Posts by John Bailey 811 publicly visible posts • joined 7 Jun 2007
Silverlight is another MS "We want to run everything" technology. Want to watch something with Silverlight, you need other MS tech to make it run "properly". MS SOP. Nothing new there.
I just want it to die. A painful but quick death.
Nothing against Microsoft, I use hardly any of their products any more. And I want to be able to make a choice based on what I want. Not on what they have been able to smooth talk some media company exec into using.
A clone of the air from a Microsoft windbag... Classic stuff.
Seriously though.. The same thing applies to the Windows wafer thin notebooks as applied to the Air.
You are shrinking the wrong axis. Compact = small footprint. Thin = slow, hot, and pricey.
Please please Keep Steve in his job. He is the best thing that could happen to Linux.
But isn't this the same ASA that got condemned for being Apple haters because it made Apple take down some actually misleading ad a short time ago. Something about making it look a lot faster than it actually is.. Hardly the actions of a group in someone's pocket..
Note to all fanboys of all devices/OSs/brands etc....
The ASA is not an ad removal service. It's an advertising standards watchdog. It listens to complaints, adjudicates, and finds for OR against the advertiser. Not always for, and not always against. This is the way a watchdog is supposed to act.
In this case, no rational person honestly believes that there is an app for everything on any device any more than they believe that a specific deodorant will cause attractive young women to launch themselves in your direction. No matter how much I pu.. er.. Obviously there is a certain amount of creative licence before it becomes misleading. . The ASA's job is to define and enforce that line.
Possibly because they intend to make some money out of it. With Silverlight, it would keep more away. Somehow I doubt they will tie it to the browser and media player like they tried to do with the BBC iPlayer during the first rollout.
Silverlight is only used for high visibility PR projects. Not actual money making propositions.
1) You do know what a NETBOOK is. Small low power PC with just enough welly to do basic stuff.. Video editing on a netbook?? come on. Photoshop? Games?? HD video.. Getting it to play on a netbook would be an achievment. But editing it.. come on.
2) The usual trolls moaning about compiling stuff. Get some actual current Linux experience under your belts and you will be able to troll far more effectively.
3) To the guy who was moaning about ISP support. Get a better ISP. I use Orange. I called them twice since I started using Linux. Both times, I mentioned I had Linux, and they skipped the long Windows check the settings and reboot this and reinstall that, and went straight to doing a line check once I verified that i had used a live CD to verify the settings on my PC were not at fault. With a Windows setup, I would have had to spend twenty minutes saying yes to various pointless things before the line check was ordered.
Linux hasn't failed anywhere. Neither has OSX, or any other OS. They haven't unseated Microsoft as the top dog.. So what. You don't need 100% of the market before you make a profit. They all have users who did something that most Windows users don't do.
They choose..
They did more than going to the sales person and saying I want that one there. And walking out with a couple of boxes. Scary eh?
So scary that Microsoft had to get a carefully focused report on American bricks and mortar sales of netbooks to "prove" that Linux wasn't selling much. Why? Anybody paying attention already knew that Windows was outselling Linux. No surprise.
So scary that any time there is an article on anybody selling anything with Linux on it that even vaguely resembles a PC, the fanboys and astro turfers come pouring out of the woodwork.
Looks to me like the job is done. I'll keep using my stable virus free Linux install for most things, and I'm thinking of building a Windows box for gaming end of this year/early next year. So I'll have the best of both worlds. A nice stable rig that doesn't get in my face for the serious stuff, and a gamer rig to use for playing video games. Will the world explode if a Linux computer and a Windows one come closer than five feet to each other.. We will have to wait and see.
Linux replacing Windows for every knuckle dragging moron who can;t manage something as simple as a virus scanner, doubtful. Linux on appliance type locked down and pre configured hardware. Why the hell not.
Before the astroturfers and Daily Mail readers get here.. A couple of points for reference.. A waste of time, but what the hell..
1) Apple, Linux, Microsoft and many others are all competing in the same market. There is no Linux market and there is no Apple market. There is just a desktop computer market. The one Microsoft has a monopoly position in.
2) Just because alternatives exist, it doesn't stop Microsoft from using unethical and often illegal practices to keep that monopoly influence, and to strong arm other markets. This is for Microsoft's benefit, not yours.
3) The market share aspect is trivial. The real meat of the issue revolves around the bit that the astroturfers will try to disguise as much as possible.
Compatibility.
Why exactly does IE8 only score about 20% on Acid 3 when Firefox and Safari get near or actually reach 100%? Are Microsoft programmers really that incompetent?
Right. Now ignore all I have said, and get going with a nice Euroskeptic MS fanboy rant. Earn your money for a change and come up with something more original than the usual nonsense. At least try to come up with a reasonably good argument. Do Paris proud.
The 96% figure is accurate enough I'd guess.. For the sample they used.
Specifically, American retail bricks and mortar sales. Places where the Linux netbooks were special orders or limited to the bottom spec, and where the sales staff had no idea what they were selling.
Yet Microsoft feel the need to quote the retail survey in their PR handouts and make ad sites like this, along with financing the (OEM name) recommends Windows (current version).
Go to a BNP meeting and get their response to immigration, and it doesn't really reflect UK public opinion on immigration does it?
So much effort for what is frequently quoted as being around 1% of computer users.. Funny that. Kind of like Tesco trying to fight a retail war against Harrods. Funny how the biggest player in the world of operating systems feels the need to keep telling everybody how big they are, and how rubbish the statistically insignificant competition is. Or am I missing something?
Pretty simple.
1) Filler track model not working any more.
If I can buy a single track for a few pence, why would I pay the full whatever it is for the whole album? Especially when I can preview the tracks before I buy.
2) Second hand albums easier than ever to get.
Amazon, Ebay etc. No problem getting an album for a few quid. No money reaches the poor starving artists and the poor recording companies. And if the plod kick in my door, they don't find any bootleg DVDs or dodgy MP3 files.
3) General annoyance. if the music business is in such dire straits, then how come there are so many multi millionaires? true. Not every musician is filthy rich, but when Andrew Lloyd Bagpuss and Pete Waterman are the designated whiners, it doesn't really do their case much good. Perhaps the talented artists are too busy working to bother with empty PR fluff.
In truth. The most I have paid for an album in the last few years is about £7 tops. Downloads or CDs. And I don't file share. But the music biz doesn't usually get my money either.
Mine's the one with the hammer and nails in the pocket.
Adding new features and tweaks.. Why does that sound to me like they sent out the good version as a beta to get a bit of positive press, and the release version will be stuffed to the brim with new "value" that nobody wants.
Cheer up Windows users.. They have plenty of time to muck it up between now and release date. The marketing department will surely find something to add that will make it a must have.
If the Hollywood movie industry dies, then all the other countries where quality is not calculated in total minutes of CGI might get a look in. Some of the Korean horror, and other far eastern stuff is pretty good. A slightly bigger budget in places, would help. They already have some great plots that don't involve teenage girls running from psychopaths in their underwear.
@ AC..
We are not unhappy with Apple's products at all. Quite the opposite. They are an endless source of amusement. Even Microsoft at it's most pompous is no match for the sheer daring of Apple's marketing philosophy.
From the misplaced sense of superiority of the fanboys, to the control freakishness of the makers. All good stuff. Especially now that Apple have decided to invent the cell phone, touch screens, and heaven knows what else. Rest assured, we are all far too amused by Apple to ever bother sullying their brand identity by actually buying any of the iProdicts.
Not the best way to get introduced to Linux I'll admit. But essentially, someone with no idea what they were buying bought the wrong thing. what a surprise.
How she managed to buy an Ubuntu Dell by mistake is also quite impressive. And do American ISPs really demand a Windows disk to use their service? Or is it that she just had some cheap ass ISP provided USB modem or something instead of a router.
At a guess, it will be the usual hard won deal where the civil servants have managed to get an equipment and support deal at only three times the cost of a lease system from any corporate supplier. Oh look.. RM are on the list of recognized suppliers.
Just how difficult would it be to set up a localised recycling scheme that would give each kid/family a donated serviceable PC, an internet connection, and a support hotline or place to bring the PC to fix when it goes down. Companies could even get a warm fuzzy advertising aspect with sponsorship and their logo on the system unit.
Linux/Windows, not that important. Although if saving money is a priority, why bother with a Windows license when the Linux one is free. And what broadband supplier doesn't supply a router with Ethernet these days.
Is it just me, or is this suspiciously similar to the plot of The IT crowd last night.. Get the computer illiterate PR bod up in front of a bunch of computer illiterate shareholders. Give her a box with a flashing light on it and tell her it's the internet. Room full of idiots are impressed.
Somewhere there has to be a geek that put the idea into her head as a windup and never thought it would go outside the agency..
Now if only we can get her to promise to never type Google into Google.
Perhaps you should take a quick look at the front page of the reg.. Two ASA stories in one day is pretty much proof that they don't have a vendetta on the Jesusphone. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/11/26/tiger_beer_asa/
If you don't like the accuracy of the adverts, feel free to complain to the ASA. URL elsewhere in comments. Or are you just sulking because Apple got a slapped wrist again?
The consultancy firm that they hired to do the fesability study,
the companies that are going to tender to produce the system,
the companies that make the cards and readers,
the companies they hire to lose the data etc.
All are dead keen on ID cards. Especially if they know that they will never have to deliver, as the chances of Gordie's mob getting in next time are about as much as Paris getting the Nobel prise for physics.
The only thing that could make it a bit more sticky is if they somehow sneak in some method that makes it incredibly difficult to cancel, or a few more terrorist attack attempts just as the vote is going through. Who wants to be seen as soft on tourism after all..
No rodents have been damaged by my tech, but so far, 1 TV card remote with buttons removed five minutes after unpacking the remote.. rubber was apparently the food of the gods as far as this particular rat was concerned, multiple corded phones, phone extension cables, digitiser puck cable, various mouse cables, and many CDs found in favourite stashing point under the sofa on cleaning day.
Cables with no electricity running through them are no fun, as I had an old corded mouse on the floor under my desk for months which went unmolested. I have since made sure every cable is well out of reach, and then made sure again when proven wrong, so I don't get any more chewed cabl.................................................................
I jumped ship when the WGA check became compulsory a little over two years ago. I have a fully licensed copy, but I resent the implication that I have to prove over the phone to some twit in a call centre that I am allowed to use the software I bought.
Linux for the past two years has been great. Rock solid, compatible with all my hardware, and a pleasure to use. It is also the closest I have got in recent years to the old geeky buzz i had in the 80s when I was typing in listings from magazines in my ZX81, and trying to learn how the program worked.
With Fedora and WINE, I have wanted for nothing, as the remaining Windows apps I want to run are all pretty low end ones that work fine without an actual copy of Windows. The only exception is Sketchup, but that seems to be getting better support each WINE update. I miss games a bit, and researching my next hardware upgrade, but my favourite game works great on Linux, so it isn't a problem that is worth bothering with.
I'll not deny, it was a bit of a challenge the first few weeks, there is still a learning curve, but once you get into the mindset, it is fairly straightforward. And once you learn how to use a different OS, you have options.. Choice.. you are not at the mercy of Microsoft's release cycle any more.
Can you imagine what they would have done if they had watched McGuyver!!!
So GTA or whatever the dangerous game of the time is, is the new "big boys did it.." excuse.
And Mike, I think you might find it is the Righty god botherers who are more inclined to use this as an excuse than the lefty tree huggers..
If this is to stop malware and viruses and trojans (oh my) then why is it on the iPhone?
Isn't one of the standard boasts of the fruit logo persuasion that Apple doesn't have malware, and as the iphone is an Apple product, it can't possibly be sullied by such a thing.
And if the reason why you can only buy apps from the Apple store is to maintain the sanctity of the platform, and not allow badly written apps to degrade the experience, then how the hell is it ever going to need any security system to blacklist Apple approved apps?
So much for a quick marketing dodge to get a better price from Microsoft. After a year, they are still selling Linux loaded computers. And it seems, expanding these models.
Face it.. People want Linux as a choice. Not everybody, but enough to make it worthwhile. And not all are skinflints that dare not buy unless they are getting their PC as part of a discount.
Who is really and truly surprised? Come on.. Be honest.
When Swivel eyes was in power, he took decisions based on what he believed. And had it confirmed by a hand picked selection of senior ministers who were going to agree with him if he proclaimed that everyone had to wear their underpants on their head every second Tuesday. And as he had a direct line to god, how could he go wrong?
Gordy still has the moral compass that his dad gave him, but somehow the needle got stuck and now it points to " This can't possibly go wrong" all the time.
Neither have entertained the concept of being anything other than a decisive leader. Tough on indecision, tough on the facts that get in the way of making big impressive decisions. So listening and acting on the information gained from listening is not gonna work.
Basically.. hardware.
It doesn't really matter if you can get a little business powerhouse for £399. It is still a dual core 2 gig machine with a hard drive in the hundreds of gig. Great for an enthusiast, or someone who is going to take advantage of that, but for the average person in the street.. It is an insane amount of power. The computer equivalent of a 4X4 to do the school run in London.
A recent refurbished model on the other hand, will do all they need for a fraction of the price, and an old model with a copy of Linux slapped on it would do even better.
Yep.. I use Ad blocking software. And I go to sites that are ad supported. Am I ashamed? Not even a little bit. I recommend ad block to everyone I know.I also make a cup of tea or fast forward during ad breaks on TV. I know.. I'm one step away from a terrorist.. I'm even too anarchic to pay for proper commercial software and use Linux instead.. Yes.. I am trying to ruin the internet for the nice advertising people who know that we really want to listen to their message instead of reading some silly article or something.
I will not read a site that has a quarter page flashing ad for something. If that means I don't get to see the content, then so be it. Some sites really milk it. A couple of paragraphs each page of a ten page article.. Come on. This is just asking for someone to block the thing.
Some sites I do unblock, but reverse that if they get carried away. Advertising is ok in moderation, but don't overdo it.
Throttle back the migraine inducing "eye catching" ads and people don't need to use blockers, and don't make me use the mute button on my keyboard late at night. It really is that simple. An ad for the latest video game... fine. A static picture with links to find out more. An ad with a flash animation in a perpetual loop with annoying sound is not helping guys, neither is a moving fake window offering insurance with a difficult to find close button floating over what I came there to read. It's the internet equivalent of driving down my street at four in the morning with a megaphone and a strobe light. I am NOT going to buy from your fine advertiser under any circumstances after that! And a brand that advertises in such a way that I already use has just lost my custom.
As a replacement for Windows, Wine is not going to cut it. Especially in a business environment, but as a means of getting a few fairly basic Windows programs and some older games to run.. It is invaluable. It's one of the first apps I install when I upgrade to a new version of Fedora, and has served me well so far. Each release gets better.
Good question.. And the good answer is that if they were handed into the police station, then nothing would ever be heard of the incident beyond a civil servant being told to be more careful next time.
In their position, the police would be the last people I'd even consider. Partly because I wouldn't want to miss the chance to embarrass the government, but partly because I don't particularly fancy the risk of being the first to try out the new detention powers.
The HMRC data loss dribbled out over some time, and the level of security was found to be laughable. Entire records instead of anonymous samples which were asked for, everyone having root access, the prohibition on doing such things being in a procedure manual that the person who did the copying and posting was not cleared to see. Not to mention the DWP, military records, and heaven knows what else has been lost or swiped by these twerps.
The really interesting question is... How many top secret documents have been handed into the police and not reported on?
Carlton Browne is alive and well and still working for the civil service.
Paris.. because even she is overqualified for such things.
The EU commission are taking the right path. Dealing with Microsoft in cases like this, it's like getting a stubborn five year old to eat their vegetables.
Every spoonful is an exercise in tragic over acting and every attempt is made to make each fragment seem like they are chewing razor blades.
Microsoft generously allowed the SAMBA project to look at the server protocols? Nope. they kept coming up with booby trapped offers that the Commission rejected until they finally buckled under and provided something useful, which would have been useless if MS could just change everything as soon as the ink was dry, except the condition to keep the documentation and patent information up to date was added. Nothing from Microsoft in the field of interoperability is useful unless they are cornered into giving it up.
This will be no different. You can bet that behind the scenes, Microsoft approached someone to see if the commission would swallow various degrees of compliance. A separate converter app wouldn't fly, neither was an import/export function nested several layers down enough, or a partial implementation of ODF that only supported MS functions, but ignored or treated as a fail, any aspects that MS did not implement.
The only way to get real interoperability from Microsoft is to make it sit at the table until each and every pea is eaten, and leave it in no doubt that tomorrow, they will face the same treatment.
As long as it is in Microsoft's interest to have their software incompatible with everyone else's, they will fight every attempt to make it so.
I've had my bacon saved more than once with a live CD. Anybody that does computer trouble shooting and doesn't have one is missing out on an incredible tool.!
Boot up the customer's computer, copy all their work across to an external drive or to a DVD, Nuke Windows from orbit.. The only way to be sure you got all the nasties out. And enjoy the look on the face of the customer who spent the last three days trying to figure out how to boot their Windows install without wiping everything out.
I might just get myself a bigger USB key for this. Fedora is my favorite distro anyway, so I'll be downloading the DVD tomorrow, and installing over the weekend.
The person at the other end of the phone isn't personally responsible, but they represent the company/department that is. If Said Numpty decides that your guarantee is void for some reason, or that you are not entitled to something or other, or you have not in fact been overcharged, then they have to have the authority of representing the company/department to do so. Otherwise we may as well grab a random person and demand satisfaction.
Screaming and shouting at the person on the other end of the phone however, is counter productive. Honey catches more flies than vinegar, and politely requesting to speak to someone higher up is usually more effective.
Linux isn't a universal cure for computer problems. But neither is Windows, or OSX. Its an operating system. What would be the point if they were all the same.
I'm typing this on Fedora 8 right now, and I'll be downloading Fedora 9 soon, when it comes out of beta. After two years on Linux, I'm still having a blast. Way more fun that Windows ever was. I've had hiccups and problems, but who doesn't. I'm a self confessed geek and proud of it. Why shouldn't we have an OS aimed at us.
As far as degree level computer knowledge, Sorry to disappoint. I don't have a single letter after my name. Didn't even finish secondary school to be honest. I did go on a short programming course once. Basic COBOL. So not very useful for hacking around with Linux. I just have enough interest and curiosity to learn how to do stuff.
in reference to the topic at hand.. Red Hat not wanting to get involved in making a consumer grade desktop distro is spot on. I don't blame them one bit. Its too expensive to support, and most people would not be willing to pay a subscription fee. No profit, no point. Especially when there are so many good distros out there already. Let them stick to what they know. The corporate and workstation biz. Leave the consumer desktop to the community based distros who know their users already.
Not so much evolution as Microsoft shooting themselves in the foot I think.
The sudden arrival of low cost low spec machines that do most if not all of what the casual computer user wants are being supplied with Linux because XP is on the way out, and Vista has too high a set of specifications to run anything near the level that any rational person would expect on these. Microsoft must be furious. (hehe)
Come June, Microsoft will have to think very carefully. Do they..
A) Discontinue as planned and hope people buy lots of nice powerful systems that will run Vista?
B) Keep XP, as they need a low end OS for the low end systems that do all people really want. Not because they dare not risk Linux getting a foothold, but "because they have been listening to their customers and want to give them the opportunity to use a high quality operating system and associated software"...
C) Release "XP ultra mobile" for the ultra portable and low cost market with some means of keeping it from infecting the Vista market by hobbling it on more powerful machines, or removing services that would make it an attractive option for all us Vista don't wannabes.
Personally, my money is on B, but I'm hoping for A. Anything that gets Linux on more desktops is good in my books. If only the makers of these computers could have waited another six months.
After all the twaddle about not supporting non Windows systems, I find that the streaming iplayer works perfectly on my Linux box every time, and even works on my N800(linux web tablet). but every time I try to use it on my Windows box, it crashes in both IE and Firefox. Nice to see the streaming version is more popular though.
Since the 3% is in the manicured hands of a brain dead bimbo who has no concept of living in the real world. Take away the "Hilton Heiress" angle, and you have yet another twerp in the public eye. Hardly celebrity material once her looks start to go a bit, and the next super spoiled little girl comes on the scene. The entourage and the cars and the clothes and the whole Paris image ain't cheap you know.
If you want to choose the motherboard, memory configuration, drive spec, video card, OS and perhaps go for a better mouse than the standard off the shelf system, then for heaven's sake, build your own! Or go to a small place where each computer is hand built to exactly the spec you want.
Don't bother with an underpaid telesales person for a large company who wouldn't know a stick of RAM from a hole in the ground. They can't offer anything outside the options listed for each model in their database, so you are going to get nowhere. Full flexibility or mass produced non standard crapplet laden junk, your choice.
Personally I wouldn't touch a brand name computer. Way too much hassle.
No problem with it working on Linux. I can see this being way more popular than the iPlayer thingy. Good thing too. Nobody in their right mind is going to use this to replace a proper video recorder or PVR, but for occaisional things like when you forget to set something to record, it could be useful. The penguin is victorious.
The full screen video quality isn't that great, but was it expected to be? This way you don't have to download more crud to run in the background and make things even more unstable.
I have a sinking feeling that this is the rule rather than the exception for the civil service. Lots of petty little line managers jealously guarding their patch and obstructing any move to change the practices of the office.
I too can see even EDS putting layered access into the system spec, it's pretty much standard operating procedure, but being knocked back because it cost too much. Or required retraining. And I doubt I'm the only one who can imagine the one and only login being HMRC and the password being "password"
My first ever work experience program even had user specific content so whoever logged on had their data automatically sorted, and the boss had access to the whole thing.
The thing is.. This should not have been down to some vague policy. It should have been physically impossible for this to happen!
Anybody remember the assurances that the various government departments who were supposed to be sharing the information linked to ID cards would only be able to access the relevant bits, and not the whole sum of all data for each individual? I'm hoping they will die a slow and unremarked death, but I still wouldn't put it past the gits to try and spin it into reality in some sneaky way.
Nice to see Microsoft serving the second user market. <snigger> And with a third license too<g>
I seem to remember reading that it wasn't open to the average member of the public who is selling an old PC or two on Ebay and wants to stay legal, but to companies who are selling/giving away old ex corporate systems in large numbers. Think thousands of units a year instead of hundreds. A nod to recycling and a bid to get genuine recycled windows on everything in the refurb market.
Otherwise people would be buying these cheap XP licenses and swearing blind that they were for this old P3 I have clutering up the back bedroom honest Guv..
Nothing wrong with sticking Linux on the PC. Then leave it up to the end user to decide if they want to go the legal route, or install a pirate copy, although I'd go for Linux on an older PC any day. Even better if its a face to face sale. Linux will make the system perform faster than XP on lower spec hardware most if not all the time.
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