PostgreSQL hasn’t had much coverage on this site yet and that’s something we’re going to correct now. PostgreSQL has, for the longest time, had a running rivalry with MySQL as the great open source database. MySQL has arguably been more popular but PostgreSQL is not without its share of advocates and adherents.
In this short article, we’re going to take a quick look at two tools written for designing and administering PostrgreSQL databases. These were selected for their recent releases this April.
First up, we have pgDesigner, an open source program for graphic design of PostgreSQL databases. pgDesigner is written in Gambas, a Visual BASIC-like programming language and requires Gambas to run. pgDesigner is currently at version 1.2.3.
Next, we have phpPgAdmin, a web-based administration tool for PostgreSQL databases. phpPgAdmin can administer multiple servers and is ideal for managing remote databases. Almost all aspects of a running PostgreSQL database can be managed using phpPgAdmin. phpPgAdmin is currently at version 4.2.
WordPress released version 2.5.1 over the weekend. According to the announcement:
It includes a number of bug fixes, performance enhancements, and one
very important security fix. We recommend everyone update immediately,
particularly if your blog has open registration. The vulnerability is
not public but it will be shortly.
If you download the entire 2.5.1 release, you will be getting over 70 other fixes. 2.5.1 focuses on fixing the most annoying bugs and improving performance. Here are some highlights:
- Performance improvements for the Dashboard, Write Post, and Edit Comments pages.
- Better performance for those who have many categories
- Media Uploader fixes
- An upgrade to TinyMCE 3.0.7
- Widget Administration fixes
- Various usability improvements
- Layout fixes for IE
You can download WordPress 2.5.1 here.
While it doesn’t qualify as an open source solution, IBM’s Lotus Notes/Domino gets some space today because of a lively discussion over at Slashdot concerning the products push against Microsoft. Recently announced Domino Express Licensing and Notes 8 places the price at $100 per user. That may still a hefty price for many small businesses, but for some companies that require a robust commercial messaging solution and with the budget to match may find something in it for them.
From the IBM information page:
IBM Lotus Domino Messaging Express software combines full support for
the latest Internet mail standards with the industry-leading messaging,
calendar and scheduling, discussion database and reference database
capabilities of Lotus Domino software - all in one manageable and
reliable package.
Lotus Domino Messaging Express includes a restricted license of Lotus
Domino Messaging Server that removes selected capabilities designed for
larger enterprises. You are entitled to use it on as many machines
within your company as you would like, but access is limited to those
users for which you have paid the per user charge.
ComputerWorld has an article that looks at the new Notes 8.
Ubuntu 8.04, also known as Hardy Heron, was released just last Friday. This is a significant milestone for the operating system as it marks another Long-Term Support version, the last one being Ubuntu 6.06 LTS. LTS means that the product will be supported for five years, a basic requirement for enterprise software.
New additions to the stock Ubuntu package include Kernel-based Virtual Machines for Intel and AMD processors with virtualization capabilities, built-in firewall, granular security policy, Firefox 3, Brasero (an improved CD-burning application), an improved Totem player (with YouTube and digital video broadcast support) and Inkscape.
To download the latest Ubuntu version quickly, visit the releases page.
From the Red Hat press releases web site: IDC Discusses the Health of the Linux Server Market. According to the IDC report:
“Spending on software related to Linux SOE [Server Operating Environment] platforms is growing quickly - with a 2006-2011 CAGR of 35.7%. Overall spending on Linux SOEs, including software, hardware, and services, is increasing at a 2006-2011 CAGR of 24.1%.”
The full report is available online.
Joomla 1.5.3 released today. This version was released earlier than scheduled to correct a database name validation error introduced in version 1.5.2. There are also some fixes pertaining to xHTML compliance, JFilterInput, PDF, and CSS.
We’ve covered Hyperic HQ on this site before as part of the set of open source system management products. Hyperic has just announced version 3.2.3 of its HQ product.
To recap: Hyperic HQ provides open source system management of Apache, Tomcat, LAMP, WAMP, WebSphere, JBoss, and WebLogic stacks. It also manages virtualization and VMware machines. The product is under the GPL license and is freely downloadable. On the other hand, the Hyperic HQ Enterprise is only available as an time-limited evaluation download.
Hyperic HQ is deployed in two parts: the HQ server, which collects and presents the information from the agents; and the HQ agents, which run on the monitored system.
Hyperic HQ 3.2.3 is available as a free download.
From the Asterisk web site: Asterisk 1.2.28, 1.4.19.1, and 1.6.0-beta8 released.
All of these releases contain a security patch for the vulnerability described in the AST-2008-006 security advisory. 1.6.0-beta8 is also a regular update to the 1.6.0 series with a number of bug fixes over the previous beta release.
Early last year, we made some modifications to the IAX2 channel driver to combat potential usage of IAX2 in traffic amplification attacks. Unfortunately, our fix was not complete and we were not notified of this until the original reporter of the issue decided to release information on how to exploit it to the public.
BitRock InstallBuilder, currently at version 5.4.6, allows you to create multiplatform installers for Linux (x86/PPC/s390/x86_64/Itanium), Windows, Mac OS X, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, Solaris (x86/Sparc), IRIX, AIX, and HP-UX applications. The generated application installers have a native look-and-feel and no external dependencies, and can be run in GUI, text, and unattended modes. In addition to self-contained installers, the installation tool is also able to generate standalone RPM packages.
The latest version features improved file copying speed on Unix, the ability to pass installation variables from the command line, and comment preservation in XML.
WaveMaker 3.0 is a WYSIWYG builder for Java Web applications. It creates standard Java applications based on Dojo AJAX widgets, Spring, and Hibernate. WaveMaker apps deploy as standard Java WAR files and can be opened and extended in Eclipse or Netbeans.
