You forgot about the fact that the slow-refreshing screen uses basically no static power. The end result is that such devices have INCREDIBLE battery life.
Over and over I hear how important this is. Why is it important?
Just how many two-week-long vacations on desert islands do you take in a year?
As a point of comparison, my phone would probably last 6-8 hours as an ebook reader, with the phone turned off and the screen backlight on. (Under most lighting conditions the backlight would be necessary to be able to read the thing...)
Now, if I were traveling, I might find myself without access to a power outlet for a substantial period of time. I could go to the airport and wait around hours, while the few outlets in the lounge are taken by people who got there before me... Or I could be on the plane itself with no access to power - or I could travel by train and be unfortunate enough to wind up on one that doesn't provide outlets. (That happened, actually, I took a train from Chicago to Colorado and didn't have an outlet. Lucky me, this also happened at the same time as my laptop battery failed...) For a trip with a daytime layover or two, that could easily turn into two or three days without access to power.
The thing is, the competition for e-book readers is nearly as small, takes no power, and, short of physical damage, never fails. It is also legible in any lighting conditions. To make an electronic device that can replace a traditional book, it needs to offer something the paper medium can't (storage, and also online access in the case of the kindle) and be designed such that its limitations as an electronic device, to the extent possible, don't diminish the experience. Battery life and legibility are especially important if you don't want it to be painfully obvious to the user that this expensive, modern technological solution to a problem that was well-addressed centuries ago carries dreadful limitations...
Low power consumption is very important for a device that seeks to act as a "better implementation of a book" - something that most people would probably argue doesn't need fixing. But more important, IMO, is that the electronic ink screens are actually very legible in all sorts of lighting conditions... Current LCD screens are very good in bright light (as long as what's being displayed is high-contrast: especially black characters on a white background) and look good in darkness, but anything in between relies on the power of the screen's built-in light: the screen has to emit the light you're going to see in those conditions, because the reflected ambient light is too easily overpowered by glare. If you're displaying color, the problem gets worse: this is why people complained so much about the original Gameboy Advance's lack of a backlight. Electronic ink screens don't have this problem so much: if there's enough light to read paper you can probably read the e-ink screen, too.
The technology is pretty raw at this point, though... The displays are great for reading, but with their slow refresh, they're pretty lousy for scanning through a book...
Anyone's ready with the old 640 kB joke? 1... 2... 3...
Yeah, I got ya covered! You ready?
So a woman walked into a bar with 640kB - the bartender says, "Hey, we don't serve memory capacities in here" and 640kB says, "That's no memory capacity, that's MY WIFE!"
I did that when I was a kid (learned how to make explosives on the internet). However, I also learned how to build a computer, program, cook, fix my car, argue, etc. on the Internet. In fact, I would say I am where I am today (full-time developer and grad student)
Don't forget "demolitions expert"!
I think the A-Team was looking for one of those... They wound up with a special effects guy instead. Go figure.
Of course, I'm not going to say a silly thing in this post like, "Oh, damn, I posted and now I can't mod you down!" - because if I realized that while formulating this post, I would simply hit the cancel button, instead of "preview" and then "submit"!
To open the secret cow level, all you need to do is put Wirt's leg and a tome of book portal in the cube.
Or you can give Wirt's leg to Cynthia, and she'll give you a copy of Blueshift on CD! (Never mind that you had half the tracks already from Redshift, and the rest from MP3s found online from a leaked review copy...)
Oh, believe me, I gave Cynthia Wirt's leg. If you know what I mean.
Adam might have something to say about that. But then again, maybe not...
To open the secret cow level, all you need to do is put Wirt's leg and a tome of book portal in the cube.
Or you can give Wirt's leg to Cynthia, and she'll give you a copy of Blueshift on CD! (Never mind that you had half the tracks already from Redshift, and the rest from MP3s found online from a leaked review copy...)
I can't wait for Mac OS XI: This one goes to eleven!
Ah, yes... the "Bubastis" release... Never go for the first released revision, though, it tends to have a way of falling apart on you. Wait for the dot-one version, "Nuku-Nuku". That one will be a lot more reliable.
Someone enlighten me: how hard would it be for someone to fake this on either end, someone downloading it on something faking the "iphone 3.1" or someone at ibart playing a prank?
Well, you see, the iPhone has a lockout system that prevents people from doing anything with the device apart from buying programs on the app store... This lockout system is guaranteed unsinkable, so it is entirely impossible that anyone could cause their iPhone to report false information......Well, there was a "pretend to be iPhone 3.1" app released, but it was rejected from the app store...
Something that is shipped by a number of major distos (Ubuntu, Mandriva, SuSE, Fedora, etc).
Well, I can see where it'd be very helpful to have a clear path to follow to start editing video on Linux.. I mean, I didn't really know where to start. I evaluated 5 or 6 different packages, most of them were so failure-prone that I couldn't get anywhere with them.
That said, though, the software exists, and some of it actually works... Going from that stage to a point where a package may be considered a clear-cut default choice is largely a matter of adoption... It's an unavoidable process really... (you can't adopt a package as a "standard solution" for something until it's proven capable)
See, originally the plan was to go to PAX East - they had the whole booth setup arranged and everything - but they were laughed out of the convention by the planners as it is technically impossible to play games on a Linux machine... So being in a rather awkward spot, they arranged to get into the next convention at the Hynes - Anime Boston, taking place one week later...
Slashdot Mirror
My laptop is called a "Eee PC"... I think it's a damned stupid name, but I really like the machine...
Call it a Triple-E CompuRock EXTREME! and you'll feel better about it.
Oh, I feel great about the machine, best $300 I ever spent. It's just the name that's stupid. :)
You forgot about the fact that the slow-refreshing screen uses basically no static power. The end result is that such devices have INCREDIBLE battery life.
Over and over I hear how important this is. Why is it important?
Just how many two-week-long vacations on desert islands do you take in a year?
As a point of comparison, my phone would probably last 6-8 hours as an ebook reader, with the phone turned off and the screen backlight on. (Under most lighting conditions the backlight would be necessary to be able to read the thing...)
Now, if I were traveling, I might find myself without access to a power outlet for a substantial period of time. I could go to the airport and wait around hours, while the few outlets in the lounge are taken by people who got there before me... Or I could be on the plane itself with no access to power - or I could travel by train and be unfortunate enough to wind up on one that doesn't provide outlets. (That happened, actually, I took a train from Chicago to Colorado and didn't have an outlet. Lucky me, this also happened at the same time as my laptop battery failed...) For a trip with a daytime layover or two, that could easily turn into two or three days without access to power.
The thing is, the competition for e-book readers is nearly as small, takes no power, and, short of physical damage, never fails. It is also legible in any lighting conditions. To make an electronic device that can replace a traditional book, it needs to offer something the paper medium can't (storage, and also online access in the case of the kindle) and be designed such that its limitations as an electronic device, to the extent possible, don't diminish the experience. Battery life and legibility are especially important if you don't want it to be painfully obvious to the user that this expensive, modern technological solution to a problem that was well-addressed centuries ago carries dreadful limitations...
Low power consumption is very important for a device that seeks to act as a "better implementation of a book" - something that most people would probably argue doesn't need fixing. But more important, IMO, is that the electronic ink screens are actually very legible in all sorts of lighting conditions... Current LCD screens are very good in bright light (as long as what's being displayed is high-contrast: especially black characters on a white background) and look good in darkness, but anything in between relies on the power of the screen's built-in light: the screen has to emit the light you're going to see in those conditions, because the reflected ambient light is too easily overpowered by glare. If you're displaying color, the problem gets worse: this is why people complained so much about the original Gameboy Advance's lack of a backlight. Electronic ink screens don't have this problem so much: if there's enough light to read paper you can probably read the e-ink screen, too.
The technology is pretty raw at this point, though... The displays are great for reading, but with their slow refresh, they're pretty lousy for scanning through a book...
Anyone's ready with the old 640 kB joke? 1... 2... 3...
Yeah, I got ya covered! You ready?
So a woman walked into a bar with 640kB - the bartender says, "Hey, we don't serve memory capacities in here" and 640kB says, "That's no memory capacity, that's MY WIFE!"
I stopped at the new name...."JooJoo" I'm guessing this guy doesn't have much of an understanding at least of how naming should be done for the US.
My laptop is called a "Eee PC"... I think it's a damned stupid name, but I really like the machine...
If you don’t know what a horse is, then yeah, it’s easier to take its picture than type it in.
But if you want someone to believe it's a horse, then you need an electric monk...
One man's -1 Troll is another's +5 funny/insightful.
Funny divided by insightful equals negative troll. :)
"Consult your doctor if you have an erection lasting more than 125 years..."
And let's not forget, we're also talking about a 170 meter erection!
Well, OK, that may be a slight exaggeration... And let's be clear, here - even Lady Liberty wouldn't know what to do with it...
I did that when I was a kid (learned how to make explosives on the internet). However, I also learned how to build a computer, program, cook, fix my car, argue, etc. on the Internet. In fact, I would say I am where I am today (full-time developer and grad student)
Don't forget "demolitions expert"!
I think the A-Team was looking for one of those... They wound up with a special effects guy instead. Go figure.
a law should be signed to block child pornography that passed Parlament earlier this year, am I right?
No, I don't think any child pornography passed Parliament this year.
Maybe Bill Gates will say, "48 cores is more cores than anyone will ever need." Cor blimey.
Or maybe in the future he'll be well-known for saying "I never said that 48 cores is all anyone would ever need"...
What the heck? Just, what the heck?
Yeah, a better code-name would have been "Lakitu"...
Damn cloud, always following me around throwing things at me...
Insightful WTF? If you get offended that easily, you'd better:
Mummy?
Are you my mummy?
Mummm-myyy...
Intel an American company, with the American economy in the shape it's in, I am offended at the codename Bangalore.
As the last remaining operational Soong type android, I am offended by the name Bang-A-Lore.
So you're B4, then?
Well, I guess it was several years ago that you were known as B4... What's the name you're using these days... "Pryor", isn't it?
Super Mario Bros would sound better
I don't have a lot of atomic bombs so I'll probably just start with the 1812 overture....
Yes! I, too, will mod you into oblivion!
Of course, I'm not going to say a silly thing in this post like, "Oh, damn, I posted and now I can't mod you down!" - because if I realized that while formulating this post, I would simply hit the cancel button, instead of "preview" and then "submit"!
I really think I've got it right this time...
To open the secret cow level, all you need to do is put Wirt's leg and a tome of book portal in the cube.
Or you can give Wirt's leg to Cynthia, and she'll give you a copy of Blueshift on CD! (Never mind that you had half the tracks already from Redshift, and the rest from MP3s found online from a leaked review copy...)
Oh, believe me, I gave Cynthia Wirt's leg. If you know what I mean.
Adam might have something to say about that. But then again, maybe not...
To open the secret cow level, all you need to do is put Wirt's leg and a tome of book portal in the cube.
Or you can give Wirt's leg to Cynthia, and she'll give you a copy of Blueshift on CD! (Never mind that you had half the tracks already from Redshift, and the rest from MP3s found online from a leaked review copy...)
I thought New Moon was a poorly done movie. The acting was terrible, and the characters themselves, corny. 4/10, would not see again.
Yeah, but Edward has a soul!
Apple's cycle is well known.
Yeah, but the truly exciting part is when their cycle doesn't come...
I can't wait for Mac OS XI: This one goes to eleven!
Ah, yes... the "Bubastis" release... Never go for the first released revision, though, it tends to have a way of falling apart on you. Wait for the dot-one version, "Nuku-Nuku". That one will be a lot more reliable.
Someone enlighten me: how hard would it be for someone to fake this on either end, someone downloading it on something faking the "iphone 3.1" or someone at ibart playing a prank?
Well, you see, the iPhone has a lockout system that prevents people from doing anything with the device apart from buying programs on the app store... This lockout system is guaranteed unsinkable, so it is entirely impossible that anyone could cause their iPhone to report false information... ...Well, there was a "pretend to be iPhone 3.1" app released, but it was rejected from the app store...
denken Sie an die Kinder!
But what's a "standard" movie editor?
Something that is shipped by a number of major distos (Ubuntu, Mandriva, SuSE, Fedora, etc).
Well, I can see where it'd be very helpful to have a clear path to follow to start editing video on Linux.. I mean, I didn't really know where to start. I evaluated 5 or 6 different packages, most of them were so failure-prone that I couldn't get anywhere with them.
That said, though, the software exists, and some of it actually works... Going from that stage to a point where a package may be considered a clear-cut default choice is largely a matter of adoption... It's an unavoidable process really... (you can't adopt a package as a "standard solution" for something until it's proven capable)
See, originally the plan was to go to PAX East - they had the whole booth setup arranged and everything - but they were laughed out of the convention by the planners as it is technically impossible to play games on a Linux machine... So being in a rather awkward spot, they arranged to get into the next convention at the Hynes - Anime Boston, taking place one week later...
Ubuntu... I'm not really into Pokemon.
OSOI!