Yeah, I was being smarmy/sarcastic, but my point was illustrated several times via normal posts, rants/raves and the like, that ever since posting a story that got "spin doctored" via/. (the only words that were mine were 'this article on') I've been modded down as "overrated/troll/flambait/offtopic" ever since.
There is that, and my former "win95 had "start me up", Win XP needs "run like hell"...or as a macintosh web writer said "oops, I did it again".
My over all point was that the/. mod system/government/monopoly/(insert topic) can and *will be/has been/is being" abused.
It saddens me that/. is building a "community" of sorts that is being subverted.
Like the line from Star Trek TNG, "when subersion is suspected, it is never real, but when subversion is real it is almost never suspected" --Picard.
My point being that control comes in many forms from something innocous as "while your up" to modding people down not because what they said is a troll/flamebait/offtopic/overrated but because of their nicname/persona and/. is losing its charm because of such abuse.
How does it manifest itself? Well, sooner or later I'll prolly wind up posting as an AC, but I doubt I will because *if* i know or think I am right I don't back down. I've swayed people that way, and gotten my ass kicked a few times because of it.
Or maybe stop posting at all...would anyone notice? I doubt it, but if the abuse continues, and it will, more people might do the same.
Same applies to Microsoft as well as slashdot, but the tolerance varies.
Oh well, going to get modded down no matter what I do (just watch) and it *still* has not shut me up...but on the other hand, I'm typing this in Netscape and not Word 2000.
--note: all spelling and grammar mistakes are my own, if you take issue with them, then copy and past the phrase "bite me" into Word 2000/XP and pull up the thesaurs for a translation.
the "archive" in place of the www trick no longer works, and IIRC neither does the slashdot2001 (was that the login/pass?).
At any rate this quote made me smile:
We realized the difference: He was working with Word 97, not the Word 2000 I was using.
Hence the saying "Less is more".
I wonder if you typed that phrase into word 2000/XP if it would suggest "you should upgrade, then".
Typing in Thesaurus/dictionary.microsoft.com into future version of word will say "no suggestions" but, by the same token, typing in Thesaurus/dictionary.slasdot.org will say "not found".
Heh, not to worry tho, this comment and others like it will be modded into oblivion because they are funny, but the current usage for funny is "overrated"...
Yeah, I'm being funny/sarcastic (I need other suggestions...damn, I've got word 2000 on this box), yeah, I'm burning off Karma cause I'm damned if I do, damned if I don't...
If you are on thin ice, you may as well dance (tappity, tappity, tappity....)
Yeah, funniest thing I've had happen to me on/. concerning "control" of sorts: Being modded down as overrated when *no one* had modded me up!
Now, that is funny....how can you be overrated when no one has rated you in the first place.
Sheesh, and I thought *I* needed to lay off the crack pipe after confusing suse with debian...
soldiers get confused on the battle field because they don't hear updates like "you've take/lost/are tied for the lead" from an announcer.
Or accuse the "enemy" of cheating because they don't make grunts and sounds when they jump around or hit the ground.
I can see it now: legions of new recruits in boot camp taught to "bunny hop" while firing their weapons.
You know you've been playing quake too long when you fall off the roof of your house and are instantly comforted by the fact you will only take 5 points of damage.
Re:Debian based in Germany?
on
Debian On DVD
·
· Score: 2
Quite possible...been a long day with NT4/Tired Brain/Crack Pipe/Non Stop trouble shooting...or as we call it on a college campus: "Thursday".
Isn't that like the phrase "A sheep in wolf's clothing"?
Stealth Humor: "speaker says something funny that goes over your head, as soon as he's out of range then it hits you".
All joking aside, I've found as a webmaster that using I.E. to check "handcoding" and standards compliance of *valid* HTML to be a mistake of the worst kind.
Why?
Simple, I.E (4.x and above, if memory serves) allows for HTML/Programming mistakes, like not closing tags at all, much less in the proper order.
Making programming mistakes is one thing, but to keep making mistakes and *never* correct them because your browser hides them. Oye.
On the flip side, I wonder if you could have Dreamweaver say it is MS Frontpage and make a webpage griping about MSN and Frontpage... you know, "disparaging remarks" not allowed in the EULA?
Did anyone notice what program "generated" the MSN homepage?
Curious.
Technology....Politics...Karma whoring...*this* is Slashdot!
if hidden somewhere on the DVD was DeCSS, ripper/player software (and maybe DRM removal software...salt+wound, rub).
Debian is a German Distro, correct... could be possible as a) our legislation does not affect them (I think) and b) DeCSS was originally generated in Germany (remember Jon Johanssen was the "distributor" of sorts, he said (IIRC) it came from a "German IRC" chat/hacker aquaintence of his).
I've tried an older version (5.x era) of debian and I was impressed.
Down side to using it was my campus was mainly RedHat. Heh, and I'm a Slackware boy from a while back.
Two lovely quotes about Slack:
on/. " Slackware: when you know what you are doing"
and
From a "linux shootout" article I read a while back that gave me a chuckle "Slackware is not for everyone, the learning curve is steeper than other Distros, but is best suited for those people who never had enough toys to play with as children".... Heh, explains a lot about me... (G).
Unix in general: "Unix is user friendly, it is just pickier about its friends".
....while an expert on Windows 95 networking would have first had to abandon NETBUIE for DECNET to cope with Windows/NT and now have to abandon that skill set to learn the basic Unix networking built into Windows/XP.
expert on win95 caused the same cerebral twinge normally reserved for "military intelligence" or "managerial decision".
While the mention of NETB...oh, god, I can't say it, much less type it without that "fingernails screeching down a chalk board" chill down my spine...(sniff..*SOB*, shudder...make it stop...MAKE IT STOP!!).
and that "Basic UNIX networking in XP"...oh, that explains why changing network settings no longer requires a reboot.
Learn something new every day.
Of course I love the quote--not from the article, mind you (might have been on arstechnica, I think)--- that Microsoft Windows 2000 is better and more stable that 30 year old UNIX technology, but, later claims that Windows 2000 is approaching the *stability* of said 30 year old UNIX technology...
And sure enough, there was a link to a "PR" page on windows 2000... yep, decode some of the marketing "twists and turns" and, yes-sirreee, the put UNIX down and say "We are almost as good" in black and white.
I have yet to see an AMD commercial, and word of mouth (yes, even mine) only carries so far.
AMD processors are simply increadible, IMO, but how to get the word out? Marketing, commercials and ads.
It is a simple question, really. What is the point of having such a great processor, if no one knows it?
I think a simple commercial like this would work wonders:
Open on a little tv playing the p4 "blue man group" commercial....have a "sledge hammer" and a "claw hammer" (both with big AMD stickers) smash the tv into oblivion.
(fade to black with the AMD logo and a "well known voice")
The AMD Hammer series and XP series, smashing 'you know who's higher numbers".
Power is *sexy*, AMD.
Or, as a demo, us the the ending of "The fast and the Furious' " car race.
Amd would be the Black Toranado(?) and Intel the Honda(?)...Raw Horsepower vs high rpm and technology+"cheats" (inflated Ghz = NOS, perhaps.)
Essentially, it was a tie.
Draw your own conclusions, or come up with something better.
First I think the naming convention is a classic example of duck and cover.
The unmitigated gall of some companies, what is next? A post sequil to Moon Over Orion being called Moo3.exe? When will the horror ever stop.
Ok, my sarcasm and stupidity stops now.
In essence ATI is trying to make their hardware look better. Compared to the current GF3's I understand they stack up very well, but in "classic ATI fashion" their drivers blow goats/ducks/chunks (insert colorful phrase).
ATI has always been a mass hardware producer and now is trying to break into the high end gaming market...they have the visual quality, that is a given, but their speed is/has always been lacking until recently.
But, their lack of quality drivers has been dogging them and they have always tried to duck the issue...so maybe there is a subliminal message to this "quack.exe" thing.
( i could not resist, sorry, that was too good to pass up).
I just sincerely hope we do not end of with a ATI only version of D3D or GL or Gl-ATI-ide.
They will just be painting themselves into a corner like 3dfx did to some extent.
How about we find the "Copy Proof" Cd's that can not be played in a computer and send one to each of our respective senators and congresspersons.
Also Include a DVD from a region other than the United States(US is region 1, correct?).
Included In the envelope, fedex package or hand delivery a "voucher" from their district for a $50K "contribution" with the stipulation they only get said contribution provided the do not run afowl of the law by playing both disks on a computer of their choosing.
And if you really wanted to be cruel, provide the documentation electronically as an "e-book" that only allows *one* viewing and no printing.
It has been stated here on/. repeatedly that most of the people representing (I use the term loosely in some cases) us do not understand the implications of the laws the are passing.
This can only help, I think, to make it perfectly clear the kind of frustrating, draconian, unconstitutional and consumer unfriendly path we are headed down with this kind of nonsense.
If you really think about it, how long *before* the corporations buying this legislation start doing something similar?
Vendor lock-in is one thing, "legislative career lock-in to a corporation" is another.
Yeah, I pointed some of this out in the DMCA discussions and the SSSCA discussions prior to this...the phrase I used was "Digital Prohibition".
In addition I took the phrase "Digital Crowbar" used by the MPAA lawyer and gave it a more apropos meaning: DMCA = Digital Millineum Crowbar Assault, because that is what it is, an assault on our rights, bludgeoning us just as a crowbar would be used other than its intended purpose.
Ironically, I was being facetous in a way, but it was considered insightful. Heh, I just appreciated that my penchant for esoteric thought processes was figured out.
Oh, and let me just say "Bravo" you put out a few historical relations/connections I did not see. I am surprised you did not pull a mention of Sept 11 ~= Dec 7.
An attack on "American Soil" (Hawaii, at the time is debatable...close enough, I think).
Maybe it has been said before, I don't know I'm still reading the feedback (800+ comments at 1+, oye).
It has been pointed out that the moderation system is subject to abuse. True, the same abuse as AC comments at times, but this is the exception, not the rule.
Personally, I think it is becoming the "rule" at times.
Look at the system if an AC posts something that is modded as a troll, their account is subject to suspension, posting limits or some such thing.
Is there any way to point out moderator abuse?
Nope. Think it does not happen? Heh, I offer my self as an example.
But lets face it, moderation (and metamoderation) is a thankless job...a fact some of us forget (even stated in the moderator guideline, IIRC) from time to time.
What I've tried to do is put this in perspective.
Now as hard as it may be to believe, I a far from perfect. I know, I know, but it is true.
With that in mind, follow me on this:
(If there is anything I've omitted or gotten wrong, tell me, I'd love to hear it.)
Moderation is a thankless job, as I stated before, so, to all the moderators, thank you.
I mean it, people who moderate keep us coming to slashdot again and again because most moderation is done in an intelligent fashion.
Like any good manager, I've pointed out what is right, now is time to point out what is wrong.
The Moderation system ain't broke, it just needs a little fixing. How about limiting the number of mod points for negative scores? say, 5 positive, and 2 negative?
Metamoderation, thankless job, thanks to metamoderators, too. (I've metamoderated almost every day for years...yet I've been give mod points..what, once? twice?...It was a 'thrill' and a privelage).
How about before giving mod points you have to metamoderate 5 to 10 times?
And this is rather obvious, it is silly really, if you go to the metamod page, the names are blanked out, yes? However if you click on the context link...you see the name of the 'person' who made the comment. This also leaves it subject to misuse/abuse.
If we can refuse to metamoderate, why can't we refuse to be modded up/down/at all?
Or, at the very least, have the opportunity to say "WOAH" and have the/. crew, or have metamoderation not for just the comments, but for the moderators themselves and the comments they moderate.
This makes sense to have moderators doing what they do best, or like to do, but with a "safety net" in metamoderation (anyone can do it, correct?) to look and say, "hey, moderatorX, moderates person Y down all the time reguardless of context"...not cool, unless person Y is an obvious troll.
I don't know really besides "Funny", "over-rated" and perhaps "flamebait"...should be changed to rant, perhaps...all should have a mod total of 0.
Why? For the simple reason, as CmdrTaco stated, funny is subjective...I agree... subjective opinions should have no value in a moderation system. One could also argue the same about insightful/interesting et al, but "positive" things being argued against seem hollow somehow.
Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go change my sig, it is incorrect.
"If I am right. I am right. But, *if* I am wrong, show me I'm wrong"
ah, that explains a lot...thanks.
on
Slashdot Updates
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· Score: 3, Funny
And here I was being paranoid, or thinking I was getting there at least, but this explains it:
From CmdrTaco:
I'd personally like to assign a -2 penalty on any comment rated 'funny' because most of them frankly just aren't funny at all. But humor is far too subjective to say that the moderation is unfair. Anyway, now everyone can decide for themselves. That should happen in the next few weeks. Well, you got your wish CT, any funny comment that I've seen and made, reguardless of content has been modded down (probably including this one, too).
Don't believe me...browse at -1 on occasion.
Too many "Why was this modded down" posts are cropping up... or rants on the subject.
You are correct that "humor is entirely to subjective", so, we'll be objective about it and hunt down people by name and mod them down no matter what. Seems to be the case.
Ever since my (only) accepted submission of "MS extensions" being another piece of the monopoly they have...things have gone to hell and a handbasked.
Ironically, what I had written on the subject was being an "interesting notion and plausable" and my words were ignored but the slashdot spin put on it was all that was needed to bring about being modded down reguardless
Aw, gawd, I hate it when I answer my own question, but it took this subject to make it clear.
I post a story.
Story Accepted.
Story posted +/. spin villifying Microsoft.
Moose gets villified.
Moose gets modded down at every turn reguardless of content/intent.
Let me be the first to say, that I have never, ever trolled.
Yes, I have strayed offtopic during a post (who hasn't on occasion), I've had rants that are/were/could be flamebait (when you are pissed, you really don't care).
I've apologized (and gotten modded down in the process...my, how nice).
Personally I find the quote from CmdrTaco disturbing, almost as bad as trying to "legislate morality"...we all know how well that works.
Think about it: a -2 for being/trying to be funny?
Dang, but why not just say "try to crack a joke and we will censor you".
The ultimate irony here is in "trying to avoid becoming the things/people we "hate/dislike" only to look and see we have turned into just that. (i.e. if/. moderators can silence a few people that are not trolling, is that any better than Apple/ms/disney lawyers silencing "the little guy")
I think my sig says the above in the fewest words possible and more to the point.
(even more ironic is it was one of the funniest lines in the monty python film it came from)
P...I...R, Arruuggghhh, we're at it again...A...C...Y..., Why? because we DON'T like you...M...ooo...uuuu...sss..eee.
DMCA == Dis Mouse's Congressional Administration?
(off topic, but no ranting)
I apologise if this has been done (redundant) and to the moderators as well, but, you have to admit, being modded down as a "troll" every time I try to be funny gets a little annoying.
See it from my point of view, I post something amusing 1 post out of 10 is modded up, the rest down... as a troll... Ok, I got a warped sense of humor, but really now.
If it is one person...what is your beef?
If it is several, ok, point taken.
But modding someone down because you don't like or get their humor is like punishing a child for trying to expand their horizons.
Modding me down for being an asshole, I'd do the same.
Modding me down for trying/being funny...that is not right!.)
Ok, I'm done trying to sweep the tide with a push broom.
As hinted at before, if the capacity is 500M total, then imagine a dual function device that reads cd and these disks.
For instance ad DVD-RAM uses 2 lasers (I know, I took one apart to clean them) on for the DVD-RAM the other for the CD's. Remember those adapters for the 3 and 1/2 inch cd's?
It's be neat to put in a cd sized adapter for a "5 disk changer" kind of setup. Granted unless a really good engineer devises the "holder" it will be another PITA to use/implement.
But storage will be a breeze, just use a left over toilet/hand wipe paper tube, especially if they are light/heat sensitive like most cd/dvd's are.
Maybe I am being overly optimistic/pessimistic but I think the success or failure of this will be based on how well it can be put into a multifunction device that can read/burn/shift whatever data is put on it in addition to all the other specs of DVD/CD -r -rw +r +rw etc.
Like "mini-disc" a single function device is ok, but I'd want more capability, personally.
I originally started as a programmer in college (ok, first was the track for electrical engineer, but alas, calc II killed my plans less than kindly) and touched on some of the aspects of design, development and some of the "herding cats" aspect of project management.
I'll be the first to admit that I did not have the stamina to code for a living, which lessened my interest in doing so. Like anything of interest, it is a slow learning process.
For me it was a slow degradation of the fun aspect of programming. The thrill is still there, but, the hard work of programming just kind of wore me thin (figuratively speaking, of course...literally, wellll, lets not talk about it).
As a "Lead Developer" for your company, you have both my admiration and my condolences.
My condolences, because it is always hard breaking away (or being forced away) from your "first love", so to speak.
My admiration, for you are moving up and are getting the realization that it is a needed step.
Here is the thing that may or may not hit you sooner or later, as it has happened to me on a couple of occasions: the people "under" you are better than you at coding, more often than not.
It is a harsh reality to face, but here is the kicker: Yes, your underlings are better at coding, but not at design and architecture! Hence, your position is more important than you think. To put out to you the words of wisdom/cliche, "those that know how, will always work for those that know why".
Think about it, really. Your role is more of a teacher, guru, advisor or sensi (SP?).
You've been there, done that and you've got the experience of the big picture that those you work with need.
I know first hand from working with coders, techs, IT, MIS people that are so sharp they could have my job in a heart beat, but, invariably I find the one thing they are missing is the why. As a matter of fact, one particullarly sharp individual thanked me saying "in school they tell you how without explaining the when, where, and why it is done in the process".
You have to see that you are in a unique position of taking the fear and uncertainty and doubt out of the the process of development and coding.
At the risk of sounding very silly, it is quite a "Zen" feeling, because you have to let go and move up in order to be the best person for the job.
I think physiclly, you are there, the reality has yet to catch up to you.
We should have a new moderator catagory: +1 Excellent Comeback
{on topic reply, semi-off topic for the catagory}
We do. It is called Overrated. But the score is -1, sadly.
(/gomer pyle voice) You're gonna burn in hell for that one!(/end gpv)
Anywho, back on topic.
Trying to read the review, same as others, I'm getting the MySQL error.
It was pointed out that for a server case 600 dollars is not that bad. And inferring from other post, if I may, it is strong, light and has excellent cooling properties/abilities.
This is an excellent value when you consider the commodity market of today's PC hardware.
16K for a Proliant, true, but it makes you wonder how much went into the case?
Even a wild guess would put it at a 1k to 2k mark, leaving the other 14k for hardware and other components and software.
Kind of makes that 600 bucks pale in comparison, plus the {god, I hate to sound like a marketer} "added value" of having "standars compliant" bays, connectors, MB trays and mounts.
I mean, really now, adding memory to a Dell...gotta go to {almot typed goto, shudder) dell, need a newer/better mobo? ain't gonna happen unless you get the dremel tool out.
These are excellent looking and functioning cases, but, I've always been partial to the Enlight series of cases, myself, for workstation/general configs, but, for servers I just might have to look into these.
One of the facts being overlooked is that any thing designed for "military" application is usually done by the lowest bidder.
As a former military person (USN, if ya'll care) this was evident in many pieces of equipment I had to deal with in the service.
Don't get me wrong, the equipment was functional, as it should be, but sometimes a lot of stuff was meant to be "sailor proof"...one step beyond "idiot proof", because any devices 'intended' use will invariably be expanded unintended uses.
So if you take into account the specs of any equipment, there is always a tolerance for these devices...not only the physical abuse of changing hands many times, transporting, shipping, and varied levels of (in)competancy.
You have to realize that for better or worse, that the armed forces (I have to laugh, this is me to a 'T') personel are both the best and worst case scenarios.
Now that I am on the periphery of GIS (admin for a GIS training lab...man what a lot of data just for one state) I've gotten to play with the "toys" and for those out in the field, 30 to 100 meters ain't that big a deal, it is acceptable.
You would think it would not be, but consider:
A satellite has already imaged the area, and sometimes it has been surveyed from the ground and always surveyed from a aircraft plus the final check is to drive/walk the surveyed area with a GPS unit to do a final "triple check".
It seems more or less an integrity check.
Even the GPS is subjected to a test or two, where a building, area, large parking lot is measured with GPS points assigned and then checked against previous data.
It must be within an acceptable range (in civilian use, mind you) because I have not heard any complaints. The device was actually kind of neat (was the usual "military yellow" gear color) and had a palm pilot like interface, 6 tabs on the display, about 8 buttons to navigate and mark and save/recall points.
In the end, if it is 3meters, 30'ish meters or 100, I hate to sound cliche, but close enough for government work, perchance?
I don't know, but as long as the device does not say I'm in the artic circle when standing in the AZ desert, its gotta be doing something right.
In a response filed on his behalf, Clark's lawyers blasted the notion that the lack of a commercial Web site constituted bad-faith use on an Internet address.
Excuse me? just because it is a.com, does not mean you have to be a commercial site?
Is slashdot.com a commercial site?
(or am I mistaken on this?)
It is like saying if you buy a sports car and don't drive it like a sports car you should get a ticket other wise (because sports cars, next to motorcycles, prolly get more tickets than your average station wagon.)
Is this the way the legal mind works?
So, if a "lawyer tazer" is invented, we have to use it, or else we will be sued?
or
Yes, a hammer is meant to hammer in nails, but you'll be in deep trouble if you should *dare* pull a nail out.
Gotta love "Catch-22's" like this.
Amusing in a sad/ironic/silly way.
I suppose if the owner gave the domain over to Nestle it would technically be "The Gift of the Maggi"?
The response was he was "burned" pretty badly by the pre X.1, but Mail, utilities and such (with mention to Office for X, too) everything in X.1 "seemed 'good enough'".
Correct me if I am wrong, please, but is that not a statement normally associated with Microsoft's applications? Even in the Microsoft, Linux, Unix and Mac camp's I've heard this so much it stood out as if shouted from a rooftop.
Tell me honestly; Is that comment a compliment or a slap in the face?
I'm still mulling it over.
Heh, the FW moderator strikes again.
on
LOTR Campout Begins
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· Score: 0, Flamebait
Yeah, poor form replying to your own post... but *READ* my post, the main point was *ON TOPIC*, yet, true to form, it was modded as *OFF TOPIC*...c'mon.
Talking about the *draw* of LOTR, Rocky horror picture show et al was and is one of those *INEXPLICABLE* things in life to those on the "other side".
How was that offtopic? Topic == LOTR, reply talked about "LOTR"...off topic how?
Like I said...FW moderator out there.
IF, and that should be said again **IF** my **ENTIRE** post is offtopic/troll, shit mod it as such...this post and my previous were not.
READ the MODERATOR's GUIDELINES...sheesh.... **I HAVE, FW moderator, HAVE YOU?**
Slashdot Mirror
Touche.
/. (the only words that were mine were 'this article on') I've been modded down as "overrated/troll/flambait/offtopic" ever since.
/. mod system/government/monopoly/(insert topic) can and *will be/has been/is being" abused.
/. is building a "community" of sorts that is being subverted.
/. is losing its charm because of such abuse.
Nice comback, BTW, 'zilla.
Yeah, I was being smarmy/sarcastic, but my point was illustrated several times via normal posts, rants/raves and the like, that ever since posting a story that got "spin doctored" via
There is that, and my former "win95 had "start me up", Win XP needs "run like hell"...or as a macintosh web writer said "oops, I did it again".
My over all point was that the
It saddens me that
Like the line from Star Trek TNG, "when subersion is suspected, it is never real, but when subversion is real it is almost never suspected" --Picard.
My point being that control comes in many forms from something innocous as "while your up" to modding people down not because what they said is a troll/flamebait/offtopic/overrated but because of their nicname/persona and
How does it manifest itself? Well, sooner or later I'll prolly wind up posting as an AC, but I doubt I will because *if* i know or think I am right I don't back down. I've swayed people that way, and gotten my ass kicked a few times because of it.
Or maybe stop posting at all...would anyone notice? I doubt it, but if the abuse continues, and it will, more people might do the same.
Same applies to Microsoft as well as slashdot, but the tolerance varies.
Oh well, going to get modded down no matter what I do (just watch) and it *still* has not shut me up...but on the other hand, I'm typing this in Netscape and not Word 2000.
--note: all spelling and grammar mistakes are my own, if you take issue with them, then copy and past the phrase "bite me" into Word 2000/XP and pull up the thesaurs for a translation.
La, la, laaaaa.
the "archive" in place of the www trick no longer works, and IIRC neither does the slashdot2001 (was that the login/pass?).
At any rate this quote made me smile:
We realized the difference: He was working with Word 97, not the Word 2000 I was using.
Hence the saying "Less is more".
I wonder if you typed that phrase into word 2000/XP if it would suggest "you should upgrade, then".
Typing in Thesaurus/dictionary.microsoft.com into future version of word will say "no suggestions" but, by the same token, typing in Thesaurus/dictionary.slasdot.org will say "not found".
Heh, not to worry tho, this comment and others like it will be modded into oblivion because they are funny, but the current usage for funny is "overrated"...
Yeah, I'm being funny/sarcastic (I need other suggestions...damn, I've got word 2000 on this box), yeah, I'm burning off Karma cause I'm damned if I do, damned if I don't...
If you are on thin ice, you may as well dance (tappity, tappity, tappity....)
where have i seen that before. oh yeah:
/. concerning "control" of sorts: Being modded down as overrated when *no one* had modded me up!
Karma whore -> insightful
Honesty -> Troll
Insightful/+2bounus -> Overrated
Redundant UnderRated
moderat* -> Flamebait
Funny -> -2
Yeah, funniest thing I've had happen to me on
Now, that is funny....how can you be overrated when no one has rated you in the first place.
Sheesh, and I thought *I* needed to lay off the crack pipe after confusing suse with debian...
(So when does Bob XP pro edition se ship?)
I have a suggestion, how about burning the bill.
What piffle.
Has it gotten to the point that every cover sheet to every submitted bill or piece of legislation needs to have the Constitution attached?
Seriously, we have warning/information labels on everything else, why not make it mandatory?
A Constitutional EULA of sorts.
soldiers get confused on the battle field because they don't hear updates like "you've take/lost/are tied for the lead" from an announcer.
Or accuse the "enemy" of cheating because they don't make grunts and sounds when they jump around or hit the ground.
I can see it now: legions of new recruits in boot camp taught to "bunny hop" while firing their weapons.
You know you've been playing quake too long when you fall off the roof of your house and are instantly comforted by the fact you will only take 5 points of damage.
Quite possible...been a long day with NT4/Tired Brain/Crack Pipe/Non Stop trouble shooting...or as we call it on a college campus: "Thursday".
(apologies to George Foreman) "I was wrong!"
Doh.
Isn't that like the phrase "A sheep in wolf's clothing"?
Stealth Humor: "speaker says something funny that goes over your head, as soon as he's out of range then it hits you".
All joking aside, I've found as a webmaster that using I.E. to check "handcoding" and standards compliance of *valid* HTML to be a mistake of the worst kind.
Why?
Simple, I.E (4.x and above, if memory serves) allows for HTML/Programming mistakes, like not closing tags at all, much less in the proper order.
Making programming mistakes is one thing, but to keep making mistakes and *never* correct them because your browser hides them. Oye.
On the flip side, I wonder if you could have Dreamweaver say it is MS Frontpage and make a webpage griping about MSN and Frontpage... you know, "disparaging remarks" not allowed in the EULA?
Did anyone notice what program "generated" the MSN homepage?
Curious.
Technology....Politics...Karma whoring...*this* is Slashdot!
if hidden somewhere on the DVD was DeCSS, ripper/player software (and maybe DRM removal software...salt+wound, rub).
/. " Slackware: when you know what you are doing"
.... Heh, explains a lot about me... (G).
Debian is a German Distro, correct... could be possible as a) our legislation does not affect them (I think) and b) DeCSS was originally generated in Germany (remember Jon Johanssen was the "distributor" of sorts, he said (IIRC) it came from a "German IRC" chat/hacker aquaintence of his).
I've tried an older version (5.x era) of debian and I was impressed.
Down side to using it was my campus was mainly RedHat. Heh, and I'm a Slackware boy from a while back.
Two lovely quotes about Slack:
on
and
From a "linux shootout" article I read a while back that gave me a chuckle "Slackware is not for everyone, the learning curve is steeper than other Distros, but is best suited for those people who never had enough toys to play with as children"
Unix in general: "Unix is user friendly, it is just pickier about its friends".
I'll shut up before I stray off topic.
Cost of Servers for 5,200 users: 850K
cost of Storage for said users: 8X 40K
The look on the Admins face when management standardizes on XP home
edition and s/he has to make 5,200 phone calls to activate them all:
Priceless.
(Laff now, you know it will happen to someone, eventually. With Microsoft's luck it will be a charity.)
....while an expert on Windows 95 networking would have first had to abandon NETBUIE for DECNET to cope with Windows/NT and now have to abandon that skill set to learn the basic Unix networking built into Windows/XP.
expert on win95 caused the same cerebral twinge normally reserved for "military intelligence" or "managerial decision".
While the mention of NETB...oh, god, I can't say it, much less type it without that "fingernails screeching down a chalk board" chill down my spine...(sniff..*SOB*, shudder...make it stop...MAKE IT STOP!!).
and that "Basic UNIX networking in XP"...oh, that explains why changing network settings no longer requires a reboot.
Learn something new every day.
Of course I love the quote--not from the article, mind you (might have been on arstechnica, I think)--- that Microsoft Windows 2000 is better and more stable that 30 year old UNIX technology, but, later claims that Windows 2000 is approaching the *stability* of said 30 year old UNIX technology...
And sure enough, there was a link to a "PR" page on windows 2000... yep, decode some of the marketing "twists and turns" and, yes-sirreee, the put UNIX down and say "We are almost as good" in black and white.
Heh.
someone has to say the "M" word...marketing.
I have yet to see an AMD commercial, and word of mouth (yes, even mine) only carries so far.
AMD processors are simply increadible, IMO, but how to get the word out? Marketing, commercials and ads.
It is a simple question, really. What is the point of having such a great processor, if no one knows it?
I think a simple commercial like this would work wonders:
Open on a little tv playing the p4 "blue man group" commercial....have a "sledge hammer" and a "claw hammer" (both with big AMD stickers) smash the tv into oblivion.
(fade to black with the AMD logo and a "well known voice")
The AMD Hammer series and XP series, smashing 'you know who's higher numbers".
Power is *sexy*, AMD.
Or, as a demo, us the the ending of "The fast and the Furious' " car race.
Amd would be the Black Toranado(?) and Intel the Honda(?)...Raw Horsepower vs high rpm and technology+"cheats" (inflated Ghz = NOS, perhaps.)
Essentially, it was a tie.
Draw your own conclusions, or come up with something better.
Moose, out.
First I think the naming convention is a classic example of duck and cover.
The unmitigated gall of some companies, what is next? A post sequil to Moon Over Orion being called Moo3.exe? When will the horror ever stop.
Ok, my sarcasm and stupidity stops now.
In essence ATI is trying to make their hardware look better. Compared to the current GF3's I understand they stack up very well, but in "classic ATI fashion" their drivers blow goats/ducks/chunks (insert colorful phrase).
ATI has always been a mass hardware producer and now is trying to break into the high end gaming market...they have the visual quality, that is a given, but their speed is/has always been lacking until recently.
But, their lack of quality drivers has been dogging them and they have always tried to duck the issue...so maybe there is a subliminal message to this "quack.exe" thing.
( i could not resist, sorry, that was too good to pass up).
I just sincerely hope we do not end of with a ATI only version of D3D or GL or Gl-ATI-ide.
They will just be painting themselves into a corner like 3dfx did to some extent.
How about we find the "Copy Proof" Cd's that can not be played in a computer and send one to each of our respective senators and congresspersons.
/. repeatedly that most of the people representing (I use the term loosely in some cases) us do not understand the implications of the laws the are passing.
Also Include a DVD from a region other than the United States(US is region 1, correct?).
Included In the envelope, fedex package or hand delivery a "voucher" from their district for a $50K "contribution" with the stipulation they only get said contribution provided the do not run afowl of the law by playing both disks on a computer of their choosing.
And if you really wanted to be cruel, provide the documentation electronically as an "e-book" that only allows *one* viewing and no printing.
It has been stated here on
This can only help, I think, to make it perfectly clear the kind of frustrating, draconian, unconstitutional and consumer unfriendly path we are headed down with this kind of nonsense.
If you really think about it, how long *before* the corporations buying this legislation start doing something similar?
Vendor lock-in is one thing, "legislative career lock-in to a corporation" is another.
Yeah, I pointed some of this out in the DMCA discussions and the SSSCA discussions prior to this...the phrase I used was "Digital Prohibition".
In addition I took the phrase "Digital Crowbar" used by the MPAA lawyer and gave it a more apropos meaning: DMCA = Digital Millineum Crowbar Assault, because that is what it is, an assault on our rights, bludgeoning us just as a crowbar would be used other than its intended purpose.
Ironically, I was being facetous in a way, but it was considered insightful. Heh, I just appreciated that my penchant for esoteric thought processes was figured out.
Oh, and let me just say "Bravo" you put out a few historical relations/connections I did not see. I am surprised you did not pull a mention of Sept 11 ~= Dec 7.
An attack on "American Soil" (Hawaii, at the time is debatable...close enough, I think).
Very interesting post.
So, what happens when "Clippy XP" pops up and says "Don't 'kill' me, I'm just the (windows integrated) Messenger?"
Yes, kill him...launch the de-installer..take A.I.M and Fire(.app)...before vanishing he screams "I.Eeeee".
Heh, I love cross platform humor.
(seg) I'm gonna pay for this one.
ah, I stand corrected. Thanks.
/. crew, or have metamoderation not for just the comments, but for the moderators themselves and the comments they moderate.
Maybe it has been said before, I don't know I'm still reading the feedback (800+ comments at 1+, oye).
It has been pointed out that the moderation system is subject to abuse. True, the same abuse as AC comments at times, but this is the exception, not the rule.
Personally, I think it is becoming the "rule" at times.
Look at the system if an AC posts something that is modded as a troll, their account is subject to suspension, posting limits or some such thing.
Is there any way to point out moderator abuse?
Nope. Think it does not happen? Heh, I offer my self as an example.
But lets face it, moderation (and metamoderation) is a thankless job...a fact some of us forget (even stated in the moderator guideline, IIRC) from time to time.
What I've tried to do is put this in perspective.
Now as hard as it may be to believe, I a far from perfect. I know, I know, but it is true.
With that in mind, follow me on this:
(If there is anything I've omitted or gotten wrong, tell me, I'd love to hear it.)
Moderation is a thankless job, as I stated before, so, to all the moderators, thank you.
I mean it, people who moderate keep us coming to slashdot again and again because most moderation is done in an intelligent fashion.
Like any good manager, I've pointed out what is right, now is time to point out what is wrong.
The Moderation system ain't broke, it just needs a little fixing. How about limiting the number of mod points for negative scores? say, 5 positive, and 2 negative?
Metamoderation, thankless job, thanks to metamoderators, too. (I've metamoderated almost every day for years...yet I've been give mod points..what, once? twice?...It was a 'thrill' and a privelage).
How about before giving mod points you have to metamoderate 5 to 10 times?
And this is rather obvious, it is silly really, if you go to the metamod page, the names are blanked out, yes? However if you click on the context link...you see the name of the 'person' who made the comment. This also leaves it subject to misuse/abuse.
If we can refuse to metamoderate, why can't we refuse to be modded up/down/at all?
Or, at the very least, have the opportunity to say "WOAH" and have the
This makes sense to have moderators doing what they do best, or like to do, but with a "safety net" in metamoderation (anyone can do it, correct?) to look and say, "hey, moderatorX, moderates person Y down all the time reguardless of context"...not cool, unless person Y is an obvious troll.
I don't know really besides "Funny", "over-rated" and perhaps "flamebait"...should be changed to rant, perhaps...all should have a mod total of 0.
Why? For the simple reason, as CmdrTaco stated, funny is subjective...I agree... subjective opinions should have no value in a moderation system. One could also argue the same about insightful/interesting et al, but "positive" things being argued against seem hollow somehow.
Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go change my sig, it is incorrect.
"If I am right. I am right. But, *if* I am wrong, show me I'm wrong"
And here I was being paranoid, or thinking I was getting there at least, but this explains it:
/. spin villifying Microsoft.
/. moderators can silence a few people that are not trolling, is that any better than Apple/ms/disney lawyers silencing "the little guy")
From CmdrTaco:
I'd personally like to assign a -2 penalty on any comment rated 'funny' because most of them frankly just aren't funny at all. But humor is far too subjective to say that the moderation is unfair. Anyway, now everyone can decide for themselves. That should happen in the next few weeks.
Well, you got your wish CT, any funny comment that I've seen and made, reguardless of content has been modded down (probably including this one, too).
Don't believe me...browse at -1 on occasion.
Too many "Why was this modded down" posts are cropping up... or rants on the subject.
You are correct that "humor is entirely to subjective", so, we'll be objective about it and hunt down people by name and mod them down no matter what. Seems to be the case.
Ever since my (only) accepted submission of "MS extensions" being another piece of the monopoly they have...things have gone to hell and a handbasked.
Ironically, what I had written on the subject was being an "interesting notion and plausable" and my words were ignored but the slashdot spin put on it was all that was needed to bring about being modded down reguardless
Aw, gawd, I hate it when I answer my own question, but it took this subject to make it clear.
I post a story.
Story Accepted.
Story posted +
Moose gets villified.
Moose gets modded down at every turn reguardless of content/intent.
Let me be the first to say, that I have never, ever trolled.
Yes, I have strayed offtopic during a post (who hasn't on occasion), I've had rants that are/were/could be flamebait (when you are pissed, you really don't care).
I've apologized (and gotten modded down in the process...my, how nice).
Personally I find the quote from CmdrTaco disturbing, almost as bad as trying to "legislate morality"...we all know how well that works.
Think about it: a -2 for being/trying to be funny?
Dang, but why not just say "try to crack a joke and we will censor you".
The ultimate irony here is in "trying to avoid becoming the things/people we "hate/dislike" only to look and see we have turned into just that. (i.e. if
I think my sig says the above in the fewest words possible and more to the point.
(even more ironic is it was one of the funniest lines in the monty python film it came from)
Moose.
P...I...R, Arruuggghhh, we're at it again...A...C...Y..., Why? because we DON'T like you...M...ooo...uuuu...sss..eee.
:)
DMCA == Dis Mouse's Congressional Administration?
(off topic, but no ranting)
I apologise if this has been done (redundant) and to the moderators as well, but, you have to admit, being modded down as a "troll" every time I try to be funny gets a little annoying.
See it from my point of view, I post something amusing 1 post out of 10 is modded up, the rest down... as a troll... Ok, I got a warped sense of humor, but really now.
If it is one person...what is your beef?
If it is several, ok, point taken.
But modding someone down because you don't like or get their humor is like punishing a child for trying to expand their horizons.
Modding me down for being an asshole, I'd do the same.
Modding me down for trying/being funny...that is not right!.)
Ok, I'm done trying to sweep the tide with a push broom.
Mmmm..O..OO..S..eeeeee
As hinted at before, if the capacity is 500M total, then imagine a dual function device that reads cd and these disks.
For instance ad DVD-RAM uses 2 lasers (I know, I took one apart to clean them) on for the DVD-RAM the other for the CD's. Remember those adapters for the 3 and 1/2 inch cd's?
It's be neat to put in a cd sized adapter for a "5 disk changer" kind of setup. Granted unless a really good engineer devises the "holder" it will be another PITA to use/implement.
But storage will be a breeze, just use a left over toilet/hand wipe paper tube, especially if they are light/heat sensitive like most cd/dvd's are.
Maybe I am being overly optimistic/pessimistic but I think the success or failure of this will be based on how well it can be put into a multifunction device that can read/burn/shift whatever data is put on it in addition to all the other specs of DVD/CD -r -rw +r +rw etc.
Like "mini-disc" a single function device is ok, but I'd want more capability, personally.
YOMV (your opinion may vary)
I originally started as a programmer in college (ok, first was the track for electrical engineer, but alas, calc II killed my plans less than kindly) and touched on some of the aspects of design, development and some of the "herding cats" aspect of project management.
I'll be the first to admit that I did not have the stamina to code for a living, which lessened my interest in doing so. Like anything of interest, it is a slow learning process.
For me it was a slow degradation of the fun aspect of programming. The thrill is still there, but, the hard work of programming just kind of wore me thin (figuratively speaking, of course...literally, wellll, lets not talk about it).
As a "Lead Developer" for your company, you have both my admiration and my condolences.
My condolences, because it is always hard breaking away (or being forced away) from your "first love", so to speak.
My admiration, for you are moving up and are getting the realization that it is a needed step.
Here is the thing that may or may not hit you sooner or later, as it has happened to me on a couple of occasions: the people "under" you are better than you at coding, more often than not.
It is a harsh reality to face, but here is the kicker: Yes, your underlings are better at coding, but not at design and architecture! Hence, your position is more important than you think. To put out to you the words of wisdom/cliche, "those that know how, will always work for those that know why".
Think about it, really. Your role is more of a teacher, guru, advisor or sensi (SP?).
You've been there, done that and you've got the experience of the big picture that those you work with need.
I know first hand from working with coders, techs, IT, MIS people that are so sharp they could have my job in a heart beat, but, invariably I find the one thing they are missing is the why. As a matter of fact, one particullarly sharp individual thanked me saying "in school they tell you how without explaining the when, where, and why it is done in the process".
You have to see that you are in a unique position of taking the fear and uncertainty and doubt out of the the process of development and coding.
At the risk of sounding very silly, it is quite a "Zen" feeling, because you have to let go and move up in order to be the best person for the job.
I think physiclly, you are there, the reality has yet to catch up to you.
FWIW, naturally.
We should have a new moderator catagory: +1 Excellent Comeback
{on topic reply, semi-off topic for the catagory}
We do. It is called Overrated. But the score is -1, sadly.
(/gomer pyle voice) You're gonna burn in hell for that one!(/end gpv)
Anywho, back on topic.
Trying to read the review, same as others, I'm getting the MySQL error.
It was pointed out that for a server case 600 dollars is not that bad. And inferring from other post, if I may, it is strong, light and has excellent cooling properties/abilities.
This is an excellent value when you consider the commodity market of today's PC hardware.
16K for a Proliant, true, but it makes you wonder how much went into the case?
Even a wild guess would put it at a 1k to 2k mark, leaving the other 14k for hardware and other components and software.
Kind of makes that 600 bucks pale in comparison, plus the {god, I hate to sound like a marketer} "added value" of having "standars compliant" bays, connectors, MB trays and mounts.
I mean, really now, adding memory to a Dell...gotta go to {almot typed goto, shudder) dell, need a newer/better mobo? ain't gonna happen unless you get the dremel tool out.
These are excellent looking and functioning cases, but, I've always been partial to the Enlight series of cases, myself, for workstation/general configs, but, for servers I just might have to look into these.
One of the facts being overlooked is that any thing designed for "military" application is usually done by the lowest bidder.
As a former military person (USN, if ya'll care) this was evident in many pieces of equipment I had to deal with in the service.
Don't get me wrong, the equipment was functional, as it should be, but sometimes a lot of stuff was meant to be "sailor proof"...one step beyond "idiot proof", because any devices 'intended' use will invariably be expanded unintended uses.
So if you take into account the specs of any equipment, there is always a tolerance for these devices...not only the physical abuse of changing hands many times, transporting, shipping, and varied levels of (in)competancy.
You have to realize that for better or worse, that the armed forces (I have to laugh, this is me to a 'T') personel are both the best and worst case scenarios.
Now that I am on the periphery of GIS (admin for a GIS training lab...man what a lot of data just for one state) I've gotten to play with the "toys" and for those out in the field, 30 to 100 meters ain't that big a deal, it is acceptable.
You would think it would not be, but consider:
A satellite has already imaged the area, and sometimes it has been surveyed from the ground and always surveyed from a aircraft plus the final check is to drive/walk the surveyed area with a GPS unit to do a final "triple check".
It seems more or less an integrity check.
Even the GPS is subjected to a test or two, where a building, area, large parking lot is measured with GPS points assigned and then checked against previous data.
It must be within an acceptable range (in civilian use, mind you) because I have not heard any complaints. The device was actually kind of neat (was the usual "military yellow" gear color) and had a palm pilot like interface, 6 tabs on the display, about 8 buttons to navigate and mark and save/recall points.
In the end, if it is 3meters, 30'ish meters or 100, I hate to sound cliche, but close enough for government work, perchance?
I don't know, but as long as the device does not say I'm in the artic circle when standing in the AZ desert, its gotta be doing something right.
In a response filed on his behalf, Clark's lawyers blasted the notion that the lack of a commercial Web site constituted bad-faith use on an Internet address.
.com, does not mean you have to be a commercial site?
Excuse me? just because it is a
Is slashdot.com a commercial site?
(or am I mistaken on this?)
It is like saying if you buy a sports car and don't drive it like a sports car you should get a ticket other wise (because sports cars, next to motorcycles, prolly get more tickets than your average station wagon.)
Is this the way the legal mind works?
So, if a "lawyer tazer" is invented, we have to use it, or else we will be sued?
or
Yes, a hammer is meant to hammer in nails, but you'll be in deep trouble if you should *dare* pull a nail out.
Gotta love "Catch-22's" like this.
Amusing in a sad/ironic/silly way.
I suppose if the owner gave the domain over to Nestle it would technically be "The Gift of the Maggi"?
In the interview he was asked about os X.
The response was he was "burned" pretty badly by the pre X.1, but Mail, utilities and such (with mention to Office for X, too) everything in X.1 "seemed 'good enough'".
Correct me if I am wrong, please, but is that not a statement normally associated with Microsoft's applications? Even in the Microsoft, Linux, Unix and Mac camp's I've heard this so much it stood out as if shouted from a rooftop.
Tell me honestly; Is that comment a compliment or a slap in the face?
I'm still mulling it over.
Yeah, poor form replying to your own post... but *READ* my post, the main point was *ON TOPIC*, yet, true to form, it was modded as *OFF TOPIC*...c'mon.
Talking about the *draw* of LOTR, Rocky horror picture show et al was and is one of those *INEXPLICABLE* things in life to those on the "other side".
How was that offtopic? Topic == LOTR, reply talked about "LOTR"...off topic how?
Like I said...FW moderator out there.
IF, and that should be said again **IF** my **ENTIRE** post is offtopic/troll, shit mod it as such...this post and my previous were not.
READ the MODERATOR's GUIDELINES...sheesh.... **I HAVE, FW moderator, HAVE YOU?**
POM (Pissed Off Moose)