You could have a Class-C license to code and that would mean you know how to develop without buffer-overrun vulnerabilities, SQL-injection vulnerabilities, things like that. A top Class-A license to architect secure designs and robust inter-system communications.
And still you'll find a huge share of WTFs because if anything, the licenses will create a false sense of security and trust. "Of course it can't be Mr. Class-A, we've paid good money for his expertise and he can't possibly be wrong." Also, companies might think that they could replace 3 Class Cs with 1 Class A which then gets overworked, and because he's the top dog nobody has the guts to offer critique. More eyes will reveal more bugs (unless they're all equally incompetent, of course).
What you need is not a license but accountability; when you put your John Hancock under the QA document you give your word that the system's fault-free to the best of your efforts, and that you will take care of support.
Being forced to take responsibility does a whole lot more than having a fancy piece of paper on your wall. The same responsibility would be nice for CEOs: lousy track record? Then you don't get any fancy stock options or nonsense like that.
How are you otherwise going to view all those horribly saccharine sunset pictures with a waterdrop distortion/wavy lake mirror effect? Or those gradient-laden roll-over buttons (requiring one applet each!) that don't tell you what they're pointing at?
But because smartphones usually run in portrait mode (240 x 320 instead of 320 x 240) Verdana is too wide. Windows Mobile 6 has a narrow font (with anti-aliasing) that is very legible. Even then, Tahoma, not Verdana used to be the font of choice in WM5 and before (Windows 2000, XP); the difference is obvious if you compare 'm side by side.
although I am confused as to why anyone would use it
Because my software of choice that I use to create music and graphics does not run on Linux. Don't bother listing "alternatives" -- I know about them already and they aren't alternatives as long as I have to jump through hoops or have to give up what I use now.
Security is not an issue; I'm not running a virus or spyware scanner here because it steals away precious resources from my music software. Learning Linux is not even an issue; you'd have to convince the corporations making the gear I use to switch.
I wonder how unlametheweak would feel if you'd said
(I think you meant incite)
Joke about illiterate $(ETHNIC_SLUR)s
I don't know. Mainly it's not what I said, and it's a hypothetical scenario you're painting here. Plus, his comment on humor inciting the PC people was understood here on this side of the keyboard as being about humor in general, not race-related humor specifically. Really, it was more about correcting his "insight/incite".
I'm not cheerleading anyone for making racist (or bordering on -) jokes; if anything, they make me feel the same as someone at the dinner table in a chique restaurant farting with an epic force and pungency including THX 0.1 sound; embarrassed.
Would it be okay if your $(ETHNIC_SLUR) janitor or coworker thought it was funny too?
Pretty much every joke involves someone else's misfortune, unless we're talking about puns; which are a rare medium well done anyway, and the lowest form of wit.
Oh god yes. "Lose" seems to be most commonly mis-spelled word on the net.
I guess your/you're (or worse: ur/u're, this is great to ramp up the blood pressure), their/there/they're and it's/its beat it - because the frequency of use is higher - but I don't know if those fall under the mis-spelling category (wrongful substitution maybe).
We're not selfish or greedy because we collect; we just have so many resources that collecting useless crap doesn't interfere with our basic needs. It has no value until someone assigns a value to it that is disproportionally greater than the material and labor costs involved in the original production.
Why do you assume collectors always pay more than the cost of materials and labor?
Because the very act of being a collector means usually that you are willing to pay (not saying that you have to every time) something extra for it just to have it - that's part of the act of collecting.
Lots of people collect things that they find along the side of the road, for free. Other people collect stuff like salt and pepper shakers that they mostly buy at garage sales. I personally collect old video games and game consoles, which I always pay a fraction of their original retail price for.
Ah, but in that case there's not so much scarcity, because the demand is not so big, or the collected objects themselves do not suffer from scarcity. Collecting 17th century antiques is a lot harder than scrounging an Atari 2600 cartridge of E.T.; not because of the cost, but because of the uniqueness of the thing.
All of this stuff would have ended up in a landfill or an incinerator if somebody wasn't collecting it. So what's the problem? If somebody can still get enjoyment out of something, then it's hardly trash.
I'm trying to make a counter-argument at the GP that we're not necessarily greedy for collecting; just that it's something we can do because we don't have to go hunting/gathering.
The other day we apparently had 500,000 people lining up around the country to spend $600 on a phone that will be obsolete in 6 months (or is arguably obsolete now). You may have been one of those people for all I know;
It's not coming out in Europe yet, so no. Also, it has nothing to do with the argument, because buying a fad phone for an extortionate amount does not equal "collecting".
certainly some people reading this were. I've spent probably that much on my video game collection over a 15 year period and have gotten countless hours of enjoyment out of it. Who is wasting their money here?
Is your argument that none of us should spend any money beyond what our basic needs are? If so, then you're on the wrong planet, man... not even communist countries follow that rule anymore.
I have no clue what your thought process was that translated my post into this; all I know is that it is absolutely not part of the argument I'm making.
I sort of collect synthesizers and I've got some vintage game computers. I'm not too proud to look for a sweet deal; I'm certainly proud enough to not pay a ridiculous price for it that could be dictated by a bunch of bonobos with darts and a dartboard and a marketing executive (which is how certain companies in the audio world seem to determine the price level for their products).
I think you mean (stuff) (escape characters, woohoo), and for the rest:
It is a pretty big indication of how selfish and greedy we are in the west, that we prize this stupid old crap, and artificially inflate the value of trash like this
We're not selfish or greedy because we collect; we just have so many resources that collecting useless crap doesn't interfere with our basic needs. It has no value until someone assigns a value to it that is disproportionally greater than the material and labor costs involved in the original production.
The only stupidity is in the people paying money for it; but for those who still want it but complain about the price; they're not somehow less stupid or better than those who pay the full sum; just more frugal.
Because you can teach mice little tricks; they can respond to more stimuli and do problem-solving.
Bandwidth is one - having full sensory perception (think of the nearly 2 square meters humans have as skin, a pressure- and temperature sensitive grid with a fine resolution) gives you simply a lot of data to work with. Processing and filtering (and discarding a lot of it because it's not vital) is the second part. Plus, discarding visuals - no thanks. Humans are very visually oriented. Better discard smell or sound, first.
IIRC we're already at the level of the spider brain; mice are a nice next step.
Also, there's a delicious irony in building a big, expensive computer to emulate mice - maybe we'll find the question to Life, the Universe and Everything;).
On a dark desert planet, with no atmosphere there
Red columns of dust, rising up through the air
Up ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering light
My wheels grew heavy and my camera grew dim
I had to stop for the night
I used FastTracker II under DOS, jumping back to Windows 98 to work with Sonic Foundry's Sound Forge 4.5 to timestretch offline - save, jump back, try, save, jump back, etc... lots of work, but that's how I made my first mashup:). Count on it - that's indeed frustrating because a lot of chopping is involved.
Not to start any holy wars, but Sonic Foundry's ACID (1998) (and something called MixMeister IIRC) were available on the PC first and offered the vital ingredients (automatic, realtime timestretching and looping) necessary to make mashups - I know because I was using it to do exactly that almost 10 years ago. ACID is also named by several other mashup producers as their choice application (or at least their first) - applications like Logic and Digital Performer got this later and were much more highbrow.
Ableton Live was released first in 2001 but it could be that I've missed an earlier incarnation of a similar program.
There is something scarily religious about people that really believe in global warming - that the earth is doomed unless we make sacrifices, or buy indulgences in the form of emissions trading permits.
It is possible to cut back without any economic disasters, if only for the sake of not wasting resources. The problem is that everyone will try to hold off doing anything at all (even minor savings) until the last moment. If we guessed right, we've saved resources. If we've guessed wrong, we'll still have saved resources.
Personally, I don't know. And I reckon in my life time the worst case rise of a degree or so is no biggie.
The earth is robust in the sense that it doesn't matter much what strikes it - it's the inhabitants who aren't robust. Furthermore, even a small push can be of influence on a system in an equilibrium.
Personally, I think most people will be disappointed in your post because "in my life" tells them you don't care much for any future generations.
This is a pretty generous estimate for a Pulled-Out-Of-The-Air statistic. I think you can adjust that to 75%, but that depends on where they dwell; if they all go bonkers on their own forum, you think they behave reasonable outside of it (simply because they already had a chance to spew their vitriol).
I'd rather see bulletproof license control for commercial software.
There's no such thing unless you make a piece of hardware big and impossible to fake enough (e.g. a PCI card with some dedicated DSPs op for audio processing or generation), and even then, having it and running 1 legit plugin and 10 not so legit ones can't be stopped. Plus you'll introduce an extra hassle to the customer who does pay, and a problem if the hardware's out of date.
Challenge response? Doesn't work. Draconian dongles? Doesn't work. To get it bulletproof, you need the BSA to do regular checkups, and preferably at those who can afford it, first. Another solution is a valuable community that only can be reached if you're validated again. No legit serial or duplicate login information? Out. Most evasions just focus on making the application work by disabling phoning home, but if the application largely depends on a community, you can keep the best part for those who do pay.
Slashdot Mirror
What you need is not a license but accountability; when you put your John Hancock under the QA document you give your word that the system's fault-free to the best of your efforts, and that you will take care of support.
Being forced to take responsibility does a whole lot more than having a fancy piece of paper on your wall. The same responsibility would be nice for CEOs: lousy track record? Then you don't get any fancy stock options or nonsense like that.
No. "Nerd" or "geek" is generally the moniker for anyone you threaten to beat up if they don't do your homework for you.
Population US: 300 million.
You're welcome.
How are you otherwise going to view all those horribly saccharine sunset pictures with a waterdrop distortion/wavy lake mirror effect? Or those gradient-laden roll-over buttons (requiring one applet each!) that don't tell you what they're pointing at?
But because smartphones usually run in portrait mode (240 x 320 instead of 320 x 240) Verdana is too wide. Windows Mobile 6 has a narrow font (with anti-aliasing) that is very legible. Even then, Tahoma, not Verdana used to be the font of choice in WM5 and before (Windows 2000, XP); the difference is obvious if you compare 'm side by side.
I hope they'd hire Alan Rickman for that.
That is an excellent story, and thank you for bringing it to my attention. Quite visionary, too.
Security is not an issue; I'm not running a virus or spyware scanner here because it steals away precious resources from my music software. Learning Linux is not even an issue; you'd have to convince the corporations making the gear I use to switch.
You forgot something:
1.5, 2.5, up to n.5: Blatant product placement.
I'm not cheerleading anyone for making racist (or bordering on -) jokes; if anything, they make me feel the same as someone at the dinner table in a chique restaurant farting with an epic force and pungency including THX 0.1 sound; embarrassed. Pretty much every joke involves someone else's misfortune, unless we're talking about puns; which are a rare medium well done anyway, and the lowest form of wit.
(I think you meant incite)
I sort of collect synthesizers and I've got some vintage game computers. I'm not too proud to look for a sweet deal; I'm certainly proud enough to not pay a ridiculous price for it that could be dictated by a bunch of bonobos with darts and a dartboard and a marketing executive (which is how certain companies in the audio world seem to determine the price level for their products).
We're not selfish or greedy because we collect; we just have so many resources that collecting useless crap doesn't interfere with our basic needs. It has no value until someone assigns a value to it that is disproportionally greater than the material and labor costs involved in the original production.
The only stupidity is in the people paying money for it; but for those who still want it but complain about the price; they're not somehow less stupid or better than those who pay the full sum; just more frugal.
Because you can teach mice little tricks; they can respond to more stimuli and do problem-solving.
;).
Bandwidth is one - having full sensory perception (think of the nearly 2 square meters humans have as skin, a pressure- and temperature sensitive grid with a fine resolution) gives you simply a lot of data to work with. Processing and filtering (and discarding a lot of it because it's not vital) is the second part. Plus, discarding visuals - no thanks. Humans are very visually oriented. Better discard smell or sound, first.
IIRC we're already at the level of the spider brain; mice are a nice next step.
Also, there's a delicious irony in building a big, expensive computer to emulate mice - maybe we'll find the question to Life, the Universe and Everything
Red columns of dust, rising up through the air
Up ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering light
My wheels grew heavy and my camera grew dim
I had to stop for the night
(etc.)
I used FastTracker II under DOS, jumping back to Windows 98 to work with Sonic Foundry's Sound Forge 4.5 to timestretch offline - save, jump back, try, save, jump back, etc... lots of work, but that's how I made my first mashup :). Count on it - that's indeed frustrating because a lot of chopping is involved.
Ableton Live was released first in 2001 but it could be that I've missed an earlier incarnation of a similar program.
Personally, I think most people will be disappointed in your post because "in my life" tells them you don't care much for any future generations.
I still love the artwork of the game, and I wouldn't mind a souped-up, smoother version with the same cartoony, colorful atmosphere.
Challenge response? Doesn't work. Draconian dongles? Doesn't work. To get it bulletproof, you need the BSA to do regular checkups, and preferably at those who can afford it, first. Another solution is a valuable community that only can be reached if you're validated again. No legit serial or duplicate login information? Out. Most evasions just focus on making the application work by disabling phoning home, but if the application largely depends on a community, you can keep the best part for those who do pay.