Shoutout Zone

What is Linux?

Linux is an operating system. The easiest way to understand an operating system is to look at other popular operating systems including Microsoft Windows and Windows NT, Apple Mac/S, and Sun Microsystems UNIX. An operating system is the 'guts' of any computer or microprocessor. It tells a computer how to do basic tasks such as 'save' or 'share files', 'print documents', 'add users to a network', 'receive input from a keyboard', 'display information on a monitor' and numerous other tasks. An operating system is the foundation on which useful applications are built to allow individuals and organizations to be more productive. Examples of applications include word processors, personal finance managers, enterprise resource planning packages and countless others.

Why is an operating system important? With the proliferation of computers and microprocessors, the operating system market has grown extremely large. All microprocessors require an operating system and there are a lot of microprocessors in the world. Remember, microprocessors include computers and also embedded systems contained in automobiles, cellular phones, elevators, personal digital assistants and millions of other appliances. These microprocessors need operating systems and Linux is turning into a popular choice because its source code can be modified and scaled, and there are no licensing fees for individual installations.

Open Source

Linux was developed in 1991 for an Intel driven platform by a Finnish student named Linus Torvalds. Linux's roots are firmly entrenched in UNIX which is a stable, robust operating system traditionally used by large organizations for enterprise applications and by government and academic institutions. Shortly after developing Linux, Torvalds made an important licensing decision that has rapidly accelerated Linux's acceptance within the developer community. He released Linux under the GNU GPL (Gnu Not Unix General Public License) which gives anyone the ability to access and modify the source code at no cost and requires that the modifications be released back into the public domain at no cost. This has become known as the open source software development model. Torvalds, along with other prominent members of the open source community, have taken responsibility for vetting thousands of code submissions and testing and accepting the best submissions for inclusion in updates to the Linux operating system.

Security of Linux

There is a misconception that because Linux's source code is open and readily available, Linux is not as secure as a closed-source operating system. Linux is actually no more prone to incursion than a proprietary operating system. If breaches do occur, the open source community develops patches to repair problems quickly. The open source community itself is an important provider of solutions for maintaining security. All major Linux distributors provide updates and patches for their versions of the Linux operating system. In addition, an open source project, Bastille Linux, provides a "hardening script" which attempts to close security holes and make security breaches more difficult. Dedicated security vendors are well suited to enhance security controls. Furthermore, as Linux shipments have increased, large security vendors have begun to develop commercial security products for Linux.

Growth and Acceptance

The rapid growth of Linux -- from a home grown system used by hackers, to a robust operating system being adopted by businesses everywhere -- is nothing short of astonishing. In 1998, worldwide spending on Linux products by the world's top 100 financial institutions was $50 million and is expected to increase to $200 million by 2003. Expanding this estimate to other industrial sectors, this figure ranges in the billions.

Modifiable source code and no licensing fees also make Linux extremely attractive to developing countries. One major distribution, TurboLinux, started in Asia and has since moved into North America. Although it can be somewhat difficult to find information on Linux use in these countries, we have found a few organizations and companies that are involved. In early 1999, an organization called Linux Without Borders was formed to further accessible personal computer use with Linux in developing countries. We were also able to find links to Linux User Groups in approximately 80 countries including many developing nations.

Linux is popular in developing countries for a number of reasons:
- The operating system can be run on low-cost personal computers. Governments are embracing Linux and encouraging educational institutions and businesses to use the software.
-The source code can be modified to suit local needs such as multiple languages.
-The Internet allows developing countries to access resources in developed countries that would otherwise not be available to them.
-The open source community is actively promoting Linux use in these countries. Linux has also rapidly gained acceptance in the server operating system market because:

- Linux source code is available for modification and can be tailored to specific needs. Interestingly, one example of where this makes Linux a popular choice is in areas where older technology dominates (e.g. developing countries) because Linux can be scaled down to run on slower computers.
-There are no licensing fees to use Linux on any number of individual computers or embedded systems.
-Linux is an extremely stable operating system that has been adapted to run on most hardware platforms including Intel, Apple Macintosh, SUN Solaris and numerous others.
-Linux traces its roots to UNIX and many popular UNIX server applications including Apache, the world's most popular web server application and Sendmail, the world's most popular email server application were ported to Linux in its early days.
-The Samba application was released which allows Linux to act as a Windows NT fi/print server.
Many developers are turned off by Microsoft's proprietary source code software model and the perceived inferiority and instability of Microsoft's operating system, applications and developer tools.

Some reasons corporate IT departments are choosing Linux include:
-Large Support Network - It is estimated that the Linux development community numbers in excess of 15,000 people.
-It Gives Developers More Control - The source code is available for developers to repair defective code or add functionality if needed.
-High Performance - The Linux kernel is relatively compact compared to other operating systems and it is powerful. Linux has found a place running on compact utility servers such as an Intranet server or a printer server.
-Reliability - Linux is a very stable operating system with reports of it running for weeks without any signs of instability.
-Low Cost - Linux is relatively inexpensive to install as there are no licensing fees and is therefore a logical choice for small- and medium-sized businesses over a proprietary system such as Windows or Unix.
It is estimated that Linux now runs on approximately 20% of all servers (60% of Web servers), and it is widely believed that the information technology departments of most large organizations are experimenting with Linux as a viable competitor to Windows NT and UNIX as a server operating system. As well, initial embedded systems development efforts were an extension of Linux's strength on the Web server and appliance servers, ecommerce payment systems and wireless internet devices are a few of the embedded systems that use Linux.

As an Operating System

The increased acceptance of Linux as a powerful server operating system has resulted in a number of parallel movements that have enhanced Linux's usability and increased its commercialization. A number of open source projects have been successfully organized that are moving Linux from solely a server operating system to an equally robust desktop operating system. The KDE and GNOME projects have created Graphical User Interfaces for Linux that many believe are more powerful than Windows. The source code for these projects is freely available to anyone. The Netscape Mozilla project released the source code for Netscape's popular browser application, which has been fully ported to Linux. The WINE project has been organized to allow a user to run Windows applications on top of the Linux operating system without having to purchase Windows and has met with some success as most Linux distributions can be run peacefully with Windows on the same hard drive (although Windows is not always cooperative). As well, companies have been building technology to run Windows applications on the Linux operating system without having Windows installed.

WINE, an open source collaboration, is a freely distributed program that allows the operation of DOS and Windows programs on UNIX. Wine is not a true emulator, but provides low-level binary compatibility for an OS running on an Intel or compatible platform. Wine allows applications to run based upon the implementation of an application programming interface. The underlying operating system maintains hardware interfaces and Windows itself runs in a protected mode. Similar to Linux itself, Wine is an open source project supported by countless individuals as well as corporations such as Corel and VMware. Corel Corporation's WordPerfect Office Suite is the first commercial application to have been ported using Wine.

In Embedded Systems

Linux is also a logical choice for embedded systems due to its availability, stability and scalability because the source code for the Linux operating system is freely available to any developer and the open-source nature of the operating system allows developers to scale down Linux to meet the needs of a particular chip. For example, a thin client may not need any of the file sharing components of the operating system. Using Linux, a skilled developer can remove that portion of the operating system and reduce the memory and processing power requirements for the particular device. With its roots in UNIX, an extremely stable operating system, Linux offers the incredible stability that embedded systems require as they are used in industrial applications. Using embedded systems in conjunction with the Linux operating system, corporations are finding many uses for specialized computing appliances that do not need the broad-based functionality of a traditional server or personal computer.

In Ecommerce

Presently, the majority of ecommerce servers running larger Web sites use Sun's Solaris or Windows NT operating systems. (This does not include generic Web servers where Linux Apache dominates.) License fees for either of these systems can take a substantial chunk out of any startup's budget. According to Forrester Research, the cost of building a feature-rich, enterprise Internet storefront from scratch starts at around $2 million and can escalate to as much as $41 million with ongoing maintenance costs running between $2 million and $49 million. With the barrier to entry this high for businesses looking to challenge the established on-line retailers, Linux is a logical alternative due to its low cost and ease of maintenance. As these smaller businesses grow, their Linux-based operations can grow with them. As Linux gains acceptance as an enterprise operating system, we expect ecommerce applications to be ported to Linux and used by larger organizations.

On the Desktop

In an effort to establish Linux as a viable alternative to Windows for the mainstream computer user, some major and a number of minor graphical user interfaces (GUI) similar to Windows or Macintosh OS have been developed and are continually being refined. Linux is still used primarily as a server operating system by technically skilled operators that have not needed a GUI and has received many accolades for its strength as a server operating system, particularly when used on Web servers with Apache. Linux has also become noticed as a prospective desktop operating system.

The three problems most often cited as hindering Linux on the desktop are GUI appearan/usage, perceived difficulties of overall usage and installation, and lack of desktop applications. However, you can be confident that each are rapidly being addressed by numerous vendors.

There are two primary desktops for Linux - KDE and GNOME. Most Linux distributions include both desktops. The desktops are open source collaborations in different stages of development.

The Commercialization of Linux

In the mid-1990's, a number of companies (e.g. Red Hat, Caldera Systems, etc.) were organized to provide bundled versions of Linux (commonly known as distributions) that use the core Linux kernel and include hundreds or thousands of applications that make Linux more functional and easier to install. These companies also provide premium support to individuals and corporations for a fee. As well, an increasing number of large software companies began releasing commercial versions of their server or desktop software packages for the Linux operating system. Equally important, some of the largest computer hardware companies, including Dell, started to ship hardware with the Linux operating system pre-installed.

The Future of Linux

With the rapid acceptance of the open source development model and Linux as a legitimate competitor to Microsoft, a revolution is happening in operating systems and software development . As Linux distributions are continually improved and modified for diverse uses, companies and individuals are increasing usage with unusual fervor, commercial software companies are porting applications to Linux, and open source projects are starting to challenge commercial applications. The Linux sector is still in its early commercial stage and in our opinion consumers, developers and investors have an unprecedented opportunity to participate in the significant growth and redefinition of the software industry as we know it.

Source: (aplusnetKB,2009) http://www.apluskb.com/scripts/What_is_Linux_answer191.html

When it comes to naming conventions for their operating systems (OS), Microsoft usually takes the less inspired approach. It’s not that Windows 3.1, 98, ME, 2000, XP, or Vista didn’t have reasons behind their names. They clearly denoted the year of their release or the experience you would likely have with the OS. So Windows 7 comes to us as the seventh Windows build, at least that’s what we call it now (that could all change closer to release) and, as we know, the number seven brings about ideas of luck and fortune. Since installing Windows 7 beta, I would have to agree that this is indeed an applicable name for their next generation OS. Windows 7 cuts the fat from the Vista release and promises to correct some of the wrongs found in the former release. But will it be as good as Windows XP?

For consumers, Windows 7 has a lot of win packed in the new release. It’s become easier and more secure to share files across a network, as well as maintain a healthy system. The enterprise users don’t seem to receive as much appreciation with this OS release as I would have guessed, since a major complaint of Vista was its lack of Enterprise support. There are three distinct improvements for business enterprise users, including Power Shell 2.0 being included on every version, Local Security Policy settings, and a feature called Direct Access that will appear once Windows Server 2008 hits the market. The release of Windows 2008 Server should help to close the gap for business users.

The new operating system does remove some of the flubs of Vista, like the UAC and the removal of the sidebar. In place of the sidebar users can simply add gadgets to the desktop. The UAC has been improved to include four distinct settings, so users can set it to only bother then when they feel they need to be bothered. Windows 7 will be missing two key programs from Vista, including Windows Movie Maker and Photo Gallery. The Movie Maker application had plenty of use for video creation for YouTube and other such sites, but Photo Gallery didn’t offer much that Windows 7 or a similar free web applications can now provide.

Vista started off on rocky terrain. Many of the accessories commonly used on a desktop just wouldn’t work. It was months before many manufacturers came out with compatible drivers for video cards, printers, scanners, cameras, webcams, and the like. It’s these types of problems that forced business owners to retain XP.

Vista changed the overall architecture layer of the operating system, which is why many drivers wouldn’t work with the new OS. Through testing of the Windows 7 beta, none of our accessories have had trouble installing. In fact, we had little problem setting up the OS with an HP printer, Zune (obviously), webcam, monitor, and digital camera. Putting together our basic workstation took less time than it would have on a comparable XP or Vista machine. We did not test our installation on an Enterprise network though. Business users should be wary of compatibility issues with deployed software.


Coming from a Vista Service Pack 1 machine to the Windows 7 Build 7000 wasn’t too much of a shock. Many of the graphical conventions of Vista, like Aero, are still in place with Windows 7. The trimmed down taskbar, addition of file libraries, toned down UAC, and touch screen support make this new OS really shine. While I couldn’t test the touch screen performance, I can report that many users have found these tools to be fun, but not quite practical. Touch screen monitors are rather pricey too. It’s possible the prices will fall as the technology becomes more prevalent.

Source: (Jason Frye,2009) http://www.tkarena.com/Articles/tabid/59/ctl/ArticleView/mid/382/articleId/135/An-Introduction-to-Windows-7.aspx

Two years after shipping Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, Apple has delivered Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard. A cat of the same family, Apple bills its new operating system as a better Leopard, and we think Snow Leopard on the Mac is destined for anything but rarity. But "Snow Leopard" is a new breed, too. It runs only on Intel hardware, leaving PowerPC hardware (such as Power Macs, PowerBooks and iBooks) rapidly heading toward extinction.

Despite its own Intel requirement, though, Snow Leopard can still run most Mac OS X applications written for PowerPC hardware, along with native Universal Binary and Intel-only applications. (Snow Leopard accomodates both "Carbon" and "Cocoa" types of applications.) Apple's "Rosetta" code-translation technology, introduced for the first Intel Macs, is the magic that makes this possible. (Of course, "classic" Mac applications are already extinct; Apple dropped support for those with Leopard.)

Discarding heaps of pre-Intel code and rewriting the much-criticized Mac OS X Finder from scratch, Snow Leopard trades legacy support for the promise of faster, leaner and more reliable performance. It also overhauls QuickTime (now "QuickTime X"); adds support for Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 in Mail, iCal, and Address Book (licensing Microsoft's ActiveSync protocol), and brings additional improvements.

Leopard was the culmination of years of breakneck development that added feature upon feature to Mac OS X. With Snow Leopard, Apple's developers took a break to get back to basics. As with Windows 7, the new operating system is intended to refine and improve its predecessor, fixing bugs, polishing and smoothing rough edges, and improving the core.

There are new features — tons of them — but they're almost all little things that make Mac life a little easier. That's hard to sell, but Apple's also taking a break from its usual pricing. Instead of the $129 price tag that every new Mac OS X version carried previously, the upgrade from Leopard is a paltry $29. That's impulse buy, oh-why-not range. And that's obviously what Apple wants — everything about this product is pushing to help every Intel Mac user adopt Snow Leopard as quickly as possible.

A "Family Pack" upgrade lists for just $49. If you're still running Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, you're directed to a Mac Box Set/Snow Leopard bundle, which lists for $169 (single-user), or $229 (Family Pack) but also includes Apple's iLife '09 and iWork '09 application packages. Recent buyers of Macs and qualifying Xserves, purchased from Apple and authorized resellers between June 8 and December 27, are eligible for a $9.95 upgrade via Apple's "Up To Date" program.

Along with the Finder, the foundations of Mac OS X are improved in Snow Leopard, too. It's now almost entirely 64-bit optimized, which yields small but significant performance improvements for 64-bit (Core 2 Duo and Xeon) processors. Apple has introduced new features that will help developers more easily harness the power of multiple processors in future applications, and its latest technology may help security in a few specific areas, as well..

A new Snow Leopard Server, built on the same core operating system as Snow Leopard, lists at $499 for an unlimited number of clients (the same as the old 10-client price and half the old "unlimited" price). It requires a "Mac desktop or server with Intel processor" and 2GB of RAM. We won't attempt to review it here, but Snow Leopard Server features a new "Mobile Access Server" and "Podcast Producer 2", along with other improvements.

Unlike Microsoft, Apple severely restricts discussion of its beta-test software, so we can expect the usual shaking-out period, where customers identify bugs and misfeatures, and third-party developers scramble to identify and resolve compatibility issues, as Apple gradually addresses Snow Leopard's most critical problems. But, warnings aside, we are optimistic about Snow Leopard's potential for improving the Mac experience. This report is based on our initial experiences, and full assessment of something this complex is a process that will play out over weeks and months ahead. We welcome your participation and feedback in this exploration, and we have set up a new "Snow Leopard" reader report section for ongoing discussion, research, analysis and problem solving.

Source: (Robert Mohns and the MacInTouch staff, 2009) http://www.macintouch.com/specialreports/snowleopard/

It's been an exciting nine months since we launched the Google Chrome browser. Already, over 30 million people use it regularly. We designed Google Chrome for people who live on the web — searching for information, checking email, catching up on the news, shopping or just staying in touch with friends. However, the operating systems that browsers run on were designed in an era where there was no web. So today, we're announcing a new project that's a natural extension of Google Chrome — the Google Chrome Operating System. It's our attempt to re-think what operating systems should be.

Google Chrome OS is an open source, lightweight operating system that will initially be targeted at netbooks. Later this year we will open-source its code, and netbooks running Google Chrome OS will be available for consumers in the second half of 2010. Because we're already talking to partners about the project, and we'll soon be working with the open source community, we wanted to share our vision now so everyone understands what we are trying to achieve.

Speed, simplicity and security are the key aspects of Google Chrome OS. We're designing the OS to be fast and lightweight, to start up and get you onto the web in a few seconds. The user interface is minimal to stay out of your way, and most of the user experience takes place on the web. And as we did for the Google Chrome browser, we are going back to the basics and completely redesigning the underlying security architecture of the OS so that users don't have to deal with viruses, malware and security updates. It should just work.

Google Chrome OS will run on both x86 as well as ARM chips and we are working with multiple OEMs to bring a number of netbooks to market next year. The software architecture is simple — Google Chrome running within a new windowing system on top of a Linux kernel. For application developers, the web is the platform. All web-based applications will automatically work and new applications can be written using your favorite web technologies. And of course, these apps will run not only on Google Chrome OS, but on any standards-based browser on Windows, Mac and Linux thereby giving developers the largest user base of any platform.

Google Chrome OS is a new project, separate from Android. Android was designed from the beginning to work across a variety of devices from phones to set-top boxes to netbooks. Google Chrome OS is being created for people who spend most of their time on the web, and is being designed to power computers ranging from small netbooks to full-size desktop systems. While there are areas where Google Chrome OS and Android overlap, we believe choice will drive innovation for the benefit of everyone, including Google.

We hear a lot from our users and their message is clear — computers need to get better. People want to get to their email instantly, without wasting time waiting for their computers to boot and browsers to start up. They want their computers to always run as fast as when they first bought them. They want their data to be accessible to them wherever they are and not have to worry about losing their computer or forgetting to back up files. Even more importantly, they don't want to spend hours configuring their computers to work with every new piece of hardware, or have to worry about constant software updates. And any time our users have a better computing experience, Google benefits as well by having happier users who are more likely to spend time on the Internet.

Source: Sundar Pichai, VP Product Management and Linus Upson, 2009 : http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/introducing-google-chrome-os.html

The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standardized Internet Protocol Suite (TCP/IP) to serve billions of users worldwide. It is a network of networks that consists of millions of private and public, academic, business, and government networks of local to global scope that are linked by copper wires, fiber-optic cables, wireless connections, and other technologies.

The Internet carries a vast array of information resources and services, most notably the inter-linked hypertext documents of the World Wide Web (WWW) and the infrastructure to support electronic mail. In addition it supports popular services such as online chat, file transfer and file sharing, gaming, commerce, social networking, publishing, video on demand and teleconferencing and telecommunication. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) applications allow person-to-person communication via voice and video.

The origins of the Internet reach back to the 1960s when the United States funded research projects of its military agencies to build robust, fault-tolerant and distributed computer networks. This research and a period of civilian funding of a new U.S. backbone by the National Science Foundation spawned worldwide participation in the development of new networking technologies and led to the commercialization of an international network in the mid 1990s, and resulted in the following popularization of countless applications in virtually every aspect of modern human life. As of 2009, an estimated quarter of Earth's population uses the services of the Internet.

The Fallen has ARISE~

hi there, there is such a long time that i never touch or tidy up my blog here. Ouch~ so SAD that my blog is soooooo dusty now... haihs~ please bear with me! its because due to my assignments and entertainment over here made me kinda sooo busy with my life here.

These months what did i done huh~ curious rite... lemme do a fast flash back to 4 months backward :

end of february : the Mr. Inti result had announced and im the 1st runner up only.
[2] Sports Feasta
[3] Service Cell
[4] Exhibition Week
[5] Facilitator for May intake
[6] Street Party
[7] Malaysian Cultural Night
[8] Blood Donation Organizing Chairperson
[9] Co-Modelling for Mr.Inti participants
[10] Orientation Night for May intake
[11] P.A system for Children Camp 5 !!
[12] Trip to Bagan Lalang (Sepang GoldCost) for club event
[13] Fashion Rehab from DAC club

And lot more ! hahaaa.... list till here is more than enough already.

There are a lot of up coming event !!
[1] College Model Angel competition (TARC,HELP,INTI,Sunway) a lot more! final will be in Inti-UC
[2] Inti Ball (Promp Night)

more post will arise soonn~~~

by,
The Fallen.

Yesterday 7th of February... I went for my Mr.Inti shooting album at Sepang GoldCoast.... Its a beach with many sands and many stones there....btw sunset time REALLY damn nice there! a good place to visit if u come sepang here.... Yesterday soooo damn tiring cuz shooting photos for 7 hours....waaaa!! 10 Participants with 1 Dream..... MR/MS INTI !!! yeah ! alltogether got 6 professional cameramens help us to take the best photo ever.... xD

End~xD c u next time