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TheOpenCD Translations
by henrik＠theopencd.org 16 Jan '03

16 Jan '03

Hello, I see that some of you have started using and disributing TheOpenCD in India, which is great! For our next version, due out this spring we will focus on internationalisation by adding multiple language versions of major programs and other CD content. The new mozilla-based CD browser now has multi-language capabilities. I see by the OpenOffice pages: http://l10n.openoffice.org/localization_responsibilities.html That there are some Indian language versions in the works; any further news on the progress? It would be great if we could get some help translating our web pages and CD-browser content! Thanks, Henrik http://theopecd.org

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FW: [bytesforall_readers] New software to assist NGO documentatio n of human rights abuses (fwd)
by Frederick Noronha 15 Jan '03

15 Jan '03

---------- Forwarded message ---------- Fred, Brendan Nyhan passed your note on to me. We designed Martus software to be compatible with GNU/Linux and the program appears to work though we haven't tested it extensively. We are just looking into working on an installation process at this time. This could be an opportunity for designers in the free software community to have a hand in its development. Please let me know if there are other questions I can help out on. Best, Marc ________________________ Marc B. Levine Senior Product Manager, The Martus Project www.martus.org A Project of The Benetech Initiative - Technology Serving Humanity 870 Market Street, Suite 1214 San Francisco, CA 94102 USA (415) 394-9838 (415) 394-6560 (fax) marc(a)benetech.org www.benetech.org ------ Forwarded Message From: Frederick Noronha <fred(a)bytesforall.org> Date: Wed, 15 Jan 2003 23:14:22 +0530 (IST) To: Brendan Nyhan <bnyhan(a)benetech.org> Cc: Niranjan Rajani <niranjan.rajani(a)maailma.net> Subject: [bytesforall_readers] New software to assist NGO documentation of human rights abuses (fwd) Great! Does this work on the GNU/Linux or the Windows platform? If the former, I could popularise it among Free Software circuits here. If not, you could include it on the Open CD network (a CD containing GPLd software that works with Windows). An interesting idea! FN ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Bytes For All readers - I wanted to let everyone know that the nonprofit I work for, The Benetech Initiative, just released our human rights software, The Martus Human Rights Bulletin System. The release (with URL) is below; the main Martus site where people can download the software is http://www.martus.org. Sincerely - Brendan Nyhan http://www.martus.org/project_update.html NEW SOFTWARE PROVIDES SECURE WORLDWIDE TRACKING AND DOCUMENTATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES The Benetech Initiative and The Asia Foundation team up to deliver The Martus(tm) Human Rights Bulletin System Palo Alto, Calif. - Jan. 15, 2003 - The Benetech Initiative, a Silicon Valley nonprofit, today announced the release of The Martus Human Rights Bulletin System, an open source technology tool designed to assist human rights organizations in collecting, safeguarding, organizing and disseminating information about human rights abuses. Through a partnership with The Asia Foundation, a U.S.-based nonprofit working on the ground in Asia, Martus will first be implemented in the Philippines to provide better resources to groups combating hundreds of human rights violations per year. Currently, much of the violation and abuse information gathered by grassroots human rights groups is lost to confiscation, destruction, or neglect, making it difficult or impossible for prosecutors, truth commissions and others to use the information as evidence to hold the perpetrators of human rights abuses accountable for many of their crimes. The Martus software enables grassroots NGOs to securely store their records on off-site servers with easy-to-use software, preserving crucial evidence for research, investigation and prosecutions. "Grassroots NGOs told us it was essential that the software be easy to use, so we modeled it after the simple interface of email," said Jim Fruchterman, CEO of Benetech. In the Philippines, The Asia Foundation is sponsoring and facilitating the first implementation and training of the Martus software in the 22 offices of the Philippine Commission on Human Rights, and a network of domestic human rights organizations. In February, the software will be installed on Internet-connected workstations, allowing these organizations to securely document and disseminate information on human rights cases for the first time, which in turn will facilitate and improve the process of investigation, prosecution, assistance, and advocacy for victims of human rights violations. "Information technology has the potential to dramatically improve the ability of human rights groups to manage information, giving them evidence to prosecute perpetrators," said Dr. Steven Rood, Country Representative of The Asia Foundation in the Philippines. "The Martus software provides a platform for nongovernmental human rights advocates to communicate with the Commission on Human Rights in a secure manner, and will provide detailed information to help press for broader reforms." The software was designed in consultation with human rights groups and experts worldwide, including Dr. Patrick Ball of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, one of the world's leading human rights statisticians and Senior Advisor to the project. Beta testing took place in Guatemala, Russia, Sri Lanka and the US. Aspiration, an organization specializing in nonprofit technology implementation, has supported the development and introduction of the Martus system. Jonathan Peizer, Aspiration's President, says, "The Martus software is essential for human rights groups working to document abuses. We are now working actively to help support its deployment." Future applications of the Martus software for social justice groups include monitoring other issues like violence against women, human trafficking, environmental destruction and hate crimes. The software and its source code are available for download at http://www.martus.org. About Benetech http://www.benetech.org The Benetech Initiative is a Silicon Valley nonprofit that develops technology projects addressing major social problems in areas such as disability, human rights, literacy, education, and the digital divide. Its purpose is to use the high technology enterprise model to address pressing social problems. Many technologies have compelling social applications that are not developed because such efforts do not meet investors' financial expectations. Benetech specifically pursues endeavors with a strong social, rather than financial, return on investment, bringing commercial technology and private sector management techniques to bear in creating innovative, non-traditional solutions to problems ranging from literacy to human rights. The Martus Project was funded by a major grant from the Information Program of the Open Society Institute, as well as by individual donors and the Benetech Initiative itself. About The Asia Foundation http://www.asiafoundation.org The Asia Foundation is a non-profit, non-governmental organization committed to the development of a peaceful, prosperous, and open Asia-Pacific region. The Foundation supports programs in Asia that help improve governance and law, economic reform and development, women's participation, and international relations. Drawing on nearly 50 years of experience in Asia, the Foundation collaborates with private and public partners to support leadership and institutional development, technical assistance, exchanges, policy research, and educational materials. With a network of 17 offices throughout Asia, an office in Washington, D.C., headquarters in San Francisco, the Foundation addresses these issues on both a country and regional level. The Asia Foundation has a proven track record of success. In just the past fiscal year of 2002, the Foundation has provided grants, educational materials, and other resources of more than $50 million to 21 countries in Asia and through its Books for Asia program has distributed over 750,000 books to over 4,000 schools and other regional educational institutions. During the past five years, the Foundation has supported more than 800 public interest NGOs. The Asia Foundation has been working in the Philippines since 1954 and has a trusted network of partners. With funding from the U.S. State Department, The Asia Foundation is supporting this first implementation of the Martus system in the Philippines. Contact: Brendan Nyhan The Benetech Initiative Phone: 202/588-8269 Email: bnyhan(a)benetech.org Contact: Jennifer C. Betti The Asia Foundation Phone: 415/743-3367 Email: jbetti(a)asiafound.org ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Turn flat surfaces into speakers with the Soundbug. http://us.click.yahoo.com/QWAVSC/onCFAA/xGHJAA/C7EolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: bytesforall_readers-unsubscribe(a)yahoogroups.com Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ ------ End of Forwarded Message

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[OFFTOPIC] NEWS: India's first computerised village council in Kerala (fwd)
by Frederick Noronha 15 Jan '03

15 Jan '03

---------- Forwarded message ---------- India's first computerised village council in Kerala By Sanu George, Indo-Asian News Service Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 14 (IANS) A Kerala village is all set to create a record -- as the first to have a fully computerised grassroots administration in India. The Vellanad 'gram panchayat', or village council, 20 km south of this city, will be declared fully computerised Wednesday by state IT Minister P.K. Kunjalikutty. The Information Kerala Mission (IKM), a project of the state-owned autonomous institution, Centre for Development of Imaging Technology, took up the computerisation of Vellanad. The entire cost of computerisation came to Rs.600,000. "It took IKM almost a year to fully computerise the village council," said the Local Self-Government Minister Cherkalam Abdullah at a news conference here Tuesday. "As a result, certificates for deaths, births, marriages and taxes will be ready for villagers in a matter of minutes." IKM has developed 12 different packages for application at the village level. A survey of the socio-economic status of villagers, a databank on the qualifications of the unemployed in the area and the financial position of the administration will be among information now available at the click of a mouse. Staff at Vellanad has undergone two computer-training programmes, and a final one is scheduled to commence on January 20. IKM is hoping that the forthcoming Global Investors Meet on January 18-19 will help spot a suitable investor to take up computerisation of all 1,214 local bodies in the state. Among the biggest project proposals of the local self-government ministry is one worth Rs.7.5 billion that is getting ready to be showcased at the meet. --Indo-Asian News Service

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Kannur shows the way
by Sujeevan Pullanhiotan 14 Jan '03

14 Jan '03

Hi All, Kannur Achieved a unique feat by implementing very cost effective and economicaly sustainalbe( the least expensive approach known sofar!!)computer education facilities for school children. Children of 49 Govt. schools in Kannur parliamentary constituency will now have access to their own computer facilities running on GNU/Linux Operating sysytem packed with the latest GNU free softwares.The computer facilities are being setup at schools and the first facility setup at Valapatnam Govt Scholl will be inagurated by Shri A P Abdullakutty, Hon. M P ( Member of Parliamnet) of Kannur at 10 A M on 14- Jan 03. The resource for the project comes from the Constituency Development Fund of Kannur M P Shri A P Abdullakutty and is being implented by Keltron who provided the hardware facilities. The Software solution and support is provided by Swatantra Software Solutions & Support( S2S2),at Kannur who implented the cost effective LTSP( Linux Terminal Server) solution. The computer facility include One P4 Sever and many diskless workstation using etherboot to load Redhat 8 Operating system. The other GNU software package include, Openoffice, multimdedia, programming tools, and many applets for educational use( physics, chemistry maths etc.) all installed using GLUE CD. Regards Sujeevan S2S2, Kannur

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security- a discussion
by Manjush G. Menon 13 Jan '03

13 Jan '03

hi guys, Check out the forwarded message, which originated from the following groups. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ To: linux-middleeast(a)yahoogroups.com, arab-linux(a)yahoogroups.com From: Peters A P <peters1968(a)yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 8 Jan 2003 03:38:36 -0800 (PST) Subject: [arab-linux] I found this and thought this might be of interest Aberdeen Group says Linux/UNIX is as vulnerable as Windows Turning up the heat up another notch on a long-simmering debate, the Aberdeen Group has published a study comparing the security of Linux/UNIX systems with that of the Microsoft Windows family of products "Contrary to popular misperception, Microsoft does not have the worst track record when it comes to security vulnerabilities. Also contrary to popular wisdom, UNIX- and Linux-based systems are just as vulnerable to viruses, Trojan horses, and worms," Aberdeen's report states. Based on CERT advisories for 2001 and 2002, Aberdeen reached the following conclusions: "Virus and Trojan horse advisories affecting Microsoft products peaked at six in 2001, which then bottomed out at zero for the first 10 months of 2002 Virus and Trojan horse advisories affecting UNIX, Linux, and open source software products went from one in 2001 to two for the first 10 months of 2002 Advisories affecting network equipment products jumped from two in 2001 to six for the first 10 months of 2002 Firewalls and other security products were affected by just two advisories in 2001, but have been linked to seven advisories for the first 10 months of 2002." The report also points out that Apple is becoming vulnerable, "now that it is fielding an operating system [OS X] with embedded Internet protocols and UNIX utilities." Windows vs. Linux/UNIX vulnerabilities Aberdeen Group report, vol. 1, no. 35, is dated Nov 12, 2002, and it's a brief but interesting read. I can't post a direct link since you have to subscribe to see the report. But it doesn't cost anything, so I recommend that you go to the Aberdeen site, register, and then take a look at the entire report Some people will dismiss the report as Microsoft-sponsored hot air, but the raw data is there for everyone to see in CERT's Advisories and Incident Notes, giving legitimacy to The Aberdeen Group's conclusion that open source operating systems in general, the new Mac OS X, and critical security programs themselves, aren't as safe as many proponents suggest The underlying data is worth a close look. No new Windows platform virus or Trojan CERT advisories were issued in the period of January 2002 through October 2002. CERT's confirmed vulnerabilities list shows that the threat level is growing faster for Linux/UNIX platforms than for Windows. This could be a statistical anomaly due to the much larger number of Linux/UNIX versions (although there are actually fewer versions available now, as there has been consolidation in both the Linux and UNIX markets in recent years). So the number of threats is growing while the number of Linux/UNIX versions is shrinking Perhaps this is an indication that UNIX is becoming less genetically diverse and therefore is more vulnerable to attack because the market isn't so fragmented. One Microsoft virus would attack a lot of systems, but it used to take a slightly different virus for every version of Linux/UNIX. That's not always the case anymore Rating vulnerabilities The open source community sometimes claims that vulnerabilities are "more serious" in Windows, but I don't know of an objective way to measure that. And lacking a generally accepted method, all we are left with are the raw numbers. Microsoft rates vulnerabilities when it publishes a patch, but we need a comparable way to rate Linux/UNIX bugs if we're going to compare the seriousness of the patches released for these platforms It's useful to look at incidents as well as confirmed vulnerabilities (advisories). Although this isn't exactly the same as measuring how serious a vulnerability is, it provides a good way for those in the security business to judge how many attacks are taking place, or at least how many are being reported According to the Aberdeen report, "In 1995 the incidents reported by CERT numbered 2,412. However, incidents tracked by CERT skyrocketed from 21,756 in 2000 to 52,658 in 2001, and then to 73,359 for the first nine months of 2002. Clearly, the trend in incidents and advisories is going up, and at an alarming rate." However, we should always take incident statistics with a grain of salt. After all, vulnerabilities are easy to count, but who knows how many attacks go unreported Microsoft has recently announced a new policy for rating vulnerabilities. The company says this was due to customer complaints about far too many "critical" warnings, which compelled administrators to patch vulnerabilities even when the critical rating was not warranted by the actual risk According to Microsoft's director of security assistance, Steve Lipner, the new rating system will expand the old Critical-Moderate-Low reporting scale to include Important, which will fall between Critical and Moderate Most of the old Critical vulnerabilities will now be labeled Important, including threats that could lead to system penetration and file compromise. The Critical rating will be reserved for Internet threats (e.g., major disasters of the Code Red variety) A new two-tier security bulletin system with a less technical bulletin service will also be hosted at http://www.microsoft.com/security/ to supplement the current one, which many users found simply too technical A recent eWeek report brings yet another aspect of this subject to the forefront by pointing out that White House Cybersecurity Tsar, Richard Clark, has called for mandatory vulnerability reporting to a central federal government office. This would require any security firm discovering a new vulnerability to report it with the goal of forcing vendors to respond more quickly to new threats Others feel this may lead to premature disclosure of vulnerabilities, which happened in the past when the FBI's National Infrastructure Protection Center attempted to coordinate reports with various vendors The newly organized (Sept. 26, 2002) Organization for Internet Safety is also developing a proposed set of guidelines for timely and safe reporting of vulnerabilities. OIS founders include Microsoft, @stake, Symantec, Caldera, Network Associates, BindView, and Oracle, so there may be some muscle behind these guidelines Final word We will probably always be comparing apples and oranges when we try to see how the number and severity of vulnerabilities found in the major competing platforms match up. But this really doesn't matter in the real world. The bottom line is that if a vulnerability leads to intrusions on your network, it's a problem, and it doesn't matter whether the vulnerability was a "high" risk or a "low" risk, only whether it cost you time and money to deal with it Most of us are supporting legacy systems and always will be. Only new companies have the luxury of selecting a platform based only on security, performance, and initial cost. That's further limited to only new companies that have an expert IT staff in place to advise the company founders before they buy a single computer. It's far more likely that a platform decision will be based on the experience of the founders, the vendor who gets there first with the best proposal, or, most likely of all, which platform runs a line-of-business application that the company needs The Aberdeen Report concludes that the reduction in Microsoft vulnerabilities is the result of the company's much-touted new security initiative. It may be too early to determine that, but it is a relief to see that no major viruses have besieged Windows in 2002 As for Microsoft's new security labeling system, I think it is useful. It makes sense to reserve the Critical rating for those dangerous global threats that can spread around the world quickly and temporarily threaten the integrity of corporate systems ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Have a great day ~~Manjush

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OpenCD
by Kanti Jadia 13 Jan '03

13 Jan '03

i have copies of theopencd iso. if anybody is interested i can provide copies Am in NAGPUR(Maharashtra) regards Kanti Jadia

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http://sofall.vze.com/
by Frederick Noronha 13 Jan '03

13 Jan '03

This is a young student's attempt to make it easier to share various Free/Libre and Open Source Software. Please check out the site and send in feedback to Ajay <incubuz(a)softhome.net> http://sofall.vze.com/ FN

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GNULinuxIndia 10012003
by Frederick Noronha 11 Jan '03

11 Jan '03

e88~~\ 888b | 888 | / 888 888 ,e, d888 |Y88b | 888 | L 888 888-~88e e88~\888 " /~~~8e 8888 __ | Y88b | 888 | I 888 888 888 d888 888 888 88b 8888 | | Y88b | 888 | N 888 888 888 8888 888 888 e88~-888 Y888 | | Y88b| Y88 | U 888 888 888 Y888 888 888 C888 888 "88__/ | Y888 "8__/ X 888 888 888 "88_/888 888 "88_-888 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Formerly LinuxInIndia * Compiled by: Frederick Noronha * Jan 10,2003 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Although we pride ourselves on being a software superpower, hardly any of the products we use are made in India. -- G. Nagarjuna of TIFR, member of the Free Software Foundation, quoted in a recent news report in the Times of India. See http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/cms.dll/html/ uncomp/articleshow?artid=33405578&sType=1 NUMBER 300,000 FROM CHENNAI: The Linux Counter (counter.li.org) is where users of the GNU/Linux operating system can voluntarily register themselves as such. Recently, Harald Alvestrand of Norway, the founder of the Linux Counter, announced: "Account number 300.000 got handed out today - to a Linux user in Tamil Nadu, India." Let look forward to many other GNU/Linux enthusiasts signing up there and proudly identifying themselves as users of Free Software. PROJECT RESOURCE CENTRE GETS A FILLIP: Thanks to the many students and mentors (over 100) that are now part of this list, the Project Resource Centre has been seeing some interesting discussions. It is a place where students wanting to work on GNU/Linux projects can get ideas and guidance from volunteer-mentors. If you fall in either category (student or possible mentor) please do sign up at http://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/prc THE COMPASS TO THE EAST: ILUG-Calcutta is participating in COMPASS 2003 (24-27 Jan 2003) -- the biggest annual IT event of the Eastern India. "We are having 18sqm of space and are planning a big show," say local volunteers. P K Sharma <pksharma(a)cal.vsnl.net.in> recently gave an idea of plans for participation. To subscribe to this LUG's mailing list send mail to majordomo(a)ilug-cal.org with the body "subscribe ilug-cal" and an empty subject line. FAQ for the LUG: http://www.ilug-cal.org/node.php?id=3 They seem to be heading for it rather seriously. There are plans for demo's, installations, showcasing various distros, and focussing on GNU/Linux in school / at home / in the corporate world. If all goes as per plan, there will also be emphasis on the work done in GNU/Linux localization (Bangla Linux), how Free Software can be an enabler and force multiplier in e-governance, development possibilities (languages, tools, IDEs etc) , scientific apps (Octave, Blender, etc), high-end computing like clustering and FT, and 'cool stuff' that includes video editing, dual heading, virtual machines, emulators and media streaming (MP3s and video). More details from Indranil Das Gupta <indradg(a)cal.vsnl.net.in> or Sayamindu Dasgupta <unmadindu(a)Softhome.net> WATER... AND GNU/LINUX: Dr Vikram Vyas, who has written an interesting software to help villagers calculate availability of water in their region, is eager to port it to GNU/Linux. If you would be interested in the same, kindly get in touch with him at Vikram Vyas <visquare(a)satyam.net.in> GNU/LINUX IN WEST ASIA: Quite a few GNU/Linux mailing lists are active in the Gulf area. Some see the active involvement of Indian expat communities. One list is Linux-middleeast(a)yahoogroups.com This group is sponsored by GoldenSun Internet Consulting &amp; Research, Phone 971-4-2728310 /Fax:971-4-2728320 http://www.uaelug.org Its moderator is GSC Prabhakar James, and the LUG was founded in 1999. DEMO@SCHOOLS IN CHENNAI: bharathi(a)lantana.TeNeT.res.in informs that work on the GNU/Linux-in-schools front is also being undertaken by Demo@Schools volunteer Suraj Kumar. Contact him at suraj(a)symonds.net THEOPENCD LAUNCHES FIRST EDITION: Something from outside South Asia, but of potential interest to many of us. This is a collection of high-quality Open Source Software that runs in Windows. A good bridge for reluctant users of proprietorial software who would like to try out the power of Free/Libre and Open Source Software (FLOSS). Says Henrik Nilsen Omma, one of the project leaders: "Our aim is to create a simple to use CD distribution of Open Source software for Windows, and in that way spread the OSS message.... The disc allows new users can try out Open Source software (OSS) in the comfort of their own, familiar operating system, rather than having to take the drastic step of reformatting their hard drive to install Linux or BSD. The collection, which includes OpenOffice.org, AbiWord and Beonex is primarily intended for non-technical computer users. However, we expect that the disc will appeal first to experienced OSS users, who will hopefully find it a useful vehicle by which to introduce OSS to their less computer-savvy friends." They invite all FLOSS enthusiasts to download the ISO, burn CDs and distribute them widely to friends, local schools, universities, and companies. http://www.theopencd.org/ See http://linuxpr.com/releases/5379.html More details from Henrik Nilsen Omma <henrik(a)theopencd.org> SIRTAJ SINGH KANG... IN THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: Australia-based Indian-origin KDE developer Sirtaj Singh Kang is profiled in a prominent newspaper. Taj is one of the two nominated as official KDE spokespeople in Australia. Quote: "When I was around 14, my dad bought us a 286-based computer. It was quite expensive. We weren't poor by any standards but this stuff was still a luxury. Still, for me to get all the tools a kid needed to learn programming cost as much again, even just to get started. Given that software is infinitely reproducible practically for free, there is really no excuse for this especially now that hardware has become so cheap. Give interested people access to software, allow them to improve and redistribute it - that's the way for computing to really make a difference." http://smh.com.au/articles/2002/11/01/1036027033828.html *************************************************************************** WANTED: Volunteers to support and help the growth of smaller GLUGs and LUGs across India. If you are willing to encourage a Little League LUG to grow and become active, please contact Sukrit D <sd_root(a)yahoo.com> of Pondicherry who formulated the Little League idea. ILUG-Bhubaneswar was recently discussing what could be done to boost their activities. *************************************************************************** GNOWLEDGE.ORG: Dr G Nagarjuna, an eminently optimistic and always-upbeat educationist from Mumbai <nagarjun(a)hbcse.tifr.res.in> recently announced that he completed setting up a Sourceforge site for the Project Resource Centre (a centre for mentors to guide students in Free Software work) and other projects. Says he: "I haven't tested it completely, but it seems to be working satisfactorily. I request the various groups to begin using this facility." Needed: volunteers to maintain the site. http://gnowledge.org Also see http://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/prc MAXIMUS2 INITIATIVE: Maximus2, a wholly owned subsidiary of a British company, is to give away what it terms its powerful office productivity suite -- GroupX2 -- free of cost. "Every organization with 10 to 500 employees needs this application," it says. "With GroupX2 your company will become more organized, productive and highly efficient. The GroupX2 application is normally priced at $1000 is free (of cost) for the first 2003 companies that register," says the firm. Register at www.maximus2.com This application consists of full working software enabled for 20 users. GroupX2 will "take the pain out" of managing tasks, people, messages, calendars, meetings, contacts and much more. Please note, this is not 'Free Software' but a limited offer of a free-of-cost version for early subscribers. http://www.maximus2.com BSPELLER, ON THE BENGALI LANGUAGE FRONT: Thanks to Sayamindu Dasgupta <unmadindu(a)Softhome.net> for forwarding a post from Taneem Ahmed <taneem(a)eyetap.org> on the Bengali computing front. What is Bspeller: A light weight text editor with a Bengali spell checker. This program is part of the Bengali dictionary project. Bspeller can also print Bengali text files using OpenType fonts, a feature currently not available in most of the text editors, eg. gedit, kedit, etc. This is the first release of Bspeller that makes any sense as it actually works as a Bengali spell checker! More information, instructions, and screenshot can be found at: http://www.bengalinux.org/projects/dictionary/bspeller.php Bspeller-0.3 is now available for download from: http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=43331 SARAI.NET OFFERS SUPPORT FOR FREE SOFTWARE: The Delhi-based non-profit has taken another step to support Free Software. Meyarivan <mary(a)sarai.net> recently announced the independent fellowships under its FLOSS Initiative. Those selected include projects for: Linux based CNC Controller Sagar Behere [ behere at sancharnet.in ] and Sandeep Bhambra. The project aims to develop a GNU/Linux based CNC controller using off the shelf hardware. The mechanical design of the CNC machine has been completed and they have developed an add-on ISA expansion card that can control stepper motors simultaneously. Management and Information System - Tapan Parikh/Ekgaon [ tap2k at yahoo.org ] This project aims to implement a complete, modular Management and Information System (MIS) for village-based savings and lending groups, otherwise known as Self-Help Groups (SHGs). This MIS would allow central tracking of the internal accounts, financial position, loan repayment performance and related account information for a community of SHGs, federated under a common administrative and financial body, referred to as a SHG Federation, or a Community-Based Financial Institution (CBFI). Library Management Software - Sharmad Naik [ sharmad at goatelecom.com ] This project will implement a complete library management system. A working version of the software has already been released and future updates will provide complete functionality required for a library. KreSIT (Kanwal Rekhi School of Information Technology), IIT Bombay [ http://www.it.iitb.ac.in/ ] There are about 19 groups working under the guidance of Dr.Pathak and Ms. C.Vijayalakshmi at KreSIT, IIT Bombay on opensource software. They have already developed software for distance education and are currently developing various applications in office automation, voip and localization. Sunil Abraham [ sunil at mahiti.org ] Will test and benchmark free software to ensure that it can be used for mission critical applications. Will conduct research on different types of user communities, usability studies for various interfaces and devices and technology cost calculator for village information kiosks and work on open source storage formats and algorithms for bioinformatics. INDLINUX DISTRO... AN IDEA WITH LOCAL LANG SUPPORT: Details of one distro planned, with local language support, are at http://www.indlinux.org/distro Also see the Indian Linux Project www.indlinux.org and the Indic-Computing Project indic-computing.sf.net LANGUAGE-RELATED SOLUTIONS: Says Guntupalli Karunakar <karunakar(a)freedomink.org> : IIIT Hyd has a good track record on free software, they have released lot of language related stuff under GPL (language dictionaries, machine translation tools etc). See http://www.iiit.net/ltrc/Dictionaries/Dict_Frame.html and http://www.iiit.net/ltrc/downloads.html SITE FOR EXCHANGING SOFTWARE: A youngman from Goa - Ajay - <incubuz(a)softhome.net> tells of a small site he has built for "exchanging software". Says he: "It is very basic and I plan to build upon it gradually." Check http://sofall.vze.com GLUE, AN INNOVATIVE SOLUTION FOR SCHOOLS FROM DELHI: Feedback from Bijon Shaha <bbshaha(a)yahoo.com> about the GLUE, an interesting concept from Ajith <ajith(a)nsc.ernet.in>: The cd uses the concept of preinstalled and prconfigured LTSP server which has been tar archived on a cd. Installation is basically extracting this tar ball into the new partition in the new system, which is very fast. At the first boot it depends on Kudzu for quick detection of hardware in the new machine where it usually has to unconfigure the mismatching hw and configure with the new hardware, and you are ready to use the server! BHUBANESWAR LUG NEEDS SUPPORT: This is about a (GNU)Linux Users' Group that needs support. The Bhubaneswar LUG mailing list was setup sometime in 2000. But there has been only a very posts to this lists. You can join the list by sendign a message to ILUG-BBSR <ilug-bbsr-subscribe(a)yahoogroups.com> ... This info was posted via LIG, the Linux India General list. See https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/linux-india-help --------------------------------------------------------------------------- BOUQUETS&BRICKBATS BOUQUETS&BRICKBATS BOUQUETS&BRICKBATS BOUQUETS&BRICKBATS --------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Nikhil Shanker <nikhil(a)ilug-hyd.org.in> Subject: Re: NEWSLETTER: GNU/LinuxIndia Dec 27, 2002 I share the same opinions as Arun Sharma on LIG. The logo reduces "Linux" to a single column. GNU/Linux is acceptable since it caters to some individuals' sentiments, but this looks like an overkill. I think RMS must be show the logo with "LINUX" replaced with "HURD" with the same one column layout. I bet, he'd be satisfied with... e88~~\ 888b | 888 | 888 888 888 | 88888b 888 / d888 |Y88b | 888 | 888 888 888 | 888 88 e88~\888 I 8888 __ | Y88b | 888 | 88888888 888 | 888ee88 d888 888 N 8888 | | Y88b | 888 | 88888888 888 | 88888b 8888 888 D Y888 | | Y88b| Y88 | 888 888 Y88 | 888 88b Y888 888 I "88__/ | Y888 "8__/ 888 888 "8__/ 888 88b "88_/888 A bah! > > SPEECH SYNTHESIS: Rohit Kumar of the Speech Processing Lab, LTRC at > IIIT Hyderabad points to a speech synthesis demo at > http://196.12.44.11/~speech/index.htm Says he: "I look forward to > your responses both about the speech quality and the ease of use and > understandability of the web interface. PS: For all [GNU/]/Linux > enthusiasts the speech synthesizer is currently built on Red Hat > Linux 7.2 and we have tested it with RHL 8.0." This is insane too. You're quoting a post here, and you GNU-hijack it within the quotes. This very prominent and noticable GNU-hijacking makes the newsletter more unreadable. Although the content is commendable, the we-will-serve-you-oh-RMS-my-l0rd attitude hides the real juice. Maybe even this comment will only be listed in the "Comments" section of the next version of the newsletter just like Arun's was. But I've been looking at this newletter everytime and seeing more GNU than actual information is really disheartening. The best part is it gets posted to LI and LUGs. Please note that these its not GLI and GLUGs. I imply no disrespect to the poster. Its just an opinion. -- Nikhil (nikhil.shankar at acm.org) -------------------------------------------------------------------------- YOUR INPUTS and criticism to this newsletter are welcome. Contact us at fred at bytesforall dot org --COPYLEFT 2002, GPL. May be freely circulated provided entire text is retained. FN --------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Freeware of Free Software?
by Frederick Noronha 11 Jan '03

11 Jan '03

Dear PCQuest Editor: I was surprised to see your CDs list a number of GNU/Linux programmes as 'freeware'. Needless to say, there is a sharp difference between 'freeware' and the connotations it has, and 'Free Software' (free as in freedom!). Would you agree? FN

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programmers
by M.Balakrishna Pillai 11 Jan '03

11 Jan '03

hi all Refer page 9 column 3 of Malayala Manorama January 11,(Ernakulam edition) Calicut University is requires programers experienced in Mandrake/RedHat Linux - more than 2 years experience in Python, Postgress, GTK Glade etc. Salary Rs.11000/- Appointment for one year Apply to Deputy Registrar, Administration branch Calicut University Pin 673635 M.Balakrishna Pillai

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