Matt Hartley

Linux adoption up until now has been rather staggered, to say the least. “Joe Average” has yet to show any sustaining interest in Linux. And yet in 2007, this began to slowly change. After a long-fought battle for Linux desktops adoption, we’re seeing a new breed of Linux PCs filling a unique need – offering […]

Ever since the dawn of commercial software, piracy has been a problem without a realistic solution that meets the needs of both the software vendor and the end user. From serial keys to outright DRM (digital rights management) schemes, the software industry has left no preventive measure untried. Some software companies by contrast, have opted […]

Many people are looking to Ubuntu to be something that it is not: A mass market ready operating system designed to work with the same level of compatibility as Microsoft Windows. Where people get confused is in believing that if Ubuntu, king of the Linux distros, is not able to take the marketplace by storm, […]

So what does free software mean to you? Not to be confused with Freeware, which refers to “free” as in free of “cost” to the end user. I’m talking about the kind of software freedom that’s derived from not restricting your users from altering or distributing software developed by you. For years, this type of […]

Ubuntu has been a force to be reckoned within the Linux world for a couple of years now. It’s undeniably the path to Linux gaining mainstream acceptance. In this article, I’ll examine ten areas where I think Ubuntu could go still further; that is, really improve and even gain back those who abandoned it out […]

With open source software becoming a household name, another open source movement that may one day see some fanfare is already taking shape. Open source hardware, which I once thought to be little more than a pipe dream left over from a bygone era, is proving to be a dream that it is very much […]

For years, Microsoft has reigned supreme as the ‘only’ choice for OEM partners on the x86 architecture. Later on, Apple switched from PPC (Power PC) to x86, but really did not make a dent in the OEM market, as Apple produces its own hardware, with OS X being a means to that end. Then it […]

Behold the vast and sprawling feast of open source downloads. Incredible, ain’t it? Armed with little more than an Internet connection and some extra space on your hard drive, a rich cornucopia awaits you. And so, with no further ado…let’s dig in! 1) FilezillaA popular FTP client that is powerful, simple to use and cross […]

Generally when a company is considering an upgrade to new workstations or notebook computers, they will elect to use Microsoft Windows. Not out of love for the operating system, rather out of understanding for the importance of familiarity and compatibility with the existing office ecosystem. Sounds like a good approach, until the ecosystem breaks down […]

Despite fantastic advances with Desktop Linux as a collective whole, there still seems to be some hurdles that this Windows alternative has yet to overcome. In this piece, I’ll examine these from my own perspective, that of a full time Linux user. For example, this statement: Desktop Linux is not ready for prime time Perhaps […]