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User: Virtucon

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  1. i've heard this for years, move along on Consumer Groups Bemoan Google's "Deceptive" Ads for Kids In FTC Complaint · · Score: 1

    Sponsors pay for content either in production or distribution and that's how they get their brand recognition to their targeted audience. It's been that way for decades and when it comes to kids shows, most of them are toy manufacturers or clothing or related products that get the kids to desire the things that are advertised. with targeted marketing on platforms like IOS or Android now content sponsors can drill in even further with ads that are identifying a specific child. "Hey Billy, buy this.."
    is it unfair? In some ways yes and in others it's not because there's no such thing as free content.

    In Kids programming that's what PBS did for kids with Sesame Street etc.

    If you want to fix this, fix how content production and distribution are funded but you're never going to outlaw Barbie.

  2. Re:Right on Carly Fiorina Calls Apple's Tim Cook a 'Hypocrite' On Gay Rights · · Score: 1

    and don't forget Lucent. She's an idiot peddling for votes. I do however agree with what she's saying on this set of topics however.

  3. Re:Waste That Tax Money on W. Virginia Bans Direct Tesla Sales, With Urging of Car-Dealer Senate President · · Score: 1

    with the 49th worst median income in the US, I doubt anybody in West Virgina will be able to afford a Tesla anyway.

  4. i can't belive it. on W. Virginia Bans Direct Tesla Sales, With Urging of Car-Dealer Senate President · · Score: 3, Interesting

    In a state where coal is king, you ban the direct sale of electric cars.

  5. another career highlight being targeted on Is This the Death of the Easter Egg? · · Score: 1

    It's called taking pride in what you do and having the passion to do it. When dumb shits in management crack down on these kinds of things it's time to find another company to work for.

  6. screw that what i want to know is on Developer of 'Banished' Develops His Own Shading Language · · Score: 0

    why my towns start starving? i keep building farms, gathering and hunting lodges yet starvation. fix that first!

  7. Tell me what you need, not how to make it. on US Air Force Overstepped In SpaceX Certification · · Score: 1

    This is the fundamental flaw with bureaucratic thinking. Define metrics, design criteria but let the contractor build it. This is why government projects are so fucking expensive. Rules, Laws, Legislators and stupidity get in the way of innovation.

  8. no hungarian notation! on Ask Slashdot: What Makes Some Code Particularly Good? · · Score: 1

    I don't care how bad or tangled the logic but as long as it's not using Hungarian notation, It's good.

  9. Re:Why??? on Rebuilding the PDP-8 With a Raspberry Pi · · Score: 1

    Nostalga. I used to have a beer fridge sitting inside of an old S/370 system cabinet. Sure it took up 20 times the space but it was still cool to look at in the garage.

  10. Why not a PDP 11? on Rebuilding the PDP-8 With a Raspberry Pi · · Score: 1

    The 8 was a great system but the 11 was far better.

    Just checking ebay, this guy selling the 8E is smoking something. He thinks it's a mainframe.

    However this PDP-11 can be had for a reasonable price.

    The point being, you can run emulation software on commodity hardware but I guess as the TFA indicates he wanted the nostalgia look. He could have easily just mounted an LEDs behind the panel with small pattern generator circuit instead of using the Pi.

  11. Re:Dear crazy russian. on Russian Official Proposes Road That Could Connect London To NYC · · Score: 1

    it's problematic, but first you'd have to define the conditions and variables. How much power, how far, resistance. Certainly a technical challenge but it wouldn't be insurmountable.

  12. Product Placement Taco Bell on Ordnance Survey Releases Mapping Tools · · Score: 1

    "Taco Bell, Taco Bell, product placement Taco Bell, Echirito, Macho Burrito" - Master Tang "Kung Pow"

    Why is it that we keep getting more product placement "articles" on Slashdot?

  13. Re:Dear crazy russian. on Russian Official Proposes Road That Could Connect London To NYC · · Score: 1

    ever hear of electric trains such as the TGV or the Acela? Power distribution would still be problematic along long stretches between the usual power distribution points in cities etc.

  14. Where is Groklaw when we need them? on Developers and the Fear of Apple · · Score: 2

    IMO this is an example of exclusive dealing arrangements and restricting free trade.

    15 USC Code 1 Trusts..

    Every contract, combination in the form of trust or otherwise, or conspiracy, in restraint of trade or commerce among the several States, or with foreign nations, is declared to be illegal. Every person who shall make any contract or engage in any combination or conspiracy hereby declared to be illegal shall be deemed guilty of a felony, and, on conviction thereof, shall be punished by fine not exceeding $100,000,000 if a corporation, or, if any other person, $1,000,000, or by imprisonment not exceeding 10 years, or by both said punishments, in the discretion of the court.

    From that, $100 mil is a slap on the wrist, wait, a mosquito bite for Apple.

    https://www.law.cornell.edu/we...

    Exclusive dealing agreements require a retailer or distributor to purchase exclusively from the manufacturer. These arrangements make it difficult for new sellers to enter the market and find prospective buyers, thus depressing competition. However, because companies widely-use requirements contracts, which essentially are exclusive dealing agreements, for purposes that promote competition, exclusive dealing arrangements only face rule of reason scrutiny..

    Section 2 makes illegal a firm's refusal to deal with another firm if the refusing firm refuses for the purpose of trying to monopolize the market. Meanwhile, section 1 prohibits a group from refusing to deal with a particular firm. A group refusal to deal is known as a group boycott. Because of seemingly contradictory Supreme Court decisions over the years, the question of whether group boycotts are subject to the rule of reason or a per se rule has been left murky.

    Apple with it's walled garden can certainly dictate who's allowed in but I think there could be legal grounds for challenging that in court. Sure Apple can say "we're protecting our customers" but at the same time they're restricting competition and free access to markets, namely the app store.

  15. It's a start but what about China et al. on New Bill Would Repeal Patriot Act · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I have a lot of Internet facing applications and it's becoming more and more apparent that certain nations, China for one, are constantly scanning or trying to break into systems. We've been leveraging mod_geoip/geoip2 etc. for awhile but that's at my point of presence. When are we going to start filtering IP addresses or subnets from nations where this kind of activity is permitted? It's a matter of national security but I don't see much in the way that the Patriot act or any act is really protecting intellectual property and websites from these kinds of coordinated efforts not just spying on citizens? I would much rather see a substantial amount of NSA resources focused on that problem rather than worrying of about who I send e-mails to.

  16. The Web of trust only works on Chinese CA Issues Certificates To Impersonate Google · · Score: 5, Insightful

    When we all agree to the same rules.

  17. Re:Security theater on $1B TSA Behavioral Screening Program Slammed As "Junk Science" · · Score: 2

    If you travel that often, why haven't you signed up for the PreCheck program? It lets you go back to the pre 9/11 security screening procedure. Truly frequent travelers can get in the program free via their airline, otherwise the application fee is not significant with respect to other travel costs and is worth it.

    I'm already PreCheck but a lot of places don't have it yet and there is the random factor. For example, Las Vegas which is one of the worst places to go through with a domestic 2 hour pre-flight arrival recommendation. I guess they do that so you can gamble more before boarding the flight or going through the checkpoint.

    You intentionally frequently travel on a plane in tight quarters with lots of other people and you opt not to use deodorant?

    Not intentionally but only when I go through special airports on my list. It also cuts down on people reclining their seats. ;-)

  18. Re:Security theater on $1B TSA Behavioral Screening Program Slammed As "Junk Science" · · Score: 1

    PreCheck isn't in all airports and terminals, yet. Of course there's been a resurrection of Clear as well but again, it's competing with PreCheck.

  19. Re:SubjectsInCommentsAreStupid on $1B TSA Behavioral Screening Program Slammed As "Junk Science" · · Score: 0

    your point is what? how has that got to do with anything regarding the topic? If you want to troll, go troll reddit please.

  20. Re:Security theater on $1B TSA Behavioral Screening Program Slammed As "Junk Science" · · Score: 2

    I can assure you it's not just bad for people coming to the US, it's bad for everybody traveling within the US. The TSA security theater causes more delays than bad weather and the current "open, transparent" administration has put billions more into this charade. I travel sometimes every week and it's a pain in the ass. Because of this I always opt out of being scanned and force the pat down. It frustrates the officers and other travelers because you get to stand aside while a screening agent comes to get you. Yeah it adds 5 to 10 minutes per checkpoint but you know what I get special satisfaction in doing it especially if I haven't used deodorant that day.

  21. Re:What good is this? on Finland To Fly "Open Skies" Surveillance Flight Over Russia · · Score: 1

    It gives the observed party enough time to hide their shit.

  22. Re:No bringing moose and squirrel! on Finland To Fly "Open Skies" Surveillance Flight Over Russia · · Score: 1

    You'll have to overlook it. He knew the job was dangerous when he took it.

  23. Re:Big Deal on Costa Rica Goes 75 Days Powering Itself Using Only Renewable Energy · · Score: 1

    Maybe he was thinking Iceland, Jupiter?

  24. Why can't this be done in the US? on Costa Rica Goes 75 Days Powering Itself Using Only Renewable Energy · · Score: 1

    Because of two major pieces or legislation: Environmental Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act. That created legal attack vectors on large hydro projects in the US and made things like Salmon and the Snail Darter tools to prevent projects from being built or disassembling those already in place. That's why.

  25. The Moon is like a series of Tubes on Giant Lava Tubes Possible On the Moon · · Score: 1

    The Moon is like a series of Tubes - If Ted Stevens had been an astronaut.