I have always wondered - what if/. went subscription - or what if Andover/VA went under, and/. wasn't there - what would I be willing to do to get my/. fix (and let's face it - it _is_ a drug for a lot of us)?
Yeah, I click the banner ads from time to time - sometimes just to see what the product is, other times because the ad seems interesting - sometimes just to give a penny to the crew.
Would I be willing to pay for/.? Do bears shit in the woods? Of course I would pay!
k5 started a pay model, but I don't find them to be worth paying for, not yet, anyhow - but they still rake in about $300/month for new subscriptions so far, which isn't too bad (though I bet it costs more than that to keep/. going). I think I would be willing to do $10.00/month just to read/.
I like the idea of pledge drives, though - and a "sponsor wall" showing high pledges, etc. I also like certain other suggestions bandied about by others.
Think about this - please!!! Don't just go with the bigger banner ads, but be original and creative instead!
If you google on "pixter" and "hacking", "hack", or "interface" (I was curious whether anything has been tried with this device yet), for some reason you seem to get a fair share of "porn" style links...
I used to use one of those mechanical four port kvm switches - but after a while (a couple of years) it started to get very flakey on me, so I decided to get something a little better. I wanted an active switch, but I needed at least four ports, hopefully more - but everywhere I turned, the price was INSANE for anything over two ports...
Then I decided to try Ebay...
I ended up bidding on an ATEN CS-106 from a seller on Ebay, who had a few up for grabs as used equipment. I bid - and someone out-bid me. I was crushed, because my bid was $50.00, the person who had sniped me was $51.00. I noticed he had a zero rating, so I emailed the seller, and let him know that I was willing to pay was the winning bidder offered if he didn't come through (I had a rating of 40). The seller emailed me back, and said that he thought he had an extra, sans a power supply, and sold it to me - I sent him the money via paypal, and before he sent it, he said he found the PS and would throw it into the deal.
About a week later my KVM arrived - only a slight dent on the case gave any indication that it was used - other than that it was in perfect shape (even had the manual!). It was AT only (serial mouse, etc) - but for my needs perfect - 6 ports of perfection, for $50.00!!! I plugged it in using the cables I had already, and everything has worked great since. A simple CTRL-ALT-SHIFT-port#-RETURN to switch ports, other key combos to page through, or you can use the front panel switch. The case is built like a rock (pretty heavy steel construction).
I can only recommend this KVM - unless you have a need for a more expensive remote capable (ya know the kind, with Cat5 between the master unit and the remote), this one is it.
Oh, BTW - I should say that I got lucky - if you note from the link above, it still retails (MSRP) for $300.00, I have seen it used for about $200.00, maybe a little less. I got lucky for $50.00 - not sure how (of course, I also have this print buffer/10BaseT printer interface that normally goes for $400.00, picked it up used for $5.00 at a local electronics dump - so, maybe I have a knack for these deals...hmmm).
The corporations gain - a flagging economy, then war - wow, sudden need for all of those products.
But do I think that reps of all of the multinationals got into this big room and hashed this plan out themselves in secret? Sounds like a squabble when the Taliban comes together for a meeting (tribal heads, etc).
No - probably not. I like your idea, though - not sure how true it is or not, but very plausible - I wondered the same thing the day of the attack (ie, did it come from within?)...
I can see something else, though - what if the heads of the major competing airlines to those who were big that got "used" staged this, perhaps in cooperation with whoever was likely to get the contract to rebuild/reconstruct the towers (or recondition - maybe they didn't even expect them to fall)? Sounds nutty, doesn't it? Or maybe it was heads of Boeing - being as they manufacture tons of military hardware, as well as civilian aircraft (which might need mods/changes/new systems for "safer" travel in these "times")? Actually, that last one...
I remember a lot of this from high school physics - I didn't want to get too deep into it in my reply, but you did an excellent job.
One thing, I am sure you are aware of, is in regards to the wave/particle duality of particles (double slit experiment), which of course begins to lead one down a slippery slope toward quantum physics, HUP, and other "magical" things...
And then, does the escrow service only release the money to the seller when the buyer confirms receipt of the item, and satisfaction with it? If that is the case, then a warehouse wouldn't be needed, and most of my suppositions are out the window...
Re:Yes, your vague half-truths are very valuable.
on
Babbage, A Look Back
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· Score: 2
Not really a misconception, as I have always considered India to be a part of the Middle East (not sure what it really is - Near East?). As far as whether knowing this makes me a better coder - maybe, maybe not - but it does make me a better human being, with slightly more knowledge about the world. Thank you.
Regarding Latin - it is something I wish I had time to learn, actually - I think it would help in certain situations.
What I was trying to get at is that by forgetting and not realizing that we are humans on a world, who actually share experience and culture - we tend to become separate, and we tend to be more base, and think in an "Us vs Them" fashion - "I am better than you" or "My country is better than yours" - instead of realizing that by continuing to work together, we could achieve extremely great things...
These freenets are great ideas, and I for one would like to see them continue...
But think for a second on what would happen should these freenets upset the "powers that be"...
They use radio frequencies, in a "free" spectrum - sure, a lot of other equipment uses this free spectrum as well, and companies have vested interests in keeping it open. But none of this stops the government from stepping in and regulating the system, taking back the frequencies, finding and prosecuting "pirates" who continue to use "banned" equipment, etc. None of this stops those same companies from going a different route if they see their subsidiary markets threatened (they may not want freenets).
So the glass house come crashing down - simply because the equipment in use can and will be regulated by the FCC.
As I stated before - I hope this isn't the case, and I hope this keeps flourishing - I would love to try to get in on it myself someday (when I have more cash and time). But I sincerely think that freenet members should start looking into comm technologies which can't be regulated (like lasercomm, or LEDcomm ala Ronja), rather than setting themselves up for a later fall (and yes, I know of people who are doing this, and have been sucessful on a number of fronts. I also know the arguments about there not being an "omni" capability with these type system - people, with wired systems there isn't an omni capability, but that didn't stop anything, did it?)...
I currently own a Kodak DC3200 - cheapest looking piece of shit camera that was ever made (ok, next to the Photorun DJ1000 - which I also own). The DC3200 cost me about $150.00 a few months ago (and just noticed on PriceWatch it is much cheaper now). It has all the features I want, and despite looking like shit, actually gives great pictures:
* "megapixel" quality (1280 x 960 or thereabouts, I believe, on highest setting) * 2x digital zoom - which sucks because it only works on the 640 x 480 setting * LCD preview display * Serial interface and video out * Flash * Built in 2 meg memory * Uses CompactFlash memory cards, as well * Linux "compatible" via gPhoto
It really does have great quality, even in low light levels - I picked it specifically because it stored the images in jpeg format on the card, guaranteeing me that I could use an operating system of my choice. A serial interface that guarantees no proprietary lock in. Wow! All of that cheap! My complaints:
Lens cap and charger for the batteries not included - they are seperate items to buy. Plus, there is a small lag time when taking a picture, about a second (that, and the "speed" of the camera is very low - no capturing high speed shots - but I am not a professional photographer, so I don't care much).
All in all, not many complaints - and far more worth it than a disposable digital (which, I have to admit, have hack value attractiveness for me). I think maybe having one of these as a backup or standby for bad situations (where you wouldn't want to lose a good camera) is also an idea.
To be honest, I have wondered for a while when these kind of things would come out - I am now waiting for "disposable" video cameras...
And tons cheaper than PC-104! Think of using this for robotics!
For el-cheapo systems, the parallel and serial ports are right there. Hopefully there is a way to disable video, so it doesn't suck precious battery juice. For better systems, hook up a USB interface, or firewire, or build a PCI card interface (ok, not the easiest thing, but it can be done).
More than enough robotic fun can come out of the parallel and serial ports - drop a USB quickcam (or two!) and experiment with vision.
Now - just have to dig out specs on the ATX power connector to get the thing fired up from a homebrew robotic power supply...
Actually, from what I understand, what "holds the light in around curves" in current fiber optic strands is the cladding, which is of a different refraction index, thus it bends (bounces) the light back toward the center, except in extremely tight bends. I would imagine the same thing would/could be done with this stuff. Also, sometimes having the light leak can be a good thing: Think VR glove bend sensors, and lightweight robotic whisker bump sensors (see Gordon McCombs latest edition of "99 Inexpensive Robotics Projects" for more on this one)...
For large scale power generation, the generators do not use permanent magnets, but rather use electromagnets. These electromagnets are energized by a small current, then the generator spun up, and the electromagnets keep generating a magnetic field, either by being fed directly off the generator (like a car alternator works), or by simple induction (look here for how to do this yourself from common electric motors!!!). Permanent magnets tend to only be used on small generators like that used for bicycle lights, or for the spark generation on small engines (where I suppose it could make a difference).
As for motors, most AC motors, once again, are either induction based, or three phase with two sets of electromagnets - no permanent magnets used. Where it could get interesting though, for electric vehicles - where I think your idea might have merit. A lighter, but more powerful motor using these magnets (if they prove to be more powerful than other magnets, of course) would mean longer battery life. Still, I think some electric vehicles actually use AC motors as well, and do a DC->AC conversion. AC motors are used, I think, because even after the conversion from DC to AC, they are more powerful for a smaller package, and more efficient (of course, I could be wrong - someone enlighten me, please).
Also, smaller, lighter motors could mean smaller conventional DC motors, like smaller pager motors, smaller printer stepper motors, all the small motors that exist (smaller, lighter, more powerful kick-ass battlebot motors - yeah!!!)...
I typically look at the feedback rating, and decide if the product is worth it, and if I would trust myself if I was the seller.
I also look at the positive vs. negative vs. neutral comment level - if they had a few negatives, but nothing in the last six months but positives, I consider them OK - if they have negatives that are periodic in nature, then I stay away. Also, sometimes I get the feeling that a seller has one ID, but is actually multiple people or of a company (some you can tell ARE a company, and the ID will reflect it - but sometimes it is just a "feeling"). I also look and see how long they have been an Ebay member, and when the last time they changed their ID (if they don't currently have the shades on) - this can give you an idea of whether they are trying something hinky.
For large items, though - escrow all the way. Small items there isn't much you can do about it. I once won a bid on some memory (about $35.00) - and I sent through PayPal - I never received the memory, and my emails went unanswered - then my emails started bouncing. I later found that others were having similar issues with the guy. It turns out he never claimed the money from my PayPal account, so I was able to get a check back from PayPal - so I was safe. I think he never claimed it because the email PayPal sent was to the old defunct account that was bouncing mail - so he never knew I sent the money.
I later found an email from him in an account I wasn't using at the time - I still don't know why or how he sent it to that account, but he did - asking me when the money was coming - the date on that email was within the time that the PayPal balance was available to him - I don't know why he didn't check his PayPal account (as I had alerted him in an earlier email that he did acknowledge that I was going to use PayPal).
All in all, a weird episode - but I didn't get screwed as hard as others, and managed to get my money back, plus I didn't get a neg feedback from the guy...
This is a good idea, especially with items over a certain limit. However, with small items (ie, those with low bids - I know there is a difference between a 10 caret diamond and a bolt) the fees would have to be adjusted accordingly.
One thing about escrow - doesn't the third party have to hold the item while waiting for the money (or vice versa, depending on which arrives first)? If that is the case, then EBay would need a large warehouse as well as inventory tracking just to keep things straight - and then there is always the possibility that things could be "lost" in escrow (sticky fingered employees) - hopefully that could be cut to the minimum (security and insurance mostly)...
Actually, yeah - it does hurt...
on
Babbage, A Look Back
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· Score: 3, Insightful
It hurts all of mankind.
Does it hurt you to be unaware of who first thought of writing numbers as digits? The genius who came up with reliable procedures for adding them? The spectacular genius who generalized expression of fractions by numbers?
You know, I sit here in my office - knowing that outside my window, thousands of miles away, people are dying: Some by war, some by famine, some by sheer ignorance. Furthermore, I know that in some cases, these deaths and sufferings are occuring because of the ignorance and lack of understanding of others...
We humans should know at least where these things came from, if not specific identities. For example, I know that the first two things you mentioned, "Numbers as Digits" and "Adding Digits" most likely came from the Middle East, and that our word for Algebra comes from "the Arabic al-jabr". As for the last one, it pains me not to know where it came from, I am certain I could find it with a bit of googling, but I wouldn't doubt it came from the same region as well. Much of the math you speak of actually goes further back, but it is to the Middle East we must look to for our number system and for the number zero (0). These contributions are nothing short of amazing.
In a similar fashion, I tend to wonder how many people in the Middle East are aware of various contributions of Western society's great thinkers, scientists, philosophers, teachers, mathematicians, and medical doctors? How many of them are aware of things they might use every day, without which their standard of living would surely be lower than what it is today (I am thinking of things like automobiles and electricity, basic medicine, and engineering).
These things should bring us together - to cause us all, on every corner of the planet to think "We are human, we have made these things!". We should rightly be humbled by greater men than ourselves, and should strive to be like them or better. We should be proud that we, as humans, have explored our solar system and beyond! That we have stepped foot on another world, beyond our mere Earth.
I think of the photos of the Earth-rise captured by cameras that man invented, hand carried to another world in machines and suits built by man to keep him alive in a world utterly inhospitable to himself, daring it to take his life so that he could step down, and take one picture...
A picture - a world so fragile - and small - holding, as far as we know (though we, as men, dream - yes, we dream - of more...), all the life in the universe...
You know, as I just wrote this, I cried - I know I can't do anything about what is going on in this world - and I know that none of you can, either - not directly. I know that there are people that just don't care. I guess this is why I cried - because despite all of that mankind has achieved - from everything small to everything great - there are still individuals who exist who seem to be unable to look past their own petty self-interests and dream of the possibilities...
It would be better to claim he is "ignorant", rather than "stupid" - the word "stupid" implies something fundamentally wrong with his mind, while the word "ignorant" is more of "lack of knowledge", rather than of intelligence.
You are right to claim that he should look into and be curious about these people - they are a part of what has led him to where he is today.
Actually... (Completely OT)
on
New Cube controller
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· Score: 2, Interesting
As far as breaking your TV is concerned...
I participated and help set up this year's BotBash here in Phoenix, AZ - outside, we set up a bunch of TV's and other junk for Christian Ristow's machines to rip apart... Fast forward to end of show...
Some TV's were lying around - various people were trying to kick the TV tube's face in - one huy was wearing steel toe boots - it took about twenty extremely hard kicks before the tube would implode.
A controller being thrown at a TV, even a keyboard, would likely do nothing to bust the screen, or the TV - might scratch it, and yeah, it could break other things - but the TV picture tube - nope.
Actually, TV's _do_ have pixels (except they aren't called pixels, but instead "dots", hence, "dot-pitch ratio", which gives the distance between adjacent dots).
Each dot is formed by a thin piece of material called the "electron gun shadow mask", which is basically a very fancy method of saying "a piece of thin metal with lots of precisely placed holes in it". This mask is swept on the back by the electron stream from the "electron gun" in the back (actually, three different "guns" are used, one for each color R, G and B). As the beam passes over the hole, it lights up a corresponding dot of red, green, or blue phospor, which glows in the proper color. This beam is varied in intensity, to change the color level of each dot, to give the wide variety of colors (interesting point - most TVs aren't balanced to pure white, but rather to the blue end of the spectrum, adding blue to a display makes it look brighter to our eyes, but purists have issues with it - also note the same is used in laundry detergent). These dots are very small, and close together, but they exist nonetheless. If this mask wasn't used, extreme smearing would result (now, your statement is correct prior to the mask, but not after it). One other thing, some picture tubes use a grid of vertical wires as a mask - not sure how it works, but I would imagine it is similar, but with less interfereing, and no holes to create pinhole camera electron beam distortion effects, there exists less blurring (ie, the beam doesn't stray from its phospor dot onto adjacent dots). I am sure there is a good FAQ on this out there.
If you want to "see" these dots, up close, take a magnafying glass and look at your monitor or TV, or, alternatively, get some beads of water on your TV, and you can see them (badly, of course).
Maybe the edges are blurry because most TVs and monitors have curved glass fronts (especially cheap TVs) - perhaps using a WEGA or some other flat tube might help things? I know that the actual image may be "flat" - but there is a lot of glass it still has to pass through, thus possibly distorting it when you magnify it?
It is possible to flip the wires around on the deflection coil in your TV or monitor. It is also possible to rotate the deflection coil assembly on some monitors/TVs. Here is a webpage detailing flipping wires.
BE VERY CAREFUL IF YOU ARE WORKING ON THE INSIDE OF A TV OR MONITOR - THERE ARE LETHAL VOLTAGES PRESENT, EVEN IF THE TV OR MONITOR IS OFF!!! DISCHARGE THE PICTURE TUBE AND ALL CAPACITORS!!! EVEN THEN, BE ULTRA-EXTRA CAREFUL - YOU CAN KILL YOURSELF IF YOU ARE NOT CAREFUL!!! IF YOU HAVE _ANY_ DOUBTS, DON'T FUCK WITH IT!!! I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH!!! (maybe I should add more exclamation points?)
I am amazed that the kid (at the link I gave) didn't kill himself.
Correcting Fuziness:
Two options - bend the screen horizontally (like the Torus screens in theaters), possibly vertically as well, to bring the edges in focus. Might be difficult to do. Option B (probably more difficult) would be to bend the fresnel lens slightly...
Correct! That is what I was trying to imply, but I didn't mention it for some reason - my mistake. Thank you for pointing it out.
Many of these LCD TVs can be had cheap now, in many cases under $100.00 - Fry's, RatShack, others sell them all the time. One thing you have to be careful of as you take them apart is getting the electronics and backlight separated from the LCD - many times they are glued or metal tabs are soldered, plus there is a VERY thin ribbon-style cable connecting the tuner/output board to the LCD , which is easy to break or tear, from what I have read. Plus, be careful of the high-voltage power supply for the backlight on the LCD - these are dangerous as well!
Slashdot Mirror
I have always wondered - what if /. went subscription - or what if Andover/VA went under, and /. wasn't there - what would I be willing to do to get my /. fix (and let's face it - it _is_ a drug for a lot of us)?
/.? Do bears shit in the woods? Of course I would pay!
/. going). I think I would be willing to do $10.00/month just to read /.
Yeah, I click the banner ads from time to time - sometimes just to see what the product is, other times because the ad seems interesting - sometimes just to give a penny to the crew.
Would I be willing to pay for
k5 started a pay model, but I don't find them to be worth paying for, not yet, anyhow - but they still rake in about $300/month for new subscriptions so far, which isn't too bad (though I bet it costs more than that to keep
I like the idea of pledge drives, though - and a "sponsor wall" showing high pledges, etc. I also like certain other suggestions bandied about by others.
Think about this - please!!! Don't just go with the bigger banner ads, but be original and creative instead!
If you google on "pixter" and "hacking", "hack", or "interface" (I was curious whether anything has been tried with this device yet), for some reason you seem to get a fair share of "porn" style links...
And haven't regretted it since!
I used to use one of those mechanical four port kvm switches - but after a while (a couple of years) it started to get very flakey on me, so I decided to get something a little better. I wanted an active switch, but I needed at least four ports, hopefully more - but everywhere I turned, the price was INSANE for anything over two ports...
Then I decided to try Ebay...
I ended up bidding on an ATEN CS-106 from a seller on Ebay, who had a few up for grabs as used equipment. I bid - and someone out-bid me. I was crushed, because my bid was $50.00, the person who had sniped me was $51.00. I noticed he had a zero rating, so I emailed the seller, and let him know that I was willing to pay was the winning bidder offered if he didn't come through (I had a rating of 40). The seller emailed me back, and said that he thought he had an extra, sans a power supply, and sold it to me - I sent him the money via paypal, and before he sent it, he said he found the PS and would throw it into the deal.
About a week later my KVM arrived - only a slight dent on the case gave any indication that it was used - other than that it was in perfect shape (even had the manual!). It was AT only (serial mouse, etc) - but for my needs perfect - 6 ports of perfection, for $50.00!!! I plugged it in using the cables I had already, and everything has worked great since. A simple CTRL-ALT-SHIFT-port#-RETURN to switch ports, other key combos to page through, or you can use the front panel switch. The case is built like a rock (pretty heavy steel construction).
I can only recommend this KVM - unless you have a need for a more expensive remote capable (ya know the kind, with Cat5 between the master unit and the remote), this one is it.
Oh, BTW - I should say that I got lucky - if you note from the link above, it still retails (MSRP) for $300.00, I have seen it used for about $200.00, maybe a little less. I got lucky for $50.00 - not sure how (of course, I also have this print buffer/10BaseT printer interface that normally goes for $400.00, picked it up used for $5.00 at a local electronics dump - so, maybe I have a knack for these deals...hmmm).
I'll take a stab at it...
The corporations gain - a flagging economy, then war - wow, sudden need for all of those products.
But do I think that reps of all of the multinationals got into this big room and hashed this plan out themselves in secret? Sounds like a squabble when the Taliban comes together for a meeting (tribal heads, etc).
No - probably not. I like your idea, though - not sure how true it is or not, but very plausible - I wondered the same thing the day of the attack (ie, did it come from within?)...
I can see something else, though - what if the heads of the major competing airlines to those who were big that got "used" staged this, perhaps in cooperation with whoever was likely to get the contract to rebuild/reconstruct the towers (or recondition - maybe they didn't even expect them to fall)? Sounds nutty, doesn't it? Or maybe it was heads of Boeing - being as they manufacture tons of military hardware, as well as civilian aircraft (which might need mods/changes/new systems for "safer" travel in these "times")? Actually, that last one...
Here's to hoping I don't "disappear"...
I remember a lot of this from high school physics - I didn't want to get too deep into it in my reply, but you did an excellent job.
One thing, I am sure you are aware of, is in regards to the wave/particle duality of particles (double slit experiment), which of course begins to lead one down a slippery slope toward quantum physics, HUP, and other "magical" things...
Looks like, in a way, Newton was right after all.
this is a test - please ignore or mod down
And then, does the escrow service only release the money to the seller when the buyer confirms receipt of the item, and satisfaction with it? If that is the case, then a warehouse wouldn't be needed, and most of my suppositions are out the window...
Not really a misconception, as I have always considered India to be a part of the Middle East (not sure what it really is - Near East?). As far as whether knowing this makes me a better coder - maybe, maybe not - but it does make me a better human being, with slightly more knowledge about the world. Thank you.
Regarding Latin - it is something I wish I had time to learn, actually - I think it would help in certain situations.
What I was trying to get at is that by forgetting and not realizing that we are humans on a world, who actually share experience and culture - we tend to become separate, and we tend to be more base, and think in an "Us vs Them" fashion - "I am better than you" or "My country is better than yours" - instead of realizing that by continuing to work together, we could achieve extremely great things...
These freenets are great ideas, and I for one would like to see them continue...
But think for a second on what would happen should these freenets upset the "powers that be"...
They use radio frequencies, in a "free" spectrum - sure, a lot of other equipment uses this free spectrum as well, and companies have vested interests in keeping it open. But none of this stops the government from stepping in and regulating the system, taking back the frequencies, finding and prosecuting "pirates" who continue to use "banned" equipment, etc. None of this stops those same companies from going a different route if they see their subsidiary markets threatened (they may not want freenets).
So the glass house come crashing down - simply because the equipment in use can and will be regulated by the FCC.
As I stated before - I hope this isn't the case, and I hope this keeps flourishing - I would love to try to get in on it myself someday (when I have more cash and time). But I sincerely think that freenet members should start looking into comm technologies which can't be regulated (like lasercomm, or LEDcomm ala Ronja), rather than setting themselves up for a later fall (and yes, I know of people who are doing this, and have been sucessful on a number of fronts. I also know the arguments about there not being an "omni" capability with these type system - people, with wired systems there isn't an omni capability, but that didn't stop anything, did it?)...
I currently own a Kodak DC3200 - cheapest looking piece of shit camera that was ever made (ok, next to the Photorun DJ1000 - which I also own). The DC3200 cost me about $150.00 a few months ago (and just noticed on PriceWatch it is much cheaper now). It has all the features I want, and despite looking like shit, actually gives great pictures:
* "megapixel" quality (1280 x 960 or thereabouts, I believe, on highest setting)
* 2x digital zoom - which sucks because it only works on the 640 x 480 setting
* LCD preview display
* Serial interface and video out
* Flash
* Built in 2 meg memory
* Uses CompactFlash memory cards, as well
* Linux "compatible" via gPhoto
It really does have great quality, even in low light levels - I picked it specifically because it stored the images in jpeg format on the card, guaranteeing me that I could use an operating system of my choice. A serial interface that guarantees no proprietary lock in. Wow! All of that cheap! My complaints:
Lens cap and charger for the batteries not included - they are seperate items to buy. Plus, there is a small lag time when taking a picture, about a second (that, and the "speed" of the camera is very low - no capturing high speed shots - but I am not a professional photographer, so I don't care much).
All in all, not many complaints - and far more worth it than a disposable digital (which, I have to admit, have hack value attractiveness for me). I think maybe having one of these as a backup or standby for bad situations (where you wouldn't want to lose a good camera) is also an idea.
To be honest, I have wondered for a while when these kind of things would come out - I am now waiting for "disposable" video cameras...
Damn this thing is small!
And tons cheaper than PC-104! Think of using this for robotics!
For el-cheapo systems, the parallel and serial ports are right there. Hopefully there is a way to disable video, so it doesn't suck precious battery juice. For better systems, hook up a USB interface, or firewire, or build a PCI card interface (ok, not the easiest thing, but it can be done).
More than enough robotic fun can come out of the parallel and serial ports - drop a USB quickcam (or two!) and experiment with vision.
Now - just have to dig out specs on the ATX power connector to get the thing fired up from a homebrew robotic power supply...
Actually, from what I understand, what "holds the light in around curves" in current fiber optic strands is the cladding, which is of a different refraction index, thus it bends (bounces) the light back toward the center, except in extremely tight bends. I would imagine the same thing would/could be done with this stuff. Also, sometimes having the light leak can be a good thing: Think VR glove bend sensors, and lightweight robotic whisker bump sensors (see Gordon McCombs latest edition of "99 Inexpensive Robotics Projects" for more on this one)...
Good idea, but I doubt it.
For large scale power generation, the generators do not use permanent magnets, but rather use electromagnets. These electromagnets are energized by a small current, then the generator spun up, and the electromagnets keep generating a magnetic field, either by being fed directly off the generator (like a car alternator works), or by simple induction (look here for how to do this yourself from common electric motors!!!). Permanent magnets tend to only be used on small generators like that used for bicycle lights, or for the spark generation on small engines (where I suppose it could make a difference).
As for motors, most AC motors, once again, are either induction based, or three phase with two sets of electromagnets - no permanent magnets used. Where it could get interesting though, for electric vehicles - where I think your idea might have merit. A lighter, but more powerful motor using these magnets (if they prove to be more powerful than other magnets, of course) would mean longer battery life. Still, I think some electric vehicles actually use AC motors as well, and do a DC->AC conversion. AC motors are used, I think, because even after the conversion from DC to AC, they are more powerful for a smaller package, and more efficient (of course, I could be wrong - someone enlighten me, please).
Also, smaller, lighter motors could mean smaller conventional DC motors, like smaller pager motors, smaller printer stepper motors, all the small motors that exist (smaller, lighter, more powerful kick-ass battlebot motors - yeah!!!)...
I typically look at the feedback rating, and decide if the product is worth it, and if I would trust myself if I was the seller.
I also look at the positive vs. negative vs. neutral comment level - if they had a few negatives, but nothing in the last six months but positives, I consider them OK - if they have negatives that are periodic in nature, then I stay away. Also, sometimes I get the feeling that a seller has one ID, but is actually multiple people or of a company (some you can tell ARE a company, and the ID will reflect it - but sometimes it is just a "feeling"). I also look and see how long they have been an Ebay member, and when the last time they changed their ID (if they don't currently have the shades on) - this can give you an idea of whether they are trying something hinky.
For large items, though - escrow all the way. Small items there isn't much you can do about it. I once won a bid on some memory (about $35.00) - and I sent through PayPal - I never received the memory, and my emails went unanswered - then my emails started bouncing. I later found that others were having similar issues with the guy. It turns out he never claimed the money from my PayPal account, so I was able to get a check back from PayPal - so I was safe. I think he never claimed it because the email PayPal sent was to the old defunct account that was bouncing mail - so he never knew I sent the money.
I later found an email from him in an account I wasn't using at the time - I still don't know why or how he sent it to that account, but he did - asking me when the money was coming - the date on that email was within the time that the PayPal balance was available to him - I don't know why he didn't check his PayPal account (as I had alerted him in an earlier email that he did acknowledge that I was going to use PayPal).
All in all, a weird episode - but I didn't get screwed as hard as others, and managed to get my money back, plus I didn't get a neg feedback from the guy...
This is a good idea, especially with items over a certain limit. However, with small items (ie, those with low bids - I know there is a difference between a 10 caret diamond and a bolt) the fees would have to be adjusted accordingly.
One thing about escrow - doesn't the third party have to hold the item while waiting for the money (or vice versa, depending on which arrives first)? If that is the case, then EBay would need a large warehouse as well as inventory tracking just to keep things straight - and then there is always the possibility that things could be "lost" in escrow (sticky fingered employees) - hopefully that could be cut to the minimum (security and insurance mostly)...
It hurts all of mankind.
Does it hurt you to be unaware of who first thought of writing numbers as digits? The genius who came up with reliable procedures for adding them? The spectacular genius who generalized expression of fractions by numbers?
You know, I sit here in my office - knowing that outside my window, thousands of miles away, people are dying: Some by war, some by famine, some by sheer ignorance. Furthermore, I know that in some cases, these deaths and sufferings are occuring because of the ignorance and lack of understanding of others...
We humans should know at least where these things came from, if not specific identities. For example, I know that the first two things you mentioned, "Numbers as Digits" and "Adding Digits" most likely came from the Middle East, and that our word for Algebra comes from "the Arabic al-jabr". As for the last one, it pains me not to know where it came from, I am certain I could find it with a bit of googling, but I wouldn't doubt it came from the same region as well. Much of the math you speak of actually goes further back, but it is to the Middle East we must look to for our number system and for the number zero (0). These contributions are nothing short of amazing.
In a similar fashion, I tend to wonder how many people in the Middle East are aware of various contributions of Western society's great thinkers, scientists, philosophers, teachers, mathematicians, and medical doctors? How many of them are aware of things they might use every day, without which their standard of living would surely be lower than what it is today (I am thinking of things like automobiles and electricity, basic medicine, and engineering).
These things should bring us together - to cause us all, on every corner of the planet to think "We are human, we have made these things!". We should rightly be humbled by greater men than ourselves, and should strive to be like them or better. We should be proud that we, as humans, have explored our solar system and beyond! That we have stepped foot on another world, beyond our mere Earth.
I think of the photos of the Earth-rise captured by cameras that man invented, hand carried to another world in machines and suits built by man to keep him alive in a world utterly inhospitable to himself, daring it to take his life so that he could step down, and take one picture...
A picture - a world so fragile - and small - holding, as far as we know (though we, as men, dream - yes, we dream - of more...), all the life in the universe...
You know, as I just wrote this, I cried - I know I can't do anything about what is going on in this world - and I know that none of you can, either - not directly. I know that there are people that just don't care. I guess this is why I cried - because despite all of that mankind has achieved - from everything small to everything great - there are still individuals who exist who seem to be unable to look past their own petty self-interests and dream of the possibilities...
Maybe I am just a romantic optimist...
It would be better to claim he is "ignorant", rather than "stupid" - the word "stupid" implies something fundamentally wrong with his mind, while the word "ignorant" is more of "lack of knowledge", rather than of intelligence.
You are right to claim that he should look into and be curious about these people - they are a part of what has led him to where he is today.
As far as breaking your TV is concerned...
I participated and help set up this year's BotBash here in Phoenix, AZ - outside, we set up a bunch of TV's and other junk for Christian Ristow's machines to rip apart... Fast forward to end of show...
Some TV's were lying around - various people were trying to kick the TV tube's face in - one huy was wearing steel toe boots - it took about twenty extremely hard kicks before the tube would implode.
A controller being thrown at a TV, even a keyboard, would likely do nothing to bust the screen, or the TV - might scratch it, and yeah, it could break other things - but the TV picture tube - nope.
In theory, yes - but you would have to work out how to drive such a thing properly.
Actually, TV's _do_ have pixels (except they aren't called pixels, but instead "dots", hence, "dot-pitch ratio", which gives the distance between adjacent dots).
Each dot is formed by a thin piece of material called the "electron gun shadow mask", which is basically a very fancy method of saying "a piece of thin metal with lots of precisely placed holes in it". This mask is swept on the back by the electron stream from the "electron gun" in the back (actually, three different "guns" are used, one for each color R, G and B). As the beam passes over the hole, it lights up a corresponding dot of red, green, or blue phospor, which glows in the proper color. This beam is varied in intensity, to change the color level of each dot, to give the wide variety of colors (interesting point - most TVs aren't balanced to pure white, but rather to the blue end of the spectrum, adding blue to a display makes it look brighter to our eyes, but purists have issues with it - also note the same is used in laundry detergent). These dots are very small, and close together, but they exist nonetheless. If this mask wasn't used, extreme smearing would result (now, your statement is correct prior to the mask, but not after it). One other thing, some picture tubes use a grid of vertical wires as a mask - not sure how it works, but I would imagine it is similar, but with less interfereing, and no holes to create pinhole camera electron beam distortion effects, there exists less blurring (ie, the beam doesn't stray from its phospor dot onto adjacent dots). I am sure there is a good FAQ on this out there.
If you want to "see" these dots, up close, take a magnafying glass and look at your monitor or TV, or, alternatively, get some beads of water on your TV, and you can see them (badly, of course).
Something I just thought of:
Maybe the edges are blurry because most TVs and monitors have curved glass fronts (especially cheap TVs) - perhaps using a WEGA or some other flat tube might help things? I know that the actual image may be "flat" - but there is a lot of glass it still has to pass through, thus possibly distorting it when you magnify it?
Image Inversion:
It is possible to flip the wires around on the deflection coil in your TV or monitor. It is also possible to rotate the deflection coil assembly on some monitors/TVs. Here is a webpage detailing flipping wires.
BE VERY CAREFUL IF YOU ARE WORKING ON THE INSIDE OF A TV OR MONITOR - THERE ARE LETHAL VOLTAGES PRESENT, EVEN IF THE TV OR MONITOR IS OFF!!! DISCHARGE THE PICTURE TUBE AND ALL CAPACITORS!!! EVEN THEN, BE ULTRA-EXTRA CAREFUL - YOU CAN KILL YOURSELF IF YOU ARE NOT CAREFUL!!! IF YOU HAVE _ANY_ DOUBTS, DON'T FUCK WITH IT!!! I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH!!! (maybe I should add more exclamation points?)
I am amazed that the kid (at the link I gave) didn't kill himself.
Correcting Fuziness:
Two options - bend the screen horizontally (like the Torus screens in theaters), possibly vertically as well, to bring the edges in focus. Might be difficult to do. Option B (probably more difficult) would be to bend the fresnel lens slightly...
AcidWarp and The Warper
I am not really sure if this is the earliest incarnation - somehow, I doubt it. But it has to be an early one (1992)...
Correct! That is what I was trying to imply, but I didn't mention it for some reason - my mistake. Thank you for pointing it out.
Many of these LCD TVs can be had cheap now, in many cases under $100.00 - Fry's, RatShack, others sell them all the time. One thing you have to be careful of as you take them apart is getting the electronics and backlight separated from the LCD - many times they are glued or metal tabs are soldered, plus there is a VERY thin ribbon-style cable connecting the tuner/output board to the LCD , which is easy to break or tear, from what I have read. Plus, be careful of the high-voltage power supply for the backlight on the LCD - these are dangerous as well!
A good source for those larger LCD displays are:
http://www.eio.com/
and
http://www.EarthLCD.com/
http://groups.google.com/groups?q=5250dnld&hl=en&r num=1&selm=slrn874uqp.k0a.griffon%2Busenet%40Keyse rSoze.snurgle.org
http://www.snurgle.org/~griffon/