I'm growing my hair out and I haven't shaved. The beauty, and perhaps irony, of the fact that a guy like myself is tightly involved in such a liberal industry such as mine (social responsibility, social accountability, corporate responsibility, ethical standards, anti-sweatshop activism, whatever you'd like to call it) is that appearance is completely unimportant. In the summers I walk around my office barefoot - how many people get to do that? In any case, with the possible exception of having the sides thinned out (my hair gets bushy) I think that I'm going to het it hang until I absolutely have to cut and shave. Mountain man, here I come!



Something (e:ajay) wrote as a comment in (e:paul)'s latest journal - - startled me.

The days of Windows are numbered? I'm not an IT guy, but I can't help but think that Windows will never go away. It has a ridiculously large marketshare that, IMO anyway, will take longer than 10 years to whittle away. Business applications are one thing, but home use is another problem entirely.

I would love to instigate (in a good way) some chit chat about Windows vs. Linux.

Linux has a number of hurdles to clear before it will ever be used as a replacement for Windows. Firstly, the stigma that Linux is a "geeks only" type of OS that is difficult to use has to be cleared away. If it doesn't install software, run and is as easy to use as Windows is, Linux will never catch the attention of average computer users, and I question the ability of hardcore Linux advocates to be able to see the issue from the side of the people who are not at all technically savvy. Even the most user-friendly Linux distro is going to have components that even average Windows users, who feel that they know what they are doing around a PC, are going to cause confusion. No command lines, period, under any circumstances, for any reason. Any frustration experienced, any little thing that made life easier but doesn't work exactly the same as Windows did, etc. - these are factors that will eliminate the opportunity for Linux to gain market share.

Secondly, the graphics capabilities for Linux are extremely poor - if gamers cannot play the most popular PC games through a Linux platform that gamer will *always* have a Windows partition, even if they are the most enthusiastic Linux user. Thirdly - plug and play. I find it ironic that Linuxheads refer to Windows PnP as "plug and pray." Fourthly - comfort level - this cannot be understated. Abandoning Windows for Linux is a huge step for a lot of people, and Linux has to generate enough of an appeal to encourage Windows users to take the leap. All the free software in the world isn't going to mean anything to somebody who is experiencing trouble with Linux and has an XP install disk in the other hand.

IT people that know what they are doing should be running Linux anyway... its a more secure OS and for that reason alone businesses should consider using a flavor of Linux on servers. I actually quite like Linux - for everyday use, as far as I'm concerned, its a superior product to Windows... if you know what you are doing. Linux is not ready to be mass marketed to the general public quite yet. Sure, many Linux distros have made fantastic leaps in the past 5 or 6 years and many of the problems that I'm highlighting are being worked out, but since Linux is not perfect it will not eclipse Windows and its massive market share. Nothing short of an OS that operates exactly, precisely like Windows (gaming and ease of use/installation included) and adds the appeals of free software that is 110% compatible with Microsoft products will create a wave large enough to make a dent in home usage share. Server side - IT people know what they are doing and therefore do not have much of an excuse.

If I'm wrong, and in 10 years Microsoft is out of the OS business, I'll buy steak dinners (or if you are not a meat eater, whatever you like).

Apple - never have been a particularly big fan of Apple products outside of the iPod. For years they were generally inferior to IBM clones (theres an old term for you!) and Apple's only great and consistant calling card has been the appeal from artist types, who have always been loyal to Apple. I was impressed with their latest offerings though. I am 75/25 on making a MacBook my next computing purchase... such an amazing product! For home computing purposes, if I were getting into computers now rather than 20 years ago I would strongly consider an Apple product. Without a doubt they are the innovators at the moment and their products are the slickest.

(e:imk2) - were those tickets yours or someone elses?

(e:paul) - how much testing have you had to do for multiple browsers in the past for work-related projects? If you are frustrated about that kind of thing, my brother could deluge you with stories. I can understand the frustration but ultimately if you elminate browser choices, that would be to the detriment of the site. In any case, next time you feel this frustration break out the sticky green and then proceed to log on to (e:terry)'s WoW character and delete all his gear.

Only kidding (e:terry)! Speaking of which, our 60 paladin with MC/BWL gear is rotting.

Per the Linux/Apple discussion in my previous journal - VERY intriguing idea (e:ajay), concerning the possibility of expanding into Apple clones. Steve Jobs is utterly reluctant to separate hardware and software, but seriously, OSX is a better OS than XP and if he were supremely confident about his software he would try to strike out and make deals for clones. I have to admit that it would be intriguing to see what would happen. Server side, when you look at these massive datacenters that costs hundreds of thousands if not millions, specifically the ones that are marketed on TV by the likes of HP, Dell, IBM, etc. - what OS do these usually have installed on them upon receipt? Is it relatively common if servers come with Windows pre-installed that they simply wipe the disks and start over with the OS that they want?

(e:ajay) - as per AG Gonzales. My god, a Baltimore paper that is more left wing than the Sun - bravo! I am with the wackos on this one. Habeas corpus has a 200-year established legal precedence and will likely not have its meaning changed because of clever wording. If you can suspend a right, there must be an implication that there is a right in the first place. I'm actually insulted by the suggestion, so imagine how Arlen Specter felt having been face to face with the guy.

Where the rest of the article goes horribly wrong, and of course you know I cannot let this stuff go, are in the following -

1) The Constitution does grant the executive branch broad war powers, but IMO anyway neoconservatives are reaching too far at times with respect to interpretation of law. I find the complaints by the author a tad funny considering that he likely supported the legal Twister game that morphed into Roe vs. Wade.

2) The incessant attempts at bringing non-citizens into the American legal fold are absolutely frightening, and thanks to Speaker Pelosi, who knows that such a thing would result in no less than the guillotine for Demos in '08, this will never happen.

3) The problem with guys like the one who wrote this article is that there is absolutely no understanding of the fact that military courts or tribunals meant to handle suspected terrorists' cases are NOTHING LIKE civilian courts. They aren't meant to be, they shouldn't be and they never will be.

(e:mrmike) - my friend that works at one of the local news stations is saying that at midnight tonight Fox stations will be going dark unless some sort of agreement is made. I.E. no 24, no football. Any truth to this?

California has lost 75% of its citrus crop. California also happens to grow 86% of our nations lemons.

So, in other words, If you love lemons you should be prepared to pay quite a bit more for them, or that at the lemony flavor is firmly planted in your mind so that you don't forget.

This journal entry is by far the best one I've ever posted as far as I'm concerned. Can you believe that Liz Phair is turning 40 this year?



Lord Jeebus I'm in love. This is MILF with the emphasis on "ILF!" Seriously.