The production of free software appears to me to represent, an emerging, new mode of production.
Are we now in a period where the new process of producing value, (essentially use value since free digital stuff has almost no exchange value,) has crystalised and we are just starting to realise that it has the potential to become the dominant mode of production?
Open content, like free software, has use value but because anyone can reproduce and distribute it for next to no cost it doesn't really have much of an exchange value:-)
I've been running RedHat 9 (ISO's downloaded via BitTorrent) all week on my desktop machine (10:32:32 up 4 days, 19:58, 21 users, load average: 0.66, 0.44, 0.86) and it seems fine, the first thing I did was install apt-get to make updates nice and easy, the next thing I discovered was that there is no WindowMaker, which is a real shame, the reason stated by RH is "developer resource constraints". I hope they put it back in, anyhow, this is how I get it working with RH 8 SRPMS:
1. Install the WindowMaker SRPM from RedHat 8.0 updates.
rpm -ivh WindowMaker-0.80.1-5.src.rpm
2. Edit the SPEC file:
vi/usr/src/redhat/SPECS/WindowMaker.spec
Change this:
%define autoconf_ver -2.53
to:
%define autoconf_ver -2.57
Change this:
autoheader%{autoconf_ver}
to:
autoheader
Change this:
autoconf%{autoconf_ver}
to:
autoconf
(I don't know what the implications of this is -- I just played with the SPEC file till it worked...)
The space elevator seems to be the most promising alternative to the Shuttle program.
Well, perhaps it'll be an alternative to the generation of shuttles after the next generation, probably though it'll be one after that or even further in the future...
This space elevator idea ain't gonna happen very quicky...
What about Terrasoft? Can't their machines run OSX
on
Beige Box Apple Clone?
·
· Score: 1
Fraser will be the first third party to make a Mac since Apple shut down its three-year experiment in clone licensing in 1997
http://www.wired.com/news/mac/0,2125,58310,00.ht ml
What about things like the Terrasoft briQ? That runs YellowDog and can't they run OSX? It is a PPC after all... but I don't have one so I dunno...
I agree that this is a good way to go -- using a update tool that can use mirrors, it's what YellowDog does, for the new version they have apt and yum.
Personally I use apt with RedHat and YellowDog, but I might try yum some time.
Why ruin a perfectly good system with Mac OS X and install Linux over it?
OK, I'll bite. About a year ago I was loaned a iBook, great I thought, a Unix with a nice GUI. Then I found that there was no colour in the shell, no vim, no bash, no multiple desktops. I just thought screw it, installed YellowDog 2.something and straight away I had WindowMaker, bash, vim, the Gimp, GQview and mozilla -- basically all the tools I use every day on desktop RedHat boxes and servers.
I have posted to/. about this before and people have told me to spend more time making OSX nicer and now 10.2 is out and again it's supposed to be better, but I'm far happier with YellowDog 2.3 and as soon as they ship the ISOs for 3.0 I'll probably buy a set. I run OSX with mol if I ever need it for testing web pages in Mac IE.
I like running a Free OS on a nice bit of hardware. I have no need for OSX.
IE has to fix its bugs with understanding mimetypes.
IE seems to take no notice what so ever of the MIME type specified in HTTP headers. It also takes no notice of the charset specified in HTTP headers:-(
This is why the IE problems with this page are nothing to do with the fact that it's served as text/xml -- it SHOULD be served as'application/xhtml+xml' since it's a XHTML 1.1 document.
I think that there is huge potential for doing Free stuff in the building industry. Yes a Free CAD programme should be the first step but then after that there are things like parts libraries, libraries of junction details, linking drawings to specifications and so on. One interesting thing about architecture is that there is already a culture in which the sharing and re-use of details and designs is common place and this has not had the attention of IP lawyers in the was that other industries have.
Just because they are not involved with this at this stage doesn't mean they are not interested in the Linux desktop -- they are (this is a link to an earlier comment by me on this story) planning a Corporate Desktop version of RedHat:
Linux software vendor Red Hat plans to fortify its desktop Linux lineup by shipping Red Hat Linux 8.1 in April, a 32-bit technical workstation this quarter and a full-fledged corporate desktop in the next six to 12 months, the company confirmed.
I suspect that the reason Red Hat aren't part of it is that they don't really care that much about Linux on the desktop
I'm not so sure that is the case, according to this article a RedHat Corporate Desktop distro is due out later this year.
The juicy bits for those who don't want to bother reading the whole
thing:
Red Hat executives told CRN that Red Hat won't attempt to unseat
Windows and Office but will aim its desktops at targeted customer
segments such as call centers at financial institutions needing only
Word and Excel, or highly technical audiences that use one or two
productivity applications.
Dell is in discussions with Red Hat and plans to load the 32-bit
workstation on its Precision workstations, Dell said.
Sources in the Linux channel are cautiously optimistic about the
desktop aspirations of startups but say endorsements by Sun
Microsystems and Red Hat give the Linux desktop more credibility.
Sun also plans to debut its Linux desktop this quarter.
There has been quite a lot of discussion of this stuff on various W3C lists, especially over issues as the fact that hex encoding of UTF-8 is case insensitive and URIs are case sensitive...
This allows things like XHTML templates which are very WYSIWYG friendly since the editors don't do anything with attributes that they don't know about.
I think that the CC project is a great idea and some kind of P2P distribution is great too. I do have some some minor concerns though, one is over their share alike license.
On the FSF web site there is a short list of Licenses For Works Besides Software and Documentation and the Creative Commons Share Alike license is not mentioned, so I sent the FSF an email about this and the opinion seems to be that the Share Alike license would not be considered GPL-compatible, which I think is a shame. The email about this can be found on the cc-licenses list archive
Doom (and Doom II) is probably the best game ever!
on
25 Best Linux Games
·
· Score: 1
Yeah Doom and Doom II (Doom II was Doom with an double barreled shotgun and new levels) were totally amazing. Some of the architecture of the levels is still more memorable for me than many other, later games.
What is really cool is that since Idsoftware GPL'ed the code (not the levels textures or music but the 3d engine) people have been able to add new things, like mouse aiming and the ability to jump up and down -- check out PrBoom! (I assume almost everyone has a CD somewhere with the Doom wad files on it? or am I just showing my age?!)
Duke Nukem 3D was fab as well but I guess it's now dead because the engine wasn't GPL'ed:-(
Slashdot Mirror
The production of free software appears to me to represent, an emerging, new mode of production.
Are we now in a period where the new process of producing value, (essentially use value since free digital stuff has almost no exchange value,) has crystalised and we are just starting to realise that it has the potential to become the dominant mode of production?
Mod the parent comment up -- it's a great description of the difference between use value and exchange value.
Open content, like free software, has use value but because anyone can reproduce and distribute it for next to no cost it doesn't really have much of an exchange value :-)
This stuff has been discussed quite a bit at Project Oekonux and there is an interesting essay, GNU/Linux is not a thing of value - and that is fine! which does explore these ideas, however it is a bit hard to follow because it's only a partial translation of a German document.
I've been running RedHat 9 (ISO's downloaded via BitTorrent) all week on my desktop machine (10:32:32 up 4 days, 19:58, 21 users, load average: 0.66, 0.44, 0.86) and it seems fine, the first thing I did was install apt-get to make updates nice and easy, the next thing I discovered was that there is no WindowMaker, which is a real shame, the reason stated by RH is "developer resource constraints". I hope they put it back in, anyhow, this is how I get it working with RH 8 SRPMS:
1. Install the WindowMaker SRPM from RedHat 8.0 updates.
rpm -ivh WindowMaker-0.80.1-5.src.rpm
2. Edit the SPEC file: /usr/src/redhat/SPECS/WindowMaker.spec
vi
Change this:
%define autoconf_ver -2.53
to:
%define autoconf_ver -2.57
Change this:
autoheader%{autoconf_ver}
to:
autoheader
Change this:
autoconf%{autoconf_ver}
to:
autoconf
(I don't know what the implications of this is -- I just played with the SPEC file till it worked...)
3. Rebuild: /usr/src/redhat/SPECS/WindowMaker.spec
rpm-build -bb
4. Install: /usr/src/redhat/RPMS/i386/WindowMaker-0.80.1-5.i38 6.rpm \
rpm -ivh
WindowMaker-libs-0.80.1-5.i386.rpm
I also got wmapm, wmclock and wmix SRPMS from RedHat 8.0 and rebuilt those.
There has been some discussion on the wm-user list about doing some RPMS for RedHat 9.
One thing that is great is the inclusion of Subversion -- I installed subversion from scratch on RH 8 and it took some time...
Well, perhaps it'll be an alternative to the generation of shuttles after the next generation, probably though it'll be one after that or even further in the future...
This space elevator idea ain't gonna happen very quicky...
What about things like the Terrasoft briQ? That runs YellowDog and can't they run OSX? It is a PPC after all... but I don't have one so I dunno...
Weird, one crash later all the stuff that was bust is now working fine :-)
Also the bookmark manager is totally bust with the RH 8.0 RPMS, ah well, I just use Google these days anyway!
I have just installed the RH 8.0 RPMS and Ctr-T to open a new tab is broken (but right click on a link and open in new tab works).
Also lots of preferences things are also broken, like everything under Navigator -- the error looks like the one you get with an invalid XML file.
However it's still my fave browser and hopefully it's going to be more stable than 1.4 was... :-)
You mentioned the Clash because of Spanish Songs on their third album, more to the point in the current period, but a OT karma burn:
The Call Up
I agree that this is a good way to go -- using a update tool that can use mirrors, it's what YellowDog does, for the new version they have apt and yum.
Personally I use apt with RedHat and YellowDog, but I might try yum some time.
One of the best reasons for a distrubted, free, updates system is that it aviods the potential problems of people not updating.
In the medium term using P2P for ISO's and updates might make most sense, though I also think it's cool that people do want to pay for Linux :-)
YellowDog offer early ISO's to people who pay as well, I guess it's a result of the fact that people mostly download GNU/Linux distros these days?
OK, I'll bite. About a year ago I was loaned a iBook, great I thought, a Unix with a nice GUI. Then I found that there was no colour in the shell, no vim, no bash, no multiple desktops. I just thought screw it, installed YellowDog 2.something and straight away I had WindowMaker, bash, vim, the Gimp, GQview and mozilla -- basically all the tools I use every day on desktop RedHat boxes and servers.
I have posted to /. about this before and people have told me to spend more time making OSX nicer and now 10.2 is out and again it's supposed to be better, but I'm far happier with YellowDog 2.3 and as soon as they ship the ISOs for 3.0 I'll probably buy a set. I run OSX with mol if I ever need it for testing web pages in Mac IE.
I like running a Free OS on a nice bit of hardware. I have no need for OSX.
The case study the parent post refers to is excellent -- mod it up someone! it's only Score:1 at the moment.
IE seems to take no notice what so ever of the MIME type specified in HTTP headers. It also takes no notice of the charset specified in HTTP headers :-(
This is why the IE problems with this page are nothing to do with the fact that it's served as text/xml -- it SHOULD be served as'application/xhtml+xml' since it's a XHTML 1.1 document.
However there are not many browsers that support application/xhtml+xml...
I think the only way around this is to serve different MIME types to different clients for XHTML 1.0 Strict and XHTML 1.1.
What do you think about the applicability of the ideas and organisational methods of the free software movement to things other that software?
For example free designs of things (products, buildings etc)...
I guess banks want to pay for software so they have someone to moan at or something, perhaps the commercial software runs really quick?
Apart from this I can't think of a reason not to use GNUPG, or am I missing something fundamental here?
I think that there is huge potential for doing Free stuff in the building industry. Yes a Free CAD programme should be the first step but then after that there are things like parts libraries, libraries of junction details, linking drawings to specifications and so on. One interesting thing about architecture is that there is already a culture in which the sharing and re-use of details and designs is common place and this has not had the attention of IP lawyers in the was that other industries have.
Just because they are not involved with this at this stage doesn't mean they are not interested in the Linux desktop -- they are (this is a link to an earlier comment by me on this story) planning a Corporate Desktop version of RedHat:
I'm not so sure that is the case, according to this article a RedHat Corporate Desktop distro is due out later this year.
The juicy bits for those who don't want to bother reading the whole thing:
There has been quite a lot of discussion of this stuff on various W3C lists, especially over issues as the fact that hex encoding of UTF-8 is case insensitive and URIs are case sensitive...
See the Internationalized Resource Identifiers (IRIs) page for more info.
One new, and cool, Perl XML module that people might not know about is Petal (PErl Template Attribute Language).
It is an implementation of the Zope TAL (Template Attribute Language) specification and it basically allows you to create XML templates where all the templating commands are just attributes of existing tags.
This allows things like XHTML templates which are very WYSIWYG friendly since the editors don't do anything with attributes that they don't know about.
I agree that RSS is probably the most popular semantic web thingy at the moment.
However only RSS 1.0 is based on RDF and is a standard with an open committee in control, RSS 2.0 is plain XML and is controlled by Dave Winer...
One of the best collection of RSS resources is the one Ben Hammersley maintains on DMOZ.
I think that the CC project is a great idea and some kind of P2P distribution is great too. I do have some some minor concerns though, one is over their share alike license.
On the FSF web site there is a short list of Licenses For Works Besides Software and Documentation and the Creative Commons Share Alike license is not mentioned, so I sent the FSF an email about this and the opinion seems to be that the Share Alike license would not be considered GPL-compatible, which I think is a shame. The email about this can be found on the cc-licenses list archive
Yeah Doom and Doom II (Doom II was Doom with an double barreled shotgun and new levels) were totally amazing. Some of the architecture of the levels is still more memorable for me than many other, later games.
What is really cool is that since Idsoftware GPL'ed the code (not the levels textures or music but the 3d engine) people have been able to add new things, like mouse aiming and the ability to jump up and down -- check out PrBoom! (I assume almost everyone has a CD somewhere with the Doom wad files on it? or am I just showing my age?!)
Duke Nukem 3D was fab as well but I guess it's now dead because the engine wasn't GPL'ed :-(