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Domain: linuxandmain.com

Stories and comments across the archive that link to linuxandmain.com.

Comments · 58

  1. Re:BTW, what "cob2c" compiler is this? by Arrgh · · Score: 2 · on COBOL IDE, Compiler for Linux

    This identical question has already been answered in the original article.

  2. Re:Where is the Download link? by Dave114 · · Score: 1 · on United Linux is Here
    This thing got to be great! :)

    Why don't you take a nice close look at LinuxAndMain.com. There dep points out that there will be no desktop version of this UnitedLinux. It seems in many other ways as well, that with this release they'll be leaving the "typical" linux user behind to focus on the enterprise markets. And if then we see software be packaged only for this UnitedLinux, what are we then to do?

  3. Re:on losing by aberkvam · · Score: 2, Interesting · on Slashback: Brilliance, Delay, Simputer
    Well, according to an older article that was referenced on /. last month:
    During at least part of the period when employee payrolls were not met, Loki sometimes gave employees "advances" on salary owed. Former employees say that these advances were in the amount of their net pay; the benefit to the company was that federal and state taxes on the payroll were not paid, because the money was treated as loans rather than pay. This in turn resulted in the now-former employees receiving 1099 forms instead of W-2s in January. The 1099 covers moneys paid to non-employees, but more important to the former employees, it meant that they would now have to pay taxes -- and perhaps penalties -- on what would have been their net pay.
    If the company withheld the taxes they would have had some recourse. But it sounds like no money was withheld. I would suspect that the company didn't make the point clear and that the employees didn't ask. I haven't heard anything that implies that there was a deliberate effort to cheat the employees on this point, it was more likely bad communication. In any case, the employees owe the money and they never paid it. One would hope that they could get some kind of extension from the government but the debt is theirs to pay.
  4. The References You Requested. by FreeUser · · Score: 2 · on Consensus At Lawyerpoint

    I don't suppose you can back up that assertion with links to authoritative source(s), can you?

    Yes.

    The Relevant Patent

    The Hollings bill S-2048

    A less authoritative but nevertheless informative article summarizing the issues

    If you need more information and aren't just a troll, you can do any further research on your own. Google is your friend (except when censored by corporate interests such as the Scientologists, but that doesn't appear to have happened WRT this subject, yet).

  5. The References You Requested. by FreeUser · · Score: 2 · on Consensus At Lawyerpoint

    I don't suppose you can back up that assertion with links to authoritative source(s), can you?

    Yes.

    The Relevant Patent

    The Hollings bill S-2048

    A less authoritative but nevertheless informative article summarizing the issues

    If you need more information and aren't just a troll, you can do any further research on your own. Google is your friend (except when censored by corporate interests such as the Scientologists, but that doesn't appear to have happened WRT this subject, yet).

  6. In other news... by jensend · · Score: 2 · on Qt For The Console

    For those who expect to find stuff that matters at ./, try this: The founder of theKompany said in an interview with linuxandmain that theKompany will no longer use the GPL for any further projects. This might also mean that future versions of their current projects will be relicensed.

  7. Re:The Tragedy of the Commons. by reflective+recursion · · Score: 1 · on Microsoft, zlib, and Security Flaws
    This article came across the Free Software Business mailing list today. Why Shawn Gordon, of theKompany.com, will not use the GPL.
    We sell one product that is GPL. On at least a weekly basis we get someone telling us that we have to give them the source code because it is GPL. Some of them become verbally violent and abusive when I point out that the GPL provides for us to charge for the source code, we just have to make it available, and this we have done. Some of these people even tried to hack our system to get the code because they thought it was their God-given right to have it. These are also typically the people who contribute nothing to the community.
    Keep in mind that these are people who are technical enough to install something like Linux, and they are already ignorant of what the GPL is about.
    I had RMS come to me on this product to make sure we weren't violating the GPL, and he admitted that we were not, but in the course of the conversation he proceeded to project onto the KDE project aspects of theKompany in a totally inappropriate fashion and was very negative about KDE in this regard. Now, to my mind there is far more corporate involvement and control over GNOME than KDE, but RMS chose to see things the way he wanted to see them in this instance and say that it was too bad the KDE didn't stand for freedom.
    Proof of RMS' extremist viewpoint and his narrow mindedness.
    What is the net result of this? We won't use the GPL for anything anymore. It is far too frustrating to deal with; it is ambigiously worded in places that make it just too risky for a company like us. I've heard the arguments about selling services, but for what we are doing it just really doesn't work. Look at it this way. I can send 1,000 copies to a distributor who will put it on store shelves around the world. People will walk in, pick it up and buy it. Now let's say that the software was free (as in cost) and I just sell services. Well, now I can't put it on a store shelf and for every customer; I have to go and hunt them down somehow and persuade them to use our free software and then pay us for support -- but they should only really need support if our software is hard to use or poorly designed, which isn't the case or our objective.
    I really like that last statement. Take a look at Sendmail, and its obfuscation of configuring it. Is it deliberate? Maybe. What I do know is that Sendmail makes money from their support and they have made no attempt to make their software easier to use. I believe you could also say the same thing about Perl. While there is plenty of free documentation, it seems new features are added just so people can write books documenting those new features. So they have something to support.
  8. Re:About time by Brian+Kendig · · Score: 4, Insightful · on Microsoft Case Enters Crucial Penalty Phase

    If there's any question left in anyone's mind about whether or not Microsoft is guilty, and how far any ruling against them needs to go...

    Look at the Slashdot story preceding this one, 'The Sad Parable of OS/2'. Specifically, read the article in Linux And Main it links to.

    Scroll down to the section titled 'Courtly Hatred and Windows in Mud Huts,' and start reading.

    If Microsoft got away with a slap on the wrist last time, it can get away with a slap on the wrist again. It's going to take someone with a lot of backbone to make sure this doesn't happen.