Ok. Since I have a ton of computers that I’m trying to sell, I think a good segway into the world of Linux might be to take one of those machines and turn it into a linux box. So that’s what I’m going to do. I’ll put it upstairs with my main computer and get pelted by radiation from three sides.
Now, what distribution to run? Malhavoc suggests Xandros. I have a machine running Red Hat in my basement, but the machine itself is pretty flakey, so I don’t really count it.
Thanks to the helpful comments below, I’m now using decent, free calendaring software for Mozilla. With the installation of the Mozilla Google bar, I’m pretty much free of any Microsoft software, other than the OS itself. This wasn’t something I really set out to do. I have no personal or philosophical beef with MS. It’s just that they have made it very difficult and expensive to manage their office software. Its just not worth it. I don’t want to dick around with activation, CD keys, and installing previous versions just to install the version I want. Abiword, Open Office, and Mozilla are easy to install and, more importantly, I can just download it whenever I need it. MS probably doesn’t have to worry about Linux taking over the home just yet, but they should start getting worried about Office. Changing an OS is a big deal. Changing an application is easy.
Office is the big cash cow for MS and there is no way they will be able to sustain the margins they have been getting on it. There is nothing that a new version of Office has to offer. We’ve come about as far as we are going to with Word Processing. 99% of the people only use a few features in any of the Office applications.
Any future business I start will NOT use any MS Office applications. There is no need for it. Its expensive and the upgrade cycle is just insane. (I’m writing this update on Mozilla btw)
Having come this far with open source software, I suppose the next question is, why not go all the way and use Linux?
While I’m not ready to make the Linux leap yet, I’m to the point where I can make a finite list of things I’d need to switch. All the problems with Office also apply to XP, but to a lesser extent.
Since I last posted, I have written three times, none of which ever made it to the website. All three of them suffered from either an accidental closure of the browser window or a machine reboot. The topics of posts were: The Riemann Hypothesis and higher level mathematics, extemporaneous speech, and the middle aged housewives at my gym.
Just a quick update…
First, congrats to Pete and Meg on thier nuptials.
Second, was I right or was I right about Barry Bonds and the MVP.
If all goes like it has been this season, Barry Bonds should win his 6th MVP award. No other baseball player has won more than 3. This is not to say that other players probably didn’t deserve more than 3 (Ted Williams comes to mind), but for years there seems to have been some barrier where as there was reluctance to give someone the award too many times. Maybe it was just a fluke, but I think there was something more to it.
Prior to Barry Bond’s incredible 2001 season, he had won the award 3x already. To break the unspoken tradition of being limited to 3 MVP awards, you’d have to do something incredible. Barry Bonds sort of forced the issue by having, arguably, two of the best offensive seasons in baseball history in 2001 and 2002. His OPS (On-base % plus Slugging %) were 1.3785 and 1.3807 in 2001 and 2002. To give you an idea of how good that was, not only were they the 1st and 3rd best OPS seasons in history, only Babe Ruth and Ted Williams ever hit above 1.245 in a single season. Of the two components of OPS, he set the single season slugging record in 2001 (.8635) and the single season on-base percentage in 2002 (.5817), demolishing the former record set by Ted Williams in his amazing 1941 season when he hit .406.
So, Barry Bonds is a stud. I think that’s an established fact. He’s won 5 MVP awards (and should have won another one in 1991 when freaking Terry Pendelton won).
This season he is continuing his studly ways leading the major leagues in OPS again. His OPS is currently at 1.249, on-base percentage is at .515, and he’s slugging .734. Assuming everything stays the same till the end of the year, he’ll have a season which ranks in the top 15 in all the categories listed, he’ll pass Willie Mays for 3rd place on the all-time home run list, and will probably pass Babe Ruth for 2nd all-time in base on balls (trailing the guy who really should retire, Rickey Henderson).
The next closest player to Bonds is Albert Pujols, who by all measures is having a very good season. (OPS: 1.112, OBP: .437, SLG:.674) But, he’s not having as good a season as Bond. Nonetheless, I think there is a good chance he’ll win the MVP. Why?
I hope I’m wrong, but I think that’s how its going to go down.
The other big Barry Bonds question is whether he is the greatest player ever. The fact that the question can even be asked is significant in itself. Bill James had placed Bonds just outside of the top 10 in 2000. Before he had his monster seasons in 2001 and 2002. I think it may already be safe to say that the debate for who is the greatest hitter of all time (formerly between Ruth and Williams) will now include Bonds.
Here’s the deal. I don’t use Microsoft Office anymore. It’s not some grand political statement, but rather a practical decision. I have several Office Upgrade CD’s in my house, but nothing I can put on my machine. Moreover, I don’t want to install Office because it tends to take stuff over and the alternatives are pretty good. I have Abiword and Open Office installed on my primary computer. The only complaint I have with open source office software is that the spell checking could be better.
For email, I’ve been using Outlook Express. It gets the job done, but there is nothing special about it. I need some sort of calendar software, but I don’t want to use Outlook. Outlook Express doesn’t have a calendar. Mozilla email doesn’t have a calendar program either. Any suggestions?