I don't see how Richard Dawkins is an "inflammatory jerk-off". Hitchens you could definitely make a strong case for, but Dawkins? Certainly he's very vocal about his opinions, but there's nothing wrong with that. He seems to me to be a very kind person. Christopher Hitchens was the one who'd miss no chance to tell you you're a fucking retard.
So, in your opinion, is there no intersection between "hackers" and "computer programmers"? Because I'm pretty sure there is one, and it's quite large.
Any reason why you couldn't replace your ATmega with something like this Cortex M0 and have the same cheap DIP setup?
Actually, no. That's the first time I've seen a nice DIP ARM chip, and I'll have to look into it. Thank you! But I'm still not going to do that immediately, since I still have a bunch of AVRs sitting around, and quite a bit of time invested in learning the ins and outs of programming them. I also suspect that chip is a good bit more expensive than a simple ATmega, though I haven't actually looked, so I could be dead wrong.
Also did you benchmark the digitalWrite function?
No proper benchmarking, but in my experience it is much slower. I did read the source code. It compiles to a rather complex C++ function involving multiple table lookups and branches - repeated for every single digitalWrite(). Not nice at all for bit-banging protocols and such. When you call digitalWrite(12, 1);, it actually has to look up which register "pin 12" is in, and which bit that is. Then it checks to verify that you actually called pinMode(12, OUTPUT) - every damn time. And it does this with function calls, not just OR-ing the PORTB/C/D register with the right bit.
Everyone is just bitching about how much better their favorite chip is than AVR. This isn't even an article about that. Save it for an article about different microcontrollers.
As for the "WTF would I do with a 'wearable platform'" questions - what happened to all the hackers on Slashdot? You know, the people who were actually interesting? Jesus, I don't know what you'd do with it. I don't know what I would do with it, to be honest, but whatever happened to that inventive spirit? Just because you can't think of anything doesn't mean it's useless.
Now allow me a minute of hypocrisy to discuss why I like AVR. When I want to prototype a microcontroller-based device, I don't need some $55 "Maple" device, or even an Arduino. I bought a tube of five ATmega328s from eBay for $7. I toss one on a breadboard with a 16 MHz crystal, a couple of capacitors and a pullup resistor for the reset pin and wire it up to a 5V power supply. When I make the final circuit, I throw a DIP socket on the board, and into that socket goes the programmed chip. Again, with just a crystal, two capacitors and a resistor (maybe with a decoupling cap, depending on the rest of the circuit). Total cost? Maybe $5.
No need to even use the Arduino "IDE" or anything else, if you don't want to. And why would you? It's crap, anyway. I edit the file in vim, and generally stay away from their slow helper functions like digitalWrite() in favor of direct register access. But sometimes, it's nice to throw an Arduino library in the project. They might not be fast, but hey, you're using a 16 MHz microcontroller! It's really easy to just #include and be ready to use an LCD.
Good point about autism, and that hits home for me because I have a large number of autistic family members. Of course, "slow" is still a valid description, if a bit politically incorrect, while "just didn't want to pay attention" intentionally blames the individual.
The difference that I see is that autism and ADHD can be studied properly, we know a good bit about their causes (if not enough, it's still a start) and can medicate (whether that is desirable is a different story, but it does show that there are actual, medical causes behind them). However, I have yet to see a difference between a personality disorder and a shitty personality. They seem to be just labels for a common personality we find unpleasant.
Narcissistic Personality Disorder? Let's just call it narcissism and cut the crap. He's a narcissistic dickhead, not a sick person we should all feel sorry for.
Instead of an insult, you could add to the discussion by pointing out where he was wrong and explaining what is correct. Or, if you don't know, you could just not speak, which will still give a higher net contribution to the conversation.
I've always just used fast, small WMs on netbooks. Currently mine runs IceWM. I've happily used Fluxbox and a fairly stripped-down GNOME 2 on it as well. Just make the panel nice and small (I fucking hate autohide...) and you're set.
Or are they only going to target low power low performance parts?
Like mobile? I didn't RTFA, but that's the area that seems to me to be screaming for this. With all the crap we're running on phones lately, we're going to need more memory. You can't exactly stick a SO-DIMM in a phone.
2nd-year CS/computational math student here (but I've been programming for much longer). I'm amused by your use of quotes around "programmer", since even many of my professors can't figure out the difference. I cringed every time last term when one of them insisted that Python was weakly typed and C strongly typed. Well, professor, which of the two will allow me (at least with warnings off) to "printf" a string as an integer?
I hope one day Linus or RMS states they like the taste of poo, just to see how many nuts out there will just blindly go along and do it because these guys have an opinion and because they have done or are doing great things they must be always right.
It's a good thing you put that at the end, or most people would never read past it.
Actually, the 3 series is really quite different from the 2 series. It's not like they're suddenly spewing majors like Firefox &c - they just decided it's about time to move on to 3. It's been a while, and there have been a lot of changes between. Unlike Firefox (I can't even tell 4 and 5 apart, and now 6 is coming), and Chrome (it moves so fast, I don't even know which version I have anymore), Linux has been at 2 for quite a while.
And if you don't want to? I go to PA for gas all the time (southern upstate NY), and I'd much rather a nice drive than time in the office. In fact, I might be willing to pay more for the long drive than what I'd earn in the office. A sort of luxury cost, if you will. Because it's much nicer.
Slashdot Mirror
Why do you spend that much money on switches?
Sure. But you don't own other houses made by the same blueprints, or which look similar. Even if you buy the blueprints themselves.
Say, hold out your arm and point to the other side for 10 seconds before crossing. Then train drivers to actually stop for that signal?
OK, not a bad idea. Couple problems, but it could work.
Sighted people could use the same signal
And here is where it falls apart. People will start ignoring the signal again as soon as those who don't need to use it start to use it anyway.
God I hate business-speak. "Work together to better monetize your inventory"? Three words' meaning over the span of seven Dilbertian words...
I don't see how Richard Dawkins is an "inflammatory jerk-off". Hitchens you could definitely make a strong case for, but Dawkins? Certainly he's very vocal about his opinions, but there's nothing wrong with that. He seems to me to be a very kind person. Christopher Hitchens was the one who'd miss no chance to tell you you're a fucking retard.
So, in your opinion, is there no intersection between "hackers" and "computer programmers"? Because I'm pretty sure there is one, and it's quite large.
Any reason why you couldn't replace your ATmega with something like this Cortex M0 and have the same cheap DIP setup?
Actually, no. That's the first time I've seen a nice DIP ARM chip, and I'll have to look into it. Thank you! But I'm still not going to do that immediately, since I still have a bunch of AVRs sitting around, and quite a bit of time invested in learning the ins and outs of programming them. I also suspect that chip is a good bit more expensive than a simple ATmega, though I haven't actually looked, so I could be dead wrong.
Also did you benchmark the digitalWrite function?
No proper benchmarking, but in my experience it is much slower. I did read the source code. It compiles to a rather complex C++ function involving multiple table lookups and branches - repeated for every single digitalWrite(). Not nice at all for bit-banging protocols and such. When you call digitalWrite(12, 1);, it actually has to look up which register "pin 12" is in, and which bit that is. Then it checks to verify that you actually called pinMode(12, OUTPUT) - every damn time. And it does this with function calls, not just OR-ing the PORTB/C/D register with the right bit.
Everyone is just bitching about how much better their favorite chip is than AVR. This isn't even an article about that. Save it for an article about different microcontrollers.
As for the "WTF would I do with a 'wearable platform'" questions - what happened to all the hackers on Slashdot? You know, the people who were actually interesting? Jesus, I don't know what you'd do with it. I don't know what I would do with it, to be honest, but whatever happened to that inventive spirit? Just because you can't think of anything doesn't mean it's useless.
Now allow me a minute of hypocrisy to discuss why I like AVR. When I want to prototype a microcontroller-based device, I don't need some $55 "Maple" device, or even an Arduino. I bought a tube of five ATmega328s from eBay for $7. I toss one on a breadboard with a 16 MHz crystal, a couple of capacitors and a pullup resistor for the reset pin and wire it up to a 5V power supply. When I make the final circuit, I throw a DIP socket on the board, and into that socket goes the programmed chip. Again, with just a crystal, two capacitors and a resistor (maybe with a decoupling cap, depending on the rest of the circuit). Total cost? Maybe $5.
No need to even use the Arduino "IDE" or anything else, if you don't want to. And why would you? It's crap, anyway. I edit the file in vim, and generally stay away from their slow helper functions like digitalWrite() in favor of direct register access. But sometimes, it's nice to throw an Arduino library in the project. They might not be fast, but hey, you're using a 16 MHz microcontroller! It's really easy to just #include and be ready to use an LCD.
Good point about autism, and that hits home for me because I have a large number of autistic family members. Of course, "slow" is still a valid description, if a bit politically incorrect, while "just didn't want to pay attention" intentionally blames the individual.
The difference that I see is that autism and ADHD can be studied properly, we know a good bit about their causes (if not enough, it's still a start) and can medicate (whether that is desirable is a different story, but it does show that there are actual, medical causes behind them). However, I have yet to see a difference between a personality disorder and a shitty personality. They seem to be just labels for a common personality we find unpleasant.
Narcissistic Personality Disorder? Let's just call it narcissism and cut the crap. He's a narcissistic dickhead, not a sick person we should all feel sorry for.
Even with a DNR? My mother, an emergency room nurse, says those are always taken very seriously.
He said "from 'Star Trek'", not "created by 'Star Trek'".
No.
Instead of an insult, you could add to the discussion by pointing out where he was wrong and explaining what is correct. Or, if you don't know, you could just not speak, which will still give a higher net contribution to the conversation.
Rain-X isn't teflon, stupid.
Correct - in fact, it only has one, which it already has multiplexed over six input pins.
It does: Vimpulse/Viper
I've always just used fast, small WMs on netbooks. Currently mine runs IceWM. I've happily used Fluxbox and a fairly stripped-down GNOME 2 on it as well. Just make the panel nice and small (I fucking hate autohide...) and you're set.
Or are they only going to target low power low performance parts?
Like mobile? I didn't RTFA, but that's the area that seems to me to be screaming for this. With all the crap we're running on phones lately, we're going to need more memory. You can't exactly stick a SO-DIMM in a phone.
2nd-year CS/computational math student here (but I've been programming for much longer). I'm amused by your use of quotes around "programmer", since even many of my professors can't figure out the difference. I cringed every time last term when one of them insisted that Python was weakly typed and C strongly typed. Well, professor, which of the two will allow me (at least with warnings off) to "printf" a string as an integer?
Ass? He was just answering a question.
I know we've gotten thousands of "RMS smells" jokes here before, but (and it might have to do with me being extremely tired) I laughed. Thank you.
I hope one day Linus or RMS states they like the taste of poo, just to see how many nuts out there will just blindly go along and do it because these guys have an opinion and because they have done or are doing great things they must be always right.
It's a good thing you put that at the end, or most people would never read past it.
Actually, the 3 series is really quite different from the 2 series. It's not like they're suddenly spewing majors like Firefox &c - they just decided it's about time to move on to 3. It's been a while, and there have been a lot of changes between. Unlike Firefox (I can't even tell 4 and 5 apart, and now 6 is coming), and Chrome (it moves so fast, I don't even know which version I have anymore), Linux has been at 2 for quite a while.
And if you don't want to? I go to PA for gas all the time (southern upstate NY), and I'd much rather a nice drive than time in the office. In fact, I might be willing to pay more for the long drive than what I'd earn in the office. A sort of luxury cost, if you will. Because it's much nicer.