MHz, kWh, A/C...
Thank you. The call us at best, WordNerds, at worst, assholes, but someone has to try and keep the collective Us from completely losing all grammar and punctuation. Bad enough we've all but lost the ability to find the Shift Key.
Posts by Fred Tourette
46 publicly visible posts • joined 5 May 2008
Drone 'swarm' buzzed off FBI surveillance bods, says tech bloke
How life started on Earth: Sulfur dioxide builds up, volcanoes blow, job done – boffins
Windows 10 to force you to use Edge, even if it isn't default browser
Monday 19th March 2018 16:02 GMT
Re: Fucking idiots
...this still won't usher in the era of desktop Linux....
No, and I long ago gave up crusading for same; I'll be happy if there are enough of us Linux desktop users to at least keep it relevant. But as a Linux desktop user - quite a few years now in personal life, albeit work keeps me in Win7 - it is pieces like this that make me smile. We penguinheads may never conquer the universe, but it's still a nice little smug corner of it in which we reside, not only shrugging off most (not all) of the malware that's floating around, but also shrugging off Microsoft (and Apple) making decisions for us whether we like/want them or not.
No Windows 10, no Office 2019, says Microsoft
Friday 2nd February 2018 17:09 GMT
MS Games
A handful of us - Penguinheads, Open/LibreOffice users, G-Suite fans, etc. - have been more-or-less saying this since, well, virtually forever. And we're right. Unfortunately, truckloads of people who are sold and use MSEverything make our pleas all but unheard. Might as well try to sell Trump on climate change being real and that we can slow it down.
While we can damn (not dam) the mainstream for its following the path of least resistance and taking the road more traveled, in the end, we just feel superior to them and they are oblivious to it.
Once upon a time, I was wailing along with the NO HTML! email crowd - HUGE FILES! SECURITY RISK! - but when myself and about six other people were still clinging to plain text, I finally caved and allowed my own self all those nice text styles and formatting.
Not every battle goes the way we want it to.
Zombie … in SPAAACE: Amateur gets chatty with 'dead' satellite
UK competition watchdog: Fox's takeover of Sky 'not in public interest'
Samsung to let proper Linux distros run on Galaxy smartmobes
Dot-Amazon spat latest: Brazil tells ICANN to go fsck itself, only 'govts control the internet'
Thursday 28th September 2017 12:25 GMT 
Gone Too Far
Okay, when the Bezoses, Zuckerbergs and Gateses have enough power to create TLDs in their companys' names - amazon.com ain't good enough?! - too much power and influence is in the hands of these tech titans, who in time will make the finance crooks look like amateurs.
And the namespace is already a mess without this additional insanity. It went off the rails with the creation of .biz and all its siblings.
Criticize Google, get fired: Spotlight spins on ad giant's use of soft money
DJI drones: 'Cyber vulnerabilities' prompt blanket US Army ban
Browser trust test: Would you let Chrome block ads? Or Firefox share and encrypt files?
Wednesday 2nd August 2017 15:12 GMT
Re: Trust Google ? Yeah, right.
Once upon a time my standard rant/retort would be along the lines of, "Google is getting to be like Microsoft, forcing the installation of This in order to run That." But these days, such behavior is more along the lines of.... Apple.
I'll stick with my Firefox/XMarks/NoScript/AdBlock/Ghostery/Box concoction. Less convenient, perhaps, but fewer eggs in the same basket. Bridges my Lin/Win life and follows me around, so works for me. Sometimes the price of convenience is just a bit too risky for me.
Microsoft drops Office 365 for biz. Now it's just Microsoft 365. Word
Monday 10th July 2017 17:42 GMT
Re: Inspire...
Couple that with some flavor of Linux and you really can get out from under the Redmond Beast. And the for moment, the current version of LibreOffice can open up an Excel workbook, fondle it, close it back up, and a gen-u-ine Excel user can open it back up without finding it mangled.
The years keep finding me with fewer and fewer reasons to boot into the Dark Side.
Russia shoves antitrust probe into Microsoft after Kaspersky gripes about Windows 10
Monday 3rd July 2017 10:44 GMT
Re: His concerns are valid
I've been trying for years with a small group of stubborn Penguinheads to make it be Linux, but so far all I have to show for it is the ability to use most websites without using Internet Exploder, er, Edge. Oh, and, LibreOffice can actually open an Excel sheet now without blowing it up. Most of the time.
But from what I've seen of Win10 - and I've seen a bit more than just looking over the shoulder of someone using it - the effort has been worth it. Man am I glad to be untethered from the Beast, save for the occasional boot into Win7 for some legacy applications that I can't easily get rid of. (Each to his own, but I find dual-booting simpler and easier than WINE.)
Monday 3rd July 2017 10:32 GMT
Re: His concerns are valid
Yes, the West Washington Redmond Beast (or non-political Gates) discovered the value of kissing ass in East Washington, but Silicon Valley is no stranger to lovin' and schmoozin' D. C. either Money still speaks the loudest in D. C., but a new breed of money is joining the ranks of those who own the country now. Bezos, Brin and Zuckerberg moved in to guest suites ages ago.
Facebook is abusive. It's time to divorce it
AT&T swallows DirecTV in $50 BEELLION biz gulp – moments after FCC OK
Facebook vows to blow EVEN HARDER
Zuckerberg asks the public to tell him where to go in 2015
Facebook's plain English data policy: WE'LL SELL YOU LIKE A PIG at a fair
Friday 14th November 2014 12:35 GMT
Re: Umm
True, in a way it is akin to any idiot today taking up smoking with all that we now know. But some consideration should be given those early and recent adopters who, um, trusted Facebook (and the, um, dripping with integrity Zuck behind it). Nobody is forced to stay (or join), but the damage is done to those who already have.
Easy for me to say, "See, I told you so," since I never took the Facebait. But that being said, I know I'm in a minority - every time someone says "You don't have Facebook?!" or "friends" that used to maintain contact via personal (or even shot-gunned) email now just do it wholesale on Facebook.
Avoiding Facebook is like avoiding Microsoft - it can be done, but not always done easily.
Microsoft's canceled 'Project Brazil' took aim at Amazon, eBay
Ubuntu for smartphones aims to replace today's mobes, laptops
World IPv6 Day fails to kill the internet
Dear Dell and Microsoft: You're not Apple
Official: Microsoft buys Skype for $8.5bn
Friday 13th May 2011 13:12 GMT
Your Words to God's Ears...
But I fear that the Beast has much up its sleeve - including massive amounts of money to throw at whatever (or whomever) it takes to survive. Also, morals and ethics have never gotten in the way of Microsoft's style of doing business.
Microsoft is too big to fail - but opposite the way that we've recently seen other companies and entities deemed to be the same. MS is too big to fail because they have too MUCH money, enough to buy their way out of just about anything.
Tuesday 10th May 2011 13:20 GMT 
Best used with Microsoft....
"Microsoft would 'continue to invest in and support Skype clients in Non-Microsoft platforms.' In other words, Mac and Linux versions of the VoIP service will still be developed by the team, but presumably the main focus will be on Windows support from here on in."
I'm guessing that's putting it quite mildly, an attempt to calm down the Mac- and Penguinheads spooling up for a storm. The reality, in time, will be quite different. This Penguinhead will be enjoying what I'm sure will be a crippled version of Skype when compared to what the Win7 kids get to play with.
Microsoft lobby will turn Google into Microsoft
2011: The year open source (really) goes capitalist
Sarah Palin calls for US to stand by North Korea
Thursday 25th November 2010 22:09 GMT
I Regret to Inform You...
"Surely there can't be that many inbred rednecks who'll vote for her?
"Please tell me there arn't."
I regret to inform you that, while they may not all qualify as "inbred rednecks," we Americans do indeed have a large number of idiots that will never see this woman for the imbecile that she is. Unfortunately, a very clever and dangerous imbecile.
Microsoft slings mud in VMware living room
SugarCRM sweet on Microsoft's Azure cloud
Sunday 18th July 2010 18:23 GMT 
Aw, Shyt
We've been using SugarCRM (after finally retiring that godawful Act!) in a Linux server/Windoze desktop/Firefox browser (IE prohibited) shop. A buck says a fresh new world of trouble awaits as the Beast has sunk its talons into Sugar and starts nudging it toward their usual "best used with MS..." tactics while crippling competing products.
Fuckin' Microsoft. To borrow from Visa, it's everywhere I *don't* want it to be.
Google sets sights on the dashboard
Thursday 13th May 2010 12:54 GMT
This Could Get Me Back
Ford lost the potential of ever getting me as a customer once they got into bed with Microsoft, but GM lost me as a long-term customer thanks to the recent shyte they've been bullding. Between things looking up in terms of quality at GM, plus their (maybe) choosing Google over the Beast, I may look at the brand again.
Ubuntu's Lucid Lynx: A (free) Mactastic experience
Oracle charges $90 for Sun's free ODF plug-in
Wednesday 21st April 2010 15:57 GMT
The Kill Shot
For everyone who thinks this might push people *toward* OO, say Hi to the Easter Bunny and Santa for me. My money is on this greed-based decision being the shot that puts OO down for good, and anyone sitting on the fence deciding OO v. MSO will jump down and head toward Microsoft.
Thanks a lot, Larry, you fucking asshole.
Microsoft's Office Web Apps - a long way from here
Students get deep Windows 7 price break
Friday 18th September 2009 12:50 GMT 
Drug Dealers at the Playground
An A.C. writes, "Yet another student discount. Why do students get all the breaks?"
By that comment I presume you mean Office Student & Teacher Edition, etc.
Because the first hit is (almost) free. Hook 'em in school and they'e hooked for life. Not that it's a done deal - Apple tried that way back, and all the kids found out was once they left school, it was a Windows world.
When you have Microsoft's deep pockets, you can afford to give away something nobody wants, or cares that much about otherwise. It worked - in part thanks to the failure of the U. S. Department of Justice - splendidly for IE v. Netscape; the rest is history.
Renault unveils e-car foursome
Microsoft tightens open-source links with server biz
Google books deal 'bad for biz', thunders Microsoft
Wednesday 9th September 2009 12:27 GMT 
Bad For Biz
It's a shame that no one (perhaps including Google) is doing what's right overall, but merely what's good for self-interest (and shareholders).
But whenever Microsoft chimes in about unfair practices/tactics, I have to laugh. Or I would, if it were funny, and not disgusting and hypocritical.
Microsoft's web Office: No love for Chrome, Opera
Tuesday 11th August 2009 13:08 GMT
It's over, man. Let It go.
I loathe Microsoft probably more than the average Microsoft hater, and was loyal to Opera from about v. 2.x through 8.x, but there comes a time when you just have to give up. Firefox came along and, for whatever reason, found enough of a following, gained more market share in months than Opera could in years, and website developers (and even Microsoft) had to take notice and work with it or face a firestorm of complaints from users. I loved Opera, but it got futile to be one of three people taking the time to bitch at every site that wouldn't work with it, and to be (rightfully) ignored as they thought, "For less than 1% of our users we're going to spend time and money?"
Rosetta Stone rocks Google with trademark lawsuit
MS security chief becomes DHS cybersecurity boss
Netbooks: A bit popular
Monday 2nd February 2009 15:36 GMT
Notebooks?
Could the popularity of netbooks be a result of "notebooks" growing in size to the point that, if this progresses, we'll be dragging along "portables" the size of Osborne-1s? I had the pleasure of working on one of Toshiba's wide-screen, all the bells-and-whistles laptops a few days ago and can't imagine dragging that cumbersome thing around with me - in addition to whatever else I might need for the trip - and calling it "portable." The netbook is Marketing at work again: now we don't need one, we don't need two, we need three computers - plus a "smart" phone that's also heading in the wrong size direction in - our e-lives.
Boy band sings praises of Windows 7
Microsoft's IE 8 puts giant web hole on notice
Thursday 21st August 2008 12:38 GMT
Popular v. Most Used
Stolen from up there...
"[IE is] by far and away the most used browser, because it's mostly just about good enough that people use it by default.... no-one who uses another browser ever goes back by choice."
Exactly. IE is the AOL of browsers: Everyone who finally leaves AOL wonders why it took them so long to do it in the first place. So too with Internet Exploder.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
