Mine hasn't really died, but the headphone jack is falling apart. The Gen1 and Gen2 iPods had really shoddy headphone jacks, on my Gen2 it's come almost completely loose and it's pretty much impossible to listen anymore.
It might be able to be soldered back on but I don't want to wreck the thing even more. One of these days I'll probably try it, though, since the device is nearly useless now.
Does Mac-On-Linux work on the G5? I did see on their website that they are planning OS X support.
I'm curious because I'm thinking of getting a powermac G5 as my next computer... still undecided though.
Is there any virtualization software for Mac OS that could run a linux distribution like Yellow Dog in a window? I'm not talking about an x86 emulator like Virtual PC. I'm thinking of something like VMware, but for the G5 architecture.
I had trouble with PlayFair at first too (on my Linux machine)... the same thing happened to me - if PlayFair doesn't find a valid key for your song, it goes ahead and creates a messed up file anyway. These files crashed every player I tried them in. After I moved my key into ~/.drms, where PlayFair could find it, the decrypted files came out fine.
I guess PlayFair needs some improved error checking. But I think it's great... now I can listen to my iTunes songs on my linux machine!
The reason to have an alternative operating system for the iPod is to add new features! There are so many great things that can be done with the hardware in the iPod, that Apple is only beginning to scratch the surface of (or not even considering at all).
Using the iPod as a recording device (better then those little voice recorders can do)
OGG (and other formats as well) support
iPod-to-iPod music transfers (legally questionable but still a cool concept)
Not to mention adding features to the 1G and 2G iPods that are only available on the 3G firmware... I would run Linux on my 2G iPod if it provided functionality similar to the On-The-Go playlists on the newer iPods. Open-source firmware could even improve on these features, such as having the ability to name and save a playlist you've made away from your computer.
Finally, feature additions such as these might keep Apple on their toes - they couldn't let their own firmware become stale, because the alternative would always be improving. I think the Linux on iPod firmware is a great idea, and I wish the developers the best of luck.
If you want to help save Sam and Max 2 (if it's even possible at this point) or just let LucasArts know how big of a mistake they made, so it won't happen again next time:
Disabling Javascript entirely would be a mistake, for each bad/annoying use of it there is a good legitimate use. Instead, all browsers should provide the option of disabling certain Javascript functions (popups, move/resize windows, etc.) on a per-function and per-site basis. Maybe the first time you visit a site that tries to display a popup it will ask "Would you like this site to be able to display popups?" and if you know it's just pop-up ads you can hit no. Just an idea.
It's true that they have increased their coverage of non-Microsoft software and OS's in the past year or so. But most of their reviews still have a definite pro-Microsoft slant.
I cancelled my subscription a few months ago, after getting the mag for many years, because of this. And also because of the steady decline of technical information in the magazine. They gave too much coverage to unpopular internet technologies (e.g. ASP's [Application Service Providers]) and other far-reaching topics, and not enough to real technologies and real technical info. Maybe some people want to read about that stuff, but I'm more interested in technology I can actually use.
Slashdot Mirror
Try BirdieSync... it's not free, but it works pretty well for me.
http://www.birdiesync.com/
Mine hasn't really died, but the headphone jack is falling apart. The Gen1 and Gen2 iPods had really shoddy headphone jacks, on my Gen2 it's come almost completely loose and it's pretty much impossible to listen anymore. It might be able to be soldered back on but I don't want to wreck the thing even more. One of these days I'll probably try it, though, since the device is nearly useless now.
Does Mac-On-Linux work on the G5? I did see on their website that they are planning OS X support. I'm curious because I'm thinking of getting a powermac G5 as my next computer... still undecided though.
Is there any virtualization software for Mac OS that could run a linux distribution like Yellow Dog in a window? I'm not talking about an x86 emulator like Virtual PC. I'm thinking of something like VMware, but for the G5 architecture.
I had trouble with PlayFair at first too (on my Linux machine)... the same thing happened to me - if PlayFair doesn't find a valid key for your song, it goes ahead and creates a messed up file anyway. These files crashed every player I tried them in. After I moved my key into ~/.drms, where PlayFair could find it, the decrypted files came out fine.
I guess PlayFair needs some improved error checking. But I think it's great... now I can listen to my iTunes songs on my linux machine!
The reason to have an alternative operating system for the iPod is to add new features! There are so many great things that can be done with the hardware in the iPod, that Apple is only beginning to scratch the surface of (or not even considering at all).
Not to mention adding features to the 1G and 2G iPods that are only available on the 3G firmware... I would run Linux on my 2G iPod if it provided functionality similar to the On-The-Go playlists on the newer iPods. Open-source firmware could even improve on these features, such as having the ability to name and save a playlist you've made away from your computer.
Finally, feature additions such as these might keep Apple on their toes - they couldn't let their own firmware become stale, because the alternative would always be improving. I think the Linux on iPod firmware is a great idea, and I wish the developers the best of luck.
If you want to help save Sam and Max 2 (if it's even possible at this point) or just let LucasArts know how big of a mistake they made, so it won't happen again next time:
Sign the online petition at PetitionOnline. http://www.petitiononline.com/LACOSAM/petition.htm l
Also, send e-mail to LucasArts!
pr@lucasarts.comwebjedi@lucasarts.com
...to browse the web without using a web browser.
We have to be prepared to fight off the Buggers when they come to colonize the Earth!
Disabling Javascript entirely would be a mistake, for each bad/annoying use of it there is a good legitimate use. Instead, all browsers should provide the option of disabling certain Javascript functions (popups, move/resize windows, etc.) on a per-function and per-site basis. Maybe the first time you visit a site that tries to display a popup it will ask "Would you like this site to be able to display popups?" and if you know it's just pop-up ads you can hit no. Just an idea.
It's true that they have increased their coverage of non-Microsoft software and OS's in the past year or so. But most of their reviews still have a definite pro-Microsoft slant. I cancelled my subscription a few months ago, after getting the mag for many years, because of this. And also because of the steady decline of technical information in the magazine. They gave too much coverage to unpopular internet technologies (e.g. ASP's [Application Service Providers]) and other far-reaching topics, and not enough to real technologies and real technical info. Maybe some people want to read about that stuff, but I'm more interested in technology I can actually use.