Once again DEC leads the market in technology but for some unfathomable reason refuses to sell to customers who are begging to buy. Complete and utter morons. -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
I've got Katz-icles filtered out in my user pages, yet I notice that there is a book review AND interview on my front page. My question is:
How high up the VA Linux management hierarchy did you have to call to get the Slasdot crew to violate their few remaining shreds of integrity and force you once again down our throats? -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Let me start by saying THANK YOU for reading and responding to a comment. (actually, you may always read--but there's no way for us to know that if you don't respond). You need feedback frm us to know how the site is working, but we also need feedback from YOU to know that we make a difference.
As for the specific items: 1&2) Editorial control. I note that you DON'T say whose idea Roblimo and Emmett were. I'm sure you guys will have veto power as provided in your contract, but as others have pointed out that doesn't preclude bias. 3) No, I DO have less of a guarantee. Corporate-ownership has ruined many a good thing in the past, therefore there is reason to doubt that corporate-ownership in the present case will be a good thing. Without out something to counteract that doubt we feel more uneasy. A guarantee is only as good as the holder feels about it. 4) It will be interesting to see what (if any) difference there is among how you'd like Slashdot run, how VA would it run and how it actually ends up running. I urge you to think long and hard about how equitable your relationship with VA is (or any owner for that matter). This applies especially in the case were you are an independent business unit. The question boils down to: "If we're so independent, why do they want to own us?" -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
You think Corel is just a Linux company? Well, I guess I can't blame you, because that's what they want people to think.
Just go to their website, I'm sure they list some other products you may have heard of. Like WordPerfect. And "Corel Draw". Etc. They've been around for a while--probably 10 years. -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
A site like/. is more than a "I got mine, you got yours, now let's both leave" transaction. It is a relationship.
When you have a SO that starts drinking heavily and staying out late, do you say to yourself "He/She owes me nothing. We both received value from the relationship. Now it is time to move on."? No.
Same here. I read and contribute to Slashdot. In many ways I AM Slashdot. But Slashdot ain't what it used to be. My gadfly-ism is attempting to change that but comments like yours only serve to take the heart out of the/. community and replace it with a risk-analysis engine: "If I read/. I will get a potential 10% bias in reporting. ZDNet has a 60% bias, but the plants are easier to spot. I think I'll try the Register today." -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
So Larry and [Insert Andover Drone's Name Here] have a "vision" of how "the community" should work, eh? Great. And if it doesn't work out that way, what happens to Slashdot? Or what about if their "vision" changes (or gets clouded by money)?
Let's face the facts here: Slashdot is a business unit. If that unit doesn't serve it's purpose, it will be changed or eliminated. The current (stated) purpose is as a forum. What happens when the (primary) purpose is to make money? Or advertising?
Sure, Slashdot has a contract to keep "editorial control". Has a lawyer looked at this contract? Does the contact guarantee that you get to choose the editors? (for instance, where did Roblimo and emmett come from?)
Most importantly: what contract/guarantee do we have that our interests are being served?
A better plan, IMO, is for VA Linux to spin-off Slashdot into it's own business. That keeps the media out of the hands of the corporations as it should be. If they (or anyone) is concerned about how Slashdot will support itself, they (or anyone) can contribute money to a (blind) fund. This solution is fully compatible with the letter we just read, so if the plan is rejected we know there are ulterior motives. -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
I agree that "the posters make the place", but I DON'T agree that "not the guys at the console". Sure, we're the ones that provide the feedback, create the threads, move the discussion along, etc. But the "console guys" create the topics. By selective topic creation (for instance, this content-free, VA Linux rah rah rah piece)/. can control what we discuss. And what we discuss can easily turn into what we care about--it should be the other way around. -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Less than 24 hours after claiming that "creative control will remain where it's always been", we already have spokebeasts writing "features" for their "media outlet". *sigh* Time to move on... -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
I see a lot of comments here about how "this is clearly biased" or "nobody knows anything about MS, that's why".
These comments seem to imply that this number represents good news for MS. On the contrary. If the methodology can be trusted (more about which below) this survey says that one third of *all Americans* think MS is NOT doing a good job. As widespread as Linux is getting, it sure doesn't encompass 1/3 of the US yet. So some of these people are non-techies and/or techies who run an MS OS.
If the survey is biased, the case is even worse. Survey bias would imply that even by stacking the numbers MS couldn't come up with more than 2 people out of 3 who like them. That's pretty bad. -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Your "explanation" is exactly my point. "Creative control" includes what to say and when to say it. More and more, business/legal needs are dictating what/. prints (and therefore what we read). I don't like this trend.
If you are tempted to respond "I bet you can't do any better", chew on this: A few months ago I started programming a site that would be to Linux programming what Slashdot (used to be) to Linux in general. If it weren't for the fact that I've moved and haven't yet restored my personal Internet access the site would be up and competing with the lameness that has become Slashdot. -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Sorta puts that postponed Larry Augustin interview into a new light, eh?
BTW, you are opening yourselves to a lot of jokes by saying "Creative control...remains where it's always been". -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
"It isn't a security flaw in cookies....It's a secruity flaw in the CGI...."
Yes. And your point is?
Tell me, when flu season comes around, do you get a vaccination? Why? The problem isn't that YOU have the flu, the problem is that OTHER PEOPLE have it. If only they'd cure themselves everyone would be better off.
You see, online scripting will ALWAYS have security flaws--that's why I don't allow my online software (browsers, etc) to store information that I don't want to get out. -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Turing based his famous test on a "parlor game" of his time. That parlor game involved correctly labelling two (human) people as "male" or "female" (depending on which deception was being used).
I don't recall whether the judge in Turing's version is supposed to know that one of the contestants is non-human, but I think so. Why do I think so? Because of the following question (paraphrased) from Turing's sample transcript:
Judge: "What is 12 times 14?" Subject: (thinks for a few seconds and then responds) "182".
The judge wouldn't ask a mathematical question to determine sex and Turing wouldn't make a point of having the subject give a wrong answer if "mathematical perfection" weren't a hallmark of computers. -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Speaking as someone who is porting a Motif on Tru64/AIX app over to LessTif on Linux, I say: "I dearly hope so". -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
You attract the poor people by basing your exam on how much practice you've had with an expensive toy, the handicapped with a test of manual dexterity and the "disadvantaged" with a complex spatial relations test.
This isn't going to go down well... -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Every 2-3 months Slashdot posts a story saying "Linux [laptops|desktops|servers] available from Dell". And every time we have a huge discussion with the following threads:
a) Why does it cost the same as the MS-taxed version? b) Now we've hit the big time c) I'm going to buy from them because they support Linux d) I'm NOT going to buy from them because they DON'T support Linux. etc, etc, etc
Finally, someone goes to the Dell site and finds out that:
a) It was just a rumor OR b) It only applies in another country OR c) They are really selling Linux "certified" machines, but not with Linux installed OR d) You can only buy them with one config (one screen size, on HD size, etc) OR e) You can only buy them in lots of 100 and only if you are a business customer. etc, etc, etc
If Slashdot is going to continue to shill for Dell's crappy deals, can we at least have the stories put in their own category so that I can filter them out? -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Fact: MS knows that many people dual-boot for items that run only under Windows (games, etc).
Assumption: Probably very few people will reboot in order to run the WiMP (Windows Media Player).
Conjecture: But people WILL try to get WiMP running under Wine.
Fact: The more people that use Wine the better Wine gets.
Conclusion: I expect to see a lot of "utility" type programs come out of Redmond for Linux. These utilities will be those that aren't important enough to actual own Windows for, but are still "nice to have". The quality of the Linux ports will be just enough to keep us from revolting (and writing out own), but not enough to make us happy (Open Source, non-sucking software).
Reasons: As a best case scenario, MS wants to drive people from Linux back to Windows under the guise of "better integration". As a worst case scenario (for them) they want to sell some software, however little, to other platforms. In all cases, MS doesn't want Wine to get any better, particularly in the hot area of "media".
(This post powered by Mozilla!) -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
I didn't forget the early books. I'm recommending those. The list of books is books to AVOID (for a 13-year-old). -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
I would probably add both of those to the list as well. Although, I read Friday first as a HS freshman, so I was 14 or so.
Job is a little harder to classify. When I first found the book in a used book store and started reading it, I kept checking the front cover to make sure it actually said "written by Robert Heinlein". The style and storyline are just so non-(book)-Heinlein--at least in the first two-thirds. If it weren't for some of the slightly more adult "succubus material" near the end I'd have no problem giving it to a 13-year-old.
I thought IWFNE had a good idea, but there were two main problems:
1) "Eunice" is about the ugliest name I can think of. 2) Considering the range of topics covered (one) there were too many pages (600?). -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Read all of the Heinlein books for children. I wouldn't recommend the following RAH books to a 13-year-old:
Farnham's Freehold Sixth Column Stranger in a Strange Land Number of the Beast I Will Fear No Evil (actually, I don't recommend this stinker to ANYONE) Time Enough For Love To Sail Beyond the Sunset
Pretty much everything else (including the "adult" The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and all of the short stories) would be suitable for children. Depending on the maturity of the child, Stranger and Sixth Column would be OK. The others should wait a year or two. -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
The Incredible Machine is one of my favorite games of all time. TIM II is even better.
I've actually thought about writing my own TIM clone, but I'm afraid that if I do it won't be as fun to play....8^( -- Java banners: Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
When I didn't see Larry's interview at week one I was disappointed and confused. When I didn't see it at week two I was crabby and confused. When I didn't hear anything from the/. editorship I was also insulted. So wrote a comment about it.
Roblimo, (seemingly) alone among the/. editors reads the comments and responded to me with an apology. I accepted but suggested that the rest of the/. readership needed an apology as well. I'm assuming that his comments constitute that apology.
Well done, Roblimo! --- This comment powered by Mozilla!
Slashdot Mirror
Once again DEC leads the market in technology but for some unfathomable reason refuses to sell to customers who are begging to buy. Complete and utter morons.
--
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I've got Katz-icles filtered out in my user pages, yet I notice that there is a book review AND interview on my front page. My question is:
How high up the VA Linux management hierarchy did you have to call to get the Slasdot crew to violate their few remaining shreds of integrity and force you once again down our throats?
--
Java banners:
Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Let me start by saying THANK YOU for reading and responding to a comment. (actually, you may always read--but there's no way for us to know that if you don't respond). You need feedback frm us to know how the site is working, but we also need feedback from YOU to know that we make a difference.
As for the specific items:
1&2) Editorial control. I note that you DON'T say whose idea Roblimo and Emmett were. I'm sure you guys will have veto power as provided in your contract, but as others have pointed out that doesn't preclude bias.
3) No, I DO have less of a guarantee. Corporate-ownership has ruined many a good thing in the past, therefore there is reason to doubt that corporate-ownership in the present case will be a good thing. Without out something to counteract that doubt we feel more uneasy. A guarantee is only as good as the holder feels about it.
4) It will be interesting to see what (if any) difference there is among how you'd like Slashdot run, how VA would it run and how it actually ends up running. I urge you to think long and hard about how equitable your relationship with VA is (or any owner for that matter). This applies especially in the case were you are an independent business unit. The question boils down to: "If we're so independent, why do they want to own us?"
--
Java banners:
Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
You think Corel is just a Linux company? Well, I guess I can't blame you, because that's what they want people to think.
Just go to their website, I'm sure they list some other products you may have heard of. Like WordPerfect. And "Corel Draw". Etc. They've been around for a while--probably 10 years.
--
Java banners:
Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
A site like /. is more than a "I got mine, you got yours, now let's both leave" transaction. It is a relationship.
/. community and replace it with a risk-analysis engine: "If I read /. I will get a potential 10% bias in reporting. ZDNet has a 60% bias, but the plants are easier to spot. I think I'll try the Register today."
When you have a SO that starts drinking heavily and staying out late, do you say to yourself "He/She owes me nothing. We both received value from the relationship. Now it is time to move on."? No.
Same here. I read and contribute to Slashdot. In many ways I AM Slashdot. But Slashdot ain't what it used to be. My gadfly-ism is attempting to change that but comments like yours only serve to take the heart out of the
--
Java banners:
Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
So Larry and [Insert Andover Drone's Name Here] have a "vision" of how "the community" should work, eh? Great. And if it doesn't work out that way, what happens to Slashdot? Or what about if their "vision" changes (or gets clouded by money)?
Let's face the facts here: Slashdot is a business unit. If that unit doesn't serve it's purpose, it will be changed or eliminated. The current (stated) purpose is as a forum. What happens when the (primary) purpose is to make money? Or advertising?
Sure, Slashdot has a contract to keep "editorial control". Has a lawyer looked at this contract? Does the contact guarantee that you get to choose the editors? (for instance, where did Roblimo and emmett come from?)
Most importantly: what contract/guarantee do we have that our interests are being served?
A better plan, IMO, is for VA Linux to spin-off Slashdot into it's own business. That keeps the media out of the hands of the corporations as it should be. If they (or anyone) is concerned about how Slashdot will support itself, they (or anyone) can contribute money to a (blind) fund. This solution is fully compatible with the letter we just read, so if the plan is rejected we know there are ulterior motives.
--
Java banners:
Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
I agree that "the posters make the place", but I DON'T agree that "not the guys at the console". Sure, we're the ones that provide the feedback, create the threads, move the discussion along, etc. But the "console guys" create the topics. By selective topic creation (for instance, this content-free, VA Linux rah rah rah piece) /. can control what we discuss. And what we discuss can easily turn into what we care about--it should be the other way around.
--
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Less than 24 hours after claiming that "creative control will remain where it's always been", we already have spokebeasts writing "features" for their "media outlet". *sigh* Time to move on...
--
Java banners:
Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
I see a lot of comments here about how "this is clearly biased" or "nobody knows anything about MS, that's why".
These comments seem to imply that this number represents good news for MS. On the contrary. If the methodology can be trusted (more about which below) this survey says that one third of *all Americans* think MS is NOT doing a good job. As widespread as Linux is getting, it sure doesn't encompass 1/3 of the US yet. So some of these people are non-techies and/or techies who run an MS OS.
If the survey is biased, the case is even worse. Survey bias would imply that even by stacking the numbers MS couldn't come up with more than 2 people out of 3 who like them. That's pretty bad.
--
Java banners:
Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Your "explanation" is exactly my point. "Creative control" includes what to say and when to say it. More and more, business/legal needs are dictating what /. prints (and therefore what we read). I don't like this trend.
If you are tempted to respond "I bet you can't do any better", chew on this: A few months ago I started programming a site that would be to Linux programming what Slashdot (used to be) to Linux in general. If it weren't for the fact that I've moved and haven't yet restored my personal Internet access the site would be up and competing with the lameness that has become Slashdot.
--
Java banners:
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"...we're sorta restricted in what we can say..."
"Creative control will remain where it's always been."
--
Java banners:
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Sorta puts that postponed Larry Augustin interview into a new light, eh?
BTW, you are opening yourselves to a lot of jokes by saying "Creative control...remains where it's always been".
--
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"It isn't a security flaw in cookies....It's a secruity flaw in the CGI...."
Yes. And your point is?
Tell me, when flu season comes around, do you get a vaccination? Why? The problem isn't that YOU have the flu, the problem is that OTHER PEOPLE have it. If only they'd cure themselves everyone would be better off.
You see, online scripting will ALWAYS have security flaws--that's why I don't allow my online software (browsers, etc) to store information that I don't want to get out.
--
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"Recommended solutions include completely overhauling web sites, disabling cookies..."
Huh, what do you know. Many of us have been laughed at for taking this very precaution.
"Told ya so."
--
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Turing based his famous test on a "parlor game" of his time. That parlor game involved correctly labelling two (human) people as "male" or "female" (depending on which deception was being used).
I don't recall whether the judge in Turing's version is supposed to know that one of the contestants is non-human, but I think so. Why do I think so? Because of the following question (paraphrased) from Turing's sample transcript:
Judge: "What is 12 times 14?"
Subject: (thinks for a few seconds and then responds) "182".
The judge wouldn't ask a mathematical question to determine sex and Turing wouldn't make a point of having the subject give a wrong answer if "mathematical perfection" weren't a hallmark of computers.
--
Java banners:
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Speaking as someone who is porting a Motif on Tru64/AIX app over to LessTif on Linux, I say: "I dearly hope so".
--
Java banners:
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You attract the poor people by basing your exam on how much practice you've had with an expensive toy, the handicapped with a test of manual dexterity and the "disadvantaged" with a complex spatial relations test.
This isn't going to go down well...
--
Java banners:
Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Every 2-3 months Slashdot posts a story saying "Linux [laptops|desktops|servers] available from Dell". And every time we have a huge discussion with the following threads:
a) Why does it cost the same as the MS-taxed version?
b) Now we've hit the big time
c) I'm going to buy from them because they support Linux
d) I'm NOT going to buy from them because they DON'T support Linux.
etc, etc, etc
Finally, someone goes to the Dell site and finds out that:
a) It was just a rumor OR
b) It only applies in another country OR
c) They are really selling Linux "certified" machines, but not with Linux installed OR
d) You can only buy them with one config (one screen size, on HD size, etc) OR
e) You can only buy them in lots of 100 and only if you are a business customer.
etc, etc, etc
If Slashdot is going to continue to shill for Dell's crappy deals, can we at least have the stories put in their own category so that I can filter them out?
--
Java banners:
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Fact: MS knows that many people dual-boot for items that run only under Windows (games, etc).
Assumption: Probably very few people will reboot in order to run the WiMP (Windows Media Player).
Conjecture: But people WILL try to get WiMP running under Wine.
Fact: The more people that use Wine the better Wine gets.
Conclusion: I expect to see a lot of "utility" type programs come out of Redmond for Linux. These utilities will be those that aren't important enough to actual own Windows for, but are still "nice to have". The quality of the Linux ports will be just enough to keep us from revolting (and writing out own), but not enough to make us happy (Open Source, non-sucking software).
Reasons: As a best case scenario, MS wants to drive people from Linux back to Windows under the guise of "better integration". As a worst case scenario (for them) they want to sell some software, however little, to other platforms. In all cases, MS doesn't want Wine to get any better, particularly in the hot area of "media".
(This post powered by Mozilla!)
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I didn't forget the early books. I'm recommending those. The list of books is books to AVOID (for a 13-year-old).
--
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I would probably add both of those to the list as well. Although, I read Friday first as a HS freshman, so I was 14 or so.
Job is a little harder to classify. When I first found the book in a used book store and started reading it, I kept checking the front cover to make sure it actually said "written by Robert Heinlein". The style and storyline are just so non-(book)-Heinlein--at least in the first two-thirds. If it weren't for some of the slightly more adult "succubus material" near the end I'd have no problem giving it to a 13-year-old.
I thought IWFNE had a good idea, but there were two main problems:
1) "Eunice" is about the ugliest name I can think of.
2) Considering the range of topics covered (one) there were too many pages (600?).
--
Java banners:
Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
Read all of the Heinlein books for children. I wouldn't recommend the following RAH books to a 13-year-old:
Farnham's Freehold
Sixth Column
Stranger in a Strange Land
Number of the Beast
I Will Fear No Evil (actually, I don't recommend this stinker to ANYONE)
Time Enough For Love
To Sail Beyond the Sunset
Pretty much everything else (including the "adult" The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and all of the short stories) would be suitable for children. Depending on the maturity of the child, Stranger and Sixth Column would be OK. The others should wait a year or two.
--
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The Incredible Machine is one of my favorite games of all time. TIM II is even better.
I've actually thought about writing my own TIM clone, but I'm afraid that if I do it won't be as fun to play....8^(
--
Java banners:
Bad for users because Java kills Netscape
When I didn't see Larry's interview at week one I was disappointed and confused. When I didn't see it at week two I was crabby and confused. When I didn't hear anything from the /. editorship I was also insulted. So wrote a comment about it.
/. editors reads the comments and responded to me with an apology. I accepted but suggested that the rest of the /. readership needed an apology as well. I'm assuming that his comments constitute that apology.
Roblimo, (seemingly) alone among the
Well done, Roblimo!
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A digital watermark could conceivably come through on a copy (depending on how the watermark and copy were made).
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