Posts by Dan 55

Just out of interest, does ReactOS run the software?

Re: It's gonna cost more than that...

Wouldn't the most important factor in looking for a new bank if you're a TSB customer be reliability, not interest rates? Unfortunately they never got round to putting that table on Moneysupermarket.

Re: The problem is not Linux itself...

So ... what is going on?

Politics. Another SPD-CDU coalition has decided to migrate to Windows, this time before the cost-benefit analysis has even come out (wonder who's going to write that one anyway):

Windows scores a win over Linux as another state decides to switch

The Munich decision was made by the city's ruling coalition of the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) and centre-right Christian Social Union (CSU), a party that only operates in Bavaria, and that is the long-running junior partner to Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU).

Again, Lower Saxony is governed by an SPD-CDU coalition, which was formed last year with an agreement that included turning the state's back on Linux. Other administrative departments there, including the police, are already using a Windows 8.1-based client developed by a local company.

Lower Saxony's tax authority will now conduct a cost-benefit analysis on the migration. The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE), which is highly critical of the decision to turn away from Linux, welcomed the procedural formality, but program manager Max Mehl said it was important to keep an eye on who conducts the analysis.

The Munich migration followed the recommendations of a report from consultants at Accenture, a Microsoft partner.

"It is already apparent that the desired consolidation of the IT landscape is going in the wrong direction," said Mehl. "Instead of taking the chance to expand the existing infrastructure of Linux systems, the state voluntarily goes back into a cage of artificial dependencies from individual manufacturers."

Mehl pointed to Lower Saxony's neighbour, Schleswig-Holstein, for an example of a more "future-oriented IT strategy". Schleswig Holstein has been governed since last year by a 'Jamaica' coalition of the CDU, the Greens, and the liberal Free Democrats (the party colours of which match the Jamaican flag), which decided last month to go in entirely the opposite direction, abandoning Windows for free software.

Re: "Where is the evidence to suggest that would happen?"

You know Ireland joined the EFTA at the same time as the UK in 1960 and joined the EC at the same time as the UK in 1973 partly due to the 'customs posts on a border' problem?

Re: I was pro-remain, but this really is "Project Fear" at work.

I don't know about project fear, but have a quick through the EU preparedness notices. It's probably equally useful for UK businesses. Then go back to what you were doing as it's never going to happen, right?

No country has to let anyone and everyone fly over. The planes must be deemed airworthy, and the UK will have left EASA. Hopefully the UK will managed to get the CAA to do the EASA's job in record time and persuade other countries of this by Brexit day (March 2019 without agreement, a couple of years later with agreement).

Re: eh?

According to WTO rules, goods must be checked at ports of entry and tariffs must be applied. The UK at the moment just doesn't have the capacity to do that with the amount of goods that come from Europe. If we assume the UK does get the capacity, JIT supply chains would be screwed anyway.

Re: They have two bugs

Firefox ESR 52 is still up to date... for another month then they're dropping that.

So it's Waterfox, Basilisk, Pale Moon, Seamonkey or something else entirely. All have got pros and cons... I think I'll put the choice off another month.

Re: Morons

Thank you for your second ever post to El Reg, on the EU. I missed your first post to El Reg a month ago, also about the EU.

Re: "Without Google we still would live in a 90's hell of .NET dominated internet sites"

No, in the time in between Firefox's launch and Chrome being pushed everywhere by the Google juggernaut (Search, antivirus programs, Flash, etc...), Firefox gained 30%+ market share, perfectly good enough to force a change away from closed to HTML-based formats.

Re: Backups and redundancy, FFS

Stop blaming the customer for the failings of the systems/software.

This is not a perfect world and things go wrong. People have car insurance, home insurance, and life insurance so why shouldn't they have another card and a bit of cash just in case?

Re: ...why are you holding your phone like that?

To think the Nokia nGage didn't sell because you had to hold it sideways with the display facing forward while calling and you looked stupid using it. Looks positively intelligent these days.

Get off my lawn.