RE: Talking with Open Source advocates from Peru..
Posted by: Doctor Digital
on October 23, 2002 10:26 PM
First, let me say excellent writing for a number of reasons. Not the least of which is to inform many citizens in this country (US) the extent to which we are blessed.
Having gone to Viet Nam, and seeing the people there who merely wanted to be left alone, I certainly support their "attitude" regarding foreign proprietary software. China, Korea, and much of IndoChina are still largely agricultural economies per capita. Their journey into the techno-age can surely be hastened by Open Source software. The best part is while it is not intended as such, it amounts to backlash against restrictive EULAs and profiteering licensing fees.
I also commend your efforts at getting another honest politician for this country. We can use all we can get.
Hopefully, the article provided one more wake up call for a number of people (the DOJ leaps to mind). MS OSes and other software are being pirated at 80 and 95 percent rates in other countries, and they claim in excess of 50 percent here. Having just recently announced they are making excellent profits and you can measure millionaires per millimeter at the Microsoft offices. Do the math. Would that not mean that the price of McSoft software is horrifically inflated? It doesn't take Calculus to figure that out. It looks like you can do it with an Abacus, right?
I founded a LUG here at my company 3 years ago to "spread the word" and increase the general understanding of Linux and Open Source. As it turns out, the programmers were already embracing and using some Open Source tools. Now, we are really heating up the issue by using Linux in a number of products. Recent developments at Sun have forced us to look at AMD/Intel architecture motherboards and Linux as a base OS for our largest and most profitable products. This change will allow us to reduce our prices to the customers. Everybody wins. Well.. not everybody nudge, nudge, wink, wink.
As I am not a programmer (but strive to be one) I cannot fully enjoy all that Open Source has to offer. Next summer I turn a half century old (in case anyone wants to send a card). This means I have seen a lot of technology develop. Nothing has been as exciting as watching (and hopefully helping) Open Source gain momentum. Java is what I an trying to learn first. Without the Java SDK and Open Source development tools, I would be hard pressed to justify the expense of a proprietary IDE/compiler to learn something that I may never use professionally.
Best wishes to Peru and Viet Nam. I would go there and work to help get them up to speed, but I can't leave until I finished paying off the second mortagage I took out to buy XP Professional just to check it out.
My heartfelt thanks to all Open source developers out there. If I hit the lottery (the odds are slim as I don't play), I will quit work here, find some really good projects, and come donate money and pizza to the cause.
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RE: Talking with Open Source advocates from Peru..
Posted by: Doctor Digital on October 23, 2002 10:26 PMHaving gone to Viet Nam, and seeing the people there who merely wanted to be left alone, I certainly support their "attitude" regarding foreign proprietary software. China, Korea, and much of IndoChina are still largely agricultural economies per capita. Their journey into the techno-age can surely be hastened by Open Source software. The best part is while it is not intended as such, it amounts to backlash against restrictive EULAs and profiteering licensing fees.
I also commend your efforts at getting another honest politician for this country. We can use all we can get.
Hopefully, the article provided one more wake up call for a number of people (the DOJ leaps to mind). MS OSes and other software are being pirated at 80 and 95 percent rates in other countries, and they claim in excess of 50 percent here. Having just recently announced they are making excellent profits and you can measure millionaires per millimeter at the Microsoft offices. Do the math. Would that not mean that the price of McSoft software is horrifically inflated? It doesn't take Calculus to figure that out. It looks like you can do it with an Abacus, right?
I founded a LUG here at my company 3 years ago to "spread the word" and increase the general understanding of Linux and Open Source. As it turns out, the programmers were already embracing and using some Open Source tools. Now, we are really heating up the issue by using Linux in a number of products. Recent developments at Sun have forced us to look at AMD/Intel architecture motherboards and Linux as a base OS for our largest and most profitable products. This change will allow us to reduce our prices to the customers. Everybody wins. Well.. not everybody nudge, nudge, wink, wink.
As I am not a programmer (but strive to be one) I cannot fully enjoy all that Open Source has to offer. Next summer I turn a half century old (in case anyone wants to send a card). This means I have seen a lot of technology develop. Nothing has been as exciting as watching (and hopefully helping) Open Source gain momentum. Java is what I an trying to learn first. Without the Java SDK and Open Source development tools, I would be hard pressed to justify the expense of a proprietary IDE/compiler to learn something that I may never use professionally.
Best wishes to Peru and Viet Nam. I would go there and work to help get them up to speed, but I can't leave until I finished paying off the second mortagage I took out to buy XP Professional just to check it out.
My heartfelt thanks to all Open source developers out there. If I hit the lottery (the odds are slim as I don't play), I will quit work here, find some really good projects, and come donate money and pizza to the cause.
Doctor Digital
for our Spanish Speaking friends
El doctor Digital
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