In a new attack on multinational corporations, the Communist government in India's southern state of Kerala is campaigning to eliminate Microsoft from use in public institutions, just weeks after it imposed a ban on Coca-Cola and Pepsi.

So you want a Linux that's set up with just the applications you want -- no more, no less. What do you do? Well, an expert Linux user does it himself. But, not everyone's a Linux legend. For the rest of us, there are two good choices.

There's a low-end personal option: Instalinux.com's free service, SystemDesigner. There's also a high-end corporate choice: rPath's rBuilder.

Desktop migration specialist Versora on Aug. 8 released an updated version (v2.0) of its Progression Desktop Windows to Linux desktop migration software, a tool that helps users to transfer files and settings from their Windows system to a Linux system.

RealNetworks will release open-source software this year that will let Linux computers play Windows Media files.

The confab for fans of the open-source operating system kicks off Tuesday, when Linux and open-source diehards will head to San Francisco to hear what's new. On the cards: Advanced Micro Devices to launch "Rev F" versions of its Opteron chips, Sun to provide more details on moving Java into open-source development, and all the latest Linux trends.