He's right only if your Slashdot ID is 10000. Everybody else here isn't an "Open Source" slave. I use it, but it by no means has become my sole religion.
You don't know your Apples. The Lisa only saved the state of the desktop itself, i.e. the icons and folder windows. That's a far cry from saving exactly where I am in my word processor before I logged out, or any other program for that matter.
This reminds me surprisingly of the "frozen Furby dye" debacle a few years back.
But honestly, I've spent over $300 in Game Boy Advance merchandise in the past 2 weeks (one import, one US and 3 games). Do I really want to risk this?
The windowing system, which you can argue is integrally part of Windows, is what needs to be restarted. I have had to restart the X server a million times after making an update. See above.
Ever try to make a change to the X Windows system and not restart it? Same concept as the reboots for Windows. A majority of the time this is simply to restart the windowing system.
"Neither apt-get nor urpmi submit information to a third party (unless you count the hits that the file downloads cause -- but then both apt-get and urpmi download files from various mirrors. Windows Update, unless I am mistaken, all comes from Microsoft...)"
They make it a point to say "you are not sending any information to Microsoft" when you update (same as registering for Office, they only send the hardware hash). I'm assuming it would be illegal to say that and do otherwise.
"Yes, there's a lot of software that requires a reboot while using Linux distribution. I'll summarize it in three words: The Linux Kernel. That's right, the only reason you'd have to reboot your computer is to upgrade the kernel. Name another "reason", and I bet you can do that just fine in userland without rebooting."
Oftentimes the warnings for rebooting can go unheeded. Granted, many updates change elements of the windowing system. Linux users (myself included) can say we don't need reboots when changing console apps, but nearly every one of us have to restart the X server after an update. I think it's foolhardy to think otherwise.
"Windows Update tends to break things, and your box is sometimes rendered useless."
Another person mentioned this, but I'll throw my two cents in. Microsoft has never "broken" my box for a Windows Update. Changed my file associations around to Microsoft apps (that I chose to download), yes. Anything worse, no. Granted, installing Windows NT/2000/I'm assuming XP has the nasty habit of rewriting the Master Boot Record without asking, effectively rendering my Linux side "useless". But a boot floppy clears that up, and even though it is the worst offense MS has done to my box, it's not part of Windows Update.
Actually, it isn't too bad for what it does. The constant reboots are a pain, but the actual act of installing service packs is usually pretty painless. Now if only they can get it so you can order MS Word and download it through it for less money. Save me quite a bit of trouble.
Not quite. That merely saves the programs being run. It doesn't save the state they are in (in a game like Quake 3, for example, the exact moment the player left off) and it doesn't show the programs being listed on the logon screen so a user can decide if he or she wants to continue said programs, or merely start a new session. In a lot of ways it's quite innovative.
Same here. After installing Linux on a friend's computer, she was in awe of all the textual information on boot. Of course, she wanted a graphical login menu to show up in a few minutes (as most of us -- myself included -- do). I kind of like all the professional sounding terms that come up while you boot (although seeing a driver in 0.09 stage is a little frightening).
Hopefully it'll be optional, although I really doubt it wouldn't. That kind of thing needs to be at least a little understood (I wish there was a way to get some of the same information to show up when I boot Windows 2000. Good [expensive] OS, lousy under the hood documentation.)
"The smart Start menu (like in W2K and 98) is a pain".
Wrong Start menu. I'm not talking about the one that hides unused apps. I'm talking about the new one in XP that groups programs by their purpose instead of alphabetically. Click a digital photo and you get tabs for Adobe Photoshop, MS Picture Express, etc. Click a web page and you get tabs for IE (or Netscape, depending on your default browser), Word to edit it, and Notepad to do the same.
"Ehm, yes...but actually I would prefer that it would open Eudora, because that is what I use on my Windows machines. Does it do that, or do I have to hack the registry manually?"
Uh, no. You simply go into the Smart Tags options and change the default program opened to Eudora. (Simple, but still rather pointless).
I'm not a big fan of the stuff, but at least I know what I'm talking about before I attempt to put it down.:/
And noone should care, because they do absolutely NOTHING. I purchased Word XP for my family's main machine, and the number of improvements over the previous version are a joke. Task Panes are OK, but they're not nearly as intuitive as simply dragging the toolbars to where you'd like to use them. And Smart Tags are barely used. Click an email address, it opens Outlook. Click a regular address and you can get a map. Big freaking deal.
And don't tell me "well, they're going to add features that will make them evil". That's bull. The way I see it, Smart Tags are going to go the way of IE Internet Channels: used for approximately 5 minutes then removed completely.
There are new features in Windows XP that Linux/FreeBSD should probably borrow from. Saving the user's session *completely* (including what programs are open, and where they are in those programs) is a good idea. So is the smarter Start menu. Smart Tags though? Fttt. They'll be out of here.
Actually, I don't see what's the big deal. If you're going to "rate evil", Rambus is not nearly on the top of the list. Even in computers, it pales in comparison to some of the legal stuff MS, Apple and Intel have pulled. I guess I don't understand false liberalism.
You know what's going to be real scary? When they create an algorhythm/machine that takes paintings by original artists (perhaps still wet) and transcribes them to "Van Gogh" pictures. With the brush strokes and everything. The technology is certainly there on the processor side (getting a good painting machine might be difficult).
But can you imagine all sorts of artists being able to "Van Gogh-ize" their paintings? You thought creativity was being diminished in society before...
A bit offtopic, but I was always wondering, what happens if you release sourcecode into the wild without any license at all? I mean, just posting it on your website (without a GPL/insert your favorite license).
I've posted one thing with a GPL, a very simple encryption program, but I always wondered since I'm simply giving the source away, why I can't just leave the code completely open. Let's face it: a majority of people who use GPL'd code are going to treat it like it was code found on a website tutorial. And a majority of those people are never going to publish their changed code. I personally don't mind. (And if a major company decided to use my GPL'd code [I doubt it] would it really make a difference to me if they mentioned my name somewhere in the docs?)
Personally, since this is a hobby for most of us (barring the people from RedHat -- hi guys!) I don't see why we need to worry about licenses and such. If Microsoft uses my code I really don't care (although my 16-bit encryption program may be a little lame in the next version of Windows.;) ) To me, free code is just that: free. Without any extra licensing tags.
"Of course, most if not all of the free webmail services do add a line of spam to the top or bottom of all messages sent..."
And of course, if they didn't, services like Hotmail would go out of business. (beginning sarcasm) And we all want services like Hotmail to go out of business, right? (ending sarcasm)
I'm no biology/space major, but isn't it a bit presumptous to expect extraterristerial life to rely on photosynthesis, even within our own galaxy? Who says the rules that apply on Earth apply everywhere?
This nerd pretense always reminded me of a Seinfeld standup routine: "Ever notice that in the future, on all those Star Trek shows, we all wear the same clothing? At some point planet Earth must have said to itself 'OK people. We're going to be exploring new worlds, seeking out new galaxies. We want to look like a team, here.'"
But the overwhelming majority of techies are against globalization. I'm all for it. The "differences" that proportedly "support diversity" are also the things that start wars and drive us apart. If we can set trade accords for the entire planet, and remove the divisions of "countries", I'd be all for it. Star Trek clothing, people.
Like all Microsoft "innovations", this one will be vastly argued against and defeated by hordes of developers/techies, and Microsoft will eventually drop it (like the paperclip in office) or never include it (the subscription model in the current version of Office XP, which was argued about forever). I wouldn't worry.
I would be careful about using the word "we". I know I personally wear multiple hats (RedHat, Win2K, Mac OS X) because I like to explore all the options. "Free" software is nice idealistically, but I'm more concerned with the various UI's strengths and weaknesses (and yes, RedHat, Win2K and Mac OS X each have strengths and weaknesses the other two don't have).
I really don't know what the major issue is with the lighting "probblems" on the Game Boy Advance. I own two (one is an import, one is a recently released US version) and the screen is perfectly viewable -- provided you are under some sort of light (sun or normal bulb).
I notice that halogen lights are a little harder to see, but it's still managable. The whole reason for the lack of backlighting (as I'm sure many have known) is that it's a tremendous battery saver. Also, I'm sure it brings the price down.
Slashdot Mirror
He's right only if your Slashdot ID is 10000. Everybody else here isn't an "Open Source" slave. I use it, but it by no means has become my sole religion.
You don't know your Apples. The Lisa only saved the state of the desktop itself, i.e. the icons and folder windows. That's a far cry from saving exactly where I am in my word processor before I logged out, or any other program for that matter.
But honestly, I've spent over $300 in Game Boy Advance merchandise in the past 2 weeks (one import, one US and 3 games). Do I really want to risk this?
Duh. lol I insult Microsoft as much as the next guy, but I try to be a little more informed before I do.
The windowing system, which you can argue is integrally part of Windows, is what needs to be restarted. I have had to restart the X server a million times after making an update. See above.
As for me rebooting the X Windows system -- tons.
They make it a point to say "you are not sending any information to Microsoft" when you update (same as registering for Office, they only send the hardware hash). I'm assuming it would be illegal to say that and do otherwise.
"Yes, there's a lot of software that requires a reboot while using Linux distribution. I'll summarize it in three words: The Linux Kernel. That's right, the only reason you'd have to reboot your computer is to upgrade the kernel. Name another "reason", and I bet you can do that just fine in userland without rebooting."
Oftentimes the warnings for rebooting can go unheeded. Granted, many updates change elements of the windowing system. Linux users (myself included) can say we don't need reboots when changing console apps, but nearly every one of us have to restart the X server after an update. I think it's foolhardy to think otherwise.
"Windows Update tends to break things, and your box is sometimes rendered useless."
Another person mentioned this, but I'll throw my two cents in. Microsoft has never "broken" my box for a Windows Update. Changed my file associations around to Microsoft apps (that I chose to download), yes. Anything worse, no. Granted, installing Windows NT/2000/I'm assuming XP has the nasty habit of rewriting the Master Boot Record without asking, effectively rendering my Linux side "useless". But a boot floppy clears that up, and even though it is the worst offense MS has done to my box, it's not part of Windows Update.
Actually, it isn't too bad for what it does. The constant reboots are a pain, but the actual act of installing service packs is usually pretty painless. Now if only they can get it so you can order MS Word and download it through it for less money. Save me quite a bit of trouble.
Not quite. That merely saves the programs being run. It doesn't save the state they are in (in a game like Quake 3, for example, the exact moment the player left off) and it doesn't show the programs being listed on the logon screen so a user can decide if he or she wants to continue said programs, or merely start a new session. In a lot of ways it's quite innovative.
Hopefully it'll be optional, although I really doubt it wouldn't. That kind of thing needs to be at least a little understood (I wish there was a way to get some of the same information to show up when I boot Windows 2000. Good [expensive] OS, lousy under the hood documentation.)
Wrong Start menu. I'm not talking about the one that hides unused apps. I'm talking about the new one in XP that groups programs by their purpose instead of alphabetically. Click a digital photo and you get tabs for Adobe Photoshop, MS Picture Express, etc. Click a web page and you get tabs for IE (or Netscape, depending on your default browser), Word to edit it, and Notepad to do the same.
"Ehm, yes...but actually I would prefer that it would open Eudora, because that is what I use on my Windows machines. Does it do that, or do I have to hack the registry manually?"
Uh, no. You simply go into the Smart Tags options and change the default program opened to Eudora. (Simple, but still rather pointless).
I'm not a big fan of the stuff, but at least I know what I'm talking about before I attempt to put it down. :/
And noone should care, because they do absolutely NOTHING. I purchased Word XP for my family's main machine, and the number of improvements over the previous version are a joke. Task Panes are OK, but they're not nearly as intuitive as simply dragging the toolbars to where you'd like to use them. And Smart Tags are barely used. Click an email address, it opens Outlook. Click a regular address and you can get a map. Big freaking deal.
And don't tell me "well, they're going to add features that will make them evil". That's bull. The way I see it, Smart Tags are going to go the way of IE Internet Channels: used for approximately 5 minutes then removed completely.
There are new features in Windows XP that Linux/FreeBSD should probably borrow from. Saving the user's session *completely* (including what programs are open, and where they are in those programs) is a good idea. So is the smarter Start menu. Smart Tags though? Fttt. They'll be out of here.
Actually, I don't see what's the big deal. If you're going to "rate evil", Rambus is not nearly on the top of the list. Even in computers, it pales in comparison to some of the legal stuff MS, Apple and Intel have pulled. I guess I don't understand false liberalism.
It's rumored to be $500 million. I wouldn't doubt it.
Do you agree that the fundamental challenge against mass-marketing Linux is ignoring the command line?
But can you imagine all sorts of artists being able to "Van Gogh-ize" their paintings? You thought creativity was being diminished in society before...
I've posted one thing with a GPL, a very simple encryption program, but I always wondered since I'm simply giving the source away, why I can't just leave the code completely open. Let's face it: a majority of people who use GPL'd code are going to treat it like it was code found on a website tutorial. And a majority of those people are never going to publish their changed code. I personally don't mind. (And if a major company decided to use my GPL'd code [I doubt it] would it really make a difference to me if they mentioned my name somewhere in the docs?)
Personally, since this is a hobby for most of us (barring the people from RedHat -- hi guys!) I don't see why we need to worry about licenses and such. If Microsoft uses my code I really don't care (although my 16-bit encryption program may be a little lame in the next version of Windows. ;) ) To me, free code is just that: free. Without any extra licensing tags.
And of course, if they didn't, services like Hotmail would go out of business. (beginning sarcasm) And we all want services like Hotmail to go out of business, right? (ending sarcasm)
I'm no biology/space major, but isn't it a bit presumptous to expect extraterristerial life to rely on photosynthesis, even within our own galaxy? Who says the rules that apply on Earth apply everywhere?
But the overwhelming majority of techies are against globalization. I'm all for it. The "differences" that proportedly "support diversity" are also the things that start wars and drive us apart. If we can set trade accords for the entire planet, and remove the divisions of "countries", I'd be all for it. Star Trek clothing, people.
Or should I say "ni". :)
Like all Microsoft "innovations", this one will be vastly argued against and defeated by hordes of developers/techies, and Microsoft will eventually drop it (like the paperclip in office) or never include it (the subscription model in the current version of Office XP, which was argued about forever). I wouldn't worry.
I would be careful about using the word "we". I know I personally wear multiple hats (RedHat, Win2K, Mac OS X) because I like to explore all the options. "Free" software is nice idealistically, but I'm more concerned with the various UI's strengths and weaknesses (and yes, RedHat, Win2K and Mac OS X each have strengths and weaknesses the other two don't have).
Simple comment: I don't think the word "attack" is appropriate. It sounds almost conspiracy-theorish.
I notice that halogen lights are a little harder to see, but it's still managable. The whole reason for the lack of backlighting (as I'm sure many have known) is that it's a tremendous battery saver. Also, I'm sure it brings the price down.