I remember a very good quote that sums up the nature of libertarians:
"... they have taken a personality defect and turned it into a political philosophy..."
This is just typical boorish, persnickety behavior from a geeky libertarian who doesn't want be reasonable because he holds some absurdly rigid interpretation of "constitutional" rights.
Give me a break, its not a burden to be asked to show ID when boarding an airplane.
Forms, the way they are now, are a mess. And the very very late introduction of the long-awaited xforms will serve to F things up even more because all the developer toolchains will have to be made compliant (or not). Its going a long and painful road.
Part of the blame goes to java (sun) and microsoft for screwing up and/or sabotaging the applet concept.
If things were done right, developers would be writing user-input pages as applets rather than a messy rat's nest of css, html, forms, javascript, jsp's, etc...
Its about a small group of creepy people ruining a collective (yet private) internet space-- sort of like having a party with a loose guest list and then having really uncool and really annoying people show up and offend everyone.
In general, household IT support is a no-win situation and people are best left to fend for themselves. If you get paid, you'll feel cheap, and they will expect everything to be perfect.
If you have to do it, do it for free, but make it easy for yourself. Introduce them to ad-aware, or other computer hygiene tools.
If that doesn't work, and you have to do something, wipe the hard drive and install windows XP or 2000, and give a lecture about computer hygiene while it installs. For old machines, there are many linux distros that give you a nice web-browsing, email-writing workstation on a low-capability machine-- sometimes even a liveCD OS is good enough. My wife has an old thinkpad that we keep in the kitchen, it runs "feather linux" and serves its purpose flawlessly-- to look up recipes on the internet, and get email.
Although it is true that everyone starts as a beginner. People with artistic talent are, to some extent, born that way. This innate talent is then developed over years of work and practice.
If it is at all possible, it is best to hire an artist to do your graphics. If you don't, the end-result is often (but not always) cheesy.
... The most obvious security risk is that someone steals a tag and enters the premises unnoticed. But there are others that I worry about. Stuff like the ease of replicating an RFID tag or even a hacker passively reading a tag in public then recreating it and gaining access....
RFID in conjunction with pin numbers addresses stuff like that.
...There is a clear difference between writing the code for a program and actually determining what code is needed or making a new, original algorithm. Those fields are the only ones that matter now and are the only ones that have ever really mattered....
There are bacteria that can generate small amounts of hydrogen gas. If genetic engineering can make these bacteria much better at this function, we will have very good renewable energy source.
I like the LP because it fractures the right wing and thus weakens it.
Other than that, it serves no useful purpose.
Everytime I discuss any issue with a libertarian, the discussion degrades into a impassable nexus of absurdist, inflexible, and literally "fundamentalist" beliefs that libertarian takes as absolute truth.
They see the constitution as some holy assembly language program that government must follow without deviation. Any federal activity that is not explicit in the constitution is regarded as "illegal".
Anyways, more power to them. They will never get anywhere, and will help the us (liberals) by diluting the other side.
So while I'm certianly not going to advocate a gun as a first line of defense, I don't see that it is a bad idea as a complete part of defense. If the person is, as you say, desperate and willing to kill you, better that you are able to defend yourself.
Neither do I. If someone wants a gun and is prepared to accept the full responsibility for their actions, I'm all for it.
The problem is that having a gun is practically useless in an urban environment.
I happen to think that _confronting_ someone breaking into a car or comitting property crimes with deadly force is not worth the risk. The cops take it very seriously even when they outnumber the thug. An untrained fool with no support is asking for trouble.
Bah, i don't see what truth there is in this. In my neighborhood criminals are really dangerous bad guys type and drug addicts are really dangerous too.
Good, so you know what you're dealing with. Many people have no idea what to expect. In no way was I saying that these people are not dangerous, they are, but being surprised about what you're dealing with is a disadvantage.
These programs are the lamest thing ! [neighborhood watch]
You might think so, but having people keep an eye on what is going on around them is the best crime deterent. In too many communities, people don't know their own neighbors. Neighbors are too afraid to call each other, or the police, if they see something suspicious occuring near them.
Did you know that most home burglaries occur in broad daylight? Theives drive up in a truck and clean out the house. Many times neighbors are too concerned about "minding their own business" to do anything-- so much for not having "nosy neighbors!
I live in Baltimore city in a _very_ high crime neighborhood (albeit one that is rapidly gentrifying ). My neighhors and I have encountered all kinds of criminal activity.
Some suburban blowhards will say to get a gun first, but there are a number of things you can do that are more effective than having a gun. Simple preventative measures will go much farther than a loaded gun in the closet. If you have to have a gun, fine, but do the things below FIRST:
1) Keep an eye on things. Call the cops whenever something remotely suspicious is happening. Don't hesitate to call 911. The system can handle a tremendous number of calls and they know how to prioritize. Even if the police don't respond to the call, it is logged and stats are collected. In most urban areas, 911 call stats are used to allocate police resources. When calling 911 be accurate, specific and unemotional.
2) Don't leave _ANYTHING_ in your car and use a club. Larceny from auto is the hallmark of a drug addict criminal. They want easy targets. Even change on the dashboard is worth breaking a window to them. They don't think like normal people. Be discreet, don't show off wealth or new acquisitions.
3) Get to know your neighbors. Share information. Talk about what is happening in the neighborhood. The police in your area may offer "neighborhood watch" programs that educate folks about crime. This is usually done through their community relations department. Its a good way to learn about real crime prevention.
Please don't get a gun because some armchair libertarians on slashdot think its a good idea. If you have a gun, it is only useful if you confront the criminal. In the VAST majority of property crimes, you never even SEE the criminal. In those rare cases where you happen to catch the punk, you will discover something that is NOT what you expect: often a child, or a desparate drug addict who couldn't care less about risking his life and yours to get away. If you have a gun and display it, you have to be prepared to kill someone and face the permanent consequences of a potentially tragic mistake and the tremendous guilt that any normal person will feel even if they kill in self-defense.
The last thing we need is a 400 mph vehicle to enable people to live even farther from where they work, waste more resources, and further alienate the rich from the poor.
Some of the renderings in the Hall of fame are fantastic.
But sadly, it seems that no POV-ray artist has succeeded in creating a proper human form.
When they try, they have that creepy not-quite-right look that was common in professional computer graphics a few years ago.
I attribute this to the lack of powerful graphic modelling programs used in the pov toolchain. To make realistic human shapes, one needs to be able to quickly and easily nudge these forms thousands of times before its right.
Slashdot Mirror
...Funny how Slashdot is the only site I have ever seen that renders so poorly as to make it unreadable at times under Firefox ...
What?
I never had a problem with slashdot. What exactly makes it "unreadable"?
I remember a very good quote that sums up the nature of libertarians:
"... they have taken a personality defect and turned it into a political philosophy..."
This is just typical boorish, persnickety behavior from a geeky libertarian who doesn't want be reasonable because he holds some absurdly rigid interpretation of "constitutional" rights.
Give me a break, its not a burden to be asked to show ID when boarding an airplane.
Apple can't afford the negative publicity of ruining an individual like this, but they can't just drop it, either.
I predict they will win the civil case and then waive their right to collect any damages.
Unfortunately, the legal fees to get to that point could still be crushing for an individual.
Yes, applets are horrible.
It didn't have to be that way, however.
By saying that forms are a mess, I do not mean they are hard (by themselves).
The problem is the whole big picture of what needs to be done to get forms-on-web-page to work properly and meet all requirements.
In fact, I would argue that forms are too simple. That's why we need all the exessive junk on many webpages.
At some point, things will get so messed up that it will just make more sense to go back to an application (applet).
We have been waiting for xforms for far too long.
Forms, the way they are now, are a mess. And the very very late introduction of the long-awaited xforms will serve to F things up even more because all the developer toolchains will have to be made compliant (or not). Its going a long and painful road.
Part of the blame goes to java (sun) and microsoft for screwing up and/or sabotaging the applet concept.
If things were done right, developers would be writing user-input pages as applets rather than a messy rat's nest of css, html, forms, javascript, jsp's, etc...
Its not about "thought crimes", whatever that is.
Its about a small group of creepy people ruining a collective (yet private) internet space-- sort of like having a party with a loose guest list and then having really uncool and really annoying people show up and offend everyone.
What HP?
The _real_ "HP" is now called "Agilent"!
I get this a lot.
In general, household IT support is a no-win situation and people are best left to fend for themselves. If you get paid, you'll feel cheap, and they will expect everything to be perfect.
If you have to do it, do it for free, but make it easy for yourself. Introduce them to ad-aware, or other computer hygiene tools.
If that doesn't work, and you have to do something, wipe the hard drive and install windows XP or 2000, and give a lecture about computer hygiene while it installs. For old machines, there are many linux distros that give you a nice web-browsing, email-writing workstation on a low-capability machine-- sometimes even a liveCD OS is good enough. My wife has an old thinkpad that we keep in the kitchen, it runs "feather linux" and serves its purpose flawlessly-- to look up recipes on the internet, and get email.
So it is "Safer" and "easier" to "shut the hell up" about something that is politically incorect if the price is a large amount of suffering?
Not only safer and easier, but better.
Even if his what he said were true, it is only a statistical statment. Such statements do not apply to capabilities _individuals_.
BTW, I am writing this a software developer surrounded on all cubicle sides by biologists-- 70% of which are FEMALE.
True!
I like bittorrent, but my problem is that I can't easily search for what I want in torrent form.
Please, I hope I am wrong, but it seems that one is forced to go to "seedy" (I mean, really seedy, as in icky) websites to get the links.
Although it is true that everyone starts as a beginner. People with artistic talent are, to some extent, born that way. This innate talent is then developed over years of work and practice.
If it is at all possible, it is best to hire an artist to do your graphics. If you don't, the end-result is often (but not always) cheesy.
Why not?
It is an excellent tool for learning programming.
... ...
The most obvious security risk is that someone steals a tag and enters the premises unnoticed. But there are others that I worry about. Stuff like the ease of replicating an RFID tag or even a hacker passively reading a tag in public then recreating it and gaining access.
RFID in conjunction with pin numbers addresses stuff like that.
...There is a clear difference between writing the code for a program and actually determining what code is needed or making a new, original algorithm. Those fields are the only ones that matter now and are the only ones that have ever really mattered. ...
Ouch.
My life must be meaningless ?!
Is it just me, or do people look like dorks when they ride these things?
Forget about designer fruit...
There are bacteria that can generate small amounts of hydrogen gas. If genetic engineering can make these bacteria much better at this function, we will have very good renewable energy source.
I like the LP because it fractures the right wing and thus weakens it.
Other than that, it serves no useful purpose.
Everytime I discuss any issue with a libertarian, the discussion degrades into a impassable nexus of absurdist, inflexible, and literally "fundamentalist" beliefs that libertarian takes as absolute truth.
They see the constitution as some holy assembly language program that government must follow without deviation. Any federal activity that is not explicit in the constitution is regarded as "illegal".
Anyways, more power to them. They will never get anywhere, and will help the us (liberals) by diluting the other side.
So while I'm certianly not going to advocate a gun as a first line of defense, I don't see that it is a bad idea as a complete part of defense. If the person is, as you say, desperate and willing to kill you, better that you are able to defend yourself.
Neither do I. If someone wants a gun and is prepared to accept the full responsibility for their actions, I'm all for it.
The problem is that having a gun is practically useless in an urban environment.
I happen to think that _confronting_ someone breaking into a car or comitting property crimes with deadly force is not worth the risk. The cops take it very seriously even when they outnumber the thug. An untrained fool with no support is asking for trouble.
Bah, i don't see what truth there is in this. In my neighborhood criminals are really dangerous bad guys type and drug addicts are really dangerous too.
Good, so you know what you're dealing with. Many people have no idea what to expect. In no way was I saying that these people are not dangerous, they are, but being surprised about what you're dealing with is a disadvantage.
These programs are the lamest thing ! [neighborhood watch]
You might think so, but having people keep an eye on what is going on around them is the best crime deterent. In too many communities, people don't know their own neighbors. Neighbors are too afraid to call each other, or the police, if they see something suspicious occuring near them.
Did you know that most home burglaries occur in broad daylight? Theives drive up in a truck and clean out the house. Many times neighbors are too concerned about "minding their own business" to do anything-- so much for not having "nosy neighbors!
I live in Baltimore city in a _very_ high crime neighborhood (albeit one that is rapidly gentrifying ). My neighhors and I have encountered all kinds of criminal activity.
Some suburban blowhards will say to get a gun first, but there are a number of things you can do that are more effective than having a gun. Simple preventative measures will go much farther than a loaded gun in the closet. If you have to have a gun, fine, but do the things below FIRST:
1) Keep an eye on things. Call the cops whenever something remotely suspicious is happening. Don't hesitate to call 911. The system can handle a tremendous number of calls and they know how to prioritize. Even if the police don't respond to the call, it is logged and stats are collected. In most urban areas, 911 call stats are used to allocate police resources. When calling 911 be accurate, specific and unemotional.
2) Don't leave _ANYTHING_ in your car and use a club. Larceny from auto is the hallmark of a drug addict criminal. They want easy targets. Even change on the dashboard is worth breaking a window to them. They don't think like normal people. Be discreet, don't show off wealth or new acquisitions.
3) Get to know your neighbors. Share information. Talk about what is happening in the neighborhood. The police in your area may offer "neighborhood watch" programs that educate folks about crime. This is usually done through their community relations department. Its a good way to learn about real crime prevention.
Please don't get a gun because some armchair libertarians on slashdot think its a good idea. If you have a gun, it is only useful if you confront the criminal. In the VAST majority of property crimes, you never even SEE the criminal. In those rare cases where you happen to catch the punk, you will discover something that is NOT what you expect: often a child, or a desparate drug addict who couldn't care less about risking his life and yours to get away. If you have a gun and display it, you have to be prepared to kill someone and face the permanent consequences of a potentially tragic mistake and the tremendous guilt that any normal person will feel even if they kill in self-defense.
The last thing we need is a 400 mph vehicle to enable people to live even farther from where they work, waste more resources, and further alienate the rich from the poor.
Usually conservatives are quite humorless, but that is a very good practical joke.
Some of the renderings in the Hall of fame are fantastic.
But sadly, it seems that no POV-ray artist has succeeded in creating a proper human form.
When they try, they have that creepy not-quite-right look that was common in professional computer graphics a few years ago.
I attribute this to the lack of powerful graphic modelling programs used in the pov toolchain. To make realistic human shapes, one needs to be able to quickly and easily nudge these forms thousands of times before its right.