Really? A big portion of the Open Source business is predicated upon this.
The key distinction is whose initiative it is: I can do something nice for you, seeking nothing but a thank you. But it doesn't mean that you can now ask me to do something and expect that it will cost you a mere thank you.
If they could just find a way to tap into _that_ enthusiasm.
Ah give me a break!
As someone who has written open source software, I can tell you that there is no enthusiasm that you "tap into".
When you are an agency that is part of a department of the government whose budget is in the billions (or is it trillions?), no sane "enthusiast" is going to do jack for you for "appreciation", especially when you are a military organization...
But even if this wasn't DOD we were talking about, I find the assumption that people will perform valuable services for simple recognition just plain weird. People who think this way just don't get it - you want someone to do something for you, you pay for it.
When I feel like releasing code to the public is a good idea, I will do it, but don't think that I am some sort of an OSS monkey who jumps at every opportunity to work for free!
According to my spammeter it barely made a dent in the sea of spam I'm getting these days.
It took my baesian filter a few to learn to recognize it, since then I'm not affected by it in any way. Of course, I'm not exactly a big Windows user either....
I used to love Lilypond. You do have to think in LaTeX to use it, but once you get over it, the output is fantastic - looks like an expensive professionally published score. The output from most other nice GUI Windows/Mac programs always looked slightly on the cheesy side.
So it looks like now I could take Finale-produced XML output, run it through xml2ly and get my Lilypond sheet music. Has anyone tried it?
Great topic. IMHO, entrepreneurship is the only way out of the tech marketplace disaster we find ourselves in. (BTW, Cringely is suddenly not at all optimistic about the "offshoring phonomenon").
Here are the reasons why felt absolutely compelled to start a company:
Ever since being laid off from a seniour level job at a large ISP in 2001 I have been unable to find anything that would match my level of expertise. I have not been unemployed a single day since, but I've changed jobs 3 times already and have been frustrated with the level (or lack thereof) of technological advancement, at least in my general area - Washington, DC.
I know for a fact that the survivors of the dot bomb are plagued with all kinds of moral and managerial problems. I am convinced that this will not pass, and that the only way to find an interesting project is to make one yourself. Sure it's easier to "get a job", but the management of today's companies who have the money to hire lack the vision and creativity to provide you with a dream job, so you have to do it yourself. I also see this as a competitive advantage - I can have my prices very low because I don't have the overhead of loans, layoffs, chapter 11, etc.
I do not think I can make a living by simply being a developer or system administrator. The offshoring thing is very real, and unless you insert yourself into the IT chain not just as a programmer, but as a manager and steakholder, don't expect anything other than a mediocre living.
The bright side is that it is still much easier to start a business in the US than most anywhere else. Really, why not take advantage of it?
But have you ever tried to set up a web hosting scenario where you have multiple clients acessing their sites in a secure way? On unix - just create a group, chown/chmod and you're done. On Windows you'll be clicking till sunrise, only to learn that there is no way to change permissions from command line.
So it's clickity-click on Windows until you run into one of these gotchas. Unix tends to be easier on you this way - once you've mastered the basic stuff, there is no limit to what you can do. On Windows, there is always a catch, and M$ is working hard on coming up with more.
It absolutely will happen. We will know it when we will start seeing those PC for sale at Walmart and others that are incredibly cheap, but contain hardware protection measures that allow them to run Windows only under the auspices of the DRM technlogy.
Even though I personally hold no single certification (and back when I was in a position to hire I tended to actually consider them a nagative, especially the low end ones), one that I've always seriously considered was CCIE. With a CCIE you have a pretty chance of getting a job even in this lousy market.
Other than that, no jobs means no jobs - I know quite a few people that having lost their job started builg up their accreditation portfolio to no avail. But the silverlining is that when the job market tunrs around (and it has not yet AFAIC), those with more credentials will be much better off.
I would check to make sure that the rippers speak the shoutcast protocol. The request that they send must contain an "Icy-Metadata" header, in order for the server to start sending a shoucast stream.
Personally I'd just fire up a sniffer (e.g. tcpflow) to see what the request looks like. Or point the ripper to a listening socket that you have control over to see what it sends. Or perhaps grep the sourcecode for "Icy".
FWIW - The shoutcast method of track separation does not rely on silence.
The shouldcast metadata protocol works by inserting special data every X (usually 8192) bytes. The data looks something like "StreamTitle=blah; StreamUrl=bleh".
Since 8192 bytes is about half a second at 128Kbps (128000/8192/8 = 1.95), a detection of a change of track using this method is usually pretty accurate.
Python has been an important part of Google since the beginning
What I'm kinda curious about is whether they use mod_python. From the looks of the URL's on Adsense and AdWords it seems likely that they are using the Publisher handler, but I've never heard any official (or even rumor) about it.
The first Apple computers and the Mac were very innovative indeed.
But remember that when Microsoft came up with Windows, it was actually a very
innovative thing too - a Mac-like interface for you DOS machines! And while MS was
improving Windows (added multitasking, threading, nicer GUI), Apple was stagnating - little new was being introduced in their MacOS, Jobs quit.
These days Apple is innovating (OS X, iTunes, iPod, etc), and MS is stagnating.
Give it another few years, and the tables will turn again....
It's so hard to name because these companies all lack the synergistic, results-driven leverage that will incentivize their paradigm shift.
Well said. They should consider adopting modern methodologies and devising bolder strategic plans. This will leverage the synergy required resulting in a win-win situation.
I highly recommend they study Greg Stein's work on the subject.
Clearly, something monumental must be going on in the world of computing for these technology titans simultaneously to discover something that is so profound and yet so hard to name.
What is going on is the marketroids are harvesting what they've sown. They are a little short on ideas at the moment. They have nothing to better to do so they copy one another. Having witnessed the overindulgence in irrational exuberance and the trade of talent for third-world coding monkeys (aka offshoring), the creative people are turned off and don't really feel that they can trust the likes of Carlie with anything. This is really what is going on right now.
The solution to this problem is to get yourself a Virtual Dedicated Server. The technology for these things is so mature, you can get yourself what seems like a dedicated FreeBSD or Linux box with 1G of space for only a few bucks a month. And if $20+ is too much money, you can share it with your firends and relatives. Have your mail routed to that server and then use IMAP (preferably over SSL) read your e-mail. If you get a large attachment - just log in the the server using ssh, fire up your favorite client and save it to a web server directory.
With a little creative scripting, the task of saving the attachement can be easily automated.
Another advantage is that your mail server does not depend on your dial-up ISP - dump it any time you want for another one, and your mail account is not affected.
P.S. This post is meant as a blatant ad, but yes, such a server can be obtained by clicking on the link in my signature.
I'd almost rather the US government spent the money they plan on spending on some Mars trip on building a maglev track connecting major cities on the east coast, west coast, and perhaps even one running across from east to west.
Wouldn't it be cool to take a 300MPH train from New York to LA?
I think I would develop signs of serious depression soon after starting your IT course.
First of all it uses words like Linux, Windows, Exchange... Those are things you can learn by reading HOW-TO's on the Internet and O'Reilly books. Paying tuition for this sort of thing seems like a waste of money.
This may be a radical point of view, but I believe that one should only hire a teacher to learn things that one could not learn himself. An extreme example of that is playing a musical instrument - you can take 3 years to read all the HOW-TO's on piano playing in the world, and I will bet that a 7 year old who has a good teacher will play far better than you after the same period of time.
I rank myself pretty high when it comes to knowledge of computers and networking, and yet I never took any courses on Linux (or UNIX - Linux barely existed back then). The things that helped me most in my career were my ability to read, write, speak, listen and understand, experience in basic science (math and physics), my musical training, my study of foreign languages (English being one of them) and perhaps the few courses in programming (BASIC and Pascal).
You have to focus on skills that do not become obsolete - creativity, ability to think out of the box, persistence, patience, communication skills. And when it comes to spefic knowledge, learn history, science, literature - they are constants, their value does not decline with time.
The specific knowldge of "Linux", "Windows", "IOS" or "OSPF" etc. should be treated as "figure it out when you need it and foget it afterwards"
I wouldn't be surprised if it is based on Cygwin, and they're not going to distribute the source code like they are supposed to under the GPL until FSF makes a big deal out of it.
The fact that people are willing to get evil just to steal a bit of your vision field is a social problem indeed.
But Spam is more about an inappropriate use of technology. SMTP was designed on the assumption that the community at large using it would not be interested in abusing it. This was the case back when the Internet was not yet commercialized, and I remember it pretty well.
I think the only thing that will resolve the spam issue is abandonment of SMTP as we know it, and an adoption of a new protocol that enforces traceability. This is nothing new or scary - the IP numbers are all tracked and the BGP tables that run the internet all provide traceability to the source. Even though your average Joe might not be able to do it, but ISP's cooperate and exchange this info all the time on NOC-to-NOC basis to identify sources of trouble.
A similar system will need to exist for mail, that will require some sort of a registration and compliance to join the "mail provider" network, whatever that will be. As soon as the e-mail becomes traceable to the source, perhaps even if not with 100% accuracy, there will be a drastic reduction in spam.
Second problem is all those exploitable zombie Windows boxen out there, but I don't know what to suggest here...
Looking at my spam folder, I've been getting a lot of those lately, but my SpamBayes is still remarkably accurate. Perhaps it has to do with the fact that I trained it on spam and legit e-mail going back at least two years. So I am not too worried.
Since we're on the subject of spam - it's time to mention my Spammeter page, complete with source code now. An interesting thing is that there appears to be a small decline in the amount of spam since mid-december. Perhaps they are regrouping...
I don't think this decision is in any way political. At first they wanted to please Microsoft by including WMA, but soon realized that adding another format is a can of worms from the technology standpoint - it would require significant changes to the software on the iPod, the iTunes as well as the store, so they probably decided to abandon or at least put off the idea, and not try to "fix" what already works. Pretty smart move in my opinion.
Having said that, I predict more embarrasing blunders from M$ execs on this issue (which is a non-issue really).
Those of us who were lucky enough to attend the 2000 ApacheCon in London saw a keyonote by Douglas Adams. Little did we know that he has less than a year to live. I remember he was excited about his recent move to California and talked about his daughter too. After the keynote we all got a copy of the authographed Hitchhiker Guide book.
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The key distinction is whose initiative it is: I can do something nice for you, seeking nothing but a thank you. But it doesn't mean that you can now ask me to do something and expect that it will cost you a mere thank you.
Ah give me a break!
As someone who has written open source software, I can tell you that there is no enthusiasm that you "tap into".
When you are an agency that is part of a department of the government whose budget is in the billions (or is it trillions?), no sane "enthusiast" is going to do jack for you for "appreciation", especially when you are a military organization...
But even if this wasn't DOD we were talking about, I find the assumption that people will perform valuable services for simple recognition just plain weird. People who think this way just don't get it - you want someone to do something for you, you pay for it.
When I feel like releasing code to the public is a good idea, I will do it, but don't think that I am some sort of an OSS monkey who jumps at every opportunity to work for free!
Our model is: review a whole body of code, eventually finding no bugs, and receive a deeper level of appreciation from people who use the code.
I'm sorry, appreciation does not pay bills.
It took my baesian filter a few to learn to recognize it, since then I'm not affected by it in any way. Of course, I'm not exactly a big Windows user either....
So it looks like now I could take Finale-produced XML output, run it through xml2ly and get my Lilypond sheet music. Has anyone tried it?
Embarrassing, ain't it? I saw that after clicking submit... This is what I get for not using a spellchecker.
Here are the reasons why felt absolutely compelled to start a company:
- Ever since being laid off from a seniour level job at a large ISP in 2001 I have been unable to find anything that would match my level of expertise. I have not been unemployed a single day since, but I've changed jobs 3 times already and have been frustrated with the level (or lack thereof) of technological advancement, at least in my general area - Washington, DC.
- I know for a fact that the survivors of the dot bomb are plagued with all kinds of moral and managerial problems. I am convinced that this will not pass, and that the only way to find an interesting project is to make one yourself. Sure it's easier to "get a job", but the management of today's companies who have the money to hire lack the vision and creativity to provide you with a dream job, so you have to do it yourself. I also see this as a competitive advantage - I can have my prices very low because I don't have the overhead of loans, layoffs, chapter 11, etc.
- I do not think I can make a living by simply being a developer or system administrator. The offshoring thing is very real, and unless you insert yourself into the IT chain not just as a programmer, but as a manager and steakholder, don't expect anything other than a mediocre living.
The bright side is that it is still much easier to start a business in the US than most anywhere else. Really, why not take advantage of it?But have you ever tried to set up a web hosting scenario where you have multiple clients acessing their sites in a secure way? On unix - just create a group, chown/chmod and you're done. On Windows you'll be clicking till sunrise, only to learn that there is no way to change permissions from command line.
So it's clickity-click on Windows until you run into one of these gotchas. Unix tends to be easier on you this way - once you've mastered the basic stuff, there is no limit to what you can do. On Windows, there is always a catch, and M$ is working hard on coming up with more.
I believe the telcos are still obligated by regulations to provide ISDN no matter where you are.
It absolutely will happen. We will know it when we will start seeing those PC for sale at Walmart and others that are incredibly cheap, but contain hardware protection measures that allow them to run Windows only under the auspices of the DRM technlogy.
Other than that, no jobs means no jobs - I know quite a few people that having lost their job started builg up their accreditation portfolio to no avail. But the silverlining is that when the job market tunrs around (and it has not yet AFAIC), those with more credentials will be much better off.
Personally I'd just fire up a sniffer (e.g. tcpflow) to see what the request looks like. Or point the ripper to a listening socket that you have control over to see what it sends. Or perhaps grep the sourcecode for "Icy".
The shouldcast metadata protocol works by inserting special data every X (usually 8192) bytes. The data looks something like "StreamTitle=blah; StreamUrl=bleh".
Since 8192 bytes is about half a second at 128Kbps (128000/8192/8 = 1.95), a detection of a change of track using this method is usually pretty accurate.
What I'm kinda curious about is whether they use mod_python. From the looks of the URL's on Adsense and AdWords it seems likely that they are using the Publisher handler, but I've never heard any official (or even rumor) about it.
But remember that when Microsoft came up with Windows, it was actually a very innovative thing too - a Mac-like interface for you DOS machines! And while MS was improving Windows (added multitasking, threading, nicer GUI), Apple was stagnating - little new was being introduced in their MacOS, Jobs quit.
These days Apple is innovating (OS X, iTunes, iPod, etc), and MS is stagnating.
Give it another few years, and the tables will turn again....
Well said. They should consider adopting modern methodologies and devising bolder strategic plans. This will leverage the synergy required resulting in a win-win situation.
I highly recommend they study Greg Stein's work on the subject.
What is going on is the marketroids are harvesting what they've sown. They are a little short on ideas at the moment. They have nothing to better to do so they copy one another. Having witnessed the overindulgence in irrational exuberance and the trade of talent for third-world coding monkeys (aka offshoring), the creative people are turned off and don't really feel that they can trust the likes of Carlie with anything. This is really what is going on right now.
With a little creative scripting, the task of saving the attachement can be easily automated.
Another advantage is that your mail server does not depend on your dial-up ISP - dump it any time you want for another one, and your mail account is not affected.
P.S. This post is meant as a blatant ad, but yes, such a server can be obtained by clicking on the link in my signature.
Wouldn't it be cool to take a 300MPH train from New York to LA?
First of all it uses words like Linux, Windows, Exchange... Those are things you can learn by reading HOW-TO's on the Internet and O'Reilly books. Paying tuition for this sort of thing seems like a waste of money.
This may be a radical point of view, but I believe that one should only hire a teacher to learn things that one could not learn himself. An extreme example of that is playing a musical instrument - you can take 3 years to read all the HOW-TO's on piano playing in the world, and I will bet that a 7 year old who has a good teacher will play far better than you after the same period of time.
I rank myself pretty high when it comes to knowledge of computers and networking, and yet I never took any courses on Linux (or UNIX - Linux barely existed back then). The things that helped me most in my career were my ability to read, write, speak, listen and understand, experience in basic science (math and physics), my musical training, my study of foreign languages (English being one of them) and perhaps the few courses in programming (BASIC and Pascal).
You have to focus on skills that do not become obsolete - creativity, ability to think out of the box, persistence, patience, communication skills. And when it comes to spefic knowledge, learn history, science, literature - they are constants, their value does not decline with time.
The specific knowldge of "Linux", "Windows", "IOS" or "OSPF" etc. should be treated as "figure it out when you need it and foget it afterwards"
I wouldn't be surprised if it is based on Cygwin, and they're not going to distribute the source code like they are supposed to under the GPL until FSF makes a big deal out of it.
But Spam is more about an inappropriate use of technology. SMTP was designed on the assumption that the community at large using it would not be interested in abusing it. This was the case back when the Internet was not yet commercialized, and I remember it pretty well.
I think the only thing that will resolve the spam issue is abandonment of SMTP as we know it, and an adoption of a new protocol that enforces traceability. This is nothing new or scary - the IP numbers are all tracked and the BGP tables that run the internet all provide traceability to the source. Even though your average Joe might not be able to do it, but ISP's cooperate and exchange this info all the time on NOC-to-NOC basis to identify sources of trouble.
A similar system will need to exist for mail, that will require some sort of a registration and compliance to join the "mail provider" network, whatever that will be. As soon as the e-mail becomes traceable to the source, perhaps even if not with 100% accuracy, there will be a drastic reduction in spam.
Second problem is all those exploitable zombie Windows boxen out there, but I don't know what to suggest here...
Since we're on the subject of spam - it's time to mention my Spammeter page, complete with source code now. An interesting thing is that there appears to be a small decline in the amount of spam since mid-december. Perhaps they are regrouping...
Having said that, I predict more embarrasing blunders from M$ execs on this issue (which is a non-issue really).
Anyway, I hope the movie is good.