I've tried pretty much every IRC client available for both Linux and OS X. (I use both platforms during my day job.) No matter how many times I try to find a GUI application that meets my needs, I always turn back to Irssi.

Want to add real-time collaboration to your Web application? Mozilla's TogetherJS is worth a look.

In my last article, I started a series called Command-Line Cloud. The intent of the series is to discuss how to use the cloud services we are faced with these days without resorting to a Web browser. I spend most of my time on the command line, so that's where I'd most like to interface with cloud services.

With the increasing prevalence of open-source implementations and the expansion of personal computing device usage to include mobile and non-PC devices as well as traditional desktops and laptops, combating attacks and security obstacles against malware is a growing priority for a broad community of vendors, developers and end users.

Git has become the most popular version-tracking platform around for open-source projects. Whether you're using GitHub, Gitorious, Bitbucket or similar, or even if you're hosting the git repository yourself, accessing the code is something us Linux users take for granted.

If you run a publicly accessible Web server for your own use (and let's face it, if you're reading Linux Journal, there's a very good chance you do), how do you go about limiting the risk of someone accessing your site and doing bad things? How about SSH, an even bigger concern?

Setting up Web servers is fairly simple. In fact, it's so simple that once the server is set up, we often don't think about it anymore. It wasn't until I had a very large Web site rollout fail miserably that I started to research a method for load-testing servers before releasing a Web site to production.

In my last article, I looked at NumPY and some of its uses in numerical simulations. Although NumPY does provide some really robust building blocks, it is a bit lacking in more sophisticated tools. SciPY is one of the many Python modules that build on NumPY's.

"Do you know Linux? WE AE HIRING!" That's what billboards from HostGator have been saying for the past several years. That company is not alone. Demand for Linux talent is high and getting higher.

Cooler Than Minnesota in January By the time this issue goes to press, the snow in my backyard probably will be only knee deep in the shade.