Download Squad week in review
Been so busy reading passport records of presidential candidates that you haven't had time to keep up on the week's geekier news? Not to worry, we've got you covered. Here's a few of our favorite stories you might have missed:Flipping the Linux Switch: Installing and configuring Linux
This week we had a twofer in our Linux 101 series. First up, we wanted to show you just how easy it is to install Linux. Once upon a time, making the switch from Windows to Linux may have required some technical wizardry, complete with the latest model broomstick, but no more. Modern distros like Ubuntu make installation a breeze. But once you've got Linux up and running, you might notice that there's no support for common file types like MP3s, so you might want to take a look at another part in our series which shows how to do some basic configuration and tweaking of a fresh Linux installation.
Download full version of FairUse Wizard DVD ripper for free
This week we discovered that one of our favorite DVD ripping applications, FairUse Wizard was available for free for a limited time. Normally FairUse Wizard comes in two varieties, a limited free edition, and a full featured commercial version. But if you download the full version now, you can save a few bucks. No telling how long this deal will last, so go ahead and grab it while you still can.
Sneak Peak at OpenOffice.org 3.0
While OpenOffice.org 3.0 isn't scheduled for release until September, you can download an early developer preview of the application today and take it for a test drive. There's already some support for Office 2007 documents, multi-page view in Writer, and multi-user spreadsheet editing in Calc. Oh, and did we mention that there's a native Mac client?
DLS Poll: What do you think of Windows Vista SP1?
After much anticipation, Microsoft finally released Windows Vista SP1 this week. There aren't a ton of fancy bells and whistles in this update, but Microsoft has promised improved performance and reliability. So we decided to ask our readers what they think. So far only a small portion of readers say Vista SP1 has caused them major problems, but a pretty large number of folks say they can't really see any difference between Vista RTM and Vista SP1. What's your experience with SP1 been?
Digsby adds Twitter, drops private beta
Social networking/IM tool Digsby emerged from private beta this week. Sure, Digsby is still beta software, but now it's available for anyone to download and install. The IM client was already pretty robust, letting users chat with friends on AOL, MSN, Yahoo!, and Google messengers among others. But Digsby also lets you keep up with your MySpace, Facebook, and now Twitter activity.
And here are a few more of our top stories from the week that was:
