LinuxWorld 2006 Wrap-Up: Notes from the Conference

From August 15 to 17, Linux enthusiasts, company representatives, and curious head-scratching types once again packed into San Francisco's Moscone Center for the twice-yearly geek-fest called LinuxWorld.

Lining the show floor were tools, software, and services designed to help nonprofits (and for-profits) do their thing a little bit better and a whole lot cheaper. This year's offerings came from large companies and small nonprofits alike, and they all promise to replace — or peacefully coexist with — your Windows operating systems and software.

Centeris Likewise Management Suite 2.0

Centeris's Likewise Management Suite 2.0 vows to help reduce the headaches of running a mixed Windows-Linux network by making it easier to secure, administer, monitor, and configure print, file, mail, and other types of servers. Centeris's software tools, for example, help you join Linux servers to Active Directory and set a single sign-on.

Centeris offers a free trial as well as flexible nonprofit and educational pricing.

CodeWeavers CrossOver Mac

You want to switch to Mac — but what happens to all of your favorite Windows applications? CodeWeavers answers that question in the form of its CrossOver line of products. The same company that brings your Windows applications to Linux through its CrossOver Linux and CrossOver Server products will add a new CrossOver Mac title at the end of this month. While not exactly Linux-related, CrossOver's new Mac release will let you install your favorite Windows applications on Mac OS X, which is based on Unix. New developments on the Linux side include the ability to use Outlook 2003 and Exchange Servers on Linux. Now there's no excuse not to switch to Linux or Mac.

Spike Source Drupal SpikeIgnited

If your organization wants to harness the power of Drupal but lacks the resources and doesn't want to wade through its existing documentation, Drupal Spike Ignited might be your ticket. Spike Source provides automated testing, integrated updates, subscription-based maintenance services, and 24-hour technical support.

Spike Source's Web site even offers a Total Cost of Ownership calculator to figure out how much it would cost to deploy your own Drupal solution versus the one Spike offers.

Joomla!

Last year we wrote about free open-source content management system (CMS) Mambo. Too new to get our attention then, this year's next big thing is Joomla. Though it sounds like something you'd scream while riding a roller coaster, Joomla is a CMS equipped to manage all of the content on your Web site, whether you're engaged in e-commerce, blogging, creating newsletters, or hosting forums.

At LinuxWorld, Joomla showed off the beta version of its new 1.5 CMS release, which is shifting the product from Web application to Web application framework. In plain English, that means the tool promises to be easier to use and more flexible. Because Joomla is GNU-licensed, you can use, modify, and distribute the software freely.

Sophos

With antivirus software for Linux, Mac, and Windows, Sophos helps keep your networks and desktops virus-free — a deal made a little sweeter by the company's 40-percent discount for nonprofits. (Sophos representatives at LinuxWorld said there may be better deals, depending on your organization's size and infrastructure.)

Sophos scans hard drives, networks, downloads, email attachments, and even floppy drives for viruses. You can even set the scans to run according to a schedule or on-demand when a file is opened. Special tools for educational institutions are also available.

Splunk

Mentioned in last year's LinuxWorld wrap-up, Splunk is a search tool that allows you to navigate logs, configuration files, messages, and other IT data to help you fix problems more quickly. Splunk Server software is now available two flavors: the commercial Version Professional 2.0 and the free version. Professional includes new features, such as Live Splunks that run at regular intervals and provide alerts via RSS or email; access controls; and multiple indexes. The free version indexes up to 500MB per day and offers limited features.

Both versions run on Linux (2.4 kernel or higher); Solaris/SPARC 8, 9, 10; Free BSD; and Mac OS X. The company also offers a free 30-day trial.

Socialtext

You may have tried free wiki services only to learn that they don't have all of the features or security your organization needs. Socialtext provides an Enterprise edition of its wiki with email integration, WSIWIG (what-you-see-is-what-you-get) editor, backups, RSS feeds, blogs, and monitoring — all from a wiki appliance, a preconfigured piece of hardware. The company offers nonprofits a 50 percent discount off its retail price, and with additional discounts for organizations willing to be mentioned in its promotional materials. The company also offers a free 30-day trial.

Ubuntu

No, it's not the latest dance move or a new sport; it's a Linux distribution that's become a hit with nonprofits around the globe. With its support for all sorts of languages, including Swahili, it's no wonder why. (Ubuntu itself is an ancient African word meaning "humanity to others.")

Both desktop and server editions are free to download — and for that matter so is Edubuntu, the educational version that offers specific tools for schools and other educational institutions. Ubuntu also includes many of the open-source community's favorites such as Gnome Evolution email client, OpenOffice, Mozilla's Firefox Web browser, and the latest Gnome desktop. Ubuntu offers plenty of support options should you need a little extra help.

The best part? Ubuntu's Live CD lets you try out the operating system without installing it on your computer.