The self-destruct sequence on Dell equipment is fully automated and is initiated the first time the unit is powered up after purchase. The countdown is assigned to a random number at the factory, ranging anywhere from ten seconds to several months.
Rhett Butler's "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn" in Gone with the Wind raised more than a few eyebrows in its time. But then again, decades ago we, as a culture, were far more sensitive to such issues. You don't even need to go that far back: when I watch movies and TV shows that were popular when I was growing up in the Sixties, they seem, well, corny by today's standards. That's because nobody ever swears, and when characters get shot they simply clutch their chests and fall over: no blood, no bullet holes. Yet, at the time such imagery was as shocking to the audience as the producers meant it to be.
because if there ever is a major thermonuclear conflict you need to have a functioning chain-of-command, so that there will be someone capable of saying "stop". Matter of fact, in an all-out war between two or more nuclear superpowers the last thing you want to do is knock of the enemy's leadership early in the game: if they have no way of surrendering (meaning: ordering their missile commanders to stand down) things can go from terrible to terminal.
It can be modified, but not run - and, to me at least, running is the ultimate point of software.
Well, yes and no. To a programmer (indeed, to society as a whole) the ultimate point of open-source software is that the knowledge, experience and technique embodied in that software is not lost or otherwise taken out of circulation. There are, I am sure, some absolutely brilliantly-designed and implemented routines in Microsoft Windows. But the world will never know about them, nor will other software development efforts be able to benefit from that brilliance. That may or may not be to Microsoft's advantage, but it is certainly not to everyone else's. I agree, the ability to modify the operating software of a specific device and still use it is very important, but it is not the only relevant perspective, nor is it the most valuable aspect of open source. Any developer who has Googled for some useful free source code has benefited from the FOSS ideals: it allows all of us to stand on the shoulders of giants.
Yet what makes place-shifting devices so powerful also makes them appear very dangerous to established entertainment and media companies.
So who cares. I wouldn't shed a tear if the whole corrupt entertainment "industry" vanished from the face of the Earth. Sure, they have some value, but that value is not worth the sacrifices they wish us to accept in order to guarantee their cash flow. The truth of the matter is that all incumbent industries, large and small, face threats from change, from the new. They just do, and nothing will change that unless these corrupt, greed-ridden fools manage to halt progress entirely.
You know what's worse? Someone that actually counted the words in a five hundred and thirty three word post.
Besides, it was a rant, one of the most intelligently-composed rants I've yet read on Slashdot, and I fully believe that one so obviously literate as RailGunSally could certainly have inserted appropriate paragraph breaks had she chose. However, not using paragraphs lends a certain intense stream-of-consciousness aspect to a good rant.
So, Sally... may I infer from your name that you're into high-powered electromagnetics?
but it smells a lot like the "Contract with America" that Congress foisted upon us some years ago. A mere expression of "principles" is nothing but a meaningless PR move, and I'm willing to bet that Microsoft's guiding principle ("try and take over the world") hasn't changed one bit.
More like "death by a thousand papercuts". And don't think for a minute that there aren't attorneys out there hungering for the government to eliminate the common carrier.
I eagerly await the incensed cries of "activist judges!
Yeah, no kidding. Seriously though, an activist judge is usually one that wants to set new precedent according to his own convictions, whereas this judge is attempting to uphold existing law... you know, the Constitution. It sure would be nice to get back to a state of affairs where the government is transparent and scared shitless of us.
The last new CD I bought was in 1984, or thereabouts (can't remember exactly but it's been a long time.) As it happens, I like music but I know a raw deal when I see one. Too bad a lot of other people didn't figure that out sooner. That the music publishers have always charged whatever the market will bear isn't the problem: the problem is the market being stupid enough to bear such excessive pricing in the first place. You get what you pay for... unless you're buying a CD.
Does remembering the 90's make us "Antique Geeks"?
I remember writing code for a Rockwell PPS-4 4-bit microcontroller, not to mention the 6502, 6800, 6809, 1802 and the venerable 8080. That doesn't really make me an "antique geek", though... just an antique.
True... but because of that leeway (really, Judge Jackson giving them plenty of rope with which to hang themselves) there wasn't any way for the appeals court to argue that the conviction was invalid. I mean, Microsoft had every chance to prove its innocence, up to and including perjury, and still failed. Now, I suspect that much of that failure was Microsoft management's inability to take the Department of Justice seriously. I doubt they'll make that same mistake again.
It's a quote from the Keith Laumer novel The Great Time Machine Hoax. What precisely is an "insemomat"? I can't really say since it wasn't described in the story.
Not really. The court ruled that while there was no actual impropriety on the part of Judge Jackson, there was the appearance of it, and that was largely why they threw out Jackson's breakup order. At least, that's how it was explained in the mainstream media. Microsoft was ruled an illegal monopoly by the original court, and that ruling was upheld by the appeals court. The only issue was what remedies should be applied: Jackson wanted to break up the company according to antitrust law, the appeals court rescinded that order and imposed lesser sanctions, which have apparently had little effect on Microsoft's behavior. Improprieties or not, history will probably show that Jackson was right.
I don't know about "the fundamental sanctity of Windows", whatever that means, but the reality is that Microsoft was taken to court over multiple antitrust violations, perpetrated over decades, involving multiple corporate customers and competitors, and billions of dollars. The company was convicted of those illegalities, and was then let off the hook. Say what you will, Microsoft got a free get-out-of-jail card... just ask the antitrust folks at the DOJ. They were pretty torqued off about the whole thing, since all their good work went for naught.
Given the size of the EU market for Microsoft software nobody in their right mind would believe such a story. Besides, Microsoft has used that particular tactic so many times in the past that nobody takes it seriously anymore.
The Department of Justice did at one point (I mean, they did win the antitrust case against Microsoft you know) but when the regime change occurred their priority system got readjusted. At least, that's how it appeared to me at the time.
Slashdot Mirror
The self-destruct sequence on Dell equipment is fully automated and is initiated the first time the unit is powered up after purchase. The countdown is assigned to a random number at the factory, ranging anywhere from ten seconds to several months.
Rhett Butler's "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn" in Gone with the Wind raised more than a few eyebrows in its time. But then again, decades ago we, as a culture, were far more sensitive to such issues. You don't even need to go that far back: when I watch movies and TV shows that were popular when I was growing up in the Sixties, they seem, well, corny by today's standards. That's because nobody ever swears, and when characters get shot they simply clutch their chests and fall over: no blood, no bullet holes. Yet, at the time such imagery was as shocking to the audience as the producers meant it to be.
because if there ever is a major thermonuclear conflict you need to have a functioning chain-of-command, so that there will be someone capable of saying "stop". Matter of fact, in an all-out war between two or more nuclear superpowers the last thing you want to do is knock of the enemy's leadership early in the game: if they have no way of surrendering (meaning: ordering their missile commanders to stand down) things can go from terrible to terminal.
It can be modified, but not run - and, to me at least, running is the ultimate point of software.
Well, yes and no. To a programmer (indeed, to society as a whole) the ultimate point of open-source software is that the knowledge, experience and technique embodied in that software is not lost or otherwise taken out of circulation. There are, I am sure, some absolutely brilliantly-designed and implemented routines in Microsoft Windows. But the world will never know about them, nor will other software development efforts be able to benefit from that brilliance. That may or may not be to Microsoft's advantage, but it is certainly not to everyone else's. I agree, the ability to modify the operating software of a specific device and still use it is very important, but it is not the only relevant perspective, nor is it the most valuable aspect of open source. Any developer who has Googled for some useful free source code has benefited from the FOSS ideals: it allows all of us to stand on the shoulders of giants.
Yet what makes place-shifting devices so powerful also makes them appear very dangerous to established entertainment and media companies.
So who cares. I wouldn't shed a tear if the whole corrupt entertainment "industry" vanished from the face of the Earth. Sure, they have some value, but that value is not worth the sacrifices they wish us to accept in order to guarantee their cash flow. The truth of the matter is that all incumbent industries, large and small, face threats from change, from the new. They just do, and nothing will change that unless these corrupt, greed-ridden fools manage to halt progress entirely.
You know what's worse? Someone that actually counted the words in a five hundred and thirty three word post.
... may I infer from your name that you're into high-powered electromagnetics?
Besides, it was a rant, one of the most intelligently-composed rants I've yet read on Slashdot, and I fully believe that one so obviously literate as RailGunSally could certainly have inserted appropriate paragraph breaks had she chose. However, not using paragraphs lends a certain intense stream-of-consciousness aspect to a good rant.
So, Sally
Probably about the same number that believed in George Bush, Sr's "Kindler, Gentler, America". Which is to say, not many.
but it smells a lot like the "Contract with America" that Congress foisted upon us some years ago. A mere expression of "principles" is nothing but a meaningless PR move, and I'm willing to bet that Microsoft's guiding principle ("try and take over the world") hasn't changed one bit.
It would be "death by lawyers" for the internet.
More like "death by a thousand papercuts". And don't think for a minute that there aren't attorneys out there hungering for the government to eliminate the common carrier.
Dude, at least it's an ethos..
No, I'd say it's more of a pathos.
You're Getting A Dell
You misspelled "You're going to Hell".
I eagerly await the incensed cries of "activist judges!
... you know, the Constitution. It sure would be nice to get back to a state of affairs where the government is transparent and scared shitless of us.
Yeah, no kidding. Seriously though, an activist judge is usually one that wants to set new precedent according to his own convictions, whereas this judge is attempting to uphold existing law
I'm dreaming, I know.
Our goal is to be principled and transparent as we develop new versions of Windows
Microsoft. Principled. Transparent.
Ah hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!
Ha.
Sorry, that blast of humor took me completely by surprise.
True. Remember Carly?.
Trying to forget.
No problem ... they can just borrow the Great Firewall of China to protect the kids ... of course, it means they probably won't find anything.
The last new CD I bought was in 1984, or thereabouts (can't remember exactly but it's been a long time.) As it happens, I like music but I know a raw deal when I see one. Too bad a lot of other people didn't figure that out sooner. That the music publishers have always charged whatever the market will bear isn't the problem: the problem is the market being stupid enough to bear such excessive pricing in the first place. You get what you pay for ... unless you're buying a CD.
Does remembering the 90's make us "Antique Geeks"?
... just an antique.
I remember writing code for a Rockwell PPS-4 4-bit microcontroller, not to mention the 6502, 6800, 6809, 1802 and the venerable 8080. That doesn't really make me an "antique geek", though
True ... but because of that leeway (really, Judge Jackson giving them plenty of rope with which to hang themselves) there wasn't any way for the appeals court to argue that the conviction was invalid. I mean, Microsoft had every chance to prove its innocence, up to and including perjury, and still failed. Now, I suspect that much of that failure was Microsoft management's inability to take the Department of Justice seriously. I doubt they'll make that same mistake again.
Yeah ... thanks for reminding me of that. Excuse me, I think I need to reformat my boot drive now ...
It's a quote from the Keith Laumer novel The Great Time Machine Hoax. What precisely is an "insemomat"? I can't really say since it wasn't described in the story.
Not really. The court ruled that while there was no actual impropriety on the part of Judge Jackson, there was the appearance of it, and that was largely why they threw out Jackson's breakup order. At least, that's how it was explained in the mainstream media. Microsoft was ruled an illegal monopoly by the original court, and that ruling was upheld by the appeals court. The only issue was what remedies should be applied: Jackson wanted to break up the company according to antitrust law, the appeals court rescinded that order and imposed lesser sanctions, which have apparently had little effect on Microsoft's behavior. Improprieties or not, history will probably show that Jackson was right.
... just ask the antitrust folks at the DOJ. They were pretty torqued off about the whole thing, since all their good work went for naught.
I don't know about "the fundamental sanctity of Windows", whatever that means, but the reality is that Microsoft was taken to court over multiple antitrust violations, perpetrated over decades, involving multiple corporate customers and competitors, and billions of dollars. The company was convicted of those illegalities, and was then let off the hook. Say what you will, Microsoft got a free get-out-of-jail card
True, but they still managed to get themselves ruled an illegal monopoly ... it was the penalties phase that was largely altered by the appeals court.
2. EU's windows-based PCs are infected with viruses and crash causing loss of all records relating to fines against Microsoft.
Why bother releasing a virus to crash Windows? All Microsoft has to do is drag this out long enough in court and the machines will trash themselves.
Given the size of the EU market for Microsoft software nobody in their right mind would believe such a story. Besides, Microsoft has used that particular tactic so many times in the past that nobody takes it seriously anymore.
The Department of Justice did at one point (I mean, they did win the antitrust case against Microsoft you know) but when the regime change occurred their priority system got readjusted. At least, that's how it appeared to me at the time.