At the last BLU meeting I attended, someone said the desktop queston (whether Linux will ever replace Windows) was irrelevant. I can't help but disagree.
I've been running Mandrake 6.0 since November '99. I've found software to do everything I used to do with Windows except file my taxes (WebTurbotax doesn't like my browser). The only things I miss from Windows are certain plugins (like Quicktime and Shockwave). Plus, my printer(an Okidata) and ex-modem aren't Linux compatible.
Promoting Linux for non-techies is a good thing. I'm a techie, and I'm still learning a lot. My sister, who is definitely not a techie and uses my computer for web surfing, is getting the hang of Linux. It does what she wants it to (except printing), and she's happy.
As far as using computers as an "appliance", both BeOS and Linux are being used in "web appliances" . With their ease of use compared with Linux's stability, Linux may come out on top in a few years.
The Boston Globe is currently running a six-part series about this. "Choosing Naia" follows a couple whose child has a bunch of health problems (hole in the heart, Down's Syndrome, etc.) from the day they find out about their disabilities. If anything, it puts a human face on some rather esoteric debate.
According to one of my "Publication design" textbooks (the exact title escapes me), US Currency can be copied legally if it's black-and-white and reduced to smaller than 75% or enlarged to more than 125% of its actual size.
First Night Boston will be entertaining enough for me. Watching drunks stumble around on the train and such.
My only worry will be keeping the house warm while the power goes out, since we have a gas furnace and no fireplace or wood stove. My utility (Unitil/FGE) is so bad everyone is planning for an outage.
Who in their right mind, asside from criminals and kids who want to look cool (also known as wannabes) would want one of these things?
How about someone who wants a cell phone only for emergencies? Twenty five dollars for 60 minutes (including the phone) is the best prepaid deal I've seen. It's even better if those minutes don't expire. Most prepaid deals expire within 6-12 months, and you still have to buy the phone.
It would also be great for travel, since it's more convenient than a phone booth. When you're on vacation and your rental car breaks down in he middle of nowhere, it helps to have a cell phone.And if it's lost or stolen, you haven't lost much. You won't be billed for hours of calls to some country you've never heard of.
Why do people buy long-distance calling cards instead of signing up for a long-distance carrier? If you travel a lot, or you don't make many long-distance calls, cards cost less than long distance service. Disposable cell phones would appeal to those consumers.
P.S.- Sprint PCS isn't available in a lot of areas (like my hometown, which is 50 miles from Boston but hardly in the boondocks).
IMHO, Linux isn't even ready to take up that challenge. A solid, stable, pretty, glitzy GUI is needed first.
KDE is pretty, stable, solid, glitzy GUI. Gnome is pretty and glitzy, approaching solid and stable.
The OS needs to be usable to a new user - on the same level as Windows.
Mandrake's distro with KDE is extremely easy for a Windows user to get used to, especially if you set up X to start automatically. I installed it on my machine last month after four years of using Windows.
Does anyone remember the iMac ads where the guy says "A computer person? That would be like changing my sex!" ? People use iMacs (and Windows) because they're easy to set up and use. The "Geek Factor" isn't there. If Linux is to appeal to non-geeks, it has to "dumb down" a bit.
As far as the browsers, it would be nice if there were a shockwave player for Linux. But the problem is people writing pages for specific browsers (like IE), not for the web in general. the same thing happens if you use Netscape for Windows.
The article almost hit the nail on the head. We need to get the word out about Linux, but we also need to make it easier for the average user to use
I thought it just caused a long-term loss of manners.
So many people with cell phones seem to forget that most people at movies, operas, weddings, concerts, and parties would rather not hear them discuss the specifics of little Timmy's diaper rash.
A lot of jazz albums (especially older, horn-driven stuff by artists like Sonny Rollins and Charlie Parker) are great for long stretches of coding (or anyother type of writing).
Other great coding albums- Depeche Mode's "Violator", Pink Floyd's "Mettle", Maxwell's "Embrya", and anything by They Might Be Giants (especially "Lincoln", "Flood", and "John Henry")
I've never been good with math. I didn't discover computers 'till college. I'm an English major who can't code anything beyond HTML. I can't read people's emotions. I've always been a loner. Am I a geek?
Sure I am. Before I discovered computers, I discovered the library (before they got internet access). I used to spend hours wandering through the stacks, reading random books. When you think about it, The internet is just an enormous library.
I'm also a musician. In high school, I was a "band geek".
There are Physics Geeks, Sports Geeks, Art Geeks, Literature Geeks, History Geeks, the list goes on and on. What really makes a geek is an unquenchable desire for knowlege about something.
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At the last BLU meeting I attended, someone said the desktop queston (whether Linux will ever replace Windows) was irrelevant. I can't help but disagree.
I've been running Mandrake 6.0 since November '99. I've found software to do everything I used to do with Windows except file my taxes (WebTurbotax doesn't like my browser). The only things I miss from Windows are certain plugins (like Quicktime and Shockwave). Plus, my printer(an Okidata) and ex-modem aren't Linux compatible.
Promoting Linux for non-techies is a good thing. I'm a techie, and I'm still learning a lot. My sister, who is definitely not a techie and uses my computer for web surfing, is getting the hang of Linux. It does what she wants it to (except printing), and she's happy.
As far as using computers as an "appliance", both BeOS and Linux are being used in "web appliances" . With their ease of use compared with Linux's stability, Linux may come out on top in a few years.
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The game was okay, too.
The water where I live is usually brownish anyway. People boil it before giving it to their plants.
I think Y2K will be a big boon to watter bottlers.
The Boston Globe is currently running a six-part series about this. "Choosing Naia" follows a couple whose child has a bunch of health problems (hole in the heart, Down's Syndrome, etc.) from the day they find out about their disabilities. If anything, it puts a human face on some rather esoteric debate.
According to one of my "Publication design" textbooks (the exact title escapes me), US Currency can be copied legally if it's black-and-white and reduced to smaller than 75% or enlarged to more than 125% of its actual size.
First Night Boston will be entertaining enough for me. Watching drunks stumble around on the train and such.
My only worry will be keeping the house warm while the power goes out, since we have a gas furnace and no fireplace or wood stove. My utility (Unitil/FGE) is so bad everyone is planning for an outage.
Kleizer Walczak in North Adams, MA, did special effects for "The Rage: Carrie 2" and "Judge Dredd". It's four hours from New York City.
Who in their right mind, asside from criminals and kids who want to look cool (also known as wannabes) would want one of these things?
How about someone who wants a cell phone only for emergencies? Twenty five dollars for 60 minutes (including the phone) is the best prepaid deal I've seen. It's even better if those minutes don't expire. Most prepaid deals expire within 6-12 months, and you still have to buy the phone.
It would also be great for travel, since it's more convenient than a phone booth. When you're on vacation and your rental car breaks down in he middle of nowhere, it helps to have a cell phone.And if it's lost or stolen, you haven't lost much. You won't be billed for hours of calls to some country you've never heard of.
Why do people buy long-distance calling cards instead of signing up for a long-distance carrier? If you travel a lot, or you don't make many long-distance calls, cards cost less than long distance service. Disposable cell phones would appeal to those consumers.
P.S.- Sprint PCS isn't available in a lot of areas (like my hometown, which is 50 miles from Boston but hardly in the boondocks).
IMHO, Linux isn't even ready to take up that challenge. A solid, stable, pretty, glitzy GUI is needed first.
KDE is pretty, stable, solid, glitzy GUI. Gnome is pretty and glitzy, approaching solid and stable.
The OS needs to be usable to a new user - on the same level as Windows.
Mandrake's distro with KDE is extremely easy for a Windows user to get used to, especially if you set up X to start automatically. I installed it on my machine last month after four years of using Windows.
Does anyone remember the iMac ads where the guy says "A computer person? That would be like changing my sex!" ? People use iMacs (and Windows) because they're easy to set up and use. The "Geek Factor" isn't there. If Linux is to appeal to non-geeks, it has to "dumb down" a bit.
As far as the browsers, it would be nice if there were a shockwave player for Linux. But the problem is people writing pages for specific browsers (like IE), not for the web in general. the same thing happens if you use Netscape for Windows.
The article almost hit the nail on the head. We need to get the word out about Linux, but we also need to make it easier for the average user to use
I thought it just caused a long-term loss of manners.
So many people with cell phones seem to forget that most people at movies, operas, weddings, concerts, and parties would rather not hear them discuss the specifics of little Timmy's diaper rash.
Compared to some other states (Louisiana, New York, California, Connecticut), MA taxes aren't that bad.
But we've gotta do something about that Turnpike.
A lot of jazz albums (especially older, horn-driven stuff by artists like Sonny Rollins and Charlie Parker) are great for long stretches of coding (or anyother type of writing).
Other great coding albums- Depeche Mode's "Violator", Pink Floyd's "Mettle", Maxwell's "Embrya", and anything by They Might Be Giants (especially "Lincoln", "Flood", and "John Henry")
I've never been good with math. I didn't discover computers 'till college. I'm an English major who can't code anything beyond HTML. I can't read people's emotions. I've always been a loner. Am I a geek?
Sure I am. Before I discovered computers, I discovered the library (before they got internet access). I used to spend hours wandering through the stacks, reading random books. When you think about it, The internet is just an enormous library.
I'm also a musician. In high school, I was a "band geek".
There are Physics Geeks, Sports Geeks, Art Geeks, Literature Geeks, History Geeks, the list goes on and on. What really makes a geek is an unquenchable desire for knowlege about something.
Wasn't there a shooting on a Long Island commuter train about five years ago?
Don't a lot of train passengers wear trench coats?
Maybe we should ban bags and put metal detectors and armed guards on commuter trains.
So antidepressants are evil, overprescribed, and unnecessary?
My father though the same way. He has bipolar disorder (also known as manic depression). Before he went on lithium and prozac, home was a living Hell.
My ex-roommate's parents were against antidepressants too. She ended up on prozac after three suicide attempts.
Not every mental illness responds well to drugs. If you put someone with bipolar disorder on prozac, they can end up manic.
If Harris and Kleibold really were mentally ill, maybe we should blame them and take their illness into account, instead of blaming their meds.
Sorry if this sounds angry, but it seems that antidepressants are always condemned by people who have neer been affected by clinical depression.