Free Republic

  Chapter Ten THE MANDRAKE  MECHANISM The Method by which the Federal Reserve creates money out of nothing; the concept of usury as the payment of interest on pretended loans; the true cause of the hidden tax called inflation; the way in which the Fed creates boom-bust cycles.  In the 1940s, there was a comic strip character called Mandrake the Magician. His specialty was creating things out of nothing and, when appropriate, to make them disappear back into that same void. It is fitting, therefore, that the process to be described in this section should be named in his honor.In...

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Bought the latest whiz-bang personal computer, but don't know what to do with your older, fully functional PC? One option would be to try breathing new life into it with Linux (news - web sites), the software standard that is presenting itself as an alternative to Microsoft Corp.'s (NasdaqNM:MSFT - news) Windows operating system. With better stability, security and pricing in a desktop operating system with a look-and-feel similar to Windows, Linux advocates say they are getting ready to take on Microsoft, which dominates the desktop market. Since Linux is free to be copied and modified, unlike...

Linux maker Mandrake: We need cash By Stephen Shankland Special to ZDNet News December 20, 2002, 10:11 AM PT Linux seller MandrakeSoft issued a plea for cash Friday, encouraging people to buy products, MandrakeClub memberships or company stock. The company, based in Paris but drawing much of its revenue from North America, needs $4 million to pay debts and cover expenses in order to attain profitability. It's the second time this year the company has sought help from its customers. "A very difficult time has arrived for us: We have a very big short-term cash issue," co-founder Gael Duval said...

Mandrake flirts with non-open source By Stephen Shankland Staff Writer, CNET News.com December 16, 2002, 1:01 PM PT MandrakeSoft has taken a step away from the open-source philosophy, changing license terms for a Linux-based firewall so customers that want product support may no longer install the software on as many computers as they wish. The company's new Multi Network Firewall (MNF) software is free and ships under an open-source license for those who don't need support, Paris-based MandrakeSoft said Thursday. But if customers want support, they must buy a version covered by a different, more restrictive license. "Our goal is...