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Belgium: A Computer in Every Home
joost writes "In an article published online by Belgian newspaper 'Het Nieuwsblad' (sorry only a dutch link), Belgian minister Miss Laurette Onkelinx speaks about her plan to provide every Belgian household with a computer. The minister is (amongst other things) responsible for 'equality' and therefore pushes the plan to provide the less fortunate with a pc. In the same article, she said she already started talking to Compaq for the hardware and Microsoft for the OS. Belgian Linux users are starting a campaign to petition Miss Onkelinx's departement, explaining their concern about the decision, and advising to look towards linux for an alternative.(more on be.comp.os.linux) You too can send an email by clicking here."
That almost sounds like somebody clearing something out of their throat... oh, but then again, that would make you Dutch and this is a story about Belgium.
They dont know Windows, they dont know anything, they know what they are introduced to first.
Introduce the wholee population to linux and soon youll have a bunch of linux experts.
If you use Linux, please help development of Autopac
Yes, I imagine the M$ astroturfers are pretending to be Linux Zealots. You are right about it being a turn off, therfore I expect the Gates drones to adopt it quickly.
DMCA, Hollings, Palladium. What might have sounded like paranoia is now common sense.
Can you give me an example of a 'balanced' industry?!
The computer industry is quite balanced. 99.76% of all people do not use Linux, meaning inequality is confined to the bottom 0.24% of humanity, the Linux geeks (or as I like to call them, the useful idiots.)
Wouldn't it be nice if the linux community stopped acting like the Jehovah's Witnesses of computers?
Linux User: Hi, are you aware that your computer's resources are in imminent danger?
Window$ User: What? My computer is fine.
Linux User: No sir, if you would just take this Oreilly pamphlet, your computer can still be saved.
Window$ User: Um, I think I left the stove on. *slams door*
Just be happy that the underprivileged are going to get some computers. Leave it to them to discover that Window$ is computer poison.
you guys are all debating about whether it should be linux or windows. the real question is, do the poor really need a computer? do they have the mental capabilities to use one?
the government did that here in quebec with their "branchez les familles" thing, what we got out of it? poorer families (some families get a 60 hours internet plan for 5$ a month, and they cant even pay that! and the plan gave them 500$ to buy the computer), a lot of lamers doing mayhem in the irc channels and more newbies calling the tech support lines for problems they could have figured by themselves had they researched more than 5 minutes, but because they are dumb as shit, didnt do it (altough you get those even whitout government implication, but the ones that used the govt's help tend to be exceptionnally dumb) and of course, all this was paid using our taxes, which could have been used for useful things (ie health, transportation, etc..)
Feyr Tlincail
Hello!! Let me break from the topic for a few moments to discuss something that I believe will fill the hearts of all Linux users with joy.
I am a long-time "IT" employee of the former Soviet Union, and in many way I believe that I am one of the first few men who can truly identify with the "Information" portion of the term "Information Technology." During the glorious reign of the Soviet Union, I was charged with a daunting task - crossing the Soviet border into Switzerland to obtain design schematics of Digital VAX machines. It was vital for our military to match the computing might of the Western devils (no offense, I am many a friend with Westerners!), and this was my sole task.
I must say, if Mr. Torvalds had decided to become employee of our Government, America would no longer exist on this planet. The Superior Might of communist Linus OS coupled with the Superior Might of communist Soviet Digital VAX clones would crush any who dared to rival our computing prowess. It is rather unfortunate that Mr. Torvalds decided to wait until the downfall of our great land to develop his Linus operating system.
No, you are not reading miscorrectly my Capitalist friend; I am solely blaming the death of The Motherland on Linus Torvalds and his Linus OS. It is my belief that Linus, siding with the Americans, chose to delay development of his software to allow our enemies to mass their computing strength. He now plans to replace our great Soviet Union with what he calls the "Linus Syndicate," a militant regime led by the world's most criminally insane neo-communists: Linus OS kernel developers.
So, my new Western allies, we must all bond together now to keep Linus from prevailing. It is best that both of our nations - mine fallen, yours strong - combine our strengths to crush this rebel programmer and his henchmen. Allen Cox; Erick S. Raymond - these are names that should be made to ring terror in the hearts of our people, for this is the only way to prevent such a horrid worldwide revolution from taking place.
Do your part. Submit botched patches to the kernel. Wrap them in confusing proprietary Licenses (avoid the GNU beast at all costs). Do everything that you can to hinder development of the beast that is Linus OS.
And I have got to ask where do your figures come from, I believe you have pulled these directly from your posterior. Not that I can provide accurate numbers myself, I just have my doubts about your ability as well.