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User: gatzke

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  1. Had to leave Tivo... on TiVo Series 5 Coming This Fall · · Score: 1

    I loved my Tivo over the years but it became just too much.

    It became a super zombie machine. Add a M card. Add an external HD. Add a cable tuning adapter.

    When I had trouble, Time Warner would blame the Tivo. Finding customer service to sort out this hot mess was a disaster.

    On top of that, each update made the interface more and more sluggish.

    I eventually went to a standard TWC crappy cable box and now Direct TV Genie. Not great, but adequate. And the interface is not a total slug.

  2. Highlights the need for your own software... on Ask Slashdot: Which Google Project Didn't Deserve To Die? · · Score: 1

    You need to control your data! Now more than ever.

    We hate Microsoft, but at least you have some control there. They sell you bad software, but at least you sorta have it in your possession (until they sunset the license / activation servers).

    Luckily, I learned a few lessons early on with the loss of Yahoo Photos. I now have nicely named folders of the selected good family photos for relatively quick online upload (again) if I have to move services. Or I can roll my own web server if I had to, just for photos.

    You need to be prepared to download your documents and switch your email if needed.

    I was about to start up full-force with g+, but after this reader nonsense I went and make an account at joindiaspora.com and tried out Diaspora. It looks pretty solid now and they are trying to do it the way God intended for the internet, open standards and software so you can roll your own. I only use g+ now to bitch and moan about google...

  3. Re:Treo- on Don't Write Them Off: A Palm Retrospective · · Score: 1

    It did not have a camera. I don't think it did mp3 or video playback either.

    Palm had a wireless PDA for a bit, but it was not that great. Email and crappy browser, no music or camera.

  4. Go for a run- on Ask Slashdot: How Do You Stay Fit At Work? · · Score: 2

    I have tried various things over the years. The best I ever found was to make myself run every day. Get in the habit of roll out of bed, go run, shower, go to work.

    One day I went to work, then after eight hours I realized that I never even stood up. I was busy all day long, with all of my meetings coming to my office. I never got thirsty or had the call of nature. I realized that I had been sitting on my rear for a full eight hours. I try to at least go get coffee now...

  5. Re:Feedly looks ok on What's the Best RSS Reader Not Named Google Reader? · · Score: 3

    There are ways to make it look like GoogleReader I think. In the top right gear / settings, I tried "Timeline View" which gives you a blurb and image. Decent shortcuts as well.

  6. Re:Treo- on Don't Write Them Off: A Palm Retrospective · · Score: 1

    The point was, it did everything the iPhone did and more.

    It had features the iPhone still does not have.

    Go back to your shiny little toys and let the men work with their tools.

  7. Re:Treo- on Don't Write Them Off: A Palm Retrospective · · Score: 1

    Some other iPhone limitations (that Treo could do)

    -No video recording
    -No editing MS Office documents
    -No EVDO (iPhone Edge was slow)
    -No laptop tethering

    But the iPhone was shiny!

  8. Treo- on Don't Write Them Off: A Palm Retrospective · · Score: 4, Informative

    Palm had the first integrated smartphones, the Treo series. Camera, PDA, net connectivity, music and media all in one.

    They were far ahead of the first iPhone in terms of features. Stereo bluetooth and copy paste were there way before iPhone implemented them. Palm had stuff iPhone never will have, like hardware keyboard, SD card slot, user-replaceable battery, install any program, multi-day battery, and actual physical buttons.

    Too bad the OS was dated...

  9. Re:The PhD is not an end-point on Ask Slashdot: Advice For Summer Before Ph.D. Program? · · Score: 1

    Post-doc requirement for industry depends on your field.

    Our engineering PhD students generally get industrial spots without a post doc. However, academics do need them now. That changed 10-15 years back, so maybe engineering industrial slots are headed the same way?

  10. Go for a hike- on Ask Slashdot: Advice For Summer Before Ph.D. Program? · · Score: 1

    I had a short summer, as my undergrad got out late and my grad school started early. Lucky for me, my little brother had just graduated from high school.

    We started hiking the southern end of the Appalachian Trail, starting at Springer Mountain. After about three weeks, we managed to get to Clingman's Dome in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

    This experience changed my life. I absolutely loved it.

    Brother and and I got struck by lightning. On separate occasions. (more like shocked)

    We stopped for a full day about every week to rest and recover. At the start it was hard to do 10-12 miles per day with a full pack. At the end we were doing 20-25 with no trouble.

    Out with nature, relaxing, nothing to really think about but getting to the next stopping point and feeding yourself.

    Awesome experience!

  11. Re:Try LyX! on Collaborative LaTeX Editor With Preview In Your Web Browser · · Score: 1

    The windows installer installs and configures it all automatically, so you don't have to worry with the LaTeX stuff. I think Mac is similar, just click to install. Linux variants generally install LaTeX with ease for most distributions.

    LyX has had version control for a long time. CVS was standard years ago, I think they are open to various version control now. It may not be multi-user simultaneous edits, but many version control systems will sort out non-conflicting edits.

  12. Re:Try LyX! on Collaborative LaTeX Editor With Preview In Your Web Browser · · Score: 2

    I use tgif for vector graphics editing fairly well.

    I have managed to get a couple of scripts to automatically run that let me have WYSIWYG type 1 eps equations in tgif. Click on the equation object in LyX, edit, save and close, the lyx file is dumped to ps then eps and pulled into tgif.

    I have even gotten that to work on a cygwin PC too.

  13. Try LyX! on Collaborative LaTeX Editor With Preview In Your Web Browser · · Score: 4, Informative

    LyX is a great free cross-platform document processor that uses LaTeX on the back end for export.

    Not exactly WYSIWYG, but close enough. You export to PS or PDF as needed.

    You can see basically what your equations look like while editing before you tex it. You can still use normal LaTeX commands too, but anyone with basic Word experience can jump right in.

    I have used it for tons of things for over a decade now.

  14. Re:I didn't watch the speech on Obama Proposes 'Meaningful Progress' On Climate Change · · Score: 1

    I agree natural resources are not going to last forever. But the proposed "solutions" do nothing significant to fix the "problem" while allowing India and China a free pass.

    WRT to links, here is one sowing how raw data is adjusted http://wattsupwiththat.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/fig_7-ghcn-averages.jpg

    And here is one on how data sets keep changing:
    http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2012/09/nasas_rubber_ruler.html#ixzz27YZRxqIW

    Here is a little animation showing some modifications:
    http://klimaforskning.com/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=825.0;attach=2823;image

    Changing past data just seems sketchy to me. Especially if it is not transparent on your modeling and methodology.

  15. Re:I didn't watch the speech on Obama Proposes 'Meaningful Progress' On Climate Change · · Score: 1

    I am not a climate scientist. I do not rely on Fox News for science information. But thanks for the ad hom insults!

    I have seen that the climate scientists keep making modifications to the temperature records. "Normalization" efforts that push down older temperatures while increasing more recent temps. Seems sketchy to me, but I am not a climate scientist.

    I have seen that climate scientist make predictions that fail to come true. "Millions of climate refugees by 2010" "x amount of increase in the next 10 years" If their methods fail to accurately model future events, why do we trust them?

    I have seen efforts to change behavior that are dubious at best. Carbon tax that has minimal if any impact, best case? If you can't get China and India to follow along, you are wasting your time.

    Things like the divergence issue bother me. Modeling issues related to solar sensitivity and cloud response worry me. I am not saying they are wrong, I just don't know if they are right at this point. There seem to be issues that may not adequately be addressed.

  16. Re:I didn't watch the speech on Obama Proposes 'Meaningful Progress' On Climate Change · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Global cooling was taught in my middle school science text books. I remember the "Igloo Effect" specifically.

    Popular press seized on it as well. You may not be old enough to remember, but it was out there in the MSM.

    I really like the new rationalization, "blizzards and snow are caused by global warming." Or just cover all the bases and stick with "Climate Change" so you are always right.

  17. Re:We need to nip this in the bud. on What EMC Looks For When It's Hiring · · Score: 5, Insightful

    15 years here at least, and now we have this.

    What is the point of even sticking around any more?

    Pretty sad state of affairs.

  18. Re:Check me if I wrong... on Woz Says iPhone Features Are 'Behind' · · Score: 1

    No, the Treo 700 released a year earlier than the first iPhone equaled or bettered the original iPhone in most ways.

    Better battery
    User replaceable battery
    Removable media
    Recorded video
    Read and edit MS office
    Faster network
    Ran third party apps
    Wireless bluetooth stereo
    Real keyboard
    Copy Paste
    Tons of Apps

    I admit the screen and camera resolutions were similar, with the iPhone having some edge (320x320 vs 320x480, 2.0MP vs 1.6 MP)

    Just like Macs, iOS dumbed down the user interface so that any idiot could use it. And they did. And it was good. And Shiny!

  19. Re:Real enemy: It just doesn't work on Missile Defense's Real Enemy: Math · · Score: 1

    They have been able shoot down plenty of missiles, despite your nice bold text statement. The US has had many tens of successful intercepts over the years. The DoD deserves credit for these amazing feats of science.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aegis_Ballistic_Missile_Defense_System#Flight_tests_to_date

    Evasive action can potentially make this more difficult, but most of the time evasive action is difficult in terminal phase ballistics.

  20. slashvertisement? on Does Microsoft Have the Best App Store For Open Source Developers? · · Score: 2, Interesting

    MS advertising coffers well spent, looks like.

    Enjoy that new surface, timothy.

  21. Found /. through distributed.net back in the day on Einstein@Home Set To Break Petaflops Barrier · · Score: 2

    The reason I found slashdot back in the 90s was due to the team performance on the distributed.net tasks. So they do turn those cycles into something useful!

  22. Re:Taiwanese on Foxconn Begins To Assemble Its Robot Army · · Score: 1

    Cornwall is not a Constituent country AFAIK. The brits only have England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

    Or am I missing some trivial British demarcation?

    Bollocks! Roger me silly.

  23. Re:And for all of us who prefer RPN? on Color-Screen TI-84 Plus Calculator Leaked · · Score: 1

    Yep. Any calculator type calculating and I need my 15C. For anything more complex, I am going to a PC, probably with excel or matlab.

    You can get decent used deals occasionally, if you need a spare. I convinced my retired dad to part with his 15C so I have a backup. Nobody realizes I have $400 worth of calculator on my desk...

  24. Re:And for all of us who prefer RPN? on Color-Screen TI-84 Plus Calculator Leaked · · Score: 1

    I have a 15C emulator on my droid, but it just does not feel the same.

    HP had buttons that feel like buttons should, not the cheap low-tolerance stuff on most TIs.

    And the landscape form factor fits in your hands, letting you use both together.

    It is built to be a tool.

  25. Re:And for all of us who prefer RPN? on Color-Screen TI-84 Plus Calculator Leaked · · Score: 1

    They did a re-release of the totally awesome HP 15C.

    I have two on my desk, the original version.

    This is the perfect RPN calculation tool.

    http://www.amazon.com/HP-NW250AA-15C-Scientific-Calculator/dp/B005EIG3MW