Open Recall: Etherpad, Slacko 5.5 and GNOME Software

Open Recall is a space on The H for those things that are too small to package as news but are worth covering. In this edition: Proxmox VE 2.3, two releases of Etherpad, RawTherapee 4.0.10, Slacko 5.5, a new package manager for GNOME, winning a Raspberry Pi camera, and running a MUD on the Raspberry Pi.

• Proxmox VE 2.3 – Proxmox has released the latest version of the Proxmox Virtual Environment (Proxmox VE). Proxmox VE 2.3 updates the qemu-kvm component and its Linux kernel and includes a number of updated browsers and tools. The core of the distribution is now based on Debian 6.0.7. A number of bugs have also been fixed.
  

• Magic Dust Twinkle Twinkle – The Etherpad Foundation released version 1.2.8 of Etherpad, quickly followed by the bugfix release 1.2.81, fixing three problems introduced in the major release. The developers commented: "Our strong tradition of releasing a major full of bugs continues despite having a test framework. We are proud of our traditions and we hope one day to enhance them with more beer." Etherpad 1.2.8 "Magic Dust Twinkle Twinkle" introduces improved logging, allows clients to reconnect to pads when they drop the connection, and also prepares the code base for scaling improvements in future releases.
  

• RawTherapee 4.0.10 – After "months of hard work", version 4.0.10 of RawTherapee includes improvements to its noise reduction tool, support for HDR files using the 32-bit TIFF format, and a number of user interface improvements. A list of all of the new features is available in the release announcement and RawTherapee can be downloaded from the project's servers. Its source code is licensed under the GPLv3.
  

• Slacko 5.5 – After the release of a whole litter of different Puppy Linux versions, Barry Kauler announced the release of version 5.5 of Slacko, the Puppy version built on a Slackware base. Slacko is binary compatible with Slackware and the new version includes an improved update manager and better graphics support with kernel mode setting (KMS) and updates for NVIDIA's and AMD's proprietary video drivers.
  

• GNOME Software – Red Hat developer Richard Hughes is working on a new package manager for the GNOME desktop. GNOME Software, as it is called, is not designed to replace GNOME PackageKit but aims to provide an easy-to-use abstraction layer to software installation and updating that is built right into the desktop.
  

• Win a Raspberry Pi camera – The Raspberry Pi Foundation is giving away ten pre-production camera boards for the mini computer to contestants who come up with good ideas of what they would do with the hardware. More information is available on the foundation's blog.
  

• MudPi – Duncan Jauncey is running his Alternate Universe MUD (Multi User Dungeon) game on a Raspberry Pi. Players who are interested in joining the experience can telnet to alternateuniverse.dyndns.org 1063
  

(fab)