That has to be one of the most thoroughly explained and analyzed surveys I've seen in a long time. The fact that he analyzed the leanings of the respondents and took that into account was really well done.
Now, can we also ask them who is really responsible for the current bank crisis (whether profit hungry execs, slimy people luring people into bad mortgages, people flipping houses and then wanting a bailout when burned, government policy...)?
I'm assuming they get by the legality of selling it by stating it is for use for the single copy you are allowed to make. Still, I'm sure they'll see some pressure from the content providers.
Most "average" users I know play they're dvds on their tvs, not their computers. I hope they explicitly state only plays on a computer on the label, or a lot of average customers will be rather annoyed.
Finally, I remember something about dvd shrink (which is extremely easy for average users when used with dvd-decrypter, though not legal in the us) may be actually legal in the EU since CSS does not effectively protect the content. Here is a link to one of the articles. Any way we can push this through in the US?
If the operating system is being developed correctly, then the further along you get the less support you need
This is only true if software and hardware stops changing. For example, any time a cpu gets updated with new instruction sets. The kernel has to be updated to use those instructions, then the OS needs to get updated to use those calls, etc etc. The new wireless cards will need driver updates (and possibly further reverse engineering if the drivers are proprietary)
Software evolution means the same thing. As new paradigms and new ways of doing things (shared calendars, torrents) are created, the os will have to create new ways to interface with them (and as things become standard, incorporate that into the os, such as zip in XP, etc).
People will constantly need help to deal with ever-changing requirements and technology. That is the one thing that is unlikely to change.
Or its predecessor, "Ripper", starring Walken, David Patrick Kelly, Paul Giamatti, etc. I loved this game, and had to buy the disks (it was a 6 disc game) again from ebay since the disks were so scratched up.
Also, I should mention the Home of the Underdogs for anyone looking for some great classic games. It hasn't been updated in a while, but it has a ton of great games listed.
The poster I was replying to said that Mozilla should think about bundling some of the more popular extensions.
I thought I'd look and see which of the top 10 most popular (according to the extension site) had an argument for addition.
My list was not meant to be exhaustive, just a test of whether the top ones had cases, hence the reason I did not list pencil. I was just testing the hypothesis, since it was an interesting concept.
My point was that the most popular ones really shouldn't be bundled, in response to the houghi comment.
As for your idea, some problems will exist:
1. Where is the listing for where you can get each package? How often is this listing updated?
2. You have to sort through each package to find the one that has the 5 extensions you want.
3. You have to make sure it is a reliable source.
Or you can simply go to tools, add-ons, and quickly look for a few extensions that will do what you are looking for, and no more (Maybe the add-on manager should be more obvious to newcomers, like being of the main splash page?). You can also disable each one, which may not work with a packaged version.
There are also too many different combinations for packages, and it would take forever to find the right one. Even if there was a helper application, that you would choose the extensions, and have it select the meta-manager for you, you'd still have to already know what extensions you wanted. I think they current solution is the most flexible.
However, I know ubuntu has an add-on for greater inter-op with to OS, so something like that may be a good idea.
While I think illicit drugs should definitely be banned, as always we have to ask what extent does this go to?
I can get in there and hook up a coffee/Red Bull IV, and do almost as much damage to my body as taking dexedrine. So they ban caffeine, which means no moutain dew, and we know mountain dew is one of the nectars of the gods.
As soon as you start eliminating caffeine, we get to the point that they can't take cold medicine before a tourney as it will show up as a drug.
As soon as money and egos get involved, people will look for any advantage they can get. I think drugs should be outlawed, but that the organizers need to be realistic, and understand that anything in excess can be harmful, and that a well rounded approach is necesary
I agree, it is a balancing act. That's why my last line states that Firefox is getting larger, because it is larger than Opera. I just tend to think Firefox has so far done a pretty good job of figuring out what it needs to focus one, and what can be left to the community.
Out of curiosity, what extensions are you using? I have around 7 or 8 depending on computer, and I've had no crashes. As always, people's problems vary, but I'm curious as to what may be crashing you.
As for the most popular extensions, such as downloadhelper, firebug, etc, those tend to be pretty darn reliable, which may be due to many bug reports, the open source concept of helping out with fixes, or because people tend to use things that work, but I have had very few problems.
On the other hand, I've had VERY bad luck with active-X "extensions" in IE, and even when not allowing ActiveX, I crash more with IE.
On another note, is it the sites you are working on that tend to crash, or basic browsing? Maybe IE is more forgiving of code you are still working on and may have forgotten a curly brace or two?
Interesting. Let's take a slightly deeper look, by looking at the most popular add-ons, and see if most non-savvy people would want them:
1.Ad-block plus - Users might like it, but people running the sites and companies would absolutely hate it. Get ready for a huge backlash on enabling this one in the base package.
2. DownloadHelper - Again, users may like it, but the people running the video sites would be fuming. As would people who do simple paid-for web tutorials, who would have everyone able to get their stuff extremely easily. Once again, good size backlash. This also has features that may need to be updated more frequently, such as when embedding code changes or something on the popular sites changes.
3. No-Script - I don't know if this would really help most non-savvy users, as they wouldn't understand why many more popular sites won't work that well, not to mention all the ajax-y things they'd miss.
4. Download-them-all - May be a good thing to implement (along with Download Status bar, a personal favorite). I'm not sure how many people would use its benefits though, but this one is a serious contender.
5. Flashgot (See Download Helper)
6. Firebug - No real use to non-savvy people.
7. Fast-video Download - See Download Helper
8. Cooliris - Cool, but no real functionality. Of course, Compiz, Widgets, Apples, etc all live off of cool, but I don't think this should be standard, especially since it is windows only.
9. IE Tab - Very nice for people who still stubbornly make IE specific sites, but still windows only.
10. Colorful tabs - cute, but not really functional. Might be a nice option though.
So, of the top 10, only one could really have a good argument made for it being in the base package. I actually think Mozilla does a pretty good job finding the middle ground of stuff to keep in the base, and stuff to have as extensions, and that helps keep the energy where they think it should be, instead of focusing on little segments.
I might add that I like extensions also since they can add new functionality before a new version comes out.
And if bandwith download is an issue for you, then perhaps you should not download Firefox in the first place.
and brings a lot to the table that Firefox requires extensions for
You say that like it is a bad thing. I prefer the use of extensions for my browser, instead of the bloatware that tends to happen. What if I don't care about privacy? I don't need that installed then. I like that I can choose the features I want, instead of having everything thrown in there.
Also, extensions have a great benefit with regards to updates. they can be updated at any time, and therefore don't have to wait on a new browser update for tweaking things and adding functionality. They also allow me to leave an extension that I don't want to update as is while still being able to update the browser (and possibly its security).
This is not to say that Firefox is not getting large, or that microsoft is not trying to assist people who don't have the savvy to look for extensions. I'm just saying extensions have a lot of benefits, and can be a very important tool.
I think one of the potential problems is with software patents. In industry specific software (such as autocad, etc), there are a lot of innovations that they've patented, that open source people can't therefore replicate.
Other problems are mindset issues, such as not changing something even though it is an oft requested feature. For example, Qcad won't let you enter in a point based on distance away (such as @10'8-1/4""180), they make you do 10*12*8.25180. This may be a patent issue, maybe not, but it makes creating a drawing a lot harder (and if this is mentioned in the faq, I'm sure a lot of people are asking for it).
How many people who are starting open source projects have the time and money to sift through patents to make sure their projects doesn't get sued into oblivion?
Yeah, this is just like the hoopla over the American Idol people saying there were more votes for AI than for the last presidential election. However, since people voted multiple times (MANY multiple times), while it seems to imply that there is more interest in AI than politics, it is just a misleading statement that makes it look as if Americans only care about the next big singer (whether or not we are is beside the point, this is only about misleading #s due to multiples being allowed).
Sorry for the delayed response, I have been working 18 hr days.
Then you would be contributing to the problem rather than getting to the root of it. It is rather easy to look down your nose at someone and complain they are not helping. Your pat statement does not a. tell me what the root problem is and b. a realistic way of fixing that problem (in the short term in this case - I can talk to many people and try and change the system in the long term, and do so, but most people are deceived by the media, and don't understand. What is a REALISTIC short term solution?). Don't just try and put me down because you don't think I'm trying to do something - show me what you are doing practically, instead of just theoretically.
Everytime there is a perceived economic crisis, congressmen think they see a way to fix it, a "hole to patch", with legislation controlling what companies can do. For this current crisis, banks and lenders are the target of regulation.
I was commented on bailouts, which is the other side to what they are doing. They will do both as a dual pronged approach (fix the problem with regulations, but then help the people affected by the bailout - they are both solutions, but to different parts of the problem). I agree the solutions so far have been short-sighted and aimed at the illusion of doing good without making much of a difference.
The decision whether or not to have federal bailouts is an economy policy as it involves the redistribution of wealth. A policy is a worldview, and indeed does influence how people react and see solutions. I am talking about the effect of the policy or worldview, which is in this case a specific item. The policy deals with an all encompassing plan, this is just an item of it. The policy is a problem, as I have stated several times, and leads to the awful solution, and needs to be addressed. However, many different worldviews agree on the solution here for different reasons. Therefore, we should inspect the ramifications of the item, independent of which policy each voter was trying to put forth, to see how the outcome has helped or hurt us. Different policies will have to react in different ways.
"IF the government decided to do it (which they may have already)"
They already have on countless occasions. The most recent example is the Federal Reserve bailout of Bear Stearns.
-Agreed - I was talking solely about foreclosures.
"I would hope that there would be rules about who got the money."
If you invested in a privately-provided safety net service, you would have much more control over who gets the money. You have no control when the funding is taken by force.
-I have no qualms about your idea, as I mentioned above, I don't want the government to do it, but since they don't seem to listen to me, I would want some checks there if they did.
"As for rights violations, I don't see it."
Federal bailouts require funding, which is taken by force from members of the public. Economic regulations tell people what they can and cannot do with their property.
-Well, lately (since credit became so popular in the late 70s - 80s), the bailouts have been taken from thin air, which weakens us all, I agree. Once again, I don't want the government to bail out foreclosures (if people got screwed, they can sue, and get additional damages for pain and suffering). I'm not really understanding your comments about regulations, as I am only talking about the government giving money to investors who got screwed and want a handout. This isn't an economic policy in any way.
Personally, I think the idea of the government bail-out is the wrong move, although Congress seems quite taken with the idea. So my comment is that IF the government decided to do it (which they may have already), I would hope that there would be rules about who got the money. As for rights violations, I don't see it. How is a quick check of how many houses you own a rights violation? And all it means is those people don't get a check. The other option is for people to request the help through a form, if you fill out the form, you agree to have a quick check done. This is not go and search someones house, this is a basic asset verification.
Well, looking at the last 4 with the Congress, I'd say both sides are guilty of screwing up right now. Both branches have an awful approval rating (can we rate the courts too? That would be interesting).
Democrats won the Legislative and haven't made much of a change. Either way it goes, there are major issues right now.
On the other hand, Obama wants the government to pay for health care. I'm thinking that is far more costly than a war. Either way though, we have WAY too much deficit spending. Both are likely to continue the trend, which will further devalue the dollar, etc. Both have policies that will eventually hurt the economy, by putting us farther in debt.
You forgot to bring up the large number of people who were signing up for those loans because they were trying to flip a house. Since they didn't think they were going to be in them for long, they went with the easiest method. Then when their investment went south, they cried foul. Look at all the shows on tv about people flipping houses for profit. People see it, think it is a great way to make quick money, and ended up losing the house.
While I understand that some people were the victims of predatory practices (although as usual caveat emptor applies, there are some people who take complete advantage), I certainly do not want to subsidize a bad investment decision, so any "bailout" should have some kind of check to make sure that flipping wasn't the cause, and should go after the mortgage companies for as many funds as they can get.
Gnome is modified. Check out MArk Shuttleworth's blog for some screenshots. They made the window title appear in the top bar for instance, so they understand the spacing issue and are trying to maximize it.
Slashdot Mirror
Seems fitting for me, since I spent most of my time on 3.1 playing minefield...
No, TOLKIEN Rings.
And please see the story on Ars Geeks are Not Comic Book Guy
That has to be one of the most thoroughly explained and analyzed surveys I've seen in a long time. The fact that he analyzed the leanings of the respondents and took that into account was really well done.
Now, can we also ask them who is really responsible for the current bank crisis (whether profit hungry execs, slimy people luring people into bad mortgages, people flipping houses and then wanting a bailout when burned, government policy...)?
I'm assuming they get by the legality of selling it by stating it is for use for the single copy you are allowed to make. Still, I'm sure they'll see some pressure from the content providers.
Most "average" users I know play they're dvds on their tvs, not their computers. I hope they explicitly state only plays on a computer on the label, or a lot of average customers will be rather annoyed.
Finally, I remember something about dvd shrink (which is extremely easy for average users when used with dvd-decrypter, though not legal in the us) may be actually legal in the EU since CSS does not effectively protect the content. Here is a link to one of the articles. Any way we can push this through in the US?
This is only true if software and hardware stops changing. For example, any time a cpu gets updated with new instruction sets. The kernel has to be updated to use those instructions, then the OS needs to get updated to use those calls, etc etc. The new wireless cards will need driver updates (and possibly further reverse engineering if the drivers are proprietary)
Software evolution means the same thing. As new paradigms and new ways of doing things (shared calendars, torrents) are created, the os will have to create new ways to interface with them (and as things become standard, incorporate that into the os, such as zip in XP, etc).
People will constantly need help to deal with ever-changing requirements and technology. That is the one thing that is unlikely to change.
Or its predecessor, "Ripper", starring Walken, David Patrick Kelly, Paul Giamatti, etc. I loved this game, and had to buy the disks (it was a 6 disc game) again from ebay since the disks were so scratched up.
Also, I should mention the Home of the Underdogs for anyone looking for some great classic games. It hasn't been updated in a while, but it has a ton of great games listed.
The poster I was replying to said that Mozilla should think about bundling some of the more popular extensions.
I thought I'd look and see which of the top 10 most popular (according to the extension site) had an argument for addition.
My list was not meant to be exhaustive, just a test of whether the top ones had cases, hence the reason I did not list pencil. I was just testing the hypothesis, since it was an interesting concept.
I know it shows up - I pointing out how insanely far it can go.
Do cold meds help performance? Maybe (I don't actually know for sure)
Do people actually get colds and legitimately need meds? Yes
Will people abuse this? Of Course (same as those taking dexedrine for ADD, as I did for a number of years, which is also why I listed that).
I'm just saying that people can take things to extremes, and that anything can be abused.
Off-topic, but what does THIS stand for? I can't find it anywhere
Let me rephrase (obviously illicit drugs are illegal - which is why I used that term, to clarify illegal vs legal drugs):
Illicit drugs should be explicitly banned by the gamers association, which likely also means testing to ensure compliance.
Although, this brings up the question - who will pay for the testing?
My point was that the most popular ones really shouldn't be bundled, in response to the houghi comment.
As for your idea, some problems will exist:
1. Where is the listing for where you can get each package? How often is this listing updated?
2. You have to sort through each package to find the one that has the 5 extensions you want.
3. You have to make sure it is a reliable source.
Or you can simply go to tools, add-ons, and quickly look for a few extensions that will do what you are looking for, and no more (Maybe the add-on manager should be more obvious to newcomers, like being of the main splash page?). You can also disable each one, which may not work with a packaged version.
There are also too many different combinations for packages, and it would take forever to find the right one. Even if there was a helper application, that you would choose the extensions, and have it select the meta-manager for you, you'd still have to already know what extensions you wanted. I think they current solution is the most flexible.
However, I know ubuntu has an add-on for greater inter-op with to OS, so something like that may be a good idea.
While I think illicit drugs should definitely be banned, as always we have to ask what extent does this go to?
I can get in there and hook up a coffee/Red Bull IV, and do almost as much damage to my body as taking dexedrine. So they ban caffeine, which means no moutain dew, and we know mountain dew is one of the nectars of the gods.
As soon as you start eliminating caffeine, we get to the point that they can't take cold medicine before a tourney as it will show up as a drug.
As soon as money and egos get involved, people will look for any advantage they can get. I think drugs should be outlawed, but that the organizers need to be realistic, and understand that anything in excess can be harmful, and that a well rounded approach is necesary
I agree, it is a balancing act. That's why my last line states that Firefox is getting larger, because it is larger than Opera. I just tend to think Firefox has so far done a pretty good job of figuring out what it needs to focus one, and what can be left to the community.
Out of curiosity, what extensions are you using? I have around 7 or 8 depending on computer, and I've had no crashes. As always, people's problems vary, but I'm curious as to what may be crashing you.
As for the most popular extensions, such as downloadhelper, firebug, etc, those tend to be pretty darn reliable, which may be due to many bug reports, the open source concept of helping out with fixes, or because people tend to use things that work, but I have had very few problems.
On the other hand, I've had VERY bad luck with active-X "extensions" in IE, and even when not allowing ActiveX, I crash more with IE.
On another note, is it the sites you are working on that tend to crash, or basic browsing? Maybe IE is more forgiving of code you are still working on and may have forgotten a curly brace or two?
Interesting. Let's take a slightly deeper look, by looking at the most popular add-ons, and see if most non-savvy people would want them:
1.Ad-block plus - Users might like it, but people running the sites and companies would absolutely hate it. Get ready for a huge backlash on enabling this one in the base package.
2. DownloadHelper - Again, users may like it, but the people running the video sites would be fuming. As would people who do simple paid-for web tutorials, who would have everyone able to get their stuff extremely easily. Once again, good size backlash. This also has features that may need to be updated more frequently, such as when embedding code changes or something on the popular sites changes.
3. No-Script - I don't know if this would really help most non-savvy users, as they wouldn't understand why many more popular sites won't work that well, not to mention all the ajax-y things they'd miss.
4. Download-them-all - May be a good thing to implement (along with Download Status bar, a personal favorite). I'm not sure how many people would use its benefits though, but this one is a serious contender.
5. Flashgot (See Download Helper)
6. Firebug - No real use to non-savvy people.
7. Fast-video Download - See Download Helper
8. Cooliris - Cool, but no real functionality. Of course, Compiz, Widgets, Apples, etc all live off of cool, but I don't think this should be standard, especially since it is windows only.
9. IE Tab - Very nice for people who still stubbornly make IE specific sites, but still windows only.
10. Colorful tabs - cute, but not really functional. Might be a nice option though.
So, of the top 10, only one could really have a good argument made for it being in the base package. I actually think Mozilla does a pretty good job finding the middle ground of stuff to keep in the base, and stuff to have as extensions, and that helps keep the energy where they think it should be, instead of focusing on little segments.
I might add that I like extensions also since they can add new functionality before a new version comes out.
Isn't Firefox smaller in download size than IE?
You say that like it is a bad thing. I prefer the use of extensions for my browser, instead of the bloatware that tends to happen. What if I don't care about privacy? I don't need that installed then. I like that I can choose the features I want, instead of having everything thrown in there.
Also, extensions have a great benefit with regards to updates. they can be updated at any time, and therefore don't have to wait on a new browser update for tweaking things and adding functionality. They also allow me to leave an extension that I don't want to update as is while still being able to update the browser (and possibly its security).
This is not to say that Firefox is not getting large, or that microsoft is not trying to assist people who don't have the savvy to look for extensions. I'm just saying extensions have a lot of benefits, and can be a very important tool.
I think one of the potential problems is with software patents.
In industry specific software (such as autocad, etc), there are a lot of innovations that they've patented, that open source people can't therefore replicate.
Other problems are mindset issues, such as not changing something even though it is an oft requested feature. For example, Qcad won't let you enter in a point based on distance away (such as @10'8-1/4""180), they make you do 10*12*8.25180. This may be a patent issue, maybe not, but it makes creating a drawing a lot harder (and if this is mentioned in the faq, I'm sure a lot of people are asking for it).
How many people who are starting open source projects have the time and money to sift through patents to make sure their projects doesn't get sued into oblivion?
Yeah, this is just like the hoopla over the American Idol people saying there were more votes for AI than for the last presidential election. However, since people voted multiple times (MANY multiple times), while it seems to imply that there is more interest in AI than politics, it is just a misleading statement that makes it look as if Americans only care about the next big singer (whether or not we are is beside the point, this is only about misleading #s due to multiples being allowed).
Sorry for the delayed response, I have been working 18 hr days.
Then you would be contributing to the problem rather than getting to the root of it.
It is rather easy to look down your nose at someone and complain they are not helping. Your pat statement does not a. tell me what the root problem is and b. a realistic way of fixing that problem (in the short term in this case - I can talk to many people and try and change the system in the long term, and do so, but most people are deceived by the media, and don't understand. What is a REALISTIC short term solution?). Don't just try and put me down because you don't think I'm trying to do something - show me what you are doing practically, instead of just theoretically.
Everytime there is a perceived economic crisis, congressmen think they see a way to fix it, a "hole to patch", with legislation controlling what companies can do. For this current crisis, banks and lenders are the target of regulation.
I was commented on bailouts, which is the other side to what they are doing. They will do both as a dual pronged approach (fix the problem with regulations, but then help the people affected by the bailout - they are both solutions, but to different parts of the problem). I agree the solutions so far have been short-sighted and aimed at the illusion of doing good without making much of a difference.
The decision whether or not to have federal bailouts is an economy policy as it involves the redistribution of wealth.
A policy is a worldview, and indeed does influence how people react and see solutions. I am talking about the effect of the policy or worldview, which is in this case a specific item. The policy deals with an all encompassing plan, this is just an item of it. The policy is a problem, as I have stated several times, and leads to the awful solution, and needs to be addressed. However, many different worldviews agree on the solution here for different reasons. Therefore, we should inspect the ramifications of the item, independent of which policy each voter was trying to put forth, to see how the outcome has helped or hurt us. Different policies will have to react in different ways.
"IF the government decided to do it (which they may have already)"
They already have on countless occasions. The most recent example is the Federal Reserve bailout of Bear Stearns.
-Agreed - I was talking solely about foreclosures.
"I would hope that there would be rules about who got the money."
If you invested in a privately-provided safety net service, you would have much more control over who gets the money. You have no control when the funding is taken by force.
-I have no qualms about your idea, as I mentioned above, I don't want the government to do it, but since they don't seem to listen to me, I would want some checks there if they did.
"As for rights violations, I don't see it."
Federal bailouts require funding, which is taken by force from members of the public. Economic regulations tell people what they can and cannot do with their property.
-Well, lately (since credit became so popular in the late 70s - 80s), the bailouts have been taken from thin air, which weakens us all, I agree. Once again, I don't want the government to bail out foreclosures (if people got screwed, they can sue, and get additional damages for pain and suffering). I'm not really understanding your comments about regulations, as I am only talking about the government giving money to investors who got screwed and want a handout. This isn't an economic policy in any way.
Personally, I think the idea of the government bail-out is the wrong move, although Congress seems quite taken with the idea. So my comment is that IF the government decided to do it (which they may have already), I would hope that there would be rules about who got the money.
As for rights violations, I don't see it. How is a quick check of how many houses you own a rights violation? And all it means is those people don't get a check. The other option is for people to request the help through a form, if you fill out the form, you agree to have a quick check done. This is not go and search someones house, this is a basic asset verification.
Well, looking at the last 4 with the Congress, I'd say both sides are guilty of screwing up right now. Both branches have an awful approval rating (can we rate the courts too? That would be interesting).
Democrats won the Legislative and haven't made much of a change. Either way it goes, there are major issues right now.
On the other hand, Obama wants the government to pay for health care. I'm thinking that is far more costly than a war.
Either way though, we have WAY too much deficit spending. Both are likely to continue the trend, which will further devalue the dollar, etc. Both have policies that will eventually hurt the economy, by putting us farther in debt.
You forgot to bring up the large number of people who were signing up for those loans because they were trying to flip a house. Since they didn't think they were going to be in them for long, they went with the easiest method. Then when their investment went south, they cried foul. Look at all the shows on tv about people flipping houses for profit. People see it, think it is a great way to make quick money, and ended up losing the house.
While I understand that some people were the victims of predatory practices (although as usual caveat emptor applies, there are some people who take complete advantage), I certainly do not want to subsidize a bad investment decision, so any "bailout" should have some kind of check to make sure that flipping wasn't the cause, and should go after the mortgage companies for as many funds as they can get.
Gnome is modified. Check out MArk Shuttleworth's blog for some screenshots. They made the window title appear in the top bar for instance, so they understand the spacing issue and are trying to maximize it.