"It has come to our attention that rumors are floating regarding the appearance of a Red Hat Linux beta release, named ROSWELL. We would like to reassure you that there is nothing of the sort."

At Linux Expo in London this week, companies are showing off the latest additions to the open source arsenal, including tools designed to step up software development and software to make Linux more attractive for high-end servers and workstations. In the meantime, Linux has grown in the last year into a serious competitor for Microsoft's Windows operating system, according to industry experts.

The Debian Multimedia Distribution[1] (DeMuDi) project is an effort to build a Linux distribution for the purpose of multimedia work. The Debian GNU/Linux distribution already contains the tools for building and maintaining such a distribution and will serve as the basis for this distribution. Current Linux distributions either target Web applications and services or on desktop machines. Multimedia and

specifically multimedia production capabilities have only recently been well integrated into the Linux kernel.

Last week Michael Stutz released the "design science license," in an effort to bring copyleft to all copyrighted materials, not just software. But it's a soft-headed idea, argues Powell, who calls it a plan for progressive redistribution of talent that will appeal to the talentless.

PlayApp has announced today that they are offering their PlayApp Key technology as a free open-source alternative to Microsoft's Passport. PlayApp Keys, which are key-chain sized portable USB devices consumers give consumers complete control over many of their security needs. When used with the free PlayApp Player program, the keys allow consumers to instantly log-on to websites. Other uses include generating codes for encrypting/decrypting files and generating/using PGP passphrases for secure email/real-time communications.

Red Hat Inc. has announced that Compaq Computer Corporation will be offering its newly announced Accredited System Engineer (ASE) and Accredited Platform Integrator (API) level Linux certification programs in conjunction with Red Hat's acclaimed RHCE (Red Hat Certified Engineer) program. The programs will extend the scope of professional training opportunities available to Linux systems and software professionals and position them to take greater advantage of the expanding Linux marketplace.

Debian is a free or Open Source, operating system (OS) for your computer. It's like a tower. At the base is the kernel. On top of that are all the basic tools. Next is all the software that you run on the computer. At the top of the tower is Debian-carefully organizing and fitting everything so it all works together.

Since Linux is an independent happening - no company or sole entity owns what is essentially a continually growing resource, free for all humanity - this tangle of information can be confusing. But don't fret and don't be discouraged. First, understand that no matter what your skill level, you're not alone. And remember, help is always available.

Red Hat has signed a partnership with 3G Lab to build an operating system for cell phones and other devices that can tap into high-speed wireless networks. The companies will jointly develop an open-source operating system, but Linux won't be part of the deal. Instead, the companies will use Red Hat's eCos operating system, which is designed to work in smaller devices that don't have the computing horsepower Linux requires. The Red Hat-3G Lab product also will enable multimedia features.

"The lesson I take away from all of this is pretty straightforward: Even if everybody used Linux, the support we'd get would continue to be terrible. It's tempting to believe that there's a quiet anti-Linux conspiracy at work in the farmed-out support houses, customer centers, and help desks of the world (some people seem to want to run an OS they perceive as likely to remain marginal in perpetuity), but it seems clear that there isn't: there's just a general problem with customer care and quality in general," says Michael Hall.