Wait until it is contingent upon entering an establishment (such as a theme park like Disney World) that you must transfix some device to your belt, or carry it at all times.
Then the people have only one recourse... to fight with their wallets and refuse to give business to places where your anonymity is removed. It's only one more step until the gov't forces this system on you.
But maybe people don't care if they're anonymous anymore... maybe they want a talking AI Mickey doll to tell them what to think... I know that I don't want that however.
From reading the article (yes I read actually read it), it would seem that only the "wax" type color laserjet printers have this ability. There was a Slashdot article a while back that dealt with color laser printers and alternatives to inkjets. The news.com.com article does specify the models or type of printers where this was discovered. Any other info on this?
I'm sure some hackers will try to do some mods on their printers to control this as well. {cough}fake holograms{/cough}
On another note, how cool a job do these "Xerox Scientists" have? I need to get a job where I can hardware hack like these guys.
Since I'm too lazy to go look at the changelog, could you tell me what's changed with the 2.6 kernel? I'm no kernel hacker, so put it in basic sysadmin terms if ya don't mind. Thanks.
I know a lot of people use Mandrake (myself included), but really is it necessary to annouce the beta version of a point release? C'mon... Not that many people are interested in burning the ISOs for a b1. When the point release comes out of beta, then maybe it deserves a front page article, but this is just wasted space on/.s front page.
Am I totally off base in wondering if the Virtual Machine stuff they've developed to mimic the DOS environment can be extended to more "modern" games instead of just these old Amiga era games? Stuff like the original SimCity that ran under DOS
Perhaps that's an impossibility due to the"non-freeness" of lots of more modern games. How supposrtive are game companies of this sort of work? Most of the games supported now are "abandonware" right?
But do the cops have DNA on record? I didn't know they collected this. I guess it helps if you are trying to prove a case in court however, but we know that most jurors don't understand DNA evidence (just look at OJ).
If you already have the fingerprint, why do you need the DNA? Most criminals (or at least those arrested and brought to jail) are processed via fingerprints and that is what's stored.
Does this indicate a move toward DNA databases instead of fingerprint ones?
Will this save any time or effort on the part of law enforcement agencies?
Will newborns have their DNA sampled shortly after birth?
The writing in Star Wars that you usually see is called Aurebesh. It is remarkably similar to the Roman alpabet in use in the english langauge of today. Here is a chart of aurebesh characters and their english counterparts.
It always surprised me that they took letters (and shapes) from the Roman alphabet for their ships. I guess it's just easier for the fans (read:kids) to remember. The 'X' in aurebesh looks like a triangle.
It's because of the close proximity of three very developed sources of technological innnovation, UC Berkeley, Stanford University, and Xerox Parc. Not to mention all of the other tech companies that have sprung up to support YOUR up and coming tech business. It's becuase it is a center for technological innovation, and the culture there is "supposed" to foster that. Whether it does now or not is another story.
Speaking as a resident of California, I can say that a lot of the residents choose to have their tax rates so high becuase they choose to protect the environment with those taxes. California has ALWAYS led the nation in progessive environmental legislation. If you've ever been here and seen some of the beautiful landscapes and natural sites we have, you'll understand. Politicians here fight tooth and nail to prove to the voters who is the more environmetally counsious without wasting tax resources. Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of things wrong with California, but to be honest I wouldn't want to live anywhere else, and I've been a few places in my time. The weather and the beauty is a BIG draw for people moving to California. It always has been and it always will be as long as we protect it.
It's a story of a few greedy, self-serving people at the top of the organization selling out the lives, careers and dreams of the thousands of technicians and engineers...
Until there are serious repercussions for this sort of action, then it will continue. Right now there is no disincentive for running a company into the ground and ruining the lives of the workers who rely on that company for their retirement benefits. The executives who are granted "golden parachutes" make out like fat cats regardless if the company does well or fails miserably after doing well for so long.
Will their be any corporate responsibility for these sort of actions? To me, it's doubtful while these same corporations are highly influental on the policies enacted at the national level.
Lo siento. You are oh so helpful as a spelling nazi. I'm sure you really had no idea what my post was about because I switched an 'e' for an 'i'. I'll make sure to run my posts through a spell checker next time so you and everyone else can understand my message. Any other suggestions, oh slashdot sage?
I've lived both places and I can say without a doubt that the L.A. Times is an order of magnitude better than the S.F. Chronicle. I haven't read the San Jose Mercury News much, but I doubt it's as good as the L.A. Times. I know that the Oakland Tribune blows too since I've read it on occasion.
The only problem I have with the Times is sometimes they focus too much on Hollywood and never really examine it with an objective eye. Oh and they don't really give much voice to the people who are for fair use instead of siding with the media content producers, but that goes along with my other point. Other than that it's great!
And according to the Dept. of Homeland Security it's an effective barrier to a chemical or biological attack! Go out and support the economy by buying these supplies, don't worry, we're not trying to stir up paranoia for our own domestic agenda...
*cough* PATRIOT ACTS I and II *cough*
We would never play with the American people like that.
I have to disagree with your claim that "the effects of the Iraq war aren't likely to be profound, positive OR negative". They may not be in an economic sense in the near future, but perhaps in a political sense they may be. I believe we are seeing the formation of a new (or at least growing) type of foriegn policy. The policy of "oderint dum metuant" is rearing its ugly head right now, and I don't think its increasing the safety of Americans or furthering their interests in the long run. True, most countries will be forced to concede defeat and capitulate to the power of the U.S., but eventually the luck runs out in my opinion. This policy will come around and bite us in the ass by fostering MORE anti-american rehtoric. If Europe's economy rebounds out of this recession faster and stronger than the U.S. then watch out, you may see more geopolitical wrangling across the Atlantic for years to come.
This war may be the galvinization that the people of Europe need to elect representatives that will agree with their constituents and not give the U.S. everything it wants. It could have a huge negative impact in the long run. Obviously this is speculation right now, but with the way that the world has reacted to Bush thus far, it may not be that far off. Perhaps the rest of the world put up with Regan and his policies which were very similar was becasue of the balance of power between the U.S.S.R. and the U.S. at the time.
Then what was the deal with Gulf War I? As I recall, the economy was pretty poor before that, when unemployment was still high after the trickle-down policies of the 80's. What happened after the original Gulf War? "Read my lips, no new taxes" went out the window because we were running such a rediculous deficit. Will the same thing happen with Bush II and Gulf War II? I can't say, but your claim that "every time the US economy has struggled, it has been war that has turned it around." seems to fail due to at least this counter-example.
I am not convinced that this was will help out the economy at all. In fact I'm so cynical that the only sector I think it will help will be the defense contractors. That won't be good enough to turn around consumer confidence and the like.
I haven't read the article but since I just finished up at Berkeley, I know the research projects you are referring to. In particular I work peripherally on the SmartDust Project run bt Prof. Pister. He actually has referenced the issues of "the dark side" on that webpage. So it's not like the engineers and scientists working on this research don't know the implications of their work. Basically, Pister's philosophy is that the useage of these projects should be left up to the people (or the market if you like) in determining whether it is used for invasion of privacy or not. It's not up to HIM to stop his work based on the POSSIBILITY that these things can be used for nefarious purposes. Much like the scientists that synthesized chemicals that were the precursors for chemical weapons or the nuclear physicists who worked on fission, he is not out to be the moral authority deciding what is and is not used. That's why we have governments and such.
I agree with him to an extent, and it's the perogative of each and every researcher to decide what projects he or she wants to work on. For instance, I worked one summer at Raytheon. After the summer, I reflected on the work I was doing and decided that it didn't make me feel good knowing that my work would go towards the destruction of human life. I thought "If I agreed with each and every action that my governement undertakes while using this component, then I would have no problem creating it. But if I cannot make this claim, then I don't think I should use my abilities to create destruction." So that ended my work for defense contractors, and this was in 1999 mind you, before the current geopolitical situation.
Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that it's truly up to each and every one of us to decide how technology will be applied. We elect the officials (kinda, I suppose) and we can change things if we want to. We just have to have the WILL to act, and not stand by while other interests create a society that we disagree with.
I think the guy's point was that he DOESN'T live in the US, and the way that the credit card system works in the U.S. is screwed up. I assume you do live in the U.S.
It's no wonder we have such massive amounts of consumer debt here in the states. It's simply too lucrative for the CC companies right now. They are offering credit to ANYONE nowadays. They have no interest in making sure that the application is legit. They don't get penalized for it as far as I know.
Speaking as a college student (still), I really have no idea where I'd leave this thing either on campus or at my dorm/apt. It's not like you can just lock it up to a bike rack or something since it takes up quite a bit more space right? Most college students are capable of riding a bicycle if the distance they need to travel is more than walking range, and most within walking range would prefer to walk I assume.
I must say that I agree with the above posters who say that there really isn't a wide market for this product.
Actually I did fairly well last semester (all A's, 1 B), but I progressed very little in terms of my thesis writing or research. Yes I agree being lazy is being selfish to an extent, and I truly don't think there is something inherantly wrong with being selfish sometimes. Taking it to an extreme (as with most things to the extreme) is a bad thing.
Right now I'm a little too cynical about things to think that I can "change the world" especially in my situation. Reading the headlines of the news has made me a bit depressed lately, and I can't help but being in a "funk".
Yes it's true that I could help out with teaching children or bridging the digital divide and the like, but right now I seriously don't have the motivation. To me this is not a bad thing although I do hope it ends someday and I do find the motivation to change the world and seriously help others, but right now I simply want to survive and experience the world outside of working my ass off for some corporate entity.
As for your statement that I should "be happy in my cubical" I doubt you'd say that if you really met me. It actually seems the opposite that if someone is really motivated to "earn the big bucks" and "get ahead" that those are the ones that end up in the cube-farms. I hope to avoid this as much as possible in my professional career.
Although your self-righteous attitude still comes through in your posts, I appologize for the flame as it didn't really add much to the conversation.
I've read quite a number of your posts in this thread and I really have to say you may be one of the most pompous and judgemental persons I've ever read. I know that's judgemental as well, but I can;t help thinking thes ethings when you keep writing that the choices that some of make are not the "right" ones. Personally, I am currently choosing to be lazy in my academics right now... I'm working on an advanced degree and you know what? I don't want to do very much of anything anymore. Seriously... I would like to take a 2 year vacation somewhere and use my brain for stuff that I want to like elarning a new language (and I'm not talking programming). Is ther something wrong with that? I don't think so. it's everyone's right to be "lazy" as you said. As long as I can provide for myself what the hell does it matter to you. Please stop posting your self-rightous drivel as it's gettign real old, real fast. I'm glad I don't ahve to work with you. Sorry to flame byt eh way but I just couldn't take it anymore.
In America, you're probably right. In many other countries, though, this will probbaly be less of an issue.
I can't understand why you aren't worried about the gov't having some intelligence on this sort of stuff. If you're from the UK, doesn't the CCTV thing prove the negative of your statement? I really haven't seen ANY country anywhere that is concerned with the anonymity that many of us would like to have. Please prove me wrong with soem examples. Until that time, I'm going to stick with real cash for transactions that I don't want traced back to me. The others I will use debit on.
Re:You keep all your money in cash?
on
Cashless Society
·
· Score: 1
I'm not sure how this works. You mentioned "'hidden' debit charges." Could you explain how this works?
As for debit cards here in the states, there are no "hidden" fees such as this. You aren't charged by your bank on the number of purchaces and the retail price doesn't go up simply becuase you're using plasic instead of paper. It's true that you have some monthly charges from your bank account (which issues the debit card) but this is only like $2-3 per month if you have direct deposit of your paycheck. Some banks won't charge you a dime if you satisfy some requirements (direct deposit, min balance, etc.) and then your debit card would simply be the exact same thing as cash (except tied to you and not anonymous). So could you explain how these "hidden fees" arrise? I understand that the retailer pays the vig back to the bank/credit card people or whatever but how does it affect the customer?
Slashdot Mirror
But just wait until it's not opt-in.
Wait until it is contingent upon entering an establishment (such as a theme park like Disney World) that you must transfix some device to your belt, or carry it at all times.
Then the people have only one recourse... to fight with their wallets and refuse to give business to places where your anonymity is removed. It's only one more step until the gov't forces this system on you.
But maybe people don't care if they're anonymous anymore... maybe they want a talking AI Mickey doll to tell them what to think... I know that I don't want that however.
From reading the article (yes I read actually read it), it would seem that only the "wax" type color laserjet printers have this ability. There was a Slashdot article a while back that dealt with color laser printers and alternatives to inkjets. The news.com.com article does specify the models or type of printers where this was discovered. Any other info on this?
I'm sure some hackers will try to do some mods on their printers to control this as well. {cough}fake holograms{/cough}
On another note, how cool a job do these "Xerox Scientists" have? I need to get a job where I can hardware hack like these guys.
Yeah, but those programs cost money. I thought SCUMMVM was free. Perhaps I'm wrong and this is another "Slashdot Ad" article.
Since I'm too lazy to go look at the changelog, could you tell me what's changed with the 2.6 kernel? I'm no kernel hacker, so put it in basic sysadmin terms if ya don't mind. Thanks.
I know a lot of people use Mandrake (myself included), but really is it necessary to annouce the beta version of a point release? C'mon... Not that many people are interested in burning the ISOs for a b1. When the point release comes out of beta, then maybe it deserves a front page article, but this is just wasted space on /.s front page.
Am I totally off base in wondering if the Virtual Machine stuff they've developed to mimic the DOS environment can be extended to more "modern" games instead of just these old Amiga era games? Stuff like the original SimCity that ran under DOS
Perhaps that's an impossibility due to the"non-freeness" of lots of more modern games. How supposrtive are game companies of this sort of work? Most of the games supported now are "abandonware" right?
But do the cops have DNA on record? I didn't know they collected this. I guess it helps if you are trying to prove a case in court however, but we know that most jurors don't understand DNA evidence (just look at OJ).
Anyway, I sure hope they don't have mine.
If you already have the fingerprint, why do you need the DNA? Most criminals (or at least those arrested and brought to jail) are processed via fingerprints and that is what's stored.
/me puts on his tin foil gloves
Does this indicate a move toward DNA databases instead of fingerprint ones?
Will this save any time or effort on the part of law enforcement agencies?
Will newborns have their DNA sampled shortly after birth?
The writing in Star Wars that you usually see is called Aurebesh. It is remarkably similar to the Roman alpabet in use in the english langauge of today. Here is a chart of aurebesh characters and their english counterparts.
It always surprised me that they took letters (and shapes) from the Roman alphabet for their ships. I guess it's just easier for the fans (read:kids) to remember. The 'X' in aurebesh looks like a triangle.
and God is dead, what does that make Friedrich Nietzsche?
It's because of the close proximity of three very developed sources of technological innnovation, UC Berkeley, Stanford University, and Xerox Parc. Not to mention all of the other tech companies that have sprung up to support YOUR up and coming tech business. It's becuase it is a center for technological innovation, and the culture there is "supposed" to foster that. Whether it does now or not is another story.
Speaking as a resident of California, I can say that a lot of the residents choose to have their tax rates so high becuase they choose to protect the environment with those taxes. California has ALWAYS led the nation in progessive environmental legislation. If you've ever been here and seen some of the beautiful landscapes and natural sites we have, you'll understand. Politicians here fight tooth and nail to prove to the voters who is the more environmetally counsious without wasting tax resources. Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of things wrong with California, but to be honest I wouldn't want to live anywhere else, and I've been a few places in my time. The weather and the beauty is a BIG draw for people moving to California. It always has been and it always will be as long as we protect it.
It's a story of a few greedy, self-serving people at the top of the organization selling out the lives, careers and dreams of the thousands of technicians and engineers...
Until there are serious repercussions for this sort of action, then it will continue. Right now there is no disincentive for running a company into the ground and ruining the lives of the workers who rely on that company for their retirement benefits. The executives who are granted "golden parachutes" make out like fat cats regardless if the company does well or fails miserably after doing well for so long.
Will their be any corporate responsibility for these sort of actions? To me, it's doubtful while these same corporations are highly influental on the policies enacted at the national level.
Lo siento. You are oh so helpful as a spelling nazi. I'm sure you really had no idea what my post was about because I switched an 'e' for an 'i'. I'll make sure to run my posts through a spell checker next time so you and everyone else can understand my message. Any other suggestions, oh slashdot sage?
I've lived both places and I can say without a doubt that the L.A. Times is an order of magnitude better than the S.F. Chronicle. I haven't read the San Jose Mercury News much, but I doubt it's as good as the L.A. Times. I know that the Oakland Tribune blows too since I've read it on occasion.
The only problem I have with the Times is sometimes they focus too much on Hollywood and never really examine it with an objective eye. Oh and they don't really give much voice to the people who are for fair use instead of siding with the media content producers, but that goes along with my other point. Other than that it's great!
And according to the Dept. of Homeland Security it's an effective barrier to a chemical or biological attack! Go out and support the economy by buying these supplies, don't worry, we're not trying to stir up paranoia for our own domestic agenda...
*cough*
PATRIOT ACTS I and II
*cough*
We would never play with the American people like that.
I have to disagree with your claim that "the effects of the Iraq war aren't likely to be profound, positive OR negative". They may not be in an economic sense in the near future, but perhaps in a political sense they may be. I believe we are seeing the formation of a new (or at least growing) type of foriegn policy. The policy of "oderint dum metuant" is rearing its ugly head right now, and I don't think its increasing the safety of Americans or furthering their interests in the long run. True, most countries will be forced to concede defeat and capitulate to the power of the U.S., but eventually the luck runs out in my opinion. This policy will come around and bite us in the ass by fostering MORE anti-american rehtoric. If Europe's economy rebounds out of this recession faster and stronger than the U.S. then watch out, you may see more geopolitical wrangling across the Atlantic for years to come.
This war may be the galvinization that the people of Europe need to elect representatives that will agree with their constituents and not give the U.S. everything it wants. It could have a huge negative impact in the long run. Obviously this is speculation right now, but with the way that the world has reacted to Bush thus far, it may not be that far off. Perhaps the rest of the world put up with Regan and his policies which were very similar was becasue of the balance of power between the U.S.S.R. and the U.S. at the time.
Then what was the deal with Gulf War I? As I recall, the economy was pretty poor before that, when unemployment was still high after the trickle-down policies of the 80's. What happened after the original Gulf War? "Read my lips, no new taxes" went out the window because we were running such a rediculous deficit. Will the same thing happen with Bush II and Gulf War II? I can't say, but your claim that "every time the US economy has struggled, it has been war that has turned it around." seems to fail due to at least this counter-example.
I am not convinced that this was will help out the economy at all. In fact I'm so cynical that the only sector I think it will help will be the defense contractors. That won't be good enough to turn around consumer confidence and the like.
I haven't read the article but since I just finished up at Berkeley, I know the research projects you are referring to. In particular I work peripherally on the SmartDust Project run bt Prof. Pister. He actually has referenced the issues of "the dark side" on that webpage. So it's not like the engineers and scientists working on this research don't know the implications of their work. Basically, Pister's philosophy is that the useage of these projects should be left up to the people (or the market if you like) in determining whether it is used for invasion of privacy or not. It's not up to HIM to stop his work based on the POSSIBILITY that these things can be used for nefarious purposes. Much like the scientists that synthesized chemicals that were the precursors for chemical weapons or the nuclear physicists who worked on fission, he is not out to be the moral authority deciding what is and is not used. That's why we have governments and such.
I agree with him to an extent, and it's the perogative of each and every researcher to decide what projects he or she wants to work on. For instance, I worked one summer at Raytheon. After the summer, I reflected on the work I was doing and decided that it didn't make me feel good knowing that my work would go towards the destruction of human life. I thought "If I agreed with each and every action that my governement undertakes while using this component, then I would have no problem creating it. But if I cannot make this claim, then I don't think I should use my abilities to create destruction." So that ended my work for defense contractors, and this was in 1999 mind you, before the current geopolitical situation.
Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that it's truly up to each and every one of us to decide how technology will be applied. We elect the officials (kinda, I suppose) and we can change things if we want to. We just have to have the WILL to act, and not stand by while other interests create a society that we disagree with.
I think the guy's point was that he DOESN'T live in the US, and the way that the credit card system works in the U.S. is screwed up. I assume you do live in the U.S.
It's no wonder we have such massive amounts of consumer debt here in the states. It's simply too lucrative for the CC companies right now. They are offering credit to ANYONE nowadays. They have no interest in making sure that the application is legit. They don't get penalized for it as far as I know.
Speaking as a college student (still), I really have no idea where I'd leave this thing either on campus or at my dorm/apt. It's not like you can just lock it up to a bike rack or something since it takes up quite a bit more space right? Most college students are capable of riding a bicycle if the distance they need to travel is more than walking range, and most within walking range would prefer to walk I assume.
I must say that I agree with the above posters who say that there really isn't a wide market for this product.
Actually I did fairly well last semester (all A's, 1 B), but I progressed very little in terms of my thesis writing or research. Yes I agree being lazy is being selfish to an extent, and I truly don't think there is something inherantly wrong with being selfish sometimes. Taking it to an extreme (as with most things to the extreme) is a bad thing.
Right now I'm a little too cynical about things to think that I can "change the world" especially in my situation. Reading the headlines of the news has made me a bit depressed lately, and I can't help but being in a "funk".
Yes it's true that I could help out with teaching children or bridging the digital divide and the like, but right now I seriously don't have the motivation. To me this is not a bad thing although I do hope it ends someday and I do find the motivation to change the world and seriously help others, but right now I simply want to survive and experience the world outside of working my ass off for some corporate entity.
As for your statement that I should "be happy in my cubical" I doubt you'd say that if you really met me. It actually seems the opposite that if someone is really motivated to "earn the big bucks" and "get ahead" that those are the ones that end up in the cube-farms. I hope to avoid this as much as possible in my professional career.
Although your self-righteous attitude still comes through in your posts, I appologize for the flame as it didn't really add much to the conversation.
I've read quite a number of your posts in this thread and I really have to say you may be one of the most pompous and judgemental persons I've ever read. I know that's judgemental as well, but I can;t help thinking thes ethings when you keep writing that the choices that some of make are not the "right" ones. Personally, I am currently choosing to be lazy in my academics right now... I'm working on an advanced degree and you know what? I don't want to do very much of anything anymore. Seriously... I would like to take a 2 year vacation somewhere and use my brain for stuff that I want to like elarning a new language (and I'm not talking programming). Is ther something wrong with that? I don't think so. it's everyone's right to be "lazy" as you said. As long as I can provide for myself what the hell does it matter to you. Please stop posting your self-rightous drivel as it's gettign real old, real fast. I'm glad I don't ahve to work with you. Sorry to flame byt eh way but I just couldn't take it anymore.
In America, you're probably right. In many other countries, though, this will probbaly be less of an issue.
I can't understand why you aren't worried about the gov't having some intelligence on this sort of stuff. If you're from the UK, doesn't the CCTV thing prove the negative of your statement? I really haven't seen ANY country anywhere that is concerned with the anonymity that many of us would like to have. Please prove me wrong with soem examples. Until that time, I'm going to stick with real cash for transactions that I don't want traced back to me. The others I will use debit on.
I'm not sure how this works. You mentioned "'hidden' debit charges." Could you explain how this works?
As for debit cards here in the states, there are no "hidden" fees such as this. You aren't charged by your bank on the number of purchaces and the retail price doesn't go up simply becuase you're using plasic instead of paper. It's true that you have some monthly charges from your bank account (which issues the debit card) but this is only like $2-3 per month if you have direct deposit of your paycheck. Some banks won't charge you a dime if you satisfy some requirements (direct deposit, min balance, etc.) and then your debit card would simply be the exact same thing as cash (except tied to you and not anonymous). So could you explain how these "hidden fees" arrise? I understand that the retailer pays the vig back to the bank/credit card people or whatever but how does it affect the customer?
Oh I wish I had some mod points... I'm sure you stole this from somewhere, but it's still damn funny to me.