It has never been a single button mouse. It's just that the rest of the buttons are exceptionally inconveniently located on the keyboard, most of them in the lower left quadrant!
On the other hand, the Microsoft style of putting a gazillion buttons and scroll wheels on the mouse is not necessarily good either. I sometimes wonder why Windows machines even ship with a keyboard at all, given this tendency.
How the heck is this useful? I imagine it was intended to bridge a conceptual gap between paper documents and computing, but it's a nightmare to my retina.
On most screens (barring reflective LCDs) the white colour is just light, shining right into your eyes. With paper documents this is not quite the case. Terminal style is much easier on the eyes, as you need much less light to convey the same information. Even then, it's not wise to use full white and full black.
If you think black-on-white is the best way, try reading black text written on a lightbulb that's turned on. I think it's a much closer analogy to black-on-white on a computer screen, than a paper document is.
WINE is an implementation of the WIN32 API on Linux (and others)
True. Now then, can you name a piece of software that IS an emulator?
For example, does Dosemu provide a "DOS API" on top of Linux, so that DOS applications can run on Linux? Or does it emulate DOS instead? What is the difference anyway?
Of course, there are matters of degree, for example when emulating hardware as well. Or is that implementing a hardware interface in software? Again, what's the difference?
Microsoft MUST allow the patching of even pirate copies or they are setting of the biggest virus/bot/spam net in the entire world.
No, this would not help correct piracy. If MS can identify pirated and legitimate copies, they should simply disable the pirates OS from doing anything at all.
Then again, they probably figure it's better to have a pirated Windows than an alternative OS...
This is certainly not funny, I agree with most points about it.
However, old and simple technology does not always equate to lower power consumption. Compare my two laptops:
K6-400, 800x600 color DSTN, consumes 30 W max.
486SL-33, 640x480 color TFT, consumes 50 W max.
The newer laptop is much more efficient. If you calculate something like FLOPS/Watt then newer processors are almost always more efficient. For example with Pentium II to III you get more FLOPS but less power consumption, so it's a lin-lin situation;)
On the other hand, many new laptops consume much more than the 30 W of my Toshiba, yet if they manage a few hours of wireless use, their batteries are more capable than mine.
Basically adults have more places to fit new knowledge into. Children have to learn everything from scratch, which is a bit harder.
I see this also in the way that adults have more ways where they can apply the knowledge, so they understand why the new knowledge is useful and interesting. I'm a math/science teacher in a junior high school, and I'm constantly faced by the question "Where do we need this?"
Have you ever used openoffice ? Given my personal experience OOo performs just about the same as MO.
I agree that OOo is a good replacement for MS Office, but the whole WYSIWYG idea sucks for writing anything more than a few pages. For longer, structured documents LaTeX or something similar is much better. It runs on Windows as well.
In my opinion, word processors are just glorified drawing programs, with a few special features added to make text processing easier. They tend to make the user more focused on the superficial presentation than the actual content/structure. Which is fine in some cases, but not when you're writing an essay, an academic thesis or something like those.
I also know from practical experience that word processors get painfully slow to use for large and complicated documents. Besides, no office software has the stability of simple text editors, and it would be annoying to lose your thesis because of a bug in your nice and shiny word processor.
Re:First to apply OS methodology outside SW?
on
Cooking With Linux
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· Score: 1
I think you might be confusing opensource with free software. The latter is a religious/political movement.
Opensource is the bare, practical side of free software. The software can be seen as a model or a theory, which everyone is allowed and encouraged to test and improve.
First to apply OS methodology outside SW?
on
Cooking With Linux
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· Score: 1
About Michael Stutz
Michael Stutz has used Linux exclusively for over a decade. He was the first to apply the open source methodology of Linux to non-software works
This is utter BS. The open source methodology is basically the scientific method, which has been used for at least hundreds of years. Other kinds of OS analogies, like folk music, go back way more.
From an energy perspective, the CPU only converts electricity into heat
Well, yes and no. There is, in fact, a thermodynamical minimum limit for how much heat is produced by information processing. Everything above this is waste due to inefficiencies.
This applies when information is destroyed, which is almost always the case. For instance, when you sum two 32-bit numbers (64 bits of info) into a new 32-bit one, you are effectively destroying 32 bits. Information destroyed is entropy created.
Entropy is directly related to heat, and the minimum amount of heat thus created is
kT * information in bits
where k = 1.38E-23 J/K (Boltzmann's constant) and T is the temperature. So for example, if we destroy 32 bits * 1 Ghz = 3.2E10 bits per second, in room temperature of 300 K, we have to create at least
1.32E-10 Watts
This is negligible compared to today's processors, but it might become important sometime in far future. (Note to those in the know, this is a rough order-of-magnitude calculation, but the basic principle remains.)
Reversible computing is a new paradigm that does not destroy information, so it can theoretically produce a lot less heat. It may not seem very useful to remove that 1E-10 W of heat, but dealing with the information loss probably has some wasteful effects. Think about the waste always being 1E12 times the theoretical value (constant efficiency of 0.0000000001 %); now reduce the theoretical value to zero and think of the outcome.
Dark energy or dark matter or whatever dark clever tag you want to give it is just another way of saying " we don't know what it is so we'll make an educated SWAG (scientific wild ass guess)...just so we don't have to admit to anyone taht that we don't know...
I agree to some extent. It seems too complicated. One problem is IMHO that General Relativity is taken as an absolute gospel, and then we need all these complications to make observations fit theory. Whereas other theories besides GR can explain things more simply (hello Ockham!). I suggest everyone who's interested in these things take a look at Dynamic Universe, but there are other alternative theories as well.
Slashdot Mirror
The rest of Lynx users have migrated to w3m, as it's lighter and more capable (e.g. frames). Thus only three are stuck with Lynx.
I thought "jail" is just the American spelling of the British "gaol".
Never mind the question why people say "acronym" when they mean "abbreviation"...
On the other hand, the Microsoft style of putting a gazillion buttons and scroll wheels on the mouse is not necessarily good either. I sometimes wonder why Windows machines even ship with a keyboard at all, given this tendency.
How the heck is this useful? I imagine it was intended to bridge a conceptual gap between paper documents and computing, but it's a nightmare to my retina.
On most screens (barring reflective LCDs) the white colour is just light, shining right into your eyes. With paper documents this is not quite the case. Terminal style is much easier on the eyes, as you need much less light to convey the same information. Even then, it's not wise to use full white and full black.
If you think black-on-white is the best way, try reading black text written on a lightbulb that's turned on. I think it's a much closer analogy to black-on-white on a computer screen, than a paper document is.
linky
True. Now then, can you name a piece of software that IS an emulator?
For example, does Dosemu provide a "DOS API" on top of Linux, so that DOS applications can run on Linux? Or does it emulate DOS instead? What is the difference anyway?
Of course, there are matters of degree, for example when emulating hardware as well. Or is that implementing a hardware interface in software? Again, what's the difference?
No, this would not help correct piracy. If MS can identify pirated and legitimate copies, they should simply disable the pirates OS from doing anything at all.
Then again, they probably figure it's better to have a pirated Windows than an alternative OS...
However, old and simple technology does not always equate to lower power consumption. Compare my two laptops:
- K6-400, 800x600 color DSTN, consumes 30 W max.
- 486SL-33, 640x480 color TFT, consumes 50 W max.
The newer laptop is much more efficient. If you calculate something like FLOPS/Watt then newer processors are almost always more efficient. For example with Pentium II to III you get more FLOPS but less power consumption, so it's a lin-lin situationOn the other hand, many new laptops consume much more than the 30 W of my Toshiba, yet if they manage a few hours of wireless use, their batteries are more capable than mine.
I see this also in the way that adults have more ways where they can apply the knowledge, so they understand why the new knowledge is useful and interesting. I'm a math/science teacher in a junior high school, and I'm constantly faced by the question "Where do we need this?"
I agree that OOo is a good replacement for MS Office, but the whole WYSIWYG idea sucks for writing anything more than a few pages. For longer, structured documents LaTeX or something similar is much better. It runs on Windows as well.
In my opinion, word processors are just glorified drawing programs, with a few special features added to make text processing easier. They tend to make the user more focused on the superficial presentation than the actual content/structure. Which is fine in some cases, but not when you're writing an essay, an academic thesis or something like those.
I also know from practical experience that word processors get painfully slow to use for large and complicated documents. Besides, no office software has the stability of simple text editors, and it would be annoying to lose your thesis because of a bug in your nice and shiny word processor.
Word processors are stupid and inefficient.
Opensource is the bare, practical side of free software. The software can be seen as a model or a theory, which everyone is allowed and encouraged to test and improve.
This is utter BS. The open source methodology is basically the scientific method, which has been used for at least hundreds of years. Other kinds of OS analogies, like folk music, go back way more.
Ba-doom-tcsh!
Vor-bis is a simple word. Em-pee-three is a cryptic abbreviation.
I think it makes a huge difference that you can buy a laptop without supporting the organized crime that is Microsoft.
It must be absolutely hilarious to you that someone has the balls to challenge arbitrary gender segregation traditions.
Funny that I happen to be wearing a MIDAS kilt right now.
From an energy perspective, the CPU only converts electricity into heat
Well, yes and no. There is, in fact, a thermodynamical minimum limit for how much heat is produced by information processing. Everything above this is waste due to inefficiencies.
This applies when information is destroyed, which is almost always the case. For instance, when you sum two 32-bit numbers (64 bits of info) into a new 32-bit one, you are effectively destroying 32 bits. Information destroyed is entropy created.
Entropy is directly related to heat, and the minimum amount of heat thus created is
where k = 1.38E-23 J/K (Boltzmann's constant) and T is the temperature. So for example, if we destroy 32 bits * 1 Ghz = 3.2E10 bits per second, in room temperature of 300 K, we have to create at least This is negligible compared to today's processors, but it might become important sometime in far future. (Note to those in the know, this is a rough order-of-magnitude calculation, but the basic principle remains.)Reversible computing is a new paradigm that does not destroy information, so it can theoretically produce a lot less heat. It may not seem very useful to remove that 1E-10 W of heat, but dealing with the information loss probably has some wasteful effects. Think about the waste always being 1E12 times the theoretical value (constant efficiency of 0.0000000001 %); now reduce the theoretical value to zero and think of the outcome.
If you're preaching ethics, consider removing your sig that advertises a pyramid scheme.
I agree to some extent. It seems too complicated. One problem is IMHO that General Relativity is taken as an absolute gospel, and then we need all these complications to make observations fit theory. Whereas other theories besides GR can explain things more simply (hello Ockham!). I suggest everyone who's interested in these things take a look at Dynamic Universe, but there are other alternative theories as well.
On Gentoo, "emerge koules".
I agree with you, but I'm always wary of using the word 'supernatural'. I've elaborated the problem with this word here a little more.
"Evolution is a theory, just like gravity. If you don't believe in those, go jump off a bridge."
It was our Moon, with Earth countries having a telepresence war. One of the best Lem books IMHO.
Linus is from Finland. But the facts of socialism are equally true.