The open source community operates from a different point of view as it relates to intellectual property ownership and in generally abhors the concept of patents. However, patent and intellectual property rights exist and the open source community has been forced to both defend itself from patent infringement suits and pursue those who misappropriate open source code.

If you do a lot of writing, a desktop dictionary tool can be a powerful asset. With it, you can highlight a word within any program and then click the dictionary icon in your menu bar, which will open a new Web browser window containing the definition of the word.

Microsoft has long pooh-poohed Linux as a desktop competitor. But a recent filing with the Security and Exchange Commission has the company admitting for the first time that Linux represents a significant threat to Windows.

TechFlash reports that in Microsoft's recent annual filing with the SEC, it listed for the first time Ubuntu's maker Canonical, and Linux distributor Red Hat as competitors to its Client division, which makes Windows. Previously, TechFlash says, Red Hat was listed but only as a competitor to its Business and Server & Tools divisions.

The announcement a few days ago of Google's new Chrome OS was simultaneously shocking and expected. It's a typically understated and quietly ambitious move on behalf of Google. It's also proof -- if it were needed -- that Google people are supremely smart. They have their sights firmly set on the future as well as the here and now.

Chrome OS is initially targeted at netbook computers but it's anticipated it will spread to more mainstream computing devices as time goes on. Like Intel's Moblin OS, Chrome OS is a proof of concept that will use the hothouse environment of netbook computing to grow and mature.

As has been predicted for some time, Google has announced a new operating system project: Google Chrome OS. This is separate from Android, Google's mobile phone OS.

Initially aimed at netbooks, but seemingly intended to mature into a platform for all kinds of computing devices, Chrome OS is a "open source, lightweight operating system". It won't be available until the second half of 2010, but the source code will be made available later this year, so I wouldn't be surprised if we see some kind of usable release about that time too.

Moblin is an Intel-created open-source operating system for netbooks and, specifically, the kind of people who use them.

On a technical level this means Moblin is built for the Atom x86 chip found in many netbooks, while on a practical level it means Moblin is an Internet- and multimedia-focused operating system. Moblin is less about knocking-up spreadsheets on the move and more about twittering, updating your Facebook account, and watching movies on the go.

Wine is an open source project that, on the face of it, seems to offer something wondrous: the ability to run Windows applications under Linux (or any other open source OS). It does this by attempting to recreate the Windows API layer in open source.

Finally! A chance to run those Windows programs for which there are no open source analogs: Quicken, or Flash CS. And all those games!

There are a variety of netbook distros out there, but you can have a little fun creating your own. Here are some software packages and tips worth considering:

Choosing a distro

You can chose any distro but my favorite is, of course, Ubuntu. The 9.04 release is particularly well-suited to netbooks because it not only works well on most of them, but includes the ultra-quick boot-up technology that will probably mean the desktop appears in about 25 seconds of powering-up. This removes the need to hibernate or suspend the computer each time you've finished with it, which also removes the need for a large swap partition because this is where the hibernate file is stored (my Dell Mini 9 only has a 4GB SD disk, for example, and has 2GB of RAM, so a swap partition is simply impossible).

One of the biggest problems with open source is understanding what it means out in the real world. I'm not talking about understanding the actual technology. I'm talking about the impact of open source. How open source is actually useful.

What's clear to me is that open source is not an end in itself. Open source is an enabler. It's a catalyst. It allows other things to happen. It's the fulcrum upon which can be rested the lever that will move the world. But it isn't the lever itself.

It seems like the chatter around some impending Windows 7 vs. Linux faceoff has been exponentially increasing these past couple of weeks. I do not know about you, but I find it somewhat humorous. After all, the fan boys are getting widely excited. And, from reading all of the comments flying around one might think this is some kind of no holds bar, dirt encrusted, choose your own weapon, cage match of death.

In fact, let's just call this Thunderdome!