Ever actually CHECK the oil? You know, raise the hood, pull the dipstick out, wipe it, put it back in, pull it out, and READ IT?
They are called "idiot lights" for a reason. There is just a little light bulb glowing, to let you know that something is wrong. Sometimes, light bulbs don't work. At the other end is a sensor. Sometimes, sensors don't work. Want to be half-ass sure? Demand a GUAGE on your dash. Screw an idiot light. To be really sure, CHECK THE OIL!
People who rely on idiot lights shouldn't be permitted to drive. These are the same people who need an air pressure warning system for their vehicles, because they are to stupid to walk around their vehicle, and CHECK their tires.
Just in case you didn't see the first reply, I'll echo it:
*** Disclaimer for those willing to analyse this poll *** Most of users voting here are users with issues. Users with painless experience are not likely to come here.
I haven't upgraded yet, but, seriously, if it works painlessly, I'm unlikely to look for a poll to post that information in. I'll only go looking to find information if it's NOT painless.
RobDude - I hear your frustration. Personally, it's been quite some time since I had a *serious* hardware problem. Yeah, I struggled, until about the time Suse 9 came out. With that download, everything "just worked" for me. Things have gotten better since then, as well. But, that doesn't help the guy with this thing, or that gadget for which there IS NO SUPPORT! So, I hear you.
Did you contact the vendor of the gadget that refused to work? Yeah - it's a pain, just one more pain in a long list of pains when the gadget doesn't work. But, I hope you DID contact the mfgr, and give them a good cussing out.
Doing so makes them aware that more and more of the world is using Linux, and that they can make money by supplying a driver for us. I've contacted several, myself. It ain't that big a deal, but if it helps to convince one mfr to support Linux, well, I've done a little bit for the community.
BTW - you are aware that not every distro and/or repository supports the same hardware? If you feel like experimenting, you might try some Live-CD's to see which if any makes your gadget work. Just an idea......
Whatever. I don't run an AV. It's installed, but I mostly use it to scan downloads for Windows. Check a directory now and then, because I share it with Windows. This machine has been running for 3 years now, at least 99% uptime, including power outages, always connected.
Yeah, Linux might get a virus - but I'm not seeing it yet.
It's called "revolution". The founding fathers of the United States claimed that right for themselves, and they also extended that right to following generations.
Record away.
And, while you're recording, bear in mind that we've had several revolutions in the United States since the founding fathers. The most recent that I can point to was the "Taxpayer's Revolution", in which the IRS was harnessed - for awhile.
There are bloodless revolutions, and there are bloody revolutions. The potential for a bloody revolution depends on how well the politicians listen to the civil disobedience and other measures that lead up to violence.
Maybe I'm just tired and sleepy - but your post makes me think that if Gate's daddy had used a dirty needle and a condom, we wouldn't be so worried about getting Bill's viruses today. Hmmmm. I'll sleep on that idea......
YMMV, but as an experiment, I chose the "alternate validation" thing long ago on a legitimate installation of Windows. Copy pasted the code into the window, then pasted the code into an email. Went to a pirated copy of Windows, ran the "alternate validation" thing again, and posted the prior code into the little window. This machine had failed WGA validation at least 2 times, but when I pasted that code into the window, suddenly it was good. The two installations were on similar, but not identical, hardware - which may mean anything, or nothing. It was an experiment that worked at least once, and may work for you.
Yes. And? 80% of the world's population cheers the pirates. So, you point is, what? You think that when something is right, when that something is overwhelmingly approved around the world, Slashdot should kowtow to the corporate weenies? Are nerds and geeks supposed to be stupid, or what?
Let me help you to understand: the movie moguls and the music studios are STILL MAKING MONEY!! They are making so much money that they can afford to support the ineffectual RIAA and MPAA. What more evidence do you need to convince you that piracy is good for Hollywood and good for the studios? Just how many millions have they dumped down the gullets of the RIAA vultures, and the MPAA hyenas? What has been the return on those millions? Maybe - just maybe.00000001%?
Aye, matey, it's the pirate life for me!! Do you need me to rip something for you?
Well - I'm trying to understand how and why your quote applies to my statement. I didn't ask for a law to be imposed that will allow me to have my say. I merely expressed my disgust with the "media" owners that prohibit free speech on their sites.
BTW - I respect none of those "terms of use" crap things. Have you seen how many demand to know your real name, your address, and other identifying information? So long as proxies exist, I'll be able to use the name "John Smith", or whatever the hell I choose to be, LOL
Not sure if that's a dig at Fox News or not. Be that as it may - I'm growing more and more disgusted with the main media "news" sites. Places like CNN have online discussions with many of their news articles. You have to register of course - which is cool. But, as soon as you post something that they deem to be "politically incorrect", you are censored. Complain a few times, and your account is locked, your IP address banned, and they might even send some activists to your door to re-educate you.
Neither party has any desire whatsoever to either pay it off, or face responsibility for incurring the debt. The fools running Washington went to the same schools, and sat in front of the same professors as the batch of fools who ran Wall Street into the ground.
Responsibility is the least likely lesson to be taught to any student in America today.
Ehhh. You have the "consumer" mindset. Suppose you buy that 200 dollar tool, use it for a few years, and it's still lying around your shop. You decide one day that you don't use it, you might as well get rid of it. You can give it to a friend, you can pass it down to your kids, you can sell it, you can donate it to the high school - whatever you choose to do.
That 50 dollar tool? It's just so much more pollution, and wasted energy.
With all the talk of "going green", I'd sure like to see more of the "conservation" mindset, and less of the "consumer" mindset. Shopping for quality is a forgotten art. An item that costs 4 times as much, but lasts 10 times as long is always the higher quality item. If that item costs 4 times as much, and only lasts 4 times as long, then it is roughly an equal quality item - but, "greener", because it won't have to be disassembled and melted down to make something new so soon.
Maybe - but "You're either with us or against us" Bush certainly did. You remember "The seniors are just going to have to tighten their belts" Bush? Men and women who lived through the Great Depression, then fought in WW2, then came home to build a booming nation afterward were told that there was no money for them in their old age.
I'm not completely sold on Obama's ideas, but I sure as hell hate to hear people forgetting that the country went to hell on Bush's watch. The crash came while BUSH was president, not Obama.
"I recently bought a made-in-China power tool for $50. "
Thou art a fool, and probably the son of fools.
If you had bought that $50 dollar tool made-in-India, I would ask you how well the tool worked, and how long it lasted. But, I know how well that $50 made-in-China power tool worked out. It has 1/4 the power of the "comparable" American made tool, and it will last about 1/10 as long.
In short, you are full of shit, because there is no "made-in-China equivalent". Replace China with any of a dozen other nations, then you'll have my interest. Korea, Taiwan, India, Vietnam - there are indeed a lot of Asian markets who are undercutting us on goods that might be comparable. But, it sure as HELL isn't China.
Bought any milk products, lately, from China? Drywall? Children's toys? Clothing?
No wonder you post as Anonymous Coward - you have your head up your ass, or you are being paid by China to astroturf for China.
"I've no idea what Dr. Asimov would have thought."
I can't claim to know anything about Isaac beyond what he published about himself. But, what he published gives me an idea.
"Sure, Junior, you go ahead and finish my works for me. This should be as funny as hell! I figure you'll botch my characters beyond recognition, but I'll give you the chance!"
Really, it shouldn't be terribly hard to stay true to the story line. Especially since the story line changed over time. How many of us read Isaac's forward to one of his last books, about why the Positronic Brain worked early in the story line, but ultimately fails? The man evolved over the years, and so did his stories.
But, then again, maybe that would be the worst sense of loss. The new kid can't evolve along the same lines as Isaac himself would have. He will probably restrict himself to what was known of Isaac, rather than how Isaac's mind worked.
Hmmm. I know you're right, but they DID manage to capture almost 3% of Starship Troopers. That was an amazingly good job on Hollywood's part, wasn't it? Just imagine - if they use the same directors and screenwriters, they might get as much as 5% of the Robot series. Wow. What an idea.
Nahhh - sitting through 95 minutes of mindless drivel that is totally unrelated to the story just to see those 5 good minutes is unendurable.
Pretty much on target, with the two or three per day. Credible leads concerning subversives don't just materialize out of thin air. Those subversive types who have been publicized recently lived in neighborhoods where all the neighbors thought they were fine, upstanding young men. "Muhammed? He's always at church worshipping, and always has something nice to say when we meet. He played catch with my Junior just last week. He has even carried my groceries from the car a few times!"
I like how they attempt to allay citizen's suspicions: "Fewer than 5 percent of the people on the list are U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents." To paraphrase that, "We're just targeting evil furriners!"
What does everyone think those botnets are for? They're just raking in the names. Do a search for "Al-Queda.net" and the bot reports you. You only THOUGHT the botnets were all monitored by the criminal element, LOL
"If that problem is solved we could theoretically reach 18 billion people or more."
Thank God that I won't be alive to see 18 billion humans on this earth. Let's just say that I couldn't survive long in cities like Hong Kong. There are precious few places on the North American continent where a man can just get lost, without meeting anyone for a week or more.
As for the stars - one of the best reasons for going out there is the wide open spaces. Even assuming a FTL drive, people can get lost, and stay that way if they choose. Sweet!!
FFS, the Microsoft trolls and astroturfers are out early is the only reason Commodore is modded down. Look, fanbois and fangirls, Bill Gates was NOT the developer of much, if anything. Not even freaking WINDOWS!! Gates BOUGHT WINDOWS, just like he bought almost everything that ever worked for him. Well - he bought what he couldn't steal by one means of another.
Get the sticks out of your asses, moderators.
If you're so sure that Gates was a developer, provide links to refute Commodore's statement.
Who, exactly, designs the infrastructure? The problem with our infrastructure are really two problems - politicians who won't give up the money they steal from the taxpayers, and the engineers who don't push the system forward.
Without a strong engineering corps, there is no infrastructure to brag about.
Oh, no mystery there. The Bay Bridge predates basket weaving degrees.;^)
Even in the '50's and '60's engineering took precedence over politics. Today, being "politically correct" takes precedence over everything, except maybe generating revenue.
If at all interested in traffic engineering, consider speed limits. Real traffic engineers believed in the "85th percentile". In effect, when you open a new road, you post no speed limits - but you monitor how fast people go. After a period of time, you tally up those speeds, and settle on the 85th percentile. Faster drivers will almost all slow down to that speed limit, slower drivers tend to speed up closer to that speed limit, and everything flows smoothly. Today - speed limits are set well below that 85th percentile, intentionally. This way, when the cops are detailed to generate some revenue for the courts, they don't have to spend all day waiting for "x" number of speeders to come along.
If you want something totally screwed up, give it to a committee. If you want it FUBAR'd, make it a committee of politicians.
Anyway - the proper fix for that crack on the bridge would have been to shut traffic down, and REPLACE the damaged part. Slapping a band-aid on the problem was a political BS thing.
Slashdot Mirror
Ever actually CHECK the oil? You know, raise the hood, pull the dipstick out, wipe it, put it back in, pull it out, and READ IT?
They are called "idiot lights" for a reason. There is just a little light bulb glowing, to let you know that something is wrong. Sometimes, light bulbs don't work. At the other end is a sensor. Sometimes, sensors don't work. Want to be half-ass sure? Demand a GUAGE on your dash. Screw an idiot light. To be really sure, CHECK THE OIL!
People who rely on idiot lights shouldn't be permitted to drive. These are the same people who need an air pressure warning system for their vehicles, because they are to stupid to walk around their vehicle, and CHECK their tires.
Just in case you didn't see the first reply, I'll echo it:
*** Disclaimer for those willing to analyse this poll ***
Most of users voting here are users with issues.
Users with painless experience are not likely to come here.
I haven't upgraded yet, but, seriously, if it works painlessly, I'm unlikely to look for a poll to post that information in. I'll only go looking to find information if it's NOT painless.
RobDude - I hear your frustration. Personally, it's been quite some time since I had a *serious* hardware problem. Yeah, I struggled, until about the time Suse 9 came out. With that download, everything "just worked" for me. Things have gotten better since then, as well. But, that doesn't help the guy with this thing, or that gadget for which there IS NO SUPPORT! So, I hear you.
Did you contact the vendor of the gadget that refused to work? Yeah - it's a pain, just one more pain in a long list of pains when the gadget doesn't work. But, I hope you DID contact the mfgr, and give them a good cussing out.
Doing so makes them aware that more and more of the world is using Linux, and that they can make money by supplying a driver for us. I've contacted several, myself. It ain't that big a deal, but if it helps to convince one mfr to support Linux, well, I've done a little bit for the community.
BTW - you are aware that not every distro and/or repository supports the same hardware? If you feel like experimenting, you might try some Live-CD's to see which if any makes your gadget work. Just an idea......
Whatever. I don't run an AV. It's installed, but I mostly use it to scan downloads for Windows. Check a directory now and then, because I share it with Windows. This machine has been running for 3 years now, at least 99% uptime, including power outages, always connected.
Yeah, Linux might get a virus - but I'm not seeing it yet.
It's called "revolution". The founding fathers of the United States claimed that right for themselves, and they also extended that right to following generations.
Record away.
And, while you're recording, bear in mind that we've had several revolutions in the United States since the founding fathers. The most recent that I can point to was the "Taxpayer's Revolution", in which the IRS was harnessed - for awhile.
There are bloodless revolutions, and there are bloody revolutions. The potential for a bloody revolution depends on how well the politicians listen to the civil disobedience and other measures that lead up to violence.
SOLVE global warming? I was just starting to scan down for the post that BLAMES global warming!
Hell, I feel obligated to make the assertion now.
IT'S ALL THE FAULT OF BUSH AND BIG OIL!!! GO GREEN TODAY!! Help prevent the desert from falling into the ocean!
Maybe I'm just tired and sleepy - but your post makes me think that if Gate's daddy had used a dirty needle and a condom, we wouldn't be so worried about getting Bill's viruses today. Hmmmm. I'll sleep on that idea......
YMMV, but as an experiment, I chose the "alternate validation" thing long ago on a legitimate installation of Windows. Copy pasted the code into the window, then pasted the code into an email. Went to a pirated copy of Windows, ran the "alternate validation" thing again, and posted the prior code into the little window. This machine had failed WGA validation at least 2 times, but when I pasted that code into the window, suddenly it was good. The two installations were on similar, but not identical, hardware - which may mean anything, or nothing. It was an experiment that worked at least once, and may work for you.
Yes. And? 80% of the world's population cheers the pirates. So, you point is, what? You think that when something is right, when that something is overwhelmingly approved around the world, Slashdot should kowtow to the corporate weenies? Are nerds and geeks supposed to be stupid, or what?
Let me help you to understand: the movie moguls and the music studios are STILL MAKING MONEY!! They are making so much money that they can afford to support the ineffectual RIAA and MPAA. What more evidence do you need to convince you that piracy is good for Hollywood and good for the studios? Just how many millions have they dumped down the gullets of the RIAA vultures, and the MPAA hyenas? What has been the return on those millions? Maybe - just maybe .00000001%?
Aye, matey, it's the pirate life for me!! Do you need me to rip something for you?
Well - I'm trying to understand how and why your quote applies to my statement. I didn't ask for a law to be imposed that will allow me to have my say. I merely expressed my disgust with the "media" owners that prohibit free speech on their sites.
BTW - I respect none of those "terms of use" crap things. Have you seen how many demand to know your real name, your address, and other identifying information? So long as proxies exist, I'll be able to use the name "John Smith", or whatever the hell I choose to be, LOL
Not sure if that's a dig at Fox News or not. Be that as it may - I'm growing more and more disgusted with the main media "news" sites. Places like CNN have online discussions with many of their news articles. You have to register of course - which is cool. But, as soon as you post something that they deem to be "politically incorrect", you are censored. Complain a few times, and your account is locked, your IP address banned, and they might even send some activists to your door to re-educate you.
Censorship - it's not just for government!
"We're never going to be able to pay that off"
Neither party has any desire whatsoever to either pay it off, or face responsibility for incurring the debt. The fools running Washington went to the same schools, and sat in front of the same professors as the batch of fools who ran Wall Street into the ground.
Responsibility is the least likely lesson to be taught to any student in America today.
Ehhh. You have the "consumer" mindset. Suppose you buy that 200 dollar tool, use it for a few years, and it's still lying around your shop. You decide one day that you don't use it, you might as well get rid of it. You can give it to a friend, you can pass it down to your kids, you can sell it, you can donate it to the high school - whatever you choose to do.
That 50 dollar tool? It's just so much more pollution, and wasted energy.
With all the talk of "going green", I'd sure like to see more of the "conservation" mindset, and less of the "consumer" mindset. Shopping for quality is a forgotten art. An item that costs 4 times as much, but lasts 10 times as long is always the higher quality item. If that item costs 4 times as much, and only lasts 4 times as long, then it is roughly an equal quality item - but, "greener", because it won't have to be disassembled and melted down to make something new so soon.
"Even Reagan never spent like that."
Maybe - but "You're either with us or against us" Bush certainly did. You remember "The seniors are just going to have to tighten their belts" Bush? Men and women who lived through the Great Depression, then fought in WW2, then came home to build a booming nation afterward were told that there was no money for them in their old age.
I'm not completely sold on Obama's ideas, but I sure as hell hate to hear people forgetting that the country went to hell on Bush's watch. The crash came while BUSH was president, not Obama.
Obama wrote a budget last year? Amazing - how did he find the time while on the campaign trail?
"I recently bought a made-in-China power tool for $50. "
Thou art a fool, and probably the son of fools.
If you had bought that $50 dollar tool made-in-India, I would ask you how well the tool worked, and how long it lasted. But, I know how well that $50 made-in-China power tool worked out. It has 1/4 the power of the "comparable" American made tool, and it will last about 1/10 as long.
In short, you are full of shit, because there is no "made-in-China equivalent". Replace China with any of a dozen other nations, then you'll have my interest. Korea, Taiwan, India, Vietnam - there are indeed a lot of Asian markets who are undercutting us on goods that might be comparable. But, it sure as HELL isn't China.
Bought any milk products, lately, from China? Drywall? Children's toys? Clothing?
No wonder you post as Anonymous Coward - you have your head up your ass, or you are being paid by China to astroturf for China.
"I've no idea what Dr. Asimov would have thought."
I can't claim to know anything about Isaac beyond what he published about himself. But, what he published gives me an idea.
"Sure, Junior, you go ahead and finish my works for me. This should be as funny as hell! I figure you'll botch my characters beyond recognition, but I'll give you the chance!"
Really, it shouldn't be terribly hard to stay true to the story line. Especially since the story line changed over time. How many of us read Isaac's forward to one of his last books, about why the Positronic Brain worked early in the story line, but ultimately fails? The man evolved over the years, and so did his stories.
But, then again, maybe that would be the worst sense of loss. The new kid can't evolve along the same lines as Isaac himself would have. He will probably restrict himself to what was known of Isaac, rather than how Isaac's mind worked.
"Taco Bell isnt bad food,"
Taco Bell actually serves FOOD?! Have you informed the Vatican? Tell me where - I would like to witness this miracle!
Hmmm. I know you're right, but they DID manage to capture almost 3% of Starship Troopers. That was an amazingly good job on Hollywood's part, wasn't it? Just imagine - if they use the same directors and screenwriters, they might get as much as 5% of the Robot series. Wow. What an idea.
Nahhh - sitting through 95 minutes of mindless drivel that is totally unrelated to the story just to see those 5 good minutes is unendurable.
Pretty much on target, with the two or three per day. Credible leads concerning subversives don't just materialize out of thin air. Those subversive types who have been publicized recently lived in neighborhoods where all the neighbors thought they were fine, upstanding young men. "Muhammed? He's always at church worshipping, and always has something nice to say when we meet. He played catch with my Junior just last week. He has even carried my groceries from the car a few times!"
I like how they attempt to allay citizen's suspicions: "Fewer than 5 percent of the people on the list are U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents." To paraphrase that, "We're just targeting evil furriners!"
What does everyone think those botnets are for? They're just raking in the names. Do a search for "Al-Queda.net" and the bot reports you. You only THOUGHT the botnets were all monitored by the criminal element, LOL
"If that problem is solved we could theoretically reach 18 billion people or more."
Thank God that I won't be alive to see 18 billion humans on this earth. Let's just say that I couldn't survive long in cities like Hong Kong. There are precious few places on the North American continent where a man can just get lost, without meeting anyone for a week or more.
As for the stars - one of the best reasons for going out there is the wide open spaces. Even assuming a FTL drive, people can get lost, and stay that way if they choose. Sweet!!
FFS, the Microsoft trolls and astroturfers are out early is the only reason Commodore is modded down. Look, fanbois and fangirls, Bill Gates was NOT the developer of much, if anything. Not even freaking WINDOWS!! Gates BOUGHT WINDOWS, just like he bought almost everything that ever worked for him. Well - he bought what he couldn't steal by one means of another.
Get the sticks out of your asses, moderators.
If you're so sure that Gates was a developer, provide links to refute Commodore's statement.
Who, exactly, designs the infrastructure? The problem with our infrastructure are really two problems - politicians who won't give up the money they steal from the taxpayers, and the engineers who don't push the system forward.
Without a strong engineering corps, there is no infrastructure to brag about.
Oh, no mystery there. The Bay Bridge predates basket weaving degrees. ;^)
Even in the '50's and '60's engineering took precedence over politics. Today, being "politically correct" takes precedence over everything, except maybe generating revenue.
If at all interested in traffic engineering, consider speed limits. Real traffic engineers believed in the "85th percentile". In effect, when you open a new road, you post no speed limits - but you monitor how fast people go. After a period of time, you tally up those speeds, and settle on the 85th percentile. Faster drivers will almost all slow down to that speed limit, slower drivers tend to speed up closer to that speed limit, and everything flows smoothly. Today - speed limits are set well below that 85th percentile, intentionally. This way, when the cops are detailed to generate some revenue for the courts, they don't have to spend all day waiting for "x" number of speeders to come along.
If you want something totally screwed up, give it to a committee. If you want it FUBAR'd, make it a committee of politicians.
Anyway - the proper fix for that crack on the bridge would have been to shut traffic down, and REPLACE the damaged part. Slapping a band-aid on the problem was a political BS thing.