Maria Winslow

Maria Winslow's Practical Open Source Blog There is a lot of open source activity currently surrounding Java, from JBoss and Geronimo (open source app servers) to MyFaces (an open source web application framework - think Struts but better) to Spring (an open source application framework). And now Harmony, an open source Java implementation, is in incubator status at the Apache Software Foundation. IBM and Intel have both made contributions toward the project. The Harmony project mission (from the website): -  Create a compatible, independent implementation of J2SE 5 under the Apache License v2 - Create a community-developed modular runtime (VM and class library) architecture to allow independent implementations to share runtime components, and allow independent innovation in runtime components But do we really need open source Java? Jeff Genender, a core developer on ... (more)

The Rapid Development of SugarCRM with LAMP

After all the buzz about SugarCRM at the LinuxWorld Conference and Expo this year in Boston, we caught up with the company's co-founder and VP of Open Source, Clint Oram, to find out more about his hot new project. How did you get started with SugarCRM? The three of us who co-founded SugarCRM, Inc., and the SugarCRM Open Source Project worked together in the CRM industry for several years and saw that the time was right for a commercial Open Source CRM application. With my previous company, I encountered Open Source software and quickly realized how powerful a software development... (more)

Evaluating the ROI of Open Source on the Desktop

When people hear that open source software is often free and overall cheaper than proprietary solutions, they're intrigued. But how much cheaper is another question. What other costs are involved? This article examines the budgetary impact of migrating corporate desktops to open source solutions. This is one of many areas where open source can positively impact IT budgets. Classifying Desktops The first step in evaluating the license savings on the desktop is to determine which desktops in your organization are candidates for migrating to Linux, OpenOffice, or both. Step One: Inv... (more)

AJAX Performance Measured

AJAX Performance, Measured The latest buzzword in web design is AJAX, or Asynchronous Javascript and XML.  New sites like http://flickr.com manage to provide the interactivity of a desktop-based application in a web page, while using only the javascript that's been in web browsers for some time now.  While many people are aware that this style of design can create a big improvement in the usability and basic viability of web-based applications, this article shows there's also a huge payoff in bandwidth requirements, which means a more responsive application and more capacity. pos... (more)

Linux Thin Clients Do the Job

When the North Carolina Cooperative Extension needed to overhaul the computer system for 1,200 users in multiple remote locations, systems programmer administrator Janyne Kizer found that Linux on thin clients was the best solution. The North Carolina Cooperative Extension is a joint effort between the state of North Carolina, most of the state's 100 counties, and NC State University. Each participating county has an office that accesses the system, which serves a network of agricultural support staff. 4-H agents, state agricultural agents, plant pathologists, etymologists, and ... (more)