This sounds similar to my Compaq SLT/386 (my little slut) - damn thing weighs about 14 lbs (no, not as mighty as yours, but still damn heavy) - causes shoulder pain after carrying it for awhile.
Why do I keep it? Well, it has a nice monochrome screen - and get this: A detachable keyboard. Put it on a desk, remove the keyboard, and kick back!
Farnsworth is one of those inventors, who much like Tesla, came up with ideas and implemented them, but was forgotten by the public - even though we use both men's discoveries/inventions EVERY DAY.
There has been quite a bit of talk here about how 1 meter res imaging can't read a license plate (if it was flat on the ground), can't resolve a human being (past the shape, anyhow), pixel "blooming" etc...
It was also mentioned that spy sats can't be larger than the shuttle, so the mirror can't be larger for the CCD array...
However (and I am not an engineer or a satalite designer or anything), I want to throw out some ideas...
It was mentioned that the sats use a method similar to scanners to make the images - by using a 1 by x pixel CCD with optics, and moving the satellite to "scan" the image - now, you may not be able to make the mirror big in diameter, but what if you make it long and parabolic (think of a half-pipe shape, almost as long as the shuttle bay, nearly the diameter of the bay, with an equally long CCD element at the focus)? Could something like this make a good imager?
The second thing that we are assuming is that the gov't is only using one satellite per image - but what if they had two (or more?) sattelites, trailing each other in the same or near same orbit, and they angled the imagers in a bit - then scanned the same area - the images could then be reconstructed as a stereo photo, which would reveal even more information and detail about what was being viewed...
The direction taken by today's games (full on, no-holds-barred 3D) has almost singlehandedly been determined by your work in the field of game development. It has reached a point where the "common" hobbiest programmer cannot even hope to develop a game of similar richness, due to the inherent need to understand how to develop and implement the (sometimes complex) algorithms involved in creating a quality 3D engine.
Furthermore, it seems that in order to get into the field of 3D game development, the prospective individual still needs to have more than a passing knowledge of 3D systems/math, physics and world modeling, if he wants to do more than level design (don't get me wrong here - I know that level design is a very important aspect of a complete project, for it is what brings the entire game together, much like the plot of a book. However, I am a programmer, and level design isn't something I am good at - yet).
I have looked from time to time into beginning a career in the field of game development - not for money or fame (indeed, I would be willing to take a pretty large cut in pay to work at Id, which I am sure many would), but because I love games. Looking at what employers seem to want, I have come away from these lists thinking "These guys want the next John Carmack." - which in retrospect, they probably do!
I don't begrudge a company wanting the best and brightest for their development team, however it seems to have gotten to a point where a "newbie" in game development can't get their foot in the door of a company, nor can they "demo" their way in due to the fact that by the time they learn enough of the basics of 3D game development, they are woefully behind the curve.
Are these views of mine valid? What is the best way for a person to begin a career in 3D game development when the amount of needed knowledge is so vast? More importantly, would a person who has no degree in advanced math or physics (but a working knowledge of both, as well as a strong desire to learn more) be able to compete, and if so, how?
Thank you for any answers to these questions you may have, and for inspiring me and many others in the fields of game and 3D graphics development via the engines you have created.
Why should we continue to use more area to live? We should be using VOLUME.
We have the technology today to create large livable spaces that are aesthetically pleasant, while at the same time being practical.
We could free up enough land for agriculture/farming to support the increased population.
I am not talking about a large apartment complex, more like a volumized city. Certain problems would have to be overcome (like not using internal combustion engines on the "inside" for transportation, as well as the issue that people, for some reason, have a need for a "custom" home). But it is possible - today!
As far as the plates are concerned, maybe not in your state (course, I don't know where you are from), but here in Arizona - call this a slip up by the state:
I have a neighbor who has the following license plate: 666*DVL (where the "*" is the cactus between the numbers).
This is a state issued license - and it could offend a very moral/religious right person, if they happened to see it (of course, I found it so funny I nearly pulled the poor woman over to offer $100 for the plate!)...
Here we have a case of something that could be offensive to one person, and not to another (me).
I have to agree with your statements about basically "attracting flys with honey" - however, this could get into the area of site misrepresentation and other things that have been bandied about here on/.
It sucks that I got rated down as a troll - but really, of the innovative things being done with Linux by Compaq, the Itsy should come out near the top of the list.
I took two 8 foot long 1 x 12 pine boards, and attached them to the top of a frame I made out of six 4x4 posts (for legs) and a three 8 foot 2x4 studs (front, rear and sides of frame - to hold the legs together). All of it is held together with 3.5 inch deck screws.
The top of the desk is about 36 inches tall.
On top of the desk, on each side, are two 3 foot wide shelves I made from 1x12 pine - each one about 4 feet tall with 3 shelves. They are bracketed to the desk and wall.
A front shelf for the keyboard and mouse completes the desk.
It can only be moved by unassembling it - due to its weight and overall size.
I have no clue how much it can support - but I am a big guy, and even with me sitting on it with all the books and computer equipment currently on it - it don't budge - not one iota.
Because it is made from cheap wood - I don't worry when I need to do some soldering for hardware mods, etc - if the solder lands on the desk and burns - hey, just another character mark!
If a nuclear bomb was detonated just below ("below" being a relative term - dependant on the size of the fireball) a ship in the ocean, could the steam resulting from the fireball lower the density of the surrounding water enough to sink a large ship in one fell swoop?
Then why are they having problems with "dropouts" when the third slot _is_ filled? Is there something "magical" in the two slot/four slot config?
Or is it something having to do with "length of the chain" - ie, RAMBUS was only designed for two devices on the chain, but someone thought it would be cool to add a third (Intel?) for extra memory, found that it worked (most of the time), but then found it really wasn't that stable in the end?
As far as fixing the problem with the current motherboards - I was thinking like a termination pack that would go in the slot. Does this sound right? I have a feeling it wouldn't help the matter any (might even make it worse)...
This RAMBUS tech is wierd - can anyone point me to a more in-depth explanation as to how it works (spec-sheets?)...
Only about 3 weeks ago my GF and I bought a Neon - never once did the salesman try to steer us toward leasing a car - all in all, the sale went great, we were able to get our monthly payments below $250, and we even got the _color_ of the car we wanted!
All in all, a much better experience than I had expected (first time buying a car)...
All of what you stated sounds good - except that first point, about what we "have":
A) Video: We have direct cortex implants that supply low res/approx 640x480, and we have the beginings of artificial retinas, which could have video piped into them.
Now, don't get me wrong - I realize that there are such things in existance, but the last I saw of a "direct cortex implant" had a very meager resolution - only about 64 x 64. This was good enough for the user to "see" shapes and letters, but not good enough for general vision.
In fact, if what you say actually exists, I would think that someone who had the use of a 640 x 480 level of res would actually see in a useful manner - even if it was only a 1-bit per pixel system (in the way that devices I have seen are), they might be able to read a book if it was held close to the camera input...
So tell me, do you have a link or other information on this tech?
If I am understanding correctly, RAMBUS tech is based off of something similar (in concept) to ethernet - basically a very high speed analog interconnect between the CPU and memory, using some sort of packeting scheme (maybe similar to IP?)...
If this is correct, then is the third slot problem being caused by what is essentially a non-termination of the bus - similar to what can happen if a SCSI chain or 10bT chain is left unterminated?
Yes, the swastika is a modified form of a cross, and has been around for a very long time - long before the Nazi party and Hitler. Incidentally, there is a pretty good theory, with a lot of historical basis and facts to back it up, that the Nazi party was really a religious orginazation, fighting a "cult" war...
Anyhow, regarding the swastika - the reason the swastika can have points "leading" clockwise or counter-clockwise is not just a simple reversal, but more the use of this symbol of protection. For that is what the swastika is. It is similar in regard to a pentagram (which has been distorted to mean that if it is "upside down", you must be in league with Satan - though if it is "rightside up" - guess what? - you are still in league with Satan - at least according to some - grrr...) or a hexagram.
In many paganistic religions, "doing" something clockwise is different from doing the same thing counterclockwise. Just as a poor example - say you and your fellow pagans are dancing around a bonfire on a full moon night, linked arms, etc. - and chanting your "enemy's" name - dancing clockwise around the circle might mean "defence", like a shield - while counterclockwise would be an "offence" - casting a "magickal" spell toward the enemy.
The terms used to described clockwise and counterclockwise movement are "daosil" and "widdershins", respectively (I think I got those right - someone please correct me if I am wrong).
The fact that the Nazi party used a religious symbol to represent the party is only one example to show how they were ultimately a religious force (you also have ties to the Thules, various artifact finding expiditions to Tibet and Iceland, and a host of other facts to support this, as well)...
I have a Visa credit card. I am sure quite a lot of the people in America have one too (considering how easy they are to get). Mine is through Bank of America - so I am going to limit it to that.
Tommorow, I've decided to put up a page showing every possible combination (it would be a BIG page!) of 16 digits for a BofA Visa credit card. I will put on it a big title that says "Some of these numbers are actual accounts! Use them as you like!".
I first tried out Ebay on a whim - I had heard about it through a friend of my GF, and decided to see what it was all about (this was sometime last year). I had been to several real life auctions in the past (mostly for furniture) - and Ebay was easy stuff compared to fast talking auctioneers (although, funny thing about these guys is that after you listen to them long enough, they begin to sound normal, and everyone else seems to sound slow after the auction - including yourself!).
Anyhow, my first item I bid on - and won - was a Dinky model of a Tucker (a gift for a friend). Since then, I have bid and won multiple times (about 20 or so), and have highly rated feedback. I have sold once (that was a nightmare - due to some a-hole with zero feedback rating bidding on the item - a laptop - then not paying. I eventually sold it later on Ebay to an honest buyer). Only a couple of times have I bid and one things that I think I got screwed on (one is this old radar detector I have in my truck - doesn't seem to do much than beep when I get close to cities or microwave towers - oh well, only $10).
There have been times I have thought about bidding on something, then looked around a bit and found it on the Net for a cheaper price. However, the best things I have bought on Ebay tend to be those things that are impossible to find anymore in any other way:
I collect old Tomy toys - you, the kind before Tomy became a brand for toddlers...
Through Ebay I have bought both an Air Jammer Car and a Chatbot (I already have a Verbot and an Omnibot 2000 - just need an Omnibot to fill in the middle a bit!). Not related, but one of my most recent purchases was that of a Milton Bradley Big Trak. Works great too (I am thinking about converting it to wireless computer control)!
I often wonder what my Tomy Zoids Giant Zrk would go for...
Or my Bandai Spacewarp sets...
That is all speculation - I will never let go of these things anyhow - can't get such things anymore - toys nowaday's almost universally suck (not all - but most).
I haven't bid on Ebay in a while (my last purchase was a VGA -> TV converter - X works great with it, I am going to use it for VR), but I expect to again in the future.
Some people are addicted to Ebay - I am not one of them...
Look on the LEGO Mindstorms page, one of the recent new contributors is this one Japanese guy who created his own AIBO from a few Mindstorms kits - called it MIBO. Uses a couple of RCX units, and is pretty complex. He goes by (may even be his name) Jinsato.
Here is a link to his page:
http://www.mi-ra-i.com/JinSato/MindStorms/index. html
From what I could see on the site, all this guy did was drop a motherboard, etc into a pot and photograph it. If I were doing something like this, I would mount it up well, provide some form of real ventilation (maybe make the plant fake, instead of real, and vent through some moss or something), and show the steps through contruction...
Please realise I am not saying that doing such a creative form of casing for a PC is impossible, or that this guy didn't do it. I just expected to see more regarding the construction. As it is, it just seems like a bunch of old parts in a bucket...
I know I am a little late on this one (vacation and all), but I have a little something to add.
I once wrote a program in Pick BASIC (which someday I want to convert to some other better suited language/system) that takes an input (a question, statement, anything), and compares it to a list of possible inputs (if no match is found, the user is told so, and can input a variety of possible responses for the keywords input). Based on keywords found, a percentage is created, the one with the highest percentage wins, and one of the responses is selected randomly to be displayed to the user. This is all well and good, but not only is the current input used to generate the percentages, the last few lines input by the user are also used (it has been a long time since I looked at the code, so I am not sure I am completely right on this), so that the "conversation" stays "on topic".
All in all, it can be quite fun to "talk" with the program - my intent originally was to create a form of an encyclopedia for discussion; rather than look up something by topic, the user could simply ask it questions about the subject, and it would answer. It then evolved into some form of an AI personality type project (or something like an expert system with randomness thrown in - not very good for an expert system). I also had plans for allowing it the ability to detect when/if the user was getting mad/happy/excited/upset/etc. and having different responses based on that.
In short, I have the original code - written about 3 years ago. Would this invalidate the patent? I am willing to GPL this code (or whatever it would take) if this might be the case...
Slashdot Mirror
This sounds similar to my Compaq SLT/386 (my little slut) - damn thing weighs about 14 lbs (no, not as mighty as yours, but still damn heavy) - causes shoulder pain after carrying it for awhile.
Why do I keep it? Well, it has a nice monochrome screen - and get this: A detachable keyboard. Put it on a desk, remove the keyboard, and kick back!
RCA may have gotten a patent - but they didn't invent television - that distinction goes to a man (nay, a boy!) by the name of Philo T. Farnsworth.
Don't believe me - read the history yourself:
The Farnsworth Chronicles
Not only did Farnsworth invent television when he was a kid, he went on to develop what some think is a different form of fusion:
Farnsworth Fusion
Farnsworth is one of those inventors, who much like Tesla, came up with ideas and implemented them, but was forgotten by the public - even though we use both men's discoveries/inventions EVERY DAY.
There has been quite a bit of talk here about how 1 meter res imaging can't read a license plate (if it was flat on the ground), can't resolve a human being (past the shape, anyhow), pixel "blooming" etc...
It was also mentioned that spy sats can't be larger than the shuttle, so the mirror can't be larger for the CCD array...
However (and I am not an engineer or a satalite designer or anything), I want to throw out some ideas...
It was mentioned that the sats use a method similar to scanners to make the images - by using a 1 by x pixel CCD with optics, and moving the satellite to "scan" the image - now, you may not be able to make the mirror big in diameter, but what if you make it long and parabolic (think of a half-pipe shape, almost as long as the shuttle bay, nearly the diameter of the bay, with an equally long CCD element at the focus)? Could something like this make a good imager?
The second thing that we are assuming is that the gov't is only using one satellite per image - but what if they had two (or more?) sattelites, trailing each other in the same or near same orbit, and they angled the imagers in a bit - then scanned the same area - the images could then be reconstructed as a stereo photo, which would reveal even more information and detail about what was being viewed...
Does any of this sound plausible?
The direction taken by today's games (full on, no-holds-barred 3D) has almost singlehandedly been determined by your work in the field of game development. It has reached a point where the "common" hobbiest programmer cannot even hope to develop a game of similar richness, due to the inherent need to understand how to develop and implement the (sometimes complex) algorithms involved in creating a quality 3D engine.
Furthermore, it seems that in order to get into the field of 3D game development, the prospective individual still needs to have more than a passing knowledge of 3D systems/math, physics and world modeling, if he wants to do more than level design (don't get me wrong here - I know that level design is a very important aspect of a complete project, for it is what brings the entire game together, much like the plot of a book. However, I am a programmer, and level design isn't something I am good at - yet).
I have looked from time to time into beginning a career in the field of game development - not for money or fame (indeed, I would be willing to take a pretty large cut in pay to work at Id, which I am sure many would), but because I love games. Looking at what employers seem to want, I have come away from these lists thinking "These guys want the next John Carmack." - which in retrospect, they probably do!
I don't begrudge a company wanting the best and brightest for their development team, however it seems to have gotten to a point where a "newbie" in game development can't get their foot in the door of a company, nor can they "demo" their way in due to the fact that by the time they learn enough of the basics of 3D game development, they are woefully behind the curve.
Are these views of mine valid? What is the best way for a person to begin a career in 3D game development when the amount of needed knowledge is so vast? More importantly, would a person who has no degree in advanced math or physics (but a working knowledge of both, as well as a strong desire to learn more) be able to compete, and if so, how?
Thank you for any answers to these questions you may have, and for inspiring me and many others in the fields of game and 3D graphics development via the engines you have created.
Why should we continue to use more area to live? We should be using VOLUME.
We have the technology today to create large livable spaces that are aesthetically pleasant, while at the same time being practical.
We could free up enough land for agriculture/farming to support the increased population.
I am not talking about a large apartment complex, more like a volumized city. Certain problems would have to be overcome (like not using internal combustion engines on the "inside" for transportation, as well as the issue that people, for some reason, have a need for a "custom" home). But it is possible - today!
As far as the plates are concerned, maybe not in your state (course, I don't know where you are from), but here in Arizona - call this a slip up by the state:
/.
I have a neighbor who has the following license plate: 666*DVL (where the "*" is the cactus between the numbers).
This is a state issued license - and it could offend a very moral/religious right person, if they happened to see it (of course, I found it so funny I nearly pulled the poor woman over to offer $100 for the plate!)...
Here we have a case of something that could be offensive to one person, and not to another (me).
I have to agree with your statements about basically "attracting flys with honey" - however, this could get into the area of site misrepresentation and other things that have been bandied about here on
The guy who has written Terragen DOES know his stuff!
Funny thing is, the damn thing is written in VB - put that in your pipe and smoke it!
Here's a link for the curious:
Planetside - the Home of Terragen
Here are some images as well:
Terragen Images
I am just starting to get into NS (starting out with Snow Crash - so far loving it!) - but this book sounds interesting too.
If he doesn't want people to spend ungodly sums on something, he should "open source" it...
Give it to the Guttenburg Project...
It sucks that I got rated down as a troll - but really, of the innovative things being done with Linux by Compaq, the Itsy should come out near the top of the list.
Why can't we get a palmtop that runs Linux?
I want my Itsy!
Linux/X11 Game Writers Page
Learn to program.
Then compare COBOL to C.
Now tell me, which would you rather have to code that oh-so-complex data-mining application - "arcane soundbite" (C) or "plain English" (COBOL)?
I second this! This is what I did:
I took two 8 foot long 1 x 12 pine boards, and attached them to the top of a frame I made out of six 4x4 posts (for legs) and a three 8 foot 2x4 studs (front, rear and sides of frame - to hold the legs together). All of it is held together with 3.5 inch deck screws.
The top of the desk is about 36 inches tall.
On top of the desk, on each side, are two 3 foot wide shelves I made from 1x12 pine - each one about 4 feet tall with 3 shelves. They are bracketed to the desk and wall.
A front shelf for the keyboard and mouse completes the desk.
It can only be moved by unassembling it - due to its weight and overall size.
I have no clue how much it can support - but I am a big guy, and even with me sitting on it with all the books and computer equipment currently on it - it don't budge - not one iota.
Because it is made from cheap wood - I don't worry when I need to do some soldering for hardware mods, etc - if the solder lands on the desk and burns - hey, just another character mark!
If a nuclear bomb was detonated just below ("below" being a relative term - dependant on the size of the fireball) a ship in the ocean, could the steam resulting from the fireball lower the density of the surrounding water enough to sink a large ship in one fell swoop?
Then why are they having problems with "dropouts" when the third slot _is_ filled? Is there something "magical" in the two slot/four slot config?
Or is it something having to do with "length of the chain" - ie, RAMBUS was only designed for two devices on the chain, but someone thought it would be cool to add a third (Intel?) for extra memory, found that it worked (most of the time), but then found it really wasn't that stable in the end?
As far as fixing the problem with the current motherboards - I was thinking like a termination pack that would go in the slot. Does this sound right? I have a feeling it wouldn't help the matter any (might even make it worse)...
This RAMBUS tech is wierd - can anyone point me to a more in-depth explanation as to how it works (spec-sheets?)...
I actually meant 10Base2 - not 10BaseT as I wrote - I was thinking co-ax, but typing twisted pair. However, thank you for the correction...
Well, I for one have!
Only about 3 weeks ago my GF and I bought a Neon - never once did the salesman try to steer us toward leasing a car - all in all, the sale went great, we were able to get our monthly payments below $250, and we even got the _color_ of the car we wanted!
All in all, a much better experience than I had expected (first time buying a car)...
All of what you stated sounds good - except that first point, about what we "have":
A) Video: We have direct cortex implants that supply low res/approx 640x480, and we have the beginings of artificial retinas, which could have video piped into them.
Now, don't get me wrong - I realize that there are such things in existance, but the last I saw of a "direct cortex implant" had a very meager resolution - only about 64 x 64. This was good enough for the user to "see" shapes and letters, but not good enough for general vision.
In fact, if what you say actually exists, I would think that someone who had the use of a 640 x 480 level of res would actually see in a useful manner - even if it was only a 1-bit per pixel system (in the way that devices I have seen are), they might be able to read a book if it was held close to the camera input...
So tell me, do you have a link or other information on this tech?
If I am understanding correctly, RAMBUS tech is based off of something similar (in concept) to ethernet - basically a very high speed analog interconnect between the CPU and memory, using some sort of packeting scheme (maybe similar to IP?)...
If this is correct, then is the third slot problem being caused by what is essentially a non-termination of the bus - similar to what can happen if a SCSI chain or 10bT chain is left unterminated?
Or do I have this completely wrong?
Yes, the swastika is a modified form of a cross, and has been around for a very long time - long before the Nazi party and Hitler. Incidentally, there is a pretty good theory, with a lot of historical basis and facts to back it up, that the Nazi party was really a religious orginazation, fighting a "cult" war...
Anyhow, regarding the swastika - the reason the swastika can have points "leading" clockwise or counter-clockwise is not just a simple reversal, but more the use of this symbol of protection. For that is what the swastika is. It is similar in regard to a pentagram (which has been distorted to mean that if it is "upside down", you must be in league with Satan - though if it is "rightside up" - guess what? - you are still in league with Satan - at least according to some - grrr...) or a hexagram.
In many paganistic religions, "doing" something clockwise is different from doing the same thing counterclockwise. Just as a poor example - say you and your fellow pagans are dancing around a bonfire on a full moon night, linked arms, etc. - and chanting your "enemy's" name - dancing clockwise around the circle might mean "defence", like a shield - while counterclockwise would be an "offence" - casting a "magickal" spell toward the enemy.
The terms used to described clockwise and counterclockwise movement are "daosil" and "widdershins", respectively (I think I got those right - someone please correct me if I am wrong).
The fact that the Nazi party used a religious symbol to represent the party is only one example to show how they were ultimately a religious force (you also have ties to the Thules, various artifact finding expiditions to Tibet and Iceland, and a host of other facts to support this, as well)...
I have a Visa credit card. I am sure quite a lot of the people in America have one too (considering how easy they are to get). Mine is through Bank of America - so I am going to limit it to that.
Tommorow, I've decided to put up a page showing every possible combination (it would be a BIG page!) of 16 digits for a BofA Visa credit card. I will put on it a big title that says "Some of these numbers are actual accounts! Use them as you like!".
Would this be illegal?
Should it?
I first tried out Ebay on a whim - I had heard about it through a friend of my GF, and decided to see what it was all about (this was sometime last year). I had been to several real life auctions in the past (mostly for furniture) - and Ebay was easy stuff compared to fast talking auctioneers (although, funny thing about these guys is that after you listen to them long enough, they begin to sound normal, and everyone else seems to sound slow after the auction - including yourself!).
Anyhow, my first item I bid on - and won - was a Dinky model of a Tucker (a gift for a friend). Since then, I have bid and won multiple times (about 20 or so), and have highly rated feedback. I have sold once (that was a nightmare - due to some a-hole with zero feedback rating bidding on the item - a laptop - then not paying. I eventually sold it later on Ebay to an honest buyer). Only a couple of times have I bid and one things that I think I got screwed on (one is this old radar detector I have in my truck - doesn't seem to do much than beep when I get close to cities or microwave towers - oh well, only $10).
There have been times I have thought about bidding on something, then looked around a bit and found it on the Net for a cheaper price. However, the best things I have bought on Ebay tend to be those things that are impossible to find anymore in any other way:
I collect old Tomy toys - you, the kind before Tomy became a brand for toddlers...
Through Ebay I have bought both an Air Jammer Car and a Chatbot (I already have a Verbot and an Omnibot 2000 - just need an Omnibot to fill in the middle a bit!). Not related, but one of my most recent purchases was that of a Milton Bradley Big Trak. Works great too (I am thinking about converting it to wireless computer control)!
I often wonder what my Tomy Zoids Giant Zrk would go for...
Or my Bandai Spacewarp sets...
That is all speculation - I will never let go of these things anyhow - can't get such things anymore - toys nowaday's almost universally suck (not all - but most).
I haven't bid on Ebay in a while (my last purchase was a VGA -> TV converter - X works great with it, I am going to use it for VR), but I expect to again in the future.
Some people are addicted to Ebay - I am not one of them...
Look on the LEGO Mindstorms page, one of the recent new contributors is this one Japanese guy who created his own AIBO from a few Mindstorms kits - called it MIBO. Uses a couple of RCX units, and is pretty complex. He goes by (may even be his name) Jinsato.
. html
Here is a link to his page:
http://www.mi-ra-i.com/JinSato/MindStorms/index
There is also stuff on the LEGO site...
From what I could see on the site, all this guy did was drop a motherboard, etc into a pot and photograph it. If I were doing something like this, I would mount it up well, provide some form of real ventilation (maybe make the plant fake, instead of real, and vent through some moss or something), and show the steps through contruction...
Please realise I am not saying that doing such a creative form of casing for a PC is impossible, or that this guy didn't do it. I just expected to see more regarding the construction. As it is, it just seems like a bunch of old parts in a bucket...
I know I am a little late on this one (vacation and all), but I have a little something to add.
I once wrote a program in Pick BASIC (which someday I want to convert to some other better suited language/system) that takes an input (a question, statement, anything), and compares it to a list of possible inputs (if no match is found, the user is told so, and can input a variety of possible responses for the keywords input). Based on keywords found, a percentage is created, the one with the highest percentage wins, and one of the responses is selected randomly to be displayed to the user. This is all well and good, but not only is the current input used to generate the percentages, the last few lines input by the user are also used (it has been a long time since I looked at the code, so I am not sure I am completely right on this), so that the "conversation" stays "on topic".
All in all, it can be quite fun to "talk" with the program - my intent originally was to create a form of an encyclopedia for discussion; rather than look up something by topic, the user could simply ask it questions about the subject, and it would answer. It then evolved into some form of an AI personality type project (or something like an expert system with randomness thrown in - not very good for an expert system). I also had plans for allowing it the ability to detect when/if the user was getting mad/happy/excited/upset/etc. and having different responses based on that.
In short, I have the original code - written about 3 years ago. Would this invalidate the patent? I am willing to GPL this code (or whatever it would take) if this might be the case...
Respond to this post if you are interested...