Those stickers were impossible to get applied squarely, even if there was a recessed or embossed surface for it to go on! And don't even think about repositioning once you start sticking them.;-)
Seriously, $1000 for two mounted badges, vinyl stripe set, custom sill plates, and embroidered arm rest (all installed) sounds about right. The "GM Certified" accessories available for my car start at $200 for engine louver screens - about 0.25 m^2 of cut screen material. Moral of the story - get aftermarket whenever possible!
There appears to be an embroidered logo on the center arm rest.
Accessory packages are usually expensive because the components they use (GM certified accessories) are really expensive. If you REALLY like all the components in the package, it makes sense to get it. If you only want ONE of the components (maybe you only want the exterior badges), you can get those dealer-installed for a lower price.
Or better yet, get a knock-off and pay 25% the price:-)
BTW, if this is truely an accessory package, the dealer is installing it anyway - parts are thrown in the trunk at assembly.
That's a pretty massive pneumatic cyclinder for the job needed. It looks like you'd need quite a large collection tank to maintain pressure.
I'd complain that the compressor would make a lot of noise, but if this guy requires this to wake up, I'm guessing he could have the compressor in his room and he wouldn't notice. I'm guessing he's running hose down to a basement or garage air unit.
If I was designing this system, I probably would have mounted the cylinder rod to the floor with a alignment coupler instead of letting it drive into some plywood. I bet the walls around the bed are pretty messed up from the bed banging against it.
If this guy needs this violent of a wake-up scheme, perhaps the cost of these materials would have been better used towards some medical attention?
Working as a design engineer and FEA analyst at a small mechanical design shop gives me the chance to work with on a lot of different projects.
One day, my boss comes in and tells me to look over a design this old guy from Florida has for a power generating machine.
This guy wasn't taking the "violates the laws of thermodynamics" line, so I had to spend some time to model up his design (a large drum that rotated, with small pistons that would drive up and down in relation to the surface of the drum, driving a crankshaft). He couldn't get it that this was essentially an overly complex gear, except with way more inefficiencies.
He tried to use the "if you roll a wine bottle with a string attached to the circumference, you can lift a load". He just couldn't accept that this was an example of transfer of work. Sigh.
What finally got him to calm down was that even if the drum could produce positive energy, it would immediately be gobbled up by the inefficiencies of the drive motor, gearing, and generator.
Good luck getting on a plane or train without driver's license. Granted, a Passport will work too. Though, I used my driver's license to get my passport:-)
We already have a national ID card and everybody already has it. It's your social security card.
How about we update the SSCard from paper to plastic, add a 2-d barcode on the back, add a photo on the font, add a hologram, rfid, gps, whatever on it, and you're done.
Licensed to drive in a state? Change the border of the picture, add a line on the info, whatever.
Would that cost $4,000,000,000? Maybe. I'm happy the government is finally worried about a number as low as 4-billion.:-)
While the state of Texas can't have a law, the establishment you were in could very likely have a rule stating that they won't accept out-of-state IDs, as they are easier to forge (an unusual ID is easier to get by). As a private business, they have the right to refuse to serve anyone they deem fit for (almost) any reason.
When I worked at the Wisconsin student union bar, we had a book of state licenses so we could check them. We also required student ID or union membership, and we had a LARGE book with all the students names and their birthdates so we could corroborate if we didn't like the look of somebody's ID.
It was a blast to refuse people because their ID was fake. Some were really bad - one guy scratched off the last digit on his birthdate and drew in a different number. Problem was, there was one place that said "under 21 until..." on the top of his picture, and the scratching there distorted the picture, which he didn't try to fix. Another one was a NY liscense that was glued onto the back of a ATM card to give it the right thickness. Classy.
While multi-body systems are complex, when you compare the gravitational forces of the planets on one-another to the gravitational force from the sun, there isn't a comparison. I suppose, over billions and billions of years, Jupiter could affect Mars' path and pull it to a more eccentric path... maybe. Hm... maybe the point of the article (which I didn't read, of course) is that as time progresses, the Sun's mass gets lower, thus gravity from the surrounding planets becomes a larger factor?
It would be interesting to see Mars gravity-assist around Jupiter. Too bad we won't be around to see it:-)
More likely is an outside force causing a change in orbit, like our ex-planet Pluto.
You could upgrade bit by bit, only purchasing the items you need to get the performance boost you desire.
You could theoretically keep the case, fans, dvd drives, maybe the HD between builds. Will you end up paying a little more over a bare-bones setup. Depends on where you buy and what deals you find.
Re-using is more eco-friendly than recycling.
On a different note, doesn't a 9800 require a power hook-up, and isn't the suggested minimum PowerSupply 400W? I thought I noticed that the last time I was looking at them... And if you're putting a Blu-Ray and a TV Tuner, aren't you going to need a larger PS?
I scanned TFA and all I saw that was "green" was the CPU, PS and the vid card. I don't know if that warrants a $800 starting point.
The B/W e-paper and the high-contrast Color LCD - sounds like the color is used in both the backlit and non-lit versions, while the e-paper is used to get the high efficiency mode.
I wonder what the refresh rates on each of these displays is?
I'm guessing the refresh rate on the e-paper is way low if it uses so little power. Black to White in 250ms maybe?
But if that's what radio is transitioning to, better to have the next gen, which can also pick up old stations, than be left with an obsolete bit of tech, right?
They'll have an HD radio receiver. That's something that iPod doesn't do. Screen resolution does sound cruddy. It would be interesting to see what this thing could do, but most likely will be discarded, just like the original Zune (I believe the original Zune had a radio receiver too).
Slashdot Mirror
Did you ever have Transformers growing up?
;-)
Those stickers were impossible to get applied squarely, even if there was a recessed or embossed surface for it to go on! And don't even think about repositioning once you start sticking them.
Seriously, $1000 for two mounted badges, vinyl stripe set, custom sill plates, and embroidered arm rest (all installed) sounds about right. The "GM Certified" accessories available for my car start at $200 for engine louver screens - about 0.25 m^2 of cut screen material. Moral of the story - get aftermarket whenever possible!
I didn't see any mention of interior changes.
There appears to be an embroidered logo on the center arm rest.
:-)
Accessory packages are usually expensive because the components they use (GM certified accessories) are really expensive. If you REALLY like all the components in the package, it makes sense to get it. If you only want ONE of the components (maybe you only want the exterior badges), you can get those dealer-installed for a lower price.
Or better yet, get a knock-off and pay 25% the price
BTW, if this is truely an accessory package, the dealer is installing it anyway - parts are thrown in the trunk at assembly.
My Corvette still turned heads this morning when I drove it to work. I guess they didn't realize that it's just two Aveos glued together ;-)
That's a pretty massive pneumatic cyclinder for the job needed. It looks like you'd need quite a large collection tank to maintain pressure.
I'd complain that the compressor would make a lot of noise, but if this guy requires this to wake up, I'm guessing he could have the compressor in his room and he wouldn't notice. I'm guessing he's running hose down to a basement or garage air unit.
If I was designing this system, I probably would have mounted the cylinder rod to the floor with a alignment coupler instead of letting it drive into some plywood. I bet the walls around the bed are pretty messed up from the bed banging against it.
If this guy needs this violent of a wake-up scheme, perhaps the cost of these materials would have been better used towards some medical attention?
If we build it, Scotty will come!
Yeah, the power you got from it was low. Fusion was the way to go!
Working as a design engineer and FEA analyst at a small mechanical design shop gives me the chance to work with on a lot of different projects.
:-)
One day, my boss comes in and tells me to look over a design this old guy from Florida has for a power generating machine.
This guy wasn't taking the "violates the laws of thermodynamics" line, so I had to spend some time to model up his design (a large drum that rotated, with small pistons that would drive up and down in relation to the surface of the drum, driving a crankshaft). He couldn't get it that this was essentially an overly complex gear, except with way more inefficiencies.
He tried to use the "if you roll a wine bottle with a string attached to the circumference, you can lift a load". He just couldn't accept that this was an example of transfer of work. Sigh.
What finally got him to calm down was that even if the drum could produce positive energy, it would immediately be gobbled up by the inefficiencies of the drive motor, gearing, and generator.
Best part of it was that I still got paid!
Good luck getting on a plane or train without driver's license. Granted, a Passport will work too. Though, I used my driver's license to get my passport :-)
We already have a national ID card and everybody already has it. It's your social security card.
:-)
How about we update the SSCard from paper to plastic, add a 2-d barcode on the back, add a photo on the font, add a hologram, rfid, gps, whatever on it, and you're done.
Licensed to drive in a state? Change the border of the picture, add a line on the info, whatever.
Would that cost $4,000,000,000? Maybe. I'm happy the government is finally worried about a number as low as 4-billion.
Oh, and we did accept Passports and Military IDs
While the state of Texas can't have a law, the establishment you were in could very likely have a rule stating that they won't accept out-of-state IDs, as they are easier to forge (an unusual ID is easier to get by). As a private business, they have the right to refuse to serve anyone they deem fit for (almost) any reason.
When I worked at the Wisconsin student union bar, we had a book of state licenses so we could check them. We also required student ID or union membership, and we had a LARGE book with all the students names and their birthdates so we could corroborate if we didn't like the look of somebody's ID.
It was a blast to refuse people because their ID was fake. Some were really bad - one guy scratched off the last digit on his birthdate and drew in a different number. Problem was, there was one place that said "under 21 until..." on the top of his picture, and the scratching there distorted the picture, which he didn't try to fix. Another one was a NY liscense that was glued onto the back of a ATM card to give it the right thickness. Classy.
While multi-body systems are complex, when you compare the gravitational forces of the planets on one-another to the gravitational force from the sun, there isn't a comparison. I suppose, over billions and billions of years, Jupiter could affect Mars' path and pull it to a more eccentric path... maybe. Hm... maybe the point of the article (which I didn't read, of course) is that as time progresses, the Sun's mass gets lower, thus gravity from the surrounding planets becomes a larger factor?
:-)
It would be interesting to see Mars gravity-assist around Jupiter. Too bad we won't be around to see it
More likely is an outside force causing a change in orbit, like our ex-planet Pluto.
Exactly. I meant the syntax is essentially the same. I guess you could make the case that it's also similar in syntax to a bunch of other languages...
:-)
Coding for NASTRAN was a blast. It definitely gave us appreciation for visual analyzers, near-auto meshing, and integration into 3-d modeling
MatLab is essentially Fortran.
When we did FEA work, we used NASTRAN, which still required inputs in Fortran.
That being said, I think colleges should teach more relevant materials to get them better acquainted with current standard programs.
You could upgrade bit by bit, only purchasing the items you need to get the performance boost you desire.
You could theoretically keep the case, fans, dvd drives, maybe the HD between builds. Will you end up paying a little more over a bare-bones setup. Depends on where you buy and what deals you find.
Re-using is more eco-friendly than recycling.
On a different note, doesn't a 9800 require a power hook-up, and isn't the suggested minimum PowerSupply 400W? I thought I noticed that the last time I was looking at them... And if you're putting a Blu-Ray and a TV Tuner, aren't you going to need a larger PS?
I scanned TFA and all I saw that was "green" was the CPU, PS and the vid card. I don't know if that warrants a $800 starting point.
The entire power used in the North American grid isn't too bad when you're only using it for a fermentosecond :-)
Too bad we won't be able to buy Incandescents any more in a couple years.... :-(
http://www.formplusfunction.com/blog/2009/will-incandescent-bulbs-soon-be-outlawed/
unless they can get the new bulbs to 70% less power used.
The clock is ticking to 2014 (when 40watts are outlawed).
sorry for the link, didn't have time to find a reputable site...
The B/W e-paper and the high-contrast Color LCD - sounds like the color is used in both the backlit and non-lit versions, while the e-paper is used to get the high efficiency mode.
I wonder what the refresh rates on each of these displays is?
I'm guessing the refresh rate on the e-paper is way low if it uses so little power. Black to White in 250ms maybe?
On a laptop it is :-)
"Portable" computers used to have that 4" CRT on them back when they weighted 20 lbs. But as for the modern laptop, it's been LCD all the way.
Does the school truancy database count as a government computer?
Step 1: Stop answering bug reports
Step 2: Use GIMP to remove "beta" from all header pics
Step 3: ????
Step 4: Profit!
TFA says it has HDMI capabilities - I assume it either has a mini-HDMI jack or you have to buy a dock to get an HDMI jack (more likely, suckier).
But if that's what radio is transitioning to, better to have the next gen, which can also pick up old stations, than be left with an obsolete bit of tech, right?
They'll have an HD radio receiver. That's something that iPod doesn't do. Screen resolution does sound cruddy. It would be interesting to see what this thing could do, but most likely will be discarded, just like the original Zune (I believe the original Zune had a radio receiver too).
:-)
Lol, GoBots
that the programming required to make this machine worked required at least one random function :-)