Do you really mean that the second best explanation is God did it((TM)). Even "the species have always been here" makes less assumptions, predicts as little and is therefore better than creationism.
While the parent is totally overreacting, it is justly based in an attitude that prevails; just as with cell phones, personal computers are still regarded by many as some kind of geek toy only - because they were something of a game console/luxury typewriter for their first 15 years. A quick reality check reveals that the internet has filled the role of telephones, libraries, free press and a few other old-school intellectual tools combined. In that way the parent is right, if we (the industrial world) want to keep a substantial portion of the developing world growing bananas for us, they won't need computers. If we want their political climate to change for the better with all that follows of economic improvements - personal computers may be the best solution available in 2006.
If Gates idea of helping children is to provide them with Windows licences... Good for him, but unless he wants to give a Dell with windows installed to all children in Africa and develloping nations he should probably tone down his comments.
He doesn't want to, but he will once MIT's computer becomes widespread and millions of 3rd-worlders use open source software, anything not to have the market going in the wrong direction. Look at what happened when Thailand started discussing Linux as a standard platform - instant price drops on thai Windows.
Why? There's no need for DRM to be proprietary. Frankly given the generally better quality of open-source encryption technology, I'd imagine you could write a more effective DRM suite with open-source tools than with proprietary tools.... The security of any cryptographic system (including DRM) is and must be in the keys, not in public ignorance of the encryption scheme.
While your statements after "no need for DRM to be proprietary" are factually correct, it misses the point in the case of DRM. The content holder is not protecting the transmission against third parties, but against the receiver. The only way to go with DRM (unlike information security) is security through obscurity, which we all know does not work. It is from these two conditions that it follows that no DRM scheme is uncrackable.
In the long term this is good news, because it reduces the likelihood of the 1984-ish DRM society we all fear. In the short term it does not matter because the content companies will try to f-up things for a while before they realize this.
It is a bug, there is not supposed to be any auto-run (as opposed to auto-open of non-executable media files). Now, in its attempt to auto-open say, this faux JPG file launch services opens the actual script in the terminal. This run in terminal function is necessary, i've used it myself numerous times for starting MySql and the like from a prewritten script.
If there is an implementational problem it is that Safari can't/won't tap into the same type determination algorithm that launch services uses, to determine the safeness of a file type.
While it would be naive not to freak out about this, it is equally naive to expect Joe User to carefully examine every file he downloads to see if it is really safe. Inherently safe files (non-executables) should always be passed swiftly along, and the warnings and blocks be saved for files that really pose a threat. Of course they have to be categorized correctly, and that's what failed here. Downloading a zipped JPG to view it is not a power user task, and must be considered safe. Joe won't know that JPGs are compressed and zipping them is redundant...highly suspect to the trained eye!
Remember, Apple is a hardware company. The more boxes they sell, the more profitable they'll be. They don't really care which OS the user is on. Hopefully this move will allow them to have iPod-like success with the desktop systems.
Also remember, Apple is notorious in the business for not takning whatever route gives them the fastest cash. Instead they often go for solutions that are different, often more expensive and seen as better by their customers. They do care very much which OS the user is on, just don't admit that at this point.
What I'd prefer is them to say that they wouldn't support OS X on a non-Mac machine, but should you happen to buy a licence for it then they wouldn't put anything in the way of installing it. But then their hardware profit margin vanishes, and they have a million and one combinations of hardware to test under.
And all the disclaimers in the world won't stop people from complaining that Apple's OS X (that they paid the whole $129 for) locks up on their (homebuilt) computer. I think Apple would rather not want that.
Usually, the way to handle something like this is to leave the feature disabled, unless you've asked the user or they explicitly enable it. The problem is that it is enabled by default, without asking the user.
You should check it out. No need to read, even an analphabet recognizes the big ITMS pane, and would figure out that to display what it does it has to communicate with Apple over the internet.
My iBook G3 600 (purchased april 2002) broke down twice, first the hard drive (february 2004, repaired off warranty) and then the backlight (related to the logic board as it turned out - december 2004) For various reasons I didn't turn it in for repairs (off warranty) until may 2005. The backlight problem turned out to be caused by a faulty logic board, but since this was just past the iBook repair extension deadline I'd have to pay for that replacement myself which would be close to the price of a new iBook.
Around the same time I had purchased an iMac G5 with had a case of the infamous fan problem and a few months later a faulty screen. They were both fixed rather snappily, but I had gotten rather disappointed.
I wrote a letter to Apple describing my experiences with their products asking for a warranty exception on the logic board and...voilá. Semi-happy ending, my iBook gets fixed and breaks down again (exactly same backlight problem) in less than a week. This falls under meta-warranty, the logic board is replaced once more and the iBook is currently alive and well.
The lesson: generous warranty is a bad substitute for product quality, but at least Apple got that right.
The fact that you couldn't grasp those limited lyrics (4 words total) while listening to the song says a lot
And, the fact that you're making this comment does not say a lot but surely one thing: that you haven't actually heard this track. But you're making the comment anyway and that says a lot!
What happens when someone releases a worm like the sasser on a mac? (If you think it can't happen, you really must have the wool pulled over your eyes). All these macs aren't running firewalls, no one uses a virus scanner et cetera. Basically Apple (or people like myself encouraging others to switch to a mac) is encouraging bad behaviour. See what I mean? Safety comes from good computing practices regardless of what OS you run. I run a firewall and virus scanner, and I am on Debian.
How would you convince a mac user to purchase (those aren't free) an anti-virus program? There have been a handful of trojans, a root kit, but no viruses or worms. There are no virus definitions, not even blueprints or attack strategies for such. Mac anti-virus software (which is of the scan-for-definitions type) currently does absolutely nothing.
True that many mac users are clueless about computer security just like the majority of windows users, but the disabled root user and authorisation requirements still put them in a better place when the day comes. Other than that, perhaps the firewall should be on by default but you know then people would complain about MSN messenger not functioning - and for what reason? Joe Luser deems the mac inferior and switches to a Windows PC which would get real viruses today.
For being a consumer OS and having zero existing malware threats I would say Apple are on the level. But I expect their strategy to change if/when actual problems arise.
All we have to do, is track down what company or companies wrote this "Explorer" and "Outlook" program, and stop using their dangerous products. Who knows, it might be someone who already has a reputation for writing software that is extremely dangerous for non-expert users. But I'm just speculating on that.;-)
I agree, I just wish Joe WinUser would realize this too:-)
Most people don't like it, but I have to fall into "blame the victim mode" here. What Sony did, was not trespass. It is 100% impossible for a passive piece of media (a CD) to trespass on a computer. The computer, working as the user's agent, actively loaded and executed code from the CD.
You know this means that toolbar and mail attachment malware isn't malware either? They are run by the user by double-clicking attachments or visiting a web page (inserting a CD).
I think not. The visitors to this museum are hardcore computer geeks that are already well aware of their choices and are likely not going to dump their current setups for Microsoft's latest and greatest based on their experiences at this museum.
Microsoft's target audience is corporate executives and average consumers, not enthusiasts
The corporate executives are MS's strongest foothold. The people saying that we might as well give up the fight (of not being pwnd by MS), not because they're insightful but because they never understood that struggle anyway.
As of today, hardcore geeks are the most likely to abandon MS if they haven't already. Being aware of the perils of Microsoft, they are also main targets for the "Bill Gates ain't so bad"-campaign currently running at a slashdot near you.
And gambling is also way better than alchol or drugs any day, does this mean these things shouldn't be treated? Judging the seriousness of problems on a relative basis isn't going to help anyone.
And I've heard that a substantial portion of chinese citizens have a serious labor addiction, working 18+ hours a day. They don't sleep or eat well either, and don't earn much on top of that.
But I'm sure the chinese government are on top of that too, helping all these people get a break!
And a vocal minority on/. complain about Microsoft bashing. A lot.
MS bashing on slashdot is often redundant, and that is it. It's not insightful to point out that Microsoft is being "bashed" here, there are cases against Microsoft that are not discussed in other places. The fact that you don't agree does not make it bashing.
Also, those curves would take up a hideous amount of memory. Mmm...sounds about right, in fact, that must be exactly how they will "solve" the PDF problem!
Making PDFs Read/Write would torpedo a LOT of current practices.
Well then it's time to kiss the current practices goodbye! PDFs have been read/write for a number of years with apps like Adobe Illustrator and Macromedia Freehand. With formatting completely preserved, too.
As other posts have pointed out, document signing is the only real way to proof documents. Your mention of a major engineering firm "securing" documents this way makes me feel kind of uneasy...
Would the Mac people please please PLEASE stop saying "[possible future Apple product] will beat [currently available non-Apple product]". It's getting tiresome.
Ah, you mean as in "[proposed future version of Windows] will beat [current shipping Apple OS]"?
Actually, tutorials is one of Blender's weak points right now - especially considering the relative pro-iness of the UI. Other people have posted links to the two most prominent sources, other than that you may consider buying the Blender 2.3 printed manual. It includes a 3D beginners section. It's quite cheap for what you get, I'm getting one myself soon;-)
Slashdot Mirror
Do you really mean that the second best explanation is God did it((TM)). Even "the species have always been here" makes less assumptions, predicts as little and is therefore better than creationism.
While the parent is totally overreacting, it is justly based in an attitude that prevails; just as with cell phones, personal computers are still regarded by many as some kind of geek toy only - because they were something of a game console/luxury typewriter for their first 15 years. A quick reality check reveals that the internet has filled the role of telephones, libraries, free press and a few other old-school intellectual tools combined.
In that way the parent is right, if we (the industrial world) want to keep a substantial portion of the developing world growing bananas for us, they won't need computers. If we want their political climate to change for the better with all that follows of economic improvements - personal computers may be the best solution available in 2006.
He doesn't want to, but he will once MIT's computer becomes widespread and millions of 3rd-worlders use open source software, anything not to have the market going in the wrong direction. Look at what happened when Thailand started discussing Linux as a standard platform - instant price drops on thai Windows.
While your statements after "no need for DRM to be proprietary" are factually correct, it misses the point in the case of DRM. The content holder is not protecting the transmission against third parties, but against the receiver. The only way to go with DRM (unlike information security) is security through obscurity, which we all know does not work. It is from these two conditions that it follows that no DRM scheme is uncrackable.
In the long term this is good news, because it reduces the likelihood of the 1984-ish DRM society we all fear. In the short term it does not matter because the content companies will try to f-up things for a while before they realize this.
It is a bug, there is not supposed to be any auto-run (as opposed to auto-open of non-executable media files). Now, in its attempt to auto-open say, this faux JPG file launch services opens the actual script in the terminal. This run in terminal function is necessary, i've used it myself numerous times for starting MySql and the like from a prewritten script.
If there is an implementational problem it is that Safari can't/won't tap into the same type determination algorithm that launch services uses, to determine the safeness of a file type.
While it would be naive not to freak out about this, it is equally naive to expect Joe User to carefully examine every file he downloads to see if it is really safe. Inherently safe files (non-executables) should always be passed swiftly along, and the warnings and blocks be saved for files that really pose a threat. Of course they have to be categorized correctly, and that's what failed here. Downloading a zipped JPG to view it is not a power user task, and must be considered safe. Joe won't know that JPGs are compressed and zipping them is redundant...highly suspect to the trained eye!
And all the disclaimers in the world won't stop people from complaining that Apple's OS X (that they paid the whole $129 for) locks up on their (homebuilt) computer. I think Apple would rather not want that.
You should check it out. No need to read, even an analphabet recognizes the big ITMS pane, and would figure out that to display what it does it has to communicate with Apple over the internet.
My iBook G3 600 (purchased april 2002) broke down twice, first the hard drive (february 2004, repaired off warranty) and then the backlight (related to the logic board as it turned out - december 2004) For various reasons I didn't turn it in for repairs (off warranty) until may 2005. The backlight problem turned out to be caused by a faulty logic board, but since this was just past the iBook repair extension deadline I'd have to pay for that replacement myself which would be close to the price of a new iBook.
Around the same time I had purchased an iMac G5 with had a case of the infamous fan problem and a few months later a faulty screen. They were both fixed rather snappily, but I had gotten rather disappointed.
I wrote a letter to Apple describing my experiences with their products asking for a warranty exception on the logic board and...voilá. Semi-happy ending, my iBook gets fixed and breaks down again (exactly same backlight problem) in less than a week. This falls under meta-warranty, the logic board is replaced once more and the iBook is currently alive and well.
The lesson: generous warranty is a bad substitute for product quality, but at least Apple got that right.
True that many mac users are clueless about computer security just like the majority of windows users, but the disabled root user and authorisation requirements still put them in a better place when the day comes. Other than that, perhaps the firewall should be on by default but you know then people would complain about MSN messenger not functioning - and for what reason? Joe Luser deems the mac inferior and switches to a Windows PC which would get real viruses today.
For being a consumer OS and having zero existing malware threats I would say Apple are on the level. But I expect their strategy to change if/when actual problems arise.
So, when can we get insurance for accidentally violating the DMCA while trying to fairly use our hard-earned media?
As of today, hardcore geeks are the most likely to abandon MS if they haven't already. Being aware of the perils of Microsoft, they are also main targets for the "Bill Gates ain't so bad"-campaign currently running at a slashdot near you.
Actually it's Quick and Dirty Operating System later shortened into DOS - Dirty Operating System?
And I've heard that a substantial portion of chinese citizens have a serious labor addiction, working 18+ hours a day. They don't sleep or eat well either, and don't earn much on top of that.
But I'm sure the chinese government are on top of that too, helping all these people get a break!
And a vocal minority on /. complain about Microsoft bashing. A lot.
MS bashing on slashdot is often redundant, and that is it. It's not insightful to point out that Microsoft is being "bashed" here, there are cases against Microsoft that are not discussed in other places. The fact that you don't agree does not make it bashing.
Also, those curves would take up a hideous amount of memory. Mmm...sounds about right, in fact, that must be exactly how they will "solve" the PDF problem!
As other posts have pointed out, document signing is the only real way to proof documents. Your mention of a major engineering firm "securing" documents this way makes me feel kind of uneasy...
So how does editing Slashdot and smoking crack measure up to all this?
"Netcraft confirms it...it is whack." -- Oscar Wilde on Slashdot
So much I didn't know!
Actually, tutorials is one of Blender's weak points right now - especially considering the relative pro-iness of the UI. Other people have posted links to the two most prominent sources, other than that you may consider buying the Blender 2.3 printed manual. It includes a 3D beginners section. It's quite cheap for what you get, I'm getting one myself soon ;-)