So what you fucked up mod wankers who don't have a life are telling me is that I can't dare logically question your moderation abilities? If I do, you'll just hammer me down even more?
This is why/. sucks. Really. Mod me down all you like. I'll just close this account up and start a new one. Mod that down assholes and asswipes.
How is this marked flamebait? I'm agreeing with the parent poster (who is rated up to 3 on the modding system).
Again, for those that can't read:
Flamebait -- Flamebait refers to comments whose sole purpose is to insult and enrage. If someone is not-so-subtly picking a fight (racial insults are a dead giveaway), it's Flamebait.
How have I picked a fight with this? I've simply agreed with the parent poster. Now, if he'd been marked down as a troll, then perhaps I could understand. Inconsistencies from the mods yet again.
How is this modded down to off topic? Again, for the reading challenged who can't read the moderating guidelines:
Offtopic -- A comment which has nothing to do with the story it's linked to (song lyrics, obscene ascii art, comments about another topic entirely) is Offtopic.
Quality of vinyl re-releases is most certainly on topic. It's a major issue to be honest, with most re-pressings being quite bad. That's why collectors pay top money for first pressings.
WTF? How is this marked as "troll"? Did you moderators even read the descriptions:
Troll -- A Troll is similar to Flamebait, but slightly more refined. This is a prank comment intended to provoke indignant (or just confused) responses. A Troll might mix up vital facts or otherwise distort reality, to make other readers react with helpful "corrections." Trolling is the online equivalent of intentionally dialing wrong numbers just to waste other people's time.
How is my post distorting reality, mixing up vital facts etc?
The technics SL1200 was never rated as a top audiophile turntable. It's not a bad turntable, but there are plenty better that exist.
Linear tracking arms are still not common, and still very expensive. They are very good, but only few can really justify/afford them, as is the case with most high end hi fi.
Turntables most certainly sound different. Take the time to listen to lots of them, or read reviews in hi fi magazines and you'll agree.
And yes, moving coil cartridges are still quite pricey, with the better ones starting around US $500 or so.
This is why I hate slashdot with a passion - we have moderators moderating who really shouldn't be. And there's no justice for those who are wrongly modded down either.
They have quite good ideas by looking at the spectra of the planet in question. From that they can deduce it's composition. Has been done for the past 2 or so years now.
Yes, the parent star in question is old, very old. Life has probably advanced on this planets, and possibly other planets in this system far past the current life status on Earth.
Life almost certainly exists elsewhere - many exoplanets are being found with oxygen in their atmospheres for starters. It seems that the smaller, Earth like terrestrial bodies with 1-3x mE seem to dwell in the goldilocks zone as a regular occurrence. The trick is find them, since they are smaller than Jupiter type gas giants, hence gravitationally finding them, and then monitoring for occultations around the parent star are inherently harder (but not impossible). Water seems to be a very common part of proto planet disks around stars too.
I can't comment on tidal locking, gravity is not something I'm really au fait with.
Moving coil is still usually expensive. There are high output MCs (they work with a MM stage) and low output MCs (they need a pre-preamp, step up transformer or whatever you want to call it!).
The SL-1200 is not the best table out there, there are far better (I'm not trying to sound like a snobby audiophile here). Nor is the tonearm in question.
Linear tracking arms are generally quite pricey, which is why only the top end hi end tables offer them. The cheapest one I know of is around US 3k or so, and that's considered cheap for a linear tracking arm. 12" standard arms are generally regarded as provided very good quality and excellent tracking. They are (thankfully) becoming more common.
Turntables all sound different, and you don't have to have golden ears to hear the differences either - that's just what snooty nosed audiophiles would like you to believe, cos it makes them sound uber cool.
I use a SystemDek IIX/900/Rega RB300/Lyra Clavis cartridge, with a Lentek step up amp and Yaqin MS-12B valve preamp. It's not a bad table, but is entry level (apart from the cartridge, which is high end) and 2011 should see it replaced by a far better turntable and arm. If I have enough funds, the preamp will be replaced too, not sure with what yet.
My primary concern is replacing my speakers (Sonus Faber Electa Amators) as my Opera Consonance Cyber 845 SETs (single ended triodes) monoblocs aren't too happy with driving the Sonus Fabers. I'm thinking high efficiency horns.:-)
Yes, this is partly true. But - most re-pressings are going to sound crap. There's only so many mothers that can be stamped from the original master tape. I've got a hi fi mag somewhere that talks about this whole process, I should scan it. It's very interesting reading.
Not quite true - high end compact cassette (or open reel) recorders can record vinyl quite accurately from my experience. Do I need digital recording? Not really. Is the analogue recording portable? Hell yeah. And not much larger or heavier than a modern MP3 player either. Drawbacks? Limited playtime, and ultimately, lifespan of the magnetic tape used in the cassette cartridge.
You are right in that the music studios pushed CDs because they could control illegal recordings of said material easier (well, that's what they thought). Plus, there's the "sell 'em the entire music catalogue again [in a new format], so we can make even more money" argument too. We see the same thing happening with DVD and Blu-ray (over VHS). Profit over quality.
How is this trollish post modded to +5 informative? WTF?
Firstly, there is enough evidence to strongly suggest that humans are affected by higher frequencies, mainly for directional [sound] purposes. Distortion is not the be all and end all - if digital was so good, nature would be producing all digital sounds. It doesn't. It produces analogue sounds. Now of course, if you're telling me that man is smarter than mother nature...
Vinyl is still a technical masterpiece - from the pressing stages to the final product. Yes, there are bad vinyl albums out there (poor recording, poor pressing, poor quality vinyl used and so on and so forth), but when the time and care is taken to do things right with vinyl, and the end user takes the time to play said vinyl on high quality reproduction systems, then it sounds wonderful.
Dave
PS Most amps and speakers do cover outside of the 20hz/20khz range too, but not always with the -3db measuring limit.
Oh dear. Another 90s child probably that knows jack shit. Firstly, the redbook standard (CDs to you) covers 20hz to 20khz. Most decent cartridges cover 15hz to 60khz. Now, you might argue (and wrongly I might add) that since the average adult cannot hear about 13khz, then anything above that is a waste. Wrong. You may not hear it directly, but the human ear is incredibly complex and these higher frequencies provide queues to the ears for imaging etc. It does make a difference. How can CD be better when it has a smaller frequency range? mmm? Answer me that one smarty pants.
So many people on/. that know jack shit about what they talk about. And the sad thing is, other idiotic lemmings mod them up as being 'insightful'. Crikey...
wait until the laser wears out (it'll wear out before the cartridge does on a turntable I might add). I've got an expensive CD transport that is now a boat anchor cos there's no laser replacements. What happens when my turntable's cartridge wears out? I simply buy another one. There's no "sorry sir, we don't have that spare part anymore" BS either. I don't have to throw the entire turntable/arm away either.
Obviously many on/. haven't heard a decent setup either. So many experts on hear that know jack shit.
Yes, but analogue overloads gently, digital has a hard overload (witness compact cassette vs DAT).
The CD crowd has been brainwashed for many years into thinking that it represents great sound quality. And now, we're hearing the same BS with MP3 players etc. I'm not saying all CDs are horrible, clearly they are not. The format has good potential if everything is done right. I still maintain that ultimately, LPs sound better - digital just sounds well, grating to my ears for a combination of reasons.
You obviously are a young spring chicken and haven't heard a decent vinyl setup. There's no comparison. It kills CDs. It kills DVD-As. It kills SACD. And it kills blu-ray musical discs too. Don't judge the capability of the format unless you've heard some decent kit. Try a Michell GyroDek + Rega RB301 arm + mid range Lyra MC cartridge, coupled to a good preamp/phono stage. I think you'll be very surprised.
Digital is not the be all and end all. I remember being able to use my analogue Nakamichi CR-5 cassette deck to make recordings of CDs that were indistinguishable from the source. DAT just couldn't compete (nor could DCC).
Not quite correct. The styli (and cantilever design, including suspension) all are important. fine line styli etc do the least amount of damage to the vinyl track walls, as well as retrieve the most data. They aren't cheap. Then there's to consider ceramic, MM (moving magnet) or MC (moving coil) cartridge designs. MC designs undoubtedly sound better, but are usually far more expensive, and most preamps/amps will not drive them well. Then there's the tonearm, and tonearm resonance, as well as effective mass matching to the actual cartridge used (it *does* make a difference). There's a growing trend to unipivot designs (I'm personally not a fan), and also to 12" arms (they track much better on inner tracks than the standard 9" arms).
The old saying, garbage in, garbage out, really applies here. If you're not getting the maximum data out of the vinyl record, then no matter how good the software used, you're missing out. You can't restore missing data. Get the source and preamp right, the rest on the computer side is relatively easy.
Dave
PS vinyl isn't the only thing making a "comeback" - Class A SET valve amps (single ended triode) are becoming cheaper and popular. Usually using 300B valves, but some are using more esoteric valves such as 211 or 845 (more power, sweeter midrange).
USB turntables are crap - period. Plastic, low mass, poorly sprung turntables are what killed the media in the first place, because the ordinary person thought that this was all the technology was capable of. Wrong. Coupled with lightweight vinyl, poor pressings, poor recordings, and non virgin vinyl, and no wonder people thought the medium sounded shyte.
If you take the time to invest in a decent turntable, and a decent amp/preamp that has a decent phono stage, you can do far far better with digitising your vinyl collection onto your computer. But - why bother? Analogue has a completely different, more natural sound than anything digital produces imho.
As Master Yoda said in the empire strikes back, "wars not make one great". Whilst the source of the quote is a bit weird, it rings true.
War is interesting, because their are (usually) 2 opposing views and atrocities are enacted because of this, usually with some righteous BS. No thank you.
Where did most of the kids for both Iraq wars get recruited? The poorest suburbs of America. You didn't see too many kids of rich parents getting drafted, did you? So much for "serving your country". The same applies not only to the US, but to other countries as well, including my native Australia.
The general populace doesn't do anything [about politicians] because they are lazy. Generations of abuse from the powers that be have ensured that people are disinclined to "rock the boat". I call it social brainwashing.
For all his talk, MLK didn't live to see his vision. He was probably assassinated by the CIA, it wouldn't surprise me. Even now, in many parts of the US, Negroes have little or no rights. Remember Rodney King? Did those bastard police get into trouble? Originally no. It was only on a retrial that 2 of them were found guilty. Justice? I don't think so. I wonder how much money exchanged hands during the first set of trials to make sure the police got away with a not guilty verdict.
Oh fuck off you tosser./. has always had a bad reputation about moderation - anyone who slightly deviates from the pro Linux regiment gets hammered down into oblivion. You can deny it, I know it happens.
I made sensible comments about why Linux isn't making it both in the business and home markets, and you chose to make ad hominem attacks. I responded in similar.
Why don't you grow up instead of attacking those whose thoughts and comments differ from yours?
Why don't you get a fucking clue you arrogant moron? Of course, since I've made anti Linux comments I'll get modded down and you'll get modded up, that's the way/.'s moderation system works (been there, done that). Anyone pro Linux gets modded up, anyone who dares criticise your darling operating system, no matter how valid, gets modded down as a 'troll'.
You want everyone to be super technologically smart, well I'm sorry, it ain't gonna happen.
As to my 'boring rants', perhaps Linux would actually get somewhere if people like you, and the developers started paying attention, instead of having their heads so far up their asses it isn't funny. If you don't fix what's broken, you won't get anywhere. Linux can adopt and change what's broken, or it can stubbornly stay in the land of the elite and gradually become extinct. And then idiots like you can bitch about the fact that pilot schemes for Linux get canned.
Meanwhile, in the real world, people will just laugh at your pathetic whines.
The problem is that all of our connections use a Telstra backend (well, nearly *all* of them). Telstra needs to be absolutely hammered into the ground and everything taken away from them and given back to public domain and control. Let's consider the ABN - the government gave a closing date for tenders for the ABN. Telstra gave the government the finger and didn't submit a tender by the closing date because it had a hissy fit that it didn't get preferential treatment. Now what should have happened is that the government said tough shit, you miss out Telstra, too late. That's what happens in *business*. Of course, the government did a backflip and allowed Telstra to submit a highly biased tender after the closing date I might add. Worse, the government has happily accepted this plan of the ABN, to basically update Telstra's infrastructure, at public cost. WTF? Let Telstra pay for the fucking upgrades, it's supposedly their network. It really isn't, not when you look at the actual law, and even that legislation is highly suspicious if you do enough research on the matter (in the words of AC/DC - dirty deeds done dirt cheap). The other competitors need to band together and sue the government for providing legislation that gives Telstra a monopoly. For those in the US, think of AT&T in the 70s and then triple it. That's how *bad* Telstra's monopoly is.
I've heard of substantiated reports where an ISP (using Telstra infrastructure) has not been able to provide a DSL service due to some problems with the PSTN infrastructure provided by Telstra I might add (DSL application rejected). Said person then applied for DSL with Telstra's Bigpond directly and got DSL without *any* issues, using the very same infrastructure. WTF? Of course, this person was a smart cookie and used the 30 day cooling off period to churn back to his preferred ISP.
I myself have had issues - DSL2+ service which whilst not always totally stable, worked well enough for over 2 years. Around 5 months ago, it started becoming very unstable, with drops every 5 minutes. An isolation test, replacement of modem etc did nothing to alleviate the issue. The issue became worse in colder or wet conditions too. Here's the deal - my wholesaler (AAPT powertel) has an agreement with Telstra on a wholesale level for what it calls "spectrum share" services. These are DSL services provided on Telstra PSTNs, but the DSL service is not provided by Telstra, but by a 3rd party using Telstra's infrastructure. This agreement stipulates that the 3rd party will NOT ask Telstra to check the line for DSL faults. Now, in my own personal case, as our PSTN is with Telstra (as is most peoples'), all I could do was to have Telstra come out for a line (voice) fault. They will not test for DSL faults as the DSL service is not with them. My wholesaler will only check to see if the service is in sync, not radius drop times etc, but nothing else, not even an OATS/RVOP test etc as its beyond their ability. They will not get Telstra to do a DSL test on the line. So, I'm stuck with a shit service, that neither my wholesaler, or Telstra will fix. Piggy in the middle. And there's jack shit that I can do about it, since minimum service agreements are 1.5mb for a DSL 2+ service (which it just barely meets). I can't make my wholesaler fix the issue, and I can't make Telstra fix the issue. Where's my rights as a consumer? If there was any other industry, the players in the game would be in deep consumer shit.
Oh, and the Internet ombudsman is a total joke. ISPs can't complain against other ISPs or wholesalers. End users can only complain against their ISP, and not the wholesaler, even when their ISP is not at fault and it's a wholesaler issue. Does that sound right? No. It's utterly borked and utterly useless. I did formally complain against my ISP, but all it did was mean that pressure was placed on my job to withdraw the complaint (I actually work for my ISP). My ISPs/employer's view was "go use Optus cable then'. Not good service at all.
And it's this sort of attitude that increases the number of people who both hate Americans, and the American government. What is America going to do in the long run when this *really* becomes an issue? Governments won't take fiscal action cos they're corrupt. Nor will big business, as it works in league with the governments due to greed. But - the people will eventually wake up. Both within the US, and outside. Sure, governments will try and clamp down on it, but it won't work. People can be killed, tortured, but movements cannot be halted. America is going to get an ass kicking, it's just a matter of when. Of course, the powers behind the American corrupt government may decide that they'd rather destroy the world than let freedom happen (this will probably happen). It's sad to see that many Americans like you are suppressed zombies.
I hope Julian releases as much documentation as possible into the open. Of course, the news media will not report it (it's in league with the government and big business), but the Internet is so powerful that it will spread. Of course, that's the real reason behind most western governments pushing for Internet filters - they can then filter this sort of stuff out and force people to go via the "proper" news media outlets for biased information and outright lies (read: propaganda). I will happily teach everyone and anyone that I know on how to bypass any future Internet filters. Freedom to the people.
Yes, it is about change. That's why Linux will fail in the workplace. Tell me, which Linux trial has actually went ahead, let alone succeeded? None. They have all been cancelled as being too difficult to implement, or staff disliking the new setup. UK. Germany. Now Switzerland. There's probably a few more that I've missed.
You've shown the typical "I know it all cos I'm an advanced Linux user" attitude that turns most ordinary people off.
And, I was on topic. Just because I've said a few things that you, as a hardcore Linux support can't stomach, doesn't mean what I've written is irrelevant. That's the other great failing of the Linux community - criticism is not tolerated, and those criticising are usually ridiculed. Linux has had a long time now and has really not made any inroads into the market, in fact, it's probably shrinking, since OS X is becoming so popular. People who leave Windows don't go to Linux, they go to OS X, and they don't seem to look back either. In my support role, I've seen a growing trend of just that - people switching to OS X and wishing they'd done it sooner.
Then there's support - Linux has none, not unless you want to pay an arm, leg and a couple of kidneys to the likes of Redhat or Novell. This 'google it yourself' mantra doesn't really cut it with either the average user, or the boss for that matter. They want something that they can *get* support for. Of course, it helps if it just works.
Of course, that you only read my first sentence shows that as the typical arrogant, Linux user, you don't care about making Linux better. Your comments denigrate the average user, who just because they're not super computer literate doesn't mean that they're not capable of fulfilling a role in the work place.
Have denotes past tense. I'd be curious as to what happened to it.
And again, I disagree that Linux is really useful in the office, unless it's in an IT related role, etc. We use Debian all day @ work (as well as Windows for the "office" stuff). For ordinary users, Linux is too complex, too much change, too different.
If you want Linux to make inroads, you need to get the university and school kids using it. Have them grow up with it so it's not alien and is an ordinary part of the daily life. The problem here is that Apple has been exceedingly smart and done just that. There's no real room for 3 major operating systems imho, not for the ordinary user.
Linux had it's chance and failed. As time goes by, less and less people will use it. Oh, and downloading an iso doesn't mean someone installed it. Many people might download but never install the ISO, cos hey, it's too complex! Sure, Ubuntu's wabi makes it easier, which is good from the end user perspective, but it took a *long* time for the Linux community to come out with that one.
As to staff, sure, some are bright and computer literate, but from my experience, for every 1 that is bright, 5 or 6 aren't. Not everyone in the workforce is in their late teens or early to mid 20s either, where you typically learn new things quicker.
Centrelink (huge government agency in Australia) was going to deploy Linux to its 40k staff members but didn't. Why? Feasibility studies showed that it wasn't just going to cut it with the majority of staff. Oh, and Microsoft made the government a deal it couldn't refuse. Which leads me to another point - whilst Linux doesn't really have any OEM market presence (with computers), it can't compete at the oem level with Windows. Like Apple's business plan, Microsoft has been very smart to get this type of vendor lock in for its operating system. It has NO competition.
Linux is a cult, niche operating system. Always has been, always will be. I'm not saying that it's a bad operating system, it isn't. It's VERY good in most ways, but for the advanced user. Yes, I hear these stories of "I got my grandma to use it" blah blah blah. Let me guess who does all the sysadmin work on it, it certainly isn't grandma! Not from my experience.
Ah yes. If you seriously think people (especially usually ill trained office workers) love change, you're kidding yourself and need to get out of the computer chair more often and into the real world. This is another issue with Linux users - they seem to think everyone else is computer literate. I hate to break it to you, but even in this day and age, most people are not. Sad, but true.
Thankfully, you don't own your own business. Cos you'd never have staff stay for long. One of the big costs to business is staff that do not stay long term - there's significant funds wasted in recruitment, re-training, more chances of staff personality clashes, etc. Even if it is 2010, people haven't changed. People use Windows (and Office) at home, and that's what they're used to. People hate change, and they hate learning different things. It's far easier for employees to say F.U and hunt for another job that uses Windows/Office on its desktops. Your business would not stay in business for long I'm afraid. Employees are the key to business success, despite what some employers might say on the subject. You can have the best products, the best marketing and advertising, the best management, but without employees, you will never make a profit for a long period of time. It is far wiser to make life easier for your employees, and keep them happy. Happy workers, are hard workers, and less inclined to move to another role with another employer.
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So what you fucked up mod wankers who don't have a life are telling me is that I can't dare logically question your moderation abilities? If I do, you'll just hammer me down even more?
This is why /. sucks. Really. Mod me down all you like. I'll just close this account up and start a new one. Mod that down assholes and asswipes.
Dave
How is this marked flamebait? I'm agreeing with the parent poster (who is rated up to 3 on the modding system).
Again, for those that can't read:
Flamebait -- Flamebait refers to comments whose sole purpose is to insult and enrage. If someone is not-so-subtly picking a fight (racial insults are a dead giveaway), it's Flamebait.
How have I picked a fight with this? I've simply agreed with the parent poster. Now, if he'd been marked down as a troll, then perhaps I could understand. Inconsistencies from the mods yet again.
Dave
How is this modded down to off topic? Again, for the reading challenged who can't read the moderating guidelines:
Offtopic -- A comment which has nothing to do with the story it's linked to (song lyrics, obscene ascii art, comments about another topic entirely) is Offtopic.
Quality of vinyl re-releases is most certainly on topic. It's a major issue to be honest, with most re-pressings being quite bad. That's why collectors pay top money for first pressings.
Dave
WTF? How is this marked as "troll"? Did you moderators even read the descriptions:
Troll -- A Troll is similar to Flamebait, but slightly more refined. This is a prank comment intended to provoke indignant (or just confused) responses. A Troll might mix up vital facts or otherwise distort reality, to make other readers react with helpful "corrections." Trolling is the online equivalent of intentionally dialing wrong numbers just to waste other people's time.
How is my post distorting reality, mixing up vital facts etc?
The technics SL1200 was never rated as a top audiophile turntable. It's not a bad turntable, but there are plenty better that exist.
Linear tracking arms are still not common, and still very expensive. They are very good, but only few can really justify/afford them, as is the case with most high end hi fi.
Turntables most certainly sound different. Take the time to listen to lots of them, or read reviews in hi fi magazines and you'll agree.
And yes, moving coil cartridges are still quite pricey, with the better ones starting around US $500 or so.
This is why I hate slashdot with a passion - we have moderators moderating who really shouldn't be. And there's no justice for those who are wrongly modded down either.
Dave
They have quite good ideas by looking at the spectra of the planet in question. From that they can deduce it's composition. Has been done for the past 2 or so years now.
Yes, the parent star in question is old, very old. Life has probably advanced on this planets, and possibly other planets in this system far past the current life status on Earth.
Life almost certainly exists elsewhere - many exoplanets are being found with oxygen in their atmospheres for starters. It seems that the smaller, Earth like terrestrial bodies with 1-3x mE seem to dwell in the goldilocks zone as a regular occurrence. The trick is find them, since they are smaller than Jupiter type gas giants, hence gravitationally finding them, and then monitoring for occultations around the parent star are inherently harder (but not impossible). Water seems to be a very common part of proto planet disks around stars too.
I can't comment on tidal locking, gravity is not something I'm really au fait with.
Dave
Moving coil is still usually expensive. There are high output MCs (they work with a MM stage) and low output MCs (they need a pre-preamp, step up transformer or whatever you want to call it!).
The SL-1200 is not the best table out there, there are far better (I'm not trying to sound like a snobby audiophile here). Nor is the tonearm in question.
Linear tracking arms are generally quite pricey, which is why only the top end hi end tables offer them. The cheapest one I know of is around US 3k or so, and that's considered cheap for a linear tracking arm. 12" standard arms are generally regarded as provided very good quality and excellent tracking. They are (thankfully) becoming more common.
Turntables all sound different, and you don't have to have golden ears to hear the differences either - that's just what snooty nosed audiophiles would like you to believe, cos it makes them sound uber cool.
I use a SystemDek IIX/900/Rega RB300/Lyra Clavis cartridge, with a Lentek step up amp and Yaqin MS-12B valve preamp. It's not a bad table, but is entry level (apart from the cartridge, which is high end) and 2011 should see it replaced by a far better turntable and arm. If I have enough funds, the preamp will be replaced too, not sure with what yet.
My primary concern is replacing my speakers (Sonus Faber Electa Amators) as my Opera Consonance Cyber 845 SETs (single ended triodes) monoblocs aren't too happy with driving the Sonus Fabers. I'm thinking high efficiency horns. :-)
Cheers,
Dave
Yes, this is partly true. But - most re-pressings are going to sound crap. There's only so many mothers that can be stamped from the original master tape. I've got a hi fi mag somewhere that talks about this whole process, I should scan it. It's very interesting reading.
Dave
Amen. You hit the nail on the head.
Dave
Not quite true - high end compact cassette (or open reel) recorders can record vinyl quite accurately from my experience. Do I need digital recording? Not really. Is the analogue recording portable? Hell yeah. And not much larger or heavier than a modern MP3 player either. Drawbacks? Limited playtime, and ultimately, lifespan of the magnetic tape used in the cassette cartridge.
You are right in that the music studios pushed CDs because they could control illegal recordings of said material easier (well, that's what they thought). Plus, there's the "sell 'em the entire music catalogue again [in a new format], so we can make even more money" argument too. We see the same thing happening with DVD and Blu-ray (over VHS). Profit over quality.
Dave
How is this trollish post modded to +5 informative? WTF?
Firstly, there is enough evidence to strongly suggest that humans are affected by higher frequencies, mainly for directional [sound] purposes. Distortion is not the be all and end all - if digital was so good, nature would be producing all digital sounds. It doesn't. It produces analogue sounds. Now of course, if you're telling me that man is smarter than mother nature...
Vinyl is still a technical masterpiece - from the pressing stages to the final product. Yes, there are bad vinyl albums out there (poor recording, poor pressing, poor quality vinyl used and so on and so forth), but when the time and care is taken to do things right with vinyl, and the end user takes the time to play said vinyl on high quality reproduction systems, then it sounds wonderful.
Dave
PS Most amps and speakers do cover outside of the 20hz/20khz range too, but not always with the -3db measuring limit.
Oh dear. Another 90s child probably that knows jack shit. Firstly, the redbook standard (CDs to you) covers 20hz to 20khz. Most decent cartridges cover 15hz to 60khz. Now, you might argue (and wrongly I might add) that since the average adult cannot hear about 13khz, then anything above that is a waste. Wrong. You may not hear it directly, but the human ear is incredibly complex and these higher frequencies provide queues to the ears for imaging etc. It does make a difference. How can CD be better when it has a smaller frequency range? mmm? Answer me that one smarty pants.
So many people on /. that know jack shit about what they talk about. And the sad thing is, other idiotic lemmings mod them up as being 'insightful'. Crikey...
Dave
and my sarcastic reply:
wait until the laser wears out (it'll wear out before the cartridge does on a turntable I might add). I've got an expensive CD transport that is now a boat anchor cos there's no laser replacements. What happens when my turntable's cartridge wears out? I simply buy another one. There's no "sorry sir, we don't have that spare part anymore" BS either. I don't have to throw the entire turntable/arm away either.
Obviously many on /. haven't heard a decent setup either. So many experts on hear that know jack shit.
Dave
Yes, but analogue overloads gently, digital has a hard overload (witness compact cassette vs DAT).
The CD crowd has been brainwashed for many years into thinking that it represents great sound quality. And now, we're hearing the same BS with MP3 players etc. I'm not saying all CDs are horrible, clearly they are not. The format has good potential if everything is done right. I still maintain that ultimately, LPs sound better - digital just sounds well, grating to my ears for a combination of reasons.
Dave
You obviously are a young spring chicken and haven't heard a decent vinyl setup. There's no comparison. It kills CDs. It kills DVD-As. It kills SACD. And it kills blu-ray musical discs too. Don't judge the capability of the format unless you've heard some decent kit. Try a Michell GyroDek + Rega RB301 arm + mid range Lyra MC cartridge, coupled to a good preamp/phono stage. I think you'll be very surprised.
Digital is not the be all and end all. I remember being able to use my analogue Nakamichi CR-5 cassette deck to make recordings of CDs that were indistinguishable from the source. DAT just couldn't compete (nor could DCC).
Dave
Not quite correct. The styli (and cantilever design, including suspension) all are important. fine line styli etc do the least amount of damage to the vinyl track walls, as well as retrieve the most data. They aren't cheap. Then there's to consider ceramic, MM (moving magnet) or MC (moving coil) cartridge designs. MC designs undoubtedly sound better, but are usually far more expensive, and most preamps/amps will not drive them well. Then there's the tonearm, and tonearm resonance, as well as effective mass matching to the actual cartridge used (it *does* make a difference). There's a growing trend to unipivot designs (I'm personally not a fan), and also to 12" arms (they track much better on inner tracks than the standard 9" arms).
The old saying, garbage in, garbage out, really applies here. If you're not getting the maximum data out of the vinyl record, then no matter how good the software used, you're missing out. You can't restore missing data. Get the source and preamp right, the rest on the computer side is relatively easy.
Dave
PS vinyl isn't the only thing making a "comeback" - Class A SET valve amps (single ended triode) are becoming cheaper and popular. Usually using 300B valves, but some are using more esoteric valves such as 211 or 845 (more power, sweeter midrange).
USB turntables are crap - period. Plastic, low mass, poorly sprung turntables are what killed the media in the first place, because the ordinary person thought that this was all the technology was capable of. Wrong. Coupled with lightweight vinyl, poor pressings, poor recordings, and non virgin vinyl, and no wonder people thought the medium sounded shyte.
If you take the time to invest in a decent turntable, and a decent amp/preamp that has a decent phono stage, you can do far far better with digitising your vinyl collection onto your computer. But - why bother? Analogue has a completely different, more natural sound than anything digital produces imho.
Dave
Why would I want to become involved in a war?
As Master Yoda said in the empire strikes back, "wars not make one great". Whilst the source of the quote is a bit weird, it rings true.
War is interesting, because their are (usually) 2 opposing views and atrocities are enacted because of this, usually with some righteous BS. No thank you.
Where did most of the kids for both Iraq wars get recruited? The poorest suburbs of America. You didn't see too many kids of rich parents getting drafted, did you? So much for "serving your country". The same applies not only to the US, but to other countries as well, including my native Australia.
The general populace doesn't do anything [about politicians] because they are lazy. Generations of abuse from the powers that be have ensured that people are disinclined to "rock the boat". I call it social brainwashing.
For all his talk, MLK didn't live to see his vision. He was probably assassinated by the CIA, it wouldn't surprise me. Even now, in many parts of the US, Negroes have little or no rights. Remember Rodney King? Did those bastard police get into trouble? Originally no. It was only on a retrial that 2 of them were found guilty. Justice? I don't think so. I wonder how much money exchanged hands during the first set of trials to make sure the police got away with a not guilty verdict.
Let's consider how police treated this Black man?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKy-WSZMklc
Mind you, Australia is no better. But anyways, I've sidetracked from our original discussion.
Cheers,
Dave
Oh fuck off you tosser. /. has always had a bad reputation about moderation - anyone who slightly deviates from the pro Linux regiment gets hammered down into oblivion. You can deny it, I know it happens.
I made sensible comments about why Linux isn't making it both in the business and home markets, and you chose to make ad hominem attacks. I responded in similar.
Why don't you grow up instead of attacking those whose thoughts and comments differ from yours?
Boo fucking hoo to you.
Dave
PS and I don't need you to psychoanalyse me.
Why don't you get a fucking clue you arrogant moron? Of course, since I've made anti Linux comments I'll get modded down and you'll get modded up, that's the way /.'s moderation system works (been there, done that). Anyone pro Linux gets modded up, anyone who dares criticise your darling operating system, no matter how valid, gets modded down as a 'troll'.
You want everyone to be super technologically smart, well I'm sorry, it ain't gonna happen.
As to my 'boring rants', perhaps Linux would actually get somewhere if people like you, and the developers started paying attention, instead of having their heads so far up their asses it isn't funny. If you don't fix what's broken, you won't get anywhere. Linux can adopt and change what's broken, or it can stubbornly stay in the land of the elite and gradually become extinct. And then idiots like you can bitch about the fact that pilot schemes for Linux get canned.
Meanwhile, in the real world, people will just laugh at your pathetic whines.
have a nice day!
Dave
The problem is that all of our connections use a Telstra backend (well, nearly *all* of them). Telstra needs to be absolutely hammered into the ground and everything taken away from them and given back to public domain and control. Let's consider the ABN - the government gave a closing date for tenders for the ABN. Telstra gave the government the finger and didn't submit a tender by the closing date because it had a hissy fit that it didn't get preferential treatment. Now what should have happened is that the government said tough shit, you miss out Telstra, too late. That's what happens in *business*. Of course, the government did a backflip and allowed Telstra to submit a highly biased tender after the closing date I might add. Worse, the government has happily accepted this plan of the ABN, to basically update Telstra's infrastructure, at public cost. WTF? Let Telstra pay for the fucking upgrades, it's supposedly their network. It really isn't, not when you look at the actual law, and even that legislation is highly suspicious if you do enough research on the matter (in the words of AC/DC - dirty deeds done dirt cheap). The other competitors need to band together and sue the government for providing legislation that gives Telstra a monopoly. For those in the US, think of AT&T in the 70s and then triple it. That's how *bad* Telstra's monopoly is.
I've heard of substantiated reports where an ISP (using Telstra infrastructure) has not been able to provide a DSL service due to some problems with the PSTN infrastructure provided by Telstra I might add (DSL application rejected). Said person then applied for DSL with Telstra's Bigpond directly and got DSL without *any* issues, using the very same infrastructure. WTF? Of course, this person was a smart cookie and used the 30 day cooling off period to churn back to his preferred ISP.
I myself have had issues - DSL2+ service which whilst not always totally stable, worked well enough for over 2 years. Around 5 months ago, it started becoming very unstable, with drops every 5 minutes. An isolation test, replacement of modem etc did nothing to alleviate the issue. The issue became worse in colder or wet conditions too. Here's the deal - my wholesaler (AAPT powertel) has an agreement with Telstra on a wholesale level for what it calls "spectrum share" services. These are DSL services provided on Telstra PSTNs, but the DSL service is not provided by Telstra, but by a 3rd party using Telstra's infrastructure. This agreement stipulates that the 3rd party will NOT ask Telstra to check the line for DSL faults. Now, in my own personal case, as our PSTN is with Telstra (as is most peoples'), all I could do was to have Telstra come out for a line (voice) fault. They will not test for DSL faults as the DSL service is not with them. My wholesaler will only check to see if the service is in sync, not radius drop times etc, but nothing else, not even an OATS/RVOP test etc as its beyond their ability. They will not get Telstra to do a DSL test on the line. So, I'm stuck with a shit service, that neither my wholesaler, or Telstra will fix. Piggy in the middle. And there's jack shit that I can do about it, since minimum service agreements are 1.5mb for a DSL 2+ service (which it just barely meets). I can't make my wholesaler fix the issue, and I can't make Telstra fix the issue. Where's my rights as a consumer? If there was any other industry, the players in the game would be in deep consumer shit.
Oh, and the Internet ombudsman is a total joke. ISPs can't complain against other ISPs or wholesalers. End users can only complain against their ISP, and not the wholesaler, even when their ISP is not at fault and it's a wholesaler issue. Does that sound right? No. It's utterly borked and utterly useless. I did formally complain against my ISP, but all it did was mean that pressure was placed on my job to withdraw the complaint (I actually work for my ISP). My ISPs/employer's view was "go use Optus cable then'. Not good service at all.
And it's this sort of attitude that increases the number of people who both hate Americans, and the American government. What is America going to do in the long run when this *really* becomes an issue? Governments won't take fiscal action cos they're corrupt. Nor will big business, as it works in league with the governments due to greed. But - the people will eventually wake up. Both within the US, and outside. Sure, governments will try and clamp down on it, but it won't work. People can be killed, tortured, but movements cannot be halted. America is going to get an ass kicking, it's just a matter of when. Of course, the powers behind the American corrupt government may decide that they'd rather destroy the world than let freedom happen (this will probably happen). It's sad to see that many Americans like you are suppressed zombies.
I hope Julian releases as much documentation as possible into the open. Of course, the news media will not report it (it's in league with the government and big business), but the Internet is so powerful that it will spread. Of course, that's the real reason behind most western governments pushing for Internet filters - they can then filter this sort of stuff out and force people to go via the "proper" news media outlets for biased information and outright lies (read: propaganda). I will happily teach everyone and anyone that I know on how to bypass any future Internet filters. Freedom to the people.
Dave
Yes, it is about change. That's why Linux will fail in the workplace. Tell me, which Linux trial has actually went ahead, let alone succeeded? None. They have all been cancelled as being too difficult to implement, or staff disliking the new setup. UK. Germany. Now Switzerland. There's probably a few more that I've missed.
You've shown the typical "I know it all cos I'm an advanced Linux user" attitude that turns most ordinary people off.
And, I was on topic. Just because I've said a few things that you, as a hardcore Linux support can't stomach, doesn't mean what I've written is irrelevant. That's the other great failing of the Linux community - criticism is not tolerated, and those criticising are usually ridiculed. Linux has had a long time now and has really not made any inroads into the market, in fact, it's probably shrinking, since OS X is becoming so popular. People who leave Windows don't go to Linux, they go to OS X, and they don't seem to look back either. In my support role, I've seen a growing trend of just that - people switching to OS X and wishing they'd done it sooner.
Then there's support - Linux has none, not unless you want to pay an arm, leg and a couple of kidneys to the likes of Redhat or Novell. This 'google it yourself' mantra doesn't really cut it with either the average user, or the boss for that matter. They want something that they can *get* support for. Of course, it helps if it just works.
Of course, that you only read my first sentence shows that as the typical arrogant, Linux user, you don't care about making Linux better. Your comments denigrate the average user, who just because they're not super computer literate doesn't mean that they're not capable of fulfilling a role in the work place.
Dave
Have denotes past tense. I'd be curious as to what happened to it.
And again, I disagree that Linux is really useful in the office, unless it's in an IT related role, etc. We use Debian all day @ work (as well as Windows for the "office" stuff). For ordinary users, Linux is too complex, too much change, too different.
If you want Linux to make inroads, you need to get the university and school kids using it. Have them grow up with it so it's not alien and is an ordinary part of the daily life. The problem here is that Apple has been exceedingly smart and done just that. There's no real room for 3 major operating systems imho, not for the ordinary user.
Linux had it's chance and failed. As time goes by, less and less people will use it. Oh, and downloading an iso doesn't mean someone installed it. Many people might download but never install the ISO, cos hey, it's too complex! Sure, Ubuntu's wabi makes it easier, which is good from the end user perspective, but it took a *long* time for the Linux community to come out with that one.
As to staff, sure, some are bright and computer literate, but from my experience, for every 1 that is bright, 5 or 6 aren't. Not everyone in the workforce is in their late teens or early to mid 20s either, where you typically learn new things quicker.
Centrelink (huge government agency in Australia) was going to deploy Linux to its 40k staff members but didn't. Why? Feasibility studies showed that it wasn't just going to cut it with the majority of staff. Oh, and Microsoft made the government a deal it couldn't refuse. Which leads me to another point - whilst Linux doesn't really have any OEM market presence (with computers), it can't compete at the oem level with Windows. Like Apple's business plan, Microsoft has been very smart to get this type of vendor lock in for its operating system. It has NO competition.
Linux is a cult, niche operating system. Always has been, always will be. I'm not saying that it's a bad operating system, it isn't. It's VERY good in most ways, but for the advanced user. Yes, I hear these stories of "I got my grandma to use it" blah blah blah. Let me guess who does all the sysadmin work on it, it certainly isn't grandma! Not from my experience.
Dave
Ah yes. If you seriously think people (especially usually ill trained office workers) love change, you're kidding yourself and need to get out of the computer chair more often and into the real world. This is another issue with Linux users - they seem to think everyone else is computer literate. I hate to break it to you, but even in this day and age, most people are not. Sad, but true.
Dave
Thankfully, you don't own your own business. Cos you'd never have staff stay for long. One of the big costs to business is staff that do not stay long term - there's significant funds wasted in recruitment, re-training, more chances of staff personality clashes, etc. Even if it is 2010, people haven't changed. People use Windows (and Office) at home, and that's what they're used to. People hate change, and they hate learning different things. It's far easier for employees to say F.U and hunt for another job that uses Windows/Office on its desktops. Your business would not stay in business for long I'm afraid. Employees are the key to business success, despite what some employers might say on the subject. You can have the best products, the best marketing and advertising, the best management, but without employees, you will never make a profit for a long period of time. It is far wiser to make life easier for your employees, and keep them happy. Happy workers, are hard workers, and less inclined to move to another role with another employer.
Dave