The way I see it, learn as much as you can about each operating system (by using them), and then decide for yourself what is best for you.
I don't hate MS, Apple, or Linux, that is counter-productive.
I prefer Linux as a server/client development platform, and use it for 85% of my Desktop needs, and 100% of my Server needs, as it lets me do whatever I want (with the programming and scripting languages that I'm fluent in), and that keeps me fed each day.
I enjoy Mac for high-end audio/video engineering, and I also use Windows for low-end/home-studio electronic music production.
Linux is not a contender in the Audio Engineering field, and won't be for some time, so I really have no choice but Mac or Windows, for now.
Each suits it's purpose well. I just try to avoid using a web browser (IE or Firefox) in Windows as much as possible, due to the amount of exploits running wild for the operating system, not because I hate Microsoft.
That's the cover-my-ass (to avoid accountability for my lack of management oversight) way to do it.
A) Managers should enforce strict oversight of documentation practices for network admins and software developers, which a lot of places don't do.
B) Developers and Administrators should document their work as they go, so that others can pick-up where they left off, which a lot don't do.
If these processes are already in place, which is usually the case at most structured IT shops, then there should be no reason why you have to rely on the support of some 3rd-Party vendor.
But I agree, it's not a perfect world, and sometimes it's good to cover your arsch! =)
I personally do not agree with the 'Support Licensing Scheme' business model or services offered by these vendors trying to capitalize from the open source software development model.
However, some Managers do (generally those who talk more affectively than they manage IT), and most of those Managers will be using SuSE and/or Red Hat, as they would much rather pay some vendor for support, rather than face accountability issues when the ish hits the fan.
I had a similar debate w/ our CTO regarding the matter, and of coarse, he chose RHEL over Debian. Most of it came down to the issue of vendor support, whereas I felt that I am paid to be the support tech, so why pay them as well.
I guess the real question here should be: Why would a debian admin need to pay for support when he/she is (usually) experienced enough to find most of the answers on their own??
The internet isn't making people perceive these politicians as corrupt, it's the decisions and actions these politicians make that leave people to perceive them as corrupt.
It's very similar to hollywood vs. internet piracy. It's not the internet or piracy that is making movie ticket sales dive, it's shitty product.
They need to take a whif of the stuff their shoveling!
As a hacker, you can just as easily spoof IP addresses using an insecure HTTP Proxy from another Country, or control a botnet of remote compromised machines, so it isn't entirely logical, unless you can get the logs of those machines and trace back to the actual source of the attack, which could be layers upon layers of proxies, in some cases.
HELLO!!! From an intelligence stand-point, who are these idiots making decisions which land top secret weapons development projects in the hands of foreign companies/governments? Is it any wonder why China is rising in military technology so fast? Why are 40%+ of the staff @ Los Alamos foreign nationals? Is it any wonder why we have security breaches?
I guess it would be nice to get this for my (would-be) wife's phone, so that I can track her to make sure she isn't cheating on me, but I don't think I would want her to have one to track me, since I'd probably get caught bone'n the secretary. =/
"supporting oss you are not undermining other software businesses, but America itself"
Last time I checked, America had this thing called a constitution, which states something about 'freedom' in there, somewhere.
If American corporations are free to expand their business using the 'free trade' or 'globalization' model, who is really undermining America? The software businesses who are run by 2-3 American citizens using OSS? or the Lawmakers who allow these corporate lobbyists to do whatever they wish (for the right price), regardless of the implications.
This whole issue will pan-out to lobbyism, just as the war in Iraq, and most every other law being passed.
I've written code that is used in Ubuntu (as well as other distros), and I don't hate any particular distro, I just hate the way Ubuntu's being marketed to the masses. IMHO, linux is not for everyone, and not everyone should be using linux.
The more morons that switch to linux, the more exploit-centric it will become, as there are more chances that rootkits and other forms of exploits will be made to target such a 'market share' like Ubuntu.
The more people who use the same distro with the same package-manager-configured settings, the easier it will be for that to happen. That may or may not happen, but that's just how I see it (forward-thinking, albeit a bit paranoid perhaps). =)
For linux newbies, ubuntu is a great distro. For lazy people who don't like to compile software or use a command line (which really defeats the purpose of linux, imo), it is also great.
But, honestly... who cares what I think? Do you think I care what you think? =)
or people who demand that their OS have more of a brain than they do.
When I see the stock photos on the ubuntu site, it clearly reminds me that I am not one of those 'normal' people, and don't want to be, nor do I want to share a distro with people like that.
When you pay for Commercial Software, whether it be based upon Open Source or Proprietary technologies, you get what you pay for... the ability (for your staff) to avoid accountability by purchasing a commercial vendor support license.
When you hire a team of qualified/skilled developers who are smart/experienced enough to use FREE OSS products, AND google (or other search engines) as their means of support, rather than avoiding accountability by purchasing a commercial vendor support license, you will save yourself ALOT of that money, even though you may have to pay a bit higher on the Salary level. *Not to mention they probably have the ability to make a much better product.*
Take the time it requires to find the solution to a 'bug' on a search engine... 5-10mins.
Compare that with the time it requires to get help (after sitting on-hold for 5-10mins) on some vendor's support line: 10-25mins
Managers insist on purchasing support licenses so they can avoid accountability. How often do you really use those support lines? And if it's more than 1hr a month, then you should probably be looking for better personel, imo.
Slackware is my (personal favorite) choice for distros.
Although we don't use it @ work for our production servers, I use it @ home for my laptop, firewall/router, and building other network appliances, as well as @ work for my desktop.
It's flexibility and minimalistic approach are very attractive reasons why I can't seem to embrace other (bloaty) distros equally, although I do use them (when required).
Well, I'm sorry to tell you MS, but MySpace KILLED-IT. You can try to follow in it's foot-steps, but good luck with that.
The fact of the matter is...
A) The name 'myspace' has a lot to do with it's popularity. 'Wallop' is a word that 68% of those myspace users have never heard of, so the chances of it catching-on, or them being able to spell it even, is very slim.
B) The whole myspace phenom is long over. The majority of people who use myspace STILL, are not likely to switch to yet another social networking site. They've been to Friendster, tribez, etc. MySpace works for them.
C) The majority of people who have moved-on from myspace MAY be interested in some less-shady alternative, but I suspect that they are 'over it' with the whole social networking fetish.
Why don't they use that R&D dept. to actually innovate something for once. I mean... seriously, what a waste!
It's kind of hard to be creative and innovating when you're access to information is restricted to state-approved content (only).
I'm not saying that the Chinese People are not capable of such free-thinking, but currently, under an authoritarian regime, this is all a pipe-dream for the CPC.
The most common sloppy coding issue that people using dreamweaver's 'design mode' (only) create, is the font tag. Sometimes it nests multiple font tags that can grow rather large in bytes, and introduce bandwidth and storage overhead, and overall sloppy HTML.
I've seen a LOT of web/graphic designers (non-html programmer types) do this, and I refuse to clean-up their code, or work with it even. It's more of an issue w/ inexperienced dw users, and mainly applied to older versions of dw.
Although I do agree that dw is a great app for what it is, don't get me wrong, I just think people (including those replied to my comment) need to understand the difference between Web Page Development, and Web Application Development, and how it differs in an (assembly line) developmemt environment (not 1-man shops).
It's not a drawback for developers, it's a limitation for Microsoft.
Why would any (sane) web application developer want to pay for and use a windows-only IDE, when you can develop on a free operating system, with free software, and do (virtually) anything you want with the source code??
As a perl/php web application developer, and someone who sometimes helps HR interview/test candidates to see where their technical skills and abilities are... I wouldn't recommend hiring someone who only uses IDE's such as dreamweaver, simply because they generally lack programming and software-design skills.
I might recommend them for a Web 'Designer' position, as they may be great at making graphical interfaces, but Web (GUI) Designers should not be confused with Web Application Developers, and in an assembly-line process they should never be exposed to the server-side source code.
Another drawback of using IDEs such as Dreamweaver in an assembly-line web application development environment, is that there is always a poor soul who has to clean-up all the nasty WYSIWYG-generated HTML code from the IDE. This is can sometimes be a huge set-back for resources and time allocation.
It's simply counter-productive.
Since most Web Designers who use IDEs only view from the 'Design' view, they generally don't realize how much sloppy code is being generated, or how to clean it up. (not all, but the majority of the mass)
The only people who want a mainstream adoption of linux are the marketing (bottom-feeders) who want to cash in on it, so they obviously don't get the point.
Linux is for geeks, and it should stay that way. Windows and Mac is for the mainstream (spoonfed) mass, and it should stay that way.
If you want to make an alternative desktop to windows/mac, then start writing your own kernel, and go from there, but *please* don't continue to ruin the Linux kernal and OSS community by using jedi (marketing-influenced) mind-tricks, you padowan Siths.
lol, true, didn't mean to sound off like some yuppy kack. I am closer to the HS dropout kabillionaire type (minus the kabillions), wearing baggy shorts and a ghetto beanie etc. too.
I guess what I meant to say, was, if that guy was an air marshall, he sure did stick out like a soar thumb, or at least, was the closest to looking like an air marshall as I'd imagine, compared to the rest.
If he wasn't an air marshall, he should have been, because I sure as hell wouldn't fuck with him! =p
Slashdot Mirror
The way I see it, learn as much as you can about each operating system (by using them), and then decide for yourself what is best for you.
I don't hate MS, Apple, or Linux, that is counter-productive.
I prefer Linux as a server/client development platform, and use it for 85% of my Desktop needs, and 100% of my Server needs, as it lets me do whatever I want (with the programming and scripting languages that I'm fluent in), and that keeps me fed each day.
I enjoy Mac for high-end audio/video engineering, and I also use Windows for low-end/home-studio electronic music production.
Linux is not a contender in the Audio Engineering field, and won't be for some time, so I really have no choice but Mac or Windows, for now.
Each suits it's purpose well. I just try to avoid using a web browser (IE or Firefox) in Windows as much as possible, due to the amount of exploits running wild for the operating system, not because I hate Microsoft.
No arguments there! =)
That's the cover-my-ass (to avoid accountability for my lack of management oversight) way to do it.
A) Managers should enforce strict oversight of documentation practices for network admins and software developers, which a lot of places don't do.
B) Developers and Administrators should document their work as they go, so that others can pick-up where they left off, which a lot don't do.
If these processes are already in place, which is usually the case at most structured IT shops, then there should be no reason why you have to rely on the support of some 3rd-Party vendor.
But I agree, it's not a perfect world, and sometimes it's good to cover your arsch! =)
I personally do not agree with the 'Support Licensing Scheme' business model or services offered by these vendors trying to capitalize from the open source software development model.
However, some Managers do (generally those who talk more affectively than they manage IT), and most of those Managers will be using SuSE and/or Red Hat, as they would much rather pay some vendor for support, rather than face accountability issues when the ish hits the fan.
I had a similar debate w/ our CTO regarding the matter, and of coarse, he chose RHEL over Debian. Most of it came down to the issue of vendor support, whereas I felt that I am paid to be the support tech, so why pay them as well.
I guess the real question here should be: Why would a debian admin need to pay for support when he/she is (usually) experienced enough to find most of the answers on their own??
terrorizing the civilized open source community... you should be ashamed, Steven.
The internet isn't making people perceive these politicians as corrupt, it's the decisions and actions these politicians make that leave people to perceive them as corrupt.
It's very similar to hollywood vs. internet piracy. It's not the internet or piracy that is making movie ticket sales dive, it's shitty product.
They need to take a whif of the stuff their shoveling!
As a hacker, you can just as easily spoof IP addresses using an insecure HTTP Proxy from another Country, or control a botnet of remote compromised machines, so it isn't entirely logical, unless you can get the logs of those machines and trace back to the actual source of the attack, which could be layers upon layers of proxies, in some cases.
HELLO!!! From an intelligence stand-point, who are these idiots making decisions which land top secret weapons development projects in the hands of foreign companies/governments? Is it any wonder why China is rising in military technology so fast? Why are 40%+ of the staff @ Los Alamos foreign nationals? Is it any wonder why we have security breaches?
I guess it would be nice to get this for my (would-be) wife's phone, so that I can track her to make sure she isn't cheating on me, but I don't think I would want her to have one to track me, since I'd probably get caught bone'n the secretary. =/
LOL!! your argument is simply laughable.
"supporting oss you are not undermining other software businesses, but America itself"
Last time I checked, America had this thing called a constitution, which states something about 'freedom' in there, somewhere.
If American corporations are free to expand their business using the 'free trade' or 'globalization' model, who is really undermining America? The software businesses who are run by 2-3 American citizens using OSS? or the Lawmakers who allow these corporate lobbyists to do whatever they wish (for the right price), regardless of the implications.
This whole issue will pan-out to lobbyism, just as the war in Iraq, and most every other law being passed.
or am I the only one who still uses it? =|
I guess it doesn't really need any of that, or at least I don't.
I've written code that is used in Ubuntu (as well as other distros), and I don't hate any particular distro, I just hate the way Ubuntu's being marketed to the masses. IMHO, linux is not for everyone, and not everyone should be using linux.
The more morons that switch to linux, the more exploit-centric it will become, as there are more chances that rootkits and other forms of exploits will be made to target such a 'market share' like Ubuntu.
The more people who use the same distro with the same package-manager-configured settings, the easier it will be for that to happen. That may or may not happen, but that's just how I see it (forward-thinking, albeit a bit paranoid perhaps). =)
For linux newbies, ubuntu is a great distro. For lazy people who don't like to compile software or use a command line (which really defeats the purpose of linux, imo), it is also great.
But, honestly... who cares what I think? Do you think I care what you think? =)
or people who demand that their OS have more of a brain than they do.
When I see the stock photos on the ubuntu site, it clearly reminds me that I am not one of those 'normal' people, and don't want to be, nor do I want to share a distro with people like that.
Slackware on the other hand... =p
When you pay for Commercial Software, whether it be based upon Open Source or Proprietary technologies, you get what you pay for... the ability (for your staff) to avoid accountability by purchasing a commercial vendor support license.
When you hire a team of qualified/skilled developers who are smart/experienced enough to use FREE OSS products, AND google (or other search engines) as their means of support, rather than avoiding accountability by purchasing a commercial vendor support license, you will save yourself ALOT of that money, even though you may have to pay a bit higher on the Salary level. *Not to mention they probably have the ability to make a much better product.*
Take the time it requires to find the solution to a 'bug' on a search engine... 5-10mins.
Compare that with the time it requires to get help (after sitting on-hold for 5-10mins) on some vendor's support line: 10-25mins
Managers insist on purchasing support licenses so they can avoid accountability. How often do you really use those support lines? And if it's more than 1hr a month, then you should probably be looking for better personel, imo.
Slackware is my (personal favorite) choice for distros.
Although we don't use it @ work for our production servers, I use it @ home for my laptop, firewall/router, and building other network appliances, as well as @ work for my desktop.
It's flexibility and minimalistic approach are very attractive reasons why I can't seem to embrace other (bloaty) distros equally, although I do use them (when required).
Well, I'm sorry to tell you MS, but MySpace KILLED-IT. You can try to follow in it's foot-steps, but good luck with that.
The fact of the matter is...
A) The name 'myspace' has a lot to do with it's popularity. 'Wallop' is a word that 68% of those myspace users have never heard of, so the chances of it catching-on, or them being able to spell it even, is very slim.
B) The whole myspace phenom is long over. The majority of people who use myspace STILL, are not likely to switch to yet another social networking site. They've been to Friendster, tribez, etc. MySpace works for them.
C) The majority of people who have moved-on from myspace MAY be interested in some less-shady alternative, but I suspect that they are 'over it' with the whole social networking fetish.
Why don't they use that R&D dept. to actually innovate something for once. I mean... seriously, what a waste!
Excuse me sir, can you please put down that glass (FUD) pipe.
Thanks!
whoever pays 1.5b for that site, is going to need it!
It's kind of hard to be creative and innovating when you're access to information is restricted to state-approved content (only).
I'm not saying that the Chinese People are not capable of such free-thinking, but currently, under an authoritarian regime, this is all a pipe-dream for the CPC.
Good luck CPC!
which probably woudln't prevent such viral infections anyhow
The most common sloppy coding issue that people using dreamweaver's 'design mode' (only) create, is the font tag. Sometimes it nests multiple font tags that can grow rather large in bytes, and introduce bandwidth and storage overhead, and overall sloppy HTML.
I've seen a LOT of web/graphic designers (non-html programmer types) do this, and I refuse to clean-up their code, or work with it even. It's more of an issue w/ inexperienced dw users, and mainly applied to older versions of dw.
Although I do agree that dw is a great app for what it is, don't get me wrong, I just think people (including those replied to my comment) need to understand the difference between Web Page Development, and Web Application Development, and how it differs in an (assembly line) developmemt environment (not 1-man shops).
It's not a drawback for developers, it's a limitation for Microsoft.
Why would any (sane) web application developer want to pay for and use a windows-only IDE, when you can develop on a free operating system, with free software, and do (virtually) anything you want with the source code??
As a perl/php web application developer, and someone who sometimes helps HR interview/test candidates to see where their technical skills and abilities are... I wouldn't recommend hiring someone who only uses IDE's such as dreamweaver, simply because they generally lack programming and software-design skills.
I might recommend them for a Web 'Designer' position, as they may be great at making graphical interfaces, but Web (GUI) Designers should not be confused with Web Application Developers, and in an assembly-line process they should never be exposed to the server-side source code.
Another drawback of using IDEs such as Dreamweaver in an assembly-line web application development environment, is that there is always a poor soul who has to clean-up all the nasty WYSIWYG-generated HTML code from the IDE. This is can sometimes be a huge set-back for resources and time allocation.
It's simply counter-productive.
Since most Web Designers who use IDEs only view from the 'Design' view, they generally don't realize how much sloppy code is being generated, or how to clean it up. (not all, but the majority of the mass)
I couldn't agree more.
Sites like InfoWorld, CNet, etc. are all FUD and misinformation spreading wastes of time and binary.
The only people who want a mainstream adoption of linux are the marketing (bottom-feeders) who want to cash in on it, so they obviously don't get the point.
Linux is for geeks, and it should stay that way. Windows and Mac is for the mainstream (spoonfed) mass, and it should stay that way.
If you want to make an alternative desktop to windows/mac, then start writing your own kernel, and go from there, but *please* don't continue to ruin the Linux kernal and OSS community by using jedi (marketing-influenced) mind-tricks, you padowan Siths.
lol, true, didn't mean to sound off like some yuppy kack. I am closer to the HS dropout kabillionaire type (minus the kabillions), wearing baggy shorts and a ghetto beanie etc. too.
I guess what I meant to say, was, if that guy was an air marshall, he sure did stick out like a soar thumb, or at least, was the closest to looking like an air marshall as I'd imagine, compared to the rest.
If he wasn't an air marshall, he should have been, because I sure as hell wouldn't fuck with him! =p
Wolfenwhat?