I was at a talk by Rasmus Lerdorf where he contended that simple web-scripting languages designed to be easier than PHP one day grow to "become" PHP. And, it's true. The same goes for TeX, the problem of typesetting is hard and if you want the flexibility and the features of TeX then it may well be that TeX is "simple" as it can be.
Also, TeX may have it's complexities but have you ever tried doing a bulleted list inside a numbered list in MS Word.... I'd rather try to solve global warming in Emacs Lisp!
Perhaps an interesting poll would be "how many Slashdot readers, over the age of 30, don't personally have prior art that would invalidate this patent?" I know I do. What is truely scarey is that this patent ever got accepted.... it augurs badly for our friends in the Patent office.
Run Winblows in a virtual machine (vmware) on a Linux system and have all your files living on mapped "network" drives served up by Samba. Then you don't get screwed. It's a beautiful world:-)
DocBook vs Latex is a discussion 'cos each has it's advantages and disadvantages. Subversion is just CVS but with some of the annoying quirks removed..... I just want to save the guy using CVS and then saying "it really sucks when....." and then discovering SVN has fixed the problem.
Maybe use SVN rather than CVS - it does all the same stuff but version directories too... this makes it much less of a big decision about when to start the version control, so you start earlier, and it's smiles all around. TortoiseSVN is a winblows client which works really well and I've even found managers who can understand it.
Since M$ doesn't seem to be able to produce software without a plethora of critical bugs, let alone the odd incidental bug. Legislation like this would have a far bigger impact on them than anyone else for two reasons: 1. their software is as buggy as a bee hive 2. Everyone used their software. They'd be screwed!
If you want a clown suit use M$ Word, if you want to write a document the "easy" way use Tex. It's just like the problem with half the Linux distributions trying to become Windows. If you want Windows, use it. If you know why you don't want Windows then use Slackware or FreeBSD.
The US has some claim on the internet (albeit less that you might think). Just feel lucky for the Scots and, more recently, the Aussies who have invented pretty much everything (including quite large portions of the eglomeration we call the internet). Having said the I've lived in the US and you are right, the stereotype is just that. There are many things we could learn from the US but sadly we seem, for the most part, to only assimilate the bad stuff.
What possible link to brain tumours? This seems very unlikely given the physics involved. Perhaps someone should explain the difference between ionising and non-ionising radiation and then just to allay all fears they should explain the power levels that are involved. Perhaps he should consider banning FM radios; the remote central locking thingey for his car; and maybe he should go the whole hog and ban solar-flare activity (which actually produces dangerous radiation. Just 'cos you work at a Uni it doesn't mean you know your arse from your hand.
And a big bunch of people who don't realise there's something better out there. Just like all the people who install windows in Servers. (I'm prepared to accept there are people who do better with Winblows on a desktop). IE is shite. That was true for 4,5 & 6. It will probably be true to 7 too. At least now with Firefox those people who care have the option to use a browser that works (and adheres to the vast majority of standards).
What American principles would they be? The right to free speech and freedom of religion,.... didn't that get David Koresh and a whole bunch of other people murdered. The right to a fair trial and the need to be charged with a crime before being detained,.... how does that apply to David Hicks? Or is it the principle that America can invade a country in order to control its oil supplies under the thin veil of a story about Weapons of Mass Distraction (sic). America may not have the worst record on civil rights but it might be closer than you think. It's only the distorted media that helps you believe otherwise:-)
Slashdot Mirror
I was at a talk by Rasmus Lerdorf where he contended that simple web-scripting languages designed to be easier than PHP one day grow to "become" PHP. And, it's true. The same goes for TeX, the problem of typesetting is hard and if you want the flexibility and the features of TeX then it may well be that TeX is "simple" as it can be. Also, TeX may have it's complexities but have you ever tried doing a bulleted list inside a numbered list in MS Word.... I'd rather try to solve global warming in Emacs Lisp!
Bullshit Operating System?
Perhaps an interesting poll would be "how many Slashdot readers, over the age of 30, don't personally have prior art that would invalidate this patent?" I know I do. What is truely scarey is that this patent ever got accepted.... it augurs badly for our friends in the Patent office.
Run Winblows in a virtual machine (vmware) on a Linux system and have all your files living on mapped "network" drives served up by Samba. Then you don't get screwed. It's a beautiful world :-)
DocBook vs Latex is a discussion 'cos each has it's advantages and disadvantages. Subversion is just CVS but with some of the annoying quirks removed..... I just want to save the guy using CVS and then saying "it really sucks when....." and then discovering SVN has fixed the problem.
Maybe use SVN rather than CVS - it does all the same stuff but version directories too... this makes it much less of a big decision about when to start the version control, so you start earlier, and it's smiles all around. TortoiseSVN is a winblows client which works really well and I've even found managers who can understand it.
Since M$ doesn't seem to be able to produce software without a plethora of critical bugs, let alone the odd incidental bug. Legislation like this would have a far bigger impact on them than anyone else for two reasons: 1. their software is as buggy as a bee hive 2. Everyone used their software. They'd be screwed!
If you want a clown suit use M$ Word, if you want to write a document the "easy" way use Tex. It's just like the problem with half the Linux distributions trying to become Windows. If you want Windows, use it. If you know why you don't want Windows then use Slackware or FreeBSD.
The US has some claim on the internet (albeit less that you might think). Just feel lucky for the Scots and, more recently, the Aussies who have invented pretty much everything (including quite large portions of the eglomeration we call the internet). Having said the I've lived in the US and you are right, the stereotype is just that. There are many things we could learn from the US but sadly we seem, for the most part, to only assimilate the bad stuff.
How fitting a "relatively dumb drone" is sanctioning the use of relatively dumb drones.
What possible link to brain tumours? This seems very unlikely given the physics involved. Perhaps someone should explain the difference between ionising and non-ionising radiation and then just to allay all fears they should explain the power levels that are involved. Perhaps he should consider banning FM radios; the remote central locking thingey for his car; and maybe he should go the whole hog and ban solar-flare activity (which actually produces dangerous radiation. Just 'cos you work at a Uni it doesn't mean you know your arse from your hand.
And a big bunch of people who don't realise there's something better out there. Just like all the people who install windows in Servers. (I'm prepared to accept there are people who do better with Winblows on a desktop). IE is shite. That was true for 4,5 & 6. It will probably be true to 7 too. At least now with Firefox those people who care have the option to use a browser that works (and adheres to the vast majority of standards).
What American principles would they be? The right to free speech and freedom of religion,.... didn't that get David Koresh and a whole bunch of other people murdered. The right to a fair trial and the need to be charged with a crime before being detained,.... how does that apply to David Hicks? Or is it the principle that America can invade a country in order to control its oil supplies under the thin veil of a story about Weapons of Mass Distraction (sic). America may not have the worst record on civil rights but it might be closer than you think. It's only the distorted media that helps you believe otherwise :-)