Yes, the Sonys have great battery life nowadays. In fact I would argue that they offer the best Android phones these days. But for some mysterious reason U.S. operators are effectively blocking them from the market. When was the last time you saw a high-end Sony at a Verizon or AT&T stand?
I think you are wrong about this. I do think people actually want something like circles from Google+. Google+ failed for other reasons, mainly the fact that everyone is on Facebook and before they get to G+ things will be very quiet there.
You need to get past the first hurdle of getting people onto the new social media platform. Then you can improve it.
The Facebook lists have failed because it is such a pain to use. Instead people simply don't post stuff other than very banal and general "for-everyone" posts.
This topic and no one mentions Stuart Hameroff or Roger Penrose...
Google it my friends, these guys have a much more fascinating and mathematically rigorous theory than these guys in post seem to have, including a much more convincing definition of what consciousness is.
As a European living in a country with a fairly well working public health system (Sweden), and a tech background, I am amazed that Slashdot and other tech media is behind the curve on this story. Why is NYTimes and other mainstream media the ones running with this and finding the background etc?
Damn common sense tech people in the U.S.! Get on top of this to fix it!
I also work for a major manufacturer, though we manufacture industrial products and not food. We are already best in our business when it comes to quality, efficiency etc., but there is so much else we can do in this field.
This idea sounds like a typical Management Consultant's powerpoint proposal. This would do to Dell like it has done to so many other manufacturers, relegate them to the terror of mediocracy.
What would Dell's key competitive advantage be if they did this?
Doesn't all Sony Ericsson phones that have TackID installed use gracenote?
I have used TrackID on my phone many times and it's just fantastic! I can't understand why Sony Ericsson is not promoting that service more!! Especially since the seem to be really keen to ride the Walkman wave..
I show this service every time I see a friend or colleague who has a Sony Ericsson phone. Every single time the person didn't know he/she had it in the phone, and every time they just love it.
Sony Ericsson marketing people: Get to work, damnit!!!
As all Swedes know, having a huge welfare system doesn't mean that you get good welfare.
Have you tried getting an appointment with a doctor? How much is your pension going to be when you retire? Do you feel assured that people with serious mental problems are not roaming the streets (see Anna Lindh story? Do you have children in school? Do you have a close friend or family member out of work (probably) and are you satisfied with their progress in finding work?
My point is that we have the largest welfare system in the world, but much of the proceeds are so squandered that we definately don't have the best benefits in the world.
Also it doesn't help that Sweden is a one-party state (in practice). The same party has been running the show for the last seven decades with only guest performances from the opposition during a few "crisis" years.
Toyota, one of the most successful companies in the world, is notoriously open about their practices. They even started a joint venture with GM in California in the eighties were they jointly ran a factory.
This project is still ongoing so GM has perfect insight into how Toyota produces cars.
I have worked in a cubicle environment in the states and now work in an office in Nagoya, Japan. Here in Japan they almost always (at least at big companies) use rows and rows of desks, with three-four people next to each other.
I have been here 7 months now and I like this much, much more than those horrible american cubicles. And it didn't help that they were piping out white noise from the ceiling.
I can't really put a finger on why this open style doesn't bother me. My best idea is that the cubicles create some kind of worst-of-all-styles situation. You are completely isolated and alone but still have no privacy.
It really made me understand why mentally weak people are likely to go crazy at the work place. Have you noticed that that doesn't happen nearly as much in other countries where cubicles are less prevalent...
Well, obviously they are damaging the careers and lifes of these developers. But they are also damaging themeselves.
Screwing your workers for a quick buck will come back to bite you in the end.
In the long run companies that take care of their workers - and don't do the hire-layoff-cycle several times per economic cycle - will outperform companies like EA that treat their employees like shit.
Let's say you have company A, with employees that feel threatened and intimidated, and company B, where the emplyees feel empowered and trust the upper management. Where do you think the best games will be developed?
I don't think it is a coincidence that great stuff is produced at id (by Carmack & pals) for instance.
EA may be the big bully on the block which enables them to get the lucrative partnership contracts with movie production companies etc., but they are not invulnarable. The gaming industry is fiercely competitive and extremely dependent on the developer's skills. If they continue like this it is just a matter of a few quarters until their competitors start to kick their butts.
To expand the discussion on interfaces a bit I'd like to mention mobile phones (U.S.: cell phones).
Ericsson had problems with their mobile phone business since around '98, which is approximately when Nokia's business took off.
Ericsson's problems were largely attributed to the really boring design of the Ericsson phones. They fixed a lot of design issues (remember the fix-all-problems T28) but again were unsuccessful. This time because they couldn't keep up with the demand which of course started to let up once the production was up to speed.
Something that in my opinion has always been much worse on the Ericcson phones is the user interface. Ericsson used to hide the games under the "Tools" menu for instance(!). Nokia on the other hand has always used pretty much the same kind of interface but continuously improved it in logical ways. I strongly believe that is a major reason why people have preferred Nokia instead of Ericsson (now SonyEricsson) and other makers during the last few years. I think this is especially true for the last few years when late adaptors (like grandmas, my mother etc.) have started using mobiles.
I have both a SonyEricsson T68 and a Nokia 6610 and boy do I like the Nokia more! I can't stand the interface on the SE!
What kind of first-year student did this study? To give absolute numbers for how many people will be employed in various fields in 2015?!? That's laughable!
Whenever you see a prediction for something to be at an absolute level more than a year from now, then just ignore it!
For 2015 the most you can say is something like "the level will be at 200 000" or at most "it will be at 240 000". It's just ludicrous that they put it down exactly.
France did jack-shit to the nazis when Poland was invaded.
France and others were supposed to assist Poland in time of war. Poland was supposed to hold out against the much larger German army for two weeks.
They managed to hold out for four weeks, and some units even longer.
Now what did the rest of Europe do? They just held their breath and hoped the nazis would ignore them (only Sweden succeeded with this strategy).
In my eyes that is being weasily to the highest degree. The accord between Poland and France was apparantly not worth the paper it was signed on.
In the latest Iraq-war-hoopla both the US and France did massive amounts of spinning (WMDs, UN Resolutions etc.). The difference is that the US did it to instigate change for the better in the Arab world (which is tricky to achieve as everybody can acknowledge). France on the other hand did it for populistic (Chirac wants more say in world affairs) and self-enriching (France had not stopped having business dealings with Iraq as the US had) reasons.
What's IBM:s view one this whole mess? There must be some kind of official (or inofficial) remark or comment from them on this.
Are they playing this safe, or unleashing Utah-covering-hoards of lawyers on poor SCO?
I can't help but feel gleefully expectant of what will happen when IBM makes their move. It's a little like watching those MTV-crazys take a kick in the groin or going down a stairway in a shopping cart.
Isn't it great to finally have the big gorilla in the right corner!
Finally someone who dares to go out on a limb and state the obvious. The article is somewhat lofty and tries to put classical literature on a pedestal, but still manages to get the point through;
Star Wars really is pulp fiction (pulp=trash).
Now granted, tastes are like butts, i.e. everyone has their own (Swedish saying), and SW was extremely successful.
I am of the view, however, that the major reason for the success is the novelty of the trilogy (there had been nothing like it ever made) and a stunning luck in choosing the setting of it.
All sci-fi-fans deep down know that Lucas doesn't really get it...
You are missing the point. "Software piracy" is not stealing, it is copyright infringment. Now, I agree it is wrong to copy and use something without paying for it.
So why have I and the great majority of computer users been doing it all along?
The reason is the pricing model. The whole system of selling one boxed copy of software in a store for often hundreds of dollars is crazy! It is wildly ignorant of the nature of software and the way people use it. It also completely ignores the fact that only a small minority of computer owners can afford to pay such prizes in addition to the hardware.
The whole industry has to re-think how to price software towards private individuals. I actually think a rent-like system where you pay a small fee is much better than the complete sham we use now. Please keep in mind that everybody feels much better being on the right side of the law.
Many of us here where young boys (and some girls?) when the first three episodes came out. Because they where so much more and better than anything we had seen before in sci-fi action we all loved them. With the not-so-critical eyes of a child we all overlooked the cheesy parts of the story (I could give you a truck-load of exampels), and instead enjoyed the grand drama, specialfx end epic scale.
When I saw the special-ed. versions a couple of years ago I had a great time. That time around I didn't mind the corny parts of the story since the movies had a special place in my heart.
There was extra room in my heart for Episode I.
The reason I and many others were disappointed I think is because EpI is such a lousy movie. There is no excitement, no epic scale, no magic!
Granted, I had huge expectations. But I also had a lot of tolerence for what they, in my mind, where allowed to do in the story. I think they just went too far for most people.
EpI is for kids, the original three are for all ages. That is what has changed, and that is what is bad.
I agree. I almost left The Matrix in disgust after about five minutes.
I'm pretty happy I stayed now...
The conclusions Katz came to in those minutes seem to be things that I can deduce from the trailer - or even less than that!
I think you err on that one my friend. One of the main reason most countries in Europe - including Eastern Europe - have such a high saturation of mobile phones is because the phones themselves are sold at a huge loss. The wireless operators foot that bill and then reap back the proceeds through the monthly subscription fees users pay.
What if someone were to hack that service. No more cheap mobile phones..
You are so wrong. Now, more than anytime, wages don't matter as much as other things. I am talking about growth opportunities, good policies on worker education (if someone wants to learn something new, let them!), and the general atmosphere of the place.
Anyone in the tech industry will have options and good salaries, that's just part of the game.
The management at this place are doing the right thing and they don't even know it!
Letting people grow and develop is the only way to keep them. Money is only an issue if you get to little of it and feel disgruntled. This guy hasn't mentioned anything like that.
Slashdot Mirror
Yes, the Sonys have great battery life nowadays. In fact I would argue that they offer the best Android phones these days. But for some mysterious reason U.S. operators are effectively blocking them from the market. When was the last time you saw a high-end Sony at a Verizon or AT&T stand?
This explains the whole conspiracy:
https://youtu.be/Qr2bSL5VQgM
Thank you Dr. Strangelove!
Gary Oldman shows how it's done:
https://youtu.be/1Pb1Voc85ac
I think you are wrong about this. I do think people actually want something like circles from Google+. Google+ failed for other reasons, mainly the fact that everyone is on Facebook and before they get to G+ things will be very quiet there.
You need to get past the first hurdle of getting people onto the new social media platform. Then you can improve it.
The Facebook lists have failed because it is such a pain to use. Instead people simply don't post stuff other than very banal and general "for-everyone" posts.
This topic and no one mentions Stuart Hameroff or Roger Penrose...
Google it my friends, these guys have a much more fascinating and mathematically rigorous theory than these guys in post seem to have, including a much more convincing definition of what consciousness is.
As a European living in a country with a fairly well working public health system (Sweden), and a tech background, I am amazed that Slashdot and other tech media is behind the curve on this story. Why is NYTimes and other mainstream media the ones running with this and finding the background etc? Damn common sense tech people in the U.S.! Get on top of this to fix it!
General..? General Ripper? :-)
I completely agree with you.
I also work for a major manufacturer, though we manufacture industrial products and not food. We are already best in our business when it comes to quality, efficiency etc., but there is so much else we can do in this field.
This idea sounds like a typical Management Consultant's powerpoint proposal. This would do to Dell like it has done to so many other manufacturers, relegate them to the terror of mediocracy.
What would Dell's key competitive advantage be if they did this?
Doesn't all Sony Ericsson phones that have TackID installed use gracenote?
I have used TrackID on my phone many times and it's just fantastic! I can't understand why Sony Ericsson is not promoting that service more!! Especially since the seem to be really keen to ride the Walkman wave..
I show this service every time I see a friend or colleague who has a Sony Ericsson phone. Every single time the person didn't know he/she had it in the phone, and every time they just love it.
Sony Ericsson marketing people: Get to work, damnit!!!
I am guessing you are a Swede. I am a Swede too.
As all Swedes know, having a huge welfare system doesn't mean that you get good welfare.
Have you tried getting an appointment with a doctor? How much is your pension going to be when you retire? Do you feel assured that people with serious mental problems are not roaming the streets (see Anna Lindh story? Do you have children in school? Do you have a close friend or family member out of work (probably) and are you satisfied with their progress in finding work?
My point is that we have the largest welfare system in the world, but much of the proceeds are so squandered that we definately don't have the best benefits in the world.
Also it doesn't help that Sweden is a one-party state (in practice). The same party has been running the show for the last seven decades with only guest performances from the opposition during a few "crisis" years.
I don't know if secrecy really is that useful.
Toyota, one of the most successful companies in the world, is notoriously open about their practices. They even started a joint venture with GM in California in the eighties were they jointly ran a factory.
This project is still ongoing so GM has perfect insight into how Toyota produces cars.
I have worked in a cubicle environment in the states and now work in an office in Nagoya, Japan. Here in Japan they almost always (at least at big companies) use rows and rows of desks, with three-four people next to each other.
I have been here 7 months now and I like this much, much more than those horrible american cubicles. And it didn't help that they were piping out white noise from the ceiling.
I can't really put a finger on why this open style doesn't bother me. My best idea is that the cubicles create some kind of worst-of-all-styles situation. You are completely isolated and alone but still have no privacy.
It really made me understand why mentally weak people are likely to go crazy at the work place. Have you noticed that that doesn't happen nearly as much in other countries where cubicles are less prevalent...
Well, obviously they are damaging the careers and lifes of these developers. But they are also damaging themeselves.
Screwing your workers for a quick buck will come back to bite you in the end.
In the long run companies that take care of their workers - and don't do the hire-layoff-cycle several times per economic cycle - will outperform companies like EA that treat their employees like shit.
Let's say you have company A, with employees that feel threatened and intimidated, and company B, where the emplyees feel empowered and trust the upper management. Where do you think the best games will be developed?
I don't think it is a coincidence that great stuff is produced at id (by Carmack & pals) for instance.
EA may be the big bully on the block which enables them to get the lucrative partnership contracts with movie production companies etc., but they are not invulnarable. The gaming industry is fiercely competitive and extremely dependent on the developer's skills. If they continue like this it is just a matter of a few quarters until their competitors start to kick their butts.
To expand the discussion on interfaces a bit I'd like to mention mobile phones (U.S.: cell phones).
Ericsson had problems with their mobile phone business since around '98, which is approximately when Nokia's business took off.
Ericsson's problems were largely attributed to the really boring design of the Ericsson phones. They fixed a lot of design issues (remember the fix-all-problems T28) but again were unsuccessful. This time because they couldn't keep up with the demand which of course started to let up once the production was up to speed.
Something that in my opinion has always been much worse on the Ericcson phones is the user interface. Ericsson used to hide the games under the "Tools" menu for instance(!). Nokia on the other hand has always used pretty much the same kind of interface but continuously improved it in logical ways. I strongly believe that is a major reason why people have preferred Nokia instead of Ericsson (now SonyEricsson) and other makers during the last few years. I think this is especially true for the last few years when late adaptors (like grandmas, my mother etc.) have started using mobiles.
I have both a SonyEricsson T68 and a Nokia 6610 and boy do I like the Nokia more! I can't stand the interface on the SE!
What kind of first-year student did this study? To give absolute numbers for how many people will be employed in various fields in 2015?!? That's laughable!
Whenever you see a prediction for something to be at an absolute level more than a year from now, then just ignore it!
For 2015 the most you can say is something like "the level will be at 200 000" or at most "it will be at 240 000". It's just ludicrous that they put it down exactly.
France did jack-shit to the nazis when Poland was invaded.
France and others were supposed to assist Poland in time of war. Poland was supposed to hold out against the much larger German army for two weeks.
They managed to hold out for four weeks, and some units even longer.
Now what did the rest of Europe do? They just held their breath and hoped the nazis would ignore them (only Sweden succeeded with this strategy).
In my eyes that is being weasily to the highest degree. The accord between Poland and France was apparantly not worth the paper it was signed on.
In the latest Iraq-war-hoopla both the US and France did massive amounts of spinning (WMDs, UN Resolutions etc.). The difference is that the US did it to instigate change for the better in the Arab world (which is tricky to achieve as everybody can acknowledge). France on the other hand did it for populistic (Chirac wants more say in world affairs) and self-enriching (France had not stopped having business dealings with Iraq as the US had) reasons.
What's IBM:s view one this whole mess? There must be some kind of official (or inofficial) remark or comment from them on this.
Are they playing this safe, or unleashing Utah-covering-hoards of lawyers on poor SCO?
I can't help but feel gleefully expectant of what will happen when IBM makes their move. It's a little like watching those MTV-crazys take a kick in the groin or going down a stairway in a shopping cart.
Isn't it great to finally have the big gorilla in the right corner!
Finally someone who dares to go out on a limb and state the obvious. The article is somewhat lofty and tries to put classical literature on a pedestal, but still manages to get the point through;
Star Wars really is pulp fiction (pulp=trash).
Now granted, tastes are like butts, i.e. everyone has their own (Swedish saying), and SW was extremely successful.
I am of the view, however, that the major reason for the success is the novelty of the trilogy (there had been nothing like it ever made) and a stunning luck in choosing the setting of it.
All sci-fi-fans deep down know that Lucas doesn't really get it...
Even though the cable would not stretch half-way around the moon it would still be long enough for potential problems to arise.
What if the cable breaks somewhere? It would be a major undertaking just to fix it (think of cable failures under the oceans for comparison).
The satellite option has some real problems (where to put it, radio-noise) but I think this danger with a cable option is more serious.
You are missing the point. "Software piracy" is not stealing, it is copyright infringment. Now, I agree it is wrong to copy and use something without paying for it.
So why have I and the great majority of computer users been doing it all along?
The reason is the pricing model. The whole system of selling one boxed copy of software in a store for often hundreds of dollars is crazy! It is wildly ignorant of the nature of software and the way people use it. It also completely ignores the fact that only a small minority of computer owners can afford to pay such prizes in addition to the hardware.
The whole industry has to re-think how to price software towards private individuals. I actually think a rent-like system where you pay a small fee is much better than the complete sham we use now. Please keep in mind that everybody feels much better being on the right side of the law.
When I saw the special-ed. versions a couple of years ago I had a great time. That time around I didn't mind the corny parts of the story since the movies had a special place in my heart.
There was extra room in my heart for Episode I.
The reason I and many others were disappointed I think is because EpI is such a lousy movie. There is no excitement, no epic scale, no magic!
Granted, I had huge expectations. But I also had a lot of tolerence for what they, in my mind, where allowed to do in the story. I think they just went too far for most people.
EpI is for kids, the original three are for all ages. That is what has changed, and that is what is bad.
I agree. I almost left The Matrix in disgust after about five minutes. I'm pretty happy I stayed now... The conclusions Katz came to in those minutes seem to be things that I can deduce from the trailer - or even less than that!
I think you err on that one my friend. One of the main reason most countries in Europe - including Eastern Europe - have such a high saturation of mobile phones is because the phones themselves are sold at a huge loss. The wireless operators foot that bill and then reap back the proceeds through the monthly subscription fees users pay. What if someone were to hack that service. No more cheap mobile phones..
The management at this place are doing the right thing and they don't even know it!
Letting people grow and develop is the only way to keep them. Money is only an issue if you get to little of it and feel disgruntled. This guy hasn't mentioned anything like that.