My god! Not a two line mencoder command that could take at least two hours to complete on your home computer as you go to work or school! Whatever will you do??? To be fair, you can't really complain.
Well, exactly what constitutes "easily available" is the question at the heart of the debate. It is not enough that they exist somewhere in a package management system; I should be able to apt-get/yum/etc. a single package to set up a basic build environment with the standard tools required to build a basic source package. I also object to the fact that I have to find the -dev version of every package I've already installed, and install it as well; surely there should be an option to install -dev packages based on what's already on the system.
This is a good thing, no matter how you slice it. If this provokes another space race, the Western world will have to put its money where its mouth is regarding space exploration, and great scientific advancements could be made by both sides. Having just one superpower does lead to some degree of stagnation.
I think he used the kernel version as more of a timestamp than an, "I used Linux X.XX and foo bar, etc." Referencing a kernel version will have more relevence than a specific version for a (possibly) obscure distro, to all members of the linux community at that time.
That's certainly taking my argument to its bizarre conclusion. I am, however, suggesting that controlling any kinds of products by age is stupid and pointless, including alcohol and tobacco: people should be free to make a bad choice.
I don't see how they aren't useful... that's like saying most programs are in apt-get. The truth is, although many people will never feel comfortable doing a make on a source package, that a distro gains a lot of its legitimacy through the sort of user who would. The GNU/Linux landscape is one that, at this point, requires a compiler and dev tools; as far as I know, even OS X includes them by default. It has been a historical part of a UNIX-based system, and I see no reason why that should change; there is no harm in including it and having people not notice whether it's there or not, but it can create a more negative image if someone goes looking for it and can't find it easily.
Only in the US would there be laws against selling pipes... hell, in Canada there's legal stores that will sell everything you need except the actual marijuana, all legit. Maybe the US's problem is they are insanely backwards and stupid...
I don't mean all the libraries, I mean all the tools. build-essentials has been missing a few things in the past when I've tried it, and it's a real pain in the ass trying to track down the package name of whatever keeps causing the compile error because it isn't there.
The problem with that is I don't, when compiling some obscure GPL'd project, want to search through YaST (or apt-get... I'm looking at you, ubuntu) trying to guess which packages I'll need. GCC is the obvious one, but what about autoconf, automake, nasm, etc...? Either make sure you have a meta-package that installs *all* of the things I might need to compile something, or have it there by default.
Where would I add such a request? Also, given extremely limited knowledge of C, the GIMP API, and no prior knowledge of the BMP format, how hard would it be to write a plugin or small converter app myself?
Well, to be fair, they were kinda stupid to sell it (even if it is a stupid law). I'm talking more about things like mplayer and xine, which are essential to watching dvds on a computer, provided you don't run windows or OS X.
Kids will get their hands on games the same way they get their hands on alcohol and cigarettes: by finding a store too lazy to card them, or just getting an over-18 friend to go out and buy it for them. The first option is by far the best, because word-of-mouth spreads fast among kids with a desire to purchase age-controlled products; this means that the wealth of the newly-attained business will pay for any fines the government can hand down. The second option is the fatal flaw in any situation: there will always be some older guy you know, or some uncaring 20-year-old outside the store that will do it for you.
In the US, the DMCA does make DeCSS, and thus playing dvds, illegal. In the rest of the world, the status is murky. I have also heard that distributing or creating the circumvention device (DeCSS) is illegal, but using it for fair use is not.
Correct me if I'm wrong... is it still legal for me to obtain the software from someone else, provided I do not redistribute it (provided I were as US citizen, which I'm not)? If so, I think the DMCA has been blown much out of proportion, because then (as I interpret it) as long as the distribution servers of decss, or circumvention program X are located outside of the US or a similar jurisdiction, there is no way to make such a thing illegal provided it is not being used for piracy.
The only thing keeping me from using GIMP with no concern for PS whatsoever is the lack of support for 32-bit BMP files (BMP with Alpha). Even if it were implemented in a seperate (linux) program, that could a) convert a PNG with alpha or b) combine two BMP files, one grayscale. Until that point, I still have to use PS or some other tool to do the final edits for textures on MS Flightsim.
You actually mean that I could get more than what I agreed to pay for?! Those bastards, how dare they do such a thing! Honestly, people, it's not a bad thing.
First of all, mandrake (at this point) is a completely different distro, and secondly, paid support staff is much different from a bunch of people in an IRC channel. I know I've seen ubuntu questions and even debian questions asked in #gentoo without a bunch of flames. Also, realize that it's not so much that they do it, but the rudeness with which they do it. A simple, "we limit this channel to debian questions only" would suffice, but instead we have like 20 people saying "OMG!!!! Ubuntu is *NOT* debian, don't ask questions here!". Half of the time, the question doesn't involve anything distro-specific (even apt-get, when talking about ubuntu vs. debian, is hardly distro specific), so anyone could answer the question for the most part.
Now, I'm a gentoo user too, and I'm so sick of people like this claiming it's just that easy. It's not, and I admit it. Gentoo pisses me off on occasion too, because compiling everything from source means you can run into some interesting errors. So, cut the shit, eh?
The debian devs/fanboys seem to do this in exchange for the opportunity to mercilessly tear to shreds anyone who asks about Ubuntu or Knoppix in #debian. Just speaking from experience here...
To all those who say this is a win for DRM, it isn't really. This doesn't take away your freedoms. I, like the next linux zealot, have a somewhat obsessive preference for freedom. I don't support DRM, nor would I like to see it used on a wider basis. What people seem to fail to understand is that this technology gives you more freedom, not less. All of us freedom-loving folks need to get used to the fact that media companies see the world in a vastly different way, and that we will probably never agree with one another. This merely allows you greater versatility in how you use your DRM-crippled music; the evil is still squarely in the hands of those who "protect" their works with DRM.
Slashdot Mirror
My god! Not a two line mencoder command that could take at least two hours to complete on your home computer as you go to work or school! Whatever will you do??? To be fair, you can't really complain.
Well, exactly what constitutes "easily available" is the question at the heart of the debate. It is not enough that they exist somewhere in a package management system; I should be able to apt-get/yum/etc. a single package to set up a basic build environment with the standard tools required to build a basic source package. I also object to the fact that I have to find the -dev version of every package I've already installed, and install it as well; surely there should be an option to install -dev packages based on what's already on the system.
This is a good thing, no matter how you slice it. If this provokes another space race, the Western world will have to put its money where its mouth is regarding space exploration, and great scientific advancements could be made by both sides. Having just one superpower does lead to some degree of stagnation.
I think he used the kernel version as more of a timestamp than an, "I used Linux X.XX and foo bar, etc." Referencing a kernel version will have more relevence than a specific version for a (possibly) obscure distro, to all members of the linux community at that time.
That's certainly taking my argument to its bizarre conclusion. I am, however, suggesting that controlling any kinds of products by age is stupid and pointless, including alcohol and tobacco: people should be free to make a bad choice.
I don't see how they aren't useful... that's like saying most programs are in apt-get. The truth is, although many people will never feel comfortable doing a make on a source package, that a distro gains a lot of its legitimacy through the sort of user who would. The GNU/Linux landscape is one that, at this point, requires a compiler and dev tools; as far as I know, even OS X includes them by default. It has been a historical part of a UNIX-based system, and I see no reason why that should change; there is no harm in including it and having people not notice whether it's there or not, but it can create a more negative image if someone goes looking for it and can't find it easily.
So it only duplicates matter... I'll give you two bucks.
Only in the US would there be laws against selling pipes... hell, in Canada there's legal stores that will sell everything you need except the actual marijuana, all legit. Maybe the US's problem is they are insanely backwards and stupid...
I don't mean all the libraries, I mean all the tools. build-essentials has been missing a few things in the past when I've tried it, and it's a real pain in the ass trying to track down the package name of whatever keeps causing the compile error because it isn't there.
The problem with that is I don't, when compiling some obscure GPL'd project, want to search through YaST (or apt-get... I'm looking at you, ubuntu) trying to guess which packages I'll need. GCC is the obvious one, but what about autoconf, automake, nasm, etc...? Either make sure you have a meta-package that installs *all* of the things I might need to compile something, or have it there by default.
Where would I add such a request? Also, given extremely limited knowledge of C, the GIMP API, and no prior knowledge of the BMP format, how hard would it be to write a plugin or small converter app myself?
Microsoft Flight Simulator, for some reason that's beyond me, uses them for texturing aircraft (alpha channel controls shine).
Well, to be fair, they were kinda stupid to sell it (even if it is a stupid law). I'm talking more about things like mplayer and xine, which are essential to watching dvds on a computer, provided you don't run windows or OS X.
Kids will get their hands on games the same way they get their hands on alcohol and cigarettes: by finding a store too lazy to card them, or just getting an over-18 friend to go out and buy it for them. The first option is by far the best, because word-of-mouth spreads fast among kids with a desire to purchase age-controlled products; this means that the wealth of the newly-attained business will pay for any fines the government can hand down. The second option is the fatal flaw in any situation: there will always be some older guy you know, or some uncaring 20-year-old outside the store that will do it for you.
In the US, the DMCA does make DeCSS, and thus playing dvds, illegal. In the rest of the world, the status is murky. I have also heard that distributing or creating the circumvention device (DeCSS) is illegal, but using it for fair use is not.
I've tried many times with ImageMagick, and that doesn't work. I haven't looked into PBMtools; perhaps I will try that.
Correct me if I'm wrong... is it still legal for me to obtain the software from someone else, provided I do not redistribute it (provided I were as US citizen, which I'm not)? If so, I think the DMCA has been blown much out of proportion, because then (as I interpret it) as long as the distribution servers of decss, or circumvention program X are located outside of the US or a similar jurisdiction, there is no way to make such a thing illegal provided it is not being used for piracy.
The only thing keeping me from using GIMP with no concern for PS whatsoever is the lack of support for 32-bit BMP files (BMP with Alpha). Even if it were implemented in a seperate (linux) program, that could a) convert a PNG with alpha or b) combine two BMP files, one grayscale. Until that point, I still have to use PS or some other tool to do the final edits for textures on MS Flightsim.
You actually mean that I could get more than what I agreed to pay for?! Those bastards, how dare they do such a thing! Honestly, people, it's not a bad thing.
Know, even. Scary, isn't it?
First of all, mandrake (at this point) is a completely different distro, and secondly, paid support staff is much different from a bunch of people in an IRC channel. I know I've seen ubuntu questions and even debian questions asked in #gentoo without a bunch of flames. Also, realize that it's not so much that they do it, but the rudeness with which they do it. A simple, "we limit this channel to debian questions only" would suffice, but instead we have like 20 people saying "OMG!!!! Ubuntu is *NOT* debian, don't ask questions here!". Half of the time, the question doesn't involve anything distro-specific (even apt-get, when talking about ubuntu vs. debian, is hardly distro specific), so anyone could answer the question for the most part.
Now, I'm a gentoo user too, and I'm so sick of people like this claiming it's just that easy. It's not, and I admit it. Gentoo pisses me off on occasion too, because compiling everything from source means you can run into some interesting errors. So, cut the shit, eh?
The debian devs/fanboys seem to do this in exchange for the opportunity to mercilessly tear to shreds anyone who asks about Ubuntu or Knoppix in #debian. Just speaking from experience here...
Professional addition? I mean, humans can be fast, but I thought calculators kinda put an end to all those professional adders.
To all those who say this is a win for DRM, it isn't really. This doesn't take away your freedoms. I, like the next linux zealot, have a somewhat obsessive preference for freedom. I don't support DRM, nor would I like to see it used on a wider basis. What people seem to fail to understand is that this technology gives you more freedom, not less. All of us freedom-loving folks need to get used to the fact that media companies see the world in a vastly different way, and that we will probably never agree with one another. This merely allows you greater versatility in how you use your DRM-crippled music; the evil is still squarely in the hands of those who "protect" their works with DRM.