but if your mac breaks, beyond reasonable repair, you're forced to buy apple hardware (and another copy of your os) to replace it, if you still want to access your old data reliably. so it is pretty similar to how ms wants to make windows.
That's not the point, is it? Apple isn't threatening to disable "unlicensed" or older Macs, are they?
Right now Linux and MacOS are not options for much of the computer-owning/using population. Why? Games. Virtually none of the games most commonly played right now function in *either* platform.
What fraction of the population actually games? Personally, I prefer *real* interaction with humans. And the more I use a computer for work, the less I want to use one outside of work. Hiking, hunting, biking, motorcycling, reading, hanging out with friends (sometimes playing non-computer games), building stuff, drawing, etc, are all more fun than sitting in front of a glass teat of any type.
I've seen this on a lot of non-open source software, not just windows.
The inactivation of most software won't render the computer almost totally unusable. OS's should be held to a higher standard. At least there should be an option that copies all data in the C:\Users (the replacement for Docs & Settings) folder to an external drive given an admin. password if Windows gets deactivated.
Which internationally recognized entity publishes the human-readable exact definition of a conforming Microsoft Word or Microsoft Excel file
None. But unofficial standards can still be standards. Kind of like there are 4 tines on a fork. Or the headlight dimmer on a car is usually turned by pulling the turn switch back.
is it extortion if it involves possibly deactivating a product you suspect someone doesn't have a license to use?
"Suspicion" might not be enough. For example, in a lot of states, you can't evict someone in your building without a hearing in front of a judge - even if it's a squatter (not that I necessarily agree with that law).
I don't like product activation, not because M$ can arbitrarily disable my computer. I guess they might have expanded powers with Vista, but no real history of doing it. I don't like it because it gives them the ability to time limit the use of the software. Suppose I have a retail copy of XP Professional, which I really like.
I hope that this does help stem unlicensed Windows installations, and makes Microsoft more profitable. After all, I am a shareholder.
Except that if it stems unlic'd installs, it might make MS *less* profitable since the people who were previously using pirated copies will just move to something more free and less obtrusive. Thus lowering MS's market penetration.
With OS X's DRM, I'm locked into Apple hardware. That's right vendor lock-in. Without OS X, I won't be able to get at my data, either.
You're locked into your existing hardware and possibly your existing OS (if newer versions of OS X won't run on your old Mac). No one is threatening to render your old Mac unusable.
Microsoft has broken the law before, and been found guilty. Nothing substantial happened.
MS has never tried something like *this* before. If they deactivate, they're probably overstepping some hitherto invisible line. Just wait until some gov't agency's or some Federal judge's copies of Windows get deactivated. I think that using extortionate tactics like this will get MS into some deep legal shite.
Or, I could just not purchase Vista and not have to worry about it.
The problem is that a certain number of business will purchase Vista/Orifice 07, if only because it comes with new computers. Then will come the pushes for "standardisation" and "interoperability" which will cause more businesses to upgrade. And what about the latest games that will be Vista-only in 2008. You will be assimilated, sadly.
Best move is to switch to MacOS (less restrictive licensing, since the hardware essentially is the dongle) or Linux now.
Putting "bombs" in software that you create is generally frowned upon by the law, if only because it comes dangerously close to extortion. If MS starts deactivating legit copies of Vista after the fact or demanding money, I suspect that there'd be legal hell to pay. In the same sort of way that if you're in the mafia and you get caught saying "pay up or I'll burn your store down" you'll probably end up in jail.
If a pig ever hit me, I would hit the fucker back.
Yes police brutality sucks. OTOH, drunk drivers *should* have their asses stomped, especially in countries like Germany where there are alternative means of transport available. Actually, when I was driving with my family when I was 16 and some old drunk fuck decided to go diagonally on the Turnpike and ram into us, I punched the fucker in the face before the cops got there. (No charges were filed by either side, but it felt good to mete out some rough justice. And for the record, he wasn't that old, maybe 50...) I don't necessarily agree with strict blood alcohol limits, but you shouldn't drink so much that you can't control your car.
But given the choice between hiring two equally-qualified candidates, one with a criminal record and one without, I'll take the "clean" candidate.
Provided that the record is for non-violent and/or "victimless" crimes, I'd take the candidate with the record. Why? (a) I don't necessarily want blind followers working for me (b) as a "fuck you" to the government (c) because I'd feel like I was doing something good for someone who needed a job.
In the US, I can see that happening because the speed limit was 55 mph for so long.
But it was basically always ignored, especially out West. In Montana, for example, the fine for exceeding 55 mph in the day time used to be a $5 "energy conservation fee" with no points against your license. Then the speed limit went to "reasonable and prudent" but a judge invalidated that due to the fact that there wasn't a clear law. So they set the limit at 75 with enforcement that's not half as bad as in the Northeast. Texas has an 80 mph limit now, BTW.
Average speeds in the Northeast on roads like the NJ Turnpike are closer to 75-80 mph...
I have no idea why americans are allergic to roundabouts. It's not like they're patented or something. Anyone care to explain?
It depends on the region of America you're talking about. Washington, DC has quite a few of them. So do New Jersey and Massachusetts, but mostly on state highways. If traffic gets really high and backs up before the roundabout, they tend to either eliminate it and replace it with a traffic light and/or ramps, or build a flyover for the dominant path of traffic.
Actually, if you get caught drunk-driving in Germany (above a 0.05 alcohol content) you *will* probably go to jail the first offence. Plus get an informal shit-kicking from the cops.
I suspect that this won't be used a lot on home computer systems. Where it may be used a lot is in things like automotive dashboards and possibly non-critical systems on aircraft where space is at a premium and touch screens work poorly if you're wearing gloves and/or want some tactile feedback.
PINE users don't think of it as "old but bearable." The fact is, PINE still has the best UI of any mail client out there. I'm really looking forward to the day when I can switch to another client that lets me view images, but somebody has to develop a better client first!
I agree 100%. How difficult would it be for pine to know if it was running in an xterm window as opposed to a straight console and spawn an attachment viewer upon request. Better yet, Alpine (the pine replacement) is supposed to have text-based and web-based versions. So the web version might be usable for attachment viewing.
Place a six inch ball of pultonium wrapped in one inch of plactic expolsives in microwave. Heat on high until plutonium atoms fuse.
Better yet, take the ball of plutonium and form two hemispheres of beryllium (a neutron reflector) around it to fit closely. Put the ball in one hemisphere. Then, using a screwdriver as a spacer, lower the other hemisphere over the plutonium ball. Make sure not to slip. If you see a blue flash from Cerenkov radiation inside your eyeballs, write your will after you've stopped barfing.
(They actually did similar experiments at Los Alamos in the 40s. And, yes, the screwdriver did eventually slip. Not only once, but two people actually got "bit by the dragon."
1)College is just too expensive in the US now, it is *insane*
For private schools: I'd agree. Public universities in some states like Maryland, NJ, and California (among others) are less expensive for in-state residents and frequently have decent programs in the sciences and engineering.
As far as I am concerned anyone should be able to come over here and reap the American dream just like all our ancestors did (except for the natives we forgot to kill).
Who are we letting in, though. If we don't vet the people whom we allow into the US carefully, we might very well allow some terrorists and other foreign enemies in. Which will mean that we'll accept further erosion of our civil liberties under the guise of watching over them. If we control whom we let into the US more tightly, we can afford a freer society internally.
In addition to the foreigners, you can avail yourself of more Americans by setting your sights lower. I've found that people that have an entrepreneurial spirit, ability to take personal responsibility of job functions, and demonstrate willingness to learn and self-study do very well in IT regardless of official degree.
I'm doing just fine in tech with no formal training - actually, I do have a mech engr degree but no one has really asked. The only thing is that I want to go back into engineering so I'll probably be out of the market within a year or two. Hopefully, I'd have hired enough good talent to keep supporting my clients by then, though and to have a financial cushion to lay back upon if I hate the new job or decide to go to grad school.
Can you imagine going to a certification class and someone said it would cost you 4 years and $110,000. That is what college essentially is, except there is no corporate backing and the material is always outdated. Now if you were going to college for networking, fine.
The certification classes don't give you anything you can't learn yourself either, TYVM. I've been freelancing in the NYC area for the past 2 years, and out of many prospective clients (and around 50 actual business clients) exactly one has asked if I was MCSE. I said I wasn't - "ok, come in and meet with me." Meeting: "Can you fix this?" Fixed it. "Ok, no one else was able to get this to work. Cool..."
After years of the tell-all CID service foiling our evil plots, we can once again order pizzas to be delivered to our annoying neighbors, and the pizzerias will be none the wiser! I suppose this would work for Chinese delivery too. Oh the terror! Ban Google now!
We used to have a shore house up until 2001 or so. We didn't have a land line phone there, since there was little point in paying for service year round when we only used the place 2 or 3 months out of the year. The problem was that a lot of the local takeout places would only deliver to a phone number in the form of 77xxxxx or 98xxxxx, so calling them to deliver from a cell phone was out of the question. Setting caller ID to blocked caused us to stop having problems:)
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That's not the point, is it? Apple isn't threatening to disable "unlicensed" or older Macs, are they?
-b.
What fraction of the population actually games? Personally, I prefer *real* interaction with humans. And the more I use a computer for work, the less I want to use one outside of work. Hiking, hunting, biking, motorcycling, reading, hanging out with friends (sometimes playing non-computer games), building stuff, drawing, etc, are all more fun than sitting in front of a glass teat of any type.
-b.
The inactivation of most software won't render the computer almost totally unusable. OS's should be held to a higher standard. At least there should be an option that copies all data in the C:\Users (the replacement for Docs & Settings) folder to an external drive given an admin. password if Windows gets deactivated.
-b.
None. But unofficial standards can still be standards. Kind of like there are 4 tines on a fork. Or the headlight dimmer on a car is usually turned by pulling the turn switch back.
-b.
To each one their own? Some would say the same about Windows or Linux.
-b.
"Suspicion" might not be enough. For example, in a lot of states, you can't evict someone in your building without a hearing in front of a judge - even if it's a squatter (not that I necessarily agree with that law).
-b.
That's what cracked copies of Windoze are for.
-b.
Except that if it stems unlic'd installs, it might make MS *less* profitable since the people who were previously using pirated copies will just move to something more free and less obtrusive. Thus lowering MS's market penetration.
-b.
You're locked into your existing hardware and possibly your existing OS (if newer versions of OS X won't run on your old Mac). No one is threatening to render your old Mac unusable.
-b.
MS has never tried something like *this* before. If they deactivate, they're probably overstepping some hitherto invisible line. Just wait until some gov't agency's or some Federal judge's copies of Windows get deactivated. I think that using extortionate tactics like this will get MS into some deep legal shite.
-b.
The problem is that a certain number of business will purchase Vista/Orifice 07, if only because it comes with new computers. Then will come the pushes for "standardisation" and "interoperability" which will cause more businesses to upgrade. And what about the latest games that will be Vista-only in 2008. You will be assimilated, sadly.
Best move is to switch to MacOS (less restrictive licensing, since the hardware essentially is the dongle) or Linux now.
-b.
-b.
Growing pot in your basement and then smoking it yourself (or with friends who are of age) is illegal. Who's being victimized?
Laws against sex toys in some states (sale is a felony).
Illegal gun ownership for self defense even if you don't shoot anyone.
Need I go on?
-b.
Yes police brutality sucks. OTOH, drunk drivers *should* have their asses stomped, especially in countries like Germany where there are alternative means of transport available. Actually, when I was driving with my family when I was 16 and some old drunk fuck decided to go diagonally on the Turnpike and ram into us, I punched the fucker in the face before the cops got there. (No charges were filed by either side, but it felt good to mete out some rough justice. And for the record, he wasn't that old, maybe 50...) I don't necessarily agree with strict blood alcohol limits, but you shouldn't drink so much that you can't control your car.
-b.
Provided that the record is for non-violent and/or "victimless" crimes, I'd take the candidate with the record. Why? (a) I don't necessarily want blind followers working for me (b) as a "fuck you" to the government (c) because I'd feel like I was doing something good for someone who needed a job.
-b.
But it was basically always ignored, especially out West. In Montana, for example, the fine for exceeding 55 mph in the day time used to be a $5 "energy conservation fee" with no points against your license. Then the speed limit went to "reasonable and prudent" but a judge invalidated that due to the fact that there wasn't a clear law. So they set the limit at 75 with enforcement that's not half as bad as in the Northeast. Texas has an 80 mph limit now, BTW.
Average speeds in the Northeast on roads like the NJ Turnpike are closer to 75-80 mph...
-b.
It depends on the region of America you're talking about. Washington, DC has quite a few of them. So do New Jersey and Massachusetts, but mostly on state highways. If traffic gets really high and backs up before the roundabout, they tend to either eliminate it and replace it with a traffic light and/or ramps, or build a flyover for the dominant path of traffic.
-b.
Actually, if you get caught drunk-driving in Germany (above a 0.05 alcohol content) you *will* probably go to jail the first offence. Plus get an informal shit-kicking from the cops.
-b.
-b.
I agree 100%. How difficult would it be for pine to know if it was running in an xterm window as opposed to a straight console and spawn an attachment viewer upon request. Better yet, Alpine (the pine replacement) is supposed to have text-based and web-based versions. So the web version might be usable for attachment viewing.
-b.
Better yet, take the ball of plutonium and form two hemispheres of beryllium (a neutron reflector) around it to fit closely. Put the ball in one hemisphere. Then, using a screwdriver as a spacer, lower the other hemisphere over the plutonium ball. Make sure not to slip. If you see a blue flash from Cerenkov radiation inside your eyeballs, write your will after you've stopped barfing.
(They actually did similar experiments at Los Alamos in the 40s. And, yes, the screwdriver did eventually slip. Not only once, but two people actually got "bit by the dragon."
-b.
For private schools: I'd agree. Public universities in some states like Maryland, NJ, and California (among others) are less expensive for in-state residents and frequently have decent programs in the sciences and engineering.
-b.
Who are we letting in, though. If we don't vet the people whom we allow into the US carefully, we might very well allow some terrorists and other foreign enemies in. Which will mean that we'll accept further erosion of our civil liberties under the guise of watching over them. If we control whom we let into the US more tightly, we can afford a freer society internally.
In addition to the foreigners, you can avail yourself of more Americans by setting your sights lower. I've found that people that have an entrepreneurial spirit, ability to take personal responsibility of job functions, and demonstrate willingness to learn and self-study do very well in IT regardless of official degree.
I'm doing just fine in tech with no formal training - actually, I do have a mech engr degree but no one has really asked. The only thing is that I want to go back into engineering so I'll probably be out of the market within a year or two. Hopefully, I'd have hired enough good talent to keep supporting my clients by then, though and to have a financial cushion to lay back upon if I hate the new job or decide to go to grad school.
-b.
The certification classes don't give you anything you can't learn yourself either, TYVM. I've been freelancing in the NYC area for the past 2 years, and out of many prospective clients (and around 50 actual business clients) exactly one has asked if I was MCSE. I said I wasn't - "ok, come in and meet with me." Meeting: "Can you fix this?" Fixed it. "Ok, no one else was able to get this to work. Cool..."
-b.
We used to have a shore house up until 2001 or so. We didn't have a land line phone there, since there was little point in paying for service year round when we only used the place 2 or 3 months out of the year. The problem was that a lot of the local takeout places would only deliver to a phone number in the form of 77xxxxx or 98xxxxx, so calling them to deliver from a cell phone was out of the question. Setting caller ID to blocked caused us to stop having problems :)
-b.