Do people read Sun's EULAs, or do they listen to RMS and assume he's justified?
From RMS: A program is free software if its users have certain crucial freedoms. Roughly speaking, they are: the freedom to run the program, the freedom to study and change the source, the freedom to redistribute the source and binaries, and the freedom to publish improved versions.
By analyzing the EULA that comes with a Java SDK download, I can run the program, I can study the source, I can redistribute the binaries and source, and I can publish improved versions (I can extend core Java classes, so long as I don't make them part of the java, javax, or sun packages).
I can't change the source. But in object oriented fashion, I can make my own version of any class, or I can extend any class in OO fashion. So I don't give a rat's butt that I can't change the core source itself. As a developer, I still have all the freedom I need.
I also don't see what all the fear and uncertainty is about. Sun may at some point take away my ability to download the next version of Java. But they cannot take away the versions they've already distributed. Sun has given me rights to redistribute. That cannot be undone.
A serial killer who one day decides to donate blood... is still a serial killer.
Using an analogy of an individual doesn't work when relating to a collective group. Hitler may always be a murderer, but Germany doesn't have to be considered an evil empire forever. Slave owners may always be oppressors, but the United States isn't forever an oppressive country.
Bill Gates will always be a law-breaking monopolist, but Microsoft doesn't have to be evil forever.
Agree 100%. When i was in school we only had a handful of them. We used them when it was necessary.
Now look at me, I am a software engineer, I think they are the biggest waste of money within a school, they are "super machines" that people think will make teaching go so much better.
Computers are not in schools strictly for the potential software engineer. They are there because learning to operate a computer, such as authoring documents on publishing software, or keying in orders, is a requirement for a large number of jobs in the U.S. economy.
Further, computers are in school for more than students such as myself and yourself whose parents could afford to supply us with computers at home. Computers are in schools so that the children of low-income families have equal capability to learn what you and I learned at home. Computers in school reduce the digital divide, at least somewhat.
Give the money to the teachers to higher a better staff, THEN you will have more well informed children. God if they paid $60K+ starting to teach, think of the people they could have instructing.
Teachers earn what the market will bear, like any other profession. Every graduate that I know with a teaching degree has had to compete fiercely for job openings. When an offer is available, they take it, gladly. As long as this is the case, schools will not be forced to pay higher wages. My economics teacher taught me about supply and demand.
yeah, no joke.. get rid of the computers and learn the hard way! I was raised without computers until late in highschool, and look at me! I mean, I am single, a musician.. alcoholic.. addicted to porn and constantly refreshing slashd..
At least it paid off in your grammar, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation skills.
A launching platform from which fans can throw rotting vegetables at the 2005 Seattle Mariners, for example. One more reason baseball players should stay away from needles.
At any rate, if you read Speakeasy's website where you would actually sign up for the service, you'll find they do offer a $500 per month option offering 3 megabit service. It's still not "cheaper" than a $500 1.5 megabit service as the article incorrectly claims, but it is more bandwidth for your buck.
The article you mention is a joke. Not once does it mention Enterprise airing only on UPN, unlike previous Star Trek successes.
Further, the article mentions that when Enterprise first aired, it had over 12 million viewers, then dwindled quickly. Then it goes on to hypothesize things like saturation and a poor matchup with UPN content. If that was the problem, Enterprise wouldn't have started out with 12 million viewers.
In the world of science, if something fails when it had always succeeded, we identify the differences, and hypothesize that the differences cause the failure. In the world of Star Trek, the genuises at UPN find bizarre reasoning, rather than identify the obvious. Sad really.
Actualy, pick the second thing that you have a passion for rather than THE thing that you have a passion for so that when you go home at night you will have something that you enjoy
1. Linux still isn't ready for prime time zero hassle common user usage.
As someone who spends many a weekend at his parents', aunts', uncles', or cousins' house fixing the damn mess that is Windows, you must explain to me exactly what is "zero hassle". On every Windows computer I "fix", I install AVG antivirus, ZoneAlarm, Firefox, AdAware, Spybot, and bring them up to do date with WindowsUpdate. I teach them how to run AdAware, Spybot, and WindowsUpdate regularly. And somehow, I usually have to come visit again in a couple of months. How is this zero-hassle? I can assure you I've hassled less since I switched from Windows to Linux.
The closest thing I've seen would be OSX. But I've had roomates with OSX, and I can assure you that even it is not zero hassle.
Actually, when you get into a touchscreen based environment, operating systems that expect 2 button (or more) mouses are a liability.
If you say so. Having done kiosk touch-screen work myself, I have to question your claims. When doing kiosk development, you usually either write browser-based applications (running the browser in "kiosk mode"), or use an application toolkit that is provided by your kiosk vendor. At any rate, the right-click functions are not necessary or even desired. Having no way to get to them for your science center vistor tapping a screen is no issue. Does Grandma really need access to "View Source" so she can see your HTML code?
If we were leaving the operation of the kiosk entirely up to the Operating System, we'd run up against the double-click problem long before we worried about something as unimportant as right-click. But we don't run into either because we use toolkits/browser running a customized single-click application flow.
I mean, seriously, do you have your science center visitors punching around Windows Explorer trying to figure out how to delete "C:\Program Files" without a delete button or right-click?
Interesting you mention XFCE as a light option - I recently noticed it is one of the first window managers to roll turn on drop shadows when running under X.org (meaning, you don't need xcompmgr for drop shadows under XFCE). Certainly, other WM will follow, but its interesting that a WM everyone describes as "light" is one of the first.
Why screenshots?... What do screenshots mean in such a scenario ? I know I'm being overly critical but any default X configuration tends to look like 1994 nostalgia.
How would you know it still looks that way if it weren't for the screenshots? Would you rather have to install every distro in the hopes that it looks sexy, only to be pissed off at the time and effort required to find out it looks the same?
It takes someone with a capable system, the correct graphic acceleration drivers installed, X.org with xcompmgr shadows (or a window manager AND gui toolkit that supports the extensions), a pimp-looking WM and gui toolkit skin, a pimp-looking icon theme, and gdesklets (or equivalent) to even approach the OSX sexiness.
Apple's benefit is that they know most of their systems can support sexy. If Suse were to release the desktop you want, every old-school Linux geek with a 10 year old computer would make more noise than 77 Olds Cutlass with a squeaky fan belt.
Even today, those same people argue that GTK+ 2 is too fat - a three year old toolkit. It's a wonder Linux desktops make any progress at all.
She's not too far off - Everytime I see a story on Microsoft and Linux - I see the extremists belittle, spread FUD, and incorrect information.
The kettle called, it wants its color back. Laura Didio is the queen of OSS bashers in research analyst's clothing. Don't beleive me? Try a Google search on Laura.
She has made a career out of bashing open source because she knows it makes her one of the most well known technology analysts around. Read a bit about this woman and the reports she writes, and then tell me you don't see a trend. Whenever a long period of time goes where you hear nothing about Laura Didio, she throws out something controversial to stir the pot.
That analogy is terrible. The analogy would work if you could only buy XBox games from the Microsoft store.
I can't think of a single situation where a single company controlled the hardware AND the store for an entire media industry. Even Microsoft never owned the hardware. When Microsoft used their power to influence hardware manufacturers, we all cried foul and sicked the DOJ on them.
Yes, Apple fanboys will tell me to shut up because Apple got where they are by making a good product. I don't disagree with that. But, I do have plenty of concern for a future where ITMS is the only place to get music.
When I purchased an audio player, I chose the Zen Touch for this very concern. I don't like Microsoft's DRM any more than Apple's, but I do appreciate that Microsoft DRM music is sold by competing stores. I would've definitely purchased an iPod if there were competing music stores.
What about WiMax and 3g wireless networks that will provide wide-are high-speed Internet connectivity? Between WiMax and 3g wireless, there will be plenty of networks that blanket much of the U.S. and the world. The city of Dayton Ohio can only cover the metro city limits. People will pay for WiMax and 3g connectivity which will offer them seamless connectivity from their homes in the suburbs to their offices in the city and the drive betwen, from the Dayton airport to the San Francisco airport, from Dayton to Cleveland and the highways in between, and across the state, the Bi-State, the Tri-State, and the Quad Cities.
This isn't the death of private wireless networks you seem to fear. The city of Dayton cannot compete with these networks.
I have a stupid 19" trinitron and it's just getting brighter. All too common a problem with the 19s and 21s. Wait a few minutes. I'm pretty sure CmdrTaco will post something to fix that, too.
So would that be like putting a pig in a dress? Or are you dressing your girlfriend as a pig? Or is your mother a girl dressed like a pig in combat boots? Damn, I'm so freaking confused.
Slashdot Mirror
Do people read Sun's EULAs, or do they listen to RMS and assume he's justified?
From RMS:
A program is free software if its users have certain crucial freedoms. Roughly speaking, they are: the freedom to run the program, the freedom to study and change the source, the freedom to redistribute the source and binaries, and the freedom to publish improved versions.
By analyzing the EULA that comes with a Java SDK download, I can run the program, I can study the source, I can redistribute the binaries and source, and I can publish improved versions (I can extend core Java classes, so long as I don't make them part of the java, javax, or sun packages).
I can't change the source. But in object oriented fashion, I can make my own version of any class, or I can extend any class in OO fashion. So I don't give a rat's butt that I can't change the core source itself. As a developer, I still have all the freedom I need.
I also don't see what all the fear and uncertainty is about. Sun may at some point take away my ability to download the next version of Java. But they cannot take away the versions they've already distributed. Sun has given me rights to redistribute. That cannot be undone.
Dorothy: Gee, Toto, I don't think we are in Kansas anymore.
Toto: Thank freaking god.
A serial killer who one day decides to donate blood ... is still a serial killer.
Using an analogy of an individual doesn't work when relating to a collective group. Hitler may always be a murderer, but Germany doesn't have to be considered an evil empire forever. Slave owners may always be oppressors, but the United States isn't forever an oppressive country.
Bill Gates will always be a law-breaking monopolist, but Microsoft doesn't have to be evil forever.
Agree 100%. When i was in school we only had a handful of them. We used them when it was necessary.
Now look at me, I am a software engineer, I think they are the biggest waste of money within a school, they are "super machines" that people think will make teaching go so much better.
Computers are not in schools strictly for the potential software engineer. They are there because learning to operate a computer, such as authoring documents on publishing software, or keying in orders, is a requirement for a large number of jobs in the U.S. economy.
Further, computers are in school for more than students such as myself and yourself whose parents could afford to supply us with computers at home. Computers are in schools so that the children of low-income families have equal capability to learn what you and I learned at home. Computers in school reduce the digital divide, at least somewhat.
Give the money to the teachers to higher a better staff, THEN you will have more well informed children. God if they paid $60K+ starting to teach, think of the people they could have instructing.
Teachers earn what the market will bear, like any other profession. Every graduate that I know with a teaching degree has had to compete fiercely for job openings. When an offer is available, they take it, gladly. As long as this is the case, schools will not be forced to pay higher wages. My economics teacher taught me about supply and demand.
yeah, no joke.. get rid of the computers and learn the hard way! I was raised without computers until late in highschool, and look at me! I mean, I am single, a musician.. alcoholic.. addicted to porn and constantly refreshing slashd..
At least it paid off in your grammar, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation skills.
The report shows an average saving of 24% per computer
Sorry to pick nits, but qualifying 24% with "per computer" is meaningless.
A launching platform from which fans can throw rotting vegetables at the 2005 Seattle Mariners, for example.
One more reason baseball players should stay away from needles.
At any rate, if you read Speakeasy's website where you would actually sign up for the service, you'll find they do offer a $500 per month option offering 3 megabit service. It's still not "cheaper" than a $500 1.5 megabit service as the article incorrectly claims, but it is more bandwidth for your buck.
Linux PDA Resurfaces in U.S.
I lost my Zaurus about 2 months ago. When I read the title, I was really hoping you had found my missing $350 handheld. Doh!
The article you mention is a joke. Not once does it mention Enterprise airing only on UPN, unlike previous Star Trek successes.
Further, the article mentions that when Enterprise first aired, it had over 12 million viewers, then dwindled quickly. Then it goes on to hypothesize things like saturation and a poor matchup with UPN content. If that was the problem, Enterprise wouldn't have started out with 12 million viewers.
In the world of science, if something fails when it had always succeeded, we identify the differences, and hypothesize that the differences cause the failure. In the world of Star Trek, the genuises at UPN find bizarre reasoning, rather than identify the obvious. Sad really.
Actualy, pick the second thing that you have a passion for rather than THE thing that you have a passion for so that when you go home at night you will have something that you enjoy
So, your advice is to stay out of porn?
we'll seed the collective by planting Windows onto a drone....The collective will grind to a halt, and humanity will prevail.
Your scenario highlights that Windows Activation actually will doom humanity when the borg are unable to install Windows on multiple systems.
1. Linux still isn't ready for prime time zero hassle common user usage.
As someone who spends many a weekend at his parents', aunts', uncles', or cousins' house fixing the damn mess that is Windows, you must explain to me exactly what is "zero hassle". On every Windows computer I "fix", I install AVG antivirus, ZoneAlarm, Firefox, AdAware, Spybot, and bring them up to do date with WindowsUpdate. I teach them how to run AdAware, Spybot, and WindowsUpdate regularly. And somehow, I usually have to come visit again in a couple of months. How is this zero-hassle? I can assure you I've hassled less since I switched from Windows to Linux.
The closest thing I've seen would be OSX. But I've had roomates with OSX, and I can assure you that even it is not zero hassle.
Actually, when you get into a touchscreen based environment, operating systems that expect 2 button (or more) mouses are a liability.
If you say so. Having done kiosk touch-screen work myself, I have to question your claims. When doing kiosk development, you usually either write browser-based applications (running the browser in "kiosk mode"), or use an application toolkit that is provided by your kiosk vendor. At any rate, the right-click functions are not necessary or even desired. Having no way to get to them for your science center vistor tapping a screen is no issue. Does Grandma really need access to "View Source" so she can see your HTML code?
If we were leaving the operation of the kiosk entirely up to the Operating System, we'd run up against the double-click problem long before we worried about something as unimportant as right-click. But we don't run into either because we use toolkits/browser running a customized single-click application flow.
I mean, seriously, do you have your science center visitors punching around Windows Explorer trying to figure out how to delete "C:\Program Files" without a delete button or right-click?
One word: Shrinkage
Opera calls their tiny products "embedded".
Interesting you mention XFCE as a light option - I recently noticed it is one of the first window managers to roll turn on drop shadows when running under X.org (meaning, you don't need xcompmgr for drop shadows under XFCE). Certainly, other WM will follow, but its interesting that a WM everyone describes as "light" is one of the first.
Why screenshots? ... What do screenshots mean in such a scenario ? I know I'm being overly critical but any default X configuration tends to look like 1994 nostalgia.
How would you know it still looks that way if it weren't for the screenshots? Would you rather have to install every distro in the hopes that it looks sexy, only to be pissed off at the time and effort required to find out it looks the same?
It takes someone with a capable system, the correct graphic acceleration drivers installed, X.org with xcompmgr shadows (or a window manager AND gui toolkit that supports the extensions), a pimp-looking WM and gui toolkit skin, a pimp-looking icon theme, and gdesklets (or equivalent) to even approach the OSX sexiness.
Apple's benefit is that they know most of their systems can support sexy. If Suse were to release the desktop you want, every old-school Linux geek with a 10 year old computer would make more noise than 77 Olds Cutlass with a squeaky fan belt.
Even today, those same people argue that GTK+ 2 is too fat - a three year old toolkit. It's a wonder Linux desktops make any progress at all.
Linus is being silly if he's blaming Tridge for anything here.
Someone criticizes Linus and gets modded +5 Insightful.
In other news, bacon prices surge as pigs disappear from farms on new-found power of flight.
Fortunately, keeping bits will be a much simpler task now that they are standing perpendicular.
You would think, but when bits get exposed to disco all bets are off.
She's not too far off - Everytime I see a story on Microsoft and Linux - I see the extremists belittle, spread FUD, and incorrect information.
The kettle called, it wants its color back. Laura Didio is the queen of OSS bashers in research analyst's clothing. Don't beleive me? Try a Google search on Laura.
She has made a career out of bashing open source because she knows it makes her one of the most well known technology analysts around. Read a bit about this woman and the reports she writes, and then tell me you don't see a trend. Whenever a long period of time goes where you hear nothing about Laura Didio, she throws out something controversial to stir the pot.
She's the equivalent of a troll - don't feed her.
That analogy is terrible. The analogy would work if you could only buy XBox games from the Microsoft store.
I can't think of a single situation where a single company controlled the hardware AND the store for an entire media industry. Even Microsoft never owned the hardware. When Microsoft used their power to influence hardware manufacturers, we all cried foul and sicked the DOJ on them.
Yes, Apple fanboys will tell me to shut up because Apple got where they are by making a good product. I don't disagree with that. But, I do have plenty of concern for a future where ITMS is the only place to get music.
When I purchased an audio player, I chose the Zen Touch for this very concern. I don't like Microsoft's DRM any more than Apple's, but I do appreciate that Microsoft DRM music is sold by competing stores. I would've definitely purchased an iPod if there were competing music stores.
You can't compete with free.
What about WiMax and 3g wireless networks that will provide wide-are high-speed Internet connectivity? Between WiMax and 3g wireless, there will be plenty of networks that blanket much of the U.S. and the world. The city of Dayton Ohio can only cover the metro city limits. People will pay for WiMax and 3g connectivity which will offer them seamless connectivity from their homes in the suburbs to their offices in the city and the drive betwen, from the Dayton airport to the San Francisco airport, from Dayton to Cleveland and the highways in between, and across the state, the Bi-State, the Tri-State, and the Quad Cities.
This isn't the death of private wireless networks you seem to fear. The city of Dayton cannot compete with these networks.
If I put CmdrTaco in my enemies list, will I stop seeing his news?
I have a stupid 19" trinitron and it's just getting brighter. All too common a problem with the 19s and 21s.
Wait a few minutes. I'm pretty sure CmdrTaco will post something to fix that, too.
So would that be like putting a pig in a dress? Or are you dressing your girlfriend as a pig? Or is your mother a girl dressed like a pig in combat boots? Damn, I'm so freaking confused.
I'm off to port MS Paint to Linux, wish me luck.