postgresql can use ident for authentitication. useful for doing unattended maintainance activities, such as vacuuming the database. the other alternative is to have username/password information on the machine in cleartext somewhere. i run ident on postgresql machines, but use iptables to disallow remote access to the service.
use any suitable postscript printer driver, and print to a file.
you don't need to buy any proprietary software. you will retain all formatting. you can view using free software on virtually any platform you like.
this will easily work for any other document type you may have also, so you can have one standard archival format for anything and everything. big CADD file? no problem.
bonus tip. archive or no archive, make sure your documents include text (in the footer, say) that indicates the location and filename of the document. so when you want to work backwards from paper to file, you know where to look. the print date is important, too.
BTW, it's important to know that today is the last day you can submit comments to the FCC telling them what you think about the broadcast flag. For more details:
Maybe because the beneficiaries of this remarkably stupid legislation are afraid to death that litigation will turn on the DMCA's unconstitionality, rendering it null and void.
Novelty. The opposite of formulaic. I.E. - I don't expect to see the formula for writing I will like appear here or anywhere else except the book in question.
I want to be amazed.
I also expect good writing. I used to tolerate sophmoric use of language, but I just don't have the patience to endure it anymore. (Just because I like to read good writing doesn't mean I write well myself, alas...:)
If you've only ever read science fiction, try some other genres. Try Nabokov, for example. I'd recommend 'Lolita'. Yeah, there's a movie, but don't bother. You might just cry the next time you slough your way through a penny sci-fi novel.
Every time this discussion comes up, the presumption appears to be that free software lacks mainstream appeal because of interface issues. While such considerations play a role, de-facto standard proprietary data formats and communications protocols play a far greater role in establishing the entrenched 'mainstream' computer interface with which people are familiar. Unless and until people wean themselves from their dependance on.doc,.xls, SMB,.NET,.mov,.wma, etc. they will find themselves locked into the familiar "mainstream" operating systems and applications. That is the crux of the matter, not pretty buttons and widget layout. With the MS anti-trust farce behind them, and palladium ahead of them, expect no mercy on the proprietary format front. Free software has a very tough row to hoe. Which is why free software's ultimate victory will be so much the sweeter...
I don't use Microsoft products because I want to; I use Microsoft products because I don't have a choice. Proprietary de-facto standards rule the roost.
Colleen was given the opportunity of a lifetime, and she blew it. She is clearly technologically and economically illiterate. She could have made the world a much better place. Instead she made it worse. Her actions can only be described as cowardly and ignorant.
I will continue to use Microsoft products because that the only way I can communicate with the vast majority of users who don't care that the world could be better. I will continue to use Microsoft products because Judge Colleen believes that what's best for Microsoft is best for all of us. I will continue to use Microsoft products because Judge Colleen is a coward. I will continue to use Microsoft products because this spineless ignorant judge failed to free the world from the grip of Microsoft's proprietary file formats and protocols.
My favorite columnist, Moshe Bar, has a current article up on Byte that discusses this very topic. Short answer: Right now, Linux is faster than OS X on same hardware.
The computer he seem to describe would be able to pull up the information based on what you wanted based on a request, not on some method of searching for a file.
Or perhaps this can be rephrased. What are files, and how do you interact with them? This is what makes the Reiserfs filesystem so interesting. They are thinking about these kinds of issues in unconventional ways. Reiserfs is not just another journaling filesystem. Moreover, Hans Reiser is subjecting his ideas to the test of reality by producing tangeable testable results.
Linus Torvalds himself has said that he will allow binary-only drivers, as long as they're loadable modules, to be distributed.
That's been a long standing supposition. However, lwn recently ran an article in which Linus' view on this matter doesn't seem to support this point of view:
There is NOTHING in the kernel license that allows modules to be non-GPL'd. The _only_ thing that allows for non-GPL modules is copyright law, and in particular the "derived work" issue. A vendor who distributes non-GPL modules is _not_ protected by the module interface per se, and should feel very confident that they can show in a court of law that the code is not derived.
and also
The original binary-only modules were for things that were pre-existing works of code, ie drivers and filesystems ported from other operating systems, which thus could clearly be argued to not be derived works, and the original limited export table also acted somewhat as a barrier to show a level of distance.
Re:PDF is to XML, as Acrobat is to XDocs
on
Microsoft takes on PDF
·
· Score: 3, Interesting
If anything, XML will be the PDF-killer.
Amen, I hope so. I always thought that perhaps SVG would fill this role. Why hasn't SVG gained more momentum (along w/ MathML, etc.)? IIRC, I think there were a couple of patent snafu's, along w/ perhaps some text handling deficiencies. But I'm not really qualified to say. Can anyone provide some insight into SVG's ability to play in this space?
Instead of bickering about which of these two formats to use, stop and consider that you can write postscript without using any proprietary software. And you can view postscript on pretty much any platform you desire using ghostview.
So it must be brand new and shiny, eh? I take it you don't play computer chess or go. Do you ever play a game that doesn't involve a computer at all? Yikes, that really would be the land of the dinasours, wouldn't it?
O.K., so you can lie in court without giving millions to Congress. People do it all the time and get away with it, you say. Do you condone this behaviour, or are you merely casting aspersions at the acumen of our judicial system?
For those who doubt the ability of the usdoj to met out justice, I submit this message that they just emailed to me. I subscribed to this maillist yesterday for updates on the MS trial. This is the only message I have recieved so far:
To users who use the Netscape version 6.2 browser, fi you see the message at the bottom of the browser stating that the document is done and you do nit see the document, please hit the reload button at the top of your browser to view the document. Thank you for your patience in this matter.
It remains to be seen if the electro-magnetic mechanism used on these Tablet PCs will be any better
You know, MS has always made a pretty good mouse. Perhaps that's their future: input devices. Hey, a guy can dream, no?
Just to ramble... What if this electromagnetic input really is good gonzo? And for the sake of argument, let's say MS holds a patent on the technology. If they manufacture the hardware in a closed shop and don't publish the specs, then they can compell anyone who wants to use their hardware to use their OS. Maybe MS wants to be more like Apple: use proprietary hardware to move your software.
If you really believed in freedom then the GPL would just be the same as the public domain. That's freedom. The BSD license is far closer to a truly free license, the GPL isn't even remotely close to a free license.
Or so says Larry McVoy.
The freedom to take someone else's freedom away does not equate to "more freedom". When one individual gains a priviledge, while many others lose priviledges, the world is not "more free".
Poor Larry's plaintiff wail in defense of true freedom rings hollow the minute you realize the only freedoms he really cares about are his own.
Yes, Larry, in defense of freedom, the GPL places restrictions on what you can do with code. That's the way it works. The GPL restricts you from taking away other people's freedoms.
Slashdot Mirror
postgresql can use ident for authentitication. useful for doing unattended maintainance activities, such as vacuuming the database. the other alternative is to have username/password information on the machine in cleartext somewhere. i run ident on postgresql machines, but use iptables to disallow remote access to the service.
use any suitable postscript printer driver, and print to a file.
you don't need to buy any proprietary software. you will retain all formatting. you can view using free software on virtually any platform you like.
this will easily work for any other document type you may have also, so you can have one standard archival format for anything and everything. big CADD file? no problem.
bonus tip. archive or no archive, make sure your documents include text (in the footer, say) that indicates the location and filename of the document. so when you want to work backwards from paper to file, you know where to look. the print date is important, too.
i don't know why i'm not using caps today...
BTW, it's important to know that today is the last day you can submit comments to the FCC telling them what you think about the broadcast flag. For more details:
2 002.html
http://www.lxny.org/announce/2002/FCC.6.December.
Artists and waiters do a lot more good for this world than corporate executive pig dog fuckwits like Phil Lelyveld.
Yeah, there are way too many artists. A vice president of Disney saying 'fuck art'. Big surprise.
What kind of a loser would want to be an artist, anyway? Michaelangelo. Jimmy Hendrix. Mark Twain. Stanly Kubrick. Umm, Walt Disney.
How do such complete and utter morons end up in such positions of power and influence? Something is really wrong about that.
a single criminal case because ... why?
Maybe because the beneficiaries of this remarkably stupid legislation are afraid to death that litigation will turn on the DMCA's unconstitionality, rendering it null and void.
Novelty. The opposite of formulaic. I.E. - I don't expect to see the formula for writing I will like appear here or anywhere else except the book in question.
:)
I want to be amazed.
I also expect good writing. I used to tolerate sophmoric use of language, but I just don't have the patience to endure it anymore. (Just because I like to read good writing doesn't mean I write well myself, alas...
If you've only ever read science fiction, try some other genres. Try Nabokov, for example. I'd recommend 'Lolita'. Yeah, there's a movie, but don't bother. You might just cry the next time you slough your way through a penny sci-fi novel.
Every time this discussion comes up, the presumption appears to be that free software lacks mainstream appeal because of interface issues. While such considerations play a role, de-facto standard proprietary data formats and communications protocols play a far greater role in establishing the entrenched 'mainstream' computer interface with which people are familiar. Unless and until people wean themselves from their dependance on .doc, .xls, SMB, .NET, .mov, .wma, etc. they will find themselves locked into the familiar "mainstream" operating systems and applications. That is the crux of the matter, not pretty buttons and widget layout. With the MS anti-trust farce behind them, and palladium ahead of them, expect no mercy on the proprietary format front. Free software has a very tough row to hoe. Which is why free software's ultimate victory will be so much the sweeter...
I don't use Microsoft products because I want to; I use Microsoft products because I don't have a choice. Proprietary de-facto standards rule the roost.
Colleen was given the opportunity of a lifetime, and she blew it. She is clearly technologically and economically illiterate. She could have made the world a much better place. Instead she made it worse. Her actions can only be described as cowardly and ignorant.
I will continue to use Microsoft products because that the only way I can communicate with the vast majority of users who don't care that the world could be better. I will continue to use Microsoft products because Judge Colleen believes that what's best for Microsoft is best for all of us. I will continue to use Microsoft products because Judge Colleen is a coward. I will continue to use Microsoft products because this spineless ignorant judge failed to free the world from the grip of Microsoft's proprietary file formats and protocols.
That's why I use Microsoft products.
My favorite columnist, Moshe Bar, has a current article up on Byte that discusses this very topic. Short answer: Right now, Linux is faster than OS X on same hardware.
Yes, but there's no reason that access methods need resemble the storage mechanism.
The computer he seem to describe would be able to pull up the information based on what you wanted based on a request, not on some method of searching for a file.
Or perhaps this can be rephrased. What are files, and how do you interact with them? This is what makes the Reiserfs filesystem so interesting. They are thinking about these kinds of issues in unconventional ways. Reiserfs is not just another journaling filesystem. Moreover, Hans Reiser is subjecting his ideas to the test of reality by producing tangeable testable results.
Linus Torvalds himself has said that he will allow binary-only drivers, as long as they're loadable modules, to be distributed.
That's been a long standing supposition. However, lwn recently ran an article in which Linus' view on this matter doesn't seem to support this point of view:
There is NOTHING in the kernel license that allows modules to be non-GPL'd. The _only_ thing that allows for non-GPL modules is copyright law, and in particular the "derived work" issue. A vendor who distributes non-GPL modules is _not_ protected by the module interface per se, and should feel very confident that they can show in a court of law that the code is not derived.
and also
The original binary-only modules were for things that were pre-existing works of code, ie drivers and filesystems ported from other operating systems, which thus could clearly be argued to not be derived works, and the original limited export table also acted somewhat as a barrier to show a level of distance.
If anything, XML will be the PDF-killer.
Amen, I hope so. I always thought that perhaps SVG would fill this role. Why hasn't SVG gained more momentum (along w/ MathML, etc.)? IIRC, I think there were a couple of patent snafu's, along w/ perhaps some text handling deficiencies. But I'm not really qualified to say. Can anyone provide some insight into SVG's ability to play in this space?
Instead of bickering about which of these two formats to use, stop and consider that you can write postscript without using any proprietary software. And you can view postscript on pretty much any platform you desire using ghostview.
So throw them *both* out, I say.
The smiley was to help the humor impaired. Apparently it wasn't sufficient.
Don't quote me on that part, though.
;)
Why would anyone need to quote you? You posted your thoughts to a public forum.
So it must be brand new and shiny, eh? I take it you don't play computer chess or go. Do you ever play a game that doesn't involve a computer at all? Yikes, that really would be the land of the dinasours, wouldn't it?
People lie in court *every day*
O.K., so you can lie in court without giving millions to Congress. People do it all the time and get away with it, you say. Do you condone this behaviour, or are you merely casting aspersions at the acumen of our judicial system?
So much for having faith in the market.
Or put another way, so much for having faith in government.
For those who doubt the ability of the usdoj to met out justice, I submit this message that they just emailed to me. I subscribed to this maillist yesterday for updates on the MS trial. This is the only message I have recieved so far:
From: "USDC Clerk's Office" donotreply@DCD.USCOURTS.GOV
To users who use the Netscape version 6.2 browser, fi you see the message at the bottom of the browser stating that the document is done and you do nit see the document, please hit the reload button at the top of your browser to view the document. Thank you for your patience in this matter.
A stupid message that says a lot.
It remains to be seen if the electro-magnetic mechanism used on these Tablet PCs will be any better
You know, MS has always made a pretty good mouse. Perhaps that's their future: input devices. Hey, a guy can dream, no?
Just to ramble... What if this electromagnetic input really is good gonzo? And for the sake of argument, let's say MS holds a patent on the technology. If they manufacture the hardware in a closed shop and don't publish the specs, then they can compell anyone who wants to use their hardware to use their OS. Maybe MS wants to be more like Apple: use proprietary hardware to move your software.
corporations pay a lot of taxes as well
Yeah right. Like Microsoft, for example.
Bzzzt. Not the amount Microsoft reported, but the amount Microsoft paid. Try again.
Zilch. As in nada.
Don't be such a stool pigeon.
If you really believed in freedom then the GPL would just be the same as the public domain. That's freedom. The BSD license is far closer to a truly free license, the GPL isn't even remotely close to a free license.
Or so says Larry McVoy.
The freedom to take someone else's freedom away does not equate to "more freedom". When one individual gains a priviledge, while many others lose priviledges, the world is not "more free".
Poor Larry's plaintiff wail in defense of true freedom rings hollow the minute you realize the only freedoms he really cares about are his own.
Yes, Larry, in defense of freedom, the GPL places restrictions on what you can do with code. That's the way it works. The GPL restricts you from taking away other people's freedoms.
Are you seriously criticizing the LKML for not being more like Slashdot? Please say it isn't so.