Brand image is a serious matter. Just talk to any marketing dudes and they'll tell you how far it goes in making a thing credible.
I know Linux isn't a 'brand' as such, but the same argument applies IMO.
I can't tell you how embarrasing it is trying to pitch a Linux solution to a roomfull of IT managers whith that damn stupid penguin all over everything.
Beasty is cooler, but still not very cool.
Re:Brits and failure to invest...
on
The Difference Engine
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· Score: 2, Interesting
I think it's more the financial institutions the govt.
Venture capital in the UK has always been more risk averse that in the US, especially when it comes to anything remotely tech that they can't quite grasp.
The VCs started to come out of their shells a little during the.com feeding frenzy, but then look what happened - fingers burned by boo.com etc.
Trying to get VC funding for any kind of tech-based vernture in the UK is almost impossible at the moment.
how about selling groceries over the internet. Who wouldn't pay more just for the privilege of buying food online?
Actually, that's what I do here (in the UK), it costs me 5 UKP for next-day delivery. Much better than having to drive to the store and push a shopping cart around for an hour.
I know this sounds seriously wierd, but it's relatively easy to take apart a laptop shell without damaging it by easing your fingernails into the joins between the mouldings and prying them apart, popping in those little moulded snap locks as you work around the case. Using screwdrivers etc. to lever apart the case will almost certainly scratch, deform and generally mess up the mouldings.
If you don't have custom tooling, a strong set of fingernails can often do the job safely, and If you're not too much of a geek, you can even clean under them!
there really aren't any laptops out there that really meet the needs of a Linux user
In what way? I have run Linux (various distros) on a variety of laptops ranging from an old toshiba T3400 to various Tecra's and Thinkpads without too many problems.
Anyhow, building your own laptop would be quite a challenge. You don't have a choice of nice, standard-sized mobos that fit nice standard enclosures. Laptop parts (mobos, cases, screens) are made to fit by the manufacturer, there ain't much you can change except for the HDD.
And you don't want PCMCIA (PC-CARD), well bang goes most of your hardware customisation options right there!
Its true that some IT folks need to get educated, but some folks around here need to get a little more objective if they want to be taken seriously by corporate IT.
Slashdot Mirror
PS2 is evil, your only helping Sony... don't buy it...
Are there any wholesome consoles out there?
Anyway, maybe I meant 'Al Gore-isms'. Didn't he invent compilers?
Well, that's not too difficult. Compilers are just a bunch of algorythms.
Question is - are you smarter than the person that wrote the compiler?
I know Linux isn't a 'brand' as such, but the same argument applies IMO.
I can't tell you how embarrasing it is trying to pitch a Linux solution to a roomfull of IT managers whith that damn stupid penguin all over everything.
Beasty is cooler, but still not very cool.
Venture capital in the UK has always been more risk averse that in the US, especially when it comes to anything remotely tech that they can't quite grasp.
The VCs started to come out of their shells a little during the .com feeding frenzy, but then look what happened - fingers burned by boo.com etc.
Trying to get VC funding for any kind of tech-based vernture in the UK is almost impossible at the moment.
This seems to fit the bill.
Actually, that's what I do here (in the UK), it costs me 5 UKP for next-day delivery. Much better than having to drive to the store and push a shopping cart around for an hour.
Sadly, I don't have a t-series :(
But obviously built-in NIC is the way to go.
Just out of interest, what kind of issues?
Most of my own issues are video/audio related.
Yes, sorry, I did miss the point about the NIC.
But then what alternatives are there? Was he suggesting a built-in/mobo NIC? I don't know of any.
I know pccard NICs with flimsy cables are a pain sometimes but at least they are (fairly) cheap and easily upgradeable.
I know this sounds seriously wierd, but it's relatively easy to take apart a laptop shell without damaging it by easing your fingernails into the joins between the mouldings and prying them apart, popping in those little moulded snap locks as you work around the case. Using screwdrivers etc. to lever apart the case will almost certainly scratch, deform and generally mess up the mouldings.
If you don't have custom tooling, a strong set of fingernails can often do the job safely, and If you're not too much of a geek, you can even clean under them!
In what way? I have run Linux (various distros) on a variety of laptops ranging from an old toshiba T3400 to various Tecra's and Thinkpads without too many problems.
Anyhow, building your own laptop would be quite a challenge. You don't have a choice of nice, standard-sized mobos that fit nice standard enclosures. Laptop parts (mobos, cases, screens) are made to fit by the manufacturer, there ain't much you can change except for the HDD.
And you don't want PCMCIA (PC-CARD), well bang goes most of your hardware customisation options right there!
I have read that once a shop switches to a MS solution, their data is owned from that point on by MS
.
So what the hell are you reading?
Of course MS don't own your data, you dimwit!
As for mom & pop businesses running *IX, well it just doesn't work out IMO. Unless of course Mom & Pop have local expert on hand - i.e. you.
I have convinced my family's company that we should be moving towards chucking WIndows, and we are slowly moving towards a MS-free office
Hmm - Good luck!
The Register has a piece on the patents issue here...
Eurolinux goes ballistic over Euro patent 'coup'
CERT® Advisory CA-2001-30 Multiple Vulnerabilities in lpd (dated 05-Nov-2001)
Its true that some IT folks need to get educated, but some folks around here need to get a little more objective if they want to be taken seriously by corporate IT.