I had to read the headline about six times to figure out what it meant.
Now I'm going to go have a first-of-it's-kind lunch of whatever combination of items they have in the cafeteria arranged in a particular way on the tray with just that much salt and ketchup on it...
1. This thing is just going to be the biggest piece of space junk until it burns up.
2. Unless it's got propulsion units, it's not going to sweep anything up, because it's just going to move at the same speed they are in that orbit.
3. If it's going to cross orbits, it's going to run into the problem of large objects hitting it at high velocities.
4. The first thing of any size that hits it at a low speed is going to ball it up, unless, again, it's got some sort of propulsion units to unfold it again, but that will just un-bag the thing it caught.
5. Anything of any size that hits it at high speed is going to poke right through it.
6. Anything in an orbit that this thing can reach and still bring back to Earth is in an orbit that's decaying on its own just fine domo arigato.
7. Many things in those orbits are supposed to be there and are still operational and very expensive; a lot more expensive than this titanium handi-wipe.
8. Stupid publicity stunt by a fish-net manufacturer. Pass the maguro sashimi and pardon my snicker.
No, they aren't. I had a Lexus gas gauge I could trust to the mile. They're easy to get right. And even if they're not well calibrated, they are at the least repeatable. Unless they're total shit, which the one on the Prius is. It's famous for it. Prius owners call it the "guess gauge".
It's not just legally required testing for safety-critical systems, it's legally required/independent/ review and testing for safety-critical systems.
If Toyota is not giving their code to someone else, or allowing independent parties to test their cars with full diagnostic gear, then they're not making systems that could be certified for safety to the same standards as an aircraft's control systems.
They run for a bit after detecting a crash so that they don't cut off in the middle of data that might be useful. Then they stop recording and start beeping.
It also doesn't know when it's got only half a gallon left.
The gauge goes to 1 bar, presumably at 1/8th tank, then it beeps and blinks starting when you have about 25 miles of fuel left (according to the manual).
The only time I trusted the "25 miles" number, the car went into electric-only and then creeping (limping along at a few mph) mode after about 11 miles.
More often, the thing will beep and blink, and I'll pull in within a couple of miles, and the 11-gallon tank will only take 8-9 gallons, meaning it had at least 80 miles of fuel left.
Since one of the people behind the wheel was Steve Wozniak (previous slashdot story hyperlinked here), and he said he'd actually been able to replicate unchecked acceleration by the cruise-control system, I'm not trusting Toyota.
They have a vested interest in not finding a cause. He could not have any possible interest in making a claim of observing a misbehavior in a car he likes to drive.
Nor should anyone at Toyota trust Toyota.
Nor would I trust the government. They're not likely to be bringing A+ talent to the party.
Not just the Italians. The Fuckyoutonians were very successful with theirs, too, to the point that it's been adopted by most major languages on Earth. Of course, their language only has one word...
That's because of a failure of haptics and resolution. It's not because the concept is invalid.
If you can create a system that actuates a virtual button right where it appears to be to the user, within a fraction of a millimeter, within a few milliseconds, it will work.
But you won't get that with the current stuff. Too slow and too chunky for anything other than demos.
Technically, the Google Nexus One is a beautiful, high-performing, genius-simple device.
But as a business it was a total flop. Why? Because Schmidt assumed that if you make a better mousetrap people will beat a path to your door; that is, until they realize it's not the same as their previous mousetrap and it doesn't work perfectly and they can't get hold of anyone in your company to tell them how to deal with their issues. At that point it doesn't matter whether it's a Google Phone or an actual mousetrap, the technology part is over and the business part is going to determine if it goes anywhere.
Meanwhile, over at Microsoft, they're still selling buggy, vulnerable Windows NT in a 7th-generation wrapper and kicking the shit out of every other operating-system company on Earth.
The moral: You can make a little money off your technical skills, but you can make a lot of money off your business skills.
And you interview people to find out that they're competent, you don't hire them as a test. So your HR department and managers are probably the result of cheating in school as well, and the people who hired them were lazy.
Do what the rest of us do. Let the company screw itself up, and ride the top of the curve to a better gig.
The simple solution to this is that homework no longer counts. No more take-home tests. And any long-form papers, theses, etc. that are due must include citations from N sources prescribed by the professor (where N is a moderately small integer)
There will still be homework, but the grade on it will merely be feedback for your benefit.
There will still be tests, but they will be in-class, with all personal possessions placed in bins at the front of the room.
And if the citations aren't integrated properly into the paper, or if your paper looks just like someone else's, you get a 0.
Slashdot Mirror
I had to read the headline about six times to figure out what it meant.
Now I'm going to go have a first-of-it's-kind lunch of whatever combination of items they have in the cafeteria arranged in a particular way on the tray with just that much salt and ketchup on it...
1. This thing is just going to be the biggest piece of space junk until it burns up.
2. Unless it's got propulsion units, it's not going to sweep anything up, because it's just going to move at the same speed they are in that orbit.
3. If it's going to cross orbits, it's going to run into the problem of large objects hitting it at high velocities.
4. The first thing of any size that hits it at a low speed is going to ball it up, unless, again, it's got some sort of propulsion units to unfold it again, but that will just un-bag the thing it caught.
5. Anything of any size that hits it at high speed is going to poke right through it.
6. Anything in an orbit that this thing can reach and still bring back to Earth is in an orbit that's decaying on its own just fine domo arigato.
7. Many things in those orbits are supposed to be there and are still operational and very expensive; a lot more expensive than this titanium handi-wipe.
8. Stupid publicity stunt by a fish-net manufacturer. Pass the maguro sashimi and pardon my snicker.
No, they aren't. I had a Lexus gas gauge I could trust to the mile. They're easy to get right. And even if they're not well calibrated, they are at the least repeatable. Unless they're total shit, which the one on the Prius is. It's famous for it. Prius owners call it the "guess gauge".
It's not just legally required testing for safety-critical systems, it's legally required /independent/ review and testing for safety-critical systems.
If Toyota is not giving their code to someone else, or allowing independent parties to test their cars with full diagnostic gear, then they're not making systems that could be certified for safety to the same standards as an aircraft's control systems.
They run for a bit after detecting a crash so that they don't cut off in the middle of data that might be useful. Then they stop recording and start beeping.
It also doesn't know when it's got only half a gallon left.
The gauge goes to 1 bar, presumably at 1/8th tank, then it beeps and blinks starting when you have about 25 miles of fuel left (according to the manual).
The only time I trusted the "25 miles" number, the car went into electric-only and then creeping (limping along at a few mph) mode after about 11 miles.
More often, the thing will beep and blink, and I'll pull in within a couple of miles, and the 11-gallon tank will only take 8-9 gallons, meaning it had at least 80 miles of fuel left.
I don't trust them any more.
My Prius doesn't even know when it's still got a fifth of a tank of gas left.
Fuck Toyota. They're going to kill someone, here.
They already do.
Since one of the people behind the wheel was Steve Wozniak (previous slashdot story hyperlinked here), and he said he'd actually been able to replicate unchecked acceleration by the cruise-control system, I'm not trusting Toyota.
They have a vested interest in not finding a cause. He could not have any possible interest in making a claim of observing a misbehavior in a car he likes to drive.
Nor should anyone at Toyota trust Toyota.
Nor would I trust the government. They're not likely to be bringing A+ talent to the party.
Good point.
Who elected Linus Torvalds, anyway?
FREE THE KERNEL!
When do you ever lean on a key on your keyboard for five minutes?
I can't imagine any activity that requires such an act.
Oh, and FYI, I can probably do that with a 5-lb weight in my hand. But that's me.
I want the Lexx. And several of the crew...
Not just the Italians. The Fuckyoutonians were very successful with theirs, too, to the point that it's been adopted by most major languages on Earth. Of course, their language only has one word...
Every gesture system has failed.
That's because of a failure of haptics and resolution. It's not because the concept is invalid.
If you can create a system that actuates a virtual button right where it appears to be to the user, within a fraction of a millimeter, within a few milliseconds, it will work.
But you won't get that with the current stuff. Too slow and too chunky for anything other than demos.
Because it tends to be #fail.
Technically, the Google Nexus One is a beautiful, high-performing, genius-simple device.
But as a business it was a total flop. Why? Because Schmidt assumed that if you make a better mousetrap people will beat a path to your door; that is, until they realize it's not the same as their previous mousetrap and it doesn't work perfectly and they can't get hold of anyone in your company to tell them how to deal with their issues. At that point it doesn't matter whether it's a Google Phone or an actual mousetrap, the technology part is over and the business part is going to determine if it goes anywhere.
Meanwhile, over at Microsoft, they're still selling buggy, vulnerable Windows NT in a 7th-generation wrapper and kicking the shit out of every other operating-system company on Earth.
The moral: You can make a little money off your technical skills, but you can make a lot of money off your business skills.
You still have to test it. Pass/fail just lowers the bar for people who want not simply to pass but to excel.
N.B.: It's not plagiarism if you bought the right to put your name on the paper.
And you interview people to find out that they're competent, you don't hire them as a test. So your HR department and managers are probably the result of cheating in school as well, and the people who hired them were lazy.
Do what the rest of us do. Let the company screw itself up, and ride the top of the curve to a better gig.
Chucks are hot again, too.
Remembering stuff is just cheating at being creative.
Less from those who lack Cyberskillz.
The simple solution to this is that homework no longer counts. No more take-home tests. And any long-form papers, theses, etc. that are due must include citations from N sources prescribed by the professor (where N is a moderately small integer)
There will still be homework, but the grade on it will merely be feedback for your benefit.
There will still be tests, but they will be in-class, with all personal possessions placed in bins at the front of the room.
And if the citations aren't integrated properly into the paper, or if your paper looks just like someone else's, you get a 0.
Begin.
We already know your opinion, Mr. Torvalds.
When you assume, you make an ass out of you. Just you. Not me.