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User: otis+wildflower

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  1. Re:SimpleMobile on Ask Slashdot: A Cheap US Cellphone Plan With an Unlocked Phone? · · Score: 1

    I have the same plan, along with Vitelity paygo setup for using the internal SIP client. Works fairly well, though I wish the internal client had more and selectable codecs based on available bandwidth. I'm considering Bria with G729a, but from what I've read it's not up to snuff given the price.

  2. Old Man in the Cave 1.0 on Will IBM Watson Be Your Next Mayor? · · Score: 1
  3. Looks like someone... on Massive Methane Release In the Arctic Region · · Score: 1

    ... pulled God's finger!

    Just blame it on the dog. The big, huge dog.

  4. Torrents? on Comcast Not Counting Their Video Service Against Bandwidth Cap · · Score: 1

    So, does this include torrents that don't route outside of Comcast's network? Presumably a good proportion of P2P need not cross their perimeter, I wonder if support for such "preferred" netranges can be added to P2P clients..

  5. Re:Hegemony, schmegemony on Cheap Solar Panels Made With An Ion Cannon · · Score: 2

    Hydrocarbons created by energy from renewables or thorium LFTR power, using atmospheric CO2 (or coal) and water.

    You're welcome.

  6. Glad to be free of oncall! on Ask Slashdot: Life After Software Development? · · Score: 1

    I was lucky enough to find a new gig that utilizes unix sysadmin analytical skills in a different context. While it's still ops (more like app admin), it involves profiting on low latencies and proximity to certain data exchanges. And they're (insanely) profitable, but when systems aren't working properly the impact on profitability is pretty instant, and outages can involve pretty large losses pretty quickly. So.. No on-call, very little outsourcing risk, respect for operations team, technical and logical rigor in decision making, and actual bonuses. Can't complain!

    ps: no state income tax neither. And rent for a detached cozy house with a garage and yard for less than 25% of take-home.

  7. Re:Don't think so on Small, Modular Nuclear Reactors — the Future of Energy? · · Score: 1

    There's no amount of conservation that will offset 3+ billion people living an adequately-powered lifestyle. And it is immoral to ask them to do so. LFTRs have the potential of generating all the power everyone on Earth will ever need for hundreds of years using stuff that's currently considered toxic waste, along with medically and industrially useful fission products, and generate far less waste of far shorter half-lives. Plus, LFTRs are inherently fail-safe and self-regulatory. The only haters are folks ignorant of the facts, religious Greentards, or self-interested rent-seekers in the legacy uranium fission industrial complex.

    I won't mod you down, I'll just say you're delusional if you think any democracy or republic will accept a lower-quality lifestyle voluntarily.

  8. Re:What about Thorium on Small, Modular Nuclear Reactors — the Future of Energy? · · Score: 1

    Too bad research, development, licensing and implementation aren't states-rights issues, at least for non-weaponizable processes. For example, rebuilding the ORNL reactor from 1960s plans in, say, Texas, should be doable as long as there's no crossing of state lines.. The beauty of statism in effect!!

  9. Re:Office space? Data center space. on All-IP Network Produces $100B Real Estate Windfall · · Score: 1

    So... Colo glut?

  10. In Rod We Trust on Berkeley Scientists Develop Self-Assembling Nanorods · · Score: 1

    EOM

  11. Re:Why are you even still using petrol? on Is E85 Dead Now? · · Score: 1

    Diesel is tax-advantaged in Europe so our diesel is shipped there to fetch a better price (more demand). The US in fact is shipping an awful lot of refined petroleum products, and IIRC is at or near the top of export revenues:

    http://fuelfix.com/blog/2011/12/02/fuel-exports-up-and-so-is-the-cost-at-the-pump/

  12. Re:It was never "available" - it was mandated on Is E85 Dead Now? · · Score: 1

    I find this highly unlikely. You're probably talking about E10 or E15, which are mandated in many localities for what they claim are environmental purposes, but are largely sops to the corn lobby (or sold to well-meaning useful idiots as envirogoodness).

  13. Some benefits to flexfuel cars... on Is E85 Dead Now? · · Score: 1

    ... You can more easily mod the stock FI mapping without having to replace with higher-flow injectors due to their already being enlarged to handle the less-energy-dense ethanol. So, if you have a flexfuel vehicle that you want to, say, drop forced compression into, you may not need to replace the stock injectors or fuel pumps to increase fuel delivery. I would think that flexfuel Corvettes would be an awfully good platform for such mods, with LS blocks that already have an ecosystem of mods.

    Also, as ethanol is more corrosive to gaskets and lines than gasoline, those parts are more robust and longer-lasting than those in traditional fuel lines and couplings.

    Additionally, there are ways of producing ethanol that don't involve burning food, and perhaps methanol would also be usable in such a vehicle. Methanol can be generated by atmospheric CO2, water, and a power/heat source such as solar or thorium LFTR. Me, I'd rather see a flexfuel SOFC or on-vehicle reformulator plus fuel cell that would enable the use of liquid hydrocarbons to be more efficiently converted into power to drive an electrified powertrain. HC fuels are very good at carrying lots of H2 at STP reasonably safely, there's an infrastructure already in place to support it, and if we can get tank-to-wheel efficiency to the ~50-60% range instead of ~20-30% (or lower) then it'd be a big win.

  14. Re:Very subjective on Microsoft Patents Bad Neighborhood Detection · · Score: 1

    To the victims of people mugged, robbed or assaulted in your neighborhood? If it's not as bad as people say, you won't be paying out much $$.

    Stereotyping is faster.

  15. Re:As someone who's maintined bind servers... on Internet Systems Consortium Seeks Wider Input For BIND 10 · · Score: 1

    PowerDNS does autoserials with DB backends. It's quite handy.

  16. 3.354 cents per mile for 'fuel' on Another Stab At Sorting Hybrid Hype From Reality · · Score: 1

    I'm currently getting an average of 390Wh/mile in my Volt. At this time, my full retail price for power to my house (total cost / KWh delivered) is about 8.5 cents per KWh. .085*.39 = 3.354 cents per mile. Even with charging and battery inefficiencies it's likely less than 4.5 cents per mile.

    Plus, you can hammer the go pedal as hard as you like and it's basically silent except for tire and wind noise. That increases the 'pick-up' factor as most folks with conventionally-powered cars don't typically put the hammer down from light to light. I'd probably get better efficiency if I drove more like a Priuser, 390Wh/mi is fairly poor compared to a Leaf, but I wouldn't have as much fun.

    And when I have a >80mi round trip for good barbecue, the gas motor will get me home afterwards. So I roll fully electric during the commute (both ways) for >80% of the mileage so far (closer to 90%) and gas power for longer road trips.

  17. Overpriced Verizon is overpriced on Verizon Adds $2 Charge For Paying Your Bill Online · · Score: 1

    Fuck Verizon.

    That is all.

  18. Jasper Maskelyne, hero of WWII on Progressive Era Hacker Griefed Marconi Demonstration · · Score: 1

    http://www.cracked.com/article_19170_6-insane-stories-magician-who-helped-win-wwii.html

    And that's where we have to leave it. One way or another, Jasper Maskelyne was a fascinating man, and there is no question he helped the war effort. But the real details have been blurred by secrecy, lost documents, exaggerated war stories and the fact that time has killed off almost everyone who would know for certain.

    But we admit: We want to believe it's all true. The idea that one man and his gang of rogue theater rats tricked the Nazis through Bugs Bunny-style tomfoolery? Who doesn't want to believe that?

  19. Dumb phone with tethering? on Do You Really Need a Smart Phone? · · Score: 1

    I'd probably be interested in a dumb phone that could do reliable bluetooth tethering with an iPad or Macbook via Virgin Mobile. My Optimus V does that, and for the time being there's been no blockages on my tethered access. Unlimited 3G (so far) for $25/mo.

  20. Re:.... and fails. on Star Wars: the Old Republic Launches · · Score: 1

    AFAIK there is currently no way to transfer toons.

    They really need to be doing this, for free, from high-pop to low-pop. As many times as is necessary until servers level out.

  21. Re:WoW 2.0 on Star Wars: the Old Republic Launches · · Score: 1

    Wow, you just missed the whole point of the game.

    I'd have thought that it being produced by Bioware would have been a clue as to how it would play..

  22. Re:So, when did subscriptions become traditional? on Star Wars: the Old Republic Launches · · Score: 1

    I've been playing (or, rather waiting in fucking queues) since last thursday, and yes, it's quite a lot like WoW. The colors on items are the same, at least the first 10 levels of soloing are the same.

    But.

    The NPC interactions are a lot more fun, quite Mass Effect-like. I don't know if there's a rep system yet as you only get dark/light side interaction points, but this would play particularly nicely into a faction rep system as well. Plus, you could have light/dark faction issues, where if you're light-side and walk into a dark-side bar you are immediately gonna have issues..

    This game is basically KOTOR: the MMO, which is what a lot of people (including myself) have wanted for quite awhile.

    Now all they have to do is FIX THE FUCKING QUEUES and/or have free toon transfers from higher pop to lower pop, until things have calmed down and they've fully geared up.

  23. Re:I must be misunderstanding on Gas Powered Fuel Cell Could Help EV Range Anxiety · · Score: 2

    I would rather power my car with American coal, gas, or nukes, than with imported oil. Though LFTRs would be my first choice, if there's a chicken-and-egg problem, I say just pick one and fucking start with vehicular electrification already.

  24. Re:Hard part still remains on Gas Powered Fuel Cell Could Help EV Range Anxiety · · Score: 2

    Turbo EGTs can run 800+C regularly underhood, and presumably having some sort of insulated molten salt to retain heat would be helpful for reducing load on the battery and improving startup times.. The engineering to have those temps in automotive applications has been done (though the molten salt probably hasn't), and with a large enough battery pack, it shouldn't be a huge issue getting, say, a 20x20cm fuel cell core to fit in the space of, say, a transverse V6..

  25. Re:America on Gas Powered Fuel Cell Could Help EV Range Anxiety · · Score: 2

    Or methanol, or dimethyl ester.

    Both of which can be created from water, air, and power from solar or LFTRs.

    In fact, carbon-neutral (and American-made) liquid hydrocarbon fuels could be a GREAT way to store sunlight for later use.