Slashdot Mirror

Copyright 1993 Captain Sarcastic (kkoller@nox.cs.du.edu)

On my way home from the second job I've taken for the extra holiday cash I need, I stopped at Taco Bell for a quick bite to eat. In my billfold is a $50 bill and a $2 bill. That is all of the cash I have on my person. I figure that with a $2 bill, I can get something to eat and not have to worry about people getting pissed at me.

Me: "Hi, I'd like one seven layer burrito please, to go."

Clerk: "Is that it?"
Me: "Yep."
Clerk: "That'll be $1.04, eat here?"
Me: "No, it's to go." [I hate effort duplication.]

At this point I open my billfold and hand him the $2 bill. He looks at it kind of funny and says,

Clerk: "Uh, hang on a sec, I'll be right back."

He goes to talk to his manager, who is still within earshot. The following conversation occurs between the two of them.

Clerk: "Hey, you ever see a $2 bill?"

Manager: "No. A what?"
Clerk: "A $2 bill. This guy just gave it to me."
Manager: "Ask for something else, there's no such thing as a $2 bill."
Clerk: "Yeah, thought so."

He comes back to me and says,

Clerk: "We don't take these. Do you have anything else?"

Me: "Just this fifty. You don't take $2 bills? Why?"
Clerk: "I don't know."
Me: "See here where it says legal tender?"
Clerk: "Yeah."
Me: "So, shouldn't you take it?"
Clerk: "Well, hang on a sec."

He goes back to his manager who is watching me like I'm going to shoplift, and

Clerk: "He says I have to take it."

Manager: "Doesn't he have anything else?"
Clerk: "Yeah, a fifty. I'll get it and you can open the safe and get change."
Manager: "I'm not opening the safe with him in here."
Clerk: "What should I do?"
Manager: "Tell him to come back later when he has real money."
Clerk: "I can't tell him that, you tell him."
Manager: "Just tell him."
Clerk: "No way, this is weird, I'm going in back."

The manager approaches me and says,

Manager: "Sorry, we don't take big bills this time of night."

[It was 8:00pm and this particular Taco Bell is in a well-lighted indoor mall with a hundred other stores.]
Me: "Well, here's a two."
Manager: "We don't take those either."
Me: "Why the hell not?"
Manager: "I think you know why."
Me: "No really, tell me, why?"
Manager: "Please leave before I call mall security."
Me: "Excuse me?"
Manager: "Please leave before I call mall security."
Me: "What the hell for?"
Manager: "Please, sir."
Me: "Uh, go ahead, call them."
Manager: "Would you please just leave?"
Me: "No."
Manager: "Fine, have it your way then."
Me: "No, that's Burger King, isn't it?"

At this point he backs away from me and calls mall security on the phone around the corner. I have two people staring at me from the dining area, and I begin laughing out loud, just for effect.

A few minutes later, this 45-year-oldish guy comes in and says at the other end of counter, in a whisper:

Security Guard: "Yeah, Mike, what's up?"

Manager: "This guy is trying to give me some [pause] funny money."
Guard: "Really? What?"
Manager: "Get this, a two dollar bill."
Guard: "Why would a guy fake a $2 bill?" [incredulous]
Manager: "I don't know? He's kinda weird. Says the only other thing he has is a fifty."
Guard: "So, the fifty's fake?"
Manager: "No, the $2 is."
Guard: "Why would he fake a $2 bill?" Manager: "I don't know. Can you talk to him, and get him out of here?" Guard: "Yeah..."

Security guard walks over to me and says

Guard: "Mike here tells me you have some fake bills you're trying

There's been a story on the web for years about a guy who tries to pay for a burrito with a $2 bill and the Taco Bell people have no idea there is such a thing. I just reread it and it still made me laugh out loud.

I remembered this bit from the old FidoNet - I saw it on a BBS when it first made the rounds in 1993.

1993. Boy, am I dating myself... (I mean in the chronological sense, get your mind out of the gutter!)

http://www.digiserve.com/eescape/closet/silly/2-at -Taco-Bell.html

Also, here's a jpg of both sides of a $2 bill in case anybody on /. has never seen one.

Also, here's a jpg of both sides of a $2 bill in case anybody on /. has never seen one.

4 oh 4...Silly /., and their spaces. Try this link.

Clickety Click

> the original projected release date was 2005

Not quite. The projected release date has always been 2006. 2005 was just a date picked by the fans to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the first movie. On the web forum, Don Murphy mentions they were shooting for a summer 2006 release. More information on the movie can be found on the TF - The Movie roundup page. If the first movie is successful, they plan for Unicron to make an appearance in the third one.

Though many people do not realise it, over 500 episodes of Transformers have been made in their various incarnations.
Here is a brief rundown of the various Transformer shows that have aired in the last 20 years.

American shows
Transformers Generation 1 TV show (American written show, set during 1985-86 and 2005-06)

2) Transformers Generation 2 TV show (modified version of the G1 series that added an annoying 3D space cube animation.

Japanese only series
Transformers: Headmasters (Japanese). Available as an official or partial fandub.

Transformers: Masterforce (Japanese). Available in official dub or sub-titled versions.

Transformers Victory (Japanese series) Available as an official dub, fan dub, or subtitled.

Transformers Zone (Japanese). Available in subtitled or dubbed versions.

Though transforming robots remained popular in the East, the Transformers line was 'rested' for a few years.

The Beast Era
In 1996 the toy line was relaunched. After the disappointing sales of the Generation 2 series, vehicle modes were abandoned and animal forms introduced. Optimus Primal transformed into a gorilla and Megatron became a dinosaur. The Beast era was set years after the original series 300-1000 years, depending upon your source) and introduced two new factions - the Maximals and Predacons.

Beast Wars - The Autobots and Decepticons are gone and the Maximals and Predacons have made peace. This peace is broken by Megatron (a namesake, not the original), who travels back in time in an attempt to change the course of history. In most episodes he is thwarted by Optimus Primal and a small band of Maximals. The animation shows its age, but it is probably the most intelligently written TF show made (season 2, in particular).

Beast Machines - The Beast Wars are over and the Maximals return to Cybertron. They find that Megatron has captured the sparks (soul) of every Transformer on the planet and created an army of mindless drones called Vehicons. Best remembered for the strong religious overtones, huge explosions and scenes of the Maximals running away.

Japanese Beast series
While the US got the second and third season of Beast Wars, Japan received two spin-off series that focused upon other planets.

Beast Wars 2 (Japanese). Leo Convoy (lion) Vs Galvatron (dragon).

Beast Wars Neo (Japanese) - The Maximal leader, Big Convoy (a wooly mammoth) faces against the evil Magmatron. Unlike earlier Convoy/Prime toys, Big Convoy has a removable matrix in his chest.

Autobots and Decepticons return
Hasbro's initial plan was to create a followup to the Beast Machines series called Transtech. This would feature vehicle TFs with animal moulding. However, it was later abandoned and Hasbro made a deal

> the original projected release date was 2005

Not quite. The projected release date has always been 2006. 2005 was just a date picked by the fans to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the first movie. On the web forum, Don Murphy mentions they were shooting for a summer 2006 release. More information on the movie can be found on the TF - The Movie roundup page. If the first movie is successful, they plan for Unicron to make an appearance in the third one.

Though many people do not realise it, over 500 episodes of Transformers have been made in their various incarnations.
Here is a brief rundown of the various Transformer shows that have aired in the last 20 years.

American shows
Transformers Generation 1 TV show (American written show, set during 1985-86 and 2005-06)

2) Transformers Generation 2 TV show (modified version of the G1 series that added an annoying 3D space cube animation.

Japanese only series
Transformers: Headmasters (Japanese). Available as an official or partial fandub.

Transformers: Masterforce (Japanese). Available in official dub or sub-titled versions.

Transformers Victory (Japanese series) Available as an official dub, fan dub, or subtitled.

Transformers Zone (Japanese). Available in subtitled or dubbed versions.

Though transforming robots remained popular in the East, the Transformers line was 'rested' for a few years.

The Beast Era
In 1996 the toy line was relaunched. After the disappointing sales of the Generation 2 series, vehicle modes were abandoned and animal forms introduced. Optimus Primal transformed into a gorilla and Megatron became a dinosaur. The Beast era was set years after the original series 300-1000 years, depending upon your source) and introduced two new factions - the Maximals and Predacons.

Beast Wars - The Autobots and Decepticons are gone and the Maximals and Predacons have made peace. This peace is broken by Megatron (a namesake, not the original), who travels back in time in an attempt to change the course of history. In most episodes he is thwarted by Optimus Primal and a small band of Maximals. The animation shows its age, but it is probably the most intelligently written TF show made (season 2, in particular).

Beast Machines - The Beast Wars are over and the Maximals return to Cybertron. They find that Megatron has captured the sparks (soul) of every Transformer on the planet and created an army of mindless drones called Vehicons. Best remembered for the strong religious overtones, huge explosions and scenes of the Maximals running away.

Japanese Beast series
While the US got the second and third season of Beast Wars, Japan received two spin-off series that focused upon other planets.

Beast Wars 2 (Japanese). Leo Convoy (lion) Vs Galvatron (dragon).

Beast Wars Neo (Japanese) - The Maximal leader, Big Convoy (a wooly mammoth) faces against the evil Magmatron. Unlike earlier Convoy/Prime toys, Big Convoy has a removable matrix in his chest.

Autobots and Decepticons return
Hasbro's initial plan was to create a followup to the Beast Machines series called Transtech. This would feature vehicle TFs with animal moulding. However, it was later abandoned and Hasbro made a deal

> the original projected release date was 2005

Not quite. The projected release date has always been 2006. 2005 was just a date picked by the fans to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the first movie. On the web forum, Don Murphy mentions they were shooting for a summer 2006 release. More information on the movie can be found on the TF - The Movie roundup page. If the first movie is successful, they plan for Unicron to make an appearance in the third one.

Though many people do not realise it, over 500 episodes of Transformers have been made in their various incarnations.
Here is a brief rundown of the various Transformer shows that have aired in the last 20 years.

American shows
Transformers Generation 1 TV show (American written show, set during 1985-86 and 2005-06)

2) Transformers Generation 2 TV show (modified version of the G1 series that added an annoying 3D space cube animation.

Japanese only series
Transformers: Headmasters (Japanese). Available as an official or partial fandub.

Transformers: Masterforce (Japanese). Available in official dub or sub-titled versions.

Transformers Victory (Japanese series) Available as an official dub, fan dub, or subtitled.

Transformers Zone (Japanese). Available in subtitled or dubbed versions.

Though transforming robots remained popular in the East, the Transformers line was 'rested' for a few years.

The Beast Era
In 1996 the toy line was relaunched. After the disappointing sales of the Generation 2 series, vehicle modes were abandoned and animal forms introduced. Optimus Primal transformed into a gorilla and Megatron became a dinosaur. The Beast era was set years after the original series 300-1000 years, depending upon your source) and introduced two new factions - the Maximals and Predacons.

Beast Wars - The Autobots and Decepticons are gone and the Maximals and Predacons have made peace. This peace is broken by Megatron (a namesake, not the original), who travels back in time in an attempt to change the course of history. In most episodes he is thwarted by Optimus Primal and a small band of Maximals. The animation shows its age, but it is probably the most intelligently written TF show made (season 2, in particular).

Beast Machines - The Beast Wars are over and the Maximals return to Cybertron. They find that Megatron has captured the sparks (soul) of every Transformer on the planet and created an army of mindless drones called Vehicons. Best remembered for the strong religious overtones, huge explosions and scenes of the Maximals running away.

Japanese Beast series
While the US got the second and third season of Beast Wars, Japan received two spin-off series that focused upon other planets.

Beast Wars 2 (Japanese). Leo Convoy (lion) Vs Galvatron (dragon).

Beast Wars Neo (Japanese) - The Maximal leader, Big Convoy (a wooly mammoth) faces against the evil Magmatron. Unlike earlier Convoy/Prime toys, Big Convoy has a removable matrix in his chest.

Autobots and Decepticons return
Hasbro's initial plan was to create a followup to the Beast Machines series called Transtech. This would feature vehicle TFs with animal moulding. However, it was later abandoned and Hasbro made a deal

> the original projected release date was 2005

Not quite. The projected release date has always been 2006. 2005 was just a date picked by the fans to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the first movie. On the web forum, Don Murphy mentions they were shooting for a summer 2006 release. More information on the movie can be found on the TF - The Movie roundup page. If the first movie is successful, they plan for Unicron to make an appearance in the third one.

Though many people do not realise it, over 500 episodes of Transformers have been made in their various incarnations.
Here is a brief rundown of the various Transformer shows that have aired in the last 20 years.

American shows
Transformers Generation 1 TV show (American written show, set during 1985-86 and 2005-06)

2) Transformers Generation 2 TV show (modified version of the G1 series that added an annoying 3D space cube animation.

Japanese only series
Transformers: Headmasters (Japanese). Available as an official or partial fandub.

Transformers: Masterforce (Japanese). Available in official dub or sub-titled versions.

Transformers Victory (Japanese series) Available as an official dub, fan dub, or subtitled.

Transformers Zone (Japanese). Available in subtitled or dubbed versions.

Though transforming robots remained popular in the East, the Transformers line was 'rested' for a few years.

The Beast Era
In 1996 the toy line was relaunched. After the disappointing sales of the Generation 2 series, vehicle modes were abandoned and animal forms introduced. Optimus Primal transformed into a gorilla and Megatron became a dinosaur. The Beast era was set years after the original series 300-1000 years, depending upon your source) and introduced two new factions - the Maximals and Predacons.

Beast Wars - The Autobots and Decepticons are gone and the Maximals and Predacons have made peace. This peace is broken by Megatron (a namesake, not the original), who travels back in time in an attempt to change the course of history. In most episodes he is thwarted by Optimus Primal and a small band of Maximals. The animation shows its age, but it is probably the most intelligently written TF show made (season 2, in particular).

Beast Machines - The Beast Wars are over and the Maximals return to Cybertron. They find that Megatron has captured the sparks (soul) of every Transformer on the planet and created an army of mindless drones called Vehicons. Best remembered for the strong religious overtones, huge explosions and scenes of the Maximals running away.

Japanese Beast series
While the US got the second and third season of Beast Wars, Japan received two spin-off series that focused upon other planets.

Beast Wars 2 (Japanese). Leo Convoy (lion) Vs Galvatron (dragon).

Beast Wars Neo (Japanese) - The Maximal leader, Big Convoy (a wooly mammoth) faces against the evil Magmatron. Unlike earlier Convoy/Prime toys, Big Convoy has a removable matrix in his chest.

Autobots and Decepticons return
Hasbro's initial plan was to create a followup to the Beast Machines series called Transtech. This would feature vehicle TFs with animal moulding. However, it was later abandoned and Hasbro made a deal

> the original projected release date was 2005

Not quite. The projected release date has always been 2006. 2005 was just a date picked by the fans to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the first movie. On the web forum, Don Murphy mentions they were shooting for a summer 2006 release. More information on the movie can be found on the TF - The Movie roundup page. If the first movie is successful, they plan for Unicron to make an appearance in the third one.

Though many people do not realise it, over 500 episodes of Transformers have been made in their various incarnations.
Here is a brief rundown of the various Transformer shows that have aired in the last 20 years.

American shows
Transformers Generation 1 TV show (American written show, set during 1985-86 and 2005-06)

2) Transformers Generation 2 TV show (modified version of the G1 series that added an annoying 3D space cube animation.

Japanese only series
Transformers: Headmasters (Japanese). Available as an official or partial fandub.

Transformers: Masterforce (Japanese). Available in official dub or sub-titled versions.

Transformers Victory (Japanese series) Available as an official dub, fan dub, or subtitled.

Transformers Zone (Japanese). Available in subtitled or dubbed versions.

Though transforming robots remained popular in the East, the Transformers line was 'rested' for a few years.

The Beast Era
In 1996 the toy line was relaunched. After the disappointing sales of the Generation 2 series, vehicle modes were abandoned and animal forms introduced. Optimus Primal transformed into a gorilla and Megatron became a dinosaur. The Beast era was set years after the original series 300-1000 years, depending upon your source) and introduced two new factions - the Maximals and Predacons.

Beast Wars - The Autobots and Decepticons are gone and the Maximals and Predacons have made peace. This peace is broken by Megatron (a namesake, not the original), who travels back in time in an attempt to change the course of history. In most episodes he is thwarted by Optimus Primal and a small band of Maximals. The animation shows its age, but it is probably the most intelligently written TF show made (season 2, in particular).

Beast Machines - The Beast Wars are over and the Maximals return to Cybertron. They find that Megatron has captured the sparks (soul) of every Transformer on the planet and created an army of mindless drones called Vehicons. Best remembered for the strong religious overtones, huge explosions and scenes of the Maximals running away.

Japanese Beast series
While the US got the second and third season of Beast Wars, Japan received two spin-off series that focused upon other planets.

Beast Wars 2 (Japanese). Leo Convoy (lion) Vs Galvatron (dragon).

Beast Wars Neo (Japanese) - The Maximal leader, Big Convoy (a wooly mammoth) faces against the evil Magmatron. Unlike earlier Convoy/Prime toys, Big Convoy has a removable matrix in his chest.

Autobots and Decepticons return
Hasbro's initial plan was to create a followup to the Beast Machines series called Transtech. This would feature vehicle TFs with animal moulding. However, it was later abandoned and Hasbro made a deal

Interesting how times have changed...

The Atari people speak of today is simply not the same company you're thinking of -- that company is dead, and some see it as a travesty that its corpse has been exhumed and made the puppet of a new startup desperate to garner some street cred with the geek crowd. (wait...is that an oxymoron?)

But, judge for yourself, of course. Here's a timeline

Ah, Macs and games...

For an amusing account of the trouble someone had when trying to pay for food at Taco Bell with a US$ 2.00 note, check this link:

http://www.digiserve.com/eescape/closet/silly/2-at -Taco-Bell.html

How long until we get arrested for paying for something with "funny money"? Remember, every time you use a non-standard currency, your funding terrorists!

Using a two dollar bill in the U.S. can result in something close to it.

Like this one? $2 at Taco Bell.

It would be like saying, "Yep, Mars is made of red rock and dust." That's not news, it's olds. There are probably heaps of discoveries that aren't brought to our attention because they fit the commonly held assumptions.

The discovery of Titan's flat surface is like the trailer to a movie. It leaves you wanting to know more, wanting to know why. It captures your interest, and so it's considered 'news'.

Although its good (for the type of people that read Slashdot) to know that theories are proven correct, it's just not interesting to the wider populace.

http://www.digiserve.com/eescape/atari/misc/Last-S tarfighter.html

blakespot

The Sea Shadow stealth ship used to be parked inside a huge aquatic "hangar" back behind the NeXT headquarters at the same time Rolling Stone magazine conducted an interview of Steve Jobs there back in 1994.

PS: The NSA loved NeXT's computers.

the nation's gone absolutely ape-shit

Neilette: "We put all our politicians in prison as soon as they're elected. Don't you?"
Rincewind: "Why?"
Neilette: "It saves time."
--Terry Pratchett, The Last Continent

Link here.

Yeah right, there's no such thing as a two dollar bill. Taco Bell helped disprove this silly statement of yours.

...who thought you were talking about geek clothing?

The bit-width of the Jaguar was a bit tricky to figure out. Scroll down a little to "Q. Was the Jaguar really a 64-bit system?"

Kudos to Adam Dunkels for pushing the envelope of 8-bit computing. Many people will say "whats' the point of this." or "This has no application whatsoever and is a waste of time." but I disagree. Adam is making software and designing methods of programming to run internet based programs on chips and systems that where never designed for it, like the Atari Jaguar the Atari 8-bit console not to mention the C64. This work will allow others to get the motivation to push the envelope in other areas of computing as well.

It seems Adam has what was once prevailant in the computing and electronics industry. Tinkering and programming for the sheer joy of creating something new. In this way, programming and building systems like this are very similar to creating a piece of art, contrary to public opinion and modern developments in computing. Keep up the good work Adam. You are an inspriation to hobbyists in all fields.

nope, Steve didn't invent this one either...

(yet another atari/apple coinky-dink.. chills...)

How to get free food at Taco Bell using a two-dollar bill

Here is a true story about someone who almost got arrested for trying to buy a burrito with a $2 bill. A mall security guard actually helped out.

If there are two dollar bills are they a limited run, collectible currency thing like silver dollars? what do they look like? why have I never seen one?

I don't know it they're still printed, but they are real, and still in circulation. They just not commonly used.

Here's a link to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. The have a picture of Jefferson on them.

And here's a link to a funny story about someone who recently tried to spend one at a Taco Bell.

"Game companies such as Sega, Taito, and Eidos have already expressed support for it."

Don't get too excited about this, folks -- after all, based on initial announcements, even the Atari Lynx and the Atari Jaguar got support from big-name companies like Konami, Taito, and Electronic Arts (as the author of the FAQs for those systems, I ought to know). "Support" at this stage is nothing more than a codeword meaning "we'll be there if it takes off, but with an option to ignore it if it sinks." Sega gets a partial pass on this prediction, since they've got announced games for it already, but don't count your Soul Reavers until they hatch (or whatever it is soul reavers do)

Then again, Nokia is a mite bigger (and more competent) than Atari was during the Tramiel era...

As the keeper of the Atari Jaguar FAQ, I can say that "Jaguar == game system" is still the first association I make...

"Technology without the price" was their slogan in the late 80's, and despite Atari's great success in gaming, the company sold A LOT of their 68k-based machines in Europe. I happily remember my first Atari, a 1040STF that I bought as a teen. The better machines (like the Mega ST, later: TT030 with astonishing 16, then 32 MHz CPU!) were beyond my reach, but I could afford an extension set to boost the black&white 640x400 display to ~690x450. What a gain! The GUI based OS ("TOS") was quite good for the time - it really kicked ass in comparison to Win 3.11. Even without the price, we got a machine that we could use to actually get some work done. That was different with Commodore's Amiga machines, which weren't too expensive - but they sucked because of their crappy color display.

Oh, if you want to know what Jack Tramiel (our hero!) is doing today... Electric Escape has a feature article.

Yes, you are correct. Interesting tidbit: Nolan Bushnell went on to form "Sente Games" (see #27) after he left Atari. From what I've heard, "Sente" is the checkmate to Atari's "check".

Did I read a different article than everyone else here? Because it seems to me that while Pixar will be using Macs for storyboarding and other such work, the actual rendering will still be done by their Linux-based renderfarms...?

--R.J.
"Listen Different" golf shirts!

The webbing dossolves in about an hour, so that makes it useless for commercial purposes.

I can think of three hundred law-enforcement, military, and civilian uses for a one-hour-limit criminal-disabling web shooter. Forget pepper spray and tasers and riot gear, just use webs!

--R.J.
"Listen Different" golf shirts!

I bought the official strategy guide for the first Metal Gear Solid game for the PlayStation. Even though I had finished the game on my own already, I enjoyed seeing the little tidbits I missed, and savored the concept art that the guide reproduced.

--R.J.
"Just Play It" golf shirts!

You mean like this one?

Special effects in iMovie aren't too shabby, either. Apple's bundled transitions and effects aren't much, but GeeThree and Virtix have some nice iMovie packages for around $30. Just ten minutes ago I was looking at Virtix's new Bravo filters, and their "Laser" and "lightning" look like they would be pretty handy for those backyard Star Wars reenactments...

And anyone who dismisses the power and flexibility of iMovie obviously hasn't used it. It is a compelling reason to buy a Mac!

--R.J.
"Slacker Survivor" T-shirts!

How about a live action Transformers movie? I suppose it'd probably be one of those movies that wouldn't be mentioned, although I'd like to see it.

At the last company I worked for we used transformers as our naming convention. There are plenty of names available and you can get fairly creative with using the names:

All NT machines can be decepticons because they are evil, and all UNIX machines can be Autobots becuase they are friendly.

Your biggest UNIX machine can be Optimus and your biggest NT machine can be Megatron.

Your tape library can be Soundwave because he was the transformer that you put tapes into.

Your entire NOC can spend a fun filled afternoon debating naming decisions. It is a fun waste of time!

How else do you think the Republican party got so rich, anyway? They're the best politicians your money can buy...

--R.J.
"Get Bill Gates Out Of Jail" T-shirts!

But the iPod uses Firewire, not USB. It's hard to snarf 3GB of warez if you have to sit by the demo machine for six hours to do it...

--R.J.
"Get Bill Gates Out Of Jail" T-shirts!

3). No compelling reason to switch. I can manage pictures and create MP3's and CD's on my old Pentium. I can create a VCD on my reconditioned Pentium III. Why would any reasonable person want to create his own DVDs? Even creating a VCD is a very time consuming process (capture the video in real time, then compress it for eight-twelve hours). Who has the equipment to create a professional quality DVD anyway? If it isn't going to be professional quality, why not just make a VCD instead?

You just answered your own question.

Get one of those new high-end iMacs, for instance, and you can create your own, professional-quality DVDs, without a lot of time -- Apple's iDVD compresses at 2:1, so your 90-minute DVD would take 3 hours to compress, and you can multitask while it's doing that.

As for "Why would any reasonable person want to create his own DVDs?", you're kidding, right?

--R.J.
"Get Bill Gates Out Of Jail" T-shirts!

I'm a function over form kind of guy.

You drive a used 1981 Oldsmobile, right? With the crackling paint all covered in bird poo and the rust spots and the missing hubcaps, am I correct? The stuffing in the back seat is bubbling through the torn upholstery, yes?

Just checking.

--R.J.
"Get Bill Gates Out Of Jail" T-shirts!

Because they need to accomodate the countless generic PC motherboards and cards out there. It's no good making a computer that's a half-dome if you can't fit the Generic Korean Motherboard Of The Week into it.

Apple can do their amazing designs because they control the hardware -- they can say, "We need a motherboard in this shape and this size, get engineering to make it." Everyone else is "Sorry, ask the other guy to make it first, and maybe we'll support it."

--R.J.
"Get Bill Gates Out Of Jail" T-shirts!

Oh, go vote in the Trannies already: http://www.digiserve.com/eescape/tf/Transformers.s html

--R.J.
Monopoly XP T-shirts!

It'd make more sense for Microsoft employees to vote for Bush -- look at who got their boss off the hook...

--R.J.
Monopoly XP T-shirts!