That's the one really nice thing about having a very common name. You always have plausible deniability.
Potential Employer: We have found some troubling things on the Internet attribitued to you Mr./Ms. (insert very common name)
You: Um, that's not me.
Potential Empoyer: We would like to believe you, but your name is all over it.
You: Do you have any idea how common my name is? Just Google it! You'll find people with the same name as me all over the internet!
Potential Employer: Hmm.. Good point. Ok, you're hired!
Ok, maybe that's a bit simplified, but the overall principle remains the same. As long as there aren't full-face photos of you doing porn, alcohol or drugs, you should be OK.
Of course, people with uncommon names don't have it so easy. Sucks to be them I guess.
Is why there aren't any photo printers out there that just use the Polaroid style of image development. Polaroids last nearly as long as traditionally developed photos, and loading a pack of polaroids into a small printer seems like it would be a whole lot easier than dealing with separate printer paper and ink. Of course, then you lose the "multifunction" portion of the printer, but you end up with much higher quality prints anyway, so who cares?
If you like your music to actually SOUND good, 128kbps sucks. I personally rip my music using a Variable bitrate between 224 and 320 kbps. Unfortunately, this makes for VERY large files. But my music sounds FANTASTIC!
My apologies if I offended. The problem with generalities is that they are sometimes inadequate. Yes, the Intel integrated chipsets ARE well supported in Ubuntu. However many of the other ones are not.
Also, I was basing my statement in part on the fact that the Linux base model laptop will have dedicated video, and the base model Windows versions will have integrated video. I made an assumption I should not have about the reasoning behind that.
Either way, I don't think you would argue with the fact that a dedicated video card is generally a better option than an integrated one. If the Linux boxes come with dedicated video by default, then that would go a long way towards explaining the lack of a huge price differential between the competing base model units.
the money quote: "The Criminal Code, in its Sections 185, 189 and 194, prohibits the defamation and denigration of the character of deceased persons and make such denigration punishable by law. The statement that Jews were not persecuted during National Socialism is clearly false. The mass murder of Jews in the gas chambers of the Third Reich is a historical fact that has been proven by countless witness statements and documents, numerous court rulings and extensive historical research."
And: "The "Auschwitz-Lge" (Holocaust Denial) may also be prosecuted under Section 130 of the Criminal Code, which makes incitement (Volksverhetzung) a punishable offense. The current German legal interpretation of incitement protects public peace and human dignity. The constitutional foundation of the Federal Republic of Germany recognizes no interest that could justify injuring the personal honor and dignity of some of its citizens and promoting enmity and hatred toward them."
So yes, Denying the Holocaust is ILLEGAL in Germany, and you CAN get thrown in jail.
Just a friendly reminder that historically speaking your more likely to be killed by a believer in the "Religion of Love" than the 'Religion of Peace"
Just a friendly reminder that you are absolutely full of shit.
Historically, Islam has and continues to be a religion of barbarism, tribalism and conquest. Mohammed himself was a warrior chieftain famous for killing those he disagreed with. Islam has had ONE I repeat ONE bright spot, and that was Sufism. Unfortunately, the Sufists were exterminated by the Salafists in the east, and by power hungry Europeans in the west. Where Salsfism has reigned, things have changed little since the 7th century, and the followers of that religion just bring their brutality and primitive mindset with them to the west when they move.
Historically, Christianity (the Religion of Love) has had ONE dark spot on it's otherwise mostly peaceful existence, The Crusades. Before and since Christianity has been a largely peaceful religion, focusing on the spiritual rather than the physical. That's not to say that there haven't been other problems, but on the whole Christianity has been good for Western society.
Generally speaking, the followers of Christ have left dark ages barbarism behind them, and have helped to build a prosperous western society. The followers of Islam remain stuck in the past, and rather than follow the Christians into the present and future, seemed bound and determined to drag us all back into the dark ages with them. So please, don't insult our intelligence by equating Christianity to Islam. You only make yourself look foolish.
My old laptop is actually 2 1/2 years old. So my old laptop would be the same age as the one he is going to spend $400 on, and I only paid $650 for it new. Sounds like I'm getting the better deal here.
Besides, I've found that the useful life of most laptops is about 3-4 years. After that they start to either have battery issues, Power Adapter problems, loose or sticky lid hinges, worn keys, cracked frames and other component problems that require either repair or costly replacement parts. Not to mention you usually end up immediately investing money in RAM upgrades, as they are always under-RAMmed. You are basically at a point of diminishing returns with older machines like that. You end up paying out as much money to keep the older, slower, worn-out machine going as you would have if you had just ponied up the extra $200 - $300 for a low-end new one with a full warranty and support.
Old machines are fine as free hand-me-downs or when bought in large quantities where a few units can be parts-scavenged to repair other ones, but buying new is almost always the better way to go. Now that Dell is giving us the option for brand new with Linux, there really isn't any excuse other than penny-wise pound-foolishness.
Don't forget there are always direct funds transfers, and quick-cash. If you can make a good replica of a CC or bank card, and have the correct info, it's often easy to just use it for quick cash at ATMs. Just wear an appropriate disguise and hunch over a bit to cover your height. With enough cards you can clean up quick.
Also, I have hear of instances where people will use a stolen CC to setup a fake bank account, and then perform many small wire transfers from other CC"s into the fake account until it has a large amount in it. Then they just empty the bank account (or transfer the money away to an overseas account) and walk away quite a bit richer.
They may be out of date, but they work fine for office stuff, on-site troubleshooting, and graphics editing.
But see, here's the thing; If I didn't care about being up to date, I'd keep my OLD laptop (which works just fine), spend $0.00 and laugh at you. But the point of getting a new laptop is to get a NEW (as in UNUSED) laptop. Why in hades would I get someone else's used laptop when I want a new, up to date one? It kind of defeats the purpose by buying a used one.
Dell has given us the opportunity to buy a fully-supported, warrantied, brand spanking new laptop (Mmm new laptop smell!) with Linux pre-installed! And you want to whine about Dell? Geez! Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face! Besides, as I said, your quality complaints about Dell are not accurate for the general market. Any large corporation is going to have a few lemons, perhaps you were unlucky enough to be stuck with one. But honestly, your complaining smacks of elitist snobbery, and anti-Dell trolling.
Oh, and you won't be able to find a Powerbook (Intel or G4) for around 400 bucks, unless it's damaged in some way. So yeah, you STILL won't have a "better" machine than the brand-new Dell, as Apple is really the only high-quality leader. Everybody else (Dell, HP, Lenovo, Gateway, Acer, Asus, Toshiba, Etc.) Are all pretty much equal in quality, and an old, used & worn laptop from one of them is all you will be able to afford at that cheap price.
If you want new, and Linux, Dell is now the way to go. Good for them, good for us, just generally good all around.
And I'll be laughing at you when I buy a better-quality used laptop for $300-400 and install Ubuntu on it.
Unless you are going to be buying a used Mac Powerbook, I doubt that will be happening.
A used notebook is going to be used, abused, and worn out. Even the much-vaunted Thinkpads are not indestructible, and the notebooks that sell at the prices you mention are going to be more than 3 years old, and completely out of date.
I've not found the Dell laptops to be any better or worse than the competition, and I carry my laptop with me pretty much everywhere I go, so it gets plenty of abuse. It sounds to me like you just have a bug up your butt about Dell. With that I cannot help you, as no matter what I say, your obvious irrational hate of all things Dell will not allow you to take a balanced approach to this issue. It's too bad, because Dell and Ubuntu really do need our support as a community if this is going to work. Trolling Dell for personal reasons just gets in the way.
And before you go off on me as a Dell fanboy, Keep in mind that I was hired into an already established "Dell shop". My company as a long-standing relationship with Dell, and regardless of my personal preferences, Dell is what we use. We have thousands of machines, all Dell, and I have had to work on EVERY ONE of them. I have dealt with Dell support, and I have worked with a Dell Rep. So I'm not just working on the one or two machines owned by family and friends, these boxes are my job to keep running. I have found that duty to be reasonably easy. Yes, we have had our share of lemon machines, but no more than I have run into at other places, with other makes of PC. Dell is no worse or better than any other manufacturer in regards to the general quality of their PCs, excepting perhaps Apple, but those aren't so good in a Windows software programmer shop, so I can't get them.
Dell deserves our support. They listened to their customers, and are giving us what we wanted. They deserve to have this risk rewarded.
They are basically the lost leader prices they use to "get you in the door". Once there you can still customize the laptop or desktop with any number of hardware selections, including more RAM, better processor, and larger hard drive. These machines also come with dedicated video cards, as the integrated video isn't supported very well by Ubuntu. So you are STARTING OUT with a better base model than the Windows base model. (Which also explains why the Linux laptop is more expensive than the Windows one.)
My company has been a Dell shop for as long as I have been here, and I've become VERY familiar with Dell's setup. Keep in mind, Dell has been selling "open Source" (Free DOS) Desktops and laptops for YEARS already. Adding Ubuntu isn't THAT much of a change for them. I'd also imagine that you will find that the support package offered by Dell will actually be a Canonical support contract. This was a natural next step for Dell, and I think that all Slashdotters should get behind them. Not just with their words, but with their Dollars. I know that when it's time to replace my personal laptop (in about 6 months), I'll be going through Dell, and getting an Ubuntu Laptop.
Maybe now everybody will go to their site using this JS hack to see what they play...
I know I did. I've been listening to ad-free jazz music for several hours now! I even bookmarked the URL in Winamp, so now I can listen to their station ad-free whenever I want!
Far MORE terrifying is Cheney dying in office due to heart failure and Speaker of the House Nancy "Lugosi" taking over. *shudder*
So yeah, I'm VERY VERY glad that they are taking every possible precaution to keep Bush alive. If your teenager can't text her "bff jill" for a few minutes too bad. Just think of it as a "Presidential discount" on your cell phone bill.
Not to take away from your point, but it's not the cancer that causes the baldness, it's the chemotherapy. If the chemotherapy works and kills the cancer cells, it is stopped and your hair grows back. If the chemotherapy doesn't work, then hair loss is the least of your problems.
As you know, Windows has a particular look to it's User Interface (the windows, the task bar, the buttons, all the stuff you interact with to make the computer do stuff for you.) In Windows XP, the User Interface (or UI) is called Luna. In Windows Vista there are Two UI's; Aero (the core UI), and Aero Glass (the nifty 3D one)
Well Linux has MANY available UI's that can be loaded. GNOME and KDE are the two most popular. Most distributions ("brands", if you prefer) of Linux choose at least one UI to start with. Ubuntu Linux uses the GNOME UI. Kubuntu uses the KDE UI.
As far as selecting one over the other, it's really a matter of personal taste:
KDE is the traditional "Windowsy" looking UI. It has a task bar along the bottom of the screen, and the KDE equivalent to the "Start" button in the lower left corner, right where it is in Windows. However, it is more complex than Windows with far more options to work with. This can be confusing to new users, but many users who like to tinker find this interface enjoyable to use.
GNOME is the more "Mac-like" interface. It uses two task bars, one at the top, and one at the bottom. The top bar has all the menus on it, and yes, there is more than one. It is somewhat less configurable than KDE, but no less powerful. It is preferred among those who like a cleaner interface with a more mac-like approach to menus and usage.
Again, there isn't necessarily a "better" choice here. They are both equally good at what they do, they just do it in different ways. I would recommend using the Live CD's to explore the UI options you have without having to commit to one or the other right away. You can run the live CD, and then just rboot when you are done, with no changes made to your PC.
Or in another room in his house. I'm always amazed by people that INSIST on having these devices sitting out on top of a desk. Don't they have more important things they could be doing with their desk space than clogging it with devices they almost never interact directly with? I keep my cable-modem and router in my basement next to my server. There is just no good reason (other than a physical handicap) to keep these things out in plain view. Lock 'em in the closet and have done with it!
As far as his Dell XPS PC goes, like many in his comments section pointed out, the guy just needs to go get a Mac. No irritating blinking lights and the keyboard is backlit with a light sensor. What a maroon!
Slashdot Mirror
Isn't it obvious? Russian computers use 220 plugs, the Solar Panels are 110 output! Darn incompatible power systems! :)
That's the one really nice thing about having a very common name. You always have plausible deniability.
Potential Employer: We have found some troubling things on the Internet attribitued to you Mr./Ms. (insert very common name)
You: Um, that's not me.
Potential Empoyer: We would like to believe you, but your name is all over it.
You: Do you have any idea how common my name is? Just Google it! You'll find people with the same name as me all over the internet!
Potential Employer: Hmm.. Good point. Ok, you're hired!
Ok, maybe that's a bit simplified, but the overall principle remains the same. As long as there aren't full-face photos of you doing porn, alcohol or drugs, you should be OK.
Of course, people with uncommon names don't have it so easy. Sucks to be them I guess.
Well, they have to fund the Stargate program SOMEHOW don't they? Why not take the money from an agency that nobody would suspect of being involved? :)
Hmmm...
Seems to me it passed UNANIMOUSLY.
So that would include the Congressional BLACK caucus
the Gay and Lesbian caucus
the Women's caucus
the Asian-American caucus
did I leave anyone out?
Oh yeah, the one-man Muslim caucus, Keith Ellison.
Yep, looks like the stupidity of politicians is a universal constant, regardless of your race, religion, political affiliation, or sex.
Now take your white men bashing and stuff it.
I know that Kodak has made Injet and Dye-Sublimation photo printers under the "Polaroid" nameplate ( http://shopping.yahoo.com/p:Polaroid%20P-500%20Ink jet%20Printer:1990740150) but they aren't true, traditional Polaroid-style photos. Was there another printer type and I just missed it?
Perhaps your Google-fu is greater than mine, but I can't find anything about an actual true-Polaroid printer. Anyone got a link?
Is why there aren't any photo printers out there that just use the Polaroid style of image development. Polaroids last nearly as long as traditionally developed photos, and loading a pack of polaroids into a small printer seems like it would be a whole lot easier than dealing with separate printer paper and ink. Of course, then you lose the "multifunction" portion of the printer, but you end up with much higher quality prints anyway, so who cares?
Two words: High Bitrate.
If you like your music to actually SOUND good, 128kbps sucks. I personally rip my music using a Variable bitrate between 224 and 320 kbps. Unfortunately, this makes for VERY large files. But my music sounds FANTASTIC!
Do they deliver to the US?
I guess I'll have to check the site out a bit more for uh... research. Yeah, that's it, research...
My apologies if I offended. The problem with generalities is that they are sometimes inadequate. Yes, the Intel integrated chipsets ARE well supported in Ubuntu. However many of the other ones are not.
Also, I was basing my statement in part on the fact that the Linux base model laptop will have dedicated video, and the base model Windows versions will have integrated video. I made an assumption I should not have about the reasoning behind that.
Either way, I don't think you would argue with the fact that a dedicated video card is generally a better option than an integrated one. If the Linux boxes come with dedicated video by default, then that would go a long way towards explaining the lack of a huge price differential between the competing base model units.
Google is your friend: http://www.germany.info/relaunch/info/archives/bac kground/speech.html
the money quote: "The Criminal Code, in its Sections 185, 189 and 194, prohibits the defamation and denigration of the character of deceased persons and make such denigration punishable by law. The statement that Jews were not persecuted during National Socialism is clearly false. The mass murder of Jews in the gas chambers of the Third Reich is a historical fact that has been proven by countless witness statements and documents, numerous court rulings and extensive historical research."
And: "The "Auschwitz-Lge" (Holocaust Denial) may also be prosecuted under Section 130 of the Criminal Code, which makes incitement (Volksverhetzung) a punishable offense. The current German legal interpretation of incitement protects public peace and human dignity. The constitutional foundation of the Federal Republic of Germany recognizes no interest that could justify injuring the personal honor and dignity of some of its citizens and promoting enmity and hatred toward them."
So yes, Denying the Holocaust is ILLEGAL in Germany, and you CAN get thrown in jail.
Just a friendly reminder that you are absolutely full of shit.
Historically, Islam has and continues to be a religion of barbarism, tribalism and conquest. Mohammed himself was a warrior chieftain famous for killing those he disagreed with. Islam has had ONE I repeat ONE bright spot, and that was Sufism. Unfortunately, the Sufists were exterminated by the Salafists in the east, and by power hungry Europeans in the west. Where Salsfism has reigned, things have changed little since the 7th century, and the followers of that religion just bring their brutality and primitive mindset with them to the west when they move.
Historically, Christianity (the Religion of Love) has had ONE dark spot on it's otherwise mostly peaceful existence, The Crusades. Before and since Christianity has been a largely peaceful religion, focusing on the spiritual rather than the physical. That's not to say that there haven't been other problems, but on the whole Christianity has been good for Western society.
Generally speaking, the followers of Christ have left dark ages barbarism behind them, and have helped to build a prosperous western society. The followers of Islam remain stuck in the past, and rather than follow the Christians into the present and future, seemed bound and determined to drag us all back into the dark ages with them. So please, don't insult our intelligence by equating Christianity to Islam. You only make yourself look foolish.
"You keep saying that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."
:)
Sorry, I just couldn't resist.
My old laptop is actually 2 1/2 years old. So my old laptop would be the same age as the one he is going to spend $400 on, and I only paid $650 for it new. Sounds like I'm getting the better deal here.
Besides, I've found that the useful life of most laptops is about 3-4 years. After that they start to either have battery issues, Power Adapter problems, loose or sticky lid hinges, worn keys, cracked frames and other component problems that require either repair or costly replacement parts. Not to mention you usually end up immediately investing money in RAM upgrades, as they are always under-RAMmed. You are basically at a point of diminishing returns with older machines like that. You end up paying out as much money to keep the older, slower, worn-out machine going as you would have if you had just ponied up the extra $200 - $300 for a low-end new one with a full warranty and support.
Old machines are fine as free hand-me-downs or when bought in large quantities where a few units can be parts-scavenged to repair other ones, but buying new is almost always the better way to go. Now that Dell is giving us the option for brand new with Linux, there really isn't any excuse other than penny-wise pound-foolishness.
Don't forget there are always direct funds transfers, and quick-cash. If you can make a good replica of a CC or bank card, and have the correct info, it's often easy to just use it for quick cash at ATMs. Just wear an appropriate disguise and hunch over a bit to cover your height. With enough cards you can clean up quick.
Also, I have hear of instances where people will use a stolen CC to setup a fake bank account, and then perform many small wire transfers from other CC"s into the fake account until it has a large amount in it. Then they just empty the bank account (or transfer the money away to an overseas account) and walk away quite a bit richer.
But see, here's the thing; If I didn't care about being up to date, I'd keep my OLD laptop (which works just fine), spend $0.00 and laugh at you. But the point of getting a new laptop is to get a NEW (as in UNUSED) laptop. Why in hades would I get someone else's used laptop when I want a new, up to date one? It kind of defeats the purpose by buying a used one.
Dell has given us the opportunity to buy a fully-supported, warrantied, brand spanking new laptop (Mmm new laptop smell!) with Linux pre-installed! And you want to whine about Dell? Geez! Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face! Besides, as I said, your quality complaints about Dell are not accurate for the general market. Any large corporation is going to have a few lemons, perhaps you were unlucky enough to be stuck with one. But honestly, your complaining smacks of elitist snobbery, and anti-Dell trolling.
Oh, and you won't be able to find a Powerbook (Intel or G4) for around 400 bucks, unless it's damaged in some way. So yeah, you STILL won't have a "better" machine than the brand-new Dell, as Apple is really the only high-quality leader. Everybody else (Dell, HP, Lenovo, Gateway, Acer, Asus, Toshiba, Etc.) Are all pretty much equal in quality, and an old, used & worn laptop from one of them is all you will be able to afford at that cheap price.
If you want new, and Linux, Dell is now the way to go. Good for them, good for us, just generally good all around.
Unless you are going to be buying a used Mac Powerbook, I doubt that will be happening.
A used notebook is going to be used, abused, and worn out. Even the much-vaunted Thinkpads are not indestructible, and the notebooks that sell at the prices you mention are going to be more than 3 years old, and completely out of date.
I've not found the Dell laptops to be any better or worse than the competition, and I carry my laptop with me pretty much everywhere I go, so it gets plenty of abuse. It sounds to me like you just have a bug up your butt about Dell. With that I cannot help you, as no matter what I say, your obvious irrational hate of all things Dell will not allow you to take a balanced approach to this issue. It's too bad, because Dell and Ubuntu really do need our support as a community if this is going to work. Trolling Dell for personal reasons just gets in the way.
And before you go off on me as a Dell fanboy, Keep in mind that I was hired into an already established "Dell shop". My company as a long-standing relationship with Dell, and regardless of my personal preferences, Dell is what we use. We have thousands of machines, all Dell, and I have had to work on EVERY ONE of them. I have dealt with Dell support, and I have worked with a Dell Rep. So I'm not just working on the one or two machines owned by family and friends, these boxes are my job to keep running. I have found that duty to be reasonably easy. Yes, we have had our share of lemon machines, but no more than I have run into at other places, with other makes of PC. Dell is no worse or better than any other manufacturer in regards to the general quality of their PCs, excepting perhaps Apple, but those aren't so good in a Windows software programmer shop, so I can't get them.
Dell deserves our support. They listened to their customers, and are giving us what we wanted. They deserve to have this risk rewarded.
Keep in mind those are the BASE prices.
They are basically the lost leader prices they use to "get you in the door". Once there you can still customize the laptop or desktop with any number of hardware selections, including more RAM, better processor, and larger hard drive. These machines also come with dedicated video cards, as the integrated video isn't supported very well by Ubuntu. So you are STARTING OUT with a better base model than the Windows base model. (Which also explains why the Linux laptop is more expensive than the Windows one.)
My company has been a Dell shop for as long as I have been here, and I've become VERY familiar with Dell's setup. Keep in mind, Dell has been selling "open Source" (Free DOS) Desktops and laptops for YEARS already. Adding Ubuntu isn't THAT much of a change for them. I'd also imagine that you will find that the support package offered by Dell will actually be a Canonical support contract. This was a natural next step for Dell, and I think that all Slashdotters should get behind them. Not just with their words, but with their Dollars. I know that when it's time to replace my personal laptop (in about 6 months), I'll be going through Dell, and getting an Ubuntu Laptop.
Good on ya' Dell!
I know I did. I've been listening to ad-free jazz music for several hours now! I even bookmarked the URL in Winamp, so now I can listen to their station ad-free whenever I want!
(I love irony, don't you?)
For some reason this was modded -1 Troll.
How in hell was that comment a Troll?
The Microsoft fanboys must have mod points today.
about people with UNmodded Xbox 360's that get erroneously banned start in 3... 2... 1...
What? You don't think it will happen? Think about Windows Genuine Advantage for a few seconds and then get back to me, mmmkay?
Far MORE terrifying is Cheney dying in office due to heart failure and Speaker of the House Nancy "Lugosi" taking over. *shudder*
So yeah, I'm VERY VERY glad that they are taking every possible precaution to keep Bush alive. If your teenager can't text her "bff jill" for a few minutes too bad. Just think of it as a "Presidential discount" on your cell phone bill.
Not to take away from your point, but it's not the cancer that causes the baldness, it's the chemotherapy. If the chemotherapy works and kills the cancer cells, it is stopped and your hair grows back. If the chemotherapy doesn't work, then hair loss is the least of your problems.
How about I answer you right here?
As you know, Windows has a particular look to it's User Interface (the windows, the task bar, the buttons, all the stuff you interact with to make the computer do stuff for you.) In Windows XP, the User Interface (or UI) is called Luna. In Windows Vista there are Two UI's; Aero (the core UI), and Aero Glass (the nifty 3D one)
Well Linux has MANY available UI's that can be loaded. GNOME and KDE are the two most popular. Most distributions ("brands", if you prefer) of Linux choose at least one UI to start with. Ubuntu Linux uses the GNOME UI. Kubuntu uses the KDE UI.
As far as selecting one over the other, it's really a matter of personal taste:
KDE is the traditional "Windowsy" looking UI. It has a task bar along the bottom of the screen, and the KDE equivalent to the "Start" button in the lower left corner, right where it is in Windows. However, it is more complex than Windows with far more options to work with. This can be confusing to new users, but many users who like to tinker find this interface enjoyable to use.
GNOME is the more "Mac-like" interface. It uses two task bars, one at the top, and one at the bottom. The top bar has all the menus on it, and yes, there is more than one. It is somewhat less configurable than KDE, but no less powerful. It is preferred among those who like a cleaner interface with a more mac-like approach to menus and usage.
Again, there isn't necessarily a "better" choice here. They are both equally good at what they do, they just do it in different ways. I would recommend using the Live CD's to explore the UI options you have without having to commit to one or the other right away. You can run the live CD, and then just rboot when you are done, with no changes made to your PC.
You can download the Ubuntu live CD here: http://www.ubuntu.com/getubuntu/download
You can download a Kubuntu live CD here: http://www.kubuntu.org/download.php#latest
Just download, burn to CD with your favorite burning software, insert into CD drive, reboot and enjoy!
If it makes you feel any better, I got it.
Or in another room in his house. I'm always amazed by people that INSIST on having these devices sitting out on top of a desk. Don't they have more important things they could be doing with their desk space than clogging it with devices they almost never interact directly with? I keep my cable-modem and router in my basement next to my server. There is just no good reason (other than a physical handicap) to keep these things out in plain view. Lock 'em in the closet and have done with it!
As far as his Dell XPS PC goes, like many in his comments section pointed out, the guy just needs to go get a Mac. No irritating blinking lights and the keyboard is backlit with a light sensor. What a maroon!