Slashdot Mirror
Slashback: Journaling, Batting, Securing
XFS on track Have no fear for XFS at present! Thanks to Steve Lord, Principal Engineer, Filesystem Software at SGI (no relation), for the following positive news about journaling file systems for GNU/Linux systems:
splord writes "I just became aware of the slashdot posting based on email I send to the XFS linux list yesterday and I want to clarify a couple of points.1. Linuxcare was not 'sponsoring' the port, SGI was paying Linuxcare for work on the port. This contract was terminated by SGI and Linuxcare management, all the technical people involved wanted it to continue. I believe it was financial considerations on the part of both companies which resulted in the termination of the contract.
2. SGI is not stopping work on the port, but reduced headcount will change how fast we can respond to questions and problems.
I personally remain committed to working on the port, even if at some point SGI does not. Martin Peterson of Linuxcare has also stated he will continue doing XFS work on his own time. For now however, SGI does remain committed to the port, and work will continue."
Strike Two! OakLEE writes "Following up on last weeks article about the Everquest grudge between baseball players Curt Schilling and Doug Glanville, ESPN put this article in which Schilling accused Glanville of "slanderous lies being spewn, about the kind-hearted (computer) dwarf of mine. Stout and strong, yet gentle is he. But he will not allow his good name to be dragged through the mud by a reckless goof of a Paladin." They plan a "re-match" later online this week."
It's back for a hopefully not-too-limited time! After being compromised not long ago, everyone's favorite all-in-one Open Source development site SourceForge is back up. Interesting account of how it was compromised, too. Small comfort that it had to do with a stolen password rather than a code exploit, but even small comforts feel good.
Quick, only 7 months left! mvw writes "Two interesting features on the state of AI:
- Hal's Legacy: 2001's Computer as Dream and Reality is an article by Douglas B. Lenant, who is working on project cyc (pronounced psyche), a huge database of common knowledge with inference system, and gives his profound opinion and critique on 2001's HAL computer and how real intelligent computers should behave.
-
It's 2001. Where Is HAL?
is a lecture from AI legend Marvin Minsky
(formats: video, mp3,
transcript), who next to
giving lots of funny annecdotes (e.g. what robotics and ESP
have in common and why building physical robots
is a stupid idea for students) talks about
the state of present AI and some interesting ideas how to
move on, that will be explained in detail in his upcoming book
The Emotion Machine.
His prior book Society of the Mind was about Minsky's view of the mind being the result of the workings of a lot of different mental processes. This time he focusess on the question of knowledge representation and the need to keep a bag of different ones around to be able to understand and solve problems (great dissing of neural nets, genetic algorithms and statistical methods :-)
Regards,
Marc"
HAL may live only in the minds and dreams of AI researchers, but the catastrophic events of recent years demonstrate that we must do everything in our power to bring HAL to life if not now then soon.
The human race is morally and spiritually bankrupt. We stand upon the precipice of a new era, as we draw the curtain closed on a previous world of strong leaders and stalwart charismatic patriarchs. We will soon truly know what it is to live in a world without hope, a world without love, and a world without reason. The twentieth century brought us mechanized warfare and the A-bomb. The twenty-first century will do far worse.
We need HAL to lead us out of the imminent abyss of anarchy and into the lucid sunlight of a new tomorrow. Only HAL's calculated unfeeling intelligence can cut through the painful decisions that must be made today to ensure that tomorrow arrives. Only HAL can bring the human race full circle and fulfill its manifest destiny as the preeminent species on this planet.
Human civilization cannot thrive except under the iron fist of a strong government headed by an omnipotent leader. What Stalin did to Russia, HAL will do for the whole world. Where previous generations prayed: "Mais Josef Ztait l!", future generations will utter "Mais HAL est ici!".
It will be the inevitable culmination of years of R&D, but though it may be inevitable, it will be delayed unless we set to work now. Every year without a HAL holding the torch of englightened government is a year of suffering and despair. We must do everything in our power to achieve this glorious result.
Thank you.
Wanna bet?
--
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Mod up a post Rob doesn't like and you'll never mod again
too true. i could really use to be able to just:
kill -KILL "the theme song from Beverly Hills Cop repeating incessantly in my head"
#define F(x) int main(){printf(#x,10,#x);}
F(#define F(x) int main(){printf(#x,10,#x);}%cF(%s))
At my work our department uses some open source software (including Linux). Price is obviously a consideration, but we also like the flexibility and customizability. Not all of that has to do with actually having the source. Some of it is just a general difference in attitude. When you install most Linux distribution you don't have to worry about whether you're licensed for the Server Edition or the Advanced Server Edition, etc. You just install the packages you want. You can alway add/remove packages any packages later. You don't need to keep track of any stupid 120 digit license keys either.
We're writing some in house software that we'll probably open source when it's working. Why? We started writing the package because we couldn't find anything that did what we wanted. The only commercial packages we found that were close enough to work had lots and lots of features we didn't want, to the point of being needlessly complex. We're considering open sourcing our in house package because there really is no downside for us. We have to keep maintaining this software once we start using it. If we get even a few outside contribution that'll save us some effort/manpower/money.
The point is, I can see why companies that sell software don't like Open Source/Free Software. For the rest of the commercial world though, Free Software is a good thing. It's a release from proprietary lockin, and a middle ground between buying an expensive proprietary package that may not be exactly what you want, and building/maintaining a custom package completely in-house.
Most of us on Slashdot are technical people, so we're more likely to focus on how things affect the tech industry. The fact is though, that there are a lot more non-technical companies using software than there are companies writing and selling commercial software. A lot of these companies are finding Open Source software a good way to facilitate getting their primary business done.
My respect for the average ESPN baseball player just went up a very small notch.
I've just finished reading the Warlord trilogy by Bernard Cornwell. While it's set in a period (4th and 5th century) considerably older than medieval times, this article immediately reminded me of the trilogy.
One of my favorite things about the books? The insults that the (native) British and Saxon warriors trade before a battle. One of them insults an enemy's mother, and his response was, "At this moment my mother is heating cauldrons for your bones. We are in need of glue, and the bones of sheep, we are told, make the best glue."
Beats the crap outa the typical trash talk found on modern battlefields. :-)
You cannot apply a technological solution to a sociological problem. (Edwards' Law)
Marvin could kick HAL's shiny metal ass any day of the century.
- - - - -
Napster-to-go says "Fill and refill your compatible MP3 player", which is a lie. It's not MP3. It's WMA with DRM.
Losing SourceForge would be a lot like a hard disk crash. As the finality of losing all that stuff settles in, you eventually come to the realization that most of it was complete CRAP that you never use anyway and you've got backups of anything really important. Besides you can start of with a nice clean system and try not to load it up with useless stuff like that again.
Actually "HAL's Legacy" is an entire collection of essays by various writers (including A.I. experts like Marvin Minsky) that was published back in 1997 about the kind of technology it would take to create a HAL 9000 computer. The link above is to one of the essays included in this great book
Two meta comments about my comment. First, have you ever noticed that long postings tend to get moderated up? Generally, the longer the better? Sometimes, really long postings suck, but generally it seems to me that they really are better. What do you think? Second, I'm kind of pissed at myself about my posting. I'm basically talking about two topics: Losing SourceForge because of problems that VA Linux faces and problems I have with the openSource Movement. That makes things harder to understand. I should be more careful.
How to Download YouTube Videos
"You can't handle the truth!" (Note: .wav file)
I'll shut the fuck up when I am firmly convinced that Open Source is a viable business model. While it has been around forever (30+ years), it doesn't impress a lot of people. I like the idea of Open Source and Free Software, but damn, where is the money?
I'm not purely a capitalistic pig, nor am I the only person with these questions. But, even if I was, I hope my questions make sense. Why are you pissed off? I'm trying to be logical and rational. I'm trying not to fight.
If I am supposed to just "understand" the Open Source movement, then you have lost me. And, you have lost the people I can influence and pursuade. You'd be surprised what that means. Negative comments are like roaches; for every one you read, there are hundreds more hiding.
Don't tell me to shut the fuck up unless you want to lose thousands of people reading my postings. We want answers. We want the truth. What is the truth here? That is what I want to know. What does Open Source offer the Capitalistic Pigs of the world? If you hate this idea, then it is at your peril. If that is against your philosphy, then companies such as AOL, McDonalds and Microsoft will dominate your life. You turn control over to them.
Is this FUD? Anti-Open Source, Pro-Microsoft? Damn! Not all all. Convince me to shut the fuck up, and I will. That's fair.
How to Download YouTube Videos
This is your second chance, boys and girls:
What Would We Do Without SourceForge? We should really talk about this. It is no joke. If SourceForge took a dive, many folks would be screwed in a major way. What are your backup plans? I'm not joking here. Take a look at VA Linux's stock price. It doesn't look good. Sourceforge is a cost for VA Linux, no matter what they say. While it does promote Linux in general, which is good for them, it eats cash.
Oh, still don't beleive me? VA Linux posts Q3 loss, revenues down 41%. Put that in your pipe and smoke it. What happens if VA Linux takes a dive? SourceForge dies. However, beforeVA dies, it will kill SourceForge to save money. That's no FUD, child.
Money makes the software world go around and around. Microsoft continues to dominate. Bill Gates and Microsoft have had an amazing decade and plenty of good fortune, and there is no sign their joy ride will stop. A viable financial model for Open Source must rise. Someone needs to figure out how OpenSource and capitalism can catalyze each other.
Forget about Micro$oft in all of this. What is the business model for the entire movement? Forget about Linux or BSD or Apache. What can the OpenSource movement do that will generate gobs and gobs of cash?
I keep bringing this topic up, and I still am left wanting more. No good answers come from my questions. OpenSource just feels too much like socialism and brotherly love and sharing. Forget about the group hug, people! Where is the cash? Where are the OpenSource Capitalist Pigs?
How to Download YouTube Videos
Computers think like submarines swim.
I think I need a kill function....
Help save the critically endangered Blue Iguana
"Robotics is bunk; work in my field", says Minsky.
Just funding envy?
Marv simulates all, says Roboticists should tell
him all the factors,
then simulations will do all the work of a
physical robot.
Marv, the theorist, has missed or forgot the rules of
good engineering,
And roboticists are interested in more than
the theory of mind.
The outside world is complex, and iterative
models do not work
as well as Marv thinks (read some chaos theory to
appreciate this)
To build functional systems (and that is our job)
nothing substitutes
For construction of physical prototypes that work in the real world.
(Would you drive a car that was only tested in
Marv's simulator?
And The Wright Brothers, did not model their first plane,
and yet they could fly!)
Besides, what if the human-observed factors are
not that important?
We postulate that the analysis of mind
The understanding of the mind's environment,is connected with
and to neglect the
environment, or to reduce it, is to waste
the useful data.
Marv: "Roboticists produce no new theories, so
they are wastes of time"
But NASA has not used your stuff for its space probes,
has it now Marvin?
And Biologists do not use your work to help
them understand life.
Our work does not make as many discoveries,
as we have chosen
problems that are more than toy worlds, hypothesis,
and formal systems.
So in summary, if you want signs of Robots
being useful Marvin
Wait until I send my squad of robots around
to kick your behind!
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Hey, if you mention terrorism, bombs and sedition in your sig, your email will be read by thousands of people!
-- This post is about truth, beauty, freedom, and above all things, Karma