When I'm buying something from eBay that's about $50 or more, and it's Buy It Now, that is.
Bing Cashback FTW. That's the only reason to use it, IMO. (Although, I had a friend who used it back when it was called Live Search, because she didn't want to contribute to a Google monoculture. *facepalm*)
And that's what's so dangerous for the common geek - that this business model IS contagious.
And, the reason why the Blackberry is popular is not because it's not locked down. Has everything to do with it being able to integrate into corporate e-mail systems well, and actually that it *CAN* be locked down.
Windows Mobile 6.5 would be the other OS possibility in that market, but it's not the most stable or fast. (It can be locked down even farther than a Blackberry, IIRC, it integrates rather well with Exchange, and Exchange has support for all the lockdown features built in.)
The thing is, Apple's model appears to be contagious.
At least one platform that was previously "open" (in the sense of, the platform allowed users to download and run whatever apps they wanted) are now closed, purely because it worked for Apple - Microsoft's main platform, Windows Mobile/Phone, is drastically changing as of version 7, to a closed model.
The point of this article is that it doesn't matter, because almost every single person fixing bugs, enhancing it, and porting it to other platforms is employed by Oracle, and wouldn't be able to work on a fork. Nobody else is really contributing, so a fork would die quickly.
Being highly resistant to viruses has nothing to do with it being open source, though.
It has everything to do with Linux being a minority OS. Security through obscurity, really.
OS X is less secure than modern versions of Windows (which is the first platform to get pwned in Pwn2Own, every time? OS X,) yet there's very little malware for it. Why? Because it's also a minority OS.
And, there is the back gesture, although it could be more intuitive. That is, however, IMO, hardware interface. There's nothing preventing a webOS phone from having a hardware back button.
It didn't fail because of the OS. (Well, OK, them dragging their feet on native code didn't help, but the OS is quite good, and probably has the best UI of any mobile OS today.)
Well, considering IP is the only product that the US can actually export any more... arguably, Waterworld's earning potential IS of utmost importance to national security, otherwise, China utterly pwns us.
Don't CONSUME. Don't even view the movies, don't listen to the music. Treat it as part of the corporatocracy's forced culture, not our real culture. Otherwise, it'll get mindshare.
And I remember not that long ago that the best way to play online video was to download a codec pack, and hope your codec pack of choice didn't have malware hiding in it.
And now, you just need Flash Player. MASSIVE usability improvement, but it's not open, and Flash Player is a terrible malware vector.
The problem is, video codecs *ARE* a case of interoperability.
Video codecs end up in *HARDWARE* on mobile devices. Once you put them there, you're kinda stuck with that, and need to buy a new device to change codecs. Picking a good codec at first is generally a good idea there.;)
Also, let's say people can freely install codecs as they choose. You'll get websites saying you need to download this codec to watch this video, and people will do it. With a standard codec, if a site does that, users can be educated that they shouldn't download ANY codecs.
In this case, we're talking about a carrier app store, at the exclusion of all other app stores.
So, you can only download Vodafone-approved apps.
This would be like buying a computer from AOL (I know AOL doesn't sell computers, but bear with me here,) and they only let you install applications that they feel don't use too much bandwidth, or that they can make enough money off of. For example, you'll never see a torrent client, and you might see a streaming movie program, but only if the developer charges a large monthly fee (that they get a significant cut of) for it.
And, you'll have to jump through major hoops to get your app approved by the Vodafone app store, most likely, and only get a small cut.
I'll note that Verizon (45% owned by Vodafone) locks down all of their dumbphones, partially by using BREW instead of J2ME.
Everyone else's J2ME phones, you download whatever the hell you want. Maybe you'll get a warning, but at least on the phones I've tried it on, it works.
BREW? Nope. With BREW, applications have to be signed by the carrier to run.
And, the reason why carriers want this... they want to control how much data you use by making it impossible to install data-hogging apps.
GPL says that if they don't have the right to redistribute for another reason, due to another license, then they don't have the right to redistribute the GPL code, IIRC.
Re:Apple has made Microsoft look "open".
on
The Apple Two
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· Score: 1
Technically, it's called Windows Phone 7, and Windows Mobile 6.5.3 will still be sold.;)
And, note that I didn't say revert society, I said to adjust it.
Giving them responsibility doesn't mean giving them slave labor, or declaring them adults at 12.
It means easing them into responsibility, but at a far earlier age than is considered normal, so when they have to make decisions for themselves, they'll make decisions that are better in the long run.
Maybe a "semi-adult" stage would make sense - a semi-adult would have more legal responsibilities than a child, but less than an adult. There are other rights that are granted as a teenager - ability to drive, ability to work - and in many areas in the US, the age of consent is already under 18, so the concept of a semi-adult already somewhat exists.
Conspiracy theory warning: What if abstinence-only education is in place specifically to get more people that are ill-equipped to understand the world into this world, and therefore be influenced into being wage slaves for the government, big business, and churches?
Of course, the argument has been made that teenagers were ready for it at younger ages in the past, due to having more responsibility and being more mature.
So maybe the correct answer is to adjust society to reflect biology, and then adjust the laws so that they reflect both society and biology.
Re:Apple has made Microsoft look "open".
on
The Apple Two
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· Score: 1
Here's some more flamebait: I don't have to pay $99 and sign an NDA to do it, either.
CEGCC.
Re:Apple has made Microsoft look "open".
on
The Apple Two
·
· Score: 1
Granted, many of them are mandated by companies, just like a lot of the BlackBerry marketshare. Those phones may well be locked down by settings on the Exchange server that it's synced to, so they can't install apps period, unless they're pushed from the Exchange server.
BTW, Nokia isn't on that, because this is a US-specific list, and S60 was a complete and total flop here, for the Europeans that are wondering where the hell it is.
Slashdot Mirror
I use Bing.
When I'm buying something from eBay that's about $50 or more, and it's Buy It Now, that is.
Bing Cashback FTW. That's the only reason to use it, IMO. (Although, I had a friend who used it back when it was called Live Search, because she didn't want to contribute to a Google monoculture. *facepalm*)
And that's what's so dangerous for the common geek - that this business model IS contagious.
And, the reason why the Blackberry is popular is not because it's not locked down. Has everything to do with it being able to integrate into corporate e-mail systems well, and actually that it *CAN* be locked down.
Windows Mobile 6.5 would be the other OS possibility in that market, but it's not the most stable or fast. (It can be locked down even farther than a Blackberry, IIRC, it integrates rather well with Exchange, and Exchange has support for all the lockdown features built in.)
The thing is, Apple's model appears to be contagious.
At least one platform that was previously "open" (in the sense of, the platform allowed users to download and run whatever apps they wanted) are now closed, purely because it worked for Apple - Microsoft's main platform, Windows Mobile/Phone, is drastically changing as of version 7, to a closed model.
Obligatory post pointing out that funny doesn't give karma.
Don't pirate it.
That means the game could be remembered for any positive aspects.
No, the bastards don't deserve for their software to make it into our culture. Buy someone ELSE'S game.
The point of this article is that it doesn't matter, because almost every single person fixing bugs, enhancing it, and porting it to other platforms is employed by Oracle, and wouldn't be able to work on a fork. Nobody else is really contributing, so a fork would die quickly.
Being highly resistant to viruses has nothing to do with it being open source, though.
It has everything to do with Linux being a minority OS. Security through obscurity, really.
OS X is less secure than modern versions of Windows (which is the first platform to get pwned in Pwn2Own, every time? OS X,) yet there's very little malware for it. Why? Because it's also a minority OS.
Myself, I'm used to a Touch Pro running MightyROM (a WinMo 6.5 build,) the Pre that I had felt *FAST* compared to the Touch Pro.
But, comparing the Pre to the Droid and N900 would be a good idea, they've got the same CPU. ;)
I hadn't seen that on the Pre I've got right now.
And, there is the back gesture, although it could be more intuitive. That is, however, IMO, hardware interface. There's nothing preventing a webOS phone from having a hardware back button.
Have you actually used WebOS?
It didn't fail because of the OS. (Well, OK, them dragging their feet on native code didn't help, but the OS is quite good, and probably has the best UI of any mobile OS today.)
Even the marketing didn't do it.
It's the hardware that's absolute crap.
Well, considering IP is the only product that the US can actually export any more... arguably, Waterworld's earning potential IS of utmost importance to national security, otherwise, China utterly pwns us.
They still make money from theaters and rental.
Don't CONSUME. Don't even view the movies, don't listen to the music. Treat it as part of the corporatocracy's forced culture, not our real culture. Otherwise, it'll get mindshare.
And I remember not that long ago that the best way to play online video was to download a codec pack, and hope your codec pack of choice didn't have malware hiding in it.
And now, you just need Flash Player. MASSIVE usability improvement, but it's not open, and Flash Player is a terrible malware vector.
Sure there is.
Firefox is licensed under GPL2, not GPL3, among its various licenses. So, they could put H.264 in Firefox.
Those redistributing Firefox would need a license from MPEG LA, though, and that's why they don't want to do it.
The problem is, video codecs *ARE* a case of interoperability.
Video codecs end up in *HARDWARE* on mobile devices. Once you put them there, you're kinda stuck with that, and need to buy a new device to change codecs. Picking a good codec at first is generally a good idea there. ;)
Also, let's say people can freely install codecs as they choose. You'll get websites saying you need to download this codec to watch this video, and people will do it. With a standard codec, if a site does that, users can be educated that they shouldn't download ANY codecs.
In this case, we're talking about a carrier app store, at the exclusion of all other app stores.
So, you can only download Vodafone-approved apps.
This would be like buying a computer from AOL (I know AOL doesn't sell computers, but bear with me here,) and they only let you install applications that they feel don't use too much bandwidth, or that they can make enough money off of. For example, you'll never see a torrent client, and you might see a streaming movie program, but only if the developer charges a large monthly fee (that they get a significant cut of) for it.
And, you'll have to jump through major hoops to get your app approved by the Vodafone app store, most likely, and only get a small cut.
I'll note that Verizon (45% owned by Vodafone) locks down all of their dumbphones, partially by using BREW instead of J2ME.
Everyone else's J2ME phones, you download whatever the hell you want. Maybe you'll get a warning, but at least on the phones I've tried it on, it works.
BREW? Nope. With BREW, applications have to be signed by the carrier to run.
And, the reason why carriers want this... they want to control how much data you use by making it impossible to install data-hogging apps.
GPL says that if they don't have the right to redistribute for another reason, due to another license, then they don't have the right to redistribute the GPL code, IIRC.
Technically, it's called Windows Phone 7, and Windows Mobile 6.5.3 will still be sold. ;)
And, note that I didn't say revert society, I said to adjust it.
Giving them responsibility doesn't mean giving them slave labor, or declaring them adults at 12.
It means easing them into responsibility, but at a far earlier age than is considered normal, so when they have to make decisions for themselves, they'll make decisions that are better in the long run.
Maybe a "semi-adult" stage would make sense - a semi-adult would have more legal responsibilities than a child, but less than an adult. There are other rights that are granted as a teenager - ability to drive, ability to work - and in many areas in the US, the age of consent is already under 18, so the concept of a semi-adult already somewhat exists.
Conspiracy theory warning: What if abstinence-only education is in place specifically to get more people that are ill-equipped to understand the world into this world, and therefore be influenced into being wage slaves for the government, big business, and churches?
Of course, the argument has been made that teenagers were ready for it at younger ages in the past, due to having more responsibility and being more mature.
So maybe the correct answer is to adjust society to reflect biology, and then adjust the laws so that they reflect both society and biology.
Here's some more flamebait: I don't have to pay $99 and sign an NDA to do it, either.
CEGCC.
At least in the US, there's actually more Windows Mobile phones than Android and Palm (I'm assuming both webOS and Palm OS) phones combined: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/04/07/smartphone_ownsership_stats/
Granted, many of them are mandated by companies, just like a lot of the BlackBerry marketshare. Those phones may well be locked down by settings on the Exchange server that it's synced to, so they can't install apps period, unless they're pushed from the Exchange server.
BTW, Nokia isn't on that, because this is a US-specific list, and S60 was a complete and total flop here, for the Europeans that are wondering where the hell it is.
Here's a halfway decent place to start: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinball#Pinball_and_gambling
Wikipedia may not be the most reliable reference, but it sure as hell can point to some more reliable ones. ;)