Paris takes on Ubuntu in techno celebrity clash

Dell's sales and marketing team makes like the boss and chooses to put Ubuntu on its desktops and laptops. You're all delighted, we're sure: Three cheers for Ubuntu! Three cheers for Linux and open source generally! Three cheers for De....ermm...nah! Yes it's good that a big player like Dell have dipped a toe in the Linux pond …

[Geoff Erickson]

Linux and Yanks

Ummmmm for the record, here's one Yank among many who is thrilled about Ubuntu on Dell and is no big fan of Microsoft either.

So I can't help but wonder if your objection to all of us is that we spawned Microsoft or just a response to the Bush regime nearly 50% of us here have been trying to put an end to.

Seriously, while I can certainly understand our lack of popularity these days if you read our news at all you will find out there has been a division in this country for some years about the direction we are headed in. So please don't apply a blanket statement about a large group of folks like that, lest you start to resemble the very close mindedness you may detest about us and our current leadership.

Also while you are reading our news (notice I read yours for additional and less narrow minded perspective), maybe you should read some history and show a little respect for the people who sacrificed the lives of their young sons in WWII to help you when the chips were so down you had to send your children away from your cities out of fear for their lives. My grandfather lost his brother in that effort.

One final note, if you read even more history you will find that the majority of the messes The Yanks and others are attempting to clean up these days had more than a little to do with Britannia. See Pakistan and India for starters.

Less narrow mindedness, a little more respect for your fellow penguine lovers if you please.

-The Yanks

[Dave Coventry]

Please remind Lorne....

.... that 'neighbours' is spelt with a 'u'.

Except in America. Obviously.

[Anonymous Coward]

Please also remind Lorne

that the problems with our places where Britannia once ruled might be less dramatic now if our "cousins" hadn't insisted a while ago that we either hand over power to the locals (most of Africa and Asia) before they were really ready or to withdraw when they get belligerent (Suez et al). I like most Americans and take his points, but its not all that simple.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re:Linux and yanks

Geoff - Fair point on the "Division of Nation re direction" thing, I work with a good deal of Americans, so I know a seriously large number of you can’t stand Bush and worry about how bad he is making the US look…

... But, for the love of all that is unholy (Dell, Microshaft etc etc), before criticising the UK and waving the Flag of WWII, please check YOUR history and remember that the only reason the US got involved was Pearl Harbour, and NOT because we were getting our major cities bombed on a daily basis.

This is a round world last time I looked and I have never seen a single war, terror strike, fracas, border incursion etc been the responsibility of only one nation. So if we’re to stop finger pointing, can you do the same?

Oh., and Penguin doesn’t have an “e” on the end.

Man In Serious Need Of Coffee

[Zulon]

Ready for self rule???

..thats a unique rationale for continuation of (Brit) colonies...however, now we happen to know that you are no longer capable of running your country. So we, your former co-subjects, will do it for you, for a fee. When you are capable and competent, we will send the (outsourced) jobs back. And do be greatful to the Yanks, they saved your arse from being Germanised.

[Nick Leverton]

You have: uspint. You want: brpint.

>Except that we like pints. Of lager, if you're buying.

If I'm buying, you can have US pints. Especially if it's lager.

Mine's a British pint, of bitter, please.

Cheers !

Nick

[Morely Dotes]

Motes and beams, mate!

@ Zulon: No, thanks, you haven't been doing too awfully well with self-rule yourselves since, oh, about the time Winnie left office.

Personally, I say put Lizzie back in charge and let the PM and Parliament advise her. At least she seems intelligent and good-hearted.

[Anonymous Coward]

"Don't mention the war..."

Americans joined as soon as they saw which way it was going...

...and then created a front (a long way from America) where

they could hassle the commies from. Oh History, is a wonderfool thing...

[Joe Cooper]

Pearl Harbor

"the only reason the US got involved was Pearl Harbor"

That was just an excuse cause of all the anti-war folks at home.

Seriously, why in the world would we head off to Europe cause of Pearl Harbor? Don't be silly!

...Not that I advocate throwing the WW2 line around.

[currynut]

don't understand

Apart from a quote from an illiterate commentator, I can't see any direct anti-American comment that Geoff Erickson can object to here. He might find more moronic anti-Americanism on the BBC site, which is generally frequented by both right-wing and left-wing idiots (let's just say "thinking" isn't their strong point).

Lighten up, guys!

[David Neil]

Concentrate, here comes the history bit...

"And do be greatful (sic) to the Yanks, they saved your arse from being Germanised."

OK, so by December 1941 the Germans had pretty much abandoned all hope of subduing Britain by means of invasion and so had alternated to the U-Boat campaign.

Now its a fact that Roosvelt bent, stretched and twisted all sorts of restrictions to get the US Navy involved in the convoy battles, but even that was a side show to the battle in the east.

If we have anyone to thank for the hammering of the Nazi's it's the Soviets, for all their faults, they threw more manpower into the grinder than the rest of us put together, and pretty much chewed their way to Berlin.

From their point of view we were d!cking about down in the Med (North Africa and Italy) and procrastinating about invading France, while they were fighting a total war.

[Ishkandar]

Oh, come now...

The Yanks WON the WW2. It's what Hollywood said and they must be right !! After all they gave such great historically accurate movies like U571.....

[Matthew Say]

....and a little more history

"Seriously, why in the world would we head off to Europe cause of Pearl Harbor? Don't be silly!"

Because of the Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis - in declaring war on Japan you were also declaring war on Germany and Italy who were allied with them. Don't think if you hadn't come over to Europe that the German U-Boats would have left the American Fleet alone. They spent many months submerged around your coast lines taking free pot shots at your your ships carrying supplies for us (at inflated prices - we were paying you back longer than the Germans paid reparations). Of course we told you about these U-Boats because of the clever people at Bletchley Park decoded the German Navy transmissions but America was too arrogant to believe we could actually figure that stuff out. It was also helped by the fact that a British commando squad raided a German U-Boat and stole an Enigma machine to help Bletchley Park decrypt messages sent by the German Navy - nothing to do with America and that U571 Hollywood rubbish!

And as David said were weren't "Germanised" because the Germans gave up their plans for invasion - why? Because they couldn't cross the channel without air superiority and we didn't need the Americans help to win the Battle Of Britain - that was done by Churchill, the RAF and the pluckiness of all those who never gave up despite the constant bombing of our major cities.

I think you will also find that Field Marshall Montgemory did pretty well with the fighting in the desert and driving the enemy back.

The way you Americans are taught WWII history it is not surpising that you think that we just sat here and got bombed for 2 years waiting for the good old Americans to (finally) wade in and save us.

And again as David pointed out the Russians did throw more manpower in and consequently more Russian lives were lost (about 17 million I believe) than American, British and German lives put together.

[Michael H.F. Wilkinson]

about winning wars

In this rather futile discussion about "who won WWII" people forget: no one wins, you might just scrape by by not losing as much as the other guys. Look at the horrendous death toll of the Soviets, and if you can still say they really won you need a different set of brains.

it may be corny, but its still true

(and I do not like U571 either)

Cheers

Michael

[Nick Pettefar]

Pints, Cups, etc.

I thought a cup was 200ml! That's what it says in my cookbook. Not sure of that is size A, B or C though...

Nick - all confused about cup sizes.

PS Judging by the economy and prosperity, I think Germany and Japan won the war.