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  1. Re:Solid state on Seagate Claims New Drive Silent and Fastest · · Score: 1

    >there is pretty much nil difference between HDs now and 40 years ago!

    I dunno, I'd say the difference between rectangular and cylindrical counts as a major change...

    That and the size -- modern hard drives are much smaller than their older cousins. Try comparing an IBM microdrive to a washing machine sized drive from the 70's.

    CPUs haven't changed all that much since the 70's either, if you look at them the same way you're looking at hard drives. Still silicon, still encased in ceramic (or plastic). :-)

  2. Re:486es do not work great. on Making an X Terminal from a PC · · Score: 1

    >Of course, you can still argue that old machines use much more electricity.

    No way... The latest Athlon CPUs require 250 watt power supplies for enough juice just to power the CPU, one HDD, and one CDROM. A Pentium IV requires a 200 watt to do the same thing.

    I've seen miniturised 486s using 100 watt power supplies doing the same thing. That and the fact not all 486s even required heatsinks should tell ya something. ;-)

  3. Re:This isn't hacking... on Hacking DirecTV over TCP/IP using Linux · · Score: 1

    >it sounds more to me like they are going to the hairdresser and forget to pay the bill at the end.

    No, they are going to the hairdresser, and realising that the RCMP *will* come to their house and prosecute them for paying, deciding that its best they don't.

    Would you pay your hairdresser if the government threatened you with jail time and thousands of dollars in fines? Would you say it is morally unjust to follow the law?

    If so, then the law is immoral. Get it struck down in court for the benefit of all Canadians (we really don't want the CRTC).

    Short of killing people, or beating on people, I generally do what the government tells me to. Does that make be a bad person?

    By your rule, it does. By your rule Canada should be in anarchy over this unfair form of legally enforced non-payment. But wait a minute, we already are in a state of anarchy as far as DirecTV satellite TV goes.

    Which goes to prove Canadians are morally just. Thank you.

    [BTW: If you don't believe we can't pay for DirecTV, phone them up yourselves. Say you are a Canadian and want their service. See what they tell you. Ask them if it is even legal for you to attempt to circumvent their rules with a US mailing address if you are a Canadian.]

  4. Re:Protecting data on Hacking DirecTV over TCP/IP using Linux · · Score: 1

    >Does that mean that if I speak on a mobile phone next to your house, you have the right to intercept my conversation?

    In Canada, yes. If I had $500 to blow on a nice scanner I can walk into a Canadian radio shack and buy a scanner that lets me listen to your cell phone. I can show it to the police and the RCMP -- they will only get angry for me wasting their time.

    >That would be quite funny as an argument.

    I'm not laughing.

  5. Re:a few thoughts... on Hacking DirecTV over TCP/IP using Linux · · Score: 1

    >Seems like the owner of the intellectual property is being stolen from, if you ask me.

    Not unless someone stole your patent or copyright on it. If I patent something you already have patented, for example, that is theft of intellectual property. If I instead build the device described in your patent, that is a copy. No theft has occurred. You still own your idea, can still market it, can still call it yours.

    Unless they make it impossible for you to own your basic idea it is not stealing.

    >The creator or owner of the media should be compensated for the effort, time and money that went into creating it.

    Agreed. But, for example, just like parking in a handicapped space is not stealing (assuming you have no handicapped parking permit), neither is copyright violation. They are different items and cannot and should not be confused. Otherwise I would suggest that parking in a handicapped space is stealing that space from a handicapped person (which is also ludicrous in the extreme).

  6. Re:Filtered power? on Powerline Networks Finally Viable? · · Score: 1

    /me thinks you should take a look at Metal Oxide Varistors.

    Cheap little things (likely under $1) that short out when there's a voltage spike (this is actually good). Otherwise they do nothing (unless they get old/worn).

    That's what those big blue/orange/yellow/brown discs across the phone/power input of many things often are. That is, unless it's a capacitor (or something else).

    Great for anything... power lines, USB cables, ethernet, telephones, whatever...

  7. Re:Frivilous on Judge Sues ISP for Poor Service · · Score: 1

    >Sounds to me like mrs pirsnickety got a little miffed because she couldnt get online a few times.

    Yeah. You are so right.

    I mean, I should stop getting bitchy at the vending machine company when those green donuts aren't actually Christmas coloured (well, that'
    s what the expiry date says). I wouldn't want to bug them about it and increase the price of them! I mean, they are *just* donuts. I'll just buy the bag of chips below them instead.

    Mmmm, purple.

  8. Re:I think I speak for us all when I say on Star Wars Episode I DVD - October 16, 2001 · · Score: 1

    Succinctly? Indeed.

  9. Re:I think I speak for us all when I say on Star Wars Episode I DVD - October 16, 2001 · · Score: 1

    The tenacity of your prose ostensibly renders manifest your perfunctory implementation of the English language.

    Does endeavouring new words cause you to funk; Trembling at the thought of tucking tail; worried that someone similar might dispense a little displeasureable diatribe directed your way?

    Continued subversion of my writing will only leave me more resolute to plow forward with it.

    Although, I would appreciate the opportunity for a more amiable dialogue which could enrich upon the preponderation of both our future comments, rather than the current dialogue that renders our comments little more than plebeian in nature.

  10. Re:I think I speak for us all when I say on Star Wars Episode I DVD - October 16, 2001 · · Score: 1

    I had a big item written up explaining why I think you are wrong. But I'll put it in short.

    Let's say I only own a Beta VCR. I rent a movie in VHS format (since that's all that is out there nowadays). I borrow a freind's VHS machine, but the cheap piece of junk has no TV Coax out. So instead I copy it to a Beta tape. I watch the movie. I bulk erase the Beta tape. I then return the movie.

    Did I violate the law? If not, then how is putting the VHS onto a digital format temporarialy any different? Would it be illegal to play the VHS tape on my computer's TV in (which is digital)? What if I played the tape through my Tivo and accidentally turned on the 15 minute video delaying feature (using MPEG-2 compression, similar to my VCD, of course)?

    Why is it I have this idea that the law looks upon leasing like a temporary purchase -- perhaps that's where I'm getting the idea wrong.

    If it doesn't I guess I'll just have to get rid of the 60" projection TV and put back the old 21" Panaphonics console, since the projection TV has digital picture enhancement, modifying the original signal again.

    I am pretty sure the DMCA only applies to things availiable in a digital format, which Star Wars EP-1 is not.

  11. Re:I think I speak for us all when I say on Star Wars Episode I DVD - October 16, 2001 · · Score: 1

    And you don't know anything about a lease, do you?

  12. red light cams on Rental Car + GPS = Speeding Ticket · · Score: 1

    >Studies are revealing that town that install those red-light cameras are not shortening the length that the yellow-light stays on.

    Same here. That's why I'm careful nowadays to slam my brakes on (occasionally to the point of laying rubber) to ensure I don't go through the yellow light if there's a stop cam on there. If I need to go through one of these intersections I litterally ensure all the movable objects in my care are secured first.

    I also speed up to the limit (well... maybe more) when going through these intersections to ensure I don't get a ticket. You should see my left turns at these intersections. My in car holy-shit-handles are getting worn because of this...

    I remember reading somewhere that after they put these cameras all over an australian city their higher rear end accident stats more than made up for the lower mid-intersection accidents.

    And while getting T-Boned is dangerous, I bet whiplash (a primary effect of being run into from behind) is worse...

  13. I think I speak for us all when I say on Star Wars Episode I DVD - October 16, 2001 · · Score: 2

    George Lucas might make good movies but his attitude sucks.

    What do we do with people with a bad attitude? Do we give them money? Hell no!

    Here's what I did:

    - Rented the VHS copy
    - Downloaded a VCD of it
    - Watched the VCD in my DVD player
    - Returned the VHS copy and deleted the VCD

    all of which I am allowed to do by fair use laws. I never bothered to buy the VHS and keep the VCD after that as the movie wasn't good enough -- it was dumbed down for the lowest common denominator by Jar-Jar, and therefore ruined. Special effects aren't so special on VHS -- you need good acting and a good plot -- both of which Jar-Jar decimated. DVD, maybe, since special effects are better on DVD. But, of course, by now they are old news and not worth the cost of the DVD.

    That man will never see more than the rental price of his movie from me until he improves his attitude (by which, I mean, he needs to release the DVD at the same time or earlier than the VHS, or don't release either).

    To sum it up: Check your attitude at the door next time Lucas, and I'll by happy to buy your stuff. 'Till then I'll just laugh at the huge stock of old EP-1 tapes still at my local Costco.

    I know I have an attitude, but I'm the customer. That's my right. :-)

  14. Re:Stealing as well on SETI@Home A Security Threat, Says TVA · · Score: 1

    What would happen if a trojaned version of Webshots, Eudora, Spinner, or Minesweeper were installed?

    The same thing. Maybe they should just ask Maxtor to provide a write protect jumper on the Hard Drives, or just get rid of internet access entirely.

  15. Company toilets are for use at breaks only on SETI@Home A Security Threat, Says TVA · · Score: 2

    And so is the company water fountain.

    And company furniture is for work only. Not for you to rest your drinks, food, and children's pictures on.

    And the company floor is not for you to stand your own furniture on, just in case you were thinking of avoiding company rules.

    Better learn how to both use the toilet and drink at the same time. And learn how to time both those urges to happen for exactly 15 minutes minus walking distance once every four hours.

    "Employee #3782372, your typing rate has been below company standards for the past 240 seconds. You have been sent an automated pink slip as a result. Your pink slip will be recalled upon your resumption of a 40 wpm typing rate, and warning sent in its place. Note employee #3782372, you already have 2 of the 3 warnings necessary before being fired. Please clean your desk out tonight."

    I have a quote from a cartoon that's appropriate here (picture a steward readying the whip for a sweatshop worker): "Nike - Do it. Or ELSE!"

  16. Re:And at work... on Duke's All Out of Gum · · Score: 1

    Ugh! Mountain Dew!

    I'll have the crab juice.

  17. Re:Sorry, Chip...I don't buy it. on The GPL: A Technology Of Trust · · Score: 1

    Let's compare your QPV to the GPL:

    - They both let users distribute the software unmodified.
    - You may make modifications to both pieces of software, except with the QPL you must go about it the long way with patches.
    - In both cases the Author has the right to use your new additional code -- although with the GPL undistributed modifications need not be made availiable to the author. Note that if I don't give anyone (including the Author) patches to the QPL program I am violating the license but myself being the only person who knows, what can you do about it?
    - All modifications are to be under their respective licenses.
    - All binaries are to be accompanied by source code.
    - Derivative works using libraries must include source.
    - No warranties for either license.

    Wait a minute, the only BIG difference I see between the licenses is that the GPL allows the user to not accept the license and default the software to be under copyright.

    Huh? Why do you dislike the GPL again? Oh, I see, it doesn't fit your ultra-conservative right-wing politics.

    So sorry to see that you apply world politics to everything. Are you careful not to buy Heinz ketchup because it is Union Made?

    And, it seems, there's no provision for the idea of automatic patches. You know -- another set of source patches with an install.sh that downloads your software and automatically patches it. Just as good as a GPL source fork, really, except that you have to put up with downloading a large package with a bunch of useless code for no reason. Ho-hum.

    And if you don't like the Vaccination nature of the GPL, well, reread part 6 of your own license. Read it carefully and tell me that it doesn't require derivative works to include source. Can you do that and keep a straight face?

  18. Re:Could it be... on Zero-Knowledge Ceases Linux Support · · Score: 1

    I question how a company can make software run on:

    - Windows 95 A
    - Windows 95 B
    - Windows 95 OSR 2.0
    - Windows 95 OSR 2.0 /w USB support
    - Windows 98
    - Windows 98 SE
    - Windows ME
    - Windows XP
    - Windows NT 3.5
    - (Windows NT 4.0) * (Number of Service Packs + 1)
    - (Windows 2000) * (Number of Service Packs + 1)

    yet they can't get it to run on 1 or 2 major Linux distributions.

  19. Re:It's a great way to move to management. on What is the Value of an MBA to a Techie? · · Score: 2

    You still don't really answer the question. Was the Open Source guy just a complainer trying to inform you that the solution proposed sucked, that worked hard anyways to deliver a product on time that he knew was going to be crappy because "there's no way to make a silk purse from a sow's ear"?

    If so, so what? You should take the good advice in stride. If you have to deliver crap, then fine, just tell him "I'm considering your ideas but the client doesn't want anything else". Sure he'll probably still bitch and whine, but only to himself. Now if his productivity is still good, big deal. If not, well, that's the real reason to get rid of him -- not because he likes Open Source.

  20. Re:This is proof... on Tom's Looks At The New P-III · · Score: 1

    >how could anyone not buy AMD?

    That's just too easy.

    At the time I owned an Athlon system I was burned by the Athlon chipsets, I owned a Diamond MX-300 and a G200. I upgraded the sound to a Soundblaster Live. I then upgraded the video to an ATI Radeon.

    I thought about getting an nVidia card.

    I even thought about getting a couple of Maxtor HDDs and raiding them together.

    But then thought again: Since none of the above hardware works well with VIA chipsets and drivers, and since all the Athlon boards I see in stores use VIA chipsets, I realized someting.

    The CPU is only as good as its weakest link.

    The VIA chipset sucks extremely badly -- just look at the exceptions and workabout here: http://go.to/kt7faq/. AMD quit making uniprocessor chipsets a long time ago. Now they're teaming up with SiS for chipsets. What's next? A PC Chips "686++PRO-X-AGP-751-AMD-Extreme" chipset? Ugh!

    So I bought a BX board and a PIII 733. Not the world's fastest machine, but it doesn't explode at the slightest whim. And when it comes down to it, everything works faster than I need it as it is.

    Owning an Athlon system is like dropping a V8 engine into a Lada.

  21. Two can play that game on "Smart Tags," Round Two · · Score: 2

    [ http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2001/jun0 1/06-04UshersPR.asp ]

    " Windows XP offers an easy-to-use, real-time communication experience, enabling people to communicate and connect like never before," said Bill Gates, chairman and chief software architect for Microsoft.

    The above is a parody, and isn't necessarialy meant to harm the company in question. Just in case you couldn't notice...

  22. Re:Ping experts please help on 2-Way Satellite Internet Now Available In Canada · · Score: 2

    Here's the math:

    Speed of light (generally unbreakable :-) - 186,000 miles/sec.

    Distance to geosynchronous orbit - 22,250 miles

    22,250 / 186,000 = 120 ms each way

    Assuming the server is built into the transmitting satellite (ie: The internet is perfect):

    Open port at server = 120 ms (up)
    Acknowledgement from server = 120 ms (down)

    Now, if we're using UDP, there's no more latency (unless your client supports cleaning up after lost packets, which will slow it down horribly, and you WILL lose packets. This is radio communications)

    If this were TCP, now you get this:

    Server sends a couple of packets
    You acknowledge those packets.
    Server waits for your reply before sending more. (+ x ms, depending on your TCP windows)

    Anything much more interactive then "Send me /blah/foo.txt" is suicide over satellite.

    Let's consider a POP (mail) link.

    Open port, wait for acknowledgement (+240 ms)
    Send user, wait for reply (+240 ms)
    Send pass, wait for reply (+240 ms)
    Send list, wait for reply (+240 ms)
    Send retr, wait for reply (+240 ms * no. of messages)
    Send quit, wait for reply (+240 ms)

    Total time spent doing NOTHING for downloading three emails: 2 seconds. And that's being NICE. Servers aren't that responsive, and neither is the internet. Expect checking empty mailboxes to take 5 seconds. Which isn't much, but grates on your nerves like the local pop radio station announcer.

    FTP is similar, and so are most interactive protocols. Every letter typed on a telnet/ssh session takes at least 240 ms to show up. If you don't type the next letter until the one you typed just shows up, you effectively have a 50 baud modem. Telex was faster (I think).

    I'm not too great with this stuff, so if you are better at it than me, please correct any mistakes.

  23. Re:Two Japans on Employers Who Hold Back Their Employees? · · Score: 1

    Is this coming from a person living in a country that killed and tortured the people who were rightfully there first so they could steal their land? (oh, so sorry, it was really a trade for putting residents up in reserves) What of the unctuousness of North America on Nuclear Armaments? A country with a near insatiable demand for slave-made imports? A country that once enslaved people based on their looks? A country that locked up anyone who looked Japanese because, well, simply because they looked Japanese?

    I know my country's basic history. That's why I don't beat down on people (or companies) who, decidedly, have changed their ways. If the whole of North America could do it, why can't tiny (relatively speaking) Mitsubishi?

    To that matter, how many American immigrants to Japan working at Mitsubishi (if there are any) sniff gas and are provided with some of the poorest education in the country for their children (Japanese-only textbooks notwithstanding)?

    We have our own problems to deal with before we can even begin passing social commentary on countries like Japan.

    Let history be in the history books. Important not to forget it, lest it be repeated; Equally important not to become pharisaical about it.

    For the record, I'm not an indian, although I was born, raised, and am living in Canada. But I can't ignore what has transpired and what continues in our contries.

    If you ask me, and I was born far after the war, the Japanese people seem ok. And I hope they return the favour by not instilling needless hostility in their children for anything we've done to them (and, truly, America came out of warring against Japan with the blood of far too many innocents on their hands).

  24. Old idea on Shocking Force Feedback Ideas · · Score: 1

    Ok, someone at Mad Catz has been up too late watching old James Bond movies (can someone tell me which one it is? I've forgotten).

    How many of you thought that two person game with the shock handles looked like *fun*? Not me! Who wants to buy this thing?

  25. Re:Fuck 'em on Canadian Recording Industry Claims Drop in Sales · · Score: 1

    Do you have the impression that because the record company controls distribution of music, they deserve to own every note an artist records?

    If an artist puts their CD on a shelf, they must want everyone to have it. If they didn't want everyone to have it, selling it seems quite conterproductive to their motives.