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  1. Re:Evil on Google Patents Shipping-Container Data Centers · · Score: 1

    we had a NCR 500 in a semi trailer that read punch cards and wrote to magnetically striped ledger cards

  2. Re:Oops! on Google Patents Shipping-Container Data Centers · · Score: 3, Insightful

    When I was stationed in Germany back in 1974-1977 our supply section had a shipping contain, actually a complete semi trailer and inside it was an NCR-500 computer that read and printed to magnetically striped ledger cards for storage and read punch cards for input and of course that trailer was air conditioned, so much for most of the claims.

    a little later we got a HAWK missile platoon command post which was an air-transportable shipping container, once again mounted on a trailer, inside the wire-wrapped cpu of the RCA computer used ferrite cores for memory. I think Google patent really would only have defensive value, there is way too much prior art for them to use it offensively.

  3. Re:Which IPs in particular? on Ballmer Suggests Linux Distros Will Soon Have to Pay Up · · Score: 1

    I assume it depends on the law, if the law says something like "for anyone in the United States" then where you are matters, if its "for anyone period" then it probably doesn't. One thing I wouldn't even guess about is where being charged in a foreign jurisdiction counts toward double jeopardy.

  4. Re:that does seem possible according to the photos on Man Claims iPod Set His Pants Aflame · · Score: 1

    I was lucky enough that the local hospital thought the burns were worse than they were and transfered me to the regional burn center at Detroit Receiving. I've heard some real horror stories about the local hospitals and burns.

    The theory behind the compression garment is it helps keep the edema, swelling, down so the tissues get better blood flow and it keep the scar tissue flat. I only have a little bit of the spider-web raised scar on the inside of the thumb web on the palm side, well the half that's still there LOL. If nothing else it keeps you from getting a sun burn on top of a thermal burn.

  5. Re:Copyright registration on How Not to Write a Cease-and-Desist Letter · · Score: 1

    oh I don't know lawyers are pretty grandiose, and would probably argue that their letters qualify as literary works

  6. Re:HTML/Javascript is broken for this article. on Is the Internet Bad For Professional Writers · · Score: 1

    Did you follow the ad on the site for Luxury Sex Toys? Now there is some market savy, $125.00 for a vibrator, and I bet they sell like hot cakes; damn we're in the wrong business.

  7. Re:Translation on Is the Internet Bad For Professional Writers · · Score: 1

    There is no end to the possibilities design something, hire some engineers in India to refine parts of the design, hire a plant in China to make some of the sub-assemblies, others in Indonesia, do the finals in the Phillipeans and package in Mexico; what's the problem the left hand never has to know what the right hand is doing, call it modular manufacturing in a global economy

  8. Re:that does seem possible according to the photos on Man Claims iPod Set His Pants Aflame · · Score: 1

    Other than stupidity, it was rosin/pine tar that had over heated and caught fire, I had put it out successfully three times and was trying to move it away from other flammables when it must have reignited, there are a couple gaps in my memory like a badly edited movie.

  9. Re:Copyright registration on How Not to Write a Cease-and-Desist Letter · · Score: 1

    The courts are less likely to consider an infringement without copyright registration at the time of infringement to be willful and the statutory damages are $750.00 - $30,000.00 if the infringement is willful the damages are $200.00 thru $150,000.00

  10. Re:Copyright registration on How Not to Write a Cease-and-Desist Letter · · Score: 2, Interesting

    the way I understand it is it not being copyrighted that is being considered here but the fact that an unregistered copyrighted material can only get actual damages. A lawyer's boilerplate letter is worth about $50.00 at most, and $0.00 at most likely. The argument would be along the liens that because the letter was specific between the two parties, it's worthless to anyone else so the actual damages would be zero. Now if the letter is registered with the copyright office there could be an award of statutory damages of between $750.00 - $30,000.00.

  11. Re:that does seem possible according to the photos on Man Claims iPod Set His Pants Aflame · · Score: 1

    Your lucky, polyester melts into a hot sticky tarry mess that holds the heat in when it melts. What I was burned with was basically melted rosin, sports rosin, which I use because its a sticky tarry stuff for sticking dental models together. Mostly I feel lucky, I got off pretty easy compared to what it easily could have been, I've very slight scarring now, the hand looks about like 70 or 80 year old skin, I've lost some pigment near the palm and a lot of elastisicty; range of motion is back up to 99% so I'm good.

  12. Re:They did it for sales... on Man Claims iPod Set His Pants Aflame · · Score: 1

    That puts poisoned torrents into a whole new context

  13. Re:Maybe... on Man Claims iPod Set His Pants Aflame · · Score: 1

    Nope "Mission Impossible"

  14. Re:hmmm on Man Claims iPod Set His Pants Aflame · · Score: 1

    How about a movie sound track?
    "If captured the government will disavow any knowledge of your mission, this IPOD will self destruct in fifteen seconds, Good Luck"

  15. Re:that does seem possible according to the photos on Man Claims iPod Set His Pants Aflame · · Score: 5, Informative

    I was on fire for at least 15 seconds, maybe more it's hard to tell with traumatic amnesia. I don't remember catching on fire, but I remember smothering foot high flames with my shirt sleeve for 15 seconds, then I remember pulling my hand out of a bucket of water that was across the room, so I can speak with some authority when I say if what he said happened, happened he'd look more like I did. I'm calling bullshit on that one, a slight scald from a overly warm battery sure, foot high flames stopped by "glossy" paper yeah right, sounds more like a bullshit entry to the Liability Lottery to me.

  16. Re:What a crock on Microsoft's Ballmer: Google Reads Your Mail · · Score: 1

    never assume anything involving "Natalie Portman and Hot Grits", "Robotic overlords", "Old people in Korea" or anything in "Soviet Russia" is true, but if you want good hot grits, you gotta going down-south to get them where hairy female wrestlers waiting tables as a day job isn't that far fetched.

    Seriously Google isn't that good yet but it's scary how close to being that good they've become, I wouldn't be surprised if the first real artificial intelligence doesn't carry the Google brand.

  17. Re:What a crock on Microsoft's Ballmer: Google Reads Your Mail · · Score: 3, Insightful

    There does seem to be a philosophical disconnect there; the real question is can a machine read an email or listen to a phone call? Obviously the answer is no listening and reading are activities that only intelligent sentient beings can do. As long as google's algorithms sever out adds without human intervention or revelation to a third party, it's not an invasion of privacy, as long as no human listens to or reads the transcripts of the NSA wiretap no unreasonable search has happened.

  18. Re:What a crock on Microsoft's Ballmer: Google Reads Your Mail · · Score: 1

    It's worse than that, as an experiment a friend and I took a picture of Natallie Portman, and change the jpg comments to "hairy amazon sumo wrestler", changed the name of the picture to hairy_amazon_sumo_wrestler.jpg and attached it to an Email to my gmail account. When it got there, Google servered up ads for resturants serving Hot Grits, and Quaker Oats grits, so obviously they are not just reading the email but looking at the pictures too!

  19. Re:Too bad they weren't engineers on X-Wing Rocket Launches, Disintegrates · · Score: 1
    The vehicle in question was made from Baltic Birch plywood, a commonly available aviation grade plywood still

    Balsa wood is used to make very light, stiff structures in model bridge tests and for the construction of light wooden aeroplanes, most famously the World War II de Havilland Mosquito. It also is used in the floorpan of the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 sandwiched between two sheets of carbon fibre. Balsa

    It would seem that if a styrofoam wrapped with fiberglass is strong enough for a jet, and balsa aircraft was strong enough to be used in a jet that balsa wrapped in fiberglass would be way strong enough.
  20. Re:Too bad they weren't engineers on X-Wing Rocket Launches, Disintegrates · · Score: 1

    You know that people do build 3/4 scale models of P51 mustangs, use small block chevy engines for power and fly in them and some these planes are made of wood. The Hughes H4 the largest flying boat ever built, and has the largest wingspan and height of any aircraft in history spruce goose was made of wood. You need to think of wood as a composite material of complex sacaarides polymer fibers bound by ligin resins like glass or carbon fibers bound by polyester or epoxy resins. Don't disrespect wood in the hands of a master it's a capable engineering material, just stay within its boundries, which are much broader than you imagine.

  21. Re:Too bad they weren't engineers on X-Wing Rocket Launches, Disintegrates · · Score: 1

    I guess that means you've never seen a commercially manufactured missile designed by competenat professoinal engineers have a booster failure and have it try to run along the ground and up your ass on the sustainer motor with a warhead full of high-explosives.

    Sometimes shit just happens.

  22. Re:I'm not surprised on X-Wing Rocket Launches, Disintegrates · · Score: 1

    Makes no difference the particle deflectors protect the ship from both micro-particles and gas atoms; that's why these don't burn-up on reentry from compression heating!

  23. Re:Yoda says.... on X-Wing Rocket Launches, Disintegrates · · Score: 1

    the strength doesn't scale well, a painted cardboard that's a cm or two in diameter 6 inches long is a pretty strong airframe, a piece of birch plywood 3/8 th thich, rolled into a tube 12 inches in diameter and 21 feet long is a pretty weak airframe. Still if they hadn't made the elevons moveable they'd had a good chance of a successful flight, the spreaders and longerons looked appropriate, with a plywood skin the strength would have came up a bunch.

  24. Re:Yoda says.... on X-Wing Rocket Launches, Disintegrates · · Score: 1

    Three man-rated parachutes at that

  25. Re:Practical reason on Verdict Reached In RIAA Trial · · Score: 1

    Because the file is not destroyed as it is sent, the server is make an additional copy so the servers owner is make an addition copy for distribution each time the file is downloaded. That is why the Rafiaa goes after the distributer, they are always liable. If I download a file lets say of the Doors song the I have on a scratched up vinyl, I could argue that its legal for me to have the file as a backup for the vinyl copy and a jury might buy it.