As many people have said before, slashdot has a lot of the feel of a bbs. It's just a very, very big bbs. It has a lot of the functions of bbs'. There's slashnet (the irc servers). So - what would slahsdot need to become a complete bbs-like environment? Well, a way to see who else is online. Perhaps jabber? Games. Slashwars? Slashmail? Well, that could be the jabber messages i suppose.
I think that it's important to have a standard install interface for those that want it. A uniform way to do things will make one of the most difficult processes on linux, installing, a bit more intuitive. Sure, there's rpms, debs, glint, apt, kpackage, etc. However, none of them are as easy as they could be. Look at the mac and windows: click-click. They don't require the user to know what the packaging format is, or what programs are used to install them. We need fire and forget installs. Execute the package, and start the program. It doesn't matter what format it uses, rpm's deb's slp's or tgz's. Does it want to compile on its own? No problem, pop up a dialog with a progress bar.
I think Loki could well have a winner. An installer targeted towards the game-player crowd could well be what we need. I'd love to hear more about it, perhaps see some screenshots.
My domain registration was very easy. Just use their web-form, reply to their confirmation email... wait - and you've got a domain. Their web based tools to handle DNS have come in very handy. They're clear, easy-to-use... I can't think of any reason why not to recomment these guys.
I fully agree that the most important thing is to keep things simple. Ofter writing documentation or rewriting a garbled paragraph is done on a whim. Something which allowed the documents to be edited in place when you're reading them would probably increase the contributions, and make the docs easier to read. For example - using something like amaya to edit an html version in place, or having a system like the php pages, where notes can be submitted via the webpage. All is just one click away. There are fo course potential abuses of this system, but I'm fairly confident that it wouldn't be too much of a problem.
By the time I get this submitted, there will porobably be 1k posts. However, as a Physics student I had to say something, even if it's only a remote possibility that anyone will read it.
Attacking the educational system n this way is a very cold, calculated attempt to influence the next generation. It is a classic example of what to do in order to control and opress a population. (look at Afghanistan - women are denied access to education altogeather - therefore they're not a political "threat")
I think that there's an experimental IPv6 network called the 6-bone. It's used to test IPv6 in a real-world situation, and get any glitches out before wide-scale adoption. I don't know how open it is. it might be interesting to find out - since Linux already has support. IPv6 should be very easy to use for new users since the specification includes autoconfiguration. It also includes end-to end encryption, and flow labelling.
If the ASCAP can (hypothetically so far) legally force webmasters to pay fees for indicating where to find content, this can have much wider repercussions. After all - slashdot also indicates where to find content - much of it provided my reuters, zdnet, cnn, bcc - and other companies.
It raises questions about portal sites, search engines and homepages. Search engines can spew out links to musioc that doesn't take you off the search engine's site. It woudl seem that they'd be liable for fees to the ASCAP.
It also brings up questions about where end-users really are. is a site such as slashdot an end user as well as a provider?
While this is certainly a while off - I can just imagine that PDA's cold become a lot more useful. Imagine folding out the screen on your pda to A4 size. Slashdot on a page - with updates. A constant source of news. Being able to take notes in the margin of online manuals while commuting.
I must admit that when I read the headline - I thought it was a cruel hoax. When it sank in that this was true - I got worried. However - after reading your explanation - I just feel that you've taken the nessecary steps to help slashdot and yourselves. You deserve all that's coming to you, especially some rest. Slashdot needs YOU. You have to do what is best for you, in order to do what is best for slashdot. This is an important fork in the road, I wish you good luck.
I cant' see how McKubre could expect a technical physics talk to be teeming with journalists? Apart from that - from what little the article describes about his findings - they don't seem to be anything of consequence. In physics - it's often not the measurments that are important - they are just a step towards an understanding of the phenomenon. While he may have measurements, unless they are reproducable - they can't even further ou runderstanding of what's going on.
Slashdot Mirror
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I think that it's important to have a standard install interface for those that want it. A uniform way to do things will make one of the most difficult processes on linux, installing, a bit more intuitive.
Sure, there's rpms, debs, glint, apt, kpackage, etc. However, none of them are as easy as they could be. Look at the mac and windows: click-click. They don't require the user to know what the packaging format is, or what programs are used to install them.
We need fire and forget installs. Execute the package, and start the program. It doesn't matter what format it uses, rpm's deb's slp's or tgz's. Does it want to compile on its own? No problem, pop up a dialog with a progress bar.
I think Loki could well have a winner. An installer targeted towards the game-player crowd could well be what we need.
I'd love to hear more about it, perhaps see some screenshots.
My domain registration was very easy. Just use their web-form, reply to their confirmation email... wait - and you've got a domain. Their web based tools to handle DNS have come in very handy. They're clear, easy-to-use... I can't think of any reason why not to recomment these guys.
While we are on the subject of OS's and IRC servers; what does slashnet run on?
I fully agree that the most important thing is to keep things simple. Ofter writing documentation or rewriting a garbled paragraph is done on a whim. Something which allowed the documents to be edited in place when you're reading them would probably increase the contributions, and make the docs easier to read.
For example - using something like amaya to edit an html version in place, or having a system like the php pages, where notes can be submitted via the webpage. All is just one click away.
There are fo course potential abuses of this system, but I'm fairly confident that it wouldn't be too much of a problem.
Rikard
The apache website does have news about 1.3.9 here. Rikard
By the time I get this submitted, there will porobably be 1k posts. However, as a Physics student I had to say something, even if it's only a remote possibility that anyone will read it.
Attacking the educational system n this way is a very cold, calculated attempt to influence the next generation. It is a classic example of what to do in order to control and opress a population. (look at Afghanistan - women are denied access to education altogeather - therefore they're not a political "threat")
More info at http://www.6bone.net/
That page is supposedly also assessible via IPv6...
There's a HOWTO at http://www.bieringer.de/linux/IPv6/
Rikard
I think that there's an experimental IPv6 network called the 6-bone. It's used to test IPv6 in a real-world situation, and get any glitches out before wide-scale adoption.
I don't know how open it is. it might be interesting to find out - since Linux already has support.
IPv6 should be very easy to use for new users since the specification includes autoconfiguration.
It also includes end-to end encryption, and flow labelling.
Rikard
If the ASCAP can (hypothetically so far) legally force webmasters to pay fees for indicating where to find content, this can have much wider repercussions. After all - slashdot also indicates where to find content - much of it provided my reuters, zdnet, cnn, bcc - and other companies.
It raises questions about portal sites, search engines and homepages. Search engines can spew out links to musioc that doesn't take you off the search engine's site. It woudl seem that they'd be liable for fees to the ASCAP.
It also brings up questions about where end-users really are. is a site such as slashdot an end user as well as a provider?
Rikard
While this is certainly a while off - I can just imagine that PDA's cold become a lot more useful. Imagine folding out the screen on your pda to A4 size. Slashdot on a page - with updates. A constant source of news. Being able to take notes in the margin of online manuals while commuting.
Rikard
I must admit that when I read the headline - I thought it was a cruel hoax. When it sank in that this was true - I got worried. However - after reading your explanation - I just feel that you've taken the nessecary steps to help slashdot and yourselves. You deserve all that's coming to you, especially some rest.
Slashdot needs YOU. You have to do what is best for you, in order to do what is best for slashdot. This is an important fork in the road, I wish you good luck.
I cant' see how McKubre could expect a technical physics talk to be teeming with journalists?
Apart from that - from what little the article describes about his findings - they don't seem to be anything of consequence. In physics - it's often not the measurments that are important - they are just a step towards an understanding of the phenomenon. While he may have measurements, unless they are reproducable - they can't even further ou runderstanding of what's going on.
This is something I'd like in a portable MP3 player. (Assuming of course that the shocks and vibrations won't damage it).