..is that they recommend to do all this "...with free implementations of win32 (Wine)...".
This is plainly hilarious.
I know that cygwin will compile under Wine. But using it under Wine to run dpkg... the idea is just beyond my mind!
Let me quote the whole parragraph:
This port is meant to run on any win32 implementation. Some win32
implementations are free (wine, reactos), others are not (microsoft).
free implementations are of course recommended and cygwin is proven
to work fine on wine.
The first (and older model) wasn't that good at being a fast crypto card. That good for 2001 standards, that's it. Back when they were developed were pretty darn good.
The newest model was better and more powerfull. It supports more and tougher encryption keys. It offloads any machine of the heavy-cpu-load encryption burden. And it is pretty good piece of technology.
Their mision is to take over the CPU when dealing with encryption. That is, encrypt stuff before being sent or decrypt stuff received. It can seen not a big deal. But think of e-commerce and/or bank transactions: litearly hundreds of encrypt/decrypt processes.
The card is (was) a computer-in-a-card. It has a CPU with the power of a 486 (it does not use a 486 cpu). And it costs lotsa money.
Not so long ago, I heard that IBM was considering dumping the propietary OS of those cards, and use instead embeded secure Linux.
Now, I want to believe that they have craked the older model. If it is the newer model, well, it is pretty bad. This banks means not being able to trust each other. And I'm serious.
Nevertheless, to access one of those cards installed in a sensitive system, you must have phisycal access to the card. And this is not easy. It's like a real-life,a href="http://www.missionimpossible.com/">Missio n Impossible kind-of-thing.
If there's any problem with it, I'm pretty sure that the crypto team has worked and solved this thing.
I interpret what really happened in this other way:
BALLMER: After 20 years of backstabing, copying other's innovations, playing Mafia-games with IT companies, abusing our consumers and stealing children's bubblegum, we have gotten a slap on the wrist by the DoJ. Surely this means something.
GATES: If I might add a few words...
BALLMER:, Sure, Bill, go on.
GATES: Our impressive innovation Laboratories -MS-iLabs , (c) (R) - show that actualy being nice to customers can help selling our product...
AUDIENCE: (gasps, mutted comments of surprise, a few horror screams)
BALLMER: Be quiet back there! It is true! You can get the results in ExcelXP format at dubya-dubya-dubya-microsoft-dot-com-slash-ilabs-sl ash-results
GATES: In fact, in a demo-test carried over at Poukeespie-upon-Avon (Yorkshire, UK) with a cautive population, we discovered that WindowsXP-SE was being bought by people that had no history of verbal-and-phisycal abuse by part of our marketing representatives.
SOMEONE IN THE AUDIENCE: Don't you think that having both legs not-broken could help? I mean, last year, in the ASF file that you showed us about training methods for Microsoft Certified Marketing Representatives , they were being trained in "MS-Leg-Breaking-As-A-Buying-Stimulous 101". Maybe we should change this module to "MS-**ARM-TWISTING**-As-A-Buying-Stimulous 101" instead of playing nice...
AUDIENCE: Yeah! yeah! that sounds more sensible!
GATES: Please! Calm down! I personally worked with the MS-iLabs environment definition and I can assure you that the results are true!
AUDIENCE: but... but.... We Want Blood! We Want Blood! We Want Blood!
Yes, today, for real high end, Unix (in most of the flavous) is still better (= scales better, deals better) with high-end hardware and its associated requirements.
While running Linux on a Mainframe can be thought as "high end", what actualy happens is that you get "virtual" smaller machines generated by the mainframe.
Of course , this is the situation as today. In a couple of years I foresee no eral difference between Linux or any other flavour of Unix.
My ISP, Bellsouth, did the same when Windows2000 was born. So it was funny to see the rp-pppoe.tar.gz on the "drivers CD" and the note on their site about not supporting Windows 2000.
Actualy, it makes the most sense for a serious company: Do not support a new product unless you have people trained in that product.
It should't be so "unusual". Actualy, the article would have been more shocking like this:
"YouNameIt ISP supports Windows XP even before October, 1st."
"We do not need no stinkin trainin', said Joe Sixpack, CEO of YouNameIt ISP. "
"Any bozo with a hand able to point-and-click should do fine with any Windows version. And if anything happens, well, the Client Agreement made the user to surrender any right to protest against us. Heck, in the Alient Agreement even states that we take no responsability even if the user cannot never connect to internet!"
I don't know if you are serious are not, but I am going to assume you are.. I don't think I would have ever thought of that lol.. Do they really have that much of a voice?
I am serious, indeed.
And, yes, the librarians have that much voice. In fact, SunSite/Metalab/iBiblio (is the same thing; they change anmes every other year or so, because they change sponsors) is actually an on-line library. They host, for example the Linux Documentation Project (LDP). and many more goodies.
And of course they have a big voice over the Congress. Where do you think the Congressman get their p0rn? At the Library of Congress, off course!
Excellent news... looks like
a) the big boys (corps) have come in and had a word in their ear, or
b) all your letters and lobbying of representatives has worked... I'm with the former:)
Yes, librarians are a long-time deffenders of our rights. Just check who is against DMCA, filters in internet access (CIPA) and other pitifull, rights-basher laws.
So next time you go to a library to check p0rn from a free computer, please be quiet. That lady with funny glasses that "Shssss!"'s you all the time is on your side. on the Freedom side.
It is paranoia and all this paranoia will not stop terrorists.
This only jeopardize's the liberties and rights of US law-abiding citizens. While trying to protect our liberties, they cut the liberties and we have no protection.
Think about it. Many countries, specially in Europe, have or have suffered in the recent past terrorist activity.
The IRA blew up a hotel in London, expecting to kill Margaret Thacer and her cabinet. A PanAm airplane was blown up by terrorists ontop the Scotish town of Locherby.
Car bombs, killings, shootings... by Unionists have been killing many in Northen Ireland.
Still, British security is far much better than US security. And it is more polite.
You do not need to search every single piece of luggage that boards an airplane... nor every single backpack that enters into a building.
Place proper security (using underpaid untrained people does not count). Use experts in human emotions to detect suspects. Do not profile. Be smart. Invest in security.
ELAL (known as Ever Landing, Always Late.... although it means Israelian Airlines) does this kind of things. Since they started doing that, not even a single hijaker has succeeded.
Israelians are not smarter nor they have a sixth sense (no they do not see "dead people"). How they do that? They train their security people to identify treats, behaviours, patterns... on their passengers. If someone fits one of those patterns, even by a sligth margin, this person gets questioned aside, all this person's belongings are searched and, usually, this means a few minutes of delay.
Nothing like the interminable, nonsese, automatic searches that happen in our Airports. Yes: the personnel will get tired after a few months, so we will be exposed again.
And nothing as nonsense of pilots refusing to fly unless all middle-eastern-looking passengers and/or sikhs and/or hindustanis are deprived of their right to fly.
The "gcc/RH7.0 Fiasco" was actually a Kernel problem, as Linus himself pointed out.
Sorry I cannot find now the URL. But this was explained at the local LUG on a Kernel Talk. And I come to respect those folks. They usually know what they are talking about.
So there it goes another piece of FUD against the Linux comunity...
Does someone has the link to Linus interview about this?
-ext3 maybe will not score the best in a single FileSystems comparison table. But, overall, is a pretty darn good filesystem. It is stable, you can migrate easily, is fast... We are talking about RedHat 7.2, that is, a stable distribution
-Last time that I checked (5 minutes ago) you can choose between Gnome, KDE... as your default desktop environment/graphical login/workstation installation. Even if you choose to select as default graphical environment GNOME, you can select KDE for your use and set it as your default one. Nuff said.
-Who cares about a programming language? If you do not like it, port it to C++. Show me the code.
-You obiously have no idea of Linux. You can run Konqueror form within GNOME!.
-Nautilus is pretty cool. It has a whole bunch of interesting features, like the "tabbed" way of displaying multiple webpages (instead of having multiple separated windows). This is A Good Thing (TM). If you don't like it, don't use it. Linux is about choice.
Middle Earth Role Playing. A RPG that was very good. Awesome modules with drawings from Agnus McBride. IIRC they were published by ICE (Iron Crown Enterprises).
The point is how much Microsoft is expending on Marketing for 1 product. The same amount that IBM is spending to integrate Linux into all its product lines!!! 1! billion!!!
And WinXP innovation... Well, read your InfoWorld Magazine (here and here)and you will discover that Brian Livingstone, the author of Windows 95 secrets, Windows 98 secrets, WindowsMe secrets, Windows 2000 secrets... has explicitely said that he is not gong to upgrade to WindowsXP. Also, he is not going to write WindowsXP secrets.
From a business point of view: Use "Linux Terminal Server". Yes, get a fat machine to serve all the applications to your users. This way, to modify/update/change/configure.... all the clients means working in a single machine: the fat server.
This is that the city of Largo has done. This is what Linux at schools project is doing.
Actualy, any distribution will do. But I will recommend you to look for a
"support contract" from RedHat, SuSE, Mandarke...
Linux in Schools. Although it is oriented for schools, school needs are the same as Your Big Comany or Government.
The City of Largo uses Linux as desktop. So it is possible for plain clerks and secretaries to learn and be productive on Linux Desktops.
A worker just needs a working desktop, so he/she can use a word processor and an spreadsheet program. The "configuration and control" must be done byt he Support Team.
And my mom is unable to properly use Windows98. She's not a moronic mom. She is smart. But she has never been trained as computer specialist. But she can use word processing and spreadsheets. Yes, she uses or has used AmiPro, Office, WordPerfect... they are all the same in the end. No FUD about "difficult StarOffice". But when Windows crashes, she enters in panic mode. delete Windows, add Linux and you get no panic mode.
Do not extend FUD.
Use OpenOffice. Fairly soon should be available as a non-beta product.
Easy to use stuff? Try KDE and make it pretty with themes.
Use KDE as the desktop. Easy transition from any user. Install the "Acqua" or "Acqua-Graphite" Theme & "MacOS Loon'n'feel" with top desktop menu for your MacOS users.
Proprietary software requires that one company absorb all the R&D costs and then distribute that cost on to their customers.
Actualy, for Microsoft, the biggest cost is Marketing. You want to read this article and learn about the cost of launching WindowsXP ($1 billion!!!!!!).
Have in mind that WindowsXp has no real new features. Just some outrageous theme ontop of Windows2000 core and then some code merginf from the WindowsME tree. Really.
Aside that they do not tell us how long it takes to expend $23,000 (maybe is the ROI average for a PC or 2 years. This makes much more sense), I do not see it completely ilogical.
Think:
-A new PC every 2 years
-A new OS with every PC
-A new MS-Office Professional license with every new PC
-MS-Exchange license
-MS-NT Server license
-MS-SQL Server client license
-Classical Overhead costs for the PC (electricity, site maintenance)
-Hardware support contract
-User Support personnel (Level 1 support)
-Software Suport Contract with external company (Level 2 support)
-MS-Actualization support contract
-Antivirus license
-Training for the user in several applications: Windows, Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Outlook (they change quite often, so there's often training)
-Overhead from Spare PCs to make for "PCs in repair shop"
-Overhead from Fisical Network installation and maintenance (CAT-5 cable, hubs, switches, wall jacks...)
-Overhead from Firewalls
-Overhead from Mail server
-Overhead from WebServer
-Overhead from Internet ConnectionCosts
-Overhead from damages caused by viruses
-Overhead from down times due to viruses
-Overhead from down time caused by crashed applications
-Overhead from down time caused by crashing OS
-Overhead from Technical support Team training
-Overhead from Technical support Team salary and benefits
--Overhead from PC insurance
-Overhead from data backup (because everybody does backup their stuff, right?... right?... anyone does backups?)
Probably there's more stuff. but you get the idea. And, actualy, big companies do not buy "el Cheapo PC". They buy IBM or Dell or any "big name" from a reseller company that ships slightly old PC at an outreageous high price... because Big Companies pay at 90 to 365 days, so they need to charge for the time that they do not have the money.
Actually, you can get a pretty expensive support contract qith a commercial company.
Yes, SuSE Gmbh is a commercial company that provides solutions for companies in forms of:
-24/7 support
-training
-selling of products
-software customization
and all those goodies and security nets that a big company is used to.
Also, get some zSeries mainframes from IBM Corp were SuSE is te distribution of choice. They will have reliable hardware for a (comparative) cheap price. Do you recall the article about cost savings while running a Mainframe instead a server farm? Here's one: in this link
And, of course, if they do not like SuSE, because the product is OpenSource, the German Government can hire and train their own team to support themselves the whole thing.
Big government organizations in Europe tend to have tight budgets. I know because I used to work in one of them. And that organization is right now, as we speak, evaluating the full migration towards Linux-based solutions. Yes, tehy cannot afford in any way the new Microsoft pricing policy, so they have decided to go the Penguin way. Too bad they did that after I left.
Slashdot Mirror
..is that they recommend to do all this "...with free implementations of win32 (Wine)...".
... the idea is just beyond my mind!
This is plainly hilarious.
I know that cygwin will compile under Wine. But using it under Wine to run dpkg
Let me quote the whole parragraph:
This port is meant to run on any win32 implementation. Some win32
implementations are free (wine, reactos), others are not (microsoft).
free implementations are of course recommended and cygwin is proven
to work fine on wine.
Who had the idea in the first place? Terry Gillian? Pratchet? Benny Hill? Jay Leno? Chiquito de la Calzada?
Check this picture
Or this other one
More on The Register
I used to work with some of those cards at my former employee.
,a href="http://www.missionimpossible.com/">Missio n Impossible kind-of-thing.
Ther are actualy 2 models, well, there were 2 models when I was there. They are called cryptographic 4758 and 4758-II.
The first (and older model) wasn't that good at being a fast crypto card. That good for 2001 standards, that's it. Back when they were developed were pretty darn good.
The newest model was better and more powerfull. It supports more and tougher encryption keys. It offloads any machine of the heavy-cpu-load encryption burden. And it is pretty good piece of technology.
Their mision is to take over the CPU when dealing with encryption. That is, encrypt stuff before being sent or decrypt stuff received. It can seen not a big deal. But think of e-commerce and/or bank transactions: litearly hundreds of encrypt/decrypt processes.
The card is (was) a computer-in-a-card. It has a CPU with the power of a 486 (it does not use a 486 cpu). And it costs lotsa money.
Not so long ago, I heard that IBM was considering dumping the propietary OS of those cards, and use instead embeded secure Linux.
Now, I want to believe that they have craked the older model. If it is the newer model, well, it is pretty bad. This banks means not being able to trust each other. And I'm serious.
Nevertheless, to access one of those cards installed in a sensitive system, you must have phisycal access to the card. And this is not easy. It's like a real-life
If there's any problem with it, I'm pretty sure that the crypto team has worked and solved this thing.
I interpret what really happened in this other way:
l ash-results
BALLMER: After 20 years of backstabing, copying other's innovations, playing Mafia-games with IT companies, abusing our consumers and stealing children's bubblegum, we have gotten a slap on the wrist by the DoJ. Surely this means something.
GATES: If I might add a few words...
BALLMER:, Sure, Bill, go on.
GATES: Our impressive innovation Laboratories -MS-iLabs , (c) (R) - show that actualy being nice to customers can help selling our product...
AUDIENCE: (gasps, mutted comments of surprise, a few horror screams)
BALLMER: Be quiet back there! It is true! You can get the results in ExcelXP format at dubya-dubya-dubya-microsoft-dot-com-slash-ilabs-s
GATES: In fact, in a demo-test carried over at Poukeespie-upon-Avon (Yorkshire, UK) with a cautive population, we discovered that WindowsXP-SE was being bought by people that had no history of verbal-and-phisycal abuse by part of our marketing representatives.
SOMEONE IN THE AUDIENCE: Don't you think that having both legs not-broken could help? I mean, last year, in the ASF file that you showed us about training methods for Microsoft Certified Marketing Representatives , they were being trained in "MS-Leg-Breaking-As-A-Buying-Stimulous 101". Maybe we should change this module to "MS-**ARM-TWISTING**-As-A-Buying-Stimulous 101" instead of playing nice...
AUDIENCE: Yeah! yeah! that sounds more sensible!
GATES: Please! Calm down! I personally worked with the MS-iLabs environment definition and I can assure you that the results are true!
AUDIENCE: but... but.... We Want Blood! We Want Blood! We Want Blood!
CATS: All Your Base Are Belong To Us!
CATS: Make Your Time!
BILL: HAHAHAHA
BALMER: Take Off Every ZiggyXP!!!!
.
Please, mode the parent up. Thank you.
Yes, today, for real high end, Unix (in most of the flavous) is still better (= scales better, deals better) with high-end hardware and its associated requirements.
While running Linux on a Mainframe can be thought as "high end", what actualy happens is that you get "virtual" smaller machines generated by the mainframe.
Of course , this is the situation as today. In a couple of years I foresee no eral difference between Linux or any other flavour of Unix.
Enjoy
Yes, this is not a new thing on ISP.
My ISP, Bellsouth , did the same when Windows2000 was born. So it was funny to see the rp-pppoe.tar.gz on the "drivers CD" and the note on their site about not supporting Windows 2000.
Actualy, it makes the most sense for a serious company: Do not support a new product unless you have people trained in that product.
It should't be so "unusual". Actualy, the article would have been more shocking like this:
"YouNameIt ISP supports Windows XP even before October, 1st."
"We do not need no stinkin trainin', said Joe Sixpack, CEO of YouNameIt ISP. "
"Any bozo with a hand able to point-and-click should do fine with any Windows version. And if anything happens, well, the Client Agreement made the user to surrender any right to protest against us. Heck, in the Alient Agreement even states that we take no responsability even if the user cannot never connect to internet!"
I don't know if you are serious are not, but I am going to assume you are.. I don't think I would have ever thought of that lol.. Do they really have that much of a voice?
I am serious, indeed.
And, yes, the librarians have that much voice. In fact, SunSite/Metalab/iBiblio (is the same thing; they change anmes every other year or so, because they change sponsors) is actually an on-line library. They host, for example the Linux Documentation Project (LDP) . and many more goodies.
And of course they have a big voice over the Congress. Where do you think the Congressman get their p0rn? At the Library of Congress, off course!
Well, maybe not. But it is a funny thought.
Excellent news... looks like :)
a) the big boys (corps) have come in and had a word in their ear, or
b) all your letters and lobbying of representatives has worked... I'm with the former
I would add another possibility:
c) All the librarians through the ALA have, as always, raised their common voices against a law that offends Freedom of Speech and the Right to Knowledge..
Yes, librarians are a long-time deffenders of our rights. Just check who is against DMCA, filters in internet access (CIPA) and other pitifull, rights-basher laws.
So next time you go to a library to check p0rn from a free computer, please be quiet. That lady with funny glasses that "Shssss!"'s you all the time is on your side. on the Freedom side.
It is paranoia and all this paranoia will not stop terrorists.
This only jeopardize's the liberties and rights of US law-abiding citizens. While trying to protect our liberties, they cut the liberties and we have no protection.
Think about it. Many countries, specially in Europe, have or have suffered in the recent past terrorist activity.
The IRA blew up a hotel in London, expecting to kill Margaret Thacer and her cabinet. A PanAm airplane was blown up by terrorists ontop the Scotish town of Locherby.
Car bombs, killings, shootings... by Unionists have been killing many in Northen Ireland.
Still, British security is far much better than US security. And it is more polite.
You do not need to search every single piece of luggage that boards an airplane... nor every single backpack that enters into a building.
Place proper security (using underpaid untrained people does not count). Use experts in human emotions to detect suspects. Do not profile. Be smart. Invest in security.
ELAL (known as Ever Landing, Always Late.... although it means Israelian Airlines) does this kind of things. Since they started doing that, not even a single hijaker has succeeded.
Israelians are not smarter nor they have a sixth sense (no they do not see "dead people"). How they do that? They train their security people to identify treats, behaviours, patterns... on their passengers. If someone fits one of those patterns, even by a sligth margin, this person gets questioned aside, all this person's belongings are searched and, usually, this means a few minutes of delay.
Nothing like the interminable, nonsese, automatic searches that happen in our Airports. Yes: the personnel will get tired after a few months, so we will be exposed again.
And nothing as nonsense of pilots refusing to fly unless all middle-eastern-looking passengers and/or sikhs and/or hindustanis are deprived of their right to fly.
This is insane.
Can you choose non-Windows 98 clones?
Like blackbox, enlightenment, windowmaker...
Aside from Gnome and KDE being far and better desktop enviroments than Win98, maybe you will like this:
WindowMaker-0.65.1
enlightenment-0.16.4
XFree86-twm-4.1.0-3
and probably many others.
Not anough time to chek'em all.
Enjoy
The "gcc/RH7.0 Fiasco" was actually a Kernel problem, as Linus himself pointed out.
Sorry I cannot find now the URL. But this was explained at the local LUG on a Kernel Talk. And I come to respect those folks. They usually know what they are talking about.
So there it goes another piece of FUD against the Linux comunity...
Does someone has the link to Linus interview about this?
-ext3 maybe will not score the best in a single FileSystems comparison table. But, overall, is a pretty darn good filesystem. It is stable, you can migrate easily, is fast... We are talking about RedHat 7.2, that is, a stable distribution
-Last time that I checked (5 minutes ago) you can choose between Gnome, KDE... as your default desktop environment/graphical login/workstation installation. Even if you choose to select as default graphical environment GNOME, you can select KDE for your use and set it as your default one. Nuff said.
-Who cares about a programming language? If you do not like it, port it to C++. Show me the code.
-You obiously have no idea of Linux. You can run Konqueror form within GNOME!.
-Nautilus is pretty cool. It has a whole bunch of interesting features, like the "tabbed" way of displaying multiple webpages (instead of having multiple separated windows). This is A Good Thing (TM). If you don't like it, don't use it. Linux is about choice.
-RedHat 7.2 comes with KDE 2.2.1.
BTW, you sounded like a Troll.
Enjoy the best RedHat!
...by an Englishman living in South Africa ?
Vë shøld gø øn Vakatiøn to SwëËdËn!
We the Hobbits at Hobbiton are going to watch the movie through cable. We rather prefer be in our homes. It's more confy.
Our HobbitHoles are well prepared for that event: 2 extra lunches and about half-a-dozen tea-breaks are schedulled for the whole thing.
And, oh, yes!
They are going to play the movie LoTR in the Travel Channel.
Time to go for some dessert!
MERP
Middle Earth Role Playing. A RPG that was very good. Awesome modules with drawings from Agnus McBride. IIRC they were published by ICE (Iron Crown Enterprises).
Check the FAQ at http://www.merp.com
You know whe wears the Iron Crown, do you?
Also, is MERP was too easy, you could always use all the thing with RoleMaster characters.
Good times, 10-sided dices, and always hopping for an open-ended roll.
Unfortunately, ICE went out of business and stopped releasing the wonderful modules, like the one about the Black Numenoreans. "Bring in the Chains!"
C'mo on.
The point is how much Microsoft is expending on Marketing for 1 product. The same amount that IBM is spending to integrate Linux into all its product lines!!! 1! billion!!!
And WinXP innovation... Well, read your InfoWorld Magazine (here and here)and you will discover that Brian Livingstone, the author of Windows 95 secrets, Windows 98 secrets, WindowsMe secrets, Windows 2000 secrets... has explicitely said that he is not gong to upgrade to WindowsXP. Also, he is not going to write WindowsXP secrets.
This sure means something, isn't it?
First, you sign a contract with Linux Supporting Specialist companies (SuSE, RedHat, Mandrake, IBM, Caldera...).
Then, send your first-line support teams to train with the aforementioned companies.
In the end, you test and deploy your Linux solution.
Just like any other serious IT project.
From a business point of view: Use "Linux Terminal Server". Yes, get a fat machine to serve all the applications to your users. This way, to modify/update/change/configure.... all the clients means working in a single machine: the fat server.
This is that the city of Largo has done. This is what Linux at schools project is doing.
Actualy, any distribution will do. But I will recommend you to look for a
"support contract" from RedHat, SuSE, Mandarke...
Some links:
Linux Terminal Server Project. You will see that they have packages for any distribution
Linux in Schools. Although it is oriented for schools, school needs are the same as Your Big Comany or Government.
The City of Largo uses Linux as desktop. So it is possible for plain clerks and secretaries to learn and be productive on Linux Desktops.
A worker just needs a working desktop, so he/she can use a word processor and an spreadsheet program. The "configuration and control" must be done byt he Support Team.
And my mom is unable to properly use Windows98. She's not a moronic mom. She is smart. But she has never been trained as computer specialist. But she can use word processing and spreadsheets. Yes, she uses or has used AmiPro, Office, WordPerfect... they are all the same in the end. No FUD about "difficult StarOffice". But when Windows crashes, she enters in panic mode. delete Windows, add Linux and you get no panic mode.
Do not extend FUD.
Use OpenOffice. Fairly soon should be available as a non-beta product.
Easy to use stuff? Try KDE and make it pretty with themes.
Use KDE as the desktop. Easy transition from any user. Install the "Acqua" or "Acqua-Graphite" Theme & "MacOS Loon'n'feel" with top desktop menu for your MacOS users.
Install the Win2000 Theme & "Win2000 Look'n'Feel for your Windows users.
My 2 cents
Exactly.
Check this link for information on test in Europe of the RFC 1149, also known as A Standard for the Transmission of IP Datagrams on Avian Carriers.
As you can see, Europe does use Pigeons!
All the best,
OpKool
Nevertheless, everyone and their mothers in the US know that the really darn good cars are produced in Germany.
:)
US can build millions of cars. But noone is as good as a nice BMW.
Belive me. Cars are a proof of concept of the technology situation of a country. And Germany rocks on car making
Proprietary software requires that one company absorb all the R&D costs and then distribute that cost on to their customers.
Actualy, for Microsoft, the biggest cost is Marketing. You want to read this article and learn about the cost of launching WindowsXP ($1 billion!!!!!!).
Have in mind that WindowsXp has no real new features. Just some outrageous theme ontop of Windows2000 core and then some code merginf from the WindowsME tree. Really.
Aside that they do not tell us how long it takes to expend $23,000 (maybe is the ROI average for a PC or 2 years. This makes much more sense), I do not see it completely ilogical.
Think:
-A new PC every 2 years
-A new OS with every PC
-A new MS-Office Professional license with every new PC
-MS-Exchange license
-MS-NT Server license
-MS-SQL Server client license
-Classical Overhead costs for the PC (electricity, site maintenance)
-Hardware support contract
-User Support personnel (Level 1 support)
-Software Suport Contract with external company (Level 2 support)
-MS-Actualization support contract
-Antivirus license
-Training for the user in several applications: Windows, Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Outlook (they change quite often, so there's often training)
-Overhead from Spare PCs to make for "PCs in repair shop"
-Overhead from Fisical Network installation and maintenance (CAT-5 cable, hubs, switches, wall jacks...)
-Overhead from Firewalls
-Overhead from Mail server
-Overhead from WebServer
-Overhead from Internet ConnectionCosts
-Overhead from damages caused by viruses
-Overhead from down times due to viruses
-Overhead from down time caused by crashed applications
-Overhead from down time caused by crashing OS
-Overhead from Technical support Team training
-Overhead from Technical support Team salary and benefits
--Overhead from PC insurance
-Overhead from data backup (because everybody does backup their stuff, right?... right?... anyone does backups?)
Probably there's more stuff. but you get the idea. And, actualy, big companies do not buy "el Cheapo PC". They buy IBM or Dell or any "big name" from a reseller company that ships slightly old PC at an outreageous high price... because Big Companies pay at 90 to 365 days, so they need to charge for the time that they do not have the money.
Actually, you can get a pretty expensive support contract qith a commercial company.
Yes, SuSE Gmbh is a commercial company that provides solutions for companies in forms of:
-24/7 support
-training
-selling of products
-software customization
and all those goodies and security nets that a big company is used to.
Also, get some zSeries mainframes from IBM Corp were SuSE is te distribution of choice. They will have reliable hardware for a (comparative) cheap price. Do you recall the article about cost savings while running a Mainframe instead a server farm? Here's one: in this link
And, of course, if they do not like SuSE, because the product is OpenSource, the German Government can hire and train their own team to support themselves the whole thing.
Big government organizations in Europe tend to have tight budgets. I know because I used to work in one of them. And that organization is right now, as we speak, evaluating the full migration towards Linux-based solutions. Yes, tehy cannot afford in any way the new Microsoft pricing policy, so they have decided to go the Penguin way. Too bad they did that after I left.
All the best,
OpKool
...it's actually "pointy-haired bosses"