This may be no shock to some people, but an article in Full Circle magazine today gave
links to ZDNET's articles:
China ditching Windows for Linux https://www.zdnet.com/article/china-drops-windows-for-linux/
and that article has a link to France doing it too. https://www.zdnet.com/article/france-leaves-windows-for-linux-desktop/
Granted it's governmental only but the reasons are the same.
On Sun, 30 Aug 2026 09:06:58 -0400, Alan K. wrote:
This may be no shock to some people, but an article in Full Circle magazine today gave
links to ZDNET's articles:
China ditching Windows for Linux
https://www.zdnet.com/article/china-drops-windows-for-linux/
and that article has a link to France doing it too.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/france-leaves-windows-for-linux-desktop/
France's intelligence agency has been using Linux for some time. Now
they want the government to do the same.
Granted it's governmental only but the reasons are the same.
Governments are a start. Next is schools, universities, companies, ...
I believe Switzerland uses Linux as well, or government software should
be open source. (?)
The EU is also moving away from American Big Tech. For instance: EU OS.
<https://eu-os.eu/>
As for Windows: <https://www.windowscentral.com/microsoft/windows-11/windows-president-confirms-os-will-become-ai-agentic-generates-push-back-online>
Governments are a start. Next is schools, universities, companies, ...
Linux is a superior OS to Windows indeed. It is
faster, far more stable, the GUI's are easier to
use (well, not gnome, which it too weird to be
usable), but Linux will have a very difficult
time getting widely accepted until major software
companies come out with Linux additions of
their software. And properly support them.
M$ Office
QuickBooks
Anything Adobe
AutoCad
Solid Works
Point-of-Sale software
etc.
Users DO NOT CARE and often do not even know what their
OS is. THEY ONLY CARE if their preferred applications
that they have invested years into work on their OS.
And as far as Windows goes, they have learned to HOLD
THEIR NOSES.
I am a Linux house myself (Fedora). In my 32 years
of consulting, I have not found one single small business
I could switch to Linux. (I do have a few Linux servers
and a few home users on it though.)
This is classic example of catch 22:
Even if Linux were objectively a better operating
system, people won't switch to it because the
applications they need aren't available. But developers
won't create those applications for Linux because
people aren't switching to it.
And I would not have a job without Windows being the
mess that it is.
On 8/30/26 9:19 AM, s|b wrote:
Governments are a start. Next is schools, universities, companies, ...
Basically entities that have programming staffs and can
create the software they need for themselves.
Good lord, ever try to get someone to switch from M$ Office
to Libre Office. YIKES!
On 8/30/26 9:19 AM, s|b wrote:
Governments are a start. Next is schools, universities, companies, ...
Basically entities that have programming staffs and can
create the software they need for themselves.
Good lord, ever try to get someone to switch from M$ Office
to Libre Office. YIKES!
On Sun, 30 Aug 2026 10:10:02 -0700, T wrote:
On 8/30/26 9:19 AM, s|b wrote:
Governments are a start. Next is schools, universities, companies, ...
Basically entities that have programming staffs and can
create the software they need for themselves.
You have to start somewhere.
Good lord, ever try to get someone to switch from M$ Office
to Libre Office. YIKES!
I've switched everybody in the family* to LibreOffice. Told them they
would either have to pay for M$ Office (Office365, is it?) or look for a cracked version which I would not help them with. (Money is a good
motive.)
Got one complaint: an aunt made a report which she shared with the rest
of her building and they couldn't open it. So I saved it as DOCX and
changed the settings so the default save was DOCX instead of ODT.
Problem solved.
I've got several family members still using W10, but they are already
using Thunderbird, Firefox and LibreOffice. A switch to Linux wouldn't
be that hard for them, but they're reluctant even though I could copy Fx
and TB's profile and they wouldn't lose anything.
* Doing my small part. (-:
This may be no shock to some people, but an article in Full Circle
magazine today gave links to ZDNET's articles:
China ditching Windows for Linux https://www.zdnet.com/article/china-drops-windows-for-linux/
and that article has a link to France doing it too. https://www.zdnet.com/article/france-leaves-windows-for-linux-desktop/
Granted it's governmental only but the reasons are the same.
On 8/30/2026 12:08 PM, T wrote:
Linux is a superior OS to Windows indeed. It is
faster, far more stable, the GUI's are easier to
use (well, not gnome, which it too weird to be
usable), but Linux will have a very difficult
time getting widely accepted until major software
companies come out with Linux additions of
their software. And properly support them.
M$ Office
QuickBooks
Anything Adobe
AutoCad
Solid Works
Point-of-Sale software
etc.
Users DO NOT CARE and often do not even know what their
OS is. THEY ONLY CARE if their preferred applications
that they have invested years into work on their OS.
And as far as Windows goes, they have learned to HOLD
THEIR NOSES.
I am a Linux house myself (Fedora). In my 32 years
of consulting, I have not found one single small business
I could switch to Linux. (I do have a few Linux servers
and a few home users on it though.)
This is classic example of catch 22:
Even if Linux were objectively a better operating
system, people won't switch to it because the
applications they need aren't available. But developers
won't create those applications for Linux because
people aren't switching to it.
And I would not have a job without Windows being the
mess that it is.
FWIW, I use most of the programs in your list and it is not a mess for me.
I will make a simple observation to the theme of this argument of yours.
Linux often feels simpler and smoother than windows because it doesn't have to support what windows does.
Many of the problems people get
using windows based computers is that often the causes are the third-
party software, bloated games, and the installers of the individual software. Windows has to navigate all these different software programs while running on an incredible amount of differing hardware setups and
still has to use backward compatibility in almost every version. All
while still trying to make improvements.
Ultimately, Linux's perceived superiority is a luxury of its low desktop market share. Though linux does have advantages at times when being
used as a specialized tool, it falls to it's knees when asked to
accomplish what windows does. If it had to accomplish what windows has,
it would get the same complaints windows does. As it is now, when
windows has a difficulty with some new piece of hardware installation,
it is immediately a windows failure. When linux can't get something working, it is hardware incompatibility. Same computer, different blame.
At this point in time, they are like apples and oranges. Windows is intended to be universal, whereas linux is built to be specialized.
On Sun, 30 Aug 2026 10:10:02 -0700, T wrote:
On 8/30/26 9:19 AM, s|b wrote:
Governments are a start. Next is schools, universities, companies, ...
Basically entities that have programming staffs and can
create the software they need for themselves.
You have to start somewhere.
Good lord, ever try to get someone to switch from M$ Office
to Libre Office. YIKES!
I've switched everybody in the family* to LibreOffice. Told them they
would either have to pay for M$ Office (Office365, is it?) or look for a cracked version which I would not help them with. (Money is a good
motive.)
Got one complaint: an aunt made a report which she shared with the rest
of her building and they couldn't open it. So I saved it as DOCX and
changed the settings so the default save was DOCX instead of ODT.
Problem solved.
I've got several family members still using W10, but they are already
using Thunderbird, Firefox and LibreOffice. A switch to Linux wouldn't
be that hard for them, but they're reluctant even though I could copy Fx
and TB's profile and they wouldn't lose anything.
* Doing my small part. (-:
Once my cousin visited and she wanted to look at her mail. She is not a computer person. I just set the laptop on a table and started Firefox.
She did not even notice it was not Windows 🙂
On 30/08/2026 18:10, T wrote:
On 8/30/26 9:19 AM, s|b wrote:
Governments are a start. Next is schools, universities, companies, ...
Basically entities that have programming staffs and can
create the software they need for themselves.
Good lord, ever try to get someone to switch from M$ Office
to Libre Office. YIKES!
Interesting you should say that. A number of government departments
*have* ditched MS Office in favour of Libre Office - presumably to make systems accessible to people who don't want to have to pay a lot of
money to M$. For example, if you are involved with a charity and need to re-claim the tax on donations which have been Gift Aided, the
spreadsheet which you submit, listing all the donors, amounts, dates,
etc. *has* to be in Libre Office format. They won't accept anything else.
On Sun, 30 Aug 2026 09:06:58 -0400, Alan K. wrote:
This may be no shock to some people, but an article in Full Circle
magazine today gave links to ZDNET's articles:
China ditching Windows for Linux
https://www.zdnet.com/article/china-drops-windows-for-linux/
and that article has a link to France doing it too.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/france-leaves-windows-for-linux-desktop/
Granted it's governmental only but the reasons are the same.
It might work in China if Windows users are sent to a re-education camp.
It's a hard sell. When our clients transitioned from RS6000/AIX to x86 machines the logical choice would have been Linux. All but two went to Windows and even those two only used Linux of the server.
That was in the early 2000s and Linux wasn't as polished but there still
was the feeling Microsoft was an established corporate entity like IBM and not amateur hour.
On 30/08/2026 18:10, T wrote:
On 8/30/26 9:19 AM, s|b wrote:
Governments are a start. Next is schools, universities, companies, ...
Basically entities that have programming staffs and can
create the software they need for themselves.
Good lord, ever try to get someone to switch from M$ Office
to Libre Office. YIKES!
Interesting you should say that. A number of government departments
*have* ditched MS Office in favour of Libre Office - presumably to make systems accessible to people who don't want to have to pay a lot of
money to M$. For example, if you are involved with a charity and need to re-claim the tax on donations which have been Gift Aided, the
spreadsheet which you submit, listing all the donors, amounts, dates,
etc. *has* to be in Libre Office format. They won't accept anything else.
Got one complaint: an aunt made a report which she shared with the rest[]
of her building and they couldn't open it. So I saved it as DOCX and
changed the settings so the default save was DOCX instead of ODT.
Problem solved.
I always recommend at least two browser is case one does not work on a particular web site, use the other. My two favorite for this are Brave Browser and Firefox.
Not that I noticed. Linux can be very universal, but with out the applications people need, it is a catch 22.
I personally prefer Brave although FF is the default on most Linux
distros. For some reason I could not resolve Khan Academy videos don't
play on Brave so I use FF. I've also installed LibreWolf since Mozilla
has went all in on AI.
On Sun, 30 Aug 2026 13:29:57 -0700, T wrote:
Not that I noticed. Linux can be very universal, but with out the
applications people need, it is a catch 22.
I'm involved with a library project to help people move to Linux. Mint is the recommended one although we certainly would help with others. Part of the process is a document recommending backing up the current system,
doing due diligence on potential hardware problems like Apple silicon machines, and so forth.
Then there is what the Catholics would call the Examination of Conscience. Is there any Windows application that you married until death do you
part? There is a list of Linux alternatives for the common stumbling blocks. For apps like LibreOffice that are cross platform we suggest installing it on the existing Windows system to see if they can live with it.
Even one of the people on the program admits he uses a Windows video
editing application and is really struggling to use the Linux equivalent. The muscle memory developed over the years doesn't work.
I'm lucky. Almost everything I use is available on both Windows and
Linux.
On 2026/8/30 20:0:8, s|b wrote:
[]
Got one complaint: an aunt made a report which she shared with the rest[]
of her building and they couldn't open it. So I saved it as DOCX and changed the settings so the default save was DOCX instead of ODT.
Problem solved.
Would have reached even more users if you'd used DOC :-)--
Once my cousin visited and she wanted to look at her mail. She is not a computer person. I just set the laptop on a table and started Firefox.
She did not even notice it was not Windows :-)
And M$ Word does support odt. They must have
had really old version of Word. You might have
to go all the way back to .doc.
In my technical opinion LibreOffice, with all
its numerous faults, is an equal product to
M$ Office, Maybe slightly better.
The only users I can get to use LO are the ones
who have never used M$O.
Often times what I come across is users with new
replacement computers. They get pissed that
they can not get M$O to run because they did not
buy an OEM copy of it with the computer.
I put Libre Office on for them so they can read
their old documents that I port over from their
old computer. Since they are a bit angry at the
cost of M$O, I tell them to try Libre Office first.
Then if they just do not like LO, then I will
assist them with purchasing the desktop version
of M$O. So far, not a single one has stayed with
LO and suddenly are not so pissed at the cost of M$O.
I chalk it up the the "I can't learn anything new!"
problem
I do not recommend the rental version of M$O (365).
AI Overview[]
But, I still remember a company that had me install LO on all
their computers. The office receptionist/office manager got
really pissed at me for it. She got so mad she actually
bought her own copy of M$O and installed it herself and
refused to use LO.
On Sun, 30 Aug 2026 13:29:57 -0700, T wrote:
Not that I noticed. Linux can be very universal, but with out the
applications people need, it is a catch 22.
I'm involved with a library project to help people move to Linux. Mint is
the recommended one although we certainly would help with others. Part of
the process is a document recommending backing up the current system,
doing due diligence on potential hardware problems like Apple silicon machines, and so forth.
Then there is what the Catholics would call the Examination of Conscience.
Is there any Windows application that you married until death do you
part? There is a list of Linux alternatives for the common stumbling
blocks. For apps like LibreOffice that are cross platform we suggest installing it on the existing Windows system to see if they can live with
it.
Even one of the people on the program admits he uses a Windows video
editing application and is really struggling to use the Linux equivalent.
The muscle memory developed over the years doesn't work.
I'm lucky. Almost everything I use is available on both Windows and
Linux.
One of the YUGE difficulties with migrating to Linux is that
the users have, as you call it, mussel memory It is also
One of the major difficulties I find in choosing video (and audio)
editors, is finding any certainty that conversion is _not_ involved. The majority of the editing I can see doing involves just cutting and
splicing segments, but in virtually all cases, I feel that some
conversion is involved.
On 2026/8/31 18:43:50, T wrote:
[]
One of the YUGE difficulties with migrating to Linux is that
the users have, as you call it, mussel memory It is also
Sounds fishy to me ...
It's not just major changes like windows to Linux; I also have muscle
memory for my Office 2003, and it's not supported in later versions.
(The first one or two after 2003 did, though popped up some
condescending message like "old key sequence recognised".)
[]
One of the YUGE difficulties with migrating to Linux is that the users
have, as you call it, mussel memory It is also years of intellectual property invested in a Windows only programs. The users really, really
do not want to learn anything new.
It's not just major changes like windows to Linux; I also have muscle
memory for my Office 2003, and it's not supported in later versions.
(The first one or two after 2003 did, though popped up some
condescending message like "old key sequence recognised".)
On Mon, 31 Aug 2026 18:54:39 +0100, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
It's not just major changes like windows to Linux; I also have muscle
memory for my Office 2003, and it's not supported in later versions.
(The first one or two after 2003 did, though popped up some
condescending message like "old key sequence recognised".)
It always pissed me off when VisualStudio restacked the deck. Same old
stuff but in different menus. Of course the whole top level experience changed periodically. 'Where the hell is 'Add/Remove Programs this week?'
My primary editor was, and still is, gVim. Cross-platform
On 8/31/26 10:54 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
On 2026/8/31 18:43:50, T wrote:
[]
One of the YUGE difficulties with migrating to Linux is that
the users have, as you call it, mussel memory It is also
Sounds fishy to me ...
It's not just major changes like windows to Linux; I also have muscle
memory for my Office 2003, and it's not supported in later versions.
(The first one or two after 2003 did, though popped up some
condescending message like "old key sequence recognised".)
[]
INDEED!
M$O 2003 was my favorite of all the M$O releases.
I have several customers and cling to the M$O 2003
CDs.
Can blame them, as once you have learned something, you
really do not want to relearn something else. But it
puts a real strain on trying to support them.
On 2026/8/31 19:11:48, T wrote:
On 8/31/26 10:54 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
On 2026/8/31 18:43:50, T wrote:
[]
One of the YUGE difficulties with migrating to Linux is that
the users have, as you call it, mussel memory It is also
Sounds fishy to me ...
It's not just major changes like windows to Linux; I also have muscle
memory for my Office 2003, and it's not supported in later versions.
(The first one or two after 2003 did, though popped up some
condescending message like "old key sequence recognised".)
[]
INDEED!
M$O 2003 was my favorite of all the M$O releases.
I have several customers and cling to the M$O 2003
CDs.
Can blame them, as once you have learned something, you
really do not want to relearn something else. But it
puts a real strain on trying to support them.
Well, it* works well enough for me under W10 - no support needed.
* with the patches to enable it to use the *x formats (which I only use
for input if I receive something; I save in DOC/XLS).
On 2026/8/31 8:9:41, Paul wrote:
[]
AI Overview[]
Thanks for comprehensive report; lots to ponder there.
One of the major difficulties I find in choosing video (and audio)
editors, is finding any certainty that conversion is _not_ involved. The majority of the editing I can see doing involves just cutting and
splicing segments, but in virtually all cases, I feel that some
conversion is involved.
Yes, I do realise that (for example, just extracting a section of a
video) headers will need to be regenerated, and you'd also be limited to cutting at iframes if the videos are of that type; however, most
software I've seen either does, or doesn't show that it isn't, do some recoding.--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/<1985 MB++G()ALIS-Ch++(p)Ar++T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf
There are things that we should be free by law to say but choose not
to. A right to offend doesn't mean a duty to offend.
- Timothy Garton Ash, RT 2016/4/9-15
On 8/30/26 8:37 PM, rbowman wrote:
On Sun, 30 Aug 2026 13:29:57 -0700, T wrote:
Not that I noticed. Linux can be very universal, but with out the
applications people need, it is a catch 22.
I'm involved with a library project to help people move to Linux. Mint is
the recommended one although we certainly would help with others. Part of
the process is a document recommending backing up the current system,
doing due diligence on potential hardware problems like Apple silicon
machines, and so forth.
Then there is what the Catholics would call the Examination of Conscience. >> Is there any Windows application that you married until death do you
part? There is a list of Linux alternatives for the common stumbling
blocks. For apps like LibreOffice that are cross platform we suggest
installing it on the existing Windows system to see if they can live with
it.
Even one of the people on the program admits he uses a Windows video
editing application and is really struggling to use the Linux equivalent.
The muscle memory developed over the years doesn't work.
I'm lucky. Almost everything I use is available on both Windows and
Linux.
Wow. I admire you intestinal fortitude!
One of the YUGE difficulties with migrating to Linux is that
the users have, as you call it, mussel memory It is also
years of intellectual property invested in a Windows
only programs. The users really, really do not want to
learn anything new.
In my rounds, I will bend over backwards to assist people
with their old stuff. I have even worked on DOS for them.
But I have to say, there does come a point where they
really do have to bite the bullet and learn something new.
It has become a hassle.
Your "Examination of Conscience" remark really hit the
nail on the head.
I am still trying to find print in Brave Browser.
<ctrl><P> is quicker than trying to find it.
It is probably in the hamburger somewhere. But the muscle memory is
quicker.
On Mon, 31 Aug 2026 10:43:50 -0700, T wrote:
One of the YUGE difficulties with migrating to Linux is that the users
have, as you call it, mussel memory It is also years of intellectual
property invested in a Windows only programs. The users really, really
do not want to learn anything new.
I have never used Office so that whole set of memories is missing. If I received a RFP or something in Office format I used LibreOffice to read
it. Same for .xls. However I didn't use LO for document creation and even trying to edit something was a disaster.
My primary editor was, and still is, gVim. Cross-platform. I've started
On Mon, 8/31/2026 1:36 PM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:[]
On 2026/8/31 8:9:41, Paul wrote:
[]
AI Overview[]
Thanks for comprehensive report; lots to ponder there.
One of the major difficulties I find in choosing video (and audio)
editors, is finding any certainty that conversion is _not_ involved. The
majority of the editing I can see doing involves just cutting and
splicing segments, but in virtually all cases, I feel that some
conversion is involved.
Yes, I do realise that (for example, just extracting a section of a
video) headers will need to be regenerated, and you'd also be limited to
cutting at iframes if the videos are of that type; however, most
software I've seen either does, or doesn't show that it isn't, do some
recoding.--
There are separate tools that do various kind of lossless
splices. You might find mention of them on videohelp.
# Don't forget to scroll down!
https://www.videohelp.com/software/sections/video-editors-lossless
You can prepare videos that are forward and backward encoded,
which improves their job/shuttle behavior. A benefit of the
extra info that might involve, is you can make splices in the
middle of a GOP, rather than on GOP boundaries. And those splices
are "adjusted" to smooth over the discontinuity, because the
math works in both the forward and the reverse direction, and the
math works better that way.
These are kind of specialist topics, in that you the adventurer,
have to know how to check just how lossless the methods are. One
way you can guess at it, is use ffprobe, dump the interleaved
audio and video streams, measure the size of the video change
on each frame, look at the "pacing" of the various frames,
do the splice, re-examine the pacing and "see if one frame
has become bloated" indicating a re-encode and a lot of
change happened in one frame.
It's one thing to buy such a product, quite another to
get a result out of it. You need to have sharp eyes, and
recognize things are happening in your video edit. For
example, a lot of things are processed as Progressive today,
but if you ever worked with Interleaved material, you can
get the odd and even frames in the wrong order, which
"looks weird" and would then be something you the editor
have to recognize and fix :-) The work is partly touchy-feely
like that. When you've made a mistake and it affected
the quality, it might not be the re-encode after all.
Generally speaking, it's a garbage in garbage out enterprise.
You cannot start with materials on the knife edge of acceptable,
and go around doing lossless splices like you were Mother
Theresa and end up with an iMax quality result. Find better
source material, and use "ordinary techniques" and if there
is a little bit of re-encode loss, it's not likely to be
a problem. Shoot with your 8K Red camera, and reduce the
output resolution to the DVD standard. Should be "as sharp
as a tack".
I have only one good sample from an 8K Red camera. It's a video
clip of Hong Kong at night. It's maybe 7-10 seconds long.
The file is *1GB* in size. Now, that's "quality" (quantity).
Plenty of bits to throw away later :-) Is that camera
a rolling shutter or a global shutter ? It would not do, to
have your vid ruined by side effects of rolling shutter. A
global shutter camera can shoot a rotating fan blade without
distorting it.
Paul
On 8/31/26 2:57 PM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
On 2026/8/31 19:11:48, T wrote:
On 8/31/26 10:54 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
On 2026/8/31 18:43:50, T wrote:
[]
One of the YUGE difficulties with migrating to Linux is that
the users have, as you call it, mussel memory It is also
Sounds fishy to me ...
[]M$O 2003 was my favorite of all the M$O releases.
I have several customers and cling to the M$O 2003
CDs.
Can blame them, as once you have learned something, you
really do not want to relearn something else. But it
puts a real strain on trying to support them.
Well, it* works well enough for me under W10 - no support needed.
Remember, there is a difference between you and the general
compute using public. You are cleaver and know what
you are doing. Most of them do not. And it is our
jobs as consults to hold their hands.
Are you accusing me of doing a hatchet job? 🙂
On 2026/8/31 8:9:41, Paul wrote:I use VideoReDo for editing out continuity and commercials from off-air recordings. It regenerates i/p/b frames at the edit points, up to the
[]
AI Overview[]
Thanks for comprehensive report; lots to ponder there.
One of the major difficulties I find in choosing video (and audio)
editors, is finding any certainty that conversion is _not_ involved. The majority of the editing I can see doing involves just cutting and
splicing segments, but in virtually all cases, I feel that some
conversion is involved.
Yes, I do realise that (for example, just extracting a section of a
video) headers will need to be regenerated, and you'd also be limited to cutting at iframes if the videos are of that type; however, most
software I've seen either does, or doesn't show that it isn't, do some recoding.--
On 31/08/2026 18:36, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
On 2026/8/31 8:9:41, Paul wrote:I use VideoReDo for editing out continuity and commercials from off-air recordings. It regenerates i/p/b frames at the edit points, up to the
[]
AI Overview[]
Thanks for comprehensive report; lots to ponder there.
One of the major difficulties I find in choosing video (and audio)
editors, is finding any certainty that conversion is _not_ involved. The
majority of the editing I can see doing involves just cutting and
splicing segments, but in virtually all cases, I feel that some
conversion is involved.
Yes, I do realise that (for example, just extracting a section of a
video) headers will need to be regenerated, and you'd also be limited to
cutting at iframes if the videos are of that type; however, most
software I've seen either does, or doesn't show that it isn't, do some
recoding.--
next GOP boundary, but otherwise it copies without modifying the data.
It works flawlessly.
There is a problem: it was written by a two-man team. One of the men
left the team and a bit later the other man died unexpectedly, without making provision for handing on the code. Obviously future development
won't happen, which isn't really a problem because the latest version
can handle MPEG (SD), H264 (HD) and H265 (UHD formats). But because the software has a licence key (which you have to buy), there is the worry
that the licence server which validates existing installations, may one
day die. The ex-employee is trying to keep things going as long as
possible, but there is a worry that one day users may get a nasty
surprise. Sadly the widow of the head developer has no interest in cooperating or it selling the software to anyone who can keep things going.
I use VideoReDo for editing out continuity and commercials from off-air recordings. It regenerates i/p/b frames at the edit points, up to the
next GOP boundary, but otherwise it copies without modifying the data.
It works flawlessly.
There is a problem: it was written by a two-man team. One of the men
left the team and a bit later the other man died unexpectedly, without making provision for handing on the code. Obviously future development
won't happen, which isn't really a problem because the latest version
can handle MPEG (SD), H264 (HD) and H265 (UHD formats). But because the software has a licence key (which you have to buy), there is the worry
that the licence server which validates existing installations, may one
day die. The ex-employee is trying to keep things going as long as
possible, but there is a worry that one day users may get a nasty
surprise. Sadly the widow of the head developer has no interest in cooperating or it selling the software to anyone who can keep things going.
On 2026-08-31 22:11, rbowman wrote:
On Mon, 31 Aug 2026 10:43:50 -0700, T wrote:
One of the YUGE difficulties with migrating to Linux is that the users
have, as you call it, mussel memory It is also years of intellectual
property invested in a Windows only programs. The users really,
really do not want to learn anything new.
I have never used Office so that whole set of memories is missing. If I
received a RFP or something in Office format I used LibreOffice to read
it. Same for .xls. However I didn't use LO for document creation and
even trying to edit something was a disaster.
My primary editor was, and still is, gVim. Cross-platform. I've started
Well, $O or LO are not Text Editors. They are, or contain, a Word
Processor. Way different thing. Different goals.
Not trying to say which is better. That's not possible really, makes no sense.
On Tue, 1 Sep 2026 10:02:44 +0200, Carlos E.R. wrote:
On 2026-08-31 22:11, rbowman wrote:
On Mon, 31 Aug 2026 10:43:50 -0700, T wrote:
One of the YUGE difficulties with migrating to Linux is that the users >>>> have, as you call it, mussel memory It is also years of intellectual
property invested in a Windows only programs. The users really,
really do not want to learn anything new.
I have never used Office so that whole set of memories is missing. If I
received a RFP or something in Office format I used LibreOffice to read
it. Same for .xls. However I didn't use LO for document creation and
even trying to edit something was a disaster.
My primary editor was, and still is, gVim. Cross-platform. I've started
Well, $O or LO are not Text Editors. They are, or contain, a Word
Processor. Way different thing. Different goals.
Not trying to say which is better. That's not possible really, makes no
sense.
Understood. I'm a programmer not someone who needs to create office type documents. WordStar had a fairly useful text mode but when office software replaced dedicated word processors like Wangs they became specialized, as
did programming editors and IDEs.
On 9/1/26 5:56 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
Are you accusing me of doing a hatchet job? 🙂
I am accusing you of knowing what you are doing.
:-)
On 2026/9/1 16:22:28, T wrote:
On 9/1/26 5:56 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
Are you accusing me of doing a hatchet job? 🙂
I am accusing you of knowing what you are doing.
:-)
Oh dear, my humour is not being caught very much in this thread! I was teasing because in the previous line you had told me I am "cleaver". and earlier in the thread you had referred to "mussel memory", which I said sounded fishy ...
rbowman wrote on 9/1/2026 4:22 PM:
Understood. I'm a programmer not someone who needs to create office type
documents. WordStar had a fairly useful text mode but when office
software
replaced dedicated word processors like Wangs they became specialized, as
did programming editors and IDEs.
It's a damn shame that linux didn't work out better. I guess nobody cared.
On 9/1/26 7:52 PM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
On 2026/9/1 16:22:28, T wrote:
On 9/1/26 5:56 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
Are you accusing me of doing a hatchet job? 🙂
I am accusing you of knowing what you are doing.
:-)
Oh dear, my humour is not being caught very much in this thread! I was
teasing because in the previous line you had told me I am "cleaver". and
earlier in the thread you had referred to "mussel memory", which I said
sounded fishy ...
My spelling is so bad I did not know the difference.
I went to Publik Skool. Graduated with honors too.
I could barely read, write. Did home work maybe
three times out of four years of Hi Skool. My math
was pretty good though. When I hit Uni, oh holy ....
It was like I'd never been to skool. Graduated
with honors again, but this time I earned it.
On Wed, 9/2/2026 11:06 PM, T wrote:
On 9/1/26 7:52 PM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
On 2026/9/1 16:22:28, T wrote:
On 9/1/26 5:56 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
Are you accusing me of doing a hatchet job? 🙂
I am accusing you of knowing what you are doing.
:-)
Oh dear, my humour is not being caught very much in this thread! I was
teasing because in the previous line you had told me I am "cleaver". and >>> earlier in the thread you had referred to "mussel memory", which I said
sounded fishy ...
My spelling is so bad I did not know the difference.
I went to Publik Skool. Graduated with honors too.
I could barely read, write. Did home work maybe
three times out of four years of Hi Skool. My math
was pretty good though. When I hit Uni, oh holy ....
It was like I'd never been to skool. Graduated
with honors again, but this time I earned it.
The education system is amazing.
It's just like that machine that makes coleslaw.
Paul
On 9/2/26 9:53 PM, Paul wrote:
On Wed, 9/2/2026 11:06 PM, T wrote:
On 9/1/26 7:52 PM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
On 2026/9/1 16:22:28, T wrote:
On 9/1/26 5:56 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
Are you accusing me of doing a hatchet job? 🙂
I am accusing you of knowing what you are doing.
:-)
Oh dear, my humour is not being caught very much in this thread! I was >>>> teasing because in the previous line you had told me I am "cleaver". and >>>> earlier in the thread you had referred to "mussel memory", which I said >>>> sounded fishy ...
My spelling is so bad I did not know the difference.
I went to Publik Skool. Graduated with honors too.
I could barely read, write. Did home work maybe
three times out of four years of Hi Skool. My math
was pretty good though. When I hit Uni, oh holy ....
It was like I'd never been to skool. Graduated
with honors again, but this time I earned it.
The education system is amazing.
It's just like that machine that makes coleslaw.
Paul
I got to watch it first hand as an adult when my sister,
who became a publik grade skool teacher, was correcting
papers and said, "oh this kid can't read, so we just pass
him through".
On Thu, 9/3/2026 1:14 AM, T wrote:
On 9/2/26 9:53 PM, Paul wrote:
On Wed, 9/2/2026 11:06 PM, T wrote:
On 9/1/26 7:52 PM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
On 2026/9/1 16:22:28, T wrote:
On 9/1/26 5:56 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
Are you accusing me of doing a hatchet job? 🙂
I am accusing you of knowing what you are doing.
:-)
Oh dear, my humour is not being caught very much in this thread! I was >>>>> teasing because in the previous line you had told me I am "cleaver". and >>>>> earlier in the thread you had referred to "mussel memory", which I said >>>>> sounded fishy ...
My spelling is so bad I did not know the difference.
I went to Publik Skool. Graduated with honors too.
I could barely read, write. Did home work maybe
three times out of four years of Hi Skool. My math
was pretty good though. When I hit Uni, oh holy ....
It was like I'd never been to skool. Graduated
with honors again, but this time I earned it.
(I'm still trying to process that comment!)The education system is amazing.
It's just like that machine that makes coleslaw.
Paul
I got to watch it first hand as an adult when my sister,
who became a publik grade skool teacher, was correcting
papers and said, "oh this kid can't read, so we just pass
him through".
When I went through, they weren't passing people back then.
This very occasionally led to some sad cases.
But passing people isn't very clever either.
Paul
On 2026/9/3 7:18:50, Paul wrote:
I have always thought the US usage of that term is far more sensible
than the UK one! Here, "public school" means, usually, one of the
high-class ones; I've never been too sure why they use that name. (I've
heard it suggested it means they're open to any member of the public who
can afford them - but that's not correct in all cases, as many of them
have entrance exam.s too.) What the US calls public schools we tend to
call state schools.
--(I'm still trying to process that comment!)It's just like that machine that makes coleslaw.
But passing people isn't very clever either.Agreed. I don't know what the solution_is_, but that's not it.
Paul
On 9/3/26 5:47 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
But passing people isn't very clever either.Agreed. I don't know what the solution_is_, but that's not it.
Paul
Easy
1) permanently get rid of the Department of Education. They
took us from the top of the industrial world in education
to the bottom.
2) turn education over to the states where it belongs
3) states turn education over to the municipalities,
where it is best monitored
4) set state testing standard every kid has to pass
5) get rid of the stupid Teaching/Education degrees.
Most private school won't take teacher with them. And
they wipe the floor with publik skools. They use
on the job training. These ridiculous requirements
are political payback. Creates ajos for educaors
6) get rid of politics from the Publik skools. No DEI,
no gender Studies, no grooming, etc.. Teach what is expected
in 4 above.
7) teach what the kids need to know, see 4 above: reading
(phonics, not look see), writing, math (not modern math),
civics, finance, history (not the 1619 project!), oration.
And no "underwater lesbian badmitten" either.
8) privatize the Publik Skools. Get rid of the skool
boards and place the responsibility in the County
commissioners. If the skool does not meet state standards
in its testing results, fire them and hire someone else.
Skool board are manly populated by guess who. Oh no self
interest there!
9) decertify the teachers unions.
10) have reasonable financing, not political payback.
Utah spends the least per child and has the highest
results. It is not an accident. The more we spend, the
worse education gets.
11) pass regulation that limit the number of administrators
to teachers ratio to a reasonable standard. I believe France
use to have 11 to 1. Last I heard we had 2 to 1 or worse.
If you can't do, you teach. If you can't teach, you
become and administrator. It is absolutely insane that
you change text books every year to keep an education consultant
in a job. 11 to 1 sounds good.
There is a lot of corruption in our education system. And
any teacher that passes a kid through that can't read,
should be fired and walked to the door, including my sister,
But there is a fly in the ointment. A particular political
party, no names mentioned, has over half of its delegates
to its conventions are teachers/educators. And that is
here all the corruptions starts.
5) get rid of the stupid Teaching/Education degrees. Most private school won't take teacher with them. And they wipe the floor with publik
skools. They use on the job training. These ridiculous requirements
are political payback. Creates ajos for educaors
On Sat, 5 Sep 2026 11:41:47 -0700, T wrote:
5) get rid of the stupid Teaching/Education degrees. Most private school
won't take teacher with them. And they wipe the floor with publik
skools. They use on the job training. These ridiculous requirements
are political payback. Creates ajos for educaors
You need some control. I very briefly 'taught' math and science to 7th and 8th grade kids. I graduated from an engineering school so I knew the
material but I had no idea how to teach, prepare lesson plans, and all
that good stuff. The idea was I would work for certification.
It was a bad choice all around.
On 9/5/26 8:26 PM, rbowman wrote:
On Sat, 5 Sep 2026 11:41:47 -0700, T wrote:
5) get rid of the stupid Teaching/Education degrees. Most private school >>> won't take teacher with them. And they wipe the floor with publik
skools. They use on the job training. These ridiculous requirements
are political payback. Creates ajos for educaors
You need some control. I very briefly 'taught' math and science to 7th
and
8th grade kids. I graduated from an engineering school so I knew the
material but I had no idea how to teach, prepare lesson plans, and all
that good stuff. The idea was I would work for certification.
It was a bad choice all around.
Did they have you work under a teacher that mentored you?
Or did they just throw you into the water?
Private school turn away folks with education degrees and
use on the job training in place of it. That is control.
And all schools should meet state and community standards.
That is control too.
Just not political payback make work control.
I keep thinking about what you said. It definitely sounds like
they threw you into the water without any or adequate
mentoring or training. The thought makes my knees week.
Let me just say I am glad you survived and are here still
to share with use today and are not in a straight jacket
somewhere.
On 9/6/26 1:26 AM, T wrote:
On 9/5/26 8:26 PM, rbowman wrote:
On Sat, 5 Sep 2026 11:41:47 -0700, T wrote:
5) get rid of the stupid Teaching/Education degrees. Most private school >>>> won't take teacher with them. And they wipe the floor with publik
skools. They use on the job training. These ridiculous requirements >>>> are political payback. Creates ajos for educaors
You need some control. I very briefly 'taught' math and science to 7th and >>> 8th grade kids. I graduated from an engineering school so I knew the
material but I had no idea how to teach, prepare lesson plans, and all
that good stuff. The idea was I would work for certification.
It was a bad choice all around.
Did they have you work under a teacher that mentored you?
Or did they just throw you into the water?
Private school turn away folks with education degrees and
use on the job training in place of it. That is control.
And all schools should meet state and community standards.
That is control too.
Just not political payback make work control.
I keep thinking about what you said. It definitely sounds like
they threw you into the water without any or adequate
mentoring or training. The thought makes my knees week.
Let me just say I am glad you survived and are here still
to share with use today and are not in a straight jacket
somewhere.
On 2026/9/6 9:57:25, T wrote:
[]
I keep thinking about what you said. It definitely sounds like
they threw you into the water without any or adequate
mentoring or training. The thought makes my knees week.
Let me just say I am glad you survived and are here still
to share with use today and are not in a straight jacket
somewhere.
Since we're talking about education: 6/10, see me after class - "week"
should be "weak", and (common error this one) it's a "straitjacket" (all
one word) - strait meaning restraint (as in a narrow stretch of water
than has to be navigated with care, such as the Hormuz one).
On Sun, 9/6/2026 5:26 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
On 2026/9/6 9:57:25, T wrote:
[]
I keep thinking about what you said. It definitely sounds like
they threw you into the water without any or adequate
mentoring or training. The thought makes my knees week.
Let me just say I am glad you survived and are here still
to share with use today and are not in a straight jacket
somewhere.
Since we're talking about education: 6/10, see me after class - "week"
should be "weak", and (common error this one) it's a "straitjacket" (all
one word) - strait meaning restraint (as in a narrow stretch of water
than has to be navigated with care, such as the Hormuz one).
For one day here, all the news articles referred to "Straight of Hormuz".
I mean, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. That was the first
day of reporting on the area.
News editors used to be grumpy individuals, who would yell at
reporters for doing stuff like that. It's "Strait of Hormuz".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strait_of_Hormuz
Did they have you work under a teacher that mentored you?
Or did they just throw you into the water?
I keep thinking about what you said. It definitely sounds like they
threw you into the water without any or adequate mentoring or training.
The thought makes my knees week.
Let me just say I am glad you survived and are here still to share with
use today and are not in a straight jacket somewhere.
On 9/5/26 8:26 PM, rbowman wrote:
On Sat, 5 Sep 2026 11:41:47 -0700, T wrote:
5) get rid of the stupid Teaching/Education degrees. Most private school >>> won't take teacher with them. And they wipe the floor with publik
skools. They use on the job training. These ridiculous requirements
are political payback. Creates ajos for educaors
You need some control. I very briefly 'taught' math and science to 7th
and
8th grade kids. I graduated from an engineering school so I knew the
material but I had no idea how to teach, prepare lesson plans, and all
that good stuff. The idea was I would work for certification.
It was a bad choice all around.
Did they have you work under a teacher that mentored you?
Or did they just throw you into the water?
Private school turn away folks with education degrees and
use on the job training in place of it.
That is control.--
And all schools should meet state and community standards.
That is control too.
Just not political payback make work control.
Can we take this somewhere else? It's way off-topic for any Windows
'group. I tried eternal-september.talk, but that doesn't allow crossposts.
On 2026/9/5 19:41:47, T wrote:
On 9/3/26 5:47 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
But passing people isn't very clever either.Agreed. I don't know what the solution_is_, but that's not it.
Paul
Easy
For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong. - H.L.Mencken
1) permanently get rid of the Department of Education. They
took us from the top of the industrial world in education
to the bottom.
Presumably they were created for a reason. That reason may no longer be valid, or even never was - but it needs investigating before you discard
it arbitrarily.>
2) turn education over to the states where it belongs
Hmm. Some states would push one religion, certainly above all others and would suppress even learning about the others, and in extremis above science.>
3) states turn education over to the municipalities,
where it is best monitored
4) set state testing standard every kid has to pass
How do you achieve that: what do you do about/with the kids that just
don't? Force them to go round and round again - until what age? And then there are three possible reasons (at least) why they won't: either
they're just thick (so what do you do with them?), or they genuinely
have difficulty with certain subjects (need for special teachers), or
they - or more likely their parents - are ideologically opposed to the concept, either in single subjects or to the whole concept of (state, or
in some cases any) education.
5) get rid of the stupid Teaching/Education degrees.
Most private school won't take teacher with them. And
they wipe the floor with publik skools. They use
on the job training. These ridiculous requirements
are political payback. Creates ajos for educaors
There is _some_ value in teaching qualifications; if it's not meeting
the requirements, tweak it (extensively if necessary). But I agree if
you're saying that someone having _only_ such a qualification should not
be employed.
But on the whole private schools succeed better because they have more resources - partly equipment where relevant, but mainly class sizes,
plus the ability to exclude disruptive students.
6) get rid of politics from the Publik skools. No DEI,
no gender Studies, no grooming, etc.. Teach what is expected
in 4 above.
I am with you to some extent there - so-called political correctness has
in many cases gone too far. But, equally, throwing them out altogether
is not the answer either: you may produce bigots, bullies, or other such problems.
7) teach what the kids need to know, see 4 above: reading
A repeat of your 6, mostly.
(phonics, not look see), writing, math (not modern math),
civics, finance, history (not the 1619 project!), oration.
Why do you think history is important? I happen to agree with you, but
many would ask why it matters.
And no "underwater lesbian badmitten" either.
Do you mean badminton?
But see above about political correctness. (It
also sounds as if you - even if you don't realise it - have something _against_ gays. I certainly don't think there should be _advocacy_, but _tolerance_ should be taught [ideally at home, but not all parents are tolerant]. Or do you disagree, and favour gay-bashing? [If you say I'm
going too far, where _would_ you draw whatever line you advocate?])
8) privatize the Publik Skools. Get rid of the skool
boards and place the responsibility in the County
commissioners. If the skool does not meet state standards
in its testing results, fire them and hire someone else.
Who? I don't know the details of the US system, but what would be the difference between the "school boards" and the "county commissioners" -
and how would you prevent the latter turning into the former if you gave
them the same responsibility?
Skool board are manly populated by guess who. Oh no self
interest there!
I won't try to guess.
9) decertify the teachers unions.
What do you mean by decertify? And, if you mean just depower them
somewhat, good luck in finding enough teachers.
10) have reasonable financing, not political payback.
Utah spends the least per child and has the highest
I suspect Utah is one of the less tolerant states.
results. It is not an accident. The more we spend, the
worse education gets.
Certainly, spending more does not guarantee improvement. But cutting
funding doesn't help either. Certainly, expose (and thus kill)
"political payback" wherever possible, if by that you mean someone profits.
11) pass regulation that limit the number of administrators
to teachers ratio to a reasonable standard. I believe France
use to have 11 to 1. Last I heard we had 2 to 1 or worse.
If you can't do, you teach. If you can't teach, you
become and administrator. It is absolutely insane that
you change text books every year to keep an education consultant
in a job. 11 to 1 sounds good.
I can't comment. (Other than to say that you need _some_ control.)
There is a lot of corruption in our education system. And
any teacher that passes a kid through that can't read,
should be fired and walked to the door, including my sister,
I agree, no result should be falsified - that doesn't help the kid
either, in the long run. But see above about what you _do_ with kids
that don't pass. You can't _force_ knowledge into a child (or, even more
so, most adults!), despite what the Victorians (or US equivalent) thought.
I can guess which side you mean. But the other side thinks the solution
But there is a fly in the ointment. A particular political
party, no names mentioned, has over half of its delegates
to its conventions are teachers/educators. And that is
here all the corruptions starts.
to school violence is to arm the teachers, so both are as bad as each
other - well, I think one is worse than the other, but almost certainly
not the same one you do. (Having only the two parties - and many on both sides having a closed mind - doesn't help.)
Basically, the Mencken quote I started with is extremely relevant: the
whole subject of education is NOT simple. Most of the apparently-simple solutions have been tried; some did some good, some did more harm than
good, often unintentionally and often unforeseen.
On 2026/9/6 9:57:25, T wrote:
[]
I keep thinking about what you said. It definitely sounds like
they threw you into the water without any or adequate
mentoring or training. The thought makes my knees week.
Let me just say I am glad you survived and are here still
to share with use today and are not in a straight jacket
somewhere.
Since we're talking about education: 6/10, see me after class - "week"
should be "weak", and (common error this one) it's a "straitjacket" (all
one word) - strait meaning restraint (as in a narrow stretch of water
than has to be navigated with care, such as the Hormuz one).
On 9/5/26 12:33 PM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:I'm not conceding defeat - just (a) can't be bothered to keep replying
Can we take this somewhere else? It's way off-topic for any Windows
'group. I tried eternal-september.talk, but that doesn't allow crossposts. []
I was taught "look see" instead of phonics. I am a prime
example of the affect of corruption in our Public Skool
system
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