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The Bolivarian VIT C2660, powered by a 2.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor. (Source: VIT)
One more South American nation hops on the open source bandwagon

The Venezuelan government is the latest administration to jump ship when it comes to Microsoft Windows.

The "Bolivarian Computer," a locally built PC and notebook line, is now available in four different models -- all of which use the Linux operating system.  The low-cost Linux-based laptop and desktops are currently available for government programs and workers, but should eventually hit the open market for all Venezuelan citizens soon.

Venezuela de Industria Tecnologica (VIT), owned by the Inspur Group, working alongside the Venezuelan government, hope to manufacture 80,000 desktops and 6,000 notebooks in the trial run.  If the initiative picks up, the factory where the products are manufactured can create up to 150,000 products every year.

Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez personally announced the lineup last week, claiming the systems will range from $405 up to $1,400 USD.

One motherboard representative, who spoke under the condition that DailyTech would not reveal his name or employer, states that Venezuela is able to achieve such a low price point by implementing a proven manufacturing process already prevalent in Brazilian PCs.  "It's called CKD, Complete Knock Down. Instead of doing the surface mount in China or Taiwan, we ship all the components to Venezuela and the boards are assembled there."

Not only does CKD reduce the tariffs for the component manufacturer, but it also frees the manufacturer from any service and warranty woes.  Inspur Group will be responsible for any in-field servicing or repairs of the new machines.

Once demand inside the country dies down, Chavez also promised the computers would become a principle export for the country.  The government will donate the first several thousand computers to medical students studying in Venezuela.

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The software is open source - not the press...
By jskirwin on 6/22/2007 10:24:27 AM , Rating: 5
So Hugo is embracing open source software while at the same time he moves the country towards a "proprietary" press by shutting down any media outlet critical of his administration.

Am I the only who appreciates the irony?




RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By gersson on 6/22/2007 10:41:23 AM , Rating: 4
he embodies the inert hypocrisy in human beings. He's just not good @ hiding it.


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By jarman on 6/22/2007 11:14:32 AM , Rating: 5
While I would love to debate your obvious disdain for Bush, do us all a favor and keep your politics off of a great "tech" news site...


By rippleyaliens on 6/22/2007 12:24:24 PM , Rating: 1
Correct. It is not like Bush RUns the entire country. Bush is just a pawn to the game. Blame goes to congress, the senate.. and the local governers, and politicians.
The US has turned itself into a cuban like country so to say. 2 Classes,, rich and well poor like me. Poor meaning less than 1 million in value.
Hugo has a good plan, install linux machines and such. Force the way for open source. BUT that also teashes his country, that free is good, and you shouldnt pay for anything. Open source is cool feature, except that those opensouce fanatics will start to get really upset, when they realize that with free stuf out there, why pay for anything.
Open office, is cool, but when the 17yr old fee peeps, or the people that support the notion of opensource, find themselves without jobs, as companies can get it free. Well the point will hit home hard then.. Welcome to 3rd world , open source people


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By hubajube on 6/22/2007 12:47:29 PM , Rating: 1
Dude, we are nothing like Cuba in any shape or form. I and MILLIONS of others own homes, cars, can MORE than afford to eat what we want, own as many clothes as we desire, and even give what money we have left and time away to help those less fortunate. Rich is not the only path to a comfortable life. I am NOT anywhere near rich but I live comfortably. This life only requires SOME education and a career job.

My sister-in-law and her husband have no degree yet earn double what my wife and I earn (I almost have a BS degree and she has her Masters). My sis-in-law has been working the same job for 15 years and has moved up enough to get really decent pay (more than me or my wife) and her husband flips houses for a living.

The middle class (see above) is what keeps the ball rolling here. There just aren't enough rich people in America (you're looking at 5% of the population) to consume enough to keep us running like we do. In order for us to become third world, the rich would literally have to take over a chunk of our buying power AND would have to drop our wages considerably. Just not going to happen.


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By mcnabney on 6/22/2007 2:13:49 PM , Rating: 5
You haven't been paying attention have you?

Real wages are either down or stagnant. The middle-class lifestyle is floating on top of an ocean of debt. A massive chunk of the nation is just making the minimum monthly payments and hoping nothing bad happens. The only reason that inflation hasn't rushed in to knock the whole precariously balanced system down is because of cheap Chinese imports and cheap, often illegal, labor from Central America.


By Omega215D on 6/22/2007 3:01:28 PM , Rating: 2
And when I hear stuff like this I get mad about the story on how our city council members voted themselves a pay raise when they didn't do much to help out our district in our city. They make nearly 6 figures as it is.


By encryptkeeper on 6/22/2007 5:57:26 PM , Rating: 4
and yet, the middle class has more cars then ever, bigger houses then ever, more free time then ever, more phones, more food, etc...

Unfortunately you have more time to troll on Daily Tech as well. Actually, if you look up true figures for the Bush tax "cuts" you'll find that they increased overall tax revenue, which was the goal the whole time. The bad thing is, the overall cuts MOST affect the rich, not the people who work 40 and 50 hour weeks just to get by. The cuts need to be for the middle class since they represent the most of the population in the US (except they won't because they don't run large companies that have lots of lobbying power). The other thing is that forcing middle class citizens to borrow so they can live puts the whole country in more debt, which we don't need to do. Finally, the economy is nearly stagnant, and almost in recession. The tax cuts were SUPPOSED to prevent that. Besides, remember back in about 1994 you were more heavily taxed overall but your dollar had more buying power. Basically, putting us in MORE debt makes things much worse than we realize, and when the debts are due, it'll be hell for a lot of people.


By rsmech on 6/24/2007 12:57:30 AM , Rating: 1
quote:
The bad thing is, the overall cuts MOST affect the rich, not the people who work 40 and 50 hour weeks just to get by. The cuts need to be for the middle class since they represent the most of the population in the US


Have tax revenues went up or down since the tax cuts?

If taxes are high the rich shelter there money. If they are low they keep more & spend more.

quote:
The other thing is that forcing middle class citizens to borrow so they can live


You are sooo spoiled. Nobody forces the middle class to borrow. How many TV's, computers, dvd player, HDdvd player, cell phones for kids, too many vacations, too big of a house, go out to eat too much. I could go on & on. None of these are a necessity. The middle class are just a bunch of Jones's.

quote:
remember back in about 1994 you were more heavily taxed


I don't know where you live, but my state & local Gov't taxes have more than mad up for any tax break I got from the Feds.


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By Munkles on 6/22/2007 4:35:07 PM , Rating: 5
I'm sorry to all the intelligent Daily Tech readers but I cannot abide by this person speaking so poorly about subjects he does not truly understand.

Mcnabney,

Not all middle class is floating on mounds of debt. I recently moved out on my own making ~35k per year and I comfortably can afford housing, food, car, a girlfriend, and even have money left over to enjoy the little things in life like FAST internet, and games to play in my spare time. The oceans of debt you speak of would exist regaurdless if everyone made over 10 million a year and cost of living remained the same.

That debt exists because of peoples desire to live out side their means. I have NO debt, and I do not plan on having debt. I break no bones about it! I drive a car from '99 (still runs very well) and I buy my clothes from Kohl's (when on sale) not from Saks.

When people CHOOSE to live a life they cannot have you end up with "oceans" of debt. It has nothing to do with the working man not making enough.

I CHOOSE to work hard, and I will continue to do so until my wage meets what I feel that I am worth.... then double that.

To even assert that the American middle class is "poor" is to not understand being poor. Poor is having a hole in the ground to crap in. Poor is not having potable running water, poor is having dirt floors and a 1 room hut for all 6 family members, poor is only being able to afford a couple meals a week. Poor is NOT not owning an '07 car, or not being able to buy the "good beer" or not being able to go out to eat whenever you feel like it.

I am LIVING my American dream. Why aren't you?


By Ringold on 6/22/2007 4:48:35 PM , Rating: 2
And lets all be intellectually honest here, too. Debt isn't evil, excessive debt taken on by those too lazy to understand it is. Debt such as reasonable mortgages for homes one can afford, vehicles, and other applications like for business is very much constructive, allowing an individual to bring forward future income to the present and accomplish a large goal now -- especially if internal rates of return are favorable, be they measured in dollars or "utils".

Focusing on the minority, such as probably many of those 75% of High School students in Detroit who fail to graduate, is misleading of the earlier posters. Anything that also looks as statements along the lines of "the bottom half" is also baseless; unless we're all identical drones, there's always going to be a bottom half to any distribution...


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By hubajube on 6/22/2007 4:52:49 PM , Rating: 1
Thanks Munkles. We Americans really lose sight of reality in our "bubbles". I read that the average credit card debt is $8000. That is NOT $8000 PER family, it's an average across all families. Some debts will be higher and others will be lower. Honestly, that's really not all that bad. I think the "scare" over debt is because Americans are saving less and that puts the fear of God into a LOT of older Americans. Of course, we don't know where that money that was being shoved under the mattress "back in the day" is going to now. Could it be retirement? My wife and I have about three months stashed for emergencies but other than that we don't have anything saved. I'd rather put extra money in my retirement instead having to depend a on possibly non-existent social security or just having money sitting around not doing anything.


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By Ringold on 6/22/2007 4:57:33 PM , Rating: 3
quote:
My wife and I have about three months stashed for emergencies but other than that we don't have anything saved. I'd rather put extra money in my retirement instead having to depend a on possibly non-existent social security or just having money sitting around not doing anything.


You've just displayed more serious forethought and responsibility than most people. :) If social security is severely cut and millions of aging irresponsible hippies whine about not being able to afford the lifestyles they once did while working and not saving you and your wife may end up, like my own retired parents who sacked away between 1/4 and 1/2 of every paycheck all their lives, wondering what in the hell all the fuss is over. They make more now retired than they did working!


By hubajube on 6/22/2007 5:25:49 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
They make more now retired than they did working!
That's our plan but we'd have to move out of California for that to happen. It's just WAY too expensive here. Only reason we're still here is that I see being successful here as a sort of conquest.
quote:
You've just displayed more serious forethought and responsibility than most people. :)
Thanks for the complement. We just don't want to be poor when we retire. I'd personally rather die at work before going through that.


By Spivonious on 6/23/2007 9:50:45 PM , Rating: 3
All the more reason to drop SS completely. Wasn't it started as a temporary relief effort in the 30s?


By FITCamaro on 6/22/2007 3:36:27 PM , Rating: 3
Umm..my value is far less than $1 million. I am by no means poor. I'm by no means rich either.

Maybe someone should tea c h you to spell.


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By nayy on 6/22/2007 3:37:44 PM , Rating: 1
I think this is a complicated issue, I would describe DT as a Tech news site with open discussion forum in which sometimes users end up discussing politcs, ethics, religious believes, etc. Occasionally deviating some much from the original subject that it may be hard remember what the article was about.
I’m not saying I like this way, in more than one occasion I have read comments that I find insulting, but the same person how made it, may be giving a very insightful technological comment in an other article. It would be too hard for DT staff to clean the place, many comments are political and technological, and they can’t delete whatever they don’t like because that would be censorship. But we do have the power to rate down, so you can either use it or avoid reading any thread discussing a political issue.
But don’t make it personal just because you don’t agree with his view, is not about HIS politics, everybody is entitled to an opinion and if everyone else is speaking his mind so can he.
Last thing the article was about open-source software in Venezuela, or so the titled said, I think it talked more about hardware :-)


By mep916 on 6/26/2007 1:59:57 PM , Rating: 2
Some appear to be annoyed by the direction this discussion has moved toward - I think it is awesome. American history, politics, economics, and other important issues have been thoughtfully addressed.

Often, these issues are discussed very irrationally in the media and the commentators opinions do not represent how the American people truly think. Although this site is an unusual place to have this discussion, I am glad we are having it here, opposed to not addressing these issues at all.

Thank you everyone for your excellent commentary!


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By mezman on 6/22/2007 5:00:07 PM , Rating: 2
He wasn't saying you shouldn't be able to bring up your political views, he's saying that you simply should leave them outside a discussion of linux desktops for Venezuela, you idiot. It was more of a "Shut your pie-hole" statement. Which I whole heartedly agree with I might add.

As an aside, it's such a tired tact for people to make inflammatory statements and then when someone calls them on it, hide behind the First Amendment, which has nothing to do with discourse between two individuals. The First Amendment is a clause to protect the speech of citizens from the government, not other citizens.


By retrospooty on 6/23/2007 10:58:59 AM , Rating: 2
Agree or not, its an awful long thread with many participants. Its not about the 1st amendment at all, agreed. I really don't care where you think I should post. I have been coming to AT/DT for nearly a decade, and will post as I please, "pie hole gaping" as it may be. You always have the option to not read it.


By bobdelt on 6/24/2007 9:51:40 AM , Rating: 1
I suggest you learn how to spell before you try to discuss politics. Not only do you look foolish, but also your arguement does as well.


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By mneilson on 6/22/2007 10:55:28 AM , Rating: 3
Implying that "Dubbya" is in any way worse than Hugo Chavez is insensitive to the people who actually live under the torturous reign of Chavez. You might not like what is going on in the USA all the time, but the fact that you even have the right to say such things on message boards proves how much better we have it than Venezuela. Get a grip with reality, stop bashing Bush every chance you get, and grow up a bit.


By SeeManRun on 6/22/2007 11:11:54 AM , Rating: 5
First off, I am a Canadian, so my views may be skewed. Second off, it is completely ignorant to think Bush is the reason America is deemed a "free" country. He has done more to harm your great country than any preceding president. Limited your freedoms more, upset other countries more, damaged your economy more. Perhaps saying he is equal to Chavez is a little harsh, but make no mistake, he is not the angel by comparison you make him out to be.


By retrospooty on 6/22/2007 11:14:57 AM , Rating: 5
"He (Bush) has done more to harm your great country than any preceding president."

Totally agreed - And I am a patriotic American. I love my country and what it stands for and I am absolutly sick to my stomach to watch what he has done, and continues to do.


By knowyourenemy on 6/22/2007 11:20:38 AM , Rating: 4
Agreed.


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By kattanna on 6/22/2007 11:26:24 AM , Rating: 3
yes, it saddens me to think the only reason bush hasnt been impeached yet, or worse shot, is because we want cheney for president even less.


By knowyourenemy on 6/22/2007 11:33:14 AM , Rating: 2
Yea, every time a thought like that crosses my mind (concerning Bush), the latter appears while I start to form a cringe in my face.


By masteraleph on 6/22/2007 11:48:23 AM , Rating: 4
As a history teacher I'd have to say that James Buchanan (President 1857-1861) was worse. You know, the guy who was bribing congress to approve Kansas as a slave state? The one who refused to take any action at the end of his term for months while states seceded, leading to the Civil War? That guy?


By Murst on 6/22/2007 11:55:20 AM , Rating: 2
Imagine if Aaron Burr got Hamilton's vote instead of Thomas Jefferson!


By hubajube on 6/22/2007 12:14:04 PM , Rating: 2
99% of people only care about what's happening now not what happened in past history (or even recent history for that matter). It's really a shame as we could put things in their proper perspective instead overreacting.


By SeeManRun on 6/22/2007 12:33:47 PM , Rating: 2
I stand corrected. We learn European history up here in Canada. My bad.


By Spivonious on 6/22/2007 12:39:38 PM , Rating: 2
Blaming Buchanan for the Civil War is ridiculous. Nothing was going to stop it at that point.


By Spivonious on 6/22/2007 4:31:13 PM , Rating: 2
Why am I rated down for this?


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By Ringold on 6/22/2007 4:43:52 PM , Rating: 4
Possibly because Buchanan certainly doesn't deserve to be defended. He was a lame duck disaster that sat back and watched the house of cards fall around him.

Speaking of Bush limiting freedom more than any other, and the civil war, it should be noted that Lincoln was essentially a dictator in every measure that counts for duration of the Civil War, and the entire Reconstruction era after the Civil War wasn't exactly a nice ball of democracy. In almost every war parts of the consitution have been suspended in order to assure the long-term survival of the entire document, and after every conflict such restrictions have been lifted. During these conflicted times, the Supreme Court has additionally typically upheld these restrictions (later to strike them down once the problems have passed).

But liberals probably don't want to go to the bother to learn all of that and qualify their statements. It wouldn't sound nearly as bad.


By Spivonious on 6/23/2007 9:48:59 PM , Rating: 2
Oh I totally agree about Lincoln and the whole Reconstruction era. It was a sad time for the U.S.

I have to support Buchanan because he's from my hometown! :) Yay for Lancaster.

Please suggest what Buchanan could have done to stop the Civil War. "I'm sorry, could you please not secede from the union?" At the point B was president events were already set in motion.


By Ringold on 6/24/2007 3:06:33 PM , Rating: 1
I'll concede Buchanan couldn't of stopped it, but it just would've looked nicer for the history books if he'd TRIED. ;)

It seems to me it was even necessary to have the war to permanently, for all of time, to decisively close the door left open intentionally or not by the framers, but still. From the day Lincoln took office till the day the war concluded he worked tirelessly both on the back-door diplomatic (war with Mexico!) and military fronts. Lincoln's a hard guy to have to measure up to, but Buchanan was more of a Jimmy Carter than a Abe Lincoln, heheh.


By rsmech on 6/24/2007 1:13:23 AM , Rating: 2
Don't you know that history evolves around there lives not the dead. History for many didn't start until they were born. Many peoples perspective is limited. Trying not to sound too harsh against previous posts, I fall victim to the same trap also.


By blaster5k on 6/22/2007 1:16:15 PM , Rating: 3
I haven't seen any of my freedoms go away under Bush. I saw some go away with DMCA, but that was under the Clinton administration -- and supported by all in the pockets of the entertainment industry.

Bush may not be a particularly effective leader, but I don't think he's quite as bad as some make him out to be. Definitely not the worst president of all time, but far from the best.


By TxJeepers on 6/22/2007 2:08:23 PM , Rating: 4
But thank God we are here and do what we do, no matter how bad it seems sometimes. Canada, like many other countries sleeps better at night knowing that the big bad USA is doing its thing. Maybe, a little off the subject but wanted to say it.
All the finger pointing and blaming is so old. How does it go? When you are pointing, three fingers are pointing back at you.
Do something! Become active. Make the phone calls to your politicians. Send them emails. Be a thorn in their butt to get them to do what we want.
Big business runs this country. Congress is so pitiful these days, it makes me sad thinking about it. I see and hear more about relection crap then these people taking action on important subjects.
I'm tired of politicians. We need to vote in people of action, who will make things happen and not these people who only care about being a politician their entire career.
I could go on and on. So much depth to this, but so little time and this is not the place.


By FITCamaro on 6/22/2007 3:42:34 PM , Rating: 1
You can whine about us loosing freedoms all you want. I notice no change. The only people this country is less free for now than before is criminals. Unless you're an illegal alien (which seem to forget they're criminals).

I've had a gun to my head from "Big Brother" and still think its a good idea. It stops people who trully are doing things wrong. Sure I had to endure a few hours of answering questions for something I had nothing to do with. But if thats the price I have to pay to be safe and to stop sickos and criminals, I'll gladly do it.

As far as our economy. Last I checked unemployment is down, the dollar is rising in value, and wages are up in engineering professions(which I'm in). The only thing we need to work on is getting employers not to outsource jobs or bring in as many foreigners to work.

I voted for Bush. No, I'm not completely happy with the way things are right now. But thats mostly on the immigration issue. However, I think things are far better than they would have been with Kerry in office.


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By Ringold on 6/22/2007 5:07:00 PM , Rating: 2
To flush out your point on the economy to fend off the nit-picking attack I sense coming (a disturbance in the force), if one were to look at the buying power of the bottom half of America now as compared to a decade ago one would discover quite a nice improvement.

Not as good of an improvement as the "white collar" professional class, but that's to be expected. Engineers do four or more years of rigorous college work, as to investment bankers, executives and so forth, and entrepenuers who start small businesses and happen to strike gold took initiative and financial risk even if they didn't graduate high school. It's only natural such individuals be rewarded more than only the high-school educated and high school drop-outs.

Oh, and unemployment isn't just low, it's hovering right around theoretical maximum or full employment. In some places, like here in Florida, it's beyond even that and before too long needs to go up a bit. Job interviews for college grads has turned in many cases completely around such that recruiters are trying to convince grads to work for them, not the other way around!

If this is what people think of as a bad economy I really would like to know what they think a good one looks like! It sure as hell isn't Venezeula's, which is rapidly tanking, and has been interestingly since capitalist reforms were rolled back and industries nationalized.


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By hubajube on 6/22/2007 5:18:17 PM , Rating: 3
I really don't understand why people keep saying the economy is bad when the Dow is in record territory and the unemployment is damn low. Even though it dropped 185 points today, it's STILL higher than it's ever been! Maybe some are equating the housing market with the economy.


By FITCamaro on 6/23/2007 8:31:34 AM , Rating: 1
Well the issue with the housing market is that in some ways it is a good indicator of the economy. If people are making more, more houses are bought since people can afford them. Also the housing industry is a lot of jobs. Of course, more and more of those jobs go to illegal aliens every day because they're so desperate that they'll work for $20 a day. An honest, taxpaying American can't do that.

Of course to get rid of all the illegal immigrants in this country, all we have to do is start actually enforcing our own laws. If we start heavily fining companies who hire illegal immigrants, they'll stop hiring them. Then, the illegals will leave because they can't find work.

In Palm Bay, Florida they wanted to pass a law that would fine businesses who hired illegal aliens. The second offense would result in their business license being pulled. The bill was rejected because liberals claimed that was being racist against hispanics. It's already a federal law for this to happen.

And for the next president, my vot will largely go to whoever is for working towards getting these criminals, who bleed our system dry and then demand (not ask) that they be given citizenship, out of our great country and helping to ensure that they can't get back in nearly as easily as they can today.


By rsmech on 6/24/2007 1:26:33 AM , Rating: 2
I'm in construction & this is just a personal opinion. One thing I have noticed is that you always had your big local builders but this last housing boom brought in a lot of national builders into many markets they were never in or didn't do much in. They come & don't just build a house they build a whole subdivision. They have the capitol that the local guys never had. Not finding fault but it's just a supply & demand issue. The supply is very high so work stops until it's used up.


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By AndreasM on 6/23/2007 1:51:24 PM , Rating: 3
quote:
the dollar is rising in value,


Welcome to Planet Earth. From where do you hail?


By Ringold on 6/23/2007 3:18:18 PM , Rating: 2
http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/DTWEXM...

I wouldn't say it's rising either versus many key currencies, but considering the correlation between boom,bust and the value of the dollar seems flimsy (relative strength during recessions in the 70s, 80s, and 90s, relative weakness during the recession in the early 90s) I'm not sure it matters.

One would think the dollar would head north at this point if interest rates rise... but who knows. Sovereign wealth funds are unprecedented and could do odd things with currency valuation, and Democrats work at cross purposes trying to get China to appreciate the yuan rapidly. Maybe Bernanke knows where exchange rates are heading, but I don't, and the charts don't hint either.


By arazok on 6/23/2007 3:31:01 PM , Rating: 1
"He (Bush) has done more to harm your great country than any preceding president."

While I don't think Bush is the best thing to have ever happened to America, I'd have to say that Jimmy Carter was by far the worst president America ever had. They both made foreign policy mistakes, but at least Bush didn't destroy the economy.


By rsmech on 6/24/2007 1:08:09 AM , Rating: 2
I Agree to disagree with you.


By mcnabney on 6/22/2007 2:25:05 PM , Rating: 2
Just because it is worse some place else doesn't mean things are just peachy here.

The American colonists had a pretty good deal. They were doing better than much of Europe and all of the rest of the world. Our Founders thought that we could do better. I tend to agree.


By retrospooty on 6/22/2007 3:41:18 PM , Rating: 2
"Implying that "Dubbya" is in any way worse than Hugo Chavez is insensitive to the people who actually live under the torturous reign of Chavez"

No-one implied that... The comment was made that Chavez was not good at hiding his hipocracy, so I suggested he take lessons from Bush. That is all.


By rsmech on 6/24/2007 1:31:53 AM , Rating: 2
What hypocricy? Some things he's done I have liked and some not, but were is the hypocrisy?


By sxr7171 on 6/23/2007 9:52:41 PM , Rating: 2
Very good, but I think you meant inherent. In any case you are right, human nature is to get ahead and say whatever it takes to do it.


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By Murst on 6/22/2007 10:45:52 AM , Rating: 2
By using OSS, Venezuela will be able to put their spyware right into the OS, without having to rely on any 3rd party programs that can be uninstalled.

They've already proven that they'll shut down / lock up anyone who speaks out against the government. This will just let them apply the same silencing rules to email, IM, etc.


By AstroCreep on 6/22/2007 11:14:31 AM , Rating: 2
Hmmm...that didn't even occur to me when reading this article. I was like "Oh, that's kinda cool...so what's the 'catch'?".
I'm sure that when they start producing these that some online tech forum will dissect one of these systems (both hardware and software) and we'll see what's up with them.


By TwistyKat on 6/22/2007 2:18:38 PM , Rating: 1
For your consideration...

Imagine Bush & Cheney declare some kind of national security crisis in 2009 and decide not to leave office after the election of a Democrat for President. Also imagine Fox news becomes a cheerleader for this action while calling anyone opposed to it a traitor or a communist.

Then imagine that Bush & Cheney are forced out of office and on the day constitution is saved the headlining news item on Fox is a missing blond in Aruba.

Would you call this responsible journalism or the propaganda arm of a political party?

The station Chavez has a long history of dis-service to the public while being a mouthpiece for the conservatives. Not unlike Fox news is now, only more extreme if you can imagine that.

He was justified is shutting it down.


By TxJeepers on 6/22/2007 2:38:40 PM , Rating: 2
Poor Fox, has to be the mouthpiece for conservatives all by itself, while liberals get all the others.
So many so called Journalists at all of them have forgotten what real reporting is truly about. Reporting true facts. Or they never learned it. Either way, its all about the ad dollars so what can you? Me, I watch very little.
It's becoming harder and harder to find news that is not bias or full of the writers opinions.


By TwistyKat on 6/22/2007 3:09:24 PM , Rating: 2
I agree with you whole-heartedly. There are no real mainstream American journalists anymore. You have to read the fringe publications to get real investigative journalism.

I think the mainstream reporters all saw what happened to Gary Webb and learned how to shut up pretty quickly.

Nixon would never be forced to leave office in this day - which is why Bush is still in office.


By rsmech on 6/24/2007 1:36:25 AM , Rating: 2
for what reasons would he not be?


By FITCamaro on 6/23/2007 8:34:22 AM , Rating: 2
Daily Show ;)

Yes Stewart is about as liberal as they come but at least he'll make fun of both the democrats and the republicans.


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By Amiga500 on 6/22/2007 3:04:02 PM , Rating: 2
I know, its unbelieveable that half the posts in this thread are going on at Chavez for "shutting down a TV station"...

Truth is - the station is NOT shut down. The station is still available on cable, and will be for the forseeable future. The government decided not to RENEW its broadcast frequency license, which was given to another station.

Yet, don't expect Faux news to report that... after all, its the extremely rich owners of that station (that lost its license) that are in cahoots with Murdoch et al.

I'll not even bother going into the allegations on said station attempting to incite a revolution.


By KCjoker on 6/22/2007 4:26:07 PM , Rating: 2
So unless they pay for cable they can't get the channel? I wonder how many people that accounts for that can't afford it.


By Ringold on 6/22/2007 5:20:25 PM , Rating: 2
I'd like to know where you got that interesting spin on events, simply because I'd like to know who is spinning a the creation of a South American Soviet-style Iron Curtain as merely a bureaucratic scuffle over licensing.

The station is question was the sole vocal source on the national level of any serious criticism of Chavez's leadership left -- and the mostly popular station with the most popular shows (including the longest running comedy in history if I'm not mistaken) in Venezeula. When Chavez silenced other critics it bravely continued until Chavez utlimately silenced them. There is still one other station that dared speak ill of him but they've not critized him in quite a while after continuous threats that they too would get shut down.

Oh, and the license was given to a state-owned station. Interesting. I also got the impression that, with almost all of the audience gone, it was completely shutting down entirely soon.

With a leader that legally has the power to rule by decree you're really going to sit there and argue Chavez didnt shut down the station? Is there special weed from Mexico you buy that lets you see things so warped?


By wordsworm on 6/25/2007 11:01:44 AM , Rating: 2
Woohoo! Someone other than myself reads stories that are outside of the American 'free press' regime! American free press is free to omit important details that would put everything into context so that they can continue to get their collective monopoly protected by one American vanilla government after another! For whatever reason, Chavez didn't want the rich folks brainwashing the locals. What a horrible guy!

In any case, Bush II isn't nearly as bad as his father was. So far, despite his involvement in Iraq, I haven't seen any of the death squads that were routine under Bush I as president and as CIA head.

I think guys like Chavez are heroes for reclaiming Venezuelan sovereignty and pushing a true liberal agenda. Go socialism!

It's good that Chavez will save his government billions of dollars on their computers because they're choosing open source. If only the Canadian government were equally wise!


By ceefka on 6/22/2007 12:58:05 PM , Rating: 3
Calm down, at least he's not into Apple ;-)


RE: The software is open source - not the press...
By ncheran on 6/22/2007 5:38:53 PM , Rating: 3
I’m not sure where everyone is obtaining their info on Venezuelan politics. CNN? Fox? Chavez’s decision to revoke the license of one TV station does not mean a total clamp on free speech. Despite claims made by opponents of Chavez, there is no censorship in Venezuela, where 95% of the media is opposed to the government. This includes five privately owned TV stations controlling about 90% of the market. All of the country's 100 + newspaper companies are held in private hands, as are 706 out of 709 radio stations (Source: several articles from Znet). The TV station in question, RCTV, was directly implicated in the 2002 coup attempt against Chavez. (You have just got to see “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised,” an excellent documentary by a group of Irish filmmakers who happened to be there at the time. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5832390545...

Also, considering the right-wing Latin American countries that are supported by the US, how many actually have opposing media in which to shut down?

Lastly, Venezuela’s push to ween itself from Microsoft et al (including the Big Oil companies) is, you’ll have to admit, pretty courageous given how we Americans support without question the monopolies (both commercial and political) of US capitalism.


By ncheran on 6/23/2007 2:02:01 AM , Rating: 2
Dang it, "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised," or, for that matter, linked. I'll try again:
<http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5832390545...
Anyway, it's somewhere on YouTube :>


By FITCamaro on 6/23/2007 8:39:32 AM , Rating: 2
Venezuela is one of the largest oil exporters in the world. They hardly need the big oil companies. I for one though will never buy their gas (Citgo). I don't give money to dictators who openly consort with groups such as Hamas. Notice how Circle K is no longer using their fuel either.


By roguetwo on 6/23/2007 10:58:05 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
Chavez’s decision to revoke the license of one TV station does not mean a total clamp on free speech.

True, but should we (venezuelans) wait until it does?
quote:
where 95% of the media is opposed to the government

Of the 4 biggest TV stations, 2 negotiated with the goverment, 1 is sports-only, so there is only 1 critic TV station. You should check the number of the TV and radio stations the goverment control (directly or indirectly) before and after Chavez.
quote:
The TV station in question, RCTV, was directly implicated in the 2002 coup attempt against Chavez

If thats true, Why they didn`t used the judicial way (by the way, totally controlled by Chavez)?. It seems you have forgoten Chavez past....
Chavez is a "snake charmer"


By rsmech on 6/24/2007 1:43:35 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
how we Americans support without question the monopolies


So you don't run windows? Good for you. Or maybe you are "forced to use it".


By leousb on 6/24/2007 10:59:35 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
I’m not sure where everyone is obtaining their info on Venezuelan politics. CNN? Fox?

Where are u getting it? VTV? Telesur? RNV? ATV? aporrea.org? Do you even live here in Venezuela like I do??

quote:
where 95% of the media is opposed to the government. This includes five privately owned TV stations controlling about 90% of the market

Are you aware or can you not see that all stations but Meridiano TV (sports) and Globovison (news) are already auto sensoring their contents just to be able to broadcast??

quote:
“The Revolution Will Not Be Televised,” an excellent documentary by a group of Irish filmmakers who happened to be there at the time.
dear lord, there can not be a more biased "documentary" in the history of film making.

Is it commendable that Venezuelan´s money is going towards infrastructure and social programs abroad when poverty is STILL so high?? Is it "correct" that anyone who dares to speak of goverment wrongdoing, corruption or anything not positive for that matter is branded as "Imperialist", "CIA funded terrorist", "traitor","oligarch".

A society can not be built around the policy of "If you are not with me, think like me, or support me YOU ARE MY ENEMY, and I shall destroy you", which is what Chavez stands for.

I´m not a "rich kid", or CIA funded terrorist, nor traitor , I´m a regular lower middle class person who is fighting very hard to survive.

Maybe you should watch "V for Vendetta" and compare to Venezuelan reality, and you´ll see a lot of similarity

quote:
The TV station in question, RCTV, was directly implicated in the 2002 coup attempt against Chavez.

As someone else commented: Should this be true why no legal action was taken in due time?? (specially when all Judicial system is commanded by Chavez?????? is it because he´s so merciful??)

Is it possible that we are giving Cuba (among other stuff) 100 thousand oil barrels a day for free and They have the nerve of stating that we "owe them" still for the Cuban pseudo doctors that they´re sending us here??

I could go on for pages, but people in general get the picture. A modern dictatorship is forming in Venezuela, do not be fools to think that this is a regular dictator, he´s taking all actions to secure that the transition is slow paced and "legalized" , at the end we´ll have a "legal" dictator since all state organizations are run by him.


By Saist on 6/25/2007 8:24:38 AM , Rating: 2
thanks jskirwin :) You are not the only one to see the irony in this. Considering that open source software is extremely capitalistic in an economic sense, and that Microsoft's software hasn't been anything close to capitalistic (more imperialism I think) for a long time... I find it quite funny that Hugo would turn to a capitalistic solution for computing needs, and then announce desire to export it.

But, as funny as I found that, I do find your irony even more funny. Given the lockdown on "open press" ... yes, it is quite hilarious that Hugo would embrace anything open...


thug life
By codeThug on 6/22/2007 10:47:53 AM , Rating: 4
I feel sad for the Venezuelans. They don't deserve that thug.

I'm afraid there are going to be many many deaths before that POS is removed.

Maybe we should send Ballmer down for a little "mano e mano".




RE: thug life
By killerroach on 6/22/2007 11:19:38 AM , Rating: 1
You mean that last thing as a clean-up operation, or something a la "Celebrity Deathmatch"? Either way, I'm down for it. Only problem in my mind is that, with Chavez embracing open-source software like this, it'll give ammo to the Microsoft-fueled "open source is for Marxists" tripe. Doesn't do anything to elevate discourse (even if it's true in this case).

I can't get Chavez, though... he got elected with largely the support of the underclass in Venezuela (who live an existence that's on a similar level to medieval peasants), yet, in recent months, he's giving computers away to prospective doctors, sent tankers full of fuel oil to "underprivileged" areas in California and New York as a goodwill gesture (where even the poverty line is roughly ten to twenty times what some in his country make), purchased fighter jets and submarines from Russia, and gave millions of dollars to Danny Glover to make a movie about one of his heroes. Were it not for the fact that he's not having to rely on taxes to accomplish this, the groundlings would probably be dragging him through the streets of Caracas by now.

That being said... add Hugo Chavez to the already established names of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Bashar Assad as yet another reason to reduce our dependence on foreign oil.


RE: thug life
By codeThug on 6/22/2007 11:29:20 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
he's not having to rely on taxes to accomplish this


Remember, he recently nationalized the oil operations in Venezuela:

http://www.pinr.com/report.php?ac=view_report&repo...

I believe that is where his cash windfall is coming from.

Some people call it theft, but who am I to judge...


RE: thug life
By Ringold on 6/22/2007 5:24:01 PM , Rating: 2
Additionally, his budget deficit, last I heard, is nearly to a crisis level. If it's not been in the news already in the past few days (I haven't checked) it'll likely be in there soon that he's going to have to do something serious to raise additional revenue, and lots of it. Especially since he just left the World Bank.


RE: thug life
By Durrr on 6/22/2007 5:50:59 PM , Rating: 2
I'm in the military, and what annoys me even more is the fact that Citgo has a contract with the US military to provide gasoline on base. Nothing has been done about that (to my knowledge) even though I have voiced my concerns. Essentially, the US military is supporting Chavez directly due to his nationalization of the oil industries there.


RE: thug life
By codeThug on 6/23/2007 1:03:40 PM , Rating: 2
yeah... bidness is bidness.

Makes you sick thinking about it.


RE: thug life
By knowyourenemy on 6/22/2007 11:23:18 AM , Rating: 3
Assuming you mean Chavez, I have to agree. A lot of good friends of mine are living down there at the moment, and ever since he shut down the last opposing free-press source, it's been hell for them. My bud is trying to open a LAN center, for Christ's sake, and the government down there is already making up reasons to take it. The sick part is, he can't fight it, if they decide to pull the trigger, there goes his chances.


RE: thug life
By codeThug on 6/22/2007 11:39:02 AM , Rating: 2
I spent a little time in Caracas in the early nineties. Man I loved it. The Tech People at the DEC Office were really cool and fun to be with.

The cab ride back and forth to the airport was a bit unnerving however. Kinda like doing Hell's Half Mile on the Green River in Utah drunk on a Jet Ski.


RE: thug life
By hubajube on 6/22/2007 12:18:04 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
Kinda like doing Hell's Half Mile on the Green River in Utah drunk on a Jet Ski.
ROFLMFAO!!!!!!!!!!!!! "That there is funny, I don't care who you are."


RE: thug life
By qball101 on 6/22/2007 11:42:59 AM , Rating: 4
Just like Castro, Chavez was a better option to what came before him; a corrupt social elite that enjoyed the high-life whilst millions lived in abject poverty, a situation that was only allowed to continue because it was financially beneficial to the US.

Admittedly the situation in Venezuela hasn't changed much, but then US politicians and media weren't foaming at the mouth for the downfall of President Carlos Andres Perez in the early 90s, a fact which would suggest that they are more concerned with economic resrtictions rather than human rights.

At the end of the day he was as democratically elected as the last government and has been returned to power because of grass roots support (Lets face it 'Dubya' doesn't exactly have a good record either). The real reason he is vilified by many comentators in the US is because of his socialist ideology and the implications this has for US corporations (such as FOX) to make money in Venezuela not because the US feels it should protect the Venezuelan people.


RE: thug life
By hubajube on 6/22/2007 12:26:24 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
The real reason he is vilified by many comentators in the US is because of his socialist ideology and the implications this has for US corporations (such as FOX) to make money in Venezuela not because the US feels it should protect the Venezuelan people.
Not to mention Venezuela is number 4 on our list of oil and petroleum imports.


RE: thug life
By aftlizard01 on 6/22/2007 12:53:27 PM , Rating: 2
Better Option? Loss of democracy, no freedom of the press, grocery stores running out of food. Yeah that seems like a better option. You are sick in the head if you think Hugo is a improvement for Venezuela.


RE: thug life
By Ringold on 6/22/2007 5:28:35 PM , Rating: 2
Agreed. And while he might've been elected supposedly to replace an elite upper ruling class and champion the poor people the invariable conclusion, and the trend the countries economic stats his already taken, is that the poor people end up even more poor (and often times, a few hundred thousand dead).


RE: thug life
By arswihart on 6/23/2007 8:47:36 AM , Rating: 2
Tell me what has Huge Chavez done that is worse than our invading Iraq? You want a thug, look at George W. His recent manipulation of the media was bad, I'll admit, but we are just looking for a reason to hate him. Why? Because his country has oil and we want him to share some, but he isn't. It's that simple.


RE: thug life
By rsmech on 6/24/2007 1:56:56 AM , Rating: 3
Turn about is fair play. I take it you didn't vote for Bush. Well it's payback for all those Clinton years I had to endure.


RE: thug life
By theapparition on 6/25/2007 8:48:20 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
Why? Because his country has oil and we want him to share some, but he isn't. It's that simple.

Is it that simple? Venezuela "shares" every bit of oil that they produce (under quota agreements with OPEC). Nothing more, nothing less. Claiming that the US is just crying foul over oil is completely without merit.


Aunt Edna
By ted61 on 6/22/2007 11:27:51 AM , Rating: 2
If old Hugo can figure out Linux, so can my dear Aunt Edna.

If only Hugo can teach me how to get my video drivers working.

First MS sues, now Hugo. Open source is on its way to mainstream!




RE: Aunt Edna
By codeThug on 6/22/2007 11:51:48 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
First MS sues, now Hugo. Open source is on its way to mainstream!


My God!!! You're absolutely right (no sarcasm intended). These are definitely two of the seven signs of the Linux apocalypse. But that would make Steve Ballmer the........

<lightning strikes and codeThug goes up in a flash of smoke>


RE: Aunt Edna
By KristopherKubicki (blog) on 6/22/2007 12:08:37 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
But that would make Steve Ballmer the........

Dark Lord of the Sith?

http://kristopher.us/2007/05/red-rod.html

<DailyTech's NOC vaporizes>


Interesting reactions...
By bernardl on 6/25/2007 7:59:14 AM , Rating: 2
Free speech is a myth.

Cracking down on a TV channel - that had very little impact anyway - was a stupid move by Chavez who does enjoy real support from a majority of the population in Venezuela.

The way opposition channels are controlled in the US is more subtle but just as efficient. Speaking of facts, just check out how 95% of medias reacted to the Iraky campain - an amazing total lack of opposition to a move that was at least extremely questionable. Enough has been said on this, but if you feel that you live in a country where the press is a real opposition to potential abuse of the govenment, think twice. They just say what they are told to say.

Now, back on Chavez... Ever wondered why the guy was re-elected twice although extremely powerful opponents (the White House being one of them - as acknowledged by a WH representative himself 2 years ago) invested a significant amount of money in opposition compains? Well the answer is obvious, because a majority of Venezulians are better off now than they were before.

Cheers,
Bernard




No more Yahoo! feed?
By mikeblas on 7/5/2007 2:18:32 AM , Rating: 2
This is the last story that MyYahoo! puts in the DailyTech tech news feed. Other stores have been released, though, from DailyTech.

So why aren't they showing up in the MyYahoo! feed?




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