I have Charter internet here and I don't have to pay extra because I don't have their cable TV service. I've read that in the past they had a $10/month charge if you only subscribed to internet, but they have since dropped it (I've used them for about 6 months now). Works for me.
Ah, right you are, now that I check. But even uninstalling both.8 and.9 through Add/Remove, re-installing has kept my bookmarks and plugins--I'm not complaining. Looks good to me.
Uh...I'm not sure what OS you're using, but it installed/upgraded just fine on my XP Pro box I have here. Plugins/Bookmarks/Etc, all moved over just fine.
I agree that the grandparent post is right on, but the fact that you say,
But IMO, part of the problem is that these people are just "aware" that they have to do updates. I can't count the number of people I've told to go to WindowsUpdate to keep up to date and I get the most clueless looking face I've ever seen...
That is why this problem persists. Most people that currently use Linux realize that patches are needed, flaws are found. The fact that we use a different OS than Windows would confound most average users. If I installed Fedora on my parent's pc, they wouldn't realize that the red circle in the lower right corner meant they needed to download something--same as the notifications on their XP box they have now. All they want to do is surf the web and get email. You wouldn't expect to buy a microwave and then a week later take it back to the store for an 'update'. Or buy a new TV and once a month click on an 'Update' button on your remote.
The point I'm trying to make is that the average user expects their computer to work just like any other household item. You buy it at the store, you plug in a few things, it works and you don't worry about it. I know what you're saying about the average user giving you a blank stare when you mention Windows Update, but it takes me 2 minutes to tell them how to check for updates and download critical ones.
I'm not bashing your post, I'm just further illustrating that the reason for this is that the user has this mindset is that that's what they expect. Unless an OS comes out that is so stable that an update is never needed (don't give me a bunch of Debian or Mac rhetoric), it's just not going to happen.
In college I took a 'Film 101' class which was basically a class showing movies that upped the ante as far as movie-making goes. At one point, the professor, a complete smart ass, informed the 300 person class of mostly frat boys and sorority sisters that, (I'm paraphrasing) 'You need a sledgehammer to beat any idea into the viewers' head'. This was right after his ranting about 'Titanic' and I highly doubt that a 1/3 of the people in there got it. Most people do not understand subtlety. Hence the reason that great shows like Futurama have been cancelled.
At least Fox takes a chance on these shows, but unfortunately, they tend to get cancelled after the first or second season. It's not that the average TV viewer is an idiot. It's just that when they get home from work, they want to turn on the tube and not think. TV has become an escape and to watch 'reality' bs only offers people a greater escape from themselves. Expect more of the same.
Sometimes I see a dupe article on/. Sometimes that same article will appear more than a few times. Do I get up-in-arms about it? No, I just let it go./. has about 10 editors, AFAIK, and who knows how many stories get submitted everyday? I'd say at least in the 1000-range. So you expect every fscking article that is interesting to be reseached?
Flame me all you like, but I'd just like to point out that the editors of/. are HUMAN. If they post a dupe, ignore it, go to another article, rethink your view on it. I can hardly believe that you have never made a mistake in your life. You've never typed a wrong character when you were coding? You've never wrongly diagnosed a pc problem? The/. editors are doing us a service of showing articles that they think WE will find interesting. If you have such a hard time with an occasional human failure, go look for another site that's as good. I can assure you you will not find it.
Sometimes I see a dupe article on/. Sometimes that same article will appear more than a few times. Do I get up-in-arms about it? No, I just let it go./. has about 10 editors, AFAIK, and who knows how many stories get submitted everyday? I'd say at least in the 1000-range. So you expect every fscking article that is interesting to be reseached?
Flame me all you like, but I'd just like to point out that the editors of/. are HUMAN. If they post a dupe, ignore it, go to another article, rethink your view on it. I can hardly believe that you have never made a mistake in your life. You've never typed a wrong character when you were coding? You've never wrongly diagnosed a pc problem? The/. editors are doing us a service of showing articles that they think WE will find interesting. If you have such a hard time with an occasional human failure, go look for another site that's as good. I can assure you you will not find it.
I think we continue to read it because we hope that we'll see that final nail in the coffin. Between groklaw and slashdot, I know I've had my fill. I rarely visit groklaw anymore and I usually skip the SCO articles here, but it is an important case, even if it's been beaten into the ground and borders on the ridiculous.
And the fact that I'm even replying to this post, much less having read most of them--WTF am I doing?
Slashdot Mirror
And /. even has a Bill Gates borg icon.
Oh, the injustice.
I have Charter internet here and I don't have to pay extra because I don't have their cable TV service. I've read that in the past they had a $10/month charge if you only subscribed to internet, but they have since dropped it (I've used them for about 6 months now). Works for me.
Ah, right you are, now that I check. But even uninstalling both .8 and .9 through Add/Remove, re-installing has kept my bookmarks and plugins--I'm not complaining. Looks good to me.
Uh...I'm not sure what OS you're using, but it installed/upgraded just fine on my XP Pro box I have here. Plugins/Bookmarks/Etc, all moved over just fine.
I for one welcome NoData, our new Weird-Al-Yankovicesque-M$-bashing overlord.
I agree that the grandparent post is right on, but the fact that you say,
But IMO, part of the problem is that these people are just "aware" that they have to do updates. I can't count the number of people I've told to go to WindowsUpdate to keep up to date and I get the most clueless looking face I've ever seen...
That is why this problem persists. Most people that currently use Linux realize that patches are needed, flaws are found. The fact that we use a different OS than Windows would confound most average users. If I installed Fedora on my parent's pc, they wouldn't realize that the red circle in the lower right corner meant they needed to download something--same as the notifications on their XP box they have now. All they want to do is surf the web and get email. You wouldn't expect to buy a microwave and then a week later take it back to the store for an 'update'. Or buy a new TV and once a month click on an 'Update' button on your remote.
The point I'm trying to make is that the average user expects their computer to work just like any other household item. You buy it at the store, you plug in a few things, it works and you don't worry about it. I know what you're saying about the average user giving you a blank stare when you mention Windows Update, but it takes me 2 minutes to tell them how to check for updates and download critical ones.
I'm not bashing your post, I'm just further illustrating that the reason for this is that the user has this mindset is that that's what they expect. Unless an OS comes out that is so stable that an update is never needed (don't give me a bunch of Debian or Mac rhetoric), it's just not going to happen.
Just my thoughts.
In college I took a 'Film 101' class which was basically a class showing movies that upped the ante as far as movie-making goes. At one point, the professor, a complete smart ass, informed the 300 person class of mostly frat boys and sorority sisters that, (I'm paraphrasing) 'You need a sledgehammer to beat any idea into the viewers' head'. This was right after his ranting about 'Titanic' and I highly doubt that a 1/3 of the people in there got it. Most people do not understand subtlety. Hence the reason that great shows like Futurama have been cancelled.
At least Fox takes a chance on these shows, but unfortunately, they tend to get cancelled after the first or second season. It's not that the average TV viewer is an idiot. It's just that when they get home from work, they want to turn on the tube and not think. TV has become an escape and to watch 'reality' bs only offers people a greater escape from themselves. Expect more of the same.
Just my thoughts...
Just ask your mom, last night she figured out the 'up up down down left right left right...' hack.
She had more continues than I care to remember.
So I take it that in your Soviet Russia...
The Ramen WORKS you.
Sometimes I see a dupe article on /. Sometimes that same article will appear more than a few times. Do I get up-in-arms about it? No, I just let it go. /. has about 10 editors, AFAIK, and who knows how many stories get submitted everyday? I'd say at least in the 1000-range. So you expect every fscking article that is interesting to be reseached?
/. are HUMAN. If they post a dupe, ignore it, go to another article, rethink your view on it. I can hardly believe that you have never made a mistake in your life. You've never typed a wrong character when you were coding? You've never wrongly diagnosed a pc problem? The /. editors are doing us a service of showing articles that they think WE will find interesting. If you have such a hard time with an occasional human failure, go look for another site that's as good. I can assure you you will not find it.
Flame me all you like, but I'd just like to point out that the editors of
Sometimes I see a dupe article on /. Sometimes that same article will appear more than a few times. Do I get up-in-arms about it? No, I just let it go. /. has about 10 editors, AFAIK, and who knows how many stories get submitted everyday? I'd say at least in the 1000-range. So you expect every fscking article that is interesting to be reseached?
/. are HUMAN. If they post a dupe, ignore it, go to another article, rethink your view on it. I can hardly believe that you have never made a mistake in your life. You've never typed a wrong character when you were coding? You've never wrongly diagnosed a pc problem? The /. editors are doing us a service of showing articles that they think WE will find interesting. If you have such a hard time with an occasional human failure, go look for another site that's as good. I can assure you you will not find it.
Flame me all you like, but I'd just like to point out that the editors of
I think we continue to read it because we hope that we'll see that final nail in the coffin. Between groklaw and slashdot, I know I've had my fill. I rarely visit groklaw anymore and I usually skip the SCO articles here, but it is an important case, even if it's been beaten into the ground and borders on the ridiculous.
/.ers have more important things to think about like frying ants with huge magnifying glasses. Thank you.
And the fact that I'm even replying to this post, much less having read most of them--WTF am I doing?
SCO please die now.