We had to do this at one of our clients. The problem wasn't USB drives, it was vendor webapps (transportation industry) that insisted on installing ActiveX controls to work. So we setup 4 Windoze PCs in an inuslated subnet to run those, and do other dangerous things.
A show of strength is not a war. Apart from everyone just getting along, the
only way for there to be peace is for the "alpha wolf" to be (or appear to be)
so much stronger that no one dares challenge him. In the human world, the
equivalent of the alpha wolf might be morally good, bad, or (most likely) a
mixture. But there will be peace (even if an oppressive one) until weakness,
or the appearance of weakness, encourages a challenger.
With two regimes, like in the cold war, a show of strength on both sides prevented a major direct conflict. However, there were a lot of small conflicts on the side encouraged or instigated by the two powers.
There are deep reasons why everyone can't "just get along". Christian
doctrine calls it "concupiscence". Although the popular meaning considers only
sexual dysfunction, it means all the physical and mental dysfunctions which
mar our humanity, and make it impossible for us to be wholly good without
help. Current (American) liberal thought agrees to the point of explaining
bad behaviour in terms of syndromes. For example, 16 million Americans
"suffer" from IED - which makes
them more likely to engage in "road rage".
The difference is that liberalism sees the dysfunction as an excuse.
Christian thought sees the dysfunction as an explanation, but no amount
of excusing will change the eventual end result of physical and spiritual
death. Only supernatural intervention can turn around the human condition.
The "here be binary" tags in MS "open" XML clearly go against the spirit of XML and render MS documents effectively proprietary. Sure, the XML parts are documented, but only MS can properly interpret the binary blobs.
My Minix-1 came on 5 1/4" floppies. I gave the textbook to my nephew a few years ago. It was a great book. The entire minix system was easy to understand - and hence more practical systems were comprehensible with some work.
That is how messages have worked in Mach since its inception. The Microkernel would always send messages by page table manipulation whenever possible. Minix-1 did not work that way (for simplicity) - it just copied the bytes. Someone who has downloaded Minix-3 will have to tell us whether Minix-3 can send "page based" messages.
Knoppix also supports Nvidia. However, it does not come on the CD. The CD boots with opensource video drivers (no 3D acceleration). There is a menu option which then downloads the nvidia package from the nvida website, compiles the kernel module, loads it, and restarts X. In a minute or so you have 3D acceleration without distributing tainted code (GPL kernel modules linked with closed source binaries are "tainted").
Sun provides an open spec (actually multiple specs). There are open source implementations of the spec. Sun and others have proprietary implementations. There are applications where the open source implementations are superior (typically small memory and embedded). If you have tons of memory, Sun's Hotspot VM is very fast.
If there are areas where the specs need improvement to get closer to the "Write Once Run Anywhere" goal, by all means complain about those areas.
We want multiple competing implementations, both open and proprietary. That said, I could see Sun open sourcing the Java libraries - at least the Java parts. The SDK comes with Sun source for the publically visible parts of libraries. However, the licence precludes using that source in an open source VM. Instead, the GNU classpath project has to rewrite them from the spec.
Keeping the Sun VM proprietary but opensourcing the libraries seems like a good compromise between maximum interoperability and competition.
My Dad worked on creating "custom fog" for the Navy. He studied propagation, e.g.
this civilian paper. Then he developed a method of modifying droplet size distribution in fogs over the ocean. The end product (details classified) allows ships to create a fog bank on demand over large bodies of water (within 1 or 2 hours) that blocks enemy frequencies, but has "holes" for friendly scanner frequencies. The details include taking temperature/humidity/droplet profiles by altitude of the atmosphere over the target area.
I prefer "out of the mainstream" movies that are unlikely to be found at a brick and mortar store. I am on the 9.99/mo plan because I don't have time to watch more than about 1 movie / week.
I am with Blockbuster currently, but I almost switched when Netflix "number of titles" was higher. Now they are neck in neck. Blockbuster complaints:
Their email forges 'custhelp.com' as MAIL FROM despite repeated complaints from custhelp.com (and me).
I've had "The Black Hole" at the top of my queue where it says "short wait" for over 6 months now. Will they ever send it?
But it sure beats picking over the leavings at the physical store.
Our customers start off that way, because everyone is doing it. However, as the costs mount up, they inevitable realize how stupid it is. Each company gravitates towards a different thin client solution, however. We have only one using Linux LTSP thin clients (and that is what we use in our own office and what I use at home).
However, gnome is too customizable for many end-users. One large client rejected the Linux solution because their users kept rearranging their menus until they couldn't find things anymore. We had a tarball to restore their desktop, but it got very annoying very quickly to constantly have to restore it. They ended up going to Sun desktop on a Sunfire server and the neat stateless clients where your desktop follows your access card. Another shop went with a Windows Citrix server "because our applications need to be 100% 'compatible'".
Another smaller client tackles the high TCO of Windows by not dealing with it. They buy cheap $400 PCs. When they get a virus, or develop a hardware problem, there is no attempt to diagnose it - the PC is just "worn out". They junk it and buy a new one. They keep mail and documents on a server, so only wallpaper, bookmarks, and such are lost. Although some of the problems might be fixable, at $100/hr service cost this approach is likely cost effective on average. They very kindly "throw" the "broken" PCs in our direction, which is why our LTSP thin clients are "free".
I agree that Java on the client is cumbersome. However, on the server it is sweet. Switching between PPC AIX, Intel Linux, and Sun servers is a snap (other than learning the system administration differences between the flavors of unix). We just copy the application binaries and files over, and presto! Instant port.
Gonzales is thinking about the pirate who stands on a street corner in Indonesia and calls "CDs, cheap! DVDs, cheap!" - and indeed, they are only a $1USD each. Although the album art seems to be slightly fuzzy and off-color.
You are thinking about the "pirate" who unknowingly distributes copies of a copyrighted work to strangers while using a PTP "download" application (and receives no money for the distribution).
Gonzales assertion makes sense with the first kind. Trying to equate the two, ala *AA, is the logical fallacy known as "equivocation".
Cockroaches don't fight off infections. Their systems are designed/evolved to work in spite of infection. This makes them dangerous for creatures that do fight off infections. This also seems to be the direction Microsoft Security is headed. And no, Paladium doesn't stop infection via security flaws. It only stops infection via idiot users.
It is the nature of an industrialized society to change the environment. The changes can be beautiful, or they can be ugly. For instance, a 2 lane black road (without a lot of ugly patches) winding through the countryside adds to the beauty of the scene. Even 2 lanes in each direction is pretty when the median is wide/forested enough to hide the two directions from each other. But anything over 2 lanes is too jarring in a rural setting (for my taste, anyway).
Similarly, windmills dotted on the landscape are picturesque, provided they aren't visibly rusted and falling apart. (And even 1 or 2 that are rusted and falling apart can be quaint.) But an army of windmills in a rank and file, like an invading army of robot warriors, is downright ugly.
In my opinion, all large scale infrastructure like interstate roads, windmills, buildings and plants visible from a distance, should be designed with artists as well as engineers.
I just got back from visiting St Louis. It isn't a power plant, but a great example of combined art and engineering is the City Museum. Built mostly from recycled junk, but engineered to be safe for children and adults to play on - and pleasing to look at.
Why support bands who support the evil RIAA? Why not give your hard earned dollars to groups that provide good music with no DRM and a liberal license? Have you tried the small but eclectic and growing collection at Magnatune? I would never spend money on an RIAA CD just to try it. But I can actually give some of the "heavy metal" stuff a serious listen at magnatune (I am normally classical and jazz). I still don't like most of it - but I actually liked "Painful Ambient Industrial Noise". Not at full volume, of course, but it is a very interesting rythmic composition of industrial noises. Reminds me somewhat of musicals like "The Music Man" and "Hello Dolly" which contain numbers with rythm built from background noises.
So I heard new music, bought dozens of albums (with *half* of the purchase price going directly to the artist), didn't break any laws, and didn't support the RIAA.
Subway. (Sandwiches) Noodles & Company (pasta dishes served in 5 minutes - takes longer to eat, though). Smoothie King. (Fruit, protein powder, ice in a blender.) Pizza. (12 minutes from order - call ahead and it is instant.)
For 60 cycles, there is a known mechanism for the cancer link. And no - the EMF itself does not cause cancer. Instead, in vitro lab experiments (sorry, this was several years ago, no link) have shown that 60 hz EMF fields stronger than 12 milligaus inhibit several immune system enzymes that are key to preventing cancer. There is a threshhold effect. The EMF doesn't cause cancer, but inhibits natural cancer protection. Your immune system is most active cleaning up potential cancer and foreign invaders while you are sleeping.
So working around powerful transformers at your day job is not a cancer risk. But sleeping under pylons, or under an electric blanket for many nights is a risk. EMF strength falls off with square of distance (apart from accidental directional antenna effects), so pylons are only a risk if you sleep right under them.
Electric blankets are a bad idea all around.
It turns out that dogs are more susceptible to 60 hz EMF than people are. Cancer in dogs has been linked to continuous proximity to strong EMF, even when no measurable link for humans was found. Dogs seems to be a "canary" species for 60hz EMF.
For the original poster - I would recommend not protesting the pylons entirely, but insist on making the land underneath and closeby a park area. Just visiting the area is not a problem. You can even study the wildlife in the park to see if any other health effects turn up.
I would like to see studies on 50hz EMF. Avoiding the problems with 60hz might be as simple (yeah - right, the whole country buys all new appliances and power supplies) as changing frenquency.
I should have mentioned - I disabled about a dozen unneeded services that are started by default on Fedora Core 4. Things like that are a performance killer on a low RAM system (not to mention potential security holes). I suppose a Windows power user would know how to disable all the unneeded services there as well. Or is it all secret?
I installed Fedora Core 4 on a 466Mhz Celeron with 192M RAM (I am poor and recycle computers from the trash). I use it for web browsing, email, and gaim. Only when rendering a large complex web page do I wish for a 4Ghz CPU (and that is not the OS). Visiting a friend with XP on 1Ghz Celeron with 512M RAM, the XP system is a dog, freezing for seconds at a time. Of course, this is all subjective, and the slowness of the XP system is likely due to malware, but then that is part of the problem with Windows.
Another anecdote or two. I took a trashed Win 98 computer which was dog slow. Reinstalled Win 98, and now it is fine (I use it for Taxact and games). My sister keeps a good copy of Windows XP on a backup partition. When XP starts getting doggy, she restores the XP system. Presto, snappy again. My theory about Windows slowness is that it is entirely due to malware.
... may not be trying to convert in a religious or philosophical sense. They are trying to pick up more customers through inadvertent addiction. The business model is like Big Tobacco: establish addiction, exploit addiction.
Assuming you are not a smoker, how would you like it tobacco companies could release various smokes into the commons at your shopping mall for marketing purposes. While smokers and some non-smokers (especially ex-smokers) may enjoy the smell, many non-smokers find it anywhere from unpleasant to nauseating. This is how those of us who haven't established the addiction feel about porn.
In the old days, porn was sold discreetly and mailed in brown paper wrappers. It is the aggessive "in your face" marketing, popping up in web ads and emails for users who want nothing to do with it that is keeping social conservatives riled up. I got pretty steamed too when a hard core email got past all my filters and popped up in my daughters mailbox.
There are rules about display of potentially offensive magazines in stores. There are rules about billboards, but IMO they ought to be stricter. Fine, put racy billboards in the red-light district, but I don't want to see them when I'm driving through on the interstate. Some libertines are not content to coexist - they are determined to coerce everyone into their own image. (And yes, the same could be said of some social conservatives.)
In the early church, there was no internet, but nevertheless Roman roads brought together Christians with conflicting community standards. Some believers bought cheap meat at the local pagan temple, realizing that the idol it had been offered to was mere superstition. Others, just converting to christianity from paganism, were horrified at the thought of eating meat offered to idols. Paul's advice is to defer to the "weaker brethren" - those who are easily offended. This means not flaunting your freedom by eating such meat in front of a weaker brother. (I Corinthians 8).
The application today is that web publishers, knowing that certain potential viewers will be offended by their content, should take steps to make sure that such content cannot be accidentally viewed by "weaker brethren". This was the principal behind restricting potentially offensive content on broadcast TV to the wee hours.
Such publishers may not care two hoots about Paul the Apostle's advice. But they should bear in mind that if they don't apply self-censorship in avoiding audiences that are offended, they may end up with government censorship (option 1) - which is the worst possible outcome for all concerned. Since said standards are arbitrary, they will eventually turn and bite the "right" as well as the "left" (and have done so historically).
(Sorry for the dupe, accidentally posted anonymously.)
This was the legal basis for the old USSR to criminalize Bible smugglers. It is often helpful to remind Christians of this when debating ill conceived government censorship programs. I am a Christian, and I despise pornography. It destroys the viewers sex life, and in cases of violent addiction those of many others around him (it is usually a male). I have read heart wrenching letters from women, one of them I know personally, who have no sex life because their husband would rather do himself in front of a picture. Nevertheless, what words or images act as pornography varies with the culture and individual.
Machines might be able to recognize images containing bare skin, but bare skin is not pornography. It might be possible to create a bayesian like filter that could be trained to block text and images offensive to an individual. Or an individual can hire a service that shares his/her values to do the filtering. The government (US or AU) does *not* share my values.
For my own family, I check authentication and do bayesian content filtering using pymilter for email. I use squid with a "safesites" list for kids and a "bannedsites" list (obtained from the browsing habits of porn addicted employees of my clients who couldn't stop on their own during working hours) for adults. I use pine to screen my personal email (no images) and lynx to screen websites before adding to safesites.
Some of the students in a beginning programming class I teach were unable to browse web pages on group theory, klein bottles, and other topics which I really doubt acted as porn for anyone alive now or throughout history. They were blocked by a porn filter installed by the parents. I guess those 3D projections of 4 dimensional surfaces do have a rather sensuous look to them. Third party filters are very frustrating. I sympathize with those advocate them in their desire to fight porn. However, they simply do not understand computer technology (and those I know personally invariably run Windows on their PC).
Because the capacity of optical fiber is so high, this optical-wireless network could use wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) to carry as many as 32 different channels, each providing 2.5 gigabit-per-second service. That would allow users within buildings to subscribe to services from many different providers, each with their own content.
At first I was confused, because the article seemed to be talking about internet access. But then I noticed that Bell South was one of the sponsors. So, welcome to the future of the internet as envisioned by Bell South.
Slashdot Mirror
We had to do this at one of our clients. The problem wasn't USB drives, it was vendor webapps (transportation industry) that insisted on installing ActiveX controls to work. So we setup 4 Windoze PCs in an inuslated subnet to run those, and do other dangerous things.
With two regimes, like in the cold war, a show of strength on both sides prevented a major direct conflict. However, there were a lot of small conflicts on the side encouraged or instigated by the two powers.
There are deep reasons why everyone can't "just get along". Christian doctrine calls it "concupiscence". Although the popular meaning considers only sexual dysfunction, it means all the physical and mental dysfunctions which mar our humanity, and make it impossible for us to be wholly good without help. Current (American) liberal thought agrees to the point of explaining bad behaviour in terms of syndromes. For example, 16 million Americans "suffer" from IED - which makes them more likely to engage in "road rage".
The difference is that liberalism sees the dysfunction as an excuse. Christian thought sees the dysfunction as an explanation, but no amount of excusing will change the eventual end result of physical and spiritual death. Only supernatural intervention can turn around the human condition.
OLE objects. Exactly my point.
The "here be binary" tags in MS "open" XML clearly go against the spirit of XML and render MS documents effectively proprietary. Sure, the XML parts are documented, but only MS can properly interpret the binary blobs.
My Minix-1 came on 5 1/4" floppies. I gave the textbook to my nephew a few years ago. It was a great book. The entire minix system was easy to understand - and hence more practical systems were comprehensible with some work.
That is how messages have worked in Mach since its inception. The Microkernel would always send messages by page table manipulation whenever possible. Minix-1 did not work that way (for simplicity) - it just copied the bytes. Someone who has downloaded Minix-3 will have to tell us whether Minix-3 can send "page based" messages.
Knoppix also supports Nvidia. However, it does not come on the CD. The CD boots with opensource video drivers (no 3D acceleration). There is a menu option which then downloads the nvidia package from the nvida website, compiles the kernel module, loads it, and restarts X. In a minute or so you have 3D acceleration without distributing tainted code (GPL kernel modules linked with closed source binaries are "tainted").
If there are areas where the specs need improvement to get closer to the "Write Once Run Anywhere" goal, by all means complain about those areas.
We want multiple competing implementations, both open and proprietary. That said, I could see Sun open sourcing the Java libraries - at least the Java parts. The SDK comes with Sun source for the publically visible parts of libraries. However, the licence precludes using that source in an open source VM. Instead, the GNU classpath project has to rewrite them from the spec.
Keeping the Sun VM proprietary but opensourcing the libraries seems like a good compromise between maximum interoperability and competition.
My Dad worked on creating "custom fog" for the Navy. He studied propagation, e.g. this civilian paper. Then he developed a method of modifying droplet size distribution in fogs over the ocean. The end product (details classified) allows ships to create a fog bank on demand over large bodies of water (within 1 or 2 hours) that blocks enemy frequencies, but has "holes" for friendly scanner frequencies. The details include taking temperature/humidity/droplet profiles by altitude of the atmosphere over the target area.
- I prefer "out of the mainstream" movies that are unlikely to be found at a brick and mortar store. I am on the 9.99/mo plan because I don't have time to watch more than about 1 movie / week.
I am with Blockbuster currently, but I almost switched when Netflix "number of titles" was higher. Now they are neck in neck. Blockbuster complaints:- Their email forges 'custhelp.com' as MAIL FROM despite repeated complaints from custhelp.com (and me).
- I've had "The Black Hole" at the top of my queue where it says "short wait" for over 6 months now. Will they ever send it?
But it sure beats picking over the leavings at the physical store.However, gnome is too customizable for many end-users. One large client rejected the Linux solution because their users kept rearranging their menus until they couldn't find things anymore. We had a tarball to restore their desktop, but it got very annoying very quickly to constantly have to restore it. They ended up going to Sun desktop on a Sunfire server and the neat stateless clients where your desktop follows your access card. Another shop went with a Windows Citrix server "because our applications need to be 100% 'compatible'".
Another smaller client tackles the high TCO of Windows by not dealing with it. They buy cheap $400 PCs. When they get a virus, or develop a hardware problem, there is no attempt to diagnose it - the PC is just "worn out". They junk it and buy a new one. They keep mail and documents on a server, so only wallpaper, bookmarks, and such are lost. Although some of the problems might be fixable, at $100/hr service cost this approach is likely cost effective on average. They very kindly "throw" the "broken" PCs in our direction, which is why our LTSP thin clients are "free".
I agree that Java on the client is cumbersome. However, on the server it is sweet. Switching between PPC AIX, Intel Linux, and Sun servers is a snap (other than learning the system administration differences between the flavors of unix). We just copy the application binaries and files over, and presto! Instant port.
You are thinking about the "pirate" who unknowingly distributes copies of a copyrighted work to strangers while using a PTP "download" application (and receives no money for the distribution).
Gonzales assertion makes sense with the first kind. Trying to equate the two, ala *AA, is the logical fallacy known as "equivocation".
Cockroaches don't fight off infections. Their systems are designed/evolved to work in spite of infection. This makes them dangerous for creatures that do fight off infections. This also seems to be the direction Microsoft Security is headed. And no, Paladium doesn't stop infection via security flaws. It only stops infection via idiot users.
Similarly, windmills dotted on the landscape are picturesque, provided they aren't visibly rusted and falling apart. (And even 1 or 2 that are rusted and falling apart can be quaint.) But an army of windmills in a rank and file, like an invading army of robot warriors, is downright ugly.
In my opinion, all large scale infrastructure like interstate roads, windmills, buildings and plants visible from a distance, should be designed with artists as well as engineers.
I just got back from visiting St Louis. It isn't a power plant, but a great example of combined art and engineering is the City Museum. Built mostly from recycled junk, but engineered to be safe for children and adults to play on - and pleasing to look at.
So I heard new music, bought dozens of albums (with *half* of the purchase price going directly to the artist), didn't break any laws, and didn't support the RIAA.
A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children, but the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous. Proverbs 13:22
Subway. (Sandwiches)
Noodles & Company (pasta dishes served in 5 minutes - takes longer to eat, though).
Smoothie King. (Fruit, protein powder, ice in a blender.)
Pizza. (12 minutes from order - call ahead and it is instant.)
So working around powerful transformers at your day job is not a cancer risk. But sleeping under pylons, or under an electric blanket for many nights is a risk. EMF strength falls off with square of distance (apart from accidental directional antenna effects), so pylons are only a risk if you sleep right under them. Electric blankets are a bad idea all around.
It turns out that dogs are more susceptible to 60 hz EMF than people are. Cancer in dogs has been linked to continuous proximity to strong EMF, even when no measurable link for humans was found. Dogs seems to be a "canary" species for 60hz EMF.
For the original poster - I would recommend not protesting the pylons entirely, but insist on making the land underneath and closeby a park area. Just visiting the area is not a problem. You can even study the wildlife in the park to see if any other health effects turn up.
I would like to see studies on 50hz EMF. Avoiding the problems with 60hz might be as simple (yeah - right, the whole country buys all new appliances and power supplies) as changing frenquency.
I should have mentioned - I disabled about a dozen unneeded services that are started by default on Fedora Core 4. Things like that are a performance killer on a low RAM system (not to mention potential security holes). I suppose a Windows power user would know how to disable all the unneeded services there as well. Or is it all secret?
Another anecdote or two. I took a trashed Win 98 computer which was dog slow. Reinstalled Win 98, and now it is fine (I use it for Taxact and games). My sister keeps a good copy of Windows XP on a backup partition. When XP starts getting doggy, she restores the XP system. Presto, snappy again. My theory about Windows slowness is that it is entirely due to malware.
Assuming you are not a smoker, how would you like it tobacco companies could release various smokes into the commons at your shopping mall for marketing purposes. While smokers and some non-smokers (especially ex-smokers) may enjoy the smell, many non-smokers find it anywhere from unpleasant to nauseating. This is how those of us who haven't established the addiction feel about porn.
There are rules about display of potentially offensive magazines in stores. There are rules about billboards, but IMO they ought to be stricter. Fine, put racy billboards in the red-light district, but I don't want to see them when I'm driving through on the interstate. Some libertines are not content to coexist - they are determined to coerce everyone into their own image. (And yes, the same could be said of some social conservatives.)
The application today is that web publishers, knowing that certain potential viewers will be offended by their content, should take steps to make sure that such content cannot be accidentally viewed by "weaker brethren". This was the principal behind restricting potentially offensive content on broadcast TV to the wee hours.
Such publishers may not care two hoots about Paul the Apostle's advice. But they should bear in mind that if they don't apply self-censorship in avoiding audiences that are offended, they may end up with government censorship (option 1) - which is the worst possible outcome for all concerned. Since said standards are arbitrary, they will eventually turn and bite the "right" as well as the "left" (and have done so historically).
This was the legal basis for the old USSR to criminalize Bible smugglers. It is often helpful to remind Christians of this when debating ill conceived government censorship programs. I am a Christian, and I despise pornography. It destroys the viewers sex life, and in cases of violent addiction those of many others around him (it is usually a male). I have read heart wrenching letters from women, one of them I know personally, who have no sex life because their husband would rather do himself in front of a picture. Nevertheless, what words or images act as pornography varies with the culture and individual.
Machines might be able to recognize images containing bare skin, but bare skin is not pornography. It might be possible to create a bayesian like filter that could be trained to block text and images offensive to an individual. Or an individual can hire a service that shares his/her values to do the filtering. The government (US or AU) does *not* share my values.
For my own family, I check authentication and do bayesian content filtering using pymilter for email. I use squid with a "safesites" list for kids and a "bannedsites" list (obtained from the browsing habits of porn addicted employees of my clients who couldn't stop on their own during working hours) for adults. I use pine to screen my personal email (no images) and lynx to screen websites before adding to safesites.
Some of the students in a beginning programming class I teach were unable to browse web pages on group theory, klein bottles, and other topics which I really doubt acted as porn for anyone alive now or throughout history. They were blocked by a porn filter installed by the parents. I guess those 3D projections of 4 dimensional surfaces do have a rather sensuous look to them. Third party filters are very frustrating. I sympathize with those advocate them in their desire to fight porn. However, they simply do not understand computer technology (and those I know personally invariably run Windows on their PC).
At first I was confused, because the article seemed to be talking about internet access. But then I noticed that Bell South was one of the sponsors. So, welcome to the future of the internet as envisioned by Bell South.