As I see it, this has nothing to do with what lazy kids want or what overaccommodating parents want. Rather, this is about what EA wants. Private enterprise is the "savior" of underfunded schools everywhere and this is the unfortunate result. Plenty of exposure of EA to young, impressionable kids and laughable approaches to "education". Yes, I hate to be "the guy" complaining about corporate bogeymen impinging on his present and future, but c'mon, this is pretty obvious.
See, there's often a difference between what a company sells and what consumers actually get when they purchase the product. Apple Computer, Inc. has "sold" slightly exotic, "technically superior," performance-oriented hardware for years, regardless of where the company's products have actually stood vis-à-vis the PC on the performance ladder. Or, to put it differently, the "RISC" PowerPC architecture has been a core part of the Apple brand and the overall "mythology" of the Mac platform since the 68K transition, even if that architecture rarely delivered on company's promises with benchmark numbers. So what Apple fans are mourning right now isn't the loss of some actual technical superiority of the Mac hardware, but rather the loss of the perception of that hardware's "technical superiority." Even more importantly, Mac enthusiasts are also mourning the loss of that perception's role in the ongoing maintenance of the myth of Apple and of the Apple brand in the form in which these two have coexisted in the PowerPC era.
If you want to know more about this particular view of modern corporations, you should read No Logo by Naomi Klein. In it, she talks about the new "brand" economy, where a company's first priority is no longer "to manufacture product" but rather to nurture their brand image(s). The actual physical goods are a secondary (and heretofore, costly) element of their business model. So, for companies who can do this (garment, auto, toy, etc.) this has been moved to third world countries (or, in Microsoft's case, simply bought wholesale from upstart competitors). It's a really good book.
These discussions happen every so often. They're a bit tiring.
People forget that GNU/Linux is, at heart, anarchic and informal. It is not a "product". The ideals and goals of (I assume) a great many GNU/Linux developers don't easily translate into the ideals and goals of those in the corporate sphere (namely: profits). Sure, some make money, but for many, it doesn't seem to be "the point". While more users would be nice and would help accelerate development (maybe), GNU/Linux doesn't need "market share" any more than it needs cobranding, synergy, or celebrity endorsements.
I think Slashdotters, being generally more technically-minded than the average bear, like to think that increasing the number of "coverts" is solely a matter of engineering. Many forget that money buys influence. As corporations, Microsoft and Apple (though to a seemingly lesser extent) put business before technology. And for good reason: money buys drivers, usability research, and preinstalls. Microsoft and Apple can afford to spend millions on television/print/web ad campaigns. Microsoft can afford to twist the arms of government for favorable legislation. When public school funding runs dry, Microsoft can swoop with lucrative deals that strengthen its hold on its users. GNU/Linux can't do these things.
In the end, the solutions to the issues described in the article will be engineered in one way or another over the course of time. And that's fine. Lively debate over what works for now and what needs to be changed is needed and encouraged. But for these technical fixes to translate into a significant bump in usership, more fundamental societal issues, regarding the role of the corporation and the individual in society (i.e. the big picture), will have to be openly questioned, discussed, and understood. GNU/Linux is as much political as it is technical.
Maybe someday you'll grow up and realize that "free as in freedom" and "screw the corporates" rhetoric, nice as it is, doesn't justify sub-par computing.
I don't think it was ever said that one's ideals didn't involve a sacrifice or two at some point.
I thought the same thing. And even if it turns out that this is a real query, it still best to stay on one's toes. I've noticed that Drew Curtis @ Fark has posted a few "sponsored link" disclaimers (well, at least one) in response to reader discontent over paid-for links.
Now, almost everyone agrees that Silicon Valley is coming back, and employment there grew from March to May, but the area still has about 10,000 fewer jobs than there were a year ago.
Come off it. You say everything but the two magical words: "liberal bias". They're reporting on a general trend. In the context, a slight upturn deserves a paragraph, but it's not the thrust of their (cogent, imho) point.
I hate the Bush administration as much as the next guy, but people need to realize that BOTH parties have been thoroughly pwned by Big Business. In these entertainment cases, the Democrats are the ones who deserve our ire.
"32. Defendant slashdot.org is an far-right wing Internet news website that posts libelous and defamatory content and is used by Open Source Community members to anonymously post hate speech, death threats, threats to murder and promotes and advocates acts of domestic terrorism within the United States. The address and location of defendants is believed to be within the State of California, but is unknown at the present time."
Slashdot reports on a submission by Ant who informed us of a Broadband Reports report about a PC World article based on the opinions of 6,000 PC World readers! Purple monkey dishwasher.
How horribly closed-minded! The ignorance! The blanket condemnation of folks who have a different of view of self-expression! 'Circus freaks', you say!
The worst part is you got modded insightful. I thought geeks were above judging books by their covers.
If you live in the United States, you are more likely to be a prisoner at some point in your life than if you were a citizen of any other country in the world.
Slashdot Mirror
don't be too hard on slashdot. after all, it did pretty much provide us with the explanation for why we have garbage like this.
I suppose when the 'funny' mod was added.
And plantery scientists are geologists.
er.. no. plantery scientists are botanists.
no, I think they're quite fine with it. 'gmail.com' IM'd me and it said:
(23:16:34) gmail.com: The broken link has been fixed. Thanks for being our first users!
cool!
As I see it, this has nothing to do with what lazy kids want or what overaccommodating parents want. Rather, this is about what EA wants. Private enterprise is the "savior" of underfunded schools everywhere and this is the unfortunate result. Plenty of exposure of EA to young, impressionable kids and laughable approaches to "education". Yes, I hate to be "the guy" complaining about corporate bogeymen impinging on his present and future, but c'mon, this is pretty obvious.
Yeah and it had their freakin' propaganda videos embedded right in the page!! Make a link to them dammit!! ARGH!!
There is a well-known tool for removing Apple's (intentionally) weak DRM, so that's barely an issue anymore.
Yes, but if you're going to break the law by circumventing the DRM, what's the point of buying the music in the first place?
...but they shot him.
they shot him for jumping a ticket barrier and evading police. you can't seriously be suggesting he deserved to die for what he did.
From Ars Technica:
See, there's often a difference between what a company sells and what consumers actually get when they purchase the product. Apple Computer, Inc. has "sold" slightly exotic, "technically superior," performance-oriented hardware for years, regardless of where the company's products have actually stood vis-à-vis the PC on the performance ladder. Or, to put it differently, the "RISC" PowerPC architecture has been a core part of the Apple brand and the overall "mythology" of the Mac platform since the 68K transition, even if that architecture rarely delivered on company's promises with benchmark numbers. So what Apple fans are mourning right now isn't the loss of some actual technical superiority of the Mac hardware, but rather the loss of the perception of that hardware's "technical superiority." Even more importantly, Mac enthusiasts are also mourning the loss of that perception's role in the ongoing maintenance of the myth of Apple and of the Apple brand in the form in which these two have coexisted in the PowerPC era.
Look beyond the mythos and marketing, man...
If you want to know more about this particular view of modern corporations, you should read No Logo by Naomi Klein. In it, she talks about the new "brand" economy, where a company's first priority is no longer "to manufacture product" but rather to nurture their brand image(s). The actual physical goods are a secondary (and heretofore, costly) element of their business model. So, for companies who can do this (garment, auto, toy, etc.) this has been moved to third world countries (or, in Microsoft's case, simply bought wholesale from upstart competitors). It's a really good book.
yeah, check it out (fourth one down)
If this isn't an argument for copyright reform, I don't know what is.
No Stairway! Denied!
These discussions happen every so often. They're a bit tiring.
People forget that GNU/Linux is, at heart, anarchic and informal. It is not a "product". The ideals and goals of (I assume) a great many GNU/Linux developers don't easily translate into the ideals and goals of those in the corporate sphere (namely: profits). Sure, some make money, but for many, it doesn't seem to be "the point". While more users would be nice and would help accelerate development (maybe), GNU/Linux doesn't need "market share" any more than it needs cobranding, synergy, or celebrity endorsements.
I think Slashdotters, being generally more technically-minded than the average bear, like to think that increasing the number of "coverts" is solely a matter of engineering. Many forget that money buys influence. As corporations, Microsoft and Apple (though to a seemingly lesser extent) put business before technology. And for good reason: money buys drivers, usability research, and preinstalls. Microsoft and Apple can afford to spend millions on television/print/web ad campaigns. Microsoft can afford to twist the arms of government for favorable legislation. When public school funding runs dry, Microsoft can swoop with lucrative deals that strengthen its hold on its users. GNU/Linux can't do these things.
In the end, the solutions to the issues described in the article will be engineered in one way or another over the course of time. And that's fine. Lively debate over what works for now and what needs to be changed is needed and encouraged. But for these technical fixes to translate into a significant bump in usership, more fundamental societal issues, regarding the role of the corporation and the individual in society (i.e. the big picture), will have to be openly questioned, discussed, and understood. GNU/Linux is as much political as it is technical.
Maybe someday you'll grow up and realize that "free as in freedom" and "screw the corporates" rhetoric, nice as it is, doesn't justify sub-par computing.
I don't think it was ever said that one's ideals didn't involve a sacrifice or two at some point.
heh. "a reader"
I thought the same thing. And even if it turns out that this is a real query, it still best to stay on one's toes. I've noticed that Drew Curtis @ Fark has posted a few "sponsored link" disclaimers (well, at least one) in response to reader discontent over paid-for links.
The bit in question:
Now, almost everyone agrees that Silicon Valley is coming back, and employment there grew from March to May, but the area still has about 10,000 fewer jobs than there were a year ago.
Come off it. You say everything but the two magical words: "liberal bias". They're reporting on a general trend. In the context, a slight upturn deserves a paragraph, but it's not the thrust of their (cogent, imho) point.
I hate the Bush administration as much as the next guy, but people need to realize that BOTH parties have been thoroughly pwned by Big Business. In these entertainment cases, the Democrats are the ones who deserve our ire.
Heh...
"32. Defendant slashdot.org is an far-right wing Internet news website that posts libelous and defamatory content and is used by Open Source Community members to anonymously post hate speech, death threats, threats to murder and promotes and advocates acts of domestic terrorism within the United States. The address and location of defendants is believed to be within the State of California, but is unknown at the present time."
W... T... F...?
Slashdot reports on a submission by Ant who informed us of a Broadband Reports report about a PC World article based on the opinions of 6,000 PC World readers! Purple monkey dishwasher.
He's a fark photoshopper. A good one, too!
Blacklists have a structural flaw: there is no one to watch the watchers.
Lisa: If you're the police, who will police the police?
Homer: I 'unno, Coast Guard?
Exactly. It's about as hilarious as the fact that there's a word ('anarchy') that describes the concept.
How horribly closed-minded! The ignorance! The blanket condemnation of folks who have a different of view of self-expression! 'Circus freaks', you say!
The worst part is you got modded insightful. I thought geeks were above judging books by their covers.
If you live in the United States, you are more likely to be a prisoner at some point in your life than if you were a citizen of any other country in the world.
Reminds me of the last pane of a recent This Modern World. Remember folks, Michael Moore is *not* the left's political equivalent of Ann Coulter.