Yup, but very very few games or applications made use of it. Why, i've got no idea. I think maybe only some CGAs supported it perhaps? Undocumented programming hack? If you could have used that mode for everything i'm not sure why you wouldn't...
These days, there are enough levels of abstraction for the typical web/cloud app that the programmer doesn't generally need or want to *CARE* about the low level implementation details. So long as the API is open and it is portable from platform to platform, the low level source of the host platform is not of concern.
More to the point - I'm currently in 2 minds regarding DISABLING updates to our corporate desktops for Java. We have 2 content filtering firewalls to block exploits, and the amount of legacy shit we have that are only supported on specific versions of the JVM. Now it's in oracle's hands my confidence in backwards compatibility with old code is rapidly diminishing...
If you're a business, it allows you to MERGE NETWORKS or talk between two discrete LANs in a far more convenient manner. If you've ever had to support the situation where say, you want to talk between a corp network running on 10.0.0.0/8 and another corp also using 10.0.0.0/8, you'll understand the brain damage that IPV4 NAT brings to the table.
Ditto for home users trying to VPN into your network when they're using 10/8 or another one of the private networks on their LAN that you happen to have employed inside your LAN as well.
I would fall into that category. Simply because i was out of the loop with many many social events. Sure you may say, people can email invites out but it is not the same. In that case, i get spammed with email. The one thing that Facebook and other social networking sites do right is that they enable me to only check for things when i'm interested in doing so.
And yes, the second i believe there's a viable alternative with critical mass (and it looks like google+ is headed there rapidly), you'll see a mass exodus from Facebook in short order.
If I wanted a bureaucracy to decide for me what's appropriate for me to say and do, and punish me severely for violating the rules, I'd build a time machine and go back to the Soviet Union.
Or, you know... you could just stick around in the US, because thats the way things are headed over there. Already various media agents are being told what they can and can not report.
Purchase company making open source product for $millions. Discontinue support for competitors, encouraging fork of open source code. Rest of linux world uses !ksplice. Oracle left holding non-standard, non-community supported code-base worth $pittance.
I find it amusing to watch this self destructive cycle continue...
Except wave wasn't trying to compete with one of the most painfully, deliberately obtuse (security wise) websites on the web. If G+ is even half as "good" as facebook, but doesn't keep deliberately fucking with your security settings without advance notice every 6 months, then I expect users to leave en-masse. I've already noticed that the number of people requesting to add me (ex facebook) has doubled in number in the past 48 hrs.
Well, you're one of the users who may need to buy an external drive then, or use drive sharing from your old mini to your new one. Online streaming media, online downloadable apps, etc are becoming more and more commonplace. People bitched when apple removed the floppy drive also, but the reality is that usage of the optical drive is not common for many people. Who would probably prefer not to pay for one.
If you're using a mini as an HTPC, you can easily rip your DVDs to a network share using your regular usage machine and stream from there. Would i prefer to have an inbuilt optical drive for the same price? Sure, but given the price drop and the level of usage it typically gets, i'm happy to see it gone to be honest.
If you create an account and have friends... your associates are there, events you attend or are likely to attend are in there. Photos tagigng you are there. There is a hell of a lot that can be inferred. If someone happens to know where you live and is in one of your friend's contacts, they can use social networking to discover when you are not at home, for example via information posted by others.
If you want a "home theatre pc" then you're in the market for an AppleTV, looking at apple's lineup. PCs suck in that role due to fan noise, ventilation requirements, etc. I'm not saying the mini can't do it, but in the home theatre role (which i used to use my mini) i can count the number of times I've used physical disks this year on one hand.
True of course, but I suspect that my experience is representative of many. The focus points of the mini are small size and low price. Given the low usage and space consumption of the optical drive and the move to network based media, its a prime candidate for removal. Which is why it went.
to be fair, i've used the optical drive in my mini (2007) about 3 times. and one of those times was upgrading to snow leopard.
For the amount of use it doesn't get, I think its a smart move - considering in the AU market they've dropped the price by $200 in compensation. If you need an optical drive, a USB one will work for you to convert your media, or just play that using your existing player.
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Yup, but very very few games or applications made use of it. Why, i've got no idea. I think maybe only some CGAs supported it perhaps? Undocumented programming hack? If you could have used that mode for everything i'm not sure why you wouldn't...
These days, there are enough levels of abstraction for the typical web/cloud app that the programmer doesn't generally need or want to *CARE* about the low level implementation details. So long as the API is open and it is portable from platform to platform, the low level source of the host platform is not of concern.
More to the point - I'm currently in 2 minds regarding DISABLING updates to our corporate desktops for Java. We have 2 content filtering firewalls to block exploits, and the amount of legacy shit we have that are only supported on specific versions of the JVM. Now it's in oracle's hands my confidence in backwards compatibility with old code is rapidly diminishing...
Is it re-write everywhere yet?
Look up NAT64
If you're a business, it allows you to MERGE NETWORKS or talk between two discrete LANs in a far more convenient manner. If you've ever had to support the situation where say, you want to talk between a corp network running on 10.0.0.0/8 and another corp also using 10.0.0.0/8, you'll understand the brain damage that IPV4 NAT brings to the table.
Ditto for home users trying to VPN into your network when they're using 10/8 or another one of the private networks on their LAN that you happen to have employed inside your LAN as well.
IPV4 is broken and needs to die.
I remember monochrome being preferable to CGA. I mean really, could they have picked a more hideous palette?
I would fall into that category. Simply because i was out of the loop with many many social events. Sure you may say, people can email invites out but it is not the same. In that case, i get spammed with email. The one thing that Facebook and other social networking sites do right is that they enable me to only check for things when i'm interested in doing so.
And yes, the second i believe there's a viable alternative with critical mass (and it looks like google+ is headed there rapidly), you'll see a mass exodus from Facebook in short order.
Or, you know... you could just stick around in the US, because thats the way things are headed over there. Already various media agents are being told what they can and can not report.
Purchase company making open source product for $millions. Discontinue support for competitors, encouraging fork of open source code. Rest of linux world uses !ksplice. Oracle left holding non-standard, non-community supported code-base worth $pittance.
I find it amusing to watch this self destructive cycle continue...
Given the state of world finances, i would say neither do the majority of our "economists".
It is still significantly more difficult than adding some zeros to an electronic balance.
No, its because people have been ditching your monopoly money and going into real assets.
You think you AREN'T already living with 200% inflation?
Except wave wasn't trying to compete with one of the most painfully, deliberately obtuse (security wise) websites on the web. If G+ is even half as "good" as facebook, but doesn't keep deliberately fucking with your security settings without advance notice every 6 months, then I expect users to leave en-masse. I've already noticed that the number of people requesting to add me (ex facebook) has doubled in number in the past 48 hrs.
Well, you're one of the users who may need to buy an external drive then, or use drive sharing from your old mini to your new one. Online streaming media, online downloadable apps, etc are becoming more and more commonplace. People bitched when apple removed the floppy drive also, but the reality is that usage of the optical drive is not common for many people. Who would probably prefer not to pay for one.
If you're using a mini as an HTPC, you can easily rip your DVDs to a network share using your regular usage machine and stream from there. Would i prefer to have an inbuilt optical drive for the same price? Sure, but given the price drop and the level of usage it typically gets, i'm happy to see it gone to be honest.
What do you mean, finally? They are a multi-billion dollar corporation, they're not a charity.
You planning to change your appearance and move house in 6 months? Every 6 months?
If you create an account and have friends... your associates are there, events you attend or are likely to attend are in there. Photos tagigng you are there. There is a hell of a lot that can be inferred. If someone happens to know where you live and is in one of your friend's contacts, they can use social networking to discover when you are not at home, for example via information posted by others.
If you want a "home theatre pc" then you're in the market for an AppleTV, looking at apple's lineup. PCs suck in that role due to fan noise, ventilation requirements, etc. I'm not saying the mini can't do it, but in the home theatre role (which i used to use my mini) i can count the number of times I've used physical disks this year on one hand.
Any USB optical drive should work.
True of course, but I suspect that my experience is representative of many. The focus points of the mini are small size and low price. Given the low usage and space consumption of the optical drive and the move to network based media, its a prime candidate for removal. Which is why it went.
Whilst a good idea - if you lose it you should be able to get it back off the app store from a snow leopard install if it all goes pear shaped.
to be fair, i've used the optical drive in my mini (2007) about 3 times. and one of those times was upgrading to snow leopard.
For the amount of use it doesn't get, I think its a smart move - considering in the AU market they've dropped the price by $200 in compensation. If you need an optical drive, a USB one will work for you to convert your media, or just play that using your existing player.
android was open, and all this jailbreaking malarkey was something only iphone users trapped by steve jobs had to deal with