Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2001/12/28

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Subject: Re: [Leica] Ma Barker Meets Bill Gates
From: "Barney Quinn" <Barney.Quinn@noaa.gov>
Date: Fri, 28 Dec 2001 07:15:28 -0500
References: <3.0.2.32.20011227205104.00753628@roanoke.infi.net> <3.0.2.32.20011227222435.0134c1f0@roanoke.infi.net>

Marc,

Marc, et al;

Think what you will about Bill Gates. If he's one of your personal heros, then
I say, "great." But, let's give credit where credit is due. The notion of
"mouse, desktop, and icon" computing - a Graphical User Interface in short -
was developed by Xerox in the fifties, who somehow never managed to make their
work a market reality, though they tried. Neither Apple nor Microsoft developed
the foundations of what you might call "modern" computing. They simply
popularized it.

You can think of the Internet as the last frontier and the new wild west if you
want, but the fact is that the government has been involved in it from the get
go. Your tax dollars, in the hands of agencies such DARPA (military) and NSF (
Civilian ) helped invent, and have been deeply involved in the net ever since.
They have, to use your term, been "meddling" with it from day one. That may be
good or bad, depending on your view point.

The net,  as we know it, is the result of a lot of synergistic work by a lot of
people, including governmnets, colleges, universities, the military, business
and industry. Not the least of these is our own Brian Reid. Neither Bill Gates
or Al Gore "invented" the net. Bill Gates is clearly a business genius, but he
is not the net.

Barney

Marc James Small wrote:

> At 06:36 PM 12/27/01 -0800, Adam Bridge wrote:
> >The problems with Windows XP threaten the entire internet and that IS of
> >national security concern. The problem is so severe that the Feds have had
> >to have a "heart to heart" talk with MS to get them to clean up their act.
> >Maybe they have, maybe they haven't. There are lots of sites which are
> >covering this.
>
> With all due respect, Mr Bridge, Horse-Shit.  Equine Excrement.
>
> The FBI has no business meddling with the Internet.  They have been hot to
> do so ever since they recognized that they had an uncontrollable factor on
> their hands.  The ancient advice to not put your faith in the government
> would seem multiply applicable here.  If those bozos claim that anything is
> a threat, I would recommend supporting this 'anything' -- it more likely is
> a huge boost to personal liberty and your individual freedoms.
>
> Libertas floreat!
>
> Marc
>
> msmall@roanoke.infi.net  FAX:  +540/343-7315
> Cha robh bąs fir gun ghrąs fir!
>
> --
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In reply to: Message from Marc James Small <msmall@roanoke.infi.net> (Re: [Leica] Widows XP/Mac was Gamma)
Message from Marc James Small <msmall@roanoke.infi.net> ([Leica] Ma Barker Meets Bill Gates)