PBS used to be almost completely dependent on congress. Now it is not. Individuals / organizations who want to contribute can do so with confidence. And they do. It gives people a concrete target for their generosity.
I know, $126K is nothing. Think of it as seed money. How many of us would leave a few sheckels in our wills to an OSS trust-fund? I would. It adds up.
Have a small committee decide on how to preserve and use the money to best serve the OSS community.
When the unexpected legal expenses occur (the next SCO), draw from this area. Use it to help continue vital but non-glamerous projects. Use it for counter-lobbying in Washington. Worthy international charities. OSS-friendly academic programs. Purchasing closed software projects to open, as blender was.
Someone feel like authoring a manifesto, writing up a plan? Make this real, do it right and I will give money to it. And you might too.
NASA's budget has been a political football since it was started. Currently, it's cut to very little. They are talking about closing parts of the ISS. For budgetary reasons.
Does anyone reading this actually think that in 30 short years NASA will be put above politics, get proper funding, discover intelligent management, escape from hyde-bound buerocracy, develop functional nanotechnology capable of teraforming a planet and doing it right?
Remember, 30 years AGO, we were all expecting to have bases on the moon by now. Unearth some of those plans and weep.
But don't ask anyone to be excited about this one. This is nothing but ink on paper, drawn with the rosiest of contact lenses.
I'll make a technology prediction about 30 years from now: if our species still exists, there will still be politics and politicians who are willing to exploit the fears of the Great Unwashed and skuttle real technological development and advancement in the name of short-term political gain.
I took up my prozac with exlax this morning. Now I can't get off the toilet, but I feel good about it.
But he's given enough of what he stole to decent charities that I say let him be crowned or sainted or venerated by the sort of people who do that sort of thing. As long as he keeps giving to charities, I just don't care.
>"... proving yet again that the day of the >machines has not yet arrived."
Why do people think these games "prove" anything? Go ahead, "prove" that man is smarter than machine or vice versa. It's a game. It's not AI. We can't even agree on what native human intelligence is, much less artificial intelligence. A different class of problem.
BITNET was IBM's RSCS network, pre-TCP/IP. Back in the day, this was the Internet, no joke. BITNET got completely whacked by a virus back around 79 or 80(?).
Around Xmas, someone wrote a script that displayed a pretty Xmas tree... then mailed itself to everyone in your address book. (Sound familiar?)
One is a huge, slow-moving, ultra-conservative, monolithic bureauocracy which has recently been forced by circumstance to open up to unconveltional methods...
... And while some have shown skepticism of the usefulness or even safety of the massive networking project, voices at the Pentagon are enthusiastic. "This will be the end of networking issues as we know it. EVeryhting will be different after tomorrow."
On the small chance that this message is not a troll... I'll submit a few reasons why a moon base would NOT be dumb.
You asked if a bas on the moon would be "practical, usefull, or economically feasable".
"Practical"
Let's see: - a nearly unlimited source of steel and other useful materials - no steep gravity well - lack of atmosphere means very efficient solar power collection, practically free energy - the moon is much closer than Mars Mean distance to moon: 384,000 km Mean Distance to Mars: 78,300,000 km Shortest possible Distance to Mars: 56,000,000 km
"Useful"
Some Idiot: "What use is this electromagnotism, Mr Faraday?" Faraday: "What use is a baby?"
The moon could be a staging area for larger trips, a cheap builing area for large structures and more. Commerse. Research. (yes, and tourism too).
"Economically Feasible"
How great inventions or explorations were able to turn a cash profit from day one? Isn't this a somewhat goofy yardstick for the worthiness of a human endevour?
Right now, it costs a bundle to move a pound of steel into space from earth. From the moon, it would be almost free.
And if that's not enough:
I want out species to survive. Genetically, we have all of our eggs in one basket. One accident, one asteroid, one war, one mishap with a supercollider or a nanobot or a designer virus, and we're gone. No backup. Gone. Any backup today is better than a great backup "real soon now".
Re:Young coders have no life
on
Ageism in IT?
·
· Score: 1
>Its easier to sqeeze 80+ hrs out of someone with out kids, house and a wife.
Depends on the wife.
=brian
Why hire young?
on
Ageism in IT?
·
· Score: 5, Insightful
Why hire young?
Younger IT workers will often put in absurd unpaid overtime, where most older workers won't.
Younger workers just out of college will often take a job at a low salary for the experience. Older workers won't.
Younger workers are often have more exposure to cutting edge tech than older workers who cut their teeth on cobol, jcl and basic.
Younger workers have lower expectations about benefits, perks, salary, etc than older workers who can remember the 'good old days' of 5 years ago.
Older workers are more likely to have children, families, in short lives. Younger workers are more likely to drop everything and fix that server at 3:00 AM.
Older workers have seen many managers pull many tricks, know how to spot them and how to deal with them. Younger workers are generally more pliable.
This dam was very pricey, I think it was more than 25 billion USD. They could have built, say, 10 real big dams with that same money.
The dam is so far from major population centers that much of the energy generated (I think one third) will be lost in transit. Not too efficient.
Remember that China is largely a cleptocracy (gov't of theives). Corruption is the rule, not the exception. You can't get... a driver's license without bribing some official somewhere. This is not a criticism, just a statement of fact. It's Not Like Over Here.
Even the gov't admits there has been a lot of corruption involved in the construction. Imaging the temptation to mix in an extra 1% of sand in the concrete. Or to use slightly impure steel in the rebar.
Hundreds of millions in USD could be skimmed off the top. Tempting. Engineers don't plan for that sort of thing.
Slashdot Mirror
Edge of mantle != center of the earth. Mantle = ~3000 km, outer core = ~ 5000 km, inner core = ~5000 km.
Reaching the mantle is very impressive. Just keep it in perspective.
PBS used to be almost completely dependent on congress. Now it is not. Individuals / organizations who want to contribute can do so with confidence. And they do. It gives people a concrete target for their generosity.
I know, $126K is nothing. Think of it as seed money. How many of us would leave a few sheckels in our wills to an OSS trust-fund? I would. It adds up.
Have a small committee decide on how to preserve and use the money to best serve the OSS community.
When the unexpected legal expenses occur (the next SCO), draw from this area. Use it to help continue vital but non-glamerous projects. Use it for counter-lobbying in Washington. Worthy international charities. OSS-friendly academic programs. Purchasing closed software projects to open, as blender was.
Someone feel like authoring a manifesto, writing up a plan? Make this real, do it right and I will give money to it. And you might too.
=brian
That would save me at least 4 mouse clicks.
=brian
=cows are strangely attracted to me=
Reuters must be happy. It's about to gain a serious foot up on AP.
What were they thinking?
... bad drugs. Real bad drugs.
Some twisted creature wrote that. They can vote. And they might have kids.
I'm moving to Canada.
NASA's budget has been a political football since it was started. Currently, it's cut to very little. They are talking about closing parts of the ISS. For budgetary reasons.
Does anyone reading this actually think that in 30 short years NASA will be put above politics, get proper funding, discover intelligent management, escape from hyde-bound buerocracy, develop functional nanotechnology capable of teraforming a planet and doing it right?
Remember, 30 years AGO, we were all expecting to have bases on the moon by now. Unearth some of those plans and weep.
But don't ask anyone to be excited about this one. This is nothing but ink on paper, drawn with the rosiest of contact lenses.
I'll make a technology prediction about 30 years from now: if our species still exists, there will still be politics and politicians who are willing to exploit the fears of the Great Unwashed and skuttle real technological development and advancement in the name of short-term political gain.
I took up my prozac with exlax this morning. Now I can't get off the toilet, but I feel good about it.
Never assume malace when simple incompetence will do.
Which is more likely? Do we really need a conspiracy to explain this?
But he's given enough of what he stole to decent charities that I say let him be crowned or sainted or venerated by the sort of people who do that sort of thing. As long as he keeps giving to charities, I just don't care.
=brian
I'm beginning to think he's somewhat biased.
Brother, I understand your point, but I really don't like the way you express it. At all.
I would really like to keep this kind of crap off slashdot. The rest of the internet is a toilet. Save it for there. Thanks.
>TomsNetworking will return as soon as our
>slashdot initiation is finished...
Initiation. Nice word that.
>"... proving yet again that the day of the
>machines has not yet arrived."
Why do people think these games "prove" anything? Go ahead, "prove" that man is smarter than machine or vice versa. It's a game. It's not AI. We can't even agree on what native human intelligence is, much less artificial intelligence. A different class of problem.
BITNET was IBM's RSCS network, pre-TCP/IP. Back in the day, this was the Internet, no joke. BITNET got completely whacked by a virus back around 79 or 80(?).
... then mailed itself to everyone in your address book. (Sound familiar?)
Around Xmas, someone wrote a script that displayed a pretty Xmas tree
Dropped all of BITNET like a stone for days.
I'd use mine for the SCO legal team.
Or perhaps for Bill "Security of Job One" Gates.
=brian
... Cockaroaches ARE WMDs.
"Oh good, here come the Americans with a nasty disease carrying pest which can not be killed."
Not From Concentrate.
One is a huge, slow-moving, ultra-conservative, monolithic bureauocracy which has recently been forced by circumstance to open up to unconveltional methods ...
and the other is Russia.
=brian
... the Sun.
=brian
Hmm... how if you had, say 60 seconds to do it in, ... and a gun was to your head, .... and you were getting an expert hummer at the time, ...
Now THAT could be challenging.
... And while some have shown skepticism of the usefulness or even safety of the massive networking project, voices at the Pentagon are enthusiastic. "This will be the end of networking issues as we know it. EVeryhting will be different after tomorrow."
"entirely transparent to users ... "
The first time I recall hearing that phrase was when my university switched form WYLBUR to VM/CMS.
I suspect it is as true now as it was then.
Anybody remember Paper Tape?
=brian
On the small chance that this message is not a troll... I'll submit a few reasons why a moon base would NOT be dumb.
You asked if a bas on the moon would be "practical, usefull, or economically feasable".
"Practical"
Let's see:
- a nearly unlimited source of steel and other useful materials
- no steep gravity well
- lack of atmosphere means very efficient solar power collection, practically free energy
- the moon is much closer than Mars
Mean distance to moon: 384,000 km
Mean Distance to Mars: 78,300,000 km
Shortest possible Distance to Mars: 56,000,000 km
"Useful"
Some Idiot: "What use is this electromagnotism, Mr Faraday?"
Faraday: "What use is a baby?"
The moon could be a staging area for larger trips, a cheap builing area for large structures and more. Commerse. Research. (yes, and tourism too).
"Economically Feasible"
How great inventions or explorations were able to turn a cash profit from day one? Isn't this a somewhat goofy yardstick for the worthiness of a human endevour?
Right now, it costs a bundle to move a pound of steel into space from earth. From the moon, it would be almost free.
And if that's not enough:
I want out species to survive. Genetically, we have all of our eggs in one basket. One accident, one asteroid, one war, one mishap with a supercollider or a nanobot or a designer virus, and we're gone. No backup. Gone. Any backup today is better than a great backup "real soon now".
Hatch, a Pirate?
Of course not. He's a politician.
Pirates work for a living.
>Its easier to sqeeze 80+ hrs out of someone with out kids, house and a wife.
Depends on the wife.
=brian
Why hire young?
Younger IT workers will often put in absurd unpaid overtime, where most older workers won't.
Younger workers just out of college will often take a job at a low salary for the experience. Older workers won't.
Younger workers are often have more exposure to cutting edge tech than older workers who cut their teeth on cobol, jcl and basic.
Younger workers have lower expectations about benefits, perks, salary, etc than older workers who can remember the 'good old days' of 5 years ago.
Older workers are more likely to have children, families, in short lives. Younger workers are more likely to drop everything and fix that server at 3:00 AM.
Older workers have seen many managers pull many tricks, know how to spot them and how to deal with them. Younger workers are generally more pliable.
=brian
This dam was very pricey, I think it was more than 25 billion USD. They could have built, say, 10 real big dams with that same money.
... a driver's license without bribing some official somewhere. This is not a criticism, just a statement of fact. It's Not Like Over Here.
The dam is so far from major population centers that much of the energy generated (I think one third) will be lost in transit. Not too efficient.
Remember that China is largely a cleptocracy (gov't of theives). Corruption is the rule, not the exception. You can't get
Even the gov't admits there has been a lot of corruption involved in the construction. Imaging the temptation to mix in an extra 1% of sand in the concrete. Or to use slightly impure steel in the rebar.
Hundreds of millions in USD could be skimmed off the top. Tempting. Engineers don't plan for that sort of thing.
Folks, why don't we all share one big mainframe?
=brian