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User: RJFerret

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Comments · 485

  1. Trust. on Ask Slashdot: To Publish Change Logs Or Not? · · Score: 1

    Trust.

    It's earned from open communication, then living up to your word. No disclosure, no trust, no investment.

    As an employee, my next question would be, if they aren't communicating with their most valuable assets (customers), what aren't they communicating with their next most valuable assets (staff)?

  2. Pursue passion... on Ask Slashdot: As a Programmer/Geek, Should I Learn Business? · · Score: 1

    Business will help you no matter what you get in to. It's worthwhile, but if you don't care about it, you won't invest yourself in it and really appreciate it.

    Sales/marketing takes more natural ability than book teaching in my experience. Here you REALLY have to have a desire for it, or you get burned out quickly and hate your job.

    Starting your own business requires some level of knowledge of both, as well as finance/economics, or complementing your team with those knowledgeable/trustworthy where you lack.

    So you have figured out what you are currently doing isn't your passion, now figure out what IS your passion. The only reason I was happy with the career I've had is because the day to day job I enjoyed, in all aspects of my career, including current. Explore other venues, talk to friends, see what excites you, then pursue what permits you to be involved in that.

    (I've managed multiple businesses, owned a tiny company [short-lived], then worked for others in creative fields, now manage property investments and wear multiple hats, none of which required even my high school diploma, heh.)

    The other trick is to find something fulfilling that capitalizes on skills you have in other ways. Also, ask friends what they see you possibly doing other than what you are doing. I encouraged a friend to become a childrens' librarian over a decade ago, she's been enjoying that work ever since. Another friend is in the process of transitioning his career to reselling/auctioning, totally up his alley.

    PS: Networking is required/a given in all options, to various degrees, so it's not a separate consideration.

  3. Re:Butterfingers on Aussie Company Planning To Use Drones For Textbook Delivery · · Score: 2

    Coed, "There I was giving this bloke a blowie out back when WHAM, I get knocked out by an economics text...what are they suggesting?"

  4. Uh duh. on What Developers Can Learn From Healthcare.gov · · Score: 2

    Odd, in my state it worked fine...no, wait a minute, it's only Oct. 4th, who in their right mind with technical savvy or experience would access such a new product in the first week of it's availability?

    I live in one of the most population dense states. My current health insurance is paid up through the end of the month. I won't be accessing the exchange for three weeks yet because everything in the article is obvious, but even if implemented within the time constraints to the best of their ability, will still probably have issues in the first few days.

    Duh.

  5. Re:Different Governments have Different Issues on Can There Be a Non-US Internet? · · Score: 1

    Either way, the part that cracks me up, is the NSA was outed, but Euro countries have been doing the same thing, China has been actively attacking, aside from presumably passively monitoring traffic, any country would be foolish to not use the resource available to them...which means specifying routing just means you are choosing who listens in on you, and their friends, and the company the NSA sets up there.

    That fails cost/benefit analysis.

  6. Re:Normally... on What I Did During My Summer Vacation: Burning Man Edition · · Score: 1

    The virtual world of Second Life was inspired from an attendance of the Burning Man festival.

    Why would nerds want to socialize with other nerds and creative people and others? To be inspired, to network, to create, to pursue their desires, to recreate, to experience life, to [i]fill in the blank[/i].

    Most folks I've met who knew what the Burning Man festival was have been nerds. Who else would engineer the various contraptions that Burning Man features/celebrates? Ever see an overhead shot of the geometrical layout of the city?

    Many nerds don't hate others, or even their comments.

  7. Re:"taking industrial action" on London Tube Cleaners Don't Want Fingerprint Clock-in · · Score: 1

    In this case, they explicitly say not to strike, but to use the preexisting system rather than the fingerprint scanners.

  8. All PR is good PR on Angry Customer Buys Promoted Tweets To Bash British Airways · · Score: 1

    They might lose luggage more if it results in others paying to promote their brand name! Folks down the road won't remember why BA is in the forefront of their subconscious when they go to purchase tickets... Smart of Jet Blue to try to get in on the attention too.

    This is one of the big problems with trying to warn folks off bad service, you really need to promote every company save the one you aren't a fan of or it just ends up good for them in the long run.

  9. Re:Instafail on Microsoft Seeks Patent On 'Quieting Mobile Devices' · · Score: 2

    Destroy it, heck no! Think of the possibilities? Teen girls could prevent their boyfriend(s) from texting anyone other than them. Enemies can disable one's fav game or pr0n access. In the midst of a test, mysteriously cheat notes aren't accessible. The kids who hack this stand to make lotsa' cash, or gain sexual favors, or whatever kids want nowadays...Adderall.

  10. Re:Not creepy at all on Microsoft Seeks Patent On 'Quieting Mobile Devices' · · Score: 1

    No worries, it'll never hit the market, the summary says MS is seeking a patent for it. Of course, the government might realize granting a patent means preventing this tech from becoming available, but probably too late. ;-)

  11. Re:gee i wonder. on Feds Seek Prison For Man Who Taught How To Beat a Polygraph · · Score: 1

    And what does any of that have to do with lie detectors, the first amendment, and the summary?

  12. Re:gee i wonder. on Feds Seek Prison For Man Who Taught How To Beat a Polygraph · · Score: 1

    Downplaying an unfortunate relation is NOT the same as lying about a criminal history, now is it?

    According to the law he was prosecuted under and plead guilty to? Apparently he himself, a judge, the prosecutors, the people who wrote the law presumably, and those trying to hire honorable people for federal agencies (*snicker) disagree with your interpretation of that. But who cares, it still doesn't relate to the summary or polygraphs.

    Think about it this way, if the devices didn't exist, and he told someone what he did, he'd still be guilty, and turning in another person for something unrelated has no bearing.

    The summary is trying to do what you are attempting to do, downplay the facts and draw in unrelated red herrings to push an unrelated agenda.

  13. Re:gee i wonder. on Feds Seek Prison For Man Who Taught How To Beat a Polygraph · · Score: 1

    ...he advised... ...to downplay the relationship he might have with his unfortunately criminal sibling.

    OTOH, when he had a client specifically ask about a so-far undisclosed crime, he called the guy's probation officer and reported the confession.

    I'm sure he did plead guilty when faced with the SOP of layering on the charges but offering a plea deal.

    Not speeding 364 days out of the year doesn't mean you don't get a ticket the one day you do speed. IE, being a law abiding citizen doesn't mean you can't break a law, knowingly or unknowingly, either way, he wasn't prosecuted for his speech, and the law he broke by suggesting someone downplay a family relationship to deceive the feds isn't imperiling free speech or in any way related to polygraphs.

    If you assume he took a plea deal, what other charge(s) did they drop for the deal? Your suggestion makes the poor guy sound worse.

    I do agree that our justice system is lose-lose, especially for the poor saddled with families.

  14. Re:gee i wonder. on Feds Seek Prison For Man Who Taught How To Beat a Polygraph · · Score: 3, Interesting

    He already plead guilty. Ironically the summary lies, he fell for entrapment, providing a lie for an undercover investigator to purportedly get a federal job dishonestly. Wire fraud is in there too. Sorry, I read the article.

    There's nothing first amendment related, you can tell people to befriend the examiner, control their breathing, put antiperspirant on their fingers, and be anxious for early control questions so you seem less anxious for later questions.

    If he'd simply responded, "I can't provide answers you should give" instead of, "tell them X", he'd have been fine.

    I do feel for the poor guy, he's literally poor, had a failing business and was trying to generate side income to support his family/kids by charging people for what is in the wikipedia article on polygraphs, and obvious to anyone who had parents they lied to.

    Actually, it sounds more like they should have hired the guy to help them out.

  15. Re:Amended quote on Snowden Spoofed Top Officials' Identity To Mine NSA Secrets · · Score: 1

    *blinks, um, how is doing what any child learns to do to get around parental blocking "brilliant"? Admittedly, anyone who believes that is rather dumb, so in comparison that individual might appear relatively smart?

    That notwithstanding, if he has any demonstrable management skills, Snowden for president. (First act, pardon himself.)

    (But it does sound like he's at least smart enough to not accept that job.)

  16. Re:$20,000 hammer on Ask Slashdot: How To Get Open Source Projects To Take Our Money? · · Score: 1

    Pfft, contact me, I'll generate an invoice for "invoicing", toss the cash in a separate account, retain documentation of the exchange, and if nothing bad turns up in a reasonable amount of time (at least a year and half), ka-ching.

    I'm never happier than when I can generate an invoice (with expectation of remittance).

    Of course, like dating, 61+ days later I might be cruelly disappointed...

    And they say money doesn't equal happiness.

  17. Re:Second Life on Ask Slashdot: Good Ideas For Creative Gaming With Girlfriend? · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Bingo, lotsa' couples use SL exactly for this purpose. There are restaurants, live music events, parks, amusement park rides, canoe trips, shopping, golfing, bowling, book clubs, art exhibits, games within the environment, educational classes, clubs, adult erotic fare of all sorts, and zillions of people to share/socialize/befriend, many of whom are in the same boat.

    You can pick up or rent a house or apartment and decorate together to have your own shared place.

    I even knew a couple who explored things they felt too silly to do in their own bedroom, from two computers in the same apartment, within the safe confines of SL.

    It's also amazing how effective a virtual hug can be when someone prompts it. It does give you a sense of being in the same place, together.

  18. Re:No notice, no reference on Ask Slashdot: When Is It OK To Not Give Notice? · · Score: 1

    As a landlord, I verify employment, the larger the company, the less forthcoming for aforementioned legal reasons. Blue collar workers? I'll get personal info right down to salary and expression on their faces when they arrive for their shift from managers. White collar? Position and dates from HR/equivalent.

    Ironically, all I care about is the info they gave me cross references (honesty/integrity), so anything beyond dates is just entertainment to see how much a company will give a random stranger over the phone (if the applicant didn't warn them I'd be contacting--my first question). More impressive was the one that wanted fax of queries...which was returned with mostly "won't answer". Of the dozens I've done over the years, only that one requested documentation.

    This is obviously a bit different as the person currently works/remains there.

  19. Re:Illuminating ... With a Plastic Bottle. And a d on Illuminating Window-Less Houses With a Plastic Bottle · · Score: 2

    Tools only require power in lazy post-industrial societies. Hand tools are inexpensive, effective and less costly to operate. I've cut steel roofing with hand snips in seconds.

    Polyester resin is kind of a staple product. In post-industrial societies, it's sold for recreation in craft stores. But in less developed places, it's needed for boat building and all sorts of fabrication. Before 3D printers with their costly supplies, we made molds and used resin for pennies.

    I imagine they are chosing it over tar or pitch due to availability as much as any other factor.

  20. Re:Subj on Battle of the Media Ecosystems: Amazon, Apple, Google and Microsoft · · Score: 1

    The walls are quite well-established in all of those, they're just not done making them a thousand feet tall, covered in grease, topped with spikes and surrounded by lava moats.

    So...you're saying a Mario Bros game then?

  21. Re:interesting take. on Mozilla Labs Experiment Distills Your History Into Interests · · Score: 1

    Websites are already tailored to users' interests, that's how we got there in the first place, we searched for what we were interested in, and that site came up. Duh. Other interests (my taste in porn) is not relevant to the transaction. I don't need to see sex toy ads (not that I ever see ads, thank you ad blocking Hosts file) when searching for some game or pastime for my niece.

    People were creeped out when gmail came along "reading" your email to target specific ads based upon what other people wrote to you about. Imagine if all your fetishes started popping up alongside news sites when you were at the coffee shop?

  22. Re:Better plots? on Hollywood's Love of Analytics Couldn't Prevent Six Massive Blockbuster Flops · · Score: 1

    I found Memento straightforward in comparison, it just didn't get all put together until you got to the end. Inception, pun intended, had more depth to myself (as well as some cohorts). ;-) The former didn't have as many twists as the latter, and the latter is open to multiple interpretations. I can remember watching Inception with four other people, multiple viewings for each, and each came to a unique differing conclusion regarding various outcomes of the film, one changed their perspective from previous viewings! I'm not sure I've heard of any disagreement regarding the resolution of Memento.

  23. Re:Better plots? on Hollywood's Love of Analytics Couldn't Prevent Six Massive Blockbuster Flops · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Inception. (Heck, this one so intricate, is prompted multiple viewings, group viewings, and discussions that didn't reach agreement.)

    The Matrix. (Not surprisingly, the sequels were useless.)

  24. Re:Dealing with the impossible on Ask Slashdot: How To Deliver a Print Magazine Online, While Avoiding Piracy? · · Score: 1

    I find it so ironic, that a publication whose purpose is to profit via distributing information, seeks to prohibit dispersing information/limit readership and restrict profits!

  25. Re:You can't avoid piracy on Ask Slashdot: How To Deliver a Print Magazine Online, While Avoiding Piracy? · · Score: 1

    I agree but quite the opposite, yes care how many are reading/pirating it and try to increase those numbers.

    "...survival depends not only on advertising...", I wonder what advertisers would say if someone reported back to them that efforts were being taken to reduce the exposure of their adds to as few people as possible?

    Take advantage of the demand for your product and turn that into revenue! Let other people bear the cost of distributing if they desire. Just make sure that the source (your product/organization) is readily accessible, adds value, and creates an easier experience than any potential competition. IE, operate a business!