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- [$] Python audio processing with pedalboard
ThePyCon US 2025, which was held in Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania in May. He started from the basics of digital audio and thenmoved into working with pedalboard. There were, as might be guessed, audio examplesin the talk, along with some visual information; interested readers may want to view the YouTube video of thepresentation.
- Security updates for Friday
Security updates have been issued by AlmaLinux (.NET 9.0, container-tools:rhel8, ghostscript, git-lfs, grafana-pcp, pandoc, perl-FCGI:0.78, ruby:2.5, ruby:3.3, tigervnc, and varnish:6), Debian (jpeg-xl and mediawiki), Fedora (darktable, guacamole-server, mingw-gdk-pixbuf, and yarnpkg), Oracle (gimp, kernel, libsoup, python-tornado, python3.12, and thunderbird), Slackware (php), SUSE (libgepub), and Ubuntu (libtpms, linux-aws-5.15, linux-intel-iot-realtime, and linux-bluefield).
- Richards: Introducing tmux-rs
Collin Richards has announced version0.0.1 of tmux-rs, a port of the tmux terminal multiplexerto Rust. For the [past] 6 months or so I've been quietly porting tmux from C toRust. I've recently reached a big milestone: the code base is now 100%(unsafe) Rust. I'd like to share the process of porting the originalcodebase from ~67,000 lines of C code to ~81,000 lines of Rust(excluding comments and empty lines). You might be asking: why did yourewrite tmux in Rust? And yeah, I don't really have a goodreason. It's a hobby project. Like gardening, but with more segfaults. Richards says that the next goal for the project is to convert itto safe Rust. It is currently "not very difficult to get it tocrash", but he wanted to share the project with other Rust fansnow. The project is available onGitHub.
- [$] Kernel API specification and validation
The kernel project makes a strong promise to its users: the kernel ABI willnot be changed in ways that break user-space code. The occasional failurenotwithstanding, kernel developers do try to live up to that promise. Theyare handicapped by one little problem, though: there is no description ofwhat the kernel ABI is, and no comprehensive way to test whether a givenchange breaks it. The kernel APIspecification framework proposed (in its second revision) by SashaLevin addresses some of those concerns, but the solution is incomplete anddoes not come for free.
- Security updates for Thursday
Security updates have been issued by AlmaLinux (.NET 9.0, aardvark-dns, apache-commons-beanutils, bootc, buildah, corosync, delve and golang, exiv2, expat, firefox, ghostscript, git, git-lfs, gnutls, grafana, grafana-pcp, grub2, gstreamer1, gstreamer1-plugins-bad-free, gstreamer1-plugins-ugly-free, and gstreamer1-rtsp-server, gstreamer1-plugins-base, gstreamer1-plugins-good, gvisor-tap-vsock, iptraf-ng, java-21-openjdk, kernel, keylime-agent-rust, krb5, libarchive, libblockdev, libsoup3, libtasn1, libvpx, libxslt, microcode_ctl, mod_auth_openidc, nodejs22, nodejs:20, openjpeg2, osbuild and osbuild-composer, perl-FCGI, perl-Module-ScanDeps, perl-YAML-LibYAML, php, php:8.2, php:8.3, podman, protobuf, python-jinja2, python-requests, python3.11, python3.12, python3.12-cryptography, python3.9, rpm-ostree, rsync, rust-bootupd, skopeo, thunderbird, tigervnc, tomcat, tomcat9, webkit2gtk3, xdg-utils, xorg-x11-server, and xorg-x11-server-Xwayland), Debian (ring), Mageia (libarchive and rootcerts, nss & firefox), Oracle (.NET 9.0, corosync, firefox, osbuild-composer, pam, python3, python3.11, python3.12, python3.9, skopeo, sudo, and thunderbird), Red Hat (microcode_ctl, pam, php, thunderbird, tigervnc, xorg-x11-server, xorg-x11-server and xorg-x11-server-Xwayland, and xorg-x11-server-Xwayland), SUSE (clamav, icu, libgepub, libsoup, python-requests, tomcat, and xorg-x11-server), and Ubuntu (clamav, logback, mongo-c-driver, pcs, and python-flask-cors).
- [$] LWN.net Weekly Edition for July 3, 2025
Inside this week's LWN.net Weekly Edition: Front: Kernel features from Python; i686 in Fedora; Kernel development with LLMs; Rust drivers; Load balancing with machine learning; Transparent huge pages. Briefs: Bcachefs removal; Coccinelle for Rust; Netdev Foundation; Oracle Linux 10; GNU HHIS 5.0; Rust 1.88.0; Quotes; ... Announcements: Newsletters, conferences, security updates, patches, and more.
- Debian looking for testers with Apple M1/M2 machines
Debian's Bananas team has putout a call for people with Apple M1 or M2 systems to help testDebian on those machines: The Bananas Team has set up an installer at with images for GNOME, KDE and console installations. While we'd like to build an actual Debian installer sooner or later (we may need a heads-up from the Debian Images team for that), at this time we only provide an asahi-type installer, which installs both the "bootloader" and the OS partitions to disk from the network (as opposed to only installing the bootloader and then letting you install Debian using a d-i USB stick). We haven't forked Trixie from Testing yet, so what you'll get is Debian Testing quite deep into the freeze.
- The Netdev Foundation launches
The NetdevFoundation, which is "a user-led effort under the supervision of theLinux Foundation, focused on financially supporting Linux networkingdevelopment", has announced itsexistence. The initial motivation was to move the NIPA testing outside of Meta, so that more people can help and contribute. But there should be sufficient budget to sponsor more projects. (NIPA is NetdevInfrastructure for Patch Automation).
- [$] Accessing new kernel features from Python
Every release of the Linux kernel has lots of new features, many of whichare accessible from user space. Usually, though, the GNU C Library (glibc)and tools that access the Linux user-space API lag behind the kernelreleases. Geoffrey Thomas showed how Python programs can access these newkernel features as soon as the kernel is released in his "What's New in theLinux Kernel... from Python" talk atPyCon US 2025. While he had twoexamples of accessing new kernel features, the real goal of the talk was todemonstrate how to go about connecting Python tothe Linux kernel.
- Copyleft-next project relaunched
The copyleft-next project is aneffort to develop a next-generation copyleft license; it was covered here back in 2013 (as well as in 2015 and 2021). The project has stalled in recentyears, but now Richard Fontana and Bradley Kuhn have announceda new effort to push copyleft-next forward: Today, GPLv3 turns exactly 18 years old. This month, GPLv2 turned 34 years old. These are both great licenses and we love them. Nevertheless, at least once in a generation, FOSS needs a new approach to strong copyleft.
- Security updates for Wednesday
Security updates have been issued by AlmaLinux (apache-commons-beanutils, firefox, kea, kernel, kernel-rt, libblockdev, libvpx, pam, python-setuptools, python3, python3.11, python3.12, python3.9, and sudo), Debian (chromium), Gentoo (sudo), Oracle (.NET 8.0, buildah, firefox, freerdp, golang-github-openprinting-ipp-usb, grafana, grafana-pcp, gvisor-tap-vsock, libsoup3, mod_proxy_cluster, perl-FCGI, podman, python-setuptools, qt6-qtbase, skopeo, sudo, and thunderbird), Slackware (mozilla), SUSE (redis, runc, xorg-x11-server, and xwayland), and Ubuntu (composer, linux, linux-aws, linux-aws-6.8, linux-gcp, linux-gcp-6.8, linux-gke, linux-gkeop, linux-lowlatency, linux-lowlatency-hwe-6.8, linux-nvidia, linux-nvidia-6.8, linux-nvidia-lowlatency, linux-oem-6.8, linux-oracle, linux-oracle-6.8, linux-raspi, linux, linux-aws, linux-gcp, linux-gcp-5.15, linux-gke, linux-gkeop, linux-hwe-5.15, linux-ibm, linux-kvm, linux-lowlatency, linux-lowlatency-hwe-5.15, linux-nvidia, linux-oracle, linux-oracle-5.15, linux, linux-aws, linux-gcp, linux-gcp-6.11, linux-hwe-6.11, linux-oracle, linux-raspi, linux-realtime, linux, linux-aws, linux-lts-xenial, linux, linux-gcp, linux-raspi, linux-realtime, linux-fips, linux-fips, linux-aws-fips, linux-gcp-fips, linux-realtime, and linux-realtime, linux-raspi-realtime).
- GNU Health Hospital Information System 5.0 released
Version 5.0 of theGNU Health Hospital Information System has been released. This project,working to support medical offices, shows just how far the free-softwareeffort can reach. Changes in this release include improved reporting andanalytics, more comprehensive handling of many types of patientinformation, a reworked medical-imaging subsystem, better insurance andbilling functionality, and more.
- [$] Yet another way to configure transparent huge pages
Transparent huge pages (THPs) are, theoretically, supposed to allow processes tobenefit from larger page sizes without changes to their code. This does work,but the performance impacts from THPs are not always a benefit, so systemadministrators with specific knowledge of their workloads may want the abilityto fine-tune THPs to the application. On May 15, Usama Arifshared a patch set that would add aprctl() option for setting THP defaults for a process; that patchset has sparked discussion about whether such a setting is a good fit forprctl(), and what alternative designs may work instead.
- [$] Improved load balancing with machine learning
The extensible scheduler class("sched_ext") allows the loading of a custom CPU scheduler into the kernelas a set of BPF functions; it was merged for the 6.12 kernel release.Since then, sched_ext has enabled a wide range of experimentation withscheduling algorithms. At the 2025 OpenSource Summit North America, Ching-Chun ("Jim") Huang presented workthat has been done to apply (local) machine learning to the problem ofscheduling processes on complex systems.
- 15 Years of OsmAnd
The OsmAnd map and navigation app project recently celebrated its 15thanniversary. All these 15 years can be roughly divided into three stages. For the first five years, we built the very basic functionality—offline maps and navigation that just worked. Over the next five years, we transformed OsmAnd into a full-fledged application with plugins, extensive settings, and professional tools. We dedicated the third five-year period to deep internal work: completely rewriting and improving key components like the rendering engine and routing algorithms. Now, a new, fourth stage begins. We have reached functional maturity, and our main goal for the near future is to polish what we've already built. We will focus on stability, speed, and consolidation. User expectations are growing, and what was once considered normal must now be flawless. (Thanks to Paul Wise).
- Debian Looks To Attract More Contributors, Eyes Budget For AI/LLM Usage By Debian Developers
The Debian project is hoping to address challenges of mentoring newcomers to contribute to the Debian Linux distribution as well as making it more known that open-source contributors can do more than just work on Debian packaging but that help is needed for documentation writing, web page creation, sorting out licensing issues, finding project sponsors, and more. Debian is also looking to attain OpenAI sponsorship or open-source funds from other large language model (LLM) / AI providers to help Debian developers for those wanting to use AI to help accelerate their Debian workflows...
- Bash 5.3 Released With Many Improvements
Three years since the Bash 5.2 release and one year since the first alpha release, GNU Bash 5.3 was released overnight as the newest step forward for this popular shell used on Linux and other operating systems...
- Intel Lunar Lake Showing Some Performance Improvements With Linux 6.16
For those on an Intel Core Ultra Series 2 "Lunar Lake" system, the upcoming Linux 6.16 kernel is looking to be in better shape for those newest Intel SoCs. In testing carried out using a Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 13 Aura edition laptop, there are performance gains in some areas with the Linux 6.16 development kernel.
- Fedora 43 GNU & LLVM 21 Toolchain Updates Planned
It shouldn't be particularly surprising as Fedora Linux has always been known for shipping with a leading-edge compiler toolchain, but the formalities have now been submitted for Fedora 43 to ship with the latest GNU and LLVM toolchain components...
- Bryan Lunduke is Actually Sending His Audience to Attack People
If this is his 'style' of resisting Wayland, then he does everyone a disservice, even to people who don't wish to use Wayland. He was also siccing mobs onto me, so I know this modus operandi of his. It was very direct and explicit. He did the same on his show.
- (Updated) Bela Upgrades Embedded DSP Platforms with PocketBeagle 2 Support and New Web IDE
Bela.io has unveiled the Gem Stereo and Gem Multi, two new open-source boards that expand PocketBeagle 2 into a real-time digital signal processing platform. Designed for audio and sensor applications, the boards target creative, educational, and research projects requiring low-latency performance and flexible I/O. Built around the PocketBeagle 2’s quad-core 64-bit ARM processor, the Bela […]
- Libreboot 25.06 Released With Support For Two More Outdated Systems
Libreboot 25.06 released this week as the newest version of this Coreboot downstream focused on shipping only with free and open-source components. But due to the strict open-source nature of Libreboot, it continues to primarily see support for long outdated platforms...
- Fedora Linux 43 to Drop MBR Support for UEFI x86 Installs
Fedora Linux 43 is set to bring a significant change to how it handles system installations. Specifically, for systems using UEFI firmware on x86 architecture, the Anaconda installer will soon require the use of GPT partition tables.
- Axiomtek KIWI330 Combines SBC Form Factor with Alder Lake-N Processor
Axiomtek has introduced the KIWI330, an ultra-compact single board computer for edge AIoT projects with limited space. Measuring just 72?mm by 56?mm and 1.6?mm thick, the KIWI330 targets robotics, smart gateways, industrial automation, and other applications needing performance in a small footprint. As of publication, this Axiomtek board is configured with the Intel N50 Alder […]
- 'Vibe Coder' Who Doesn't Know How to Code Keeps Winning Hackathons in San Francisco
An anonymous reader shared this report from the San Francisco Standard:About an hour into my meeting with the undisputed hackathon king of San Francisco, Rene Turcios asked if I wanted to smoke a joint with him. I politely declined, but his offer hardly surprised me. Turcios has built a reputation as a cannabis-loving former professional Yu-Gi-Oh! player who resells Labubus out of his Tenderloin apartment when he's not busy attending nearly every hackathon happening in the city. Since 2023, Turcios, 29, has attended more than 200 events, where he's won cash, software credits, and clout. "I'm always hustling," he said. The craziest part: he doesn't even know how to code. "Rene is the original vibe coder," said RJ Moscardon, a friend and fellow hacker who watched Turcios win second place at his first-ever hackathon at the AGI House mansion in Hillsborough. "All the engineers with prestigious degrees scoffed at him at first. But now they're all doing exactly the same thing...." Turcios was vibe coding long before the technique had a name — and was looked down upon by longtime hackers for using AI. But as Tiger Woods once said, "Winning takes care of everything...." Instead of vigorously coding until the deadline, he finished his projects hours early by getting AI to do the technical work for him. "I didn't write a single line of code," Turcios said of his first hackathon where he prompted ChatGPT using plain English to generate a program that can convert any song into a lo-fi version. When the organizers announced Turcios had won second place, he screamed in celebration.... "I realized that I could compete with people who have degrees and fancy jobs...." Turcios is now known for being able to build anything quickly. Businesses reach out to him to contract out projects that would take software engineering teams weeks — and he delivers in hours. He's even started running workshops to teach non-technical groups and experienced software engineers how to get the most out of AI for coding. "He grew up in Missouri to parents who worked in an international circus, taming bears and lions..."
 
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- Tesla Launches Solar-Powered 'Oasis' Supercharger Station: 30-Acre Solar Farm, 39 MWh of Off-Grid Batteries
"Tesla has launched its new Oasis Supercharger," reports Electrek, "the long-promised EV charging station of the future, with a solar farm and off-grid batteries."Early in the deployment of the Supercharger network, Tesla promised to add solar arrays and batteries to the Supercharger stations, and CEO Elon Musk even said that most stations would be able to operate off-grid... Last year, Tesla announced a new project called 'Oasis', which consists of a new model Supercharger station with a solar farm and battery storage enabling off-grid operations in Lost Hills, California. Tesla has now unveiled the project and turned on most of the Supercharger stalls. The project consists of 168 chargers, with half of them currently operational, making it one of the largest Supercharger stations in the world. However, that's not even the most notable aspect of it. The station is equipped with 11 MW of ground-mounted solar panels and canopies, spanning 30 acres of land, and 10 Tesla Megapacks with a total energy storage capacity of 39 MWh. It can be operated off-grid, which is the case right now, according to Tesla. With off-grid operations, Tesla was about to bring 84 stalls online just in time for the Fourth of July travel weekend. The rest of the stalls and a lounge are going to open later this year. The article makes that point that "This is what charging stations should be like: fully powered by renewable energy."
 
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- How Do You Teach Computer Science in the Age of AI?
"A computer science degree used to be a golden ticket to the promised land of jobs," a college senior tells the New York Times. But "That's no longer the case." The article notes that in the last three years there's been a 65% drop from companies seeking workers with two years of experience or less (according to an analysis by technology research/education organization CompTIA), with tech companies "relying more on AI for some aspects of coding, eliminating some entry-level work." So what do college professors teach when AI "is coming fastest and most forcefully to computer science"?Computer science programs at universities across the country are now scrambling to understand the implications of the technological transformation, grappling with what to keep teaching in the AI era. Ideas range from less emphasis on mastering programming languages to focusing on hybrid courses designed to inject computing into every profession, as educators ponder what the tech jobs of the future will look like in an AI economy... Some educators now believe the discipline could broaden to become more like a liberal arts degree, with a greater emphasis on critical thinking and communication skills. The National Science Foundation is funding a program, Level Up AI, to bring together university and community college educators and researchers to move toward a shared vision of the essentials of AI education. The 18-month project, run by the Computing Research Association, a research and education nonprofit, in partnership with New Mexico State University, is organising conferences and roundtables and producing white papers to share resources and best practices. The NSF-backed initiative was created because of "a sense of urgency that we need a lot more computing students — and more people — who know about AI in the workforce," said Mary Lou Maher, a computer scientist and a director of the Computing Research Association. The future of computer science education, Maher said, is likely to focus less on coding and more on computational thinking and AI literacy. Computational thinking involves breaking down problems into smaller tasks, developing step-by-step solutions and using data to reach evidence-based conclusions. AI literacy is an understanding — at varying depths for students at different levels — of how AI works, how to use it responsibly and how it is affecting society. Nurturing informed skepticism, she said, should be a goal. The article raises other possibilities. Experts also suggest the possibility of "a burst of technology democratization as chatbot-style tools are used by people in fields from medicine to marketing to create their own programs, tailored for their industry, fed by industry-specific data sets." Stanford CS professor Alex Aiken even argues that "The growth in software engineering jobs may decline, but the total number of people involved in programming will increase." Last year, Carnegie Mellon actually endorsed using AI for its introductory CS courses. The dean of the school's undergraduate programs believes that coursework "should include instruction in the traditional basics of computing and AI principles, followed by plenty of hands-on experience designing software using the new tools."
 
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- KDE Plasma 6.4 Has Landed in OpenBSD
OpenBSD Journal writes:Yes, you read that right: KDE 6.4.0 Plasma is now in OpenBSD packages... The news was announced 2025-07-04 via a fediverse post and of course the commit message itself, where the description reads.... "[I]n 6.4 the KDE Kwin team split kwin into kwin-x11 and kwin (wayland). This seems to be the sign that X11 is no longer of interest and we are focussing on Wayland. As we currently only support X11, kwin-x11 has been added as a runtime dependency to kwin. So nobody should have to install anything later. This ports update also includes Aurorae; a theme engine for KWin window decorations."
 
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- UK Scientists Achieve First Commercial Tritium Production
Interesting Engineering reports:Astral Systems, a UK-based private commercial fusion company, has claimed to have become the first firm to successfully breed tritium, a vital fusion fuel, using its own operational fusion reactor. This achievement, made with the University of Bristol, addresses a significant hurdle in the development of fusion energy.... Scientists from Astral Systems and the University of Bristol produced and detected tritium in real-time from an experimental lithium breeder blanket within Astral's multi-state fusion reactors. "There's a global race to find new ways to develop more tritium than what exists in today's world — a huge barrier is bringing fusion energy to reality," said Talmon Firestone, CEO and co-founder of Astral Systems. "This collaboration with the University of Bristol marks a leap forward in the search for viable, greater-than-replacement tritium breeding technologies. Using our multi-state fusion technology, we are the first private fusion company to use our reactors as a neutron source to produce fusion fuel." Astral Systems' approach uses its Multi-State Fusion (MSF) technology. The company states this will commercialize fusion power with better performance, efficiency, and lower costs than traditional reactors. Their reactor design, the result of 25 years of engineering and over 15 years of runtime, incorporates recent understandings of stellar physics. A core innovation is lattice confinement fusion (LCF), a concept first discovered by NASA in 2020. This allows Astral's reactor to achieve solid-state fuel densities 400 million times higher than those in plasma. The company's reactors are designed to induce two distinct fusion reactions simultaneously from a single power input, with fusion occurring in both plasma and a solid-state lattice. The article includes this quote from professor Tom Scott, who led the University of Bristol's team, supported by the Royal Academy of Engineering and UK Atomic Energy Authority. "This landmark moment clearly demonstrates a potential path to scalable tritium production in the future and the capability of Multi-State Fusion to produce isotopes in general." And there's also this prediction from the company's web site:"As we progress the fusion rate of our technology, aiming to exceed 10 trillion DT fusions per second per system, we unlock a wide range of applications and capabilities, such as large-scale medical isotope production, fusion neutron materials damage testing, transmutation of existing nuclear waste stores, space applications, hybrid fusion-fission power systems, and beyond." "Scientists everywhere are racing to develop this practically limitless form of energy," write a climate news site called The Cooldown. (Since in theory nuclear fusion "has an energy output four times higher than that of fission, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency.") Thanks to long-time Slashdot reader fahrbot-bot for sharing the news.
 
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- Microsoft Open Sources Copilot Chat for VS Code on GitHub
"Microsoft has released the source code for the GitHub Copilot Chat extension for VS Code under the MIT license," reports BleepingComputer.This provides the community access to the full implementation of the chat-based coding assistant, including the implementation of "agent mode," what contextual data is sent to large language models (LLMs), and the design of system prompts. The GitHub repository hosting the code also details telemetry collection mechanisms, addressing long-standing questions about data transparency in AI-assisted coding tools... As the VS Code team explained previously, shifts in AI tooling landscape like the rapid growth of the open-source AI ecosystem and a more level playing field for all have reduced the need for secrecy around prompt engineering and UI design. At the same time, increased targeting of development tools by malicious actors has increased the need for crowdsourcing contributions to rapidly pinpoint problems and develop effective fixes. Essentially, openness is now considered superior from a security perspective. "If you've been hesitant to adopt AI tools because you don't trust the black box behind them, this move opensources-github-copilot-chat-vscode/offers something rare these days: transparency," writes Slashdot reader BrianFagioli"Now that the extension is open source, developers can audit how agent mode actually works. You can also dig into how it manages your data, customize its behavior, or build entirely new tools on top of it. This could be especially useful in enterprise environments where compliance and control are non negotiable. It is worth pointing out that the backend models powering Copilot remain closed source. So no, you won't be able to self host the whole experience or train your own Copilot. But everything running locally in VS Code is now fair game. Microsoft says it is planning to eventually merge inline code completions into the same open source package too, which would make Copilot Chat the new hub for both chat and suggestions.
 
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- A Common Assumption About Aging May Be Wrong, Study Suggests
"Some of our basic assumptions about the biological process of aging might be wrong," reports the New York Times — citing new research on a small Indigenous population in the Bolivian Amazon. [Alternate URL here.] Scientists have long believed that long-term, low-grade inflammation — also known as "inflammaging" — is a universal hallmark of getting older. But this new data raises the question of whether inflammation is directly linked to aging at all, or if it's linked to a person's lifestyle or environment instead. The study, which was published Monday, found that people in two nonindustrialized areas experienced a different kind of inflammation throughout their lives than more urban people — likely tied to infections from bacteria, viruses and parasites rather than the precursors of chronic disease. Their inflammation also didn't appear to increase with age. Scientists compared inflammation signals in existing data sets from four distinct populations in Italy, Singapore, Bolivia and Malaysia; because they didn't collect the blood samples directly, they couldn't make exact apples-to-apples comparisons. But if validated in larger studies, the findings could suggest that diet, lifestyle and environment influence inflammation more than aging itself, said Alan Cohen, an author of the paper and an associate professor of environmental health sciences at Columbia University. "Inflammaging may not be a direct product of aging, but rather a response to industrialized conditions," he said, adding that this was a warning to experts like him that they might be overestimating its pervasiveness globally. "How we understand inflammation and aging health is based almost entirely on research in high-income countries like the U.S.," said Thomas McDade, a biological anthropologist at Northwestern University. But a broader look shows that there's much more global variation in aging than scientists previously thought, he added... McDade, who has previously studied inflammation in the Tsimane group, speculated that populations in nonindustrialized regions might be exposed to certain microbes in water, food, soil and domestic animals earlier in their lives, bolstering their immune response later in life. More from The Independent:Chronic inflammation is thought to speed up the ageing process and contribute to various health conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, arthritis, cancer, heart disease, and Type 2 diabetes... However, other experts shared a word of caution before jumping to conclusions from the study. Vishwa Deep Dixit, director of the Yale Center for Research on Aging, told the New York Times it's not surprising that people less exposed to pollution would see lower rates of chronic disease. Aurelia Santoro, an associate professor at the University of Bologna, also cautioned about the results, according to the Times. "While they had lower rates of chronic disease, the two Indigenous populations tended to have life spans shorter than those of people in industrialized regions, meaning they may simply not have lived long enough to develop inflammaging, Santoro said." And Bimal Desai, a professor of pharmacology who studies inflammation at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, told the Times that the study "sparks valuable discussion" but needs more follow-up "before we rewrite the inflammaging narrative."
 
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- XBOW's AI-Powered Pentester Grabs Top Rank on HackerOne, Raises $75M to Grow Platform
We're living in a new world now — one where it's an AI-powered penetration tester that "now tops an eminent US security industry leaderboard that ranks red teamers based on reputation." CSO Online reports:On HackerOne, which connects organizations with ethical hackers to participate in their bug bounty programs, "Xbow" scored notably higher than 99 other hackers in identifying and reporting enterprise software vulnerabilities. It's a first in bug bounty history, according to the company that operates the eponymous bot... Xbow is a fully autonomous AI-driven penetration tester (pentester) that requires no human input, but, its creators said, "operates much like a human pentester" that can scale rapidly and complete comprehensive penetration tests in just a few hours. According to its website, it passes 75% of web security benchmarks, accurately finding and exploiting vulnerabilities. Xbow submitted nearly 1,060 vulnerabilities to HackerOne, including remote code execution, information disclosures, cache poisoning, SQL injection, XML external entities, path traversal, server-side request forgery (SSRF), cross-site scripting, and secret exposure. The company said it also identified a previously unknown vulnerability in Palo Alto's GlobalProtect VPN platform that impacted more than 2,000 hosts. Of the vulnerabilities Xbow submitted over the last 90 days, 54 were classified as critical, 242 as high and 524 as medium in severity. The company's bug bounty programs have resolved 130 vulnerabilities, and 303 are classified as triaged. Notably, though, roughly 45% of the vulnerabilities it found are still awaiting resolution, highlighting the "volume and impact of the submissions across live targets," Nico Waisman, Xbow's head of security, wrote in a blog post this week... To further hone the technology, the company developed "validators," — automated peer reviewers that confirm each uncovered vulnerability, Waisman explained. "As attackers adopt AI to automate and accelerate exploitation, defenders must meet them with even more capable systems," XBOW's CEO said this week, as the company raised $75 million in Series B funding to grow its platform, bringing its total funding to $117 million. Help Net Security reports:With the new funding, XBOW plans to grow its engineering team and expand its go-to-market efforts. The product is now generally available, and the company says it is working with large banks, tech firms, and other organizations that helped shape the platform during its early testing phase. XBOW's long-term goal is to help security teams stay ahead of adversaries using advanced automation. As attackers increasingly turn to AI, the company argues that defenders will need equally capable systems to match their speed and sophistication.
 
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- HPE Acquires Juniper Networks for $14B After Settling Antitrust Case
This week Hewlett-Packard Enterprise settled its antitrust case with America's Justice Department, "paving the way for its acquisition of rival kit maker Juniper Networks," reported Telecoms.com:Under the agreement, HPE has agreed to divest its Instant On unit, which sells a range of enterprise-grade Wi-Fi networking equipment for campus and branch deployments. It has also agreed to license Juniper's Mist AIOps source code — a software suite that enables AI-based network automation and management. HPE can live with that, since its primary motivation for buying Juniper is to improve its prospects in an IT networking market dominated by Cisco, where others like Arista and increasingly Nokia and Nvidia are also trying to make inroads. And after receiving regulatory clearance, HPE "very quickly closed the deal..." reports The Motley Fool. "In the press release heralding the news, the buyer wrote that it "doubles the size of HPE's networking business and provides customers with a comprehensive portfolio of networking solutions."Investors were obviously happy about this, as according to data compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence the company's stock price ballooned by nearly 16% across the week, largely on the news.... The Justice Department had alleged, in a lawsuit filed in January, that an HPE/Juniper tie-up would essentially result in a duopoly in networking equipment. It claimed that a beefed-up HPE and networking incumbent Cisco would hold more than 70% combined of the domestic market. Thanks to long-time Slashdot reader AmiMoJo for sharing the news.
 
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- Why Do Killer Whales Keep Handing Us Fish? Scientists Unpack the Mystery
Science Daily reports:Wild orcas across four continents have repeatedly floated fish and other prey to astonished swimmers and boaters, hinting that the ocean's top predator likes to make friends. Researchers cataloged 34 such gifts over 20 years, noting the whales often lingered expectantly — and sometimes tried again — after humans declined their offerings, suggesting a curious, relationship-building motive... "Orcas often share food with each other — it's a prosocial activity and a way that they build relationships with each other," said study lead author Jared Towers, of Bay Cetology in British Columbia, Canada. "That they also share with humans may show their interest in relating to us as well." The complete research was published in the Journal of Comparative Psychology. Its title? "Testing the Waters: Attempts by Wild Killer Whales (Orcinus orca) to Provision People (Homo sapiens)."
 
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- Will FaceTime In IOS 26 Freeze Your Call If Someone Starts Undressing?
Long-time Slashdot reader AmiMoJo shared this report from the Apple news blog 9to5Mac:iOS 26 is a packed update for iPhone users thanks to the new Liquid Glass design and major updates for Messages, Wallet, CarPlay, and more. But another new feature was just discovered in the iOS 26 beta: FaceTime will now freeze your call's video and audio if someone starts undressing. When Apple unveiled iOS 26 last month, it mentioned a variety of new family tools... "Communication Safety expands to intervene when nudity is detected in FaceTime video calls, and to blur out nudity in Shared Albums in Photos." However, at least in the iOS 26 beta, it seems that a similar feature may be in place for all users — adults included. That's the claim of an X.com user named iDeviceHelp, who says FaceTime in iOS 26 swaps in a warning message that says "Audio and video are paused because you may be showing something sensitive," giving users a choice of ending the call or resuming it. 9to5Mac says "It's unclear whether this is an intended behavior, or just a bug in the beta that's applying the feature to adults... [E]verything happens on-device so Apple has no idea about the contents of your call."
 
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- Two Sudo Vulnerabilities Discovered and Patched
In April researchers responsibly disclosed two security flaws found in Sudo "that could enable local attackers to escalate their privileges to root on susceptible machines," reports The Hacker News. "The vulnerabilities have been addressed in Sudo version 1.9.17p1 released late last month."Stratascale researcher Rich Mirch, who is credited with discovering and reporting the flaws, said CVE-2025-32462 has managed to slip through the cracks for over 12 years. It is rooted in the Sudo's "-h" (host) option that makes it possible to list a user's sudo privileges for a different host. The feature was enabled in September 2013. However, the identified bug made it possible to execute any command allowed by the remote host to be run on the local machine as well when running the Sudo command with the host option referencing an unrelated remote host. "This primarily affects sites that use a common sudoers file that is distributed to multiple machines," Sudo project maintainer Todd C. Miller said in an advisory. "Sites that use LDAP-based sudoers (including SSSD) are similarly impacted." CVE-2025-32463, on the other hand, leverages Sudo's "-R" (chroot) option to run arbitrary commands as root, even if they are not listed in the sudoers file. It's also a critical-severity flaw. "The default Sudo configuration is vulnerable," Mirch said. "Although the vulnerability involves the Sudo chroot feature, it does not require any Sudo rules to be defined for the user. As a result, any local unprivileged user could potentially escalate privileges to root if a vulnerable version is installed...." Miller said the chroot option will be removed completely from a future release of Sudo and that supporting a user-specified root directory is "error-prone."
 
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- Nuclear Microreactors Advance as US Picks Two Companies for Fueled Testing
This week America's Energy Department selected two companies to perform the first nuclear microreactor tests in a new facility in Idaho, saying the tests "will fast-track the deployment of American microreactor technologies... The first fueled reactor experiment will start as early as spring 2026." The new facility is named DOME (an acronym for Demonstration of Microreactor Experiments), and it leverages existing "to safely house and test fueled reactor experiments, capable of producing up to 20 megawatts of thermal energy," according to a local newspaper.[T]wo companies were competitively selected in 2023 and are currently working through a multi-phase Energy Department authorization process to support the design, fabrication, construction, and testing of each fueled reactor experiment. Both are expected to meet certain milestones throughout the process to maintain their allotted time in DOME and to ensure efficient use of the test bed, according to the release... The department estimates each DOME reactor experiment will operate up to six months, with the DOME test bed currently under construction and on track to receive its first experiment in early 2026... The next call for applications is anticipated to be in 2026. The site Interesting Engineering calls the lab "a high-stakes proving ground to accelerate the commercialization of advanced microreactors..."Based in Etna, Pennsylvania, Westinghouse will test its eVinci Nuclear Test Reactor, a compact, transportable microreactor that uses advanced heat pipe technology for passive cooling. Designed to deliver 5 megawatts of electricity on sites as small as two acres, eVinci could support applications ranging from remote communities to mining operations and data centers. Meanwhile, Radiant (El Segundo, California) will test its Kaleidos Development Unit, a 1.2 megawatt electric high-temperature gas reactor aimed at replacing diesel generators. Designed to run for five years, Kaleidos is fueled by TRISO fuel particles that could offer reliable backup power for hospitals, military bases, and other critical infrastructure. Radiant's CEO said "In short order, we will fuel, go critical, and operate, leading to the mass production of portable reactors which will jumpstart American nuclear energy dominance."
 
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- Near Antarctica, Saltier Seas Mean Less Ice, Study Finds
Some of the water around Antarctica has been getting saltier. And that has affected the amount of sea ice at the bottom of the planet. From a report: A study published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that increases in salinity in seawater near the surface could help explain some of the decrease in Antarctic sea ice that have been observed over the past decade, reversing a previous period of growth. "The impact of Antarctic ice is massive in terms of sea-level rise, in terms of global warming, and therefore, in terms of extremes," said Alessandro Silvano, a senior scientist at the University of Southampton studying the Southern Ocean and lead author of the study. The findings mean "we are entering a new system, a new world," he said. The Times adds: "the Department of Defense announced it would be no longer be providing some of the satellite data that researchers use to monitor changes in sea ice."
 
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- AI Coding Agents Are Already Commoditized
Software engineer Sean Goedecke argues that AI coding agents have already been commoditized because they require no special technical advantages, just better base models. He writes: All of a sudden, it's the year of AI coding agents. Claude released Claude Code, OpenAI released their Codex agent, GitHub released its own autonomous coding agent, and so on. I've done my fair share of writing about whether AI coding agents will replace developers, and in the meantime how best to use them in your work. Instead, I want to make what I think is now a pretty firm observation: AI coding agents have no secret sauce. [...] The reason everyone's doing agents now is the same reason everyone's doing reinforcement learning now -- from one day to the next, the models got good enough. Claude Sonnet 3.7 is the clear frontrunner here. It's not the smartest model (in my opinion), but it is the most agentic: it can stick with a task and make good decisions over time better than other models with more raw brainpower. But other AI labs have more agentic models now as well. There is no moat. There's also no moat to the actual agent code. It turns out that "put the model in a loop with a 'read file' and 'write file' tool" is good enough to do basically anything you want. I don't know for sure that the closed-source options operate like this, but it's an educated guess. In other words, the agent hackers in 2023 were correct, and the only reason they couldn't build Claude Code then was that they were too early to get to use the really good models.
 
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- Massive spike in use of .es domains for phishing abuse
¡Cuidado! Time to double-check before entering your Microsoft creds Cybersecurity experts are reporting a 19x increase in malicious campaigns being launched from .es domains, making it the third most common, behind only .com and .ru.…
- We're number 1! Windows 11 finally overtakes Windows 10
Three months to go until support ends, and Microsoft's flagship operating system squeaks past its predecessor Windows 11 has finally overtaken the market share of its predecessor, with just three months remaining until Microsoft discontinues support for Windows 10.…
- Wikidata: Attempting to bridge FOSS ideals and direct democracy
There's more to the Wikimedia organization than the famous encyclopedia Comment Multiple other projects also use the vast linked data store that underpins ubiquitous internet encyclopaedia Wikipedia, and some of them are helping the fight for democracy.…
- 'Trained monkey' from tech support saved know-it-all manager's mistake with a single keypress
Righteous mockery entranced execs in ways slideware could not On Call Friday dawns with the promise of precious freedom, yet the world of tech support is seldom free from trouble. The Register always finds a way to celebrate anyway, by bringing you a fresh instalment of On Call, the reader-contributed column that tells your tales of breaking away from bad bosses and ungrateful users.…
- Cold without the compressor: Boffins build better ice box
A thermoelectric material called CHESS is pretty cool Scientists at Johns Hopkins and Samsung have developed a nano-engineered thermoelectric material that is twice as efficient at material-level cooling as existing alternatives, paving the way for broader adoption of solid-state refrigeration technology.…
- US budget bill passes without controversial block on states regulating AI
And with some increases to rural broadband funds, fresh spectrum auctions, and wholesale dismantling of clean energy subsidies Lawmakers have passed President Trump's budget reconciliation but removed one of its most tech-contentious measures - the ban of state-level AI regulation – meaning the law will have little effect on the tech industry.…
- AI models just don't understand what they're talking about
Researchers find models' success at tests hides illusion of understanding Researchers from MIT, Harvard, and the University of Chicago have proposed the term "potemkin understanding" to describe a newly identified failure mode in large language models that ace conceptual benchmarks but lack the true grasp needed to apply those concepts in practice.…
- Musk's antics and distractions are backfiring as Tesla's car business stalls
Robotaxis, humanoid robots, and fights with Trump can't hide declining EV sales Comment Tesla reported its vehicle delivery and production numbers for Q2 2025 this week, and while the figures weren't quite as low in absolute terms as Q1, they still mark a worrying downward trend as CEO Elon Musk continues to spread his attention across a huge variety of topics unrelated to making and selling electric cars.…
- Canonical adds extra shots to Ubuntu Java
Juices the tooling and support for developers and enterprise customers Canonical has some extra toppings, flavorings, and offers coming for its bigger Java fans – because the suits swallow a lot of the stuff.…
- 23andMe's new owner says your DNA is safe this time
Nonprofit TTAM assures everything is BAU. Whether that makes customers feel better is another matter The medical research nonprofit vying to buy 23andMe is informing existing customers that it plans to complete the deal on July 8.…
- Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill bankrolls $85M Space Shuttle shuffle
NASA science might be cut, but cash can be found to move a 'space vehicle' from museum to museum Lurking in the text contained within the One Big Beautiful Bill, which was passed by the US Senate yesterday, is an $85 million allocation for shifting a "space vehicle" to a new location, widely interpreted as a move of the retired Space Shuttle Discovery orbiter from Virginia to Houston.…
- 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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- Linux 6.16 Performance Regression Tracked Down In New Futex Code
Sent out this morning as part of this week's "locking/urgent" pull request is a performance regression fix ahead of today's Linux 6.16-rc5 release. This latest performance regression in the Linux kernel is around the new Futex code merged this cycle with a big performance hit being observed in scheduler benchmarks...
- Fedora 43 GNU & LLVM 21 Toolchain Updates Planned
It shouldn't be particularly surprising as Fedora Linux has always been known for shipping with a leading-edge compiler toolchain, but the formalities have now been submitted for Fedora 43 to ship with the latest GNU and LLVM toolchain components...
- Coreboot 25.06 Released With Xeon Emerald Rapids Support, Better Panther Lake
Building off Coreboot 25.03 is now the availability of Coreboot 25.06 for further enhancing this open-source system firmware project that continues to see new hardware improvements -- predominantly for Google Chromebook devices but also more Intel platforms and other hardware -- as well as new capabilities to further rival proprietary BIOS solutions...
- Bcachefs Fixes Merged For Linux 6.16-rc5
A handful of Bcachefs file-system fixes were submitted yesterday to Linus Torvalds for merging ahead of the Linux 6.16-rc5 release due out on Sunday. Today they were merged...
- Intel Enables Wildcat Lake Display & Experimental Flip Queue For Linux 6.17 Graphics
Intel today sent out a batch of new kernel graphics/display driver code for queuing ahead of the Linux 6.17 merge window opening in a few weeks. There is now DRM Panic support for the Intel i915 and Xe kernel drivers, Wildcat Lake "WCL" display enablement, and experimental flip queue support for Lunar Lake and Panther Lake hardware, among other changes coming for the Intel drivers in Linux 6.17...
- Debian Looks To Attract More Contributors, Eyes Budget For AI/LLM Usage By Debian Developers
The Debian project is hoping to address challenges of mentoring newcomers to contribute to the Debian Linux distribution as well as making it more known that open-source contributors can do more than just work on Debian packaging but that help is needed for documentation writing, web page creation, sorting out licensing issues, finding project sponsors, and more. Debian is also looking to attain OpenAI sponsorship or open-source funds from other large language model (LLM) / AI providers to help Debian developers for those wanting to use AI to help accelerate their Debian workflows...
- Redis 8.2 Preparing More Performance Optimizations, SVS-VAMANA
The first release candidate of Redis 8.2 is now available for testing of this popular in-memory key-value database. Redis 8.2 is building off the recent Redis 8.0 release that ended up going tri-licensing with the AGPLv3 stemming from developer/community feedback...
- Bash 5.3 Released With Many Improvements
Three years since the Bash 5.2 release and one year since the first alpha release, GNU Bash 5.3 was released overnight as the newest step forward for this popular shell used on Linux and other operating systems...
- Fedora Linux Looks To End Support For UEFI On MBR-Paritioned Disks
A proposal raised for Fedora 43 would end support for allowing UEFI installations on MBR-partitioned disks for x86_64 systems in the Anaconda installer. This would enforce a requirement on using GPT partition tables for all UEFI-based Fedora installations in the x86 world...
- Intel Lunar Lake Showing Some Performance Improvements With Linux 6.16
For those on an Intel Core Ultra Series 2 "Lunar Lake" system, the upcoming Linux 6.16 kernel is looking to be in better shape for those newest Intel SoCs. In testing carried out using a Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 13 Aura edition laptop, there are performance gains in some areas with the Linux 6.16 development kernel.
- Improved TTM Memory Management Eviction Submitted Ahead Of Linux 6.17
Sent out today was the newest drm-misc-next pull request of changes built up over the past week for DRM-Next ahead of the Linux 6.17 kernel cycle. The drm-misc-next material is the usual random assortment of DRM display/graphics driver changes and core improvements, which this week includes some TTM eviction work...
- Libreboot 25.06 Released With Support For Two More Outdated Systems
Libreboot 25.06 released this week as the newest version of this Coreboot downstream focused on shipping only with free and open-source components. But due to the strict open-source nature of Libreboot, it continues to primarily see support for long outdated platforms...
- Steam On Linux Usage Dips Slightly For June, AMD Linux CPU Usage Hits 69%
Steam Survey issues prevented the survey results from being posted on the evening of the 1st as is traditionally done, but the results were just uploaded now to the Steam website. Steam on Linux usage dipped slightly but overall remains healthy with much excitement still around the Steam Deck and SteamOS efforts...
- ZLUDA Making Progress In 2025 On Bringing CUDA To Non-NVIDIA GPUs
The ZLUDA open-source effort that started off a half-decade ago as a drop-in CUDA implementation for Intel GPUs and then for several years was funded by AMD as a CUDA implementation for Radeon GPUs atop ROCm and then open-sourced but then reverted has been continuing to push along a new path since last year. The current take on ZLUDA is a multi-vendor CUDA implementation for non-NVIDIA GPUs for AI workloads and more. More progress was made during Q2 on this effort...
- Firefox 120 To Firefox 141 Web Browser Benchmarks
For those curious about the direction of Mozilla Firefox web browser performance over the past year and a half, here are web browser benchmarks for every Firefox release from Firefox 120 in November 2023 through the newest Firefox 140 stable and Firefox 140 beta releases from a few days ago. Every major Firefox release was benchmarked on the same Ubuntu Linux system with AMD Ryzen 9 9950X for evaluating the performance and memory usage of this open-source web browser.
- NVIDIA is full of shit
Since the disastrous launch of the RTX 50 series, NVIDIA has been unable to escape negative headlines: scalper bots are snatching GPUs away from consumers before official sales even begin, power connectors continue to melt, with no fix in sight, marketing is becoming increasingly deceptive, GPUs are missing processing units when they leave the factory, and the drivers, for which NVIDIA has always been praised, are currently falling apart. And to top it all off, NVIDIA is becoming increasingly insistent that media push a certain narrative when reporting on their hardware. ↫ Sebin Nyshkim Out of all the issues listed here and there are many, and each is bad enough on their own its the frame generation and related pressure campaigns on reviewers that really get on my nerves the most. Technologies like DLSS (rendering at a lower internal resolution scaling that up) and frame generation (injecting fake AI! frames to jack up the frame rate) can be fine technologies when used at the consumers discretion to find a balance between improved perceived performance in exchange for blurry image quality and artefacting, but weve now reached a point where NVIDIA will only boast about performance figures with these technologies enabled, downsides be damned. If that wasnt misleading enough, the company is also pressuring reviewers who dont enable these technologies, and focus on real frames, real resolutions, and this, real performance. If you dont comply, youre not getting the next crop of GPUs in early access. Its the kind of shit Apple pulls all the time, and we need less of it, not more. Just dont buy NVIDIA. Theyre already a terrible choice if youre running anything other than Windows, but the companys recent behaviour and serious missteps have made the choice for AMD or Intel only more obvious.
- Redox gets network booting, work on UNIX domain sockets continues
Redox continues to make progress, and as another month has passed us by, its time for another monthly update. This past month, the focus has been on UNIX domain sockets, which are needed for Redox goal of running Wayland. As we continue to move forward with our plans for Wayland, a key technology for Wayland support is the ability to send file descriptors over Unix Domain Sockets. File descriptor sending is also an important part of many other OS features, including Capability-based Security. Our Redox Summer of Code project to implement that ability has been progressing very well. Ibuki, a new member of the Redox team, has jumped right into the deep end, and implemented the sendmg and recvmsg functionality, and continues to move forward with work on UDS. ↫ Ribbon and Ron Williams You can read more about the UNIX domain sockets progress in a detailed post on the Redox website. Redox now also supports network booting through PXE, but for now, only UEFI is supported. Of course, all of this work is topped off with the usual slew of fixes in relibc, RedoxFS, various drivers, and more, as well updated ports across the board.
- Is an Intel N100 a better value than a Raspberry Pi?
All of this to say: value is complicated. The Pi 5 is`much`more compact and slightly more power efficient (especially at idle) compared to the cheapest N1XX Intel systems. The Intel systems are better suited for a desktop use case. The Pi 5 can be run off PoE power, for easier one-cable networking + power. The Intel systems are more compatible with a wider range of software (not the least of which is`anything requiring Windows). ↫ Jeff Geerling Intels N100 and N150 are vastly underappreciated. The mini laptop I reviewed over a year ago is built around the N100, and I still use it every day for watching YouTube, writing OSNews posts, and so on. I never run into performance issues, battery life is excellent, and I dont have to deal with the annoyances of using ARM. The catch is that youre going to want to use Linux I use Fedora KDE because Windows performance on the N100 is dreadful. I dont think the jump from the N100 to the N150 is worthwhile enough to buy the new version of my mini laptop, so Ill stick with what I have. I do hope Intel continues the Nxxx line or processors, because it offers something no other x86 chip offers: more than reasonable performance at low power usage for an incredibly low price.
- Ubuntu 25.10 to drop support for effectively all existing RISC-V hardware, focuses on future RISC-V hardware instead
A recent bug report filed against Ubuntu’s upgrading tool confirmed a major change with regards to the RISC-V requirements for the upcoming Ubuntu 25.10 release — most existing RISC-V devices will`not`be able to run Ubuntu 25.10. How come? ↫ Joey Sneddon at omgubuntu.co.uk RISC-V just isnt delivering. Thats the cold and harsh truth more and more people are having to deal with, such as Chimera Linux dropping RISC-V support because the ecosystem is simply lacking the kind of powerful and available hardware to sustain itself (Chimera got lucky, though, and gained access to a Milk-V Pioneer through Adélie Linux). The number of systems and boards that are both powerful and available is close enough to zero that it might as well be zero, and if neither users nor developers can buy RISC-V hardware, whats the point in supporting it? The issue for Ubuntu specifically is that version 25.10 of the distribution intends to target only the RVA23 baseline RISC-V profile, while currently Ubuntu supports RVA20 as the baseline. This higher baseline profile requires a number of extensions to the instruction set that no existing hardware yet supports, making 25.10 effectively a clean break for all existing RISC-V hardware. In other words, if youre running Ubuntu on RISC-V hardware today, you wont be able to upgrade to 25.10 or higher. RISC-V really needs vastly improved hardware availability, because right now its just not delivering on the years of promises.
- The Amiga 3000 UNIX and Sun Microsystems: deal or no deal?
Amiga lore is full of exciting tales. Many of them are retold to demonstrate how the incompetence of Commodores management destroyed a platform that, by rights, was destined for success.`Coulda, shoulda,`and the Amiga`woulda`risen as rightful ruler of all other computer platforms, forever and ever. Amen. One of those stories is about how Sun Microsystems allegedly showed interest in the Amiga 3000 during the early 1990s. Its a classic Amiga anecdote, usually recounted without much reflection, and one`Ive certainly helped perpetuate. Alas, the more I think about it, the less it adds up. Fact or factoid? Lets speculate! ↫ Carl Svensson Great speculation with some solid reasoning and sourcing. Considering that had been some minor joint marketing between Sun and Commodore, my money is on the talks around that deal birthing rumours about more extensive Sun involvement in the Amiga 3000. At this point in time, however, decades after the fact and with several conflicting account, its unlikely well ever get a solid answer.
- AI note takers are flooding Zoom calls as workers opt to skip meetings
Clifton Sellers attended a Zoom meeting last month where robots outnumbered humans. He counted six people on the call including himself, Sellers recounted in an interview. The 10 others attending were note-taking apps powered by artificial intelligence that had joined to record, transcribe and summarize the meeting. ↫ Lisa Bonos and Danielle Abril at The Bezos Post Management strongly encourages mandates that everyone use AI! to improve productivity, but then gets all uppity when people actually do. Welcome to finding out!.
- Elementary OS makes meaningful accessibility improvements
With recent efforts to improve accessibility in GNOME and KDE, as well as a renewed focus on highlighting the many issues that still need fixing, the Linux desktop is making meaningful strides in becoming more accessible to those among us with disabilities. Obviously, the Linux desktop is bigger than just GNOME and KDE, so today we have elementary OS improving its accessibility features in a variety of ways. July is Disability Pride Month, an opportunity for us to consider how we’re serving our disabled community and work on breaking down barriers to access. Last year we had the pleasure of being introduced to Florian—a fully blind cybersecurity enthusiast—and thanks to his feedback we completely rewrote navigation in Onboarding to be more keyboard and screen reader friendly, as well as took another look at Installation and Initial Setup to vastly improve our entire first run experience for blind folks. Plus, we implemented the screen reader interface in the + window switcher. Thanks to this feedback, elementary OS 8 can be installed and set up completely blind, an important win for maintaining your independence as a person with vision disabilities. Since the release of OS 8 we’ve been working on things like improving contrast, support for Dark Mode screenshots and brand colors in AppCenter, turning on or snoozing Dark Mode without canceling your schedule, expanding the scope of the “Reduce Motion” setting, and adding more options to reduce distracting notification bubbles. Plus, thanks to feedback from Aaron who you may know from his blog series on Linux accessibility, Notifications and the Shortcut Overlay both got releases that add screen reader support. ↫ Danielle Foré at elementarys blog Im glad were finally putting to rest this idea that accessibility features should be afterthoughts, relevant to only a minute percentage of people. Not only is the disabled community way bigger than we might think, many of the features they require are simply also extremely nice and beneficial to users who might not actually require them. I know tons of people who, for instance, love reduce motion features simply because it makes their operating system feel faster, or people who just dont want to be bothered with notifications the instant they arrive. Accessibility goes far beyond what we traditionally think of as accessibility features, like screen readers or high contrast modes. Making software more accessible for those that require it, also makes software more accessible for those that merely desire it. Even though elementary OS probably isnt the type of distribution that appeals to the average OSNews reader, Im incredibly happy theyre taking accessibility seriously, and I intend to continue to highlight such improvements.
- Servers and thin clients in every home is the future they stole from us
I’ve used thin clients at home for quite a while both for their intended use (remotely accessing a desktop of another system); and in the sense of “modern thin clients are x86 boxes that are wildly overpowered for what they run, so they make good mini servers.” Recently, I saw a bulk lot of Sun Ray thin clients pop up on Trade Me (NZ’s eBay-like auction site) and with very little idea of how many clients were actually included in this lot, I jumped on it. After a 9 hour round-trip drive (on some of the worst roads I’ve seen!), I returned home with the back of my car completely packed with Sun Rays. Time for some interesting shenanigans! ↫ catstret.ch I was unaware you could still set up a Sun Ray environment with latest versions of OpenIndiana, and that has me quite interested in buying a few Sun Rays off eBay and follow in the authors footsteps. It seems like its not too difficult, and while theres some manual nonsense you have to do to get everything to install correctly, its nothing crazy. To this day, I firmly believe that the concept of dumb thin clients connected to powerful servers is an alluring and interesting way of computing. Im not talking about connecting up to servers owned by massive technology corporations Im talking about a few powerful servers down in your own basement or attic or whatever, serving applications and desktops straight to basic thin clients all around your house. These thin clients can take the shape of anything, from something like a desktop setup in your office, down to a basic display in your kitchen for showing recipes, setting timers, and other basic stuff and everything in between. Sun Rays could hot desk using personal smart cards, but of course, in this day and age youd have your smartphone. The thin clients around your house would know it was you through your smartphone, and serve up the applications, desktop, tools, and so on that you use, but everything would be running on the servers in your house. Of course, my wife would have her own account on the server, as would our children, when they are old enough. None of this is impossible with todays tools and computing power, but it wouldnt be easy to set up. There are no integrated solutions out there to make this happen; youd have to scrap it together from disparate parts and tools, and I doubt such a house of cards would end up being reliable enough not to quickly become a massive annoyance and time sink. On top of that, we live in a rental apartment, so we dont even have a basement or attic to store loud servers in, nor are we allowed to drill holes and route Ethernet cabling for optimal performance. Anyway, theres no chance in hell any of the major technology companies would build such a complex ecosystem in a world where its much easier and more profitable to force people to subscribe to shitty services. In my ideal computing world, though a server in every home, with cheap thin clients in every room.
- The new troll diet
We need a new framework for how to defend against trolls!. The feeding metaphor ran its course many years ago. It is done and will not be coming back. New online risks demand that we adapt and become proactive in protecting our spaces. We have to loudly and proudly set the terms of what is permissible. Those holding social or institutional power in communities should be willing to drop a few loud fuck offs to anyone trying to work their way in by weaponizing optics, concern trolling, or the well known tolerance paradox!. Conceding through silence, or self-censorship, only emboldens those who benefit from attacking a community. ↫ diegoebe Een volk dat voor tirannen zwicht, zal meer dan lijf en goed verliezen, dan dooft het licht.
- Donkey Kong Country 2 and open bus
Apparently, Donkey Kong Country 2 has runs into a bug in the old SNES emulator ZSNES, where one of the barrels that youre supposed to be able to precisely control the spinning direction of ends up spinning forever. This bug is caused by ZSNES not emulating open bus behavior. I believe this was originally discovered by Anomie roughly two decades ago, who subsequently fixed the same bug in Snes9x. This original fix hardcoded the specific addresses to return the values that the game depends on rather than properly emulating open bus, but it fixed DKC2 and probably didn’t break anything else. The bug was never fixed in ZSNES, which is now a long abandoned project (last release in 2007). Purely out of curiosity, I wanted to dig into this a little more to figure out what exactly in the game code causes these barrels to spin forever in an emulator that doesn’t emulate open bus behavior. ↫ jsgroth Just in case youve always wanted to know.
- Wayback: experimental layer to run X desktop environments on Wayland
With X.org being in maintenance mode, with the process of replacing it with Wayland accelerating pretty quickly now, a lot of projects using X.org are looking for ways to prepare for the future. Alpine Linux, a distribution focused on musl, BusyBox, and OpenRC, also wants to reduce its maintenance burden for X11 applications, and so Alpine Linux maintainer Ariadne Conill has come up with something interesting. Wayback is an experimental X compatibility layer which allows for running full X desktop environments using Wayland components. It is essentially a stub compositor which provides just enough Wayland capabilities to host a rootful Xwayland server. It is intended to eventually replace the classic X.org server in Alpine, thus reducing maintenance burden of X applications in Alpine, but a lot of work needs to be done first. ↫ Wayback GitHub page Its nowhere near done and most likely contains massive amounts of bugs and issues, but the seed has been planted. Wayback will make it possible to keep running X11-based desktop environments even in a full-Wayland environment. This may be necessary in case you need a specific feature not yet available in the Wayland version of your desktop environment, or if your desktop environment of choice simply isnt going to move to Wayland at all (due to lack of maintainers or whatever). Itll also be a boon for retrocomputing, especially as over the coming years and decades unmaintained X11 desktop environments become become ever harder to keep running on modern Linux distributions. While X.org as it exists today certainly isnt going anywhere any time soon, it will, eventually, stop working properly on Linux distributions who dont ship it by default anymore, and its awesome to already have the beginnings of a project to address this problem.
- Microsoft to remove all but the latest versions of drivers from Windows Update
This blog post is intended to notify all Windows Hardware program partners that Microsoft has taken a strategic initiative to clean up legacy drivers published on Windows Update to reduce security and compatibility risks. The rationale behind this initiative is to ensure that we have the optimal set of drivers on Windows Update that cater to a variety of hardware devices across the windows ecosystem, while making sure that Microsoft Windows security posture is not compromised. This initiative involves periodic cleanup of drivers from Windows Update, thereby resulting in some drivers not being offered to any systems in the ecosystem. ↫ Microsofts Hardware Dev Center The general gist is that Microsoft is going to remove all drivers from Windows Update for which newer versions exist or, to put it in a different way, only the latest versions of a driver are going to remain available on Windows Update. Its effectively a clean-up of Windows Update, and the only way older versions of drivers will remain available on Windows Update is if the manufacturer in question can make a business justification! to keep them around. Some of this may sound surprising, since many people assume Windows Update only offers the latest versions of drivers annoyingly so, sometimes but this isnt the case. Corporations with fleets of devices can actually determine exactly which drivers get sent to their devices, including opting for older versions in case newer versions have regressions or otherwise cause issues. Sometimes you just dont have a choice. According to Adam Demasi, the creator and maintainer of the amazing Legacy Update service, Microsoft hasnt deleted a single driver or update from Windows Update since 2001 (save for problematic updates). This results in a truly massive collection of updates and drivers, and thats causing real problems for Microsoft. Windows Update has a pretty cool system of describing whether an update is necessary to be installed on the current system, or if it is already installed. It also builds a relationship graph between updates, to indicate when they have been replaced by a newer update that includes all changes from the previous update. That system is also its downfall, causing the Windows Update service to be incredibly slow in checking for updates, possibly never completing the check at all. This issue also applies to WSUS, which despite being based on the very robust SQL Server, struggles with the number of drivers Microsoft hosts on Windows Update. As of April, we know that Windows Update hosts 1,799,339 drivers, and this creates a 138 GB database that requires almost 16 days to synchronise down from the main servers. The WSUS server is brought to its knees, with frequent timeouts while it furiously tries to complete database queries. (The PC used is a Ryzen 5700G with 32 GB of 3600 MHz RAM and 500 GB of NVMe, running Windows Server 2025 and SQL Server 2022.) ↫ Adam Demasi From this, its easy to understand why Microsoft would want to perform some housekeeping, followed by a new set of rules around only keeping the latest versions of drivers around in Windows Update. Demasi also notes that these plans by Microsoft wont affect drivers for old devices, since they will still be served their newest! driver version, and it wont affect Legacy Update either.
- I want a good parallel computer!
The GPU in your computer is about 10 to 100 times more powerful than the CPU, depending on workload. For real-time graphics rendering and machine learning, you are enjoying that power, and doing those workloads on a CPU is not viable. Why aren’t we exploiting that power for other workloads? What prevents a GPU from being a more general purpose computer? ↫ Raph Levien Fascinating thoughts on parallel computation, including some mentions of earlier projects like Intels Larabee or the Connection Machine with 64k processors the 80s, as well as a defense of the PlayStation 3s Cell architecture.
- Windows gets new blue! screen of death and automated boot recovery
The blue screen of death has been such a core part of Windows thats its become part of humanitys collective consciousness. Theyre not nearly as common anymore as they used to be back in the Windows 9x and early Windows XP days, but they do still occasionally when dealing with broken hardware, shoddy drivers, or other such faults. Well, the blue screen of death is losing its eponymous blue colour, and will now clearly mention the stop code and where in which driver the kernel panic occurred. The Windows 11 24H2 release included improvements to crash dump collection which reduced downtime during an unexpected restart to about two seconds for most users. We’re introducing a simplified user interface (UI) that pairs with the shortened experience. The updated UI improves readability and aligns better with Windows 11 design principles, while preserving the technical information on the screen for when it is needed. ↫ David Weston at the Windows Blogs This is part of a new feature in Windows 11 called quick machine recovery, or QMR. If a Windows PC gets stuck in a boot loop, ending up in the Windows Recovery Environment, Microsoft can now deploy fixes and remediations through WinRE. This feature will become available later this year by default on Windows 11 Home, while on Windows 11 Pro and Enterprise, administrators can control how this feature works. So far, it seems QMR is only intended to be used for widespread outages, but I wonder if it would be possible to eventually use QMR locally. It would be pretty neat if Microsoft released the server-side component of QMR so individuals can run and (ab)use it locally for their own machines.
- Snow, a new classic Macintosh emulator
The world isnt short of classic Macintosh emulators, but one more certainly cannot hurt. Snow emulates classic (Motorola 6800-based) Macintosh computers. It features a graphical user interface to operate the emulated machine and provides extensive debugging capabilities. The aim of this project is to emulate the Macintosh on a hardware-level as much as possible, as opposed to emulators that patch the ROM or intercept system calls. It currently emulates the Macintosh 128K, Macintosh 512K, Macintosh Plus, Macintosh SE, Macintosh Classic and Macintosh II. ↫ Snows homepage Snow is written in Rust and open source under the MIT license.
- Microsoft is moving antivirus providers out of the Windows kernel
It’s been nearly a year since a faulty CrowdStrike update took down 8.5 million Windows-based machines around the world, and Microsoft wants to ensure such a problem never happens again. After holding a summit with security vendors last year, Microsoft is poised to release a private preview of Windows changes that will move antivirus (AV) and endpoint detection and response (EDR) apps out of the Windows kernel. ↫ Tom Warren at The Verge After the CrowdStrike incident, one of the first things Microsoft hinted as was moving antivirus and EDR applications out of the kernel, building an entirely new framework for these applications instead. The company has been working together with several large security vendors on these new frameworks and APIs, and its now finally ready to show off this new work to the outside world. Instead of designing the new frameworks and APIs in-house and just dumping them on the security vendors, Microsoft requested the security vendors send them detailed documentation on how they want the new frameworks and APIs to work. This first preview of the new implementation will be private, and will allow security vendors to request changes and additional features. Microsoft states it will take a few iterations before its ready for general availability, and on top of that, security software is only the first focus of this new effort. It turns out Microsoft wants to move more stuff out of the kernel, with anti-cheat software more accurately described as rootkits, like Riots Vanguard being an obvious next target. Perhaps this effort could have some beneficial side effects for gaming on Linux, which you should be doing anyway if you want better performance, because Windows games seem to perform better on Linux than they do on Windows.
- EU OS: A Bold Step Toward Digital Sovereignty for Europe
Image 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
Image 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
Image 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
- Fedora Continues 32-Bit Support
In a move that should come as a relief to some portions of the Linux community, Fedora will continue supporting 32-bit architecture.
- ONLYOFFICE v9 Embraces AI
Like nearly all office suites on the market (except LibreOffice), ONLYOFFICE has decided to go the AI route.
- KaOS 2025.05 Officially Qt5 Free
If you're a fan of independent Linux distributions, the team behind KaOS is proud to announce the latest iteration that includes kernel 6.14 and KDE's Plasma 6.3.5.
- openSUSE Joins End of 10
openSUSE has decided to not only join the End of 10 movement but it also will no longer support the Deepin Desktop Environment.
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