OpenOffice.org 3.1 is 65 days away, and developers are finishing up more than 1000 issues targeted for this Microsoft Office killer packing an army of new features, enhancements, and bug fixes. The most requested feature in this release is anti-aliasing, which smooths edges of diagonal lines. On the left is OpenOffice.org 3.0, and the right is OpenOffice.org 3.1. Both images are enlarged to show detail.

Read more about it at All about Linux-blog.

Arch Linux is an operating system intended to be lightweight and simple. The design approach of the development team focuses on “simplicity”, elegance, code correctness and minimalism.

Arch is largely based around binary packages. Packages are targeted for i686 and x86-64 microprocessors to assist performance on modern hardware. A ports/ebuild-like system is also provided for automated source compilation, known as the ABS- Arch Build System. The Arch focus on simplicity and economy for developers means, among other things, that the main effort in assisting the user is not expended in crafting GUI configuration tools.

Ravi from all about Linux- blog wrote a full informative review on the arch Linux.

Matasano.com as just released a new version of thier first product: Playbook v1.2.

Playbook is a web-based command center for network firewalls. From a single console, Playbook allows firewalls teams to search firewall rulesets, design access rules with full change tracking, and push them out to one, ten or one hundred devices with a single click.

Your existing tools were designed to manage individual firewalls. Playbook solves the challenges of controlling many devices from different vendors. It’s a simple way to speed deployment, improve customer response time, slice through change management red tape, reduce operator error, and painlessly document complex policies.

IBM has added a Linux desktop with new virtualization capabilities to its portfolio.

The Virtual Desktop, which bundles Canonical’s Ubuntu Linux, Virtual Bridges’ KVM-based desktop virtualization software and IBM’s Open Collaboration Client Solution, is available now, Big Blue announced on Thursday.

None of the pieces are new. But the bundled solution makes it easier and cheaper for companies to deploy a complete VDI solution on Linux, IBM maintains. IBM’s OCCS includes Lotus Symphony, its implementation of the ODF-based OpenOffice, as well as Lotus Notes and other applications.

Read more about it in the Linux and Open Source-blog.

If there was a place i wanted to be more than anywhere else is the FOSS.IN convention, FOSS.IN is one of the world’s largest Free and Open Source Software events, held annually in India. The event is highly focused on FOSS development and contribution. Over the years, it has attracted thousands of participants, and the speaker roster reads like a “Who’s Who” of FOSS contributors from across the world.

FOSS.IN is a non-commercial event organized and run entirely by FOSS community volunteers. It does not represent the interests of any commercial entity.

This year Balbir presented and held a workshop at the FOSS.IN 2008 that i was so sad to miss. Gladly he wrote all about it in his blog.