Gnu Consumers

[Douglas Pollard]

     Most Of us are GNU consumers and we are defeating an immensely 
powerful software company Microsoft, even though we are only a few.  
They had it sewed up and where in their own minds a monopoly.  That is 
changing slowly but surely the consumer is finding their products less 
desirable and unreasonably expensive.  It is only one more example of 
consumerism. There is another thing going on. I am a Machinist and spent 
a lot of years owning and running a large machine shop with as may as 45 
machinists and many other employers so I know that business.
     Guess what is happening.  Many of the machinists and their wives 
are building their own machines and running them in their basement using 
GNU EMC software to control the machines. I know several who are making 
in the neighborhood of one hundred thousand a year with these little 
shops.  They never look a for a proffit they only want a good living. 
Their wives help run the machine and some now have EMC robots that load 
and unload the machines.  On fellow told me he is driving a twenty year 
old car that only has about 40 thousand miles on it because him or his 
wife does not have to drive to work. There is I think a GNU revolution 
in it's infancy out there.
     My Grandson uses linux and he makes signs in his shop where the 
letters are cut out using an EMC controlled cutter and router.  He make 
motor cycle after market parts with a EMC mill and an Emc lathe.  All 
there Office computer needs are Ubuntu.

      One fellow told me he is only making about $15.00 per hour per 
machine and his wife runs them all while he is building more machines. 
He said he used to have to stop what he was going to program a machine. 
His 13 year old daughter now does most of that programing and has earned 
over several years $11,000.00 to help pay for her education when she is 
grown.  They manufacture spare parts for the bottle industry and other 
industries. They make the parts and stock them and ship as needed  and 
they are competitive the Chinese on price.
      At least one of the families uses Linux for all thie computer work 
but I don't know about the others.
        I now do some video in Ubuntu for some one who is in that 
business.  He uses Xp and I make clips for him to use. It wasn't  long 
ago he insisted I use windows but has recently gained confidence that I 
can do the work in Ubuntu.  That took some persuading from me.
       There are some things that are going on in this country that no 
one is paying any attention to.
        I think Linux is going to be a part of another kind of 
industrial revolution in the not to distant future.  We will 
See???                            Doug