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  1. Re:Slaughterhouse Cases on PC Repair In Texas Now Requires a PI License · · Score: 1

    I don't believe this law actually says what TFA says it does. Read it. The para in particular is under a subhead of "Investigation companies" and, elsewhere, I've seen the shrill explanation that the State might decide that the troubleshooting process is "investigation" or that merely seeing the data constitutes "investigating." I don't think that's the case and, as the owner of a PC shop who was considering going into forensics only to trip over this, I've actually consulted several lawyers about it already.

    I think this is a grand publicity stunt perpetrated by a PAC and a couple of tag-along PC shops. Read the Institute for Justice's PR piece about this. At no point does it explain the legal reasoning; it just states the story as though it's established fact. Notice also that none of the shops in their lawsuit have actually been told that they need a PI license; they are all "concerned" that the state "might."

    Even better, notice that the Inst. for Justice is taking this opportunity to open a new branch in Texas. This, really, is just their PR blast announcing that fact, and they've dreamed up this crazy talk to make it bigger news.

    It's a PR stunt, plain and simple, and a piss poor one at that. And the PC shops going along with it should be horribly, horribly ashamed of themselves for taking part.

  2. Re:Texas voter here: This is simply untrue. on Clinton Takes Ohio, Texas; McCain Seals The Deal · · Score: 1

    Really we're talking about hundreds of extra Obama caucus votes vs. Hillary's hundreds of thousands of extra primary votes.

    Hundreds of thousands? Really?

    From CNN:
    Clinton 1,455,959
    Obama 1,356,330


    Unless basic math fails me, that's a difference of only 99,629 votes. That's tens of thousands of votes, not hundreds. You're off by an order of magnitude here.

  3. Re:No.. requirements list itself omitted the info. on No iPhone For 64-Bit Windows · · Score: 4, Informative

    In fact:

    http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=305 703

    The default search option only hits "Manuals" and ignores technical documents, leading any casual search to _appear_ empty. Changing it to search _everything_ rendered that link. Notice footnote (1) in the Windows section...

  4. Re:Yeah .. that's how it works. on Google's Second-Class Citizens · · Score: 1
    According to the Federal Dept. of Labor Website:

    Federal law does not require lunch or coffee breaks. However, when employers do offer short breaks (usually lasting about 5 to 20 minutes), federal law considers the breaks work-time that must be paid.
    Some states require breaks for hourly employees generally, while others other single out Retail employees for this treatment.
  5. Re:Generic Connectors??? on iPods Becoming Entrenched In Major League Baseball · · Score: 1

    The Video-enabled iPods (gen 5+) will charge over USB and FireWire, but will only sync with a computer over USB.

    The 4G models did both over both.

    The 3G models synced both, charged over FireWire.

    The 1 and 2G models were FireWire only.

  6. assuming the web was the cause... on Dell Battery Recall- Win for the Web · · Score: 4, Insightful

    This, of course, assumes that "the web" was directly at cause for the eventual recall.

    Having worked QA for a competitor of Dell's that's under similar scrutiny, and knowing what mechanisms we had in place, I would imagine that the various bloggers had - at best - a tangential relationship to the end game here. Of course, that's assuming that Dell has QA mechanisms in place that are at least half as smart as ours were...

  7. Re:Some bold statements from this article on Scientists Respond to Gore on Global Warming · · Score: 1

    perhaps, one would think, a site dedicated to outing such astroturfing, would actually detail this to some degree or another, rather than having a single, context-less link.

    i'm sure i'm asking too much, though.

  8. Re:Some bold statements from this article on Scientists Respond to Gore on Global Warming · · Score: 1

    it's in bold, so it must be true!

    seriously though....

    quite the contrary... recent research has shown that increased solar activity plays a role in recent and not-so-recent climate changes, but there's been very little research yet (as these are relatively recent developments, in the grand scheme of things) to determine to just what degree...

    I'm not denying that man-made CO2 is a cause of global warming. Hell, I'll even go on record as saying that, IMO, it's probably by far the single greatest cause, and that reducing CO2 emissions and eliminating latent CO2 should be the focus of all mitigation plans.

    That said, the political climate of today makes it such that scientists with data pointing to other possible causes - even if they're only suggesting contribulary linkage - subjects them to ridicule and loss of funding. One day, we'll learn that Global Warming was 70% CO2 emissions and 30% adolescent american male flatulance caused by too many trans-fats in our diet. Someone will have suggested it, and been on the record with a plan that would have reduced 30% of the cause, and had been ignored for purely political reasons.

    In other words: yes, in all likelihood, we know the primary cause(s). That doesn't mean we should close our minds to other possible contribulary causes.

  9. Re:Some bold statements from this article on Scientists Respond to Gore on Global Warming · · Score: 1

    (as the anonymous Parent) I think you miss my point. I, actually, happen to believe said-Climate Change Experts.

    I just think that the logic used by the grandparent is flawed.

  10. Re:Some bold statements from this article on Scientists Respond to Gore on Global Warming · · Score: 4, Insightful

    (i'm the AC above - forgot to log in. dork.)

    there's a little something missing in your analogy. the experts you mention must be insanely knowledgable about their fields such that they know not just the base fact, but also the cause, the methodologies, and the cures. i could go a paragraph for each, but let's just look at the radiologist...

    His job is not just to say "your leg is broken." it's to figure out where, why, and how badly, and to advise your Attending Physician on reasonable cures. Is this a break that can easily be set, requiring little more than a cast and some aspirin? Or are you in need of more invasive surgery, a few screws, and a lifetime of setting off metal detectors? The radiologist doesn't necessarily decide this, but his report detail is crucial to your attending.

    From the perspective of watching you hobble into the hospital, five radiologists will all decide that you have a broken leg. From their own anecdotal experience, all five will have differing opinions of the severity and of the treatment. One will tell you that since you can still walk (however poorly), it's not bad and you just need some anti-inflammatories and bed rest, and that the hairline fracture will heal itself. Another will decide your distinctive gait betrays a severe fracture with nerve damage, and you are at risk of losing your leg if not rushed into surgery immediately. With all likelihood, however, these experts will probably agree on all counts after looking at the X-Ray.

    When it comes to climate change, Climate Change Experts in 2006 are a lot like these radiologists before the X-Ray. None of the doctors disagreed about whether your leg was broken - they differed on the severity and treatment. CCEs don't doubt the existance of climate change or global warming, but there is a tremendous amount of discourse about the causes and cures. We have at least three possible causes, all of which have mounds of evidence to support them.

  11. Re:Some bold statements from this article on Scientists Respond to Gore on Global Warming · · Score: 1

    ...because information from someone funded to be skeptical of someone funded to be skeptical is bound to be 100% accurate, reliable, and unbiased.

    Not saying he's not an Exxon flunky, but your link to exxonsecrets.com doesn't seem to have any data suggesting an actual link to Exxon.

    Or do you think that his name merely appearing on a website called "ExxonSecrets", with a link to an article wherein he talks out his ass, is credible enough to label him such?

  12. Re:little Apple on Ex-AppleCare Employee Describes Life Inside Apple · · Score: 1

    as a former AppleCare Rep and Mac Genius... you, sir, are my hero.

  13. Re:Huh? on iPod May Not Have The Horsepower For Ogg [updated] · · Score: 1

    the ipod voice recorder software saves to uncompressed WAV files, actually. and in relatively low quality. rather annoying.

  14. Re:What about M$soft? on AOL Now Publishing SPF Records · · Score: 1

    or, you know, maybe change to a solution that better supports established standards, better supports up-and-coming standards, and is more easily and freely extended.

    but i know. that's just crazy talk.

  15. Re:Buy iPod + 2.5" HDD? on Finding Holiday Discounts on iPods? · · Score: 1

    the ipod doesn't use 2.5" HDD's. they're pcmcia-style mechanisms.

  16. Re:Quick questions directed at Mac users. on Panther Released into the Wild · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Note that you WILL NOT be using your mac to play games. The games support just isn't there. You can play a small, random, usually not terribly good selection of the games that were released for the PC six months to a year ago. As a developer, your mac will make you extremely happy. As a gamer it will not.

    the selection of games available on the mac isn't random, actually. other than the small smattering of games that are released simultaneously on Mac and PC, the others are games that make it over because they were profitable.

    it doesn't matter how cool a game is, how many copies it's sold on the PC... if it's not profitable, it will not be ported. period.

  17. Re:Heads up for unix types on Panther Released into the Wild · · Score: 1

    the BSD option in the installer isn't config file - it's userland stuff.

  18. Re:iTunes can be twice as expensive... on Comparing Online Music Offerings · · Score: 2, Informative

    most CDs are, in fact, only $9.99. if every track on an album is available, you'll see a "Buy Album" link with it's price.

    On compilation CDs, though, it seems that tracks are often missing. I'd guess probably due to licensing issues. Ultra Lounge CDs seem to all be partial... and thus, not available to buy whole. Maybe they'll fill it out later and have it available at a more rational, reduced cost.

  19. Re:Apple Computer needs to settle. on Beatles Bite Apple · · Score: 1

    except that this lawsuit isn't even remotely related to IT. it's about Trademark.

  20. Re:Ethics.. on RIAA Sues 12-Year Old Girl · · Score: 1

    that would be important if we lived in a pure democracy. but we don't. and for EXACTLY that reason.

    if the will of the majority was the most important aspect, for instance, one could say that the civil rights movement in the middle of the last century was "not democratic." i think we can all agree that being popular does not make something right.

  21. Re:Worth it... on AppleCare for PowerBooks - Worth it or Wasted? · · Score: 1

    if you drop it, it's not covered even if you have AppleCare. warranties cover manufacturing defects, not abuse.

  22. Re:iBook or 12 inch PB requires AppleCare on AppleCare for PowerBooks - Worth it or Wasted? · · Score: 1

    any apple-authorized shop is supposed to mail it in to Apple for service, and for good reason. Apple also only charges a flat rate for service, regardless of part cost (unless the failure is due to abuse, etc). for iBooks, it's about $300. for powerbooks, it's about $350.

  23. Re:Owned a PowerBook Apple Care Free on AppleCare for PowerBooks - Worth it or Wasted? · · Score: 1

    incorrect. apple's portables warranty and applecare is a worldwide agreement. you can call applecare or teh equivalent in whatever country you're in - if you speak that language. you can also have it serviced there.

    read your warranties people. please.

  24. what they should have been doing all along on RIAA Obtains Subpoenas Against File Swappers · · Score: 4, Insightful

    honestly, this is exactly what the RIAA should have been doing all along. going after the networks themselves was futile - with the demise of Napster came the advent of AudioGalaxy, then Gnutella, then Kazaa (with a couple of others omitted out of laziness on my part). most have fallen like dominoes, only to be replaced by progressively less centralized networks.

    shutting down the networks is akin to closing a road just because people speed and suing the contractor that built the road. cities, though, have to bitchslap those who are actually breaking the law. siren, lights, ticket, court date.

    and that's just what the RIAA is learning now. they can go after the networks all they want, but as long as the end users feel immune from harm for their trafficking, another network will spring up in its place. by going after the actual swappers, the RIAA is finally going to make a dent in its little problem here.

    argue about the inequality of the music industry, its uneven balance away from the artists themselves, the unfairness of the current copyright schema, and all that jazz... but that's the way the world turns today. the consumers are not going to instigate change in the music industry - the balance will favor the artists only when the artists start standing up for themselves. and truly, if the balance were that unfair you'd see that happening.

    laws are another matter, but the same necessity. just like the musicians need to stand up and wrestle back some control over their art, the American people need to stand up and wrestle their government back from corporate interests.

    the whining that goes on in here and around the net is disappointing. we know what the current regime is. we know what the consequences are. unfair or not, we shouldn't act surprised when you get caught.

  25. Re:My Hyundai is faster than your Porsche... on NASA Benchmarks the New G5 Powermac · · Score: 1

    that's not what "MHz Myth" is parallel to, if you're going to take the analogy to cars.

    Higher MHz makes a faster computer like higher RPM makes a faster car - both are false.