Red Hat, Caldera release new versions of Linux

Red Hat Software and Caldera Systems have updated their Linux products tosupport the Linux 2.2 kernel and a host of new features that take some ofthe pain out of using this UNIX-like OS, which has historically been almostimpossible to install and difficult to use.

Red Hat, as usual, has garnered support from a number of hardware makers,including IBM and Dell, for its new Red Hat Linux 6.0. The new version,which is available for free from the Internet, will cost $80 when it becomesavailable in stores next week.

And though Red Hat seems to grab the lion's share of the Linux news thesedays, the big news--surprisingly--is Caldera's new OpenLinux 2.2. Caldera'searlier version of Linux (1.3) was one of the more lackluster distributions,featuring a sickly install routine with no "go back" capability. But the newversion is slick, with a graphical install feature and no command lineexperience required. An integrated version of Partition Magic will allow youto resize your disk partitions and the install program will even launch fromWindows, given that most Linux users will probably also be using one ofMicrosoft's OSes. All in all, the Caldera distribution is suddenly the oneto watch