Comment What Key Instead of CapsLock? (Score 1) 586
Control instead of CapsLock? And just when most people have gotten used to the current placement. :-) Then does CapsLock get demoted to Fn-(Right)Shift?
Submission + - Migrating to a Freer Country? 2
puroresu writes: I currently reside in the UK. In recent years I've seen privacy, free expression and civil liberties steadily eroded, and I can't see anything changing for the better any time soon. With people being banned from the UK for expressing (admittedly reprehensible) opinions, the continuing efforts to implement mandatory ID cards and the prospect of a Conservative government in the near future, I'm seriously considering migrating to a less restrictive country.
Which countries would Slashdotters recommend in terms of freedom and privacy? Distance is not an issue, however a reasonable level of stability and provision of public services would be a bonus.
Which countries would Slashdotters recommend in terms of freedom and privacy? Distance is not an issue, however a reasonable level of stability and provision of public services would be a bonus.
Comment Re:I wonder if he's not thinking about scaling eno (Score 1) 370
Facebook uses PHP, and yes you can, on both z/OS and Linux. Probably on z/TPF, too. And Facebook wouldn't be the first Internet company to buy a mainframe.
Submission + - WSJ: Microsoft Says IBM is Anticompetitive
BBCWatcher writes: Microsoft has long claimed that the mainframe is dead, slain by the company's Windows monopoly. Yet, apparently without any mirror nearby, Microsoft is now complaining through the Microsoft-funded Computer & Communications Industry Association that not only are mainframes not dead, but IBM is so anticompetitive that governments should intervene in the hyper-competitive server market. The Wall Street Journal reports that Microsoft is worried that the trend toward cloud computing is introducing competition to the Windows franchise, favoring better positioned companies including IBM and Cisco. HP now talks about almost nothing but the IBM mainframe, with no Tukwila CPUs to sell until 2010. The global recession is encouraging more mainframe adoption as businesses slash IT costs, dominated by labor costs, and improve business execution. In 2008, IBM mainframe revenues rose 12.5% even whilst mainframe prices fell. (IBM shipped 25% more mainframe capacity than in 2007. Other server sales reports are not so good.) IBM mainframes can run multiple operating systems concurrently including Linux and, more recently, OpenSolaris.
Submission + - Breakthru Allows Calculations on Encrypted Data 2
BBCWatcher writes: Can data be encrypted in a way that allows any calculation to be performed on the scrambled information without unscrambling it? It's a simple concept that sounds impossible, but if it were possible businesses and individuals could then protect their secrets yet still perform Web searches, medical studies, financial risk assessments, and many other tasks. Computer scientists call this idea "fully homomorphic encryption," and it was first envisioned 30 years ago by Ronald Rivest, one of RSA's coinventors. Rivest and two coauthors thought it was probably impossible. However, Craig Gentry at IBM Research recently discovered a solution, although at present the solution requires too much computing horsepower for common adoption. Nonetheless, Rivest now predicts the remaining engineering problems will be solved, yielding fully homomorphic encryption products and services. Crypto experts believe this breakthrough will make encryption much more convenient and more widespread.
Submission + - NY Times: Sun Kills Rock CPU
BBCWatcher writes: Despite Oracle CEO Larry Ellison's recent statement that his company will continue Sun's hardware business, it won't be with Sun processors (and associated engineering jobs). The New York Times reports that Sun has canceled its long-delayed Rock processor, the next generation SPARC CPU. Instead, the Times says Sun/Oracle will have to rely on Fujitsu for SPARCs (and Intel otherwise). Unfortunately Fujitsu is decreasing its R&D budget and unprofitable at present. Sun's cancellation of Rock comes just after Intel announced yet another delay for Tukwila, the next generation Itanium, now pushed to 2010. HP is the sole major Itanium vendor. Primary beneficiaries of this CPU turmoil: IBM and Intel's Nehalem X86 CPU business.
Comment Wireless Internet in Mount Pleasant (Score 1) 699
Wireless Internet service is available in Mount Pleasant, Michigan -- at least in certain areas. CMS Internet offers wireless starting at $29.95 per month. WMS Wireless is another possible option, but their price is higher. Another company called ISP Management offers wireless Internet as well, but their rates are not published online.
Submission + - Intel Delays Tukwila (Itanium)...Again
BBCWatcher writes: Intel is putting on the bravest possible face as the company announces yet another delay shipping Tukwila, the long promised next iteration of Itanium. Tukwila-rebooted — improved (promise!) over the Tukwila that never shipped — will not ship until 2010, even as Intel's own Nehalem EX CPUs likely beat Tukwila to market. The delays hurt HP, the sole remaining major Itanium OEM, the most. IBM and Oracle/Sun will benefit the most. Analysts continued to savage Itanium. A sample: "That's not to say that those shops which are using the Itanium aren't in their right mind. Heck, that'd be like saying that people still using IBM's OS/2 weren't in their right mind, or people still running CP/M on Apricots. No, they're all in their right minds — they're just living in a parallel universe where these products somehow still matter."
Comment Book Metaphor? (Score 2, Insightful) 554
I think the correct metaphor for organizing a large number of (Web) pages is a book. A book can have hundreds or even thousands of pages, referenced by page number at least. The pages can be organized into sections, chapters, and subsections, all of which are listed in a hierarchical table of contents. The pages can also be indexed according to key words and topics. And there's a level of abstraction above a book if needed: a bookshelf. In terms of user interface design, all of these bookish elements have been implemented pretty well in other contexts. Coverflow-style page flipping would probably be one navigation option, for example.
Comment Follow Apple's Lead Already! (Score 1) 1365
Why are Ubuntu and other Linux desktop distributions trying to work on *every* PC? It's a mess! (It is for Windows, too. It's just somewhat hidden because of the death grip between arbitrary PC vendors and the preloaded Microsoft software.) I think Ubuntu needs to take a step back here. How about if Ubuntu simply follows Apple's lead, designing and selling their own PCs? Sell Ubuntu primarily as a vertically integrated, preloaded machine stack, along with a selection of optional certified compatible peripherals available for purchase. If people also want Windows, then let them use VMware, VirtualBox, etc. (Just like Apple again.) Yes, provide the Ubuntu software for download, too -- that's basically a GPL requirement anyway -- but concentrate on at least getting Ubuntu 100% correct on Ubuntu-branded hardware. Or, in a slight variation, Ubuntu could sell Ubuntu-branded PCs based on a periodically revised "Ubuntu Reference Platform." That way other manufacturers could build URP machines if they wish, or perhaps in different physical form factors. Most likely every URP component would be dual sourced, to prevent any monopolistic tendencies among component suppliers.
Submission + - After 53 Years at IBM, Engineer Dies
BBCWatcher writes: Mainframers are still catching up to the sad news that Vern Watts, the "Father of IMS," died suddenly. He was 77. Vern "retired" from IBM in 2004, but he still worked at IBM two days per week (and three days per week at ScaleDB) up until his death. Incredibly that's over 53 years of continuous IBM service. His famous child, IMS, is now entering its 11th major version. IMS's Chief Architect got it right: IMS gracefully evolved from a 1960s Saturn V rocket parts inventory system into a globally popular, extreme performance, zero downtime transaction manager and database with XML, SOAP, Java programming, and JDBC support, among other modern features, while retaining backward compatibility. IMS is reportedly IBM's highest revenue software product (and growing). What have you done with your life?
Comment Did the Bush Administration Get a Court Order? (Score 1) 165
So AT&T now respects the need for court orders before they cut off service. Good to hear. It sure would have been nice if the company stood up for the rule of law when the Bush Administration decided it didn't need a court order to wiretap.
Comment Re:Easy answer (Score 1) 422
Yeah, I did forget we were talking about the Z-series here. I do know that they use the Power architecture and no, I am no an expert.
No, they don't use Power architecture. They use z/Architecture. System z machines are not POWER machines, and the CPUs are quite different, with different instruction sets. IBM's POWER-based servers can run AIX while System z cannot. System z can run z/OS, z/VSE, z/TPF, and z/VM operating systems while POWER-based servers cannot.
Comment Re:Why not VMware? (Score 1) 422
I believe that System Z comes with on-site support...
Actually, every IBM mainframe has "Call Home" built in. (And almost everybody keeps it turned on.) The machine automatically rings up IBM if any service part is required, and IBM rings back (to a human) to schedule a convenient service time (for the humans -- the machine keeps chugging while the repair takes place, particularly on the System z10 EC but also almost always on the System z10 BC). Repairs are seldom needed, though. Every few decades on average. This Call Home functionality is entirely within the hardware and requires nothing whatsoever from the operating system.
Comment Re:Reliability. (Score 1) 422
But in my recollection, when you run Linux on a mainframe you actually run it on special processor modules based on IBM Power chips
No, you run it on System z processors which are based on... System z processors. You might be confusing an IFL (Integrated Facility for Linux) with a CP (general purpose processor). On an IBM mainframe you can run Linux on either type of processor, but they are the same hardware. The IFL simply has special microcode loaded which disables one instruction (that Linux doesn't need but other operating systems do), so it only runs Linux (and z/VM, the hypervisor). But IFLs are certainly not POWER processors.
