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He must have done something really bad - like help Nintendo slip out the eponym slot for "home videogame". Otherwise, he would have taken the huge retirement bonus in more stock at a preferred price (like an option), or just cash with which to buy stock like anyone else. $10M in cash infusion that way could have given the company money to use, perhaps bumping the share price up, while smoothing his transition from prez -> director -> major shareholder. Nobody's that "nice", and I'm sure many others will also be suspicious, which will hurt the company,

I concur, please do consider donating the memory. I worked for a local place that refurbished donated computers and used them for a community networking initiative which provided poor people with:

• a gentle introduction to using a computer (many hours of hands-on use with an instructor who can answer questions on-the-spot),
• a computer system (including all the hardware and software they needed to do real tasks),
• and a dialup account at the ISP operated by the organization.

All of this was provided at no cost to the recipient. As I understand the financing, the place is run on a combination of grant money, selling dialup accounts and hosting, and donations. After building and testing a bunch of low-end machines used for these classes, my work there ended. It was a good karma job with good people working there and I would work there again if the need arose.

As a former technician there, I would have been grateful to receive donated RAM for what is today considered old. I'm sure someone's machine would have used it (or some machine that will soon be donated there would use it).

Bah, I use microwave encryption, it even works on Read Only Format devices.

Right. Which is why you will never see Xerox, Klennex, Band Aid, Escalator, Styrofoam, or any of the other proprietary eponyms used as a generic name for a product that is not a genuine trademarked thing. Oh wait...

When products domainate [sic] and earn name recognition they deserve it not to be trampled ...

An eponym is a general term used to describe from what or whom something derived its name. /.../ a proprietary eponym could be considered a brand name /.../ which has fallen into general use." [American proprietary eponyms]

yes I have, seriously, anyone looking for a pure flight experience, try soaring!

I have not been able to fly since I left school a little over 2 years ago, I miss it a lot, but there are no glider operations near by, and weekends are out due to long distance relationship. I hope to fly again some day.

I thought AOL was based on the idea that people need a never-ending supply of drink coasters.

Nononono, you got it all screwed up! AOL is based on the idea that people need a never-ending supply of Microwave CD Burning CDs.

Another hint for the frugal: forget expensive lighting, just bring a bunch of CDs and party until the crack of... well... the CDs.

And don't forget the numerous other party tricks you could do...

Put the CD in a microwave. It looks really cool when it comes out.

Here are the directions.

And don't forget the Desert Eagle .50 Action Express...

I think that we agree on most points. But let's go back to the question that started it all. Is globalization to blame here? Let's define globalization as the increase in power of multinational companies without a corresponding growth in transparency and citizen control of multinational institutions. This is something so new that it can hardly be blamed for the problems of today's world.

The fundamental cause of the tension in the Middle East is here. Some would rather reapportion blame to a vague abstraction that they have a pre-existing problem with. I consider that obfuscatory rather than clarifying.

Those same people tend to present the "problem" without presenting a solution. "Smash global capitalism". "Destroy McDonald's" etc. Those are slogans, not solutions.

I have spent some of my time (not recently alas) fighting particularly abusive multinationals so I would be the last to claim that multinationals and globalization are onalloyed goods. But I fight specific evils in a specific way rather than attacking a meaningless abstraction or the concrete system which has benefited us so much.

There's a cute usage of them here, for parachute drop cushioning.

[O]ne of the main points behind XP is that the requirement will change and so it allows them to change.

Mea culpa. All I've been hearing about, at least on Slashdot, is team programming. "A little learning" and all that...

I'll be hearing a presentation on XP from Martin Fowler on Thursday night, presented by the Chicago Software Process Improvement Network. After that, I'll be fully qualified to make sweeping generalizations.
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[O]ne of the main points behind XP is that the requirement will change and so it allows them to change.

Mea culpa. All I've been hearing about, at least on Slashdot, is team programming. "A little learning" and all that...

I'll be hearing a presentation on XP from Martin Fowler on Thursday night, presented by the Chicago Software Process Improvement Network. After that, I'll be fully qualified to make sweeping generalizations.
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There is a metal called Nitinol, which is known as a shape memory alloy, commonly known as "muscle wires" that contract when heated. They are also low resistance conductors, so they will contract when you put current through them (and heat them up). Here's some more information. They call it "Flexinol" though. You can get small actuators, but it has limitations in that these muscles are slow, and can only "pull", they must cool down to go to their extended state, which can take some time. Also, they require a lot of current (at low voltages).

I have seen some work done with pneumatic bladders in a mesh sleeve, when they are inflated, the sleeve causes the pneumatic muscle to contract. It is called a "McKibben Actuator", here's some more information.

• 
  Ok, napster. A couple points. I feel like I've had this discussion a
  million times in the past few days so I'm not going to go overboard today.
  For those of you interested, Jenny Toomey from Tsunami has started/joined a
  great lobbying group representing the interests of smaller artists (ie not
  Metalllica) in conjunction with the Washington DC law firm Bracy Williams.
  I'm going to be getting involved with the group also
  
  1. The most frequent argument that I hear is "well, napster isn't always
  bad because I got to hear a few of your songs and then I went out bought
  your CD. So it was ok!" Here's the deal. I appreciate you buying the CD so
  much! But if a band wants to give away some of their songs for free as a
  promotional device, that should be their choice. You DONT have the right to
  make that decision for them. And just because YOU go out and buy the CD
  that doesn't mean everyone else does. Just because you're (somewhat)
  ethical doesn't mean everyone is. But once something is up on Napster,
  there's no way to screen these people. No matter how you defend it, taking
  these songs IS STEALING. And yes, there are lesser and greater degrees of
  stealing but it's still stealing. All of these excuses are simply
  rationalizations. The point is, you as a consumer don't have the right to
  make that choice for the "creator" of the music. It's not your decision to
  make.
  
  For the record, sarge has offered free mp3's at different points. We also
  have sound clips up in different places. If people wanted to just hear
  sarge before they bought a CD, there are plenty of other avenues for them.
  I recognize these avenues take more time on your part and offer less than
  Napster does but they're legal _and_ ethical. Sooner or later some
  musician's going to sue the shit out of an individual napster user for
  illegally copying their material and then making it illegally available for
  distribution to millions of people. This person could potentially receive
  thousands of counts of copyright infringement. You don't want to be the
  test case!!!!!!!
  
  2. The other (extremely silly and poorly thought out excuse I've heard) is
  that napster is a way to "stick it" to corporations and the big music
  labels. Well, I guess you can justify stealing by saying you're stealing
  from the right people. But personally, I never thought it was ok to steal
  from anyone, no matter who they were.
  
  Anyway, the problem is that the band getting the most attention for
  protesting Napster is Metallica. I believe Metallica has every right to
  protest Napster (they're getting dicked on a monumental scale) but
  obviously they are protesting it more from a political and artists' rights
  standpoint. The thing is, bands like Metallica make most of their money
  from Alternative Revenue Streams (ARS). ARS are basically money earned
  through touring, the sale of merchandise, etc. Bands on major labels only
  get a very small percentage (probably a few cents) from every CD that's
  sold. Although they may sell millions of CD's, most of their money still
  comes from other touring and merch.
  
  On the other hand, indie bands (whom I assume you all support!) can make a
  very large percentage of their money from sales and have very low ARS. Mud
  and Parasol Records give us a wonderful deal. After the agreed up expenses
  are covered, they split money with us 50/50. That means after the first
  hundred or two hundred CD's sold for each 1000 pressed, we make $3.50 for
  every CD that's wholesaled at $7. That's a fantastic deal and the only way
  we _ever_ survived touring 6 months a year when we made less than $50 on
  plenty of nights.
  
  So anyway, you may think you only download major label songs. But in
  reality you're lending your support to a product that facilitates the
  stealing of music from _your_ friends. If touring indie bands can't make
  money on CD sales they won't be able to afford to tour at all - and then no
  more bands will be cruising through your town anytime soon.
  
  Once again, I'm not taking a pro-corporate stance! Or a capitalistic "bands
  should make more money" stance. But we do have to survive.
  
  Ok, I'm tired and this is probably really incoherent so I'm going to shut
  up.
  
  Enough.
  xo
  e
  

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