To get into what I'm thinking I want you to pull out your inner newbe.
Now you think newbies want user friendly GUI systems? Really? What is "user friendly" to a newbie? what is "gui" to a newbie? They are "Complex computer words like mouse keyboard and on switch"
What do newbies want? They want a computer to go on the Internet with. They want e-mail.
Go into a computer store. Your a newbie.. what do you see? You see Macs and PCs. No not Windows just Macs and PCs.
Look at the Macs. pritty Macs. Wow. But those pritty Macs are expensive aren't they. Thats a lot of money for a pritty computer. Your a newbie what do you know of processing power or capabilitys. It's a pritty computer with a big price tag nothing more.
Look at the PCs. Well some are really expensive some are really cheap. But they all seem ok. Some pritty. Some pritty and cheap. Now a salesmen walks up... "Why are those so much more expensive?"
"Those are faster store more information and have more memory so your documents can be bigger."
"Wow" Now your getting an idea of what power is. But your already looking at the PCs.. the Macs no longer exist to you.
"But you can always upgrade later.. add memory, bigger hard disk etc" Ok your transfixed on the cheapest. "What is Windows?" Your not going to go away not noticing the big Microsoft Windows logo plastered on the screen.
"Thats the software than runs the computer. It's very populare and runs all your favoret games and business programms."
Notice not a single mention of "user friendly". Some times the salesman says "The most populare" but usually they sink back with "a very populare" But he dosen't mean populare in the same way the user expects. "Populare" has become market speak for "monopoly". But the rest of the world expects the majority of it's users to be happy with the product. If you lissen to tech support and avrage user complaints you'll know thats just not the case.
Can you spot the other misleading half truth? How about "all your favoret software" not "All the software you need" or "All they software you'll ever want" but "All your favroet" your a newbie at this moment in time you have no favoret software so saying a pocket calcuator runs all your favoret software is true.. it runs none at all and thats exactly how much software is your favoret.
You won't have a favoret untill AFTER you get a computer.
So your sold... he asks you some basic questions and helps you get the best computer for your needs.. well the best PC for your needs.
Horray you have a PC.
Think about this. Linux runs mostly on PCs. when we pick a computer to run Linux it's always a PC. Why? Macs and Sun Sparcs are suppereor. So what are we doing with PCs for servers desktops and game boxes?
Simple... PCs are the best price for the money. Piriod.
My idea of how to really move Linux into the consummer market is to make a new computer system. We've already proven Linux runs nearly anyplace so now just design a whole new consummer platform system.
First issue is cost over speed. Use the Amiga method. Use co-processors for everything so the computers CPU isn't loaded down with junk. But go with a CPU that runs on the very low end and very high end. I'd say Intel but my best suggestion would be to work with Transmeta and IBM to build a new processor for the task. One that has an ultra low end version to ultra high end version. The low end is the cheapest and the first released.
Open the basic system (Not the CPU) for commertal reproduction. The CPU and chips are all closed but can be obtainned from IBM or Transmeta partners.
The key of the low end version is also cheaper memory chips.
Build it ground up to be both expandable and user friendly. So I'd say use a cartrage method of adding cards. Slots in the back and you slide the cards in like cartrages but not when the computer is on.. maybe a safty bar can lock in place when the computer is on to protect the cards from being added or removed.
User friendly interface is a MUST design the hardware with that in mind. Maybe set it so each card has driver binaries on a rom chip so the card will work automaticly. BUT... have drivers in the Linux kernel for additional preformence for the expert users.
The preinstalled Linux should have a GUI. The system should have a built in CD rom drive or DVD drive. It should include a CD or DVD collection of free Linux software for users to install.
It should include a directory of known Linux User Groups offering free trainning.
It should include a self playing CD with a video on it "How to set up your Linux computer" Just pop the CD and it boots the Linux on the disk and automaticly drops to a secured user account to play a video about how to set things up.
This will solve the problem of not being able to buy new hardware... While users usually don't buy new hardware anyway becouse it's so hard to install they can at least be sure it works with Windows or Mac Os. But not Linux.
With a specalised Linux platform they user can buy hardware for that system and know it will work on Linux. Ferther if the user dosen't have to open the box it's even easier to upgrade than Windows PCs.
Also you'll have to go bribing companys to port software to Linux at first. To make sure drivers exist you'll also need to put together a "Linux Box" logo program. Say you name your system "TuxiCom" then you'll have a "TuxiCom certification program" certifying software and hardware conforms to the TuxiCom standards and can have the TuxiCom sticker. For hardware you want an open source version of the driver as well as a working binary on rom.
For software you just want to be sure it dosen't do anything dangerous or stupid.
There seems to be a tendency for what I call "close proximity" patents or "I was in the room when" patents.
Open GL is the work of SGI not Microsoft. The 3D rendering on the PC is the work of vareous card makers. Microsoft happend to "in the room".
But they were not "in the room" when it was invented. The 3D rendering we see on desktop PCs today was originally on mainframes and super computers nearly 20 years ago and workstations 10 years ago. Microsoft was still selling Basic when this stuff was intented.
Basicly Microsoft has as much right to Open GL as Netscape has to the web or AoL to the Internet.
In reality this is a "Well nobody patented yet so we will" patent. The patent office in issuing such a thing is doing sloppy work and shows the state of patents today to be one of the patent office version of "first post".. and this one came 10 to 20 years late.
Spec bodys should consider a liccens stating that members will not seek patents on the specs should they violate this they release those rights to the specs group or agree to be banned from access to the specs.
I know it's the software interface layor on Intel platform that Microsoft is patenting leaving SGI super computers, Amigas, Macs and thousands of prior art untouched however this genetic enough to be a creative patent on existing technology.
User friendly interfaces are a convences only. Users who believe it a need not a convenced become dependent on it so badly that otherwise briliant people become blithering idiots.
Most users seem to just accept that computers are to complex to understand and with that resolve they are confused by such complications as the on switch and power plug.
However the computer industry is not alone in this problem. Everyone who deals with people has a fair share of hopeless cases. Security, retail clerks, any area of marketting are all familure with clueless idiots.
In computers we end up forgiving the user becouse our own experences we had some problems. I myself have tossed my vic 20 in the trash a few times only to discover it was my fault and fished it back out.
However we were working with the internl complexitys of computers when we had problems. Somebody develuped a flaky chip and forgot to document the fact that certen features your now using don't work right and a software workaround was used instead.
Thies are things your going to learn as a programmer or systems expert but never have to deal with as an end user even on the most basic hardware.
So when a user complains that he can't get a program to work it's the users fault not the complex hardware.
Any five year old can learn computers for one reason. Nobody told them it's to complex and they are to young to be affrade to learn.
This is the core of the problem. Users are affrade to learn computers so they sabotog themselvs at every turn. The start of this is the whole idea that they NEED user friendly. They don't. It's a convence plain and simple. Todays computers are easier to use than cars are to drive. Linux being the exception.. more like learnning to fly. But learning Linux is an investment of time not of brains.
if people needed user friendly interfaces those same people wouldn't pass a drivers test or graduate high school.
The only "user hostile" Linux has to offer is "obscure" commands. Not complex or difficult to understand but simply obscure. Linux is hostile becouse the avrage user has to already know the commands exist and what they do. But learnning that is amazingly simple.
There was a board that permitted the old Amiga to run as a Mac. It required the Macintosh rom.
The old Amiga also ran Dos.. and near the end also ran Windows 3.11 but never Windows 95. The later trick was done by a bridge board that included an intel processor.. a 8086 or for Windows a 286.
The open source liccenses only permit you to use and redistrobute the code.
So if in writing code for open source program you accadentally write a virus and infect yourself it's not going to reflect on the orginal author.
As for non-commertal code.. with the lawsute madness in the 1980's of every jerk with a lawer suing every hobby sysop they could I'd think they'd sue the programmers of public domain programs that mistakenly carried viruses if the lawer didn't blow the whole idea off as silly.
All non-commertal software has a default protection. Just as you can not sue the berror of a gift if the gift is defective.
That part of the GPL that states the code comes with no warrenty etc is becouse not all GPLed code is noncommertal. ID software could be sued for defects in the GPLed Quake code if it weren't for that.
Mostly thow that clause is redundent. "You may not sue me for your own suiside" Of course people do sue for the suiside of children due to games music what ever. Eventually somebody will sue becouse his kid was working on a GPLed program.
Anywho.. It's redundent but probablly nessisary under the situation
I refuse to sign nondiscloser agreements becouse of the fact that this means MY work is under the liccens.
When I worked for a BBS (as a hobby) the Sysop asked me to sign a nondisclosure. I said no. I've got no access to anything byond my own work why should I?
I understand the basic idea. If I write code for Windows for Microsoft then Microsoft would want me to sign an agreement thay says I won't give away the whole source code.
In the book outside the inner circle one of the techniques used to hack into systems was to get employees to fill out servays or walk into the office like you worked there. Now a days your not allowed in the lobby unless you have a pass card.
No doupt based on the kinds of cracks he was found guilty of he used socal hacking techniques.
He may be forbidden to use his technical skills but there is nothing keeping him from using the human conterpart.
When shopping for a PDA I don't remember speed meaning anything but "cost to much"
People buy PDAs for cheap lap tops or simple organisers. Nither needs speed.
Pocket PCs can get faster and faster while Palm Os PDAs outsell them.
The Palm Os devices are cheaper and use less power. This is becouse they are slower.
It's not speed... it's memory.... Handspring Visors have memory cartrages and the Palm m500 use media cards so while Power PC devices play with added speed and don't get it Palm os devices get added memory.
Thies things are just portable databanks they aren't for processing information just storing it.
Want to play MP3s? Slap on an MP3 player... a sound chip that has an mp3 incoder built in and some added ram.
Want to do presentations? Slap on a presentaion device.
Go on the Internet? Snap on a wireless... (Unless it's built in)
Play Quake? compile data?
Hotsync with desktop...
I'm looking for a keyboard and a wireless for my Visor (the i705 can't handle telnet) so I can use a shell account from my PDA... I'm not going to have any real computting power on a PDA. Thats not what a PDA is for.
On open source: Look over the source code and find a defect. Make sure it hasn't been discovered and patched and make sure it's in use.
Use it... then lose it... Once you've used it enough times a system admin will report it. He may even fix it himself. Once reported using the source code track down the program that caused it. Swap out the buggy program for an alternitive until a patch comes in.
Poking around dosn't work as your user box isn't going to be as secure as your target computer.
How this works on closed source: Decompile or if your a terrorist who can afford expensive wepons just liccens the source from Microsoft.
Or you can poke around.
As only a sellect few have the source the target sysadmin can't fix it.. swaping programs will cost to much so that's not an option.
Your best bet is to find an ill planned feature. Software companys are reluctent to remove features even when they compramise security. So your crack is likely to continue to work for a very long time.
In the past larg companys wouldn't use a program or operating system if they couldn't get the source code. They want the ability to fix the code if a defect is found.
The printer driver wouldn't have such an impact if the operating system had been designed properly. Instead it's designed to expect everything to work perfictly all the time so a minnor defect in an idle printer driver could crash compleatly unrelated programs like security software ripping massive holes in the system.
Windows was designed to be a multitasker for Dos programs. Reliability wasn't a big deal as compeating multitaskers would usually crash simply becouse the dos application wasn't coperating. Users expected this.
But with Windows no longer running "I want total control dam it" Dos applications it continues to have the same design.
Operating systems that are made to be operating systems don't tank when a printer driver screws up.
When a video driver crashes you lose video.. that sucks... but everything else works... Keyboard driver crashes... shut down with the mouse.
When I had video, keyboard and mouse drver problems I ran a TV 100 on my box.. at worst the computer continues to work.
Yes Microsoft can't be called to blame when a printer driver tanks.. they can when that causes a BSOD.
The damage should be limited to the printer driver.... On anything else it would be...
As we know Unix based systems are basicly virus resistant.
As it is this leaves Windows and Palm Os. Take the precaution of turnning off the IR on your plam and your reasonably safe. Leaving Windows on desktop, PDA and server the only virus security risk.
Microsoft will eventually have to adress the problem rather than ignore it... Probably with some silly half considered system. But viruses aren't the unstopable all powerful programs pretended to be in TV shows and movies. Even a sloppy effort is good enough.
Chances are Microsoft already has this system laied out. They aren't in any hurry as it's not a big consern right now. But they know it could be.
Big anti-virus companys however don't have it so easy. If Unix systems dominate the market or if Microsoft kills the viruses on the Windows famaly they are out of business.
Your right stores don't like unhappy costummers. However they are more likely to blow up the building than have protesters arrested.
What the store dosn't want is bad press. Protesters are bad press protesters being arrested is worse.
Anyway the police aren't going to arrest anyone unless you throw bricks. They'll usually advice you on how to conduct your protest if your out of line.
Civil rights protesters WANT to be arrested it brings the news media in.
Most stores honner the return policy. Some dont and that is sad.
But you should try. The Microsoft agreement is void the moment you try and the OEM won't take the software back. Once you've tried and they don't accept the return then go the legal route.
Microsofts answer to e-mail viruses "Don't open file attachments" Why not remove the feature?
The Microsoft Wizard utilitys don't work. Microsoft deffenders say you need to be an operating system expert to understand Windows and you need to understand Windows to use it.
While both clames are a bit of a strech if true it would mean you'd have to be one of the 15 top computer experts in the world to use Windows effectively.
The truth is significantly less extream... You need a vage understanding of computers in general to use Windows and you only need to know how to code Dos applications to fully understand Windows.
So basicly the avrage expert user can use Windows. The avrage expert user can use Linux just as effectively. The avrage expert user can use anything given half an hour and a manual.
The avrage expert user dosn't need useability studys.
The whole idea of a user friendly operating system is so the avrage newbie could use the computer effectively.... Thats the Mac.
Realisticly speaking there isn't any hope of a user friendly opertaing system existing on the PC. The system has to be user friendly from ground up.
As for leadership... This is the diffrence between a system and a console. A console is one core design. If something is to be added it must be part of the original design. Everything is easy and simple and if your needs aren't part of the original design or if technology advances byond what the original design expects then you have an expensive paperwight.
A system dosen't rely on an overall vision. If you have a need just add it on.
Linus didn't consider 3D cards, sound cards, TV cards or radio cards, camras or scanners in his design. So other people made the drivers as needed.
Bill Gates didn't consider TV or radio cards.. sorry no drivers exist.. just end user appications. If you want to use your TV card for a security camra you have to run Linux to do it..
That's what makes a system...
Not to be down on consoles. They work great for what ever they are designed to do. But not everyone who uses a computer is going to do the expected.
Once an operating system has been out for more than five years with a large userbase it's a bit late to say it'll never fly.
It's one thing to say "It'll never work" before the wright brothers get into the air... But to point to an airport and proclame it is just laughable.
"Linux will never fly" "And Microsoft will never be proffitable" "And that wheel thing..."
I'd like to remind everyone something... To everyone who thinks providing source code is a security risk... Unix venders would sell source code for a significant fee and companys would pay it... Why? Becouse with out source code you CAN NOT have a secure operating system.. It's imposable to do with out the source code. That was the reasoning back in the past... and it's proven itself. Not everyone could afford to liccens the source.
Today Microsoft still liccens the source to Windows large chunks of money. Why? Security...
You know if a cracker wanted he could get the money together and publish all the defects and back doors he finds on an e-zine like phrak.
As for how imposable it is to make money with open source.. You know Microsoft said that about closed source about 20 years ago...
Companys want to make spinoffs of my GPLed code I say hay.. Just pay me a liccens fee and you can have a closed source liccens for your production... I'm fair.
There are a number of ways to make money with the GPL.
One trick is to offer your 5 year old product under GPL to kill compeditors selling 10 year old products.
Hardware comapnsy can release GPLed driver source code to improve user support... (In the past they always provided source code or at least specs.. Today companys are affrade of reverse engenearing that actually has nothing to do with software.)
I'm sceptical.. ZD publicications are pritty much all Windows centric so there is absolutly no reason for them to publish anything about Linux or open source.
It's not that ZD would kiss up to Microsoft but for every person who switches from Windows to Linux is a potentally lost costummer for ZD.
This is why I expect to never see anything about Microsoft Windows in LJ byond "Here is how to make Linux work with Windows"
ZD isn't a business publication so ZD's technical experts have as much call talking about the business potental of open source as a buisness expert has talking about writing drivers for Linux.
This isn't Fud as much as wishful thinking. They aren't talking to business people or anyone who might try to make money from open source.
So far nobody has been able to make money writing open source code.. But then so far nobody has tried.
This is the scond time a "must have root to infect" virus has been created.
Windows: Don't do something stupid like reading e-mail.. Unix: Be very careful not to strip your security bare naked and tatoo your butt with "Hack me crash me rip me dry"... You MIGHT get a virus.
Even if a user runs programs as root as a habbit they wouldn't pick up e-mail that way. Unix delivers e-mail to the user account.. only the user account could pick it up...
Unless you go out of your way to run everything as root and not have user accounts and set up your e-mail to always be delivered to root...
That would be the same as removing all the locks on your car and replacing the egnition with a swotch..
Thats pritty much what you have with Windows... You could have exactly the same thing with Linux if you want..
But there is a reason why IRC servers kick you off if your running your client from root...
It's multiplatform for a reason... needs Windows to spread becouse it's not going to find enough Unix users in the world... (Maybe two exist... gotta adjust for stupidity with sunden outbreaks of genous.. such as that needed to strip Unix so badly as to make a virus infection actually work)
After the first virus anti-virus companys prommised us software for Linux... The only reason the virus worked at all was a defective libary asked users to run binarys as root.
I personally prefer to always download source code not binarys.. this is just one reason.. If Windows users did the same thing... and changed the e-mail client to one that dosen't download and run binarys automaticly.. (anything not available from Microsoft) they too won't get viruses.
I'm far less supprised this happend now than I am that it never happend before. The source code is provided so that we can re-create and compeate.
I write GPLed program Ishi and give it away. If you want to make a commertal product and sell it I'm all up for it.. buy a commertal liccens from me.. like you'd do for any non-free software. I gave this program to the world and people quickly confuse this gift to that of a Christmas or birthday present.
I give a present to a single person he can sell it if he likes. But if I give a gift to three people.. say a house.. and one collects rent from the other two I'll be very pissed.
I give this program to THE WORLD.. No single person should be able to sell my work to annother person.. let alone myself. Great that you added code but if your work dosn't stand alone then you'll have to recreate my work. Sorry just how it is.
Now.. you take my code and put it in a pacage with exsisting commertal software.. I'm ok.. Your just including something that is already free.
Your pacage is a bunch of free software.. well thats nice.. show me the code..
You tossed in some commertal software. Ok hay no skin off my nose.
Destrobutions give away a compleate binary for free becouse the community expects it. The commertal realitys are that any Linux distro COULD go give source code... But....
Every Linux release we all jump in the air.. Linus just shoots of an e-mail..
Microsoft spends billions and everyone says "Oh" for each Windows release.
Linux the question is "why shouldn't I update" Windows the question is "Why should I?"
For that reason it's douptful anyone is using anything as old as Kernel 2.2 but Windows 3.x is still in use today...
Why? Linux is free.. I pay $35 to Slackware for the latest Slackware becouse it's free...
I download each version but from time to time I'll buy a CD... last time I got the manual as well.
I won't touch RedHat becouse I can't download it.
It's a marketting advantage..
Caldera offered Open Linux lite... The full pacage includes comemrtal software.. you have to buy that....
Also when I buy How To books on Linux they come with freebe Linux CDs.. Slackware, RedHat, Debian etc... It increases the value of the book. But wait... UnitedLinux is going to miss out on that...
When we give away CDs at the office and to friends guess who won't be in the burnner? United Linux.
Who won't be available at the Linux UGs? United Linux
Who won't be available at any of the Linux community sponsered type giveaways and freebes done to premote Linux.. or in ANY Linux premotion deal.. United Linux.
Even if they provided a United Lite they'd be included...
Or we can say "Oh well.." and let it die a slow and painful death...
"Good bye... sorry you misunderstood us..." and maybe it's better now than later.... So that somebody won't be hurt and bitterly clame no money in Linux...
From my prosective the question is... Is a call to action protected speach? Is this a call to action?
The danger of protecting a call to action is that protects insightment to riot.. terrorist threats and calls to murder.
I'd say no... call to action is not protected when the act is illegal.
But then comes the next question... Is this a call to action? This must be weighted carefully. Rember how often Linux, GPL, Open source and free software get pinned as tools of theft by the entertainment industry.. Now they seem to be pinning Intel Pentium 4 ads as an endorcement of theft.
It's easy to distort something... Calls for legalisation of narcotics are often clamed to be calls to break the law.. not change it...
Video games, rock music and movies are often accused of premoting violence.
Often people TRY to pin "insightment to act" lables.
The medium matters not.. A psudo christian group got together in my home town and preached how some friends of mine (who started a pagan club in collage) were satanic and evil. As long as they stayed with expressing opinions it didn't matter.
In fact some members thought it was funny... Funny until a local politicion (local in that he was running for office in my home town.. won office.. and was kicked out for breaking the ellection law requering he actually LIVE here a year before running for office..)
He called for action... It was fairly vage and being psudo christain the pagan club felt comfortable in the unstated action would be political...
Then one of the group was attacked. His leg was broken..
Then tried to attack other members... Side note there was also a christan club... with REAL christians.. Was much harder to attack pagan club members with christan club members acting as body guards.
The moral of the story is... There is a fine line between stating an option and calling for action. Making the wrong call could have some very sereous reprocutions. There is no safe call.
Usually protecting speech is the safest call. Not this time...
It is my opinion that any test with "PC" as a posability has lost credibility. The PC is just the hardware and not everyone means the same thing when they say PC.. PC.. is that Linux? OS/2? BSD? Dos?
In my view such a test should score points between diffrent Unix platforms.. In the past it would be diffrent Unix platforms and MacOs but now that MacOs is a Unix platform the tests should be a bit diffrent.
I think Mac people do often over emphasise the point that MacOs is an effective Geek machine but I understand why when people keep labling it a dummy box. On the inverse I am puzzled why Unix/Linux people alow non Unix types to speak so poorly of Unix in the user friendly department.
In my view MacOs is an artists/newbie machine who's capabilitys extend well into the expert user arena.. Linux is a geek/admin box with capabilitys extending well into the artist/newbie arena.
The reality is they overlap and unless your at the upmost extream they both work extreamly well. Outside the upmost extream I might recomend two other options... BSD and Geoworks.. however Geoworks is dead...:(
Geoworks becouse the whole freaking os is installed on ROM and the system is basicly low end so the end user is paying for a cheap system that dose exactly what he/she needs with no additional cost. The Geobook was a nice portable system at a cheap price.
BSD is the extream in internet services.. handles the load designed and updated on reliability and uptime more than anything else. Even if that means sacraficing multimedia nicitys.. Sorry no Video4BSD.. There are ways around that if you really want a web cam.
Nothing prevents BSD from doing everything Linux dose but often takes more effort on the end users behalf.
All Unix systems can be updated to be user friendly. KDE and Gnome is proving this.. Preveous user friendly Unixes did exist. However the typical user friendly GUI of the 1980s was a bit more than any typical consummer box could handle leading to overtly expensive Unix systems that failed on the market.
The non-Unix MacOs was worth while in it's time. We didn't know what a graphics libary needed in order to be effecent so anything standing between the application and the video chip slowed everything down to much. Unix security means libarys only.. no dirrect access posable.
Todays systems are significantly more powerful and we know a lot more about making good graphics libarys. MacOs X takes adantage of that.
We have not yet learnned how to make low overhead user friendly interfaces.. Geoworks did but a closed source dead os isn't going to teach us anything.
In the end I'd say the gap between MacOs and Linux is illusionary... there is a huge overlap.
Windows is the os for those who just want what "everybody else is using"... not what works best..
My first experence with Unix was on an AT&T 3B2.. It was used so the os was already installed configured etc.. It was wonderful.. when I was done I instructed the computer to shut down... from the keyboard.. no funbling for a switch to turn it off... I hear you say "But didn't you need to AFTER the shut down?" Hack no.. this box was made to run Unix.. it turnned itself OFF..
The joy of using Linux for the first time.. I finally got it installed.. My Pentoum system was home made.. high end and great.. I install Slackware from floppy.. The cool part was downloading everything using Dos...
It was done and it took me a day to install.. And annother to get DIP to work.. and annother to get X11 to work..
From there I was surfing the web and ircing at the same time..
Could I do that from Windows? Yeah but only after forking over $100 more and I wasn't about to do it.
Soon I was FTPing files left and right... and recompiling the kernel and still chatting on IRC..
Somebody had to convence me to try out a graphical web browser however... stuck in the old ways I continued to use Lynx..
Then after a while I caved to curreosity.. installed Windows... one week later It actually worked.. one day later I reinstalled Linux... and I never looked back....
AT&T Unix made AT&T a computer giant [Remembering of course AT&T was THE phone company so they had quite a bit behind them... So all they needed was a good os (Unix) half way decent computer (The 3Bs) and they are golden.. Even giving Unix away AT&T had the money from the phone industry to role over anybody]
Early 1990s AT&T took over NEC and NEC became AT&Ts hardware side.. What did NEC make? The first high end Windows NT boxes.. using high end RISC.. It was a big marketting campaign and everything..
AT&T dropped out of the computer industry and let go of NEC to recover the losses..
Sun a small little company making low end Unix boxes for Berkly went commertal to sell high end desk tops.. or low end servers.. depending on your prespective. A supped up 386 using a Unix clone called SunOS. Free of the limits of the PC ISA buss the Sun i386 was fast...
Long story short... Unix made Sun into a techno giant.. Windows NT put an end to AT&T computers.
Windows NT is an answer all right.... But who here knows the question?
A. Switch to Windows NT Q. How do you bring a larg company to a grinding halt..
1960's Larg mainframe computers like IBM mainframes come into exsistence.. soon well have computers that can store records of every person in the world for easy retreaval by any government burocrat...
1970's Home computers like the Apple// come into exsistence... Soon we'll be able to hack into those larg databases and change them... The ground work for the revolution...
1990's Windows defects tolerated by government and business agentcys make hacking databases even easier... While end users fuss and more knowladgeable use Mac, Linux, BSD and in the enterprise Solarus..
2000's The database comes into existence.. Orical.. on Windows XP. Soon after Freshmeat apps show up to erase your criminal record and give yourself dimplomatic status.. The revolution is won..
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To get into what I'm thinking I want you to pull out your inner newbe.
Now you think newbies want user friendly GUI systems?
Really?
What is "user friendly" to a newbie? what is "gui" to a newbie?
They are "Complex computer words like mouse keyboard and on switch"
What do newbies want?
They want a computer to go on the Internet with. They want e-mail.
Go into a computer store. Your a newbie.. what do you see?
You see Macs and PCs. No not Windows just Macs and PCs.
Look at the Macs. pritty Macs. Wow. But those pritty Macs are expensive aren't they. Thats a lot of money for a pritty computer.
Your a newbie what do you know of processing power or capabilitys. It's a pritty computer with a big price tag nothing more.
Look at the PCs. Well some are really expensive some are really cheap. But they all seem ok. Some pritty. Some pritty and cheap.
Now a salesmen walks up...
"Why are those so much more expensive?"
"Those are faster store more information and have more memory so your documents can be bigger."
"Wow" Now your getting an idea of what power is. But your already looking at the PCs.. the Macs no longer exist to you.
"But you can always upgrade later.. add memory, bigger hard disk etc"
Ok your transfixed on the cheapest.
"What is Windows?"
Your not going to go away not noticing the big Microsoft Windows logo plastered on the screen.
"Thats the software than runs the computer.
It's very populare and runs all your favoret games and business programms."
Notice not a single mention of "user friendly".
Some times the salesman says "The most populare" but usually they sink back with "a very populare"
But he dosen't mean populare in the same way the user expects.
"Populare" has become market speak for "monopoly".
But the rest of the world expects the majority of it's users to be happy with the product.
If you lissen to tech support and avrage user complaints you'll know thats just not the case.
Can you spot the other misleading half truth?
How about "all your favoret software" not "All the software you need"
or "All they software you'll ever want" but "All your favroet"
your a newbie at this moment in time you have no favoret software so saying a pocket calcuator runs all your favoret software is true..
it runs none at all and thats exactly how much software is your favoret.
You won't have a favoret untill AFTER you get a computer.
So your sold... he asks you some basic questions and helps you get the best computer for your needs.. well the best PC for your needs.
Horray you have a PC.
Think about this. Linux runs mostly on PCs. when we pick a computer to run Linux it's always a PC. Why? Macs and Sun Sparcs are suppereor.
So what are we doing with PCs for servers desktops and game boxes?
Simple... PCs are the best price for the money. Piriod.
My idea of how to really move Linux into the consummer market is to make a new computer system.
We've already proven Linux runs nearly anyplace so now just design a whole new consummer platform system.
First issue is cost over speed. Use the Amiga method. Use co-processors for everything so the computers CPU isn't loaded down with junk.
But go with a CPU that runs on the very low end and very high end.
I'd say Intel but my best suggestion would be to work with Transmeta and IBM to build a new processor for the task.
One that has an ultra low end version to ultra high end version. The low end is the cheapest and the first released.
Open the basic system (Not the CPU) for commertal reproduction.
The CPU and chips are all closed but can be obtainned from IBM or Transmeta partners.
The key of the low end version is also cheaper memory chips.
Build it ground up to be both expandable and user friendly. So I'd say use a cartrage method of adding cards.
Slots in the back and you slide the cards in like cartrages but not when the computer is on..
maybe a safty bar can lock in place when the computer is on to protect the cards from being added or removed.
User friendly interface is a MUST design the hardware with that in mind.
Maybe set it so each card has driver binaries on a rom chip so the card will work automaticly.
BUT... have drivers in the Linux kernel for additional preformence for the expert users.
The preinstalled Linux should have a GUI. The system should have a built in CD rom drive or DVD drive.
It should include a CD or DVD collection of free Linux software for users to install.
It should include a directory of known Linux User Groups offering free trainning.
It should include a self playing CD with a video on it "How to set up your Linux computer"
Just pop the CD and it boots the Linux on the disk and automaticly drops to a secured user account to play a video about how to set things up.
This will solve the problem of not being able to buy new hardware...
While users usually don't buy new hardware anyway becouse it's so hard to install they can at least be sure it works with Windows or Mac Os.
But not Linux.
With a specalised Linux platform they user can buy hardware for that system and know it will work on Linux.
Ferther if the user dosen't have to open the box it's even easier to upgrade than Windows PCs.
Also you'll have to go bribing companys to port software to Linux at first.
To make sure drivers exist you'll also need to put together a "Linux Box" logo program.
Say you name your system "TuxiCom" then you'll have a "TuxiCom certification program" certifying software
and hardware conforms to the TuxiCom standards and can have the TuxiCom sticker.
For hardware you want an open source version of the driver as well as a working binary on rom.
For software you just want to be sure it dosen't do anything dangerous or stupid.
Now if you start from Windows openning up Dos shell for newbe Windows user would they say Windows is to hard?
There seems to be a tendency for what I call "close proximity" patents or "I was in the room when" patents.
Open GL is the work of SGI not Microsoft. The 3D rendering on the PC is the work of vareous card makers. Microsoft happend to "in the room".
But they were not "in the room" when it was invented. The 3D rendering we see on desktop PCs today was originally on mainframes and super computers nearly 20 years ago and workstations 10 years ago. Microsoft was still selling Basic when this stuff was intented.
Basicly Microsoft has as much right to Open GL as Netscape has to the web or AoL to the Internet.
In reality this is a "Well nobody patented yet so we will" patent. The patent office in issuing such a thing is doing sloppy work and shows the state of patents today to be one of the patent office version of "first post".. and this one came 10 to 20 years late.
Spec bodys should consider a liccens stating that members will not seek patents on the specs should they violate this they release those rights to the specs group or agree to be banned from access to the specs.
I know it's the software interface layor on Intel platform that Microsoft is patenting leaving SGI super computers, Amigas, Macs and thousands of prior art untouched however this genetic enough to be a creative patent on existing technology.
User friendly interfaces are a convences only.
Users who believe it a need not a convenced become dependent on it so badly that otherwise briliant people become blithering idiots.
Most users seem to just accept that computers are to complex to understand and with that resolve they are confused by such complications as the on switch and power plug.
However the computer industry is not alone in this problem. Everyone who deals with people has a fair share of hopeless cases. Security, retail clerks, any area of marketting are all familure with clueless idiots.
In computers we end up forgiving the user becouse our own experences we had some problems. I myself have tossed my vic 20 in the trash a few times only to discover it was my fault and fished it back out.
However we were working with the internl complexitys of computers when we had problems. Somebody develuped a flaky chip and forgot to document the fact that certen features your now using don't work right and a software workaround was used instead.
Thies are things your going to learn as a programmer or systems expert but never have to deal with as an end user even on the most basic hardware.
So when a user complains that he can't get a program to work it's the users fault not the complex hardware.
Any five year old can learn computers for one reason. Nobody told them it's to complex and they are to young to be affrade to learn.
This is the core of the problem. Users are affrade to learn computers so they sabotog themselvs at every turn.
The start of this is the whole idea that they NEED user friendly. They don't. It's a convence plain and simple.
Todays computers are easier to use than cars are to drive. Linux being the exception.. more like learnning to fly.
But learning Linux is an investment of time not of brains.
if people needed user friendly interfaces those same people wouldn't pass a drivers test or graduate high school.
The only "user hostile" Linux has to offer is "obscure" commands. Not complex or difficult to understand but simply obscure. Linux is hostile becouse the avrage user has to already know the commands exist and what they do.
But learnning that is amazingly simple.
There was a board that permitted the old Amiga to run as a Mac. It required the Macintosh rom.
The old Amiga also ran Dos.. and near the end also ran Windows 3.11 but never Windows 95.
The later trick was done by a bridge board that included an intel processor.. a 8086 or for Windows a 286.
The open source liccenses only permit you to use and redistrobute the code.
So if in writing code for open source program you accadentally write a virus and infect yourself it's not going to reflect on the orginal author.
As for non-commertal code.. with the lawsute madness in the 1980's of every jerk with a lawer suing every hobby sysop they could I'd think they'd sue the programmers of public domain programs that mistakenly carried viruses if the lawer didn't blow the whole idea off as silly.
All non-commertal software has a default protection. Just as you can not sue the berror of a gift if the gift is defective.
That part of the GPL that states the code comes with no warrenty etc is becouse not all GPLed code is noncommertal. ID software could be sued for defects in the GPLed Quake code if it weren't for that.
Mostly thow that clause is redundent.
"You may not sue me for your own suiside"
Of course people do sue for the suiside of children due to games music what ever. Eventually somebody will sue becouse his kid was working on a GPLed program.
Anywho.. It's redundent but probablly nessisary under the situation
I refuse to sign nondiscloser agreements becouse of the fact that this means MY work is under the liccens.
When I worked for a BBS (as a hobby) the Sysop asked me to sign a nondisclosure. I said no. I've got no access to anything byond my own work why should I?
I understand the basic idea. If I write code for Windows for Microsoft then Microsoft would want me to sign an agreement thay says I won't give away the whole source code.
In the book outside the inner circle one of the techniques used to hack into systems was to get employees to fill out servays or walk into the office like you worked there.
Now a days your not allowed in the lobby unless you have a pass card.
No doupt based on the kinds of cracks he was found guilty of he used socal hacking techniques.
He may be forbidden to use his technical skills but there is nothing keeping him from using the human conterpart.
When shopping for a PDA I don't remember speed meaning anything but "cost to much"
People buy PDAs for cheap lap tops or simple organisers. Nither needs speed.
Pocket PCs can get faster and faster while Palm Os PDAs outsell them.
The Palm Os devices are cheaper and use less power.
This is becouse they are slower.
It's not speed... it's memory....
Handspring Visors have memory cartrages and the Palm m500 use media cards so while Power PC devices play with added speed and don't get it Palm os devices get added memory.
Thies things are just portable databanks they aren't for processing information just storing it.
Want to play MP3s? Slap on an MP3 player... a sound chip that has an mp3 incoder built in and some added ram.
Want to do presentations? Slap on a presentaion device.
Go on the Internet? Snap on a wireless... (Unless it's built in)
Play Quake? compile data?
Hotsync with desktop...
I'm looking for a keyboard and a wireless for my Visor (the i705 can't handle telnet) so I can use a shell account from my PDA...
I'm not going to have any real computting power on a PDA. Thats not what a PDA is for.
How this works....
On open source:
Look over the source code and find a defect. Make sure it hasn't been discovered and patched and make sure it's in use.
Use it... then lose it...
Once you've used it enough times a system admin will report it. He may even fix it himself.
Once reported using the source code track down the program that caused it. Swap out the buggy program for an alternitive until a patch comes in.
Poking around dosn't work as your user box isn't going to be as secure as your target computer.
How this works on closed source:
Decompile or if your a terrorist who can afford expensive wepons just liccens the source from Microsoft.
Or you can poke around.
As only a sellect few have the source the target sysadmin can't fix it.. swaping programs will cost to much so that's not an option.
Your best bet is to find an ill planned feature. Software companys are reluctent to remove features even when they compramise security. So your crack is likely to continue to work for a very long time.
In the past larg companys wouldn't use a program or operating system if they couldn't get the source code. They want the ability to fix the code if a defect is found.
It's a considerably sad thing to say considering other Unixes are fighting Microsoft the current problem.
But it's true.... and more sad to admit they had it comming.
Ma Bell liccensed source code. No binarys no support just source.
Unix admin came to expect source code.
But with the Ma Bell break up and shrink wrap liccenses Unix drifted farther and farther away from that philosophy.
GNU/Linux fills the void left by this...
Sun offers Solarus source code for a hefty liccens fee I believe.
The printer driver wouldn't have such an impact if the operating system had been designed properly.
Instead it's designed to expect everything to work perfictly all the time so a minnor defect in an idle printer driver could crash compleatly unrelated programs like security software ripping massive holes in the system.
Windows was designed to be a multitasker for Dos programs. Reliability wasn't a big deal as compeating multitaskers would usually crash simply becouse the dos application wasn't coperating. Users expected this.
But with Windows no longer running "I want total control dam it" Dos applications it continues to have the same design.
Operating systems that are made to be operating systems don't tank when a printer driver screws up.
When a video driver crashes you lose video.. that sucks... but everything else works...
Keyboard driver crashes... shut down with the mouse.
When I had video, keyboard and mouse drver problems I ran a TV 100 on my box.. at worst the computer continues to work.
Yes Microsoft can't be called to blame when a printer driver tanks.. they can when that causes a BSOD.
The damage should be limited to the printer driver....
On anything else it would be...
Remeber all the open file formats that don't work anymore becouse Microsoft created forked versions?
Same diffrence..
As we know Unix based systems are basicly virus resistant.
As it is this leaves Windows and Palm Os. Take the precaution of turnning off the IR on your plam and your reasonably safe. Leaving Windows on desktop, PDA and server the only virus security risk.
Microsoft will eventually have to adress the problem rather than ignore it...
Probably with some silly half considered system.
But viruses aren't the unstopable all powerful programs pretended to be in TV shows and movies. Even a sloppy effort is good enough.
Chances are Microsoft already has this system laied out. They aren't in any hurry as it's not a big consern right now.
But they know it could be.
Big anti-virus companys however don't have it so easy. If Unix systems dominate the market or if Microsoft kills the viruses on the Windows famaly they are out of business.
Your right stores don't like unhappy costummers.
However they are more likely to blow up the building than have protesters arrested.
What the store dosn't want is bad press. Protesters are bad press protesters being arrested is worse.
Anyway the police aren't going to arrest anyone unless you throw bricks. They'll usually advice you on how to conduct your protest if your out of line.
Civil rights protesters WANT to be arrested it brings the news media in.
Most stores honner the return policy. Some dont and that is sad.
But you should try. The Microsoft agreement is void the moment you try and the OEM won't take the software back.
Once you've tried and they don't accept the return then go the legal route.
"Microsoft performs usability studies"
Really?
Microsofts answer to e-mail viruses "Don't open file attachments" Why not remove the feature?
The Microsoft Wizard utilitys don't work.
Microsoft deffenders say you need to be an operating system expert to understand Windows and you need to understand Windows to use it.
While both clames are a bit of a strech if true it would mean you'd have to be one of the 15 top computer experts in the world to use Windows effectively.
The truth is significantly less extream...
You need a vage understanding of computers in general to use Windows and you only need to know how to code Dos applications to fully understand Windows.
So basicly the avrage expert user can use Windows. The avrage expert user can use Linux just as effectively. The avrage expert user can use anything given half an hour and a manual.
The avrage expert user dosn't need useability studys.
The whole idea of a user friendly operating system is so the avrage newbie could use the computer effectively....
Thats the Mac.
Realisticly speaking there isn't any hope of a user friendly opertaing system existing on the PC.
The system has to be user friendly from ground up.
As for leadership...
This is the diffrence between a system and a console.
A console is one core design. If something is to be added it must be part of the original design.
Everything is easy and simple and if your needs aren't part of the original design or if technology advances byond what the original design expects then you have an expensive paperwight.
A system dosen't rely on an overall vision. If you have a need just add it on.
Linus didn't consider 3D cards, sound cards, TV cards or radio cards, camras or scanners in his design.
So other people made the drivers as needed.
Bill Gates didn't consider TV or radio cards.. sorry no drivers exist.. just end user appications.
If you want to use your TV card for a security camra you have to run Linux to do it..
That's what makes a system...
Not to be down on consoles. They work great for what ever they are designed to do.
But not everyone who uses a computer is going to do the expected.
Once an operating system has been out for more than five years with a large userbase it's a bit late to say it'll never fly.
It's one thing to say "It'll never work" before the wright brothers get into the air...
But to point to an airport and proclame it is just laughable.
"Linux will never fly"
"And Microsoft will never be proffitable"
"And that wheel thing..."
I'd like to remind everyone something...
To everyone who thinks providing source code is a security risk...
Unix venders would sell source code for a significant fee and companys would pay it...
Why? Becouse with out source code you CAN NOT have a secure operating system.. It's imposable to do with out the source code.
That was the reasoning back in the past... and it's proven itself. Not everyone could afford to liccens the source.
Today Microsoft still liccens the source to Windows large chunks of money. Why? Security...
You know if a cracker wanted he could get the money together and publish all the defects and back doors he finds on an e-zine like phrak.
As for how imposable it is to make money with open source..
You know Microsoft said that about closed source about 20 years ago...
Companys want to make spinoffs of my GPLed code I say hay.. Just pay me a liccens fee and you can have a closed source liccens for your production... I'm fair.
There are a number of ways to make money with the GPL.
One trick is to offer your 5 year old product under GPL to kill compeditors selling 10 year old products.
Hardware comapnsy can release GPLed driver source code to improve user support...
(In the past they always provided source code or at least specs..
Today companys are affrade of reverse engenearing that actually has nothing to do with software.)
I'm sceptical.. ZD publicications are pritty much all Windows centric so there is absolutly no reason for them to publish anything about Linux or open source.
It's not that ZD would kiss up to Microsoft but for every person who switches from Windows to Linux is a potentally lost costummer for ZD.
This is why I expect to never see anything about Microsoft Windows in LJ byond "Here is how to make Linux work with Windows"
ZD isn't a business publication so ZD's technical experts have as much call talking about the business potental of open source as a buisness expert has talking about writing drivers for Linux.
This isn't Fud as much as wishful thinking. They aren't talking to business people or anyone who might try to make money from open source.
So far nobody has been able to make money writing open source code..
But then so far nobody has tried.
This is the scond time a "must have root to infect" virus has been created.
Windows: Don't do something stupid like reading e-mail..
Unix: Be very careful not to strip your security bare naked and tatoo your butt with "Hack me crash me rip me dry"... You MIGHT get a virus.
Even if a user runs programs as root as a habbit they wouldn't pick up e-mail that way.
Unix delivers e-mail to the user account.. only the user account could pick it up...
Unless you go out of your way to run everything as root and not have user accounts and set up your e-mail to always be delivered to root...
That would be the same as removing all the locks on your car and replacing the egnition with a swotch..
Thats pritty much what you have with Windows... You could have exactly the same thing with Linux if you want..
But there is a reason why IRC servers kick you off if your running your client from root...
It's multiplatform for a reason... needs Windows to spread becouse it's not going to find enough Unix users in the world...
(Maybe two exist... gotta adjust for stupidity with sunden outbreaks of genous.. such as that needed to strip Unix so badly as to make a virus infection actually work)
After the first virus anti-virus companys prommised us software for Linux...
The only reason the virus worked at all was a defective libary asked users to run binarys as root.
I personally prefer to always download source code not binarys.. this is just one reason..
If Windows users did the same thing... and changed the e-mail client to one that dosen't download and run binarys automaticly.. (anything not available from Microsoft) they too won't get viruses.
I'm far less supprised this happend now than I am that it never happend before.
The source code is provided so that we can re-create and compeate.
I write GPLed program Ishi and give it away.
If you want to make a commertal product and sell it I'm all up for it.. buy a commertal liccens from me.. like you'd do for any non-free software. I gave this program to the world and people quickly confuse this gift to that of a Christmas or birthday present.
I give a present to a single person he can sell it if he likes.
But if I give a gift to three people.. say a house.. and one collects rent from the other two I'll be very pissed.
I give this program to THE WORLD.. No single person should be able to sell my work to annother person.. let alone myself. Great that you added code but if your work dosn't stand alone then you'll have to recreate my work. Sorry just how it is.
Now.. you take my code and put it in a pacage with exsisting commertal software.. I'm ok.. Your just including something that is already free.
Your pacage is a bunch of free software.. well thats nice.. show me the code..
You tossed in some commertal software. Ok hay no skin off my nose.
Destrobutions give away a compleate binary for free becouse the community expects it.
The commertal realitys are that any Linux distro COULD go give source code...
But....
Every Linux release we all jump in the air.. Linus just shoots of an e-mail..
Microsoft spends billions and everyone says "Oh" for each Windows release.
Linux the question is "why shouldn't I update"
Windows the question is "Why should I?"
For that reason it's douptful anyone is using anything as old as Kernel 2.2 but Windows 3.x is still in use today...
Why? Linux is free.. I pay $35 to Slackware for the latest Slackware becouse it's free...
I download each version but from time to time I'll buy a CD... last time I got the manual as well.
I won't touch RedHat becouse I can't download it.
It's a marketting advantage..
Caldera offered Open Linux lite... The full pacage includes comemrtal software.. you have to buy that....
Also when I buy How To books on Linux they come with freebe Linux CDs.. Slackware, RedHat, Debian etc... It increases the value of the book. But wait... UnitedLinux is going to miss out on that...
When we give away CDs at the office and to friends guess who won't be in the burnner? United Linux.
Who won't be available at the Linux UGs? United Linux
Who won't be available at any of the Linux community sponsered type giveaways and freebes done to premote Linux.. or in ANY Linux premotion deal.. United Linux.
Even if they provided a United Lite they'd be included...
Or we can say "Oh well.." and let it die a slow and painful death...
"Good bye... sorry you misunderstood us..." and maybe it's better now than later....
So that somebody won't be hurt and bitterly clame no money in Linux...
The artical probably is based on pure philosphical arguments. Sound ones.
Open source uses "many eyes" thery...
Historicly many untrainned eyes don't know problems when they are looking dirrectly at them.
Closed source uses experts theroy.. history shows that two good experts can do a wonderful job.
However any group of experts will deposit garbage instead of quality craftsmenship if permitted to do what every they like.
Hobbyest breat new ground in technology and quality when under sufficant review.
It's the review that gives Linux the edge..
The many eyes..
Yes Linux programmers could do better...
But the suppereor to Linux is not Microsoft or Sun... but BSD.. annother free software operating system...
From my prosective the question is...
Is a call to action protected speach?
Is this a call to action?
The danger of protecting a call to action is that protects insightment to riot.. terrorist threats and calls to murder.
I'd say no... call to action is not protected when the act is illegal.
But then comes the next question...
Is this a call to action? This must be weighted carefully.
Rember how often Linux, GPL, Open source and free software get pinned as tools of theft by the entertainment industry..
Now they seem to be pinning Intel Pentium 4 ads as an endorcement of theft.
It's easy to distort something...
Calls for legalisation of narcotics are often clamed to be calls to break the law.. not change it...
Video games, rock music and movies are often accused of premoting violence.
Often people TRY to pin "insightment to act" lables.
The medium matters not..
A psudo christian group got together in my home town and preached how some friends of mine (who started a pagan club in collage) were satanic and evil.
As long as they stayed with expressing opinions it didn't matter.
In fact some members thought it was funny...
Funny until a local politicion (local in that he was running for office in my home town.. won office.. and was kicked out for breaking the ellection law requering he actually LIVE here a year before running for office..)
He called for action...
It was fairly vage and being psudo christain the pagan club felt comfortable in the unstated action would be political...
Then one of the group was attacked.
His leg was broken..
Then tried to attack other members...
Side note there was also a christan club... with REAL christians..
Was much harder to attack pagan club members with christan club members acting as body guards.
The moral of the story is... There is a fine line between stating an option and calling for action.
Making the wrong call could have some very sereous reprocutions. There is no safe call.
Usually protecting speech is the safest call.
Not this time...
It is my opinion that any test with "PC" as a posability has lost credibility.
:(
The PC is just the hardware and not everyone means the same thing when they say PC..
PC.. is that Linux? OS/2? BSD? Dos?
In my view such a test should score points between diffrent Unix platforms.. In the past it would be diffrent Unix platforms and MacOs but now that MacOs is a Unix platform the tests should be a bit diffrent.
I think Mac people do often over emphasise the point that MacOs is an effective Geek machine but I understand why when people keep labling it a dummy box.
On the inverse I am puzzled why Unix/Linux people alow non Unix types to speak so poorly of Unix in the user friendly department.
In my view MacOs is an artists/newbie machine who's capabilitys extend well into the expert user arena..
Linux is a geek/admin box with capabilitys extending well into the artist/newbie arena.
The reality is they overlap and unless your at the upmost extream they both work extreamly well. Outside the upmost extream I might recomend two other options... BSD and Geoworks.. however Geoworks is dead...
Geoworks becouse the whole freaking os is installed on ROM and the system is basicly low end so the end user is paying for a cheap system that dose exactly what he/she needs with no additional cost. The Geobook was a nice portable system at a cheap price.
BSD is the extream in internet services.. handles the load designed and updated on reliability and uptime more than anything else.
Even if that means sacraficing multimedia nicitys.. Sorry no Video4BSD.. There are ways around that if you really want a web cam.
Nothing prevents BSD from doing everything Linux dose but often takes more effort on the end users behalf.
All Unix systems can be updated to be user friendly. KDE and Gnome is proving this..
Preveous user friendly Unixes did exist. However the typical user friendly GUI of the 1980s was a bit more than any typical consummer box could handle leading to overtly expensive Unix systems that failed on the market.
The non-Unix MacOs was worth while in it's time.
We didn't know what a graphics libary needed in order to be effecent so anything standing between the application and the video chip slowed everything down to much.
Unix security means libarys only.. no dirrect access posable.
Todays systems are significantly more powerful and we know a lot more about making good graphics libarys. MacOs X takes adantage of that.
We have not yet learnned how to make low overhead user friendly interfaces.. Geoworks did but a closed source dead os isn't going to teach us anything.
In the end I'd say the gap between MacOs and Linux is illusionary... there is a huge overlap.
Windows is the os for those who just want what "everybody else is using"... not what works best..
My first experence with Unix was on an AT&T 3B2.. It was used so the os was already installed configured etc..
It was wonderful.. when I was done I instructed the computer to shut down... from the keyboard.. no funbling for a switch to turn it off...
I hear you say "But didn't you need to AFTER the shut down?"
Hack no.. this box was made to run Unix.. it turnned itself OFF..
The joy of using Linux for the first time..
I finally got it installed.. My Pentoum system was home made.. high end and great.. I install Slackware from floppy..
The cool part was downloading everything using Dos...
It was done and it took me a day to install..
And annother to get DIP to work..
and annother to get X11 to work..
From there I was surfing the web and ircing at the same time..
Could I do that from Windows? Yeah but only after forking over $100 more and I wasn't about to do it.
Soon I was FTPing files left and right...
and recompiling the kernel
and still chatting on IRC..
Somebody had to convence me to try out a graphical web browser however... stuck in the old ways I continued to use Lynx..
Then after a while I caved to curreosity.. installed Windows...
one week later It actually worked..
one day later I reinstalled Linux...
and I never looked back....
AT&T Unix made AT&T a computer giant [Remembering of course AT&T was THE phone company so they had quite a bit behind them...
So all they needed was a good os (Unix) half way decent computer (The 3Bs) and they are golden..
Even giving Unix away AT&T had the money from the phone industry to role over anybody]
Early 1990s AT&T took over NEC and NEC became AT&Ts hardware side..
What did NEC make? The first high end Windows NT boxes.. using high end RISC..
It was a big marketting campaign and everything..
AT&T dropped out of the computer industry and let go of NEC to recover the losses..
Sun a small little company making low end Unix boxes for Berkly went commertal to sell high end desk tops.. or low end servers.. depending on your prespective.
A supped up 386 using a Unix clone called SunOS. Free of the limits of the PC ISA buss the Sun i386 was fast...
Long story short...
Unix made Sun into a techno giant..
Windows NT put an end to AT&T computers.
Windows NT is an answer all right.... But who here knows the question?
A. Switch to Windows NT
Q. How do you bring a larg company to a grinding halt..
1960's Larg mainframe computers like IBM mainframes come into exsistence.. soon well have computers that can store records of every person in the world for easy retreaval by any government burocrat...
// come into exsistence...
1970's Home computers like the Apple
Soon we'll be able to hack into those larg databases and change them... The ground work for the revolution...
1990's Windows defects tolerated by government and business agentcys make hacking databases even easier...
While end users fuss and more knowladgeable use Mac, Linux, BSD and in the enterprise Solarus..
2000's The database comes into existence..
Orical.. on Windows XP.
Soon after Freshmeat apps show up to erase your criminal record and give yourself dimplomatic status..
The revolution is won..