Re:It's people I distrust, not the technology
on
China Goes Nuclear
·
· Score: 1
Actually, I am very open minded about nuclear power. And in the unlikely event that the public is ever called upon to vote on it I will break out the physics books and try to make an informed decision. The fact that I don't trust you is nothing personal. How could it be? I don't even know you!
It's people I distrust, not the technology
on
China Goes Nuclear
·
· Score: 1
Pebble beds may be the safest thing in the world, but I'm not about to take your word, or anyone else's word, on this subject. I'm old enough to remember 30 years ago when sloughs of "experts" swore that a meltdown could never happen. Furthermore,
you can always count on for-profit corporations to cut corners and lobby for laxer regulation at the expense of safety.
I am very interested in the ideas presented here (extreme, agile, automated), but my experience is that - even with CppUnit and C++ support for ANT - the fit is not very good. Most of the test and build automation that one hears about is targeted toward Java.
On the other hand, there is Test Environment Toolkit that noone seems to use. And STAF which requires a huge investment of time just to comprehend.
So, question: what tools do people find useful for build/test automation with C++ ?
Downhill battle wants to prove that P2P has "legitimate" uses, but they should not fall into the trap of
trying to defend the all of these new technologies.
Quite the contrary, the RIAA and the MPAA should be constantly
on the defensive. They should prove to us that they can
move with the times and are not just obsolete obstructionists.
Bach is a bad example, because his stuff has been in the public domain forever. Sure musicians still can copyright their performances of his work, but there are so many folks willing to perform Bach that his tunes are usually available at a very decent price. You can get a classical CD very inexpensively, and you can get a used classical CD for almost nothing. Push comes to shove you can get a copy of the music yourself (free) and learn to play the tune yourself.
That is exactly my point. The public domain is good.
I frankly don't care if people are downloading out of a sense of altruism or for pure self interest as long as it has the desired effect of bringing down the system.
We're not just talking about the latest Boy Band. Copyright is virtually forever. Suppose I were a classical music fan and that the RIAA owned the copyright for all of Bach's music. Your suggestion that I just listen to something else is not helpful.
From my point of view, P2P is the perfect way to work around the RIAA middlemen.
The U.S. Constitution's Copyright Clause grants Congress the power to "promote the Progress of Science... by securing for LIMITED TIMES TO AUTHORS... the exclusive Right to their respective Writings.." The statute before us, the 1998 Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act, extends the term of most existing copyrights to 95 years and that of many new copyrights to 70 years after the author's death. The economic effect of this 20-year extension, the longest blanket extension since the Nation's founding, is to make the copyright term not limited, but virtually perpetual.
Its primary legal effect is to grant the extended term not to authors, but to their heirs, estates, or corporate successors. And most importantly, its practical effect is not to promote, but to inhibit, the progress of Science, by which word the Framers meant learning or knowledge...
As the cliche goes, if you're not a criminal, you have nothing to worry about. If you're paranoid, I'd guess you shut up anytime a cop comes within hearing distance.
This is a good point. The powers pushing DMCA, etc. are multinational companies like Sony. They control the US government, and now it looks like they control Australia's government too. So, we can (and should) write to our representatives, but we should also think about more direct forms of action, e.g. boycotting those companies.
I sold my TV when I moved six years ago and I haven't really missed it. I wasn't watching much anyway. I've never watched a single episode of Friends, Sienfeld, Cheers, Buffy, Dawson's Creek. I watched the Simpsons at a friends house, that was pretty funny.
When people see my URL they assume that I download lots of movies and music. In fact, I don't download at all. I personally prefer a good book. But I despise the commodification of the media and that's why I am so rabidly in favor of copyright reform.
Creating the infrastructure for automated testing is a big investment, one that generally only pays off in the long run. If your company decides to take the plunge here are a couple of suggestions:
Don't let developers check in code until it has passed the entire regression suite. Otherwise, SQA (the test maintainers) will be in a constant catch-up mode and ultimately the disconnect will grow until the whole test suite is abandoned.
Make tests easy to create. This is harder than it sounds. Tools that simply record user inputs and take screenshots are way too brittle. You need hooks at the functional level so that you can drive and monitor the application.
Prefer standardized languages and open-source tools to homegrown stuff. Much easier to maintain, especially across a large organization.
What do you mean by "cost of deciding if you want to pay"? Unless you are sending spam there is nothing to think about. You configure your email client to send the payment and then you don't think about it. If someone decides to keep your nickle or penny or whatever, to hell with him, don't send him another email.
Also, you are unlikely to get a reply stating that you need to pay a bond because the amount would already have been specified (for example in the address of the person you are emailing).
and software engineers are like plumbers. We hook up the pipes, sometimes in creative ways. Non-open-source software is like a garbage disposal with its hood welded shut.
Do concert ticket proceeds go to the artists? If so, then that is one way to support them.
Many of those who signed with RIAA were duped and didn't know what they were getting into, so yes, feel sorry for them, but for the greater good of society your money would be better spent supporting EFF, downhillbattle.org, and independent artists.
I agree. The founders debated whether there should even be copyright, but eventually settled on 14 years, which was about right given the technology at the time. Now it is much much easier to produce and distribute, so 5 years seems entirely appropriate.
Copyright was originally 14 years. With todays high speed
communications it should be even less, say 5 years. But
congress has extended it to virtually forever.
Here is a thought experiment. Imagine if every song, movie,
book, and program created before 1999 were in the public
domain. What a wonderful world!
I agree. The MPAA are really not agaist fair use... provided that they have absolute authority over what constitutes fair use and absolute power to enforce their definition. They would like to control what, where, how, when (NO! SIT DOWN! YOU CAN NOT GO TO THE BATHROOM DURING THE COMMERCIAL!), and with whom you watch your movies.
Downhill battle have a very good article
titled Civil Disobedience, p2p which
explains why the RIAA doesn't deserve our sympathy and why P2P will be good for (most) artists.
Check out my latest "resampling" effort: bradonna.
I agree. And I would include the movie industry as well, although it is a little different because certain types of movies are still quite expensive to make. But Hollywood is reaping huge profits in the
theaters, so for them DVD sales are just icing on
the cake.
Back in the early 1900's the
"horse industry" for lack of a better term was threatened
by new technology, the automobile. To anyone with any
sense it was clear that the auto was the transportation
of the future. The writing was on the wall. But the
"horse industry" lobbied politicians to impose rediculous
restrictions on automobiles in a futile attempt to hold
back progress.
I'm sure there are dozens of similar examples where
livelihoods are threatened by change. Ideally when the
change is inevitable those industries retool and retrain
and everyone is better off.
Unfortunately, we the people are up against
the most formidable, rich, powerful, influential, ingrained
industry yet. I have no sympathy for stuntman Manny Perry. If he were a person
of integrety he would be fighting along with us to make
movies more accessible and more enjoyable.
Just fill out the form below and make a contribution of $20 or more with your Mastercard, Visa or American Express card to become a card-carrying member of the ACLU today!
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Actually, I am very open minded about nuclear power. And in the unlikely event that the public is ever called upon to vote on it I will break out the physics books and try to make an informed decision. The fact that I don't trust you is nothing personal. How could it be? I don't even know you!
Pebble beds may be the safest thing in the world, but I'm not about to take your word, or anyone else's word, on this subject. I'm old enough to remember 30 years ago when sloughs of "experts" swore that a meltdown could never happen. Furthermore, you can always count on for-profit corporations to cut corners and lobby for laxer regulation at the expense of safety.
On the other hand, there is Test Environment Toolkit that noone seems to use. And STAF which requires a huge investment of time just to comprehend.
So, question: what tools do people find useful for build/test automation with C++ ?
No it's not. It's music, movies, books, art, science, ... . It's our entire culture that large corporations want to own and commodify.
Hey, it's only fucking music, why are we getting this worked up over it?
I don't know, why are you getting all worked up?
Downhill battle wants to prove that P2P has "legitimate" uses, but they should not fall into the trap of trying to defend the all of these new technologies. Quite the contrary, the RIAA and the MPAA should be constantly on the defensive. They should prove to us that they can move with the times and are not just obsolete obstructionists.
That is exactly my point. The public domain is good.
I frankly don't care if people are downloading out of a sense of altruism or for pure self interest as long as it has the desired effect of bringing down the system.
From my point of view, P2P is the perfect way to work around the RIAA middlemen.
It's not paranoia. These days people are being arrested for carrying anti-Bush signs.
This is a good point. The powers pushing DMCA, etc. are multinational companies like Sony. They control the US government, and now it looks like they control Australia's government too. So, we can (and should) write to our representatives, but we should also think about more direct forms of action, e.g. boycotting those companies.
I'd vote libertarian if it weren't for the fact that I disagree with them on most of the issues.
When people see my URL they assume that I download lots of movies and music. In fact, I don't download at all. I personally prefer a good book. But I despise the commodification of the media and that's why I am so rabidly in favor of copyright reform.
Don't let developers check in code until it has passed the entire regression suite. Otherwise, SQA (the test maintainers) will be in a constant catch-up mode and ultimately the disconnect will grow until the whole test suite is abandoned.
Make tests easy to create. This is harder than it sounds. Tools that simply record user inputs and take screenshots are way too brittle. You need hooks at the functional level so that you can drive and monitor the application.
Prefer standardized languages and open-source tools to homegrown stuff. Much easier to maintain, especially across a large organization.
Also, you are unlikely to get a reply stating that you need to pay a bond because the amount would already have been specified (for example in the address of the person you are emailing).
and software engineers are like plumbers. We hook up the pipes, sometimes in creative ways. Non-open-source software is like a garbage disposal with its hood welded shut.
Many of those who signed with RIAA were duped and didn't know what they were getting into, so yes, feel sorry for them, but for the greater good of society your money would be better spent supporting EFF, downhillbattle.org, and independent artists.
I agree. The founders debated whether there should even be copyright, but eventually settled on 14 years, which was about right given the technology at the time. Now it is much much easier to produce and distribute, so 5 years seems entirely appropriate.
Here is a thought experiment. Imagine if every song, movie, book, and program created before 1999 were in the public domain. What a wonderful world!
Fight back. Donate to downhillbattle and EFF blah blah blah.
Check out my latest "resampling" effort: bradonna.
Back in the early 1900's the "horse industry" for lack of a better term was threatened by new technology, the automobile. To anyone with any sense it was clear that the auto was the transportation of the future. The writing was on the wall. But the "horse industry" lobbied politicians to impose rediculous restrictions on automobiles in a futile attempt to hold back progress.
I'm sure there are dozens of similar examples where livelihoods are threatened by change. Ideally when the change is inevitable those industries retool and retrain and everyone is better off.
Unfortunately, we the people are up against the most formidable, rich, powerful, influential, ingrained industry yet. I have no sympathy for stuntman Manny Perry. If he were a person of integrety he would be fighting along with us to make movies more accessible and more enjoyable.
Be careful how you configure your network or you may end up with something like this.
when the MPAA and RIAA respect the public domain. They can start by lobbying congress to reduce copyright terms to, say, five years.