My company, Backstop Solutions Group, has been distributing a branded version of Firefox since Nov. '03 - before they even settled on the name 'Firefox'.
We're an ASP for investment partnerships, and the main reason we require Firefox is CSS compliance. CSS allows us to easily build some cool UI features into the software, and set a default home page etc. Standardization also simplifies support.
And even though the "Backstop Browser" has our logo in the corner, we're very clear with clients that the browser is based on Firefox. As a result, we've seen clients switching over to Firefox as their primary browser.
You missed one popular argument(one that I don't necessarily agree with): pornography debases women by reducing them to objects of sexual desire. This process of objectification affects the way that children view gender roles later in life.
In a nutshell: boys that see a lot porn my not be more likely to become rapists, but they may be more likely to sexually harass women in the workplace. And by the same token, girls that see a lot of porn may be more likely to accept mistreatment.
I think that nudity is not in itself a bad thing, but rather how we represent sexuality in general. The "Miss America" pageant probably objectifies women as much as "Debbie does Dallas".
The other interesting aspect to this line of thought, is that in the last several years men are increasingly subject to this same process of objectification as women - check out any reality TV show sometime.
I have no idea how this will alter the gender dynamics of our society, but I'm willin to bet there is a PhD student somewhere out there, watching a "Temptation Island" marathon, trying to answer that question.
I remember when I first discovered the custom sounds feature in Win 95. Since I was in college (and had way too much time on my hands) I created and an entire sound scheme around James Brown noises.
At startup, my machine would hit me with "[rimshot] I feel good!". "Yeeoooooow!" was reserved for errors. In fact I had to ditch that sound, because with Win 95 I was hearing it *way* too often.
Basically, if you're trying to protest the painting of all Christians with a wide brush, then yes, you're right, good point. But other than that, I don't see how one Christian minority group disapproving of violent tactics makes the actions of another Christian minority group which does approve of violent tactics any less of a "lynching".
I agree with most of your post, but you're a little off on referting to Catholics as "one Christian minority group". In the US, Catholics are not only the largest Christian sect, but they are the single largest religious denomination, making up fully one quarter of the population. Worldwide, Catholics number more than one billion.
So, when the leaders of the US and worldwide Catholic church stand up against violence, and preach this to their members, it carries a great deal of weight. And while it doesn't make violent acts "any less of a lynching", it should show you that the majority of Christians feel that violence and hate go against the fundamental teachings of our faith.
Evanescence is actually *not* on a major label - they're signed with Wind-Up Records out of New York. Other bands on the label include Creed, Drowning Pool and Seether.
While Wind-Up may not produce the most innovative music, they are known for how well they treat their artists, and they have been very successful.
It is possible that two engines with widely different horespower ratings will have the same mileage performance but that's a matter of coincidence not science. As an example consider the highly efficient 100HP/liter powerplants in the S2000, 911 and M3 compared to the 5.7 liter (and that's a key number) powerplants of American muscle cars of a generation ago (Mustang, Camaro, Corvette etc.).
You're confusing specific output and fuel efficiency here. Acheiving 100hp/liter is an impressive engineering feat, and has packaging and weight advantages for the design of the vehicle. However, it has nothing to do with fuel efficiency.
Look at your own examples: the 3.3L 333hp BMW M3 is rated at 16/23mpg. The modern Corvette still has a 5.7L motor making 375hp and gets 19/28 mpg.
They are both stunning motors. However, the Corvette makes more power and gets better mileage - although at a slight weight and size penalty.
An excerpt (for the lazy):
"Lawrence E. Armstrong, a professor of exercise and environmental physiology at the University of Connecticut, found that caffeine is not the dehydrating demon some people believe. In fact, he concluded that caffeine is no more a diuretic than water."
Although I'm only in my 20s, I read all of the sci-fi classics in high school, and then sort-of dropped the genre until recently. Some authors with which I have recently connected:
Neil Gaman - More fantasy than sci-fi, but intelligent and very entertaining. Start with "Stardust". It's a quick read, and even my wife enjoyed it
Bruce Sterling - He's not exactly new, but definitely more recent than Asimov and Niven. "Schismatrix" is a impressive and original piece of sci-fi.
Neil Stephenson - Stephenson has become my favorite contemporary author. His books are massive, but are so entertaining that I literally can't put them down. All of his novels are incredible, but I would recommend you start with "Snow Crash"
Think of the possibilities of global wireless broadband. I've heard that Qualcom is going to have a 2.4gig wireless laptop modem out soon. And you know it won't be long before a variety of smaller devices with this capablity hit the market. Access to information, no matter where you are, is one of most enticing opportunities the web has to offer. PCS phone services and advanced pagers have only scratched the surface in this regard. I just can't wait to be "working from home" while sitting at the beach.
Slashdot Mirror
"My friend's TV burned out, so all Plasma TV's are guaranteed to burn out!"
Nice logic.
There is a lot of FUD out there concerning the longevity of plasma displays. Check out this article for a sensible analysis of the problem.
(If you're too lazy to read the article, it basically says that you can reasonably expect to be watching your plasma tv 10 years from now)
My company, Backstop Solutions Group, has been distributing a branded version of Firefox since Nov. '03 - before they even settled on the name 'Firefox'.
We're an ASP for investment partnerships, and the main reason we require Firefox is CSS compliance. CSS allows us to easily build some cool UI features into the software, and set a default home page etc. Standardization also simplifies support.
And even though the "Backstop Browser" has our logo in the corner, we're very clear with clients that the browser is based on Firefox. As a result, we've seen clients switching over to Firefox as their primary browser.
You missed one popular argument(one that I don't necessarily agree with): pornography debases women by reducing them to objects of sexual desire. This process of objectification affects the way that children view gender roles later in life.
In a nutshell: boys that see a lot porn my not be more likely to become rapists, but they may be more likely to sexually harass women in the workplace. And by the same token, girls that see a lot of porn may be more likely to accept mistreatment.
I think that nudity is not in itself a bad thing, but rather how we represent sexuality in general.
The "Miss America" pageant probably objectifies women as much as "Debbie does Dallas".
The other interesting aspect to this line of thought, is that in the last several years men are increasingly subject to this same process of objectification as women - check out any reality TV show sometime.
I have no idea how this will alter the gender dynamics of our society, but I'm willin to bet there is a PhD student somewhere out there, watching a "Temptation Island" marathon, trying to answer that question.
I remember when I first discovered the custom sounds feature in Win 95. Since I was in college (and had way too much time on my hands) I created and an entire sound scheme around James Brown noises.
At startup, my machine would hit me with "[rimshot] I feel good!". "Yeeoooooow!" was reserved for errors. In fact I had to ditch that sound, because with Win 95 I was hearing it *way* too often.
Basically, if you're trying to protest the painting of all Christians with a wide brush, then yes, you're right, good point. But other than that, I don't see how one Christian minority group disapproving of violent tactics makes the actions of another Christian minority group which does approve of violent tactics any less of a "lynching".
I agree with most of your post, but you're a little off on referting to Catholics as "one Christian minority group". In the US, Catholics are not only the largest Christian sect, but they are the single largest religious denomination, making up fully one quarter of the population. Worldwide, Catholics number more than one billion.
So, when the leaders of the US and worldwide Catholic church stand up against violence, and preach this to their members, it carries a great deal of weight. And while it doesn't make violent acts "any less of a lynching", it should show you that the majority of Christians feel that violence and hate go against the fundamental teachings of our faith.
Evanescence is actually *not* on a major label - they're signed with Wind-Up Records out of New York. Other bands on the label include Creed, Drowning Pool and Seether.
While Wind-Up may not produce the most innovative music, they are known for how well they treat their artists, and they have been very successful.
It is possible that two engines with widely different horespower ratings will have the same mileage performance but that's a matter of coincidence not science. As an example consider the highly efficient 100HP/liter powerplants in the S2000, 911 and M3 compared to the 5.7 liter (and that's a key number) powerplants of American muscle cars of a generation ago (Mustang, Camaro, Corvette etc.).
You're confusing specific output and fuel efficiency here. Acheiving 100hp/liter is an impressive engineering feat, and has packaging and weight advantages for the design of the vehicle. However, it has nothing to do with fuel efficiency.
Look at your own examples: the 3.3L 333hp BMW M3 is rated at 16/23mpg. The modern Corvette still has a 5.7L motor making 375hp and gets 19/28 mpg.
They are both stunning motors. However, the Corvette makes more power and gets better mileage - although at a slight weight and size penalty.
Are there any cars out there better than this?
This may or may not be the best car available. However, it is surprising how much competition the Veyron has:
There are more cars in this class, but I can't remember them off the top of my head.
I don't know how the market can support all of these $250k+ cars. How many people out there can really afford these? Wish I was one of them
Check out this debunking page.
An excerpt (for the lazy):"Lawrence E. Armstrong, a professor of exercise and environmental physiology at the University of Connecticut, found that caffeine is not the dehydrating demon some people believe. In fact, he concluded that caffeine is no more a diuretic than water."
Although I'm only in my 20s, I read all of the sci-fi classics in high school, and then sort-of dropped the genre until recently. Some authors with which I have recently connected:
Neil Gaman - More fantasy than sci-fi, but intelligent and very entertaining. Start with "Stardust". It's a quick read, and even my wife enjoyed it
Bruce Sterling - He's not exactly new, but definitely more recent than Asimov and Niven. "Schismatrix" is a impressive and original piece of sci-fi.
Neil Stephenson - Stephenson has become my favorite contemporary author. His books are massive, but are so entertaining that I literally can't put them down. All of his novels are incredible, but I would recommend you start with "Snow Crash"
Think of the possibilities of global wireless broadband. I've heard that Qualcom is going to have a 2.4gig wireless laptop modem out soon. And you know it won't be long before a variety of smaller devices with this capablity hit the market. Access to information, no matter where you are, is one of most enticing opportunities the web has to offer. PCS phone services and advanced pagers have only scratched the surface in this regard. I just can't wait to be "working from home" while sitting at the beach.