Even so, how is it news? I could understand if Apple were to show OS X running well on non-Apple hardware, and implying that it may be legally allowed in the future. That's news. Windows and Windows programs have been running on myriad hardware combinations for years, with few problems (if we ignore Vista). This is not news.
A simple demo game written on a Fedora system runs perfectly on Ubuntu, Debian, Mandriva, Mint, Arch, and a few dozen others, but nobody paid for a press conference.
I agree fully. Having slight differences is a good reminder that the user is now unique among their peers, and uses something superior to the average. Like driving a Ferrari, it's got everything, but just a little different than their neighbor's Buick.
However, normalcy is nice. Having a steering wheel is good. This is why I usually just rearrange things a bit. Sure, it takes a bit of effort, but you can rearrange the applets on the GNOME panel and get a decent facsimile of Windows, but with different images. It's enough to match up with basic instructions from less-than-savvy friends, and it's certainly close enough to learn quickly.
Once I've converted folks, I've often put a sheet of paper next to the computer, listing equivalent options between Ubuntu and Windows. If you want to do something and can't figure out how immediately, look at the list. Eventually, that list will disappear from use.
Finally, one of the most important things I've done to convert someone has nothing to do with the OS itself. I always leave my cell phone number and a card listing the hours where I'm not otherwise occupied. For the next week, I'll get several calls, but the user gets someone friendly to help them. It also often serves as a nice introduction to the community in general. If I'm unable to really help right then, I'll direct the user to the Ubuntu forums. Calls drop off rapidly after that.
In a sick and twisted sort of way, I hold in my heart a secret hope that the increased snowfall will reflect more sunlight into space, causing a significant amount of global cooling.
There is definitely a "certain degree" of lock-in, but it's like being trapped in a prison with a key-making machine and full details on every lock in the place. Sure, it'll take a bit of time and effort, but you can get out pretty simply.
Of course. Microsoft wants to take Google's place everywhere.
In China specifically, Microsoft can't pack up and leave like Google did. China's already a big target for their anti-piracy efforts Their only option is to play nice with the government and get cooperation, no matter how bad it really is.
Not being much of a Mac person myself, I only initially compared my setup to the Time Capsule because of the AC's apparent love for Macs.
My fiancée has the only Mac in our house (triple-booting), and at one point I set up my server to act as a Time Capsule for her. It still got the fancy interface.
Really, it's just a matter of preference. I prefer the feel of a keyboard to a mouse, and would rather type out a few commands than drag and drop icons. My initial comment was more against the AC's financial comment rather than his fanaticism.
sshfs and cp. I've recently also started using Subversion for some projects where previous revisions are still necessary. Yes, it's ugly, but it works enough for my needs.
Fact is, I really don't need to back up much. If I lose my collection of "hey this could be fun" programs, I don't care. How many times does one REALLY need to calculate pi, anyway?
I also like to keep my backups organized differently from my actual system, so most image and image-like backups are not feasible.
In many years, about the time it breaks even, it'll be up for replacement anyway. By that time, I've earned a couple dollars for free in interest on that initially-saved $200.
I'm not blindly stating anything. Rather, I'm countering a blind statement against it. There are also too many people who accept the marketing spin about corporate products being better on some arbitrary level.
If you're going to claim that running Windows will save me money in the long run, I want proof. Are there any reputable tests showing Windows making that big a difference to justify its initial cost? Bear in mind, we're talking a machine that is only on when needed, has no monitor, and all its hardware is old and well-documented.
In the end, all transactions are about value versus cost. Windows and Mac have a far higher initial cost, so unless you're doing something where the cost rises dramatically under Linux, they lose. If you want to run the latest greatest games, Windows will cost less than the extra hardware to accommodate Wine. If you want a stable prepackaged system, Apple's premium price is the cheapest. For a system like this, where there is no corporate conspiracy (referring to "secret" hardware) and a simple job to do, Linux wins.
Money does not concern me. I'm far more concerned with getting the most quality for the price. In cruises, quality really depends on what line you go with. Sure, you can go with the bottom-dollar line, offering little more comfort than steerage on a freighter, but a better line is still quite luxurious. My preferred line is pretty nice. It's not the most expensive line, but offers quite enough amenities to suit me.
By pulling a computer from a dumpster, outfitting it with a $100 hard disk, and installing Linux, I get a giant file server, saving me $200 on an easy backup solution (vs. Apple's Time Capsule). That makes me $200 richer than I would be otherwise, meaning I can use that money elsewhere. With the money I've saved over the years thanks to Linux and other open-source packages, I will soon be taking a Caribbean cruise. Has your "real" Mac ever paid for your vacation?
I didn't say it was a bad thing. Personally, I think it's about time Hollywood recognized that following the same formulas results in the same bad movies.
No, because I'd expect the server to have some sort of data storage, which could still get corrupted. Perhaps a major flaw was discovered in the server software itself. The problem is obviously something big, that simply looking elsewhere won't fix.
I meant that the problem is not caused by the fact that the software is proprietary. Yes, if it were open, it'd be easier to fix, but the original problem of failing services would still exist.
It's good to see others who actually accept responsibility for the world we live in.
I actually rescheduled my jury duty for when I had a break in my grad school courses, even though I could have been excused entirely. There's a reason it's called "jury duty", and not "jury we'd-really-like-it-if-you-came-and-helped-please".
Slashdot Mirror
Even so, how is it news? I could understand if Apple were to show OS X running well on non-Apple hardware, and implying that it may be legally allowed in the future. That's news. Windows and Windows programs have been running on myriad hardware combinations for years, with few problems (if we ignore Vista). This is not news.
A simple demo game written on a Fedora system runs perfectly on Ubuntu, Debian, Mandriva, Mint, Arch, and a few dozen others, but nobody paid for a press conference.
The list is custom and generally written on-the-spot based on what the user says they do. However, there are some lists already made by others:
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/WindowsApplicationsEquivalents
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/SwitchingToUbuntu/FromWindows
...Wow. That was a dumb question. Thanks for the answer, though.
Is the 96-pound figure without fuel? I wonder how much it weight fully loaded.
I agree fully. Having slight differences is a good reminder that the user is now unique among their peers, and uses something superior to the average. Like driving a Ferrari, it's got everything, but just a little different than their neighbor's Buick.
However, normalcy is nice. Having a steering wheel is good. This is why I usually just rearrange things a bit. Sure, it takes a bit of effort, but you can rearrange the applets on the GNOME panel and get a decent facsimile of Windows, but with different images. It's enough to match up with basic instructions from less-than-savvy friends, and it's certainly close enough to learn quickly.
Once I've converted folks, I've often put a sheet of paper next to the computer, listing equivalent options between Ubuntu and Windows. If you want to do something and can't figure out how immediately, look at the list. Eventually, that list will disappear from use.
Finally, one of the most important things I've done to convert someone has nothing to do with the OS itself. I always leave my cell phone number and a card listing the hours where I'm not otherwise occupied. For the next week, I'll get several calls, but the user gets someone friendly to help them. It also often serves as a nice introduction to the community in general. If I'm unable to really help right then, I'll direct the user to the Ubuntu forums. Calls drop off rapidly after that.
This turned into an essay. Sorry about that.
In a sick and twisted sort of way, I hold in my heart a secret hope that the increased snowfall will reflect more sunlight into space, causing a significant amount of global cooling.
There is definitely a "certain degree" of lock-in, but it's like being trapped in a prison with a key-making machine and full details on every lock in the place. Sure, it'll take a bit of time and effort, but you can get out pretty simply.
Sounds good. I'll join.
Of course. Microsoft wants to take Google's place everywhere.
In China specifically, Microsoft can't pack up and leave like Google did. China's already a big target for their anti-piracy efforts Their only option is to play nice with the government and get cooperation, no matter how bad it really is.
For ignoring robots.txt, they don't deserve any more nor less.
Not being much of a Mac person myself, I only initially compared my setup to the Time Capsule because of the AC's apparent love for Macs.
My fiancée has the only Mac in our house (triple-booting), and at one point I set up my server to act as a Time Capsule for her. It still got the fancy interface.
Really, it's just a matter of preference. I prefer the feel of a keyboard to a mouse, and would rather type out a few commands than drag and drop icons. My initial comment was more against the AC's financial comment rather than his fanaticism.
sshfs and cp. I've recently also started using Subversion for some projects where previous revisions are still necessary. Yes, it's ugly, but it works enough for my needs.
Fact is, I really don't need to back up much. If I lose my collection of "hey this could be fun" programs, I don't care. How many times does one REALLY need to calculate pi, anyway?
I also like to keep my backups organized differently from my actual system, so most image and image-like backups are not feasible.
In many years, about the time it breaks even, it'll be up for replacement anyway. By that time, I've earned a couple dollars for free in interest on that initially-saved $200.
I'm not blindly stating anything. Rather, I'm countering a blind statement against it. There are also too many people who accept the marketing spin about corporate products being better on some arbitrary level.
If you're going to claim that running Windows will save me money in the long run, I want proof. Are there any reputable tests showing Windows making that big a difference to justify its initial cost? Bear in mind, we're talking a machine that is only on when needed, has no monitor, and all its hardware is old and well-documented.
In the end, all transactions are about value versus cost. Windows and Mac have a far higher initial cost, so unless you're doing something where the cost rises dramatically under Linux, they lose. If you want to run the latest greatest games, Windows will cost less than the extra hardware to accommodate Wine. If you want a stable prepackaged system, Apple's premium price is the cheapest. For a system like this, where there is no corporate conspiracy (referring to "secret" hardware) and a simple job to do, Linux wins.
Last I measured, it averaged 35 watts.
Money does not concern me. I'm far more concerned with getting the most quality for the price. In cruises, quality really depends on what line you go with. Sure, you can go with the bottom-dollar line, offering little more comfort than steerage on a freighter, but a better line is still quite luxurious. My preferred line is pretty nice. It's not the most expensive line, but offers quite enough amenities to suit me.
By pulling a computer from a dumpster, outfitting it with a $100 hard disk, and installing Linux, I get a giant file server, saving me $200 on an easy backup solution (vs. Apple's Time Capsule). That makes me $200 richer than I would be otherwise, meaning I can use that money elsewhere. With the money I've saved over the years thanks to Linux and other open-source packages, I will soon be taking a Caribbean cruise. Has your "real" Mac ever paid for your vacation?
Bloggers and policitians are now mutually exclusive groups?
Is it stated anywhere on the blog that the author is impartial? By "could be", do you mean it is, or just might be in a more restrictive country?
It's a pity when relevance gets in the way of good facts.
Usually, we just call that "turning left" (or right, depending on your country)
I didn't say it was a bad thing. Personally, I think it's about time Hollywood recognized that following the same formulas results in the same bad movies.
Further proof that Hollywood is running out of good ideas, and must turn to new sources.
But what will the marketing departments do, if they can't show off the shiny buttons?
What will happen to all the unthinking programmers who can't muster anything better than a sliding panel?
What will happen to the hardware market when a 2ghz computer can actually do a thousand times the productive work of a 2mhz machine from the 1980s?
What will happen to our economy then? It's bad enough as it is. Can't you see that being intelligent will only make it worse?
No, because I'd expect the server to have some sort of data storage, which could still get corrupted. Perhaps a major flaw was discovered in the server software itself. The problem is obviously something big, that simply looking elsewhere won't fix.
I meant that the problem is not caused by the fact that the software is proprietary. Yes, if it were open, it'd be easier to fix, but the original problem of failing services would still exist.
It's good to see others who actually accept responsibility for the world we live in.
I actually rescheduled my jury duty for when I had a break in my grad school courses, even though I could have been excused entirely. There's a reason it's called "jury duty", and not "jury we'd-really-like-it-if-you-came-and-helped-please".