i think by clean filesystem, he's just referring to having self contained applications and a unified, standard place to store preferences. which certainly seems cleaner to me than having applications in several places, their config files in another place, their preferences in another place..etc.
Cleaner doesn't always equate to better, though, and I think a lot of people are happy with things the way they are. The truth is, if you came in and reorganized my desk, it sure might look a lot nicer to passersby but I will have a hell of a hard time finding anything.
try installing ubuntu server or the ubuntu alternate intall cd.
with ubuntu server you just get a command line as your finished product. if you want a graphical interface you can install it easily enough "apt-get install xubuntu-desktop"... which if that still gives you problems, you can manually edit xorg.conf. and of course, you can choose a kernel besides server if you so desire.
it's quite easy to use these alternatives, you should give them a try before totally giving up on Ubuntu.
don't get me wrong, i love halo, but my guess is that Bioshock or Orange Box (or maybe even Mass Effect?) will win most Game of the Year competitions.. but with the number of Wii's out there, I wouldn't be surprised to see Mario challenge Halo's sales numbers.
despite all the criticism the slashdot crew face from people who are just critical by nature, slashdot has grown into a (more or less) +1 insightful community over the years. i've gotten a good deal of my tech news from that familiar teal and white website, and i know a lot of people are the same way. heck, one of the first things I do when i install firefox is create a Google bookmark, then a/. bookmark in the toolbar. slashdot is a voice in the industry. (plus think of all the in-jokes that just wouldn't be funny without slashdot!)
happy birthday/. and many more! now i've got to get back to a date with natalie portman, a beowulf cluster, some soviets, and a big bowl of hot grits.
Ok ok... a new version comes out. I can understand you getting upset if you're somebody who JUST got into DnD, JUST purchased the PHB and maybe some other books, and now suddenly the 4th ed is coming out. But remember folks, this is DnD. Despite the digital inclusions eluded to in the 4th ed articles, this is an analog game! You aren't being forced to update to 4th edition like so many Windows updates. You can play the older version with just as much enjoyment as new revisions.
Are you worried you can't get new campaign books for 3rd edition? Tell that to the hoards of people who still play 2nd ed with campaigns that are, wait for it now... completely original. And they still have fun!
So if your group wants to update to 4th edition, great. If you want to stick to 3rd, or 2nd or God forbid play the original game rules, then you can certainly do it! I haven't been able to play much since my old group is all over the country, so I'm hoping the virtual tabletop might be a good way to bring us back together. This is a good thing.
personally, as strictly a hobby programmer, i've found the challenge of writing a chess program a fun opportunity to poke around in some code. writing a chess program is a problem that's been solved a zillion times now, but it is still a fun challenge.
your attempt to be clever with "the car analogy" simply doesn't work, as it fails in the distinction of REMOVING something from somebody's possession, and DUPLICATING something.
so to correct your analogy... imagine your friend has a foreign car that isn't for sale in your country. and you have the ability to make a copy of it (albiet, maybe not 100% as fast, or 100% as fuel efficient, etc), using your own tools and parts? imagine that duplication process was very easy. your friend isn't losing anything. however, you might become such a fan of that car that you'll decide you only want that type of car in the future. if they ever go on sale in your country you'll be sure to check them out, because you're an established fan.
and now your analogy is more in touch with reality.
Slashdot Mirror
Cleaner doesn't always equate to better, though, and I think a lot of people are happy with things the way they are. The truth is, if you came in and reorganized my desk, it sure might look a lot nicer to passersby but I will have a hell of a hard time finding anything.
try installing ubuntu server or the ubuntu alternate intall cd.
with ubuntu server you just get a command line as your finished product. if you want a graphical interface you can install it easily enough "apt-get install xubuntu-desktop"... which if that still gives you problems, you can manually edit xorg.conf. and of course, you can choose a kernel besides server if you so desire.
it's quite easy to use these alternatives, you should give them a try before totally giving up on Ubuntu.
don't get me wrong, i love halo, but my guess is that Bioshock or Orange Box (or maybe even Mass Effect?) will win most Game of the Year competitions.. but with the number of Wii's out there, I wouldn't be surprised to see Mario challenge Halo's sales numbers.
despite all the criticism the slashdot crew face from people who are just critical by nature, slashdot has grown into a (more or less) +1 insightful community over the years. i've gotten a good deal of my tech news from that familiar teal and white website, and i know a lot of people are the same way. heck, one of the first things I do when i install firefox is create a Google bookmark, then a /. bookmark in the toolbar. slashdot is a voice in the industry. (plus think of all the in-jokes that just wouldn't be funny without slashdot!)
/. and many more! now i've got to get back to a date with natalie portman, a beowulf cluster, some soviets, and a big bowl of hot grits.
happy birthday
Are you worried you can't get new campaign books for 3rd edition? Tell that to the hoards of people who still play 2nd ed with campaigns that are, wait for it now... completely original. And they still have fun!
So if your group wants to update to 4th edition, great. If you want to stick to 3rd, or 2nd or God forbid play the original game rules, then you can certainly do it! I haven't been able to play much since my old group is all over the country, so I'm hoping the virtual tabletop might be a good way to bring us back together. This is a good thing.
personally, as strictly a hobby programmer, i've found the challenge of writing a chess program a fun opportunity to poke around in some code. writing a chess program is a problem that's been solved a zillion times now, but it is still a fun challenge.
so to correct your analogy... imagine your friend has a foreign car that isn't for sale in your country. and you have the ability to make a copy of it (albiet, maybe not 100% as fast, or 100% as fuel efficient, etc), using your own tools and parts? imagine that duplication process was very easy. your friend isn't losing anything. however, you might become such a fan of that car that you'll decide you only want that type of car in the future. if they ever go on sale in your country you'll be sure to check them out, because you're an established fan.
and now your analogy is more in touch with reality.