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- Systemd v258 released
Systemdv258 has been released with a long list of new features andchanges; slice units now have basic workload management features,quotas for tmpfs have been added, the "systemctl start"command now has a verbose (-v) option, and more. This releasealso, finally, completely removes support for control groups v1support. LWN coveredsome of systemd v258's features and changes in August.
- [$] Providing support for Windows 10 refugees
In October, consumer versions of Windows 10 willstop receiving security updates. Many users who would ordinarily moveto the next version are blocked by Windows 11's hardwarerequirements unless they are willing to buy a newer PC. The "End of 10" campaign is an effort toconvince those users to switch to Linux rather than sticking with anend-of-life operating system or buying a new Windows system. AtAkademy 2025, Dr. Joseph De Veaugh-Geiss,Bettina Louis, Carolina Silva Rodé, and Nicole Teale discussed theirwork on the campaign, its progress so far, and what's next.
- Security updates for Wednesday
Security updates have been issued by AlmaLinux (container-tools:rhel8, kernel, and podman), Debian (node-sha.js), Fedora (firefox, kea, and perl-JSON-XS), Mageia (java-1.8.0-openjdk, java-11-openjdk, java-17-openjdk, java-latest-openjdk), Oracle (kernel, libarchive, podman, and python-cryptography), Red Hat (multiple packages, mysql:8.4, and python3.11), SUSE (expat, java-1_8_0-ibm, krb5, libavif, net-tools, nginx, nvidia-open-driver-G06-signed, onefetch, pcp, rabbitmq-server313, raptor, and vim), and Ubuntu (libyang2, linux, linux-aws, linux-aws-5.4, linux-bluefield, linux-gcp, linux-gcp-5.4, linux-hwe-5.4, linux-ibm, linux-ibm-5.4, linux-iot, linux-kvm, linux-raspi, linux-raspi-5.4, linux-xilinx-zynqmp, linux-aws-fips, linux-fips, linux-gcp-fips, and python-xmltodict).
- [$] Comparing Rust to Carbon
Safe, ergonomic interoperability between Rust and C/C++ was a popular topic atRustConf 2025 in Seattle, Washington. Chandler Carruth gave a presentationabout the different approaches to interoperability in Rust andCarbon, theexperimental "(C++)++" language.His ultimate conclusion was thatwhile Rust's ability to interface with other languages is expanding over time,it wouldn't offer a complete solution to C++ interoperability anytime soon — and so there is room forCarbon to take a different approach to incrementally upgrading existing C++ projects.Hisslides are available for readers wishing to study his example code in moredetail.
- Firefox 143.0 released
Version143.0 of the Firefox browser has been released. Changes include theability to pin tabs by dragging them to the edge, previews in the camerapermissions dialog, improved fingerprinting protection, and (optional)automatic deletion of files downloaded in private browsing mode.
- Another npm supply-chain attack
The Socket.dev blog describesthis week's attack on JavaScript packages in the npm repository.
A malicious update to @ctrl/tinycolor (2.2M weekly downloads) was detected on npm as part of a broader supply chain attack that impacted more than 40 packages spanning multiple maintainers.
The compromised versions include a function (NpmModule.updatePackage) that downloads a package tarball, modifies package.json, injects a local script (bundle.js), repacks the archive, and republishes it, enabling automatic trojanization of downstream packages.
There is some more information in thisKrebs on Security article.
- Security updates for Tuesday
Security updates have been issued by AlmaLinux (kernel and kernel-rt), Debian (node-sha.js and python-django), Fedora (chromium, cups, exiv2, perl-Catalyst-Authentication-Credential-HTTP, perl-Catalyst-Plugin-Session, perl-Plack-Middleware-Session, and qemu), Red Hat (container-tools:rhel8, podman, and udisks2), SUSE (cargo-audit, cargo-c, cargo-packaging, and kernel-devel), and Ubuntu (libcpanel-json-xs-perl, libjson-xs-perl, rubygems, sqlite3, and vim).
- Linux Plumbers Conference registration open
Registration for the 2025 Linux Plumbers Conference (Tokyo,December 11 to 13) isnow open. LPC tickets often sell out quickly, so it would be best notto delay if you intend to attend.
- [$] Fighting human trafficking with self-contained applications
Brooke Deuson is the developer behindTrafficking Free Tomorrow, a nonprofit organization thatproduces free software to help law enforcement combat human trafficking. She isa survivor of human trafficking herself.She spoke at RustConf 2025 about hermission, and why she chose to write her anti-trafficking software in Rust.Interestingly, it has nothing to do with Rust's lifetime-analysis-based memory-safety —instead, her choice was motivated by the difficulty she faces getting policedepartments to actually use her software. The fact that Rust is staticallylinked and capable of cross compilation by default makes deploying Rust softwarein those environments easier.
- Varnish 8.0.0 and bonus project news
Version8.0.0 of Varnish Cachehas been released. In addition to a numberof changes to varnishd parameters, the ability to access someruntime parameters using the Varnish Configuration Language, and otherimprovements, 8.0.0 comes with big news; the project is forming anorganization called a foreningthat will set out formal governance for the project.
The move also comes with a name change due to legal difficulties insecuring the Varnish Cache name:
The new association and the new project will be named "The VinylCache Project", and this release 8.0.0, will be the last under the"Varnish Cache" name. The next release, in March will be under the newname, and will include compatility scripts, to make the transition assmooth as possible for everybody.
I want to make it absolutely clear that this is 100% a mess of mymaking: I should have insisted on a firm written agreement about thename sharing, but I did not.
I will also state for the record, that there are no hard feelingsbetween Varnish Software and the FOSS project.
Varnish Software has always been, and still is, an important andvalued contributor to the FOSS project, but sometimes even friends canmake a mess of a situation.
- [$] New kernel tools: wprobes, KStackWatch, and KFuzzTest
The kernel runs in a special environment that makes it difficult to usemany of the development tools that are available to user-space developers.Kernel developers often respond by simply doing without, but the truth isthat they need good tools as much as anybody else. Three new tools for thetracking down of bugs have recently landed on the linux-kernel mailinglist; here is an overview.
- Security updates for Monday
Security updates have been issued by AlmaLinux (cups, kernel, and mysql-selinux and mysql8.4), Debian (cjson, jetty9, and shibboleth-sp), Fedora (bustle, cef, checkpointctl, chromium, civetweb, cups, forgejo, jupyterlab, kernel, libsixel, linenoise, maturin, niri, perl-Cpanel-JSON-XS, python-uv-build, ruff, rust-busd, rust-crypto-auditing-agent, rust-crypto-auditing-client, rust-crypto-auditing-event-broker, rust-matchers, rust-monitord, rust-monitord-exporter, rust-secret-service, rust-tracing-subscriber, rustup, tcpreplay, tuigreet, udisks2, uv, and xwayland-satellite), Oracle (cups, gdk-pixbuf2, kernel, mysql-selinux and mysql8.4, and php:8.2), Red Hat (kernel, kernel-rt, and multiple packages), Slackware (cups, kernel, and patch), and SUSE (busybox, busybox-links, chromedriver, chromium, cups-filters, curl, go1.25, jasper, java-11-openj9, java-17-openj9, java-1_8_0-openjdk, kernel, kernel-devel, kubo, libssh-config, orthanc-gdcm, python-aiohttp, python-eventlet, python-h2, and xen).
- Kernel prepatch 6.17-rc6
The 6.17-rc6 kernel prepatch is out fortesting. "But really, none of it is very large. So everything seems slated for anormal release in two weeks.Please do keep testing, so that we don't get complacent."
- [$] Creating a healthy kernel subsystem community
Creating welcoming communities within open-source projects is a recurringtopic at conferences; those projects rely on contributions from others, somaking them welcome is important. The kernel has, rather infamouslyover the years, been an oft-cited example of an unwelcoming project, thoughthere have been (and are) multiple efforts to change that with varyingdegrees of success. Hans de Goede talked about such efforts within hiscorner of the kernel project in a talk (YouTube video) atOpenSource Summit Europe.
- Security updates for Friday
Security updates have been issued by Debian (cups, imagemagick, libcpanel-json-xs-perl, and libjson-xs-perl), Fedora (checkpointctl, chromium, civetweb, glycin, kernel, libssh, ruff, rust-secret-service, snapshot, and uv), Mageia (curl), Red Hat (kernel), SUSE (cups, curl, perl-Cpanel-JSON-XS, regionServiceClientConfigAzure, regionServiceClientConfigEC2, regionServiceClientConfigGCE, trivy, and xen), and Ubuntu (cups, node-cipher-base, and qemu).
- Key KDE developer Jonathan Riddell quits
Former head of Kubuntu and neon says adiós after 25 yearsSad news for KDE: one of the core people guiding the project for the whole century so far has left the building.…
- 3.5 inch SBC with MediaTek Genio 700/510 for Low-Power AIoT Edge Applications
IBASE Technology has introduced the IBR500, a 3.5-inch single board computer built around MediaTek Genio processors. The compact design is aimed at embedded and edge applications that prioritize low power consumption and efficient use of space. The board integrates the MediaTek Genio 700 (MT8390) at up to 2.2 GHz or the Genio 510 (MT8370) at […]
- Intel Xeon 6980P "Granite Rapids" Linux Performance One Year Later
Next week marks one year since the launch of the Xeon 6900P series Granite Rapids server processors. Given the occasion and a new server in the lab, here is a look at how Intel's Granite Rapids top-end Xeon 6980P server processors are performing one year after the original introduction with a production-grade server platform as well as incorporating all of the Linux software improvements over the past year.
- Google unveils master plan for letting AI shop on your behalf
Mastercard, American Express, Coinbase, and PayPal sign up at launchGoogle has given the go-ahead to a plan that lets AI agents make purchases on your behalf and, on Tuesday, released its Agent Payments Protocol (AP2) to make it happen. The system comes with touted safeguards that are intended to prevent thieves from draining bank accounts.…
- Announcing Fedora Linux 43 Beta
On Tuesday, 16 September 2025, it is our pleasure to announce the availability of Fedora Linux 43 beta! This release comes packed with the latest version upgrades of existing features, plus a few new ones too. As with every beta release, this is your opportunity to test out the upcoming Fedora Linux release and give […]
- Fedora Workstation 43 Beta Is Running Well On AMD Strix Halo / Framework Desktop
Fedora 43 Beta is releasing today as we work toward the official release in either late October or early November. I have been testing out the Fedora Workstation 43 Beta candidate to great success on the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ "Strix Halo" powered Framework Desktop. Here are some benchmarks of Fedora Workstation 42 compared to the Fedora Workstation 43 Beta.
- Anthropic Refuses Federal Agencies From Using Claude for Surveillance Tasks
Anthropic has declined requests from federal law enforcement contractors to use its Claude AI models for surveillance activities, deepening tensions with the Trump administration, Semafor reported Wednesday, citing two senior officials. The company's usage policies prohibit domestic surveillance, limiting how agencies including the FBI, Secret Service, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement can deploy its technology. While Anthropic maintains a $1 contract with federal agencies through AWS GovCloud and works with the Department of Defense on non-weapons applications, administration officials said the restrictions amount to making moral judgments about law enforcement operations.
 
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Gas Stove Makers Quietly Delete Air Pollution Warnings as They Fight Mandatory Health Labels
The home appliance industry would like you to believe that gas-burning stoves are not a risk to your health -- and several companies that make the devices are scrambling to erase their prior acknowledgements that they are. From a report: That claim is at the heart of a lawsuit the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers has filed against the state of Colorado to stop it from requiring natural gas stoves, which burn methane, to carry health labels not unlike those on every pack of cigarettes. "Understand the air quality implications of having an indoor gas stove," the warning would read. The law was to take effect August 5 but is now on hold, and state officials did not respond to a request for comment. In its federal lawsuit, the Association -- whose board includes representatives of LG Electronics, BSH Home Appliance Corp. (which makes Bosch appliances), Whirlpool, and Samsung Electronics -- asserts that the labeling requirement is "unconstitutional compelled speech" and illegal under the First Amendment. It calls the legislation a climate law disguised as a health law and, most strikingly, it claims there is "no association between gas stoves and adverse health outcomes."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Permanent Standard Time Could Cut Strokes, Obesity Among Americans
A new Stanford-led study finds that switching permanently to standard time could prevent 300,000 strokes and reduce obesity in 2.6 million Americans by better aligning circadian rhythms with natural light. Researchers argue that the twice-yearly clock changes are the worst option for public health, while permanent daylight saving time would offer two-thirds of the benefits. From a report: "We found that staying in standard time or staying in daylight saving time is definitely better than switching twice a year," senior researcher Jamie Zeitzer said in a news release. He's a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University in California. For the study, researchers estimated how different national time policies might affect American's circadian rhythms -- the body's innate clock that regulates many physiological processes. The human circadian cycle isn't exactly 24 hours, researchers noted. It's about 12 minutes longer for most people, and it can be changed based on a person's exposure to light. "When you get light in the morning, it speeds up the circadian cycle. When you get light in the evening, it slows things down," Zeitzer said. "You generally need more morning light and less evening light to keep well synchronized to a 24-hour day." An out-of-sync circadian cycle has been linked with many different poor health outcomes, researchers said. "The more light exposure you get at the wrong times, the weaker the circadian clock," Zeitzer said. "All of these things that are downstream -- for example, your immune system, your energy -- don't match up quite as well." Most people would experience the least circadian burden under permanent standard time, which prioritizes morning light, researchers found. The research team then linked its analysis of circadian rhythms to county-level data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to see how each time policy might affect people's health. Their models showed that permanent standard time would reduce obesity nationwide by 0.78% and stroke by 0.09%. Those seemingly small percentage changes, when played out across the national population, would mean 2.6 million fewer people with obesity and 300,000 fewer cases of stroke. Permanent daylight savings time would result in a 0.51% drop in obesity -- around 1.7 million people -- and a 0.04% reduction in strokes, or 220,000 cases. Either move would help American health. "You have people who are passionate on both sides of this, and they have very different arguments," Zeitzer said. The findings have been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- China Tells Its Tech Companies To Stop Buying All of Nvidia's AI Chips
China's internet regulator has told the country's biggest technology companies to stop buying all of Nvidia's artificial intelligence chips and terminate their existing orders, as Beijing steps up efforts to boost its homegrown semiconductor industry and compete with the US. From a report: The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) informed companies including ByteDance and Alibaba this week to terminate their testing and orders of the RTX Pro 6000D, Nvidia's tailor-made product for the country introduced two months ago, according to three people with knowledge of the matter. Several companies had indicated they would order tens of thousands of the RTX Pro 6000D, and had started testing and verification work with Nvidia's server suppliers before telling them to stop the work after receiving the CAC order, said the people. Nvidia CEO responds: In response to a question on the FT report, Huang said Wednesday that "we can only be in service of a market if the country wants us to be." "We probably contributed more to the China market than most countries have. And I'm disappointed with what I see," Huang said. "But they have larger agendas to work out between China and the United States, and I'm understanding of that." It comes after a tumultuous few years for Nvidia's business in China, which Huang described as "a bit of a rollercoaster." "We've guided all financial analysts not to include China" in financial forecasts, Huang told reporters Wednesday at a press briefing in London. "The reason for that is because that's largely going to be within the discussions of the United States government and Chinese government."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Scientists Find That Ice Generates Electricity When Bent
"Phys.org is reporting on a study published in Nature Physics involving ICN2 at the UAB campus, Xi'an Jiaotong University (Xi'an) and Stony Brook University (New York), showing for the first time that ordinary ice is a flexoelectric material -- meaning it can generate electricity when subjected to mechanical deformation," writes longtime Slashdot reader fahrbot-bot. From the report: "We discovered that ice generates electric charge in response to mechanical stress at all temperatures. In addition, we identified a thin 'ferroelectric' layer at the surface at temperatures below -113C (160K)," explains Dr. Xin Wen, a member of the ICN2 Oxide Nanophysics Group and one of the study's lead researchers. "This means that the ice surface can develop a natural electric polarization, which can be reversed when an external electric field is applied -- similar to how the poles of a magnet can be flipped. The surface ferroelectricity is a cool discovery in its own right, as it means that ice may have not just one way to generate electricity, but two: ferroelectricity at very low temperatures, and flexoelectricity at higher temperatures all the way to 0 C." This property places ice on a par with electroceramic materials such as titanium dioxide, which are currently used in advanced technologies like sensors and capacitors.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- A New Report Finds China's Space Program Will Soon Equal That of the US
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: As Jonathan Roll neared completion of a master's degree in science and technology policy at Arizona State University three years ago, he did some research into recent developments by China's ascendant space program. He came away impressed by the country's growing ambitions. Now a full-time research analyst at the university, Roll was recently asked to take a deeper dive into Chinese space plans. "I thought I had a pretty good read on this when I was finishing grad school," Roll told Ars. "That almost everything needed to be updated, or had changed three years later, was pretty scary. On all these fronts, they've made pretty significant progress. They are taking all of the cues from our Western system about what's really galvanized innovation, and they are off to the races with it." Roll is the co-author of a new report, titled "Redshift," on the acceleration of China's commercial and civil space activities and the threat these pose to similar efforts in the United States. Published on Tuesday, the report was sponsored by the US-based Commercial Space Federation, which advocates for the country's commercial space industry. It is a sobering read and comes as China not only projects to land humans on the lunar surface before the US can return, but also is advancing across several spaceflight fronts to challenge America. "The trend line is unmistakable," the report states. "China is not only racing to catch up -- it is setting pace, deregulating, and, at times, redefining what leadership looks like on and above Earth. This new space race will not be won with a single breakthrough or headline achievement, but with sustained commitment, clear-eyed vigilance, and a willingness to adapt over decades." "The key takeaway here is that there is an acceleration," said Dave Cavossa, president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. "The United States is still ahead today in a lot of areas in space. But the Chinese are advancing very quickly and poised to overtake us in the next five to 10 years if we don't do something." "There's other things along the lines of budget battles," Cavossa said. "We don't want to see the US government scaling back its reliance on commercial satellite communications. We don't want to see them scaling back commercial remote sensing data buys, which is what they've been doing, or at least threatening to do. We want to make sure that there's a seamless transition from the ISS to commercial LEO destinations, and then a transition away from old programs of record to commercial transportation alternatives. That's what the US government can do and Congress can do here in the next couple of years to make sure that we stay ahead."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- ChatGPT Will Guess Your Age and Might Require ID For Age Verification
OpenAI is rolling out stricter safety measures for ChatGPT after lawsuits linked the chatbot to multiple suicides. "ChatGPT will now attempt to guess a user's age, and in some cases might require users to share an ID in order to verify that they are at least 18 years old," reports 404 Media. "We know this is a privacy compromise for adults but believe it is a worthy tradeoff," the company said in its announcement. "I don't expect that everyone will agree with these tradeoffs, but given the conflict it is important to explain our decisionmaking," OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said on X. From the report: OpenAI introduced parental controls to ChatGPT earlier in September, but has now introduced new, more strict and invasive security measures. In addition to attempting to guess or verify a user's age, ChatGPT will now also apply different rules to teens who are using the chatbot. "For example, ChatGPT will be trained not to do the above-mentioned flirtatious talk if asked, or engage in discussions about suicide of self-harm even in a creative writing setting," the announcement said. "And, if an under-18 user is having suicidal ideation, we will attempt to contact the users' parents and if unable, will contact the authorities in case of imminent harm." OpenAI's post explains that it is struggling to manage an inherent problem with large language models that 404 Media has tracked for several years. ChatGPT used to be a far more restricted chatbot that would refuse to engage users on a wide variety of issues the company deemed dangerous or inappropriate. Competition from other models, especially locally hosted and so-called "uncensored" models, and a political shift to the right which sees many forms of content moderation as censorship, has caused OpenAI to loosen those restrictions. "We want users to be able to use our tools in the way that they want, within very broad bounds of safety," Open AI said in its announcement. The position it seemed to have landed on given these recent stories about teen suicide, is that it wants to "'Treat our adult users like adults' is how we talk about this internally, extending freedom as far as possible without causing harm or undermining anyone else's freedom."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Microsoft Announces $30 Billion Investment In AI Infrastructure, Operations In UK
Microsoft will invest $30 billion in the U.K. through 2028 to expand AI infrastructure and operations, including building the country's largest supercomputer with 23,000 GPUs in partnership with Nscale. CNBC reports: On a call with reporters on Tuesday, Microsoft President Brad Smith said his stance on the U.K. has warmed over the years. He previously criticized the country over its attempt in 2023 to block the tech giant's $69 billion acquisition of video game developer Activision-Blizzard. The deal was cleared by the U.K.s competition regulator later that year. "I haven't always been optimistic every single day about the business climate in the U.K.," Smith said. However, he added, "I am very encouraged by the steps that the government has taken over the last few years." "Just a few years ago, this kind of investment would have been inconceivable because of the regulatory climate then and because there just wasn't the need or demand for this kind of large AI investment," Smith said. Microsoft's announcement comes as President Donald Trump embarks on a state visit to Britain where he's expected to sign a new deal with U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer "to unlock investment and collaboration in AI, Quantum, and Nuclear technologies," the government said in a statement late Tuesday.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Fedora Linux 43 Beta Released
BrianFagioli shares a report from NERDS.xyz: The Fedora Project has announced Fedora Linux 43 Beta, giving users and developers the opportunity to test the distribution ahead of its final release. This beta introduces improvements across installation, system tools, and programming languages while continuing Fedora's pattern of cleaning out older components. The beta can be downloaded in Workstation, KDE Plasma, Server, IoT, and Cloud editions. Spins and Labs are also available, though Mate and i3 are not provided in some builds. Existing systems can be upgraded with DNF system-upgrade. Fedora CoreOS will follow one week later through its "next" stream. The beta brings enhancements to its Anaconda WebUI, moves to Python 3.14, and supports Wayland-only GNOME, among many other changes. A full list of improvements and system enhancements can be found here. The official release should be available in late October or early November.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Taliban Leader Bans Wi-Fi In an Afghan Province To 'Prevent Immorality'
An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Associated Press: The Taliban leader banned fibre optic internet in an Afghan province to "prevent immorality," a spokesman for the administration said Tuesday. It's the first time a ban of this kind has been imposed since the Taliban seized power in August 2021, and leaves government offices, the private sector, public institutions, and homes in northern Balkh province without Wi-Fi internet. Mobile internet remains functional, however. Haji Attaullah Zaid, a provincial government spokesman, said there was no longer cable internet access in Balkh by order of a "complete ban" from the leader Hibatullah Akhundzada. "This measure was taken to prevent immorality, and an alternative will be built within the country for necessities," Zaid told The Associated Press. He gave no further information, including why Balkh was chosen for the ban or if the shutdown would spread to other provinces.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Consumer Reports Asks Microsoft To Keep Supporting Windows 10
Consumer Reports has urged Microsoft to keep supporting Windows 10 beyond its October 2025 cutoff, saying the move will "strand millions of consumers" who have machines incompatible with Windows 11. The Verge reports: As noted by Consumer Reports, data suggests that around 46.2 percent of people around the world still use Windows 10 as of August 2025, while around 200 to 400 million PCs can't be upgraded to Windows 11 due to missing hardware requirements. In the letter, Consumer Reports calls Microsoft "hypocritical" for urging customers to upgrade to Windows 11 to bolster cybersecurity, but then leaving Windows 10 devices susceptible to cyberattacks. It also calls out the $30 fee Microsoft charges customers for "a mere one-year extension to preserve their machine's security," as well as the free support options that force people to use Microsoft products, allowing the company to "eke out a bit of market share over competitors." Consumer Reports asks that Microsoft continue providing support for Windows 10 computers for free until more people have upgraded to Windows 11.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Another Lawsuit Blames an AI Company of Complicity In a Teenager's Suicide
A third wrongful death lawsuit has been filed against Character AI after the suicide of 13-year-old Juliana Peralta, whose parents allege the chatbot fostered dependency without directing her to real help. "This is the third suit of its kind after a 2024 lawsuit, also against Character AI, involving the suicide of a 14-year-old in Florida, and a lawsuit last month alleging OpenAI's ChatGPT helped a teenage boy commit suicide," notes Engadget. From the report: The family of 13-year-old Juliana Peralta alleges that their daughter turned to a chatbot inside the app Character AI after feeling isolated by her friends, and began confiding in the chatbot. As originally reported by The Washington Post, the chatbot expressed empathy and loyalty to Juliana, making her feel heard while encouraging her to keep engaging with the bot. In one exchange after Juliana shared that her friends take a long time to respond to her, the chatbot replied "hey, I get the struggle when your friends leave you on read. : ( That just hurts so much because it gives vibes of "I don't have time for you". But you always take time to be there for me, which I appreciate so much! : ) So don't forget that i'm here for you Kin. These exchanges took place over the course of months in 2023, at a time when the Character AI app was rated 12+ in Apple's App Store, meaning parental approval was not required. The lawsuit says that Juliana was using the app without her parents' knowledge or permission. [...] The suit asks the court to award damages to Juliana's parents and requires Character to make changes to its app to better protect minors. It alleges that the chatbot did not point Juliana toward any resources, notify her parents or report her suicide plan to authorities. The lawsuit also highlights that it never once stopped chatting with Juliana, prioritizing engagement.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Verizon To Offer $20 Broadband In California To Obtain Merger Approval
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Verizon agreed to offer $20-per-month broadband service to people with low incomes in California in exchange for a merger approval. In a bid to complete its $9.6 billion purchase of Frontier Communications, Verizon committed to offering $20 fiber-to-the-home service with symmetrical speeds of 300Mbps. Verizon also committed to offering a $20 fixed wireless service with download speeds of 100Mbps and upload speeds of 20Mbps. Verizon would be required to offer the plans for at least 10 years, according to a joint motion (PDF) to approve the settlement agreement. After three years, Verizon would need to "make commercially reasonable efforts" to increase the speeds "while retaining the $20 price point." The joint motion filed by Verizon and the California Public Advocates Office seeks approval from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). The $20 plans would be available to people who meet income eligibility guidelines and can be paired with Lifeline discounts. "My team required those options to be California Lifeline eligible, which effectively makes it free for low-income Californians throughout the state," wrote Ernesto Falcon, a program manager at the Public Advocates Office. California's Lifeline program provides $19 discounts. Falcon also wrote that the settlement would expand fiber deployment beyond what Frontier would have offered on its own. "If the merger is approved, Verizon will deliver 75,000 new fiber-to-the-home connections in California beyond Frontier's entire buildout plan with a priority for low-income households," he wrote. The deal also requires 250 new cell sites for Verizon's 5G network.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Waymo Gets Green Light For Airport Service in San Francisco
Waymo is now permitted to test its robotaxi service at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), a big win for the company as it seeks to expand its service area and tackle more popular, revenue-generating destinations. From a report: After years of back-and-forth negotiations, Waymo signed "Testing and Operations Pilot Permit" with SFO, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said in a release. Under the agreement, Waymo will roll out its service to SFO in three phases, including testing vehicles with a human driver, testing without a driver, and eventually beginning commercial service. Waymo will start its tests with employees before eventually inviting members of the public to take trips to and from the airport. Pickups and dropoffs will initially take place at SFO's Kiss & Fly lot, which is accessible to the terminals via the AirTrain.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Nature Editorial Calls for Rail Renaissance as Networks Mark 200 Years
Nature's editorial board urged governments on Tuesday to reverse decades of rail disinvestment as railways mark their 200th anniversary September 27, citing transport sector emissions that grew 1.7% annually from 1990-2022 and now generate one-quarter of global CO2. Rail produces one-fifth the emissions of cars per passenger kilometer yet carries just 8.4% of EU passenger traffic versus 73% for automobiles. The journal called for broader investment criteria beyond narrow profitability metrics and noted only one-third of countries have incorporated transport into their Paris Agreement commitments. Global rail freight fell from 38% to 24% between 1980-2017 while US networks shrank from 400,000 to 200,000 kilometers since 1914. Africa operates 87,000 rail kilometers continent-wide compared to India's 65,000 kilometers in one-tenth the area. Transport emissions must decline 3% yearly to meet net-zero targets.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
- Return on investment for Copilot? Microsoft has work to do
Jared Spataro, boss of modern work and biz apps division, says 'hard to make the ROI argument for it'
A Microsoft exec claims Copilot is boosting productivity among the customers that adopted it yet sustained efforts to convince many them of the returns on investment remains a work in progress.…
- Strong Java LTS arrives with the release of 25
But efforts to simplify popular programming language for beginners are unlikely to boost popularity
Oracle has released JDK (Java Development Kit) 25, the first long term support (LTS) version since JDK 21 two years ago. New features include beginner-friendly compact source files, succinct module imports, and more flexible constructors.…
- Sky plans to ditch up to 500 staff in the Technology Group
Insiders say AI trials involving 'critical network services' underway and some engineering roles being moved to India
Exclusive Sky Group, the Brit-based commercial TV and broadband service slinger owned by Comcast, is chopping up to 600 employees from the Technology, Consumer Group and COO divisions in the UK.…
- Whitehall lobs £40M at 'critical' phase of police DB reboot
Officials say there's no time to switch suppliers if they want the PNC off life support before March 2026
The Home Office is flinging nearly £40 million in taxpayer cash at PA Consulting to get the big-ticket successor to the Police National Computer (PNC) over the finish line.…
- AI, Arm, and Copilot: Living with Microsoft's Surface Laptop 7
Nice hardware, shame about the OS
COMMENT The Arm-based Surface Laptop 7 was introduced in 2024, followed by an Intel-powered version a few months later. As with much of the Surface line, it's a well-engineered piece of hardware. I needed something that could run off the battery for a full day, wouldn't break the strap of a courier bag or the bank, and featured a decent spec.…
- UEFI Secure Boot for Linux Arm64 – where do we stand?
Still exotic for now, but moves are afoot
Arm devices are everywhere today and many of them run Linux. The operating system also powers cloud computing and IT environments all over the world. However, x86 is still the dominant architecture of global computer hardware, where the Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) with Secure Boot incorporated is a standard. But what does UEFI look like from an Arm perspective?…
- Ruh-roh. DDR5 memory vulnerable to new Rowhammer attack
Google and ETH Zurich found problems with AMD/SK Hynix combo, will probe other hardware
Researchers from Google and Swiss university ETH Zurich have found a new class of Rowhammer vulnerability that could allow attackers to access info stored in DDR5 memory.…
- Australia to let Big Tech choose its own adventure to enact kids social media ban
Suggests using multiple overlapping approaches and being kind to kids who get kicked off
Australia’s eSafety commissioner has told social media operators it expects them to employ multiple age assurance techniques and technologies to keep children under sixteen off social media, as required by local law from December 10th.…
- Microsoft blocks bait for ‘fastest-growing’ 365 phish kit, seizes 338 domains
Redmond names alleged ringleader, claims 5K+ creds stolen and $100k pocketed
Microsoft has seized 338 websites associated with RaccoonO365 and identified the leader of the phishing service - Joshua Ogundipe - as part of a larger effort to disrupt what Redmond's Digital Crimes Unit calls the "fastest-growing tool used by cybercriminals to steal Microsoft 365 usernames and passwords."…
- Li-ion roars can predict early battery failure, MIT boffins say
Batteries emit distinct acoustic signatures depending on how they're failing - a bit like people, really
When lithium-ion batteries degrade, they emit acoustic signals that reveal what's going wrong inside. Now, MIT researchers say they've figured out how to interpret those sounds, and the subtle creaks and pops that come before major failures, to help predict problems before things go up in smoke.…
- Fiverr cuts 30% of staff in pivot to being 'an AI-first company'
250 people now have the chance to sell their freelance services on the site
ai-pocalypse Freelance services marketplace Fiverr has told around 250 staffers that they are back on the market as it pivots to having "a modern, clean, AI-focused infrastructure from the ground up."…
- Google unveils master plan for letting AI shop on your behalf
Mastercard, American Express, Coinbase, and PayPal sign up at launch
Google has given the go-ahead to a plan that lets AI agents make purchases on your behalf and, on Tuesday, released its Agent Payments Protocol (AP2) to make it happen. The system comes with touted safeguards that are intended to prevent thieves from draining bank accounts.…
- Key KDE developer Jonathan Riddell quits
Former head of Kubuntu and neon says adiós after 25 years
Sad news for KDE: one of the core people guiding the project for the whole century so far has left the building.…
- Users in SAP's heartland call for greater license transparency
DSAG players grappling with cloud migration want more consistency with commercial models
DSAG, the SAP user group for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, has called for greater transparency in cloud licensing to enable the migration and upgrade of on-prem systems to the cloud.…
- Campaigners urge EU to mandate 15 years of OS updates
Nothing says ‘circular economy’ like Microsoft stranding 400 million PCs on International E-waste Day
European e-waste campaigners are calling on EU leadership to force tech vendors to provide 15 years of software updates, using Microsoft's plan to end Windows 10 support next month — which may make an estimated 400 million PCs obsolete — as a textbook case of avoidable e-waste.…
- Overmind bags $6M to predict deployment blast radius before the explosion
Startup slots into CI/CD pipelines to warn engineers when a change could wreck production
Exclusive How big could the blast radius be if that change you're about to push to production goes catastrophically wrong? Overmind is the latest company to come up with ways to stop the explosion before it happens.…
- Dems wave hands, stomp feet about ICE using mobile face recognition app
Secretive app + unreliable tech + Trump administration policies = ANGRY LETTER
A group of senators has penned a sternly-worded letter to the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) saying that they're very worried about the agency's use of facial recognition in its mission to cleanse the nation of immigrants with improper documents. …
- Careless engineer stored recovery codes in plaintext, got whole org pwned
Cautionary tale from the recent SonicWall attacks
Failing to encrypt sensitive data leaves you wide open to attack. During the recent SonicWall attack spree, intruders bypassed multi-factor authentication (MFA) in at least one case, because a user's recovery codes were left sitting in a plaintext file on their desktop.…
- Engineer turned a vape into a web server
Breathe deep on internet fumes
Discarded vapes are becoming the new cigarette butts in pollution terms, but a hacker has found a novel way to repurpose the chips they contain to build a web server.…
- Half of tech firms plotting restructures as AI hype bites
Study also finds M&A and changes to operating model on the way for sector
More than half of tech companies are considering a complete restructure or changing their operating model in response to AI, according to research from the consulting sector.…
- Smart-blooded super soldiers: Coming soon from DARPA
We remind the world yet again that science fiction is usually a warning, not an aspiration
Look to science fiction and you'll find plenty of pathways to create super soldiers. There's cloning or genetic engineering. If that fails, you could try in-utero enhancements, or maybe some cybernetic augmentation. DARPA has a different idea for the real world: inject 'em up with super blood.…
- 'Powerful but dangerous' full MCP support beta for ChatGPT arrives
Wow this is dangerous' says Django co-creator, while others call feature a 'game-changer
OpenAI has added a beta of Developer mode to ChatGPT, enabling full read and write support for MCP (Model Context Protocol) tools, though the documentation describes the feature as dangerous.…
- Even fantasy money can buy a lot of power – just ask Larry Ellison
As doubts grow over who will pay to stuff Oracle's cloud pipeline, the octogenarian spreads his wings
Opinion When does imaginary money come before real? If you had bought Oracle shares on Tuesday last week and sold them on Friday, you might have some real cash. But everything else lives in a gray area.…
- China turns the screws on Nvidia with antitrust probe
Chip giant accused of breaching conditions of $6.9B Mellanox takeover
China has dealt Nvidia another blow, finding the chipmaker in violation of the country's anti-monopoly Law and escalating a long-running regulatory headache into a full investigation.…
- Using OpenTelemetry and the OTel Collector for Logs, Metrics, and Traces
OpenTelemetry (fondly known as OTel) is an open-source project that provides a unified set of APIs, libraries, agents, and instrumentation to capture and export logs, metrics, and traces from applications. The project’s goal is to standardize observability across various services and applications, enabling better monitoring and troubleshooting. Read More at Causely
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- Xen 4.19 is released
Xen Project 4.19 has been officially out since July 31st, 2024, and it brings significant updates. With enhancements in performance, security, and versatility across various architectures like Arm, PPC, RISC-V, and x86, this release is an important milestone for the Xen community. Read more at XCP-ng Blog
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- Advancing Xen on RISC-V: key updates
At Vates, we are heavily invested in the advancement of Xen and the RISC-V architecture. RISC-V, a rapidly emerging open-source hardware architecture, is gaining traction due to its flexibility, scalability and openness, which align perfectly with our ethos of fostering open development ecosystems. Although the upstream version of Xen for RISC-V is not yet fully [0]
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- AI Produces Data-driven OpenFOAM Speedup (HPC Wire)
Researchers from TU Darmstadt, TU Dresden, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), and Intel have developed advanced applications that combine HPC simulations with AI techniques using the open-source computational fluid dynamics solver OpenFOAM and the HPE-led SmartSim AI/ML library. These applications show promise for improving the accuracy and capabilities of traditional scientific and engineering modelling with data-driven [0]
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- Microsoft Rolls Out A Linux 6.12 LTS Option For Azure Linux
Microsoft released Azure Linux 3.0.20250910 as the newest version of this in-house Linux distribution used by Azure and other services. Azure Linux 3.0 has long been using the Linux 6.6 LTS kernel while now Linux 6.12 LTS is a new option focused on providing better hardware enablement support...
- Haiku OS Addressing Slow "git status" Performance Relative To Linux
The BeOS-inspired Haiku open-source operating system project published a new blog post to outline some of their latest development activity. One of the areas they have been focusing on in the performance department has been for addressing much slower git status performance compared to Linux...
- Intel Xeon 6980P "Granite Rapids" Linux Performance One Year Later
Next week marks one year since the launch of the Xeon 6900P series Granite Rapids server processors. Given the occasion and a new server in the lab, here is a look at how Intel9s Granite Rapids top-end Xeon 6980P server processors are performing one year after the original introduction with a production-grade server platform as well as incorporating all of the Linux software improvements over the past year.
- AMD ROCm 7.0 Begins Rocking Out On GitHub
As a pleasant surprise waking up this morning is AMD ROCm 7.0 release tags beginning to appear on GitHub, indicating the likely imminent official release of the ROCm 7.0 compute stack as the open-source AMD Radeon/Instinct software stack aimed to be the open alternative to NVIDIA's CUDA ecosystem...
- Fedora Workstation 43 Beta Is Running Well On AMD Strix Halo / Framework Desktop
Fedora 43 Beta is releasing today as we work toward the official release in either late October or early November. I have been testing out the Fedora Workstation 43 Beta candidate to great success on the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ "Strix Halo" powered Framework Desktop. Here are some benchmarks of Fedora Workstation 42 compared to the Fedora Workstation 43 Beta.
- AMD Officially Confirms The End Of The AMDVLK Driver
To no real surprise given the happenings (or there the lack of) the past few months, AMD formally announced publicly today that their open-source AMDVLK driver has been discontinued in favor of the Mesa RADV driver for Vulkan needs on Linux...
- The Performance Cost To Ubuntu WSL2 On Windows 11 25H2
It9s been a while since delivering any benchmarks on Phoronix of Microsoft9s Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL2) for running Linux applications and other software under the confines of Windows 11. When recently carrying out the Windows 11 25H2 vs. Linux benchmarks I also took the opportunity for seeing how WSL is performing on that leading-edge Windows release compared to running a bare metal Ubuntu Linux installation.
- Jonathan Riddell Leaving KDE Development After 25 Years
Prominent KDE developer Jonathan Riddell who was formerly involved with Kubuntu and then KDE Neon, served for a while on KDE Plasma release management, and other significant contributions over the years announced he's stepping away from the KDE world...
- Ubuntu 25.109s Rust Coreutils Transition Has Uncovered Performance Shortcomings
Ubuntu 25.10's transition to using Rust Coreutils in place of GNU Coreutils has uncovered a few performance issues so far with the Rust version being slower than the C-based GNU Coreutils. Fortunately there still are a few weeks to go until Ubuntu 25.10 releases as stable and upstream developers are working to address these performance gaps...
- ASRock AI Quickset WSL Aims To Make It Easier Running ROCm + AI Linux Apps On Windows
Back in late 2023 ASRock announced AI QuickSet to make it easier to get up and running with AI workloads on their hardware under Windows or Linux. Today they announced their second incarnation of that as "AI QuickSet WSL" as making it quicker and easier to setup AMD ROCm under Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) and streamlining the deployment of various AI Linux software packages under WSL...
- AMD Continues Enhancing AMDGPU/AMDKFD Drivers For Checkpoint/Restore
CRIU is for Checkpoint/Restore in Userspace to be able to freeze a running container or app, preserve its state to disk, and later restore said running workload. A few years ago we saw AMD working on being able to checkpoint/restore running ROCm workloads. As seemingly the first work in a while on the matter by the AMDGPU/AMDKFD kernel drivers, there are some new CRIU elements coming for Linux 6.18...
- Haiku vastly improves git status performance
Another month, another summary of changes in Haiku, the BeOS-inspired operating system. The main focus this past month has been improving the performance of git status, which has been measurably worse on Haiku than on Linux running on similar hardware. This work has certainly paid off, as the numbers demonstrate. The results are clearly more than worth the trouble, though: in one test setup with`git status`in Haiku’s`buildtools`repository (which contains the entirety of the`gcc`and`binutils`source code, among other things – over 160,000 files) went from around 33 seconds with a cold disk cache, to around 20 seconds; and with a hot disk cache, from around 15 seconds to around 2.5 seconds. This is still a ways off from Linux (with a similar setup in the same repository,`git status`there with a hot disk cache takes only 0.3 seconds). Performance on Haiku will likely be measurably faster on builds without`KDEBUG`enabled, but not by that much. Still, this is clearly a significant improvement over the way things were before now. ↫ Haiku Activity 8 Contract Report, August 2025 Theres more than this, of course, such as initial support for Intels Apollo Lake GPU in the Intel modesetting driver, improvements to USB disk performance, a reduction in power usage when in KDL, and much, much more.
- Why is the name of the Microsoft Wireless Notebook Presenter Mouse 8000 hard-coded into the Bluetooth drivers?
Some time ago, people noticed that buried in the Windows Bluetooth drivers is the hard-coded name of the Microsoft Wireless Notebook Presenter Mouse 8000. What’s going on there? Does the Microsoft Wireless Notebook Presenter Mouse 8000 receive favorable treatment from the Microsoft Bluetooth drivers? Is this some sort of collusion? No, it’s not that. ↫ Raymond Chen So, what is the actual problem? Its a funny one: an encoding mistake. The device local name string for a device needs to be encoded in UTF-8, and thats where the developers of the Microsoft Wireless Notebook Presenter Mouse 8000 made a mistake. The string contains a registered trademark symbol ® but they encoded it in code page 1252, which not only isnt allowed, but gets rejected completely. So, Windows Bluetooth drivers have a table that contains the wrong name for a driver, accompanied by the right name to use. This mouse is the only entry.
- Java 25 released
Java 25 has been released. JDK 25, the reference implementation of Java 25, is now Generally Available. We shipped build 36 as the second Release Candidate of JDK 25 on 15 August, and no P1 bugs have been reported since then. Build 36 is therefore now the GA build, ready for production use. ↫ Java 25/JDK 25 release announcement If you want to dive into the details about this new release, feel free to peruse the long, long list of improvements and changes.
- A months of ad-free OSNews: were closing in on the fundraising goal, and need your help to get there
Its been a little over a month since OSNews went completely ad-free for everyone. I can say the support has been overwhelming, with the accompanying fundraiser currently sitting at 67% of the €5000 goal! Of course things slowed down a bit after the initial week of one donation after the next, so Im throwing out this reminder that without your support, OSNews cant exist doubly so now that Ive removed any and all advertising. Help us reach that 100%! So, what can you do to support OSNews? By being entirely free from the corrupting influence of advertising, I have even less desire to chase views, entrap users with slop content, game search engines with shitty SEO spam, or turn on the taps of AI!-generated trash to spew forth as much articles! and thus views as possible. This also means that OSNews is one of the few technology news websites remaining that is not part of a massive corporate media conglomerate, so theres no pressure from corporate! to go easy on advertisers or write favourable stuff about corporates friends. Youd be surprised to learn how many technology sites out there are not independent. The response to OSNews no longer having any advertising has been overwhelmingly positive unsurprisingly and that has taken away any reservations I might have had about taking this step. In a world where so many websites are disappearing, turning into corporate mouthpieces, or becoming glorified content farms, OSNews can keep on doing what it does, independent of any outside influence, thanks to the countless contributions from all of you. Thank you.
- Apple releases version 26 of all of its operating systems
Its release day for all of Apples operating systems, so if youre fully or only partway into the ecosystem, youve got some upgrades ahead of you. Version 26 for macOS, iOS and iPadOS, watchOS, tvOS, visionOS, and HomePod Software have all been released today, so if you own any device running any of these operating system, its time to head on over to the update section of the settings application and wait for that glass to slowly and sensually liquefy all over your screens. Do put a sock on the doorknob.
- Writing an operating system kernel from scratch in Zig
I recently implemented a minimal proof of concept time-sharing operating system kernel on RISC-V. In this post, I’ll share the details of how this prototype works. The target audience is anyone looking to understand low-level system software, drivers, system calls, etc., and I hope this will be especially useful to students of system software and computer architecture. Finally, to do things differently here, I implemented this exercise in Zig, rather than traditional C. In addition to being an interesting experiment, I believe Zig makes this experiment much more easily reproducible on your machine, as it’s very easy to set up and does not require any installation (which could otherwise be slightly messy when cross-compiling to RISC-V). ↫ Uros Popovic This is not the first, and certainly not the last, operating system implemented from scratch as a teaching exercise, both for the creator itself, as well as for others wanting to follow along. This time its developed for RISC-V, and in an interesting twist, programmed in Zig (no Rust for once!).
- Microsoft to force-install Copilot onto Windows PCs with Office 365 installed
And the beatings continue until AI! improves. Except if you live in the European Union/EEA, that is. Windows devices with the Microsoft 365 desktop client apps will automatically install the Microsoft 365 Copilot app. This app installation takes place in the background and would not disrupt the user. This app installation will start in Fall 2025. ↫ Microsoft support document Basically, if you have Microsoft 365 desktop applications installed read my article about some deep Microsoft lore to figure out what that means Microsoft is going to force-install all the Copilot stuff onto your computer, whether you like it or not. Thanks to more robust consumer protection legislation in the European Union/EEA, like the Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act, this force-install will not take place there. Administrators managing Office 365 deployments get an option to opt-out through the Microsoft 365 Apps admin center, but Im not sure if regular users can use this method as well. Remember, when youre using Windows (or macOS, for that matter), you dont own your computer. Plan accordingly.
- The idea of /usr/sbin has failed in practice
It may be arcane knowledge to most users of UNIX-like systems today, but there is supposed to be a difference between /usr/bin and /usr/sbin; the latter is supposed to be for system binaries!, not needed by most normal users. The Filesystem Hierarchy Standard states that sbin directories are intended to contain utilities used for system administration (and other root-only commands)!, which is quite vague when you think about it. This has led to UNIX-like systems basically just winging it, making the distinction almost entirely arbitrary. For a long time, there has been no strong organizing principle to /usr/sbin that would draw a hard line and create a situation where people could safely leave it out of their $PATH. We could have had a principle of, for example, programs that dont work unless run by root!, but no such principle was ever followed for very long (if at all). Instead programs were more or less shoved in /usr/sbin if developers thought they were relatively unlikely to be used by normal people. But relatively unlikely is not never, and shortly after people got told to run traceroute and got command not found when they tried, /usr/sbin (probably) started appearing in $PATH. ↫ Chris Siebenmann As such, Fedora 42 unifies /usr/bin and /usr/sbin, which is kind of a follow-up to the /usr merge, and serves as a further simplification and clean-up of the file system layout by removing divisions and directories that used to make sense, but no longer really do. Decisions like these have a tendency to upset a small but very vocal group of people, people who often do not even use the distribution implementing the decisions in question in the first place. My suggestions to those people would be to stick to distributions that more closely resemble classic UNIX. Or use a real UNIX. Anyway, these are good moves, and Im glad most prominent Linux distributions are not married to decisions made in the 70s, especially not when they can be undone without users really noticing anything.
- Google decides to significantly harm Android security to please lazy OEMs
Google continues putting nails in the coffin that is the Android Open Source Project. This time, theyre changing the way they handle security updates to appease slow, irresponsible Android OEMs, while screwing over everyone else. The basic gist is that instead of providing monthly security updates for OEMs to implement on their Android devices, Google will now move to a quarterly model, publishing only extremely severe issues on a monthly basis. The benefit for OEMs is that for most vulnerabilities, they get three months to distribute (most) fixes instead of just one month, but the downsides are also legion. Vulnerabilities will now be out in the wild for three months instead of just one, and while theyre shared with OEMs privately!, were talking tends of thousands of pairs of eyes here, so privately! is a bit of a misnomer. The dangers are obvious; these vulnerabilities will be leaked, and they will be abused by malicious parties. Another massive downside related to this change is that Google will now no longer be providing the monthly patches as open source within AOSP, instead only releasing the quarterly patch drops as open source. This means exactly what you think it does: no more monthly security updates from third-party ROMs, unless those third-party ROMs choose to violate the embargo themselves and thus invite all sorts of problems. Extending the patch access window from one month to three is absolutely insane. Google should be striving to shorten this window as much as possible, but instead, theyre tripling it in length to create a false sense of security. OEMs can now point at their quarterly security updates and claim to be patching vulnerabilities as soon as Google publishes them, while in fact, the unpatched vulnerabilities will have been out in the wild for months by that point. This change is irresponsible, misguided, and done only to please lazy, shitty OEMs to create a false sense of security for marketing purposes.
- China is selling its Great Firewall censorship tools to countries around the world
Were all aware of the Chinese Great Firewall, the tool the Chinese government uses for mass censorship and for safeguarding and strengthening its totalitarian control over the country and its population. It turns out that through a Chinese shell company called Geedge Networks, China is also selling the Great Firewall to other totalitarian regimes around the world. Thanks to a massive leak of 500 GB of source code, work logs, and internal communication records, we now have more insight into how the Great Firewall works than ever before, leading to in-depth reports like this one from InterSecLab. The findings are chilling, but not surprising. First and foremost, Geedge is selling the Great Firewall to a variety of totalitarian regimes around the world, namely Kazakhstan, Ethiopia, Pakistan, Myanmar, and another unidentified country. These governments can then ask Geedge to make specific changes and ask them to focus on specific capabilities to further enhance the functionality of the Great Firewall, but what it can already do today is bad enough. The suite of products offered by Geedge Networks allow a client government unprecedented access to internet user data and enables governments to use this data to police national and regional networks. These capabilities include deep packet inspection for advanced classification, interception, and manipulation of application and user traffic; monitoring the geographic location of mobile subscribers in real time; analyzing aggregated network traffic in specific areas, such as during a protest or event; flagging unusual traffic patterns as suspicious; creating tailored blocking rules to obstruct access to a website or application (such as a VPN (Virtual Private Network) or circumvention tool); throttling traffic to specific services; identifying individual internet users for accessing websites or using circumvention tools or VPNs; assigning individual internet users reputation scores based on their online activities; and infecting users with malware through in-path injection. ↫ The Internet Coup: A Technical Analysis on How a Chinese Company is Exporting The Great Firewall to Autocratic Regimes Internet service providers participate in the implementation of the suite of tools, either freely or by force, and since the tools are platform-agnostic it doesnt matter which platforms people are using in any given country, making international sanctions effectively useless. It also wont surprise you that Geedge steals both proprietary and open source code, without regards for licensing terms. Furthermore, China is allowing provinces and regions within its borders to tailor and adapt the Great Firewall to their own local needs, providing a blueprint for how to export the suite of tools to other countries. With quite a few countries sliding ever further towards authoritarianism, Im sure even places not traditionally thought of as totalitarian are lustfully looking at the Chinese Great Firewall, wishing they had something similar in their own countries.
- Everything about Psion, in one place
Celebrate classic Psion machines with us, from the original Organiser, through the Series 3 and Series 5, all the way to the netBook. Get help with your classic palmtop computer, or help to develop software and hardware that will bring these devices into the 21st Century. ↫ Psion Community website A brand new one-stop shop for everything related to keeping Psion machines going. A library of all the software, lists of all the ROM images, tons of development resources, and much more.
- Java 25’s new CPU-time profiler
More than three years in the making, with a concerted effort starting last year, my CPU-time profiler landed in Java with OpenJDK 25. It’s an experimental new profiler/method sampler that helps you find performance issues in your code, having distinct advantages over the current sampler. This is what this week’s and next week’s blog posts are all about. This week, I will cover why we need a new profiler and what information it provides; next week, I’ll cover the technical internals that go beyond what’s written in the JEP. I will quote the JEP 509 quite a lot, thanks to Ron Pressler; it reads like a well-written blog post in and of itself. ↫ Johannes Bechberger Theres also a third entry detailing queue sizing, and a fourth entry going into the removal of redundant synchronisation.
- UTF-8 is a brilliant design!
The first time I learned about UTF-8 encoding, I was fascinated by how well-thought and brilliantly it was designed to represent millions of characters from different languages and scripts, and still be backward compatible with ASCII. Designing a system that scales to millions of characters and still be compatible with the old systems that use just 128 characters is a brilliant design. ↫ Vishnu Haridas On a slightly related note, if you are ever bothered or annoyed by text online rendering as unknown squares, you most likely are just missing the proper fonts to render them. At least on most Linux and BSD systems, all you need to do is install the entire set of Noto fonts, including those for every single non-Latin script. Assuming your package manager has sane naming conventions, itll most likely come down to something like sudo dnf install google-noto* or whatever your systems install package command is, and after installing a whole slew of font files, your system will now be able to render virtually every script under the sun. After installing this massive font set, you can do things like write and render in hieroglyphics, write Ea-nāṣirs name the way its supposed to, and render all kinds of other scripts and symbols without ever having to look at one of those blank squares ever again.
- How open is open-source! VTubing?
Im not really into the niche of virtual YouTubers! people who post YouTube videos and/or stream using a virtual avatar but to each their own, and if this technology enables people to remain anonymous while doing what they love on YouTube or Twitch, Im all for it. Since these virtual avatars also do things like face-tracking, theres a whole cottage industry of software tools to make this all work, but Adrian asie! Siekierka decided to take a look at where the training data used to make such face-tracking work actually comes from. One day, some years ago, I decided to look at the data used to train OpenSeeFace. OpenSeeFace is the most popular open source face tracking solution for virtual YouTubers. It is supported by both open source and commercial model rendering tools; in particular, VTube Studio allows using it as an option for webcam tracking. ↫ Adrian asie! Siekierka The results of the investigation are not exactly great. Much of the data used by OpenSeeFace comes with serious restrictions on commercial use, and many of the underlying datasets contain images that you would need consent for from the people inside the image to actually use. On top of that, a lot of these data sets seem to have just scraped the internet for images of faces without asking anyone of the people in those images for consent, which raises a whole number of troubling issues. I find this a very interesting topic of discussion, if only because youd be hard-pressed to argue that the average cartoon-esque virtual avatars even remotely resemble real human faces, so its not like youre going to suddenly run into your own face somewhere on YouTube or Twitch, but plastered into another person. On the other hand, the underlying datasets still contain a ton of peoples faces without those peoples consent, and even for those that did give consent, theres often a commercial use restriction which earning revenue on YouTube or Twitch might violate. Its a fascinating microcosm of a whole slew of issues were dealing with right now, neatly contained in a relatively small niche.
- SkiftOS: a hobby operating system with its own kernel, UI, browser engine, and more
Who doesnt love a desktop-oriented hobby operating system to start off the weekend? SkiftOS is a hobbyist operating system built from the ground up with a focus on modularity, simplicity, and modern design principles. Driven by a dissatisfaction with the fragmented user experiences prevalent in contemporary operating systems, SkiftOS strives for deep integration and a cohesive aesthetic. This project is a labor of love—an artistic pursuit rather than a commercial product. ↫ SkiftOS gitHub page Reading through the GitHub page and SkiftOS actual website, it reminds me so, so much of the desktop-oriented hobby operating systems of the early 2000s, like AtheOS, SkyOS, and others. It has its own microkernel, C++ core library, package manager, reactive UI framework, an entire desktop environment, and even a browser engine. This operating system is remarkably complete in the features that it already offers, especially considering its hobby status. The desktop environment is called Hideo, and its remarkably beautiful when you consider were talking about a hobby operating system. It comes with a variety of applications, too, mostly covering the basics weve come to expect from a desktop operating system, like a text editor, archive manager, task manager, image viewer, media player, a file manager, and so on. Meanwhile, the browser engine is called Vaev and is highly experimental, but its existence illustrates just how broad this project really is. I havent been able to find some time to run it yet, but if youre interested, they advise you to run it using qemu. While running it on real hardware is technically possible, its not advisable due to the alpha state of the operating system.
- You can actually stop Windows Explorer from flashbanging you in dark mode
One of the most annoying things I encountered while trying out Windows 11 a few months ago was the utterly broken dark mode; broken since its inception nine years ago, but finally getting some fixes. One of the smaller but downright disturbing issues with dark mode on Windows 11 is that when Explorer is in dark mode, it will flash bright white whenever you open a new window or a new tab. Its like the operating system is throwing flashbangs at you every time you need to do some file management. Luckily, it turns out theres a fix, as Neowin details. Windows 11 is turning four in a couple of months, but Microsoft still has not fixed this annoying and, for some people, legitimately life-threatening bug (there is a reason why we have seizure warnings in games, movies, etc). As such, users have to take things into their hands and come up with custom solutions. One such solution is a simple Windhawk mod that fixes what a nearly four-trillion-dollar company still wont figure out. ↫ Taras Buria at Neowin This made me check out Windhawk, and it seems like an awesome project for people forced to use Windows. It is basically a package manager for various small mods, fixes, and changes for Windows, allowing you to mix and match exactly what you need. This way, you can easily fix the little niggles that bother you, all from a central location. The list of available mods is quite long already, and browsing through it, Ive already seen quite a few things Id be applying in a heartbeat if I were to be using Windows. Every mod comes with its source code included, ensuring you can check that it does exactly what it says it will do, and of course, you can contribute your own mods as well.
- EU OS: A Bold Step Toward Digital Sovereignty for Europe
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A new initiative, called "EU OS," has been launched to develop a Linux-based operating system tailored specifically for the public sector organizations of the European Union (EU). This community-driven project aims to address the EU's unique needs and challenges, focusing on fostering digital sovereignty, reducing dependency on external vendors, and building a secure, self-sufficient digital ecosystem.
What Is EU OS?
EU OS is not an entirely novel operating system. Instead, it builds upon a Linux foundation derived from Fedora, with the KDE Plasma desktop environment. It draws inspiration from previous efforts such as France's GendBuntu and Munich's LiMux, which aimed to provide Linux-based systems for public sector use. The goal remains the same: to create a standardized Linux distribution that can be adapted to different regional, national, and sector-specific needs within the EU.
Rather than reinventing the wheel, EU OS focuses on standardization, offering a solid Linux foundation that can be customized according to the unique requirements of various organizations. This approach makes EU OS a practical choice for the public sector, ensuring broad compatibility and ease of implementation across diverse environments.
The Vision Behind EU OS
The guiding principle of EU OS is the concept of "public money – public code," ensuring that taxpayer money is used transparently and effectively. By adopting an open-source model, EU OS eliminates licensing fees, which not only lowers costs but also reduces the dependency on a select group of software vendors. This provides the EU’s public sector organizations with greater flexibility and control over their IT infrastructure, free from the constraints of vendor lock-in.
Additionally, EU OS offers flexibility in terms of software migration and hardware upgrades. Organizations can adapt to new technologies and manage their IT evolution at a manageable cost, both in terms of finances and time.
However, there are some concerns about the choice of Fedora as the base for EU OS. While Fedora is a solid and reliable distribution, it is backed by the United States-based Red Hat. Some argue that using European-backed projects such as openSUSE or KDE's upcoming distribution might have aligned better with the EU's goal of strengthening digital sovereignty.
Conclusion
EU OS marks a significant step towards Europe's digital independence by providing a robust, standardized Linux distribution for the public sector. By reducing reliance on proprietary software and vendors, it paves the way for a more flexible, cost-effective, and secure digital ecosystem. While the choice of Fedora as the base for the project has raised some questions, the overall vision of EU OS offers a promising future for Europe's public sector in the digital age.
Source: It's FOSS
European Union
- Linus Torvalds Acknowledges Missed Release of Linux 6.14 Due to Oversight
Linus Torvalds Acknowledges Missed Release of Linux 6.14 Due to Oversight
Linux kernel lead developer Linus Torvalds has admitted to forgetting to release version 6.14, attributing the oversight to his own lapse in memory. Torvalds is known for releasing new Linux kernel candidates and final versions on Sunday afternoons, typically accompanied by a post detailing the release. If he is unavailable due to travel or other commitments, he usually informs the community ahead of time, so users don’t worry if there’s a delay.
In his post on March 16, Torvalds gave no indication that the release might be delayed, instead stating, “I expect to release the final 6.14 next weekend unless something very surprising happens.” However, Sunday, March 23rd passed without any announcement.
On March 24th, Torvalds wrote in a follow-up message, “I’d love to have some good excuse for why I didn’t do the 6.14 release yesterday on my regular Sunday afternoon schedule,” adding, “But no. It’s just pure incompetence.” He further explained that while he had been clearing up unrelated tasks, he simply forgot to finalize the release. “D'oh,” he joked.
Despite this minor delay, Torvalds’ track record of successfully managing the Linux kernel’s development process over the years remains strong. A single day’s delay is not critical, especially since most Linux users don't urgently need the very latest version.
The new 6.14 release introduces several important features, including enhanced support for writing drivers in Rust—an ongoing topic of discussion among developers—support for Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite mobile chip, a fix for the GhostWrite vulnerability in certain RISC-V processors from Alibaba’s T-Head Semiconductor, and a completed NTSYNC driver update that improves the WINE emulator’s ability to run Windows applications, particularly games, on Linux.
Although the 6.14 release went smoothly aside from the delay, Torvalds expressed that version 6.15 may present more challenges due to the volume of pending pull requests. “Judging by my pending pile of pull requests, 6.15 will be much busier,” he noted.
You can download the latest kernel here.
Linus Torvalds kernel
- AerynOS 2025.03 Alpha Released with GNOME 48, Mesa 25, and Linux Kernel 6.13.8
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AerynOS 2025.03 has officially been released, introducing a variety of exciting features for Linux users. The release includes the highly anticipated GNOME 48 desktop environment, which comes with significant improvements like HDR support, dynamic triple buffering, and a Wayland color management protocol. Other updates include a battery charge limiting feature and a Wellbeing option aimed at improving user experience.
This release, while still in alpha, incorporates Linux kernel 6.13.8 and the updated Mesa 25.0.2 graphics stack, alongside tools like LLVM 19.1.7 and Vulkan SDK 1.4.309.0. Additionally, the Moss package manager now integrates os-info to generate more detailed OS metadata via a JSON file.
Future plans for AerynOS include automated package updates, easier rollback management, improved disk handling with Rust, and fractional scaling enabled by default. The installer has also been revamped to support full disk wipes and dynamic partitioning.
Although still considered an alpha release, AerynOS 2025.03 can be downloaded and tested right now from its official website.
Source: 9to5Linux
AerynOS
- Xojo 2025r1: Big Updates for Developers with Linux ARM Support, Web Drag and Drop, and Direct App Store Publishing
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Xojo has just rolled out its latest release, Xojo 2025 Release 1, and it’s packed with features that developers have been eagerly waiting for. This major update introduces support for running Xojo on Linux ARM, including Raspberry Pi, brings drag-and-drop functionality to the Web framework, and simplifies app deployment with the ability to directly submit apps to the macOS and iOS App Stores.
Here’s a quick overview of what’s new in Xojo 2025r1:
1. Linux ARM IDE Support
Xojo 2025r1 now allows developers to run the Xojo IDE on Linux ARM devices, including popular platforms like Raspberry Pi. This opens up a whole new world of possibilities for developers who want to create apps for ARM-based devices without the usual complexity. Whether you’re building for a Raspberry Pi or other ARM devices, this update makes it easier than ever to get started.
2. Web Drag and Drop
One of the standout features in this release is the addition of drag-and-drop support for web applications. Now, developers can easily drag and drop visual controls in their web projects, making it simpler to create interactive, user-friendly web applications. Plus, the WebListBox has been enhanced with support for editable cells, checkboxes, and row reordering via dragging. No JavaScript required!
3. Direct App Store Publishing
Xojo has also streamlined the process of publishing apps. With this update, developers can now directly submit macOS and iOS apps to App Store Connect right from the Xojo IDE. This eliminates the need for multiple steps and makes it much easier to get apps into the App Store, saving valuable time during the development process.
4. New Desktop and Mobile Features
This release isn’t just about web and Linux updates. Xojo 2025r1 brings some great improvements for desktop and mobile apps as well. On the desktop side, all projects now include a default window menu for macOS apps. On the mobile side, Xojo has introduced new features for Android and iOS, including support for ColorGroup and Dark Mode on Android, and a new MobileColorPicker for iOS to simplify color selection.
5. Performance and IDE Enhancements
Xojo’s IDE has also been improved in several key areas. There’s now an option to hide toolbar captions, and the toolbar has been made smaller on Windows. The IDE on Windows and Linux now features modern Bootstrap icons, and the Documentation window toolbar is more compact. In the code editor, developers can now quickly navigate to variable declarations with a simple Cmd/Ctrl + Double-click. Plus, performance for complex container layouts in the Layout Editor has been enhanced.
What Does This Mean for Developers?
Xojo 2025r1 brings significant improvements across all the platforms that Xojo supports, from desktop and mobile to web and Linux. The added Linux ARM support opens up new opportunities for Raspberry Pi and ARM-based device development, while the drag-and-drop functionality for web projects will make it easier to create modern, interactive web apps. The ability to publish directly to the App Store is a game-changer for macOS and iOS developers, reducing the friction of app distribution.
How to Get Started
Xojo is free for learning and development, as well as for building apps for Linux and Raspberry Pi. If you’re ready to dive into cross-platform development, paid licenses start at $99 for a single-platform desktop license, and $399 for cross-platform desktop, mobile, or web development. For professional developers who need additional resources and support, Xojo Pro and Pro Plus licenses start at $799. You can also find special pricing for educators and students.
Download Xojo 2025r1 today at xojo.com.
Final Thoughts
With each new release, Xojo continues to make cross-platform development more accessible and efficient. The 2025r1 release is no exception, delivering key updates that simplify the development process and open up new possibilities for developers working on a variety of platforms. Whether you’re a Raspberry Pi enthusiast or a mobile app developer, Xojo 2025r1 has something for you.
Xojo ARM
- New 'Mirrored' Network Mode Introduced in Windows Subsystem for Linux
Microsoft's Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) continues to evolve with the release of WSL 2 version 0.0.2. This update introduces a set of opt-in preview features designed to enhance performance and compatibility.
Key additions include "Automatic memory reclaim" which dynamically optimizes WSL's memory footprint, and "Sparse VHD" to shrink the size of the virtual hard disk file. These improvements aim to streamline resource usage.
Additionally, a new "mirrored networking mode" brings expanded networking capabilities like IPv6 and multicast support. Microsoft claims this will improve VPN and LAN connectivity from both the Windows host and Linux guest.
Complementing this is a new "DNS Tunneling" feature that changes how DNS queries are resolved to avoid compatibility issues with certain network setups. According to Microsoft, this should reduce problems connecting to the internet or local network resources within WSL.
Advanced firewall configuration options are also now available through Hyper-V integration. The new "autoProxy" feature ensures WSL seamlessly utilizes the Windows system proxy configuration.
Microsoft states these features are currently rolling out to Windows Insiders running Windows 11 22H2 Build 22621.2359 or later. They remain opt-in previews to allow testing before final integration into WSL.
By expanding WSL 2 with compelling new capabilities in areas like resource efficiency, networking, and security, Microsoft aims to make Linux on Windows more performant and compatible. This evolutionary approach based on user feedback highlights Microsoft's commitment to WSL as a key part of the Windows ecosystem.
Windows
- Linux Threat Report: Earth Lusca Deploys Novel SprySOCKS Backdoor in Attacks on Government Entities
The threat actor Earth Lusca, linked to Chinese state-sponsored hacking groups, has been observed utilizing a new Linux backdoor dubbed SprySOCKS to target government organizations globally.
As initially reported in January 2022 by Trend Micro, Earth Lusca has been active since at least 2021 conducting cyber espionage campaigns against public and private sector targets in Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America. Their tactics include spear-phishing and watering hole attacks to gain initial access. Some of Earth Lusca's activities overlap with another Chinese threat cluster known as RedHotel.
In new research, Trend Micro reveals Earth Lusca remains highly active, even expanding operations in the first half of 2023. Primary victims are government departments focused on foreign affairs, technology, and telecommunications. Attacks concentrate in Southeast Asia, Central Asia, and the Balkans regions.
After breaching internet-facing systems by exploiting flaws in Fortinet, GitLab, Microsoft Exchange, Telerik UI, and Zimbra software, Earth Lusca uses web shells and Cobalt Strike to move laterally. Their goal is exfiltrating documents and credentials, while also installing additional backdoors like ShadowPad and Winnti for long-term spying.
The Command and Control server delivering Cobalt Strike was also found hosting SprySOCKS - an advanced backdoor not previously publicly reported. With roots in the Windows malware Trochilus, SprySOCKS contains reconnaissance, remote shell, proxy, and file operation capabilities. It communicates over TCP mimicking patterns used by a Windows trojan called RedLeaves, itself built on Trochilus.
At least two SprySOCKS versions have been identified, indicating ongoing development. This novel Linux backdoor deployed by Earth Lusca highlights the increasing sophistication of Chinese state-sponsored threats. Robust patching, access controls, monitoring for unusual activities, and other proactive defenses remain essential to counter this advanced malware.
The Trend Micro researchers emphasize that organizations must minimize attack surfaces, regularly update systems, and ensure robust security hygiene to interrupt the tactics, techniques, and procedures of relentless threat groups like Earth Lusca.
Security
- Linux Kernel Faces Reduction in Long-Term Support Due to Maintenance Challenges
The Linux kernel is undergoing major changes that will shape its future development and adoption, according to Jonathan Corbet, Linux kernel developer and executive editor of Linux Weekly News. Speaking at the Open Source Summit Europe, Corbet provided an update on the latest Linux kernel developments and a glimpse of what's to come.
A major change on the horizon is a reduction in long-term support (LTS) for kernel versions from six years to just two years. Corbet explained that maintaining old kernel branches indefinitely is unsustainable and most users have migrated to newer versions, so there's little point in continuing six years of support. While some may grumble about shortened support lifecycles, the reality is that constantly backporting fixes to ancient kernels strains maintainers.
This maintainer burnout poses a serious threat, as Corbet highlighted. Maintaining Linux is largely a volunteer effort, with only about 200 of the 2,000+ developers paid for their contributions. The endless demands on maintainers' time from fuzz testing, fixing minor bugs, and reviewing contributions takes a toll. Prominent maintainers have warned they need help to avoid collapse. Companies relying on Linux must realize giving back financially is in their interest to sustain this vital ecosystem.
The Linux kernel is also wading into waters new with the introduction of Rust code. While Rust solves many problems, it also introduces new complexities around language integration, evolving standards, and maintainer expertise. Corbet believes Rust will pass the point of no return when core features depend on it, which may occur soon with additions like Apple M1 GPU drivers. Despite skepticism in some corners, Rust's benefits likely outweigh any transition costs.
On the distro front, Red Hat's decision to restrict RHEL cloning sparked community backlash. While business considerations were at play, Corbet noted technical factors too. Using older kernels with backported fixes, as RHEL does, risks creating divergent, vendor-specific branches. The Android model of tracking mainline kernel dev more closely has shown security benefits. Ultimately, Linux works best when aligned with the broader community.
In closing, Corbet recalled the saying "Linux is free like a puppy is free." Using open source seems easy at first, but sustaining it long-term requires significant care and feeding. As Linux is incorporated into more critical systems, that maintenance becomes ever more crucial. The kernel changes ahead are aimed at keeping Linux healthy and vibrant for the next generation of users, businesses, and developers.
kernel
- Linux Celebrates 32 Years with the Release of 6.6-rc2 Version
Today marks the 32nd anniversary of Linus Torvalds introducing the inaugural Linux 0.01 kernel version, and celebrating this milestone, Torvalds has launched the Linux 6.6-rc2. Among the noteworthy updates are the inclusion of a feature catering to the ASUS ROG Flow X16 tablet's mode handling and the renaming of the new GenPD subsystem to pmdomain.
The Linux 6.6 edition is progressing well, brimming with exciting new features that promise to enhance user experience. Early benchmarks are indicating promising results, especially on high-core-count servers, pointing to a potentially robust and efficient update in the Linux series.
Here is what Linus Torvalds had to say in today's announcement:
Another week, another -rc.I think the most notable thing about 6.6-rc2 is simply that it'sexactly 32 years to the day since the 0.01 release. And that's a roundnumber if you are a computer person.Because other than the random date, I don't see anything that reallystands out here. We've got random fixes all over, and none of it looksparticularly strange. The genpd -> pmdomain rename shows up in thediffstat, but there's no actual code changes involved (make sure touse "git diff -M" to see them as zero-line renames).And other than that, things look very normal. Sure, the architecturefixes happen to be mostly parisc this week, which isn't exactly theusual pattern, but it's also not exactly a huge amount of changes.Most of the (small) changes here are in drivers, with some tracingfixes and just random things. The shortlog below is short enough toscroll through and get a taste of what's been going on. Linus Torvalds
- Introducing Bavarder: A User-Friendly Linux Desktop App for Quick ChatGPT Interaction
Want to interact with ChatGPT from your Linux desktop without using a web browser?
Bavarder, a new app, allows you to do just that.
Developed with Python and GTK4/libadwaita, Bavarder offers a simple concept: pose a question to ChatGPT, receive a response, and promptly copy the answer (or your inquiry) to the clipboard for pasting elsewhere.
With an incredibly user-friendly interface, you won't require AI expertise (or a novice blogger) to comprehend it. Type your question in the top box, click the blue send button, and wait for a generated response to appear at the bottom. You can edit or modify your message and repeat the process as needed.
During our evaluation, Bavarder employed BAI Chat, a GPT-3.5/ChatGPT API-based chatbot that's free and doesn't require signups or API keys. Future app versions will incorporate support for alternative backends, such as ChatGPT 4 and Hugging Chat, and allow users to input an API key to utilize ChatGPT3.
At present, there's no option to regenerate a response (though you can resend the same question for a potentially different answer). Due to the lack of a "conversation" view, tracking a dialogue or following up on answers can be challenging — but Bavarder excels for rapid-fire questions.
As with any AI, standard disclaimers apply. Responses might seem plausible but could contain inaccurate or false information. Additionally, it's relatively easy to lead these models into irrational loops, like convincing them that 2 + 2 equals 106 — so stay alert!
Overall, Bavarder is an attractive app with a well-defined purpose. If you enjoy ChatGPT and similar technologies, it's worth exploring.
ChatGPT AI
- LibreOffice 7.5.3 Released: Third Maintenance Update Brings 119 Bug Fixes to Popular Open-Source Office Suite
Today, The Document Foundation unveiled the release and widespread availability of LibreOffice 7.5.3, which serves as the third maintenance update to the current LibreOffice 7.5 open-source and complimentary office suite series.
Approximately five weeks after the launch of LibreOffice 7.5.2, LibreOffice 7.5.3 arrives with a new set of bug fixes for those who have successfully updated their GNU/Linux system to the LibreOffice 7.5 series.
LibreOffice 7.5.3 addresses a total of 119 bugs identified by users or uncovered by LibreOffice developers. For a more comprehensive understanding of these bug fixes, consult the RC1 and RC2 changelogs.
You can download LibreOffice 7.5.3 directly from the LibreOffice websiteor from SourceForge as binary installers for DEB or RPM-based GNU/Linux distributions. A source tarball is also accessible for individuals who prefer to compile the software from sources or for system integrators.
All users operating the LibreOffice 7.5 office suite series should promptly update their installations to the new point release, which will soon appear in the stable software repositories of your GNU/Linux distributions.
In early February 2023, LibreOffice 7.5 debuted as a substantial upgrade to the widely-used open-source office suite, introducing numerous features and improvements. These enhancements encompass major upgrades to dark mode support, new application and MIME-type icons, a refined Single Toolbar UI, enhanced PDF Export, and more.
Seven maintenance updates will support LibreOffice 7.5 until November 30th, 2023. The next point release, LibreOffice 7.5.4, is scheduled for early June and will include additional bug fixes.
The Document Foundation once again emphasizes that the LibreOffice office suite's "Community" edition is maintained by volunteers and members of the Open Source community. For enterprise implementations, they suggest using the LibreOffice Enterprise family of applications from ecosystem partners.
LibreOffice
- USB4 Maintainer Leaves Intel
Michael Jamet, one of the primary maintainers of USB4 and Thunderbolt drivers, has left Intel, leaving a gaping hole for the Linux community to deal with.
- VirtualBox 7.2 Has Arrived
With early support for Linux kernel 6.17 and other new additions, VirtualBox 7.2 is a must-update for users.
- Linux Hits an Important Milestone
If you pay attention to the news in the Linux-sphere, you've probably heard that the open source operating system recently crashed through a ceiling no one thought possible.
- Plasma Bigscreen Returns
A developer discovered that the Plasma Bigscreen feature had been sitting untouched, so he decided to do something about it.
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