The corporate culture that treats employees like replaceable widgets has to take most of the blame here. My first job out of college was for a Fortune 100 industrial electronics company. My boss was a visionary, and we embraced the Internet long before it became mainstream. It was a great job... for a while. But then demand for network access and computer support mushroomed within the company. Management's solution? *Consolidate* support departments and serve more people with far less staff. It was insane. I finally quit to start my own company. I've never regretted it.
So how tough would it be to create an Exchange clone for Linux? Not an exact clone, just the same general functionality tied together with a nice management GUI. SMTP, NNTP, POP3, IMAP, LDAP, IRC, Scheduling, web access to mailboxes... I've seen open source apps for all of these. Have I missed any key parts here?
Interesting, though I expect IO bottlenecks elsewhere in the architecture would keep you from seeing the full benefits in a real world situation. Still, might be fun to snag a couple and hack together some Linux drivers.
Speaking as someone who has been through the export approval process, I have one thing to say.... WAHOOO! This looks like an important step in getting those idiotic laws off the books. Supreme Court here we come.
A good document but a little long for many managers. I would preface it with an executive summary. Nevertheless, I plan to snarf this for my arsenal of FUD busting docs.:-)
Besides which, maybe exporting strong crypto isn't that great of an idea in the first place. Anybody care to comment?
Restriciting export of crypto is POINTLESS. The laws are left over from the days when the *algorithm itself* was an important secret that needed to be protected. Now days the algorithms are all public (and well known all over the world) and the encryption key is really the important part. Restricting crypto export accomplishes nothing but harm to the American software industry.
I've been through the process of getting export approval for an encryption capable web server. It was a time consuming pain in the butt, and in the end we still lost sales because we couldn't ship the 128 bit version. The whole things was particularly annoying because we had to get a new license every time we released a new version of the software. Our product did the same SSL encryption everyone else did. It is a waste of taxpayer money when the government takes the time to individually license every single version of every single product that uses the same friggen algorithm! I almost wonder if the only reason we still have these pointless laws is because a bunch of useless buraeucrats are just trying to hang on to their pointless regulatory jobs.
It's very obvious that the current "Linus personality cult" has to go.
Of course there is any easy way for that to happen. Linus could just start acting like a jerk. But somehow I don't really expect that to happen. It is no accident that the "personality cult" exists... Linus has the just right mix of humility, likeability, and brashness to result in this sort of thing, intential or not. Linux would not have been nearly as popular as quickly if Linus had been otherwise.
I hold up Bill Jolitz as the counter-example. 386bsd was a hit when he first released it, but (IMHO) his attitude and treatment of fellow developers drove people away from the project and eventually caused it to split into FreeBSD, NetBSD, etc. Linus has done much to hold the Linux movement together. In that respect, the "cult" is a Good Thing.
The way I see it, SMP is not the overriding issue that determines the performance in a test like this. This is an IO bound thing after all. As long as the kernel is good enough to keep the data moving on all four ethernet cards, the real issue becomes the file caching, ethernet drivers, etc. Microsoft has pushed much of there file server and web support down into the kernel. This gives a performance boost in some areas with a tradeoff in others.
Linux, on the other hand, keeps more of its services in user space. This means it may suffer a little in this type of benchmark but it makes Linux an all around better application server. We are talking apples and oranges here.
To *win* Mindraft 3 we don't need to beat NT totally, just come close (which should be possible on a properly configured Linux box). This will show that the original test was a crock, and that Linux is still a much better price/performance buy.
Then we should go on to do REAL tests that show how Linux smokes NT's butt when you throw in CGI support and a mix of other net services.
This seems like a very juicy market, at least for those who get in early with a good product. I know I'd pay for a decent linux portable. Something smaller than a laptop but bigger than a palmtop (don't like those cramped keyboards)... I'd shell out bucks in a heartbeat for something like that, especially if it had a builtin cellular modem and a long battery life.
OK, I find this bit particularly scary. Read this related artical in which NSI asserts the right to deny renewal of domains already registered. Here is a juicy bit regarding shit.com.
Huddleston said that domain name was registered before the 1996 installation of the automated registration system. She said the name will be denied when it comes up for renewal.
So just how do they justify refusal to renew a domain that they have ALREADY registered. As the owner of several domains, I don't like the idea that NSI can pull the rug out from under them just because they *don't like them*.
I've been a domain admin for a few years (my InterNIC handle is just TDP... no numbers). I'm really beginning to miss The Good Old Days when politicians didn't even know the Internet existed, spam email was virtually unheard of, and InterNIC was not run by a bunch of assholes.
Hmmm, sounds like an interesting book actually. Makes me want to write that BattleZone bot that I've been thinking about. Now where did I put that protocol analyser?:-)
I'm not sure I follow this logic. Jon strikes a chord, resulting in his articles having more comments than any other... and somehow that indicates they are not inappropriate for this forum?
By this same logic, the musician who sells the most CDs should be banned from the stores to make room for other artists. If Jon's articles were not appropriate, he would have had far fewer respondents, or at least a larger percentage of negative ones. If the servers are bogged down, it is a technical problem that needs a technical solution. Censoring a popular topic or author is NOT the answer.
And this latest article was (IMHO) the best written of the three. He have obviously had some time to mull things over.
I've used many diffrent OS's, 9x,NT, OS/2, many forms of unix. I would have to say the 9x interface is the nicest I have used.. I can change hardware from there, check problems, change monitor setting with ease...I'm not saying that it's the best os, i'm just
Actually, if you are a system administrators of large networks, you usually DON'T want the end user to go fiddling with hardware settings and such. Thats the whole point of centralizing the apps on the server... fewer things for the individual users to screw up. This does reduce support costs, though at the expense of less flexibility for users who really do need to customize their system.
Several weeks ago I heard a story on National Public Radio about a school in Salt Lake City that sent a boy home because he wore a t-shirt that said VEGAN on it. (for those of you who don't know, vegan is type of vegetarian lifestyle that avoids any use of animal products... in essance a *cruelty free* lifestyle) Their excuse, through some incomprehensible chain of logic, was that veganism was a sign of gang affiliation.
I kid you not!
I sent off a letter to the school administration in an attempt to educate them with the truth about veganism. Yesterday I finally got a response. It implied that the recent events in Colorado simply reinforce their need to engage in this sort of behavior.
It is this sort of idiocy that make school such a hell for intelligent young people.
To those of you who have expressed disdain for Linux newbies...
OK, this is a soapbox issue for me. People who essentially say, "Linux should stay the exclusive province of hackers and hobbyinst... keep the clueless newbies away!"... you are being just plain selfish. EVERY computer user should have a bulletproof operating to run their applications on, not just the hackers. When someone in my family has a problem with their computer because Windows ate its own head, *I* am the one who gets the call. Just last week I had to reinstall Windows on my sister's computer because they installed an educational program and it corrupted something in the OS. I have NEVER had that problem with Linux, even installing alpha software. Add to that the ability to remotely admin their computer, and Linux is very attractive. Unfortunately, the educational software she wants for her children is not avalible on Linux. That is why I support the *mainstreaming* of Linux.
Thad
Linux: Because I love my family members, clueless newbies though they be.
And regardles of where you live, you can have a subscription delivered to your mailbox. At $50 a year it isn't bad, and you don't have to go out of your way to grab one.
True, though it is nice having free copies of it available all over the city. Useful for those times when you are waiting to meet a friend at a bar and they are late showing up. It is usually available right next to the Shepherd Express, another free (but more serious) newspaper. Great publications, especially compared the *major* paper in the area... which you have to pay for even though it sucks more than a whitehouse intern.
For those of you who are not lucky enough to live in a city that distributes the actual paper Onion, all I have to say is... NEENER NEENER NEENER. >:) As usual another hilarious piece. Hey, remember the "Microsoft Patents Ones, Zeros" issue? I had that one hung up at work, and a coworker looked at it and said "can they actually DO that?" First encounters with The Onion are always fun to observe. I know it is distributed in Madison, Milwaukee, and Chicago. Anywhere else?
BTW, the suspended linux server was cool. I've done something similar but it was fastened to the underside of my loft... and I've always *wanted* to make a bar out of a VAX.:-)
I'd like to know which spoken words can kill. I'm not a fan of guns, but if I can pull the same level of permanent violence off with language, fill me in! I suppose I could find a list of those words on this here internet thing somewhere, huh?
How about the words "Round up and execute all of the troublemakers." Of course you have to be someone in political power for these words to be effective, and it helps if the populace is not armed.
OK, as many people have suggested, this could be combined with some sort of small form factor computer to make your own portable MP3 player, ala Rio. I personally think this would be cool to make your own boom-box form factor player that actually contains a decent size hard drive for hundreds of hours of music. Heck, I might just tackle such a project... Of course that might delay my solar powered robotic lawn mower. Oh well.:-)
is this really such a great idea? i mean, linux, no matter how much i like it isn't as easy to use or maintain as windows, i just don't have the experience yet... how are a bunch of schoolkids supposed to use it? i just don't think its ready for the masses yet.
Once it is installed and properly configured, Linux can be just as easy or even easier to use than windows. Also, have you checked out the new Caldera install? I've heard it kicks Window's butt in the ease of use catagory.
Yes, they had this technology here back in 1992. I left my cable box unplugged for a while, and the cable company actually CALLED ME UP and asked what was wrong. The system needed to send a "bullet" (their word) down the line to adjust the scrambling key, and my box had not responded to the key update in way too long. The lady on the phone then admitted (though she said she was not supposed to) that their system could tell what channel you were watching and, if you ran your tv set power through the cable box, when the tv was on. I half expected her to finish by being critical of what I was wearing at the moment. Creepy!
I find your reasoning in the article "Free Software. Is it Worth the Cost?" rather strange. If creating free software is somehow immoral because it denies paid programmers the chance to make money with their product... how can you justify Microsoft dumping Internet Explorer on the market. By your own argument, this is vastly unfair and anticompetitive to Netscape. Seems rather hypocritical to me.
Slashdot Mirror
And last I checked they also now require that you be dual homed to the backbone (i.e. a major player). I'm glad I snapped up my /22 when I did. :-)
Thad
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Thad
Restriciting export of crypto is POINTLESS. The laws are left over from the days when the *algorithm itself* was an important secret that needed to be protected. Now days the algorithms are all public (and well known all over the world) and the encryption key is really the important part. Restricting crypto export accomplishes nothing but harm to the American software industry.
I've been through the process of getting export approval for an encryption capable web server. It was a time consuming pain in the butt, and in the end we still lost sales because we couldn't ship the 128 bit version. The whole things was particularly annoying because we had to get a new license every time we released a new version of the software. Our product did the same SSL encryption everyone else did. It is a waste of taxpayer money when the government takes the time to individually license every single version of every single product that uses the same friggen algorithm! I almost wonder if the only reason we still have these pointless laws is because a bunch of useless buraeucrats are just trying to hang on to their pointless regulatory jobs.
Thad
Of course there is any easy way for that to happen. Linus could just start acting like a jerk. But somehow I don't really expect that to happen. It is no accident that the "personality cult" exists... Linus has the just right mix of humility, likeability, and brashness to result in this sort of thing, intential or not. Linux would not have been nearly as popular as quickly if Linus had been otherwise.
I hold up Bill Jolitz as the counter-example. 386bsd was a hit when he first released it, but (IMHO) his attitude and treatment of fellow developers drove people away from the project and eventually caused it to split into FreeBSD, NetBSD, etc. Linus has done much to hold the Linux movement together. In that respect, the "cult" is a Good Thing.
Thad
Linux, on the other hand, keeps more of its services in user space. This means it may suffer a little in this type of benchmark but it makes Linux an all around better application server. We are talking apples and oranges here.
To *win* Mindraft 3 we don't need to beat NT totally, just come close (which should be possible on a properly configured Linux box). This will show that the original test was a crock, and that Linux is still a much better price/performance buy.
Then we should go on to do REAL tests that show how Linux smokes NT's butt when you throw in CGI support and a mix of other net services.
Thad
Thad
Huddleston said that domain name was registered before the 1996 installation of the automated registration system. She said the name will be denied when it comes up for renewal.
So just how do they justify refusal to renew a domain that they have ALREADY registered. As the owner of several domains, I don't like the idea that NSI can pull the rug out from under them just because they *don't like them*.
I've been a domain admin for a few years (my InterNIC handle is just TDP... no numbers). I'm really beginning to miss The Good Old Days when politicians didn't even know the Internet existed, spam email was virtually unheard of, and InterNIC was not run by a bunch of assholes.
Thad
Thad
By this same logic, the musician who sells the most CDs should be banned from the stores to make room for other artists. If Jon's articles were not appropriate, he would have had far fewer respondents, or at least a larger percentage of negative ones. If the servers are bogged down, it is a technical problem that needs a technical solution. Censoring a popular topic or author is NOT the answer.
And this latest article was (IMHO) the best written of the three. He have obviously had some time to mull things over.
Keep up the good work Jon.
Thad
Actually, if you are a system administrators of large networks, you usually DON'T want the end user to go fiddling with hardware settings and such. Thats the whole point of centralizing the apps on the server... fewer things for the individual users to screw up. This does reduce support costs, though at the expense of less flexibility for users who really do need to customize their system.
Thad
The standard on *nix boxes is the .html extension. Using .htm means it is probably (though not certainly) a MS box.
Thad
I kid you not!
I sent off a letter to the school administration in an attempt to educate them with the truth about veganism. Yesterday I finally got a response. It implied that the recent events in Colorado simply reinforce their need to engage in this sort of behavior.
It is this sort of idiocy that make school such a hell for intelligent young people.
Thad
OK, this is a soapbox issue for me. People who essentially say, "Linux should stay the exclusive province of hackers and hobbyinst... keep the clueless newbies away!"... you are being just plain selfish. EVERY computer user should have a bulletproof operating to run their applications on, not just the hackers. When someone in my family has a problem with their computer because Windows ate its own head, *I* am the one who gets the call. Just last week I had to reinstall Windows on my sister's computer because they installed an educational program and it corrupted something in the OS. I have NEVER had that problem with Linux, even installing alpha software. Add to that the ability to remotely admin their computer, and Linux is very attractive. Unfortunately, the educational software she wants for her children is not avalible on Linux. That is why I support the *mainstreaming* of Linux.
Thad
Linux: Because I love my family members, clueless newbies though they be.
True, though it is nice having free copies of it available all over the city. Useful for those times when you are waiting to meet a friend at a bar and they are late showing up. It is usually available right next to the Shepherd Express, another free (but more serious) newspaper. Great publications, especially compared the *major* paper in the area... which you have to pay for even though it sucks more than a whitehouse intern.
Thad
BTW, the suspended linux server was cool. I've done something similar but it was fastened to the underside of my loft... and I've always *wanted* to make a bar out of a VAX. :-)
Thad
How about the words "Round up and execute all of the troublemakers." Of course you have to be someone in political power for these words to be effective, and it helps if the populace is not armed.
Thad
Thad
Once it is installed and properly configured, Linux can be just as easy or even easier to use than windows. Also, have you checked out the new Caldera install? I've heard it kicks Window's butt in the ease of use catagory.
Thad
Thad
I find your reasoning in the article "Free Software. Is it Worth the Cost?" rather strange. If creating free software is somehow immoral because it denies paid programmers the chance to make money with their product... how can you justify Microsoft dumping Internet Explorer on the market. By your own argument, this is vastly unfair and anticompetitive to Netscape. Seems rather hypocritical to me.
Thad