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User: barzok

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  1. Re:Android respects freedom 0 for apps on RMS: 'Is Android Really Free Software?' · · Score: 1

    Of course, that same freedom does not apply to REMOVING applications. unless I root my phone, there are several applications pre-installed that I cannot remove, and nag me every few weeks to buy.. CityID, i'm looking at you, as well as my cell phone companies "Navigator" product, which is much less useful than Google Maps, which is also installed on the darn phone

    Your beef here is with your carrier and to a lesser extent the phone manufacturer, not Google/Android

  2. Re:Interpol alert rescinded? on Sarah Palin 'Target WikiLeaks Like Taliban' · · Score: 1

    not the sort of person they are supposed to be looking for?

    Why? Is he a droid, and was the ghost of Sir Alec Guinness seen in the area of Interpol HQ?

  3. Re:Sarah Palin... on Sarah Palin 'Target WikiLeaks Like Taliban' · · Score: 1

    McCain didn't choose her. Once they realized that the election was almost unwinnable, the Republicans picked her to finish throwing the election while at the same time gathering massive media attention.

  4. Re:Fantastic on New MacBook Pros To Sport Light Peak Technology · · Score: 1

    I recently happened upon an old Popular Mechanics magazine from the 1950s. It dealt extensively with automotive topics. It struck me how much people had to know about their car's inner workings to properly maintain it. Today, you really don't have to know what kind of spark system your car has, or what kind of plugs it uses, or what kind of fuel delivery system it has. You don't have to clean varnish out of the carbuerator every year, or have the piston rings done at 60k miles. You don't have to replace the plugs and points every 10k miles. Just keep gas in it, make sure you change the oil, and take it somewhere for minor maintenance every year or two.

    Cars have swung too far in that direction. More and more, they're getting to a "no user-serviceable parts" state. You're expected to bring the car to the expensive dealer for everything, or just replace the car when big maintenance is required. Recently, one of the headlights on my wife's car burned out. I checked the manual, it said to turn the steering wheel all the way to the opposite side, remove a couple clips, pull the fender liner back, and reach up and in to remove & replace the bulb.

    I spent 30 minutes in the driveway attempting to follow those instructions, but the liner would not move far enough for me to get my arm in there. Finally I relented, spent 15 minutes putting it back together, and sent my wife to the dealer. It took the dealer 45 minutes to do, and they had to remove the wheel completely (the new bulb & labor were covered under warranty). IMO, this is a ridiculous amount of work required to replace a light bulb.

    Chrysler PT Cruiser? The battery is buried behind the right front suspension. There's a couple terminals located under the hood if you have to jump the car, but good luck replacing the battery in the Sears parking lot.

  5. Re:Assume it's in the mainframe world on CA Sues Over DB2 Migration Tool · · Score: 1

    Step 1: Migrate to DB2
    Step 2: Migrate DB2 to non-mainframe hardware
    Step 3: Scale back or eliminate mainframe expense due to lower usage requirements
    Step 4: Maybe not profit, but at least you're spending less.

  6. Re:For the better? on Sony Adopts Objective-C and GNUstep Frameworks · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Just because something is popular & widespread, doesn't mean it's high-quality.

    And just because something is not widespread, does not mean that it isn't high-quality.

  7. Re:Great - now put FiOS here please on Verizon Speeds Up FiOS To 150Mbps · · Score: 1

    There is a Verizon substation 2 blocks from my house - less than half a mile. FiOS isn't even "coming soon" - they won't even tell you that they're considering offering it.

  8. Re:Shame on Utah vs. NASA On Heavy-Lift Rocket Design · · Score: 1

    Short of making sperm they are useless

    So you don't need testosterone?

  9. Re:Follow the money on New Bill Would Put DHS In Charge of 'Critical' Private Networks · · Score: 1
  10. Follow the money on New Bill Would Put DHS In Charge of 'Critical' Private Networks · · Score: 2, Informative

    How would this benefit Rep. Thompson's campaign & PAC funding? "Defense Electronics" firms are the #3 contributor to his campaign & leadership PAC for 2009-2010. "Computers/Internet" were #3 for the 2008 campaign.

    http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?cid=N00003288

  11. Re:But TVs are OK?! on US May Disable All Car Phones, Says Trans. Secretary · · Score: 1

    In-dash screens have an interlock on them to prevent them from being used when the vehicle is in motion.

    It's pretty easy to disable, especially the aftermarket ones.

  12. Re:VSS All the Way on An Illustrated Version Control Timeline · · Score: 1

    The false sense of security you get with VSS is worse than having nothing at all.

  13. Re:Hmmm .... on Mystery Missile Launched Near LA · · Score: 1

    Because they may have forgotten that we've been capable of doing it for 50 years?

  14. Re:time to start using my macbook on my lap then on Is Your Laptop Cooking Your Testicles? · · Score: 1

    The parts of a MacBook that get warmest are furthest from your nads when using it on your lap.

  15. Re:opposing cylinders? on Looking To Better Engines Instead of Electric Vehicles · · Score: 2, Informative

    Subaru? A gentleman by the name of Ferdinand Porsche (perhaps you've heard of him) sold/licensed the original Boxer engine design to Subaru.

  16. Re:Is this story for real? on iPhone Alarm Bug Leads To Mass European Sleep-in · · Score: 4, Funny

    Alarm clock? I haven't needed an alarm clock for almost 4 years.

    I'm sure it's merely a coincidence that my eldest child is almost 4 years old now.

  17. Re:It's true! on Mount Everest Gets 3G Service · · Score: 1

    You're talking about Rob Hall. May 1996 was a very bad month on Everest. I'm not sure how to feel about Hall - he was a very accomplished climber and guide, and was very conscious of safety concerns.

    However, on that expedition, he had a client with him who had previously attempted Everest with him, and they were unable to make the summit. Hall pressed forward in 1996, hell-bent on getting that client to the summit to make up the previous failure, completely ignoring his 2 PM "point of no return" deadline - all climbers in his group were to turn back & return to the high camp regardless of where they were on the mountain, but he kept pushing forward instead.

    I don't want to ever hear that conversation. If you want to read first-hand accounts of what happened that year, read Into Thin Air (I hate Krakauer; that book is more like first-and-a-half account, because Krakauer spent a lot of time in his tent) and The Climb (co-written Anatoly Boukareev, who had summited w/o supplemental Oxygen and then went back out to rescue people), and what he wrote is why I don't like Krakauer). It's haunting.

    The IMAX crew helped with the rescue effort for several of the climbers who got caught out in that storm that blew in that day and summited later in the month. Those guys are the heroes.

  18. Re:The letter on The Time Travel Paradoxes of Back To the Future · · Score: 1

    The map & schematics were packaged with the letter.

  19. Re:Omni Outliner Pro on How Do You Manage the Information In Your Life? · · Score: 1

    That's way easier said than done. Simple backup doesn't cut it for the corruption example, as the backup may have been corrupt too unless you noticed the problem before making the next backup. Basically your backup regime would require a history of backups much like Time Machine, so that you can always find a backup dated from before the corruption was introduced.

    Then I guess it's a good thing that every computer Omni Outliner can run on is capable of using Time Machine, isn't it?

  20. Re:Strange Name on Microsoft Announces Web-Based Office365 · · Score: 1

    There won't be version numbers. They'll just roll out updates, fixes & new features over time. Just like Google Docs and GMail - I don't recall seeing version numbers there, updates just roll out every now and then.

  21. Re:Wrong order on Convincing Your Employer To Go With FOSS? · · Score: 1

    one of the trustees was also a high level employee at a local enterprise. He used his company discount to get them a new copy of Microsoft Office

    Most likely, his company discount only got him a license to use that copy of Office on his own computer(s) for his own personal use. He may have saved them money that day, but if anyone should happen to do a software license audit on the church, it'll cost them much more than they "saved."

  22. Re:Yes, but is it dishwasher safe? on Tablets Are Game-Changers For Special Needs Kids · · Score: 1

    If you visit a local meeting of whatever autism or other handicap support organization is in your community, I guarantee this is NOT what you will see. You will meet families struggling to keep their homes and their sanity in the face of impossible demands on their time, health and budget.

    My wife works with a lot of kids like yours, all over the Autism Spectrum (social worker/service coordinator). Her clients range anywhere from families living in 11,000 square foot mansions to those living in a seedy motel & having to choose between diapers for their newborn, putting gas in the car, and making this week's rent payment (yet both parents smoke at least a pack of cigarettes a day).

    The parents in the middle to lower income brackets (excluding those at the absolute bottom) tend to be the most invested in getting their kids the services they need and more understanding of the policies & procedures that go along with everything. The really rich ones tend to either be in denial about their kids' needs, are actively unhelpful, or unreasonably demanding (demanding things that simply can't be done/given to them).

  23. Re:Define "Public" on Researchers Test WiFi Access From Moving Vehicles · · Score: 1

    Or, if you leave your blinds open and your big screen T.V. on, should I be able to stand on the public sidewalk and watch?

    At least until the NFL catches wind of it and drops lawyers on you for a public showing of their broadcast without express written consent.

  24. Re:Great idea. on Facebook Introduces One-Time Passwords · · Score: 1

    And here I thought they just buried it on the site and I couldn't find it. They completely did away with it? Jerks.

  25. Re:Dont' call your lawyer? on College Student Finds GPS On Car, FBI Retrieves It · · Score: 1

    They said that because they don't want to get sued for violation of his civil rights. Some shyster will want the case.

    The ACLU is already involved.