They do claim to be making a profit selling books, for merchandise that they stock perhaps they should just stick with books and such.
Get rid of the electronics, I am not buying anything from there mainly because of their limited selection.
Amazon just needs to realize that they cannot be all things to all people. The internet will reward those who concentrate on getting one thing done and done right.
If they can't make a profit now, just how do they plan to make one once the government starts taxing internet commerce? How much more of a free ride do these companies need?
So for another two or so years Harddrives, with their fragile and moving parts will dominate the scene.
While I like the idea of bigger drives, I really want to see a non-volatile storage solution that does not have any moving parts come along.
Why should the industry invest in them if harddrives just become bigger and cheaper?
About the only need would be for space agencies and military organizations - and with cutbacks in most countries even they come to rely on cheap and easy.
Hopefully there a few IBM'ers or others out there snorting some other dust and inventing that storage solution.
I used fireman as I have a relative who is one. He has two main gripes about firefighting.
Weight of gear, and the heat because of the gear (as in you can sweat so much you pass out) - he understands the tradeoff... cause he still has his skin.
the issue is that these pads might be able to support the weight of two humans, but the human scaling the building still has to be able to do the same. That is why all rescues involve rescurers who are not required to use their strength to support both people!. At worse their strength is needed to support the person they are rescuing.
next is the fact that he has his own weight to contend with, this is not the same as standing on the ground. I don't know about you, but I guarantee it will get tiring moving those pads, and that doesn't count fact it has ZERO backup safety that cable suspended rescue persons have or those on high extension ladders... you will still need a cable suspended from above to make this acceptable to recue people
There isn't much chance a fireman or whatnot is going to carry someone on their back down the face of a building with one of these things. Combined with their fire gear the weight of these items is just a bit on the high side.
Regardless I think they are neat, but I see a bigger use in inspection and construction than rescue.
Another point, why do they need the lcd displays at all? Why can't a processor simply determine if there are enough currently active supports to allow movement of any specific one? I think with some coaching and computer assist you could actually increase your ascent. Basically the computer would free the pad it wants you to move next, with enough practice you should be able to move quicker.
It was okay for Nintendo to sell their product for less that it cost, it was okay for Sony to do it. However, if evil Microsoft tries to do its not fair.
Gee, maybe Atari and a few other console makers would disagree with you. It wasn't exactly fair to them when nintendo entered the market and put them face down in the dirt.
Yes Microsoft is not the nicest punk on the block, but you cannot have competition with double standards. Whats next, welfare for the last two failed attempts lo launch a linux game box?
Microsoft won't dominate the industry unless they make something that clearly exceeds the expectations of the people who buy consoles. Secondly the technology changes so much that in 18 months the X-box will look like a 2600... (well maybe a 5200).
If Microsoft actually introduces a platform that people don't have to throw out every 18 months then they are doing more for the public than these current game console companies are doing. Don't go blaming microsoft for something nintendo and sony are already doing - you'll look like a hypocrit.
Smile, mod me down or up, in the end your still wrong.
Unfortunately even if they take the cash they are in the same boat. They don't have the clout to demand payment up front, and they probably never will.
If anything these these sites need to band together to put a stop to the abuse foisted upon them.
I am quite sure the executives at UGO are highly paid, and protected if they should be let go. Its crap like Webvan's recent settlement with their EX-CEO that show who really benefits on the web, http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1007-200-5940466.html? tag=nbs
Hopefully they will piss off a site that has connections, and get their ass handed to them legally.
Until then, fan sites will continually be screwed. The net isn't free, and if we want good sites we are going to eventually have to pay (even if its micropayments - I would not mind paying a few cents per day to these sites for their content)
Bunch of dummies, for the last two quarters advertising companies are demanding cash up front for producing content/ads for web companies. A lot of other companies demand the same from any web based enterprise.
Why do web based enterprises think they are immune from the same treatment? Just because your both web based doesn't mean you have some secret handshake protecting you.
You would have thought the guys at VE would have learned by now.
Suggestion, get all these sites together and file a single lawsuit. In the meantime don't run their ads
Sorry but I don't think the instrumentation on these probes really is advanced enough to gather what is needed to make an accurate or informed decision.
I would not mind seeing a mission equiped so they could determine what really is out there. In other words, ditch the hardware needed for planetary observations, use the slingshot effects of gravity and get a probe out there pronto.
It would probably be a better use to understand what goes on out there than visit the disney planet.
This article says a lot about/. editorial discretion.
I used sarcasm to point it out.
As for Art Bell, I have heard pieces of his show when I get up to take my dog outside in the morning, and for the most part its just as valuable as this article.
The most important part of this article was AMD's statement that the socket-A layout will continue throughout this series and the next two.
Contrast this to Intel, who is so bent on shoving stuff down our throats that they willingly sell products that have a short or no real life span expectancy. (p462 anyone?)
I think this statement from AMD may actually help them among the fence sitting OEMs who still seem glued to AMD. By keeping the same socket it allowd manufacturers to refine the product, instead of trying to figure out a new one.
When do we get stories on hair replacement systems that work? Or how about, amazing 400 pound babies. Or everyones favorite, the "Devil's face seen in smoke of burning building"
They don't care, never have and never will. I have never met anyone other than a geek who wanted to remove something installed in windows.
Neither my neighbors, my relatives, or some of pc-idiots at work ever asked to help them remove a windows provided product.
Actually I was surprised, but then based on the questions I anwsered for them and the tasks I helped them with I realized something.
they don't care, it works for them, they just want to get X installed (because the developer of product X couldn't even write an install routine), or they wanted to change Y.
If they did a blind survey, meaning randomly mail out questions to a 1000 people asking them what they would want removed from windows, wish it did not install, and then added a section of "would you want this with it?" I bet the results would be.
75% not returned
24% saying they want all those extras listed at the bottom
1% saying microsoft sucks
Netscapes bloat and freaking bugs prevent me from using netscape.
Who really gives a rats ass about browsers anyway? They don't make or break an operating system, hell they don't do anything special in the first place.
If anything built in network support is more important than some silly html viewer.
I really don't understand this fixation with bundling the browser, no wonder why microsoft stays number one, they got everyone fixated on the browser while running off with the real money, the OEMS.
fuck the browser. get over it, it doesn't mean crap. you want to get microsoft, then get them on something meaningful, like oem deals, like forced upgrades for businesses, and other stuff with real importance.
Who would buy the gimped version anyway? Why must it be the browser? Huh? Just as logical to ban TCP/IP from windows and make you buy/download the upgrade!!!
The fact is they cannot afford to. Everyone expects internet capability from their operating system. Are we going to tell them what parts of that they can or cannot do? Do you want the government say they can't?
If the government says the cannot bundle the browser but must distribute it separately then why should any other operating system be allowed to distribute one?
Do you get one with most linux distros? What if it HAD to be a totally separate download or on a separate disk and there was no ability to install it when you installed the operating system? For you it might be fine, for mom and dad buying bobby a computer it would be an complete pain!
Yeah, lets all go back to the stoneage.. just the command line please, and hold the convienence.
they should have every right to bundle what they want in their operating system. How is that protecting consumers means forcing them to buy more software? How is this preventing users from buying more software if they want to? How is that when features are added to linux distributions its not the same thing? Why? Is it because Linux is free? Why? Is because you can choose to install someone elses version (Guess what, I installed someone elses defragger on my windows - nothing prevent me)
If anything the widespread use of PCs has been because we had someone who made it easy on the "BELOW average person". Thats the key to this whole issue, the majority of consumers want to plug it in and go. They don't want to have to download a web browser, an email program, or even a word processor.
Wordpad has been in windows forever, and do people complain about it? It does 90% of what most people could ever want! Should windows be without tcp/ip support? After all the story goes that some poor third party company is obviously being prevented from thriving because TCP/IP is in the operating system.
What utter bullshit. They can include any software they want in their operating system. It does not prevent me from using WHAT I WANT to use.
So who decides what is acceptable for them to bundle in their operating system??? WHO? You want the government to do it?
Lets see... pick what can and cannot be in an operating system (optional install or not - they put it on the CD)
1. sound card support
2. video driver support
3. cd rom support
4. dvd player support
5. avi support
6. mp3 support
7. mouse support
8. basic networking
9. TCP/IP
10. DIAL UP
11. DSL/Cable support?
12. Word processing (ie word pad)
13. Word processing (ie something like WORD)
14. Database support (I would love at least a standard one, something I can use without having to buy ACCESS)
15. Browser (internet/intranet)
16. Email program
17. FTP program (via a browser interface)
18. Game support via specialty drivers
19. Disk utilities
20. Advanced disk utilities
21. PC Security services
22. encryption
23. Software to customize the operating system
24. auto matic update process
25. uninstall programs
26. support for the disabled (try and remove it - they couldn't even if they wanted to... thats what happens when governments decide what you must have and must not have!!!!!)
27. pretty backgrounds
28. themes
29. cd burning software
30. file management software(explorer - command line should be all they need eh?)
Come on, pick. I bet you can't get an agreement on all of them, hell 90% would be tough. So what to do? Tell them none of it? Would you buy an operating system that could not do half of whats listed? How about only one fourth???
The point is, you do have a choice in operating systems. You can run linux or windows on your PC. You can even step back and run dos or desqview. You can even run OS/2. So if its such a heartache then why don't do it? Hell, its only apple that forces people to run their stuff, they run competitors on their hardware and software platforms out of business... but I guess thats okay, because only 5% suffer from it:)
I suppose either they are on a different planet or I will wake up and find out who shot JR?
Uh...
Customer's never list everything they want, and they damn well don't prioritize. After all they would not ask for something if it wasn't important.
There are obviously many "bullet points" missing from the list, mainly those where management blows holes throughout any possible planning and implementation.
I guess this would be published in the science fiction section eh?
Professionals should not be unionized.
on
IT Unions?
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· Score: 3
I don't believe that professionals should belong to unions. Unions do have their uses, but in the end they seem self serving than serving the true needs of their employees.
The best example of why professionals should never be subject to unions is the ALPA. This union, originally created to protect pilots now enslaves them. Through union rules a pilot can never go to another airline without being FORCED to the bottom of the ladder all because of rules the union fought for on the supposed behalf of the employees. If airline pilots are not "professionals" then I don't know who is. They are highly trained, rigorously tested, and entrusted with immense responsibility. Yet in turn their union makes them no better than numbers.
The worse unions are those in the public sector. Unions have no business there, there is enough protections by law for government employees, and for that matter all but the entry level regular employees, that they now have simply transformed themselves into political entities. Teacher unions constantly strike in the middle of school year, regardless of the effect on students, because suddenly they, the employee, have become more important than the students they serve. While teachers should be paid well and receive good benefits, in this case they should also be expected to not put themselves before the children entrusted to them. Want to be on strike, then show your professionalism by not doing it when children are being taught. These same unions also thwart almost every effort to require measurable results from their members. How is this a benefit to society?
This is why I don't think most IT level jobs should ever be unionized. For IT to work it requires people of demonstratable skills who are willing to work together to accomphlish the needs of the business. Considering the need for people in our field we sorely lack reason to be unionized. The common method is to scare people into believeing that they will lose everything and be constantly abused if they don't join. Why should I want to dedicate nearly 2 weeks of my pay to a union? If you don't believe that is what it costs, then I suggest you check into what some unionized people pay. Friends of mine pay more than one hour of their weekly paycheck as union dues! The unions explain away the true cost by saying things like "It only cost you xxxx per week, but look at the benifits. However look at the xxxx * 52 and see just how much money you really are paying!
The real money makers in unions are those employees in businesses that cannot afford to cheat their employees in the first place. The number of qualified people is way to low for them to get away with running them into the ground. Through networking I know which companies to avoid, and as should be they are always understaffed. It takes time, but they do come around.
With a unionized staff we would not have had the ability to rid the company I work for of people who thought the whole day was for smoke breaks and surfing. Thats the cost of a union, you will end up with people in your IT department who don't contribute, forcing those who do to pick up the pace.
No, the cost of losing my professionalism is not worth the benefits of joining a union. I take pride in doing my job, and learning to do it better everyday. I don't need a crutch, and fear having one available.
""open, democratic, nonhierarchical, fluid, varied, inclusive -- a slippery domain that evades the critic's grasp just on the verge of definition.""
Ouch, I haven't seen such gobbly-gook double-speak since the last time I actually read my credit card agreement.
I realize that multimedia is important, but do they really need confuse the issue by burying it under doublespeak and general nonsense. Any computer geek will tell you, multimedia using more than one medium to convey a message.
(these quotes you have are utterly amazing, guess this is where the credit card lawyers practice between updates to agreements)
Honestly, he blows some things out of proportion (see his first paragraphs in this story - using napster). Combined with is overly obvious political slant. He also loves to overstate the obvious conclusions, and he rarely takes a stand on much of anything. He also sticks to PC subjects (politically correct - some would even same/. correct) topics like bashing corporations or similar ideas. He also has a tendency to overuse a theme (remember when nearly every story he posted had a Columbine reference?). Lastly, he does come off sometimes as another leftist elitist... telling us how much better we would be if we just listened to him. (and someone who looks for a plot in a Mummy sequel needs a clue)
So, essentially, he manages to eventually annoy someone somehow sometime.
In the US the Constitutional right to privacy is to prevent the Government and agencies created by it from taking it from you.
The method to hold corporations accountable is by controlling their access to your money and the money of others. Market pressure creates a lot of rights in this country.
but how can they enforce adoption by those in the internet of the products incorporating this protection.
Unless they can totally replace DVD/CD music as it currently stands its going to be nearly impossible for any new "protection" mechanism to prevail. Simply put, the geeks will just keep using what works? If they watermark new ones how do they prevent old tech from still reading the content without breaking all existing hardware? I don't think it can be done.
So what if they introduce something that produces better than mp3 quality music in half the size. If its got copy protection we won't need it. Storage costs are so low that it would take a radical size change to justify a new "recording" standard as mp3 has become for the net.
Ban MP3 AVI and any other unprotected form of recording? About their only chance, and that snowball has the same chance in hell as they do.
We also don't have laws that forbid even the copying of music from one form to another.
We are also not taxed to support religion, but instead choose which of ours we give our money too.
We don't put people in jail for memorabilia they auction.
We don't have to wait for surgery if it impairs our ability to enjoy life just because the government says you can live with it for awhile.
Did you know that displaying certain flags or burning others in European countries can get you thrown in jail? (nearly similar reasons to the auction problem).// fortunately flag burning laws always get thrown out here)
Got to love how free their press is over there;)
Want more? Or do you plan to provide a list of all the freedoms they have that we don't? I noticed that you "accidently" forgot to list any but of course expected me to provide some of my own?
Your comment has so little to do with mine, mine was a comment on Jon's slap at the US, which he seems to always try to accomphlish with his rants.
Lets see, subsidized health care, sounds great doesn't it? Just hope that the problem you need surgery for is something they consider important... otherwise its not uncommon to wait 3 to 6 months for what that surgery. Ask Canadians (who have socialized medicine) why so many come here for service they have to pay for?
As for public transportation, considering the taxes they pay isn't it amazing they still have to pay to ride this "public" transit?
Living standards? I would want to agree, but most of Europe is very behind. Friends visiting from France, Britain, and Germany have all commented on how nice it is to shop here, how we have so much stuff... how easy it is to find what you need... Their only real advantage is that most European countries have law upon law forbidding long hours, and most like those in France weren't done to benefit the employees, but to benefit the government by reducing unemployment.
Alas I forget, Europe has been leading the economic revival over these last 5-8 years haven't they? Its so nice that the dollar is finally worth something versus the might EURO;) *smile*
Don't make Europe out to be some bastion of freedom, their people are more dependant on their governments than ours, and they are forced to pay taxes that we would consider unConstitutional (like being forced to pay a tax that goes to churches in Germany).
Saner, I don't think so. They have their problems and we have ours. My issue was with Jon and his constant whining and slaps at the US that he interjects into his rants. If its so bad he should move.
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They do claim to be making a profit selling books, for merchandise that they stock perhaps they should just stick with books and such.
Get rid of the electronics, I am not buying anything from there mainly because of their limited selection.
Amazon just needs to realize that they cannot be all things to all people. The internet will reward those who concentrate on getting one thing done and done right.
If they can't make a profit now, just how do they plan to make one once the government starts taxing internet commerce? How much more of a free ride do these companies need?
So for another two or so years Harddrives, with their fragile and moving parts will dominate the scene.
While I like the idea of bigger drives, I really want to see a non-volatile storage solution that does not have any moving parts come along.
Why should the industry invest in them if harddrives just become bigger and cheaper?
About the only need would be for space agencies and military organizations - and with cutbacks in most countries even they come to rely on cheap and easy.
Hopefully there a few IBM'ers or others out there snorting some other dust and inventing that storage solution.
I used fireman as I have a relative who is one. He has two main gripes about firefighting.
Weight of gear, and the heat because of the gear (as in you can sweat so much you pass out) - he understands the tradeoff... cause he still has his skin.
the issue is that these pads might be able to support the weight of two humans, but the human scaling the building still has to be able to do the same. That is why all rescues involve rescurers who are not required to use their strength to support both people!. At worse their strength is needed to support the person they are rescuing.
next is the fact that he has his own weight to contend with, this is not the same as standing on the ground. I don't know about you, but I guarantee it will get tiring moving those pads, and that doesn't count fact it has ZERO backup safety that cable suspended rescue persons have or those on high extension ladders... you will still need a cable suspended from above to make this acceptable to recue people
There isn't much chance a fireman or whatnot is going to carry someone on their back down the face of a building with one of these things. Combined with their fire gear the weight of these items is just a bit on the high side.
Regardless I think they are neat, but I see a bigger use in inspection and construction than rescue.
Another point, why do they need the lcd displays at all? Why can't a processor simply determine if there are enough currently active supports to allow movement of any specific one? I think with some coaching and computer assist you could actually increase your ascent. Basically the computer would free the pad it wants you to move next, with enough practice you should be able to move quicker.
It was okay for Nintendo to sell their product for less that it cost, it was okay for Sony to do it. However, if evil Microsoft tries to do its not fair.
Gee, maybe Atari and a few other console makers would disagree with you. It wasn't exactly fair to them when nintendo entered the market and put them face down in the dirt.
Yes Microsoft is not the nicest punk on the block, but you cannot have competition with double standards. Whats next, welfare for the last two failed attempts lo launch a linux game box?
Microsoft won't dominate the industry unless they make something that clearly exceeds the expectations of the people who buy consoles. Secondly the technology changes so much that in 18 months the X-box will look like a 2600... (well maybe a 5200).
If Microsoft actually introduces a platform that people don't have to throw out every 18 months then they are doing more for the public than these current game console companies are doing. Don't go blaming microsoft for something nintendo and sony are already doing - you'll look like a hypocrit.
Smile, mod me down or up, in the end your still wrong.
Unfortunately even if they take the cash they are in the same boat. They don't have the clout to demand payment up front, and they probably never will.
? tag=nbs
If anything these these sites need to band together to put a stop to the abuse foisted upon them.
I am quite sure the executives at UGO are highly paid, and protected if they should be let go. Its crap like Webvan's recent settlement with their EX-CEO that show who really benefits on the web, http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1007-200-5940466.html
Hopefully they will piss off a site that has connections, and get their ass handed to them legally.
Until then, fan sites will continually be screwed. The net isn't free, and if we want good sites we are going to eventually have to pay (even if its micropayments - I would not mind paying a few cents per day to these sites for their content)
so now you know why!
Bunch of dummies, for the last two quarters advertising companies are demanding cash up front for producing content/ads for web companies. A lot of other companies demand the same from any web based enterprise.
Why do web based enterprises think they are immune from the same treatment? Just because your both web based doesn't mean you have some secret handshake protecting you.
You would have thought the guys at VE would have learned by now.
Suggestion, get all these sites together and file a single lawsuit. In the meantime don't run their ads
Sorry but I don't think the instrumentation on these probes really is advanced enough to gather what is needed to make an accurate or informed decision.
I would not mind seeing a mission equiped so they could determine what really is out there. In other words, ditch the hardware needed for planetary observations, use the slingshot effects of gravity and get a probe out there pronto.
It would probably be a better use to understand what goes on out there than visit the disney planet.
This article says a lot about /. editorial discretion.
I used sarcasm to point it out.
As for Art Bell, I have heard pieces of his show when I get up to take my dog outside in the morning, and for the most part its just as valuable as this article.
The most important part of this article was AMD's statement that the socket-A layout will continue throughout this series and the next two.
Contrast this to Intel, who is so bent on shoving stuff down our throats that they willingly sell products that have a short or no real life span expectancy. (p462 anyone?)
I think this statement from AMD may actually help them among the fence sitting OEMs who still seem glued to AMD. By keeping the same socket it allowd manufacturers to refine the product, instead of trying to figure out a new one.
It must be the weekend.
When do we get stories on hair replacement systems that work? Or how about, amazing 400 pound babies. Or everyones favorite, the "Devil's face seen in smoke of burning building"
Is OMNI still publishing?
They don't care, never have and never will. I have never met anyone other than a geek who wanted to remove something installed in windows.
Neither my neighbors, my relatives, or some of pc-idiots at work ever asked to help them remove a windows provided product.
Actually I was surprised, but then based on the questions I anwsered for them and the tasks I helped them with I realized something.
they don't care, it works for them, they just want to get X installed (because the developer of product X couldn't even write an install routine), or they wanted to change Y.
If they did a blind survey, meaning randomly mail out questions to a 1000 people asking them what they would want removed from windows, wish it did not install, and then added a section of "would you want this with it?" I bet the results would be.
75% not returned
24% saying they want all those extras listed at the bottom
1% saying microsoft sucks
Netscapes bloat and freaking bugs prevent me from using netscape.
Who really gives a rats ass about browsers anyway? They don't make or break an operating system, hell they don't do anything special in the first place.
If anything built in network support is more important than some silly html viewer.
I really don't understand this fixation with bundling the browser, no wonder why microsoft stays number one, they got everyone fixated on the browser while running off with the real money, the OEMS.
fuck the browser. get over it, it doesn't mean crap. you want to get microsoft, then get them on something meaningful, like oem deals, like forced upgrades for businesses, and other stuff with real importance.
Who would buy the gimped version anyway? Why must it be the browser? Huh? Just as logical to ban TCP/IP from windows and make you buy/download the upgrade!!!
The fact is they cannot afford to. Everyone expects internet capability from their operating system. Are we going to tell them what parts of that they can or cannot do? Do you want the government say they can't?
If the government says the cannot bundle the browser but must distribute it separately then why should any other operating system be allowed to distribute one?
Do you get one with most linux distros? What if it HAD to be a totally separate download or on a separate disk and there was no ability to install it when you installed the operating system? For you it might be fine, for mom and dad buying bobby a computer it would be an complete pain!
Yeah, lets all go back to the stoneage.. just the command line please, and hold the convienence.
they should have every right to bundle what they want in their operating system. How is that protecting consumers means forcing them to buy more software? How is this preventing users from buying more software if they want to? How is that when features are added to linux distributions its not the same thing? Why? Is it because Linux is free? Why? Is because you can choose to install someone elses version (Guess what, I installed someone elses defragger on my windows - nothing prevent me)
:)
If anything the widespread use of PCs has been because we had someone who made it easy on the "BELOW average person". Thats the key to this whole issue, the majority of consumers want to plug it in and go. They don't want to have to download a web browser, an email program, or even a word processor.
Wordpad has been in windows forever, and do people complain about it? It does 90% of what most people could ever want! Should windows be without tcp/ip support? After all the story goes that some poor third party company is obviously being prevented from thriving because TCP/IP is in the operating system.
What utter bullshit. They can include any software they want in their operating system. It does not prevent me from using WHAT I WANT to use.
So who decides what is acceptable for them to bundle in their operating system??? WHO? You want the government to do it?
Lets see... pick what can and cannot be in an operating system (optional install or not - they put it on the CD)
1. sound card support
2. video driver support
3. cd rom support
4. dvd player support
5. avi support
6. mp3 support
7. mouse support
8. basic networking
9. TCP/IP
10. DIAL UP
11. DSL/Cable support?
12. Word processing (ie word pad)
13. Word processing (ie something like WORD)
14. Database support (I would love at least a standard one, something I can use without having to buy ACCESS)
15. Browser (internet/intranet)
16. Email program
17. FTP program (via a browser interface)
18. Game support via specialty drivers
19. Disk utilities
20. Advanced disk utilities
21. PC Security services
22. encryption
23. Software to customize the operating system
24. auto matic update process
25. uninstall programs
26. support for the disabled (try and remove it - they couldn't even if they wanted to... thats what happens when governments decide what you must have and must not have!!!!!)
27. pretty backgrounds
28. themes
29. cd burning software
30. file management software(explorer - command line should be all they need eh?)
Come on, pick. I bet you can't get an agreement on all of them, hell 90% would be tough. So what to do? Tell them none of it? Would you buy an operating system that could not do half of whats listed? How about only one fourth???
The point is, you do have a choice in operating systems. You can run linux or windows on your PC. You can even step back and run dos or desqview. You can even run OS/2. So if its such a heartache then why don't do it? Hell, its only apple that forces people to run their stuff, they run competitors on their hardware and software platforms out of business... but I guess thats okay, because only 5% suffer from it
According to the CNN story about his death the rights to make a film using the story is owned by Disney. It even hints that it is still in production.
m s. death/index.html
http://www.cnn.com/2001/SHOWBIZ/books/05/12/ada
I suppose either they are on a different planet or I will wake up and find out who shot JR?
Uh...
Customer's never list everything they want, and they damn well don't prioritize. After all they would not ask for something if it wasn't important.
There are obviously many "bullet points" missing from the list, mainly those where management blows holes throughout any possible planning and implementation.
I guess this would be published in the science fiction section eh?
I don't believe that professionals should belong to unions. Unions do have their uses, but in the end they seem self serving than serving the true needs of their employees.
The best example of why professionals should never be subject to unions is the ALPA. This union, originally created to protect pilots now enslaves them. Through union rules a pilot can never go to another airline without being FORCED to the bottom of the ladder all because of rules the union fought for on the supposed behalf of the employees. If airline pilots are not "professionals" then I don't know who is. They are highly trained, rigorously tested, and entrusted with immense responsibility. Yet in turn their union makes them no better than numbers.
The worse unions are those in the public sector. Unions have no business there, there is enough protections by law for government employees, and for that matter all but the entry level regular employees, that they now have simply transformed themselves into political entities. Teacher unions constantly strike in the middle of school year, regardless of the effect on students, because suddenly they, the employee, have become more important than the students they serve. While teachers should be paid well and receive good benefits, in this case they should also be expected to not put themselves before the children entrusted to them. Want to be on strike, then show your professionalism by not doing it when children are being taught. These same unions also thwart almost every effort to require measurable results from their members. How is this a benefit to society?
This is why I don't think most IT level jobs should ever be unionized. For IT to work it requires people of demonstratable skills who are willing to work together to accomphlish the needs of the business. Considering the need for people in our field we sorely lack reason to be unionized. The common method is to scare people into believeing that they will lose everything and be constantly abused if they don't join. Why should I want to dedicate nearly 2 weeks of my pay to a union? If you don't believe that is what it costs, then I suggest you check into what some unionized people pay. Friends of mine pay more than one hour of their weekly paycheck as union dues! The unions explain away the true cost by saying things like "It only cost you xxxx per week, but look at the benifits. However look at the xxxx * 52 and see just how much money you really are paying!
The real money makers in unions are those employees in businesses that cannot afford to cheat their employees in the first place. The number of qualified people is way to low for them to get away with running them into the ground. Through networking I know which companies to avoid, and as should be they are always understaffed. It takes time, but they do come around.
With a unionized staff we would not have had the ability to rid the company I work for of people who thought the whole day was for smoke breaks and surfing. Thats the cost of a union, you will end up with people in your IT department who don't contribute, forcing those who do to pick up the pace.
No, the cost of losing my professionalism is not worth the benefits of joining a union. I take pride in doing my job, and learning to do it better everyday. I don't need a crutch, and fear having one available.
""open, democratic, nonhierarchical, fluid, varied, inclusive -- a slippery domain that evades the critic's grasp just on the verge of definition.""
Ouch, I haven't seen such gobbly-gook double-speak since the last time I actually read my credit card agreement.
I realize that multimedia is important, but do they really need confuse the issue by burying it under doublespeak and general nonsense. Any computer geek will tell you, multimedia using more than one medium to convey a message.
(these quotes you have are utterly amazing, guess this is where the credit card lawyers practice between updates to agreements)
It is the best way to store them long term.
Honestly, he blows some things out of proportion (see his first paragraphs in this story - using napster). Combined with is overly obvious political slant. He also loves to overstate the obvious conclusions, and he rarely takes a stand on much of anything. He also sticks to PC subjects (politically correct - some would even same /. correct) topics like bashing corporations or similar ideas. He also has a tendency to overuse a theme (remember when nearly every story he posted had a Columbine reference?). Lastly, he does come off sometimes as another leftist elitist... telling us how much better we would be if we just listened to him. (and someone who looks for a plot in a Mummy sequel needs a clue)
So, essentially, he manages to eventually annoy someone somehow sometime.
Does that anwser your question?
No.
In the US the Constitutional right to privacy is to prevent the Government and agencies created by it from taking it from you.
The method to hold corporations accountable is by controlling their access to your money and the money of others. Market pressure creates a lot of rights in this country.
but how can they enforce adoption by those in the internet of the products incorporating this protection.
Unless they can totally replace DVD/CD music as it currently stands its going to be nearly impossible for any new "protection" mechanism to prevail. Simply put, the geeks will just keep using what works? If they watermark new ones how do they prevent old tech from still reading the content without breaking all existing hardware? I don't think it can be done.
So what if they introduce something that produces better than mp3 quality music in half the size. If its got copy protection we won't need it. Storage costs are so low that it would take a radical size change to justify a new "recording" standard as mp3 has become for the net.
Ban MP3 AVI and any other unprotected form of recording? About their only chance, and that snowball has the same chance in hell as they do.
At least we have yet to pay taxes on each CD-R.
// fortunately flag burning laws always get thrown out here)
;)
We also don't have laws that forbid even the copying of music from one form to another.
We are also not taxed to support religion, but instead choose which of ours we give our money too.
We don't put people in jail for memorabilia they auction.
We don't have to wait for surgery if it impairs our ability to enjoy life just because the government says you can live with it for awhile.
Did you know that displaying certain flags or burning others in European countries can get you thrown in jail? (nearly similar reasons to the auction problem).
Got to love how free their press is over there
Want more? Or do you plan to provide a list of all the freedoms they have that we don't? I noticed that you "accidently" forgot to list any but of course expected me to provide some of my own?
Your comment has so little to do with mine, mine was a comment on Jon's slap at the US, which he seems to always try to accomphlish with his rants.
;) *smile*
Lets see, subsidized health care, sounds great doesn't it? Just hope that the problem you need surgery for is something they consider important... otherwise its not uncommon to wait 3 to 6 months for what that surgery. Ask Canadians (who have socialized medicine) why so many come here for service they have to pay for?
As for public transportation, considering the taxes they pay isn't it amazing they still have to pay to ride this "public" transit?
Living standards? I would want to agree, but most of Europe is very behind. Friends visiting from France, Britain, and Germany have all commented on how nice it is to shop here, how we have so much stuff... how easy it is to find what you need... Their only real advantage is that most European countries have law upon law forbidding long hours, and most like those in France weren't done to benefit the employees, but to benefit the government by reducing unemployment.
Alas I forget, Europe has been leading the economic revival over these last 5-8 years haven't they? Its so nice that the dollar is finally worth something versus the might EURO
Don't make Europe out to be some bastion of freedom, their people are more dependant on their governments than ours, and they are forced to pay taxes that we would consider unConstitutional (like being forced to pay a tax that goes to churches in Germany).
Saner, I don't think so. They have their problems and we have ours. My issue was with Jon and his constant whining and slaps at the US that he interjects into his rants. If its so bad he should move.