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Stallman -- as he usually does -- wrote a well-opinioned piece, but it's money that influences politicians. Stallman doesn't have any, and the FSF not nearly enough to stop M$ or others.

The patent system will change when enough big companies get tired of it, like IBM's recent call for patent reform. IBM has the money to push these kinds of issues. Stallman does not.

You can tell from the way the icons are arranged and their colours. Zoom in a little on http://www.zdnet.com.au/shared/images/insight/virt ual/day1.jpg

The graphs are more than a bit misleading...

5:51 for battery life is phenomenal, but you are buying integrated graphics and a 1024x768 display. But this thing is aimed at desktop work and scored above average for business content creation. I'm still shocked by a notebook computer that can manage nearly 6 hours from its batteries...

Fewer ads 'n' whatnot: Clicky.

actually....
of note: Music Industry Piracy Investigations general manager Michael Kerin said "This is a very significant blow in the war against piracy."
which i guess means it's already begun...

Multi redundant?
You mean *more than two*, I hope?

http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/communications/0,2000 061791,39198846,00.htm

Is this the same "chief evangelist" Asa who wrote: "Why Linux isn't ready for desktops" which has the following at the top of the hosted page: "ZDNet.com.au Ticker brought to you by Microsoft: Register now for Microsoft TechEd 2005 - Click here" ?? If so, then meh.

http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/0,2000061744 ,39200021,00.htm And one can talk about why such insecurity exists, but this is how the reality is currently. How linux will be like when it has a bigger market share, who knows. It doesnt matter what is today.

Sun Microsystems' chief information officer (CIO) has backed the vendor's embrace of corporate blogging, despite difficulties such as ensuring senior executives don't post comments that affect the stock price and the occasional posting that makes the company's lawyers "pull their hair out".

"So far we've had very positive experiences with blogging, and I would encourage many other companies to do it as well," Bill Vass told ZDNet Australia in a wide-ranging interview about his experiences as the CIO of a high-technology company.

He cited Sun engineers' blogging of technical information and responses to questions about Sun's Solaris operating system.

Vass said Sun had faced problems with so-called 'Section 10' employees, such as senior executives that had the potential to affect the company's stock price with their blog postings.

For example, he said Sun president Jonathan Schwartz -- who keeps a public blog -- was frustrated when April Fool's day came around, because he couldn't use his blog to play a practical joke.

"A few times, he's said things like 'maybe we should acquire Novell', and it changed the stock price," Vass said of Schwartz's blog. "You have to be careful ... if ever he's writing anything controversial he has to get the lawyers to look at it."

Sun faced fewer issues with blogs written by non-Section 10 employees said Vass, but the company's legal team still read all the postings. Vass said he suspected the blogs were "making some of the lawyers pull their hair out".

For example, he said, one employee used his blog to post advice on how to comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley reporting legislation. The company's lawyers forced that employee to put a disclaimer on his blog in case someone called him to account for bad advice.

Just another CIO ... almost
Vass said his position at Sun was not that different from the average CIO in that he spent most of his time facing common drudgeries like keeping costs low (his budget has halved to US$300 million over the past several years), complying with the Sarbanes-Oxley and consolidating data warehouses.

However, some unusual problems did surface sometimes, he said, citing the example of a Solaris engineer who contacted Sun's IT help desk in India and subsequently sent Vass a note complaining the help desk member who assisted him didn't know intricate kernel settings for the operating system he needed help on.

"I'm like: 'Hey, he's a help desk guy, give him a break'", said Vass.

In another example, Vass received a mysterious note that a major system had been disabled and had stopped production on a hardware chip.

Although Vass had no knowledge of this, he soon discovered the system in question was in fact the desktop machine of an engineer who had recently left the company. The desktop had been reformatted following his departure, cutting off 600 users who had over the last three years depended on it for network services.

"There was no way for us to really know that was going on," said Vass. "Fortunately we had backups and could restore it, but those are the kind of things you run into at a tech company. Everyone has an opinion and everyone's building things here and there."

Vass said while many of the Sun engineers could largely take care of their own support needs, "they're also, because of their expertise, able to really mess things up".

Risky business
One of the most exciting parts of working at Sun for Vass is the fact the company runs all of its own products generally far in advance of the time they're put out to market.

The CIO runs a group called 'Sun on Beta-Sun', that rigorously tests beta software in large-scale deployments within the company's 42,000 users. Generally the people who have to use Sun's new products on a daily basis first are the ones who build them, said Vass.

"So for instance the Sola

So has Microsoft retracted their stand on Open Source being a a cancer? They can't possibly stick to that story, specially after so many organizations are seeing the benefits of Open Source. Will MS really and their fanboys ever learn?

I don't know if Gentoo 2005 will fit the Linux 8 requirement: http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/0,2000061733 ,39200568,00.htm

link from dupe

http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/communications/0,2000 061791,39177708,00.htm

If Apple was pushed, now doesnt it?

Whats really sad about most of all of this is that AMD's product out performs a large portion of Intel's products.

Yet companies like HP and Dell hold on to Intel like it was a mewling babe in need of a mothers teet.

This story , http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/hardware/0,2000061702 ,39160769,00.htm, from last year rings true. Itanium procs dont compete. So if AMD has a better product, why shouldnt it attemp to push antitrust. Even if companies are undercutting Intel by guilting them into selling for cheaper prices , its still a form of monopoly. Likely they encourage it.

Im reminded of Ballmer offering the germans a 90% discount on good/services if they didnt take a FOSS solution earlier this year.

Monopolies suck.

Good points, and a good post. Except for one part:

Torvald's response came quickly and succinctly. "My main machine these days is a dual 2GHz G5 (aka PowerPC 970) - it's physically a regular Apple Mac, although it obviously only runs Linux, so I don't think you can call it a Mac any more ;)" he said.

Reference.

Someone already did this, but solved a bigger problem than broken software.

This probably has more to do with them giving him one for free rather than them actually being any better hardware wise, as we saw with the recent article comparing x86 workstations CPUs and Dual G5s which I won't link to as people seem to get mysteriously modded down for linking to it.

Bullshit. He's not giving, he's maneuvering to block competitors or Open Source. To make matters worse, much of his so called health care charity involves purchasing massive amounts of expensive pharmaceuticals from companies he's heavily invested in -- using matching government funds.

You can read more about it here: Munich chooses Debian

Don't forget that money came from charging 4 to 5 times the market value of the products (most vouchers were never cashed so there was in practice no punishment) and from scams like Microsoft Software Assurance.

As long as Rush Limbaugh hasn't succeeded in brain-washing all the Americans, some of them may still have a chance to find such tidbits here

ICT issues? Not anymore.

Not since Slate (created to take out Salon) has taken over content in that area. But that's not alone, Chairman Bill's foundation dumps many hundreds of thousands of dollars on NPR each year. Probably those 'donations' have strings attached if places like India, Australia show us anything.

Linux users would probably fall for this social engineering too, if it wasn't so expensive to patch Linux systems.

ZDNet Australia has a scathing report on problems with Netscape's original 8.0 release, which shipped with known critical security bugs. ZDNet notes that several key Mozilla devs have lashed out at Netscape, including Firefox lead developer Ben Goodger, who posted a live exploit of the known vulnerability. Gervase Markham, another Mozilla employee found Netscape's claim that Firefox 1.0.4 is "outdated" ridiculous. Ali Ebrahim, another contributor commented that Netscape's claim of "more security choices" is based on a false premise. To their credit, Netscape has since released Netscape 8.0.1, based on Firefox 1.0.4 which plugs the most severe known issues, though the question still remains as to why they released 8.0 in the first place if it contained such severe security issues.

ZDNet Australia has a scathing report on problems with Netscape's original 8.0 release, which shipped with known critical security bugs. ZDNet notes that several key Mozilla devs have lashed out at Netscape, including Firefox lead developer Ben Goodger, who posted a live exploit of the known vulnerability. Gervase Markham, another Mozilla employee found Netscape's claim that Firefox 1.0.4 is "outdated" ridiculous. Ali Ebrahim, another contributor commented that Netscape's claim of "more security choices" is based on a false premise. To their credit, Netscape has since released Netscape 8.0.1, based on Firefox 1.0.4 which plugs the most severe known issues, though the question still remains as to why they released 8.0 in the first place if it contained such severe security issues.

Ahem.... Darls phone number and address was posted HERE before it was on Groklaw.
In fact it was posted there as a link from here.

http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/0,2000061744 ,39115983,00.htm

Idiot.

if there was ever a justification for speaking only about what one has knowledge of, this blog entry of yours is it, Ben. seriously, this is sad.

had you actually read the original content you would likely have realized that Zack wasn't begrudging Apple's not cooperating better or somehow implying license non-compliance. no, instead he was annoyed by how a lot of people keep claiming that Apple is working in tight cooperation with KDE when they really aren't, and how a lot of people (many of them KDE users) keep asking him constantly when patch #XYZ from Safari was going to be merged in to KHTML.

the code quality comments, etc, were part of his explanation about why it wasn't happening how everyone, including the developers, had hoped it would. yes, there was more to his communique than the sensational snippets the press picked up.

but instead of being informed and perhaps supportive, you got duped by the press and now the press is completing the life cycle by feeding on your comments: http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/0,2000061733 ,39191656,00.htm

nothing like supporting the open source community by spreading ignorance and divisiveness, huh? way to go Ben. >:-(

Have Linux "zealots" ever put up personal info on how to find Darl McBride's mother, with pictures of her home and the number on her mailbox so any stalker can find her readily?

Perhaps not his mother but his (and his wife's) home address and phone # were posted on Slashdot. It led to the harrasment that they were bitching about in the first place.

References:
one
two

Why your comment got modded as Insightful rather than Funny is beyond me.

I have a theory regarding ASOTV. Basically, we can all agree that (s)he is either an Apple employee or a very skilled troll. The problem with the Apple employee conclusion, and the reason he draws so much flak as of late, is that (1) Apple is secretive and tends to sack leakers as a general proposition; (2) (s)he makes no secret as to his/her "employer" with gratuituous use of the royal we; (3) while (s)he is usually correct with Apple insider-type information, (s)he does slip up sometimes.

So here's my take. I think (s)he does work for Apple. Now, any ordinary Apple employee would not have held onto his/her job for so long after so much Slashdot discourse, due to (1). But what we have here is no ordinary employee.

Who does Apple want to sell Macs to right now? Everybody, sure. But some folks are more amenable to switching than others. Windows users in general hate their computers, but not because of Windows insamuch as they hate the Microsoft 2-year upgrade cycle; they loathe having to "relearn their computer" at those fixed intervals. Luna and Outlook 2003 (yuck) notwithstanding, Windows/Office transitions are a hell of a lot easier to swallow for your grandma than switching to OS X. There isn't much Apple can do about that; we, their customers, want them to make NeXTSTEP++, not Longhorn or Blackcomb. Heaven forbid they ever start trying to "bend" OS X to be more Windows-like to get the switchers.

So your mom won't necessarily buy a Mac, and Apple cannot change this. But who will buy a Mac? Linux users, BSD users, Unix users in general. Apple does, in fact, occupy the space in the market that once belonged to SGI. Like SGI, they provide a system with (proprietary but damn good) value-adds for niche markets. But unlike SGI, their machines and software are affordable, often more so than the Wintel platform, and those add-ons (Aqua, Quartz, Spotlight, Finder when it behaves) make the system amenable to users of all skill levels, not just people with root. All the better to make root switch. And if root switches, grandma will eventually follow, because root makes software which grandma will use. Or so goes the theory. (Yes, even Linus uses a Mac now, but not for OS X.)

So here's my theory: Since root's /pub is Slashdot, ASOTV has likely been given a second job by Apple management. Her/His task is to try and convince /. users, by destruction of FUD and misconceptions regarding OS X, to give Apple a fair shake. So his activities are sanctioned, perhaps secretly, by Apple; this is why he hasn't been beheaded. If you think that's a crazy proposition, try to put yourself in the shoes of upper-level management in Cupertino. You need to get Unix folks to switch to Mac, because the Windows people keep saying "Windows has more software than Mac" (never mind that 60+% is malware). Meanwhile, people on Slashdot keep posting Apple FUD from the late '90s, which works quite effectively against your goal. Solution? Deploy a secret agent.

What about (1)? If ASOTV really worked for Apple, and needs not to conceal that fact, as in (2), why the secrecy? Because while Apple may want ASOTV to talk, they don't want their other employees to. This is the essence of the secret agent! And this secret agent probably is somewhere between PR and engineering, which is why his/her information is sometimes stale, which would explain (3).

So, I say, let him/her do her job. Since most Slashdot users bash Microsoft on a daily basis, then either resume using or dual-boot into Windows XP, I think there is some nobility in the goal of getting those folks to give the Mac a spin. So, there you go... take it or leave it.

"Of all those in the army close to the commander none is more in

They approved a licence that is not open source and branded it as "open source". Read the following:

http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/0,2000061733 ,39190311,00.htm

If the guy just gave us the links to the news articles without his blog bullshit then he'd be a great poster. I don't need more crappy summaries thanks.

In this case, the blog bullshit consists of quotes from and a link to New Scientist, ditto for the LOFAR website itself along with a diagram of the LOFAR-STELLA interaction, a link to and a quote from a Reuters article, and a link to a news release in Dutch. The length of the article wouldn't fit given slashdot's typical summary size, not to mention that slashdot doesn't post images except in really rare circumstances (eg: Penny Arcade's book images).

Do you hold other sites to the same standard? What about when an article links to CNet, ZDNet, Wired, MSN, etc? A blog is really just an informal news site. Many news sites give you the crappy summaries with links to the full meal deal. The latest story on Canonical's version tracking tool links to this zdnet article which is nothing but a crappy summary for describing the actual Launchpad project. The bulk of all online news sites simply rehash the original stories -- why do you hold Roland to a different standard? Is it because it looks like he submits them himself, so you'd find a Wired posting just as distasteful if it started with "Wired's editor writes: ..."?

They've got to do it. If they don't make the switch, how can they expect customers to?!

If you read the original article, the server is apparently quite stable (makes sense: servers run just a few processes intensively but repetitively, and cracks would show quickly), it's the client that is more questionable:

while Microsoft is keen to tout the server version's stability, the desktop version is not as mature. Greg Sullivan, a lead product manager in the company's Windows unit told ZDNet Australia's sister site CNET News.com the desktop version "is not quite there" in terms of quality, and even hardware makers admit there might be issues.

SALT!

Not to mention the protocol. ...and the fact the vendor is currently being sued into oblivion over their other product, Kazaa, in Australia.

Nothing says stable technology like a wonderful closed-source product whose vendor might just soon evaporate.

How is the Internet not "public communication?" That said, it's great to see this going forward. Though it's interesting to note that, as reported before, most people don't want to give free reign to blogs. Issues like this set precedent for future legislation, though simply because this goes forward doesn't mean the government wouldn't happily sneak in some other law later on that gets used in nefarious ways, much like the DMCA which was signed in by Clinton in October of '98. So get this one passed, but be watchful of stuff coming in from the side.

You do realize that you can run Linux on Apple hardware, right? In fact i think that Linus Torvalds (you may have heard of him) does this.

Ah yes, nothing like an austrailian news organization (the writer not ZDNet), quoting a survey by some webhost (alot of people have probably never heard of) of 2500 people to tell what the 292 million Americans favor.

My company Solutions First (http://www.solutionsfirst.com.au) made it on the panel right next to the multinationals. We are a relativly small IT firm that specialises in Linux solutions, even if most of our clients don't know it. We have been providing linux solutions for 5 years in our current form.
Nevertheless, this is a great thing for NSW. It means that all those government departments that previously had to submit a tender for linux services can now just call us up and we can help them.

There is a more detailed article here:

http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/0,2000061733 ,39187094,00.htm
we are listed as Sol1 in that list.

Its going to a great chance for our little company.

dave

Strange, there was a link to this article on the front page of /. about two weeks ago. To quote

SuSE Linux Professional is geared for desktop computer tasks such as word processing, programming or playing digital videos. And Novell hopes Windows users wanting to breathe new life into older computers will be interested.

SuSE Linux Professional 9.3 also adds the Linphone software for voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP); the Firefox Web browser; and the F-Spot photo organizer software. And it comes with the latest versions of graphical interface software, Gnome 2.10 and KDE 3.4.

"how often do you hear of people with Macs running linux instead of OS X now?"

see follow-up article Is Mac OS X weaker than Windows? http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/0,2000061744 ,39185501,00.htm "To back its claim, Symantec cited several reasons -- ranging from Mac OS X's heredity to attacking the intelligence of loyal Mac fans. "It's difficult to grasp the reasoning behind these statements. Symantec's only piece of solid evidence is reference to 37 previous high-impact vulnerabilities in Mac OS X -- all of which have been patched. Juxtaposed against the 17,500 Windows-based viruses and threats, it's clearly an uneven contest."

What Would Linus Do?
My main machine these days is a dual 2GHz G5 (aka PowerPC 970) http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/0,39023165,39183867,0 0.htm

http://www.zdnet.com.au/insight/software/print.htm ?TYPE=story&AT=39185372-39023769t-10000102c

According to Yahoo, this has been rejected, and was an inaccurate statement without full authorisation by Yahoo Australia.

The government is not involved in this in any way (seperation of the court and government and all that).

Yes. In fact, many Australian government departments were recently exposed as having been found accessing a web site that was specifically used to search for copyright infringing mp3's.

If the tin foil hat brigade claim that the Australian government and large corporates were hand-in-hand exploiting citizens and smaller private companies, with such control, then I'd like to see them explain the Australian government being exposed so embarassingly by the very same Music Industry Piracy Investigations entity that is supposedly in bed with the Australian government on this one!

Zen... Xen... Zen... Xen... Zen... Xen...

Novell Marketing, the biggest bunch of punching bags in the history of the technology industry, has gotta be asking themselves, "Why us?"

Zen... Xen... Zen... Xen... Zen... Xen...

Novell Marketing, the biggest bunch of punching bags in the history of the technology industry, has gotta be asking themselves, "Why us?"

Zen... Xen... Zen... Xen... Zen... Xen...

Novell Marketing, the biggest bunch of punching bags in the history of the technology industry, has gotta be asking themselves, "Why us?"

There is a longer piece in article format here.

Tegam refutes his claims...

and

Tegam is adamant that Tena's claims are false and his motives are questionable.

BTW, was it already illegal in France to do what he did? If so, then the people should get the laws changed, not trash the judeges and judicial system for doing their jobs by upholding them...

I know this is offtopic, but I haven't seen any articles concerning this article: http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/0,2000061744 ,39183346,00.htm

It's about tracking any computer anywhere by fingerprinting system clock variances in the TCP code. WTF? Isn't there a way around this?