The only "scent" I've noticed is paper and a faint bit of what I would assume is adhesive that finished drying during shipment. I assumed Apple tried to keep smells down, since I've inhaled far worse after opening other electronics packages (motherboards come to mind). I've never thought of any sort of characteristic "Mac smell"...though admittedly I don't hold my nose up to the packaging and inhale deeply. This is nothing but a gimmick IMHO.
It's probably targeting Apple's iCloud. It's nice to be able to tell developers "Here's a place to store data. It will automatically be backed up and synchronized between the user's devices. You won't have to run your own servers and get the user to trust you with their data. You won't even have to ask the user for special credentials or get them to sign up for Dropbox or anything like that. It just works."
At least until you remove Java (and preferably Flash and Acrobat Reader), or set plugins to click-to-run, or they finally implement signed apps and sandboxing (which Apple keeps delaying since developers keep screaming about it).
It's ridiculous that all browsers don't require you to approve plugins, at least on a per-site level, but it's true there are still quite a few sites out there that break in strange ways if some hidden java or flash element fails to load. Still, I'd rather live with that than trust my computers' security to Adobe and Oracle.
We now know enough about how the universe really works that we can discard the fairy tales of ancient history. We now have GOOD reasons to believe what we believe.
The flaw in this theory is that humans have always believed that, and that belief often causes people to think themselves superior and then do very nasty things indeed.
Unfortunately, I know plenty of people running Windows at 1024x768—on widescreen displays capable of 1600x900 or better. Either they changed monitors without updating their display resolution, or they "made everything bigger" the only way they know how.
Also, tens of millions of iPads at 1024x768 probably skewed the statistics. Who knows, maybe next year 2048x1536 will be the single most popular resolution...
Researchers claim that the increased number of planets makes this star far more interesting than its companion, HD 7120.
However, it takes sophisticated equipment to detect the additional planets; most amateur astronomers can't see the difference with their smaller telescopes.
The recovery could be pretty close to 100%; the reactor's only products are oxygen and hydrogen, both of which are gases, so capturing zinc should be simple enough.
Zinc is usually found in conjunction with other metals like copper, so we get most of it "for free". Zinc oxide is actually a lot easier to produce than pure zinc, so refinement costs should be relatively low. The most common ore of Zinc, Sphalerite, is ZnS, and converting it to ZnO just involves adding oxygen and heat:
ZnS + (3)O2 = ZnO + SO2
The sulphur dioxide can be converted to sulphuric acid (H2SO4).
No carbon involved.
Besides, we already use >10 million tons of the stuff per year, and have at least a couple centuries more deposits to mine (to say nothing of recycling), so using a bit for this solar plant wouldn't even be noticed.
As well as a lack of emissions, the other good news is that the zinc oxide can apparently be reused, meaning the solar reactor is theoretically self sustaining as it only relies on materials and energy that are renewable.
But it's pointless to speculate about its utility without knowing how much hydrogen a given unit can produce, how much that unit costs, and how much maintenance it will need.
And the four giant robot arms the operator wears don't fill me with confidence.
As cool as it is to hate Apple, iCloud is a backup/synchronization service. All your emails/contacts/songs/pictures/videos/documents/whatever are stored locally on each device; the "cloud" is only used to keep them in sync. It's basically Dropbox for Apps.
So if iCloud got shut down tomorrow, you'd still have copies of everything and you'd still be able to sync your files the old fashioned way. And it's not likely to change anytime soon; Apple is a hardware company, after all, and they want you to fill up your devices so you'll go out and buy bigger ones.
Maybe because to reduce the workload per person, they'll have to find more workers (the pool of which is starting to dry up), build more infrastructure to support them, etc. Alternatively, they could automate more tasks, but that would also require time and effort to procure, install, and configure the massive amount of equipment needed.
What, you were expecting them to call all their clients tomorrow and say "Oh, you remember that contract we had for $DEVICE? We're cutting production by 25% starting today. Sorry for the inconvenience."
Slashdot Mirror
The only "scent" I've noticed is paper and a faint bit of what I would assume is adhesive that finished drying during shipment. I assumed Apple tried to keep smells down, since I've inhaled far worse after opening other electronics packages (motherboards come to mind). I've never thought of any sort of characteristic "Mac smell"...though admittedly I don't hold my nose up to the packaging and inhale deeply. This is nothing but a gimmick IMHO.
Oh, and the obligatory.
I'd imagine Google Drive would be tied to Google accounts, and it's safe to assume most Android users will have Google accounts.
It's probably targeting Apple's iCloud. It's nice to be able to tell developers "Here's a place to store data. It will automatically be backed up and synchronized between the user's devices. You won't have to run your own servers and get the user to trust you with their data. You won't even have to ask the user for special credentials or get them to sign up for Dropbox or anything like that. It just works."
But if life has to imitate Star Trek, couldn't they have picked a better episode?
But it looks like the good times are over.
At least until you remove Java (and preferably Flash and Acrobat Reader), or set plugins to click-to-run, or they finally implement signed apps and sandboxing (which Apple keeps delaying since developers keep screaming about it).
It's ridiculous that all browsers don't require you to approve plugins, at least on a per-site level, but it's true there are still quite a few sites out there that break in strange ways if some hidden java or flash element fails to load. Still, I'd rather live with that than trust my computers' security to Adobe and Oracle.
We now know enough about how the universe really works that we can discard the fairy tales of ancient history. We now have GOOD reasons to believe what we believe.
The flaw in this theory is that humans have always believed that, and that belief often causes people to think themselves superior and then do very nasty things indeed.
Unfortunately, I know plenty of people running Windows at 1024x768—on widescreen displays capable of 1600x900 or better. Either they changed monitors without updating their display resolution, or they "made everything bigger" the only way they know how.
Also, tens of millions of iPads at 1024x768 probably skewed the statistics. Who knows, maybe next year 2048x1536 will be the single most popular resolution...
25% faster than pure copper and will cost less to produce
...in much the same way that diamonds, being composed of carbon, cost less than copper.
http://vancouverdesi.com/news/iran-denies-reports-internet-to-be-cut-soon/
The scale of this survey is really quite incredible. It will serve as a benchmark for other accomplishments for years to come.
For example, I just made a remarkably roundabout pop culture joke...
I'm showing my age here, but I remember the days when MACs were only 48 bits.
But...but...you had to click a link! And enter your phone number A SEEEECOND TIIIIIME!
/me rattles heavy chains menacingly!
/me shakes chains some more.
/me feebly quivers them a bit.
Okay, I admit it; Slashdot "Stories of Legend" aren't quite what they used to be.
Researchers claim that the increased number of planets makes this star far more interesting than its companion, HD 7120.
However, it takes sophisticated equipment to detect the additional planets; most amateur astronomers can't see the difference with their smaller telescopes.
I'm writing a really useful navigation package for players' ships.
The recovery could be pretty close to 100%; the reactor's only products are oxygen and hydrogen, both of which are gases, so capturing zinc should be simple enough.
Zinc is usually found in conjunction with other metals like copper, so we get most of it "for free". Zinc oxide is actually a lot easier to produce than pure zinc, so refinement costs should be relatively low. The most common ore of Zinc, Sphalerite, is ZnS, and converting it to ZnO just involves adding oxygen and heat:
ZnS + (3)O2 = ZnO + SO2
The sulphur dioxide can be converted to sulphuric acid (H2SO4).
No carbon involved.
Besides, we already use >10 million tons of the stuff per year, and have at least a couple centuries more deposits to mine (to say nothing of recycling), so using a bit for this solar plant wouldn't even be noticed.
TFAs: Read one today!
But it's pointless to speculate about its utility without knowing how much hydrogen a given unit can produce, how much that unit costs, and how much maintenance it will need.
And the four giant robot arms the operator wears don't fill me with confidence.
Do they help us learn? Well, it depends on the software.
Are they part of the Star Trek future-utopia? Hell yes.
Cell phones...tablets...we're well on our way to holodecks, and I'll be damned if we stop now.
If it helps, I made up some ridiculous stories to fool your friends with:
Duke Nukem Forever released
most of game involves jokes about Half-Life 2 Ep. 3
Kim Jong Il, Gaddafi Dead
mad, mad world now almost 7% less mad
Apple now biggest computer manufacturer
HP says it never liked PCs anyway
Seal Team Six Kills Osama Bin Laden
then finds, kills Higgs boson
Windows, Ubuntu adopt new kindergarden UI
OS X still ignoring touch revolution
Newt Gingrich Runs For President
convinced he'll find his base among moon-men
Liberals Protesting Unemployment, Poverty
Starbucks shares sharply higher
Steve Jobs Dead
meets with Apple board three days later
My Little Pony Now Cool
teenage boys squee in delight
NASA Ends Space Shuttle program
asks if they can bum a ride with anyone
As cool as it is to hate Apple, iCloud is a backup/synchronization service. All your emails/contacts/songs/pictures/videos/documents/whatever are stored locally on each device; the "cloud" is only used to keep them in sync. It's basically Dropbox for Apps.
So if iCloud got shut down tomorrow, you'd still have copies of everything and you'd still be able to sync your files the old fashioned way. And it's not likely to change anytime soon; Apple is a hardware company, after all, and they want you to fill up your devices so you'll go out and buy bigger ones.
"Our lawyers have assured us that we can legally redefine 'do not track' to not really offer you any protection at all."
Maybe because to reduce the workload per person, they'll have to find more workers (the pool of which is starting to dry up), build more infrastructure to support them, etc. Alternatively, they could automate more tasks, but that would also require time and effort to procure, install, and configure the massive amount of equipment needed.
What, you were expecting them to call all their clients tomorrow and say "Oh, you remember that contract we had for $DEVICE? We're cutting production by 25% starting today. Sorry for the inconvenience."
Yeah, it's always been a favorite of mine. Along with...ehh, practically every other strip he or Gary Larson ever made... :)
Oh, and one more for the road.
Remember "DOS ain't done 'til Lotus won't run"?
Why yes, I do.
verbing weirds language
–Bill Watterson