Civil disobedience means that you disobey the law and then submit to the legal process to demonstrate how bad of a law it is. Virtually all software piracy is done under the table. If you don't rub it in the software company's face and risk being sued, you are simply lining your own pockets. Nothing heroic about that.
...is that 47% of the respondents are uncertain that they will migrate to W2K after it comes out. It may be a point of concern for Microsoft if Microsoft customers don't buy Microsoft upgrades.
Also of interest is the fact that a majority (52%) are not considering LINUX as a possible OS alternative. It would be of interest to see how many of them are hard-core "I won't switch 'till someone puts a gun to my head" types.
I don't know about your one watt figure. I do know that a college instructor of mine told a story about how, during his Marine days, he would be able to fry a steak in a microwave signal when they were tuning the station. (They probably run at much lower power when in actual operation, though.)
Even though there's a big difference in the amount of energy in a microwave station vs. a radio station, the microwave station's signal is much more focused, and could perhaps cause more damage. Enviromentalists are concerned about this very problem re: endangered species of birds who live on military bases that use microwave signaling. (Granting that the birds wouldn't be there in the first place if the bases weren't such good habitat for them, it's still an issue.)
Nobody's too upset about microwaves now because the only ones using them are the military and the phone companies. This may be a different story, though, if everybody and their cousin Earl start putting up towers.
While I think that the inherent security of UNIX-style systems is a factor,
* virus writers (like most developers) will write for the platform they know most about, * Microsoft is a large corporation (and assumedly more fun to victimize), * the commonness of Windows machines (or even specific configurations of Windows machines, like that used by Melissa) accelerate the propagation of Windows viruses, and * most Windows users wouldn't know enough to secure their systems (even if they could).
Granting that you may have your own reasons for being anonymous, for all we know, you're some 12-year-old trying to pick an argument. This article may or may not be true, but we certainly aren't going to tell what is the case from your unsubstantiated assertions. (And calling someone delusional when they challenge said unsubstantiated assertions isn't helping build your credibility.)
Unless you have something substantive to add, I don't see why anybody should pay further attention to what you say.
If you were really interested in a superconcise, plain-English statement of the theorem, you'd look up Kurt Goedel in the Columbia Encyclopedia.
While you're probably right about people getting the wrong idea about the _end_ of Goedel's theorem from GEB, GEB is really more about illustrating the _process_ of Goedel's theorem. (Draw up this funky-looking theorem that proves theorems, load the theorem into itself, and what do you get?)
You get a better idea of what a car's purpose is from watching a Mercedes commercial than from watching a mechanic poke around the engine, but sometimes watching the mechanic is better if you want to see how it works.
Believe it or not, there are people who use Linux because they find it to be the most efficient way to do what they need to do. If you like to use Microsoft products, fine (and, for many people, Microsoft products _are_ good enough). Just don't get in a snit because people prefer Linux over _your_ particular brand of operating system.
I've been visiting Slashdot for WAY more than a month at a time, so I know how much Linux is discussed here. I'm just kind of concerned that Slashdot doesn't get put into a ghetto of some sort or another. There's something more to it than just a single operating system. A site that has a poll about whether you like the Beatles, the Stones, or the Who the best can't be solely about a single operating system.
Maybe it would help if Rob got more into Beat Farmers-SCOTS-Mojo Nixon. Or maybe not.
HOW did Creative Labs get that impression?!? Granting that there's an occasional posting about Linux here, there's a lot more to Slashdot than just one operating system.
Oh, well, more links == more clickthrus. There's no such thing as bad publicity.
If they tried anything like that they would have a massive revolt on their hands. They're already having enough trouble convincing companies to switch from Win3.1, Win95, Office95, etc. to the latest versions. Even the staunchest Microsoft supporters have a hard time seeing the advantages in switching unless there's a compelling reason (Y2K, for example, or the latest Big Thing). If Microsoft started forcing companies to pay on a subscription basis (or even worse, forced them to install regular updates that hit them in TCO and lost employee productivity), companies will simply stick with whatever the latest version of Windows they have and look for an alternative doublequick.
That isn't to say that Microsoft wouldn't love to do that, but the smart move is to get offices to upgrade by (a) purchasing new equipment from OEMs and/or (b) bundling "upgrades" with new software. -----
As the Economist editorial frames the debate, the QWERTY layout won out over the Dvorak layout because a study proved that there was no significant speed advantage of Dvorak over QWERTY. One could respond that this ignores the other advantages of the Dvorak layout. (This is probably a good reason to avoid arguing excessively about whether one thing or another is a "market failure." Such arguments inevitably tend to devolve toward arguments about taste, appeals to the "bandwagon effect," etc.)
However, I think it would be more profitable to ask why there have not been more alternative keyboard formats than the Dvorak, given the widely -held beliefs in the deficiency of the QWERTY layout. So much else has changed in society in the 100+ years that the QWERTY keyboard has existed; why hasn't the keyboard? -----
United Media can get all over his ass about this for all I care (though I doubt they will, since it isn't hurting their Calvin & Hobbes sticker business).
I doubt that Waterson gives a whit about them either. His objections to licensing the image were a) It would take his time and attention from drawing the best comic strip he could, b) It would necessarily put him under pressures to water down the strip to make it more palatable to potential licensees, and c) Seeing the characters shilling for products would simply degrade their impact in the strips. A case in point is that other comic strip that's used to sell Met Life insurance here in the U.S. Does anyone else find it in the least ironic that A Charlie Brown Christmas complains about how Christmas is getting too commercial in between the Dolly Madison Bakery commercials? (Make no mistake, Peanuts was deep and intellectual for a comic strip back in the '60s, much more so than it is anymore.)
While I'm not exactly ecstatic about these guys trying to make a buck on Waterson's creation, I don't see these stickers similarly degrading the impact of Calvin and Hobbes comic strips. When I was in college, I saw an ad advertising a rock band appearance at a local bar. It had Calvin going apoplectic shouting "Rock and Roll!!!" while Hobbes strummed a guitar in the background. Probably not exactly what Waterson had in mind, but not nearly as out of line as shilling for milk. -----
For a Randinista, the whole thing comes down to autonomous individuals having the moral authority to create and to make agreements with other individuals without interference. You have no obligation to buy what I produce, nor do I have any obligation to sell you what I produce.
For whatever weaknesses there are in the Randinista position, that isn't one of them. -----
Right. Overwriting bytes on other partitions is not increasing the partition size, but Win9x could do that. Even in that case, though, you'd be seeing problems sooner rather than later. -----
Win98 would have to change the MBR on your hard drive to do that, would it not? If so,
1) The change per reboot is going to be a whole lot more than just a few bites, and 2) You're probably in for a world more hurt than just a few bytes lost if the OS messes with the MBR.
It fits the bill as an urban legend, though. Microsoft taking over your hard drive a few bytes at a time... -----
"...the good ones are good in their own unique ways." 8-)
There's some merit to having a machine do your weeding for you, but I'm partial to the idea of fallible human beings doing the weeding myself (where practicable). Maybe it will even work. -----
Slashdot Mirror
Civil disobedience means that you disobey the law and then submit to the legal process to demonstrate how bad of a law it is. Virtually all software piracy is done under the table. If you don't rub it in the software company's face and risk being sued, you are simply lining your own pockets. Nothing heroic about that.
...is that 47% of the respondents are uncertain that they will migrate to W2K after it comes out. It may be a point of concern for Microsoft if Microsoft customers don't buy Microsoft upgrades.
Also of interest is the fact that a majority (52%) are not considering LINUX as a possible OS alternative. It would be of interest to see how many of them are hard-core "I won't switch 'till someone puts a gun to my head" types.
I don't know about your one watt figure. I do know that a college instructor of mine told a story about how, during his Marine days, he would be able to fry a steak in a microwave signal when they were tuning the station. (They probably run at much lower power when in actual operation, though.)
Even though there's a big difference in the amount of energy in a microwave station vs. a radio station, the microwave station's signal is much more focused, and could perhaps cause more damage. Enviromentalists are concerned about this very problem re: endangered species of birds who live on military bases that use microwave signaling. (Granting that the birds wouldn't be there in the first place if the bases weren't such good habitat for them, it's still an issue.)
Nobody's too upset about microwaves now because the only ones using them are the military and the phone companies. This may be a different story, though, if everybody and their cousin Earl start putting up towers.
Wait a second, Oscar the Grouch already is Yoda.
I don't care if it is false, I'm having a lot of fun with this.
While I think that the inherent security of UNIX-style systems is a factor,
* virus writers (like most developers) will write for the platform they know most about,
* Microsoft is a large corporation (and assumedly more fun to victimize),
* the commonness of Windows machines (or even specific configurations of Windows machines, like that used by Melissa) accelerate the propagation of Windows viruses, and
* most Windows users wouldn't know enough to secure their systems (even if they could).
Granting that you may have your own reasons for being anonymous, for all we know, you're some 12-year-old trying to pick an argument. This article may or may not be true, but we certainly aren't going to tell what is the case from your unsubstantiated assertions. (And calling someone delusional when they challenge said unsubstantiated assertions isn't helping build your credibility.)
Unless you have something substantive to add, I don't see why anybody should pay further attention to what you say.
that "other people" may include yourself.
Well, enough with the speculation; we'll know for certain soon enough.
If you were really interested in a superconcise, plain-English statement of the theorem, you'd look up Kurt Goedel in the Columbia Encyclopedia.
While you're probably right about people getting the wrong idea about the _end_ of Goedel's theorem from GEB, GEB is really more about illustrating the _process_ of Goedel's theorem. (Draw up this funky-looking theorem that proves theorems, load the theorem into itself, and what do you get?)
You get a better idea of what a car's purpose is from watching a Mercedes commercial than from watching a mechanic poke around the engine, but sometimes watching the mechanic is better if you want to see how it works.
Believe it or not, there are people who use Linux because they find it to be the most efficient way to do what they need to do. If you like to use Microsoft products, fine (and, for many people, Microsoft products _are_ good enough). Just don't get in a snit because people prefer Linux over _your_ particular brand of operating system.
By the way, Craftsman is a Sears brand. FYI
I've been visiting Slashdot for WAY more than a month at a time, so I know how much Linux is discussed here. I'm just kind of concerned that Slashdot doesn't get put into a ghetto of some sort or another. There's something more to it than just a single operating system. A site that has a poll about whether you like the Beatles, the Stones, or the Who the best can't be solely about a single operating system.
Maybe it would help if Rob got more into Beat Farmers-SCOTS-Mojo Nixon. Or maybe not.
HOW did Creative Labs get that impression?!? Granting that there's an occasional posting about Linux here, there's a lot more to Slashdot than just one operating system.
Oh, well, more links == more clickthrus. There's no such thing as bad publicity.
As in late 50's automobile vintage. Now that would be style!
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One of the characters recites a quote, and two others argue about whether it was Mark Twain who said it or Samuel Clemens.
Pogo asks the character who made the quote, and he said, "You heard me. I heard me. I said it."
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then of course the moderators won't ding it. You need to show the moderators that it's not worth seeing by demonstrating it's not worth a reply.
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That's one of the things I learned from working at the Iowa State Daily. (Apart from the fact that I didn't want to be a journalist.)
Not that it's necessarily bad for an article to have an opinion. (It's only good if you expect to sell your news to everybody.)
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The part where the Vogon guard has Ford and Arthur under his armpits is probably a lot more memorable than any given TNG episode with the Borg.
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If they tried anything like that they would have a massive revolt on their hands. They're already having enough trouble convincing companies to switch from Win3.1, Win95, Office95, etc. to the latest versions. Even the staunchest Microsoft supporters have a hard time seeing the advantages in switching unless there's a compelling reason (Y2K, for example, or the latest Big Thing). If Microsoft started forcing companies to pay on a subscription basis (or even worse, forced them to install regular updates that hit them in TCO and lost employee productivity), companies will simply stick with whatever the latest version of Windows they have and look for an alternative doublequick.
That isn't to say that Microsoft wouldn't love to do that, but the smart move is to get offices to upgrade by (a) purchasing new equipment from OEMs and/or (b) bundling "upgrades" with new software.
-----
As the Economist editorial frames the debate, the QWERTY layout won out over the Dvorak layout because a study proved that there was no significant speed advantage of Dvorak over QWERTY. One could respond that this ignores the other advantages of the Dvorak layout. (This is probably a good reason to avoid arguing excessively about whether one thing or another is a "market failure." Such arguments inevitably tend to devolve toward arguments about taste, appeals to the "bandwagon effect," etc.)
However, I think it would be more profitable to ask why there have not been more alternative keyboard formats than the Dvorak, given the widely -held beliefs in the deficiency of the QWERTY layout. So much else has changed in society in the 100+ years that the QWERTY keyboard has existed; why hasn't the keyboard?
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I mean, who do you think fits the Siskel model the best and who fits the Ebert model?
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Enquiring minds want to know!
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United Media can get all over his ass about this for all I care (though I doubt they will, since it isn't hurting their Calvin & Hobbes sticker business).
.
I doubt that Waterson gives a whit about them either. His objections to licensing the image were
a) It would take his time and attention from drawing the best comic strip he could,
b) It would necessarily put him under pressures to water down the strip to make it more palatable to potential licensees, and
c) Seeing the characters shilling for products would simply degrade their impact in the strips.
A case in point is that other comic strip that's used to sell Met Life insurance here in the U.S. Does anyone else find it in the least ironic that A Charlie Brown Christmas complains about how Christmas is getting too commercial in between the Dolly Madison Bakery commercials? (Make no mistake, Peanuts was deep and intellectual for a comic strip back in the '60s, much more so than it is anymore.)
While I'm not exactly ecstatic about these guys trying to make a buck on Waterson's creation, I don't see these stickers similarly degrading the impact of Calvin and Hobbes comic strips. When I was in college, I saw an ad advertising a rock band appearance at a local bar. It had Calvin going apoplectic shouting "Rock and Roll!!!" while Hobbes strummed a guitar in the background. Probably not exactly what Waterson had in mind, but not nearly as out of line as shilling for milk
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For a Randinista, the whole thing comes down to autonomous individuals having the moral authority to create and to make agreements with other individuals without interference. You have no obligation to buy what I produce, nor do I have any obligation to sell you what I produce.
For whatever weaknesses there are in the Randinista position, that isn't one of them.
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Right. Overwriting bytes on other partitions is not increasing the partition size, but Win9x could do that. Even in that case, though, you'd be seeing problems sooner rather than later.
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Win98 would have to change the MBR on your hard drive to do that, would it not? If so,
1) The change per reboot is going to be a whole lot more than just a few bites, and
2) You're probably in for a world more hurt than just a few bytes lost if the OS messes with the MBR.
It fits the bill as an urban legend, though. Microsoft taking over your hard drive a few bytes at a time...
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"...the good ones are good in their own unique ways." 8-)
There's some merit to having a machine do your weeding for you, but I'm partial to the idea of fallible human beings doing the weeding myself (where practicable). Maybe it will even work.
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