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<TITLE>The Answer Guy 29: More on 'WinModems': How to "Lose"
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Gracefully</TITLE>
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<!--endcut ========================================================= -->
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<H4>"Linux Gazette...<I>making Linux just a little more fun!</I>"
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</H4>
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<P> <hr> <P>
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<!-- =============================================================== -->
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<H1 align="center"><A NAME="answer">
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<img src="../gx/dennis/qbubble.gif" alt="" border="0" align="middle">
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<a href="./index.html">The Answer Guy</a>
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<img src="../gx/dennis/bbubble.gif" alt="" border="0" align="middle">
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</A></H1> <BR>
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<H4 align="center">By James T. Dennis,
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<a href="mailto:linux-questions-only@ssc.com">linux-questions-only@ssc.com</a><BR>
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Starshine Technical Services,
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<A HREF="http://www.starshine.org/">http://www.starshine.org/</A> </H4>
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<p><hr><p>
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<H3><img src="../gx/dennis/qbub.gif" alt="(?)" width="50" height="28"
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align="left" border="0">WinModem and WinPrinters
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--- Just Say "No!"</H3>
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<p><strong>From Richard Storey on 15 May 1998
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<br><br>
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I am in the process of gearing up to install Linux and so forth on a new
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HD. I read a few days ago that Win modems, which I have in the form of a
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US Robotics 56k X2 voice modem, bla, bla, leave off some of the on-board
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chips which normally carry on some functions of the modem. The article
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said that the modem drivers take over these functions and pass the load
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over to the CPU. That's not good, but my thoughts are that if this is true
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and Windows is supposed to be running for these drivers will this keep me
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from being able to run the modem while in Linux?
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</strong></p>
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<blockquote><img src="../gx/dennis/bbub.gif" width="50" height="28" alt="(!)"
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align="left" border="0">
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I'm afraid you're stuck. Last I heard these companies
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won't release the specs. Don't buy any more of these modems
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and printers.
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<br><br>
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My fear is that a certain software company (no names but the
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initials are "Microsoft") will see the WinModems and WinPrinters
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as the amazing boon and raging success that they are (for
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MS OS') and encourage the development of more lobotomized,
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cut rate peripherals, components and whole systems.
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<br><br>
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Reading between the lines about Microsoft/Intel's PC98
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"recommendations" (<a href="http://www.microsoft.com/hwdev/pc98.htm"
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>http://www.microsoft.com/hwdev/pc98.htm</a>)
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I see plenty of opportunity for proprietary, non-disclosed
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software drivers to be <strong>required</strong> for system operation.
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<br><br>
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If I was a "mad scientist" and I wanted to control the PC
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marketplace and keep it safe from free software (open source
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or otherwise) I'd run the scam like this:
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<br><ul>
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<li>Produce a complex spec that looks attractive to
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the average consumer, and to the busy reporter
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(or other trade press editor, writer, et al).
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<li>Sneak in a number of compliance requirements that
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entail a fair amount of software/firmware support.
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<li>Contract a team of HW engineers to design a number
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of ASIC's (Application Specific Integrated Circuits)
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that would be key components of this new architecture.
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<li>Have my team of crack coders write up all the drivers
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that would be required for key products. These
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drivers would be interfaces between my chipsets and
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ASIC's and my OS(es).
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<li>Offer these drivers freely to all of the hardware
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manufacturers under NDA. Carefully leave room
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for product differentiation in each category ---
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and make sure that all support for these forms
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of differentiation have to be built on my designs
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and integrated into my driver/libraries.
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<li>Quietly apply pressure on them to refuse to disclose
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the details of their own hardware designs (by hinting
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that support for "non-compliant" devices will be a
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very low priority in your OS development efforts and
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"may not be possible or feasible").
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<br><br>
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(Note: I wouldn't be so crass as to outright
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threaten to close out access to my market
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for any rogue manufacturers --- I'd just
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make a show of engaging in lucrative cross-
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licensing and "stategic partnerships" with
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that vendors competitors).
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<li>I'd keep my "crack team" of programmers on hand to
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provide free or low-cost "migration support" to
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"eligible and compliant" manufacturers. It would
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only cost their signature on the NDA line to get free
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programming help for their designs.
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<li>I'd also build in plenty of "security" features for
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"anti-piracy" and "copy protection" (a la DVD
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encryption) and make those specs NDA and patented
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wherever possible.
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<li>While I was at it I'd also patent everything in sight
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and I'd put plenty of political pressure on the U.S.
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Congress to support trade secrets and intellectual
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property legislation that would make it a felony for
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anyone to engage in open disclosure reverse engineering
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and security research (decryption efforts) on any
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commercial software products.
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</ul><br>
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Not that any of this is happening.... or is it?
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</blockquote>
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<p><strong><img src="../gx/dennis/qbub.gif" width="50" height="28" alt="(?)"
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align="left" border="0">
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Hoping I'm not stuck with buying another modem right now.
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<br>RS
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</strong></p>
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<blockquote><img src="../gx/dennis/bbub.gif" width="50" height="28" alt="(!)"
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align="left" border="0">
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Call USR and give them a piece of your mind. Let them know that
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you might be willing to let your CPU take the load
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<strong>IF</strong> you had some choice in what OS your system was
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running.
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<br><br>
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However, there is nothing in the hardware market today that is
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quite so odious has having no choice about the software that
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drives your peripherals. This is especially true of modems
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and printers which had been pretty reasonably standardized for
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almost 20 years (before the PC was even marketed by IBM we
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at Hayes AT command set for modems and printers that could take
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simple parallel text output).
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</blockquote>
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<hr width="40%">
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<H3><img src="../gx/dennis/qbub.gif" alt="(?)" width="50" height="28"
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align="left" border="0">
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More on 'WinModems': How to "Lose" Gracefully
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</H3>
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<p align="center"><table width="50%" align="center"><tr>
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<th volspan="2" align="center"><strong>Score:</strong></th>
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</tr><tr>
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<td>Winmodems:</td> <td>1</td>
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</tr><tr>
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<td>Free Software Users:</td> <td>0</td>
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</tr></table></p>
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<p><strong>From Richard Storey on 18 May 1998
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<br><br>
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[Sorry for sending the whole thing back to you but I figured you must get
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ton of mail and don't always know who's is what!]
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</strong></p>
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<blockquote><img src="../gx/dennis/bbub.gif" width="50" height="28" alt="(!)"
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align="left" border="0">
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Yes, I do. However, a small excerpt is usually sufficient
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to jog the ol' noggin
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</blockquote>
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<p><strong><img src="../gx/dennis/qbub.gif" width="50" height="28" alt="(?)"
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align="left" border="0">
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Thanks for the essay. I never expected such a thoughtful and extensive
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response. This choir says Amen! The Winmodem was in small print, but I
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still, at that time didn't know that some of the functions were dumped off
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to the software.
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<br><br>
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The funny thing is that IBM wrote the drivers for it and they are not
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working properly. I updated the modem's firmware to V.90 and now the
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comm/port gets hung up, requiring a reboot to reinstall on a regular basis.
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I spent 6 hours on the phone today with IBM tech support doing brain
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surgery on my system solve it to no avail. My next strategy is to get them
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to take it back.
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</strong></p>
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<blockquote><img src="../gx/dennis/bbub.gif" width="50" height="28" alt="(!)"
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align="left" border="0">
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Hmm. Typical. The firmware upgade probably doesn't work
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with the software drives.
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<br><br>
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Obviously you should do your best to get them to take it
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back. It isn't fullfulling your requirements. When enough
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of us as consumers can communicate our needs to enough
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vendors --- they will meet them, or other, new vendors will
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take over the niche.
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</blockquote>
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<p><strong><img src="../gx/dennis/qbub.gif" width="50" height="28" alt="(?)"
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align="left" border="0">
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Anyway, my next step is to plan out my software uses, make a full effort to
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dump windoze entirely, and start a support group for former windows users
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(the abused) and those who would like to get out of abusive relationships
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with PC operating systems. <img src="../gx/dennis/smily.gif" alt=";-)"
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width="20" height="24" align="top">)
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<br><br>
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Cheers --RS
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</strong></p>
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<blockquote><img src="../gx/dennis/bbub.gif" width="50" height="28" alt="(!)"
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align="left" border="0">
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Sounds like a veteran of some
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<a href="http://www.yahoo.com/Health/Mental_Health/Diseases_and_Conditions/Substance_Abuse/Organizations/">12 step</a> program.
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<br><br>
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Hmmm....
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<ol>
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<li>Admitted we were powerless over proprietary OS'
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<li>Came to believe that access to source code could
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restore our systems to usability and stability.
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<li>Made a conscious descision to turn our systems into
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workstations.(<a href=#tag29_powerless">*</a>)
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</ol>
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. . .
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<br><br>
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... we could work on that list --- at the risk of giving
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offense....
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<br><br>
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There are some excellent Linux Users Groups forming
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across the world. There are also at least three actively
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maintained lists of LUGS:
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<dl>
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<dt>LUGR (LUG Registry)
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<dd><a href="http://www.linux.org/users/index.html"
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>http://www.linux.org/users/index.html</a>
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<dt>GLUE (Groups of Linux Users Everywhere)
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<dd><a href="http://www.linuxresources.com/glue/"
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>http://www.linuxresources.com/glue/</a>
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<dt>LUG List
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<dd><a href="http://www.nllgg.nl/lugww/"
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>http://www.nllgg.nl/lugww/</a>
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</dl>
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There are also HOW-TO's on forming users groups
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(<a href="http://www.linuxresources.com/LDP/HOWTO/User-Group-HOWTO.html"
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>http://www.linuxresources.com/LDP/HOWTO/User-Group-HOWTO.html</a>)
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and on "Advocacy"
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(<a href="http://www.linuxresources.com/LDP/HOWTO/mini/Advocacy.html"
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>http://www.linuxresources.com/LDP/HOWTO/mini/Advocacy.html</a>).
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Finally there is a fairly new and
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relatively quiet mailing list for LUG organizers at:
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lug_support@ntlug.org (subscribe with an appropriate
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message to majordomo@ntlug.org and read the North Texas
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Linux Users Group web pages, <a href="http://www.ntlug.org/"
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>http://www.ntlug.org/</a> for details).
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<blockquote>
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(<a name="tag29_powerless">*</a>)
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This is an inside reference to the various
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12 step programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous.
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No, I'm not a member (and it would fly in the
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face of their traditions to announce it "at the
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level of press, TV, or radio"). However, I am
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close to a number of recovering addicts and
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alcoholics. You can find out more at:
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<dl>
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<dt>Alcoholics Anonymous Web Site
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<dd><a href="http://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org/"
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>http://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org/</a>
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</dl><dl>
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<dt>... and at an unofficial and more heartwarming site:
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<dd><a href="http://webhome.idirect.com/~avroarow/P6.HTM"
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>http://webhome.idirect.com/~avroarow/P6.HTM</a>
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</dl>
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</blockquote>
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</blockquote>
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<!--================================================================-->
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<P> <hr> <P>
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<H5 align="center"><a href="http://www.linuxgazette.com/copying.html"
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>Copyright ©</a> 1998, James T. Dennis <BR>
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Published in <I>Linux Gazette</I> Issue 29 June 1998</H5>
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<P> <hr>
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<!--================================================================-->
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<p align="center"><table width="95%"><tr align="center">
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<td rowspan="4"><A HREF="lg_answer29.html"><IMG
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SRC="../gx/dennis/answernew.gif"
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ALT="[ Answer Guy Index ]"i
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align="left"></A></td>
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</tr><tr align="center">
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<!-- begins -->
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<td><A HREF="tag_versions.html">versions</A></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_lilo.html">lilo</A></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_virtdom.html">virtdom</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_kernel.html">kernel</A></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_winmodem.html">winmodem</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_basicmail.html">basicmail</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_betterbak.html">betterbak</a></td>
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</tr><tr align="center">
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<td><A HREF="tag_shadow.html">shadow</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_dell.html">dell</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_dumbterm.html">dumbterm</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_whylinux.html">whylinux</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_redhat.html">redhat</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_netcard.html">netcard</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_macrovir.html">macrovir</a></td>
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</tr><tr align="center">
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<td><A HREF="tag_newlook.html">newlook</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_tacacs.html">tacacs</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_sendmail.html">sendmail</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_dialdppp.html">dialdppp</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_ppp233.html">ppp233</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_msmail.html">msmail</a></td>
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<td><A HREF="tag_procmail.html">procmail</a></td>
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<!-- ends -->
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