FOSS Force

Mandriva Linux Reportedly at Death’s Door

By Christine Hall on May 11, 2010 |

The online rumor mills are spitting out reports that Mandriva, once a rising star in the Linux world, is facing grave financial difficulties. According to rumor, the distro is desperately seeking a buyer and if one isn’t found soon they will close their doors.

As of Monday, the story was being reported on at least a half-dozen sites, all coming from the same source, a short article in French on Mandriva Linux Online, which bills itself as “an unofficial site dedicated to beginners on Mandriva Linux.” The poor quality English translation of the article provided by Google is confusing and somewhat unclear, but it appears that without a cash infusion, Mandriva will not be able to make payroll much longer.

Is Open but Proprietary iFlash Coming?

By Christine Hall on May 10, 2010 |

Business, Patents and Software

There are many reason’s to dislike Adobe’s Flash. It’s buggy, it’s a resource hog, and it’s a security risk of Microsoft proportions. But the biggest reason to dislike Flash, the engine behind everything from YouTube videos to distracting online ads, is that it’s proprietary. It’s not free, and most likely never will be.

That’s why, like many, I was happy a few weeks back when Apple announced they were all but forever banning Flash and Flash apps on their mobile devices. I was happier still when Steve Jobs thoroughly trashed the Adobe product in his Thoughts on Flash post on the Apple web site. For once it seemed as if Jobs was on the same wavelength as open source proponents. He recognized that the web needs to be based on open standards and pledged to support standards like HTML5 as Apple attempts to redefine the mobile online experience.