The Problem: Space travel is costly. We can't lower the price because there isn't enough demand to make up the volume. Furthermore, the last few price drops didn't increase the demand. So space travel will remain costly.
The Solution: Increase the demand in some way other than reducing price. Add value to space travel. Or advertise the value you already have.
Specific ideas: Make a deal with Hollywood to make a space epic actually shot in space ("On location...from the moon!"). Hype some medical device/technique that came from space research ("the defrobbinator, developed by NASA for the Mars mission, saved Joe Schmoe's life today...").
And don't try to tell me this is already going on. I'm not talking about John Glenn commemorative plates. I'm talking about touching Joe Sixpack. Get him to realize that satellite cable depends on satellites which depends on rockets and he will whip his checkbook out so fast it'll make your head spin. --
Interesting site. I haven't thought about it to the depth he obviously has, but I do something similar when I'm driving (even short distances). Try to keep a constant pace and put on your brakes only if you MUST (and do it as late as possible). One effect he left out was the psychological one of seeing brake lights ahead of you. When people see brake lights, they put on their brakes (often causing the stop waves). So if you don't use your brakes unless you absolutely must, the people behind you are less likely to, leading to fewer traffic waves.
As soon as he mentioned his hypothetical friends helping him out, I thought of the state trooper idea that he mentions two paragraphs later. But I may have a twist on that: Don't get a "rolling barrier" of cops, just put one or two a few miles out from the slowdown/jam. Have them drive 5 miles below the speed limit. Everyone else will slow down to keep from passing the cop and the effect will be achieved. Experiments will be necessary to determine real distances and speeds for specific cases, of course.
Another idea is to have continuously updated speed limit signs. When there is a jam ahead, the previous 5 miles of signs can say "65 MPH" instead of "70 MPH". --
It would probably be worthwhile to see if one of their reports contains credit info (which would be required to make your plan work), but reading their website (www.ewatch.com) it doesn't sound like that's the case.
"This inquiry may include, inter alia (i) Monitoring and analyzing messages posted by the subject on the appropriate message board(s); (ii) Examining other company message boards within the same web site for posts made by the subject; (iii) Examining other message boards and Usenet groups for posts made by the subject; (iv) Conducting searches of the Internet for additional references to the subject; (v) Conducting searches for related e-mail addresses, and; (vi) Supplementing developed information utilizing databases containing identifiers such as dates of birth, addresses, etc. "
Note that i-v are Internet-only (i.e. credit info) and vi is, at most, partially meat-space. It may only be online, it may include some real footwork. In any case, no mention is made of credit information. --
Now there will be immediate and easily understood costs to being insecure. The Old Way:
Me: We really shouldn't be running our VPN on NT. SysAdmin: Eh.
The New Way:
Price Sheet: Running no VPN: $100k/year Running Open Source VPN on Open Source OS: $200k/year Running Closed Source VPN on Closed Source OS: $500k/year --
Hey, Ask Slashdot editors: Could we get a slightly higher quality of question and less repetition (we've had the "internet camera" question at least twice). --
You can't always normalize your data. And sometimes when you can, you don't want to. That's what happened to me: We were getting large (100MB+) daily/weekly/monthly files and we wanted to load them into a SQL DB so we could run reports and things. But we didn't want to split the lines (which were over 2K) for fear we'd lose the ability to point to the source of the files as the source of all problems. That is, once we start manipulating the files we get we can't prove we didn't harm them. --
First, there are features that exist outside of the SQL definition. Things like user-authentication (for instance MS SQL will use NT auth), ease of backup, etc.
Then there are performance issues. Some DBs, like MySQL, optimize for speed while others optimize for reliability.
And finally there is adherence to the standard. For instance Access is pretty poor in this regard (at least up through Access 95 which is the last version I used). --
I notice that postgresql has an 8k rowsize limit. Back when I was using MS software, I had occasion to try MS SQL 6.0. I messed with it for a while until I found that it had a 2k rowsize limit. Utterly ridiculous, especially since there was overhead for a row (index stuff or something) so the effective limit was around 1800 bytes. --
"Increasing the FSB also overclocks the PCI and AGP ports. This can fuck a lot of older cards."
Can you expand on this a little. I'm having some trouble with a new (to me) S3 Virge that occasionally locks up (and ALWAYS locks up when I use xscreensaver/xlockmore). --
Now I just need to get a mobile version of this so that when I go somewhere with someone their cellphone doesn't go off every 5 minutes.
Better yet, get the 1 mile radius version installed in my car. I should get an insurance discount for this due to all the people around me guaranteed not to be distracted by ringing phones.
Of course, someone is going to invent the Silencer Override, followed by the Silencer Override Override, etc, much like the "Caller-ID", "Caller-ID blocking" and "Caller-ID blocking auto-refusal" mess we've gotten ourselves into. --
Imagine it's 1950. Someone comes up to you and says "I created a device that holds a pattern of magnetic charges! It's the world's first hard drive!" Yeah, great...and what are you going to put on it?
Creating a chromosome is small potatos. What we need to know is how to create a GENE that means something. Create a gene for blue hair or limb regeneration or something cool. Don't just shove more junk in my overcrowded cells. --
DVD: Digital Video Disk (feel free to flame) EFF: Electronic Frontier Foundation (kind of the ACLU of the Internet) BayFF: Apparently not an acronym but a nickname for the monthly EFF meetings in the San Francisco Bay area. --
2) "The Mac case is easy to open". Ummm...yeah, that's relevant.
3) "The Mac breeds MORE curiosity". No, the Mac breeds more a more intense feeling of curiosity because you become determined to figure it out against all odds. But inevitably some things remain hidden from you, no matter how hard you search. This means that the curious and non-masochistic go somewhere else. --
Obviously MS can't enforce bundling any more than they can enforce casual Fridays. Presumably the court decision was they can't enforce bundling even if their contract says they can.
What's the diff? It raises the question: What other stuff in a standard MSContract is illegal? And when do the lawsuits start? --
Because, in terms of openness, Mac is to Windows as Windows is to Linux.
No really--the hood is almost literally welded shut on every Mac. This style of computer doesn't breed much curiosity in the user, so Open Source is unlikely to interest them. That doesn't mean they couldn't benefit from it, it just means that the two groups don't have much overlap. --
There are some non-secretive companies doing the same thing. Netcraft and Google come to mind. What's the big deal? Remember, all this data was explicitly made public by the respective owners--there is no privacy issue here.
Step 1: Does the box have just the Tux logo (goto 3) or does it also say something like "it works with Linux"? (goto 2)
Step 2: Tell tech support that the box says "it works with Linux" but it doesn't. Keep them on the phone until they fix your problem. If they refuse, tell the store manager where you bought the product, write a letter to the BBB and (depending on the situation) contact a lawyer.
Step 3) If it's just a logo, WRITE a PAPER letter to the company saying that you are considering buying one of their products, but you want to know what the penguin logo signifies. If they claim (in writing on paper) that it means "it works with Linux", goto step 2. If they don't respond or say "it's just decoration", tell the store manager where you bought the product and write a letter to the BBB. (this is assuming it really is Tux and not just a generic penguin--if it's generic you can't claim you were defrauded).
I don't know why people keep insisting on reinventing the wheel for these problems. This is not a Linux-specific issue. What if you bought a powerstrip and it pictured a man with a toaster and a laser printer plugged into it but the instructions said "never plug a toaster and laser printer into the same strip"? Same damn issue: misleading (if not outright false) claims made on a box. --
Hey, I'm technical! The problem is, I can't take the time to rewrite the timecard thing (which is more than just checkmarks, btw--it's got drop downs and calendaring and stuff in there). --
True there is Linux software that can replace Windows software. But I have to fill out a "timecard" in Excel and then email it to HR. Do I want to recreate all the Excel macros in, say, StarOffice and then hope I can export an Excel file to email in? No. --
I'd like to setup something similar as an infant monitor. How well do the Axis cameras (or any others mentioned here) perform in low-light conditions? --
Do you think that all criminals/psychos have non-government jobs? Or maybe you think the US government is magically different than all other governments in history and would forego the opportunity to "take care of dissidents"?
You are right about the sense of unreality. But I don't think you are right about the curiosity.
My belief is that some people categorize the world into two groups: "People who are stupider than me" and "People who are smarter than me". These kiddies like to have as many entries as possible in list A and as few as possible in list B.
What does this explain and how?
They don't try to understand what they are doing. They can't admit to themselves that there are people smarter than themselves who could teach them about, say, TCP/IP. So they use scripts the found on the net and pretend to themselves that "I could have created this."
It also explains the motivation: If you break into someone's system, you have proved that person is on list A. The reasoning is: "Their automated defenses didn't keep out my automated attack, therefore I am smarter than they are." This is flawed, of course, but we already know the kiddies are a little...dim. --
Slashdot Mirror
The Problem: Space travel is costly. We can't lower the price because there isn't enough demand to make up the volume. Furthermore, the last few price drops didn't increase the demand. So space travel will remain costly.
The Solution: Increase the demand in some way other than reducing price. Add value to space travel. Or advertise the value you already have.
Specific ideas: Make a deal with Hollywood to make a space epic actually shot in space ("On location...from the moon!"). Hype some medical device/technique that came from space research ("the defrobbinator, developed by NASA for the Mars mission, saved Joe Schmoe's life today...").
And don't try to tell me this is already going on. I'm not talking about John Glenn commemorative plates. I'm talking about touching Joe Sixpack. Get him to realize that satellite cable depends on satellites which depends on rockets and he will whip his checkbook out so fast it'll make your head spin.
--
Interesting site. I haven't thought about it to the depth he obviously has, but I do something similar when I'm driving (even short distances). Try to keep a constant pace and put on your brakes only if you MUST (and do it as late as possible). One effect he left out was the psychological one of seeing brake lights ahead of you. When people see brake lights, they put on their brakes (often causing the stop waves). So if you don't use your brakes unless you absolutely must, the people behind you are less likely to, leading to fewer traffic waves.
As soon as he mentioned his hypothetical friends helping him out, I thought of the state trooper idea that he mentions two paragraphs later. But I may have a twist on that: Don't get a "rolling barrier" of cops, just put one or two a few miles out from the slowdown/jam. Have them drive 5 miles below the speed limit. Everyone else will slow down to keep from passing the cop and the effect will be achieved. Experiments will be necessary to determine real distances and speeds for specific cases, of course.
Another idea is to have continuously updated speed limit signs. When there is a jam ahead, the previous 5 miles of signs can say "65 MPH" instead of "70 MPH".
--
It would probably be worthwhile to see if one of their reports contains credit info (which would be required to make your plan work), but reading their website (www.ewatch.com) it doesn't sound like that's the case.
"This inquiry may include, inter alia (i) Monitoring and analyzing messages posted by the subject on the appropriate message board(s); (ii) Examining other company message boards within the same web site for posts made by the subject; (iii) Examining other message boards and Usenet groups for posts made by the subject; (iv) Conducting searches of the Internet for additional references to the subject; (v) Conducting searches for related e-mail addresses, and; (vi) Supplementing developed information utilizing databases containing identifiers such as dates of birth, addresses, etc. "
Note that i-v are Internet-only (i.e. credit info) and vi is, at most, partially meat-space. It may only be online, it may include some real footwork. In any case, no mention is made of credit information.
--
And then when someone launces a Denial of Service attack against you, you just pull our your tape backup drive and....what?
--
Now there will be immediate and easily understood costs to being insecure. The Old Way:
Me: We really shouldn't be running our VPN on NT.
SysAdmin: Eh.
The New Way:
Price Sheet:
Running no VPN: $100k/year
Running Open Source VPN on Open Source OS: $200k/year
Running Closed Source VPN on Closed Source OS: $500k/year
--
Don't worry, I got it.
--
http://www.speakfreely.org/
Hey, Ask Slashdot editors: Could we get a slightly higher quality of question and less repetition (we've had the "internet camera" question at least twice).
--
You can't always normalize your data. And sometimes when you can, you don't want to. That's what happened to me: We were getting large (100MB+) daily/weekly/monthly files and we wanted to load them into a SQL DB so we could run reports and things. But we didn't want to split the lines (which were over 2K) for fear we'd lose the ability to point to the source of the files as the source of all problems. That is, once we start manipulating the files we get we can't prove we didn't harm them.
--
So why do we have more than one browser?
First, there are features that exist outside of the SQL definition. Things like user-authentication (for instance MS SQL will use NT auth), ease of backup, etc.
Then there are performance issues. Some DBs, like MySQL, optimize for speed while others optimize for reliability.
And finally there is adherence to the standard. For instance Access is pretty poor in this regard (at least up through Access 95 which is the last version I used).
--
I notice that postgresql has an 8k rowsize limit. Back when I was using MS software, I had occasion to try MS SQL 6.0. I messed with it for a while until I found that it had a 2k rowsize limit. Utterly ridiculous, especially since there was overhead for a row (index stuff or something) so the effective limit was around 1800 bytes.
--
"Increasing the FSB also overclocks the PCI and AGP ports. This can fuck a lot of older cards."
Can you expand on this a little. I'm having some trouble with a new (to me) S3 Virge that occasionally locks up (and ALWAYS locks up when I use xscreensaver/xlockmore).
--
Now I just need to get a mobile version of this so that when I go somewhere with someone their cellphone doesn't go off every 5 minutes.
Better yet, get the 1 mile radius version installed in my car. I should get an insurance discount for this due to all the people around me guaranteed not to be distracted by ringing phones.
Of course, someone is going to invent the Silencer Override, followed by the Silencer Override Override, etc, much like the "Caller-ID", "Caller-ID blocking" and "Caller-ID blocking auto-refusal" mess we've gotten ourselves into.
--
Imagine it's 1950. Someone comes up to you and says "I created a device that holds a pattern of magnetic charges! It's the world's first hard drive!" Yeah, great...and what are you going to put on it?
Creating a chromosome is small potatos. What we need to know is how to create a GENE that means something. Create a gene for blue hair or limb regeneration or something cool. Don't just shove more junk in my overcrowded cells.
--
DVD: Digital Video Disk (feel free to flame)
EFF: Electronic Frontier Foundation (kind of the ACLU of the Internet)
BayFF: Apparently not an acronym but a nickname for the monthly EFF meetings in the San Francisco Bay area.
--
I see three kinds of responses:
1) "I agree"--no comment needed.
2) "The Mac case is easy to open". Ummm...yeah, that's relevant.
3) "The Mac breeds MORE curiosity". No, the Mac breeds more a more intense feeling of curiosity because you become determined to figure it out against all odds. But inevitably some things remain hidden from you, no matter how hard you search. This means that the curious and non-masochistic go somewhere else.
--
Obviously MS can't enforce bundling any more than they can enforce casual Fridays. Presumably the court decision was they can't enforce bundling even if their contract says they can.
What's the diff? It raises the question: What other stuff in a standard MSContract is illegal? And when do the lawsuits start?
--
Because, in terms of openness, Mac is to Windows as Windows is to Linux.
No really--the hood is almost literally welded shut on every Mac. This style of computer doesn't breed much curiosity in the user, so Open Source is unlikely to interest them. That doesn't mean they couldn't benefit from it, it just means that the two groups don't have much overlap.
--
There are some non-secretive companies doing the same thing. Netcraft and Google come to mind. What's the big deal? Remember, all this data was explicitly made public by the respective owners--there is no privacy issue here.
--
Step 1: Does the box have just the Tux logo (goto 3) or does it also say something like "it works with Linux"? (goto 2)
Step 2: Tell tech support that the box says "it works with Linux" but it doesn't. Keep them on the phone until they fix your problem. If they refuse, tell the store manager where you bought the product, write a letter to the BBB and (depending on the situation) contact a lawyer.
Step 3) If it's just a logo, WRITE a PAPER letter to the company saying that you are considering buying one of their products, but you want to know what the penguin logo signifies. If they claim (in writing on paper) that it means "it works with Linux", goto step 2. If they don't respond or say "it's just decoration", tell the store manager where you bought the product and write a letter to the BBB. (this is assuming it really is Tux and not just a generic penguin--if it's generic you can't claim you were defrauded).
I don't know why people keep insisting on reinventing the wheel for these problems. This is not a Linux-specific issue. What if you bought a powerstrip and it pictured a man with a toaster and a laser printer plugged into it but the instructions said "never plug a toaster and laser printer into the same strip"? Same damn issue: misleading (if not outright false) claims made on a box.
--
Hey, I'm technical! The problem is, I can't take the time to rewrite the timecard thing (which is more than just checkmarks, btw--it's got drop downs and calendaring and stuff in there).
--
True there is Linux software that can replace Windows software. But I have to fill out a "timecard" in Excel and then email it to HR. Do I want to recreate all the Excel macros in, say, StarOffice and then hope I can export an Excel file to email in? No.
--
I'd like to setup something similar as an infant monitor. How well do the Axis cameras (or any others mentioned here) perform in low-light conditions?
--
We would be safer? SAFER??
Do you think that all criminals/psychos have non-government jobs? Or maybe you think the US government is magically different than all other governments in history and would forego the opportunity to "take care of dissidents"?
"Safer", he says. Cripes!
--
Current slogan: "Concentrate all of your typing into a 'single point of failure' with the Fitaly One-Finger Keyboard!".
Tomorrow's slogan: "You have ten fingers. So why are you typing with only one? Use the Fitaly Ten-Finger Keyboard!"
--
You are right about the sense of unreality. But I don't think you are right about the curiosity.
My belief is that some people categorize the world into two groups: "People who are stupider than me" and "People who are smarter than me". These kiddies like to have as many entries as possible in list A and as few as possible in list B.
What does this explain and how?
They don't try to understand what they are doing. They can't admit to themselves that there are people smarter than themselves who could teach them about, say, TCP/IP. So they use scripts the found on the net and pretend to themselves that "I could have created this."
It also explains the motivation: If you break into someone's system, you have proved that person is on list A. The reasoning is: "Their automated defenses didn't keep out my automated attack, therefore I am smarter than they are." This is flawed, of course, but we already know the kiddies are a little...dim.
--