Well, the new year may be officially under way, but that hasn’t stopped Linux bloggers from continuing their reflections on all that transpired over the past decade. At TuxRadar, for example, Graham Morrison looked back over the past 10 or so years and identified “15 game-changing Linux moments of the decade.” Beginning with the release of version 2.4 of the Linux kernel back in 2001, all the way through to Oracle’s purchase of Sun last year, Morrison zeroes in on the news he thinks mattered most for Linux.

MIPS Technologies announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Tuesday its plan to develop a new line of set-top boxes with Android inside. The new product base provides the company’s OEM customers and partners with a viable Android platform ready for individual customization for digital home devices such as set-top boxes, Blu-ray disc players, digital TVs and VoIP products. “MIPS is driving the movement of Android beyond the mobile device. In the mobile market, MIPS has focused on ARM. But it has not yet conquered the home entertainment market,” said MIPS’ Kevin Kitagawa.

Unveiling its much-anticipated Nexus One smartphone on Tuesday, Google put it in a new class of devices it dubs “superphones.” “Nexus One is where the Web meets the phone,” declared Mario Queiroz, vice president of product management. “It’s an exemplar of what’s possible on mobile phones through Android.” The device hit the market in two versions Tuesday — an unlocked version that will run on any GSM network, and a subsidized one from T-Mobile.

Google’s Chrome may be a relatively new entrant in the browser arena, but already it’s edged past Apple’s long-standing Safari to assume the third-place spot. That’s according to market researcher Net Applications, which recently released year-end data indicating that Chrome now accounts for 4.63 percent of the browser market. Microsoft’s Internet Explorer still holds the top position, with 62.69 percent of the market, while Mozilla’s Firefox weighs in at No. 2, with a 24.61 percent market share. Safari, now in fourth place, accounts for 4.46 percent.

Jan. 4 is here at last, and not a moment too soon! Good riddance to all the eggnog, the mingling and the jolliness. It’s time to settle back down to work once again, and for that, what better companion than FOSS? There’s certainly no better way to get things done — the only catch, of course, is that not everyone realizes that. Bosses, in particular, can sometimes lag behind those of us in the know when it comes to appreciating free and open source software.