Slashdot Mirror

Jean-loup Gailly is the author of gzip and, now, CTO for Mandrakesoft, purveyors of Linux-Mandrake. Jean-loup's home page tells you quite a bit about him, including some interesting peeks into his life beyond Linux and open source software. Please try to keep it down to one question per post. Submitted questions will be chosen from the highest-moderated. Answers will appear within the next week.

Soko writes "Linux-Mandrake has joined SUSE, Red Hat and Caldera in porting their distribution to Alpha and SPARC architectures. The announcement was originally found on freshmeat and talks about getting help from Alpha Processors Inc. and Sun Microsystems Inc. MandrakeSoft has ported its latest popular version of the Linux operating system, Linux-Mandrake 7.0, to the above processors. "

Marius Kjeldahl writes "I noticed a local LinuxMandrake mirror got the 7.0 directory a couple of days ago but without anything in it. Today I checked again, and there is an iso image for LinuxMandrake 7.0 there. " Gael Duval from Mandrakesoft sent us an overview of whats new and improved in Mandrake 7. Check it out to see if you really want to download a whole ISO ;) Graphical Install, Disk Manager, new config tools, compiled with pentium optimizations. Lots of nice bits.

Thanks to Gael Duval for letting me know that Mandrake 7 is up and ready for download. They sent over the press release, which I've posted below. Essentially, it's ready for "geeks and testers" and includes many new features.

December 22, 1999 - MandrakeSoft is very pleased to announce that its new Linux distribution is available, only for geeks and testers who can't wait to discover all the new killer features that have been introduced. This beta version (NOT FOR PRODUCTION USE) includes:

- New perl/gtk based graphical installer Drakx, including support for many languages and the DiskDrake partitioner (lets one change the size of Ext2, FAT... disk partitions).

- Use of supermount (integrated in kernel 2.2.14) in order to suppress the need to mount and unmount for most removable medias (cdrom, floppy, zip): Mandrake easier to use than ever!

- Several security levels are available. They let you use your Linux box like a jail (extremely high security, restricted use), or like certain very common proprietary OSes (very poor security, no constraint in use). The default security level, medium, is the security level found in most standard Linux distributions.

- Improved desktop integration with new tools like DrakConf and rpmdrake that let the user manage its Linux-Mandrake box like a charm.

- New hardware configuration tools like lothar and XFdrake

The new distribution has to be tested by many people to detect any problem that would not have been found internally.

Hackers, Geeks, Nerds or simply curious users, just download Mandrake 7.0beta, have fun with it and report all the bugs! For this, just see http://www.linux-mandrake.com/en/oxygenbeta.php3 and read the instructions!

The Mandrake Team.

The original concept of free, Open Source software was that of programmers writing software they wanted for themselves and sharing it with their peers like poets writing work that only other poets would ever read. Now Open Source and free software are getting major attention. There is suddenly an adoring public out there beyond the footlights. And the presence of this audience is changing the entire Open Source "movement." (more below)

Coming Out of the Programming Closet
I remember the first time I suggested an improvement to a piece of free, Open Source software. The testy response I got was, "Learn to program and do it yourself." This attitude was similar to that displayed by what I call "academic writers," whose fiction and poetry is so obscure that no one reads it except other academics.

But in the last few years, I've noticed a slow change in attitude among the Open Source and free software developers I know personally. More and more of them seem to be thinking in terms of writing software that is useful to others, not just what they want for themselves.

There is nothing wrong with this. Artists need audiences. So do techies. Sure, it's nice to write a "deep" piece of fiction that only top-rung English professors will appreciate, but it's also nice to write something that a whole bunch of people will read and understand, and perhaps even write you a letter or e-mail now and then that says "Thanks. Nice work."

Playing an instrument, reading a poem or performing a dramatic work on a stage in a theater full of adoring fans is certainly more gratifying than doing it alone, in private, or strictly in front of other musicians or actors.

Let's not veer off into the skeptical-but-valid "Is programming really an art?" question. Let's just say that it is a skill that takes both talent and practice, and that not everyone can do it well. In this way, if no other, it is similar to acting, singing, and other performing arts. And there is no reason talented programmers shouldn't get the same level of recognition as talented actors and musicians.

Will Success Spoil Rock Codeson?
It depends on what you call "success." By monetary standards, Bill Gates is more "successful" than Alan Cox a million times over. But I know who I'd rather invite over for a beer, and I'm sorry, Bill, it's not you. I can also think of dozens of actors and musicians whose work I think is wonderful, but who have never been (and may never be) nearly as famous or rich as others for whom I have no respect.

To go back to the theatrical metaphor, there are plenty of marvelous shows that run for months in off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway theaters without taking in one percent of what a big-time musical like Cats can earn on a single weekend night. But the small theatrical productions often have better acting than what you see in the "major" shows. The music is often more interesting. Scripts in low-budget shows are often far superior to the blanded-down words used in productions with millions of dollars invested in them, that have been tested and revised in so many out-of-town tryouts that somuch life has been squeezed out of them that all they have to offer is glitz and glitter with little or no underlying value. The soul of theater, if you will, is in people working out on the edge, going beyond the norm, thinking with their hearts instead of reading market research studies and holding "focus group" sessions with audience members.

There is beauty in putting your heart into a creation, and there is beauty in watching others respond to that creation. Whether that creation is a song or a piece of code hardly matters; the "click" that comes from connecting with an audience can and should be there in either case. Actors generally recognize this, which is why there are dozens of small stage theaters in and around Los Angeles where screen actors perform - almost always unpaid - works that would never make it onto TV or into movie theaters. There is commercial success, and there is satisfaction. The two are not always the same.

Most of the "free software" writers I know make their livings writing commercial software or from some sort of programming-related consulting. But, like auto mechanics who build race cars on weekends for fun, when they go home they work on projects of their own choosing.

Mechanics who prove their creds on the racetrack always have their pick of the best "shop" jobs. Actors who get good reviews in small stage productions tend to get steady work in movies and TV. And a programmer who has gained recognition by doing excellent free software development is likely to have his or her pick of jobs. In this sense, fame gained by writing free software has direct financial value, and if it is widely-used software, not something that will be used only by a few other programmers, that value is increased substantially.

Building a Portfolio
When an actor, musician or writer goes looking for a job, he or she is expected to show potential employers or freelance clients samples of previous performed or published work. If that work has been performed or published to great public acclaim, so much the better.

Right now, programmers, like auto mechanics, are in short supply. A resume that says you have worked for So-and-So inc. for X amount of time, and have experience with Y language (or for the mechanic, on Z make of car) will get you in the door and will probably land you a decent job. And if you're satisfied with that, fine. The world needs ordinary grunt-work coders and ordinary "do brake jobs all day" mechanics. But in either field, the plum jobs go to those who can point to extraordinary individual accomplishments.

For the mechanic, the best proof of accomplishment has traditionally been the winning race car. For the programmer, the stellar proof of personal accomplishment is a popular piece of free software.

Look at Miguel de Icaza. A few years ago he was an obscure listing in the Linux Source, best known for his work on Midnight Commander. Today he's running a well-financed startup, and I'm sure he didn't have to look very hard for backers. But his work on Midnight Commander and other free software projects, even before Gnome made him famous, was more than enough to guarantee him not only an excellent living as a programmer, but complete freedom from "industrial-style" code writing for the rest of his life.

I suspect we'll see a lot more energetic, imaginative young programmers following in Miguel's footsteps instead of going into the highest-paying jobs they can find as soon as they can find them. Will some of them be doing this so that they can reap great financial rewards later? Of course! Not everyone can be a saint like Richard M. Stallman; Jean-loup Gailly, previously best-known as the principal author/maintainer of gzip, is now CTO of MandrakeSoft. And I'm sure there are countless others whose free software fame is getting them not only kudos but excellent salaries. And there's nothing wrong with that.

Passing Batons
We can sit around and cry about how free software developers are being "corrupted" by fame and money, but it's pointless. For one thing, just as the mechanic who gets promoted to shop foreman can still build race cars on his own time, and successful movie actresses often do unpaid stage acting on the side, there's no reason for people who use free software work as a springboard to fortune to give up their prior love. And many don't. They keep on doing what they always did, after work, on their own time. (And a few exceptionally lucky ones actually get to develop free software all day long for pay, but they're still a rare breed.)

But today's free software developers are not the be-all and end-all of the idea. Free software is starting to produce enough success stories that even if all of today's luminaries end up working for Microsoft, Adobe, and other big proprietary development houses within the next decade, plenty of new ones will come along, as hungry for applause as any group of talented young actors and singers.

And as more free software developers realize that by treating users as adoring fans - not as annoyances - they can earn even more applause, there will be more users. And more applause. And more developers. And if this upward spiral can become self-perpetuating, in a few years movie stars may be asking free software developers for their autographs instead of the other way around.

Neil99 wrote to us with the news that Mandrake has announced Jean-Loup Gailly will be joining them as CTO. He's the author of gzip, and co-author Zlib. Very interesting - makes you wonder where they will be going next.

Neil99 wrote to us with the news that Mandrake has announced Jean-Loup Gailly will be joining them as CTO. He's the author of gzip, and co-author Zlib. Very interesting - makes you wonder where they will be going next.

g8orade wrote to us with a column currently running on ZDNET about Macmillan Linux, aka Linux-Mandrake. The column is regarding the fact that while Macmillan is the best selling, the "geeks" of Linux don't give it any respect - which is an interesting point, although I would like to say that we've done more then one story on it. The column has some thought-provoking comments about useability and the direction of Linux, as well.

Several readers have written in with the news that, yes, Linux-Mandrake 6.1 (Helios) is out. The ISOs, and the whole bit are availible from their site as well as mirrors around the Web.

Several readers have written in with the news that, yes, Linux-Mandrake 6.1 (Helios) is out. The ISOs, and the whole bit are availible from their site as well as mirrors around the Web.

swestbrook writes "It appears that Mandrake 6.1 final is out. It's starting to appear on the mirrors everywhere-grab it from here or the usual places. No news of the release on their website but details should show up today. Update: 09/14 10:44 by H : I've been informed by Mandrake that it is not out yet-they are still going through the beta process, so don't be surprised by bugs in the current beta. You've been warned.

Stone writes "It's seems that Red Hat get a big competitor with Mandrake. Axa announces today an equity position in Mandrakesoft. Axa is the second world leader of assets management with 650 billion USD and the owner of DLJ who makes a lot's of Nasdaq IPOs." Thus it begins.

Base_16 writes "Panoramix, a new graphical installation for linux-mandrake, was released today. It nicely integrates the new Diskdrake partitioning tool with the rest of the installation to make setting up linux much easier. Go here to get more information. "

dayeight wrote in to tell us about Linux Mandrake's new DiskDrake GUI Disk Partitioner and resizer GTK Based replacement for FIPS or Partition Magic- it looks like a promising for the free world.

Jim Dabell writes "Macmillan have announced they are releasing "The Complete Linux(TM) Operating System 6.0" based on Mandrake. There are also deluxe and secure server options. " Why not. Everybody else seems to be creating their own distribution. Its fun.

The Linux Mandrake team has released version 6.0 of their award-winning distribution. The new release includes software so new it's almost scary - kernel 2.2.9, KDE 1.1.1, and even GNOME 1.0.9. To go along with the new version, the guys have also redone their web page. Comments?

sledge writes "eiT, a small German company, recently released easyLinux, a distribution targeted at beginners. Could be an interesting competitor for the 'big' boys. " We've mentioned this before, but it's actually been released now (in German - the English version should be out RSN). It looks impressive - a GUI based install, nice setup tools, etc. Does anyone know how the new stuff is licensed?
Also, Gael from Linux-Mandrake writes "We have release Mandrake6.0beta (Mariner) a few days ago and we need many many many people to test it!! :) It's available for download Thanx!!! " So, it seems as if all the news in Linux distributions for the day comes from Europe.

sledge writes "eiT, a small German company, recently released easyLinux, a distribution targeted at beginners. Could be an interesting competitor for the 'big' boys. " We've mentioned this before, but it's actually been released now (in German - the English version should be out RSN). It looks impressive - a GUI based install, nice setup tools, etc. Does anyone know how the new stuff is licensed?
Also, Gael from Linux-Mandrake writes "We have release Mandrake6.0beta (Mariner) a few days ago and we need many many many people to test it!! :) It's available for download Thanx!!! " So, it seems as if all the news in Linux distributions for the day comes from Europe.

jesus writes "The crazy kiddies over at Linux Mandrake have started the Lothar Project . The goal is to make hardware detection and configuration easy. The code is in CVS and they need all sorts of different people and furry animals, so take a gander at the page, look at the pretty screenshots, and contribute to world domination. "

jesus writes "The crazy kiddies over at Linux Mandrake have started the Lothar Project . The goal is to make hardware detection and configuration easy. The code is in CVS and they need all sorts of different people and furry animals, so take a gander at the page, look at the pretty screenshots, and contribute to world domination. "

Jacques Le Marois wrote in to plug Linux Mandrake which has just released v5.3 of their self dubbed "User-Friendly Linux Distribution". Probably best described as "Red Hat, KDE and some other nifty stuff".

Linux-Mandrake mailed us to let us know about some interesting happenings as of late. Their site now features a documentation area as well as an updated FAQ. Hit the link below to read more.

• The Linux-Mandrake website will soon be re-designed by a specialized company.
• The "Official Linux Mandrake Guide" is expected for the end of November.
• A Russian Linux-Mandrake edition is distributed by "IP Labs" in Moscow. Have a look at their (nice) website : http://www.iplabs.ru/Linux/
• In the USA, "Wheat Computers" has announced that they now ship they PCs with pre-installed Linux-Mandrake 5.1. See http://www.wheatcomputers.com/
• In France, "Power Inside" (hua@club-internet.fr) is now distributing :
  • Mandrake 5.1 CDs
  • Pre-installed hard-drives with disks Mandrake!
  • All its PCs with Linux-Mandrake pre-installed for free (so Windows is an OPTION!)
• "NoL" (http://store.nol.fr/order-int.html) can ship Linux-Mandrake distributions for European Community.
• Linux-Mandrake will very soon be distributed by iXsoft in Germany. http://www.ixsoft.de/
• Linux-Mandrake is having more and more success and things are going faster every day. So, we will now quickly found a commercial entity. The goal is to provide an international good quality Linux-Mandrake support for companies asking for this. And more. We will give more details soon. Anyway, the Linux-Mandrake distributions will always keep on being distributed in a "GPL edition".
• In this perspective, we are still looking for happy an motivated people who wish to participate to our project. We need correspondants, developers, lists-mainteners, writers and translators ALL OVER THE WORLD. Please write to mandrake@linux-mandrake.com about this.

Linux-Mandrake mailed us to let us know about some interesting happenings as of late. Their site now features a documentation area as well as an updated FAQ. Hit the link below to read more.

• The Linux-Mandrake website will soon be re-designed by a specialized company.
• The "Official Linux Mandrake Guide" is expected for the end of November.
• A Russian Linux-Mandrake edition is distributed by "IP Labs" in Moscow. Have a look at their (nice) website : http://www.iplabs.ru/Linux/
• In the USA, "Wheat Computers" has announced that they now ship they PCs with pre-installed Linux-Mandrake 5.1. See http://www.wheatcomputers.com/
• In France, "Power Inside" (hua@club-internet.fr) is now distributing :
  • Mandrake 5.1 CDs
  • Pre-installed hard-drives with disks Mandrake!
  • All its PCs with Linux-Mandrake pre-installed for free (so Windows is an OPTION!)
• "NoL" (http://store.nol.fr/order-int.html) can ship Linux-Mandrake distributions for European Community.
• Linux-Mandrake will very soon be distributed by iXsoft in Germany. http://www.ixsoft.de/
• Linux-Mandrake is having more and more success and things are going faster every day. So, we will now quickly found a commercial entity. The goal is to provide an international good quality Linux-Mandrake support for companies asking for this. And more. We will give more details soon. Anyway, the Linux-Mandrake distributions will always keep on being distributed in a "GPL edition".
• In this perspective, we are still looking for happy an motivated people who wish to participate to our project. We need correspondants, developers, lists-mainteners, writers and translators ALL OVER THE WORLD. Please write to mandrake@linux-mandrake.com about this.

Linux-Mandrake mailed us to let us know about some interesting happenings as of late. Their site now features a documentation area as well as an updated FAQ. Hit the link below to read more.

• The Linux-Mandrake website will soon be re-designed by a specialized company.
• The "Official Linux Mandrake Guide" is expected for the end of November.
• A Russian Linux-Mandrake edition is distributed by "IP Labs" in Moscow. Have a look at their (nice) website : http://www.iplabs.ru/Linux/
• In the USA, "Wheat Computers" has announced that they now ship they PCs with pre-installed Linux-Mandrake 5.1. See http://www.wheatcomputers.com/
• In France, "Power Inside" (hua@club-internet.fr) is now distributing :
  • Mandrake 5.1 CDs
  • Pre-installed hard-drives with disks Mandrake!
  • All its PCs with Linux-Mandrake pre-installed for free (so Windows is an OPTION!)
• "NoL" (http://store.nol.fr/order-int.html) can ship Linux-Mandrake distributions for European Community.
• Linux-Mandrake will very soon be distributed by iXsoft in Germany. http://www.ixsoft.de/
• Linux-Mandrake is having more and more success and things are going faster every day. So, we will now quickly found a commercial entity. The goal is to provide an international good quality Linux-Mandrake support for companies asking for this. And more. We will give more details soon. Anyway, the Linux-Mandrake distributions will always keep on being distributed in a "GPL edition".
• In this perspective, we are still looking for happy an motivated people who wish to participate to our project. We need correspondants, developers, lists-mainteners, writers and translators ALL OVER THE WORLD. Please write to mandrake@linux-mandrake.com about this.

Linux-Mandrake mailed us to let us know about some interesting happenings as of late. Their site now features a documentation area as well as an updated FAQ. Hit the link below to read more.

• The Linux-Mandrake website will soon be re-designed by a specialized company.
• The "Official Linux Mandrake Guide" is expected for the end of November.
• A Russian Linux-Mandrake edition is distributed by "IP Labs" in Moscow. Have a look at their (nice) website : http://www.iplabs.ru/Linux/
• In the USA, "Wheat Computers" has announced that they now ship they PCs with pre-installed Linux-Mandrake 5.1. See http://www.wheatcomputers.com/
• In France, "Power Inside" (hua@club-internet.fr) is now distributing :
  • Mandrake 5.1 CDs
  • Pre-installed hard-drives with disks Mandrake!
  • All its PCs with Linux-Mandrake pre-installed for free (so Windows is an OPTION!)
• "NoL" (http://store.nol.fr/order-int.html) can ship Linux-Mandrake distributions for European Community.
• Linux-Mandrake will very soon be distributed by iXsoft in Germany. http://www.ixsoft.de/
• Linux-Mandrake is having more and more success and things are going faster every day. So, we will now quickly found a commercial entity. The goal is to provide an international good quality Linux-Mandrake support for companies asking for this. And more. We will give more details soon. Anyway, the Linux-Mandrake distributions will always keep on being distributed in a "GPL edition".
• In this perspective, we are still looking for happy an motivated people who wish to participate to our project. We need correspondants, developers, lists-mainteners, writers and translators ALL OVER THE WORLD. Please write to mandrake@linux-mandrake.com about this.