They tend to be things like silly-looking airplanes with folding wings, strap-on mini-helicopters, and oversized drone-like craft. Flying cars are what we see in Blade Runner, Back to the Future, The Fifth Element, etc. I.e., devices that meet the following requirements:
1) Almost completely quiet; at worst, a humming sound.
2) Able to hover and maneuver effortlessly.
3) Able to take off and land anywhere effortlessly.
4) Affordable.
I would add a fifth requirement:
5) Fully computer-controlled - most people do not have what it takes to pilot ships in three dimensions.
The problem is that we do not have the technology to meet these requirements. The first three, in particular, require access to energy densities well beyond anything that we can muster these days. Either that, or antigravity technology.
We are not going to have flying cars any time soon, if ever. We are going to have expensive, noisy and generally stupid-looking contraptions that will, at the very best, occupy a very small niche. If the Segway was obviously ridiculous and stupid when it came out, such devices will be only more so.
1) DRM - getting DRM'd ebooks is a pain in the neck, unless you happen to have the exact device specifically approved by the content's owner. Even in that case, it can be a pain the neck.
2) Lack of control - the content's owner lets you access such content. That is all. The owner can override that permission at will.
3) Price - ebooks are insanely expensive, bearing in mind that the format removes lots of costs, when compared with traditional books.
As long as the three issues above stay, ebooks will be niche products - and ebook piracy will remain rampant.
Coming from Europe, the mobile phone service in the US is both pathetic and expensive. I am sure though that many Americans are convinced that, like their health system, is the best in the world.
It is a technical/scientific problem. Flying cars, as we all understand them (the Jetsons, Back to the Future, The Fifth Element, etc.) depend on technologies that do not yet exist, and that might not be feasible under the laws of physics as currently understood.
But, at least, it is not one of those ridiculous airplanes with folding wings. Not there yet, by a definite improvement on those pathetic designs that some have been pushing for decades now.
A properly placed apostrophe has its virtues as well. it's means it is.
Or it has.
It's amazing that people that can learn dozens of languages all more complex than the previous can't seem to grasp the humble apostrophe.
I violently agree. The rule is very simple: If you mean "it is" or "it has" then you can write "it's". Otherwise, it is "its". Why so many out there seem to be unable to comprehend such a simple idea is something deserving of a study.
I would too. It is just that, try as I may, installing the AMD driver for their cards under Linux is something I have yet to pull off. With NVidia, on the other hand, the correspnding task is a breeze.
Relax, buddy. We are breaking Samsung's balls because they are a bunch of assholes and because it is fun to stick to the man - especially when the man is a complete asshole.
As Richard Dawkins has said, compared to “certain” relgions, Christianity is relatively benign.
Very relatively benign. Nowadays, that the savage fundamentalists are kept in check. You do not have to go so far into the past to see how extremely deleterious Christianity has been, and can still be. People like Ted Cruz in power would strive to bring back such times.
It was silly when it came out, with the mostly inane comments of the three front row clowns. It will probably be stupid now, but, hey, it does have its legion of fans.
They have been trying very hard for decades, but the truth is that Cadillac remains the car of the elderly. I know I would be embarrassed to be seeing driving one before entering my 70s.
Slashdot Mirror
They tend to be things like silly-looking airplanes with folding wings, strap-on mini-helicopters, and oversized drone-like craft. Flying cars are what we see in Blade Runner, Back to the Future, The Fifth Element, etc. I.e., devices that meet the following requirements:
1) Almost completely quiet; at worst, a humming sound.
2) Able to hover and maneuver effortlessly.
3) Able to take off and land anywhere effortlessly.
4) Affordable.
I would add a fifth requirement:
5) Fully computer-controlled - most people do not have what it takes to pilot ships in three dimensions.
The problem is that we do not have the technology to meet these requirements. The first three, in particular, require access to energy densities well beyond anything that we can muster these days. Either that, or antigravity technology. We are not going to have flying cars any time soon, if ever. We are going to have expensive, noisy and generally stupid-looking contraptions that will, at the very best, occupy a very small niche. If the Segway was obviously ridiculous and stupid when it came out, such devices will be only more so.
1) DRM - getting DRM'd ebooks is a pain in the neck, unless you happen to have the exact device specifically approved by the content's owner. Even in that case, it can be a pain the neck.
2) Lack of control - the content's owner lets you access such content. That is all. The owner can override that permission at will.
3) Price - ebooks are insanely expensive, bearing in mind that the format removes lots of costs, when compared with traditional books.
As long as the three issues above stay, ebooks will be niche products - and ebook piracy will remain rampant.
Microsoft mobile. New synonym of 'moron': Microsoft.
Soon you will attain the status of an Islamic theocracy, that you seem to be so keen on.
Pay them well, and they will come. Isn't that the way it is supposed to work?
What kind of responses can you expect but kid's responses?
Windows users are probably used to this kind of nonsense by now.
Coming from Europe, the mobile phone service in the US is both pathetic and expensive. I am sure though that many Americans are convinced that, like their health system, is the best in the world.
It is a technical/scientific problem. Flying cars, as we all understand them (the Jetsons, Back to the Future, The Fifth Element, etc.) depend on technologies that do not yet exist, and that might not be feasible under the laws of physics as currently understood.
But, at least, it is not one of those ridiculous airplanes with folding wings. Not there yet, by a definite improvement on those pathetic designs that some have been pushing for decades now.
A properly placed apostrophe has its virtues as well. it's means it is.
Or it has.
It's amazing that people that can learn dozens of languages all more complex than the previous can't seem to grasp the humble apostrophe.
I violently agree. The rule is very simple: If you mean "it is" or "it has" then you can write "it's". Otherwise, it is "its". Why so many out there seem to be unable to comprehend such a simple idea is something deserving of a study.
Well, coming from Samsung, it already is really explosive.
That is not a flying car - it is a teeny weeny airplane with folding wings. Ridiculous.
What version? Starting on 51 it has become so unstable under Linux as to be almost unusable.
That will do wonders to turn your company into an instantly recognizable one.
After all, it is owned by an organization that has been found guilty of criminal behavior in a court of law.
I would too. It is just that, try as I may, installing the AMD driver for their cards under Linux is something I have yet to pull off. With NVidia, on the other hand, the correspnding task is a breeze.
Relax, buddy. We are breaking Samsung's balls because they are a bunch of assholes and because it is fun to stick to the man - especially when the man is a complete asshole.
After all, it is a product by Microsoft - which, by the way, can considered itself middle-fingered, again.
As Richard Dawkins has said, compared to “certain” relgions, Christianity is relatively benign.
Very relatively benign. Nowadays, that the savage fundamentalists are kept in check. You do not have to go so far into the past to see how extremely deleterious Christianity has been, and can still be. People like Ted Cruz in power would strive to bring back such times.
Those self-appointed men of God have long used technology to perpetuate their scamming.
It was silly when it came out, with the mostly inane comments of the three front row clowns. It will probably be stupid now, but, hey, it does have its legion of fans.
They have been trying very hard for decades, but the truth is that Cadillac remains the car of the elderly. I know I would be embarrassed to be seeing driving one before entering my 70s.
Are you really that thick, or are you just pretending?
It is a Samsung device, after all.