I agree with a lot of the comments here about the need for recuping the initial cost of investment etc etc. However, isn't the eventual sale contingent upon some form of hard currency which is more or less of a permanent? (yes yes barring inflation vs. cost averaging, profit margins etc.)
OK so if companies want us to pay on a subscription model (so as to generate a revenue stream) but please don't pass it off under DRM. Call it for what it is - a subscription model.
On the other hand, if DRM is going to stop me from getting what I already paid for (or require me to pay up again & again..) then that is something else.
Lastly (and I admit I've missed a lot of other issues), I'm also increasingly unhappy with all the intrusions of privacy that come at the behest of DRM. When did such small commmerical transactions begin to require such inspection of the buyer?
Well, after reading a couple of very good points, I couldn't resist but add this comment. But first, let me state that I have never worked for HP but have had interractions with them while working for several different employers over the last 5-10 years.
What I've noticed is that HP used to be a place of engineering driven projects. At that start it went something like this: Here's a problem, here's a business case, now let the engineers go and do their jobs. If there was a problem, you could reach a person who had infact worked on the impacted area, could offer solid advice or even provide a fix. Today (and I'm sad to say) it is something like this: here's a problem, deny it outright. Shove HP 'Support' at the customer. These guys suffer from 'little knowledge'. Their recommendations are bad to incompetent and they will stall for weeks knowing full well there is a defect/fault at hand. The problem remains where it is. Issues are escalated to management where finally at the 11th hour some fix is provided (at great risk to both HP & the client company). Often time, this results in additional churn.
As others have mentioned, CEOs play games. But then if we step back, who isn't? The Board of Directors are often hand picked by CEOs and have no independent power. The stock holders consist of big firms (who have their agendas on profiteering) vs. an extremely diluted pool of investors who bear the brunt of the stock price and are in a rush to make an easy buck. So to answer my own question, the only person who 'cares' in this whole vicious circle are those whose livelihoods depend on the company. Yet, these are the people who have no say in the system.
Summary: the system is broken, everyone who has any power exerts it in the way they can. The people whose lives are impacted have no say. What Mr. H & Mr. P started out way back then was to provide an environment for the workers yet that spirit was lost after these vultures/hyenas descended upon HP. To be honest with you, this is not only an HP problem, it is everywhere. The saddest realisation is that how many lives are hurt by people like Carly yet there is no accountability.
I agree completely - however, I do wish to point out that ASN.1 and BER are a pain to code & maintain. XML is definitely an improvement, but I would argue its flexibility is what is going to fracture it. This is not putting down XML or its use, but on the so-called 'partners' who are involved in this 'deal' have an established pattern of adding their own 'extensions' which defeat interoperability and serve to enforce market share and not true integration.
If I were doing this, I would take the strenghts of SNMP (e.g., nice simple interface of get/set/walk etc). and make a HTTP style language for it. Extend the language for specific needs but don't make them optional. Keep the data and its overheads small and clean. And lest I forget, add a proper layer of security that may not have been important when SNMP came along but today is indispensible.
I can't agree more- if this law is nothing more than Spam Law mentioned by others or even something meaningless like 'declare spyware in some obscure EULA' click option (worse make it opt-in) then what good is it other than politiking?
Yeah, given the election climate this is all distraction... sad part is that it hurts the People's interest now instead of leaving it alone till the fair/appropriate Law can be passed & implemented.
Well the sum of my fears is that:
1. There is no mass scale public outrage - the media is so 0wn3d that no one dare say a word. The masses are force fed a 'branded' image of how good things are and how 'lucky' the attendees are and how they too should make it to the next Olympics.
2. We've seen this (atleast in the US), where when attending Disney World, Six Flags etc. people are searched for bringing in 'non-approved' articles (e.g. food, water). But what makes this so offensive to me is that it is taking place on an international scale. The corporations have been so emboldened that they are 'enforcing' 'rules' which would otherwise be counted as fleecing the public. Countries have boycotted the Olympics for other things - I wonder if any of the athletes will be brave enough to say that this is all a sham and that they will not attend. Of course this too will have to be a concerted effort.
Everyday brings a fresh assault on the uninformed people everywhere and sad to say things are not improving.
Right on - I work for a multinational as well and my even after my group was 'downsized' by about 70% to India while the work load went up by 100%, they are now getting us 'help' from India. Three Indian programmers; who will then be rotated into 'other' groups but they won't hire one local person. The joy of work is gone - most people now work to keep their jobs rather than work to do anything meaningful.
Economy improving? Ask those who are in the unemployment line.
Well I've seen some folks here state that this is a change and government is recognizing that they cannot infringe on people's privacy etc. I beg to differ - I think it has nothing to do with acknowleding people's privacy, instead, it has everything to do with skirting the law when real abuses come to light.
Consider, a person whose information is quietly taken and then misused (e.g., credit card fraud). Person discovers and sues airline. Airline claims no liability due to Government regulation/law. Person sues Government. Now if the person had 'voluntarily' provided that information who can he/she sue? And I bet there is going to be a typical sign-off-your-life disclaimer sheet that no one can/will read each time this happens.
The problem of figuring out a person's intentions is very old. Lists, invasion of privacy, snooping etc. have never yielded any good or reliable results for ordinary people (e.g., the communist witch hunts of not too long ago). However, there are lawful means of doing this which involve judicial review and can stand up in the open daylight (in front of a jury) when challenged to both catch real offenders and not vicitimize innocent folk.
Sorry no takers here on CAPSS{n}...
'villains who twirl their mustaches are easy to spot. Those who clothe themselves in good deeds are well camouflaged.'
Jean-Luc Picard, "The Drumhead"
Yup, after about 1.5 years of no spam, suddenly, I started to receive SMS messages in spanish! I called Verizon and told them that since they were just a dozen or so junk messages, I was igonring them, but that they should remove the 10cent per message charge from my bill.
The Verizon droid told me that she would 'enhance' my service to a $2.99 per month charge where I would be able to receive 'unlimited' SMS messages!
To make a long story short, I got those charges removed but decided to remove the SMS option from the cellphone because there is no winning when the cellphone company colludes with the spammers.
I agree that informed users who look before they click are much better off than the ones who will install crap without a clue.
On the other hand, there _definitely_ is a parallel world of worm infested windows boxes - e.g., A friend of mine shared his laptop with his significant other - within a week she had installed useless screen savers, crappy 'instant messengers' and a whole boat load of unidentifiable crap - An ad-aware scan revealed 140 spam/spyware bots alone!
But apart from that windows itself is pretty fragile - deviate (or wish to deviate) off the windows 'wizard' model of configuration and you're bound to get hosed. A good example of this is trying to turn off those useless services that windows has on by default - then see how stable windows is without them.
If you stay within the windows 'user experience' and have a sharp IT group or are in the know yourself then you'll be stable - but then one has to wonder, is that really a reflection on windows being 'more' stable or just the user being less capable and more paranoid?
While I can understand your point - Imaging doing this with someone, who if offended, could retaliate with prejudice (e.g., the CEO of the company who is running your show). I'm sorry, I cannot endorse making fun of legitimate people who have no defense/no bite for a cheap 'kick'.
Another thing that I have seen is that there is an 'investment' regardless - e.g., where I work, they now are more willing to send actual hardware and setup labs in India rather than in the US - since physically shipping stuff is more expensive, so they buy locally, which then helps the Indian economy. Further, with the hardware there, management sees less and less rational to do actual software development/testing here. In this particular case, the hardware is tied pretty closely with the software - so monetary loss aside, to train a new person in the US is very difficult and getting worse all the time. Go to the websites of big multinationals like Intel/Cisco/Motorola - check out the pictures of the buildings they have built in Bangalore India - if these companies decided to shift elsewhere, the cost of building that infrastructure (power/phone lines etc) remains in India.
(getting on my soap box here) Lastly, I don't dispute what you said about lower wages but in all honesty, the worst abuses are in places we don't hear about - e.g., a few months back there was a senate sub-committee that spoke with a South American (Brazilian/Argentinian?) textile worker - she was paid 34cents a day and the company that employed her, would only allow her to access those funds thru some sort of ATM machine. The ATM then charged her 6cents each time she retrieved her wages.
This is no real standard of living increase for anyone but those who sit (without accountability) at the very top. I'm not sure traitor is the correct word I would argue a better fit would be 'thugs'.
Yet again and again, despite all their failings, they are being hired by big corporations for major projects.
I'd like to know why.
One big reason (that I've observed a 2 places where I've worked) is that upper management makes these decisions unilaterally - the subordinates (including middle management) rarely are involved at all. Upper management also tends to be clueless - especially when it comes to technical issues (which require true foresight) that these consultants boast of.
I've read the comments about tunnel vision etc. but I think it is highly demotivating to ignore the opinions of the people who work for you and understand the real issues closely. If they say that the consultant is a sham, then there is good reason to depend on their judgement. Sadly, this doesn't happen very often. Why? politics:)
Ok so just now I decided to give this dog a try and here's what was presented to me as the EULA:
8. DIGITAL RIGHTS MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS ("DRMs").
a) The Software includes a DRM called the RealSystem Media Commerce
Update Software ("Media Commerce Software") and may include third party
DRMs as Plug-in components, which are subject to their own license
agreements. DRMs are designed to manage and enforce intellectual
property rights in digital content purchased over the Internet. You may
not take any action to circumvent or defeat the security or content
usage rules provided or enforced by either the DRM or the Software.
DRMs may be able to revoke your ability to use applicable content. RN
is not responsible for the operation of third party DRM in any way,
including revocation of your content. RN is not responsible for any
communications to or from any third party DRM provider, or for the
collection or use of information by third party DRMs.
You consent to
the communications enabled and/or performed by the DRM, including
automatic updating of the DRM without further notice, despite the
provisions of AutoUpdate defined in Section 6(c). You agree to
indemnify and hold harmless RN for any claim relating to your use of a
third party DRM.
b) Content providers are using the digital rights management technology
contained in this Software to protect the integrity of their Secure
Content so that their intellectual property, including copyright, in
such content is not misappropriated. Secure Content Owners may, from
time to time, request RN or its suppliers to provide security related
updates to the DRM components of the Software ("Security Updates") that
may affect your ability to copy, display and/or utilize the Software.
You therefore agree that, if you elect to download a license from the
Internet which enables your use of Secure Content, RN or its suppliers
may, in conjunction with such license, also download onto your computer
such Security Updates that a Secure Content Owner has requested that RN
or its suppliers distribute. Unless notification is provided to you,
RN and its suppliers will not retrieve any personally identifiable
information, or other information, from your computer by downloading
such Security Updates.
c) The Media Commerce Software allows you to receive and playback
content that has been digitally secured by a content provider. The
Media Commerce Software interacts with your computer in the following
ways:
1. Hardware information: In order to download the appropriate software,
RealPlayer must send certain anonymous information about the hardware
on your computer to the RealNetworks download server. Once the
software is installed, information about your hardware will not be
stored on any server. Hardware information will also be sent for
content passes, as described below.
2. Content passes: When obtaining passes for playback of content (such
as a music or video file) in RealPlayer, information about your
specific Media Commerce Software installation and hardware will be sent
to the content provider for inclusion in the pass. This installation
and hardware information will be scrambled a different way each time it
is sent, usable only for inclusion in your pass.
3. Personal information: Media Commerce Software will not associate
itself with any personal information in RealPlayer or anywhere else on
your computer. RealNetworks' use of any personal information is
governed by the RealNetworks privacy policy
(http://www.realnetworks.com/company/privacy/index.html). RealNetworks
does not share with third parties any personal information you provide
in connection with our products without first obtaining your informed
consent.
4. Financial information: Media Commerce Software does not interact
with the process of secure financial transactions, e.g. credit card
transactions. These transactions are handled by the website providing
the content and are governed by that party's privacy policy.
5. Usage information: RealN
What I cannot fathom is why marketing people seem to all believe that people have to be tricked. Ad agencies are tripping over themselves to come up with the next "killer" stealth technique. Why?
I have often wondered about the same thing - my conclusion is that the biggest reason is the profit motive - especially for sales people who work on commission (where they are rated on number of items sold). Obviously, there is a tradeoff, do it too much (and get caught) and the repurcussions are there (just see here.
On the other hand, Internet based advertising is new and carries its own myths - checkout #9 on the FTC's list.
The list isn't that dated but has anything changed since then? Aren't all what they describe just variations of age-old scams?
Sounds like there is some kind of special connection between your area code, your "home" phone switch, and your phone's programming.
Well as far as cell phones are concerned, the locality in which a phone operates has a lot to do with what the phone's nonvolative RAM holds - e.g., 'neighbor lists' and 'preferred' roaming lists - all based on which band is local to your geographical location and who your carrier prefers you (mostly) roam over to;) There's also the matter of how billing works - when a call is placed they go to the 'home location register' to figure out who to charge.
Dude! The fact that it's the same guy writing both articles, both that dish up circumspect evidence and provide no real information except creating a myth
to soften up the Indian outsourcing situation makes it propaganda. All I'm saying is don't be led astray by supposed 'facts', maintain a healthy skepticism.
Now consider the quote that 'We have come across about 3,000 people of foreign origin in our database who are looking for jobs in India.' - "Foreign origin" can mean anywhere - West, East, anywhere that's not India - how does that account for the statement (at the top of the article) that states: 'India is becoming a major hub for not only outsourcing, but also for foreigners in search of employment'? Infact, beyond a few lines of insinuation and inneuendo, the article goes at length of describing so-called benefits of working in India - most of which are debatable (as evidenced by other comments by posters on/.). When it comes to numbers (one form of factual data) the article serves up ancedotal evidence and then offhandly self-negates it by saying how the numbers are small or how individual reasons are of a personal nature.
Sorry man, I feel I've already given it too much attention - believe what you will, I hope you give (everything) a good shakeup before accepting it as fact:)
True, however, I take issue with the claim that 'many' westerners are going to India and this 'news' is being promoted courtesy of an Indian paper. The evidence presented is at best ancedotal and the currency exchange rate difference alone presents a factor that makes this story nothing more than hype and propoganda - the 'softening' of the Indian image when it comes to a politically sensitive subject as outsourcing.
Registrant: The Indian Express Online Media Ltd (JYXCIDMQMD)
Express Towers, 2nd Floor,
Nariman Point
Mumbai, Maharashtra 400021
IN
Domain Name: FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM
Administrative Contact, Technical Contact:
The Indian Express Online Media Ltd (KYYHDIAZUO) hostmaster@bombaybiz.com
Express Towers, 2nd Floor,
Nariman Point
Mumbai, Maharashtra 400021
IN
91-022-22884113 fax: 91-022-22044654
Record expires on 03-Jan-2005.
Record created on 02-Jan-1998.
Database last updated on 31-Jan-2004 23:31:58 EST.
I must agree with both of you - I feel like I'm at the short end of the stick each time. For example, my experience with most email based support sites has been atrocious to the point where I'll squander upto 30mins waiting for a real person (hopefully not of them droids) to get my problem solved. The phone person is almost always able to see that my email was received but that nobody had taken it up. On the other hand, I know of some people who flood others with so much email that its makes it impossible for the receipient to manage his Inbox with any success at all. i work at a large engineering company where test labs cast wide nets when trying to find a contact for any problem they have. Worse, they send out 1-2 line emails every 30 secs while 'narrowing' their search. The result, the receipient's Inbox is DOS'd. I have now resorted to a filter for the few key people who I need to interact with fast - the rest they get 30mins in the morning and 30mins before I leave. So how can I combat these problems? I've pretty much stopped using email unless absolutely necessary - not a perfect solution but better than drowning in email.
heh - well you know my experience is that atleast in technology related issues this is the way to go - have atleast two teams work on two separate initiatives - and when I say two different teams, I don't necessarily mean two parallel efforts, have one class in the fall semester do the same thing as one in the spring. Then decide on which one did a better job and take that 'team's' product. Rinse and repeat each semester adding newer ideas and fresh blood (have the stragglers support the existing stuff).
Alas, the real world works by cutting the cost where-ever when-ever. Most decisions are made for the bottom line; it 's a rare day when someone will standup for the right/best option. Universities are no more immune to this than any other business out there. On the other hand, the push to commercial systems is because (a) management doesn't understand the existing stuff (ie don't want to learn it themselves) or (b) the commercial stuff comes with 'support' no matter how crappy the product is and how equally bad the support is.
The best defense is to collect stats and metrics on how well the current software works and stand up for the right cause rather than accept the management directives - of course, I'll readily admit that's harder to do in today's economy.
Slashdot Mirror
I agree with a lot of the comments here about the need for recuping the initial cost of investment etc etc. However, isn't the eventual sale contingent upon some form of hard currency which is more or less of a permanent? (yes yes barring inflation vs. cost averaging, profit margins etc.)
OK so if companies want us to pay on a subscription model (so as to generate a revenue stream) but please don't pass it off under DRM. Call it for what it is - a subscription model.
On the other hand, if DRM is going to stop me from getting what I already paid for (or require me to pay up again & again..) then that is something else.
Lastly (and I admit I've missed a lot of other issues), I'm also increasingly unhappy with all the intrusions of privacy that come at the behest of DRM. When did such small commmerical transactions begin to require such inspection of the buyer?
bah!
Well, after reading a couple of very good points, I couldn't resist but add this comment. But first, let me state that I have never worked for HP but have had interractions with them while working for several different employers over the last 5-10 years.
What I've noticed is that HP used to be a place of engineering driven projects. At that start it went something like this:
Here's a problem, here's a business case, now let the engineers go and do their jobs. If there was a problem, you could reach a person who had infact worked on the impacted area, could offer solid advice or even provide a fix.
Today (and I'm sad to say) it is something like this: here's a problem, deny it outright. Shove HP 'Support' at the customer. These guys suffer from 'little knowledge'. Their recommendations are bad to incompetent and they will stall for weeks knowing full well there is a defect/fault at hand. The problem remains where it is. Issues are escalated to management where finally at the 11th hour some fix is provided (at great risk to both HP & the client company). Often time, this results in additional churn.
As others have mentioned, CEOs play games. But then if we step back, who isn't? The Board of Directors are often hand picked by CEOs and have no independent power. The stock holders consist of big firms (who have their agendas on profiteering) vs. an extremely diluted pool of investors who bear the brunt of the stock price and are in a rush to make an easy buck. So to answer my own question, the only person who 'cares' in this whole vicious circle are those whose livelihoods depend on the company. Yet, these are the people who have no say in the system.
Summary: the system is broken, everyone who has any power exerts it in the way they can. The people whose lives are impacted have no say. What Mr. H & Mr. P started out way back then was to provide an environment for the workers yet that spirit was lost after these vultures/hyenas descended upon HP. To be honest with you, this is not only an HP problem, it is everywhere. The saddest realisation is that how many lives are hurt by people like Carly yet there is no accountability.
I agree completely - however, I do wish to point out that ASN.1 and BER are a pain to code & maintain. XML is definitely an improvement, but I would argue its flexibility is what is going to fracture it. This is not putting down XML or its use, but on the so-called 'partners' who are involved in this 'deal' have an established pattern of adding their own 'extensions' which defeat interoperability and serve to enforce market share and not true integration.
If I were doing this, I would take the strenghts of SNMP (e.g., nice simple interface of get/set/walk etc). and make a HTTP style language for it. Extend the language for specific needs but don't make them optional. Keep the data and its overheads small and clean. And lest I forget, add a proper layer of security that may not have been important when SNMP came along but today is indispensible.
I can't agree more- if this law is nothing more than Spam Law mentioned by others or even something meaningless like 'declare spyware in some obscure EULA' click option (worse make it opt-in) then what good is it other than politiking?
Yeah, given the election climate this is all distraction... sad part is that it hurts the People's interest now instead of leaving it alone till the fair/appropriate Law can be passed & implemented.
On the same lines, I wish /. would post their stats... (Cmdr Taco?)
/.'s stats compare.
It would be interesting to see how
Well the sum of my fears is that:
1. There is no mass scale public outrage - the media is so 0wn3d that no one dare say a word. The masses are force fed a 'branded' image of how good things are and how 'lucky' the attendees are and how they too should make it to the next Olympics.
2. We've seen this (atleast in the US), where when attending Disney World, Six Flags etc. people are searched for bringing in 'non-approved' articles (e.g. food, water). But what makes this so offensive to me is that it is taking place on an international scale. The corporations have been so emboldened that they are 'enforcing' 'rules' which would otherwise be counted as fleecing the public. Countries have boycotted the Olympics for other things - I wonder if any of the athletes will be brave enough to say that this is all a sham and that they will not attend. Of course this too will have to be a concerted effort.
Everyday brings a fresh assault on the uninformed people everywhere and sad to say things are not improving.
Right on - I work for a multinational as well and my even after my group was 'downsized' by about 70% to India while the work load went up by 100%, they are now getting us 'help' from India. Three Indian programmers; who will then be rotated into 'other' groups but they won't hire one local person. The joy of work is gone - most people now work to keep their jobs rather than work to do anything meaningful.
Economy improving? Ask those who are in the unemployment line.
Well I've seen some folks here state that this is a change and government is recognizing that they cannot infringe on people's privacy etc. I beg to differ - I think it has nothing to do with acknowleding people's privacy, instead, it has everything to do with skirting the law when real abuses come to light.
Consider, a person whose information is quietly taken and then misused (e.g., credit card fraud). Person discovers and sues airline. Airline claims no liability due to Government regulation/law. Person sues Government. Now if the person had 'voluntarily' provided that information who can he/she sue? And I bet there is going to be a typical sign-off-your-life disclaimer sheet that no one can/will read each time this happens.
The problem of figuring out a person's intentions is very old. Lists, invasion of privacy, snooping etc. have never yielded any good or reliable results for ordinary people (e.g., the communist witch hunts of not too long ago). However, there are lawful means of doing this which involve judicial review and can stand up in the open daylight (in front of a jury) when challenged to both catch real offenders and not vicitimize innocent folk.
Sorry no takers here on CAPSS{n}...
'villains who twirl their mustaches are easy to spot. Those who clothe themselves in good deeds are well camouflaged.'
Jean-Luc Picard, "The Drumhead"
Yup, after about 1.5 years of no spam, suddenly, I started to receive SMS messages in spanish! I called Verizon and told them that since they were just a dozen or so junk messages, I was igonring them, but that they should remove the 10cent per message charge from my bill.
The Verizon droid told me that she would 'enhance' my service to a $2.99 per month charge where I would be able to receive 'unlimited' SMS messages!
To make a long story short, I got those charges removed but decided to remove the SMS option from the cellphone because there is no winning when the cellphone company colludes with the spammers.
Well I agree and disagree with your post :)
I agree that informed users who look before they click are much better off than the ones who will install crap without a clue.
On the other hand, there _definitely_ is a parallel world of worm infested windows boxes - e.g., A friend of mine shared his laptop with his significant other - within a week she had installed useless screen savers, crappy 'instant messengers' and a whole boat load of unidentifiable crap - An ad-aware scan revealed 140 spam/spyware bots alone!
But apart from that windows itself is pretty fragile - deviate (or wish to deviate) off the windows 'wizard' model of configuration and you're bound to get hosed. A good example of this is trying to turn off those useless services that windows has on by default - then see how stable windows is without them.
If you stay within the windows 'user experience' and have a sharp IT group or are in the know yourself then you'll be stable - but then one has to wonder, is that really a reflection on windows being 'more' stable or just the user being less capable and more paranoid?
And what happens when RFID becomes spyware?
While I can understand your point - Imaging doing this with someone, who if offended, could retaliate with prejudice (e.g., the CEO of the company who is running your show). I'm sorry, I cannot endorse making fun of legitimate people who have no defense/no bite for a cheap 'kick'.
Hehe - (couldn't resist) so what will the T-shirt for this say:
'No I'm not going to fix your...'
Ok...couldn't resist...
Another thing that I have seen is that there is an 'investment' regardless - e.g., where I work, they now are more willing to send actual hardware and setup labs in India rather than in the US - since physically shipping stuff is more expensive, so they buy locally, which then helps the Indian economy. Further, with the hardware there, management sees less and less rational to do actual software development/testing here. In this particular case, the hardware is tied pretty closely with the software - so monetary loss aside, to train a new person in the US is very difficult and getting worse all the time. Go to the websites of big multinationals like Intel/Cisco/Motorola - check out the pictures of the buildings they have built in Bangalore India - if these companies decided to shift elsewhere, the cost of building that infrastructure (power/phone lines etc) remains in India.
(getting on my soap box here)
Lastly, I don't dispute what you said about lower wages but in all honesty, the worst abuses are in places we don't hear about - e.g., a few months back there was a senate sub-committee that spoke with a South American (Brazilian/Argentinian?) textile worker - she was paid 34cents a day and the company that employed her, would only allow her to access those funds thru some sort of ATM machine. The ATM then charged her 6cents each time she retrieved her wages.
This is no real standard of living increase for anyone but those who sit (without accountability) at the very top. I'm not sure traitor is the correct word I would argue a better fit would be 'thugs'.
If I may present a simple proof:
.... [1]
............ [2]
... [3] ... [4]
:)
We know that girls require time and money.
Girls = Time X Money
However, we also know that time is money.
Time = Money
Substituting in Time in [1].
Girls = Money X Money
or => Girls = (Money)^2
Finally, we know that Money is the root of all
evil.
Money = sqrt(Evil).... [5]
Substituting [5] in [4].
=> Girls = (sqrt(Evil))^2
therefore Girls = Evil!
I would like to say that it could be +Evil or -Evil. I tend to prefer the ones that are +Evil myself
I have often wondered about the same thing - my conclusion is that the biggest reason is the profit motive - especially for sales people who work on commission (where they are rated on number of items sold). Obviously, there is a tradeoff, do it too much (and get caught) and the repurcussions are there (just see here. On the other hand, Internet based advertising is new and carries its own myths - checkout #9 on the FTC's list. The list isn't that dated but has anything changed since then? Aren't all what they describe just variations of age-old scams?
Dude! The fact that it's the same guy writing both articles, both that dish up circumspect evidence and provide no real information except creating a myth to soften up the Indian outsourcing situation makes it propaganda. All I'm saying is don't be led astray by supposed 'facts', maintain a healthy skepticism.
Now consider the quote that 'We have come across about 3,000 people of foreign origin in our database who are looking for jobs in India.' - "Foreign origin" can mean anywhere - West, East, anywhere that's not India - how does that account for the statement (at the top of the article) that states: 'India is becoming a major hub for not only outsourcing, but also for foreigners in search of employment'? Infact, beyond a few lines of insinuation and inneuendo, the article goes at length of describing so-called benefits of working in India - most of which are debatable (as evidenced by other comments by posters on /.). When it comes to numbers (one form of factual data) the article serves up ancedotal evidence and then offhandly self-negates it by saying how the numbers are small or how individual reasons are of a personal nature.
Sorry man, I feel I've already given it too much attention - believe what you will, I hope you give (everything) a good shakeup before accepting it as fact :)
True, however, I take issue with the claim that 'many' westerners are going to India and this 'news' is being promoted courtesy of an Indian paper. The evidence presented is at best ancedotal and the currency exchange rate difference alone presents a factor that makes this story nothing more than hype and propoganda - the 'softening' of the Indian image when it comes to a politically sensitive subject as outsourcing.
"Financial Express"?
whois financialexpress.com displays:
Registrant:
The Indian Express Online Media Ltd (JYXCIDMQMD)
Express Towers, 2nd Floor,
Nariman Point
Mumbai, Maharashtra 400021
IN
Domain Name: FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM
Administrative Contact, Technical Contact:
The Indian Express Online Media Ltd (KYYHDIAZUO) hostmaster@bombaybiz.com
Express Towers, 2nd Floor,
Nariman Point
Mumbai, Maharashtra 400021
IN
91-022-22884113 fax: 91-022-22044654
Record expires on 03-Jan-2005.
Record created on 02-Jan-1998.
Database last updated on 31-Jan-2004 23:31:58 EST.
Domain servers in listed order:
NS1.RILINFO.NET 202.138.96.2
NS2.RILINFO.NET 202.138.103.100
surely their views must be impartial!
Ok so am I missing something here - this seems like a scam - go somewhere, get someone laid off and pretend to be the replacement?
I'm also curious, how did he find out that he was listed as the 'vulnerability'? Usually that sort of stuff is kept under lock and key by HR.
I sympathize but how can someone who has a good record at work be suddenly laid off for an assessment from an external company?
I must agree with both of you - I feel like I'm at the short end of the stick each time. For example, my experience with most email based support sites has been atrocious to the point where I'll squander upto 30mins waiting for a real person (hopefully not of them droids) to get my problem solved. The phone person is almost always able to see that my email was received but that nobody had taken it up. On the other hand, I know of some people who flood others with so much email that its makes it impossible for the receipient to manage his Inbox with any success at all. i work at a large engineering company where test labs cast wide nets when trying to find a contact for any problem they have. Worse, they send out 1-2 line emails every 30 secs while 'narrowing' their search. The result, the receipient's Inbox is DOS'd. I have now resorted to a filter for the few key people who I need to interact with fast - the rest they get 30mins in the morning and 30mins before I leave. So how can I combat these problems? I've pretty much stopped using email unless absolutely necessary - not a perfect solution but better than drowning in email.
heh - well you know my experience is that atleast in technology related issues this is the way to go - have atleast two teams work on two separate initiatives - and when I say two different teams, I don't necessarily mean two parallel efforts, have one class in the fall semester do the same thing as one in the spring. Then decide on which one did a better job and take that 'team's' product. Rinse and repeat each semester adding newer ideas and fresh blood (have the stragglers support the existing stuff).
Alas, the real world works by cutting the cost where-ever when-ever. Most decisions are made for the bottom line; it 's a rare day when someone will standup for the right/best option. Universities are no more immune to this than any other business out there. On the other hand, the push to commercial systems is because (a) management doesn't understand the existing stuff (ie don't want to learn it themselves) or (b) the commercial stuff comes with 'support' no matter how crappy the product is and how equally bad the support is.
The best defense is to collect stats and metrics on how well the current software works and stand up for the right cause rather than accept the management directives - of course, I'll readily admit that's harder to do in today's economy.