Ok, the post was mostly a joke, but if you want to get quantitative...
"Billions of Aussie dollars"... eh, yeah. Quick search shows consensus estimate of ~300k iPads sold in Australia. Let's be conservative and call that 500k tablets total, at $500 per unit that's still only $250M gross revenue, and even with Apple's absurd $200 profit margins that's under $100M net for the entire market. Samsung's share of the market is TINY right now, probably a few million in profit at best in Australia. Patent licensing would make up a fraction of that per unit, so we're probably talking a couple million Aussie dollars, not billions.
Australia might be a good test market for a product (or lawsuit), but in the world of consumer electronics sales, it's about as high stakes as the Sunday game at the retirement home.
Apple the corporate entity is a marketing monster, yes, and they are also a totally anti-competitive, control-freaks as well.
But to say they haven't made a decent product (or as one reply to you said "certainly not innovative") is absurd. They completely redefined the concepts of smartphones and tablet computers, and all of their competitors are basically scrambling to parrot their basic design innovations.
Do I agree with their marketing tactics, locked down platform, or stifling app store policies? No. But that doesn't mean I can't give them credit for creating a brilliant example of engineering and human interface design.
Samsung will provide Apple Australia with three units for study in coming weeks to ascertain whether or not the Korean gadget maker did in fact infringe on Apple's patented intellectual property
Even better, apparently Apple gets to decide if it infringes. Can't wait to hear their decision!
You should be more worried about what crawled up your own ass today, and the fact that you apparently can't master basic reading comprehension (or just felt like a random troll).
But even in areas where cable/dsl is readily available, this could be the third option that keeps the others in check.
Sounds like it could be nice for rural areas, if you already have upgraded cable/DSL services run to your neighborhood there isn't much it can offer...
What about the above statements have anything to do with your rant? 802.22 sounds like a fine idea for areas that don't have cable or DSL already installed, not so much for those that do. And yup, large expanses Africa would qualify (and might even be usable in more populated areas with decreased bandwidth).
Yep, most states have figured out that loophole by now, so ironically much of US public education is funded by the gullible and mathematically challenged.
It shares a few ~20Mbps channels over 12,000 square miles. New York City has over 8 million residents in about 300 mi^2, and the entire New York state is only 47,000 mi^2.
Most cable or FTTN DSL shares higher bandwidth over a neighborhood with 1000 homes, intsead of (potentially) millions. In rural Wyoming, it might be a good alternative to wired access, but I'm pretty skeptical about a dense urban - or even suburban - area. Actually, if you look up any white paper of 802.22, they specifically point out the target market is "wireless broadband access for geographically dispersed, sparsely populated areas."
Except I don't see how it's going to be as cheap, fast, or scalable as cable or telco FTTN/ADSL2 is already. Sounds like it could be nice for rural areas, but it you already have upgraded cable/DSL services run to your neighborhood there isn't much it can offer...
The single $5 trillion coin is a joke. What would it weigh?
Eh, the entire point was that the platinum in the coin wasn't worth $5T, it was that the government is allowed by law mint a coin worth more value than the metal it contains. From the *summary*:
Seigniorage is the extra value added when a government mints a coin with a face value greater than the value of the precious metal contained in the coin
Also answers "Why a coin?" in the *summary*...
The statute governing the minting of coins contains a section (31 USC 5112(k) ) that authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue platinum coins in any denomination or quantity
Re:3D - and Resolution Maxed-Out?
on
Beyond HDTV
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· Score: 1
BD uses the MVC extension to AVC, which is closer to frame packing. Cable broadcasts usually use L/R or T/B to be compatible with old hardware. Streaming does the same (though I think only Vudu is doing that).
Would you care to cite an example of this that is in use commercially? I don't know everything about 3D stereoscopic encoded video, but I know a fair bit... and widespread use of 3840x1080 video would be new to me...
Re:3D - and Resolution Maxed-Out?
on
Beyond HDTV
·
· Score: 1
3D doesn't necessarily require "higher resolution - what it requires is more fields per second. i.e. the ability to send two separate screen images, whereas now only one is sent.
The way 3D TV works now, is they cheat, and squeeze two pictures into one image. That needs to stop.
Well, first it's important to differentiate between source content resolution and display resolution...
Content can be encoded top/bottom, left/right, or frame packed. The first two lose 1/2 resolution, but frame packing can preserve full resolution by doubling the frame rate. It's not used much yet, since it's not compatible with most current decoding hardware (and it harder to encode efficiently).
Display can be done different ways, with the 2 main technologies for TVs being active shutter and passive polarization. Active shutter does full resolution. Passive polarization (at least the implementation used by most current TVs) uses a filter with alternating horizontal polarized lines, and interlaces the 3D frames, which does cut the resolution to 1920x540. The LCD display would need to be 1920x2160 to do full 1080p passively that way (or do something completely different like projection).
And of course, there is also the way it's sent from a decoding device to a TV (eg. HDMI) - T/B, L/R, or interleaving will lose resolution, but frame packing won't.
So anyway, there are a bunch of things that have to be done "right" to get true 1080p... and currently many of them aren't being done right...
What, seriously? I think you need to RTFA... This was Richard Stallman noticing a problem with his own project, and then freaking out about it and trying to figure out a fix ASAP. I'm going to have to go with accident.
But that's not his point. His point was to explain to the OP that they distributed C files, which happily compiled to recreate the binaries.
I don't think anyone is really arguing that those C files aren't useful for much more than compiling, just as no one in the emacs project is arguing that it's not violating the GPL, they just noticed it and are trying to fix it ASAP...
I think his point was that electrical cable = cheap wire (cheap but large gauge). ie, one of the most respected custom turntable builders uses standard wiring, not esoteric "audiophile speaker cable".
In all seriousness, I'm not sure why anyone should listen to this Steve Guttenberg, either. He's one of those Stereophile kooks who loves to go on about how much better things sound once you add that $1000 speaker cable to the system.
Besides, if he really thinks 30 year old stereo systems sound better, what is he doing raving about modern ultra-high end electronics, speakers, and *cables* in his reviews, anyway? I'm pretty sure my Dad didn't pay $1000 for his speaker cables, and I'm pretty sure someone trying to sell $1000 speaker cables back then would be categorically laughed at, if not worse.
Not really - Sony made a crapload of net profits with that strategy on the PS1 and PS2. Lose some at first, then make a ton from game licensing and accessories. Sony took that strategy too far with the PS3 and almost blew it, but MS played it pretty well and is now dominating the online console business (which pretty obviously is where everything is going).
Only on/. can choice of OS become a "moral decision"...;)
[oh, and I challenge you to name a networked TV or BD player sold in the last year or two that isn't based on Linux, and most likely streaming Netflix, Amazon, and Walmart (Vudu)...]
The streaming movies aren't censored. It's all just re-branding the existing Vudu service on Walmart's site, anyway.
Vudu did remove their adult content after Walmart bought them, but it hasn't affected any other movies - in fact, they have a lot of "unrated" cuts of R movies, as well. (Vudu does, I mean - I haven't tried Walmart's version).
You can play the iTunes videos on your AppleTV. And Netflix & Vudu can be played on just about any networked TV or Blu Ray player sold in the last couple years, and a bunch of game consoles and set-top boxes...
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Ok, the post was mostly a joke, but if you want to get quantitative...
"Billions of Aussie dollars"... eh, yeah. Quick search shows consensus estimate of ~300k iPads sold in Australia. Let's be conservative and call that 500k tablets total, at $500 per unit that's still only $250M gross revenue, and even with Apple's absurd $200 profit margins that's under $100M net for the entire market. Samsung's share of the market is TINY right now, probably a few million in profit at best in Australia. Patent licensing would make up a fraction of that per unit, so we're probably talking a couple million Aussie dollars, not billions.
Australia might be a good test market for a product (or lawsuit), but in the world of consumer electronics sales, it's about as high stakes as the Sunday game at the retirement home.
Oh, come on.
Apple the corporate entity is a marketing monster, yes, and they are also a totally anti-competitive, control-freaks as well.
But to say they haven't made a decent product (or as one reply to you said "certainly not innovative") is absurd. They completely redefined the concepts of smartphones and tablet computers, and all of their competitors are basically scrambling to parrot their basic design innovations.
Do I agree with their marketing tactics, locked down platform, or stifling app store policies? No. But that doesn't mean I can't give them credit for creating a brilliant example of engineering and human interface design.
Samsung will provide Apple Australia with three units for study in coming weeks to ascertain whether or not the Korean gadget maker did in fact infringe on Apple's patented intellectual property
Even better, apparently Apple gets to decide if it infringes. Can't wait to hear their decision!
They could easily fix this if only they'd stop supporting their OS releases after 3-4 years like Apple does with OS X (or 6 months like Fedora).
You should be more worried about what crawled up your own ass today, and the fact that you apparently can't master basic reading comprehension (or just felt like a random troll).
But even in areas where cable/dsl is readily available, this could be the third option that keeps the others in check.
Sounds like it could be nice for rural areas, if you already have upgraded cable/DSL services run to your neighborhood there isn't much it can offer...
What about the above statements have anything to do with your rant? 802.22 sounds like a fine idea for areas that don't have cable or DSL already installed, not so much for those that do. And yup, large expanses Africa would qualify (and might even be usable in more populated areas with decreased bandwidth).
And if you define "broken" as "unfair", it's still a lot more fair than the rules/laws of most of the state's other forms of revenue...
Yep, most states have figured out that loophole by now, so ironically much of US public education is funded by the gullible and mathematically challenged.
Yeah, but McDonald's doesn't give you free cocktails while you work.
It shares a few ~20Mbps channels over 12,000 square miles. New York City has over 8 million residents in about 300 mi^2, and the entire New York state is only 47,000 mi^2.
Most cable or FTTN DSL shares higher bandwidth over a neighborhood with 1000 homes, intsead of (potentially) millions. In rural Wyoming, it might be a good alternative to wired access, but I'm pretty skeptical about a dense urban - or even suburban - area. Actually, if you look up any white paper of 802.22, they specifically point out the target market is "wireless broadband access for geographically dispersed, sparsely populated areas."
Except I don't see how it's going to be as cheap, fast, or scalable as cable or telco FTTN/ADSL2 is already. Sounds like it could be nice for rural areas, but it you already have upgraded cable/DSL services run to your neighborhood there isn't much it can offer...
The single $5 trillion coin is a joke. What would it weigh?
Eh, the entire point was that the platinum in the coin wasn't worth $5T, it was that the government is allowed by law mint a coin worth more value than the metal it contains. From the *summary*:
Seigniorage is the extra value added when a government mints a coin with a face value greater than the value of the precious metal contained in the coin
Also answers "Why a coin?" in the *summary*...
The statute governing the minting of coins contains a section (31 USC 5112(k) ) that authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue platinum coins in any denomination or quantity
BD uses the MVC extension to AVC, which is closer to frame packing. Cable broadcasts usually use L/R or T/B to be compatible with old hardware. Streaming does the same (though I think only Vudu is doing that).
Would you care to cite an example of this that is in use commercially? I don't know everything about 3D stereoscopic encoded video, but I know a fair bit... and widespread use of 3840x1080 video would be new to me...
3D doesn't necessarily require "higher resolution - what it requires is more fields per second. i.e. the ability to send two separate screen images, whereas now only one is sent.
The way 3D TV works now, is they cheat, and squeeze two pictures into one image. That needs to stop.
Well, first it's important to differentiate between source content resolution and display resolution...
Content can be encoded top/bottom, left/right, or frame packed. The first two lose 1/2 resolution, but frame packing can preserve full resolution by doubling the frame rate. It's not used much yet, since it's not compatible with most current decoding hardware (and it harder to encode efficiently).
Display can be done different ways, with the 2 main technologies for TVs being active shutter and passive polarization. Active shutter does full resolution. Passive polarization (at least the implementation used by most current TVs) uses a filter with alternating horizontal polarized lines, and interlaces the 3D frames, which does cut the resolution to 1920x540. The LCD display would need to be 1920x2160 to do full 1080p passively that way (or do something completely different like projection).
And of course, there is also the way it's sent from a decoding device to a TV (eg. HDMI) - T/B, L/R, or interleaving will lose resolution, but frame packing won't.
So anyway, there are a bunch of things that have to be done "right" to get true 1080p... and currently many of them aren't being done right...
What, seriously? I think you need to RTFA... This was Richard Stallman noticing a problem with his own project, and then freaking out about it and trying to figure out a fix ASAP. I'm going to have to go with accident.
they're not really intended nor suitable to be read or edited by a human
You mean, like Perl ?
Or LISP...
But that's not his point. His point was to explain to the OP that they distributed C files, which happily compiled to recreate the binaries.
I don't think anyone is really arguing that those C files aren't useful for much more than compiling, just as no one in the emacs project is arguing that it's not violating the GPL, they just noticed it and are trying to fix it ASAP...
I think his point was that electrical cable = cheap wire (cheap but large gauge). ie, one of the most respected custom turntable builders uses standard wiring, not esoteric "audiophile speaker cable".
In all seriousness, I'm not sure why anyone should listen to this Steve Guttenberg, either. He's one of those Stereophile kooks who loves to go on about how much better things sound once you add that $1000 speaker cable to the system.
Besides, if he really thinks 30 year old stereo systems sound better, what is he doing raving about modern ultra-high end electronics, speakers, and *cables* in his reviews, anyway? I'm pretty sure my Dad didn't pay $1000 for his speaker cables, and I'm pretty sure someone trying to sell $1000 speaker cables back then would be categorically laughed at, if not worse.
Global warming affects the temperature, not the length of night.
Do you by any chance live near the equator? ;)
Not really - Sony made a crapload of net profits with that strategy on the PS1 and PS2. Lose some at first, then make a ton from game licensing and accessories. Sony took that strategy too far with the PS3 and almost blew it, but MS played it pretty well and is now dominating the online console business (which pretty obviously is where everything is going).
Only on /. can choice of OS become a "moral decision"... ;)
[oh, and I challenge you to name a networked TV or BD player sold in the last year or two that isn't based on Linux, and most likely streaming Netflix, Amazon, and Walmart (Vudu)...]
So, Nintendo is now paying its entrance fee to the next marathon after giving up on the first one... maybe they should train a bit better this time ;)
The streaming movies aren't censored. It's all just re-branding the existing Vudu service on Walmart's site, anyway.
Vudu did remove their adult content after Walmart bought them, but it hasn't affected any other movies - in fact, they have a lot of "unrated" cuts of R movies, as well. (Vudu does, I mean - I haven't tried Walmart's version).
You can play the iTunes videos on your AppleTV. And Netflix & Vudu can be played on just about any networked TV or Blu Ray player sold in the last couple years, and a bunch of game consoles and set-top boxes...
It's Flash-based, so it does support Linux if you install the latest Flash plugin.