As a voice for non-pedantry, let me say: I graduated with a BA in English Lit a couple years ago. I had a nearly perfect GPA in my major, and like to think that I'm a fairly competent person. I'm now a copywriter at an advertising agency.
I still look up affect vs. effect a couple times a month. It's one grammar mistake I think should be given a free pass. Hell, you can always tell from the context how the word is being used anyway, I vote that we merge the two, eliminate the confusion.
On the other hand, Less vs. Fewer gets my goat. To each his own grammar peeve.
Blu-Ray really seems like a technology invented for profit rather than for utility.
I completely agree, but for different reasons. If look in the seamy underbelly of the internets you'll find plenty of HD rips. About 8GB worth of carefully compressed MPEG-4 HD content will make most movies look pretty darn good on my 42" 1080P display. Better than standard DVD's, and fairly indistinguishable from Blu-Rays.
So, if the goal was the utility of easily delivering better content, it seems like the process should have been using the DVD-DL format with decoding software and file formats that could supported Hi-Def resolutions.
Sure, it'll be great down the road to fit 30GB of content on a single disk. But I'd imagine that Joe Public would be more willing to embrace a standard DVD player that could support HD content. Microsoft was on the right track with their WMV HD Content initiative. But, as Microsoft is wont to do, they didn't get it quite right.
XBMC really was the killer app for a modded 1st gen XBOX. I dropped a 120GB hard drive in mine, had it auto-sync with my video torrent folder, and had a brilliant little movie/tv show playing setup going on. It makes an Xbox do what Microsoft should have done with its Media Center Extender initiative.
For something that was quasi-legal (if I remember you needed proprietary things from the Xbox developer's SDK to properly compile the source for the Xbox) it had a remarkably excellent UI. Things seemed to work quite well. It seems like a good thing to have some real competition in the media center market, particularly cross-platform open-source competition.
2. Someone at their ad agency thought it would be a great idea, and by the time anyone realized what a train wreck it was going to be, it had gathered too much steam to stop. By the time they released it, probably most of the people involved thought, "well... look on the bright side! It might not suck too bad! It might even be 'so bad it's good'!"
More likely someone at their ad agency thought, "This is effing brilliant, but the client will never go for it." And then the client went for it.
I donno. I sort of found the ads delightful. And I'm absolutely certain that's the first time I've been able to call a Microsoft offering delightful.
Maybe there's been so much of a "backlash" on the blogosphere that other equally delighted nerds have been reluctant to speak out, but I thought they were great ads. Microsoft has gazallions of dollars, and if more of those dollars were spent producing delightful things, we might begin to loathe them less.
On a related note, as someone who works in advertising - these commercials feel much more like the result of a creative director gone wild than some CEO at Microsoft. Maybe an effort to counter the wildly popular Mac ads. They failed to realize that the key ingredient was Jon Hodgman.
Am I the only one that thought, "Holy Shit!" at 81mph?! On flat ground? On a bike?
I've never broken 40 letting my fat ass drag me downhill on a roadbike - I can't imagine what it's like to be able to propel yourself at 80mph with your feet.
That has to be one of the most thoroughly explained and analyzed surveys I've seen in a long time.
The problem is that thoughtful analysis of complex issues rarely leads to cut-and-dry conclusions. After reading the TFA, I came away understanding, "Economists basically think their party's candidate will do a better job with the economy." Hrm.
That's why I generally ignore careful analysis of complex issues and go with my gut. Batman '08!
I donno. I find that my regimen of listening to NPR on my commute, plus an evening with the voter's guide is generally enough to let me make some kind of informed decision.
I admit that local offices can be a challenge, but I usually find an issue or two that the candidates disagree on for any position, and vote based on that issue.
My general guideline? People are generally selfish - let's get some laws that reasonably mitigate some of that selfishness.
Tragic that I don't have mod-points at the moment, because you make a very good point. It's easy to love Apple and hate Microsoft, but clearly on this point Microsoft has developed a far more open platform.
The problem with WinMo is that while your mum, dad and girlfriend can use windows mobile smartphones, it's not particularly pleasant to do so.
I'm really hoping that Android combines openness with an excellent UI. Some of the winning entries inthe Android Developer Challenge encourage me in this hope.
Urm. Not really. On my connection, it looked about as good as Hulu's "480p" option - considerably better than YouTube. I'm guessing the quality of your content - to a certain point - is dictated by the speed of your connection.
Really? Privacy, a big concern because you can choose to download a piece of software that will attempt to recognize your face? Or *gasp* a friend could import a photo of you into said software? Without your written consent? The Horror! Won't somebody please think of the children!
You think I'm exaggerating, but TFA actually says:
This is also a larger issue for parents with small children. Other family members could tag photos of your child on the Internet. If a predator were to find pictures labeled with a location and a full name, he could gather enough information on your child to pose as a family friend in an attempt to lure your child from safety. What is Google's advice on keeping your children safe?
Now will you please explain to me how this is more of a concern than some random friend tagging said photos without the use of Google's software?
I'm all for privacy, but this seems like a white whale. Nobody's forcing you to use Picasa, and there's really nothing intrusive about this application of the technology. I think it's just the phrase, "Facial Recognition" that brings to mind images of big brother.
Let's try and do a better job of picking our battles.
How difficult is it to vote in the USA? I.e. how much time does it take, is it generally convenient etc?
The answer is, ridiculously easy.
If you like getting up and going to a polling place and filling your ballot there to get the taste of democracy in your mouth (Bait for Larry Craig Jokes), you can, or if you prefer to fill out your ballot at home and put it in your mailbox, you can. Or, if you prefer to fill out your ballot at home and bring it in to the polling place to drop off without waiting in line, you can.
Just about the only thing you can't do is vote online. I hope soon that's an option, but even the way things are not, "It's too inconvenient" isn't a real valid excuse.
Why is it not OK for a presidential candidate to admit that he doesn't know something? I'm sick to death of people who think they have to pretend to know everything all the time.
I completely agree. I cherish the few plainly honest tidbits that the candidates send our way from time to time.
I'm a big Obama supporter, but the other day on NPR I heard a story on Blender asking the candidates for their top 10 songs. McCain's number 1? Abba's "Dancing Queen."
Now there is absolutely no fucking way that McCain chose to give Blender that list on the cunning advice of some political consultant. I mean really, unless he's suddenly going after the gay vote, who would be impressed with that song?
It's obviously a song the man loves, which means that for once, a politician answered a question honestly.
'Course, it won't make me vote for the man, but it did remind me of the "Maverick" senator that he once truly was.
Both the Boy Genius Report and Engadget are fairly skeptical that this is the "final" Dream, mostly because the phone in this video isn't nearly as attractive as HTC's other recent phones.
I hope it's not final. Why would HTC release something that looks like the generic phone in this video for their first android handset when the company is perfectly capable of making something as attractive as the Touch Diamond?
Also, I know that Youtube comments are generally about as useful as catshit, but the uploader claims in the comments below his video, "i Think Semi-final but not Sure. And there is a black one. i'll upload the live demo of it."
"I'm talking about the type who scream at motorists to "share the road" because "bikes have the same rights as motor vehicles," and then proceed to run the next four red lights.
I'll grant that bicyclists are no more immune to prick'ism than car drivers. But, more often then not the root cause of that yelling is fear.
If you, a car driver, run into a bicycle your car might be dented. If I, a bicyclist, am run into by a car, I'll likely at least suffer some broken bones, if not death.
Bicycleists freak out when they feel a car is endangering them because every bicyclist should be scared shitless of being run over.
I don't understand in-dash computers that can't be upgraded easily. It defies common sense.
As much as I love to hate on both Microsoft and Ford, their Sync partnership seems to be a pretty good thing. I wrote a couple ads for the system last year, and I was sort of impressed. Essentially they're taking the type of system that used to only be available in luxury cars and putting it in Focuses and the like.
The basic Sync system with voice activated control of your Zune, iPod, bluetooth phone and the like is only $400, which, compared to the rediculous price of most car options isn't too bad.
They haven't really integrated navigation too well with the sync system yet, but hopefully that's coming down the pipe.
So yeah, sure, I'd rather have a Linux carputer, but for now, Microsoft doesn't seem to be doing things as badly as I'd expect.
The unfulfilled prophecies, including those in the book of Revelation, are similar for us today. We don't know exactly when it will happen, or how. So, nobody has a perfect knowledge of it.
I grew up in a solidly Christian environment, and what my years of Christian education (all the way from the 3rd grade through university with a year of "student mission" work thrown in for good measure) have led me to believe that you're on the right track, but not quite taking your line of reasoning far enough.
What most Christians don't seem able to do is take the screwed up things that "popular" bible authors say and see them as screwed up.
Take Paul for example. Great guy, has a lot of good things to say. But when in 1st Corinthians 14, he says that women shouldn't speak in church because it's a disgrace, the average Christian should be able to say, "Whoa, that's fucked up".
The fact that some biblical authors/heroes/characters got things wrong doesn't need to be disheartening, it should be reassuring. "Look, Paul screwed up, we're all human, phew."
So many Christians seem to think that it's sacrilegious or inappropriate to find fault with these biblical characters, but it's clear that (and here I'm assuming a Christian worldview) God delivered a bible with inconsistencies, and being God, he must have done that for a reason.
I like to think that reason was so that we could use our brains, and figure out which parts of the bible give screwed up instructions. Because it's either that, or he did it as some sort of cruel joke. I prefer a God who's not into cruel jokes.
I took a class on this in college, and it seemed to me that the KJV FTW! crowd has come to their beliefs in the same way as many other offshoot religious groups: A series of anecdotes turns into truth.
Most of the KVJ only'ers had the same argument, it went something like this: "When I/others read different translations, I/they get so confused, and have trouble finding the 'truth'. When we read the KJV, everything's so clear."
So of course it doesn't make sense to think of a later version of the bible as more accurate than an earlier version, which is why they rely on a series of anecdotes to support their beliefs. Anecdotes are much harder to argue with than facts.
Speaking of anecdotes, a town (Touchet, WA) near where I grew up used to have a giant billboard in the center of town that depicted a large lion with the letters "KJV" on its side, trampling a pile of other translations. It was brilliant. An effective witnessing tool I'm sure.
What is the appeal of wireless internet if this is as good as it gets?
I know that was supposed to be a rhetorical question, but what you're missing is that your experience is nowhere near as good as it gets, or at least as it could get.
When I tether my Sprint EVDO handset to my laptop, I get great data speeds. When I use my friend's iPhones I get great page rendering speed and quality. Once the two are combined (maybe now in the iPhone 3G, hopefully soon on EVDO networks with Android-based handsets or with mobile Firefox) mobile web browsing will be a much better experience.
I agree, that was the only part of the movie where I felt a bit letdown. Dent's actions seemed to scream, "crazy person", but post-accident dialogue didn't fit his persona.
Also, the Dark Knight didn't seem to be quite dark enough. The plot was building towards Batman having to do something against his credo for the greater good, and taking the blame for something he didn't do was a bit of a letdown.
Yes, these advances will bring about more Crysises, but there are some real alternatives. As much as I love to hate Microsoft, the Xbox Live Marketplace is a wonderful "little game" delivery tool. N+ and a host of other titles available in that medium prove that there's still room for little developers to make great games and release them to mass audiences.
Steam seems to be is the best current PC equivalent, offering little brilliant games like Audiosurf alongside its "Nasa sized engineering project" games. And then there's instantaction.com, great (mostly) free (as in beer) little multiplayer games, taking flash to a whole 'nother level.
So yes, some games will always require the latest and greatest hardware, but there's also been some promising developments on the little-studio game distribution front.
Slashdot Mirror
As a voice for non-pedantry, let me say: I graduated with a BA in English Lit a couple years ago. I had a nearly perfect GPA in my major, and like to think that I'm a fairly competent person. I'm now a copywriter at an advertising agency.
I still look up affect vs. effect a couple times a month. It's one grammar mistake I think should be given a free pass. Hell, you can always tell from the context how the word is being used anyway, I vote that we merge the two, eliminate the confusion.
On the other hand, Less vs. Fewer gets my goat. To each his own grammar peeve.
Blu-Ray really seems like a technology invented for profit rather than for utility.
I completely agree, but for different reasons. If look in the seamy underbelly of the internets you'll find plenty of HD rips. About 8GB worth of carefully compressed MPEG-4 HD content will make most movies look pretty darn good on my 42" 1080P display. Better than standard DVD's, and fairly indistinguishable from Blu-Rays.
So, if the goal was the utility of easily delivering better content, it seems like the process should have been using the DVD-DL format with decoding software and file formats that could supported Hi-Def resolutions.
Sure, it'll be great down the road to fit 30GB of content on a single disk. But I'd imagine that Joe Public would be more willing to embrace a standard DVD player that could support HD content. Microsoft was on the right track with their WMV HD Content initiative. But, as Microsoft is wont to do, they didn't get it quite right.
I think I always used one of the "All in One" CD's that seem to float around the darker corners of the internets.
XBMC really was the killer app for a modded 1st gen XBOX. I dropped a 120GB hard drive in mine, had it auto-sync with my video torrent folder, and had a brilliant little movie/tv show playing setup going on. It makes an Xbox do what Microsoft should have done with its Media Center Extender initiative.
For something that was quasi-legal (if I remember you needed proprietary things from the Xbox developer's SDK to properly compile the source for the Xbox) it had a remarkably excellent UI. Things seemed to work quite well. It seems like a good thing to have some real competition in the media center market, particularly cross-platform open-source competition.
2. Someone at their ad agency thought it would be a great idea, and by the time anyone realized what a train wreck it was going to be, it had gathered too much steam to stop. By the time they released it, probably most of the people involved thought, "well... look on the bright side! It might not suck too bad! It might even be 'so bad it's good'!"
More likely someone at their ad agency thought, "This is effing brilliant, but the client will never go for it." And then the client went for it.
I donno. I sort of found the ads delightful. And I'm absolutely certain that's the first time I've been able to call a Microsoft offering delightful.
Maybe there's been so much of a "backlash" on the blogosphere that other equally delighted nerds have been reluctant to speak out, but I thought they were great ads. Microsoft has gazallions of dollars, and if more of those dollars were spent producing delightful things, we might begin to loathe them less.
On a related note, as someone who works in advertising - these commercials feel much more like the result of a creative director gone wild than some CEO at Microsoft. Maybe an effort to counter the wildly popular Mac ads. They failed to realize that the key ingredient was Jon Hodgman.
Am I the only one that thought, "Holy Shit!" at 81mph?! On flat ground? On a bike?
I've never broken 40 letting my fat ass drag me downhill on a roadbike - I can't imagine what it's like to be able to propel yourself at 80mph with your feet.
You idiot! When converting from numbers to percentages, you have to move the decimal point.
So obviously 2 out of 4 becomes 20%.
That has to be one of the most thoroughly explained and analyzed surveys I've seen in a long time.
The problem is that thoughtful analysis of complex issues rarely leads to cut-and-dry conclusions. After reading the TFA, I came away understanding, "Economists basically think their party's candidate will do a better job with the economy." Hrm.
That's why I generally ignore careful analysis of complex issues and go with my gut. Batman '08!
I donno. I find that my regimen of listening to NPR on my commute, plus an evening with the voter's guide is generally enough to let me make some kind of informed decision.
I admit that local offices can be a challenge, but I usually find an issue or two that the candidates disagree on for any position, and vote based on that issue.
My general guideline? People are generally selfish - let's get some laws that reasonably mitigate some of that selfishness.
Tragic that I don't have mod-points at the moment, because you make a very good point. It's easy to love Apple and hate Microsoft, but clearly on this point Microsoft has developed a far more open platform.
The problem with WinMo is that while your mum, dad and girlfriend can use windows mobile smartphones, it's not particularly pleasant to do so.
I'm really hoping that Android combines openness with an excellent UI. Some of the winning entries inthe Android Developer Challenge encourage me in this hope.
the quality was almost as bad as Youtube
Urm. Not really. On my connection, it looked about as good as Hulu's "480p" option - considerably better than YouTube. I'm guessing the quality of your content - to a certain point - is dictated by the speed of your connection.
Really? Privacy, a big concern because you can choose to download a piece of software that will attempt to recognize your face? Or *gasp* a friend could import a photo of you into said software? Without your written consent? The Horror! Won't somebody please think of the children!
You think I'm exaggerating, but TFA actually says:
This is also a larger issue for parents with small children. Other family members could tag photos of your child on the Internet. If a predator were to find pictures labeled with a location and a full name, he could gather enough information on your child to pose as a family friend in an attempt to lure your child from safety. What is Google's advice on keeping your children safe?
Now will you please explain to me how this is more of a concern than some random friend tagging said photos without the use of Google's software?
I'm all for privacy, but this seems like a white whale. Nobody's forcing you to use Picasa, and there's really nothing intrusive about this application of the technology. I think it's just the phrase, "Facial Recognition" that brings to mind images of big brother.
Let's try and do a better job of picking our battles.
How difficult is it to vote in the USA? I.e. how much time does it take, is it generally convenient etc?
The answer is, ridiculously easy.
If you like getting up and going to a polling place and filling your ballot there to get the taste of democracy in your mouth (Bait for Larry Craig Jokes), you can, or if you prefer to fill out your ballot at home and put it in your mailbox, you can. Or, if you prefer to fill out your ballot at home and bring it in to the polling place to drop off without waiting in line, you can.
Just about the only thing you can't do is vote online. I hope soon that's an option, but even the way things are not, "It's too inconvenient" isn't a real valid excuse.
Why is it not OK for a presidential candidate to admit that he doesn't know something? I'm sick to death of people who think they have to pretend to know everything all the time.
I completely agree. I cherish the few plainly honest tidbits that the candidates send our way from time to time.
I'm a big Obama supporter, but the other day on NPR I heard a story on Blender asking the candidates for their top 10 songs. McCain's number 1? Abba's "Dancing Queen."
Now there is absolutely no fucking way that McCain chose to give Blender that list on the cunning advice of some political consultant. I mean really, unless he's suddenly going after the gay vote, who would be impressed with that song?
It's obviously a song the man loves, which means that for once, a politician answered a question honestly.
'Course, it won't make me vote for the man, but it did remind me of the "Maverick" senator that he once truly was.
Both the Boy Genius Report and Engadget are fairly skeptical that this is the "final" Dream, mostly because the phone in this video isn't nearly as attractive as HTC's other recent phones.
I hope it's not final. Why would HTC release something that looks like the generic phone in this video for their first android handset when the company is perfectly capable of making something as attractive as the Touch Diamond?
Also, I know that Youtube comments are generally about as useful as catshit, but the uploader claims in the comments below his video, "i Think Semi-final but not Sure. And there is a black one. i'll upload the live demo of it."
"I'm talking about the type who scream at motorists to "share the road" because "bikes have the same rights as motor vehicles," and then proceed to run the next four red lights.
I'll grant that bicyclists are no more immune to prick'ism than car drivers. But, more often then not the root cause of that yelling is fear.
If you, a car driver, run into a bicycle your car might be dented. If I, a bicyclist, am run into by a car, I'll likely at least suffer some broken bones, if not death.
Bicycleists freak out when they feel a car is endangering them because every bicyclist should be scared shitless of being run over.
I don't understand in-dash computers that can't be upgraded easily. It defies common sense.
As much as I love to hate on both Microsoft and Ford, their Sync partnership seems to be a pretty good thing. I wrote a couple ads for the system last year, and I was sort of impressed. Essentially they're taking the type of system that used to only be available in luxury cars and putting it in Focuses and the like.
The basic Sync system with voice activated control of your Zune, iPod, bluetooth phone and the like is only $400, which, compared to the rediculous price of most car options isn't too bad.
They haven't really integrated navigation too well with the sync system yet, but hopefully that's coming down the pipe.
So yeah, sure, I'd rather have a Linux carputer, but for now, Microsoft doesn't seem to be doing things as badly as I'd expect.
To segway into the unrelated theory of relativism
A beautiful mental image. Dean Kamen would be proud.
The unfulfilled prophecies, including those in the book of Revelation, are similar for us today. We don't know exactly when it will happen, or how. So, nobody has a perfect knowledge of it.
I grew up in a solidly Christian environment, and what my years of Christian education (all the way from the 3rd grade through university with a year of "student mission" work thrown in for good measure) have led me to believe that you're on the right track, but not quite taking your line of reasoning far enough.
What most Christians don't seem able to do is take the screwed up things that "popular" bible authors say and see them as screwed up.
Take Paul for example. Great guy, has a lot of good things to say. But when in 1st Corinthians 14, he says that women shouldn't speak in church because it's a disgrace, the average Christian should be able to say, "Whoa, that's fucked up".
The fact that some biblical authors/heroes/characters got things wrong doesn't need to be disheartening, it should be reassuring. "Look, Paul screwed up, we're all human, phew."
So many Christians seem to think that it's sacrilegious or inappropriate to find fault with these biblical characters, but it's clear that (and here I'm assuming a Christian worldview) God delivered a bible with inconsistencies, and being God, he must have done that for a reason.
I like to think that reason was so that we could use our brains, and figure out which parts of the bible give screwed up instructions. Because it's either that, or he did it as some sort of cruel joke. I prefer a God who's not into cruel jokes.
I took a class on this in college, and it seemed to me that the KJV FTW! crowd has come to their beliefs in the same way as many other offshoot religious groups: A series of anecdotes turns into truth.
Most of the KVJ only'ers had the same argument, it went something like this: "When I/others read different translations, I/they get so confused, and have trouble finding the 'truth'. When we read the KJV, everything's so clear."
So of course it doesn't make sense to think of a later version of the bible as more accurate than an earlier version, which is why they rely on a series of anecdotes to support their beliefs. Anecdotes are much harder to argue with than facts.
Speaking of anecdotes, a town (Touchet, WA) near where I grew up used to have a giant billboard in the center of town that depicted a large lion with the letters "KJV" on its side, trampling a pile of other translations. It was brilliant. An effective witnessing tool I'm sure.
What is the appeal of wireless internet if this is as good as it gets?
I know that was supposed to be a rhetorical question, but what you're missing is that your experience is nowhere near as good as it gets, or at least as it could get.
When I tether my Sprint EVDO handset to my laptop, I get great data speeds. When I use my friend's iPhones I get great page rendering speed and quality. Once the two are combined (maybe now in the iPhone 3G, hopefully soon on EVDO networks with Android-based handsets or with mobile Firefox) mobile web browsing will be a much better experience.
I agree, that was the only part of the movie where I felt a bit letdown. Dent's actions seemed to scream, "crazy person", but post-accident dialogue didn't fit his persona.
Also, the Dark Knight didn't seem to be quite dark enough. The plot was building towards Batman having to do something against his credo for the greater good, and taking the blame for something he didn't do was a bit of a letdown.
I wonder how closely the actual racing will resemble the video renders. Because while the video renders look awesome, they seem a bit fantastical.
Either way, here's a less likely to be slashdotted video mirror.
Yes, these advances will bring about more Crysises, but there are some real alternatives. As much as I love to hate Microsoft, the Xbox Live Marketplace is a wonderful "little game" delivery tool. N+ and a host of other titles available in that medium prove that there's still room for little developers to make great games and release them to mass audiences.
Steam seems to be is the best current PC equivalent, offering little brilliant games like Audiosurf alongside its "Nasa sized engineering project" games. And then there's instantaction.com, great (mostly) free (as in beer) little multiplayer games, taking flash to a whole 'nother level.
So yes, some games will always require the latest and greatest hardware, but there's also been some promising developments on the little-studio game distribution front.