Scientific Linux 6.1 has been released for both i386 and x86_64 architectures
We want to thank everyone who has contributed, tested, and given us feedback. We feel that this is one of our best releases yet, and we couldn't have done it without the entire SL community. Scientific Linux 6.1 has a new graphical theme called "Edge Of Space" provided by Shawn Thompson. We want to thank him for all the work he put in making this release look more polished. Scientific Linux release 6.1 is based on the rebuilding of RPMS out of SRPMS's from Enterprise 6 Update 1, both Server and Client.
Dell launched its long awaited 10.1-inch Honeycomb tablet -- but only in China, with no date yet given for a U.S. appearance. The Dell Streak 10 Pro runs Android 3.1, offers the usual Nvidia Tegra 2 processor and other Honeycomb features, measures 0.51 inches (12.95mm) thick, and weighs 1.6 pounds, says the company.
Dell has begun taking orders for the Streak 10 Pro on its Chinese website, and says it will start shipping them "in the next couple of weeks" as well as selling direct at Dell-authorized retailers in more than 2,000 cities in China. The tablet will be heading "eventually elsewhere," which may well include the U.S. manufacturer's U.S. homeland.
The long-rumored Streak 10 Pro first showed up in a leaked Staples training guide in March as a nameless 10-inch Android 3.0 tablet, and more details were tipped in May . Yet 10.1-inch Honeycomb tablet "tip" stories are less compelling than with smartphones because so far, the devices all offer Nvidia Tegra 2 processors and pretty much identical features. The Streak 10 Pro is no exception.
Dell Streak 10 Pro, in landscape and portrait modes
The key differentiating features for Honeycomb tablets are the width, the weight, the battery life, and the software, although the latter two criteria require reviews to ferret out completely. If Dell's claim for up to 12-hour battery life rings true, that will be good news indeed.
On weight and dimensions, the Dell comes in slightly on the heavy and thick side at 0.51 inches (12.95mm) and 25.6 ounces (727 grams/1.6 pounds). This comes nowhere close to the market-leading Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 , which measures 0.34 inches (8.6mm) and weighs 20.1 ounces (595 grams). However, it's about the same as the Lenovo IdeaPad Tablet K1 , and is thinner than the 0.62-inch Toshiba Thrive .
Streak 10 Pro, back and front
Like the Thrive, the Dell is aimed -- at least partially -- at the business market. The tablet ships with an application called "Dell Divide," which offers "a clear balance between your personal and professional information -- the ultimate in yin and yang," says Dell.
The work mode offers secure access to corporate networks and business applications, yet protects personal mode items like family photos and personal email from the prying eyes of IT techs. Conversely, personal mode features are said to be enabled without "compromising access to any sensitive work data," says Dell.
(The company does not say whether the tablet also protects private info from other curious types, such as the Chinese government or Rupert Murdoch.)
We can almost list the Dell Streak 10 Pro's features without checking the spec list (which is, however, available from a link at the end of this story). Following the Honeycomb script, the Streak Pro offers a dual-core, 1GHz Tegra 2 processor with 1GB RAM, and 16GB of internal flash storage, says Dell.
Dell cites the Streak 10 Pro as having an SDHC reader for up to 32GB of memory. It doesn't say, however, whether this is microSD-sized or offers a full-sized, desktop-compatible SD format, a la the Lenovo's IdeaPad K1 or the Toshiba Thrive. (With Android 3.2, full SD support will be standard, so vendors will no longer need to offer customized support.)
Streak 10 Pro, side views
(Click on either to enlarge)
A Honeycomb-standard 10.1-inch, 1280 x 800 touchscreen with Gorilla Glass is supplied, as well as five-megapixel rear-facing and two-megapixel front-facing cameras. The tablet is further equipped with GPS, 802.11a/b/g/n, and Bluetooth 2.1, says Dell. While there's no talk about cellular support, we note that the company's official model mthe official model name is Dell T03G.
The Streak 10 Pro offers the usual gyro, accelerometer, and compass, as well as a micro-USB port, 3.5mm audio port, speakers, and dual microphones, says the company. A 40-pin dock connector is available, but there appears to be no mention of accessories at this point.
With the bug-fixed Android 3.1 release, Chinese customers should be able to spend more time enjoying their tablets and less time on tech support. In addition to the aforementioned Dell Divide UI layer, the tablet ships with Dell apps including Dell Work Profile, Stage, SyncUp, and Back up and Restore, says the company.
With the China launch, it's not surprising there are no Google apps to be seen. Instead you get Quickoffice, Swype, and a number of Chinese apps. These include Baidu maps, input, and search, which will save users from those pesky Dalai Lama stories.
Third time a charm?
Dell has so far stumbled in the Android tablet market with its original, five-inch Streak tablet and the more recent, seven-inch Streak 7 . Both tablets were hampered by high prices and out-of-date Android releases, among other issues.
Even so, a recent survey of Retrevo customers offers good news for Dell. When asked what vendors they would likely choose for an Android tablet, 55 percent said Amazon, but Dell was tied with Samsung for second with 38 percent.
Availability
The Streak 10 Pro is orderable now in China, for a special introductory price through July 29 of 2,999 Renminbi (RMB) -- $461 -- followed July 30 by 3,699 RMB ($574). The tablet is available at Dell's Chinese online store and Dell-authorized retail channels in China. More information and a spec list may be found here .
Dedoimedo posted an article introducing Xen Live CD, which allows testing a preconfigured Xen virtualization setup on top of Debian 5 Lenny in a live session. Say, you liked my Xen introduction article and you are now looking to test its functionality. But you may be afraid of the long and complex configuration setup, which in the end, might not yield desirable results. Well, that's a justified concern. Luckily, there's a very simple solution. You can download and run Xen from a live CD! Based on Debian 5, it's a demonstration tool that allows users to roadtest Xen in a volatile live session before deciding whether they want or need Xen. Sounds fantastic. So let's see what this thing can do.
Axiomtek announced a fanless embedded PC that offers Intel's single-core Atom N455 or dual core D525 processors, along with a Mini PCI expansion slot. The eBOX620-801-FL supports up to 4GB of DDR2 RAM, includes a 2.5-inch drive bay and a CompactFlash slot, and has three serial ports, according to the company.
Despite a troubled global economy, there has been no lessening in demand for fanless industrial PCs. OK, that statement might or might not be a fact, but it's certainly the impression given by Axiomtek, which continues to pump out what seems like infinite variations of its eBox devices -- all passively cooled via impressive-looking heat sinks.
Axiomtek's eBOX620-801-FL
(Click to enlarge)
The new eBOX620-801-FL (above) is closely related to the eBOX620-800-FL that was released in March, as the modestly incremented model number indicates. Specs are mostly the same, except that where that model employed Intel's Atom N450 or D510 , the newer device is offered with the single-core, 1.66GHz Atom N455 or dual-core, 1.8GHz Atom D525 (TDPs are 5.5 and 10 Watts, respectively, according to Intel).
We wouldn't expect to see much of a performance boost associated with this change in processors. However, Axiomtek points out that the D525-equipped model of the eBOX620-801-FL accepts up to 4GB of DDR3 RAM in its single SODIMM slot (the N455-equipped version still has the 2GB limit that's more typical for Atom-powered PCs).
As did its predecessor, the identically sized eBOX620-801-FL has room for a 2.5-inch SATA hard disk drive and a CompactFlash slot (the latter apparently externally accessible once a door is unscrewed). Again, the device also features a Mini PCI Express slot, and Axiomtek says there's also now room for an internal USB-based wireless LAN adapter.
Ports on Axiomtek's eBOX620-801-FL
(Click to enlarge)
The PC's front panel (top, above) features a microphone input and line output, two USB 2.0 ports, plus two antenna connectors that were not present on the earlier eBOX620-800-FL. The rear panel is like the earlier PC's, with three serial ports (one RS232/422/485 and two RS232), a VGA port, two more USB 2.0 ports, and two gigabit Ethernet ports.
Axiomtek says that, as was the case with the eBOX620-800-FL, the eBOX620-801-FL is orderable with a second (DVI) video output, in which case dual monitors are supported. The company also claims the device has a PS/2 keyboard/mouse port, though we can't work out from the supplied images where this might be located (on the eBOX620-800-FL, it was between the Ethernet ports).
The eBOX620-801-FL supports a 14 to 122 deg. F (-10 to 50 deg. C) operating temperatures with the D525 and 14 to 131 deg. F (-10 to 55 deg. C) with the N455, says the company. Operating system support is said to include Linux, Windows CE, and Windows XP Embedded.
Features and specifications listed by Axiomtek for the eBOX620-801-FL include:
Processor -- Intel Atom N455 (single-core) or Atom D525 (dual-core) Chipset -- ICH 8M Memory -- up to 4GB DDR3 of RAM via 1 x 200-pin SODIMM on D525 version; up to 2GB of DDR3 RAMStorage -- 2.5-inch SATA bay and CompactFlash slot Expansion -- 1 x Mini PCI Express card; internal USB bay for wireless LAN adapter Networking -- 2 x gigabit Ethernet ports
Other I/O: 4 x USB 2.0 (2 front, 2 rear)
1 x RS-232/422/485 (COM 1) 2 x RS-232 (COM 2/3)
1 x VGA
1 x DVI (optional) audio -- mic in and line out 1 x PS/2 keyboard/mouse (claimed) Power -- AC adapter; 90-264 VAC input; 12 VDC output
Operating temperature -- 14 to 122 deg. F (-10 to 50 deg. C) with D525; 14 to 131 deg. F (-10 to 55 deg. C) with N455
Vibration endurance -- 2Grms with CompactFlash
Dimensions -- 7.87 x 4.7 x 2.2 inches (200 x 120 x 56mm)
Weight -- 4.36 pounds (1.98 kg) Operating systems -- Windows XP Embedded, Windows CE, Linux
Further information
Axiomtek did not cite pricing or availability for the eBOX620-801-FL, but the device appears to be available now. More information may be found at Axiomtek's eBOX620-801-FL page .
Jonathan Angel can be reached at jonathan.angel@ziffdavisenterprise.com and followed at www.twitter.com/gadgetsense .
ARM Holdings has reported a 27 percent increase in year-over-year revenue, an 25 percent increase in pre-tax profit, and the signing of 29 processor licensees -- nine of them new. But both ARM and key licensee Texas Instruments have added a cautionary note about the rest of the year, given the shaky state of consumer confidence.
Reporting results for the second quarter of its 2011 financial year (ending June 30), ARM Holdings once again detailed increases in revenues and profits. At $190.2 million dollars, for example, revenue was up both sequentially -- the corresponding first-quarter figure had been $185.5 billion -- and year-over year.
According to ARM, its year-over-year revenue increase for the second quarter was 27 percent (relative to Q2 2010 revenue of $150.3 billion). Pre-tax profit was up too, to 54.2 million U.K. pounds, again handily beating the last quarter's figure (50.8 million pounds) and that of Q2 2010 (43.5 million pounds).
As the statement suggests, ARM makes its money from licensing its processor IP, not from actually shipping the chips. During the second quarter, the company says, it added 29 licensees to its installed base of more than 800. Of these, nine involved Cortex-A cores, including two for the advanced Cortex-A15 and two for "Kingfisher," a smaller version the company has said it is readying for "lower-end smartphones, feature phones, and cost-sensitive digital TV applications."
ARM added 29 licensees during the second quarter of this year
(Click to enlarge)
According to ARM, nine of the 29 licensees signed during the second quarter were adopting ARM technology for the first time, in applications such as digital TVs, microcontrollers, and near field communication (NFC) chips. The Cortex-A15 core has now been licensed to ten companies, and "will enable the next generation of scalable computing from super-smartphones and mobile computers to servers and networking infrastructure applications," the company added.
More than 1.9 billion shipped
ARM says more than 1.9 billion chips based on its technology shipped during the second quarter, the "highest ever." (During the first quarter of 2011, 1.5 billion shipped, the company reported previously.) These shipments went into the following market segments, according to ARM:
mobile -- 58 percent embedded -- 22 percent enterprise -- 16 percent home -- 4 percent Cambridge, England-based ARM's fortunes have been boosted not only by booming smartphone and tablet sales, but also by Microsoft's well-publicized announcement that it will port Windows 8 to run on ARM SoCs (systems on chip). Google, too, has announced that its Chrome OS will soon be ported, ARM noted in its earnings report.
Nearly two billion ARM-based processors shipped during the second quarter of this year
(Click to enlarge)
Last December, meanwhile, ARM acknowledged its plans to move into the server market , claiming that its designs could halve the power consumption of the low-end servers increasingly being used for tasks such as virtualization and cloud computing.
Server-related developments since then have included:
Calxeda's announcement that it will ship ARM Cortex-A9 server chips later this year Marvell's introduction of the server-targeted quad-core Armada XP Nvidia's plans to build server CPUs and ZT Systems' release of a power-sipping R1801e rackmount serverARM divides its business into a processor division (PD) centered on microprocessor cores -- including specific functions, such as graphics and video IP, fabric IP, and embedded software IP -- and a physical IP division (PIPD), focused on building blocks for translation of a circuit design into actual silicon.
According to the company, PD licensing and PD royalties were up year over year by 59 percent (to $58.1 million) and 16 percent (to $84.4 million), respectively. (We note, however, that PD royalties fell sequentially from the last quarter's $87.9 million.) At the same time, PIPD licensing went up 19 percent year over year to $12.3 million, ARM added.
A cautionary note
ARM added to the above good tidings that it has a "healthy order backlog and a robust opportunity pipeline, which are expected to deliver strong performance in license revenues." But, it said, "relevant data for the second quarter, being the shipment period for ARM's Q3 royalties, points to a small sequential increase in industry-wide revenues." And, it cautioned, "Q4 royalties are harder to predict as continuing macroeconomic uncertainties may impact consumer confidence."
Separately, key ARM licensee Texas Instruments (TI) reported second-quarter revenue that, at $3,46 billion, was up two percent sequentially but down one percent year over year. Compared to Q4 2010, operating profit and net income were down 18 percent and 13 percent year over year, the company added.
Compared to the first quarter of its 2011 financial year, TI experienced higher revenue. However, operating profit declined because of "lower factory utilization, higher earthquake-related costs [in Japan], and higher operating expenses," the company added.
Rich Templeton, TI's chairman, president, and CEO stated, "We expect growth in the third quarter, but because of mixed macroeconomic and market signals we are prepared for a broader-than-normal range of growth possibilities. We note that production at some computing and consumer manufacturers appears lukewarm even though we're heading into the back-to-school and holiday seasons."
Further information
Links providing access to ARM Holdings' earnings release, presentation, and webcast -- including the company's predictions for the rest of the year -- may be found on ARM's investor relations website . More information on TI's financial results may be found on the company's website .
Jonathan Angel can be followed at www.twitter.com/gadgetsense .
Linux 3.0 has been released, featuring a storage backend for Xen virtualization and an antifrag and data-scrubbing features for the Btrfs filesystem. Meanwhile, Thomas Gleixner released a major new, real-time Linux patch that will ready Linux 3.0 for highly-deterministic applications.
Timed for release in conjunction with the 20th anniversary of Linux -- which will be celebrated Aug 17-19 at the Linux Foundation's LinuxCon event in Vancouver, BC -- Linux 3.0 is just another Linux kernel update, according to Linux creator and gatekeeper Linus Torvalds. Back in May, he warned not to expect too much from the birthday release when he announced the major numbering shift , the first second-digit jump since Linux 2.6 arrived back in 2003.
The next release will be Linux 3.1, whose release data may wind up being determined by Torvalds' vacation schedule, he explained. Torvalds, whose main job is to decide which updated code is ready to roll into each Linux kernel release, already had his vacation delayed by a last-minute bug that delayed Linux 3.0 by several days.
In what other major software project does the head honcho's vacation plans change the release schedule? Well, perhaps more often than one would think, but only in the wonderful Oz-like open source reality of Linux does the wizard cop to it. You gotta love it.
Depending on one's perspective, beyond the numbering change Linux 3.0 will be remembered either for the improvements to the Btrfs file-system, or for the new storage backend for the Xen hypervisor. If you're a real-time Linux industrial developer, meanwhile, the big news occurred outside the mainline kernel earlier this week with a major new real-time Linux patch for Linux 3.0 from Thomas Gleixner (see farther below).
Btrfs fights fragmentationBtrfs, which debuted in the Linux kernel in a preliminary version in the early 2009 Linux 2.6.29 release , has been steadily improved in subsequent releases including Linux 2.6.31 and 2.6.32 . Btrfs is touted for offering better fault tolerance and offering easier administration than the Ext file-systems, among other benefits.
The first Btrfs enhancement is found in new anti-fragmentation code. Because Btrfs is a COW (copy-on-write) filesystem, it is plagued by even more data fragmentation problems than other filesystems, explains Kernelnewbiews.org , which offers its usual semi-official changelog for kernel releases. Btrfs already has several mechanisms for fighting fragmentation, but now offers an autofragmentation mounting option as well as an option to turn off COW to reduce fragmentation, according to the overview.
Btrfs also gains a "scrubbing" feature to check the integrity of the data in the filesystem. As Thorsten Leemhuis explains it in his detailed kernel write-up on The H , the feature lets developers "instruct the kernel to read all data from the storage medium and run through all the checksums to ensure data integrity." Among other enhancements, Btrfs is said to boost performance by about 15 per cent when creating files, and by about 20 per cent during deletions.
Other Linux filesystems have also been spruced up in various ways. The now mainstream Ext4, for example, gains a "punch hole" function that identifies areas that lack data so it can de-allocate them. This is said to be particular useful in virtualization environments.
Xen adds storage backendThanks to contributions from Xen.org , the Xen virtualization system offers the long-awaited full initial domain ("dom0 ") support, essentially enabling a storage backend for Xen . As a result, explains Leemhuis, Linux "has finally acquired all the essential components for hosting guest systems as a Dom0 together with the Xen hypervisor." He notes, however, that this is a "cut-down" version of Dom0 support and lacks extras found in commercial Xen products like Xen Server, such as suspend-to-RAM and enhanced USB support.
Here's a brief rundown of other features listed as "prominent" in the Kernelnewbies.org changelog:
Sendmmsg() -- syscall batching for send messages, said to offer speed improvements in light virtualization systemsCleancache -- optional feature for improving page cache performance, said to be aimed primarily at virtualization environments
Berkeley Packet Filter -- just-in-time, memcached-like filtering technique, similar to FreeBSD feature, that can generate native code when filter is loaded in memory. (Writes Leemhuis: "It generates assembler code at runtime that carries out some of the network packet filtering tasks set by sniffer tools.")
Wake on WLAN -- similar to Wake-on-LAN, enables system to nap while Wi-Fi stays active
unprivileged ICMP_ECHO messages -- MAC OS X-like technique for pinging without special privileges, now offered as default, enabled at boot-up
Setns() syscall -- improved namespace handling for resources like filesystem directory structure, network resources, and IPC
alarm-timers -- improved, hybrid-style POSIX timers "inspired by the Android Alarm driver" and other high-resolution timers
driver enhancements -- Drivers include Radeon DRM/KMS driver with support for AMD Llano graphics cores, and a i915-DRM/KMS driver for graphics in upcoming Intel "Ivy Bridge" Core processors. Other drivers include the Microsoft Kinect, Intel iwlwifi 105 and 135, Intel C600 serial-attached-scsi controller, Ralink RT5370 USB, several Realtek RTL81xx devices, and the Apple iSight webcam. BeagleBoard users who want to check out the new Linux 3.0 kernel can download it here .
Gleixner releases real-time patch for Linux 3.0
This "long awaited" patch "is a major milestone of integrating it into mainline," writes Carsten Emde at OSADL (Open Source Automation Development Lab). PREEMPT_RT provides guarantees for hard timing deadlines, as required by many mission-critical applications in industries like telecom, military, healthcare, music recording, and financial trading.
OSADL , which coordinates the development of open source projects in the areas of embedded and industrial design, including real-time and safety-critical Linux, has benchmarked the new patch and found it to offer very low latency. The latest patch, which Emde calls "a major milestone of integrating it into mainline" Linux kernel, is said to be much smaller in size, in part due to upstreaming infrastructure patches. Other enhancements are said to include solving the "preemptible MMU gather problem" as well as various scheduler improvements.
Since its merger with the Real-Time Linux Foundation (RTLF), OSADL has regularly released "Latest Stable" industrial real-time Linux kernels based on the PREEMPT_RT patch series. In February, 2010, OSADL released Kernel 2.6.31.12-rt21, based on Linux 2.6.31, and in December, OSADL released Kernel 2.6.33.7.2-rt30, based on Linux 2.6.33. With the new patch, the RTL developers have finally caught up with the mainline kernel release.
Aaeon has added to its line of fanless embedded controllers with a model sporting ten serial ports. The AEC-6872 has a 1.6GHz Intel Atom processor, two Ethernet ports, a CompactFlash slot, four USB ports, and a slot that can hold a PCI or PCI Express card, the company says.
Aaeon's AEC-6872 is the latest in a long line of fanless embedded controllers from this company. The one we most recently covered is the AEC-6924 , released at the end of April with a Core 2 Duo SL9400 processor.
Aaeon's AEC-6872
The AEC-6872 returns to a more typical Atom CPU (specifically, the dual-core D510 , which has a 13-Watt TDP). It's exceptional, however, in including a total of ten serial ports.
As seen below left, eight RS232 ports are lined up on the device's front panel, along with a 25-pin parallel port. There are two more serial ports (1 RS232, 1 RS232/422/585) on the rear panel (below right), along with two gigabit Ethernet ports, four USB 2.0 ports, a VGA output, two PS/2 ports, audio I/O (mic in, line out) and a power input, says Aaeon.
Aaeon's AEC-6872
(Click either to enlarge)
Aaeon says the AEC-6872 accepts up to 4GB of RAM via two SODIMM slots, while fixed storage is via a bay (2.5-inch, we presume, though this wasn't stated) and an internal CompactFlash slot. The device also has a Mini PCI slot and a "mini card" (Mini PCI Express?) slot, according to the company.
There are four different SKUs for the AEC-6872, Aaeon notes. For example, the device is available with a choice of externally accessible expansion slots -- either PCI or PCI Express x 1. Apart from this, it's orderable either in a version that uses 12VDC input power, or one that accepts voltages ranging from 9 to 30VDC.
According to Aaeon, the AEC-6872 may be operated in temperatures ranging from 14 to 131 deg. F. When employing only CompactFlash storage, it resists shocks of up to 5G while in operation, the company adds.
Specifications listed by Aaron for the AEC-6872 include:
Processor -- Intel Atom D510 clocked at 1.6GHz Chipset -- ICH 8M Memory -- up to 4GB DDR2 RAM in two DIMM slots Storage -- CompactFlash slot (internal) and bay for SATA hard disk drive Expansion: 1 x PCI or 1 x PCI Express x1 1 x Mini PCI 1 x "mini card" Networking -- 2 x gigabit Ethernet Other I/O: 9 x RS232 (8 front, 1 rear) 1 x RS232/422/485 (rear) 4 x USB 2.0 VGA 2 x PS/2 1 x parallel audio -- mic lin, line out Power -- 12VDC or 9~48VDC; consumption n/s Operating range -- 14 to 131 deg. F Dimensions -- 9.4 x 8.4 x 3.7 inches Weight -- 12.8 pounds (5.8kg) Further informationAaeon did not cite pricing or operating system support for the AEC-6872. More information on the device, which appears to be available now, may be found on the company's AEC-6924 product page .
Jonathan Angel can be followed at www.twitter.com/gadgetsense .