Google wanted hackers to take down its Linux-based Chrome OS running on a base WiFi Samsung Series 5 500 Chromebook. They were willing to pay the best hackers in the world (other than those who are so good that they probably shouldn’t appear at these events) to find exploits with their software. Nobody qualified. It’s not like there wasn’t enough incentive to try. Google was offering a very geeky $3.14159 million worth of prizes to those who could perform various levels of hacking on their system. These prizes included $110,000 to achieve a browser or system level compromise in guest mode or as a…

In the market for a new computer? How does 25 bucks fetch ya? Cooked up by game developer David Braben, ‘Raspberry Pi’ is a PC he’s hoping to market to teaching children the joys (or horrors, depending on which camp you’re in) of programming. So, what do you get for $25? Well, howsabout a 700MHz ARM11 processor, 128MB of RAM, HDMI Out, and a single USB port, running Ubuntu 9.0.4? Yeah, that’s not much. But it’s pretty impressive once you’re told that this computer IS A USB STICK. No foolin’. Here, watch Braben wax lyrical about it for a few minutes. No, he doesn’t rap. But as mad fly as this device is, he really…

Few things say “geek cred” as loudly as invoking the Linux lifestyle. Those of us who are embedded in its use understand the inherent beauty within its complex nature, the warm and devastating force within its simplicity, and the sheer power that the open source movement has acquired since its casual launch in 1991. To celebrate the anniversary, the Linux Foundation has put together some material for us all to help look back at the last 20 years. Watch this video and then examine the infographic they designed – both are clever enough to carry the Linux badge. Speaking of badges, you can help commemorate…

Meanwhile, in Russia… If Google translate is to be trusted, a Russian publication has claimed that Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has signed an order to transition the technological “power structures and the federal budget to free software” starting in the second quarter of 2012. The 17-page document, “Transition Plan of the Federal Authorities and Federal Budgetary Institutions to Free Software,” covers the period from 2011 to 2015. According to Deputy Head of the Ministry of Communications Ilya Massuh, the document describes a complete transition of the federal government and state…

Somewhere between DIY and iPad sits this hacked Insignia Infocast. The Infocast is a strange beast to begin with – little more than a digital frame on steroids, the thing surprisingly packs an 800MHz processor, 2 gigs of memory, a touchscreen, Wi-Fi, and two USB ports. And it’s only $170 bucks. Really, it’s the perfect candidate for someone to hack open and mod the Chumby Linux inside. And, of course, that’s exactly what’s been done. By tweaking the device to run a WebKit-based browser, the savvy hackers have transformed the device into not-quite-an-iPad. But for $170 bucks, I’m sure not complaining….

It’s as if a million penguins cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced. Dell has dropped Ubuntu-loaded machines from their online store – a head-scratching play, considering their original declaration that Ubuntu is safer than Windows. The move comes after Dell posted a totally compelling argument for each operating system on its website, advising that only open source programmers should consider Ubuntu. That’s not completely unwise advice, but it’s not like Ubuntu is an unsolvable puzzlebox, or something. The other bullet point in Dell’s two-bullet-point case for Ubuntu is “choose…

In a shocking announcement, Tech Radar declares Linux non-sexy with appeal only to nerds, geeks and basement dwellers. In an article addressing the challenges faces by Linux in it’s ongoing quest to unseat either Windows or Mac OS as a mainstream operating system, Tech Radar concludes that lack of sex appeal is it’s biggest obstacle. Citing the iPad as an example of what the open source community is lacking, Jim Zemlin, Executive Director of the Linux Foundation says that for Linux to jump ahead in popularity, a little magic and sex appeal will go a long way. Other factors cited include the massive…