For example, if you asked me a week ago the origin of chopsticks I (like most people) would have responded China, or parts nearby. Now this totally neglects the less-than-common knowledge that they were actually created in America in the 1800s by immigrants to mining communities as a means of differentiating their restaurants from more common fare, and have caught on in Asia to the point of accounting for over 2.5% of our lumber exports!
Where on earth did you get that bit of mis-information from? See here and
here and even
here.
Okay, I'll buy that as a source of information becomes more reputable the impact of each bit of erroneous information becomes greater but I still think that the overall contribution to the common good is great enough to make it worth the risk.
Wikipedia is also a flawed process for creating an accurate encylopedia. Although vast quantities of content are created, many interested things added, the passage of time and the enlargement of Wikipedia does nothing to stem the creation of mistakes, because it is the very same process that created the mistakes in the first place.
Interesting argument. But perhaps what is more important than the absolute number of mistakes is the ratio of good content to mistakes. As long as more good content is being created per unit time than mistakes the ratio will in the limit become quite large. If some of those mistakes are fixed too, then so much the better.
As another old timer, I'm surprised with your comparison to Linux-- that somehow the success or failure of Linux is tied to its adoption on the desktop. Software gets adopted for a variety of reasons, and not all of them have to do with technical merits or some nebulous concept of ease of use. As long as there exists some minimum number of users and developers linux will continue to improve and prosper. Even if you use the percentage-of-installed-desktops metric, this number appears to be growing every year. Looks like a good recipe for world domination to me...
Excellent analysis. Furthermore, note that all his custom chalking equipment, his bike, etc. have all been confiscated. Even if he eventually gets all his property back his speech has effectively been quelched. The chilling effect is very clear. It's too bad he has basically no recourse.
the Elevator as a type of "philanthrophy", which rich people have always done in the USA, but other than Andrew Mellon who founded a university, it has mostly gone to the arts
Just a minor point but don't forget about Johns Hopkins or Duke to name a few universities founded by rich men.
You have a very reasonable perspective (and I suspect one that we will all have to take when materialism finally trumps dualism) however the way I look at it is that if "free will" arises from purely physical means, and if we someday have the scientific knowledge to trace every cause and effect from your genes through all your experiences to some action you produce, should you really be held responsible for those actions any more than a hurricaine should be held responsible for its distruction?
Personally, I'm betting that quantum uncertainty will prevent us from ever getting to such a far fetched scenerio.
From what I've read on *cough* rumor sites it's widely expected that your above list will come more or less come true with the Treo 610/ACE (or whatever it's ultimately called.) And if I may be so bold as to add another item to the wishlist,
I'm happy that you love "slightly interesting" articles like this. However, not all of us do. What would make the most sense would be for Slashdot to add a "PR" category so that those who do not like it filter drivel like this away.
I am not advocating eliminating anonymity-- far from it. My only real point was that I do not believe that there can be a truly anonymous environment which also discourages undesirable behavior. Period.
Forgive me if I am misunderstanding you, but if it is impossible to link a nickname to a real person, how is that not a climate that encourages illegal activity? Sure, nobody wants to tarnish their online persona, but who says they are limited to only one online persona?
First, it is unfair because it costs the good scientist more money to publish. A paper with great results deserves the highest-quality editing and the widest circulation possible, correct?
This is a quite valid concern. But at least for the PLoS Journals it does not seem to be an issue (from their excellent FAQ):
The ability of authors or their institutions to pay publication charges will never be a consideration in the decision whether to publish.
Regardless of how small the "dish" is, many apartment buildings prohibit installation of satellite TV.
Try the following: Get a large plastic bucket, cement mix, and a sturdy metal pole a few feet long. Pour the cement in the bucket and leave it to set with the pole sticking straight up. Have the satellite installer afix the disk to your bucket/pole fixture, place on your balcony or porch facing the right direction, and enjoy satellite TV.
Unfortunately, even for people that operate primarily in text, Screen is not a perfect replacement for X (or another GUI). Perhaps the biggest issue is that it lacks facilities for having multiple terminals visible at the same time, which is a requirement for many people (including myself).
Slashdot Mirror
Okay, I'll buy that as a source of information becomes more reputable the impact of each bit of erroneous information becomes greater but I still think that the overall contribution to the common good is great enough to make it worth the risk.
Interesting argument. But perhaps what is more important than the absolute number of mistakes is the ratio of good content to mistakes. As long as more good content is being created per unit time than mistakes the ratio will in the limit become quite large. If some of those mistakes are fixed too, then so much the better.
As another old timer, I'm surprised with your comparison to Linux-- that somehow the success or failure of Linux is tied to its adoption on the desktop. Software gets adopted for a variety of reasons, and not all of them have to do with technical merits or some nebulous concept of ease of use. As long as there exists some minimum number of users and developers linux will continue to improve and prosper. Even if you use the percentage-of-installed-desktops metric, this number appears to be growing every year. Looks like a good recipe for world domination to me...
Excellent analysis. Furthermore, note that all his custom chalking equipment, his bike, etc. have all been confiscated. Even if he eventually gets all his property back his speech has effectively been quelched. The chilling effect is very clear. It's too bad he has basically no recourse.
You may have heard of this document called The Constitution. See, it turns out that it trumps all other laws in the land...
Just a minor point but don't forget about Johns Hopkins or Duke to name a few universities founded by rich men.
Great point. thanks!
Personally, I'm betting that quantum uncertainty will prevent us from ever getting to such a far fetched scenerio.
For fun, let's compare Tivo and Redhat
- PalmOS 6 (aka Cobalt)
I'm not very hopefull about that one, thoughP.S. There is always a right to complain.
I am not advocating eliminating anonymity-- far from it. My only real point was that I do not believe that there can be a truly anonymous environment which also discourages undesirable behavior. Period.
Forgive me if I am misunderstanding you, but if it is impossible to link a nickname to a real person, how is that not a climate that encourages illegal activity? Sure, nobody wants to tarnish their online persona, but who says they are limited to only one online persona?
twenty-five cents.
2.4.27 should be out shortly. If you feel the need to upgrade to something, upgrade to that! :)
Yes.
"YHBT HAND"
Repeat after me: There is no general solution to the global optimization problem.
I suspect the Masters/PhD folks are writing books. :)
Well it ain't called GNU screen for nothing. :)
Agreed. I'll further say that when I have had problems and filed bug reports the JFS developers have been very responsive.