> IBM ViaVoice, which is FAR better than the voice recognition in XP
> (IBM and Dragon are the best in the field), is also available for
> GNU/Linux.
AAMOF it's included in the Mandrake 8.0 PowerPack.
> > Bill Gates said that the fact that everyone can recompile the source
> > code is what he doesn't like about Linux. Perhaps he's right.
>
> Are you KIDDING?! What is wrong with being able to do that? That has
> got to be Linux's greatest strength! You can compile a kernel (or even
> a whole system) to suit YOUR own machine, not some thing that MS wants
> you to buy to get "optimal performance". I can customise my kernel to
> have what I want, making it fully optimised for my particular
> combination of hardware.
I can understand why Gates would be opposed to recompileable kernels. Most
Microsoft users are not especially tech-savvy; allowing them to deviate from
a "one size fits all" kernel would just be asking for tech-support
headaches. Besides, this might open the door to unauthorized third-party
modifications that wouldn't generate any income for MS -- and some of those
mods might even hurt sales of future versions of Windows.
I believe the "turnkey Linux system" vendors require their support clients
to stay with approved kernel configurations for much the same reason.
Change the kernel beyond what's permitted and the support techs may not be
able to help you. That's probably also the reason most commercial
distribution vendors (Mandrake, Red Hat, SuSE, etc.) limit their standard
support options to installation itself -- once users get away from the
"stock" kernel configuration, keeping track of all the possible new problems
becomes effectively impossible for a technician on the other end of a
telephone line.
--
Walter Luffman, [EMAIL PROTECTED] Medina, TN USA
Supercharged with extra glucose! (Type 2 diabetes 5/99, d/e/m/motorcycle)
"Sage", purple 1998 Honda VT1100C Shadow Spirit
