Yes.... Think of the children... My GOD! Will Someone Please Think Of The CHILDREN?...
That being said, it is important to note that while the people who work on these games, producing that which gives so many fun hours to gamers are working for companies that tend to treat the customers like lepers.
Copy protection has NEVER been a deterrent to copying a game. Copy protection hurts only legitamate users. People who want to copy that game are going to figure a way around whether it is easy or not is not something they care about.
When I bought Civ3 gold, (really the only game I play) I found it had some dumbass, lame disc protection. Well, the first thing I did was image it, and toss it into DaemonTools, turned on the protection stuff, and away it went.
So how does that stop me from copying it? I was able to circumvent it with less that 5 minutes of effort, and with no other software than I had already. The trouble is, now I have to go through the motions of mounting the fucking image before I play. I should just find a no-cd crack, but that's a hassle too. Especially if you don't like to wade through the spyware infested pornholes that these things are found in.
Some retarded asshole in these game companies is thinking that the copy protection saved them even one pirated copy, that it would be worth it. Well, it didn't! It would be very very easy.
One of the other factors I note, is that a large number of software development houses are VASTLY underlicensed for their development tools. Hell, one place I did code audits for was using a cracked version of terminal services for crying out loud. It's nice to think of the poor, downtrodden developers in these companies, but they can (but obviously not always) be as guilty as those who rip off their wares.
THE BAG OF TRICKS. I have a 20 gig pocket drive I carry around with me these days. It started off as a couple of floppy disks in the early 90's, graduated to CD in the late 90s, and now I have this USB pocket drive. I keep on it all sorts of utilities and tools that I use to do things people just don't know how to do. Some of it is homegrown, some open source, some shareware. Stuff like the Sysinternals tools, etc. Collect these. Know How To Use Them.
SOURCE CONTROL. Real consultants know how to use source control and configuration management tools. The Good: CVS, Subversion. The Other Good: Clearcase, BitKeeper, Perforce, Starteam. The Bad: PVCS, Visual Source Safe. Get access to these types of things, and learn what they do and how they work. Don't try to come into a job and not know what they are, you will look unprofessional--if they wanted unprofessional they'd get an employee.
BE TECHNOLOGY AGNOSTIC. Your primary focus is MONEY, not the furthurance of a particular ethos or technology. If you are a Java Zealot today, you are going to look like quite the hypocrite when your next gig is a.NET project. I solved this one with the mantra: "All Software Sucks", therefore I don't really like any of it. When you are unattached from the technology, you sound like you have a broader experience, and are not a 1 trick pony.
LEARN THE HISTORY. Read lots of books about the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s software development. Steven Levy's HACKERS gives you a nice foundation. Read about IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, Sun, Borland, and all these companies that make up our world today. Learn who those major players are inside those companies. Who's the CEO, who calls the shots. Who Invented Java, C++, Perl, C#, Linux, etc... A broad understanding of the field you work in gives you insight into where it may head.
KNOW THY MACHINE. From circuts to desktops. How many times have you installed windows. Do you know where everthing is in the Registry? What are all those damn files for? How do device drivers work. What SDKs do you need to make software and drivers? Ever made bootable CD's from scratch? What do all those CMOS settings do? How many versions of Linux have you installed, and used? You should have at least become good at several, and understand the fundamental differences between them. Know editors: VI, Emacs, Notepad, etc.. Open up your computer. What does everything you see do?
Now for some Personality related items:
DON'T GET MAD OR ANGRY, and NEVER EVER CALL A PAST CLIENT STUPID OR RETARDED. When talking about past experiences, they should always be positive. You won't get hired for gigs if the client thinks that you are going to give them a bad rap later on too. You need to be professional and friendly, 100% of the time. You are not there to be potentially explosive. Contractors are disposable, if they don't like you they will drop you like last weeks laundry. Your #1 goal in this line is to Get along with people. Especially if you can't stand them.:p ohh! Read "How to win friends and influence people" by Dale Carnegie. VERY IMPORTANT.
Well, that's what I have on the top of my head. If I can think of some more I'll post again:)
I'll tell you some things I think you should know, and you can take it or leave it.
I don't have any post-secondary education, and I've never taken a class on anything Computer Science. I *have* worked my ass off on more platforms and languages than you can imagine.
First off, if you are going to be contractor/consultant, make sure that you are an expert in at least one field. Get jobs related to that. After that, keep learning. Become that expert in as many fields as possible.
Secondly, Always ask for too much money. It will improve your bargaining ability, and it will make your client think you are worth more than you really are.
quoting you: I realize that I might make signifigantly less, at least at first, than I could working for a company, but I would rather make less money and be more fulfilled working for myself.
Ha-ha. I'm not sure what it's like where you come from, but I made $161,000 last year. No shit.
It sounds like you need more experience before you start. My first jobs I literally fell right into, and secured myself a spot where someone needed my skills bad. You need to be needed, not just wanted.
Here's what I recommend to young folk wanting to make that mark:
ALWAYS BE INTERVIEWING. Take a full time job, but never stop looking.
ALWAYS BE READING. If you can't read Alot really fast, learn how. I don't know how I learned that, but I can blow through more text faster than pretty much anyone I know. It has saved my bacon more times than I can count. I worked for 11 months teaching C, C++, Java, and Unix for a company once, with extremely good results. The trick? I didn't know Java when they hired me, but I did two days later. You need to LEARN fast, not just read.
BE OUTSTANDING. If you can type 60+wpm, you won't look like a twit.
I've often thought that there were not too many options with desktop OSes in the corporate environment.
In order for it to make sense, it has to not impede the business. After that, pretty much is negotiable.
Replacing Windows, while it can be about money, I think in this day and age of JPEG exploits, really should be about safety.
And lets, face it, MacOS is going to be safer than Windows. Less Users, Less Virus/Exploits. It's got an interface that kicks ass, and a real OS underneath.
Linux is fantastic, but lacks that user-intuitiveness in the desktop that Windows and MacOS have. (One word: Clipboards). That, and it tends to be a roll your own solution out of the box.
I think companies would/could switch to another platform if it were properly canned, but we've really not seen this outside of MacOS yet. I'd be afraid of doing 7000 desktops without some sort of already proven solution, that was user-ready (That didn't involve Sun or the word "java":p).
I guess I'm just pining for a G5 iMac, wishing apple would drop the price a bit. The Mac Tax is about the same as the Microsoft Tax, and you don't get the option of buying beige.
The article doesn't say that they have a judgement for 1.06 billion, it says: "Eastman Kodak Co. will return to U.S. District Court next week to seek $1 billion in damages from Sun Microsystems Inc. now that a federal jury has ruled in its favor in a dispute over the Java computer language"
That being said, Kodak is appearing to be quite the assholes.
Kodak in pre-trial documents indicated it would ask for $1.06 billion in lump-sum royalties - a figure that represents half of Sun's operating profit from the sales of computer servers and storage equipment between January 1998 and June 2001. The argument: Java provides the engine for such computer equipment. Sun executives have publicly estimated that Java is a "key factor in 90 percent of Sun's sales," Kodak said.
Well, they're fucked now. Sun's products sell because of ANYTHING but Java. I'd buy Sun products to run Oracle, but not Java. Heh-heh. Sorry Kodak!
Additionally, I doubt that the patent applies to Java at all, and from Microsoft's perspective, it Won't apply to.NET, as the.NET infrastructure is built significantly different..NET bytecode is not passed to a VM at all, the technology for execution is extended into the system, and the PE executable format has been extended..NET bytecode runs on Windows. Mono, on the otherhand, does this more like Java. Who'da thunk that Mono's patent fears would come from Kodak instead of MS?
And finally, MS has a nice collection of bitch-smacking patents that it'd use against Kodak, in the event that push comes to shove over this anyway. I'm suprised Sun has been somewhat careless in this fashion. It should have a defensive patent collection to retaliate with.
Hmmm.... Patents are like Nuclear weapons. Everyone's got them, and the minute someone uses one, the whole world is fucked.
--
This profanity laden post was brought to you in anger as I sit trying to fix a Java to ActiveX COM integration problem in a Client's shitty app!
More Importantly, it is coming, just not how you beleive.
While the Black Death did indeed kill less numbers, it did kill 25 million people(over 5 years), where the 1918 flu killed upwards of 40 million in about a year.
The thing is the Black Death killed 1/3 of europe's population, fueling the greatest economic boom this planet has ever known (at least the one that didn't fall like the internet bubble).
Upcomming in the next quarter century is the death of the Baby Boomers. When they start to pass on, they will leave behind more money and jobs than you can possibly imagine. This will fuel a new era of real money the likes of which the modern world has never experienced. Unfortunatly, the government that is in power when this begins to happen is going to get credited with the economic boom that will happen, without actually doing anything.
Now, while the boomers don't represent 1/3 of the population, they nearly represent 1/3 of the weath, possibly causing the same sort of wealth redistribution that occured at the end of the Black Plauge. Trouble is, that the goods that North Americans will buy, will often be manufactured offshore, thereby moving the money off to other countries. Trouble with that? The governments of the last 40 years have been sucking the North American people dry, and the money that should rightly end up in the pockets of local producers, will move to their offshore competitors.
So, When you get your inheritance, Buy North American!... wow, neat rant...
Others have said it, check your local options first. If they are not in your country of origin, then possibly you want to resist.
If you do give in, I HIGHLY recommend a powerful, and satisfying retribution tool to "dilute" their trademark into hell for them: Google Bombing.
Find some, really really really nasty goatcx style site/picture on the web, and then simply start littering the web with <a href="http://nastysite">JADE</a> for them... Do it long enough, and they won't want the trademark anymore.
Jesus, when I see this shit on a sunday, I sure get mad about it.
I can't even run my Windows binaries full speed on Windows, how the fuck are they going to put MacOS binaries full speed on Windows?
Tell me that!
feh!
It pegged by BS meter before I got to the page. I'm pretty sure that it's going to be like the magical compression that can compress anything down to 256 bytes.
Slashdot: Fark's new Bitch.
on
They Killed Ken!
·
· Score: 0, Offtopic
Seriously,
If all/. is going to do is rerun posts on Fark.com, why bother.
Just put a link at the top of the page and be done with it.
Next thing you know,/. will have photoshop contests. And nude women....hmmm...
Is it Duct or Duck? We don't want you to be confused, so we will explain. The first name for Duct Tape was DUCK. During World War II the U.S. Military needed a waterproof tape to keep the moisture out of ammunition cases. So, they enlisted the Johnson and Johnson Permacel Division to manufacture the tape. Because it was waterproof, everyone referred to it as "duck" tape (like water off a duck's back). Military personnel discovered that the tape was good for lots more than keeping out water. They used it for Jeep repair, fixing stuff on their guns, strapping equipment to their clothing... the list is endless.
After the War, the housing industry was booming and someone discovered that the tape was great for joining the heating and air conditioning duct work. So, the color was changed from army green to the silvery color we are familiar with today and people started to refer to it as "duct tape*." Therefore, either name is appropriate.
I can't even finish this . That's how annoyed this makes me!
True, but where else can you be a dick and still get modded up to 5?
My Point, (posted before the doctor adjusted my litium dose) is that Microsoft specifically left a rather large margin of time for the gentleman to test Service Pack 2. With apparently little concern for the inevitable, he chose not to test before it went "Gold" -- a misnomer to be sure.
If he (and by extension, the company he works for) is unwilling or unable to test SP2 prerelease, maybe software development is not for him.
So, to those I offended with my snarky attitude, I am sorry. But, then again, I am also tired of the I'll wait attitude of others. Fair Exchange.:P
Is when a Prof thinks that the work is too high quality to have been submitted by university students. My prof assumed that my work had been copied directly from a textbook.
I didn't go to University until I was 26, having worked as a software development consultant for 8 years right out of highschool.
Having actually written many reports, briefs and mounds of documentation, I had learned more about writing than first year kiddies. The only thing that saved my bacon the day the Prof thought I was cheating, is when I engaged him in a very thourough conversation about the subject (Chemistry) and demonstrated that not only did I actually understand the current assignment, but I could articulate it very well.
But, it could have easily turned the other way. He didn't have anyplace to check the text, but if he had pressed the issue, then what?
I think in the future, students may be required to either (a) do the work in class [NOT LIKELY] or (b) submit notes and outlines along with their papers. -- Troublesome, 'cause I tend to do my thinking on the keyboard, and I don't generate useless extra paper.
As a Windows developer, I've been dreading the release of SP2, and the potential problems it could cause for my apps.
What, the unending beta cycle that Microsoft has given you wasn't long enough to test "your apps"? What have you been doing for the last fucking year?
But, I haven't found any sites for developers detailing issues that others have discovered! Are there any sites/forums that developers can consult when attempting to determine why their code doesn't work with SP2,
What? Are you really that slow?
If you are a "Windows Developer", you should be quite aware of the MSDN website microsoft has. In addition the microsoft public newsgroups have tons of answers.
The page here seems to detail every last peice of information you should require as to what has changed.
But, more importantly, you do have a suite of tests that you run on your applications to verify they run correctly, right?
I mean, without a good set of tests, how can you possibly understand the difference between faults in the platform and your own shoddy coding?
The link to the RIAA is not that far off of a leap of logic.
1. The companies represented by the RIAA have been required to "donate" cds to libraries.
2. The RIAA represented companies in their infinite cleverdom, are dumping cds of questionable content and lousy artistic merit on the libraries.
3. The AG decides that the CDs of questionable content are not to be accepted as part of the deal.
4. The ACLU steps in and says, "Hey, that's fucking censorship motherfucker!" -- At this point, who's fucking interests are they representing? (other than the ACLU's themselves") The people of Kansas certainly aren't going to benefit. Between the shitty CDs that they did accept, and the shitty questionable content they didn't, the residents are going to get fucked on both sides of this. Sure, the AG would have had a brain if he would have sent the entire back, and petitioned the judge for a boot to the head for the record companies, but what the hell?
5. So now, the ACLU opposing the AG on "general fucking principles" and the RIAA reap the benefit. So tell me, at what point does the ACLU grab their brains out of their ass, dust them off, and realize that some fights are not about universal truth and the one American way, but back off in the interests of Common fucking sense justice.
Are you *REALLY* that concerned that the Kansas (And let's face it this is Fucking Kansas, we're talking about here) AG has some holier-than-thou stick up his ass, more than the fact that the only one to benefit from the RIAA represented companies' actions is the RIAA companies themselves?
So, yes.
You are perfectly correct. The ACLU is not actually defending the RIAA represented companies. The ACLU is representing the "People of America" I guess. The RIAA represeted companies are simply the only ones to actually benefit from this.
From the ACLU's perspective, the State should accept all the damn CDs, and shut the fuck up. RIAA 1, Kansas 0.
From the States' perspective the State should at least get the option to say, take back the fucking profanity, and stick it in your rear. In which case the RIAA is still able to dump a quarter of a million copies of "Willenium" on the libraries. RIAA 1, Kansas 0.
Either way, Kansas get's fucked along with the rest of the states that took the deal.
So now, the RIAA gets to sit back, and not say a damnned thing, and let the ACLU fight their battle. Takes them out of the limelight for a moment, and the ACLU gets to suck it for a bit.
Any way you slice it, Common fucking sense should have prevailed, and the Record companies should have been required to deliver what the libraries wanted, as opposed to the other way around. Do you think that the libraries themselves would have asked for that content (and deprived themselves of federal funding?)
Feh.
Censor Shit or Bend over for corrupt America. Your choice Kansas. Election time is here.
1. The RIAA is funded well enough to fend for themselves. I don't imagine that they are *really* in need of the ACLU's assistance. It's quite a common theme in North American law for the rich (Corporations or People) to afford their own defence. Moreover, it's bad practice to routinely smack a dog(the RIAA) on the nose, and then try to pet it(The defence of the RIAA).
2. The RIAA is pissing the face of the Judgement against them, by trying to dump 4 million tonnes of audioshit onto the states which won the judgement against them in the first place. The judge should either be smacked in the head( ATTENTION VOTERS: GET OFF YOUR ASS. YOUR JUDGES ARE ELECTED) or he should find the RIAA in contempt(for violating the spirit of his order), which is certianly inside the scope of the Judge's ability.
3. Personally, I find a difference between the KKK's rights to "hold rallies, participate in "adopt a highway" programs and other such common sense objectionable" and the RIAA's foisting off objectionable material to public libraries. The KKK have a right to do those things, and then I have the right not to patronize that road, listen to their rallies, etc. The RIAA is putting giving (worthless) cds to the libraries, ones they would not have volentarily purchased. Then the libary has to either (1) control access to potentially "harmful"* materials (which is a pain in the ass for libraries to have to do) in order to receive Federal funding, or (2) not use them at all, which invalidates the reasoning behind the judgement in the first place.
Either way, the RIAA can go suck the southbound end of a northbound horse for all I care.
Feh.
*"harmful" -- After looking at the post, it may be construed that I actually give a shit as to what is harmful or not. I really don't, and I'm not some sort of whacked out uber conservative. I'm more interested in the application of two unheard of principals in the application of laws on this continent. Common Sense and Honesty -- Common Sense is that which more and more people (and by the extension of their ignorant voting: the judges) lack. Honesty is the concept that corporations should have a moral responsibility to the country (and the people from which they take so much and give so little), and act accordingly (not to follow the letter of the judgement, but the honest spirit, which they would instantly recognize with the application of fucking common sense).
Honesty and common sense, applied over the justice system would result in the bankruptcy of the Laywers tho' I imagine.
Is it just me, or doesn't the fact that the ACLU is hopping mad about this, due to the fact that it's censorship:
[from the article] The American Civil Liberties Union said the decision amounted to censorship.
"What he's doing is enforcing his concept of decency on libraries around the state of Kansas, and that's not his business," said Dick Kurtenbach, executive director of the ACLU in Kansas and western Missouri.
AAAHHGGHGHHG!!!! Sweet jesus mother fucker! The ACLU is defending the RIAA.
What!?
You know, americans have a funny sense of Justice. It seems that to americans, the "civil liberties" of large,abusive litigous scumsucking bastard organizations is more important than possibly stopping that same company from blatently violating the spirit of the judgement against them. Well, that and the shitty music they were trying to foist off on the states.
Y'know, sometimes I think it's ok to live in a backwoods country like Canada.
It appears from your list that CA has cleverly excluded the french from their little contest. Even the pseudo-french in Canada (Which as we all know, is the home to the largest collection of frechmen to never surrender to the Germans!):P
I've been constantly amazed by people imagining that version numbers on the Kernel, (Or other software for that matter) actually reflect anything other than a simple fact: A build at a point in time.
Read the kernel mailing list. Sure, as a version approaches, Linus makes an attempt to not include patches which have not undergone much testing, but the simple fact of the matter is that the Kernel is no less or more stable at 2.6.n version as it is in version 2.6.n-mm4, or 2.6.n-rc7 etc...
Versions in the kernel are really just "points in time" The apparent stability of a version is really perception as to what is working or what isn't, and is completely outside of the versioning.
What's worse, in order to facilitate the versioning mechanism, Kernel maintainers have moved closer to the 2.n.m-rc1234 bla bla bla in order to signify that the whole number m is "stable", which, just as often it isn't quite, and requires patches anyway.
Honestly, for my money Linus could either use 2.6.n.20040722 to signify his builds, and I'd be just as happy.
Aside notes: For those who used the 2.5.xx series and found it unstable, Did you report what unstability you had?
For those who tried the 2.6.xx serise and found unstability, did you report what unstability you had?
I think that when you claim that a version is unstable, you should back it up with what is wrong, and how it affected you, and pass that information forward to the developers. If you don't, you are robbing the developers of the very feedback they need. Complaining about it doesn't do much good if they don't know about it.
Slashdot Mirror
Yes.... Think of the children... My GOD! Will Someone Please Think Of The CHILDREN? ...
That being said, it is important to note that while the people who work on these games, producing that which gives so many fun hours to gamers are working for companies that tend to treat the customers like lepers.
Copy protection has NEVER been a deterrent to copying a game. Copy protection hurts only legitamate users. People who want to copy that game are going to figure a way around whether it is easy or not is not something they care about.
When I bought Civ3 gold, (really the only game I play) I found it had some dumbass, lame disc protection. Well, the first thing I did was image it, and toss it into DaemonTools, turned on the protection stuff, and away it went.
So how does that stop me from copying it? I was able to circumvent it with less that 5 minutes of effort, and with no other software than I had already. The trouble is, now I have to go through the motions of mounting the fucking image before I play. I should just find a no-cd crack, but that's a hassle too. Especially if you don't like to wade through the spyware infested pornholes that these things are found in.
Some retarded asshole in these game companies is thinking that the copy protection saved them even one pirated copy, that it would be worth it. Well, it didn't! It would be very very easy.
One of the other factors I note, is that a large number of software development houses are VASTLY underlicensed for their development tools. Hell, one place I did code audits for was using a cracked version of terminal services for crying out loud. It's nice to think of the poor, downtrodden developers in these companies, but they can (but obviously not always) be as guilty as those who rip off their wares.
Ok, I'm back ;)
.NET project. I solved this one with the mantra: "All Software Sucks", therefore I don't really like any of it. When you are unattached from the technology, you sound like you have a broader experience, and are not a 1 trick pony.
:p ohh! Read "How to win friends and influence people" by Dale Carnegie. VERY IMPORTANT.
:)
THE BAG OF TRICKS. I have a 20 gig pocket drive I carry around with me these days. It started off as a couple of floppy disks in the early 90's, graduated to CD in the late 90s, and now I have this USB pocket drive. I keep on it all sorts of utilities and tools that I use to do things people just don't know how to do. Some of it is homegrown, some open source, some shareware. Stuff like the Sysinternals tools, etc. Collect these. Know How To Use Them.
SOURCE CONTROL. Real consultants know how to use source control and configuration management tools. The Good: CVS, Subversion. The Other Good: Clearcase, BitKeeper, Perforce, Starteam. The Bad: PVCS, Visual Source Safe. Get access to these types of things, and learn what they do and how they work. Don't try to come into a job and not know what they are, you will look unprofessional--if they wanted unprofessional they'd get an employee.
BE TECHNOLOGY AGNOSTIC. Your primary focus is MONEY, not the furthurance of a particular ethos or technology. If you are a Java Zealot today, you are going to look like quite the hypocrite when your next gig is a
LEARN THE HISTORY. Read lots of books about the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s software development. Steven Levy's HACKERS gives you a nice foundation. Read about IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, Sun, Borland, and all these companies that make up our world today. Learn who those major players are inside those companies. Who's the CEO, who calls the shots. Who Invented Java, C++, Perl, C#, Linux, etc... A broad understanding of the field you work in gives you insight into where it may head.
KNOW THY MACHINE. From circuts to desktops. How many times have you installed windows. Do you know where everthing is in the Registry? What are all those damn files for? How do device drivers work. What SDKs do you need to make software and drivers? Ever made bootable CD's from scratch? What do all those CMOS settings do? How many versions of Linux have you installed, and used? You should have at least become good at several, and understand the fundamental differences between them. Know editors: VI, Emacs, Notepad, etc.. Open up your computer. What does everything you see do?
Now for some Personality related items:
DON'T GET MAD OR ANGRY, and NEVER EVER CALL A PAST CLIENT STUPID OR RETARDED. When talking about past experiences, they should always be positive. You won't get hired for gigs if the client thinks that you are going to give them a bad rap later on too. You need to be professional and friendly, 100% of the time. You are not there to be potentially explosive. Contractors are disposable, if they don't like you they will drop you like last weeks laundry. Your #1 goal in this line is to Get along with people. Especially if you can't stand them.
Well, that's what I have on the top of my head. If I can think of some more I'll post again
I've been an independant contractor for 14 years.
I started when I was 20.
I'll tell you some things I think you should know, and you can take it or leave it.
I don't have any post-secondary education, and I've never taken a class on anything Computer Science. I *have* worked my ass off on more platforms and languages than you can imagine.
First off, if you are going to be contractor/consultant, make sure that you are an expert in at least one field. Get jobs related to that. After that, keep learning. Become that expert in as many fields as possible.
Secondly, Always ask for too much money. It will improve your bargaining ability, and it will make your client think you are worth more than you really are.
quoting you:
I realize that I might make signifigantly less, at least at first, than I could working for a company, but I would rather make less money and be more fulfilled working for myself.
Ha-ha. I'm not sure what it's like where you come from, but I made $161,000 last year. No shit.
It sounds like you need more experience before you start. My first jobs I literally fell right into, and secured myself a spot where someone needed my skills bad. You need to be needed, not just wanted.
Here's what I recommend to young folk wanting to make that mark:
ALWAYS BE INTERVIEWING. Take a full time job, but never stop looking.
ALWAYS BE READING. If you can't read Alot really fast, learn how. I don't know how I learned that, but I can blow through more text faster than pretty much anyone I know. It has saved my bacon more times than I can count. I worked for 11 months teaching C, C++, Java, and Unix for a company once, with extremely good results. The trick? I didn't know Java when they hired me, but I did two days later. You need to LEARN fast, not just read.
BE OUTSTANDING. If you can type 60+wpm, you won't look like a twit.
oops, the wife just came back.
I'll post more later.
I've often thought that there were not too many options with desktop OSes in the corporate environment.
:p).
In order for it to make sense, it has to not impede the business. After that, pretty much is negotiable.
Replacing Windows, while it can be about money, I think in this day and age of JPEG exploits, really should be about safety.
And lets, face it, MacOS is going to be safer than Windows. Less Users, Less Virus/Exploits. It's got an interface that kicks ass, and a real OS underneath.
Linux is fantastic, but lacks that user-intuitiveness in the desktop that Windows and MacOS have. (One word: Clipboards). That, and it tends to be a roll your own solution out of the box.
I think companies would/could switch to another platform if it were properly canned, but we've really not seen this outside of MacOS yet. I'd be afraid of doing 7000 desktops without some sort of already proven solution, that was user-ready (That didn't involve Sun or the word "java"
I guess I'm just pining for a G5 iMac, wishing apple would drop the price a bit. The Mac Tax is about the same as the Microsoft Tax, and you don't get the option of buying beige.
*sigh*
The article doesn't say that they have a judgement for 1.06 billion, it says:
.NET, as the .NET infrastructure is built significantly different. .NET bytecode is not passed to a VM at all, the technology for execution is extended into the system, and the PE executable format has been extended. .NET bytecode runs on Windows. Mono, on the otherhand, does this more like Java. Who'da thunk that Mono's patent fears would come from Kodak instead of MS?
"Eastman Kodak Co. will return to U.S. District Court next week to seek $1 billion in damages from Sun Microsystems Inc. now that a federal jury has ruled in its favor in a dispute over the Java computer language"
That being said, Kodak is appearing to be quite the assholes.
Kodak in pre-trial documents indicated it would ask for $1.06 billion in lump-sum royalties - a figure that represents half of Sun's operating profit from the sales of computer servers and storage equipment between January 1998 and June 2001. The argument: Java provides the engine for such computer equipment. Sun executives have publicly estimated that Java is a "key factor in 90 percent of Sun's sales," Kodak said.
Well, they're fucked now. Sun's products sell because of ANYTHING but Java. I'd buy Sun products to run Oracle, but not Java. Heh-heh. Sorry Kodak!
Additionally, I doubt that the patent applies to Java at all, and from Microsoft's perspective, it Won't apply to
And finally, MS has a nice collection of bitch-smacking patents that it'd use against Kodak, in the event that push comes to shove over this anyway. I'm suprised Sun has been somewhat careless in this fashion. It should have a defensive patent collection to retaliate with.
Hmmm.... Patents are like Nuclear weapons. Everyone's got them, and the minute someone uses one, the whole world is fucked.
--
This profanity laden post was brought to you in anger as I sit trying to fix a Java to ActiveX COM integration problem in a Client's shitty app!
Um, Two Points.
:p
First,Run to the Trademark office, not the Patent office. (Next floor, first door on the left).
Secondly, What the fuck is expresso. I am aware of a coffee related drink called espresso, but maybe I'm just not hearing right this morning...
Are you SURE that it's PC friendly?
It's USB, sure, but nowhere did I see that it mentions using it on a PC.
Griffin Technology is a Mac shop by the looks of their product.
Without suitable drivers, this ain't gonna work on a PC.
--
The above post is null and void if someone points out the page where it says it works with a PC.
I just tried this with a bunch of things, and gave my home address.
It is FANTASTIC!
I'm truly impressed. That could be my favorite web app now!
COOL
More Importantly, it is coming, just not how you beleive.
... wow, neat rant ...
While the Black Death did indeed kill less numbers, it did kill 25 million people(over 5 years), where the 1918 flu killed upwards of 40 million in about a year.
The thing is the Black Death killed 1/3 of europe's population, fueling the greatest economic boom this planet has ever known (at least the one that didn't fall like the internet bubble).
Upcomming in the next quarter century is the death of the Baby Boomers. When they start to pass on, they will leave behind more money and jobs than you can possibly imagine. This will fuel a new era of real money the likes of which the modern world has never experienced. Unfortunatly, the government that is in power when this begins to happen is going to get credited with the economic boom that will happen, without actually doing anything.
Now, while the boomers don't represent 1/3 of the population, they nearly represent 1/3 of the weath, possibly causing the same sort of wealth redistribution that occured at the end of the Black Plauge. Trouble is, that the goods that North Americans will buy, will often be manufactured offshore, thereby moving the money off to other countries. Trouble with that? The governments of the last 40 years have been sucking the North American people dry, and the money that should rightly end up in the pockets of local producers, will move to their offshore competitors.
So, When you get your inheritance, Buy North American!
I wouldn't rush to comply.
Others have said it, check your local options first. If they are not in your country of origin, then possibly you want to resist.
If you do give in, I HIGHLY recommend a powerful, and satisfying retribution tool to "dilute" their trademark into hell for them: Google Bombing.
Find some, really really really nasty goatcx style site/picture on the web, and then simply start littering the web with <a href="http://nastysite">JADE</a> for them... Do it long enough, and they won't want the trademark anymore.
Jesus, when I see this shit on a sunday, I sure get mad about it.
Fuck. I *REALLY* need coffee.
I just realized I missed the O not the U.
That could have been funny, instead it wasn't.
Fuck.
...bla bla bla.. Pompus Asshole ...
I thought it was, but then I made the mistake of looking at the parent post.
Ah, well. Shit happens, life goes on.
Pity I got no comeback...
here: just for fun.
His name cannot be s :
Witty Retort Man: What no U?
His name cannot be s : No, just You!
ha ha ha...
Feh.. I need some coffee..
Yeah, this sucks.
Time to start a new google bomb:
Pompus Asshole
There!
That'll be some feat!
I can't even run my Windows binaries full speed on Windows, how the fuck are they going to put MacOS binaries full speed on Windows?
Tell me that!
feh!
It pegged by BS meter before I got to the page. I'm pretty sure that it's going to be like the magical compression that can compress anything down to 256 bytes.
Seriously,
/. is going to do is rerun posts on Fark.com, why bother.
/. will have photoshop contests. And nude women. ...hmmm...
:p
If all
Just put a link at the top of the page and be done with it.
Next thing you know,
Ok, I changed my mind! Keep posting like fark.
Unfortunatly for you, it's not DUCT tape it's DUCK tape.
:
as in "WATER OFF A FUCKING DUCK'S BACK" because it's somewhat water resistant.
see HERE
Is it Duct or Duck? We don't want you to be confused, so we will explain. The first name for Duct Tape was DUCK. During World War II the U.S. Military needed a waterproof tape to keep the moisture out of ammunition cases. So, they enlisted the Johnson and Johnson Permacel Division to manufacture the tape. Because it was waterproof, everyone referred to it as "duck" tape (like water off a duck's back). Military personnel discovered that the tape was good for lots more than keeping out water. They used it for Jeep repair, fixing stuff on their guns, strapping equipment to their clothing... the list is endless.
After the War, the housing industry was booming and someone discovered that the tape was great for joining the heating and air conditioning duct work. So, the color was changed from army green to the silvery color we are familiar with today and people started to refer to it as "duct tape*." Therefore, either name is appropriate.
I can't even finish this . That's how annoyed this makes me!
True, but where else can you be a dick and still get modded up to 5?
:P
My Point, (posted before the doctor adjusted my litium dose) is that Microsoft specifically left a rather large margin of time for the gentleman to test Service Pack 2. With apparently little concern for the inevitable, he chose not to test before it went "Gold" -- a misnomer to be sure.
If he (and by extension, the company he works for) is unwilling or unable to test SP2 prerelease, maybe software development is not for him.
So, to those I offended with my snarky attitude, I am sorry. But, then again, I am also tired of the I'll wait attitude of others. Fair Exchange.
Is when a Prof thinks that the work is too high quality to have been submitted by university students. My prof assumed that my work had been copied directly from a textbook.
I didn't go to University until I was 26, having worked as a software development consultant for 8 years right out of highschool.
Having actually written many reports, briefs and mounds of documentation, I had learned more about writing than first year kiddies. The only thing that saved my bacon the day the Prof thought I was cheating, is when I engaged him in a very thourough conversation about the subject (Chemistry) and demonstrated that not only did I actually understand the current assignment, but I could articulate it very well.
But, it could have easily turned the other way. He didn't have anyplace to check the text, but if he had pressed the issue, then what?
I think in the future, students may be required to either (a) do the work in class [NOT LIKELY] or (b) submit notes and outlines along with their papers. -- Troublesome, 'cause I tend to do my thinking on the keyboard, and I don't generate useless extra paper.
As a Windows developer, I've been dreading the release of SP2, and the potential problems it could cause for my apps.
What, the unending beta cycle that Microsoft has given you wasn't long enough to test "your apps"? What have you been doing for the last fucking year?
But, I haven't found any sites for developers detailing issues that others have discovered! Are there any sites/forums that developers can consult when attempting to determine why their code doesn't work with SP2,
What? Are you really that slow?
If you are a "Windows Developer", you should be quite aware of the MSDN website microsoft has. In addition the microsoft public newsgroups have tons of answers.
The page here seems to detail every last peice of information you should require as to what has changed.
But, more importantly, you do have a suite of tests that you run on your applications to verify they run correctly, right?
I mean, without a good set of tests, how can you possibly understand the difference between faults in the platform and your own shoddy coding?
feh!~
Origins of downloaded files logged
It's not a sinister as you seem to think.
IE simply straps another NTFS stream onto the file so that the shell can warn you that you are running a file that came from a particular source.
It doesn't log it anywere else (like a log file).
So, it's more like an origin-stamp on the file, rather than logging.
No, dumbass.
The link to the RIAA is not that far off of a leap of logic.
1. The companies represented by the RIAA have been required to "donate" cds to libraries.
2. The RIAA represented companies in their infinite cleverdom, are dumping cds of questionable content and lousy artistic merit on the libraries.
3. The AG decides that the CDs of questionable content are not to be accepted as part of the deal.
4. The ACLU steps in and says, "Hey, that's fucking censorship motherfucker!" -- At this point, who's fucking interests are they representing? (other than the ACLU's themselves") The people of Kansas certainly aren't going to benefit. Between the shitty CDs that they did accept, and the shitty questionable content they didn't, the residents are going to get fucked on both sides of this. Sure, the AG would have had a brain if he would have sent the entire back, and petitioned the judge for a boot to the head for the record companies, but what the hell?
5. So now, the ACLU opposing the AG on "general fucking principles" and the RIAA reap the benefit. So tell me, at what point does the ACLU grab their brains out of their ass, dust them off, and realize that some fights are not about universal truth and the one American way, but back off in the interests of Common fucking sense justice.
Are you *REALLY* that concerned that the Kansas (And let's face it this is Fucking Kansas, we're talking about here) AG has some holier-than-thou stick up his ass, more than the fact that the only one to benefit from the RIAA represented companies' actions is the RIAA companies themselves?
So, yes.
You are perfectly correct. The ACLU is not actually defending the RIAA represented companies. The ACLU is representing the "People of America" I guess. The RIAA represeted companies are simply the only ones to actually benefit from this.
From the ACLU's perspective, the State should accept all the damn CDs, and shut the fuck up. RIAA 1, Kansas 0.
From the States' perspective the State should at least get the option to say, take back the fucking profanity, and stick it in your rear. In which case the RIAA is still able to dump a quarter of a million copies of "Willenium" on the libraries. RIAA 1, Kansas 0.
Either way, Kansas get's fucked along with the rest of the states that took the deal.
So now, the RIAA gets to sit back, and not say a damnned thing, and let the ACLU fight their battle. Takes them out of the limelight for a moment, and the ACLU gets to suck it for a bit.
Any way you slice it, Common fucking sense should have prevailed, and the Record companies should have been required to deliver what the libraries wanted, as opposed to the other way around. Do you think that the libraries themselves would have asked for that content (and deprived themselves of federal funding?)
Feh.
Censor Shit or Bend over for corrupt America. Your choice Kansas. Election time is here.
A couple of things tho'
1. The RIAA is funded well enough to fend for themselves. I don't imagine that they are *really* in need of the ACLU's assistance. It's quite a common theme in North American law for the rich (Corporations or People) to afford their own defence. Moreover, it's bad practice to routinely smack a dog(the RIAA) on the nose, and then try to pet it(The defence of the RIAA).
2. The RIAA is pissing the face of the Judgement against them, by trying to dump 4 million tonnes of audioshit onto the states which won the judgement against them in the first place. The judge should either be smacked in the head( ATTENTION VOTERS: GET OFF YOUR ASS. YOUR JUDGES ARE ELECTED) or he should find the RIAA in contempt(for violating the spirit of his order), which is certianly inside the scope of the Judge's ability.
3. Personally, I find a difference between the KKK's rights to "hold rallies, participate in "adopt a highway" programs and other such common sense objectionable" and the RIAA's foisting off objectionable material to public libraries. The KKK have a right to do those things, and then I have the right not to patronize that road, listen to their rallies, etc. The RIAA is putting giving (worthless) cds to the libraries, ones they would not have volentarily purchased. Then the libary has to either (1) control access to potentially "harmful"* materials (which is a pain in the ass for libraries to have to do) in order to receive Federal funding, or (2) not use them at all, which invalidates the reasoning behind the judgement in the first place.
Either way, the RIAA can go suck the southbound end of a northbound horse for all I care.
Feh.
*"harmful" -- After looking at the post, it may be construed that I actually give a shit as to what is harmful or not. I really don't, and I'm not some sort of whacked out uber conservative. I'm more interested in the application of two unheard of principals in the application of laws on this continent. Common Sense and Honesty -- Common Sense is that which more and more people (and by the extension of their ignorant voting: the judges) lack. Honesty is the concept that corporations should have a moral responsibility to the country (and the people from which they take so much and give so little), and act accordingly (not to follow the letter of the judgement, but the honest spirit, which they would instantly recognize with the application of fucking common sense).
Honesty and common sense, applied over the justice system would result in the bankruptcy of the Laywers tho' I imagine.
Is it just me, or doesn't the fact that the ACLU is hopping mad about this, due to the fact that it's censorship:
[from the article]
The American Civil Liberties Union said the decision amounted to censorship.
"What he's doing is enforcing his concept of decency on libraries around the state of Kansas, and that's not his business," said Dick Kurtenbach, executive director of the ACLU in Kansas and western Missouri.
AAAHHGGHGHHG!!!! Sweet jesus mother fucker! The ACLU is defending the RIAA.
What!?
You know, americans have a funny sense of Justice. It seems that to americans, the "civil liberties" of large,abusive litigous scumsucking bastard organizations is more important than possibly stopping that same company from blatently violating the spirit of the judgement against them. Well, that and the shitty music they were trying to foist off on the states.
Y'know, sometimes I think it's ok to live in a backwoods country like Canada.
*sigh*
Excellent.
:P
Most Excellent.
It appears from your list that CA has cleverly excluded the french from their little contest. Even the pseudo-french in Canada (Which as we all know, is the home to the largest collection of frechmen to never surrender to the Germans!)
I've been constantly amazed by people imagining that version numbers on the Kernel, (Or other software for that matter) actually reflect anything other than a simple fact: A build at a point in time.
Read the kernel mailing list. Sure, as a version approaches, Linus makes an attempt to not include patches which have not undergone much testing, but the simple fact of the matter is that the Kernel is no less or more stable at 2.6.n version as it is in version 2.6.n-mm4, or 2.6.n-rc7 etc...
Versions in the kernel are really just "points in time" The apparent stability of a version is really perception as to what is working or what isn't, and is completely outside of the versioning.
What's worse, in order to facilitate the versioning mechanism, Kernel maintainers have moved closer to the 2.n.m-rc1234 bla bla bla in order to signify that the whole number m is "stable", which, just as often it isn't quite, and requires patches anyway.
Honestly, for my money Linus could either use 2.6.n.20040722 to signify his builds, and I'd be just as happy.
Aside notes:
For those who used the 2.5.xx series and found it unstable, Did you report what unstability you had?
For those who tried the 2.6.xx serise and found unstability, did you report what unstability you had?
I think that when you claim that a version is unstable, you should back it up with what is wrong, and how it affected you, and pass that information forward to the developers. If you don't, you are robbing the developers of the very feedback they need. Complaining about it doesn't do much good if they don't know about it.
I thinks I rant too much