CyberCash, and I assume all other CC verification/payment services, sends all of its CC info over the net encrypted. The actual plaintext CC number is only in memory on the server for a few lines of code; after that, you just refer to a transaction ID supplied by CyberCash. You didn't think that people use SSL encryption to send their CC# to the website, only to have it travel in the clear to the payment service, did you?
Hmm, isn't it funny that one app, compiled into one binary with one compiler against one set of libraries, can run on 9 of those items in the list with pretty much any consumer hardware configuration, with ZERO driver configuration on the part of the user (clicking "OK" in DirectX setup does not constitute configuration).
That's pretty damn impressive.
Linux distros are a completely different animal, and the somewhat standard structure of Linux should make this problem EASIER, considering the wildly different system architectures of the DirectX compatible Microsoft OSes.
And by the way, Bob is/was not an operating system.
The Java implementation in *every* modern browser, be it Netscape, IE, or anything else, is either so horribly broken or outdated (or both) that it's not worth seriously programming for. Use the Java plugin instead; it's fast and works with every browser out there (Win32, Solaris, and Linux included), except on Macs. It's a small download for users, and in this age of Flash animations everywhere, a little plugin download doesn't really turn people away.
nope, straight from the annual report, Microsoft pulled in $22.9 billion in revenue, which comes out to $9.4 billion in net income. $150 million definitely isn't peanuts, but it wouldn't exactly be considered a main revenue stream either...
I believe that a truly dedicated kid, one who enjoys programming, will devour (or at least try) every new development environment they come across. A kid who's really interested in coding is not going to say "man, this linux thing is icky" if they got broken in with VB or Visual Studio.
However, from a practical/school system point of view, the nice thing about Microsoft development environments is that they install well onto those PCs from Dell that are shared between the C class, the BASIC class, and the word processing class. Dual booting is always an option, I guess, but try telling a overworked schoolteacher that they have to go through a 2-operating-system installation ordeal every time somebody infects a machine with a virus or hoses it some other way.
Microsoft maintains that the starting price of the X-Box will be competitive with other consoles (especially PS2), so that places it at $300. Really, when you think about it, they can't sell it for anything higher than that; the market has certain expectations for console prices.
X-Box has a mascot, her name is Raven (there's a few pics on that page). I'm sure we can expect to see her in a few games.
And here is a list of X-Box developers. The only major console game company I can think of that's missing from there is Squaresoft, who is pretty tight with Sony.
2) the x-box will be a waste of money. i've said this countless times in the past. it is a scaled-down PC. by the time it comes out (christmas of 2001 is projected) it will be obsolete already. as it is the hardware is not very impressive.
It'll be an order of magnitude better than any other console, including PS2.
especially given that it will likely cost $300-400.. you will be able to by a video card for your PC to make it outperform the x-box by the time it comes out.
It will be priced competitively, meaning $300 or less. (probably $300 though). Nobody would buy a $400 console, look at Neo-Geo's failure years ago.
And yes, you will be able to buy a more powerful PC graphics accelerator then, but guess what - no games will utilize it! Games shipping next year can't even assume the presence of hardware TnL (GeForce or better) - they still have to write for the market segment with TNT 1 and 2 cards. *EVERY* Xbox game can and will take advantage of every last drop of performance the CPU/GPU can crank out, which will make them much more impressive than the best PC games at the time.
also, other than the developers that M$ *buys* (see: bungie), it is very reasonable to expect that every game which comes out for the x-box (which will run windoze and direct-x) will also be released for the PC.
Also not true. Some console game genres don't port well to PC platforms (like fighting games), and some PC game genres don't port well to consoles (real-time-strategy games, for example). There's plenty of Playstation games ported to the PC, and I don't see Sony in any trouble...
Oh, and let's not forget that a $300 console plus $40-$50 games is much, much cheaper than a top-of-the-line $3000 PC gaming rig, plus $50-$60 games.
If this were simply a case of Microsoft choosing a bigger box for more visibility on the shelf, don't you think they'd do it for all of their software? Since that's not the case, there must be some other reason.
Consider Streets & Trips' biggest competitor, Delorme's Street Atlas USA. Look at the box picture at http://www.delorme.com/software.htm . It's big as well. I assume MS made the box big to match the size of its competitors. If you went to the store, and were uninformed about the state-of-the-art in mapping software, wouldn't you pick the big box over a smaller box, even if each contained only one or two CDs? I would.
This may or may not be relevant, but scorecard.org has info on who makes what pollution where. Additionally, it has contacts so you can email or send a fax to companies that are polluting your area. Check it out!
Tcl is a simple, stupid little language. Once someone tells you that whitespace and bracket placement is not negotiable, you're home free. It's a bit of brain damage to re-learn what braces, brackets, and parens do what, but it's not any major mental effort.
AOLserver has only about 50 API functions, and only 10 or so are really commonly used. Also, if you're doing the work in Philip's class, you have assloads of sample source to look at.
For the record, I mean no ill will against UMCP. What I mean is that if you have a choice between MIT and UMCP, and all other things are equal (you/your family can afford either one, with financial aid being factored in), there's little reason why someone would choose UMCP.
Also, there's a higher chance of getting laid at UMCP compared to MIT, according to my friends who go there. I don't doubt it a bit. That feature ranks pretty high on some peoples' lists of things they're looking for in a school.
BTW, I worked two summers at JHU, doing CS stuff in a non-CS department. I wasn't particularly impressed (it wasn't bad by any means, but not outstanding either).
And yes, cold weather sucks ass. Every now and then, you'll hear me mutter "why didn't I go to Stanford" when a cold gust of wind nearly knocks me over. But I can tolerate it... it's just cold weather; think of the much more intolerable inconveniences in life that we deal with on a daily basis. Crappy weather pales in comparison.
You know, that exact shtick is what my guidance counselors in high school were telling me about the University of Maryland versus MIT. "Why, oh why, do you set your sights on MIT, when UMCP is good enough? MIT is soooo expensive, and soooo out of your reach."
Well, guess what, I think I've gotten my money's worth (well, my parents' money's worth).
Don't allow yourself (or others) to be held back by the notion that state schools are just as good as the Ivy League schools. They aren't. Regardless of how much money you have, if you're good enough to go to Harvard, there's a way for you to attend Harvard.
I have not taken any classes at MIT that are taught by grad students (the recitation sections are sometimes taught by grad students, but that's normal). In fact, the only class in recent memory that I've taken, that wasn't taught by a professor, was 6.916, Philip Greenspun's class (which was awesome, btw). Professors do actually know some of the students' names, you can visit most of them in their offices, etc. Some of the profs that teach freshman classes are hard to get to, though.
I do agree with your views on the SAT, it is partially just a game, and certain time/effort/money investments can be traded for higher scores. However, not many people, prep course or not, can break 1500 on the SATs. It is, at some level, some sort of indicator of critical thinking ability. If it were purely a measure of financial ability or "aristocracy", it would be thrown out immediately.
Most decent schools know that SAT scores don't mean much, and that's why there's stuff like an essay requirement, an interview, and teacher recommendations. It's the whole package that is considered, not just the SAT score.
Philip and Alex's Guide to Web Publishing is a great book, but it's not a good reference if you're looking for nitty-gritty coding knowhow. It seeks to avoid that stuff, since you should be able to think about building web sites on a higher level, where the particular language doesn't matter.
However, if you'd like to be a web coding ninja, do problem sets 1-5 on this site. If you don't have the exact environment in which to complete them (AOLserver, Oracle, CyberCash account), improvise. After completing those, you should be able to tackle anything, and you'll know how to code a great site.
Umm, Tom's Hardware is not all that reputable, especially after that fiasco a while back about his involvement with NVIDIA. I think he's apologized, but the suspicion is still there. Frankly, I don't really trust ANY website with accurate benchmarks - I trust my own judgement after I read all of the benchmarks on all sites.
Tom and his hardware aside, I think that open benchmarking tools are a good idea. However, we might see a different set of problems, in that if the hardware company knows exactly what code is going to be executed to benchmark their product, they can optimize/cheat for that code.
Yeah, no problems until someone clones your phone and makes an 8 hour call to Afghanistan. There's nothing like sending your credentials in the clear! Sure, you can do things like forcing yourself to enter a PIN before making a call, but hell, it's a phone, and it's supposed to be convenient.
Within a metropolitan area, digital service kicks the crap out of analog service. Outside the city, analog is best, because, duh, analog is all that's out there. But you won't get full 3 watt broadcasting from a handset, which is what's necessary for a good analog connection.
I recently got a dual-band digital StarTac from Sprint PCS to replace my Qualcomm QCP-2700. Not only is the StarTac smaller and lighter, but the call reception is MUCH better, even better than my friend's Nokia 6185 (which is also Sprint PCS). I got the StarTac because I think these tiny little Nokia phones are just too damn small for my hands. The StarTac is large enough to hold comfortably when it's open, and nice and small when it's closed. Best of both worlds, I guess.
Get a dual-band phone, even if you don't plan to leave populated areas that often. One of my friends was in a remote location recently, and another car in his group was in a very bad accident (drunk driver in the snow hit them, grrr). Without analog capability, he would not have been able to call the paramedics.
I highly recommend the StarTac, it has great battery life and great reception, and it looks very cool.
The only company I know of that's making money hand over fist, and all the while giving away all their source code, is ArsDigita. They do a lot of work with AOLserver, but more importantly, their ArsDigita Community System is totally open and free to anyone. Their angle: it takes a smart (and well-paid) group of people to apply these tools to a client's needs (also, there's a lot more to web development than code).
If you were worried about Big Brother coming and putting a silenced bullet in your back, don't you think one of the last things you would consider is talking on a damn cell phone?
Frankly, I don't give a crap what the gov't knows about me. Hell, if a team of spooks is working round the clock just to track everything I do, that's almost flattering. In any case, my life isn't interesting or dangerous enough to warrant investigation.
Kinda weird, since just about every MS employee with a cell phone has an AT&T digital phone (MS employees get a small discount). No discounts for Sprint though.
When a developer decides to make a Dreamcast game, they can choose between Windows CE and Sega's OS that they developed for the DC. I'm sure that each one has their respective plusses and minuses. The chosen OS is put on the game disc with each game.
second, he sues me, I show the judge a nice green piece of cardboard paper, judge says case dismissed
Forgive my lack of cluefulness, but what is Slade referring to here? Does he mean a "green card", i.e. Slade is a permanent resident of the U.S., not a citizen? Are you not allowed to sue people with green cards or something?
Sure, Quark is a major kick in the wallet, but there's other, cheaper packages out there that don't make you resort to sticks and rocks (e.g. LaTeX). For example, Adobe PageMaker is pretty decent. It's no Quark, but it's decent. PageMaker is not too expensive. Just sell some ads and pick up a copy or two. You should be able to get an academic discount.
Word is for writing reports and letters, and if you have graphical needs, seek other packages.
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CyberCash, and I assume all other CC verification/payment services, sends all of its CC info over the net encrypted. The actual plaintext CC number is only in memory on the server for a few lines of code; after that, you just refer to a transaction ID supplied by CyberCash. You didn't think that people use SSL encryption to send their CC# to the website, only to have it travel in the clear to the payment service, did you?
Hmm, isn't it funny that one app, compiled into one binary with one compiler against one set of libraries, can run on 9 of those items in the list with pretty much any consumer hardware configuration, with ZERO driver configuration on the part of the user (clicking "OK" in DirectX setup does not constitute configuration).
That's pretty damn impressive.
Linux distros are a completely different animal, and the somewhat standard structure of Linux should make this problem EASIER, considering the wildly different system architectures of the DirectX compatible Microsoft OSes.
And by the way, Bob is/was not an operating system.
The Java implementation in *every* modern browser, be it Netscape, IE, or anything else, is either so horribly broken or outdated (or both) that it's not worth seriously programming for. Use the Java plugin instead; it's fast and works with every browser out there (Win32, Solaris, and Linux included), except on Macs. It's a small download for users, and in this age of Flash animations everywhere, a little plugin download doesn't really turn people away.
http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.3.0_01/jre/index.html
nope, straight from the annual report, Microsoft pulled in $22.9 billion in revenue, which comes out to $9.4 billion in net income. $150 million definitely isn't peanuts, but it wouldn't exactly be considered a main revenue stream either...
I believe that a truly dedicated kid, one who enjoys programming, will devour (or at least try) every new development environment they come across. A kid who's really interested in coding is not going to say "man, this linux thing is icky" if they got broken in with VB or Visual Studio.
However, from a practical/school system point of view, the nice thing about Microsoft development environments is that they install well onto those PCs from Dell that are shared between the C class, the BASIC class, and the word processing class. Dual booting is always an option, I guess, but try telling a overworked schoolteacher that they have to go through a 2-operating-system installation ordeal every time somebody infects a machine with a virus or hoses it some other way.
Microsoft maintains that the starting price of the X-Box will be competitive with other consoles (especially PS2), so that places it at $300. Really, when you think about it, they can't sell it for anything higher than that; the market has certain expectations for console prices.
X-Box has a mascot, her name is Raven (there's a few pics on that page). I'm sure we can expect to see her in a few games.
And here is a list of X-Box developers. The only major console game company I can think of that's missing from there is Squaresoft, who is pretty tight with Sony.
Your Xbox conclusions are pretty uninformed.
2) the x-box will be a waste of money. i've said this countless times in the past. it is a scaled-down PC. by the time it comes out (christmas of 2001 is projected) it will be obsolete already. as it is the hardware is not very impressive.
It'll be an order of magnitude better than any other console, including PS2.
especially given that it will likely cost $300-400 .. you will be able to by a video card for your PC to make it outperform the x-box by the time it comes out.
It will be priced competitively, meaning $300 or less. (probably $300 though). Nobody would buy a $400 console, look at Neo-Geo's failure years ago.
And yes, you will be able to buy a more powerful PC graphics accelerator then, but guess what - no games will utilize it! Games shipping next year can't even assume the presence of hardware TnL (GeForce or better) - they still have to write for the market segment with TNT 1 and 2 cards. *EVERY* Xbox game can and will take advantage of every last drop of performance the CPU/GPU can crank out, which will make them much more impressive than the best PC games at the time.
also, other than the developers that M$ *buys* (see: bungie), it is very reasonable to expect that every game which comes out for the x-box (which will run windoze and direct-x) will also be released for the PC.
Also not true. Some console game genres don't port well to PC platforms (like fighting games), and some PC game genres don't port well to consoles (real-time-strategy games, for example). There's plenty of Playstation games ported to the PC, and I don't see Sony in any trouble...
Oh, and let's not forget that a $300 console plus $40-$50 games is much, much cheaper than a top-of-the-line $3000 PC gaming rig, plus $50-$60 games.
If this were simply a case of Microsoft choosing a bigger box for more visibility on the shelf, don't you think they'd do it for all of their software? Since that's not the case, there must be some other reason.
Consider Streets & Trips' biggest competitor, Delorme's Street Atlas USA. Look at the box picture at http://www.delorme.com/software.htm . It's big as well. I assume MS made the box big to match the size of its competitors. If you went to the store, and were uninformed about the state-of-the-art in mapping software, wouldn't you pick the big box over a smaller box, even if each contained only one or two CDs? I would.
This may or may not be relevant, but scorecard.org has info on who makes what pollution where. Additionally, it has contacts so you can email or send a fax to companies that are polluting your area. Check it out!
dude, it's freaking simple.
Tcl is a simple, stupid little language. Once someone tells you that whitespace and bracket placement is not negotiable, you're home free. It's a bit of brain damage to re-learn what braces, brackets, and parens do what, but it's not any major mental effort.
AOLserver has only about 50 API functions, and only 10 or so are really commonly used. Also, if you're doing the work in Philip's class, you have assloads of sample source to look at.
For the record, I mean no ill will against UMCP. What I mean is that if you have a choice between MIT and UMCP, and all other things are equal (you/your family can afford either one, with financial aid being factored in), there's little reason why someone would choose UMCP.
Also, there's a higher chance of getting laid at UMCP compared to MIT, according to my friends who go there. I don't doubt it a bit. That feature ranks pretty high on some peoples' lists of things they're looking for in a school.
BTW, I worked two summers at JHU, doing CS stuff in a non-CS department. I wasn't particularly impressed (it wasn't bad by any means, but not outstanding either).
And yes, cold weather sucks ass. Every now and then, you'll hear me mutter "why didn't I go to Stanford" when a cold gust of wind nearly knocks me over. But I can tolerate it... it's just cold weather; think of the much more intolerable inconveniences in life that we deal with on a daily basis. Crappy weather pales in comparison.
You know, that exact shtick is what my guidance counselors in high school were telling me about the University of Maryland versus MIT. "Why, oh why, do you set your sights on MIT, when UMCP is good enough? MIT is soooo expensive, and soooo out of your reach."
Well, guess what, I think I've gotten my money's worth (well, my parents' money's worth).
Don't allow yourself (or others) to be held back by the notion that state schools are just as good as the Ivy League schools. They aren't. Regardless of how much money you have, if you're good enough to go to Harvard, there's a way for you to attend Harvard.
I have not taken any classes at MIT that are taught by grad students (the recitation sections are sometimes taught by grad students, but that's normal). In fact, the only class in recent memory that I've taken, that wasn't taught by a professor, was 6.916, Philip Greenspun's class (which was awesome, btw). Professors do actually know some of the students' names, you can visit most of them in their offices, etc. Some of the profs that teach freshman classes are hard to get to, though.
I do agree with your views on the SAT, it is partially just a game, and certain time/effort/money investments can be traded for higher scores. However, not many people, prep course or not, can break 1500 on the SATs. It is, at some level, some sort of indicator of critical thinking ability. If it were purely a measure of financial ability or "aristocracy", it would be thrown out immediately.
Most decent schools know that SAT scores don't mean much, and that's why there's stuff like an essay requirement, an interview, and teacher recommendations. It's the whole package that is considered, not just the SAT score.
Cool, that fixed my problem. Thanks!
Now, I have a fully functional wad of crap on my hard drive, if you can call this game functional. I can't believe how bad this game is.
Philip and Alex's Guide to Web Publishing is a great book, but it's not a good reference if you're looking for nitty-gritty coding knowhow. It seeks to avoid that stuff, since you should be able to think about building web sites on a higher level, where the particular language doesn't matter.
However, if you'd like to be a web coding ninja, do problem sets 1-5 on this site. If you don't have the exact environment in which to complete them (AOLserver, Oracle, CyberCash account), improvise. After completing those, you should be able to tackle anything, and you'll know how to code a great site.
Umm, Tom's Hardware is not all that reputable, especially after that fiasco a while back about his involvement with NVIDIA. I think he's apologized, but the suspicion is still there. Frankly, I don't really trust ANY website with accurate benchmarks - I trust my own judgement after I read all of the benchmarks on all sites.
Tom and his hardware aside, I think that open benchmarking tools are a good idea. However, we might see a different set of problems, in that if the hardware company knows exactly what code is going to be executed to benchmark their product, they can optimize/cheat for that code.
Yeah, no problems until someone clones your phone and makes an 8 hour call to Afghanistan. There's nothing like sending your credentials in the clear! Sure, you can do things like forcing yourself to enter a PIN before making a call, but hell, it's a phone, and it's supposed to be convenient.
Within a metropolitan area, digital service kicks the crap out of analog service. Outside the city, analog is best, because, duh, analog is all that's out there. But you won't get full 3 watt broadcasting from a handset, which is what's necessary for a good analog connection.
I recently got a dual-band digital StarTac from Sprint PCS to replace my Qualcomm QCP-2700. Not only is the StarTac smaller and lighter, but the call reception is MUCH better, even better than my friend's Nokia 6185 (which is also Sprint PCS). I got the StarTac because I think these tiny little Nokia phones are just too damn small for my hands. The StarTac is large enough to hold comfortably when it's open, and nice and small when it's closed. Best of both worlds, I guess.
Get a dual-band phone, even if you don't plan to leave populated areas that often. One of my friends was in a remote location recently, and another car in his group was in a very bad accident (drunk driver in the snow hit them, grrr). Without analog capability, he would not have been able to call the paramedics.
I highly recommend the StarTac, it has great battery life and great reception, and it looks very cool.
Well, you're almost right.
The only company I know of that's making money hand over fist, and all the while giving away all their source code, is ArsDigita. They do a lot of work with AOLserver, but more importantly, their ArsDigita Community System is totally open and free to anyone. Their angle: it takes a smart (and well-paid) group of people to apply these tools to a client's needs (also, there's a lot more to web development than code).
If you were worried about Big Brother coming and putting a silenced bullet in your back, don't you think one of the last things you would consider is talking on a damn cell phone?
Frankly, I don't give a crap what the gov't knows about me. Hell, if a team of spooks is working round the clock just to track everything I do, that's almost flattering. In any case, my life isn't interesting or dangerous enough to warrant investigation.
Kinda weird, since just about every MS employee with a cell phone has an AT&T digital phone (MS employees get a small discount). No discounts for Sprint though.
When a developer decides to make a Dreamcast game, they can choose between Windows CE and Sega's OS that they developed for the DC. I'm sure that each one has their respective plusses and minuses. The chosen OS is put on the game disc with each game.
second, he sues me, I show the judge a nice green piece of cardboard paper, judge says case dismissed
Forgive my lack of cluefulness, but what is Slade referring to here? Does he mean a "green card", i.e. Slade is a permanent resident of the U.S., not a citizen? Are you not allowed to sue people with green cards or something?
...use publishing software!
Sure, Quark is a major kick in the wallet, but there's other, cheaper packages out there that don't make you resort to sticks and rocks (e.g. LaTeX). For example, Adobe PageMaker is pretty decent. It's no Quark, but it's decent. PageMaker is not too expensive. Just sell some ads and pick up a copy or two. You should be able to get an academic discount.
Word is for writing reports and letters, and if you have graphical needs, seek other packages.
Whoops, you're right. Time to get some sleep.
This page has links to all of Maryland's representatives and senators, which then have contact links on their respective pages.