It's no secret that Linux powers much of the technology we all rely on every day, but on Thursday the creator of the free and open source operating system received an honor that underscores the software's ubiquity and global importance.

The Technology Academy of Finland announced Thursday that Linux kernel creator Linus Torvalds is one of two laureates for the 2012 Millennium Technology Prize, in recognition of his contributions to the open-source software world.

The Technology Academy Finland has shortlisted Linus Torvalds for its 2012 Millennium Technology Prize, worth over €1 million (US$1.3 million).

Despite a rocky historical relationship with the open-source community, Microsoft's recent decision to create a specialised Open Technologies spinoff is the latest phase of its recent rapprochement with the open world - as well as a canny defensive measure.

The first wave of Raspberry Pi computers -- credit card-size devices that are designed to serve as teaching aids -- shipped this weekend after a series of delays. However, manufacturer RF Technologies is already out of stock again.

After months of widespread anticipation and a buying frenzy that took its makers by surprise earlier this year, the tiny Raspberry Pi PC has begun arriving on buyers' doorsteps.

A Department of Energy (DOE) lab is taking research done to develop a host-based security sensor and open-sourcing the software to encourage community feedback and participation.

Microsoft is spinning out a wholly owned subsidiary to bridge the gap between proprietary Microsoft technologies and non-Microsoft technologies in mixed IT environments by engaging with open source and standards communities.

As Ubuntu Linux continues to grow in popularity, most discussions of it tend to focus on the basics of the operating system itself, including especially details about its desktop environment and user interface.

Are you fed up with Microsoft Windows and ready to give Linux a try? Here's how to get started. This guide for Linux discusses who the Linux OS is right for, what you need to get started, and how to turn your Windows PC into a dual-boot computer so you can have the best of both worlds - Linux and Windows.

The Motorola Xoom was the most advanced tablet that we got to try out at Mobile World Congress. Other tablets, including the HTC Flyer, certainly look promising, but the Xoom is the launch device for the Google Android Honeycomb OS - the version of Android developed specifically for tablets - and the devices on show at MWC were fully working ones used for live demonstrations.

There's no doubt Canonical's popular Ubuntu Linux distribution gets the majority of attention in the Linux world these days, but there are myriad others equally worthy of consideration.

Motorola announced the Atrix smartphone at the Consumer Electronics Show, and while many have been concentrating on its 4G connectivity and clever desktop dock that lets it run a cut-down Linux desktop on a full-sized monitor, nearly everybody has missed something very important.

Were it not for Windows' long-standing installed base and overwhelming market dominance, it seems unlikely that anyone would argue seriously for the merit of the operating system, plagued as it is by high prices, security problems and vendor lock-in.

As the details of Samsung's Galaxy Tab are gradually revealed, it's becoming increasingly clear that many of the tablet's most desirable features derive from its use of Android--or Linux, that is--which, after all, is the basis for Google's winning mobile operating system.

Google's patching of vulnerabilities in its open source Chrome Web browser last week wasn't so much notable in itself; Microsoft, to be sure, is forever issuing patches for the many bugs that afflict its products.