__/ [ The Ghost In The Machine ] on Wednesday 13 December 2006 03:29 \__
> In comp.os.linux.advocacy, Roy Schestowitz
> <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> wrote
> on Wed, 13 Dec 2006 02:38:51 +0000
> <1380625.0QuDWRUTh7@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>:
>> __/ [ The Ghost In The Machine ] on Tuesday 12 December 2006 17:25 \__
>>
>>> In comp.os.linux.advocacy, Roy Schestowitz
>>> <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>>> wrote
>>> on Tue, 12 Dec 2006 13:53:27 +0000
>>> <2008412.X9yrRebjtZ@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>:
>>>> __/ [ High Plains Thumper ] on Tuesday 12 December 2006 12:46 \__
>>>>
>>>>> Roy Schestowitz wrote:
>>>>>> alt on Tuesday
>>>>>>> Roy Schestowitz wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Dell OptiPlex GX260 SFF P4 2.4GHz 256MB 40GB No Operating System
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>
http://www.hcditrading.com/Shop/Control/Product/fp/vpid/2375435/vpcsid/0/
>>>>>>>> SFV/29664/order/asc/order_by/sell_price
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> It used to be $199 for a similar machine. Yet again, this makes one
>>>>>>>> wonder about the disproportionate cost of Microsoft software and the
>>>>>>>> cost of hardware.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I didn't read the article, but based on your description, adding a
>>>>>>> little bit more ram would make this a really great box.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> At home, I use KDE 3.4 with 256 MB of RAM and a 2.2 GHz processor.
>>>>>> Works like a charm.
>>>>>
>>>>> I now have a 2.93 GHz Celeron with 1 GB RAM, ATI Radeon 9500 with 256
>>>>> MB RAM, SoundBlaster Audigy card for Windows XP gaming. Works like a
>>>>> charm. :-)
>>>>>
>>>>> Now it boots up smoothly and quickly.
>>>>>
>>>>> My 1.7 GHz Celeron with 512 MB RAM, nVidia MX440 video with 128 MB RAM,
>>>>> SoundBlaster 16 card took a while for disk to grind before completing
>>>>> boot and login. SuSE 10.1 Open and Debian was quicker.
>>>>>
>>>>> It goes to show the differences in comparison. Symantec Antivirus and
>>>>> personal firewall added to the overhead.
>>>>>
>>>>> Should I give a benchmark comparison between XP and Debian 2.6 kernel
>>>>> on those systems, or would I be violating an EULA with the benchmark?
>>>>> :-)
>>>>
>>>> Take your box to Germany then.
>>>>
>>>> Just don't bring back any Cuban cigars.
>>>>
>>>
>>> Why would there be Cuban cigars in Germany...?
>>>
>>> Oh, never mind, my brain hurts too much.
>>
>>
>> *LOL* I think you should see a doctor. It seems like a pattern.
>
> Naw. I know the cause; I pay too much attention to stuff like that. :-)
A colleague of mine says that a lot ("my brain hurts").
>>> :-)
>>>
>>> In any event, I have a 1.4 GHz Athlon with 512 MB RAM
>>> and an old nVidia card (I don't know what variety offhand
>>> but it's RV250-based). The sound system could be better
>>> and I and nVidia have differences, but overall it works
>>> very well.
>>
>>
>> I can attest to the same experience. With Linux I get a desktop that's
>> ahead of our times (assuming Windows as a status quo) and it specked as
>> though we live 4-5 years behind. Some strong machines are simply being
>> build for unnecessarily greedy code.
^
"built", "it's specked"... I should stop proofreading after posting.
> An interesting way of putting it. Admittedly, I don't know
> whether we'd be arguing about (say) The Amiga Aristocracy
> or The MacOS Monarchy or The Atari Amalgamation or
> even DEC/Digital Domination, had things gone slightly
> differently.
>
> Microsoft might be aggressive, but they weren't the only
> ones, once upon a time. Of course that was a long time ago.
They eliminated competition by ignoring all the fundamental rules of the
capitalist game. Inconvenient, but true.
Jury Hears Microsoft Competition Suit
,----[ Quote ]
| A judge on Friday told jurors they must accept as fact that a
| federal court found in 1999 that Microsoft holds a monopoly over
| computer operating systems and that it restricted computer
| manufacturers' ability to use competing systems.
|
| [...]
|
| She said she'll show that the company used its monopoly power
| to exclude competition and control prices and that it conspired with
| other companies to restrain trade, maintaining what she called a
| chokehold on software competitors and computer manufacturers.
|
| "It isn't illegal to be successful," Conlin said in opening
| remarks. "We applaud that. ... But you can't freeze out competitors
| and punish and retaliate against people who cooperate with
| competitors. Microsoft did all that and more."
|
| Conlin warned jurors that she would say some unflattering things
| about Microsoft and its billionaire founder Bill Gates, who
| serves as company chairman.
|
| [...]
|
| Conlin's first 3 1/2 hours of opening arguments delved deeply into
| computer industry history and how Microsoft fought off competitors
| attempting to design rival software.
`----
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/061201/microsoft_trial.html?.v=1
Quote:
--------------------
Today in Iowa, attorneys have once again taken Microsoft (nasdaq: MSFT
- news - people ) to court over anti-trust charges associated with
its Windows operating system. In addition to the age-old complaints
about squeezing out competitors and price-fixing, there is a twist:
This case alleges that by bolting together Windows and Internet
Explorer, Microsoft produced software that gummed up people's
computers....
The opening statement by Iowa attorney Roxanne Barton Conlin is
expected to last three to four days. She plans to show the entire
10-hour deposition given by Gates in 1998 to attorneys for the U.S.
Department of Justice....
One minor victory for Microsoft: Gates and Ballmer need only make one
trip to Iowa and so will answer questions from both the prosecution and
defense on the same day--potentially disrupting the "flow" of the
plaintiff's case.
Complaints about lack of choice and high prices have been the theme
song of most of the legal complaints against Microsoft. The Iowa case
also alleges that Microsoft's software caused "drained memory,
decreased speed and an increased incidence of security breaches and
bugs" in its customers' computers....
The plaintiff lawyers contend that Iowan customers of Microsoft are
entitled to as much as $329 million in damages as compensation for
Microsoft overcharges between May 1994 and June 2006. The lawyers are
also seeking compensation for the time people have had to spend
repairing security breaches--a figure that they put at a minimum of $50
million. "The illegal bolting of Internet Explore to the Windows
operating system created a larger 'attack surface'" and made the
operating system more vulnerable, asserts Richard Hagstrom, co-lead
counsel for the plaintiffs. "The damages are based on what people
need to do to protect themselves from security breaches."
-------------------
http://www.forbes.com/2006/11/30/vista-lawsuit-microsoft-tech-cz_ec_1130microsoft.html?partner=yahootix
Comes v. MS Antitrust Trial Begins in Iowa
,----[ Quote ]
| Here's part of what Allchin said about how to deal with the competitive
| threat from Novell then:
|
| "We need to slaughter Novell before they get stronger....If you're
| going to kill someone, there isn't much reason to get all worked up
| about it and angry. You just pull the trigger. Any discussions
| beforehand are a waste of time. We need to smile at Novell while
| we pull the trigger."
|
| [...]
|
| Conlin used a variety of computer-generated illustrations,
| including one that showed 15 icons, each representing what she
| said was an illegal action taken by Microsoft in pursuit of its
| bid to become and remain a monopoly. The icons had titles like
| "exclusionary contract," "technical sabotage," "buying out the
| competition," "espionage," and "deception and misinformation."
`----
http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=2006120516224886
--
~~ Kind greetings and happy holidays!
Roy S. Schestowitz | FreeBSD - sidling with a little devil
http://Schestowitz.com | RHAT GNU/Linux ¦ PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
5:00am up 55 days 15:14, 8 users, load average: 0.49, 0.72, 0.88
http://iuron.com - help build a non-profit search engine
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