Follow-up criticism?

So Davyd, I agree - I don't like where the Liberals are going with their Nuclear energy policy. But from what I see the ALP is no different. Will I find an equally strong condemnation of the ALP on your blog soon?

/tech/misc | 29 Apr 2007 | #

LinuxSA April 2007 - Linux Music/Audio Applications

  Hi all,

  Time for the April meeting announcement (it's next Tuesday)...

  The usual details:

   When:   7:00pm-9:30pm (doors open 6:45pm) on
           Tuesday, 17th April, 2007
   Where:  Senior Secondary Assessment Board
           of South Australia (SSABSA)
           Boardroom (1st floor)
           60 Greenhill Road
           Wayville SA
   Cost:   FREE
   Who:    Anyone and everyone.
           No pre-registration necessary.

  Presentation:

   Kevin Hremeviuc will be giving a talk on Linux Music/Audio
   Applications.  Kevin has been making computer music since 1990,
   starting on a Tandy Color Computer with a Lowrey keyboard.  Since
   1997 he has been using Linux, and these days he runs a single-boot
   Linux machine on which he will be showing us the joys of making
   electronic music with Linux.

  Finding the Venue and Parking:

   You can park either beneath or next to the SSABSA building.  If you
   are driving west along Greenhill road, you can turn left into the
   driveway if you are going slow enough to notice the sign and turn in
   time :-), or you can turn left at the next road, and left again to
   go along the street behind the building to access the carpark that
   way.

   If you try to enter the building from street level but the doors are
   locked, walk down the stairs and use the lift in the below-ground
   carpark.

  Pizza:

   After the meeting, please join us for pizza at San Giorgios (cnr.
   Frome Street and Rundle Street in the city).

  For more information:

   Email:        organisers@linuxsa.org.au
   Web Page:     http://www.linuxsa.org.au/
   Mailing List: linuxsa@linuxsa.org.au
   IRC:          #linuxsa on irc.freenode.net

/tech/LinuxSA | 13 Apr 2007 | #

Large Behomeths, Small Startups, and Open Source

So Paul Graham has come out and said that Microsoft is dead. That's a pretty big claim on a company about to get several million sheep to pay several hundred dollars each to upgrade to the latest offerings of Vista and Office. But it might not be fatal - if they have the will and are willing to use the tens of billions of dollars they have in the bank, it would be possible to change corporate culture - but it would be a monumental change. There are good signs already (and some negative ones), but it's really all small stuff.

The issue is that lumbering behomeths have trouble being agile. Innovative software doesn't get written by large companies with long-standing culture practices and heavy-weight processes; but rather by small nimble startups, where hours worked are long, and everything can be challenged. Demotivation is limited because there are no boundaries.

One particular instance where there are no boundaries (read this as disruptive technology) is of course an Open Source development model. The keys here are software freedom, distributed development, collaboration, international 24x7x365 involvement with full internationalisation.

While I have my own personal biases (blind-spots?), I think the Open-Source Software snowball is rolling down the hill, gaining momentum, and can't be stopped. Jump on board, or be overtaken.

/tech/code | 11 Apr 2007 | #

A Special Day

Christos anesti! Aléthos anesti!

/life | 08 Apr 2007 | #

Planet Linux Australia migration

Planet Linux Australia is in the progress of being migrated to a new server, so please be patient of any disruptions to service over the next couple of days.

As part of the migration, we've also upgraded the Planet aggregator software to Sam Ruby's Venus branch. And not just that, but now all of the p.l.o.a. install (code, config, artwork) is managed in bzr branches.

/tech/linux-australia | 03 Apr 2007 | #

DRM-free iTunes

Wow. According to AppleInsider, Apple and EMI have announced that DRM is a failed business model. (Press Releases). DRM free songs for USD 0.30 more. The only sticking point is that it's in AAC format - which AFAIK only Apple devices support. Nonethless, Wow.

/tech/IP | 02 Apr 2007 | #