BackTrack - Penetration testing Linux distribution

BackTrack is a Linux distribution based on Slackware, created for penetration testing purposes. It merges two existing distributions, Whax (formerlyWhoppix) and Auditor Linux, into a single powerful Live CD system.

BackTrack incorporates all the necessary tools used in security testing, like nmap, finger, traceroute, Metasploit and other software. The Live CD worked perfectly in my VirtualBox VM, but actual installation on a USB drive or a hard disk is a bit technical (Although anyone who seriously uses BackTrack can do this). BackTrack also has all the other usual software for web browsing, image manipulation, document editing, etc... BackTrack automatically comes with HTTP, SMTP, and other server software so there's no need for manually installing them. The major drawback to BackTrack is the lack of an updating mechanism.

BackTrack Penetration testing Tools

I don't recommend this distribution to the average user. Only those who are extremely curious or expert computer users should find any use for this. You can download the distribution from here.

Songbird - Music Jukebox for Linux

iTunes is the frontrunner when it comes to Music Jukeboxes for the Windows platform, but there is no version of iTunes available for Linux. This is not much of a problem because good ol' Free and Open Source solutions are out there for you, and this blog is about one such player, Songbird, available for multiple platforms and OSs.

Based on the stable Mozilla Platform, Songbird has all the features you would expect from a typical Jukebox including support for multiple file formats, Skinnable interface, and an extension system that is the same as in Firefox. The User interface is modeled after the familiar iTunes interface, with links to the library, Bookmarks and downloads housed on the left sidebar. Listening to online radio is a simple matter of clicking the SHOUTcast link on the left sidebar.

Since its based on Firefox, Songbird inherits the Firefox extension system and can act like a web browser, and also has the ability to play media off web pages. There is a feature called Birdhouse included that lets you discover and download new music according to your taste.

Songbird is a new project under active development, so it still has a few drawbacks to it. When it comes to external devices, Apple iPod is supported but not the iPhone (Should not be a problem for most of us). CD ripping is still not available as is video playback. Another important feature missing is the ability to watch given folders for changes in music.

I tested the 64bit version of songbird in Ubuntu linux and was just OK with the performance. It was a bit too slow for my liking (64bit should mean faster performance dont you think?) and takes up a fair amount of memory if kept running for a long time (See the Below picture).


All in all, I would say Songbird is a reasonable choice as your standard Jukebox, but I recommend waiting until all the new features are implemented and the stability and performance issues are resolved.
You can download songbird from http://getsongbird.com/

Multimedia Linux Systems - I

I'm a fan of Open Source software, and this post is about the biggest of them all. Linux. And not just any linux, its about Multimedia Linux. What the heck is that?
Well, i just included that multimedia part to get your attention, but this post is about linux operating systems created with multimedia in mind. This includes audio/video creating/editing software and serious graphics creation/editing software. In the days olden, this might have passed off as a dream, but nowadays, some of the best multimedia programs available are open source.
And these linux distributions i'm about to pen down grabs all these 'best-of-the-best' linux software into a single distribution, which is a great thing because, most of these software are hard to configure for the average computer user (who happens to be a windows user most of the time), and well, some people(like me) likes to collect linux distros (like collecting stamps. No just kidding!).
So, if you do want to try out these multimedia OSs, here are the links.

Musix GNU + Linux

A Linux distribution based on Knoppix. This OS has all the bells and whistles you would expect from a multimedia system including software for video editing, audio editing, audio creation using midi and many other software. But dont be fooled by the multimedia tag, because this OS has all the other features you would expect from a fully fledged OS (mainly because its based on the stable Debian kernel).
I actually tried out the live CD version of this software, and I have to say it seems pretty capable of doing major multimedia tinkering, but I couldn't test these out since I don't have any midi enabled devices (and also I don't have a scrap of knowledge on music). OS itself was fast and thats a good thing considering I was testing out a live CD (without installing) inside VirtualBox.

ArtistX

Another Linux Distro based on Debian. Has a lot of software included into the DVD like Blender, Cinelerra, GIMP, Rosegarden, etc...
I haven't actually tried this OS (Live DVD too big to download for me!) but the description and the software lineup is pretty impressive. But the biggest drawback is the lack of a proper installation method. When I say proper, I mean a method that is easy for the average user. The current method of installation requires the user to first install the core Debian system and then use the aptitude command to install a big list of software through the internet. Experienced users can follow the installation guide provided at their site to get a working ArtistX OS installed onto the hard drive.




dyne:bolic

A different, yet equally good (or better?) multimedia OS. This is different because, well, it has mostly to do with the fact that dyne:bolic GUI is not the familiar kde or Gnome, but a more light weight XFCE. The OS website says the creator wanted to make sure that the system works on as many low end machines as possible, hence the use of XFCE. I tested this OS in VirtualBox and the results were very good. It has an impressive collection of software for audio/video creation and editing, and for all other needs as well. Another unique feature of this OS is that it explicitly gives the user the option of saving their work on the local hard drives when working in the Live CD (the other OSs mentioned here don't have this feature, although an experienced linux user can mount the local hard drives and achieve the same thing).