About ten years ago I saw a TV program with a concrete spring. They'd used something of this sort to make the spring. I remember it was much lighter than what we normally think of as concrete.
They were suggesting that it would be excellent for mounting Hi-Fi Speakers on.
I can't really remember any more details - but it always struck me as cool.
First off, if you want to have a rational discussion, you should avoid using words like "scheme," which implies that the system is a deceitful enterprise
I don't think the average English-speaking European thinks "scheme" is synonymous with "deceitful enterprise". I certainly don't. As far as I am concerned a "scheme" is a system, arrangement, setup etc - no moral bias implied when used on its own.
I'm fascinated that this equation is made in the US though. It must be one of the many examples of "two peoples separated by a common language" (Oscar Wilde?)
"As an independent Alpha architecture licensee, Alpha Processor, Inc. engineers microprocessors, Alpha platforms and leading-edge system logic."
So it seems like API only license the Alpha technology, they don't own it.
I tried to find a more up-to date reference or one from the API site but I couldn't. However I don't think Compaq would be anouncing a transfer of technology they don't own - do you?
I basically agree with your analysis but why this comment?
Our notions of ease of use are not the same as Joe Sixpack's.
As the original poster pointed out - Joe Sixpack is in the majority of computer users. If free software developers don't write software that caters to his needs he's not going to consider using it.
Is that important? Depends what you as a free software developer care about
If you care about Freedom - in the RMS/GPL/Free-as-in-speech-and-just-as-important way - then you'll want as many people to use Free Software as possible.
If what you really care about is the technology itself - then you'll focus on the things that matter to hackers/developers.
I suspect that most developers of free software care about the Free bit but are truly passionate about the Software bit.
My apologies if you feel I was taking credit for this idea - I certainly didn't intend to.
I had forgotten who it was that first thought of this. I suppose I should have mentioned that it was someone else's idea - but I posted this quickly during a break at work.
Backdoors are possible in Open Source - if you put them in the compiler.
Suppose I set up a website with my new compiler. I give a binary download and a source download. What I don't tell people is that the binary download contains extra code which adds a backdoor to the software it compiles. It also recognises when it is compiling itself and adds all this extra code.
So now you've got a corrupt compiler which generates back doors.
Of course you have to persuade someone to download the binary compiler first. But if they're working on a system without a compiler - that's exactly what they'll do. Or they installed the compiler direct from the CD.
I'm afraid the only way to 100% sure that your compiler is not corrupt in this way is to write your own. At least one that's good enough to compile another one.
...I've been working in IT for 10 years and ALL of that time people have been telling me that performance doesn't matter 'cos the hardware's getting cheaper and faster?
And most of those 10 years I've been working in Tech Support of one kind or another. One of the commonest types of problem is performance issues.
We tend to train programmers how to program but not how to program well. Even good programmers aren't always aware of performance issues because it may be 'too low level' for them.
As predicted by the late Douglas Adams in his book "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency" - Slashdot is one of the first Electric Monks.
For those that don't know - an Electric Monk is a device which makes your life easier by believing things for you. To be any use they have to be pretty adept at believing several contradictory things at once.
Whilst that's true - I always kinda liked the idea that maybe that was the question - and the fact that the ultimate question and answer don't match explains a lot about the crazy universe we live in.
Use your expertese upfront not afterwards. Why not make part of your sales pitch a 'common security mistakes' section? Describe the kind of thing your competitors do and show why it's insecure.
Then when you competitors make their pitch - hopefully alarm bells will start ringing, the client will be asking very awkward questions. Meanwhile you look real clever because you've predicted their approach. The client feels clever 'cos they get to make the other guys squirm with awkward questions - to which they have the answers (courtesy of you).
My only caution would be to make your examples all fictional.
As a DBA I used to work 9-10hours a day weekdays and probably 10-15hours every other weekend. Plus being on-call 1 week a month - I'd get called out maybe 1-2 a week.
Then it got crazy - not long after I did a 60-hour weekend I quit. (Ok it was Friday morning through to Monday night so technically it was more than a weekend)
Now I work in DBMS Vendor Tech Support - 9-5:30, Mon-Fri. We're a global company so support follows the Sun - so I get a life.:)
Slashdot is not the place to get legal advice I'd agree with you there.
But it seems to me the poster is also trying to get a sense of what and how others in a similar position are paid. Presumably in order to be better informed when negotiating with his employers.
Am I the only one who finds it sad that this article equates 5 companies controlling US broadband access (I agree not good) with 5 companies "controlling the Internet".
I'm not saying the picture is any better outside the US - in the UK it looks like being 1 company (although broadband access hasn't had that big a takeup here yet) But come on guys - the internet is a global medium try to think outside your own borders for a change!
Slashdot Mirror
About ten years ago I saw a TV program with a concrete spring. They'd used something of this sort to make the spring. I remember it was much lighter than what we normally think of as concrete.
They were suggesting that it would be excellent for mounting Hi-Fi Speakers on.
I can't really remember any more details - but it always struck me as cool.
Possible does not mean commercially realistic - it means possible - i.e. can be done at all.
I don't think the average English-speaking European thinks "scheme" is synonymous with "deceitful enterprise". I certainly don't. As far as I am concerned a "scheme" is a system, arrangement, setup etc - no moral bias implied when used on its own.
I'm fascinated that this equation is made in the US though. It must be one of the many examples of "two peoples separated by a common language" (Oscar Wilde?)
It's only GPL incompatible if you change GPL software and distribute it without allowing others to change and distribute freely.
The GPL does not (cannot in fact) cover other pieces of software you happen to ship on the same CD.
As someone above suggested - take out all the Caldera-proprietary stuff and you can copy without paying Caldera a penny.
Not sure... but it looks like they license the technology (see my comment above)
So I'm guessing it comes down to whether Intel have to honour the License Agreements or not.
In particular this quote
"As an independent Alpha architecture licensee, Alpha Processor, Inc. engineers microprocessors, Alpha platforms and leading-edge system logic."
So it seems like API only license the Alpha technology, they don't own it.
I tried to find a more up-to date reference or one from the API site but I couldn't. However I don't think Compaq would be anouncing a transfer of technology they don't own - do you?OK this is offtopic but I was checking COmpaq's site for news of this and came across this monstrosity!
f in ity_0601.html
http://www.compaq.com/alphaserver/news/linux_af
It's the worst Tux logo I've ever seen!
I basically agree with your analysis but why this comment?
Our notions of ease of use are not the same as Joe Sixpack's.
As the original poster pointed out - Joe Sixpack is in the majority of computer users. If free software developers don't write software that caters to his needs he's not going to consider using it.
Is that important? Depends what you as a free software developer care about
If you care about Freedom - in the RMS/GPL/Free-as-in-speech-and-just-as-important way - then you'll want as many people to use Free Software as possible.
If what you really care about is the technology itself - then you'll focus on the things that matter to hackers/developers.
I suspect that most developers of free software care about the Free bit but are truly passionate about the Software bit.
My apologies if you feel I was taking credit for this idea - I certainly didn't intend to.
I had forgotten who it was that first thought of this. I suppose I should have mentioned that it was someone else's idea - but I posted this quickly during a break at work.
Once again if I offended you - I apologise.
Backdoors are possible in Open Source - if you put them in the compiler.
Suppose I set up a website with my new compiler. I give a binary download and a source download. What I don't tell people is that the binary download contains extra code which adds a backdoor to the software it compiles. It also recognises when it is compiling itself and adds all this extra code.
So now you've got a corrupt compiler which generates back doors.
Of course you have to persuade someone to download the binary compiler first. But if they're working on a system without a compiler - that's exactly what they'll do. Or they installed the compiler direct from the CD.
I'm afraid the only way to 100% sure that your compiler is not corrupt in this way is to write your own. At least one that's good enough to compile another one.
...I've been working in IT for 10 years and ALL of that time people have been telling me that performance doesn't matter 'cos the hardware's getting cheaper and faster?
And most of those 10 years I've been working in Tech Support of one kind or another. One of the commonest types of problem is performance issues.
We tend to train programmers how to program but not how to program well. Even good programmers aren't always aware of performance issues because it may be 'too low level' for them.
Oracle now ships with a modified version of Apache which they call "Oracle HTTP server"
Probably the biggest single time wasting mistake I make is to type :Wq in vi rather than :wq.
On a UK keyboard : requires the shift key (not sure about the US keyboard)
As predicted by the late Douglas Adams in his book "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency" - Slashdot is one of the first Electric Monks.
For those that don't know - an Electric Monk is a device which makes your life easier by believing things for you. To be any use they have to be pretty adept at believing several contradictory things at once.
...that we'll find out he's just spending a year dead for tax reasons.
Whilst that's true - I always kinda liked the idea that maybe that was the question - and the fact that the ultimate question and answer don't match explains a lot about the crazy universe we live in.
:)
I've been hearing rumours about a movie at least since 1980 - maybe earlier.
I'm sure one day someone will have a crack at it - I just hope it's someone good. Tim Burton springs to mind.
There's 60-70 million of us and we don't all have the same sense of humour. So British Humour is a meaningless term.
... not you
To this day I still use this one -
Me: It's at times like this I wish I'd listened to what my mother told me when I was young.
Unsuspecting victim: Why what did she say?
Me: I don't know I wasn't listening!
Maybe I'm just an old geek but it still make me laugh every time.
Thanks Douglas for my favourite joke.
Use your expertese upfront not afterwards. Why not make part of your sales pitch a 'common security mistakes' section? Describe the kind of thing your competitors do and show why it's insecure.
Then when you competitors make their pitch - hopefully alarm bells will start ringing, the client will be asking very awkward questions. Meanwhile you look real clever because you've predicted their approach. The client feels clever 'cos they get to make the other guys squirm with awkward questions - to which they have the answers (courtesy of you).
My only caution would be to make your examples all fictional.
(unlike the Empirical British)
I think you mean Imperial British.
Imperial means "of the Empire"
Empirical means "quantitative, subject to measurement" as in "there's no empirical evidence for that statement"
At least that's the meaning in the UK - it could be that this is one of those ways in which American English differs from British English.
As a DBA I used to work 9-10hours a day weekdays and probably 10-15hours every other weekend. Plus being on-call 1 week a month - I'd get called out maybe 1-2 a week.
:)
Then it got crazy - not long after I did a 60-hour weekend I quit. (Ok it was Friday morning through to Monday night so technically it was more than a weekend)
Now I work in DBMS Vendor Tech Support - 9-5:30, Mon-Fri. We're a global company so support follows the Sun - so I get a life.
Slashdot is not the place to get legal advice I'd agree with you there.
But it seems to me the poster is also trying to get a sense of what and how others in a similar position are paid. Presumably in order to be better informed when negotiating with his employers.
Am I the only one who finds it sad that this article equates 5 companies controlling US broadband access (I agree not good) with 5 companies "controlling the Internet".
I'm not saying the picture is any better outside the US - in the UK it looks like being 1 company (although broadband access hasn't had that big a takeup here yet) But come on guys - the internet is a global medium try to think outside your own borders for a change!