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Wal-Mart Cancels RFID Trial
EABird writes "CNet is reporting that Wal-mart has announced that they have canceled the RFID trial they were planning. Unfortunately, it looks like they are canceling it to focus on the use of the same technology in the warehouses and distribution centers instead, and waiting for the cost to come down before using the RFIDs in the stores."
fucked post
Woot!
...why people even care about Wal-Mart? Anyone who's seen Jennifer Connolly's bra-busting performance in "Career Opportunities" knows that you should always shop at Target! You'll never know what kind of gorgeous babe you might get to bang!
[ed. note: in the following text, former FreeBSD developer Mike Smith gives his reasons for abandoning FreeBSD]
When I stood for election to the FreeBSD core team nearly two years ago, many of you will recall that it was after a long series of debates during which I maintained that too much organisation, too many rules and too much formality would be a bad thing for the project.
Today, as I read the latest discussions on the future of the FreeBSD project, I see the same problem; a few new faces and many of the old going over the same tired arguments and suggesting variations on the same worthless schemes. Frankly I'm sick of it.
FreeBSD used to be fun. It used to be about doing things the right way. It used to be something that you could sink your teeth into when the mundane chores of programming for a living got you down. It was something cool and exciting; a way to spend your spare time on an endeavour you loved that was at the same time wholesome and worthwhile.
It's not anymore. It's about bylaws and committees and reports and milestones, telling others what to do and doing what you're told. It's about who can rant the longest or shout the loudest or mislead the most people into a bloc in order to legitimise doing what they think is best. Individuals notwithstanding, the project as a whole has lost track of where it's going, and has instead become obsessed with process and mechanics.
So I'm leaving core. I don't want to feel like I should be "doing something" about a project that has lost interest in having something done for it. I don't have the energy to fight what has clearly become a losing battle; I have a life to live and a job to keep, and I won't achieve any of the goals I personally consider worthwhile if I remain obligated to care for the project.
Discussion
I'm sure that I've offended some people already; I'm sure that by the time I'm done here, I'll have offended more. If you feel a need to play to the crowd in your replies rather than make a sincere effort to address the problems I'm discussing here, please do us the courtesy of playing your politics openly.
From a technical perspective, the project faces a set of challenges that significantly outstrips our ability to deliver. Some of the resources that we need to address these challenges are tied up in the fruitless metadiscussions that have raged since we made the mistake of electing officers. Others have left in disgust, or been driven out by the culture of abuse and distraction that has grown up since then. More may well remain available to recruitment, but while the project is busy infighting our chances for successful outreach are sorely diminished.
There's no simple solution to this. For the project to move forward, one or the other of the warring philosophies must win out; either the project returns to its laid-back roots and gets on with the work, or it transforms into a super-organised engineering project and executes a brilliant plan to deliver what, ultimately, we all know we want.
Whatever path is chosen, whatever balance is struck, the choosing and the striking are the important parts. The current indecision and endless conflict are incompatible with any sort of progress.
Trying to dissect the above is far beyond the scope of any parting shot, no matter how distended. All I can really ask of you all is to let go of the minutiae for a moment and take a look at the big picture. What is the ultimate goal here? How can we get there with as little overhead as possible? How would you like to be treated by your fellow travellers?
Shouts
To the Slashdot "BSD is dying" crowd - big deal. Death is part of the cycle; take a look at your soft, pallid bodies and consider that right this very moment, parts of you are dying. See? It's not so bad.
To the bulk of the FreeBSD committerbase and the developer community at large - keep your eyes on the real goals. It
>>How that unfortunate? (Score:0, Flamebait)
>>by Weeb (69841) on Wednesday July 09, @03:56PM (#6402515)
Appearantly the wallmart greeters have mod points left.
Fuck every one of them in their stupid asses.
Dave "I INVENTED BLOGGING" Weiner, go fuck yourself. How about you invent sucking my dick.
Anil Dash? More like Anal Rash.
Xeni - What the fuck kind of name is Xeni, anyways? Go back to munching carpet, you fucking ugly dyke.
Cory Doctorow: You sucked back when you were doing movies with your buttbuddy Cory Feldman, and you suck now. Please stop blogging until you've removed your tongue completely from Mickey Mouse's asshole.
And last but not least, a big ol' hearty fuck you you fascist pig to Glenn "Instafaggot" Reynolds.
What exactly is "unfortunate" about this? If it doesn't make it into a consumer product at the point of sale, what FSCKING harm is it doing? (as far as it goes, even if it DOES make it into a consumer product at the point of sale, if 1) they disclose that it's there and optionally 2) they make it removeable (part of packaging, on a removable tag, etc) I fail to see how this is a problem. If they disclose and don't make it removeable, I don't have to buy that product, do I?
Do mods even read the article, the article summary, or the post they are moderating?
This was moderated as Insightful. Heavily moderated as Insightful.
The Summary was saying it was unfortunate that they are NOT deploying the new technology.
You are upset at the summary for dissing the new technology. They are not.
They are saying it's unfortunate that it isn't being deployed.
How did this get modded up so high?
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