Workpad z50 with NetBSD was my mobile solution that allowed me to make massive changes to a legacy application back in 2000(*). Took that machine with me all over Orange County, CA, so that I could work without interruption. Couldn't afford a laptop at the time. Very fond memories of getting everything working on that Workpad z50. Heck, I even learned about NetBSD for the discontinued z50 from Slashdot.
(*)The changes were to a COBOL application. The changes were to produce, on request, XML output of all reports for web dissemination. The task was urgent, boring as Hell (assuming Hell is boring; YMMV) and I could not do it in the office. I needed vi and sed and the Workpad z50 w/ NetBSD was the thing that allowed me to get away and work all day without interruption. Park, beach, microbrewery... all accessible with NetBSD and my z50.
My suggestion is to d/l edubuntu Live CD (x86, PPC, AMD64 versions available). I did this just this weekend and began showing my 6 year old around the system. There are a number of excellent applications for education (most above the level of the average elementary student, no doubt) and educational games. One is the LOGO programming language/environment, which is designed to teach programming to children. Also, in the GCompris educational packages is a "boat race" game that is a programming teaching aid (forward x, left degrees). Recommended.
"If you're words aren't truthful, the finest optically letter spaced typography won't help," he says. "And if your images aren't on point, making them dance in color in three dimensions won't help."
This is true, no doubt. However, it is helpful from the position of the viewer of the presentation more so than from the presenter. What I mean is this: many times people have to make presentations that
Don't have anything to say and or
Whose words aren't truthful
For these people in either or both the above categories, PowerPoint can be a huge g-dsend, allowing them to execute a praise-generating (or, sales-generating) presentation that, had the person followed Tufte's advice, would have (rightfully) bombed.
PowerPoint: stretching Truth and Content since 1997.
People ready software, indeed. Lots of people have nothing to say or lie when they say it.
Example: the Vista project manager giving a status report on features implemented, bugs solved and milestones met (this needs "filler") and projections for hitting delivery dates (this needs "less than truthful"). PowerPoint to the rescue!
Seriously, though. In Tufte's world, those without something truthful to say simply would say nothing. I like that world. But, I live in the Internet Age and know that world, perfect as it is, does not exist.
I always thought of the 72 Virgins as 8 and 9 year old boys. So, when these losers blow themselves up, they have to put up with 72 rowdy boys who are NOT about to allow some raghead (excuse the French) piddle with their blokes. Plan subject to modification in case of pederast. Limit 1 per customer. Not valid in all jurisdictions. Must have two forms of ID and this coupon to be eligible. No smoking.
Aside: If Islam is a religion of peace, why is there so much violence where it is unanimously practiced?
Terrorism isn't likely to kill anyone. Driving to work is a greater threat; but a more boring one, so it doesn't get the attention it statistically deserves..
You don't understand what Terrorism is all about, evidently. Mass murder, as a different motive from Terrorism, is about killing lots of people. Terrorism is about inducing terror in the masses. Very few, if any, deaths are required to produce terror. In fact, the goals of the Islamofacists are to disrupt our economy and society through acts of terror.
When it comes to yet another highway fatality the cost in terms of human life is measurable, but the impact on day-to-day life in our society hardly sees a blip (unless that fatality closes the 405, 101, or some other major thoroughfare; then it is (sorry to say) a tragedy on a grander scale!).
Reducing deaths in daily life is a different subject altogether from stopping terrorism. Don't you recall September 2001? The month the skies were quiet? Few people died in the planes (compared to the numbers flying that day) but the effect was that all traffic was stopped for days. Our nation was at a standstill. THAT is the intent of terrorism. Remember the stock market crash after 9/11/01? THAT is the intent of terrorism. Remember Spain pulling out of the alliance fighting terror sponsors in the Middle East (e.g., Iraq)? THAT is the intent of the terrorist. Murder is a means to the terrorist, not the aim.
Oh, great. I commented on the unreliability of the author without reading the article. Rob Enderle. What a freak. That he makes 'wild attributions' of intent (positive or negative on any given subject) is a given. Mark my post with the 'Obvious' tag. Oh wait... this isn't Fark. Sorry.
Even more interesting is the DHS initiative for Coverity to use this same bug detection software on 40 open source projects.
Before the F/OSS nay sayers toss out the obligatory (and to be expected) "Meh. So much for the 'many eyes' theory" let's point out that having the ability to run a code checker on source code is only possible to the holders of said source code. So, while absolutely true that a proprietary vendor can run the code checker on their code as well as an open source project, there is a huge difference when it comes to the customer/user of said software: with Open Source the user has the freedom to run such a tool over the source code themselves.
In this age of SarbOx and risk management there is a real competitive advantage to F/OSS over proprietary code to large companies: audit-ability. In previous roles I've had to attest under HIPPA::Security that proprietary code was "secure" -- how? All I could do was obtain a vendor statement that was as non-commital and burden-shifting as possible. Yet, with a true ability to audit the code my pharmaceutical company depended on it would tilt the balance between similar-featured Closed vs Open source solutions. Especially today.
Ok, maybe nobody really cares about the 'many eyes' theory anymore. Regardless, the "open the hood" theory still applies, perhaps more than ever.
'If you get too excited about what is supposed to be an incredibly amazing product you simply won't buy a new Apple this year.'
The writer of that statement, in explaining why Apple must have dumbed-down their product announcements of late, attributes strategic genius to Steve beyond the pale. The suppositions behind such a statement is that
Apple could never release a dud
Steve is incapable of a less-than-stellar product introduction
Therefore, the thinking goes, it is master strategy to sell more this year so that people won't tank the stock (*ahem*) this year by not buying current inventory. Problem with this is that Apple has always led with its best foot forward: they announced the move to Intel before there was an Intel-based product offering, as a case in point.
Attributing a master strategy as the reviewer in question has done is akin to Coca Cola aficionados who attribute New Coke as a masterful ploy to boost "Classic Coke" sales and loyalty over Pepsi Cola. Yeah, it turned out that CC pulled their butts out of a tight spot with the re-introduction of Coke Classic to appease the revolt, but calling it master strategy is revisionist history at best.
Let's just leave it at this: Apple has broken its string of amazing announcements (amazing in the marketing buzz generation sense) with a slight dud; expect more goodness in the future as Apple redoubles its efforts to overwhelm us with goodness.
To do this, Paloski will put astronauts in a centrifuge. While they lie comfortably on their sides (the astronauts are tested one at a time), the device spins at varying rates of speed forward and back.
Someone register google.gov real quick like! You'll make a billion!
(Note: this is an example of sarcasm. Enjoy. If you actually have the connections to register Google.gov, please move along, this isn't the tax payer you're looking for.)
Is it any wonder he's leaving MS in 2008 to focus on his charitable work? I mean, that gives him time to run for US President as the "real" executive answer to Ross Perot for an American public increasingly tired of the extremists in the 2 Parties We Have Now(TM). Successful businessman, charitable giver...
Of course, his detractors will say that:
He has a terrible record with security
He's just performing a hostile takeover of the biggest threat to Microsoft's monopoly position
He is conviction-less and, like his PR-based charitable efforts, is less motivated by the public sector than by the power of the office.
While Bush may be stupid, at least he's not a college drop-out
Then again, his supporters will say that:
He has really, truly, produced jobs and made millionaires out of people, unlike Welfare State politicos or Trickle-Down economos
He would be taking a severe "cut in pay"
He would be "giving up" influence and power (scary thought)
Awww.... he's a harmless geek! Gootchie, gootchie, ***GGGAAAHHHHHH!!!! My Finger!!!! ****
Ok, I'm using synergy now on my PowerBook G4 with two screens and my Dell 5150 (which will soon have two screens). The mouse sharing is seamless and exactly what I need to develop cross-platform web apps.
Slashdot Mirror
'cause it's not cool unless it's tomorrow's technology today or 25 year old technology today.
As long as Charles Nelson Riley isn't my partner (not that there's anything wrong with that...) this should be fun.
Not true. There are several non-obvious ways to Mute the Startup Sound.
(See, the start up "noise" is not obviously controllable to new Mac users... Oh, never mind...)
(*)The changes were to a COBOL application. The changes were to produce, on request, XML output of all reports for web dissemination. The task was urgent, boring as Hell (assuming Hell is boring; YMMV) and I could not do it in the office. I needed vi and sed and the Workpad z50 w/ NetBSD was the thing that allowed me to get away and work all day without interruption. Park, beach, microbrewery... all accessible with NetBSD and my z50.
My suggestion is to d/l edubuntu Live CD (x86, PPC, AMD64 versions available). I did this just this weekend and began showing my 6 year old around the system. There are a number of excellent applications for education (most above the level of the average elementary student, no doubt) and educational games. One is the LOGO programming language/environment, which is designed to teach programming to children. Also, in the GCompris educational packages is a "boat race" game that is a programming teaching aid (forward x, left degrees). Recommended.
- Don't have anything to say and or
- Whose words aren't truthful
For these people in either or both the above categories, PowerPoint can be a huge g-dsend, allowing them to execute a praise-generating (or, sales-generating) presentation that, had the person followed Tufte's advice, would have (rightfully) bombed.PowerPoint: stretching Truth and Content since 1997.
People ready software, indeed. Lots of people have nothing to say or lie when they say it.
Example: the Vista project manager giving a status report on features implemented, bugs solved and milestones met (this needs "filler") and projections for hitting delivery dates (this needs "less than truthful"). PowerPoint to the rescue!
Seriously, though. In Tufte's world, those without something truthful to say simply would say nothing. I like that world. But, I live in the Internet Age and know that world, perfect as it is, does not exist.
Aside: If Islam is a religion of peace, why is there so much violence where it is unanimously practiced?
Very nice
When it comes to yet another highway fatality the cost in terms of human life is measurable, but the impact on day-to-day life in our society hardly sees a blip (unless that fatality closes the 405, 101, or some other major thoroughfare; then it is (sorry to say) a tragedy on a grander scale!).
Reducing deaths in daily life is a different subject altogether from stopping terrorism. Don't you recall September 2001? The month the skies were quiet? Few people died in the planes (compared to the numbers flying that day) but the effect was that all traffic was stopped for days. Our nation was at a standstill. THAT is the intent of terrorism. Remember the stock market crash after 9/11/01? THAT is the intent of terrorism. Remember Spain pulling out of the alliance fighting terror sponsors in the Middle East (e.g., Iraq)? THAT is the intent of the terrorist. Murder is a means to the terrorist, not the aim.
Oh, great. I commented on the unreliability of the author without reading the article. Rob Enderle. What a freak. That he makes 'wild attributions' of intent (positive or negative on any given subject) is a given. Mark my post with the 'Obvious' tag. Oh wait... this isn't Fark. Sorry.
In this age of SarbOx and risk management there is a real competitive advantage to F/OSS over proprietary code to large companies: audit-ability. In previous roles I've had to attest under HIPPA::Security that proprietary code was "secure" -- how? All I could do was obtain a vendor statement that was as non-commital and burden-shifting as possible. Yet, with a true ability to audit the code my pharmaceutical company depended on it would tilt the balance between similar-featured Closed vs Open source solutions. Especially today.
Ok, maybe nobody really cares about the 'many eyes' theory anymore. Regardless, the "open the hood" theory still applies, perhaps more than ever.
The writer of that statement, in explaining why Apple must have dumbed-down their product announcements of late, attributes strategic genius to Steve beyond the pale. The suppositions behind such a statement is that
- Apple could never release a dud
- Steve is incapable of a less-than-stellar product introduction
Therefore, the thinking goes, it is master strategy to sell more this year so that people won't tank the stock (*ahem*) this year by not buying current inventory. Problem with this is that Apple has always led with its best foot forward: they announced the move to Intel before there was an Intel-based product offering, as a case in point.Attributing a master strategy as the reviewer in question has done is akin to Coca Cola aficionados who attribute New Coke as a masterful ploy to boost "Classic Coke" sales and loyalty over Pepsi Cola. Yeah, it turned out that CC pulled their butts out of a tight spot with the re-introduction of Coke Classic to appease the revolt, but calling it master strategy is revisionist history at best.
Let's just leave it at this: Apple has broken its string of amazing announcements (amazing in the marketing buzz generation sense) with a slight dud; expect more goodness in the future as Apple redoubles its efforts to overwhelm us with goodness.
Does sharing it via SMB work?
That'd be my poor-man's solution
Unimpressed with the FBI's charges against their employee/contractor? Heard of Randal Schwartz?
Oh. My. God. Get This thing OFF my ARM!
(Note: this is an example of sarcasm. Enjoy. If you actually have the connections to register Google.gov, please move along, this isn't the tax payer you're looking for.)
- He has a terrible record with security
- He's just performing a hostile takeover of the biggest threat to Microsoft's monopoly position
- He is conviction-less and, like his PR-based charitable efforts, is less motivated by the public sector than by the power of the office.
- While Bush may be stupid, at least he's not a college drop-out
Then again, his supporters will say that:BookmarkRank to augment PageRank?
Hmmm.....
Congratulations. You win the Internet!
Firefox on OS X. No pop-ups on that site.
Ok, I'm using synergy now on my PowerBook G4 with two screens and my Dell 5150 (which will soon have two screens). The mouse sharing is seamless and exactly what I need to develop cross-platform web apps.
I don't hear them complaining, so why should you?
Thank you!