What I didn't like about Wesley (note: I never actually hated Wesley) wasn't so much the character as the fact that it felt like the studio was pandering to the crowd. They took a character that could have been really interesting if developed correctly and instead tried to fashion him into an instant geek icon. They knew that they had a huge adult fan base and it was as if they were trying to pull in a teenage audience by saying, "hey, Wesley's a geek just like you, and he gets to fly a spaceship!!! Isn't that cool? I bet you all can identify with him, right?"
I think they missed out on a lot of development that Wesley could have had. Prodigy or not, the type of pressure he was under would have been a lot for a teenager to handle. It would have been neat to have Wes have the occasional meltdown, rebellious phase, or depressions, while slowly growing more confident and self-assured as time went on. Okay, they did do a little of that, but they could have done more. He also should have made mistakes... sometimes really big ones. Instead, they made him instantly and completely capable of doing pretty much anything he wanted to.
I think a lot of the Wesley hatred can be tracked back to a mishandled character. He just wasn't written very realistically... and yes, I do realize how silly it is to talk about realistic characters in Sci-Fi.
It's funny, because I think that big business missed the boat there. Many people who smoke own their own plants, but there is almost no one who smokes cigarettes and grows their own tobacco. If it's legalized, then the number of plant-growers will increase dramatically, I believe. They should never have driven it underground if they wanted to control it, because now the distribution is beyond their control.
In my opinion, the same thing will happen with peer-to-peer. The industry's attempt to drive it away is driving it underground, and thus out of their control.
If you really want to have fun, switch some of the keys around. Spell out something funny while you're at it. Anyone who's a "hunt-and-peck" style typist will have their productivity cut to about 10% of normal.
That gives me an idea for an "upgrade" actually... time to work on some co-workers' boards >:-)
I think its funny that they always make sure to note that it's an outside company... in my opinion, it doesn't really matter if it's an outside vendor or not, the company who owns the data is still responsible for the security of that information. Are the vendor's procedures inadequate? Well, it was your company's job to find that out before contracting with them. Were they not following procedures? Well, it's your company's job to check up on them and make sure they're following them.
Honestly, I'd like to see all of the victims of ID theft get together and start filing class-actions against the companies that allow this sort of thing to happen. Maybe if we start hitting them in the pocketbook, these companies will start taking data security seriously.
Any environmentalists who protest the destruction/diversion of an earth-impacting asteroid should be launched into space, in the hopes that the impact of their frozen corpses will deflect the asteroid just enough to make it miss the planet.
We don't need hundreds or thousands of people... just a racially diverse mix of a couple dozen or so fairly young women, and a wide variety of frozen semen. You let the colony grow from there. After all, if all we're interested in is ensuring the survival of humanity, then we don't need to move our current population off planet, we just need a small "seed" population somewhere else.
Are you sure about that? When I worked in retail, every time I ever called the police to report a shoplifter, the officer who responded made sure to tell me that I was the one pressing the charges, and that if it turned out that I was blowing smoke, I would be the one to face the false arrest liability, not the officer.
A store CAN do something (have you charged with theft) but often will not do so without very good evidence. If they're not SURE you stole something, they'd better pray that you're actually guilty, or they're likely to be hit with a false arrest charge and sued.
As far as I know, there is no law or ordinance anywhere in the US that requires a person to stop and wait for security to show up when an alarm goes off. Which is why I just keep walking if I get a false positive. I've never had a problem with it. Security won't typically tackle you, because an assault charge is no fun for anyone.
The funny thing was, I was getting a lot of false positives for a while. I couldn't figure it out. I finally realized that the wallet I had bought a few weeks earlier had an active security device still in it. It was pretty well hidden (behind a flap in the wallet that I didn't realize was something that could be opened), or I would have removed it earlier. I kept the device after I removed it, just in case I ever decided I wanted to mess with store security:)
"For PS2 players, that meant they had to spend $100 to buy a new hard drive, too."
That is incorrect, although I don't blame you for not knowing that. You can use another set of CD keys to set up a new Playonline ID, and it doesn't matter if it is a PS2 CD Key or a PC CD Key. You can buy the PC version and set up an account on the playstation with no problems. It's not exactly an obvious solution to the problem, so it's not surprising you didn't know.
Yeah, I can understand that. Those things look a lot like all those advertising-based free papers (like the For Rent and Now Hiring ones). Which is why we kept the auto traders in with the regular magazines, to try and cut down on that type of thing:)
This guy, though... I watched him the entire time while he was in the store. It was obvious to me that he knew what he was doing was wrong.
Let me see if I can clear up some of your delusions. First of all, NO THEFT IS OK! Second of all, as I said, there was a LOT of theft there, we just never could catch anyone. Third, and I didn't state this (didn't think I'd need to qualify myself, honestly) but the person I called the cops on was one of the people who regularly came in and shoplifted from us, which we suspected but could never prove. He made the mistake of bragging about it to some folks in the neighborhood, though, and we heard about it. Therefore, a determination was made that we would be keeping a very close eye on that particular loser, and nail him the first chance we got, for ANY infraction.
After the minor theft that we DID nail him for, we prevented all the theft that would have followed (he was officially banned from the premesis after that) and demonstrated to all the neighborhood kids that he bragged to that, while you may get away with shoplifting occasionally, eventually you WILL get busted, charges WILL be pressed.
What's pathetic is someone who is not in full possesion of the fact flying off the handle and calling other people names. You may want to keep that truth close to your heart before posting again.
Absolutely true. I've worked in retail and I KNOW that there was a lot of product walking out. But our management told us, never NEVER attempt to detain someone unless you actually saw them take an item off the shelf, hide it on their person, and try to leave the store without paying. Oh, and you had to keep them under observation the whole time, to make sure that they didn't remove the item from their person before leaving. The losses are insured, the false imprisonment charges and any following lawsuits are not. I think I called the police once, on a guy who stole a $0.95 auto-trader magazine. It was pretty funny:)
I tried this once on a cat at home (not one of my favorites, fortunately). The cat landed on it's feet at the same time that the bread landed buttered-side down, causing a small tear in space time that instantly pulled the cat, toast, butter container, miscellaneous dishes, the toaster, and 3/4ths of a city block into a parallel dimension where old adages aren't always true. I can't imagine the horror of trying to live in such a place!
I have no problem with that. It would be worth it to have to retest say, every 5 years, if the test actually started to clear the incompetents off the road. And mandatory re-testing for every traffic incident, whether it's a fender-bender, severe swerving, speeding, etc. Any incident where the driver's competence could be called into question. There are some damned scary drivers out there... the thought of a ticket doesn't slow them down, but maybe the inconvenience of a re-test would.
I agree, to a point... Where I live, there are options available(Metro Mobility, bus, etc.) which, although inconvenient, can get an older person almost anywhere. Yet, older folks around here still fight tooth and nail to retain their driving "rights". When a lot of elderly people say they can't survive without a car, they mean they can't live as convieniently without a car. Public transportation improvements alone are not enough, since many seniors would refuse to take it.
As far as having elderly people drive... my Grandmother is already at the point where I consider her a hazard to public safety, even though she's convinced that she's a good driver. My Aunts and Uncles are afraid to pressure her into quitting driving (they might make her MAD or something! the horror!). I told them that I would talk to her about it, because her independance is not worth the lives of the family that she might kill because she got distracted at the wrong time or couldn't react quickly enough in an emergency.
I've already told my own mother that I'm taking the keys away when she gets too old. If her reaction is any indication as to how it will go when I actually try, then I'm sure to be in for a fight on that one...
Walking into a theater and watching a movie without paying wouldn't be theft, but it could be trespassing (depending on how you got in). Similarly, downloading a movie without paying for it is not theft, but it could be copyright infringement, depending on the circumstances. By calling it "Theft", movie studios and record companies are trying to make it seem like a much more sinister issue then it really is. I'm not saying downloading someone else's content without their consent is ok, but let's call it what it is. The problem is (for the MP/RIAA), "Copyright infringement" does not have the same dramatic ring as "theft" or "pirating"
Now that I think of it, simply downloading music, movies, or whatever does not violate copyright. It's the unauthorized distribution that is against copyright, not the unauthorized acquisition.
"spawning a really big monster instead that simply wipes out all the campers"
I really like that idea... something roughly as strong as Bloodtear Baldurf that spawns randomly in place of spawns like Lizzie or Argus. Of course, something that powerful would wreak havok if it spawned in a place like Gustaberg (all those poor low-levels!) but maybe it could be set to automatically ignore anyone under level 12 (and viciously attack anyone over it:)
Slashdot Mirror
Aw, crap... I've been reading the wrong horoscope for years... no wonder it never seemed accurate!
I think they missed out on a lot of development that Wesley could have had. Prodigy or not, the type of pressure he was under would have been a lot for a teenager to handle. It would have been neat to have Wes have the occasional meltdown, rebellious phase, or depressions, while slowly growing more confident and self-assured as time went on. Okay, they did do a little of that, but they could have done more. He also should have made mistakes... sometimes really big ones. Instead, they made him instantly and completely capable of doing pretty much anything he wanted to.
I think a lot of the Wesley hatred can be tracked back to a mishandled character. He just wasn't written very realistically... and yes, I do realize how silly it is to talk about realistic characters in Sci-Fi.
In my opinion, the same thing will happen with peer-to-peer. The industry's attempt to drive it away is driving it underground, and thus out of their control.
That gives me an idea for an "upgrade" actually... time to work on some co-workers' boards >:-)
Wake me when they convert everything to Sub-Etha ;)
The "Last Orders" line was in there, it was (barely) audible as Ford was running away from the pub after Arthur left.
Honestly, I'd like to see all of the victims of ID theft get together and start filing class-actions against the companies that allow this sort of thing to happen. Maybe if we start hitting them in the pocketbook, these companies will start taking data security seriously.
Any environmentalists who protest the destruction/diversion of an earth-impacting asteroid should be launched into space, in the hopes that the impact of their frozen corpses will deflect the asteroid just enough to make it miss the planet.
We don't need hundreds or thousands of people... just a racially diverse mix of a couple dozen or so fairly young women, and a wide variety of frozen semen. You let the colony grow from there. After all, if all we're interested in is ensuring the survival of humanity, then we don't need to move our current population off planet, we just need a small "seed" population somewhere else.
Are you sure about that? When I worked in retail, every time I ever called the police to report a shoplifter, the officer who responded made sure to tell me that I was the one pressing the charges, and that if it turned out that I was blowing smoke, I would be the one to face the false arrest liability, not the officer.
You and I must buy our wallets at the same place... Did you keep your anti-theft device, too? :)
A store CAN do something (have you charged with theft) but often will not do so without very good evidence. If they're not SURE you stole something, they'd better pray that you're actually guilty, or they're likely to be hit with a false arrest charge and sued.
The funny thing was, I was getting a lot of false positives for a while. I couldn't figure it out. I finally realized that the wallet I had bought a few weeks earlier had an active security device still in it. It was pretty well hidden (behind a flap in the wallet that I didn't realize was something that could be opened), or I would have removed it earlier. I kept the device after I removed it, just in case I ever decided I wanted to mess with store security :)
That is incorrect, although I don't blame you for not knowing that. You can use another set of CD keys to set up a new Playonline ID, and it doesn't matter if it is a PS2 CD Key or a PC CD Key. You can buy the PC version and set up an account on the playstation with no problems.
It's not exactly an obvious solution to the problem, so it's not surprising you didn't know.
This guy, though... I watched him the entire time while he was in the store. It was obvious to me that he knew what he was doing was wrong.
After the minor theft that we DID nail him for, we prevented all the theft that would have followed (he was officially banned from the premesis after that) and demonstrated to all the neighborhood kids that he bragged to that, while you may get away with shoplifting occasionally, eventually you WILL get busted, charges WILL be pressed.
What's pathetic is someone who is not in full possesion of the fact flying off the handle and calling other people names. You may want to keep that truth close to your heart before posting again.
Absolutely true. I've worked in retail and I KNOW that there was a lot of product walking out. But our management told us, never NEVER attempt to detain someone unless you actually saw them take an item off the shelf, hide it on their person, and try to leave the store without paying. Oh, and you had to keep them under observation the whole time, to make sure that they didn't remove the item from their person before leaving. The losses are insured, the false imprisonment charges and any following lawsuits are not. :)
I think I called the police once, on a guy who stole a $0.95 auto-trader magazine. It was pretty funny
I tried this once on a cat at home (not one of my favorites, fortunately). The cat landed on it's feet at the same time that the bread landed buttered-side down, causing a small tear in space time that instantly pulled the cat, toast, butter container, miscellaneous dishes, the toaster, and 3/4ths of a city block into a parallel dimension where old adages aren't always true. I can't imagine the horror of trying to live in such a place!
"Soylent Diesel is PEOPLE!!!!!"
I've heard the same rumors about Vin Diesel, and I'm not buying it.
87% of all stats on slashdot are made up on the spot.
I have no problem with that. It would be worth it to have to retest say, every 5 years, if the test actually started to clear the incompetents off the road. And mandatory re-testing for every traffic incident, whether it's a fender-bender, severe swerving, speeding, etc. Any incident where the driver's competence could be called into question. There are some damned scary drivers out there... the thought of a ticket doesn't slow them down, but maybe the inconvenience of a re-test would.
As far as having elderly people drive... my Grandmother is already at the point where I consider her a hazard to public safety, even though she's convinced that she's a good driver. My Aunts and Uncles are afraid to pressure her into quitting driving (they might make her MAD or something! the horror!). I told them that I would talk to her about it, because her independance is not worth the lives of the family that she might kill because she got distracted at the wrong time or couldn't react quickly enough in an emergency.
I've already told my own mother that I'm taking the keys away when she gets too old. If her reaction is any indication as to how it will go when I actually try, then I'm sure to be in for a fight on that one...
I'm guessing... Microsoft?
I'm not saying downloading someone else's content without their consent is ok, but let's call it what it is. The problem is (for the MP/RIAA), "Copyright infringement" does not have the same dramatic ring as "theft" or "pirating"
Now that I think of it, simply downloading music, movies, or whatever does not violate copyright. It's the unauthorized distribution that is against copyright, not the unauthorized acquisition.
I really like that idea... something roughly as strong as Bloodtear Baldurf that spawns randomly in place of spawns like Lizzie or Argus. Of course, something that powerful would wreak havok if it spawned in a place like Gustaberg (all those poor low-levels!) but maybe it could be set to automatically ignore anyone under level 12 (and viciously attack anyone over it :)