I don't recall it making the news, but I know Microsoft threatened Lake Forest Hospital in Lake Forest, IL. with that option when they were less than enthusiastic over dropping everything and proving they had licenses for everything. Think they came up two short.
Has anyone ever had a gun stuck down their throat by an MS employee and been forced to purchase MS software?
Do audits conducted under the guard of armed federal marshalls count? Microsoft has long claimed that anyone who buys a machine without thier operating system is a pirate. Showing up with an armed escort to check your machine sounds alot like what you are saying here.
The GPL, he continued, "breaks that cycle--that is, it makes it impossible for a commercial company to use any of that work or build on any of that work. So what you saw with TCP/IP or Sendmail or the browser could never happen.
I think what he is trying to say is that the GPL would have kept Microsoft off the Internet.
Gate's seems to think that the only reason there should be free software is so his company can "innovate" it into his product.
Jon,
As a person working in the insurance industry, I find this line very funny:
But what Wurzler is doing here is essentially punishing people (fining them, as it were) for making a responsible choice to use the products and services offered by one of America's most important flagship companies.
Now maybe the Open Source people will call you a Microsoft shill, but I would have to point out your ignorance of how the insurance industry works. Premiums are determined by risk factors. If you have more risk factors than someone else, you will be paying a higher premium. It is not a punishment or a fine.
Consider this, my little brother pays almost triple what I pay in a 6-month premium. We both drive cars from a flagship American company (Jeep). Is that fair? Should Congress investigate? Does it matter to you that he is single, twenty-one, male, lives in Chicago and has a DUI on his record and I'm married, thirty-two, male, live in the suburbs and have a clean driving record? It should. These are examples of risk factors. This is how the industry works.
Now, if studies have shown that Microsoft products are more open to attack than other systems for any reason, then that is considered a risk factor. If they (underwriters) find that Storm Linux is less secure than all the other distros (I'm not saying it is, just an example) then it would be logical to see Storm users paying more.
Spend a little time looking into how insurance premium rates are determined before screaming 'foul'.
We have a disaster recovery day once a year where a rep from every team in the division goes off-site and has to conduct tests to make sure they are fully functional without any links to home office (we pull the plugs on the routers). It can be quite an experience every year.
Of course, during our last real disaster (the Chicago Flood), our disaster site was knocked an hour before our home office. Guess they need to be more than a mile apart.
I guess this can be shot down pretty simply under prior art even without video games as examples.
Anyone ever read the book Headcrash by Bruce Bethke? It describes the patent exactly and it was published in September of 1995. It won the Philip K. Dick award for Sci-Fi in 1995.
The place I used to work did this with Compaq 200MMX machines on shelves in racks. They used a DB25 cable between repeaters to throw the signal.
Main problem was that they were doing it with Windows 95 and NT machines. Someone always had to be available to run downstairs and reboot some machine. And just imagine how many reboots you get on 300 Windows machines in an average day!
Glad to see bullies are still alive and well. I was bullied in Grade school. I had my face smashed into a brick wall and broke a tooth. No punishment for anyone. I got a three day suspension for being hit in the face. The bully got three days as well.
One day, at summer camp, I snapped. I was pushed backwards over a bench by a kid a year older and a foot taller. I grabbed a coffee can filed with sand (for fire prevention) and hit him in the head with it. Boy, was he pissed at me. I was about to get thrashed when he noticed all the blood on his hand. A dozen stiches and a tetnis shot later, I never had any trouble with him again.
My new rep travelled with me to High School and I was seldom picked on there.
Defend yourselves, people! Never threaten, act. Worse that can happen is you get beat up again.
I am a CO2 producer here to stand up for my rights. I spend every hour of my life creating CO2. You rotten people are using your 'plants' to take my CO2 and convert it to O2 (stripping off my C copy protection) which you then use for your own purposes!
And don't tell me it's ok just because every living thing does it! Stealing is stealing!
How exactly is it "libertarian" to argue that government should assist companies in blocking people from engaging in collective bargaining?
I guess it isn't. The government should just get out of labor disputes. Of course, that means that striking workers can be replaced if they don't come back to work. ON STRIKE then becomes equal to I QUIT. Would you like information on COBRA before you go?
When you guys get laid off without severance pay in a couple of months because your department's project is being moved to a subcontractor in Russia or India, let's see how anti-union you are.
Oh yeah, the unions have done such a great job keeping jobs here in America. That's why so many American cars are partially built in Mexico and Canada.
Wanna kill any tech company? Unionize it! Do you know what union scale is pull a ten foot patch cable from one rack to another?
Did anyone seriously believe that a country that fully censors the Internet and the media was going to suddenly be open? Your ideas give the leaders of China nightmares.
For all our (the US) government fears free communication, imagine how China sees it.
BTW, they can't legally take their hardware but they could shut down the site through the courts if they ever got really ticked off of at the Mac OS modeled themes again.
Apple couldn't legally take their hardware, but they could get a judge to issue a warrant and have the police sieze the computers (ala Steve Jackson Games, DeCSS, etc.).
But I'm glad to see that Apple hasn't gone that nuts... yet.
I was going to reply via e-mail but yours isn't listed.
Maybe growing up as the son of a Homicide cop has made me paranoid, but no one lives in safety anymore. I have been mugged in broad daylight less than a block from a police station. My car has been hit by stray fire one evening. I've had my car and apartment broken into on numerous occasions.
Granted that my weapon of choice is currently a baseball bat, I still see no reason as to why I should give up my gun because it makes you nervous.
I can take you places in Chicago (where guns are illegal) where you would be lucky to last 10 minutes without getting mugged or shot. Don't the honest people have the right to defend themselves?
I'll alter my challenge:
You with a cell phone, me with a nerf gun. Ten paces and turn. Can you place a call and give your address before I nerf you?
You can give me all the statistics you want. You DO live here it COULD happen but choose to think otherwise.
I don't think retraining for the rank and file staff would be that much of a problem. Speaking as someone who has done training and support at a Fortune 500 company, it wouldn't be that difficult:
"This is how you log in."
"This is where Word Perfect (or Star Office) is."
"Here is your e-mail client."
"Here is your Internet connection."
"Here is your Mainframe emulator."
What else does 99% of the workforce need? The majority of our new applications are web based with either java or ASP.
If you have your department secretary runing around changing IP address or screen resolutions, you need to rethink your IT staffing.
Quick question:
Pick *ANY* city in the world...
Someone kicks in your front door and is screaming his intention to kill you. They are armed with a knife and are coming in. You are sitting at your desk with a phone and a gun. Which do you choose to save your (Canadian) bacon?
Think fast. The person will find you or a family member in the next 60 seconds.
Now do it over with the choices on your desk being a phone and a bowl of warm oatmeal.
I guess I'd rather be a gun-toting freak over a red stain and sad story. What would you be?
Slashdot Mirror
I don't recall it making the news, but I know Microsoft threatened Lake Forest Hospital in Lake Forest, IL. with that option when they were less than enthusiastic over dropping everything and proving they had licenses for everything. Think they came up two short.
Viv
-----------
Has anyone ever had a gun stuck down their throat by an MS employee and been forced to purchase MS software?
Do audits conducted under the guard of armed federal marshalls count? Microsoft has long claimed that anyone who buys a machine without thier operating system is a pirate. Showing up with an armed escort to check your machine sounds alot like what you are saying here.
Viv
-----------
I found it ironic that when I went to read the letter on NewsForge, there was a random big ad for IBM in the sidebar.
With the big guys getting into Linux boxes, I figured it was only a matter of time before the smaller brands fell by the wayside.
Best of luck to everyone at VA. If there is a layoff, you at least have a chance of getting in the Linux group at IBM or Compaq!
Viv
-----------
Just great. Now Microsoft can just 'innovate' some parts of NetBSD and claim to have invented a 64 bit OS.
Viv
-----------
The GPL, he continued, "breaks that cycle--that is, it makes it impossible for a commercial company to use any of that work or build on any of that work. So what you saw with TCP/IP or Sendmail or the browser could never happen.
I think what he is trying to say is that the GPL would have kept Microsoft off the Internet.
Gate's seems to think that the only reason there should be free software is so his company can "innovate" it into his product.
Viv
-----------
You guys have now showed that a free operating system can turn a profit.
Next you need to show that it can SUSTAIN a profit.
Keep up the good work and keep making those nay-sayers eat their words!
Viv
-----------
Jon, As a person working in the insurance industry, I find this line very funny:
But what Wurzler is doing here is essentially punishing people (fining them, as it were) for making a responsible choice to use the products and services offered by one of America's most important flagship companies.
Now maybe the Open Source people will call you a Microsoft shill, but I would have to point out your ignorance of how the insurance industry works. Premiums are determined by risk factors. If you have more risk factors than someone else, you will be paying a higher premium. It is not a punishment or a fine.
Consider this, my little brother pays almost triple what I pay in a 6-month premium. We both drive cars from a flagship American company (Jeep). Is that fair? Should Congress investigate? Does it matter to you that he is single, twenty-one, male, lives in Chicago and has a DUI on his record and I'm married, thirty-two, male, live in the suburbs and have a clean driving record? It should. These are examples of risk factors. This is how the industry works.
Now, if studies have shown that Microsoft products are more open to attack than other systems for any reason, then that is considered a risk factor. If they (underwriters) find that Storm Linux is less secure than all the other distros (I'm not saying it is, just an example) then it would be logical to see Storm users paying more.
Spend a little time looking into how insurance premium rates are determined before screaming 'foul'.
Viv
-----------
Invicta? Wasn't that the name of the FBI's fake company that snagged those Russian hackers?
Odd that they would have the same name...
Viv
-----------
We have a disaster recovery day once a year where a rep from every team in the division goes off-site and has to conduct tests to make sure they are fully functional without any links to home office (we pull the plugs on the routers). It can be quite an experience every year.
Of course, during our last real disaster (the Chicago Flood), our disaster site was knocked an hour before our home office. Guess they need to be more than a mile apart.
Viv
-----------
I guess this can be shot down pretty simply under prior art even without video games as examples.
Anyone ever read the book Headcrash by Bruce Bethke? It describes the patent exactly and it was published in September of 1995. It won the Philip K. Dick award for Sci-Fi in 1995.
Viv
-----------
This could be a huge can of worms. It will be interesting to see if Russia views these searches the same way.
Viv
-----------
The place I used to work did this with Compaq 200MMX machines on shelves in racks. They used a DB25 cable between repeaters to throw the signal.
Main problem was that they were doing it with Windows 95 and NT machines. Someone always had to be available to run downstairs and reboot some machine. And just imagine how many reboots you get on 300 Windows machines in an average day!
Viv
-----------
Glad to see bullies are still alive and well. I was bullied in Grade school. I had my face smashed into a brick wall and broke a tooth. No punishment for anyone. I got a three day suspension for being hit in the face. The bully got three days as well.
One day, at summer camp, I snapped. I was pushed backwards over a bench by a kid a year older and a foot taller. I grabbed a coffee can filed with sand (for fire prevention) and hit him in the head with it. Boy, was he pissed at me. I was about to get thrashed when he noticed all the blood on his hand. A dozen stiches and a tetnis shot later, I never had any trouble with him again.
My new rep travelled with me to High School and I was seldom picked on there.
Defend yourselves, people! Never threaten, act. Worse that can happen is you get beat up again.
Viv
-----------
Anyone know what the IPs of these Ranger clowns are? We can just block their IPs at the firewall. No more searches...
Viv
-----------
I am a CO2 producer here to stand up for my rights. I spend every hour of my life creating CO2. You rotten people are using your 'plants' to take my CO2 and convert it to O2 (stripping off my C copy protection) which you then use for your own purposes!
And don't tell me it's ok just because every living thing does it! Stealing is stealing!
Time to take my meds.....
Viv
-----------
How exactly is it "libertarian" to argue that government should assist companies in blocking people from engaging in collective bargaining?
I guess it isn't. The government should just get out of labor disputes. Of course, that means that striking workers can be replaced if they don't come back to work. ON STRIKE then becomes equal to I QUIT. Would you like information on COBRA before you go?
When you guys get laid off without severance pay in a couple of months because your department's project is being moved to a subcontractor in Russia or India, let's see how anti-union you are.
Oh yeah, the unions have done such a great job keeping jobs here in America. That's why so many American cars are partially built in Mexico and Canada.
Wanna kill any tech company? Unionize it! Do you know what union scale is pull a ten foot patch cable from one rack to another?
Viv
-----------
You can see just the GIF image here!
Viv
-----------
Did anyone seriously believe that a country that fully censors the Internet and the media was going to suddenly be open? Your ideas give the leaders of China nightmares.
For all our (the US) government fears free communication, imagine how China sees it.
Viv
-----------
Think turning on all the AC units in Southern California during one of their stage three alerts. DDOS half the state!
Viv
-----------
What a great idea! NSA Linux! Because when you think of personal privacy and security, the first thing that comes to mind is the US Government!
Now 97% spy free!!
On a serious note, at least people can look at the source and find out if there are any backdoors. Much better than guessing at Microsoft...
Viv
-----------
BTW, they can't legally take their hardware but they could shut down the site through the courts if they ever got really ticked off of at the Mac OS modeled themes again.
Apple couldn't legally take their hardware, but they could get a judge to issue a warrant and have the police sieze the computers (ala Steve Jackson Games, DeCSS, etc.).
But I'm glad to see that Apple hasn't gone that nuts... yet.
Viv
-----------
Well, mark it in the books. This is the first time I've ever fowarded a joke to Senator Orrin Hatch. I wonder if I'll get a reply....
Viv
-----------
I was going to reply via e-mail but yours isn't listed.
Maybe growing up as the son of a Homicide cop has made me paranoid, but no one lives in safety anymore. I have been mugged in broad daylight less than a block from a police station. My car has been hit by stray fire one evening. I've had my car and apartment broken into on numerous occasions.
Granted that my weapon of choice is currently a baseball bat, I still see no reason as to why I should give up my gun because it makes you nervous.
I can take you places in Chicago (where guns are illegal) where you would be lucky to last 10 minutes without getting mugged or shot. Don't the honest people have the right to defend themselves?
I'll alter my challenge:
You with a cell phone, me with a nerf gun. Ten paces and turn. Can you place a call and give your address before I nerf you?
You can give me all the statistics you want. You DO live here it COULD happen but choose to think otherwise.
Viv
-----------
I don't think retraining for the rank and file staff would be that much of a problem. Speaking as someone who has done training and support at a Fortune 500 company, it wouldn't be that difficult:
"This is how you log in."
"This is where Word Perfect (or Star Office) is."
"Here is your e-mail client."
"Here is your Internet connection."
"Here is your Mainframe emulator."
What else does 99% of the workforce need? The majority of our new applications are web based with either java or ASP.
If you have your department secretary runing around changing IP address or screen resolutions, you need to rethink your IT staffing.
Viv
-----------
Quick question:
Pick *ANY* city in the world...
Someone kicks in your front door and is screaming his intention to kill you. They are armed with a knife and are coming in. You are sitting at your desk with a phone and a gun. Which do you choose to save your (Canadian) bacon?
Think fast. The person will find you or a family member in the next 60 seconds.
Now do it over with the choices on your desk being a phone and a bowl of warm oatmeal.
I guess I'd rather be a gun-toting freak over a red stain and sad story. What would you be?
Viv
-----------