This is where the Ubuntu LiveCD comes in useful. You can see precisely whether or not you do in fact have to put in a lot of time and effort, or if it Just Works. Which it increasingly does these days.
YMMV. With Ubuntu 8.04, kernel 2.6.27, I find precisely the opposite: XP runs 2 hours, 8.04 runs 3.5 to 4 hours. I blame the shitty, shitty McAfee antivirus on the Windows installation (it's my work laptop); but antiviruses aren't optional on Windows, and have a notable tendency to cripple the machine and suck power.
Oh, and the critical factor for battery life? Run a recent Linux. And use PowerTop to check what's taking power, and disable it. Linux is getting REALLY GOOD at this stuff. On my Compaq 6710b (Core 2 Duo, 1GB RAM) doing lots of browsing in Firefox 3 with hundreds of tabs and almost nothing else, Windows XP runs 2 hours, Kubuntu 7.10 ran 3 hours, Kubuntu 8.04 runs 3.5 to 4 hours. Your mileage may vary, of course - but the most up-to-date Linux kernel is well worth it.
I run Kubuntu 8.04 on a Compaq Evo N410c, which is a 1.2GHz P-III with 512MB memory. It's just fine.
The full desktop environments are fat, but not slow. The limiting factor for your free Unix is not CPU - a few hundred MHz will do fine - but memory. I also have a P-II 450MHz desktop running FreeBSD with KDE, and it works marvellously because it's got 704MB RAM.
The other thing is screen resolution - but Xandros on the Eee at 800x480 is quite usable. Perhaps play with the Ubuntu Netbook remix.
At this point, Lubos Motl, high in his Transylvanian crag-side castle, let out a shout of anger, causing even his henchmen to scatter. "SMOOOOO-LINNNNN!"
I recall that cold fusion got so much notice by the scientists holding a press conference... before publishing their paper.
Presumably the next pseudoscience snake oil innovation will be publicised in a YouTube video incorporating phone footage of a hilarious injury and the word "FAIL" in Impact Condensed, to the tune of "Still Alive".
"We have buttiduously canvbutted the industry, buttessed what is available and buttembled the finest selection of private contractors for this buttignment. The filters will buttociatively clbuttify all communications and filter then, I can butture you, rebuttemble them with surpbutting exacbreastude in any quanbreasty. Consbreastuents can be rebuttured that a mulbreastude of industry compebreastors will butture quality and keep our clbuttrooms safe. EDS Capita Goatse will not embarbutt us."
And massive copyright violation. More than a few Wikipedia editors are getting a little peeved at (a) people blatantly taking Wikipedia articles and reposting them in violation of the GFDL (b) Google's refusal to do anything about this massive blatant copyright violation. IT'S NOT HARD TO OBEY ON THE WEB, GUYS.
"Our market is the enterprise," said Microsoft security marketer Jonathan Ness. "Information technology professionals know that Windows is the greatest IT job creation scheme in history. Without Patch Tuesday, there's no reason for the experienced IT worker to spend his time hiding out in the server room watching progress bars and getting over his hangover. Also, you can't tell people a virus ate their mail, you actually have to get it back for them."
Several faintly cat-piss-smelling Linux users pointed and laughed in a nerdy bray at the news and a much larger number of annoying Mac users showed off their new model iPod Nanos.
We were seriously considering it for our kid because it's either the local Catholic schools or the hideous state sink schools. Thankfully we have her in with the local Church of England school, who will provide a decent education but are not insane.
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This is where the Ubuntu LiveCD comes in useful. You can see precisely whether or not you do in fact have to put in a lot of time and effort, or if it Just Works. Which it increasingly does these days.
YMMV. With Ubuntu 8.04, kernel 2.6.27, I find precisely the opposite: XP runs 2 hours, 8.04 runs 3.5 to 4 hours. I blame the shitty, shitty McAfee antivirus on the Windows installation (it's my work laptop); but antiviruses aren't optional on Windows, and have a notable tendency to cripple the machine and suck power.
Oh, and the critical factor for battery life? Run a recent Linux. And use PowerTop to check what's taking power, and disable it. Linux is getting REALLY GOOD at this stuff. On my Compaq 6710b (Core 2 Duo, 1GB RAM) doing lots of browsing in Firefox 3 with hundreds of tabs and almost nothing else, Windows XP runs 2 hours, Kubuntu 7.10 ran 3 hours, Kubuntu 8.04 runs 3.5 to 4 hours. Your mileage may vary, of course - but the most up-to-date Linux kernel is well worth it.
I run Kubuntu 8.04 on a Compaq Evo N410c, which is a 1.2GHz P-III with 512MB memory. It's just fine.
The full desktop environments are fat, but not slow. The limiting factor for your free Unix is not CPU - a few hundred MHz will do fine - but memory. I also have a P-II 450MHz desktop running FreeBSD with KDE, and it works marvellously because it's got 704MB RAM.
The other thing is screen resolution - but Xandros on the Eee at 800x480 is quite usable. Perhaps play with the Ubuntu Netbook remix.
At this point, Lubos Motl, high in his Transylvanian crag-side castle, let out a shout of anger, causing even his henchmen to scatter. "SMOOOOO-LINNNNN!"
I recall that cold fusion got so much notice by the scientists holding a press conference ... before publishing their paper.
Presumably the next pseudoscience snake oil innovation will be publicised in a YouTube video incorporating phone footage of a hilarious injury and the word "FAIL" in Impact Condensed, to the tune of "Still Alive".
Google "jot or breastle"
See the Daily WTF link and do a Google on "medireview" and "loveual harbuttment".
That'll be three months and another $500,000 contractor's fees. God I love private consultancy!
"We have buttiduously canvbutted the industry, buttessed what is available and buttembled the finest selection of private contractors for this buttignment. The filters will buttociatively clbuttify all communications and filter then, I can butture you, rebuttemble them with surpbutting exacbreastude in any quanbreasty. Consbreastuents can be rebuttured that a mulbreastude of industry compebreastors will butture quality and keep our clbuttrooms safe. EDS Capita Goatse will not embarbutt us."
(Inspired by Daily WTF.)
Yeah, Knol works on selling ads.
And massive copyright violation. More than a few Wikipedia editors are getting a little peeved at (a) people blatantly taking Wikipedia articles and reposting them in violation of the GFDL (b) Google's refusal to do anything about this massive blatant copyright violation. IT'S NOT HARD TO OBEY ON THE WEB, GUYS.
Oh, I know. It's just in comparison to the massive publicity Knol got.
In further news, Google would rather Knol didn't suffer the ignominious fate of Google Answers. Not everything Google does is a hit.
Microsoft has released eight patches for applications with an insufficient number of security holes.
"Our market is the enterprise," said Microsoft security marketer Jonathan Ness. "Information technology professionals know that Windows is the greatest IT job creation scheme in history. Without Patch Tuesday, there's no reason for the experienced IT worker to spend his time hiding out in the server room watching progress bars and getting over his hangover. Also, you can't tell people a virus ate their mail, you actually have to get it back for them."
Several faintly cat-piss-smelling Linux users pointed and laughed in a nerdy bray at the news and a much larger number of annoying Mac users showed off their new model iPod Nanos.
BitTorrent link is now up! Instructions here.
BitTorrent link is now up! Instructions here.
BitTorrent link is now up! Instructions here.
I believe it's being used as a handy content guideline, not a straightjacket.
The sort of stuff that attracts Template:Nopenis. Wikipedia is not censored for taste.
*applause*
We were seriously considering it for our kid because it's either the local Catholic schools or the hideous state sink schools. Thankfully we have her in with the local Church of England school, who will provide a decent education but are not insane.
That's because he wrote them.
Citizendium started as a fork, but now does as much of its own stuff as possible.
You are when it's a blatant troll post, as that is.
Wikinews coverage.