I know many people who do. A long-time family friend, who used to work for IBM, and who saw up-close how Microsoft has, and does, jerk around its "corporate partners" and customers, happily trusts Microsoft software for his desktops and servers. I think it's nuts, myself. He also, unfortunately, believes in Microsoft tech support (which I've had the debatable joy of dealing with, and can say firsthand is completely and utterly worthless).
Also, the "average Joe" out there doesn't really understand what Microsoft did/does/is doing that's so bad. Being as non-technical as they are, they don't understand why anyone would think they're bad guys. They think that MS is trying to make the world a better place. And I suppose some people at Microsoft even believe that.
So yes, many people believe Microsoft has their best interests at heart. I don't buy it, but there are people who do. _____
The only reason Microsoft has you over a barrel then, as it were, is because you allow it to remain so. You can't blame that entirely on Microsoft. If you wanted to change that, it's all a matter of informing yourself.
Of course, it seems for most Americans, that'd be too much work. However, don't try to make me feel bad about it. It's not _my_ fault. (Though it is everyone's problem.) _____
Actually, the article didn't really say anything good about "The Net" - and rightly so. I also thought it was a really lame movie.
I actually thought, when "The Matrix" was released, that it was going to be similar to "The Net" - I hadn't really heard much of anything about it. Good thing some friends convinced me to go with them to see it.:) _____
That's a bullshit argument, considering you can run any network protocol (NetBEUI, IPX, IP, AppleTalk) over 802.11 networking. It doesn't in any way depend on IP - it's like Ethernet, to it, IP's just another packet it transports from point A to point B. _____
Ok, so some people are daring enough to try XFS. How about IBM's port of JFS to Linux? Has anyone gotten this working, and if so, how well? I've looked at the READMEs on it, but I, as someone who's not intimately familiar with journalling filesystems, don't know if it's ready for prime time, or even for testing. _____
Making a DirectX equivalent for Linux is a good idea too. Duh.
Hmm. Has no one here heard of SDL? http://www.libsdl.org/ - go check it out. It's the library set that Loki uses as a base for porting its titles (developed by Sam Lantinga, an employee of Loki). It even works on top of Solaris, BeOS, MacOS, MacOS X, Win32, etc.
Or no, maybe we should just develop yet another completely incompatible API, that's specific to one platform. What a great idea. (Not.) _____
That seems to be the biggest problem in the cases of youth suicides. All the "conformist" types don't understand the "non-conformist" kids, so they feel the need to punish those who aren't like them, like it's a crime to not be just like them.
When I was in school, I went through some of the same sort of bullying that others (who've made comments here) have mentioned. Some people seem to think, "Oh, you're just pissed because not everyone wanted to be your friend." I would've been more than happy if people would've just left me alone. Why can't parents teach their kids to either try to learn about people who are different, or if nothing else, just leave them the hell alone? The old "If you can't say/do something nice" principle would be good. Unfortunately, most people can't just live and let live.
A quote I saw somewhere said something to the effect of "We are brought up to value that which is like us, and hate and fear that which isn't." That's our biggest problem as a society, IMO - too many of us hate and fear anything unfamiliar. Unfortunately, I don't know that we can change that. And if we can't, how long can our society last? _____
You misunderstand their intentions. It's not about the usefulness of their service - they're not interested in being humanitarians. It's about control - they control their servers, and you don't. They want to keep it that way, by denying "unapproved" clients. Just like the MPAA, RIAA, and Microsoft. _____
No, there was a more recently released binary client based on Gtk+. The Tik Tcl/Tk client came earlier. Also, from several reports I've heard, AOL's working on pretty much repealing support for the TOC protocol - so if you can't speak OSCAR, at some point you may not be able to talk on AIM without an "official" client at all. _____
Yes, except for the fact that (practically) the server could ask for a hash of pretty much any length section of the file. That creates an exponentially-large set of hashes to generate. I can see doing some kind of caching, but prehashing everything would be very expensive space-wise. (As in, probably bigger than any available disk.) _____
Well, considering the AIM package is freely downloadable, I don't know how big an issue that'd be anyway. So you have the binary image? You can get that any old time you want. _____
Well, they actually did release a (beta-quality) AIM client, based on Gtk+, some time back. (I'm not an AIM user, so I just know what I've heard.) From what I heard, many people weren't pleased with its quality, and its lack of features, so it's not been particularly well received.
But I agree - it's not like they're charging money for it. So someone else writes a client that uses your service - big deal, they're not trying to turn a profit by doing it. They just want to write a good client.
But that's Corporate America for you - it's all about control with them, even if it seems pointless. (Like the RIAA and the MPAA.) _____
Well, considering the optical out isn't analog, but digital, probably. It looks like the common copy-protect formats use some kind of TOC poisoning that standard CD players just ignore. So, yeah, that would be one possible workaround. Or maybe programs like CDParanoia can somehow be adapted?
I know I won't buy a copy-protected CD - I want to be able to listen to my music in whatever way I choose, and I'm not going to let the RIAA stop me from doing so. _____
Yes, but at least you can secure the SMB server so it won't do stupid things like that. Most admins don't, but just because people don't do it, doesn't mean it can't be done, and doesn't make it any less of a good idea. _____
the hell with linux that can't even upgrade without a reinstall.
Uhh. Are you on crack? I have four words for you: "apt-get update ; apt-get ugprade". And I do this regularly, and I don't have to even reboot the machine.
And I'm sure you can do that with your NT box. (Win2K == NT 5.0. Let's not lie to ourselves.) _____
Out of curiousity, I wonder if Linux coders could add one feature Win XP is touting: saving sessions completely, and listing each user with their currently running programs and whether or not they have email -- all in one place.
I doubt it. This looks to be similar (except for the mail and background programs stuff) to something that was done once upon a time on SGI's Irix - visual login. The fact is, that just makes it easier for would-be "h4x0rs" who can get access to the console to find out usernames. One more way to get user-level access, which (on NT/2K) has been nearly as good as Administrator rights, due to design flaws leading to privilege escalation. (Don't get me wrong - Unix and Linux certainly aren't invulnerable to such stuff either, but there are well-known ways of doing it in NT and Win2K.)
I, for one, don't need anyone to be able to walk up to a machine I have an account on, and without even logging in, find out info on what I'm doing. I think it's just a bad idea. (I've been perusing the copy of "Hacking Exposed" I just bought - it's making me a bit paranoid about this stuff.:) _____
Go read the security advisory on bugtraq or CERT.org that talks about the weakness in BIND that the Lion worm is exploiting. It's an error in the way BIND handles TSIGs. Hey - I'll make it easy for you.
How about next time you read the security advisories. Just because the worm's for Linux, doesn't mean the vulnerability it uses to get where it's going is only on one platform. _____
And how is that a Linux problem? That's a BIND problem. It's a BIND problem with a fix, too. I updated my DNS server to the 8.2.3 debs awhile back, so I was already covered.
Don't go blaming Linux (an OS kernel) for a userspace package's vulnerability. Besides, shouldn't you be having BIND switch to non-root UID and GID, and probably in a chroot()ed jail? _____
Let those companies spend their dollars to write what they want, and make their distro what they want it to be. They can make a profit if they choose to do so, but damn it, no one owes anyone a revenue stream "just because". I'll stick with Debian, thanks. _____
Linux will continue to be available to those who want to use and extend it. Linux won't just go away, just because some users switch to OS X because they want user-friendly. If that's what they really want, well, OK, that's their choice. (Just keep in mind you have to buy the whole package - Apple's hardware, which is a good bit more expensive than PC hardware, in general, to get OS X.)
One thing I find interesting is that some people seem to think that people who write Open Source/Free Software programs should write for others, not for themselves. This shows a fundamental misunderstanding of why an individual writes a piece of code. They don't do it to make some amorphous entity, known only as The Buying Public(TM), happy - they write to scratch a personal itch. Whether it's something they need to get a job done, or something they just want to do, they're not doing it with Joe Windows Luser in mind. You expect them, just out of the goodness of their heart, to put time into something that they have no interest in using, and (quite likely) have no interest in trying to build a business around?
This is the problem with the typical user. They just don't understand, and can't believe that the entire world isn't groveling on hand and foot to serve their needs. Bah. _____
"Large international entity" my ass. IETF is a nonprofit organization for standardizing protocols for use over the Internet. We're not talking about a corporation here.
Tatu's just trying to be an "indian-giver" (apologies to any Indians or Native Americans), providing those who created a compatible derivative of SSH the opportunity to use the name, then later on, trademarking it, and selectively enforcing the trademark to boot. Read up on US trademark policy - it really should never have been granted, and even so, by waiting so long to enforce it, and only enforcing it when they feel threatened, they've basically given up rights to their trademark.
We thank you for developing SSH, Tatu, but that doesn't make us dislike your current course of action any less. _____
Slashdot Mirror
I know many people who do. A long-time family friend, who used to work for IBM, and who saw up-close how Microsoft has, and does, jerk around its "corporate partners" and customers, happily trusts Microsoft software for his desktops and servers. I think it's nuts, myself. He also, unfortunately, believes in Microsoft tech support (which I've had the debatable joy of dealing with, and can say firsthand is completely and utterly worthless).
Also, the "average Joe" out there doesn't really understand what Microsoft did/does/is doing that's so bad. Being as non-technical as they are, they don't understand why anyone would think they're bad guys. They think that MS is trying to make the world a better place. And I suppose some people at Microsoft even believe that.
So yes, many people believe Microsoft has their best interests at heart. I don't buy it, but there are people who do.
_____
The only reason Microsoft has you over a barrel then, as it were, is because you allow it to remain so. You can't blame that entirely on Microsoft. If you wanted to change that, it's all a matter of informing yourself.
Of course, it seems for most Americans, that'd be too much work. However, don't try to make me feel bad about it. It's not _my_ fault. (Though it is everyone's problem.)
_____
Bush is the president now. Clinton's gone. Where have you been? :)
_____
Actually, the article didn't really say anything good about "The Net" - and rightly so. I also thought it was a really lame movie.
:)
I actually thought, when "The Matrix" was released, that it was going to be similar to "The Net" - I hadn't really heard much of anything about it. Good thing some friends convinced me to go with them to see it.
_____
Only because it wasn't around yet. :)
_____
That's a bullshit argument, considering you can run any network protocol (NetBEUI, IPX, IP, AppleTalk) over 802.11 networking. It doesn't in any way depend on IP - it's like Ethernet, to it, IP's just another packet it transports from point A to point B.
_____
Ok, so some people are daring enough to try XFS. How about IBM's port of JFS to Linux? Has anyone gotten this working, and if so, how well? I've looked at the READMEs on it, but I, as someone who's not intimately familiar with journalling filesystems, don't know if it's ready for prime time, or even for testing.
_____
Making a DirectX equivalent for Linux is a good idea too. Duh.
Hmm. Has no one here heard of SDL? http://www.libsdl.org/ - go check it out. It's the library set that Loki uses as a base for porting its titles (developed by Sam Lantinga, an employee of Loki). It even works on top of Solaris, BeOS, MacOS, MacOS X, Win32, etc.
Or no, maybe we should just develop yet another completely incompatible API, that's specific to one platform. What a great idea. (Not.)
_____
What exactly does "Jens Axboe: more loop cleanups and fixes" cover, for example?
Maybe cleanups and fixes for the loop block device driver? Naaah, that couldn't possibly be it...
</sarcasm>
_____
That seems to be the biggest problem in the cases of youth suicides. All the "conformist" types don't understand the "non-conformist" kids, so they feel the need to punish those who aren't like them, like it's a crime to not be just like them.
When I was in school, I went through some of the same sort of bullying that others (who've made comments here) have mentioned. Some people seem to think, "Oh, you're just pissed because not everyone wanted to be your friend." I would've been more than happy if people would've just left me alone. Why can't parents teach their kids to either try to learn about people who are different, or if nothing else, just leave them the hell alone? The old "If you can't say/do something nice" principle would be good. Unfortunately, most people can't just live and let live.
A quote I saw somewhere said something to the effect of "We are brought up to value that which is like us, and hate and fear that which isn't." That's our biggest problem as a society, IMO - too many of us hate and fear anything unfamiliar. Unfortunately, I don't know that we can change that. And if we can't, how long can our society last?
_____
You misunderstand their intentions. It's not about the usefulness of their service - they're not interested in being humanitarians. It's about control - they control their servers, and you don't. They want to keep it that way, by denying "unapproved" clients. Just like the MPAA, RIAA, and Microsoft.
_____
No, there was a more recently released binary client based on Gtk+. The Tik Tcl/Tk client came earlier. Also, from several reports I've heard, AOL's working on pretty much repealing support for the TOC protocol - so if you can't speak OSCAR, at some point you may not be able to talk on AIM without an "official" client at all.
_____
Yes, except for the fact that (practically) the server could ask for a hash of pretty much any length section of the file. That creates an exponentially-large set of hashes to generate. I can see doing some kind of caching, but prehashing everything would be very expensive space-wise. (As in, probably bigger than any available disk.)
_____
Well, considering the AIM package is freely downloadable, I don't know how big an issue that'd be anyway. So you have the binary image? You can get that any old time you want.
_____
Well, they actually did release a (beta-quality) AIM client, based on Gtk+, some time back. (I'm not an AIM user, so I just know what I've heard.) From what I heard, many people weren't pleased with its quality, and its lack of features, so it's not been particularly well received.
But I agree - it's not like they're charging money for it. So someone else writes a client that uses your service - big deal, they're not trying to turn a profit by doing it. They just want to write a good client.
But that's Corporate America for you - it's all about control with them, even if it seems pointless. (Like the RIAA and the MPAA.)
_____
Well, considering the optical out isn't analog, but digital, probably. It looks like the common copy-protect formats use some kind of TOC poisoning that standard CD players just ignore. So, yeah, that would be one possible workaround. Or maybe programs like CDParanoia can somehow be adapted?
I know I won't buy a copy-protected CD - I want to be able to listen to my music in whatever way I choose, and I'm not going to let the RIAA stop me from doing so.
_____
Yes, but at least you can secure the SMB server so it won't do stupid things like that. Most admins don't, but just because people don't do it, doesn't mean it can't be done, and doesn't make it any less of a good idea.
_____
the hell with linux that can't even upgrade without a reinstall.
Uhh. Are you on crack? I have four words for you: "apt-get update ; apt-get ugprade". And I do this regularly, and I don't have to even reboot the machine.
And I'm sure you can do that with your NT box. (Win2K == NT 5.0. Let's not lie to ourselves.)
_____
Out of curiousity, I wonder if Linux coders could add one feature Win XP is touting: saving sessions completely, and listing each user with their currently running programs and whether or not they have email -- all in one place.
:)
I doubt it. This looks to be similar (except for the mail and background programs stuff) to something that was done once upon a time on SGI's Irix - visual login. The fact is, that just makes it easier for would-be "h4x0rs" who can get access to the console to find out usernames. One more way to get user-level access, which (on NT/2K) has been nearly as good as Administrator rights, due to design flaws leading to privilege escalation. (Don't get me wrong - Unix and Linux certainly aren't invulnerable to such stuff either, but there are well-known ways of doing it in NT and Win2K.)
I, for one, don't need anyone to be able to walk up to a machine I have an account on, and without even logging in, find out info on what I'm doing. I think it's just a bad idea. (I've been perusing the copy of "Hacking Exposed" I just bought - it's making me a bit paranoid about this stuff.
_____
Dear cluebie:
Go read the security advisory on bugtraq or CERT.org that talks about the weakness in BIND that the Lion worm is exploiting. It's an error in the way BIND handles TSIGs. Hey - I'll make it easy for you.
How about next time you read the security advisories. Just because the worm's for Linux, doesn't mean the vulnerability it uses to get where it's going is only on one platform.
_____
And how is that a Linux problem? That's a BIND problem. It's a BIND problem with a fix, too. I updated my DNS server to the 8.2.3 debs awhile back, so I was already covered.
Don't go blaming Linux (an OS kernel) for a userspace package's vulnerability. Besides, shouldn't you be having BIND switch to non-root UID and GID, and probably in a chroot()ed jail?
_____
Let those companies spend their dollars to write what they want, and make their distro what they want it to be. They can make a profit if they choose to do so, but damn it, no one owes anyone a revenue stream "just because". I'll stick with Debian, thanks.
_____
But there are a lot of people out there who aren't in their right mind whenever they sit in front of a computer. That's problem #1.
_____
Linux will continue to be available to those who want to use and extend it. Linux won't just go away, just because some users switch to OS X because they want user-friendly. If that's what they really want, well, OK, that's their choice. (Just keep in mind you have to buy the whole package - Apple's hardware, which is a good bit more expensive than PC hardware, in general, to get OS X.)
One thing I find interesting is that some people seem to think that people who write Open Source/Free Software programs should write for others, not for themselves. This shows a fundamental misunderstanding of why an individual writes a piece of code. They don't do it to make some amorphous entity, known only as The Buying Public(TM), happy - they write to scratch a personal itch. Whether it's something they need to get a job done, or something they just want to do, they're not doing it with Joe Windows Luser in mind. You expect them, just out of the goodness of their heart, to put time into something that they have no interest in using, and (quite likely) have no interest in trying to build a business around?
This is the problem with the typical user. They just don't understand, and can't believe that the entire world isn't groveling on hand and foot to serve their needs. Bah.
_____
"Large international entity" my ass. IETF is a nonprofit organization for standardizing protocols for use over the Internet. We're not talking about a corporation here.
Tatu's just trying to be an "indian-giver" (apologies to any Indians or Native Americans), providing those who created a compatible derivative of SSH the opportunity to use the name, then later on, trademarking it, and selectively enforcing the trademark to boot. Read up on US trademark policy - it really should never have been granted, and even so, by waiting so long to enforce it, and only enforcing it when they feel threatened, they've basically given up rights to their trademark.
We thank you for developing SSH, Tatu, but that doesn't make us dislike your current course of action any less.
_____