In all seriousness what reason do we have to go to Mars?
Here's a reason I don't hear mentioned much: The benefits of space research help us here on Earth everyday. Thousands of ideas from Microwave Ovens to Cell Phones were first hatched by scientists working on space research. Research and exploration bring unexpected benefits which we cannot even imagine at the time.
That's right; the only real showstopper here is in the performance department. It's a pity Linux can run smoothly on a p-166, but when you need an easy-to-use desktop, {kde,gnome}+OOo, raise the bar usually up to 1GHz and up (same for ram).
Excuse me? I am running a latest linux distro, KDE and OO on an old PII, 266 Mgz, with 180 mb of RAM. It runs great. In fact this is one of the great things about Linux...it loves the old hardware. Why should I go out and buy a new power machine when this one is still working fine? In fact, my 'power machine', running W2K is currently down. Thank God I still have this old laptop.
The real risk to MS is if other governments or corporations start to demand seperate Office Components. Despite MS claim that it has always been thier policy to allow this, I have never heard of Office being 'split up' before.
How many other companies would perfer to buy just Word or Excel or Access or Outlook at a good discount? Probably most organizations don't need everything that comes with Office. I believe this is the real fear with MS. It will be difficult to justify the $400 price tag and If other organizations start demanding this too, their cash cow may suddenly find itself on a diet.
Are we so sensitive that we cannot take a little good natured teasing from an old friend? Jeeze everyone is so touchy. Learn to laugh at yourself and not take everything so seriously. This is a great day for science, no matter what your nationality.
And if you don't respond to flamebait, his stupid post would die in -1 obscurity.
which is why it's still such a controversial subject even today
Yes, like the Evolution vs. Creationism 'controversy.' I guess some people find comfort in myth and conspiracy theories which don't require to much thinking.
It's sad that in 2004 we are even still having these conversations.
There are a few other reasons a person may continue at a crappy company:
Mortgage: Nothing like facing homelessness for your children to keep you coming back to work. Health Insurance: A biggie for many people. My sister is battling cancer. It wouldn't be a great time for them to be loosing their insurance or trying to find another carrier. Employers like you:Most people can't afford to quit a job unless they have already found another. Your post shows how tough that can be.
It's real easy to sound self rightous when it's all hypothetical. Reality is often somewhat different.
Welcome to adult-hood. Guess I've been a parent so long, I forgot what a Christmas feels like where you get the things you want and get as much/more than you gave.
Adults routinely spend more than they can afford on gifts for others who will give them 'socks', hideous cheap jewelry and useless dust catching knick-knacks. Occasionally you get a true prize like your six year olds handprint in clay and hung with yarn.
A Catholic School in our community recently set up a computer lab using donated equipment. Lots of 486's and PI's. They were forced to purchase new XP licenses for them all, so they could install Win 9x on them.
In the future, schools like this would be forced to purchase new equipment, as the OS's available to install legally will no longer run on these old machines.
An expense like that could make computer labs in cash-strapped schools an impossible dream.
Despite the slant of the article, properly patched and firewalled 98se machines are probably more secure online than XP or 2000 machines. Seems most of the exploits lately have taken advantage of the security problems and default settings of these network enabled OS's.
So I recommend NOT upgrading these folks unless it's absolutely necessary. Unless you plan on providing ongoing security related tech support for your family.
Yes, its an aberration because it is actually a great series of movies. Possibly the best I have ever seen. They did justice to a complicated, beautifully written story, which has never been told properly in the cinema before.
I'm not a fantasy nerd, but I can't wait for The Return of the King to come out. You can spot the true fantasy nerds as they will arrive in costume at the midnight showing on the release date.
All the bands that make any significant revenue from touring are also some of the biggest names on the RIAA's artist list.
Not really. The biggest money making bands on tour are the older bands. i.e. Rolling Stones, U2, Bruce Springsteen. The record company lackies credit this to 'an established library of music'. The ticket buying public would tell you that most new RIAA 'artists' sound the same, generally suck and only appeal to the 12-16 year old crowd.
Actually, Yahoo just recently (within the past month) sent letters to users that they were going to begin to implement that policy.
I have yet to see an increase in spam in my Yahoo mailbox (I get almost zero) and my preferences have not been changed.
If I do start recieving 'special offers from Yahoo partners' I will simply reset my preferences.
I really don't feel like I can complain. I have recieved literally years of free nearly spam free email with virus scanners and all the bells and whistles from Yahoo. They are one of the few free content providers left which still delivers a quality free product.
I have my own domain and use it to send email. Do I need to create/publish a key in order to make it past this new spam filter?
BTW, I use Yahoo email and I find it one of the best free emails out there. I already pick up very little spam in my Yahoo mailbox. My domain accounts with lots of filters set up recieves much more.
I live and work in California and filed a claim through Lindows.com. I have purchased a great deal of MS products over the last 7-8 years for myself, my children and my employer.
The items I claimed on the Lindows form represented only a fraction of the $$ MS has gotten from me over the years.
Because MS is paying with vouchers, and those vouchers will not cover the cost of any new software, they are betting most of it will come back to MS along with some cash.
I filed that claim through Lindows because it gave me a chance to use my share of the settlement money to help a MS competitor and I felt assured the money would not wind up back in MS's pockets. This seems to be the intention of the portion of the settlement which states the settlement"cannot be used by Microsoft to complicate or discourage claims, and they must not discourage legitimate Microsoft competitors from promoting the settlement, distributing claim forms or otherwise participating in the settlement process as expressly contemplated by the Settlement Agreement."
I have no idea whether I will ever see my new free PC but I certainly don't consider myself a thief, nor do I blame Lindows for "promoting and participating in the settlement" as is their right.
This is not a Code war, it is a PR war and the geeks are losing. PR is what is needed.
So true.
A friend recently informed me that Linux (he pronounced it LY-nix) and Red Hat were being sued by some company for stealing their code. This was the extent of his knowledge on the subject.
The FUD is definately working with the non-tech public. The only press this story is generating is SCO's version and their skyrocketing stock prices. To the public this looks like truth.
Is there no way to stop SCO's continued slanderous remarks until the case goes to court, as they were able to do in Europe?
Maybe this is due to a little thing called the 10th Ammendment to the Constitution:
Amendment X
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
Yeah, it's not soon enough and not perfect yet. But I am truly heartened that the "vocal contingent that opposed a paper trail" did not prevail over the "minority of computer and voting experts who supported the requirement."
This puts voting machine manufacturers on notice that we know there are flaws in the system and we will be watching closely.
Hurray for California Secretary of State Kevin Shelley, who obviously was paying attention to the facts over company PR.
Yes, I believe this is a new 'feature'. One of my informational websites used to be listed in the top 10 on MSN, now it seems to be buried somewhere below 300+ sponsored ads. The website still grabs a top 10 spot in Google and Yahoo however.
Did you ever stop to think that one of the reasons people don't support or take the time to learn about the various OSS movements is because of high-brow, elitist comments such as yours?
I don't think that's an elitist statement. It is a fact. I have dealt with hundreds of end users who don't know they can change their homepage, they use MSN search because MSN came with thier computer, etc. This is actually very common among new users. These users ARE the bread and butter of MS, not/. readers. The parent was right on!
Why does everything have to be black or white? One extreme or the other. Either you are letting your kids run rampant in the neighborhood or controlling them like a Nazi prison guard. Most parents find some reasonable middle ground. They trust their kids but monitor. Thats' thier freekin' job!
A good parent will give their kids as much freedom as they can handle at the time. Increase it when they are ready, pull back when they blow it.
No offence to those raised differently, but looking at porn with my kids or parents just seems weird to me.
All of the above is true. As both a parent and media lab supervisor at a local high school, I have had to deal with this issue many times. My favorite way of handling it: Keep an eye on the history folder. Let your kids know you know how and will be checking on the sites they visit. A recently emptied history folder is an admission of guilt. Better yet, set them up as users without administrative rights so they can't empty the history folder. Then check it regularly, in front of the kids.
I hope not yet. It gives me hope to see outsiders gain momentum, much to the dismay of the party big wigs which pre-select the candidates we are supposed to choose.
A recent example of this is the explosion in supporters for Dean who has risen through a grass-roots energization of the Democratic party. Suddenly this nobody is the frontrunner, and will probably be taking on GWB & Co. next year. This is completely against the will of the official Democratic Party, who had already annointed Gephart and Kerry.
Democracy is not completely dead in America. I feel very lucky that Diebod exposed their stupidity or bad intentions to the world through the accidental posting of internal documents and source code. Just think if this had never come out. The ability to rig elections untracably, secretly hidden away in the closed, propriatary source which no one can see.
We might have gotten lucky. Perhaps we have bought a few more years before 'they' can come up with a new plan for world domination.
Wish I had some mod points today. I don't blame you for posting anonymously due to the right wing mods which cannot tolerate comments which are unflattering to the Grand Ol' Party (GOP).
There is an assault on your civil liberties taking place. Some is obvious, some not. The net effect is chilling. I have voted in every election for the last 25 years. I have cheered and cursed our government, but I have never feared them.
The US is like a frog slowly boiling in a pot of water. Is it just me, or is it getting pretty fucking warm in here?
Slashdot Mirror
In all seriousness what reason do we have to go to Mars?
Here's a reason I don't hear mentioned much: The benefits of space research help us here on Earth everyday. Thousands of ideas from Microwave Ovens to Cell Phones were first hatched by scientists working on space research. Research and exploration bring unexpected benefits which we cannot even imagine at the time.
That's right; the only real showstopper here is in the performance department. It's a pity Linux can run smoothly on a p-166, but when you need an easy-to-use desktop, {kde,gnome}+OOo, raise the bar usually up to 1GHz and up (same for ram).
Excuse me? I am running a latest linux distro, KDE and OO on an old PII, 266 Mgz, with 180 mb of RAM. It runs great. In fact this is one of the great things about Linux...it loves the old hardware. Why should I go out and buy a new power machine when this one is still working fine? In fact, my 'power machine', running W2K is currently down. Thank God I still have this old laptop.
The real risk to MS is if other governments or corporations start to demand seperate Office Components. Despite MS claim that it has always been thier policy to allow this, I have never heard of Office being 'split up' before.
How many other companies would perfer to buy just Word or Excel or Access or Outlook at a good discount? Probably most organizations don't need everything that comes with Office. I believe this is the real fear with MS. It will be difficult to justify the $400 price tag and If other organizations start demanding this too, their cash cow may suddenly find itself on a diet.
Are we so sensitive that we cannot take a little good natured teasing from an old friend? Jeeze everyone is so touchy. Learn to laugh at yourself and not take everything so seriously. This is a great day for science, no matter what your nationality.
And if you don't respond to flamebait, his stupid post would die in -1 obscurity.
which is why it's still such a controversial subject even today
Yes, like the Evolution vs. Creationism 'controversy.' I guess some people find comfort in myth and conspiracy theories which don't require to much thinking.
It's sad that in 2004 we are even still having these conversations.
I believe it's called 'My Mars' and it creates a permanent icon on your desktop that regularly phones home.
There are a few other reasons a person may continue at a crappy company:
Mortgage: Nothing like facing homelessness for your children to keep you coming back to work.
Health Insurance: A biggie for many people. My sister is battling cancer. It wouldn't be a great time for them to be loosing their insurance or trying to find another carrier.
Employers like you:Most people can't afford to quit a job unless they have already found another. Your post shows how tough that can be.
It's real easy to sound self rightous when it's all hypothetical. Reality is often somewhat different.
Welcome to adult-hood. Guess I've been a parent so long, I forgot what a Christmas feels like where you get the things you want and get as much/more than you gave.
Adults routinely spend more than they can afford on gifts for others who will give them 'socks', hideous cheap jewelry and useless dust catching knick-knacks. Occasionally you get a true prize like your six year olds handprint in clay and hung with yarn.
Sorry guys, Christmas is different for grown-ups.
This brings up an important point.
A Catholic School in our community recently set up a computer lab using donated equipment. Lots of 486's and PI's. They were forced to purchase new XP licenses for them all, so they could install Win 9x on them.
In the future, schools like this would be forced to purchase new equipment, as the OS's available to install legally will no longer run on these old machines.
An expense like that could make computer labs in cash-strapped schools an impossible dream.
Despite the slant of the article, properly patched and firewalled 98se machines are probably more secure online than XP or 2000 machines. Seems most of the exploits lately have taken advantage of the security problems and default settings of these network enabled OS's.
So I recommend NOT upgrading these folks unless it's absolutely necessary. Unless you plan on providing ongoing security related tech support for your family.
Q: What do you call a nerd after he graduates?
A: Boss
Yes, its an aberration because it is actually a great series of movies. Possibly the best I have ever seen. They did justice to a complicated, beautifully written story, which has never been told properly in the cinema before.
I'm not a fantasy nerd, but I can't wait for The Return of the King to come out. You can spot the true fantasy nerds as they will arrive in costume at the midnight showing on the release date.
All the bands that make any significant revenue from touring are also some of the biggest names on the RIAA's artist list.
Not really. The biggest money making bands on tour are the older bands. i.e. Rolling Stones, U2, Bruce Springsteen. The record company lackies credit this to 'an established library of music'. The ticket buying public would tell you that most new RIAA 'artists' sound the same, generally suck and only appeal to the 12-16 year old crowd.
Actually, Yahoo just recently (within the past month) sent letters to users that they were going to begin to implement that policy.
I have yet to see an increase in spam in my Yahoo mailbox (I get almost zero) and my preferences have not been changed.
If I do start recieving 'special offers from Yahoo partners' I will simply reset my preferences.
I really don't feel like I can complain. I have recieved literally years of free nearly spam free email with virus scanners and all the bells and whistles from Yahoo. They are one of the few free content providers left which still delivers a quality free product.
I have my own domain and use it to send email. Do I need to create/publish a key in order to make it past this new spam filter?
BTW, I use Yahoo email and I find it one of the best free emails out there. I already pick up very little spam in my Yahoo mailbox. My domain accounts with lots of filters set up recieves much more.
I live and work in California and filed a claim through Lindows.com. I have purchased a great deal of MS products over the last 7-8 years for myself, my children and my employer.
The items I claimed on the Lindows form represented only a fraction of the $$ MS has gotten from me over the years.
Because MS is paying with vouchers, and those vouchers will not cover the cost of any new software, they are betting most of it will come back to MS along with some cash.
I filed that claim through Lindows because it gave me a chance to use my share of the settlement money to help a MS competitor and I felt assured the money would not wind up back in MS's pockets. This seems to be the intention of the portion of the settlement which states the settlement"cannot be used by Microsoft to complicate or discourage claims, and they must not discourage legitimate Microsoft competitors from promoting the settlement, distributing claim forms or otherwise participating in the settlement process as expressly contemplated by the Settlement Agreement."
I have no idea whether I will ever see my new free PC but I certainly don't consider myself a thief, nor do I blame Lindows for "promoting and participating in the settlement" as is their right.
This is not a Code war, it is a PR war and the geeks are losing. PR is what is needed.
So true.
A friend recently informed me that Linux (he pronounced it LY-nix) and Red Hat were being sued by some company for stealing their code. This was the extent of his knowledge on the subject.
The FUD is definately working with the non-tech public. The only press this story is generating is SCO's version and their skyrocketing stock prices. To the public this looks like truth.
Is there no way to stop SCO's continued slanderous remarks until the case goes to court, as they were able to do in Europe?
Maybe this is due to a little thing called the 10th Ammendment to the Constitution:
Amendment X
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
Yeah, it's not soon enough and not perfect yet. But I am truly heartened that the "vocal contingent that opposed a paper trail" did not prevail over the "minority of computer and voting experts who supported the requirement."
This puts voting machine manufacturers on notice that we know there are flaws in the system and we will be watching closely.
Hurray for California Secretary of State Kevin Shelley, who obviously was paying attention to the facts over company PR.
Yes, I believe this is a new 'feature'. One of my informational websites used to be listed in the top 10 on MSN, now it seems to be buried somewhere below 300+ sponsored ads. The website still grabs a top 10 spot in Google and Yahoo however.
Did you ever stop to think that one of the reasons people don't support or take the time to learn about the various OSS movements is because of high-brow, elitist comments such as yours?
/. readers. The parent was right on!
I don't think that's an elitist statement. It is a fact. I have dealt with hundreds of end users who don't know they can change their homepage, they use MSN search because MSN came with thier computer, etc. This is actually very common among new users. These users ARE the bread and butter of MS, not
Why does everything have to be black or white? One extreme or the other. Either you are letting your kids run rampant in the neighborhood or controlling them like a Nazi prison guard. Most parents find some reasonable middle ground. They trust their kids but monitor. Thats' thier freekin' job!
A good parent will give their kids as much freedom as they can handle at the time. Increase it when they are ready, pull back when they blow it.
No offence to those raised differently, but looking at porn with my kids or parents just seems weird to me.
All of the above is true. As both a parent and media lab supervisor at a local high school, I have had to deal with this issue many times. My favorite way of handling it: Keep an eye on the history folder. Let your kids know you know how and will be checking on the sites they visit. A recently emptied history folder is an admission of guilt. Better yet, set them up as users without administrative rights so they can't empty the history folder. Then check it regularly, in front of the kids.
"The will of the people" is a myth."
I hope not yet. It gives me hope to see outsiders gain momentum, much to the dismay of the party big wigs which pre-select the candidates we are supposed to choose.
A recent example of this is the explosion in supporters for Dean who has risen through a grass-roots energization of the Democratic party. Suddenly this nobody is the frontrunner, and will probably be taking on GWB & Co. next year. This is completely against the will of the official Democratic Party, who had already annointed Gephart and Kerry.
Democracy is not completely dead in America. I feel very lucky that Diebod exposed their stupidity or bad intentions to the world through the accidental posting of internal documents and source code. Just think if this had never come out. The ability to rig elections untracably, secretly hidden away in the closed, propriatary source which no one can see.
We might have gotten lucky. Perhaps we have bought a few more years before 'they' can come up with a new plan for world domination.
Wish I had some mod points today. I don't blame you for posting anonymously due to the right wing mods which cannot tolerate comments which are unflattering to the Grand Ol' Party (GOP).
There is an assault on your civil liberties taking place. Some is obvious, some not. The net effect is chilling. I have voted in every election for the last 25 years. I have cheered and cursed our government, but I have never feared them.
The US is like a frog slowly boiling in a pot of water. Is it just me, or is it getting pretty fucking warm in here?
God help the USA