I agree with you. I've always been of the belief that animals are in fact a lot smarter than what we give them credit for, it's just that their intelligence is different from that of our own.
When we talk about intelligence in other animals, it seems that we end up comparing it to our own intelligence. When we see a difference, we take it to mean that the animals are inferior.
I don't expect any of my cats to start writing shell scripts (though two of them love getting onto my keyboard, I think it's more because they want attention), I do get the feeling that they understand me quite well. Put simply, they're damn good at being cats; they're perfected for that.
As for emotion and morality, I deffinitely think they possess it, but once again it's different from our own. They've adapted to their own ways of life, and they do what they have to do, just as we do. The fact that we adapt ourselves to different situations does give us as a race a diverse morality, though.
OK, so this is the ranting of an animal lover (don't take that the wrong way). Take it how you like.
I do some multitrack audio work on my Gentoo system (Ardour and Jack, etc.). I did spend several days playing with things to get them to work right, though for the most part I didn't really have that many problems. My M Audio Delta 44 sound cards works pretty well, though I'll probably get a SoundBlaster or something similar so I don't have to fire up the pro audio equipment I use every time I want to listen to music via headphones.
In my opinion, the thing Linux has the most of is potential. It did when it started out, and it still does. The problem is that it is a "hacker" OS, one that mainly appeals to people who like to screw around with their systems. Distros like Gentoo are built around this idea. Sure there are ones like RedHat/Fedora, SuSe, and Ubuntu which aim at more of a nice, desktop OS, but not enough people are united behind the idea of this.
So, getting back to the idea of potential, IMHO Linux is just as (if not more) capable than, for example, Windows or Mac OS X. It's just that it wasn't originally meant to be used on the family computer, as the other two were. Progress is being made, and in the process some really neat apps (ie Sun's Project Looking Glass) are coming about.
I don't know, just my $0.02. I still like playing with it, but I'd like to see things get easier.
I don't attempt to justify piracy legally, but I'll take a shot at doing it morally.
If I pirate a piece of software, I am not denying others the chance to use it. You could argue that my not paying for the program could contribute to the software's authors going out of business, but other people can still use the program; it doesn't bleep out of exisistence. For me, it becomes morally wrong when someone pirates a program in order to make money with it, more specifically, when they use a pirated program for business, whether they sell copies of it or use it to make money.
An example of this is PhotoShop. If I pirate it so that I can use it to touch up my family photos and maybe submit a few entries to a Fark PhotoShop contest once in a while, I don't have a problem. However, I would not burn copies and sell it or use it to start a graphic design business.
You'd probably think I'm a masochist. I am a musician, and do recording in Linux via a low latency kernel and the Jack Audio Connection Kit and Ardour. I run Gentoo. My system has pissed me off so many times, and I'm sure I could have made my life a lot easier by getting a Mac. But you know what? I've been able to work through these problems. I now have a nice desktop that I can do graphics work on, my audio work, as well as surf the Web and read my mail.
If a Mac is what works for you, fine, go get a Mac. For me, my Linux is what "just worked" and I am content. I don't mean to sound elitist, but if it's not working out for you, don't use it.
Of course Linux has its problems. But so does Windows (obviously) and OS X. But think about it. Linux is still a nice open source OS, and it is being developed. It is chaotic in the way that it is designed. But frankly, I want something different. I don't know, just my $0.02.
It would have been nice if my high school would have at least set up a Linux lab or something to get people exposed, and to have an alternative to the mostly all-Windows environment. (We have a handful of Macs in the music lab, but for some reason the teacher refuses to use OS X.) At least with companies like RedHat offering educational discounts on support the tech department would have a bit of an easier time integrating things.
Several of the colleges I looked at have at least one or two Linux labs, which is nice. It's good that, if nothing else they're providing exposure to something different.
One thing I intend to try very soon with my band is to put somewhat-decent recordings on the Net, yet sell CDs and other merchandise at gigs. That way people can have good quality CDs and such and support you if they want, yet you also have the prospect of building a fan base in China.
My main workstation runs Gentoo, and I'm happy with it. I really don't need to use Windoze anymore (though I still use it because others in my family do and need support, and for the sake of knowing another system). Has my box given me trouble? Of course it has. With Gentoo I'm on the bleeding edge, and it's not uncommon to have something not compile. But I like it. I've gotten it to be what I want it to be, and now I'm productive with it. I've tried OS X, but it just doesn't appeal to me. I don't always need such a fancy GUI; Gnome is fine for my needs. (Plus there's Looking Glass... Can this be run on OS X via an X server?)
I recently got an iPod for my birthday, and I love it. It works with my Gentoo box just fine, the biggest problem being the fact that most of my music is in OGG Vorbis format. Otherwise, I'm happy. I have as many options to customize my system as I want, but if I don't want to I can still be productive.
True. But that doesn't mean that I'm going to go out and buy a Mac simply to learn it. Maybe if I really had the cash to spend. But right now I can do just fine with what I have, so I really have no reason to buy a Mac. If, say, someone else in my family decided they wanted to get one, I would gladly network it, and learn the system, not only for my own curiosity but to help them out.
What, the Darwin part of it? If I want to learn Open Darwin I'll go download it and run it myself. I don't need Mac OS X to use it. The new stuff added in OS X is mostly proprietary anyway. It's what Apple knows about, and what I'd just be a simple user of. I'd still be dependent on some big corporation. With Linux I have the community to turn to for help, as well as various companies. I'm not totatlly boxed in. I'm sure there are a lot of ins and outs to OS X, but still I couldn't get to know it like I can my GNU/Linux box.
I don't game. I use my dual AMD MP 2800 Linux PC for audio work (PlanetCCRMA), Maya, Shake, image editing via the GIMP, Web surfing, and Emailing. I built this computer myself. I've had problems. I could have gone out and gotten a Mac and probably had an easy ride. But I decided to stick with my PC.
Why? You know the old saying Knowledge is Power. It's true. I know my computer. I know what's in it, how the pieces go together, what it can and can't do. If I were to go with a Mac to me at least I would be handing my computing experience to some company. (Not that I don't to a degree already by buying the parts, but I can still choose what to use and what not to use.) There is something to be said for being independent. I know that if there is a problem I can work it out myself rather than take it in for a repair or restart it and make the problem hide temporarilly. (Note I am refering to, say, Dell PCs running Windoze as well.) What I have works, and I am happy with it. Maybe a faster box would be nice, but I have poored my own soul (well, part of it) into this box, and to me nothing else can replace it.
I walked in to CompUSA a few weeks ago looking for a new keyboard. I had to walk past the Apple section to do this. While I happened to look at one of the 30 inch displays, a salesperson came over and started giving his memorized speach about the Macs and how they were so advanced that you could drag and drop files with them. I politely listened, but wasn't really impressed. I'm not saying they're bad boxes, but they're just not for me.
Didn't VT also have some advanced networking gear donated to them for the project, though? Seems that would give them an advantage in terms of speed, while keeping the cost down...
Can you go to Apple's Web site and download a copy of OS X free of charge? What I mean by "relatively proprietary" is that it still does have a lot of proprietary code in it like the GUI. Sure, it's more open than Windows, but for the most part it is still a proprietary OS.
Though this was interesting, it would be nice to see something comparing OS X security to Windows security. When you think about it, they're both relatively proprietary OSes. Sure, Microsoft has there "Shared Source" stuff, and OS X is based on Open Darwin, but really the two would be a better match because of thier commercial status.
Sure, there are enterprise Linux distros from coimpanies like Red Hat, but you can still get a lot of use out of a non-commercial distro. There are so many ways that you can change Linux to make it more secure that comparing it to a rigid commercial OS is a bit inappropriate. I'm not saying that I think the article was pointless, just that we should give equal attentention to systems like OS X or even some of the other commercial UNIX distros for that matter.
Isn't it obvious? He's gradually moving in so the secret anti-Microsoft secret commando mission can take place. Give it another couple months and Linus and his cronies will have infiltrated Microsoft.
While the article paints a picture of some kind of Uptopia, frankly it scares the shit out of me. I want technology to progress, but I don't want it part of every aspect of my life. I don't want the toilet to know more about my own health than I do. I don't want my car to drive itself. I want the technology to exist, but I want control.
There are too many things to go wrong here. What happens if there's some catastrophic failure (i.e., BSOD)? How will everyone continue to go about their lives? What if someone cracks the system (whcih can and will happen, if this is really what our future is like) and starts monitoring my every move, if the government doesn't do it already?
What about those of us who run our own mail servers? Is the government going to demand to have a back door into my Linux box in the basement, or am I safe?
Well yes and no. You can't make a general statement that any car that is solar powered is only fit for competition. Right now the efficiency of photovoltaic cells makes it impractical to, for example, line your car roof with them. But solar cells with efficiencies in the 90% range are deffinately coming up soon. As the efficiency increases, then maybe we can start researching solar cars that will be more adapted for street driving.
I agree. The big vehicles have their uses, like towing big loads through rough terrain. But for just going to pick up groceries, come on... Maybe SUVs should have their own class of vehicle, with a different type of licence. Then they could be only permitted in certain areas, where they are actually the right tool for the job.
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I agree with you. I've always been of the belief that animals are in fact a lot smarter than what we give them credit for, it's just that their intelligence is different from that of our own.
When we talk about intelligence in other animals, it seems that we end up comparing it to our own intelligence. When we see a difference, we take it to mean that the animals are inferior.
I don't expect any of my cats to start writing shell scripts (though two of them love getting onto my keyboard, I think it's more because they want attention), I do get the feeling that they understand me quite well. Put simply, they're damn good at being cats; they're perfected for that.
As for emotion and morality, I deffinitely think they possess it, but once again it's different from our own. They've adapted to their own ways of life, and they do what they have to do, just as we do. The fact that we adapt ourselves to different situations does give us as a race a diverse morality, though.
OK, so this is the ranting of an animal lover (don't take that the wrong way). Take it how you like.
I do some multitrack audio work on my Gentoo system (Ardour and Jack, etc.). I did spend several days playing with things to get them to work right, though for the most part I didn't really have that many problems. My M Audio Delta 44 sound cards works pretty well, though I'll probably get a SoundBlaster or something similar so I don't have to fire up the pro audio equipment I use every time I want to listen to music via headphones.
In my opinion, the thing Linux has the most of is potential. It did when it started out, and it still does. The problem is that it is a "hacker" OS, one that mainly appeals to people who like to screw around with their systems. Distros like Gentoo are built around this idea. Sure there are ones like RedHat/Fedora, SuSe, and Ubuntu which aim at more of a nice, desktop OS, but not enough people are united behind the idea of this.
So, getting back to the idea of potential, IMHO Linux is just as (if not more) capable than, for example, Windows or Mac OS X. It's just that it wasn't originally meant to be used on the family computer, as the other two were. Progress is being made, and in the process some really neat apps (ie Sun's Project Looking Glass) are coming about.
I don't know, just my $0.02. I still like playing with it, but I'd like to see things get easier.
I don't attempt to justify piracy legally, but I'll take a shot at doing it morally.
If I pirate a piece of software, I am not denying others the chance to use it. You could argue that my not paying for the program could contribute to the software's authors going out of business, but other people can still use the program; it doesn't bleep out of exisistence. For me, it becomes morally wrong when someone pirates a program in order to make money with it, more specifically, when they use a pirated program for business, whether they sell copies of it or use it to make money.
An example of this is PhotoShop. If I pirate it so that I can use it to touch up my family photos and maybe submit a few entries to a Fark PhotoShop contest once in a while, I don't have a problem. However, I would not burn copies and sell it or use it to start a graphic design business.
Just my $0.02.
You'd probably think I'm a masochist. I am a musician, and do recording in Linux via a low latency kernel and the Jack Audio Connection Kit and Ardour. I run Gentoo. My system has pissed me off so many times, and I'm sure I could have made my life a lot easier by getting a Mac. But you know what? I've been able to work through these problems. I now have a nice desktop that I can do graphics work on, my audio work, as well as surf the Web and read my mail.
If a Mac is what works for you, fine, go get a Mac. For me, my Linux is what "just worked" and I am content. I don't mean to sound elitist, but if it's not working out for you, don't use it.
Of course Linux has its problems. But so does Windows (obviously) and OS X. But think about it. Linux is still a nice open source OS, and it is being developed. It is chaotic in the way that it is designed. But frankly, I want something different. I don't know, just my $0.02.
It would have been nice if my high school would have at least set up a Linux lab or something to get people exposed, and to have an alternative to the mostly all-Windows environment. (We have a handful of Macs in the music lab, but for some reason the teacher refuses to use OS X.) At least with companies like RedHat offering educational discounts on support the tech department would have a bit of an easier time integrating things.
Several of the colleges I looked at have at least one or two Linux labs, which is nice. It's good that, if nothing else they're providing exposure to something different.
Already we have an OS X zealot.
Speed wise, maybe. But it doesn't really do anything "human;" it's not set up to do that. Maybe if someone created the right AI algorithm...
One thing I intend to try very soon with my band is to put somewhat-decent recordings on the Net, yet sell CDs and other merchandise at gigs. That way people can have good quality CDs and such and support you if they want, yet you also have the prospect of building a fan base in China.
My main workstation runs Gentoo, and I'm happy with it. I really don't need to use Windoze anymore (though I still use it because others in my family do and need support, and for the sake of knowing another system). Has my box given me trouble? Of course it has. With Gentoo I'm on the bleeding edge, and it's not uncommon to have something not compile. But I like it. I've gotten it to be what I want it to be, and now I'm productive with it. I've tried OS X, but it just doesn't appeal to me. I don't always need such a fancy GUI; Gnome is fine for my needs. (Plus there's Looking Glass... Can this be run on OS X via an X server?)
I recently got an iPod for my birthday, and I love it. It works with my Gentoo box just fine, the biggest problem being the fact that most of my music is in OGG Vorbis format. Otherwise, I'm happy. I have as many options to customize my system as I want, but if I don't want to I can still be productive.
But that's just me.
True. But that doesn't mean that I'm going to go out and buy a Mac simply to learn it. Maybe if I really had the cash to spend. But right now I can do just fine with what I have, so I really have no reason to buy a Mac. If, say, someone else in my family decided they wanted to get one, I would gladly network it, and learn the system, not only for my own curiosity but to help them out.
What, the Darwin part of it? If I want to learn Open Darwin I'll go download it and run it myself. I don't need Mac OS X to use it. The new stuff added in OS X is mostly proprietary anyway. It's what Apple knows about, and what I'd just be a simple user of. I'd still be dependent on some big corporation. With Linux I have the community to turn to for help, as well as various companies. I'm not totatlly boxed in. I'm sure there are a lot of ins and outs to OS X, but still I couldn't get to know it like I can my GNU/Linux box.
I don't game. I use my dual AMD MP 2800 Linux PC for audio work (PlanetCCRMA), Maya, Shake, image editing via the GIMP, Web surfing, and Emailing. I built this computer myself. I've had problems. I could have gone out and gotten a Mac and probably had an easy ride. But I decided to stick with my PC.
Why? You know the old saying Knowledge is Power. It's true. I know my computer. I know what's in it, how the pieces go together, what it can and can't do. If I were to go with a Mac to me at least I would be handing my computing experience to some company. (Not that I don't to a degree already by buying the parts, but I can still choose what to use and what not to use.) There is something to be said for being independent. I know that if there is a problem I can work it out myself rather than take it in for a repair or restart it and make the problem hide temporarilly. (Note I am refering to, say, Dell PCs running Windoze as well.) What I have works, and I am happy with it. Maybe a faster box would be nice, but I have poored my own soul (well, part of it) into this box, and to me nothing else can replace it.
I walked in to CompUSA a few weeks ago looking for a new keyboard. I had to walk past the Apple section to do this. While I happened to look at one of the 30 inch displays, a salesperson came over and started giving his memorized speach about the Macs and how they were so advanced that you could drag and drop files with them. I politely listened, but wasn't really impressed. I'm not saying they're bad boxes, but they're just not for me.
C'mon, Steve...
Didn't VT also have some advanced networking gear donated to them for the project, though? Seems that would give them an advantage in terms of speed, while keeping the cost down...
I recently carved a Tux pumpkin. You can find a pic of it here (whatsmykarma.com).
Can you go to Apple's Web site and download a copy of OS X free of charge? What I mean by "relatively proprietary" is that it still does have a lot of proprietary code in it like the GUI. Sure, it's more open than Windows, but for the most part it is still a proprietary OS.
Though this was interesting, it would be nice to see something comparing OS X security to Windows security. When you think about it, they're both relatively proprietary OSes. Sure, Microsoft has there "Shared Source" stuff, and OS X is based on Open Darwin, but really the two would be a better match because of thier commercial status.
Sure, there are enterprise Linux distros from coimpanies like Red Hat, but you can still get a lot of use out of a non-commercial distro. There are so many ways that you can change Linux to make it more secure that comparing it to a rigid commercial OS is a bit inappropriate. I'm not saying that I think the article was pointless, just that we should give equal attentention to systems like OS X or even some of the other commercial UNIX distros for that matter.
Isn't it obvious? He's gradually moving in so the secret anti-Microsoft secret commando mission can take place. Give it another couple months and Linus and his cronies will have infiltrated Microsoft.
But does it come with a color monitor?
Is a big fan. Stick with me here. We'll build a gigantic fan, black out the entire country for a few hours, and blow the hurricane over to Africa.
Hey, I wonder if a hydrogen bomb would work better than a nuke? In any case, we could use the fan to blow the radioactive waste away too.
While the article paints a picture of some kind of Uptopia, frankly it scares the shit out of me. I want technology to progress, but I don't want it part of every aspect of my life. I don't want the toilet to know more about my own health than I do. I don't want my car to drive itself. I want the technology to exist, but I want control.
There are too many things to go wrong here. What happens if there's some catastrophic failure (i.e., BSOD)? How will everyone continue to go about their lives? What if someone cracks the system (whcih can and will happen, if this is really what our future is like) and starts monitoring my every move, if the government doesn't do it already?
Not my idea of a bright future...
What about those of us who run our own mail servers? Is the government going to demand to have a back door into my Linux box in the basement, or am I safe?
Well yes and no. You can't make a general statement that any car that is solar powered is only fit for competition. Right now the efficiency of photovoltaic cells makes it impractical to, for example, line your car roof with them. But solar cells with efficiencies in the 90% range are deffinately coming up soon. As the efficiency increases, then maybe we can start researching solar cars that will be more adapted for street driving.
I agree. The big vehicles have their uses, like towing big loads through rough terrain. But for just going to pick up groceries, come on... Maybe SUVs should have their own class of vehicle, with a different type of licence. Then they could be only permitted in certain areas, where they are actually the right tool for the job.
Linux drivers would be nice also.