A simple program... something to send that important email, decrypt the data that you honestly don't have to safeguard anymore, etc. A program to take action when you haven't proven (password | biometric | whatever...) your continued existance on a pre-arranged schedule.
Don't go on vacation for a longer period of time than you have the 'bot set for
(see either link, "If you're reading this, I'm dead!" type goofs have happened!)
What happens when you actually do pass on to the great unknown, don't manage to pay your bills, and your (ISP | power company | shell host) kills your service?
Or, more simply, what if your next of kin just tag the 'ol power switch?
Oh well... no person (or thing!) is perfect. Norway is keenly aware of this right now.
Yes, Reagan does have a carrier named after him. It's a Nimitz class carrier, CVN 76 (USS Ronald Reagan). It is currently still under construction at Newport News shipyard in Virgina. Expected comissioning in 2003, planned arrival in San Diego in 2004, and the first deployment is figured for sometime in 2005.
Somewhat depressing what we come up with here... not subversive at all, unless you consider the ability to reconfigure your dorm furniture at will subversive...
There are many posts about tools... certainly very important, and I can't emphasize the need for quality tools enough.
My list (in order of decreasing priority) would be something like:
14-ounce hammer
Craftsman screwdriver, #2 Philips
Craftsman screwdriver, 3/16" Straight
Medium (6 or 8 inch) adjustable wrench, Craftsman or Crescent brand
A simple pocket multimeter (if she's likely to use it)
Non-contact live-wire detector (again, only if useful)
I'm displaying my expensive loyalty to Sears here. It's been worth it to me, as I've had Craftsman tools work (and survive!) in situations that would wilt another tool. (I'm thinking mainly about screwdrivers.) Now that I've gotten into making this list, a few truly subversive tools do come up:
A set of the special Cable TV tools (they'll be really popular!)
A set of security hex wrenches (the ones that have a hole drilled in the center, the fasteners are usually found on those damn "tamper resistant" thermostat covers)
A network card that will allow you to change its' MAC address easily, and the knowledge to use it (I know, not really a tool in the sense I've been writing about... but it has subversive possibilities.)
There is much more... personal preference and taste will certainly dictate changes. But this (meaning all the comments posted so far) is one hell of a start!
Ouch... It'll be a while before any reviews get submitted, Michael -- it's HUGE! (Page 2 of the article: "At 1,280 pages, the book pushes the limit of what can be physically bound between two covers.") Levy talks about it dwarfing (!!!) a phone book... though it would depend on what phone book you're trying to dwarf.
Wolfram's demands regarding publishing are interesting -- the book is going to cost $12 to actually produce (5x to 6x that of a "normal" book, though the extra size certainly has to be a factor!), and be priced at $45 -- it includes large quantities of high-rez graphics. Also, it went through alphas and betas, like software -- not versions or revisions as writers are familiar with.
Definitely something I'm going to read... although I doubt I'll achieve full comprehension. The "A New Kind of Science Explorer" software should be fun to play with -- but will I have to wait another 10 years for that?
In dark ages past, my aunt would renew my subscription to OMNI as my birthday present. Gawd... that was 15, maybe 20 years ago. As I aged, I kept that subscription -- all the way up to when they quit publishing. (They "embraced a fully electronic format" or something like that... sound familiar?)
Now, here's the kicker:
I remember an article about this same subject!
(It was complete with artists' renditions of the ideas... fields of giant spikes, etc...)
And now here we are... the internet has come, grown, the bubble has burst, my favorite Sci-Fi magazine is no more, and we STILL haven't answered one (seemingly) simple question! Nuclear power plants are storing every fuel rod they've ever used on-site, Germans are willing to disable their rail system to prevent nuclear waste transport, and Nevada residents (read: voters) will only allow the Yucca Mountain Facility if the rest of the country rams it down their collective throat!
The more things change, the more they stay the same, I suppose.
And yes, the local police do use the marks as references when writing accident reports.
You ought to read "If at all Possible, Involve a Cow." -- it's about college pranks, and has nice sections on both MIT and Caltech. A nice afternoon's diversion, at least... motivation for one's own college prank career at the worst.
Coolio got paid because "Al is just a very nice guy?"
Bullshit, I don't buy it.
Asking permission "because he's a nice guy", sure. That I can explain as "nice."
When it comes to money, he's not foolish. He's (okay, his record company is...) writing large checks to the authors of music he parodies. Nice? No way. That's a royalty payment by definition.
(Skipping parts 1 to 7, which refer to monarchies, kingdoms, etc...)
8: "A share paid to a writer or composer out of the proceeds resulting from the sale or performance of his or her work."
Note that I didn't say anything about permission stopping him -- he can do his thing regardless. But he has to play by the rules; that means proper attribution and royalty payments where necessary. He may have changed the words, but the music was the same -- just in a different key. (Or perhaps they changed the pitch...)
In closing, you might wish to read some of the Weird Al FAQ, which addresses this situation:
Does Al get permission to do his parodies?
Al does get permission from the original writers of the songs that he parodies. While the law supports his ability to parody without permission, he feels it's important for him to maintain the relationships that he's built with artists and writers over the years. Plus, Al wants to make sure that he gets his songwriter credit (as writer of new lyrics) as well as his rightful share of the royalties.
(Original writer of the song... Stevie Wonder? There seems to be some... contention... about this point. I've heard "Pastime Paradise," it's obvious where the tune came from. Still, it was Coolio that got paid, so there must be something to it...)
What do the original artists think of the parodies?
Most artists are genuinely flattered and consider it an honor to have Weird Al parody their work. Some groups (including Nirvana) claim that they didn't realize that they had really "made it" until Weird Al did a parody of them!
What about Coolio? I heard that he was upset with Al about "Amish Paradise."
That was a very unfortunate case of misunderstanding between Al's people and Coolio's people. Short version of the story: Al recorded "Amish Paradise" after being told by his record label that Coolio had given his permission for the parody. When Al's album came out, Coolio publicly contended that he had never given his blessing, and that he was in fact very offended by the song. Al immediately sent Coolio a very sincere letter of apology for the misunderstanding, but has yet to hear back from him.
"Why would Wierd Al pay Coolio for a Stevie Wonder song?"
I don't know why he did that, why don't you ask him? I note that Coolio appears in the credits to Amish Paradise, at least from a quick Google search and reading from an unofficial site (first result). That could explain things somewhat...
"...the track was called "Past time paradise."
Found a copy, tried to listen to the whole thing... couldn't.
Perhaps the distinction is this: Pastime Paradise sounds very similar, many parts match, but it's not the nearly-perfect match (ignoring pitch and tempo differences) that occurs between Gangsta's Paradise and Amish Paradise.
Like I acronymed before, IANAL.
I'd wonder if Coolio is paying Stevie Wonder, but that's a new thread.
Heh... interesting you should pick that particular reference. I caught the Weird Al episode of "Behind the Music" (I think that's what it's called) on VH1 recently. I remember one part in particular, after they showed Coolio's reaction to "Amish Paradise" -- to paraphrase:
"... he must have enjoyed that check we sent him!"
Coolio did get paid for Weird Al's use of his song. How much, or precisely why, were not revealed. If Coolio was as displeased with "Amish Paradise" as he claimed to be, he could have sued... but he didn't. Parody may be protected, but copyright is copyright -- considering (in this case) the tune, not the words. Weird Al's version is easily identifiable as the same tune, thus would (in my mind, IANAL) require royalty payments.
Spaceballs is different, I suppose... although using identifiable characters, Mel Brooks wrote his own story -- instead of having to use an existing song. Also, the characters themselves are parodies of the originals.
Odd how the human mind works -- we can relate things by visual cues easily (a large (tall | fat) furry character, someone wearing a black helmet, Mel Brooks as Yogurt...) -- but to identify similar diversity in music takes significant training. Go figure.
Dammit, I missed the "Preview" button by a couple pixels!
I wanted to point out, after establishing the point of the Salon article, that Mr. Byrd is appealing to the RIAA vs. Napster judge to free his music. "Since Sony is stealing it, everyone should be able to!" is his basic point.
JWZ is railing against (and rightfully so!) the fact that the royalties he pays never go to the artists who actually (wrote | recorded | etc.) the music he's playing in his club!
It's 35 years later, and he has yet to receive any royalties on it!
(Part of the trouble stems from a missing contract.)
Sony, having bought out Columbia Records ignores his requests for sales figures of his material -- no denials, no "we're looking into it," silence!
JWZ had this interesting little bit
"In case you're unclear on how RIAA, ASCAP, BMI, etc. work, it's like this: everyone who comes anywhere near any kind of music is expected to pay them. They'll sue you into oblivion if you don't. Then, regardless of what music you were playing, they take your money, keep most of it for themselves, and then divide the rest statistically based on the Billboard charts. That means that no matter what kind of obscure, underground music you played, 3/4ths of the extortion money you paid goes to whichever company owns N'Sync; and the rest goes to Michael Jackson (since he owns The Beatles' catalog); and all other artists (including the ones whose music you actually played) get nothing."
And I love him for it. Geek hobby success -- truly, qualities to aspire to...
(Second page, first paragraph)
Tydlaska is prone to gloating about his sometimes invaluable skill. "People go into audit a company and they need to see its 'hysterical data,' as I like to call it -- 'hysterical' because of the prices they pay me to see it. They say, 'But there's nothing wrong with the tape! If I had the equipment I could restore the data myself.' And I say, you're right! If you had it, you could! But you can't buy it, and you can't reproduce it, so it's either worth my exorbitant fee or not. I mean, let the IRS believe you've got the data!"
I've got it, you need it, now pay up! Ha!
I've got some old tape drives... an Exabyte 8mm, a few DAT (Wang, I think...) drives, a couple circa-1995 pre-Travan QIC plugs-into-the-floppy-controller anachronisms. I even have a one-piece combo 5¼- and 3½-inch floppy drive! Perhaps I ought to start "Joe's Cut-Rate Data Recovery and Money Removal Service."
I bought a HP ScanJet recently -- the 7400 series that has 2400 DPI optical resolution. While it scans things relatively fast at 200 - 300 DPI, if you set it higher it gets VERY slow. I even skipped using USB and plugged it into an Adaptec 2940 SCSI card... not that it scans things any quicker.
High resolutions (I'll use 1200 DPI occasionally) are leave-and-get-a-cup-of-coffeeslow. If its performance is any indication, a 40,000 DPI (read on!) scan -- even a 5 inch one -- would take days.
Now, about the math here... God, it's UGLY! (There are storage and bandwidth considerations, too.)
Area of a circle: Pi times Radius squared.
CDs are actually 4.72 inches (12 CM) in diameter.
The unused area in the center measures approximately 1.75 inches diameter. (Delorme Street Atlas Deluxe data disc)
3.14 x (2.36 x 2.36) = 17.49
3.14 x (.875 x.875) = 2.40
Useful Area of a CD = 15.09 square inches
650 MB is the CD standard. Let's assume perfect data integrity (HA!!), and spread those 5.452 billion bits evenly throughout the surface. Further, assume that the circular nature of the tracks isn't going to screw with these particular calculations.
5,452,595,200 / 15.09 = 361,338,316.766 (bits in every square inch)
Square Root of 361,338,316.766 = 19,008.9 (minimum optical resolution of the scanner, if perfectly aligned)
CD data is packed on there at nearly 20,000 DPI! Unfortunately, it looks like the AC's right here... 10,000 DPI won't resolve the pits sufficiently. 40,000 is likely the functional minimum, and that scan's going to generate one hell of a huge image!
Next problem: How big a file does that scanner generate?
Since we aren't doing any kind of alignment, or following any track, assume we have to scan the whole surface at full resolution.
Image size = Resolution (times) Area Scanned (times) Bit Depth
Bit Depth: Something simple, but with enough detail to allow image processing software to find ALL the pits and their true edges... 8-bit grayscale?
(40,000 x 40,000) x 15.09 x 8 = 193,152,000,000 bits
193,152,000,000 / 8 (bits in a byte) / 2^30 (bytes in a GB) =...
22.48 Gigabytes (!!!)
Congratulations, the image is almost 35 times the size of the data you're trying to access! FireWire will take -- assuming that's the only thing going and you actually do get 400 Mb/sec -- just over 8 minutes to actually transfer the file. Now you have to store it on your HD, page it in and out of memory, analyze it, etc...
Ouch.
"Scanner and algorithm design left as an exercise for the reader" indeed! I don't think you'd want me involved in this project -- I'd tell you to go buy a Plextor and forget it.
Yup... they don't do it now, but they did it 12 years ago!
I saw dual-armed hard drives at Las Vegas Comdex in 1990. There was a set of heads on each side of the spindle (180 opposed). I don't remember if one set was the read heads and the others were for writing, or if each arm held both heads, or... ( I don't remember the manufacturer, either. )
The demo was neat -- a drive in a glass case with the heads flying back and forth. It was the first time I'd seen the innards of a drive while it was operating, so that image has rather vividly stuck in my mind.
Since most of the easily accessible locations have been photographed already, getting a 'new' point on the map (one that hasn't been visited or attempted) will require a significant period of interface with a non-virtual world.
It'll even exercise your diplomatic interpersonal skills, as some of the 'attempted' sites are on reservations -- since they're a sovereign nation, they can require permits for a visit. Heck, even getting onto private land can be interesting.
( i.e.
"You want to do WHAT? Yeah, right buddy! What are you really here for??? )
Fortunately, there is a form letter that you can print and take with you to convince the skeptical.
Back then, he was enlisted in the Navy... If I figure right, his first term should be up by now. Anyone have a status update for us? How's he doing? (Pathwalker, perhaps you have an inside track? You went to high school with him...)
Certainly one of the dirtier home science projects... at least from a radiological point of view. Look on the bright side, though: At least he got help cleaning it up!
That leaves $170 to pay for the 'net access. It'll certainly get you a nice connection... but it'll be a while before that buys you 10-Mbit.
My ISP charges $1200/month for 7.1-Mbit (down) & 768-Kbit (up), unmetered transfer DSL. Those speeds are only offered to 'business' class service, and thus include the right to run servers & host a couple domains. What it doesn't include is what our local ILEC (Verizon) will charge you for the circuit. Still, we can probably not consider that, as the cable company owns the 'circuit' anyway. Quite an eye-opening bandwidth bill.
Take a look at the Cisco uBR 925. It includes two RJ-11 POTS ports. Okay, so it's not three but I don't have teenagers. This device is capable of 10 Mbit/sec (limited because they installed 10-base instead of 100-base). Why aren't more of them installed? Why aren't we getting phone service over cable?
(I'm not going to address pay-TV service, since you're already plugging this thing into it!)
...
Ya got me. I'd say it's because the cable companies are in bed with the phone companies, and they both are milking things for all their worth. Just because something is available, possible, (both physically and financially!), and desirable doesn't mean it's going to happen.
Heck, look what happened to the XFL -- and they had Jesse "The Mind" Ventura!
But I'm cynical. I've pointed that out before. And it probably clouds my judgement.
"The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has charged that a Gateway (NYSE: GTW) advertising campaign that declares support for digital music downloads uses "misleading scare tactics" to frighten consumers into buying more of the company's products."
(My emphasis, of course.)
This from a consortium almost as good at scare tactics as Microsoft! (Meaning when they're convincing congress they need 'protecting' -- tariffs on blank media, copyright extensions, etc...) Oh well. I guess they know 'em when they see 'em.
"These slimeballs" don't even come into play here. Slashdot is hosting its' own ads (in this case), so your spleen-venting is rather unfair. Half of what you're demanding they do, they already do! (And if they're willing to accept credit cards directly, or let me mail them a check, I'll subscribe -- I won't deal with PayPal. There is that point.)
Now, back on target... The addresses I posted were all requests from the slashdot.org domain. The log was from my proxy -- which drops all communication with Doubleclick.
It's easy to check, just make the request to images.slashdot.org -- it's the California Digital ad about their acquisition of VA Linux's servers "...blue lights and all." The interesting thing is that you can see the load balancing in action. I received responses from "Apache/1.3.12" and "Apache/2.0.35" (same content, different server!) -- keep hitting 'reload', you'll see it.
Final note... I switched off my denial function and took a look at Doubleclick -- both their.com domain and clients that serve from their.net ad servers. Yes the 'Great Satan' is joined at the hip with Lucifer himself (at least from what I'm told here). They're running Internet Information Server, both v4 and v5.
HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Server: Apache/1.3.20 (Unix) mod_perl/1.25 mod_gzip/1.3.19.1a
X-Powered-By: Slash 2.003000
X-Fry: Where's Captain Bender? Off catastrophizing some other planet?
Well, there's the first one at least. Looks like their banner ad server's on 2.0+. I don't feel like formatting the rest of the logfile, but there are a couple more in there.
I suppose the longer we wait, the more stuff we can take -- it'll take less fuel to get there. (Unless we're using antimatter propulsion in 850 years or so... then I guess it really wouldn't matter.)
Slashdot Mirror
A simple program... something to send that important email, decrypt the data that you honestly don't have to safeguard anymore, etc. A program to take action when you haven't proven (password | biometric | whatever...) your continued existance on a pre-arranged schedule.
And wouldn't you know it, one exists!
I caught this discussion at Ars Technica last month. It refers to a cool-sounding program called "Dead Man's Switch (DMS)", which caught the attention of the New York Times.
Just a few issues...
- Don't go on vacation for a longer period of time than you have the 'bot set for
- What happens when you actually do pass on to the great unknown, don't manage to pay your bills, and your (ISP | power company | shell host) kills your service?
- Or, more simply, what if your next of kin just tag the 'ol power switch?
Oh well... no person (or thing!) is perfect. Norway is keenly aware of this right now.(see either link, "If you're reading this, I'm dead!" type goofs have happened!)
Yes, Reagan does have a carrier named after him. It's a Nimitz class carrier, CVN 76 (USS Ronald Reagan). It is currently still under construction at Newport News shipyard in Virgina. Expected comissioning in 2003, planned arrival in San Diego in 2004, and the first deployment is figured for sometime in 2005.
Somewhat depressing what we come up with here... not subversive at all, unless you consider the ability to reconfigure your dorm furniture at will subversive...
There are many posts about tools... certainly very important, and I can't emphasize the need for quality tools enough.
My list (in order of decreasing priority) would be something like:
- 14-ounce hammer
- Craftsman screwdriver, #2 Philips
- Craftsman screwdriver, 3/16" Straight
- Medium (6 or 8 inch) adjustable wrench, Craftsman or Crescent brand
- 'Regular' Craftsman pliers
- Leatherman | Victorinox SwissTool | Craftsman needle-nose pliers
- Craftsman wire cutters
- A simple pocket multimeter (if she's likely to use it)
- Non-contact live-wire detector (again, only if useful)
I'm displaying my expensive loyalty to Sears here. It's been worth it to me, as I've had Craftsman tools work (and survive!) in situations that would wilt another tool. (I'm thinking mainly about screwdrivers.) Now that I've gotten into making this list, a few truly subversive tools do come up:- A set of the special Cable TV tools (they'll be really popular!)
- A set of security hex wrenches (the ones that have a hole drilled in the center, the fasteners are usually found on those damn "tamper resistant" thermostat covers)
- A network card that will allow you to change its' MAC address easily, and the knowledge to use it (I know, not really a tool in the sense I've been writing about... but it has subversive possibilities.)
There is much more... personal preference and taste will certainly dictate changes. But this (meaning all the comments posted so far) is one hell of a start!This is a case in Germany, under German law, against the German division of Microsoft. From the article:
- "...Steffi Graf won a court case against Microsoft Germany..." (my emphasis)
Frightening though it may be, this isn't about any of the draconian US laws.-
"If anyone wants to review it, go right ahead."
Ouch... It'll be a while before any reviews get submitted, Michael -- it's HUGE! (Page 2 of the article: "At 1,280 pages, the book pushes the limit of what can be physically bound between two covers.") Levy talks about it dwarfing (!!!) a phone book... though it would depend on what phone book you're trying to dwarf.Wolfram's demands regarding publishing are interesting -- the book is going to cost $12 to actually produce (5x to 6x that of a "normal" book, though the extra size certainly has to be a factor!), and be priced at $45 -- it includes large quantities of high-rez graphics. Also, it went through alphas and betas, like software -- not versions or revisions as writers are familiar with.
Definitely something I'm going to read... although I doubt I'll achieve full comprehension. The "A New Kind of Science Explorer" software should be fun to play with -- but will I have to wait another 10 years for that?
In dark ages past, my aunt would renew my subscription to OMNI as my birthday present. Gawd... that was 15, maybe 20 years ago. As I aged, I kept that subscription -- all the way up to when they quit publishing. (They "embraced a fully electronic format" or something like that... sound familiar?)
Now, here's the kicker:
- I remember an article about this same subject!
And now here we are... the internet has come, grown, the bubble has burst, my favorite Sci-Fi magazine is no more, and we STILL haven't answered one (seemingly) simple question! Nuclear power plants are storing every fuel rod they've ever used on-site, Germans are willing to disable their rail system to prevent nuclear waste transport, and Nevada residents (read: voters) will only allow the Yucca Mountain Facility if the rest of the country rams it down their collective throat!(It was complete with artists' renditions of the ideas... fields of giant spikes, etc...)
The more things change, the more they stay the same, I suppose.
Perhaps it is the "Smoot"-ing of the Harvard Bridge you refer to? It's only off by 2 letters...
And yes, the local police do use the marks as references when writing accident reports.
You ought to read "If at all Possible, Involve a Cow." -- it's about college pranks, and has nice sections on both MIT and Caltech. A nice afternoon's diversion, at least... motivation for one's own college prank career at the worst.
Coolio got paid because "Al is just a very nice guy?"
Bullshit, I don't buy it.
Asking permission "because he's a nice guy", sure. That I can explain as "nice."
When it comes to money, he's not foolish. He's (okay, his record company is...) writing large checks to the authors of music he parodies. Nice? No way. That's a royalty payment by definition.
- royalty
Note that I didn't say anything about permission stopping him -- he can do his thing regardless. But he has to play by the rules; that means proper attribution and royalty payments where necessary. He may have changed the words, but the music was the same -- just in a different key. (Or perhaps they changed the pitch...)(Skipping parts 1 to 7, which refer to monarchies, kingdoms, etc...)
8: "A share paid to a writer or composer out of the proceeds resulting from the sale or performance of his or her work."
In closing, you might wish to read some of the Weird Al FAQ, which addresses this situation:
- Does Al get permission to do his parodies?
(Original writer of the song... Stevie Wonder? There seems to be someAl does get permission from the original writers of the songs that he parodies. While the law supports his ability to parody without permission, he feels it's important for him to maintain the relationships that he's built with artists and writers over the years. Plus, Al wants to make sure that he gets his songwriter credit (as writer of new lyrics) as well as his rightful share of the royalties.
Most artists are genuinely flattered and consider it an honor to have Weird Al parody their work. Some groups (including Nirvana) claim that they didn't realize that they had really "made it" until Weird Al did a parody of them!
That was a very unfortunate case of misunderstanding between Al's people and Coolio's people. Short version of the story: Al recorded "Amish Paradise" after being told by his record label that Coolio had given his permission for the parody. When Al's album came out, Coolio publicly contended that he had never given his blessing, and that he was in fact very offended by the song. Al immediately sent Coolio a very sincere letter of apology for the misunderstanding, but has yet to hear back from him.
- "Why would Wierd Al pay Coolio for a Stevie Wonder song?"
I don't know why he did that, why don't you ask him? I note that Coolio appears in the credits to Amish Paradise, at least from a quick Google search and reading from an unofficial site (first result). That could explain things somewhat...- "...the track was called "Past time paradise."
Found a copy, tried to listen to the whole thing... couldn't.Perhaps the distinction is this: Pastime Paradise sounds very similar, many parts match, but it's not the nearly-perfect match (ignoring pitch and tempo differences) that occurs between Gangsta's Paradise and Amish Paradise.
Like I acronymed before, IANAL.
I'd wonder if Coolio is paying Stevie Wonder, but that's a new thread.
CNN has a story about it, with a (somewhat decent) picture.
Makes me want to move to Nevada just so I can put these on my car. Too bad it's not a Delorean with a Mr. Fusion.
Heh... interesting you should pick that particular reference. I caught the Weird Al episode of "Behind the Music" (I think that's what it's called) on VH1 recently. I remember one part in particular, after they showed Coolio's reaction to "Amish Paradise" -- to paraphrase:
- "... he must have enjoyed that check we sent him!"
Coolio did get paid for Weird Al's use of his song. How much, or precisely why, were not revealed. If Coolio was as displeased with "Amish Paradise" as he claimed to be, he could have sued... but he didn't. Parody may be protected, but copyright is copyright -- considering (in this case) the tune, not the words. Weird Al's version is easily identifiable as the same tune, thus would (in my mind, IANAL) require royalty payments.Spaceballs is different, I suppose... although using identifiable characters, Mel Brooks wrote his own story -- instead of having to use an existing song. Also, the characters themselves are parodies of the originals.
Odd how the human mind works -- we can relate things by visual cues easily (a large (tall | fat) furry character, someone wearing a black helmet, Mel Brooks as Yogurt...) -- but to identify similar diversity in music takes significant training. Go figure.
Prices are for case, power supply, and motherboard (that's it!), and are approximately:
- SV-24 / SV-25 (Pentium 3) -- $215 to $230
- SS-50 (Pentium 4) -- $340
Nice to see the reviews, at any rate. I'm building a SS-50 for my folks as soon as Plextor ships their PlexCombo DVD/CD-RW drive.Therefore, I would expect the SS-40 (Athlon) to be close to $350 as well.
(Numbers are based on what is advertised via PriceWatch.)
Dammit, I missed the "Preview" button by a couple pixels!
I wanted to point out, after establishing the point of the Salon article, that Mr. Byrd is appealing to the RIAA vs. Napster judge to free his music. "Since Sony is stealing it, everyone should be able to!" is his basic point.
JWZ is railing against (and rightfully so!) the fact that the royalties he pays never go to the artists who actually (wrote | recorded | etc.) the music he's playing in his club!
The Salon article is quite interesting...
- Joseph Byrd records two albums in the late 60s
- They're released on vinyl
- They're re-released on CD
- It's 35 years later, and he has yet to receive any royalties on it!
JWZ had this interesting little bit(Part of the trouble stems from a missing contract.)
Sony, having bought out Columbia Records ignores his requests for sales figures of his material -- no denials, no "we're looking into it," silence!
And I love him for it. Geek hobby success -- truly, qualities to aspire to...
- (Second page, first paragraph)
I've got it, you need it, now pay up! Ha!Tydlaska is prone to gloating about his sometimes invaluable skill. "People go into audit a company and they need to see its 'hysterical data,' as I like to call it -- 'hysterical' because of the prices they pay me to see it. They say, 'But there's nothing wrong with the tape! If I had the equipment I could restore the data myself.' And I say, you're right! If you had it, you could! But you can't buy it, and you can't reproduce it, so it's either worth my exorbitant fee or not. I mean, let the IRS believe you've got the data!"
I've got some old tape drives... an Exabyte 8mm, a few DAT (Wang, I think...) drives, a couple circa-1995 pre-Travan QIC plugs-into-the-floppy-controller anachronisms. I even have a one-piece combo 5¼- and 3½-inch floppy drive! Perhaps I ought to start "Joe's Cut-Rate Data Recovery and Money Removal Service."
Hmmm....
I bought a HP ScanJet recently -- the 7400 series that has 2400 DPI optical resolution. While it scans things relatively fast at 200 - 300 DPI, if you set it higher it gets VERY slow. I even skipped using USB and plugged it into an Adaptec 2940 SCSI card... not that it scans things any quicker.
High resolutions (I'll use 1200 DPI occasionally) are leave-and-get-a-cup-of-coffee slow. If its performance is any indication, a 40,000 DPI (read on!) scan -- even a 5 inch one -- would take days.
Now, about the math here... God, it's UGLY! (There are storage and bandwidth considerations, too.)
- Area of a circle: Pi times Radius squared.
- CDs are actually 4.72 inches (12 CM) in diameter.
- The unused area in the center measures approximately 1.75 inches diameter. (Delorme Street Atlas Deluxe data disc)
- 3.14 x (2.36 x 2.36) = 17.49
- 3.14 x (.875 x
.875) = 2.40
Useful Area of a CD = 15.09 square inches650 MB is the CD standard. Let's assume perfect data integrity (HA!!), and spread those 5.452 billion bits evenly throughout the surface. Further, assume that the circular nature of the tracks isn't going to screw with these particular calculations.
- 5,452,595,200 / 15.09 = 361,338,316.766 (bits in every square inch)
- Square Root of 361,338,316.766 = 19,008.9 (minimum optical resolution of the scanner, if perfectly aligned)
CD data is packed on there at nearly 20,000 DPI! Unfortunately, it looks like the AC's right here... 10,000 DPI won't resolve the pits sufficiently. 40,000 is likely the functional minimum, and that scan's going to generate one hell of a huge image!Since we aren't doing any kind of alignment, or following any track, assume we have to scan the whole surface at full resolution.
(40,000 x 40,000) x 15.09 x 8 = 193,152,000,000 bits
193,152,000,000 / 8 (bits in a byte) / 2^30 (bytes in a GB) = ...
22.48 Gigabytes (!!!) Congratulations, the image is almost 35 times the size of the data you're trying to access! FireWire will take -- assuming that's the only thing going and you actually do get 400 Mb/sec -- just over 8 minutes to actually transfer the file. Now you have to store it on your HD, page it in and out of memory, analyze it, etc...
Ouch.
"Scanner and algorithm design left as an exercise for the reader" indeed! I don't think you'd want me involved in this project -- I'd tell you to go buy a Plextor and forget it.
Yup... they don't do it now, but they did it 12 years ago!
I saw dual-armed hard drives at Las Vegas Comdex in 1990. There was a set of heads on each side of the spindle (180 opposed). I don't remember if one set was the read heads and the others were for writing, or if each arm held both heads, or... ( I don't remember the manufacturer, either. )
The demo was neat -- a drive in a glass case with the heads flying back and forth. It was the first time I'd seen the innards of a drive while it was operating, so that image has rather vividly stuck in my mind.
Check out The Degree Confluence Project
Since most of the easily accessible locations have been photographed already, getting a 'new' point on the map (one that hasn't been visited or attempted) will require a significant period of interface with a non-virtual world.
It'll even exercise your diplomatic interpersonal skills, as some of the 'attempted' sites are on reservations -- since they're a sovereign nation, they can require permits for a visit. Heck, even getting onto private land can be interesting.
- ( i.e.
- "You want to do WHAT? Yeah, right buddy! What are you really here for??? )
Fortunately, there is a form letter that you can print and take with you to convince the skeptical.( Personally, I'd love to do some of the sites in Montana. )
Ah, yes... the infamous "Radioactive Boy Scout."
He even made Slashdot nearly a year ago.
Back then, he was enlisted in the Navy... If I figure right, his first term should be up by now. Anyone have a status update for us? How's he doing? (Pathwalker, perhaps you have an inside track? You went to high school with him...)
Certainly one of the dirtier home science projects... at least from a radiological point of view. Look on the bright side, though: At least he got help cleaning it up!
Let's see... prices would be (including taxes...)
- $30 for the first phone line
- $40 for the additional lines ($20 each)
- $60 for premium cable
That leaves $170 to pay for the 'net access. It'll certainly get you a nice connection... but it'll be a while before that buys you 10-Mbit.Total: $130
My ISP charges $1200/month for 7.1-Mbit (down) & 768-Kbit (up), unmetered transfer DSL. Those speeds are only offered to 'business' class service, and thus include the right to run servers & host a couple domains. What it doesn't include is what our local ILEC (Verizon) will charge you for the circuit. Still, we can probably not consider that, as the cable company owns the 'circuit' anyway. Quite an eye-opening bandwidth bill.
Take a look at the Cisco uBR 925. It includes two RJ-11 POTS ports. Okay, so it's not three but I don't have teenagers. This device is capable of 10 Mbit/sec (limited because they installed 10-base instead of 100-base). Why aren't more of them installed? Why aren't we getting phone service over cable?
(I'm not going to address pay-TV service, since you're already plugging this thing into it!)
Ya got me. I'd say it's because the cable companies are in bed with the phone companies, and they both are milking things for all their worth. Just because something is available, possible, (both physically and financially!), and desirable doesn't mean it's going to happen.
Heck, look what happened to the XFL -- and they had Jesse "The Mind" Ventura!
But I'm cynical. I've pointed that out before. And it probably clouds my judgement.
Point... but I like THIS better:
- "The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has charged that a Gateway (NYSE: GTW) advertising campaign that declares support for digital music downloads uses "misleading scare tactics" to frighten consumers into buying more of the company's products."
This from a consortium almost as good at scare tactics as Microsoft! (Meaning when they're convincing congress they need 'protecting' -- tariffs on blank media, copyright extensions, etc...) Oh well. I guess they know 'em when they see 'em.(My emphasis, of course.)
All I got was:
- This is the Plesk Server Administrator(TM) default page.
Ouch.If you see this page it means:
1) hosting for this domain is not configured
or
2) there's no such domain registered in Plesk.
For more information please contact [email address removed...]
Slashdotted to oblivion! Sorry guys...
ABORT, ABORT!!!
Whoa there, cowboy. Slow down a bit.
"These slimeballs" don't even come into play here. Slashdot is hosting its' own ads (in this case), so your spleen-venting is rather unfair. Half of what you're demanding they do, they already do! (And if they're willing to accept credit cards directly, or let me mail them a check, I'll subscribe -- I won't deal with PayPal. There is that point.)
Now, back on target... The addresses I posted were all requests from the slashdot.org domain. The log was from my proxy -- which drops all communication with Doubleclick.
It's easy to check, just make the request to images.slashdot.org -- it's the California Digital ad about their acquisition of VA Linux's servers "...blue lights and all." The interesting thing is that you can see the load balancing in action. I received responses from "Apache/1.3.12" and "Apache/2.0.35" (same content, different server!) -- keep hitting 'reload', you'll see it.
Final note... I switched off my denial function and took a look at Doubleclick -- both their .com domain and clients that serve from their .net ad servers. Yes the 'Great Satan' is joined at the hip with Lucifer himself (at least from what I'm told here). They're running Internet Information Server, both v4 and v5.
Poke some more, you quit too soon.
- GET
/article.pl?sid=02/04/06/0216250 HTTP/1.1
- HTTP/1.1 200 OK
- GET
/Slashdot/pc.gif?article,1018062768900 HTTP/1.1
- HTTP/1.1 200 OK
- GET
/banner/cdig0001en.gif?1018062768915 HTTP/1.1
- HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Well, there's the first one at least. Looks like their banner ad server's on 2.0+. I don't feel like formatting the rest of the logfile, but there are a couple more in there.Server: Apache/1.3.20 (Unix) mod_perl/1.25 mod_gzip/1.3.19.1a
X-Powered-By: Slash 2.003000
X-Fry: Where's Captain Bender? Off catastrophizing some other planet?
Server: Apache/1.3.17 (Unix)
Server: Apache/2.0.35 (Unix)
-
"...zero G raw materials for future missions."
Or... a counterweight for a space elevator!I suppose the longer we wait, the more stuff we can take -- it'll take less fuel to get there. (Unless we're using antimatter propulsion in 850 years or so... then I guess it really wouldn't matter.)