Archive for September 18th, 2007

Best way to learn Mandarin in GNU/Linux or OS X?

Tuesday, September 18th, 2007

What’s a good, quick way, to learn a new language with the help of Linux?

In particular, I’m interested in learning conversational Mandarin. Basic reading, is a bonus, but hey, I’m not that fussed. I’d like to not pay for my software, if possible, and since I tote a Linux laptop most of the time (this might change to an OS X based one that actually works - rant on this soon), if it runs on Linux, all the better. The Popagandhi tells me I need to go to a good class - do these exist in Melbourne/

Some useful links I’ve found, so far:

  • QQ for Linux - QQ is the Chinese version of ICQ, that pretty much everyone there uses. Though MSN seems to be a lot popular these days (compared to what, 2.5-3 odd years ago)
  • ChinesePod - podcasts to help? Well, maybe here’s a reason to use an iPod again…
  • I saw this thread on the Ubuntu Forums, but it doesn’t really address anything of requirement

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Posted in Languages, Linux, MacOSX, New Media | 5 Comments »

Zimbra acquired by Yahoo! - congratulations, and hope they don’t kill it

Tuesday, September 18th, 2007

Its exciting to see Zimbra being purchased for USD$350 million, by Yahoo!. Exciting because its a great product, exciting because I use it daily, and I guess Satish & team (of over 100 employees) deserve a big pat on the back. The other exciting thing to note is that its got MySQL in its core, and if they’re pushing it out farther and wider now thanks to the Yahoo! purchase, all the better.

There are a few things that are unclear, though, even from their FAQ:

  • They mention commitment to Zimbra 5, but I’m still waiting for 4.5.7 :P (My Series 60 phone still hates IMAP via Zimbra).
  • Will we see, say the AdSense Zimlet (only available in network, at the moment), disappear?
  • Will they hurt the community by attempting to over-commercialise Zimbra? Compiling Zimbra from source control isn’t the easiest process, because of the dependency list, so I do hope they don’t run away from their amazing “easy” install process

I guess its good to know that they’re in the Communications & Community team. Yahoo! has a tendency to buy things and kill it in the past as well. Anyone remember Geocities? They were a better MySpace, any day. Lets hope Brad Garlinghouse ensures Zimbra stays committed to delivering their product, and remain relevant (today, I don’t see any better software for ease-of-use and integration available out there in the open source world). Again, congratulations to Yahoo! on acquiring a great company, and here’s me tipping my hat for their betterment in the future.

– a loyal Zimbra fan.

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Posted in Business, Current Issues, OSSSoftware, Software, Zimbra | 3 Comments »