Yesterday on the news they had said that many people were calling it ‘vi day’ – the emacs people were of course pretty pissed off about this…
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Month: April 2003
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Megan had a Baby
In other news, Megan had her baby on Monday. It’s a girl!
Rasterboy Enterprises congratulates the Morrone family on the new addition.
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MS-Free or MS-Free?
Windows key leak threatens mass piracy: Oh sure, on the surface this looks like a bad thing for Microsoft, but put on your conspiracy hats and get ready for a ride!
Microsoft wants to sell software. And they will sell software. As long as Windows is running on a lot of computers, they will sell a lot of software.
They want to sell this software to get money. That’s simple, right? Right. Now, to use the old ‘razor blade’ argument, can we see that Microsoft can make money even if someone gets a free copy of Windows? Sure they can, they can sell you Microsoft Office, or Visio, or Project, or Publisher, or some games, and in doing so, they are selling software. Give away the razors, sell the blades. You can get a cell phone for free nowadays – with activation and a service contract – they’ll find some way to get the money they need.
So, let’s say that you can purchase a copy of Windows, or you can get an illegal copy – if you buy it, Microsoft gets your money, and you get the product. If you get an illegal copy, Microsoft does not directly get your money, but you do get the product. When you buy a new PC doesn’t Microsoft get a cut of that money? (I think they still do.) And by insuring that some people will get ‘free’ copies of Windows, they are ensuring that people will use it, and it will continue to be a dominant operating system.
Personally I’d like to see Microsoft crack down on any illegal copies, and add even more protection (return of the dongle?) so that installing and using Windows becomes so much of a hassle, no one in their right mind would do it. (Some would argue that you’d have to be out of your mind to use Windows anyway…)
Ok, that’s it. I’m done.
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Caminotaur, Phoenotaur?
I was thinking… perhaps the Camino browser and the Minotaur email/newsreader could be combined into one huge suite of applications – a web browser, email app, newsreader extravaganza called Caminotaur!
What about merging Phoenix and Minotaur to create Phoenotaur?
No good? What about Phomino? A combination of Phoenix and Camino. Two browsers in one!
Minix? Phoeno? Chiminox? Mozninotaurix? Netninocamixscape?
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My Kingdom for a Torx 8!
When repairing a PowerBook G3 (Wallstreet) you’ll need two Torx screwdrivers, a size 8 and a size 6. If you’re lucky, you’ll find these at your local hardware store. If you’re unlucky – or cheap – this might be more difficult.
I managed to get the Torx 6 at the local hardware store, no problem. They also had a Torx 8 bit, with the security hole in it, which makes it cost more, and allows you to remove Torx screws of the size 8 variety with a small pin in the hole on the top. Yeah, so anyway, I bought that one. The bit worked OK until I had to remove some screws that are way inside, that require you use a Torx 8 with long skinny shaft – which means the damn bit would not fit. This halted repairs a bit.
So I happen to be at Home Depot, they have a Torx set but it’s $20, which for someone who is cheap, is quite the deterrent. I ended up calling another hardware store, they had nothing, I then called Radio Shack, and they did have a tool with fold out Torx bits, but they said it was $16, and it sounded cheap and I wasn’t sure it would work, plus I figured if I was gonna spend that much I’d spend $20 for a nice set.
So at this point I continue to hope I’ll find a single Torx 8 screwdriver, and if I don’t I’ll end up spending $20 for the nice set, even though I’ve already spent $7 for the bit and the Torx 6.
This demonstrate the frustration of everyday life I must endure…
(I’ll leave it up to you to determine if that last statement was sarcasm or not…)