Pennies are so annoying here in the U.S. now that I refuse them when they're offered as change (or toss them into the penny jar or charity jar on the counter when they have one).
Sometimes I forget though, and I usually just throw them in the trash. I just hope my Grandma never finds out. She would have a heart attack on that one. I could never get it through to her that they would cost me more in time to deal with than the pennies themselves are even worth.
I'm pretty sure no one thinks the idea of pumping shit-tons of excess carbon dioxide into the atmosphere is a GOOD thing. It's not a question of whether we should do something about this, it's a question of how to most rationally balance our economic interests and our long-term environmental interests. The problem is that reason has become a scarce commodity in both sides of the debate at this point. The increasingly shrill alarmism of the left and the head-in-the-sand denialism of the right are making for the kind of emotionally-charged debate that's making it damn near impossible to chart a clear path that's going to keep the planet from warming too much while also not creating an economic disaster worse than the environmental one.
I'm all for these sorts of projects, just keep in mind that the idealistic do-gooder mentality of "They're all going to use this wonderful internet for education and uplift" needs to be tempered with a realization that these are real people you're dealing with, not characters in some fairy tale narrative you've created in your own head. Understand that some of them are going to use it for education. But some are also going to use it to scam, surf porn, download shitty Nicolas Cage movies, and play games. So don't throw a hissy-fit and abandon the project the second you find out that you're dealing with real human beings who aren't always going to use your wonderful gift to do what YOU want them to.
Remember that these are real autonomous human beings just like you, and don't idealize them as some abstraction.
I'm starting to think that Republicans are actively trying to drive us moderate Republicans away.
Wow, you're just now catching on to that? They've been doing that since the 80's. The reasoning behind it is to increase party discipline and put the Dems on the defensive by playing a strong offense. I would say that's crazy, but I have to give it to them, the strategy has worked VERY well. By tightening up the party and eliminating moderate voices, the Republican party has become VERY disciplined--to the point when they can control Congress even when they're in the minority. Compare that to the Democrats, who are so fractured and undisciplined that they can't pass a law even when they have a clear majority. What's more, by driving their party farther to the right (so much so that Reagan probably couldn't even run in the modern Republican Party), they have driven the Dems to the right too. The modern Democratic party is further right than the Nixon Administration at this point.
Crazy a strategy as it looks on paper, you can't argue with success.
To do that kind of reform you need social, political and economic stability and a strong, relatively uncorrupt, government. Good luck finding that in some of the poorest countries in Africa.
When is the last time Congress passed *any* law that benefited consumers at the expense of corporations? If a near national economic collapse can't even get Congress to reinstate Glass–Steagall, you think ANYTHING is going to get through without the coporatocracy's seal of approval?
Publishers have already managed to kill the used market for PC games with stuff like this. Console games are next. A lot of new console games are already requiring online activation for certain features (like Mass Effect 3). It's only a matter of time before they require online activation to work at all, and then ultimately require an online verification check each time the game is started.
A requiem for the days when consumers actually owned videogames, and could still play them just fine, even ten years later, using just the original game discs/cartridges.
Yep. And every one of them ends up on my team at some point.
You could learn to do apps just learning at night
on
Parlez-vous Python?
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· Score: 3, Insightful
You can indeed learn to design mobile apps in just a few hours a night. It will just take a lot of nights. I imagine even a greenhorn could be designing decent apps within a year, just teaching themselves at night. It's really all about self-discipline and motivation there.
"These satellites, which we will use for asteroid deflection only, not for covert assassinations or as a dreadful weapon of war, will be a vital part in ensuring the future of human civilization" said a Pentagon spokesperson. "We look forward for a chance to put these satellites, which will not be a part of any secret missile shield program nor used to destroy terrorist hideouts, into orbit to protect our planet."
At least we no longer have to face the disturbing prospect of Steve Jobs taking over as Sony CEO. Surely that would have produced a future that would make Mad Max seem charming by comparison.
The American English equivalent of "made redundant" is "laid off." As in,"The company closed one of its plants and laid off 1,000 workers" or "I got laid off from work." This is different, of course, from being fired.
And now I can say I finally got to use some of the knowledge I gained from watching the BBC version of "The Office." It also taught me what "wind up" meant, and that you can apparently be denied an office promotion if you fail a physical exam in the UK (wtf is with THAT?).
For those not familiar with this company, who may ask "But won't they lose money if they take down the games?", let me give you some background. This is a company that would rather pull EVERY game on PSN than to lose even the slightest bit of control over their locked-down system. This is a company that will infect their CD's with viruses to prevent copying, a company that repeatedly kills its own platforms with its insistence on proprietaryformats, a company that doesn't care if your old blu-ray player plays the latest blu-rays or not--a company that will remove any feature, cripple any platform, pull any game, destroy any product line--all to maintain control. If Sony were faced tomorrow morning with the choice between risking people copying even one of their movies and bulldozing the entire PSP line into a landfill, they would have that landfill full before the sun went down.
This is what happens when you allow a media producer to mix in the same company with the producer of the hardware that plays said media.
It's likely to stabilize it and make it easier to preserve.Trying to preserve it in parts is a lot easier than trying to preserve it as a whole (especially with that complex a system with that many different kinds of materials).
Slashdot Mirror
Pennies are so annoying here in the U.S. now that I refuse them when they're offered as change (or toss them into the penny jar or charity jar on the counter when they have one).
Sometimes I forget though, and I usually just throw them in the trash. I just hope my Grandma never finds out. She would have a heart attack on that one. I could never get it through to her that they would cost me more in time to deal with than the pennies themselves are even worth.
You can bet there is language in the bill to make damn sure it could never apply to the U.S. government.
Got an example?
The post directly above yours where the poster asserts that global warming will cause the extinction of all humanity pops to mind.
If you're not a socially-popular overachieving jock these days, they want to call it a disorder.
I'm pretty sure no one thinks the idea of pumping shit-tons of excess carbon dioxide into the atmosphere is a GOOD thing. It's not a question of whether we should do something about this, it's a question of how to most rationally balance our economic interests and our long-term environmental interests. The problem is that reason has become a scarce commodity in both sides of the debate at this point. The increasingly shrill alarmism of the left and the head-in-the-sand denialism of the right are making for the kind of emotionally-charged debate that's making it damn near impossible to chart a clear path that's going to keep the planet from warming too much while also not creating an economic disaster worse than the environmental one.
I'm all for these sorts of projects, just keep in mind that the idealistic do-gooder mentality of "They're all going to use this wonderful internet for education and uplift" needs to be tempered with a realization that these are real people you're dealing with, not characters in some fairy tale narrative you've created in your own head. Understand that some of them are going to use it for education. But some are also going to use it to scam, surf porn, download shitty Nicolas Cage movies, and play games. So don't throw a hissy-fit and abandon the project the second you find out that you're dealing with real human beings who aren't always going to use your wonderful gift to do what YOU want them to.
Remember that these are real autonomous human beings just like you, and don't idealize them as some abstraction.
There's a difference between social conservatives and fiscal conservatives.
It doesn't really matter, because you're not going to last very long in today's Republican Party unless you're both.
Are you kidding, that was PERFECT for them! They got to duck out on the worst recession in decades and blame it all on the Dems.
I'm starting to think that Republicans are actively trying to drive us moderate Republicans away.
Wow, you're just now catching on to that? They've been doing that since the 80's. The reasoning behind it is to increase party discipline and put the Dems on the defensive by playing a strong offense. I would say that's crazy, but I have to give it to them, the strategy has worked VERY well. By tightening up the party and eliminating moderate voices, the Republican party has become VERY disciplined--to the point when they can control Congress even when they're in the minority. Compare that to the Democrats, who are so fractured and undisciplined that they can't pass a law even when they have a clear majority. What's more, by driving their party farther to the right (so much so that Reagan probably couldn't even run in the modern Republican Party), they have driven the Dems to the right too. The modern Democratic party is further right than the Nixon Administration at this point.
Crazy a strategy as it looks on paper, you can't argue with success.
To do that kind of reform you need social, political and economic stability and a strong, relatively uncorrupt, government. Good luck finding that in some of the poorest countries in Africa.
When is the last time Congress passed *any* law that benefited consumers at the expense of corporations? If a near national economic collapse can't even get Congress to reinstate Glass–Steagall, you think ANYTHING is going to get through without the coporatocracy's seal of approval?
Publishers have already managed to kill the used market for PC games with stuff like this. Console games are next. A lot of new console games are already requiring online activation for certain features (like Mass Effect 3). It's only a matter of time before they require online activation to work at all, and then ultimately require an online verification check each time the game is started.
A requiem for the days when consumers actually owned videogames, and could still play them just fine, even ten years later, using just the original game discs/cartridges.
A lot of people who program suck at it
Yep. And every one of them ends up on my team at some point.
You can indeed learn to design mobile apps in just a few hours a night. It will just take a lot of nights. I imagine even a greenhorn could be designing decent apps within a year, just teaching themselves at night. It's really all about self-discipline and motivation there.
Wait, what am I saying? I'm sure Google would never, ever share this kind of info with any government agency, especially without a warrant.
"These satellites, which we will use for asteroid deflection only, not for covert assassinations or as a dreadful weapon of war, will be a vital part in ensuring the future of human civilization" said a Pentagon spokesperson. "We look forward for a chance to put these satellites, which will not be a part of any secret missile shield program nor used to destroy terrorist hideouts, into orbit to protect our planet."
At least we no longer have to face the disturbing prospect of Steve Jobs taking over as Sony CEO. Surely that would have produced a future that would make Mad Max seem charming by comparison.
You're the guy at the office who goes apeshit whenever someone plays Alanis Morissette's "Ironic" aren't you?
The American English equivalent of "made redundant" is "laid off." As in,"The company closed one of its plants and laid off 1,000 workers" or "I got laid off from work." This is different, of course, from being fired.
And now I can say I finally got to use some of the knowledge I gained from watching the BBC version of "The Office." It also taught me what "wind up" meant, and that you can apparently be denied an office promotion if you fail a physical exam in the UK (wtf is with THAT?).
For those not familiar with this company, who may ask "But won't they lose money if they take down the games?", let me give you some background. This is a company that would rather pull EVERY game on PSN than to lose even the slightest bit of control over their locked-down system. This is a company that will infect their CD's with viruses to prevent copying, a company that repeatedly kills its own platforms with its insistence on proprietary formats, a company that doesn't care if your old blu-ray player plays the latest blu-rays or not--a company that will remove any feature, cripple any platform, pull any game, destroy any product line--all to maintain control. If Sony were faced tomorrow morning with the choice between risking people copying even one of their movies and bulldozing the entire PSP line into a landfill, they would have that landfill full before the sun went down.
This is what happens when you allow a media producer to mix in the same company with the producer of the hardware that plays said media.
Presumably to make it just hard enough to hack to give you time to deactivate it before your local crackhead's fingers get tired.
When respected authorities begin to compare you directly to the commercial alternative, even if you're still found somewhat wanting, you have arrived.
A good leader never lets reality interfere with politics.
Well, look at it this way. It's probably a lot cheaper to preserve it that to launch it into space twice a year at a cost of $600 million a pop.
It's likely to stabilize it and make it easier to preserve.Trying to preserve it in parts is a lot easier than trying to preserve it as a whole (especially with that complex a system with that many different kinds of materials).