Linux and Open Source

Linux on the desktop, Ubuntu and its long-term releases, and the news from the kernel and open-source world that's worth knowing about.

I’ve used Linux for a long time, sometimes dual-booted and sometimes as my main desktop. This is where I write about it: getting started with a Linux desktop, how the distributions I use handle updates and long-term support, and the kernel and open-source news that matters to people who actually run it.

What you’ll find here:

  • Linux on the desktop: getting started with Ubuntu, from install to a desktop you can live with.
  • Distributions and LTS: what Ubuntu’s and Kubuntu’s patch cadence says about how far you can trust a long-term release.
  • Kernel and open-source news: what actually happened behind the headlines, and credit to the maintainers doing the work.

Looking for the career posts that used to sit next to these under “Modern Computing”? They’re in IT Careers now.

Torvalds joked about blaming AI for Linux 7.3-rc2 — what actually happened

Torvalds joked about blaming AI for Linux 7.3-rc2 — what actually happened

by Jan Holbo Rasmussen

The joke: “We’ll obviously all blame it on AI”

Linux 7.3-rc2 came out on Sunday 6 September, and Linus Torvalds ended the announcement with this: “It might be just random, but we’ll obviously all blame it on AI, because whether that’s really the cause or not, it’s an easy thing to blame ;)” [1]. That line made the headlines [2]. The rest of the email, where he lists what actually made the release big, got far less attention [3].

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Getting started with Ubuntu on your desktop

Getting started with Ubuntu on your desktop

by Jan Holbo Rasmussen

I have been using Linux for a long time. Some times with a Dual Boot setup - that is when the system starts you choose between the installed operating systems e.g. Windows and Linux. And I have been using Linux as the main desktop as well. In this post I will be exploring getting started with Ubuntu.

This write-up will document my choices and reasonings for those choice. Mainly as a reminder to myself but perhaps it can be of use to you too! It will be a “Work-in-Progress” so consider it ever-changing.

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