[ale] Linux bashed by Apple?

[Rich Faulkner]

I think the idea with "too many competing technologies" is just fine.
Do we want a monopoly?  I for one do not.  That is what Microsoft has
regarding their hold on consumer's concerning their desktop.  I for one
prefer choice and change at a developer's whim.  Why?  Innovation and
the freedom to innovate and invent.  Not all ideas will be useful and I
for one do not have to change just because a developer did.  

My machines run Ubuntu 11.04.  Why?  Because it is the last version of
Ubuntu that offers Gnome2 OOB (that I am aware of) and it suits my
needs.  I turn-off notifications on major releases of the OS and do not
do migrations just because it's April or October.  I use what I use
because it suits my needs.  No discomfort or dissatisfaction here...

The idea behind free software is that we are free to innovate and make a
better product because of it.  Take that away and we're nothing more
than another Apple or Microsoft.  YMMV but to each their own.  I for one
do find frustration in the recent convolutions of the DE market; but who
says I have to embrace their change?  I roll my own and like it that
way...so to this I say (IMHO); compete and bring new technologies to
bear in the free market of GNU/Linux.  

But then again, the desktop is on the way out...hand held and portable
devices will rule the day.  Their kind will drive the next decade and
into the cloud.  (I believe that's why Apple is suing over iPad patent
infringement and why Google may be next after Samsung - they seek to own
that market and be the next Microsoft).  Less and less importance on a
DE and more upon the UI that interfaces with cloud services.  Be it
browsers or what have you; small, thin and powerful (portables) will
rule the development scene.  This is where Linux will continue to shine
as it already has...more likely I think it that desktops (and Linux as
we use it today) will become a niche and specialized corner of the
industry for those who are developers and content creators.  

Turning "Rant" to "off"......RinL


On Wed, 2012-08-29 at 18:01 -0400, James Sumners wrote:

> The "Linux desktop" is broken. Always has been and, if nothing is done
> about it, always will be. There are too many competing technologies
> that change at a developer's whim for it to stabilize and advance the
> way end users need. Notice that Valve is porting to Steam to Ubuntu
> 12.04. They're not doing that because they just happen to like Ubuntu.
> They're specifically targeting Ubuntu so that they can provide
> specific support for a known system. Sure, it'll probably work on
> other distros, but they aren't going to support you in doing so.
> 
> Read Miguel de Icaza's followup to the article[1]. He was a core
> member of GNOME. He now uses OS X as his desktop OS. He has a little
> bit of insight as to why one is succeeding while the other isn't.
> 
> [1] -- http://tirania.org/blog/archive/2012/Aug-29.html
> 
> On Mon, Aug 27, 2012 at 11:15 PM, Cornelis van Dijk
> <cor.angela0 at gmail.com> wrote:
> > Is this old news or did I just wake up?
> >
> > http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/27/tech/web/apple-linux-desktop/index.html?hpt=hp_t3
> >
> > Cor
> 
> 


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