I think I must be a desktop Luddite, because none of the new developments you mention appeal to me at all, with the possible exception of Wayland.
I'm now running Debian 6 with XFCE after years of running Ubuntu (since it started in fact - I was running Debian Unstable before then and this new Ubuntu was just that with some bugs ironed out and some polish).
Unfortunately it's going to be harder for Free software going forward. Try writing an opensource point-of-sale or e-commerce program that can directly process credit cards. You can't without spending around $20,000 for PA-DSS auditing. And I see more of these types of industry barriers to entry popping up.
It won't be harder, it will be impossible - it destroys the mechanism of Free / Open Source software. The way you put it is as if the rise of FOSS is just some kind of unfortunate minority part of the computing world that will be affected, rather than one of the most important, game changing event in the recent history of computing.
It seems an obvious requirement now to me that any 'international standards', as H.264 is described in TFA, should not be written by a consortium that have a collection of patents on the only possible implementation of the standard!
I'm not sure how this would be ensured - maybe the same consortium that pool the defensive patent pool for Linux could start a standards body based around this simple idea.
"The other interesting tidbit, as many noted, is that despite suggestions from some that the "open source" world are folks who "just want stuff for free," the average amount paid by Linux users ($14.52) was significantly higher than those paid by Mac ($10.18) or Windows ($8.05) users."
Humble Indie Bundle - so many Linux gamers bought this that several of the titles in it were even open sourced! This is where the Linux gamers have been shown to be supportive and vote with their wallets when native games are released. Who needs Steam - not me!
Would I be better off not bringing my laptop and just using Internet kiosks (do they exist in London?)
What are these kiosks of the inter-net you speak of?
Why, here in blighty the modern mode of communication is the telegraph, which we run using steam, dontyouknow!
I care, as does anyone who remembers operating systems that were responsive to user interaction first and foremost
I feel in full control of BeOS and Haiku (also AmigaOS) and there's a lot of things that it gets right that Windows, Mac and Linux still fail to do between them. There's something kind of indefinable 'fun' about the OS as well..
Believe it or not, Microsoft has done a lot to make the computing world better.
I used to use Amigas and was surprised when my school started replacing their various Acorn computers with these clunky, crash prone machines running this 'Windows'.
With the Amiga, I had a fast, properly multitasking OS that made Windows look like a joke OS cobbled together by morons. Commodore went under and I switched to BeOS - an even better AmigaOS than AmigaOS! BeOS was destroyed by Microsoft in what has been proven in court to be illegal interference.
So yes, I hate Microsoft. I've never liked their OS, I've never wanted to use it. It may have 'set a standard' but it was a shitty standard which destroyed the better alternatives.
Someone want to calculate the minimum safe stopping distance of a wide-load truck laden with a 50-meter section of tower traveling at, let's say 45MPH without jackknifing or breaking the load restraints?
Slashdot Mirror
Shuttleworth recently said the target for Ubuntu was 200 million users in four years and hinted at some upcoming hardware partnerships...
What if the SteamBox's official OS is going to be Ubuntu and Steam is to be heavily integrated into Unity?
Just installed Firefox 4.0.1 on Debian Squeeze seconds after reading about this. Seems like a good way to get updated apps on a stable base.
I think I must be a desktop Luddite, because none of the new developments you mention appeal to me at all, with the possible exception of Wayland. I'm now running Debian 6 with XFCE after years of running Ubuntu (since it started in fact - I was running Debian Unstable before then and this new Ubuntu was just that with some bugs ironed out and some polish).
The last Brit sci-fi I remember that was any good was Red Dwarf back in the '80s, and that was Channel 4.
Nope, was BBC 2 in fact. Later, Dave.
It's been downhill with science in general at the beeb since Tomorrow's World was canceled...
Yeah, because corrupting the ISO process was soooo 1990's... no wait!
Unfortunately it's going to be harder for Free software going forward. Try writing an opensource point-of-sale or e-commerce program that can directly process credit cards. You can't without spending around $20,000 for PA-DSS auditing. And I see more of these types of industry barriers to entry popping up.
It won't be harder, it will be impossible - it destroys the mechanism of Free / Open Source software. The way you put it is as if the rise of FOSS is just some kind of unfortunate minority part of the computing world that will be affected, rather than one of the most important, game changing event in the recent history of computing.
It seems an obvious requirement now to me that any 'international standards', as H.264 is described in TFA, should not be written by a consortium that have a collection of patents on the only possible implementation of the standard!
I'm not sure how this would be ensured - maybe the same consortium that pool the defensive patent pool for Linux could start a standards body based around this simple idea.
...seriously? Will USB 6.0 be super-hyper-megaspeed USB?
http://www.techdirt.com/blog/entrepreneurs/articles/20100518/0844299463.shtml
"The other interesting tidbit, as many noted, is that despite suggestions from some that the "open source" world are folks who "just want stuff for free," the average amount paid by Linux users ($14.52) was significantly higher than those paid by Mac ($10.18) or Windows ($8.05) users."
Humble Indie Bundle - so many Linux gamers bought this that several of the titles in it were even open sourced! This is where the Linux gamers have been shown to be supportive and vote with their wallets when native games are released. Who needs Steam - not me!
The first law of Thermodynamics is that YOU DO NOT TALK ABOUT THERMODYNAMICS!
My university is also switching to not just gmail, but integrating the other Google apps also.
Indeed, don't forget libraries too! Libraries.
Would I be better off not bringing my laptop and just using Internet kiosks (do they exist in London?)
What are these kiosks of the inter-net you speak of?
Why, here in blighty the modern mode of communication is the telegraph, which we run using steam, dontyouknow!
Free beer? Where!? Yeah, it's free as in air.
The MIT License is a free software license
Haiku is free, as in speech. That adds to its meaningfulness quite a bit I think.
I care, as does anyone who remembers operating systems that were responsive to user interaction first and foremost
I feel in full control of BeOS and Haiku (also AmigaOS) and there's a lot of things that it gets right that Windows, Mac and Linux still fail to do between them. There's something kind of indefinable 'fun' about the OS as well..
Darn it, that was supposed to be a link
Article about 'Augmented Reality' on Android from last year.
Robots outsmart man. Woman inherits the earth...
Believe it or not, Microsoft has done a lot to make the computing world better.
I used to use Amigas and was surprised when my school started replacing their various Acorn computers with these clunky, crash prone machines running this 'Windows'.
With the Amiga, I had a fast, properly multitasking OS that made Windows look like a joke OS cobbled together by morons. Commodore went under and I switched to BeOS - an even better AmigaOS than AmigaOS! BeOS was destroyed by Microsoft in what has been proven in court to be illegal interference.
So yes, I hate Microsoft. I've never liked their OS, I've never wanted to use it. It may have 'set a standard' but it was a shitty standard which destroyed the better alternatives.
Someone want to calculate the minimum safe stopping distance of a wide-load truck laden with a 50-meter section of tower traveling at, let's say 45MPH without jackknifing or breaking the load restraints?
Is that an African or European wide-load truck?
I can't believe an editor let that report pass
You must be new here.
Exactly. Oracle would never be in a situation where they lack Lustre.