Check out ConsumersUnion.org operated by Consumer Reports. I can forsee consumers organizing along these lines, though perhaps in a stronger way. While it may not affect Microsoft and their monopoly, it may put the fear of god into most other corporations that are too focused on the bottom line and ignoring any social responsibilies.
I was talking with a friend a while back, who brought up a good point for Rutan's concept having a real commercial application : travel. Not tourist travel, but actual travel to other places.
Out of curiousity, I had been exploring these ideas recently. The problem is there's really no free launch, er lunch. SS1 can go pretty well straight up, but in current configuration have a heck of a time if it was also required to go horizontally. I think I remember reading that it's ballistics could send it 26 miles down range. (and that's all in a flight lasting more than an hour) It's true that a commercial jet has to suffer slogging through the draggy atmosphere to get anywhere, but it really does take a terrific amount of energy to touch space and travel somewhere else for any significant distance, even though the in-transit costs are basically free.
We use IE 6.0 for our intranet db application. Unfortunately, IE 5.2 (I think that's what it is) for the Mac is so different that we haven't supported it running on a Mac or any non-Win32 platform. Now with Firefox, both the Win32 and Mac versions behave practically identically. Not only that, but Firefox runs our IE-centric application almost without modification. We are now interested in exploring using Firefox for whatever platform there's a Firefox port for.
If you have a Roadrunner cable modem and have ever called tech support, chances are you've been talking to someone at a local Ottawa firm called Convergys. I bet you never knew it, either.
As a matter of fact, I did know it and struck up an interesting conversation with the guy while my computer was rebooting. What tipped me off is he said "Turn off the modem and wait aboat one minute."
Sure. About three years ago I ordered his CD-ROM that was supposed to provide pulsejet plans for most of his designs. Never came. Nagged him by email several times and gave up. Other people who had ordered kits and even completed engines lost much more money than I did, however.
Old != Useless as you seem to imply. Bruce's original stated goal was to alert the global community of the threat of cheaply built jet-powered missiles capable of traveling 400-500 M.P.H. Such a device would be very challenging to guard against. And let's not forget the incidents where Mathiast Rust landed a Cessna 172 in Moscow's Red Square or the other guy that landed the Cessna on the Whitehouse lawn.
Personally, I don't like Bruce. He's an asshole with a lot of gaul and he scammed me out of $45 U.S., but he's got a valid point.
Cassini-Huygens were to somehow act as a catalyist and cause a chain reaction in Saturn's rings causing them to spontaneously combust and destroy themselves? People all over the world would be calling the U.S. "ring wreckers"!
Makes you wonder if this is something that JPL, or whoever runs Hubble, schemed up in order to save the Hubble from the ax. Did they get together and reprioritize, abandoning the more scientifically significant work and focusing on work that has a much higher public profile, but perhaps less scientific significance?
Offer a free international call blocker to all subscribers and allow them to block out all the countries they are reasonably sure they would never call. When you try to call a foreign country that's blocked, a recorded message gives instructions on the procedure for removing the block.
I think this stuff DOES actually matter, I mean, physicists discovered quantum entanglement and now there's a the tantalizing possibility of the development unbreakable cyphers, quantum computers etc. Who knows what magical technology will come from these seemingly obscure discoveries. And I dare say that it doesn't take a physicist to come up with ways to harness these technologies, all it takes is a curious mind.
...so what, specifically is wrong with GTA Vice City? I've actually learned a lot about driving playing that game. I guess the only advice I'd give is 1. if you collide head-on, you WILL die. 2. If you drive off the top of a building you will not land gracefully and earn $212.
I think I might know why. Unless I'm missing the boat here, this would lead to making a more efficient web server. If the IP stack, the web server and the dynamic HTML processing is all integrated into one program, it seems to me that you'd have one very efficient html-processing screamer.
the probe is doing the close flyby at 2056 UTC (i.e. about two and a half hours from now
Sorry to confuse the issue even more, but since the probe is 80 light minutes from the earth, does that mean that 2056 UTC is when it's actually happening, or is that when we finally find out that it happened 80 minutes in the past?
Now, if all of geeks who hack it would get rid of their egos and put the best of breed into one utility instead of fighting over 50 or more different ones, then Microsoft would be out of business tomorrow.
Yeah, I agree. I consider OS X to be that best of breed. I have just started using it and what impressed me was how easy it was to download and install software--something notoriously difficult with Linux (don't get me started on apt-get and rpm #%!&$!!!!) The cool thing was the download manager showed all the recent files that have come down in recently. I was surprised when I double-clicked on the last entry, OMG! it's offering to pull up the directory where the recent download is currently residing! Sweeeet! But there's this dmg file, now what? Oh well, double-click? Yessss. Opens up and there are two files, and one's an.rtf. Double-click the rtf and the remaining installation instructions says to drag the app to the applications folder. That's it. Don't get me wrong, when apt-get works, it works great, but more often than not, it's just taking up space on the disk.
Slashdot Mirror
Can they program the fasteners to reveal their crack at various times and swear like a sailor?
Click, whir, thunk! Hmmm, yep, there's number 1 piston now. Won't be too long now, Mrs. Jenkins.
BTM
Check out ConsumersUnion.org operated by Consumer Reports. I can forsee consumers organizing along these lines, though perhaps in a stronger way. While it may not affect Microsoft and their monopoly, it may put the fear of god into most other corporations that are too focused on the bottom line and ignoring any social responsibilies.
BTM
I was talking with a friend a while back, who brought up a good point for Rutan's concept having a real commercial application : travel. Not tourist travel, but actual travel to other places.
Out of curiousity, I had been exploring these ideas recently. The problem is there's really no free launch, er lunch. SS1 can go pretty well straight up, but in current configuration have a heck of a time if it was also required to go horizontally. I think I remember reading that it's ballistics could send it 26 miles down range. (and that's all in a flight lasting more than an hour) It's true that a commercial jet has to suffer slogging through the draggy atmosphere to get anywhere, but it really does take a terrific amount of energy to touch space and travel somewhere else for any significant distance, even though the in-transit costs are basically free.
BTM
Yeah, but I thought it was not kosher to wear, for example, leather shoes while attending a Green Bay Packers game wearing the obligatory cheese hat.
We use IE 6.0 for our intranet db application. Unfortunately, IE 5.2 (I think that's what it is) for the Mac is so different that we haven't supported it running on a Mac or any non-Win32 platform. Now with Firefox, both the Win32 and Mac versions behave practically identically. Not only that, but Firefox runs our IE-centric application almost without modification. We are now interested in exploring using Firefox for whatever platform there's a Firefox port for.
BTM
Nixie tubes are cool. I Googled once and found you can get a nixie tube clock and GPS in kit form.
If you have a Roadrunner cable modem and have ever called tech support, chances are you've been talking to someone at a local Ottawa firm called Convergys. I bet you never knew it, either.
As a matter of fact, I did know it and struck up an interesting conversation with the guy while my computer was rebooting. What tipped me off is he said "Turn off the modem and wait aboat one minute."
BTM
I'm going to go patent this now before the porn industry can!
There, you see? This is an example of poor timing. You need to wait until everybody is using it then apply for a patent.
BTM
Awwright! Another ABBA fan!
Let's together you and me jam!
Money, money, money,
Seems so funny,
It's a rich mans world!
$45? Do tell.
Sure. About three years ago I ordered his CD-ROM that was supposed to provide pulsejet plans for most of his designs. Never came. Nagged him by email several times and gave up. Other people who had ordered kits and even completed engines lost much more money than I did, however.
BTM
Cruise missile technology is hardly new
Old != Useless as you seem to imply. Bruce's original stated goal was to alert the global community of the threat of cheaply built jet-powered missiles capable of traveling 400-500 M.P.H. Such a device would be very challenging to guard against. And let's not forget the incidents where Mathiast Rust landed a Cessna 172 in Moscow's Red Square or the other guy that landed the Cessna on the Whitehouse lawn.
Personally, I don't like Bruce. He's an asshole with a lot of gaul and he scammed me out of $45 U.S., but he's got a valid point.
BTM
Cassini-Huygens were to somehow act as a catalyist and cause a chain reaction in Saturn's rings causing them to spontaneously combust and destroy themselves? People all over the world would be calling the U.S. "ring wreckers"!
BTM
Makes you wonder if this is something that JPL, or whoever runs Hubble, schemed up in order to save the Hubble from the ax. Did they get together and reprioritize, abandoning the more scientifically significant work and focusing on work that has a much higher public profile, but perhaps less scientific significance?
BTM
I read this article in the Houston Chronicle this morning: Flaws may mean it's time to drop Microsoft browser. It's beginning to look like there's a ton of exploitable stuff in IE.
BTM
Offer a free international call blocker to all subscribers and allow them to block out all the countries they are reasonably sure they would never call. When you try to call a foreign country that's blocked, a recorded message gives instructions on the procedure for removing the block.
Yeah, right, when you try to send out an email from Nigeria, you would have to call a transcriber and dictate the email??
"Please type most happily in capital letters."
I think this stuff DOES actually matter, I mean, physicists discovered quantum entanglement and now there's a the tantalizing possibility of the development unbreakable cyphers, quantum computers etc. Who knows what magical technology will come from these seemingly obscure discoveries. And I dare say that it doesn't take a physicist to come up with ways to harness these technologies, all it takes is a curious mind.
BTM
You can just think of them as particle archaeologists.
BTM
...we will all want to shag either that vulcan girl...
Oh yeah! Pieces of Eight! Mmmm!
BTM
...so what, specifically is wrong with GTA Vice City? I've actually learned a lot about driving playing that game. I guess the only advice I'd give is 1. if you collide head-on, you WILL die. 2. If you drive off the top of a building you will not land gracefully and earn $212.
BTM
Hiya David.
Yup, I agree. geekradio and "Technology Bytes".
Another radio suggestion: Radio Stations in Brasil are excellent--even if you don't understand the lingo.
BTM
I think I might know why. Unless I'm missing the boat here, this would lead to making a more efficient web server. If the IP stack, the web server and the dynamic HTML processing is all integrated into one program, it seems to me that you'd have one very efficient html-processing screamer.
BTM
the probe is doing the close flyby at 2056 UTC (i.e. about two and a half hours from now
Sorry to confuse the issue even more, but since the probe is 80 light minutes from the earth, does that mean that 2056 UTC is when it's actually happening, or is that when we finally find out that it happened 80 minutes in the past?
BTM
Now, if all of geeks who hack it would get rid of their egos and put the best of breed into one utility instead of fighting over 50 or more different ones, then Microsoft would be out of business tomorrow.
.rtf. Double-click the rtf and the remaining installation instructions says to drag the app to the applications folder. That's it. Don't get me wrong, when apt-get works, it works great, but more often than not, it's just taking up space on the disk.
Yeah, I agree. I consider OS X to be that best of breed. I have just started using it and what impressed me was how easy it was to download and install software--something notoriously difficult with Linux (don't get me started on apt-get and rpm #%!&$!!!!) The cool thing was the download manager showed all the recent files that have come down in recently. I was surprised when I double-clicked on the last entry, OMG! it's offering to pull up the directory where the recent download is currently residing! Sweeeet! But there's this dmg file, now what? Oh well, double-click? Yessss. Opens up and there are two files, and one's an
BTM