One Shot Design

UNIX Berkeley Software Distributions like PC-BSD were created to make the FreeBSD accessible to the layman. Both PC-BSD and FreeBSD use the ZFS file system designed by Sun Microsystems for the Solaris operating system.

Another ZFS-based operating system has just been released: StormOS beta, based on Nexenta, a combination of the OpenSolaris Kernel and Debian code. Unlike PC-BSD, which needs its own installation sources, Nexenta and StormOS can install and run Debian applications.

Ubuntu already featured by default security enhancements developed by the U.S. National Security Agency, but version 9.04 of the Linux distribution now brings seamless file encryption for added protection of critical data. When activated, the option automatically mounts the encrypted home folder without asking for a password, and the user can browse and work with files at normal speed. Should the encrypted folder need to be recovered, there is a hash passphrase.

This new feature could prove useful should the computer gets stolen: in case critical data was not already encrypted through Keepass or Truecrypt, the thief won’t be able to read anything from the home folder. File encryption is not virtually unbreakable, so for added security one should combine all those different layers of security.

This should be something mandatory for all government laptops, which are particularly at risk.

The Palm Pre sold out in many locations, during its first weekend on sale. Experts expect Palm to ramp up production quickly before enthusiasm cools. Palm will also have refreshed competition from Apple, which is expected to deliver big iPhone news from the WWDC.

Read the full article at eWeek.com

Palm has stopped teasing us and finally announced a date for the launch of the Pre. The handset will go on sale on Saturday June 6th for $300, just two days before Apple’s WWDC, where many are expecting the announcement of a new iPhone.

Read the whole article at Wired.com

Canonical has begun beta tests of a web-based service that’ll let you store and synchronize files on your Jaunty Jackalope PC with other Jackalope-powered machines. Called Ubuntu One, it’s designed to provide you with access to your files using a web interface when you’re away from your main machine. The service also promises to let you share documents with others.

Ubuntu fluffs web file-synchronization service • The Register