The government can say they are only supporting the major OSes
There is a vast difference between not providing support for an OS and prohibiting others from supporting an OS. The EU--by choosing a proprietary, patent-encumbered format--has chosen the latter, not merely the former.
This will never happen until Microsoft's monopoly diminishes to the point where it's no longer feasible to provide individual drivers for each of the main operating systems since they can't count on selling enough units solely with Windows drivers, and the vendors must fully implement standards supported by the most popular OSes, and/or a common driver framework is implemented (if there's a market, there's most certainly a way (hint: there's no market until Windows marketshare diminishes substantially)). Until that glorious day of level playingfield bliss, the best you can do is check for Linux compatibility when you buy hardware even if you have only a vague inkling that you might someday install Linux, and if you intend to install Linux, buy a Linux system instead of a Windows one. Or at least one that doesn't come up as a Windows sale. Stand up and be counted. Yes, I'm a hypocrite because it wasn't easy 3 years ago (and it's likely not an immediatley simple task, although it seems much better nowadays at least with a No OS option).
pay $50 for a CD that gives you everything in the way of proprietary drivers and codecs ready to go for all your hardware and multimedia as opposed to spending hours and hours and hours downloading just bits and pieces of the solutions from all over the place and fighting to get them working?
I couldn't agree more. I'd give my right arm for a fully-licensed, fully-supported QuickTime, WindowsMedia, Real, MPEG, CSS, and other format CD. I don't know why someone doesn't do this!
That said, your portrayal of hunting down codecs isn't accurate for Ubuntu at all. Most of the software you're looking for is available in the Metaverse--if not the Universe--repository, which is only a few short clicks away (it's included by default, but not enabled). The few remaining, legally questionable codecs (namely libcss and win32codecs) are readily documented and generally require only one more repository, so it's not like "spending hours and hours and hours downloading just bits and pieces of the solutions from all over the place to get them working," it's more like searching the Ubuntu community wiki for the locations of the repositories (it's even in the FAQ!) and spending a few minutes adding the repository in. Rather, the quote reminds me of the peanut butter and jelly in a squeeze bottle comedy routine: Regarding assembling a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and the apparent necessity of combining the peanut butter and jelly in a squeeze bottle, Regan remarks 'Some guy going, "You know I could go for a sandwich, but uh, I'm not gonna open TWO jars! I can't be opening and closing all kinds of jars... cleaning, who KNOWS how many knives!?!"'
All of that said, if any Linux vendors are listening, PLEASE put the proprietary codecs in the pay-for versions of your software!!!!, if not the free ones
1) I got sick to death of having to run CD burning software with sudo.
Running as root is not required. Rather, the problem is that users are not in the cdrom group by default (members of the cdrom group have permission to read and write to the CD-ROM drive). To fix this, you need to add your user to the cdrom group. To do this, go to System->Administration->Users and Groups. Choose your user from the list, and click on "Properties". Then check the "Use CD-ROM drives" checkbox (along with others you wish to check, such as "Use audio devices" and "Access external storage devices automatically". Of course, being root trumps requiring permissions, so sudo-ing or su-ing to root will work as well. However, I'd recommend this method first.
Things like easily configuring wireless connections really do work out of the box better on Windows XP than they do in Linux.
Agreed, with the caveat "out of the box" and restricted to Ubuntu and similar systems. Unfortunately, Ubuntu doesn't include NetworkManager out of the box yet (my understanding is that next version it will), at which time (IMHO) it's as easy or even easier than Windows. Other Linux distros (e.g. Fedora) do include NetworkManager out of the box. Fortunately, it's easy to install NetworkManager today, and it's one of the first things I do.
they'll just sell the profitable product and not sell the space-wasting one, and make more money than if they looked at the lemon as "subsidized" by the star product just because they came from the same vendor.
You're totally missing what I'm saying. The store doesn't care about subsidization or not; all they care about is that Minority Vendor gave them a large enough wad of cash and/or other incentives to inflate Minority Vendor's product beyond the attention it would otherwise receive. Indeed, if enough incentive is given, it would undoubtedly add space to accomodate Minority Product even up to a whole isle like the grandparent said. Heck, if the money were good enough, they'd even reduce the size of Majority Product's display space (yes, it would take a lot of money). But if you're receiving what amounts to pure profit, most anything can happen if it's enough. Sure, they'd lose sales on Majority Product, but it'd be compensated by income from Minority Vendor. As long as it makes the sheet balance in the end, that's what counts.
The subsidization is merely what makes the situation sustainable. If another Minority Player were to try to buy the space, they would run out of money and fold. Luckily for them, a certain Minority Player has extremely deep pockets.
The aisle of accessories follows the market share, not the other way around.
Not necessarily. Stores are also a business, and if the minority product's vendor can subsidize its losses in one division with excessive profits in another, the store might be persueded to add extra emphesis to a non-leading product that its vendor hopes will one day become one.
My prediction: the Zune ceases production within the year.
That depends entirely upon how badly Microsoft wants it to succeed. They can survive massive losses if they want to (i.e. think it's an important enough market to conquer). If it fails embarrassingly badly, they can also roll their accumulated lessons into another Son of Zune, maybe linking with their Origami or Tablet PC or (very likely here) XBox initiatives.
As a college student I paid under $20 for my copy of WinXP
If you didn't get this through the Campus Software Assurance program, then what I'm about to say may not be true for you. However, if you got it through the Campus Software Assurance Program, you bought an upgrade version of Windows XP Pro for $20 plus a program maintenance fee per semester which was rolled into your campus privilege fees (figures I've heard are between $30 and $70 either by year or by semester). So it wasn't just $20, and it wasn't just a copy of XP, it was a copy of XP Pro Upgrade.
I don't know if the same thing goes for the Mac software (I don't own a mac)
From what I heard the SPUs use low precision for floating point operations which makes them useless for many scientific applications.
Yes, and not necessarily, respectively. The SPUs in the PS3 anyway (IIRC this may be changed for other revs of the design, which would definitely be nice for scientific computing) are all single-precision. You must do double-precision (most scientific work) in software+single, which takes a performance hit of one order of magnitude. Fortunately, however, the Cell is blindingly fast at single-precision, so the question of if it'll suck at double precision is not at all settled. But if you only need single-precision, it'll kill.
Disclaimer: I do not actually have a Cell system in my hand, so I've not been able to benchmark any of my/our apps myself. This is based on my interested readings of the cell stuff other people have reported on.
i seem to recall that there were some "equal-access for the handicapped" advocates that didn't have a buck to make off of MS Office that had concerns
after Microsoft had a "chat" with them, as I recall.
Furthermore, they are misinformed because OpenOffice has pretty good accessiblity support--just not on Microsoft Windows, due to Windows issues and no fault of its own.
Users with disabilities might move to a UNIX/GNOME desktop, and utilize the assistive technologies there to interact with StarOffice or OpenOffice.org (or KOffice). For some disabilities this is unlikely to be an option for a while, but for others - especially users with major physical impairments who use single-switch, head-mouse, or eye-gaze systems - this is already an excellent choice. And for blind and low vision users, Sun is developing the Orca open source, scripting-based screen reader which shows tremendous promise in providing equivalent efficiency and productivity to commercial products in Windows.
[note: since this writing, Orca has been released and in Ubuntu Edgy]
the guy is an EX-employee, who is *supposed* to have spoken on Microsoft's behalf
No, according to The Friendly Article,
Brian Burke, the Microsoft Regional Director for Public Affairs,
t is my understanding that it was Burke who led the lobbying effort on Beacon Hill against ODF, and also urged legislators to introduce the amendment intended to take away much of the ITD's planning power generally, and as regards standards specifically, and hand it to a task force made up of political appointees.
Galvin also received a show of support from Microsoft in the form of a $200 December 2005 donation from Brian Burke, Microsoft's Northeast regional government affairs director
Last fall, both Pacheco and Galvin voiced concerns about the ODF initiative, criticizing the process that led to the ODF mandate.
an indication from Microsoft's Brian Burke during the last semi-public meeting on the matter (Sept 16) that he had been discussing the matter with the state's senators on Beacon Hill (Boston's equivalent of Capitol Hill).
a Massachusetts organized meeting on June 9, 2005 that was attended by Sun, IBM, Adobe, and many others. Representing Microsoft at the meeting were McKee, state government affairs manager Brian Burke and account technology specialist Leslie Tan
So I think it's pretty well established that:
He isn't merely a lobbyist, he's a chief lobbyist
In all likelihood, he's represented Microsoft's interests (i.e. pushed anti-ODF) for the duration of this discussion
and, therefore, he's more than "supposed" to have spoken on Microsoft's behalf--he is/was a chief in pushing Microsoft's viewpoint in Massachusetts.
Can you provide evidence that the advisory post is a full-time job and/or that Burke has left Microsoft, let alone being seen as "disloyal"? Maybe my google-fu isn't up to your ability, but I just can't find evidence to support your allegations.
Did any of you bother to check and see whether any of the other members were pro-ODF at all?
In what way was my statement limited to Microsoft?!It is my opinion that the rulemakers and regulartors shouldn't be directly involved with the groups they're regulating, be they from Microsoft, IBM, or Linus.
Since you brought it up, the relevant ones (i.e. the "Technology" Committee) are all listed prominently in The Friendly Article, along with their affiliations. Given, I've not done extensive background on them, but neither do they seem to be primary movers in pushing ODF. Can you provide evidence to the contrary? If so, I'll be against them too!
The mere mention of Microsoft instantly instills FUD.
And the Microsoft fanboys immediately post counter FUD to any aspersions cast upon the Great Microsoft! Sheesh. Give me a break and go get informed.
Either a technology savvy/aware person would be pro MS or pro-ODF
That may well be, but if you're going to argue that having an opinion vs work to actively promote is on the same continent, you're being rather foolish.
While I applaud the efforts of OO and am grateful for it's inclusion in modern distros I would also love to see them wake up one day and deceide they were going to take a "and now for something completely different" approach.
If they do something radically different, nobody will use it because it's Too Different, and hence a) hard to learn and b) expensive to train (heard this one in conjunction with Linux, eh?). If they do something too much the same, then nobody will use it because it's no different from the monopoly offering that everyone has and is familiar with. Catch-22.
Never mind that the new Office UI retraining difference costs will be pooh-poohed and shoved under the rug....
Only compelling reason is that Direct3D acceleration only works if both the host OS and the guest OS are both Windows. Info here.
I think you misunderstood the sentence "Experimental support for Direct3D applies only to Windows 2000 and Windows XP guests, on hosts running Windows 2000, Windows XP, or Linux." [emphasis mine]
Wow. I'm sorry, man. If only I could pitch in somehow, maybe maintaining the Ubuntu install. But the UK is quite a ways away from the midwestern USA....:(
Yep. I tend to take sarcasm somewhat personally. But I was correct in pointing out that your attempt at parodying my statement that you should be allowed to run legally-purchased software wherever you choose by portraying it as a request for a port to Some Random OS is a non-sequitur at best. Hence the lack of comedy.
Slashdot Mirror
This will never happen until Microsoft's monopoly diminishes to the point where it's no longer feasible to provide individual drivers for each of the main operating systems since they can't count on selling enough units solely with Windows drivers, and the vendors must fully implement standards supported by the most popular OSes, and/or a common driver framework is implemented (if there's a market, there's most certainly a way (hint: there's no market until Windows marketshare diminishes substantially)). Until that glorious day of level playingfield bliss, the best you can do is check for Linux compatibility when you buy hardware even if you have only a vague inkling that you might someday install Linux, and if you intend to install Linux, buy a Linux system instead of a Windows one. Or at least one that doesn't come up as a Windows sale. Stand up and be counted. Yes, I'm a hypocrite because it wasn't easy 3 years ago (and it's likely not an immediatley simple task, although it seems much better nowadays at least with a No OS option).
I couldn't agree more. I'd give my right arm for a fully-licensed, fully-supported QuickTime, WindowsMedia, Real, MPEG, CSS, and other format CD. I don't know why someone doesn't do this!
That said, your portrayal of hunting down codecs isn't accurate for Ubuntu at all. Most of the software you're looking for is available in the Metaverse--if not the Universe--repository, which is only a few short clicks away (it's included by default, but not enabled). The few remaining, legally questionable codecs (namely libcss and win32codecs) are readily documented and generally require only one more repository, so it's not like "spending hours and hours and hours downloading just bits and pieces of the solutions from all over the place to get them working," it's more like searching the Ubuntu community wiki for the locations of the repositories (it's even in the FAQ!) and spending a few minutes adding the repository in. Rather, the quote reminds me of the peanut butter and jelly in a squeeze bottle comedy routine: Regarding assembling a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and the apparent necessity of combining the peanut butter and jelly in a squeeze bottle, Regan remarks 'Some guy going, "You know I could go for a sandwich, but uh, I'm not gonna open TWO jars! I can't be opening and closing all kinds of jars... cleaning, who KNOWS how many knives!?!"'
All of that said, if any Linux vendors are listening, PLEASE put the proprietary codecs in the pay-for versions of your software!!!!, if not the free ones
Running as root is not required. Rather, the problem is that users are not in the cdrom group by default (members of the cdrom group have permission to read and write to the CD-ROM drive). To fix this, you need to add your user to the cdrom group. To do this, go to System->Administration->Users and Groups. Choose your user from the list, and click on "Properties". Then check the "Use CD-ROM drives" checkbox (along with others you wish to check, such as "Use audio devices" and "Access external storage devices automatically". Of course, being root trumps requiring permissions, so sudo-ing or su-ing to root will work as well. However, I'd recommend this method first.
Agreed, with the caveat "out of the box" and restricted to Ubuntu and similar systems. Unfortunately, Ubuntu doesn't include NetworkManager out of the box yet (my understanding is that next version it will), at which time (IMHO) it's as easy or even easier than Windows. Other Linux distros (e.g. Fedora) do include NetworkManager out of the box. Fortunately, it's easy to install NetworkManager today, and it's one of the first things I do.Aisle. Aisle. Can't believe I wrote that!
You're totally missing what I'm saying. The store doesn't care about subsidization or not; all they care about is that Minority Vendor gave them a large enough wad of cash and/or other incentives to inflate Minority Vendor's product beyond the attention it would otherwise receive. Indeed, if enough incentive is given, it would undoubtedly add space to accomodate Minority Product even up to a whole isle like the grandparent said. Heck, if the money were good enough, they'd even reduce the size of Majority Product's display space (yes, it would take a lot of money). But if you're receiving what amounts to pure profit, most anything can happen if it's enough. Sure, they'd lose sales on Majority Product, but it'd be compensated by income from Minority Vendor. As long as it makes the sheet balance in the end, that's what counts.
The subsidization is merely what makes the situation sustainable. If another Minority Player were to try to buy the space, they would run out of money and fold. Luckily for them, a certain Minority Player has extremely deep pockets.
If you didn't get this through the Campus Software Assurance program, then what I'm about to say may not be true for you. However, if you got it through the Campus Software Assurance Program, you bought an upgrade version of Windows XP Pro for $20 plus a program maintenance fee per semester which was rolled into your campus privilege fees (figures I've heard are between $30 and $70 either by year or by semester). So it wasn't just $20, and it wasn't just a copy of XP, it was a copy of XP Pro Upgrade.
I don't know if the same thing goes for the Mac software (I don't own a mac)
Weird. I dunno. This was a desktop system, so maybe its hard drive was faster? It was a very old system, though.
also, what speed is your hard drive?
Yes, and not necessarily, respectively. The SPUs in the PS3 anyway (IIRC this may be changed for other revs of the design, which would definitely be nice for scientific computing) are all single-precision. You must do double-precision (most scientific work) in software+single, which takes a performance hit of one order of magnitude. Fortunately, however, the Cell is blindingly fast at single-precision, so the question of if it'll suck at double precision is not at all settled. But if you only need single-precision, it'll kill.
Disclaimer: I do not actually have a Cell system in my hand, so I've not been able to benchmark any of my/our apps myself. This is based on my interested readings of the cell stuff other people have reported on.
Not a PS3 per se....
/me would dearly love to get his hands on a cell system, if anyone from IBM is in the house.... :)
after Microsoft had a "chat" with them, as I recall.
Furthermore, they are misinformed because OpenOffice has pretty good accessiblity support--just not on Microsoft Windows , due to Windows issues and no fault of its own.
Quoth Peter Korn
[note: since this writing, Orca has been released and in Ubuntu Edgy]
No, according to The Friendly Article,
Furthermore
Additionally,
And also,
So I think it's pretty well established that:
- He isn't merely a lobbyist, he's a chief lobbyist
- In all likelihood, he's represented Microsoft's interests (i.e. pushed anti-ODF) for the duration of this discussion
and, therefore, he's more than "supposed" to have spoken on Microsoft's behalf--he is/was a chief in pushing Microsoft's viewpoint in Massachusetts.Can you provide evidence that the advisory post is a full-time job and/or that Burke has left Microsoft, let alone being seen as "disloyal"? Maybe my google-fu isn't up to your ability, but I just can't find evidence to support your allegations.
In what way was my statement limited to Microsoft?! It is my opinion that the rulemakers and regulartors shouldn't be directly involved with the groups they're regulating, be they from Microsoft, IBM, or Linus.
Since you brought it up, the relevant ones (i.e. the "Technology" Committee) are all listed prominently in The Friendly Article, along with their affiliations. Given, I've not done extensive background on them, but neither do they seem to be primary movers in pushing ODF. Can you provide evidence to the contrary? If so, I'll be against them too!
And the Microsoft fanboys immediately post counter FUD to any aspersions cast upon the Great Microsoft! Sheesh. Give me a break and go get informed.
That may well be, but if you're going to argue that having an opinion vs work to actively promote is on the same continent, you're being rather foolish.
If they do something radically different, nobody will use it because it's Too Different, and hence a) hard to learn and b) expensive to train (heard this one in conjunction with Linux, eh?). If they do something too much the same, then nobody will use it because it's no different from the monopoly offering that everyone has and is familiar with. Catch-22.
Never mind that the new Office UI retraining difference costs will be pooh-poohed and shoved under the rug....
Wow. I'm sorry, man. If only I could pitch in somehow, maybe maintaining the Ubuntu install. But the UK is quite a ways away from the midwestern USA.... :(
Kudos to you for installing Linux as a dual-boot!
So half the price of each PC was Windows?!
Amen to that. What ever happened to "if you build it, they will come?"
From the graphs, it's obvious that Linux, BSD, and MacOS lumped together are only 0.05 percent of the desktop market!!
But it wasn't even a frickin joke. It was a thinly-veiled slam that was entirely tangential to the topic at hand. that is my point.
Yep. I tend to take sarcasm somewhat personally. But I was correct in pointing out that your attempt at parodying my statement that you should be allowed to run legally-purchased software wherever you choose by portraying it as a request for a port to Some Random OS is a non-sequitur at best. Hence the lack of comedy.
what request was that, O Mighty Zealot?