Slashdot Mirror


Queen of England Gets Red Hat

Zerbey writes "According to Linux Today The Royal Family's web site is now running Red Hat as apposed to Solaris. See for yourself on Netcraft. Congratulations, Ma'am :) "

150 comments

  1. Re:The Queen? -> Her power. by MattXVI · · Score: 2
    Almost true. If there is an inconclusive parliamentary election, the Queen can appoint a Prime Minister, and it can be whomever she pleases. This has almost happened a number of times. Also, she can technically dissolve parliament and call for a new election at her whim. This, as you've said, is a prerogative not exercised since the time of Queen Anne. It probably wouldn't fly today, unless some very important crisis called for it.

    All this ignores the real power of a Monarch, though. They have a sort of centrifugal effect on a country- they draw a sort of uber-loyalty that transcends mere politics. It's very valuable to have such a symbol of continuity and immutability, particularly in tough times. Ideally, they'd serve as a role model for the nation, though some royal families (the Windsors!!) have done an awful job of fulfilling this responsibility.

    Maybe choosing Linux for Her Majesty's Web Servers is a good first step on the road to Windsor redemption.

    --
    When I'm singing a ballad and a pair of underwear lands on my head, I hate that. It really kills the mood.
    -Tom Jones
  2. Re:Is this an argument for BSD ? by miahrogers · · Score: 1

    but ms uses bsd... and so do A LOT of isps, it's not like bsd is more obscure than linux or anything, sure less folks know about it but that doesn't make it less used. Just don't use redhat if you don't want to be using what they're using. Personally i don't find it cool to switch os'es because one is "less cool" than another. I don't use redhat- but only because i don't like a distrib that depends so heavily on their gui.
    char *stupidsig = "this is my dumb sig";

  3. Re:DESTROY THE BRITISH MONARCHY! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You are correct - you have no clue about these things.

    Actually, come to think of it, it is closer to 300 years.

    HTH

  4. Re:"Ma'am"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sp presumably you have no problem with us non-US people calling your president "Yo BillyBoy" is we met him on the street, as he has no authority here? Just checking.

  5. Re:"Ma'am"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Actually, the correct form of address is "Your Majesty" this first time, and "Ma'am" thereafter.

    Indeed, the Queen prefers people to drop the "Majesty" bit and just call her "Ma'am" from the start. Oh, and she's not keen on people bowing before her either - she thinks it un-necessary and outdated.

    Hope this helps

  6. Re:Another Stupid American (Re:Those Royals) by warmi · · Score: 0

    "Traditional British Values" ??
    What's that ? Never heard about them ..

  7. Re:I can see it now: by mpe · · Score: 1


    Could we soon be kneeling and saying, "Sir Linus"?

    The rules would not permit either a "Sir Linus" or
    "Linus KBE".

    Though a "Sir Alan Cox" would be possible...

  8. Re:That's impressive. NOT! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    ****BZZTTTT****

    At no point did I call it a victory against the US. It wasn't. It was however a victory against americans (small "a" again). Only you in your arrogance take american to mean USAvian. It doesn't.

    As for linux on a webserver dictating who'd win a war, it just might.

    It is my belief that in the 21st century the 1st world nations will conduct PR wars against each other. The purest form of the PR war will be who is running the coolest distro at the highest level. This can be seen as the equivalent of global nuclear war.

    The next level down, equivalent to a police action would be the BSD/Linux argument. Below that is the MS/UNIX argument. Right at the bottom of the pile, roughly equivalent to HM the Q getting in a slugfight with Bill Clinton would be the GNOME/KDE question.

    Second world countries won't have these problems as they will only have access to SLS and RedHat distros so the one with Redhat loses. 3rd world countries will keep on firing bullets and bombs at each other.

    If the 3rd world countries get too pissy then the USA can send a couple of B52s across to dump a few million MS License agreements. The papercuts would stop any war in an instant.

    Normality resumes below this line

  9. its probably NT in disguise by raykt · · Score: 1

    you're right that it could be a firewall, else why does the current ervice look like its comming from a linux 2.0.x box?

    All the static pages have the suffix .htm so its could even be running windows95 for the weserver.

  10. its probably NT in disguise by raykt · · Score: 1

    you're right that it could be a firewall, else why does the current service look like its comming from a linux 2.0.x box? ( as seen at WTF is www.royal.gov.uk )

    All the static pages have the suffix .htm so its could even be running windows95 for the weserver.

  11. Re:Those Royals by elvum · · Score: 1

    Obviously you know different young British people to me.

  12. Re:"Ma'am"? by teleny · · Score: 1

    Sorry. It's correct. Doubly so if you're American.

    --
    teleny, friend of cats.
  13. "Ma'am"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    This is only slightly off-topic.

    Excuse me, sirs, but addressing the Queen of Britain as "ma'am" is just slightly disrespectful. "Your Majesty" would have been much more appropriate in this case.

    1. Re:"Ma'am"? by Zerbey · · Score: 1

      Well...officially you call her "Your Majesty" when first introduced and from then on can get away with "Ma'am". Point taken though :)

    2. Re:"Ma'am"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Apparently she prefers "ma'am" (pronounced to rhyme with "jam", not "smarm"). Not that I've ever met her, mind ;)

    3. Re:"Ma'am"? by 2sheds · · Score: 1

      Yep, she even changed official protocol so that bowing etc is optional.

      j.

      --

      Absit Invidia
    4. Re:"Ma'am"? by warlock · · Score: 1

      Well, that is nitpicking, but why should anyone that is not a citizen of the UK address her as if she was their queen?

      To me, a Greek citizen (that has lived for several years in Scotland btw), she is just another person. I would probably ignore her or just say "Hi there, what's up?" if I met her.

      Just FYI, The Greek constitution prohibits Greek citizens from accepting titles of honour. Which makes sense. After all, how can all people be equal if some are more equal than others (as George Orwell put it very eloquently)?

      No offence, but in my book absolutely noone has to address British Lords, Sirs, Dukes and whatnot with their title. If they are offended, tough. I don't care. If they are disappointed that people in other countries don't treat them in a special way, again, that's tough. Expecting to be treated as royalty outside the empire (what's left of it anyway) is really backwards. They should just be glad that the majority of the brits still do them the courtesy of using their titles and maintaining monarchy, for it will not last long IMHO.

      -W

    5. Re:"Ma'am"? by 0xdeadbeef · · Score: 1

      She don't look too majestic to me.

      You do realize that most of the world sees the queen as the mascot of the Great Britian. As far as I'm concerned, anyone who wears a title of nobility deserves disrespect, regardless of what she represents. But then again, that's just my Yankee egalitarianism talking.

    6. Re:"Ma'am"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Umm... Actually, it IS disrespectful. "Majesty" may seem a bit extravagant, but it indicates her position and respect for such. Do you have a problem with other people referring to the U.S. President as "Mr. President", or "President So-and-So"?

      I'm pretty sure that the British monarchy's gonna be around for a while, by the way. Go study some British history.

    7. Re:"Ma'am"? by Blackknight · · Score: 1

      If I saw her on the street I wouldn't even call her Ma'am, as she has no authority here in the U.S.

    8. Re:"Ma'am"? by Uart · · Score: 1

      Two things:

      1) Isn't scotland awesome!
      2) In the US, it takes an act of congress (not easy, since congress doesn't do anything) to be able to accept a title.

      --

      Opinionated Law Student Strikes Again!
    9. Re:"Ma'am"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      It's not a matter of authority. It's a matter of respect. She is the ruler of a nation, and that means she deserves respect. Within our own nation (yes, I posted the original comment, and yes, I am an American) we refer to the President not as 'hey, you' but as 'Mr. President.' (And, yes, he deserves respect no matter how many scandals he is involved in.)

      You might point out that you have the right to call either of these individuals by whatever you like. That's true; you have that wonderful God-given, First Amendment-protected right to be an ass. But I was speaking of what is proper. And if you have any manners in your body, you would address the royalty of any nation with the respect they deserve.

    10. Re:"Ma'am"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If I saw her on the street here, I would probably adress her as "ma'am", because in the area I live in (rural southeast Texas) "sir" and "ma'am" are still part of ordinary formal courtesy to strangers. It would have nothing to do with any titles she still has in some countries.

  14. Re:Those Royals by Mr+Windows · · Score: 1
    ...the british will stop at nothing to keep their empire.

    Not strictly true, for two reasons. Firstly, there's not much of an empire left (c.f. Hong Kong, handed back to China not so long ago), and Australia isn't part of the `empire' (on which, of course, the sun never sets :); it's part of the Commonwealth, which means that the Queen is officially head of state. Practically, it seems to mean the odd state visit here and there, to allow someone a pot-shot at Prince Charles :)

  15. Re:Queen of *BRITAIN* by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Ah, David, nice to see this one brought out. Thing is it may not technically be correct.

    She is (formally) Her Britannic Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second of The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

    Slight problem with this is that we are missing a Queen Elizabeth somewhere for this to work. Elizabeth Tudor was queen some time before the union of the crowns (James the VI and I was her successor) and the union of Parliament (1801 or thereabouts).

    This technically means that by claiming the title Queen Elizabeth the Second she effectively rules herself out of contention to be the Queen of Scotland. Ain't history wonderful?

  16. Re:Not the first time by Zerbey · · Score: 1

    Well she probably has her own personal Linux guru to help her out. Hmm, wonder if I could get a job... :-)

  17. Re:That's impressive. NOT! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Isn't it interesting that the last time Britain went up against americans we kicked their butts and badly?

    Of course I am talking about Argentina which despite what all you USAvians may think is on the South American continent and makes them american (small "a").

    Heh.

  18. The Sun never sets on the British Commonwealth! by tilly · · Score: 1

    That would be the current version of the old saying.

    Incidentally back in my grandfather's day the wags used to add to that ...because God doesn't trust an Englishman in the dark.

    :-)

    Cheers,
    Ben

    --
    My usual seat in the cluetrain is at A HREF="http://pub4.ezboard.com/biwethey.ht
  19. firewall ? by NoNsense · · Score: 1

    Couldnt it be that the Sun box was the firewall ?

    The firewall (where I work) is running Solaris, and all of the servers in the DMZ are running IIS or apache. Perhaps the firewall has changed, or the firewall was changed to linux.

    No way to tell, if they are behind a tuff firewall.

    --
    So there.
  20. Re:I can see it now: by Bogatyr · · Score: 1

    But the thought of having to address current Red Hat luminaries with titles is odd, "Sir Robert", "Lord Donnie", and so on.

  21. Re:Another Stupid American (Re:Those Royals) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ROTFL!!!

    Can you say "Paranoid fuckwit"?

    (The sad thing is you probably believe the bull you are spouting!)

  22. Re:This is just the beginning by cjs · · Score: 2

    I thought the US system was summed up well many years ago, when the Beyond the Fringe gang explained the political system in the US to a UK person: ``There are two parties in the US: the Republican party, which is the equivalant of our Tory party, and the Democratic party, which is the equivalant of our Tory party.''

    cjs

    --
    The world's most portable OS: http://www.netbsd.org.
  23. Not the first time by Squirtle · · Score: 3

    She was a RedHat user a year or so ago. Then she experimented with Solaris, but now she's back.

    I bet she got sick of recompiling KDE and just installs it from RPMs nowadays.

    1. Re:Not the first time by warlock · · Score: 1


      Maybe she found Solaris licensees to expensive to maintain. Hmmm. Pehaps not - I guess there must have been another reason to switch to Red Hat. I wonder what.


      -W

    2. Re:Not the first time by MassacrE · · Score: 1

      Maybe she just thinks she looks better in a red hat? :)

    3. Re:Not the first time by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm sure she really cares that her site is running Red Hat Linux. Come on really! I'm sure the queen is up all hours of the night hacking Red Hat Linux!

    4. Re:Not the first time by Brandon+Hume · · Score: 1

      Recompile? Vuz iz zees... recompile?

      Solaris packaged KDE installations, available
      right off the KDE main site.

      pkgadd -d, baby.
      --
      Brandon Hume
      hume -> BOFH.Halifax.NS.Ca, http://WWW.BOFH.Halifax.NS.Ca/

      --
      Brandon Hume
      hume -> BOFH.Halifax.NS.Ca, http://WWW.BOFH.Halifax.NS.Ca/
  24. Well paint me wrong by Foogle · · Score: 1


  25. Re:Those Royals by sparks · · Score: 1

    Actually, the young British people I know are really young Scottish people, and maybe there is a distinction there regarding loyalty to the Queen. Thing is, I lived in England for four years, and in the whole time I lived there, the only person I met who expressed support for the Monarchy was a certain technical support Bob going by the nickname of Zerbey....

  26. Those Royals by LordChaos · · Score: 2

    Now that Australia is voting to remove the royal family from the ruling status, they finally do something worthwhile. Maybe we should have options like this in our upcoming referendum:
    Should Australia become a republic?
    1 Yes
    2 No
    3 No, because they use linux

    Perhaps this is the best thing related to the royal family that has happened in a long while :)

    1. Re:Those Royals by g.macdonald · · Score: 1

      I love reading all this crap about the Queen, it's really quite entertaining! Maybe 300 years ago, it would mean something, but today? Come on! The Queen holds no power over Great Britain, let alone Austalia and Canada. It's all -symbolic-!

      BTW, most of us Brits really don't care about the Queen anyway, and whether people want or don't want the Queen to have anything to do with their country doesn't matter to us. We don't give a shit, and I seriously doubt the Queen cares much either.

      Why not rant about something that has meaning in today's world, like Tibet or East Timor or something.

    2. Re:Those Royals by Uart · · Score: 1

      Umm, I thought Austrailia was already a republic, but a republic that was a member of the British commonwealth, kinda like Canada, or the Bahamas.

      --

      Opinionated Law Student Strikes Again!
    3. Re:Those Royals by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well, that just goes to show how ignorant you are, then.

    4. Re:Those Royals by NtG · · Score: 0

      The brits don't have a say in this. This is a referrendum put to the people of australia, voting whether or not to amend the constitution. By amending the constitution, we would infact be removing any power that the brits had, no longer recognising that we are a monarchy. If anything is going to be done about it, it better be done soon, the referendum is in 48 days, and if a yes vote is passed, that will be it for the brits. PS. Vote YES to a republic! http://www.republic.org.au/ PPS. If her royal highness has a problem with us becoming a republic (its inevitable), she can feel free to drop into my house, I'll kick her geriatric ass for ghandi and canada too.

    5. Re:Those Royals by sparks · · Score: 1

      To be honest, the thinking among young British people isn't so much "those stiking Australians getting rid of the Queen" as "how long will we have to wait before *we* can get rid of the Queen?".

    6. Re:Those Royals by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Notice those fleets off Timor? Where did Linus discover the Penguin? - Canberra. Whats his aim? World Domination. In the game of risk, wheres the best place to take over the world from? - Australia. Its all coming together.

  27. We can't be sure she's serious about Linux... by Stephen+Williams · · Score: 3

    ...until she starts wearing a red hat instead of a crown.

    1. Re:We can't be sure she's serious about Linux... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But when she found out it wasn't optimized for
      her linux boxen she switched to Mandrake. Look
      here
      http://www.royal.gov.uk/images2/family/toronto.h tm

    2. Re:We can't be sure she's serious about Linux... by snej · · Score: 1

      Just count the red hats on http://www.royal.gov.uk/family/hmqueen.htm . At least 3, and a pink one extra.

    3. Re:We can't be sure she's serious about Linux... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That'd make her serious about Red Hat. Not necessarily Linux.

  28. Re:Fucking moderators by 2sheds · · Score: 1

    As a Brit living in California - this is looking like a hell of a lot more of a Police State than Jolly ol' England, or most of Europe for that matter.

    Get a clue.

    j.

    --

    Absit Invidia
  29. Re:Linux: by 2sheds · · Score: 1

    You know, I always get the impression that America would love to have colonies, if it were politically correct to do so...

    j.

    --

    Absit Invidia
  30. Who made the decision? by tilly · · Score: 2

    This is truly hearsay, but I heard that the decision was made by a sub-contractor. But still it is a nice decision and Red Hat should certainly see whether they can get the standard, By appointment to... line approved. (At least for their British sales.)

    :-)

    Cheers,
    Ben

    --
    My usual seat in the cluetrain is at A HREF="http://pub4.ezboard.com/biwethey.ht
    1. Re:Who made the decision? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Should they change their name to Red Crown? :-)

  31. Why did she do it? by Kitsune+Sushi · · Score: 1

    I have no idea, but I kind of doubt it was due to monetary concerns.

    I never did like SunOS or Solaris, though. At work the "time clock" runs on SunOS and is practically guaranteed to go down each and every day. I hate writing times down in a book.

    --

    ~ Kish

    1. Re:Why did she do it? by miahrogers · · Score: 1

      "I have no idea, but I kind of doubt it was due to monetary concerns."
      of coarse not, that is why this is so cool. Linux was chooosen purely because it's a good os.
      char *stupidsig = "this is my dumb sig";

  32. Re:No 'merkins that time, buddy by 2sheds · · Score: 1

    ...which, remember, is exactly the same support we (the UK) give to the USAF when we let them fly F-111's etc. out of British bases.

    I think the proof-of-capability bombing of the airfield at Port Stanley by an RAF Vulcan was pretty cool - pitty one of them had to go and break a refuelling boom so it couldn't make it back to home soil...

    j.

    --

    Absit Invidia
  33. Hail holy Queen enthroned above.. by MrPlab · · Score: 1

    Glad to see everyone associates the Queen with RedHat now thanks to someone at the 700+ command of power making the decision :-)

    But the queen does need a stable website like she needed that hip replacement. After all, if another one of the royals die, she can totally ignore their death on a stable server.

    Fumbling towards royalty,
    Matthew
    _____________________________________

    --
    sortakinda.ca | canadian paraphrasing.
    1. Re:Hail holy Queen enthroned above.. by plett · · Score: 1

      > You don't really think that every single member
      > of the kennedy family died by coincidence, do > you?

      Of course not, but that was the CIA, not the royals :)

    2. Re:Hail holy Queen enthroned above.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      dude, any member of the royal family can do whatever the hell they want, they have more power than the prime minister. They just do everything in secret. You don't really think that every single member of the kennedy family died by coincidence, do you?

    3. Re:Hail holy Queen enthroned above.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Are you sure every member of the Kennedy family has died?

  34. Re:That's impressive. NOT! by 2sheds · · Score: 1

    ..ROTFL. As Jeremy Clarkson observed re the American war of independence:

    'It was a civil war. Therefore, we kicked our own butts'.

    j.

    --

    Absit Invidia
  35. I can see it now: by ptomblin · · Score: 4

    Red Hat Linux, By Appointment To Her Majesty The Queen.

    --
    The next Cmdr Taco duplicate will be ready soon, but subscribers can beat the rush and see it early!
    1. Re:I can see it now: by Zerbey · · Score: 1

      My original headline for this was "Tux: By Royal Appointment" *shrug*

    2. Re:I can see it now: by Llanfairpwllgwyngyll · · Score: 1

      Red Hat Linux, By Appointment To Her Majesty The Queen.

      Well - not immediately. To get the official "By Appointment to HRH" one has to have been a regular supplier to the Royal Family for over 3 years.

      Oh, and you still have to actually apply for it too :-)

      Finally, it's issued to a named individual rather than an organisation.

      However, it must be nearly time for someone within the Apache group to apply.... even when on Solaris HRH was using Apache.

      S.

    3. Re:I can see it now: by Ronin+Developer · · Score: 1

      Could we soon be kneeling and saying, "Sir Linus"?
      Will he have a Penguin on his Coat of Arms?

  36. Re:Princess Diana... by 2sheds · · Score: 1

    Nah, she's alive and well and having JFK Jr.'s love child.

    :-)

    james

    --

    Absit Invidia
  37. It's slow by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    I mean it. 26 byte/sec does not impress me and it is just a 30 minute ride from here. But what can one expect from some bloody American distribution. First the Boston Tea Party and now this, you cannot get enough, eh ;)

    Leaves the question what the White House is using ... HAHA !!

  38. Cretin by tobyp · · Score: 1

    Ghandi was killed by a Hindu nationalist - same as those right wing BJP arseholes who seem so keen on destroying mosques at the moment. Toby Poynder

  39. This may be a bit off topic, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5

    ...could any of you Linux experts give an old lady a hand?

    Now that I got the server and the firewall running fine and dandy, I have been trying to set up a WWW site that would allow me to map the genealogical data of our fairly unique family tree. I'd like to find an application that would enable me to do this automatically.

    All of the software I've tried so far crashes with "Too many unreferenced child nodes", "Circular references not permitted" or "Tree does not branch".

    Any tips are greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance, dudes!

    st4y k00l,

    Her Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and West Indies^W^W^W

  40. Re:DESTROY THE BRITISH MONARCHY! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    An an american you should shut the hell up until you know absolutely anything about monarchies .. or history. Having said that I guess it's just hard for us to break 1800 years of tradition ...a

  41. This is just the beginning by Pelerin · · Score: 2

    In a move hailed by the Green Party, Christopher Hitchens, and Italian PM Massimo d'Alema, the Labour Party announced that they will use Slackware instead.

    "Finally Labour is going back to its proletarian roots" an enthusiastic Christopher Hitchens was quoted as saying, expressing his hope that the adoption of OpenSource "will hasten the demise of that bunch of inbred, brain-addled morons". Asked to specify who he was refering to (Labour or the Crown), Hitchens declined to comment.

    Others were not so thrilled. An angry Richard Stallman summoned the British consul to his Boston office and upbraided the diplomat for "the imperial arrogance" shown by the crown by not referring to "Red Hat GNU/Linux".

    Meanwhile the Conservative Party expressed regret that the Queen had not "shown support for free enterprise and Capitalism" by adopting Microsoft's Internet Server. A spokesman for the Tories added, "we'll have lots more to say about this on our web site, just as soon as we reboot".

    1. Re:This is just the beginning by Transzip · · Score: 1

      Ahem...I suspect that you are rather out of touch with the British political scene. Labour (Democrat equivalents to you Yanks) are the establishment worshippers at the court of the great Bill G, whereas the Tories are those desposed to listen to something new. Try reading the history of the last twenty years in the UK...you soon see who was "anti-establishment", and it wasn't the likes of Tony Blair

      --
      // Hmm, another variant of IE/W9x/NT to add to the "integrated MS value proposition" //
    2. Re:This is just the beginning by Uart · · Score: 1

      Tony Blair is Bill Clinton Incarnate with an English accent. And like the US, the English have more than two parties as well, if I'm not mistaken.

      --

      Opinionated Law Student Strikes Again!
  42. oh grow up already.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Whenever anything linux related happens, linux users always start spouting crap about world domination. you don't see the BSD camp celebrating like a bunch of 15 year old script kiddies when BSD gets installed on yet another high profile site do you? Linux users think they're all revolutionary because of "free software". Get this, you are just reinventing the BSD wheel (just under a more restrictive license (the GPL)).

    1. Re:oh grow up already.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Slashdot is not representative of the Linux community in general.

      Thanks for your time.

    2. Re:oh grow up already.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Heh. Thanks. I'm glad to know that 99% of Linux advocacy is microsoft bashing.


      Seriously though, wasn't there an article like this posted a few weeks ago? It was titled "That Weird guy down the hall finally installs Linux.", no, wait, that was on theonion.slashdot.org

  43. Re:mesasage to british royalty by 2sheds · · Score: 1

    Now go away, or I shall taunt you a second time!

    --

    Absit Invidia
  44. Re:Silly Americans (Re:DESTROY THE BRITISH MONARCH by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    >> As an American I can think of nothing that we could contribute more to our friends the Canadians and Australians than helping to eliminate the shackles of the British tyranny.
    >
    > Since the IRA stopped taking money to blow up busloads of schoolchildren you Americans just don't know what to do with yourselves

    Blow up their own by the looks of things.

  45. Re:Another Stupid American (Re:Those Royals) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    >> "Traditional British Values"
    >
    > What's that ? Never heard about them ..

    Must the contemporary values from back then.

  46. Kudos to the Queen? by Awel · · Score: 1

    I bet she doesn`t even know her server`s running RedHat. Someone somewhere will have the job of sorting it out silently, and as long as it works (or even if it doesn`t), she won`t know or care what the webserver is being run on.

  47. And I wonder.. by prodeje · · Score: 1

    Who Yahoo and Walnut Creek CD-Rom are?

    Face it.. they're both great operating systems.

    ...

    --

    Bitchslapped? Give Rob a bitchslap from bitchslapped.com.

  48. Re:Is this an argument for BSD ? by chazR · · Score: 1

    The real argument for BSD is the mascot. The daemon is *way* cooler than the penguin. Figuratively.

  49. Re:whoooohooo!!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You remind me of Barbados, where I talked with a local.

    Barbadian: Where are you from?
    I: Finland.
    Barbadian: Where's that?
    I: Between Sweden and Russia.
    Barbadian: So is it in America or England?

    Marko

  50. Re:Queen of *BRITAIN* by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's not a matter of actually choosing to call the United Kingdom England, but rather just a misnomer that has taken hold. Why does the media call crackers hackers? Why do many people still call The Netherlands Holland? It's just something that took hold and is hard to shake.

  51. Re:Linux: by MassacrE · · Score: 1

    They think "Oh, we can read the source, so they can't
    erally be serious, they said they were joking.. meanwhile, they keep missing that one
    single, all important line of perl code in linux v2.2 ... bwaahahaha :)

  52. Re:whoooohooo!!! by miahrogers · · Score: 1

    I know where finland is, and if the finnish government switched all their computer to linux that would be wonderful. But it is ALSO wonderful that britian and the us are using linux, right?
    char *stupidsig = "this is my dumb sig";

  53. Silly Americans (Re:DESTROY THE BRITISH MONARCHY!) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1
    > As an American I can think of nothing that we could contribute more to our friends the Canadians and Australians than helping to eliminate the shackles of the British tyranny.

    Since the IRA stopped taking money to blow up busloads of schoolchildren you Americans just don't know what to do with yourselves.

    > Break free of the obsolete monarchy

    You're living in the past, man.

  54. Another Stupid American (Re:Those Royals) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Another daming indictment of the American school system... Oh, the horror. the horror.

    >they british monarchy won't allow australia to become an independant nation, same as canada.
    The Brits have no control over either of these countries. The Queen is just something to stamp on their coins. And say what you like of the British. At least their soldiers (unlike the USMC) know which side is "up" of the Canadian flag!

    > And look at india, they were so pissed about that, that they killed ghandi. so don't count on it, the british will stop at nothing to keep their empire.
    You moron. It was a Sikh that assasinated Ghandi. You're obviously still getting over that reading and writing thing, but you do know how to watch a movie, right? Hire Ghandi, The Movie. Get Mommie to help you put in the VCR.

    >They can't stand to loose more and more of their empire. Look at how pissed they got when we broke away back in '76.
    At the time Britain was being ruled by a German King, and the "British" soldiers he was fighting with were Prussian Mercenaries recruited en masse. So a German King with Prussian Mercenaries fighting British Colonists with Traditional British Values? No wonder we won!

    1. Re:Another Stupid American (Re:Those Royals) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      well that's obviously what they want you to think! Do you really think that if they assisinated someone then they'd hire someone from the british government to do it? That's idiotic that you'd think that. Look at what's happening now! The indian helicopter that was shot down over pakistan was shot down by british troops! and that's a fact, not some theory. The british also sold nuclear weapons to pakistan, they'll do anything to get india back.

    2. Re:Another Stupid American (Re:Those Royals) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Right. And the CIA assassinated JFK. And the black helicoptors are just over the horizon, preparing to impose a one-world government. Idiot. Go suck rocks.

  55. On a related note by nhowie · · Score: 1

    I noticed that www.netaid.org is also running Red Hat, cool since their claiming to be expecting 60 Million hits a day...

  56. Re:The Queen? -> Her power. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Possibly, except that when the monarch has made breaks with, for instance, Parliament, such loyalty has been subjugated to politics. Note the reaction to the appointment of the Duke of Wellington to the office of Prime Minister. There was hell to pay, and the King was forced to reinstate Charles Grey, who then passed the Great Reform Bill of 1832.

    Granted, this was during the Industrial Revolution, so it might be exceptional, but I think the British people are probably (when it comes down to it) more loyal to Parliament and their own ideals than to the monarch.

    I get the feeling that the British are proud of their monarch largely because they know that, bottom line, they own her ass.

  57. Re:Fucking moderators by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    My GOD you are a retard. Read up you freak. When was the last time that Canada being part of the British Monarchy interfere with personal freedoms in Canada? It's called a FIGUREHEAD you moron.

    And the last time I took score, these monarchis had more 'freedoms' then you fucking 'Merikans

  58. _Gandhi_ by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You could at least spell his name properly.

  59. President vs Majesty by warlock · · Score: 1

    I don't have a problem calling the president of a corporation or a country 'president'. I have a problem with calling someone "Your Majesty". Greece for example is a presidential republic. I do refer to our president as "president". Difference is, he is:

    1) elected by the people
    2) remains an equal person, paying taxes and all.

    In that sense, it's nothing more than a job title. I can't really say that about "Majesty" -it is VERY different. I am quite confident that the majority of people out there can discern the difference, and I wouldn't like to explain it in detail.

    As for not addressing a queen as "Her Majesty" I don't find that disrespectful, since I simply don't recognize "Her Majesty" and I have no reason to do so. I am not being a troll here - don't misunderstand me. I'm just trying to make a point - I am a citizen of a country that all people are equal, and I find titles of honour redundant and offending. You wouldn't find me using them, and if a Queen of some other contry is offended or something if I don't address her as "Your Majesty", well, that's none of my business, she should get over it.

    -W

    1. Re:President vs Majesty by JimDabell · · Score: 1
      It's none of your business whether or not you offend someone? I bet you're a joy to know. This has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that she is the Queen. It's just a case of being *polite*

      I'm from the U.K. and I think that the Queen doesn't serve any useful purpose apart from bringing in the tourists. If I ever met her, I wouldn't call her a freeloader to her face. It's not because I recognise her importance, it's just that I am polite. Big deal if you respect the president of Greece more than the Queen of the U.K. They both deserve our respect and courtesy. Learn some diplomacy sometime.

    2. Re:President vs Majesty by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Fortunately you will never come in contact with Her Majesty, peasant!

      (just kidding)

    3. Re:President vs Majesty by MattXVI · · Score: 1

      Your low class and lack of manners is your own problem, but as a point of fact, the Queen pays the same taxes as any other British citizen, and, though not elected, her office is certainly wanted by the vast majority of her subjects.

      --
      When I'm singing a ballad and a pair of underwear lands on my head, I hate that. It really kills the mood.
      -Tom Jones
  60. Oh, but she has! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
  61. It's all colour-coordination..... by cswiii · · Score: 2

    ...After all, what else would you expect redcoats to use? ;)

  62. Wrong Choice. by Mr.+Piccolo · · Score: 1

    Methinks Her Majesty's Royal WebMaster, if he or she had needed to switch at all, should have chosen OpenBSD instead of Red Hat.

    I believe that for something like this, security should override all other concerns. That, and the price is approximately the same. Also, Red Hat is known not to be the world's most secure Linux distribution.

    I just hope the Royal Webmaster knows how to find and close the security holes that might exist...

    --
    Glückwünsche, haben Sie Slashdot ermordet, indem Sie zum korporativen Druck beugten und Subskriptionen einlei
  63. You missed my point. by warlock · · Score: 1

    Please, don't take that out of context - I didn't say it's none of my business if I offend *anyone*, and I assure you I'm not a total arsehole ;)

    I understand your point of being polite perfectly, but I didn't say that I'd call her a freeloader to her face - that is something *you* suggested. I agree totally with showing courtesy and respect to people that deserve it.

    Maybe it's my greek egalitarian ideology, maybe I'm nuts, bottomline is I do not and will not show extra courtesy or respect to someone *just* because they have a title of honour. I do not, and will not recognize them as valid - in my book, the Queen or any queen for that matter is equal to every other person on this planet. Now, if a person holding a title of honour *expects* everyone to treat them with extra courtesy and respect, compared to 'mere mortals' so to speak, and they are offended because someone doesn't *that's* their problem, and they should get over it.

    I stated from the start that I don't particularly like the idea of Monarchy, but I like to belive that I am a reasonable person. I hope that clears it up.

    -W

    1. Re:You missed my point. by JimDabell · · Score: 1
      ...if a Queen of some other contry is offended or something if I don't address her as "Your Majesty", well, that's none of my business, she should get over it.

      Probably just a poor choice of words then. Sorry. But calling the Queen "Your Majesty" isn't a case of acknowledging that she is a better person than anyone else, in my opinion. It's just a case of recognising that she holds a position of authority over me. I would call her that whether or not I was a British citizen, because a title is mostly just tradition anyway.

      I'm basically in agreement with you though. I don't believe anyone is a better human being just because of their heritage. That would be bordering on racism as far as I can tell.

      For the record though, I don't respect our Prime Minister for getting elected by the public any more than I respect the Teletubbies for getting to number one in the music charts. It's basically the same thing, isn't it? Except for the fact the Teletubbies didn't lie to the public about what they would get if they bought their single.

  64. UK Government running Linux by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
  65. Re:Queen of *BRITAIN* by Transzip · · Score: 1

    Glad to see her Majesty is using a decent OS; our pathetic government seem keener on sucking up to Bill G and insisting NT runs everywhere. Luckily, she's rather practical; what works is OK with her. Gawd bless you ma'am...(pauses to tug forelock). It should be remembered by non-Brits that the "Great Britain and Northern Ireland" bit is important. Most ppl forget..

    --
    // Hmm, another variant of IE/W9x/NT to add to the "integrated MS value proposition" //
  66. Re:Queen of *BRITAIN* by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I happened to be in Edinburgh during the festivities surrounding the opening of the Scottish Parlement this summer and my understanding was that the official title was ammended to include "...and Queeen Eliabeth the First of Scotland", or something like that.

    Of course, being a damn yankee, I could be wrong but I was a firsthand witness to the occasion.

  67. Re:Queen of *BRITAIN* by Uart · · Score: 1

    What part of Scotland?

    Anywho... the first king of the UK was James Stuart, AKA, The King of Scotland. And the Queen Mother is Scottish too. Just thought I'd inform you...

    The Scottish rule the world.

    --

    Opinionated Law Student Strikes Again!
  68. Re:Linux: by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    i think it's perfect for the british, they're obsession is world domination.

  69. Re:What Next? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This is offtopic and probably common knowledge, but here it goes anyway.

    > whitehouse.gov running Debian?
    > nsa.gov running LinuxPPC?
    > Slashdot.org running IIS

    hotmail.com running Apache + FreeBSD. At least that's what they say at http://www.netcraft.com/whats

    Take care,

    Stephen VanDahm
    scvd@SPAM-ME-NOT.home.com

  70. Re:Princess Diana... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    after the british killed her for threatening to marry outside of her race

  71. Re:whoooohooo!!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Do you think that because one person doesn't know where a place is located represents the entire culture? You make me sick. Trini forever

  72. Re: titles by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    except for the designation Esq. Do a search on the lost 13th amendment, or admiralty. Maybe the wackos in the hills have a point (besides the one on the top of their heads, that is)

  73. World Domination. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Mrs. Windsor and her gang must be planning a big comeback! Might as well go with an operating system designed for "world domination".

  74. hehe by Haven · · Score: 0

    who sits around looks up what royal.gov.uk is running? I could understand looking at microsoft.com or hotmail.com (which runs BSD)... any way... its just weird that someone would not only look that up, but they submitted and had it posted on slashdot

  75. Re:That's impressive. NOT! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Please tell me what's so funny about the Royal Web Server running Red Hat Linux. You need to get out more.

  76. linux: the gnu choice of world governments by swonkdog · · Score: 1

    episode 2.3.x: from points across the globe, followers of linus trade rumors that governments in their particular part of the world have switched to linux. linux: the gnu choice of world governments. yes, linux, deposing the totaltarian dictatorship of the once mighty microsoft empire. a weekness has been found in their software and licensing; with the help of a small band of rebel fighters and one penguin the shackels of injustice will be thrown away forever. the world and indeed one day the entire universe will be saved by the open source marvel called the 'linux kernel'.

    on a serious note: this is really cool. i wonder what microsoft thinks about loosing american government support? on the point of the royal family sacking solaris, well, i used to play solaris on my atari 2600, it was cool then but pretty out of date now. 8^)

  77. whoooohooo!!! by miahrogers · · Score: 1

    so linux now has england and the us goverments... now don't get me wrong but aren't those two of the most powerful goverments of earth? and linux is number 1 as an os in japan. I think that qualifies for world domination...
    char *stupidsig = "this is my dumb sig";

  78. The queen can not stand the Slashdot Republic Army by redhog · · Score: 1

    Seems, she've been slashdotted - I barly could load the frontpage...

    --
    --The knowledge that you are an idiot, is what distinguishes you from one.
  79. um... no by McFarlane · · Score: 1

    Neither Australia nor Canada nor the Bahamas is a republic. They are constitutional monarchies with a governor general representing the queen when the queen's not in country. They are all members of the Commonwealth, yes.
    Australia may become a republic in a few years it's true... but they haven't decided yet. And yes they could still remain in the Commonwealth after becoming a republic. There have been several republics in the Commonwealth for some time.

    --
    [We don't come from a planet. We come from a grid sector.]
  80. Re:DESTROY THE BRITISH MONARCHY! by azz · · Score: 1
    As a British "subject", I feel slightly more qualified to talk about this then you do. First, "billions of dollars collected from you" is rather inaccurate---first, she collects pounds, and secondly, it's more like millions or tens of millions (remember the British billion is 10^12). "Rules like she is God's right hand" is also an interesting viewpoint, given that Britain's monarchy hasn't exercised its right to veto a law passed in the UK for at least a couple of centuries.

    I'm pro-Monarchy, but only 'cos they make a nice tourist attraction.

    "I want to use software that doesn't suck." - ESR
    "All software that isn't free sucks." - RMS

  81. This *IS* good news by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    hey boys, anybody wanna 0wn the royal family?
    shoulda stuck with solaris, queenie.

  82. Ignorance of title... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Someone should teach Zerbey that the proper title to address someone of Royal blood is "Your Highness" and the correct title for the reigning monarch is "Your Majesty" :) Im not quite sure how the Queen would take to being addressed as "Ma'am" :)

    1. Re:Ignorance of title... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The Queen is quite content with being addressed as "Ma'am", although etiquette suggests the first address of a dialogue should be as "Your Majesty". ac.uk

  83. seriously by RoLlEr_CoAsTeR · · Score: 1

    correct.


    according to another majoritoristic view, she couldn't be said to be serious about Linux until she sports a Tux the penguin

    --

    Insert mind here.
  84. Re:That's impressive. NOT! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Um, great - pick on the poor guys in Argentina and call it a victory against the US... Wonderful. As if the idea of the Royal Family's webserver running Linux had *anything* at all to do with who'd win in a war?? C'mon, let's not get stupid here - and don't drag the South Americans into what is clearly a US/Britain testosterone-fest.

  85. The OS is dead, long live the OS. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Cool! A half baked operating system for a half baked
    institution. I suppose the thinking is, 'we don't
    run the country anymore, so we don't need a proper
    operating system.'

  86. Fucking moderators by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That wasn't a troll. You people are idiots. All Monarchies MUST die. Anyone that lives like that might as well shut the fuck up when it comes to free software as well. Switch to NT lusers. You make freedom look bad to the rest of us when you sit under your tree of servitude to your royal masters.

  87. Re:DESTROY THE BRITISH MONARCHY! by Foogle · · Score: 1

    A couple of centuries?? Seriously?? I have no clue about this sort of thing, but that seems to push way too far back - You're saying that the monarchy hasn't touched the laws since 1799??

  88. Re:DESTROY THE BRITISH MONARCHY! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    As an american, what the fsck are you using a metric measure for? Damn twits, the lot of you!

  89. Re:DESTROY THE BRITISH MONARCHY! by MattXVI · · Score: 1

    That's right, they haven't. Actually since about 1700.

    --
    When I'm singing a ballad and a pair of underwear lands on my head, I hate that. It really kills the mood.
    -Tom Jones
  90. Yow! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Amen, brother!

  91. Re:That's impressive. NOT! by MattXVI · · Score: 1

    Your comment is cute! But remember that Thatcher had to wait to invade the Falklands until the US aircraft carrier and support ships had arrived to back up the tiny British navy. (Man, I love Thatcher!)

    --
    When I'm singing a ballad and a pair of underwear lands on my head, I hate that. It really kills the mood.
    -Tom Jones
  92. What Next? by Zaffle · · Score: 1

    whitehouse.gov running Debain?

    nsa.gov running LinuxPPC?

    Slashdot.org running IIS

    --

    I use to have a funny sig, but slash cut it off, and I forgot what the punchline was.
  93. Re:That's impressive. NOT! by chiller2 · · Score: 1

    Mr Anonymous,


    So the article was not something you were interested in? Rob can't please everyones literary tastes. It was just a harmless story to say somebody in the public eye has their site hosted with our beloved OS.


    Did it ever occur to you to just skip onto something else? Your post served only to get on peoples nerves. It doesn't surprise me at all that you're a 'anonymous coward'.


    Best wishes,


    Brit who'd kick your ass

    --
    --- Commission free trading & free stock up to $500 - use http://share.robinhood.com/kelvinp6 :)
  94. Queen of *BRITAIN* by D.+Taylor · · Score: 1

    You know, the last time I checked, the Queen
    was still the Queen up here in Scotland, which
    means she is the Queen of Britain, even though
    I hate her, I'd prefer it if people stopped
    treating the UK as England, and ignoring the
    fact Scotland (and Wales, and Northern Ireland)
    exist.
    --
    David Taylor
    davidt-sd@xfiles.nildram.spam.co.uk
    [To e-mail me: s/\.spam//]

    1. Re:Queen of *BRITAIN* by benno · · Score: 1

      She's still the Queen of Australia too.

      In fact I _think_ she is probably the Queen of
      the Commonwealth.

      Either way she is still the Queen of England even if she is also the queen of a bunch of other countries as well.

  95. Re:The Queen? by PigleT · · Score: 0

    Freedom dance?
    At least our queen doesn't demand the keys to every door in the country like your poxy government continually threatens to with encryption, so ner! :P

    :8)

    --
    ~Tim
    --
    .|` Clouds cross the black moonlight,
    Rushing on down to the circle of the turn
  96. More Purple than Red by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I dunno, sure looks like a purple hat to me.

  97. Babylonian whore! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Queen of England is Babylon whore! Fiyah bun wicked bitch!

  98. Re:Idiot troll by NtG · · Score: 1

    Pardon me, your majesty
    I just changed my mind, lets remain a monarchy.. it could be worse, you could end up as our queen

  99. No 'merkins that time, buddy by RallyDriver · · Score: 1

    Actually, I think you've got the wrong war - there was no overt US involvement in the Falklands due to the Americas Treaty.

    However, the US Navy airbase at Kindley Field, Bermuda (British soil on loan) did give a few Harrier pilots a helping hand and a bit of fuel on their way from Farnborough to Ascencion.


  100. I dub you Sir Torvalds by Ukab+the+Great · · Score: 1

    So does this mean that Linus will be knighted?

  101. We're all at it over here by nicky_d · · Score: 1

    Oxford University is running on RHL too, so all our major institutions are obviously catching on. Nice to see Microsoft running on a beta of NT5, you've got to admire their bravery.

  102. Nope, it was definitly a troll by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yup. It was a simple troll, nothing more.

  103. Idiot troll by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    You are a total moron. Stupid troll.

    It's Gandhi, by the way, fool.

  104. SSRA Rules !!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Royalists can use our stuff; but it's designed for revolutionaries !!!

  105. Linux: by FascDot+Killed+My+Pr · · Score: 2

    The OS upon which the sun never sets.

    Does anyone else think it's ironic that an operating system with designs on "world domination" is being embraced wholeheartedly by governments around the world?
    ---
    Put Hemos through English 101!
    "An armed society is a polite society" -- Robert Heinlein

    --
    Linux MAPI Server!
    http://www.openone.com/software/MailOne/
    (Exchange Migration HOWTO coming soon)
  106. Is this an argument for BSD ? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    BSD *does* look a little cooler now.

  107. She wore on in 1998! by pjones · · Score: 2
    --
    Certified Black Helicopter Pilot *** Unwitting Dupe of One World Gov'ment