The Tucows Network has a review of Linux Mandrake 7.0. It’s a pretty interesting looking distribution that I might try out the next time that I install Linux (which should be very soon). You can get the CD distribution from CheapBytes for $1.99.

For work, I’m reading the book Permission Marketing, by Seth Godin. Generally speaking, it’s a pretty good book that discusses marketing strategies that work in an economy where attention is the scarcest commodity. I think all marketing people should read it, because it recommends that they treat their customers with respect. Interestingly, while the book was written at least a year ago, the author predicts exactly (starting on page 133) the DoubleClick situation where an advertising network uses its placement on many sites to track user activity, and then uses its affiliation with sites where users register to map their Web activity to their real name and other information. The only difference between his prediction and reality is that he says Imgis will be the company that brings this about. I hadn’t been paying attention, but perhaps they’re doing the same thing DoubleClick does. (In the book, he argues strenuously against this type of activity as it squanders the “permission” given to companies by their customers.)

This John Udell talk from the 8th Annual Python Conference articulates a widely held vision of the future of the Web. It describes how Web sites can be used as network services for data interchange, and how Zope and XML fit into that vision. I have mixed feelings about Zope, but I’m completely sold on the larger vision described.

Unix geeks who haven’t visited appwatch.com are missing out. Not only does it list applications which have recently released new versions, but it also provides a brief description of each application and what has changed since the last release. Quite useful.

Andrew Leonard has written a piece for Salon discussing the fears many of us share regarding the VA Linux purchase of Andover.net.

The news that VA Linux is acquiring Andover.net is somewhat bizarre to me. VA Linux already paid a big chunk of money for the linux.com domain name, but obviously it’s nothing compared to the cool billion they’re shelling out for Slashdot (plus a hodgepodge of other, less interesting sites). Oh well, it’s all play money anyway.

I saw the Superbowl ad for Epidemic.com, but I didn’t really understand what they did (not unusual for a Superbowl ad). Now that I do know (thanks to Janelle Brown’s article in Salon), I must say that I’m pretty revolted. They offer a little program you can use to include graphical advertisements in the email messages you send. As if HTML mail weren’t bad enough as it is. All I can say is that anyone sending me Epidemic-infected email will immediately earn a one way ticket into my procmail filter.

Did you know that you can use CSS to remove those nasty little borders around radio buttons that appear in some browsers? Check out this tip at evolt.org to see how.

The Center for Democracy and Technology has put up a site that provides one stop where you can complain about DoubleClick’s evil practices and opt out of their ad tracking scheme all in one place. I have doubts about the efficacy of emailing form letters to people, but if the best thing that happens is that all of the people involved get thousands of messages from around the ‘net, I’ll still consider it a success.

Tara Calishain, of the ResearchBuzz web log, found the release date for NCSA HTTPD 1.0 for me. Thanks, Tara!