I agree with most of what you say, and I also thought the test was crap.
However, I think it's important for people to understand the debates between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists. They give us the context for, among other things, the Constitution. Even though it does say in the Bill of Rights that powers not delegated to the government in the Constitution go to the states or the people, it might drive the point home further for some people if they understood that not all of the founding fathers wanted a Bill of Rights.
They'd take the next logical step and ask how that could be. Then they'd realize that there is a downside to having a list of rights--people start to think that the government actually grants them their rights, when it merely is charged with protecting them.
The story is similar with copyright. If you understand that not everyone was in favor of it, it becomes easier to take of the "but that's that way it is" glasses and truly look at the pros and cons.
I think the problem was mostly the name of the text...they should have called it "history and civics" or something. Even considering the more contentious questions, it doesn't reflect well on someone who got less than half of the test right, and who is American. I realized as I was taking the test that this is why people say such stupid things around the office around election time, because they don't understand things like checks and balances, whereas I tend to take for granted that people know the three branches (I wonder how many people would say Democrat, Republican, Independent).
What do you consider "out of the gate"? If you picked '91-93, then OS X didn't exist and you could have said "Windows 3.1 and Linux basically came out of the gate with the same amount of following."
Apple both contributes to and benefits from free software. I think you're high from case modding fumes.
You're right...I think that's that's precisely why people should be educated on who exactly can declare war according to the Constitution. So that they can call out the things you listed as the bullshit power grabs that they are.
They could also be people who lied about holding office.
I agree, the test could have been a lot better.
The price system utilizes more local knowledge of means and ends
To be fair, this is how I remember learning it in freshman economics. To the degree that, after I read the question, I expected an answer about price being based on information, and individuals getting the information faster. Not that it isn't contentious, or that there isn't more to the picture, but I think it's okay to expect someone to know at least that definition. Of course, if they're going to include the money questions, they should call the test subject something like "American goverment" rather than civics.
And the vast majority of those users are happy to spell "Mac" correctly. That the occasional idiot gets it wrong doesn't mean we all need to start updating our dictionaries.
If those "poor victimized employees" really work in a call center, there's no damn way they're starting work an hour late. They add up the amount of time you were logged in to the phone system every day, and every week they tell you it wasn't good enough, and you should eat/poop less, etc.
On the other hand, if they're not in a call center, they should be judged by better metrics than "were you at your desk". Like how much work you got done, how many sales made, etc.
What an LLC protects you from is bankruptcy, not something like a lawsuit or a criminal investigation.
That is, under an LLC, your financial liability is "limited" to a certain amount (what you've invested), and you do not have to personally cover losses above this amount.
Because over 90% of their desktop customers still want Windows, and because Microsoft is probably giving them a lot more than a $10 discount for playing nice.
I'm not saying it wouldn't be nice, it's just not realistic right now. Now, if Windows 7 tanks, we might start to see some nice-looking linux systems.
Then again, are you sure we want HP doing this? HP thinks it's acceptable to spackle their own media center on top of Microsoft's, because selling you the machine is not enough, and because apparently Microsoft's doesn't take long enough to load.
I have heard these arguments from you before. I agreed with them then and I agree now. Though, like I said before, I don't think there's much *technology-wise* that keeps street-corner linux support from becoming financially viable, just that there's not much of a market for it at present.
You speak from experience. It's always enjoyable to hear from such people. These "armchair OEMs" shouldn't be telling you how to run your shop, or that you don't know how to market because you decided not to lopsidedly cater to what's, at best, 2% of the market.
But then there's this...
Believe me I have known plenty of Mac heads and a snobbier bunch has never been on the earth.
Maybe I just have good friends, but if we drool over gadgets, we don't look at the brand first. I know plenty of people who not only use Apple but work for them (Apple stores, not Cupertino) and even they know not to argue with people about, of all things, what brand of computer they use.
I know the stereotype is Macheads are snobs, but I've just never ever experienced it. To the contrary, what I get is people looking for ways to knock my computer, like it actually offends them that I'm not on a PC. Then they go fishing for something to insult with. Now that Apple is back in the public eye, they flip to the index card marked "it's faddish". (If having a well-thought-out OS on decent hardware is a fad, then I hope it continues for as long as possible.)
But we are defined by our actions, not by what brands we consume. If somebody wants to infer something about me based on my computer, I will infer that they believe that they were gullible enough to buy into this "brand = lifestyle" thing the ad goons have stuck us with. Their loss.
My one extremely mild caveat: I know one Mac user who basically told me, "I caught a deal on a PC and tried Windows for a while, and I don't understand why people like it." Not exactly what I'd call snobbishness, just an honest but uninformed question. I made sure I answered it though, or at least made him understand that most people feel the opposite way, since there's a lot that's good about Windows.
What would they gain? The ire of the shareholders?
If they could push linux on the desktop in a significant way, and come out ahead, they would. One day, they probably will. That's business. They've been around much longer than Microsoft, and seeing on how Microsoft is not as diverse a company as HP, maybe they'll outlast MS as well.
But, for the time being, their customers want Windows. I think that the linux push, if there is one, has to come from the community for quite a while longer before it makes financial sense for the OEMs to throw out their MS discounts.
That, or MS could stop pulling bullshit like subverting the ISO, and we wouldn't have to treat proprietary software stacks like they're a contagious disease.
I largely agree with you and it's nice to hear from someone who doesn't repeat the same old "country sucks" meme.
Someone who listens to bluegrass will likely also listen to pop country too.
But here's where we differ. As you say, there's quite a range within country. I wouldn't go as far as to include bluegrass, though. Strange as it sounds, I'd guess that their audiences don't overlap much (assuming that you define "country" as Shania Twain et al. Your average Gram Parsons fan tends to be a little more informed, I'd think).
Today's country is straight pop. I hate to have to say this but...following the explosion of crossover artists like Garth Brooks in the 90s, the only thing really separating radio country from radio pop is the absence/presence of black musicians (yeah yeah, Charlie Pride, I know).
I'm sure a lot of people will be offended by that. I don't mean to condemn anyone. I'm certainly not making a statement about the listeners of country music. It's just the way it is. Life is weird.
I love Gram Parsons, George Jones, Johnny Cash, Alison Krauss, etc. And I love bluegrass. And I hate today's country-pop. I'm not including artists like Alison Krauss (how could you hate her?!). Anyway, I'd imagine it's the same with a lot of people. Either you like country, or you like the crap that passes for it today, in which case bluegrass isn't going to find its way into your collection.
Similarly, fans of Led Zeppelin probably aren't lining up to buy Hoobastank tickets because they're both rock.
Where I'm from, there's no way you could get all those groceries and make a burger for a dollar. The ground beef alone is going to be most of that dollar. Then you still have to buy the bun, onion, etc.
Cruel though it may be, I doubt many of us will be crying if McAfee disappears.
That said, I feel this might a little bit different from the Netscape story. Consider that the antivirus companies will have to convince regulators that their product is not a necessary part of Windows, despite telling the public over and over again that it is.
That's interesting, I never noticed that. We had a typewriter with the white tape but I was young and never used it for anything serious. They should just standardize on a key called "oops".
As for Apple, it's pretty simpler on the laptops and the new keyboard...Delete erases to the left, Fn-Delete erases to the right. Makes sense to me. Almost all of the actions are the same between different systems, they just have different key combos. One cool think I'm noticing is that with wx, you code for one and it's smart enough to keep it cross-platform (Cmd becomes Ctrl on Windows, etc).
On closer inspection, it's looking like I fed a troll (M$, Canonical writing drivers, etc). Wish I had an oops key.
Since when does calling your "delete" key "backspace" make sense? Shouldn't backspace insert a space to the left of the cursor?
The Apple keyboards may not be what you're used to, but if we're going to knock one, let's pick the IBM style, since that's the one that doesn't make sense.
Slashdot Mirror
I agree with most of what you say, and I also thought the test was crap.
However, I think it's important for people to understand the debates between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists. They give us the context for, among other things, the Constitution. Even though it does say in the Bill of Rights that powers not delegated to the government in the Constitution go to the states or the people, it might drive the point home further for some people if they understood that not all of the founding fathers wanted a Bill of Rights.
They'd take the next logical step and ask how that could be. Then they'd realize that there is a downside to having a list of rights--people start to think that the government actually grants them their rights, when it merely is charged with protecting them.
The story is similar with copyright. If you understand that not everyone was in favor of it, it becomes easier to take of the "but that's that way it is" glasses and truly look at the pros and cons.
I think the problem was mostly the name of the text...they should have called it "history and civics" or something. Even considering the more contentious questions, it doesn't reflect well on someone who got less than half of the test right, and who is American. I realized as I was taking the test that this is why people say such stupid things around the office around election time, because they don't understand things like checks and balances, whereas I tend to take for granted that people know the three branches (I wonder how many people would say Democrat, Republican, Independent).
Spreadsheets or GTFO!
but anyone with a clue will tell you it has just as many problems as any other OS
Maybe Paul Thurrott says that. I don't know about "anyone with a clue".
By the way, I only responded to this comment because it looked pretty :)
I think he means Canada and Mexico. If not then I'm totally stumped.
What do you consider "out of the gate"? If you picked '91-93, then OS X didn't exist and you could have said "Windows 3.1 and Linux basically came out of the gate with the same amount of following."
Apple both contributes to and benefits from free software. I think you're high from case modding fumes.
You're right...I think that's that's precisely why people should be educated on who exactly can declare war according to the Constitution. So that they can call out the things you listed as the bullshit power grabs that they are.
They could also be people who lied about holding office.
I agree, the test could have been a lot better.
The price system utilizes more local knowledge of means and ends
To be fair, this is how I remember learning it in freshman economics. To the degree that, after I read the question, I expected an answer about price being based on information, and individuals getting the information faster. Not that it isn't contentious, or that there isn't more to the picture, but I think it's okay to expect someone to know at least that definition. Of course, if they're going to include the money questions, they should call the test subject something like "American goverment" rather than civics.
And the vast majority of those users are happy to spell "Mac" correctly. That the occasional idiot gets it wrong doesn't mean we all need to start updating our dictionaries.
Two words: automated deployment.
If those "poor victimized employees" really work in a call center, there's no damn way they're starting work an hour late. They add up the amount of time you were logged in to the phone system every day, and every week they tell you it wasn't good enough, and you should eat/poop less, etc.
On the other hand, if they're not in a call center, they should be judged by better metrics than "were you at your desk". Like how much work you got done, how many sales made, etc.
What an LLC protects you from is bankruptcy, not something like a lawsuit or a criminal investigation.
That is, under an LLC, your financial liability is "limited" to a certain amount (what you've invested), and you do not have to personally cover losses above this amount.
Because over 90% of their desktop customers still want Windows, and because Microsoft is probably giving them a lot more than a $10 discount for playing nice.
I'm not saying it wouldn't be nice, it's just not realistic right now. Now, if Windows 7 tanks, we might start to see some nice-looking linux systems.
Then again, are you sure we want HP doing this? HP thinks it's acceptable to spackle their own media center on top of Microsoft's, because selling you the machine is not enough, and because apparently Microsoft's doesn't take long enough to load.
I have heard these arguments from you before. I agreed with them then and I agree now. Though, like I said before, I don't think there's much *technology-wise* that keeps street-corner linux support from becoming financially viable, just that there's not much of a market for it at present.
You speak from experience. It's always enjoyable to hear from such people. These "armchair OEMs" shouldn't be telling you how to run your shop, or that you don't know how to market because you decided not to lopsidedly cater to what's, at best, 2% of the market.
But then there's this...
Believe me I have known plenty of Mac heads and a snobbier bunch has never been on the earth.
Maybe I just have good friends, but if we drool over gadgets, we don't look at the brand first. I know plenty of people who not only use Apple but work for them (Apple stores, not Cupertino) and even they know not to argue with people about, of all things, what brand of computer they use.
I know the stereotype is Macheads are snobs, but I've just never ever experienced it. To the contrary, what I get is people looking for ways to knock my computer, like it actually offends them that I'm not on a PC. Then they go fishing for something to insult with. Now that Apple is back in the public eye, they flip to the index card marked "it's faddish". (If having a well-thought-out OS on decent hardware is a fad, then I hope it continues for as long as possible.)
But we are defined by our actions, not by what brands we consume. If somebody wants to infer something about me based on my computer, I will infer that they believe that they were gullible enough to buy into this "brand = lifestyle" thing the ad goons have stuck us with. Their loss.
My one extremely mild caveat: I know one Mac user who basically told me, "I caught a deal on a PC and tried Windows for a while, and I don't understand why people like it." Not exactly what I'd call snobbishness, just an honest but uninformed question. I made sure I answered it though, or at least made him understand that most people feel the opposite way, since there's a lot that's good about Windows.
Speak for yourself :)
Maybe we "grammar Nazis" have a point.
In the real world, they have no reason to do any of that.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usage_share_of_desktop_operating_systems
What would they gain? The ire of the shareholders?
If they could push linux on the desktop in a significant way, and come out ahead, they would. One day, they probably will. That's business. They've been around much longer than Microsoft, and seeing on how Microsoft is not as diverse a company as HP, maybe they'll outlast MS as well.
But, for the time being, their customers want Windows. I think that the linux push, if there is one, has to come from the community for quite a while longer before it makes financial sense for the OEMs to throw out their MS discounts.
That, or MS could stop pulling bullshit like subverting the ISO, and we wouldn't have to treat proprietary software stacks like they're a contagious disease.
Year after year, I maintain the feeling that Windows is teetering on the brink.
Reading a lot of Slashdot will do that to you :D
If I had to guess, I'd say you're a fan of fast playing. I'd be interested to hear what you think of this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AD5Tc2TDCmM
"Redneck Jazz Explosion - Gatton & Emmons"
I largely agree with you and it's nice to hear from someone who doesn't repeat the same old "country sucks" meme.
Someone who listens to bluegrass will likely also listen to pop country too.
But here's where we differ. As you say, there's quite a range within country. I wouldn't go as far as to include bluegrass, though. Strange as it sounds, I'd guess that their audiences don't overlap much (assuming that you define "country" as Shania Twain et al. Your average Gram Parsons fan tends to be a little more informed, I'd think).
Today's country is straight pop. I hate to have to say this but...following the explosion of crossover artists like Garth Brooks in the 90s, the only thing really separating radio country from radio pop is the absence/presence of black musicians (yeah yeah, Charlie Pride, I know).
I'm sure a lot of people will be offended by that. I don't mean to condemn anyone. I'm certainly not making a statement about the listeners of country music. It's just the way it is. Life is weird.
I love Gram Parsons, George Jones, Johnny Cash, Alison Krauss, etc. And I love bluegrass. And I hate today's country-pop. I'm not including artists like Alison Krauss (how could you hate her?!). Anyway, I'd imagine it's the same with a lot of people. Either you like country, or you like the crap that passes for it today, in which case bluegrass isn't going to find its way into your collection.
Similarly, fans of Led Zeppelin probably aren't lining up to buy Hoobastank tickets because they're both rock.
Where I'm from, there's no way you could get all those groceries and make a burger for a dollar. The ground beef alone is going to be most of that dollar. Then you still have to buy the bun, onion, etc.
You're forgetting about the "dumb user" security risk.
Cruel though it may be, I doubt many of us will be crying if McAfee disappears.
That said, I feel this might a little bit different from the Netscape story. Consider that the antivirus companies will have to convince regulators that their product is not a necessary part of Windows, despite telling the public over and over again that it is.
pretty simpler = simpler
That's interesting, I never noticed that. We had a typewriter with the white tape but I was young and never used it for anything serious. They should just standardize on a key called "oops".
As for Apple, it's pretty simpler on the laptops and the new keyboard...Delete erases to the left, Fn-Delete erases to the right. Makes sense to me. Almost all of the actions are the same between different systems, they just have different key combos. One cool think I'm noticing is that with wx, you code for one and it's smart enough to keep it cross-platform (Cmd becomes Ctrl on Windows, etc).
On closer inspection, it's looking like I fed a troll (M$, Canonical writing drivers, etc). Wish I had an oops key.
Ubuntu != OS X.
Since when does calling your "delete" key "backspace" make sense? Shouldn't backspace insert a space to the left of the cursor?
The Apple keyboards may not be what you're used to, but if we're going to knock one, let's pick the IBM style, since that's the one that doesn't make sense.