Back in the days when "speed" meant catching a train with a full head of steam, railroad repair engineers were a brave bunch, and many sported stumps of arms and legs as mute witness to their bravery in repairing moving trains.
One day, a city slicker with a spotless seersucker suit and a perfectly pointy moustache was reported travelling from station to station, selling his new technology suite. It included remote manipulators for making repairs from a higher level, without having to go under the trains. It also came equipped with "parking brakes" for trains, to prevent them accidentally moving while they were under repair.
This new "high level" technology was a hit in many towns, where the
young repair technicians were unenthusiastic about life with missing limbs. In addition, the new technology came with many interlocking "safeguard" mechanisms to make sure that no fittings were left unsecured when the repair was completed. This saved many a "crash".
But there remained many towns with older engineers, who had grown up doing things the "fast" way, repairing the trains on the fly (because things went faster that way!), and of course having the scars and stumps to show for it. They were also unenthusiastic about the "safeguards", declaring that they were "smarter than any newfangled machine", and could remember to close the latches and fittings themselves.
In one of these Ancient Telegraph Towns, one of the older engineers, Cyclone Bob, came up with his answer to the newfangled "high-level machines" -- special steel braces to wear over arms and legs while repairing the moving trains. "In most every case, these braces will protect your precious limbs from the hazards of moving wheels!", enthused Cyclone Bob.
The older engineers, who, when all was said and
done, actually enjoyed mucking about under trains, and who had already paid their dues in missing limbs, were rather proud of the new braces, and wore them proudly. "My trains hardly ever crash now", they would say, "and now I don't always have to lose a leg to prove it!".
The younger, smarter engineers continued using their "high-level" machines, and were happy that they still had arms so they could snigger up their sleeves.
Sure, I trust Microsoft with all my data. These
are the guys who, last week, claimed that all my bits are belong to them, and just a few days ago "noticed" that their privacy policy was a bit 'draconian'...so they backed off just a bit. We don't want ownership of all your bits anymore. Just the bits you send to us!
Of course I trust these guys to keep my secret data. They won't let it be revealed, they want it for themselves...
Okay, maybe I didn't make myself clear.
Boycott XP or be assimilated...
You don't have to use Hotmail or Passport to have
MS own EVERYTHING you do. You just have to use
Windows XP, which is claiming to be Microsoft's
next "gotta have it" OS.
Windows XP will integrate the Windows authentication system with the Passport authentication system, so a user can log onto Windows XP a single time and also be logged onto Passport and therefore be able to receive HailStorm services without an additional logon process. The release will also incorporate support for programmatic notifications, which means users of the HailStorm myNotifications service can easily opt to have their notifications delivered to their Windows XP-powered PC.
So talk all you want about using other mail
and password services, Micro$oft plans to own
all XP users too!
If you think this is bad, just look at how dot-NET and Passport are tied together.
If you use the new Windows XP, you are automatically a.NET (=Passport) customer!
...and therefore all your IP belong to us!
Great advice, he forgot one more thing:
7. Have Savings
Have at least 3 months' living expenses
and bills saved up. You will have slow periods
and the worst one is usually at the beginning.
-steve
I just applied for a part-time job here
and was told that the job was limited to
people under 35. No reason given, no
apology. "Here" is Milan, Italy.
So I would guess that Germany is not the
bad apple here....
-steve
Citrix has already announced wireless LAN support for Psion EPOC32 machines including
Series5, Series7, and NetBook. The product is available already.
Too bad Psion doesn't have any marketing or
someone might already know this.
Steve "Disgruntled Psion user: Love the machines,
too bad they don't know how to publicize or
distribute them." Rapaport
They are us. We, the people, are the "corporations". We build them. People run them. People who, at the end of the day, are no worse than we are. Maybe no better, either, but they're not worse. Mr. Case is not evil. He does not hate freedom. He has different priorities than you do. I do too. Perhaps Jon didn't effectively mention why we are NOT the corporations, you and me.
But I will.
If you and I have priorities that lead us to hurt others for our own personal gain, or spill huge amounts of toxic chemicals in rich wildlife areas and not bother to clean up, you and I will be put in jail. That's called accountability.
If a Corporation chooses to do these things to meet its own priorities (i.e. increase shareholder value), the Corporation does NOT go to jail. Ever. There is no accountability. At worst the corporation will be sued and lose some money. DId you see how much Exxon suffered after Valdez? How much did the CEO of Exxon suffer? Even less. In the early 40's Bayer took loads of Jews from concentration camps and used them for rather sadistic drug experiments. Humans who did this are still hunted as war criminals. The Bayer corporation still has no responsibility for this. When challenged, they blandly reply that the people who made that decision are no longer with the company. Who is accountable? Fear Corporate Rule until stockholders can be personally sent to jail for a corporations decisions which are aimed to please them. Steve
Hedy Lamarr's patent partner, George Antheil, was also no slouch at premature applications of future technologies. His riot-inciting work, Ballet Mécanique required sixteen synchronized player pianos to sound right. This wasn't technically possible until 1991, and first performed correctly in 1999 so perhaps the "George Antheil award for premature killer apps" is in order too... Anyway we geeks will miss you, Hedy!
I never reboot my Psion 7 subnotebook, which runs EPOC32 Release 5. It has the same freaky-cool suspension feature as the Dell with Linux, except that even a deliberate reboot takes only 1 to 5 seconds. And it does all that a laptop should do, at 1/4 the weight, 1/4 the size, and 3x the battery life. Even Linux would have trouble duplicating this level of reliability*functionality. Just thought I'd throw in another OS to consider...
Every piece of remote-sensing hardware that could tell you Earthlings more about the "face", or about Phobos, has disappeared mysteriously without a trace.
Eventually you will figure it out. Heh heh.
We will not let you see us until you visit us. Perhaps not even then. We like our privacy.
"Will continue to defend the principle of innovation."...and so business as usual, right, Bill? Okay, if you really believe that Microsoft wins by innovation, then you'll have no objection at all to Sun's suggestions for remedies. None of them seems to stifle Microsoft's innovative role.
As attention turns to potential remedies, Sun believes that:
Microsoft should be prohibited from buying the distribution channels of the future (e.g. cable and wireless) and from buying rather than inventing technologies. Microsoft's unfettered use of a cash hoard created out of monopoly profits is a competition killer; (Since we are talking about innovation into better technologies and serving the customer's need, not just engulfing all available distribution channels and competitors, right?)
The government needs to foster competition in the software industry by assuring that the technical interfaces of Microsoft's monopoly products are open; (C'mon, you don't need to keep your protocols and API's private to protect innovation, do you?)
Microsoft must be forbidden from entering into exclusive or preclusive agreements; (...And I'm sure you don't need to bully OEMs into not including your competitor's products, since yours are so much more innovative!)
Microsoft must be required to make their pricing policies non-discriminatory and public. Sun believes it is important that steps be taken to ensure that one company is not allowed to stifle true competition in an increasingly networked and dynamic industry. (No need to manipulate the market and distribution channels with secret backroom deals -- your software is so good it shouldn't need that!)
I can't see how any Microsoft supporter could object to these simple restrictions and still believe that the products are superior. And if Microsoft really does have better products, then these restrictions will help MS show that they don't need to fight dirty to win. Bill G: you should jump at the chance to show you can live this way!
Slashdot Mirror
One day, a city slicker with a spotless seersucker suit and a perfectly pointy moustache was reported travelling from station to station, selling his new technology suite. It included remote manipulators for making repairs from a higher level, without having to go under the trains. It also came equipped with "parking brakes" for trains, to prevent them accidentally moving while they were under repair.
This new "high level" technology was a hit in many towns, where the young repair technicians were unenthusiastic about life with missing limbs. In addition, the new technology came with many interlocking "safeguard" mechanisms to make sure that no fittings were left unsecured when the repair was completed. This saved many a "crash".
But there remained many towns with older engineers, who had grown up doing things the "fast" way, repairing the trains on the fly (because things went faster that way!), and of course having the scars and stumps to show for it. They were also unenthusiastic about the "safeguards", declaring that they were "smarter than any newfangled machine", and could remember to close the latches and fittings themselves.
In one of these Ancient Telegraph Towns, one of the older engineers, Cyclone Bob, came up with his answer to the newfangled "high-level machines" -- special steel braces to wear over arms and legs while repairing the moving trains. "In most every case, these braces will protect your precious limbs from the hazards of moving wheels!", enthused Cyclone Bob.
The older engineers, who, when all was said and done, actually enjoyed mucking about under trains, and who had already paid their dues in missing limbs, were rather proud of the new braces, and wore them proudly. "My trains hardly ever crash now", they would say, "and now I don't always have to lose a leg to prove it!".
The younger, smarter engineers continued using their "high-level" machines, and were happy that they still had arms so they could snigger up their sleeves.
Sure, I trust Microsoft with all my data. These are the guys who, last week, claimed that all my bits are belong to them, and just a few days ago "noticed" that their privacy policy was a bit 'draconian'...so they backed off just a bit. We don't want ownership of all your bits anymore. Just the bits you send to us!
Of course I trust these guys to keep my secret data. They won't let it be revealed, they want it for themselves...
Hotmail isn't the only way to get a Passport account and give up your privacy -- how about just using Windows XP? See message 337 for more details...
Boycott XP or be assimilated...
You don't have to use Hotmail or Passport to have MS own EVERYTHING you do. You just have to use Windows XP, which is claiming to be Microsoft's next "gotta have it" OS.
From the Microsoft White Paper on Hailstorm
So talk all you want about using other mail and password services, Micro$oft plans to own all XP users too!
If you think this is bad, just look at how dot-NET and Passport are tied together. .NET (=Passport) customer!
...and therefore all your IP belong to us!
If you use the new Windows XP, you are automatically a
For those unfamiliar with the difference, all that has happened is that the court has overturned the injunction against B&N, not the case.
This just means that the outcome of the patent case is not so overwhelmingly obvious that an injunction should be granted before the trial.
The trial has yet to occur.
So although this is encouraging, there's no news like, er, no news...
Great advice, he forgot one more thing:
7. Have Savings Have at least 3 months' living expenses and bills saved up. You will have slow periods and the worst one is usually at the beginning.
-steve
M$ has ways: Remember Java?
.NET is a credible attempt at following that advice.
In case people have forgotten, M$ has also successfully used the embrace-engulf-devour strategy very successfully against "threats" like Java.
In fact, that's the way the Halloween Document II recommends Linux be marginalized, and I think
The approach used against Netscape is not so relevant, but the one used against Java may work nicely.
I just applied for a part-time job here and was told that the job was limited to people under 35. No reason given, no apology. "Here" is Milan, Italy.
So I would guess that Germany is not the bad apple here....
-steve
Citrix has already announced wireless LAN support for Psion EPOC32 machines including Series5, Series7, and NetBook. The product is available already. Too bad Psion doesn't have any marketing or someone might already know this.
Steve "Disgruntled Psion user: Love the machines, too bad they don't know how to publicize or distribute them." Rapaport
But I will.
If you and I have priorities that lead us to hurt others for our own personal gain, or spill huge amounts of toxic chemicals in rich wildlife areas and not bother to clean up, you and I will be put in jail. That's called accountability.
If a Corporation chooses to do these things to meet its own priorities (i.e. increase shareholder value), the Corporation does NOT go to jail. Ever. There is no accountability. At worst the corporation will be sued and lose some money. DId you see how much Exxon suffered after Valdez? How much did the CEO of Exxon suffer? Even less. In the early 40's Bayer took loads of Jews from concentration camps and used them for rather sadistic drug experiments. Humans who did this are still hunted as war criminals. The Bayer corporation still has no responsibility for this. When challenged, they blandly reply that the people who made that decision are no longer with the company. Who is accountable? Fear Corporate Rule until stockholders can be personally sent to jail for a corporations decisions which are aimed to please them. Steve
Hedy Lamarr's patent partner, George Antheil, was also no slouch at premature applications of future technologies. His riot-inciting work, Ballet Mécanique required sixteen synchronized player pianos to sound right. This wasn't technically possible until 1991, and first performed correctly in 1999 so perhaps the "George Antheil award for premature killer apps" is in order too... Anyway we geeks will miss you, Hedy!
I never reboot my Psion 7 subnotebook, which runs EPOC32 Release 5. It has the same freaky-cool suspension feature as the Dell with Linux, except that even a deliberate reboot takes only 1 to 5 seconds. And it does all that a laptop should do, at 1/4 the weight, 1/4 the size, and 3x the battery life. Even Linux would have trouble duplicating this level of reliability*functionality. Just thought I'd throw in another OS to consider...
Eventually you will figure it out. Heh heh.
We will not let you see us until you visit us. Perhaps not even then. We like our privacy.
Marklar! ~O:}
I quote from http://www.sun.com/announcement/findings.html
I can't see how any Microsoft supporter could object to these simple restrictions and still believe that the products are superior. And if Microsoft really does have better products, then these restrictions will help MS show that they don't need to fight dirty to win. Bill G: you should jump at the chance to show you can live this way!this:
PostGresQL:
undocumented bugs, inconsistent behavior
from one release to the next. Not reliable.
MySQL: The opposite.