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User: erp_consultant

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  1. Re:Observations.... on Former HP CEO Carly Fiorina Announces Bid For White House · · Score: 1

    "You're not trying to suggest that there's any such thing as a US politician that isn't corrupt are you?' - Not in the least. I think that there are some honorable politicians but once they get to the top of the heap all the morals are left behind. Having said that, it doesn't excuse Clinton's behavior by saying that everyone else is corrupt. That's just a cop out.

  2. Re:Observations.... on Former HP CEO Carly Fiorina Announces Bid For White House · · Score: 1

    Yes but this time Hillary really stepped in it. Whether you are a Republican or a Democrat it is impossible to overlook what she has done in recent times. The whole email server fiasco. The slippery dealings with the Clinton Foundation. The worst case scenario is that she has broken several laws. The best case scenario is that it looks really, really suspect.

    This is not just some right wing conspiracy. She broke rules at the State department by storing official government correspondence on a private email server in her home. Then, if that wasn't enough, she destroys all the evidence.

    The Clinton Foundation stinks to high heaven. Millions of dollars flowing in from foreign governments while Bill gets huge speaking fees followed by contracts being approved. All within the space of a few days. Not just once but many times over the course of her tenure at the State department. The Clinton Foundation now has to refile tax returns going back 5 years because of misstated donation amounts and donations not recorded at all. Only 10% of the money the foundation collects actually goes to the charitable causes they support. 10%. Where did the other 90% of the money go? If you are a doner how would you feel knowing that only 10% of the money you donated actually reached the source? This completely invalidates the claim that the donations were simply humanitarian in nature. Obviously the money was to curry favor. The doners could care less what happened to the money as long as they get their quid pro quo.

  3. Observations.... on Former HP CEO Carly Fiorina Announces Bid For White House · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Carly has a specific role for the Republicans. Her job is to go after Hillary Clinton. If any of the male Republican candidates went after Hillary they would be accused of being "sexist" or some other form of "ist". Carly can get away with it because she is a woman. Sadly this is the world we live in.

    Fiorina is the official attack dog for the Presidential campaign. It matters not whether she makes it through the Republican primary. If she succeeds in weakening Clinton then her job is done.

    If Fiorina plays this right she might end up as the Vice Presidential nominee paired with whomever ends up winning the Republican nomination. These days, the VP ends up playing attack dog in the Presidential campaigns. The President is seen as being above the fray while his surrogates dish out all the dirty politics. Nobody will care about her failed HP ventures as a VP nominee. They will only see that she is a woman on the ticket and the Republicans will get points for that.

  4. Agile? Really? on IBM CIO Thinks Agile Development Might Save Company · · Score: 1

    I was under the impression that much of what IBM does involves very large projects and often with packaged software such as SAP or even some of their own software.

    Typically in packaged software like SAP or Oracle they deliver functionality that you can build upon to suit the customers requirements. But it has to be built upon using frameworks that they provide and - more importantly - it has to be done in a way that doesn't break what is delivered. These systems contain literally millions of lines of code. Any time you try to bolt something on to it you run the risk of breaking something. Often in very unpredictable ways.

    As a result these projects need to be managed in a very formal fashion. Agile just doesn't lend itself well to this sort of thing in my experience. Maybe some sort of hybrid model but certainly not Agile as I know it.

    Just on the face of it "IBM" and "Agile" could not be further apart.

  5. Nice theory but... on The Future Deconstruction of the K-12 Teacher · · Score: 1

    never going to fly. Why? Because it sounds too much like everyone gets the same quality of education in that scenario. Rich and upper middle class families don't want that. Why? Because they paid lots of money to buy a home in a neighborhood with other wealthy home owners. High value homes pay higher property tax and more property tax means more money for schools. Which means that Jr. gets an unfair advantage (one of many, but that's another issue) over kids in less wealthy families. And the folks with money are going to do everything they can to keep it that way. End of story.

  6. Feature bloat on Ask Slashdot: What Are the Most Stable Smartphones These Days? · · Score: 1

    I think that all mobile operating systems are suffering from this now. Mobile has matured to the point that phones now do just about everything we need them to do. So the problem now becomes, why buy a new phone?

    I'm actually faced with this problem. My contract is up in September and my year and a half phone is still good. It has a 1080p display. It's fast. Lots of storage. The newer phones are better but only marginally.

    So given that the hardware has matured the only other option is to add more things to the OS. Some of which will require a newer phone to use. That way, people have to upgrade the phone to use that shiny new feature.

    Personally, I think this is part of the reason that so few phones now allow you to replace the battery. The battery is likely the first component to go so by making it non-replacable some people are likely to just get a new phone rather than a new battery.

  7. Re:Nice idea but... on Tesla To Announce Battery-Based Energy Storage For Homes · · Score: 1

    The question is not will energy costs go up over time. They will. The question is how much. Solar City doesn't know. Neither do I. Neither do you. Yet SC is presenting their numbers as facts. They are projecting savings to potential customers that are pure speculation. That's what I take issue with.

    I'm all for renewables, don't get me wrong. I want a clean environment as much as the next guy.

  8. Re:Nice idea but... on Tesla To Announce Battery-Based Energy Storage For Homes · · Score: 2

    That's how Musk makes his money. By selling over priced panels supported by dodgy break even calculations. Buying your own panels is the way to go. I know people that have done it and it's not that difficult.

  9. Re:Nice idea but... on Tesla To Announce Battery-Based Energy Storage For Homes · · Score: 1

    "Not installing solar now because you're worried that solar is going to get better is just depriving yourself of the benefits that you enjoy by doing it sooner" - What benefits? Not economic, that's for sure. The numbers Solar City gave me showed a net savings of $30 a month. That's it - 30 bucks a month. And that is assuming you buy into their calculations - which I don't. As I mentioned, they cannot control the rates that the utility company pays for the power you sell them back and the rate increases are merely speculation on their part.

  10. Nice idea but... on Tesla To Announce Battery-Based Energy Storage For Homes · · Score: -1, Troll

    the economics don't add up. Others on this thread have already done the math for us. If you're off the grid or have a remote cabin somewhere this could be a great idea, combined with solar panels. But for the typical on the grid residential customer it just doesn't add up.

    Part of the problem is the off peak rates that are part of the equation. The power companies are already pushing back on the amount they are willing to pay solar customers for excess power that is sold back to them from solar customers. A lot of people that bought panels were counting on those rebates and now their payback period is going to be much longer. Same thing will happen to off peak rates if this battery idea takes off.

    What happens if you buy this battery and a year or two down the road someone comes out with a battery that is twice as efficient as the one you have? You're stuck with old technology that you can't trade in or sell easily. This is the exact question I asked Solar City when I was considering solar panels for my house. They told me you can't trade up to the newer panels. You have to pay off the first panels and then lease or buy the new ones. Their payoff calculation for the panels is based on two things that Solar City cannot control - the amount that the utility company will pay you for excess power and the amount of money that utility rates will rise in the future. No thanks.

    It's kind of like buying a new computer or TV. You know that next years model will be better and cheaper. Except that instead of a $1000 computer you are taking about $20,000 solar panels. Or $6,500 batteries.

  11. The hard truth... on Cheap Gas Fuels Switch From Electric Cars To SUVs · · Score: 2

    is that Americans will always drive big cars and trucks. We like big roads and wide open spaces. We like the space and utility that a truck offers. We like the feeling of security that driving a big hulking SUV offers.

    Hybrids and electrics are a nice idea but for many people they are wholly impractical. Too small, too expensive compared to a gas powered equivalent, limited hauling capability. The high mileage ratings are for city driving. Once you get out on the freeway the advantage is lessened. For a lot of Americans, their daily commute is on the freeway.

    Frankly, if I was looking for a vehicle that got great gas mileage I would buy a diesel. Better highway mileage, less complex than an hybrid, proven long term reliability.

  12. TV studios are scared shitless on Netflix Is Betting On Exclusive Programming · · Score: 1

    The decades long crap-opoly that the TV networks have enjoyed is crumbling down before them. Netflix IS the future of TV. The networks know this. But like every other monopoly they are trapped by their business model. If they try to pivot towards the streaming trend they risk losing revenue from their current business model. CEO's, and shareholders, are rewarded based on current earnings. CEO's, despite what they might say, are concerned about this quarter not what is happening 5 years from now. If they fail to deliver THIS QUARTER they are out on their ass. So they continue to milk the monopoly cow and let someone else deal with 5 years from now.

    The only real remedy they have is the court system. They will litigate and litigate and litigate until the little guy gives up.

    But Netflix isn't going to give up. Even after the shakedown from Verizon (forced to pay up so that Verizon won't slow them down) they are still doing fine. The original content is brilliant - right out of the HBO playbook. And you know what? Their original programming is excellent. I think that House Of Cards is the best show on TV. That alone is worth the $9 a month.

    Compared to what the networks charge per month a Netflix membership is an absolute steal. Not only do they have excellent choices but it is geared towards what I want to watch, not the slop served up by network TV.

  13. Typical automaker BS on Automakers To Gearheads: Stop Repairing Cars · · Score: 2

    For years these pricks have been ripping off their customers with deceptive pricing and dealer networks that are nothing more than a middle man. They want you to believe that you have to bring your car to the dealer for service but if you read the fine print you will see that any competent neighborhood mechanic can service you car and not void the warranty.

    Then along comes Tesla and Uber and others that threaten their monopolies. So instead of changing their business to suit the way consumers want it they double down and try to lock you in. Right out of the playbook of the movie studios and cable companies and utilities. They will litigate and use political pressure to force you to play the game the way they want it played. Same old same old.

  14. $200 Million? on George Lucas Building Low-Income Housing Next Door To Millionaires · · Score: 1

    They must be including the value of the land in that calculation, which Lucas already owns.

  15. Re:Solar is here to stay on Utilities Battle Homeowners Over Solar Power · · Score: 1

    The other problem is that many single family homes in the Philippines are poorly insulated. Single pane windows, little or no roof insulation, that sort of thing..

  16. Re:Solar is here to stay on Utilities Battle Homeowners Over Solar Power · · Score: 5, Interesting

    "The other half of the country is lucky to have reliable electricity." - You're spot on with that assessment. Brownouts in the Philippines are a way of life. it is particularly bad in rural areas. Many of the condos in Manila boast of their own power supplies independent of government power. Like a lot of other things in the Philippines, rampant corruption and cronyism has ruined nearly every industry. Before cellphones took off there it would take literally years to get a land line phone installed and you would probably have to bribe someone at that. Now just about everyone has a cellphone and the coverage is actually pretty good. The technology literally leapfrogged the old technology and I believe the exact thing will happen with solar once the price of the panels comes down.

  17. The enemy of my enemy... on Cyanogen Partners With Microsoft To Replace Google Apps · · Score: 1

    is my friend. It's kind of interesting to watch all of this shake out. Apple and Google hate one another. Microsoft has traditionally been anti-open source. Google hates Microsoft. Apple embraces open source...as long as you play by their rules. Microsoft and Apple have an alliance, albeit an uneasy one. IBM hates Microsoft and now had teamed up with Apple.

    So Microsoft figures the best way to get Google is to team up with Apple and Cyanogen. We'll see how effective it is but it seems like a bit of a desperation move on Microsoft's part.

  18. Terrible idea on Can Online Reporting System Help Prevent Sexual Assaults On Campus? · · Score: 1

    Campus rapes? You mean like the one that occurred at the University of Virginia? Except that it never occurred. And the press is still treating the accuser like she is some sort of victim when the real victims are the young men that were falsely accused. If i were one of those guys I would be suing that devious bitch to high heaven.

    It's just too easy to make false accusations without any real consequences. I could see this sort of system very easily used as revenge or blackmail.

  19. Good for him on Seattle CEO Cuts $1 Million Salary To $70K, Raises Employee Salaries · · Score: 2

    The cynical side of me wonders if he still maintains stock options, etc. but that is besides the point. The point is that he did it when he didn't have to. More importantly he is raising the salaries of others at the same time that he is lowering his own. It might be symbolic to a certain extent but I'm betting that the people that got raises are not seeing it that way.

    Well played Mr. Price, well played.

  20. Re:Hell No Hillary on Hillary Clinton Declares 2016 Democratic Presidential Bid · · Score: 1

    Good points. To me, the email server is at the center of it all. Therein lies the evidence for all of the current scandals. Unfortunately, it has been wiped clean so it's going to be darn near impossible to prove anything.

    If she had nothing to hide then why did she have the server wiped? It seems to me that would be the perfect way to shut up all of her critics - turn over the emails and then we will all see that everything was above board. Except that its not. So now are left to speculate as to what happened and based on her track record I'm betting dollars to donuts that she is lying about Benghazi and the Clinton foundation.

    But all of those email messages still exist in the recipients inboxes. You can bet that Republican operatives are looking for them right now. And if any of them surface, and they are damaging, Clinton is finished.

  21. Par for the course.... on Denver TSA Screeners Manipulated System In Order To Grope Men's Genitals · · Score: 2

    Nothing about this group of idiots surprises me. Typical federal government cluster-fuck.

    So now that the ball gropers have been let go (3 months later, but probably pretty fast by Fed standards) I would presume that the "gropees" are lining up the lawsuits. This is going to be hilarious. Watch how the surveillance tapes and emails disappear when asked to produce them.

  22. Re: Hmmmmm on Hillary Clinton Declares 2016 Democratic Presidential Bid · · Score: 1

    I think what will sink Rand Paul is his criticism of the "Neo-Con" branch of the Republican party. Neo-Cons are the pro military people and Paul is firmly an Isolationist, or very close to that. Already Charles Krauthammer has criticized Paul as having a foreign policy position close to that of Obama. The kiss of death for any Republican candidate. I have seen interviews on Fox and he is being treated like an outsider. If you didn't know better you would think he was a Democrat.

    Republicans always seem to fall into this trap in modern times. If a candidate doesn't conform to the party narrative for even one issue (abortion, pro-military, Christian coalition, etc.) they are immediately thrown on the scrap heap. What they are left with is someone that toes the line but is un-electable. McCain. Romney. You get the idea.

    Personally I would like to see Rand Paul as the nominee but I doubt that the Republicans can get out of their own way.

  23. Re:Hell No Hillary on Hillary Clinton Declares 2016 Democratic Presidential Bid · · Score: 1

    That doesn't excuse what Clinton did...or what Nixon did for that matter.

  24. Re:Hell No Hillary on Hillary Clinton Declares 2016 Democratic Presidential Bid · · Score: 1

    "If she makes it as far as public debate I cannot wait to see her drilled for this." - And this is the Democrats worst nightmare. Carly Fiorina is the perfect proxy for this. She can attack Clinton mercilessly about the email server, the Clinton foundation and Benghazi while the real Republican candidates sit back and watch the fireworks. If it were Jeb Bush or Marco Rubio attacking Clinton they would face the same "anti-women" charges that Rand Paul is getting now.

    Everyone knows that Fiorina cannot win the Republican nomination but she will have served her purpose by being the Clinton attack dog.

    If this scenario plays out the Democrats will be screwed and they know it.

  25. No surprise at all... on Hillary Clinton Declares 2016 Democratic Presidential Bid · · Score: 2

    Hillary is now the official front runner for the Democrats. She will raise a ton of money do doubt. But she was also the front runner back in 2008 until this obscure Senator named Obama came out of nowhere...and the rest is history.

    For many Democrats, Clinton is too centrist. Certainly to the right of Obama. They see her as being just a little to cozy with business types. She has a lot of well documented baggage - past and present. Democrats are torn between supporting someone they believe can win (Clinton) and a less flawed candidate with a lesser chance of winning.

    Her resignation from the Clinton Foundation is quite timely. I'm sure that we are going to hear about questionable donations from foreign heads of state to her foundation and allegations of pay-for-play. It all ties in with the secretive email server and the subsequent disappearance of thousands of email messages that were not only never turned over they were willfully destroyed.

    I think that some in the Democratic party fear there is a smoking gun and that if someone manages to get to the bottom of it their chances of retaining control of the White House drop to nearly zero. It would not surprise me to suddenly see Elizabeth Warren emerge as a candidate, despite her repeated denials that she is running.

    Having said all of that I don't think that Jeb Bush is the answer. We need someone new and fresh ideas.