Yes, my comment was meant to be tongue-in-cheek. The point I was trying to make is that no system is perfect. It bothers me intensely that every time an alternative to Microsoft is discussed, each and every objection can be applied to Microsoft products too. The one common thread is that the alternatives are almost always much, much more cost effective than Microsoft.
It sounds like you're fortunate to have a well-equipped IT shop watching your back (e.g. PXE and bootp overnight). I wonder how much your business is spending on in-house IT? Just because you don't spend it from your budget doesn't mean your company's not spending it. And just because you, as an end user, don't see the problems doesn't mean someone didn't have to pull an all-nighter frantically working behind the scenes to fix things.
And your comment about web apps breaking? We have some internal IE-only apps that broke when IE7 was released. My guess is that IE, which is not and never has been standards compliant, changes their own "standards" far more frequently than w3c does. So that objection doesn't hold water.
And FYI, we're not on the bleeding edge. We've decided not to do a mass deployment of Vista until SP1, as we did with XP. What, you've *never* had a Windows update catch you by surprise and either crash a computer, or cause some weird interaction with another app or your internal systems? I've seen it quite a number of times. Sure, WSUS helps mitigate that somewhat, but you never *really* know until a patch/app is deployed in the field what true effect it will have.
I was using MS Exchange and MS Office on Windows for a while and was very happy about the prospect. However, on many occasions, right when I really needed to get at something, the Exchange server was simply broken, or, Windows on my PC crashed. I'm sure you've seen Windows get into a confused state where you cannot log in. This usually results in you having to boot into safe mode or do a repair install, though this doesn't always work. Microsoft makes some change somewhere, and then after a while they figure it out and fix it. But they never tell you when to expect new patches. Microsoft just rolls out new code whenever they feel like it and you wind up suffering.
Until they start to design their software more like professional IT grade software, I can't see how anyone can run a business on it.
We use them in the Engineering College at our university -- about 30% of lab computers and 5% of desktops. We're trying to push them because they make way more sense financially. It's an uphill battle against user ennui (they're used to Windows and our thin clients are Solaris, although we do have Citrix-to-Windows-server functionality). We're also part of a pilot program to push them out to dorm users (slogan: a SunRay for every pillow!)
We're using SunRay thin clients from Sun, which have just gotten better (actual USB peripheral support, and real graphics!)
I'm also in the midst of a project to convert old semi-useless (PIII and lower) PCs to linux-based thin clients at my daughter's charter school, which is chronically strapped for funds. It would free up about half of their IT budget to get rid of the Microsoft tax.
The amount of human lifetimes that are wasted waiting for PC's to reboot is pretty horrifying - and there's a lot more than a million of them. Someone should take this seriously.
You can always try multitasking instead of staring at the screen waiting for it to boot. Grab some coffee, adjust your chair, read your snailmail, chat with your cubicle neighbors, whatever. I learned to not wait for the computer back when I would query the tape drive on my C-64.
You're totally right, but the ironic part is that when you go to inner Mongolia and see Windows come up on the screen, you'll also see the familiar unwanted spyware toolbars, Windows update icon in the system tray screaming for attention to install updates, the security center whining about antivirus defs being out of date, a couple of random "not found" autostartup links, etc etc... it's universal, yes, but is universal bad-ness a good thing?
I honestly have yet to find a vacumn cleaner these days that work beyond a few years.
That's easy. Don't shop at Wal-Mart. Go find a vaccuum cleaner shop. They exist, the people who work there are generally great help and know their vaccuums, and let you try before you buy.
That's a specific example, but it works for everything. Find a reputable dealer, one that specializes. Yes, you will generally pay more up front. But it will last 20x longer than the cheap crap Wal-Mart version.
Re:Maybe Joe Schmoe shouldn't be using a computer.
on
AOL 9.0 Called Badware
·
· Score: 1
If Joe Schmoe decides he wants to click "Yes" when AnnoyingAdBar, LLC tells him to, than doesn't he pretty much get what he deserves?
I hear you, but the problem is, when he runs an unpatched system and gets hit by a mass emailing virus that spams the world... then it's everyone's problem, not just his.
Judging by what I've seen on Usenet, email and Slashdot posts, unix admins don't know what the Caps Lock (or Shift) key is, anyway, so this doesn't really apply to them.
Two solutions to mouse balls being stolen:
1) Glue down the removable mouse ball covers. Sure, you can no longer clean the mouse balls, but you can get non-optical mice for a buck each if you look around.
2) Replace with optical mice. You can get these for $3 each if you look around. This way you don't have to deal with mouse pads.
I run several University computer labs for a living, and voluntarily run a junior high & high school computer lab. I speak from experience. (One other thing we do at the junior high computer lab, since their pasttime is to bounce the computer mouse balls down the hall, is to keep the lab regularly stocked with bouncy balls. You can get those real, real cheap: a bag at the dollar store, or order in bulk from a novelty store.)
Seriously. As long as stupid people respond to spam, it will continue to make money for spammers. Currently spammers have an overwhelming tactical advantage over users (and sysadmins) in the spam fight, because it costs practically nothing to create spam, whereas the toll to users and sysadmins is enormous, as are the resources marshalled by sysadmins to combat spam.
Unfortunately, spam is a business model that works, thanks to people's poor judgement and gullibility. It's not so much a technical problem as it is a social engineering problem.
What I say to my mom is, "There's nothing you can break that I can't fix." Yes, I've had to fix a very few things, but for the most part, it makes her more brave and willing to try things rather than to ask me if she can click on anything. I think the payoff is worth it.
Intriguing thought. Wouldn't work, though. I can tell you from personal experience (I am an IT manager at a university, and one of my roles is to purchase software) that most major purchases (including technology) have more to do with politics than you would think. (Actually, more university operations are more guided by politics than you would like to think.) Any "state contract" pricing for technology is usually not a great deal, if it's even better off at all*. IT "standards" are normally decided by a higher-level committee and are almost always guided by someone's personal agenda. (Someone more politically powerful than anyone else on the committee.) Sometimes IT mandates are handed down to the university from the state government.
At many universities (mine included), the individual Colleges and Departments often have great autonomy but little support from central IT if they deviate from the norm. Most individual departments simply don't have the resources (in terms of technology or human capital) to deviate from the norm that way. And when it comes down to it, we have clients -- i.e. the faculty, staff and students who may ask for or demand certain IT functions which may necessitate going directions we'd rather not go. More often than not, this means mainstream, i.e. Microsoft.
I'm fortunate to work within an Engineering College which does happen to have resources to deviate from the central campus IT and do what we deem necessary and beneficial to our educational mission. We're a non-discriminatory OS & software bunch: We support Windows, Mac, Unix, Linux; 1/3 of our open computer labs are Sunray thin clients; we install OpenOffice right next to MS Office on every system; we've effectively banned IE and replaced it with Firefox. Plus, we fought to not have to buy Dell PCs and instead chose our own (whitebox) vendor. Unfortunately, we're hampered by central campus IT: We have to allow IE use for some users because some central campus resources are only managed with IE; after years of banning Outlook, we're forced to start allowing it because the central campus IT just implemented Exchange server for the entire campus calendar; and we're installing more and more MS products because the campus just bought a Microsoft Campus agreement (and billed each department for their share). Finally, there's absolutely no way the majority of our computer labs could be non-Microsoft, because the specialized Engineering software that's needed to teach courses is in most cases only written for Windows computers.
*Our Dell "discount" is actually more expensive than a non-affiliated customer's base price, for the same systems. It's easy to spot: Just go to the Dell site and go through the "Academic" portal, identify yourself as to which contract you have, then go back to the Dell site and go through the normal business portal. I have actually seen that in some cases, for the exact same systems, the contract pricing is more expensive. Dell isn't the only one that does this, either.
Honestly, I think I'm putting way too much thought into this, but... assuming you did own English, think about marketing it like software!
You could have upgrades for every new generation of people... "Get all the new slang you hear from the young'uns! Only $149.95 with proof of purchase of a previous English Language Pack(tm)! (Upgrading from Olde English does not qualify)"
Or you might have it based on a subscription model. "$49.99 per year entitles you to unlimited upgrades, so you can learn the new technobabble as soon as it leaves Silicon Valley!"
Competitive upgrades! "Migrate from your existing language for the special promotional offer of $169.99! Act now and you'll receive the free Rhymes plug-in!"
Of course it would come in a suite: Comprehension, Speech and Writing as separate (but interoperable) modules. (If MS owned it, each module would come in 7 different 'flavors', which incorporated a highly complex mix of regional dialects and education levels. I fear the Corporate version, to be honest.)
Heh. English On-Demand. Now there's a possibility.
You have used a PC. You just said you use Macs. Macs are PCs.
Repeat after me:
"PC" refers to Personal Computer. It is the hardware architecture.
"Windows" or "MacOS" (aka "OSX" and earlier versions) refers to the Operating System.
Macs are personal computers that, until now, have only been able to use one Operating System, MacOS.
Windows has, until now, only been able to run on non-Apple-brand PC hardware.
Now that the dynamics of those has changed, hopefully the term "PC" will become a little less corrupted.
(As someone who's used a linux OS with AMD hardware, I also especially wince at the term "Wintel" to describe non-Mac PCs.)
The very simple answer to that is because users want it. It doesn't matter if it's a smart idea, or efficient, or flies in the face of the project's original philosophies. At some point you have to decide if you are creating software for your benefit or for the users'. The users want/demand an integrated email/calendar app. If Mozilla doesn't supply it, someone else will. (And does.) If Mozilla does supply it, it will likely be better than other similar products. Either way, the users who want an integrated email/calendar app will use one -- whether or not Mozilla makes one. You are not going to change their (collective) minds about it. Personally, I would rather see Thunerbird become a bit more bloated (or have an offshoot) and still be able to convert Joe User away from Outscum.
In all seriousness, the "analog" solution you mention is much more versatile than any PDA.
For years I've been using a simple pen and mini paper notebook in the back pocket. (Not front pocket protector, I'm not an Engineer.) Lately I've been using the PocketMod. It's extremely useful and versatile, but does require frequent "recharging".
Not installing them doesn't always help. In a former job I was a sysadmin assigned the task of removing all games from the company's PCs. It seems a certain department had an addiction to Solitaire. I did that, but they were just savvy enough to copy sol.exe from their home computer to the PC's c:\temp (which was required to stay open access).
Kids (and game-playing employees) will find a way, y'know.
It's not so much about how complex the code is, though that should definitely factor in. The problem is that paying programmers to patch products that someone has already paid for doesn't earn you any money. It's the bottom line.
Quick and easy solution for you:
(1) Copy and Paste into OpenOffice Writer.
(2) Highlight the text.
(3) From the Format menu, choose Change Case, then Lowercase.
Voila!
Slashdot Mirror
Yes, my comment was meant to be tongue-in-cheek. The point I was trying to make is that no system is perfect. It bothers me intensely that every time an alternative to Microsoft is discussed, each and every objection can be applied to Microsoft products too. The one common thread is that the alternatives are almost always much, much more cost effective than Microsoft.
It sounds like you're fortunate to have a well-equipped IT shop watching your back (e.g. PXE and bootp overnight). I wonder how much your business is spending on in-house IT? Just because you don't spend it from your budget doesn't mean your company's not spending it. And just because you, as an end user, don't see the problems doesn't mean someone didn't have to pull an all-nighter frantically working behind the scenes to fix things.
And your comment about web apps breaking? We have some internal IE-only apps that broke when IE7 was released. My guess is that IE, which is not and never has been standards compliant, changes their own "standards" far more frequently than w3c does. So that objection doesn't hold water.
And FYI, we're not on the bleeding edge. We've decided not to do a mass deployment of Vista until SP1, as we did with XP. What, you've *never* had a Windows update catch you by surprise and either crash a computer, or cause some weird interaction with another app or your internal systems? I've seen it quite a number of times. Sure, WSUS helps mitigate that somewhat, but you never *really* know until a patch/app is deployed in the field what true effect it will have.
I was using MS Exchange and MS Office on Windows for a while and was very happy about the prospect. However, on many occasions, right when I really needed to get at something, the Exchange server was simply broken, or, Windows on my PC crashed. I'm sure you've seen Windows get into a confused state where you cannot log in. This usually results in you having to boot into safe mode or do a repair install, though this doesn't always work. Microsoft makes some change somewhere, and then after a while they figure it out and fix it. But they never tell you when to expect new patches. Microsoft just rolls out new code whenever they feel like it and you wind up suffering.
Until they start to design their software more like professional IT grade software, I can't see how anyone can run a business on it.
We use them in the Engineering College at our university -- about 30% of lab computers and 5% of desktops. We're trying to push them because they make way more sense financially. It's an uphill battle against user ennui (they're used to Windows and our thin clients are Solaris, although we do have Citrix-to-Windows-server functionality). We're also part of a pilot program to push them out to dorm users (slogan: a SunRay for every pillow!)
We're using SunRay thin clients from Sun, which have just gotten better (actual USB peripheral support, and real graphics!)
I'm also in the midst of a project to convert old semi-useless (PIII and lower) PCs to linux-based thin clients at my daughter's charter school, which is chronically strapped for funds. It would free up about half of their IT budget to get rid of the Microsoft tax.
You can always try multitasking instead of staring at the screen waiting for it to boot. Grab some coffee, adjust your chair, read your snailmail, chat with your cubicle neighbors, whatever. I learned to not wait for the computer back when I would query the tape drive on my C-64.
You're totally right, but the ironic part is that when you go to inner Mongolia and see Windows come up on the screen, you'll also see the familiar unwanted spyware toolbars, Windows update icon in the system tray screaming for attention to install updates, the security center whining about antivirus defs being out of date, a couple of random "not found" autostartup links, etc etc... it's universal, yes, but is universal bad-ness a good thing?
That's easy. Don't shop at Wal-Mart. Go find a vaccuum cleaner shop. They exist, the people who work there are generally great help and know their vaccuums, and let you try before you buy.
That's a specific example, but it works for everything. Find a reputable dealer, one that specializes. Yes, you will generally pay more up front. But it will last 20x longer than the cheap crap Wal-Mart version.
Judging by what I've seen on Usenet, email and Slashdot posts, unix admins don't know what the Caps Lock (or Shift) key is, anyway, so this doesn't really apply to them.
Two solutions to mouse balls being stolen: 1) Glue down the removable mouse ball covers. Sure, you can no longer clean the mouse balls, but you can get non-optical mice for a buck each if you look around. 2) Replace with optical mice. You can get these for $3 each if you look around. This way you don't have to deal with mouse pads. I run several University computer labs for a living, and voluntarily run a junior high & high school computer lab. I speak from experience. (One other thing we do at the junior high computer lab, since their pasttime is to bounce the computer mouse balls down the hall, is to keep the lab regularly stocked with bouncy balls. You can get those real, real cheap: a bag at the dollar store, or order in bulk from a novelty store.)
It's this: Make people smarter!
Seriously. As long as stupid people respond to spam, it will continue to make money for spammers. Currently spammers have an overwhelming tactical advantage over users (and sysadmins) in the spam fight, because it costs practically nothing to create spam, whereas the toll to users and sysadmins is enormous, as are the resources marshalled by sysadmins to combat spam.
Unfortunately, spam is a business model that works, thanks to people's poor judgement and gullibility. It's not so much a technical problem as it is a social engineering problem.
What I say to my mom is, "There's nothing you can break that I can't fix." Yes, I've had to fix a very few things, but for the most part, it makes her more brave and willing to try things rather than to ask me if she can click on anything. I think the payoff is worth it.
Intriguing thought. Wouldn't work, though. I can tell you from personal experience (I am an IT manager at a university, and one of my roles is to purchase software) that most major purchases (including technology) have more to do with politics than you would think. (Actually, more university operations are more guided by politics than you would like to think.) Any "state contract" pricing for technology is usually not a great deal, if it's even better off at all*. IT "standards" are normally decided by a higher-level committee and are almost always guided by someone's personal agenda. (Someone more politically powerful than anyone else on the committee.) Sometimes IT mandates are handed down to the university from the state government.
At many universities (mine included), the individual Colleges and Departments often have great autonomy but little support from central IT if they deviate from the norm. Most individual departments simply don't have the resources (in terms of technology or human capital) to deviate from the norm that way. And when it comes down to it, we have clients -- i.e. the faculty, staff and students who may ask for or demand certain IT functions which may necessitate going directions we'd rather not go. More often than not, this means mainstream, i.e. Microsoft.
I'm fortunate to work within an Engineering College which does happen to have resources to deviate from the central campus IT and do what we deem necessary and beneficial to our educational mission. We're a non-discriminatory OS & software bunch: We support Windows, Mac, Unix, Linux; 1/3 of our open computer labs are Sunray thin clients; we install OpenOffice right next to MS Office on every system; we've effectively banned IE and replaced it with Firefox. Plus, we fought to not have to buy Dell PCs and instead chose our own (whitebox) vendor. Unfortunately, we're hampered by central campus IT: We have to allow IE use for some users because some central campus resources are only managed with IE; after years of banning Outlook, we're forced to start allowing it because the central campus IT just implemented Exchange server for the entire campus calendar; and we're installing more and more MS products because the campus just bought a Microsoft Campus agreement (and billed each department for their share). Finally, there's absolutely no way the majority of our computer labs could be non-Microsoft, because the specialized Engineering software that's needed to teach courses is in most cases only written for Windows computers.
*Our Dell "discount" is actually more expensive than a non-affiliated customer's base price, for the same systems. It's easy to spot: Just go to the Dell site and go through the "Academic" portal, identify yourself as to which contract you have, then go back to the Dell site and go through the normal business portal. I have actually seen that in some cases, for the exact same systems, the contract pricing is more expensive. Dell isn't the only one that does this, either.
I have one word for you: Wheee!
Honestly, I think I'm putting way too much thought into this, but... assuming you did own English, think about marketing it like software!
You could have upgrades for every new generation of people... "Get all the new slang you hear from the young'uns! Only $149.95 with proof of purchase of a previous English Language Pack(tm)! (Upgrading from Olde English does not qualify)"
Or you might have it based on a subscription model. "$49.99 per year entitles you to unlimited upgrades, so you can learn the new technobabble as soon as it leaves Silicon Valley!"
Competitive upgrades! "Migrate from your existing language for the special promotional offer of $169.99! Act now and you'll receive the free Rhymes plug-in!"
Of course it would come in a suite: Comprehension, Speech and Writing as separate (but interoperable) modules. (If MS owned it, each module would come in 7 different 'flavors', which incorporated a highly complex mix of regional dialects and education levels. I fear the Corporate version, to be honest.)
Heh. English On-Demand. Now there's a possibility.
You have used a PC. You just said you use Macs. Macs are PCs.
Repeat after me:
"PC" refers to Personal Computer. It is the hardware architecture.
"Windows" or "MacOS" (aka "OSX" and earlier versions) refers to the Operating System.
Macs are personal computers that, until now, have only been able to use one Operating System, MacOS.
Windows has, until now, only been able to run on non-Apple-brand PC hardware.
Now that the dynamics of those has changed, hopefully the term "PC" will become a little less corrupted.
(As someone who's used a linux OS with AMD hardware, I also especially wince at the term "Wintel" to describe non-Mac PCs.)
The very simple answer to that is because users want it. It doesn't matter if it's a smart idea, or efficient, or flies in the face of the project's original philosophies. At some point you have to decide if you are creating software for your benefit or for the users'. The users want/demand an integrated email/calendar app. If Mozilla doesn't supply it, someone else will. (And does.) If Mozilla does supply it, it will likely be better than other similar products. Either way, the users who want an integrated email/calendar app will use one -- whether or not Mozilla makes one. You are not going to change their (collective) minds about it. Personally, I would rather see Thunerbird become a bit more bloated (or have an offshoot) and still be able to convert Joe User away from Outscum.
In all seriousness, the "analog" solution you mention is much more versatile than any PDA.
For years I've been using a simple pen and mini paper notebook in the back pocket. (Not front pocket protector, I'm not an Engineer.) Lately I've been using the PocketMod. It's extremely useful and versatile, but does require frequent "recharging".
Not installing them doesn't always help. In a former job I was a sysadmin assigned the task of removing all games from the company's PCs. It seems a certain department had an addiction to Solitaire. I did that, but they were just savvy enough to copy sol.exe from their home computer to the PC's c:\temp (which was required to stay open access).
Kids (and game-playing employees) will find a way, y'know.
No, this is the real Jem.
It's not so much about how complex the code is, though that should definitely factor in. The problem is that paying programmers to patch products that someone has already paid for doesn't earn you any money. It's the bottom line.
- Sony rootkit ate my balls!
Pshaw, that's nothing. I cured myself of Slashdot once.
Okay, yes, I relapsed.
Quick and easy solution for you:
(1) Copy and Paste into OpenOffice Writer.
(2) Highlight the text.
(3) From the Format menu, choose Change Case, then Lowercase.
Voila!