Slashdot Mirror

"Rather than appealing to emotion, you'd do well to site some facts."

I was appealing to LOGIC. When talking about firearms control laws and their effect on crime, examining only "gun crime" data is a very poor methodology. Gun control advocates are always spewing "facts" about how few firearms-related deaths there are in places with strict gun control. A "fact", but one that definitely distorts the truth and appeals to emotion. Using this logic assumes that there is absolutely ZERO crime deterrent effect of private firearms ownership. A ridiculous assumption in a policy debate.

I fully agree that the MAJOR reason for private firearms ownership is to stop the brown shirts and goose steppers from eliminating the tattered remains of our freedom, but the right to self defense is fundamental as well.

P.S. Want some good facts about guns and overall crime rates? Check out John Lott's book "More Guns, Less Crime". I'd challenge anyone to cite methodological deficiencies in his data gathering, especially since his original goal was to DIS-prove the deterrent factor.

http://www.amazon.com/More-Guns-Less-Crime-Underst anding/dp/0226493644/sr=8-1/qid=1160233557/ref=pd_ bbs_1/002-5298167-9901645?ie=UTF8&s=books

There are, as you probably realize, many ways to approach learning. Sometimes it helps to get an explanation of what the concepts are, that is to say 'what is trying to be accomplished,' before delving in to find out the nitty-gritty How parts.

As one previous poster mentioned above (in probably different terms,) understanding a base point is usually sufficient for building up to the bigger thing and what you'll really remember is the path of logic that gets you there. What is to be developed in this case is an understanding of how to build up from the base, to learn enough of the entirety of the system to grasp the larger concepts. This takes time, and some people don't 'get it' until some trigger of knowledge is learned that sets all the other previously learned bits into alignment. This can happen at any time, early on or much later. Don't give up just because it's not instantly understood!

If you want to learn the Calculus, maybe you should consider learning -about- the Calculus. It has been a few years since I last read it, but David Berlinski wrote a fantastic book called "A Tour of the Calculus" - I recommend it. Amazon link below:

http://www.amazon.com/Tour-Calculus-Vintage-David- Berlinski/dp/0679747885/sr=8-1/qid=1160231231/ref= pd_bbs_1/002-9559630-6664847?ie=UTF8&s=books

You mentioned Richard Feynman, a fantastic visionary, who attributed much of his success in understanding the concepts and abilities to perform works in the Calculus at a very young age (12 or so, if memory serves) to the education his father instilled upon him. The focus was patterns and behaviors. For example, many of Richard's peers growing up might have learned the names of various species of bird found in the nearby woods, being able to identify them on sight... Richard's father instead would have taught him to study the bird and piece it into it's environment, what is the importance of the call it makes, how does it 'fit in' to it's surroundings to keep itself and it's family safe and well fed, etc. I'm probably doing a horrible injustice to this as I read his book some time ago, but the main point is Feynman had a deep sense of logic and strongly developed problem solving abilities, which served him far better than methodical approaches to learning. He is also likely to have had synesthesia, which is a tremendous leg up on the competition:

http://www.google.com/search?client=opera&rls=en&q =richard+feynman+synesthesia&sourceid=opera&ie=utf -8&oe=utf-8

Remember also that things you lack a natural talent for can be supplemented by lots of hard work. I believe the Scientific American had an article not so long ago that explained some research that showed 10 years was the approxomate amount of time for nearly anyone to become an expert in almost any field - musicians practice feverishly for a long time before they become talented enough to be recognized, chess grandmasters play the game with intent passion for about as long, so it is with pretty much any field. Yes there are some with natural advantages, but so it is with anything - keep at it and you'll find success!

Tragically, according to http://amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/002-1718624-80528 08?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=big+secre ts&Go.x=14&Go.y=9&Go=Go the KFC secret sauce is salt, pepper and MSG. Besides, who wants 600 gallons of salt water?

I was thinking of Dune myself. Frank Herbert's notion that man could survive with such limited water supplies apparently wasn't entirely fantastical. However, IIRC no such device was used in the series. Instead, the Fremen relied on farming the naturally forming dew of the planet. Personally, after reading Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars trilogy, I wonder why Herbert never thought of having some Fremen just crash a few comets into the planet to at least provide some selected portion of it with water. Of course, that would have killed off all the sandworms.

Try also the Handbook of Algorithms and Data Structures:

http://www.amazon.com/Handbook-Algorithms-Data-Str uctures-Pascal/dp/0201416077/sr=8-1/qid=1160102805 /ref=sr_1_1/102-2768899-0462565?ie=UTF8&s=books

For calculus, you ought to give Berlinski's "A Tour of the Calculus" a shot. I happen to like Gil Strang's "Calculus", but not everyone does. Both books try to elucidate the key ideas behind the calculus. Berlinksi's book is informal and conversational. Strang's is conversational but more rigorous. Neither encourages reliance on rules, tricks, memorization, etc.

Larry Gonick's "A Cartoon Guide To Statistics" (Amazon) is pretty good. It's mildly entertaining, clear, and doesn't slaughter the precise concepts as badly as many "popular" books do :) Good luck.

""I've always been an avid reader but my math skills were poor[1], and TV had taught me that math was difficult. I knew only the concepts of the basic operations. From seventh grade through high school, I did only what was needed to get by and so my math skills remained below par. Now, as a freshman pre-cal student, I am struggling. "

I'm solving that particular problem through self-education via what would be considered children's level educational software. The plus is that good software is adaptive to your level of skill and rate of learning. Palatable.* Non-judgemental, and more importantly. You can go at your pace. Once I'm through with that then I can move to the books, of which I have plenty.

*Usually graphical, but also not intimidating.

[1] I've bolded the above because I've always wondered if there's a link between the two. Do math people have problem with words?

Here's another thought. Fingermath is an innovative way to bring the tactile to math (to a point naturally).

Oh well since I'm doing ads, here's another. Invention Highway Creative Thinking Family Edition

""I've always been an avid reader but my math skills were poor[1], and TV had taught me that math was difficult. I knew only the concepts of the basic operations. From seventh grade through high school, I did only what was needed to get by and so my math skills remained below par. Now, as a freshman pre-cal student, I am struggling. "

I'm solving that particular problem through self-education via what would be considered children's level educational software. The plus is that good software is adaptive to your level of skill and rate of learning. Palatable.* Non-judgemental, and more importantly. You can go at your pace. Once I'm through with that then I can move to the books, of which I have plenty.

*Usually graphical, but also not intimidating.

[1] I've bolded the above because I've always wondered if there's a link between the two. Do math people have problem with words?

Here's another thought. Fingermath is an innovative way to bring the tactile to math (to a point naturally).

Oh well since I'm doing ads, here's another. Invention Highway Creative Thinking Family Edition

Google: "Feynman mathematics"

A summary of Richard Phillips Feynman

Amazon search for Richard Feynman

--
Mod +1 informative -5 Karma Slut

Boarding the Enterprise: Transporters, Tribbles and the Vulcan Death Grip in Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek

"Trekkies and Trekkers alike will get starry-eyed over this eclectic mix of essays on the groundbreaking original Star Trek series. Star Trek writers D. C. Fontana and David Gerrold, science fiction authors, such as Howard Weinstein, and various academics share behind-the-scenes anecdotes, discuss the show's enduring appeal and influence, and examine some of the classic features of the show, including Spock's irrationality, Scotty's pessimism, and the lack of seatbelts on the Enterprise. The impact of Star Trek on subsequent science-fiction television programs is explored, as well as how the show laid the foundation for the science fiction genre to break into the television medium.

About the Author
David Gerrold is the author of the Hugo and Nebula Award-nominated The Man Who Folded Himself, When Harlie Was One, and the Chtorr, Dingillian, and Star Wolf series. He also wrote "The Trouble with Tribbles" episode of Star Trek, which was voted the most popular Star Trek episode of all time. He lives in Northridge, California. Robert Sawyer is the author of several science fiction novels, including the Nebula Award-winning The Terminal Experiment and the Hugo Award-nominated Calculating God."

The Algorithm Design Manual is pretty good.

And the US has a confused view of the French

A few years ago, I took Chris Okasaki's "Advanced Data Structures" course at Columbia. Looking at the Wikipedia Data Structures article others have mentioned, it's pretty good, but doesn't include, e.g. Pairing Heaps, which have excellent real-world performance. You might want to check out Chris's book Purely Functional Data Structures (ISBN 0521663504). Even though you're not working with a functional language, it's a good catalog of some recent data structures, and from what I saw in the class, he understands them at a very deep level.

Have you ever read transcripts of the television news casts? Each story is usually a paragraph of text at most, whereas the reporting on the same subject in a newspaper will usually be several columns.

How to Watch TV News is a fascinating analysis on just why that is. In summation, TV as a different form of media compared to print isn't suited to news with the exception of visual news such as national disasters. For politics and international affairs, TV news doesn't have the time to spend on each issue to give much information across. Instead you get sound bites. On the other hand, Katrina and 9-11 were ratings goldmines.

Ultimately it always comes down to ratings, the bottom line in any media endevour. Americans also don't like bad news, which is why Newsweek localises it's cover for the US market. Example (27 Sept 2006): internationally the cover story was "losing Afganistan". In the states, they got a fluff piece about the photographer Annie Leibovitz.

It saddens me that today's youth brags about getting all their news from the daily show while newspaper circulation is in rapid decline.

I'm not sure that they are saying that it's their only source though. For me it's the only US news source I trust, but I round it off with many other international sources. I'm finding blogs are the best these days, simply to act as a filter onto media I wouldn't normally read. Take the Christian Science Monitor; normally I'd stay the hell away from them simply based on their name (Christian science?), but I've read some linked articles on there from time to time that are changing my preconceptions on them.

You could have a look at Network Algorithmics:

http://www.amazon.com/Network-Algorithmics-Interdi sciplinary-Designing-Networking/dp/0120884771

Which reminds me of a pretty 2 book SciFi series by Niven and Pournelle that begins with "The Mote in God's Eye" and ends with "The Gripping Hand". (Wikipedia) (Amazon)

Honestly though, when I went through college, the very last thing they tried to shove down my throat wasn't advanced data structures but instead Design Patterns.

I didn't get this too much in college, and got a little in grad school, but I went on to some self discovery afterwards and I gotta tell ya, Design Patterns are a must when it comes to doing OO design. Design patterns can be used in any structured design method as well, it just takes some creativity... I use this online link, which is really cool (it even has code, CODE!)

As far as data structures go, I haven't found a good "quick reference".

Algorithms, by Robert Sedgewick is pretty good. It has many of the best methods for solving a ton of problems. It isn't a quick reference, but I am not sure there would be such a thing, but at least this book is focused.

The real explanation is quite a bit longer than you want (it won't fit into a Slashdot post). It takes some study to answer these questions to oneself. Not very much if you are smart, but still a study. A good book to read is The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins.

Sorry for linking to an offline text, but I haven't seen this book in electronic form anywhere.

Tarjan's Data Structures book looks like it has potential, but seems focused on network algorithms, which are unlikely to be applicable to the kernel programming I do.

CLR is far too large and almost exclusively covers basic territory.

http://www.amazon.com/Lucas-Arts-23272325756-Repub lic-Commando/dp/B00020BV1A

Fairly fun game. :)

I dont' know if anyone will get this far down, or if it's been mentioned but but The Inmates Are Running the Asylum : Why High Tech Products Drive Us Crazy and How To Restore The Sanity http://www.amazon.com/Inmates-Are-Running-Asylum-P roducts/dp/0672316498 is a great book on the same topic. It is a bit dated win98 it is still accurate. Cooper's book is written for the general public.

Your questions are premised on the untrue assumption that you are your body. You aren't your body, nor any result of that body's physical operation (ie the mind). A little introspection is sufficient to convince yourself of the truth of that. Otherwise, Doug Hofstadter is an excellent place to start reading...

Save yourself $4 by buying the book here: Why Software Sucks. And if you use the "secret" A9.com discount, you can save an extra 1.57%!

Save yourself $4 by buying the book here: Why Software Sucks. And if you use the "secret" A9.com discount, you can save an extra 1.57%!

This is the one that I used when I took these a few years ago... probably a bit out dated now that they have the Written section. http://www.amazon.com/Real-SATs-Third-College-Boar d/dp/0874477050

The review links to B & N, but I notice that Amazon has it cheaper (look under the "Used and New..." third-party sellers). One wonders why the editors keep linking to B & N if it's so comparatively expensive.

I have no business plan, or enough information to even know the potential of the market I'm targeting. All I know is that the products available now suck, and not just a little. So my question is, what should be my first step to starting a startup at this point? What do I need before I can approach investors?

I would say that you need several things: some fundamental business know-how, some idea of what business model you might adopt for your business, and some contacts that can help out. You can gain these things in a variety of ways.

Regarding basic business know-how:

You could take classes in the basics of management, micro-economics, macro-enonomics, business finance, etc. at a local community college or something. You could self educate yourself by just doing a lot of reading; taking the appraoch I've dubbed the used bookstore MBA, etc.

Regarding business model:

Google and blogs are your friend here, as well as books about existing open-source companies and startups. Google for
Open Source Business Models and just start reading. Read Under The Radar, Under The Radar, Art of the Start and High Tech Startup among others.

Regarding contacts:

See if you have any friends or acquaintances that run their own business (it doesn't have to be tech related). Ask them to meet you for lunch
to sit and just chat about business. Ask them for advice, tips, other contacts, etc. Find out if your area has any sort of business networking group, a "leads group," etc. If so, join and attend meetings. Meet people, talk to them, throw ideas around, ask interesting people out to lunch, etc. Attend local users groups meetings, LUGs, JUGs, etc. Not all of the attendees will be (just) techies: some will be entrepreneurs, managers, etc. that could be potential partners, future employees, etc. Attend and get to know people. Chat, schmooze and take notes. Ask interesting people out to lunch. Lather, rinse, repeat. Read The Little Black Book of Connections and similiar books.

If you do enough of this, you will eventually reach a point where you have some solid ideas about what to do, and more specific questions to ask. Once you reach that point, you can start digging deeper with help from your new-found connections and other resources.

I have no business plan, or enough information to even know the potential of the market I'm targeting. All I know is that the products available now suck, and not just a little. So my question is, what should be my first step to starting a startup at this point? What do I need before I can approach investors?

I would say that you need several things: some fundamental business know-how, some idea of what business model you might adopt for your business, and some contacts that can help out. You can gain these things in a variety of ways.

Regarding basic business know-how:

You could take classes in the basics of management, micro-economics, macro-enonomics, business finance, etc. at a local community college or something. You could self educate yourself by just doing a lot of reading; taking the appraoch I've dubbed the used bookstore MBA, etc.

Regarding business model:

Google and blogs are your friend here, as well as books about existing open-source companies and startups. Google for
Open Source Business Models and just start reading. Read Under The Radar, Under The Radar, Art of the Start and High Tech Startup among others.

Regarding contacts:

See if you have any friends or acquaintances that run their own business (it doesn't have to be tech related). Ask them to meet you for lunch
to sit and just chat about business. Ask them for advice, tips, other contacts, etc. Find out if your area has any sort of business networking group, a "leads group," etc. If so, join and attend meetings. Meet people, talk to them, throw ideas around, ask interesting people out to lunch, etc. Attend local users groups meetings, LUGs, JUGs, etc. Not all of the attendees will be (just) techies: some will be entrepreneurs, managers, etc. that could be potential partners, future employees, etc. Attend and get to know people. Chat, schmooze and take notes. Ask interesting people out to lunch. Lather, rinse, repeat. Read The Little Black Book of Connections and similiar books.

If you do enough of this, you will eventually reach a point where you have some solid ideas about what to do, and more specific questions to ask. Once you reach that point, you can start digging deeper with help from your new-found connections and other resources.

I have no business plan, or enough information to even know the potential of the market I'm targeting. All I know is that the products available now suck, and not just a little. So my question is, what should be my first step to starting a startup at this point? What do I need before I can approach investors?

I would say that you need several things: some fundamental business know-how, some idea of what business model you might adopt for your business, and some contacts that can help out. You can gain these things in a variety of ways.

Regarding basic business know-how:

You could take classes in the basics of management, micro-economics, macro-enonomics, business finance, etc. at a local community college or something. You could self educate yourself by just doing a lot of reading; taking the appraoch I've dubbed the used bookstore MBA, etc.

Regarding business model:

Google and blogs are your friend here, as well as books about existing open-source companies and startups. Google for
Open Source Business Models and just start reading. Read Under The Radar, Under The Radar, Art of the Start and High Tech Startup among others.

Regarding contacts:

See if you have any friends or acquaintances that run their own business (it doesn't have to be tech related). Ask them to meet you for lunch
to sit and just chat about business. Ask them for advice, tips, other contacts, etc. Find out if your area has any sort of business networking group, a "leads group," etc. If so, join and attend meetings. Meet people, talk to them, throw ideas around, ask interesting people out to lunch, etc. Attend local users groups meetings, LUGs, JUGs, etc. Not all of the attendees will be (just) techies: some will be entrepreneurs, managers, etc. that could be potential partners, future employees, etc. Attend and get to know people. Chat, schmooze and take notes. Ask interesting people out to lunch. Lather, rinse, repeat. Read The Little Black Book of Connections and similiar books.

If you do enough of this, you will eventually reach a point where you have some solid ideas about what to do, and more specific questions to ask. Once you reach that point, you can start digging deeper with help from your new-found connections and other resources.

I have no business plan, or enough information to even know the potential of the market I'm targeting. All I know is that the products available now suck, and not just a little. So my question is, what should be my first step to starting a startup at this point? What do I need before I can approach investors?

I would say that you need several things: some fundamental business know-how, some idea of what business model you might adopt for your business, and some contacts that can help out. You can gain these things in a variety of ways.

Regarding basic business know-how:

You could take classes in the basics of management, micro-economics, macro-enonomics, business finance, etc. at a local community college or something. You could self educate yourself by just doing a lot of reading; taking the appraoch I've dubbed the used bookstore MBA, etc.

Regarding business model:

Google and blogs are your friend here, as well as books about existing open-source companies and startups. Google for
Open Source Business Models and just start reading. Read Under The Radar, Under The Radar, Art of the Start and High Tech Startup among others.

Regarding contacts:

See if you have any friends or acquaintances that run their own business (it doesn't have to be tech related). Ask them to meet you for lunch
to sit and just chat about business. Ask them for advice, tips, other contacts, etc. Find out if your area has any sort of business networking group, a "leads group," etc. If so, join and attend meetings. Meet people, talk to them, throw ideas around, ask interesting people out to lunch, etc. Attend local users groups meetings, LUGs, JUGs, etc. Not all of the attendees will be (just) techies: some will be entrepreneurs, managers, etc. that could be potential partners, future employees, etc. Attend and get to know people. Chat, schmooze and take notes. Ask interesting people out to lunch. Lather, rinse, repeat. Read The Little Black Book of Connections and similiar books.

If you do enough of this, you will eventually reach a point where you have some solid ideas about what to do, and more specific questions to ask. Once you reach that point, you can start digging deeper with help from your new-found connections and other resources.

I have no business plan, or enough information to even know the potential of the market I'm targeting. All I know is that the products available now suck, and not just a little. So my question is, what should be my first step to starting a startup at this point? What do I need before I can approach investors?

I would say that you need several things: some fundamental business know-how, some idea of what business model you might adopt for your business, and some contacts that can help out. You can gain these things in a variety of ways.

Regarding basic business know-how:

You could take classes in the basics of management, micro-economics, macro-enonomics, business finance, etc. at a local community college or something. You could self educate yourself by just doing a lot of reading; taking the appraoch I've dubbed the used bookstore MBA, etc.

Regarding business model:

Google and blogs are your friend here, as well as books about existing open-source companies and startups. Google for
Open Source Business Models and just start reading. Read Under The Radar, Under The Radar, Art of the Start and High Tech Startup among others.

Regarding contacts:

See if you have any friends or acquaintances that run their own business (it doesn't have to be tech related). Ask them to meet you for lunch
to sit and just chat about business. Ask them for advice, tips, other contacts, etc. Find out if your area has any sort of business networking group, a "leads group," etc. If so, join and attend meetings. Meet people, talk to them, throw ideas around, ask interesting people out to lunch, etc. Attend local users groups meetings, LUGs, JUGs, etc. Not all of the attendees will be (just) techies: some will be entrepreneurs, managers, etc. that could be potential partners, future employees, etc. Attend and get to know people. Chat, schmooze and take notes. Ask interesting people out to lunch. Lather, rinse, repeat. Read The Little Black Book of Connections and similiar books.

If you do enough of this, you will eventually reach a point where you have some solid ideas about what to do, and more specific questions to ask. Once you reach that point, you can start digging deeper with help from your new-found connections and other resources.

Linkety link http://www.amazon.com/Ali-Farka-Toure/dp/B000003QJ E/ http://www.amazon.com/Debussy-Orchestral-Music-Ber nard-Haitink/dp/B00000417P/ http://www.amazon.com/State-Wonder-Complete-Goldbe rg-Variations/dp/B00006FI7C/ http://www.amazon.com/Far-East-Suite-Duke-Ellingto n/dp/B0000C8AOZ/

Linkety link http://www.amazon.com/Ali-Farka-Toure/dp/B000003QJ E/ http://www.amazon.com/Debussy-Orchestral-Music-Ber nard-Haitink/dp/B00000417P/ http://www.amazon.com/State-Wonder-Complete-Goldbe rg-Variations/dp/B00006FI7C/ http://www.amazon.com/Far-East-Suite-Duke-Ellingto n/dp/B0000C8AOZ/

Linkety link http://www.amazon.com/Ali-Farka-Toure/dp/B000003QJ E/ http://www.amazon.com/Debussy-Orchestral-Music-Ber nard-Haitink/dp/B00000417P/ http://www.amazon.com/State-Wonder-Complete-Goldbe rg-Variations/dp/B00006FI7C/ http://www.amazon.com/Far-East-Suite-Duke-Ellingto n/dp/B0000C8AOZ/

Linkety link http://www.amazon.com/Ali-Farka-Toure/dp/B000003QJ E/ http://www.amazon.com/Debussy-Orchestral-Music-Ber nard-Haitink/dp/B00000417P/ http://www.amazon.com/State-Wonder-Complete-Goldbe rg-Variations/dp/B00006FI7C/ http://www.amazon.com/Far-East-Suite-Duke-Ellingto n/dp/B0000C8AOZ/

Robert Anton Wilsons autobiography is titled Cosmic Trigger. There were several updates/sequals including Cosmic Trigger III: My Life After Death

What the subtitle refers to is the false stories that he was found dead in his home on February 22, 1994 that propagated on the internet and the insights he had from watching the situation unfold.

I really hope that again the current story is also unfounded. But I am afraid its not, so I will be sending a check.

For all those 'the hippy should gedda job' folks, they might be interested to know that RAW was a (little l) libertarian before it was cool. It fact he was probably one of the seed crystals that fostered the 'coolness' on the internet back in the day.

The best way to score well is to familiarize yourself with the test. Get a copy of The Official SAT Study Guide. It's the only book with real tests from the company that administers the SAT.

The best way to score well is to familiarize yourself with the test. Get a copy of The Official SAT Study Guide. It's the only book with real tests from the company that administers the SAT.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0375765441/ref=pd _cp_b_title/104-7416757-8067151?ie=UTF8 (11 Practice Tests for the SAT and PSAT, 2007)

The difference is the "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" was a Sci-Fi book. (A very good book but it is still fiction.)

The "High Frontier: Human Colonies in Space" by Gerard K. O'Neill is a non-fiction detailed explination of how to commercially exploit space. http://www.amazon.com/High-Frontier-Colonies-Space -Apogee/dp/189652267X

One could also add Michael Flynn's Firestar to the list. I don't know why Flynn isn't more popular with the Slashdot crowd. Sure, the characterization in his novels is weak (but this is common to most of science fiction), but the vision he has of expanding into space in the near future by shucking NASA and encouraging private innovation is compelling. With all the XPrize news here, he merits attention.

In Flynn's future history, sending cargo into space with superconducting magnets is the way its done, while spacecraft are reserved for quick point-to-point transportation of goods (FedEx is one of the first companies to sign on) and getting people up there.

Yep... Raimi pretty much cut his teeth on Evil Dead... Raimi and Campbell were good friends growing up and pretty much started their careers with that movie. They had done other movies together earlier, but Evil Dead and the sequels are pretty much what gave those guys hollywood level names. I actually doubt that Raimi owns the rights to the word "groovy" said in that manner, but was just trying to give an example that was relatively on topic to illustrate the idea that making ONE hit game can be done on the cheap but there are limitations that can arise afterwards.

On a mildly related note, if you're interested If Chins Could Kill is a must read for any Campbell fan... gives a pretty good feel for the whole mystique, and shows a lot of the trouble that you have to go through in making ANY independant work. And I remember it being a pretty entertaining read.

Well, they could embed a cross in their chests that would allow them to be resurrected. Although it could be at a terrible cost.

http://www.amazon.com/Hyperion-Dan-Simmons/dp/0553 283685/sr=8-4/qid=1159902191/ref=pd_bbs_4/104-9955 155-8501551?ie=UTF8&s=books

Actually, "Atlas Shrugged" can be read in about 15 minutes, since any synopsis of it will eschew the mundane character development and endless repetition of capitalistic independence. As for economic philosophy, try reading about the effects of unchecked consumptive capitalism in the real world (The Wal-Mart Effect) instead of fiction from last century.

Ubisoft is essentially a Microsoft-only shop these days, it seems. They've pretty much bet the farm on the Xbox, and have so far been the only game shop to make anything really decent for it.

See Amazon 's games list for the Wii, Red Steel is one of the "ones to watch" as well. Of course Ubisoft and ps3 produces nothing, so it's possible MS is trying an "anything but PS3 play" to hurt Sony but that seems too tin foil hat like.

Here's one of that Casio family. Other options (moving hands, metal cases, etc.).

Saw this book in a bookstore in the ADKs last summer (not far from the border...): http://www.amazon.com/How-Move-Canada-Primer-Ameri cans/dp/0312349866/sr=1-1/qid=1159893980/ref=pd_bb s_1/102-2225495-4131348?ie=UTF8&s=books

I personally could care less if someone else could look at which CD's I'm interested in.

Save yourself $7.65 by buying the book here: IPv6 Essentials. And if you use the "secret" A9.com discount, you can save an extra 1.57%!