Your post needs some modding up, it's the only one I see that actually goes into this point. I'm a bit surprised of the slashdot crowd being so pro-RIM here, maybe it's an allergic reaction to patents and patent-farming companies in general.
Apparently, NTP had valid patent claims (orignally developed for the Telefind company, not just 'ideas') that were ignored by RIM (as NTP is just a 2-people company, why should RIM care?) when NTP confronted them with this in 2001. NTP had the right to set this through and did accordingly.
I don't say that/know if the patent system allowed the patents correctly in the first place, but I do think that NTP had their right as it is and shouldn't be barked down as some just-for-money patent fabricating company. Furthermore we saw some pretty dubious US government-supports-US corporation things happening in the process, which in all are not a very good contribution to a more rightful way to treat patent disputes.
I use a english opera in germany. It uses google.com by default. There seems to be no interactive menu that can change this, that sucks, but I saw that there is a preference file which you could edit:
In linux, open: $HOME/.opera/search.ini (similar file in windows, don't know the exact place) Make the entry look like this, maybe add &rls=en to the URL string.
[Search Engine 1]
Name=&Google
URL=http://www.google.com/search?q=%s&sourceid=ope ra&num=%i&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8
Query=
Key=g
Is post=0
Has endseparator=0
Encoding=utf-8
Search Type=0
Verbtext=17063
Position=-1
Nameid=0
You could even add other Key variables for google.de search! I think google is to blame for this behaviour as well, though, they seem to forward google.com to the local google server, which is not always that what I want. (or better, always that what I don't want!)
I changed the preferences, but that's only saved in my own browser, not when I browse somewhere else. Note to google: when I use google.com I want english!
(Often I do a fist trick by using google.co.uk:))
Gates said that Google has an excellent browser but said that Microsoft is working on something better.
Wait a minute, isn't Microsoft supposed to be working on a better browser already since years and years? I knew MS is often just following trends, but now they're actually following someone who just started in the field they've been in for years! Where they sleeping al that time, or what?
Your comment reminds me of the 'this site best viewed with IE 5.0' pages. We got rid of those, hope the google-optimizing can have the same faith.
(I plead guilty though, just tried out a view titles and found out Ì could get higher on google depending on how I made my title. These are pages actually about the subject the title suggests, so I can sleep well about it, but the possibilities for misuse are just too high)
Are you no taking a stand for or against microsoft/google bashing?:) Just from a practical point of view, I know google is on the ethically bad path pretty often, but it's currently the best search site around.
Maybe if MS gets a lot better qualitatively, and google does more ethical slips, I might change, but in the mean time I'll just use the search engine that works best for me. Google should realize that's how it works for most people and people won't be loyal to the google-idea no matter what.
you may be right, but rather than changing this 'feature' I just switched my browser to oprea;) Anyway, a lot of users won't take the effort (or won't know how) to change all this. Why did you think google paid opera to have them use google as standard search engine? Most people use standard settings, period.
maybe Vista will have a default link to this site for everything that you do in Vista, more or less like the trick in IE now where any misspelling will lead you to msn search by default. That way you'll get the "more hits than google" allright. Still won't make you a good search engine though.
I am not a supercomputerbuilder, but the IBM "supercomputers" are actually just "clustered machines" as far as I know. But that still doesn't make them a "cluster".
It's probably a question of definition. The CTO of Cray answered this question some time ago. Now he might be biased towards supercomputers, but the way I read it there is not much difference at the moment except that supercomputers are specifically built to have fast and broad interconnects between CPUs and an optimal way to share CPU. A cluster is built out of standard parts, therefore has less shared memory, slower inter-CPU connections etc.
Of course the supercomputer will be better, but also a factor 10 more expensive when comparing same amount of single CPU power. But I would say it's worth it, the simulations don't gain much from parallel runs on a simple ethernet-cluster, but when you go to stuff like myrinet connects it really speeds like hell:)
page per placename:( See, I am smart enough to skip the sites that have urls like that, but even then I have to carefullt scroll through several google pages to find something. The whole search engine idea to help you find something specific fast gets lost this way.
Unless search engines find a way out of these "harvested" sites (you can just generate your own original content by combining several sources in an automatic way), these search engines will become completely useless in a few years
Already now in germany I cannot search for a local electronics store, because if I enter the name of my town and say 'pc peripherals' in google, I'll end up with the 100s of pages filled with these crappy harvest-sites, containing all often used search terms and all geographical names, but linking to nothing useful. I've given up now, hoping that google will somehow manage this (they already tried something similar in the case of BMW). In the meantime I'll have to search the phonebook to find stores, or ask on internet-fora on computing (good luck finding those, though!).
yeah, I did that with my no-name rt8139 network card. Good thing is that it will probably be supported on linux until eternity this way:) You'll have to know what the chipset is of the thing before you buy it, though, and I don't know how easy to find this is with scanners, printers and photocameras. I guess there are websites that keep track of this, specially for the linux community.
That won't help you in Amsterdam though. Everyone has a crap bike there anyway and as long as a drug-addict can get 25 euro for any bike that works, he'll steel the bike. If something's really in bad condition, e.g. the saddle, he'll change it with a part he stole from another bike.
I'm originally from holland, where everyone has at least one bike, and bikes get stolen pretty frequently, no matter how flashy/crappy your bike is. You can find out that any lock will eventually be opened, it is all just a matter on how much time the thief has, and how desirable your bike is. This means no lock will ever prevent someone 100% from stealing your bike, but you can take measures to at least slow down the process and make it more tricky. You can think of combining several types of locks, making sure that your bike is connected to something solid, and making sure that all your parts of your bike are connected to the main frame at least. Furthermore it should be clear from a distant that your bike will be a pain to steal (3 big flashy locks prevented my bike from being touched by anyone). With every lock you win only a few minutes from stealing your bike, but at some point it will be enough to scare thiefs away enough.
The same goes for house doors, cars, etc (I read a test once that any car can be opened within 5 minutes, the more popular the car, the more well-known the trick is to open it). Just make sure it's clear from the outside that you did a professional job in locking your house/car/whatever, and that it will take too much effort to open the damn thing.
Also don't forget your own safety (you might have to leave your house fast in case of fire), and convenience (what to do when your key is lost).
I had a nightmare installing a CPU temp monitoring app in windows (ok, I admit, I use windows on my home machine). First of all I had to find a freeware version (not some crappy 30-day shareware version that won't completely uninstall afterwards) that looked unsuspicious enough to not contain spyware or the like. Then I had to install that program at least 3 times because it wouldn't save the configuration correctly if I pressed a wrong button during install.
It's running now (MBM something, forgot the name), but it's just exemplary of the sh*t people tend to forget when talking about the userfriendliness of windows programs. Furthermore I just spend several afternoons installing "normal" programs on the windows pc of a friend of mine, she couldn't do it because there are too many things to consider! The default-installed aspi version wouldn't work very well with the cd-burner, the firewall gives pop-ups where you should sometimes ignore them, sometimes not, etc. etc. You need to be just as a computer-savy person for windows as for linux nowadays, with the difference that linux is only a pain during installation, but windows is a continuous pain, because you always have to be careful that some window might pop up that is either a security risk, or actually necessary. Most people in my family wouldn't know how to react correclty to these things, even I have trouble with it sometimes!
Furthermore I guess the GP was a troll anyway, goes all the way to say that linux isn't ment for the desktop but how does that explain that a big-bucks company like DELL introduces linux desktop machines in the first place?? As GP doesn't mention one single word about DELL's decision it sounds too much like a copy-paste of the standard MS fanboy answer in any linux-on-desktop topic.
Is linux more userfriendly then windows? Not yet. But if a PC builder the size of DELL starts making cautious moves towards linux desktops that might just be the sign linux is almost there. Also take into note that TFA mentions that some people might want to switch the moment the 6-version Vista arrives.
I would be cautious with using no-name PC-peripherals, such as printers, scanners, cameras and such. You will soon find out that they will have no drivers available at their website, which will make the product worthless the moment you switch os-es or have lost your installation CD. For printers the availability of ink cartridges will be a point.
Furthermore I just buy branded pc-peripherals because I know I will use those longer than my pc will hold, therefore they have to be stable and have the aforementioned downloadable drivers.
I'm wondering about the blue enter buttons, that's really still IBM heritage. Might as well have kept the trackpoint if they were going this way anyway.
Well, from the article summary, I got the impression that people have the idea that something can only be successful when you can make money of it. Which is just as sad an idea.
BTW, next time you talk to your friends, can you mention me(tm)? I'll pay you 10c per friend;)
btw, I would consider an apple, the nice OS and simple design attract me, but I heard about too many 'rotten apples' from people around me that I just wouldn't consider buying one when looking for a _robust_ laptop. Also I don't own an Ipod, so no incentive from that point of view;)
yo, just to defend my posting here. I currently own a thinkpad with a pentium 1 processor. It's a bit bulky, the hinges show wear, but it still works! At some point I will probably be earning enough (finishing a phd at the moment) to be able to buy a NEW laptop, and I would like to buy a robust one. (And no I didn't earn anything from posting this article;) )
Here is where my concern for the fate of the thinkpad comes. They are expensive, not using state of the art tech (for a reason, though), no flashy design, but build like a rock. Lenovo already started making metallic covers and using newest technology (instead of testing for durability first), now they're going budget and even dumping the trackpoint. Seems like they are moving away from the thinkpad philosophy, and moving towards the usual fancy-looking crap notebooks you can buy anywhere already. The new ones here aren't called thinkpad, that leaves a bit of hope that they may do a 2-way scheme, budget lenovo and high-quality thinkpad lenovo. I really hope that when the 5-year transition period from IBM to lenovo has ended there are still trustworthy thinkpads built, so I can buy one by then.
I'll have an alternative, though, the panasonic toughbook. http://www.panasonic.com/toughbook The hits I find at google for those things show that you can get one for a reasonable price. Not black and no trackpoint, though;)
Yes, that's the thing that struck me the most.
Maybe IBM wouldn't let them, just to make the difference between these and the Thinkpads more clear. Can't imagine that it can be a cost factor, a touchpad would be more or less the same price, wouldn't it?
Slashdot Mirror
Apparently, NTP had valid patent claims (orignally developed for the Telefind company, not just 'ideas') that were ignored by RIM (as NTP is just a 2-people company, why should RIM care?) when NTP confronted them with this in 2001. NTP had the right to set this through and did accordingly.
I don't say that/know if the patent system allowed the patents correctly in the first place, but I do think that NTP had their right as it is and shouldn't be barked down as some just-for-money patent fabricating company. Furthermore we saw some pretty dubious US government-supports-US corporation things happening in the process, which in all are not a very good contribution to a more rightful way to treat patent disputes.
Alternatively: a link in your link shows a Pez-type USB stick: http://crap.mousetoy.com/pez.html
In linux, open: $HOME/.opera/search.ini (similar file in windows, don't know the exact place)
Make the entry look like this, maybe add &rls=en to the URL string.
You could even add other Key variables for google.de search! I think google is to blame for this behaviour as well, though, they seem to forward google.com to the local google server, which is not always that what I want. (or better, always that what I don't want!) :))
I changed the preferences, but that's only saved in my own browser, not when I browse somewhere else.
Note to google: when I use google.com I want english!
(Often I do a fist trick by using google.co.uk
Gates said that Google has an excellent browser but said that Microsoft is working on something better.
Wait a minute, isn't Microsoft supposed to be working on a better browser already since years and years? I knew MS is often just following trends, but now they're actually following someone who just started in the field they've been in for years! Where they sleeping al that time, or what?
(I plead guilty though, just tried out a view titles and found out Ì could get higher on google depending on how I made my title. These are pages actually about the subject the title suggests, so I can sleep well about it, but the possibilities for misuse are just too high)
Apple should bring out $49 pieces of stylish tape to cover the iSight for those that don't want the thing staring at them all the time.
Are you no taking a stand for or against microsoft/google bashing? :) Just from a practical point of view, I know google is on the ethically bad path pretty often, but it's currently the best search site around.
Maybe if MS gets a lot better qualitatively, and google does more ethical slips, I might change, but in the mean time I'll just use the search engine that works best for me. Google should realize that's how it works for most people and people won't be loyal to the google-idea no matter what.
you may be right, but rather than changing this 'feature' I just switched my browser to oprea ;) Anyway, a lot of users won't take the effort (or won't know how) to change all this. Why did you think google paid opera to have them use google as standard search engine? Most people use standard settings, period.
So much for your first post here, eh? I certainly hope I hindered the MS prediction from coming true as well this way ;)
come on man, this has been done for ages: the fish was this (hold your arms way out at both sides) big! I swear by my grand-mother's grave! ;)
maybe Vista will have a default link to this site for everything that you do in Vista, more or less like the trick in IE now where any misspelling will lead you to msn search by default. That way you'll get the "more hits than google" allright. Still won't make you a good search engine though.
It's probably a question of definition. The CTO of Cray answered this question some time ago. Now he might be biased towards supercomputers, but the way I read it there is not much difference at the moment except that supercomputers are specifically built to have fast and broad interconnects between CPUs and an optimal way to share CPU. A cluster is built out of standard parts, therefore has less shared memory, slower inter-CPU connections etc.
Of course the supercomputer will be better, but also a factor 10 more expensive when comparing same amount of single CPU power. But I would say it's worth it, the simulations don't gain much from parallel runs on a simple ethernet-cluster, but when you go to stuff like myrinet connects it really speeds like hell :)
Also it hinders people that have actually something to say and want to make their site easy to find.
computer.[somecrappysite].de/ computer-teile-verkauf+stuttgart?gallery=1
page per placename :( See, I am smart enough to skip the sites that have urls like that, but even then I have to carefullt scroll through several google pages to find something. The whole search engine idea to help you find something specific fast gets lost this way.
Already now in germany I cannot search for a local electronics store, because if I enter the name of my town and say 'pc peripherals' in google, I'll end up with the 100s of pages filled with these crappy harvest-sites, containing all often used search terms and all geographical names, but linking to nothing useful. I've given up now, hoping that google will somehow manage this (they already tried something similar in the case of BMW). In the meantime I'll have to search the phonebook to find stores, or ask on internet-fora on computing (good luck finding those, though!).
yeah, I did that with my no-name rt8139 network card. Good thing is that it will probably be supported on linux until eternity this way :) You'll have to know what the chipset is of the thing before you buy it, though, and I don't know how easy to find this is with scanners, printers and photocameras. I guess there are websites that keep track of this, specially for the linux community.
That won't help you in Amsterdam though. Everyone has a crap bike there anyway and as long as a drug-addict can get 25 euro for any bike that works, he'll steel the bike. If something's really in bad condition, e.g. the saddle, he'll change it with a part he stole from another bike.
The same goes for house doors, cars, etc (I read a test once that any car can be opened within 5 minutes, the more popular the car, the more well-known the trick is to open it). Just make sure it's clear from the outside that you did a professional job in locking your house/car/whatever, and that it will take too much effort to open the damn thing. Also don't forget your own safety (you might have to leave your house fast in case of fire), and convenience (what to do when your key is lost).
It's running now (MBM something, forgot the name), but it's just exemplary of the sh*t people tend to forget when talking about the userfriendliness of windows programs. Furthermore I just spend several afternoons installing "normal" programs on the windows pc of a friend of mine, she couldn't do it because there are too many things to consider! The default-installed aspi version wouldn't work very well with the cd-burner, the firewall gives pop-ups where you should sometimes ignore them, sometimes not, etc. etc. You need to be just as a computer-savy person for windows as for linux nowadays, with the difference that linux is only a pain during installation, but windows is a continuous pain, because you always have to be careful that some window might pop up that is either a security risk, or actually necessary. Most people in my family wouldn't know how to react correclty to these things, even I have trouble with it sometimes!
Furthermore I guess the GP was a troll anyway, goes all the way to say that linux isn't ment for the desktop but how does that explain that a big-bucks company like DELL introduces linux desktop machines in the first place?? As GP doesn't mention one single word about DELL's decision it sounds too much like a copy-paste of the standard MS fanboy answer in any linux-on-desktop topic.
Is linux more userfriendly then windows? Not yet. But if a PC builder the size of DELL starts making cautious moves towards linux desktops that might just be the sign linux is almost there. Also take into note that TFA mentions that some people might want to switch the moment the 6-version Vista arrives.
Furthermore I just buy branded pc-peripherals because I know I will use those longer than my pc will hold, therefore they have to be stable and have the aforementioned downloadable drivers.
I'm wondering about the blue enter buttons, that's really still IBM heritage. Might as well have kept the trackpoint if they were going this way anyway.
BTW, next time you talk to your friends, can you mention me(tm)? I'll pay you 10c per friend ;)
btw, I would consider an apple, the nice OS and simple design attract me, but I heard about too many 'rotten apples' from people around me that I just wouldn't consider buying one when looking for a _robust_ laptop. Also I don't own an Ipod, so no incentive from that point of view ;)
Here is where my concern for the fate of the thinkpad comes. They are expensive, not using state of the art tech (for a reason, though), no flashy design, but build like a rock. Lenovo already started making metallic covers and using newest technology (instead of testing for durability first), now they're going budget and even dumping the trackpoint. Seems like they are moving away from the thinkpad philosophy, and moving towards the usual fancy-looking crap notebooks you can buy anywhere already. The new ones here aren't called thinkpad, that leaves a bit of hope that they may do a 2-way scheme, budget lenovo and high-quality thinkpad lenovo. I really hope that when the 5-year transition period from IBM to lenovo has ended there are still trustworthy thinkpads built, so I can buy one by then.
I'll have an alternative, though, the panasonic toughbook. http://www.panasonic.com/toughbook The hits I find at google for those things show that you can get one for a reasonable price. Not black and no trackpoint, though ;)
Yes, that's the thing that struck me the most. Maybe IBM wouldn't let them, just to make the difference between these and the Thinkpads more clear. Can't imagine that it can be a cost factor, a touchpad would be more or less the same price, wouldn't it?