For the price of a little CCD, I didn't presume to suggest you do away with the rear camera. I was merely suggesting that you could ADD one to the front, under the glass of the screen..
Making a good phone isn't rocket science. Give it the same form factor as the MyTouch/iPhone, and then give it:
A) Good battery life B) Good call quality C) A front facing camera
And why not use the free and excellent Android Operating System, and then put money into some really killer apps, rather than duplicating effort trying to reinvent the wheel with YET ANOTHER phone OS? I'd like to see a Skype alternative that worked on free and open codecs like speex and theora, in particular. If I had that on a phone that was less than $100, why would I buy anything else? I'm really surprised at the lack of innovation in the phone market. I STILL don't have a video phone, which is ludicrous given a 640x480 webcam can't cost more than $5 to install on the front side of a phone.
Lighter than air dirigibles are clearly a superior technology, with all the necessary engineering to free us from our reliance on grounded transportation. Zeppelin technology can be safe, efficient, cheap, and reliable in most of the world (barring extremely windy climates). The problem isn't technology. The problem is economic interests who promote the status quo. Just like in most of the issues facing American society.
Google Docs is free. Free as in beer. And it runs on every OS. Making a comparison to OO is fine, and valid. OO is definitely superior for ONE user on ONE machine. However, it's bloated, requires java, and has dozens of other aspects that I don't like at all.
That said, I'd use either in place of paying for Microsoft Office. I really can't understand anybody's preference to MS Office over Open Office. I've made all of my students turn in their work in Open Office format. I've had 2 complaints over hundreds of students. Both admitted that their gripes were small, along the order of "It's not what I'm used to!"
Google Docs is getting better all the time. The writing is on the wall, in my opinion, and definitely no machine I administer will use anything other than Google Docs or Portable Open Office.
Man, it's a good thing we shot that guy in the face. Imagine humanity living together in peace, exploring the cosmos and improving the standard of living cooperatively. *SHUDDER*
I'm actually looking forward to ACTA and other corporate abuses of human liberty. As Leia said, "The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers!" I think this is certainly true of information freedom. First they killed Napster, and everyone went to Limewire, which provided slightly more anonymity. Then Limewire got bought out / corrupted, and everyone switched to pirate bay / utorrent. Then torrents started getting throttled and letters got sent, and encryption has been added to the protocol.
We have the technology right now with onion routing and freenet style network systems to provide true anonymity and freedom for all. The corporations and their slave governments (the US in particular) continuing to push people into digital slavery will only proliferate and strengthen these technologies.
Eventually I'd like to see everyone's cell phone and wifi router work as an anonymous ad hoc p2p system, bypassing the corporate ISP model altogether. Try throttling that, Comcast (et al)!
I agree with all the above posters though, Obama is definitely a corporate whore, no different than Bush, Clinton, Bush Sr, Carter, Nixon, Ford, Johnson... EVERY president since they shot JFK in the face has been acting completely against the interest of the American people and FOR the interests of large corporations and special interests of that ilk. Like Robin Hood, though, our technology will make that entire system irrelevant eventually. It's just up to a few of us geeks to pave the way for mom, and all the other technophobes.
Riiiiight I forgot about that. However, Whoever ported initially could port it again, I'd think. I just think there are some better engines that might get higher fps at this point. ioquake3 is pretty darned fast.
One other thing: What few inventors DID succeed in providing themselves amply with patents seem to have been charlatans appropriating other people's works:
I know maybe nobody has argued with me yet on this topic, extensively, but I just can't find a single justification for the status quo of our patent system, and have to wonder what benefits we can possibly imagined having gotten as it was arrived at in it's current form?
A good case in point is that I read somewhere that several auto manufacturers have patents on batteries, and are quashing them in favor of the status quo system of internal combustion engined cars, which they have engineered for maximum profitability, largely through universal engineering of disposable systems. I think we could have much, much better cars if the human spirit and genius had a hand in the shaping of humanity, rather than base economic interests that have run out of control and eliminated all competitors. There should be 600 car companies in the US. Not 3. Who thought 3 was a better idea than 600? WHY!?!?
The only reason it isn't "economically advantageous" is because corporations are patent hording and driving up cost, which is horrific in it's toll on humanity. Specifically regarding well-being and possibly long term increased leisure and satisfaction with life.
There are technologies that exist RIGHT NOW that are:
1. Cheap. 2. Easy. 3. Long-Lasting.
The combination of all 3 would drive prices down further in the extreme with mass-production and a system wide shift in architecture. Particularly if there were no stupid engineering royalties to pay, and often to a corporation who had no hand in developing the technology, and in fact on introduction went to great lengths to thwart it.
Ben Franklin had words on patents that were much clearer than my lunatic raving. However I agree entirely with his conclusion:
"As we enjoy great advantages from the inventions of others, we should be glad of an opportunity to serve others by any invention of ours; and this we should do freely and generously."
Patents are fucked. I agree. Our scientific contributions to humanity are mandatory, and for free, on a basic moral level. Any other thought on patents is actually abhorrent and vile in my opinion.
In conclusion, I'd like to also take this time to mention that the system AS IS, has been no boon to the great inventors of our time. Santos Dumont, Nikola Tesla, and many other great scientific minds have died alone and in poverty, never having gotten their truly deserved human luxuries. So what the fuck is the point?!? FUCK PATENTS!
And money. Clearly, our whole society would benefit much more (and create much less pollution) by switching over completely to electric. If the government spent even a fraction of the money they spent on the TWO useless oil wars we have going on in the middle east on nano-capacitors or eliminating costly and vile corporate patents on battery technology, we would have better more reliable cars (electric cars have many, MANY less moving parts), that would be cheaper to operate, own, and be faster and quieter.
Here are some promising links that lead me to believe our government is completely corrupt, incompetent, and wholly a subsidiary of various oil corporations:
Even covering part of existing roofs, driveways, roads, or other surfaces with solar panels would ensure our energy freedom in the long run. Not doing this is just plain stupid.
Well, a better plan would actually be porting ioquake3, and including the latest speex and OpenAL 3d positioned VOIP. But I'm sure you could down sample the openarena stuff quite easily to a q2 format if you weren't willing to instead bolster the engine.
I like a good fps as much as the next guy. I really do, I'm an Urban Terror junkie. It's quake 3 tech, but very similar gameplay. However, it seems like we could have better uses for this technology:
Freedom of Speech should be limited for no reason. Even screaming fire in a theater should be allowed. Of course that theater may choose to ban that patron, and that should also be a freedom that we the people possess. ACTA is clearly just large corporations continually attempting to subvert all human liberty, again. It is disgusting. Obama et al are no better than any of the puss bags we've "elected" since they shot JFK in the face:
I could go on and on, but Obama lied about EVERY campaign promise, just like every president has since JFK got shot in the face. Troops out of Afghanistan? Nope. Troops out of Iraq? Nope. Repeal Patriot Act. Nope, Extend!! End warrantless wiretapping? Nope, even make it impossible to prosecute any of the guilty parties!
Fuck Obama. Fuck him and every other politician that acts in the interests in the corporations, not the people.
We need to DISBAND the NSA. A democracy should be run by it's citizenry, not the other way around. The entire idea behind the NSA, that the American people need to be spied on, is repugnant, and helps stagnate our liberty in obvious and tyrannical fashion. This kind of agency is the whole reason we don't have real elections with real candidates that talk about real issues. This kind of agency is only required in a media run fascism where the populace does not know who killed JFK, or why, or who then succeeded him and to what purpose.
We should disband the NSA immediately. It is the most loathsome, disgusting, and horrible institution yet created by man, and it serves no purpose other than to subvert the very principle of democracy.
This could definitely work. But nix the ethernet jack, give it wifi, and a rechargeable battery. Make it the same as an ipad in form factor, but on FOSS OS.
While you're at it, I have ideas for the new FOSS OS/Social Network:
First, don't close your FB MS and other social network accounts. Leave them open, and automagically allow all of your friends updates etc. to come over as if they were native. There will always be some friend who is stuck in the dark ages on geocities that you might need to still talk to (that example was intentionally bad).
Second, we need a more intuitive interface. Clone FaceBook and MySpace exactly, and set those as options, but then also make a vastly superior interface. I would use one of the many great GPL'ed 3d engines, such as ioquake3. Then let everyone's webcam build a custom 3d avatar based on their actual face/body, and have their avatars be able to interact real time on screen, complete with real time 3d positioned VOIP. Of course this functionality could be turned on or off with a simple mouse click.
In addition, allow a 3rd party plugin system that can create whole new 3d experiences in this virtual world. Build a couple of fast easy ones right in: Chess, checkers, Cards..... And allow anyone to autmagically sign on to their FB, MS, email, IRC, AIM, hotmail, yahoo, or etc. and be able to talk with, and PLAY a card game with as many of their other friends as are currently online.
Third, make all the tools to interact very, very easy to do from an android phone. Pictures, Audio and Videos should be able to be uploaded instantly, and in open formats like.PNG and.OGG. In addition, Video and Audio should be possible to broadcast real time, to any other user with a FOSSpace account.
With this design, you could easily supplant YouTube, Picasa, MySpace, Facebook, and all other social networking sites, very quickly. In addition, as most people would only require this and a Firefox plugin, you could also supplant Mac and Windows, virtually over night.
The final part of my plan to supplant corporations with personal freedom involves replacing the ISPs. With a system of FOSS routers and repeaters, and with all devices and phones acting as potential relays for a truly open ad hoc networking system, we could easily rest control of the entire internet from corporations and governments and truly begin a world of freedom and open information for all.
Other "Plugins" that I would like to see implemented in the 3d virtual space: Boggle SNES emu N64 emu NES emu Sega emu Mame emu Urban Terror Portal (just walk your avatar into a door to join a server) Wow Portal (though I'd like to replace WoW with a FOSS clone ASAP. GTA San Andreas Portal (this would require a whole new FOSS clone of the original game. Lots of work this bit.) Civ 2 emu. Something you could play real time with your friends in VOIP conversation still. And a Civ 2 clone because it was more fun than later version. Real Time Music Collaboration tools. A jack for your guitar/bass/keys/violin/drums to hook up directly and allow your instrument to be heard real time while your avatar moves real time to play exactly as you are playing. This would make rehearsal SO MUCH BETTER for me in both of my bands.
Do all of this, you could beat apple and their iphone, you could beat skype, you could beat windows, you could beat myspace, facebook, and even google.
Slashdot Mirror
For the price of a little CCD, I didn't presume to suggest you do away with the rear camera. I was merely suggesting that you could ADD one to the front, under the glass of the screen..
Making a good phone isn't rocket science. Give it the same form factor as the MyTouch/iPhone, and then give it:
A) Good battery life
B) Good call quality
C) A front facing camera
And why not use the free and excellent Android Operating System, and then put money into some really killer apps, rather than duplicating effort trying to reinvent the wheel with YET ANOTHER phone OS? I'd like to see a Skype alternative that worked on free and open codecs like speex and theora, in particular. If I had that on a phone that was less than $100, why would I buy anything else? I'm really surprised at the lack of innovation in the phone market. I STILL don't have a video phone, which is ludicrous given a 640x480 webcam can't cost more than $5 to install on the front side of a phone.
Lighter than air dirigibles are clearly a superior technology, with all the necessary engineering to free us from our reliance on grounded transportation. Zeppelin technology can be safe, efficient, cheap, and reliable in most of the world (barring extremely windy climates). The problem isn't technology. The problem is economic interests who promote the status quo. Just like in most of the issues facing American society.
Google Docs is free. Free as in beer. And it runs on every OS. Making a comparison to OO is fine, and valid. OO is definitely superior for ONE user on ONE machine. However, it's bloated, requires java, and has dozens of other aspects that I don't like at all.
That said, I'd use either in place of paying for Microsoft Office. I really can't understand anybody's preference to MS Office over Open Office. I've made all of my students turn in their work in Open Office format. I've had 2 complaints over hundreds of students. Both admitted that their gripes were small, along the order of "It's not what I'm used to!"
Google Docs is getting better all the time. The writing is on the wall, in my opinion, and definitely no machine I administer will use anything other than Google Docs or Portable Open Office.
Man, it's a good thing we shot that guy in the face. Imagine humanity living together in peace, exploring the cosmos and improving the standard of living cooperatively. *SHUDDER*
I'm actually looking forward to ACTA and other corporate abuses of human liberty. As Leia said, "The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers!" I think this is certainly true of information freedom. First they killed Napster, and everyone went to Limewire, which provided slightly more anonymity. Then Limewire got bought out / corrupted, and everyone switched to pirate bay / utorrent. Then torrents started getting throttled and letters got sent, and encryption has been added to the protocol.
We have the technology right now with onion routing and freenet style network systems to provide true anonymity and freedom for all. The corporations and their slave governments (the US in particular) continuing to push people into digital slavery will only proliferate and strengthen these technologies.
Eventually I'd like to see everyone's cell phone and wifi router work as an anonymous ad hoc p2p system, bypassing the corporate ISP model altogether. Try throttling that, Comcast (et al)!
I agree with all the above posters though, Obama is definitely a corporate whore, no different than Bush, Clinton, Bush Sr, Carter, Nixon, Ford, Johnson... EVERY president since they shot JFK in the face has been acting completely against the interest of the American people and FOR the interests of large corporations and special interests of that ilk. Like Robin Hood, though, our technology will make that entire system irrelevant eventually. It's just up to a few of us geeks to pave the way for mom, and all the other technophobes.
Girth isn't everything... :)
But then, as an American, something like this might be the closest thing to health care I ever get.
Seriously. The US is in no way less evil than China at this point. They shouldn't help any corporate fascism access individual's emails!!
Riiiiight I forgot about that. However, Whoever ported initially could port it again, I'd think. I just think there are some better engines that might get higher fps at this point. ioquake3 is pretty darned fast.
One other thing: What few inventors DID succeed in providing themselves amply with patents seem to have been charlatans appropriating other people's works:
http://techdirt.com/articles/20091218/1100247426.shtml
I know maybe nobody has argued with me yet on this topic, extensively, but I just can't find a single justification for the status quo of our patent system, and have to wonder what benefits we can possibly imagined having gotten as it was arrived at in it's current form?
A good case in point is that I read somewhere that several auto manufacturers have patents on batteries, and are quashing them in favor of the status quo system of internal combustion engined cars, which they have engineered for maximum profitability, largely through universal engineering of disposable systems. I think we could have much, much better cars if the human spirit and genius had a hand in the shaping of humanity, rather than base economic interests that have run out of control and eliminated all competitors. There should be 600 car companies in the US. Not 3. Who thought 3 was a better idea than 600? WHY!?!?
The only reason it isn't "economically advantageous" is because corporations are patent hording and driving up cost, which is horrific in it's toll on humanity. Specifically regarding well-being and possibly long term increased leisure and satisfaction with life.
There are technologies that exist RIGHT NOW that are:
1. Cheap.
2. Easy.
3. Long-Lasting.
The combination of all 3 would drive prices down further in the extreme with mass-production and a system wide shift in architecture. Particularly if there were no stupid engineering royalties to pay, and often to a corporation who had no hand in developing the technology, and in fact on introduction went to great lengths to thwart it.
Ben Franklin had words on patents that were much clearer than my lunatic raving. However I agree entirely with his conclusion:
"As we enjoy great advantages from the inventions of others, we should be glad of an opportunity to serve others by any invention of ours; and this we should do freely and generously."
Patents are fucked. I agree. Our scientific contributions to humanity are mandatory, and for free, on a basic moral level. Any other thought on patents is actually abhorrent and vile in my opinion.
In conclusion, I'd like to also take this time to mention that the system AS IS, has been no boon to the great inventors of our time. Santos Dumont, Nikola Tesla, and many other great scientific minds have died alone and in poverty, never having gotten their truly deserved human luxuries. So what the fuck is the point?!? FUCK PATENTS!
They could at least have went with a more up to date Q2 codebase, like Quake2evolved, which I know is floating around, and can take Q3 assets.
And money. Clearly, our whole society would benefit much more (and create much less pollution) by switching over completely to electric. If the government spent even a fraction of the money they spent on the TWO useless oil wars we have going on in the middle east on nano-capacitors or eliminating costly and vile corporate patents on battery technology, we would have better more reliable cars (electric cars have many, MANY less moving parts), that would be cheaper to operate, own, and be faster and quieter.
Here are some promising links that lead me to believe our government is completely corrupt, incompetent, and wholly a subsidiary of various oil corporations:
http://www.physorg.com/news188637189.html
http://www.physorg.com/news180704455.html
http://www.physorg.com/news180713660.html
http://www.physorg.com/news186850199.html
Even covering part of existing roofs, driveways, roads, or other surfaces with solar panels would ensure our energy freedom in the long run. Not doing this is just plain stupid.
Well, a better plan would actually be porting ioquake3, and including the latest speex and OpenAL 3d positioned VOIP. But I'm sure you could down sample the openarena stuff quite easily to a q2 format if you weren't willing to instead bolster the engine.
I like a good fps as much as the next guy. I really do, I'm an Urban Terror junkie. It's quake 3 tech, but very similar gameplay. However, it seems like we could have better uses for this technology:
http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=1588910&cid=31546834&art_pos=5&art_pos=5
There's GOT to be some good levels, characters, weapons available under Creative Commons. How about stealing some from OpenArena?
No, no, I've actually had my review completely deleted. And it was for a very shady business.
Yelp has been bullshit for some time. It's a neat idea, but they've censored several of my negative reviews which were all factual.
As such, Yelp holds no value.
Freedom of Speech should be limited for no reason. Even screaming fire in a theater should be allowed. Of course that theater may choose to ban that patron, and that should also be a freedom that we the people possess. ACTA is clearly just large corporations continually attempting to subvert all human liberty, again. It is disgusting. Obama et al are no better than any of the puss bags we've "elected" since they shot JFK in the face:
Corporate whore,
Liar,
Charlatan,
Anti-Liberty,
Anti-Free market (pro monopoly!),
Anti-Privacy (Warrantless Wiretapping, Patriot Act).....
I could go on and on, but Obama lied about EVERY campaign promise, just like every president has since JFK got shot in the face. Troops out of Afghanistan? Nope. Troops out of Iraq? Nope. Repeal Patriot Act. Nope, Extend!! End warrantless wiretapping? Nope, even make it impossible to prosecute any of the guilty parties!
Fuck Obama. Fuck him and every other politician that acts in the interests in the corporations, not the people.
We need to DISBAND the NSA. A democracy should be run by it's citizenry, not the other way around. The entire idea behind the NSA, that the American people need to be spied on, is repugnant, and helps stagnate our liberty in obvious and tyrannical fashion. This kind of agency is the whole reason we don't have real elections with real candidates that talk about real issues. This kind of agency is only required in a media run fascism where the populace does not know who killed JFK, or why, or who then succeeded him and to what purpose.
We should disband the NSA immediately. It is the most loathsome, disgusting, and horrible institution yet created by man, and it serves no purpose other than to subvert the very principle of democracy.
This could definitely work. But nix the ethernet jack, give it wifi, and a rechargeable battery. Make it the same as an ipad in form factor, but on FOSS OS.
While you're at it, I have ideas for the new FOSS OS/Social Network:
First, don't close your FB MS and other social network accounts. Leave them open, and automagically allow all of your friends updates etc. to come over as if they were native. There will always be some friend who is stuck in the dark ages on geocities that you might need to still talk to (that example was intentionally bad).
Second, we need a more intuitive interface. Clone FaceBook and MySpace exactly, and set those as options, but then also make a vastly superior interface. I would use one of the many great GPL'ed 3d engines, such as ioquake3. Then let everyone's webcam build a custom 3d avatar based on their actual face/body, and have their avatars be able to interact real time on screen, complete with real time 3d positioned VOIP. Of course this functionality could be turned on or off with a simple mouse click.
In addition, allow a 3rd party plugin system that can create whole new 3d experiences in this virtual world. Build a couple of fast easy ones right in: Chess, checkers, Cards..... And allow anyone to autmagically sign on to their FB, MS, email, IRC, AIM, hotmail, yahoo, or etc. and be able to talk with, and PLAY a card game with as many of their other friends as are currently online.
Third, make all the tools to interact very, very easy to do from an android phone. Pictures, Audio and Videos should be able to be uploaded instantly, and in open formats like .PNG and .OGG. In addition, Video and Audio should be possible to broadcast real time, to any other user with a FOSSpace account.
With this design, you could easily supplant YouTube, Picasa, MySpace, Facebook, and all other social networking sites, very quickly. In addition, as most people would only require this and a Firefox plugin, you could also supplant Mac and Windows, virtually over night.
The final part of my plan to supplant corporations with personal freedom involves replacing the ISPs. With a system of FOSS routers and repeaters, and with all devices and phones acting as potential relays for a truly open ad hoc networking system, we could easily rest control of the entire internet from corporations and governments and truly begin a world of freedom and open information for all.
Other "Plugins" that I would like to see implemented in the 3d virtual space:
Boggle
SNES emu
N64 emu
NES emu
Sega emu
Mame emu
Urban Terror Portal (just walk your avatar into a door to join a server)
Wow Portal (though I'd like to replace WoW with a FOSS clone ASAP.
GTA San Andreas Portal (this would require a whole new FOSS clone of the original game. Lots of work this bit.)
Civ 2 emu. Something you could play real time with your friends in VOIP conversation still. And a Civ 2 clone because it was more fun than later version.
Real Time Music Collaboration tools. A jack for your guitar/bass/keys/violin/drums to hook up directly and allow your instrument to be heard real time while your avatar moves real time to play exactly as you are playing. This would make rehearsal SO MUCH BETTER for me in both of my bands.
Do all of this, you could beat apple and their iphone, you could beat skype, you could beat windows, you could beat myspace, facebook, and even google.
I'm willing to beta test.
Requires Java on my machine, and I just don't hate myself enough to install that.....
If google did this, I would have to change my anti-corporate rhetoric into anti Apple and MS rhetoric.