Thanks to corporate vendors, I think we can keep Tux and still maintain a streamlined image. Tux, as he is, shall remain the mascot of Linux the kernel as long as Linus sees fit. Yet distributions, the real OSes, usually have their own mascots/logos. SUSE and RedHat come most readily to mind. THEIR trademarks are certainly professional-looking enough. I don't think we'll face an 'unattractive brand' problem. Vendors usually take care of that. They have to. Marketing!
PS: I also stand by my statement that chicks do indeed dig Tux. Every friend of the double-X-chromosome variety I know of who has seen Tux considers him 'cute.' Jane Average Users, I believe, will become far less afraid of their machines if they associate them with a 'cute' little penguin than a 'goddamn' little paperclip.
First, I'm going to assume that by "internation sysmbol" you mean "international symbol." In which case you're correct. He is, as Linus intended. And Tux has been wildly successful as that symbol.
Anyhow, Tux does NOT need to go--or even to change. I personally think that "Everaldo's penguin" is so unlike Tux that it seems you want to re-create the well-established Linux brand from scratch. What good would THAT do?
I have mentioned Linux to my peers and since their first exposure to Tux, they identify him with "that Linux thing". These are complete non-techies. They shouldn't even remember how to PRONOUNCE Linux, much less have a lasting memory of its mascot. Tux is more readily recognized and far more endearing than some abstract flying window. It sounds strange, but the Linux brand, if competently exposed to the public, would probably completely overwhelm any opposing FUD tactics of Microsoft. I think people overlook one very important thing about the Joe Average desktop user. Joe Average could give a rat's ass what his computer runs on, as long as it runs the apps he needs. If the PERCEPTION of "Linux is the next-generation desktop" got advertised and was made available to the public thoroughly enough, the few applications/modifications Linux lacks would swiftly follow. All we need is for someone to make the marketing push. Multiple OEMs offering preinstalled distros--that sort of thing. The last thing Linux needs is a complete rebranding.
Tux is cute, well-recognized by non-geeks, and chicks dig him. Tux is all the things that slashdotters are not.
These are the guys that were publishing strangely pro-SCO articles DESPITE the increasing amount of bovine feces they'd been spewing about IBM conspiracies.
Now this article. The tagline paragraph atop the article tips me off that it isn't even PRETENDING to be objective. The article feels like an over-the-top attempt to compensate for kissing SCO's ass a week ago. There are several things I could call this article--journalism is not one of them. The whole publication appears extremely contrived. I wouldn't listen to a single word they publish.
Or even browse eBay. That's how I got SuSE 8.1 and 8.2 when they came out. It's how I'd get Debian or Slackware if I wanted all 7 discs. It only costs a couple bucks and you don't need to spend hours downloading. No need to feel separated from the broadband folks:) --
The idea of "meek" meaning the above came from a lecture from one of my theological profs.
Among my prof's sources is the Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, vol. 6. I'll be double-checking that book soon, since our library has it. As one of the replies to my slashdot post noted, the Greek word was "praus" (pra-oos). Commonly in Greek literature, my prof has told me, this word was an adjective meaning "ready for service," or "awaiting command." He told me about a pair of instances in Greek literature. In one occurrence of the word, a character was looking upon a warship which was decked out with all of its equipment and lacked only a Captain. In the other instance, "praus" was used to describe an armored horse, fitted for battle, and needed only its rider.
So, according to these usages, and the Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, when Christ said Blessed are the "praus," he was probably referring to those who keep themselves spiritually prepared. --
When I read that letter, Chapter IV of Chesterton's Orthodoxy came to mind. This book is in public domain, so I shall post the pertinent paragraph:
"When the business man rebukes the idealism of his office-boy, it is commonly in some such speech as this: "Ah, yes, when one is young, one has these ideals in the abstract and these castles in the air; but in middle age they all break up like clouds, and one comes down to a belief in practical politics, to using the machinery one has and getting on with the world as it is." Thus, at least, venerable and philanthropic old men now in their honoured graves used to talk to me when I was a boy. But since then I have grown up and have discovered that these philanthropic old men were telling lies. What has really happened is exactly the opposite of what they said would happen. They said that I should lose my ideals and begin to believe in the methods of practical politicians. Now, I have not lost my ideals in the least; my faith in fundamentals is exactly what it always was. What I have lost is my old childlike faith in practical politics.... As much as I ever did, more than I ever did, I believe in Liberalism. But there was a rosy time of innocence when I believed in Liberals."
In other words, go ahead and believe in OSS--just don't necessarily believe in IBM.:)
that the vast majority of software-creation jobs are in-house, and that giving it away is pretty much a moot point, because the company hires you to spend your time writing something very specific to THEIR BUSINESS? In such a case, isn't it possible to keep one's FLOSS principles and still get paid for software engineering? The writer of the article also seems to ignore the fact that there will always remain people who feel it is a civic duty to write software for people, in the same way that there are scientists who would spend all their time researching for the good of mankind if money weren't an issue. For enough people, money won't necessarily be an issue for them in writing software. They just like to do it.
Free Software would probably have a hard time spreading if Closed Source didn't have as glowing a representative as Microsoft. MS has shown us some of the worst-case scenarios of closed software, and they are often things that can be avoided using OSS methods. Being a Free Software advocate is not just some idealistic phase for youths (RMS isn't exactly YOUNG, is he), it is a proven method. It is the logical social result of the freedom of the Internet. No matter what this guy says, FLOSS will be sticking around, if not always growing. So why not just learn to live with it instead of trying to spread fear?
I shall ask this Professor about this at the next opportunity I have. Probably Monday.
I do regret not being able to reference that--if you'd like, you can reach me at bt3819 AT arbor DOT edu. When I get in touch with my prof maybe I can email anyone interested about what he has dug up on the topic.
My most important correction with the parent of my other post was that meek != weak. The extra interpretations of my old prof were an (I thought) interesting addition.:)
Actually, common English translations of Matthew 5:5 state that the MEEK shall inherit the Earth. Additionally, the evolution of the english word "meek" since the time of translation makes it an unfit word for the intended meaning.
A more accurate interpretation suggests that those who inherit the earth are exactly the opposite of weak. Instead, the "meek" originally intended was a word to describe a ready and willing warrior. My university's Bible professor likened it unto the steed of a knight. Eager for battle, ready at a moment's notice to aggressively and unashamedly obey its master. Christ, I think, was referring to those who put intense, unmitigated faith in his Father. That's the sort of "meek" who inherit the earth. [/theology lesson]
Anyway, I do agree with you that advancing technology like this is not necessarily at the expense of helping the poor. It can actually HELP that endeavor. I am of the personal belief that it shouldn't rest on the government's shoulders to prop up the poor. That's the sort of thing with which the compassionate members of society ought to be busying themselves. --
Not two years away. More like fourteen. According to the article, it would be two years away once research has produced the proper technique for creating a cable, and once someone produces 650 tons of the stuff. Earlier in the article he mused that they were 12 years away from such a thing.
I've recently heard about the Microsoft video from Comdex parodying the Matrix pill scene. Gates presents Ballmer with a small red pill with a Windows logo, and an "IBM/LINUX" pill the size of a football (something about it being "hard to swallow").
Aggressive moves by IBM to opensource things as important as Java are no surprise to me (It would be a sort of poetic justice after MS tried to bastardize it). I can easily see the industry as a whole ganging up on Microsoft. For IE alone, Gates deserves to be glove-slapped, Bugs Bunny style.
What, I wonder, would(will?) Microsoft do when their backs are thoroughly against the wall? Would they realize the flaws in their reasoning and throw their resources into creating something that truly bestows FREEDOM? Would they rev up the FUD machine until it overheats and explodes? Would they sob like horrified toddlers and pull a SCO?
The near future looks messy indeed, but in the end, bright. I hope Sun decides that IBM's idea is in their best interest. I like Sun. They've been doing their best, and need something to rejuvinate them. Opensourcing Java would at least give them colossal mindshare. --
I think these CEOs need to do a little soul-searching and figure out if they're really doing themselves, or the industries they work in, any good. In the cases of "intellectual property" and especially software patents, if so many people have to sue one another, I believe it's indicative of a deeper problem. A problem already solved here.
Morons. Don't they know that the lawyers are the only winners? The real solution is not more lawsuits. The money spent on a software patent lawsuit might as well be flushed down the toilet for all the good it does the world. The real solution is adjusting the industry's perceptions about software. --
1) Microsoft is doing its best to combat OSS using strategies easily deduced from the early Halloween Documents. At the same time, 2) nearly everywhere outside the US, governments and companies are departing from the Microsoft Way, if not becoming more than a little wary of MS. The net result? An increasing transparency of this megacorp's insincerity.
Microsoft has repeatedly been accused (and sometimes convicted) of abusing monopoly power in multiple countries.
And Microsoft's perceptions are clearer now. Microsoft looks at the big-name vendors and noone else. This means they are ignoring all the areas where a lot of R&D is getting done in Linux. Is he unaware that the NSA has been giving Linux security boosts? Does he not realize that there is more to the OSS world than the big five vendors? I don't know where he got his numbers for kernel developers, but the mere POSSIBILITY that another organization can pick up your code and help you improve it is the singular advantage that empowers the world to abandon and destroy the Microsoft Way. Software is now a social, humanitarian phenomenon.
I would argue that the biggest reason people trust Linux over Microsoft "products" is that OSS has nothing to hide. It is HONEST. Heck, that's why *I* use it. I don't want to be haunted with the nagging suspicion that my box is spying on me. *I* prefer to be the one in control of my machine.
That's the topic the article never touched on: what about the vast number of people who simply DO NOT TRUST Microsoft?
Microsoft has a massive cash reserve, so they can tread water for a long time. But eventually they will either change or Microsoft will die. Interviewees like this man simply do not understand the nature of the beast which is coming for them. Now would be a good time for a reporter to bring up the Halloween Documents, where Microsoft consistently acknowledges that the peer-review system of OSS turns out better software. They should be asked how their recent press releases and actions compare to the very underhanded strategy outlined in the early Halloween Docs.
I have the utmost respect for those who engage in this (national conversation), even when I am unfairly maligned because those persons are willing to engage in order to advance the national conversation and contribute meaningfully to our process of governance. Somebody once said that democracy is not a spectator sport. We should all applaud each other for getting into the game and risking injury because of it, because at the end of the day we all win if we do engage.
According to Viet Dinh toward the end of the article: USA PATRIOT and similar legislation will be necessary as long as we are "fighting terrorism." If you think he is correct, then you probably believe that the Iraq war had everything to do with Terrorism, and you are probably the caliber of person to whom I would like to sell this bridge I own in New York.
These people MUST realize that the "War on Terrorism" is a necessarily perpetual one. Is Viet therefore proposing that we give up our civil liberties indefinitely? Whether he knows it or not, that's what he seems to be proposing.
As long as Americans are willing to believe that politics is over their heads and that they shouldn't worry about what goes on in Washington, the way is wide open for some dynastic madman to install himself in the White House without even being elected, and start waging unprovoked wars in countries most Americans can't recognize on continents most Americans can't name.
As THE most powerful nation on Earth that claims to be, (of/by/for) the people, its citizens have a great responsibility to keep their civil servants accountable. If you ask me, most are allowing themselves to be distracted from that responsibility.
If this is true, the future could be bright for Apple customers. With the company operating in the black now, perhaps there is a little leeway for prices to come down. Imagine a decked-out G5 costing the same as a similar Wintel box+monitor.
Heck, Apple may one day soon be in a strong enough position to risk porting OSX to other platforms. I believe that the sooner one's choice OS becomes irrelevant, the sooner real, healthy, competition can take place in this industry.
Encouraging people to exercise self-control and consideration for the repercussions of their actions is NOT the same thing as censorship. It's a world of spin and media manipulation, unfortunately. Guarding our mouths is a way to protect the community from that. Of course, if you still feel like saying things which you KNOW will cause indirect harm to others or perhaps your own ideals, that's your right and no one should take it from you.
An employer/customer should be able to pay his hirees however he pleases. It's the employer's money and he or she can do whatever he wants with it. On this I say Fuck You, IBM. You can't patent a damn business model.
I don't care if they thought of it first. I don't care if it's wonderfully original. There was a time thousands of years ago when giving people money for goods/services was a gloriously original idea. Someone thought of it first. IBM patenting this (albeit confusing) method is not only a slap in the face of everything Open Source stands for, but proves to hurt IBM and the entire software industry when the domination of proprietary firms finally crumbles. IBM, while our ally on the SCO front, can NOT be allowed to retake the position it had before Microsoft. I was just getting to really liking them. Who do I even write to about our ludicrous patent system?
A rule which might help fix the litigation system:
on
All Encompassing Patents
·
· Score: 3, Funny
If a lawyer's offense/defense can, in the slightest regard, be construed as dishonest or in bad faith, then the lawyer ought to be in danger of undergoing the fate the client would have in the case of a loss.
Or something similar. My point is this: I think the premise of the lawyer being the aggressive lawmucking servant of the plaintiff/defendant must be discontinued. There ought to be VERY strong incentives in the rules of litigation for the lawyer to encourage honesty and justice. With REAL CONSEQUENCES. With the current system, we have no shortage of shysters who can get away with warping the truth because hey, they're just the attorney. If we fix that, a lot of frivolous lawsuits should disappear. Imagine every SCO lawyer jumping ship very early in the game.
The EFF might have a model letter up soon. I really think writing to your representatives is key. There is still a vestige of citizens' power left if enough of us do this. If we don't use what's left of that power NOW, we might never have it again.
Gonna have to agree there. I keep 9x around because hey, I like Descent.
I have, of course, taken XP for a test drive and the grandparent post is also right. It lacks the hallmark flaws of 9x. My personal NT favorite though, shall always and forever be, Win2k.
Slashdot Mirror
Thanks to corporate vendors, I think we can keep Tux and still maintain a streamlined image. Tux, as he is, shall remain the mascot of Linux the kernel as long as Linus sees fit. Yet distributions, the real OSes, usually have their own mascots/logos. SUSE and RedHat come most readily to mind. THEIR trademarks are certainly professional-looking enough. I don't think we'll face an 'unattractive brand' problem. Vendors usually take care of that. They have to. Marketing!
PS: I also stand by my statement that chicks do indeed dig Tux. Every friend of the double-X-chromosome variety I know of who has seen Tux considers him 'cute.' Jane Average Users, I believe, will become far less afraid of their machines if they associate them with a 'cute' little penguin than a 'goddamn' little paperclip.
First, I'm going to assume that by "internation sysmbol" you mean "international symbol." In which case you're correct. He is, as Linus intended. And Tux has been wildly successful as that symbol.
Anyhow, Tux does NOT need to go--or even to change. I personally think that "Everaldo's penguin" is so unlike Tux that it seems you want to re-create the well-established Linux brand from scratch. What good would THAT do?
I have mentioned Linux to my peers and since their first exposure to Tux, they identify him with "that Linux thing". These are complete non-techies. They shouldn't even remember how to PRONOUNCE Linux, much less have a lasting memory of its mascot. Tux is more readily recognized and far more endearing than some abstract flying window. It sounds strange, but the Linux brand, if competently exposed to the public, would probably completely overwhelm any opposing FUD tactics of Microsoft. I think people overlook one very important thing about the Joe Average desktop user. Joe Average could give a rat's ass what his computer runs on, as long as it runs the apps he needs. If the PERCEPTION of "Linux is the next-generation desktop" got advertised and was made available to the public thoroughly enough, the few applications/modifications Linux lacks would swiftly follow. All we need is for someone to make the marketing push. Multiple OEMs offering preinstalled distros--that sort of thing. The last thing Linux needs is a complete rebranding.
Tux is cute, well-recognized by non-geeks, and chicks dig him. Tux is all the things that slashdotters are not.
These are the guys that were publishing strangely pro-SCO articles DESPITE the increasing amount of bovine feces they'd been spewing about IBM conspiracies.
Now this article. The tagline paragraph atop the article tips me off that it isn't even PRETENDING to be objective. The article feels like an over-the-top attempt to compensate for kissing SCO's ass a week ago. There are several things I could call this article--journalism is not one of them. The whole publication appears extremely contrived. I wouldn't listen to a single word they publish.
Do not read LinuxInsider.
--
Or even browse eBay. That's how I got SuSE 8.1 and 8.2 when they came out. It's how I'd get Debian or Slackware if I wanted all 7 discs. It only costs a couple bucks and you don't need to spend hours downloading. No need to feel separated from the broadband folks :)
--
The idea of "meek" meaning the above came from a lecture from one of my theological profs.
Among my prof's sources is the Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, vol. 6. I'll be double-checking that book soon, since our library has it. As one of the replies to my slashdot post noted, the Greek word was "praus" (pra-oos). Commonly in Greek literature, my prof has told me, this word was an adjective meaning "ready for service," or "awaiting command." He told me about a pair of instances in Greek literature. In one occurrence of the word, a character was looking upon a warship which was decked out with all of its equipment and lacked only a Captain. In the other instance, "praus" was used to describe an armored horse, fitted for battle, and needed only its rider.
So, according to these usages, and the Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, when Christ said Blessed are the "praus," he was probably referring to those who keep themselves spiritually prepared.
--
"When the business man rebukes the idealism of his office-boy, it is commonly in some such speech as this: "Ah, yes, when one is young, one has these ideals in the abstract and these castles in the air; but in middle age they all break up like clouds, and one comes down to a belief in practical politics, to using the machinery one has and getting on with the world as it is." Thus, at least, venerable and philanthropic old men now in their honoured graves used to talk to me when I was a boy. But since then I have grown up and have discovered that these philanthropic old men were telling lies. What has really happened is exactly the opposite of what they said would happen. They said that I should lose my ideals and begin to believe in the methods of practical politicians. Now, I have not lost my ideals in the least; my faith in fundamentals is exactly what it always was. What I have lost is my old childlike faith in practical politics. ... As much as I ever did, more than I ever did, I believe in Liberalism. But there was a rosy time of innocence when I believed in Liberals."
In other words, go ahead and believe in OSS--just don't necessarily believe in IBM. :)
that the vast majority of software-creation jobs are in-house, and that giving it away is pretty much a moot point, because the company hires you to spend your time writing something very specific to THEIR BUSINESS? In such a case, isn't it possible to keep one's FLOSS principles and still get paid for software engineering? The writer of the article also seems to ignore the fact that there will always remain people who feel it is a civic duty to write software for people, in the same way that there are scientists who would spend all their time researching for the good of mankind if money weren't an issue. For enough people, money won't necessarily be an issue for them in writing software. They just like to do it.
Free Software would probably have a hard time spreading if Closed Source didn't have as glowing a representative as Microsoft. MS has shown us some of the worst-case scenarios of closed software, and they are often things that can be avoided using OSS methods. Being a Free Software advocate is not just some idealistic phase for youths (RMS isn't exactly YOUNG, is he), it is a proven method. It is the logical social result of the freedom of the Internet. No matter what this guy says, FLOSS will be sticking around, if not always growing. So why not just learn to live with it instead of trying to spread fear?
--
I shall ask this Professor about this at the next opportunity I have. Probably Monday.
:)
I do regret not being able to reference that--if you'd like, you can reach me at bt3819 AT arbor DOT edu. When I get in touch with my prof maybe I can email anyone interested about what he has dug up on the topic.
My most important correction with the parent of my other post was that meek != weak. The extra interpretations of my old prof were an (I thought) interesting addition.
It feels as though a lot of powers-that-be are reading Slashdot and taking our advice.
Or perhaps these influential types are actually venting their thoughts on Slashdot threads.
Actually, common English translations of Matthew 5:5 state that the MEEK shall inherit the Earth. Additionally, the evolution of the english word "meek" since the time of translation makes it an unfit word for the intended meaning.
A more accurate interpretation suggests that those who inherit the earth are exactly the opposite of weak. Instead, the "meek" originally intended was a word to describe a ready and willing warrior. My university's Bible professor likened it unto the steed of a knight. Eager for battle, ready at a moment's notice to aggressively and unashamedly obey its master. Christ, I think, was referring to those who put intense, unmitigated faith in his Father. That's the sort of "meek" who inherit the earth. [/theology lesson]
Anyway, I do agree with you that advancing technology like this is not necessarily at the expense of helping the poor. It can actually HELP that endeavor. I am of the personal belief that it shouldn't rest on the government's shoulders to prop up the poor. That's the sort of thing with which the compassionate members of society ought to be busying themselves.
--
Not two years away. More like fourteen. According to the article, it would be two years away once research has produced the proper technique for creating a cable, and once someone produces 650 tons of the stuff. Earlier in the article he mused that they were 12 years away from such a thing.
I've recently heard about the Microsoft video from Comdex parodying the Matrix pill scene. Gates presents Ballmer with a small red pill with a Windows logo, and an "IBM/LINUX" pill the size of a football (something about it being "hard to swallow").
Aggressive moves by IBM to opensource things as important as Java are no surprise to me (It would be a sort of poetic justice after MS tried to bastardize it). I can easily see the industry as a whole ganging up on Microsoft. For IE alone, Gates deserves to be glove-slapped, Bugs Bunny style.
What, I wonder, would(will?) Microsoft do when their backs are thoroughly against the wall? Would they realize the flaws in their reasoning and throw their resources into creating something that truly bestows FREEDOM? Would they rev up the FUD machine until it overheats and explodes? Would they sob like horrified toddlers and pull a SCO?
The near future looks messy indeed, but in the end, bright. I hope Sun decides that IBM's idea is in their best interest. I like Sun. They've been doing their best, and need something to rejuvinate them. Opensourcing Java would at least give them colossal mindshare.
--
I think these CEOs need to do a little soul-searching and figure out if they're really doing themselves, or the industries they work in, any good. In the cases of "intellectual property" and especially software patents, if so many people have to sue one another, I believe it's indicative of a deeper problem. A problem already solved here.
Morons. Don't they know that the lawyers are the only winners? The real solution is not more lawsuits. The money spent on a software patent lawsuit might as well be flushed down the toilet for all the good it does the world. The real solution is adjusting the industry's perceptions about software.
--
1) Microsoft is doing its best to combat OSS using strategies easily deduced from the early Halloween Documents. At the same time, 2) nearly everywhere outside the US, governments and companies are departing from the Microsoft Way, if not becoming more than a little wary of MS. The net result? An increasing transparency of this megacorp's insincerity.
Microsoft has repeatedly been accused (and sometimes convicted) of abusing monopoly power in multiple countries.
And they're the only ones badmouthing FLOSS.
--
And Microsoft's perceptions are clearer now. Microsoft looks at the big-name vendors and noone else. This means they are ignoring all the areas where a lot of R&D is getting done in Linux. Is he unaware that the NSA has been giving Linux security boosts? Does he not realize that there is more to the OSS world than the big five vendors? I don't know where he got his numbers for kernel developers, but the mere POSSIBILITY that another organization can pick up your code and help you improve it is the singular advantage that empowers the world to abandon and destroy the Microsoft Way. Software is now a social, humanitarian phenomenon.
I would argue that the biggest reason people trust Linux over Microsoft "products" is that OSS has nothing to hide. It is HONEST. Heck, that's why *I* use it. I don't want to be haunted with the nagging suspicion that my box is spying on me. *I* prefer to be the one in control of my machine.
That's the topic the article never touched on: what about the vast number of people who simply DO NOT TRUST Microsoft?
Microsoft has a massive cash reserve, so they can tread water for a long time. But eventually they will either change or Microsoft will die. Interviewees like this man simply do not understand the nature of the beast which is coming for them. Now would be a good time for a reporter to bring up the Halloween Documents, where Microsoft consistently acknowledges that the peer-review system of OSS turns out better software. They should be asked how their recent press releases and actions compare to the very underhanded strategy outlined in the early Halloween Docs.
THAT would be some actual journalism.
--
I have the utmost respect for those who engage in this (national conversation), even when I am unfairly maligned because those persons are willing to engage in order to advance the national conversation and contribute meaningfully to our process of governance. Somebody once said that democracy is not a spectator sport. We should all applaud each other for getting into the game and risking injury because of it, because at the end of the day we all win if we do engage.
...he at least is able to regurgitate THAT maxim.
According to Viet Dinh toward the end of the article: USA PATRIOT and similar legislation will be necessary as long as we are "fighting terrorism." If you think he is correct, then you probably believe that the Iraq war had everything to do with Terrorism, and you are probably the caliber of person to whom I would like to sell this bridge I own in New York.
These people MUST realize that the "War on Terrorism" is a necessarily perpetual one. Is Viet therefore proposing that we give up our civil liberties indefinitely? Whether he knows it or not, that's what he seems to be proposing.
As long as Americans are willing to believe that politics is over their heads and that they shouldn't worry about what goes on in Washington, the way is wide open for some dynastic madman to install himself in the White House without even being elected, and start waging unprovoked wars in countries most Americans can't recognize on continents most Americans can't name.
As THE most powerful nation on Earth that claims to be, (of/by/for) the people, its citizens have a great responsibility to keep their civil servants accountable. If you ask me, most are allowing themselves to be distracted from that responsibility.
If this is true, the future could be bright for Apple customers. With the company operating in the black now, perhaps there is a little leeway for prices to come down. Imagine a decked-out G5 costing the same as a similar Wintel box+monitor.
Heck, Apple may one day soon be in a strong enough position to risk porting OSX to other platforms. I believe that the sooner one's choice OS becomes irrelevant, the sooner real, healthy, competition can take place in this industry.
Encouraging people to exercise self-control and consideration for the repercussions of their actions is NOT the same thing as censorship. It's a world of spin and media manipulation, unfortunately. Guarding our mouths is a way to protect the community from that. Of course, if you still feel like saying things which you KNOW will cause indirect harm to others or perhaps your own ideals, that's your right and no one should take it from you.
I don't care if they thought of it first. I don't care if it's wonderfully original. There was a time thousands of years ago when giving people money for goods/services was a gloriously original idea. Someone thought of it first. IBM patenting this (albeit confusing) method is not only a slap in the face of everything Open Source stands for, but proves to hurt IBM and the entire software industry when the domination of proprietary firms finally crumbles. IBM, while our ally on the SCO front, can NOT be allowed to retake the position it had before Microsoft. I was just getting to really liking them. Who do I even write to about our ludicrous patent system?
The sooner the EFF gets on this the better.
Seriously. Enough's enough.
If a lawyer's offense/defense can, in the slightest regard, be construed as dishonest or in bad faith, then the lawyer ought to be in danger of undergoing the fate the client would have in the case of a loss.
Or something similar. My point is this: I think the premise of the lawyer being the aggressive lawmucking servant of the plaintiff/defendant must be discontinued. There ought to be VERY strong incentives in the rules of litigation for the lawyer to encourage honesty and justice. With REAL CONSEQUENCES. With the current system, we have no shortage of shysters who can get away with warping the truth because hey, they're just the attorney. If we fix that, a lot of frivolous lawsuits should disappear. Imagine every SCO lawyer jumping ship very early in the game.
The EFF might have a model letter up soon. I really think writing to your representatives is key. There is still a vestige of citizens' power left if enough of us do this. If we don't use what's left of that power NOW, we might never have it again.
I'd mod you "+6 Informative" if I could.
Gonna have to agree there. I keep 9x around because hey, I like Descent. I have, of course, taken XP for a test drive and the grandparent post is also right. It lacks the hallmark flaws of 9x. My personal NT favorite though, shall always and forever be, Win2k.