The following presentation was made in Ubuntu Open Week, Monday, November 2, 2009, at 17:00 UTC.  The classroom session is closed, now, but I’m still willing to answer what questions I can, here:

My name is Craig Eddy – known as Tyche in IRC and in the Ubuntu community – and I am an editor for the UWN.  And in the past few weeks people have asked me various questions about the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter.

Some of them have been of the nature of, “I told you about it in channel, why can’t you put it in the UWN?”

Others have been, “can I contribute to the UWN?”  And there have been others.

I’d like to address some of the questions by explaining the fondation of the Newsletter, and how it gets put together.  Along the way I’ll be describing some of what actually goes on in the process.

As I go through this presentation questions may arise.  Please, open a text editor (not a word processor) and type your questions in there.  Preceed your question with the word QUESTION to gain a moderator’s attention.  At the end of the presentations, you can then copy them into #ubuntu-classroom-chat, and I’ll do my best to answer them.

This presentation will be repeated on my blog, http://tycheent.wordpress.com/, which is also attached to the Planet Ubuntu.  So if I couldn’t get to your answer in channel feel free to comment there and I’ll try to answer it.

The UWN is, and has been from the beginning, a way of letting the community know what’s going on.  Sometimes within the community as a whole.  Sometimes as noting what’s being said about Ubuntu from the outside.

The first issue of the UWN came out in June of 2006, and a basic structure to the Newsletter.  General Community News, a section called “Ubuntu” that gave release information, and an In The Press section.

But, along with that structure were the beginnings of how to go about putting the Newsletter together.  And thus was born journalism in an on-line Newsletter.

Structure is important.  And between Issue #1 and Issue #166 the structure has changed (hopefully for the better) many times.

Each change in the structure involved “executive decisions”, and discussion with others about whether they were worthwhile and how to go about adding them.

Now, we have the General Community News, that has incorporated the Ubuntu section.  The Ubuntu Stats, that give figures on Bugs, Translations and, recently added, Ubuntu Brainstorm Top 5 for the week.

We also have LoCo News, that celebrates upcoming and just past events.  Also Launchpad News that tells of changes to our all important Launchpad server and sites.

We have the Ubuntu Forms News that adds information on Tutorials and other ongoing information.  We have The Planet that lets people know what other things of interest are happening with individuals.

In The Press is still there, but the format has changed over time to provide a summary or “teaser” to the article to which it is linked.

In The Blogosphere outlines what other individual’s opinions of Ubuntu are.  And In Other News covers information that doesn’t fit the preceeding two categories.

We also have a Meeting Summaries section that outlines what has happened in groups in the past month.  Information taken from that submitted by the various Teams and Councils.

And then, there’s the two that are the most tedious to do:  Upcoming Meetings and Events, and Updates and Security.  The first gives the information on meetings in the #ubuntu-meetings channel on irc.freenode.net.  The second lists all the posted updates – both those that are security updates and those that are applied to individual releases.

Also recently added is the Glossary of Terms where some of thos nasty little acronyms that the average person might not know are defined.

Also added to the structure of the UWN are the Credits, so you know who to blame for what’s in any particular issue.  Hee hee.

Structure is all very well.  But just like having a bunch of boards organized into a house doesn’t make it a lived-in home, so this structure needs something else to actually BE the UWN.

It’s traditionally been the job of the newest recruit to visit the many links for the Security and Updates section and do the dull, tedious work of gathering that information.  And when a Beta is released, that can be a daunting task.  As an example, when Karmic Koala Beta was released there were 244 updates between the release date and the date of the UWN.

Fortunately, that task, that used to be done manually, has now been automated with a script (actually a series of scripts, one for each sub-section of the Security and Updates section.

Likewise, the Upcoming Meetings section, originally gathered from a calendar within the Fridge, was much more difficult to deal with than its more recent Google calendar, both in gathering information and in posting it.

With the original calendar, the “repeating events” had to be manually posted to the Fridge.  With the Google calendar, those repeating events are taken care of with one posting.  Also, there are shortcuts that can be put in so that half the information can just be copied and pasted from the calendar to the UWN.

Other sections, like the Forums News and the Brainstorm Stats are entered directly by specialized contributors (and we, who constitute the core group in the UWN REALLY appreciate their efforts and help).

One of our editors, and our Chief Editor, have RSS feeds from various sources from which the links for In The Press, In The Blogosphere and In Other News are gathered.  Likewise, General Community News, LoCo News, Launchpad News, and The Planet are gathered from links within the Ubuntu community.

And now the killer piece of information that causes the chaos of creating the UWN.  ALL of that is left as long as possible to make the information we put in the UWN as up-to-date as possible.

When one has three to six people all trying to edit one page at the same time things get interesting.  In channel, one can see people saying things like, “Well, when SOMEONE finally lets me in, I’ll dump my section in.  Hee hee”

Good natured teasing, like that, helps us keep sane.  Some elements can be put in early, like the Forums (I’ve yet to tangle with Isabelle Duchatelle as she does her part), and the Security and Updates (Liraz Siri, partly due to the difference in time zones, always manages to get his section in before the chaos starts).

But that still leaves a bunch of sections to go in, all at the same time.  The way we manage to do it is to compose our sections in text files (with all the wiki formatting) so that all we have to do is cut and paste to actually dump it in the page.

A template was developed, to keep everyone on the “same page” for formatting.  That way, we can reduce the number of camelcases (wiki hot links, like LoCo) that we have to go and change in the actual wiki page.

But that still leaves us with situations where 2 or 3 people are trying to edit the page at the same time (thank goodness for locks).  And, on top of that, we’re correcting eachother’s spelling and grammer, and making decisions on whether or not to dump a particular link.

If we were trying to edit directly into the page, rather than the cut-and-paste method we use, the chaos would be worse.  As it is, the chatter in channel can get “interesting”.  And all this while trying to beat a deadline to get the issue out.

In addition, the chaos of the channel serves another two purposes.  The humor we insert helps to relieve the tensions of trying to beat the deadline.  And the somewhat social aspect of the channel allows us to interact, perhaps to change a style or correct a formatting “on-the-fly”.

But even more important, it allows us to proof-read eachother’s work to make the issue as good as we can get it.  Mistakes DO get through, but we honestly try to keep them to a minimum.

So, for 2 or 3 hours on a Sunday, the editors and contributors go through organized chaos to put something out that will inform and entertain you readers.

Contributions are essential to the UWN.  Without them the issues would be bland rehashing of information that’s already available to the community.

New contributions – those outside our normal sources for information – need to follow the same structure that is set up for all the rest of the summaries.  There has to be a link that we can point to, so that readers can find out more information or even check to see if we actually summarized it properly.

This reliance on hard links to put in each issue is important to us, as it keeps us honest.  You may notice that we don’t editorialize in the UWN.  We’re trying very hard to NOT offer our opinion, but just state the facts as we find them.  This is the essence of journalism as it pertains to the UWN, and the one place where YOU can help us.

If you have information that you want to share with the community, GREAT!  But . . . we need it to be YOUR information, not our “opinion” of what you may have said in channel or in an email.  We need that hard link to point to.  This seems to be the hardest thing for me to get people to understand about the UWN.

Also, it helps if the information you supply, on a blog link or where ever, gives us enough information so that we CAN summarize it in an intelligent fashion.  Remember, we can’t know all the information YOU know about a subject.  If you like, you can run your ideas by me, and I’ll happily help you build something that will be interesting and informative, from which we can draw our summary.

Is it a new program?  What does it do?  How does it differ from other, similar programs?

Is it an event?  Where will it be held?  What is the focus of the event?  What is the target audience?  Who is helping out with the event?  What, if any, companies or organizations are involved?

One other point:  there is a difference between named contributors (people named in the Credits section) and editors of the UWN.  It’s not a prestige thing, believe it or not.  It’s based on ability.  New “named” contributors are given a specific task to complete.  They may also do some proofing, but primarily they are set to complete one particular task at a time.

As they grow into working on the UWN, those tasks change to more complex tasks until they are able to handle anything that the UWN may throw at them.  At that point, they become editors.  Editors are the “clean-up hitters”, the ones fill in for others that happen to be unavailable in any particular week.

They also have more say in the editing of the UWN, based on their experience, and their viewpoint is valuable.  We encourage people to work their way through the tasks, so they CAN help out.  The more eyes and hands we have, the better the UWN runs, and the more fun with it we can have.

Despite all that I’ve just told you, the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter isn’t OUR newsletter.  It’s YOUR’S.  The information that makes up the bulk of the newsletter comes from  you.  Every entry in the Upcoming Meetings and Events is something that YOU have added to the Fridge calendar.  All the Meeting Summaries, all the Security and Updates, and much more, come from YOU.

Our purpose is to document them in a way that reaches beyond the range of your particular circles of influence.  Our purpose is to celebrate the advances you make, the achievements you accomplish, and yes even the setbacks you experience.  And for that we need your help.

There are procedures you can follow . . . oh, nothing difficult . . . that will make it easier for us and better for you.  Little things, like providing a link for the agenda of your meetings to the Fridge calendar, or making sure that security updates and release updates are documented where they need to be.

Another way you can help is to make sure you write up whatever events, new programs, or etcetera in a blog article or some format that we can link to.  This way, what’s reported is what YOU want known, and not some vague opinion.  We who edit the UWN have had to scramble on a few occasions to get such links, and people haven’t understood why.  The “why” is simple.  It keeps US honest in our reporting, and presents the facts that YOU want reported.

Casual, “one-off” contributions are always welcome.  You can let us know in the #ubuntu-news channel or in an email to the list – ubuntu-news-team@lists.ubuntu.com.  Be sure to include a link to where the information actually is, so we can add it to the UWN.  By the way, feedback about the UWN can also be addressed through the same means.  We like constructive criticism (and, of course, we ALWAYS like to hear compliments.  Hee hee).

Right now, we have a pretty good balance of people helping put the UWN together.  However, there are times when we do need more help.  If you are interested in being listed as a contributor (one that does the nuts and bolts, tedious and hectic, work of putting the UWN together, contact us in the #ubuntu-news channel.  We’ll gladly talk to you about it.

Now that I’ve blathered on for what seems like forever, here’s your chance to ask questions that I may not have covered in the presentation.

Some of the questions that occurred in channel are:

[QUESTION]: on what basis do you decide ubuntu news/blogs is relevant ?

Mostly, we look to see if it’s Ubuntu related, and provides INFORMATION.  Information may be positive or negative, as long as it’s not just “selling” or FUD.

[QUESTION]: Does the newsletter have a mailing list or is it just RSS feed?

While I answered this in the channel, I’ve since stumbled on further information.  The newsletter is posted to the ubuntu-news mailing list as well as being up on the wiki at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuWeeklyNewsletter/Current?action=show

[QUESTION]: how about translations into other languages?

We’re always looking for people or groups to translate the newsletter.  We have some who do and/or take information from the newsletter to add to their own.  But the core group doesn’t have any translators in it.

[QUESTION]: Have you considered asking people to write a piece for you to link to? If you want to know about a certain issue I’m sure some people would knock up a reasonable piece for you.

We’ve had people come to us and say “hey, how about . . .” then worked with them to develop a web page we could link to, so we could add their article to the UWN.  There have also been times when we’ve requested information from people.  But, I repeat, we rely on hard links – something someone else has  written up, not our opinion.

[QUESTION]: i would like to know how non-english versions of UWN are made and how to contribute. thanks.

Non-English versions are done by the translators.  Some of them simply take portions of the UWN and add them to their own newsletter, and you’d have to ask them how to contribute to those.  Others translate the whole thing (a daunting task, from my opinion), in which case the contribution would have to be in the UWN, itself.

[QUESTION] applications will need to be added in order to to use the scripts?  where are they found? and how much technical experience does one need?

I’m not sure I understand the question about adding applications in order to use the scripts.  If you mean the ones we use for Security and Updates, it’s BeautifulSoup – a python module – and is in the repos.  BeautifulSoup is a module that is needed to use the Security and Updates scripts.  Since I didn’t create the python scripts we use, I can’t really tell you what it does.  The scripts were created by a previous Chief Editor (Thanks, boredandblogging).  I’m just a user.

One thing I’ll mention about the socialization aspects of the UWN.  It helps to keep us on the same page with changes, and to be able to interact with eachother – offering suggestions and making corrections.  It’s as much an important part of the UWN as the links we go to for information.

Back a bit, the question was raised about asking other people for information.  Actually, we have had some interviews, but dropped out of it, since others were doing a much better job of it than we could, and they graciously provided hard links for us to go to.  The only time that I know of when we did something special on our own was with Issue 100, when we ran interviews by Skype with Mark Shuttleworth and previous contributors/editors of the UWN.  I not only took part in that, but ended up transcribing both interviews, so we’d have as much hard information available as possible.  THAT was DEFINITELY a chaos weekend.  Hee hee

At that point, due to net-splits and/or lag and/or ISP problems I suggested that the session be terminated.  Since there was only 10 minutes left, it was agreed and a break was taken before the next session.  I want to thank all the people that attended as well as those that helped (thanks, Amber and Jorge) and those that asked questions.

ABLEconf (Arizona Business and Liberty Experience conference) was held on Saturday, October 24, 2009.  Once again at the University of Advancing Technology in Phoenix, the conference held more presentations than in its inaugural.  Among those displaying their services was the Ubuntu-Arizona LoCo team.

I was disappointed with the conference at first, this year.  Not because my table was bracketed by Red Hat on one side and Fedora on the other.  That was pure serendipity, and we had a lot of fun talking about our experiences and discussing mutual problems with various programs and new converts.  No, it just seemed that there were very few people attending the conference.  All morning long, we only had a handful of people approach the tables.

BOY!  Was I wrong.  Noon-time came, and the whole area around the vendors’ tables seemed to sprout people by the handfuls and in bunches.  Then it hit me.  Everyone had been at the morning presentations.  That’s why we hadn’t seen them.  About 90 people filled the space as PLUG (Phoenix Linux Users Group) leader Hans started up the raffle for prizes.  Sponsors had donated a number of prizes to be given out – everything from books to a USB pen (literally) drive, to a child’s penguin costume, to various food items.  Excitement ran high as Hans had tickets selected and numbers called off, and good natured teasing erupted from all over.

Reports I’ve heard lead me to believe that the presentations were well received.  Certainly discussions at my table were enlightening both for the people who came to ask questions and for me.  If the questions raised at my table are any indication then people are starting to think of more than just “what’s in it for me.”  They are beginning to ask about how Linux behaves and what is available, as well as differences between distributions.

The talks with the Red Hat representatives was just as enlightening.  We discussed problems we’d had with various elements of our distributions – everything from window managers and sound and graphics to problems raised by others and how we strove to solve them.  It was interesting to find that we all shared similar problems and solutions.  Unlike commercial software vendors, there was no competition between us, or at least only good natured competition.  We were just as apt to suggest to someone that they also look into Red Hat or Fedora or Ubuntu, and see if it suited their needs.  We even discussed SELinux, both between ourselves and with conference attendees.  The spirit of Free Libre Open Source Software seems to have been the attitude of the whole conference.  Though we each presented our own distributions and situations, we didn’t restrict ourselves, and tried to make things as all-inclusive as possible.

For myself, the AZ LoCo distributed 12 Ubuntu server disks, 9 Kubuntu desktop disks, and 19 Ubuntu desktop disks.  In all, I think this ABLEconf was a success, and was glad that I was able to represent Ubuntu and the Arizona LoCo.  I look forward to future ones as being even better.

It’s interesting that the word, “samizdat” should sound so much like the phrase, “same as that”, in a dialect.  The word is Russian, meaning “self-publish”, and was used to label works that were copied and handed out in violation of the censorship laws of the Union of Soviet Socialists Republic.  And, of course, since people wanted the work to be as complete as possible, they wanted this copy to be the same as that.  (I know, bad pun.  But the thought works).  This work is also a samizdat, in that anyone can copy it and hand it out to others.

There’s a reason for that.  It shortly will be very unpopular with a particular company, which means that that company may attempt to have the article removed.  The reason it’ll be unpopular is because it will be showing that the company has been lying to people in order to keep you from making choices for yourself.  The company doesn’t just want your money, it wants to enslave your mind.  The company wants your sole purpose to be to give your money to that company, rather than to another company or even (oh, horrors!) keep it to yourself.  In short, the company wants no competition.  So, by all means, make copies of this article and pass them out.  Show people what that company is really like and how they operate.

The company is Microsoft.  The competition that it wants to squash is Linux distributions.  And, as I intimated earlier, it is using lies to attempt to defeat it.  Unlike “Microsoft bashing” this article isn’t just complaining.  It’s pointing out what is – a little thing called “reality”.  It’s also pointing out a little thing called “ethics”.

Microsoft has a website, Microsoft ExpertZone, which is used to train retailers such as BestBuy in how to sell Microsoft products.  The link may not work with Firefox on Linux – in fact it may only work with Microsoft Internet Explorer on a Windows operating system.  However, other people have managed to get to the site and have taken screen shots to show the “truth” that Microsoft espouses.  One of those is Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols and the article he wrote is Microsoft’s Latest Lies.  And, since it’s the retailers that control what is offered for sale to customers, once a company has the retailers’ minds, it controls the market of its and similar goods.  In other words, the retailers aren’t offering Linux or computers with Linux distributions installed because Microsoft has convinced them that it’s inferior.  Customers aren’t given any choice in the matter.

Of course, to be fair, it’s to a retailer’s benefit to sell computers loaded with Microsoft operating system, since then they can also sell so much more:  Office productivity suite, anti-virus software, firewalls, and (of course) larger and more expensive computers.  None of these sales are necessary with Linux distributions.  But this is secondary to Microsoft’s purpose.  If Linux doesn’t even exist, then there’s no chance that retailers will even consider the option of selling computers that are not loaded with Windows.  However, from the retailer’s point of view, they need very little convincing to forgo selling computers with Linux installed.  Though individuals in the employ of a retailer may understand the difference between what Microsoft has shown them and the reality of what Linux is, they are not the ones in charge.

What follows are some of the statements that Microsoft has made, in turn followed by the reality of Linux distributions:

Microsoft statement: “Linux has poor support for cameras, iPods and MP3s.”
Linux Reality: Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols uses all three all the time with desktop Linux.  Personally, I’ve got a camera that Linux sees just fine, and I’ve got at least one MP3 that I listen to.  I don’t have an iPod, but then I’ve never been interested in anything Apple makes.

Microsoft statement: “Linux doesn’t support all Windows programs, such as Windows Live applications.”
Linux Reality: According to Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols, most people use the free or commercial version of Google Apps.   I don’t.  However, to be fair, Windows doesn’t support Linux programs.  Come to that, Windows can’t even see a Linux partition.  However, Linux can see a Windows partition and even read, edit and save files to it.  And Linux can, with the assistance of Wine or CrossOver Office, run some Windows applications.  Linux can also run some Windows games using Wine or CrossOver Games.

Microsoft statement: There’s no support for desktop Linux.
Linux Reality: That depends on what you mean by support.  Many distributions of Linux have forums that will answer questions.  Ubuntu has, not only forums but also Local Community teams that are willing to help.  These are free options manned by volunteers (community members) who have faced various problems and found solutions, and share them with whoever needs help.  However, if Microsoft is trying to intimate that there’s no commercial support then apparently they are blind to the offerings of Red Hat, SUSE and Novell, to say nothing of the multiple forms of commercial support offered by Ubuntu that are tailored to the needs of a company or individual.  Oh, and then there’s Dell, who makes no software themselves but provides a means of getting support anyway.

Microsoft statement: You can’t use video chat with Linux.
Linux Reality: Both Ekiga and Skype have video chat.

More Microsoft “misstatements”, from their “Get the Facts Straight” campaign:

Microsoft statement: Linux updates and upgrades are not easy.
Linux Reality: Updates:  every day Update Manager checks to see if there are new updates available in the Ubuntu repositories then allows my computer to compare what’s offered with what software I have on my system.  If there’s a match, it offers the update.  I click install and give it my password, and it downloads and installs it.  Upgrades?  Same thing, but it affects the entire distribution.  I don’t have to go looking for it or pay for a new upgrade.  It’s simply there.  And I don’t have to go looking for each individual piece of software.  Anything downloaded and installed through Synaptic (the Apt front-end), which means all or almost all the software on my computer, is searched out the same way.  Microsoft’s updates are only to its own software offerings.  And Microsoft upgrades have to be paid for and installed manually.  Linux updates often are performed without even having to reboot, and are usually done while I’m performing some other activity.  Microsoft?  Reboot every time.

Microsoft statement: Windows is safer than Linux.
Linux Reality: Linux will not allow anything to be installed that would affect the entire system without administrative privileges (called “root”).  In fact, Ubuntu Linux doesn’t normally run under root, but only under the user’s privileges, so it takes special permissions to install something that would affect the entire system.  For a more accurate report on Windows safety, see Why Windows security is awful.

Microsoft statement: Linux is hard to learn.
Linux Reality: Linux is so hard to learn that untutored grandmothers can pick it up in a very short period of time.  Linux is so hard that children take to it easily.  No, Linux is not hard, particularly today.  New Graphic User Interfaces, better designed menu systems, modern developments in programming have long since dispelled that image.  It WAS, at one time, difficult.  But it hasn’t been difficult since, at the latest, 2004.  And it’s been getting easier since.

It occurs to me that some of Microsoft’s arguments are comparing Linux as it was in it’s infancy to Windows as it is now.  Should I, then, compare Linux as it is now with Windows 3.1?  And Windows was never meant to work on a network.  It was intended for a stand-alone computer, where security wasn’t as much of a problem.  Linux, on the other hand, was always intended to be connected to other computers.  A Linux computer CAN exist as a stand-alone, but the capability for network or internet connection was always available.

Microsoft is running scared.  Linux is gaining ground on the desktop, on servers, and on the latest mobile internet devices (MIDs) and netbooks (which very often can function as a full fledged computer, such as my Dell Mini 9 which has a full Ubuntu desktop distribution installed).  In addition, Linux operates on a wider range of equipment, without being stripped down, than Microsoft Windows can operate on.  And check the Linux Hardware Compatibility lists for the vast array of hardware that Linux supports, often without even having to go outside the repositories to get drivers.  Microsoft has reason to be running scared.  People are finding Microsoft products to be too expensive a luxury to continue to use.  So Microsoft has resorted to telling lies to keep Linux and computers loaded with Linux off the shelves.

I’ve shown you the reality.  As for the ethical side of it, Christianity and Judaism both hold “bearing false witness”, or lying, to be unethical behavior.  I’m fairly sure that other religions also have statements to that effect.  Many of our laws, also, hold such lies to be unethical or even criminal.  Share this with others.  Let them see the truth that Microsoft won’t acknowledge.

Welcome to the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter, Issue #147 for the week June 15th – June 21st, 2009 is available.

In this issue we cover:

* Ubuntu Free Culture Showcase competition
* 3 New Members of the Americas Region Membership Board
* Bootchart testing for UNR
* Empathy to replace Pidgin in Karmic Koala
* Ubuntu Global Jam 2nd – 4th October 2009
* New freenode webchat (and why to use it)
* Ubuntu Stats
* In the Press & Blogosphere
* Upcoming Meetings & Events
* Updates & Security

The Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter is brought to you by:

* Dave Bush
* Sayak Banerjee
* Kenny McHenry
* Liraz Siri
* Craig A. Eddy
* And many others

If you have a story idea for the Weekly News, join the Ubuntu News Team mailing list and submit it. Ideas can also be added to the wiki!

Except where otherwise noted, content in this issue is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License BY SA License

Welcome to the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter, Issue #146 for the week June 8th – June 14th, 2009 is available.

In this issue we cover:

* SanDisk collaborates to improve Ubuntu netbook SSD performance
* MOTU Council Results
* Ubuntu Stats
* Calling all LoCo Teams!
* In the Press & Blogosphere
* Upcoming Meetings & Events
* Updates & Security

The Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter is brought to you by:

* Dave Bush
* Jeff Martin
* Sayak Banerjee
* Liraz Siri
* Nathan Handler
* Craig A. Eddy
* And many others

If you have a story idea for the Weekly News, join the Ubuntu News Team mailing list and submit it. Ideas can also be added to the wiki!

Except where otherwise noted, content in this issue is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License Creative Commons License Attribution 3.0 BY SA

Welcome to the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter, Issue #145 for the week June 1st – June 7th, 2009 is available.

In this issue we cover:

* Ubuntu Hall of Fame: Adi Roiban
* Ubuntu Stats
* Ubuntazo In Venezuela
* Ubuntu Forums Tutorial of the Week
* In the Press & Blogosphere
* Upcoming Meetings & Events
* Updates & Security

The Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter is brought to you by:

* Dave Bush
* Jeff Martin
* Isabelle Duchatelle
* Craig A. Eddy
* Sayak Banerjee
* Kenny McHenry
* Liraz Siri
* And many others

If you have a story idea for the Weekly News, join the Ubuntu News Team mailing list and submit it. Ideas can also be added to the wiki!

Except where otherwise noted, content in this issue is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License BY SA Creative Commons LicenseAttribution 3.0 License

Everyone has heard, and may have used, the expression that Linux is free.  Actually, that’s wrong.  There is a price to Linux.  In fact there are two prices for Linux, which depend on the individual and his/her relationship to it.

1. The cost in time of the people that develop, test, debug and package it for individual consumption.
2. The cost in time of the people that use it, in learning a new operating system, in setting it up each time a new release comes out, in learning to use the many and varied programs that run on it, and in explaining to others WHY they chose to use Linux.

Linux may not have a monitary cost, but that doesn’t mean that it has NO cost.  How much does a programmer make in the commercial market?  Is her/his time any less valuable simply because he/she chooses to work on a program for which she/he will receive no remuneration?  Of course not.  That person could easily be working on some other commercial program as a contractor, or acting as a consultant to a company.  But because that programmer has chosen to work on “free” software he/she is labled with the most obnoxious lables, considered some sort of anti-social person with no concept of true value, and that his/her work is therefore without value.

Without value.  How that rankles me.  If it had no value then why are major companies using it?  Many of them using it exclusively.  And making lots of money doing so.  If it is without value then why are manufacturers using it in embeded products, like desk-top units, etc.  This is not some sort of socialism.  These companies see true value Linux, and make use of it, and make money from it.  Enough money that many of these outfits find ways to contribute, themselves.  IBM, for example, pays programmers to work on Linux and associated programs because the company makes money from them.  It is in there best interest to see Linux improve, because then their own products improve.  I could go on and on about such companies, but if you honestly take a look at what’s going on instead of buying into someones ADVERTISING, then you will see it for yourself.  Linux has value, and that value has proven itself in the marketplace.

What is true of the core operating system, of Linux, is also true of the vast number of “non-commercial” programs that ride on top of it.  Programs like OpenOffice.org, GIMP, GNOME, KDE, VLC media player, and Firefox . . . and the list goes on.  These all have value.  The value is in how you use them and how you respect them.  I do not claim to be a computer guru, but I can sit down at a computer and hammer out a spreadsheet or a simple database, or even write a story or a blog because I took the time to learn the tools with which to do so.  Nor is it the first time that I’ve done so.  I’ve worked with computers for about 18 1/2 years as a CAD operator – a Computer Assisted Draftsman, operating on commercial programs and operating system.  I had to learn them all by my self.  I didn’t go to school for it.  Then had to relearn when the company I worked for tossed me onto a UNIX system.  Then relearn again when they went back to their original OS manufacturer.  In fact, my whole working life has been one round of learning new things in order to do my job and do it, not just to the satisfaction of my employers, but to the satisfaction of myself.  so when I hear people say that they don’t want to use Linux because it’s not what they’re used to, I have to wonder why they are being paid.  Are they so afraid of a little work, the true cost of ANYTHING, that they refuse to crawl out of their holes and look toward the horizon?  If so, I feel sorry for them, for they will never feel that they are a success.  At anything.

No, Linux is not free.  It is without cost, if you choose to accept it that way, though there are distributions that charge for it (mainly, they are charging for the packaging and a certain limited amount of support), or that charge for service contracts.  But that’s not “buying” Linux.  It’s buying the service contracts or the pretty packaging.  It’s up to the individual to free himself or herself of the advertising claims of commercial operating system manufacturers that only see money as having value, and ignore the fact that the OS they are producing costs even more in time and money due to viruses and the like.

I offer you the hand of freedom.  Freedom to choose for yourself where your money will be spent.  Freedom to learn new things and find new ways of producing value for which you CAN charge.  Freedom to decide what you will have on your computer and how you can use it.  A computer is a tool, a versital tool that can be reconfigured to meet the needs of whatever job is out there.  But it’s up to the individual to decide how to use it, not up to some faceless manufacturer that doesn’t understand the needs of the individual.  So, when I hand you a disk and say, “here, it’s free”, I’m only referring to the monitary cost.  It will still cost you some time and effort on your part.  Pay the price.  It’s worth it.

This posting is not about Ubuntu, directly. This is about security: what is is and how does one achieve it. Certainly, having an operating system that is not subject to the assorted malware that’s out there is helpful. But the FIRST thing one must have is the proper attitude toward security.

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There is a story going around that a certain software manufacturer managed to get a particular operating system certified as secure by NOT having it attached to the Internet. Opponents of that operating system made comments about it being even more secure if one never turned that computer on. Despite the humor of the situation, it’s not far wrong. There is NOTHING secure about the Internet. To believe that there is is to delude yourself. There is NO way that I can over-emphasize this:

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THERE IS NOTHING SECURE ABOUT THE INTERNET.

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If you put something on the Internet it will be accessed. If it interests somebody, it will be copied. This goes back to the simple maxim, “Tell one person a secret, and it’s no longer a secret”. This is true of not only the Internet, but of anything at all. If you don’t want people to read, view, hear or otherwise access something then don’t make it available in the first place.

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But does this simply mean that one shouldn’t post private information on the Internet? Not at all. ANY security can be broken by dedicated people with the proper tools and the will. And there are those who definitely have the will and the tools. Hard drives and CDs with vital information can be stolen or even “mislaid”. Books can be scanned. Music CDs and video DVDs can be copied. Artwork can be copied. State and corporate “secrets” can be accessed by dedicated professionals. It’s all there and available.

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So, what can one do about it? It’s called “risk management”:

1. If there’s no need to put something out there, don’t do it. If you want people to NOT be able to access something, then don’t put it where they can gain access to it. This includes music and movies.

2. Have a plan worked out in advance for the security of “hard” information, such as papers, hard drives, CDs during any movement or storage. Sending something by way of the government post-office is a good way to have it “ripped off”. Secure currier with signatures and receipts for any changes in possession is a must. First, it gives you a chain to follow if something DOES go wrong. Second, it impresses the seriousness of the situation on the individuals involved.

3. If it is something of commercial value, then take a thought to how others might gain access to it, copy it, and/or otherwise try to get around the monetary aspects of it. It will be done. But instead of fighting it one might find it better to turn a weakness into a strength. Instead of the failed system of DRM, choose to make access easier for a reasonable price. Recognize that file-sharing actually gets your works into more hands – hands that will pay money for higher quality versions of what they’ve downloaded. And, where you’re attempting to foist off on an unsuspecting public some trash, you’ll quickly find out what the public considers trash. It is the opinions of the public that actually drive your profits. If they’re displeased, they won’t buy. If they are pleased they’ll happily pay a reasonable fee to own a valid copy.

4. Before all else, consider how much risk there is in the dissemination of your material. If the risk is too great for you then DON’T PUT IT OUT THERE. Listen to the people who are security experts when they tell you that something isn’t working (if you’re only listening to people who agree with you – marketing people, “yes-men”, managers that haven’t worked their way up through the ranks of IT or the like – then you WILL fail to find appropriate solutions to your security problems). When you don’t know something it pays to listen to those who do.

In short, don’t blame others for your material getting away from you. They are YOUR secrets. Making them available to others is YOUR choice. Don’t blame people for being people. You’re simply attempting to transfer your OWN guilt to somebody else because you’re too immature in your attitude to accept your own responsibility.

Welcome to the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter, Issue 141 for the weeks May 3rd – May 9th, 2009.  Available here.

In this issue we cover:

* Monthly BugSquad Meeting: May 12th
* Jaunty Jackalope Release parties
* What’s a build score, then?
* byobu 2.0 released
* In The Press and Blogosphere
* Ubuntu Podcast #27
* Meeting Summaries of Technical Board and Ubuntu Server Teams
* Upcoming Meetings and Events
* Updates and Security for 6.06, 8.04, 8.10 and 9.04
and much, much more.

The Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter is brought to you by:

* John Crawford
* Craig A. Eddy
* Dave Bush
* Jeff Martin
* Keny McHenry
* Liraz Siri
* Nathan Handler
* And many others

Contrary to what it looks like, this really isn’t about bashing any particular FUD, just FUD in general about Linux.  Now, obviously, since I use Ubuntu, my responses will be restricted to what I’ve seen in that, but I’m sure a lot of it will be common to many of the Linux distributions.  So, let’s look at some of the things that are said about Linux, and what the reality is about them:

1.  Installing new software and updating existing software in Linux isn’t for the faint-hearted, and most people won’t be able to figure out how to do it.

1. REALITY – The hardest way would be to use “sudo apt-get install [name of application]“.  The way I usually do it is to simply go to Synaptic and install the package and all dependencies that it needs.  That covers installation.  Now what about updates?  Update Manager goes looking every morning at about 8:00 LOCAL TIME.  If there are any updates to ANYTHING from the initial install, or installed subsequently through Synaptic or apt-get, it will offer to download and install them.

2. In addition, Windows 7 has eye candy and extra features that Linux lacks.

2. REALITY – You want eye-candy?  I’m running Kubuntu Jaunty RC right now.  When I shift desktops (I’ve got 4 set up to use, right now) you can see the cube of desktops circle around to the newly selected one.  There are other ways I could do that, as well as all sorts of ways that I could have windows maximize, minimize, or close out.  I don’t bother with them, though.  I’m a bit of a conservative.  Then there’s screensavers.  How about a fiber-optic lamp that rotates and changes color?  That’s only one of many, some of them very “retro” style and old fashioned, and some that are quite modern and attractive.  I could even have swimming whales, if I wanted.  Eye-candy?  You want some?  See Linux.

3. Since no one company owns Linux, there won’t be any marketing muscle for Linux.

3. REALITY – There are computer manufacturers that have learned the value of Linux, from major ones, like System76 to small refurbishing shops like RedSeven.  Since Linux doesn’t require the latest, most expensive hardware, manufacturers can put together systems that cost THEM less, and offer them for less than the cost of a Windows machine, and STILL get a good return for their investment.  They’re the ones that will be doing the pushing.  And that’s not counting the various forms of marketing engaged in by such as Red Hat and Canonical (to say nothing of all the LoCos that help push Linux).

4. Linux is for techies, and is difficult to learn.

4. REALITY – I really wish people would get off the “techie” schtick.  Its comedy value was never great, and has dropped off remarkably over some 10 years or more.  I’m not a techie.  I’m not a geek.  I’m simply a guy that wants to use a computer that doesn’t frustrate me.  I want to be able to visit my favorite web sites, get my email, chat with fellow travelers.  I want to be able to write articles for this blog, or do summaries for newsletters.  I want to have “productivity tools” available for doing presentations or spreadsheets.  I want to be able to build a database for my library or music collection.  Occasionally, I want to be able to stretch beyond myself and try new things.  I can do all of that quickly and effectively in Linux, without having to learn esoteric commands or know how many sectors are in a hard drive.  And, as for difficult to learn, well, my wife was a dedicated Microsoft user.  She offered to try Ubuntu.  Now, the three computers in the household all run Linux.  Even the Dell Mini 9.  She’s had no trouble learning to use it, and very few questions.

So, I hope this answers, once and for all, some of the FUD that’s been touted about Linux.  And I would hope that it would also cause one to do the REAL research about other things one hears.  There’s a lot of garbage out there (I won’t even dignify it with the term “spin”).  This garbage is being planted by people who are in the pay of commercial enterprises that want you to believe that Linux is no good.  Don’t believe their words, try it for yourself.