Silly silly people.
You don't want one so you lie and say that a repository is the same as an app store.
I don't think it's that we don't want one, generally speaking, it's just that the culture behind Linux doesn't really lend itself to a paid apps store setup. The good games you've cited would probably already exist in free-as-in-beer form, were a programmer interested enough to create them.
Let me preface by saying that I use Linux exclusively, save for an XP VM. With XP, you can still get the most recent releases of software. Not so with older releases of Linux. There's no way I can run Fedora core 4 even without upgrading EVERYTHING - a huge pain - and then it's not an old distribution anymore. They rely on newer versions of either Gnome or KDE to get the latest versions of the best software to run.
Try Firefox. Try OpenOffice. Try Amarok. Those are just three examples.
Umm Flash on the other hand requires you to install a 3rd party plugin that may not work well (or at all) depending on what platform/browser you use.
True enough.
But the (protected) content people want happens to be in Flash, and because of that specific ability, I am willing to bet that publishers will be reluctant to use anything as open as HTML5. Yes, I understand that HTML5 can wrap Flash content, but why add the extra layer? I just can't see sites like hulu.com doing that, as much as I would like to see it happen.
As far as Flash performance, maybe my expectations are lowered, but I've never really had great problems on any fairly recent Linux distribution (last 5 years or so).
If you only base your decision on your friends recommendations, you would never look at anything 'new'. Somebody needs to do that.
Look at it from another point view:
If you've used Boxee and use the social aspects of that, you've most likely discovered shows and/or music (and other online content) you probably didn't know existed. I've also discovered new things through Facebook.
I think there's room enough for more than one way to get information, be it impartial or through a circle of friends and colleagues, as would be the case with LinkedIn. Discovery is discovery, wherever you get it.
Myself I simply store contact info "in the cloud", use my MP3 player to hold all my music and occasionally sync it to all computers to have a copy, any needed documents are either somewhere on my e-mail or on a USB drive,
I do the opposite with my mp3s.. I have a media server in the living room that has my entire collection. from there I mount those (NFS, in my case) to whichever system I happen to be working on. Or I copy different songs onto my mp3 player before leaving the house with it.
For documents, I use Opengoo (http://www.opengoo.org). It was super easy to set up on my hosted server, and for what I do - translation - it allows me to let my clients interact with the documents as well, should I want/need them to. I highly recommend it.
I do pretty much the same as you for my contacts, and sync them to my BB.
Most people on/. know what "Iteration" means; but PLEASE find me 10 (non-dev and non-IT) people on the street who can give a definition of "Iteration" in that sentence.
I think you're giving the slashdot crowd a bit too much patting on the back.
The word "iteration" has been around a very long time - most high school educated people know what the word means. And if they don't, they've got bigger things to worry about. Really.
for those that buy DRMed music. E-books are another story.
Every single piece of DRMed music is available in some other format, be it a purchasable CD (my personal choice), or via other, possibly less legal means. Get your music in a non-DRMed format and do what you like with it.
It's not like this is the first time we've heard of customers getting shafted by DRM. It's been going on for years. Learn from it and move on to something you know you can use.
I have an N800 and it's a great pocketable device. But it doesn't really do what I want, that is, hang a panel on the kitchen wall, for browsing, music and video.
I also have a Pepper Pad 3 - that came close (and it's still in the kitchen, albeit on the countertop), but there is no decent distribution for it.
The Crunchpad looks like it would fit the bill, and looks good too. Hung on the wall it could be a digital picture frame too.
Your reply is extremely disingenuous, although I expect that from people who automatically discount solutions from Microsoft based on nothing more than prejudice.
Nope, haven't discounted anything from Microsoft. My point was that there ARE other solutions, even commercial, out there. Whether you think they are deficient or not probably shows that you haven't even bothered to look at the alternatives.
Nobody's put together a half-competent framework which deals with the management side and doesn't require you to spend a fortnight just figuring out how to get started with it.
Ever hear of a little company called Novell? eDirectory does everything you've considered.
As for spending a fortnight figuring out how to get started... well, frankly, if you're setting up any kind of directory service, you SHOULD be spending a good amount of time figuring things out. That kind of thing shouldn't be setup or administered by anyone but an administrator, familiar with the entire network infrastructure.
It kind of amazes me that the same people who scream "Well don't use Windows/Linux/whatever if it doesn't do what you want!" are the same ones who do nothing but whine and continue to use a product solely based on its label and cool factor.
Do you remember the Live 8 concert? Their technology pulled it off pretty flawlessly. Not even normal cable providers who supposedly could handle it could do it better than AOL. MTV's coverage was abysmal, for example.
Call me suspicious, but Boxee have always made it clear that they eventually plan to sell a set top box.
My bet is that Hulu would do the same, although they've made no announcement of that intention. They are, after all, currently the number one site to go to for network shows. It would be nice branding for an "internet TV receiver".
Slashdot Mirror
I don't think it's that we don't want one, generally speaking, it's just that the culture behind Linux doesn't really lend itself to a paid apps store setup. The good games you've cited would probably already exist in free-as-in-beer form, were a programmer interested enough to create them.
Yes it's a bad example. It's pretty much the only example out there right now.
I also think that if a company that actually sells Linux can't do it, a phone company CERTAINLY won't be able to.
I would think that all any would have to do is take a look at how CNR has done and conclude that it's a waste of time.
As others have pointed out, most distributions have their own repositories that handle the job.
Try Firefox. Try OpenOffice. Try Amarok. Those are just three examples.
Trust me, I've tried (Damn Pepper Pad 3).
True enough.
But the (protected) content people want happens to be in Flash, and because of that specific ability, I am willing to bet that publishers will be reluctant to use anything as open as HTML5. Yes, I understand that HTML5 can wrap Flash content, but why add the extra layer? I just can't see sites like hulu.com doing that, as much as I would like to see it happen.
As far as Flash performance, maybe my expectations are lowered, but I've never really had great problems on any fairly recent Linux distribution (last 5 years or so).
Only if you let it. It's not invasive with some forethought.
Look at it from another point view:
If you've used Boxee and use the social aspects of that, you've most likely discovered shows and/or music (and other online content) you probably didn't know existed. I've also discovered new things through Facebook.
I think there's room enough for more than one way to get information, be it impartial or through a circle of friends and colleagues, as would be the case with LinkedIn. Discovery is discovery, wherever you get it.
No Apple hate here. Go back and read it again. It was a statement - no more, no less.
Around long before the iPhone, but it was a nice try to attribute that to the iPhone.
I do the opposite with my mp3s.. I have a media server in the living room that has my entire collection. from there I mount those (NFS, in my case) to whichever system I happen to be working on. Or I copy different songs onto my mp3 player before leaving the house with it.
For documents, I use Opengoo (http://www.opengoo.org). It was super easy to set up on my hosted server, and for what I do - translation - it allows me to let my clients interact with the documents as well, should I want/need them to. I highly recommend it.
I do pretty much the same as you for my contacts, and sync them to my BB.
I thought Java was already quite open.
Doesn't mean it's easy. But it's open.
I think you're giving the slashdot crowd a bit too much patting on the back.
The word "iteration" has been around a very long time - most high school educated people know what the word means. And if they don't, they've got bigger things to worry about. Really.
Every single piece of DRMed music is available in some other format, be it a purchasable CD (my personal choice), or via other, possibly less legal means. Get your music in a non-DRMed format and do what you like with it.
It's not like this is the first time we've heard of customers getting shafted by DRM. It's been going on for years. Learn from it and move on to something you know you can use.
All these smartphones can tether. It's the carriers that prevent it, not the hardware.
I also have a Pepper Pad 3 - that came close (and it's still in the kitchen, albeit on the countertop), but there is no decent distribution for it.
The Crunchpad looks like it would fit the bill, and looks good too. Hung on the wall it could be a digital picture frame too.
Nope, haven't discounted anything from Microsoft. My point was that there ARE other solutions, even commercial, out there. Whether you think they are deficient or not probably shows that you haven't even bothered to look at the alternatives.
Ever hear of a little company called Novell? eDirectory does everything you've considered.
As for spending a fortnight figuring out how to get started... well, frankly, if you're setting up any kind of directory service, you SHOULD be spending a good amount of time figuring things out. That kind of thing shouldn't be setup or administered by anyone but an administrator, familiar with the entire network infrastructure.
They used LTSP and tftp to boot the image off the server, essentially making the desktops terminals.
If I were setting up an office, that would be the way I would go. Everything is centralized and easily backed up.
It is an office environment, after all. The users probably complained the first month, then got over it and did their work.
Wired are just writing to their reader base. That's what magazines do.
There ARE other options out there.
Do you remember the Live 8 concert? Their technology pulled it off pretty flawlessly. Not even normal cable providers who supposedly could handle it could do it better than AOL. MTV's coverage was abysmal, for example.
If you go to Boxee's site, then click download, you are given VERY clear instructions on what needs to be done.
The poster's "I've been trying to find it for ages" translates as "I'm too lazy to even bother going to the site". Seriously.
If someone is interested in an application (particularly an app that's still in alpha), the first thing they should do is visit their website.
My bet is that Hulu would do the same, although they've made no announcement of that intention. They are, after all, currently the number one site to go to for network shows. It would be nice branding for an "internet TV receiver".
Uh... have you not poked around boxee's site AT ALL? They give you VERY clear instructions on how to add the repository (Ubuntu is supported).
As I run Boxee on Ubuntu and I get all the ads from Hulu. Currently using the latest Boxee build, which uses the Hulu public feeds.