It is believed there is oil under and around the small islands where the boat collision occurred and it is suspected that if China had valid claim to those islands they would drill near them - but it's accepted by basically all nations other than China and Taiwan (who both periodically make claims to them) that the islands are Japanese territory.
I was just going to point that out but you did it for me. But upset or not the US bases in Japan are necessary - particularly in times like this, and if the residents near the base in Okinawa are so upset about noise they can fucking move somewhere else. Hatoyama is (was) an idiot and Kan isn't much better - despite the cost a favorable position with the US military is worth it and it's still less than it would take to develop and maintain a national military. Not to mention having a national military would just make Japan a target.
That is very much not true here in Japan. I had no idea they were doing that overseas but if that's what it takes to compete then that's quite unfortunate.
Mainly game systems and media devices but a few mechatronic devices as well. To be honest I've never actually tried to set the speed so I basically just didn't know you could. The only time I've laid out a board with an ARM core I used a Renesas package and a clock crystal and that board had no need to save power so I didn't even think about it.
Sony and Panasonic are Japanese brands and I don't think either actively develops products just to be cheap. I often pick Panasonic specifically for reliability (my cell phone is a 930P for example) and I can't recall a single Panasonic product failing on me... but then again I have quite a few things I just don't use anymore as there are newer better versions I own. Built to last or not the reality is when newer better things come out and I have cash to burn these non-broken things end up in a closet.
Check the data-sheets? I've been writing code on ARM for 6 years now and I can't recall any devices having a dynamic or software-set clock rate... I'm just blindly assuming there is a reason for that. I also think technologies like Intel SpeedStep shut down paths as well as dropping clock rates, and I also have no idea just how much SpeedStep actually saves. If anyone has any numbers I'd love to see them, but I'm too lazy to try and remember login credentials to download datasheets and figure out W@[Hz] .
You've never even tried or seen the device and if you watched some review videos you'd see what I'm saying is quite true. The 7 seconds was after logging in and letting it sit to finish loading up all the Gnome widgets, I did not close and re-launch it so nothing was cached. Depending on usage it is most definitely better than the iPad in that it fits in a pocket and runs basically any software that is available on Ubuntu that isn't super dependent on straight OpenGL. The resolution is that of a normal NetBook and it's running an ARM-EL built of NetBook Remix so I don't see what your deal with that is. The iPad resolution is still 1024x768 so that's only an additional 168 pixels on one axis, that's not that much of a big deal. The fact is it does everything I want it to and it does it very well, it is a more viable option than the iPad for people who want a real portable they can fit in there pocket and run real-world applications. If all you want to do is use the device as a toy then go for the iPad, the Z1 and T1 are not much as far as games go - but the screen is nice and easy to read, it will play music and video, there are no restrictions and there are even guides as to how to install different ARM based OSes on it if you don't like Ubuntu so much. I'm sure you like your iPad for what you use it for but for me the Z1 and T1 are excellent and fit my needs and expectations to a T.
Oh and while we are at it my Panasonic 930p cell phone can play full wide VGA video and it can record one-seg video in the background (while I use the phone normally otherwise). The Sharp 9xx series on SoftBank even had a dual one-seg tuner and recorder. Both the 930P and the Sharp 9xx series are ARM cores (I'm guessing both Renesas boards and running T-engine or straight up TRON).
The review links another as well: http://www.pocketables.net/2010/06/review-sharp-netwalker-pct1.html I'd say that is fairly accurate, and points something out that I had not yet realized: that people would try to write in roman(english) letters on the device. The handwritten input is mainly tuned for Japanese script and kanji, and while it is not perfect it works pretty well. When I am writing roman letters I use the on-screen keyboard but on days when I am writing code on the train I bring the Z1 and not the T1. The T1 is really great for documents and "office work" and it's a pleasure to be able to write with my hand. It's also true the interface is not finger friendly, but I'm not a fan of big clumsy interfaces and fingerprint smudged screens so for me that's a moot point.
Wow, did you actually watch the video linked there: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9D53GVyVxWw&feature=player_embedded#! Note how he shows it playing, and confirms it is playing 720p video. Look at how long it takes to launch applications, FireFox is maybe approaching 10 seconds there. Again, it took me 7 seconds to launch OOo writer, maybe it takes longer for the spread sheet but certainly not half a minute. The written review is just short and negative, that guy was having a bad day or has a grudge against Sharp or Ubuntu or something. Watch the linked video and see for yourself.
I encoded on my desktop then copied to the Z1, sorry if my wording was awkward English is not my first language. It IS inexpensive compared to the iPad, and generally around $300USD is not that much for a device such as this so for what it is I don't personally feel it is expensive at all. Also it's not the ARM core that is decoding the video, you are obviously uneducated about embedded architectures. Here is a video of 720p on the BeagleBoard under Android, the BeagleBoard being a less powerful device than the Z1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdnDpH3543Q . They both have peripheral media sub-cores which handle video and both TI and FreeScale provide kernel modules and source to utilize them. My wife has an Atom subnote that not only plays 720p it can record 720p digital broadcasts, and it runs Vista - the 720p encoding and decoding on it is no doubt assisted by special hardware in the video card but it's playing 720p with no problem none the less. Now please just accept reality and stop trying to twist my words.
I agree with some patents, and I agree with the patents concerning GSM, AAC, and h.264. And the reason I agree with them is that nobody is forcing me to use them and I have alternatives. The W3C is putting out a single unified standard to which all browser makers should adhere, and if adhering to that standard involves paying licensing fees to one very concerned party there is a very big problem. That's part of why the h.264 vs Theora argument ended up in neither being chosen.
I was using "proposal" and "working draft" loosely, sorry! And if you have actually followed any of the W3C work you'll note some things have been "working drafts" for close to 10 years now. Last time I looked at the code was when Apple took flack for making "HTML5" demos that only ran in Safari on OSX and on the iPhone/iPad (about the time the iPad was released). At that point in time the namespace had "Apple" in it. Seeing as to how it can be run in Chrome now I guess they changed it, but to tell you the truth I could care less at this point.
I have yet to run into an application that didn't fit comfortably in the screen and I've run quite a few. Everything runs quite well, and timing it just now it took me about 7 seconds to launch Open Office Writer. 720P in mp4 (h.264 or XVID) plays quite well - in fact I encoded a bunch of movies and my kids watched them in the car on a recent trip with no problems to speak of. And yes the graphics chip is supported, the modules are actively developed by Freescale and full source is available on the Freescale web site (I used it a while back to play with OpenGL ES 2.0 stuff). The T1 actually has a compositing built in GLES and it works very well (transparent terminals make working on small screens very nice!). In general everything is pretty snappy, it doesn't take much time to load applications and everything is pretty responsive. I'm guessing you are such a mac zealot you can't possibly accept something could be as good or dare I say better than your beloved iPad and you are trying to rationalize that by making vague assumptions. The Z1 and T1 are very nice devices, they can do a lot right out of the box and you don't even need to jailbreak them just to open a terminal. They are inexpensive, fit in a pocket, and you can read the screens in sunlight without a special film. I've used an iPad before and while it is flashy the actual practicality and unrestricted freedom of the Z1/T1 just totally outweigh that for me. How about you actually check one out before you make assumptions.
Your comment makes no sense to me, there is significantly more software available on the T1 or Z1 - basically every piece of software in the Ubuntu repository has been rebuilt in ARM. According apt there are over 25 thousand packages available in the main repository alone. Top that with the fact I can actually do things like open a terminal, run the editor of my choice, write code on the device and compile it with GCC/G++/run it in Ruby or view it on some of the latest versions of Firefox and Chromium just like a normal desktop. There is a built in book store application as well to purchase and view e-books - but I've never actually used it as I use the device to write code, do work (open office, thunderbird), and surf the web.
Significantly more satisfied with Flash on Android than on the iPhone - you know because it's actually there. We've had Flash mobile on cell phones here in Japan for years now, and it works great. Your making the assumption Flash will run like sludge on mobile devices but the reality is Adobe has been doing mobile devices long before Apple made a phone and the Flash offerings on mobiles now works very well.
Look at the source dipshit, the CSS3 extensions are in the Apple name space and they aren't anything more than proposals, they aren't near standards. They are the equivalent of ActiveX components in JavaScript.
You are confusing Open Standards and Open Source. Futhermore you are seriously uneducated about what Apple is pushing in the W3C and how self-serving their proposals are. They also blocked similar proposals in the past so they could get their versions in - like their version of their own patent riddled multi-touch. Just imagine if that went through, people would have to pay Apple in order to fulfill and Open Standard.
Somebody needs to put your comment in the article summary because it is ridiculously accurate. It's also a shame you posted as AC, and it's also a shame you can't be modded above 5. Thank you, please comment more.
Have you ever actually written complex web based applications in JavaScript/HTML5 and ActionScript3? Well I have, and I'll tell you right now ActionScript3 as a language is obscenely superior to JavaScript. Furthermore, you don't need to worry about checking your application on every browser, and you don't need to worry about older browsers when you write in AS3. Oh, and you may want to note the AS3 standard is published and the compiler is free - I write code on a 64bit Ubuntu box using make files. And here's the deal breaker - Flash lets you access web cameras, audio input, game controllers, and more. Furthermore you can manipulate raw (binary) data in Flash whereas doing the same in JavaScript would be obscenely difficult (the only real exception being images, which you access as bitmaps). Dynamically including in JavaScript is near impossible unless you import as objects through AJAX - which is iffy and in then end means you need to make extensive use of evaluation functions and worry about cross domain blocking. Oh, and try using drag features in JavaScript - go on just try it, I dare you. Next go ahead and look at those nifty Apple HTML5/JavaScript demos that make use of CSS3 features----oh wait those aren't standard and won't work on anything but Apple products!?
Seriously, there are some annoying things about Flash and the fact that Adobe controls it completely can be considered a downside - but the reality is it is that control that allows Adobe to progress Flash and ActionScript3 as they see fit without any arguments from anybody else and that has allowed them to progress way past areas that haven't even come up for discussion in HTML5/JS (Camera input, binary handling, plug and play encryption back ends that don't need SSL, various forms of media protection, dynamic stream adjustment, real non-blocking asynchronous asset loading). Furthermore, if people would take the time to look at it they would realize ActionScript3 is a surprisingly capable language, and is significantly more powerful and feature filled than JavaScript with basically none of the bizarre anomalies JavaScript has ("this" context changing randomly, definition of classes, defintion of class methods ("function name(args)" and "name = new function(args)" behave totally differently)). And if you are a business with designers and programmers, programmers can code in AS3 and just hand the source files off to designers who can use CS5 to plug all that code into their framework effortlessly. Before you call me a zealot or whatever take note of this: until I actually had to code an application in AS3 I hated Flash probably much more than you. Actually writing in application in AS3 that could not have been written in JS, and actually realizing how good AS3 is made me realize I was ignoring reality over my love of Open Standard and Open Source... which are also two things Apple abuses to no end and seems to only participate in to leech of others work and throw their weight around in comities for no good but their own (Khronos, W3C - particularly see "multi-touch" extensions and CSS3 proposals from Apple).
There are other Debian based distributions out there, but even as I make that point I know it does not make yours any less relevant. If Canonical is making money off of Ubuntu and Ubuntu is being based off of Debian I don't see how they can possibly push a position of "we support free software and the community" without actually financially supporting Debian or at least contributing development time to the Debian project - which they could then simply integrate directly into Ubuntu so it's just a matter of who's directions and schedules the developers are following.
I second this, that's the first thing I thought of. I'll bet you systems like ITRON would seem scarily familiar to what you used to do, and are coded mainly in ASM and C. Embedded is something a lot of high level programmers just don't understand because they never really learned how hardware works in the first place. Programming on older systems like you did required that kind of knowledge, so I think not only will embedded not require you to learn so much new information but will also seem familiar and probably comfortable. Embedded programming is also a field that's not over crowded, you should be quite in demand and finding a job should not be too hard. To get started and used to it you need only buy a dev board and programmer (I recommend Renesas but I'm in Japan where they are big, look for what is big in your country).
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It is believed there is oil under and around the small islands where the boat collision occurred and it is suspected that if China had valid claim to those islands they would drill near them - but it's accepted by basically all nations other than China and Taiwan (who both periodically make claims to them) that the islands are Japanese territory.
I was just going to point that out but you did it for me. But upset or not the US bases in Japan are necessary - particularly in times like this, and if the residents near the base in Okinawa are so upset about noise they can fucking move somewhere else. Hatoyama is (was) an idiot and Kan isn't much better - despite the cost a favorable position with the US military is worth it and it's still less than it would take to develop and maintain a national military. Not to mention having a national military would just make Japan a target.
That is very much not true here in Japan. I had no idea they were doing that overseas but if that's what it takes to compete then that's quite unfortunate.
Mainly game systems and media devices but a few mechatronic devices as well. To be honest I've never actually tried to set the speed so I basically just didn't know you could. The only time I've laid out a board with an ARM core I used a Renesas package and a clock crystal and that board had no need to save power so I didn't even think about it.
Sony and Panasonic are Japanese brands and I don't think either actively develops products just to be cheap. I often pick Panasonic specifically for reliability (my cell phone is a 930P for example) and I can't recall a single Panasonic product failing on me... but then again I have quite a few things I just don't use anymore as there are newer better versions I own. Built to last or not the reality is when newer better things come out and I have cash to burn these non-broken things end up in a closet.
Check the data-sheets? I've been writing code on ARM for 6 years now and I can't recall any devices having a dynamic or software-set clock rate... I'm just blindly assuming there is a reason for that. I also think technologies like Intel SpeedStep shut down paths as well as dropping clock rates, and I also have no idea just how much SpeedStep actually saves. If anyone has any numbers I'd love to see them, but I'm too lazy to try and remember login credentials to download datasheets and figure out W@[Hz] .
Actually I think the word you want is "transcode", not "re-encode". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transcoding
You've never even tried or seen the device and if you watched some review videos you'd see what I'm saying is quite true. The 7 seconds was after logging in and letting it sit to finish loading up all the Gnome widgets, I did not close and re-launch it so nothing was cached. Depending on usage it is most definitely better than the iPad in that it fits in a pocket and runs basically any software that is available on Ubuntu that isn't super dependent on straight OpenGL. The resolution is that of a normal NetBook and it's running an ARM-EL built of NetBook Remix so I don't see what your deal with that is. The iPad resolution is still 1024x768 so that's only an additional 168 pixels on one axis, that's not that much of a big deal. The fact is it does everything I want it to and it does it very well, it is a more viable option than the iPad for people who want a real portable they can fit in there pocket and run real-world applications. If all you want to do is use the device as a toy then go for the iPad, the Z1 and T1 are not much as far as games go - but the screen is nice and easy to read, it will play music and video, there are no restrictions and there are even guides as to how to install different ARM based OSes on it if you don't like Ubuntu so much. I'm sure you like your iPad for what you use it for but for me the Z1 and T1 are excellent and fit my needs and expectations to a T.
Oh and while we are at it my Panasonic 930p cell phone can play full wide VGA video and it can record one-seg video in the background (while I use the phone normally otherwise). The Sharp 9xx series on SoftBank even had a dual one-seg tuner and recorder. Both the 930P and the Sharp 9xx series are ARM cores (I'm guessing both Renesas boards and running T-engine or straight up TRON).
The review links another as well: http://www.pocketables.net/2010/06/review-sharp-netwalker-pct1.html I'd say that is fairly accurate, and points something out that I had not yet realized: that people would try to write in roman(english) letters on the device. The handwritten input is mainly tuned for Japanese script and kanji, and while it is not perfect it works pretty well. When I am writing roman letters I use the on-screen keyboard but on days when I am writing code on the train I bring the Z1 and not the T1. The T1 is really great for documents and "office work" and it's a pleasure to be able to write with my hand. It's also true the interface is not finger friendly, but I'm not a fan of big clumsy interfaces and fingerprint smudged screens so for me that's a moot point.
Wow, did you actually watch the video linked there: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9D53GVyVxWw&feature=player_embedded#! Note how he shows it playing, and confirms it is playing 720p video. Look at how long it takes to launch applications, FireFox is maybe approaching 10 seconds there. Again, it took me 7 seconds to launch OOo writer, maybe it takes longer for the spread sheet but certainly not half a minute. The written review is just short and negative, that guy was having a bad day or has a grudge against Sharp or Ubuntu or something. Watch the linked video and see for yourself.
I encoded on my desktop then copied to the Z1, sorry if my wording was awkward English is not my first language. It IS inexpensive compared to the iPad, and generally around $300USD is not that much for a device such as this so for what it is I don't personally feel it is expensive at all. Also it's not the ARM core that is decoding the video, you are obviously uneducated about embedded architectures. Here is a video of 720p on the BeagleBoard under Android, the BeagleBoard being a less powerful device than the Z1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdnDpH3543Q . They both have peripheral media sub-cores which handle video and both TI and FreeScale provide kernel modules and source to utilize them. My wife has an Atom subnote that not only plays 720p it can record 720p digital broadcasts, and it runs Vista - the 720p encoding and decoding on it is no doubt assisted by special hardware in the video card but it's playing 720p with no problem none the less. Now please just accept reality and stop trying to twist my words.
I agree with some patents, and I agree with the patents concerning GSM, AAC, and h.264. And the reason I agree with them is that nobody is forcing me to use them and I have alternatives. The W3C is putting out a single unified standard to which all browser makers should adhere, and if adhering to that standard involves paying licensing fees to one very concerned party there is a very big problem. That's part of why the h.264 vs Theora argument ended up in neither being chosen.
I was using "proposal" and "working draft" loosely, sorry! And if you have actually followed any of the W3C work you'll note some things have been "working drafts" for close to 10 years now. Last time I looked at the code was when Apple took flack for making "HTML5" demos that only ran in Safari on OSX and on the iPhone/iPad (about the time the iPad was released). At that point in time the namespace had "Apple" in it. Seeing as to how it can be run in Chrome now I guess they changed it, but to tell you the truth I could care less at this point.
I have yet to run into an application that didn't fit comfortably in the screen and I've run quite a few. Everything runs quite well, and timing it just now it took me about 7 seconds to launch Open Office Writer. 720P in mp4 (h.264 or XVID) plays quite well - in fact I encoded a bunch of movies and my kids watched them in the car on a recent trip with no problems to speak of. And yes the graphics chip is supported, the modules are actively developed by Freescale and full source is available on the Freescale web site (I used it a while back to play with OpenGL ES 2.0 stuff). The T1 actually has a compositing built in GLES and it works very well (transparent terminals make working on small screens very nice!). In general everything is pretty snappy, it doesn't take much time to load applications and everything is pretty responsive. I'm guessing you are such a mac zealot you can't possibly accept something could be as good or dare I say better than your beloved iPad and you are trying to rationalize that by making vague assumptions. The Z1 and T1 are very nice devices, they can do a lot right out of the box and you don't even need to jailbreak them just to open a terminal. They are inexpensive, fit in a pocket, and you can read the screens in sunlight without a special film. I've used an iPad before and while it is flashy the actual practicality and unrestricted freedom of the Z1/T1 just totally outweigh that for me. How about you actually check one out before you make assumptions.
Your comment makes no sense to me, there is significantly more software available on the T1 or Z1 - basically every piece of software in the Ubuntu repository has been rebuilt in ARM. According apt there are over 25 thousand packages available in the main repository alone. Top that with the fact I can actually do things like open a terminal, run the editor of my choice, write code on the device and compile it with GCC/G++/run it in Ruby or view it on some of the latest versions of Firefox and Chromium just like a normal desktop. There is a built in book store application as well to purchase and view e-books - but I've never actually used it as I use the device to write code, do work (open office, thunderbird), and surf the web.
You could have paid half the price for a NetWalker Z1 or T1, which runs Ubuntu and has a much clearer and easier to read screen.
Read the W3C proposals by Apple. Any of them.
Significantly more satisfied with Flash on Android than on the iPhone - you know because it's actually there. We've had Flash mobile on cell phones here in Japan for years now, and it works great. Your making the assumption Flash will run like sludge on mobile devices but the reality is Adobe has been doing mobile devices long before Apple made a phone and the Flash offerings on mobiles now works very well.
Look at the source dipshit, the CSS3 extensions are in the Apple name space and they aren't anything more than proposals, they aren't near standards. They are the equivalent of ActiveX components in JavaScript.
You are confusing Open Standards and Open Source. Futhermore you are seriously uneducated about what Apple is pushing in the W3C and how self-serving their proposals are. They also blocked similar proposals in the past so they could get their versions in - like their version of their own patent riddled multi-touch. Just imagine if that went through, people would have to pay Apple in order to fulfill and Open Standard.
Somebody needs to put your comment in the article summary because it is ridiculously accurate. It's also a shame you posted as AC, and it's also a shame you can't be modded above 5. Thank you, please comment more.
Have you ever actually written complex web based applications in JavaScript/HTML5 and ActionScript3? Well I have, and I'll tell you right now ActionScript3 as a language is obscenely superior to JavaScript. Furthermore, you don't need to worry about checking your application on every browser, and you don't need to worry about older browsers when you write in AS3. Oh, and you may want to note the AS3 standard is published and the compiler is free - I write code on a 64bit Ubuntu box using make files. And here's the deal breaker - Flash lets you access web cameras, audio input, game controllers, and more. Furthermore you can manipulate raw (binary) data in Flash whereas doing the same in JavaScript would be obscenely difficult (the only real exception being images, which you access as bitmaps). Dynamically including in JavaScript is near impossible unless you import as objects through AJAX - which is iffy and in then end means you need to make extensive use of evaluation functions and worry about cross domain blocking. Oh, and try using drag features in JavaScript - go on just try it, I dare you. Next go ahead and look at those nifty Apple HTML5/JavaScript demos that make use of CSS3 features----oh wait those aren't standard and won't work on anything but Apple products!?
Seriously, there are some annoying things about Flash and the fact that Adobe controls it completely can be considered a downside - but the reality is it is that control that allows Adobe to progress Flash and ActionScript3 as they see fit without any arguments from anybody else and that has allowed them to progress way past areas that haven't even come up for discussion in HTML5/JS (Camera input, binary handling, plug and play encryption back ends that don't need SSL, various forms of media protection, dynamic stream adjustment, real non-blocking asynchronous asset loading). Furthermore, if people would take the time to look at it they would realize ActionScript3 is a surprisingly capable language, and is significantly more powerful and feature filled than JavaScript with basically none of the bizarre anomalies JavaScript has ("this" context changing randomly, definition of classes, defintion of class methods ("function name(args)" and "name = new function(args)" behave totally differently)). And if you are a business with designers and programmers, programmers can code in AS3 and just hand the source files off to designers who can use CS5 to plug all that code into their framework effortlessly. Before you call me a zealot or whatever take note of this: until I actually had to code an application in AS3 I hated Flash probably much more than you. Actually writing in application in AS3 that could not have been written in JS, and actually realizing how good AS3 is made me realize I was ignoring reality over my love of Open Standard and Open Source... which are also two things Apple abuses to no end and seems to only participate in to leech of others work and throw their weight around in comities for no good but their own (Khronos, W3C - particularly see "multi-touch" extensions and CSS3 proposals from Apple).
There are other Debian based distributions out there, but even as I make that point I know it does not make yours any less relevant. If Canonical is making money off of Ubuntu and Ubuntu is being based off of Debian I don't see how they can possibly push a position of "we support free software and the community" without actually financially supporting Debian or at least contributing development time to the Debian project - which they could then simply integrate directly into Ubuntu so it's just a matter of who's directions and schedules the developers are following.
I second this, that's the first thing I thought of. I'll bet you systems like ITRON would seem scarily familiar to what you used to do, and are coded mainly in ASM and C. Embedded is something a lot of high level programmers just don't understand because they never really learned how hardware works in the first place. Programming on older systems like you did required that kind of knowledge, so I think not only will embedded not require you to learn so much new information but will also seem familiar and probably comfortable. Embedded programming is also a field that's not over crowded, you should be quite in demand and finding a job should not be too hard. To get started and used to it you need only buy a dev board and programmer (I recommend Renesas but I'm in Japan where they are big, look for what is big in your country).