There is a cost of having to choose one format over the other. Even though the DVD writers have glossed over this for now, there is large number of dvd players that can not play both - specifically the ones you set on top of your tv.
The consumer has to continually buy "more stuff" whenever they want a different service.
I think this is fair when it comes to cable vs. satellite tv as those require different technologies.
Open and established equipment standards always favors the consumers.
In contrast proprietary, incompatible formats favor the corporation.
I could explain this further, but I lack time now, and it is already been argued aplenty here on slashdot.
No I did not throw my tv out. But in recent years I have watched a lot less, and my life has improved greatly.
I'm not really bitching, just making an observation. When a game becomes too serious, it stops being a game
I too, like computer games. But some of these games require vast amounts of time that generally means the sacrifice of other, normally more important things.
We freak about purified water that comes from a questionable source, yet most of us probably think nothing about cooking with tap water (I certainly have no idea where my tap water comes from, other than the faucet)
This highlights the fact that we take reasonably clean water for granted.
The fundamental truth is clean water is more precious than gold.
And integral to this truth is that you can't dump crap in clean water and still have it "clean".
Quite honestly, my current POTS service sucks. 3/4 of the time when I pick up the receiver to make a call, I get a "we can not complete your custom call request at this time".
That's probably because they have oversubscribed the phone service in my area.
So quite frankly, service degredation for one reason or another on Voip doesn't bother me, especially considering it costs a whole lot less.
That and the fact that I do not make a lot of calls in the first place, and want to get away from the phone service all together. I'm tired of being forced to scurry to pick up the phone because someone wants to talk to me at their convenience.
I bet that I belong to an increasing market segment.
It's amazing how they have held their price well considering that it is a toy.
Of course there is a large following to the toy cameras now, exploring minimalist photography. I remember when the Dianas littered the landscape, hated by all. How times have changed!
I would have done quite well if I had of put a box or two of those away.
Unfortunate but true. Just as WMD was used as an excuse for Iraq, Viruses will justify a new draconian Patriot Act II that really will do nothing to stop virus writers but will do everything to control law abiding citizens.
Unbelievably, Fisher Price also made 110 and 35 mm film cameras. Normally you think of toys that a one year old would pound on and make noises, not a line of cameras.
That's what was so amazing about the Pixlvision - that it would even make it all the way to market and actually work.
What I loved about it is how it used a standard audio tape at high speed to produce 5 minutes of video.
Dvorak can be off the wall occasionally, but I would not go so far as to say he is a gasbag. Taking what he says with a grain of salt, I have never found him annoying either.
It's worth putting up with the occasional rant as he can be prophetic.
Back in the day there was a time when every single pc on this earth was beige, the internet was being written in cern, and there was no modding to speak of.
He predicted that colored and decorated computers would become popular. Obvious now, but I didn't see how it could happen back then.
There was another time when there was no legal music downloads. He predicted that there would be and it would become popular with a price point below $1.40 a song. I didn't see how that could happen with the RIAA Nazis around. Apple itunes came along, and against all odds has become a success.
Dvorak is far more interesting and insightful than other printed rag pundits.
So I wouldn't go so far as to call him him a gasbag because you may disagree with him.
Not only could they clean up all the corporate tax dodging scum, they could get rid of (or tax and regulate) a vast majority of internet gambling.
I really think that invading the Bahamas makes FAR more sense than invading Iraq -- we would have gotten 200 billion for the tax coffers versus spending 200++ billion for rebuilding Iraq (for which it is difficult to see what we will get in return, if anything).
And you are right - it could be done without using a bullet.
Yes but they make telescopes out of fancy shmancy material so it won't sag. Obviously its all the impurities (like sand) in old glass that makes it sag.
Hey look, I'm just reporting the incorrect information fed to me by some tour guide, and I'm too lazy to check it out for myaself until everyone piles on like now. Garbage in garbage out, ya know?
Indeed, that is the key point. From this list you can get an idea of the index of refraction of common materials. This ceramic glass has index of refraction of 2.08.
Presumably this ceramic glass has the advantage of being hard and have a very low cost, otherwise they might as well use cubic zirconia (index of refraction 2.17)
This might be a case of a solution finding a problem.
Slashdot Mirror
Escape velocity is going to be the same anywhere on earth.
The earth does not impart energy to the rocket as it heads to orbit.
Rather, launching near the equator makes it easier to reach a more convenient orbit, esp. on the return to earth.
No cocoa beans? I'm not going...
Catnip? My cat probably will.
I just finished cleaning up after my cat who peed on the couch, and I'd love to find the nearest rocket headed to deep space.
I can hear him on take-off now.....
MeeeeEEEEEEOOOOOOOWWWWWWW!!!!!
yeah, they don't want drug dealers cleaning their money through it.
I bet if paypal had to pay credit-card interest (through legislation) on locked accounts, you would see many if all of the problems go away.
So, if you took some OxyContin and listened to Rush Limbaugh, does that mean that it would be quadraphonic sound?
Groovy.
Or not.
I don't think so.
There is a cost of having to choose one format over the other. Even though the DVD writers have glossed over this for now, there is large number of dvd players that can not play both - specifically the ones you set on top of your tv.
The consumer has to continually buy "more stuff" whenever they want a different service.
I think this is fair when it comes to cable vs. satellite tv as those require different technologies.
Open and established equipment standards always favors the consumers.
In contrast proprietary, incompatible formats favor the corporation.
I could explain this further, but I lack time now, and it is already been argued aplenty here on slashdot.
Back in the 70's the FCC thought that AM stereo would help rejuvenate interest in the AM band.
Rather than mandating one particular standard, they made the fatal decision of "let the marketplace decide."
So you saw different AM stereo (all incompatible) formats being deployed accross the country.
Needles to say, am stereo has never caught on.
And in recent years, AM radio consists mostly of talk radio and sports, which really do not require stereo.
Who would want to listen to Rush Limbaugh in stereo? -shudder-
No I did not throw my tv out. But in recent years I have watched a lot less, and my life has improved greatly.
I'm not really bitching, just making an observation. When a game becomes too serious, it stops being a game
I too, like computer games. But some of these games require vast amounts of time that generally means the sacrifice of other, normally more important things.
Just an observation, not intended to be a troll.
So in other words, 17 year-olds were playing the game versus 13 year-olds?
After all, any older and you normally have a life
Oh, wait, this is slashdot. I forgot.
I found their reasoning interesting nonetheless.
The consumer does not need a format war, because the consumer always ends up as collateral damage (think am stereo).
The higher capacity of 50gb versus 30gb is a compelling argument for blu-ray by itself though.
What that means is when you buy a blu-ray disc at the store with music or video, you will get more for your money
Who can argue with that?
We freak about purified water that comes from a questionable source, yet most of us probably think nothing about cooking with tap water (I certainly have no idea where my tap water comes from, other than the faucet)
This highlights the fact that we take reasonably clean water for granted.
The fundamental truth is clean water is more precious than gold.
And integral to this truth is that you can't dump crap in clean water and still have it "clean".
Another fact - Dubya is not a friend of clean water.
Another thing to think about as you grab that glass of water and go vote.
That rminds me, I want to pull out the decorations for the hanukkah bush early this year.
Quite honestly, my current POTS service sucks. 3/4 of the time when I pick up the receiver to make a call, I get a "we can not complete your custom call request at this time".
That's probably because they have oversubscribed the phone service in my area.
So quite frankly, service degredation for one reason or another on Voip doesn't bother me, especially considering it costs a whole lot less.
That and the fact that I do not make a lot of calls in the first place, and want to get away from the phone service all together. I'm tired of being forced to scurry to pick up the phone because someone wants to talk to me at their convenience.
I bet that I belong to an increasing market segment.
It's amazing how they have held their price well considering that it is a toy.
Of course there is a large following to the toy cameras now, exploring minimalist photography. I remember when the Dianas littered the landscape, hated by all. How times have changed!
I would have done quite well if I had of put a box or two of those away.
Unfortunate but true. Just as WMD was used as an excuse for Iraq, Viruses will justify a new draconian Patriot Act II that really will do nothing to stop virus writers but will do everything to control law abiding citizens.
Unbelievably, Fisher Price also made 110 and 35 mm film cameras. Normally you think of toys that a one year old would pound on and make noises, not a line of cameras.
That's what was so amazing about the Pixlvision - that it would even make it all the way to market and actually work.
What I loved about it is how it used a standard audio tape at high speed to produce 5 minutes of video.
Quite strange (but cool) when you think about it.
I remember when sony introduced the first portable cd player and they cost $400.
I drooled over them.
Now Walmart has them for less than $20.
Dvorak can be off the wall occasionally, but I would not go so far as to say he is a gasbag. Taking what he says with a grain of salt, I have never found him annoying either.
It's worth putting up with the occasional rant as he can be prophetic.
Back in the day there was a time when every single pc on this earth was beige, the internet was being written in cern, and there was no modding to speak of.
He predicted that colored and decorated computers would become popular. Obvious now, but I didn't see how it could happen back then.
There was another time when there was no legal music downloads. He predicted that there would be and it would become popular with a price point below $1.40 a song. I didn't see how that could happen with the RIAA Nazis around. Apple itunes came along, and against all odds has become a success.
Dvorak is far more interesting and insightful than other printed rag pundits.
So I wouldn't go so far as to call him him a gasbag because you may disagree with him.
That thought came to my mind also.
Not only could they clean up all the corporate tax dodging scum, they could get rid of (or tax and regulate) a vast majority of internet gambling.
I really think that invading the Bahamas makes FAR more sense than invading Iraq -- we would have gotten 200 billion for the tax coffers versus spending 200++ billion for rebuilding Iraq (for which it is difficult to see what we will get in return, if anything).
And you are right - it could be done without using a bullet.
Sweet! Now it's finally against the law to kill and eat me!
Dude, you're gonna be roadkill as your job speeds out of this country.
Not really. Everyplace where there is a frayed connection, it will act like a miniature antenaa wiping out adjacent bands for the ham down the street.
Ham Radio is a fantastic hobby, and this is truly an unfortunate decision.
Yes but they make telescopes out of fancy shmancy material so it won't sag. Obviously its all the impurities (like sand) in old glass that makes it sag.
Hey look, I'm just reporting the incorrect information fed to me by some tour guide, and I'm too lazy to check it out for myaself until everyone piles on like now. Garbage in garbage out, ya know?
No, they don't melt, but much of egyptian glass I have seen is filled with hairline cracks.
I could find no definitive research in the short amount of time I had to google it.
So it might be a manufacturing defect, or maybe it's the stress of bearing weight that might make it sag.
The one mention I did find said it would make a good graduate research project.
Indeed, that is the key point. From this list you can get an idea of the index of refraction of common materials. This ceramic glass has index of refraction of 2.08.
Presumably this ceramic glass has the advantage of being hard and have a very low cost, otherwise they might as well use cubic zirconia (index of refraction 2.17)
This might be a case of a solution finding a problem.