It'll be interesting, that's for sure. It looks like they are basically running a two year interest-free loan on the phone, so still not a bad deal at all. I suspect most users are going to opt for a payment plan on their phone, and from a quick perusal it looks like the most expensive phone is $20/mo. According to this they'll unconditionally unlock a t-mobile phone as soon as it has been paid off.
I think the biggest challenge is going to be getting people out of the "contract up, time for a new phone" mindset... I mean, sure it can still work with t-mobile (just get a new phone loan one the current one is up), but the main selling point is saving money when the phone is paid off.
In any case, I give them a thumbs up - as long as they don't drop my year-old low minute/high data plan on me:P
I believe they've laid it out that the first 500MB (or 2.5GB if you went that route) is 4g speed (or whatever is the fastest available to you), after which you're dropped back to EDGE speed. I'm surprised they placed a 500MB cap on the "Unlimited" data plan for tethering, rather than the 2.5GB available at the next lower tier. Supposedly they offer more tethering services, but I'm having trouble finding details on their website.
Looks like they've been steadily expanding their 3G service (HSPA+ I think) into the 1900MHz band, likely driven by users bringing iPhones over. When I first got my phone (an Xperia Sola with no 1700MHz radio), I was always on EDGE for data. Starting perhaps in November, I was seeing 3g pop up in one spot around town. Now it looks like about 80% of my town is covered. Hopefully someday soon the 1900MHz band at my house will be upgraded...
Worries me that they don't have their old Monthly 4G plans listed... I hopped on one of those, giving up the unlimited minutes for a great deal more data and a $30/mo total cell phone bill. Unlimited talk time? Who talks to each other these days anyway!?
I feel like I'm posting the same thing over and over again with different analogies, but why the heck not...
If the guy was firing a gun randomly into the air in celebration, and one of those rounds came down and injured or killed somebody, what punishment would you expect for him? Most laser pointers are toys - but a high powered one is quite capable of causing near instantaneous blindness. What outcome do you suppose this kid was trying to achieve by hindering the ability of pilots to see where they're going?
It's monumentally stupid. It's definitely assault. Being ignorant of the potential harm you can do does not excuse you from stupid acts. We aren't talking about copyright infringement here, we're talking about serious injury or death.
I don't think it should be worded as a deterrent. High powered lasers are capable of causing permanent blindness in the victim faster than they can blink. 30 months for multiple counts of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm? Sounds like he got off light, particularly since he was targeting people operating vehicles who would likely be killed if they were incapacitated in this manner. High powered lasers are not toys, they are tools and can be quite dangerous. Being ignorant of the harm you could cause is no excuse for that sort of behavior.
What do you think an appropriate penalty for somebody who wandered through a public park firing a nail gun at random passers-by should be?
I assume from TFS that this isn't a simple low powered laser pointer. Shining a high powered laser at somebody's face is nothing short of assault - they are capable of causing permanent blindness before the victim can even blink. These aren't the lasers you use to play with your cat. You give this kid a light sentence and you enforce the thinking that devices like this are just toys. They aren't - they're a tool - and need to be respected and treated like any other potentially dangerous tool.
And for the mods - I disagree with the down-mod on parent post. It's the first post putting forth the view that the sentence is too long, so it's certainly not redundant. Don't down-mod posts simply because you disagree with them (even if they're wrong;) ).
Or... y'know... just don't point lasers in peoples eyes. That *is* assault you know. If the laser is powerful enough, it's capable of grievous bodily harm in the form of quite permanent blinding. So yeah, I'd say the sentence is quite good, maybe even a little light.
Picture it another way - guy standing next to a road at night pointing it into the windshield of oncoming cars. What exactly does that guy *think* will happen?
It's not "how do I prevent piracy" - it's "how can I deter piracy." There are many answers to that question with varying levels of reasonableness.
You're looking at it from an all or nothing perspective. You're right - it's pretty much impossible to keep a program from being pirated, but some basic deterrent like an install key is an unobtrusive step that submitter can take to keep the honest people honest.
Local validation has a drawback - one user's validation could be spread far and wide. I can see somebody saying "I bought this neat program, here's the install key!" Sort of like locking up your bike but leaving the key in the lock. I suspect submitter is looking just to prevent casual piracy - get those who aren't going to go to Pirate Bay to pay for the product - which is tough to do without keeping some track of the number of installs per key. I personally have no problem with a one-time online activation (with a reasonable grace period), but I understand a lot of people aren't. You could just as easily validate the key before allowing a software update - perhaps a "Validate Online" prompt during install extolling the benefits of your future updates, access to user forums, etc.
The point here isn't to harass the people installing it on two or three machines - but to find out when a key has been compromised (ie: hundreds of installs). At that point it's up to submitter if he wants to disable the key or simply use it for tracking. Either way, you don't want to demonize the customer - offer them a new key (via email to the original registered address or some similar means).
Lastly (or firstly and foremostly) - accept that your product *will* be pirated. Accept that it's likely the majority of installations will be pirated. You can't let this get to you - after all, the more people use your software (even pirated), the more exposure you'll have and the more real sales you'll get. You know your software sucks if nobody wants to pirate it. When it comes down to it, if you have a good product which is convenient enough to buy legally, you'll get most of your potential customers to pay for it.
Don't do anything? Offer the download and have a "click here to donate" button? I've seen and used those programs and have very rarely paid anything. There are a great deal of people who would pay for a program they use, but don't simply because it was convenient enough to get for free. Hell, I'd say this is most people.
The determined pirate you will never stop. Elaborate DRM schemes will only hurt your paying customers. The answer isn't to do nothing and hope people pay you - because most won't. You need to make the purchase process convenient and unobtrusive.
I was going to argue with you because, after all, all wealthy people die of cancer or heart disease these days. However, according to the wikis on that movie, a group that size would expect to have 30 individuals to have contracted some form of cancer.
I think the bigger travesty though was the decision to cast John Wayne as Genghiz Khan.
I can't disagree more, as this poster put it - if you've done a good job on the software and a good job on the training, you'll have a happy client more likely to recommend you or consult with you in the future. You'll have a client that wants to call you for their next project, instead of being stuck calling you for support on their past projects. Don't look at it as the client trying to replace you with somebody cheaper - look at it as the client freeing up your time for more valuable and interesting tasks than maintaining an old project. Do the best you can, try to save that company money, and you'll be viewed as an asset to them and see greater long-term gains from them and others they recommend you to. Do a halfhearted job and you'll be viewed as a leech just hanging out for more money - they'll be anxious to get rid of you. You say it's been a happy relationship for both parties, don't ruin it for your ego.
For a group that fosters the FOSS movement, why would you all be opposed to getting *paid* to train somebody else to maintain your old software? Let it go and move on to bigger and better things!
I'm sad this wasn't the first post. You need to look at it from the right perspective. If you do a great job on the software and a great job on the training, in the long run you've saved that company money as opposed to being a contractor who milks money out of them and leaves them unsatisfied. Most companies will remember that. They'll refer new business toward you, and you'll be first on their list when they need something new that they can't do in house. You've freed up your time to work on other clients *and* will likely see more occasional business from this client. The next call you get from this client will be because they *want* you, not because they *need* you.
So absolutely yes - train this new kid as best you can. Put yourself out of that job if you can. Unless you're a one-trick pony who only knows how to support some niche legacy product, it really can be a great opportunity for you and should be treated as such.
I'm pretty sure any non-idiotic *anybody* simply says the Bible is a collection of stories and parables with valuable life lessons for the place and time in which it was written. As with all old stories, they're usually rooted in some factual event that occurred at the time. Christians take it a step further claiming its writing was guided by God. Idiotic Christians take it even one step further claiming every word as a literal truth, but luckily there are very few of those.
I know it's fashionable to assume everybody who believes in Christianity takes every kernel of the Bible as an absolute truth, but most take the book as a whole. You talk about ignoring the details - with all of our modern science, we *still* can't grasp the details of how the universe was created.
Hell, I'm not even a Christian. Why do you jump to inflammatory conclusions and make me take their side?
Sorry, I meant to add the correct analogy you guys were looking for: the first model year of a car is always to be avoided, because they haven't worked out the kinks yet.
Not sure where you got that this guy is wealthy... 'Sides, there are more than enough people moving from small town Ohio out to San Francisco that he's in no way upsetting the balance. Fact is more people would want to be in the big cities than in the quiet, scenic small towns.
I think you're doing it wrong. I insure three cars and spend less than $100 per month - if needed I could drop back to a single motorbike for $100 per *year*. Could eat quite well for $200 or so per month (cooking is fun). It would be trivial to find a room to rent for $400. Maybe toss in an extra $100 slop fund for recurring expenses.
'Course, my budget looks absolutely nothing like that now, but it was a good deal slimmer than that through college.
Slashdot Mirror
It'll be interesting, that's for sure. It looks like they are basically running a two year interest-free loan on the phone, so still not a bad deal at all. I suspect most users are going to opt for a payment plan on their phone, and from a quick perusal it looks like the most expensive phone is $20/mo. According to this they'll unconditionally unlock a t-mobile phone as soon as it has been paid off.
:P
I think the biggest challenge is going to be getting people out of the "contract up, time for a new phone" mindset... I mean, sure it can still work with t-mobile (just get a new phone loan one the current one is up), but the main selling point is saving money when the phone is paid off.
In any case, I give them a thumbs up - as long as they don't drop my year-old low minute/high data plan on me
I believe they've laid it out that the first 500MB (or 2.5GB if you went that route) is 4g speed (or whatever is the fastest available to you), after which you're dropped back to EDGE speed. I'm surprised they placed a 500MB cap on the "Unlimited" data plan for tethering, rather than the 2.5GB available at the next lower tier. Supposedly they offer more tethering services, but I'm having trouble finding details on their website.
Looks like they've been steadily expanding their 3G service (HSPA+ I think) into the 1900MHz band, likely driven by users bringing iPhones over. When I first got my phone (an Xperia Sola with no 1700MHz radio), I was always on EDGE for data. Starting perhaps in November, I was seeing 3g pop up in one spot around town. Now it looks like about 80% of my town is covered. Hopefully someday soon the 1900MHz band at my house will be upgraded...
Worries me that they don't have their old Monthly 4G plans listed... I hopped on one of those, giving up the unlimited minutes for a great deal more data and a $30/mo total cell phone bill. Unlimited talk time? Who talks to each other these days anyway!?
I feel like I'm posting the same thing over and over again with different analogies, but why the heck not...
If the guy was firing a gun randomly into the air in celebration, and one of those rounds came down and injured or killed somebody, what punishment would you expect for him? Most laser pointers are toys - but a high powered one is quite capable of causing near instantaneous blindness. What outcome do you suppose this kid was trying to achieve by hindering the ability of pilots to see where they're going?
It's monumentally stupid. It's definitely assault. Being ignorant of the potential harm you can do does not excuse you from stupid acts. We aren't talking about copyright infringement here, we're talking about serious injury or death.
If it was that close, I'd try to play Frisbee with it... With a frying pan...
I don't think it should be worded as a deterrent. High powered lasers are capable of causing permanent blindness in the victim faster than they can blink. 30 months for multiple counts of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm? Sounds like he got off light, particularly since he was targeting people operating vehicles who would likely be killed if they were incapacitated in this manner. High powered lasers are not toys, they are tools and can be quite dangerous. Being ignorant of the harm you could cause is no excuse for that sort of behavior.
What do you think an appropriate penalty for somebody who wandered through a public park firing a nail gun at random passers-by should be?
I assume from TFS that this isn't a simple low powered laser pointer. Shining a high powered laser at somebody's face is nothing short of assault - they are capable of causing permanent blindness before the victim can even blink. These aren't the lasers you use to play with your cat. You give this kid a light sentence and you enforce the thinking that devices like this are just toys. They aren't - they're a tool - and need to be respected and treated like any other potentially dangerous tool.
;) ).
And for the mods - I disagree with the down-mod on parent post. It's the first post putting forth the view that the sentence is too long, so it's certainly not redundant. Don't down-mod posts simply because you disagree with them (even if they're wrong
Or... y'know... just don't point lasers in peoples eyes. That *is* assault you know. If the laser is powerful enough, it's capable of grievous bodily harm in the form of quite permanent blinding. So yeah, I'd say the sentence is quite good, maybe even a little light.
Picture it another way - guy standing next to a road at night pointing it into the windshield of oncoming cars. What exactly does that guy *think* will happen?
It's not "how do I prevent piracy" - it's "how can I deter piracy." There are many answers to that question with varying levels of reasonableness.
You're looking at it from an all or nothing perspective. You're right - it's pretty much impossible to keep a program from being pirated, but some basic deterrent like an install key is an unobtrusive step that submitter can take to keep the honest people honest.
Local validation has a drawback - one user's validation could be spread far and wide. I can see somebody saying "I bought this neat program, here's the install key!" Sort of like locking up your bike but leaving the key in the lock. I suspect submitter is looking just to prevent casual piracy - get those who aren't going to go to Pirate Bay to pay for the product - which is tough to do without keeping some track of the number of installs per key. I personally have no problem with a one-time online activation (with a reasonable grace period), but I understand a lot of people aren't. You could just as easily validate the key before allowing a software update - perhaps a "Validate Online" prompt during install extolling the benefits of your future updates, access to user forums, etc.
The point here isn't to harass the people installing it on two or three machines - but to find out when a key has been compromised (ie: hundreds of installs). At that point it's up to submitter if he wants to disable the key or simply use it for tracking. Either way, you don't want to demonize the customer - offer them a new key (via email to the original registered address or some similar means).
Lastly (or firstly and foremostly) - accept that your product *will* be pirated. Accept that it's likely the majority of installations will be pirated. You can't let this get to you - after all, the more people use your software (even pirated), the more exposure you'll have and the more real sales you'll get. You know your software sucks if nobody wants to pirate it. When it comes down to it, if you have a good product which is convenient enough to buy legally, you'll get most of your potential customers to pay for it.
Don't do anything? Offer the download and have a "click here to donate" button? I've seen and used those programs and have very rarely paid anything. There are a great deal of people who would pay for a program they use, but don't simply because it was convenient enough to get for free. Hell, I'd say this is most people.
The determined pirate you will never stop. Elaborate DRM schemes will only hurt your paying customers. The answer isn't to do nothing and hope people pay you - because most won't. You need to make the purchase process convenient and unobtrusive.
Yes - our heated arguments over the appropriate usage of the question mark would have ground the war machine advance to a halt!
It's a economics philosophy.
He had the power of invisibility
Oh, you mean Sir Not Appearing In This Film?
I was going to argue with you because, after all, all wealthy people die of cancer or heart disease these days. However, according to the wikis on that movie, a group that size would expect to have 30 individuals to have contracted some form of cancer.
I think the bigger travesty though was the decision to cast John Wayne as Genghiz Khan.
I can't disagree more, as this poster put it - if you've done a good job on the software and a good job on the training, you'll have a happy client more likely to recommend you or consult with you in the future. You'll have a client that wants to call you for their next project, instead of being stuck calling you for support on their past projects. Don't look at it as the client trying to replace you with somebody cheaper - look at it as the client freeing up your time for more valuable and interesting tasks than maintaining an old project. Do the best you can, try to save that company money, and you'll be viewed as an asset to them and see greater long-term gains from them and others they recommend you to. Do a halfhearted job and you'll be viewed as a leech just hanging out for more money - they'll be anxious to get rid of you. You say it's been a happy relationship for both parties, don't ruin it for your ego.
For a group that fosters the FOSS movement, why would you all be opposed to getting *paid* to train somebody else to maintain your old software? Let it go and move on to bigger and better things!
This this this!!!
I'm sad this wasn't the first post. You need to look at it from the right perspective. If you do a great job on the software and a great job on the training, in the long run you've saved that company money as opposed to being a contractor who milks money out of them and leaves them unsatisfied. Most companies will remember that. They'll refer new business toward you, and you'll be first on their list when they need something new that they can't do in house. You've freed up your time to work on other clients *and* will likely see more occasional business from this client. The next call you get from this client will be because they *want* you, not because they *need* you.
So absolutely yes - train this new kid as best you can. Put yourself out of that job if you can. Unless you're a one-trick pony who only knows how to support some niche legacy product, it really can be a great opportunity for you and should be treated as such.
I'm pretty sure any non-idiotic *anybody* simply says the Bible is a collection of stories and parables with valuable life lessons for the place and time in which it was written. As with all old stories, they're usually rooted in some factual event that occurred at the time. Christians take it a step further claiming its writing was guided by God. Idiotic Christians take it even one step further claiming every word as a literal truth, but luckily there are very few of those.
I know it's fashionable to assume everybody who believes in Christianity takes every kernel of the Bible as an absolute truth, but most take the book as a whole. You talk about ignoring the details - with all of our modern science, we *still* can't grasp the details of how the universe was created.
Hell, I'm not even a Christian. Why do you jump to inflammatory conclusions and make me take their side?
Up until "abrought" I almost believed you!
Sorry, I meant to add the correct analogy you guys were looking for: the first model year of a car is always to be avoided, because they haven't worked out the kinks yet.
I'm pretty sure none of these analogies are valid...
Not sure where you got that this guy is wealthy... 'Sides, there are more than enough people moving from small town Ohio out to San Francisco that he's in no way upsetting the balance. Fact is more people would want to be in the big cities than in the quiet, scenic small towns.
I think you're doing it wrong. I insure three cars and spend less than $100 per month - if needed I could drop back to a single motorbike for $100 per *year*. Could eat quite well for $200 or so per month (cooking is fun). It would be trivial to find a room to rent for $400. Maybe toss in an extra $100 slop fund for recurring expenses.
'Course, my budget looks absolutely nothing like that now, but it was a good deal slimmer than that through college.
but that extra $300/mo is a price i'd be glad to pay for the option to default and have it wiped clean.
Which is why you wouldn't pass their screening process.