Rare Photos: Gnu Crashing a Windows 8 Launch Event

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Rare Photos: Gnu Crashing a Windows 8 Launch Event

Posted by Soulskill on Saturday October 27, 2012 @05:40AM from the somebody-call-attenborough dept.

New submitter Atticus Rex writes "Reporters and security guards at the Windows 8 launch event weren't sure how to react when they were greeted by a real, live gnu. The gnu — which, on closer inspection, was an activist in a gnu suit — had come for some early trick-or-treating. But instead of candy, she had free software for the eager journalists. The gnu and the Free Software Foundation campaigns team handed out dozens of copies of Trisquel, a fully free GNU/Linux distribution, along with press releases and stickers. Once they got over their confusion, the reporters were happy to see us and hear our message — that Windows 8 is a downgrade, not an upgrade, because it steals users' freedom, security and privacy."

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Sounds like a plan by colinrichardday · 2012-10-27 05:43 · Score: 5, Informative

Way to spread the word!
1. Re:Sounds like a plan by jhoegl · 2012-10-27 05:55 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Although their points are kind of redundant to techies, they do make some good ones.
  Unlike the MS points about Linux and how it is the Hackers utility and is insecure due to code being open to the public...
2. Re:Sounds like a plan by GoodNewsJimDotCom · 2012-10-27 06:08 · Score: 2
  
  Is this what it takes to get GNUs in the news?
  
  --
  God spoke to me
3. Re:Sounds like a plan by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-27 06:30 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  No {GNUs,news} is good {GNUs,news}.
4. Re:Sounds like a plan by colinrichardday · 2012-10-27 08:09 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  Sure, why not? They annoy me with their Windows stuff.
5. Re:Sounds like a plan by davydagger · 2012-10-27 08:24 · Score: 2
  
  I think its the other way around
  
  GNU and linux work on every sort of hardware imaginable. Windows runs on desktops, UNIX on servers, and old high end workstations no one uses any more.
  
  the same linux kernel runs on everything.
6. Re:Sounds like a plan by jellomizer · 2012-10-27 10:21 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  The word has spread. The problem is people just don't care. It isn't like back in the 90's where people don't know about Linux and Open Source... They Do, they just don't care. They are willing to take the tradeoffs to get windows.
  The problem when you give people a choice, they will often choose something you don't like.
  
  --
  If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
Crashing, huh? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-27 05:43 · Score: 5, Insightful

When I read the headline I was expecting something involving forcing their way into the event. This, however, turns out to be the kind of positive thing we want to present the community with. Also, that is a sweet head!
1. Re:Crashing, huh? by Intrepid+imaginaut · 2012-10-27 06:35 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  Good thing it wasn't dark, they would have been likely to have been eaten by the GNU.
2. Re:Crashing, huh? by donaggie03 · 2012-10-27 07:02 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  Thanks for ruining the joke captain smartypants.
  
  --
  Three days from now?? Thats tomorrow!! ~Peter Griffin
Re:Worthless by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-27 05:49 · Score: 2, Interesting

Have you seen a 3D printing story?
It was funny in 1995 by Joe+U · 2012-10-27 05:50 · Score: 5, Insightful

It was funny in 1995 when the "protesters" were in front of CompUSA on 35th street in Manhattan. It was cute when they were outside PC Expo in 1996. Started to get kinda sad at the Windows 98 launch and went downhill after that.
Now they're just a sideshow attraction.
1. Re:It was funny in 1995 by fm6 · 2012-10-27 06:15 · Score: 5, Interesting
  
  Especially when they're pushing a distro nobody's ever heard of and which does a terrible job of promoting itself. I looked on both Trisquel's home page and its Wikipedia entry, and the only justification I could find for its existence was that it had Gallician support. (Why they didn't just contribute Gallician localization to an existing distro is unclear.) Other than that, it appears to be a simple Ubuntu fork.
  Now that is ironic. Not just a fringe OS, but a fringe version of the OS. How fringe? The very existence of the Gallician language is controversial. It's spoken only in the northwest corner of Spain, which would be part of Portugal if borders were drawn by actual cultural boundaries. (The Portugese language originated there.) But it's unpatriotic to refer to Gallician as a dialect of Portugese, so they have to pretend have their own language, mainly distinguished by the fact that Gallicia refuses to participate in efforts to reform Portugese spelling.
  Do Linux zealots actually work at being marginal?
2. Re:It was funny in 1995 by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-27 06:33 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  The reason for promoting Trisquel is that it is one of the few Linux distributions on the FSF's approved list of completely free distributions. It's basically Ubuntu with a free kernel and without the option of installing Flash. Trisquel is one of the few distributions on the FSF's approved list which is quite user friendly. Personally, I'd rather they hand out a distribution with all the Linux firmware and drivers to provide better hardware support, but the FSF isn't about being practical, they are focused on software freedom.
3. Re:It was funny in 1995 by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-27 06:45 · Score: 3, Funny
  
  The very existence of the Gallician language is controversial. It's spoken only in the northwest corner of Spain, which would be part of Portugal if borders were drawn by actual cultural boundaries. (The Portugese language originated there.) But it's unpatriotic to refer to Gallician as a dialect of Portugese, so they have to pretend have their own language, mainly distinguished by the fact that Gallicia refuses to participate in efforts to reform Portugese spelling.
  Huh. Portugal has hipsters, too.
  So, when folks ask them where they're from and what's their native tongue, they say in their Gallician accent, "It's so cool, you've never heard of it."
4. Re:It was funny in 1995 by fm6 · 2012-10-27 07:40 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  but the FSF isn't about being practical, they are focused on software freedom.
  Please don't use "software freedom" without scare quotes. If you leave them out, you imply that FSF actually matters.
  Anyway, I'm glad this is about the Gospel According to Stallman and not about some weird geopolitical agenda. Had me worried.
5. Re:It was funny in 1995 by JabberWokky · 2012-10-27 08:17 · Score: 5, Interesting
  
  you imply that FSF actually matters.
  With not much enthusiasm, I simply note that two decades ago I couldn't run anywhere near the phenomenal library of free and Free software that I do today. Three decades ago, I was closer to being able to, so there was a very serious period of "you must license your software and only companies can own or alter it". I don't have much enthusiasm because it's a pretty non-notable fact these days. If you're coding something new, you first look for libraries or code that does much of what you need, and then use them for free. That's not surprising to say. Two decades ago, it would be.
  So the FSF pretty much won (as did the many many non-FSF coders who contributed). Maybe not in terms of global dominance, but in real terms of "I can use my system and do what I want because I have rights to the software and can alter it at whim". This state of things was not a certain outcome. Now it is simply part of the IT world we take for granted.
  
  --
  "$30 for the One True Ring. $10 each additional ring!" -- JRR "Bob" Tolkien
6. Re:It was funny in 1995 by TraumaHound · 2012-10-27 08:26 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  the FSF's approved list of completely free distributions. It's basically Ubuntu with a free kernel and without the option of installing Flash.
  There goes my irony quota for the day.
7. Re:It was funny in 1995 by pnot · 2012-10-27 08:46 · Score: 5, Interesting
  
  Amen. I use Ubuntu and am happy (on a pragmatic level) to have a set-up that's maybe 98% free software. I would sooner punch myself in the nuts than switch to Trisquel, but I'm keenly aware that were it not for RMS's single-mindedness, I would probably be using a set-up that's 98% non-free (or, more likely, doing something entirely different because the world of computers wouldn't interest me as much).
8. Re:It was funny in 1995 by fm6 · 2012-10-27 09:24 · Score: 2
  
  Actually, a lot of linguists feel that there's no such thing as "language" only "dialect". Portugese and Spanish are not as different as many dialetcts that are considered to be variations on the same language.
  Another way of putting it: the language/dialect distinction is a political concept, not a scientific one. Someone once said that a language is a dialect with an army.
9. Re:It was funny in 1995 by VortexCortex · 2012-10-27 10:04 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  the FSF's approved list of completely free distributions. It's basically Ubuntu with a free kernel and without the option of installing Flash.
  There goes my irony quota for the day.
  "without the option" wasn't exactly correct. Of course you can install whatever software from whatever repository you want once it's installed, or even compile the sources-- Oh, Flash, well, no source for proprietary stuff like that, but you can still install it. Windows XP comes "without the option" of installing Flash. Last I checked you get Flash from Adobe's website after installing Windows. Some Linux distros make it easy to stay up to date by putting Adobe's Flash in their repository. However, now that Adobe will no longer release updates for Flash on Linux I can't blame some folks for not including the buggy product in their distros...
  I wonder if you'll be able to add 3rd party markets to Windows 8's app store, like on most Android and Linux distributions, or if it'll actually be "without the option" like Apple's app store?
10. Re:It was funny in 1995 by icebraining · 2012-10-27 14:19 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  My paycheck from developing AGPL licensed code must be an illusion, then.
  RMS' ideology just eliminates jobs that depending on rewriting the wheel. New code still has to be written, and there's plenty of work and money to those who are willing to write it.
  
  --
  Dilbert RSS feed
11. Re:It was funny in 1995 by icebraining · 2012-10-27 14:38 · Score: 2
  GNU software:
  
  GCC
  coreutils
  grep
  tar
  Gnome
  Bash
  grub
  gettext
  make
  bazaar
  Yeap, clearly all software that nobody in the open source community uses anymore. It's all irrelevant.
  Oh, I forgot the GNU GPL. It's just the license that governs about half of all the free and open source projects, including small stuff like Linux. Completely irrelevant.
  --
  Dilbert RSS feed
12. Re:It was funny in 1995 by murr · 2012-10-28 02:17 · Score: 2
  
  an army and a navy!
  In any case, Portuguese would certainly qualify.
So it wasn't a real, live Gnu... by BrownLeopard · 2012-10-27 05:51 · Score: 5, Insightful

...but someone in a Gnu suit? Kind of misleading, yeah? I do have to agree with the other posters though. It does seem like trolling an event. If Microsoft came into a Gnu event it would be bashed as them crashing a party. Same kind of thing here.
1. Re:So it wasn't a real, live Gnu... by Zocalo · 2012-10-27 06:29 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  If Microsoft came into a Gnu event it would be bashed as them crashing a party.
  Of course it would. Chances are it would also be csh'ed, ksh'ed and zsh'ed (amongst others) as well.
  
  --
  UNIX? They're not even circumcised! Savages!
2. Re:So it wasn't a real, live Gnu... by BrownLeopard · 2012-10-27 06:29 · Score: 2
  
  No, not really. While techies will herald this as a good thing, normal computer users will go "Well that was rude!" and "What is Linux?". Case in point: when I shared this on my Facebook I had 3 comments go "I thought a Gnu was an animal?", "Did they have to crash the party? Why not just send the journos a press release with pros/cons?" and "What OS do you use?" to which I replied "I use Win 7 on my desktop, Win 7 with Ubuntu dual booting on my laptop, OSX Mountain Lion on my Macbook Pro and ICS on my phone."
3. Re:So it wasn't a real, live Gnu... by icebraining · 2012-10-27 07:07 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  normal computer users will go "Well that was rude!" and "What is Linux?"
  Getting people to ask the latter question is already a goal achieved.
  
  --
  Dilbert RSS feed
4. Re:So it wasn't a real, live Gnu... by artor3 · 2012-10-27 07:26 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Not if the answer they come to is "a fringe OS pushed by weirdos dressed as wildebeests".
5. Re:So it wasn't a real, live Gnu... by blane.bramble · 2012-10-27 07:42 · Score: 2
  
  GNU - the OS for furries?
6. Re:So it wasn't a real, live Gnu... by jtownatpunk.net · 2012-10-27 08:52 · Score: 2
  
  I was disappointed by the fake gnu. I wonder what it would cost to rent a real gnu. I'll bet a kickstarter project could make this happen for Windows 9.
A valuable lesson learned today. by FSWKU · 2012-10-27 05:55 · Score: 3, Funny

The software may be free. Enough computing power for the software to handle a slashdotting, however, is NOT free...

--
"So after all this, you make my case for me. To end this stalemate, you must die..."
Re:Real live gnu? Seriously? by EmagGeek · 2012-10-27 06:00 · Score: 2

My thoughts exactly. What's with all of this sensational bullshit on Slashdot lately?
Powell's colon by Tablizer · 2012-10-27 06:01 · Score: 5, Funny

John SuGnuGnu said only a Gnu could love a Gnu.

--
Table-ized A.I.
Activist is an old Indian word.... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-27 06:03 · Score: 4, Funny

...that translates roughly to "Doesn't have a real job.'
Windows 8 downgrades security? by Wrath0fb0b · 2012-10-27 06:09 · Score: 4, Insightful

Citation needed.
Now, it's quite possible that Windows 7 is not secure enough for your needs and 8 doesn't improve upon that significantly, but I'm skeptical that 8 is a step backwards in security.
1. Re:Windows 8 downgrades security? by Call+Me+Black+Cloud · 2012-10-27 06:19 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Citation needed.
  You must be gnu here...
2. Re:Windows 8 downgrades security? by VortexCortex · 2012-10-27 10:13 · Score: 2
  
  Let me explain something: SECURITY MUST BE PROVEN. You can't just claim the product secure, we look back and then determine how secure it has been. Additionally: NEW SOFTWARE HAS NEW BUGS, and these bugs are what makes security exploits possible.
  Considering that Windows8 is not just Windows7 in a different box, that it actually comes with more and newer code than Windows7 or XP, I think it's safe to say that it more likely than not that it contains more bugs than these already released and hammered on systems... In laymen's terms: Windows8 is less secure.
3. Re:Windows 8 downgrades security? by jo_ham · 2012-10-27 11:43 · Score: 2
  
  If that's your position then the lack of security must also be proven.
  You cannot say "it's Microsoft's responsibility to prove they are insecure, otherwise it is 'safe to say' that it is less secure".
  That's called hypocrisy.
Sounds like Microsoft needs better security by Culture20 · 2012-10-27 06:15 · Score: 2

Well trained security guards would have quashed that right away, along with explanations of "You need to buy a vendor permit to distribute pamphlets/software at the show".
Microsoft Security Fail!
only Windows 8? by mschaffer · 2012-10-27 06:16 · Score: 4, Insightful

Really? Only Windows 8? OSX/iOS steals users' freedom, security and privacy quite a bit.
1. Re:only Windows 8? by Fishchip · 2012-10-27 06:21 · Score: 3, Funny
  
  Shh, this is a Windows-bashing article. There'll be an OSX one in a little while.
2. Re:only Windows 8? by VAElynx · 2012-10-27 06:26 · Score: 2
  
  Well... it would be sort of retarded to point out the deficiencies of iOS on a Microsoft event. Kinda like when the soviet and the american argued about their countries.
  American: "But we have freedom of speech!" Soviet: "What is that, even?" American: "For example , if I were to walk into the White House, shout Ronald Reagan is a filthy thieving lying fuck, nobody would do anything to me." Soviet: "Hah! We got it even better. If I were to walk into the Kremel, and shout Ronald Reagan is a filthy thieving lying fuck, it'd get into the newspaper and I'd get a commendation, even."
Re:Worthless by larry+bagina · 2012-10-27 06:17 · Score: 5, Insightful

Look, she can't help it if she's not pretty. Or if she's too poor to afford nice clothes.
FREE software is like people -- what's on the inside matters more than the external appearance.

--
Do you even lift?
These aren't the 'roids you're looking for.
Re:Real live gnu? Seriously? by PPH · 2012-10-27 06:18 · Score: 4, Insightful

I don't know about that. A new UI on top of Windows 7 seems to have fooled them.

--
Have gnu, will travel.
Nice beard. by Haxagon · 2012-10-27 06:20 · Score: 4, Funny

"The gnu — which, on closer inspection, was an activist in a gnu suit"
It's hard to tell the two apart sans suit, sometimes.
Said as a GNU/Linux enthusiast.
Re:Worthless by VAElynx · 2012-10-27 06:21 · Score: 5, Funny

If you think the purpose of a demonstration/event is "nude tits for the onlookers", you're a moron whose thought centre has moved from cranium to crotch.
I'd like to add a small change by Rooked_One · 2012-10-27 06:31 · Score: 2, Interesting

"...Windows 8 is a downgrade, not an upgrade, because it steals users' freedom, security and privacy."

This may be so, but I think that statement detracts from the fact that windows is starting to make users very ignorant. Windows 7 took away the advanced search. I used to love to be able to search for files largers than 10MB very easily but now I must use third party software to do a very "Windows" function.

I sometimes mourn for the days that when you installed something, its functions went into its own directory. You could very easily find what you're looking for, and modify if possible. This constantly gets stripped down, at least for a few things.
1. Re:I'd like to add a small change by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-27 06:56 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  It's still there, albeit hard to find. Just use size:>10mb in the search bar
Not a gnu by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-27 06:32 · Score: 4, Funny

Richard Stallman just hasn't shaved in awhile.
Why this distro? by mwvdlee · 2012-10-27 06:47 · Score: 2, Insightful

They're fighting the Windows 8 downgrade by offering a fringe GNU-downgraded Linux distro.
I'm sure all those journalists will be convinced after they have learned to manually install the required hardware drivers.
Marketing isn't about promoting the things you personally like, it's about promoting the things your potential users like.
Windows and Apple users don't care about privacy, freedom, security or ownership. Either convince them of the importance of those issues before pushing Linux or promote the Linux features they do care about (i.e. "Linux is free and has the best tools for downloading the latest movies").

--
Slashdot social media options: AIM, ICQ, Yahoo, Jabber and Mobile Text. Why no MySpace?
1. Re:Why this distro? by swillden · 2012-10-27 07:25 · Score: 2
  
  What distro would you suggest? Keep in mind that this is the FSF, so it must be one that is completely Free. No binary-only blobs and no licenses that would bar you from modifying, redistributing or both. This excludes Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, Gentoo, etc.
  Because, whether you agree with their message or not, the fact is that giving away a distribution that is only mostly Free would undermine it.
  
  --
  Note to ACs: I usually delete AC replies without reading them. If you want to talk to me, log in.
2. Re:Why this distro? by Maow · 2012-10-27 08:13 · Score: 2
  
  Marketing isn't about promoting the things you personally like, it's about promoting the things your potential users like.
  Windows and Apple users don't care about privacy, freedom, security or ownership. Either convince them of the importance of those issues before pushing Linux or promote the Linux features they do care about (i.e. "Linux is free and has the best tools for downloading the latest movies").
  I look at marketing more as promoting not what you think your potential users like, but simply what you have to offer.
  Now to be successful, there should be significant overlap between those.
  This story makes a great example, as this is a Windows 8 event and MS has the Sisyphean task of marketing TIFKAM (the interface formerly known as Metro) - certainly not what the users want (nor have been asking for).
OS/2 crashing by PolygamousRanchKid+ · 2012-10-27 06:50 · Score: 3, Informative

Back about 20 years ago, Steve Ballmer went to an IBM booth at an computer show, and tried to crash OS/2 there. So, I guess you reap what you sow.
Eventually. Kinda sorta.

--
Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
1. Re:OS/2 crashing by icebraining · 2012-10-27 08:14 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  That's nothing. Windows 98 crashed its own show.
  
  --
  Dilbert RSS feed
Re:Worthless by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-27 07:09 · Score: 3, Insightful

Except they are not selling to morons who think with their dicks, moron.
Re:Worthless by VAElynx · 2012-10-27 07:15 · Score: 4, Funny

I don't think a reasonable person's choice of operating system is determined by the presence of human mammary glands. Otherwise Apple would be selling the iTit.
Closer inspection? by devnullkac · 2012-10-27 07:28 · Score: 2

On closer inspection? More like "The person with an enormous mascot mask - which, on closer inspection, vaguely resembled a gnu."

--
What do you mean they cut the power? How can they cut the power, man? They're animals!
Re:Real live gnu? Seriously? by Scarletdown · 2012-10-27 07:47 · Score: 2

The owner realized the same thing Fox News did -- if you present stories in ways to whip up a fringe zealot audience, you may lose a lot of your audience, but the audience you have comes back a lot and consumes a lot of ads.
Ah. That would explain why I am not seeing any ads. Other people consumed them instead of just looked at them, so there are no more ads.

--
This space unintentionally left blank.
Re:Worthless by wonkey_monkey · 2012-10-27 07:56 · Score: 4, Funny

What truly pathetic depths Slashdot has sank to.
They let you in for a start.

--
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
Re:Worthless by sumdumass · 2012-10-27 08:20 · Score: 4, Interesting

Actually, I think they are. A protest is not necessarily selling a product, it's selling the idea that there is support for the product. The product is generally being sold to whatever they are protesting against but by selling sex, it increases the appearance of support for their cause by the inclusion of morons thinking with their dicks.
Imagine if you will, 20 prudently dresses women holding a rally to support $insertcause. Now imagine 10 scantly dressed 21 year old hotties and 10 muscle bound shirtless men doing the same for the same cause. You will have a base showing for the prudent women because the cause is what is there. But you will have added women and men interested in looking at the hot bodies of the people involved so there will likely be an above base showing for the event. In the end, the people thinking with their primitive instincts lend the appearance of wider spread support increasing the power for the cause. So using sex to sell a concept is a powerful tool for a cause and I think that the sale of sex (metaphorically) is actually intended to some of not a large degree.
Re:Worthless by SuperMooCow · 2012-10-27 08:34 · Score: 5, Funny

Use a 3D printer to print bitcoins to pay for Windows 8, you say? What a great idea!
Why do people go.. by tbird81 · 2012-10-27 09:26 · Score: 2

To a Windows 8 opening?
Who really cares about getting it first? Who (non-geek) even installs new operating systems? People just use whatever is on their computer.
Re:Worthless by VortexCortex · 2012-10-27 09:47 · Score: 3, Insightful

You fail to control for those who are easily offended by over sexualized displays.
Re:The obvious answer by AmazingRuss · 2012-10-27 10:21 · Score: 2

True. After a couple of years of fighting with endless niggling problems, you'll switch again, to OSX.
Re:Worthless by Fjandr · 2012-10-27 12:05 · Score: 4, Funny

Only people who already support their cause are supposed to look at them naked in public. It's in the EULA somewhere.
Hurd of GNUs by girlinatrainingbra · 2012-10-27 17:39 · Score: 2

(btw, first post to reference Hurd that I'm seeing. That's kinda lame for this being /., isn't it?)
There could/should have been a whole Hurd of GNUs sent over except for the fact that so many of them have been discontinued:
Hurd-based GNU distributions include:
-- Arch Hurd
-- Debian GNU/Hurd
-- NixOS[23][24]
-- Bee GNU/Hurd (discontinued)
-- Gentoo GNU Hurd (discontinued)
-- GNU/Hurd Live CD (discontinued) I kid, I kid. I love GNU. I love Linux. They taste great together, like peanut butter and chocolate. There's a commercial for you:
Your GNU ran into my Linux! No, your Linux ran into my GNU! Hey, they taste great together! And no unpopped kernels, either! (c) 2012-10-27-23h35PDF, by me.
BTW, first post to reference Hurd that I'm seeing. That's kinda lame for this being /., isn't it?