I thought Mint was based off of Ubuntu, but I guess it's nice they're applying their fixes to stock Debian as well.
A lot of people are going to be looking to jump off the Ubuntu bus now that they're shoehorning a netbook/phone interface into a desktop computer distribution and Mint/Debian seem like excellent choices.
The "religious fundamentalism" you deride is responsible for developing the system that millions are using on desktops, media boxes, phones, etc., for free. The only reason people work for free is when they are working for an ideal.
As far as your specific concern about video drivers, Ubuntu doesn't (and can't) distribute nVidia's proprietary graphics driver. But downloading and enabling it is as easy as clicking System> Administration> Hardware Drivers.
The last time I checked, fundamentalist preachers don't have "click here for a keg" signs in their churches.
I guess that's the reason coders prefer telecommuting (also a/. story today).
Anyway, as far as keyboards go: I think that must be regarding communal keyboards. For your own computer's keyboard, I think you can keep it clean. And also not eat right on your computer.
A followup: the only way to improve software is to criticize it, so, as a user of various opensource programs, I welcome criticism.
Re: print- it's a must-need for some/many, and yet it's not for others. There are a lot of web-based businesses that are providing services over the Internet, and don't need to print brochures in specific colors. At the most, they might want to have a few business cards, but they can just have those made up at the local printshop for $10 or $20. They most definitely are not a traditional-style corporation with a fleet of travelling salesman with full-color brochures and catalogs.
Dreamweaver: could you describe how it's commonly used, and how you use it? Thanks.
Is this how it works: You drag and create a rectangle on the screen with a mouse. Then Dreamweaver sets up a CSS region, and your stuff goes into that?
Do people attempt to use Dreamweaver to get "pixel-perfect" layouts? Is Dreamweaver the force behind those sites that have fixed font sizes with a ton of !important's or the ones where if do a single Ctrl+= (to increase the font size), the whole layout goes crazy and sidebars drop to the bottom?
Or, if not, is Dreamweaver just an HTML editor with an integrated previewer?
Just a clarification: I was talking about small, new companies that are making stuff and who "need to produce some graphics for your website". I.e., companies that have a business other than print/design but do make use of graphics.
For professional printers and designers, yes, you get files in Adobe formats, and you need to be able to handle that.
By the way, could you provide a few specific (common) examples of "how to do X" where it's easy in Photoshop, and hard in Gimp?
People are hesitant to toot their own stuff lest the anti-self-promotion brigade come and downmod them, but I've acquired a handy collection of useful sites from people posting about their own work.
Although the OP has a point, and I'm not saying he's saying this, but:
If Apple put's an "i" in front of anything and everything, it's brilliant, innovative, a breath of fresh air, and why-didn't-anyone-think-of-this-before-the-genius-Steve-Jobs: iPod, iPhone, iMac, iPad, iLife, iWork, iMovie, iWeb, iDVD.
But, let someone else do it, and it's old, tired, boring, hackneyed, cliched.
>Running some window manager with a few KDE or GNOME programs doesn't give you the full experience of the desktop environment. That's fine for some, like me and you, but a lot of people really want the integration and whatnot.
The weird thing is all those things (widgets) that you had become accustomed to, and use as a part of your working style, like notifiers, shortcuts, and other stuff that goes into the panel? They're removing all those (in Gnome).
It's like taking people's smartphone apps away.
So, anywhere, people are thinking, what's the point of running a "desktop environment" if there's no environment anymore.
What? Why's that? Did they take it (gnome-terminal) out?
I'm on Ubuntu Lucid (10.04), and I haven't upgraded to either 10.10 or Natty Narwhal. I've put off the decision at least until 12.04, but I'm really considering what to do at that point.
The funny thing is: who is there left who doesn't know how to operate a desktop computer? Who are they making all these changes for? And if you need to give granny or the kids an easy computer, give them and iPad or a TouchPad.
But don't dumb the desktop down to the level of an iPad.
This. Of course, they're be the usual whining about how Gimp is supposedly unintuitive (i.e., it's not set up exactly like Photoshop), or how it doesn't support color separation for print (even though most people are just using it for web graphics).
And Inkspace gets better with each version, it's already much more usable (I think) than Gimp.
If you're a small company, just starting out, and you're not locked into Photoshop for some reason, there's no reason to start producing files in that format. If you're starting up a web-based company, and need to produce some graphics for your website, just create it in Inkscape.
One of the biggest problems with Drupal is the need to install a whole bunch of modules to even get the basic functionality you would expect in a website. For example, in WordPress you get nice URLs (with the title as-words-in-the-url instead of just a document ID) out of the box. In Drupal, you install the path module, and then the pathauto module (to automatically create aliases at the time of article creation), not to mention dependencies.
This. If you want to install a CMS, install a theme, and launch, go for WordPress.
Drupal is like: install, and then what ??@#!!.
That said, both Drupal and WordPress can be made (emphasis) to encompass the same functionality. Check out the following sister sites, made in Drupal and WordPress:
no one has mentioned the utter inanity of the need for an application that shows the world around you so you can use a computer while walking through green lights.
The funny thing is, I think at 99 cents, anything can sell even if it's totally useless.
Yeah, I'm glad you agree re: Nokia at least. Unfortunately, it seems that to some/.'ers who happen to have mod points today, calling a spade a spade regarding iPhone competitors is trolling.
So, in the world that today's mods live in, iDevice competitors have actually got their act together? Even if they could manage to come out with something with higher specs in all features than a given iDevice, there's still inertia to deal with. But what's amazing is they come out with inferior phones and pads, and then expect to compete.
I don't know who I offended: Nokia, Android, or WebOS fans? The fact is, I am a fan of better open devices, the more open the better. And the way to get their is through criticism, not closing your eyes and shouting "I can't hear you."
Although I grant that the megapix race is ultimately futile, there are plenty of other specs on which iPhone competitors have settled into a comfortable pattern of too little, too late.
For example, the recently announced Palm Pre 3 will have a resolution of 800x480, which is about half the pixels of the iPhone 4's 960x640.
So when are Android manufacturers and Palm/HP going to start competing with the next iPhone iteration instead of the previous one? I'm leaving Nokia out of this due to utter incompetence and failure to deliver.
The reason Chomsky-style critiques are not useful in Wikipedia is because Wikipedia is supposed to be a compilation of received, conventional wisdom, i.e., what "normal" people or people in power think.
Now, you might agree or disagree with that conventional wisdom, but you at least have to know what it is (even if you want to criticize it on your own, separate Chomskypedia).
Speaking of which, could you have a look here and here, and comment and pros and cons of both semi-vetted pages regarding astrophysics?
If you could remove ego from it, I could see a system in which someone like you could write the condensed matter physics page as a "placeholder" until someone in the field was able to come by and replace it. Unfortunately, the human ego is both a vanishingly small and vastly huge thing at the same time, and it throws a monkey wrench into that plan. Scientists don't get a whole lot of money, all they have to go on is recognition, hence accounting for the huge egos in science.
OK, I'm glad I went to the end looking for a mention of Citizendium before I did so myself. They only have 15725 articles, but they are vetted by real subject matter experts.
Amazing how the discussion got this far without someone saying that Wikipedia must obviously have gotten the idea from Citizendium, as it's growing a good bit these days.
I think it could do with some marketing, because very few have heard of it (and maybe they should have chosen a "something-pedia" name).
Is there any defense to stock dilution? I think this is a pertinent question, because a good number of/.'ers might be working for startups with stock as part of the package.
Are there standard contracts which prevent this, or should everyone have to hire a lawyer to pound out custom contract$.
If everybody's share is getting diluted at the same time, I guess that might be OK if the value is increasing.
Also, I wonder if the RIAA might clarify if it's OK to store music in place I don't own (such as a rented apartment) or if I can only store it in place that I own myself (such as house with the mortgage paid off).
Slashdot Mirror
What? There's a Mint Debian now, too?
I thought Mint was based off of Ubuntu, but I guess it's nice they're applying their fixes to stock Debian as well.
A lot of people are going to be looking to jump off the Ubuntu bus now that they're shoehorning a netbook/phone interface into a desktop computer distribution and Mint/Debian seem like excellent choices.
Well, it does 'show the drive'. If you're using Nautilus, just click on the name and icon of the drive you want to access.
Of course, it's also mounted someplace under / as well.
The "religious fundamentalism" you deride is responsible for developing the system that millions are using on desktops, media boxes, phones, etc., for free. The only reason people work for free is when they are working for an ideal.
As far as your specific concern about video drivers, Ubuntu doesn't (and can't) distribute nVidia's proprietary graphics driver. But downloading and enabling it is as easy as clicking System> Administration> Hardware Drivers.
The last time I checked, fundamentalist preachers don't have "click here for a keg" signs in their churches.
I guess that's the reason coders prefer telecommuting (also a /. story today).
Anyway, as far as keyboards go: I think that must be regarding communal keyboards. For your own computer's keyboard, I think you can keep it clean. And also not eat right on your computer.
A followup: the only way to improve software is to criticize it, so, as a user of various opensource programs, I welcome criticism.
Re: print- it's a must-need for some/many, and yet it's not for others. There are a lot of web-based businesses that are providing services over the Internet, and don't need to print brochures in specific colors. At the most, they might want to have a few business cards, but they can just have those made up at the local printshop for $10 or $20. They most definitely are not a traditional-style corporation with a fleet of travelling salesman with full-color brochures and catalogs.
Illustrator- Inkscape
InDesign- Scribus
Dreamweaver: could you describe how it's commonly used, and how you use it? Thanks.
Is this how it works: You drag and create a rectangle on the screen with a mouse. Then Dreamweaver sets up a CSS region, and your stuff goes into that?
Do people attempt to use Dreamweaver to get "pixel-perfect" layouts? Is Dreamweaver the force behind those sites that have fixed font sizes with a ton of !important's or the ones where if do a single Ctrl+= (to increase the font size), the whole layout goes crazy and sidebars drop to the bottom?
Or, if not, is Dreamweaver just an HTML editor with an integrated previewer?
Just a clarification: I was talking about small, new companies that are making stuff and who "need to produce some graphics for your website". I.e., companies that have a business other than print/design but do make use of graphics.
For professional printers and designers, yes, you get files in Adobe formats, and you need to be able to handle that.
By the way, could you provide a few specific (common) examples of "how to do X" where it's easy in Photoshop, and hard in Gimp?
Hey, thanks for the link to your magazine!
People are hesitant to toot their own stuff lest the anti-self-promotion brigade come and downmod them, but I've acquired a handy collection of useful sites from people posting about their own work.
Although the OP has a point, and I'm not saying he's saying this, but:
If Apple put's an "i" in front of anything and everything, it's brilliant, innovative, a breath of fresh air, and why-didn't-anyone-think-of-this-before-the-genius-Steve-Jobs: iPod, iPhone, iMac, iPad, iLife, iWork, iMovie, iWeb, iDVD.
But, let someone else do it, and it's old, tired, boring, hackneyed, cliched.
>Running some window manager with a few KDE or GNOME programs doesn't give you the full experience of the desktop environment. That's fine for some, like me and you, but a lot of people really want the integration and whatnot.
The weird thing is all those things (widgets) that you had become accustomed to, and use as a part of your working style, like notifiers, shortcuts, and other stuff that goes into the panel? They're removing all those (in Gnome).
It's like taking people's smartphone apps away.
So, anywhere, people are thinking, what's the point of running a "desktop environment" if there's no environment anymore.
What? Why's that? Did they take it (gnome-terminal) out?
I'm on Ubuntu Lucid (10.04), and I haven't upgraded to either 10.10 or Natty Narwhal. I've put off the decision at least until 12.04, but I'm really considering what to do at that point.
The funny thing is: who is there left who doesn't know how to operate a desktop computer? Who are they making all these changes for? And if you need to give granny or the kids an easy computer, give them and iPad or a TouchPad.
But don't dumb the desktop down to the level of an iPad.
This. Of course, they're be the usual whining about how Gimp is supposedly unintuitive (i.e., it's not set up exactly like Photoshop), or how it doesn't support color separation for print (even though most people are just using it for web graphics).
And Inkspace gets better with each version, it's already much more usable (I think) than Gimp.
If you're a small company, just starting out, and you're not locked into Photoshop for some reason, there's no reason to start producing files in that format. If you're starting up a web-based company, and need to produce some graphics for your website, just create it in Inkscape.
One of the biggest problems with Drupal is the need to install a whole bunch of modules to even get the basic functionality you would expect in a website. For example, in WordPress you get nice URLs (with the title as-words-in-the-url instead of just a document ID) out of the box. In Drupal, you install the path module, and then the pathauto module (to automatically create aliases at the time of article creation), not to mention dependencies.
This. If you want to install a CMS, install a theme, and launch, go for WordPress.
Drupal is like: install, and then what ??@#!!.
That said, both Drupal and WordPress can be made (emphasis) to encompass the same functionality. Check out the following sister sites, made in Drupal and WordPress:
http://www.rue89.com/
http://www.quebec89.com/
I'd like to agree with you, and I'd like for the public to agree with us geeks on the matter of openness.
The problem I see is agreements with carriers which hide the cost of the various iDevices.
no one has mentioned the utter inanity of the need for an application that shows the world around you so you can use a computer while walking through green lights.
The funny thing is, I think at 99 cents, anything can sell even if it's totally useless.
Where is that ozone hole to release some heat when you need it :)
Yeah, I'm glad you agree re: Nokia at least. Unfortunately, it seems that to some /.'ers who happen to have mod points today, calling a spade a spade regarding iPhone competitors is trolling.
So, in the world that today's mods live in, iDevice competitors have actually got their act together? Even if they could manage to come out with something with higher specs in all features than a given iDevice, there's still inertia to deal with. But what's amazing is they come out with inferior phones and pads, and then expect to compete.
I don't know who I offended: Nokia, Android, or WebOS fans? The fact is, I am a fan of better open devices, the more open the better. And the way to get their is through criticism, not closing your eyes and shouting "I can't hear you."
Although I grant that the megapix race is ultimately futile, there are plenty of other specs on which iPhone competitors have settled into a comfortable pattern of too little, too late.
For example, the recently announced Palm Pre 3 will have a resolution of 800x480, which is about half the pixels of the iPhone 4's 960x640.
So when are Android manufacturers and Palm/HP going to start competing with the next iPhone iteration instead of the previous one? I'm leaving Nokia out of this due to utter incompetence and failure to deliver.
What's different this version as opposed to others that only 20 apps are considered 'real'?
And what about Apple's trick of just doubling the pixel usage for iPad vs iPhone apps to repurpose the latter for the former?
Does that work on Android?
The reason Chomsky-style critiques are not useful in Wikipedia is because Wikipedia is supposed to be a compilation of received, conventional wisdom, i.e., what "normal" people or people in power think.
Now, you might agree or disagree with that conventional wisdom, but you at least have to know what it is (even if you want to criticize it on your own, separate Chomskypedia).
>I've got a PhD in cosmology
Speaking of which, could you have a look here and here, and comment and pros and cons of both semi-vetted pages regarding astrophysics?
If you could remove ego from it, I could see a system in which someone like you could write the condensed matter physics page as a "placeholder" until someone in the field was able to come by and replace it. Unfortunately, the human ego is both a vanishingly small and vastly huge thing at the same time, and it throws a monkey wrench into that plan. Scientists don't get a whole lot of money, all they have to go on is recognition, hence accounting for the huge egos in science.
OK, I'm glad I went to the end looking for a mention of Citizendium before I did so myself. They only have 15725 articles, but they are vetted by real subject matter experts.
Amazing how the discussion got this far without someone saying that Wikipedia must obviously have gotten the idea from Citizendium, as it's growing a good bit these days.
I think it could do with some marketing, because very few have heard of it (and maybe they should have chosen a "something-pedia" name).
Is there any defense to stock dilution? I think this is a pertinent question, because a good number of /.'ers might be working for startups with stock as part of the package.
Are there standard contracts which prevent this, or should everyone have to hire a lawyer to pound out custom contract$.
If everybody's share is getting diluted at the same time, I guess that might be OK if the value is increasing.
Also, I wonder if the RIAA might clarify if it's OK to store music in place I don't own (such as a rented apartment) or if I can only store it in place that I own myself (such as house with the mortgage paid off).