Of course then there's this whole thing about having to learn on/. that your OS is phoning home every time you connect to the internet, and then having to go to the trouble of stopping it, so I figure I'm already ahead.
Next up: Let's talk about how much harder it would be to run antivirus on Linux, if there were actually a reason to do such a thing. How much wood would a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
I'm exaggerating a bit, but this happens more often than not, and is the main reason why I'm still using windows.
I've been using Linux for years, so it's always exhilarating to hear how impossibly difficult it is and what a superman I must be. Don't try this at home, kids!
Well said. Unfortunately the Cartoon World is the one in which most of us live, so the moronic "they hate us for our freedom" narrative always gets good traction here.
For all practical purposes, bin Laden was a myth, and so is al-Qaeda. Yes, they existed, but not as the uber-powerful bogeymen they've been made out to be. In fact, we pretty much created their reality during and after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. But as arch-villains they excel at frightening Americans and creating a hysterical demand for endless war, which we fight not to "defend our freedom" but rather because it is profitable, both politically and - for an influential few - financially.
Discovered? No, we've known this and used this for years.
True, but the pahrmaceutical industry can't make money with mere table sugar. What will be new here is the discovery that only a patentable sugar analogue or derivative is truly effective, at a cost of around $1,000 per dose.
Since what you propose would generate an AVI file with an invalid index
Nope, works fine. The input files aren't stand-alone AVIs, but a single large one that's been split up. That is, file.avi.001, file.avi.002, etc., and not file001.avi, file002.avi,....
I think you just hit the nail on the head. At the time I would gladly have given up being the individualistic weird kid, if I knew how. Looking back, though, I'm glad I didn't "fit in" too much better than I did.
if you want to cry, follow this link and count the number of shitty gui hacks that do nothing but "split" and "cat"
Oh lordy, if anything typifies the Windows ecosystem for me, this has to be it. I can't count how many posts I've seen on Usenet discussing where to find shiny software that essentially does nothing but "cat file.avi.* > file.avi". I'm sure that such a thing must be possible from the command line, but the majority of Windows users are afraid to venture there.
...staff will not be able to deliver their best unless they are provided with the means to keep their skills fresh and relevant.
If only there were an easy way to connect with the world's vast knowledge, so that someone with the motivation and desire to learn could access it easily and cheaply from the comfort of his/her own home...
To me it sounds like someone (non-technical) high up in the chain wanted to focus blame on an inadverant act by one of the engineers. Inadvertant, of course, so no one needs to get fired and file a lawsuit, and an engineer so that no one in upper management appears culpable. The downside is that they dramatically underscore the fragility of their cloud, thereby undermining its acceptance in the market. Not a good tradeoff, if that's the case.
Alright, I can't take it anymore. Even in the absence of a "common" name, I doubt that any chemist would refer to H20 as "dihydrogen monoxide", any more than aluminum oxide (Al2O3) would be "dialuminum trioxide". It's redundant, people. We call H2O2 "hydrogen peroxide" -- not dihydrogen dioxide -- and "hydrogen oxide" is all you need to distinguish H2O from that. If we're being pedantic, that is.
The idea that you can "agree" to waive your right to legal recourse in a contract is a bit interesting, especially if you are required to do so as a condition of doing business with the other party. Is a contract really a contract if only one side is entitled to enforce it?
Support on that level would cost more than updating your OS every decade from a stable company.
What is this "support" thing, exactly? If you're talking about patches and updates, they're free and automatic. If you're talking about being able to call somebody on the phone whenever you have a problem, well... I'll solve mine after 5 minutes of Googling while you're still on hold waiting to be told to make sure your computer is plugged into the wall socket. How often do you need phone support, really? Is it free?
And don't forget: You're not just paying to update your proprietary OS; you're going to have to update all of those commercial applications, as well. Unless you're pirating that adds up.
In case any of us hadn't noticed, all of this authoritarian war-on-terrorism crap is taking place at a time when the rights and economic well-being of everyone in the middle class on down is under attack. It doesn't require a big stretch of the imagination to realize that this may all be in anticipation of the civil unrest and disobedience that often accompanies this kind of class warfare from above.
I'm pretty sure your average CS major needs to be able to quote Dante in his original language about as much as he needs an extra heavy bender prior to the big test.
I think you're missing the point about what education was all about back then. For the most part it wasn't about occupational training, as it largely is today. The purpose of education was to make you an educated, enlightened person who, being obviously refined and well-spoken, could instantly be recognized as such. And yes, the social class connotations are thick and deep.
Even today, you can usually tell how "well-educated" someone is just by talking to them for a minute or two, before you have any idea what they know and what they don't, or how good they are at whatever it is they do. Fair or not, people make those snap judgements all the time.
Can't say I ever met anyone too conservative to run to the government for protection as soon as his/her monopoly gets threatened with new competition. I knew government was good for something...
Slashdot Mirror
ordinary people don't want to use Linux if there's a risk of becoming one of these losers.
Yes, that must be it...
Could be, if they're logging your MAC address in addition to your IP. Somehow I don't find that comforting, though...
Of course then there's this whole thing about having to learn on /. that your OS is phoning home every time you connect to the internet, and then having to go to the trouble of stopping it, so I figure I'm already ahead.
Next up: Let's talk about how much harder it would be to run antivirus on Linux, if there were actually a reason to do such a thing. How much wood would a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
I'm exaggerating a bit, but this happens more often than not, and is the main reason why I'm still using windows.
I've been using Linux for years, so it's always exhilarating to hear how impossibly difficult it is and what a superman I must be. Don't try this at home, kids!
Well said. Unfortunately the Cartoon World is the one in which most of us live, so the moronic "they hate us for our freedom" narrative always gets good traction here.
For all practical purposes, bin Laden was a myth, and so is al-Qaeda. Yes, they existed, but not as the uber-powerful bogeymen they've been made out to be. In fact, we pretty much created their reality during and after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. But as arch-villains they excel at frightening Americans and creating a hysterical demand for endless war, which we fight not to "defend our freedom" but rather because it is profitable, both politically and - for an influential few - financially.
Home of the Brave, indeed...
Irony is cruel, isn't it? The only amazing thing is that our government has remained so oblivious to it.
Along with cutting taxes on the wealthy in wartime, it plays well with the GOP's ongoing "Starve the Beast" strategy...
With fantastic salespersons/representatives/users like this, I just don't know why the general public rejects the Linux desktop.
Well there's an interesting deflection of the discussion.
Actually, the reason I don't use Windows is that some Windows user was rude to me once, so I guess it all evens out...
Discovered? No, we've known this and used this for years.
True, but the pahrmaceutical industry can't make money with mere table sugar. What will be new here is the discovery that only a patentable sugar analogue or derivative is truly effective, at a cost of around $1,000 per dose.
Since what you propose would generate an AVI file with an invalid index
Nope, works fine. The input files aren't stand-alone AVIs, but a single large one that's been split up. That is, file.avi.001, file.avi.002, etc., and not file001.avi, file002.avi,....
I think you just hit the nail on the head. At the time I would gladly have given up being the individualistic weird kid, if I knew how. Looking back, though, I'm glad I didn't "fit in" too much better than I did.
Oops - close quote on that first line.
if you want to cry, follow this link and count the number of shitty gui hacks that do nothing but "split" and "cat"
Oh lordy, if anything typifies the Windows ecosystem for me, this has to be it. I can't count how many posts I've seen on Usenet discussing where to find shiny software that essentially does nothing but "cat file.avi.* > file.avi". I'm sure that such a thing must be possible from the command line, but the majority of Windows users are afraid to venture there.
With all of the money and PR behind Windows, surely it can't be for the lack of trying.
Although to be fair I had a Linux box rooted back in 2001, due to some carelessness on my own part. Still have the trojan code, too...
...staff will not be able to deliver their best unless they are provided with the means to keep their skills fresh and relevant.
If only there were an easy way to connect with the world's vast knowledge, so that someone with the motivation and desire to learn could access it easily and cheaply from the comfort of his/her own home...
But of course you'd have the source, and could modify it any way you like...
To me it sounds like someone (non-technical) high up in the chain wanted to focus blame on an inadverant act by one of the engineers. Inadvertant, of course, so no one needs to get fired and file a lawsuit, and an engineer so that no one in upper management appears culpable. The downside is that they dramatically underscore the fragility of their cloud, thereby undermining its acceptance in the market. Not a good tradeoff, if that's the case.
Alright, I can't take it anymore. Even in the absence of a "common" name, I doubt that any chemist would refer to H20 as "dihydrogen monoxide", any more than aluminum oxide (Al2O3) would be "dialuminum trioxide". It's redundant, people. We call H2O2 "hydrogen peroxide" -- not dihydrogen dioxide -- and "hydrogen oxide" is all you need to distinguish H2O from that. If we're being pedantic, that is.
Unless interstellar travel becomes more profitable in the short term than waging senseless wars, I'd have to (sadly) agree with you.
The idea that you can "agree" to waive your right to legal recourse in a contract is a bit interesting, especially if you are required to do so as a condition of doing business with the other party. Is a contract really a contract if only one side is entitled to enforce it?
Support on that level would cost more than updating your OS every decade from a stable company.
What is this "support" thing, exactly? If you're talking about patches and updates, they're free and automatic. If you're talking about being able to call somebody on the phone whenever you have a problem, well... I'll solve mine after 5 minutes of Googling while you're still on hold waiting to be told to make sure your computer is plugged into the wall socket. How often do you need phone support, really? Is it free?
And don't forget: You're not just paying to update your proprietary OS; you're going to have to update all of those commercial applications, as well. Unless you're pirating that adds up.
In case any of us hadn't noticed, all of this authoritarian war-on-terrorism crap is taking place at a time when the rights and economic well-being of everyone in the middle class on down is under attack. It doesn't require a big stretch of the imagination to realize that this may all be in anticipation of the civil unrest and disobedience that often accompanies this kind of class warfare from above.
I'm pretty sure your average CS major needs to be able to quote Dante in his original language about as much as he needs an extra heavy bender prior to the big test.
I think you're missing the point about what education was all about back then. For the most part it wasn't about occupational training, as it largely is today. The purpose of education was to make you an educated, enlightened person who, being obviously refined and well-spoken, could instantly be recognized as such. And yes, the social class connotations are thick and deep.
Even today, you can usually tell how "well-educated" someone is just by talking to them for a minute or two, before you have any idea what they know and what they don't, or how good they are at whatever it is they do. Fair or not, people make those snap judgements all the time.
Can't say I ever met anyone too conservative to run to the government for protection as soon as his/her monopoly gets threatened with new competition. I knew government was good for something...
A little defensive, are we? Really, this one's not a generational thing.