Will you, at any point in the future, be an attractive young woman? Have you, in your acting career, ever been a young woman?
Well, there's a persistent rumor that Wil is actually the Actor Formerly Known As Winona Ryder, but I think his voice puts that one to rest, since she sounds like Nellie Oleson.
Seriously, Wil, do people ever point this out? You could be her brother (or something). Do you know Winona? Would you consider playing her brother? And do you happen to have her phone number?
That's right. You need third-party software to change the file type on a Mac, and even then it's not easy.
It's as easy as dragging the file icon to an app that can read it, then choosing "Save." Don't have an application that can read the file? PCs aren't immune to that problem either.
If the file type is incorrect, that's when you need to mess with the codes. And you can use Applescript to do it, no need for third-party tools.
While Windows maintains a correlation between filenames and descriptions (.doc = Microsoft Word Document, for example) there is no such listing in Mac OS. True power users are just supposed to know that MSWD is a Word document.
So is that ".doc" file a Word 6 document? Word 3.0? Word 97? They all fight over the same extension, but the file formats are different. This example is far from being a rare or unusual case.
As others have pointed out, BeOS did this right by making this part of the interface instead of like a Mac where the type/creator info is hidden from the user and not editable without downloading additional software.
Just to nitpick-- you can change the file/creator types using Applescript, which comes installed on every Mac. That doesn't mean, of course, that your average end-user is going to do this.
The way it's supposed to work, you can drag your icon onto the application you want to open it with, and then save it from within that app. Presto, the icon changes, and you never have to see a 4-letter code. My problem with it is that there's no easy way to de-associate a file from all apps.
You wouldn't hire a 24-year-old architect to design a million-dollar building. But experienced architects are using software written by 24-year-old programmers to design million dollar buildings.
No offense, but this is a red herring.
The tools used by architects (and other professionals) don't necessarily have to meet the level of sophistication of their users. They only have to meet the requirements for the jobs they do. Programmers don't design buildings, but probably the software the architect uses was programmed under the direction of an experienced architect.
Put it this way, do you expect the low-wage workers who assembled your computer to be replaced by the highly-paid engineers who designed it?
There's also an implication of ageism in your post that disturbs me. Who cares how old the programmer is if he or she is qualified to do the work? Your 24-year-old might have 10 years of coding experience.:)
"The default button should be the button that represents the action that the user is most likely to perform if that action isn't potentially dangerous."
- "Button Behavior," Macintosh Human Interface Guidelines
(Note: on my Power Mac 7500 under Mac OS 8.6, pressing the "power" key brings up a dialog box with the options "Restart," "Sleep," "Cancel," and "Shut Down." The default button is "Shut Down.") Heh.
I have a hard time believing that these excerpts where written by a fourth grader. Any fourth grader who writes that well shouldn't be in fourth grade any more. The more I read about this one the more I think the parents used their daughter to create some sensationalism and get their own opinions out to a wider audience
Well, Emily was 12 years old when she appeared at the Ig Nobel Awards. And she didn't claim to have written her own material! In any case, you can hear her yourself on NPR at:
I think she obviously had the support and assistance of her parents, but it's clear that she is a very bright girl and has a promising future. The science project was completely her idea. She was originally going to do a probability of picking M&M's blindly from a bowl, when she saw a videotape her mother (a registered nurse) was watching as part of her research on Therapeutic Touch. She said "I wonder if they can really do that?":)
Do most people understand how computers work in order to use them? No.
True, but when they claim to be able to click on a menu item, you'd assume they can accomplish this more than 50% of the time!:)
Not understanding the mechanism by which something works does not mean you cannot make use of it. It could very well be the case in this situation.
Fair enough, but the mechanism is secondary. First they have to demonstrate that it works. TTPs haven't even managed to do that.
Put it this way, will you trust the person selling the snake oil when they say the snake oil works wonders? I know the snake oil analogy is overused, but in this case it's almost an exact parallel.
I know this article is about young minds in math and science. Even though Therapeutic Touch is a whole other can of worms, it's good to see that Emily has a sense of humor about the relative (un)importance of her research. In her speech at the 1998 Ig Nobel Awards ceremony, Emily stated:
"Scientists shouldn't have to spend a lot of time and money testing really far-out ideas. I had an excuse for doing the first basic research on TT: I was just learning about science, and I only spent ten dollars."
The Ig Nobel award for Science Education went to Dolores Krieger, Prof Emerita of NY Univ. and founder of TT. The host gave the award with the comment that TT is "a method by which nurses manipulate the energy fields of ailing patients, by carefully avoiding physical contact with those patients." He added that since Dr. Krieger "could not (or would not) be with us tonight," the prize will be accepted on her behalf by Emily Rosa. Emily gave this acceptance speech:
"My career in science started off with such promise. At age four, I was successfully conducting parent behavior-modification experiments. Within a few short years, I was obtaining dramatic results in studying the effects of oatmeal porridge on the respiratory system of the common goldfish.
"But by the time I entered fourth grade, my career was definitely languishing. You can appreciate that grant money was tight, and my peers - they weren't taking me seriously. Always just kidding around. But I was concerned; I had yet to get even one paper published in a major medical journal. Then I heard about Therapeutic Touch and NYU Prof. Dolored Krieger, who introduced the practice to nursing back in 1972.
"Apparently realizing it was mere child's play, they saved all the basic research on TT for future generations to do. Imagine, 15 years before I was even born, Professor Krieger and NYU were giving me my first really big break. I can't thank you enough, Prof. Krieger (who is not here)."
I was going to add some comments on TT, but everything I would say has already been said much better than I could do:
>>I'm planning to rob a bank. If I dress up really decently, and use polite language (and a nice
>> looking gun) while adressing the bank staff, will I get away with it?
Don't laugh, there was a case (in England, if I'm not mistaken) where a robber walked into a store and simply said "give me the money in the cash register," and the clerk did.
Because he simply said he wanted the money, and didn't threaten the staff or show a weapon, the jury acquitted him of robbery.
> Luke: It's not impossible. I used to bull's-eye womp rats in my T-sixteen back home. They're not much bigger than two meters.
Note: that's a damn big rat!
In all seriousness, that sequence simply showed some 3D-projected images on a 2D screen. I am reminded more of the "Endor moon" sequence in ROTJ where the moon and Death Star are projected in 3D into thin air and rotated for all to see.
That's where this idea falls flat - there is no way to draw in thin air, since photons don't interact with each other. You literally need "smoke and/or mirrors" to get this illusion. As with holograms, where you are actually looking at a piece of glass or plastic, giving the illusion of projecting an image into thin air.
The best simulation of this that I've seen uses a spinning helical piece of translucent plastic under a dome, with a laser "drawing" on the plastic surface. Because it's spinning, it looks like the laser is drawing on air.
Oh, and for all you hologram aficionados out there: a piece of a hologram does not contain the "whole image." It contains a portion of the interference pattern, or a range of views of the whole image.:)
Maybe I'm not understanding correctly, but everytime they grab a music file to scan, aren't they making an illegal copy? As is stands, the only people who are copying music illegally are those who go and get it. Now anyone who uses this scanning software will also be a pirate.
Don't forget, the RIAA is only powerful because we have given them a shitload of our money. The way to take their power away is to stop giving them money!
> (and I do,) then I can select any one of these using
> at most two keypresses and two arrowkeys.
Select any *one* of them, yes, but how do you select multiple files on Mac using just the keyboard?
Oh yes, you write a (verbose) Applescript!
What's more, how do you copy files without using the mouse? Applescript again. There might be another way, but I don't have the time to wait for the Macintosh Guide to walk me through it. It would be nice if I could access the Apple menu via keyboard as well.
BTW, I love the Mac and own one, but it is not the be-all end-all of efficient interfaces. It is extremely usable and consistent, but there is always room for improvement.
"CHRISTIAN, n. One who believes that the New Testament is a divinely inspired book admirably suited to the spiritual needs of his neighbor. One who follows the teachings of Christ in so far as they are not inconsistent with a life of sin."
This has always been my theory on why there is so little Mac open source. Specifically, if you've invested the time and effort to learn to program a Mac, the ease with which you can obtain a commanding marketshare makes it quite tempting to take any and every piece of Mac software commercial.
The temptation may be there, but I think certain shareware authors should think twice about going commercial with their little weekend projects. I have seen $15 shareware programs that do nothing more than change file/creator types! Please! If you're going to try to market a shareware program, try to make it something substantial. Something that I can't do myself in 10 minutes with AppleScript.
Slashdot Mirror
Will you, at any point in the future, be an attractive young woman? Have you, in your acting career, ever been a young woman?
Well, there's a persistent rumor that Wil is actually the Actor Formerly Known As Winona Ryder, but I think his voice puts that one to rest, since she sounds like Nellie Oleson.
Seriously, Wil, do people ever point this out? You could be her brother (or something). Do you know Winona? Would you consider playing her brother? And do you happen to have her phone number?
- MFN
That's right. You need third-party software to change the file type on a Mac, and even then it's not easy.
It's as easy as dragging the file icon to an app that can read it, then choosing "Save." Don't have an application that can read the file? PCs aren't immune to that problem either.
If the file type is incorrect, that's when you need to mess with the codes. And you can use Applescript to do it, no need for third-party tools.
While Windows maintains a correlation between filenames and descriptions (.doc = Microsoft Word Document, for example) there is no such listing in Mac OS. True power users are just supposed to know that MSWD is a Word document.
So is that ".doc" file a Word 6 document? Word 3.0? Word 97? They all fight over the same extension, but the file formats are different. This example is far from being a rare or unusual case.
- MFN
As others have pointed out, BeOS did this right by making this part of the interface instead of like a Mac where the type/creator info is hidden from the user and not editable without downloading additional software.
Just to nitpick-- you can change the file/creator types using Applescript, which comes installed on every Mac. That doesn't mean, of course, that your average end-user is going to do this.
The way it's supposed to work, you can drag your icon onto the application you want to open it with, and then save it from within that app. Presto, the icon changes, and you never have to see a 4-letter code. My problem with it is that there's no easy way to de-associate a file from all apps.
- MFN
I can use voice recognition easily with lots of ram and a fast cpu. I long for the day when I can say "computer play xyz.mp3"
You can do that today on your Mac. I do it with mine... except that I say "Computer, play YYZ." ;)
- MFN
OS/2 wasn't the crown jewel of IBM. You could arguably say that the Mac OS is and always has been the crown jewel of Apple.
I'd argue that, at least the "always has been" part. Apple became huge just selling Apple ][s.
- MFN
The "late Mr. Sagan?" That's Doctor Butt-Head Astronomer to you!
- MFN
You wouldn't hire a 24-year-old architect to design a million-dollar building. But experienced architects are using software written by 24-year-old programmers to design million dollar buildings.
No offense, but this is a red herring.
The tools used by architects (and other professionals) don't necessarily have to meet the level of sophistication of their users. They only have to meet the requirements for the jobs they do. Programmers don't design buildings, but probably the software the architect uses was programmed under the direction of an experienced architect.
Put it this way, do you expect the low-wage workers who assembled your computer to be replaced by the highly-paid engineers who designed it?
There's also an implication of ageism in your post that disturbs me. Who cares how old the programmer is if he or she is qualified to do the work? Your 24-year-old might have 10 years of coding experience. :)
- MFN
(Note: on my Power Mac 7500 under Mac OS 8.6, pressing the "power" key brings up a dialog box with the options "Restart," "Sleep," "Cancel," and "Shut Down." The default button is "Shut Down.") Heh.
- MFN
I have a hard time believing that these excerpts where written by a fourth grader. Any fourth grader who writes that well shouldn't be in fourth grade any more. The more I read about this one the more I think the parents used their daughter to create some sensationalism and get their own opinions out to a wider audience
Well, Emily was 12 years old when she appeared at the Ig Nobel Awards. And she didn't claim to have written her own material! In any case, you can hear her yourself on NPR at:
1998 Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony
I think she obviously had the support and assistance of her parents, but it's clear that she is a very bright girl and has a promising future. The science project was completely her idea. She was originally going to do a probability of picking M&M's blindly from a bowl, when she saw a videotape her mother (a registered nurse) was watching as part of her research on Therapeutic Touch. She said "I wonder if they can really do that?" :)
- MFN
Do most people understand how computers work in order to use them? No.
True, but when they claim to be able to click on a menu item, you'd assume they can accomplish this more than 50% of the time! :)
Not understanding the mechanism by which something works does not mean you cannot make use of it. It could very well be the case in this situation.
Fair enough, but the mechanism is secondary. First they have to demonstrate that it works. TTPs haven't even managed to do that.
Put it this way, will you trust the person selling the snake oil when they say the snake oil works wonders? I know the snake oil analogy is overused, but in this case it's almost an exact parallel.
- MFN
I know this article is about young minds in math and science. Even though Therapeutic Touch is a whole other can of worms, it's good to see that Emily has a sense of humor about the relative (un)importance of her research. In her speech at the 1998 Ig Nobel Awards ceremony, Emily stated:
The Ig Nobel award for Science Education went to Dolores Krieger, Prof Emerita of NY Univ. and founder of TT. The host gave the award with the comment that TT is "a method by which nurses manipulate the energy fields of ailing patients, by carefully avoiding physical contact with those patients." He added that since Dr. Krieger "could not (or would not) be with us tonight," the prize will be accepted on her behalf by Emily Rosa. Emily gave this acceptance speech:
I was going to add some comments on TT, but everything I would say has already been said much better than I could do:Therapeutic Touch: Responses to Objections to the JAMA Paper
- MFN
>>I'm planning to rob a bank. If I dress up really decently, and use polite language (and a nice
:)
>> looking gun) while adressing the bank staff, will I get away with it?
Don't laugh, there was a case (in England, if I'm not mistaken) where a robber walked into a store and simply said "give me the money in the cash register," and the clerk did.
Because he simply said he wanted the money, and didn't threaten the staff or show a weapon, the jury acquitted him of robbery.
So sometimes, it doesn't hurt to ask!
- MFN
>> Authorities in Salem have been known to burn people they dont agree with
They never burned anyone. They hanged a lot of people though.
- MFN
AAAAHHH!!!!
It's CHOWDAH!! Say it right!
I'll kill you! I'll kill all of you, especially those of you in the jury!!!
:)
- MFN
A "perspective" employer? I thought you said you were an English major.
- MFN
My statement to IBM is this: Before you release this "MRAM" technology, develop a shielding strategy for it.
Boy, it's a good thing you brought that issue up. I'm sure IBM's top engineers didn't even think of it!
;)
- MFN
Check out the Berlin Consortium.
It may not be perfect, but it shows that an alternative is possible.
- MFN
>
;)
I think the Germans already tried to put themselees between the English and the French.
Personally, I'd annex the Sudetenland.
- MFN
> So, "TeknoHog", can you translate this:
:)
> C;[ENTER];#;#;
> (translation)
> See colon, enter colon, pound colon, pound colon
Those are semicolons, dumbass
- MFN
> Luke: It's not impossible. I used to bull's-eye womp rats in my T-sixteen back home.
They're not much bigger than two meters.
Note: that's a damn big rat!
In all seriousness, that sequence simply showed some 3D-projected images on a 2D screen. I am reminded more of the "Endor moon" sequence in ROTJ where the moon and Death Star are projected in 3D into thin air and rotated for all to see.
That's where this idea falls flat - there is no way to draw in thin air, since photons don't interact with each other. You literally need "smoke and/or mirrors" to get this illusion. As with holograms, where you are actually looking at a piece of glass or plastic, giving the illusion of projecting an image into thin air.
The best simulation of this that I've seen uses a spinning helical piece of translucent plastic under a dome, with a laser "drawing" on the plastic surface. Because it's spinning, it looks like the laser is drawing on air.
Oh, and for all you hologram aficionados out there: a piece of a hologram does not contain the "whole image." It contains a portion of the interference pattern, or a range of views of the whole image. :)
- MFN
Maybe I'm not understanding correctly, but everytime they grab a music file to scan, aren't they making an illegal copy? As is stands, the only people who are copying music illegally are those who go and get it. Now anyone who uses this scanning software will also be a pirate.
Don't forget, the RIAA is only powerful because we have given them a shitload of our money. The way to take their power away is to stop giving them money!
- MFN
> Thus if I have three JPG images in a directory named:
> FSMHSusNM131_N2.jpg
> FSMusNM131_G8.jpg
> FSMHSusNM132_N5.jpg
> (and I do,) then I can select any one of these using
> at most two keypresses and two arrowkeys.
Select any *one* of them, yes, but how do you select multiple files on Mac using just the keyboard?
Oh yes, you write a (verbose) Applescript!
What's more, how do you copy files without using the mouse? Applescript again. There might be another way, but I don't have the time to wait for the Macintosh Guide to walk me through it. It would be nice if I could access the Apple menu via keyboard as well.
BTW, I love the Mac and own one, but it is not the be-all end-all of efficient interfaces. It is extremely usable and consistent, but there is always room for improvement.
- mfnickster
> Well, in my experience of a couple of friends mobiles
;)
> (I don't own one - no brain tumours for me!)
Dude, you are *much* more likely to die from getting in car accident while chatting on your cell phone, than from a brain tumor!
It still amazes me how paranoid people are about this, especially tech-savvy types who should know better.
- mfnickster
"CHRISTIAN, n. One who believes that the New Testament is a divinely inspired book admirably suited to the spiritual needs of his neighbor. One who follows the teachings of Christ in so far as they are not inconsistent with a life of sin."
- Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary
This has always been my theory on why there is so little Mac open source. Specifically, if you've invested the time and effort to learn to program a Mac, the ease with which you can obtain a commanding marketshare makes it quite tempting to take any and every piece of Mac software commercial.
The temptation may be there, but I think certain shareware authors should think twice about going commercial with their little weekend projects. I have seen $15 shareware programs that do nothing more than change file/creator types! Please! If you're going to try to market a shareware program, try to make it something substantial. Something that I can't do myself in 10 minutes with AppleScript.
- MFN ("Mighty Flying Nickster") / mfnickster@yahoo