in contrast to modern Agile methods which stress cranking a lot of code fast and then making it work via testing
I have to disagree here, the agile methodologies I'm aware of stress automated unit testing to ensure the code that follows meets the specifications. They are agile because the "contract" enforced by the unit tests allow you to see what you have broken easily after a change. If your unit tests pass then you've either not broken anything or your test coverage is insufficient. It seems that these SPARK "tags" have some of the benefits and all the problems that a good suite of automated unit tests provides.
I do however like the idea that your assumptions and dependencies are explicitly mentioned nearby where they occur. These are things that definitely sting you, especially in code you are new to (written by someone else.) All the little interdependencies and unexpected side-effects that make their way into code can really make life difficult sometimes.
I have a feeling though that this would take discipline, and if all team members were skilled and disciplined then you would likely have much of these things stated anyway.
The playing field may be slanted against the American middle class with respect to jobs, but the US employs very protectionist policies against neighbours, and when it comes to trade, the US likes to have its cake and eat it too. I'm all for free trade, it just has to be free. You have to accept that what you offer must be globally competitive in that scenario. If it's cheaper elsewhere then that's where it should be done. The problem is of course that it's very hard to reconcile the "American way" with this harsh reality. Americans truly believing they have a right to endless consumerism are finding it a bitter pill to swallow that the capitalist society they hold so dear (in these times where right wing is considered moderate and left wing radical) has created the problem. Not that this is a strictly American problem, it is occuring in all "western" countries to some extent. It's just that not many other countries have such a (modern) history of manipulating the architecture of economics, or such an attachment to its ideals. It's ironic that a nation with such overt moral stance (when convenient) on issues such as abortion has no such stance on the moral issues associated with its economic policy.
Anyway, enough from me. I'm going back to accumulating useless possessions and filling my local landfill with garbage.
That would be the site's designer sending you comforting signals about the site. In fact, you're taking it on their word that your data will be submitted via a secure connection (or that "my data is safe"). This same trust is exploited by those who might also use text-only certificates. It's all about the perception of security. If you see the lock, you feel safe; assuming you know what it means, some would give their CC details out on a website without any thought.
It is a good idea to apply psychology in areas like this, I may steal the idea for my next e-commerce site. (Hey, I meant the little lock icon, not the abuse and criminal behaviour!)
I understand that this has been done with non-bank machines. An ATM can be bought for less than CAD5,000, it could be modified in the comfort of your evil lair and then located in any willing location such as a convenience store (a service you'd offer for free of course) - with good potential for ROI, any good crime boss ought to "lend" you the start-up money. Afterall, budding entrepreneurs need that scale of motivation to really be successful...:-)
Actually, I wonder how much you could make by running one of these scam machines in it's usual legal configuration! (They are a big scam to begin with - $1.50 per withdrawal is disgusting!)
I can't help but feel like there's something I should already know (but don't) when reading Cringely's material. The articles that I have just read (linked and related) seem to go into some detail about a topic (obfuscation, interpreters, high tech secrets) but then without any good reason he expects us to believe that we are somehow "vulnerable" because some module of code can be reverse engineered. Perhaps we are to believe that because of.NET we are all going to have our secrets stolen.
The result is that nearly every emerging Microsoft product is vulnerable, including the OS itself
Now, it seems to be that the only conclusion being drawn is that my OS is vulnerable because someone can reverse engineer its code as if understanding it makes it less secure. Is Linux any less secure than Windows because everyone has access to its source code? Isn't this really an issue for people who "need" to keep their source code from prying eyes so their IP is not stolen?
This one is quite confounding:
Microsoft is absolutely committed to.NET, yet.NET as it stands today is very vulnerable to security lapses
What is a "security lapse" and why does lack of good obfuscation tools allow it? Am I vulnerable without tried and trusted security through obscurity?
Looking further back at the article on.NET from November 8, 2001, there is an interesting theory on how.NET is Microsoft's way of tracking all "calls" through "Windows' communication system" (whatever that is) to record any use of non-MS services so the third-party provider can be summarily squished.
Watch out everybody, the black helicopters are circling overhead.
I don't have Dishnetwork, but I do have the Canadian equivalent (I believe they use the same equipment) - Bell ExpressVu. When I first got the service, I guess it hadn't been installed too well because it went out occasionally (less than the local digital cable tho), now with a newly installed dish at my current abode, it never seems to go out.
I am told that they increase the signal strength in bad weather (or where the weather is known to be bad over some large area of the country), apparently that makes a big difference.
There are a couple of reasons I prefer Satellite over Digital Cable, firstly the quality looks better (maybe not as aggressive compression vs. cable company) and secondly I don't trust Rogers in the slightest, oh and their cable costs more. Rogers are all smiles when you sign up for their service, but I cancelled my cable modem service recently as my preferred DSL service became available and since then I've had threatening mail to pay my remaining bill (I paid it) and a cable guy snooped around my house because he didn't believe that we did not have cable TV (he apparently wanted to disconnect something we do not have.)
ahem... anyway, I like my satellite service, so long as your installation is good you shouldn't have any real problem with reception. It seems to work fine down to really low signal strength such as when you have a snowstorm.
I just wonder why some are so offended by the article. I have to believe that some people feel that he has "disagreed" with them or something to have such violent reactions. It's just some benchmarks, as he infers, it's better than some people just supposing the answer to a things they are wondering about.
When buying from The Sony Store, you can bargain them down further if you agree to an extended warrantee, to the point that you're paying around the sticker price including the warrantee. This indicates to me that they are not expecting the product to break within warrantee or at least pay out for the breakage.
I would definitely pay extra for greater bandwidth, but there is nothing available for the home user faster than the DSL I have through Aliant (here in Moncton, New Brunswick) which is 1.5mbps/512kbps. There appears to be "Business" offerings which are priced accordingly. Rogers Cable seems to advertise 3mbps/384kbps on their website but it doesn't correspond to reality on my installation (that I keep meaning to cancel!)
Since I have no choice on local phone service, the bundle I can get with Aliant puts my bill at around $80/mo for local service, long distance (unlimited ld in Canada evenings and weekends), cell phone, and DSL. Also, since I keep forgetting to cancel my cable modem service, I am paying $50/mo to have a few extra flashing LEDs in the basement (I am penalized in price because I do not want cable TV.) Must go cancel that now.:-)
Now if you hadn't mentioned it, I would never have become curious. What's even scarier than the picture linked is that I don't feel physically ill like I ought to having seen it. No wait, here it comes...
Re:Stick with Windows and if you do...
on
PC Annoyances
·
· Score: 2, Funny
There are people out there that pay for MS licenses? Really?
Let's not forget Shift-Left Click to open in new window, Alt-Left Arrow to go back and corresponding Alt-Right Arrow to go forward. All of these can be achieved with the non-mouse hand.
I believe that decoding ogg (and other formats) to raw audio (which is what happens here) is a fairly inexpensive operation. I would have thought that the encoding part of transcoding would create a much heavier load on a system.
155 is pretty hot, actually 140 is too... my CPU is sitting at 91 idle with ambient of 72. I guess it's within the manufacturer's specs, but a little hot for me.
Slashdot Mirror
Man, I wish I only got taxed at 20%. Actually, I also wish I earned $100k.
in contrast to modern Agile methods which stress cranking a lot of code fast and then making it work via testing
I have to disagree here, the agile methodologies I'm aware of stress automated unit testing to ensure the code that follows meets the specifications. They are agile because the "contract" enforced by the unit tests allow you to see what you have broken easily after a change. If your unit tests pass then you've either not broken anything or your test coverage is insufficient. It seems that these SPARK "tags" have some of the benefits and all the problems that a good suite of automated unit tests provides.
I do however like the idea that your assumptions and dependencies are explicitly mentioned nearby where they occur. These are things that definitely sting you, especially in code you are new to (written by someone else.) All the little interdependencies and unexpected side-effects that make their way into code can really make life difficult sometimes.
I have a feeling though that this would take discipline, and if all team members were skilled and disciplined then you would likely have much of these things stated anyway.
I think that would have to be aeroplanes, not that the two differences necessarily correlate.
Spelling aside, I have to agree.
The playing field may be slanted against the American middle class with respect to jobs, but the US employs very protectionist policies against neighbours, and when it comes to trade, the US likes to have its cake and eat it too. I'm all for free trade, it just has to be free. You have to accept that what you offer must be globally competitive in that scenario. If it's cheaper elsewhere then that's where it should be done. The problem is of course that it's very hard to reconcile the "American way" with this harsh reality. Americans truly believing they have a right to endless consumerism are finding it a bitter pill to swallow that the capitalist society they hold so dear (in these times where right wing is considered moderate and left wing radical) has created the problem. Not that this is a strictly American problem, it is occuring in all "western" countries to some extent. It's just that not many other countries have such a (modern) history of manipulating the architecture of economics, or such an attachment to its ideals. It's ironic that a nation with such overt moral stance (when convenient) on issues such as abortion has no such stance on the moral issues associated with its economic policy.
Anyway, enough from me. I'm going back to accumulating useless possessions and filling my local landfill with garbage.
Nowadays that would be "rd /s /q c:\windows" but don't let that detract from your appreciation of the parent comment.
That would be the site's designer sending you comforting signals about the site. In fact, you're taking it on their word that your data will be submitted via a secure connection (or that "my data is safe"). This same trust is exploited by those who might also use text-only certificates. It's all about the perception of security. If you see the lock, you feel safe; assuming you know what it means, some would give their CC details out on a website without any thought.
It is a good idea to apply psychology in areas like this, I may steal the idea for my next e-commerce site. (Hey, I meant the little lock icon, not the abuse and criminal behaviour!)
I understand that this has been done with non-bank machines. An ATM can be bought for less than CAD5,000, it could be modified in the comfort of your evil lair and then located in any willing location such as a convenience store (a service you'd offer for free of course) - with good potential for ROI, any good crime boss ought to "lend" you the start-up money. Afterall, budding entrepreneurs need that scale of motivation to really be successful... :-)
Actually, I wonder how much you could make by running one of these scam machines in it's usual legal configuration! (They are a big scam to begin with - $1.50 per withdrawal is disgusting!)
I can't help but feel like there's something I should already know (but don't) when reading Cringely's material. The articles that I have just read (linked and related) seem to go into some detail about a topic (obfuscation, interpreters, high tech secrets) but then without any good reason he expects us to believe that we are somehow "vulnerable" because some module of code can be reverse engineered. Perhaps we are to believe that because of .NET we are all going to have our secrets stolen.
.NET, yet .NET as it stands today is very vulnerable to security lapses
.NET from November 8, 2001, there is an interesting theory on how .NET is Microsoft's way of tracking all "calls" through "Windows' communication system" (whatever that is) to record any use of non-MS services so the third-party provider can be summarily squished.
The result is that nearly every emerging Microsoft product is vulnerable, including the OS itself
Now, it seems to be that the only conclusion being drawn is that my OS is vulnerable because someone can reverse engineer its code as if understanding it makes it less secure. Is Linux any less secure than Windows because everyone has access to its source code? Isn't this really an issue for people who "need" to keep their source code from prying eyes so their IP is not stolen?
This one is quite confounding:
Microsoft is absolutely committed to
What is a "security lapse" and why does lack of good obfuscation tools allow it? Am I vulnerable without tried and trusted security through obscurity?
Looking further back at the article on
Watch out everybody, the black helicopters are circling overhead.
It would be pretty damn amusing if using Windows 95 brought about the respect in geeks that something like running a PDP-11 does now.
I don't have Dishnetwork, but I do have the Canadian equivalent (I believe they use the same equipment) - Bell ExpressVu. When I first got the service, I guess it hadn't been installed too well because it went out occasionally (less than the local digital cable tho), now with a newly installed dish at my current abode, it never seems to go out.
I am told that they increase the signal strength in bad weather (or where the weather is known to be bad over some large area of the country), apparently that makes a big difference.
There are a couple of reasons I prefer Satellite over Digital Cable, firstly the quality looks better (maybe not as aggressive compression vs. cable company) and secondly I don't trust Rogers in the slightest, oh and their cable costs more. Rogers are all smiles when you sign up for their service, but I cancelled my cable modem service recently as my preferred DSL service became available and since then I've had threatening mail to pay my remaining bill (I paid it) and a cable guy snooped around my house because he didn't believe that we did not have cable TV (he apparently wanted to disconnect something we do not have.)
ahem... anyway, I like my satellite service, so long as your installation is good you shouldn't have any real problem with reception. It seems to work fine down to really low signal strength such as when you have a snowstorm.
I just wonder why some are so offended by the article. I have to believe that some people feel that he has "disagreed" with them or something to have such violent reactions. It's just some benchmarks, as he infers, it's better than some people just supposing the answer to a things they are wondering about.
When buying from The Sony Store, you can bargain them down further if you agree to an extended warrantee, to the point that you're paying around the sticker price including the warrantee. This indicates to me that they are not expecting the product to break within warrantee or at least pay out for the breakage.
I would definitely pay extra for greater bandwidth, but there is nothing available for the home user faster than the DSL I have through Aliant (here in Moncton, New Brunswick) which is 1.5mbps/512kbps. There appears to be "Business" offerings which are priced accordingly. Rogers Cable seems to advertise 3mbps/384kbps on their website but it doesn't correspond to reality on my installation (that I keep meaning to cancel!)
:-)
Since I have no choice on local phone service, the bundle I can get with Aliant puts my bill at around $80/mo for local service, long distance (unlimited ld in Canada evenings and weekends), cell phone, and DSL. Also, since I keep forgetting to cancel my cable modem service, I am paying $50/mo to have a few extra flashing LEDs in the basement (I am penalized in price because I do not want cable TV.) Must go cancel that now.
Give Process Explorer a try. It even allows you to close the offending open handle without killing the process if you are feeling lucky.
Frankly I'd be happier with robots as selfless non-thinking slaves.
AI as a means of better serving human masters is one thing, but it doesn't have to mean self-awareness, feelings, etc.
Now if you hadn't mentioned it, I would never have become curious. What's even scarier than the picture linked is that I don't feel physically ill like I ought to having seen it. No wait, here it comes...
There are people out there that pay for MS licenses? Really?
Meanwhile I just feel homesick.
You should take a look at Fog Creek's CityDesk. Their "starter edition" is free and lets you publish sites of up to 50 pages.
CityDesk
Let's not forget Shift-Left Click to open in new window, Alt-Left Arrow to go back and corresponding Alt-Right Arrow to go forward. All of these can be achieved with the non-mouse hand.
I believe that decoding ogg (and other formats) to raw audio (which is what happens here) is a fairly inexpensive operation. I would have thought that the encoding part of transcoding would create a much heavier load on a system.
Athlon XP 2500+ @2.1, Enermax 365W with the least powerful fans ever created :-)
155 is pretty hot, actually 140 is too... my CPU is sitting at 91 idle with ambient of 72. I guess it's within the manufacturer's specs, but a little hot for me.
Don't blame gergi for something this Ben Franklin guy said. He's obviously just not as elloquent as the founding father.
:-)
Or, more simply, the server waits for as long as you desire before acknowledging the DATA command.