First post in Firefox, it took me a while since my machine was running low on RAM!
Actually at least with the Windows version, I haven't noticed much of a problem with memory leaks personally. I guess that's probably because I finish whatever I'm doing and tend to close all my FF windows at least once every few hours though. Anything to fix bugs and lower resource usage is always a step in the right direction though, so I'd have to applaud this action regardless.
I'd certainly pay pennies for a mod that replaced all the characters in Grand Theft Auto with political figures, celebrities, and one certain much-maligned lawyer.
The difference is that options within an application GUI are offered to you, are obviously relevant to that application, and are usually faster and simpler to reconfigure. Editing a text configuration file requires that you a) find the file (locations vary between distributions, and sometimes multiple versions are stored, making finding the active one tough) b) understand the format of that configuration file, which is not standardised (may require checking documentation) c) ensure the file is saved in the right format (e.g. some editors screw up line breaks which a novice user might not expect). While it's still not hard to change a true option to false, if you want to add an option, it's often not clear from config files what options are available, and reading documentation is unavoidable.
And that's assuming everything goes according to plan. Error checking within a GUI normally makes it impossible to invoke invalid options. However a mistake in a text file could just cause an application to silently fail, which then usually requires finding the relevant log file and deciphering error messages, costing more time.
This is speaking very generally in terms of standard GUI applications. Obviously for console applications (and certain other specific/unusually complex apps) a text configuration file makes a lot of sense.
It seems to me that kernel development is already well served by many capable and active developers (I guess this is the 'glamorous' area of Linux dev). If anything, I think there should be less emphasis on adding major new features to the kernel itself and more on ironing out the few existing bugs and having a slower release schedule with better testing.
Most of the major issues are with the desktop and with individual distributions, some areas that I think could use development (many of which seem to suffer a lack of interested developers currently): -
A lot more focus is needed on ease of installing. Most of the latest generation of graphical distribution installers are great when they work, but in a large percentage of cases fail on modern hardware unless particular command line options are invoked (noacpi, nodmraid etc.) Another example is that the majority of installers won't run correctly in graphical mode on the Geforce 8800 series despite them having been common for almost a year. At the very least fallback to command line troubleshooting options, text mode etc. should be automatic and specialist user knowledge should not be assumed. Also the majority of installers do not offer the option to resize an existing Windows partition to create install space, a common need among novice Linux desktop users.
Better integrated control tools, fewer obscure configuration files. The Linux command line is one of the OS's great strengths and I don't advocate dropping/obscuring it like some posters. However, all configuration affecting the desktop system/UI should be capable of being accomplished within the GUI. Few if any distributions provide UI tools capable of, for example, installing/managing ATI/Nvidia display drivers, or connecting to a WPA encrypted wireless network. Also many distributions provide multiple GUI tools for managing the same things, e.g. sound settings. This is confusing and inconsistant as well as a frequent cause of conflicts.
Better selection of software to include in distributions. For example many common desktop distributions include between two and half a dozen different media player applications in their standard package. It would be better to provide one player which is well integrated into the desktop environment and comes sanely configured.
By the same token decide where features of software are surplus to requirements and streamline it. For example Konqueror is a fully featured web browser with script support etc. but many distributions including it instead install Firefox as a primary web browser. It would be preferable to standardise by major distributions either using Konqueror as a primary web browser, or encouraging the developers to drop this functionality completely and focus on making a more streamlined file browser.
Some desktop software lacks features which users 'expect' or they are not easily accessible. For example I couldn't make either KDE or Gnome's file browser display a multicolumn list of files like the 'list' view option in Windows, which in my opinion is the fastest way to browse a directory with a very large number of files in. Another example is that the Linux version of VLC doesn't appear to have an option to open files in an existing window if a video is already playing, and always spawns a new one. Note that these are just examples and can quite possibly be accomplished somehow - my point is that these options are not easy accessible from the GUI.
Poorly chosen or confusing defaults and UI choices. For example some distributions default different audio file types to different media players for no compelling reason (support by both players). Another popular example is hotkeys, even for something as simple as copy/paste, some GUI apps follow the ctrl-c ctrl-v Windows style convention, some use the select/middle-mouse console style convention, and some support both (usually clumsily). At least within a single distribution, these conventions should be standardised.
Everyone knows Windows has a lower TCO than Linux, so anybody buying the Linux system is just going to go out and waste that $50 they saved on Mountain Dew. Right?
Lets keep things in perspective here. The fact is that no matter how many OSS fans on Slashdot claim Microsoft is up against the ropes, it doesn't make it the true, and in fact their earnings are well up on this period last year. I'm sure Microsoft's motives for claiming they may have patents on Linux are entirely political, and that if they were actually going to bring lawsuits against major players, they'd have done it before making threats about it (which could harm their legal position in any case).
However, Microsoft is leagues ahead of Linux in the desktop market, and people claiming that Dell selling XP boxes instead of Vista marks the death knell for the company and suchlike is clear Linux fanboyism and propaganda. Whichever of their OSes they're selling, they're still paying Microsoft hefty licensing fees, and that is unlikely to change as long as their OS and office suite is ubiquitous in the corporate world. Microsoft may be deceitful and manipulative, but anyone comparing this to a dying company making a last ditch grab for cash in SCO style is clearly stupid or ill-informed, however much we might wish that to be the case.
Unfortunately the robot failed anyway, with only 5 minutes left until the radiation leaked out, destroying civilisation in an evil terrorist plot. Bruce Willis had to throw himself into the chamber and heroically sacrifice his life in order to correct the problem manually.
After fixing the radiation leak, he managed to crawl into and activate an experimental cryogenic chamber stored in the same room, before expiring from the overdose of radiation. The probability of him being revived for a sequel is high.
It was so good I couldn't bring myself to post it anonymously:(
"The problem's all inside your head", she said to me The crap filter is annoying, I agree You can defeat it if you do it logically There must be fifty ways to troll on Slashdot
She said it's not really my habit to intrude The sensationalist titles are often misconstrued The editors' spelling may be somewhat crude There must be fifty ways to troll on Slashdot Fifty ways to troll on Slashdot
Mods are on crack, Jack Repost spam, Sam GNAA, Ray Just set yourself free Get a first post, Gus You don't need to discuss much Hit the refresh key, Lee And get yourself free
Goatse.cx Tex, Widen the page, Dave Stephen King's dead, Fred Just set yourself free Change the article text, Gus You don't need to discuss much BSD's dead, Lee Just get yourself free
Although it grieves me to see Zonk in so much pain I post "I fail it!" and then start to smile again Netcraft confirms that Wikipedia explains About the fifty ways to troll on Slashdot
She said why don't we both karma whore tonight Thinks about your breathing, you'll begin to see the light She poured hot grits down herself and I know she was right There must be fifty ways to troll on Slashdot Fifty ways to troll on Slashdot
Is it whack, Jack Viewing tubgirl, Earl Mod up a flame, Shane Just set yourself free KDE sucks, Gus You don't need to discuss much Referral link, Lee Just set yourself free
That's strange, earlier today Slashdot was reporting that Linux developers were too old to cater for young people, and now they are celebrating coming of age. I guess it's time to buy Tux a zimmer frame.
I predict Yahoo's unbreakable security system will feature a webpage with some text along the lines of "You must be over 18 to use this chat system. Please only click the button below if you are over 18." It will also feature two buttons saying "I am over 18" and "I am not over 18, please show me the Disney store instead".
It may take up to two attempts, but I think that unscrupulous Internet hackers might find a way around their near flawless protection.
Uncyclopedia is quite possibly the least funny thing I have read in a long time. There are one or two quite amusing articles (such as the Nano article featured), and about 5 million articles full of nonsensical rubbish. For spoof articles to be funny, they must bear some relation to reality. Most of Uncyclopedia's stuff is like 'The country of Nigeria is famous for its 70s glam rock music. It was recently visited by George Bush, the Queen of Sweden. Popular pimp Oscar Wilde really loves Nigeria. It was founded by Michael Jackson in 706 BC.' I guess that kind of rubbish is the best humour you can expect since most of Uncyclopedia's articles are presumably written by the same people who mod Slashdot comments 'funny'.
Snood either comes or used to come with Bonzai Buddy. A google search for the terms will reveal multiple sources for this. It may not be in the latest version, I haven't checked.
FYI, Snood is packaged with known adware/spyware. I'll let the Slashdot audience draw their own conclusions.
Elements of a successful game
on
Ask Sid Meier
·
· Score: 2, Insightful
Mr Meier,
Your games are regarded as some of the most in-depth in the industry, whilst retaining their addictive qualities; many are still popularly played over a decade after release. What, in your opinion, are the elements that need to go into a game to make it so successful? Do they vary from game to game, or are there elements that every successful game should include? In an industry where few games have any replay value, what gives your releases such incredible longevity?
Thanks.
It seems that cunning Linux zealots embedded a subliminal message in that article as the submitter's name. I don't expect such shoddy journalism from Slashdot, which is normally a high quality news source.
Slashdot Mirror
Things became problematic after a passer-by tried to kill him to see how much faction he gave with the legion of darkness.
Actually at least with the Windows version, I haven't noticed much of a problem with memory leaks personally. I guess that's probably because I finish whatever I'm doing and tend to close all my FF windows at least once every few hours though. Anything to fix bugs and lower resource usage is always a step in the right direction though, so I'd have to applaud this action regardless.
It's not the manager's fault, he'd just heard that Linux users were all a bunch of crackers.
I'd certainly pay pennies for a mod that replaced all the characters in Grand Theft Auto with political figures, celebrities, and one certain much-maligned lawyer.
Another vote for Down Them All, it does everything including stuff the default download manager should have but doesn't, like proper resume support.
Fedora?
Who lives in his own special country that his church set up as a tax dodge.
And that's assuming everything goes according to plan. Error checking within a GUI normally makes it impossible to invoke invalid options. However a mistake in a text file could just cause an application to silently fail, which then usually requires finding the relevant log file and deciphering error messages, costing more time.
This is speaking very generally in terms of standard GUI applications. Obviously for console applications (and certain other specific/unusually complex apps) a text configuration file makes a lot of sense.
Most of the major issues are with the desktop and with individual distributions, some areas that I think could use development (many of which seem to suffer a lack of interested developers currently): -
Everyone knows Windows has a lower TCO than Linux, so anybody buying the Linux system is just going to go out and waste that $50 they saved on Mountain Dew. Right?
Please list millions of reasons why Dell only wish to sell it for personal use.
Speech recognition is great, the Slashdot editors have been using it to enter stories for a long time, and it's clearly absolutely flawless.
However, Microsoft is leagues ahead of Linux in the desktop market, and people claiming that Dell selling XP boxes instead of Vista marks the death knell for the company and suchlike is clear Linux fanboyism and propaganda. Whichever of their OSes they're selling, they're still paying Microsoft hefty licensing fees, and that is unlikely to change as long as their OS and office suite is ubiquitous in the corporate world. Microsoft may be deceitful and manipulative, but anyone comparing this to a dying company making a last ditch grab for cash in SCO style is clearly stupid or ill-informed, however much we might wish that to be the case.
29% of broadband users needed to refresh Slashdot more rapidly so that they could obtain a first post.
Unfortunately the robot failed anyway, with only 5 minutes left until the radiation leaked out, destroying civilisation in an evil terrorist plot. Bruce Willis had to throw himself into the chamber and heroically sacrifice his life in order to correct the problem manually. After fixing the radiation leak, he managed to crawl into and activate an experimental cryogenic chamber stored in the same room, before expiring from the overdose of radiation. The probability of him being revived for a sequel is high.
Hit the road, Jack.
Want to know what really scares game developers??
It was so good I couldn't bring myself to post it anonymously :(
"The problem's all inside your head", she said to me
The crap filter is annoying, I agree
You can defeat it if you do it logically
There must be fifty ways to troll on Slashdot
She said it's not really my habit to intrude
The sensationalist titles are often misconstrued
The editors' spelling may be somewhat crude
There must be fifty ways to troll on Slashdot
Fifty ways to troll on Slashdot
Mods are on crack, Jack
Repost spam, Sam
GNAA, Ray
Just set yourself free
Get a first post, Gus
You don't need to discuss much
Hit the refresh key, Lee
And get yourself free
Goatse.cx Tex,
Widen the page, Dave
Stephen King's dead, Fred
Just set yourself free
Change the article text, Gus
You don't need to discuss much
BSD's dead, Lee
Just get yourself free
Although it grieves me to see Zonk in so much pain
I post "I fail it!" and then start to smile again
Netcraft confirms that Wikipedia explains
About the fifty ways to troll on Slashdot
She said why don't we both karma whore tonight
Thinks about your breathing, you'll begin to see the light
She poured hot grits down herself and I know she was right
There must be fifty ways to troll on Slashdot
Fifty ways to troll on Slashdot
Is it whack, Jack
Viewing tubgirl, Earl
Mod up a flame, Shane
Just set yourself free
KDE sucks, Gus
You don't need to discuss much
Referral link, Lee
Just set yourself free
That's strange, earlier today Slashdot was reporting that Linux developers were too old to cater for young people, and now they are celebrating coming of age. I guess it's time to buy Tux a zimmer frame.
I predict Yahoo's unbreakable security system will feature a webpage with some text along the lines of "You must be over 18 to use this chat system. Please only click the button below if you are over 18." It will also feature two buttons saying "I am over 18" and "I am not over 18, please show me the Disney store instead". It may take up to two attempts, but I think that unscrupulous Internet hackers might find a way around their near flawless protection.
Uncyclopedia is quite possibly the least funny thing I have read in a long time. There are one or two quite amusing articles (such as the Nano article featured), and about 5 million articles full of nonsensical rubbish. For spoof articles to be funny, they must bear some relation to reality. Most of Uncyclopedia's stuff is like 'The country of Nigeria is famous for its 70s glam rock music. It was recently visited by George Bush, the Queen of Sweden. Popular pimp Oscar Wilde really loves Nigeria. It was founded by Michael Jackson in 706 BC.' I guess that kind of rubbish is the best humour you can expect since most of Uncyclopedia's articles are presumably written by the same people who mod Slashdot comments 'funny'.
Snood either comes or used to come with Bonzai Buddy. A google search for the terms will reveal multiple sources for this. It may not be in the latest version, I haven't checked.
FYI, Snood is packaged with known adware/spyware. I'll let the Slashdot audience draw their own conclusions.
Mr Meier, Your games are regarded as some of the most in-depth in the industry, whilst retaining their addictive qualities; many are still popularly played over a decade after release. What, in your opinion, are the elements that need to go into a game to make it so successful? Do they vary from game to game, or are there elements that every successful game should include? In an industry where few games have any replay value, what gives your releases such incredible longevity? Thanks.
It seems that cunning Linux zealots embedded a subliminal message in that article as the submitter's name. I don't expect such shoddy journalism from Slashdot, which is normally a high quality news source.