Adlink announced an entry-level, display-oriented Intel Atom-based COM Express module. The Express-AT incorporates a 1.6GHz Atom N270 processor, supports CRT resolution up to 1600 x 1200, and provides a gigabit Ethernet port and two SATA ports, says the company. (more…)

A CNET review of the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) XO netbook explores the dilemma facing customers choosing between the Linux and Windows XP versions. Meanwhile, the Fedora Project has released a Fedora Sugar Spin Live CD incorporating the Linux XO version's Sugar desktop environment. (more…)

Dell has announced a device billed as the company's first-ever thin client design. The Optiplex FX160 has single-core Atom 230 or dual-core Atom 330 processors, up to 4GB of RAM, an optional 2.5-inch hard disk drive, gigabit Ethernet port, and available 802.11b/g wireless networking, says Dell. (more…)

IBM DeveloperWorks has published a tutorial on GNU Compiler Collection (GCC) version 4. Written by Tim Jones, “Get to know GCC 4” describes the upgrade's new Tree SSA optimization framework and intermediate code representation, OpenMP multi-threading, and novel approaches to target and language support. (more…)

Jim Zemlin, director of the Linux Foundation, has posited that Linux may outship Windows on the desktop next year, thanks to the many fast-booting Linux environments increasingly bundled with PCs. Writes Zemlin, “We may see a world at the end of next year where Linux ships on almost every notebook computer regardless of whether it is loaded with Windows.” (more…)

An electronic design services (EDS) provider in San Jose has started shipping a PowerPC-based reference board with a Linux 2.6.24 BSP (board support package). GDA Technologies' “Bali” board is based on Freescale's MPC5121e, a system-on-chip (SoC) product targeting automotive telematics, building automation, medical diagnostics, surveillance, digital home, and gaming applications. (more…)

Aonix is shipping a symmetric multi-processing (SMP) version of its Linux-compatible real-time Java virtual machine (JVM), targeting multi-core processors running Linux. Offering initial support for Concurrent's RedHawk real-time Linux, “PERC Ultra SMP” optimizes PERC's garbage collection techniques for complex SMP environments, says Aonix. (more…)

In conjunction with a disappointing 3Q earnings release in which Motorola reported losses of $397 million, the company reported it would focus future handset efforts on Android and Windows Mobile platforms. (more…)

The Small Form Factor Special Interest Group (SFF-SIG) announced it is working on a specification to standardize small-format storage. The SFF-SIG, which earlier this year announced a “SUMIT” spec for tiny single-board computers (SBCs), will base the MiniBlade spec on SiliconSystems's SiliconDrive II Blade… (more…)

Intel and Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) will jointly establish an “enabling center” for Moblin, an open source toolkit and software stack for developers targeting Intel's Atom processors. Additionally, Intel Capital will invest $11.5 million in Taiwanese carrier VMAX Telecom, with the aim of enabling Taiwan's first WiMAX network. (more…)

REDWOOD CITY, CALIF. — Nokia hopes to increase the number of developers working on its Qt GUI toolkit tenfold. In opening remarks at its annual Developer Days conference today, Qt Software Chief Sebastian Nystrom (pictured) invited attendees to look for online job postings, commenting, “We're hiring.”

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FST (Fluffy Spider Technologies) announced that its FancyPants lightweight graphics stack has been optimized for the Texas Instruments (TI) OMAP3x system-on-chips (SoCs). FST offers a Linux-based software development kit (SDK) for OMAP3x that supports the Cortex-A8-based platform's graphics engine and video… (more…)

VersaLogic announced the release of a Linux board support package (BSP) for two of its single-board computers (SBCs). The DEV-CD-L6 supports the AMD Geode LX-based Cougar and Python boards with a LiveCD that includes Debian Linux 4.0 running Linux kernel 2.6.25-5. (more…)

[Updated: Oct. 31, 2008] — Opengear is shipping several open-source uninterruptible power supply (UPS) monitoring tools in its uClinux-based remote access equipment. Opengear is offering its console servers (pictured) with preintegrated tools from Eaton Corp., derived from the open-source… (more…)

Xilinx is shipping a development kit for its high-end Virtex-5 FXT FPGA (field-programmable gate array) that supports dual PowerPC440 processors. The Virtex-5 FXT FPGA ML510 Embedded Development Platform includes an ATX-format evaluation board, and is available with a Linux BSP (board support package). (more…)