"but that's what i call realism... they even rendered wristwatches for the computer generated orcs. artificial bloopers, a concept of the future indeed!"
Oh yes. Who can forget the laws about having other gods, making carved images, taking the name of the lord in vain, remembering the Sabbath, honoring your parents, and coveting your neighbors stuff?
"For example, making recreational drugs illegal was the best gift ever given to organized crime!"...and law enforcement, big govt, legal drug companies, etc.
One thing I recently read about farming subsidies was that many of the poorer nations that are complaining about the agricultural subsidies are net importers of food. If the farm subsidies were removed, it it will lead to higher export prices for their farmers, but hurt their country in the long run, due to an increase in food prices for everyone.
"Possibly. But then again, if such mechanisms were very successful, why did they not evolve for 4 billion years on a planet surface covered in silicon compounds. In general, it is very difficult for people in labs to compete with the lab which is our planet, and time-scales of millions or billions of years. "
An artificially created virus created to kill as many people as possible in a short period of time would have a different 'life' cycle than a natural virus. If a natural virus is too deadly, it won't allow the host to live long enough for the virus to reproduce and spread. If that happens, the cycle of infection will end as soon as the initial host dies. In a weaponized virus, that would more likely be seen as a beneficial trait. Following a massive initial infection, everyone dies, and the infection cycle of the virus is finished.
I don't know how it works. I had a problem with watching DVDs because of the macrovision, so I asked around and was told that an RF modulator would eliminate the problem. It worked- I haven't had any problems since then.
I do agree with you that you shouldn't have to buy extra equipment to be able to view your DVDs.
"It turns out that when I hook up a DVD player to the jack, the picture on the screen is fskced because the signal is most likely routed through the built-in VCR. "
Go to Radio Shack and buy an RF Modulator, and run the wires through that before they go into the RCA input jack on the VCR. Cheaper than buying a new TV set.
If trash is public property in most states, and freely searchable without a warrant, if they search someone's trash and they find illegal materials (drugs or whatever) in there, technically that illegal material would no longer belong to whoever put it there, right? So you can't bust someone for possessing it if it is no longer theirs.
Say a heroin addict decides they want to kick the habit so they throw out all of their heroin and paraphanalia. The cops search their garbage and find it all. Too bad it doesn't belong to the addict anymore, since it's now 'public property.'
"Who to blame? Personally, as with all contracts, I think it's the responsibility of the signer to make sure they're happy with it. If you sign something and then realise it's a bad deal, tough. These kids should get proper legal advice before signing up, and make sure they understand the risks."
True, but it's not like the artists and the record companies are on equal footing. If the Electric Vomitorium doesn't like the contract, there's 100 other bands willing to accept it, and the Electric Vomitorium ends up with nothing. Best to take their chances, dream the dream of success, and hope for the best? I don't know.
"It's already bad enough to be forced to give money to so many social programs I disagree with, when excersizing a choice to not give money to them literally results in a prison sentence."
I don't want to pay taxes to support building nuclear weapons. I don't want my taxes to support covert wars. I don't want my taxes to support prosecution of non-violent 'criminals.' I don't want my taxes to help bail out failing corporations. I don't want my taxes to fund clear-cutting our national forests. And if I don't pay the taxes, I'd go to jail too.
We all end up paying for things we don't agree with. What makes you so special?
"Sure, an automated system could 'hear' the original question, but we are a hell of a long ways away from a computer being able to correctly say "cat" based on that prompt."
Actually I don't think it would be that tough.
The program in question would be expecting the prompt "Say the word spelled by the following letters."
A voice recognition program could recognize the letters stated, which are then fed into a 'speaking program' (Dr Sbaitso?) which reads the word formed by the letters.
Slashdot Mirror
"I shouldn't have to prove anything to any investigator.
Why not?"
Why not? Because in the US, we don't have to prove our innocence to anyone. We're presumed innocent, until proven guilty.
What a country!
Maybe people are put-off by your pumpkin-sized head, needed to carry around that huge brain.
I once worked on the floor of a fiberglass plant (car panels) placing and removing fiberglass sheets on the presses. 12 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Between the heat, the smell, the itching, and the hours, that was the worst job I ever had.
I can understand how most people wouldn't last the day. It sucks.
It makes me appreciate what I have a lot more though.
"but that's what i call realism... they even rendered wristwatches for the computer generated orcs. artificial bloopers, a concept of the future indeed!"
Are you sure they weren't wrist-mounted sundials?
Oh yes. Who can forget the laws about having other gods, making carved images, taking the name of the lord in vain, remembering the Sabbath, honoring your parents, and coveting your neighbors stuff?
"For example, making recreational drugs illegal was the best gift ever given to organized crime!" ...and law enforcement, big govt, legal drug companies, etc.
One thing I recently read about farming subsidies was that many of the poorer nations that are complaining about the agricultural subsidies are net importers of food. If the farm subsidies were removed, it it will lead to higher export prices for their farmers, but hurt their country in the long run, due to an increase in food prices for everyone.
"Possibly. But then again, if such mechanisms were very successful, why did they not evolve for 4 billion years on a planet surface covered in silicon compounds. In general, it is very difficult for people in labs to compete with the lab which is our planet, and time-scales of millions or billions of years. "
An artificially created virus created to kill as many people as possible in a short period of time would have a different 'life' cycle than a natural virus.
If a natural virus is too deadly, it won't allow the host to live long enough for the virus to reproduce and spread. If that happens, the cycle of infection will end as soon as the initial host dies.
In a weaponized virus, that would more likely be seen as a beneficial trait. Following a massive initial infection, everyone dies, and the infection cycle of the virus is finished.
Remember when we had the War on Drugs, and now you can't buy drugs anymore? It'll be just like that.
"whenever you dial someone, you first listen to a ~30 second ad before it connects you."
hope you didn't just dial 911
I don't know how it works. I had a problem with watching DVDs because of the macrovision, so I asked around and was told that an RF modulator would eliminate the problem. It worked- I haven't had any problems since then.
I do agree with you that you shouldn't have to buy extra equipment to be able to view your DVDs.
"It turns out that when I hook up a DVD player to the jack, the picture on the screen is fskced because the signal is most likely routed through the built-in VCR. "
Go to Radio Shack and buy an RF Modulator, and run the wires through that before they go into the RCA input jack on the VCR. Cheaper than buying a new TV set.
hey works for me.
I really was just curious about how such a situation would work out. I'm (obviously) not a lawyer.
So thanks for the response and clarification- I appreciate it.
If trash is public property in most states, and freely searchable without a warrant, if they search someone's trash and they find illegal materials (drugs or whatever) in there, technically that illegal material would no longer belong to whoever put it there, right? So you can't bust someone for possessing it if it is no longer theirs.
Say a heroin addict decides they want to kick the habit so they throw out all of their heroin and paraphanalia. The cops search their garbage and find it all. Too bad it doesn't belong to the addict anymore, since it's now 'public property.'
"Including the ellipsis, followed by the manual signature "-sam" at the end shatters the illusion that your connection was broken by a reboot. "
Maybe he was dictating?
"Why do you think that famine is practically unheard of in capitalist countries?"
Actually, it's rather common for starving countries to be exporting food, because it's more profitable to export the food rather than sell it locally.
"Unemployment is the new environmentalism."
Who knew it? Dubya's an environmentalist after all.
"Who to blame? Personally, as with all contracts, I think it's the responsibility of the signer to make sure they're happy with it. If you sign something and then realise it's a bad deal, tough. These kids should get proper legal advice before signing up, and make sure they understand the risks."
True, but it's not like the artists and the record companies are on equal footing. If the Electric Vomitorium doesn't like the contract, there's 100 other bands willing to accept it, and the Electric Vomitorium ends up with nothing.
Best to take their chances, dream the dream of success, and hope for the best? I don't know.
"It's already bad enough to be forced to give money to so many social programs I disagree with, when excersizing a choice to not give money to them literally results in a prison sentence."
I don't want to pay taxes to support building nuclear weapons. I don't want my taxes to support covert wars. I don't want my taxes to support prosecution of non-violent 'criminals.'
I don't want my taxes to help bail out failing corporations. I don't want my taxes to fund clear-cutting our national forests. And if I don't pay the taxes, I'd go to jail too.
We all end up paying for things we don't agree with. What makes you so special?
I dunno... For all we know Gandalf could have been like Obi Won coming back from the dead. He's in the movie, but not really alive.
The problem that comes with having friends who will see anything is that generally, they'll see anything and *like* it.
There's no accounting for taste- I really only have one or two friends whose taste in movies I actually trust.
"Real geeks use natural gas generators."
Real geeks ARE natural gas generators.
"You want 4 more years of lying? Vote for a Repub or a Green."
Are you saying Greens are liars like Republicans, or are you saying that a vote for Greens is a vote for Republicans?
"Sure, an automated system could 'hear' the original question, but we are a hell of a long ways away from a computer being able to correctly say "cat" based on that prompt."
Actually I don't think it would be that tough.
The program in question would be expecting the prompt "Say the word spelled by the following letters."
A voice recognition program could recognize the letters stated, which are then fed into a 'speaking program' (Dr Sbaitso?) which reads the word formed by the letters.
"This has as little to with the Turning Test as eating a bologna sandwich"
That's a pretty good Turing Test itself- if you can eat a bologna sandwich, you're not a computer.