I can't wait to see how the slashbots react to this one. Face it, you music pirates have been caught red handed. You can whine and cry all you want, but that doesn't change the fact that copying the new Tory Amos album from your best friend is not "fair use."
Too bad that fingerprints aren't really unique. Security should be based on vigorous math proofs, not old wives' tales. Even if they were, someone could always just steal the thing out of your coat pocket. Better to keep your important data in a large, immobile computer.
No one still plays those games anyway. They are interesting as history, but they just aren't appealing or fun anymore. Even games from just a few years ago are now dull when compared to new titles like Doom 3 and The Sims. The Atari is dead, and there is no way this product will sell.
Yeah, if you don't want children. Then again, you're probably like 95% of geeks and keep your cell phone hanging near your nuts all day already.
Some people (Scott Adams of Dilbert and Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy fame, notoriously) have claimed that humanity is evolving geekward, that brawn is becoming less common than brains as the Information Age increasingly selects for intelligence. But when you see how determined these geeks are to remove their genes from the pool, you have to wonder.
The NSA is probably the most secretive organization in the world, after the Freemasons and the Elks. I'd be very surprised if this "interview" is anything but a very well-crafted propoganda campaign. Take everything he says with a large spoon of salt. Regardless of what they say about liberty, these people are not elected, so they have no incentive to protect your rights. Treat them as the enemy, and be ready to defend yourself when they come to haul you away for thoughtcrimes.
I've always been a fan of foreign art forms. Perhaps one day I will travel the world to see the cave paintings of Paris and the pyramids of Egypt. I am usually very supportive of exotic foreign contemporary art, such as the excellent rap music being made in Mexico (pick up the soundtrack to Amores Peros for a good sampling). But the growing popularity of anime disturbs me.
Most of these shows, supposedly aimed at children, appear to portray unhealthy stereotypes. Men are tough and brutish (and almost always smoke), white people are always fat, and women are either airheads or dominatrices. The level of humor is usually targetted at the lowest common denominator, and is filled with slapstick and bathroom humor. Then there is the level of violence, which often surpasses what would be accepted in an American R-rated movie. And I haven't even touched on the pornographic content and rape fantasies.
Put simply, this type of material could only be produced in a nation steeped in institutional social repression. It is neither appropriate nor healthy to air most of this in the US. We are a tolerant people, but this filth should not be tolerated. If you find yourself interested in anime cartoons, then I would suggest that you leave the country for good, as you are not welcome here.
There are exceptions, of course, but I doubt there are enough decent anime cartoon shows to fill out the programming for an entire cable channel. Anyway, most "anime fans" only want the hard stuff, so I wouldn't expect to see anything worthwhile aired.
Obviously you have never tried teaching children anything. Your choices are way off.
vi - With their small hands and weak retention, 8 year olds will never be able to master the keyboard spans that Emacs requires, nor memorize the lists of arcane commands.
vi is a toy editor. It's cute, and handy for tight memory situations, but should be avoided by those wishing to get real work done. Emacs is much more feature-rich and robust, and is an industry standard. Its menus make those difficult-to-reach key commands unnecessary.
Languages - You aren't seriously suggesting that the upcoming generation should use an interpreted language, are you? If so, say hello to 20 more years of code bloat. I think C (and definitely not the horror that is C++) would be the ideal astere first language for anyone, especially a young, impressionable mind.
On the contrary, interpreted languages are a great way to learn programming without the complexity of Makefiles, command lines, objects, and debugging. I'd recommend the Mono project, which is a Linux port of Microsoft's C# language, as a good introduction to interpreted programming.
Mathematica - There is no more suitable program for 8 year old math than mathematica. I mean, you installed Linux where they used to have Apple ]['s, right? So it sounds like you want to give them the big iron (heh, not THAT big iron). So don't try to give them "Blue Teaches Addition" or anything lame like that--go for the gusto and install the full professional version of Mathematica.
Mathematica might help in college, but what about after graduation? Nobody in the Real World uses Mathematica. MatLab is the only sane choice here.
Fortunately, these are shallow bugs that will be found by many eyes. I'm guessing I won't have to wait more than a few hours for a patch that fixes any of these either. And while IE exploits tend to be devastating, since Explorer is integrated into the whole Windows OS, these security holes in Mozilla will, at most, crash your browser, a minor inconvenience. All this proves is that Open Source is (still!) better than proprietary software. Keep up the great work, Moz team!
What are you implying? That manual labor isn't good enough for an Ivy League grad? This is classism at it's most basic, folks. I may not make much money, but I'm proud of who I am.
It's great to see Apple giving its upper-class customers more for the same price, but it still doesn't solve the real problem. Apple Ibooks are still out of reach for those of us who compromise the working classes.
Just glancing at the Apple web page, I can see that their most "affordable" lap-top is anything but. I could understand them doing this if they already had a large market share--there is value in "luxury" brands--but with MAC sales so low, it seems like a bad idea. As a result, the average consumer won't even consider the Ibook. For example, look at me. I was laid off when the Dot.Com bubble burst, and now work doing manual labor down at the docks. I'm in hock up to my loogies, and have enough trouble just keeping my wife and five children sheltered, shorn, and clod each month. There's no way I could afford one of these things, and neither could most people in my position. The lower classes need something affordable, dependable, and proven, and for this reason we will continue to stick with PC manufacturers such as GateWay 2000 and DELL. I hope Apple figures this out soon.
It's great to see that someone is staying strong against Micro$oft. I can't believe how much injustice is being done by our so-called "justice" system. They spout tough-sounding sound bytes, but never follow through with any sort of action against what is basically at this point a criminal organization. It's not even surprising, though, given how much money M$ gives to politicians.
Fortunately, our allies in the EU are not so easily bought. After seeing what Nazi-driven companies like Volkswagen could do, the Europeans are suspicious--and rightly so--of any successful business. This will pay off in the end. Even as we Americans become slaves of Micro$oft, the Europeans will find freedom from their oppression and create a haven for Linux and freeware.
Perhaps in ten years, when the US is a wasteland with a handful of ultra-rich masters ruling over millions toiling in poverty, the EU will allow some of us to join them in harmonious cooperation. I fear that Europe remains the one final outpost of Western civilization, freedom, and democracy.
If you're trying to boot up, and your rubber bung breaks and leaks electrolyte, then I'd recommend getting tested as soon as possible, especially if you were trying to boot from a strange floppy.
Well, I'm usually outraged by hackers, especially those who steal. At least this guy was stealing from common criminals and other scum. I say let him go, and let him take care of the pimps, pushers, and pornographers next. Anything that makes the world safer for our children is worth it in my book, law be damned.
Wow, OpenBSD 3.2. For a while there I wasn't sure they'd ever get another release out (heh, and I'm not one of those "BSD is dying!" trolls, either!). It's always been one of my favorite BSD distros, and I'd never have switched to Linux if OpenBSD had had an SB Live! driver back in the day. The name "OpenBSD" was synonymous with "rock hard security."
It was sad to see the record for "no remote holes" disappear earlier this year. Even sadder when the holes in OpenSSH and -SSL were found. It seemed like the OpenBSD developers had maybe started to get lazy, or were too busy rushing to support the latest gee-whiz hardware and flashy features to keep an eye on security. And for most unix admins out there, flashy features aren't worth much if you don't have security.
I guess it's good to see that Theo isn't giving up. But I'm wondering if this release is going to be just another stepping stone on OpenBSD's recent path to shame, or if they are turning it around in an attempt to regain the glory of, say, 2.7. What do people think, is OpenBSD rising from the ashes or gasping its last breath?
While it generates headlines (especially on Slashdot!) to talk about an "antimatter" drive, anyone who's been through a high school physics course can see the problem with a drive that works like this, and identify the whole concept as utter nonsense.
We all know how rockets work: propellant is shot out the back of the rocket engine, and as it pushes off surrounding matter, the reactive force propels the vehicle forward according to Newton's third law. However, in the case of antimatter propellant, instead of a reactive force, the propellant will just annhilate the surrounding matter, and nothing will happen to the vehicle. In fact, an antimatter rocket would only work in an antimatter universe, and in that case it would be no more powerful or efficient than our current rockets.
I can't believe that people are being pulled into this one. Just remember that you can't judge the validity of these kinds of things based on the presence of buzzwords like "antimatter." Remember what you learned in school, be skeptical, and you won't get duped.
I guess I'm glad that something like this is available (rather than it not being available), but I have to wonder what the point of it is. The Open Source development model results in software that is provably superior to proprietary solutions (see Edgar Raymond's excellent essay, The Cathedral and the Bizarre for more info). This is why KOffice and GNOME Office are so great, despite their small development teams and short development cycles. So why would anyone even want to run M$ Office on a Linux workstation? No thanks, I'll stick to what works: AbiWord, Gnumeric, and Tux Racer!!
I have to agree that database reuse is among the most essential parts of running a profitible business. I've worked with all sorts of RDBMSes, from MS to Oracle to PostgresSQL, on everything from the lowliest hand-me-down Linux server to top-of-the-line Big Iron, and I can tell you that any modern database is going to be able to take whatever you can throw at it. I like being able to whip out whatever data we have, shove it in and pull it out again, repeatedly and at a moment's notice. It's this kind of flexibility that makes us keep coming to database systems in the first place.
At first this sounds like a miracle drug. You inject it into everybody, and it only starts working when there's a problem. But it's pretty obvious that this is just an accident waiting to happen.
In the presence of cosmic rays and background radiation, to say nothing of the computer monitors, cellular phones, and irradicated beef that we surround ourselves with every day, these genetic superdrugs could easily mutate. In their new forms, they'd be essentially unstoppable. One stray gramma ray could spell the end of humanity.
I'd like to fight cancer and HIV as much as anyone else. But I'll stick to traditional means, rather than meddling where Nature never intended.
Slashdot Mirror
I can't wait to see how the slashbots react to this one. Face it, you music pirates have been caught red handed. You can whine and cry all you want, but that doesn't change the fact that copying the new Tory Amos album from your best friend is not "fair use."
Too bad that fingerprints aren't really unique. Security should be based on vigorous math proofs, not old wives' tales. Even if they were, someone could always just steal the thing out of your coat pocket. Better to keep your important data in a large, immobile computer.
No one still plays those games anyway. They are interesting as history, but they just aren't appealing or fun anymore. Even games from just a few years ago are now dull when compared to new titles like Doom 3 and The Sims. The Atari is dead, and there is no way this product will sell.
Yeah, if you don't want children. Then again, you're probably like 95% of geeks and keep your cell phone hanging near your nuts all day already.
Some people (Scott Adams of Dilbert and Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy fame, notoriously) have claimed that humanity is evolving geekward, that brawn is becoming less common than brains as the Information Age increasingly selects for intelligence. But when you see how determined these geeks are to remove their genes from the pool, you have to wonder.
The NSA is probably the most secretive organization in the world, after the Freemasons and the Elks. I'd be very surprised if this "interview" is anything but a very well-crafted propoganda campaign. Take everything he says with a large spoon of salt. Regardless of what they say about liberty, these people are not elected, so they have no incentive to protect your rights. Treat them as the enemy, and be ready to defend yourself when they come to haul you away for thoughtcrimes.
I've always been a fan of foreign art forms. Perhaps one day I will travel the world to see the cave paintings of Paris and the pyramids of Egypt. I am usually very supportive of exotic foreign contemporary art, such as the excellent rap music being made in Mexico (pick up the soundtrack to Amores Peros for a good sampling). But the growing popularity of anime disturbs me.
Most of these shows, supposedly aimed at children, appear to portray unhealthy stereotypes. Men are tough and brutish (and almost always smoke), white people are always fat, and women are either airheads or dominatrices. The level of humor is usually targetted at the lowest common denominator, and is filled with slapstick and bathroom humor. Then there is the level of violence, which often surpasses what would be accepted in an American R-rated movie. And I haven't even touched on the pornographic content and rape fantasies.
Put simply, this type of material could only be produced in a nation steeped in institutional social repression. It is neither appropriate nor healthy to air most of this in the US. We are a tolerant people, but this filth should not be tolerated. If you find yourself interested in anime cartoons, then I would suggest that you leave the country for good, as you are not welcome here.
There are exceptions, of course, but I doubt there are enough decent anime cartoon shows to fill out the programming for an entire cable channel. Anyway, most "anime fans" only want the hard stuff, so I wouldn't expect to see anything worthwhile aired.
THERE IS NO WEATHER IN SPACE.
Last I checked, air was required for weather. Sorry, try again.
Obviously you have never tried teaching children anything. Your choices are way off.
vi - With their small hands and weak retention, 8 year olds will never be able to master the keyboard spans that Emacs requires, nor memorize the lists of arcane commands.
vi is a toy editor. It's cute, and handy for tight memory situations, but should be avoided by those wishing to get real work done. Emacs is much more feature-rich and robust, and is an industry standard. Its menus make those difficult-to-reach key commands unnecessary.
Languages - You aren't seriously suggesting that the upcoming generation should use an interpreted language, are you? If so, say hello to 20 more years of code bloat. I think C (and definitely not the horror that is C++) would be the ideal astere first language for anyone, especially a young, impressionable mind.
On the contrary, interpreted languages are a great way to learn programming without the complexity of Makefiles, command lines, objects, and debugging. I'd recommend the Mono project, which is a Linux port of Microsoft's C# language, as a good introduction to interpreted programming.
Mathematica - There is no more suitable program for 8 year old math than mathematica. I mean, you installed Linux where they used to have Apple ]['s, right? So it sounds like you want to give them the big iron (heh, not THAT big iron). So don't try to give them "Blue Teaches Addition" or anything lame like that--go for the gusto and install the full professional version of Mathematica.
Mathematica might help in college, but what about after graduation? Nobody in the Real World uses Mathematica. MatLab is the only sane choice here.
Fortunately, these are shallow bugs that will be found by many eyes. I'm guessing I won't have to wait more than a few hours for a patch that fixes any of these either. And while IE exploits tend to be devastating, since Explorer is integrated into the whole Windows OS, these security holes in Mozilla will, at most, crash your browser, a minor inconvenience. All this proves is that Open Source is (still!) better than proprietary software. Keep up the great work, Moz team!
What are you implying? That manual labor isn't good enough for an Ivy League grad? This is classism at it's most basic, folks. I may not make much money, but I'm proud of who I am.
It's great to see Apple giving its upper-class customers more for the same price, but it still doesn't solve the real problem. Apple Ibooks are still out of reach for those of us who compromise the working classes.
Just glancing at the Apple web page, I can see that their most "affordable" lap-top is anything but. I could understand them doing this if they already had a large market share--there is value in "luxury" brands--but with MAC sales so low, it seems like a bad idea. As a result, the average consumer won't even consider the Ibook. For example, look at me. I was laid off when the Dot.Com bubble burst, and now work doing manual labor down at the docks. I'm in hock up to my loogies, and have enough trouble just keeping my wife and five children sheltered, shorn, and clod each month. There's no way I could afford one of these things, and neither could most people in my position. The lower classes need something affordable, dependable, and proven, and for this reason we will continue to stick with PC manufacturers such as GateWay 2000 and DELL. I hope Apple figures this out soon.
It's great to see that someone is staying strong against Micro$oft. I can't believe how much injustice is being done by our so-called "justice" system. They spout tough-sounding sound bytes, but never follow through with any sort of action against what is basically at this point a criminal organization. It's not even surprising, though, given how much money M$ gives to politicians.
Fortunately, our allies in the EU are not so easily bought. After seeing what Nazi-driven companies like Volkswagen could do, the Europeans are suspicious--and rightly so--of any successful business. This will pay off in the end. Even as we Americans become slaves of Micro$oft, the Europeans will find freedom from their oppression and create a haven for Linux and freeware.
Perhaps in ten years, when the US is a wasteland with a handful of ultra-rich masters ruling over millions toiling in poverty, the EU will allow some of us to join them in harmonious cooperation. I fear that Europe remains the one final outpost of Western civilization, freedom, and democracy.
If you're trying to boot up, and your rubber bung breaks and leaks electrolyte, then I'd recommend getting tested as soon as possible, especially if you were trying to boot from a strange floppy.
Well, I'm usually outraged by hackers, especially those who steal. At least this guy was stealing from common criminals and other scum. I say let him go, and let him take care of the pimps, pushers, and pornographers next. Anything that makes the world safer for our children is worth it in my book, law be damned.
Wow, OpenBSD 3.2. For a while there I wasn't sure they'd ever get another release out (heh, and I'm not one of those "BSD is dying!" trolls, either!). It's always been one of my favorite BSD distros, and I'd never have switched to Linux if OpenBSD had had an SB Live! driver back in the day. The name "OpenBSD" was synonymous with "rock hard security."
It was sad to see the record for "no remote holes" disappear earlier this year. Even sadder when the holes in OpenSSH and -SSL were found. It seemed like the OpenBSD developers had maybe started to get lazy, or were too busy rushing to support the latest gee-whiz hardware and flashy features to keep an eye on security. And for most unix admins out there, flashy features aren't worth much if you don't have security.
I guess it's good to see that Theo isn't giving up. But I'm wondering if this release is going to be just another stepping stone on OpenBSD's recent path to shame, or if they are turning it around in an attempt to regain the glory of, say, 2.7. What do people think, is OpenBSD rising from the ashes or gasping its last breath?
Good to hear that her knee's recovered. Any word on whether she'll go back to skating?
While it generates headlines (especially on Slashdot!) to talk about an "antimatter" drive, anyone who's been through a high school physics course can see the problem with a drive that works like this, and identify the whole concept as utter nonsense.
We all know how rockets work: propellant is shot out the back of the rocket engine, and as it pushes off surrounding matter, the reactive force propels the vehicle forward according to Newton's third law. However, in the case of antimatter propellant, instead of a reactive force, the propellant will just annhilate the surrounding matter, and nothing will happen to the vehicle. In fact, an antimatter rocket would only work in an antimatter universe, and in that case it would be no more powerful or efficient than our current rockets.
I can't believe that people are being pulled into this one. Just remember that you can't judge the validity of these kinds of things based on the presence of buzzwords like "antimatter." Remember what you learned in school, be skeptical, and you won't get duped.
I've been looking for good working examples of source code for Linux programs.
I guess I'm glad that something like this is available (rather than it not being available), but I have to wonder what the point of it is. The Open Source development model results in software that is provably superior to proprietary solutions (see Edgar Raymond's excellent essay, The Cathedral and the Bizarre for more info). This is why KOffice and GNOME Office are so great, despite their small development teams and short development cycles. So why would anyone even want to run M$ Office on a Linux workstation? No thanks, I'll stick to what works: AbiWord, Gnumeric, and Tux Racer!!
I have to agree that database reuse is among the most essential parts of running a profitible business. I've worked with all sorts of RDBMSes, from MS to Oracle to PostgresSQL, on everything from the lowliest hand-me-down Linux server to top-of-the-line Big Iron, and I can tell you that any modern database is going to be able to take whatever you can throw at it. I like being able to whip out whatever data we have, shove it in and pull it out again, repeatedly and at a moment's notice. It's this kind of flexibility that makes us keep coming to database systems in the first place.
At first this sounds like a miracle drug. You inject it into everybody, and it only starts working when there's a problem. But it's pretty obvious that this is just an accident waiting to happen.
In the presence of cosmic rays and background radiation, to say nothing of the computer monitors, cellular phones, and irradicated beef that we surround ourselves with every day, these genetic superdrugs could easily mutate. In their new forms, they'd be essentially unstoppable. One stray gramma ray could spell the end of humanity.
I'd like to fight cancer and HIV as much as anyone else. But I'll stick to traditional means, rather than meddling where Nature never intended.
Since you're apparently in a "meta" mood, can you tell me what happened to Jon Katz? I miss him.
I hope XMMS incorporates some of Real's technology, so my Linux box can crash as frequently as my Windows one!
Is it just me, or does the title of this story sound like a Harry Potter book?
The Bee-Gees have been doing this for years.