I'm just curious what kind of math background you have. I know that it takes some prety deep calculus and algebra to pull off all of the lighting effects in your games and I wanted to know how you went about aquiring these skills (college, random text books, etc).
Assembly programming is easy on the z80 and there are still a lot of programmers who know how to do it. Combine this with a total cost of about a dollar for a chip and you have a winner.
Why use a RISC thing or 68k processor when this one gets the job done more efficiently and at a lower cost? Just because more powerful processors are out there doesn't mean we need to use them. This is the same reason why my coffeemaker doesn't have a pIII-500 in it.
With the rumors of the internet connected coffemakers, Zilog introducing a tcp/ip stack is a good move toward future embedded applications. This thing can probably easily be used in so called "internet appliances" at a very low cost and programmers don't have to learn a new instruction set.
Andrew, waiting patiently for the era of the TI calculator with a web browser
WinCE devices are not selling very well right now, dispite having hardware that is arguably better than that of a Palm Pilot. Manufacturers are having to drop the prices on these just to move them out the door.
If Linux and BSD can get running well on these, and someone can develop a good, simple GUI (X doesn't count for this, I don't want to see Enlightenment an a screen that size) we may see this hardware come out faster with lower prices than before (no WinCE licensing fees to increase the price)
These could be killer machines, running a Linux kernel and a GUI that is as simple as the Palm Pilot. Enough hobbyists will pick these up that there will be no shortage of free applications. Hell, even the compiler is free, so people wont need to shell out fot CodeWarrior as for the Palm Pilot.
All in all, this could be very good news, and I am not usually one to evangelize Linux.
I wouldn't exactly try to take credit for the term "WebTone". In an industry full of buzzwords, that one is nearly the worst I've heard...(away from the attempted conversion of PCMCIA to PcCard).
I mean really, if a dial tone refers to a tone prompting you to dial....then a web tone must be a tone prompting you to....wait a minute, that doesn't make sense.
I went there a couple of times when it first came out, and proceeded to answer a couple of hundered questions....all about popular artists that I couldn't care less about (don't get me wrong, I don't mind (some) popular music, I just don't willingly purchase it). 2 hours later, it gave me a list of artists that not only had I already heard of, but that I also didn't like.
I then proceeded to head over to usenet and look at groups like alt.music.dream-theater and see what the people there tend to listen to. They have never steered me wrong yet. Plus, thanks to mp3's and the web, I can now get a feel for what a group sounds like before I spend 16-30 bucks on a CD (I have to order a lot of things as imports, thanks to the backward music climate in this country, (the US for any of you who are interested))
All in all, it seemed like firefly was for people who didn't want to expend the effort to attempt to find things on their own.
The smaller places that sell cds over the internet are much more helpful in that they are staffed by humans who are fans of the music they sell. Not only can they tell you what you would like if you already liked a certain artist, they can tell you which cd to start with. This is much more useful than an agent could ever be. audiophileimports.com is my friend =)
With all that said, I can't really comment on the community that sprung up around firefly, as I never really visited it. I'm just saying that the technology never really impressed me.
Oh well, I'll try connecting to it in a couple of days. I just got a mental image of this thing bursting into flames from the coming onslaught. On the bright side, they can make a server farm about the size of a floppy disk.
A really cool idea though.
Andrew (thinking a web controlled microwave is a really cool idea for some reason, except for when some cracker breaks in and overheats my lasagna)
About 3, almost 4 years ago, I participated in an event in California(don't know if it was in the rest of the country) called NetDay'96. About ten people volunteered to run network cable throughout the school, in preparation for a future internet connection. 3 years later, the cable is still unused.
I volunteered in my old elementery school's computer lab for several years, maintaining the Mac (ugh) network. There were some basic programs on the computers, educational games and such, but the teachers had absolutely no training or knowledge of the systems themselves, and the budget had long ago cut out the required funds for a real computer teacher. That computer lab has long since been disassembled and all of the machines have been placed in other classrooms, usually two to a classroom. Teachers do not have time to send students to the computers, so they end up gathering dust in a corner (the computers, not the students). My mother currently is a special ed aid at another elementary school, and the local prison donates computers to the school, refurbised by the prisoners. The 486's could be put to good use, but they currently only have win3.1 on them. Win95 is available for each...on CD...when the computers only have floppy drives. Linux would probably do halfway decent, but I don't have the time to teach the teachers, who are already scared of Macintoshes the ins and outs of UNIX.
My sister was recently telling me that when she was in 7th grade, a treat in computer class was getting to draw a picture on the apple 2 GS systems after finishing typing in a program. I had her particular teacher as well, and can report that this guy know less about the systems than most of the students.
I admire anyone with a will to get technology into schools, but we have to go against the current technophobic system and provide training for teachers, money to get teachers who know anything about computers, and real internet access, without limits.
I've learned the most on the internet when not looking for anything in particular, just surfing around looking at things that interest me. Kids should be able to do the same, without fear of getting in trouble. I think 'net access inherently lends itself to learning by osmosis. If you are out there, you will gradually pick up information.
It will take a while, but I think things will gradually get better for schools and net access. As soon as teachers can turn around, stop thinking like teachers, and see the potential in the internet, it will take off.
PC-Tel seem to be the modem of choice for things such as e-machines, with cyrix processors that can't seem to provide the power the modem needs to operate. The *fastest* I have personally seen one of these connect(with a live connetion) is 28.8. Any noise on the phone line kills the connection. I feel like breaking out in tears as soon as I hear PC-Tel.... it's going to be a long call that I can't end quickly without being a jerk.)
As soon as someone calls up with one of these pieces of crap I tell them to buy a new modem. As a ISP tech, I take all the crap from people saying they have a 56k modem and wondering why they are only conecting at 24000. I would just once love to tell them to go out, stick a crowbar in their wallet, and spring for a 150 dollar USR external.
It is a pain in the ass to explain to someone that since they just spent 2500 dollars on a new PIII from $major_manufacturer (that'll never be used for anything more then talking to friends online), perhaps they ought to spend another hundred on their connection to the outside world The exact same thing goes for Rockwell HCF's (hint for any tech support people out there, "+MS=V34" is your friend) and Diamond Supras...even the externals.
If there is going to be a Lin-modem, it should at least be on a modem with a DSP, not these HSP pieces of crap that are currently being put out.
My rant is done, feel free to moderate, as an ISP bob, I'm just passionate about modems.
Mikesch -- admitting my main system is currently a Cyrix with an LT Win-Modem (not all that bad... for a WinModem)
When it first opened, there were no brakes at it went through one of the final loops, so when they finally came into the station at the end, the shock of the sudden stop as it pulled into the station gave a few people whiplash. That is why you now hear a massive screech of the brakes as they go through one of the final loops. It slows it down enough that there is not quite so much deceleration as it pulls into the station.
For a while there were rumors that on a hot, humid day when the grease on the track would melt and get really slippery (or "slippy" in Pittsburghese), the top speed of the coaster approached 110 mph.
It's been several years since I've been to Duquesne, or even PA, so I don't remember all of the details, but I'm pretty sure this is all accurate, can anyone confirm?
Several places sell sheet lead about a 16th or 32nd of an inch thick for use in soundproofing. I've worked with it, and it is really easy to work with, incredibly flexible and easy to cut. The only problem with this is that it is *really* heavy. But for shielding, there is probably nothing better. Hell, superman can't even see through it.
Before anybody says it is dangerous for children/animals, do your children lick the inside of your computer case? I thought not.
I'm really sure that the government is scared that some web pages on some lame subdomains that nobody ever looks at anyway are getting changed.
I'll show some respect once they can get into a server that means something. I'm sure there are plenty of cracks of high security servers every year, only those who crack them are smart enough to shut the hell up about it.
This just proves that the "cracker", "hacker" or whatever the hell it is this week, community are just a bunch of whiners. They go out and vandelize a web page, and then complain when they actually have to face the consequences. I believe in freedom of information and all that, but at the same time, the destruction of data is not protected under that. Once they are finished, administrators have to clean up after them, at the very least patching the hole (a good thing) and changing some file names, at the worst having to take down an entire system and restore from tape. This takes time and costs money. Administrators, many of whom are on call 24 hours a day, are pulled away from their families to clean up after your crap. If security was what they have in mind(as many claim), they should send them information regarding the hole and allow them to patch it. If it is retaliation, who are they retaliating against. This really doesn't effect the government, it just gives the government more cause to go after them.
They really need to do something creative for a change. l0pht I have respect for, cDc I have respect for, they find ways to break into systems, their own, and then release this knowlede to the world at large. Hacking for girlies and gH I have no respect for, they exploit known holes and never give back anything.
After all this ranting I should come to a point. These people should remember that just as firmly you believe you should be allowed to do whatever you want on the internet, the government believes they should be able to put your ass away for doing it.
Speaking directly to the script kiddies:
It is because of people like you that the internet is becoming more and more closed, for instance, I know of several places that basic UNIX commands are disallowed. There are several networks where finger, talk and ping are disallowed, simply because of the security risks involved. It used to be that there was a shell account provided as a matter of course, now I have one of the few ISP's that offers one. I'm only 20 and I feel bad that I could not experience all that the internet had to offer (yes, there is more than the web) before network security was forced to get tighter because of you. It has gotten to the point where any experimentation at all is regarded as an attack by systems administrators, and we have you to thank.
>What's wrong with getting a little, or a lot, excited about something pointless and childish?
Because, once the 20th rolls around and everyone has seen the movie, the backlash starts...people will be complaining about how bad the movie sucked, when the truth is that their expectations were too high. Lets face it, there are a lot of people who could not be satisfied by this movie even if Darth Maul were to jump out of the screen and cut a movie goer's head off with a light saber. No matter what, people are going to be let down by it....and those of us who are going to *see a movie*, not regain our lost childhood will have to put up the endless whining of the people criticising every small flaw in it. Will I be going to see it? Yes, but with the expectation of a good movie, not with the expectation of seeing the second coming. And for all the people getting the toys....they aren't going to be collectors items. See, there are millions who have bought these things to keep them in their original plastic, in a hermetically sealed container in their basement...the market is flooded and will be for a long time...I went out and bought Darth Maul, and you know what? I opened it and played with it...its on my computer right now...a lot more fun then leaving it in its plasic and staring at it for 20 years.
JWZ seems like he may have a little free time on his hands. He is now wealthy after becoming fully vested in NSCP. He still seems to believe in the open source movement (based on the article on his webpage). He has no problem generating controversy in the press (has the right amount of attitude). He is easily identifyable by his 3 initials.
Slashdot Mirror
I'm just curious what kind of math background you have. I know that it takes some prety deep calculus and algebra to pull off all of the lighting effects in your games and I wanted to know how you went about aquiring these skills (college, random text books, etc).
http://www.sgi.com/grafica/huffman/
Assembly programming is easy on the z80 and there are still a lot of programmers who know how to do it. Combine this with a total cost of about a dollar for a chip and you have a winner.
Why use a RISC thing or 68k processor when this one gets the job done more efficiently and at a lower cost? Just because more powerful processors are out there doesn't mean we need to use them. This is the same reason why my coffeemaker doesn't have a pIII-500 in it.
With the rumors of the internet connected coffemakers, Zilog introducing a tcp/ip stack is a good move toward future embedded applications. This thing can probably easily be used in so called "internet appliances" at a very low cost and programmers don't have to learn a new instruction set.
Andrew, waiting patiently for the era of the TI calculator with a web browser
WinCE devices are not selling very well right now, dispite having hardware that is arguably better than that of a Palm Pilot. Manufacturers are having to drop the prices on these just to move them out the door.
If Linux and BSD can get running well on these, and someone can develop a good, simple GUI (X doesn't count for this, I don't want to see Enlightenment an a screen that size) we may see this hardware come out faster with lower prices than before (no WinCE licensing fees to increase the price)
These could be killer machines, running a Linux kernel and a GUI that is as simple as the Palm Pilot. Enough hobbyists will pick these up that there will be no shortage of free applications. Hell, even the compiler is free, so people wont need to shell out fot CodeWarrior as for the Palm Pilot.
All in all, this could be very good news, and I am not usually one to evangelize Linux.
Andrew
just got a mental picture of Bill Gates' funeral... weighing 800 pounds being buried in a piano case....sorry, next time I'll be more on-topic..
hehehehehehehe......
I wouldn't exactly try to take credit for the term "WebTone". In an industry full of buzzwords, that one is nearly the worst I've heard...(away from the attempted conversion of PCMCIA to PcCard).
I mean really, if a dial tone refers to a tone prompting you to dial....then a web tone must be a tone prompting you to....wait a minute, that doesn't make sense.
Andrew (really hating PHB buzzwords)
Hard to think that an MS employee (or anyone with any computer knowledge) wouldn't have thought about this though. Hmmmm, oh well....
Andrew
I went there a couple of times when it first came out, and proceeded to answer a couple of hundered questions....all about popular artists that I couldn't care less about (don't get me wrong, I don't mind (some) popular music, I just don't willingly purchase it). 2 hours later, it gave me a list of artists that not only had I already heard of, but that I also didn't like.
I then proceeded to head over to usenet and look at groups like alt.music.dream-theater and see what the people there tend to listen to. They have never steered me wrong yet. Plus, thanks to mp3's and the web, I can now get a feel for what a group sounds like before I spend 16-30 bucks on a CD (I have to order a lot of things as imports, thanks to the backward music climate in this country, (the US for any of you who are interested))
All in all, it seemed like firefly was for people who didn't want to expend the effort to attempt to find things on their own.
The smaller places that sell cds over the internet are much more helpful in that they are staffed by humans who are fans of the music they sell. Not only can they tell you what you would like if you already liked a certain artist, they can tell you which cd to start with. This is much more useful than an agent could ever be. audiophileimports.com is my friend =)
With all that said, I can't really comment on the community that sprung up around firefly, as I never really visited it. I'm just saying that the technology never really impressed me.
Oh well, I'll try connecting to it in a couple of days. I just got a mental image of this thing bursting into flames from the coming onslaught. On the bright side, they can make a server farm about the size of a floppy disk.
A really cool idea though.
Andrew (thinking a web controlled microwave is a really cool idea for some reason, except for when some cracker breaks in and overheats my lasagna)
with the existing educational system.
About 3, almost 4 years ago, I participated in an event in California(don't know if it was in the rest of the country) called NetDay'96. About ten people volunteered to run network cable throughout the school, in preparation for a future internet connection. 3 years later, the cable is still unused.
I volunteered in my old elementery school's computer lab for several years, maintaining the Mac (ugh) network. There were some basic programs on the computers, educational games and such, but the teachers had absolutely no training or knowledge of the systems themselves, and the budget had long ago cut out the required funds for a real computer teacher. That computer lab has long since been disassembled and all of the machines have been placed in other classrooms, usually two to a classroom. Teachers do not have time to send students to the computers, so they end up gathering dust in a corner (the computers, not the students). My mother currently is a special ed aid at another elementary school, and the local prison donates computers to the school, refurbised by the prisoners. The 486's could be put to good use, but they currently only have win3.1 on them. Win95 is available for each...on CD...when the computers only have floppy drives. Linux would probably do halfway decent, but I don't have the time to teach the teachers, who are already scared of Macintoshes the ins and outs of UNIX.
My sister was recently telling me that when she was in 7th grade, a treat in computer class was getting to draw a picture on the apple 2 GS systems after finishing typing in a program. I had her particular teacher as well, and can report that this guy know less about the systems than most of the students.
I admire anyone with a will to get technology into schools, but we have to go against the current technophobic system and provide training for teachers, money to get teachers who know anything about computers, and real internet access, without limits.
I've learned the most on the internet when not looking for anything in particular, just surfing around looking at things that interest me. Kids should be able to do the same, without fear of getting in trouble. I think 'net access inherently lends itself to learning by osmosis. If you are out there, you will gradually pick up information.
It will take a while, but I think things will gradually get better for schools and net access. As soon as teachers can turn around, stop thinking like teachers, and see the potential in the internet, it will take off.
I'm done with my (semi-off topic)rant.
PC-Tel seem to be the modem of choice for things such as e-machines, with cyrix processors that can't seem to provide the power the modem needs to operate. The *fastest* I have personally seen one of these connect(with a live connetion) is 28.8. Any noise on the phone line kills the connection. I feel like breaking out in tears as soon as I hear PC-Tel.... it's going to be a long call that I can't end quickly without being a jerk.)
As soon as someone calls up with one of these pieces of crap I tell them to buy a new modem.
As a ISP tech, I take all the crap from people saying they have a 56k modem and wondering why they are only conecting at 24000. I would just once love to tell them to go out, stick a crowbar in their wallet, and spring for a 150 dollar USR external.
It is a pain in the ass to explain to someone that since they just spent 2500 dollars on a new PIII from $major_manufacturer (that'll never be used for anything more then talking to friends online), perhaps they ought to spend another hundred on their connection to the outside world
The exact same thing goes for Rockwell HCF's (hint for any tech support people out there, "+MS=V34" is your friend) and Diamond Supras...even the externals.
If there is going to be a Lin-modem, it should at least be on a modem with a DSP, not these HSP pieces of crap that are currently being put out.
My rant is done, feel free to moderate, as an ISP bob, I'm just passionate about modems.
Mikesch -- admitting my main system is currently a Cyrix with an LT Win-Modem (not all that bad... for a WinModem)
When it first opened, there were no brakes at it went through one of the final loops, so when they finally came into the station at the end, the shock of the sudden stop as it pulled into the station gave a few people whiplash. That is why you now hear a massive screech of the brakes as they go through one of the final loops. It slows it down enough that there is not quite so much deceleration as it pulls into the station.
For a while there were rumors that on a hot, humid day when the grease on the track would melt and get really slippery (or "slippy" in Pittsburghese), the top speed of the coaster approached 110 mph.
It's been several years since I've been to Duquesne, or even PA, so I don't remember all of the details, but I'm pretty sure this is all accurate, can anyone confirm?
There is a supposed transcript of the tape at:
http://www.blurofinsanity.com/challeng er.html
There is absolutely no way I can confirm the truth of this, maybe someone else can?
Several places sell sheet lead about a 16th or 32nd of an inch thick for use in soundproofing. I've worked with it, and it is really easy to work with, incredibly flexible and easy to cut. The only problem with this is that it is *really* heavy. But for shielding, there is probably nothing better. Hell, superman can't even see through it.
Before anybody says it is dangerous for children/animals, do your children lick the inside of your computer case? I thought not.
I'm really sure that the government is scared that some web pages on some lame subdomains that nobody ever looks at anyway are getting changed.
I'll show some respect once they can get into a server that means something. I'm sure there are plenty of cracks of high security servers every year, only those who crack them are smart enough to shut the hell up about it.
This just proves that the "cracker", "hacker" or whatever the hell it is this week, community are just a bunch of whiners. They go out and vandelize a web page, and then complain when they actually have to face the consequences. I believe in freedom of information and all that, but at the same time, the destruction of data is not protected under that. Once they are finished, administrators have to clean up after them, at the very least patching the hole (a good thing) and changing some file names, at the worst having to take down an entire system and restore from tape. This takes time and costs money. Administrators, many of whom are on call 24 hours a day, are pulled away from their families to clean up after your crap. If security was what they have in mind(as many claim), they should send them information regarding the hole and allow them to patch it. If it is retaliation, who are they retaliating against. This really doesn't effect the government, it just gives the government more cause to go after them.
They really need to do something creative for a change. l0pht I have respect for, cDc I have respect for, they find ways to break into systems, their own, and then release this knowlede to the world at large. Hacking for girlies and gH I have no respect for, they exploit known holes and never give back anything.
After all this ranting I should come to a point. These people should remember that just as firmly you believe you should be allowed to do whatever you want on the internet, the government believes they should be able to put your ass away for doing it.
Speaking directly to the script kiddies:
It is because of people like you that the internet is becoming more and more closed, for instance, I know of several places that basic UNIX commands are disallowed. There are several networks where finger, talk and ping are disallowed, simply because of the security risks involved. It used to be that there was a shell account provided as a matter of course, now I have one of the few ISP's that offers one. I'm only 20 and I feel bad that I could not experience all that the internet had to offer (yes, there is more than the web) before network security was forced to get tighter because of you. It has gotten to the point where any experimentation at all is regarded as an attack by systems administrators, and we have you to thank.
>What's wrong with getting a little, or a lot, excited about something pointless and childish?
Because, once the 20th rolls around and everyone has seen the movie, the backlash starts...people will be complaining about how bad the movie sucked, when the truth is that their expectations were too high. Lets face it, there are a lot of people who could not be satisfied by this movie even if Darth Maul were to jump out of the screen and cut a movie goer's head off with a light saber. No matter what, people are going to be let down by it....and those of us who are going to *see a movie*, not regain our lost childhood will have to put up the endless whining of the people criticising every small flaw in it. Will I be going to see it? Yes, but with the expectation of a good movie, not with the expectation of seeing the second coming. And for all the people getting the toys....they aren't going to be collectors items. See, there are millions who have bought these things to keep them in their original plastic, in a hermetically sealed container in their basement...the market is flooded and will be for a long time...I went out and bought Darth Maul, and you know what? I opened it and played with it...its on my computer right now...a lot more fun then leaving it in its plasic and staring at it for 20 years.
JWZ seems like he may have a little free time on his hands. He is now wealthy after becoming fully vested in NSCP. He still seems to believe in the open source movement (based on the article on his webpage). He has no problem generating controversy in the press (has the right amount of attitude). He is easily identifyable by his 3 initials.
I think we have a winner.