Linux is not known for gaming, and when most people think of Linux games, they think of a few free and open source games that are good but not numerous. Nevertheless, there is a growing pool of free and commercial independent gaming developers who are pushing the envelope by offering their games on multiple platforms, including Linux.

They are available for purchase and download right over the Internet (often DRM-free), and some of them are pretty high quality. Here are five more you might not have played but are definitely worth giving a try.

The games: Mad Skills Motocross, Machinarium, And Yet It Moves, Tiny and Big, and OGS Mahjong.

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If you happen to use the Netflix Watch Now service and love it, the way I do, it has been frustrating to see only a handful of new DVD releases actually make it onto the Internet streaming movie service.  Watch Now has made mailing in DVDs to get new ones seems as old-fashioned as the mail-in service once made driving to the video store seem.

Now, Netflix has cut a deal with Epix to stream movies from Paramount, Lions Gate, and MGM.  The ramifications are tremendous.  Netflix would like to stop having to pay postage on DVDs just as much as we lazy movie watchers would like to stop having to go to the mailbox and wait for new discs to arrive.  The service starts in September, although there is no word about which movies, how many movies, or how soon new releases will arrive.  Nevertheless, it will extensively increase the Netflix library.

We use our Blu-ray Disc player to play Netflix Watch Now.  You can also get a set-top-box like Roku or use a gaming console like the Nintendo Wii or Xbox 360.  There is also desktop computer support for Windows and Mac, still no Linux — shame on you, Netflix!.  Despite that one shortcoming, the future looks bright indeed.

KDE 4.5 should be released this week.  This is my preview of the latest software compilation of the free and open source desktop environment.

When KDE 4.0 was released, it was clear that it was not finished and not ready for production. By version 4.2, the completely redesigned and recoded desktop environment was starting to regain the stability and depth that many loved about KDE 3, while also adding new features that make KDE a unique and rewarding desktop software compilation.

Just as KDE 3.5 was intended to be a stabilizing, long-term release, the primary goal of KDE 4.5 is to fix outstanding bugs and increase stability. Users will not be blown away by the new features, but there are a few worth noting. Last week I installed the release candidate for KDE 4.5 from the Kubuntu repositories and took it for a spin.

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…the terrorists win.

“The Federal Bureau of Investigation has demanded that Wikipedia stop using the FBI seal in articles on the online encyclopedia, or face possible legal action.

According to a letter dated July 28, FBI lawyer David C. Larson said the site is using the seal without permission from the director of the agency, as required by law. Larson sent the letter to the Wikimedia Foundation, which owns the site.”

Source: Information Week

Basket Note Pads is a multipurpose note-taking application for KDE. Business people can use it to keep track of important tasks and notes. Writers can use it to organize their thoughts. Students can use it for note taking. And generally anyone can use it as a virtual paste bin or clip drawer.

Basket was one of the last KDE 3 programs to be ported to KDE 4. While the development appeared to have stalled for some time, it has picked up again, and the developers have released a beta version for KDE 4.

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If swirling online rumors are correct, Dell’s new Android-based tablet could be released as early as Wednesday, while some blogs claim the release will be Friday or later.

The tablet is a 5″ computer that will run Android 1.6 upon release, with updates to 2.2 (codenamed Froyo) expected later in the year. It will reportedly run a 1Ghz Snapdragon ARM processor, 5-inch multi-touch WVGA screen (800×480), 5 MP camera with LED flash, a front facing camera for video chat, integrated 3G, Wi-Fi, GSM, and Bluetooth, and a micro SD card expansion slot.

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A new study by the University of Ballarat in Australia has confirmed what the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) and the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) have been telling us all along, that nearly all of the content being shared through the BitTorrent protocol is illegal copyrighted material.

The study looked at 23 torrent trackers (services that provide torrent clients with the information necessary to connect to peers and download chunks of the files). From those trackers, they sampled 1,000 files, chosen “randomly” from the most actively seeded files (seeing a problem with this yet?).

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I was writing an article that had a section about Windows Media Center, and I came across this error when searching their site on Google:

“This means that the security credentials of the server presented absolutely should not be trusted.”

I don’t know if this is Google Chrome’s way of saying the SSL certificate has expired or not.  ”Revoked” seems rather harsh, unless the issuer truly snatched the certificate from Microsoft’s hands.

Is this true or just Google’s latest strategy to overthrow the mighty Microsoft?

Many people still cling to the notion that Linux is for 30-year-old male geeks. While that may be true, there are plenty of other people of all ages, ethnicities, and genders who enjoy Linux and other free and open source software.

For the most part, the operating systems a child uses are determined by the child’s parents and school. As the parent and Linux user yourself, you may prefer your child to use Linux at home.

One feature of Linux desktop environments like KDE and Gnome is that they are extremely customizable. You can have one panel, two panels, or no panel at all. Just as easily as icons, menus, and widgets can appear, they can also disappear.

For that reason, you may find it necessary to set parameters for your children when using Linux. Whether you need tools to lockdown the desktop or filter Internet content, there is free software out there to help you. What follows is a short guide to preparing a Linux desktop for a child, complete with game recommendations.

Read the rest at MakeTechEasier.com

I decided to do a Google Image search this evening, only to find that it has changed.  They have now employed the use of some Web 2.0-ish javascript technology to display their search results.  Instead of images with metadata underneath, you get rows of images with no info.  Moving your mouse over one of them makes it zoom and pop up, presenting you with some of the metadata.

Also, instead of having to actually click to go to a new page, you just scroll and the pages are all there.  It is actually pretty fast and a lot easier to find the exact image you want.  I haven’t had a chance to test it in multiple browsers, but it runs fine in Google’s own Chrome, which is really no indicator.   At any rate, it certainly looks cooler.