Good reason for police response teams to have.50 BMG sniper rifles with AP ammo. A.50 AP would punch through that suit laughing all the way. The North Hollywood bank robbery already shows police need effective sniper rifles.
Good point. Concrete is cheap, but we still house troops in tents and unarmored trailers. I'd be potting ordinary ISO containers in concrete (you get a nice bunker with a builtin anti-spall liner) if I were tasked with base defense, but the US isn't much on bunkers.
Such melodrama! Go see REAL poverty (not the fatass so-called "poor" derelicts we have in the US) in areas where annoying the authorities will get you shot, then get back to us.
Hint: we don't have mechanics making pontoon boats of old trucks to get from the US to Cuba.
"Now, after this story, I am seriously faced with the prospect of never using the computer as an educational tool again."
K12LTSP and no internet connection should handle things for a group nicely, and on inexpensive gear too. http://www.k12ltsp.org/
If you are that worried, there really are a number of solutions that flat will not allow anything on the system you didn't choose to put there.
Want to use your personal Winbox for demos but avoid the risk? Consider running a clean install in a virtual machine, or finding out if your software of choice will run from a WinPE/BartPE live CD. You could even post an Ask Slashdot question since the subject would be of interest.
Finaally, any "IT professional" should have plenty of extra machines for a personal demo box that would make using a potentially compromised machine unnecessary. If you want to leave it in one spot, get a machine with an easily removed hard disk.
"A child doesn't want to play the latest video games. he wants to be able to read a book."
The children that this will help DO want to read a book. In order to reach the kids who will matter, one must offer opportunity to the group. Let's face it, most PEOPLE, anywhere, don't amount to sh1t. That is not a problem. Reaching the few who will learn and use that learning along with the personal ambition and ability to succeed matters.
Geeks and technically able people are a minority in ALL countries, but we matter.
"Why hasn't Microsoft released a bootable CD so you can run the anti-virus/spyware/adware stuff easier? Clean up the junk AND patch the vulnerabilities in Outlook. Even if it means turning off some of the functionality."
BartPE and WinPE (now free with the WAIK download) based live CDs are easy to build for what you want. You can open the image and add or remove components as you wish using.iso manipulation software too. Google and enjoy.
This is a breeze since you already have a Knoppix CD as a parachute (it DOES connect to the net with your system so you can surf for info just in case?).
Boot Ubuntu. Download a 98SE.iso (small file size being the main reason) from P2P and burn it. You own one, so why not? You can scan it with ClamAV if you wish. Test that it boots, but do not install yet. Backup everything you want to save from both OSs. I know Knoppix has the tools, but I'm fond of the Gparted live CD. I'd download that too.
Blow away old Windows partition, create replacement FAT32 partition for 98SE. Install Win98SE to fresh partition, then upgrade to 2000. Your GRUB CD covers you there.
I run a USAF Support Section (tool/test equipment crib). The weather doesn't throw test equipment in a mound of junk in the launch truck.:) Both the environment AND the G.I.s are harsh on gear. Since the user give-a-shit factor is often limited, the tougher the gear and the more spares the better!
A problem with electronic access to maintenance manual libraries is that G.I.s are harsh on equipment. Flash drives for military computers make sense and would easily pay for themselves in reduced system downtime.
It isn't that simple. I've met plenty of people who are just permanently, by choice of repeated behaviors, petty losers and minor offenders. It would be counterproductive and horrendously expensive to lock them all up for life, but they should be flagged by the system so those of us who want to avoid hiring them in a position of trust can do so. They don't rate being considered redeemed, because they are not and will not be redeemed. They don't rate life in Supermax either.
"add an entirely new meaning to crashing your car."
Not to mention another source of revenue for your happy local geek mechanic. The feature bloat on modern cars means they cost more to fix. More money for me!:-)
I didn't hose my mbr, but Linux forums often have tales of woe from people who cannot access their Windows install after a Linux install problem.
The ghetto method of drive isolation is to use a second hard disk for Linux, and either unplug or select a different boot order in BIOS. Swap racks are under 20 bucks, scrounged hard drives often free, so I recommend those for someone with one desktop and a free full-height bay.
Sure, I'd be comfortable dual booting if I had to (or on a laptop) but when someone has a term paper on their Winstall they can't get to, all the explanations of Linux goodness fall on deaf ears...
I'd try to avoid the dual-boot solution for the reason that your best Linux reference is the internet, which no workee if your new Linux install barfs! Being able to refer to the web while you are installing is also nice.
Since OP is upgrading his old system anyway, I suggest building another complete box, using one for Linux and one for Windows. A KVM switch will let you go back and forth as you learn. Having two comps also guards against ordinary bad stuff like hardware failures. Another way to go is hard drive swap trays, which are cheap and allow you to isolate tragedies on one drive from another.
You can also do neat stuff like use the info to pick her up if her car malfunctions (and send a wrecker to get it). If she gets lost, she can call you for directions. This tech has plenty of non-Gestapo uses.
Most people who "choose" it will not be installing it, and don't care about anything but the cost. They will buy a bundled package, use it, and have someone else fix it when it breaks. It's still "Windows". Linux distros require user installation and that the user learn enough to be their own tech support. For someone who is not a devoted geek this can take years. For someone who IS it can take years. After spending years learning Windows, few people want to throw that effort away to learn another OS. What we call fun they call tedious and frustrating.
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Good reason for police response teams to have .50 BMG sniper rifles with AP ammo. .50 AP would punch through that suit laughing all the way. The North Hollywood bank robbery already shows police need effective sniper rifles.
A
Plate armor? Meet longbow!
Good point. Concrete is cheap, but we still house troops in tents and unarmored trailers.
I'd be potting ordinary ISO containers in concrete (you get a nice bunker with a builtin anti-spall liner) if I were tasked with base defense, but the US isn't much on bunkers.
Such melodrama!
Go see REAL poverty (not the fatass so-called "poor" derelicts we have in the US) in areas where annoying the authorities will get you shot, then get back to us.
Hint: we don't have mechanics making pontoon boats of old trucks to get from the US to Cuba.
"Now, after this story, I am seriously faced with the prospect of never using the computer as an educational tool again."
K12LTSP and no internet connection should handle things for a group nicely, and on inexpensive gear too.
http://www.k12ltsp.org/
If you are that worried, there really are a number of solutions that flat will not allow anything on the system you didn't choose to put there.
Want to use your personal Winbox for demos but avoid the risk? Consider running a clean install in a virtual machine, or finding out if your software of choice will run from a WinPE/BartPE live CD. You could even post an Ask Slashdot question since the subject would be of interest.
Finaally, any "IT professional" should have plenty of extra machines for a personal demo box that would make using a potentially compromised machine unnecessary. If you want to leave it in one spot, get a machine with an easily removed hard disk.
"so why are you counting the hairs in her landing strip?"
To each his own.
Note that with endoscope pr0n the landing strip flyover is merely a prelude to inspecting the hangar!
"A child doesn't want to play the latest video games. he wants to be able to read a book."
The children that this will help DO want to read a book. In order to reach the kids who will matter, one must offer opportunity to the group.
Let's face it, most PEOPLE, anywhere, don't amount to sh1t. That is not a problem. Reaching the few who will learn and use that learning along with the personal ambition and ability to succeed matters.
Geeks and technically able people are a minority in ALL countries, but we matter.
"NormalSpeak" is imprecise. /. maybe hire her to boil this down for us mortals?"
"Could
Not as well as Groklaw.
"Why hasn't Microsoft released a bootable CD so you can run the anti-virus/spyware/adware stuff easier? Clean up the junk AND patch the vulnerabilities in Outlook. Even if it means turning off some of the functionality."
.iso manipulation software too. Google and enjoy.
BartPE and WinPE (now free with the WAIK download) based live CDs are easy to build for what you want. You can open the image and add or remove components as you wish using
This is a breeze since you already have a Knoppix CD as a parachute (it DOES connect to the net with your system so you can surf for info just in case?).
.iso (small file size being the main reason) from P2P and burn it. You own one, so why not? You can scan it with ClamAV if you wish.
Boot Ubuntu.
Download a 98SE
Test that it boots, but do not install yet.
Backup everything you want to save from both OSs.
I know Knoppix has the tools, but I'm fond of the Gparted live CD. I'd download that too.
http://gparted.sourceforge.net/livecd.php
Blow away old Windows partition, create replacement FAT32 partition for 98SE.
Install Win98SE to fresh partition, then upgrade to 2000. Your GRUB CD covers you there.
I run a USAF Support Section (tool/test equipment crib). The weather doesn't throw test equipment in a mound of junk in the launch truck. :)
Both the environment AND the G.I.s are harsh on gear. Since the user give-a-shit factor is often limited, the tougher the gear and the more spares the better!
Ought to be modded "(Score 5, Accurate)".
A problem with electronic access to maintenance manual libraries is that G.I.s are harsh on equipment. Flash drives for military computers make sense and would easily pay for themselves in reduced system downtime.
"You might even be lucky and find that your Best Buy is one of the few that hasn't pulled Linux off the shelves. "
That might have something to do with Linux users not buying retail boxed distros.
It isn't that simple.
I've met plenty of people who are just permanently, by choice of repeated behaviors, petty losers and minor offenders. It would be counterproductive and horrendously expensive to lock them all up for life, but they should be flagged by the system so those of us who want to avoid hiring them in a position of trust can do so.
They don't rate being considered redeemed, because they are not and will not be redeemed.
They don't rate life in Supermax either.
"add an entirely new meaning to crashing your car."
:-)
Not to mention another source of revenue for your happy local geek mechanic. The feature bloat on modern cars means they cost more to fix. More money for me!
I didn't hose my mbr, but Linux forums often have tales of woe from people who cannot access their Windows install after a Linux install problem.
The ghetto method of drive isolation is to use a second hard disk for Linux, and either unplug or select a different boot order in BIOS.
Swap racks are under 20 bucks, scrounged hard drives often free, so I recommend those for someone with one desktop and a free full-height bay.
Sure, I'd be comfortable dual booting if I had to (or on a laptop) but when someone has a term paper on their Winstall they can't get to, all the explanations of Linux goodness fall on deaf ears...
I'd try to avoid the dual-boot solution for the reason that your best Linux reference is the internet, which no workee if your new Linux install barfs!
Being able to refer to the web while you are installing is also nice.
Since OP is upgrading his old system anyway, I suggest building another complete box, using one for Linux and one for Windows. A KVM switch will let you go back and forth as you learn. Having two comps also guards against ordinary bad stuff like hardware failures.
Another way to go is hard drive swap trays, which are cheap and allow you to isolate tragedies on one drive from another.
"You might as well get excited because some one was bringing back DOS."
http://www.freedos.org/
"Why don't you just install Windows? You've missed the entire point."
Not if their point was to make the computer serve them in the way they wished.
Build all the Wright replicas you like. That's what the Experimental category is for.
, 00.html
Better pick a perfect day to test it though.
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,61655
You can also do neat stuff like use the info to pick her up if her car malfunctions (and send a wrecker to get it). If she gets lost, she can call you for directions. This tech has plenty of non-Gestapo uses.
And how is Redmond doing this?
SEAL teams!
Ha, I kill me!
Plug for the Fully Informed Jury Association. That we actually NEED this does not reflect well on our education system.
http://www.fija.org/
Most people who "choose" it will not be installing it, and don't care about anything but the cost. They will buy a bundled package, use it, and have someone else fix it when it breaks. It's still "Windows".
Linux distros require user installation and that the user learn enough to be their own tech support. For someone who is not a devoted geek this can take years. For someone who IS it can take years.
After spending years learning Windows, few people want to throw that effort away to learn another OS.
What we call fun they call tedious and frustrating.
I've done it. Works fine for closing small flaps and such from cuts I get doing mechanic work.