"Apple failed to secure a patent before Microsoft did."
As mentioned above, the USA runs on a first to invent system, not a first to file.
In Canada, it's first to file. Everywhere else, Apple is screwed (and so is Microsoft) because of public disclosure (North America is the only place with a 1 year grace period for patenting after public disclosure.)
It's not us that sees the $10 billion/a costs, it's the industry.
The difference in cost puts FreeDOS or any other competitor out $20. So assuming Dell would accept an offer of $20 from the competitor for every machine sold, just to have a price on par with a machine running Windows, the total costs to compete with the monopoly become significant.
Not usually anyway. But I'm sure you've heard of vehicles which have been recalled by the manufacturer for safety issues.
Usually you just bring it to the dealership and they replace the defective part - ie, they patch the bug in the vehicle.
There are also more regulations in place for automobiles because it can come down to an issue of life or death. Such is generally not the case with software, but when it is you can be sure that whoever made the software will be much more diligent and will take the heat when something goes wrong (as opposed to Microsoft who just covers their ass with an EULA.) The sector of the software industry that deals with critical issues would self regualate fairly effectively, I'd imagine. If a manufacturer screwed up big time and caused a lot of deaths, they probably wouldn't be getting many more software contracts.
"They're the ones who are costing us billions of dollars a year to secure our systems against them."
Those billions of dollars in system security have created an entire market segment that employs thousands (hundreds thereof?) of people and provides fuel for the economy.
Aside from this, you can't really blame the bad guy by saying "if it weren't for the bad people, we'd all be much better off." Well no shit, Sherlock. The fact of the matter is, there will always be bad people who will cause more trouble than they're worth. So instead of pissing and moaning about the "bad people", just do what you can to provide fewer opportunities for them to do their thing. In this case, that means write better software, design better systems, provide better security tools, etc.
Just because they keep releasing new versions doesn't mean it's not 'finished'.
I think most people, including the parent, who say Windows isn't finished are eluding to the fact that it's released in an unstable, insecure, and generally half-assed condition.
If a product is released and a year later a new feature is added to that same product, does it mean the previous product went unfinished for a whole year? Not really. Why do you think they use version names? Mac OSX 10.1 is a finished product - when changes for 10.1 are released, it's under a new version number representing a newer finished product.
Distributions of Linux, and the kernel itself, have updated releases on a much more frequent basis. But that's why there are production (or stable) and testing (or unstable) branches. The production version is a finished product.
Arguably you could still say that all the aforementioned software is never finished, but then the same could be said for a lot of things. Car models are updated on a yearly basis - does that mean the previous year's model was not finshed? No.
At some point a product which is periodically updated must be defined as 'finished' and separated from development leading to the next version of the finished product.
As I mentioned, Microsoft never seems to release a 'finished' version of Windows because it's in a perpetual state of half-assedness. Or like Longhorn, the release date is constantly being pushed back and it appears as though it'll never be finished.
These kinds of developments are certainly cool, and I can see that this system could go beyond music.
But right now its primary design is for music broadcasting, and unlicensed public performances are definetly not legal. So wtf do these guys think they're doing?
How can they possibly argue that this device will mostly be used for legal activity when the primary purpose is to broadcast from someone's personal collection of music.
Honestly, this is pretty stupid. Radio stations pay huge fees to broadcast music and what people will do with these devices is not only unfair to radio stations, but it's just plain illegal.
Yeah yeah, you could be some band wanting to promote your own music driving around town, but how many people will this account for? Maybe 0.05% of the total users - the remaining 99.95% illegaly broadcasting commercial music.
If they somehow manage to prevent people from playing commercial music, who's gonna buy the device? Even in a big city you'd be lucky to find someone on the road who's broadcasting legal music - and you'd be lucky if they're within range for the length of one track.
"Enlightenment looks like its usual "prrreeeeetttyyy" self"
You've completely overlooked the major accomplishments the Enlightenment Project has made. Yeah, it's gorgeous (is that a bad thing?), but the achievment is the Enlightenment Foundation Libraries that make it all possible.
The design that went into the libraries makes it easy to design an app that's functional, visually pleasing, and well integrated with the rest of the desktop and applications.
You've really got to visit enlightenment.org to understand how well designed the system is.
Yeah, they've created a pretty interface, but they've got the technology to back it up.
Anyone else notice the BBB logo at the bottom of cruise.com's website?
I wonder if the BBB knows what's goin on here, and if they have any rules against unsolicited email. It might help Mumma's case if the BBB has logged any complaints against cruise.com for spamming.
Well, maybe if you'd step back and look at the larger picture, you'd realise some of the implications this presents.
If and when google does its thing and releases a client/server OS or platform where all the apps are served up over the web, this little trick demonstrates that it's possible to make a very nice looking, very slick, and user friendly interface similar to that of a full blown OS currently on the market.
Eye candy is apparently possible, and it is necessary. The average user will most likely select their platform based on the look and feel first, then functionality - which is about the same way most people make all their purchases.
That's exactly what I thought when I read that sentence. I think what he means is that a community surrounding an application will support it, so long as there is demand (because if there's demand, there are people using the product to help others using the product.)
However, what he fails to realize is that a community can be formed around VB6 (I'm certain there is one already), and said community can support itself for as long as there are people who continue to use VB6. This is no different from any F/OSS project.
Ya gotta wonder what this world is coming to when students go to the police because someone was tryna sell them answers to exams.:|
Yeah I know.. it's very unethical, but honestly, would you have done the same? My peers and I used to get away with far worse, and ultimately nothing bad really happened.
This "lack of accountability" argument is bullshit. Why does Microsoft have an EULA for its software? To cover their asses so they can't be held accountable for damages caused by their shitty software. When was the last time Microsoft was taken to court over losses due to poor software? If they could be held accountable, they'd get sued right out of business!
Slashdot Mirror
If all you want to do is write code, go to college.
Anyone who gets a Computer Science degree and ends up programming for the rest of their life has wasted their time and money going to university.
"Apple failed to secure a patent before Microsoft did."
As mentioned above, the USA runs on a first to invent system, not a first to file.
In Canada, it's first to file. Everywhere else, Apple is screwed (and so is Microsoft) because of public disclosure (North America is the only place with a 1 year grace period for patenting after public disclosure.)
It's not us that sees the $10 billion/a costs, it's the industry.
The difference in cost puts FreeDOS or any other competitor out $20. So assuming Dell would accept an offer of $20 from the competitor for every machine sold, just to have a price on par with a machine running Windows, the total costs to compete with the monopoly become significant.
In North America there is a 1-year grace period for filing patents after the idea has been publicly disclosed.
No chance anywhere else in the world though.
"If you agree with their ideas then go ahead and listen to them, if not then keep watching FoxNews."
;)
False Dichotomy!
I know what you mean though - I just wanted to use my fancy words
Not usually anyway. But I'm sure you've heard of vehicles which have been recalled by the manufacturer for safety issues.
Usually you just bring it to the dealership and they replace the defective part - ie, they patch the bug in the vehicle.
There are also more regulations in place for automobiles because it can come down to an issue of life or death. Such is generally not the case with software, but when it is you can be sure that whoever made the software will be much more diligent and will take the heat when something goes wrong (as opposed to Microsoft who just covers their ass with an EULA.) The sector of the software industry that deals with critical issues would self regualate fairly effectively, I'd imagine. If a manufacturer screwed up big time and caused a lot of deaths, they probably wouldn't be getting many more software contracts.
"They're the ones who are costing us billions of dollars a year to secure our systems against them."
Those billions of dollars in system security have created an entire market segment that employs thousands (hundreds thereof?) of people and provides fuel for the economy.
Aside from this, you can't really blame the bad guy by saying "if it weren't for the bad people, we'd all be much better off." Well no shit, Sherlock. The fact of the matter is, there will always be bad people who will cause more trouble than they're worth. So instead of pissing and moaning about the "bad people", just do what you can to provide fewer opportunities for them to do their thing. In this case, that means write better software, design better systems, provide better security tools, etc.
a) new features
b) bug patches
Just because they keep releasing new versions doesn't mean it's not 'finished'.
I think most people, including the parent, who say Windows isn't finished are eluding to the fact that it's released in an unstable, insecure, and generally half-assed condition.
If a product is released and a year later a new feature is added to that same product, does it mean the previous product went unfinished for a whole year? Not really. Why do you think they use version names? Mac OSX 10.1 is a finished product - when changes for 10.1 are released, it's under a new version number representing a newer finished product.
Distributions of Linux, and the kernel itself, have updated releases on a much more frequent basis. But that's why there are production (or stable) and testing (or unstable) branches. The production version is a finished product.
Arguably you could still say that all the aforementioned software is never finished, but then the same could be said for a lot of things. Car models are updated on a yearly basis - does that mean the previous year's model was not finshed? No.
At some point a product which is periodically updated must be defined as 'finished' and separated from development leading to the next version of the finished product.
As I mentioned, Microsoft never seems to release a 'finished' version of Windows because it's in a perpetual state of half-assedness. Or like Longhorn, the release date is constantly being pushed back and it appears as though it'll never be finished.
These kinds of developments are certainly cool, and I can see that this system could go beyond music.
But right now its primary design is for music broadcasting, and unlicensed public performances are definetly not legal. So wtf do these guys think they're doing?
How can they possibly argue that this device will mostly be used for legal activity when the primary purpose is to broadcast from someone's personal collection of music.
Honestly, this is pretty stupid. Radio stations pay huge fees to broadcast music and what people will do with these devices is not only unfair to radio stations, but it's just plain illegal.
Yeah yeah, you could be some band wanting to promote your own music driving around town, but how many people will this account for? Maybe 0.05% of the total users - the remaining 99.95% illegaly broadcasting commercial music.
If they somehow manage to prevent people from playing commercial music, who's gonna buy the device? Even in a big city you'd be lucky to find someone on the road who's broadcasting legal music - and you'd be lucky if they're within range for the length of one track.
Jeeze, I know a lot of /. readers don't bother to RTFA, but did you even read the description?
"Through IP Spoofing A can even hide their identity from C."
The site has already been slashdotted so I havn't actually seen this thing, but is it any bigger than the heatsinks in a Mac?
Personally I'd like one of those giant heatsinks in my PC if it meant less fans or even really slow (hence quiet) fans.
What would be ideal is a heat pipe system that attaches to the side panel of the system case which would double as a heatsink. That would rock.
FYI, the Corel Linux Distribution based on Debian was spun off (or acquired) by Xandros.
/. community.
And Xandros is far from having "come and gone". AFAIC they've got one of the best distributions going for the desktop, workstation, and server.
I think they've done the best in creating a Linux distribution with the user friendliness that most would claim does not exist in any Linux distro.
Xandros seems to be largely overlooked by the
"Enlightenment looks like its usual "prrreeeeetttyyy" self"
You've completely overlooked the major accomplishments the Enlightenment Project has made. Yeah, it's gorgeous (is that a bad thing?), but the achievment is the Enlightenment Foundation Libraries that make it all possible.
The design that went into the libraries makes it easy to design an app that's functional, visually pleasing, and well integrated with the rest of the desktop and applications.
You've really got to visit enlightenment.org to understand how well designed the system is.
Yeah, they've created a pretty interface, but they've got the technology to back it up.
Have a look at the Internet 2's home page. They're collaborating with the RIAA on ths one.
That's a good point actually.. municipalities could begine roadside collection of grass clippings to use in addition to what is grown on farms.
The only problem would be the fertilizers likely present in residential grass.
Anyone else notice the BBB logo at the bottom of cruise.com's website?
I wonder if the BBB knows what's goin on here, and if they have any rules against unsolicited email. It might help Mumma's case if the BBB has logged any complaints against cruise.com for spamming.
Well, maybe if you'd step back and look at the larger picture, you'd realise some of the implications this presents.
If and when google does its thing and releases a client/server OS or platform where all the apps are served up over the web, this little trick demonstrates that it's possible to make a very nice looking, very slick, and user friendly interface similar to that of a full blown OS currently on the market.
Eye candy is apparently possible, and it is necessary. The average user will most likely select their platform based on the look and feel first, then functionality - which is about the same way most people make all their purchases.
This IS usable.
That's exactly what I thought when I read that sentence. I think what he means is that a community surrounding an application will support it, so long as there is demand (because if there's demand, there are people using the product to help others using the product.)
However, what he fails to realize is that a community can be formed around VB6 (I'm certain there is one already), and said community can support itself for as long as there are people who continue to use VB6. This is no different from any F/OSS project.
I wonder how many people in this thread have looked at Xandros Linux. If anything is ready for the desktop, it's that.
It's beyond ready for the desktop. It makes the desktop easy, it makes it run well, and it makes it look good.
Linux is ready for the desktop and has been for some time. You just gotta choose the right distribution.
One could carry a bootable CD with the distribution on it, and a USB key with their homedir/configs.
Well, the funny thing about the US accusing Canada of harbouring said terrorists is that the US are the ones that let them in to the US!
Ya gotta wonder what this world is coming to when students go to the police because someone was tryna sell them answers to exams. :|
Yeah I know.. it's very unethical, but honestly, would you have done the same? My peers and I used to get away with far worse, and ultimately nothing bad really happened.
This "lack of accountability" argument is bullshit. Why does Microsoft have an EULA for its software? To cover their asses so they can't be held accountable for damages caused by their shitty software. When was the last time Microsoft was taken to court over losses due to poor software? If they could be held accountable, they'd get sued right out of business!
Has SCO been ordered to show any code of theirs that they claim has been infringed upon?
So IBM turns over some code, and SCO says "yep, all of that is an infringement, pay up!" How do we know otherwise?
For anyone who hasn't seen this, here's another article with a screenshot.