I don't know how accurate this is because its a bit beyond my technical knowledge. However I know that following a hash collision while using RFS, my/usr/local directory vanished. So there is some truth to the parent post.
I work as a consultant for several fortune 500 companies, and I think I can shed a little light on the climate of the open source community at the moment. I believe that part of the reason that open source based startups are failing left and right is not an issue of marketing as it's commonly believed but more of an issue of the underlying technology.
I know that that's a strong statement to make, but I have evidence to back it up! At one of the major corps(5000+ employees) that I consult for, we wanted to integrate Linux into our server pool. The allure of not having to pay any restrictive licensing fees was too great to ignore. I reccomended the installation of several boxes running the new 2.4.9 kernel, and my hopes were high that it would perform up to snuff with the Windows 2k boxes which were(and still are!) doing an AMAZING job at their respective tasks of serving HTTP requests, DNS, and fileserving.
I consider myself to be very technically inclined having programmed in VB for the last 8 years doing kernel level programming. I don't believe in C programming because contrary to popular belief, VB can go just as low level as C and the newest VB compiler generates code that's every bit as fast. I took it upon myself to configure the system from scratch and even used an optimised version of gcc 3.1 to increase the execution speed of the binaries. I integrated the 3 machines I had configured into the server pool, and I'd have to say the results were less than impressive... We all know that linux isn't even close to being ready for the desktop, but I had heard that it was supposed to perform decently as a "server" based operating system. The 3 machines all went into swap immediately, and it was obvious that they weren't going to be able to handle the load in this "enterprise" environment. After running for less than 24 hours, 2 of them had experienced kernel panics caused by Bind and Apache crashing! Granted, Apache is a volunteer based project written by weekend hackers in their spare time while Microsft's IIS has an actual professional full fledged development team devoted to it. Not to mention the fact that the Linux kernel itself lacks any support for any type of journaled filesystem, memory protection, SMP support, etc, but I thought that since Linux is based on such "old" technology that it would run with some level of stability. After several days of this type of behaviour, we decided to reinstall windows 2k on the boxes to make sure it wasn't a hardware problem that was causing things to go wrong. The machines instantly shaped up and were seamlessly reintegrated into the server pool with just one Win2K machine doing more work than all 3 of the Linux boxes.
Needless to say, I won't be reccomending Linux/FSF to anymore of my clients. I'm dissappointed that they won't be able to leverege the free cost of Linux to their advantage, but in this case I suppose the old adage stands true that, "you get what you pay for." I would have also liked to have access to the source code of the applications that we're running on our mission critical systems; however, from the looks of it, the Microsoft "shared source" program seems to offer all of the same freedoms as the GPL.
As things stand now, I can understand using Linux in academia to compile simple "Hello World" style programs and learn C programming, but I'm afraid that for anything more than a hobby OS, Windows 98/NT/2K are your only choices.
I don't mean this as a flame, but articles like this do beg the question of whether or not advertisers are paying to have the products promoted as a Slashdot story. Especially when there's nothing really that insightful here. Furthermore given the financial strugges of Slashdot's parent company, its not unthinkable to see them accepting advertising funds in exchange for Slashdot hits.
I thought about modding you down as the troll you are, but because I'm full of whimsy this evening I'll instead ask you to support your arguement with evidence, if you have any.
Having spent a couple years in Japan teaching English, I would like to share my experiences with the rest of Slashdot.
Basically, I think it comes down to the fact that the Japanese are fastidiously hygenic. I dont' mean to imply that Americans and Europeans are not, but the Japanese take it to a new, almost obsessive-compulsive level. I may be reading too much into this, but I think this hygine compulsion has a lot to do with why they spend so much time creating the perfect commode.
Then again, given a large segment of Japanese society enjoys gross japscat porn it could be just the opposite as the above.:)
I put forth the idea that Teoma might be worth using if they weren't spineless and indecisive like Google
While I understand the point you are attempting to make, let me ask you this: Suppose you were the chairman of Google and you were faced with this lawsuit from Scientology (whom I concur is about the most evil and facist organization on the planet.) Now, would you be willing to risk untold millions of dollars in legal fees and possible court judgements to stand for your principles? Not to mention any personal harrassment (or worse!) Scientologists may elect to inflict on Google employees. You might be willing to risk your own personal safety and mental health, but are you willing to risk that of your workers?
Since we're in the land of supposition right now, suppose Google vs Scientology went to court and Google lost. Lost big. Now the only way they have to pay their legal fees is to sell the company. Guess who would love to buy it? The CoS. So now Google has gone from standing by their principles to giving up the best search engine to CoS.
While I know this is all just imagination, I'm doing this to make the point that one must pick ones fights carefully. Sometimes its better to conceed, even when you are in the right than to fight on.
Finally, you may want to look up the definition of Pyrrhic victory sometime, too!:)
So basically your arguement is that Teoma would be superior because they might not cave into Scientology's threats. Hmm... wanna put some money on that?
I think I would need a more compelling, as well as practical reason to switch. Even if Teoma didn't give in to CoS, I'd be more interested in which search engine could find me the more relevant results that I'm after. I think the bulk of Slashdotters will concur that politics in search engines is a distant second, if that.
In case anyone is curious what one of these emails looks like, I got this in my inbox, from jokoli001@yahoo.com, when I arrived at work today. Suffice to say I can't wait to get my hands on the money!;)
Dear Sir, I am Mr. Joseph Okoli. Bank Manager of Diamond Bank of Nigeria, Lagos Branch. I have urgent and very confidential business proposition for you. On June 6, 1997, a FOREIGN Oil consultant/contractor with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Mr. Barry Kelly made a numbered time (Fixed) Deposit for twelve calendar months, valued at US $25,000,000.00 (Twenty- five Million Dollars) in my branch. Upon maturity, I sent a routine notification to his forwarding address but got no reply. After a month, we sent a reminder and finally we discovered from his contract employers, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation that Mr. Barry Kelly died from an automobile accident. On further investigation, I found out that he died without making a WILL, and all attempts to trace his next of kin was fruitless. I therefore made further investigation and discovered that Mr. Barry Kelly did not declare any kin or relations in all his official documents, including his Bank Deposit paperwork in my Bank. This sum of US $25,000,000.00 is still sitting in my Bank and the interest is being rolled over with the principal sum at the end of each year. No one will ever come forward to claim it. According to Nigerian Law, at the expiration of 5 (five) years, the money will revert to the ownership of the Nigerian Government if nobody applies to claim the fund. Consequently, my proposal is that I will like you as an Foreigner to stand in as the next of kin to Mr. Barry Kelly so that the fruits of this old man's labor will not get into the hands of some corrupt government officials. This is simple, I will like you to provide immediately your full names and address so that the Attorney will prepare the necessary documents and affidavits, which will put you in place as the next of kin. We shall employ the service of two Attorneys for drafting and notarization of the WILL and to obtain the necessary documents and letter of probate/administration in your favor for the transfer. A bank account in any part of the world, which you will provide, will then facilitate the transfer of this money to you as the beneficiary/next of kin. The money will be paid into your account for us to share in the ratio of 60% for me and 40% for you. There is no risk at all as all the paperwork for this transaction will be done by the Attorney and my position as the Branch Manager guarantees the successful execution of this transaction. If you are interested, please reply immediately via the private email address below. Upon your response, I shall then provide you with more details and relevant documents that will help you understand the transaction. Please observe utmost confidentiality, and rest assured that this transaction would be most profitable for both of us because I shall require your assistance to invest my share in your country. Awaiting your urgent reply via my email:.com and . Thanks and regards. MR. JOSEPH OKOLI.
How so? What's confusing about it, and tell me that Windows/KDE/Gnome or the Unix command line is less so.
2 - One Button Mouse
What's wrong with a one button mouse? Works very well for me. Did you know that Apple now supports two-button mice as well?
3 - Customization and configuration is hard to grasp
How so? Oh, you mean that you don't have to edit a ton of cryptic.rc files to get your software and hardware to work? Yeah, if you're coming from Linux that whole "plug is in and it works"-thing could be a bit frightening!;)
4 - Expensive Hardware
You get what you pay for.
5 - Apple is unpredictable
Huh? How so?
6 - Proprietary platform
Would you rather have a flavor of Unix that's open, or one that works amazing on the desktop? I guess its idealism vs pragmaticism, and everyone has their own opinion on this one.
7 - OS X is kinda slow
I would try 10.1. It works much faster. 10.2 promises to be even faster yet. And did you know you can run Unix apps on OSX? Try that on Windows!
8 - I don't like Steve Jobs (I gotta be honest)
Again, idealism vs pragmatism.
9 - We've heard about Apple treatening many Open Source projects (ie. Themes.org OSX theme)
Oh please. If Apple doesn't defend itself, it gets drowned under a bunch of cheap imitators and wanna-bes.
Then Mac OS is doomed to be a niche product, because most users are already too heavily invested in Intel hardware and software to want to switch
Apple could care less whether its a niche player or not. Its one of the few computer manufacturers to remain in the black. Not to mention with $4.1 billion in cash reserves, it won't be hurting for money anytime soon.
Sure Apple could attempt to enter the x86 markets if it wanted to commit financial suicide. Somehow I think Jobs has other plans, though....
This arguement needs to be put to rest
on
Apple Wants Your Input
·
· Score: 3, Insightful
It didn't cost me an arm and a leg. For what I'd pay for a new IMac, I could easily stock a brand new AthlonXP w/a full fledge GF4
I hear this arguement constantly and I find it frustrating to no end. Basically, I believe (and this is not a flame) that you get what you pay for, especially when it comes to computers. Sure a Windows system will cost you less (and a Linux system even less, still) but you're losing quality in the deal.
This would be like going to a dealership and saying "Why should I spend $40,000 on this BMW when I can go across the street and get a Geo Metro for $9,000? It'll take me to work just as well as the BMW won't it?"
I believe that a lot of people who bring up this "flaw" about Macs are people who've never used one. Having used both extensively, I believe that the Macintosh is an amazing bit of engineering. But hey, that's just me. Use whatever works best for you.
I've read your posting and decided to translate a portion of it into English for the benefit of the other Slashdot readers. Your comments, obviously, are in italics.
Whether that's the case here is, of course, another story, but I've become increasingly distrustful of government and law "enforcement".
Read: I got a ticket for speeding the other day. Its disgraceful the way the so-called legal authorities can harrass a man for the so-called crime of going 85 in a 55 zone.
I am a vocal critic of abuses of state power,
Read: I'm the old man who sits in the City Council meetings and annoys everyone by my pointless argueing over trivial matters. But the law clearly states that the forms that the Animal Control officer filled out when he removed the 84 cats from my trailer needed to be filled out in *black* ink, yet they were done in *blue*. Gestapo tactics!!
engage in minor civil disobedience myself (I used a deCSS-derived program to watch DVDs that I bought on a GNU/Linux computer because I neither want to spend the money on Windows® nor trust it to be spyware-free)
Read: I'm incredibly cheap and I've found a marvellous way to rationalize it.
, and fully expect to wind up in prison someday for my thoughts, when I see crap like this.
Read: I have an overinflated sense of self-importance. In my mind I'm Emma Goldman, but to everyone else I'm just a crank that manages to amuse everyone with his annoying habits.
I can not just shut up and live a lie.
Read: Well, the first half of that sentance is true, at least.
Actually I found this thread to be of even more interest. I quote:
Erm? Correct me if I'm wrong, but are commercial activities on the Internet suddenly smiled upon? It sounds very much like you know what you're doing, but I can't say I've ever seen an Internet server dedicated to the commercial aspects of electronic communication (short of Compu$erve, and that doesn't really count). Mind explaining where the loophole lies?
Pretty interesting view of the Internet at the time, no?
Firstly, it was a joke. I was taking the piss out of the fact that the Americans are the only nation to ever use nukes, and on civilian targets.
Are you implying that the American's should not have dropped the atomic bombs on Japan?
Secondly, its not Muslims vs. Americans. as far as i know most Muslims don't support al'qaeda.
Most don't, but most don't have any love for America. If America dropped a nuclear device on an Muslim country, the Muslim world would see this as a war against Islam, and therefor would be more sympathetic, if not outright supportive, of al Qaeda.
Also, i wasn't talking about bombing some mud-hut cities in Afghanistan, i was talking about somewhere more important.
Can you show me a place in Afghanistan that has a building above the level of a mud hut? Seems that anything bigger than an earthen hovel was bombed to rubble long ago.
Hrm.. if Lucas could digitally remaster jar jar out of the next DVD release, that would be awesome.
Actually, it appears that task has been done. Salon has a nice story on it and doing a google search on Phantom Edit should enable you to find it. As an aside, rumor has it that Kevin Smith, of Clerks and Jay & Silent Bob fame, was the one behind this.
Maybe America should find a couple of cities that al'qaeda recognize as sacred, and then nuke them killing millions of civilians. Then they could say "give up now, or we bomb 2 more cities". I mean, it worked in Japan, and we all know the American government has the PR capability to turn it all around and make it seem like they are the good guys.:)
Unfortunately your logic is flawed. When the US dropped two atomic bombs on Japan, it was to end a war begun by the Japanese government. Their goverment had the power to cease hostilities. Unfortunately, doing the same thing to an Afghan city will not cause the al Qaeda terrorists to end their violence against the West. If anything, this will only encourage them, as it will be perceived by the Islamic world that the US is fighting the Muslims. Thus, dropping nuclear bombs on Afghanistan will be counter-productive to American goals.
If you read some of HanzoSan's previous articles, he posts weird rants like this one. Reading many of his posts, I can only conclude that he is actually another crazy Chinaman named Alex Chiu.
Wouldn't you want to partner with those who are distributing your product to ensure your revenue is generated? If you price your product too high you cease to get ANY revenue at all. Period.
True, it wouldn't make much sense to price Webcasters out of business. As you point out, even a small amount of revenue is better than none at all...
...unless the major labels were planning on introducing their own webcasting plans. Then those other webcasters become not revenue, but competition.
Admittedly this is just speculation at this point. However it does make a lot of sense, especially when one considers how the RIAA has gone after P2P programs. The RIAA wants to be in exclusive control over all music distributed over the Internet. In its eyes, a webcaster is little better than Napster since it is something that it cannot control, and thus not profit off of.
I hope these guys win their lawsuit. I know I've been entertained listening to Shoutcasts that have played obscure stuff I've never heard on the radio before.
In the 1999 paper"A Distributed Decentralized Information Storage and Retrieval System" which formed the basis for the Freenet project, the following future direction is suggested:
Generalisation of Adaptive Network for data processing
A longer term and more ambitious goal would be to determine whether a distributed decentralised data processing system could be constructed using the information distribution Adaptive Network [Freenet] as a starting point. Such a development would allow the creation of a complete distributed decentralised computer
As other posters have pointed out this is a duplicate article. But hey, turn this repeat to your advantage! Go read the previous posting and repost all the +5 posts as your own, then watch the karma roll in!:)
(Yeah, its a little off-topic. I'm sure the mod's will see the funny in it.)
Slashdot Mirror
I don't know how accurate this is because its a bit beyond my technical knowledge. However I know that following a hash collision while using RFS, my /usr/local directory vanished. So there is some truth to the parent post.
I work as a consultant for several fortune 500 companies, and I think I can shed a little light on the climate of the open source community at the moment. I believe that part of the reason that open source based startups are failing left and right is not an issue of marketing as it's commonly believed but more of an issue of the underlying technology.
I know that that's a strong statement to make, but I have evidence to back it up! At one of the major corps(5000+ employees) that I consult for, we wanted to integrate Linux into our server pool. The allure of not having to pay any restrictive licensing fees was too great to ignore. I reccomended the installation of several boxes running the new 2.4.9 kernel, and my hopes were high that it would perform up to snuff with the Windows 2k boxes which were(and still are!) doing an AMAZING job at their respective tasks of serving HTTP requests, DNS, and fileserving.
I consider myself to be very technically inclined having programmed in VB for the last 8 years doing kernel level programming. I don't believe in C programming because contrary to popular belief, VB can go just as low level as C and the newest VB compiler generates code that's every bit as fast. I took it upon myself to configure the system from scratch and even used an optimised version of gcc 3.1 to increase the execution speed of the binaries. I integrated the 3 machines I had configured into the server pool, and I'd have to say the results were less than impressive... We all know that linux isn't even close to being ready for the desktop, but I had heard that it was supposed to perform decently as a "server" based operating system. The 3 machines all went into swap immediately, and it was obvious that they weren't going to be able to handle the load in this "enterprise" environment. After running for less than 24 hours, 2 of them had experienced kernel panics caused by Bind and Apache crashing! Granted, Apache is a volunteer based project written by weekend hackers in their spare time while Microsft's IIS has an actual professional full fledged development team devoted to it. Not to mention the fact that the Linux kernel itself lacks any support for any type of journaled filesystem, memory protection, SMP support, etc, but I thought that since Linux is based on such "old" technology that it would run with some level of stability. After several days of this type of behaviour, we decided to reinstall windows 2k on the boxes to make sure it wasn't a hardware problem that was causing things to go wrong. The machines instantly shaped up and were seamlessly reintegrated into the server pool with just one Win2K machine doing more work than all 3 of the Linux boxes.
Needless to say, I won't be reccomending Linux/FSF to anymore of my clients. I'm dissappointed that they won't be able to leverege the free cost of Linux to their advantage, but in this case I suppose the old adage stands true that, "you get what you pay for." I would have also liked to have access to the source code of the applications that we're running on our mission critical systems; however, from the looks of it, the Microsoft "shared source" program seems to offer all of the same freedoms as the GPL.
As things stand now, I can understand using Linux in academia to compile simple "Hello World" style programs and learn C programming, but I'm afraid that for anything more than a hobby OS, Windows 98/NT/2K are your only choices.
thank you.
I don't mean this as a flame, but articles like this do beg the question of whether or not advertisers are paying to have the products promoted as a Slashdot story. Especially when there's nothing really that insightful here. Furthermore given the financial strugges of Slashdot's parent company, its not unthinkable to see them accepting advertising funds in exchange for Slashdot hits.
Just wondering, I guess....
I'm afraid its not on my version of Apache, but I believe the new 2.0 version of Apache may have it.
I thought about modding you down as the troll you are, but because I'm full of whimsy this evening I'll instead ask you to support your arguement with evidence, if you have any.
Yeah that submit button can be a pain. Taco should make that preview button the default.
Having spent a couple years in Japan teaching English, I would like to share my experiences with the rest of Slashdot.
:)
Basically, I think it comes down to the fact that the Japanese are fastidiously hygenic. I dont' mean to imply that Americans and Europeans are not, but the Japanese take it to a new, almost obsessive-compulsive level. I may be reading too much into this, but I think this hygine compulsion has a lot to do with why they spend so much time creating the perfect commode.
Then again, given a large segment of Japanese society enjoys gross japscat porn it could be just the opposite as the above.
I put forth the idea that Teoma might be worth using if they weren't spineless and indecisive like Google
:)
While I understand the point you are attempting to make, let me ask you this: Suppose you were the chairman of Google and you were faced with this lawsuit from Scientology (whom I concur is about the most evil and facist organization on the planet.) Now, would you be willing to risk untold millions of dollars in legal fees and possible court judgements to stand for your principles? Not to mention any personal harrassment (or worse!) Scientologists may elect to inflict on Google employees. You might be willing to risk your own personal safety and mental health, but are you willing to risk that of your workers?
Since we're in the land of supposition right now, suppose Google vs Scientology went to court and Google lost. Lost big. Now the only way they have to pay their legal fees is to sell the company. Guess who would love to buy it? The CoS. So now Google has gone from standing by their principles to giving up the best search engine to CoS.
While I know this is all just imagination, I'm doing this to make the point that one must pick ones fights carefully. Sometimes its better to conceed, even when you are in the right than to fight on.
Finally, you may want to look up the definition of Pyrrhic victory sometime, too!
I think I would need a more compelling, as well as practical reason to switch. Even if Teoma didn't give in to CoS, I'd be more interested in which search engine could find me the more relevant results that I'm after. I think the bulk of Slashdotters will concur that politics in search engines is a distant second, if that.
Actually, any serious geek long ago switched the AMD because they make faster CPUs for less money. But hey, whatever gets you to ditch Intel...
In case anyone is curious what one of these emails looks like, I got this in my inbox, from jokoli001@yahoo.com, when I arrived at work today. Suffice to say I can't wait to get my hands on the money! ;)
.com and .
Dear Sir,
I am Mr. Joseph Okoli. Bank Manager of Diamond
Bank of Nigeria, Lagos Branch. I have urgent and
very confidential business proposition for you. On
June 6, 1997, a FOREIGN Oil consultant/contractor
with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation,
Mr. Barry Kelly made a numbered time (Fixed)
Deposit for twelve calendar months, valued at US
$25,000,000.00 (Twenty- five Million Dollars) in my
branch. Upon maturity, I sent a routine notification to
his forwarding address but got no reply. After a
month, we sent a reminder and finally we discovered
from his contract employers, the Nigerian National
Petroleum Corporation that Mr. Barry Kelly died
from an automobile accident. On further investigation,
I found out that he died without making a WILL, and
all attempts to trace his next of kin was fruitless. I
therefore made further investigation and discovered
that Mr. Barry Kelly did not declare any kin or
relations in all his official documents, including his
Bank Deposit paperwork in my Bank. This sum of US
$25,000,000.00 is still sitting in my Bank and the
interest is being rolled over with the principal sum at
the end of each year. No one will ever come forward
to claim it. According to Nigerian Law, at the
expiration of 5 (five) years, the money will revert to
the ownership of the Nigerian Government if nobody
applies to claim the fund. Consequently, my proposal
is that I will like you as an Foreigner to stand in as
the next of kin to Mr. Barry Kelly so that the fruits of
this old man's labor will not get into the hands of
some corrupt government officials. This is simple, I
will like you to provide immediately your full names
and address so that the Attorney will prepare the
necessary documents and affidavits, which will put
you in place as the next of kin. We shall employ the
service of two Attorneys for drafting and notarization
of the WILL and to obtain the necessary documents
and letter of probate/administration in your favor for
the transfer. A bank account in any part of the world,
which you will provide, will then facilitate the
transfer of this money to you as the beneficiary/next of
kin. The money will be paid into your account for us
to share in the ratio of 60% for me and 40% for you.
There is no risk at all as all the paperwork for this
transaction will be done by the Attorney and my
position as the Branch Manager guarantees the
successful execution of this transaction. If you are
interested, please reply immediately via the private
email address below. Upon your response, I shall
then provide you with more details and relevant
documents that will help you understand the
transaction. Please observe utmost confidentiality,
and rest assured that this transaction would be most
profitable for both of us because I shall require your
assistance to invest my share in your country.
Awaiting your urgent reply via my email:
Thanks and regards.
MR. JOSEPH OKOLI.
1 - Confusing interface
How so? What's confusing about it, and tell me that Windows/KDE/Gnome or the Unix command line is less so.
2 - One Button Mouse
What's wrong with a one button mouse? Works very well for me. Did you know that Apple now supports two-button mice as well?
3 - Customization and configuration is hard to grasp
How so? Oh, you mean that you don't have to edit a ton of cryptic
4 - Expensive Hardware
You get what you pay for.
5 - Apple is unpredictable
Huh? How so?
6 - Proprietary platform
Would you rather have a flavor of Unix that's open, or one that works amazing on the desktop? I guess its idealism vs pragmaticism, and everyone has their own opinion on this one.
7 - OS X is kinda slow
I would try 10.1. It works much faster. 10.2 promises to be even faster yet. And did you know you can run Unix apps on OSX? Try that on Windows!
8 - I don't like Steve Jobs (I gotta be honest)
Again, idealism vs pragmatism.
9 - We've heard about Apple treatening many Open Source projects (ie. Themes.org OSX theme)
Oh please. If Apple doesn't defend itself, it gets drowned under a bunch of cheap imitators and wanna-bes.
Just my two cents on that....
Apple could care less whether its a niche player or not. Its one of the few computer manufacturers to remain in the black. Not to mention with $4.1 billion in cash reserves, it won't be hurting for money anytime soon.
Sure Apple could attempt to enter the x86 markets if it wanted to commit financial suicide. Somehow I think Jobs has other plans, though....
I hear this arguement constantly and I find it frustrating to no end. Basically, I believe (and this is not a flame) that you get what you pay for, especially when it comes to computers. Sure a Windows system will cost you less (and a Linux system even less, still) but you're losing quality in the deal.
This would be like going to a dealership and saying "Why should I spend $40,000 on this BMW when I can go across the street and get a Geo Metro for $9,000? It'll take me to work just as well as the BMW won't it?"
I believe that a lot of people who bring up this "flaw" about Macs are people who've never used one. Having used both extensively, I believe that the Macintosh is an amazing bit of engineering. But hey, that's just me. Use whatever works best for you.
I've read your posting and decided to translate a portion of it into English for the benefit of the other Slashdot readers. Your comments, obviously, are in italics.
Whether that's the case here is, of course, another story, but I've become increasingly distrustful of government and law "enforcement".
Read: I got a ticket for speeding the other day. Its disgraceful the way the so-called legal authorities can harrass a man for the so-called crime of going 85 in a 55 zone.
I am a vocal critic of abuses of state power,
Read: I'm the old man who sits in the City Council meetings and annoys everyone by my pointless argueing over trivial matters. But the law clearly states that the forms that the Animal Control officer filled out when he removed the 84 cats from my trailer needed to be filled out in *black* ink, yet they were done in *blue*. Gestapo tactics!!
engage in minor civil disobedience myself (I used a deCSS-derived program to watch DVDs that I bought on a GNU/Linux computer because I neither want to spend the money on Windows® nor trust it to be spyware-free)
Read: I'm incredibly cheap and I've found a marvellous way to rationalize it.
, and fully expect to wind up in prison someday for my thoughts, when I see crap like this.
Read: I have an overinflated sense of self-importance. In my mind I'm Emma Goldman, but to everyone else I'm just a crank that manages to amuse everyone with his annoying habits.
I can not just shut up and live a lie.
Read: Well, the first half of that sentance is true, at least.
Someone from the earlier thread posted a nice Divx 5 version of the trailer at 640 x 480 resolution. Check it out here.
Where can I find such photos? I've already got my grits warmed up and the waistband of my pants loosened.
Erm? Correct me if I'm wrong, but are commercial activities on the Internet
suddenly smiled upon? It sounds very much like you know what you're doing,
but I can't say I've ever seen an Internet server dedicated to the commercial
aspects of electronic communication (short of Compu$erve, and that doesn't
really count). Mind explaining where the loophole lies?
Pretty interesting view of the Internet at the time, no?
Are you implying that the American's should not have dropped the atomic bombs on Japan?
Secondly, its not Muslims vs. Americans. as far as i know most Muslims don't support al'qaeda.
Most don't, but most don't have any love for America. If America dropped a nuclear device on an Muslim country, the Muslim world would see this as a war against Islam, and therefor would be more sympathetic, if not outright supportive, of al Qaeda.
Also, i wasn't talking about bombing some mud-hut cities in Afghanistan, i was talking about somewhere more important.
Can you show me a place in Afghanistan that has a building above the level of a mud hut? Seems that anything bigger than an earthen hovel was bombed to rubble long ago.
Actually, it appears that task has been done. Salon has a nice story on it and doing a google search on Phantom Edit should enable you to find it. As an aside, rumor has it that Kevin Smith, of Clerks and Jay & Silent Bob fame, was the one behind this.
Unfortunately your logic is flawed. When the US dropped two atomic bombs on Japan, it was to end a war begun by the Japanese government. Their goverment had the power to cease hostilities. Unfortunately, doing the same thing to an Afghan city will not cause the al Qaeda terrorists to end their violence against the West. If anything, this will only encourage them, as it will be perceived by the Islamic world that the US is fighting the Muslims. Thus, dropping nuclear bombs on Afghanistan will be counter-productive to American goals.
If you read some of HanzoSan's previous articles, he posts weird rants like this one. Reading many of his posts, I can only conclude that he is actually another crazy Chinaman named Alex Chiu.
True, it wouldn't make much sense to price Webcasters out of business. As you point out, even a small amount of revenue is better than none at all...
...unless the major labels were planning on introducing their own webcasting plans. Then those other webcasters become not revenue, but competition.
Admittedly this is just speculation at this point. However it does make a lot of sense, especially when one considers how the RIAA has gone after P2P programs. The RIAA wants to be in exclusive control over all music distributed over the Internet. In its eyes, a webcaster is little better than Napster since it is something that it cannot control, and thus not profit off of.
I hope these guys win their lawsuit. I know I've been entertained listening to Shoutcasts that have played obscure stuff I've never heard on the radio before.
Guess there is nothing new under the sun.
As other posters have pointed out this is a duplicate article. But hey, turn this repeat to your advantage! Go read the previous posting and repost all the +5 posts as your own, then watch the karma roll in! :)
(Yeah, its a little off-topic. I'm sure the mod's will see the funny in it.)