Ok, I know Douglas Adams pops up in most threads around here, but...anyone remember "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency?" A computer programmer created an app to map graphable data to a musical scale, (as well as to any graphic you wanted - something about a flock of geese representing a company's net earnings as I recall).
I don't know where that was going, just an odd connection in my head. Anyone want to run with it?
here we go. I haven't read science fiction in a LONG time so I'll combine a bit.
Douglas Adams (hitchhiker, etc.)
Bo Fowler (scepticism, Inc. and The Astrological Diary of God)
Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson (the Illunimatus! Trilogy and the Shrodinger's Cat Trilogy)
Chuck Palahniuk (Fight Club, Choke)
When I worked in a bookstore I noticed that these're the ones that seem to last, regardless of fads, etc. without having all that much popular support (except for Chuck, but he's just so damn good). I'd also throw Donna Tratt's "A Secret History" in there as well, but I don't know who to nix.
Ah, that's all well and good for you maybe, but I don't HAVE a cdrom burner. If the choice is to shell out $200 for a burner and $100 for a capable mp3/CD player, I'd rather spend an extra hundred for the HD capability instead of getting yet ANOTHER portable cd player.
Now, if someone thought of a portable mp3/cd player that doubled as a cd-rw, we'd be in business.:)
Triv
This thingy isn't about market share.
on
Apple releases iPod
·
· Score: 2, Insightful
It's about product placement (and it's a good thing).
Think about it - how many people have you seen jogging with their iMac hefted onto a shoulder, 80's - style?
Seriously. It's a way to get the apple name out onto the streets instead of sitting on a desk. This started with lots (and I mean lots) of iMac TV placements and hasn't ended yet. Think about it - how many iBooks have you seen out and about, and how many of these did you notice becuase of the big glowing apple on the back, or the candy-colors? The iPod's got the logo on the back too, big and white. Whether it glows or not is yet to be seen.
I guarantee (meaning I really, really hope) that the price tag won't hold too long. Probably drop after the holidays.
And to apple I say 'good for you.' It's a much better way to get attention than the new (and horrifically tasteless) Microsoft / Compaq ads - 'Like stars and stripes - perfect together.'
Oh, and please - think before you flame, particularly on the frontpage. It's closed-minded.
this is what happens: You download a.hqx file and, after downloading, IE tries to launch Stuffit to open it. Problem is, sometimes IE can't FIND an OsX version of stuffit and launches the classic version instead. THAT'S what most people see happening. It's not the.hqx decoding and running itself, it's IE using the 'only' decoder it has available, launching classic to do so.
I can't verify this unfortunately, but I'd bet my own mother that that's what's going on.
...wonder how long it will be before the ad agencies get into bed with the ISPs?
Isn't that what "free" ISPs like NetZero or Freelane are doing already, trading net access for banner ads and the like? They can't get away with charging us for that...can they? (but then again, the Gap has no problem plastering their logo on their products so why not?)
The reason I still pay for my access is that I don't particularly feel like being bombarded with free-floating ads (banner ads, I can ignore).
It'd be interesting considering I work there. "Yeah, your book's over there somewhere. Go look, I'm trying to figure out why our stock's plummeting."
Man, I'd hate to work in the computer books department--I'd spent most of my time working tech support, and computer stuff happens to be on the same floor as the café.
oh, come on. You can't deny that the free-speech issues involved here aren't important. Technology isn't everything--the thought behind the tech, the driving moral and ethical forces, are equally imortant, if not more so.
My guess is it'd be possible two ways. One, the earth was of a lesser mass then (which doesn't make all that sense) or that it was spinning at a slower rate. As to how that's possible I don't know--it's possible that whatever killed the dinosaurs off caused an increase in the planet's rotational speed, or it could've been a slow process. Scientist I am not, this is just what makes sense to me.:)
Any ideas as to where the skeleton's gonna end up? I'm hoping it goes to an institution like the Natural History Museum in NYC or the Smithsonian, but...it would be interesting to know which one.
It's interesting you should mention that--if you follow the historical parallel a little farther down the timeline, you'll also notice that, while the longbow did have its uses and did change the face of war (and effectively brought the reign of the mounted knight to a shuddering halt) its prominence was limited; after a few decades one couldn't find enough archers to fight a war due to, of all things, a socio-religious upheaval. I wonder if this parallel will continue?
The internet, despite all its coolness and its ability to share wealths of information cheaply and easily, WILL become a marketing arena--it already has to a large extent. There are web companies that pay for whatever services they provide (free phone calls, free beeper service, free internet access, start pages and search engines) entirely through product placement. It's just a new frontier for the advertizing giants to grab hold of, much like the way Coca-Cola started selling floor tiles in supermarkets because every other available surface was already taken up by conspicuous advertizing. And as much as an optomist as I am, the idea that there's going to be a sudden reversal of ideology, that all advertizing will disappear form the net, is bunk. It makes way too much money to go totally non-commercial.
Hey, have you guys thought about burning perminant copies of Geeks in Space and selling 'em? Or hell, you're all for open-sourcing--give 'em away. I'd love a copy personally, and that desire started as soon as I realized all the episodes will no longer fit on a single Zip Disk. I'm going to end up spending way too much money on removable media if some other format isn't introduced. 25 episodes to a disk, that's worth a small hunk 'o change to me.
ok, Linux is going to be ready as the Itanium goes into production. That truly is a good piece of news, but what I'd really like to hear is that Linux will be the Itanium's standard OS. It really is hard to believe that Windows 2000 WON'T be shipping with the new machines, and honestly--to someone who knows nothing about Linux, will they bother to switch operating systems? I doubt it. I'm all for the "But...we were ready FIRST" philosophy, but normal people tend to go with what they've heard in the news. When some guy's is in the market for a new computer and hears both "Super-fast processor" and "Windows2000" he's going to buy that and ignore the alternatives. If Redhat truly wants to set a new standard (which, granted, it has in many ways) what I think should truly be done is a bit more marketing front. I can think of very few laymen who know what Linux is, and the few who do don't understand the concept of open-source. When "Redhat" and "Linux" become buzzwords to the extent that "Microsoft" already is I will feel satisfied.
I LIKE 'em longer. See, I grew up listening to stories on the radio--The Goon Show, anything from ZBS Radio, even books on tape. 15 minute episodes from the GIS crew would seem...unfulfilling. It takes any group of performers (and believe me, that's what you guys are, whether you like it or not) some on-air time to loosen up and start having fun with what they're doing, especially amateurs. 15 minutes wouldn't be enough time for the guys to get in the radio groove. Insert cheezy porn-film music here. Just my two cents.
Machines never make mistakes? Sure they do, but the mistakes they make aren't only an issue of programming--they're an issue of interpretation. When a human uses a computer, for instance, the computer's programming makes certain assumptions about why the user is inputing data in a certain way (because that was the way it was programmed) but humans don't think in straight lines. We could intend something totally different than the given result. I dunno, I just think that by building computers that can actually interpret your data in ways other than the linear we would end up with technology that would be infused with an element of conciousness, with an ability to decide what the user actually MEANS and that's...well, dangerous.
actually, the first story in the article features a harness you hook up to a vacuum cleaner that, when interfaced with Microsoft flight simulator, makes you feel like you're really flying. That could be it...
Ok, I can understand the scientific and technological revelations of ths discovery, but when do the benefits come down to us, the average (ok, maybe not so average) users? How long 'till we get a worldwide network at that speed? Not friggin' soon, unfortunately. It's like all other monumental scientific discoveries--it takes years for it to trickle down to us. I applaud the feat, don't get me wrong, but I'll be more impressed, hell, I'll give them a standing ovation, when it's made available to the rest of us.
The story goes this way: The answer to the question of life, the universe and everything is implanted in Arthur's brainwave patterns because he was a part of the original computer program to find the question to the answer. But the question in his brain (and therefore the question he pulls out of the scrabble bag) are wrong because the computer didn't take the crash of the gulgafrinchans into account. So, from the very beginning, Earth's program was skewed--the cavemen were designed to find the question, not the aliens. So any answer taken from arthur's head is wrong, because he wasn't a part of the proigram in the first place. > and this is one of the EASIER plotlines to explain. geez. Oh, and as to the whole 6X9 thing--someone else said it--6X9=54, which is 42 in base 13. Ta da!
Slashdot Mirror
Ok, I know Douglas Adams pops up in most threads around here, but...anyone remember "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency?" A computer programmer created an app to map graphable data to a musical scale, (as well as to any graphic you wanted - something about a flock of geese representing a company's net earnings as I recall).
I don't know where that was going, just an odd connection in my head. Anyone want to run with it?
Triv
here we go. I haven't read science fiction in a LONG time so I'll combine a bit.
Douglas Adams (hitchhiker, etc.)
Bo Fowler (scepticism, Inc. and The Astrological Diary of God)
Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson (the Illunimatus! Trilogy and the Shrodinger's Cat Trilogy)
Chuck Palahniuk (Fight Club, Choke)
When I worked in a bookstore I noticed that these're the ones that seem to last, regardless of fads, etc. without having all that much popular support (except for Chuck, but he's just so damn good). I'd also throw Donna Tratt's "A Secret History" in there as well, but I don't know who to nix.
Triv
Ah, that's all well and good for you maybe, but I don't HAVE a cdrom burner. If the choice is to shell out $200 for a burner and $100 for a capable mp3/CD player, I'd rather spend an extra hundred for the HD capability instead of getting yet ANOTHER portable cd player.
:)
Now, if someone thought of a portable mp3/cd player that doubled as a cd-rw, we'd be in business.
Triv
It's about product placement (and it's a good thing).
Think about it - how many people have you seen jogging with their iMac hefted onto a shoulder, 80's - style?
Seriously. It's a way to get the apple name out onto the streets instead of sitting on a desk. This started with lots (and I mean lots) of iMac TV placements and hasn't ended yet. Think about it - how many iBooks have you seen out and about, and how many of these did you notice becuase of the big glowing apple on the back, or the candy-colors? The iPod's got the logo on the back too, big and white. Whether it glows or not is yet to be seen.
I guarantee (meaning I really, really hope) that the price tag won't hold too long. Probably drop after the holidays.
And to apple I say 'good for you.' It's a much better way to get attention than the new (and horrifically tasteless) Microsoft / Compaq ads - 'Like stars and stripes - perfect together.'
Oh, and please - think before you flame, particularly on the frontpage. It's closed-minded.
Triv
EVER. I mean it. There are so many politically controlled media sources in this country, it is only prudent to GET CONFORMATION of anything you hear.
I honestly believe people should head over to
"Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting"
for a dose of honesty to combat the rhetoric.
Specifically, check out this one on civilian casualites...
Triv
I had this problem before I upgraded to Os X.1.
.hqx file and, after downloading, IE tries to launch Stuffit to open it. Problem is, sometimes IE can't FIND an OsX version of stuffit and launches the classic version instead. THAT'S what most people see happening. It's not the .hqx decoding and running itself, it's IE using the 'only' decoder it has available, launching classic to do so.
this is what happens: You download a
I can't verify this unfortunately, but I'd bet my own mother that that's what's going on.
Jacko
It'd be interesting considering I work there. "Yeah, your book's over there somewhere. Go look, I'm trying to figure out why our stock's plummeting." Man, I'd hate to work in the computer books department--I'd spent most of my time working tech support, and computer stuff happens to be on the same floor as the café.
oh, come on. You can't deny that the free-speech issues involved here aren't important. Technology isn't everything--the thought behind the tech, the driving moral and ethical forces, are equally imortant, if not more so.
My guess is it'd be possible two ways. One, the earth was of a lesser mass then (which doesn't make all that sense) or that it was spinning at a slower rate. As to how that's possible I don't know--it's possible that whatever killed the dinosaurs off caused an increase in the planet's rotational speed, or it could've been a slow process. Scientist I am not, this is just what makes sense to me. :)
Any ideas as to where the skeleton's gonna end up? I'm hoping it goes to an institution like the Natural History Museum in NYC or the Smithsonian, but...it would be interesting to know which one.
It's interesting you should mention that--if you follow the historical parallel a little farther down the timeline, you'll also notice that, while the longbow did have its uses and did change the face of war (and effectively brought the reign of the mounted knight to a shuddering halt) its prominence was limited; after a few decades one couldn't find enough archers to fight a war due to, of all things, a socio-religious upheaval. I wonder if this parallel will continue?
The internet, despite all its coolness and its ability to share wealths of information cheaply and easily, WILL become a marketing arena--it already has to a large extent. There are web companies that pay for whatever services they provide (free phone calls, free beeper service, free internet access, start pages and search engines) entirely through product placement. It's just a new frontier for the advertizing giants to grab hold of, much like the way Coca-Cola started selling floor tiles in supermarkets because every other available surface was already taken up by conspicuous advertizing. And as much as an optomist as I am, the idea that there's going to be a sudden reversal of ideology, that all advertizing will disappear form the net, is bunk. It makes way too much money to go totally non-commercial.
Hey, have you guys thought about burning perminant copies of Geeks in Space and selling 'em? Or hell, you're all for open-sourcing--give 'em away. I'd love a copy personally, and that desire started as soon as I realized all the episodes will no longer fit on a single Zip Disk. I'm going to end up spending way too much money on removable media if some other format isn't introduced. 25 episodes to a disk, that's worth a small hunk 'o change to me.
ok, Linux is going to be ready as the Itanium goes into production. That truly is a good piece of news, but what I'd really like to hear is that Linux will be the Itanium's standard OS. It really is hard to believe that Windows 2000 WON'T be shipping with the new machines, and honestly--to someone who knows nothing about Linux, will they bother to switch operating systems? I doubt it. I'm all for the "But...we were ready FIRST" philosophy, but normal people tend to go with what they've heard in the news. When some guy's is in the market for a new computer and hears both "Super-fast processor" and "Windows2000" he's going to buy that and ignore the alternatives. If Redhat truly wants to set a new standard (which, granted, it has in many ways) what I think should truly be done is a bit more marketing front. I can think of very few laymen who know what Linux is, and the few who do don't understand the concept of open-source. When "Redhat" and "Linux" become buzzwords to the extent that "Microsoft" already is I will feel satisfied.
I LIKE 'em longer. See, I grew up listening to stories on the radio--The Goon Show, anything from ZBS Radio, even books on tape. 15 minute episodes from the GIS crew would seem...unfulfilling. It takes any group of performers (and believe me, that's what you guys are, whether you like it or not) some on-air time to loosen up and start having fun with what they're doing, especially amateurs. 15 minutes wouldn't be enough time for the guys to get in the radio groove. Insert cheezy porn-film music here. Just my two cents.
Machines never make mistakes? Sure they do, but the mistakes they make aren't only an issue of programming--they're an issue of interpretation. When a human uses a computer, for instance, the computer's programming makes certain assumptions about why the user is inputing data in a certain way (because that was the way it was programmed) but humans don't think in straight lines. We could intend something totally different than the given result. I dunno, I just think that by building computers that can actually interpret your data in ways other than the linear we would end up with technology that would be infused with an element of conciousness, with an ability to decide what the user actually MEANS and that's...well, dangerous.
actually, the first story in the article features a harness you hook up to a vacuum cleaner that, when interfaced with Microsoft flight simulator, makes you feel like you're really flying. That could be it...
Ok, I can understand the scientific and technological revelations of ths discovery, but when do the benefits come down to us, the average (ok, maybe not so average) users? How long 'till we get a worldwide network at that speed? Not friggin' soon, unfortunately. It's like all other monumental scientific discoveries--it takes years for it to trickle down to us. I applaud the feat, don't get me wrong, but I'll be more impressed, hell, I'll give them a standing ovation, when it's made available to the rest of us.
The story goes this way: The answer to the question of life, the universe and everything is implanted in Arthur's brainwave patterns because he was a part of the original computer program to find the question to the answer. But the question in his brain (and therefore the question he pulls out of the scrabble bag) are wrong because the computer didn't take the crash of the gulgafrinchans into account. So, from the very beginning, Earth's program was skewed--the cavemen were designed to find the question, not the aliens. So any answer taken from arthur's head is wrong, because he wasn't a part of the proigram in the first place. > and this is one of the EASIER plotlines to explain. geez. Oh, and as to the whole 6X9 thing--someone else said it--6X9=54, which is 42 in base 13. Ta da!