Sorry for the self-reply, but my brain's still spinning. White Sands missile range had some success shooting down artillery shells, but it had a hell of a time with it. Basically they just spin to damned fast to heat up any single point enough to cause the device to fail.
I am not an aeronautic engineer, but would spinning a bomb be efficient/effective? What about missiles?
Probably more difficult than a reflective spray, but spinning could be predicted and could still have a competent guidance system with existing targeting methods.
OK, If somebody Rs TFA and my issue is addressed, feel free to enlighten/pwn me. But one of the best laser defenses I know of is simply misguiding missiles. Many are laser/infrared guided so, by providing false input, you can misdirect them and guide them off-target. It seems that any spray that can filter out a false signal will also filter out the true signal.
Buy a huge SUV big enough to fit your bike in. Then drive to work with the bike. Then ride your bike home. Then take a cab to pick up your SUV and drive home. Simple!
No way am I paying for a cab to go get my SUV. I drive it to work with my bike in the back and then tie a chain to my bike so that I can tow the SUV home. Better work-out, no stink at work. It's a win-win!
You know what would be great ? All us introverts should get together some time. No party people allowed. And then we'll have a party.
In other news, I may need medication:P
That's a terrific idea - maybe 100 or so introverts converging. But it may be hard to host.
Who has a house with a living room that can entertain 7 people with 93 bathrooms for everyone else to hide in while they're recovering from the socialization exposure?
I were stood on the Mexico side of the border and you on the US side and I shot you, I would have committed my crime in Mexico, no?
Apparently you're confused. You would be in Mexico while committing a crime in the United States. Perhaps you've committed some kind of noise violation or "discharging a weapon within city limits" crime for which Mexico could punish you for before turning you over, but the murder would be tried in US courts and punished by the US prison system.
If you started sending mail bombs from Mexico to the US, do you really think that the US wouldn't stand up and take notice?
Guess what, I'm routinely violating Saudi laws -- I tend to enjoy a glass of red wine with my pork chops. Should I be deported?
No. But you're really twisting the details there. If you want a glass of red wine, have one. If you want to travel a little and smoke some reefer in a legal hash bar, smoke some. But, if you mail reefer to the US or ship wine to Saudi, prepare to face the consequences. Even though you're not in the country where you're breaking the law, your actions crossed the line. He may have been in the UK at the time, but he was breaking the law in the US. [For the record, laws banning alcohol/pot bug the hell out of me, but that's beside the point.]
Sure it was a trivial effort to breach those systems. Sure the damages are grossly inflated. But that doesn't imply a green light for somebody to sit in the UK and break laws all over the world hoping that they won't have to pay the piper.
...Your post however does not add any value. People bitching about how a comment was rated are pathetic and makes me want to put a gun in my mouth. How can you have so little meaning in your life that you could possible even think of writing something of so little value...
This story has been in the British press for a few days, and I find the whole thing disgusting. As mentioned elsewhere, the $900k was the cost of securing these systems after this guys just walked in with default windows passwords...
I wish I could do that... I'd build a quick frame with a roof and move in my furniture and appliances. Maybe even put up a front door with no knob. As soon as somebody wandered in through my open walls, sue them for the cost of putting up walls and installing locks.
If you play it right, it's a workout. You won't get as good scores at the weenies who sit on the couch and twitch the controllers, but who cares?
If you've already got the Wii and you want to use it to work out, just buy the Wii Fit. Mostly, it's just a scale that will track your weight, but there are a number of really useful benefits. Some of the Yoga/Strength exercises are good muscle builders and the Yoga/Balance games are pretty good for posture. And as for the Aerobics, the step-aerobics and jogging may help if you haven't moved in a while. However the Hula-hoop & Super-hula-hoop are actually a decent aerobics workout if you keep it up for 15 minutes or so (if not necessarily balanced around your muscles).
Wii Sports is fun and I'll break a sweat playing baseball or boxing (the lamest two of the five games), but I wouldn't classify it as a workout.
Actually I think that, on the point I referenced, he was spot on. I won't go so far as to defend the "series of tubes" analogy, but his car analogy was absolutely accurate.
Unless of course, you're implying that the Internet is a big truck.
(In case is didn't/isn't coming across, I was/am joking.)
The bit I haven't yet deciphered (I have RTFA, but it didn't really help) is what exactly the lawsuit claims. It says that it's filed under the DMCA, but not what exactly Hasbro are claiming copyright on. Is a game concept copyrightable? If not, can Scrabulous just remove whatever little bit it is that they are claiming on?
They're not claiming copyright on anything if I understand correctly.
They're claiming trademark infringement. It's likely that if Scrabulous changed its name and perhaps trivially tweaked the gameplay, Hasbro would just bugger off. There are plenty of knock-offs of popular games, they're just renamed and re-themed.
Where are you driving that you need over an hour (almost two if you are going 55) to think about getting gas?
When the gas light comes on you should still have over a gallon left in a small car(look in your manual, it is usually called reserve) which should be enough to get you to a gas station on any interstate in the US
My car gets ~33-34 MPG. But, driving on some of the New Mexico highways, planning an hour ahead to get gas isn't at all excessive if you're getting low. Sure, you may find some wide spot in the road where you can get an extra gallon for $7 to hold you over - But even that may be wishful thinking. There are some long stretches in this state with not much to see depending on where you're going.
Of course, for normal driving in civilized areas, keeping a couple of gallons in the tank should be plenty to keep you from drifting off on to the shoulder.
Actually, I recall watching a "leaked" copy of The Devil's Rejects (it may have been House of 1000 Corpses, but I'm 75% sure it was Rejects). It was obviously a well-placed tripod at a private screening (nice theater, small screen relative to multiplexes) - Crystal clear audio. The interesting thing was that, at the very start, there was some ass-hole with a cowboy hat blocking part of the screen. He stood up during the opening credits and walked out of the theater. I don't know for certain that it was Rob Zombie, but it sure as hell looked like him when you caught his profile.
Another problem is that the general public also doesn't know what a "good movie" is.
I bet you more people saw the godawful Batman & Robin (to date, the only movie I've walked out of) in the theater than Blade Runner.
I wanted to point out what an ignorant statement that was - I sure as hell never wasted my time with Batman and Robin and I thoroughly enjoyed Blade Runner. So, I went after some numbers to shut down that disgusting and spurious statement of yours.
Unfortunately, it appears that you're not only right [B&R link], but really distressingly right [BR link]. Although (based on my rough interpretation on the rather odd box office numbers for BR and [falsely] assuming that the re-releases were free to the studio), it appears that Blade Runner was eventually profitable while Batman and Robin cost the studio almost $20M.
Assuming all the features were easy to copy, generation three cars from all 9 (lets say 1 died) manufacturers are going to be awesome: Good mileage, low pollution, creature comforts, power everything...
One big problem. If one company did not innovate at all, it would have an inferior product for a very short while. But before long, they would copy all of the other innovations and could sell a car with all of the improvements for a lower sticker price than all of the competitors because they don't have to recoup R&D and they could eliminate all of their competition. If two cars have identical A/C systems, the public won't care who came up with the idea or who had it first. If the quality's the same, they'll want the one that's cheaper (the one that doesn't have to recoup costs).
Also, your "crappy cars because of patents" scenario assumes no licensing. If two car companies both find some cool improvements, there's nothing stopping them from saying "You can put A/C in your cars if you'll pay us $25 per car with A/C and let us use that neat new suspension technique you figured out." That's a win-win (for both car companies and the consumer) and it happens all the time.
Can companies hoard their patents and refuse to play with others until they expire? Sure. That happens a lot too, but I'm not convinced that American technological ingenuity is suffocating because of it. Like I said, patents are often badly abused and the system has flaws, but I do believe that patents (at least in the case of hardware innovations) are essential for this country's business model. I'd like to see the system improved, but I certainly don't consider elimination an improvement.
Also, I think that your comparison to open source is a little flawed. As the Patent Office has finally figured out, software is a very different creature than hardware. Unfortunately, community designed hardware is something of a rarity.
Yep - That's all it takes. That's why, as soon as word got out about the horrors and hardships that blood diamonds were encouraging, the Congo immediately shut down all of its diamond mining capabilities. Just let the world know how ugly the situation is and they'll gladly give up their luxuries or pay a little bit extra to get them from somewhere a little more stable.
What?
They wont? The DRC is still exporting 8% of the world's diamonds and refusing to tell the UN where they're coming from and how they're attaining them? Well that's just sick...
Slashdot Mirror
Sorry for the self-reply, but my brain's still spinning. White Sands missile range had some success shooting down artillery shells, but it had a hell of a time with it. Basically they just spin to damned fast to heat up any single point enough to cause the device to fail.
I am not an aeronautic engineer, but would spinning a bomb be efficient/effective? What about missiles?
Probably more difficult than a reflective spray, but spinning could be predicted and could still have a competent guidance system with existing targeting methods.
OK, If somebody Rs TFA and my issue is addressed, feel free to enlighten/pwn me. But one of the best laser defenses I know of is simply misguiding missiles. Many are laser/infrared guided so, by providing false input, you can misdirect them and guide them off-target. It seems that any spray that can filter out a false signal will also filter out the true signal.
Discuss.
Buy a huge SUV big enough to fit your bike in. Then drive to work with the bike. Then ride your bike home. Then take a cab to pick up your SUV and drive home. Simple!
No way am I paying for a cab to go get my SUV. I drive it to work with my bike in the back and then tie a chain to my bike so that I can tow the SUV home. Better work-out, no stink at work. It's a win-win!
You know what would be great ? All us introverts should get together some time. No party people allowed. And then we'll have a party.
In other news, I may need medication :P
That's a terrific idea - maybe 100 or so introverts converging. But it may be hard to host.
Who has a house with a living room that can entertain 7 people with 93 bathrooms for everyone else to hide in while they're recovering from the socialization exposure?
...without gaining a fraction of an inch around my waste line...
I don't know whether that typo was intentional or not.
I just know that I like it.
My clock is digital with 1 minute resolution and is set ~30 seconds slow. It's right 1440 times a day - Try that trick with a broken clock.
You insensitive clod.
Have you ever heard a properly executed Yakov Smirnoff?
Does it sound like the trap-door on a gallows dropping or a gun-shot?
I were stood on the Mexico side of the border and you on the US side and I shot you, I would have committed my crime in Mexico, no?
Apparently you're confused. You would be in Mexico while committing a crime in the United States. Perhaps you've committed some kind of noise violation or "discharging a weapon within city limits" crime for which Mexico could punish you for before turning you over, but the murder would be tried in US courts and punished by the US prison system.
If you started sending mail bombs from Mexico to the US, do you really think that the US wouldn't stand up and take notice?
So he was violating US laws, but he wasn't there.
Guess what, I'm routinely violating Saudi laws -- I tend to enjoy a glass of red wine with my pork chops. Should I be deported?
No. But you're really twisting the details there. If you want a glass of red wine, have one. If you want to travel a little and smoke some reefer in a legal hash bar, smoke some. But, if you mail reefer to the US or ship wine to Saudi, prepare to face the consequences. Even though you're not in the country where you're breaking the law, your actions crossed the line. He may have been in the UK at the time, but he was breaking the law in the US. [For the record, laws banning alcohol/pot bug the hell out of me, but that's beside the point.]
Sure it was a trivial effort to breach those systems. Sure the damages are grossly inflated. But that doesn't imply a green light for somebody to sit in the UK and break laws all over the world hoping that they won't have to pay the piper.
...Your post however does not add any value. People bitching about how a comment was rated are pathetic and makes me want to put a gun in my mouth. How can you have so little meaning in your life that you could possible even think of writing something of so little value...
Mod parent Insightful!!! =)
This story has been in the British press for a few days, and I find the whole thing disgusting. As mentioned elsewhere, the $900k was the cost of securing these systems after this guys just walked in with default windows passwords...
I wish I could do that... I'd build a quick frame with a roof and move in my furniture and appliances. Maybe even put up a front door with no knob. As soon as somebody wandered in through my open walls, sue them for the cost of putting up walls and installing locks.
Great business model!
If you play it right, it's a workout. You won't get as good scores at the weenies who sit on the couch and twitch the controllers, but who cares?
If you've already got the Wii and you want to use it to work out, just buy the Wii Fit. Mostly, it's just a scale that will track your weight, but there are a number of really useful benefits. Some of the Yoga/Strength exercises are good muscle builders and the Yoga/Balance games are pretty good for posture. And as for the Aerobics, the step-aerobics and jogging may help if you haven't moved in a while. However the Hula-hoop & Super-hula-hoop are actually a decent aerobics workout if you keep it up for 15 minutes or so (if not necessarily balanced around your muscles).
Wii Sports is fun and I'll break a sweat playing baseball or boxing (the lamest two of the five games), but I wouldn't classify it as a workout.
Hindu push-ups, Hindu squats, back bridge. For more information: http://cbass.com/Furey.htm [cbass.com].
That was not the kama sutra link I was looking for...
Actually I think that, on the point I referenced, he was spot on. I won't go so far as to defend the "series of tubes" analogy, but his car analogy was absolutely accurate.
Unless of course, you're implying that the Internet is a big truck.
(In case is didn't/isn't coming across, I was/am joking.)
Stevens did his best to give us a car analogy: "The Internet is not a big truck."
OK, it wasn't enough to satisfy everyone, but at least he tried.
The bit I haven't yet deciphered (I have RTFA, but it didn't really help) is what exactly the lawsuit claims. It says that it's filed under the DMCA, but not what exactly Hasbro are claiming copyright on. Is a game concept copyrightable? If not, can Scrabulous just remove whatever little bit it is that they are claiming on?
They're not claiming copyright on anything if I understand correctly.
They're claiming trademark infringement. It's likely that if Scrabulous changed its name and perhaps trivially tweaked the gameplay, Hasbro would just bugger off. There are plenty of knock-offs of popular games, they're just renamed and re-themed.
These types of posts are getting on my nerves.
If you battery went you would not of made the post at all...I'm not stupid.
Candlejack does the same damn thing.
If he really had snatched away a poster, he would not have been able to hit Su
Where are you driving that you need over an hour (almost two if you are going 55) to think about getting gas?
When the gas light comes on you should still have over a gallon left in a small car(look in your manual, it is usually called reserve) which should be enough to get you to a gas station on any interstate in the US
My car gets ~33-34 MPG. But, driving on some of the New Mexico highways, planning an hour ahead to get gas isn't at all excessive if you're getting low. Sure, you may find some wide spot in the road where you can get an extra gallon for $7 to hold you over - But even that may be wishful thinking. There are some long stretches in this state with not much to see depending on where you're going.
Of course, for normal driving in civilized areas, keeping a couple of gallons in the tank should be plenty to keep you from drifting off on to the shoulder.
I'm not paying to see a movie in public, not with the assholes. I'm not paying to rent it, either.
Too many assholes at home?
Actually, I recall watching a "leaked" copy of The Devil's Rejects (it may have been House of 1000 Corpses, but I'm 75% sure it was Rejects). It was obviously a well-placed tripod at a private screening (nice theater, small screen relative to multiplexes) - Crystal clear audio. The interesting thing was that, at the very start, there was some ass-hole with a cowboy hat blocking part of the screen. He stood up during the opening credits and walked out of the theater. I don't know for certain that it was Rob Zombie, but it sure as hell looked like him when you caught his profile.
Commercial screenings != broadcast.
Cams in theaters != taping TV.
Another problem is that the general public also doesn't know what a "good movie" is.
I bet you more people saw the godawful Batman & Robin (to date, the only movie I've walked out of) in the theater than Blade Runner.
I wanted to point out what an ignorant statement that was - I sure as hell never wasted my time with Batman and Robin and I thoroughly enjoyed Blade Runner. So, I went after some numbers to shut down that disgusting and spurious statement of yours.
Unfortunately, it appears that you're not only right [B&R link], but really distressingly right [BR link]. Although (based on my rough interpretation on the rather odd box office numbers for BR and [falsely] assuming that the re-releases were free to the studio), it appears that Blade Runner was eventually profitable while Batman and Robin cost the studio almost $20M.
What a world...
Assuming all the features were easy to copy, generation three cars from all 9 (lets say 1 died) manufacturers are going to be awesome: Good mileage, low pollution, creature comforts, power everything...
One big problem. If one company did not innovate at all, it would have an inferior product for a very short while. But before long, they would copy all of the other innovations and could sell a car with all of the improvements for a lower sticker price than all of the competitors because they don't have to recoup R&D and they could eliminate all of their competition. If two cars have identical A/C systems, the public won't care who came up with the idea or who had it first. If the quality's the same, they'll want the one that's cheaper (the one that doesn't have to recoup costs).
Also, your "crappy cars because of patents" scenario assumes no licensing. If two car companies both find some cool improvements, there's nothing stopping them from saying "You can put A/C in your cars if you'll pay us $25 per car with A/C and let us use that neat new suspension technique you figured out." That's a win-win (for both car companies and the consumer) and it happens all the time.
Can companies hoard their patents and refuse to play with others until they expire? Sure. That happens a lot too, but I'm not convinced that American technological ingenuity is suffocating because of it. Like I said, patents are often badly abused and the system has flaws, but I do believe that patents (at least in the case of hardware innovations) are essential for this country's business model. I'd like to see the system improved, but I certainly don't consider elimination an improvement.
Also, I think that your comparison to open source is a little flawed. As the Patent Office has finally figured out, software is a very different creature than hardware. Unfortunately, community designed hardware is something of a rarity.
Yep - That's all it takes. That's why, as soon as word got out about the horrors and hardships that blood diamonds were encouraging, the Congo immediately shut down all of its diamond mining capabilities. Just let the world know how ugly the situation is and they'll gladly give up their luxuries or pay a little bit extra to get them from somewhere a little more stable.
What?
They wont? The DRC is still exporting 8% of the world's diamonds and refusing to tell the UN where they're coming from and how they're attaining them? Well that's just sick...
Actually... From here...
In season 1, episode 4, "Heavy Metal", of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles , it is stated that the endoskeleton of the Terminator machines is made using alloys derived from coltan to make them hardened to heat.