Distro elitism
on
KDE 2.2.1 Up
·
· Score: 1, Flamebait
Or you could just call out those 3 little letters that make ya feel so good... a-p-t.
Granted, this mention was fairly benign - but am I the only one who finds the Debian elitism around here just a little bit annoying?
First Slashdotters ragged on everyone that didn't use Linux. Then that got boring and now everyone who doesn't use Debian is clueless. Let me guess, next target: GNOME users.
Where will you people stop with your Taco worship?
Oh and by the way - mod me as a troll, I don't give a fuck. I gots karma to burn.
But could someone please tell me the difference between Real Time Linux and standard Linux?
RTLinux is a hard real-time operating system that handles time-critical tasks and runs Linux as its lowest priority execution thread. In RTLinux, a small hard-realtime kernel shares one or more processors with standard Linux. This allows the system to run accurately timed applications to perform data acquisition, systems control and robotics, while still serving as a standard Linux workstation. - from RTLinux
I wouldn't say you're stupid, but isn't typing "www.rtlinux.org" easier than posting a question on Slashdot?
... but since Torvalds is the trademark holder of the name "Linux" [...] would he be the one to push something like this further?
Not sure about the other points you mention, however in regard to the trademark issue - I don't think that it would work.
The problem is that although Linux is trademarked, he has not defended it as such. And when you don't defend your trademark, it becomes "common use". Sort of like how everyone calls tissues, Kleenex.
Of course IANAL, and I'm talking out of my ass here (like everyone else on/.) So I'd take my advice with a big-ass grain of salt.
This is somewhat peripheral to the story, but I have a question that revolves around the GPL and copyright holders.
Specifically, does the original author own the copyright on a large project that other people have made minor contributions to? Also, consider that no one explicitly handed over their copyright.
I think that one of the best ways for GPL developers to make money is by creating software under the GPL and also selling that software under a different license to companies that don't wish to use the GPL. But, I am unclear on whether the original author can do this if other people have made contributions to the project.
I guess an example would be if Torvalds decided to sell Linux to Microsoft under the BSD license. I know, I know - I would shit myself if it happened too. It's just an example.
The male urethra has a strong ring of circular bands (including "fundus ring") to prevent not only urine output, but to prevent massive retrograde ejaculation.
Don't knock retrograde ejaculation until you try it.
But seriously, you wonder why your post was moderated as offtopic? You could have summed up 3/4 of it with - "Current spacesuits were designed without proper consideration of the female anatomy." Instead you ramble on about "bulbous muscular clumps" and whatnot for nearly 10 paragraphs.
I opened up the power supply (200 watts) and neatly severed one of the wires running to the fan.
Obviously, it does raise the temperature of the power supply several degrees (it's warm to the touch), but nothing to be worried about. I do run the computer without the case on - being a router, I have it stored out of view. It's been running 24/7 for over 6 months and I've had no problems at all.
I would be a little leery of completely shutting down the fan in a bigger power supply especially if you kept the case on the computer. If you decide to experiment with it, just closely monitor the temp for several hours and see how it copes. Another option for you is to simply slow the fan down by putting a resistor on the fan's power leads.
Plus, if you run OpenBSD, you get to be superior to the Linux rabble.;-)
Heh. I was this close to choosing OpenBSD - it was between that and Debian. But in the end, I picked Debian because you can run "apt-get update; apt-get upgrade" and you're running an up-to-date installation.
Are the *BSD's "make world" scripts as painless as that? I'm not suggesting that they aren't - I truly do not know.
It's what I've done at my home - and it works great. I took a spare Pentium 166 I had and underclocked it to 120 then put a fanless heatsink on it. I then clipped the leads to the fan in the power supply. The hard drive is set to spin down after a few minutes. Result: a totally quiet, fairly low wattage (35-45 watts I think) router/firewall.
As far as software goes, after much deliberation, I finally settled on Debian GNU/Linux. The main reason I chose Debian is because you can't beat "apt-get update; apt-get upgrade" for pure ease of system management.
I know you'd prefer an "off the shelf" solution, but when you use an old PC you get so much more. Not only can it do all the routing functions you require, but you also get a print server, a file server (MP3 shares anyone?), a Freenet node, etc.
Exactly what losses can a company claim when they are victim of a DOS attack? Damaged hardware? No. Theft of goods? No. The only "loss" one of these companies had is potential income for that short period of time. And even that is completely subjective. Realistically, if you were going to buy a book from Amazon and you couldn't get to their web site, chances are you'd just try again in a few hours. The same goes for all the other web sites - especially the portals. Would you change your home page if the site was down for a couple hours?
Also, consider that this was a 16 year old boy. For Christ's sake, do you remember how stupid you were when you were 16? How much time do you think a kid should serve for a foolish mistake that didn't really harm anyone?
By far, the most interesting thing I've learned in this thread is that Microsoft is researching black holes: Information loss in black holes
Let's see what kind of conspiracies you guys can cook up with that little tidbit.;-)
Re:The need for offsite backup
on
More WTC News
·
· Score: 2
... Morgan Stanley Dean Whitter occupied roughly 10% of the WTC... There's a good article on Yahoo this morning about their offsite back strategy...
Personally, my position on offsite backups is rather self-serving. I've always figured that if something happens to our building and it is completely destroyed, I'll have bigger fish to fry than restoring some numbers for people.
A company like Morgan Stanly will almost certainly rebound to 100% given enough time. However, most service or production based companies probably can't withstand the financial impact of having their only building destroyed. That's an awful lot of downtime. My first priority is probably going to be jumping ship with the other rats and finding another job.
Sure, it's immature and irresponsible, but at least it's realistic.
Very well written post I found in the newsgroups
on
More On Tragedy
·
· Score: 3, Interesting
With apologies to the original author, I would like to present a post I read in nntp://rec.autos.makers.jeep+willys. It is very well written and insightful.
Subject: view from a new yorker...
the numbness is setting in... im looking at my family right now, each with
that depressed face one gets on the 2nd day of a funeral....
there is a depression hitting this city like you wouldnt believe.. everyone is
just.. blah at this point.. its beyond even the point of saying "i cant
believe it" its just a numbness... a blackness.
there were slight racial incidents... my neighborhood is very near to an arab
neighborhood, coincidentally only a few blocks from the mosque (sp?) where the
original 1993 bombing was planned... anyways, there have been sirens and lots
of police activity over there.. so far i have heard of a car being set on fire
and a muslim beaten, but not killed... i think when the shcok wears off
tomorrow, and people become increasingly angry at the growing number of death
reports.. or when the stupid media starts showing bodies or body parts - the
same as they keep sensationalizing the clips of people jumping out... as if
thats something we need to see 17 times in one news report:( - well as the
anger increases tomorrow, i fear common sense will not control people's actions
tomorrow... hopefully people can keep their senses, and not turn into an
LA-riots style race war.
There are still particles floating in the air, and i am 4 miles away, across
the river. there is a 1/4 inch thick layer of dust from the collapsed
buildings.. there is also a burning tire smell in the air.. just hanging
there..i find myself wishing for a breeze.
stories of the few recovered survivors are filtering through, and there are
"mental health crisis hotline" flyers posted all over NY...
i personally dont even want to go to sleep.. im haunted by images, and today
has been just a series of moments.. i have no sense of a continual and
coherent passage of time today... just a series of isolated moments and
emotions... this is the strangest feeling i have had. i decided to write this
letter after i realized i had been sitting at my keyboard just staring at the
computer screen for 10 minutes.. not doing anything.. i sort of zoned out.
its gotten to the point where we have recieved so many phone calls from crying
relatives and friends that i dont even want to pick up the phone anymore.
no one is crying anymore... their eyes are sunken in and swollen to show they
had been crying the whole day.. but not now... its a mental, emotional, and
physical weariness.
everything south of 34th street in manhattan is closed tomorrw. the rest of
manhattan is going to be "business as usual."
my fraternity brothers who own a hosue right nea the brooklyn bridge are
telling me about the HUGE amount of commercial truck traffic into the city
across the bridge. construction support and 18 wheelers full of rescue and
recovery materials are working their way down... its sort of like that scene
from "godzilla the movie" where the u.s army takes over nyc.
stored i shopped in regularly are gone totally..
people who are trapped in the rubble are calling the authorities from their
cell phones!!! As the fire was still burning and fear of a gas explosion or
further collapse was present - rescue workers have not gotten to the "ground
zero" of the towers... however the surrounding rubble is being searched.
a few of the people who were calling earlier from their cell phones are feared
dead nwo from smoke inhalation.
the national guard is a strong presence in nyc right now - and the scene of
standard issue cammo gear and soldierly movements in and about the city is such
a surreal and unfamiliar site...
most major subway train lines are not able to get into manhattan from brooklyn
tomorrow... the trade center was above one of the largest hubs in the NY subway
system... all the major lines from brooklyn met there, and then proceeded to
ther respective courses uptown or crosstown... this major station of course
collapsed once the building collapsed...
my brothers car was rear-ended by a police vehicle that started sliding out of
control on the layer of ashes (as thick as 2 inches deep around 34th street
(more than a mile away from the immediate crisis)
and right now i feel myself getting struck with that numbness i spoke about.. i
think i'll go and try to get some sleep right now... but just thought i would
update you on the local condition here in nyc... from a ny'er
-Steve 98 TJ
My heartfelt sympathies go out to all those who are directly affected by this tragedy.
If our retaliation were to consist of 30 bullets to the heads of all terrorist leaders, thats great - I'm all for it. But I'm very weary of the words I'm already hearing from the pentagon - threats against any nation that harbors terrorists. That doesn't mean we're targeting terrorists, specifically, you know.
I understand your sentiments completely. However, when the Afghanistan Talibahn (spelling?) is officially harboring terrorists, what the fuck are you supposed to do?
If they refuse to cooperate, by turning over Osama Bin Laden, then they are hindering the execution of justice.
I too, hope and pray that our retaliation harms as few innocent people as possible. However, if the Afghanistan government chooses to preserve the lives of a terrible, terrible few and, in doing so, sacrifice a great many innocent people - then there isn't much we can do.
Note: All of this depends on whether or not Bin Laden is really responsible. Which, of course, has yet to be determined.
Let's keep the truly remarkable thing in mind abou this: we heard about it on Slashdot first. Great job, guys.
You moron. The only reason you heard it here first is because you've got your head buried in your ass. There are current events in the world outside of the DMCA, DeCSS, etc.
Maybe Slashdot shouldn't be your sole source for news, eh?
...and something that is even more interesting is that they have special licensees for universities and other non profit research institutes to have access to the source code for NT and CE. This is some of the most interesting things I've seen.
Aaack!! Don't look - it's a trap!! Damn, now you're tainted and you can never work on a GPL project again.;-)
The sad thing is that some people really think that way.
Everybody keeps saying, "Whoa - who needs 320 hours of TV?"
However, I'm assuming that ReplayTV advertises their hours just like TiVo does, which is based on the lowest quality setting. If it's similar to TiVo, here is what it is probably like:
Count me as one of those public. What is so great about TiVo?
Okay, let me establish the major capabilities of a TiVo.
TV guide - This shows you exactly what channel and show you are watching, how long it is, what it's about, and who is in it. It can show you all of that for every channel for the next two weeks.
Automated recording - The killer app for TiVo. You tell TiVo to record "South Park" and it will do it indefinitely. Your VCR can do this too, but TiVo can do it for dozens of shows, 24 hours a day. Each is labeled and available for viewing whenever you feel like it. Fast forwarding through commercials is a breeze.
Pause live TV / Instant replay - Watching live TV and the phone rings, no problem. Just pause it and you can jabber on the phone for up to 30 minutes, when you get off the phone you just un-pause it and continue. You can even fast forward through commercials to catch up with the broadcast. The instant replay feature comes in handy if you missed something (e.g. dialog, action).
Those are the features that I really enjoy. The TiVo suggestions feature, although neat, isn't really that handy for me. If I wanted to watch a particular show I would already have a Season Pass for it.
Anyway, I guess you have to try it to really be hooked on it. But, I can assure you that if something happened to my TiVo, I would buy a replacement within days.
I don't necessarily want a PVR that can store 300+ hours of video - I watch too much TV as it is on my 30 hour unit. But, anything that raises public awareness of TiVo, and PVRs in general, is a good thing in my eyes.
TiVo is a great product, the problem is that the public just doesn't understand them yet. I've pretty much given up explaining them to people, as they invariably respond with: "my VCR can do that."
I just hope TiVo can hold on long enough for the critical mass of TV viewers to catch on. And things like this with a big "gee whiz" factor can only help.
I have registered over 3 MBit/s for hours on end at times.
You sound like just the kind of asshole that I'd hate to have in my neighborhood. I have a cable modem too, but I wouldn't make everyone in my district suffer just to run a 24/7 OpenNAP server.
Downloading the occasional ISO image is understandable, but don't be a dick when you're sharing bandwidth with people.
I'm so sick of people blaming Microsoft. The released a patch well before Code Red. Get over it.
You're a moron. Windows NT/2000 has some very serious design flaws with regard to operating system security. That is the source of their security woes. Don't the countless "root" exploits that exist for NT demonstrate that to you at all?
If you truly are an NT server admin than I pity you. While you spend half your day researching and applying patches to your servers, BSD and Linux admins get to play around with the really fun stuff.
Now I'll have to listen to my towels saying:
Oh man, I'm so high I don't even know what's going on.
Hint: It's not funny if you didn't see last week's South Park - and it's probably not funny even if you did.
Re:Stop addressing Code Red
on
Code Red III
·
· Score: 2
Stop addressing Code Red and start addressing the primary issue at hand. The issue is system administrators need to take proactive measures to make sure their systems have been patched.
Bullshit. Do you also think that someone should have to constantly replace the seatbelts in their car because they just spontaneously break?
Microsoft (or any other software company) should be responsible for selling defective products.
Slashdot Mirror
Granted, this mention was fairly benign - but am I the only one who finds the Debian elitism around here just a little bit annoying?
First Slashdotters ragged on everyone that didn't use Linux. Then that got boring and now everyone who doesn't use Debian is clueless. Let me guess, next target: GNOME users.
Where will you people stop with your Taco worship?
Oh and by the way - mod me as a troll, I don't give a fuck. I gots karma to burn.
RTLinux is a hard real-time operating system that handles time-critical tasks and runs Linux as its lowest priority execution thread. In RTLinux, a small hard-realtime kernel shares one or more processors with standard Linux. This allows the system to run accurately timed applications to perform data acquisition, systems control and robotics, while still serving as a standard Linux workstation. - from RTLinux
I wouldn't say you're stupid, but isn't typing "www.rtlinux.org" easier than posting a question on Slashdot?
Not sure about the other points you mention, however in regard to the trademark issue - I don't think that it would work.
The problem is that although Linux is trademarked, he has not defended it as such. And when you don't defend your trademark, it becomes "common use". Sort of like how everyone calls tissues, Kleenex.
Of course IANAL, and I'm talking out of my ass here (like everyone else on /.) So I'd take my advice with a big-ass grain of salt.
Get you're physician to tell him you've developed explosive bowel syndrome. This will actually solve a lot of social problems too.
Specifically, does the original author own the copyright on a large project that other people have made minor contributions to? Also, consider that no one explicitly handed over their copyright.
I think that one of the best ways for GPL developers to make money is by creating software under the GPL and also selling that software under a different license to companies that don't wish to use the GPL. But, I am unclear on whether the original author can do this if other people have made contributions to the project.
I guess an example would be if Torvalds decided to sell Linux to Microsoft under the BSD license. I know, I know - I would shit myself if it happened too. It's just an example.
Don't knock retrograde ejaculation until you try it.
But seriously, you wonder why your post was moderated as offtopic? You could have summed up 3/4 of it with - "Current spacesuits were designed without proper consideration of the female anatomy." Instead you ramble on about "bulbous muscular clumps" and whatnot for nearly 10 paragraphs.
Obviously, it does raise the temperature of the power supply several degrees (it's warm to the touch), but nothing to be worried about. I do run the computer without the case on - being a router, I have it stored out of view. It's been running 24/7 for over 6 months and I've had no problems at all.
I would be a little leery of completely shutting down the fan in a bigger power supply especially if you kept the case on the computer. If you decide to experiment with it, just closely monitor the temp for several hours and see how it copes. Another option for you is to simply slow the fan down by putting a resistor on the fan's power leads.
I'll tell you what - I make A LOT less then $75k/year and I don't suck.
*Sigh* I can't believe I responded to an AC. Maybe I do suck.
Heh. I was this close to choosing OpenBSD - it was between that and Debian. But in the end, I picked Debian because you can run "apt-get update; apt-get upgrade" and you're running an up-to-date installation.
Are the *BSD's "make world" scripts as painless as that? I'm not suggesting that they aren't - I truly do not know.
It's what I've done at my home - and it works great. I took a spare Pentium 166 I had and underclocked it to 120 then put a fanless heatsink on it. I then clipped the leads to the fan in the power supply. The hard drive is set to spin down after a few minutes. Result: a totally quiet, fairly low wattage (35-45 watts I think) router/firewall.
As far as software goes, after much deliberation, I finally settled on Debian GNU/Linux. The main reason I chose Debian is because you can't beat "apt-get update; apt-get upgrade" for pure ease of system management.
I know you'd prefer an "off the shelf" solution, but when you use an old PC you get so much more. Not only can it do all the routing functions you require, but you also get a print server, a file server (MP3 shares anyone?), a Freenet node, etc.
It's more work, but it's fun and it's worth it.
Exactly what losses can a company claim when they are victim of a DOS attack? Damaged hardware? No. Theft of goods? No. The only "loss" one of these companies had is potential income for that short period of time. And even that is completely subjective. Realistically, if you were going to buy a book from Amazon and you couldn't get to their web site, chances are you'd just try again in a few hours. The same goes for all the other web sites - especially the portals. Would you change your home page if the site was down for a couple hours?
Also, consider that this was a 16 year old boy. For Christ's sake, do you remember how stupid you were when you were 16? How much time do you think a kid should serve for a foolish mistake that didn't really harm anyone?
Let's see what kind of conspiracies you guys can cook up with that little tidbit. ;-)
Personally, my position on offsite backups is rather self-serving. I've always figured that if something happens to our building and it is completely destroyed, I'll have bigger fish to fry than restoring some numbers for people.
A company like Morgan Stanly will almost certainly rebound to 100% given enough time. However, most service or production based companies probably can't withstand the financial impact of having their only building destroyed. That's an awful lot of downtime. My first priority is probably going to be jumping ship with the other rats and finding another job.
Sure, it's immature and irresponsible, but at least it's realistic.
Subject: view from a new yorker...
the numbness is setting in... im looking at my family right now, each with
that depressed face one gets on the 2nd day of a funeral....
there is a depression hitting this city like you wouldnt believe.. everyone is
just.. blah at this point.. its beyond even the point of saying "i cant
believe it" its just a numbness... a blackness.
there were slight racial incidents... my neighborhood is very near to an arab :( - well as the
neighborhood, coincidentally only a few blocks from the mosque (sp?) where the
original 1993 bombing was planned... anyways, there have been sirens and lots
of police activity over there.. so far i have heard of a car being set on fire
and a muslim beaten, but not killed... i think when the shcok wears off
tomorrow, and people become increasingly angry at the growing number of death
reports.. or when the stupid media starts showing bodies or body parts - the
same as they keep sensationalizing the clips of people jumping out... as if
thats something we need to see 17 times in one news report
anger increases tomorrow, i fear common sense will not control people's actions
tomorrow... hopefully people can keep their senses, and not turn into an
LA-riots style race war.
There are still particles floating in the air, and i am 4 miles away, across
the river. there is a 1/4 inch thick layer of dust from the collapsed
buildings.. there is also a burning tire smell in the air.. just hanging
there..i find myself wishing for a breeze.
stories of the few recovered survivors are filtering through, and there are
"mental health crisis hotline" flyers posted all over NY...
i personally dont even want to go to sleep.. im haunted by images, and today
has been just a series of moments.. i have no sense of a continual and
coherent passage of time today... just a series of isolated moments and
emotions... this is the strangest feeling i have had. i decided to write this
letter after i realized i had been sitting at my keyboard just staring at the
computer screen for 10 minutes.. not doing anything.. i sort of zoned out.
its gotten to the point where we have recieved so many phone calls from crying
relatives and friends that i dont even want to pick up the phone anymore.
no one is crying anymore... their eyes are sunken in and swollen to show they
had been crying the whole day.. but not now... its a mental, emotional, and
physical weariness.
everything south of 34th street in manhattan is closed tomorrw. the rest of
manhattan is going to be "business as usual."
my fraternity brothers who own a hosue right nea the brooklyn bridge are
telling me about the HUGE amount of commercial truck traffic into the city
across the bridge. construction support and 18 wheelers full of rescue and
recovery materials are working their way down... its sort of like that scene
from "godzilla the movie" where the u.s army takes over nyc.
stored i shopped in regularly are gone totally..
people who are trapped in the rubble are calling the authorities from their
cell phones!!! As the fire was still burning and fear of a gas explosion or
further collapse was present - rescue workers have not gotten to the "ground
zero" of the towers... however the surrounding rubble is being searched.
a few of the people who were calling earlier from their cell phones are feared
dead nwo from smoke inhalation.
the national guard is a strong presence in nyc right now - and the scene of
standard issue cammo gear and soldierly movements in and about the city is such
a surreal and unfamiliar site...
most major subway train lines are not able to get into manhattan from brooklyn
tomorrow... the trade center was above one of the largest hubs in the NY subway
system... all the major lines from brooklyn met there, and then proceeded to
ther respective courses uptown or crosstown... this major station of course
collapsed once the building collapsed...
my brothers car was rear-ended by a police vehicle that started sliding out of
control on the layer of ashes (as thick as 2 inches deep around 34th street
(more than a mile away from the immediate crisis)
and right now i feel myself getting struck with that numbness i spoke about.. i
think i'll go and try to get some sleep right now... but just thought i would
update you on the local condition here in nyc... from a ny'er
-Steve 98 TJ
My heartfelt sympathies go out to all those who are directly affected by this tragedy.
I understand your sentiments completely. However, when the Afghanistan Talibahn (spelling?) is officially harboring terrorists, what the fuck are you supposed to do?
If they refuse to cooperate, by turning over Osama Bin Laden, then they are hindering the execution of justice.
I too, hope and pray that our retaliation harms as few innocent people as possible. However, if the Afghanistan government chooses to preserve the lives of a terrible, terrible few and, in doing so, sacrifice a great many innocent people - then there isn't much we can do.
Note: All of this depends on whether or not Bin Laden is really responsible. Which, of course, has yet to be determined.
You moron. The only reason you heard it here first is because you've got your head buried in your ass. There are current events in the world outside of the DMCA, DeCSS, etc.
Maybe Slashdot shouldn't be your sole source for news, eh?
Aaack!! Don't look - it's a trap!! Damn, now you're tainted and you can never work on a GPL project again. ;-)
The sad thing is that some people really think that way.
However, I'm assuming that ReplayTV advertises their hours just like TiVo does, which is based on the lowest quality setting. If it's similar to TiVo, here is what it is probably like:
Okay, let me establish the major capabilities of a TiVo.
Those are the features that I really enjoy. The TiVo suggestions feature, although neat, isn't really that handy for me. If I wanted to watch a particular show I would already have a Season Pass for it.
Anyway, I guess you have to try it to really be hooked on it. But, I can assure you that if something happened to my TiVo, I would buy a replacement within days.
TiVo is a great product, the problem is that the public just doesn't understand them yet. I've pretty much given up explaining them to people, as they invariably respond with: "my VCR can do that."
I just hope TiVo can hold on long enough for the critical mass of TV viewers to catch on. And things like this with a big "gee whiz" factor can only help.
I don't think I could pay someone enough to try that hard to figure out my passwords. I must be such a loser.
You sound like just the kind of asshole that I'd hate to have in my neighborhood. I have a cable modem too, but I wouldn't make everyone in my district suffer just to run a 24/7 OpenNAP server.
Downloading the occasional ISO image is understandable, but don't be a dick when you're sharing bandwidth with people.
You're a moron. Windows NT/2000 has some very serious design flaws with regard to operating system security. That is the source of their security woes. Don't the countless "root" exploits that exist for NT demonstrate that to you at all?
If you truly are an NT server admin than I pity you. While you spend half your day researching and applying patches to your servers, BSD and Linux admins get to play around with the really fun stuff.
Oh man, I'm so high I don't even know what's going on.
Hint: It's not funny if you didn't see last week's South Park - and it's probably not funny even if you did.
Bullshit. Do you also think that someone should have to constantly replace the seatbelts in their car because they just spontaneously break?
Microsoft (or any other software company) should be responsible for selling defective products.