"Where We Started Amazon.com opened its virtual doors in July 1995 with a mission to use the Internet to transform book buying into the fastest, easiest, and most enjoyable shopping experience possible. " http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/subst/misc/co mpa ny-info.html/ref=gw_bt_aa/103-5416636-1731026
Surely that alone would be sufficient to prove their claim vexatious.
What is the despicable thing they do? Conduct essential medical research, under very strict regulations.
If you have a problem with that, you are free to forego the benefits of modern medicine at your peril, but don't deny others these rights! Oh, and I just have to point out that you're associating yourself with people who will attempt to kill people with carbombs to protect rats.....
Well, I've ordered from scan dozens of times, always had everything delivered on time next day without problems. That's more than I can say for any other company I've ever ordered from.
Of course, YMMV
Another interesting site in the UK is www.kustompcs.co.uk - mainly because they sell the Yeong Yang Black Server Cube. Haven't tried them yet, but I'll be getting my next case from them
Re:Globalization - We didn't vote for it.
on
Globalization
·
· Score: 2, Insightful
Of course people voted for it. Every day they buy a coffee at starbucks they are voting for it.
If the majority didn't want it, it wouldn't happen.
... but a theory. Admittedly it's a theory with a lot of supporting evidence, but it's still a theory.
Science doesn't generally produce facts, but theories, which stand until they are falsified. There's no claim to "truth", just an attempt at ever closer approximation.
actually this isn't due to vodafone being a huge multinational (though it is), but due to the fact that mobile companies everywhere except the US have standardised on GSM....
Heaven forbid that you'd expose an ML programmer to Perl ideas, or a Perl programmer to ML ideas. If we allowed people to broaden their mind, who knows what they'll come up with:;
Re:I have a question...
on
New Crypto-OS
·
· Score: 1
Quite how will it do that? If I'm a money-laundering, drug selling terrorist child-pornographer I'm not going to hand my keys over to the police, am I? I'll go to jail briefly for failing to hand over the keys, instead of doing 25 years for my real crimes.
47 * 6 = 282. Which, given the overtime, sounds about right:(
But anyway, the whole slant of that article w.r.t. coding vs other things is silly: A car development engineer might only spend a few weeks a year actually thinking up new stuff - the rest of the time he's refining the engine, setting up testbeds, testing the engine, evaluating the results of the test, retesting, modifying the test environment.......
Thinking of or writing down new things isn't usually the issue with engineering - it's testing, making sure things work.
As for the cost of running a network... true. There's a lot of accidental complexity in that, which we should work out to make it accesible to more people. However, the same nonprofits wouldn't expect to run a fleet of 15 vehicles without occasional recourse to a professional mechanic, would they?
Another thing I'd like to know is how many of the non-profits are big enough to need a network > 15 Computers anyway?
Well, things like the NIC (http://www.thinknic.com) sound like a solution to the latter problem: Linux based, but with support for Windows terminal server, cheap ($199 w/o monitor) and virus proof - sounds like a perfect option for an educational environment to me.
Well, 90% of the kids learning on Macs and later moving to Windows will be using MS Office on either platform - and if they can't cope with the extra mouse button, then they are probably beyond hope anyway:)
The key question, though, is what schools should teach: Is it training - how to use WordProcessor 2.1.3.1b on OperatingSystem 17.2.1.a - or education - How does a computer work? How do I program it? What makes good programs? What are the essentials of Computer Science?
If the former, then MS products are obviously the right thing to use, since training should focus on immediately applicable skills. If it's education you are after, then the OS is less important, but exposure to variety of systems helps.
This is going OT a bit, but higher level languages ARE a lot more productive than lower level ones. Of course, there are drawbacks as well, usually in performance terms, but programmer time is usually more important than execution time.
As opposed to the US, where COPA of course wasn't passed as law because it was clearly unconstitutional, and didn't have to be sued out of the lawbooks by the ACLU.....
Not that I'm against introducing an explicit written constitution in the UK, preferrably with some drastic reforms, but it's not the only way. People just end up sueing the government in the European court of human rights instead.
Re:A long slippery slope down to Hell
on
Frankenstein Time
·
· Score: 1
How is preventing - say - Down's Syndrome or Spina Bifida worse than penicillin? Or any of the other medical advances we've encountered in the last few decades?
Indeed, Ted Nelson's stuff is useful prior art; also Vannevar Bush's "As we may think" was published in the late 40's / early 50s and definitely described hyperlinks.
So, a pretty obviously stupid patent. Even more stupid of BT that they want to enforce it - their chances of getting money are slim, and the negative publicity is just _bad_.
... not necessarily enough, and they don't reach as many people as they should, but they exist. E.g. my sister in law in Nigeria communicates with us almost exclusively via email. Admittedly this is in the city - the situation in the countryside may be different.
I think the main problems that would be faced are the lack of telecoms infrastructure, and the sheer cost of hardware. USD/GBP 400 for a PC may be cheap in the western world, but it's a lot of money elsewhere!
BTW, if anyone is aware of a simple, cheap email device that can be used with arbitrary ISPs I'd be extremely interested to hear more
I know Corel is no longer directly in charge of the NetWinder, but maybe you can still answer my questions: Although the NetWinders are extremely tempting machines, they seem considerably overpriced for their speed. Are you considering dropping the prices?
I'm really having a hard time understanding the point of this law: If I'm a terrorist, am I likely to be coerced by two years jailtime into revealing a key that will decode messages that will land me in jail for life? Terrorists may be stupid, but I doubt that they are THAT stupid.
On the other hand, if this were rigorously enforced, you could (anonymously of course) send people you dislike a random block of data and tip off the police that they have encrypted messages pertaining to a crime....
Basically this relates to tipping off people about communication interception being illegal. I.e. if the police demand that you decrypt the email I have been sending you, you can't tell me (or anyone else) about it - otherwise it's straight to jail without passing go.
In itself that is fair enough - after all you don't want to allow one of the proverbial peadophiles/drug traffickers/international terrorists to tip off their colleagues. What is insidiuous is that the government under the current proposals will not be required to reveal the interception / decryption request even after the fact - not even in summary form. In other words, the government can claim that this law is very effective in preventing crime without ever having to prove it...
I don't usually subscribe to conspiracy theories, but this is beginning to suck. But at least we still have the European Court of Human Rights to fall back on.
No, the UK does not have a freedom of information act. The government promised one when it was the opposition, but AFAIK the current proposals are so watered down as to be effectively useless.
As long as the punishment is in proportion to the crime....defacing a website like this is more akin to spraying grafitti than to robbing a bank. So the guy should be getting a fine or a similar slap on the wrist. What he will get is the same as Kevin Mitnick - several years locked up waiting for a trial.
Slashdot Mirror
"Where We Startedo mpa ny-info.html/ref=gw_bt_aa/103-5416636-1731026
Amazon.com opened its virtual doors in July 1995 with a mission to use the Internet to transform book buying into the fastest, easiest, and most enjoyable shopping experience possible. "
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/subst/misc/c
Surely that alone would be sufficient to prove their claim vexatious.
What is the despicable thing they do? Conduct essential medical research, under very strict regulations.
If you have a problem with that, you are free to forego the benefits of modern medicine at your peril, but don't deny others these rights! Oh, and I just have to point out that you're associating yourself with people who will attempt to kill people with carbombs to protect rats.....
Well, I've ordered from scan dozens of times, always had everything delivered on time next day without problems. That's more than I can say for any other company I've ever ordered from.
Of course, YMMV
Another interesting site in the UK is www.kustompcs.co.uk - mainly because they sell the Yeong Yang Black Server Cube. Haven't tried them yet, but I'll be getting my next case from them
Of course people voted for it. Every day they buy a coffee at starbucks they are voting for it.
If the majority didn't want it, it wouldn't happen.
Of course you forget that python also runs on the JVM, and hence python supports GUI toolkits on at least as many platforms as Java
regarding your sig: Inheritance, and luck. If you're so smart, how come *you* ain't rich yet? (I'm not rich either...) :>
... but a theory. Admittedly it's a theory with a lot of supporting evidence, but it's still a theory.
Science doesn't generally produce facts, but theories, which stand until they are falsified. There's no claim to "truth", just an attempt at ever closer approximation.
actually this isn't due to vodafone being a huge multinational (though it is), but due to the fact that mobile companies everywhere except the US have standardised on GSM....
Why do you think everyone who visits the US from the EU comes back with more luggage than they leave? :)
Heaven forbid that you'd expose an ML programmer to Perl ideas, or a Perl programmer to ML ideas. If we allowed people to broaden their mind, who knows what they'll come up with :;
Quite how will it do that? If I'm a money-laundering, drug selling terrorist child-pornographer I'm not going to hand my keys over to the police, am I? I'll go to jail briefly for failing to hand over the keys, instead of doing 25 years for my real crimes.
47 * 6 = 282. Which, given the overtime, sounds about right :(
But anyway, the whole slant of that article w.r.t. coding vs other things is silly: A car development engineer might only spend a few weeks a year actually thinking up new stuff - the rest of the time he's refining the engine, setting up testbeds, testing the engine, evaluating the results of the test, retesting, modifying the test environment.......
Thinking of or writing down new things isn't usually the issue with engineering - it's testing, making sure things work.
As for the cost of running a network... true. There's a lot of accidental complexity in that, which we should work out to make it accesible to more people. However, the same nonprofits wouldn't expect to run a fleet of 15 vehicles without occasional recourse to a professional mechanic, would they?
Another thing I'd like to know is how many of the non-profits are big enough to need a network > 15 Computers anyway?
Well, things like the NIC (http://www.thinknic.com) sound like a solution to the latter problem: Linux based, but with support for Windows terminal server, cheap ($199 w/o monitor) and virus proof - sounds like a perfect option for an educational environment to me.
Your six year old daughter is learning POKER? Well, at least she's getting a headstart on the really important skills in life! :)
Well, 90% of the kids learning on Macs and later moving to Windows will be using MS Office on either platform - and if they can't cope with the extra mouse button, then they are probably beyond hope anyway :)
The key question, though, is what schools should teach: Is it training - how to use WordProcessor 2.1.3.1b on OperatingSystem 17.2.1.a - or education - How does a computer work? How do I program it? What makes good programs? What are the essentials of Computer Science?
If the former, then MS products are obviously the right thing to use, since training should focus on immediately applicable skills. If it's education you are after, then the OS is less important, but exposure to variety of systems helps.
This is going OT a bit, but higher level languages ARE a lot more productive than lower level ones. Of course, there are drawbacks as well, usually in performance terms, but programmer time is usually more important than execution time.
As opposed to the US, where COPA of course wasn't passed as law because it was clearly unconstitutional, and didn't have to be sued out of the lawbooks by the ACLU.....
Not that I'm against introducing an explicit written constitution in the UK, preferrably with some drastic reforms, but it's not the only way. People just end up sueing the government in the European court of human rights instead.
How is preventing - say - Down's Syndrome or Spina Bifida worse than penicillin? Or any of the other medical advances we've encountered in the last few decades?
Indeed, Ted Nelson's stuff is useful prior art; also Vannevar Bush's "As we may think" was published in the late 40's / early 50s and definitely described hyperlinks.
So, a pretty obviously stupid patent. Even more stupid of BT that they want to enforce it - their chances of getting money are slim, and the negative publicity is just _bad_.
... not necessarily enough, and they don't reach as many people as they should, but they exist. E.g. my sister in law in Nigeria communicates with us almost exclusively via email. Admittedly this is in the city - the situation in the countryside may be different.
I think the main problems that would be faced are the lack of telecoms infrastructure, and the sheer cost of hardware. USD/GBP 400 for a PC may be cheap in the western world, but it's a lot of money elsewhere!
BTW, if anyone is aware of a simple, cheap email device that can be used with arbitrary ISPs I'd be extremely interested to hear more
I know Corel is no longer directly in charge of the NetWinder, but maybe you can still answer my questions: Although the NetWinders are extremely tempting machines, they seem considerably overpriced for their speed. Are you considering dropping the prices?
If you loose the key - you're foo bar'ed.
I'm really having a hard time understanding the point of this law: If I'm a terrorist, am I likely to be coerced by two years jailtime into revealing a key that will decode messages that will land me in jail for life? Terrorists may be stupid, but I doubt that they are THAT stupid.
On the other hand, if this were rigorously enforced, you could (anonymously of course) send people you dislike a random block of data and tip off the police that they have encrypted messages pertaining to a crime....
Basically this relates to tipping off people about communication interception being illegal. I.e. if the police demand that you decrypt the email I have been sending you, you can't tell me (or anyone else) about it - otherwise it's straight to jail without passing go.
...
In itself that is fair enough - after all you don't want to allow one of the proverbial peadophiles/drug traffickers/international terrorists to tip off their colleagues. What is insidiuous is that the government under the current proposals will not be required to reveal the interception / decryption request even after the fact - not even in summary form. In other words, the government can claim that this law is very effective in preventing crime without ever having to prove it
I don't usually subscribe to conspiracy theories, but this is beginning to suck. But at least we still have the European Court of Human Rights to fall back on.
No, the UK does not have a freedom of information act. The government promised one when it was the opposition, but AFAIK the current proposals are so watered down as to be effectively useless.
As long as the punishment is in proportion to the crime....defacing a website like this is more akin to spraying grafitti than to robbing a bank. So the guy should be getting a fine or a similar slap on the wrist.
What he will get is the same as Kevin Mitnick - several years locked up waiting for a trial.