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User: SirGeek

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  1. Re:Well LCD's maybe, on Tech Industry Warns Of Memory / LCD Shortage · · Score: 1
    Well, it hasn't hit yet. Pricewatch still sells 64MB of SDRAM for $49. Pretty damn good prices. Usually you see the prices drop before you read an article like this. I don't remember what the prices were like back in February (too much up and down). I don't think comparing today's $8.50 to February's $4.50 is a good example, considering that February was close to an all time low.

    Don't know about that.. I was paying 65/128MB in August of 1999... Thats a bit lower than 49/64MB

    A funny thing.. 2 weeks ago (on the 12th) I got a 256MB PC100 for 185.. The same place now has it at 205... Seems strange that all of a sudden these are going up in price.. Oh well.. I guess I'll do what I did when RAM hit 300/128MB last year.. Wait for the price to drop again.. Right ?

  2. Re:Site down on Court Orders Owner Of Peta.org To Give Up Domain · · Score: 1
    Since Peta's officially a "Non-Profit".. why didn't they register it (or when they found they couldn't, do something about it then) ?.

    They registered peta.com 2 years after the domain peta.org was registered...

    I mean, don't they have to file copyright/trademark disputes quickly or they lose the laws backing (not defending the mark)..

    As for the link, Go to Peta.Org

  3. Re:Offtopic: PDF on Lessig On DMCA, Adobe, The US Constitution And Fair Use · · Score: 1

    What about Postscript ? Isn't PDF just a bastardized/extended version of good old PostScript ? (Granted Adobe owns that too but still..)

  4. Re:Poor Intel... on AMD's Duron Birthed · · Score: 1
    Is that a Windows system or Linux ? I have several linux boxes that are running 6 setis at a time in about 14 hours/packet.(on RH 6.0)

    The boxes above are running Windows 98 (if it were running Linux/FreeBSD/etc I know it would be a HELL of a lot faster)..

    I have a good test coming up.. My K7 550 is going to be a Linux server (as soon as I can update the OS).. And I'll see how long seti takes on it.

    Part of the reason is that these systems are pretty heavily used (the one that was a 350 has a Fax/Voice mail system which is a lot of system overhead in Winblows and the other is a heavily used desktop system doing image editing, email, browsing, html editing, etc.) compared to my UNIX systems.

  5. Re:Poor Intel... on AMD's Duron Birthed · · Score: 1
    You'll love Athlon.. I also reccommend the FIC SD11 motherboard... I have 3 (a K7-900, K7-700, and a K7-550).. They are great systems !

    And are they FAST... I use seti as a guideline.. What used to take 66+ hours on the K6-2 350 is now taking only 18 or so hours.. Pretty good huh ?

    Get that and the Guillemot G-Force2 card and you'll rock

  6. Re:Is OpenBSD still relevant? on OpenBSD 2.7 Released · · Score: 1
    At this point its pretty moot. FreeBSD (the BSD that I use on most of my UNIX systems at home ) is getting very very similar to OpenBSD it terms of "code review". And anytime I have had problems (even if they are 'in the faq') I have gotten polite reasons from the FreeBSD and even the NetBSD camps.

    Some people find Theo's development style and anti-social behavior to be abrasive, but since when have those qualities stopped anyone from being a fantastic software developer? Consider Picasso for a moment; although you may find him intensely disagreeable as a person, does that mean you will never find meaning in his paintings?

    His abusive/abrasive behavior is one reason why people WON'T deal with OpenBSD/OpenSSH.. why should I have to deal with a spokesperson like that ? If thats how he acted privatly, "offline" then fine.. But thats NOT how the spokesperson for a project should be when in the public eye (on usenet, etc.)

    No.. it doesn't adversely affect his being a programmer. But it DOES affect how people interpret his project (Theo = Abusive, Abrasive, if I need help, I will get abuse... Therefore I don't want to deal with the project).

    I urge you to reconsider OpenBSD, if you are holding back simply because of Theo's personality. OpenBSD is a truly refined, unusual experience, and, trust me on this; you can enjoy the meal without liking the chef

    I "could" enjoy OpenBSD but not with their current "chef" in charge. In this world with plenty of options, I just go to a chef (like Jordon Hubbard from FreeBSD) who is polite and curtious to the customers, not rude and demeaning.

    And besides, OpenBSD has had reviews done but if you look, they still have had many of the same problems that other BSD's (and Linux have had) do exist in OpenBSD.

    And behavior like this doesn't give me warm fuzzies about dealing with him:http://freebsd.ntu.edu.tw/bsd/10/2/17/ 1.html (yes its a few years old, but from what I have seen he hasn't grown up yet)..

  7. Re:x86 is popular to hate, but not that bad really on Is The x86 Obsolete? · · Score: 1

    Look in the Iopener !

  8. Re:Is OpenBSD still relevant? on OpenBSD 2.7 Released · · Score: 1
    Theo won't produce an ISO image.. I asked about this from him 6 or so months ago...

    As has been said, Theo doesn't work or play well with others. I mean if FreeBSD and NetBSD can remain viable (AND give away ISO images) why can't OpenBSD ?

    Answer, they can't.

    I am like many people. I like to try before I buy. At the time I had only a 33.6K dialup, I was NOT going to download individual distros. I wanted to burn a CD at work (where I have no bandwidth) then install on my computer at home. I will NOT use their product because of the actions of their spokesperson.

  9. Re:Treat your customers like you would treat a wom on Intel tells Harvard, 'Cover that Mac!' · · Score: 1

    Dave ( http://www.thursby.com/ ) for Mac.

  10. Power Grid NOT failing...(at least in New England) on Will The Power Grid Fail? · · Score: 1
    I work for the company in charge of the New England power grid (thats Main, Vermont, New Hampshire, Mass., Connecticut and Rhode Island for those of you who don't know US Geography).

    We currently have more than enough capacity for current demands and there are new plants being built that will add enough capacity for the next 10 years...

    Californias system is also expanding their power capability. My company has the ability to take measures to protect the grid if needed (power reduction, begging the state to send home state workers, and more)... California probably has the same or similar powers.

    If these "e commerse" companies need 99.99999 uptime then they should do what hospitals and other critical places do.. build their own backup power system..

    As for Y2K issues... I had to work on Y2K EVE because of all the paranoia. There was ONE incident on the entire planet attributed to Y2K (in a Japanese Nuclear plant).

  11. Re:Non/Free and Debian on Will Debian Remove 'Non-Free'? · · Score: 1
    vi is for cheap people. If you want to do anything more than basic text editing, you should be using an X11 app instead -- I can see a lot more lines of text at 800x600px than I can at 80x24chr. If you're stuck with a shell, pico is your friend.

    Cheap ? No.. Its the only editor that is installed on UNIX by default. If you don't know vi and you have to work on a Solaris or FreeBSD or a DecUNIX or an HP Unix system then you are in deep crap..

    Yes.. the other editors are nicer, but if you know vi then you are always able to edit files. And you just gained a valuable tool that works on all systems (I don't know of any UNIX shipped without at least the vi editor installed).

  12. (slightly off topic) Steve Balmer... on Microsoft Quickies · · Score: 1
    Now.. Is it me, or does he look like the StayPuff Marshmellow Man:

    http://a.r.tv.com/cnet.1d/Images/News/Ent/2000/04/ 0424SteveBallmer.jpg

    All he is missing is the little sailor's hat.

  13. Re:GNUtella only runs on *BSD, not Linux on Gnutella VBS Worm · · Score: 1
    I talked with Theo DeRaadt about this on the BSDCON mailing list a few months ago, and he essentially told me to go to hell when I suggested that this "feature" be disabled. Apparently the *BSD folks think that point-and-drool convenience takes precedence over security, even when very little convenience is achieved.

    Theo DeRaadt != BSD.. He is OpenBSD and he tends to be a bit on the rude side. I would send an email to the physical developers of the proggy (and to the development list) and explain your concerns and make your suggestion.

    Now that they're getting it to work with Linux, they have to re-write to be compatible with the real POSIX standard ..

    This isn't ONLY a BSD to Linux problem. It can be a Linux to ANYTHING problem too. I have had more nightmares converting stuff that uses /proc "files" instead of system commands (or by using some sort of wrapper around the system calls and /proc to make it portable)

  14. Re:DeCSS will be good for DVD on DeCSS Update · · Score: 1
    I'm sorry.. Not ALL people who own DVD's are "loserish" and never leave their homes...

    My wife (yes.. I'm a geek and I've been married to the same woman for 9 years) and I just got back from 4 days in Lake George (at Canoe Island Lodge) where we have gone for the last 10 years.

    The purpose of the encoding is control. They want to make sure that you can't purchase DVD's from some part of the world where they are cheaper.. Or what happens if you like Japanese Anime (IN JAPANESE, not DUBBED) you don't have a choice with regional encoding....

  15. Re:big deal on OpenBSD, Reductionist Design · · Score: 1
    Lier. I found it in less then 30 seconds

    And.. If you read my OTHER messages.. You would have seen me say that it IS there now.. it wasn't when I originally was interested in the trying OpenBSD.

  16. Re:big deal on OpenBSD, Reductionist Design · · Score: 1
    Consider the first impression you've made: "I don't really feel like looking stuff up, I'll just pester someone else..."

    Umm... If you read my follow up, I stated I DID try and look up the answer.. but at the time when I did a search on the site for "ISO image" nothing showed up.. So I asked..

  17. Re:No Capital ? Partial blame is Theo on OpenBSD, Reductionist Design · · Score: 3
    Depends on the product. If the product suits your needs, then use it. Salesmen lie to me, and I consider that extremely rude. Theo has a short temper, but he and the other OpenBSD developers make a quality product. In many situations, I use it and recommend it. In others I don't. But his attitude has little to do with his product.

    But does the Salesman belittle you or tell you you are stupid if you don't buy the product ? I have HAD this happen at Best Buy (salestwit refused to ring up a $ 500 order because I didn't want a $ 40 extended service plan).

    No.. Theo's attitude doesn't affect the product.. It DOES affect perception of the company/project. If you go into a store to make a purchase and the manager tells you that you don't know anything, you will leave and not make any purchases there. Same would apply if the manager was calling someone else stupid or being rude.

    Perception is reality. If people perceve Theo to act childish, they in turn will have a bad perception of the project. I can understand the annoyance of an FAQ question, I try to NEVER ask an FAQ question. But it happens, sometimes the documentation is obscure or not 100 % clear, is it my fault if I can't totally understand something?

    Also the old addage of "you catch more flies with honey than you do vinigar" also applies (and don't remind me that "if you pull their wings off they'll eat whatever you give them" as that doesn't apply here *g*). If he doesn't "work and play well with others", Let him stick with what he is good at (software development). Let someone else with better people skills deal with the PR side of things.

  18. Re:big deal on OpenBSD, Reductionist Design · · Score: 1
    Do a ftp install then or make your own ISO image, its not that difficult. Show your support to the project by purchasing the cd. So your opinion of an OS is based on the the fact he doesn't like ISO images? Give me a break

    No.. Its NOT that he doesn't like ISO's.. Its the fact that his "logic" is flawed (Supply ISO Image = No CD Sales).. Sorry..

    As for FTP install.. On a 33.6K dialup ? I did it ONCE, only ONCE for a FreeBSD system (Version 2.2.5).. 5 hours to do an install is not what I want to do. (Bringing the computer to my place of employ to install isn't an acceptable option - unauthorized system on the network). I only wanted a CD so I could do the install from home on my own machine and at my own rate.
    Odds are that I would have purchased it (even if I DIDN'T use it, just as a sign of support) had I NOT been annoyed.

    Is it childish ? A little. Tough.. 1st impressions are REALLY important.

  19. Re:You read it wrong! on OpenBSD, Reductionist Design · · Score: 1
    did you READ??? they DO NOT WANT venture capital. NOT want.

    Yes.. But based on all I have read, and from personal experience my take on it was

    Do Not Want = Know I can not get

    Sorry.. it is my opinion... such is life.

  20. Re:No Capital ? Partial blame is Theo on OpenBSD, Reductionist Design · · Score: 2
    In short, before anybody complains "Theo was a dick to me!", ask yourself "Did I actually attempt to find the answer myself, or just waste other people's time reasking a FAQ?" If you went to a company and their spokesperson was rude to you.. Would you EVER use that product ? Would you EVER reccomend that product ? I doubt it.. I know I wouldn't. That's GOT to hurt a company.. I know that I will probably NEVER use And I actually DID try and find something about ISO images.. A search of their site (at that time) showed nothing.

    All it would have taken is a page on their FAQ saying WHY they don't do ISO's (not that I think it is valid) would have made it simpler.

    NOTE: It is in the FAQ now...

    And I bet partial reason for NOT wanting VC's is because they KNOW due to personality conflicts the VC's would get pissed, leave and spread the word to not deal with these people..

    Don't tell me his personality isn't a determent to the project. I talked with people who are "in" with Free/Net BSD's.. They said FreeBSD and NetBSD could probably actually merge into a common code base but they also said there is little chance in hell of ever merging with OpenBSD due to "personality conflicts"....

  21. No Capital ? Partial blame is Theo on OpenBSD, Reductionist Design · · Score: 2
    As it has been said dozens of times before, Theo is a good software developer. However his people skills are, well.. lets just say they are less than desirable for a spokes person.

    If Open BSD wants venture capitalists, they should get someone OTHER Theo to talk to them. He can have an attitude (as an example, think about things like the OpenSSH.ORG/COM Issue). If you take both sides statements with a grain of salt, It seems like the owner of OpenSSH.ORG was WILLING to make a deal (if OpenBSD/SSH would just add some links to OTHER open source security projects). But Theo copped a 'tude and sicked SlashDot on the owner of the OpenSSH.ORG domain (not a good PR thing).

    As an aside (and a vent) they (read Theo) aren't not listening to the community. The other BSD's (Free and Net) both are now releasing ISO images to download. When I wanted to do some comparisons of Free/Net/Open BSD's, I wanted to download the ISO's and burn CD's (at work, since at home I only had a 33.6K dial up). For Net and Free BSD's this was not a problem. When I got to OpenBSD, Nope.. No ISO. When I asked (in what I believe to be a polite manner) I was told basically to stick it that if I wanted a CD, I had to purchase it becuase creating an ISO would cause his sales on CD's to go to nothing (Really ? Tell this to RedHat, FreeBSD, NetBSD, etc.) Sorry, with opensource I try before I buy..

    Not good to annoy someone who helps plan server deployment at their company (and for their own company). So.. No OPEN BSD.. No Purchases (since I DO purchase open source software and CD's.. I have been buying FreeBSD since 2.2.5 and have 4 different Linux Distro's too).

  22. Re:Technology can be closed. on Napster Bans Metallica Fans · · Score: 1
    But they couldn't enforce that. It would be "an undue burden" on the ISP. I know of a local ISP that deletes ALL their logs nightly so that incase of a lawsuit they have nothing to produce so they can't be bogged down in B$ from the schiest^H^H^H^H^H^H^Hlawyers with these lawsuits.

    As it has been said, If we want to make changes we need to elect politions who listen to US, not to the lobbiests. What would be the most effective way to do this ? PHYSICALLY go and see your reps. Also send PHYSICAL MAIL, not email. Real letters have more impact on them.

    The best system to get the congress/senate listening more to US (read "the voters") would be to make the congress distributed. Have them all be physically in their OWN states/districts and have a Huge Video feed of the other senators to work together. This would TOTALLY screw the PAC's and the lobbiests (because now they would have to go to 50 states, not just Washington DC).

    I find it rude that one of my state senators (in Mass) has a "home" in Virginia.. Last time I looked, if you live in a state you are a resident of the state... He's there 6 months of the year yet he can still be a MA state senator (same crap as Hillary running in NY)..

  23. Well put.. on Shut Down Metallica, Not Napster · · Score: 2
    It's insane to go after your fans. All this will do is cause their popularity to dwindle to nothing.

    Yes, they have a right to protect their interests. That is NOT the issue, the issue is HOW they are protecting them.

    What's next, you start tracking the movements of someone "suspected" of stealing (without any proof) an artists music ? You "follow" them around online (what I would call the equivalent of cyber stalking) for the sole purpose of harassment at a later date.

    I would have thought that what they did was a violation of those people online rights. Is it legal to track someones downloads of mp3's ? What about the religeous right wing people tracking people who get abortion information, or birth control information ? What if a the KKK used this to track people who support anything that they hate ? What if the anti-semites used it to track jews online so that they could harass them later ?

    If this starts happening, more and more ISP's are going to stop logging who is on what and they will just delete all log files after 24 hours (just to avoid any possibility of lawsuits - no info, they can't be forced to supply it).

  24. Re:Time to move into the future... on Library Of Congress Will Not Digitize Books · · Score: 1

    If it were costs.. Then he should have said that.. It would be a lot smarter to say "Yeah.. We would like to put the books online, but our funding is limited and we would rather purchase new books with it"...

  25. Re:It will eventually happen on Library Of Congress Will Not Digitize Books · · Score: 1

    Hmm.. Its impractical to have all the research libraries on line.. Hmm.. No electronic access to Geneological research so someone in Maine can search out their family tree .. no access the medical journals so medical students in UCLA can research from their dorm rooms where they can take electronic notes and possibly help discover a cure to cancer or aids... no access to "The Classics" so that a literary student can do research on Beowulf (and NOT find stuff on the cluster) or Chaucer...

    Yeah I can see how bad it would be... So what if I can't download War and Peace on my 28.8K modem.. BF'ND... What if I want to search for specific topics in the library ? (ie. search ALL medical references for something like "Chrones Disease" ).. This way I could see ONLY the texts with the info. Its MORE accessable this way.. Instantly ALL colleges, ALL libraries, ALL homes have instant access to the LofC, 24/7/365 ... I can see how bad that would be...