This is true:) I fancy myself as a techno musician and have a very expensive "project studio."
However, I own every piece of gear in that studio outright. Yeah, occassionally (sp?) I've made some purchases on credit -- when a rare synth was for sale most recently... BUT i'm carying no CC debt, no car payments (because I drive a crappy 90 honda I bought outright:) and my monthly expenses are only housing / gasoline / food / cell phone (needed for work).
What I mean to say by all this is that, living beyond ones means is a recipe for poverty.
My god is this true... every last one of my friends who didn't go to college -- work menial job after menial job (read: guitar center, Wherehouse, CompUSA etc.) to buy pot, their videogames, and make payments on outrageously expensive vehicles.
I live in a well to do part of a small town in california -- I drive past the "title 9" (goverment subsidised) housing all the time, and I see *BETTER CARS* parked outside the title 9 then I do in my own neighborhood (sp?) where the lowest household income is well over 100g/y.
I think we need to institute financial education in all 3 elementary, grade school and highschool -- and I also think theres forces out there that *DON'T WANT* consumers to understand financing (Banks, Credit Card Companies, auto-dealerships... you can walk into best buy any day of the week and get 5000$ credit on a best buy card)
Im really gonna have to agree with this guy:) Encourage your friends to follow the letter of the dress code but violate the spirit.
On your lunch break take your fellow programmers down to the goodwill or salvation army and get some baggy baby-blue zuit-suits. You can get some crazy shit at the goodwill:)...
You just need to remind your management that people need the freedom to express themselves -- and theres things MUCH WORSE then t-shirts and shorts.
Anticdote: I played in my high-school jazz band back in the day... and uniform is very important in a band -- Our uniform was black dress pants, tux shirts, vest, bowtie... looked very sharp. So round about 94 the director decides, lets wear BALL CAPS with our suits!... So I decide, I'm gonna show this fucker a ballcap... I went to the closet and got out my vintage 1986 Lazer tag ball cap!! I can't find a picture of one on the net, buy immagine a silver ball cap with a huge infraread sensor array on the top, and on the forehead --6 leds and a speaker that beeps every other second. The director flipped out when he saw it and we never wore ballcaps with our uniforms again:)
Despite this, I'll dispense some wisdom anyways... I have a herniated disc and am quite familiar with back pain... If your experiencing back pain you *MUST GO TO THE DOCTOR.* It could be something serious. Go to the doctor right now, when your back and hes confirmed you don't have a serious condition, continue reading:) So heres what I've learned about backs :
You *MUST* excercise every day [Alot of slashdoters have told you this already but its worth repeating]. Excercise is crucial when you sit for 8 - 12 hours a day. Excercise dosen't have to be at a gym either -- go walk a couple miles per day.
If you have a disc problem *don't lift ANYTHING*. When you feel you can lift again, you must lift correctly (with the legs -- I'm sure you can find a website on proper lifting technique).
Your back is WEAKEST when your spine isn't straight, IE when your leaning. Never lift anything when your leaning, and try not to lean!
Lastly, its difficult to excercise your back muscles but you must do this. Theres two things you must do -- take a cylinder like a pipe or (my favorite) a wooden clothes hanging bar form your closet. Take this bar -- rest it on your shoulders behind your head, and bring your arms up and around it. Use the bar to strech by twisting left and right and up and down and every way inbetween -- its a very gentle excercise and it will help. Second of all, you must excercise your abs! Your abs support your back! Be carefull though -- alot of ab excercises are dangerous for people with back injuries. Just try situps:)
Lastly, PLEASE go to the doctor. Instead of that next GEForce card or effects processor -- or whatever your into, invest in your health. I injured my back when I was 17 with a herniated disk. I resisted going to the doctor but eventually had to when I would wake up most mornings *not being able to walk or stand.* Believe me you don't want that.
I'm somewhat baffled by some of these developers lack of funding.
Baffled? Have you ever used an SGI machine? they're just SHIT! They cost a fortune, they depreciate to a value of 5 - 10% of their original price in just a couple years -- AND -- SGI is *always* trying to get you to get on a contract with them so you can pay them lots of money to *DO NOTHING*.
Lemme give you a for instance, We have a 37,000$ Octane we bought in 97 or 98 where I work... These machines now routinely sell for 1500 - 3000$ on ebay depending on their configuration... Worst of all, the machine has never had any proper use... IRIX dosen't come with a compiler!! Our 37,000$ machine didn't come with a compiler, or even an IRIX cd incase we needed to reinstall... when you finally get gcc running (which is a hack -- as (the assembler) dosen't support this architecture) it can only compile 32 bit programs, and IRIX differs enough from standard "UNIX" (mostly in kernel headers and such) that NOTHING WILL COMPILE!
This is why SGI is going out of business -- overpriced hardware -- shitty OS -- all company policies designed to get you to buy a support contract... [you can't even get bugfixes for the OS without a support contract! (this isn't quite true, they'll give you security fixes, but everything else your on your own)]
Anticdote: I went to see an admin who was my superior where I work about what I could go to get my SGI's up and running and he says "Nothing, don't mess with them they're a pain in the ass." He then points to a STACK of half a dozen SGI workstations that hes not using
Re:Gotta add my $0.02 worth
on
Voyager Eulogy
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· Score: 3
Thats exactly how I felt -- anticlimactic -- The show faded end showing voyager coming home... I was thinking "god, what are we gonna do for the next 2 hrs if they got home in the first 60 seconds?"...
They should have cut the (lame) subplots -- the romances -- the baby -- and had a 10 minute "coming home ceremony" scene at the end where the crew was honored with medals and stuff:) this might have given that sense of accomplishment you seek... -- that would have cost ALOT of money to do that correctly -- lots of extras -- lots of matt paintings -- lots of difficult effects shots -- and I don't think they wanted to spend on the last episode.
Last episode mirrored structure of STTNG
on
Voyager Eulogy
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· Score: 4
The last episode of Voyager was an omage (or ripoff:) to the last episode ot STTNG...
If you recall the last episode of STTNG, Picard was struck with some syndrome, and was operating in 3 time periods...
The voyager finale was kindof a low-power copy of that same structure -- Janeway operating in 2 time periods simultaneously, TUVOC was sick (as opposed to janeway/picard).
The real difference was, the STTNG episode was one of the best episodes they ever made... the Voyager episode was such a hack its obvious the writers weren't even trying -- they tucked in the loose ends with a sledgehammer -- manufactured drama -- and tried to end with a bang by destroying alot of the borg which you know will come back eventually in some episode/movie/series -- and ALL done while relying on their "techno babel"... somebody explain why the ship that got janeway BACK in time, couldn't take the whole crew forward again?
I have a database of my info in my palm pilot (CC#'s, ph#'s, addressess etc...)... I wonder if I was sufficently letigious... could I copyright this database and sue Amazon for infringing ?
My brother explained to me why the french are so fucked up whacky -- (hes a sociology major)... Apparently earlier in the century the head of frances education (I realize were not talking about france directly here) was a sociologist with the notion that worshiping religion was really an indirect form of worshiping the state... so he decided to skip the middleman and teach french children to worship their culture and their state as a religion.
I can't remember the name of the guy, or probably the entire story correctly -- but I', sure some sociology major is reading this and can get us some info?
While I agree in principle with your statement -- flat screens are expensive because the technology to manufacture them isn't very mature... I remember reading somwhere that 40% of lcd panels *Don't work at all* after they've been manufactured... and I think another 5 - 10% fail within the first month.
So infact your paying for your LCD and another one that broke... *THATS* why they're so expensive.
I think you hit the nail on the head here... they've come out with lots of new models -- but none of them *DO ANYTHING NEW*. I've owned 3 pdas in my life, a US Robotics Pilot 1000, a visor deluxe, and a Palm Vx... and I gotta tell ya the palm VX is *perfect*. Its light, its.4 inches thick -- I've got a wallet case for it thats no bigger then a regular wallet -- and it stays charged for weeks at a time! The only difference between my Vx and my pilot 1000's (made in 1996) is how much ram they have and their shape... talk about progress
Re:I wonder if I could...
on
Got Tracks?
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· Score: 2
make sure you have atleast one transformers sticker so you can impress the asian-honda nuts... then apply speed holes:)
God help us when we manage to invent the Star Trek Replicator: owning one will be punishable by death. So you want to use it to replicate soup to feed your family? NO SOUP FOR YOU!:P
You'll be able to ahve them but you'll have to pay a royalty to the campbels soup consortium...:)
my god man! Someone who understands a free market economy! Copying music / software is *PRICE COMPETITION* in a monopoly market.
Re:Playing Quake like this causing health problems
on
PanQuake
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· Score: 2
ahh the beauty of youth... when doom came out I played it *EVERY* night for 8 mos, for anywhere between 2 - 6 hours... never got sick, only got fat:) I think I was 15 or 16 then:) now that I'm 23, any more then an hour and I'm lying on the floor and the room is spinning.
Isn't that the truth... the last HP product I ever bought was a HP 7110i CDRW... I had it replaced *3* times during my waranty period... and about a month after that period expired it broke again... I complained and told them I wanted a 7200 series as a replacement not another crappy 7110 series but the service guys refused saying "These units are really very good." BULLSHIT!:) Send me one that works then [end rant]
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However, I own every piece of gear in that studio outright. Yeah, occassionally (sp?) I've made some purchases on credit -- when a rare synth was for sale most recently ... BUT i'm carying no CC debt, no car payments (because I drive a crappy 90 honda I bought outright:) and my monthly expenses are only housing / gasoline / food / cell phone (needed for work).
What I mean to say by all this is that, living beyond ones means is a recipe for poverty.
I think your right now that I think about it :) thanks
I live in a well to do part of a small town in california -- I drive past the "title 9" (goverment subsidised) housing all the time, and I see *BETTER CARS* parked outside the title 9 then I do in my own neighborhood (sp?) where the lowest household income is well over 100g/y.
I think we need to institute financial education in all 3 elementary, grade school and highschool -- and I also think theres forces out there that *DON'T WANT* consumers to understand financing (Banks, Credit Card Companies, auto-dealerships ... you can walk into best buy any day of the week and get 5000$ credit on a best buy card)
http://lazertag.communicative.com/lazertag/produ ct s.html
On your lunch break take your fellow programmers down to the goodwill or salvation army and get some baggy baby-blue zuit-suits. You can get some crazy shit at the goodwill :) ...
You just need to remind your management that people need the freedom to express themselves -- and theres things MUCH WORSE then t-shirts and shorts.
Anticdote: I played in my high-school jazz band back in the day... and uniform is very important in a band -- Our uniform was black dress pants, tux shirts, vest, bowtie ... looked very sharp. So round about 94 the director decides, lets wear BALL CAPS with our suits! ... So I decide, I'm gonna show this fucker a ballcap ... I went to the closet and got out my vintage 1986 Lazer tag ball cap!! I can't find a picture of one on the net, buy immagine a silver ball cap with a huge infraread sensor array on the top, and on the forehead --6 leds and a speaker that beeps every other second. The director flipped out when he saw it and we never wore ballcaps with our uniforms again :)
Your mileage may vary :)
Legal advice from Slashdot? Folly at best.
Medical advice from Slashdot? Dangerous.
Despite this, I'll dispense some wisdom anyways ... I have a herniated disc and am quite familiar with back pain ... If your experiencing back pain you *MUST GO TO THE DOCTOR.* It could be something serious. Go to the doctor right now, when your back and hes confirmed you don't have a serious condition, continue reading :) So heres what I've learned about backs :
You *MUST* excercise every day [Alot of slashdoters have told you this already but its worth repeating]. Excercise is crucial when you sit for 8 - 12 hours a day. Excercise dosen't have to be at a gym either -- go walk a couple miles per day.
If you have a disc problem *don't lift ANYTHING*. When you feel you can lift again, you must lift correctly (with the legs -- I'm sure you can find a website on proper lifting technique).
Your back is WEAKEST when your spine isn't straight, IE when your leaning. Never lift anything when your leaning, and try not to lean!
Lastly, its difficult to excercise your back muscles but you must do this. Theres two things you must do -- take a cylinder like a pipe or (my favorite) a wooden clothes hanging bar form your closet. Take this bar -- rest it on your shoulders behind your head, and bring your arms up and around it. Use the bar to strech by twisting left and right and up and down and every way inbetween -- its a very gentle excercise and it will help. Second of all, you must excercise your abs! Your abs support your back! Be carefull though -- alot of ab excercises are dangerous for people with back injuries. Just try situps :)
Lastly, PLEASE go to the doctor. Instead of that next GEForce card or effects processor -- or whatever your into, invest in your health. I injured my back when I was 17 with a herniated disk. I resisted going to the doctor but eventually had to when I would wake up most mornings *not being able to walk or stand.* Believe me you don't want that.
Best of luck, OD
Baffled? Have you ever used an SGI machine? they're just SHIT! They cost a fortune, they depreciate to a value of 5 - 10% of their original price in just a couple years -- AND -- SGI is *always* trying to get you to get on a contract with them so you can pay them lots of money to *DO NOTHING*.
Lemme give you a for instance, We have a 37,000$ Octane we bought in 97 or 98 where I work ... These machines now routinely sell for 1500 - 3000$ on ebay depending on their configuration ... Worst of all, the machine has never had any proper use ... IRIX dosen't come with a compiler!! Our 37,000$ machine didn't come with a compiler, or even an IRIX cd incase we needed to reinstall ... when you finally get gcc running (which is a hack -- as (the assembler) dosen't support this architecture) it can only compile 32 bit programs, and IRIX differs enough from standard "UNIX" (mostly in kernel headers and such) that NOTHING WILL COMPILE!
This is why SGI is going out of business -- overpriced hardware -- shitty OS -- all company policies designed to get you to buy a support contract ... [you can't even get bugfixes for the OS without a support contract! (this isn't quite true, they'll give you security fixes, but everything else your on your own)]
Anticdote: I went to see an admin who was my superior where I work about what I could go to get my SGI's up and running and he says "Nothing, don't mess with them they're a pain in the ass." He then points to a STACK of half a dozen SGI workstations that hes not using
They should have cut the (lame) subplots -- the romances -- the baby -- and had a 10 minute "coming home ceremony" scene at the end where the crew was honored with medals and stuff :) this might have given that sense of accomplishment you seek ... -- that would have cost ALOT of money to do that correctly -- lots of extras -- lots of matt paintings -- lots of difficult effects shots -- and I don't think they wanted to spend on the last episode.
If you recall the last episode of STTNG, Picard was struck with some syndrome, and was operating in 3 time periods ...
The voyager finale was kindof a low-power copy of that same structure -- Janeway operating in 2 time periods simultaneously, TUVOC was sick (as opposed to janeway/picard).
The real difference was, the STTNG episode was one of the best episodes they ever made ... the Voyager episode was such a hack its obvious the writers weren't even trying -- they tucked in the loose ends with a sledgehammer -- manufactured drama -- and tried to end with a bang by destroying alot of the borg which you know will come back eventually in some episode/movie/series -- and ALL done while relying on their "techno babel" ... somebody explain why the ship that got janeway BACK in time, couldn't take the whole crew forward again?
just a thought
"One in a million odds happen eight times a day in New York." -- Penn Jilette
I can't remember the name of the guy, or probably the entire story correctly -- but I', sure some sociology major is reading this and can get us some info?
When we get hacked, I maje sure to answer "yes" to power savings mode when reinstalling solaris.
So infact your paying for your LCD and another one that broke ... *THATS* why they're so expensive.
Love the steely dan sig :)
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/results.tpl?acti on =full&cart=9903370874831392&--eqskudatarq=MD8&Crit eria=Results
I think you hit the nail on the head here ... they've come out with lots of new models -- but none of them *DO ANYTHING NEW*. I've owned 3 pdas in my life, a US Robotics Pilot 1000, a visor deluxe, and a Palm Vx ... and I gotta tell ya the palm VX is *perfect*. Its light, its .4 inches thick -- I've got a wallet case for it thats no bigger then a regular wallet -- and it stays charged for weeks at a time! The only difference between my Vx and my pilot 1000's (made in 1996) is how much ram they have and their shape ... talk about progress
make sure you have atleast one transformers sticker so you can impress the asian-honda nuts ... then apply speed holes :)
Or could it be that the company dosen't want to be critisized ... which I do believe is a constitutionally protected form of speach!
What really amazes me is how willing people are to undermine their principles to make a few $$ ...
You'll be able to ahve them but you'll have to pay a royalty to the campbels soup consortium ... :)
my god man! Someone who understands a free market economy! Copying music / software is *PRICE COMPETITION* in a monopoly market.
ahh the beauty of youth ... when doom came out I played it *EVERY* night for 8 mos, for anywhere between 2 - 6 hours ... never got sick, only got fat :) I think I was 15 or 16 then :) now that I'm 23, any more then an hour and I'm lying on the floor and the room is spinning.
Nahh, I've had this server it was in for 4 years and at the time I bought it was very top dollar. (
Isn't that the truth ... the last HP product I ever bought was a HP 7110i CDRW ... I had it replaced *3* times during my waranty period ... and about a month after that period expired it broke again ... I complained and told them I wanted a 7200 series as a replacement not another crappy 7110 series but the service guys refused saying "These units are really very good." BULLSHIT! :) Send me one that works then [end rant]