The Parents Television Council, one of several media watchdogs that have criticized Rockstar and the ESRB, called on the game publisher to recall the game and offer refunds.
"I tip my cap to that first step of showing responsibility," said Tim Winter, the council's executive director. "Phase two needs to be absolutely getting to the bottom of this coding issue. How did it get into that game? How did it get past the ratings board?"
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I just have to ask:
How did this game get into the hands of someone Younger than 17 to cause all this?????
How is it, that it is now an ADULTS only game when it consisted of Shooting, Pimping, Drug Trafficking, Carjacking....etc....???????????
Why do we refuse to ask these questions...rather than "How did the code get there anyways?"
These statements from persons who obviously never coded anything show pure ignorance. However, this ignorance is going to cost Game Companies, Publishers, Distributors a LOT of time and Money. All because rather than ask the Parents of children to do their Jobs, our government feels they have enact laws to "prevent" this stuff.
BORING?!? I don't consider watching the basic 'freedoms' being taken away 'Boring'. I consider it a very scary situation as I wonder what else they are going to be taking away. Maybe thats the whole problem....people cannot be bothered with anything NOT involving instant drama....in the Immortal words of one H. Simpson...."SHINY!"
/sarcasm Because I OWN the HotCoffee label...../Sarcasm
Seriously, how is it that in an M rated game that contains Cursing (to an amazing level I will say), Gang shootouts, carjacking, pimping, etc,... that this little blurb that was OBVIOUSLY a hack can cause this much controversy? Have these people NO lives? Is no one dying of vegatative states this week?
I own the game. I own ALL the GTA games. They are and HAVE been rated for ADULTS.
Why do people with a voice in the media feel they need to regulate WHAT I as a PRIVATE citizen do in my own home? Why aren't we after the parents that are too busy smoking Meth (I live in the Great NW Meth capital of the world), or the idiots that are planting bombs.....oh...I know....cause that is a DAILY event these days. Nudity in an M rated GAME is NEW!!! UGH.
Thei reminds me of a story I tell to illustrate how idiotic my "years in the valley" were. I was working for this "dot.com" and on a lunch break at the local Bagel shop (you know the one...in that little shopping mall in Redwood shores next to the Starbucks...)
I was just sitting down to enjoy my lunch when I overhear a conversation:
Guy1: So they store the Bookmarks ONLINE and can access them wherever they are. The VC's think its a go, and are willing to shell out the 4 mill to get it going!
Guy2: Can't you just export the bookmark links to a file and save them locally as an HTML page? Carry that one file with you and just maintain the updates locally? Why would anyone want to use this as a Service...much less Pay for access??
Guy1: Did you not hear me...? Its gonna be ONLINE!. People will flock to it for that reason alone. We should have the capital by the end of the week!
Did you not read the part where I said "I LOVE my Job"? What part of that statement makes you think I would want to leave it? The only sarcasm was....well, there was none. I afford MY WANTS. Because I can. I work the hours I do to afford it, and LOVE every minute of it. I appreciate the stress, the long hours....because when the time comes, I get to walk away and know that I worked for EVERYTHING I have. To include my savings, my investments, my properties.
My JOB is what it is. I know and ACCEPT it. I do the work also knowing that if I didn't, then someone else would get my check, and I wouldn't be DOING WHAT I LOVE TO DO. My hobby is code & gaming. If I weren't working, I would STILL be sitting here coding/gaming. Sure, I get out and appreciate the world....heck I watch TV also. Doesn't mean I don't appreciate what I have. Because....I NEED my job....because I WANT it.;-)
Projects ALWAYS have a Crunch time PM's never understand programmers. Programmers have to accomodate schedules, which doesn't always mean (never?) that code will be accomodating. Programmers get to work long hours with little or no reward.
Yet everyone wants my job.
Guaranteed that if I were to walk out today, I would be replaced by cheaper , less experience (but ENERGETIC) workers. And then how would I pay for my T1? My new MB? My 1GB Memory?
I am happy to have a good job, one that I like. Yes, I have worked 60+ hrs (and its Thursday Morning here) this week so far, but guess what? I am glad I am not having to work at Best Buy as a "Rent a Geek" nor some other inconsistent and underpaid job.
You don't like the hours, the slave driven mentality, the stress? Go FIND SOMETHING YOU LOVE TO DO Then and quit bitching about having to work too hard. Cause guess what? There are people IN LINE for the job you hate.
Normally, I try not to HAVE to upgrade. I maintain a stock of parts that just happen to fit inside a few boxes. I just currently overhauled 2 of the 3 servers I run at home, and added Wireless capability (and to quote another/. topic...plugged my PS/2 with GameShark Media Console into the Wireless to watch movies and play music in the front of the house).
Currently, I am trying to maintain a 64Bit environment for all my systems, and as the components reach a price point of $100.00 or less (per item) I buy what I can afford. HDD's have hit the sweet spot, with 200GB drives in my range, so I will be adding/upgrading my SATA collection. Video is another sore spot, as I like to play games and need a Decent card. The GeForce 5900 I have in my systems may not be the "Ultimate" but it was 4 times less than the top of the line. So it sits in all systems. Memory can be re-used in most cases, so that is only a factor when I require faster sticks. For the 64Bit upgrades, I bumped two systems up to 1GB (400) and was able to take the remainder (1.5GB 333) and use them in the slower system.
My general rule of thumb is to see if it plays on the current system, and if it is slow or choppy, I upgrade. That was the reason / justification for the RAID 0 arrays (video editing goes so much faster) and the 64Bit processors.
Overall, I treat my systems as a hobby (even though I use them to pay all my bills with the work I do). Hobbies can never be too much or too slick.
n early 2004, Forrester conducted in-depth discussions with 14 companies that had been running Linux platforms for longer than one year to see what the costs really were. Several key themes emerged:
* Few companies know what they're really spending. Only five of the 14 kept detailed metrics - and each of those five found Linux more expensive (5% to 20%) than their current Microsoft environments.
Basically, this is stating that regardless of the figures any company gives, they cannot and have not kept accurate records of the TCO for anything. This reason is moot at this point due to the inept accounting practices.
* Preparation and planning activities took 5% to 25% longer for Linux than Windows.
Linux has not been in the marketplace (Business) so naturally planning a move to A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT method is going to require more planning and better preparedness. In my experience, this turns into meetings and more meetings, without the ability to truly resolve anything. Naturally, when you decide to shift PLATFORMS to something like Linux from Windows, there SHOULD be more planning and careful consideration of the differing methodology. Ask these companies how long it took to implement a datastore, or a full blown Notes / Exchange server, and I am sure the amounts of time/personnel were similar. In this planning stage, a company would want to make sure that there will be several contingencies in place to handle unknown elements.
* Training for IT employees was significantly higher for Linux than for Windows - on average, 15% more expensive. The reasons: training materials were less readily available, and customers spent more on training to compensate for the lack of internal knowledge about Linux.
This just means that more people need to be trained in how to best utilize the new platform. Again, this would apply to any new SOFTWARE application...which could be why there are such issues with upgrades and new installs now. The company usually views training as a last effort and minimal cost is spent. "We can get 'Joe' trained and he can train others" which can usually lead to misinformation and bad training, especially if 'Joe' has some other job to go along with the new one of Instructor.
* All 14 companies said it was difficult finding qualified Linux personnel in the marketplace to support their Linux projects. When they did find third-party help, they had less leverage negotiating hourly rates than with Windows consulting resources.
See the above reply to #3. There needs to be more people in the field with the ability to actually DO the work. This issue then falls into the fact that the bottom line for any company these days is "How much are we spending" instead of "How productive are we going to be". The leverage they discuss is geared towards how cheap can we get this done. Without developers to play against each other (and whether they can outsource later...which to my knowledge they really cannot with Linux) the company ends up paying the "going rate" for a decent programmer. Tsk Tsk (sarcasm intended)
IMHO, it seems that companies polled were looking for INSTANT savings as opposed to overall TCO. Not taking into consideration the savings at the next version of Windows (Not needing to spend XXXXXX dollars on an upgrade platform). Nor taking into consideration the fact that if there IS a problem with the implementation that someone can FIX it then, and not have to call the MFR for a patch...or wait for a patch....or hope for a patch....
Just MS spewing forth as normal I guess. Sad to say, but it always falls to "How much do we save the shareholders this week" rather than "How much do we save Overall?"
It is only a test project in Keller TX. They expect a rollout to other areas after the completion of the test. Until then...it is still a BIG-PIPE dream.
They did say they will be sending out a notification and advertising campaign when it becomes available in other areas.
I will say that I was one of the hundreds of people Jason interviewed for this documentary. I look forward to seeing what he has compiled and released, even though I am "on the cutting room floor". Apparently my view was a bit to political and he could not get enough corroburating testimony to include it. My understanding of his process was to get all he could and then whittle it down to a decent amount of information. I am getting a copy because it reflects the History of where we were and what we have come from. Without the BBS systems, do you really think the technology we have today would be in place? Heck, I spent more for the parts and pieces to have a multi-line BBS than most people earn in a year. R&D of USR, Maxtor, and SONY should have a plaque with mine and few others names on it. In these days of the Internet and Instant information....grabbing a local connection to a local board was the only real way to get solid tech information...or to chat with friends.....or just hang out and download some really bad EGA pr0n.
What is the mix of OS? What servers are being run? What are the majority of Apps ? Windows or Unix or?
Single Sign On (dependent on the environment) can be as easy or as difficult as you and the environment make it. There are a ton of programs that ust block ALL access until sign in, and then they act as a 'proxy firewall' to the differing applications and processes based on a role or security priviledge attached to the account of the user. Most just pass the information in a Header of the requesting page. (ie. Username & Password). This would probably be the easiest method to implement with an LDAP implementation and either a PSP or Java based system. By passing the information of the user in the header, most programs were able to access and use the information without issue.
I just upgraded my gaming rig to an AMD 64 with an FX5700 256MB AGP card.
This, coming from an Athlon XP 2600 with a 5200 128MB AGP card, and I can say that it was worth the money for the performance of the card in combination with the Motherboard upgrade. The graphics have noticably improved, and I can run HIGH resolution mode in all games. However, this only involved game settings, and some minor changes. For the $99.00 I paid for the 5700, I find it to be well worth the price. When the 6x00 series hits the $99.00 mark, I will have to start looking at a replacement....but that won't be for another 6 - 12 months. I don't need Bleeding Edge performance. Not at 4 times the cost anyway.
But I don't see a COAX OUT connector. Man, if I could get a system that has a COAX out (along with the other 2) then I could actually find it usable. No TV in the hotels I have stayed in (other than maybe the Hilton) have a monitor with anything BUT a COAX.
I agree to what you have said....my point was lost in my own ranting I guess. There is no accountability in this industry. There is no support even when something HASN'T been modified.
With that said:
People don't modify their vehicles? Where do you live? I can say with utmost assurity that if I install an AFTERMARKET product in my vehicle( like a new radio)....I have just voided my warranty for the stereo and electrical components. That doesn't mean when something stops working, I cannot get support for it. It just means they disable (remove) the stereo and other aftermarket products before troubleshooting. I know, because it has happened.
As for your A,B,C,D items....If ONLY it was this way. MS charges for support prior to them MAKING the determination of error. If you go into a newsgroup or forum for support, and you ask an ignorant question (I claim FULL ignorance when asking a question....cause I wouldn't ASK if I already knew) you get assaulted by people who know more and HAVE to tell you how smart they are. Fine & Dandy, but just answer the question please.
If I buy a product (software) I CANNOT return it when it doesn';t work for ANY reason. cause I already opened it. Cause I broke the seal to read the agreement that was stuffed inside that says if you can read this, it is yours. Software companies only insure the MEDIA. Not the content. This is what I have issues with.
I managed a Computer Store for 3 years, and developed a reputation of being able to solve problems. This brought the customers in and kept them coming back, and telling friends that also came in. My business was selling parts, so I gave information away for free. This produced great sales and great rapport with the clients. Not for any reason other than the solutions were explained, the language was without accent(other than a Southern Drawl), and the recommended solutions WORKED. It increased sales because the clients understood that any problems would be resolved Fairly.
I left that position to work for a Software Company as the Technical Support Manager. This is when Problems became " Issues " and my team of techs also had to make Sales Calls, and after a time were instructed to SELL more than Fix. Time on the phone was rated, solutions were dropped down to quick fixes to get them off the line and get to the next person. Towards the end of my tenure a 900 help line was implemented, and the company went to EMAIL or 900 calls ONLY. They never understood why Technical Support costs them money, and couldn't MAKE money. No matter how many times I tried to explain that SUPPORT should be given freely, as the clients have already PAID for the product (At least for the version they bought). Soon it broke down to releases being rushed (almost a year before they were even ready) because the stock holders wanted to cash out. The Product and the company later went under, in part due to the Internet boom ("Everything on the Net Should be FREE!!") and partially due to no support being given to ANY product without a signed and paid contract.
Technical Support taught me more about human nature than I cared to know. It also taught me that when someone BUYS something, they should be able to call the manufacturer and get support when the product fails. These days it seems that it is easier and cheaper to just replace the product (meaning spending money for a replacement) Rather than fight through the Technical Support nightmare (Language barriers DO affect SALES. ) or the non-solutions provided because the person on the other end of the phone has no clue what it is you are talking about.
When I buy a car or a major appliance, and there is a recall or a problem, I take it back to the dealer where I purchased it to get it repaired. If I have a question on how something on that vehicle or appliance I call that same dealer. They sold it, they shoudl REPRESENT it, at least if they want me to buy from them again. I consider any purchase over $100 a MAJOR purchase. I shouldn't have to go through a translator to get an issue resolved. I shouldn't be talking to Hamir in India when I bought the product downtown at Sears or Best Buy. I should and EXPECT to get the problem solved ASAP rather than say "Oh, thats just how it works, and I have to live with it".
Computers are the ONLY industry where being treated properly (sure, its because of my ignorance I am asking a QUESTION) and with respect to being a CUSTOMER is not required. It has been this way for Years and is only getting worse. Companies in the Industry don't feel they OWE the customer anything, because we have become a Nation/World of consumers. THX1138 anyone? Its turned into a "Brave New World".
I run into other programmers that all want to be able to say "Yes, I program in JAVA" and will do so at the drop of a hat. When asked what they have built, it usually turns up to be a JavaScript page, or DHTML system. Not JAVA. I have worked with JSP, and find it to be easier to say "Oh, its coded in JSP/JAVA" than to try to explain to the client what was actually used to build the system. JAVA is a good 'buzzword' that unknowing persons understand, so it gets thrown around a lot for ease of use. I have built C/S apps using JAVA and found that there are other more effective ways to accomplish the same goal.
My notebook backpack is one I got at the first SUN JavaONE conference. It starts more conversations than I care to admit to because people don't know what JAVA actually is and confuse it with the 'end all beat all' way to build apps. Hell, in previous experiences, JAVA was how the project started, but was abandon due to the fact that it was 'TOO BIG' a solution to a complex program requirement. CGI/XML/JSP worked better and faster to develop.
You missed point entirely. You say "I" when it was hypothetical anyhow. And then try to conform me down to some Pr0n driven idiot? If you read the post, and the essay it was based on...this guy is saying HD will prevent piracy and we can eliminate the DVD medium by using Hard Drives. Hard Drives are not convenient....and there is a modicum of error involved in the n00b setting it up...all so that he can watch a movie that has colors and lines they cannot even interpret. The MASS public likes it cheap, quick, and CONVENIENT....To say people would sacrifice quality over convenience indicates to me that you have NO idea of what it is you were even replying to. Convenience will always outweigh quality...just look at the 7-11 Franchise.....ot even MS Windows.
Do you know what READING is? And how far it is away from UNDERSTANDING what you have read?
No Clue. The fact that the content is HD quality means nothing to the guy who is downloading movies to watch on his PC (or even burn to disc and watch it on his/her Big Screen 65" Plasma TV). The guy doing the downloading wants to watch the MOVIE. Quality is second or third in priority.
Lets say, I hypothetically download a movie to watch, and it takes all day to download this movie. It is made from someone sitting in a theater and filming it with Digital Camera in hand....but it was released the same day I am downloading it. Am I going to complain "Damn, the quality of this is poor....and I can hear whomever crunching popcorn in the background....and why is everyone laughing so loud at the screen?" OR am I going to happily watch a new release in the comfort of my PC chair / Home theater system and say "Wow, good movie...have to buy the DVD in 6 months when it gets released" or maybe "Boy...glad I did not waste money on that BOMB".
If I am going to take the time to download a movie (which in this day and age I can start the d/l and do something else for XX:XX time while it downloads) I am going to be savvy enough to realize compression was used....that its not the same experience as going into a theater, and the quality could be really bad...but at least I won't have to shell out $9.00, fight with the crowds of people, pay exhorbitant prices for popcorn just to watch a movie, AND I can take it wherever I go and watch it whenever I want to. I would be smart enough to realize the trade-off for convenience is compression (Which can result in GOOD quality and bad quality) and use, rather than worry about how the HiDef quality is degraded (hell, I would be watching it on a notebook, home PC, or maybe even a Big Screen if I wanted to burn a disc) and how big the file size is.
Compression has come a long way, and will continue to be used because IT WORKS 'good enough" for 90% of the population. Especially if the choice is Pay for real or D/L for FREE.
Heck, he used compression to copy movies to his Flash Drive and enjoyed it so much it sparked this whole essay and erroneous conclusion. Convenience will win over Quality. It has so far....and there are too many examples to site....
No...they recommended I take off my shoes. When I got in the terminal earlier that day, my shoes were fine. Still are. I asked if I HAD to take them off, to which a normal response would have been "it might be better if you did" or maybe even "Yes, take them off"...the response I received was " No, you don't HAVE to..."
They made me remove them after NOT setting off any alarm, and then searching my bag came across my ZIPPO lighter. Regardless of the ten different gadgets, they pluck out this ZIPPO and tear it apart. Yes, they found lighter fluid. Yes, they found a flint.
Hey guess what....They found a pack of Marlboros also. Imagine that. Terrorists or Smoker? YOU Decide!:-)
I regularly go through the airport 2-4 times a week on business. I am the average male caucasian, with a backpack (w/Notebook) wearing sneakers (No metal in these babies) jeans, and a cotton shirt. I have gotten checked going into the terminal for shoes ("We recommend that you remove your shoes..." Do I HAVE to take them off? "No...but we recommend you do" I leave them on and get searched.) For the bag ( what kind of work do you do?...Uh,, I work with computers?) and several other items (Hint..One way ticket means extra line time). However, I am also one of those people who smokes cigarettes. Most airports dont have a smoking section nor even a place in the terminal to think about smoking. You ave to go OUTSIDE. Meaning, when (not if....flights are ALWAYS delayed ) the flight is delayed, and I have time to go smoke, I do. I have spent over 6 hours at a time in the same airports. Each time, I exit, smoke, and walk back through security. I see the same people I saw an hour before. After the 3rd or fourth time, they actually get to know me. Asking 'Why do you keep coming through the line?" and I just hold up a cigarette pack. Each time, it is the same process. Same person usually. Yet, I dont complain about the fact they do it each time. I think I would complain if they didn't. Do I think them searching everyone going through makes one bit of difference as to whether or not terrorists will do it again? No. I don't.
hell, I had more trouble explaining my ZIPPO lighter than I did all the other electronic stuff I carry.
Your shell company doesn't do what mine does and takes HALF of the contract amount (total is $65....they get HALF to have me work where I do) you should be fine
I know I am not the only one in this boat that doesn't get any of the benefits of a contract yet supports this company just so I can pay my bills. It sucks, as they make as much as I do just because I show up to work.
We have a lot of these inventions and predictions in use today. Sure, maybe not how they were invisioned in the past, but they were just guessing. What we have in use today is practical and functional
Who would have thought 30 years ago that we would be able to communicate en masse via a teletype machine and convey a message not only across distance but also time?. Who would have thought we could cook food in under a minute, or that we could record TV shows WHILE simultaneously watching another show? Or that we would have the signal beamed down from an orbiting satellite to our homes and offices? Or that we could store 6 hours of music on one little shiny plastic disc?
the jetpacks and the rocket cars made for good water cooler talk around the office, but none were too practical in everyday life.
The past should be impressed with our future....provided we live long enough to have one....
Excluding those items and the impact of expense stock options, SBC said earnings fell to 62 cents a share from 64 cents a share. The latest results matched analysts' expectations, according to a survey by Thomson First Call.
Revenue fell to $11.22 billion from $11.9 billion.
Darn...they lost.68 BILLION....so why not sue for a patent that is an OBVIOUS one and also one that everyone uses NOW. More Money.....
Slashdot Mirror
The Parents Television Council, one of several media watchdogs that have criticized Rockstar and the ESRB, called on the game publisher to recall the game and offer refunds.
"I tip my cap to that first step of showing responsibility," said Tim Winter, the council's executive director. "Phase two needs to be absolutely getting to the bottom of this coding issue. How did it get into that game? How did it get past the ratings board?"
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I just have to ask:
How did this game get into the hands of someone Younger than 17 to cause all this?????
How is it, that it is now an ADULTS only game when it consisted of Shooting, Pimping, Drug Trafficking, Carjacking....etc....???????????
Why do we refuse to ask these questions...rather than "How did the code get there anyways?"
These statements from persons who obviously never coded anything show pure ignorance. However, this ignorance is going to cost Game Companies, Publishers, Distributors a LOT of time and Money. All because rather than ask the Parents of children to do their Jobs, our government feels they have enact laws to "prevent" this stuff.
BORING?!? I don't consider watching the basic 'freedoms' being taken away 'Boring'. I consider it a very scary situation as I wonder what else they are going to be taking away. Maybe thats the whole problem....people cannot be bothered with anything NOT involving instant drama....in the Immortal words of one H. Simpson...."SHINY!"Have we become a Nation of Homers?
Seriously, how is it that in an M rated game that contains Cursing (to an amazing level I will say), Gang shootouts, carjacking, pimping, etc,... that this little blurb that was OBVIOUSLY a hack can cause this much controversy? Have these people NO lives? Is no one dying of vegatative states this week?
I own the game. I own ALL the GTA games. They are and HAVE been rated for ADULTS.
Why do people with a voice in the media feel they need to regulate WHAT I as a PRIVATE citizen do in my own home? Why aren't we after the parents that are too busy smoking Meth (I live in the Great NW Meth capital of the world), or the idiots that are planting bombs.....oh...I know....cause that is a DAILY event these days. Nudity in an M rated GAME is NEW!!! UGH.Price is based on several factors, one being PROFIT.
Programmers and developers charge for their time.
The question to ask should be:
"How much do I, as a consumer, feel I should pay these people to build me what I want for my entertainment or career future"
Trouble is....the question asked dealing with time is: "How long will this take to download on a T1?"
Thei reminds me of a story I tell to illustrate how idiotic my "years in the valley" were. I was working for this "dot.com" and on a lunch break at the local Bagel shop (you know the one...in that little shopping mall in Redwood shores next to the Starbucks...)
I was just sitting down to enjoy my lunch when I overhear a conversation:
Guy1: So they store the Bookmarks ONLINE and can access them wherever they are. The VC's think its a go, and are willing to shell out the 4 mill to get it going!
Guy2: Can't you just export the bookmark links to a file and save them locally as an HTML page? Carry that one file with you and just maintain the updates locally? Why would anyone want to use this as a Service...much less Pay for access??
Guy1: Did you not hear me...? Its gonna be ONLINE!. People will flock to it for that reason alone. We should have the capital by the end of the week!
Guy2: Still sounds like a stupid idea to me....
Just though I would share... ;-)
Did you not read the part where I said "I LOVE my Job"? What part of that statement makes you think I would want to leave it? The only sarcasm was....well, there was none. I afford MY WANTS. Because I can. I work the hours I do to afford it, and LOVE every minute of it. I appreciate the stress, the long hours....because when the time comes, I get to walk away and know that I worked for EVERYTHING I have. To include my savings, my investments, my properties. My JOB is what it is. I know and ACCEPT it. I do the work also knowing that if I didn't, then someone else would get my check, and I wouldn't be DOING WHAT I LOVE TO DO. My hobby is code & gaming. If I weren't working, I would STILL be sitting here coding/gaming. Sure, I get out and appreciate the world....heck I watch TV also. Doesn't mean I don't appreciate what I have. Because ....I NEED my job....because I WANT it. ;-)
Projects ALWAYS have a Crunch time PM's never understand programmers. Programmers have to accomodate schedules, which doesn't always mean (never?) that code will be accomodating. Programmers get to work long hours with little or no reward.
Yet everyone wants my job.
Guaranteed that if I were to walk out today, I would be replaced by cheaper , less experience (but ENERGETIC) workers. And then how would I pay for my T1? My new MB? My 1GB Memory?
I am happy to have a good job, one that I like. Yes, I have worked 60+ hrs (and its Thursday Morning here) this week so far, but guess what? I am glad I am not having to work at Best Buy as a "Rent a Geek" nor some other inconsistent and underpaid job.
You don't like the hours, the slave driven mentality, the stress? Go FIND SOMETHING YOU LOVE TO DO Then and quit bitching about having to work too hard. Cause guess what? There are people IN LINE for the job you hate.
First Door on the left......One Cross Each.
Normally, I try not to HAVE to upgrade. I maintain a stock of parts that just happen to fit inside a few boxes. I just currently overhauled 2 of the 3 servers I run at home, and added Wireless capability (and to quote another /. topic...plugged my PS/2 with GameShark Media Console into the Wireless to watch movies and play music in the front of the house).
Currently, I am trying to maintain a 64Bit environment for all my systems, and as the components reach a price point of $100.00 or less (per item) I buy what I can afford. HDD's have hit the sweet spot, with 200GB drives in my range, so I will be adding/upgrading my SATA collection. Video is another sore spot, as I like to play games and need a Decent card. The GeForce 5900 I have in my systems may not be the "Ultimate" but it was 4 times less than the top of the line. So it sits in all systems. Memory can be re-used in most cases, so that is only a factor when I require faster sticks. For the 64Bit upgrades, I bumped two systems up to 1GB (400) and was able to take the remainder (1.5GB 333) and use them in the slower system.
My general rule of thumb is to see if it plays on the current system, and if it is slow or choppy, I upgrade. That was the reason / justification for the RAID 0 arrays (video editing goes so much faster) and the 64Bit processors.
Overall, I treat my systems as a hobby (even though I use them to pay all my bills with the work I do). Hobbies can never be too much or too slick.To quote briefly from the points made:
n early 2004, Forrester conducted in-depth discussions with 14 companies that had been running Linux platforms for longer than one year to see what the costs really were. Several key themes emerged:
* Few companies know what they're really spending. Only five of the 14 kept detailed metrics - and each of those five found Linux more expensive (5% to 20%) than their current Microsoft environments.
Basically, this is stating that regardless of the figures any company gives, they cannot and have not kept accurate records of the TCO for anything. This reason is moot at this point due to the inept accounting practices.
* Preparation and planning activities took 5% to 25% longer for Linux than Windows.
Linux has not been in the marketplace (Business) so naturally planning a move to A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT method is going to require more planning and better preparedness. In my experience, this turns into meetings and more meetings, without the ability to truly resolve anything. Naturally, when you decide to shift PLATFORMS to something like Linux from Windows, there SHOULD be more planning and careful consideration of the differing methodology. Ask these companies how long it took to implement a datastore, or a full blown Notes / Exchange server, and I am sure the amounts of time/personnel were similar. In this planning stage, a company would want to make sure that there will be several contingencies in place to handle unknown elements.
* Training for IT employees was significantly higher for Linux than for Windows - on average, 15% more expensive. The reasons: training materials were less readily available, and customers spent more on training to compensate for the lack of internal knowledge about Linux.
This just means that more people need to be trained in how to best utilize the new platform. Again, this would apply to any new SOFTWARE application...which could be why there are such issues with upgrades and new installs now. The company usually views training as a last effort and minimal cost is spent. "We can get 'Joe' trained and he can train others" which can usually lead to misinformation and bad training, especially if 'Joe' has some other job to go along with the new one of Instructor.
* All 14 companies said it was difficult finding qualified Linux personnel in the marketplace to support their Linux projects. When they did find third-party help, they had less leverage negotiating hourly rates than with Windows consulting resources.
See the above reply to #3. There needs to be more people in the field with the ability to actually DO the work. This issue then falls into the fact that the bottom line for any company these days is "How much are we spending" instead of "How productive are we going to be". The leverage they discuss is geared towards how cheap can we get this done. Without developers to play against each other (and whether they can outsource later...which to my knowledge they really cannot with Linux) the company ends up paying the "going rate" for a decent programmer. Tsk Tsk (sarcasm intended)
IMHO, it seems that companies polled were looking for INSTANT savings as opposed to overall TCO. Not taking into consideration the savings at the next version of Windows (Not needing to spend XXXXXX dollars on an upgrade platform). Nor taking into consideration the fact that if there IS a problem with the implementation that someone can FIX it then, and not have to call the MFR for a patch...or wait for a patch....or hope for a patch....
Just MS spewing forth as normal I guess. Sad to say, but it always falls to "How much do we save the shareholders this week" rather than "How much do we save Overall?"It is only a test project in Keller TX. They expect a rollout to other areas after the completion of the test. Until then...it is still a BIG-PIPE dream. They did say they will be sending out a notification and advertising campaign when it becomes available in other areas.
Excalibur? There were a few others, but this one was Windows-Centric.
I will say that I was one of the hundreds of people Jason interviewed for this documentary. I look forward to seeing what he has compiled and released, even though I am "on the cutting room floor". Apparently my view was a bit to political and he could not get enough corroburating testimony to include it. My understanding of his process was to get all he could and then whittle it down to a decent amount of information. I am getting a copy because it reflects the History of where we were and what we have come from. Without the BBS systems, do you really think the technology we have today would be in place? Heck, I spent more for the parts and pieces to have a multi-line BBS than most people earn in a year. R&D of USR, Maxtor, and SONY should have a plaque with mine and few others names on it. In these days of the Internet and Instant information....grabbing a local connection to a local board was the only real way to get solid tech information...or to chat with friends.....or just hang out and download some really bad EGA pr0n.
Get them while they are hot
Single Sign On (dependent on the environment) can be as easy or as difficult as you and the environment make it. There are a ton of programs that ust block ALL access until sign in, and then they act as a 'proxy firewall' to the differing applications and processes based on a role or security priviledge attached to the account of the user. Most just pass the information in a Header of the requesting page. (ie. Username & Password). This would probably be the easiest method to implement with an LDAP implementation and either a PSP or Java based system. By passing the information of the user in the header, most programs were able to access and use the information without issue.
I just upgraded my gaming rig to an AMD 64 with an FX5700 256MB AGP card. This, coming from an Athlon XP 2600 with a 5200 128MB AGP card, and I can say that it was worth the money for the performance of the card in combination with the Motherboard upgrade. The graphics have noticably improved, and I can run HIGH resolution mode in all games. However, this only involved game settings, and some minor changes. For the $99.00 I paid for the 5700, I find it to be well worth the price. When the 6x00 series hits the $99.00 mark, I will have to start looking at a replacement....but that won't be for another 6 - 12 months. I don't need Bleeding Edge performance. Not at 4 times the cost anyway.
But I don't see a COAX OUT connector. Man, if I could get a system that has a COAX out (along with the other 2) then I could actually find it usable. No TV in the hotels I have stayed in (other than maybe the Hilton) have a monitor with anything BUT a COAX.
As for your A,B,C,D items....If ONLY it was this way. MS charges for support prior to them MAKING the determination of error. If you go into a newsgroup or forum for support, and you ask an ignorant question (I claim FULL ignorance when asking a question....cause I wouldn't ASK if I already knew) you get assaulted by people who know more and HAVE to tell you how smart they are. Fine & Dandy, but just answer the question please.
If I buy a product (software) I CANNOT return it when it doesn';t work for ANY reason. cause I already opened it. Cause I broke the seal to read the agreement that was stuffed inside that says if you can read this, it is yours. Software companies only insure the MEDIA. Not the content. This is what I have issues with.
I managed a Computer Store for 3 years, and developed a reputation of being able to solve problems. This brought the customers in and kept them coming back, and telling friends that also came in. My business was selling parts, so I gave information away for free. This produced great sales and great rapport with the clients. Not for any reason other than the solutions were explained, the language was without accent(other than a Southern Drawl), and the recommended solutions WORKED. It increased sales because the clients understood that any problems would be resolved Fairly.
I left that position to work for a Software Company as the Technical Support Manager. This is when Problems became " Issues " and my team of techs also had to make Sales Calls, and after a time were instructed to SELL more than Fix. Time on the phone was rated, solutions were dropped down to quick fixes to get them off the line and get to the next person. Towards the end of my tenure a 900 help line was implemented, and the company went to EMAIL or 900 calls ONLY. They never understood why Technical Support costs them money, and couldn't MAKE money. No matter how many times I tried to explain that SUPPORT should be given freely, as the clients have already PAID for the product (At least for the version they bought). Soon it broke down to releases being rushed (almost a year before they were even ready) because the stock holders wanted to cash out. The Product and the company later went under, in part due to the Internet boom ("Everything on the Net Should be FREE!!") and partially due to no support being given to ANY product without a signed and paid contract.
Technical Support taught me more about human nature than I cared to know. It also taught me that when someone BUYS something, they should be able to call the manufacturer and get support when the product fails. These days it seems that it is easier and cheaper to just replace the product (meaning spending money for a replacement) Rather than fight through the Technical Support nightmare (Language barriers DO affect SALES. ) or the non-solutions provided because the person on the other end of the phone has no clue what it is you are talking about.
When I buy a car or a major appliance, and there is a recall or a problem, I take it back to the dealer where I purchased it to get it repaired. If I have a question on how something on that vehicle or appliance I call that same dealer. They sold it, they shoudl REPRESENT it, at least if they want me to buy from them again. I consider any purchase over $100 a MAJOR purchase. I shouldn't have to go through a translator to get an issue resolved. I shouldn't be talking to Hamir in India when I bought the product downtown at Sears or Best Buy. I should and EXPECT to get the problem solved ASAP rather than say "Oh, thats just how it works, and I have to live with it".
Computers are the ONLY industry where being treated properly (sure, its because of my ignorance I am asking a QUESTION) and with respect to being a CUSTOMER is not required. It has been this way for Years and is only getting worse. Companies in the Industry don't feel they OWE the customer anything, because we have become a Nation/World of consumers. THX1138 anyone? Its turned into a "Brave New World".
My notebook backpack is one I got at the first SUN JavaONE conference. It starts more conversations than I care to admit to because people don't know what JAVA actually is and confuse it with the 'end all beat all' way to build apps. Hell, in previous experiences, JAVA was how the project started, but was abandon due to the fact that it was 'TOO BIG' a solution to a complex program requirement. CGI/XML/JSP worked better and faster to develop.
Do you know what READING is? And how far it is away from UNDERSTANDING what you have read?
Lets say, I hypothetically download a movie to watch, and it takes all day to download this movie. It is made from someone sitting in a theater and filming it with Digital Camera in hand....but it was released the same day I am downloading it. Am I going to complain "Damn, the quality of this is poor....and I can hear whomever crunching popcorn in the background....and why is everyone laughing so loud at the screen?" OR am I going to happily watch a new release in the comfort of my PC chair / Home theater system and say "Wow, good movie...have to buy the DVD in 6 months when it gets released" or maybe "Boy...glad I did not waste money on that BOMB".
If I am going to take the time to download a movie (which in this day and age I can start the d/l and do something else for XX:XX time while it downloads) I am going to be savvy enough to realize compression was used....that its not the same experience as going into a theater, and the quality could be really bad...but at least I won't have to shell out $9.00, fight with the crowds of people, pay exhorbitant prices for popcorn just to watch a movie, AND I can take it wherever I go and watch it whenever I want to. I would be smart enough to realize the trade-off for convenience is compression (Which can result in GOOD quality and bad quality) and use, rather than worry about how the HiDef quality is degraded (hell, I would be watching it on a notebook, home PC, or maybe even a Big Screen if I wanted to burn a disc) and how big the file size is.
Compression has come a long way, and will continue to be used because IT WORKS 'good enough" for 90% of the population. Especially if the choice is Pay for real or D/L for FREE.
Heck, he used compression to copy movies to his Flash Drive and enjoyed it so much it sparked this whole essay and erroneous conclusion. Convenience will win over Quality. It has so far....and there are too many examples to site....They made me remove them after NOT setting off any alarm, and then searching my bag came across my ZIPPO lighter. Regardless of the ten different gadgets, they pluck out this ZIPPO and tear it apart. Yes, they found lighter fluid. Yes, they found a flint.
Hey guess what....They found a pack of Marlboros also. Imagine that. Terrorists or Smoker? YOU Decide!hell, I had more trouble explaining my ZIPPO lighter than I did all the other electronic stuff I carry.
Your shell company doesn't do what mine does and takes HALF of the contract amount (total is $65....they get HALF to have me work where I do) you should be fine
I know I am not the only one in this boat that doesn't get any of the benefits of a contract yet supports this company just so I can pay my bills. It sucks, as they make as much as I do just because I show up to work.
We have a lot of these inventions and predictions in use today. Sure, maybe not how they were invisioned in the past, but they were just guessing. What we have in use today is practical and functional
Who would have thought 30 years ago that we would be able to communicate en masse via a teletype machine and convey a message not only across distance but also time?. Who would have thought we could cook food in under a minute, or that we could record TV shows WHILE simultaneously watching another show? Or that we would have the signal beamed down from an orbiting satellite to our homes and offices? Or that we could store 6 hours of music on one little shiny plastic disc?
the jetpacks and the rocket cars made for good water cooler talk around the office, but none were too practical in everyday life.The past should be impressed with our future....provided we live long enough to have one....
Excluding those items and the impact of expense stock options, SBC said earnings fell to 62 cents a share from 64 cents a share. The latest results matched analysts' expectations, according to a survey by Thomson First Call. Revenue fell to $11.22 billion from $11.9 billion.
Darn...they lostHMM....
Step 1: Steal Underpants
Step 2: SUE!
Step 3: PROFIT!!