Recent Posts

5676

Living Room / Linus Torvalds on what makes open software development work. (BBC interview)

« Last post by 40hz on July 13, 2012, 06:07 PM »

Fresh from flipping off nVidia, demigod Linus Torvalds, in a BBC interview, sheds some light on what he believes makes open software development work: selfishness and trust.

The success of Linux is in large part due to its open source nature. Why do you think people have been willing to give up so much time without financial reward?

In many ways, I actually think the real idea of open source is for it to allow everybody to be "selfish", not about trying to get everybody to contribute to some common good.

In other words, I do not see open source as some big goody-goody "let's all sing kumbaya around the campfire and make the world a better place". No, open source only really works if everybody is contributing for their own selfish reasons.

Now, those selfish reasons by no means need to be about "financial reward", though.

The early "selfish" reasons to do Linux tended to be centred about just the pleasure of tinkering. That was why I did it - programming was my hobby - passion, really - and learning how to control the hardware was my own selfish goal. And it turned out that I was not all that alone in that.

If you're a person who is interested in operating systems, and you see this project that does this, you don't want to get involved if you feel like your contributions would be somehow "taken advantage of", but with the GPLv2 [licence], that simply was never an issue.

The fundamental property of the GPLv2 is a very simple "tit-for-tat" model: I'll give you my improvements, if you promise to give your improvements back.

It's a fundamentally fair licence, and you don't have to worry about somebody else then coming along and taking advantage of your work.

And the thing that then seemed to surprise people, is that that notion of "fairness" actually scales very well.

Read it all here.

5677

Living Room / Re: What will be your next computer?

« Last post by 40hz on July 13, 2012, 03:50 PM »

To me, a computer isn't a toy, or an entertainment center, or a social event. I work with it. I need to see what I'm doing and I need upmteen apps open at the same time - in various sizes - so I can see them all at once.

When MS stops supporting the OSs of my choice, I'll use something else to dig around online, but with all the changes, cloud computing, Windows 8, there is less and less that that interests me. All the great software will die out (for those of us that are sticking to XP and 7) so that leaves only research to keep me online.

Windows 8? I'm not going there. Ever.

-sazzen (July 13, 2012, 03:35 PM)

   

5678

Living Room / Re: Preparing for the inevitable

« Last post by 40hz on July 13, 2012, 09:22 AM »

It would be useful if there was some free zip file somewhere that contained a bunch of forms to fill out to cover all of these issues.. A living will, a place to list important passwords, etc.

-mouser (July 13, 2012, 09:10 AM)

The rules may vary slightly from state to state so you'll need to do a search for forms on that basis. For example, New York forms can be found here.

One thing...no matter what anybody tells you about witnesses - have a notary witness your signature of the document. It's some inconvenience and a few bucks (~$5) well spent. Having that official seal completely removes any legal question that you signed the document. With simple witness signatures and no notary seal it can still be called into question.
 

Addendum:

Fannie Mae publishes something called the Elderkit in PDF format. It's a collection of forms and info that is worth downloading and filling out if you're responsible for the care of an aging parent or relative. Get it here.

Most of the forms can be used as is, or serve as an outline for your own important personal information collection. So print out an extra copy for your own info while you're at it.

P.S. I just had my mother unexpectedly end up in the hospital a few weeks ago. (She's now home and fine BTW.) Although I had most of the information and documents I needed, there were a few things I didn't have. And that added greatly to the stress I experienced with her being there. Going home and frantically digging through personal papers is the last thing you need when you're worried about somebody.

So download this little book and get it filled in this weekend.

5679

General Software Discussion / Re: A unified solution for note taking and task management

« Last post by 40hz on July 12, 2012, 10:01 PM »

@wolfknight82 - Welcome to DonationCoder!

Thx for sharing that find. I'm particularly interested in  that there's a Linux version and they have a server implementation as well. That would be the icing on the cake since this sort of app begs to be used for collaboration.
 

5680

Living Room / Re: What will be your next computer?

« Last post by 40hz on July 12, 2012, 05:56 AM »

I need three. Which I get first will probably depend on what I can afford when I decide to buy one.

1. A mini-PC running Linux as my main go-to machine

2. A small 'nothing fancy' laptop running Windows 7 for onsite use when dealing with clients

3. An easily transportable not laptop for use with music apps. Since I'm starting to veer towards ProTools there's a good chance that (much as I hate to say it) I may opt for a MacMini - assuming Apple is still making them by the time I get around to it.

I'm also waiting for the Raspberry Pi I ordered. That's the one that has me totally 'juiced' right now.

5681

Developer's Corner / Re: OS4 Linux distro tries a new revenue model

« Last post by 40hz on July 12, 2012, 05:34 AM »

Since it's primarily intended to be a "pay for" product, I think they'd be better off bundling Codeweaver's Crossover into the distro and include newbie-level instructions for installing MS Office, Quicken/Quickbooks (*choke*), and whatever else is in the Top 10 list for Windows.

They could possibly make even more money if they offered the Windows apps either through direct sales or via an affiliate deal with somebody like Amazon or CDW. Or just bundle them in as part of a package deal.

What they really need to do is think outside the box a little more. They're still pitching to the choir and fellow mutants like me. We believe in the importance of Linux and what it represents. But most normal people (and many businesses) don't care what OS they're running. They just want to be sure all their apps will work.



 

5682

Living Room / Re: Is Linux just a hobby?

« Last post by 40hz on July 11, 2012, 09:22 PM »

For some reason, (just like Ubuntu too!)  , my monitor dims (during more intensive work like installing updates) and comes back.

-dantheman (July 11, 2012, 07:15 PM)

Check your power management settings and see if the "Dim when idle" monitor option is selected. If it is, turn it off. I never use it because it's flaky with some graphic adapters and the power savings it provides are minuscule for most people. I just set my screensaver to black out the monitor after 15 minutes and call it a day.
 

5683

General Software Discussion / Re: What is the ctrl-alt-del and does it exist in other OSs?

« Last post by 40hz on July 11, 2012, 12:06 PM »

@jgpavia - On many PCs it also works as a hardware-based low-level system hook in BIOS. (Wait for your BIOS splash screen and then hit CTRL-ALT-DEL before your OS starts booting. Most PCs will do a hard reboot if you do.)

So the 'three finger salute' can operate on many different levels ranging from BIOS to kernal to OS depending on the machine and the OS.

It's one of those seemingly simple questions that doesn't have a simple answer once you get beyond "what it does" and start looking at exactly how it goes about doing it.

P.S. Thx for the Wikipedia link. It's a very good article. Much better in places than digging through actual manuals for the same info.

5684

General Software Discussion / Re: What is the ctrl-alt-del and does it exist in other OSs?

« Last post by 40hz on July 11, 2012, 08:29 AM »

Look for the Keyboard Shortcuts control panel (or settings) available in most Linux distros. In Linux you can program virtually any key or key combo to do anything you want.

5685

Living Room / Re: Is Linux just a hobby?

« Last post by 40hz on July 11, 2012, 08:20 AM »

@dantheman - you should be ok with 1GB. I'm running Mint on an old 2Ghz Core2-Duo laptop with 1 GB of RAM and 1 GB swap space and everything works just fine.  

5686

Developer's Corner / OS4 Linux distro tries a new revenue model

« Last post by 40hz on July 11, 2012, 06:49 AM »

We've had discussions about revenue models for software products previously.

Right now, PC/OpenSystems LLC (makers of customized Linux distros and sellers of pre-configured Linux systems) is trying a variation of the classic "ransom" formula. As long as they receive a minimum of $2,000 recurring contributions per month, they will continue to offer their distro (OS4) for free.

Ok...maybe it's not so much a ransom as it is a "protection money" formula since it's recurring. (It worked for PBS, right?)

Be interesting to see how this plays out. I intend to check back monthly and see when (not if) they switch over to charging for it.

Here's the announcement on their website.

Saturday, June 9, 2012
Keeping OS4 Free

Ok,  So now that we are at 12.5 people have asked me about the free version of OS4.  So what happens now.  Well I had said that at 12.5 I will be charging for OS4 and I would cancel the free version.  Well, I have gotten feedback on this and the concensus is not everyone is happy about that.  So I have been brain storming on how I could satisfy my users and keep you guys happy.  First, PC/OpenSystems LLC is a company.  Any company wants to make money whether its through the consulting side or through OS4 and other software that we do.  So, here is my compromise.  If contributions build up and we make at least $2,000 dollars a month in recurring contributions I will keep OS4 free as a download.  First, you will say that thats a lot of money but lets break it down I get 143 visitors on average a day.  So lets say everyone contributes $5.00 so lets say $5.00 x 143 thats 715 dollars a week, now times that by 4 weeks that equals $2,860 a month.  We will even do this, ALL contributions for OS4 will not fund any other part of PC/OpenSystems LLC.  It will all be contributions for OS4 and http://www.os4online.com.  So here is how this will work out,  If we reach our goal by July 20, 2012 in RECURRING donations.  OS4 will remain as a free download.  If we dont, I will start charging for OS4 downloads.

I nice idea. But I think it's mostly wishful thinking on their part. There's so much "free and equally good" in Linux-land that it would require something truly unique to sway potential buyers to pay for a distro. I'll have to download a copy (and make a contribution since they've asked so politely) to see if there's anything about this distro that makes it special.

Where I think their idea is going to fall down is on the issue of support. They are only offering 90 days of email support if you purchase their distro. Not a compelling offer IMO since support is really what most newbie Linux users need more than anything. And it's also the one thing most end-users are extremely reluctant to see a need to pay for.

Time will tell...

I wish them luck.

5687

General Software Discussion / Re: It's official: Microsoft discontinuing Windows Home Server

« Last post by 40hz on July 10, 2012, 02:56 PM »

[1]  Although they don't use the PDC/BDC terminology any more, it's still actually the way the domain operates internally. At any given time, one DC is still designated the Primary, and because that server isn't working right, I can't get it to surrender control to the new one. And the new one, since it can't sync changes to the old one, refuses to accept more domain members, etc.

-CWuestefeld (July 10, 2012, 12:25 PM)

Assuming the 2nd DC was joined to the 1st DC's domain, have you tried transfering/sezing the FSMO roles? Either that or just demote the 1st DC to a member server to force the issue. Assuming of course that AD is intact. I've had to deal with a few crunchy transfers ... It's usually save-able as long as DNS is working properly.

-Stoic Joker (July 10, 2012, 12:59 PM)

The fact he can't sync gives me pause about demoting a DC to a member server since that suggests there's a problem somewhere in the AD. Or possibly DNS if somebody buggered adjusted the DNS configuration after the initial install.

@CW - +1 w/Stoic. Transferring the FSMO roles (or seizing them if necessary) is definitely the approach I'd try first. Take a look at KB255504 and also KB324801 if you're not up on FSMO roles and how to view and/or transfer them.

Luck!

5688

General Software Discussion / Re: It's official: Microsoft discontinuing Windows Home Server

« Last post by 40hz on July 10, 2012, 02:42 PM »

So my plan was to trash all the needless complexity, and use WHS for what I expected to be a more straightforward configuration.

Anybody have better suggestions for running a house-wide network with decent security?

-CWuestefeld (July 10, 2012, 12:25 PM)

Is there any reason your plan has changed?  I ask because my plan was to do the same thing... and with 40's announcement, I have it in my newegg cart... didn't see a downside to using it even if they discontinue it.

-wraith808 (July 10, 2012, 12:31 PM)

Now that I've come out of mourning, I have to agree. The current announcement says it will remain available through the end of 2013. And I would assume Microsoft will continue to provide security updates for the usual 5-year wind down period afterwards, so it shouldn't be a problem for the foreseeable life of your server.

My problem is that I liked it for small home/service based businesses and startup advocacy and similar groups. Now that it's been tombstoned, I really can't in good conscience spec it for a business client. But for home service it will probably be just fine for the next 5 years. @$50/ea it's still an excellent deal for that type of deployment.

 

5689

General Software Discussion / Re: Looking for software to manage and merge various MS word documents

« Last post by 40hz on July 10, 2012, 02:32 AM »

What I think you're looking for is a category of publishing software called a document processing system. Basically the page composition and formatting is separated from the actual page content in this type of app. You'll create a page with formatting which acts as a template. The content then gets imported into the template in order to produce the actual document. This type of system is popular for the creation of manuals where parts may be updated or edited on a regular basis, but the overall document remains mostly unchanged. This sort of app tends to be complex and expensive because they're geared toward corporate use. Examples would be Ragtime and Interleaf.

There are also a number of "help" and documentation processors that will allow you to keep a central repository of paragraphs which can be selectively imported into various documents. A good example of this type of app can be found here. These are not exactly cheap solutions ($200-800 depending), but I think they do exactly what you're trying to accomplish.

If you're willing to do a little more work and have a little less automation, take a look at Mouser's Form Letter Machine. With a little imagination it can also be made to do what you want at significantly lower cost.

Luck!

5690

Announce Your Software/Service/Product / Re: Frackin' Reserve - A Fractional Reserve Banking and Compound Interest Simulator

« Last post by 40hz on July 09, 2012, 12:11 PM »

Great educational tool for a subject most people have only heard about. (If they knew more about it they'd be losing more sleep than they already are.)

Of course, leave it to Renegade to write a whole program instead of just doing this in a spreadsheet. He's a coder for sure.

5691

General Software Discussion / It's official: Microsoft discontinuing Windows Home Server

« Last post by 40hz on July 08, 2012, 07:57 PM »

Well, it was bound to happen. Windows Home Server, one of Microsoft's best sleeper products, is being discontinued. I'm guessing what it really boils down to is that it was just a little too capable - and far too much of a bargain - for its own good.

You will still be able to buy WHS as standalone software through the end of 2013. After that it will only be available to OEMs for preinstallation on home server appliances.

Windows Home Server 2011 can be currently purchased for less than $50 at some of the major retail sites. (Amazon: $48.50/NewEgg: $49.99) The Microsoft recommended replacement for WHS is Windows Server 2012 Essentials. Essential has an announced price of $425.

Here's what Microsoft has to say about it:

Q: Will there be a next version of Windows Home Server?

A: No. Windows Home Server has seen its greatest success in small office/home office (SOHO) environments and
among the technology enthusiast community. For this reason, Microsoft is combining the features that were
previously only found in Windows Home Server, such as support for DLNA-compliant devices and media
streaming, into Windows Server 2012 Essentials and focusing our efforts into making Windows Server 2012
Essentials the ideal first server operating system for both small business and home use—offering an intuitive
administration experience, elastic and resilient storage features with Storage Spaces, and robust data protection
for the server and client computers.

Q: How long will customers be able to purchase Windows Home Server 2011?

A: Windows Home Server 2011 will remain available as an OEM embedded product until December 31, 2025, and
will remain available in all other current channels until December 31, 2013.

So it goes...  



40hz is bummed BIG time.

5692

General Software Discussion / Re: cut out middle verse and still keep pace

« Last post by 40hz on July 08, 2012, 09:05 AM »

Last I checked there was a live Linux distro called ArtistX that had Jokosher on it. IIRC, Dynebolic (another live distro) has Ardour on it. They're huge downloads since they both have a ton of media tools on them. So we're talking 1-2Gb DVD isos. But if you're somewhere with a really fast connection (i.e. university/school) they might be worth checking out.
 

5693

Living Room / Re: Help me design my next Tattoo!

« Last post by 40hz on July 08, 2012, 08:36 AM »

@Stoic - my GF said that there are far too many people with a high pain threshold and altogether too much time on their hands walking around out there.  

P.S. I guy I knew in a band up in Boston got you beat on that one. He had the "whole works" tattooed as a king cobra about to strike. Heard it from his ultra-übergoth "old lady." She was proud of him for doing it. (I declined her offer to have him "prove it" or look at their snapshots.)

5694

General Software Discussion / Re: cut out middle verse and still keep pace

« Last post by 40hz on July 07, 2012, 06:50 PM »

If you can't get a clean cut point you could always try splitting the track into two before and after the word sunshine, then overlap the two tracks on the word sunshine, and then see if you can do a smooth crossfade between the two tracks. It's not as precise as a cut and splice. But it's what many producers do when they need to chop something out of a song. Done right (source material permitting) a crossfade can mask a splice point very effectively. YMMV.

Luck!

Addendum:

For a list of 25 free audio mixing apps look here.

I've personally used Audacity, Ardour, Jokosher, and Wavosaur.

Of the bunch I liked Ardour and Wavosaur the most. But the other two were also very good programs. Why not try a half dozen and see which one you like best?

5695

Living Room / Re: Help me design my next Tattoo!

« Last post by 40hz on July 07, 2012, 06:40 PM »

Thats actually freaking hillarious! haha.

-Stephen66515 (July 07, 2012, 04:35 PM)

@Stephen - Thanks for taking it in the spirit it was intended.   I hesitated before putting that together. But then I remembered every "tat freak" I ever met had this terrific sense of humor about their passion so I figured you'd be cool with it.
 

5696

Living Room / Re: O Fortuna Misheard Lyrics

« Last post by 40hz on July 07, 2012, 02:26 PM »

   

That's a prize Mondegreen!

-rjbull (July 07, 2012, 02:13 PM)

@rj - Thanks for that link!    Adding mondegreen to my vocabulary. 

5697

Living Room / Re: Help me design my next Tattoo!

« Last post by 40hz on July 07, 2012, 02:23 PM »

Ink addict huh? Ok...just in case you're ever short on sufficient contiguous space:

Spoiler

 

5698

Living Room / Re: Do we need other programs?

« Last post by 40hz on July 07, 2012, 01:58 PM »

Many of the most popular programs out there were originally written by somebody for their own personal use and only later turned into a public release at the suggestion of friends.

As long as somebody has an itch to scratch there will always be new programs written.

So do we need all these new programs? Well...as far as at least one person is concerned, I think the answer would have to be: yes.

And if that one person is a coder, a majority of one easily wins the vote.

5699

Living Room / Re: O Fortuna Misheard Lyrics

« Last post by 40hz on July 07, 2012, 01:46 PM »

Utterly twisted. (I want more!)  

Put that right up there with the time I heard a "rock band"consisting of 12-year old girls sing Purple Haze at a Girl Scout talent show and end the first verse with: S'cuze me while I kiss this guy! (Note: I've since been told something like 25% of the people polled think that is the actual line in the song. I guess somebody's mother taught them the wrong words. )

Priceless! There wasn't a dry seat in the house after that innocent mistake.

5700

General Software Discussion / Re: Mozilla to "stop innovation" on Thunderbird

« Last post by 40hz on July 06, 2012, 10:02 PM »

Whatever happened to the "release when it's ready" philosophy that was the trademark of FOSS development?

-40hz (July 06, 2012, 06:33 PM)

When commercial software of the same genre is also free, they find that they suddenly have *real* competition. This has forced them to be much more aggressive in their development cycles, at least IMHO.

-db90h (July 06, 2012, 08:41 PM)

Nothing is forcing them to do anything unless the goal has shifted from making "best in class" software to figuring out a way to for some parties in said FOSS software project to "monetize" portions of it for certain individuals within the project.

Therein lies the problem with the FOSS philosophy once a popular project reaches a certain level of maturity. Some key players suddenly decide to take the codebase - along with all the freely submitted contributions from unpaid volunteers - and sell it for large sums of money. MySQL is one example of that.

Because FOSS is dependent on altruism, and mostly run on the "honor system," such moves have a deleterious effect on the entire FOSS ecosystem. Because it erodes the implied social contract that most people who participate in FOSS projects believe is the rule of the realm.

And all it takes is one person 'cheating' (in fact or appearance) to bring the whole FOSS 'understanding' into question.

Like Cyndie Lauper said: Money changes everything.

more

She said I'm sorry baby I'm leaving you tonight
I found someone new he's waitin' in the car outside
Ah honey how could you do it
We swore each other everlasting love
She said well yeah I know but when
We did - there was one thing we weren't
Really thinking of and that's money

Money changes everything
Money, money changes everything
We think we know what we're doin'
That don't mean a thing
It's all in the past now
Money changes everything

They shake your hand and they smile
And they buy you a drink
They say we'll be your friends
We'll stick with you till the end
Ah but everybody's only
Looking out for themselves
And you say well who can you trust
I'll tell you it's just
Nobody else's money

Money changes everything
Money changes everything
We think we know what we're doin'
We don't pull the strings
It's all in the past now
Money changes everything