For a server OS, FreeBSD has certainly had what I'll affectionately call a "lousy" console for a long time. In fact, it was my first disappointment the first time I installed FreeBSD on a server. Fortunately, I'm not the only one who felt that way.

Phoronix now reports The FreeBSD "Newcons" effort to provide a new VT console driver continues making progress for its more proper debut in the next major FreeBSD release. The new code includes full Unicode support including wide characters (Chinese, Japanese), kernel mode setting, better font maps, and support for more graphical modes to provide prettier consoles during boot time etc. It is expected to be included in the next major release.

The FreeBSD wiki Newcons page has the details.

Where mainframe computers are concerned, the Technology Spectator says it better than I could:

In a world where IT continues to power forward, the longevity of the mainframe and its place in today's computing environment is increasingly being questioned. With 'change' often confused with 'progress', a mainframe's durability can work against it. As demand grows for more agile and innovative systems, it is difficult to reconcile a technology in its sixth decade with the technology we carry around in our pockets or use at home. But while dissenters continue to challenge the validity of the mainframe, the technology keeps on proving its worth.

Few consumers know or understand that "ancient" mainframe technology is working behind the scenes in the banking, travel, and insurance sectors, and that's unlikely to change. What is changing though is the insertion of start-up mentality and innovation into the mainframe ecosystem, like Splunk, a search specialist, teaming up with Syncsort to unlock some of the data being produced by mainframe systems. What does not change though, is the fact that mainframe systems require specialized skill sets, and those experts are getting hard to find. Not a good thing in an environment of ever-more-stringent compliance and regulatory requirements.

Nobody can quite pin down what Big Data is, but apparently everybody wants some. Or is afraid of it. Or both. Nevertheless, gains in processing power and decreases in hardware costs are permitting us to crunch numbers in a bigger way than ever thought possible. And there's a lot to show for it:

Not surprisingly, big data is being used to predict the outcome of the 2014 World Cup [video link]. It's increasingly being used to monitor and quantify social media behavior to inform credit and lending decisions. It's also being used to monitor and supervise conditions along the entire food chain, with obvious safety and health benefits. In fact, the folks at ITWeb would like to debunk the myth that Big Data is only being used to monitor your social media habits and sell you more junk. Although it's being used for that, too.