worms worms worms

[Alma J Wetzker]

> Collins Richey <erichey2 at comcast.net> Sat, 16 Aug 2003 19:18:15 -0600
> On Sat, 16 Aug 2003 19:42:26 -0500
> Alma J Wetzker <almaw at ieee.org> wrote:
> 
> [ other stuff snipped - see the thread for details ]
> 
> 
> 
>>I agree with the sentiment but the reality is much harsher.  Most
>>linux apps just aren't up to their windoze counterparts.  This is
>>especially true for personal productivity apps.  The server stuff is
>>much closer.
>>
> 
> 
> It would help to know exactly what you mean by "personal productivity
> apps".
> 
There are still functions that I need for school reports that I have not 
found in Koffice or Open Office.  Adobe Photoshop can be simulated but 
it is a kludge.  I can't find anything like a recent or complete version 
of spice.  My version of xine tends to pause every once in a while.  Is 
there a quickbooks like app that is well supported?

Personal productivity apps, to me, are the horizontal apps that any 
business person would use for documents to spreadsheets all the way to 
the business/department specific functions that users would run in the 
course of a typical week ON THEIR PERSONAL MACHINE.
> 
> 
> 
> All of this is true, but companies have to deal with the (negative)
> business payoff of loosing business productivity and/or data every time
> a script kiddo comes up with a new worm.  There is a also big business
> payoff in terms of licensing fees.  
>
every executive I have ever met will spit nails about downtime and the 
cost to the company until you tell them how much it will cost to fix it. 
  Then the executive goes away, until next time.

> 
>>The only true option to pursue for linux desktop adoption is to
>>continue interoperability plans with the M$ network du jour (com, 
>>dcom, .net...) and start building functionality into linux friendly 
>>architectures.  It requires long term thinking and a dedication to the
>>strategy.  It also requires better personal productivity apps.
>>
> 
> One thing that would help (I've mentioned this frequently) would be for
> the major open source support products (glibc, gcc, and the desktop
> products like kde and gnome, perhaps even the kernel) to stop the
> practice of changing the interfaces and releasing non-compatible new
> versions every couple of years.
>
even Microsoft has been cured of this churn of API's and standards (I 
know they do have relapses but they are learning to kick the habit.)

> There is a dearth of long term thinking in the business world.  How to
> cook the books for the current quarter is about as long term as it gets.

<Bingo!>

     -- Alma