Both of you are right--you operate as a company to make a profit, but you also operate as a company for the common good.
I think most people have forgotten that.
Mandrake has offered a product that has greatly helped the community--helping you as well. You may not depend on the distribution directly, you may not even rely on the Linux platform directly, but the acceptance of Free software relies upon the success of companies like Mandrakesoft. Your products won't find a very receptive audience when they start associating Free software with bankruptcy.
Well, if you had Debian set up correctly, Mom would be getting CUPS updated anyway, wouldn't she?
CUPS simply kicks ass. You obviously haven't seen how powerful it is. CUPS on a Mac OS X laptop absolutely kicks the dingo's ass.
I can go home and select print. None of the inherent bullshit problems with "Point and Print" or any other crap. I plug in at work and viola, I have a printer available. CUPS has pushed *nix printing far ahead of the Microsoft "printing" that (by the way) still hasn't gained sway in the print world (where computer printing is your lifeline).
And if you're mom's machine really needed it updated, why not SSH into it and do it for her? That's the power you get with a true network OS.
Sorry, didn't mean you personally. It really wasn't fair to respond to your post that way. It's just the last straw. I was just happy to see the original story & responded too quickly to what I thought was another "Slashdot Repeat" post.
The sad thing is that this is a repeat story; it happens every day to countless people. You've probably had some asshole steal from you, and I know I have.
Fact is, I'd be glad if there were a lot more stories like this on Slashdot. It's a well written first-person account.
Nothing personal, but I'm quite tired of all the little ankle biters complaining about repeat stories. Yes, there's been cases in the past where the same story will be posted twice--big fricking deal. Get over it, move on to the next story, make your own message board, start submitting other stories--do something other than whine.
In this case, to call it a repeat is a long stretch to say the least.
I hope I didn't sound as if I've forgotten or excuse the actions of any fundamentalist zealot, no matter what flag or tome they use to justify their self-advancement.
No, I haven't forgotten the terrorists--I don't think anyone has forgotten the terrorsts, but their actions don't excuse the irresponsibility of this administration. Quicker than we ever imagined it could happen, George Bush is destroying the very things that men greater than he died for.
Before they had Terrorism they had Communism. Everything that didn't fit their agenda was part of a Communist plot.
Maybe you don't remember, but not too long ago, Communists would suck the blood out of your children if they were given the chance. (Funny how all those blood-suckers are now in NATO.)
Who can deny that the best thing that ever happened to this bump-in-the-road, lackluster, infantile, wannabe tricky-dick administration was Osama Bin Laden?*
*I in no way support the actions of either camp of fundamentalists. Bin Laden is as intellectually and spiritually meagre as our own pet idiot.
I've seen my family use computers for years now. They still do the same thing they did when they got the computers. They don't want anything more.
After YEARS they still only want to be able to check/send e-mail, use AIM, browse the Internet. Hell, they don't even really use the word processing tools.
They don't want to deal with all the other hassles that usually occur. If they want to play games, they use a game console. Why? because there isn't the inevitable headache that occurs every time they try doing something with their (Windows) computer.
They don't want upgrades, they don't want frills. They don't care about processor speed, they just want something that's going to work. These aren't dumb people, it's just that things like computers just don't do it for them.
I think that most people use computers for only what they need, and most people don't need a computer for much. That's who these systems will work for. Of course there's plenty of hot-rods who want to have a fast computer (even though they'll never need it), and they have their own choices.
I've already replied to this, but since it's actually been modded up since my reply, I guess I need to spell it out.
The premise of the post is that Windows is not a generic term in the world of computers. This is absolutely not true. The post is not informative nor insightful, it is just plain wrong.
Windows exists as a generic term. If you are misinformed, or believe otherwise, see my other post in this thread for a dictionary definition of what a window is, and where Windows actually derives its name from.
Not a Glass Pane, But a Window
on
The Apple Name Game
·
· Score: 2, Insightful
Window is generic with respect to transparent glass, but not with respect to operating systems.
From WordNet
Window
7.(computer science) a rectangular part of a computer screen that contains a display different from the rest of the screen
Sorry, a window has an intrinsic meaning to every modern GUI. The generic term that Microsoft uses has nothing to do with glass panes.
This is no troll, I sincerely don't understand how these things are practical in an educational environment, for business or for personal use.
I see these as another attempt by Microsoft to build an artificial need. These are slower at reading human input, more expensive, and really provide nothing more than one can alredy get with a laptop.
A piece of paper and pencil are much more durable, more field-ready, and much easier to replace. A laptop is more durable, faster at reading human input, and will ultimately last much longer than these things will (having the screen and the rest of the hardware components so close means that the LCD is going to last a relatively short time compared to its laptop counterpart).
Anyway, thanks in advance.
Re:In all fairness to the switch ads
on
Ellen Feiss Interview
·
· Score: 4, Insightful
I'm happier using my macs now than I ever was trying to get my PCs to run.
I mean, the nice thing about a Mac is that it just works. I don't need to waste time trying to figure out why the crap that should work--that was working yesterday--is not working today.
I've worked with all kinds of OS's--from Debian on a Sparcstation to OpenBSD on my old Pentium laptop. Hell, I administer an NT domain and keep a mid-sized network of production Windows machines up and running. For what it's worth, I've had a little experience getting stuff to run. I'd say that right now, I'm more productive, and less worried about getting my system running right than I have been with any other OS.
That aside, I think you may be having hardware rather than software related issues. I don't know what's happening to you, but I don't think it's Windows that's to blame. Again, there's plenty of reasons not to like Windows; the poor interface design inherent in Windows, many of the management tools are simply buried, are counter-intuitive, or just don't exist. Windows' popularity is the result of the best marketing in the world, not the best quality.
Because Microsoft's paramount concern is to get their OS to run hardware from a myriad of vendors, they have put the stability of the overall system second to the marketability of the OS. Albeit, Microsoft has done a pretty good job getting their OS running on lots of different equipment, but the down-side is that they really have no control over the quality of the overall system.
If you stick with PCs, try a business-class system from Dell, or another commodity vendor that has control of the entire system. For me, I'm extremely happy with my Apples. A few years ago I laughed at Apples. I'd never be caught near an Apple computer. Now, I'd never go back.
At home, I still have my Mandrake Linux Desktop, my FreeBSD server, my OpenBSD firewall and the wife's token Windows box--I'd never want to get rid of them (except for the hassles of the Win Box)--but I spend more and more time getting things done, learning new things and having fun on my Mac than I ever did trying to get what was working yesterday to work once again. I have enough trouble at work keeping things running right, I don't want to come home to do the same crap.
As I've said before, I sincerely hope it works as you think it will. But as it is now, it merely competes for dollars, for space for riders with the light rail project. It makes the end result more diffuse, and keeps cars on the road.
At least with the roads, we didn't have medium problems like this.
It reminds me of the days of token rings and banyan vines. People couldn't communicate because everyone wanted to do it their own way.
Jeebus, I'm tired of this. You all won't be satisfied until this wreck of an idea lies in flames around all our feet.
It serves two areas. I didn't say neighborhoods, I didn't say stops I didn't say any other such thing. There are thousands of neighborhoods in Seattle. I guess these eight neighborhoods somehow deserve more than the rest.
It's not too hard to list any address in the world on a car purchase. You want your mommie's address on your driver's license, well you can. That's the only way they know what your address is when you buy/register your car.
And it's not charged to "all residents" it's charged to those who aren't rich enough to buy a new car every year.
How is this going to get the people coming in from Northgate off the road? You keep talking around the central issue, all of you; the population served by this project is the population least in need. There are more pressing concerns, and more robust systems to address those concerns. All I hear is, "We'll go whizzing by while you sit in traffic." There's no solution except for the people rich enough to live in the highest priced housing in the Puget Sound.
First, you still haven't shown that the monorail doesn't service anything more than the two areas as stated before.
Second this is hoped to be the first in a series of monorail lines. There's no guarantee that all the money spent will be worth anything more than the 1/4 mile of monorail already up; it didn't find any federal funds. The fact that no matching funds were asked for is dubious in itself, as there are strict guidelines and safety-catches built into that system.
Third, if a system was built which ran on the same tracks built down in the Raineir valley, everyone would be benefitting from this, rather than the relative few serviced by this and any hoped-for additions to the line.
Fourth, those who want to save money buying a relatively new used $40,000 car aren't going to be willing to lose money on a local tax. They'll just drive where the prices are cheaper. I mean this has to be the most silly tax I've ever heard of. People who buy used cars want to save money. For them, it's worth it to go elsewhere.
Fifth, so what? Driving from Northgate, Southcenter, the east side, or anywhere else to down town takes on the order of 40 minutes to an hour. Taking the bus from either of these locations will take at least an hour and a half.
Sixth, the fact is that this generation of hippies/yuppies and the rest of us is so worried about our own little problems that we're not willing to sacrifice anything for the future. Do you think that the people of Seattle didn't have to sacrifice when I-5 was built? Do you think they didn't have to sacrifice in order to take advantage of the bridges and roads you ride on now?
We ride on their backs, they've given all of us a gift that most seem unwilling to reciprocate. Any major project is going to take lots of money, lots of time, and lots of inconvenience. It's going to change the way the city looks, it's going to make some quiet places noisy, it's going to change some communities. These are all the sacrificees that those before us made.
I hope you're right, I really do. I wan't the monorail to be something good for us, but I just can't see how it's going to be.
Monorail serves the interests of a very small part of Seattle, I mean your statement
Sure there will still be congestion. I'll look down on it with pity as I go sailing by overhead during a Sonics game.
really says it all. You are more concerned with funding something that will benefit the exclusive few who live in the two areas serviced rather than a project conceived for the benefit of all. I mean really, you're building this on the backs of all the people over in the Rainier valley (all the people who will be buying the second-hand cars that go to pay for this), the very people who won't be getting anything out of this deal. And it sounds like you have no problem with it.
It may be the most congested corridor in town, but the distance is small enough that even a leisurely bus ride doesn't take that long.
You want a more viable long-term solution? Light rail. You want to know how to run it through down town? Run light rail right underneath the Alaska Way Viaduct. The inevitable reconstruction of the viaduct can work double-duty, getting light-rail right to the heart of downtown with a minimum of impact.
The monorail does nothing to aleve congestion problems. What minute proportion of the population will be served by a project that only serves to break the back of more viable, better long-term solutions?
You've simply squandered more money, made the goals of mass transit more diffuse, and have left just as many cars on the road.
apologies, the intent wasn't to be pissy, but rather poignant.
Slashdot has over 600,000 accounts open, which means there's a lot of different people here.
I understand what you're saying, but I could say the same thing for anything that's central to the continued success and proliferation of Open Source Software.
People in similar situations as the author do find these tidbits meaningful.
These are the kinds of things that you use as the basis for proposals. Proposals are the basis for real change, not just a bunch of people bitching about how everything sucks because Microsoft has all the money/politicians/etc...
Sorry if it doesn't fit your aenda, but not all of us live in your world.
Unlike the teeming masses of trolls and ACs, I try to confine my comments to what I know. So, if other "DISTOS" have this functionality, then that's great. I don't use other "DISTOS," so I just don't know.
Don't bother me with another troll, I've met my quota of troll feeding for this month.
Apple can't "crush" this workaround. Once you have the software, you can use it. And you can use any WebDAV capable client to access your "iDisk" server.
Yep, it would be pretty easy to do this on a Windows/Mac network, if Windows actually handled WebDAV folders as well as, say OS X, or Mandrake Linux. But since Microsoft has decided that WebDAV filesystems are neither web-pages or mountable filesystems, you can't really automate backups to WebDAV servers with your Windows machines. In WindowsXP you can do something like this, so long as you have a server that understands Microsoft's perversion of WebDAV.
Someday Microsoft might "innovate" real WebDAV mounts into the filesystem (think flying pigs now), but until then, they are only good for point-and-click uses.
It would be extremely easy to write a batch file to do this if you could mount the remote WebDAV server (like you can with a mac). After you write your batch file, you could just set up a scheduled task to copy the files over to the WebDAV server (basically what the Backup utility makes so easy).
If you can use OS X or Mandrake Linux (probably other distros to--but I can't say for sure) you can have this functionality right now.
Slashdot Mirror
LaunchBar makes working with OS X as quick and easy as being in the shell.
I type in Apple+Space and then type the first few letters of the application, file or web page I want to open & LaunchBar opens it.
Buying LaunchBar was some of the best money I've ever spent.
Both of you are right--you operate as a company to make a profit, but you also operate as a company for the common good.
I think most people have forgotten that.
Mandrake has offered a product that has greatly helped the community--helping you as well. You may not depend on the distribution directly, you may not even rely on the Linux platform directly, but the acceptance of Free software relies upon the success of companies like Mandrakesoft. Your products won't find a very receptive audience when they start associating Free software with bankruptcy.
What I get from this is that we've been much too lax about private institutions collecting data about us.
Because it's already done by some people doesn't mean that it should be done by everyone.
Then I read the first line, and it was crystal
Funny, but I don't see 80% of the people posting in support of the crap posing as software coming out of Redmond.And you--you've got to be AC to admit to using that shit, don't you?
Well, if you had Debian set up correctly, Mom would be getting CUPS updated anyway, wouldn't she?
CUPS simply kicks ass. You obviously haven't seen how powerful it is. CUPS on a Mac OS X laptop absolutely kicks the dingo's ass.
I can go home and select print. None of the inherent bullshit problems with "Point and Print" or any other crap. I plug in at work and viola, I have a printer available. CUPS has pushed *nix printing far ahead of the Microsoft "printing" that (by the way) still hasn't gained sway in the print world (where computer printing is your lifeline).
And if you're mom's machine really needed it updated, why not SSH into it and do it for her? That's the power you get with a true network OS.
Sorry, didn't mean you personally. It really wasn't fair to respond to your post that way. It's just the last straw. I was just happy to see the original story & responded too quickly to what I thought was another "Slashdot Repeat" post.
Again, my apologies.
The sad thing is that this is a repeat story; it happens every day to countless people. You've probably had some asshole steal from you, and I know I have.
Fact is, I'd be glad if there were a lot more stories like this on Slashdot. It's a well written first-person account.
Nothing personal, but I'm quite tired of all the little ankle biters complaining about repeat stories. Yes, there's been cases in the past where the same story will be posted twice--big fricking deal. Get over it, move on to the next story, make your own message board, start submitting other stories--do something other than whine.
In this case, to call it a repeat is a long stretch to say the least.
I hope I didn't sound as if I've forgotten or excuse the actions of any fundamentalist zealot, no matter what flag or tome they use to justify their self-advancement.
No, I haven't forgotten the terrorists--I don't think anyone has forgotten the terrorsts, but their actions don't excuse the irresponsibility of this administration. Quicker than we ever imagined it could happen, George Bush is destroying the very things that men greater than he died for.
I'm not surprised. It's always been like that.
Before they had Terrorism they had Communism. Everything that didn't fit their agenda was part of a Communist plot.
Maybe you don't remember, but not too long ago, Communists would suck the blood out of your children if they were given the chance. (Funny how all those blood-suckers are now in NATO.)
Who can deny that the best thing that ever happened to this bump-in-the-road, lackluster, infantile, wannabe tricky-dick administration was Osama Bin Laden?*
*I in no way support the actions of either camp of fundamentalists. Bin Laden is as intellectually and spiritually meagre as our own pet idiot.
I've seen my family use computers for years now. They still do the same thing they did when they got the computers. They don't want anything more.
After YEARS they still only want to be able to check/send e-mail, use AIM, browse the Internet. Hell, they don't even really use the word processing tools.
They don't want to deal with all the other hassles that usually occur. If they want to play games, they use a game console. Why? because there isn't the inevitable headache that occurs every time they try doing something with their (Windows) computer.
They don't want upgrades, they don't want frills. They don't care about processor speed, they just want something that's going to work. These aren't dumb people, it's just that things like computers just don't do it for them.
I think that most people use computers for only what they need, and most people don't need a computer for much. That's who these systems will work for. Of course there's plenty of hot-rods who want to have a fast computer (even though they'll never need it), and they have their own choices.
I've already replied to this, but since it's actually been modded up since my reply, I guess I need to spell it out.
The premise of the post is that Windows is not a generic term in the world of computers. This is absolutely not true. The post is not informative nor insightful, it is just plain wrong.
Windows exists as a generic term. If you are misinformed, or believe otherwise, see my other post in this thread for a dictionary definition of what a window is, and where Windows actually derives its name from.
Window
7.(computer science) a rectangular part of a computer screen that contains a display different from the rest of the screen
Sorry, a window has an intrinsic meaning to every modern GUI. The generic term that Microsoft uses has nothing to do with glass panes.The post you respond to makes a valid point.
Please name a few.
This is no troll, I sincerely don't understand how these things are practical in an educational environment, for business or for personal use.
I see these as another attempt by Microsoft to build an artificial need. These are slower at reading human input, more expensive, and really provide nothing more than one can alredy get with a laptop.
A piece of paper and pencil are much more durable, more field-ready, and much easier to replace. A laptop is more durable, faster at reading human input, and will ultimately last much longer than these things will (having the screen and the rest of the hardware components so close means that the LCD is going to last a relatively short time compared to its laptop counterpart).
Anyway, thanks in advance.
I'm happier using my macs now than I ever was trying to get my PCs to run.
I mean, the nice thing about a Mac is that it just works. I don't need to waste time trying to figure out why the crap that should work--that was working yesterday--is not working today.
I've worked with all kinds of OS's--from Debian on a Sparcstation to OpenBSD on my old Pentium laptop. Hell, I administer an NT domain and keep a mid-sized network of production Windows machines up and running. For what it's worth, I've had a little experience getting stuff to run. I'd say that right now, I'm more productive, and less worried about getting my system running right than I have been with any other OS.
That aside, I think you may be having hardware rather than software related issues. I don't know what's happening to you, but I don't think it's Windows that's to blame. Again, there's plenty of reasons not to like Windows; the poor interface design inherent in Windows, many of the management tools are simply buried, are counter-intuitive, or just don't exist. Windows' popularity is the result of the best marketing in the world, not the best quality.
Because Microsoft's paramount concern is to get their OS to run hardware from a myriad of vendors, they have put the stability of the overall system second to the marketability of the OS. Albeit, Microsoft has done a pretty good job getting their OS running on lots of different equipment, but the down-side is that they really have no control over the quality of the overall system.
If you stick with PCs, try a business-class system from Dell, or another commodity vendor that has control of the entire system. For me, I'm extremely happy with my Apples. A few years ago I laughed at Apples. I'd never be caught near an Apple computer. Now, I'd never go back.
At home, I still have my Mandrake Linux Desktop, my FreeBSD server, my OpenBSD firewall and the wife's token Windows box--I'd never want to get rid of them (except for the hassles of the Win Box)--but I spend more and more time getting things done, learning new things and having fun on my Mac than I ever did trying to get what was working yesterday to work once again. I have enough trouble at work keeping things running right, I don't want to come home to do the same crap.
Sorry, I was unclear.
I did, in fact mean to reference registering at another address by way of a quick reference to "go elsewhere."
Thanks for pointing this out.
As I've said before, I sincerely hope it works as you think it will. But as it is now, it merely competes for dollars, for space for riders with the light rail project. It makes the end result more diffuse, and keeps cars on the road.
At least with the roads, we didn't have medium problems like this.
It reminds me of the days of token rings and banyan vines. People couldn't communicate because everyone wanted to do it their own way.
Jeebus, I'm tired of this. You all won't be satisfied until this wreck of an idea lies in flames around all our feet.
It serves two areas. I didn't say neighborhoods, I didn't say stops I didn't say any other such thing. There are thousands of neighborhoods in Seattle. I guess these eight neighborhoods somehow deserve more than the rest.
It's not too hard to list any address in the world on a car purchase. You want your mommie's address on your driver's license, well you can. That's the only way they know what your address is when you buy/register your car.
And it's not charged to "all residents" it's charged to those who aren't rich enough to buy a new car every year.
How is this going to get the people coming in from Northgate off the road? You keep talking around the central issue, all of you; the population served by this project is the population least in need. There are more pressing concerns, and more robust systems to address those concerns. All I hear is, "We'll go whizzing by while you sit in traffic." There's no solution except for the people rich enough to live in the highest priced housing in the Puget Sound.
Monorail! Monorail! Monorail!
First, you still haven't shown that the monorail doesn't service anything more than the two areas as stated before.
Second this is hoped to be the first in a series of monorail lines. There's no guarantee that all the money spent will be worth anything more than the 1/4 mile of monorail already up; it didn't find any federal funds. The fact that no matching funds were asked for is dubious in itself, as there are strict guidelines and safety-catches built into that system.
Third, if a system was built which ran on the same tracks built down in the Raineir valley, everyone would be benefitting from this, rather than the relative few serviced by this and any hoped-for additions to the line.
Fourth, those who want to save money buying a relatively new used $40,000 car aren't going to be willing to lose money on a local tax. They'll just drive where the prices are cheaper. I mean this has to be the most silly tax I've ever heard of. People who buy used cars want to save money. For them, it's worth it to go elsewhere.
Fifth, so what? Driving from Northgate, Southcenter, the east side, or anywhere else to down town takes on the order of 40 minutes to an hour. Taking the bus from either of these locations will take at least an hour and a half.
Sixth, the fact is that this generation of hippies/yuppies and the rest of us is so worried about our own little problems that we're not willing to sacrifice anything for the future. Do you think that the people of Seattle didn't have to sacrifice when I-5 was built? Do you think they didn't have to sacrifice in order to take advantage of the bridges and roads you ride on now?
We ride on their backs, they've given all of us a gift that most seem unwilling to reciprocate. Any major project is going to take lots of money, lots of time, and lots of inconvenience. It's going to change the way the city looks, it's going to make some quiet places noisy, it's going to change some communities. These are all the sacrificees that those before us made.
I hope you're right, I really do. I wan't the monorail to be something good for us, but I just can't see how it's going to be.
It may be the most congested corridor in town, but the distance is small enough that even a leisurely bus ride doesn't take that long.
You want a more viable long-term solution? Light rail. You want to know how to run it through down town? Run light rail right underneath the Alaska Way Viaduct. The inevitable reconstruction of the viaduct can work double-duty, getting light-rail right to the heart of downtown with a minimum of impact.
The monorail does nothing to aleve congestion problems. What minute proportion of the population will be served by a project that only serves to break the back of more viable, better long-term solutions?
You've simply squandered more money, made the goals of mass transit more diffuse, and have left just as many cars on the road.
Thanks
apologies, the intent wasn't to be pissy, but rather poignant.
Slashdot has over 600,000 accounts open, which means there's a lot of different people here.
I understand what you're saying, but I could say the same thing for anything that's central to the continued success and proliferation of Open Source Software.
Again, I'm sincerely sorry if I offended.
People in similar situations as the author do find these tidbits meaningful.
These are the kinds of things that you use as the basis for proposals. Proposals are the basis for real change, not just a bunch of people bitching about how everything sucks because Microsoft has all the money/politicians/etc...
Sorry if it doesn't fit your aenda, but not all of us live in your world.
Time to feed the trolls...
Unlike the teeming masses of trolls and ACs, I try to confine my comments to what I know. So, if other "DISTOS" have this functionality, then that's great. I don't use other "DISTOS," so I just don't know.
Don't bother me with another troll, I've met my quota of troll feeding for this month.
It's interesting--that one little bit of automation really might change the legality of it.
Apple can't "crush" this workaround. Once you have the software, you can use it. And you can use any WebDAV capable client to access your "iDisk" server.
Yep, it would be pretty easy to do this on a Windows/Mac network, if Windows actually handled WebDAV folders as well as, say OS X, or Mandrake Linux. But since Microsoft has decided that WebDAV filesystems are neither web-pages or mountable filesystems, you can't really automate backups to WebDAV servers with your Windows machines. In WindowsXP you can do something like this, so long as you have a server that understands Microsoft's perversion of WebDAV.
Someday Microsoft might "innovate" real WebDAV mounts into the filesystem (think flying pigs now), but until then, they are only good for point-and-click uses.
It would be extremely easy to write a batch file to do this if you could mount the remote WebDAV server (like you can with a mac). After you write your batch file, you could just set up a scheduled task to copy the files over to the WebDAV server (basically what the Backup utility makes so easy).
If you can use OS X or Mandrake Linux (probably other distros to--but I can't say for sure) you can have this functionality right now.