[H]ardNews 4th Edition - Blair Tech Ed.

MS To Linux:

Mike Petitjean has been a dedicated Microsoft user for more than a decade, but now the software developer says he's so fed up with the high prices and unreliable systems that he's switching to Linux. Linux's popularity with programmers has already managed to make a huge dent on the market share of rival software Unix and now it's gradually threatening to do the same with Microsoft's dominance of the business software market. And giants such as IBM, Hewlett-Packard, and Dell Computer are lending a helping hand.

Media Hype:

New products that will transform industries from energy and electronics to transportation. Emerging markets with vast potential and a swirl of media attention. "Sound familiar?" asked Keith Blakely, chief executive of NanoDynamics Inc., a new nanomaterials company in Buffalo, N.Y. Blakely, speaking at a recent conference, wasn't talking about nanotechnology – he was reciting the promise that surrounded engineered ceramics in the 1980s.

Linux Bugs?

Fred Langa contends that some Linux proponents harm their cause by hiding from the facts--it's just as buggy as Windows XP. I made a private bet with myself when I ran an item in my newsletter called "Linux Hacks On The Rise". It cited a study of software problems reported by CERT--the Computer Emergency Response Team that impartially tracks computing security threats. (CERT is part of a federally funded research and development center at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.)

(Editor's Note: If you are sysadmin or someone responsible for server infrastructure, read this one news story about operating systems today. It might give you a new perspective on things. Just for the record, we are linux guys around here.)

Fruit Tech:

Recent trends in Microbiological Safety of fruits and vegetables. When we hear about food safety problems resulting from the contamination of foods by organisms such as Salmonella, Escherichia coli, or Listeria, most of us think about improperly cooked hamburger or sanitation irregularities at chicken processing plants.