1. I've heard a lot about WHAT this card would do, but no HOW. Apparently this will stop illegal immigration. How? Most employers of illegal immigrants are in on it anyway, so this won't stop them. Apparently his will stop terrorism. How? The bombers on 7/7/2005 all used their own identities. The bombers in Madrid all had ID cards. Apparently this will combat crime. How? If they are so sure of this, why don't the police commit to an X% reduction in specific kinds of crime over a certain period?
2. The government refuse to be transparant about the costs. Their argument for ID cards is that if you have nothing to hide then you won't mind having one. On this basis, they MUST have something to hide.
3. The card is backed by a database containing all of your information. This WILL be used inappropriately. Even if you totally trust our current government (in which case, please contact me ASAP - I have this money from this deceased dictator that I need to move and only you can help!), by agreeing to this, you agree to trust every future government from now onwards to not abuse this system. Just see the illicit and immoral investigation into the lady who led the action group for rail crash victims. With all of this data in one place, it will be easier for them to run these 'dirty tricks' campaigns, and we are less likely to find out about them because with less places to look, there will be fewer leaks.
4. When I lose a number, I can get a new one. When I lose the digital representation of my right index finger, I can't get a new one. So if the data that represents my finger is compromised and used by someone else, how do I combat that ?
5. If I lose a finger, am I going to be treated as a pariah because I can no longer use your official identity scheme? Will I be treated with suspicion by know-nothing till operator morons who think I lopped my finger off just to beat their system? My wife recently lost a digit in an accident, and just travelling to the US while her hand was bandaged (lost finger, multiple stitches across hand) became a nightmare. I've never seen anyone treated so badly in my life, and I've spent time behind a South African police station counter.
6. Many experts in various intelligence, military and criminal fields have made public statements that this card will not address the issues that the government will say it will. Who should I believe? Experts who have proved themselves through their work, or MPs who lie to me about major issues on a regular basis?
What spending 600 quid on Photoshop gave me was hours of my life back. Ignoring the technical issues like 16bit support, LAB, plugins, etc. I still would have spent this money on CS2.
Being able to modify exposure, black point, contrast and white balance in a second or two per image cut my workflow on a standard shoot from about 2 hours to 1 hour. Beign able to do that non-destructively so that I can go back and try something else later is even more valuable. Cutting my time down behind the machine means I can spend more time behind the lens, and that's where the money really is.
Being able to make a change once and then copy it to every other image in the shoot, or a selected subset of those images means that I don't make mistakes.
The other big issue is information available. Adobe Photoshop CS2 for Photographers is an awesome book. It presents 'recipes' that are easily understood, achieve a specific goal and can easily be turned into actions. The Real World Camera RAW book was also fantastic.
I don't know about aperture because I've not used it, but lightroom ROCKS. It has cut my post-processing time in half on any given batch of pictures. It becomes where I do most of my work, and then just finalise in PS CS2.
Now that we have as many megapixels as we need, it's time to look at increasing dynamic range to compete with film.
I regularly print 15x10" from my 6MP camera, and they look fantastic - I'd rather have less issues with blown highlights or lost shadows than more MP. Lower noise at higher ISO would also be nice:)
I've just placed an order for an additional 600GB of SAN storage out to one of our servers. I've been told that the recurring anual cost will be GBP63,000.00. There is just NO WAY that my client (internal, another department) is going to accept that cost, so I'm going to have to end up bringing some other solution online.
If you're going to come in here arguing with reason, logic and facts then you can just sod off! We like our arguments emotional, uninformed and blinkered by hatred thank you very much!
My wife lost around half of her thumb on her right hand in an accident last year. This being her dominant hand, she has been unable to use most of the consoles that we have in the house as effectively as she used to.
I'm losing more and more interest in Linux because of it's lack of enterprise features. Hell, a month and a bit ago, I could have been sound asleep in bed if I'd been using Solaris, instead of up at some ridiculous time of the morning:
I dunno so much about that. My current company gave me a blackberry a couple of months ago... I'm sure it's around here somewhere. I know where the charger is at least:D
People who work free overtime for the love of their job are not only hurting themselves in the long term, but everyone else in the industry. Because computing attracts people who do this for a hobby as well, it's always easy to tell people who won't work for free "If you won't do it, we'll just get someone who will".
The question I always ask these people - would you work from 9-5 for free. If the answer to that is no, then why are they doing free overtime ?
If you love what you do, hack on opensource code or build an ISP with some friends, but don't make other people rich at your own expense.
I used to do this, but I realised the harm I was doing not just to myself (60 hour weeks make me cranky and that upsets my wife;)) but to everyone around me in the industry.
This saturday, I'll be putting in 10 hours. But at the end of february, I'll see a good sized extra chunk in my pay packet.
The Linux kernel guys are WAAAAY behind OpenBSD on this front, and I partly blame ndiswrappers for this. Because there is a brutal hack available that lets you use the windows drivers, there has been little to no incentive to actually create native solutions.
I'm glad that the OpenBSD guys put so much effort into sorting out binary licences with vendors so that they can do native kernel drivers.
It's nice to see CmdrTaco participating in the site so actively again. The humans behind/. are why I started reading it (and from time to time, avoided it entirely:)) and it's nice to see active participation beyond just editing.
In the UK we have an odd law around databases. In the US, traditionally data could not be copyrighted. In the UK, the first person to compile a specific database (think yellow pages) gets a monopoly on that kind of database for a number of years. It's a bit odd really...
That does not imply a time period to act. The doctrine of laches can be used as a defence, but it requires that you prove that the patent holder was deliberately allowing the implementation of the patent to become widespread and planning to then demand licences.
This is not the same as trademark infringement where failure to defend can result in you losing the trademark. Even if you sue someone and they use this defence, you do not lose your patent, nor do you lose the right to continue to seek licences for it from other parties.
IANAL, but this is my understanding from looking into patent defences.
I believe that either.Mac should be free or the iLife apps shouldn't remind you every time you start them.
iWeb really needs a "No, I don't want a.mac account now fuck off and leave me in peace" button.
This is every bit as bad as Microsoft - this is Apple leveraging their dominance in one space (applications on OS X) to extend their market share in another space (web hosting).
You obviously don't commute on UK public transport. Imagine a carraige at 41 degrees centigrade where it is physically impossible to stand without pushing up against at least two people. Add to that the fact that bathing seems to be considered optional and there are regular delays on most of the lines I travel on, and you have a recipe for stress.
I either end up at work half an hour early to make sure I get here on time, which means I work 2.5 hours a week for free, or I end up at work late and stressed because of delays and hassles.
I'm still not sure that the xbox 360 has been released. At the moment, this still looks like a preview release to me... Get a couple of thousand units out into public beta, then go away and try and solve any final issues that you have. At the end of the day you can still claim to have shipped the first next-gen console, even if the majority of people who want one can't have one.
Oddly enough, I modded my old xbox the week that the 360 came out here in the UK and this has given it a new lease on life. XBMC is the bomb, and I can't imagine not having it around anymore. I don't have a machine capable of running Windows in my house anymore (no more x86 kit), and I value the choice of formats I can play on XBMC. The 360 doesn't come close to giving me any of that.
All of the above said, if the 360 had been available in stores the day it came out, I probably would have bought one anyway. Now the impulse to buy is gone, I probably won't bother.
Slashdot Mirror
Amen to that! Except for all the time I spent on bablefish translating bits of it :)
DVC was like reading some trashy pulp fiction.
I SO wish I had modpoints right now! You deserve insightful, not funny!
Isn't this great ? Yahoo! are giving us Free! Code!
Pity about the reporters they've shopped to the Chinese... They're probably quite uncomfortable right now. But hey, Free! Code!
Here are some of my issues with this scheme...
1. I've heard a lot about WHAT this card would do, but no HOW. Apparently this will stop illegal immigration. How? Most employers of illegal immigrants are in on it anyway, so this won't stop them. Apparently his will stop terrorism. How? The bombers on 7/7/2005 all used their own identities. The bombers in Madrid all had ID cards. Apparently this will combat crime. How? If they are so sure of this, why don't the police commit to an X% reduction in specific kinds of crime over a certain period?
2. The government refuse to be transparant about the costs. Their argument for ID cards is that if you have nothing to hide then you won't mind having one. On this basis, they MUST have something to hide.
3. The card is backed by a database containing all of your information. This WILL be used inappropriately. Even if you totally trust our current government (in which case, please contact me ASAP - I have this money from this deceased dictator that I need to move and only you can help!), by agreeing to this, you agree to trust every future government from now onwards to not abuse this system. Just see the illicit and immoral investigation into the lady who led the action group for rail crash victims. With all of this data in one place, it will be easier for them to run these 'dirty tricks' campaigns, and we are less likely to find out about them because with less places to look, there will be fewer leaks.
4. When I lose a number, I can get a new one. When I lose the digital representation of my right index finger, I can't get a new one. So if the data that represents my finger is compromised and used by someone else, how do I combat that ?
5. If I lose a finger, am I going to be treated as a pariah because I can no longer use your official identity scheme? Will I be treated with suspicion by know-nothing till operator morons who think I lopped my finger off just to beat their system? My wife recently lost a digit in an accident, and just travelling to the US while her hand was bandaged (lost finger, multiple stitches across hand) became a nightmare. I've never seen anyone treated so badly in my life, and I've spent time behind a South African police station counter.
6. Many experts in various intelligence, military and criminal fields have made public statements that this card will not address the issues that the government will say it will. Who should I believe? Experts who have proved themselves through their work, or MPs who lie to me about major issues on a regular basis?
What spending 600 quid on Photoshop gave me was hours of my life back. Ignoring the technical issues like 16bit support, LAB, plugins, etc. I still would have spent this money on CS2.
Being able to modify exposure, black point, contrast and white balance in a second or two per image cut my workflow on a standard shoot from about 2 hours to 1 hour. Beign able to do that non-destructively so that I can go back and try something else later is even more valuable. Cutting my time down behind the machine means I can spend more time behind the lens, and that's where the money really is.
Being able to make a change once and then copy it to every other image in the shoot, or a selected subset of those images means that I don't make mistakes.
The other big issue is information available. Adobe Photoshop CS2 for Photographers is an awesome book. It presents 'recipes' that are easily understood, achieve a specific goal and can easily be turned into actions. The Real World Camera RAW book was also fantastic.
I don't know about aperture because I've not used it, but lightroom ROCKS. It has cut my post-processing time in half on any given batch of pictures. It becomes where I do most of my work, and then just finalise in PS CS2.
Now that we have as many megapixels as we need, it's time to look at increasing dynamic range to compete with film.
:)
I regularly print 15x10" from my 6MP camera, and they look fantastic - I'd rather have less issues with blown highlights or lost shadows than more MP. Lower noise at higher ISO would also be nice
I've just placed an order for an additional 600GB of SAN storage out to one of our servers. I've been told that the recurring anual cost will be GBP63,000.00. There is just NO WAY that my client (internal, another department) is going to accept that cost, so I'm going to have to end up bringing some other solution online.
If you're going to come in here arguing with reason, logic and facts then you can just sod off! We like our arguments emotional, uninformed and blinkered by hatred thank you very much!
:)
Nah, seriously - well said
My wife lost around half of her thumb on her right hand in an accident last year. This being her dominant hand, she has been unable to use most of the consoles that we have in the house as effectively as she used to.
She's looking REALLY forward to the revolution.
I'm losing more and more interest in Linux because of it's lack of enterprise features. Hell, a month and a bit ago, I could have been sound asleep in bed if I'd been using Solaris, instead of up at some ridiculous time of the morning:
d _solaris_instead_of_linux-2005-12-14
http://www.penguinpowered.org/wayne/blog/if_i_use
I've read the article and all of the comments. Instead of outrage or anger, I'm just feeling hungry... Better go find myself a BLT to sate this.
I dunno so much about that. My current company gave me a blackberry a couple of months ago... I'm sure it's around here somewhere. I know where the charger is at least :D
People who work free overtime for the love of their job are not only hurting themselves in the long term, but everyone else in the industry. Because computing attracts people who do this for a hobby as well, it's always easy to tell people who won't work for free "If you won't do it, we'll just get someone who will".
;)) but to everyone around me in the industry.
The question I always ask these people - would you work from 9-5 for free. If the answer to that is no, then why are they doing free overtime ?
If you love what you do, hack on opensource code or build an ISP with some friends, but don't make other people rich at your own expense.
I used to do this, but I realised the harm I was doing not just to myself (60 hour weeks make me cranky and that upsets my wife
This saturday, I'll be putting in 10 hours. But at the end of february, I'll see a good sized extra chunk in my pay packet.
http://kerneltrap.org/node/6053
The Linux kernel guys are WAAAAY behind OpenBSD on this front, and I partly blame ndiswrappers for this. Because there is a brutal hack available that lets you use the windows drivers, there has been little to no incentive to actually create native solutions.
I'm glad that the OpenBSD guys put so much effort into sorting out binary licences with vendors so that they can do native kernel drivers.
It's nice to see CmdrTaco participating in the site so actively again. The humans behind /. are why I started reading it (and from time to time, avoided it entirely :)) and it's nice to see active participation beyond just editing.
In the UK we have an odd law around databases. In the US, traditionally data could not be copyrighted. In the UK, the first person to compile a specific database (think yellow pages) gets a monopoly on that kind of database for a number of years. It's a bit odd really...
That does not imply a time period to act. The doctrine of laches can be used as a defence, but it requires that you prove that the patent holder was deliberately allowing the implementation of the patent to become widespread and planning to then demand licences.
This is not the same as trademark infringement where failure to defend can result in you losing the trademark. Even if you sue someone and they use this defence, you do not lose your patent, nor do you lose the right to continue to seek licences for it from other parties.
IANAL, but this is my understanding from looking into patent defences.
I believe that either .Mac should be free or the iLife apps shouldn't remind you every time you start them.
.mac account now fuck off and leave me in peace" button.
iWeb really needs a "No, I don't want a
This is every bit as bad as Microsoft - this is Apple leveraging their dominance in one space (applications on OS X) to extend their market share in another space (web hosting).
You're thinking of trademarks. There is no requirement to act upon knowledge with patents.
You obviously don't commute on UK public transport. Imagine a carraige at 41 degrees centigrade where it is physically impossible to stand without pushing up against at least two people. Add to that the fact that bathing seems to be considered optional and there are regular delays on most of the lines I travel on, and you have a recipe for stress.
I either end up at work half an hour early to make sure I get here on time, which means I work 2.5 hours a week for free, or I end up at work late and stressed because of delays and hassles.
You might want to get it checked out anyway - the c key seems intermittently faulty :D
Pity you couldn't fit an E into that acronym, because from what I can tell, most of us are in London :)
I'm still not sure that the xbox 360 has been released. At the moment, this still looks like a preview release to me... Get a couple of thousand units out into public beta, then go away and try and solve any final issues that you have. At the end of the day you can still claim to have shipped the first next-gen console, even if the majority of people who want one can't have one.
Oddly enough, I modded my old xbox the week that the 360 came out here in the UK and this has given it a new lease on life. XBMC is the bomb, and I can't imagine not having it around anymore. I don't have a machine capable of running Windows in my house anymore (no more x86 kit), and I value the choice of formats I can play on XBMC. The 360 doesn't come close to giving me any of that.
All of the above said, if the 360 had been available in stores the day it came out, I probably would have bought one anyway. Now the impulse to buy is gone, I probably won't bother.
Does PHP have a way to do placeholders? I always use them with Perl DBI, but never found a working solution for PHP in the brief time I looked at it.