I am a little late on this post, so I hope some one else said this already, but the Macbook Pro has Firewire. The difference is in the name, the Macbook is what you buy your 18 year old when you send them to college, and the Pro is what you buy your self, as a working professional. Apple will not loose a single sale because of the lack of Firewire on a consumer level machine.
This is news to people? Why would iPhone use OSX?
on
iPhone Not Running OS X
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· Score: 2, Interesting
OSX is a very large OS. While it is modular, a small embedded OS highly optimized for ARM would be a much smarter choice. This is consumer electronics not computers. The standards are MUCH higher. They need zero latency execution, absolute stability, and above all low cost. Every cent saved adds up to millions over a manufacturing run of 100,000 units. I would hazard to guess Apple did the smart thing and bought an off the shelf OS, and wrote a few apps for it with a set of prebuilt development tools just like every other phone and embedded device maker out there. Asking what OS the iPhone is running is like asking what OS is my microwave is running (yes I know my microwave doesn't have an OS). For consumers it doesn't matter and for developers there is a development kit available. This article us not news.
They have just this! It has been out since before the car in fact! It's called a cab. In the scheme of things. Maybe the insurance companies should offer incentives for people to not drive their own cars and have professional driver.
Believe it or not car companies actually know this, and have and continue to hold back a lot of technologies that remove driver "feel". I took a cognitive ergonomic course from a professor who worked on a study for Jaguar on adaptive cruse control. Humans have an optimum mental load that keeps us focused on the task at hand. Too low and we get bored too high and we get confused. The findings of the study was drivers dropped below that optimum mental load and lost focus on the task. Long and short Jaguar did not include adaptive cruse control at that time. One thing to note though, Cadilac does include it.
Now this isn't to say drivers actually know how to drive. A good example being Car and Driver's test of the Ford Explorers after the whole Firestone thing. They took a Explorer on a test track with a trained driver and blew out the tires at various speeds with out telling him when it would happen. Because he knew his left foot from a hole in his head he had absolutely no issues slowing and stopping safely. The last few runs were taken at freeway speeds with no hands to show that he did not even need to adjust the steering.
IMHO We need to up the requirements for drivers licences in the US dramatically as well as enforce driving laws better. Ideally getting a drivers licence should be to German standards, where it takes nearly a year and costs about 1000 euros for all the classes and behind the wheel training. Driving is a privilege not a right.
Apple has more impact on the world of computing...
on
The Media's Crush on Apple
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· Score: 2, Insightful
I can't be bothered to slog through the post to see if some one has said this... but... Apple has more impact in both a finical and design sense than ANY OTHER COMPUTER COMPANY because they take risk and think out side the preverbal box. Lets go through a brief list of major changes to the industry Apple has brought about. 1. USB, iMac was the first main stream machine to ship with USB and no serial. 2. Desktop digital video editing, the inclusion of FireWire on DV Cameras and Macs brought video from the $1 million editing suit to the $5000 desktop. 3. Not Beige. iMac thats all I got to say. 4. Mouse. First consumer machines 5. GUI. First consumer machines 6. DTP. Changed the industry with the WYSIWYG and high quality outline fonts 7. WiFi. First major machine to do WiFi 8. MP3. iTunes, iTunes Music Store and iPod legitimized and simplified MP3 and brought digital music to where it is today. 14 Million iPods don't lie.
Many people are quick to point out that Apple wasn't first to market with many products. But that doesn't matter. First to market only matters if you actually move the product. Apple's business practices in the last 5 years are second to none. The produce a product people want, at a price the market will bare and continue to innovate. They also continue to expand their market. All this while turning profit in a very competitive market place. This is why the get press. Their "Think Different" campaign was right on the money. They do think different from other computing companies.
Now, other firms could easily due the same things, but no other LARGE company seems to do them. I would love to see some examples of other computing companies that actually do though.
Uhm the MPAA doesn't have slipping profits... its the hollywood box offices that have slipping profits. The MPAA doesn't care if you got to the cinema because DVD's are still selling like hotcakes (Mmmm... sweet golden syrup). They just like to claim they are loosing money so they have an excuse to complain. It's the RIAA thats in a downward spiral because they still think they are selling sheet music to traveling bands of musicians.
I take Amtrak regularly from Sacramento to SF and we have had wifi for about a year. Its still beta and only on one train, so its dumb luck when you get it. As far as Amtrak failing from what I understand its a lot of issues many of which along the lines of mismanagement and not adapting to chainge. The line between San Jose and Sacramneto (the Capitol Coridor) is semi independant from the rest of the network and as far as I know is the only profitable line in the whole country. The route is so popular they have had to upgrade the tracks to and add lines because of congestion. It costs about $20 for a ticket each way and it takes the same time as driving. On fridays you have to fight for a seat if you take the rush hour trains. Amtrak needs better funding, but it needs a complete overhual of its structure first.
Uhm? Why does every one bitch about entering HEX keys. There is an option for a human readable ASCII key.
Though thinking about it... why is HEX the default on most routers? Maybe more people would use WEP if they new they could use a passphrase. I have met countless people who are not complete neophytes who didn't know they could use ASCII.
Just because some one leaves their front door unlocked doesn't make them stupid or naive (though it does make the poster) It just means they don't live in America suburbia. The majority of the world leaves their doors unlocked (actually I would love to see statistics on if the majority of the world even has a door).
Also, as has been posted repeatedly wardriving does not actually indicate that some one even passed packets on your network, it just means they passed by and took note of the existence of you network. Think of them as WAP cartographers.
By my recent drive through downtown (from the park down Oak, on to the bridge) It was almost exactly 50/50. Of the 500 networks i hit, 245 were open.
The amusing part is I hit 200 networks in that last 1/8th mile right when you get on the bay bridge. That has to be the highest density of AP's on earth.
I have to point out, that Apple, the first company to ship a AP that people bought, do by default ask you if you want WEP during the initial setup. It's one of those get what you pay for things. Apple charges more for their AP, but, they have a team of engineers, interface designers, and cognitive psychologists working on their product. Linksys probably just had one of their engineers do the interface.
I think of it as a karma thing. I use so many peoples networks around the city for free, I figure its just a given mine should be open. I actually don't understand why people do encrypt their networks. Nothing I do that matters ever travels over an unencryped connection, which is true for most others too. In the end, most of the data some one could grab even if my data was unencrypted could be stolen easier in the analog world.
Actually most labs don't throw away disposable film cameras either. They are designed to be easily opened with out damage and get sold back to remanufacturers for about $0.25 each. Same thing on the waste from most of the photo processing. The developer and rise chemicals are degradable organic chemicals, and the fix, which has all the heavy metals in it cannot be dumped legally and is full of silver so it is processed and the metals are extracted.
In the end conventional film cameras and processing are friendly on the environment than electronics manufacturing for a digital camera. Admitted there are processes out there that aren't, but not too many people out there shoot Kodachome or use pyro developer any more.
You do realize no school is going to roll a Linux distro school wide right? I don't mean to be an ass here but lets face reality? Could you see your administration doing that? Didn't think so.
Believe it or not most schools do think about the real real tco on most purchases. My school recently replaced all the monitors on campus in all the labs. They went from crt's to lcd's... the power bill will pay for it with in the life of the lcd.
That doesn't explain the mac's though really cause for some things the school doesn't care about tco. It really cares about what the school needs. What most schools need is what the teachers want. If your school doesn't have macs at all it is because your teachers don't request them . Most schools purchase on the department level. If the department wants it, it can order it.
None of the big players have been a wise moral decision ever. I don't have to even discus AOL, Nor MSN. The number 3 player Earthlink just fired thousands of employees and outsourced them to India (many friends of mine, I am a former Earthstink employee) And all the midsized players got bought by Earthlink either directly or in a round about way (Mindspring, Netcom, etc). So, the big three are all just morally bad ideas. Stick with the locals and help pay some regular guys rent and car payment on his honda, and don't give your money to these megacorporations that don't care about their employees or customers.
Another alliterative that few people think about is to bury the outside coil 1-3 m deep. The temp of soil is about 10c at that depth year round. It can provide a much more efficient cooling effect. With a heat pump attached you can get even more cooling. It also works in reverse in the winter. And as every one keeps saying. Contract an HVAC pro.
I forgot all about that (my 35mm is a uses alkaline so its a non issue)
Yes having to try to find zinc air batteries or dealing with a meter that is skewed because of incorrect voltages sucks. The zinc air aren't perfect either, they are a few 1/10th of a volt off too. Look for some thing that takes a-76's cells if you can.
Worse comes to worse you spend a $100 on a used spot meter and learn to meter really well too.
I have to agree with this. The K-1000 was a good camera. Other good alternatives are the Cannon AE1, the Nikon FM2, the Olympus OM1 or the Minolta X700. All were (are) excellent manual bodies that should give you years of use as well as the possibility for repair. They are also cheap enough to keep multiple bodies to keep different types of film in (just move the lenses around).
Many people are suggesting spending your hard earned $$ on lenses and getting a cheaper body. I can't stress this enough. The lens takes the picture, the body just holds film. Camera bodies top out at about $3,000 lenses top out at over $30,000. There is a reason. Good glass is worth its weight in gold.
The suggestion of a manual body over a automatic body is also very sound. You will have to learn how to take pictures instead of relying on the camera to do it for you. Some of the best photography schools make you learn on a 4x5 view camera. Basically a black box with a lens. (Think bugs bunny cartoons) After you lean to shoot manual well you will be able to shoot better over all.
Another consideration is film. I recommend picking 1 film and sticking with it to eliminate variables while you are learning. In addition if you shoot black and white you can develop it your self. You can learn a lot about your shooting by seeing and printing your own negatives. Another "trick" is to shoot slide film until you can shoot it consistently and get good exposures. Slide film has much less room for error compared to print film, so you have to get it right the first time. You also get to see your images with out having to pay for or store prints. Given a few years you will learn prints are a pain to store.
His point about medium format is also valid, but, it can turn cost prohibitive. It is still fun to see a 6x6cm slide though.
Lastly no matter what gear you get, shoot lots. The more you shoot the better you get. And take notes on how you shot things. Its all a practice thing. Later, when you are fully hooked on photography, and have the money, you can upgrade to a nice medium format with a digital back and take 22 megapixle photos too, but then you will appreciate why your shots look better than that idiot with a point and shoot.
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I am a little late on this post, so I hope some one else said this already, but the Macbook Pro has Firewire. The difference is in the name, the Macbook is what you buy your 18 year old when you send them to college, and the Pro is what you buy your self, as a working professional. Apple will not loose a single sale because of the lack of Firewire on a consumer level machine.
OSX is a very large OS. While it is modular, a small embedded OS highly optimized for ARM would be a much smarter choice. This is consumer electronics not computers. The standards are MUCH higher. They need zero latency execution, absolute stability, and above all low cost. Every cent saved adds up to millions over a manufacturing run of 100,000 units. I would hazard to guess Apple did the smart thing and bought an off the shelf OS, and wrote a few apps for it with a set of prebuilt development tools just like every other phone and embedded device maker out there. Asking what OS the iPhone is running is like asking what OS is my microwave is running (yes I know my microwave doesn't have an OS). For consumers it doesn't matter and for developers there is a development kit available. This article us not news.
They have just this! It has been out since before the car in fact! It's called a cab. In the scheme of things. Maybe the insurance companies should offer incentives for people to not drive their own cars and have professional driver.
Believe it or not car companies actually know this, and have and continue to hold back a lot of technologies that remove driver "feel". I took a cognitive ergonomic course from a professor who worked on a study for Jaguar on adaptive cruse control. Humans have an optimum mental load that keeps us focused on the task at hand. Too low and we get bored too high and we get confused. The findings of the study was drivers dropped below that optimum mental load and lost focus on the task. Long and short Jaguar did not include adaptive cruse control at that time. One thing to note though, Cadilac does include it.
Now this isn't to say drivers actually know how to drive. A good example being Car and Driver's test of the Ford Explorers after the whole Firestone thing. They took a Explorer on a test track with a trained driver and blew out the tires at various speeds with out telling him when it would happen. Because he knew his left foot from a hole in his head he had absolutely no issues slowing and stopping safely. The last few runs were taken at freeway speeds with no hands to show that he did not even need to adjust the steering.
IMHO We need to up the requirements for drivers licences in the US dramatically as well as enforce driving laws better.
Ideally getting a drivers licence should be to German standards, where it takes nearly a year and costs about 1000 euros for all the classes and behind the wheel training. Driving is a privilege not a right.
I can't be bothered to slog through the post to see if some one has said this ... but ... Apple has more impact in both a finical and design sense than ANY OTHER COMPUTER COMPANY because they take risk and think out side the preverbal box. Lets go through a brief list of major changes to the industry Apple has brought about.
1. USB, iMac was the first main stream machine to ship with USB and no serial.
2. Desktop digital video editing, the inclusion of FireWire on DV Cameras and Macs brought video from the $1 million editing suit to the $5000 desktop.
3. Not Beige. iMac thats all I got to say.
4. Mouse. First consumer machines
5. GUI. First consumer machines
6. DTP. Changed the industry with the WYSIWYG and high quality outline fonts
7. WiFi. First major machine to do WiFi
8. MP3. iTunes, iTunes Music Store and iPod legitimized and simplified MP3 and brought digital music to where it is today. 14 Million iPods don't lie.
Many people are quick to point out that Apple wasn't first to market with many products. But that doesn't matter. First to market only matters if you actually move the product. Apple's business practices in the last 5 years are second to none. The produce a product people want, at a price the market will bare and continue to innovate. They also continue to expand their market. All this while turning profit in a very competitive market place. This is why the get press. Their "Think Different" campaign was right on the money. They do think different from other computing companies.
Now, other firms could easily due the same things, but no other LARGE company seems to do them. I would love to see some examples of other computing companies that actually do though.
Uhm the MPAA doesn't have slipping profits ... its the hollywood box offices that have slipping profits. The MPAA doesn't care if you got to the cinema because DVD's are still selling like hotcakes (Mmmm ... sweet golden syrup). They just like to claim they are loosing money so they have an excuse to complain. It's the RIAA thats in a downward spiral because they still think they are selling sheet music to traveling bands of musicians.
I take Amtrak regularly from Sacramento to SF and we have had wifi for about a year. Its still beta and only on one train, so its dumb luck when you get it. As far as Amtrak failing from what I understand its a lot of issues many of which along the lines of mismanagement and not adapting to chainge.
The line between San Jose and Sacramneto (the Capitol Coridor) is semi independant from the rest of the network and as far as I know is the only profitable line in the whole country. The route is so popular they have had to upgrade the tracks to and add lines because of congestion. It costs about $20 for a ticket each way and it takes the same time as driving. On fridays you have to fight for a seat if you take the rush hour trains.
Amtrak needs better funding, but it needs a complete overhual of its structure first.
I have noticed the same trend, but, my assumption was higher rate of higher education (middle class != college education).
Uhm? Why does every one bitch about entering HEX keys. There is an option for a human readable ASCII key.
... why is HEX the default on most routers? Maybe more people would use WEP if they new they could use a passphrase. I have met countless people who are not complete neophytes who didn't know they could use ASCII.
Though thinking about it
what model? It works fine on my ibook, and on my roommates aluminum 15"
Just because some one leaves their front door unlocked doesn't make them stupid or naive (though it does make the poster) It just means they don't live in America suburbia. The majority of the world leaves their doors unlocked (actually I would love to see statistics on if the majority of the world even has a door).
Also, as has been posted repeatedly wardriving does not actually indicate that some one even passed packets on your network, it just means they passed by and took note of the existence of you network. Think of them as WAP cartographers.
You mean there are places there isn't free internet!? I will have to make sure I never move there.
By my recent drive through downtown (from the park down Oak, on to the bridge) It was almost exactly 50/50. Of the 500 networks i hit, 245 were open.
The amusing part is I hit 200 networks in that last 1/8th mile right when you get on the bay bridge. That has to be the highest density of AP's on earth.
I have to point out, that Apple, the first company to ship a AP that people bought, do by default ask you if you want WEP during the initial setup. It's one of those get what you pay for things. Apple charges more for their AP, but, they have a team of engineers, interface designers, and cognitive psychologists working on their product. Linksys probably just had one of their engineers do the interface.
I think of it as a karma thing. I use so many peoples networks around the city for free, I figure its just a given mine should be open. I actually don't understand why people do encrypt their networks. Nothing I do that matters ever travels over an unencryped connection, which is true for most others too. In the end, most of the data some one could grab even if my data was unencrypted could be stolen easier in the analog world.
Actually most labs don't throw away disposable film cameras either. They are designed to be easily opened with out damage and get sold back to remanufacturers for about $0.25 each. Same thing on the waste from most of the photo processing. The developer and rise chemicals are degradable organic chemicals, and the fix, which has all the heavy metals in it cannot be dumped legally and is full of silver so it is processed and the metals are extracted.
In the end conventional film cameras and processing are friendly on the environment than electronics manufacturing for a digital camera. Admitted there are processes out there that aren't, but not too many people out there shoot Kodachome or use pyro developer any more.
You do realize no school is going to roll a Linux distro school wide right? I don't mean to be an ass here but lets face reality? Could you see your administration doing that?
Didn't think so.
Believe it or not most schools do think about the real real tco on most purchases. My school recently replaced all the monitors on campus in all the labs. They went from crt's to lcd's ... the power bill will pay for it with in the life of the lcd.
That doesn't explain the mac's though really cause for some things the school doesn't care about tco. It really cares about what the school needs. What most schools need is what the teachers want. If your school doesn't have macs at all it is because your teachers don't request them . Most schools purchase on the department level. If the department wants it, it can order it.
What a waste of technology, putting an iPod in a BMW car. Now make an adapter that plugs in to my BMW Motorcycle and your talking.
So, I have successfully hammered screws in before. But, how the hell do you screw a nail in?
Earthlink is no longer related to the church if scientology. Sky Dayton's slimy ass left years ago. It is now just a regular run of the mill megacorporation who only cares about its stock holders.
None of the big players have been a wise moral decision ever. I don't have to even discus AOL, Nor MSN. The number 3 player Earthlink just fired thousands of employees and outsourced them to India (many friends of mine, I am a former Earthstink employee) And all the midsized players got bought by Earthlink either directly or in a round about way (Mindspring, Netcom, etc).
So, the big three are all just morally bad ideas. Stick with the locals and help pay some regular guys rent and car payment on his honda, and don't give your money to these megacorporations that don't care about their employees or customers.
Another alliterative that few people think about is to bury the outside coil 1-3 m deep. The temp of soil is about 10c at that depth year round. It can provide a much more efficient cooling effect. With a heat pump attached you can get even more cooling. It also works in reverse in the winter.
And as every one keeps saying. Contract an HVAC pro.
I forgot all about that (my 35mm is a uses alkaline so its a non issue)
Yes having to try to find zinc air batteries or dealing with a meter that is skewed because of incorrect voltages sucks.
The zinc air aren't perfect either, they are a few 1/10th of a volt off too.
Look for some thing that takes a-76's cells if you can.
Worse comes to worse you spend a $100 on a used spot meter and learn to meter really well too.
I have to agree with this. The K-1000 was a good camera. Other good alternatives are the Cannon AE1, the Nikon FM2, the Olympus OM1 or the Minolta X700. All were (are) excellent manual bodies that should give you years of use as well as the possibility for repair. They are also cheap enough to keep multiple bodies to keep different types of film in (just move the lenses around).
Many people are suggesting spending your hard earned $$ on lenses and getting a cheaper body. I can't stress this enough. The lens takes the picture, the body just holds film. Camera bodies top out at about $3,000 lenses top out at over $30,000. There is a reason. Good glass is worth its weight in gold.
The suggestion of a manual body over a automatic body is also very sound. You will have to learn how to take pictures instead of relying on the camera to do it for you. Some of the best photography schools make you learn on a 4x5 view camera. Basically a black box with a lens. (Think bugs bunny cartoons) After you lean to shoot manual well you will be able to shoot better over all.
Another consideration is film. I recommend picking 1 film and sticking with it to eliminate variables while you are learning. In addition if you shoot black and white you can develop it your self. You can learn a lot about your shooting by seeing and printing your own negatives.
Another "trick" is to shoot slide film until you can shoot it consistently and get good exposures. Slide film has much less room for error compared to print film, so you have to get it right the first time. You also get to see your images with out having to pay for or store prints. Given a few years you will learn prints are a pain to store.
His point about medium format is also valid, but, it can turn cost prohibitive. It is still fun to see a 6x6cm slide though.
Lastly no matter what gear you get, shoot lots. The more you shoot the better you get. And take notes on how you shot things. Its all a practice thing.
Later, when you are fully hooked on photography, and have the money, you can upgrade to a nice medium format with a digital back and take 22 megapixle photos too, but then you will appreciate why your shots look better than that idiot with a point and shoot.