I mean, other than getting the inner satisfaction from proving that you are actually able to read and flash the EEPROM:-). But then, you could just use a screwdriver and an EEPROM programmer...
i can see now some gang of script kiddies in a basement. they've got some retired guy tied up in front of a console. mom won't let them buy any weapons so they are threatening him with a screwdriver. "M4K3 TEH CH1p W3RK OR W3 W177 ST@B j00!!!!!@#111"
It makes more sense than trying to go out and educate every user. Think about it; in what other field do we "educate" "users"? We don't try to educate people with electrical outlets and let any curious individual perform as a licensed electrician. We don't "educate" passengers and let anyone who cares be a bus driver give it a try. Why are things always so difficult when it comes to computers?
because the only thing misuse of computer software and the internet costs is time, and sometimes money. not life or limb.
(i'm sure someone will jump in with some rare exception involving computers and hospital life support or something, but i think my point is valid enough regardless.)
who would notice? the difference between tokyo and most american cities is that deodorant in tokyo is optional.
nothing smells better than the trains after work packed full of sweaty guys in cheap suits who just ran a 1/4 mile through the non-air-conditioned train station to get on the train.
(well it does get worse, you could instead be on the smoking car on a shinkansen at the same time of day. or during rush hour in the morning, after staying up late drinking the night before your flight home. nothing beats standing room on the narita express near the smoking car when you're hungover and just ran through tokyo station to get to the train on time.)
sorry to quote you out of context, but this was too good to pass up
Finally, it's just not practical to use that much energy to commute downtown. And if you find a destination for which this makes sense, it would probably be better served by an airplane anyhow.
the SAME EXACT THING was said comparing automobiles to horse & buggy. in fact autos had the same exact problem that a jet powered car would have: drivers had to warn towns before they drove through them before we had niceties like mufflers and such.
i say bring on the progress. the details will work themselves out later.
funny, i've been using a domain and host different than my isp for years. which invalidates 1-5 of your rant (except for #2 which, as someone has pointed out, is pointless because your isp can sniff all your traffic anyway).
Or they stick a bunch of sideline crap for you to do to pad out the content (Sunshine is an example of this. Ok, the plots not moving along- lets do random levels until it does. Oh, we have nothing to add here- lets add a 3D jumping puzzle!)
if you're making this complaint about super mario sunshine, then you are completely missing the point of the game. the plot is secondary in importance at best. did you play through the original super mario bros. just to finish out the plot?
Who's going to develop a virus to kill the virus that kills the HIV virus?
might need it more than you know: "It's also possible that HIV and the therapeutic virus could mutate around each other and recombine to make an altogether new virus."
Notice lately how gun control doesn't fall from the lips of every Democrat running for public office the way it did in the 1990's?
uhh, who's in office again? who's dominating congress? republicans.
so you won't be hearing much of anything about guns or pro-abortion, OR less taxes, since the republicans aren't talking about it, and the democrats are busy trying to win republican votes.
(actually mostly all you'll hear IMO is how great/bad bush is)
getting a flat tax is easy. all you need is a bigger lobbying budget than every big coporation that will lobby against a flat tax because a complicated tax system is easier to leverage for loopholes.
where do you think the tax system comes from? congress. who tells congress what to do? constituents? yes, constituents. the ones with big pocketbooks.
well what's funnier is that none of this shit is really headline-worthy anymore. this is years old news in the gov't sector. no fucking clue what prompted slashdot to post an article about it other than knee-jerk reaction to "OMG 40 YEARD OLD COMPUTRSE RUN MY TAXES LOLOLOLO!!!!111eleven"
most of the companies working on the modernization project are contractors, a lot of them ex-IRS, who make 3 times their IRS pension salary because they are extremely good at their job, and the fucking get things done. i've worked with many of them.
many of the issues of why the modernization project is fucked is salaried upper-upper management of a few companies, not engineers making a paycheck.
and as for IRS employees themselves, they are way more liable for correct tax returns than other taxpayers. they also don't make shit compared to private sector wages, but the retirement and other benefits are outstanding, and few of them would willingly jeopardize that.
your blanket condemnation of people involved in that project is ignorant.
Slashdot Mirror
I mean, other than getting the inner satisfaction from proving that you are actually able to read and flash the EEPROM:-). But then, you could just use a screwdriver and an EEPROM programmer...
i can see now some gang of script kiddies in a basement. they've got some retired guy tied up in front of a console. mom won't let them buy any weapons so they are threatening him with a screwdriver. "M4K3 TEH CH1p W3RK OR W3 W177 ST@B j00!!!!!@#111"
i'm confused. how does modifying hardware that i own affect how my isp limits traffic?
note: i'm on cox cable in virginia, i got my cable modem from somewhere other than my isp.
What is it the editors do here again? Anything useful?
your boss caught you surfing on slashdot and is wondering the same thing about you.
It makes more sense than trying to go out and educate every user. Think about it; in what other field do we "educate" "users"? We don't try to educate people with electrical outlets and let any curious individual perform as a licensed electrician. We don't "educate" passengers and let anyone who cares be a bus driver give it a try. Why are things always so difficult when it comes to computers?
because the only thing misuse of computer software and the internet costs is time, and sometimes money. not life or limb.
(i'm sure someone will jump in with some rare exception involving computers and hospital life support or something, but i think my point is valid enough regardless.)
perspective++
It is illegal to telemarket cell phones
for now.
so, how's the pay at ign?
wouldn't you put nearly the same effort researching your server hardware as well?
unless you are comparing building a server out of workstation parts VS buying a server from dell. that would hardly be a fair comparison.
i forgot about the bathe-at-night thing, maybe it's more that than deodorant. and the lack of air conditioning.
:o
plus you get all sweaty playing grab-ass on the train
who would notice? the difference between tokyo and most american cities is that deodorant in tokyo is optional.
nothing smells better than the trains after work packed full of sweaty guys in cheap suits who just ran a 1/4 mile through the non-air-conditioned train station to get on the train.
(well it does get worse, you could instead be on the smoking car on a shinkansen at the same time of day. or during rush hour in the morning, after staying up late drinking the night before your flight home. nothing beats standing room on the narita express near the smoking car when you're hungover and just ran through tokyo station to get to the train on time.)
more specifically, buy a shotgun.
there is no greater deterrent to a home invader than the *shlick-shlock* of a pump action shotgun loading a round.
sorry to quote you out of context, but this was too good to pass up
Finally, it's just not practical to use that much energy to commute downtown. And if you find a destination for which this makes sense, it would probably be better served by an airplane anyhow.
the SAME EXACT THING was said comparing automobiles to horse & buggy. in fact autos had the same exact problem that a jet powered car would have: drivers had to warn towns before they drove through them before we had niceties like mufflers and such.
i say bring on the progress. the details will work themselves out later.
what you described isn't home user activity, that's business activity.
so get a business-grade account with your isp.
sucks, but that's the nature of things.
funny, i've been using a domain and host different than my isp for years. which invalidates 1-5 of your rant (except for #2 which, as someone has pointed out, is pointless because your isp can sniff all your traffic anyway).
as for #6? clearly you just need a new isp.
how that got modded up to 5 is beyond me.
i think you'll find few sites that depend on ad revenue are going to recommend ways to block ads.
more importantly, a GBA SP is costlier to replace when you hurl it across the room.
i already have a feeling i'm going to mess up the hinge from shaking it in frustration trying to beat that damn spider boss in metroid fusion.
Or they stick a bunch of sideline crap for you to do to pad out the content (Sunshine is an example of this. Ok, the plots not moving along- lets do random levels until it does. Oh, we have nothing to add here- lets add a 3D jumping puzzle!)
if you're making this complaint about super mario sunshine, then you are completely missing the point of the game. the plot is secondary in importance at best. did you play through the original super mario bros. just to finish out the plot?
and since most of us sit at desks all day in front of a computer, how is it again that work is different from thumping buttons all day?
And this is a bad thing... why?
last i checked we still need the planet. you know, 'cause we like... live here and stuff.
Who's going to develop a virus to kill the virus that kills the HIV virus?
might need it more than you know:
"It's also possible that HIV and the therapeutic virus could mutate around each other and recombine to make an altogether new virus."
...you must be new here.
Notice lately how gun control doesn't fall from the lips of every Democrat running for public office the way it did in the 1990's?
uhh, who's in office again? who's dominating congress? republicans.
so you won't be hearing much of anything about guns or pro-abortion, OR less taxes, since the republicans aren't talking about it, and the democrats are busy trying to win republican votes.
(actually mostly all you'll hear IMO is how great/bad bush is)
i don't think that would hold up under scrutiny. the deaf person can still come into the store and buy a computer.
getting a flat tax is easy. all you need is a bigger lobbying budget than every big coporation that will lobby against a flat tax because a complicated tax system is easier to leverage for loopholes.
where do you think the tax system comes from? congress. who tells congress what to do? constituents? yes, constituents. the ones with big pocketbooks.
well what's funnier is that none of this shit is really headline-worthy anymore. this is years old news in the gov't sector. no fucking clue what prompted slashdot to post an article about it other than knee-jerk reaction to "OMG 40 YEARD OLD COMPUTRSE RUN MY TAXES LOLOLOLO!!!!111eleven"
most of the companies working on the modernization project are contractors, a lot of them ex-IRS, who make 3 times their IRS pension salary because they are extremely good at their job, and the fucking get things done. i've worked with many of them.
many of the issues of why the modernization project is fucked is salaried upper-upper management of a few companies, not engineers making a paycheck.
and as for IRS employees themselves, they are way more liable for correct tax returns than other taxpayers. they also don't make shit compared to private sector wages, but the retirement and other benefits are outstanding, and few of them would willingly jeopardize that.
your blanket condemnation of people involved in that project is ignorant.