This is just a continuation of the consolidation of media outlets into the hands of the few. Not really surprising. Real journalism is almost dead in the 21st century anyway.
No, people pay for Office because they are sheeple and don't know any better; and because Micro$oft has a stranglehold on the market.
On the plus side, if you used an open source office suite instead of wasting hundreds of dollars on M$ Office, you could save enough to get your dick properly sucked by a professional and not have to resort to lame, unsatisfying blow jobs by open source asshole dickwads.
I find this a little surprising. The NSA might have some great spy tools, but some of the most incredible programmers and IT people that I have ever known are German.
One would think that they could not only build an NSA type system, but do it better.
"The topic has nothing to do with the government."
That's right. My point was a facetious one, about how efficient this company is (hoping to be) and using government as a comparison.
"...you anti-government types hijack every discussion"
Are you for real? This is not anti-government, nor a 'hijack'. It is a FACT that governments are very slow to do just about anything. Welcome to the real world.
"Maybe you should do something about it instead of just bitching."
Bitching? You are the only one who is bitching here. I was attempting to be funny. Yes, my sense of humor can be lame and dry at times, I admit.
Mr. Crotchety Grumpy Pants, please do everyone a favor and go take a happy pill and try to smile. Life just seems to get a little better when you do that...
And tomorrow, please cover your cereal bowl. That way, nobody can pee in your cornflakes.
"...a hobbyist OS that is so difficult to use...It's 10x more difficult to do even the simplest task.."
Absolute horseshit!
Linux is not difficult to use; especially if someone else - like an administrator - installs and configures it for you.
People are not born with knowledge of any OS; whether it be Windows, IOS, OS/2, or whatever. Point and click is how we use most modern operating systems, and learning the program menu and what icons to click on is trivial. Most people can be taught this in under an hour. (left click =action; right click=options. Double-click to run. It isn't exactly rocket science.) One must assume that employees were given a training session before/during/after the migration.
If a user wants to run a program such as Skype, for example, and still does not know how to use the mouse to double-click on the little Skype icon (exactly the same as in Windows), then they have no business even using a computer in the first place.
"...is so difficult to use its market share is a mere rounding error."
I know it is not specifically related to the article, but I thought this was worth mentioning:
Sometime around 1999, a security researcher - Andrew Fernandes - found a variable - _NSAKEY - unmasked inside Windows NT4 SP5.
_NSAKEY, it has been suggested, is a secondary key used by the NSA to compromise the security of systems running M$ Windows.
Microsoft said that the key's symbol was "_NSAKEY" because the NSA is the technical review authority for U.S. export controls, and the key ensures compliance with U.S. export laws.
I have a difficult time trusting Microsoft or the NSA to tell the truth. It certainly makes you wonder....
Slashdot Mirror
This is just a continuation of the consolidation of media outlets into the hands of the few. Not really surprising. Real journalism is almost dead in the 21st century anyway.
"People pay for Office because it's better."
No, people pay for Office because they are sheeple and don't know any better; and because Micro$oft has a stranglehold on the market.
On the plus side, if you used an open source office suite instead of wasting hundreds of dollars on M$ Office, you could save enough to get your dick properly sucked by a professional and not have to resort to lame, unsatisfying blow jobs by open source asshole dickwads.
What Windows only app would I like to see on Linux?
None.
That is why I use Linux.
R.I.P.
I find this a little surprising. The NSA might have some great spy tools, but some of the most incredible programmers and IT people that I have ever known are German.
One would think that they could not only build an NSA type system, but do it better.
When I see it in practice with proven real world results.
Too often these promising studies generate all kinds of hype and then disappear shortly thereafter.
Mod +1
" Something other than post on irrelevant topics on Slashdot whining about the big bad gubmint."
Are you still going on about this? Really? Get a life, buddy.
The only person 'whining' or 'bitching' here is you, because not everyone posts the comments that you want them to.
Enjoy your cornflakes, asshat.
"The topic has nothing to do with the government."
That's right. My point was a facetious one, about how efficient this company is (hoping to be) and using government as a comparison.
"...you anti-government types hijack every discussion"
Are you for real? This is not anti-government, nor a 'hijack'. It is a FACT that governments are very slow to do just about anything. Welcome to the real world.
"Maybe you should do something about it instead of just bitching."
Bitching? You are the only one who is bitching here. I was attempting to be funny. Yes, my sense of humor can be lame and dry at times, I admit.
Mr. Crotchety Grumpy Pants, please do everyone a favor and go take a happy pill and try to smile. Life just seems to get a little better when you do that...
And tomorrow, please cover your cereal bowl. That way, nobody can pee in your cornflakes.
"...the company is hoping to upgrade its entire cable network within the next two years."
Two years? Impressive.
They certainly don't work for the government!
"I suspect the "informant" was Phillip K. Dick"
It could be. The name "Phil Dick" just sound suspicious.
"Wouldn't a Linux geek use /. (rather than \.)?"
;)
I'm a southpaw geek.
I'm against encryption too, Mr. Bush. I value our freedoms and security - just like you do.
I'll tell you what.. I will unencrypt all of my files if you and your government do the same. Complete transparency.
If you do, i'll even send you a list of all of my passwords and PIN numbers as well. Promise.
Remember, this was your idea.
"In 1995 i throw slackware linux on my 8486dx and never went back."
Slackware rocks! Cheers!
"Throwing Linux on the PCs and letting users figure it out isn't a proven strategy."
It is for us \. geeks. That's the fun of it.
"...but you're not going to be loading any hay bails into the boot of that austin healey."
;)
That's correct. You'll need to install additional packages for that functionality
Evildoers?
Now where have I heard that term before?
Noooooooooooo...
+1 if I had some points.
"...a hobbyist OS that is so difficult to use...It's 10x more difficult to do even the simplest task.."
Absolute horseshit!
Linux is not difficult to use; especially if someone else - like an administrator - installs and configures it for you.
People are not born with knowledge of any OS; whether it be Windows, IOS, OS/2, or whatever. Point and click is how we use most modern operating systems, and learning the program menu and what icons to click on is trivial. Most people can be taught this in under an hour. (left click =action; right click=options. Double-click to run. It isn't exactly rocket science.) One must assume that employees were given a training session before/during/after the migration.
If a user wants to run a program such as Skype, for example, and still does not know how to use the mouse to double-click on the little Skype icon (exactly the same as in Windows), then they have no business even using a computer in the first place.
"...is so difficult to use its market share is a mere rounding error."
Really? You have proof, I assume. Do tell.
Paying people to spread propaganda is not a new concept.
This is common in politics and other industries; and has been for some time now.
Comments are the people's voice.
Disallowing or removing contents is to censor the average person's thoughts, ideas and opinions - often in favor of biased information or propaganda.
If they switch to anything it should be Libre Office.
Unfortunately they are getting sucked back into Microsoft products. Very sad, considering that they had already broken free of it's stranglehold.
I know it is not specifically related to the article, but I thought this was worth mentioning:
Sometime around 1999, a security researcher - Andrew Fernandes - found a variable - _NSAKEY - unmasked inside Windows NT4 SP5.
_NSAKEY, it has been suggested, is a secondary key used by the NSA to compromise the security of systems running M$ Windows.
Microsoft said that the key's symbol was "_NSAKEY" because the NSA is the technical review authority for U.S. export controls, and the key ensures compliance with U.S. export laws.
I have a difficult time trusting Microsoft or the NSA to tell the truth. It certainly makes you wonder....
I wouldn't consider any ISP that uses AMDOCS as reputable or safe. Which is pretty much all of the big players.