Where are your numbers? Jupiter Media Metrix says that MSN Messenger has already passed AIM in users.
Does that include AOL users? (which should count directly towards the AIM userbase...). My guess, and this is just an assumption is no. At least for now. If anybody has a aURL for that study (or a reference at a reputable news source), I'd be interested.
Until you can convince their double-digit million member base to move off of AOL, you'll probably be using AOL to talk to your non-geek friends. Of course, that implies you have non-geek friends...
Have you considered the telephone or maybe a dinner party? Both also very good ways to talk with your non-geek friends. And completely open source, as it were.:-)
when I asked aol to let me open source devlop their abandoned java im client they turned me down. I still have the, heh heh, decompiled source files though if anyone is interested.
Just when did they abandon it? I used it like 2 weeks ago, and they've been upgradingin it all the time. Presuming, that is, that you are talking about the java quickbuddy/aimexpress client.
Oh cool. To be honest, I haven't used gaim in a while, so I wasn't sure if it supported TOC (or whichever the quickbuddy-based one is). But if it does, good for it. I just sassumed from everyone's complaining that it didn't. And, for the record, everybuddy also supports both, but as a compile-time option. I assume that you meant gaim supports it at runtime.
The problem is that people aren't going from AIM to MSN. They are going from MSN to AIM, because all their friends use AIM or AOL. The userbase for AIM isn't shrinking. At all. And until it starts to, or actually indicates that it will, AOL has no business reason to officially (TOC/OSCAR still works) open access to AIM. So they aren't being stupid. It's just probably disadvantageous to the consumer in the long run. But certainly not AOL.
What really gets me is they can't even give their ISP customers an outgoing SMTP server
Oh. But they do. They just don't tell you about it. Do an nslookup (for MX records) on aol.com. You can use the results as outgoing SMTP servers for valid AOL addresses.
Just send everyone five dozen 1.44MB diskettes with your new, zippy IM software on it.
Sad that you can make a file available on the web for free, yet no one will download it. Give them a hard copy via junk mail, and they actually give it a shot.
Hmmm... maybe you meant that as a joke, but on the chance that it's not: AOL does not distribute AIM via hard copy. And really, only about 10% of the people I intereact with on AIM use AOL. The reason AIM is a success over other IM products is that
(1) It has a very simple, friendly, interface. There's nothing that keeps people using a product than a pretty interface. Believe it or not, people who aren't geeks like you prefer comfort over functionality.
(2) It was almost first to market. And then it bought out the one (ICQ) that actually was. The big thing about any communication protocol is saturing the terminal points with it. If IRC, or even ICQ met the requirement (1) above, either of those would have grown enormously, and would be in the position AIM is now.
-Andrew
P.S. And don't respond if you can't figure out my point. I'm piss drunk. I don't need to have a point.
The real problem with your idea is in the efficient distribution of precence information. That, perhaps, is the most valuable aspect of IM software. Nowadays, alot of email is delivered instantaneously, and if you set up a procmail-type filter, you can even push messages to yourself over whatever means you want. But what distributed networks have a hard time delivering is who's online at time t. At least in any effient manner.
As mentioned in the slashdot blurb up top, libfaim based clients are broken again. Take note that libfaim is a hacked library. Clients that use TOC/OSCAR to talk to the AIM servers (like Everybuddy [www.everybuddy.org]) continue to work fine.
Although, in many respects it would be desirable for AIM to open up there protocol, they haven't yet. They don't act out against TOC/OSCAR clients, though, and so that's good enough. TOC/OSCAR does have limitations compared to the full protocol, but it's still more than usable. And rather than go whining about how a library that was just a reverse-engineering job was broken, reverse-engineer it again, or use the library that isn't broken.
Now stop crying and get Everybuddy. Or Netscape 6. Or use AOL's quickbuddy. Or, god no, something other than *nux.
Word has it that it will ship without the ability to write CD-Rs, and without the ability to play or record DVDs. This is a GIANT step backward for Apple, who have been touting their DVD authoring capabilities for months.
The rest of the rumour has it that they're doing that so that they can get the majority of a stable product out on time. They do have plans to add the other features in a marginal-build/ upgrade. You can read more about this "rumour" in an Industry Standard column from about two weeks ago.
Is this a new type of troll? The 'hope the moderators read the newest first and stupidly mark the original post as redundant' troll? Or a Slashdot bug? Hmm!
My vote is on bug. That's really wierd. If it means anything, it didn't get modded up... *shrug*
It is kind of annoying me that sites like Slashdot are continually equating DivX (open source project) as MPEG4. I must reiterate that the Open Source DIVX/Project Mayo stuff is nothing more than an implementation of MPEG-4, the DivX people didn't invent it..their code was even based on an existing project.
Now, don't get me wrong, the actual coding work the DivX people are overseeing is great for open source causes, but they are using some subversive self-promotion as of late to make it seem like they invented all of this stuff, and pushing the 'Divx' brand-name (which is actually quite a stupid name since it causes much confusion with the failed Circuit City format), as the be-all end-all of MPEG-4, which is just not true.
Also, supporting DIVX/MPEG4 because there is a good open source implementation is short sighted. Please do some research into MPEG4 and realize what a patent nightmare it is. Just because the source is open doesn't mean you can use it without violating patents
If you want to get a message to your congressman - send a certified letter. The only person who can sign for it is the congressman, and you can even ask for proof of receipt.
Wrong. The only person that can sign for it is a representative of the congressman. It's the same sorta system that allows a CEO's personal assistant to stamp his signature on checks. The actual congressman/CEO really doesn't have enough time to sign/read everything that comes his way. That what filters are for.
The big issue is just in jurisdication of the tax. Do I pay Massachusettes sales tax when I live in Los Angeles and the merchant is in Boston? Or do I pay California sales tax? And, if it's California, does that mean that the merchant has to keep seperate books for all 50 states?
I believe the law is clear: you pay taxes based on where you live. Retailers have offered to provide free software to map zip codes to tax rates and so forth, so the "red tape" argument doesn't hold much water, either.
Ok. Small online businesses currenlty don't need to lay out any significant infrasturcture to sell stuff. Just because something is free doesn't mean it doesn't take effort to establish. Requiring that sort of thing, that "red tape", will cut out a large portion of (admittedly crappy) smalltime entrepreneurs.
Ok. Yeah. On $100 RAM, sales tax doesn't make a squat of a difference, compared to shipping. It's like $10 (tax) vs. $10 (shipping), so nobody cares.
But the difference is when you buy a big-ticket item, like a PC or a TV, for $2000. Now, sales tax is $180, vs. $50 for shipping.
And really, the 'Main Street' businesses don't make there money on RAM. It's on big-ticket items. And with no required sales tax, they get screwed because Internet merchants get an unfair 5-10% discount of the retail price on all their wares.
The big issue is just in jurisdication of the tax. Do I pay Massachusettes sales tax when I live in Los Angeles and the merchant is in Boston? Or do I pay California sales tax? And, if it's California, does that mean that the merchant has to keep seperate books for all 50 states? That'll definately cut into entrepreneurship. So in some ways it's bad, but not because it "teaches the Main Street retailers a lesson" or some such.
Don't be silly. Unemployment in many countries (including the US) is at or near all-time low. It's never been easier to find a job (except maybe a year ago, which is irrelevant since that was an aberration).
Now you are being silly and confusing aggregate statistics with what it's like for an individual to get a job. The unemployment rate acts as one of a number of factors that help you judge the state of a regional economy, but it doesn't effect your job prospects much. It's not like you can walk into an office and say:
"Sir, the unemployment rate today is 4.1%. You have gone and not hired 20 out of the last 20 applicants. If you do not hire me, I will have to report you to the authorities, as you will have violated the unemployment rate."
If you're good at what you do, then you don't have to worry about getting fired. If you're good at doing what you do, then you don't have to worry about being rehired. I'm good at what I do, so I'm not worried. It's not like I'm living under the sea.
If only it were that simple... Maybe you got your current job from a college career center that avoided alot of the interview process... maybe you're layed off not because you aren't qualified, but the company tanked and no one keeps there job... whatever region you're working in is so strapped, that there are NO open jobs in your field. It doesn't matter how qualified you are if you aren't in control of a zillion other factors. But do your best and you might be able to squeek on through.
We don't live in some utopian meritocracy. Sometimes even the most qualified people get screwed. But think of unemployment as a chance to develop yourself outside of your work. Do overlook training. Read a classic, learn to paint, spend time with your kids.
-Andrew
And yes. I still have my job, and my company's fairing alright. But you can still listed to what I have to say.
So this is fantastic. Despite some nay-saying in a few other posts, this will provide local companies in the UK, (and hopefully the EU) to compete more fairly and without fear of patent-infringement.
And if us State-side folks are really, really lucky this little experiment in the UK/EU will convince us to clean up a little legislation in a few years.
OK. So I normally avoid the shameless plugs for my products, but I just can't resist this time:
Cypherus does a pretty damned good job of solving [Crypto software is hard to use.] and [Public-key infrastructure is still mostly a myth]. Granted, it's not perfect, yet. But's it's pretty damned good, and in a few weeks we'll have a new version out chock-full of seamless email plugins.
Yeah, that's Cypherus, which you can buy or evaluate at: www.cypherus.com. Check it out.
Everybody seems to be whining about how impossible it is for activation codes to not interfere with upgrades/reinstalls/whatever. The fact is that they are based on your MAC address, and that's all. THe only upgrade that may cause a problem is when you re-install and swap out your Netowrk card. Microsoft loves MAC addresses. In fact, so does every other big company who tries to enforce privacy protection. Autodesk and Adobe have both been using those suckers forever. Nothing new, nothing scary, so just relax and believe the FUD this time.
You can reinstall Windows or Office XP an unlimited number of times on the same hardware. The activation will be automatic. This has to be bullshit. If I reformat and reinstall, how could Office possibly know that I already have an activation code? Where, exactly, is Office storing the activation code? On the hard drive I just formatted?
The activation code is based on your MAC address (like GUID's. Microsoft likes them). As long as you don't change your network card while you're reinstalling, you can re-use the same activation code that you aquired earlier. Simple as that.
It says million of credit card numbers were gleaned, and who knows what else, but, I'd really like to know which, if any, large companies have been exploited by this. Yes, it's MS software, but I'd like to know who's running it.
Slashdot Mirror
Where are your numbers? Jupiter Media Metrix says that MSN Messenger has already passed AIM in users.
Does that include AOL users? (which should count directly towards the AIM userbase...). My guess, and this is just an assumption is no. At least for now. If anybody has a aURL for that study (or a reference at a reputable news source), I'd be interested.
-Andrew
Until you can convince their double-digit million member base to move off of AOL, you'll probably be using AOL to talk to your non-geek friends. Of course, that implies you have non-geek friends...
:-)
Have you considered the telephone or maybe a dinner party? Both also very good ways to talk with your non-geek friends. And completely open source, as it were.
-Andrew
when I asked aol to let me open source devlop their abandoned java im client they turned me down. I still have the, heh heh, decompiled source files though if anyone is interested.
Just when did they abandon it? I used it like 2 weeks ago, and they've been upgradingin it all the time. Presuming, that is, that you are talking about the java quickbuddy/aimexpress client.
-Andrew.
The correct URL is probobly http://www.everybuddy.com.
Oops. You're right.
Thanks,
Andrew
Oh cool. To be honest, I haven't used gaim in a while, so I wasn't sure if it supported TOC (or whichever the quickbuddy-based one is). But if it does, good for it. I just sassumed from everyone's complaining that it didn't. And, for the record, everybuddy also supports both, but as a compile-time option. I assume that you meant gaim supports it at runtime.
Thanks,
Andrew
The problem is that people aren't going from AIM to MSN. They are going from MSN to AIM, because all their friends use AIM or AOL. The userbase for AIM isn't shrinking. At all. And until it starts to, or actually indicates that it will, AOL has no business reason to officially (TOC/OSCAR still works) open access to AIM. So they aren't being stupid. It's just probably disadvantageous to the consumer in the long run. But certainly not AOL.
-Andrew
What really gets me is they can't even give their ISP customers an outgoing SMTP server
Oh. But they do. They just don't tell you about it. Do an nslookup (for MX records) on aol.com. You can use the results as outgoing SMTP servers for valid AOL addresses.
-Andrew
Just send everyone five dozen 1.44MB diskettes with your new, zippy IM software on it.
Sad that you can make a file available on the web for free, yet no one will download it. Give them a hard copy via junk mail, and they actually give it a shot. Hmmm... maybe you meant that as a joke, but on the chance that it's not: AOL does not distribute AIM via hard copy. And really, only about 10% of the people I intereact with on AIM use AOL. The reason AIM is a success over other IM products is that
(1) It has a very simple, friendly, interface. There's nothing that keeps people using a product than a pretty interface. Believe it or not, people who aren't geeks like you prefer comfort over functionality.
(2) It was almost first to market. And then it bought out the one (ICQ) that actually was. The big thing about any communication protocol is saturing the terminal points with it. If IRC, or even ICQ met the requirement (1) above, either of those would have grown enormously, and would be in the position AIM is now.
-Andrew
P.S. And don't respond if you can't figure out my point. I'm piss drunk. I don't need to have a point.
The real problem with your idea is in the efficient distribution of precence information. That, perhaps, is the most valuable aspect of IM software. Nowadays, alot of email is delivered instantaneously, and if you set up a procmail-type filter, you can even push messages to yourself over whatever means you want. But what distributed networks have a hard time delivering is who's online at time t. At least in any effient manner.
-Andrew
As mentioned in the slashdot blurb up top, libfaim based clients are broken again. Take note that libfaim is a hacked library. Clients that use TOC/OSCAR to talk to the AIM servers (like Everybuddy [www.everybuddy.org]) continue to work fine.
Although, in many respects it would be desirable for AIM to open up there protocol, they haven't yet. They don't act out against TOC/OSCAR clients, though, and so that's good enough. TOC/OSCAR does have limitations compared to the full protocol, but it's still more than usable. And rather than go whining about how a library that was just a reverse-engineering job was broken, reverse-engineer it again, or use the library that isn't broken.
Now stop crying and get Everybuddy. Or Netscape 6. Or use AOL's quickbuddy. Or, god no, something other than *nux.
-Andrew
Word has it that it will ship without the ability to write CD-Rs, and without the ability to play or record DVDs. This is a GIANT step backward for Apple, who have been touting their DVD authoring capabilities for months.
The rest of the rumour has it that they're doing that so that they can get the majority of a stable product out on time. They do have plans to add the other features in a marginal-build/ upgrade. You can read more about this "rumour" in an Industry Standard column from about two weeks ago.
-Andrew
Is this a new type of troll? The 'hope the moderators read the newest first and stupidly mark the original post as redundant' troll? Or a Slashdot bug? Hmm!
;)
My vote is on bug. That's really wierd. If it means anything, it didn't get modded up... *shrug*
checked them too. I mean come on, there travelling with a guy who's middle name is Buzz. Moon dust........ sure it's moon dust.
It is kind of annoying me that sites like Slashdot are continually equating DivX (open source project) as MPEG4. I must reiterate that the Open Source DIVX/Project Mayo stuff is nothing more than an implementation of MPEG-4, the DivX people didn't invent it..their code was even based on an existing project.
Now, don't get me wrong, the actual coding work the DivX people are overseeing is great for open source causes, but they are using some subversive self-promotion as of late to make it seem like they invented all of this stuff, and pushing the 'Divx' brand-name (which is actually quite a stupid name since it causes much confusion with the failed Circuit City format), as the be-all end-all of MPEG-4, which is just not true.
Also, supporting DIVX/MPEG4 because there is a good open source implementation is short sighted. Please do some research into MPEG4 and realize what a patent nightmare it is. Just because the source is open doesn't mean you can use it without violating patents
If you want to get a message to your congressman - send a certified letter. The only person who can sign for it is the congressman, and you can even ask for proof of receipt.
Wrong. The only person that can sign for it is a representative of the congressman. It's the same sorta system that allows a CEO's personal assistant to stamp his signature on checks. The actual congressman/CEO really doesn't have enough time to sign/read everything that comes his way. That what filters are for.
-Andrew
Imagine.. (Score:4)
... He says as he gives his URL in ol' dot-commie form. haha. 63.236.12.63
by PHr0D on Thursday March 15, @11:52AM PDT (#12)
(User #212586 Info) http://www.bugshit.com
Well heck, I think we should just stick to IP numbers, and limit the influx of spam clicking mouthbreathers, but then again, I may be an elitist pig..
-Andrew
The big issue is just in jurisdication of the tax. Do I pay Massachusettes sales tax when I live in Los Angeles and the merchant is in Boston? Or do I pay California sales tax? And, if it's California, does that mean that the merchant has to keep seperate books for all 50 states?
I believe the law is clear: you pay taxes based on where you live. Retailers have offered to provide free software to map zip codes to tax rates and so forth, so the "red tape" argument doesn't hold much water, either.
Ok. Small online businesses currenlty don't need to lay out any significant infrasturcture to sell stuff. Just because something is free doesn't mean it doesn't take effort to establish. Requiring that sort of thing, that "red tape", will cut out a large portion of (admittedly crappy) smalltime entrepreneurs.
-Andrew
Ok. Yeah. On $100 RAM, sales tax doesn't make a squat of a difference, compared to shipping. It's like $10 (tax) vs. $10 (shipping), so nobody cares.
But the difference is when you buy a big-ticket item, like a PC or a TV, for $2000. Now, sales tax is $180, vs. $50 for shipping.
And really, the 'Main Street' businesses don't make there money on RAM. It's on big-ticket items. And with no required sales tax, they get screwed because Internet merchants get an unfair 5-10% discount of the retail price on all their wares.
The big issue is just in jurisdication of the tax. Do I pay Massachusettes sales tax when I live in Los Angeles and the merchant is in Boston? Or do I pay California sales tax? And, if it's California, does that mean that the merchant has to keep seperate books for all 50 states? That'll definately cut into entrepreneurship. So in some ways it's bad, but not because it "teaches the Main Street retailers a lesson" or some such.
-Andrew
Don't be silly. Unemployment in many countries (including the US) is at or near all-time low. It's never been easier to find a job (except maybe a year ago, which is irrelevant since that was an aberration).
Now you are being silly and confusing aggregate statistics with what it's like for an individual to get a job. The unemployment rate acts as one of a number of factors that help you judge the state of a regional economy, but it doesn't effect your job prospects much. It's not like you can walk into an office and say:
"Sir, the unemployment rate today is 4.1%. You have gone and not hired 20 out of the last 20 applicants. If you do not hire me, I will have to report you to the authorities, as you will have violated the unemployment rate."
-Andrew
If you're good at what you do, then you don't have to worry about getting fired. If you're good at doing what you do, then you don't have to worry about being rehired. I'm good at what I do, so I'm not worried. It's not like I'm living under the sea.
If only it were that simple... Maybe you got your current job from a college career center that avoided alot of the interview process... maybe you're layed off not because you aren't qualified, but the company tanked and no one keeps there job... whatever region you're working in is so strapped, that there are NO open jobs in your field. It doesn't matter how qualified you are if you aren't in control of a zillion other factors. But do your best and you might be able to squeek on through.
We don't live in some utopian meritocracy. Sometimes even the most qualified people get screwed. But think of unemployment as a chance to develop yourself outside of your work. Do overlook training. Read a classic, learn to paint, spend time with your kids.
-Andrew
And yes. I still have my job, and my company's fairing alright. But you can still listed to what I have to say.
So this is fantastic. Despite some nay-saying in a few other posts, this will provide local companies in the UK, (and hopefully the EU) to compete more fairly and without fear of patent-infringement.
And if us State-side folks are really, really lucky this little experiment in the UK/EU will convince us to clean up a little legislation in a few years.
-Andrew
OK. So I normally avoid the shameless plugs for my products, but I just can't resist this time:
Cypherus does a pretty damned good job of solving [Crypto software is hard to use.] and [Public-key infrastructure is still mostly a myth]. Granted, it's not perfect, yet. But's it's pretty damned good, and in a few weeks we'll have a new version out chock-full of seamless email plugins.
Yeah, that's Cypherus, which you can buy or evaluate at: www.cypherus.com. Check it out.
-Andrew
Everybody seems to be whining about how impossible it is for activation codes to not interfere with upgrades/reinstalls/whatever. The fact is that they are based on your MAC address, and that's all. THe only upgrade that may cause a problem is when you re-install and swap out your Netowrk card. Microsoft loves MAC addresses. In fact, so does every other big company who tries to enforce privacy protection. Autodesk and Adobe have both been using those suckers forever. Nothing new, nothing scary, so just relax and believe the FUD this time.
-Andrew
You can reinstall Windows or Office XP an unlimited number of times on the same hardware. The activation will be automatic.
This has to be bullshit. If I reformat and reinstall, how could Office possibly know that I already have an activation code? Where, exactly, is Office storing the activation code? On the hard drive I just formatted?
The activation code is based on your MAC address (like GUID's. Microsoft likes them). As long as you don't change your network card while you're reinstalling, you can re-use the same activation code that you aquired earlier. Simple as that.
-Andrew
It says million of credit card numbers were gleaned, and who knows what else, but, I'd really like to know which, if any, large companies have been exploited by this. Yes, it's MS software, but I'd like to know who's running it.
-Andrew