From today, Microsoft will no longer issue security updates or provide support for Windows 98 and Windows ME, which could lead users to trying alternative operating systems such as Linux. Eight years after launching Windows 98, Microsoft will finally wash its hands of updating and plugging security gaps in its ageing operating system. The software giant originally planned to pull the plug in January 2004 but decided to extend support because of the increasing threat from Linux.
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Member since:2006-07-04
Member since:2005-11-05
BTW, ubuntu, knoppix, slack...latest versions..2006...you can't push switch on your cd drive and Eject your CD? Cant devels make average joe's life easier???
That is the first thing I do on a new linux install and here is how:
sudo echo "dev.cdrom.lock=0" >> /etc/sysctl.conf
sudo sysctl -p
When Microsoft ended support for windows NT, you saw a huge surge in Linux usage / buzz in IT. Why? Because samba makes for one heck of a good fileserver and it is free.
You mean I can replace my non-supported NT PDC (Primary Domain Controller) without having to move to active directory with free software? Where do I sign up? <-- My school was one of the businesses I helped do this several years ago when NT got EOL.
Currently, a good majority of businesses (large established ones) still use windows 2000. They use win2k because it is mostly secure and gets the job done from an enterprise perspective. Large businesses haven't moved to windows XP because of hardware requirements and user training. XP? Forget about it. That won't happen for sometime to come.
I see this as only good news for Linux, BSD, and open source in general.
Member since:2006-02-25
Member since:2006-01-25
Some buggy hardware (around 5-10% of drives, mostly older ones) does emit a interrupt when the eject button is pressed... Windows deals with this by not locking the drive... Most Linux distros lock the drive while its in usage and if the button is broken, you have to right click, eject. I haven't seen a drive that doesn't emit the signal in a while though.
Member since:2005-07-02
"So in summary... Google has pulled the plug on support on a protocol they've helped popularize, after years of promising interoperability, for reasons that are dubious at best, and in a way that leaves people who don't jump to the new Hangouts app unable to talk to their contacts without any feedback that their IMs aren't getting through... And they've done that with no warning to anyone. I imagine there's a bunch of people out there wondering where some of their buddies have gone, or why their messages aren't getting responses, because this isn't documented anywhere." Google really messed this up. Such a dick move.
The Tizen Greek Community has some screenshots of a very recent build of Tizen running on a Samsung GT-i8800. It looks wholly unremarkable.Joint statement to The Next Web from Microsoft and Google: "Microsoft and YouTube are working together to update the new YouTube for Windows Phone app to enable compliance with YouTube's API terms of service, including enabling ads, in the coming weeks. Microsoft will replace the existing YouTube app in Windows Phone Store with the previous version during this time." Good to know these children stopped acting like little pricks. Can we have full Google support in Windows 8 now, please?
Yahoo is acquiring Tumblr, the microblogging and social networking website, for $1.1 billion USD. Tumblr offers little revenue but lots of eyeballs if Yahoo can monetarize them. Now Yahoo is bidding for Hulu, the streaming video service. After years of ineffective responses while Google, Facebook, and others took large chunks of the online advertising market, Yahoo is fighting back. Can Yahoo reignite the momentum it had at the turn of the century? What do you think?
"Sources have described iOS 7 as 'black, white, and flat all over'. This refers to the dropping of heavy textures and the addition of several new black and white user interface elements." I couldn't be happier.
"Ilja van Sprundel, a security researcher with IOActive, has discovered a large number of issues in the way various X client libraries handle the responses they receive from servers, and has worked with X.Org's security team to analyze, confirm, and fix these issues."
"Google is facing a new antitrust probe by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission into whether the company is using its leadership in the online display-advertising market to illegally curb competition, people familiar with the matter said." Sucks to be Google today, apparently."In the midst of the major press blitz surrounding its annual I/O Conference, Google dropped some unfortunate news about its instant messaging plans. In several places around the web, the company is replacing the existing 'Talk' platform with a new one called 'Hangouts' that sharply diminishes support for the open messaging protocol known as XMPP (or sometimes informally Jabber), and also removes the option to disable the archiving of all chat communications. These changes represent a switch from open protocols to proprietary ones, and a clear step backward for many users." That's why I always say: only suckers trust companies."The wave of departures is a sign of internal struggle, but amidst all the bad news, there is a glimmer of hope. According to an anonymous HTC executive cited by WSJ, the crucial HTC One is selling 'pretty good so far'. The executive revealed that HTC sold about five million One units since launch, a performance that is deemed encouraging. However, sales have been limited by the persisting supply issues that still plague the production of the HTC One." Finally some good news for HTC. Five million units amidst supply constraints is very impressive.
"Sony gave the PS4 50% more raw shader performance, plain and simple (768 SPs @ 800MHz vs. 1152 SPs & 800MHz). Unlike last generation, you don't need to be some sort of Jedi to extract the PS4's potential here. The Xbox One and PS4 architectures are quite similar, Sony just has more hardware under the hood. Weâll have to wait and see how this hardware delta gets exposed in games over time, but the gap is definitely there. The funny thing about game consoles is that itâs usually the lowest common denominator that determines the bulk of the experience across all platforms. On the plus side, the Xbox One should enjoy better power/thermal characteristics compared to the PlayStation 4. Even compared to the Xbox 360 we should see improvement in many use cases thanks to modern power management techniques." AnandTech does its usual in-depth thing.
Member since:
2005-08-12
Dear lord. Average Joe doesn't have to mount an audio CD, nor does anyone else. Only data CDs need to be mounted, and any modern distro will automount a data CD, then ask you whether you want to look at the contents. To unmount, you right-click on the desktop icon the system has lovingly created and select Eject. Have you actually used linux in the last 5 years?
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Reply: Have you used any distro BEFORE 5 years? at least I am using linux since 1995. The MODERN distros you mentioned needs Linux Compatible hardware???
Can you install any sensible linux distro on perfectly running win 98 box(64MB ram, XFCE, Fluxbox, etc) and tell Average Joe to listen CD as soon as you insert it?? No way..
BTW, ubuntu, knoppix, slack...latest versions..2006...you can't push switch on your cd drive and Eject your CD? Cant devels make average joe's life easier???