Using a headset and a webcam to make phone calls is easy, interactive, and even free, thanks to VoIP. In this month's cover story, we'll help you choose a VoIP softphone, and we'll show you how to configure your own Asterisk exchange server.

Looking for a softphone? We compare five Linux-ready VoIP clients.

If you want advanced features without the expense, try a VoIP phone system. We’ll show you how to configure your own Asterisk telephone exchange server.

Video telephony, calls to landlines, short messaging, and conferencing: the free Wengophone outpaces competitors in the VoIP field.

Save time and trouble with these expert techniques for building custom Python tools.

We’ll introduce you to Python, an easy-to-learn scripting language, and also help you get started creating your own practical Python scripts.

The trick to optimization is to save time in the right places.

The Stackless extension brings lightweight processes to Python, opening a new style of programming with dynamic heap access.

The user rules in Linux – if you know where you’re going. This month the trail leads deep into the Linux Bluetooth stack.

Is your address book open to the world? Is your mobile phone calling Russia? Many users don’t know how easy it is for an attacker to target Bluetooth.

You can even use Bluetooth as an alternative form of wireless networking. We’ll show you how.

We’ll show you how to set up support for a Bluetooth stereo headset.

Even if your printer vendor doesn’t advertise Linux Bluetooth support, there are a few tools that may help you set up your Linux system for Bluetooth printing.

Are your systems behaving? Is your newest workstation too busy for its memory? Stay ahead of problems on your network with the free and versatile monitoring tool known as Nagios.

Nagios monitors your network and provides early warning for problems with hosts and services.

GroundWork is a user-friendly front-end for the Nagios monitoring tool.

Home and business users are starting to wonder how Windows Vista will work with Linux. In this month’s cover story, we’ll show you Vista from the eye of Linux.

Vista is no better than its predecessors at accessing Linux partitions. If you need to access a Linux filesystem from Vista, you will need a third-party tool.

If you want to share files your own way, Vista might need some help.

Microsoft’s new PowerShell relies on .NET framework libraries and thus has access to a treasure trove of functions and objects. How does PowerShell measure up to traditional shells like Bash?