The incentive to win is high: in addition to total cash prizes of about $400,000 US, winners get global bragging rights and could go on to professional careers, like Canadian Guillaume Patry. Five years ago, the Quebec-born Patry became the Starcraft world champion and was offered a job as a professional game player in South Korea, initially making about $100,000 a year. His annual salary is now estimated at about $500,000 and, as the star of a Korean Starcraft TV program, he needs bodyguards to protect him from his fans.
Well done. Didn't think there was that much money in videogames.
In other news, the word "Cyber" hasn't been cool since 1988. Please don't use it anymore.
I've been thinking about this for a while. What if you could, for lack of a better term, Google the earth? That's a bit broad, and excuse the ca. 1994 AT&T "You Will" commercial-speak...
You listen to a song on the radio, and then search for a match from what your brain just heard (and was stored on a portable audio device) with a world database of songs.
You see a person you recognize and are able to get their name, last time you talked to them, etc.
You can take a look at all this data and have software come up with weird trends or coincidences ("Heinz! Your ketchup sells better a week after a victory by the local football team!").
The problem is of course that people are against this. I, for one, do not have a problem as long as it's easily accessible public information. Think back to 20 years ago. What would you say if your next-door neighbor had our present time internet, with access to public records, opinions, sports cores, etc. etc. etc. We take it for granted now because everyone can do it.
I think this is probably what will cause the singularity.
The directors of the firm hired to continue the FAQ after the other people had been FAQd, wish it to be known that they have just been FAQd. The FAQ has been completed in an entirely different style at great expense and at the last minute.
First off, using video game characters to promote voting is not different than any Toby Keith video, warmed over Good Morning America "news piece", Ann Coulter radio "interview", or misinformed blog rehashing other people's opinions before forming their own.
Secondly, what are the "real" "deep" "political" "issues" you speak of? The economy, of which the president has extremely limited control? Quotas in higher education? Healthcare and social security? Taxes? Iraq? Immigration? National park use? War record? Homeland security? Religion? Elementary education? Tariffs? Outsourcing? Unions? Control over the media? The Patriot Act? DMCA? Broadband for everyone? NASA? Reparations? Bank reform? Abortion? Homosexuality? Your "real" issues are not other people's "real" issues, and vice versa. Some people might vote because Bush is a Republican and they always vote Republican. Or they vote for Kerry because of REAP. Or they vote for X because of BCD, etc.
To somehow believe that your vote is more important because you have a different level of knowledge of certain issues is a bit ignorant. If you have thorough knowledge on every issue, please make a website with that information to inform others.
I remember my father (who is from S. America) told me that he met a lot of people who would name their kids after American products. The best two examples he could remember where Chevrolet and Vick's Vapor Rub (which, phonetically in Spanish, works out to be "VICK VaPOREroo").
As far as trailer parks, an attendee at a wedding I went to over the summer regaled me with this story. He works with kids in southern Virginia, so it's not complete backwater, but it's pretty far back. He said there was a girl who went by "Bobette" who was known to beat up guys who disrespected her. Like, really beat up. Not just hit. Incapacitate. This, to everyone's surprise, continued even after Bobette became pregnant.
And finally, here's my list of rules for Southern names. Feel free to add more.
1. If your first name ends in "-ette", "-worth", "-ley", "-ty", "-Mae" "-Lee" is is a Southern name, especially if any of those suffixes are added to already Southern names ("Johnette" "Janey-Mae"). 2. If your name is the combination of two angel's names, it is a Southern name. 3. If your name has been "officially retired" by the Book of Really Long Baby Names, you have a Southern name 4. If the name on the birth certificate is a shortened, childish version of a regular name ("Bobby" "Mickey" "Johnnie") you might have a Southern name. 5. If an apostrophe is part of your first name, not your last, you have a Southern name. 6. If you were named after anyone involved in the War of Northern Agression (i.e. "Civil War"), you might have a Southern name. 7. If your name is preceded by "Lil'" you have a Southern name. 8. If your name is "Junior" you have a Southern name.
There's been a malt liquor energy drink for sale around here... can looks like an orange battery. So, no, this isn't new, but it certainly is a first from a major brewer (let's see what SAB/Miller does).
Considering myself an epicurean when it comes to alcohol, I cannot recommend Chouffe Coffee liqueur highly enough. It's loads better than Kahlua and actually tastes like coffee, imagine that.
I wish I was serious, but it was just hyperbole. Although I wouldn't be surprised if they actually tried something like that. And if you really think about it, there's no claim of free speech with the DNC. All those people specifically said they don't want to be contacted. I could see if you had to form a whitelist, that might have some sort of basis for argument, but not a blacklist. Oh well. I shed no tears.
Perhaps the biggest mistake was that The American Teleservices Association, Mainstream Marketing Services Inc. and TMG Marketing Inc. all decided to run telemarketing campaigns directed at the Supreme Court judges, their family, and staff to hear the case. Not the smartest move to interrupt Rehnquist while he was having his bologna rye sandwich and thinking about the decision.
Imagine someone walks up to you and starts talking to you about your car insurance:
"Well, here's the thing. Your car needs to be safe, and since 1997, with more highways available, more ISEC 45 systems can't accomodate Goodyear telecons. Car insurances? In your glove box, you can find your insurance info several tachometers. Make sure to astagate the TFGG Nationwide proteases for the next fifteen days, and then every fifteen days -- dirkonite 1997 malfunctions could lead to superfinite hexagon and then your gas mileage Liberty Mutual goes down. But the car is fine, it's a good car. It's going to explode and your dog will die. Just call the state RT-678 system box accelerator engine spark plug twice, after frubbing the seats and air conditioner. So, yes, Ford and Honda are a risk, but you have filters, GM just needs shafts -- in Japan."
That's basically what the average person hears when you start talking about computer security. They seem to understand some terms, but for the most part their eyes glaze over. Then they say "OK" and go back to looking on eBay for that autographed baseball. Even running Ad-Aware is a pain for most people. There's about 20 different options and if they click the wrong one they don't know what just happenned.
I paid $25 to get a box that would work. I don't have time to fiddle with settings, etc. I ended up wasting a good amount of time after all was said and done, so maybe I should've tried it myself. Only question is, if I don't have Vonage, what number do I give to people?
Recently I was switched over to working almost full-time from home. I can easily be on the phone 500 minutes in one day, so only unlimited service would really do. Here's my experience, abridged:
Set up with Vonage. I decide on them because they are the biggest and well-known. I only have a couple days to research, so I order the damn thing. I get to pick a number which is supposedly in a certain town here but I don't recognize the exchange.
Installation. It comes in the mail a couple of days later. I set up and *bingo*, it just... doesn't work. The next day I figured out the phone was plugged into "Line 2"... Who puts "Line 2" on the left hand side of "Line 1"? Doesn't make sense. My mistake.
So now it works. Sort of. The router is still not part of the equation. The hardware is an awful router, so I eventually decide to put it behind the router. Forward the right ports, etc... Bingo. Works perfectly.
No wait, it doesn't work. What I didn't mention was that a large part of my job has to do with faxing. Well, the POTS fax protocol used (excuse my butchering of telephony terms) doesn't play nice with VOIP. I can get faxes fine but I can barely send them. Everything drops out. No matter where. This will not do.
A long difficult period. I contact Vonage tech support for help and no matter what I say they put me on L1 where they check to see what version of Windows do I have and do I have the router set up right etc. etc. eventhough my phone calls work just fine!!! Argh. Over the next week or so I literally spend 20+ hours researching this issue.
Finally, an agreement. I turn down the send speed of my high-speed fax, I do a bunch of hardware and software tweaks, and now about 70% of all faxes work. Not a terribly high ratio, but I've learned to rely on other forms of sending documentation now.
Over time. My only major complaints is the complete lack of support for faxes. VOIP natively is not good at handling faxes. If you ever really really need to send a fax, VOIP is not for you. Call quality was perfect except in one major teleconference call, and there were no outages until last week when outgoing calls where butchered for the entire day.
Overall, I'd give it a B+. I've probably saved $100 or so over the past couple of months, at the expense of a really bad headache. Still, if I ever go anywhere I like to know I can take my Vonage box with me and have my number be there.
How is the quality of the VOIP services?: Pretty good... sometimes there's some complaints on the other end, and it is half-duplex, which means if you're not saying anything the person on the other end hears nothing, as opposed to just a soft hiss. Vonage had a pretty serious problem the other day which wasn't fixed until the end of the business day. Not good for any critical work.
Are there delays?: None in calls. The delay is the three days it took me to set up my Vonage service so it actually worked.
Dropouts?: None.
Access to local 911?: Sort of. Vonage says:
Vonage routes your call to the Public Service Answering Point (PSAP), which provides emergency services in your area. The appropriate PSAP is determined by the physical address you supplied when you configured 911 on your web account. Therefore, if we do not have the correct address, your call cannot be routed to the corresponding PSAP for your area. Another difference between Vonage 911 Dialing service and traditional 911 service is that the Vonage call will be routed to the PSAP's general access line, which is different from the 911 Emergency Response Center. You will need to state the nature of your emergency promptly and clearly, including your location and telephone number, as PSAP personnel will not have this information at hand. PSAP personnel can help you effectively and will take necessary steps to provide you with the appropriate assistance, such as dispatching police, an ambulance and/or a fire truck. Behind the scenes, the call will go to your local Public Service Answering Point immediately, if you have provided your address by configuring 911 on your web account. If you have not configured 911 on your web account, you won't be able to dial 911 at all.
What happens when the power goes out in my house?: Do you still have an internet connection?
Vonage let's their hardware act as a router (poorly) or sit behind a router. Vonage lets their hardware do QoS and packet shaping. I don't think the hardware makes that big of a difference.
"A Yankee Group survey of 473 enterprise decision makers reveals that companies have put aside money for service-oriented architectures for 2005." This is a bigger deal then it sounds - if companies keep moving this away, it will mean a sea change in corporate technology usage - and change the way/why development is done. We're talking everything from SOAP stuff (ITMJ is part of OSTG) to whole sale ASP adoption like Salesforce.com."
473 enterprise decision makers? How many best-of-breed synergized Libraries of Congress is that?
Slashdot Mirror
Michael who?
I know Barnadick and Cobbs, they them fellas 'was arrested.
Well done. Didn't think there was that much money in videogames.
In other news, the word "Cyber" hasn't been cool since 1988. Please don't use it anymore.
The problem is of course that people are against this. I, for one, do not have a problem as long as it's easily accessible public information. Think back to 20 years ago. What would you say if your next-door neighbor had our present time internet, with access to public records, opinions, sports cores, etc. etc. etc. We take it for granted now because everyone can do it.
I think this is probably what will cause the singularity.
The directors of the firm hired to continue the FAQ after the other people had been FAQd, wish it to be known that they have just been FAQd. The FAQ has been completed in an entirely different style at great expense and at the last minute.
So you're arguing that the sender (Toby Keith vs. Luigi) is more important than the message itself?
I'll bite.
First off, using video game characters to promote voting is not different than any Toby Keith video, warmed over Good Morning America "news piece", Ann Coulter radio "interview", or misinformed blog rehashing other people's opinions before forming their own.
Secondly, what are the "real" "deep" "political" "issues" you speak of? The economy, of which the president has extremely limited control? Quotas in higher education? Healthcare and social security? Taxes? Iraq? Immigration? National park use? War record? Homeland security? Religion? Elementary education? Tariffs? Outsourcing? Unions? Control over the media? The Patriot Act? DMCA? Broadband for everyone? NASA? Reparations? Bank reform? Abortion? Homosexuality? Your "real" issues are not other people's "real" issues, and vice versa. Some people might vote because Bush is a Republican and they always vote Republican. Or they vote for Kerry because of REAP. Or they vote for X because of BCD, etc.
To somehow believe that your vote is more important because you have a different level of knowledge of certain issues is a bit ignorant. If you have thorough knowledge on every issue, please make a website with that information to inform others.
So your most ghetto name would be, let's see.
We'll start with Michael.
1. Michaell.
2. Mi'chaell.
3. Mi'chaelleta.
4. Mi'chaelletaing.
5. Mi'chaelletaing Taft.
6. Ne'Michaelle Tafting.
7. Mi'Nechaelle Tafting.
8. Ne'Nechaelle Tafting.
9. Helsinki Ne'Nechaelle Tafting.
Wow, it works.
I remember my father (who is from S. America) told me that he met a lot of people who would name their kids after American products. The best two examples he could remember where Chevrolet and Vick's Vapor Rub (which, phonetically in Spanish, works out to be "VICK VaPOREroo").
As far as trailer parks, an attendee at a wedding I went to over the summer regaled me with this story. He works with kids in southern Virginia, so it's not complete backwater, but it's pretty far back. He said there was a girl who went by "Bobette" who was known to beat up guys who disrespected her. Like, really beat up. Not just hit. Incapacitate. This, to everyone's surprise, continued even after Bobette became pregnant.
And finally, here's my list of rules for Southern names. Feel free to add more.
1. If your first name ends in "-ette", "-worth", "-ley", "-ty", "-Mae" "-Lee" is is a Southern name, especially if any of those suffixes are added to already Southern names ("Johnette" "Janey-Mae").
2. If your name is the combination of two angel's names, it is a Southern name.
3. If your name has been "officially retired" by the Book of Really Long Baby Names, you have a Southern name
4. If the name on the birth certificate is a shortened, childish version of a regular name ("Bobby" "Mickey" "Johnnie") you might have a Southern name.
5. If an apostrophe is part of your first name, not your last, you have a Southern name.
6. If you were named after anyone involved in the War of Northern Agression (i.e. "Civil War"), you might have a Southern name.
7. If your name is preceded by "Lil'" you have a Southern name.
8. If your name is "Junior" you have a Southern name.
Expect to get a bunch of email asking:
1. Where do you work?
2. Are you hiring?
3. Can you talk to the Indian guys and tell me how they got the visa?
There's been a malt liquor energy drink for sale around here... can looks like an orange battery. So, no, this isn't new, but it certainly is a first from a major brewer (let's see what SAB/Miller does).
Considering myself an epicurean when it comes to alcohol, I cannot recommend Chouffe Coffee liqueur highly enough. It's loads better than Kahlua and actually tastes like coffee, imagine that.
I wish I was serious, but it was just hyperbole. Although I wouldn't be surprised if they actually tried something like that. And if you really think about it, there's no claim of free speech with the DNC. All those people specifically said they don't want to be contacted. I could see if you had to form a whitelist, that might have some sort of basis for argument, but not a blacklist. Oh well. I shed no tears.
Perhaps the biggest mistake was that The American Teleservices Association, Mainstream Marketing Services Inc. and TMG Marketing Inc. all decided to run telemarketing campaigns directed at the Supreme Court judges, their family, and staff to hear the case. Not the smartest move to interrupt Rehnquist while he was having his bologna rye sandwich and thinking about the decision.
Imagine someone walks up to you and starts talking to you about your car insurance:
"Well, here's the thing. Your car needs to be safe, and since 1997, with more highways available, more ISEC 45 systems can't accomodate Goodyear telecons. Car insurances? In your glove box, you can find your insurance info several tachometers. Make sure to astagate the TFGG Nationwide proteases for the next fifteen days, and then every fifteen days -- dirkonite 1997 malfunctions could lead to superfinite hexagon and then your gas mileage Liberty Mutual goes down. But the car is fine, it's a good car. It's going to explode and your dog will die. Just call the state RT-678 system box accelerator engine spark plug twice, after frubbing the seats and air conditioner. So, yes, Ford and Honda are a risk, but you have filters, GM just needs shafts -- in Japan."
That's basically what the average person hears when you start talking about computer security. They seem to understand some terms, but for the most part their eyes glaze over. Then they say "OK" and go back to looking on eBay for that autographed baseball. Even running Ad-Aware is a pain for most people. There's about 20 different options and if they click the wrong one they don't know what just happenned.
But that mirrordot site has to be in competition with games.slashdot.org and it.slashdot.org for worst colors. Good grief.
1. Find scan of $50 bill
2. Digitally put John Kerry's face on it
3. ???
4. Profit!
I tried my best to find a link to the $3 GWB note.
"I'm too depressed to continue. I only wish our country had the balls to fight treason like this."
Don't worry, something is being done about it. It's just not coming from the government.
Actually, you're right. It's more of the encoding, in that it has a pretty high noise gate*.
* My 2nd stab at terms I don't know.
I paid $25 to get a box that would work. I don't have time to fiddle with settings, etc. I ended up wasting a good amount of time after all was said and done, so maybe I should've tried it myself. Only question is, if I don't have Vonage, what number do I give to people?
Overall, I'd give it a B+. I've probably saved $100 or so over the past couple of months, at the expense of a really bad headache. Still, if I ever go anywhere I like to know I can take my Vonage box with me and have my number be there.
Vonage's hardware can sit in front or behind your router. It all has to do with how you configured it.
That being said, it's not 100% service. But it's a lot, a lot less frustrating than using a cellphone.
How is the quality of the VOIP services?: Pretty good... sometimes there's some complaints on the other end, and it is half-duplex, which means if you're not saying anything the person on the other end hears nothing, as opposed to just a soft hiss. Vonage had a pretty serious problem the other day which wasn't fixed until the end of the business day. Not good for any critical work.
Are there delays?: None in calls. The delay is the three days it took me to set up my Vonage service so it actually worked.
Dropouts?: None.
Access to local 911?: Sort of. Vonage says:
What happens when the power goes out in my house?: Do you still have an internet connection?
Lingo offers $7.95/m plus $0.03/m US (thanks aacool). Calls to other Lingo customers are free. Seems like this should cost you under $9/m.
Vonage let's their hardware act as a router (poorly) or sit behind a router. Vonage lets their hardware do QoS and packet shaping. I don't think the hardware makes that big of a difference.
"after a certain period of time (like copyright expiration"
From the way copyright law is going, that's going to be about 435 years.
So are these launches going to happen from Washington D.C.?
What, with the hot air and all.
"A Yankee Group survey of 473 enterprise decision makers reveals that companies have put aside money for service-oriented architectures for 2005." This is a bigger deal then it sounds - if companies keep moving this away, it will mean a sea change in corporate technology usage - and change the way/why development is done. We're talking everything from SOAP stuff (ITMJ is part of OSTG) to whole sale ASP adoption like Salesforce.com."
473 enterprise decision makers? How many best-of-breed synergized Libraries of Congress is that?