Well, most of the US is heading back to school this week and we should see a steady pickup in traffic as the college campuses fill up with students eager to make use of someone else's bandwidth. If you have a Linux Distribution to share or one you want to see, please let us know by posting in the forums.

We're pleased to be able to offer our members TWO amazing FREE e-books and guides, the first is for those interested in learning the ins and outs of Linux from Scratch and its a 318 page eBook that provides readers with the background and instruction to design and build custom Linux systems. So now you don't have an excuse for building your OS from scratch!

The second is a Hackers Guide of sorts, Securing & Optimizing Linux: The Hacking Solution (v.3.0) and is A comprehensive collection of Linux security products and explanations in the most simple and structured manner on how to safely and easily configure and run many popular Linux-based applications and services.

Both of these books are offered free to our members and guests as one way to say thanks for helping to make LInuxtracker.org Number ONE!

This is just a reminder to our visitors and members, This is a LINUX/OSS distribution site. Files that are not open source or Linux related will be removed with out warning by a mod or admin and the account responsible will be banned from the site.

We do this for several reasons, mainly to keep the site on topic and focused on Linux, but also, it helps keep us clear of any of the battles that other torrent sites have to worry about. If you see something on the site that does not belong, please use the reporting feature to let us know or drop a note in the forums.

Also, for our members, we're currently offering a FREE subscription to The Scientist - The mission of The Scientist  is to provide compelling print and online coverage of the latest developments in the life sciences including research, technology and business. This is normally a $40 a year subscription that we're able to offer to you FOR FREE for a limited time.

Thanks and Keep Tracking!

Well, we're well in to the Dog Days of Summer here in Georgia and school has started back.

There's no better time to buckle down and learn some linux and we're hoping to help you do just that with the latest FREE Guide... "Slackware Linux Essentials".

The official guide to Slackware Linux.

Slackware Linux Essentials is an indispensible resource that you will want to have by your side at all times. It contains the most complete and up-to-date information available on the Slackware Linux Operating System. A must-have reference guide you have been waiting for, it delivers everything you need to get started with Slackware Linux, including straightforward explanations of important programs and step-by-step instructions to guide you through the Slackware installation process. You too can become an expert on this powerful OS by reading about its history and capabilities.

You can grab your FREE copy of this awesome guide HERE

If you were around over the 4th of July Weekend (which if you're in the states, we hope you weren't) you noticed that the big G had us listed as a potentially harmful site again. We've done some digging and have come to the conclusion that this was the result of an ad from one of the 3rd party ad networks we run on the site. It appears that the ad has been removed from rotation and things are operating solidly again.

We want to let everyone know that we take these things very seriously here at Linuxtracker.org and that we are in the process of updating the code that runs the site to the latest release. It will take some time before everything is running on the new code base, but it will be worth it. The change should be virtually unnoticeable from a user point of view.

We want to thank you for continuing to make Linuxtracker.org the NUMBER ONE place to go for linux torrents. By continuing to seed downloaded torrents and donating to the site you help make us Number One! Remember, if you'd like to view the site ad free, you can do so by donating.

As things heat up here in the south (Atlanta, GA) things are beginning to slow down here at Linuxtracker. We're seeing the usual midsummer slowdown as more people hit the road for a vacation, but the traffic never stops.

We want to thank those members who continue to upload torrents to the site and to the rest, we want to assure you that we're going to keep working to add more torrents every chance we get, but we need your help seeding them.

We also want to extend TWO free offers to you! The first is the Newbie's Getting Started Guide to Linux and is a GREAT resource for those looking to Learn the basics of the Linux operating system. Get to know what it is all about, and familiarize yourself with the practical side. Basically, if you're a complete Linux newbie and looking for a quick and easy guide to get you started this is it.

Second is the Incredible Guide to NEW Ubuntu Everyone's FAVORITE linux distribution gets even easier with this amazing 50 page guide to the fastest growing distribution around.

Take advantage of these FREE guides today as a way of Linuxtracker saying thanks for making us number one!

That's right! We want you to submit reviews, how to's, editorials, whatever as long as its about Linux or Technology to http://blog.linuxtracker.org/  

We've been slowly growing traffic, but haven't had the time or energy to come up with fresh content for you so we're turning to you! You know what you like and what you want to know about. We want you to let us know what that is!

Also, the month is nearing the end and we're getting close to July. We hope everyone is having a safe summer and we wanted to remind you that this tracker is for LINUX and OSS torrents only. Torrents of movies, closed source software or other items will be removed immediately and the posting account closed and banned. We will also not tolerate excessive links or ads in the torrent descriptions.

Thanks!

Summer is well underway an in addition to battling a summer cold (which is the worst) we've been busy battling a group of hackers trying to exploit the site.

The issue is related to a flaw in the message board system that we are working to patch (perhaps upgrade to 2.0RC3) and we have locked down most files at the moment on the site.

If you encounter any permissions errors please post in the forums or send mcangeli a PM with the information so that it can be handled on the server.

We thank you all for continuing to make Linuxtracker the Number ONE resource on line for Linux Distributions. We also want you to remember any EXE, .mov or other NON LINUX/OSS torrents will be deleted immediately and the offending poster's account will be deleted and blocked.

If you visited the site for any period yesterday (and perhaps Monday) you were greeted with the UGLY malware notice by Google. This was the result of someone reporting the site, not the site actually distributing malware.

Precautions have been taken and the server has been locked down to prevent any future abuse of the site. Torrents and user accounts will be monitored with greater dilligence and we will endeavor to keep a tighter control on what gets posted to the forums as well as who has access to the server and areas of the server.

If you notice anything that does not belong on the site please report it to a moderator or to mcangeli using the REPORT TORRENT feature or by sending a PM or posting in the forums.

Thank you for your continued support of Linuxtracker!

For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere (sorry Johncoom!) the weather is getting warm, the pools are opening and school is coming to a close for Summer. As things start to heat up, we're looking to become the coolest place around.

If you haven't stopped in in a while, make sure to check out the Forums where you can find the latest information on ALL the torrents uploaded to the site, stop by and check out the latest FREE MAGAZINES and WHITEPAPERS that we're offering to our members or stop in the IRC Chat and say hello.

If you notice your favorite Distro hasn't been uploaded in a while, feel free to grab a copy, make a torrent and share! Its only with your help that we've managed to maintain our status as the NUMBER ONE place online for finding Linux Torrents!

Wow! Google Buzz created a bunch of buzz the first day it was out, now that has died down, but there are still a plethora of people using it regularly. To that end, we've added the Official Google Buzz Button to the torrent details pages. Now, with the click of a button you can buzz to your hearts content. So why not get busy?

If you like the service Linuxtracker.org is providing, please consider buzzing your favorite distributions (we've made it easy) uploading you own Linux Torrents or supporting the site in any way you can (write about us on your site, support our sponsors or donate time or money to the site).

Thanks and make sure to Buzz like a busy bee!

With one month left to tax day here in the states, the saying "Beware the Ides of March" takes on a whole new meaning, doesn't it?

The poll has closed in our vote regarding wait times for guests and regular members, and we had a whopping 10 votes! How's that for member participation? As it stands now, we will not be adding wait times to the torrents, however, if we need to in the future, we will revisit the idea of adding wait times to downloading new torrents for unregistered members. Its easy to register on the site and it helps US keep more accurate stats when it comes to that sort of thing. Plus, you show your support for the site!

We have some new things in store for the rest of the year as we roll on in to spring, including some AWESOME Free Magazines and White Papers, Excellent prices on web hosting and domain names and some good prices on Electronic Gadgets of all kinds at the Nerds.net.

Please remember to support the site by seeding your downloads as long as you can after they have completed!

Thanks!

At linuxtracker we're constantly looking for ways to add benefits for becoming REGISTERED members here as well as benefits for those who donate to the site (did you know you can view the site AD FREE for as little as $5 a month?). We've added IRC chat, forums, a blog, speed tests, recommended reading. We've teamed with some of the biggest names to provide deals on Web hosting, Free Magazine and White Papers and some amazing deals on the latest technology.

Currently in the forum, we're trying to poll our members to find out if they'd lose interest in our site if we added wait times to the torrent downloads. DO NOT WORRY, this does not mean that we're going to be closing our doors to unregistered members. We realize that a large percentage of people who download our torrents, do so as guests. What we're looking to do is implement a 24 hour wait period on new torrents when they're uploaded.

What this means to you is that Guests will have to wait for 24 hours before grabbing the latest torrents. Regular Members 12 hours, PowerUsers will have to wait 6 hours and Uploaders and VIPs (members who contribute to the site) will be granted instant access. This helps us in several ways.

First, it allows us to limit the downloading in the first 24 hours to our power users. Those who can push a lot of bits and bytes out to get a torrent well seeded before it hits the general public. Second, it encourages people to become active on the site and help out by donating, uploading and seeding torrents.

Please keep in mind that we're only EXPLORING this option at this point, but we'd love YOUR FEEDBACK!

Thanks for making Linuxtracker.org number one!

We've noticed a number of torrents uploaded lately have been marked as MULTI tracker torrents (meaning they're being tracked by more then just Linuxtracker) even though the tracker listed is http://linuxtracker.org:2710. The reason for this is that its not the correct Announce URL.

The Announce url for Linuxtracker is: http://linuxtracker.org:2710/announce ANYTHING ELSE WILL BE MARKED AS A MULTI TRACKER TORRENT and will not keep stats accurately on our server. It is important that you use the correct Announce URL when making torrents for Linuxtracker.org.

Also, if you use the "report this torrent" feature, please make sure to FILL OUT THE FORM and let us know WHY you are reporting torrents. Reporting a torrent and not telling us why does absolutely no good!

We'd like to thank all the members who donated to linuxtracker.org during the month of February, thanks to your generousity we're able to keep online for a while. If you'd like to DONATE please feel free to do so and remember for $5 a month you can view the site AD FREE!

Linuxtracker.org needs your help! We pay approximately $200 every quarter for webhosting and bandwidth to stay online. Currently, we're about $70 short of that goal. You can contribute one of two ways.

The first and easiest is simply support our sponsors. The ads, while annoying, are a necessary part of almost any web site as they help keep the lights on and the server running. By visiting our sponsors and using their products and services you help linuxtracker as well as yourself.

The second way you can help Linuxtracker.org out and benefit yourself is to simply donate directly to the site. If you like the service that Linuxtracker.org provides, you can DONATE to the site. With every donation you have the option of choosing to receive VIP status, which removes the ads from the site, you can get upload points which help improve your ratio, or you can donate anonymously, which gives you that warm fuzzy feeling inside. Either way, the site benefits by being able to pay our bills and you benefit by being able to continue to download linux from the PREMIER Linux Bittorrent resource on line (don't believe us? Google it!)

Thanks for your support!

Thats right, March is right around the corner (next week) and we're here doing some early spring cleaning clearing out the cobwebs and gremlins that make the site run slow.

We've updated the Poll on the right side of the page, so let us know your favorite variant of linux (not distro, we want to know if you prefer debian based, slackware based, etc). We're in the process of retooling the forums for more member interaction (we are going to begin to have contests on the forums) and we're going to start recognizing those members who make contributions to the site, through uploading and seeding torrents, participating in the forums and IRC Chat, commenting on torrents and actual contributions.

If there's something you'd like to see added to the site, please let us know and if you have a favorite linux distribution that would benefit from the service we provide, let us know as well. We're also looking for distributions who need ads run to get their word out. We'll run your banners for free if you're a Linux Distribution, so let us know!

What do Tiger Direct, 1&1, and Amazon.com all have in common? They're all premium partners with Linuxtracker.org. Thats right, Linuxtracker.org has partnered with Tiger Direct to provide some AMAZING deals on some of the hottest technology available. We've also teamed up with Amazon to provide a list of Linux related books that even the most seasoned Linux user should have on his (or her) shelves and we've paired with 1&1 to provide some cool deals on dedicated web hosting. So if you've been looking for a place to hang your hat on the web, look no further then 1&1.

We've also made some improvements to the site in the past week, including a TOP UPLOADERS box, so now you can see how you stack up against the rest of the uploaders, we've added the side menus to the forums making the site easier to browse and we've updated the code for several other features of the site.

Check out any of the improvements and drop us a note in the forums to let us know what you'd like to see. As always, remember you can view the site AD FREE by donating and helping us keep the lights on!

Well hello there! We've had a busy week so far here at linuxtracker.org, we've made some much needed additions to the site we'd like to tell you about. First, if you hit the donate link in the menu, or the button in the block half way down the page, you'll be taken to our new donations page.

The new page gives you the option to donate one of three ways. You can either "upgrade" to vip membership for $5 per 30 days, where you get ad FREE viewing of the site, you can buy Gb to help with your ratio or you can donate anonymously. Personally, I'd go for the 30 days of VIP membership. Where else can you support the site and get AD FREE viewing for only $5?

Second, we've added a "REPORT THIS" option on the torrents and Users Pages. Our Mods are pretty good about catching things that do not belong here on Linuxtracker, but we NEED YOUR HELP at making sure we stay the NUMBER ONE resource for Linux and Open Source material online. You can do that by reporting Torrents and Users that are abusing the system here at linuxtracker.org.

As always, thank you for your continued support, we're well on our 6th year of providing a reliable source for Linux Torrents and we'll continue with your help!

Also added today, is the new "auto post" feature. when a torrent is uploaded a post will be created in the forum to discuss the torrent

Wow. Its already February and here in our part of the US, the Groundhog didn't see his shadow, so I'm hoping for an early spring. Linuxtracker.org quietly turned 6 on Monday and we're still going strong with over 10k members, 2k linux torrents and the promise of good things to come in 2010!

As as special offer to our members, we want to give you a FREE subscription to EContent Magazine. EContent covers the people, products, and services that make content happen! Regular subscription is $119 annually but you may sign up for a FREE SUBSCRIPTION as our birthday gift to you!

As always if you can support the site by seeding or uploading torrents, please do, we continue to stay online through your help!

Wow. Thats right! last week we ushered in 2010 and with it everything it promises (Can you say ChromeOS anyone?) Linuxtracker is off to a good start, we've got several new reviews posted at the Blog and we're always looking for more contributions. We'll be adding the major (and minor) distribution releases as the hit this year as we have for the past 6 years!!

We're looking to expand our user base as we approach the 10k members mark and we can do that with your help. FAN US ON FACEBOOK or Follow us on Twitter. Tell your friends about the awesome site where they can download the FUTURE of computing for free!! If you see us in the news, let us know. If you post about us on your blog, let us know and we'll post about you on ours!

Support Linuxtracker.org in any way you can and help us make 2010 an awesome year!!

Happy Holidays from Linuxtracker! Its hard to believe that Christmas is only 23 days away isn't it? Seems like last week we were ushering in the new year and a new president.

Exciting things have happened at Linuxtracker.org over the course of the last year, the blog http://blog.linuxtracker.org has taken off (we're still looking for people to submit articles), the site is running smoother and we've added a bar at the bottom with links to our RSS feed, recently added torrents (recent posts), random torrents, games, our Facebook Fan Page and our twitter page as well as a way to share what you find on our site. Make sure to check it out!

We're in the process of evaluating our current web hosting to see if its adequate or if we think we'll need to move we will let you know. Down time will be minimal and will be done when traffic to the site is a its lowest point of the day.

Lastly, we're nearing the 10k mark in registered users... its a big step for us! If you have friends interested in Linux, tell them about linuxtracker.org, membership is free! Also, make sure to Follow US ON TWITTER to stay on top of the most recent releases!

What? That’s crazy! All you have to do is submit a review of your favorite linux distribution for a chance to be entered in a monthly drawing for gift cards and other prizes! The first round will run through the end of December (as November is more then half way done!) and we will select two lucky Linux Reviewers to receive gift cards to Amie Street Music, our favorite place to find new music!

Before you get in a huff, no, the reviews do not have to be strictly Linux based (if you’ve read a good Tech book or used some AWESOME hardware, we want to know that as well), but we would like to keep it in the realm of Technology.

To submit your review of at least 200 words or more and TWO (yes, TWO) screenshots of the distribution/item you’re reviewing, simply email your review and images to reviews@linuxtracker.org. If your review is published, you’ll be entered in the drawing at the end of the month. If you submit multiple reviews, you’ll be entered multiple times (so the more you do the more chances you have to win!).

So what are you waiting for? Get busy playing in your sandbox today!

Wow! Can it get any better then free press on ComputerWorld.com? In an article about Linux Torrents being mentioned in the Australia Bittorrent Case LinuxTracker.org is singled out as one of the sites that list Linux Torrents for download (hey, who are we to complain, its what we do!). The article itself brings up a good point that bittorrent is a viable method of distributing Linux and other larger legal software files. Its a good read and we suggest everyone head over to Computer World to check it out and show your support for Bittorrent Users from the land down under (as I know we have more then a few here!)

If you see Linuxtracker in other news articles, let us know!

So while battling the evil russian ddos drones, we've also had a little time to throw together some awesome new deals for our visitors at linuxtracker.

First is our recommended reading section We've gathered some (ok, most) of the good linux books that amazon has and have put them together in one easy to find location. Looking for a book on Databases or php programming? Check the Recommended Reading page. Its there. Along with some other tasty gems.

Secondly, we've teamed up with 1&1 hosting to provide some awesome deals on Web Hosting. If you're looking to move servers, or start a site, check out some of these deals (I think you can get a FREE year of hosting on some of the plan!).

And lastly, make sure to check out the FREE MAGAZINEs we make available for our visitors. Some of them (like the Oracle one) are valuable tools that are always good to have.

As noted earlier in the week, the LinuxTracker server is still under attack. We're blocking DDOS attacks hourly (if not more) however, the server remained relatively stable for the weekend which by all accounts is a good thing. If you experience any issues with accessing the site, please email admin@linuxtracker.org so that we can work to resolve it. Also, it does appear that there may be at least one ISP actively blocking connections to the site, so be aware of that.

A new feature to the site is our collection of Web Hosting Deals available at 1&1. These deals range from anything from a FREE trial to a FREE YEAR worth of hosting on certain plans. If you're looking for hosting, check out 1&1. Its worth it.

Also, if you like the service Linuxtracker provides, please consider being a DONOR. If half of the registered members donated one dollar each, we could pay for our hosting for two years and not have to worry about keeping the lights on (meaning less ads!). As always anyone who donates $25 or more will be upgraded to VIP status and have the ads removed from their viewing pleasure. I know the ads are an eyesore at times, however, we do have to pay for hosting some how and Mrs. MCANGELI would be upset if I used the kids college funds

I don't know if you've noticed or not, but Linuxtracker has been up and down more than your favorite roller coaster over the past week or so. The unsteadiness of the site is due to a number of DDOS attacks being sent against the server (its amazing how much things calm down when apache is cut off).

We've implemented a number of safeguards against the attacks, though a few are still getting through and may render the server unresponsive at times. Please note that WE ARE WORKING ON THIS.


Unfortunately, our host's solution is to increase our bandwidth at an increased price per month, which is not an option.

We are currently using dd0s-deflate, APF and a number of apache modules to limit connections to the server to approximately 20 per IP address. If you notice your IP address routinely getting blocked, please email us at admin@linuxtracker.org and let us know what your IP address is so we can add you to the white list.

Wow! If you've visited the site in the past day or so, you might not have seen much of anything. We decided to do a dist-upgrade yesterday on the server and apache2 did not want to play nice with the core code for LinuxTracker so we've been working hard to get it back up to speed.

The good news for you is that The site is back up and running and there should only be some minor issues as we work to iron out all the bugs and put our custom programming back in to place. We're also glad to announce that we're now powered by Apache2, Php5 and mysql5 and that things appear to be a ton more stable around here.

If you notice anything, please send a PM to mcangeli or post in the forums.

Wow!! This year is almost half over, who could have thought it?? We're continually adding new torrents daily thanks to our members, please remember to keep them coming and if you have a favorite distro, SHARE THE LOVE! Seed as long as you can, or upload torrents of your favorite linux distribution. Also, remember to check us out on Twitter @linuxtracker or The Linuxtracker group on Facebook.

If you like a torrent, please consider tweeting about it, digging it, or sharing it with your friends. We're always looking for new people to reach!

Also, remember to support our sponsors, they help pay the bills. If anyone went to the Southeast Linuxfest this past weekend, we want to know!

Wow! May's half over and we're continuing to grow by leaps and bounds. We should hit 10k by the end of the summer if we're lucky.

As we approach the summer break, please remember to leave your seeds running as long as you can after downloading. Traffic will be a little lighter due to the Summer break and the more people who can continue seeding the better.

The current economic situation (I refuse to call it a crisis) has affected Linuxtracker in small ways. Revenue from Advertising is down (so we've had to increase the number of ads on the site to make the same amount). If you use a plugin such as Adblock Plus in Firefox or another ad block program, please consider turning it off on Linuxtracker. Your ad views will help the site greatly (and who knows, it might be for a product you need!) As always, you can get ad free viewing of the site for a donation of $30 or more.

Money earned from ads and donations helps to pay the hosting bill.

On another note, my wife gave birth to our Third little linux user on 5/5. Now there are four women running my life, which means I'll be immersing myself in Linuxtracker even more to try and hide.

Sorry for the absence from the site. My wife and I are expecting our third bundle of energy any day now and between work and getting things ready at home, computer time has been short.

That being said, the outages over the past week have been corrected and I think everything is operating normally (or as normally as it should)! If you notice anything please contact me via google talk (mcangeli) so that I can correct any issues right away.

On another note, LinuxJournal subscriptions have started rolling out and I have begun mailing the first batch of prizes to our winners. Sorry it has taken so long, but life (and server payments) have gotten in the way lately. The rest will be going out shortly.

Lastly, I'm working on creating an online network for Linux Professionals (those of us between newbie and guru), If interested, please check it out: http://linuxhub.org

A quick update for prize winners from February. The LinuxJournal subscriptions have been processed and the winners who sent their addresses should start receiving their LJ Subscriptions in May. The rest of the prizes are scheduled to begin being mailed out this next week. Keep your eyes on your mailboxes for those prizes you winners you!

I wanted to let you all know about an amazing one day only deal from Office Depot.  The one day was March 19, which is long gone.

So after the first (and probably last of the year) major snow storm here in Georgia for the year, we're well on our way in March. February was an amazing Birthday month for Linuxtracker.org. We've given away 20 LinuxJournal Subscriptions, a handful of Tux Dolls, a couple of shirts and some other AWESOME prizes, only to find out that we have some left. So at random times through out the month of March we're going to have some drawings for ACTIVE MEMBERS. To be included in this pool, you have to have downloaded/shared something recently and visited the site with in the past 30 days. Shouldn't be too hard. Should it?

We've made some changes to the backend of the site that should have things running a little smoother (we hope). If you notice any problems, please let us know about it by posting in the forums.

We also want to let you all know about a white paper one of our sponsors has made available. If you've been looking for a Content Management System for your website or business, we have the tool for you. [url=http://linuxtracker.tradepub.com/c/pubRD.mpl?sr=oc&_t=oc:&pc=w_crow01]The Content Management System Pocket Guide[/url] is the ultimate tool for Evaluating, Implementing and Deploying Content Management Systems and its yours free if you qualify (I think you have to be in the States). Check it out today.

We're constantly looking for new ways to make this site better for you. Our improvements have helped Linuxtracker become the NUMBER ONE spot online for finding Linux Torrents and we want that to continue. We've posted numbers above 130k for visits the past two months now and we're on pace to out do that for March. If you'd like to help keep the site running smooth (we're always looking for moderators) please let us know.

We keep tracking because YOU HELP US!

So after the first (and probably last of the year) major snow storm here in Georgia for the year, we're well on our way in March. February was an amazing Birthday month for Linuxtracker.org. We've given away 20 LinuxJournal Subscriptions, a handful of Tux Dolls, a couple of shirts and some other AWESOME prizes, only to find out that we have some left. So at random times through out the month of March we're going to have some drawings for ACTIVE MEMBERS. To be included in this pool, you have to have downloaded/shared something recently and visited the site with in the past 30 days. Shouldn't be too hard. Should it?

We've made some changes to the backend of the site that should have things running a little smoother (we hope). If you notice any problems, please let us know about it by posting in the forums.

We also want to let you all know about a white paper one of our sponsors has made available. If you've been looking for a Content Management System for your website or business, we have the tool for you. [url=http://linuxtracker.tradepub.com/c/pubRD.mpl?sr=oc&_t=oc:&pc=w_crow01]The Content Management System Pocket Guide[/url] is the ultimate tool for Evaluating, Implementing and Deploying Content Management Systems and its yours free if you qualify (I think you have to be in the States). Check it out today.

We're constantly looking for new ways to make this site better for you. Our improvements have helped Linuxtracker become the NUMBER ONE spot online for finding Linux Torrents and we want that to continue. We've posted numbers above 130k for visits the past two months now and we're on pace to out do that for March. If you'd like to help keep the site running smooth (we're always looking for moderators) please let us know.

We keep tracking because YOU HELP US!

Sorry for being MIA for the past couple of days, I took a trip to the mountains of Tennessee and I'm back. Here's an update on where the winners stand:

2/16 - Daniel_ Won a LinuxJournal Subscription and Sticker pack

2/17 - SoulReaver won a LinuxJournal Subscription and Sticker pack

2/18 - KyleBaker Won a LinuxJournal Subscription and Sticker pack

2/19 - Alexis211 Won a LinuxJournal Subscription and Sticker pack

2/20 - StrangeLite Won a LinuxJournal Subscription and Sticker pack

2/20 - Protocol won a stuffed tux and LinuxFish Emblem

2/21 - CesarChris710 Won a LinuxJournal Subscription and Sticker pack and Yammer Shirt

2/22 - Jaem Won a LinuxJournal Subscription and Sticker pack

2/23 - Marwanabo Won a LinuxJournal Subscription and Sticker pack

2/24 - KindofAbuzz Won a LinuxJournal Subscription and Sticker pack

I'm working on all the paper work now, once I know for certain what I have left to give out we'll be doing one last blast so make sure you're checking in on the site daily!!

Sorry about the downtime this morning. We were under attack by a number of different IP addresses that were hitting the server fairly hard (seems to happen every couple of weeks for some reason...).

I believe we have the situation under control and we'll continue to monitor connections for a while just to make sure.

We'll be doing another round of Give Away Wrap Up today or tomorrow, a note to those who have won, Packages will start to go out in the Post (that's the mail for you American's out there) on Monday. So STAY TUNED!! To those who have won, Congratulations, to those who haven't, hold on, we're about to unleash the rest!!

One last reminder, we pay our hosting bills through advertising and through donations from members. If you would like to support the site, there are several ways to do so. Any member who donates $25 or more will be upgraded to VIP status and will be able to see the site virtually ad free!! It PAYS TO UPGRADE!

Wow!! The Birthday Celebration is only 10 Days Old and already we've given away an amazing slew of prizes!!

2/5  - viperbush won the Pandora Prize Pack and a LinuxTracker T

2/5  - raptozilla won a LinuxPro License from Codeweavers

2/6  - cotton won a LinuxJournal/LNX/Google Pack

2/7  - oz1kad won a LinuxJournal/LNX/Google Pack

2/8  - bubu1uk won a LinuxJournal / Sticker combo pack

2/9  - pfloyd won a LinuxJournal / Sticker combo pack

2/10 - Grucha won a LinuxJournal / Sticker combo pack

2/10 - binlade2005 won a stuffed Tux and Linux Fish

2/11 - Helix won a LinuxJournal / Sticker combo pack

2/12 - pale_justice won a LinuxJournal/LNX/Google Pack and a Yammer.com Shirt

2/13 - wcc1776 won a LinuxJournal / Sticker combo pack

2/14 - djiezes won a LinuxJournal / Sticker combo pack

2/15 - amuse won a Sabayon Linux Shirt and Sticker Pack!!

2/15 - TXTad won the second Stuffed Tux/Linux Fish pack!!

2/15 - bassbend won a LinuxJournal / Sticker combo pack!!

Congratulations to our winners. If you have not emailed/pm'ed mcangeli with your contact information, please do so as soon as possible. We will begin mailing out prize packs the middle of this week.

If you haven't won yet, make sure to check back daily as the fun continues all month long and maybe even longer!!

In case you've missed the hoopla leading up to today, Linuxtracker.org is celebrating 4 years of tracking tux. We uploaded a Slax 4.2.0 Torrent and began our journey to become the premier Linux Bittorrent Repository online. I think we've succeeded!

Now we serve over 133,000 unique visitors a month, we hit almost every country in the world and we have over 1,000 current Linux Torrents and 6,000 members. We couldn't have done it with out our members and visitors and that's why, beginning today, we're going to be giving away some amazing stuff over the next 25 days!!

In case you missed it, here's a recap of what we're going to be giving away:

an impressive pack of swag supplied by Pandora as well as a linuxtracker.org shirt

a complimentary subscription to LinuxJournal (print subscription for Canadian, US, or Mexico, online subscription for international members), a Google Sticker (sticker in photo may not be the one you receive) and an LNX Oval from ThinkGeek (one for each day!)

a Plush Tux and Linux Fish (provided by ThinkGeek) - 5 of these bad boys to hand out!

two packs consisting of T-Shirts, bumper stickers and a button from Sabayon Linux

Schwag from Startupschwag.com

4 LinuxPro Licenses from CodeWeavers (the team that brought us CrossOver!)

All in all it should be an amazing month here at linuxtracker.org, check the forums daily to find out if you've won! If you aren't a registered member on the site, you aren't eligible to win, so what are you waiting for? Sign Up today!!

UPDATE: CodeWeavers has donated FOUR (4!) LinuxPro Licenses!!

Linuxtracker.org is celebrating 4 years of tracking Tux on February 5th and we're going to celebrate by having 25 Days of Give aways!

Thats right!! The first Give away will take place on February 5th. A random drawing of members who have visited the site since January 1st, 2009 (so that it benefits *active* members) and the winner will receive an impressive pack of swag supplied by Pandora as well as a linuxtracker.org shirt.

Every day after until we run out, we will be giving away at least one prize pack daily consisting of a complimentary subscription to LinuxJournal (print subscription for Canadian, US, or Mexico, online subscription for international members), a Google Sticker (sticker in photo may not be the one you receive) and an LNX Oval from ThinkGeek!

Extra prizes to be awarded at random during the 25 days of fun include a Plush Tux and Linux Fish (provided by ThinkGeek), two packs consisting of T-Shirts, bumper stickers and a button from Sabayon Linux and a couple of other shirts provided by the crew at startupschwag.com.

Make sure to check back DAILY to find out if you won one of the daily packs or were chosen at random out of the list of online members to win one of the other prize packs. Members must be registered with the tracker to win (IE: No Guests) and have visited the site since 1/1/2009.

For more information or to check out the prizes:
VISIT THE FORUMS

Wow, 2009 is off to a kicking start and coming up in February is Linuxtracker's 4th Anniversary. We're going to be celebrating all month long with special giveaways and other treats for our members, so its going to pay to visit the site DAILY! Expect more news as well as a list of things to come soon!

While we're looking ahead to our 4th year online as a Linux Bittorrent Super Site, we want to take some time to look back at the last four years and thank all of our members who have stuck with us. A little over a year ago, we switched backends on the site (and the site has been fairly stable ever since!) and ended up resetting a lot of our counters. However, in that time we've grown to host over 1500 Linux/OSS torrents, 5000 members and a countless number of other guests and we'd like to say thank you to everyone who has made it possible!

Remember to check back in February for some awesome deals and prizes as we celebrate 4 years of Tracking Tux!

Wow! What happened to 2008?? As 2009 barrels down the road, we're looking ahead to what the 2009 year will bring. We should see some more advances in the Linux Distribution world, we turn four and we have more improvements in store for Linuxtracker.org.

We do want to remind anyone who had VIP status for 2008, that those expire on Friday, January 9th. For anyone who wants to view the site Ad Free for 2009, simply contribute any amount over $25 and you can have AD FREE Viewing of Linuxtracker. For those that Donate over $50, you will receive a FREE LOGO SHIRT! as well as the ad free viewing. What a deal. Hit the DONATE page for more information or to make a donation!

As Christmas quickly approaches (or maybe you celebrate 8 nights of gifts!) many of us are stuck scrambling for gifts. Here at linuxtracker we want to help you out and support our site at the same time. If you have someone on your list that's hard to shop for or in to cool shirts you have two options. You can get them one of the cool new logo shirts to support linuxtracker through our Shop.

For $20 plus shipping you can get a dark colored shirt of your choice with the new Linuxtracker logo on it. The shirt holds up pretty well to wear and washing and has quickly become a favorite among those who like the LT. You can also find a myriad of other LT swag for sale as well. Plus, every purchase goes to Linuxtracker.

Alternatively, you can visit Busted Tees and find one a little more suited to your (or your secret santa's) taste. Personally, I like the "That's What She Said" shirt....

We're winding down the year here at Linuxtracker and soon we'll be celebrating our 4th year of tracking linux torrents. We'll have some special give aways coming up in January and February of 2009, so keep checking back! The Forums are going to play a large part in that!

Please respect the wishes of the Distribution when releasing torrents. If a torrent already exists using another tracker, please upload the existing torrent. Do not create a new torrent if one is not needed.

Also, as is the case with the PCLOS Beta that was released, they have asked not to make a torrent file for this release due to the changing nature of the beta. Please respect their wishes. Anyone uploading a torrent of the PCLOS beta will have their torrent removed and will be placed on notice.

We try to monitor what gets posted as best we can. We need every member and visitor's help in making sure that only things that belong on Linuxtracker are uploaded. If you question whether or not it should be uploaded, do not upload it with out checking with a moderator or an administrator. If you see something you think that should not have been uploaded, please bring it to an admin or Mod's attention so that we may take the proper action.

Thanks and have a warm December!

What a better way to begin the end of 2008 then with an amazing deal? Thats right, now you can get Parallels Desktop 4.0 for Mac with $5 discount
. So instead of 79.99 you pay 74.99 and you can run multiple Operating systems on your mac (letting you boot both windows and Linux on your MAC, how cool is that!?!?!) But  you have to act fast, that deal is only good today!!

Here at linuxtracker we hope you had a good holiday weekend. We saw more traffic than ever during the month of November and we're looking to expand that. If you have a friend interested in trying linux, let them know about the site. If you have a blog or website, post a link to Linuxtracker.org or talk about us on your blog. If you want to run a banner ad on your site, PM mcangeli and we'll work out a banner trade. What could be better then free advertising on the most widely traveled Linux Torrent site online? NOTHING!

Also, remember that VIP memberships expire at the end of the month. If you want to continue to view the site ad free, please DONATE!

Just a note, most of the Linuxtracker staff will be so stuffed with thanksgiving dinner this weekend (or tired from trying to find the best deals on stuff we really don't need) that we will be unable to stop by the site. We did however, want to wish everyone a very safe and happy Thanksgiving.

We need to remember to stop and give thanks this weekend for everything we have (including a kicking OS that is so customizable its unbelievable). We hope you and your family have a very merry holiday season.

On another note, VIP members ships for 2008 are set to expire on December 31st. Anyone who Donates to the site during the month of December will receive the full year of 2009 AD FREE on LinuxTracker.org. Thanks and again, we hope you have a happy thanksgiving!

Well, it happened sometime this weekend. We hit the 5,000 member mark and we're not showing any signs of stopping!

We'd like to thank those members who have helped us reach this point (we managed it under the old site, but in a much longer time!) and we want to encourage those new members to participate on the site by posting torrents, leaving comments, following us on Twitter, Donating to the site or being an active member on our forums. With your help, we'll continue to grow!

Continuing our spreading of holiday cheer, you can get up to 75% off select items at the NewLine Cinema Shop. Now you can get that LOTR replica sword you've always wanted (just in time for Christmas too!)

Wow! Turkey Day is fast approaching here in the States and we're looking forward to it! We've made a couple of improvements to the site that we think most of our visitors will like (most should have noticed by now!). The coolest of all is the addition of our Twitter Updates! You can Follow Us on twitter and have txt updates sent directly to your mobile or email whenever a torrent is uploaded! HOW SWEET IS THAT?!?!?! If you're not following us yet, make sure to sign up soon!

Also, we've partnered with EdgeTech this shopping season to provide you with some good deals on Digital Picture Frames
. If you use the Coupon Code: DPF10OFF you can get $10 off any order of $100 or more, and if you use DPF5OFF you get $5 off a purchase of $50 or more. Just another way we're helping you out this season. Now you can find the perfect frame for all your digital prints!!

One of the nice features here at Linuxtracker.org is the ability of ANY *nix or OSS software using the site as an efficient means of distributing their files. The drawback for the site is that by linking directly to the download link, we loose visitors. Currently, Linuxtracker relies on eyes to view the ads so that we can afford to keep the doors open. By linking directly to the download as opposed to your category or the torrent details page, you rob Linuxtracker of views.

This can hurt both parties in the long run as linuxtracker could be forced to go to a private membership format or even close down if we cannot pay the bandwidth bills. What we would like to ask is that if you or the distribution you work with would like to use Linuxtracker, please link to the torrent-details page or to the category page for your distribution. If your distro does not currently have a category all your own, let us know and we would be more than happy to add you to the ever growing list! This benefits both parties in the long run! Ed Note: I've added a Rewrite Rule that now directs any outside site link to the downloads page to the torrent-details page. Problem Solved!

On happier news, Linuxtracker.org would like to announce a partnership with JustTechJobs
. JustTechJobs is one of the leading online job sites for those in the Tech Field (any Tech Field) and is backed by the amazing people at Internet.com. Looking for a better job in the tech field? Or maybe you need a top quality tech person. Look no further!!

Yar, Halloween is Friday Night! By now, most of you should know what you're going dressed as (again this year, I'll be going dressed as a dad!) and in the spirit of treats, we wanted to share a 30 Day Trial with all you network admins out there.




Thats right, you can get a 30 day trial of the [url=http://linuxtracker.tradepub.com/c/pubRD.mpl?sr=oc&_t=oc:&pc=w_sola05]Affordable, Easy-to-Use Network Monitoring Software from SolarWinds[/url]. I've tried this software before and I was impressed with the info that the NMS suite was able to gather. Its really a complete package.

SolarWinds Orion Network Performance Monitor (Orion NPM) is an award-winning, Web-based network performance monitoring solution trusted by thousands of network engineers worldwide. It is a cost-effective, easy to use and scalable solution that addresses the day-to-day problems faced by network professionals in the enterprise. Don't forget to [url=http://linuxtracker.tradepub.com/c/pubRD.mpl?sr=oc&_t=oc:&pc=w_sola05]Check it Out![/url]

Also, some changes and additions to the site have been made. On the torrents page, you can now search for local or multi tracker torrents (in case you wanted something local) and we also have added a new SHOPPING site with offers and products from a number of different places. If you don't see what you want on the first page (and you probably won't) don't hesitate to search. You can't loose!!

Thats right. Linuxtracker.org needs your support! We are always looking for people to help the site through promotion, posting torrents, seeding and donating, you can help make sure that Linuxtracker.org continues to thrive.

If you have a blog or Linux/Computer related website, add a link or post to LinuxTracker.org. Anything that will help build our traffic. If you don't have a site of your own, tell your friends about linuxtracker or sport one of our cool Shirts out in public.

Maybe you'd rather help by creating torrents of the latest releases on Distrowatch and helping seed for a while. If anything, make sure to LEAVE YOUR TORRENTS RUNNING for a while after you download to ensure that you have a ratio better than 1:1.

Lastly, you can support Linuxtracker.org by donating directly to the site (you benefit from this too as you will be enabled to view the site ad free!) or by supporting our sponsors, most of whom have some super cool deals like Zappos
(who are running some amazing deals on footware and accessories) and Nero one of the ultimate resources for linux backup software.

Thats right! Something for nothing! In this time of economic uncertainty, Linuxtracker has paired with Oracle Magazine to bring you a little bit more than your favorite Linux Distributions. We want to bring you a free subscription to one of the leading magazines on Oracle, [url=http://linuxtracker.tradepub.com/c/pubRD.mpl?sr=oc&_t=oc:&pc=orm]Oracle Magazine[/url] (catchy name right?).

Oracle Magazine contains technology strategy articles, sample code, tips, Oracle and partner news, how to articles for developers and DBAs, and more. This is a must read for anyone in the IT Field or simply anyone who wants to get ahead. Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL) is the world's largest enterprise software company.

Please help support Linuxtracker.org by visiting our sponsors, by telling your friends about the site, by donating or uploading torrents. We grow and spread linux through our members!

Wow did September breeze by fast or what? Here we are in October. Things are underway and the site is growing at a steady pace. We wanted to apologize for the random down time we've witnessed lately, we think we have the issue resolved, but only time will tell.

We are in the process of making the English Language files for the site available to those who want to translate them to another language. So far we have volunteers to translate it to French and update the German Language as well. Which ROCKs!! If you want to help, drop a note in the forums. We'd also like to remind you that if you get tired of viewing the site with ad's you can Donate to the site and earn the benefit of viewing the site ad free. How much does that rock?

And Right now you can Gear Up For The Fall With MGMStore.com!
. Check out the MGM store to get swag from your favorite movies at silly prices! The deals are unbelievable!

Schools back in session and things are moving along quite nicely as 2008 progresses to 2009. We've created a Facebook Group so that our members can congregate in a less formal setting (anyone want a hobo thrown at them??) If you're on facebook, join up and say hello! lets spread the word of Linux!

Things are progressing nicely here at the tracker, we want to remind everyone that we exist through your generosity. Make sure to upload torrents of your favorite distributions! Music, movies and other uploads will not be tolerated and will be deleted immediately. Offenders will receive notice and then a ban on their second offense. Please keep things related to Linux!

On another note, one of our sponsors, wants you to Register Your Free Domain Name with Eporio.com Today!
Eporio makes having a website a snap!! If you've been itching to try your hand at being a webmaster, give them a go. You'll be glad you did!

We'd like to congratulate ruedii on becoming the newest moderator @ Linuxtracker.org. Whether its helping out people in the forums or providing valuable assistance to those in need, ruedii has been a quite force on the forums and we hope that continues!

Also, we want to let you know that we have NEW LinuxTracker logo gear in the STORE. The new logo gear has the awesome new Tux Logo on it and linuxTracker in a very stylish font. The shirts are printed on a high quality Hanes T and are very durable. Perfect for those long nights of emerging your Gentoo system.

Lastly, don't forget that if you want to view the site AD FREE, all it takes is a minimum donation of $5 (Donations of $50 or more will receive an LT Shirt). Donations help pay the for hosting and advertising of LinuxTracker. We also wanted to let you know about a super deal from one of our sponsors, ZipHosting. This Limited Time Offer, Waived setup fees for your new web hosting account at ZipHosters.com!  Sign Up Today!
. Can't beat an offer of Free Setup with a host that is going to give you 1.5gb of traffic and 1.5gb of space for as little as $7.95 a month. Now there's no reason for you not to have a web presence!!

A new version of Transmission, the popular Mac/Linux BitTorrent client, has been released. This is a significant update that adds a new browser-based interface for managing your torrents remotely. The remote features come from Clutch, which has been included with the latest version of Transmission.

I haven't had the opportunity to try this yet, but for those looking for a good way to manage their downloads while away from their main computer (or maybe you need to control your downloads at home while at work) this looks to be a good thing. I will say, this client is unique in that its ONLY available for mac/*Nix boxen. No windows love here and it is FREE!

Also, we're less then 100 torrents away from hitting the 1k mark with the uploaded torrents again! Something thats awesome considering we started from scratch in January of this year. Way to go guys!!

We also wanted to let you know that Gazelle is perhaps the quickest and easiest way to Cash In Your Old Gadgets

. They'll take almost anything electronic that you need to get rid of and give you cash! What could be better??

Wow. July is done. (well, tomorrow it is anyways) and we're more than half way through 2008. Can you believe it?? Most of the major work changing the theme on the site is done and I'd like to thank SilverBear and Darek for their hard work on the new theme. I think it brings us to a whole new level as far as the site goes.

This past week we've been posting some amazing numbers as far as visitors on the site and I'd like to think that will only continue to improve! If you're interested in advertising on the site either through banner ads or through text links please let me know or visit Our AdBrite (Please note, the link has been updated!!) Page where you can purchase text ads for under $1.25 a day!!

I also want to let you know about a really cool deal one of our sponsors is running on a Seagate 750GB Hard Drive only $98 + Free external case with code FREECASE @ Geeks.com Can't beat $98 for 750gb of storage. Thats less than thirteen cents a gig!!! Talk about a good deal!

If you're like me, you received a barrage of emails last night letting you know that there were torrents available on the site for the latest Foresight Linux install. When you came looking for them however, they weren't there!

Thats because they were hiding! Check the Foresight category Listing and make sure that you have it set to include dead torrents as well. The tracker foresight is using is not allowing scraping for some reason so we cannot have accurate stats on these torrents, but I do want you to know, there are peers connected to it and they are uploading at a decent rate!

As soon as some LT members hit the torrents, our announce url will be added and you'll at least get some credit!

Also a reminder, if you want to view the site in its ad free splendor, all you have to do is hit the DONATE link and send some financial love our way. Your donations go towards making sure we can leave the lights on!

We are slowly but surely getting all the bugs worked out of the new theme. I'm happy to say that account creation should be working completely again, the site is centered and somewhat normal in IE for the moment, and torrents with out screenshots are good to go for uploading.

We do have a list in the forums that is keeping track of bugs or issues with the new theme. If you come across one, please let us know.

We'd also like to know what you think of the new theme. Vote in the Poll box: 4th small box down in the left column!

Ok, in case you haven't noticed by now, there are some major changes taking place at Linuxtracker today.

We've been working on the new design for a while now (close to two months) and it was at a point on the development server where I couldn't proceed to make it work properly with out completely copying the current Linuxtracker site. And while I know that I really should have, I just couldn't do it.

So, I've added the new theme here and will move everyone to it so that you can see what I see.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS THEME IS IN NO WAY COMPLETE AT THE MOMENT AND WILL BE CHANGING ALL THE TIME. IF YOU STUMBLE UPON THE SITE AND ITS GIVING YOU AN ERROR ABOUT A MISPLACED ; TAKE A DEEP BREATH, HIT REFRESH AND PRAY I MANAGED TO FIND IT

The new theme is in no way done, however, the best way to work out the bugs is to test the heck out of it. If you find a bug or something that needs improving, please, please, PLEASE let me know.

If you have issues viewing the site in internet explorer, we'd like to suggest firefox!

Well, thats it folks, June is officially in the books and we're on to July. Happy Canada Day for those canooks out there and happy 4th of July to those in the States.

We'll be busy bakin in the sun this weekend, but we wanted to remind you of a few simple things. First, we actually have FORUMS here at linuxtracker where you can post comments about your favorite distro or the site. The only thing we want to remind you of is the simple fact that we are not a support site. If we were, we'd be LinuxQuestions.org or something like that.

Secondly, we have a Store where you can get Linuxtracker.org stuff. Its pretty good quality and it ships rather quickly. Check out the image from the shirt I just ordered!!

Thirdly, if you want to view the site ad free, all you have to do is donate!! Donators to the site receive VIP status and get to view the site AD FREE!! How freaking cool is that?? Every bit donated helps us pay the light bill so we can keep on tracking!!

We hope to have a demo of the new theme up by the middle of the month, and we hope to be mostly on the new theme by August 1st so check back often and Stay Cool this summer!

In honor of the pending site redesign of doom! (Thanks Darek and Silverbear for all your help so far!) We're in the process of reworking all of the linuxtracker.org swag we currently have available (What?!?!? You didn't know you could get a Linuxtracker Shirt?) We've started placing the new "logo" on shirts and the like and so far we're pretty happy with how its coming out.

Cafepress does a decent job and the black T with the circle logo I have has lasted a pretty good while now. The New Black shirt is currently on sale for $19.99 plus shipping... Prices will go up after the release of the new theme so you better check out the swag while you can!!

If you're an experienced designer or coder Linuxtracker.org needs your help!! A fresh new design has been donated to Linuxtracker.org. This new design takes several features of the site and makes them better and it updates the current look with something fresh and seldom seen on the BitTorrent Tracker scene.

The problem is that the design has been delivered as a PSD by a very talented member of our community. Normally this wouldn't be an issue, but mcangeli does *most* of his coding in vi ( :wq anyone? ) and has no clue how to take the absolutely gorgeous PSD file and make it something he can mold for the templating system on the site.

Thats where you come in. If you're talented with Adobe Fireworks or Photoshop and can take the completed PSD file and slice it and code it and make it a thing of CSS/HTML beauty, we would love you long time!! Seriously, if you have the knowledge or the ability, please let mcangeli know. He desperately wants to get this thing sliced and coded (and yes, he could turn to one of the "pay" services to do this, but come on ya'll this is OPEN SOURCE isn't it??)

Besides, you'll get one of the first peeks at the new design and mcangeli will buy you a LinuxTracker Shirt! with the new logo!!

Where has 2008 gone?? May is almost over and June is upon us. With that means people are taking vacations, working less, and in general, downloading less! What does that mean for you?

Well, it means you need to help us out by keeping your seeds alive well after you have completed the download. this way, more people can share in the glory known as Linux.

Also, we're going to be having contest through out the month of June, so stay posted for more information!

The tracker downtime yesterday was the result of an unexpected and unknown server reboot. When the server came back up, apache and mysql started properly, however, xbt did not, so the tracker itself was off line.

I've corrected the issue in case the server monkeys decide to reboot the server with out telling me again.

On the upside, May is on the downward slide and we're getting in to the summer months (did you know it was 103 degrees in Las vegas yesterday??) and with that means less people surfing from their highspeed connections at school. Don't let that stop you, remember to keep seeding.

Also, we're working with a designer on a new look and feel for the site that we think is classier than the current design so make sure you check back often!

I've installed Fedora 9 preview on a boxen here at the HQ and so far, outside of some SEL issues preventing me from accessing the net I'm pretty impressed. Whats more impressive is that Linux is taking more news from the mainstream media.

For instance, this week in eWeek, there was a fairly decent write up on the latest release from Ubuntu. Actually extolling the goodness that is Ubuntu and how well they've done in coming up with a friendly, easy to use product that could be a viable alternative to Windows.

Previously, such articles were reserved for wisened old nix gurus in specialty mags, but the fact that Ubuntu earned a two page spread in eWeek (a fairly MS biased trade publication) is something to be excited about... now if only they'd switch their color schemes to something more friendly....

Also, for those members in the USA, for a limited time only, get a free year subscription to PC Magazine!!

johncoom has been hard at work updating our categories with current home/forum urls as well as whether or not the distribution is active or not. If you see him (while you're out and about in Australia) buy him a beer. He could use it.

Coming up this fall is The Ohio Linuxfest. This is their sixth year in operation and this year, Linuxtracker would like to be a sponsor. However, we need your help. Any funds raised during the month of May will be donated to the Ohio Linuxfest in Linuxtracker.org's name. We'd like to send at least $500 to the fine folks in Ohio to help further the cause.

If you can contribute, please do as any little bit helps. In addition to helping out the Linuxfest, you'll also be upgraded to VIP status at linuxtracker.org and you can see what the site looks like with out ads!!

Happy May Day!! Can you believe that Cinco De Mayo is monday?? We pruned inactive members last night at 2:16 am EDT (I know the exact time because I'm the one who pushed the button). In order to remain active you must log in to the site once every two months. That isn't too much to ask for is it??

Automatic pruning of members opens a new window for us as it will allow us to keep an active member base. We sent out several warning emails regarding this so it should not be a surprise to anyone. The only down side is that we lost about 1000 members :'(  I have no fear that we'll gain them back though.

Beginning this month, we will be sending out monthly newsletters to keep you apprised of the happenings here. If you wish to not receive these mailings, you can change the settings in your Forum Profile (click the forum link and then the profile link). We'll keep you up to date on the more popular uploads, changes to the sites and other happenings as we need to. These will go out around the 15th of the month.

Lastly, mcangeli will be working on redesigning the site. If there are current aspects of the site layout that you like or dislike, please let us know via the forums so we know what works for our members.

Please remember to seed for at least 24 hours after your download completes and remember, Keep Tracking!

In order to keep the Linuxtracker community active and thriving we have implemented several features to help the moderators keep things under control. The most obvious is the 24 hour wating period for guests to download new torrents. Membership at linuxtracke.org has its perks.

The second, and perhaps the more important one for you, is the addition of the autoprune. Members (anyone under VIP status) who have been inactive (not logged in to Linuxtracker.org) for a period of 60 days will find their accounts at linuxtracker.org removed. In order to stay active on the site, all that is required is that you log in once every 60 days. If you have registered and never visited the site again, now is your chance to see what you have been missing.

Inactive users will be pruned on the 1st of May (this coming Thursday). If you are unsure of your status on the site, please stop by and log in. After that, members will be pruned daily based on their last log in date.

We are doing this in order to help keep the member base here at linuxtracker active and participating.

If you'd like to find out more about helping the site out in any capacity, please feel free to contact us via the message board.

In order to gather more accurate stats and to grow the member base here at linuxtracker.org, we've implimented a 24 hour waiting period for guests. New uploads will become available for download 24 hours AFTER they have been uploaded.

If you're a guest and you want to download the torrent immediately, please feel free to register. It takes less than five minutes, its completely free and it will allow you instant access to downloads.

If you'd like to advertise on the site, please contact mcangeli.

Maybe you've been a regular visitor of the site since we opened for business in 2005 or maybe you're new to the site, either way you can't help but have seen the Digg and Redit buttons on the torrent details page. We rely on word of mouth (mostly) when it comes to bringing new eyes to the site and the Digg and redit buttons are one of the best ways for us to reach more eyes.

It takes only a minute to register at digg.com in order to vote (digg) stories or pages and once you're done, you'll be amazed at the wealth of news and other things you can find at digg. But more importantly, you'll be amazed at the amount of traffic a well dugg article could bring to your favorite distribution.

If you want to share the love you have with someone else, give a little digg. It won't hurt. We promise!

Over the weekend, we managed to rack up our 3000th registered member. An impressive feat considering we wiped all the member accounts in january and started over isn't it? That number doesn't even begin to count the guests and visitors that download torrents from this site daily. We're well over that number if you take in to account the seeders and leechers from outside sources!

Not to sound like a tired old record, but if every registered member contributed 2 dollars, we could pay for the hosting of Linuxtracker.org for more than TWO years! Wouldn't it be nice?

Keep on trackin!

Thats right!! In the Spirit of Christmas or Easter or maybe Halloween, we're giving away FREE linux distributions!! So step right up and get your free Linux Distribution today!!

On a little more serious note, we're in the business of distributing FREE linux distributions. We only accept torrents of free and open source software (preferably of the linux variety). Any uploads of commercial or pirated software, music, movies, games, books, whatever, will be removed immediately (or as quickly as a mod notices it) and the uploader will be banned from linuxtracker.org.

Keeping the site limited to Linux and Opensource software is how we are able to survive in today's litigation happy world of Digital Copy Rights. If you're looking for pirated software, please look elsewhere!

On another happy note, Spring is off to an amazing start as we near the 3k user mark. We are working on a redesign of the layout which will incorporate more of the features of the old site and we are still looking for more sponsors.

We recently added The Linux Store as a sponsor and would love to add more linux related products and suppliers to our advertising ranks. If you have a linux distribution (that has released at least one release using LinuxTracker) you may qualify for FREE advertising on Linuxtracker.org. PM mcangeli for more information.

Thanks and keep on tracking!

Wow, the first full week of Spring is in gear and here in Georgia, we've gone from 75 degree (F) days to snow and 30 degree mornings. What could be better?

Well, Jelly Belly 48 Hour Sale...Buy 3 Bags Of Belly Flops Get 2 FREE!
thats what!! As if you needed more sugar after Easter!

We're nearing 3000 users and 500 torrents quickly help spread the word about the most efficient way to download linux!

We wanted to apologize for the down time last night and this morning. Someone forgot to feed the hamsters and so they quit running. When the hamsters quit, there's no juice to power the processors, so... the lights go out.

Things have been taken care of and the site is back up and running!! And on the plus side, we've decided to offer free Linux to anyone who can download it!!

w00t!!

By now, you've noticed some changes to the site. The most notable is the listing of categories on the right side of the main screen here --->>

Thats not the entire category listing (yet) but just the ones that actually have something uploaded to them. Its a good way to see who the most active distributions on LinuxTracker are (or at least the ones with the most releases posted here). Not to mention, but clicking on the category name takes you to the category page where you can see all the uploaded files. How sweet it is!

Also, we've made some changes to the ad setup here . Google ads are appearing in more places on the site. February wasn't as profitable for us and we're having a little trouble paying the bills this month (we had a HUGE bandwidth bill from last year we're still trying to make up for). We've made some changes to the way the ads are displayed as well.

As always, anyone who wants AD FREE SURFING on linuxtracker only needs to donate to the site. $5 will get you a month of ad free surfing and help to pay off our hosting tab. We know that no one likes ads, but until mcangeli becomes independently wealthy, we need a  source of income to pay the bills.

Also, as we near the 2500 member mark (for our second time around) make sure you tell your friends to check out linuxtracker.org for all their linux download needs!!

Wow. Two months down. One and a half of which has been on the new system and we're already over 2000 members (most of whom are active!) and 356 torrent files uploaded.

We've added a ton of features, including a free speed test so you can find out if your network connection will cut it when it comes to seeding. We've also enabled automatic promotion to Power User for those members who have an amazing ratio! So remember to keep your torrents live after you've finished downloading to at least give back as much as you get.

As a reminder, if you plan on posting torrents from LinuxTracker on outside trackers (like mininova or tuxdistro) please make sure to Download the torrent as a guest. That way, you're not credited with a bunch of upload/download bytes that you shouldn't have. Its a lot less confusing that way!

How could I have missed it?? February first, we celebrated our THIRD anniversary of posting torrents! Thats right I posted Slax 4.2.0 on the original linuxtracker.org site on Feb. 1st 2005 and it all went out of control from there.

Since that date, we've shared over 3500 linux files with more than 25,000 people world wide. Thats an amazing feat. Even cooler is that we're still alive and kicking and one of the most comprehensive sites on line.

We've donated countless amounts of time, energy and money to various open source projects (including the project that is responsible for the AMAZING code the site is now running on) and we're looking to do more good as Linuxtracker.org continues to move forward and revolutionize distributing your favorite linux distributions.

We've made many improvements to the site over the past  weeks and we're only looking to make more. If you'd like to help out consider donating to the site or volunteering in the forums as a moderator.

Linuxtracker.org will always remain a free resource for downloading your favorite distributions.

Thanks and here's to more years to come!

Mcangeli

We must be on a roll here at Linuxtracker lately. Yesterday we implemented the multi tracker capability to enable tracking of any torrent on this site and today, we bring you SCREEN SHOTS!!

Thats right! You have the ability to add not one, not two, but THREE images that convey the awesomeness of the distribution you're sharing with the community. Please take the time to find screen shots, even if you just upload one, as it helps members decide if the eye candy is what they want.

Also, we're working on the donation system, if it does not work completely right just yet, its because mcangeli isn't quite as good of a programmer as he likes to pretend he is...

For those of you paying attention, you've no doubt noticed by now that what used to be classified as an "external" torrent is now being called a "Multi" torrent. Whats the reason behind this?

Well, simply put, because now it has more than one Announce URL added to the torrent file!

More than one?? Thats right!! On external torrents (torrents where our tracker is not the announce URL) we are now adding our announce url and adding the file to the tracker back end. enabling us to keep our own stats of the torrents as well!

If you upload an external torrent, you'll now receive credit for it in your upload list, and if you seed or leech you'll receive credit for that as well! How much better can it get??

Whew! Its been a busy couple of days around here incase you haven't noticed.

We've added the featured torrent block, we added a speed hack to the peers page (so now you can claim to be the fastest uploader on the block) and we've added a spot for you to tell us how old you are on your profile (make sure you fill that part out, you get a present on your Birthday!).

Plans are in the work to add some additional scripts to the site as well, specifically one that appends our announce URL to ANY EXTERNAL Torrent, making them easier for us to track! How freakin cool is that??

Also, for our VIP members, the site is now completely AD FREE. If you want to know more, visit The Forums to find out how you can join this elite group!

Thanks! And if there's one thing you shouldn't give up this Lenten Season, its visiting LinuxTracker.org!

By now, you've noticed the return of the Featured Torrents box. This was a popular request among the mods and admins and one that I worked on for the past two days to implement. Its working fully now and even has a cool little admin page to make for easier updates.

The Extra Stats Page has also been corrected to show more accurately the best and worst sharers, so make sure you stay on the Best Sharer side and not the worst.

Screen shots will be added in the coming weeks as well as several other functions that should open some interesting windows in to the file sharing world! If you have any suggestions or ideas, or just want to let us know what you think of the site, please feel free to visit the forums!

Well We've made it through the first week on the new system with some rather good results! We're already running with over 600 members registered and 100 torrents uploaded. The RSS feeds are back (on the right side of the index page) if anyone needs to grab them to update their readers, and they have a good bit more information in them than previously.

The forums are booming (compared to before) and they are the best way to let us know of any issues or anything you'd like to see improved on the site. We are working on several new features for the site including:

Screen Shots

Email Notification - Added 1/28/2008!!

Automatic Rank Promotion for seeders with amazing ratios!

A report user/torrent function

FAQ/Rules for the site

And more.

By now you might have noticed the current poll on the left side of the index. We're considering implementing a waiting time for downloading a new torrent for standard members and guests. Ways around the wait time would be to improve your ratio and become a power user or uploader or donate to the site. As it currently stands, members who donate to the site are upgraded to VIP status (for a length of time depending on the amount donated) and will be able to view the site with relatively few ads.

This site runs with the blood sweat and tears of the owner and the mods and manages to pay the bills by running ads and receiving donations for the site (other wise mcangeli's wife would kill him! )

We'd like to thank those members who have stuck in there with us as we continue to grow.

For these things to do, you must "login"

Create your torrent as usual.
Go to the Upload Site and fill out every box, then LOAD IT UP = confirm.
Note that after this U/L the torrent is "dead", because there are no seeders/leechers.
Change to the page "Torrents", choose status "ALL" or "DEAD ONLY", your torrent will shine up and you D/L your own torrent now, but
NOTE, save this torrent away from that one you made first; its different !
This torrent has now your PID (Personal Identification).You will find this number in your personal panel.
Beginn to seed only with this new torrent.

for further info read in the forum this post (especially howto upload on the MININOVA site)
http://linuxtracker.org/smf/index.php?topic=14.0

good luck and happy seeding

We'd like to welcome you to the new LinuxTracker.org. Please note that over the coming weeks, the look and feel of the site will be changing slightly as we get used to the new diggs.

If you notice anything out of sorts, or anything that could use some improving please let us know. You can check the status of the To Do List in the forums.

Please note the Announce URL has changed to http://linuxtracker.org:2710/announce

Any torrent you had uploaded previously, needs to be remade with the new announce code and reuploaded. Thanks,

mcangeli