Slashdot Mirror


User: stagg

stagg's activity in the archive.

Stories
0
Comments
156
First seen
Last seen
Profile
(view on slashdot.org)

Comments · 156

  1. Summary is wrong. on Activists Destroy Scientific GMO Experiment · · Score: 1

    I was wondering why they'd have "sprayed insecticides over them." According to the article, "the trial was also allegedly sprayed with herbicide." There's a real distinction there. The article itself is about as long as the summary anyway.

  2. Re:Oh Jonesy on Last.Fm Founder Criticizes Apple Over Music Subscription Fees · · Score: 1

    That only works if your profit margins can spare 30%.

  3. President of Microsoft Russia on Is Linux At the End of Its Life Cycle? · · Score: 5, Funny

    Well, the president of Microsoft Russia should be a reliable, trustworthy source for this kind of analysis, right? Right?

  4. Re:Not implanted on Professor Has Camera Surgically Implanted In the Back of His Head · · Score: 1

    There wouldn't be much gained by actually implanting it in your skull either.

  5. Re:so the oss hater fud-monkey works for oracle on 33 Developers Leave OpenOffice.org · · Score: 4, Informative

    What's more, it might actually be MORE consolidated. "We want The Document Foundation to be open to code contributions from as many people as possible. We are delighted to announce that the enhancements produced by RedHat and the Go-OOo team will be merged into LibreOffice, effective immediately. We hope that others will follow suit. "

  6. Re:LibreOffice is painful to pronounce. on 33 Developers Leave OpenOffice.org · · Score: 1

    The webpage explains that "The OpenOffice.org trademark is owned by Oracle Corporation. Our hope is that Oracle will donate this to the Foundation, along with the other assets it holds in trust for the Community, in due course, once legal etc issues are resolved. However, we need to continue work in the meantime - hence "LibreOffice" ("free office")."

  7. Re:LibreOffice will join the ranks of Linux... on 33 Developers Leave OpenOffice.org · · Score: 1

    That's part of being "open," and many consider that diversity to be a huge advantage. Don't even get me started on: "I just want to use something that WORKs and that is NOT from MS."

  8. Re:Note to linux devs on RDS Protocol Bug Creates a Linux Kernel Hole, Now Fixed · · Score: 2, Insightful

    The same article announcing the existence of the exploit announced the existence of the fix. That's pretty good support if you ask me, and it's hard to be too worried under those circumstances.

  9. Scabbing on Google Fixes 10 Bugs In Chrome, Pays $4000 Bounty · · Score: 0, Troll

    Bug bounties are really not far off from Scab work at all. Companies use bounties and contests to replace what could otherwise be lucrative positions for permanent employees. And as long as there are people out there willing to do the work for free, the company has no incentive to create those positions. They just paid 400$ a bug to get god knows how many people to run QA for them, and paid out the ten people that got in fresh, reproducible bugs the fastest. This is great for the companies running the contests, but it sure isn't good for workers or the industry.

  10. Apple's had lots of misses... on Flawed iTunes Stands Out Among Apple's Products · · Score: 1

    Apple and Google both seem to do a really good job at drawing the media attention to their hits and not their misses. There's always a back catalog of unsuccessful software, this is just a fairly high profile case.

  11. More recent publications... on DNA-Less 'Red Rain' Cells Reproduce At 121 C · · Score: 4, Informative

    It looks like more recent publications have resolved this: "The alga was identified as a specie belonging to the genus Trentepohlia. The region in Changanacherry from where the red rain was reported was found to be densely vegetated with plenty of lichen on trees, rocks and lampposts. Samples of lichen collected from there also were cultured in the microbiology laboratory of TBGRI. The study showed that the lichen collected from the site gave rise to algae similar to the ones cultured from the spores obtained from the rain water samples. The spores in the rainwater, therefore, most probably are of local origin." http://web.archive.org/web/20060613135746/http://www.geocities.com/iamgoddard/Sampath2001.pdf

  12. Re:Who do you trust more? on UN Telecom Chief Urges Blackberry Data Sharing · · Score: 1

    For the record, I'm inclined to agree. The ideal situation is for the government to enforce some level of encryption and security on carriers and hardware/software developers. Your average end user doesn't know or care about security and encryption, but many of them should. Better that we have the keys to the data in our own pockets. There's a lot the government can do as far as ensuring that records aren't kept, checking how they're stored, and so on. Audits can and do happen, at least in some places.

  13. Who do you trust more? on UN Telecom Chief Urges Blackberry Data Sharing · · Score: 1

    Someone is going to be deciding what to do with your data here, either the individual companies or the government. Personally, I'd rather that the government made the call (whether it be to keep data private, use it, etc) than maintain the current situation, where we have to beg companies to maintain our privacy, and then trust them to continue to do so. Those of us who live in democratic countries elect our government, and the theory is that they're accountable. We do not elect corporations and private companies. As with Google's "Do not be evil," promises that our privacy will be maintained are often made graciously, and perhaps with the best intentions, If your government isn't accountable, you can replace them. If RIM, Google, or anyone else decides to abuse your data... what then?

  14. Re:No Oil on Another Gulf Oil Rig Explodes · · Score: 1

    I don't think that's necessarily going to soothe people. They've seen the repercussions at their worst, or very near it, and now they're seeing what looks like evidence of a high failure rate. Outrage can be expected, and to some extent it's understandable. It's anecdotal evidence, and screams of observation bias, but the existence of those biases does not mean that people are wrong. Scrutinizing the source of all that outrage can't possibly hurt. A properly functioning government would ensure that's done.

  15. Obligatory space elevator post... on 9 Ideas For Coping With Space Junk · · Score: 0, Redundant

    If only we could finish the space elevator, we could use it to bring the garbage back down to Earth! Or bring janitors to the stars! It's only ten years away!

  16. The Great Lower-Orbit Garbage Patch on 9 Ideas For Coping With Space Junk · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Sounds like the same kind of problem we're wrestling with down here.

  17. Don't they already have a tool for this? on GMail Introduces Priority Inbox · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I thought that's what filters were for. Gmail is getting a bit cluttered with features. The elegance of it was always one of the big wins for me. I'd rather have one simple, configurable feature that allows met do many things than a hundred buttons on my screen. Filters and tags already pretty much covered this.

  18. Re:Perhaps you've never heard of saturation on Xbox Live Pricing To Go Up To $60 Per Year · · Score: 5, Funny

    There are only so many people that want game consoles. The idea that their sales will go up and up forever is silly.

    Although they did try to address this with a 50%+ failure rate in the first year...

  19. Re:But the real question is: on How Star Wars Trumped Star Trek For Scientific Accuracy · · Score: 1

    These responses have taken the question with unprecedented seriousness. I forgot where I was.

  20. But the real question is: on How Star Wars Trumped Star Trek For Scientific Accuracy · · Score: 2, Funny

    Which would win in a fight, the Millennium Falcon or the Enterprise?

  21. /. discussions about stupid things... on Calling Shenanigans On Super SATA's Claimed Audio Qualities · · Score: 3, Insightful

    There seem to be a lot of /. discussions about obviously stupid things. The comment thread fills up with people competing for the Score 5 (funny) comments. What's the point here, other than ego stroking and karma boosting? Inflated senses of superiority? Now before anyone answers, I've got some Super SATA stock to liquidate.

  22. Nit-picking about "bugs." (get it? Har har har.) on 40 Windows Apps Said To Contain Critical Bug · · Score: 1

    /. is as bad for this as anywhere else on the net as far as I can tell. All bugs are flaws, but flaws are not necessarily bugs. This sounds like a flaw, even a vulnerability, but not a bug. Sorry, as you were.

  23. Remember when you used aliases to post online? on Google's CEO Warns Kids Will Have to Change Names to Escape "Cyber Past" · · Score: 4, Insightful

    This kind of schlock comes from the same corporate minds that have been pushing for real names and credit card information to be associated with all online interactions. I'd like to go back to taking anonymous aliases for granted again please.

  24. Re:How much more 'silent' was than other bugs? on Linux X.org Critical Security Flaw Silently Patched · · Score: 0, Troll

    Isn't that what "New Media" means; sensational?

    We require more Google hits!

  25. Re:What I suggest to people on Linux X.org Critical Security Flaw Silently Patched · · Score: 5, Funny

    You do realize that Mac is built on a FreeBSD kernel?

    Macs can't be exploited. That's why people paid to get into the walled garden, it's safe in there. LA LA LA LA LA LA I CAN'T HEAR YOU.