That's the gist of Dvorak's column in the latest PC Magazine. Linux will beat Windows on the desktop because it's adequate and cheaper (which has been the MO of Microsoft since Day One).
As a side note, that was my last copy of that publication. Back in 1995, I got a six year subscription, and for some reason, it got extended to March 2002.
Has anybody else noticed that PC Mag has dramatically changed their attitude towards Linux/Open-Source/Free Software in the past six months or so?
Try to get investors to spend on a product you'll give away, against a competitor they know can't be stopped.
You can't sell a browser for money? Look at Opera. Granted, I don't know if they're profitable or not, but they seem to be selling more ads than Slashdot...
Your post brings up one thing: Netscape's biggest mistake was going public. If you're a public company, Wall Street effectively owns you. This means that you'll get suckered into every fad that comes along and is sufficiently hyped to the Street (Java, web services, streaming media, et al come to mind). In the case of Microsoft, they have the money to pretend to make an effort in each area. If you're a small fish like Netscape, you don't have the money to fall for those tricks.
What killed the commercial internet was the IPO's that were waaaaay too early.
I had an uncle who invented a fruity soda. He called it 5-Up. It bombed. He tried a new formula and called it 6-Up. It bombed. He gave up after that....
Thor decides he wants some earth loving. So he turns himself into a dashing young human warrior. He picks up this beautiful princess and they have a wild night. The next morning, Thor decides to reveal himself. "I am Thor," he says. "You're thor," the princess replies, "I'm tho thor, I don't think I can pith."
but that we can prove that the Chinese discovered America.
It's pretty well accepted that the Vikings attempted to colonize North America.
One of the more interesting things, as I get slightly offtopic, is to look at the state of the world in the year 1002. The Arabs, the Chinese, and the Japanese were the superpowers, along with the Aztecs and Incas (if such a term can be used). Europe was the equivalent of a third world continent. I mean, a fading power, the Vikings had them on their knees (why's it called Normandy?).
What happened? The Chinese looked inwards and grew static. The Japanese and Arabs each grew complacent. The Europeans got themselves out of the rut and developed new methods of thought (largely by embracing and extending Arab/Asian thought. Then they got lucky in the Western Hemisphere. The huge economic advantage gained through the exploitation of the Americas caused growth to accelerate. Now a European/North American axis effectively runs the show (the Japanese have, in a possibly more amazing story, joined this axis). China is a borderline third world nation. The formerly Arab world is far behind. The Aztecs and Incas were effectively wiped off the map.
If that's what the last 10^3 years were like, imagine what the world order will be in 3002...
The problem was that at this time, no one had
discovered the chinesse.
This was some 300 years after Marco Polo may (or may not have... some of the non-fanciful elements of his accounts seem to have no basis in reality) have been at the court of Kublai Khan.
In addition, there was an active silk trade from Europe to China (that's why cities in Afghanistan and Pakistan are referred to as dating back to the Silk Road).
Hmmz does this mean all those historybooks need to be changes? Wow i'm going to buy some stocks;-)
Not much more than a few footnotes. As I noted in another post, there is no evidence that the Chinese did anything with this discovery. Is this world a vastly different place than it would be had the Chinese not landed? If it's not, then the Chinese "discovery," which was at the least some centuries after the Vikings, is somewhat meaningless in the scheme of things.
Sort of brings to mind various historical- fantasy novels.
How many times did Clive Cussler use the pre-Columbian contact plot point in his Dirk PItt novels.
My God, that author is the most formulaic writer I've ever had the pleasure of reading. But it's good formula. It's put your brain under the seat and relax formula. I like that.
Sorry to be offtopic... I don't know what prompted that...
The greatest Chinese Navigator,Cheng Ho, rocked China's boat so much, they closed the ports...
The Chinese have historically tended to have an insular society. This is, after all, the nation that spent years (and lots of energy) on a Great Wall to keep outsiders out.
And to this day, China still looks inward as much as outward. For Christ's sake, they don't have an independent navy (it comes under the People's Liberation Army, IIRC).
The Vikings touched base 400 years prior to the Chinese. The Arabs had the technology and knowledge to do it. The Romans, Phoenicians, and Egyptians may have done it.
But ultimately, none of those is important as Columbus' "discovery". Why? Because what was the end result of Chinese exploration of the Americas? Or of the Vikings? Or of Saint Brendan? It cannot be denied that Columbus had an effect on the history of the world (for better or for worse). Does this lessen the accomplishment of crossing an ocean? No. But exploration is only one side of the coin. There is also what you do with it. It's the difference between pure science and applied science. You can't have the applied without the pure, but the applied has a hell of a lot more bearing on the world.
That said, I am fascinated by all things to do with geography and history. This is an unquestionably cool discovery. But it's not earth shattering.
In Never Say Never again, like the world domination game. Wasn't that guy a German too.
I have avoided NSNA like the plague (I'm strictly a fan of the Broccoli productions), but NSNA is a remake of Thunderball, in which the villain was Italian. But Kevin McClory might well have made the character German.
Speaking about Mr. Greene, Mr. Faraz said, "He said it took two days to do all the stuff, and we did it for three days from 9 to 6 and left the computers on all night long, except we'd come back and the computers would be frozen."
Going to a Senator from California ain't going to help. While NoCal is tech-based, Hollywood is pretty much the dominant industry in SoCal. John Kerry, on the other hand,is vulnerable. If I were Michael Cloud, the Libertarian running against JK, I'd make this a campaign issue. Slogan: "John Kerry, selling Massachusetts' future for Hollywood's Present."
Did you see what he wrote regarding ABC's (here we go, Disney again!) censorship of Drew Carey:
This isn't really censorship. It's just that Drew Carey does a comedy show -- and a script that didn't feature anyone "competent" would be reality TV.
I also love the way TV folks scream "censorship" when the Pentagon doesn't want them to report troop locations on the battlefield, then bend over for stuff like this. To Carey's credit, he's not bending over.
No. Actually, the whole original intent of copyright was to enrich the public domain. Therefore, any copyrighted work needs to be copyable. At least the library of congress should have such a copy.
You are correct, especially when the effects of a likely CTEA overturning are considered.
However, the matter at hand in my post was that Fair Use does not forbid a copyright holder from taking steps during distribution to prevent you from exercising rights that would be considered to be held under Fair Use. Fair Use is the "Get out of Jail" card in Monopoly; it does not mean that no one can put you in jail. (yes, I know that, like most analogies, that has some issues, but, in the broad stroke, it's true).
The dark side of this issue, however, is that there doesn't seem to be anything to keep these copy-controls out of any future formats. If the RIAA-holes can't copy-protect their CDs, why whouldn't they just move to some new copy-protection-filled standard, and refuse to make music CDs? Yes, this would totally screw the consumer, but it's not like that's ever stopped them before.
The question is, which member of the RIAA wants to stick their neck out? Since the mid-80's, how many formats have challenged the Audio CD? Now, how many succeeded (in the US)? 0 for a lot.
Sony might be able to do something (being the only label that also makes hardware and has technical leadership). But they may still be nursing wounds from the failure of mini-disc in the US (I think they sort of succeeded in Japan). Also, the first bands that have new albums come out only on this copy-protected medium are going to sue the labels for dilution of earnings potential and tie that up in court for years.
Essentially, unless they can add other goodies to the format, they can't win. Maybe encoding the audio in 5.1 surround will do it. But it costs a shitload to master and record 5.1, which makes the break-even point much higher (maybe 1 million units instead of 500,000). In short, there's so much short term risk associated with a new format, that the RIAA isn't apt to take the risk.
The amount of paperwork that the FEC requires for campaign contributions means that I doubt that politicians could raise money through PayPal. That said, maybe the/.PAC could be founded which took contributions through PayPal/Amazon and would fight for the beliefs of Slashdotters (allow strong encryption, abolish the DMCA, etc).
Of course, since everything on a standard Linux machine (kernel, libraries, X, etc.) is compiled with GCC, while I imagine that everything that Windows runs is compiled with Visual Studio's compiler, if GCC consistently turns out code that's faster than Visual Studio, we could extrapolate that Linux is significantly faster than Windows.
You do not have an entitlement to rip CDs (in the sense that anyone who tries to stop you is violating the law). However, if someone tries to stop you through the courts, by accusing you of infringement, you can use the Fair Use defense (and will probably win, under current law). Fair Use doesn't obligate the owner of a copyright not to do anything that might reduce your ability to exercise Fair Use.
Slashdot Mirror
That's the gist of Dvorak's column in the latest PC Magazine. Linux will beat Windows on the desktop because it's adequate and cheaper (which has been the MO of Microsoft since Day One).
As a side note, that was my last copy of that publication. Back in 1995, I got a six year subscription, and for some reason, it got extended to March 2002.
Has anybody else noticed that PC Mag has dramatically changed their attitude towards Linux/Open-Source/Free Software in the past six months or so?
You can't sell a browser for money? Look at Opera. Granted, I don't know if they're profitable or not, but they seem to be selling more ads than Slashdot...
Your post brings up one thing: Netscape's biggest mistake was going public. If you're a public company, Wall Street effectively owns you. This means that you'll get suckered into every fad that comes along and is sufficiently hyped to the Street (Java, web services, streaming media, et al come to mind). In the case of Microsoft, they have the money to pretend to make an effort in each area. If you're a small fish like Netscape, you don't have the money to fall for those tricks.
What killed the commercial internet was the IPO's that were waaaaay too early.
...who wondered, "I didn't know that Clive Cussler had gotten into cluster design?
Really?
I had an uncle who invented a fruity soda. He called it 5-Up. It bombed. He tried a new formula and called it 6-Up. It bombed. He gave up after that....
Is this a Sinclair of Rosslyn?
If so, then the Templar connection is very interesting....
And he'll be carrying Phoenician coins...
Columbus was looking for contract programmers...
It's somewhere in his logs. I guarantee it.
Vikings rule! That's all I can say!
Thor decides he wants some earth loving. So he turns himself into a dashing young human warrior. He picks up this beautiful princess and they have a wild night. The next morning, Thor decides to reveal himself. "I am Thor," he says. "You're thor," the princess replies, "I'm tho thor, I don't think I can pith."
It's pretty well accepted that the Vikings attempted to colonize North America.
One of the more interesting things, as I get slightly offtopic, is to look at the state of the world in the year 1002. The Arabs, the Chinese, and the Japanese were the superpowers, along with the Aztecs and Incas (if such a term can be used). Europe was the equivalent of a third world continent. I mean, a fading power, the Vikings had them on their knees (why's it called Normandy?).
What happened? The Chinese looked inwards and grew static. The Japanese and Arabs each grew complacent. The Europeans got themselves out of the rut and developed new methods of thought (largely by embracing and extending Arab/Asian thought. Then they got lucky in the Western Hemisphere. The huge economic advantage gained through the exploitation of the Americas caused growth to accelerate. Now a European/North American axis effectively runs the show (the Japanese have, in a possibly more amazing story, joined this axis). China is a borderline third world nation. The formerly Arab world is far behind. The Aztecs and Incas were effectively wiped off the map.
If that's what the last 10^3 years were like, imagine what the world order will be in 3002...
Okay, I'll shut up now...
This was some 300 years after Marco Polo may (or may not have... some of the non-fanciful elements of his accounts seem to have no basis in reality) have been at the court of Kublai Khan.
In addition, there was an active silk trade from Europe to China (that's why cities in Afghanistan and Pakistan are referred to as dating back to the Silk Road).
Not much more than a few footnotes. As I noted in another post, there is no evidence that the Chinese did anything with this discovery. Is this world a vastly different place than it would be had the Chinese not landed? If it's not, then the Chinese "discovery," which was at the least some centuries after the Vikings, is somewhat meaningless in the scheme of things.
How many times did Clive Cussler use the pre-Columbian contact plot point in his Dirk PItt novels.
My God, that author is the most formulaic writer I've ever had the pleasure of reading. But it's good formula. It's put your brain under the seat and relax formula. I like that.
Sorry to be offtopic... I don't know what prompted that...
The Chinese have historically tended to have an insular society. This is, after all, the nation that spent years (and lots of energy) on a Great Wall to keep outsiders out.
And to this day, China still looks inward as much as outward. For Christ's sake, they don't have an independent navy (it comes under the People's Liberation Army, IIRC).
The Vikings touched base 400 years prior to the Chinese. The Arabs had the technology and knowledge to do it. The Romans, Phoenicians, and Egyptians may have done it.
But ultimately, none of those is important as Columbus' "discovery". Why? Because what was the end result of Chinese exploration of the Americas? Or of the Vikings? Or of Saint Brendan? It cannot be denied that Columbus had an effect on the history of the world (for better or for worse). Does this lessen the accomplishment of crossing an ocean? No. But exploration is only one side of the coin. There is also what you do with it. It's the difference between pure science and applied science. You can't have the applied without the pure, but the applied has a hell of a lot more bearing on the world.
That said, I am fascinated by all things to do with geography and history. This is an unquestionably cool discovery. But it's not earth shattering.
I have avoided NSNA like the plague (I'm strictly a fan of the Broccoli productions), but NSNA is a remake of Thunderball, in which the villain was Italian. But Kevin McClory might well have made the character German.
Going to a Senator from California ain't going to help. While NoCal is tech-based, Hollywood is pretty much the dominant industry in SoCal. John Kerry, on the other hand,is vulnerable. If I were Michael Cloud, the Libertarian running against JK, I'd make this a campaign issue. Slogan: "John Kerry, selling Massachusetts' future for Hollywood's Present."
Did you see what he wrote regarding ABC's (here we go, Disney again!) censorship of Drew Carey:
This guy is great!You are correct, especially when the effects of a likely CTEA overturning are considered.
However, the matter at hand in my post was that Fair Use does not forbid a copyright holder from taking steps during distribution to prevent you from exercising rights that would be considered to be held under Fair Use. Fair Use is the "Get out of Jail" card in Monopoly; it does not mean that no one can put you in jail. (yes, I know that, like most analogies, that has some issues, but, in the broad stroke, it's true).
The vulnerability was sent to the OpenSSH team a few days ago. It was not publicized until a fix was in CVS.
The question is, which member of the RIAA wants to stick their neck out? Since the mid-80's, how many formats have challenged the Audio CD? Now, how many succeeded (in the US)? 0 for a lot.
Sony might be able to do something (being the only label that also makes hardware and has technical leadership). But they may still be nursing wounds from the failure of mini-disc in the US (I think they sort of succeeded in Japan). Also, the first bands that have new albums come out only on this copy-protected medium are going to sue the labels for dilution of earnings potential and tie that up in court for years.
Essentially, unless they can add other goodies to the format, they can't win. Maybe encoding the audio in 5.1 surround will do it. But it costs a shitload to master and record 5.1, which makes the break-even point much higher (maybe 1 million units instead of 500,000). In short, there's so much short term risk associated with a new format, that the RIAA isn't apt to take the risk.
The amount of paperwork that the FEC requires for campaign contributions means that I doubt that politicians could raise money through PayPal. That said, maybe the /.PAC could be founded which took contributions through PayPal/Amazon and would fight for the beliefs of Slashdotters (allow strong encryption, abolish the DMCA, etc).
Of course, since everything on a standard Linux machine (kernel, libraries, X, etc.) is compiled with GCC, while I imagine that everything that Windows runs is compiled with Visual Studio's compiler, if GCC consistently turns out code that's faster than Visual Studio, we could extrapolate that Linux is significantly faster than Windows.
You do not have an entitlement to rip CDs (in the sense that anyone who tries to stop you is violating the law). However, if someone tries to stop you through the courts, by accusing you of infringement, you can use the Fair Use defense (and will probably win, under current law). Fair Use doesn't obligate the owner of a copyright not to do anything that might reduce your ability to exercise Fair Use.