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Good News You Might Have Missed in 2013

thegatesnotes.com

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Re: Good News You Might Have Missed in 2013

#101

Post by throwawaykf03 »

rbanffy wrote: post #79
bluekitten wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everytime a big company implements a feature or rolls out something, they affect companies working in that area. You can find similar things about almost any company or person, but for some reason the bad things about Microsoft are always amplified. For example, see how Google squashed Skyhook http://www.theverge.com/2011/05/12/google-android-skyhook-la... Aliyun and Acer prevented from launching a phone because of t…

It seems you need a history lesson: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stac_Electronics#Microsoft_law...

Also, i4i: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I4i

Re: Good News You Might Have Missed in 2013

#102

Post by bmelton »

PavlovsCat wrote: post #100
bmelton wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't necessarily disagree. The broader point that I was trying to make was that idols shouldn't be idolized, nor should demons be demonized. People may or may not be the sum of their actions, but even if you just mugged somebody an hour ago, you giving that $5 to a poor person is still an act of good. Not quite as benevolent, but still, preferable to having spent that $5 on crack cocaine. Robin Hood he isn't (thou…

I agree with all of that, though maybe he actually is a bit of a Robin Hood, considering Microsoft "plundered" mostly the first world? It may not have been his initial intention to give it away, but you're right, it's still a good act to do it. For kids it's more important to not die of a disease than to use Linux, that stuff can come later, and if I told a mother who is happy about her kid being alive that "yeah fin…

Perhaps I've absorbed the bias from whichever exposé I read on the matter, but (paraphrased), she ran medical centers more like "places for poor people to go and die", and ran them zero painkillers, inadequate, unhygienic conditions that were understaffed, all so that she wouldn't 'interfere' with their suffering, which she felt likened them to Christ. As I stated, it's very likely that the truth is somewhere in the middle, and I certainly don't have any knowledge that would consider me insightful on the matter.

Re: Good News You Might Have Missed in 2013

#103

Post by bluekitten »

sliverstorm wrote: post #88
rbanffy wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Are you trying to insinuate he has dark ulterior motives for his charity efforts? Dark ulterior motives? No. Being remembered as a philanthropist rather than a robber-baron is quite enough. Hs is doing good, but he is not doing good for the good of others.

Why the f%ck do you care if he is doing it to be remembered? Since when was the value of charitable works derived from the motive ?

As usual, Linus shoots straight.

http://www.osnews.com/story/21887/Linus_Microsoft_Hatred_is_...

Re: Good News You Might Have Missed in 2013

#104

Post by icambron »

techtivist wrote: post #96

It's a little unfortunate that rather than discussing the contents of the piece we are focusing on the individual But I would like to comment on the substance because that is the link that was shared; and avoid all the on and on conflicts about the author of the piece. I hate to be that guy, but while I appreciate the optimistic note (no pun intended), I think we really should introspect on how 2013 was actually a ye…

Points 2 and 3 both sound like steps forward to me.

Also:

> middle income counties has also seen concurrent high real inflation on the ground which is highly under measured.

What does that actually mean? "Real" is an economic term that doesn't make sense in that context. And if inflation's not being measured properly, how do you know in which direction it's off? Or more generally - you seem to think inflation is higher than is being reported; why do you think that?

Re: Good News You Might Have Missed in 2013

#105

Post by bluekitten »

throwawaykf03 wrote: post #101
rbanffy wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It seems you need a history lesson: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stac_Electronics#Microsoft_law...

Also, i4i: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I4i

>In May 2007 Vulpe and i4i successfully sued Microsoft, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas

Isnt that considered evil around these parts?

Re: Good News You Might Have Missed in 2013

#106

Post by shutupalready »

tn13 wrote: post #22

As people in Tech industry we should be very proud of Bill Gates and what he has done with Microsoft and his charity work. A lot of people totally miss the point when they say "hey anybody could do all that if they have enough money". That is simply not true. Charity is not just about throwing money at poor, it is a far more difficult job than say building a company. Working for profit is simpler where clear regulati…

> Over last 10 years, the sex workers in this area have reduced.

Hardly anyone wants to ask if that is an overall benefit to society?

The sex ratio for India is 108 men per 100 women [1]. For those under 15, the ratio is 113:100, so the problem is set to get much worse in the near future.

If India (pop. 1.2 billion) were to have maximal monogamous relationships and no sex workers, you'd have 577 million happy couples, and 46 million men left over who have no chance of any sexual intimacy.

EDIT: Condoms, contraception, and safe sex are obviously good things. My comment is whether eliminating sex work should be the goal. If that's the goal, then please answer the following question: Should men who don't have or can't find a normal relationship be forever denied occasional intimacy?

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_sex_ratio

Re: Good News You Might Have Missed in 2013

#107

Post by astine »

icambron wrote: post #104
techtivist wrote: post #96

It's a little unfortunate that rather than discussing the contents of the piece we are focusing on the individual But I would like to comment on the substance because that is the link that was shared; and avoid all the on and on conflicts about the author of the piece. I hate to be that guy, but while I appreciate the optimistic note (no pun intended), I think we really should introspect on how 2013 was actually a ye…

Points 2 and 3 both sound like steps forward to me. Also: > middle income counties has also seen concurrent high real inflation on the ground which is highly under measured. What does that actually mean? "Real" is an economic term that doesn't make sense in that context. And if inflation's not being measured properly, how do you know in which direction it's off? Or more generally - you seem to think inflation is high…

When people say that inflation is not being properly measured, what they're likely referring to is the fact that some policy makers use the CPI Less Food and Energy which means that some of the biggest expenses for the majority of people, food and energy, are sometimes ignored when discussing the effects inflation.

Re: Good News You Might Have Missed in 2013

#108

Post by throwawaykf03 »

bluekitten wrote: post #105
throwawaykf03 wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also, i4i: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I4i

>In May 2007 Vulpe and i4i successfully sued Microsoft, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas Isnt that considered evil around these parts?

That is the majority opinion around here, yes, but I contend that that opinion is flawed, precisely because of cases like i4i. It is a textbook case of a big guy ripping off a small guy, and patents being the only thing that helped the small guy.

The Wikipedia entry has surprisingly little backstory, so it turned out to be a poor choice on my part. But the gist is that like the Stac case, Microsoft was in active discussions to license or buy i4i's Office plugin before they turned around and, without warning, built it themselves into the next release of Word. Unlike the Stac, and indeed most, patent lawsuits, Microsoft was found guilty of willfull infringement.

I'm mostly a fan of Microsoft, and I don't really believe all the hate it gets is justified, but this is one case where it was really a bad actor.

Re: Good News You Might Have Missed in 2013

#109

Post by bluekitten »

shutupalready wrote: post #106
tn13 wrote: post #22

As people in Tech industry we should be very proud of Bill Gates and what he has done with Microsoft and his charity work. A lot of people totally miss the point when they say "hey anybody could do all that if they have enough money". That is simply not true. Charity is not just about throwing money at poor, it is a far more difficult job than say building a company. Working for profit is simpler where clear regulati…

> Over last 10 years, the sex workers in this area have reduced. Hardly anyone wants to ask if that is an overall benefit to society? The sex ratio for India is 108 men per 100 women [1]. For those under 15, the ratio is 113:100, so the problem is set to get much worse in the near future. If India (pop. 1.2 billion) were to have maximal monogamous relationships and no sex workers, you'd have 577 million happy couples…

We aren't talking about independent escorts here. Here's the link for one infamous redlight area.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonagachi

>5.17% of the 13,000 prostitutes in Sonagachi are estimated to be HIV positive

>According to some sources, prostitutes from Sonagachi who test HIV positive are not told about the results, and live with the disease without knowing about it "because the DMSC is worried that HIV positive women will be ostracized."[5] Some prostitutes in Sonagachi have stated that "the clients, at least three quarters of them" refuse to use condoms and "if we force them to use the condom, they will just go next door. There are so many women working here, and in the end, everyone is prepared to work without protection for fear of losing trade.”[5]

Weaning them off prostitution is a net positive.

Re: Good News You Might Have Missed in 2013

#110

Post by yodsanklai »

shutupalready wrote: post #106
tn13 wrote: post #22

As people in Tech industry we should be very proud of Bill Gates and what he has done with Microsoft and his charity work. A lot of people totally miss the point when they say "hey anybody could do all that if they have enough money". That is simply not true. Charity is not just about throwing money at poor, it is a far more difficult job than say building a company. Working for profit is simpler where clear regulati…

> Over last 10 years, the sex workers in this area have reduced. Hardly anyone wants to ask if that is an overall benefit to society? The sex ratio for India is 108 men per 100 women [1]. For those under 15, the ratio is 113:100, so the problem is set to get much worse in the near future. If India (pop. 1.2 billion) were to have maximal monogamous relationships and no sex workers, you'd have 577 million happy couples…

That's a rather controversial comment you're making here.

I'd rather see a man deprived of sexual intimacy than a woman constrained to prostitution for lack of better opportunity.

The first fate seems largely less cruel than the latter.

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