>I've had this discussion with other developers before, who insisted the users need backwards compatibility. My counterargument was just this, a day will come, sooner than you think, where you won't be able to provide it.
Really? On my Linux box, I have a DOS emulator running. Just for kicks, in that DOS emulator is a ZX Spectrum (USA name: Timex Sinclair) emulator running, which perfectly runs the game 'Jet Set Willy'.
Now that you could call backward compatibility over 25 years, and it's working great.
So you have a new API? Well, looks like you'll need a called-on-demand conversion layer for the old API. Sucks, yes. But a *lot* of people are using Windows, and a huge amount of them have *not* updated. A lot of offices are using NT. A lot of users are still on 98. Why change? All the software runs on it, all the games run on it, all the new hardware works with it - why should they switch?
So if you now come and say: "Everybody, everybody must update! You need new Hardware, new Software, new OS... you'll be spending a loooot of bucks!", I don't think that you'll be overrun by enthusiastic customers.
Why are people not switching to the Mac? Because their software doesn't run on it. Now it doesn't run on the new Windows, either? Well, they might just switch, even if the hardware is more expensive.
Switching anyway? Well, you don't have to buy new hardware, and there's a lot of software which looks nearly like what you're already used to - on Linux. Why not switch there instead?
You can hold a market in your iron grip if they all need compatibility with you. Drop that and you loose.
Well, you do need a certain minimum of megapixels, so you can have your photo printed. See, I never print photos on my PC (which is why I don't need an inkjet* with highly expensive ink (1 liter = 1 kg Gold)), but bring or send them to the photoshop instead. They will print it using a seriously good printer on great paper, and charge a pittance for it. Some shops (and websites) also allow me to design a nice hardcover book full of my photos and text, which makes a great present for friends and family.
But the requirement-limit is at, what, between 3 and 5 megapixels. Using more is useful for cutting images and having only a small part printed, but this happens rather rarely.
Instead I want the following:
* a good optical lens (come on, an f of 2.8 is not that great, unless you live in a really sunny country) with a solid optical zoom (who CARES about digital zoom?).
* Use standard AA rechargable batteries - they are cheap, hold a heck of a charge by now, and are easily replacable - with plain batteries if necessary. Keep in mind that these things have to be replaced every now and then, and a propriatary one isn't cheap.
* Use CF cards. Cheap, fast, big, and under steady development.
* Allow me to access the camera via USB as an external drive, without needing some kind of stupid program.
* Reasonably small, so I will usually carry it with me in my pocket instead of leaving it at home due to bulk/weight.
Currently, I use the Canon A70/A75/A80. I can recommend them all, except for the lens (2.8, but this currently is standard, except for the great Olympus 5050 with 1.8), and the interface (I have to pop out the CF to read it - I'm not using some kiddy-aimed windows program here). Not too expensive, either (nope, I have no connection to the manufacturer).
Ciao, Klaus
* Tip: Buy a used postscripting laserprinter with >= 600 dpi. Dirt cheap, toner lasts forever, you'll love it. And no drivers needed, ever.
...is that the only readable computer magazine in Germany, the c't, wrote an article on how to foil these things. Seeing as they're being used already.
Turned out to be an April Fools joke.
Two months later the UK thinks that these things might be a great idea...
You would *fight* for other peoples freedom to choose Windows? Really? You do realize that "fighting" means "doing horrible things, risking your life and health in the process"?
I wouldn't. Let's not get political here, but there are *very* few things I would fight for, and they *never* include strangers.
Hey, it's just another medium, another way of meeting people. And for us computer geeks, it sounds like a typical way.
So here's my advice: simply try it. Don't think about fat, pasty, pimply nerds sitting in the dark before glowing screens pretending to be pretty girls, just try it.
People like us tend to spend a lot of time in front of a screen, and a lot less running about the beach or parties. We simply don't have the *time*, as well.
So: use the computer to find people.
I did. Found my current girl-friend. Am seriously happy about it;) And you know what? Didn't even take long.
No, really. People with insufficient brains will simply turn to their beloved idiot-box and put some game-console on it. People with lots of brains find enjoyment in building their own PCs, to their exact specs.
Ok, the comment about the console-users wasn't nice, but I hate TVs, so you'll surely forgive me;)
But seriously... where's the market? And if you really do want to buy a pre-built thing simply out of lazyness, well there are plenty of companies out there already, like Alienware. Besides, if you want a seriously good gaming PC and you're willing to pay for it, get a computer-savy friend to do it for you. He'll ask less, and still make a nice fat profit. And his PC will be better than anything you buy in a store.
Curses. I'm using Mozilla and Adblock to get rid of all these ridiculous aimed-at-the-bottom-percentile advertisements and pop-ups, and now the ads start infiltrating the news websites!
Chaps, before publishing something *this* obviously written by an PR department, perhaps you'd at least consider rewriting it. I mean, the whole thing looks like you copied it straight off a billboard.
(Yes, here in Germany universities don't advertise themselves. That's because they're free).
I must admit it doesn't look like it has encryption (yet?), but it has everything else you mentioned, and it has SPEED.
And, Slashdotters, it's Open Source. So run up the flags for it! Why is everybody, but everybody, talking about MySQL when Firebird is just as free, has a LOT more funtions (the transaction handling is great), and it's FAST.
We use Firebird in a rather serious business environment, and have been very happy with it.
Have a look at http://www.firebirdsql.org/ff/foundation/FBFactshe et.html
Although, I'll admit, encryption? Aaaah, bah, that's just bloat;)
Easy. A friend of mine needed a computer. Nice and solid, nothing too fancy, very safe. He wanted to not only mess about on The Net, but also do AutoCAD work.
So I got him some nice powerful components, put the whole thing together, set it up, placed the usual Adaware, firewalls, scanners, etc on it, put my 19" CRT on top of it (I got myself a 21" TFT instead), and he was happy with it.
And offered to build me two cabinets for the apartment I'd recently moved into. Now he's a carpenter, and a darn good one.
Have you never looked at a corner in your place and thought: "Man, building a large custom cabinet right into there would be *so* useful"? Well, I designed two cabinets (no, I know nothing about it, but it's fun), and now we're both happy.
He has a nice and solid PC. I have two nice and solid cabinets.
>they voted against the iraq war even though they probably wanted it
Um. I'd hate to get into yet another one of these political flamewars, but why exactly would they have wanted that war? The only one profiting from it is the USA. Why would even a rather stupid gouverment have wanted that war as well?
And the germans didn't critizise what happened in Iraq? I'm afraid that's rather news to me, and I happen to live in germany. Public (and, yes, political) outcry against that profit-driven brainless mess is quite loud.
Otherwise - yes, you are perfectly correct. Politicians are janus-faced bastards, and will do absolutely anything to get elected. Which, btw, is why you can see US presidents starts wars before elections - so far it has always gotten them re-elected.
PS: Whoo, after reading my post I think I have to add something: I used to live in the US. I like the people quite a bit. It's your leadership I can't stand.
I'm a german claiming that computers were invented in Germany, via Z1, Z2, Z3 by Conrad Zuse. Particularly the Z3, built using telephone relays (and thus a lot more reliable than ENIAC - although slower, of course).
Or was it Blaise Pascal who thought up the basics? Perhaps Gottfried Leibniz who did binary mathematics? Or, oh, let's go back further to Pingala in India, who first mentioned the binary system?;)
While this seems like an interesting way to debug code you have ported between systems, I have this tendency to expand existing software. Or write new software. Where this is not terribly useful.
Besides.. have you looked at the background graphics on the left. I hardly dare to admit that I know this, but it *is* VB code. Great advert. Urgh.
These days, planning a street party can be a 'terrorist act'. Handing out pamphlets in Washington, despicting GWB as a sheep, explaining why he's such a nut, could be a terrorist act. Mooning the traffic on an interstate could be a terrorist act.
I lived for two years in California: San Francisco! Great town, although the masses of home- and helpless people in the streets disturbed me a lot.
For a while I thought that I'd go visiting again after this nut has been kicked from the white house. I watched in irritation as things rapidly got worse. Mind you, living outside the USA you can see a *lot* more things turning bad inside the united states.
But now this. You think I will allow anyone to take (and keep!) my fingerprints just for fun? Store them together with my full data and photo?
On a lower level, you think I'd be willing to wait in line while immigrations do this to a fully-loaded 747-400?
Bye, USA. It was a nice time (I loved your '68 Mustangs), but the world is large enough even for a traveller like me not to need you.
" second time since November...In February a space walk to find the source of the sound was cut short.""
Cut short. So. You're sitting up there, in a really rather hostile environment, running out of cash, spending most of your time keeping this thing alive (and, by extension, yourself), listen to the americans whine about risking their shuttle, and... you HAVEN'T GONE AND LOOKED?
What, you need a form in triplicate? You don't think that this might be dangerous to ignore? Yes, a walk outside isn't very safe either, but why wait for the brainless bovinocrats at ground control to tell you to step outside?
Sheesh. If the ISS is *that* bound by the buraeucrazy, we might as well forget about it. It'll never turn into anything useful, that you may be sure of.
Seeing that the articles discussing this nut are now on the first page of a google search, the article heading should read "[Lunatic|Nut|Litigious Moron] Googles For His Name..." Just to wish him a nice day >:)
>Could it be that a few black (and possibly white) hatters find that they serve a purpose?
Script Kiddies serving a purpose? Well, yes. Lenin called such people "useful idiots".
Especially useful for "security consultants" who know very little about it except how to set up a software firewall. Afterwards they'll write long articles on how good they are;)
Actually... if you sit on the ground, it'll come about up to your shoulder. That's not bad.
And if you creep into a house at night, mask on your face and flashlight in hand, turn a corner and see...this...you'll jump out of your skin:)
Obviously, if you know about this thing beforehand, you wouldn't care at all, thus "Protected by Baby Dragon" signs on the door are probably not a good idea.
If I want to print a digital photo, I can do so much better and cheaper at the nearest developer. Or I send it over the net, receiving the prints in the mail.
Sure, there are special applications (I wrote a medical planning system, and it had to print in color), but not that many.
If I just want to print, why would I buy an ink-jet? A liter of ink costs me about as much as a kilo of gold (US: 1 liter = 0.22 gallons, 1 kg = 2.2 pounds).
Instead, I bought a used laser printer. Neat paper tray, crisp 600 dpi, postscript with 48MB, network, serial and parallel port, very reliable, and it cost me about $150. I don't print that much, and after two years I still haven't changed the toner.
Oh, upps. Just scared my cow-orker in the office with my shouting:)
Please don't call me a Fanboy, but I love the books (first read them when I was about 12). When I first heard of the movie I was horrified, but lo and behold: it turned out great (especially the extended versions, which are actually quite a bit better than the cinema ones).
After I came out of the first film (and immediately bought another ticket for the weekend;), I hoped that he would be able to do The Hobbit, too. And now I see that he is!
Ah, just caught my little ray of sunshine for today;)
>Perhaps my comment was a bit unclear - what I was primarily referring to, was the apparent indifference with which this woman reports about this, that makes it seem like an everyday occurrence.
Ah, I see. Yes, it was a bit strange, wasn't it?
>I now live in the US - what precisely is 'more peaceful'?
Life in the streets. Not having to avoid eye contact, being scared of the people next to you in the street. I lived in the USA (CA) for two years, and a couple years here in Germany, and some in Canada, and South Africa, and so on. My personal opinion would be that life in Germany is more peaceful than in the USA, and I'd say that statistics (for example, murders per 1000 inhabitants per year) bear me out.
>Reality ain't like TV. It really isn't.
Tell me about it:) Happily, I don't own a TV and am not interested in one.
And, um, let's not talk about politicians, ok? We seem to agree on this, but my main take on them is that the top 30% should be hung from lamp posts, in the hope that the rest will behave a bit better for the next couple of years. Apparently, not everybody shares this belief;)
> Yes, peaceful Germany. Instigators of two world wars. Pfft. Why don't you come into the real world?
Wow, I actually *am* going to respond to an AC, and completely off-topic, too. Man, I'll be moderated into China, especially as I'm going to talk history - always a major problem with little hotmouths who get their world view from Indiana Jones.
First off, sir, allow me to officially call you an idiot. I do so because you know nothing about history and blather about as if you did - just like an idiot.
Now, allow me to inform you as to the causes of two world wars - don't worry, I'll keep it short, you can return to your Superman graphic novel in a moment.
I am going to start with WW2, since it's easier. The peace accord of WW1 was crushing the entire country flat. The tunnel was very deep, and there was no light at the end of it. See, the other states asked for a heck of a lot of money - not what they thought they'd get, but what they owed to the USA. Horrendous amounts. And nicely open-ended, in the style of "Okay, you'll pay *that* per year until 2000, and then we'll see".
Obviously, this didn't work. A harsh peace never does. The people became desperate, the inflation went into the sky (it is *not* funny to go shopping with a cart full of bank notes). So they voted for the guy who could hold these amazing speeches. That guy was not "satan himself", he was a romantic nut. Yes, try it sometime - give one of these people a lot of power, and see just how bad things turn out.
Initially quite well - he told the other countries to go to hell, he built highways (suddenly, you had a job again), stuff like that. Soon enough, though, he went nuts, and a LOT of trouble was the result. Some interesting side-effects remain up to this day:
a) You have to call Hitler "evil". You're not really allowed to look at the entire time period without shivering in disgust at all these evil people, too.
b) Germany is irredeemably evil. It is the only country on earth with an unforgivable past. Think they did worst? Man, I can give you examples to make your toes curl, quite a few of them from your home country, whichever it is.
c) Israel is allowed to do absolutely anything as a country. Any disapproval is instantly anti-semitic, and will be met with hatred from all over the world.
The first World War (called "The Great War" back then) was a bit more complex. Initially, the interesting countries were Britain, France, Austria and Russia. A prussian called Otto von Bismarck (yes, the ship was named after him) was a brilliant enough politician that he actually managed to pull Prussia, Bavaria, Saxonia and the rest of the tiny countries into their own real state: Germany. Furthermore, the endless squabbles between Britain and France, with the occasional agressiveness from Austria, were held well in check. Amongst other tricks, Germany had an alliance with Austria and Russia, meaning the UK and France did not dare attack it.
When the second king of the new Germany came (yes, Germany had a king), he was a disaster. Friendly, nice guy, a bit simple perhaps, knew less about politics that even you do. To him, things had always been that way. Peaceful times for over 30 years. Who needs an Old Fart like Bismarck, especially if the kings mother hated him so much?
So he fired him. The russians came to renew their treaty are were told "Nah, don't worry, we don't need this". Might upset the others, you know. Obviously, Russia was horrified, They needed a partner. They found them: France and the UK. See the lines around Germany already?
At an ambassador meeting later between Russia, France and the UK, the Russian brought out a toast: "We'll meet again in Berlin, friends!". Raging applause.
Thus the war was ready to be started. Just a spark was needed. Everybody knew this - except Germany. Then a Serbian shot the soon-to-be-King of the Hungarians (who were with the Austrians back then). The response came reasonable q
Slashdot Mirror
>I've had this discussion with other developers before, who insisted the users need backwards compatibility. My counterargument was just this, a day will come, sooner than you think, where you won't be able to provide it.
Really? On my Linux box, I have a DOS emulator running. Just for kicks, in that DOS emulator is a ZX Spectrum (USA name: Timex Sinclair) emulator running, which perfectly runs the game 'Jet Set Willy'.
Now that you could call backward compatibility over 25 years, and it's working great.
So you have a new API? Well, looks like you'll need a called-on-demand conversion layer for the old API.
Sucks, yes.
But a *lot* of people are using Windows, and a huge amount of them have *not* updated. A lot of offices are using NT. A lot of users are still on 98. Why change? All the software runs on it, all the games run on it, all the new hardware works with it - why should they switch?
So if you now come and say: "Everybody, everybody must update! You need new Hardware, new Software, new OS... you'll be spending a loooot of bucks!", I don't think that you'll be overrun by enthusiastic customers.
Why are people not switching to the Mac? Because their software doesn't run on it. Now it doesn't run on the new Windows, either? Well, they might just switch, even if the hardware is more expensive.
Switching anyway? Well, you don't have to buy new hardware, and there's a lot of software which looks nearly like what you're already used to - on Linux. Why not switch there instead?
You can hold a market in your iron grip if they all need compatibility with you. Drop that and you loose.
Well, you do need a certain minimum of megapixels, so you can have your photo printed. See, I never print photos on my PC (which is why I don't need an inkjet* with highly expensive ink (1 liter = 1 kg Gold)), but bring or send them to the photoshop instead.
They will print it using a seriously good printer on great paper, and charge a pittance for it. Some shops (and websites) also allow me to design a nice hardcover book full of my photos and text, which makes a great present for friends and family.
But the requirement-limit is at, what, between 3 and 5 megapixels. Using more is useful for cutting images and having only a small part printed, but this happens rather rarely.
Instead I want the following:
* a good optical lens (come on, an f of 2.8 is not that great, unless you live in a really sunny country) with a solid optical zoom (who CARES about digital zoom?).
* Use standard AA rechargable batteries - they are cheap, hold a heck of a charge by now, and are easily replacable - with plain batteries if necessary.
Keep in mind that these things have to be replaced every now and then, and a propriatary one isn't cheap.
* Use CF cards. Cheap, fast, big, and under steady development.
* Allow me to access the camera via USB as an external drive, without needing some kind of stupid program.
* Reasonably small, so I will usually carry it with me in my pocket instead of leaving it at home due to bulk/weight.
Currently, I use the Canon A70/A75/A80. I can recommend them all, except for the lens (2.8, but this currently is standard, except for the great Olympus 5050 with 1.8), and the interface (I have to pop out the CF to read it - I'm not using some kiddy-aimed windows program here).
Not too expensive, either (nope, I have no connection to the manufacturer).
Ciao,
Klaus
* Tip: Buy a used postscripting laserprinter with >= 600 dpi. Dirt cheap, toner lasts forever, you'll love it. And no drivers needed, ever.
...is that the only readable computer magazine in Germany, the c't, wrote an article on how to foil these things. Seeing as they're being used already.
Turned out to be an April Fools joke.
Two months later the UK thinks that these things might be a great idea...
Never thought there'd be big money in mathematics...
;)
(Go, Flo!)
You would *fight* for other peoples freedom to choose Windows? Really? You do realize that "fighting" means "doing horrible things, risking your life and health in the process"?
I wouldn't.
Let's not get political here, but there are *very* few things I would fight for, and they *never* include strangers.
Hey, it's just another medium, another way of meeting people. And for us computer geeks, it sounds like a typical way.
;)
So here's my advice: simply try it. Don't think about fat, pasty, pimply nerds sitting in the dark before glowing screens pretending to be pretty girls, just try it.
People like us tend to spend a lot of time in front of a screen, and a lot less running about the beach or parties. We simply don't have the *time*, as well.
So: use the computer to find people.
I did. Found my current girl-friend. Am seriously happy about it
And you know what? Didn't even take long.
>As I am typing this I am reading a M$ ad on the submit page.
You are? Why? I'm using my little friend Mozilla, strengthened by Adblock (http://adblock.mozdev.org/), which works wonders.
I don't see *any* ads on Slashdot.
No, really. People with insufficient brains will simply turn to their beloved idiot-box and put some game-console on it.
;)
People with lots of brains find enjoyment in building their own PCs, to their exact specs.
Ok, the comment about the console-users wasn't nice, but I hate TVs, so you'll surely forgive me
But seriously... where's the market? And if you really do want to buy a pre-built thing simply out of lazyness, well there are plenty of companies out there already, like Alienware.
Besides, if you want a seriously good gaming PC and you're willing to pay for it, get a computer-savy friend to do it for you. He'll ask less, and still make a nice fat profit. And his PC will be better than anything you buy in a store.
Curses. I'm using Mozilla and Adblock to get rid of all these ridiculous aimed-at-the-bottom-percentile advertisements and pop-ups, and now the ads start infiltrating the news websites!
Chaps, before publishing something *this* obviously written by an PR department, perhaps you'd at least consider rewriting it.
I mean, the whole thing looks like you copied it straight off a billboard.
(Yes, here in Germany universities don't advertise themselves. That's because they're free).
And Firebird?
e et.html
;)
I must admit it doesn't look like it has encryption (yet?), but it has everything else you mentioned, and it has SPEED.
And, Slashdotters, it's Open Source. So run up the flags for it! Why is everybody, but everybody, talking about MySQL when Firebird is just as free, has a LOT more funtions (the transaction handling is great), and it's FAST.
We use Firebird in a rather serious business environment, and have been very happy with it.
Have a look at http://www.firebirdsql.org/ff/foundation/FBFactsh
Although, I'll admit, encryption? Aaaah, bah, that's just bloat
> In what way does USA profit from that horrendously expensive war?
;)
Arms. Supplies. Support. Getting your firms work there. Lots of it.
>Even as a European, I sure hope he knows what he's doing
He is. His friends love him, as do the companies. Who cares about the population?
Anyway, way off topic. Let's cut here - take it to email if you prefere
Easy. A friend of mine needed a computer. Nice and solid, nothing too fancy, very safe.
:)
He wanted to not only mess about on The Net, but also do AutoCAD work.
So I got him some nice powerful components, put the whole thing together, set it up, placed the usual Adaware, firewalls, scanners, etc on it, put my 19" CRT on top of it (I got myself a 21" TFT instead), and he was happy with it.
And offered to build me two cabinets for the apartment I'd recently moved into. Now he's a carpenter, and a darn good one.
Have you never looked at a corner in your place and thought: "Man, building a large custom cabinet right into there would be *so* useful"? Well, I designed two cabinets (no, I know nothing about it, but it's fun), and now we're both happy.
He has a nice and solid PC.
I have two nice and solid cabinets.
Cheap for both of us
>they voted against the iraq war even though they probably wanted it
Um. I'd hate to get into yet another one of these political flamewars, but why exactly would they have wanted that war?
The only one profiting from it is the USA. Why would even a rather stupid gouverment have wanted that war as well?
And the germans didn't critizise what happened in Iraq? I'm afraid that's rather news to me, and I happen to live in germany. Public (and, yes, political) outcry against that profit-driven brainless mess is quite loud.
Otherwise - yes, you are perfectly correct. Politicians are janus-faced bastards, and will do absolutely anything to get elected.
Which, btw, is why you can see US presidents starts wars before elections - so far it has always gotten them re-elected.
PS: Whoo, after reading my post I think I have to add something: I used to live in the US. I like the people quite a bit. It's your leadership I can't stand.
Ooooh, let's fight :)
;)
I'm a german claiming that computers were invented in Germany, via Z1, Z2, Z3 by Conrad Zuse. Particularly the Z3, built using telephone relays (and thus a lot more reliable than ENIAC - although slower, of course).
Or was it Blaise Pascal who thought up the basics? Perhaps Gottfried Leibniz who did binary mathematics? Or, oh, let's go back further to Pingala in India, who first mentioned the binary system?
While this seems like an interesting way to debug code you have ported between systems, I have this tendency to expand existing software. Or write new software.
Where this is not terribly useful.
Besides.. have you looked at the background graphics on the left. I hardly dare to admit that I know this, but it *is* VB code. Great advert. Urgh.
All I hear is "planning a terrorist act".
These days, planning a street party can be a 'terrorist act'. Handing out pamphlets in Washington, despicting GWB as a sheep, explaining why he's such a nut, could be a terrorist act.
Mooning the traffic on an interstate could be a terrorist act.
Anybody know?
Well, good bye, America.
I lived for two years in California: San Francisco! Great town, although the masses of home- and helpless people in the streets disturbed me a lot.
For a while I thought that I'd go visiting again after this nut has been kicked from the white house.
I watched in irritation as things rapidly got worse. Mind you, living outside the USA you can see a *lot* more things turning bad inside the united states.
But now this.
You think I will allow anyone to take (and keep!) my fingerprints just for fun? Store them together with my full data and photo?
On a lower level, you think I'd be willing to wait in line while immigrations do this to a fully-loaded 747-400?
Bye, USA. It was a nice time (I loved your '68 Mustangs), but the world is large enough even for a traveller like me not to need you.
" second time since November...In February a space walk to find the source of the sound was cut short.""
Cut short. So. You're sitting up there, in a really rather hostile environment, running out of cash, spending most of your time keeping this thing alive (and, by extension, yourself), listen to the americans whine about risking their shuttle, and... you HAVEN'T GONE AND LOOKED?
What, you need a form in triplicate? You don't think that this might be dangerous to ignore? Yes, a walk outside isn't very safe either, but why wait for the brainless bovinocrats at ground control to tell you to step outside?
Sheesh. If the ISS is *that* bound by the buraeucrazy, we might as well forget about it. It'll never turn into anything useful, that you may be sure of.
Seeing that the articles discussing this nut are now on the first page of a google search, the article heading should read "[Lunatic|Nut|Litigious Moron] Googles For His Name..."
Just to wish him a nice day >:)
(Yes, yes, he'd sue again, I know, I know...)
>Could it be that a few black (and possibly white) hatters find that they serve a purpose?
;)
Script Kiddies serving a purpose?
Well, yes. Lenin called such people "useful idiots".
Especially useful for "security consultants" who know very little about it except how to set up a software firewall. Afterwards they'll write long articles on how good they are
Actually... if you sit on the ground, it'll come about up to your shoulder. That's not bad.
:)
And if you creep into a house at night, mask on your face and flashlight in hand, turn a corner and see...this...you'll jump out of your skin
Obviously, if you know about this thing beforehand, you wouldn't care at all, thus "Protected by Baby Dragon" signs on the door are probably not a good idea.
Why buy color printers?
If I want to print a digital photo, I can do so much better and cheaper at the nearest developer. Or I send it over the net, receiving the prints in the mail.
Sure, there are special applications (I wrote a medical planning system, and it had to print in color), but not that many.
If I just want to print, why would I buy an ink-jet? A liter of ink costs me about as much as a kilo of gold (US: 1 liter = 0.22 gallons, 1 kg = 2.2 pounds).
Instead, I bought a used laser printer. Neat paper tray, crisp 600 dpi, postscript with 48MB, network, serial and parallel port, very reliable, and it cost me about $150.
I don't print that much, and after two years I still haven't changed the toner.
*shrug*
Oh, upps. Just scared my cow-orker in the office with my shouting :)
;), I hoped that he would be able to do The Hobbit, too. And now I see that he is!
;)
Please don't call me a Fanboy, but I love the books (first read them when I was about 12). When I first heard of the movie I was horrified, but lo and behold: it turned out great (especially the extended versions, which are actually quite a bit better than the cinema ones).
After I came out of the first film (and immediately bought another ticket for the weekend
Ah, just caught my little ray of sunshine for today
>Perhaps my comment was a bit unclear - what I was primarily referring to, was the apparent indifference with which this woman reports about this, that makes it seem like an everyday occurrence.
:)
;)
Ah, I see. Yes, it was a bit strange, wasn't it?
>I now live in the US - what precisely is 'more peaceful'?
Life in the streets. Not having to avoid eye contact, being scared of the people next to you in the street.
I lived in the USA (CA) for two years, and a couple years here in Germany, and some in Canada, and South Africa, and so on. My personal opinion would be that life in Germany is more peaceful than in the USA, and I'd say that statistics (for example, murders per 1000 inhabitants per year) bear me out.
>Reality ain't like TV. It really isn't.
Tell me about it
Happily, I don't own a TV and am not interested in one.
And, um, let's not talk about politicians, ok? We seem to agree on this, but my main take on them is that the top 30% should be hung from lamp posts, in the hope that the rest will behave a bit better for the next couple of years. Apparently, not everybody shares this belief
> Yes, peaceful Germany. Instigators of two world wars. Pfft. Why don't you come into the real world?
Wow, I actually *am* going to respond to an AC, and completely off-topic, too.
Man, I'll be moderated into China, especially as I'm going to talk history - always a major problem with little hotmouths who get their world view from Indiana Jones.
First off, sir, allow me to officially call you an idiot. I do so because you know nothing about history and blather about as if you did - just like an idiot.
Now, allow me to inform you as to the causes of two world wars - don't worry, I'll keep it short, you can return to your Superman graphic novel in a moment.
I am going to start with WW2, since it's easier. The peace accord of WW1 was crushing the entire country flat. The tunnel was very deep, and there was no light at the end of it.
See, the other states asked for a heck of a lot of money - not what they thought they'd get, but what they owed to the USA. Horrendous amounts. And nicely open-ended, in the style of "Okay, you'll pay *that* per year until 2000, and then we'll see".
Obviously, this didn't work. A harsh peace never does. The people became desperate, the inflation went into the sky (it is *not* funny to go shopping with a cart full of bank notes).
So they voted for the guy who could hold these amazing speeches. That guy was not "satan himself", he was a romantic nut. Yes, try it sometime - give one of these people a lot of power, and see just how bad things turn out.
Initially quite well - he told the other countries to go to hell, he built highways (suddenly, you had a job again), stuff like that. Soon enough, though, he went nuts, and a LOT of trouble was the result.
Some interesting side-effects remain up to this day:
a) You have to call Hitler "evil". You're not really allowed to look at the entire time period without shivering in disgust at all these evil people, too.
b) Germany is irredeemably evil. It is the only country on earth with an unforgivable past.
Think they did worst? Man, I can give you examples to make your toes curl, quite a few of them from your home country, whichever it is.
c) Israel is allowed to do absolutely anything as a country. Any disapproval is instantly anti-semitic, and will be met with hatred from all over the world.
The first World War (called "The Great War" back then) was a bit more complex.
Initially, the interesting countries were Britain, France, Austria and Russia. A prussian called Otto von Bismarck (yes, the ship was named after him) was a brilliant enough politician that he actually managed to pull Prussia, Bavaria, Saxonia and the rest of the tiny countries into their own real state: Germany.
Furthermore, the endless squabbles between Britain and France, with the occasional agressiveness from Austria, were held well in check. Amongst other tricks, Germany had an alliance with Austria and Russia, meaning the UK and France did not dare attack it.
When the second king of the new Germany came (yes, Germany had a king), he was a disaster. Friendly, nice guy, a bit simple perhaps, knew less about politics that even you do.
To him, things had always been that way. Peaceful times for over 30 years. Who needs an Old Fart like Bismarck, especially if the kings mother hated him so much?
So he fired him. The russians came to renew their treaty are were told "Nah, don't worry, we don't need this". Might upset the others, you know.
Obviously, Russia was horrified, They needed a partner. They found them: France and the UK.
See the lines around Germany already?
At an ambassador meeting later between Russia, France and the UK, the Russian brought out a toast: "We'll meet again in Berlin, friends!". Raging applause.
Thus the war was ready to be started. Just a spark was needed. Everybody knew this - except Germany.
Then a Serbian shot the soon-to-be-King of the Hungarians (who were with the Austrians back then). The response came reasonable q