You've hit rock bottom. You're broke. No one will help you.
You snatch a loaf of bread in a store and you're committing a crime (duh). Now.. you're saying that that is also morally wrong?
Imho this is a case where at least I think it's legitimate to steal since it's for your own survival.
Nope, sorry, it's always wrong to steal. Taking pysical property from someone else CANNOT be justified. Besides, your analogy of the starving man holds no water. What if the bakery owner is near bankruptcy himself and has 20 children, is it still okay to steal from him? Besides, in the USA we have resources for those who are unable to feed themselves (welfare, unemployment, soup kitchens, etc.) Even still in the USA and around the world there are people who are hungry or starving, yet they do not steal, even to survive. What will your starving man do the next day when the bread is gone and he is hungry again?
Of course, none of this has anything to do with the discussion at hand since downloading copyrighted material IS NOT STEALING. It is copy infringemnt and it is illegal under coyright law, but it is not stealing, nor is Intellectual "Property" the same as physical property.
Anyone care to clue me in to any disadvantages of Lindows versus some other solution?
(Captain Obvious) It costs money?
Another (IMHO) disadvantage is that Lindows sets out to be a Windows clone (i.e. replicates My Documents and various other "Windowisms"). If you want to use a more "Unixy" OS I recommend Red Hat or Mandrake. The install for each is a peice o' cake, you can pretty much just walk through the defaults, and they're free for the download (try LinuxISO.org). I'm partial to KDE myself, but KDE and GNOME are so similar it probably won't matter to you starting off (it's also really easy to switch between them).
I switched less thana year ago and haven't found the learning curve to be too steep (neither has my wife who is much less computer savvy). Pretty much all my questions have been answered here.
We don't think corporations exist to make a profit, they do. This was made very clear in my freshman Economics course. This does not mean that making a profit is ALL corporations can do or their sole reason for existing, but it is the basis for their existance.
It's not inconceivable for a corporation to use it's vast resources to do more than just make a profit.
And many do. Many large corporations donate to charity, give University grants, college scholarships, etc. However, if the corporation is not profitable then none of this is possible. Yes, it's nice when corporations do things like this, but I don't think we have a right to tell corporations what they should be doing with their money anymore than we have a right to tell individuals. It would be nice if everyone gave to charity, but if they don't want to spend their hard earned money that way that's their right.
"GreenDisk
Will accept by mail (for a small fee) all forms of electronic media â" including CDs and DVDs -- for recycling. Fee goes to pay labor fees for processing."
So you buy a 50 pack of CD-Rs for $20, that works out to $.40 per disk. US first classmail is what, $.37? Plus a fee? I wonder why this program hasn't taken off...
Microsoft is the leading software manufacturer for Mac and I doubt they would do anything to loose that market.
I have a feeling that Microsoft could safely exist without the Mac market if they thought it was in their best interest. Besides, they don't seem to eager to cash in on the rapidly growing Linux market.
Microsoft may never choose to release MS Office for linux but that has nothing to do with their Mac Software division.
When did I say it did? All I said was that it wouldn't surprise me if Microsoft canceled Office for Mac.
If you don't need any Windows apps that's great but it doesn't change the fact that many people do (especially corporations). Besides, some people prefer Windows apps for one reason or another. There are Windows ports of both the GIMP and OpenOffice.org yet Photoshop & MS office haven't gone bankrupt.
but there's still no well known professional quality 3D CAD suite that runs nativly on Linux.
What are you talking about? AutoCAD is not a 3D CAD program (but AutoCAD Mechanical Desktop is). Most of the serious CAD programs I know about started on UNIX workstations long before getting Windows support (x86 boxes had nowhere near the power for solid modeling 10 years ago). I currently us CATIA on an RS6000. However, looking at CATIA's requirements they don't currently support Linux, although Pro/ENGINEER does.
Companies aren't going to port unless it financially makes sense for them to do so. Even if they get hundreds of requests for them to because they either know emulation works, or they know there are alternatives that will likely win out in the typical Linux user's mind.
I would think that if a company received a sufficient number of requests for a port (from PAYING customers) then that would indicate that there is a market for the port.
both 98 and Me have a pretty bloated feel. Unfortunately, the article does not seem to mention any of the new Windows, XP and 2K, which are arguably the best and therefore most desireable.
Windows XP is less bloated than Windows 98? I've installed both. A fresh install of Windows 98SE takes up about 350 MB of space, and about 90 MB of that is just fonts. A fresh install of Windows XP Proffessional took up about 3 GB! I was amazed, I have no idea how they fit all that onto one CD. I don't have any info on 2000, since I don't own that.
I only use Windows for compatability and 98 is a better choice. All of my older software is suported on 98, a lot doesn't work in XP even in compatability mode. I also have yet to come across any new software which doesn't work on 98, although this will no doubt change in the future.
On the other hand, the age old question is that if Windows emulation works SO well on Linux, then will there ever be a commercial market for native Linux apps? I'd rather see native ports of these various apps/games, and I hope emulation is simply a stopgap...
I don't think there will be a native port of MS Office very soon. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if the Mac version's days are numbered, what with IE being cancelled. If you have a Windows app you can't live without (which you PAY for) then contact the vendor and ask when it will be ported to Linux. If you are a major corporate customer, they will listen. Even if you aren't it will still help. As far as commercial native games go, Linux is screwed until it amasses sufficient market share. Until then, WINE & emulation will have its place.
One of the sadest things to me is that corporations will finance projects they believe will have the best return on investment.
Umm, you DO know why corporations exist, don't you? If you've ever had even a basic economics course you should know that corporations exist for one purpose and one purose only, to make money! This is neither good nor evil, it is how things are and is the basis for capitalism. A corporation which does not pursue this goal does not remain in existance very long. It is usually left to non-profits, individuals, humanitatirans, etc. to pursue selfless non-monetary goals of helping mankind. Of course, overall the system works pretty well since people are usually willing to pay for something which will make their lives better, so corporations DO have motivation to help solve societies problems.
That would come under intent. If someone cleaned out the chemistry department to build a bomb I would think the question would be on how this happened not if chemistry departments worldwide should be shut-down for sake of security. I don't see why a computer virus would be any different.
I think a more accurate parallel would be if the University was teaching bomb making classes and supplying all the neccessary materials to do so. If a student created a bomb from information gained through this course (not even using any University materials) then the University may be partially liable. Even if it turns out they are not legally liable, they would probably be held liable in the minds of the public and several University jobs would soon change hands. I'm not saying whether or not I agree with teaching viruses, just giving you something to consider. Public opinion can be very powerful and the media would have a field day.
I suggest you re-read the GPL. You are perfecly free to make any modificaions to GPL code you like and keep it closed source. Only if you distribute this code do you have to share your changes. So, as long as the organization in question only uses the modifications internally there is no problem. Of course, issues could arise if the program is to be distributed to subcontractors or such, in this case GPL would not be the best choice. Please bear in mind, there is nothing wrong with running systems on an open source OS, yet keeping the data secret, or running closed source apps on top of this. On another note, if you think the current US government still embodies the ideals it was founded upon I suggest you review your US history.
I believe the poster was making a small joke that a book titled "Mac OS X Hints" was (obviously) about Mac OS X. I don't believe his intent was to imply that a book about power tips for Mac OS X was an amazing thing.
Yes, this is different. Being a monopoly changes the rules a bit. When two competing companies, both with significant market share, try to undercut the other in an attempt to gain greater market share, it's called competition. When a company with +95% market share does this to a tiny competetor, it can only be construed as anti-competitive.
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Nope, sorry, it's always wrong to steal. Taking pysical property from someone else CANNOT be justified. Besides, your analogy of the starving man holds no water. What if the bakery owner is near bankruptcy himself and has 20 children, is it still okay to steal from him? Besides, in the USA we have resources for those who are unable to feed themselves (welfare, unemployment, soup kitchens, etc.) Even still in the USA and around the world there are people who are hungry or starving, yet they do not steal, even to survive. What will your starving man do the next day when the bread is gone and he is hungry again?
Of course, none of this has anything to do with the discussion at hand since downloading copyrighted material IS NOT STEALING. It is copy infringemnt and it is illegal under coyright law, but it is not stealing, nor is Intellectual "Property" the same as physical property.
Anyone care to clue me in to any disadvantages of Lindows versus some other solution?
(Captain Obvious) It costs money?
Another (IMHO) disadvantage is that Lindows sets out to be a Windows clone (i.e. replicates My Documents and various other "Windowisms"). If you want to use a more "Unixy" OS I recommend Red Hat or Mandrake. The install for each is a peice o' cake, you can pretty much just walk through the defaults, and they're free for the download (try LinuxISO.org). I'm partial to KDE myself, but KDE and GNOME are so similar it probably won't matter to you starting off (it's also really easy to switch between them).
I switched less thana year ago and haven't found the learning curve to be too steep (neither has my wife who is much less computer savvy). Pretty much all my questions have been answered here.
You've played Dragon Poker!
I am well aware of why we think companies exist,
We don't think corporations exist to make a profit, they do. This was made very clear in my freshman Economics course. This does not mean that making a profit is ALL corporations can do or their sole reason for existing, but it is the basis for their existance.
It's not inconceivable for a corporation to use it's vast resources to do more than just make a profit.
And many do. Many large corporations donate to charity, give University grants, college scholarships, etc. However, if the corporation is not profitable then none of this is possible. Yes, it's nice when corporations do things like this, but I don't think we have a right to tell corporations what they should be doing with their money anymore than we have a right to tell individuals. It would be nice if everyone gave to charity, but if they don't want to spend their hard earned money that way that's their right.
"GreenDisk Will accept by mail (for a small fee) all forms of electronic media â" including CDs and DVDs -- for recycling. Fee goes to pay labor fees for processing."
So you buy a 50 pack of CD-Rs for $20, that works out to $.40 per disk. US first classmail is what, $.37? Plus a fee? I wonder why this program hasn't taken off...
Microsoft is the leading software manufacturer for Mac and I doubt they would do anything to loose that market.
I have a feeling that Microsoft could safely exist without the Mac market if they thought it was in their best interest. Besides, they don't seem to eager to cash in on the rapidly growing Linux market.
Microsoft may never choose to release MS Office for linux but that has nothing to do with their Mac Software division.
When did I say it did? All I said was that it wouldn't surprise me if Microsoft canceled Office for Mac.
If you don't need any Windows apps that's great but it doesn't change the fact that many people do (especially corporations). Besides, some people prefer Windows apps for one reason or another. There are Windows ports of both the GIMP and OpenOffice.org yet Photoshop & MS office haven't gone bankrupt.
but there's still no well known professional quality 3D CAD suite that runs nativly on Linux.
What are you talking about? AutoCAD is not a 3D CAD program (but AutoCAD Mechanical Desktop is). Most of the serious CAD programs I know about started on UNIX workstations long before getting Windows support (x86 boxes had nowhere near the power for solid modeling 10 years ago). I currently us CATIA on an RS6000. However, looking at CATIA's requirements they don't currently support Linux, although Pro/ENGINEER does.
Companies aren't going to port unless it financially makes sense for them to do so. Even if they get hundreds of requests for them to because they either know emulation works, or they know there are alternatives that will likely win out in the typical Linux user's mind.
I would think that if a company received a sufficient number of requests for a port (from PAYING customers) then that would indicate that there is a market for the port.
Office XP runs just fine in Windows 98SE.
Duh. I still thought it was impressive. When I did an "Install Everything" for Red Hat 8.0 it took about 3.5 GB and used three CDs.
both 98 and Me have a pretty bloated feel. Unfortunately, the article does not seem to mention any of the new Windows, XP and 2K, which are arguably the best and therefore most desireable.
Windows XP is less bloated than Windows 98? I've installed both. A fresh install of Windows 98SE takes up about 350 MB of space, and about 90 MB of that is just fonts. A fresh install of Windows XP Proffessional took up about 3 GB! I was amazed, I have no idea how they fit all that onto one CD. I don't have any info on 2000, since I don't own that.
I only use Windows for compatability and 98 is a better choice. All of my older software is suported on 98, a lot doesn't work in XP even in compatability mode. I also have yet to come across any new software which doesn't work on 98, although this will no doubt change in the future.
On the other hand, the age old question is that if Windows emulation works SO well on Linux, then will there ever be a commercial market for native Linux apps? I'd rather see native ports of these various apps/games, and I hope emulation is simply a stopgap...
I don't think there will be a native port of MS Office very soon. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if the Mac version's days are numbered, what with IE being cancelled. If you have a Windows app you can't live without (which you PAY for) then contact the vendor and ask when it will be ported to Linux. If you are a major corporate customer, they will listen. Even if you aren't it will still help. As far as commercial native games go, Linux is screwed until it amasses sufficient market share. Until then, WINE & emulation will have its place.
One of the sadest things to me is that corporations will finance projects they believe will have the best return on investment.
Umm, you DO know why corporations exist, don't you? If you've ever had even a basic economics course you should know that corporations exist for one purpose and one purose only, to make money! This is neither good nor evil, it is how things are and is the basis for capitalism. A corporation which does not pursue this goal does not remain in existance very long. It is usually left to non-profits, individuals, humanitatirans, etc. to pursue selfless non-monetary goals of helping mankind. Of course, overall the system works pretty well since people are usually willing to pay for something which will make their lives better, so corporations DO have motivation to help solve societies problems.
AFAIK CDs can NOT be recycled. If anyone knows differently please let me know.
That would come under intent. If someone cleaned out the chemistry department to build a bomb I would think the question would be on how this happened not if chemistry departments worldwide should be shut-down for sake of security. I don't see why a computer virus would be any different.
I think a more accurate parallel would be if the University was teaching bomb making classes and supplying all the neccessary materials to do so. If a student created a bomb from information gained through this course (not even using any University materials) then the University may be partially liable. Even if it turns out they are not legally liable, they would probably be held liable in the minds of the public and several University jobs would soon change hands. I'm not saying whether or not I agree with teaching viruses, just giving you something to consider. Public opinion can be very powerful and the media would have a field day.
I suggest you re-read the GPL. You are perfecly free to make any modificaions to GPL code you like and keep it closed source. Only if you distribute this code do you have to share your changes. So, as long as the organization in question only uses the modifications internally there is no problem. Of course, issues could arise if the program is to be distributed to subcontractors or such, in this case GPL would not be the best choice. Please bear in mind, there is nothing wrong with running systems on an open source OS, yet keeping the data secret, or running closed source apps on top of this. On another note, if you think the current US government still embodies the ideals it was founded upon I suggest you review your US history.
Damn you! Your sig did the same thing to me!
I believe the poster was making a small joke that a book titled "Mac OS X Hints" was (obviously) about Mac OS X. I don't believe his intent was to imply that a book about power tips for Mac OS X was an amazing thing.
Yes, this is different. Being a monopoly changes the rules a bit. When two competing companies, both with significant market share, try to undercut the other in an attempt to gain greater market share, it's called competition. When a company with +95% market share does this to a tiny competetor, it can only be construed as anti-competitive.