Quote Originally Posted by gowator
The wifi problem is a special problem for opensource and is due to FCC regulations .. so dont blame linux blame your government regulators.
I've been out of that end of things for decades, but I'm pretty sure FCC regulations still only apply to the r.f. emissions of a contraption. To the extent that software drivers could make a wi-fi transmitter interfere with other devices, FCC regulations may have some bearing on software. I would imagine, though, that wi-fi manufacturers have designed their hardware to make it nigh unto impossible for hackers to turn it into a jammer. No, the problem you're complaining about isn't the fault of government regulators. It must be in Linux.

Quote Originally Posted by j.drake
Most people choosing an OS don't care who's to blame - they only care what works. Blaming doesn't get anyone anywhere.
.
.

Excuses are for losers, and the linux community needs to decide whether or not it's satisfied with pointing fingers and making excuses, or whether it wants the OS to reach its potential.
Obviously Mr. Knopper has done about as much as anyone to further Linux' potential. In fact, Knoppix brings a whole new way to use computers: instead of the OS trying to be all things to everyone, all at once, now we can have applications-on-a disc which run from the CD independent of the OS on the hard drive. Like a gameboy or playstation, but not limited to games.

If Knoppmyth would run direct from the CD instead of requiring to be installed on the hard drive, it would be a perfect example of what I'm trying to get at. You would only need a hard drive with a lot of empty space on it, and a TV tuner card, available to the computer. Just boot the Knoppmyth CD and presto, you have a PVR. That particular computer application wouldn't require a lot of the stuff that is on the Knoppix CD, so it could be left out.

It might not be quite that easy, and it wouldn't work on every computer, but I sure think the idea of applications-on-a-CD has a lot of potential, since Knoppix' hardware detection and configuration showed the way..

Knoppix in effect already offers another application-on-a-CD: the internet appliance. Remember a few years ago several companies made a box you could use to surf the web and get your e-mail with, because that's all most people use their computer for. The beauty of the idea was partly its intended ease of use. Mr. Knopper has made the idea a reality, without really even trying to. When I boot the Knoppix CD it automatically senses my Zoom 5001 PCI card cable modem - a rare bird - and configures everything. All I have to do to get online is click on the browser icon at the bottom of the screen. Getting my e-mail from my ISP is a bit more complicated, but if I can figure it out without resorting to phone calls or notes, anyone can.

I don't mean to say that Mr. Knopper shouldn't continue to develop Knoppix as a general-purpose OS, but that it can be used for more than just that.