In this week’s Top 5, we highlight a Linux story, an indoor digital heater that uses computing power, the Opensource.com annual holiday gift guide, 3 open source alternatives to Google Maps API, and our big open sticker article including rules and tips for adding stickers to your stuff. Plus, an honorable mention for a very popular article from last week: Scrum is dead: breaking down the new open development method.

Top 5 articles of the week

5. My mom requests a Linux computer

 A self-described Linux geek shares how he got his mother up and running on Linux.

4. Heat your home with your neighbor’s computing power

High-performance computing generates a lot of heat, and Qarnot Computing found a clever way to put that heat to work using open source software with an indoor digital heater. Think: radiator.

3. 14 amazing open source gifts for the holidays

The annual Opensource.com 2015 Holiday Gift Guide serves up 14 open source gadgets and gifts that kids, adults, hobbyists, and beginners are sure to love and appreciate.

2. 3 open source alternatives to Google Maps API

Every year on the third Wednesday of November, map geeks around the world celebrate GIS Day. GIS is short for geographic information systems, or occasionally geospatial information science, and is all about using computer systems to collect, store, analyze, and display geographic data. In this article, Jason Baker explores open source tools for creating JavaScript maps.

1. Sticky situation: The serious business of stickers in open source

On Monday, Rikki Endsley our community manager, published a fun article sharing what people like (and don’t like) about stickers for open source projects, including their rules for which stickers they collect and display, and tips getting a sticker made for your open source projects or event.

Honorable mention

Scrum is dead: breaking down the new open development method

Ahmad Nassri says scrum is dead and we need a new software development method. In this popular article, he talks about how the tenets of the open development with better meet today’s technology needs.