Re: [tlug] What, no Perl programmers around here? ;-)

["Josh Glover" <jmglov@example.com>]

On 27/08/06, Lyle H Saxon <llletters@example.com> wrote:

> On 8/27/06, Josh Glover <jmglov@example.com> wrote:
>
> > As he described it, Ubuntu's primary focus is to create a free alternative
> >  to Windows for people in low-income situations.
>
> The initial consideration was bringing computing to the vast numbers of people
> in the world who are shut out due to Microsoft's horrible overpricing and illegal
> overwriting of their licenses.

I think we have both said pretty much the same thing here. The only
reason that I included the phrase "competing on price" was to point
out that Ubuntu is not necessarily designed to be more user-friendly
than Windows.

> (Now a certain professor resident in Japan here will come riding to the defense
> of the indefensible... I wonder why he does that?)

Well, let's see if he feels like feeling trolls today--why do you do that.

Every time Steve has discussed Microsoft, he has done so from the
position of an economist. Frankly, people like you and me are not
really qualified to throw words like "monopoly" around (the last time
I did so, about IBM, Steve loaned me an excellent book[1] that showed
me that I was completely and totally mistaken), and I imagine
sometimes it is more than Steve can take to see the technical terms of
his field of expertise abused so. Kind of like if someone on this list
went on and on about recursion or finite state machines, but clearly
did not know what he was talking about, a few of us here with computer
science degrees would probably set him straight.

But really, Lyle, no need to say things like "a certain professor
resident in Japan here will come riding to the defense of the
indefensible". What does that accomplish, other than making you sound
slightly petty? I don't mean this in an offensive way, I just want you
to think about it.

-Josh