Netbook posing: update

Well I did install Linux, and indeed there was one thing it couldn't do: connect to the Imperial College wireless network. It turned out Linux didn't natively support Imperial's substantial wireless security fluff.* Infuriating it was to have to go back to XP, cap in hand, once more.

Linux has come on leaps and bounds in recent years, but from my experience there has always been crucial things you couldn't do without significant knowledge of how it worked inside. It has never, in my mind, been a genuine alternative to Windows or Mac OS for the average computer user. Roll on Google Chrome!

* I believe some of the latest distros do support this. I shall have to have another go when I'm supposed to be writing my thesis.

Facebook releases Twitbook Lite

Social networking behemoth Facebook today released a slimmed-down version of its service under the name Twitbook Lite. Developers have stripped away the bulk of its third-party content and applications, returning the site to its original, Twitter-based format.

Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg explained. "This is all about getting back to our roots," he told the QA. "When we started Facebook we had a clear vision of creating the ultimate real time micro-blogging network. Look, I have the patent! We were there first, look, look!"

Analysists say the move is the culmination of a gradual evolution for Facebook. According to The Guardian's technology editor James McNetbook, "by stripping away all features not blatantly ripped off from Twitter, Facebook really has returned to the pure Twitter experience it used to be." Response from its user base also appears positive. "It's great to use," said Facebook user Jill Jillington, "the interface is simplified so nothing distracts from its primary purpose of letting people give their opinions on subjects like President Obama and cats".

Added Zuckerberg, "this tool will finally give people the microblogging power to topple the Iranian government and end world poverty."