Top Linux Headlines of 2007 – A Year In Review

Looking back at 2007 and seeing this website as a fruit of the cesspool that we affectionately call Vista really warms my heart.

I started using Linux as a full-time operating system in September, because I was really fed up with Microsoft.  As an experiment, this website was launched simultaneously to document my adventures in Linux.

If you told me that when I started this blog that this site would see a half-million visitors in four months and be featured on sites like Lifehacker, TechCrunch, TechMeme, Linux Journal, Linux Today, OSNews, LXer, Webb Alert, etc, etc…. and have near every social news media website feature fsckin.com on their respective front pages…  I wouldn’t believe you.

When the Metapixel article became popular this website used 60GB of bandwidth in a day (Note to Self: DON’T post gigantic image hyperlinks on website in future).  The original article was Dugg, then hours later, Lifehacker’s article linking back to me was Dugg as well!

It is a miracle Dreamhost (bless their heart) hasn’t terminated my account. I contacted their support about some unrelated issue, and in their response they mentioned reading the Orange Box / Team Fortress 2 article, which helped them get the game running under WINE. Perhaps the fact that my hosting company actually reads my content helps out a little bit.

Let’s just say that fsckin w/ linux is the kind of accident that turns out not being bad at all, kinda like my little brother. 😉

I hope you all had a great chrismahanukwanzakah and enjoy the New Year.  Meanwhile, back at the ranch, let’s take a look back at some of the headlines this year.

January
Novell sues SCO for $26 Million Dollars!
OpenMoko Struts It’s Mobile Linux Stuff
Linux Foundation Formed
Microsoft FAT Patent Upheld
Fluendo Snatches Hard-Earned Cash with Proprietary Format Licensing
Adobe Exposes Naughty Bits with Flash Player 9 for Linux
Microsoft Tries to Pay For Edits to Wikipedia ODF/OOXML
Nokida N800 Internet Tablet is Bigger Hit Than Moses’ Tablets
Install Debian From Inside Windows
Windows Vista Released to Unwashed Masses

Febuary
SCO Tries to subpoena Pamela Jones of Groklaw
Nominations for Debian Project Leader
Steve Ballmer Blows Smoke Up Collective Asses Regarding Software Patents
Dell Gets Hint About Linux
NTFS-3g version 1.0 Released
Sweaty Steve Ballmer Rents Smoke Generator and Mirrors
Show Us The Code Brings IR Goggles To Ballmer’s Party
Dell Listens to Linux Consumers
Shuttleworth: Ubuntu is NOT a Charity

March
Linux is Desktop Ready?
Free Software Foundation Asks Sun, HP and Dell to “Check Yes or No” after Vista is “Rejected”
Novell releases Office Open XML translator for OpenOffice.org
Xbox Live Patch for 360 Stops Linux Installations
Hans Reiser Will Goto Trial For Alleged Murder of Ex-Wife
German Patent Federal Court Dismisses Microsoft’s FAT patent
Open Office.org asks Dell to Pre-Load Software on Their Computers
Dell Asks Which Gnu For You
Linus Torvalds Blasts the GPLv3
HP Exec: “Linux Desktop is nearing critical mass”
Robert Scoble, Microsoft Technology Evangelist says Nasty Things
Bruce Perens Doesn’t Care For Novell/Microsoft “Protection Racket”
Microsoft FoxPro goes Open-Source, Nobody Cares
Novell Spoofs “Get a Mac” Ads… Badly

April
Microsoft Sued for “Vista Capable” Marketing
Sam Hocevar is Next Debian Project Leader
Cnet Hints About “Web OS”, Foreshadows gOS
Tux500 Has Eye on Indy 500
Microsoft Admits Vista’s Horizon Cloudy
One Man, 250 Webcam Drivers, Insert Cam Whore Joke Here

May
Ubuntu & Dell Join Forces
Microsoft Siverlight For Linux by “End of Year”
Tux500 Grabs $10,000 in Donations!
Microsoft Patents “Sudo” Command (aka User Account Control)
Zimbra Runs on Linux
SUSE Asks 27,000 Linux Users To Share Porn Thoughts
Microsoft Coupons Have No Expiration Date
Digg Censors HD-DVD, BluRay Decryption Key Needed For Playback On Linux
Microsoft Still Pushing the Patent Button, Bloggers Push Back
Microsoft Wont Sue End Users of Linux
Try To Save A School District $$$ By Switching to Linux, Loose Your Job
Motorola Releases ROKR and RAZR2 Powered By Really Small Mice Linux
Creative Labs: Vista Drivers Really Hard To Figure Out… Linux Pushed to Back Burner
Microsoft Becomes “Linux Distributor”, Liable Under GPLv3
Shuttleworth Debunks Microsoft Patent Claim Threat
Sun CEO Will Use Their Patents To Help Linux
Groklaw Tells Us What We Already Know: Microsoft Cherry-picks Sponsored Survey Results
VA Software Becomes Sourceforge
Ironically The Tux500 Indy Car Crashes First

June
Google Has Microsoft In Half-Nelson, Puts Pressure on Desktop Search Functionality
GPLv3 Released via Carrier Pigeons
Xandros Joins the Dark Side With Microsoft Patent Protection
TiVo complains about GPLv3 “hurting business”
Emacs Version 22 Released, Six Years Since Last Update
Nero 3 Provides HD and Blu-Ray Disc Burning Capabilities to Linux Users
Parallels Ships Supporting Linux, Fake Steve Jobs Dies A Little Inside
LG Signs Patent Pact with Microsoft, Celebrates with Kool-Aid
AppleTV Runs Linux
Politics Plays Part in Google vs. Microsoft Antitrust Dealings
OpenOffice.org Worm hits Linux, Mac OSX, Windows
Linus: Kernel Under GPLv3? Over My Dead Body! Or When OpenSolaris Pisses Me Off, Whichever Comes First
Microsoft Hires Director of Linux Interoperability
Microsoft Patent FUD Debacle
Linspire Signs Microsoft Patent Deal
Google Linux Released is a 9/11 Conspiracy
Motorola Expects 60% of Mobile Phones Will Use Linux
Ubuntu and Redhat Refuse Patent Deal with Microsoft, Kool-Aid Tastes Funny
Vista is Number 1 Reason For Emo Culture
Windows is “More Secure” Because Fewer Vulnerabilities Are Patched
Songbird Sings First Tune
Firefox, Google Team Up for Offline Applications
OpenMoko Promises “Mass Market” device by October
Redhat Talks Dirty With Microsoft for a Year

July
No Joy For Google Desktop Search vs. Microsoft
Nokia Gives Skype & Flash Lovin to N800 Internet Tablet, Biblical Moses Sues
Samba Moves to GPLv3
IBM Releases 150+ Upset Vista Users Patents Into Wild
Apple Buys CUPS Source Code, TUMBLER is Next
OOXML Format Slapped About With A Large Trout
Asus Eee PC Will Run Xandros
Walmart gOS PC Rumors
Skype Convicted of Violating GPL
Businesses Don’t Tango With Vista
Torvalds Sucker Punches Con Kolivas

August
Fewer Companies Planning Move to Vista, Nobody Surprised
Fake Steve Jobs Real Identity Revealed as Batman Forbes Journalist
SURPRISE! UNIX Belongs to Novell, Not SCO
SCOX Stock Plummets
Best (Possibly NSFW) Bug Report Ever!
Novell Wont Sue Over UNIX
Google Pack Adds BitTorrent RSS Downloader StarOffice
Gnome Turns 10, Wants a Skateboard for Xmas
Richard Stallman: Reports of My Death Are Greatly Exaggerated
Convicted Pirate Forced to Use Windows by Court Order
Microsoft “Get The Facts” Campaign Isn’t Working
Windows Genuine Advantage Not So Advantageous
Microsoft Apologizes About Cheating on ISO for OOXML’s Approval
More Evidence of Microsoft Playing Games
Super-Duper New Improved ATI Drivers (Still Not as Good As nVidia)

September
Microsoft Looses ISO OOXML Vote, Ballmer Whines Like Little Baby
Eric Raymond May Reveal He Is a Ninja Loosing Patience with Microsoft Over OOXML
Richard Stallman Taunts Torvalds Regarding GPLv3 Adoption
Linux Voids Laptop Warranty
SCO Files for Chapter 11 Bankrupcy
Creative X-Fi Soundcards Supported. In Other News, Hell Freezes Over
Donate Linux PCs, Get Investigated by California Government
Darl McBride Blames Imaginary Friend Linux For SCO Failure
Gnome 2.20 Released
First Ever GPL Lawsuit in USA
WSU Linux User Group Auctions Off Nerds
Microsoft Pushing Vista, Businesses Demand XP
First Ever GPL Lawsuit Settles, Pontius Pilate Upset!

October
Novell Thanks Microsoft for Patent Agreement
Novell Uses Microsoft FUD as Marketing Material
Linux Journal Runs Offensive Blowjob Ads
Linus Torvalds Gets Pissed Off And Kills People About SMACK
Skype 1.4 Goes Gold
Linux Doubles Market Share
Ballmer Steamy About Patents (Again)
Ballmer Wants Redhat Users to Pay Up
IP Innovation Files Patent Suit Against Redhat & Novell
Mark Shuttleworth Fires Back. Ballmer Quoted as Saying, “You Sunk My Battleship!”
Nokia 810 Internet Porn Device Tablet Released
Oh SNAP! TurboLinux signs with Microsoft
Mandriva Club Isn’t A Champagne Room
Linux Loosing Market Share
Linux Not Really Loosing Market Share
NY Times Publishes Swimsuit Edition Opens Up Codebase
Microsoft Really Wants Windows on XO PC
Laptop Magazine Reviews Eee PC Laptop, 4/5 Stars

November
Turn Webapp Monster into gOS
Mandriva Upset with Microsoft/Nigeria 419 scam Classmate PC Linux Reversal
Microsoft Denies Involvement in 419 Scam
Say Hello to Chumby, the Linux Clock!
IBM & Novell Block Sale of SCO Assets
Google’s Android (aka gPhone) Gives Street Cred to Mobile Linux
Symbian CEO LOLs When He Heard About Google’s Android
Novell Sells Bunch More Microsoft Support Coupons
Six Floor Labs LLC Launches (Hoax?) Ransom Model for Linux Video Games
OMG! New Theme for Hardy Heron!
Only 600 UK Visitors to BBC Website
BBC Rethinks Linux Visitor Numbers
Mandriva Wins Back Nigerian Classmate PCs
OLPC Forgets Simple Math.. Buy Two One, Get One,
Walmart gPC Sells Out
Walmart Will Restock gPC at “Really Low Prices”
OpenMoko Pushes Mass Market Date Back
Obama Supports “Open” Document Format
Amazon’s Kindle Launches
Torvalds: Strength of Linux Lies in Contortionist Ability Flexibility
BusyBox Sues Xterasys and High-Gain Antennas
Asus Eee PC Laptop Violates GPL
One Year In, Vista Still Not Budging in the Business Market
Cheap Laptops Perfect Fit For Linux, Vista Miffed
Torvalds: Microsoft Can’t Stop Linux
One Laptop Per Child Sued for Patent Infringement
Asus Releases GPL Code
Lucky Fresno Kids Get Asus Eee PC Laptops

December
nVidia and ATI Users Green With Envy
KDE 4 Is Late To Dinner
Verizon Sucks Down GPL Lawsuit, Belches Loudly
MPAA University Toolkit Violates GPL
OLPC Does the Needful in India
OpenOffice.org in a Browser
Bazaar Version Control System Released
Opera Thinks Microsoft Should Distribute Their Browser
Dell Offers Ubuntu with Legal DVD Playback
Xterasys Settles GPL Suit
BBC Website Compatible With Linux
Schestowitz Interviews StallmanMicrosoft Hands Over Protocol Documentation to Samba
Redhat CEO Removes Red Hat
Ex-Delta COO Has Redhat Flying High Again
350,000 Tiny Eee PC Laptops Sold This Year