On 4 Jul 2012, at 07:38, Mouse wrote:
> If the
Ipad keeps taking off, and the Microsoft Slate with it, then
> they will have succeeded in doing unimaginable damage to the open
> source community.
> We will tell you what apps you can and cannot
write. [...]
[...] But I have to ask...how do you think this
will do damage to
the open source community?
I didn't write what you're responding to. But my take on it is that
the death of open source envisaged there is a world in which there
aren't any computers that don't subscribe to such paradigms, and the
damage done in the short term consists of accustoming people to the
idea that it's a reasonable and long-term-viable paradigm.
It's not a viable long-term paradigm. They tried to do this with PCs (closing the
software off and rigging hard drives so it was hard to change them etc.), some companies
still try and it never works. As long as a device exists that runs an operating system it
has to be programmed. That also means it can potentially be reprogrammed (most have to be
in order to update the software). Apple's devices are no impervious (see : jailbreak)
and neither are most other people's. Ultimately, those that don't care will follow
the bubble, those that give a crap will jailbreak, re-flash etc. and use open source and
open-market apps. Also you overlooked Android, which on many devices is either easy to
'root' (i.e. jailbreak) and some manufacturers don't even restrict what you
can run on it in the first place.
It won't last (I hope).
--
Mark Benson
http://DECtec.info
Twitter: @DECtecInfo
HECnet: STAR69::MARK
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