Bruce Byfield

When personal computers were introduced, few manufacturers worried about security. Not until the early 1990s did the need for security become widely understood. Today, the Internet of Things (IoT) is following the same pattern — except that the need for security is becoming obvious far more quickly, and manufacturers should have known better, especially given […]

When Ubuntu was new, those who questioned it were mostly Debian developers, disgruntled because they were not hired or because Ubuntu failed to acknowledge its debt to Debian. Today, however, a vocal minority seems to view Canonical Software, the company behind Ubuntu, as a Microsoft in the making. From being the uncritical darling of open […]

When Canonical Software, the company behind Ubuntu Linux, announced that developers from other distributions were working on Snappy packages, the media pumped a minor announcement into a major story. The headlines alone tell the story: “Snap! Ubuntu 16.04 Just Made Installing New Apps MUCH Easier;” “Goodbye apt and yum? Ubuntu’s snap apps are coming to […]

Few doubt that smart devices are the next technological revolution. The next generation of connected appliances is already starting to create the Internet of Things (IoT), and to connect users to their devices in ways that were impossible only a few years ago. However, few stop to consider that, amid the new conveniences and wonder, […]

Surely the Internet of Things will be crowdfunding, but first a question hangs in the air. Few buzzwords are heard more often in tech circles than the Internet of Things (Iot). The vision of a series of connected smart devices, the IoT is supposed to revolutionize everything from households and appliances to cars and clothes. […]

Convergence is not a word on everybody’s lips. But if Canonical Software, the company that controls Ubuntu, has any say, it soon will be. Others may be more skeptical. Canonical describes convergence as “a single software platform that runs across smartphones, tablets, PCs, and TVs. It is designed to help make converged computing a reality: […]

Newcomers to Linux desktop struggle with the concept of choosing a Linux desktop environment. Just the idea of having a choice is difficult if you are used to Windows or OS X, but how do you choose between a dozen major Linux desktop options, and several dozen minor ones? The question has no easy answer, […]

I’ve been a desktop Linux user for seventeen years. For eight of those years, I haven’t had a copy of Windows installed on any machine in the house. Under the circumstances, I can easily drift into thinking that Linux and free software represent the whole of computing, and possibly its future as well. Increasingly, though, […]

I have never cared for Unity, the desktop environment designed for Ubuntu. After Mark Shuttleworth’s challenge to free software to match Apple’s interface, it has always been a disappointing result, full of arbitrary changes and limitations. However, now, to my surprise, I find myself changing my mind. I still avoid Unity on laptops or workstations, […]

In casual conversation, most Linux users will tell you that the Debian distribution is hard to install. Mention that you have installed it multiple times, and people are apt to look at you as if you are some kind of stone-cold geek. After all, wasn’t the original point of Ubuntu was to make Debian available […]