Here is the pen drive/MP3 player. I am quite happy with mine (512 MB version). It was cheaper than the Creative Muvo and had a greater capacity.
As for the pocket knife, that would be great but you can't carry it on an airplane anymore. I bet that sales of Victorinox have gone down since 9/11. I don't even know where mine is anymore, I used to carry it with me everyday.
"They" don't decide anything once the competition has started, but I know what you mean. The website makes it clear that turns will be slower. It seems odd that they did do an S-turn at 35 mph during testing right before the comp though.
I can't quite parse your first sentence there, but I think that you are saying that I am saying it isn't a robot. I have said no such thing. Read my other posts. I think it is a valid solution, and it looks like they will do very well. Hopefully it won't flip on the open road again.
Maybe I should clarify. From what I have read I think that the Red Team will do better than any other group. They have probably put more money and time into their effort than any other team (even though they started later than some) and they deserve to do well.
That said, in a dynamic enviroment you won't always have the luxury of "the best map in the world". While this works well for convoys there are other situations where the ability to deal with a changed landscape (due to war or natural disaster) or to rapidly be able receive a new goal mid trip without the luxury of a massive map download.
Also, if the main goal of this effort were convoy work it seems like they would allow a convoy entry. The contest specifically forbids this.
It seems to me that this approach has the advantage of avoiding some of the problems that the other teams are trying to solve.
Finally, are you ever going to update the Cameo project on your website? I have been checking every few months for what must be years now.
Stanford has a similar story about a particular class that was different. It was the class admitted after the 1989 earthquake. Applications went way down that year and a lower percentage of those admitted accepted admission. They ended up admitting lots of people from the wait list. Professors later complained that the class was "different" to put it in a more PC way.
I agree that Stanford might be a healthier palce to go to school. Maybe it is the weather, maybe the relative lack of introverts, but I can only think of one person I know that didn't love Stanford.
I know a lot of people that have gone to MIT (I live in Boston currently) and while they appreciated the academics at their institutions they don't display the passion for the entire experience that Stanford undergrads do.
I for one think I did better academically because of the more social atmosphere. In any case it is great that there are a variety of institutions out there for all types of people.
Red Team has a map with the position of ravines. If a rock is big enough that their Hummer can't just go over it then the rock might show up on their map as well. This is one serious map.
There is also some onboard stuff to deal with these sorts of things, but the advantage of the Red Team over everyone else is the map.
Red Team is using "the best map in the world" to guide it. They have used topo maps, aerial photography, and a bunch of undergrads to painstakingly map out the terrain of the possible courses.
All competitors are given the actual route as a series of GPS waypoints a few hours prior to the race. Red Team is going to send those waypoints back to CMU, have the big iron there figure out the best course based on all the map data, and then download that course to the robot prior to the start. In a way this is cool, but it seems like they are using a loophole. A much more interesting problem would be to navigate a course that you know nothing about other than the waypoints.
The other teams are using techniques that require more onboard intelligence and route finding. The most interesting vehicle is from Cal. They have a motorcycle. Even though I went to Stanford I am rooting for the Cal motorcycle to do well since they have the most unique vehicle. Hopefully the team of Stanford alums (already dropped out) can come back next year and beat them.
I agree that there are far reaching implications. I would like more details on what each side is upset about than this article offers. I have read several articles on the dispute and each side complains about what the other is doing but neither discuss the fact that they are raising their own rates.
The blurb is worse than any of the articles, making it look like Dish Network is screwing their customers and Viacom is the good guy. It looks to me like Dish Network is trying to keep rates low for customers and Viacom is misrepresenting things. Also many Dish Network subscribers are getting $2 a month off if they have a local CBS station that they aren't getting right now.
What do you think the merits of the case are? Do you think the blurb reflects the point of view of the average/.er?
Certainly/.ers don't want DirecTV to have a monopoly, which seems like what the blurb is advocating.
Could this be anymore blatant? Echostar is in a dispute with Viacom since Viacom wants to raise its rates 40%. Both sides seem to be spreading disinformation, should/. be helping one do so and not the other.
MIT and CalTech don't actively want introverts. They are just willing to accept them because they value academics so much.
For the most part though you are right about elite institutions. I can tell you that there were very few introverts at Stanford. Or maybe they were locked in their dorm rooms and I just didn't notice them.
In any case the admissions people flat out told use that they look for well rounded people. The year I was admitted three people with a score of 1600 (pre-re-centering) on the SAT applied and only one got it. The admissions people said the two that were rejected didn't have anything to sell themselves with other than grades and a test score.
I wasn't implying that every store has the key needed to overwrite. If you think about it a little you'll be able to come up with a way that the tag can't be overwritten by just anyone. If you think about it some more you'll find a way to transfer ownership of the tag when the item it sold so that only the owner can write to it.
Your knee-jerk reaction shows you haven't put much thought into this.
Somebody really missed the boat here. They should have turned this into a reality TV show. Film each of the teams getting ready, introduce us to the robots, and then film the race, editing it for maximal drama.
I can't believe that somebody didn't buy this thing up. If not a broadcast network then at least the Discovery Channel (science oriented angle) or Spike TV(monster truck robots race across the desert angle).
Somehow I don't think that the military feed is going to reach a wide audience. I won't be able to see it.
I have a stack of 100 CDRs that I bought from CompUSA for cheap. They have nothing on top of the aluminium. If you rub it vigorously your finger turns silver. If you scratch it you get flakes of metal under your fingernail and you can see right through the resulting hole.
The most dangerous video game would be a Gamecube version of a game with an "Entertainment Tonight" theme. Mary Hart, one of the hosts of the show, cause seizures in some people.
Imagine the seizure inducing capability that Nintendo and Mary Hart would have if they joined forces. They could take over the world! Note that a "Little Mermaid" themed game would accomplish the same purpose.
Ha! I am sure the C=64 disks that I have are fine. I could just never get the stupid 1541 to stay aligned for more than two weeks at a time.
Trying to keep that disk drive working was the bane of my childhood. Not only was it dog slow (even for the time) but they always went out of alignment. We went through several before I bought an "align it at home" kit. Then I would fix it every few weeks but it was a major PITA. Finally even that stopped working and the drive just wouldn't read disks.
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As for the pocket knife, that would be great but you can't carry it on an airplane anymore. I bet that sales of Victorinox have gone down since 9/11. I don't even know where mine is anymore, I used to carry it with me everyday.
They'll never do that. They don't even want you to mess with the battery, they sure don't want you installing hard drives.
"They" don't decide anything once the competition has started, but I know what you mean. The website makes it clear that turns will be slower. It seems odd that they did do an S-turn at 35 mph during testing right before the comp though.
I can't quite parse your first sentence there, but I think that you are saying that I am saying it isn't a robot. I have said no such thing. Read my other posts. I think it is a valid solution, and it looks like they will do very well. Hopefully it won't flip on the open road again.
oooohhhh. Good point. Hadn't thought about that. Are there any restrictions on what you can do with songs you rip yourself with iTunes?
That will show them!
Seriously, Apple has made an effort to prevent piracy and that should be taken into consideration by Sacem.
That said, in a dynamic enviroment you won't always have the luxury of "the best map in the world". While this works well for convoys there are other situations where the ability to deal with a changed landscape (due to war or natural disaster) or to rapidly be able receive a new goal mid trip without the luxury of a massive map download.
Also, if the main goal of this effort were convoy work it seems like they would allow a convoy entry. The contest specifically forbids this.
It seems to me that this approach has the advantage of avoiding some of the problems that the other teams are trying to solve.
Finally, are you ever going to update the Cameo project on your website? I have been checking every few months for what must be years now.
I agree that Stanford might be a healthier palce to go to school. Maybe it is the weather, maybe the relative lack of introverts, but I can only think of one person I know that didn't love Stanford.
I know a lot of people that have gone to MIT (I live in Boston currently) and while they appreciated the academics at their institutions they don't display the passion for the entire experience that Stanford undergrads do.
I for one think I did better academically because of the more social atmosphere. In any case it is great that there are a variety of institutions out there for all types of people.
What is this Nobel price you speak of?
There is also some onboard stuff to deal with these sorts of things, but the advantage of the Red Team over everyone else is the map.
All competitors are given the actual route as a series of GPS waypoints a few hours prior to the race. Red Team is going to send those waypoints back to CMU, have the big iron there figure out the best course based on all the map data, and then download that course to the robot prior to the start. In a way this is cool, but it seems like they are using a loophole. A much more interesting problem would be to navigate a course that you know nothing about other than the waypoints.
The other teams are using techniques that require more onboard intelligence and route finding. The most interesting vehicle is from Cal. They have a motorcycle. Even though I went to Stanford I am rooting for the Cal motorcycle to do well since they have the most unique vehicle. Hopefully the team of Stanford alums (already dropped out) can come back next year and beat them.
The blurb is worse than any of the articles, making it look like Dish Network is screwing their customers and Viacom is the good guy. It looks to me like Dish Network is trying to keep rates low for customers and Viacom is misrepresenting things. Also many Dish Network subscribers are getting $2 a month off if they have a local CBS station that they aren't getting right now.
What do you think the merits of the case are? Do you think the blurb reflects the point of view of the average /.er?
Certainly /.ers don't want DirecTV to have a monopoly, which seems like what the blurb is advocating.
Last I checked /. is not a DirecTV/Viacom advocacy site. It is a Linux advocacy site. Perhaps I am wrong though.
Could this be anymore blatant? Echostar is in a dispute with Viacom since Viacom wants to raise its rates 40%. Both sides seem to be spreading disinformation, should /. be helping one do so and not the other.
For the most part though you are right about elite institutions. I can tell you that there were very few introverts at Stanford. Or maybe they were locked in their dorm rooms and I just didn't notice them.
In any case the admissions people flat out told use that they look for well rounded people. The year I was admitted three people with a score of 1600 (pre-re-centering) on the SAT applied and only one got it. The admissions people said the two that were rejected didn't have anything to sell themselves with other than grades and a test score.
Your knee-jerk reaction shows you haven't put much thought into this.
I can't believe that somebody didn't buy this thing up. If not a broadcast network then at least the Discovery Channel (science oriented angle) or Spike TV(monster truck robots race across the desert angle).
Somehow I don't think that the military feed is going to reach a wide audience. I won't be able to see it.
I have a stack of 100 CDRs that I bought from CompUSA for cheap. They have nothing on top of the aluminium. If you rub it vigorously your finger turns silver. If you scratch it you get flakes of metal under your fingernail and you can see right through the resulting hole.
That is the flag image. It appeared a few times at the very top of the page, centered above the banner ad. I have no idea what it is about.
btw, what is up with the mini-flag at the top of the page?
Imagine the seizure inducing capability that Nintendo and Mary Hart would have if they joined forces. They could take over the world! Note that a "Little Mermaid" themed game would accomplish the same purpose.
Not if they don't have the cryptographic keys to enable writing. What do you know about this stuff anyhow?
Trying to keep that disk drive working was the bane of my childhood. Not only was it dog slow (even for the time) but they always went out of alignment. We went through several before I bought an "align it at home" kit. Then I would fix it every few weeks but it was a major PITA. Finally even that stopped working and the drive just wouldn't read disks.
If you truely were an IBMer you'd know that massive reorganizations happen all the time. :)
Looks like your premise is flawed.