Should England finally move to eliminate its troubling state surveillance program?"
Firstly, England != the UK. The United Kingdom is made of Scotland, Northern Ireland, and England and Wales (the last two are separate countries, but they use the same laws).
Secondly, while I do think that the way CCTV has been deployed in the UK is nothing short of a sham, I believe they do actually work. The summary is misleading in that it conveniently omits any mention of the fact that CCTV footage is often useful for dealing with muggings, assaults, violent crime, and with numerous other crimes. The 3% figure is somewhat unrepresentative.
The fact also remains that if you're not doing anything illegal, you shouldn't have anything to worry about with reference to CCTV.
MR DREARY BOSS IN A SUIT, SHIRT AND PLASTIC-COATED FEDORA: I don't know... XYZ Corp. has such a dreary image. I am certain it is affecting sales. Jenkins, what do you suggest?
MR LONG-SUFFERING, YOUNG, ENERGETIC JUNIOR: I know. You need to modernise. I suggest that after work today, you go to Dixons and buy an iPod. MR DREARY: What's an iPod? MR JUNIOR: It's like a gramophone that you can carry around with you. You can put Wagner and opera on it. MR DREARY: OK, I'll try that. If it doesn't work, you're fired.
(one week later) MR DREARY: Jenkins, you're a genius! This A-pod is fantastic! What else does this Apple company do? MR JUNIOR: Well, they make computers. MR DREARY: Computers? Aren't they those modern TVs with typewriters attached? MR JUNIOR: Sort of, sir. MR DREARY: GREAT! Put in an order for ten thousand!
--
OK, to be brutally honest, I think the Mac is suited very well to small businesses, but is, at present, simply too expensive for bigger businesses with, say, thousands of internal users. That is, I'd happily order ten iMacs and an Xserve RAID for something along the lines of a local newspaper, and would order a few for a supermarket company with around 10,000 users, but in the latter case I'd make the main workforce up of cheaper Windows, Linux or BSD boxes. (Don't forget that, with sufficient package installation, even Darwin can be installed on a PC. Or Mac OS X, but that would attract the wrath of the lawyers and a hefty fine.)
I'm unsure about the upgrading arguments: my Mac (an iMac) can be upgraded in much the same way as any other computer: that is, undoing a couple of screws, and swapping out the hard drive, RAM, whatever. The iMac has the problem that the CPU is soldered to the logic board, making it impossible to swap the components independently, but the Mac Mini and the Mac Pro don't have these problems to my knowledge.
Cross out "copy of", and you get a correct statement:
Linux is a Unix.
As are FreeBSD, Darwin, Solaris and Minix. Most of which borrow at least some concepts from System V, but barely a single line of code. (OK, to be a pedant, they are Unix-like OSes, but they are compatible OSes.)
Does this mean SCO plans on suing for compatibility? Standards, even? Even if SCO did own the Unix copyright, there would be no grounds for suing based on something that works in a similar way.
True, the idea that OSS stops anyone ever improving the software is hypocritical BS and FUD, BUT...
remember the GPL is very restrictive in that it doesn't allow linking with code released under certain licenses. That is, the GPL prohibits, say, linking with licenses like the APSL, meaning it's difficult to port things like Bonjour and ZFS to Linux well.
Overall, I dislike the GPL because it doesn't allow you to link your GPL-licensed code to, say, a shared (but not properly open) source bit of code. I tend to magnetise towards the MIT license, because it is GPL compatible and allows cross-linking with proprietary software.
But remember that not every hard disk is filled to its full capacity. There are also failed and defective drives, or those undelivered or damaged in transit. Also remember the numerous clones of the binaries of thousands of copies of X operating system.
They can't force you to give them your password, but they can ask you to log in to your computer without revealing your password to them.
The trick when using a *nix on your notebook is to create a session which drops to the console, or replaces your nice GNOME, KDE or Aqua environment with a full-screen xterm. Just to scare them...;-)
My Packard Bell machine came with ad-supported Works bundled. I bought it on New Year's Eve, so the fact it's taken four months for this to appear on the front page of/. astounds me.
And yes, it sucks far more than previous versions of Works.
I've said for a long time that Linux is not desktop ready.
(snip BS)
So I bought the next best thing. A Mac Book Pro
Thats all I have to say. Which wasn't much. Anybody would choose OS X over Linux is a tool. Have you looked under the hood of your fabled OS X? Just look at the directory structure alone. Shit is spewed all over the place.
Be honest, you bought the MacBook Pro because it just looks good. You're making a fashion statement, right? Pretty boy running a Pretty OS. Pffft. Go diddle your Finder, Macboy.
Oh please. I think the Darwin/OS X directory structure is far better than most other *nixes', because end-user apps go into their own folder. Things are just more intelligently organised. Apart from that, it's almost identical to FreeBSD, but with sysvinit swapped out for launchd.
True, it's a pain in the scandal and farce whenever you need to do more advanced stuff (its terminal is often difficult to work with) but the directory structure is, by no means, an adequate argument.
The bottom line is Linux needs more configuration. My new Eee PC arrived on Tuesday, and while I absolutely love it, I've still had to
swap Xandros out for Eeedora, because of no wpa-psk support
swap Xfce for GNOME, and the text login system for GDM
install OpenOffice.org
edit the init and bash config files to get GNOME and GDM to work properly
edit the GNOME panels to be able to see the config dialogs' OK/Cancel buttons
and numerous other things. It still isn't working completely perfectly. However, I can switch on a Mac and get it up and running within the hour. Even a ten-year-old could probably get it working within three hours. It 'just works'. That doesn't mean it's the most powerful OS in the world, but (at the moment) it's my favourite.
Summary of the article: "Only GPLv3 is Free Software. Anything without an anti-TiVoization clause is unfree. Also, dual licensing does not exist." Exactly.
It may not be GPL compatible, but it may be CC, Apache, Mozilla and MIT compatible. Which I believe it is.
And, as I've said before, the GPL (at least V3) sucks anyway.
But what's the point in that? If we knew, the said F300 company would immediately become a target for corporate espionage, malicious hackers and crackers and all sorts of other nasties. That would be catastrophic for the company, and customers' (and members of staff's) personal data.
There's a reason why security flaws are almost never reported by whistleblowers. Almost all data protection scares in the news ONLY occur once a breach has occured, and the damage has been done. Naming the company would be like erecting a sign reading "OSAMA BIN LADEN'S CAVE: COME IN, THE DOOR'S UNLOCKED."
My home theatre system is a 15" iMac DV, an Internet radio and an old zonked-out TV hooked up to a digibox.
I think the whole thing comes to around £199. That would double if I decided to treat myself to an iPod.
The problem is that the idea is so feckin' obvious. It's a music shop, except the music is sent down a wire rather than etched into unreliable, breakable plastic. You might as well patent record shops as well. Oh, and music sent down a wire. Oh, and the wire at the same time.
If I'm correct, Apple had their sights on turning the computer into a 'digital media hub' around the time they released the iMac (1998). Also, the idea that a 'centralized system for digital media distribution over the Internet'. Isn't that what we call, um... the Internet? Seeing as it's pretty much centralised around Google, I think so.
While I agree that Java sucks, and that VoIP is probably AT&T's fault, Fx3 is significantly less bloated and significantly faster than Fx2. It's not as quick as Safari, but only by a few fractions of a second, and is more standards compliant. I would probably still use Safari as my primary browser, but might, if need arose, switch to Fx.
This OS doesn't really run any applications at all. Neither does a Unix, with a base install. All Singularity consists of at the time of writing is two bootloaders (don't ask me why they can't do away with the 16-bit loader and just start natively at 32 bits), the hardware abstraction layer, the kernel and a shell. Somewhat like GRUB/LILO, Linux and Bash. Of course it won't run any apps until you write some for it.
There does seem to be a lot of Linus-bashing going on lately.
I'm going to side with him here - as it links with code that is not GPL, it can't be classed as GPL. However, I don't particularly like the GPL, as it insists on locking out non-GPL'd software. If anything, this is a flaw with the GPL, and not NDISWrapper or Linus.
If anything, I wouldn't say the biggest danger to the free software world is Linus Torvalds. Or even Bill Gates or Steve Ballamer. I'd say it's RMS - I may expand on this later, but this is a prime example of how restrictive the GPL (which he endorsed) can be at times.
you are funny, but seriously, did anyone think that microsoft was going to release a beta version of ie8 to anyone other than certified testers (common people)? You must be new here.
Slashdot Mirror
Firstly, England != the UK. The United Kingdom is made of Scotland, Northern Ireland, and England and Wales (the last two are separate countries, but they use the same laws).
Secondly, while I do think that the way CCTV has been deployed in the UK is nothing short of a sham, I believe they do actually work. The summary is misleading in that it conveniently omits any mention of the fact that CCTV footage is often useful for dealing with muggings, assaults, violent crime, and with numerous other crimes. The 3% figure is somewhat unrepresentative.
The fact also remains that if you're not doing anything illegal, you shouldn't have anything to worry about with reference to CCTV.
MR DREARY BOSS IN A SUIT, SHIRT AND PLASTIC-COATED FEDORA: I don't know... XYZ Corp. has such a dreary image. I am certain it is affecting sales. Jenkins, what do you suggest?
MR LONG-SUFFERING, YOUNG, ENERGETIC JUNIOR: I know. You need to modernise. I suggest that after work today, you go to Dixons and buy an iPod.
MR DREARY: What's an iPod?
MR JUNIOR: It's like a gramophone that you can carry around with you. You can put Wagner and opera on it.
MR DREARY: OK, I'll try that. If it doesn't work, you're fired.
(one week later)
--MR DREARY: Jenkins, you're a genius! This A-pod is fantastic! What else does this Apple company do?
MR JUNIOR: Well, they make computers.
MR DREARY: Computers? Aren't they those modern TVs with typewriters attached?
MR JUNIOR: Sort of, sir.
MR DREARY: GREAT! Put in an order for ten thousand!
OK, to be brutally honest, I think the Mac is suited very well to small businesses, but is, at present, simply too expensive for bigger businesses with, say, thousands of internal users. That is, I'd happily order ten iMacs and an Xserve RAID for something along the lines of a local newspaper, and would order a few for a supermarket company with around 10,000 users, but in the latter case I'd make the main workforce up of cheaper Windows, Linux or BSD boxes. (Don't forget that, with sufficient package installation, even Darwin can be installed on a PC. Or Mac OS X, but that would attract the wrath of the lawyers and a hefty fine.)
I'm unsure about the upgrading arguments: my Mac (an iMac) can be upgraded in much the same way as any other computer: that is, undoing a couple of screws, and swapping out the hard drive, RAM, whatever. The iMac has the problem that the CPU is soldered to the logic board, making it impossible to swap the components independently, but the Mac Mini and the Mac Pro don't have these problems to my knowledge.
As are FreeBSD, Darwin, Solaris and Minix. Most of which borrow at least some concepts from System V, but barely a single line of code. (OK, to be a pedant, they are Unix-like OSes, but they are compatible OSes.)
Does this mean SCO plans on suing for compatibility? Standards, even? Even if SCO did own the Unix copyright, there would be no grounds for suing based on something that works in a similar way.
True, the idea that OSS stops anyone ever improving the software is hypocritical BS and FUD, BUT...
remember the GPL is very restrictive in that it doesn't allow linking with code released under certain licenses. That is, the GPL prohibits, say, linking with licenses like the APSL, meaning it's difficult to port things like Bonjour and ZFS to Linux well.
Overall, I dislike the GPL because it doesn't allow you to link your GPL-licensed code to, say, a shared (but not properly open) source bit of code. I tend to magnetise towards the MIT license, because it is GPL compatible and allows cross-linking with proprietary software.
But remember that not every hard disk is filled to its full capacity. There are also failed and defective drives, or those undelivered or damaged in transit. Also remember the numerous clones of the binaries of thousands of copies of X operating system.
They can't force you to give them your password, but they can ask you to log in to your computer without revealing your password to them.
The trick when using a *nix on your notebook is to create a session which drops to the console, or replaces your nice GNOME, KDE or Aqua environment with a full-screen xterm. Just to scare them... ;-)
My Packard Bell machine came with ad-supported Works bundled. I bought it on New Year's Eve, so the fact it's taken four months for this to appear on the front page of /. astounds me.
And yes, it sucks far more than previous versions of Works.
This may actually be a good thing...
it may be the first time we see even semi-accurate depictions of technology in television drama in the USA!
It still mystifies me as to why eBay, an auctioneer and item dealer, would want Skype, a telephony service.
I dunno. Maybe they were going to flog off switchboard hardware for a dime a piece.
Oh please. I think the Darwin/OS X directory structure is far better than most other *nixes', because end-user apps go into their own folder. Things are just more intelligently organised. Apart from that, it's almost identical to FreeBSD, but with sysvinit swapped out for launchd.
True, it's a pain in the scandal and farce whenever you need to do more advanced stuff (its terminal is often difficult to work with) but the directory structure is, by no means, an adequate argument.
The bottom line is Linux needs more configuration. My new Eee PC arrived on Tuesday, and while I absolutely love it, I've still had to
and numerous other things. It still isn't working completely perfectly. However, I can switch on a Mac and get it up and running within the hour. Even a ten-year-old could probably get it working within three hours. It 'just works'. That doesn't mean it's the most powerful OS in the world, but (at the moment) it's my favourite.
Not a cheap rip off of Cover Flow... honest...
OK, let's get this straight. It looks awful.
I'd say something more along the lines of "Linux is not desktop ready for inexperienced users".
And then again, neither is Vista.
It may not be GPL compatible, but it may be CC, Apache, Mozilla and MIT compatible. Which I believe it is.
And, as I've said before, the GPL (at least V3) sucks anyway.
But what's the point in that? If we knew, the said F300 company would immediately become a target for corporate espionage, malicious hackers and crackers and all sorts of other nasties. That would be catastrophic for the company, and customers' (and members of staff's) personal data.
There's a reason why security flaws are almost never reported by whistleblowers. Almost all data protection scares in the news ONLY occur once a breach has occured, and the damage has been done. Naming the company would be like erecting a sign reading "OSAMA BIN LADEN'S CAVE: COME IN, THE DOOR'S UNLOCKED."
My home theatre system is a 15" iMac DV, an Internet radio and an old zonked-out TV hooked up to a digibox.
I think the whole thing comes to around £199. That would double if I decided to treat myself to an iPod.
The problem is that the idea is so feckin' obvious. It's a music shop, except the music is sent down a wire rather than etched into unreliable, breakable plastic. You might as well patent record shops as well. Oh, and music sent down a wire. Oh, and the wire at the same time.
If I'm correct, Apple had their sights on turning the computer into a 'digital media hub' around the time they released the iMac (1998). Also, the idea that a 'centralized system for digital media distribution over the Internet'. Isn't that what we call, um... the Internet? Seeing as it's pretty much centralised around Google, I think so.
While I agree that Java sucks, and that VoIP is probably AT&T's fault, Fx3 is significantly less bloated and significantly faster than Fx2. It's not as quick as Safari, but only by a few fractions of a second, and is more standards compliant. I would probably still use Safari as my primary browser, but might, if need arose, switch to Fx.
Steve Jobs must've promised to give every future Macworld keynote dressed as Ringo Starr or something, knowing how belligerent Apple Corps are.
That, boys and girls, is how to read comics. Next week on KidTV, we teach you how to brush your teeth! Bye!
The clue will be when the BBC starts broadcasting poetry in primetime again.
There does seem to be a lot of Linus-bashing going on lately.
I'm going to side with him here - as it links with code that is not GPL, it can't be classed as GPL. However, I don't particularly like the GPL, as it insists on locking out non-GPL'd software. If anything, this is a flaw with the GPL, and not NDISWrapper or Linus.
If anything, I wouldn't say the biggest danger to the free software world is Linus Torvalds. Or even Bill Gates or Steve Ballamer. I'd say it's RMS - I may expand on this later, but this is a prime example of how restrictive the GPL (which he endorsed) can be at times.
Yep.
IE7 was a crap attempt to copy Firefox. Methinks this will be a crap attempt to copy Safari.
60mB zipped. That is relatively small.
The question is whether I can compile it using make or Xcode. Doubt it.