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Comment: It's called and OpenPGP key. (Score 2) 85

OpenPGP, PGP and GnuPG / GPG are often used interchangeably - a common mistake.

OpenPGP is technically a proposed standard although it is widely used.

PGP is an acronym for Pretty Good Privacy, a computer program which provides cryptographic privacy and authentication.

GnuPG is an abbreviation for Gnu Privacy Guard, another computer program which provides cryptographic privacy and authentication.

gpg is the name of the binary executable file for GnuPG in Gnu/Linux- and Unix-nased operating systems.

Android

Android Market Hits 10 Billion Downloads, Games Dominate 178

Posted by Soulskill
from the bored-begets-big-numbers dept.
New submitter sandeepabhat tips news that Android Market recently saw its 10 billionth app download, reaching the milestone less than a year after the App Store accomplished the same feat. New downloads through Android Market are proceeding at a rate of roughly 1 billion per month. Google has now created an infographic to break down the information further. Games outpace any other type of app, accounting for more than a quarter of all downloads. The top five countries in downloads-per-capita are South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the U.S., and Singapore.

Comment: LIbreOffice in Ubuntu (Score 3, Informative) 470

by MagicFab (#34994568) Attached to: LibreOffice 3.3 Released Today

If you're using Ubuntu, and want to try LibreOffice, I wrote a few details here:
http://www.fabianrodriguez.com/blog/2011/01/25/the-document-foundation-launches-libreoffice-3-3

Most importantly *don't install .debs manually* and *don't reinstall if you already have 3.3 RC4, it's the same as 3.3 final* :)

Cellphones

Cell Phone Interception At Def Con 95

Posted by Soulskill
from the can-i-hear-you-now dept.
ChrisPaget writes "I'm planning a pretty significant demonstration of GSM insecurity at Defcon next week, where I'll intercept and record cellular calls made by my attendees, live on-stage, no user-input required. As you can imagine, intercepting cellphones is a Very Big Deal in the eyes of the law; this blog post is an attempt to reassure everyone that their privacy is being taken seriously despite the nature of the demo. I'm not just making it up either — the EFF have helped significantly with the details."
Image

Verizon Charged Marine's Widow an Early Termination Fee 489 Screenshot-sm

Posted by samzenpus
from the literal-charges dept.
In a decision that was reversed as soon as someone with half a brain in their PR department learned about it, Verizon charged a widow a $350 early termination fee. After the death of her marine husband, Michaela Brummund decided to move back to her home town to be with her family. Verizon doesn't offer any coverage in the small town so Michaela tried to cancel her contract, only to be hit with an early termination fee. From the article: "'I called them to cancel. I told them the situation with my husband. I even said I would provide a death certificate,' Michaela said."

Comment: Bravo to FACIL, Cyrille and his team! (Score 4, Informative) 172

by MagicFab (#32457186) Attached to: Free Software Wins Court Battle in Quebec

No doubt the court decision documents will help many people understand what Free software is and how it can be considered for government use.

Full (French) PDF of the court decision is available here:
http://blogs.savoirfairelinux.net/cyrilleberaud/KMBT35020100602152155.pdf

English background information:
http://www.fabianrodriguez.com/blog/2008/03/17/gnulinux-integrator-complains-to-supreme-court-about-quebec-government-illegaly-upgrading-to-vista-without-proper-rfps/

Comment: Re:It's 10.04 LTS (not "10.04") (Score 1) 567

by MagicFab (#32094524) Attached to: Ubuntu Linux 10.04 Review (Lucid Lynx)

In fact I've done a few hundred for testing in every release, including for my main computers use at home and on the job (as a senior support analyst at Canonical).

All Canonical Staff are strongly encouraged to run the development release when it enters beta. I'd say once it's reached RC it's fairly safe for desktop production and server testing. If you follow a few known rules the chances it will go wrong are minimal. Of course I am highly biased and can only ask help to myself ;)

Open Source

Open Source Developer Knighted 101

Posted by samzenpus
from the knights-who-say-free dept.
unixfan writes "Georg Greve, developer of Open Document Format and active FOSS developer, has received a knighthood in Germany for his work. From the article: 'Some weeks ago I received news that the embassy in Berne had unsuccessfully been trying to contact me under FSFE's old office address in Zurich. This was a bit odd and unexpected. So you can probably understand my surprise to be told by the embassy upon contacting them that on 18 December 2009 I had been awarded the Cross of Merit on ribbon (Verdienstkreuz am Bande) by the Federal Republic of Germany. As you might expect, my first reaction was one of disbelief. I was, in fact, rather shaken. You could also say shocked. Quick Wikipedia research revealed this to be part of the orders of knighthood, making this a Knight's Cross.'"

Comment: It's 10.04 LTS (not "10.04") (Score 4, Informative) 567

by MagicFab (#32029878) Attached to: Ubuntu Linux 10.04 Review (Lucid Lynx)

This Ubuntu release is 10.04 LTS (for "Long Term Support").

Getting the RC version or the latest daily ISO and upgrading from that is functionally equivalent to waiting for the final ISO to be released and installing it.

Anyone updating their packages from a recent enough beta or RC of Ubuntu will end up having the equivalent of the release.

In case it's not clear, it makes sense NOT to wait for the final release.

To err is human, To purr feline. -- Robert Byrne