Ok, so this is probably asking for flame but when you look at the comments on the site there are two consistent patterns:
Either,
"I've always used Windows, never used Linux/OSX - Love Windows, Linux/OSX sucks".
or
"I used to use Windows, switched to Linux/OSX - Love Linux/OSX, Windows sucks".
I know that's what everyone mostly hears anyway and I know there are Windows users out there who can genuinely say, based on proper comparisons, that Windows is best for them - but the uninformed Windows user really sounds pathetic.
And the guy complaining about Apple charging for wireless unlike Microsoft - that's just funny.
I don't want to get into a big flamewar over this. I'm not a doctor and I'm not qualified to speak in this regard.
Let's just leave it that there are good arguments on both side of the decapitation issue - and we shouldn't lose sight of the long term benefits. Yes, of course everyone knows that it would be beneficial to the environment etc because of the reduced height requirements for ceilings, but won't somebody please think of the Milliners!
If a doctor says that decapitation is a sure-fire cure for headaches, then it would be wrong to 'censor' him. But he should not be allowed to practice medicine - at least not by medicine's governing body.
Censorship is not a good thing, true. However, as the public are duty-bound to make informed decisions when, for example, electing their representatives there must be proper regulation of the 'informers' to ensure that they do so responsibly.
(I'm not taking sides here on the Global Warming debate - I'm just speaking generally).
You're a 'continental' European - us, original, North West Europeans (who've been here longer than you johnny-come-latelys) drink PINTS - always have, always will! And you can keep your 'small beer'.
The article does not describe 'worse abuses' in Iran. If it had been about women being killed for being raped, or children being executed then I wouldn't argue.
It's about censorship in Iran and the word 'abuse' doesn't appear once in the article. The most abuse I can see is that the women bloggers got hate mail/comments - something even Slashdotters are not above. No one was locked up - one guy lost his job. Are you suggesting that that doesn't happen in the US?
What's the difference between the GP using the story to condemn US policy and you using it to condemn Iran for 'abuses' (genuine or not) that are not in the story?
1. The user interface is difficult to use (though no more difficult than OSX or Linux)
but I've never heard of a grandmother, aunt, uncle, [child], or otherwise require [...] Lucky you - but they are out there and they are terrified of the user interface. I removed child from the list, because kids can basically handle anything and the thing is they aren't worried about breaking the computer. Older people on the other hand know how much it cost, how much it will cost to repair and that breaking it is a genuine possibility.
Think about it. The simplest thing you do on a windows interface probably is to click 'Start'. But if you don't understand what click means that can be very daunting. And it requires a hint of arrogance to suggest that it is easy.
2. Games are irrelevant.
I'm not dismissing your 'favourite' activity. But the GP point is valid. When comparing operating systems, running games doesn't count. Consider the issues: 1. Security: Who cares if someone hacks your MU session. 2. Interface: You don't use the windows interface in a game, it has it's own 3. Hardware Support: Video, Joystick/Keyboard/Mouse, (Network?) - hardly a serious hardware scenario 4. Upgrades: What upgrades? 5. Compatability: Not relevant 6. Availability of Applications: Huh?
Windows is, I'm sure, a very good games platform - but games are a red herring when comparing OSs.
3. As far as installation goes, I do both on a regular basis and I would much rather do a Linux/Ubuntu install than a Windows install. It simple and straightforward. Ok there are occasionally some hardware issues. But every one of those that I know of occur because of some crappy vendor lock in by Microsoft.
Freedom of speech is not a requirement of democracy. It is of a 'liberal democracy' - and even then there will be different opinions on what is liberal.
Most democracies function (including the US) in spite of the hate speech not because of it. Elections are generally not decided by the lunatic fringe - and efforts to keep them quiet are most often a recognition that most people really aren't interested in their opinion anyway - even if the media insist on having the right to ram it down your throat.
You can say that America is a great democracy because everyone can say what they like and the individual can choose to ignore it. Other democracies, however, save everyone the bother - but in those other democracies you can be sure that no one is giving up the democratic right to control what is controlled. It is puerile to assume that democracy and freedom are the same thing - and relying one protecting the other may not be a secure as intended.
Interesting... so you are suggesting that people are born prejudiced, and full of hatred - that they do not learn such things. Is there a gene that defines this rascism thing? Could we breed it out?
I can't think of very few atrocities in the world that didn't stem from something that someone wrote or said - and communicated to rational free thinking individuals.
I can't say I'm a big fan of censorship - but it is a law like any other law and ideally reflects the democratic will of the people.
I don't think it has anything to do with conservativism.
In the US the Bill of Rights guarantees that 'Congress shall make no law [...] abridging the freedom of speech'.
In Ireland, the Constitution says that 'The State guarantees liberty for [The right of the citizens to express freely their convictions and opinions], subject to public order and morality.'
I doubt the authors of the Bill of Rights would have found the wording of Bunreacht na hEireann particularly restrictive. In fact I think they might have included the bit about public order and morality if they thought it was necessary.
And if you think Ireland is conservative - you need to come here...
I hope I'm wrong here but I was under the impression that legally ICANN is ultimately responsible for the Country TLDs or at the very least are responsible for maintaining the Root-Zone files.
Now obviously they would never interfere in the operation of the country TLDs - that would be just madness.
But what if spamhaus went with spamhaus.org.uk - and e360 decided they didn't like being in their list. The uk registry isn't going to delist spamhaus - why should they, they're out of jurisdiction.
So e360 goes back to court and says - hey judge, you've got to tell ICANN to delist.uk - yikes!!! The judge would have the power to do it, and would be kind of compelled to do it based on his earlier ruling.
I would be happy if someone would explain why I'm an idiot.
I think if there was anything I got from the interviews, it is that great programming skills come from individuals that have a broad background. (And what brings this out is the juxtaposition of the different viewpoints - which is a nice approach).
I'm sure you can program fine in C. But knowing low-level assembly or even machine code can make the difference between a mediocre C programmer and a brilliant one. Similarly, knowing LISP makes you think differently about how lists work within your C programs. And so on....
These guys all come from different backgrounds and have made substantial efforts to keep their knowledge honed. They also have very open minds to new ideas - (Except for Bjarne who just sounds like a grumpy bugger).
I find this a little odd. The Data Protection Acts in Europe essential follow the same kind of general pattern, i.e if you want to store information in a computer database then you have to register what information you are storing and why you are storing it, and you have to comply with certain conditions such as you will tell someone what information you hold about them if they ask and that you will correct any mistakes in that information.
Now these rules apply to anyone who wishes to maintain databases on individuals within the jurisdiction of the act. So why can DHS set up a little office in the airport to which the airline gives the information - bit like where US immigration operates in Europe to pre-clear passengers.
Then they do their little analysis and come up with a guess at who's the likely lads with the bombs or whatever. Then their not sharing information about the individuals, just a list of names. They print them out and fax them off to head office in Washington or whereever.
Slashdot Mirror
Kunal, Melbourne, Australia for one provides an example contrary to that opinion.
And on the other hand, all the Mac users seem very happy with their OS - even in comparison to Windows.
But then I'm just commenting on TFA.
Vi, the vi for vi viers. Vi? Vi vi!
Ok, so this is probably asking for flame but when you look at the comments on the site there are two consistent patterns:
Either,
"I've always used Windows, never used Linux/OSX - Love Windows, Linux/OSX sucks".
or
"I used to use Windows, switched to Linux/OSX - Love Linux/OSX, Windows sucks".
I know that's what everyone mostly hears anyway and I know there are Windows users out there who can genuinely say, based on proper comparisons, that Windows is best for them - but the uninformed Windows user really sounds pathetic.
And the guy complaining about Apple charging for wireless unlike Microsoft - that's just funny.
I don't want to get into a big flamewar over this. I'm not a doctor and I'm not qualified to speak in this regard.
Let's just leave it that there are good arguments on both side of the decapitation issue - and we shouldn't lose sight of the long term benefits. Yes, of course everyone knows that it would be beneficial to the environment etc because of the reduced height requirements for ceilings, but won't somebody please think of the Milliners!
If a doctor says that decapitation is a sure-fire cure for headaches, then it would be wrong to 'censor' him. But he should not be allowed to practice medicine - at least not by medicine's governing body.
Censorship is not a good thing, true. However, as the public are duty-bound to make informed decisions when, for example, electing their representatives there must be proper regulation of the 'informers' to ensure that they do so responsibly.
(I'm not taking sides here on the Global Warming debate - I'm just speaking generally).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near_beer#Small_beer
Lightweight (hic)
You're a 'continental' European - us, original, North West Europeans (who've been here longer than you johnny-come-latelys) drink PINTS - always have, always will! And you can keep your 'small beer'.
Hang on a second there...
The article does not describe 'worse abuses' in Iran. If it had been about women being killed for being raped, or children being executed then I wouldn't argue.
It's about censorship in Iran and the word 'abuse' doesn't appear once in the article. The most abuse I can see is that the women bloggers got hate mail/comments - something even Slashdotters are not above. No one was locked up - one guy lost his job. Are you suggesting that that doesn't happen in the US?
What's the difference between the GP using the story to condemn US policy and you using it to condemn Iran for 'abuses' (genuine or not) that are not in the story?
1. The user interface is difficult to use (though no more difficult than OSX or Linux) but I've never heard of a grandmother, aunt, uncle, [child], or otherwise require [...] Lucky you - but they are out there and they are terrified of the user interface. I removed child from the list, because kids can basically handle anything and the thing is they aren't worried about breaking the computer. Older people on the other hand know how much it cost, how much it will cost to repair and that breaking it is a genuine possibility.
Think about it. The simplest thing you do on a windows interface probably is to click 'Start'. But if you don't understand what click means that can be very daunting. And it requires a hint of arrogance to suggest that it is easy.
2. Games are irrelevant.
I'm not dismissing your 'favourite' activity. But the GP point is valid. When comparing operating systems, running games doesn't count. Consider the issues:
1. Security: Who cares if someone hacks your MU session.
2. Interface: You don't use the windows interface in a game, it has it's own
3. Hardware Support: Video, Joystick/Keyboard/Mouse, (Network?) - hardly a serious hardware scenario
4. Upgrades: What upgrades?
5. Compatability: Not relevant
6. Availability of Applications: Huh?
Windows is, I'm sure, a very good games platform - but games are a red herring when comparing OSs.
3. As far as installation goes, I do both on a regular basis and I would much rather do a Linux/Ubuntu install than a Windows install. It simple and straightforward. Ok there are occasionally some hardware issues. But every one of those that I know of occur because of some crappy vendor lock in by Microsoft.
From dictionary.com, 'museum' from Greek through Latin and means 'shrine to the Muses'.
Muses are [godesses].
And then to the creationist's handbook:
http://www.bartleby.com/108/02/20.html
Building a temple to godesses seems to me like a gross violation of rule number 1 (verses 3-6)
Karl Marx could also be proven wrong - which makes communism a lot more scientific than creationism.
No, 'Pirates of the Caribbean' is do-dah-do-dah-doo-de-doo. That was do-do-dah-dah-doo-de-doo - definitely 'The Rock'.
Is that soundtrack from 'The Rock'?
Marines go nuts with advanced weapons... hmmm.
...a reason to be thankful that the kids are only interested in playing with the box.
Freedom of speech is not a requirement of democracy. It is of a 'liberal democracy' - and even then there will be different opinions on what is liberal.
Most democracies function (including the US) in spite of the hate speech not because of it. Elections are generally not decided by the lunatic fringe - and efforts to keep them quiet are most often a recognition that most people really aren't interested in their opinion anyway - even if the media insist on having the right to ram it down your throat.
You can say that America is a great democracy because everyone can say what they like and the individual can choose to ignore it. Other democracies, however, save everyone the bother - but in those other democracies you can be sure that no one is giving up the democratic right to control what is controlled. It is puerile to assume that democracy and freedom are the same thing - and relying one protecting the other may not be a secure as intended.
Your next stop, the 33-bit IP Address Zone!!!!
Whatever you do, don't open that ICMP packet!!!
Interesting... so you are suggesting that people are born prejudiced, and full of hatred - that they do not learn such things. Is there a gene that defines this rascism thing? Could we breed it out?
I can't think of very few atrocities in the world that didn't stem from something that someone wrote or said - and communicated to rational free thinking individuals.
I can't say I'm a big fan of censorship - but it is a law like any other law and ideally reflects the democratic will of the people.
I don't think it has anything to do with conservativism.
In the US the Bill of Rights guarantees that 'Congress shall make no law [...] abridging the freedom of speech'.
In Ireland, the Constitution says that 'The State guarantees liberty for [The right of the citizens to express freely their convictions and opinions], subject to public order and morality.'
I doubt the authors of the Bill of Rights would have found the wording of Bunreacht na hEireann particularly restrictive. In fact I think they might have included the bit about public order and morality if they thought it was necessary.
And if you think Ireland is conservative - you need to come here...
If someone shouts across the street at you to 'come over here so I can beat you up' - do you cross the street?
I hope I'm wrong here but I was under the impression that legally ICANN is ultimately responsible for the Country TLDs or at the very least are responsible for maintaining the Root-Zone files.
.uk - yikes!!! The judge would have the power to do it, and would be kind of compelled to do it based on his earlier ruling.
Now obviously they would never interfere in the operation of the country TLDs - that would be just madness.
But what if spamhaus went with spamhaus.org.uk - and e360 decided they didn't like being in their list. The uk registry isn't going to delist spamhaus - why should they, they're out of jurisdiction.
So e360 goes back to court and says - hey judge, you've got to tell ICANN to delist
I would be happy if someone would explain why I'm an idiot.
Everyone knows that dead people are shit at filling out questionaires.
Great voters - but questionaires? It's just not their thing.
I think if there was anything I got from the interviews, it is that great programming skills come from individuals that have a broad background. (And what brings this out is the juxtaposition of the different viewpoints - which is a nice approach).
I'm sure you can program fine in C. But knowing low-level assembly or even machine code can make the difference between a mediocre C programmer and a brilliant one. Similarly, knowing LISP makes you think differently about how lists work within your C programs. And so on....
These guys all come from different backgrounds and have made substantial efforts to keep their knowledge honed. They also have very open minds to new ideas - (Except for Bjarne who just sounds like a grumpy bugger).
Ah bite my shiny metal ass!
I find this a little odd. The Data Protection Acts in Europe essential follow the same kind of general pattern, i.e if you want to store information in a computer database then you have to register what information you are storing and why you are storing it, and you have to comply with certain conditions such as you will tell someone what information you hold about them if they ask and that you will correct any mistakes in that information.
Now these rules apply to anyone who wishes to maintain databases on individuals within the jurisdiction of the act. So why can DHS set up a little office in the airport to which the airline gives the information - bit like where US immigration operates in Europe to pre-clear passengers.
Then they do their little analysis and come up with a guess at who's the likely lads with the bombs or whatever. Then their not sharing information about the individuals, just a list of names. They print them out and fax them off to head office in Washington or whereever.
Don't see the problem...