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We previously published an article on the best open source editors in 2008. Given the length of time that has elapsed, and the new projects that have come forward, it's prudent to update the article. Here's our updated list of the finest open source editors available for Linux. Naturally, it's largely a matter of preference, but it's extremely likely you'll find your ideal editor below.

Do not think home automation is just for geeks. It is now mainstream and a burgeoning industry. Become an home automation expert and try out these finest open source software for home automation. There are some real gems here. Many users flock to Domoticz and openHAB, but one of the others listed here may be a better fit for your requirements.

A download manager is computer software that is dedicated to the task of downloading files, optimizing bandwidth usage, and operating in a more organized way.

Microsoft Office still dominates market share of office suites. Businesses have often rejected free Office alternatives. However, whether this will continue is uncertain. With the cost of a price plan for Microsoft Office, the average home user or small business will welcome a free alternative. Fortunately, there are some truly excellent free alternatives available for Linux (and other operating systems).

I have selected my pick of desktop environments that are excellent candidates for older hardware. They typically run well on low-spec machines, even a system with a Pentium II 266MHz CPU, a processor that is now 16 years old. All of the desktops are released under freely distributable licenses. If your Linux box feels sluggish in general use, try one of the desktops featured below. It may just save you from discarding a perfectly good machine.

This article provides my pick of the best open source command line file transfer programs. The software featured here supports a number of different protocols. They offer shell-like command syntax, and are great for scripting purposes.

It has often been said that information confers power, and that the most important currency in our culture today is information. Keeping track of my bits and pieces of information has unfortunately been an issue for some years. In part, this is because of my passable short term memory, coupled with what can only be described as 'brain fog'. To combat this, I arm myself with open source software that helps me efficiently capture a lot of information.

Even though Terminator meets all my needs, I am always on the look out for new terminal emulators that might offer a different way of working. In this article, I explore three new terminal emulators. Each of these open source applications are a long way from the finished article. The software featured here are not stable, not feature complete, and should not be used in a production environment. But they have real potential.

Email clients offer a variety of features. Many email clients offer a slew of features, some stick with just the basics. At the end of the day, what is important is that you find an email client that offers what you need, it is reliable, and works well on your computer.

Fans of the typewriter remain a vehement group. They view the typewriter as something really special, a tool which makes the connection between languages. One of the attractions of a typewriter is that it offers a distraction-free alternative of modern day methods for producing a document. They challenge the writer to concentrate on what really matters - the content. They force the writer to think.

I would be the first to concede that Linux users will never be satisfied being denied access to a desktop environment. Linux users have a choice of many different desktop environments, all with their own different styles and strengths. Which desktop environment is best invokes strong feelings. Personally, I have no strong feelings for or against any of the environments available. This is predominately because I still spend a lot of my time either using the Linux console, or, when in X, I end up at a terminal emulator, mostly Terminator.

Mobile phone users should not regard their computer only as the means of recharging their phone, or transferring files to and from the phone's storage. There's a lot more than you can do with your Linux box. This article illustrates some good open source tools that let you manage your mobile phone.

File comparison compares the contents of computer files, finding their common contents and their differences. The result of the comparison is often known as a diff. diff is also the name of a famous console based file comparison utility that outputs the differences between two files. The diff utility was developed in the early 1970s on the Unix operating system. diff will output the parts of the files where they are different.

Text-based games often receive little coverage in the Linux press. However, there are some real ASCII gems out there waiting to be explored which are immensely addictive and great fun to play.

The focus of this article is to select the finest shell scripting books which are available to download for free. Many of the books featured here can also be freely distributed. So get reading, learning and sharing.

LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) is an application protocol for accessing directory services. It runs on a layer above the TCP/IP stack incorporating simplified encoding methods, and offers a convenient way to connect to, search, and modify Internet directories, specifically X.500-based directory services.

Linux offers a vast collection of small open source utilities that perform functions ranging from the obvious to the bizarre. It is the quality and selection of these tools that help Linux stand out as a productive environment.

This type of software puts to pasture the antiquated way of tracking network inventory, dispensing with the horrid spreadsheet or word processing document.

Learning a new programming language can be a daunting experience. To help break down the barriers, this article presents our pick of the finest free programming books available to download over the net. There is 1 book selected per language, which made selection problematic to say the least.

Ada is a structured, statically typed, imperative, wide-spectrum, multi-paradigm, object-oriented high-level, ALGOL-like programming language, extended from Pascal and other languages. The language was developed in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Ada is named after Augusta Ada Byron (often now known as Ada Lovelace), daughter of the poet Lord Byron.