yes, it is possible. and, when you pay for phone service, they also give you a "unique identification" number. this could no doubt be used for some form of DMCA enforcement, somehow. or maybe even personal tracking! quick, run! hide from the government and corporations alike! you have been tagged, numbered, and identified--you have...a PHONE NUMBER!
I think we need to suspend paranoia mode for a second here. according to the FAQ, the GPT disk partitioning specification is a documented Intel standard. and, really, isn't it about time for the old MBR scheme to die? the architectural limit to 4 primary partitions is getting old. GPT can scale far better and has a less arcane internal structure (cylinder and head arithmetic, anyone?)
and if you read more carefully you will see that it is only the 64-bit version of Whistler that won't boot on MBRs. the 32-bit version should boot just fine.
I think MS is just scaling with their new OS architecture. anything can be viewed through an anti-competitive lense. the important question is: will we be getting a better OS? I think so.
hmm...well, I'm intrigued. inhouse networks were the application I was thinking of also (they have fast ethernet connections, and are often hardest hit by worms anyway).
if you're interested, why don't you email me (canova@covad.net) and we can at least toss the idea around a little bit.
and, thinking more about it, this has possibilities. this could be used as a distribution system for almost instant bug fixes, via "worming" the systems together. participation in the chain would be voluntary, of course. but, like another poster already suggested, it resembles the human immune system. and using this kind of "swarming" bug fix/patch distribution system would result in exponentially faster bug fixes. the admin doesn't even need to be awake.
and new systems would be patched immediately, no more hunting down and downloading a bunch of old fixes every fresh install.
imagine bands of roving web worm maintaining and managing the security of the net. am I just tired, or does this sounds really cool?
hmm, I know this kind of worm is really a virus in itself and not a good idea or something to welcome, but I have to admit I kind of like the idea myself. it's nice to think of a benevolent force propagating itself out amongst the web. there are enough malevolent ones to go around.
Orson Scott Card actually wrote a good short story about just that scenario.
This man (named Hiram, I think) was living alone and had been psycologically evaluated by the goverment as a socially inactive type, so his television was kept on 24/7 to comply with some law designed to keep him mentally healhy. programming was also specified by the government (there was only one channel).
I won't give away the end, but it's worth a good read. It's in his Maps in a Mirror collection.
I know I am reading slashdot when an article is titled "PDAs, PDAs" and there is absolutely no question that the conversation will be about LCD display pixels, not displays of affection.
How do you see the relationship between jPython (the java implementation) and standard cPython (the original C language version) evolving? And do you see the advantages of either one (i.e. portability vs. speed) becoming especially pronounced in light of the recent trend toward distributed software (ala the MS.NET initiative)?
unfortunately it's unlikely that this gift from heaven to PDA geeks will be commercially available any time soon as it still only has the status of a research project.
why would compaq sit on something this potentially cool? I mean, this isn't marketroid fluff and vaporware--the guy in the pictures is actually holding one. it's right there. how about someone sticks it in a box and sells it?
you could argue that they don't think there's enough of a market to make a device like this profitable, but if that's the case why spend money to develope it in the first place?
I mean, I suppose this is kind of useful (to someone? maybe?). but when first read this I had to laugh. these people have far to much time on their hands.
and, what exactly does it mean for my air conditioner to send me error messages? the only useful one I can think of is "I've been unplugged" and that wouldn't exactly, umm, make it, would it?
this is true, and it's something I think people often don't realize. it's impossible to "break the laws of physics" because they would govern the breaking itself.
it would be more accurate to say "they broke their laws of physics"
according to the article, the materials posted "could include material such as lecture notes, course outlines, reading lists, and assignments for each course."
unless read creatively, this list does not include exams or homework. the (very laudable) goal of the project is to make freely available the content of a first rate education. Posting tests wouldn't contribute to this goal, and would probably compromise the classroom itself.
> The company intends to adapt the existing U.K. series for American audiences and will also produce a U.S. version.
does this mean I'm going to have to listen to Joe Nameth argue with Howie Long (or whatever the hell their names are) and make comments like "now what they really need to do to win the game is score some points"? maybe I'll pass.
I guess this sounds like a good thing, but I seriously mistrust corporations with this much power. I mean, they change the rules, but they can always change them back. And, as long as the powers that be have the word "corporation" in their name, capitalism dictates that their decisions will have more to do with profit margins than the continued, healthy growth of the internet.
oh yeah! let's make our point like intelligent, rational people by slashdotting the hell out of their servers! that'll let them know that we...wait, umm, we what?
and "Operation Slashdotted"? do you still play with GI Joes?
of course you realize that, at this point, depending what media you're transmiting this over, you can't fit anything more than headers into a packet. and maybe not even that.
Slashdot Mirror
yes, it is possible. and, when you pay for phone service, they also give you a "unique identification" number. this could no doubt be used for some form of DMCA enforcement, somehow. or maybe even personal tracking! quick, run! hide from the government and corporations alike! you have been tagged, numbered, and identified--you have...a PHONE NUMBER!
those cheeky bastards.
sean
I think we need to suspend paranoia mode for a second here. according to the FAQ, the GPT disk partitioning specification is a documented Intel standard. and, really, isn't it about time for the old MBR scheme to die? the architectural limit to 4 primary partitions is getting old. GPT can scale far better and has a less arcane internal structure (cylinder and head arithmetic, anyone?)
and if you read more carefully you will see that it is only the 64-bit version of Whistler that won't boot on MBRs. the 32-bit version should boot just fine.
I think MS is just scaling with their new OS architecture. anything can be viewed through an anti-competitive lense. the important question is: will we be getting a better OS? I think so.
sean
hmm...well, I'm intrigued. inhouse networks were the application I was thinking of also (they have fast ethernet connections, and are often hardest hit by worms anyway).
if you're interested, why don't you email me (canova@covad.net) and we can at least toss the idea around a little bit.
sean
yes, I was tired but...
there could easily be a worm signing/ID verification feature. encryption signatures and whatnot can solve the good/bad worm problem.
sean
and, thinking more about it, this has possibilities. this could be used as a distribution system for almost instant bug fixes, via "worming" the systems together. participation in the chain would be voluntary, of course. but, like another poster already suggested, it resembles the human immune system. and using this kind of "swarming" bug fix/patch distribution system would result in exponentially faster bug fixes. the admin doesn't even need to be awake.
and new systems would be patched immediately, no more hunting down and downloading a bunch of old fixes every fresh install.
imagine bands of roving web worm maintaining and managing the security of the net. am I just tired, or does this sounds really cool?
sean
hmm, I know this kind of worm is really a virus in itself and not a good idea or something to welcome, but I have to admit I kind of like the idea myself. it's nice to think of a benevolent force propagating itself out amongst the web. there are enough malevolent ones to go around.
sean
oh I get it, kind of like the "earth worm" of the computer virus world. it's a bug, yes, but you want it in your garden; it's good for the soil.
just don't believe people when they tell you that you can cut it in half and both halves live
sean
Orson Scott Card actually wrote a good short story about just that scenario.
This man (named Hiram, I think) was living alone and had been psycologically evaluated by the goverment as a socially inactive type, so his television was kept on 24/7 to comply with some law designed to keep him mentally healhy. programming was also specified by the government (there was only one channel).
I won't give away the end, but it's worth a good read. It's in his Maps in a Mirror collection.
sean
I know I am reading slashdot when an article is titled "PDAs, PDAs" and there is absolutely no question that the conversation will be about LCD display pixels, not displays of affection.
:)
this place is cool
sean
Maybe you didn't hear him; the man said "there aren't any browsers that don't crash."
IE crashes. period. and when it does, it usually takes half your shell with it.
really, the way IE can blow away just about any windows machine makes me wonder if the whole thing isn't running in the kernel or something.
all hail MS
sean
as the fine demotivator goes:
"Failure--when your best just isn't good enough"
How do you see the relationship between jPython (the java implementation) and standard cPython (the original C language version) evolving? And do you see the advantages of either one (i.e. portability vs. speed) becoming especially pronounced in light of the recent trend toward distributed software (ala the MS
sean
unfortunately it's unlikely that this gift from heaven to PDA geeks will be commercially available any time soon as it still only has the status of a research project.
why would compaq sit on something this potentially cool? I mean, this isn't marketroid fluff and vaporware--the guy in the pictures is actually holding one. it's right there. how about someone sticks it in a box and sells it?
you could argue that they don't think there's enough of a market to make a device like this profitable, but if that's the case why spend money to develope it in the first place?
sean
I mean, I suppose this is kind of useful (to someone? maybe?). but when first read this I had to laugh. these people have far to much time on their hands.
and, what exactly does it mean for my air conditioner to send me error messages? the only useful one I can think of is "I've been unplugged" and that wouldn't exactly, umm, make it, would it?
ya ya, Ayn Rand
this is true, and it's something I think people often don't realize. it's impossible to "break the laws of physics" because they would govern the breaking itself.
it would be more accurate to say "they broke their laws of physics"
sean
>Old age and treachery almost always overcome youth and skill.
yes, but they die of old age shortly afterwards, which is just fine with the young and skillful
sean
according to the article, the materials posted "could include material such as lecture notes, course outlines, reading lists, and assignments for each course."
unless read creatively, this list does not include exams or homework. the (very laudable) goal of the project is to make freely available the content of a first rate education. Posting tests wouldn't contribute to this goal, and would probably compromise the classroom itself.
> The company intends to adapt the existing U.K. series for American audiences and will also produce a U.S. version.
does this mean I'm going to have to listen to Joe Nameth argue with Howie Long (or whatever the hell their names are) and make comments like "now what they really need to do to win the game is score some points"? maybe I'll pass.
seanI guess this sounds like a good thing, but I seriously mistrust corporations with this much power. I mean, they change the rules, but they can always change them back. And, as long as the powers that be have the word "corporation" in their name, capitalism dictates that their decisions will have more to do with profit margins than the continued, healthy growth of the internet.
seanoh yeah! let's make our point like intelligent, rational people by slashdotting the hell out of their servers! that'll let them know that we...wait, umm, we what?
and "Operation Slashdotted"? do you still play with GI Joes?
sean
> I guess some of us have to have our humor make sense...blech
well, some of us prefer our humor to be funny.
ua lava!
I've given up on slashdot for the day. The april fool's day posts are so far from funny it hurts. ugh.
sean
of course you realize that, at this point, depending what media you're transmiting this over, you can't fit anything more than headers into a packet. and maybe not even that.
sean
April FP