Linux-like Solaris

Sun Microsystems has decided to revamp its Solaris operating system in a bid to get more popularity, says CNet news.com.

The project, code named Indiana, will give Solaris more of a Linux-feel, hoping to ease the transition for users from Linux to Solaris.

Both Solaris and Linux are rooted in Unix, but Solaris peaked in the 1990's and Linux is presently the Sun operating system's biggest competitor.

IBM has started a $1 billion a year project aimed at conserving energy at its computer data centres, says The New York Times.

IBM plans to double its capacity without increasing its energy consumption, by 2010. Technologies to enable this include a new cooling system, software and 3D modelling and thermal engineering techniques.

These technologies will be used by IBM itself and will be offered to its corporate clients.

The Xbox 360 'spring update' is now available with few major additions, but vastly improved functionality, reports arstechnica.com.

The addition of Windows Messenger allows 360 owners to chat with people on the Messenger service on either the PC or the 360. The 360 already had solid chat support; and this is mostly a move to strengthen the link between the system and PC users.

Other tweaks make the 360 dashboard more usable, for example, when a game is in the tray, the dashboard will tell its name and, if highlighted, the feature box will show the gamer-score and achievements in that title.

Red Hat has announced its global desktop, designed to deliver a modern user experience with an enterprise-class suite of productivity applications, says eweek.com.

Global desktop was developed in collaboration with Intel to enable its design, support and distribution.

The company also said it was planning a packaged Linux desktop product that it hoped will push its desktop to a far broader audience than exists for its current client solution.