Otto Kekäläinen

Detecting XZ in Debian with Otto Kekäläinen In this episode, Josh and Otto dive into the world of Debian packaging, exploring the challenges of supply chain security and the importance of transparency in open source projects. They discuss Otto’...

I had an interesting discussion about software supply-chain security with @josh.bressers.name in the Open Source Security podcast last week: opensourcesecurity.io/2025/2025-11...

#opensource #security

Subscribe to the Open Source Security podcast (opensourcesecurity.io) on your favorite platform and check out the latest episode where I am talking about how I did the XZ Utils analysis in Debian.

This became my second most popular post ever on HackerNews with 114+ upvotes: news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4563...

Could the XZ backdoor have been detected with better Git and Debian packaging practices? The discovery of a backdoor in XZ Utils earlier this year shocked the open source community, raising critical questions about software supply chain security. This post explores whether better Debian p...

Big shoutout to @anarazel.de for spotting the XZ backdoor in March of 2024! 🙌
My new post explores how the malicious changes showed up in Debian’s import of the upstream version and if the Debian maintainer could have seen them: optimizedbyotto.com/post/xz-back...

#Linux #OpenSource #Cybersecurity

Ubuntu 25.10 "Questing Quokka" Is Now Available for Download, This Is What's New - 9to5Linux Ubuntu 25.10 "Questing Quokka" distribution is now available for download powered by Linux kernel 6.17 and using the GNOME 49 desktop.

#Ubuntu 25.10 “Questing Quokka” Is Now Available for Download, This Is What’s New 9to5linux.com/ubuntu-25-10...

#Linux #OpenSource

YouTube video by Fireship There's a new Linux distro in town for developers...

Awesome to see #Omarchy getting more visibility! 🔥 Fireship’s vid youtu.be/DC2p3kFjcK0 spreading the #Linux desktop to 500k+ viewers is huge!
I don't use this distro myself, but I still cheer for anything that helps motivate Windows users to make the switch.

Zero-configuration TLS and password management best practices in MariaDB 11.8 Locking down database access is probably the single most important thing for a system administrator or software developer to prevent their application from leaking its data. As MariaDB 11.8 is the fir...

Tired of wrestling with TLS certs and CAs for your database? MariaDB 11.8's zero-configuration TLS requires no manual setup 🚀
Check out security management tips at
optimizedbyotto.com/post/zero-co...
#MariaDB #DatabaseSecurity #OpenSource

Open Source Alternatives To Proprietary Software The world's largest directory for open source software. Discover 500+ popular open source alternatives to proprietary software products. 100% free.

Seems there are also www.opensourcealternative.to, euroalternative.co and european-alternatives.eu

I got hooked on browsing @openalternative.co's "Most Popular" list.

The list at openalternative.co?sort=pagevie... is an absolute gem in finding what are the trending state-of-the-art open source programs out there 🔥

Omarchy An opinionated Arch + Hyprland Setup by DHH

Seeing David Heinemeier Hansson so excited about #Linux on the desktop and building his ultimate #webdeveloper setup omarchy.org is inspiring!
Check out the first 5 minutes of the video on the front page 📽️

Best Practices for Submitting and Reviewing Merge Requests in Debian Historically the primary way to contribute to Debian has been to email the Debian bug tracker with a code patch. Now that 92% of all Debian source packages are hosted at salsa.debian.org — the GitLab ...

Are you contributing to Debian? Check out my best practices for submitting and reviewing Merge Request on Salsa, #Debian's #GitLab instance.

optimizedbyotto.com/post/debian-...

Debian Linux version 13 has been officially released. Let the celebration begun ...

micronews.debian.org

Debian 13 "trixie" has been released! 🥳
Official release notes at www.debian.org/News/2025/20...

#debian #debian13 #trixie #opensoruce

Meet Otto robot. Unique STEM+A learning companion for kids Otto is a small modular robot that get kids excited to enter the world of robotics and the basics of electronics, engineering and coding.

"Meet Otto" 😂

hprobots.com/otto-robot/product

#DebConf25 started today with 460+ registered attendees in Brest, France. Hoping to see many attendees in all 3 of my talks :)
#opensource #debian #linux

Corporate best practices for upstream open source contributions This post is based on presentation given at the Validos annual members’ meeting on June 25th, 2025.\n

Is your company planning to start contributing to open source? 🚀 My new post shares best practices for corporate upstream contributions, spanning things from legal compliance (CRA is coming!) to reputation & quality: optimizedbyotto.com/post/best-pr...
#OpenSource #SoftwareEngineering #CRA #SBOM

GitHub - bytebase/dbhub: Universal database MCP server connecting to MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, MariaDB. Universal database MCP server connecting to MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, MariaDB. - bytebase/dbhub

If you are integrating LLMs with databases, check out github.com/bytebase/dbh... - a universal MCP server connecting to MariaDB, TiDB, PostgreSQL and more
#opensource #mcp #AI

MariaDB Community Server 11.8 LTS is Now Available | MariaDB Learn what’s new in the recently released MariaDB Community Server 11.8 LTS release and tech preview release of MariaDB Enterprise Platform 2026.

MariaDB 11.8 LTS is now officially available. Read about vector support and other new features at mariadb.com/resources/bl...
#mariadb #opensource

Creating Debian packages from upstream Git In this post, I demonstrate the optimal workflow for creating new Debian packages in 2025, preserving the upstream git history. The motivation for this is to lower the barrier for sharing improvements...

Planning to create .deb packages? 🚀

See my recommended workflow for new Debian packages when upstream uses git: optimizedbyotto.com/post/debian-...

#Debian #Git #OpenSource

Debian and Google Summer of Code illustration of desk with books

Google Summer of Code 2025 projects announced! Thrilled that 9 students got approved for #Debian. I'll mentor 2 to enhance #GitLab CI for 27,000+ git repos on salsa.debian.org
summerofcode.withgoogle.com/programs/202...
#GSoC #OpenSource

Going Full-Time as an Open Source Developer After careful consideration, I’ve decided to embark on a new chapter in my professional journey. I’ve left my position at AWS to dedicate at least the next six months to developing open source softwar...

Career news: I've left AWS to dedicate the time to full-time #OpenSource development, focusing on #Debian, #Linux, and critical digital infrastructure.

Why? Open source has won, now we need to focus on *maintaining* it 🛠️

Read more at optimizedbyotto.com/post/full-ti...

Debian Salsa CI in Google Summer of Code 2025 Are you a student aspiring to participate in the Google Summer of Code 2025? Would you like to improve the continuous integration pipeline used at salsa.debian.org, the Debian GitLab instance, to help...

💻🌟 Students! Want a #GoogleSummerOfCode project? I’ll mentor you to improve Salsa CI, @gitlab.com CI pipeline used by 27k+ packages in @debian.bsky.social.
See optimizedbyotto.com/post/debian-... & apply by Apr 8!
#GSoC #OpenSource

Will decentralized social media soon go mainstream? In today’s digital landscape, social media is more than just a communication tool — it is the primary medium for global discourse. Heads of state, corporate leaders and cultural influencers now broadc...

Do you know what ActivityPub, AT Protocol, Farcaster, Lens and Nostr are?

Check my latest optimizedbyotto.com/post/distrib... about the state of decentralized social media in 2025, with stats 📊

#decentralized #fediverse #web3

I've begun exploring @beeper.com to manage my Telegram, WhatsApp, and #Matrix messages in one app. It’s impressive – and #opensource too.

Have you used it? Could this be the ultimate solution for messaging app sprawl?

www.beeper.com

😆
`ssh starwarstel.net`

Zero Knowledge Weekend Workshop Vancouver · Luma Note: This workshop is designed specifically for students and individuals passionate about becoming leaders in their local Zero-Knowledge (ZK) cryptography…

Are you in Vancouver and keen to learn cryptography and zero-knowledge proofs? There are still a few spots left at the workshop this weekend by Wanseob Lim from the Ethereum Foundation.

Details: lu.ma/al7b7sox

#Cryptography #ZeroKnowledge #Ethereum

Heading to #FOSDEM2025? Join thousands of fellow open source enthusiasts! I'll be there - hit me up if you want to meet up and chat about code, community, or anything in between! 🙌 #OpenSource #Database

On the path to becoming a Debian Maintainer?
Start building these 10 habits to guarantee your success! 🚀
👉https://optimizedbyotto.com/post/debian-maintainer-habits/
#Debian #OpenSource #Linux

Evaluating vector indexes in MariaDB and pgvector: part 1 This post has results for vector index support in MariaDB and Postgres. I am new to vector indexes so I will start small and over time add m...

In a #AI vector database benchmark by Mark Callaghan (of Facebook MySQL fame), it seems #MariaDB significantly outperforms the competition. Check out
smalldatum.blogspot.com/2025/01/eval...

📖 How do modern #Debian source package repositories work? What git structure allows optimal software provenance, where the origin of every code line is known? Check out my latest post: optimizedbyotto.com/post/debian-...
#Linux #OpenSource #Git