Why one writer dumped Windows and switched to Linux
While Linux has gotten better and better as a desktop operating system in recent years, some folks have been running it for far longer than that. One writer at Datamation shared why he switched to Linux 13 years ago.
Matt Hartley reports for Datamation:
It recently occurred to me that I've been running Linux on my computers for about thirteen years. I'll be the first to admit, it doesn't seem all that long ago. But as I reflected upon my switch over to Linux, I began to realize that there wasn't a single event that pushed me over to the Linux desktop. In reality, it was a series of events and discoveries. This article will explain how my switch to Linux came to pass.
As I look back, I found that my switch to Linux was a fairly straight forward one. It was a path that started in seeing how Linux could be a tremendous tool for file recovery and then grew into a lifestyle from there. Today, I feel completely out of my element running Windows and OS X. Don't get me wrong, I have access to these operating systems, but I honestly don't have a need to bother with them anymore. They simply don't appeal to me and frankly, I usually end up feeling a bit put off by the experience.
An interesting note that Linux newcomers reading this might find compelling is this: Linux has become as familiar to me as Windows once did. The way a computer behaves, reacts to my input or new peripherals...all of these considerations are very Linux-centric for me now.
Clearly, switching to new operating system is an act of personal dedication. Back then, I balked at the idea of using a command line to accomplish tasks. I simply found the idea to be archaic and dated. Today, I spend at least half of my day in an SSH session or adjusting something in a text file from a command line editor.
Amazon wants its services integrated by Android OEMs
Amazon's Fire Phone was a huge flop, but the company hasn't quite given up on the mobile phone market. This time around it wants Android OEMs to integrate Amazon services into their phones.
Ron Amadeo reports for Ars Technica:
...Amazon is hoping to partner with smartphone OEMs to deeply integrate its services into handsets. The report claims that Amazon "has discussed working with phone brands at a 'factory level' to integrate its services with devices in a deeper way than simply preloading apps."
"In essence, the retailer would like its partners’ phones to resemble Amazon’s line of Kindle Fire tablets that it builds on its own," the report states. The phones would be full of Amazon services and encourage people to become a member of Amazon Prime.
Amazon already pushes some of its apps on Samsung and AT&T phones, but the report says that Amazon hopes for "deeper integration" that would let it "gain a bigger backdoor to Google’s Android." The report doesn't explain what the "deeper integration" might be.
We think Amazon will have a hard time getting vendors to include these services, since most of them are forbidden by the Google Play licensing contracts that nearly all Android OEMs sign. The contracts demand that OEMs implement all of Google's solutions for these services and, in most cases, ban competing products. There is also an "anti-fragmentation" clause, which says that if a company wants access to Google Play, it must ship Google services on every Android device it sells. If an OEM were to include a non-Google Android fork on any device it sells, it would be kicked out of the Google ecosystem. Amazon knows firsthand how limiting these contracts can be, as it has difficulty finding vendors for its Kindle devices—none of the big OEMs are allowed to manufacture them.
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