I've been wondering when/if there would ever be a convenient (legal) method to convert to and from Quicktime movie files from within a Windows environment without shelling out megabucks for something like Adobe Premiere. I've tried the Bink and Smacker approach, and it doesn't work too well with copyrighted movie files. Which is just as well... I'm just trying to expand my horizons.
Before you make your anti-Windows comments, I own an iBook too... I just like discovering new things. Address any anti-Windows comments with that in mind.;-)
It's stories like this that show us where the reliable Slashdot users' interests truly lie. All kinds of serious, substantive things are going on in the world, but put a sculpture of the Dark Helmet at a national historical site and suddenly everyone has something useful to say! But, hey, I'm thoroughly entertained.
But a serious question: Why Darth Vader? Why the dark side? Or isn't the dark side just a metaphor for the unescapable power of capitalism?
I am reminded of the parody clip called "Jar-Jar's Walking Papers". Shortly before dismissing Jar-Jar, George Lucas has some bad news to break to Chewbacca.
GL: "Chewie, Jar-Jar is your fah-ther."
Chewie, in his wookiee groan: "Wooooooooooa!" (meaning Noooo!)
Moments later, Jar-Jar is wiped from the slate, as a computer animated character, by the simple method of "Controlsa, Altsa, Deletesa". Oh so priceless. Who wants the clip?!
As the "human effort to imitate, supplement, alter, or counteract the work of nature", I would say that HTML is not art; designing web sites has little to do with imitating nature, though some existential definition of nature could include anything man has ever developed to be a part of nature...
As the "conscious production or arrangement of sounds, colors, forms, movements, or other elements in a manner that affects the sense of beauty", HTML(or web design in general) is certainly art, which I think should be obvious to just about everyone.
Art, to me, is expression exposed to the senses. HTML is only the structure of the web page, but as it allows extensive creativity and certainly exposes a variety of potential sensory stimulations on a computer screen, utilizing HTML is certainly art in my opinion.
Could this have anything to do with September 11? I got hooked on using online newspapers for news (as opposed to television news networks and programs) during the election 2000 cycle when Bush and Gore were bickering about chads and dimples -- it gave me something useful to do with the Internet. And while I'm sure most of you didn't care about the election as I did, I think September 11 had a profound impact on how much current events information people crave.
And, as we all know, the television and print news are scripted (at least insofar as they only tell what they have space/time to tell). The Internet, on the other hand, has virtually infinite potential. Concentrating specifically on news, you can find news regarding just about anything online that you can't find in print or on television.
Finally, the absolute best way to find news on any topic: go to Google News and search for a topic in the same way you would typically use the standard Google search engine. The news search scans Internet newspapers from all over the world and delivers instant links to ANY reports containing the search words. Default sorts by relevance, but I prefer to sort by date for the most recent articles first...
I LOVE MY GOOGLE. And for those who were not aware of the wonderfulness of their news site, I hope you love it too.:-)
Maybe you meant 10^14.2 -- a 15-digit length in meters seems more likely, since I can see things 26 meters away quite plainly, without a telescope even.
I just like to think, no matter what instrusive laws are on the books, that what you do in the privacy of your own local environment without illegal distribution, blah blah blah, will not only be impossible to detect (as it should be), but also ignored. People should not be discouraged from developing useful skills, and the courts should not be able to dictate what directions our lives are not allowed to take (naturally, this argument excludes things like murder, fraud, etc., which the law should definitely defend against).
Not every Republican favored the PATRIOT Act, and not nearly every Democrat opposed it. In the House, the vote was 337-79 (Republicans 207-3 and Democrats 129-75). In the Senate, the vote was 96-1 (one Democrat voted Nay, and three Republicans did not vote).
Left or Right or Wrong, it doesn't matter. Okay, so Republicans ultimately favore life over liberty, and Democrats ultimately favor liberty over life (this is an oversimplified generalization given the comments I've read here so far). Neither is more admirable than the other, and the constant bickering between the two sides is exactly what our system of government is designed to facilitate.
The result is a continuous national awareness of threats to both our lives and liberties, and therefore the best possible protection of either given assaults on the other. Sure, the balance fluctuates, but it is exactly that flucuation that keeps us aware of our political discontents. Isn't this exactly what we want?
Unabated? Assuming the madness of which you speak is a society of little to no individual freedom, then the descent is far from "unabated". We have been fighting and slowing the descent for decades.
I'm sorry. Big urban centers are much less likely to have stores without cards because people (for some stupid reason) believe they get a better deal with the card, so they allow every store they come across to snoop on their buying habits, which in turn gets them piles of junk mail catered to their tastes, luring them to spend more money...
Stores without cards, while more consumer-friendly, generally do not handle big cities well any more.
Studies have shown that, in many cases, the grocery store with the membership "discount" card is actually more expensive overall than the store that doesn't prefer the members it can snoop on. See here and here. Sure, you save money on what the bill would have been in that store by using the card, but you could have saved much more by going to another store without a card.
This study was really one of those government-funded studies that's always in progress. They just send some guys out to buy the same exact products from several stores in local communities. The big news in the last couple of years is that prices at stores (in my area) like FoodMax and Publix are, on the whole, about 30% cheaper than prices at Kroger or Food Lion. Even the discount savings using the card only knocks off about 10% of the average total bill.
(I do not have the data to back this up; these numbers are recalled to the best of my memory. This means that the best this post can do is get you to think about it and investigate it. I've already done so for myself, and I've made my decision about it. I only use my store cards to purchase alcohol and condoms.)
I want to see the streets of MY TOWN in GTA. Could you imagine wreaking havoc in a fictious GTA city whose streets were almost exactly like your own town's streets?
Let's not underestimate the need for a little lightheartedness given the geopolitical circumstances. People are so consumed in war right now that it's probably a good idea to be distracted by a handful of jokes.
"Microsoft made history today, when the total number of bug reports for the various versions of the Windows shell and operating system eclipsed the total population of the planet..."
I would say that one's definition of "engineer" would be required to determine whether or not someone is an engineer. But to the degree that such a definition is subjective, it is unacceptable. To define someone to be or not to be an engineer would require a standard definition, which is what the Texas state legislature is attempting to determine.
The American Heritage Dictionary defines an engineer as someone who (1) is trained or professionally engaged in a branch of engineering, or who (2) skillfully or shrewdly manages an enterprise. Another definition further down the page says an engineer (3) "uses scientific knowledge to solve practical problems". (I am ignoring definitions revolving around the root word "engine" because they do not apply here.)
In accordance with the second and third definitions, everyone could be an engineer. Most likely, the Texas legislature is using the first definition and is trying to determine exactly what the field of engineering is. Enter AHD:
engineering: 1. The application of scientific and mathematical principles to practical ends such as the design, manufacture, and operation of efficient and economical structures, machines, processes, and systems. 2. The profession of or the work performed by an engineer.
Engineering is mechanical in its roots, having derived from "engine", but insofar as computer technology is the engine of tomorrow, anyone who works in the development of computer technology is an engineer by my understanding of the word. I hope Texas comes to the same conclusion.
p.s.-- Wouldn't this be a decision for the courts, not the legislature?
Do negatives count? Or do 3 and -3 count as factors? And if this is so, then what stops a positive number from being composite when its factors can include its negative and -1?
The RIAA is simply putting a barrier between their own pockets and some consumers' wallets. Some of us who listen to MP3s for their convenience actually buy CDs specifically to rip our own high-quality MP3s for various reasons. I actually prefer to rip them to a particular quality so that a specific amount fits onto my MP3 player for a day's work at the library. And the computer-as-jukebox is a necessity in most homes these days... It's simply more rewarding to know that my music is legal. To take away the ability to rip my own music only encourages me to find other ways to get that music.
I have enough music that I don't have to buy those stupid copy-protected CDs for a good listen.
Slashdot Mirror
Before you make your anti-Windows comments, I own an iBook too... I just like discovering new things. Address any anti-Windows comments with that in mind. ;-)
First rule of email discretion: never use any email address you actually use to register at a porn site!
But a serious question: Why Darth Vader? Why the dark side? Or isn't the dark side just a metaphor for the unescapable power of capitalism?
I'm glad I could find it!
This is true. But who says that programming is not a form of art? It is still a unique creation and involves artistic application.
GL: "Chewie, Jar-Jar is your fah-ther."
Chewie, in his wookiee groan: "Wooooooooooa!" (meaning Noooo!)
Moments later, Jar-Jar is wiped from the slate, as a computer animated character, by the simple method of "Controlsa, Altsa, Deletesa". Oh so priceless. Who wants the clip?!
As the "human effort to imitate, supplement, alter, or counteract the work of nature", I would say that HTML is not art; designing web sites has little to do with imitating nature, though some existential definition of nature could include anything man has ever developed to be a part of nature...
As the "conscious production or arrangement of sounds, colors, forms, movements, or other elements in a manner that affects the sense of beauty", HTML(or web design in general) is certainly art, which I think should be obvious to just about everyone.
Art, to me, is expression exposed to the senses. HTML is only the structure of the web page, but as it allows extensive creativity and certainly exposes a variety of potential sensory stimulations on a computer screen, utilizing HTML is certainly art in my opinion.
Any objections?
Two plausible answers: /. effect.
/. effect!
1. Yes, thanks to the
2. No, thanks to the
And, as we all know, the television and print news are scripted (at least insofar as they only tell what they have space/time to tell). The Internet, on the other hand, has virtually infinite potential. Concentrating specifically on news, you can find news regarding just about anything online that you can't find in print or on television.
Finally, the absolute best way to find news on any topic: go to Google News and search for a topic in the same way you would typically use the standard Google search engine. The news search scans Internet newspapers from all over the world and delivers instant links to ANY reports containing the search words. Default sorts by relevance, but I prefer to sort by date for the most recent articles first...
I LOVE MY GOOGLE. And for those who were not aware of the wonderfulness of their news site, I hope you love it too. :-)
Maybe you meant 10^14.2 -- a 15-digit length in meters seems more likely, since I can see things 26 meters away quite plainly, without a telescope even.
Alcmaeon is the newest entry. And I bet that changes by the end of the weekend.
I just like to think, no matter what instrusive laws are on the books, that what you do in the privacy of your own local environment without illegal distribution, blah blah blah, will not only be impossible to detect (as it should be), but also ignored. People should not be discouraged from developing useful skills, and the courts should not be able to dictate what directions our lives are not allowed to take (naturally, this argument excludes things like murder, fraud, etc., which the law should definitely defend against).
Left or Right or Wrong, it doesn't matter. Okay, so Republicans ultimately favore life over liberty, and Democrats ultimately favor liberty over life (this is an oversimplified generalization given the comments I've read here so far). Neither is more admirable than the other, and the constant bickering between the two sides is exactly what our system of government is designed to facilitate.
The result is a continuous national awareness of threats to both our lives and liberties, and therefore the best possible protection of either given assaults on the other. Sure, the balance fluctuates, but it is exactly that flucuation that keeps us aware of our political discontents. Isn't this exactly what we want?
Unabated? Assuming the madness of which you speak is a society of little to no individual freedom, then the descent is far from "unabated". We have been fighting and slowing the descent for decades.
Stores without cards, while more consumer-friendly, generally do not handle big cities well any more.
This study was really one of those government-funded studies that's always in progress. They just send some guys out to buy the same exact products from several stores in local communities. The big news in the last couple of years is that prices at stores (in my area) like FoodMax and Publix are, on the whole, about 30% cheaper than prices at Kroger or Food Lion. Even the discount savings using the card only knocks off about 10% of the average total bill.
(I do not have the data to back this up; these numbers are recalled to the best of my memory. This means that the best this post can do is get you to think about it and investigate it. I've already done so for myself, and I've made my decision about it. I only use my store cards to purchase alcohol and condoms.)
I want to see the streets of MY TOWN in GTA. Could you imagine wreaking havoc in a fictious GTA city whose streets were almost exactly like your own town's streets?
Let's not underestimate the need for a little lightheartedness given the geopolitical circumstances. People are so consumed in war right now that it's probably a good idea to be distracted by a handful of jokes.
"Microsoft made history today, when the total number of bug reports for the various versions of the Windows shell and operating system eclipsed the total population of the planet..."
The American Heritage Dictionary defines an engineer as someone who (1) is trained or professionally engaged in a branch of engineering, or who (2) skillfully or shrewdly manages an enterprise. Another definition further down the page says an engineer (3) "uses scientific knowledge to solve practical problems". (I am ignoring definitions revolving around the root word "engine" because they do not apply here.)
In accordance with the second and third definitions, everyone could be an engineer. Most likely, the Texas legislature is using the first definition and is trying to determine exactly what the field of engineering is. Enter AHD:
Engineering is mechanical in its roots, having derived from "engine", but insofar as computer technology is the engine of tomorrow, anyone who works in the development of computer technology is an engineer by my understanding of the word. I hope Texas comes to the same conclusion.
p.s.-- Wouldn't this be a decision for the courts, not the legislature?
Pessimist: "Half-empty."
Optimist: "Half-full."
Objectivist: "Half a glass."
Opportunist: "Empty glass. Can I get more?"
Excellent! A response like this was what I was hoping for when I raised the question. Good job. :-)
Do negatives count? Or do 3 and -3 count as factors? And if this is so, then what stops a positive number from being composite when its factors can include its negative and -1?
I have enough music that I don't have to buy those stupid copy-protected CDs for a good listen.
Whitney Houston and Kenny G. CDs need copy protection!