But for the software industry today they are part and parcel of developing software and protecting the work that a software company has put in.
Copyright is a protection of (intellectual) "work". If you really want to "protect" your work, don't open source it. Patents are a protection of inventions - new, original, non-obvious inventions - not just work. Just because you've done some "work", you shouldn't be able to charge people who want to do similar things.
RedHat can be extremely selective about who is allowed to benefit from the patent (even free of charge) and who is never going to get a license.
So now a single patent can be used to completely exclude any company, individual or group of individuals from doing something someone else did first? You really think this is a good thing?
So open source people should beat Microsoft through patents ? Yeah, forget all this technical work, making a better, more secure and reliable product than theirs. It's too hard. Let's just hire a couple of lawyers, and keep filing patents until we get one really good one we can really screw them with. That'll really make the world a better place for 100's of millions of people, won't it.
What if Red Hat gets sufficient patents to really hurt Microsoft financially? What happens then? If Microsoft are really hurting, they would just have to buy Red Hat. Remember that $40 billion in cash? Screw everything else in the company. Hell, it'll probably also hold up the development of Linux for a good few months. Not all the programmers will be able to find jobs elsewhere just like that, even if the Alan Cox's and similar are famous enough to do so. And then Microsoft get the patents. And then they can use them to screw over the rest of the world - especially the Linux community.
No, using patents in this way is not good. Look on it as a necessary evil at best.
I agree with your last paragraph, but I look forward to the day when big companies and small have all become so sick of being screwed over by patent leeches, and third-world countries with a more enlightened attitude to progress and fairness on this issue have begun overtaking the USA, that the whole concept of software patenting ideas (in the USA and everywhere else) has been thrown out.
Why lie? Why not just teach her not to give out personal information?
I've had to encourage her to not trust anyone she hasn't put a face on.
Do you really mean to say that in "real" life you encourage her to trust everyone she sees?
I've had to tell her that most of the rules that apply to your day to day life mean jack shit when you're dealing with an anonymous no one.
Eh? What about rules such as "don't trust strangers"? They would seem to apply equally as well in real life as when online.
Kids are stoopit. Even the smart ones.
That's because they're children - and even so, I'm sure that many (elder) kids are not as dumb as you say.
It scares the shit out of me.
Don't know what you can do when she's away from home - other than try to educate her - but at home why not just fix the computer up so that the only net connection is in the front room - and if you're not gonna be there, take the connecting cable out with you.
Aren't they currently suing in ISP in the US over their claimed hyperlink patent ? If they win, or if the ISP relents and agrees to settle an out-of-court deal, this might make a wider range of people think again about the stupidity of software patents.
And don't just think it can't be changed because all the big tech companies love making money from patents. Just wait until loads of tin-pot little companies start screwing the big boys with some of the same ridiculous patents they've started using on others. Once they realise that they're just tying themselves up in stupid, expensive legal knots, they might decide that the whole idea was stupid in the first place, and we're all better off without them.
Sorry, but I can't agree about compiling stuff for a basic *introductory* course.
Firstly, it'll scare them, and secondly, all that most people will remember is that they HAD to compile stuff to get the operating system to work. Management in their place will get to hear about it, and this impression about Linux will stick.
For a basic course, yes, you could show them how simple it is to install, say, RPM packages (or deb equivalents, I guess) - and how to remove them (often a messy experience on windows). Show them that the compilation is often already done for them. You could even show them "rpm -ql" and "rpm -q --scripts" to show them that they can find out *exactly* what will happen when they install and remove stuff (and without reboots, too).
Show them KDE (maybe even KDE3.0). You might not agree with me that it's currently the best Linux GUI environment, but it is the most like Windows. Want to show them 'man' pages ? Show them man:/command_name in konqueror. Show them the big things that are good about KDE, and also the little things that are good about KDE (e.g. middle-button clicks on scrollbar regions to move the scrollbar there in one operation).
Show them how to cut-and-paste using the mouse. It's different to how it's done in windows, it works between KDE and Gnome apps, and it will stop them thinking they can't cut and paste in Linux. Show them there are other editors than 'vi' and 'emacs' - editors beginners can use easily.
Show them the command line, that's very important, but don't go overboard - don't reinforce their views that the command line is too difficult. Show them some simple, powerful stuff. Stuff like 'grep', 'ls', piping commands together... Think of examples that are simple on Linux/Unix, but very difficult to do on Windows.
Don't give them too much unnecessary info about how daemons work, where config files live, etc, etc. This is an *introductory* course. Just let them be assured that it all works. Get them enthusiastic. If they are, they'll get hold of copies for themselves, and start finding out more for themselves - but you have to build that enthusiasm, put their fears to rest, and show them things they can do more easily (or better) in Linux than in Windows.
OK, I've had a few serious responses to this (and some funny ones:), so here goes.
The points you're making are exactly what I was making fun of. A computer power button should work like every other power button on virtually every other piece of electrical equipment (and on most people's walls, too). It does a simple function that *everybody* understands. Why on earth did computer makers feel the need to start pissing about with it ?
TVs often have a standby button (usually on the remote control) and a separate power button. If computer makers want a "power" button to do something other than turn the power on and off, they should put another button there, and use it instead for the extra functions.
For anyone running Mandrake 8.1, note that the original, buggy packages available via the KDE web site (and mirrors) have now been replaced by updated packages. Many of the bugs have been fixed and they are also *considerably smaller*.
Note that the original packages for Mandrake 8.1 were quite buggy - but newer packages have been put up on the KDE site (and its mirrors) which cure a lot of the problems - Mandrake 8.1 users should check that they've got the latest packages.
I've not quite sorted out the best way of getting KDM3 to work properly yet, but the following works (note that the old KDM works fine without doing this):
a) In/etc/X11/prefdm, look for the setting up of $PATH, and add/opt/kde3/bin to the start.
b) mv/usr/share/config/kdm/usr/share/config/kdm.old
c) ln -s/opt/kde3/share/config/kdm/usr/share/config/kd m
There may be better ways of doing it, but this works for me (on 8.1).
Just two commands, eh ? That would seem to be twice as many commands as just running 'MandrakeUpdate'.
And it's graphical - no need to get hold of another utility from somewhere......
Of course, not everyone likes graphical installers - so you have the option of using 'urpmi' instead.
And it's not just official patches and bugfixes - your can download development packages from Cooker (Mandrake's development packages) too - if you dare...
Why is Debian cheaper when Mandrake is freely downloadable from lots of places ? And freely useable and copyable ?
This isn't a point against Debian, but one possible reason for the stability of the packages it uses is that distributions like Mandrake have included more "cutting-edge" versions of packages, which have therefore been "tested" by a much greater number of people, and had the opportunity of bugs being found and corrected.
Not that there's anything wrong with the extra stability Debian has. If I was running Linux on a server, I think I might well use it. I've also considered it for my desktop, but right now Mandrake is good enough for me.....
Slashdot Mirror
But for the software industry today they are part and parcel of developing software and protecting the work that a software company has put in.
Copyright is a protection of (intellectual) "work". If you really want to "protect" your work, don't open source it. Patents are a protection of inventions - new, original, non-obvious inventions - not just work. Just because you've done some "work", you shouldn't be able to charge people who want to do similar things.
RedHat can be extremely selective about who is allowed to benefit from the patent (even free of charge) and who is never going to get a license.
So now a single patent can be used to completely exclude any company, individual or group of individuals from doing something someone else did first? You really think this is a good thing?
So open source people should beat Microsoft through patents ? Yeah, forget all this technical work, making a better, more secure and reliable product than theirs. It's too hard. Let's just hire a couple of lawyers, and keep filing patents until we get one really good one we can really screw them with. That'll really make the world a better place for 100's of millions of people, won't it.
What if Red Hat gets sufficient patents to really hurt Microsoft financially? What happens then? If Microsoft are really hurting, they would just have to buy Red Hat. Remember that $40 billion in cash? Screw everything else in the company. Hell, it'll probably also hold up the development of Linux for a good few months. Not all the programmers will be able to find jobs elsewhere just like that, even if the Alan Cox's and similar are famous enough to do so. And then Microsoft get the patents. And then they can use them to screw over the rest of the world - especially the Linux community.
No, using patents in this way is not good. Look on it as a necessary evil at best.
I agree with your last paragraph, but I look forward to the day when big companies and small have all become so sick of being screwed over by patent leeches, and third-world countries with a more enlightened attitude to progress and fairness on this issue have begun overtaking the USA, that the whole concept of software patenting ideas (in the USA and everywhere else) has been thrown out.
What if you (or anyone else) releases modules with your own EULA attached to them ? Who says that Bioware's EULA takes precedence over yours ?
I'm sure there are template EULAs you could find and use if you wanted to do this.
Mandrake's development release (Cooker) is already being built with GCC 3.1.
I've had to encourage her to lie.
Why lie? Why not just teach her not to give out personal information?
I've had to encourage her to not trust anyone she hasn't put a face on.
Do you really mean to say that in "real" life you encourage her to trust everyone she sees?
I've had to tell her that most of the rules that apply to your day to day life mean jack shit when you're dealing with an anonymous no one.
Eh? What about rules such as "don't trust strangers"? They would seem to apply equally as well in real life as when online.
Kids are stoopit. Even the smart ones.
That's because they're children - and even so, I'm sure that many (elder) kids are not as dumb as you say.
It scares the shit out of me.
Don't know what you can do when she's away from home - other than try to educate her - but at home why not just fix the computer up so that the only net connection is in the front room - and if you're not gonna be there, take the connecting cable out with you.
Aren't they currently suing in ISP in the US over their claimed hyperlink patent ? If they win, or if the ISP relents and agrees to settle an out-of-court deal, this might make a wider range of people think again about the stupidity of software patents.
And don't just think it can't be changed because all the big tech companies love making money from patents. Just wait until loads of tin-pot little companies start screwing the big boys with some of the same ridiculous patents they've started using on others. Once they realise that they're just tying themselves up in stupid, expensive legal knots, they might decide that the whole idea was stupid in the first place, and we're all better off without them.
Perhaps you're going blind ?
I've been to your country. Lovely place, lovely people. You should be proud.
Someone mod this guy back up again. Who the hell moderated it as flamebait ?
"The problem.....is a lack of respect or even awareness of Intellectual Property in my opinion".
Perhaps, as they are different countries to your own they have different cultures, different ideas and different laws.
Perhaps it is you who is showing a lack of respect.
And as for the proceeds of piracy going directly to the Red Army......are you some sort of CIA intern on a Propaganda 101 course ?
It's gains appeal when it loses a peel ?
Sorry, but I can't agree about compiling stuff for a basic *introductory* course.
Firstly, it'll scare them, and secondly, all that most people will remember is that they HAD to compile stuff to get the operating system to work. Management in their place will get to hear about it, and this impression about Linux will stick.
For a basic course, yes, you could show them how simple it is to install, say, RPM packages (or deb equivalents, I guess) - and how to remove them (often a messy experience on windows). Show them that the compilation is often already done for them. You could even show them "rpm -ql" and "rpm -q --scripts" to show them that they can find out *exactly* what will happen when they install and remove stuff (and without reboots, too).
Show them KDE (maybe even KDE3.0). You might not agree with me that it's currently the best Linux GUI environment, but it is the most like Windows. Want to show them 'man' pages ? Show them man:/command_name in konqueror. Show them the big things that are good about KDE, and also the little things that are good about KDE (e.g. middle-button clicks on scrollbar regions to move the scrollbar there in one operation).
Show them how to cut-and-paste using the mouse. It's different to how it's done in windows, it works between KDE and Gnome apps, and it will stop them thinking they can't cut and paste in Linux. Show them there are other editors than 'vi' and 'emacs' - editors beginners can use easily.
Show them the command line, that's very important, but don't go overboard - don't reinforce their views that the command line is too difficult. Show them some simple, powerful stuff. Stuff like 'grep', 'ls', piping commands together... Think of examples that are simple on Linux/Unix, but very difficult to do on Windows.
Don't give them too much unnecessary info about how daemons work, where config files live, etc, etc. This is an *introductory* course. Just let them be assured that it all works. Get them enthusiastic. If they are, they'll get hold of copies for themselves, and start finding out more for themselves - but you have to build that enthusiasm, put their fears to rest, and show them things they can do more easily (or better) in Linux than in Windows.
OK, I've had a few serious responses to this (and some funny ones :), so here goes.
The points you're making are exactly what I was making fun of. A computer power button should work like every other power button on virtually every other piece of electrical equipment (and on most people's walls, too). It does a simple function that *everybody* understands. Why on earth did computer makers feel the need to start pissing about with it ?
TVs often have a standby button (usually on the remote control) and a separate power button. If computer makers want a "power" button to do something other than turn the power on and off, they should put another button there, and use it instead for the extra functions.
????
You mean like a power button that turns the power on, and then off again ?
Us open-source folks had better give up now - there's no way we can catch up with advances like this...
I used to work at a place that was into "motivational" posters, and they actually asked us for suggestions of words to put on them.
My suggestion ?
"We should all be committed".
For anyone running Mandrake 8.1, note that the original, buggy packages available via the KDE web site (and mirrors) have now been replaced by updated packages. Many of the bugs have been fixed and they are also *considerably smaller*.
Note that the original packages for Mandrake 8.1 were quite buggy - but newer packages have been put up on the KDE site (and its mirrors) which cure a lot of the problems - Mandrake 8.1 users should check that they've got the latest packages.
/etc/X11/prefdm, look for the setting up of $PATH, and add /opt/kde3/bin to the start.
/usr/share/config/kdm /usr/share/config/kdm.old
/opt/kde3/share/config/kdm /usr/share/config/kd m
I've not quite sorted out the best way of getting KDM3 to work properly yet, but the following works (note that the old KDM works fine without doing this):
a) In
b) mv
c) ln -s
There may be better ways of doing it, but this works for me (on 8.1).
Just two commands, eh ? That would seem to be twice as many commands as just running 'MandrakeUpdate'.
And it's graphical - no need to get hold of another utility from somewhere......
Of course, not everyone likes graphical installers - so you have the option of using 'urpmi' instead.
And it's not just official patches and bugfixes - your can download development packages from Cooker (Mandrake's development packages) too - if you dare...
Why is Debian cheaper when Mandrake is freely downloadable from lots of places ? And freely useable and copyable ?
This isn't a point against Debian, but one possible reason for the stability of the packages it uses is that distributions like Mandrake have included more "cutting-edge" versions of packages, which have therefore been "tested" by a much greater number of people, and had the opportunity of bugs being found and corrected.
Not that there's anything wrong with the extra stability Debian has. If I was running Linux on a server, I think I might well use it. I've also considered it for my desktop, but right now Mandrake is good enough for me.....
sed -e '/Unix/Microsoft/' < Microsoft.ad
....of the book ?
Or is someone just taking the myth ?
And while I'm at it, proof that Siemens really does have a Staines office (search down about half-way).
Especially not their infamous German office - Wang, Cologne.
You could have the attached computer make keyclick noises whenever it registers key-presses, which might help (if the time lag wasn't too great).
If mine did that to me, I'd find a new girlfriend.
Now repeat 500 times:
I must not repeatedly send out email messages.
I must not repeatedly send out email messages.
I must not repeatedly send out email messages.
:
:
:
Or maybe they just had to wait for a patent to expire ?