I don't have a DVD player; I want one to watch movies on my laptop.
The wireless card is a USR 5410. It "sees" it as a TI based card, and it will even see my home network when I do an "iwconfig", but it will not connect.
A degree in computer science generally isn't a degree in hardware, or in Microsoft Windows.
Some very good programmers I work with have no ability to use a computer above and beyond the compiler, and a few unix commands. The ability to work with end users, gather requirements and turn them into a working system are distinct from the ability to understand why MS made a "Pro" and "Home" version of Windows XP (something that still isn't clear to me).
I'll grant you, there are a few people who understand everything from the boot manager, to device drivers, to HTML coding, to Java coding. Those people are exceptional, and I don't think that makes other people "bad" or "dumb"
My guess is that this is Microsoft's way of saying they don't think your data is worth anything.
$5? That doesn't pay for a case of soft drinks these days.
They seem to be saying that even if everything is wiped out, they only owe you $5. What's more now that you know this, you legally acknowledge this is all the liability MS has.
They've got IE7 coming out "someday", but in the meantime, if there's a new web forms standard, that just costs them money to support it and there's not payback for that support.
I'm not saying they're right. I'm justing pointing out that from MS's viewpoint, the status-quo is just fine right now.
The PJB100 was never intended to take the market. It was simply first. Hango had no presence in the U.S. market, and still doesn't.
They simply made a gadget that proved there was a market. The software was not pretty, but it had one great feature that iTunes does not:
It can/could rip a song from a CD and save it directly to the player.
Which is just trivia.
The point is that Apple didn't invent the MP3 player. They didn't invent the HD MP3 player. They didn't even popularize the MP3 player. But they managed to take it from the realm of gadgets into people's pockets. That's a big deal. And its enough of a big deal that we don't have to exaggerate and say "Apple invented the MP3 player".
Sony didn't invent the transistor radio, but they sure made them popular.
"In many ways, it's a similar situation to CDs today - none of the attempts to replace CDs have been successful because CDs are "good enough" for 99% of the consumers."
Lets step back a minute here.
CD's offer very high quality digital music with no DRM.
The replacments offered so far are significantly poorer in terms of sonic quality and come with DRM.
SACD and DVD-Audio are fine for audio, but the music libraries available are a tiny fraction of CD's, and they come with DRM restrictions.
At this point, because of the way the RIAA views its customers as thieves, CD's will live longer than vinyl.
"but unless we can come up with a better system that will help promote the advancement of arts and sciences without trampling on the rights of inventors and creators, this is the only system we've got."
Software has only recently been considered patentable; in fact the largest body of computer work by far was done before software was considered patentable.
There's so many it would be foolish to list...real, actual advance...
job scheduling protected memory lossless compression mice dynamic RAM static RAM virtual memory networking traceroute many many many sorting algorithms
I mean, you could list them all day, and all of them came before software patents.
By contrast, Since software patents, we have....
One click shopping traceroute (?????)
When I hear people say stuff about software and patents, it makes me think they either have no understanding of the history of computers, or they're very young.
Even if this legislation were to suddenly be passed, how would you deal with CD's?
As far as I know, aside from an irrelevant number of SACD's and DVD-Audio disks, these are the highest quality digital copies that are common. And they have no DRM.
Since CD players are in every car, consumer device, computer....everything, how exactly could you ban them? And the RIAA can't stop selling them, because the infrastructure is in place and has been for 20 years.
Sure, people switched from LP's to CD's, but primarily because the new format was universally felt to be more convenient and sounded excellent.
So they're stuck with CD's (which is fortunate for consumers). And as long as CD's exist, pure digital quality sound is going to be around and available as close as the neareset CD shop.
There's no way out for the RIAA.
Now, the MPAA is actually in better shape, because they've never given us high-quality video (DVD's aren't). I have a feeling that is going to be an easier job to get us hooked on DRM, since they could conceivably hook us with HD video that has DRM attached.
But audio is a lost cause for greedy middlemen.
I have an idea how Sony can save their own butt
on
Sony Admits MP3 Error
·
· Score: 2, Interesting
This will sound crazy, but follow my logic here.
There are tons of players that do ATRAC out there. Virtually all the Sony music stuff these days does either ATRAC and MP3 or just ATRAC. That's a lot of devices.
Here's how sony can win out over Apple in the end.
Put together and open source an implementation of ATRAC. If they did that, there would immediately be tons of proprietary and non-proprietary implementations of ATRAC for every platform. Then put the thing out there in a standards body and get it sanctioned. I know some people in Sony think they have the Holy Grail with ATRAC, but as it stands, its virtually useless. If ATRAC is out there and popular, it would be a viable option to the.m4p format apple uses to protect content.
Its that's simple. Seriously. Sony could go from last to first in less than a year.
They would still have to do MP3, of course, but like Apple, they could do MP3 and ATRAC, set up a music store, and then by licensing the DRM to other music stores, effectively take control of the market.
I doubt this will happen, but it really would work.
1) What contract do you have in place with the vendor? Surely all of this is spelled out in a statement of work someplace?
2) Why would you agree to have something developed for you if you don't get the source? Surely there are so many independent vendors with references and more willing to work with you that you didn't have to agree to such a silly restriction.
At a minimum, all of your communication with the vendor should be via certified mail. If you're going to stop paying them, you need a paper trail that document that they haven't abided by the terms of the contract.
"If you're going to waste their money on a mac mini, why not just go for the el cheapo special from dell or someone and then install Linux on it?"
Because you can get
a) MS Office for the Mac b) It comes with iLife, which is a very nice tool for digital photography. c) You can go to CompUSA and get software for it d) With OS X, you do get a BSD Unix with arguably one of the best GUI's on the market. e) Recommended by Consumer Reports!
I used Spybot S&D and Adaware (I even paid for Adaware), and I finally came to the conclusion that neither was particularly effective against machines that were already infected.
On a recommendation from PC Magazine, I tried Webroot Spy Sweeper, and guess what...it really just works.
Yes, you should have firewall (two firewalls: a hardware and software firewall), yes, you should have antivirus. But Spybot S&D and Adaware aren't particularly good things to use these days. Sometimes its worth paying $30 to eliminate the problem.
Slashdot Mirror
I don't have a DVD player; I want one to watch movies on my laptop.
The wireless card is a USR 5410. It "sees" it as a TI based card, and it will even see my home network when I do an "iwconfig", but it will not connect.
I'm having trouble with a DVD player (even google can't tell me if it will work or not), and a wireless network card.
So what's the trick, and where's some good links?
I understand the marketing why's.
I just don't understand the technical difference besides the fact that "home" can't connect to a domain (and some differences in file sharing).
I guess I could look on Google, but I just don't care .
A degree in computer science generally isn't a degree in hardware, or in Microsoft Windows.
Some very good programmers I work with have no ability to use a computer above and beyond the compiler, and a few unix commands. The ability to work with end users, gather requirements and turn them into a working system are distinct from the ability to understand why MS made a "Pro" and "Home" version of Windows XP (something that still isn't clear to me).
I'll grant you, there are a few people who understand everything from the boot manager, to device drivers, to HTML coding, to Java coding. Those people are exceptional, and I don't think that makes other people "bad" or "dumb"
My guess is that this is Microsoft's way of saying they don't think your data is worth anything.
$5? That doesn't pay for a case of soft drinks these days.
They seem to be saying that even if everything is wiped out, they only owe you $5. What's more now that you know this, you legally acknowledge this is all the liability MS has.
"How can you sit back and trust your local or state government to deliver this service?"
Whether I do or don't is immaterial.
The real question is:
As a resident, as a citizen, isn't it my right to empower my local government to deliver WiFi/Broadband if I desires?
Perhaps I think my local government does do a good job delivering services.
To me, the argument about essential versus non-essential services is interesting, but not at all relevant to the discussion here.
If Lexmark want to sell printers at a loss and make money on cartridges, that's fine.
But its not clear why that's (a) my concern or (b) the government's concern.
They've got IE7 coming out "someday", but in the meantime, if there's a new web forms standard, that just costs them money to support it and there's not payback for that support.
I'm not saying they're right. I'm justing pointing out that from MS's viewpoint, the status-quo is just fine right now.
"The point of this bill is to prevent municipalities from taxing citizens to pay for a service most people will never use."
Like...Ambulance and Fire?
Or did you mean something else?
"Without protection for IP, including patents, the value of software falls to zero"
Software patent have existing for about 10 years (more or less). So are you saying the economic value of software before 1994 was zero?
I'll assume I don't have to point to the multitude of examples that prove this to be false?
"If you're really an "audiophile", then you don't get your music in digital form"
Is that available anymore? LP's are gone, and I don't have a turntable.
How can I get music stored in analog these days?
The PJB100 was never intended to take the market. It was simply first. Hango had no presence in the U.S. market, and still doesn't.
They simply made a gadget that proved there was a market. The software was not pretty, but it had one great feature that iTunes does not:
It can/could rip a song from a CD and save it directly to the player.
Which is just trivia.
The point is that Apple didn't invent the MP3 player. They didn't invent the HD MP3 player. They didn't even popularize the MP3 player. But they managed to take it from the realm of gadgets into people's pockets. That's a big deal. And its enough of a big deal that we don't have to exaggerate and say "Apple invented the MP3 player".
Sony didn't invent the transistor radio, but they sure made them popular.
Look up PJB100 on google and you'll find out about the first widely distributed HD MP3 player.
Nice player, it is considered big these days, but battery life is excellent, and the sound is terrific.
She is going to pretty steamed when she finds out there are a few people left not devoted to figuring out ways to get customers to buy more ink.
"In many ways, it's a similar situation to CDs today - none of the attempts to replace CDs have been successful because CDs are "good enough" for 99% of the consumers."
Lets step back a minute here.
CD's offer very high quality digital music with no DRM.
The replacments offered so far are significantly poorer in terms of sonic quality and come with DRM.
SACD and DVD-Audio are fine for audio, but the music libraries available are a tiny fraction of CD's, and they come with DRM restrictions.
At this point, because of the way the RIAA views its customers as thieves, CD's will live longer than vinyl.
You can send the check directly to me, since I am representing the plaintiff in this case.
We'll give a 10% discount for cash.
I'll stop by around 10 o'clock to pick up the cash.
"but unless we can come up with a better system that will help promote the advancement of arts and sciences without trampling on the rights of inventors and creators, this is the only system we've got."
Software has only recently been considered patentable; in fact the largest body of computer work by far was done before software was considered patentable.
There's so many it would be foolish to list...real, actual advance...
job scheduling
protected memory
lossless compression
mice
dynamic RAM
static RAM
virtual memory
networking
traceroute
many many many sorting algorithms
I mean, you could list them all day, and all of them came before software patents.
By contrast, Since software patents, we have....
One click shopping
traceroute (?????)
When I hear people say stuff about software and patents, it makes me think they either have no understanding of the history of computers, or they're very young.
Even if this legislation were to suddenly be passed, how would you deal with CD's?
As far as I know, aside from an irrelevant number of SACD's and DVD-Audio disks, these are the highest quality digital copies that are common. And they have no DRM.
Since CD players are in every car, consumer device, computer....everything, how exactly could you ban them? And the RIAA can't stop selling them, because the infrastructure is in place and has been for 20 years.
Sure, people switched from LP's to CD's, but primarily because the new format was universally felt to be more convenient and sounded excellent.
So they're stuck with CD's (which is fortunate for consumers). And as long as CD's exist, pure digital quality sound is going to be around and available as close as the neareset CD shop.
There's no way out for the RIAA.
Now, the MPAA is actually in better shape, because they've never given us high-quality video (DVD's aren't). I have a feeling that is going to be an easier job to get us hooked on DRM, since they could conceivably hook us with HD video that has DRM attached.
But audio is a lost cause for greedy middlemen.
This will sound crazy, but follow my logic here.
.m4p format apple uses to protect content.
There are tons of players that do ATRAC out there. Virtually all the Sony music stuff these days does either ATRAC and MP3 or just ATRAC. That's a lot of devices.
Here's how sony can win out over Apple in the end.
Put together and open source an implementation of ATRAC. If they did that, there would immediately be tons of proprietary and non-proprietary implementations of ATRAC for every platform. Then put the thing out there in a standards body and get it sanctioned. I know some people in Sony think they have the Holy Grail with ATRAC, but as it stands, its virtually useless. If ATRAC is out there and popular, it would be a viable option to the
Its that's simple. Seriously. Sony could go from last to first in less than a year.
They would still have to do MP3, of course, but like Apple, they could do MP3 and ATRAC, set up a music store, and then by licensing the DRM to other music stores, effectively take control of the market.
I doubt this will happen, but it really would work.
1) What contract do you have in place with the vendor? Surely all of this is spelled out in a statement of work someplace?
2) Why would you agree to have something developed for you if you don't get the source? Surely there are so many independent vendors with references and more willing to work with you that you didn't have to agree to such a silly restriction.
At a minimum, all of your communication with the vendor should be via certified mail. If you're going to stop paying them, you need a paper trail that document that they haven't abided by the terms of the contract.
Am I reading this correctly? 500 euros for a motherboard?
But its probably a really really good motherboard?
"If you're going to waste their money on a mac mini, why not just go for the el cheapo special from dell or someone and then install Linux on it?"
Because you can get
a) MS Office for the Mac
b) It comes with iLife, which is a very nice tool for digital photography.
c) You can go to CompUSA and get software for it
d) With OS X, you do get a BSD Unix with arguably one of the best GUI's on the market.
e) Recommended by Consumer Reports!
As a result of this arrest, I'll feel a little bit safer tonight when I go to sleep.
This is no worse than the US government arresting people for modding game consoles.
At least this serves a perceived public interest (as wrong as that might be).
I'm not defending this action, I'm just saying our house is too far out of order to criticize the Chinese.
I used Spybot S&D and Adaware (I even paid for Adaware), and I finally came to the conclusion that neither was particularly effective against machines that were already infected.
On a recommendation from PC Magazine, I tried Webroot Spy Sweeper, and guess what...it really just works.
Yes, you should have firewall (two firewalls: a hardware and software firewall), yes, you should have antivirus. But Spybot S&D and Adaware aren't particularly good things to use these days. Sometimes its worth paying $30 to eliminate the problem.