warning. I enjoy the command line, to a certain extent. It allows me to instantly kill a program when it hangs, no questions asked. I can edit configuration files without opening a text editor. Just today, an article came across my screen, in which the author stated that you could use Linux forever without having to touch the command line. While technically true, that assertion is misleading, at best. All help articles in Linux forums start with, or assume you have already opened the command line. If you need to fix something, you will be using the CL, or you will not be using Linux very long.

This is something that people are going to have to come to terms with, unless Linux kernels and library sources are closed. What will hopefully happen is a more accessible command line integrated into the various window managers as part of the default configuration. Predictive commands(and the ability for expert users to turn this feature off) should play a huge roll when delivering the rollout to the average user. The final holdup is…

Developers, Developers, Developers. So we laughed at Steve “MonkeyBoy” Ballmer during his outburst of “irrational exuberance”. Major developers of closed-source software will have to get on board for the full adoption of Linux. Even though I love to GIMP, and am huge devotee, I miss the incredible batch processing abilities, and clean interface of Photoshop CS3(GIMPShop doesn’t cut it). I just do. I miss Flash. I don’t want to dual boot, or use WINE. I want a natively run solution. That is what is currently missing in the Linux equation. I want a peanut butter sandwich, not a bologna sandwich. Just because you can eat it, doesn’t mean you enjoy it as much. The common Windows user feels a far greater fear than I do in this regard, and they won’t give up their familiar programs and OS without a serious fight.

For every flaw, Linux has thousands of advantages. Linux will become a major player on the OS scene, has(and will) be the greatest bridge on the path to platform independent software and cloud computing. It will. The question is, how soon will we, as the Linux community, stop arguing over whose distro is better, and have a conversation about which path it will take to domination as an operating system.

Linux Domination, From, here, Linux, Pathway