No they are selling these PCs to large companies that take the unit out of the box and instantly ghost it with their standard image, which may be Linux, or a site licenced version of Windows.
Harry Homeowner with his bootleg copy of Windows XP cannot purchase this PC. Unless he wants to purchase at least 50 at once.
Dell has been offering this service for years - way back in 1998 in fact.
This "announcement" is a marketing stunt masquerading as a news story.
The company will not promote the new models heavily, let alone make them easy to purchase. Optiplex n-Series desktops will be available only to customers who buy the desktops in large numbers through Dell's Custom Factory Installation program. Individuals will be able to purchase n-Series Precision workstations, but not Optiplex PCs, via Dell's Web site. The Custom Factory Installation Program allows customers to specify an operating system or have Dell install a customized bundle of software, such as Windows or Red Hat
If you buy enough boxes from Dell, they'll put any O/S you ask for on it, Linux has been available for quite some time to big customers.
This "new" PC system, is again only available to big buyers, you won't be able to order single Optiplexes sans Windows from their website.
Basically this is an old news rehashed as new news marketing droid PR stunt.
If you want a PC without Windows on it, your best bet is still Walmart.
Bear in mind not all games are based on US servers, and are not accountable to US class action suits. (If you don't want to be a helper, don't volunteer!)
Once the game is developed 5 million is a lot per month.
Development costs are covered by the sale of the game+manual+first month subscription package, day to day running costs (coders doing bug fixes, server system admins) are pretty negligable, considering companies like Blizzard and the EA can afford to do it for their customers for free, and newbie helpers/game testers/Wizards/Gods whatever, tend to be players prepared to do the work for free.
So all those Evercrack subs are sheer monthly profit, a nice little earner, even for a megacorp like Sony.
As for Starwars or whatever the MMORPG of the month is stealing custom, well that will happen, but a lot of their customers will be ex Evercrack addicts, looking for a new fix. There's plenty of burnt out players who while never wanting to touch Everquest again, won't be adverse to trying a new game out.
Remember kids, Choose life, or rather than MMORPGS choose Heroin, or crack cocaine, at least those drugs get you out of the house, meeting people now and again.
Mail bombing politicians does not work. Especially 71 year old politicians "Who don't know how to turn on a computer".
Old fashioned letters work, as do faxes, there is something about the tangible quality of paper that sends the message home, especially when you see a large pile of it, all devoted to telling you politely you are wrong.
Here in the UK, there is an easy to use system with no agenda (i.e. you can use the site to fax your MP about anything) that allows you to send a fax to the politician quickly and easily.
One assumes there is a similar site for Senators - I found one here but they seem to want you to only use the site if you share their agenda.
No doubt there are others, if not, why not ? There's enough talent on/. to set up and run such a site.
Always be polite and offer a well argued case. If all you want to write is You suck, you a55h01e, i hope u r forced to suck satan's cock forever MOFO then spend the time downloading some more p0rn instead. Every message like that, negates 20 intelligent letters.
You can make a difference - The UK government recently backed down over the extension to the RIP act partly due to the sheer volume of mail they received from the public making it clear they were not going to tolerate such infringement of privacy.
I'm currently having driver problems with a 990cxi HP printer.
Following a long, detailed explanation of the problem I got a reply from their tech support team (the address was something like 990_support@hp.com ) which was a cut and pasted FAQ, with the message "Please reply to this email if you continue to have problems".
Needless to say if you try replying, the email gets bounced...
An attitude like that guarantees I'll never buy HP again.
I think having an enforced standard for the Gnutella protocol is the the sensible way to go. If you're going to design a protocol, do it properly and completely, which includes specifying exactly and clearly what a supernode is and how it should behave. If you don't clearly define every aspect of the protocol then it is going to break down as people interpret it in different ways.
A protocol has to be a set of rules or it isn't a protocol by definition.
The London Underground had antenna on every station.
This made Rabbit the only network that could make calls while on the tube.
Rabbit had excellent reception in areas where physical topography blocked normal transmitters - too many tall buildings blocking the signal for example.
"Unrue said it is often used by enterprises for checking out their competitor's web sites. He cited instances where companies have programmed their sites to return false information, inflated prices or even job offers if a page is requested from an address in their competitor's IP range."
ftp 207.46.134.30
If (IP=64.28.67.150 ) echo 'Welcome ! Unfortunately our free update service is no longer available. Please have several credit cards handy'
It's why they're popular. I surf with Opera and have Pop ups disabled, however some sites need pop-ups enabling for legitimate reasons - little floating help boxes and so on. Without the site warning you to enable popups, you may unwittingly miss out on some useful functionality of the site.
That's my problem with pop-ups - a legitimate useful JavaScript tool has been ruined by marketeers, watch as they systematically destroy the rest of the language.
So instead of the enemy of the week (OBL/Saddam/the French) using human shields to protect their super secret missile bases, they just cover them in mirrors directed at the local orphanage. Fire the laser, blind the kids.
A few trillion dollars wasted because some clown thinks ray guns are a neat idea. What's next Boeing announce development of Photon Torpedoes ?
It isn't clear if Microsoft is talking about something happening beyond their control, or if they're boasting about
Surely the " free exchange of digital information that has defined the personal computer industry" is exactly what the internet is supposed to be ?
It's quite clear that Gate's uberplan is to lock people into.NET, creating a proprietary internet , a plan started with IE and continued with Passport.
If he's talking about Open Source, he's clearly in FUD mode. Perhaps running scared from the latest UK Government proposals to look at Open Source software in a more postive light.
I don't think even M$ believes that Linux will lose corporate support.
"Windows is a lot more expensive to run than Linux, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has finally confessed. Despite Redmond's heroic efforts to defeat common knowledge with elaborately-rigged total cost of ownership 'studies', innuendo, FUD and outright distortions, the rhetorical power of common experience has become too powerful, even for a marketing behemoth like MS. "
Well if you want consumer choice, then offer all the varying versions on the shelves at varying prices, but released on the same day.
It's a con, not a consumer choice if each slightly different release is launched on a different timescale.
It's funny, but post an RIAA story and/. is filled with posters screaming in outrage at the latest attempt to get people to pay for the same copyrighted material over and over and over again.
Yet any announcement for a limited edition Star Wars or LOTR DVD and/. is filled with good little Joe Sixpacks, sucking up the marketing nonsense with idiotic gleams in their eyes.
You keep paying more than once for the same copyrighted material, albeit in a slightly different form, and you're just encouraging the move to the RIAA's ultimate dream, pay to play each time you watch your own CD/DVD's...
Just be careful to buy the November 12 release and not the august release if you want the extra mojo. I'll be waiting.
So they sell it in August, then sell it to the same people again with bonus footage released just in time for Christmas....
What's the betting they release it again for Easter with a bonus "making of.." DVD and maybe even a couple of postcards thrown in absolutely free!!
Personally I'm going to wait for the super limited edition triple film box set with 12 postcards, limited edition poster personally signed using a scanned copy of Peter Jackson's secretary's signature, and 14 hours of previously unseen footage.
Great film, but is this level of marketing really necessary ?
I used to live there and found no problems surfing any pages I wanted.
If they clamp down on what you can and can't view, they'll simply do what their neighbours in Laos do - dial an ISP in Thailand.
"Anybody bashing the U.S. for not adopting the ludicrous Kyoto accords had better be from Bulgaria. If you're from anywhere else, answer this: If Kyoto is such a good idea, why hasn't your country adopted it? "
The EU has.
China may as well have, seeing as they are experiencing sustainable economic growth while reducing emissions
A study by scientists at the Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory in California concludes that China's C02 emissions are already 400 to 900 million tonnes below what was expected in 2000 which is approximately equivalent to all C02 emissions from Canada, at the low end of the range, or Germany, at the high end of the estimate. Press Release
"China has, despite economic growth estimated at 36%, managed to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 17% since 1996/97" United Nations
Bit embarrassing that the US could take some lessons from China in how to achieve massive economic growth, while not screwing the planet, don't you think ?
Slashdot Mirror
No they are selling these PCs to large companies that take the unit out of the box and instantly ghost it with their standard image, which may be Linux, or a site licenced version of Windows.
Harry Homeowner with his bootleg copy of Windows XP cannot purchase this PC. Unless he wants to purchase at least 50 at once.
Dell has been offering this service for years - way back in 1998 in fact.
This "announcement" is a marketing stunt masquerading as a news story.
This "new" PC system, is again only available to big buyers, you won't be able to order single Optiplexes sans Windows from their website.
Basically this is an old news rehashed as new news marketing droid PR stunt.
If you want a PC without Windows on it, your best bet is still Walmart.
Volunteers are still being used on Anarchy Online's game .
Bear in mind not all games are based on US servers, and are not accountable to US class action suits. (If you don't want to be a helper, don't volunteer!)
Once the game is developed 5 million is a lot per month.
Development costs are covered by the sale of the game+manual+first month subscription package, day to day running costs (coders doing bug fixes, server system admins) are pretty negligable, considering companies like Blizzard and the EA can afford to do it for their customers for free, and newbie helpers/game testers/Wizards/Gods whatever, tend to be players prepared to do the work for free.
So all those Evercrack subs are sheer monthly profit, a nice little earner, even for a megacorp like Sony.
As for Starwars or whatever the MMORPG of the month is stealing custom, well that will happen, but a lot of their customers will be ex Evercrack addicts, looking for a new fix. There's plenty of burnt out players who while never wanting to touch Everquest again, won't be adverse to trying a new game out.
Remember kids, Choose life, or rather than MMORPGS choose Heroin, or crack cocaine, at least those drugs get you out of the house, meeting people now and again.
Mail bombing politicians does not work. Especially 71 year old politicians "Who don't know how to turn on a computer".
/. to set up and run such a site.
/. poster contacted the senate before the vote, it would make a difference. Senators want votes even more than they want bribes.
Old fashioned letters work, as do faxes, there is something about the tangible quality of paper that sends the message home, especially when you see a large pile of it, all devoted to telling you politely you are wrong.
Here in the UK, there is an easy to use system with no agenda (i.e. you can use the site to fax your MP about anything) that allows you to send a fax to the politician quickly and easily.
UK only
One assumes there is a similar site for Senators - I found one here but they seem to want you to only use the site if you share their agenda.
No doubt there are others, if not, why not ? There's enough talent on
Always be polite and offer a well argued case. If all you want to write is You suck, you a55h01e, i hope u r forced to suck satan's cock forever MOFO then spend the time downloading some more p0rn instead. Every message like that, negates 20 intelligent letters.
You can make a difference - The UK government recently backed down over the extension to the RIP act partly due to the sheer volume of mail they received from the public making it clear they were not going to tolerate such infringement of privacy.
Geeks force government climbdown
If every US
I'm currently having driver problems with a 990cxi HP printer.
Following a long, detailed explanation of the problem I got a reply from their tech support team (the address was something like 990_support@hp.com ) which was a cut and pasted FAQ, with the message "Please reply to this email if you continue to have problems".
Needless to say if you try replying, the email gets bounced...
An attitude like that guarantees I'll never buy HP again.
The record industry is already doing this in order to pollute P2P networks.
All is does is piss off dial up users, it doesn't stop them, they just keep searching.
Salon's article on the practice
I think having an enforced standard for the Gnutella protocol is the the sensible way to go. If you're going to design a protocol, do it properly and completely, which includes specifying exactly and clearly what a supernode is and how it should behave. If you don't clearly define every aspect of the protocol then it is going to break down as people interpret it in different ways.
A protocol has to be a set of rules or it isn't a protocol by definition.
The London Underground had antenna on every station.
This made Rabbit the only network that could make calls while on the tube.
Rabbit had excellent reception in areas where physical topography blocked normal transmitters - too many tall buildings blocking the signal for example.
ftp 207.46.134.30
If (IP=64.28.67.150 ) echo 'Welcome ! Unfortunately our free update service is no longer available. Please have several credit cards handy'
Nonsense. Pop up Ads have a massive click through rate - far higher than any banner ad.
Marketing droids love Pop Ups
It's why they're popular.
I surf with Opera and have Pop ups disabled, however some sites need pop-ups enabling for legitimate reasons - little floating help boxes and so on. Without the site warning you to enable popups, you may unwittingly miss out on some useful functionality of the site.
That's my problem with pop-ups - a legitimate useful JavaScript tool has been ruined by marketeers, watch as they systematically destroy the rest of the language.
Onmouseover play_ad_jingle, OnMouseOut display_dont_leave_yet_window etc etc....
So instead of the enemy of the week (OBL/Saddam/the French) using human shields to protect their super secret missile bases, they just cover them in mirrors directed at the local orphanage. Fire the laser, blind the kids.
A few trillion dollars wasted because some clown thinks ray guns are a neat idea. What's next Boeing announce development of Photon Torpedoes ?
Surely the " free exchange of digital information that has defined the personal computer industry" is exactly what the internet is supposed to be ?
It's quite clear that Gate's uberplan is to lock people into
If he's talking about Open Source, he's clearly in FUD mode. Perhaps running scared from the latest UK Government proposals to look at Open Source software in a more postive light.
Ballmer faces reality
Well if you want consumer choice, then offer all the varying versions on the shelves at varying prices, but released on the same day.
/. is filled with posters screaming in outrage at the latest attempt to get people to pay for the same copyrighted material over and over and over again.
/. is filled with good little Joe Sixpacks, sucking up the marketing nonsense with idiotic gleams in their eyes.
It's a con, not a consumer choice if each slightly different release is launched on a different timescale.
It's funny, but post an RIAA story and
Yet any announcement for a limited edition Star Wars or LOTR DVD and
You keep paying more than once for the same copyrighted material, albeit in a slightly different form, and you're just encouraging the move to the RIAA's ultimate dream, pay to play each time you watch your own CD/DVD's...
Just be careful to buy the November 12 release and not the august release if you want the extra mojo. I'll be waiting.
So they sell it in August, then sell it to the same people again with bonus footage released just in time for Christmas....
What's the betting they release it again for Easter with a bonus "making of.." DVD and maybe even a couple of postcards thrown in absolutely free!!
Personally I'm going to wait for the super limited edition triple film box set with 12 postcards, limited edition poster personally signed using a scanned copy of Peter Jackson's secretary's signature, and 14 hours of previously unseen footage.
Great film, but is this level of marketing really necessary ?
I used to live there and found no problems surfing any pages I wanted. If they clamp down on what you can and can't view, they'll simply do what their neighbours in Laos do - dial an ISP in Thailand.
China may as well have, seeing as they are experiencing sustainable economic growth while reducing emissions
A study by scientists at the Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory in California concludes that China's C02 emissions are already 400 to 900 million tonnes below what was expected in 2000 which is approximately equivalent to all C02 emissions from Canada, at the low end of the range, or Germany, at the high end of the estimate. Press Release
"China has, despite economic growth estimated at 36%, managed to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 17% since 1996/97" United Nations
Bit embarrassing that the US could take some lessons from China in how to achieve massive economic growth, while not screwing the planet, don't you think ?
Fair points, and remember Harry Potter was released in all regions at the same time which makes protecting it an uneccessary expense.
Except the line actually says
"I should download her audio on MP3 and show the whole world how you gave Eminem VD "
In reference to Christina Aguilera.
Eminem has never condoned music piracy, in fact Doc Dre and Interscpope were there at the front alongside Metallica in the original Napster battle.