"make it more economical to conduct mining operations on the the moon"
OK, but I'm having difficulty imagining massive mining machines working their way along the tether. And how to begin the process from an orbiting craft. And then, once landed, how will these machines get the energy necessary for mining operations?
I'm obviously missing some essential information about why this might be practical.
Sometimes we need a reminder that all computer users are not programmers. Many are in business, some are in education, many are home users while others (me) do graphic arts... These people frequently need color and often they need quality color. A simple black only laser printer is not an answer. A color laser prints ugly pages that stick and peel and fade and reflect light unevenly.
If printers were designed with only programmers in mind, there would be a large outcry from the real world. It's nice to know what meets your personal needs, or doesn't; but that is of little interest to Lexmark or other manufacturers who cater to a larger audience.
After all these years, I should have explored my account page more carefully. Haven't figured out the reason for the difference between 'history' and 'comments' list yet, but given a few more years it may yet come to me.
"The intelligence level here on Slashdot, like everywhere else in American society, has fallen greatly in the last 10 years or so."
quite right
The obvious solution is to get rid of those newbies who lower the average IQ. We should just dump any member whose number is higher than, oh, say 195815...
"Comment: Re:Disable it! (Score 1) by b4dc0d3r on 12-08-25 21:14 (#41127109) Attached to: Microsoft Denies Windows 8 App Spying Via SmartScreen
Mine is pretty accurate..."
Actually, it's not... Your History (excerpt above) says that comment is a Score 1, while the comment in the context of TFA says you earned a Score 2.
Likewise, my comment in History: "Re:Recourse (Score 4, Interesting)" actually earned a Score 5. As I mentioned, almost all my History is wrong, in a negative way.
I've checked my history several times this year and found that typical. I'll look more often to compare others' history, but I think the error is endemic to the system.
"Look in his history: His Karma is negative. The comment hasn't even been modded."
Don't believe the history of zenlessyank, or anyone else. At least in my case, every comment score is wrong, on the low side. How's yours? The history function should be fixed or removed- it's been broken far too long.
OTOH, zenlessyank is remarkably fond of exclamations--used in most titles. Those exclamations tend to be rants, many with a religious undercurrent. Zenlessyank is not given to subtlety which may have something to do with his low ranking by a thinking population.
Simply this: Whenever I find someone driving less than 50MPH (80.4672KPH) in the fast lane who is less than 90 years old, it is someone with a cell phone in hand.
disclaimer: That is for daytime driving. After 2AM, there are often slow drivers who seem influenced by some other distraction.
"Cartoon characters don't lose fingers permanently. Humans do. The fifth finger is for redundancy"
No, the fifth (middle) finger is for stickin it to the Man. Great title, interesting point; but regarding robots a total of 4 is still optimal. Especially if they connect with magnets (see TFA) and can be immediately replaced if they fall off.
Mickey Mouse and all his friends and all the cartoon characters since have done well with 4 fingers.
Humans and most creatures with more than four digits are wasting at least one of them. Where is your dog's thumb? What's it good for? Yes, scratching it's ear, that's all. How often do you need all five appendages to accomplish something worthwhile? You can even throw a Series winning curve ball with only 4.
OK, many robot designers have used a minimal number of fingers, but a few have stubbornly looked for five finger solutions. Four seems optimal.
I don't think you can even block them. I consider them respectful of the reader. I suspect that many feel the same and text ads may be the smart way to go. And, yes, many sites need ads to be able to offer useful content- support them when you can.
But put animated images or sounds on my screen and they'll be out in a Flash. In fact the entire site might be gone. I don't care if it's advertising for others or a promo for the site itself- if it can't sit still I shut it down. And if there is no provision offered to stop the animation I'll probably leave the site forever.
Sadly this often includes government and major business sites. Leave that noise (visual or aural) to the Disney kids; the gambling, porn, sports and entertainment sites. There's no place in business for noise.
ThinkPad has always been a respected contender and this is a fine example. The main questions for buyers would be 1- how well does it handle OS X? and 2- can it fully implement BSD Unix? and the important issue for those who actually produce with their computers 3- Can it adroitly handle the entire Adobe suite of software?
It's to be assumed that some readers are more interested in hacking than actually producing, and may have quite different interests.
Forget class action- after attorney fees you will have little or nothing.
Small claims court is what you want. There are some huge advantages: 1- low cost to file. 2- attorneys are not allowed- only plaintiff and defendant. 3- if defendant does not appear, he will usually lose automatically. What's the chance that the CEO will come to your town to contest a $500 claim?
Sometimes there is difficulty collecting your judgement if, for instance, an individual skips town. This defendant is easy to find and easy to force payment from.
Usually you can only make them pay for actual costs. No 'pain and suffering' claims, etc. IANAL, check the rules where you live.
Have fun. If hundreds do the same you might actually be a nuisance to them.
"As we (very gradually) move away from feudal, leader-based forms of governance to collaborative and open source governance..."
Gradually indeed. Have you seen any indication of this move? Perhaps it refers to the Supreme Court allowing corporations to collaborate with our elected leaders for the benefit of you and me, or the open source journalism that squeaks in the background of our political consciousness.
Sorry- I think this post is probably written by the same anonymous person who made up the Wiki articles linked. Show me this 'movement'; give me independent citations.
You may now return to your regularly scheduled programming...
"My teacher said my handwriting was too messy. I never wrote again."
You were lucky. My teacher said I was smart and my writing was good. She almost had me believing I was smart, but I've wasted 60 years writing in an age when writers outnumber readers.
Well we've been assembling pictures this way for a hundred years, Google Maps being a recent example.
Nevertheless this may be the first time with an 'election' microscope so I'm sure it deserves a broad patent to protect the idea for the next hundred years (or whatever the term may become under the guidance of our elected officials).
I understand that the US government reserves the right to take control of intellectual property under certain circumstances (national security? not sure what else).
If an invention, discovery or entertainment production were judged terribly essential to life on earth, the government could make it available to us despite the creator's stubborn urge to keep it from us.
So if that book you want is out of print, ask the government to step in.
Intellectual property law is designed to protect the creator's right to control the property. It carries no obligation to make the property (or music or movie) available to others. It simply prevents others from doing so for the duration.
Some copyright holders seem to believe that scarcity can be profitable. Thus Disney can bring out Snow White every 30 years and make a killing, whereas if it was always available the price would have deteriorated considerably. And somehow they are able to protect their copyrights forever...
"What can you really do with a TRS-80 these days?"
Run a business. As it happens I have a complete TRS-80 payroll system on audio cassettes still in shrink wrap and ready for someone's brilliant startup plans.
As Farmer Tim says, they'll still do what they did then, but people change and have less patience. Nostalgia can only carry you for a short time.
Have we forgotten the term 'vaporware'? Has it evaporated along with the products we used to laugh at?
I've been reading about 'exciting new developments' in photovoltaics for forty years, along with the flying car that's just around the corner and similar fantasies perpetuated by Popular Science & Popular Mechanics magazines.
Show me the cheap efficient PV product I can buy today or just shut up.
I'm a lot older than the OP and have a different perspective. Some people my age spend a lot of time thinking about 'the good old days'. Those people strike me as non-functional, fossils, relics...
A few people my age forge ahead, engage with the world, eagerly anticipate exciting changes in our culture. They don't have time for ritual, reminiscing and memorabilia.
The OP doesn't say what he graduated from. If it was the Apollo astronaut team, then go for it- you've earned a place in history. Otherwise, reconsider the silly ritual; live in the present and enjoy the unfolding of history around you.
Soak the bed sheets in sweat all night. Listen to the insects banging at the screen to get in. Know that tomorrow will be just as hot and the office fan won't be much help.
This was routine in the days before air conditioning at home, work, school, car. People survived without too much whining. It's still routine for billions who aren't accustomed to luxury.
Slashdot Mirror
"make it more economical to conduct mining operations on the the moon"
OK, but I'm having difficulty imagining massive mining machines working their way along the tether. And how to begin the process from an orbiting craft. And then, once landed, how will these machines get the energy necessary for mining operations?
I'm obviously missing some essential information about why this might be practical.
don't you think?
"Not to mention that it is possible to wear fake fingertips that give you somebody else's fingerprints ..."
This is why I also carry a vial of my ex's DNA when I'm doing crimes.
Sometimes we need a reminder that all computer users are not programmers. Many are in business, some are in education, many are home users while others (me) do graphic arts... These people frequently need color and often they need quality color. A simple black only laser printer is not an answer. A color laser prints ugly pages that stick and peel and fade and reflect light unevenly.
If printers were designed with only programmers in mind, there would be a large outcry from the real world. It's nice to know what meets your personal needs, or doesn't; but that is of little interest to Lexmark or other manufacturers who cater to a larger audience.
thanks drkstr1
After all these years, I should have explored my account page more carefully. Haven't figured out the reason for the difference between 'history' and 'comments' list yet, but given a few more years it may yet come to me.
"The intelligence level here on Slashdot, like everywhere else in American society, has fallen greatly in the last 10 years or so."
quite right
The obvious solution is to get rid of those newbies who lower the average IQ. We should just dump any member whose number is higher than, oh, say 195815...
"Comment: Re:Disable it! (Score 1)
by b4dc0d3r on 12-08-25 21:14 (#41127109) Attached to: Microsoft Denies Windows 8 App Spying Via SmartScreen
Mine is pretty accurate..."
Actually, it's not... Your History (excerpt above) says that comment is a Score 1, while the comment in the context of TFA says you earned a Score 2.
Likewise, my comment in History: "Re:Recourse (Score 4, Interesting)" actually earned a Score 5. As I mentioned, almost all my History is wrong, in a negative way.
I've checked my history several times this year and found that typical. I'll look more often to compare others' history, but I think the error is endemic to the system.
Thanks for the thoughtful reply, b4dc0d3r.
"Look in his history: His Karma is negative. The comment hasn't even been modded."
Don't believe the history of zenlessyank, or anyone else. At least in my case, every comment score is wrong, on the low side. How's yours? The history function should be fixed or removed- it's been broken far too long.
OTOH, zenlessyank is remarkably fond of exclamations--used in most titles. Those exclamations tend to be rants, many with a religious undercurrent. Zenlessyank is not given to subtlety which may have something to do with his low ranking by a thinking population.
No comments on the $10k price? After all it is something of a luxury car.
Is it due to cheap labor? Substandard parts? Government subsidies?
Or is it because of an appalling shortage of lawyers?
Simply this:
Whenever I find someone driving less than 50MPH (80.4672KPH) in the fast lane who is less than 90 years old, it is someone with a cell phone in hand.
disclaimer: That is for daytime driving. After 2AM, there are often slow drivers who seem influenced by some other distraction.
"Cartoon characters don't lose fingers permanently. Humans do. The fifth finger is for redundancy"
No, the fifth (middle) finger is for stickin it to the Man.
Great title, interesting point; but regarding robots a total of 4 is still optimal.
Especially if they connect with magnets (see TFA) and can be immediately replaced if they fall off.
Mickey Mouse and all his friends and all the cartoon characters since have done well with 4 fingers.
Humans and most creatures with more than four digits are wasting at least one of them. Where is your dog's thumb? What's it good for? Yes, scratching it's ear, that's all. How often do you need all five appendages to accomplish something worthwhile? You can even throw a Series winning curve ball with only 4.
OK, many robot designers have used a minimal number of fingers, but a few have stubbornly looked for five finger solutions. Four seems optimal.
I don't think you can even block them. I consider them respectful of the reader. I suspect that many feel the same and text ads may be the smart way to go. And, yes, many sites need ads to be able to offer useful content- support them when you can.
But put animated images or sounds on my screen and they'll be out in a Flash. In fact the entire site might be gone. I don't care if it's advertising for others or a promo for the site itself- if it can't sit still I shut it down. And if there is no provision offered to stop the animation I'll probably leave the site forever.
Sadly this often includes government and major business sites. Leave that noise (visual or aural) to the Disney kids; the gambling, porn, sports and entertainment sites. There's no place in business for noise.
ThinkPad has always been a respected contender and this is a fine example. The main questions for buyers would be 1- how well does it handle OS X? and 2- can it fully implement BSD Unix? and the important issue for those who actually produce with their computers 3- Can it adroitly handle the entire Adobe suite of software?
It's to be assumed that some readers are more interested in hacking than actually producing, and may have quite different interests.
Forget class action- after attorney fees you will have little or nothing.
Small claims court is what you want. There are some huge advantages: 1- low cost to file. 2- attorneys are not allowed- only plaintiff and defendant. 3- if defendant does not appear, he will usually lose automatically. What's the chance that the CEO will come to your town to contest a $500 claim?
Sometimes there is difficulty collecting your judgement if, for instance, an individual skips town. This defendant is easy to find and easy to force payment from.
Usually you can only make them pay for actual costs. No 'pain and suffering' claims, etc. IANAL, check the rules where you live.
Have fun. If hundreds do the same you might actually be a nuisance to them.
"As we (very gradually) move away from feudal, leader-based forms of governance to collaborative and open source governance..."
Gradually indeed. Have you seen any indication of this move? Perhaps it refers to the Supreme Court allowing corporations to collaborate with our elected leaders for the benefit of you and me, or the open source journalism that squeaks in the background of our political consciousness.
Sorry- I think this post is probably written by the same anonymous person who made up the Wiki articles linked. Show me this 'movement'; give me independent citations.
You may now return to your regularly scheduled programming...
"My teacher said my handwriting was too messy. I never wrote again."
You were lucky. My teacher said I was smart and my writing was good. She almost had me believing I was smart, but I've wasted 60 years writing in an age when writers outnumber readers.
Well we've been assembling pictures this way for a hundred years, Google Maps being a recent example.
Nevertheless this may be the first time with an 'election' microscope so I'm sure it deserves a broad patent to protect the idea for the next hundred years (or whatever the term may become under the guidance of our elected officials).
I understand that the US government reserves the right to take control of intellectual property under certain circumstances (national security? not sure what else).
If an invention, discovery or entertainment production were judged terribly essential to life on earth, the government could make it available to us despite the creator's stubborn urge to keep it from us.
So if that book you want is out of print, ask the government to step in.
Intellectual property law is designed to protect the creator's right to control the property. It carries no obligation to make the property (or music or movie) available to others. It simply prevents others from doing so for the duration.
Some copyright holders seem to believe that scarcity can be profitable. Thus Disney can bring out Snow White every 30 years and make a killing, whereas if it was always available the price would have deteriorated considerably. And somehow they are able to protect their copyrights forever...
"What can you really do with a TRS-80 these days?"
Run a business. As it happens I have a complete TRS-80 payroll system on audio cassettes still in shrink wrap and ready for someone's brilliant startup plans.
As Farmer Tim says, they'll still do what they did then, but people change and have less patience. Nostalgia can only carry you for a short time.
Have we forgotten the term 'vaporware'? Has it evaporated along with the products we used to laugh at?
I've been reading about 'exciting new developments' in photovoltaics for forty years, along with the flying car that's just around the corner and similar fantasies perpetuated by Popular Science & Popular Mechanics magazines.
Show me the cheap efficient PV product I can buy today or just shut up.
I'm a lot older than the OP and have a different perspective. Some people my age spend a lot of time thinking about 'the good old days'. Those people strike me as non-functional, fossils, relics...
A few people my age forge ahead, engage with the world, eagerly anticipate exciting changes in our culture. They don't have time for ritual, reminiscing and memorabilia.
The OP doesn't say what he graduated from. If it was the Apollo astronaut team, then go for it- you've earned a place in history. Otherwise, reconsider the silly ritual; live in the present and enjoy the unfolding of history around you.
the safest storage is your own high speed server quality RAID 7 write-only drive
Soak the bed sheets in sweat all night. Listen to the insects banging at the screen to get in. Know that tomorrow will be just as hot and the office fan won't be much help.
This was routine in the days before air conditioning at home, work, school, car. People survived without too much whining. It's still routine for billions who aren't accustomed to luxury.