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Munich is ditching Linux in favor of Windows 10, at a cost of €49.3 million:
The Linux love affair of the German City of Munich, which decided to favor Linux in 2003, is finally over. The city has officially cleared the plan to bring back Windows 10 on about 29,000 PCs.
In 2003, when the city decided to switch to a Linux-based desktop called LiMux and other open source software, it showed that free software could be used on a large scale. However, things didn't turn out the way they were planned.
Coming back to the recent development, the politicians who supported the switch said that Windows 10 will make it easier to source compatible application and drivers, according to TechRepublic.
[...] Linux enthusiasts should also note that the city's IT Chief has previously said that any concrete technical reason doesn't back the move; it's all politics.
Also at Engadget.
Previously: No, Munich Isn't About To Ditch Free Software and Move Back to Windows
Munich Reveals Preliminary Costs for a 'Return' to Windows
Linux Champion Munich Takes Decisive Step Towards Returning to Windows
(Score: 1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 28 2017, @06:39AM (14 children)
Anyway, it's easy to engage in political skulduggery when you get to play around with other people's money.
The solution is to get Government out of the business of allocating resources; a Government is just a bad business that won't go bankrupt, and will even be rewarded with more money when it fails—in a civilized society, there's no place for such a bizarre, illogical kind of organization.
(Score: 3, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 28 2017, @06:45AM (1 child)
"Let's put M$, Oracle, Facebook, Google, and Verizon in charge."
-- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 28 2017, @07:12PM
Agreed then at the Backdoor Club. The Gang: "You boys play OUR spyware game, or no funding, no free beerfest, no ..." Munich: "Jawohl!! We start tomorrow."
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 28 2017, @06:53AM (6 children)
Yeah, I'm sure people prefer anarchy instead.
You actually realize how "free market economy" actually works? Government throws money out based on things people may want (like sewers, fire department or drinking water) and then everyone fights over the scraps while the government makes sure no one bullies another too much while taxing everyone a little until government gets all the paper back so they can throw out more. That is the entire economy right there, in one sentence. No government == no free market.
If you fuck around with that model, you fuck yourself rather quickly.... what do you want to cut? Sewers not needed? Or is it schools? Or healthcare? or Police and justice system? Or what?? The libtards (libertarian boneheads) need to realize that you can only tweak how government works, and slowly. Any sudden changes can cause the system to destabilize. Our entire civilization is based on this balance between altruism and authority.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 28 2017, @07:34AM (4 children)
Your reply is what is called a "straw man argument".
No one said everything should be thrown out in one rash coup; no one said anything about a jarring revolution.
However, in order to get evolution of the organization of society, there has to be some kind of selective pressure; that's why it's important to keep in mind some far flung ideal, such as a society that is organized without a government (that is, a society organized without "do-as-you're-told" coercion).
Sure, there will be authoritarian support structures along the way, but eventually those will be dismantled, carted off, and utterly forgotten, leaving behind a complex, robust, anti-fragile libertarian structure that neither requires men to be angels nor denies that each man is individually self-interested.
Evolution, not Revolution. Variation and Selection yield the Invisible Hand.
(Score: 2) by Nuke on Tuesday November 28 2017, @10:42AM (2 children)
If it is not organised by government it will be organised by local bullies and gang leaders. I know that you are likely to reply that government is the bully, but that would show that you do not really know what a bully is. As least the government is impersonal and not local.
If you want to see how anarchy works in practice, take a look at this [wikipedia.org] period of English history.
(Score: 2) by Gaaark on Tuesday November 28 2017, @12:18PM (1 child)
Soooo, which one of the Black Adders was this?
Just, you know, ....context...
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 2) by LoRdTAW on Tuesday November 28 2017, @01:44PM
Well given that the first series takes place at the end of the middle ages, I'd say it's a prequel of some sort.
(Score: 2) by boxfetish on Tuesday November 28 2017, @03:49PM
Right! Sort of like how the "authoritarian support structures along the way" in communist China and the former Soviet union were eventually dismantled, carted off, and utterly forgotten.
Oh, wait...
(Score: 2) by Bot on Tuesday November 28 2017, @09:44AM
The free market economy would be: most successful businesses, which by obvious mathematical properties are mafia owned outfits, grow bigger and bigger until they can afford to buy politicians' time, get favorable business with the government and get favorable laws passed. This ends the free market just like nepotism ends ideologically charged authoritarian governments. One generation.
A different story would be:
1. I am the government. Regardless my origin.
2. Things need to be done to make society flourish, who am I kidding, to prevent society to collapse over self interested sociopaths scheming.
2b. Money is a good incentive to make people do things.
3. People need a way to store surplus and exchange good.
3b. Money is a good way to do that.
4. Therefore I will control Money by making sure money is enough to exchange goods and not too much to be unable to store value. This is the utopia, but communist, fascist, free market, theocratic utopias are FAAAR worse than a math equation over how much money state really needs.
4b. I will pay state officers and buy things using money issued by ME.
4c. People will think my money is just paper, until I demand a growing percentage of taxes to be paid using that money, until I demand transactions with state to be done with that money.
4d. I might even not need taxes if I issue enough money for the bureaucratic machine to work and for people to do their transactions.
5 I wait for coups, massive sabotage at every level, and for the international community to bomb me with an excuse or another because I have just broken free of The True Current Government.
Account abandoned.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Arik on Tuesday November 28 2017, @07:39AM (3 children)
Also, as you appear to be attempting to false-flag post as a libertarian, that's a no. Government is what you said but it's still the most efficient known way to provision public goods. As libertarians we should certainly look to get the government out of anything that can be effectively done privately, but you're still left with a few genuine public goods and until they become obsolete there will be some sort of government, hopefully able to provide those. They're going to need computers.
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 0, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 28 2017, @07:46AM (2 children)
I dispute the validity of the word "genuine" here. Furthermore, I'm skeptical of the notion of a "public good". So, your premise is not at all acceptable.
As for admonishing revolution, that's already been covered [soylentnews.org]. Nobody is arguing for that; it's a straw man.
By the way, why are your comments always formatted with the <tt> element???
(Score: 2) by Arik on Tuesday November 28 2017, @08:13AM
That's an interesting point to pick for dispute, as it was inserted specifically to concede ahead of time that not EVERYTHING that's claimed to be a public good necessarily is so, or must always be so.
I'm all for whittling the class away as quickly as possible - just not any faster. I guess in that last respect you could say I've become a *conservative* libertarian in my old age. ;)
But there are, at least for now, some genuine public goods. Is that what you're attempting to dispute?
Even the most austere minarchist admits a few exist, otherwise he would be an anarchist.
"As for admonishing revolution, that's already been covered [soylentnews.org]. Nobody is arguing for that; it's a straw man."
So you're not an anarchist? Or are you defying the historical categories?
To be clear, you're welcome to defy them so far as I'm concerned, it's just that you need to spell it out clearly rather than just waving your hands and saying something ambiguous.
"By the way, why are your comments always formatted with the <tt> element???"
Posting preference. Once you make an account you can save the setting.
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 28 2017, @03:51PM
Down, Fido. Don't you have some shit to eat? Go on, go chase the cat, and see where she poops, so you can have some lunch, then take a nap.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 28 2017, @03:47PM
What a fuckwit. No, not him, YOU, AC. You're a complete fuckwit and a shitforbrains. Your GRANDPARENTS should have been culled from the herd. And, your great-grandparents should have been ground up for dog food. You are the one remaining class of people whom people are ENCOURAGED to be prejudiced against. Please - put your genitals into a wood shredder, and then jump in after them. (question - why are "genitals" always plural? How many does one person possess?)