Oohh...you know, what, I didn't even think about the PETA factor.
Any guesses as to how long it will be before Ingrid Newkirk gets her panties in a wad over this? I mean, after all, considering her love of lobster tails...
Technically yes - it's against US law for the US to spy on it's own citizens without due cause.
That being said, the US doesn't pay much attention to what's actually "legal" anymore, opting for "It's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission"...the same model that's gotten us so far in the last 30 years.
How's about the kind of freedom that our forefathers were aiming for? Hell, I'd be satisfied to see the government moving in that direction AT ALL, but unfortunately they're facing the wrong way.
Of course not...have you not heard the cries of, "But it takes too long!" or "I'm working on a project and I don't want to lose my place" when you suggest that they reboot to resolve a common hiccup?
I've heard this argument before. What content is actually "harmful"? At what point does the nudity stop being National Geographic and start becoming Penthouse? It's the age old question of "what is pornography?" and it's response: "Whatever turns the judge on". You can't define what's "harmful", because it's different for every damned kid. Some kids know and understand sarcasm and some don't (gee, just like adults!) Some kids don't like abusive humor and other kids thrive on it (again, just like adults! It's amazing how this is lining up...) Some kids take external factors personally, while some kids don't (holy shit, three in a row!). PEOPLE are all different, and you can't ever legislate enough to account for the fringes of the bell curve...not without completely eliminating the fundamental human component.
That being said I have a few comments for some of the folks that have replied recently: If you work in a shop that doesn't require you (officially or otherwise) to be available after hours, you're probably not the target for the discussion. My job, for example, has no "official" after hours policy that I have to deal with, which would imply that when Friday evening rolls around I can turn my phone off until Monday, right? Wrong. If a user in Japan can't connect to their sales meeting because of a failure, it's not the user that gets pinned to the wall the next week - it's the tech. If my CEO tries to do some work on the weekend and her fucking mouse isn't working I can expect to get a call - and I can expect to get chewed out for it the following Monday if I don't respond "quick" enough. This is the reality of the work environment that we spend our days in. Nobody gives a shit how much "free time" you have anymore...if you expect a paycheck, you had best make EVERYONE happy, or else you'll be collecting unemployment.
But yeah, the phantom buzzes is what kills me the most. I tend to not get a lot of emails or requests on the weekends, but when I'm walking and I feel my phone buzz I have to check it. If I *think* I feel my phone buzz, for whatever reason, I have to check or risk the wrath of the mucky-mucks that work whatever fucking hours they want (3 hour lunches, etc). You know, I've gone into panics before when I felt a buzz and realized that I didn't even have my phone on me...but then it's stress from the side of, "Oh shit! I haven't had my phone on me! I hope I still have a job!"
It would sure be nice if bosses and owners were reasonable about the expectations of their employees. The reality is that they don't know what your job is and they expect you to "prove" that you need more help before they'll hire any...unfortunately, because they don't understand (and are unwilling to learn) the work, they're still baffled when you try to explain to them that 70 users and 40+ servers are simply too much for one person to manage. Their reasoning? Well, not all 70 of those users are going to have a problem at the same time...
^ This. A billion times this. The ONLY vote that we have anymore is with our dollar.
Politically we have no power. Legally we have no power. Socially we have very little power. The only power we have comes from the money we earn and spend. Withhold it from people (companies are people, right?) that you don't think deserve it.
I was interested in participating in the political process a couple of years ago...volunteered to help out my local Libertarian group, where I learned a few different things.
Politicians at lower levels are just as deceptive and retarded as the ones on the higher levels, they're just not polished enough to get away with it. I had a few hours to talk to the candidate that I was working for. Over the course of those hours, I asked multiple questions about his stance on a variety of topics. Every answer - and I mean even "no brainer" answers for someone that's running under the Lib ticket - was designed to let me hear what I wanted to hear. Q: "What's your stance on education?" A: "Well, how do *you* feel about education?" or when pressed, "I disagree with the incumbent and will do things differently." No plans, and no actual roadmap...not even a stance that he was willing to pitch to me. It is more important for the politicians to get elected, than it is for them to do what they're being elected to do.
After an hour of hanging out with these people I needed a shower. After two hours I was ready to leave the politics to the people that actually wanted to be dirty filthy rotten lying pieces of crap.
So yes, there are ways for people to get involved, and there are methods in place to allow us to fix some of these problems. I'd like to equate it to having to climb down into the sewers to manually unblock a man-sized pipe with your bare hands.
As well as a magical process by which new data was miraculously transferred across billions of miles of space in just shy of an instant. Star fleet just added this info and we're 2,000,000 light years away? No problem...it'll be available by tomorrow.
I support the right to bear arms, as well as the right for a woman to have an abortion. I support the Death Penalty (in some circumstances), and I also support assistance for those that need it. I support gay marriage, and I also support the Free Market. I support the freedom OF religion, as well as the freedom FROM religion.
Strange. I don't seem to fit into either category.
People are different - politicians or no, you're going to have liars and hypocrites along with those that actually try to make the world a better place. The problem is that the actual JOB of being a politician puts you in a position to be surrounded by a toxic environment the from before you actually get elected. That kind of toxicity is tough to wash off, and the deeper you get immersed into the political culture, the harder it is to reverse course. The path of least resistance involves letting other people make decisions for you, and those people have no scruples.
It doesn't help that the people doing the hiring don't seem to understand the difference between "AAS, no experience" and "20 years of doing exactly what you're looking for". I'm frankly sick to death of these places wanting (and expecting) a skilled technician to be available 24/7/365 for a pittance. Why in the fuck can't we unionize again?
Instead we make them show up every day, for their 7-8 hours and sit in chairs and do nothing. They get paid for this. Some day they will quit and move on to other jobs and they just wont be replaced.
Seriously? I would have to DIE to leave a job like. Literally having 8 hours of "downtime" to work on my own projects? That's a damned dream job right there. Good luck with that.
The problem isn't in charging the phone - that can be done without iTunes installed at all. The issue is for downloading music (to my knowledge - I don't use iTunes with my phone, only an old iPod) - any interactions that you want to make happen from your computer to your phone have to be blessed by iTunes. As another poster mentioned, iTunes has at least 3 different applications that run at the same time - killing any one of them by itself it will restart immediately. Kill all 3 and they'll restart after about a minute. While it's "easy" enough for techies to go in and disable the service, my take on the question is: Why should that even be necessary? Why isn't there a clearly labeled toggle somewhere in the software? And the answer is that - at least for iDevices - there are no other alternatives (as a different poster mentioned, there are paid for apps that say they can accomplish this - I don't know anything about them). I can't come up with a Linux equivalent...sorry. (BTW, I'm not the AC from above, I think it's a good question - it's not unreasonable to have control over your own devices, however Apple has given us their opinion about that in no uncertain terms).
If it has limits, it is not Freedom. I agree with the latter, and I agree that the former is the way that things are done in the majority of the world, but I don't agree that it's right.
One of the survey's interesting points is that IT decision makers aren't willing to contradict the vendor.
Then they're shitty IT guys.
Seriously - if some salesman is going to tell you how and what to do with your job, if they can't present you with a convincing argument you tell them to STFU and move the fuck on. Of course, some industries really do need to be on the bleeding edge, but the vast majority do not. The VENDOR should not be making decisions about your purchases...that's like "Buyer Beware 101" right there.
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Oohh...you know, what, I didn't even think about the PETA factor.
Any guesses as to how long it will be before Ingrid Newkirk gets her panties in a wad over this? I mean, after all, considering her love of lobster tails...
Technically yes - it's against US law for the US to spy on it's own citizens without due cause.
That being said, the US doesn't pay much attention to what's actually "legal" anymore, opting for "It's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission"...the same model that's gotten us so far in the last 30 years.
That's what he'd like you to think :p
That is one of the best quotes I've ever read - thank you!
How's about the kind of freedom that our forefathers were aiming for? Hell, I'd be satisfied to see the government moving in that direction AT ALL, but unfortunately they're facing the wrong way.
Of course not...have you not heard the cries of, "But it takes too long!" or "I'm working on a project and I don't want to lose my place" when you suggest that they reboot to resolve a common hiccup?
I've heard this argument before. What content is actually "harmful"? At what point does the nudity stop being National Geographic and start becoming Penthouse? It's the age old question of "what is pornography?" and it's response: "Whatever turns the judge on". You can't define what's "harmful", because it's different for every damned kid. Some kids know and understand sarcasm and some don't (gee, just like adults!) Some kids don't like abusive humor and other kids thrive on it (again, just like adults! It's amazing how this is lining up...) Some kids take external factors personally, while some kids don't (holy shit, three in a row!). PEOPLE are all different, and you can't ever legislate enough to account for the fringes of the bell curve...not without completely eliminating the fundamental human component.
It's the phantom buzzes that kill my time.
That being said I have a few comments for some of the folks that have replied recently: If you work in a shop that doesn't require you (officially or otherwise) to be available after hours, you're probably not the target for the discussion. My job, for example, has no "official" after hours policy that I have to deal with, which would imply that when Friday evening rolls around I can turn my phone off until Monday, right? Wrong. If a user in Japan can't connect to their sales meeting because of a failure, it's not the user that gets pinned to the wall the next week - it's the tech. If my CEO tries to do some work on the weekend and her fucking mouse isn't working I can expect to get a call - and I can expect to get chewed out for it the following Monday if I don't respond "quick" enough. This is the reality of the work environment that we spend our days in. Nobody gives a shit how much "free time" you have anymore...if you expect a paycheck, you had best make EVERYONE happy, or else you'll be collecting unemployment.
But yeah, the phantom buzzes is what kills me the most. I tend to not get a lot of emails or requests on the weekends, but when I'm walking and I feel my phone buzz I have to check it. If I *think* I feel my phone buzz, for whatever reason, I have to check or risk the wrath of the mucky-mucks that work whatever fucking hours they want (3 hour lunches, etc). You know, I've gone into panics before when I felt a buzz and realized that I didn't even have my phone on me...but then it's stress from the side of, "Oh shit! I haven't had my phone on me! I hope I still have a job!"
It would sure be nice if bosses and owners were reasonable about the expectations of their employees. The reality is that they don't know what your job is and they expect you to "prove" that you need more help before they'll hire any...unfortunately, because they don't understand (and are unwilling to learn) the work, they're still baffled when you try to explain to them that 70 users and 40+ servers are simply too much for one person to manage. Their reasoning? Well, not all 70 of those users are going to have a problem at the same time...
Well that, and I seem to remember hearing from a very good source that Ingrid Newkirk masturbates using lobster tails.
IIRC he asked them to define everything.
truck through history rather meant: “to fail, run short, deceive, disappoint”, “to fail, miss, lack”, “to tear, wrap, reap”, “to flay, split”, “to cheat, deceive, swindle”, “to extort”, “to flatter, fawn”. ;)
Quite fitting when you consider the current quality and cost of American made trucks now days...
^ This. A billion times this. The ONLY vote that we have anymore is with our dollar.
Politically we have no power. Legally we have no power. Socially we have very little power. The only power we have comes from the money we earn and spend. Withhold it from people (companies are people, right?) that you don't think deserve it.
Oh, but what an investment it is!
I was interested in participating in the political process a couple of years ago...volunteered to help out my local Libertarian group, where I learned a few different things.
Politicians at lower levels are just as deceptive and retarded as the ones on the higher levels, they're just not polished enough to get away with it. I had a few hours to talk to the candidate that I was working for. Over the course of those hours, I asked multiple questions about his stance on a variety of topics. Every answer - and I mean even "no brainer" answers for someone that's running under the Lib ticket - was designed to let me hear what I wanted to hear. Q: "What's your stance on education?" A: "Well, how do *you* feel about education?" or when pressed, "I disagree with the incumbent and will do things differently." No plans, and no actual roadmap...not even a stance that he was willing to pitch to me. It is more important for the politicians to get elected, than it is for them to do what they're being elected to do.
After an hour of hanging out with these people I needed a shower. After two hours I was ready to leave the politics to the people that actually wanted to be dirty filthy rotten lying pieces of crap.
So yes, there are ways for people to get involved, and there are methods in place to allow us to fix some of these problems. I'd like to equate it to having to climb down into the sewers to manually unblock a man-sized pipe with your bare hands.
Or maybe the idea of labeling someone according to a very broad group of beliefs is flawed.
Nah...can't possibly be - we've been doing it for thousands of years and it seems to be working out really well for us.
As well as a magical process by which new data was miraculously transferred across billions of miles of space in just shy of an instant. Star fleet just added this info and we're 2,000,000 light years away? No problem...it'll be available by tomorrow.
I support the right to bear arms, as well as the right for a woman to have an abortion. I support the Death Penalty (in some circumstances), and I also support assistance for those that need it. I support gay marriage, and I also support the Free Market. I support the freedom OF religion, as well as the freedom FROM religion.
Strange. I don't seem to fit into either category.
People are different - politicians or no, you're going to have liars and hypocrites along with those that actually try to make the world a better place. The problem is that the actual JOB of being a politician puts you in a position to be surrounded by a toxic environment the from before you actually get elected. That kind of toxicity is tough to wash off, and the deeper you get immersed into the political culture, the harder it is to reverse course. The path of least resistance involves letting other people make decisions for you, and those people have no scruples.
Or shoes.
And this, too, teaches us something about the brain.
It doesn't help that the people doing the hiring don't seem to understand the difference between "AAS, no experience" and "20 years of doing exactly what you're looking for". I'm frankly sick to death of these places wanting (and expecting) a skilled technician to be available 24/7/365 for a pittance. Why in the fuck can't we unionize again?
Instead we make them show up every day, for their 7-8 hours and sit in chairs and do nothing. They get paid for this. Some day they will quit and move on to other jobs and they just wont be replaced.
Seriously? I would have to DIE to leave a job like. Literally having 8 hours of "downtime" to work on my own projects? That's a damned dream job right there. Good luck with that.
Or Windows.
Sorry - I had meant to include a bit that I skipped :p
While it's "easy" enough for techies to go in and disable the service these are supposed to be consumer devices. My take on the question is:
Bolded text are the alterations
The problem isn't in charging the phone - that can be done without iTunes installed at all. The issue is for downloading music (to my knowledge - I don't use iTunes with my phone, only an old iPod) - any interactions that you want to make happen from your computer to your phone have to be blessed by iTunes. As another poster mentioned, iTunes has at least 3 different applications that run at the same time - killing any one of them by itself it will restart immediately. Kill all 3 and they'll restart after about a minute. While it's "easy" enough for techies to go in and disable the service, my take on the question is: Why should that even be necessary? Why isn't there a clearly labeled toggle somewhere in the software? And the answer is that - at least for iDevices - there are no other alternatives (as a different poster mentioned, there are paid for apps that say they can accomplish this - I don't know anything about them). I can't come up with a Linux equivalent...sorry. (BTW, I'm not the AC from above, I think it's a good question - it's not unreasonable to have control over your own devices, however Apple has given us their opinion about that in no uncertain terms).
If it has limits, it is not Freedom. I agree with the latter, and I agree that the former is the way that things are done in the majority of the world, but I don't agree that it's right.
One of the survey's interesting points is that IT decision makers aren't willing to contradict the vendor.
Then they're shitty IT guys.
Seriously - if some salesman is going to tell you how and what to do with your job, if they can't present you with a convincing argument you tell them to STFU and move the fuck on. Of course, some industries really do need to be on the bleeding edge, but the vast majority do not. The VENDOR should not be making decisions about your purchases...that's like "Buyer Beware 101" right there.