Real-Time Cross Platform Video Processing
on
Forget Moore's Law?
·
· Score: 2, Interesting
I am currently doing real-time video processing for a digital musical instrument (video tracking of a performer). The video is processed on a PC with mediocre specifications and the audio is processed via OSC on a decent G4 on the other side of the room.
Could I use a faster computer to do this? Yeah I suppose so, but really speed and bit size don't matter much. Hell, I don't get true 24 bit audio using a 24 bit card. What I need is quieter, STABLE machines that communicate with each other quickly. I need hard disks that do not crash (already lost one on a brand new G4), I need gigabit that is really gigabit, and a slew of other practicle things. None of them involve a faster processor or 32 more bits.
Computers will get faster yes, but really the MHz battle is over in my mind. I need all the other technology to become more stable and the less glamourous bottle necks to be overcome.
On a completely unrelated note... Young, talented musician (piano), working on a master's in music tech, with degrees in music and computer science needs a job:)
A company made boxes designed to be cheap beowolf components. You could get very cheap, very cool boxes, running in a small space, and have only the min essenetials for clustering.
Could be really useful for research with limited initial funding.
This came up in a conversation I had with a librarian today...
I think that information is the most powerful weapon on earth. The internet is therefore extremly important, and anyone who would control the flow of information is extremely dangerous.
If you really think about it, Sadam isn't likely to churn out a bunch of nuclear war heads. Its not practicle. He'll get nuked too. With that out of the way, you can consider most military moves these days to be more like chess. It is not so much about who will be destroyed, but rather who has the potential for an attack. The potential reality is much more powerful than an attacking reality.
What we need to really fear are the forces that would control information. I think that the people who can ban internet in China, or regulate an ISP are more dangerous than all of your nuclear war heads and biowarefare combined.
Unfortunatly, slashdotters like to call these people congressman, and politians, but the freedom of the internet burdens on its users, and the people who create it.
I know lots of people who read both free and e-books.. but that's not why I haven't taken it on, and why I believe the market hasn't taken off either. Reading a book on the computer screen is the pits. Lots of technology has been promised to fix this, but where are the commercial products?
I glad to see free books are doing well, but I'm not going to read one.
I want to see all 3 LotR with short potty breaks inbetween.
Programming is music, not art.
on
Hacker Survey
·
· Score: 3
Firstly, I am a classical pianist, who dabbles in composition and studio production, and I was a computer science major.
It is extremly dangerous for programmers to consider what they do "an art". Programmers who use this reasoning generally consider themselves to be kin to painters. Only they can produce the image in the proper way (which is never true). Avoid this thinking! Programming *is* a creative process but it is much more like chamber music than it is painting.
In chamber music, musicians work together following a set of rules and guidelines to create music. They deviate slightly from the path, expressing their creativity, but not so much that they hinder other musicians from playing along. Their unique talent *contributes* to the complete music experience. Good creative ideas never hinder the ensemble. Programmers who consider what they do to be "art" tend to think nobody else is capable of altering their code, or contributing to it. Well some programming "divas" may succeed at the task, but in most projects this attitude won't stand. Besides at some level you are working with other people, even if it seems your not. Someone else wrote the compiler your using, and there is no doubt at some point you are refering to their work.
Learning to work as a programming group or community is key to success as a programmer. Programmers HATE classes where they have to work together because they suffer from bad coaches. I think much of this is due to the coaches being reformed divas.
Oh well i'm rambling and probably not making my point.
Americans are cheap bastards. I know I'm one of them.
We'd all buy a digital TV if it were cheaper. In my apartment with my roommates we had one tv, it was like 13 inches. We don't care about "digital cable" or HDTV because we can't even afford *basic* cable. Plus lots of people are already invested in their giganto projection TVs already.
Rob
P.S. I would be glad to take your gignato projection tv so that you can buy a digital.:)
As tempting as it is to say "its for the children", software piracy is not really in theirs or anyone's best interest. I see the reasoning for piracy in schools; students trained in the latest/greatest software will have an advantage over those who don't. I've known several people to even pay for their college education by working as programmers/temps/etc. But by pirating what you are really doing is keeping software costs high, and possibly limiting competition.
Part of the reason we like Linux is because of its low cost. If Windows were free, however, Linux's use might wavier. Schools will immediately use the most famous choice, ignoring competition if things are free. School heads are idiots; don't expect anything from them other than the bottom line.
I think the best solution is to have government or local contributions to pay for reasonably priced software. A competitive software company will price their software reasonably if they have a large school base to purchase their software.
Really the temptation for piracy only exists because software/music/videos are not priced so that normal profit can occur. All these markets are in excess, but I think because of the danger of losing it all to piracy, smart companies will soon price things more reasonably.
I will gladly pay $20 for my operating system. I will dance with glee to spend $50 on Photoshop. I am willing to pay for software, and my community's software if priced to compete. Don't take competition out of the equation.
Part of the reason Y2K happened nearly hitchless was due to the fact that so much hype was involved. By declaring "the sky is falling" they are preventing a problem through means of hype. However, this man is a microsoft ex-employee and I'll be quick to point out that most viruses and worms are not "computer" viruses specifically but *windows* viruses. By making a fuss he is trying to protect his "alma mater" as it were.
It looks like some big goverment, "I pat your back, you pat mine" business.
Bots have been in the making for years, but from what I've seen I found the mock "human interaction" to be more a gimic than a useful tool. In what ways do you see bots being most useful in the immediate future?
I got a piece of snall mail telling me to renew my domain name. It had all my info, but it was from Verisign... I don't use Verisign. I was not very pleased..
One thing I know from working with kids is that they love to fight (or atleast play fight). Computer fighting seems pretty cool and harmless to kids (even if it takes out your business server out, a kid would not naturally assume this is a problem). Being alittle more computer savvy than your friends means that you win the fight, and are thus cooler/more manly than your friend.
Well Linux is considered more l33t than Windows, and its getting extremly easy to use. Kids will think they are VERY computer savvy by installing Linux, and a computer genius for using someone elses program to do a simple attack. Once one kid gets Linux installed they will install Linux on their friends machines. Since Linux is free, there are no barriers to entry, and it will spread rapidly the easier it gets to use.
So all I can say is, I plead you Slashdot Community. Make your GUI's impossible to use, create lots of undocumented features, have your programs be buggy unless your users are using the most difficult to use distribution of Linux.
I mean really, won't someone please think about the children?! Rob
They are a gazillion-dollar business
on
High Score
·
· Score: 3, Funny
I've read probably 50 or so of your books, but I hadn't read one since highschool over 4 years ago. I recently purchased the book DoOon Mode and finished it. As usual, your writing style is excellent, but reading as a more mature reader, I found the content questionable. The book's heroin is a teenage girl with some very serious psychological problems and provides "instant fix" cures and glosses over some very muture topics like multiple partners and rape. A lot of my highschool friends who read your books were girls in this age group. I'm not questioning your own morals, but with subject matter this intense did you consult professionals or worry about the impact on some of your target audience?
She's narcoleptic and after the second time she drove her car into a ditch she finally got tested and they put her on Provigil.
This drug has literally been a life saver! (for everyone else on the road).
It is really a nice drug with a low occurance of side effects. Its not like she is suddenly restless, but rather she doesn't fall asleep so unexpectedly.
The only negative things she has to say about it is that because it is metabolized by the liver, you really shouldn't drink alcohol while on it. This is kinda a bummer at parties.
Well to show my age, I was born in 1980. I had two electronics kits, out of which I built a radio that could pick up WGN and a buzzing thing. Electronics, however, never really caught my eye because in 1982 I had my own TI 99 which cassette player storage and cartridge games. It was far more fascinating then building a radio or buzzing thing, and it did a lot more.
By the time college came around, I considered EE but computer science had already made a larger impact. In college I've tinkered some with electronics. I helped fix a nintendo, a stereo and a light with an EE friend, but I was not convinced to change majors. The reason? Because as fun as it was to fix the nintendo, buying a new one is $30 and as fun as it is to do low level circutry for 2 days, its much more rewarding to have a complete working program in an hour.
Electronics is complicated, expensive and time consuming you just can't do it anymore without a degree. The majority of people who would be attracted to Electronics in the "old days" find Computer work much more accessible.
Lastly, you should all know my kids will learn basic electronics. I might not be into so much, but the hobbist still has some opportunity, although slim.
Slashdot Mirror
I am currently doing real-time video processing for a digital musical instrument (video tracking of a performer). The video is processed on a PC with mediocre specifications and the audio is processed via OSC on a decent G4 on the other side of the room.
Could I use a faster computer to do this? Yeah I suppose so, but really speed and bit size don't matter much. Hell, I don't get true 24 bit audio using a 24 bit card. What I need is quieter, STABLE machines that communicate with each other quickly. I need hard disks that do not crash (already lost one on a brand new G4), I need gigabit that is really gigabit, and a slew of other practicle things. None of them involve a faster processor or 32 more bits.
Computers will get faster yes, but really the MHz battle is over in my mind. I need all the other technology to become more stable and the less glamourous bottle necks to be overcome.
Soon!
-Rob
Some of the most exciting new interfaces come from music.
New interfaces in Musical Expression will be in Montreal this year.
Check it out at http://www.nime.org
Rob
Nope.. Montreal QC. Did undergrad in the states
The music is the most important part!
:)
On a completely unrelated note... Young, talented musician (piano), working on a master's in music tech, with degrees in music and computer science needs a job
A company made boxes designed to be cheap beowolf components. You could get very cheap, very cool boxes, running in a small space, and have only the min essenetials for clustering.
Could be really useful for research with limited initial funding.
-Rob
This has got to be a joke...
This came up in a conversation I had with a librarian today...
I think that information is the most powerful weapon on earth. The internet is therefore extremly important, and anyone who would control the flow of information is extremely dangerous.
If you really think about it, Sadam isn't likely to churn out a bunch of nuclear war heads. Its not practicle. He'll get nuked too. With that out of the way, you can consider most military moves these days to be more like chess. It is not so much about who will be destroyed, but rather who has the potential for an attack. The potential reality is much more powerful than an attacking reality.
What we need to really fear are the forces that would control information. I think that the people who can ban internet in China, or regulate an ISP are more dangerous than all of your nuclear war heads and biowarefare combined.
Unfortunatly, slashdotters like to call these people congressman, and politians, but the freedom of the internet burdens on its users, and the people who create it.
Rob
I know lots of people who read both free and e-books.. but that's not why I haven't taken it on, and why I believe the market hasn't taken off either. Reading a book on the computer screen is the pits. Lots of technology has been promised to fix this, but where are the commercial products?
I glad to see free books are doing well, but I'm not going to read one.
Rob(ert) #3
I had my computer for 3 years. Never once had a problem with it. My dad decided to install extra memory on it. It literally caught on fire.
I know you're thinking novice... But he's a software engineer, and has worked with a computer since the transitor moving days.
Lesson to be learned:
Buy cheap powersupplies, and give them to your eniemes as presents.
Rob(ert) #3
Lots of research on Human Computer Interaction. Google it and also check out the digital libraries at ACM. (acm.org)
I want to see all 3 LotR with short potty breaks inbetween.
Firstly, I am a classical pianist, who dabbles in composition and studio production, and I was a computer science major.
It is extremly dangerous for programmers to consider what they do "an art". Programmers who use this reasoning generally consider themselves to be kin to painters. Only they can produce the image in the proper way (which is never true). Avoid this thinking! Programming *is* a creative process but it is much more like chamber music than it is painting.
In chamber music, musicians work together following a set of rules and guidelines to create music. They deviate slightly from the path, expressing their creativity, but not so much that they hinder other musicians from playing along. Their unique talent *contributes* to the complete music experience. Good creative ideas never hinder the ensemble. Programmers who consider what they do to be "art" tend to think nobody else is capable of altering their code, or contributing to it. Well some programming "divas" may succeed at the task, but in most projects this attitude won't stand. Besides at some level you are working with other people, even if it seems your not. Someone else wrote the compiler your using, and there is no doubt at some point you are refering to their work.
Learning to work as a programming group or community is key to success as a programmer. Programmers HATE classes where they have to work together because they suffer from bad coaches. I think much of this is due to the coaches being reformed divas.
Oh well i'm rambling and probably not making my point.
Rob
Americans are cheap bastards. I know I'm one of them.
:)
We'd all buy a digital TV if it were cheaper. In my apartment with my roommates we had one tv, it was like 13 inches. We don't care about "digital cable" or HDTV because we can't even afford *basic* cable. Plus lots of people are already invested in their giganto projection TVs already.
Rob
P.S. I would be glad to take your gignato projection tv so that you can buy a digital.
As tempting as it is to say "its for the children", software piracy is not really in theirs or anyone's best interest. I see the reasoning for piracy in schools; students trained in the latest/greatest software will have an advantage over those who don't. I've known several people to even pay for their college education by working as programmers/temps/etc. But by pirating what you are really doing is keeping software costs high, and possibly limiting competition.
Part of the reason we like Linux is because of its low cost. If Windows were free, however, Linux's use might wavier. Schools will immediately use the most famous choice, ignoring competition if things are free. School heads are idiots; don't expect anything from them other than the bottom line.
I think the best solution is to have government or local contributions to pay for reasonably priced software. A competitive software company will price their software reasonably if they have a large school base to purchase their software.
Really the temptation for piracy only exists because software/music/videos are not priced so that normal profit can occur. All these markets are in excess, but I think because of the danger of losing it all to piracy, smart companies will soon price things more reasonably.
I will gladly pay $20 for my operating system. I will dance with glee to spend $50 on Photoshop. I am willing to pay for software, and my community's software if priced to compete. Don't take competition out of the equation.
Rob
Did any chicago/burbs people go? I would have gone but frankly you people scare me. :)
Rob
Part of the reason Y2K happened nearly hitchless was due to the fact that so much hype was involved. By declaring "the sky is falling" they are preventing a problem through means of hype. However, this man is a microsoft ex-employee and I'll be quick to point out that most viruses and worms are not "computer" viruses specifically but *windows* viruses. By making a fuss he is trying to protect his "alma mater" as it were.
It looks like some big goverment, "I pat your back, you pat mine" business.
Rob
Hi,
Bots have been in the making for years, but from what I've seen I found the mock "human interaction" to be more a gimic than a useful tool. In what ways do you see bots being most useful in the immediate future?
Kind Regards,
Rob
I got a piece of snall mail telling me to renew my domain name. It had all my info, but it was from Verisign... I don't use Verisign. I was not very pleased..
Rob
How much do you think the complete library of congress disk is going to run? :)
Rob
One thing I know from working with kids is that they love to fight (or atleast play fight). Computer fighting seems pretty cool and harmless to kids (even if it takes out your business server out, a kid would not naturally assume this is a problem). Being alittle more computer savvy than your friends means that you win the fight, and are thus cooler/more manly than your friend.
Well Linux is considered more l33t than Windows, and its getting extremly easy to use. Kids will think they are VERY computer savvy by installing Linux, and a computer genius for using someone elses program to do a simple attack. Once one kid gets Linux installed they will install Linux on their friends machines. Since Linux is free, there are no barriers to entry, and it will spread rapidly the easier it gets to use.
So all I can say is, I plead you Slashdot Community. Make your GUI's impossible to use, create lots of undocumented features, have your programs be buggy unless your users are using the most difficult to use distribution of Linux.
I mean really, won't someone please think about the children?!
Rob
I believe that's a technical term.
Mr Anthony,
I've read probably 50 or so of your books, but I hadn't read one since highschool over 4 years ago. I recently purchased the book DoOon Mode and finished it. As usual, your writing style is excellent, but reading as a more mature reader, I found the content questionable. The book's heroin is a teenage girl with some very serious psychological problems and provides "instant fix" cures and glosses over some very muture topics like multiple partners and rape. A lot of my highschool friends who read your books were girls in this age group. I'm not questioning your own morals, but with subject matter this intense did you consult professionals or worry about the impact on some of your target audience?
Kind Regards,
Rob
My best friend uses it now.
She's narcoleptic and after the second time she drove her car into a ditch she finally got tested and they put her on Provigil.
This drug has literally been a life saver! (for everyone else on the road).
It is really a nice drug with a low occurance of side effects. Its not like she is suddenly restless, but rather she doesn't fall asleep so unexpectedly.
The only negative things she has to say about it is that because it is metabolized by the liver, you really shouldn't drink alcohol while on it. This is kinda a bummer at parties.
Word,
Rob
Well to show my age, I was born in 1980. I had two electronics kits, out of which I built a radio that could pick up WGN and a buzzing thing. Electronics, however, never really caught my eye because in 1982 I had my own TI 99 which cassette player storage and cartridge games. It was far more fascinating then building a radio or buzzing thing, and it did a lot more.
By the time college came around, I considered EE but computer science had already made a larger impact. In college I've tinkered some with electronics. I helped fix a nintendo, a stereo and a light with an EE friend, but I was not convinced to change majors. The reason? Because as fun as it was to fix the nintendo, buying a new one is $30 and as fun as it is to do low level circutry for 2 days, its much more rewarding to have a complete working program in an hour.
Electronics is complicated, expensive and time consuming you just can't do it anymore without a degree. The majority of people who would be attracted to Electronics in the "old days" find Computer work much more accessible.
Lastly, you should all know my kids will learn basic electronics. I might not be into so much, but the hobbist still has some opportunity, although slim.
Rob
"though Microsoft says that they do not intend to push .NET for Mac developers"
Well, duh...