That's because they're trying to build a bridge over the moat so they can escape.
Strike one off that list.
on
TiVo Will Die
·
· Score: 1
Morality and Ethics are dying
Nah, they were just a fiction in the first place.
Don't paint us all with the same brush.
on
TiVo Will Die
·
· Score: 4, Insightful
Please don't let the attitudes of a few reviewers lead you to conclude that all computer geeks like to predict the death of computer technology.
Remember, the "Death of Apple" has been predicted for so long that it's become a standard joke, so I hardly think it counts. If nothing else. Microsoft has a vested interest in Apple staying alive. They need competitors to fend off the world's Monopoly laws, and Apple is a better competitor to have than Linux. Why? Because Apple isn't trying to take over the world and doesn't have masses of developers and users out for blood. Apple has a bottom line to worry about, and while Linux companies have to worry about money, Linux itself does not.
Computer journalists love to predict the impending death of a technology, because it gets more readers. It's more sensational to say something is dying than to say it is facing challenges from a shifting market.
The only person who speaks for me is me, and I haven't heard or read all that many people predicting the death of technology.
Besides, the articles listed today are hardly "New technology" whose death is being predicted "before it's even managed to hit its stride." Both Apple and TiVo have been around the block and had high points as well as low.
As a side note, I'd like to caution everyone against confusing being critical of a new technology with predicting it's death. Lots of new technologies are being awaited with baited breath, and others are declared DOA because they're either obvious vapor ware like the Phantom Game Consol, not mature enough to take to market just yet (Nintendo Virtual Boy) or a technology looking for a market (Remember those Smell Cards they were developing?)
And the fact that evidence is turned up from such subpoenas makes it clear that people send all sorts of incriminating things through e-mail.
I know I've seen plenty of evidence for Harassment lawsuits floating around e-mail, including one woman giving a detailed account of who she thought another employee was sleeping with in exchange for promotions and raises.
I'd already explained that such messages could be brought up in court, and she kept sending them.
I distinctly remember being very surprised by some information I got in my Michigan law class.
The examples were "based on real cases."
A thief broke into a home and found a meth lab, and reported it to the police.
Another thief robbed a home, and later found what turned out to be murder evidence among his stollen goods. He reported it to the police.
In both cases, the evidence obtained by the thief was admitted into the trial.
I know this holds true in Michigan, and at the time the book stated that this was true in "Most US states." No clue about Federal court.
It was even mentioned that sometimes cops will make a deal with a known burglar to break in and retrieve evidence for them. So long as it never becomes known that the thief was asked or told to do this by the cops, then all is well. If it comes out that an officer of the law encouraged the activity, then the evidence will not be admissible. (The law course didn't tell us what would happen to a cop who encouraged such activity)
First off, I'm not addressing the authenticity of this specific e-mail, just the idea that such dealings would be sent by e-mail.
They are.
It's a common communication form, and I've had people where I work now think that by deleting an e-mail from their inbox, they erase if from exitance.
One of the shadiest people I met in my entire life was having problems with his computer, so the (then) network admin emptied the trash on the desktop and in Outlook as part of his cleanup. Said sales jackass was standing over his shoulder demanding an explanation of everything he was doing, and refused to believe that three years of e-mail were still readily available after he hit the "DEL" key.
"I deleted them, they're gone."
After much explanation, including my input, he finally said "It doesn't matter if only geeks can get at them."
Total idiot.
And then there was the day he found out about the backups we were doing of the mail server, and the fact that the "deleted items" were kept in our archives for 30 days.
He was not a happy man.
BTW: This is the same guy who was later fired when one of his business partners called up threatening to show up with a baseball bat and take out kneecaps.
I'm not saying the MS execs are anywhere near that level, I'm just saying that just because YOU and I wouldn't put something that incriminating into a system that could be tracked and recovered, doesn't mean other people would.
Besides, they probably never suspected the document would be leaked.
The main reason is that it runs XP, and not one of the light weight "Windows Powered" hand held operating systems. It's not a PDA, but a full blown PC.
"Full Windows XP Home/Professional operating system"
This is not a Pocket PC, but a full blown PC at the SIZE of the larger clamshell Pocket PCs. You're getting close to the low end of XP's recommended hardware specs with this device. It'll probably be a bit sluggish with that hardware.
And don't forget "Slashdot's going downhill".. We've been hearing that for at least 4 years.
Well, that's because people have rosy memories of the distant past. It's always been like this, people just look at the past through rose colored glasses...
After my last encounter with Palm's "tech support" I've decided to never again buy a Palm product.
Their tech support is only capable of sending canned reply, they don't read the tech support requests, and sending in a Palm for service costs $100.
Not worth my time or money. I am done with Palm forever. I like them, but their flaky hardware and pathetic support make for a "Never buy again" combo.
Re:And homer jumps a shark on a unicycle
on
The Simpsons Movie
·
· Score: 1
There are always exceptions
And homer jumps a shark on a unicycle
on
The Simpsons Movie
·
· Score: 0, Redundant
Ahhh, the definitive "Jump the Shark" moment.
Now we know The Simpsons is nearing cancellation. How long do snows normally last after a movie is made?
It'll be sad to see the show go, but I won't be crying too hard, as it's been a few years since I watched it regularly. The "Side Show Bob Steals a Nuke" episode was the end for me.
You can still run the old 3.x XFree86 if you have an older card that's not supported by 4.x, but that won't remain a viable option forever as Gnome and KDE continue to evolve. Eventually, you'll have to have 4.x XFree86 to run most Linux GUI programs. I'm sure this is already the case in many projects.
Many distros let you pick which version of XFree86 you install.
You make a number of good points, expecially about the defaults being more of a problem than the underlying architecture.
However, I'd say the days of saying "Windows has better hardware support bar none" has passed, as long as you're using a fairly recent version of the OS. Linux vs. Windows on hardware support requires you look at what category of hardware you're talking about.
Hardware that requires a closed interface a la Winmodems is still the domain of Windows. I love my Net MD Minidisc player, but there's no functional software for writing to Minidisc under Linux without real time recording over an audio cable.
Windows 2000, 2003 server and XP have dropped support for a lot of legacy hardware. Linux wins this one hands down. If it's older it's more likely to run under Linux than Windows.
Uncommon Hardware, such as poorly selling Intel webcam I once owned, tends to limp along under Windows and be ignored under Linux. Of course, most this hardware is uncommon because it sucks, so this is not an issue.
Standards compliant hardware, such as a good RAID card tend to work just as well under either OS, although Windows is far more likely to flake out on you if the hardware came out after the Service Pack running on your computer.
Linux tends to be better at getting network cards up an running out of the box. Same with non RAID IDE controller cards.
These days, USB drives tend to work better under Linux, although mounting and unmounting them can still be a pain.
Overall it's a give and take between the two. Under both systems, it's a pain to get hardware working if it doesn't work out of the box or after a quick driver download. The main difference is Linux requires command line work and compiling for the troublesome hardware, while Windows requires numerous installs and uninstalls of the driver and the hardware.
Linux is less prone to the "Have to uninstall things in just the right order" syndrome Windows is so prone to.
Graphics cards are a different issue. If the manufacturer is good about driver updates and features, they're on par, or Linux is better, but if the manufacturer is bad on updates, dominance is either firmly in the hands of Windows, or it waffles between the two through successive driver updates.
I don't know what it says about them, aside from the fact that they're the kind of idiots spreading viruses today, be it due to lack of respect for the company's property or a lack of intelligence.
Viruses wouldn't spread if it weren't for stupid, should be sterilized users who don't know better or are too dumb to learn.
Damn, I'm getting hostile over this.
I wish there was a legal way to stop all these dumb users.
Slashdot Mirror
That's because they're trying to build a bridge over the moat so they can escape.
Morality and Ethics are dying
Nah, they were just a fiction in the first place.
Please don't let the attitudes of a few reviewers lead you to conclude that all computer geeks like to predict the death of computer technology.
Remember, the "Death of Apple" has been predicted for so long that it's become a standard joke, so I hardly think it counts. If nothing else. Microsoft has a vested interest in Apple staying alive. They need competitors to fend off the world's Monopoly laws, and Apple is a better competitor to have than Linux. Why? Because Apple isn't trying to take over the world and doesn't have masses of developers and users out for blood. Apple has a bottom line to worry about, and while Linux companies have to worry about money, Linux itself does not.
Computer journalists love to predict the impending death of a technology, because it gets more readers. It's more sensational to say something is dying than to say it is facing challenges from a shifting market.
The only person who speaks for me is me, and I haven't heard or read all that many people predicting the death of technology.
Besides, the articles listed today are hardly "New technology" whose death is being predicted "before it's even managed to hit its stride." Both Apple and TiVo have been around the block and had high points as well as low.
As a side note, I'd like to caution everyone against confusing being critical of a new technology with predicting it's death. Lots of new technologies are being awaited with baited breath, and others are declared DOA because they're either obvious vapor ware like the Phantom Game Consol, not mature enough to take to market just yet (Nintendo Virtual Boy) or a technology looking for a market (Remember those Smell Cards they were developing?)
Even on Slashdot, the popular kids can't help but brag about it, and lord it over the unpopular ones.
I still haven't gotten an invite. :(
:( :~( /me slinks off into corner
*shiff*
Even my fellow Geeks want to avoid me.
And the fact that evidence is turned up from such subpoenas makes it clear that people send all sorts of incriminating things through e-mail.
I know I've seen plenty of evidence for Harassment lawsuits floating around e-mail, including one woman giving a detailed account of who she thought another employee was sleeping with in exchange for promotions and raises.
I'd already explained that such messages could be brought up in court, and she kept sending them.
I distinctly remember being very surprised by some information I got in my Michigan law class.
The examples were "based on real cases."
A thief broke into a home and found a meth lab, and reported it to the police.
Another thief robbed a home, and later found what turned out to be murder evidence among his stollen goods. He reported it to the police.
In both cases, the evidence obtained by the thief was admitted into the trial.
I know this holds true in Michigan, and at the time the book stated that this was true in "Most US states." No clue about Federal court.
It was even mentioned that sometimes cops will make a deal with a known burglar to break in and retrieve evidence for them. So long as it never becomes known that the thief was asked or told to do this by the cops, then all is well. If it comes out that an officer of the law encouraged the activity, then the evidence will not be admissible. (The law course didn't tell us what would happen to a cop who encouraged such activity)
First off, I'm not addressing the authenticity of this specific e-mail, just the idea that such dealings would be sent by e-mail.
They are.
It's a common communication form, and I've had people where I work now think that by deleting an e-mail from their inbox, they erase if from exitance.
One of the shadiest people I met in my entire life was having problems with his computer, so the (then) network admin emptied the trash on the desktop and in Outlook as part of his cleanup. Said sales jackass was standing over his shoulder demanding an explanation of everything he was doing, and refused to believe that three years of e-mail were still readily available after he hit the "DEL" key.
"I deleted them, they're gone."
After much explanation, including my input, he finally said "It doesn't matter if only geeks can get at them."
Total idiot.
And then there was the day he found out about the backups we were doing of the mail server, and the fact that the "deleted items" were kept in our archives for 30 days.
He was not a happy man.
BTW: This is the same guy who was later fired when one of his business partners called up threatening to show up with a baseball bat and take out kneecaps.
I'm not saying the MS execs are anywhere near that level, I'm just saying that just because YOU and I wouldn't put something that incriminating into a system that could be tracked and recovered, doesn't mean other people would.
Besides, they probably never suspected the document would be leaked.
It's pretty clear this is an (empty?) threat to get Microsoft to give them some deals.
Nothing to see here, no real migration in progress.
I've met this guy at a few parties. Cool chap, lots of fun, easy going.
He told me about the "Beyond Baysian" filtering they were putting in place a while back.
The name comes from "Dr. Strangelove". Gotta love it.
The main reason is that it runs XP, and not one of the light weight "Windows Powered" hand held operating systems. It's not a PDA, but a full blown PC.
"Full Windows XP Home/Professional operating system"
This is not a Pocket PC, but a full blown PC at the SIZE of the larger clamshell Pocket PCs. You're getting close to the low end of XP's recommended hardware specs with this device. It'll probably be a bit sluggish with that hardware.
And don't forget "Slashdot's going downhill" .. We've been hearing that for at least 4 years.
Well, that's because people have rosy memories of the distant past. It's always been like this, people just look at the past through rose colored glasses...
"Can Google stay ahead of new competitor x?"
"Apple is going out of business because it can't take out Microsoft"
"Repent, for the end is near"
"We are living in the last days"
After my last encounter with Palm's "tech support" I've decided to never again buy a Palm product.
Their tech support is only capable of sending canned reply, they don't read the tech support requests, and sending in a Palm for service costs $100.
Not worth my time or money. I am done with Palm forever. I like them, but their flaky hardware and pathetic support make for a "Never buy again" combo.
There are always exceptions
Ahhh, the definitive "Jump the Shark" moment.
Now we know The Simpsons is nearing cancellation. How long do snows normally last after a movie is made?
It'll be sad to see the show go, but I won't be crying too hard, as it's been a few years since I watched it regularly. The "Side Show Bob Steals a Nuke" episode was the end for me.
Ditto.
Thye make the "Baby Wipes" in "Adult" packaging now, so you don't ahve a big, smiling cartoon baby grinning at you when cleaning up.
You can still run the old 3.x XFree86 if you have an older card that's not supported by 4.x, but that won't remain a viable option forever as Gnome and KDE continue to evolve. Eventually, you'll have to have 4.x XFree86 to run most Linux GUI programs. I'm sure this is already the case in many projects.
Many distros let you pick which version of XFree86 you install.
You make a number of good points, expecially about the defaults being more of a problem than the underlying architecture.
However, I'd say the days of saying "Windows has better hardware support bar none" has passed, as long as you're using a fairly recent version of the OS. Linux vs. Windows on hardware support requires you look at what category of hardware you're talking about.
Hardware that requires a closed interface a la Winmodems is still the domain of Windows. I love my Net MD Minidisc player, but there's no functional software for writing to Minidisc under Linux without real time recording over an audio cable.
Windows 2000, 2003 server and XP have dropped support for a lot of legacy hardware. Linux wins this one hands down. If it's older it's more likely to run under Linux than Windows.
Uncommon Hardware, such as poorly selling Intel webcam I once owned, tends to limp along under Windows and be ignored under Linux. Of course, most this hardware is uncommon because it sucks, so this is not an issue.
Standards compliant hardware, such as a good RAID card tend to work just as well under either OS, although Windows is far more likely to flake out on you if the hardware came out after the Service Pack running on your computer.
Linux tends to be better at getting network cards up an running out of the box. Same with non RAID IDE controller cards.
These days, USB drives tend to work better under Linux, although mounting and unmounting them can still be a pain.
Overall it's a give and take between the two. Under both systems, it's a pain to get hardware working if it doesn't work out of the box or after a quick driver download. The main difference is Linux requires command line work and compiling for the troublesome hardware, while Windows requires numerous installs and uninstalls of the driver and the hardware.
Linux is less prone to the "Have to uninstall things in just the right order" syndrome Windows is so prone to.
Graphics cards are a different issue. If the manufacturer is good about driver updates and features, they're on par, or Linux is better, but if the manufacturer is bad on updates, dominance is either firmly in the hands of Windows, or it waffles between the two through successive driver updates.
My guess is that they'd seen how they'd basically got "time off" when the computers/network went down.
You know, I hadn't thought of that.
They might be smarter than I thought.
Hopefully you got some common sense from your mother's side!
There was another meeting.
And I was told to pirate some antivirus software and install it on all the computers.
There's more, but I'm going to leave this thread and curl up into a fetal ball at the horror of those days...
The horror.
The horror.
The horror.
*shudder*
They were company computers.
I don't know what it says about them, aside from the fact that they're the kind of idiots spreading viruses today, be it due to lack of respect for the company's property or a lack of intelligence.
Viruses wouldn't spread if it weren't for stupid, should be sterilized users who don't know better or are too dumb to learn.
Damn, I'm getting hostile over this.
I wish there was a legal way to stop all these dumb users.
No.
He authorized the test, and thus knew about it in advance.
The secretary who read his e-mail for him at the time however, WAS in the 80%.
In the first version of the program, I had the text "You are a dumbass" come up if the program was run, but I decided to remove it when I sent it out.
Sad thing is, many people ran it more than once, since it didn't "do" anything they could see.