And that's not a $200 laptop, cheapest I see with a quick search is $289 refurbished. I'm not saying it's not nice, but the article might as well say "I can dumpster dive a pc for free, so why pay $500 for an ipad". The dude scored a nice little laptop from craigslist; if I try to get an X30 from ebay, I see one for $75 with no battery or hard drive, none in a working state.
I'm a bit puzzled - in TFA he says that publishers weren't interested: "Nobody was interested. The profit margin is too low on cheap books, they said." He then concludes: "I’ve had worse salaries in my life, and I’m very grateful, but I know total royalties would probably have been higher had I gone through the traditional route of working with a mainstream publisher." The publishers weren't interested, so it seems that he'd have saved the 3 months and not written the book. Once you start thinking that a book, had it been the sort of high profit book the publishers are looking for, would have made more money than the actual, low profit book you self published, you're off on a tangent. IMHO, of course.
I never understood the whole point of contactless payment, in that I'm already burning 30 minutes driving there, an hour walking around, at least ten minutes standing in line, perhaps ten hours of labor at work to pay for it, and thats all OK, but 2 seconds to pull out my wallet, WELLLLLL thats just an insurmountable obstacle, what do you expect me to climb mt Everest here, that's crazy talk, gimme a contactless system or I'll never shop here again?
I assume it's being pushed by the credit card companies, just like how you don't need to sign for lots of smaller stuff these days. They want you to do everything through them, so they want to make it as easy as possible. Have you even been stuck behind the old lady in the supermarket who counts out the exact change? It's not a long time in the scheme of things, but it sure feels that way... And if they put these in all phones, there are all the middle and high school kids who wouldn't get a card from their parents, but might get their phone linked to some account for movie tickets etc.
I don't even like the ATM cards that are also debit cards, and have had to tell the bank I don't want one....only an ATM card, and they sent them to me...
I finally caved when my credit union was going to start charging a fee to have the ATM only card but not for the debit ones. I really don't want the debit function - if I can use a card I'd prefer to use a cash-back credit card.
We tried it at work, but we get lots of crazy restricted pdfs from outside & we had even more problems with Foxit than Reader. Which I know, is pretty hard to believe.
I don't really drink, but in Ireland I tried Guinness in both Galway & Dublin. Even I could tell that it was better in Dublin. They say it doesn't travel well, and from my limited experience I'd agree. So, from now on I only drink Guinness in Dublin.
It's going to be a while before this becomes a reality. I have a pretty high end HD camcorder, and the pictures it takes are nowhere near even an older digital SLR. The demands for the sensors needed for video are just different for those needed for stills; in particular, the noise levels from an always-on video sensor are always going to be higher than the same size sensor designed for an SLR.
The main thing I don't like about iTunes is: I rip a cd, add it to the directory where all my music is kept, and then have to go to add a folder to the library. The Zune software finds whatever I put in the directory. It's a little thing, but it's annoying. I assume it's because iTunes either wants you to buy from their store or rip with iTunes; I stick with EAC for ripping, and if I buy downloads I use Amazon's mp3s. iTunes used to be really slow, but it's not as bad these days, it's mainly that I don't fully embrace the iTunes experience I guess.
I got the brown Zune from Woot also & mine is still cranking along too. I agree that the Zune software isn't perfect, but I do like it better than itunes for two reasons - it finds new music when I add it to my Music directory, and it lets me do a wireless sync. I use other software to rip & prep my mp3 tags before adding them. I keep mine in a dock on the kitchen counter jacked into ceiling speakers, and use the radio, podcasts & music daily; the wireless sync is nice to keep the podcasts updated. If it dies I'd think of getting another from ebay, they're pretty cheap.
TFA is confused; the process can be used to make parts 65% lighter than traditional. The Economist has a much better article: http://www.economist.com/node/18114221?story_id=18114221 Companies like EADS are using these methods with stuff like titanium to make parts the shape they need to be for their function, not the shape they need to be for their function + manufacturing considerations. That's where a lot of the weight savings come in. This bike is just a tech demo.
What, you mean rebooting it and reinstalling the operating system is not the first, last, and only solution to computer problems?
It's the best solution to malware ridden machines - you can't be sure you've really cleaned all that crap off. And malware problems are the ones that I see mostly these days. My rule of thumb is "would I be happy visiting my bank on this machine?". If no, wipe it.
I don't think that a light, slim device with great battery life & an e-ink screen & wifi for $140 (base kindle) is really overpriced. I just don't like that they won't support epub, which is why I haven't bought one yet. Sure I'd like them to be cheaper, but I'd also like a pony.
How does it feel to have to wait 2 years after the ipad orginially came out to finally get a decent non-apple one?
The way I look at it, I'm waiting 2 years to get a decent tablet, period. I'm not stuck on ipad or android, I want something that's decently priced & works well. I waited & got the 4th gen ipod touch; the screen, the faster processor, and the cameras made it worthwhile. This new ipad 2 is nice and all, but the rumors are that the higher res screen may come this fall. I can wait until then.
They won't release a wifi version too. every xoom indeed every android device will always have a 3G or 4G modem or lose all access to google marketplace. Since there is no competitor to google marketplace for android there will be no wifi only devices.
My understanding is that this changes with 3.0/Honeycomb - the older, non tablet Android versions had this 3G limitation, Honeycomb doesn't. Which is why IMHO there's no point in buying a tablet until Honeycomb is shipping. I think I'm going to buy some sort of tablet this holiday season.
I have a netbook. For a lot of things I use it for, I think a tablet with multitouch would be better. After using Google maps on an ipod & an android phone, I get pissed off using the touchpad on my netbook to navigate maps. I literally touched the screen once after having used the others for a while. Looking at photos, videos, etc, all would be better on a tablet. If the rumored ipad 3 with the retina display happens this fall and keeps the same price point I think I'll overcome my natural cheapness & buy it; otherwise there should be a decent Honeycomb tablet from Archos or somebody that will do the basics for under $300. The value is in what you do with it, not the amount of parts you're getting.
The funny thing is, it's not going to stop pirates; if you look at pirated movies, what you'll see are first telesyncs & then later BD Rips. No one is bothering to mess with any analog holes.
But the £250 one is running Froyo without 3G, so it's not going to have the Android market unless you jump through hoops. Better to wait for Honeycomb. And the Tab has been selling like something that doesn't sell very fast...
Slashdot Mirror
I think that this comment here pretty much says all that needs to be said about the tablet wars. Mod up!
And that's not a $200 laptop, cheapest I see with a quick search is $289 refurbished. I'm not saying it's not nice, but the article might as well say "I can dumpster dive a pc for free, so why pay $500 for an ipad". The dude scored a nice little laptop from craigslist; if I try to get an X30 from ebay, I see one for $75 with no battery or hard drive, none in a working state.
He doesn't consider it good pay, he says he's had worse salaries. He concludes that self publishing isn't really worth it.
It took him 3 months to write, so he considers that he has so far made $3k/month. Better than minimum wage.
I'm a bit puzzled - in TFA he says that publishers weren't interested:
"Nobody was interested. The profit margin is too low on cheap books, they said."
He then concludes:
"I’ve had worse salaries in my life, and I’m very grateful, but I know total royalties would probably have been higher had I gone through the traditional route of working with a mainstream publisher."
The publishers weren't interested, so it seems that he'd have saved the 3 months and not written the book. Once you start thinking that a book, had it been the sort of high profit book the publishers are looking for, would have made more money than the actual, low profit book you self published, you're off on a tangent. IMHO, of course.
I never understood the whole point of contactless payment, in that I'm already burning 30 minutes driving there, an hour walking around, at least ten minutes standing in line, perhaps ten hours of labor at work to pay for it, and thats all OK, but 2 seconds to pull out my wallet, WELLLLLL thats just an insurmountable obstacle, what do you expect me to climb mt Everest here, that's crazy talk, gimme a contactless system or I'll never shop here again?
I assume it's being pushed by the credit card companies, just like how you don't need to sign for lots of smaller stuff these days. They want you to do everything through them, so they want to make it as easy as possible. Have you even been stuck behind the old lady in the supermarket who counts out the exact change? It's not a long time in the scheme of things, but it sure feels that way... And if they put these in all phones, there are all the middle and high school kids who wouldn't get a card from their parents, but might get their phone linked to some account for movie tickets etc.
I don't even like the ATM cards that are also debit cards, and have had to tell the bank I don't want one....only an ATM card, and they sent them to me...
I finally caved when my credit union was going to start charging a fee to have the ATM only card but not for the debit ones. I really don't want the debit function - if I can use a card I'd prefer to use a cash-back credit card.
We tried it at work, but we get lots of crazy restricted pdfs from outside & we had even more problems with Foxit than Reader. Which I know, is pretty hard to believe.
I don't really drink, but in Ireland I tried Guinness in both Galway & Dublin. Even I could tell that it was better in Dublin. They say it doesn't travel well, and from my limited experience I'd agree. So, from now on I only drink Guinness in Dublin.
It's going to be a while before this becomes a reality. I have a pretty high end HD camcorder, and the pictures it takes are nowhere near even an older digital SLR. The demands for the sensors needed for video are just different for those needed for stills; in particular, the noise levels from an always-on video sensor are always going to be higher than the same size sensor designed for an SLR.
If the HD shows up on Woot for $60 (like my classic brown 30GB) I'll be all over it!
I'm interested, what dont you like about iTunes?
The main thing I don't like about iTunes is: I rip a cd, add it to the directory where all my music is kept, and then have to go to add a folder to the library. The Zune software finds whatever I put in the directory. It's a little thing, but it's annoying. I assume it's because iTunes either wants you to buy from their store or rip with iTunes; I stick with EAC for ripping, and if I buy downloads I use Amazon's mp3s. iTunes used to be really slow, but it's not as bad these days, it's mainly that I don't fully embrace the iTunes experience I guess.
I got the brown Zune from Woot also & mine is still cranking along too. I agree that the Zune software isn't perfect, but I do like it better than itunes for two reasons - it finds new music when I add it to my Music directory, and it lets me do a wireless sync. I use other software to rip & prep my mp3 tags before adding them. I keep mine in a dock on the kitchen counter jacked into ceiling speakers, and use the radio, podcasts & music daily; the wireless sync is nice to keep the podcasts updated. If it dies I'd think of getting another from ebay, they're pretty cheap.
TFA is confused; the process can be used to make parts 65% lighter than traditional. The Economist has a much better article:
http://www.economist.com/node/18114221?story_id=18114221
Companies like EADS are using these methods with stuff like titanium to make parts the shape they need to be for their function, not the shape they need to be for their function + manufacturing considerations. That's where a lot of the weight savings come in. This bike is just a tech demo.
But I can't buy an airplane jammer for under $100 on dealextreme... unless you count the green lasers I guess!
What, you mean rebooting it and reinstalling the operating system is not the first, last, and only solution to computer problems?
It's the best solution to malware ridden machines - you can't be sure you've really cleaned all that crap off. And malware problems are the ones that I see mostly these days. My rule of thumb is "would I be happy visiting my bank on this machine?". If no, wipe it.
I don't think that a light, slim device with great battery life & an e-ink screen & wifi for $140 (base kindle) is really overpriced. I just don't like that they won't support epub, which is why I haven't bought one yet. Sure I'd like them to be cheaper, but I'd also like a pony.
How does it feel to have to wait 2 years after the ipad orginially came out to finally get a decent non-apple one?
The way I look at it, I'm waiting 2 years to get a decent tablet, period. I'm not stuck on ipad or android, I want something that's decently priced & works well. I waited & got the 4th gen ipod touch; the screen, the faster processor, and the cameras made it worthwhile. This new ipad 2 is nice and all, but the rumors are that the higher res screen may come this fall. I can wait until then.
They won't release a wifi version too. every xoom indeed every android device will always have a 3G or 4G modem or lose all access to google marketplace. Since there is no competitor to google marketplace for android there will be no wifi only devices.
My understanding is that this changes with 3.0/Honeycomb - the older, non tablet Android versions had this 3G limitation, Honeycomb doesn't. Which is why IMHO there's no point in buying a tablet until Honeycomb is shipping. I think I'm going to buy some sort of tablet this holiday season.
I have a netbook. For a lot of things I use it for, I think a tablet with multitouch would be better. After using Google maps on an ipod & an android phone, I get pissed off using the touchpad on my netbook to navigate maps. I literally touched the screen once after having used the others for a while. Looking at photos, videos, etc, all would be better on a tablet. If the rumored ipad 3 with the retina display happens this fall and keeps the same price point I think I'll overcome my natural cheapness & buy it; otherwise there should be a decent Honeycomb tablet from Archos or somebody that will do the basics for under $300. The value is in what you do with it, not the amount of parts you're getting.
As soon as you see Nigeria and bank in the same context, always run away. In fact, just Nigeria should be enough...
The funny thing is, it's not going to stop pirates; if you look at pirated movies, what you'll see are first telesyncs & then later BD Rips. No one is bothering to mess with any analog holes.
But the £250 one is running Froyo without 3G, so it's not going to have the Android market unless you jump through hoops. Better to wait for Honeycomb. And the Tab has been selling like something that doesn't sell very fast...
Sput.
Nik.
there's been a wifi-only version of the Galaxy Tab about to be released "any day now" (for the last 6-8 months).
They're just waiting until they've sold the first 100 3G models...
*rimshot*