Amiga has a history of screwing things up (mostly due to Commadore), but if they pull this off, they could end up being the company that brings Linux into the mainstream consumer market.
By selling the OS preinstalled on their own hardware, they sidestep the old and tired "but Linux is so hard to install" arguement. A new Amiga should come out of the box with X configured and the sound card working, and with any easy to use ppp utility. If they do this, and provide good support, they will have addressed the major concerns that keep most "normal" people from using Linux.
I wish you success Amiga -- this is your last chance!
I kind of wonder if this says anything negative about the ability of the open source movement to develop large applications... kind of worrisome...
I think it shows that just making a project open source doesn't guarantee success. Linux is a success because it has attracted talented people, and it's rewarding enough to them that they stick around. I suspect that whatever Linus is working on at Transmeta will be a success as well, despite the fact that it's not open source.
No process or development method can replace real skill and talent.
As an aside, does anyone have any recommendations for TNT or TNT2 based cards they have working under Linux, and if so, what issues (if any) did you have?
I purchased a Creative Labs TNT a few days after NVIDIA released Mese/GLX drivers for Linux. I picked a TNT over the TNT2 because I have a P2-300, and there isn't that much difference in performance between the two on a "slower" system like mine. If you have a P2-450 or faster, you may want to go with a TNT2 instead.
I choose Creative labs because they use the NVIDIA reference design (most mfgs do, I think), which I think is important considering the current driver situation. Also, the Creative board is inexpensive, and it didn't come with a bunch of software that I didn't want.
I was using a RIVA 128 before, so upgrading was as simple as swapping boards and tweaking a few settings in XF86Config. I haven't gotten around to trying the Mesa/GLX drivers yet.
When the ladies visit your house, a good book may set the mood.
Here's a tip: Advanced Programming in the UNIX Environment doesn't seem to produce the desired results...
I've been waiting 12 years...
on
35mm Handbook
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· Score: 1
...for a good digital camera.
I bought one of the original Canon EOS 650s (I should have spent $100 more and gotten the 620), and I've been waiting ever since to get a good, inexpensive digital SLR with interchangable lenses.
Film is okay, but it is very limiting. Digital allows the photographer to shoot under a much wider variety of lighting conditions, and there's a lot more that can be done with the color balance and contrast, not to mention retouching after the damage is done.
Unfortuately, a lot of traditional photographers seem to fear technology, and this has probably set digital photography back a decade or so.
TedC
Re:Ouch, reading with threshold=-1 make brain hurt
on
VA on Upside
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· Score: 1
If I wasn't a longtime/. reader, I would swear that Microsoft's "Anti Linux Squad" had come up with the clever tactic of joining Linux communities & disrupting them with idiotic, vitriolic rants, and attempts to turn people against each other.
I don't think that's too far fetched; some of the stuff posted on/. lately has made the Linux community look pretty bad. It would be far worse without moderation.
Anyway, back to VA. They make some nice systems, but they got some serious competition coming from Dell nowdays. Check out that 410 workstation on Dell's Linux page. A dual P2-400 system is not that expensive, and a dual P3-450 should only be about $100 more when they get around to selling one.
...FreeBSD has enough dedicated developers too make an excellent product without generating all the media hype Linux tends to draw.
There's no doubt that Linux is over-hyped in the media. Part of this is due to the MS trial; it makes interesting headlines for MS to have a real competitor for a change. I suppose that reporters will get bored with it eventually, just as they got bored with Java a while back, and move on to something else. But like BSD, Linux is an excellent product, and it can survive on it's own merit without all the media hype.
Well, like all things going commercial, quality gets lost.
Not all commercial software is of poor quality, and not all Open Source software is well written. Bad programmers write bad software; whether they get paid for it is a seperate, unrelated issue.
It seems like a lot of Linux users are adopting the attitude "if it's Linux/Open Source/whatever it must be good, otherwise it sucks". A little more introspection in the Linux community would be a Good Thing.
Whatever happened to the Opera port that TrollTech was supposed to be doing?
Good question. It's too bad that one of the moderators doesn't have a clue what Opera is. How can the discussion of an alternate web browser be off topic?
Stop using the word "theory" in the vernacular as opposed to the strict scientific meaning or no one who understands the difference will take you seriously.
Start logging in (as opposed to being an AC) or those of us who do won't take you seriously.:-)
What he's trying to say is... [snip]...That way you wouldn't have to wait to be crushed or trampled, you could just start shooting your way out.
Ah, well, that's not exactly what I had in mind.
My point was that people don't suddenly become violent when you put a gun in their hand; they had a problem before they picked up the gun. That's why gun control isn't very effective -- it tries to limit the consequences, but the real problem remains.
In most European countries it's a quite difficult task to get hold of a gun and hence things like this don't happen.
On the other side of the coin, we don't have too many problems in the U.S. with people getting trampled to death during soccer (a.k.a. "football") games. If soccer balls were illegal, these things wouldn't happen...
Actually, the Homo genus has been around for well over a million years.
That's nothing more than someones "educated" guess based on "scientific" theory. Written history only goes back a few thousand years -- anything before that you have to take on faith, based on who and/or what you have chosen to believe.
In any case, "hunting for millions years" is ridiculous by nearly anyones estimation.
Does anyone out there know what to look for in a good SMP motherboard?
I'd like to build a dual PII-450 system, but Intel's MoBo prices are somewhat out of line, and I don't want to get stuck with a flaky board that hangs every half hour.
One can't deny that with a little support, Windows would, without a doubt, be an incredible OS.
Windows will never be an incredible OS.
The Win32 API is an abomination. It violates every accepted rule of good, sane programming practice. If the interface is that bad, imagine what the implementation must be like.
SuSE has not done well by their subscribers. When I signed up for a subscription I thought I would be the first kid on the block with the new distro. Not so. Apparently retailers got it first.
I cancelled my subscription and picked up 6.1 at CompUSA for $30, which is $5 cheaper than the subscription price.
I never did get 6.0 working. I couldn't run Sax without crashing, and using XF86Setup produced a configuration that would hang X 5 minutes into a session. This was strange, considering COL 1.3 and RH 5.2 were working with the same hardware. I gave up after about 4 hours, but then I saw 6.1 for $30 and decided to take another run at it.:-)
I remember walking into a software store 10 years ago, and the only software available for Windows was Excel and Samna Ami. That's it; nothing else. I guess that Windows will never amount to anything...
Can you list a single application that you've bought? You only list Linux distributions in the above.
That's what I meant when I said _if_ there were any Linux applications that I could buy, I would. The only things that I've seen on the shelf are Aplixware (sp?) and Code Warrier. I'll probably buy code warrier and Civilization 3, and Quake 3 when it comes out. Not many choices, but you have to start somewhere!
Linux will never have lots of commercial software because its users never want to pay for anything.
During the past year I've purchased boxed sets of OpenLinux 1.3, 2.2, Red Hat 5.2, 6.0, and SuSE 6.0, 6.1. If there were any Linux applications that I could by at CompUSA, I'd be dangerous.
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By selling the OS preinstalled on their own hardware, they sidestep the old and tired "but Linux is so hard to install" arguement. A new Amiga should come out of the box with X configured and the sound card working, and with any easy to use ppp utility. If they do this, and provide good support, they will have addressed the major concerns that keep most "normal" people from using Linux.
I wish you success Amiga -- this is your last chance!
TedC
I think it shows that just making a project open source doesn't guarantee success. Linux is a success because it has attracted talented people, and it's rewarding enough to them that they stick around. I suspect that whatever Linus is working on at Transmeta will be a success as well, despite the fact that it's not open source.
No process or development method can replace real skill and talent.
TedC
I purchased a Creative Labs TNT a few days after NVIDIA released Mese/GLX drivers for Linux. I picked a TNT over the TNT2 because I have a P2-300, and there isn't that much difference in performance between the two on a "slower" system like mine. If you have a P2-450 or faster, you may want to go with a TNT2 instead.
I choose Creative labs because they use the NVIDIA reference design (most mfgs do, I think), which I think is important considering the current driver situation. Also, the Creative board is inexpensive, and it didn't come with a bunch of software that I didn't want.
I was using a RIVA 128 before, so upgrading was as simple as swapping boards and tweaking a few settings in XF86Config. I haven't gotten around to trying the Mesa/GLX drivers yet.
TedC
Here's a tip: Advanced Programming in the UNIX Environment doesn't seem to produce the desired results...
I bought one of the original Canon EOS 650s (I should have spent $100 more and gotten the 620), and I've been waiting ever since to get a good, inexpensive digital SLR with interchangable lenses.
Film is okay, but it is very limiting. Digital allows the photographer to shoot under a much wider variety of lighting conditions, and there's a lot more that can be done with the color balance and contrast, not to mention retouching after the damage is done.
Unfortuately, a lot of traditional photographers seem to fear technology, and this has probably set digital photography back a decade or so.
TedC
I don't think that's too far fetched; some of the stuff posted on /. lately has made the Linux community look pretty bad. It would be far worse without moderation.
Anyway, back to VA. They make some nice systems, but they got some serious competition coming from Dell nowdays. Check out that 410 workstation on Dell's Linux page. A dual P2-400 system is not that expensive, and a dual P3-450 should only be about $100 more when they get around to selling one.
TedC
lurk_mode = ON;
Yep.
I'm compiling a 42 MB binary on a SPARC station 5 with 32 MB of physical memory. It leaves a lot of time for posting on /. between compiles. :-)
TedC
BTW, I call myself 'TedC' because 'The TC-Linux GrooveMaster' is too much typing. :-)
TedC
There's no doubt that Linux is over-hyped in the media. Part of this is due to the MS trial; it makes interesting headlines for MS to have a real competitor for a change. I suppose that reporters will get bored with it eventually, just as they got bored with Java a while back, and move on to something else. But like BSD, Linux is an excellent product, and it can survive on it's own merit without all the media hype.
TedC
Not all commercial software is of poor quality, and not all Open Source software is well written. Bad programmers write bad software; whether they get paid for it is a seperate, unrelated issue.
It seems like a lot of Linux users are adopting the attitude "if it's Linux/Open Source/whatever it must be good, otherwise it sucks". A little more introspection in the Linux community would be a Good Thing.
TedC
Good question. It's too bad that one of the moderators doesn't have a clue what Opera is. How can the discussion of an alternate web browser be off topic?
TedC
Here they are in context:
I don't think KDE has a future at this point, it's not completely free yet and it's bound to a single programming language in Unix.
Not all FUD comes out of Redmond...
TedC
Start logging in (as opposed to being an AC) or those of us who do won't take you seriously. :-)
TedC
Ah, well, that's not exactly what I had in mind.
My point was that people don't suddenly become violent when you put a gun in their hand; they had a problem before they picked up the gun. That's why gun control isn't very effective -- it tries to limit the consequences, but the real problem remains.
TedC
On the other side of the coin, we don't have too many problems in the U.S. with people getting trampled to death during soccer (a.k.a. "football") games. If soccer balls were illegal, these things wouldn't happen...
TedC
That's nothing more than someones "educated" guess based on "scientific" theory. Written history only goes back a few thousand years -- anything before that you have to take on faith, based on who and/or what you have chosen to believe.
In any case, "hunting for millions years" is ridiculous by nearly anyones estimation.
TedC
TedC
TedC
I'd like to build a dual PII-450 system, but Intel's MoBo prices are somewhat out of line, and I don't want to get stuck with a flaky board that hangs every half hour.
Suggestions?
TedC
Windows will never be an incredible OS.
The Win32 API is an abomination. It violates every accepted rule of good, sane programming practice. If the interface is that bad, imagine what the implementation must be like.
TedC
I cancelled my subscription and picked up 6.1 at CompUSA for $30, which is $5 cheaper than the subscription price.
I never did get 6.0 working. I couldn't run Sax without crashing, and using XF86Setup produced a configuration that would hang X 5 minutes into a session. This was strange, considering COL 1.3 and RH 5.2 were working with the same hardware. I gave up after about 4 hours, but then I saw 6.1 for $30 and decided to take another run at it. :-)
TedC
TedC
That's what I meant when I said _if_ there were any Linux applications that I could buy, I would. The only things that I've seen on the shelf are Aplixware (sp?) and Code Warrier. I'll probably buy code warrier and Civilization 3, and Quake 3 when it comes out. Not many choices, but you have to start somewhere!
TedC
It would be especially nice to get away from that broken cascade on IRQ2->IRQ9 16-bit interrupt scheme. That thing sucked in 1985!
There's a lot of cruft in the BIOS that could be axed as well.
TedC
During the past year I've purchased boxed sets of OpenLinux 1.3, 2.2, Red Hat 5.2, 6.0, and SuSE 6.0, 6.1. If there were any Linux applications that I could by at CompUSA, I'd be dangerous.
TedC