Well let's face it, free software costs money. Right now all free software is either given away (Linux), or ad supported (KaZaA). We have seen many ad supported things fail in the last year from lack of revenue, so maybe this is the next logical step. I don't know about the rest of you, but I don't mind giving away my CPU cycles while I'm using a program if it means that I won't have to pay to use it. KaZaA is great, and the ads in it are small. Give me KaZaA with distributed computing any day over KaZaA with half of my screen a giant flashing add that says "If this is flashing then you've won $1,000,000 in penis enlarging, cancer curing, brain improving, lose weight while you gorge yourself on sweets pills." My only regret is I feel that they should have told us users that this was there. I wouldn't have minded. The only thing that I don't like about all of this is that they tried to do it behind my back.
The key to April Fools jokes is sublety. If slashdot posted one or two, it would be good. If they posted one, then put a bunch more in some little "Site-Seeing" type thing, then that would be good. But when at least the last 6 stories are jokes, you've taken it too far.
Also, these stories are by no means subtle. Linus giving up Linux? CPAN becomming CJAN? A rootkit package in the Debian archives? These are by no means subtle.
Let's review what, IMHO,/. should or could have done. Below is a list of stories that would have been good:
Debian Woody Released
Apple Brings Back G4 Cube
Apple Drops New iMac
Cowboy Bebop Dropped by Cartoon Network for Being Too Violent
President Bush Supports SSSSCA (well, maybe that's more of a Halloween thing)
AMD to Release Hammer Line of Processors on March 1st
ATI to Buy Matrox (the nVidia one is just too obvious)
Dell Buys Gateway
Michael Cook Declared President (I can wish can't I?)
An article on some of the best known, most misunderstood, worst, stupidest, etc. April Fools jokes ever
Apple Announces That They Intend to Port OS X to Intel Boxes
Sony Buys Square
Microsoft Buys Sega
I Buy Lunch (well, maybe this one happened.)
So please remember this post next year, and let's be a little more realistic.
"They are apparently hyping that Unix is an expensive money trap..."
Is it just me or are some versions of Unix (or Unix like OSes) are free.
"One ad states, 'No wonder Unix makes you feel boxed in. It ties you to an inflexible system..."
Unix (and Unix like OSes) run on just about every platform under the sun. Windows only runs on x86 and Alpha (didn't it used to run on PPC too?)
"...It requires you to pay for expensive experts..."
Why not look up the starting salary of an MCSE and tell me who's expensive.
"...It makes you struggle daily with a server environment that's more complex than ever."
Windows seems to be getting more complex than ever to me. While at the same time, projects on Linux (easily portable to other Unicies if not there already) are making things easier than ever.
The following is the text of my comments to Apple, so you guys can think what you will of me. On your mark, get set, MODERATE.......
Well, I guess you guys are getting lots of e-mails, having this comments page being slashdotted and all. Your plan to get people to buy Apples works great, or at least it did in '92. That's when me and my twin brother bugged the hell out of my parents until they bought me one. They got me a LC II, which has worked flawlessly to this day (with the exception of having to replace the clock battery, but what do you expect from a 10 year old PC). Sure it's slow, it's 8mb of ram is funny, and I can't help but crack up thinking of it's HUGE hard drive, we went for the 80 meg! Lately, I've been taking apart EVERYTHING in my house, and I have to say that the design of the LC IIs case is amazing. I also recently bought a PowerMac 7200 off E-Bay to put Linux on, and it's a great PC too. The case looks like it would be very elegant too, that is if UPS didn't dent the hell out of it in shipping.
Well, on to the topic at hand. I am defiantly a geek. Once I got more experienced in computers, I fell in love with PCs for a few different reasons. For one thing, there were more games, although that is SLOWLY changing. The really big thing that I liked was the fact that I could control the PC completely. Back then, PCs ran DOS and 3.1, so there were config files everywhere, you could change anything. Now, with OS X, things are basically even, but that's one reason I switched over. Also, I just love command line interfaces, but that too has changed.
Well, onto the present. Last summer my brother (who has used PCs for a long time too, but always loved Macs, more openly than me I should say), bought a PBTi. I have to say that I was amazed at the thinness of the thing. I also love that glowing apple logo on the screen, and of course, the screen it's self. It's quite zippy, and it's really nice. I only have three major gripes with it: no 3D support (but with the new ATI Mobility Radeons, I'm sure that will change), only one mouse button (I won't be buying a Mac Laptop without this getting fixed), and they keyboard seems a little bit flimsy.
Apple has done some strange things over the years but I do have a few suggestions for you. First up is OS X. It's a VAST improvement over OS 9, and you guys finally have a modern OS. I love the fact that it's built on Unix, so it has a CLI and everything. It think that you guys finally have a major opportunity. If you were to ship OS X for PCs, then I think not only would you be a formidable foe for MS, but I'm sure there are many out there who would switch (like me). Since the kernel is open source and already compiles in x86, you'd be sitting pretty there. Next up is Aqua and Carbon, which shouldn't be too hard to get running. Also, if you figure that out of the serious users (like me) who are likely to be early adopters of such a product, the vast majority would have either a ATI Radion (or better) or an nVidia GeForce (or better), drivers should be easy, especially since they would be nearly direct ports of those on the Mac. That's another point, I'm glad that you guys have switched over to PCI, AGP, and other standard interfaces from the PDS slots, NuBus, and other oddities of Macs of old. If you switched, you would get more hardware, and you could get ports to the Mac and PC fast.
My seconds suggestion is obvious and I have already stated it, GET MORE MOUSE BUTTONS. Back in the early nineties, one mouse button worked fine, but today, I seriously doubt that anyone who uses a mac for anything more than e-mail is using one of your one button mice. I know that my brother keeps a MS IntelliMouse Explorer USB plugged into his PB all the time.
I know that I had a third suggestion for you, but for the life of me I can't think of what it was. So I guess I will just leave you with this: I've been using computers nearly daily for the last 10 years, more than half my life (I'm 18). I am currently in the process of getting a BSCoE from KU. If there is ANYTHING that I can do for you guys (product testing (new iMac, HINT HINT HINT)) just e-mail me and I'll be glad to give input, answer questions, etc.
PS: I just remember the third thing! Don't you hate it when that happens? I love the hardware you guys have been making lately. I would kill for a Cinema Display. I wonder if contract killing pays enough? Oh well, I also have to say that if you would get your computers (or at least the higher end ones like the G4s) to use ATX cases, you could make a ton of money selling them. I would LOVE to be able to buy a White and Grey G4 fold out case for my PCs. The G4 cube was neat looking (but expansionally flawed), the new iMac looks cool (and will hopefully drive down the price of LCDs), the iMac was quite compact (though I am still annoyed by that "let's produce everything in 12 neon colors" concept that every company latched onto after the iMac went big. Let's face it, no one needs a neon pink surge suppressor and a neon green monitor), and like I said before, I love that Cinema display.
It has been discovered that it isnow makes it 30% harder for the youth of today to thumb their nozes at other countries, for the same reason as the above article. Does this mean that gameboys are leading to world peace? Watch tonight at 11 as well reveal the amazing fact that most people who can talk are, in fact, alive!
As far as I'm concerned, they are two different OSes. I think that Mandrake is a great distro, and it makes one hell of a desktop. RedHat, IMHO isn't a terribly user friendly desktop. On the other hand, RedHat is a great server OS, while Mandrake is good. Of course, this is based on defaults/etc. Both can be configured to do anything.
I had major problems with RH 7.x in the past, which is why I went on a distro hunt months ago. Now i've got debian and untill I can "apt-get install redhat", I think I'll be sticking;)
What you're basically asking is for a dictator to decide to replace himself with a democracy. Nine times out of ten (at LEAST), that's not going to happen.
I ask you: why let others vote on things and hope they rule the way you want when you could just keep yourself in power and have things your way.
It seems that The Critic got an advanced screening. So what did he think of the movie? I quote:
"It STINKS!!!"
Seriously though I don't understand what you are all whining about. First of all you have to remember that the episode 4 has been around and worshiped for more than 20 years, and to expect a brand new movie to live up to that is rediculous. Personaly, I'll see the movie even if it's said to be terrible. Call me crazy, but most of the movies that have come out in the last few years are complete trash. You want a plot summary of most movies? Guy/Girl exists. Guy/Girl has sex on the first date with Guy/Girl he/she doesn't know. More stupid pathetic plot with more holes in it than swiss cheese. Happy ending. If this movie is half coherent, it will already be better than many movies lately.
Also, is it really fair to judge a movie by a trailer? Lately I've been watching alot of older movies on DVD, and they usually include the trailer. I can't help but say that while many of the movies are great, I'm not so sure I would have gone to see them based on the trailer. I think we have all had an expirence like this. Then of course we've all had dozens of expirences that are just the opposite: great trailer, worst movie ever.
Have we nothing somewhat more important, but still totally pointless, to debate? Let's debate something like forcing all one-legged-weasles-born-on-the-right-side-of-a-wat ermellon to have the left side of their head shaved for posterity. That's about pointless and weird enough for Slashdot.
The Real Problem With Cheap Laptops
on
Low-end Laptops?
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· Score: 3, Insightful
I've been able to get my hands on 3 or 4 old (486ish) laptops. I got them all for free, but I have one major problem with them: no (working) bateries. The odd thing is, they won't run off their AC adaptors, at least not without a working battery. So here I am, with 4 laptops that are more than enough for some of the things I'd like to use them for, and I'll have to fork out $400 +S&H to get a battery for each. I'm sure I could find many more laptops like these, for next to free if not actually free, but they are useless without forking out MAJOR cash.
Besides that, I've seen MANY older laptops at used computer stores. But I agree that they cost WAY more than their worth. I've seen computers that wouldn't fetch $5 if they included a good monitor go for more than $200 just because they are laptops.
P.S. Does anyone else miss the trackballs that old laptops used to have?
You know what? I agree with this. I know many protest this fact, but I LIKE messing with the metal. I liked the DOS days when I could change just about everything and had to mess with obscure and confusing config files. But also, to me seeing AOL commercials on TV just reminds me of what I see happening to the Wintel market: it's getting dumbed down to the point where any IDIOT gets a computer, uses it wrong, and then complains to me to fix their computer because pressing "print" doesn't print when then don't have a printer. What we need are computer licenses, sorta like amature radio has.
Michael Cook (MBCOOK) - Going AC to save my Karma
I'm a Freshman in college right now, I and I can tell you that this article is exactly what I'm feeling.
I've always loved computers, and know that programming and working with them is what I'd like to do. But as this has come closer to being true (because I'm in college now, as opposed to the 7th grade), I have become extreemly disenfranchised with MS. MS was a company that I had always wanted to work for, (or Nintendo) because they make computer products, they do all sorts of cool stuff, and they are based in Seattle, Washington (MAJOR plus for me, used to live there, loved it).
But as I've gotten older, my oppinion has changed. I'm not sure if this is mostly my maturing, reading more news about the computer industry, or a multi-fold increase in the evilness of Microsoft. At this point in my life, I really don't want to work for Microsoft. As it stands (at least from my point of view) is that their products are getting bigger (bloated), buggier, slower, and more expensive. The biggest problem for me is the new features. They seem to keep adding this that are either useless or worse.
Let's review a quick list of "features" as I see them in recent products:
Media Player - Got better and better, but as of Windows 98 or so, it's just gotten bloated and slow as MOLLASSAS (yes I know I can't spell.)
Product Activation - Protects me from people ripping off Microsoft, allowing prices to be lower. Is it just me or is a full copy of Windows STILL $200 bucks or so? It didn't drop.
Support for the Newest Hardware - This means that MS is too lazy to optomise code, so I have to have the newest hardware to have things run at a useable speed.
Now don't get me wrong, MS has done some great things too. DirectX started out life very patheticaly, but has really become an excelent API. MS made it so my soundcard doesn't have to be a Sound Blaster, become we all know that in the dos days "compatible" meant "good luck getting your games to work". The only mice and keyboards I have are ALL made by Microsoft, becase they are the most comfortable, and I know there will not be any compatibility problems (although I'm sure that that is rare with keyboards and mice).
The other big thing that has happened to me to change my oppion is Linux. I'm sorry but I just don't see how anyone who is in the CS field can look at Linux and not be inspired. Linus wanted to make his own operating system, and he wanted to it be good. He wanted it free, and now we have Linux. It's free, you can see how it works, and it runs great on hardware that's more than 6 months old. Yes, Linux has some serious problems from the desktop standpoint (we can argue this later), but it's getting there. This has made Linux VERY attractive to me, while MS just seems to sit there saying "I know what you need, it's my newest $100 upgrade that won't change a thing." Of course, what this really means is "don't like the bugs? Too bad! Pony up or suffer!"
It is for these reasons and many more that I have begun to dislike MS. They hold the computer world in the palm of their hands, and so they are squeezing money out of us. Yes, Office is a great program and they should charge a premium for it, but $600 for a full version? $250 for an upgrade? $100 for a full copy of Word? That's ludicrous.
In summation, I don't really want to work for MS anymore. I still like Nintendo, but I think it would also be fun to be at iD and some other companies. I can't think of anyone I've met at my school who don't use Linux, or at least have a grudge against MS. With Microsoft going the way it is, I really don't see how CS students could see them any other way. At this point I'd like to say thanks for listening to my rantings. They are my opinions and once again, I know that I can't spell. I'd copy and paste this into Word to be spell checked, but I don't feel like waiting a full minute for it to open on my 1 ghz laptop that has 512mb of RAM. Also, in reality I'm a CoE student, because I like the harware side too. I used to want to be CS, and I can't help but wonder if I've moved towards CoE in part because of how my feelings of MS have changed.
How about a little dollar bill next to their name and their comments? It would be the "Sell out" indicator! Seriously though, it's too bad that slashdot has come to this, but at least we can still see it for free (unlike so many other sites). Hopefully this won't be neccessary by this time next year.
If they were to call the Be employees who had dealings, it could be a long trial! One person, that could take AGES! Seriously though, I think that this is great timing (and that's probably what they've been waiting for).
Duke Nukem Forever has gone gold, hell froze over, and I got a date;)
Seriously though, good from them. It will be nice to have magazines that compare linux distros compare woody vs. redhat, not potatoe (which is woefully old) to redhat.
And it doesn't work anymore? Back in my day, we could get our PDAs wed, burn them, have the cattle eat them, pass them, then freeze them, and they STILL had that new PDA smell! What has the world come to???
Seriously though that kind of neat. Personally I think that it would be insteresting to find out what fresh-baked Palms smell like. I guess I'll never find out because I don't have a Palm to waste (I don't have one period), and second I have to say I'd be suprised if it DIDN'T put off toxic fumes. My only real question for the guy who's Palm that was is this: how did the pizza taste? Does silicone enhance the flavor? Did you try putting the Palm in a light Bernet sauce?
I live in a sub division that has, untill recently, been way to far out of reach of broadband. Even if it would be shared bandwidth, as has been pointed out, it would be VASTLY better than the 24.6kbps modem speeds we get here. Plus my subdivision is full of multi million dollar homes: ie people with MONEY TO BURN. They would make a perfect test market. In a place like this, most everyone has a computer, and so you could test the system very well. It is a market like this where they will be able to make REAL money. But for us it's too late. We got cable modems about 10 months ago, and we should have DLS within about 6.
D-VHS may be superior, but it's still a magnetic tape format, like VHS is, correct? One of the things that I like about DVD is that no matter how many times I play a movie, it will never wear out. I'm sure we've all expirenced haveing an audio or video tape lose quality from overplaying. CDs and DVDs don't have this problem, so why would I want one? The DVD format could just be amended, like audio CDs/computer CD hybrids (CD-XA?) were ammended to the origional audio CD format. Plus if this is indeed a tape format, then you don't get that great near instant seek of DVDs. Is there anything to prevent these tapes from degrading?
All I can say is that I never watched movies much. I don't like going to the theater for a large variety of reasons. I did watch movies on VHS (sometimes) but I found it somewhat inconvient. Having to rewind, the slow fast-forward, the bad picture quality you can get (especialy when paused). But when DVD came along, I fell in love with movies again. The quality is fantastic (and I'm using a PS2 to play them on a 27" analogue sony TV, so it's not like I'm useing $50,000 worth of equiptment). I like being able to jump anywhere in the movie, how the screen is crystal clear when the movie is paused. I love how I can watch movies on the road with my laptop and all the interesting extra features that can be added to DVDs (deleted scenes, little almost "pop-up-video-esque" info like on the Akira DVD, etc). D-VHS may look good, but it seems to me that it might end up as just another laserdisc. Used by moviephiles, but not by the public at large. Maybe it will even become the Betamax to DVD's VHS, a different format that's good, and is used, but not as much. It will be interesting to see.
As for the here and now, I see three problems: first and formost, I don't have $2000 to blow on something that I can't rent movies for at my local blockbuster. Second, DVDs already have a huge install base and are a goliath to go up against. And third, very few people (remember that/.ers are disperportionatly techy) have HDTVs. So for someone with only a normal, analogue TV like me, would I see any benifit over DVD?
We've discovered this article, which is an interesting read. In other news, their sysadmins have "Discovered" the Slashdot effect. Right now, I bet they're thinking "Ah, the thrill of Discovery!";)
I'm going for a BSCoE at KU, and in our programming classes last semester, we were told that they used software that basically did the same thing. I don't know how long they've been useing it, and I didn't hear of anyone getting caught. I think that this is just the first instance of it CATCHING people.
I think that right now, and for the foreseeable future, Apple's role is clear: a relitivly large niche market. Apple had it's chance to go mainstream and rule the industry years ago, but I'm sure all you/.ers know how everything went. IMHO, Apple will continue to produce great products, but they will only be used by a select group: graphic designers (because the Mac is the best here), Apple diehards (a VERY devoted group), schools (where large discounts have given them large orders), and people who don't know much about computers and are looking for something hip looking (or have a relative in a previous catagory recommending it). I don't Apple becomming a force in the industry with a large share of sales, etc like Dell. Apple is a leader in design and useability. People looking for them to become the next Gateway/Compaq that you can buy anywhere and has a huge percentage of sales need to stop fooling themselves.
I believe that Apple understands this (largely due to Jobs running things again, IMHO) and that's good for them. If they were to continue to kidd themselves (like they did for years before Jobs came back), they wouldn't have survived much longer. The iMac brought them back, and now they realize what they're doing. They got a large, profitable niche and Apple is getting comfortable.
Slashdot Mirror
Well let's face it, free software costs money. Right now all free software is either given away (Linux), or ad supported (KaZaA). We have seen many ad supported things fail in the last year from lack of revenue, so maybe this is the next logical step. I don't know about the rest of you, but I don't mind giving away my CPU cycles while I'm using a program if it means that I won't have to pay to use it. KaZaA is great, and the ads in it are small. Give me KaZaA with distributed computing any day over KaZaA with half of my screen a giant flashing add that says "If this is flashing then you've won $1,000,000 in penis enlarging, cancer curing, brain improving, lose weight while you gorge yourself on sweets pills." My only regret is I feel that they should have told us users that this was there. I wouldn't have minded. The only thing that I don't like about all of this is that they tried to do it behind my back.
Also, these stories are by no means subtle. Linus giving up Linux? CPAN becomming CJAN? A rootkit package in the Debian archives? These are by no means subtle.
Let's review what, IMHO, /. should or could have done. Below is a list of stories that would have been good:
So please remember this post next year, and let's be a little more realistic.
That would have made a MUCH better April Fool's Post.
Is it just me or are some versions of Unix (or Unix like OSes) are free.
"One ad states, 'No wonder Unix makes you feel boxed in. It ties you to an inflexible system..."
Unix (and Unix like OSes) run on just about every platform under the sun. Windows only runs on x86 and Alpha (didn't it used to run on PPC too?)
"...It requires you to pay for expensive experts..."
Why not look up the starting salary of an MCSE and tell me who's expensive.
"...It makes you struggle daily with a server environment that's more complex than ever."
Windows seems to be getting more complex than ever to me. While at the same time, projects on Linux (easily portable to other Unicies if not there already) are making things easier than ever.
Microsoft, sacrificing Virgins? No... couldn't be.
Well, I guess you guys are getting lots of e-mails, having this comments page being slashdotted and all. Your plan to get people to buy Apples works great, or at least it did in '92. That's when me and my twin brother bugged the hell out of my parents until they bought me one. They got me a LC II, which has worked flawlessly to this day (with the exception of having to replace the clock battery, but what do you expect from a 10 year old PC). Sure it's slow, it's 8mb of ram is funny, and I can't help but crack up thinking of it's HUGE hard drive, we went for the 80 meg! Lately, I've been taking apart EVERYTHING in my house, and I have to say that the design of the LC IIs case is amazing. I also recently bought a PowerMac 7200 off E-Bay to put Linux on, and it's a great PC too. The case looks like it would be very elegant too, that is if UPS didn't dent the hell out of it in shipping.
Well, on to the topic at hand. I am defiantly a geek. Once I got more experienced in computers, I fell in love with PCs for a few different reasons. For one thing, there were more games, although that is SLOWLY changing. The really big thing that I liked was the fact that I could control the PC completely. Back then, PCs ran DOS and 3.1, so there were config files everywhere, you could change anything. Now, with OS X, things are basically even, but that's one reason I switched over. Also, I just love command line interfaces, but that too has changed.
Well, onto the present. Last summer my brother (who has used PCs for a long time too, but always loved Macs, more openly than me I should say), bought a PBTi. I have to say that I was amazed at the thinness of the thing. I also love that glowing apple logo on the screen, and of course, the screen it's self. It's quite zippy, and it's really nice. I only have three major gripes with it: no 3D support (but with the new ATI Mobility Radeons, I'm sure that will change), only one mouse button (I won't be buying a Mac Laptop without this getting fixed), and they keyboard seems a little bit flimsy.
Apple has done some strange things over the years but I do have a few suggestions for you. First up is OS X. It's a VAST improvement over OS 9, and you guys finally have a modern OS. I love the fact that it's built on Unix, so it has a CLI and everything. It think that you guys finally have a major opportunity. If you were to ship OS X for PCs, then I think not only would you be a formidable foe for MS, but I'm sure there are many out there who would switch (like me). Since the kernel is open source and already compiles in x86, you'd be sitting pretty there. Next up is Aqua and Carbon, which shouldn't be too hard to get running. Also, if you figure that out of the serious users (like me) who are likely to be early adopters of such a product, the vast majority would have either a ATI Radion (or better) or an nVidia GeForce (or better), drivers should be easy, especially since they would be nearly direct ports of those on the Mac. That's another point, I'm glad that you guys have switched over to PCI, AGP, and other standard interfaces from the PDS slots, NuBus, and other oddities of Macs of old. If you switched, you would get more hardware, and you could get ports to the Mac and PC fast.
My seconds suggestion is obvious and I have already stated it, GET MORE MOUSE BUTTONS. Back in the early nineties, one mouse button worked fine, but today, I seriously doubt that anyone who uses a mac for anything more than e-mail is using one of your one button mice. I know that my brother keeps a MS IntelliMouse Explorer USB plugged into his PB all the time.
I know that I had a third suggestion for you, but for the life of me I can't think of what it was. So I guess I will just leave you with this: I've been using computers nearly daily for the last 10 years, more than half my life (I'm 18). I am currently in the process of getting a BSCoE from KU. If there is ANYTHING that I can do for you guys (product testing (new iMac, HINT HINT HINT)) just e-mail me and I'll be glad to give input, answer questions, etc.
PS: I just remember the third thing! Don't you hate it when that happens? I love the hardware you guys have been making lately. I would kill for a Cinema Display. I wonder if contract killing pays enough? Oh well, I also have to say that if you would get your computers (or at least the higher end ones like the G4s) to use ATX cases, you could make a ton of money selling them. I would LOVE to be able to buy a White and Grey G4 fold out case for my PCs. The G4 cube was neat looking (but expansionally flawed), the new iMac looks cool (and will hopefully drive down the price of LCDs), the iMac was quite compact (though I am still annoyed by that "let's produce everything in 12 neon colors" concept that every company latched onto after the iMac went big. Let's face it, no one needs a neon pink surge suppressor and a neon green monitor), and like I said before, I love that Cinema display.
This is really cool, but according to the "today's events" page, nothing has happened in over nine hours. Have we slashdotted a cat door?
It has been discovered that it isnow makes it 30% harder for the youth of today to thumb their nozes at other countries, for the same reason as the above article. Does this mean that gameboys are leading to world peace? Watch tonight at 11 as well reveal the amazing fact that most people who can talk are, in fact, alive!
I had major problems with RH 7.x in the past, which is why I went on a distro hunt months ago. Now i've got debian and untill I can "apt-get install redhat", I think I'll be sticking ;)
NT is a weak form of unix like a donught is a weak form of a particle accelerator.
What you're basically asking is for a dictator to decide to replace himself with a democracy. Nine times out of ten (at LEAST), that's not going to happen.
I ask you: why let others vote on things and hope they rule the way you want when you could just keep yourself in power and have things your way.
Seriously though I don't understand what you are all whining about. First of all you have to remember that the episode 4 has been around and worshiped for more than 20 years, and to expect a brand new movie to live up to that is rediculous. Personaly, I'll see the movie even if it's said to be terrible. Call me crazy, but most of the movies that have come out in the last few years are complete trash. You want a plot summary of most movies? Guy/Girl exists. Guy/Girl has sex on the first date with Guy/Girl he/she doesn't know. More stupid pathetic plot with more holes in it than swiss cheese. Happy ending. If this movie is half coherent, it will already be better than many movies lately.
Also, is it really fair to judge a movie by a trailer? Lately I've been watching alot of older movies on DVD, and they usually include the trailer. I can't help but say that while many of the movies are great, I'm not so sure I would have gone to see them based on the trailer. I think we have all had an expirence like this. Then of course we've all had dozens of expirences that are just the opposite: great trailer, worst movie ever.
Have we nothing somewhat more important, but still totally pointless, to debate? Let's debate something like forcing all one-legged-weasles-born-on-the-right-side-of-a-wat ermellon to have the left side of their head shaved for posterity. That's about pointless and weird enough for Slashdot.
Besides that, I've seen MANY older laptops at used computer stores. But I agree that they cost WAY more than their worth. I've seen computers that wouldn't fetch $5 if they included a good monitor go for more than $200 just because they are laptops.
P.S.
Does anyone else miss the trackballs that old laptops used to have?
Oops, that wasn't AC. He he he. Be nice guys.
You know what? I agree with this. I know many protest this fact, but I LIKE messing with the metal. I liked the DOS days when I could change just about everything and had to mess with obscure and confusing config files. But also, to me seeing AOL commercials on TV just reminds me of what I see happening to the Wintel market: it's getting dumbed down to the point where any IDIOT gets a computer, uses it wrong, and then complains to me to fix their computer because pressing "print" doesn't print when then don't have a printer. What we need are computer licenses, sorta like amature radio has.
Michael Cook (MBCOOK) - Going AC to save my Karma
I've always loved computers, and know that programming and working with them is what I'd like to do. But as this has come closer to being true (because I'm in college now, as opposed to the 7th grade), I have become extreemly disenfranchised with MS. MS was a company that I had always wanted to work for, (or Nintendo) because they make computer products, they do all sorts of cool stuff, and they are based in Seattle, Washington (MAJOR plus for me, used to live there, loved it).
But as I've gotten older, my oppinion has changed. I'm not sure if this is mostly my maturing, reading more news about the computer industry, or a multi-fold increase in the evilness of Microsoft. At this point in my life, I really don't want to work for Microsoft. As it stands (at least from my point of view) is that their products are getting bigger (bloated), buggier, slower, and more expensive. The biggest problem for me is the new features. They seem to keep adding this that are either useless or worse.
Let's review a quick list of "features" as I see them in recent products:
Now don't get me wrong, MS has done some great things too. DirectX started out life very patheticaly, but has really become an excelent API. MS made it so my soundcard doesn't have to be a Sound Blaster, become we all know that in the dos days "compatible" meant "good luck getting your games to work". The only mice and keyboards I have are ALL made by Microsoft, becase they are the most comfortable, and I know there will not be any compatibility problems (although I'm sure that that is rare with keyboards and mice).
The other big thing that has happened to me to change my oppion is Linux. I'm sorry but I just don't see how anyone who is in the CS field can look at Linux and not be inspired. Linus wanted to make his own operating system, and he wanted to it be good. He wanted it free, and now we have Linux. It's free, you can see how it works, and it runs great on hardware that's more than 6 months old. Yes, Linux has some serious problems from the desktop standpoint (we can argue this later), but it's getting there. This has made Linux VERY attractive to me, while MS just seems to sit there saying "I know what you need, it's my newest $100 upgrade that won't change a thing." Of course, what this really means is "don't like the bugs? Too bad! Pony up or suffer!"
It is for these reasons and many more that I have begun to dislike MS. They hold the computer world in the palm of their hands, and so they are squeezing money out of us. Yes, Office is a great program and they should charge a premium for it, but $600 for a full version? $250 for an upgrade? $100 for a full copy of Word? That's ludicrous.
In summation, I don't really want to work for MS anymore. I still like Nintendo, but I think it would also be fun to be at iD and some other companies. I can't think of anyone I've met at my school who don't use Linux, or at least have a grudge against MS. With Microsoft going the way it is, I really don't see how CS students could see them any other way. At this point I'd like to say thanks for listening to my rantings. They are my opinions and once again, I know that I can't spell. I'd copy and paste this into Word to be spell checked, but I don't feel like waiting a full minute for it to open on my 1 ghz laptop that has 512mb of RAM. Also, in reality I'm a CoE student, because I like the harware side too. I used to want to be CS, and I can't help but wonder if I've moved towards CoE in part because of how my feelings of MS have changed.
How about a little dollar bill next to their name and their comments? It would be the "Sell out" indicator! Seriously though, it's too bad that slashdot has come to this, but at least we can still see it for free (unlike so many other sites). Hopefully this won't be neccessary by this time next year.
If they were to call the Be employees who had dealings, it could be a long trial! One person, that could take AGES! Seriously though, I think that this is great timing (and that's probably what they've been waiting for).
Duke Nukem Forever has gone gold, hell froze over, and I got a date ;)
Seriously though, good from them. It will be nice to have magazines that compare linux distros compare woody vs. redhat, not potatoe (which is woefully old) to redhat.
And it doesn't work anymore? Back in my day, we could get our PDAs wed, burn them, have the cattle eat them, pass them, then freeze them, and they STILL had that new PDA smell! What has the world come to???
Seriously though that kind of neat. Personally I think that it would be insteresting to find out what fresh-baked Palms smell like. I guess I'll never find out because I don't have a Palm to waste (I don't have one period), and second I have to say I'd be suprised if it DIDN'T put off toxic fumes. My only real question for the guy who's Palm that was is this: how did the pizza taste? Does silicone enhance the flavor? Did you try putting the Palm in a light Bernet sauce?
I live in a sub division that has, untill recently, been way to far out of reach of broadband. Even if it would be shared bandwidth, as has been pointed out, it would be VASTLY better than the 24.6kbps modem speeds we get here. Plus my subdivision is full of multi million dollar homes: ie people with MONEY TO BURN. They would make a perfect test market. In a place like this, most everyone has a computer, and so you could test the system very well. It is a market like this where they will be able to make REAL money. But for us it's too late. We got cable modems about 10 months ago, and we should have DLS within about 6.
All I can say is that I never watched movies much. I don't like going to the theater for a large variety of reasons. I did watch movies on VHS (sometimes) but I found it somewhat inconvient. Having to rewind, the slow fast-forward, the bad picture quality you can get (especialy when paused). But when DVD came along, I fell in love with movies again. The quality is fantastic (and I'm using a PS2 to play them on a 27" analogue sony TV, so it's not like I'm useing $50,000 worth of equiptment). I like being able to jump anywhere in the movie, how the screen is crystal clear when the movie is paused. I love how I can watch movies on the road with my laptop and all the interesting extra features that can be added to DVDs (deleted scenes, little almost "pop-up-video-esque" info like on the Akira DVD, etc). D-VHS may look good, but it seems to me that it might end up as just another laserdisc. Used by moviephiles, but not by the public at large. Maybe it will even become the Betamax to DVD's VHS, a different format that's good, and is used, but not as much. It will be interesting to see.
As for the here and now, I see three problems: first and formost, I don't have $2000 to blow on something that I can't rent movies for at my local blockbuster. Second, DVDs already have a huge install base and are a goliath to go up against. And third, very few people (remember that /.ers are disperportionatly techy) have HDTVs. So for someone with only a normal, analogue TV like me, would I see any benifit over DVD?
Just some random museings.
Ready... Set... Moderate!!!
We've discovered this article, which is an interesting read. In other news, their sysadmins have "Discovered" the Slashdot effect. Right now, I bet they're thinking "Ah, the thrill of Discovery!" ;)
I'm going for a BSCoE at KU, and in our programming classes last semester, we were told that they used software that basically did the same thing. I don't know how long they've been useing it, and I didn't hear of anyone getting caught. I think that this is just the first instance of it CATCHING people.
I believe that Apple understands this (largely due to Jobs running things again, IMHO) and that's good for them. If they were to continue to kidd themselves (like they did for years before Jobs came back), they wouldn't have survived much longer. The iMac brought them back, and now they realize what they're doing. They got a large, profitable niche and Apple is getting comfortable.