Permissions are your friend. We have a similar situation but we knew long ago that limited permissions was best for most users. They can download all the crap they want -- they just can't install it. Same goes for viruses. We haven't had a single virus or spyware problem since we instituted the policy.
Coke rep: "You're where?" Winner: "Underwater. Multi-person submersible. Just off the continental shelf. Come get me." Coke rep: "Uh, sir, I don't think I can..." Winner: "Hey, that SUV has all-terrain right, four wheel drive? I've seen the commercials: those things can drive through anything. Come get me. Four on the floor, baby!"
If by "breedingplace" you mean "fosters", then sure. When people are oppressed in one form or another, they seek more covert means of communication. It's not the mere fact that it's a form of communication, but that it becomes the only form for that particular tract of conversation. You're going to find very few discussions of writing the next Blaster worm in a Sunday school.
While Apple seems to be patching fairly regularly, the last security update (the group of 4) was a little lacking in that it offered no explanations. Microsoft (which has gotten good at revealing weaknesses) at least gives a full technical explanation, often right down to the files affected. As I work in IT, I'm often left installing patches with Apple with no clue what they're doing under the hood (a bad situation to be in, but worse if we didn't patch at all). Fortunately, Mac users are a very small minority at my company.
Also, the guys who's putting together some of the patches seem to be falling asleep at the wheel. The last Quicktime upgrade (33 MB) apparently include 18 MB of the Quicktime logo for each of language it supports: Not So Quickthinking on this page. That's just lazy work.
Well, actually, I think the point of this is to curve spam. No illegitimate (read: v1agr3) spammer will try to get on this whitelist. They'll be fined into oblivion. MS is basically saying "Here's a semi-more-legitimate group of spammers than usual. We can probably trash the rest of the messages we get".
First off, I don't think Sony's DRM has been made entirely clear yet.
Second, I know Sony isn't going to support AAC (although someone may figure out an iPod-like hack for Ogg). The point is that the more large competitors you get into the mix, the better the devices have to get. Your original post sounded like you were condemning Sony to failure because Apple's solution is so much better. It isn't.
Some of us are avoiding an iPod like the plague because of its restrictions. I want to be able to play all kinds of music: Apple's protected AAC, MP3, Ogg, WM. But I can only do the first 2, and the third is probably only available through a hack.
The first thing I do when I purchase something from iTunes music store is burn it to CD and recode it in 256 mbps MP3s.
I'd mod the above as Flamebait. *Any* time competition enters the market it's good for the industry. I don't want Apple, or any other company, controlling what I can buy AND the hardware I play it on. Until I get a device that plays all those formats, I won't be sold.
I read all the benchmarks. I (and a lot of other hardcore gamers) don't care for AA. It slows things down, and it tends to make that one-pixel person you're shooting in the distance look like a blob.
On top of that, most of the AA benefits you receive are in the upper end of resolutions (like I said before: 1600x1200). Few people run games like UT2004, because 90 fps dipping down to 40 and less (see reviews outside Tom's Hardware) isn't acceptable.
You should do what I did: buy a Mac to go alongside an XP desktop and a Linux server at home. I'm vehemently against "switching", but I'm more than happy to "try multiple things". No point getting pigeonholed into a single OS.
I was talking with people on another board (hardware mavens), and for most of us with a late model card from last generation (Radeon 9800, any of the competing nVidia cards), the X800 really isn't worth it.
A good denominator is fpspb (frames per second per buck, a made up value from Tom's Hardware. For the cash, you can squeeze a lot more out of a $200 Radeon Pro 9800 (especially with overclocking) than you can with anything else right now. You're only talking a marginal difference of fps between this generation and last at high (1600x1200) resolutions, and an almost non-existant difference at "normal" resolutions. The $200-300 extra price premium isn't worth those extra frames.
Somehow, looking at the pictures, I imagine the guy who plays PacMan has a hard time getting dates.
Scene bar: Guy: "So, baby, what's your sign?" Women: "What's that big thing sticking out of your chest?" Guy: "Oh this? Yellow foam. There's one in the back too." Women: "What's it for for? Do you use it erotically?" Guy: "Heck no. It's for playing a real-life version of a videogame from the 80s." *Total silence*
Disappointed in Falcon-Northwest
on
The FragBook
·
· Score: 3, Informative
I purchased one of their Fragboxes a few weeks ago, and was terribly dismayed by their service, construction and performance. My first Fragbox took over 10 days to arrive when the website originally said it'd take 2-3 to process the order (they since changed the website). When it did come, it came with a screw lying on the box floor (someone, when putting it together, had tried to bend a chassis panel that wasn't meant to bend; anyone could tell that's not good for durability). I returned it and they sent me another one, which was fine construction-wise but a dismal performer on benchmarks and games.
Now, granted, this is a box that was meant to be more portable than powerful, with limited upgradability, but I sent it back. Since then, I've purchased parts for a fairly decent Athlon 64 system which should wipe the floor with the Fragbox for a few hundred more. It's one of those "If you want it right, build it yourself" things.
It would've been better to save this story until..
on
Robosaurus
·
· Score: 4, Funny
This may seem silly, but hear me out. The psychology of the words "rip" and "burn" kind of lend themselves to "underground" criminal activity, particularly the "rip" part. You're not "copying" music from one of your CD's, you're "ripping" it from one CD to put on another (see the verbal difference).
Of course, the vast majority of us knows this is hogwash, but there is a loud and vocal minority that copy illegal music/software/movies, and they might have very well been the first to coin these particular terms.
I know, for example, when I asked my mom in high school if I could buy a "CD burner", she freaked out. It just sounds wrong. But if you say "CD writer", it sounds official.
I agree. I used Macs up until high school, Windows at home, and FreeBSD/Linux in college. What am I using at home right now? Windows/Linux. What am I using at work? Windows and Novell. Why? Because that's what my company had when I got here. They get good support, the system works, and it doesn't go down. They like it, so we use it.
"But DVD companies are not in the business of selling blue lasers - they're in the business of selling content."
Actually, DVD companies are more interested in selling hardware. Better visual quality, better sound - it's the same principle as hardware upgrades for the PC (get the consumer to buy new stuff every 3 years).
The only people who care about content are the content providers like movie studios, and they can care less what color laser you use (or even if there ends up being substantially more room on the disc). They cater to the mainstream (those who don't want to buy new DVD players every so often) and they're having a hard enough time filling the 4.7 GB they're being given now. Plus, it's at some companies advantage to use the limited space to create 2 DVD sets (for example, Star Wars 1) which they can sell for more money.
I disagree. I kind of like it the Windows way (I'm talking about the file explorer, not apps). MS has always been good to add support for new commands while maintaining old ones (for example, the task bar that lets you delete files, or play music). You can still right-click and choose delete, which is my method of choice. It's good to have choice and decide your "right way".
Not to mention the fact that subscribers are generally going to be the ones who post the most, provide interesting comments and provide the content for Slashdot. The demographic is going to swing. Advertisers are going to have to go after trolls and lurkers, not real tech geeks.
"Perfect for us snoopers to walk by college frat houses and hopping on the 'net with our linux ipaq's:)"
Call me crazy, but I don't remember most of the frats in my college being crazy about wireless ethernet. They were too busy drinking/partying/etc. I guess maybe if you're at MIT...
Hmm... sort of like in Back to the Future 2 when they were using the video phones. On the bottom of the screen was listed the other persons' likes, vices, etc. I wouldn't mind knowing a girl's vices before I walk up to her in a bar.:)
Of course, I'm also still waiting for video phones. The best part of that scene? At the end when the show the AT&T logo and say something like "This call brought to you by AT&T". By 2015, it'll probably be "This call brought to you by AOL Time Warner Sony Viacom Verizon".
Slashdot Mirror
Permissions are your friend. We have a similar situation but we knew long ago that limited permissions was best for most users. They can download all the crap they want -- they just can't install it. Same goes for viruses. We haven't had a single virus or spyware problem since we instituted the policy.
Coke rep: "You're where?"
Winner: "Underwater. Multi-person submersible. Just off the continental shelf. Come get me."
Coke rep: "Uh, sir, I don't think I can..."
Winner: "Hey, that SUV has all-terrain right, four wheel drive? I've seen the commercials: those things can drive through anything. Come get me. Four on the floor, baby!"
And the other 3? Apple should at least point to the relevant advisory.
If by "breedingplace" you mean "fosters", then sure. When people are oppressed in one form or another, they seek more covert means of communication. It's not the mere fact that it's a form of communication, but that it becomes the only form for that particular tract of conversation. You're going to find very few discussions of writing the next Blaster worm in a Sunday school.
While Apple seems to be patching fairly regularly, the last security update (the group of 4) was a little lacking in that it offered no explanations. Microsoft (which has gotten good at revealing weaknesses) at least gives a full technical explanation, often right down to the files affected. As I work in IT, I'm often left installing patches with Apple with no clue what they're doing under the hood (a bad situation to be in, but worse if we didn't patch at all). Fortunately, Mac users are a very small minority at my company. Also, the guys who's putting together some of the patches seem to be falling asleep at the wheel. The last Quicktime upgrade (33 MB) apparently include 18 MB of the Quicktime logo for each of language it supports: Not So Quickthinking on this page. That's just lazy work.
Well, actually, I think the point of this is to curve spam. No illegitimate (read: v1agr3) spammer will try to get on this whitelist. They'll be fined into oblivion. MS is basically saying "Here's a semi-more-legitimate group of spammers than usual. We can probably trash the rest of the messages we get".
First off, I don't think Sony's DRM has been made entirely clear yet.
Second, I know Sony isn't going to support AAC (although someone may figure out an iPod-like hack for Ogg). The point is that the more large competitors you get into the mix, the better the devices have to get. Your original post sounded like you were condemning Sony to failure because Apple's solution is so much better. It isn't.
Some of us are avoiding an iPod like the plague because of its restrictions. I want to be able to play all kinds of music: Apple's protected AAC, MP3, Ogg, WM. But I can only do the first 2, and the third is probably only available through a hack.
The first thing I do when I purchase something from iTunes music store is burn it to CD and recode it in 256 mbps MP3s.
I'd mod the above as Flamebait. *Any* time competition enters the market it's good for the industry. I don't want Apple, or any other company, controlling what I can buy AND the hardware I play it on. Until I get a device that plays all those formats, I won't be sold.
I read all the benchmarks. I (and a lot of other hardcore gamers) don't care for AA. It slows things down, and it tends to make that one-pixel person you're shooting in the distance look like a blob.
On top of that, most of the AA benefits you receive are in the upper end of resolutions (like I said before: 1600x1200). Few people run games like UT2004, because 90 fps dipping down to 40 and less (see reviews outside Tom's Hardware) isn't acceptable.
You should do what I did: buy a Mac to go alongside an XP desktop and a Linux server at home. I'm vehemently against "switching", but I'm more than happy to "try multiple things". No point getting pigeonholed into a single OS.
I was talking with people on another board (hardware mavens), and for most of us with a late model card from last generation (Radeon 9800, any of the competing nVidia cards), the X800 really isn't worth it.
A good denominator is fpspb (frames per second per buck, a made up value from Tom's Hardware. For the cash, you can squeeze a lot more out of a $200 Radeon Pro 9800 (especially with overclocking) than you can with anything else right now. You're only talking a marginal difference of fps between this generation and last at high (1600x1200) resolutions, and an almost non-existant difference at "normal" resolutions. The $200-300 extra price premium isn't worth those extra frames.
Somehow, looking at the pictures, I imagine the guy who plays PacMan has a hard time getting dates.
Scene bar:
Guy: "So, baby, what's your sign?"
Women: "What's that big thing sticking out of your chest?"
Guy: "Oh this? Yellow foam. There's one in the back too."
Women: "What's it for for? Do you use it erotically?"
Guy: "Heck no. It's for playing a real-life version of a videogame from the 80s."
*Total silence*
Now, granted, this is a box that was meant to be more portable than powerful, with limited upgradability, but I sent it back. Since then, I've purchased parts for a fairly decent Athlon 64 system which should wipe the floor with the Fragbox for a few hundred more. It's one of those "If you want it right, build it yourself" things.
Sunday! Sunday! Sunday!
Don't remember there being "fishing boats" in StarCraft. I think he's talking about Age of Empires.
Of course, the vast majority of us knows this is hogwash, but there is a loud and vocal minority that copy illegal music/software/movies, and they might have very well been the first to coin these particular terms.
I know, for example, when I asked my mom in high school if I could buy a "CD burner", she freaked out. It just sounds wrong. But if you say "CD writer", it sounds official.
Wow, 3 years on Slashdot and this is the first time I've caught a duplicate story before anyone else. What do I win? :) A free Kuro5hin.org account? :)
I agree. I used Macs up until high school, Windows at home, and FreeBSD/Linux in college. What am I using at home right now? Windows/Linux. What am I using at work? Windows and Novell. Why? Because that's what my company had when I got here. They get good support, the system works, and it doesn't go down. They like it, so we use it.
Actually, DVD companies are more interested in selling hardware. Better visual quality, better sound - it's the same principle as hardware upgrades for the PC (get the consumer to buy new stuff every 3 years).
The only people who care about content are the content providers like movie studios, and they can care less what color laser you use (or even if there ends up being substantially more room on the disc). They cater to the mainstream (those who don't want to buy new DVD players every so often) and they're having a hard enough time filling the 4.7 GB they're being given now. Plus, it's at some companies advantage to use the limited space to create 2 DVD sets (for example, Star Wars 1) which they can sell for more money.
I disagree. I kind of like it the Windows way (I'm talking about the file explorer, not apps). MS has always been good to add support for new commands while maintaining old ones (for example, the task bar that lets you delete files, or play music). You can still right-click and choose delete, which is my method of choice. It's good to have choice and decide your "right way".
You're talking to a group of people that think paying $100 for software, for 3 years of daily, intensive use, plus support, is expensive to them.
Not to mention the fact that subscribers are generally going to be the ones who post the most, provide interesting comments and provide the content for Slashdot. The demographic is going to swing. Advertisers are going to have to go after trolls and lurkers, not real tech geeks.
Considering he's only going to get about $100 or so, it'll probably make the honeymoon a little more interesting.
Call me crazy, but I don't remember most of the frats in my college being crazy about wireless ethernet. They were too busy drinking/partying/etc. I guess maybe if you're at MIT...
Of course, I'm also still waiting for video phones. The best part of that scene? At the end when the show the AT&T logo and say something like "This call brought to you by AT&T". By 2015, it'll probably be "This call brought to you by AOL Time Warner Sony Viacom Verizon".