Well on the forums a number of people are saying Hotmail and Yahoo are rejecting Spymac's confirmation emails... maybe not the same problem you were having but something to keep in mind.
Human being think pictographically. It is ALWAYS easier to do something graphically on a computer.
In a well-made GUI, generally, but sometimes command lines really are easier - particularly after you learn the commands. while *learning* is a lot easier on most GUIs, actually *using* it is sometimes easier on command line. How often depends on what kind of work you need to do - for most users it's rare, but for professionals the command line is more than just quick - it's easier.
Take setting environment/system variables, for example. Instead of having to find an application that modifies them, running it, find the key you want, then changing it, you can just type a command like "setenv FOO 1". Newbie-unfriendly? sure. User-unfriendly? hardly. Efficient? Extremely.
Maybe "human beings think pictographically", but a lot of experienced *nix nerds are so accustomed to the command line that trying to figure out what program on a given distro on Linux is harder than just "setenv". That's ASSUMING that a program to do what you want exists in GUI form in the first place.
Yes, but for most program that don't require modifying system files, drag-and-drop is the preferred method. Unistalling these apps is similarly easy - drag to the trash. You can be confident that these apps didn't leave their junk all over the system.
I assume there are GUI-based versions of these installers somewhere? If not, then Linux installs are indeed newbie-unfriendly (which is often confused with "hard to use").
I tried fink (command line version)... and in line with the last statement, while it's probably easy to use, it wasn't intuitive or newbie-friendly. I've heard there's a GUI fink but haven't looked into it. Maybe I should.
They don't offer IMAP *yet* - AtariST has said several times that it's being worked on.
I guess my experience must be different from yours - I've found that large sites like this that offer free services seem to stick around. (Though on small ones I certainly agree, they're pretty likely to fail.) For example: google has never charged the users money for their search functionality, and...well, look where they are. Not to mention Yahoo, Amazon, et al.
Plus, Spymac's paid services are a good deal - for example, $17/month for 1GB webspace and 3 domains (I think - dont quote me on that), or the one I'm going to sign up for soon, $20/year for 250MB, ad removal, and Spymac Backup.
Unless you have a good example of a free service as large as Spymac that has died, I'll be confident in its ability to survive.:)
I that until recently XServes were an inferior option to Linux servers; however, I have seen on the SM forums that there are a few new Xserves, probably replacing the old ones as they wear out or become obsolete.
(Disclaimer: I neither work for Spymac nor know anything about hosting a large site, so feel free to ignore me.)
I really need to learn to wait a few days before installing things. I'm so impatient.
Even worse, I check a dozen or so Mac sites several times daily, (yes I need a life) so I probably get every update within 8 hours or so of release, if that.
They're actually working on IMAP support. Considering how many features they've added recently, I'd say it's probably a safe bet that if searching is in high demand, they'll add that as well.
It's been steadily growing for years, and the current site is its third revision. It's mature, and as long as a small portion of the users pay for their stuff (advanced hosting, auctions, their new Backup program) they'll be profitable long into the future. Hell that might not even be necessary - the ads might be profitable themselves, or at least break even.
The name is much older than the email service - it used to be just forums, probably for rumor reporting and discussion back in the day.
Now it functions very well as a replacement to.Mac - free, even. 100MB webspace FREE, a gig of email FREE, iCal hosting, 250MB for pictures - yes - FREE. I'm amazed they turn a profit at all. (They have paid web hosting as well, something like $17/month for a couple domains and 1GB webspace... still a pretty good deal.)
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Problem with having a quality keyboard and chair is that all problems default to a PEBKAC :)
if there were any mod points still being spent in tis thread i'd recommend you get +5 Funny :)
That's classic.
I'm waiting for Skype Lite from some anonymous hacker/developer, followed of course by Skype++.
Well on the forums a number of people are saying Hotmail and Yahoo are rejecting Spymac's confirmation emails... maybe not the same problem you were having but something to keep in mind.
Eh, I wouldn't know, really. Haven't used Hotmail in years.
Human being think pictographically. It is ALWAYS easier to do something graphically on a computer.
In a well-made GUI, generally, but sometimes command lines really are easier - particularly after you learn the commands. while *learning* is a lot easier on most GUIs, actually *using* it is sometimes easier on command line. How often depends on what kind of work you need to do - for most users it's rare, but for professionals the command line is more than just quick - it's easier.
Take setting environment/system variables, for example. Instead of having to find an application that modifies them, running it, find the key you want, then changing it, you can just type a command like "setenv FOO 1". Newbie-unfriendly? sure. User-unfriendly? hardly. Efficient? Extremely.
Maybe "human beings think pictographically", but a lot of experienced *nix nerds are so accustomed to the command line that trying to figure out what program on a given distro on Linux is harder than just "setenv". That's ASSUMING that a program to do what you want exists in GUI form in the first place.
Yes, but for most program that don't require modifying system files, drag-and-drop is the preferred method. Unistalling these apps is similarly easy - drag to the trash. You can be confident that these apps didn't leave their junk all over the system.
I assume there are GUI-based versions of these installers somewhere? If not, then Linux installs are indeed newbie-unfriendly (which is often confused with "hard to use").
I tried fink (command line version)... and in line with the last statement, while it's probably easy to use, it wasn't intuitive or newbie-friendly. I've heard there's a GUI fink but haven't looked into it. Maybe I should.
If I remember correctly, doesn't the anti-aging supplement thingy make Wu look look much younger - with a little makeup, close to Wil's age?
( needs to go read the book again )
Wow.... that's creepy.
Probably good inspiration for the 3D modelers who make the model for the series.
Unless of course it's animatronic.... Hehe, a Henson's Puppeteer.... I'm so witty.
Hmm... that's certainly a big improvement over what I'd heard. (which was probably a big point in the article)
:)
Thanks for the info, may some mod grant you karma.
was that sig intended to go with that post?
I just have one thing to say in response to this story:
:D
OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG XD XD XD
Ringworld is my favorite book of all time. I can't wait.
Scifi may yet win me back as a viewer.
</giddy_fanboy>
Question for linux junkies - how exactly does installation in Linux work for most programs?
1) The Windows way - installers for everyone!
2) The Mac Way - drag and drop for 99% of programs.
3) The (fabled) Linux way - compile it yourself
Somehow I doubt that compiling every program you install yourself is correct - but I could be wrong, I suppose.
and what about uninstalling?
*chokes*
*sputters*
*death gurgle*
(jk, btw... I don't use any of the service that the update breaks, and I have tried to deDRM my iTMS songs)
They don't offer IMAP *yet* - AtariST has said several times that it's being worked on.
:)
I guess my experience must be different from yours - I've found that large sites like this that offer free services seem to stick around. (Though on small ones I certainly agree, they're pretty likely to fail.) For example: google has never charged the users money for their search functionality, and...well, look where they are. Not to mention Yahoo, Amazon, et al.
Plus, Spymac's paid services are a good deal - for example, $17/month for 1GB webspace and 3 domains (I think - dont quote me on that), or the one I'm going to sign up for soon, $20/year for 250MB, ad removal, and Spymac Backup.
Unless you have a good example of a free service as large as Spymac that has died, I'll be confident in its ability to survive.
I that until recently XServes were an inferior option to Linux servers; however, I have seen on the SM forums that there are a few new Xserves, probably replacing the old ones as they wear out or become obsolete.
(Disclaimer: I neither work for Spymac nor know anything about hosting a large site, so feel free to ignore me.)
Source (Registration at spymac required, I think)
The security update is the only one worth complaining about - Come on, did you expect a copyright circumvention program to work perfectly?
I really need to learn to wait a few days before installing things. I'm so impatient.
Even worse, I check a dozen or so Mac sites several times daily, (yes I need a life) so I probably get every update within 8 hours or so of release, if that.
Heh, what a time for their registration to break....
I'll post in the support forums about this, see if they can get this fixed - I'll reply here again if they do.
The piece of mind is priceless.
:)
<insert one of countless typo-inspired jokes here>
That's PEACE of mind. PIECE of mind is what you give to someone when you tell them to fuck off.
They're actually working on IMAP support. Considering how many features they've added recently, I'd say it's probably a safe bet that if searching is in high demand, they'll add that as well.
Longer than you might think.
It's been steadily growing for years, and the current site is its third revision. It's mature, and as long as a small portion of the users pay for their stuff (advanced hosting, auctions, their new Backup program) they'll be profitable long into the future. Hell that might not even be necessary - the ads might be profitable themselves, or at least break even.
The name is much older than the email service - it used to be just forums, probably for rumor reporting and discussion back in the day.
.Mac - free, even. 100MB webspace FREE, a gig of email FREE, iCal hosting, 250MB for pictures - yes - FREE. I'm amazed they turn a profit at all. (They have paid web hosting as well, something like $17/month for a couple domains and 1GB webspace... still a pretty good deal.)
Now it functions very well as a replacement to
If this had been a Microsoft service, it would be (crappily) integrated into the OS and locked out from any other competitors.