We may have found the source of the Great Flood stories.
According to a couple of articles in National Geographic very recently, scientists have surmised a major rise in water level in the Black Sea due to a sudden surge of water coming through the Bosphorus several thousand years ago. There is now evidence that a large number of people living on the Black Sea coast of what is now modern Turkey died or were forced to move to higher ground in very quick fashion due to this ancient flooding.
I think the following comic artists will be read 50 years from now:
1. Bill Watterson--his Calvin and Hobbes are truly imaginative and stand the test of time.
2. Charles Schulz--again, Peanuts at its very best also stands the test of time.
3. Will Eisner--he has done a number of graphic novels that are flat-out GREAT. I'll never forget The Neighborhood: Dropsie Avenue; I hope it gets made into a TV miniseries someday.
I think if Microsoft has to open their server protocols, this means that Ximian's Mono project to develop the Open Source equivalent of the.Net web services framework could become quite a bit easier to implement, since we now can have Windows 2000/XP machines (and definitely Linux workstation machines) log onto Linux servers running Mono with full.Net implementation instead of Windows 2000/2002 servers running the same services.
Alas, this is bad news for Sun. Sun's own web services initiative could be kiboshed by what amounts to low-cost.Net implementation using Mono. This means the Microsoft/DoJ settlement deal may have just unwittingly tipped the standardization of web services in favor of Microsoft and its Ximian Open Source equivalent. Imagine IBM big iron running Mono under Linux....
I think since server protocols will be disclosed, this could mean Ximian's Mono project to create the Open Source equivalent of Microsoft's.Net initiative could became much easier to implement.
Mind you, this might be really bad news for Sun Microsystems, since both Microsoft and the Open Source crowd will be supporting similar server protocols, which will leave Sun holding the bag.:-)
What makes the AMD CPU's extremely good compared to the Intel CPU's is the fact that because AMD designed their CPU's with more much efficient FPU units (no Pentium Pro FPU legacy) and also more efficient access to L2 cache, the result is extremely high performance on a per MHz basis. Indeed, the Athlon XP 1800+ on a DDR-SDRAM motherboard will run rings around the Pentium 4 2,000 MHz on most apps except those that are optimized specifically for SSE2 multimedia extensions.
The reason why machines are getting faster and faster is simple: every operating system I know are adding more and more functionality as standard, and that requires more and more computing power.
Sure, you can run Linux in command line mode quite well on older machines, but if you plan on running either the KDE or Gnome graphical environments better plan on something a bit more modern. This is especially true if you want to be involved with digital media content in any serious fashion.
And you wonder why one thing we may see in the 2.5.x developmental kernel releases is Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) support.
With ACPI implemented in Linux, things like OS upgrades, changes in OS components, and adding software support for new hardware could become quite a bit easier.
Anyway, the current process of Linux kernel updates is too complicated for the average home user. I've read about the process involved and it can get a bit tricky for less-experienced computer users.
I think what a lot of people are conveniently forgetting is that the horrible famines in Africa and currently Afghanistan are mostly NOT caused by humans damaging the environment or nautral drought cycles.
They are caused by deliberate actions of the the local ruling governments. Think about it: the horrible famines of Ethiopia in the 1980's and the Sudan for the last 15 years are caused by civil wars that have seriously interrupted the growing of local crops and transportation of food, especially with the ruling government deliberately interfering with crop growing and commandeering all the supply trucks.
Indeed, one of the most horrible examples of a deliberately-caused famine was the forced collectivization of farms in the Ukraine by Josef Stalin from 1928 to 1934--the result was fourteen million dead from mass shootings, labor camps and outright starvation due to confiscation of food--this is more than the Nazis did with their concentration camp system.
I think what bothers me to NO end about Jon Katz' views is the very fact that he wants a return to provincialism.
This, IMHO, is an extremely stupid idea. All this does is create xenophobia, and you know that leads to too many ugly wars in human recorded history.
Maybe Katz needs to read three books by Alvin Toffler--Future Shock, The Third Wave, and Powershift. Toffler's views on the rapidly changing world are some of the MOST insightful I've ever read.
Indeed, The Third Wave rightfully predicted that changes in technology will cause all kinds of changes to the world. The very existance of the Internet has meant political views drowned out in the daily newspapers and television networks in the past are being heard. Why do you think political web sites catering to almost every political group are springing up on the Internet like mushrooms after a rainstorm? The Third Wave also predicted that multinational corporations will quickly change to adopt to new conditions; look at how General Electric is so amazingly successful in everything from jet engines all the way to corporate financing.
What Jon Katz is talking about are groups of small, but very visible people trying to turn back the Third Wave of change to humanity; in the longer run, these groups too will have to adapt to this new reality.
I think while Linux is getting more user-friendly, the fact is that upgrading the OS and adding hardware device support can be quite tricky even with the best commercial distributions.
Hopefully, when Linux adopts Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) auto-configuration support, the ease of OS upgrades and new hardware support will become far easier. This will finally make Linux a true viable competitor to Windows 2000/XP for most users.
I personally thought long ago that the settlement of US v. Microsoft would involve Microsoft offering Plain Jane versions of Windows that allows an end user or OEM to install their own additional software.
As such, my prediction has become reality. Don't be surprised that we may see an AOL Plus Pack for the Plain Jane Windows XP Home Edition that includes Netscape 6.x (using final Mozilla 1.0 code), Real Network's Real One media player, AOL IM or ICQ, and so on. And this add-on pack will include full support for RoadRunner cable modems, too.:-)
Re:Since when did MS ever set any standards?
on
Microsoft's Future
·
· Score: 2
However, Microsoft produced the first production optical sensor mouse that didn't required a reflective mouse pad. Logitech's optical units didn't show up until nearly 5-6 months later.
Re:Since when did MS ever set any standards?
on
Microsoft's Future
·
· Score: 2
Well, let's try the mouse pointer.
Sure, Apple used the mouse first with the Lisa/Macintosh, but Microsoft got there first with things like:
1. Two-button mouse. Apple still hasn't produced a two-button mouse.
2. Ergonomic mouse design, thanks to MS and Logitech one-upping each other for better hand feel. Remember Apple's much-reviled hockey puck mouse that originated on the iMac? Only recently did Apple come out with a mouse that feel comfortable in your hand.
3. Scroll wheel on mouse as pioneered by Intellimouse. This is a great idea because it saves a lot of mouse movement.
4. Optical sensor that works on most surfaces. The Intellimouse Explorer was great because you no longer needed to use a special reflective pad like you did with the older optical sensor mice.
In short, Apple should have produced an ergonomic two-button mouse with scroll wheel as far back as 1993. That would have been much-praised because it would have tremendously increased mouse functionality.
Re:Now that they've won the desktop "war"
on
Microsoft's Future
·
· Score: 2
I think Microsoft Research already has done quite a lot already.
At least in the field of mouse design, Microsoft has done some major advances (remember the Dove Bar MS Mouse from the late 1980's, the J-shaped mouse from the middle 1990's, Intellimouse with its scroll wheel, and Intellimouse Explorer with its breakthrough optical sensor?).
MS is sitting on US$30 billion in cash. They definitely have the resources to do some very innovative research.
This is why Larry Ellison should put up some serious money for a Linux research lab so advances in Linux can go at a more rapid pace.
I think two things have conspired against the success of MiniDiscs in the USA besides the RIAA copyright issues:
1. Disc skipping on portable CD players is not as critical issue as it used to be. Once shock memory reached over 20 seconds on portable players unless you really jostle the player very hard disk skipping was pretty much alleviated. That meant you could jog with the player running and chances were pretty good you wouldn't hear skipping.
2. The proliferation of CD-R and CD-RW drives from 1996 on meant you could pretty much create your own CD's. And they're usually discs that could be played on most CD players out there. This is especially even more true given that CD-R blank discs are so dirt cheap nowadays.
Actually bothHarry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and The Fellowship of the Ring are going to open massively huge, to say the least.
The Harry Potter movie because of the very large under-21 readership of the books, and LoTR because of the long-time Tolkien fandom from the 1960's till now. I've heard both movies are going to be quite good; if that's the case AOL Time Warner is going to be (figuratively) getting a license to print money.:-)
While I applaud your views, the problem with Linux now is what you want to do with the OS on that bulleted list requires the OS to automatically configure and update itself with as little user intervention as possible. Sad to say, Linux currently is not quite there yet.
If the Linux programmers can support the Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) natively, this could give Linux the automatic configuration ability Windows 98/ME/2000/XP now uses. I've read about the ACPI4Linux project but that needs much more support so all the major commercial Linux distributions will support it.
I think the biggest problem with Linux is the fact that with a few notable exceptions, Linux is not as easy to install, configure and update as Windows 95/98/ME/2000/XP is now.
In my personal opinion, Linux needs right now to start gravitating towards a single unified API, GUI, web browser, etc.--in short, overall OS standardization. This saves a lot of headaches because programming for Linux becomes much easier for everyone involved.
Also, Linux needs to support true automatic configuration like ACPI; that way, when you plug in new devices driver installation becomes automatic or very close to it using on-screen menus.
Finally, I wish somebody at Sun or Oracle will just put up some serious money to open a research lab to do usability improvements in Linux akin to Microsoft's excellent Usability Lab. Think about it: the reason why Microsoft programs have for the most part a polished feel for its GUI is because Microsoft spends many, many hours in their Usability Lab with users of varying levels of computer expertise inside and outside Microsoft to determine how to set up the interface correctly. In a slightly lesser manner, Apple does pretty much the same thing with the MacOS GUI; I'm sure the MacOS X Aqua interface was refined over a couple of years of testing by Apple reseachers and outside testers.
In areas when the GUI is not so important, Linux has made major inroads, primarily in servers where flexibility of administration and excellent security are a must. In fact, until the Linux crowd spends some serious money to improve the end user experience, Linux will primarily be an operating system for servers and high-end workstations.
Fortunately, here in the USA we may see a resurgence in the interest of diesel-fuelled vehicles.
The reasons why diesel haven't not been popular is the fact US-refined diesel fuel with its high sulfur content will easily damage modern diesel fuel-delivery systems and diesel engine emission control systems found on European diesel-powered automobiles. That means you can forget about getting LEV, let alone ULEV emissions certification.
However, now that the EPA will require all refiners to switch to low-sulfur diesel fuel soon (80 parts or less per million of sulfur compounds), it means modern diesel fuel delivery systems and modern emission control systems can be sold in the USA. This could mean companies like Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi could start selling their diesel-powered cars here in the USA on a large scale, which could increase their corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) quite a bit.
Actually, most likely the moon mining operations will be done underground, not above ground. If you're so caring about the asthestics of the near side of the Moon, they can always do it on the far side. =)
I would definitely seriously look at the eventual possibility of mining the Moon.
And why not? Moon rock samples brought back show an amazing amount of strategically vital elements: aluminum, iron, magnesium and titanium. These can be easily be used to build strong structures for space colonies or even future spacecraft.
What I would do is make very substantial tax incentives available for any company that can build and operate low-cost launch systems to 200 to 2,000 km altitude LEO. In short, provide incentives to turn over the disused launch sites on the southern half of Cape Canaveral to be converted into launch pads for privately-developed launch vehicles. After all, most of the operational launch pads for Titan, Altas, Delta and the Space Shuttle are on the northern half of Cape Canaveral.
Imagine someone reviving the Roton rocket idea and converting unused launch pads at Canaveral to operate this reusable launch system.
Consider what we have now in terms of digital still cameras: 2 megapixel units that print well even at 8" x 10", 3 megapixel units that print well even at 11" x 14", and now 4 megapixel units that print well even at 11" x 17". Is it small wonder why sales of print film have fallen on hard times?
The only place you'll see continued use of film-like formats is with slides, 6 cm x 4.5 cm and 6 cm x 7 cm medium formats, and photographic plates; they will be primarily used for advertising photography and high-end art work. Already, photojournalists are switching big-time to high-end digital cameras that are based on the high-end 35 mm cameras made by Canon and Nikon.
With 6 megapixel cameras coming by the fall of 2002, we may well see the final decline of the 35 mm film format. At 6 megapixels, the resolution is high enough that only very expert camera pros can tell the difference between a picture taken by a 6 megapixel camera and a picture done on ISO 64 slide film.
Anyway, Polaroid is finished because why bother with their film packs when digital cameras can store nowadays 50 or more very high resolution shots on a single 128 MB Smartmedia or Compact Flash memory card?
Slashdot Mirror
We may have found the source of the Great Flood stories.
According to a couple of articles in National Geographic very recently, scientists have surmised a major rise in water level in the Black Sea due to a sudden surge of water coming through the Bosphorus several thousand years ago. There is now evidence that a large number of people living on the Black Sea coast of what is now modern Turkey died or were forced to move to higher ground in very quick fashion due to this ancient flooding.
I think the following comic artists will be read 50 years from now:
1. Bill Watterson--his Calvin and Hobbes are truly imaginative and stand the test of time.
2. Charles Schulz--again, Peanuts at its very best also stands the test of time.
3. Will Eisner--he has done a number of graphic novels that are flat-out GREAT. I'll never forget The Neighborhood: Dropsie Avenue; I hope it gets made into a TV miniseries someday.
I'll probably give it to Shrek.
Mostly because it had a stronger storyline.
I think if Microsoft has to open their server protocols, this means that Ximian's Mono project to develop the Open Source equivalent of the .Net web services framework could become quite a bit easier to implement, since we now can have Windows 2000/XP machines (and definitely Linux workstation machines) log onto Linux servers running Mono with full .Net implementation instead of Windows 2000/2002 servers running the same services.
.Net implementation using Mono. This means the Microsoft/DoJ settlement deal may have just unwittingly tipped the standardization of web services in favor of Microsoft and its Ximian Open Source equivalent. Imagine IBM big iron running Mono under Linux....
Alas, this is bad news for Sun. Sun's own web services initiative could be kiboshed by what amounts to low-cost
I think since server protocols will be disclosed, this could mean Ximian's Mono project to create the Open Source equivalent of Microsoft's .Net initiative could became much easier to implement.
:-)
Mind you, this might be really bad news for Sun Microsystems, since both Microsoft and the Open Source crowd will be supporting similar server protocols, which will leave Sun holding the bag.
Dwain,
What makes the AMD CPU's extremely good compared to the Intel CPU's is the fact that because AMD designed their CPU's with more much efficient FPU units (no Pentium Pro FPU legacy) and also more efficient access to L2 cache, the result is extremely high performance on a per MHz basis. Indeed, the Athlon XP 1800+ on a DDR-SDRAM motherboard will run rings around the Pentium 4 2,000 MHz on most apps except those that are optimized specifically for SSE2 multimedia extensions.
The reason why machines are getting faster and faster is simple: every operating system I know are adding more and more functionality as standard, and that requires more and more computing power.
Sure, you can run Linux in command line mode quite well on older machines, but if you plan on running either the KDE or Gnome graphical environments better plan on something a bit more modern. This is especially true if you want to be involved with digital media content in any serious fashion.
And you wonder why one thing we may see in the 2.5.x developmental kernel releases is Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) support.
With ACPI implemented in Linux, things like OS upgrades, changes in OS components, and adding software support for new hardware could become quite a bit easier.
Anyway, the current process of Linux kernel updates is too complicated for the average home user. I've read about the process involved and it can get a bit tricky for less-experienced computer users.
AMEN!!
I think what a lot of people are conveniently forgetting is that the horrible famines in Africa and currently Afghanistan are mostly NOT caused by humans damaging the environment or nautral drought cycles.
They are caused by deliberate actions of the the local ruling governments. Think about it: the horrible famines of Ethiopia in the 1980's and the Sudan for the last 15 years are caused by civil wars that have seriously interrupted the growing of local crops and transportation of food, especially with the ruling government deliberately interfering with crop growing and commandeering all the supply trucks.
Indeed, one of the most horrible examples of a deliberately-caused famine was the forced collectivization of farms in the Ukraine by Josef Stalin from 1928 to 1934--the result was fourteen million dead from mass shootings, labor camps and outright starvation due to confiscation of food--this is more than the Nazis did with their concentration camp system.
I think what bothers me to NO end about Jon Katz' views is the very fact that he wants a return to provincialism.
This, IMHO, is an extremely stupid idea. All this does is create xenophobia, and you know that leads to too many ugly wars in human recorded history.
Maybe Katz needs to read three books by Alvin Toffler--Future Shock, The Third Wave, and Powershift. Toffler's views on the rapidly changing world are some of the MOST insightful I've ever read.
Indeed, The Third Wave rightfully predicted that changes in technology will cause all kinds of changes to the world. The very existance of the Internet has meant political views drowned out in the daily newspapers and television networks in the past are being heard. Why do you think political web sites catering to almost every political group are springing up on the Internet like mushrooms after a rainstorm? The Third Wave also predicted that multinational corporations will quickly change to adopt to new conditions; look at how General Electric is so amazingly successful in everything from jet engines all the way to corporate financing.
What Jon Katz is talking about are groups of small, but very visible people trying to turn back the Third Wave of change to humanity; in the longer run, these groups too will have to adapt to this new reality.
I think while Linux is getting more user-friendly, the fact is that upgrading the OS and adding hardware device support can be quite tricky even with the best commercial distributions.
Hopefully, when Linux adopts Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) auto-configuration support, the ease of OS upgrades and new hardware support will become far easier. This will finally make Linux a true viable competitor to Windows 2000/XP for most users.
Folks,
:-)
I personally thought long ago that the settlement of US v. Microsoft would involve Microsoft offering Plain Jane versions of Windows that allows an end user or OEM to install their own additional software.
As such, my prediction has become reality. Don't be surprised that we may see an AOL Plus Pack for the Plain Jane Windows XP Home Edition that includes Netscape 6.x (using final Mozilla 1.0 code), Real Network's Real One media player, AOL IM or ICQ, and so on. And this add-on pack will include full support for RoadRunner cable modems, too.
However, Microsoft produced the first production optical sensor mouse that didn't required a reflective mouse pad. Logitech's optical units didn't show up until nearly 5-6 months later.
Well, let's try the mouse pointer.
Sure, Apple used the mouse first with the Lisa/Macintosh, but Microsoft got there first with things like:
1. Two-button mouse. Apple still hasn't produced a two-button mouse.
2. Ergonomic mouse design, thanks to MS and Logitech one-upping each other for better hand feel. Remember Apple's much-reviled hockey puck mouse that originated on the iMac? Only recently did Apple come out with a mouse that feel comfortable in your hand.
3. Scroll wheel on mouse as pioneered by Intellimouse. This is a great idea because it saves a lot of mouse movement.
4. Optical sensor that works on most surfaces. The Intellimouse Explorer was great because you no longer needed to use a special reflective pad like you did with the older optical sensor mice.
In short, Apple should have produced an ergonomic two-button mouse with scroll wheel as far back as 1993. That would have been much-praised because it would have tremendously increased mouse functionality.
I think Microsoft Research already has done quite a lot already.
At least in the field of mouse design, Microsoft has done some major advances (remember the Dove Bar MS Mouse from the late 1980's, the J-shaped mouse from the middle 1990's, Intellimouse with its scroll wheel, and Intellimouse Explorer with its breakthrough optical sensor?).
MS is sitting on US$30 billion in cash. They definitely have the resources to do some very innovative research.
This is why Larry Ellison should put up some serious money for a Linux research lab so advances in Linux can go at a more rapid pace.
Does anyone know when will Red Hat have RH Linux 7.2 available in a commercial package (e.g., manuals and CD-ROM discs).
I still haven't seen the commercial package release of Linux Mandrake 7.1.
I think two things have conspired against the success of MiniDiscs in the USA besides the RIAA copyright issues:
1. Disc skipping on portable CD players is not as critical issue as it used to be. Once shock memory reached over 20 seconds on portable players unless you really jostle the player very hard disk skipping was pretty much alleviated. That meant you could jog with the player running and chances were pretty good you wouldn't hear skipping.
2. The proliferation of CD-R and CD-RW drives from 1996 on meant you could pretty much create your own CD's. And they're usually discs that could be played on most CD players out there. This is especially even more true given that CD-R blank discs are so dirt cheap nowadays.
Actually both Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and The Fellowship of the Ring are going to open massively huge, to say the least.
:-)
The Harry Potter movie because of the very large under-21 readership of the books, and LoTR because of the long-time Tolkien fandom from the 1960's till now. I've heard both movies are going to be quite good; if that's the case AOL Time Warner is going to be (figuratively) getting a license to print money.
While I applaud your views, the problem with Linux now is what you want to do with the OS on that bulleted list requires the OS to automatically configure and update itself with as little user intervention as possible. Sad to say, Linux currently is not quite there yet.
If the Linux programmers can support the Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) natively, this could give Linux the automatic configuration ability Windows 98/ME/2000/XP now uses. I've read about the ACPI4Linux project but that needs much more support so all the major commercial Linux distributions will support it.
I think the biggest problem with Linux is the fact that with a few notable exceptions, Linux is not as easy to install, configure and update as Windows 95/98/ME/2000/XP is now.
In my personal opinion, Linux needs right now to start gravitating towards a single unified API, GUI, web browser, etc.--in short, overall OS standardization. This saves a lot of headaches because programming for Linux becomes much easier for everyone involved.
Also, Linux needs to support true automatic configuration like ACPI; that way, when you plug in new devices driver installation becomes automatic or very close to it using on-screen menus.
Finally, I wish somebody at Sun or Oracle will just put up some serious money to open a research lab to do usability improvements in Linux akin to Microsoft's excellent Usability Lab. Think about it: the reason why Microsoft programs have for the most part a polished feel for its GUI is because Microsoft spends many, many hours in their Usability Lab with users of varying levels of computer expertise inside and outside Microsoft to determine how to set up the interface correctly. In a slightly lesser manner, Apple does pretty much the same thing with the MacOS GUI; I'm sure the MacOS X Aqua interface was refined over a couple of years of testing by Apple reseachers and outside testers.
In areas when the GUI is not so important, Linux has made major inroads, primarily in servers where flexibility of administration and excellent security are a must. In fact, until the Linux crowd spends some serious money to improve the end user experience, Linux will primarily be an operating system for servers and high-end workstations.
Fortunately, here in the USA we may see a resurgence in the interest of diesel-fuelled vehicles.
The reasons why diesel haven't not been popular is the fact US-refined diesel fuel with its high sulfur content will easily damage modern diesel fuel-delivery systems and diesel engine emission control systems found on European diesel-powered automobiles. That means you can forget about getting LEV, let alone ULEV emissions certification.
However, now that the EPA will require all refiners to switch to low-sulfur diesel fuel soon (80 parts or less per million of sulfur compounds), it means modern diesel fuel delivery systems and modern emission control systems can be sold in the USA. This could mean companies like Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi could start selling their diesel-powered cars here in the USA on a large scale, which could increase their corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) quite a bit.
Actually, most likely the moon mining operations will be done underground, not above ground. If you're so caring about the asthestics of the near side of the Moon, they can always do it on the far side. =)
I would definitely seriously look at the eventual possibility of mining the Moon.
And why not? Moon rock samples brought back show an amazing amount of strategically vital elements: aluminum, iron, magnesium and titanium. These can be easily be used to build strong structures for space colonies or even future spacecraft.
Great idea! :-)
What I would do is make very substantial tax incentives available for any company that can build and operate low-cost launch systems to 200 to 2,000 km altitude LEO. In short, provide incentives to turn over the disused launch sites on the southern half of Cape Canaveral to be converted into launch pads for privately-developed launch vehicles. After all, most of the operational launch pads for Titan, Altas, Delta and the Space Shuttle are on the northern half of Cape Canaveral.
Imagine someone reviving the Roton rocket idea and converting unused launch pads at Canaveral to operate this reusable launch system.
You are correct in your assessments.
Consider what we have now in terms of digital still cameras: 2 megapixel units that print well even at 8" x 10", 3 megapixel units that print well even at 11" x 14", and now 4 megapixel units that print well even at 11" x 17". Is it small wonder why sales of print film have fallen on hard times?
The only place you'll see continued use of film-like formats is with slides, 6 cm x 4.5 cm and 6 cm x 7 cm medium formats, and photographic plates; they will be primarily used for advertising photography and high-end art work. Already, photojournalists are switching big-time to high-end digital cameras that are based on the high-end 35 mm cameras made by Canon and Nikon.
With 6 megapixel cameras coming by the fall of 2002, we may well see the final decline of the 35 mm film format. At 6 megapixels, the resolution is high enough that only very expert camera pros can tell the difference between a picture taken by a 6 megapixel camera and a picture done on ISO 64 slide film.
Anyway, Polaroid is finished because why bother with their film packs when digital cameras can store nowadays 50 or more very high resolution shots on a single 128 MB Smartmedia or Compact Flash memory card?