Well, for straightforward, new-user sorts of things, perhaps `no other application' does, but many of the people here have used something like emacs, or nvi, or screen, or... and are quite used to (addicted to? desirous of?) the power, felxibility, and functionality you can get from these sorts of systems.
Emacs is hardly a shining example of what makes a good user interface.
Bah! Apple's own development environment shuns the one window, one document paradigm. Project builder allows multiple split views of multiple loaded files in the same window.
Doesn't use tabs though.:)
And this does make a big difference. (Plus developers are generally savvy enough to deal with something like this.) Split views is not the same as hidden views. In fact, if you close a window in Project Builder, you don't "lose" the document. It is still "loaded" in Project Builder (sort-of). You can access it from the "open files" menu in one of those editor windows.
Closing a project window, however, does close the project.
1) If they don't know how to use tabs properly, where are they even going to get one from? New windows (javascript, targets) open in: new windows. Unless you go and change the option, no tabs, no worries.
Until they use someone else's computer. Or accidentally hit the right keystroke or mouse combination to open a tabbed window. And there is still the problem that this additional "feature" requires them to maybe be aware of it. If you put a cruise control button on a car, the driver never really needs to learn how to use it or anything, but it does become something that he or she does need to be aware of, just in case. This adds complexity. Even if he or she never intends to use it.
My point is that there's a disconnect between what theory tells him and what reality is telling him, in this instance, and it's not useful to choose theory over reality when the two conflict.
Theory says that tabbed browsers should offer inconsistencies that frustrate users. The reality is that users love tabbed browsers. (Really, I can't think of anyone who's told me they don't like to have tabs.)
Reality would also argue that two or three button mice are loved by users, where theory says it just causes problems. And for many users, the reality is they love more buttons. But the other reality is that many users don't even understand there's a difference between the two buttons, or why the right mouse button exists.
Apple has decided to try and make it so that a right mouse button is never necessary for convenience, efficiency, or functionality. So that people don't even have a real need to purchase or use a multiple-button mouse, even though you may really like it. I think this is an excellent approach. Tabbed browsing falls in the same area in my book.
Yes, you are a single user, and if you want to add tabs, go right ahead. But what I am saying is that adding tabs does break down what the interface's components and behavior represents to the user. It breaks the consistency. Maybe your grandma can deal with this, but there are a large number of people who can't even deal with a right mouse button (or can't understand why you single-click on links but double-click on things on your desktop, as someone else has mentioned).
A lot of people use tabs and like it. I like tabs sometimes. But a whole lot of people would just get very, very confused by tabs. Adding it even as a default-off feature (which I think may be okay...sort of, but I wouldn't do it myself) means the user has to try and keep track of one more possible interface inconsistency. Maybe they'll never come across it, but if by chance they do, then what?
If you really think about it, however, you would realize that adding the tab feature to something like a web browser window is in fact BAD DESIGN. It may be more convenient for you, but it drastically changes what a window represents to the user.
With tabs, closing a window can in fact remove the contents of many windows. Something that should only happen when you quit the application. Granted, adding this as a default-off feature might be okay, but I can just see all the grandmas wondering why all their different web pages went away when they only closed the front window.
There would also need to be a cycle-tabs keystroke, in addition to the cycle-windows keystroke. (Something that does annoy me when I use tabs in Phoenix.)
The email between the Safari team and the KHTML and KJS developers helps explain why they did this. Links to the email correspondence can be found at this KDE News posting.
Basically, the codebase for Konqueror and KHTML is very small and easy to work with. They had also done a lot of work with KJS prior to working on Safari. They did in fact make some changes to make the renderer more like Gecko, in addition to a whole lot of performance and bug fixes. It also looks like they put in support for Netscape-style plug-ins (or something) but I don't think that is part of KHTML.
There is no benefit from picking a product that is cross platform, since that is not the goal of Safari. In fact, that would add more cruft and complexity to the code when Apple developers have to go through it. I don't at all see how Mozilla has better industry support. Who is supporting it? Apple would have to support a Safari based on Mozilla anyway since it becomes an Apple product. Not sure what you mean by add-ons. If you mean plug-ins, it looks like they already have Netscape-style plug-in support (although I could be wrong). All those toolbar add-ons and weird things that put post-its on your web page are only for IE as far as I know.
Remember that almost all DVD's are dual-layer now. So a 90+ minute movie and extra stuff takes up less than 9 gigs on DVD, not less than 5.
Yeah, but you're probably not going to be grabbing the entire DVD contents. Dual-layer DVDs usually have at least two audio tracks and two video tracks, encoded using MPEG-2 and AAC. Apple is pushing AAC now, but they would probably use MPEG-4 for the video.
Yes, and you'd be watching them on a screen slightly larger than a postage stamp. Dumb, dumb idea.
Yes, this doesn't make much sense for movies. But it makes more sense for games. The GameBoy Advance screen isn't much larger physically, and a bunch of phones are now using games as a selling point.
Personally, I don't think a video-enabled iPod is going to be released. A tablet Mac would be great, but I'm not sure that really fits into the digital hub idea. And Apple usually waits a while to let the market mature a little bit and to get things right. Maybe something they are more cautious of since the Cube. People are throwing around the name iPad, right?
Will they also be able to reconstruct these memorials with the original materials and methods? Seems to me a green plastic Statue of Liberty wouldn't mean as much as a copper one done the same way as the original. (Of course, natural deterioration is different too.)
Anyone else see Armitage III? There's a comment about how they're building Statues of Liberties everywhere.
So, who owns the rights to this information? I understand that government research becomes public domain (i.e. no copyright) if it is published, but that's not necessarily true about government funded programs. Submitting your research, information, or paper to a publication usually gives copyright to the publication. Will the same hold true here? I hope not. And that same sort of stuff when done as a student or faculty member of an educational institution usually gives the institution the copyrights. If these educators submit information, does the repository get the copyrights or does it remain with the institution (requiring the institution's permission for inclusion in the repository)?
I can see the wonderful fun kids are going to have with these magnets and televisions now. No longer the simple purple-green circle. Now you can make really psychedelic stuff show up on your TV.
I registered a certain shareware internet application a couple years ago that had always been "free upgrades" ever since version 1.0 (it was version 3.x when I purchased it). The version AFTER I got mine, the author decided to start this upgrade protection nonsense.... Had I known about this policy before making my purchase, I would've chosen another product to spend my money on. My _trust_ was violated, regardless of the legality of his actions.
I don't see at all how your trust was violated. What you are saying is that you expected something (i.e. upgrades) to be free and when it turned out they weren't, you got pissed. Unless the author said all future upgrades would be free (and maybe he did), you really don't have any right to complain about something just because you expected it to be otherwise. On the other hand, if the author had said all future upgrades will be free, then I would expect him to honor that agreement for all current registered users. New users not necessarily.
I understand your mentality, however, as one where you expect things to continue they way you perceive them to. I'm just saying I think it was bad judgment on your part to have come to that perception, and the wrong reaction when you learned you had made a bad decision.
Apple has made these applications free so far, but has never said they will always be free. I would pay for upgrades to iTunes, iCal, iPhoto, and iMovie whenever I feel like those upgrades are worthwhile. The same as with any other software. Apple is not screwing me or anyone else over. Hell, things would be a lot worse if Apple had decided to start charging for the initial versions to begin with or not to develop these wonderful applications at all.
On a side note, I kind of expect free upgrades for minor version numbers, and paid upgrades for major version numbers. After all, a major number increase is supposed to mean major feature improvements or additions. Minor number increases generally mean minor feature improvements, additions, and bug fixes.
My first memory was when I was around 3 or something (don't know the exact age) and I stuck a knife into the wall socket. I got knocked out, but I can recall the room's wallpaper, the location of the outlet, etc. This room got remodeled before I have any other memories: the location with the socket got replaced with a closet, and the wallpaper was removed and replaced with white paint. My Mom thought it was really weird that I remembered the wallpaper. I think they still have the blackened knife.
Doesn't it? One of my great loves in life is the music of Bach, but after months of work, I can only crudely hammer out some of his simplest works on a keyboard. Likewise I can't memorize a phone number or learn a foreign language and it's not for a lack of effort. On the other hand, I can construct a 3D model of a mechanism in my head, rotate it and cause the pieces of it to move relative to each other. I'd say that genetics along with some luck and some hard work determined my place in life.
You might also want to think about what you did when you were a baby and young child, when most of the interconnections and learned techniques and thinking processes are formed. If you played a lot with Legos and shapes, etc. that might explain your ability to visualize objects so well. If you never got a pair of kitchen pots for banging or some nicer instruments like a xylophone, that might explain why you don't have the same ease with composing.
The cost of living in the U.S. is much higher than it is in India. That's why his Indian counterpart can get away with being paid so much less. It has nothing to do with what the guy in the U.S. is unwilling to do and everything to do with what he's unable to do.
And you think this is because it's a different country? It's because the cost of living and living standards are different. It's the exact same thing with working/living in New York City versus working/living in Idaho.
Maybe it's time H1-B haters realized that their job is becoming more of a "commodity" and lose their sense of elitism.
How about going back to the store and asking for a replacement? It depends on where you got it, but when I purchased some GameCube games from Electronics Boutique, they said if a game cracks or breaks or whatever I can get a replacement from them for free. (Hardware is different, you can buy a 1 or 2 year warranty, which I did.)
Another option is to get a pirated/cracked copy. I think this is one of those "gray" areas where you might feel it's morally okay to do this.
And the RadGameTools guys have already responded in that thread and SAID they have linux ports of both Miles and Bink available - Bioware just never asked!
If that's true, then perhaps one of the following pages should have listed Linux:
Bink Video! - Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, 2000, XP, Xbox, GameCube, Mac OS, Mac OS X. The Miles Sound System - Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, 2000, XP, Mac OS 9, Mac OS X (Carbon), Xbox and GameCube coming soon.
Would anyone really be worse off if Microsoft took the "my" off of "My Computer", "My Documents", etc? I already *know* that they're mine! Do people really like their computers to talk down to them like that?
Once you start putting on network drives and shared folders, the "My" in front might not look like such a stupid idea. Unfortunately, I don't think Windows makes it so that the shared folders say "Joe's Documents" or mounts network drives by username, something that Mac OS has done since 8 or 9, I think.
This is something that I've been pondering over for a while now. Is Israel or Palestine the terrorist? One of them has to be, while the other has to be in the "right". If one of them isn't, then, well, everything falls apart. The Chechnyans wouldn't be terrorists anymore either. Or what about the IRA? The American revolutionaries in 1776? Los Zapatos?
Obviously, the U.S. had better bomb either the Israeli or Palestinian government, to free the other from oppression and establish a democracy.::looks for more stupid people::
The $99 for Solaris x86 isn't new. Solaris 8 x86 was also $99; I know because I bought it to upgrade my Solaris 7 x86 box (which was free because Sun was trying to get everyone to develop in Java, so they set out boxes of Solaris 7 x86 and a bunch of software like Java IDEs). And there also wasn't _any_ people-support for this unless you paid for it, as is being advertised now for Solaris 9 x86. You got free support from the web site and support sites, but not phone tech support. (Updates are no doubt free for download.) So, doesn't look like anything is new now, unless the monthly support cost has changed.
Oh, and in case people are wondering why someone might want Solaris x86, the answer was very easy for me: it's a reference platform. If your socket code works on Solaris it's pretty much going to work anywhere else just fine. If you want the real sh in an environment that actually expects sh (instead of bash, for example) then you go with Solaris. This is extremely handy for writing OS independent sh scripts. I can't afford a SparcStation, but I can afford Solaris x86, and it means I can do Solaris development and testing (okay, not really low-level stuff that is endian-important) at home.
Not really. Almost all the hardcore gamers I know use Speakeasy.net or any other provider that will allow them to get a static IP and run servers, so they can provide services like GTV and shoutcast feeds for live commentary on the matches. TSN whores for speakeasy quite alot, simply because their gamer packages kick ass.
Okay, and how many of those "hardcore" gamers you speak of do you think cheat? Most cheaters are gamers who play a lot but are not "hardcore". Besides, the point of this is to apply to the majority (and hopefully everyone by some reliable method) and not the 10% of hard-core Quakers (er, Quake-ers?) who also happen to use 90% of the online time.
Microsoft machines will tell you their MAC when you do a NBTSTAT on them. At least one ISP I know of blocks NetBIOS traffic because of uncontrolled file sharing, but I don't know how common that is.
I think it's more likely that the ISP is blocking NetBIOS traffic because of all the security problems associated with it, rather than file sharing.
So have they come up with a foolproof way of detecting cheaters and people using hacks? Sure, there are client-side/server-side program combinations to identify the use of known cheats (see Half-Life) but if they start to let server admins or "regulars" report cheaters then this just isn't going to work. Even server admins will kick-ban people who aren't really cheating simply because the player is dominating. At the very least, they better be only identifying cheaters by detecting known programs or modifications.
On a related note, either Half-Life or the Counter-Strike mod will dump detected cheaters into a global database. This database is not being used for anything right now but it may be in the future.
If the producers are so concerned about viewers seeing the film as they originally meant it to be viewed, then I suggest they install home theater systems in everyone's home. After all, I'm sure weak signal reception, playing with antennas or fiddling with the cable connection, noisy people outside the window, and only average 2-channel speaker systems is definitely going to degrade the viewing experience. Give me a home theater!
That being said, I do think shows/films are a whole lot better without commercials. A la Alias with Nokia last season.
G3's and OS X is a pretty bad mix... It's like windows 98 of a pentium 100 mhz machine...
Hardly.
I've been running Mac OS X since beta on my six year old Beige G3/300 which has 256MB RAM and was running off the original ixMicro 3D video card. Once I hit 10.1.5 things ran quite smoothly, although things will slow down if I'm playing MP3s over NFS. (My 10/100 NIC and SCSI hard disk are both sitting on the PCI bus, along with the video card.) I was able to run dual monitors one off the Rage II and the other off the ixMicro just fine.
I recently upgraded to a RADEON 7000 PCI so I get better dual monitor support and can play some 3D games at low resolution.
This is my primary workstation and I am often running ~10 applications including Photoshop, OmniWeb, iChat, Mail, iCal, iTunes, BBEdit, XFree86, Terminal, etc. Things work wonderfully.
Slashdot Mirror
Well, for straightforward, new-user sorts of things, perhaps `no other application' does, but many of the people here have used something like emacs, or nvi, or screen, or... and are quite used to (addicted to? desirous of?) the power, felxibility, and functionality you can get from these sorts of systems.
Emacs is hardly a shining example of what makes a good user interface.
Bah! Apple's own development environment shuns the one window, one document paradigm. Project builder allows multiple split views of multiple loaded files in the same window.
:)
Doesn't use tabs though.
And this does make a big difference. (Plus developers are generally savvy enough to deal with something like this.) Split views is not the same as hidden views. In fact, if you close a window in Project Builder, you don't "lose" the document. It is still "loaded" in Project Builder (sort-of). You can access it from the "open files" menu in one of those editor windows.
Closing a project window, however, does close the project.
1) If they don't know how to use tabs properly, where are they even going to get one from? New windows (javascript, targets) open in: new windows. Unless you go and change the option, no tabs, no worries.
Until they use someone else's computer. Or accidentally hit the right keystroke or mouse combination to open a tabbed window. And there is still the problem that this additional "feature" requires them to maybe be aware of it. If you put a cruise control button on a car, the driver never really needs to learn how to use it or anything, but it does become something that he or she does need to be aware of, just in case. This adds complexity. Even if he or she never intends to use it.
My point is that there's a disconnect between what theory tells him and what reality is telling him, in this instance, and it's not useful to choose theory over reality when the two conflict.
Theory says that tabbed browsers should offer inconsistencies that frustrate users. The reality is that users love tabbed browsers. (Really, I can't think of anyone who's told me they don't like to have tabs.)
Reality would also argue that two or three button mice are loved by users, where theory says it just causes problems. And for many users, the reality is they love more buttons. But the other reality is that many users don't even understand there's a difference between the two buttons, or why the right mouse button exists.
Apple has decided to try and make it so that a right mouse button is never necessary for convenience, efficiency, or functionality. So that people don't even have a real need to purchase or use a multiple-button mouse, even though you may really like it. I think this is an excellent approach. Tabbed browsing falls in the same area in my book.
Yes, you are a single user, and if you want to add tabs, go right ahead. But what I am saying is that adding tabs does break down what the interface's components and behavior represents to the user. It breaks the consistency. Maybe your grandma can deal with this, but there are a large number of people who can't even deal with a right mouse button (or can't understand why you single-click on links but double-click on things on your desktop, as someone else has mentioned).
A lot of people use tabs and like it. I like tabs sometimes. But a whole lot of people would just get very, very confused by tabs. Adding it even as a default-off feature (which I think may be okay...sort of, but I wouldn't do it myself) means the user has to try and keep track of one more possible interface inconsistency. Maybe they'll never come across it, but if by chance they do, then what?
If you really think about it, however, you would realize that adding the tab feature to something like a web browser window is in fact BAD DESIGN. It may be more convenient for you, but it drastically changes what a window represents to the user.
With tabs, closing a window can in fact remove the contents of many windows. Something that should only happen when you quit the application. Granted, adding this as a default-off feature might be okay, but I can just see all the grandmas wondering why all their different web pages went away when they only closed the front window.
There would also need to be a cycle-tabs keystroke, in addition to the cycle-windows keystroke. (Something that does annoy me when I use tabs in Phoenix.)
The email between the Safari team and the KHTML and KJS developers helps explain why they did this. Links to the email correspondence can be found at this KDE News posting.
Basically, the codebase for Konqueror and KHTML is very small and easy to work with. They had also done a lot of work with KJS prior to working on Safari. They did in fact make some changes to make the renderer more like Gecko, in addition to a whole lot of performance and bug fixes. It also looks like they put in support for Netscape-style plug-ins (or something) but I don't think that is part of KHTML.
There is no benefit from picking a product that is cross platform, since that is not the goal of Safari. In fact, that would add more cruft and complexity to the code when Apple developers have to go through it. I don't at all see how Mozilla has better industry support. Who is supporting it? Apple would have to support a Safari based on Mozilla anyway since it becomes an Apple product. Not sure what you mean by add-ons. If you mean plug-ins, it looks like they already have Netscape-style plug-in support (although I could be wrong). All those toolbar add-ons and weird things that put post-its on your web page are only for IE as far as I know.
Remember that almost all DVD's are dual-layer now. So a 90+ minute movie and extra stuff takes up less than 9 gigs on DVD, not less than 5.
Yeah, but you're probably not going to be grabbing the entire DVD contents. Dual-layer DVDs usually have at least two audio tracks and two video tracks, encoded using MPEG-2 and AAC. Apple is pushing AAC now, but they would probably use MPEG-4 for the video.
Yes, and you'd be watching them on a screen slightly larger than a postage stamp. Dumb, dumb idea.
Yes, this doesn't make much sense for movies. But it makes more sense for games. The GameBoy Advance screen isn't much larger physically, and a bunch of phones are now using games as a selling point.
Personally, I don't think a video-enabled iPod is going to be released. A tablet Mac would be great, but I'm not sure that really fits into the digital hub idea. And Apple usually waits a while to let the market mature a little bit and to get things right. Maybe something they are more cautious of since the Cube. People are throwing around the name iPad, right?
Will they also be able to reconstruct these memorials with the original materials and methods? Seems to me a green plastic Statue of Liberty wouldn't mean as much as a copper one done the same way as the original. (Of course, natural deterioration is different too.)
Anyone else see Armitage III? There's a comment about how they're building Statues of Liberties everywhere.
So, who owns the rights to this information? I understand that government research becomes public domain (i.e. no copyright) if it is published, but that's not necessarily true about government funded programs. Submitting your research, information, or paper to a publication usually gives copyright to the publication. Will the same hold true here? I hope not. And that same sort of stuff when done as a student or faculty member of an educational institution usually gives the institution the copyrights. If these educators submit information, does the repository get the copyrights or does it remain with the institution (requiring the institution's permission for inclusion in the repository)?
I can see the wonderful fun kids are going to have with these magnets and televisions now. No longer the simple purple-green circle. Now you can make really psychedelic stuff show up on your TV.
I registered a certain shareware internet application a couple years ago that had always been "free upgrades" ever since version 1.0 (it was version 3.x when I purchased it). The version AFTER I got mine, the author decided to start this upgrade protection nonsense.... Had I known about this policy before making my purchase, I would've chosen another product to spend my money on. My _trust_ was violated, regardless of the legality of his actions.
I don't see at all how your trust was violated. What you are saying is that you expected something (i.e. upgrades) to be free and when it turned out they weren't, you got pissed. Unless the author said all future upgrades would be free (and maybe he did), you really don't have any right to complain about something just because you expected it to be otherwise. On the other hand, if the author had said all future upgrades will be free, then I would expect him to honor that agreement for all current registered users. New users not necessarily.
I understand your mentality, however, as one where you expect things to continue they way you perceive them to. I'm just saying I think it was bad judgment on your part to have come to that perception, and the wrong reaction when you learned you had made a bad decision.
Apple has made these applications free so far, but has never said they will always be free. I would pay for upgrades to iTunes, iCal, iPhoto, and iMovie whenever I feel like those upgrades are worthwhile. The same as with any other software. Apple is not screwing me or anyone else over. Hell, things would be a lot worse if Apple had decided to start charging for the initial versions to begin with or not to develop these wonderful applications at all.
On a side note, I kind of expect free upgrades for minor version numbers, and paid upgrades for major version numbers. After all, a major number increase is supposed to mean major feature improvements or additions. Minor number increases generally mean minor feature improvements, additions, and bug fixes.
My first memory was when I was around 3 or something (don't know the exact age) and I stuck a knife into the wall socket. I got knocked out, but I can recall the room's wallpaper, the location of the outlet, etc. This room got remodeled before I have any other memories: the location with the socket got replaced with a closet, and the wallpaper was removed and replaced with white paint. My Mom thought it was really weird that I remembered the wallpaper. I think they still have the blackened knife.
Doesn't it? One of my great loves in life is the music of Bach, but after months of work, I can only crudely hammer out some of his simplest works on a keyboard. Likewise I can't memorize a phone number or learn a foreign language and it's not for a lack of effort. On the other hand, I can construct a 3D model of a mechanism in my head, rotate it and cause the pieces of it to move relative to each other. I'd say that genetics along with some luck and some hard work determined my place in life.
You might also want to think about what you did when you were a baby and young child, when most of the interconnections and learned techniques and thinking processes are formed. If you played a lot with Legos and shapes, etc. that might explain your ability to visualize objects so well. If you never got a pair of kitchen pots for banging or some nicer instruments like a xylophone, that might explain why you don't have the same ease with composing.
The cost of living in the U.S. is much higher than it is in India. That's why his Indian counterpart can get away with being paid so much less. It has nothing to do with what the guy in the U.S. is unwilling to do and everything to do with what he's unable to do.
And you think this is because it's a different country? It's because the cost of living and living standards are different. It's the exact same thing with working/living in New York City versus working/living in Idaho.
Maybe it's time H1-B haters realized that their job is becoming more of a "commodity" and lose their sense of elitism.
How about going back to the store and asking for a replacement? It depends on where you got it, but when I purchased some GameCube games from Electronics Boutique, they said if a game cracks or breaks or whatever I can get a replacement from them for free. (Hardware is different, you can buy a 1 or 2 year warranty, which I did.)
Another option is to get a pirated/cracked copy. I think this is one of those "gray" areas where you might feel it's morally okay to do this.
And the RadGameTools guys have already responded in that thread and SAID they have linux ports of both Miles and Bink available - Bioware just never asked!
/.)
If that's true, then perhaps one of the following pages should have listed Linux:
Bink Video! - Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, 2000, XP, Xbox, GameCube, Mac OS, Mac OS X.
The Miles Sound System - Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, 2000, XP, Mac OS 9, Mac OS X (Carbon), Xbox and GameCube coming soon.
(Can't access the Great Linux Thread due to
Would anyone really be worse off if Microsoft took the "my" off of "My Computer", "My Documents", etc? I already *know* that they're mine! Do people really like their computers to talk down to them like that?
Once you start putting on network drives and shared folders, the "My" in front might not look like such a stupid idea. Unfortunately, I don't think Windows makes it so that the shared folders say "Joe's Documents" or mounts network drives by username, something that Mac OS has done since 8 or 9, I think.
This is something that I've been pondering over for a while now. Is Israel or Palestine the terrorist? One of them has to be, while the other has to be in the "right". If one of them isn't, then, well, everything falls apart. The Chechnyans wouldn't be terrorists anymore either. Or what about the IRA? The American revolutionaries in 1776? Los Zapatos?
::looks for more stupid people::
Obviously, the U.S. had better bomb either the Israeli or Palestinian government, to free the other from oppression and establish a democracy.
The $99 for Solaris x86 isn't new. Solaris 8 x86 was also $99; I know because I bought it to upgrade my Solaris 7 x86 box (which was free because Sun was trying to get everyone to develop in Java, so they set out boxes of Solaris 7 x86 and a bunch of software like Java IDEs). And there also wasn't _any_ people-support for this unless you paid for it, as is being advertised now for Solaris 9 x86. You got free support from the web site and support sites, but not phone tech support. (Updates are no doubt free for download.) So, doesn't look like anything is new now, unless the monthly support cost has changed.
Oh, and in case people are wondering why someone might want Solaris x86, the answer was very easy for me: it's a reference platform. If your socket code works on Solaris it's pretty much going to work anywhere else just fine. If you want the real sh in an environment that actually expects sh (instead of bash, for example) then you go with Solaris. This is extremely handy for writing OS independent sh scripts. I can't afford a SparcStation, but I can afford Solaris x86, and it means I can do Solaris development and testing (okay, not really low-level stuff that is endian-important) at home.
Not really. Almost all the hardcore gamers I know use Speakeasy.net or any other provider that will allow them to get a static IP and run servers, so they can provide services like GTV and shoutcast feeds for live commentary on the matches. TSN whores for speakeasy quite alot, simply because their gamer packages kick ass.
Okay, and how many of those "hardcore" gamers you speak of do you think cheat? Most cheaters are gamers who play a lot but are not "hardcore". Besides, the point of this is to apply to the majority (and hopefully everyone by some reliable method) and not the 10% of hard-core Quakers (er, Quake-ers?) who also happen to use 90% of the online time.
Microsoft machines will tell you their MAC when you do a NBTSTAT on them. At least one ISP I know of blocks NetBIOS traffic because of uncontrolled file sharing, but I don't know how common that is.
I think it's more likely that the ISP is blocking NetBIOS traffic because of all the security problems associated with it, rather than file sharing.
So have they come up with a foolproof way of detecting cheaters and people using hacks? Sure, there are client-side/server-side program combinations to identify the use of known cheats (see Half-Life) but if they start to let server admins or "regulars" report cheaters then this just isn't going to work. Even server admins will kick-ban people who aren't really cheating simply because the player is dominating. At the very least, they better be only identifying cheaters by detecting known programs or modifications.
On a related note, either Half-Life or the Counter-Strike mod will dump detected cheaters into a global database. This database is not being used for anything right now but it may be in the future.
If the producers are so concerned about viewers seeing the film as they originally meant it to be viewed, then I suggest they install home theater systems in everyone's home. After all, I'm sure weak signal reception, playing with antennas or fiddling with the cable connection, noisy people outside the window, and only average 2-channel speaker systems is definitely going to degrade the viewing experience. Give me a home theater!
That being said, I do think shows/films are a whole lot better without commercials. A la Alias with Nokia last season.
G3's and OS X is a pretty bad mix... It's like windows 98 of a pentium 100 mhz machine...
Hardly.
I've been running Mac OS X since beta on my six year old Beige G3/300 which has 256MB RAM and was running off the original ixMicro 3D video card. Once I hit 10.1.5 things ran quite smoothly, although things will slow down if I'm playing MP3s over NFS. (My 10/100 NIC and SCSI hard disk are both sitting on the PCI bus, along with the video card.) I was able to run dual monitors one off the Rage II and the other off the ixMicro just fine.
I recently upgraded to a RADEON 7000 PCI so I get better dual monitor support and can play some 3D games at low resolution.
This is my primary workstation and I am often running ~10 applications including Photoshop, OmniWeb, iChat, Mail, iCal, iTunes, BBEdit, XFree86, Terminal, etc. Things work wonderfully.