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# News Bytes

By Howard Dyckoff

## News in General

### Red Hat Releases Enterprise Linux 5.0

The new RHEL 5.0 release introduces Xen for virtualization, IPv6 support, improved SELinux management tools, and a number of new services. Red Hat also includes a preview of a new encrypted file system, co-developed with IBM.

The new version of RHEL changes the user's license choices. No more conundrum between desktop, workstation, and server. There are now 2 base classes: "Client" and "Server", each having license variations with different degrees of virtual hosting. There are 2 versions of server, where the base server licence can only support up to 4 OS virtual guests, and the advanced server license has no limitation on virtual guests. Red Hat has also developed technology to deliver software and updates to customers, even in virtualized environments. Red Hat Network Satellite provides capabilities to manage virtualized systems, including the ability to detect and create Enterprise Linux-based guests and bring them into a managed environment. RHEL subscribers now have the ability to manage dozens or thousands of virtual systems as a single system.

Here is Red Hat's technical review of its new Enterprise Linux 5: http://www.press.redhat.com/2007/03/14/red-hat-enterprise-linux-5-technical-attributes/ .

### Red Hat, Exadel Open Source Commercial Products under JBoss.org

At EclipseCon 2007, Red Hat and Exadel, a provider of rich application components, announced a strategic partnership that will add mature, Eclipse-based developer tools for building service-oriented architecture (SOA) and rich, Web 2.0 applications to Red Hat's integrated platform, including Red Hat Enterprise Linux and JBoss Enterprise Middleware. This means that a mature, high-caliber set of Eclipse-based developer tools will be available in open source. It also means that Red Hat is now supporting Java Developers, following Sun's release of Java to open source.

Exadel Studio Pro provides an advanced Web development environment that allows developers to work with multiple frameworks within a single environment. RichFaces and Ajax4jsf offer powerful yet simple models for building rich Internet and Web 2.0 applications, and supports JSF, Struts, Hibernate, Spring, and many other platforms.

By combining Exadel's developer tools with JBoss Enterprise Middleware, Red Hat offers a complete development and deployment platform that enables Java programmers to assemble SOA components and Web 2.0 applications with dramatically less coding, and reducing development and run-time errors.

RichFaces and Ajax4jsf are now available as JBoss RichFaces and JBoss Ajax4jsf, respectively, on JBoss.org under the LGPL license. Red Hat is currently working to open-source Exadel Studio Pro as Red Hat Developer Studio under a GPL-based license. Availability for Red Hat Developer Studio is planned for the first half of this year. For more information on the projects, visit: http://www.jboss.org/ .

### Oracle Commits TopLink to JPA Open Source

Also at EclipseCon, Oracle announced that it was contributing its TopLink database connectivity suite for Java to the Eclipse Foundation. Besides the code, Oracle announced the proposal of a new Eclipse project to deliver a comprehensive persistence platform based on the contribution of Oracle TopLink, a component of Oracle Fusion Middleware, source code, and test cases.

Oracle TopLink is an award-winning Java persistence framework offering object-to-relational, object-to-XML, and Enterprise Information System data access through all of the major standards, including the Java Persistence API (JPA), Java API for XML Binding, Service Data Objects, and the Java Connector Architecture. (Whew... that's a lot of standards!) Oracle TopLink works with any database, any application server, any development toolset and process, and any Java application architecture. In addition to its code contribution, Oracle proposed a new Eclipse run-time project to provide a set of persistence services that can be used in Java and OSGi environments. Working closely with the Eclipse Foundation, Eclipse member companies, and other contributors, Oracle will use the existing code base of Oracle TopLink as the starting point for this project. Through its participation in the OSGi Enterprise Expert Group, Oracle will also work with the group members to create a set of blueprints that define how OSGi applications can access standardized persistence technologies.

The Eclipse Persistence Platform project will be available free of charge under the Eclipse Public License. For more information about Oracle's development and contribution of open source solutions, visit: http://otn.oracle.com/tech/eclipse/ .

### Ian Murdock Joins Sun

Ian Murdock is leaving the Linux Foundation, and has joined Sun as the new Chief Operating Platforms Officer. While Ian is not giving out too much information yet about what he will be doing, we understand that he will be responsible for building a strategy to evolve both Sun's Solaris and GNU/Linux.

As the founder of Debian, along with the work he has done as the CTO of the Linux Foundation and the head of the Linux Standard Base, he will bring a fresh perspective to Sun's OS strategy. Ian wrote recently in his blog: "The last several years have been hard for Sun, but the corner has been turned. As an outsider, I've watched as Sun has successfully embraced x86, pioneered energy efficiency as an essential computing feature, open-sourced its software portfolio to maximize the network effects, championed transparency in corporate communications, and so many other great things. Now, I'm going to be a part of it."

To find out more, visit the following blogs:

- Ian Murdock: http://ianmurdock.com/2007/03/19/joining-sun
- Simon Phipps: "http://blogs.sun.com/webmink/entry/charting_the_next_25_years
- Tim Bray: http://www.tbray.org/ongoing/When/200x/2007/03/18/Ian-Murdock
- Barton George: http://blogs.sun.com/barton808/

### GlassFish V2 Released

In other Sun news, Sun and the GlassFish community announced the beta release of GlassFish V2, the next major version of the open source Java EE 5 application server, and the release of the Sun Web Developer Pack, a toolkit designed for simplifying and enabling advanced rich Internet applications for the Java platform. These releases help enterprises build and deploy SOA and Web 2.0 applications and services, leveraging next-generation Web technologies such as AJAX, scripting, and REST that simplify development and deployment of scalable, interactive applications.

GlassFish V2 Beta adds all the enterprise features from Sun's Java System Application Server Enterprise Edition, such as clustering, administration, Web Services Interoperability Technology (WSIT), and load balancing to support highly scalable, volume enterprise deployments for SOA and Web 2.0 applications. Sun is also announcing creation of a Java Specification Request (JSR) 311 (http://jcp.org/en/jsr/detail?id=311), focused on providing support for RESTful Web Services in the Java Platform, working with other vendors such as BEA, Apache, Google, JBoss, TmaxSoft, and Jerome Louvel (author of the Restlet project). This JSR will help further promote standardization around next-generation Web technologies, and will aim to provide an easy-to-use API for developers for Java EE or Java SE platforms.

### Microsoft Offers Source Code Access to FoxPro Extensions

Yes, even Redmond is doing an open source jig, of a sort. The venerable code base for FoxPro has not had a major update in a while, and hasn't been much of a revenue source since... perhaps Windows 95. However, there will be what Microsoft calls "shared source" for the extensions to the FoxPro codebase called the Sedna Project.

There had been an overly optimistic report (Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols's article at http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,2105307,00.asp?kc=EWRSS03129TX1K0000616) that all of FoxPro would become open source, but that invoked a strong denial on the Microsoft Developer Network Web site:

"To reiterate, today we are announcing that we are not planning on releasing a VFP [Visual FoxPro] 10, and will be releasing the completed Sedna work on CodePlex at no charge. The components written as part of Sedna will be placed in the community for further enhancement as part of our shared source initiative. You can expect to see the Sedna code on CodePlex, sometime before the end of summer 2007." (http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vfoxpro/bb308952.aspx)

Sedna is about .Net and SQL server integration, and also MSbuild integration, but not changes to the DB engine. That code will remain proprietary.

Microsoft hasn't specified which license will be used, but, in practice, the term Microsoft Shared Source Initiative can include a bit of genuine open source, along with some proprietary licences.

Too bad, because turning FoxPro, and xBase DBMSes in general, into an open source project could lead to a renewal of the focused and fast small apps that FoxPro and Clipper were famous for, in the late '80s.

### Chip Wars Continue: AMD's Volley

In early December, AMD began showing off its true quad-core "Barcelona" Opteron 8000 chip, which is expected to show a 40-70 performance gain over its current Opteron dual-core performance. The sample chip was shown running in a 4-socket test system at the AMD Industry Analyst Forum, in Berkeley, CA. The test system was upgraded from 2-way chips to 4-way chips in the same sockets (with a BIOS upgrade), as a proof of concept. See the demonstration at http://www.amd.com/quadcoredemo/ .

The "Barcelona" is initially aimed at multithreaded applications like databases or guest operating systems, and will appear in systems supporting up to 4 such chips, for an inexpensive 16-way server. It is also the first 65 nm chip AMD has produced.

Unlike Intel's approach of first releasing a design with 2 dual cores in the same case, the quad-core Opteron has faster internal data paths and more shared cache memory. The future AMD 4-core chips will be called the Opteron 8000 Series. Intel's quad chips include the Core 2 Extreme QX6700 for gamers, and the Xeon 5300 for servers.

AMD and IBM also announced a collaboration at the International Electron Device Meeting last month, to build 45 nm chips by 2008. This development makes use of immersion lithography using a transparent liquid to fill the space between the projection lens and the wafer that contains hundreds of microprocessors. This process provides increased depth of focus, and improved image fidelity that can improve chip-level performance and manufacturing efficiency.

Intel is already experimenting with fabricating 45 nm chips, and has finished designing its first 45 nm chips for release in 2008. Called the 'Penryn' family, these chips will also have 48 new media instructions. Intel may beat AMD to market with the first 45 nm chips, but it is a horse race. AMD has quietly begun selling 2 new 65 nm chips with performance and power consumption specs similar to that of Intel's current high-end Xeon chips. (Engineers at Sun tell LG that the Intel Woodcrest family chips are very good at processing small and medium data sets, while the AMD Opterons excel at moving large data sets through the processors.)

## Conferences and Events

Web 2.0 Expo April 15-18, 2007, San Francisco, CA
(http://www.web2expo.com/)

AIIM Conference April 16-19, 2007, Boston, MA
(http://www.aiimexpo.com/)

The RoboBusiness Conference May 15-16, 2007, Hynes Convention Center, Boston, MA
(http://www.roboevent.com/)

Semantic Technology Conference May 20-24, 2007, Fairmont Hotel, San Jose, CA
(http://www.semantic-conference.com/)

CardTech-SecurTech Conference May 15-17, 2007, at the Moscone Center, San Francisco, CA
(http://www.sourcemediaconferences.com/CTST07/)

Open Source Business Conference (OSBC) May 22-23, 2007, Palace Hotel, San Francisco, CA
(http://www.idgworldexpo.com/live/13/events/13SFO07A)

Gartner IT Security Summit June 4-6, 2007, Washington, DC
(http://www.gartner.com/us/itsecurity/)

3rd Annual Red Hat Summit May 9-11, 2007. San Diego, CA
(http://www.redhat.com/promo/summit/)

InfoWorld Enterprise Data Protection Forum June 26, 2007, Le Parker Meridien Hotel, New York, NY
(http://www.infoworld.com/event/data_protection/07/)

## Distro News

### RC2 Brings SimplyMEPIS 6.5 Close to Final Release

Development Release: SimplyMEPIS 6.5 RC2 is now available. SimplyMEPIS 6.5 RC2 is available for downloading and testing. This release improves hard disk reformatting and Broadcom wireless support.

### Ubuntu 5.10 Reaches End of Life on April 13, 2007

Ubuntu announced the release of 5.10 almost 18 months ago, on October 13th. As with the earlier releases, Ubuntu committed to ongoing security and critical fixes for a period of 18 months. The support period is now nearing its end, and Ubuntu 5.10 will reach end of life, on Friday, April 13, 2007. At that time, Ubuntu Security Notices will no longer include information or updated packages for Ubuntu 5.10. The supported upgrade path from Ubuntu 5.10 is via Ubuntu 6.06 LTS. Instructions and caveats for the upgrade may be found at https://help.ubuntu.com/community/DapperUpgrades/ . Note that upgrades to version 6.10 and beyond are supported only in multiple steps, via an upgrade first to 6.06 LTS, then to 6.10. Both Ubuntu 6.06 LTS and Ubuntu 6.10 continue to be actively supported, with security updates and select high-impact bug fixes. All announcements of official security updates for Ubuntu releases are sent to the ubuntu-security-announce mailing list, information about which may be found at https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-security-announce .

### Debian GNU/Linux 3.1 Updated

The Debian project announced the fifth update of its stable distribution Debian GNU/Linux 3.1 (codename "sarge"), in late February. This update mainly adds corrections for security problems to the stable release, along with a few adjustments to serious problems. Note that this update does not constitute a new version of Debian GNU/Linux 3.1, but only updates some of the packages included in the stable release. Visit Debian GNU/Linux 3.1 updated for additional information on the update. A comprehensive list of mirrors hosting the update is available at: http://www.debian.org/mirror/list .

### Linspire's CNR Technology to Deliver CrossOver Linux 6.0

Linspire (developer of the Linspire commercial and Freespire community desktop Linux operating systems, and CNR - a one-click digital software delivery service for desktop Linux applications, libraries, and packages) and CodeWeavers, the leading Windows-to-Linux software developer, have announced the release of CrossOver Linux 6.0 for CNR. This marks the latest CodeWeavers upgrade for the market-leading product that allows running native Windows applications within a desktop Linux operating system. Incorporating substantially improved support for many popular games, including World of Warcraft, Half-Life 2, and Counterstrike, CrossOver Linux 6.0 now offers CNR users more flexibility than ever to run the Windows applications. CrossOver Linux 6.0 is immediately available via digital download using CNR at http://www.linspire.com/crossover/ . CrossOver Linux is an essential productivity utility for millions of Linux users around the world, supporting the seamless, dependable installation and operation of scores of top-name Windows applications natively within Linux. Microsoft Office, Outlook, Visio, and Internet Explorer, as well as Adobe Photoshop, Adobe (formerly Macromedia) Dreamweaver, Intuit Quicken and QuickBooks, and Lotus Notes, are just some of the many popular business and productivity applications that can be used on Linux desktops via CrossOver Linux. Now, with 6.0, CodeWeavers intends to bring that same reliability to the gaming market.

### France Gives Students the Gift of Open Source

The French National Assembly will open their next session on new Linux computers. These systems will probably be running Ubuntu or France's own Linux distribution, Mandriva. Beyond a switch to new Linux desktops for the French government, other parts of the French government are currently using the Apache Web server and the Mambo content management system. Parisian high school students will also be gifted with free software / open source applications. From a ComputerWorld report:

"French authorities will give out 175,000 USB memory sticks loaded with open-source software to Parisian high school students, at the start of the next school year... The sticks will probably contain the Firefox 2 Web browser, Thunderbird e-mail client, an office productivity suite such as OpenOffice 2, an audio and video player, and software for instant messaging.... "

More on this story here:

- http://software.silicon.com/os/0,39024651,39166298,00.htm
- http://desktoplinux.com/news/NS6755477184.html
- http://www.computerworld.com/action/[...]

### South African Government Goes Open Source

The South African national government recently "approved a policy and strategy for the implementation of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) in government. All new software developed for or by the Government will be based on open standards and government will itself migrate current software to FOSS." (http://www.info.gov.za/speeches/2007/07022211451001.htm)

## Software and Product News

### Verio Offers Free Test Drive of Linux Virtual Server

Verio Inc. announced its Verio Linux Test Drive program, for companies and developers interested in hosting services on the popular open source platform. As part of a new promotional campaign that focuses on the benefits of open source and Linux, users can test drive Verio's Linux Virtual Private Server (VPS) service, free of charge. The account preview is for a limited time only, and allows businesses to explore how to leverage Verio's VPS. To sign up for the Linux Test Drive, users should register at http://www.verio.com/linuxlineage/ . Linux VPS gives users access to the vinstall tool and a software library, enabling them to deploy preconfigured applications on their virtual server. Apache 2.2.3 comes installed on Linux VPS for faster performance, and PHP 5.1.5 provides supports popular technologies such as XML, SOAP, and MySQL. Linux VPS solutions are ideal to meet the individual requirements of multiple businesses, by partitioning the resources of a single physical server to perform like a dedicated server. Verio's Linux VPS gives businesses the control they want and need with advanced FairShare technology, better resource management, and reduced cost, and includes live 24/7 technical support with administrator assistance.

### Moonwalk Showcases Storage Software for Linux at Novell BrainShare 2007

Moonwalk Inc., an Australian developer of data management and protection software, will be exhibiting its Moonwalk for Linux product at Novell BrainShare 2007 in Salt Lake City, March 18-23.

Moonwalk for Linux automates migration of unstructured data from Linux servers to lower-cost devices, on additional tiers within a storage infrastructure. Linux-captive files can be migrated to other storage devices and other file systems, without any effect on users and applications.

Moonwalk's software is YES Certified, and compatible with a variety of Novell products, including Open Enterprise Server, SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, NetWare, Novell Client, and Novell eDirectory.

BrainShare 2007 provides IT experts with the tools and knowledge to help them manage, simplify, secure, and integrate heterogeneous IT environments, at lower cost than expected. More information about BrainShare is available online at http://www.novell.com/brainshare/ .

Moonwalk, founded in 2002, has an all-inclusive data management and protection software that is available for all major operating systems and most storage platforms.

### SlickEdit 2007 Introduces New Editing Features for Power Programmers

SlickEdit is a cross-platform, multi-language code editor that gives programmers the ability to code in over 40 languages on 8 platforms, including Windows, Linux, Unix, and Mac OS X. This latest version builds on the company's 19 years of experience in enabling developers and teams to create, build, and debug code faster.

SlickEdit 2007 delivers new features including improved XML/HTML support, a class tool window, Solaris X86 compatibility, and a symbol finder window.

SlickEdit 2007 pricing starts at US $284 for new licenses. Other products available from SlickEdit are the SlickEdit Plug-In for Eclipse and SlickEdit Tools for Microsoft Visual Studio 2005. For more information about SlickEdit and free trial downloads, visit: http://www.slickedit.com/ .

### OpenMake Announced the Release of Mojo 7.0 at EclipseCon

Mojo 7.0 is a free, community-oriented solution for automating build-to-release tasks. This build-to-deploy automation solution is complete, regardless of platform or development language environment -- unlike other workflow tools designed to only support single development environments, such as either Java or C. Developers code, maintain, manage, and orchestrate hundreds of make and Ant scripts, to support their build-to-release process. In an effort to bring some order to the chaos, they look to process-automation solutions that can sit on top of these scripts, create a central place to execute the scripts in a precise order, and log results. OpenMake's Mojo solution will provide enterprise-level process automation for managing the execution of ad hoc build, testing, and deployment scripts. OpenMake's solution will interoperate with other application life cycle tools through "Adaptors". The Adaptors provide "out of the box" integration with deployment tools for packaging, testing tools for test script execution and SCM tools for check-in, check-out, labeling, Bill of Material reporting, and Build Difference reporting. Using this OpenMake solution, a complete application lifecycle process can be defined as a workflow and re-executed by any approved user. OpenMake offers script adaptors for integrating with SCM and IDE solutions such as IBM RAD, IBM ClearQuest, IBM ClearCase, Eclipse, Microsoft Visual Studio and .Net, Perforce, MKS Source, AccuRev, CVS, Subversion, Harvest, Dimensions, PVCS, and Visual Source Safe.

### Hitachi Unveils One-Terabyte Hard Drive; Scores Popular Mechanics Award

Hitachi announced the Deskstar 7K1000, the world's first terabyte hard disk drive, at CES 2007. Delivering superior performance and reliability, as well as capacity, Hitachi's 1TB hard drive meets the needs of consumers who want to create, share, and store all of their digital information. The Deskstar 7K1000 will begin shipping to retail customers in the first quarter of 2007, at a suggested retail price of US $399.

Popular Mechanics chose the Deskstar 7K1000 1TB hard drive to be among the best new products displayed at the 2007 Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Judged by the magazine's editorial staff and presented on the opening day of the show, the Editor's Choice award recognizes the best of CES in new product design and innovation.

### SC Magazine Selects Core Impact Penetration Tester for Its Security Lab

Core Impact, a leading penetration testing product for assessing information security risks, earned a perfect score and received one of the first Lab Approved awards from SC Magazine. In its group test of vulnerability assessment products published in the January 2007 issue, SC Magazine recognized Core Impact for its comprehensive capability in a production environment, performance, and ease of use.

The SC Magazine Lab Approved distinction is awarded to extraordinary products that fit into the SC Lab environment, and which will be used in its test bench for the coming year. Core Impact received a perfect five (out of five) stars across all categories of the evaluation, which included Features, Ease of Use, Performance, Documentation, and Value for Money.

According to the review, penetration tools tend to be designed for very skilled users. They often run from command lines, and run individual exploits only. While this is adequate for a research laboratory, for production testing of large networks, speed, accuracy, and repeatability are critical. This is where Core Impact shines. Core Impact is developed by Core Security Technologies.

This latest industry accolade joins a growing list of honors for Core Impact, including eWeek Excellence Awards for Best Vulnerability Assessment & Remediation Solution, SC Magazine Reader Trust Award for Best Security Audit Product, the Info Security Products Guide Hot Companies 2006 Award, and the company's recognition by leading analyst firm Gartner as a Cool Vendor in Security and Privacy.

For the complete review, visit: http://scmagazine.com/us/grouptest/details/040e98df-db32-0544-e529-4724517bb79f/vulnerability-assessment-2007/ .

### Altiris Adds Linux Patch and Virtual Server Management

Altiris announced the addition of new Linux patch and virtual server management capabilities, to help secure and manage heterogeneous server environments. Altiris also announced updates to integrated deployment, patch, and monitoring capabilities for Dell servers.

Altiris provides a suite of server management solutions to help improve system availability and reliability, monitor performance, maintain operations, and remedy security vulnerabilities. New features will include:

- New heterogeneous patch management support for Red Hat Enterprise Linux
- Improved support of VMware virtual server resources now includes expanded deployment, inventory, and software delivery for VMware ESX Server and GSX Server
- New performance and fault monitoring for Microsoft Exchange Server and Microsoft SQL Server
- Expanded server application inventory includes Microsoft Exchange Server and SQL Server configurations and Windows services (DNS, DHCP, WINS, RRAS)

Dell recently announced a new systems management strategy with Altiris that provides co-developed OpenManage hardware and software management tools, based on the Altiris platform. Customers who also want advanced server management capabilities from the same platform can purchase the Altiris Management Suite for Dell Servers.

## Magical Realism

### Compact Optical Buffer Tested in Silicon

Let there be light... in the Data Center.

In the premiere January issue of the scientific journal Nature Photonics, an IBM team reports optical buffering of 10 bits of information on a tiny part of a silicon chip. This advance could allow supercomputers to use fast optical interconnects and achieve better performance.

This demonstration is a major milestone in development of all-optical buffers for system interconnects inside systems and between servers. To avoid data congestion in a switching fabric today, multiple electrical-to-optical (EO) and OE conversions are necessary to convert optical signals and store the packets in memory, until the congestion is resolved. Avoiding multiple EO/OE conversion would not only drive the cost/performance down significantly, but also might result in better signal integrity and lower overall power consumption.

One way to delay light is to pass it through optical fibers. However, current "delay line" devices are too big to fit on a microchip. IBM control the light signal by passing it through a new form of silicon-based optical delay line, built of up to 100 cascaded "micro-ring resonators." With the optical waveguide curved to form a ring, it forces light to circle multiple times, delaying its travel. The resonators are built using current silicon complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) fabrication tools, and will fit on a microchip.

This device can to store optical information for data streams as fast at 20 Gbps (gigabits per second). The device comprises up to 100 identical micro-ring resonators, all working in tune to produce very large optical delays in excess of 500ps. Results represent at least a factor of 10 improvement with respect to previous efforts. Interestingly, the actual demonstrated buffering capacity of 10 bits on a footprint of 0.03mm2 is only about 10 percent of a floppy disk's surface storage density.

This is also an important technological advancement in the area of nanophotonics. To create the experimental delay lines, significant efforts were applied to design lossless coupling between the resonators, and to control geometric parameters of all resonators to within just a few atomic layers of silicon.

Photo animation and the Nature Photonics paper are available at: http://domino.research.ibm.com/comm/pr.nsf/pages/news.20061222_ringresonator.html .

### iRobot Unveils Ready-to-Roll Programmable Robot

iRobot Corp. has released iRobot Create, an affordable, programmable robot designed for aspiring roboticists. Create comes pre-assembled, so developers can design new robots without having to build a mobile robot from scratch. The latest robot is available at <http://www.irobot.com>www.irobot.com , and pricing starts at US $129.99.

Create is based on the core technology of iRobot Roomba, the vacuuming robot that is cleaning millions of homes worldwide, and is compatible with Roomba's rechargeable batteries, remote control, and other accessories.

With Create, developers can now begin designing new robot applications, out of the box. This new platform provides access to robot sensors and actuators, via an open interface. Create also features standard connections for electronics, and threaded mounting holes that allow users to secure their inventions to the robot, streamlining additions such as sensors, cameras, arms, and wireless connections.

A variety of methods and programming languages can be used to control Create. Beginners can observe the robot's behavior in one of ten demonstration modes, or they can program the robot directly by downloading short scripts with any basic terminal program. More advanced users can write programs for completely autonomous robot behavior in C or C++, using the iRobot Command Module. Developers can also create custom software and interact with Create using a variety of methods, including Microsoft Robotics Studio, a Windows-based development toolkit.

Helen Greiner, co-founder and chairman of iRobot says, "Innovators dream of creating useful robots, but often get bogged down with designing a mobile platform that works... iRobot Create fills a need in the robot industry for a standard, durable hardware platform on which to rapidly develop new, innovative mobile robots."

Talkback: Discuss this article with The Answer Gang

Howard Dyckoff is a long term IT professional with primary experience at Fortune 100 and 200 firms. Before his IT career, he worked for Aviation Week and Space Technology magazine and before that used to edit SkyCom, a newsletter for astronomers and rocketeers. He hails from the Republic of Brooklyn [and Polytechnic Institute] and now, after several trips to Himalayan mountain tops, resides in the SF Bay Area with a large book collection and several pet rocks.

Copyright © 2007, Howard Dyckoff. Released under the Open Publication License unless otherwise noted in the body of the article. Linux Gazette is not produced, sponsored, or endorsed by its prior host, SSC, Inc.

Published in Issue 137 of Linux Gazette, April 2007

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