Maybe Microsoft is just resetting the clock back 20-something years to when an earlier DOS-based version of Windows was found to be copying the Mac UI. Apple has already started apeing the iOS interface on its heavier computers, and maybe someone at Microsoft thinks that's a neat idea. Personally, I think it's butt-fucking-ugly, but I'm not part of their market, so I doubt if my opinion counts for much.

Your intemperate ramble misses the point. Sure, there are lots of reasons not to buy this product (and I won't), but if people just lie down and say nothing about this UEFI lockout, you can bet your ass MS will use its leverage to force it on other products later on. Remember that Martin Niemöller quotation...

All Android devices do run a Linux kernel.

And no sale.

And whose loss is that?

Exactly. Either way, I never want to have to crawl and say "pretty please" to anybody whenever I recompile a kernel.

I am becoming very tired of this often-repeated notion that Ubuntu seems to be synonymous with Linux. It is just one (admittedly currently popular) distro among many, but I have been around for long enough to have seen several such stars wane.

While I'm very happy for anyone who finds that distribution satisfying, my own impression on the several occasions I have been tempted to install it is that I become just as cranky and irritable as I do when stuck with a Windows system. I inevitably end up spitting the dummy after a few hours and going back to a more congenial distribution.

FWIW, I use Arch on my laptop, while my less-frequently used desktop machine gets Slackware. I still really prefer the latter, but enjoy being able to conveniently work with bleeding-edge versions of applications, accepting that that means a risk of things getting broken from time to time. With Slackware, nothing ever breaks (unless I break it), and it is so simple, I never forget my way around it.

And I read somewhere that "Samsung" translates as "Three Star". Go figure.

Really? OK, you're right. Samsung should make their phones bright pink. And patent that.

Seriously, though, how different does Samsung's phone need to be to not infringe on a totally and stupidly obvious patent? Maybe shape it like a pretzel?

I now boycott LG because their hardware (and embedded software, where applicable) are total shit. Their products are quite competitive (in Australia, at least) price-wise, which is why I have/had a number of their devices, but no more, thank you.

Anyway, who says lawyers don't produce anything useful? One can always use hot air to float a balloon, and bullshit is useful for growing vegetables.

If wifi internet service is going to cost the airline and/or passengers money, I would much prefer those funds were used to budget for increased legroom in those so-called "seats". I am not tall by current Western standards (5' 7") or even fat, but flying is sufficiently unpleasant for me to avoid it whenever possible.

Even terrorists need to be entertained, I suppose.

But seriously, though, does it really hurt so much to unplug from the internet for a while (and yes, I am used to long-haul flights, with all-too-common trips between the UK and Australia) and catch up on sleep, listen to music or read a book?

That's an interesting question, since Chehab appears to have been with RedHat for well over 4 years (also bearing in mind that RedHat has a prominent profile as an "enterprise" vendor) in a senior role and seems to be pretty well qualified. While it does appear that he fucked up big-time in making over-hasty commits, breaking userspace apps, then attempting to shift the blame, I can't help feeling a bit sorry for him.

Someone with his skills should have seen the red flags and quarantined the broken code before it ever came to this performance. If he was having a bad hair day (and with no real offence intended, Linus should also be used to those), this could just be a salutary reminder that even the best of systems programmers are only human.

Given that the guy is on a RedHat email address, it might be safe to assume he isn't in Linus' employment. However, he probably has a boss of his own who may have his own input to deliver.

Well, we'll never know, because nobody ever sees Microsoft internal correspondence or their source code. Sure, Linus was maybe just slightly rude, but kernel maintenance and development requires sticking to certain standards, and it looks like he had it coming.