I agree completely. It's a lovely little platform for a -lot- of things. If nintendo would grow some balls, they could pimp the DS as a mobile platform for a lot of stuff besides games. They have a very thickly drawn box around their target market, and just don't like to budge out of it. They did try some stuff with the original gameboy, I guess, but in very limited runs and/or only in Japan. The DS, though, is quite a bit different than the old GB, and it wouldn't hurt them to try.
I always wonder about some possibilities, like a dual cart music toolkit... One card (in the GBA slot maybe) could act as a more advanced sound processor and output port, and the DS slot would have a cart with synth software adapted for DS use... Maybe use the wifi to swap instrument sets or share settings.
how about a PDA package, which I've heard rumors about? Language and learning software? What about a -portable wifi-enabled network diagnosis tool - produce a cart with an ethernet port? Put stereo in/out jacks and let it work as a sound processor for guitars etc?
Hey, thanks for pointing that out. The article does suggest, after all, that if everyone replace just -one- bulb for a pretty gigantic savings. Of course, replacing more is going to provide even more results.
I've done the mixed bulbs in the ceiling fishbowl, myself, and it works out really great. One high-quality incandescent 60 watt with a great color temperature, and one 75-100 watt equiv. flourescent up there really does wonders. I have an incandescent desk lamp for paperwork and such, but a cfl reading light by my bed.
For me, the decision to use normal, cfl, or mixed bulbs is based on a few factors: what i'm going to be doing in a particular location and what kind of light quality I'd like; how often that light is going to be turned on; how often it's going to be turning on and off (and related, how long I may be in that particular area at a time); and existing lighting conditions from other nearby lights or windows.
For the record, I haven't had a cfl burn out on me, but I have had them weaken. After a full year, my kitchen light took noticably longer to brighten up than it did when I first installed it. For one of the most used and abused light fixtures in my house (always going in and out for meals, snacks, and generally using it as a social gathering point), that bulb was still going strong when I moved out of that place. The warm-up was pretty low-key, and it brightened up after no more than 30 seconds of being turned on.
However, I do have one concern. With the rise of so many personal electronic items, can cfl's help offset the rising power consumption? I basically have to carry my own 5-outlet strip with me when i travel to keep everything charged up and running. Don't even ask about my desk area - it's a rat's nest fire hazard of an electricity sinkhole. Power consumption as a whole has gone up in households across America.
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is awesome if you like a "graphic novel" adventure. Everyone else's suggestions so far have all been pretty good too, from what I've seen. Brain Age is pretty cool, too. my girlfriend is addicted to the built-in sudoku, of all things. If you like RPG's, well.. Uhm... Good luck. Lunar is kind of fun, but a terrible combat system. I mean, awful. Deep Labyrinth looks around the same. Contact might be ok. Maybe. If you want silly, keep your eyes open for Cooking Mama in September. Yep. It's kind of a cutesy cooking game, and I want it. You prep ingredients (chop or slice, grate, fry, etc) and combine them to make a meal and get graded on it. Hee hee!
Were you like me and had to have electroplankton even though you knew it was a rip-off for $30? It's pretty amazingly awesome, but like ten more plankton or so, or the ability to mix them or SOMETHING, would've made me feel better about buying it. It plays like a demo due to its limitations.
Warning: frivolous linguistic nitpicking ahead. feel free to skip.
Can one really use "architect" as a verb, as in a quote from the article? i.e. "the way the software is architected..."
An architect does not "architect" for a living, but rather "designs" architecture. you can have architecturally unsound ideas, you can create a 64-bit architecture, but do you sit down at your desk and "architect" a chip or building?
sheesh. this is attributed directly to "John Palfrey, StopBadware.org's co-director".
i'm working on a 'portable privacy suite' kind of thing on my 1gb drive. Someone's put together a portable version of Tor for win32, so that's on there. Portable Firefox is on there, with a few choice plugins like Torbutton, Noscripts and Customizegoogle. puTTY is on there, Filezilla is going to go on there soon, and I'm considering a version of PGP/GPG to put on, too. I also plan to put Eraser on.
Last step is finding a cheap/compact roll-up USB keyboard to avoid hardware keyloggers.
I really don't have anything worth hiding, but it's an interesting project. I want to see how workable a very strong "personal security policy" really is.
Does anyone have any other suggestions for software or other modifications? The idea is to keep it fairly simple at it's core.
(the keyboard is kind of pushing it already on the simple front, imo. so is my other idea of getting a micro usb hub and using smaller size keys for subdividing tasks - like having a cheap 64mb drive for my public/private keyrings, one for encryption software itself, one for everything else; then wrapping it all in the rollup keyboard... going to the library and whipping that bad boy out of my pocket and plugging it in all at once. i think the looks alone might be priceless, if i didn't get arrested on the spot...)
yeah, bad analogy there in the beginning. Everyone who gets a vanity plate through a particular state's DMV pays the same flat fee - you don't get charged exponentially more money based on how "desirable" or "cool" your vanity plate is.
Also, what about anti-sites, like (hypothetically) "www.trustgooglenomore.org" or "fuckmicrosoft.com" ? That's a free speech issue, there. You can't give google or MS a claim to those sites if they're being used for criticism or dissemination of information the company may not like.
I think that may be -exactly- why to continue research into security academically. There are people out there with a very real and practical (to them) urge to research this stuff: in order to use it against their perceived enemies. Pick a religious, ethnic, political, or racial minority OR majority, poor people, rich people, business people, you, me, everyone who buys a computer in a certain region, bugged hardware for export, foreign nationals and diplomats... The list goes on.
It's better to have the flaws in our major systems exposed on a public level so that we can develop countermeasures, then it is to let the _real_ "bad guys" use it against us, the public.
I don't know about you, but I cannot and will not stand for it. Nobody has the right to spy on me, or you, or anybody else. NOBODY. I don't care if it's for "legal" purposes or not.
Laws are written to make criminals, not good citizens.
Regardless of the source, the quote is fairly a truism. I'll quote the homeless guy down the block if he, in an estranged moment of clarity, spits forth a bolus of truth on my shoe as I pass by.
The thing with your example quote is that "2+2=4" is such a truism that a far better source can be attributed to it than Hitler, even if he did (hypothetically) state it at one point.
Let me make this clear: I do not like Ayn Rand. Atlas Shrugged made my ass hurt like a reaming from a thousand donkeys. But there is truth in that quote, and to discount that would be a great folly.
I do have the feeling often that the "lesser of two evils" is still, in fact, EVIL. I do my best not to deal with devils, even if it's the devil with the best deal.
I know the feeling.:( It's a cool game and I love the concept, but my meaty hands and bad eyes have a tough time playing more than a few DM's in a row before I'm just exhausted, unlike playing, say, Red Faction on PC or console...
Maybe we'll get lucky and they'll release an MP:H for Cube or for Wii?
I'm also terribly reluctant to pick up any of the other FPS's for DS for the same reason. I love FPS games, but I'm very wary of them on the small screen.
OK, mate. first off, yes, yes I am an american gamer. The Nintendo that I see, and interact with, is Nintendo of America. I know very well that Nintendo of Japan will continue, and quite strongly, without NOA. Japan is way cooler than the US, etc, etc. And gets all the awesome Nintendo toys that the American market never sees, which pisses me off to no end.
But allow me to clarify some things for you, so you can sleep easier tonight, K? K.
When I say I see Nintendo(NOA) struggling, I mean that I see it struggling in the marketplace creatively, and in mind-share, and the home console market. In America. I know that their handheld division is strong, and always has been. The PSP didn't blind me, or anybody I know; we all know that it's an overpriced piece of kak that, while nifty, probably won't have the staying power of the Gameboy line.
You took issue with my statement about the classic Nintendo franchises. You're just countering my subjective statement with another subjective statement, which gets us nowhere. Nonetheless, I maintain that Nintendo keeps flogging the same characters over, and over, and over again. Yes, they make it shinier each time, and yes, as I said, they do bring in new styles of play. But it's still the SAME creative property being reorganized again, and again, and again. Whether or not the games are fun is immaterial to my argument - it's still Samus, it's still Mario. Bring me something new, already! Can't Mario have a break? He's been smashing barrels and rescuing princesses since 1981!
And again, as I said before; even with a new game in every franchise once a year, that's still less than ten new titles a year! That is simply not enough to support console sales, except to idiotic fanboys like me and presumably yourself.
I quote: GBA games market is nothing like that actually.
In America, yes, yes it is. If you're in America and just being a cock-knob, go to your local mega-store and check out the GBA selection. Think you're gonna find Fire Emblem? Hell, go to your local gaming store and check out the selection, and you'll still be shocked at the ridiculous percentage of bad franchise games. In America. Yes. If you're not, you may not see that - lucky you. There are more GBA games out there, yes, but nobody is carrying them in-store - which is how games get major sales figures, rarely by dorks like you and me special-ordering from the internet! And yes, franchise games could be good, but they're not. And yes, that's a tremendously subjective statement to make, but I stand by it. Most of them are, in fact, craptastic.
See my Barbie Horse Adventures statement for more details on that.
I don't understand your complaint with my praises of the DS. It's been around for longer than I've had one, yes. Steam has been building up that entire time, but it truly seems to have gained an even greater momentum in the past maybe twelve months - I hear FAR more about the DS now than I heard about it this time last year, and I don't think all of that is just because I own one now.
N64 and Cube both -did- lose a chunk of marketshare. They got 0wned by Sony in sales figures in the US, and a big part of the problem, I believe, was a lack of games on the US market. We got all the usual mario, metroid, etc games, which were all very fun - but Sony did what Nintendo used to do, which is build up a pretty huge software library in a relatively short time. Meanwhile, we were left playing the same few (admittedly mostly fun, but still) games on 64 and Cube, waiting and watching our buddies play hundreds of titles on PSX and PS2...
Yes, Nintendo is recovering now. That's what I said. That was the point of my post. They're getting better. For them to get better, they have to have fallen some. We may not agree on the fine points, but we agree on that. And yes, one more time I add for completeness, in the American market. QED.
You know, even earlier this year, I felt that Nintendo was struggling, and I'm a big nintendo fan. Always have been. It pained me to no end to think of one of my favorite gaming companies being toppled by the evil empire of Sony.
But at any rate, what can I say? I picked up a DS in January or February, and ever since then it's had so much momentum build up it's insane. Before now, though, what I'd seen from Nintendo was the regurgitation of the same old and tired, though beloved, franchises - yip-de-fucking-doo, another Gamecube Mario game, another Metroid, another Zelda. Sure, each one used newer graphics and admittedly had often fascinating new gameplay elements. But a handful of in-house titles a year do not make for success.
And the GBA? Christ. It'd already become a no-man's-land of awful movie and children's cartoon franchises. Speak to me no more of Nickelodeon games, nor Barbie (see subscript).
But the DS really seems to have sparked something for the general public. I think it's something that we've been waiting for, and Nintendo has brought it. I think it may be the true meaning of that damnable word, "innovation". It's coming from all -over- Nintendo, now. It seems more... Unrestrained. It's not "innovating" within a closed franchise (now Link can smash pots 200% better than any previous Zelda!), and it's not a fancy hardware platform that can perform miracles spitting out the latest boring edgy-teen-angst game(yes, Sony, that means you).
What Nintendo has done is offered a complete package. We have an entirely new hardware package, the DS. It has an entirely new control interface, the touchscreen, combined with the familiar D-pad and shoulder buttons that, if you don't know them already, are pretty intuitive to learn - a fusion of new and old. The hardware isn't obnoxiously overpowered for what's intended on the system, either. And the touchscreen itself encourages an entirely new kind of thinking for the software developers, bringing us new methods of interaction with our games, in some cases making us feel more a part of the worlds that they're trying to create, or at least greatly simplifying our interactions in them.
The end result is this fascinating device that provides an entirely new face to the thing that we love to do: play games. It's refreshing and it's welcoming, and it's Nintendo that's done it. Will we continue to see the same old franchises resurrected? I'm sure we will. Will we continue to see more fun and interesting software titles that have nothing to do with Mario? I'm certain we will. It's a win-win proposition for nostalgia gamers and those of us who crave something new.
I do still maintain my position, though, that Nintendo has created the perfect hardware platform for lightweight portable computing, and may be shooting themselves in the foot by not offering non-game solutions (though the browser is a step in the right direction, as is the TV tuner, though only for use in Japan). A GPS unit for one of these? VOIP phone cart? how about a data sampler and recorder? There are quite a few options available (though I'm glad they didn't do something dumb like integrate an MP3 player. That would've raised the price by far too much and felt too much like a cheap gimmick). Let's see some action on this thing, huh?
Will Nintendo falter in the future? It's felt shaky before, but as we can see, bounced back in a pretty big way. I hope they can keep on top of it, restore market dominance, and then, do the unthinkable in that position - keep on producing innovative games and hardware that are fun to play.
(subscript: Let me just say, by the by, that Barbie Horse Adventures is a message to little both gamers, and little girls. It says "Here at Mattel, we'd just like to mention that WE HATE YOU. Yes, we hate gamers, and we hate little girls, too. Parents, lock the doors, cause we're gonna come rape your children! We're SO fucking rich! Buy some more Barbie shit!")
after the (what seems to be) unannounced first break-in attempt and briefing of the employees, any and all results should be considered fairly invalid for at least several months afterwards. Being caught on their second attempt is a no-brainer - hopefully by that point all of the employees have been informed of a security audit, so everyone is going to pay attention, at least for a while.
I worked in a "secure" government contracting facility for five years. As time passed, we had more and more security audits by both internal and external teams. The external security teams (and other inspectors, in fact) were required to be announced, and somebody always caught them - because management would address the entire staff and say 'Security audit, everyone; be alert for x, y and z happening'!
Sort of smacks of cheating. Why? Because when the internal teams worked, unannounced, almost every time someone would slip by, usually by riding through a secure door without a badge on someone's coat-tails. Then we'd get chewed out by management, and within a couple of day someone would be caught, thus "bringing us back into compliance". This cycle continued every 6 months or so.
It's a sham, pure and simple Unless security issues are constantly, CONSTANTLY addressed, and security staff is on the ball and doing their job 24/7, most employees won't give more than a passing thought to it - because it's a pain in the ass to deal with every day, and it feels like the company is just being cheap by using the main workforce as a security guard in addition to their normal duties.
kinda my point. Deckers are almost better as NPC's, unless maybe -everyone- is a decker and you play a mostly cyberspace game - also kinda boring, I wager. I've also seen games where one or two characters will have relatively low decking skills alongside their other skills. They won't be hacking the gibson any time soon, but it's usually enough to get them what they need. If big guns are called for, then they go looking to hire someone.
the awakening in shadowrun was pretty close to now in the timeline. Maybe instead of setting the game way forward in the history, the game is set early on, and sequels will seek to press the player forward in time.
One can also play shadowrun from a few different angles - not everyone was a decker, remember. There are also street samurai and the city shamans to deal with - which is more what the trailer looks like.
Idunno, the trailer looked kinda neat. Not the usual shadowrun world I'm used to, that's for sure... But we'll see.
Course, my hopes will end up being crushed and this guy is just an asshat, I know. Ah well.
wow. a lot of people are kinda jerks on this topic, and i can't figure out why.
I'll suggest that you may want to figure out exactly what you want to do with your data, first. Using a barcode scanner isn't going to organize the books on the shelves, but it'll let you organize a list of your books. That's great if you want to keep a searchable catalogue and shareable index, but it also means that if you want a book you need to go to your computer first, every single time you want a book.
My library is smaller, but I still like to be able to browse shelves that are in a sensible order when I want non-specific reading material.
A lot of folks have suggested sorting your books like a bookstore, and I agree. Fiction versus non-fiction, then go from there by genre or subject. If you want more efficient, then go by author. If you want pretty, sort by book size. Now, don't forget to leave blank shelf space around each section! Even if it's only a quarter or half a shelf, leave yourself room to expand.
Category stickers on the shelves are good, or you can use dividers between the books themselves, like sheets of thick cardstock that stand out and are labelled. Then categorize the shelves themselves. Put a piece of paper or a colored strip on it that's plainly visible. Either mark the sections on it, or make yourself a master key that's very easily visible, like on a medium-sized poster on the wall.
Now, whew, right. You've sorted everything pretty hardcore by now. OK. Still want an inventory? Grab your barcode scanner and go forth. What to do with the data? I'd probably end up importing it to MySQL and writing a simple custom web interface in PHP for this part. Scan the whole lot, and sort it out in a db however you please. Make a cheapo web frontend with a multi-function search (by title, author, category/genre etc) and you're golden.
you could also add in a 'shelf' marker to the db, allowing you to see what is where in your physical library. as in, "show me everything on the blue shelf" or "authors that start with 'A' on green shelf". I'd probably skip that bit myself, though.
That's it, really. Course, I haven't done the db stuff for my own books. I've got quite a few (three 7' tall and 3' wide cases, two 3' tall by 2.5' wide cases; all packed nearly full) books myself, and I just sort them on the shelves as mentioned above. I'm not really interested in a digital solution. I've thought about it, and realized that a digital inventory isn't really that helpful until I've got at least enough to match a medium to large used bookstore. I figure that if I can look at all my shelves in one sweeping glance, even if I've got to turn in a circle, it's just added baggage and extra maintenance I don't feel like doing.
sounds like a step closer to 'Dreampark', as in the novels by Steven Barnes and Larry Niven. Immersive real-life roleplaying games. If you haven't read the series yet, go do it. A neat idea, well-executed on paper.
They're not developing synthetic fuels, they're coating regular coal in PINE TAR or DIESEL, for christ's sake. By the IRS rule, apparently that counts as a "synthetic fuel". Yes, synthetic fuel would be a great industry - we desperately need a new alternative to come through, and/or to take greater advantage of what we've got for alternative power (biodiesel, solar, wind, hydrogen...) These jackfucks aren't helping. Do you understand? THEY ARE TAKING MONEY OUT OF YOUR POCKET. Not only that, but then, THEY'RE SELLING THE PRODUCT BACK TO YOU.
A McDonald's manager mugs you for $500 and uses it to buy $250 worth of burger patties and buns. Later, you're hungry, and you buy a burger from the guy.
Is this making sense? Is this outraging you?
Of course not, it's slashdot, and we're all jaded. This thread will be forgotten inside of twenty-four hours, anyways.
That's a pretty huge maybe there, but could be. From what I read, they didn't want to finish the network stack internal to the DS, as I said in my first post; they leave it up to the cartridge maker to build in TCP/IP or whatever protocol they feel like, which is an interesting choice. Pictochat does its own thing. Other software can call for pictochat links, but they don't (probably can't) use pictochat's protocol to send game data. Therefore, no inherent multiplayer support to the DS; again, the cartmaker has to do it all, probably to save nintendo the time and money, and keep costs down just a little more.
I thought the micro did support old GB/C games, huh! Glad I didn't buy one of those. Then again, the screens are SO tiny on those, I don't think I could even see them properly anyways. But... No.. Link cable.... ARGH! Why oh why do they do this?! I guess the GBM is only for playing the latest single-player spongebob/tv tie-in/barbie horse adventure advance game... Can't even swap unicorns or whatever with friends. Bah.
Aw, hell. Ok, you got me. I checked the box, and you're right. Yarr. So I take a hit as a bit of the fool. Even so, why do such a thing? I mean, I can see the logic behind it: "We want to add an expansion port capability. Hey, here's an idea, make it GBA game size and throw in compatibility as a bonus." But the leap to "well, let's not really make it completely work, just mostly. That way, if they really want to play GBA games, too, they'll have to shell out another $80." Kinda slimy, isn't it? Why claim it's "not replacing the GBA", instead of "optionally replace the GBA"? It doesn't even make much sense as a political move to keep recent GBA buyers happy. Just pet them and assure them that their units will still play GBA games and GBA games will still come out so that both GBA and DS owners can use them, they'll be fine. A simple press release could have fixed this problem, and that way I don't have to lug around 2 units to play different games with my friends. Bomberman Advance 2, anyone? Oh, man. It's not nearly as fun to play single-player.
I say to you the same thing I asked the other guy: If they didn't put in a link port, why not include wireless support? If they didn't want to build it in, how about putting out a DS cart that handles the connection details, and accesses the GBA port to play the game? A DS cart "wireless link port simulator" sort of thing. Maybe that's yet to come and some enterprising third party will release it, but I think that's pretty unlikely, unfortunately. So far, the expansion port has been used for just a handful of things - extra tracks in band brothers, feel the magic gives you some bonus items for having sonic team games, and a rumble pack as you said. Doesn't look like anything terribly exciting is coming of it so far, though the words about TV tuners and such do sound promising. But even if there is a TV tuner and a rumble pack, do you think those will justify inclusion of the GBA port at all? How many people are going to buy an $80 tuner, if one is even released in the US?
One could use the 3rd party movie/media player thing that was released for GBA on it, I suppose, but wouldn't it be about ten times cooler if it took advantage of the DS' full processor and touch screen capability?
On a side note, moderators are jerks. I can't believe someone modded me flamebait just for getting a little vocal about some shortcomings I perceive with nintendo. Remember, gang: I say these things not out of hate, but fanboy love. Woo.
Slashdot Mirror
I agree completely. It's a lovely little platform for a -lot- of things. If nintendo would grow some balls, they could pimp the DS as a mobile platform for a lot of stuff besides games. They have a very thickly drawn box around their target market, and just don't like to budge out of it. They did try some stuff with the original gameboy, I guess, but in very limited runs and/or only in Japan. The DS, though, is quite a bit different than the old GB, and it wouldn't hurt them to try.
I always wonder about some possibilities, like a dual cart music toolkit... One card (in the GBA slot maybe) could act as a more advanced sound processor and output port, and the DS slot would have a cart with synth software adapted for DS use... Maybe use the wifi to swap instrument sets or share settings.
how about a PDA package, which I've heard rumors about? Language and learning software? What about a -portable wifi-enabled network diagnosis tool - produce a cart with an ethernet port? Put stereo in/out jacks and let it work as a sound processor for guitars etc?
Hey, thanks for pointing that out. The article does suggest, after all, that if everyone replace just -one- bulb for a pretty gigantic savings. Of course, replacing more is going to provide even more results.
I've done the mixed bulbs in the ceiling fishbowl, myself, and it works out really great. One high-quality incandescent 60 watt with a great color temperature, and one 75-100 watt equiv. flourescent up there really does wonders. I have an incandescent desk lamp for paperwork and such, but a cfl reading light by my bed.
For me, the decision to use normal, cfl, or mixed bulbs is based on a few factors: what i'm going to be doing in a particular location and what kind of light quality I'd like; how often that light is going to be turned on; how often it's going to be turning on and off (and related, how long I may be in that particular area at a time); and existing lighting conditions from other nearby lights or windows.
For the record, I haven't had a cfl burn out on me, but I have had them weaken. After a full year, my kitchen light took noticably longer to brighten up than it did when I first installed it. For one of the most used and abused light fixtures in my house (always going in and out for meals, snacks, and generally using it as a social gathering point), that bulb was still going strong when I moved out of that place. The warm-up was pretty low-key, and it brightened up after no more than 30 seconds of being turned on.
However, I do have one concern. With the rise of so many personal electronic items, can cfl's help offset the rising power consumption? I basically have to carry my own 5-outlet strip with me when i travel to keep everything charged up and running. Don't even ask about my desk area - it's a rat's nest fire hazard of an electricity sinkhole. Power consumption as a whole has gone up in households across America.
The DS really doesn't support WPA. Open or WEP only. :(
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is awesome if you like a "graphic novel" adventure. Everyone else's suggestions so far have all been pretty good too, from what I've seen. Brain Age is pretty cool, too. my girlfriend is addicted to the built-in sudoku, of all things. If you like RPG's, well.. Uhm... Good luck. Lunar is kind of fun, but a terrible combat system. I mean, awful. Deep Labyrinth looks around the same. Contact might be ok. Maybe.
If you want silly, keep your eyes open for Cooking Mama in September. Yep. It's kind of a cutesy cooking game, and I want it. You prep ingredients (chop or slice, grate, fry, etc) and combine them to make a meal and get graded on it. Hee hee!
Were you like me and had to have electroplankton even though you knew it was a rip-off for $30? It's pretty amazingly awesome, but like ten more plankton or so, or the ability to mix them or SOMETHING, would've made me feel better about buying it. It plays like a demo due to its limitations.
Warning: frivolous linguistic nitpicking ahead. feel free to skip.
Can one really use "architect" as a verb, as in a quote from the article? i.e. "the way the software is architected..."
An architect does not "architect" for a living, but rather "designs" architecture. you can have architecturally unsound ideas, you can create a 64-bit architecture, but do you sit down at your desk and "architect" a chip or building?
sheesh. this is attributed directly to "John Palfrey, StopBadware.org's co-director".
i'm working on a 'portable privacy suite' kind of thing on my 1gb drive. Someone's put together a portable version of Tor for win32, so that's on there. Portable Firefox is on there, with a few choice plugins like Torbutton, Noscripts and Customizegoogle. puTTY is on there, Filezilla is going to go on there soon, and I'm considering a version of PGP/GPG to put on, too. I also plan to put Eraser on.
Last step is finding a cheap/compact roll-up USB keyboard to avoid hardware keyloggers.
I really don't have anything worth hiding, but it's an interesting project. I want to see how workable a very strong "personal security policy" really is.
Does anyone have any other suggestions for software or other modifications? The idea is to keep it fairly simple at it's core.
(the keyboard is kind of pushing it already on the simple front, imo. so is my other idea of getting a micro usb hub and using smaller size keys for subdividing tasks - like having a cheap 64mb drive for my public/private keyrings, one for encryption software itself, one for everything else; then wrapping it all in the rollup keyboard... going to the library and whipping that bad boy out of my pocket and plugging it in all at once. i think the looks alone might be priceless, if i didn't get arrested on the spot...)
yeah, bad analogy there in the beginning. Everyone who gets a vanity plate through a particular state's DMV pays the same flat fee - you don't get charged exponentially more money based on how "desirable" or "cool" your vanity plate is.
Also, what about anti-sites, like (hypothetically) "www.trustgooglenomore.org" or "fuckmicrosoft.com" ? That's a free speech issue, there. You can't give google or MS a claim to those sites if they're being used for criticism or dissemination of information the company may not like.
I think that may be -exactly- why to continue research into security academically. There are people out there with a very real and practical (to them) urge to research this stuff: in order to use it against their perceived enemies. Pick a religious, ethnic, political, or racial minority OR majority, poor people, rich people, business people, you, me, everyone who buys a computer in a certain region, bugged hardware for export, foreign nationals and diplomats... The list goes on.
It's better to have the flaws in our major systems exposed on a public level so that we can develop countermeasures, then it is to let the _real_ "bad guys" use it against us, the public.
I don't know about you, but I cannot and will not stand for it. Nobody has the right to spy on me, or you, or anybody else. NOBODY. I don't care if it's for "legal" purposes or not.
Laws are written to make criminals, not good citizens.
Regardless of the source, the quote is fairly a truism. I'll quote the homeless guy down the block if he, in an estranged moment of clarity, spits forth a bolus of truth on my shoe as I pass by.
The thing with your example quote is that "2+2=4" is such a truism that a far better source can be attributed to it than Hitler, even if he did (hypothetically) state it at one point.
Let me make this clear: I do not like Ayn Rand. Atlas Shrugged made my ass hurt like a reaming from a thousand donkeys. But there is truth in that quote, and to discount that would be a great folly.
I do have the feeling often that the "lesser of two evils" is still, in fact, EVIL. I do my best not to deal with devils, even if it's the devil with the best deal.
We don't need no rights. Thank you for the illegal surveillance, "Homeland Security"!
Fuck you.
I know the feeling. :( It's a cool game and I love the concept, but my meaty hands and bad eyes have a tough time playing more than a few DM's in a row before I'm just exhausted, unlike playing, say, Red Faction on PC or console...
Maybe we'll get lucky and they'll release an MP:H for Cube or for Wii?
I'm also terribly reluctant to pick up any of the other FPS's for DS for the same reason. I love FPS games, but I'm very wary of them on the small screen.
OK, mate. first off, yes, yes I am an american gamer. The Nintendo that I see, and interact with, is Nintendo of America. I know very well that Nintendo of Japan will continue, and quite strongly, without NOA. Japan is way cooler than the US, etc, etc. And gets all the awesome Nintendo toys that the American market never sees, which pisses me off to no end.
But allow me to clarify some things for you, so you can sleep easier tonight, K? K.
When I say I see Nintendo(NOA) struggling, I mean that I see it struggling in the marketplace creatively, and in mind-share, and the home console market. In America. I know that their handheld division is strong, and always has been. The PSP didn't blind me, or anybody I know; we all know that it's an overpriced piece of kak that, while nifty, probably won't have the staying power of the Gameboy line.
You took issue with my statement about the classic Nintendo franchises. You're just countering my subjective statement with another subjective statement, which gets us nowhere. Nonetheless, I maintain that Nintendo keeps flogging the same characters over, and over, and over again. Yes, they make it shinier each time, and yes, as I said, they do bring in new styles of play. But it's still the SAME creative property being reorganized again, and again, and again. Whether or not the games are fun is immaterial to my argument - it's still Samus, it's still Mario. Bring me something new, already! Can't Mario have a break? He's been smashing barrels and rescuing princesses since 1981! And again, as I said before; even with a new game in every franchise once a year, that's still less than ten new titles a year! That is simply not enough to support console sales, except to idiotic fanboys like me and presumably yourself.
I quote: GBA games market is nothing like that actually.
In America, yes, yes it is. If you're in America and just being a cock-knob, go to your local mega-store and check out the GBA selection. Think you're gonna find Fire Emblem? Hell, go to your local gaming store and check out the selection, and you'll still be shocked at the ridiculous percentage of bad franchise games. In America. Yes. If you're not, you may not see that - lucky you. There are more GBA games out there, yes, but nobody is carrying them in-store - which is how games get major sales figures, rarely by dorks like you and me special-ordering from the internet! And yes, franchise games could be good, but they're not. And yes, that's a tremendously subjective statement to make, but I stand by it. Most of them are, in fact, craptastic. See my Barbie Horse Adventures statement for more details on that.
I don't understand your complaint with my praises of the DS. It's been around for longer than I've had one, yes. Steam has been building up that entire time, but it truly seems to have gained an even greater momentum in the past maybe twelve months - I hear FAR more about the DS now than I heard about it this time last year, and I don't think all of that is just because I own one now.
N64 and Cube both -did- lose a chunk of marketshare. They got 0wned by Sony in sales figures in the US, and a big part of the problem, I believe, was a lack of games on the US market. We got all the usual mario, metroid, etc games, which were all very fun - but Sony did what Nintendo used to do, which is build up a pretty huge software library in a relatively short time. Meanwhile, we were left playing the same few (admittedly mostly fun, but still) games on 64 and Cube, waiting and watching our buddies play hundreds of titles on PSX and PS2...
Yes, Nintendo is recovering now. That's what I said. That was the point of my post. They're getting better. For them to get better, they have to have fallen some. We may not agree on the fine points, but we agree on that. And yes, one more time I add for completeness, in the American market. QED.
You know, even earlier this year, I felt that Nintendo was struggling, and I'm a big nintendo fan. Always have been. It pained me to no end to think of one of my favorite gaming companies being toppled by the evil empire of Sony.
But at any rate, what can I say? I picked up a DS in January or February, and ever since then it's had so much momentum build up it's insane. Before now, though, what I'd seen from Nintendo was the regurgitation of the same old and tired, though beloved, franchises - yip-de-fucking-doo, another Gamecube Mario game, another Metroid, another Zelda. Sure, each one used newer graphics and admittedly had often fascinating new gameplay elements. But a handful of in-house titles a year do not make for success.
And the GBA? Christ. It'd already become a no-man's-land of awful movie and children's cartoon franchises. Speak to me no more of Nickelodeon games, nor Barbie (see subscript).
But the DS really seems to have sparked something for the general public. I think it's something that we've been waiting for, and Nintendo has brought it. I think it may be the true meaning of that damnable word, "innovation". It's coming from all -over- Nintendo, now. It seems more... Unrestrained. It's not "innovating" within a closed franchise (now Link can smash pots 200% better than any previous Zelda!), and it's not a fancy hardware platform that can perform miracles spitting out the latest boring edgy-teen-angst game(yes, Sony, that means you).
What Nintendo has done is offered a complete package. We have an entirely new hardware package, the DS. It has an entirely new control interface, the touchscreen, combined with the familiar D-pad and shoulder buttons that, if you don't know them already, are pretty intuitive to learn - a fusion of new and old. The hardware isn't obnoxiously overpowered for what's intended on the system, either. And the touchscreen itself encourages an entirely new kind of thinking for the software developers, bringing us new methods of interaction with our games, in some cases making us feel more a part of the worlds that they're trying to create, or at least greatly simplifying our interactions in them.
The end result is this fascinating device that provides an entirely new face to the thing that we love to do: play games. It's refreshing and it's welcoming, and it's Nintendo that's done it. Will we continue to see the same old franchises resurrected? I'm sure we will. Will we continue to see more fun and interesting software titles that have nothing to do with Mario? I'm certain we will. It's a win-win proposition for nostalgia gamers and those of us who crave something new.
I do still maintain my position, though, that Nintendo has created the perfect hardware platform for lightweight portable computing, and may be shooting themselves in the foot by not offering non-game solutions (though the browser is a step in the right direction, as is the TV tuner, though only for use in Japan). A GPS unit for one of these? VOIP phone cart? how about a data sampler and recorder? There are quite a few options available (though I'm glad they didn't do something dumb like integrate an MP3 player. That would've raised the price by far too much and felt too much like a cheap gimmick). Let's see some action on this thing, huh?
Will Nintendo falter in the future? It's felt shaky before, but as we can see, bounced back in a pretty big way. I hope they can keep on top of it, restore market dominance, and then, do the unthinkable in that position - keep on producing innovative games and hardware that are fun to play.
(subscript: Let me just say, by the by, that Barbie Horse Adventures is a message to little both gamers, and little girls. It says "Here at Mattel, we'd just like to mention that WE HATE YOU. Yes, we hate gamers, and we hate little girls, too. Parents, lock the doors, cause we're gonna come rape your children! We're SO fucking rich! Buy some more Barbie shit!")
(sub-subscript: ever notice how those in
after the (what seems to be) unannounced first break-in attempt and briefing of the employees, any and all results should be considered fairly invalid for at least several months afterwards. Being caught on their second attempt is a no-brainer - hopefully by that point all of the employees have been informed of a security audit, so everyone is going to pay attention, at least for a while.
I worked in a "secure" government contracting facility for five years. As time passed, we had more and more security audits by both internal and external teams. The external security teams (and other inspectors, in fact) were required to be announced, and somebody always caught them - because management would address the entire staff and say 'Security audit, everyone; be alert for x, y and z happening'!
Sort of smacks of cheating. Why? Because when the internal teams worked, unannounced, almost every time someone would slip by, usually by riding through a secure door without a badge on someone's coat-tails. Then we'd get chewed out by management, and within a couple of day someone would be caught, thus "bringing us back into compliance". This cycle continued every 6 months or so.
It's a sham, pure and simple Unless security issues are constantly, CONSTANTLY addressed, and security staff is on the ball and doing their job 24/7, most employees won't give more than a passing thought to it - because it's a pain in the ass to deal with every day, and it feels like the company is just being cheap by using the main workforce as a security guard in addition to their normal duties.
bah.
Allow me to sum up this article.
"We got a bigger magnet".
Thanks, guys. That was f**king genius.
kinda my point. Deckers are almost better as NPC's, unless maybe -everyone- is a decker and you play a mostly cyberspace game - also kinda boring, I wager. I've also seen games where one or two characters will have relatively low decking skills alongside their other skills. They won't be hacking the gibson any time soon, but it's usually enough to get them what they need. If big guns are called for, then they go looking to hire someone.
the awakening in shadowrun was pretty close to now in the timeline. Maybe instead of setting the game way forward in the history, the game is set early on, and sequels will seek to press the player forward in time.
One can also play shadowrun from a few different angles - not everyone was a decker, remember. There are also street samurai and the city shamans to deal with - which is more what the trailer looks like.
Idunno, the trailer looked kinda neat. Not the usual shadowrun world I'm used to, that's for sure... But we'll see.
Course, my hopes will end up being crushed and this guy is just an asshat, I know. Ah well.
wow. a lot of people are kinda jerks on this topic, and i can't figure out why.
I'll suggest that you may want to figure out exactly what you want to do with your data, first. Using a barcode scanner isn't going to organize the books on the shelves, but it'll let you organize a list of your books. That's great if you want to keep a searchable catalogue and shareable index, but it also means that if you want a book you need to go to your computer first, every single time you want a book.
My library is smaller, but I still like to be able to browse shelves that are in a sensible order when I want non-specific reading material.
A lot of folks have suggested sorting your books like a bookstore, and I agree. Fiction versus non-fiction, then go from there by genre or subject. If you want more efficient, then go by author. If you want pretty, sort by book size. Now, don't forget to leave blank shelf space around each section! Even if it's only a quarter or half a shelf, leave yourself room to expand.
Category stickers on the shelves are good, or you can use dividers between the books themselves, like sheets of thick cardstock that stand out and are labelled. Then categorize the shelves themselves. Put a piece of paper or a colored strip on it that's plainly visible. Either mark the sections on it, or make yourself a master key that's very easily visible, like on a medium-sized poster on the wall.
Now, whew, right. You've sorted everything pretty hardcore by now. OK. Still want an inventory? Grab your barcode scanner and go forth. What to do with the data? I'd probably end up importing it to MySQL and writing a simple custom web interface in PHP for this part. Scan the whole lot, and sort it out in a db however you please. Make a cheapo web frontend with a multi-function search (by title, author, category/genre etc) and you're golden.
you could also add in a 'shelf' marker to the db, allowing you to see what is where in your physical library. as in, "show me everything on the blue shelf" or "authors that start with 'A' on green shelf".
I'd probably skip that bit myself, though.
That's it, really. Course, I haven't done the db stuff for my own books. I've got quite a few (three 7' tall and 3' wide cases, two 3' tall by 2.5' wide cases; all packed nearly full) books myself, and I just sort them on the shelves as mentioned above. I'm not really interested in a digital solution. I've thought about it, and realized that a digital inventory isn't really that helpful until I've got at least enough to match a medium to large used bookstore. I figure that if I can look at all my shelves in one sweeping glance, even if I've got to turn in a circle, it's just added baggage and extra maintenance I don't feel like doing.
sounds like a step closer to 'Dreampark', as in the novels by Steven Barnes and Larry Niven.
Wow, futuristic sci-fi AND there's a dragon on the cover! That's some hardcore geekerature there.
Dude, not only that... It's about roleplaying and roleplayers. I mean, dorkier is hard to summon... At least on a roll of 17 or less on 3d6..
sounds like a step closer to 'Dreampark', as in the novels by Steven Barnes and Larry Niven. Immersive real-life roleplaying games. If you haven't read the series yet, go do it. A neat idea, well-executed on paper.
"Do we really want humans to be forced to sit at a keyboard hitting the same 3 keys in the same order for hours and hours?"
I work for the government, fool. I get PAID to do that.
ok, so yeah, it really sucks and putting a gun to my head would be more fun. but it pays the bills.
They're not developing synthetic fuels, they're coating regular coal in PINE TAR or DIESEL, for christ's sake. By the IRS rule, apparently that counts as a "synthetic fuel". Yes, synthetic fuel would be a great industry - we desperately need a new alternative to come through, and/or to take greater advantage of what we've got for alternative power (biodiesel, solar, wind, hydrogen...) These jackfucks aren't helping. Do you understand? THEY ARE TAKING MONEY OUT OF YOUR POCKET. Not only that, but then, THEY'RE SELLING THE PRODUCT BACK TO YOU.
A McDonald's manager mugs you for $500 and uses it to buy $250 worth of burger patties and buns. Later, you're hungry, and you buy a burger from the guy.
Is this making sense? Is this outraging you?
Of course not, it's slashdot, and we're all jaded. This thread will be forgotten inside of twenty-four hours, anyways.
That's a pretty huge maybe there, but could be. From what I read, they didn't want to finish the network stack internal to the DS, as I said in my first post; they leave it up to the cartridge maker to build in TCP/IP or whatever protocol they feel like, which is an interesting choice. Pictochat does its own thing. Other software can call for pictochat links, but they don't (probably can't) use pictochat's protocol to send game data. Therefore, no inherent multiplayer support to the DS; again, the cartmaker has to do it all, probably to save nintendo the time and money, and keep costs down just a little more.
I thought the micro did support old GB/C games, huh! Glad I didn't buy one of those. Then again, the screens are SO tiny on those, I don't think I could even see them properly anyways. But... No.. Link cable.... ARGH! Why oh why do they do this?! I guess the GBM is only for playing the latest single-player spongebob/tv tie-in/barbie horse adventure advance game... Can't even swap unicorns or whatever with friends. Bah.
Aw, hell. Ok, you got me. I checked the box, and you're right. Yarr. So I take a hit as a bit of the fool. Even so, why do such a thing? I mean, I can see the logic behind it: "We want to add an expansion port capability. Hey, here's an idea, make it GBA game size and throw in compatibility as a bonus." But the leap to "well, let's not really make it completely work, just mostly. That way, if they really want to play GBA games, too, they'll have to shell out another $80." Kinda slimy, isn't it? Why claim it's "not replacing the GBA", instead of "optionally replace the GBA"? It doesn't even make much sense as a political move to keep recent GBA buyers happy. Just pet them and assure them that their units will still play GBA games and GBA games will still come out so that both GBA and DS owners can use them, they'll be fine. A simple press release could have fixed this problem, and that way I don't have to lug around 2 units to play different games with my friends. Bomberman Advance 2, anyone? Oh, man. It's not nearly as fun to play single-player.
I say to you the same thing I asked the other guy: If they didn't put in a link port, why not include wireless support? If they didn't want to build it in, how about putting out a DS cart that handles the connection details, and accesses the GBA port to play the game? A DS cart "wireless link port simulator" sort of thing. Maybe that's yet to come and some enterprising third party will release it, but I think that's pretty unlikely, unfortunately. So far, the expansion port has been used for just a handful of things - extra tracks in band brothers, feel the magic gives you some bonus items for having sonic team games, and a rumble pack as you said. Doesn't look like anything terribly exciting is coming of it so far, though the words about TV tuners and such do sound promising. But even if there is a TV tuner and a rumble pack, do you think those will justify inclusion of the GBA port at all? How many people are going to buy an $80 tuner, if one is even released in the US?
One could use the 3rd party movie/media player thing that was released for GBA on it, I suppose, but wouldn't it be about ten times cooler if it took advantage of the DS' full processor and touch screen capability?
On a side note, moderators are jerks. I can't believe someone modded me flamebait just for getting a little vocal about some shortcomings I perceive with nintendo. Remember, gang: I say these things not out of hate, but fanboy love. Woo.