Linux Magazine USA 259 2022 06.pdf

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TILING WINDOW MANAGERS
THIS CLASSIC TOOL IS AT TRACTING
A NEW GENERATION OF FANS
EE
FR D
DV
+
ISSUE 259 – JUNE 2022
Zero Trust
Reimagining security
for today’s threats
Analytics Workshop:
Data mining with Python
and KDD
Wordle with Grep
BlueSeer:
ERP solution
for the Linux desktop
W W W. L I N U X - M A G A Z I N E . C O M
OpenSnitch:
Protect
your network with this
application-based firewall
10
TERRIFIC
OPEN
SOURCE TOOLS!
EDITORIAL
Welcome
OFFICE IN THE SKY
Dear Reader,
Is Microsoft up to its old tricks again?
The past few years have seen some encouraging signs
from Microsoft. For instance, they no longer propagate
transparent and self-serving falsehoods about Linux at
every opportunity. However, recent events indicate that
maybe the new Microsoft might be all too much like the
old Microsoft.
EU investigators are currently asking around about Micro-
soft’s cloud contracts [1]: in particular, a change to the li-
censing that occurred back in 2019. The change relates to
how the company bills for products like its office produc-
tivity suite, which is now bundled as part of the Microsoft
365 package. As far as I understand it, companies pay for
a license to use the software on their network, but if they
move some of these instances to the cloud, there is an
extra charge. In theory, this extra charge applies to all
cloud platforms, including Microsoft’s own Azure cloud,
but in practice, Azure customers are allegedly getting a
special discount that offsets much of this extra fee.
If that sounds sneaky, it is. In fact, the regulators are wonder-
ing if it is the kind of sneaky that reaches the level of monop-
olistic practices. In its most extreme form, a monopoly works
by confining the customer to a single choice. Another form of
monopoly, which is slightly less exclusionary but still very
powerful, operates by imposing a penalty on the customer
who chooses to stray from monopoly control. Then there is a
third kind of monopoly that isn’t really any kind of monopoly
at all – I’m not sure what to call it, except perhaps an
imagi-
nary monopoly.
In this scenario, a vendor asserts control by
projecting a false reality that makes customers
believe
they
have no choice even when they actually do.
Microsoft 365 is somewhere between a real monopoly and
an imaginary monopoly. Yes, Microsoft does seem to be
using its position in the office software market to upload
office suite customers to the Microsoft cloud. But why are
customers so willing to go along with it? If they want to
switch to a different cloud and Microsoft 365 is holding
them back, why don’t they just give up Microsoft 365?
Companies that worry about acclimating their users to a
new productivity suite should stop worrying – seriously, is
it really so difficult to use a different word processor or
spreadsheet once you have learned to use one. Perhaps
more of a problem are the macros written for Microsoft
Office that will have to be rewritten for a different API.
First of all, this situation doesn’t apply to all customers, so
any company that is intimidated about switching for
macro compatibility reasons should make an honest as-
sessment about how much their company actually de-
pends on Office macros. Secondly, even if your company
does use a lot of legacy Office macros, it is worth consider-
ing whether this might be a good time to bite the bullet
and replace them with something more portable, now that
they are being used as a tether to limit customer choice.
Google Docs certainly bills itself as a full replacement
for Microsoft’s productivity tools. Amazon provides the
infrastructure necessary for a collaboration environ-
ment, although their WorkDocs product is currently a bit
too focused on supporting Microsoft Office. But Amazon
certainly has the resources to implement their own com-
plete solution, and you can bet they are working on it now,
given the uncertainty with Microsoft.
You might be wondering why hyper-cloud users don’t just
switch to LibreOffice. The free LibreOffice suite was instru-
mental in breaking the Microsoft Office monopoly on the
desktop. Couldn’t they do the same in the cloud? Some-
day, perhaps, but there is work to be done.
It appears that The Document Foundation (TDF), main-
tainer of LibreOffice, isn’t really interested in building a
universal cloud-based solution. TDF does provide a
browser-based, network-ready version of LibreOffice, but
they consciously avoid the complexity of integrating cloud
storage, authentication, and other technologies needed for
a drop-in cloud implementation. A message on the TDF
website states, “The Document Foundation is not planning
to develop and fund a cloud solution similar to existing
products from Google and Microsoft, because this would
require selection and integration of the other technologies
needed for deployment. This would be a significant
growth of scope and not in line with the original mission
of the project. The task is therefore left to large deployers,
ISPs and providers of open source cloud solutions, and
several options are already available on the market.” [2]
As the note states, online services based on LibreOffice do
exist, but these solutions tend to be from single vendors
who are looking to build their own businesses and are not
acting on behalf of the whole community. TDF adds, “TDF
would welcome provision of a public LibreOffice Online
offering by another charity.”
Microsoft’s recent return to antitrust tactics could be a
wake up call for TDF or “another charity” to get working
on a free and universal cloud-based productivity solu-
tion that will challenge Microsoft’s imaginary monopoly
in office software.
Info
[1]
“Microsoft’s Tactics to Win Cloud Battle Lead to Antitrust
Scrutiny” by Richard Waters,
Financial Times,
4/13/2022:
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2022/04/microsofts-
tactics-to-win-cloud-battle-lead-to-new-antitrust-scrutiny/
[2]
LibreOffice Online:
https://www.libreoffice.org/download/libreoffice-online/
Joe Casad,
Editor in Chief
LINUX-MAGAZINE.COM | LINUXPROMAGAZINE.COM
ISSUE 259
JUNE 2022
3
JUNE 2022
30 Analytics with Python and KDD
Data mining is so much easier when you break
it down into basic steps.
54 OpenSnitch
Ward off intruders with this Free Linux port
of the Little Snitch application firewall.
44 Solving Wordle with Regexes
The ever-popular Wordle offers the chance for
some practice with regular expressions.
58 Tiling Desktops
Ditch that clumsy mouse and keep your
windows organized with a tiling window
manager.
48 BlueSeer ERP
If you have a small company, you don't have
to pay for a large (and expensive) enterprise
resource planning system.
NEWS
08
News
• Microsoft Expands Their Windows Subsystem for Linux
Offerings with AlmaLinux
• Debian 11.3 Released with Numerous Bug and
Security Fixes
• The First Alpha of Asahi Linux Is Available
• Zorin OS 16.1 Released with a New Kernel for Better
Hardware Compatibility
• Red Hat Adds Common Criteria Certification for RHEL 8.2
• Linux Kernel 5.17 Has Finally Arrived
COVER STORY
16
Zero Trust
The best strategy for network security is to trust no one.
IN-DEPTH
30
Analytics with Python and KDD
The Knowledge Discovery in Data Mining (KDD) method breaks
the business of data analytics into easy-to-understand steps.
12
Kernel News
• Retargeting the Magic SysRq Key
• The Seventh Circle of Bug-Tracking Hell
40
Command Line – Snort
Detect intruders on your network.
44
Solving Wordle with Regexes
REVIEWS
22
Distro Walk – Pop!_OS
Pop!_OS, known for its innovation, customization, and
user-friendliness, features one of the easiest tiling
desktop options available.
We’ll show you how to solve any Wordle in just a few steps and
gain practical experience using grep and regular expressions
48
BlueSeer ERP
An open source ERP solution can save you thousands of
dollars – in licensing fees as well as customization
expenses.
54
OpenSnitch
Protect yourself from unwanted data leaks.
26
Twister UI
Twister UI modernizes the Xfce desktop, making it ideal
for both new users and old hardware.
58
Tiling Desktops
Minimize clutter with a tiling desktop.
4
JUNE 2022
ISSUE 259
LINUX-MAGAZINE.COM | LINUXPROMAGAZINE.COM
16
Zero Trust
Twenty Years ago, everyone
thought a gateway firewall
was all you needed to stay
safe from intruders, but
recent history has told a
different story. Today, the
best advice is: Don't trust
anyone. Your internal
network could be just as
dangerous as the Internet.
71
Welcome
This month in Linux Voice.
73
Doghouse – Strategic Redundancy
Open source software and hardware are the best
choice to protect against supply chain disruption.
74
XMonad Tiling Window Manager
Many users never look back once they get started
with a tiling window manager. A close look at
XMonad shows why.
80
FOSSPicks
This month Graham looks at Zotero 6, Conky, Czkawka,
Rich, aha, Amazing-QR, horcrux, and more!
86
Tutorial – Vulkan darktable
The RAW converter Vulkan darktable outpaces its
competitors with a modern node-graph-based
architecture and massive use of the GPU.
MakerSpace
62
Assembler on Pi
Talk to your Raspberry Pi in its native assembler language.
66
Pluggable Pi Systems
Ecosystems with pluggable Raspberry Pi modules, sensors,
and displays are a great choice if you don’t want to solder
but still want to extend your hardware.
TWO TERRIFIC DISTROS
DOUBLE-SIDED DVD!
SEE PAGE 6 FOR DETAILS
LINUX-MAGAZINE.COM | LINUXPROMAGAZINE.COM
ISSUE 259
JUNE 2022
5

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