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User: blueshift_1

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  1. Re:Tools not crutches on Technology Won't Fix America's Neediest Schools -- It Makes Bad Education Worse · · Score: 1

    I didn't mean to imply that we should expect everyone to overcome these hardships and be hugely successful. I just meant that there are some who certainly can overcome their conditions. However, these are absolutely far and few between. Many people would not be able to achieve what they've done without the advantages they received from the start. Be it race, gender, socioeconomic condition, etc, etc. It doesn't make them any less deserving of their merits, but I've always found it's important to be aware of what systemic advantages I've reaped.

  2. Re:Shouldn't this be obvious? on Technology Won't Fix America's Neediest Schools -- It Makes Bad Education Worse · · Score: 2

    and some of the worst cases is when you have brilliant teachers and parents who could care less. Many children see that there parents don't care about their schooling and they develop the same attitude. It's sad to see this problem so prevalent in many of our low-income schools.

  3. Tools not crutches on Technology Won't Fix America's Neediest Schools -- It Makes Bad Education Worse · · Score: 3, Insightful

    This is definitely obvious. Children that come from more privileged socioeconomic backgrounds tend get technological expose at a younger age - allowing them a shorter learning curve when things like this are implemented at young age. While these boundaries are certainly surmountable, we just have to consider it when implementing them. Technology has to be used as tool for further engagement & interactivity in the classroom. Too many use them as a crutch to - and nothing is worse for education than poorly executed PowerPoint presentations. Of course PP gets a bad rap because people don't generally understand how to use it as a tool for creating engaging & interactive content - but that's a whole different can of worms.

  4. No options. on Why Americans Loathe Cable Companies · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I think the biggest issue is that you're locked into a provider by area. What makes people (including myself) angrier than having terrible customer service is having terrible customer service and no real alternatives to choose from. For TV you pretty much have one cable provider, maybe verizon/AT&T as an alternative, and the various satellite providers - which isn't the worst. However for internet, the satellite providers are slow - so only useful if you can't get DSL or cable. So you have one cable provider and maybe one DSL. Both have jacked up prices and terrible service; then you just accept it, pick the cheapest one(which isn't that cheap), and grumble on reviews. Oh and if you live in one of the few places that have google fibre or similar then you naturally take that. What it comes down to is that the monopolized system has hurt the customers (surprise, surprise).

  5. Re:Link? on US Prosecutors Say Clearing Browser Data Can Be Obstruction of Justice · · Score: 3, Insightful

    It does make me wonder how something with no article or references makes it to the front page... get it together /. editors!

  6. Waiting on the Raspi on Microsoft To Release Low-Cost Windows 10 With Bing Branding · · Score: 1

    This is no real surprise... just continuing an existing product - and something that is certainly expected of them. However it is nice to see them throwing some weight behind getting this rolled out on the raspberry pi (and other of the low power computers).

  7. Metric Guns. on Presidential Candidate Lincoln Chaffee Proposes That US Go Metric · · Score: 1
    Let's be honest here, going metric is just like banning guns: regardless of how you feel about the subject, the cost of changing the way it has been for hundreds of years is just too great. From road signs to revamping of labels to changing all hardware (like tools/bolts/etc) to just changing how people think about measurements.

    The same way that gas stations in the 70's tried to sell gas in liters. People just thought, divide by four, but since there are more than 4 liters in a gallon, they though they were getting ripped off when in many cases they were saving a bit of cash. America just isn't ready for that sort of progress.

  8. Trying to bring g+ back from the grave. on Egyptian Repairman Outranks Google · · Score: 1

    Really, it's just google trying to make g+ relevant again. Sort of like, hey if you use this with these tricks, you can beat the system!

  9. Re:THIS is our answer to cord cutting? on Showtime Announces Subscription-Free Streaming Plan · · Score: 4, Insightful
    I disagree for items like HBO & Showtime. They are both non-standard channel groups that you have to buy to view. They tend to be between $10-15 extra to get with you normal cable/satelite service. So the external subscription isn't really significantly more than getting it anyway.

    However, for standard programming you really have to see if the cost is justified. For me, an Antenna + netflix is more than enough. I think the traditional model will always appeal to some, but it's nice to see that a la carte options are available if that is all you need/want.

  10. This has always been there. on Carnegie Mellon Struggles After Uber Poaches Top Robotics Researchers · · Score: 1

    This has always been battle between academia and private sector jobs. You can get funding to research what you want... or take the golden handcuffs and research what the man requires you to.

  11. Re:We the taxayer get screwed. on How Elon Musk's Growing Empire is Fueled By Government Subsidies · · Score: 2

    Agreed. Not to mention, most people don't realize how even automation requires human supervision. Someone has to be there to handle general maintenance, develop optimized layouts, handle specific deviations, etc, etc.

  12. Re:Should have kept the Spartan name on Microsoft Edge To Support Dolby Audio · · Score: 1

    If only the could have changed the logo just a bit more... the edge logo still brings back bad memories.

  13. Cost of even purposing on Charter Strikes $56B Deal For Time Warner Cable · · Score: 1

    I wonder what the legal cost of even attempting this merger is above and beyond the cost of acquiring assets/debt. Though I guess it's not nearly as much as a they gain by grabbing the huge monopoly if it goes though.

  14. Makes me think of mech keyboards on Ask Slashdot: What's the Best Dumb Phone? · · Score: 1

    Dumb phones are sort of like mechanical keyboards. Robust, archaic technology that works really well for what you need it for. However, they don't have as many flashy lights and can be a bit annoying for some around when you type on them - and in the end are going to rise in price because there isn't enough demand for them.

  15. Re:Not likely. on Video Games: Gateway To a Programming Career? · · Score: 1

    So really in the end, the same type of people are getting into programming/computers now as there were before. The people who see it more than just an tool, but as an instrument. Something that does more than just 'works', but can create something new and innovative.

  16. Re:Almost? on Chrome For Android Is Now Almost Entirely Open Source · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Agreed. There is naturally still a place for proprietary software in today's business. However, it's good to see companies making their black boxes a bit smaller.

  17. Was it worth it?!? on How Java Changed Programming Forever · · Score: 1

    They were so preoccupied with whether or not they could that they didn't stop to think if they should.

  18. Dot matrix. on Musical Organ Created From 49 Floppy Disk Drives · · Score: 1

    While this is very cool, I've always preferred the dot matrix music over the floppy drives. Something is just pleasant about seeing it print out on the page.

  19. Nostalgia on In 1984, Jobs and Wozniak Talk About Apple's Earliest Days · · Score: 0

    While there is plenty of hate thrown Apple's way in ./, it is always interesting to see some of the beginnings and seemingly ancient commercials for these tech companies that have been around the block. The nostalgia is strong - sort reminds me of the compaq story

  20. The real trick... on Oregon Testing Pay-Per-Mile Driving Fee To Replace Gas Tax · · Score: 2

    ... would be to have your car registered out of state so you don't pay the mileage tax, but buy gas in Oregon (where it's cheaper due to no tax). At least until the neighboring states follow this same policy.

  21. Re:Stupid question: how do you use it? on Yubikey Neo Teardown and Durability Review · · Score: 1

    For the average consumer it isn't that useful (while it is certainly a neat toy that can be used). I see it more at the enterprise level where if you want to VPN into your company's intranet files, they typically want more than just the normal password. That's where this comes in, it verifies it is physically you as well as your knowledge of the login password (The basis behind 2-factor authentication). Many places use an SMS or app like Duo Mobile (what my company uses). This is just another way of doing this (it works if your phone is dead).

  22. Re:Huh? on Prison Messaging System JPay Withdraws Copyright Claims · · Score: 2

    This is simply a modern day letter. Even prisons progress with the times.

  23. Re:Is playing a game Artificial Intelligence? on Poker Pros Win Against AI, But Experts Peg Match As Statistical Draw · · Score: 1

    Pretty much any algorithm can be considered Applied Statistics... and even our own existence if you want to go down that rabbit hole.

  24. Is this really a... on The Makerspace Is the Next Open Source Frontier · · Score: 1

    ... Surprise? I feel like it's kind of an obvious place for this.

  25. Short modules / Clear variable naming on Ask Slashdot: What Makes Some Code Particularly Good? · · Score: 1

    I agree with most of the earlier posts, but the main thing I look for is conciseness and clear & consistent naming of variables. If your methods/procedures/classes/functions/subroutines are are obnoxiously long, it makes it less readable, harder to test, and just longer to debug. Modular design also lends itself to be more reusable. I've always been of the mindset to name your variables what they are. You shouldn't have to go to a comment or read the code to see what it does. It should speak for itself - even for someone who isn't super familiar with your code/project. Or at least that's what I think...