But the Huges HK-1 / H-4 Hercules, commonly called the "Spuce Goose," was not some Quixotic personal transport program. It was a project by which a military transport was designed and constructed out of non-strategic materials. That was the goal. It was undeniably a technical success.
But the last time I checked, it was fully legal to shop around for the best price. In fact, AFAIK it is legal to pay someone to shop for the best price for you. And lastly, if I was inclined to take notes on prices in different stores and make them publicly available, could I be charged?
Wal-Mart used to havea policy that you couldn't note down their prices in the store. They'd try to take away your note pad if you were caught.
See above. This isn't some kind of "you must do this now" scheme, it's merely something to help you make the most of your time. If needs be you'll be able to override the program.
As long as modal dialogs exist, there will be problems.
Heck, I'd be happy if X-based window managers would do simple things-- like make sure that dialogs can't be moved behind their parent windows if they're modal dialogs.
Solaris' OpenWindows/CDE is infuriating in that respect!
Look, domain names don't matter past the vanity thing! If you want to be found, use good metadata, and register with the big search engines! it's as simple as that.
Content and domain name are not tied together in any way, so my home page could be a personal page, my own business, or a site that lambastes the corporation of my choice. It doesn't matter. I don't even have any metadata set. But when I do a Google search for my name and where I live, "jeff may eau gallie florida," my page is #1 in the list. I just looked up a high school friend of mine, and used only his name; his page was #6.
There's absolutely no reason for all these stupid domain names. If anything, they just clutter the world, kinda like AOL keywords. Just use good metadata, make sure the content of your pages is worthwhile, and register with the big search engines!
That's the problem with the domain name system right there: abuse. You don't need a domain name for your family. If you really feel your family absolutely has to have an internet presence, a subdomain or subdirectory (ie. members.aol.com/thejohnsons) should be more than adequate.
This is just what I've been thinking. I am a member of the Indian River Flying Club (our page is way out of date), for which a local business owner was gracious enough to give us some space on his web server for our page.
At our last meeting, the idea came up to get our own domain name. Why? So we could attract more members. Tell me, how does having our own domain name -- I suppose that it would be indianriverflyingclub.com -- help us any more than the page we have now at flyflorida.com/irfc?
I would say not at all. Our page is registered with major search engines-- I know Google has it. Perhaps if we want more exposure, we should add more metadata to our page, not move it to a new, and arguably more obscure, domain name.
It is my opinion that very few people type anything into that Location: line in Netscape or IE. They use search engines or click links that are mailed to them by friends. One result of this is that it really doesn't matter what the address/domain looks like as long as the content is there. If you as a web page operator want more hits, refine your metadata tags so that your page moves up the list!
For examle, I just did a Google search for "flying club melbourne florida" and got a lot of links for R/C airplanes and an ultralight school. Not us. I did another search for "flying club valkaria florida" and we were the very first link. If we want more visibility, perhaps we should update our metadata such that the first search returns us as well-- more people know where Melbourne is than Valkaria, even though they're only ten miles apart!
In conclusion: don't bother with speciall, vanity domain names! Just make sure that the metadata tags in your pages cause your page to be returned by the searches you predict people will use!
Any serious judge, or jury with industry knowledge, will know that everything stored, trasmitted, operated on, etc... is binary
You are giving a lot of credit to judges and juries-- credit that, at least here in the States, is undeserved.
I think that given a highly-enough paid lawyer, a jury here in the good ole US of A could be made to think that computers store their data on cow pies. Look at the numerous examples: Johnny Cochrane and OJ Simpson leap to mind.
Here in Florida, poor sick smokers have been awarded amost a TRILLION DOLLARS, I think, in punitive damages as a reward for their stupidity in choosing to use a LEGAL product that everyone knows will eventually kill you. Perhaps we should take up drinking Drano now so we can get in on the next gravy train!
A while back I wrote my US Representative, Dave Weldon, and my two Senators, Connie Mack and Bob Graham. I actually sent an Email to them through Grassroots.com.
Although I never heard back from either of the Senators, I did get a reply from Mr. Weldon's office. At least some congressmen ('s staff) read email. The reply was even in the form of a printed, mailed letter.
I've been thinking about an idea I had during the last meeting my wife and I attended last week-- perhaps one way to help our community is to help provide low-cost computers with internet connectivity to people in our neighborhood to help disseminate local news that the mass media (eg. the local paper) won't or doesn't cover. Many people in my area don't have computers yet-- there's a lot of retired fixed-income older people here in Florida:^)
I imagine that setting up an organization that builds low- to mid-range Linux-based computers already set up to use a "free" ISP for people that don't have the means to buy one. These machines would come from either parts bought used at the computer shows that come through town or via donations.
Perhaps some of you will say that Linux isn't the best OS for computer newbies; but when you plan on giving the machines away, Windows/MacOS and their associated applications are prohibitively expensive.
It's just an idea that's been rattling in my head for the past few days... Of course,before I start rolling out these machines, I've got to get my own going satisfactorily, yaknow.
I just looked that the NIC FAQ, and I got a chuckle where it says that the video system supports, and I quote:
What resolutions does the video support? The NIC displays at 800 x 600 resolution with 65,536 million colors.
Sixty-five thousand five-hundred thirty six MILLION colors! Shouldn't that have been easier to say as "more than sixty-five BILLION colors?" (At least here in the 'States, where 1 billion== 1000 million)
Jeff
Re:OT, but Question:(Re:How do you pronounce it?)
on
Ask 'Ian' From Debian
·
· Score: 1
WTF?!? Darn HTML tags... Message was to read as follows: "Linux" (Linnux)/lin-icks/ I hear this a lot Short i in first syllable, like the y in "Lynn" or the I in "india"
"Linux" (Leenux)/lIn-icks/ this one is new. Long E (in American English), the normal pronunciation in most romance languages, spelled "i." The vowel sound in "ear," or "me."
"Linux" (Lyenux)/LYn-icks/ what I've always said. Long I (in American English), the same sound as the word "eye." I don't know how Mr. Torvalds pronounces his name, but I know that Linus Van Pelt from the Peanuts comic strip pronounced his name "L-eye-nus." I think that Dr. Pauling had the same pronunciation. In deference to my my limited knowledge and regarding the name "Linux" to be a tribute to its progenitor, I've always thought it appropriate to call it "L-eye-nicks."
Is that so wrong?
OT, but Question:(Re:How do you pronounce it?)
on
Ask 'Ian' From Debian
·
· Score: 1
"Linux" (Linnux)/lin-icks/ "Linux" (Leenux)/lIn-icks/ "Linux" (Lyenux)/LYn-icks/ Is that so wrong?
Weather falls squarely in the Aeronautics part; didn't you ever hear about their "Mission to Planet Earth?"
Before NASA was NACA; their focus was on research into aircraft design. I've got a great book at home, "Theory of Wing Sections," that was published by some people from NACA. It also catalogs their four- and five-digit airfoils.
Perhaps you're thinking of the National Air and Space museum, which is part of the Smithsonian in Washington, DC.
To the people who want a "common backplane" - great, but whose? K7 based chips and PIII based chips use totally different bus designs now. Someone would have to heavily retool their chip designs to make them work on common motherboards.
But you'd only replace that small processor board! Everything else would be common. This would reduce the cost of upgrading the processor, because a whole new system board wouldn't be necessary!
(Whoops! Just hit [RETURN] by mistake...) GUIs are great for people that can use them. I see however a great deal of people who can't, typified by my grandparents.
Grandma, intelligent and resourceful, can't use a mouse. A track ball may help, but even that will be shaky. Why? Muscular Atrophy, a form of muscular dystrophy. MA causes the body to wither away, no matter what the person does. Mouse clicking has become a maximal-effort event. When the mouse does click, it slides halfway across the screen due to the weight of her arm and the exertion that's required.
Grandpa, on the other hand, is still a pillar of physical strength. His eyes, however, have gone. Macular degeneration. He still has some vision, and when I take him flying he can see some using his special telescopic-autofocus glasses. Viewing detailed images, like computer monitors, is impossible, though.
The next wave of computer interfaces will involve a revolustion in multi-sensory, or at least non- visual, interaction. We're going there already with the limited abilities of Dragon's Naturally Speaking and IBM's ViaVoice (among others).
This new non-visual I/O systems will enhance the computer experience of those with physical disabilities, but the rest of us as well. I dream of the day when I can write small programs by verbally giving the computer a list of actions to perform. Or retrieve data by just asking for it.
In my head, and on all sorts of paper at home I have plans for these kinds of things. I'm sure that others do as well. Computer I/O systems should be able to adapt to use any sense that can convey the information-- visual, aural, and even tactile for perhaps Braille-readers (I don't think that smell or taste will help much:)
Just my view of the Road Ahead...
Jeff
PS-- just got my first Linux box going this weekend! I've got the best father in law in the world; with the kind donations from his closet, and some cheapy stuff from the local computer show, I got a K6-2 400 system for about $300! woohoo! It's RedHat 6.2
I take offense when people say that games are different from "normal" applications in that games are half program, half art. Perhaps this is my Engineer showing, but I think that "normal" or "productivity" applications should be considered art as well.
First, I am sure that everyone here knows how much work goes into usability and interface design, as most people here have some modicum of programming experience. One of my favorite web pages, AskTog, goes into great detail on the ins and outs of computer user interface design.
I know that many people would use the building/ architecture analogy-- mere building is not art, while architecture is. "Normal" applications, they say, are mere building, while games would be considered "architecture" due to their beauty.
Poppycock! Architecture is art not because it is beautiful, although one goal of the architect is indeed visual appeal. He goes about attaining that beauty, however through the use of some language-- a visual vocabulary-- to make some statement or invoke something in the imagination of the viewer. An example: Le Corbusier's Villa Savoye is a private residence, but its visual elements combine to evoke a steam ship cruising across the lot. That is what makes it art. Art is communication, not pretty colors or "photorealistic backgrounds." Art tells you something that the artist wanted you to hear.
It is my opinion that the true art lies in making complex operations decipherable by even the simplest users. A good GUI is a work of art. Reducing complex-looking physical phenomena to a few mathematical equations, such as Ohm's Law or Maxell's Equations, is art. Pretty pictures are just that. And nothing more. They convey no extra message to the viewer; they are merely eye candy.
Don't get me wrong; these new games are beautiful. The intense graphics do enhance play by making it easier to submerge yourself in the play-world presented. But there's more to art than pretty pictures.
I suppose that, just as last week, some AC is going to shoot off their keyboard, saying how they'd not want to do business with Nike due to their obvious ineptitude, letting their domain get hijacked through inadequate security and all.
{/rant}
NSI has obviously got to go. Their services are vital; I'll admit that. Their execution is just awful. As much as people talk about the 'net as free, much of what the internet is to the average joe is handed down from ivory towers like NSI.
Domain names aren't necessary, but they sure do make life a lot more fun and user-friendly. NSI provides a service to the community, but they need to have some kind of accountability.
If NSI is truly a private organization, the most direct way to institute that accountability is to hit them where it hurts-- their pocketbook. Perhaps Nike, Harris, and all the other domain registrants that have had their domains hijacked because NSI wouldn't follow their own security policies should file a class action suit against them, and shake them down a little
NSI will now join a growing list of organizations that have gotta go:
Internal Revenue Service
Department of Education
Environmental Protection Agency
Department of Energy (give good stuff back to DOD first!)
{Lightbulb turns on} In the meantime maybe there should be something like Gnutella that would be used to keep domain name servers going without the services of NSI and all the other domain registration companies. With no ivory tower to become bloated or irresponsible, these kinds of attacks couldn't happen!
I wonder if these are similar to an idea I've been toying with for WIGTTPWSH (When I Get The Time To Play With Some Hardware), that is to use a MPC106 chip to put four MPC603e (okay, not as kewl as a G4, but respectable, I think), on a PCI bus. The '106 includes a DRAM controller, CPU-PCI bridge, L2 cache controller, and interfacing for up to four 60x microprocessors.
Now, take several of these cards, each with four processors and their own memory, and bus them together on a PCI backplane. Lotsa horsepower, no?
These would be all main processors, not peripherals like the cards mentioned here. No, they wouldn't run Windows or Linux, but I've been hankering for a chance to play with OS design anyway.:)
1) Creating a new law is more than just marking and counting paper. Most people don't understand how a law gets created (even in general terms). Nor do they understand WHICH laws SHOULD BE created. Nor do they understand how a law can/should be enforced. Etc. I agree that everyone should be able to be involved, but I don't agree that this shouldn't require any education.
Come on now, we all saw the Schoolhouse Rock "I'm Just A Bill" on TV!
I however wonder how the distribution will be as there will be a need to be sure that no "man-in-the-middle" could just "hi-jack" people's identities for malicious uses...
This happens already with identity theft. Unshredded credit card receipts or a found SSN allow people to, as you put it, "hi-jack" somebody else's identity and ruin them financially. It's been in the news off and on for a number of years now. Just because the current system of paper and written signatures is not electronic doesn't preclude identity theft.
But you do raise an interesting point. These digital signatures need to be something that are not reproducible by everyone with a cut and paste buffer. There needs to be some kind of way to ensure that only I can sign a digital document as me.
Truth be told, I am not sure I favor electronic signatures. I have been approached while out and about by people collecting signatures for this or that. The latest one was to place an initiative on November's ballot that would direct the Florida legislature to build high-speed rail between the (five?) most urbanized areas and ports. I didn't sign. Can you imagine all the harebrained initiatives that would come along if all people had to do was click? Right now, only serious people attempt to collect pettition names because of the expense-- both money for the forms and time in collection. Anybody can put up a web page with a "Click here to sign!" button for next to nothing. Ballots would become unmanageable.
Also, there's the idea of the uninformed voter. I abstain from votes where I either don't care or don't have enough information to make a dicision. I know many people vote emotionally, not rationally (nobody here does that, right?). Do I really want a touchy-feely voting process? Of course not! We have enough inmates running this asylum!
This is more a statement on the "journalist" than anything else, but since when does an e'mail to NSI qualify as a "hacker attack"? Hell, if sending an e'mail makes a hacker, then I've been an 37337 h4X0r 60D since 1994, and never even realized it!
You've got to know Florida Today. It's progenitor is the man behind USA Today, and now both are Gannett papers. Florida Today is the primeval USA Today-- News Lite. Furthermore, it's about the most left-wing paper I've read (granted, that hasn't been many). Most people around here don't even take it. In my post, I called what happened a "hijacking," which I think is more appropriate. You'd think in a town as repleat with high-tech people as Melbourne, Florida, we'd have a more with-it newspaper. Instead we've got this paper that's more interested in touchy-feely things than reporting news.
This past week the my employer's domain was hijacked twice. Twice. By somebody sending NSI an email. It even made the local paper, Florida Today.
Perhaps NSI should be made accountable for this kind of stupidity. I can't imagine not getting an encryped password from NSI. I can't imagine NSI not requiring confirmation on domain name changes. They've even admitted that this thing has happened before.
I don't speak for my employer, of course, but I'd think twice about renewing my domain through NSI without some kind of insurance against this kind of thing.
Yes, I'm a little perterbed about it. No, it doesn't effect me personally. Yet.
This is just the price for their new system in the UK. C# is obviously meant to be read as "100 Pounds," they just couldn't find the pound symbol on their keyboard.
Analogue circuits have been dying away, and their use is becoming very rare, and rightly so. Let them rest in peace.
I've got to stop replying to AC's... Analog circuits aren't going anywhere. What digital circuit can switch the thousands of amps that a power generating station produces? What digital circuit can operate at Ka-band? (Ha! Show me one that'll work at Ku or X!)
As computer clocks go higher and higher, designers are going to have to become more and more aware that there's no such thing as a digital circuit. All electric and electronic circuits are analog.
When's the last time a computer designer had to worry about impedance matching between his circuit board and the components on it? As circuits become smaller and smaller electrically, transmission line effects become more and more important. Suddenly the digital designer finds that absolutely none of his signals are making it past the package leads due to lead inductance, or the dielectric constant of that cheap plastic package is high enough to cause the characteristic impedance of the line to be ten times lower than the PC board trace!
At least as an RF circuit engineer, my career is secure:)
I'll tell you why I'd develop for Linux, but this comes from somebody that's not a professional software engineer-- at least not on a regular basis.
First, I write programs that fill needs that I see. The last desktop-based application I wrote, IntuDex, was a mailing list manager for the Amiga. It was much simpler to use than the relational database that my user group, Amiga Atlanta, had been using. Also, I could give it to anybody I wanted, an important fact. As the newsletter editor I depended on the secretary/treasurer for mailing labels. My program facilitated data sharing between us, and I didn't have to buy a $300 program to do it!
Second, I'm a big fan of simplicity. Even as an RF/Microwave engineer I find beauty in reducing complexity (try getting my program to believe that when they see this board I'm working on!). Win32 does not provide a "beautiful" environment, at least from my point of view. For example:
if(IntuitionBase=OpenLibrary("intuition.library,NU LL))
{ if(win=OpenWindow(...)) { /* do program stuff here */
CloseWindow(win); }
CloseLibrary(IntuitionBase); }
is pretty much all you need to do to open a window under the Amiga's operating system. Isn't it like a page and a half of code under Win32?
For me programming should be a joy, not a chore. It's realy as simple as that!
Slashdot Mirror
Please see this page for a description of why the HK-1 / H-4 came about. It's part of the Official Spruce Goose Web Page
Jeff
As long as modal dialogs exist, there will be problems.
Heck, I'd be happy if X-based window managers would do simple things-- like make sure that dialogs can't be moved behind their parent windows if they're modal dialogs.
Solaris' OpenWindows/CDE is infuriating in that respect!
Jeff
Content and domain name are not tied together in any way, so my home page could be a personal page, my own business, or a site that lambastes the corporation of my choice. It doesn't matter. I don't even have any metadata set. But when I do a Google search for my name and where I live, "jeff may eau gallie florida," my page is #1 in the list. I just looked up a high school friend of mine, and used only his name; his page was #6.
There's absolutely no reason for all these stupid domain names. If anything, they just clutter the world, kinda like AOL keywords. Just use good metadata, make sure the content of your pages is worthwhile, and register with the big search engines!
Jeff
At our last meeting, the idea came up to get our own domain name. Why? So we could attract more members. Tell me, how does having our own domain name -- I suppose that it would be indianriverflyingclub.com -- help us any more than the page we have now at flyflorida.com/irfc?
I would say not at all. Our page is registered with major search engines-- I know Google has it. Perhaps if we want more exposure, we should add more metadata to our page, not move it to a new, and arguably more obscure, domain name.
It is my opinion that very few people type anything into that Location: line in Netscape or IE. They use search engines or click links that are mailed to them by friends. One result of this is that it really doesn't matter what the address/domain looks like as long as the content is there. If you as a web page operator want more hits, refine your metadata tags so that your page moves up the list!
For examle, I just did a Google search for "flying club melbourne florida" and got a lot of links for R/C airplanes and an ultralight school. Not us. I did another search for "flying club valkaria florida" and we were the very first link. If we want more visibility, perhaps we should update our metadata such that the first search returns us as well-- more people know where Melbourne is than Valkaria, even though they're only ten miles apart!
In conclusion: don't bother with speciall, vanity domain names! Just make sure that the metadata tags in your pages cause your page to be returned by the searches you predict people will use!
Jeff
noahbagels wrote:
You are giving a lot of credit to judges and juries-- credit that, at least here in the States, is undeserved.I think that given a highly-enough paid lawyer, a jury here in the good ole US of A could be made to think that computers store their data on cow pies. Look at the numerous examples: Johnny Cochrane and OJ Simpson leap to mind.
Here in Florida, poor sick smokers have been awarded amost a TRILLION DOLLARS, I think, in punitive damages as a reward for their stupidity in choosing to use a LEGAL product that everyone knows will eventually kill you. Perhaps we should take up drinking Drano now so we can get in on the next gravy train!
[/rant]
Although I never heard back from either of the Senators, I did get a reply from Mr. Weldon's office. At least some congressmen ('s staff) read email. The reply was even in the form of a printed, mailed letter.
Jeff
I've been thinking about an idea I had during the last meeting my wife and I attended last week-- perhaps one way to help our community is to help provide low-cost computers with internet connectivity to people in our neighborhood to help disseminate local news that the mass media (eg. the local paper) won't or doesn't cover. Many people in my area don't have computers yet-- there's a lot of retired fixed-income older people here in Florida :^)
I imagine that setting up an organization that builds low- to mid-range Linux-based computers already set up to use a "free" ISP for people that don't have the means to buy one. These machines would come from either parts bought used at the computer shows that come through town or via donations.
Perhaps some of you will say that Linux isn't the best OS for computer newbies; but when you plan on giving the machines away, Windows/MacOS and their associated applications are prohibitively expensive.
It's just an idea that's been rattling in my head for the past few days... Of course,before I start rolling out these machines, I've got to get my own going satisfactorily, yaknow.
Jeff
Jeff
"Linux" (Leenux) /lIn-icks/ this one is new. Long E (in American English), the normal pronunciation in most romance languages, spelled "i." The vowel sound in "ear," or "me."
"Linux" (Lyenux) /LYn-icks/ what I've always said. Long I (in American English), the same sound as the word "eye." I don't know how Mr. Torvalds pronounces his name, but I know that Linus Van Pelt from the Peanuts comic strip pronounced his name "L-eye-nus." I think that Dr. Pauling had the same pronunciation. In deference to my my limited knowledge and regarding the name "Linux" to be a tribute to its progenitor, I've always thought it appropriate to call it "L-eye-nicks."
Is that so wrong?
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Weather falls squarely in the Aeronautics part; didn't you ever hear about their "Mission to Planet Earth?"
Before NASA was NACA; their focus was on research into aircraft design. I've got a great book at home, "Theory of Wing Sections," that was published by some people from NACA. It also catalogs their four- and five-digit airfoils.
Perhaps you're thinking of the National Air and Space museum, which is part of the Smithsonian in Washington, DC.
Jeff
Jeff
Grandma, intelligent and resourceful, can't use a mouse. A track ball may help, but even that will be shaky. Why? Muscular Atrophy, a form of muscular dystrophy. MA causes the body to wither away, no matter what the person does. Mouse clicking has become a maximal-effort event. When the mouse does click, it slides halfway across the screen due to the weight of her arm and the exertion that's required.
Grandpa, on the other hand, is still a pillar of physical strength. His eyes, however, have gone. Macular degeneration. He still has some vision, and when I take him flying he can see some using his special telescopic-autofocus glasses. Viewing detailed images, like computer monitors, is impossible, though.
The next wave of computer interfaces will involve a revolustion in multi-sensory, or at least non- visual, interaction. We're going there already with the limited abilities of Dragon's Naturally Speaking and IBM's ViaVoice (among others).
This new non-visual I/O systems will enhance the computer experience of those with physical disabilities, but the rest of us as well. I dream of the day when I can write small programs by verbally giving the computer a list of actions to perform. Or retrieve data by just asking for it.
In my head, and on all sorts of paper at home I have plans for these kinds of things. I'm sure that others do as well. Computer I/O systems should be able to adapt to use any sense that can convey the information-- visual, aural, and even tactile for perhaps Braille-readers (I don't think that smell or taste will help much :)
Just my view of the Road Ahead...
Jeff
PS-- just got my first Linux box going this weekend! I've got the best father in law in the world; with the kind donations from his closet, and some cheapy stuff from the local computer show, I got a K6-2 400 system for about $300! woohoo! It's RedHat 6.2
Jeff
First, I am sure that everyone here knows how much work goes into usability and interface design, as most people here have some modicum of programming experience. One of my favorite web pages, AskTog, goes into great detail on the ins and outs of computer user interface design.
I know that many people would use the building/ architecture analogy-- mere building is not art, while architecture is. "Normal" applications, they say, are mere building, while games would be considered "architecture" due to their beauty.
Poppycock! Architecture is art not because it is beautiful, although one goal of the architect is indeed visual appeal. He goes about attaining that beauty, however through the use of some language-- a visual vocabulary-- to make some statement or invoke something in the imagination of the viewer. An example: Le Corbusier's Villa Savoye is a private residence, but its visual elements combine to evoke a steam ship cruising across the lot. That is what makes it art. Art is communication, not pretty colors or "photorealistic backgrounds." Art tells you something that the artist wanted you to hear.
It is my opinion that the true art lies in making complex operations decipherable by even the simplest users. A good GUI is a work of art. Reducing complex-looking physical phenomena to a few mathematical equations, such as Ohm's Law or Maxell's Equations, is art. Pretty pictures are just that. And nothing more. They convey no extra message to the viewer; they are merely eye candy.
Don't get me wrong; these new games are beautiful. The intense graphics do enhance play by making it easier to submerge yourself in the play-world presented. But there's more to art than pretty pictures.
This is just what happened to Harris last week!
I suppose that, just as last week, some AC is going to shoot off their keyboard, saying how they'd not want to do business with Nike due to their obvious ineptitude, letting their domain get hijacked through inadequate security and all.
{/rant}
NSI has obviously got to go. Their services are vital; I'll admit that. Their execution is just awful. As much as people talk about the 'net as free, much of what the internet is to the average joe is handed down from ivory towers like NSI.
Domain names aren't necessary, but they sure do make life a lot more fun and user-friendly. NSI provides a service to the community, but they need to have some kind of accountability.
If NSI is truly a private organization, the most direct way to institute that accountability is to hit them where it hurts-- their pocketbook. Perhaps Nike, Harris, and all the other domain registrants that have had their domains hijacked because NSI wouldn't follow their own security policies should file a class action suit against them, and shake them down a little
NSI will now join a growing list of organizations that have gotta go:
- Internal Revenue Service
- Department of Education
- Environmental Protection Agency
- Department of Energy (give good stuff back to DOD first!)
{Lightbulb turns on} In the meantime maybe there should be something like Gnutella that would be used to keep domain name servers going without the services of NSI and all the other domain registration companies. With no ivory tower to become bloated or irresponsible, these kinds of attacks couldn't happen!Jeff
Now, take several of these cards, each with four processors and their own memory, and bus them together on a PCI backplane. Lotsa horsepower, no?
These would be all main processors, not peripherals like the cards mentioned here. No, they wouldn't run Windows or Linux, but I've been hankering for a chance to play with OS design anyway. :)
Come on now, we all saw the Schoolhouse Rock "I'm Just A Bill" on TV!
This happens already with identity theft. Unshredded credit card receipts or a found SSN allow people to, as you put it, "hi-jack" somebody else's identity and ruin them financially. It's been in the news off and on for a number of years now. Just because the current system of paper and written signatures is not electronic doesn't preclude identity theft.
But you do raise an interesting point. These digital signatures need to be something that are not reproducible by everyone with a cut and paste buffer. There needs to be some kind of way to ensure that only I can sign a digital document as me.
Truth be told, I am not sure I favor electronic signatures. I have been approached while out and about by people collecting signatures for this or that. The latest one was to place an initiative on November's ballot that would direct the Florida legislature to build high-speed rail between the (five?) most urbanized areas and ports. I didn't sign. Can you imagine all the harebrained initiatives that would come along if all people had to do was click? Right now, only serious people attempt to collect pettition names because of the expense-- both money for the forms and time in collection. Anybody can put up a web page with a "Click here to sign!" button for next to nothing. Ballots would become unmanageable.
Also, there's the idea of the uninformed voter. I abstain from votes where I either don't care or don't have enough information to make a dicision. I know many people vote emotionally, not rationally (nobody here does that, right?). Do I really want a touchy-feely voting process? Of course not! We have enough inmates running this asylum!
You've got to know Florida Today. It's progenitor is the man behind USA Today, and now both are Gannett papers. Florida Today is the primeval USA Today-- News Lite. Furthermore, it's about the most left-wing paper I've read (granted, that hasn't been many). Most people around here don't even take it. In my post, I called what happened a "hijacking," which I think is more appropriate. You'd think in a town as repleat with high-tech people as Melbourne, Florida, we'd have a more with-it newspaper. Instead we've got this paper that's more interested in touchy-feely things than reporting news.
Perhaps NSI should be made accountable for this kind of stupidity. I can't imagine not getting an encryped password from NSI. I can't imagine NSI not requiring confirmation on domain name changes. They've even admitted that this thing has happened before.
I don't speak for my employer, of course, but I'd think twice about renewing my domain through NSI without some kind of insurance against this kind of thing.
Yes, I'm a little perterbed about it. No, it doesn't effect me personally. Yet.
Jeff
This is just the price for their new system in the UK. C# is obviously meant to be read as "100 Pounds," they just couldn't find the pound symbol on their keyboard.
As computer clocks go higher and higher, designers are going to have to become more and more aware that there's no such thing as a digital circuit. All electric and electronic circuits are analog.
When's the last time a computer designer had to worry about impedance matching between his circuit board and the components on it? As circuits become smaller and smaller electrically, transmission line effects become more and more important. Suddenly the digital designer finds that absolutely none of his signals are making it past the package leads due to lead inductance, or the dielectric constant of that cheap plastic package is high enough to cause the characteristic impedance of the line to be ten times lower than the PC board trace!
At least as an RF circuit engineer, my career is secure :)
First, I write programs that fill needs that I see. The last desktop-based application I wrote, IntuDex, was a mailing list manager for the Amiga. It was much simpler to use than the relational database that my user group, Amiga Atlanta, had been using. Also, I could give it to anybody I wanted, an important fact. As the newsletter editor I depended on the secretary/treasurer for mailing labels. My program facilitated data sharing between us, and I didn't have to buy a $300 program to do it!
Second, I'm a big fan of simplicity. Even as an RF/Microwave engineer I find beauty in reducing complexity (try getting my program to believe that when they see this board I'm working on!). Win32 does not provide a "beautiful" environment, at least from my point of view. For example:
is pretty much all you need to do to open a window under the Amiga's operating system. Isn't it like a page and a half of code under Win32?For me programming should be a joy, not a chore. It's realy as simple as that!