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User: IronChef

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Comments · 1,723

  1. Re:Surcharge on AT&T Quietly Adds Charges To All Contract Cell Plans · · Score: 2

    There are better options. I am always surprised that more people do not use the cheaper prepaid carriers.

    I have never had my prepaid carrier raise rates on me or add surprise charges. And, since they don't have my billing information and the service is prepaid, I remain in control of spending.

    Hey, they still have problems, they're phone companies. But after being pushed down the stairs by ATT etc for years, I find prepaid to be a big improvement.

  2. Re:You mean like the Kindle Fire? on Amazon Buys Sunlight Readable Color Display Company Liquavista · · Score: 2

    I had 2 e-ink readers, and did like them quite a bit... but then I got a Nexus 7 and haven't touched them. The screen is perfectly usable outdoors. Not AWESOME... but usable. In partial shade, like sitting next to the window on a bus, it's fantastic.

    YMMV.

  3. Re:Sustainable? on Genetically Modified Plants To Produce Natural Lighting · · Score: 1

    Or, the makers of GloFish:

    http://www.glofish.com/license.html

  4. Re:Long strange road . . . on Villians & Vigilantes Creators Win Lawsuit, Rights To Game · · Score: 2

    The good ole pen & paper business!

    I used to work for a three-letter RPG publisher that went belly-up. As a line editor I developed books with an army of freelancers. These poor people were unpaid for their last months of efforts (as was I) and I have their manuscripts to this day... cool RPG books from ancient history that no one will ever see. It's too bad.

    I tried to get the authors to let me release the books for free, just so fans of the line could have them, but most people were understandably not feeling generous after getting stiffed by the company.

  5. Are you trying to get fit, lose weight, or both? on Ask Slashdot: How Do You Stay Fit At Work? · · Score: 1

    I can't speak to getting fit as I never have been and never will be--but if losing weight is a goal, start counting calories. Get MyFitnessPal or a similar free app and log everything that goes in your mouth. This is something you can do immediately with a minimal time investment and it will make a big difference.

  6. Re:name change on New Pope Selected · · Score: 1

    If I were Pope, I'd choose a sweet name like "Maximum Hammer." These guys are squandering the chance of a lifetime!

  7. Re:Slow news day? on A Few Improvements for Firefox's Android UI · · Score: 1

    Chrome for Android is better in every way, except no Adblock.

    Unfortunately Firefox for Android regularly freezes up on me, choking on pages that Chrome renders without trouble.

    I wish they would fix things like that before working on the UI.

  8. Re:And they are cheap... on Handheld Black Hornet Nano Drones Issued To UK Soldiers · · Score: 1

    A fuel cell would definitely make for a quick recharge. I don't know beans about state-of-the-art fuel cell technology but I still suspect that the fuel cell itself would be too heavy for the stated specs.

    However, the energy density of a typical fuel cell consumable, like methanol, IS a lot higher than a lithium battery.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_methanol_fuel_cell

    Then again, this source states that the efficiency of such a fuel cell is also quite low.

    So, maybe. Good idea though, I did not think of that.

  9. Re:And they are cheap... on Handheld Black Hornet Nano Drones Issued To UK Soldiers · · Score: 1

    I was instantly suspicious as well. The item in the photo looks like a bad mockup, like that Iranian jet.

    - It has one rotor, and a tail rotor. A coaxial unit would be easier to fly. Flying fixed-pitch or collective pitch model helis is hard to learn! OK, maybe it has an amazing autopilot and stability control. Or maybe operators just have to put in the time to build skill.

    - The rotor disc looks pretty small, out of proportion to other models I am familiar with. Proves nothing and I am not a helicopter designer, but...

    - The listed run time and speed imply battery technology that is about 10x as good as you can get with hobbyist grade lithium polymer batteries. Is there a light battery available anywhere, at any price, that can store power 10x more densely than the lipos used in model aircraft? Add in the GPS, autopilot, and the long video transmission range and you really seem to be talking about magic, not batteries.

    I bet the specs on this thing are BS, if it flies at all. But even a drone that can only fly short distances for short durations could be incredibly useful for looking around corners. And that sort of performance is available dirt cheap these days, so I am sure we will see more stories like this.

  10. Shameful on China's Radical New Space Drive · · Score: 1

    Wired should be ashamed for printing the story so uncritically.

    Slashdot should be ashamed for posting it at all.

    If I wanted to read this sort of nonsense, I'd be at Above Top Secret.

  11. Re:More food for thought for the mentally starved on Machine Gun Fire From Military Helicopters Flying Over Downtown Miami · · Score: 1

    >wait, who said that members of the military would actually be *willing* to fight a war against other Americans?

    I worry that it could be quite a lot of them, actually.

    Look at nation wide discussions on topics like the TSA or Occupy protestors. It seems that about half the people who open their mouth or get on a keyboard are quite happy to support the establishment's transgressions.

    I am not equating TSA support to the capacity to do violence, but a blind trust of authority is a pretty worrying first step down that road... and it is a trait that seems to be on the rise in this culture.

  12. Re:Why on The New Ethanol Blend May Damage Your Vehicle · · Score: 1

    As others have said, hydrocarbons have a great energy density. This excellent article discusses the issue.

    http://thebulletin.org/web-edition/columnists/kurt-zenz-house/the-limits-of-energy-storage-technology

  13. Re:Vulcans Invented The Prime Directive on Possible Habitable Planet Just 12 Light Years Away · · Score: 1

    What are you trying to say, pinkskin?

  14. Re:Well on Is Intel Planning To Kill Enthusiast PCs? · · Score: 1

    Celeron 300A... slotket adapters... Good times!

  15. Re:Randall Munroe is my hero on xkcd's 13-Gigapixel Webcomic · · Score: 1

    I wonder if Kibo still scours Usenet?

  16. Pushing technology maybe isn't the best way on Ask Slashdot: Where Should a Geek's Charitable Donations Go? · · Score: 1

    If you want to support "geeky" things then working directly with technology projects might not be the best use of the money. If you want to advance the geek agenda, find a way to help people THINK better. Support literacy causes, or science education for kids.

  17. Re:Take Fun on Ask Slashdot: How Much Is a Fun Job Worth? · · Score: 1

    Personally I agree with you, and I would probably stay at the fun job.

    However, OP needs to think about his career as a whole. He is a lead now, and has a chance to be a director. 10% more pay isn't much, but what kind of difference will that change in title make 5 years down the road? 10? Hard to say, of course. But it bears thinking about. Opportunities to move up can be rare.

  18. Re:money back if not delighted? on $60 Light Bulb Debuts On Earth Day · · Score: 1

    Can you address the color temperature and CRI of this bulb? The source article is, as usual, inadequate.

  19. Re:Idiotic rule on Laser Scanner May Allow Passengers To Take Bottled Drinks On Planes Again · · Score: 1

    The phrase "it's medically necessary" lets your liquids bypass most TSA checkpoint shenanigans.

  20. Re:Take the fuel.. on What To Do With a 1,000 Foot Wrecked Cruise Ship? · · Score: 1

    Where is a reality TV producer when you need one? This whole thing, even the insurance company angle, is fascinating.

    I hope there are IMAX cameras on site when they start trying to re-float that thing, or cut it into pieces.

  21. Re:I don't get it on Mug-Shot Industry Digs Up Your Past, Charges You To Bury It · · Score: 1

    A business method patent?

  22. Re:Google+ circles = crowdsourced user profiling? on How Google+ Measures Up On Privacy · · Score: 1

    I have no doubt that Google will happily build the sort of profiles you are describing. But Google already knows when my doctor appointments are and other personal things so the additional damage from G+ is minimal. That's ok, I don't post anything on the internet, even in a private service, that I wouldn't mind having used against me in a court of law. And I am only going to connect with people that I trust not to drag my name through the mud in whatever of their content may leak out into public.

    I like G+ because it is easy to use the service to keep in touch with some people while remaining nearly invisible to the people that I don't care about. I can even use a fake profile name, or first name + last initial. When I tried that on Facebook they said forget it, how about you email us a copy of your driver's license to prove that's your name? The hell with that!

  23. Re:So What? on DisplayPort-To-HDMI Cables May Be Recalled Over Licensing · · Score: 1

    You think this cable thing is silly? I got a better one.

    The GloFish is a zebra danio that's been remixed with genes from a jellyfish in order to produce a 1980s neon look. These pet fish are supposed to be shipped sterilized, but just in case yours breed... the license agreement tells you that you can't sell the offspring.

    http://www.glofish.com/license.html

    I have no idea how enforceable this is since you don't even click to agree when buying the fish. It seems absurd. How can such a "license" be binding?

    Hey, maybe I can set up a breeding tank for these contraband HDMI cables. Are they egglayers or livebearers?

  24. Re:I'm not anti-police but what legitimate reasons on LulzSec Document Dump Shows Cops' Fear of iPhones · · Score: 1

    ...but a uniformed or off-duty police officer? Why would someone with so much power be allowed to prevent the recording of the exercise of that authority?

    Homeland security, of course! The article says, "In a hearing last December, Cook County Assistant State Attorney Jeff Allen invoked homeland security, arguing that Drew's recording could have picked up police discussing anti-terrorism tactics." Man, how could you make that argument with a straight face?

    Anyone interested in "cop arrests guy with camera even though no law was broken" stories should check out Carlos Miller's blog.

  25. Re:Excellent! on XBMC Gets a Dedicated Remote · · Score: 1

    I didn't have to modify the keyboard config file by hand to use my Harmony... But I did have to spend a long time f'ing around with EventGhost. (My Harmony-compatible IR receiver is a USB-IRT, which I bought ages ago to use with SageTV.)

    Last I looked the xbmc wiki was way out of date or simply silent on some topics. The forums were the best source of info, but also the most newb-hostile forums I had ever seen. Newcomers were often referred to sticky threads that were out of date. Development moved quickly and you had to be an xbmc enthusiast to keep up with the changes.

    It's an awesome package though, and worth the time to figure out.