This could easily spell doom for independent blogs. I run a review blog. I receive tons of samples. My sample policy is always that I don't give you a good score for giving me a sample, but I will let you know when I post the review - IF I post a review.
Companies are willing to take this risk because any coverage is good coverage for them and all it cost them was a bottle.
These new rules state that if I were to review a product for, say, Logitech and not disclose that I was reviewing a provided sample, the Federal Government could fine BOTH me AND Logitech $11K. Now, with that potential liability, what's in it for Logitech to send me that sample to review? Now they're risking a five figure fine from the government every time they send a sample to a blogger that isn't affiliated with some large media organization that can guarantee compliance. Even if I intend to comply with this rule, Logitech's best interest is to avoid me and my ilk like the plague - further marginalizing independent media and favoring the print media.
but their reason for being today, in our more advanced brains, is still a mystery. Actually, there doesn't have to be a reason for them at all. Evolutionarily speaking, they only need to not confer a weakness that would hinder our survival. Benefits need not be involved.
He actually makes a good point. From a legal standpoint, the judge (most likely) should not have granted Novell's motion for a summary judgment. The judge (probably) should have let the matter go to trial. From a "rules of the bench/bar" standpoint, the author is probably correct.
Heck, he even allows that the RESULT of the ruling is most likely correct, but the act of the ruling itself is the issue.
And let's not forget...the British weren't too thrilled when the Colonials employed guerrilla warfare of their own...hiding in trees, sniping officers...
Then there were the acts of non-military violence, which today would be called "terrorism". Whenever an inferior (in numbers, technology, and resources) force takes on a vastly superior force, guerrilla tactics are the best route to take.
Wait...you mean like Jefferson did with the Alien and Sedition Act? Rail against the person that made it law and then just use it to your advantage?
It's as if you cynically believe that the Democrats are just "making a show of it" by putting up limp opposition and allowing these things to continue so that they can then turn around and continue to use them against us but for them.
...and that they're doing it with computers just makes it faster.
Most decent-sized PD's employ a Crime Analyst who's job it is to compile and analyze crime stats and present trends and other important notes to the Command Staff so that better protection strategies can be implemented. They also are used for serial criminals, such as a cat burglar who starts hitting neighborhoods.
Modern CAD/RMS systems (Computer Aided Dispatch/Records Management System) include pretty good crime analysis modules that make a lot of this easier, and it's just getting better. These days, most of these systems provide the ability to search on various types of crimes, MO's, etc., and will provide spreadsheets, density maps, predictive analysis reports...the whole 9 yards.
Sure...just move closer to work. No problem...except that I live south of where I work, but north of where my wife works. Which place should I move to?
Or how about my friend who works in Irvine, CA, where the cost of living is 4 times higher than where he lives...should he just move out there? Or maybe he should quit his programming job in Irvine and get one of the non-existent programming jobs near his home? It's not so simple.
Hell, I think I would rather vote for Joan Cusack...
THIS got modded as "Informative"? Seriously?
I don't think that word means what you think it means.
I work for an organization that writes public safety software (for police, fire, etc). To me, this product is pretty much exactly what a lot of public safety personnel are dying for...something larger and more functional than a PDA, but smaller than a laptop and that doesn't chain them to their cars.
I think this will have a very niche market, but it's going to make money.
Why use Mono/.NET when you have ruby, perl, php, and python? All of which are cross platform?
I think the point would be that by having the same framework that MS is pushing for available on Linux allows for easier migration from Windows to Linux for those who would normally never consider such a move.
The PHB's in our organization just realized that Windows is expensive (shocking, I know), but we've been working on a.NET Windows app that's already about 1.5m lines of code. I've been asked what I know about Mono on Linux, which, ufortunately is not a lot, but it at least provides some semblance of a way to move away from Windows/MS without abandoning several years of work.
I'm glad you can sit so smugly in your position that the US is wrong for wanting to spread democratic ideals, and those of freedom, including the critical free flow of information - even if the reasoning for some in the US/West is to encourage governments and peoples who are friendly to the West, and therefore more likely to ensure a continuing stable supply of energy.
Reasoning for some? If that reasoning was for less than the majority, I'm pretty sure that we would have already removed one of the most oppressive, fundamentalist regimes in the region - we call the country Saudi Arabia. I'm not arguing that terrorism shouldn't be fought, or that it is generally true that it is very uncommon for democratic nations to attack one-another, so there would appear to be logic in spreading democracy, but to say that "some" only want to spread democracy for this Realpolitik type of reasoning is either misleading or naive. The vast majority of people in Washington and London that believe in spreading democracy via the sword believe in it for exactly that reason.
[DllImport("user32", EntryPoint="EmptyClipboard")] public static extern int EmptyClipboard();
Face it, Microsoft NEVER intended to make C# a real language !
I've had to write this stuff too...but that's a shortcoming of the.NET framework, not the C# language. The difference is subtle, but it's there.
What this really demonstrates is how poorly MS implemented their System.Windows library...they left a lot out, either by design or because they rushed stuff out of the door to get it out.
I notice this especially in toolbars that attempt to cram the most common commands into tiny space. It may be "common" to use File:Open or File:Save, but these are probably the worst candidates for "useful" toolbar icons. You probably already have the shortcut ingrained in your hand motion already, and if you're using the mouse, the toolbar is hardly a twitch away from the menubar
You'd think that, but trust me, I've seen users, when I've stood over them and told them to save their work, over and over again go to File, Save...going right over the icon in the toolbar and none of them EVER know shortcuts (I write software for police departments...and I'd say a good 60% of my users don't know that CTRL+C in Windows is "Copy", based on my personal experience).
MS's approach to "Lowest Common Demoninator" for users seems to be putting icons and menus and shortcuts everywhere, so the user can have 30 different ways to screw things up.
The Patriot Act prohibits those who have been charged under many of its passages from publicly stating or discussing their case. So, exactly how are formal complaints supposed to be lodged if it's illegal to discuss the issue in the first place?
This is kind of like shutting down your Help Desk phones and then reporting the technical support issues are way down.
Unless pictures are rather literal, I often don't attach meaning to them instantaneously (or at all). Most icons are other platforms seem like hieroglyphics to me, and ultimately all look like the same indistinct blotches. The result are the time-wasting games of charades and icon-scraping.
So, her argument is that Windows or anything else has bad icons. Not just size, but that things like the picture of a computer for "My Computer" or a Firefox logo for Firefox is too hard to figure out and learn.
Now, looking at these icons can you tell me how they're more "intuitive" than those? Near as I can tell from my experience with my Mac, the hard drives look like hard drives, the computer looks like a computer, and folders look like folders.....how is that more intuitive than Windows/Gnome/KDE again?
Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the fact that icons can be so much richer in OSX, but I hardly see that as a productivity enhancement.
I know a lot of the guys (and gals) who worked at Troika. The writing has been on the wall for a while, but its so sad to see a company of people who I know for a fact just loved good computer games and tried their damndest to make them, end up in the dustbin of history.
As someone who works in a police department, my experience with the gun-toters is that CSI, while fascinating to watch, is an incredibly inaccurate look at actual forensics.
Our forensics guys here sit in a room down the hall most of the time, and as the person above pointed out, they don't order people around, they don't interrogate, etc.
I really like this guy's work. He's spot on regarding the far inferior delivery of lines with the new and improved Boba voice.
One disagreement I have with him though: the line change for Vader from "Bring my shuttle" to "Alert my star destroyer to prepare for my arrival" was a bad idea.
I know it doesn't bother him much, but I think that the original line and delivery better contributed to Vader's character arc, as the voice always sounded morose to me...like he was either angry with Luke or himself, and the curtness of the line was appropriate if that was the case./shrug
If you dl it and try it out, it's just a scripting SDK for the iTunes interface (I think someone else pointed this out as well). I downloaded it...fired up Visual Studio and build a quick Windows app with a button to create a new playlist.
Click the button and watch as iTunes opens up. In fact, aside from instantiation of the iTunes object, there isn't a single function that I've been able to perform without iTunes opening up.
Not saying it isn't pretty cool...but the COM interface isn't going to let you build tons of plugins, etc. without iTunes running on your desktop.
I find that the article posted at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3457823.stm, regaring the MyDoom virus unfairly uses very broad strokes when discussing those that believe in the Open Source Movement for software. To characterize all of these persons as "internet zealots" possessed of a malice and thirst for vengeance as great as this article implies is not only unnecessary, but thoroughly unprofessional.
I had come to expect more from the BBC than such obvious attempts to color the opinions of its readers. Apparently such expectations were unwarranted.
Slashdot Mirror
This could easily spell doom for independent blogs. I run a review blog. I receive tons of samples. My sample policy is always that I don't give you a good score for giving me a sample, but I will let you know when I post the review - IF I post a review.
Companies are willing to take this risk because any coverage is good coverage for them and all it cost them was a bottle.
These new rules state that if I were to review a product for, say, Logitech and not disclose that I was reviewing a provided sample, the Federal Government could fine BOTH me AND Logitech $11K. Now, with that potential liability, what's in it for Logitech to send me that sample to review? Now they're risking a five figure fine from the government every time they send a sample to a blogger that isn't affiliated with some large media organization that can guarantee compliance. Even if I intend to comply with this rule, Logitech's best interest is to avoid me and my ilk like the plague - further marginalizing independent media and favoring the print media.
He actually makes a good point. From a legal standpoint, the judge (most likely) should not have granted Novell's motion for a summary judgment. The judge (probably) should have let the matter go to trial. From a "rules of the bench/bar" standpoint, the author is probably correct.
Heck, he even allows that the RESULT of the ruling is most likely correct, but the act of the ruling itself is the issue.
It found my location "within 1.7 KM"...or so it says.
Based on where it says I am, the margin of error is actually 6.2 miles (crow-flies)...which I'm pretty sure is more than 1.7 KM.
And let's not forget...the British weren't too thrilled when the Colonials employed guerrilla warfare of their own...hiding in trees, sniping officers...
Then there were the acts of non-military violence, which today would be called "terrorism". Whenever an inferior (in numbers, technology, and resources) force takes on a vastly superior force, guerrilla tactics are the best route to take.
Wait...you mean like Jefferson did with the Alien and Sedition Act? Rail against the person that made it law and then just use it to your advantage?
It's as if you cynically believe that the Democrats are just "making a show of it" by putting up limp opposition and allowing these things to continue so that they can then turn around and continue to use them against us but for them.
I, cynically, agree.
...and that they're doing it with computers just makes it faster.
Most decent-sized PD's employ a Crime Analyst who's job it is to compile and analyze crime stats and present trends and other important notes to the Command Staff so that better protection strategies can be implemented. They also are used for serial criminals, such as a cat burglar who starts hitting neighborhoods.
Modern CAD/RMS systems (Computer Aided Dispatch/Records Management System) include pretty good crime analysis modules that make a lot of this easier, and it's just getting better. These days, most of these systems provide the ability to search on various types of crimes, MO's, etc., and will provide spreadsheets, density maps, predictive analysis reports...the whole 9 yards.
Sure...just move closer to work. No problem...except that I live south of where I work, but north of where my wife works. Which place should I move to?
Or how about my friend who works in Irvine, CA, where the cost of living is 4 times higher than where he lives...should he just move out there? Or maybe he should quit his programming job in Irvine and get one of the non-existent programming jobs near his home? It's not so simple.
Hell, I think I would rather vote for Joan Cusack... THIS got modded as "Informative"? Seriously? I don't think that word means what you think it means.
Pretty sure that was sarcasm he was using there, Chief.
Hence the "Really...." at the end of the statement.
Seriously...how did this get modded "Insightful"? I can understand someone modding it as "Funny", but the comment is not insightful in the least.
I work for an organization that writes public safety software (for police, fire, etc). To me, this product is pretty much exactly what a lot of public safety personnel are dying for...something larger and more functional than a PDA, but smaller than a laptop and that doesn't chain them to their cars.
I think this will have a very niche market, but it's going to make money.
Why use Mono/.NET when you have ruby, perl, php, and python? All of which are cross platform? I think the point would be that by having the same framework that MS is pushing for available on Linux allows for easier migration from Windows to Linux for those who would normally never consider such a move. The PHB's in our organization just realized that Windows is expensive (shocking, I know), but we've been working on a .NET Windows app that's already about 1.5m lines of code. I've been asked what I know about Mono on Linux, which, ufortunately is not a lot, but it at least provides some semblance of a way to move away from Windows/MS without abandoning several years of work.
This isn't happening at Disneyland...it's happening at various part of Disney WORLD. Yes, it's splitting hairs, but they are two different places.
I'm glad you can sit so smugly in your position that the US is wrong for wanting to spread democratic ideals, and those of freedom, including the critical free flow of information - even if the reasoning for some in the US/West is to encourage governments and peoples who are friendly to the West, and therefore more likely to ensure a continuing stable supply of energy.
Reasoning for some? If that reasoning was for less than the majority, I'm pretty sure that we would have already removed one of the most oppressive, fundamentalist regimes in the region - we call the country Saudi Arabia. I'm not arguing that terrorism shouldn't be fought, or that it is generally true that it is very uncommon for democratic nations to attack one-another, so there would appear to be logic in spreading democracy, but to say that "some" only want to spread democracy for this Realpolitik type of reasoning is either misleading or naive. The vast majority of people in Washington and London that believe in spreading democracy via the sword believe in it for exactly that reason.
I've had to write this stuff too...but that's a
shortcoming of the
What this really demonstrates is how poorly MS implemented their System.Windows library...they left a lot out, either by design or because they rushed stuff out of the door to get it out.
I notice this especially in toolbars that attempt to cram the most common commands into tiny space. It may be "common" to use File:Open or File:Save, but these are probably the worst candidates for "useful" toolbar icons. You probably already have the shortcut ingrained in your hand motion already, and if you're using the mouse, the toolbar is hardly a twitch away from the menubar
You'd think that, but trust me, I've seen users, when I've stood over them and told them to save their work, over and over again go to File, Save...going right over the icon in the toolbar and none of them EVER know shortcuts (I write software for police departments...and I'd say a good 60% of my users don't know that CTRL+C in Windows is "Copy", based on my personal experience).
MS's approach to "Lowest Common Demoninator" for users seems to be putting icons and menus and shortcuts everywhere, so the user can have 30 different ways to screw things up.
Mod parent up!
The Patriot Act prohibits those who have been charged under many of its passages from publicly stating or discussing their case. So, exactly how are formal complaints supposed to be lodged if it's illegal to discuss the issue in the first place?
This is kind of like shutting down your Help Desk phones and then reporting the technical support issues are way down.
From TFA:
So, her argument is that Windows or anything else has bad icons. Not just size, but that things like the picture of a computer for "My Computer" or a Firefox logo for Firefox is too hard to figure out and learn.
Now, looking at these icons can you tell me how they're more "intuitive" than those? Near as I can tell from my experience with my Mac, the hard drives look like hard drives, the computer looks like a computer, and folders look like folders.....how is that more intuitive than Windows/Gnome/KDE again?
Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the fact that icons can be so much richer in OSX, but I hardly see that as a productivity enhancement.
I mean, she makes the argument that OSX is a more productive environment because it has better icons.
I know a lot of the guys (and gals) who worked at Troika. The writing has been on the wall for a while, but its so sad to see a company of people who I know for a fact just loved good computer games and tried their damndest to make them, end up in the dustbin of history.
As someone who works in a police department, my experience with the gun-toters is that CSI, while fascinating to watch, is an incredibly inaccurate look at actual forensics.
Our forensics guys here sit in a room down the hall most of the time, and as the person above pointed out, they don't order people around, they don't interrogate, etc.
I really like this guy's work. He's spot on regarding the far inferior delivery of lines with the new and improved Boba voice.
/shrug
One disagreement I have with him though: the line change for Vader from "Bring my shuttle" to "Alert my star destroyer to prepare for my arrival" was a bad idea.
I know it doesn't bother him much, but I think that the original line and delivery better contributed to Vader's character arc, as the voice always sounded morose to me...like he was either angry with Luke or himself, and the curtness of the line was appropriate if that was the case.
If you dl it and try it out, it's just a scripting SDK for the iTunes interface (I think someone else pointed this out as well). I downloaded it...fired up Visual Studio and build a quick Windows app with a button to create a new playlist.
Click the button and watch as iTunes opens up. In fact, aside from instantiation of the iTunes object, there isn't a single function that I've been able to perform without iTunes opening up.
Not saying it isn't pretty cool...but the COM interface isn't going to let you build tons of plugins, etc. without iTunes running on your desktop.
I find that the article posted at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3457823.stm, regaring the MyDoom virus unfairly uses very broad strokes when discussing those that believe in the Open Source Movement for software. To characterize all of these persons as "internet zealots" possessed of a malice and thirst for vengeance as great as this article implies is not only unnecessary, but thoroughly unprofessional.
I had come to expect more from the BBC than such obvious attempts to color the opinions of its readers. Apparently such expectations were unwarranted.