A couple years ago Tandy spun off its leather shops and crafts stores into Tandycrafts, Inc. So, while it once was the same company, it is no longer the same company.
I got a nice, heavy, clicky 84-key Leading Edge keyboard for free at a yard sale (lots of old computer parts just sitting on the guy's lawn...all for free...*drool*). I cleaned it up really good when I got home and plugged it into my PC. After POST, I kept hearing a bunch of beeps and the keyboard wouldn't work.
The keyboard has an AT plug and my keyboard port is AT (PII system). Was there some type of change in keyboard code configs that prevents me from using this cool keyboard or is it possibly broken? I have a 386 that I could test it with, but the plug turned 90 degrees and won't fit through the hole that leads to the kbd port.
This argument is similar to the one used by people who are against hunting. "You don't need to hunt! You can just go to the supermarket and buy food!"
I, myself, don't go hunting; but, damnit, I don't want any one restricting my methods of survival, be they hunting, farming or shopping. Here is another example...."You don't need to go to the farmers' market! Everything you could possibly need is in the supermarket!"
The lesson to be learned is that when someone tells you that you don't need DeCSS because there is a "licensed" player for Linux, you should point out that the big picture isn't about licensing; it's about having the freedom to watch something you *own* without getting anyone's special permission.
I'm going to hoard^H^H^H^H^H save them for mostly historical purposes, kind of like how I do with old CPUs. I've got one hooked up to my PC right now. I might give one to a family member if they want one. Since no one in my immediate family uses Windows, privacy issues are not a concern.
As of this morning, I've snail-mailed one up to a fellow/. reader in Canada (TheTomCat) who posted here asking for one. If you stick the package in one of those 6.5" x 9.5" bubble envelopes, it comes out to 6 ounces. 1st class USPS is $1.43 to the US and $1.60 to Canada.
I've been to 5 different Radio Shacks and the experience varied. I guess since some employees think it's a "free" item, they figure there is no need to collect name/address info. Whether or not they take your name, they are supposed to scan the item at the register because (as an employee explained to me) it is nonetheless an inventory item. When the inventory level reaches a certain number, more are ordered automatically.
At the first Radio Shack, I (stupidly) gave them my name and address and they scanned in the scanner and catalog. However, my fiance was with me and they just gave her a scanner no questions asked and nothing got scanned. The next two stores asked for name/address and I gave them fake info. At the fourth store, the guy said, let's just scan this using our "dummy" account. At the last store, the kid just scanned in the cat and catalog but didn't request my name/address.
Since the scanner's output runs through your keyboard port, you can invert the case all by yourself by hitting caps lock. I wonder if windows users would have trouble reaching web pages if they scanned with their caps lock on then?
Take a look at my post where I show you the outputs of various scans and where the differences show up. The serial does appear to be portrayed in the ASCII output. The implication is that if you set up some type of cataloging system (like I did with my albums' jewel case barcodes and my mp3's) you can only use one particular scanner to do retrievals unless you take the time to strip out the (seemingly 5) ASCII output characters that are unique to each character.
This is only a little off-topic, but I've found a nifty application for the CueCat under BeOS. Using no special software other than an MP3 query tool, I can scan the barcode on the back of a jewel case and if I've got the album ripped onto my HD, the query tool (MP3 Flashlight) will seek out the songs, load them into my mp3 player (CL-Amp) and start playing.
All you have to do is store the scanner's output in the Comments attribute of the mp3 file (the Be filesystem allows indexable attributes to be associated with files). This can be done manually for albums you're already ripped, or automatically for albums you're about to rip (using a tool like RipENC).
If you have your jewel cases right next to you it's a cooler way of playing an album than simply double-clicking on a playlist.
After reading the thread topic about serial ID numbers in the CueCat's output, I decided to see it for myself.
Look at the scan outputs below. The top code is the output I got last night from doing a barcode scan of Motorhead's "1916" album. The bottom code was obtained just now from the same album, but using a different CueCat (I have 5, all from different stores).
The stars indicate differences in the scan outputs. Now, here is a comparison of the barcode output for Pulp's "Different Class" album using the same two scanners from above:
As you can see, the differences come up in the same 5 places each time. The last set of characters after the last dot seem to be unique to the album. So unless I go into the Comments attribute and delete out the part of the code where differences show up, I can only use one particular scanner to scan jewel cases and play albums. Worse yet, no one else who I share the mp3 with would be able to use their scanner if they happen to have the same jewel case.
As of this time (11:28PM EDT) I didn't see any text in Carpman's open source letter to Congress about DeCSS. So I emailed him a little "seed" information to help kick off some thoughts for contributions. Here's what I wrote:
"Hi, I saw your link on/. and thought I'd contribute a little. I'm not really good at starting letters, but here is something that might fit nicely in the middle somewhere:
The overall significance of DeCSS is not that it provides a DVD player for an operating system that currently has no "official" DVD players. DeCSS is a celebration of the right to fair use of copywritten works that we have legally purchased for our own, private use. "
If you're too cheap to help fund the 2600 defense fund, this is the next best thing!
This is why I like Mail-It for BeOS. By default, all messages are shown as plain text, even the HTML tags are visible. If you really want to see a message as HTML formatted, then you can change the "view" to HTML.
To kick out the web bugs, just view the message as plain text and edit out any suspicious tags.
Hey, I noticed the BSD demon was used instead of that shiny, blue Apple logo. Since OS X is built upon BSD, does that mean Apple hardware stories will get the blue apple, while Apple software (specifically OS X) stories will from now on get the demon attached?
I have a big pile of Popular Mechanics magazines from 1990 to 1996 in my room. I always get a kick out of looking at all those funky concept car shapes that never came to be. A couple of them could have been viable in today's market filled with new Beetles and PT Cruisers.
FYI, Popular Mechanics had a feature article in 1994 on upcoming "information appliances" that would pervade our lives in just a couple years and allow us access to the "information superhighway" in just a couple years. These devices would come in the form of slimmed-down desktop computers (iPaq, iOpener), hand-held devices (Palm/Visor) and set-top boxes for the TV (TiVo, ReplayTV, WebTV).
"Does this jacket remind anyone else of the jacket Marty McFly wore in Back to the Future 2? he puts it on, it resizes to fit him, he get's wet, it blows him dry... "
I have some cursory knowledge of networking and I'm learning a little bit more all the time. Out of curiousity, are there any security concerns that one should be aware of if ICQ is listening on many different ports? Thanks:)
It is my understanding that copyright does not mean that you "own" something. For instance, MSFT can't walk into my office and break my MS-Office CD because they hold the copyright. The doctrine of first sale states that I own the physical disc and the little bumps burned into it. I can microwave it, use it as a coaster, or do my job with it. Copyright law states that although I own it, MSFT has the right to say that I cannot share it with others. So, no, copyright does not give you the right to destroy.
Copyright was created to promote the creation of works. You are simply given distribution/copying rights (hence - copy*right*). The copyright laws were designed to promote the arts for the betterment of *society* by giving artists an incentive to create.
If you no longer distribute or support your art (such as games) and you use the copyright laws to prevent others from preserving the art, then you are harming society as a whole. I must emphasize that copyright is ultimately for the benefit of society, which will last much longer than any shortsighted individual or corporation.
I agree with one of the above posters that if copyright holders do not want their old progs. being distributed by others, then they should at least provide the progs. themselves.
In the end, I do not believe we should voluntarily burn another library of Alexandria for the temporary monetary gain of just a few individuals.
"Bookstores have been doing this for quite a while; often the markup is around 45% or so on hardcovers, so when you see the new bestseller for 50% off, chances are they're not making, but losing, money on it... "
Unless the books are what's known as "reviewer copies." These are surplus books that were originally intended to get distributed to media/book critics. Such books, when available, can be bought wholesale for 25 cents on the dollar. So, if they're sold at 50% off full retail, they could in fact be making a 100% profit.
Slashdot Mirror
A couple years ago Tandy spun off its leather shops and crafts stores into Tandycrafts, Inc. So, while it once was the same company, it is no longer the same company.
The American Revolution was illegal.
I got a nice, heavy, clicky 84-key Leading Edge keyboard for free at a yard sale (lots of old computer parts just sitting on the guy's lawn...all for free...*drool*). I cleaned it up really good when I got home and plugged it into my PC. After POST, I kept hearing a bunch of beeps and the keyboard wouldn't work.
The keyboard has an AT plug and my keyboard port is AT (PII system). Was there some type of change in keyboard code configs that prevents me from using this cool keyboard or is it possibly broken? I have a 386 that I could test it with, but the plug turned 90 degrees and won't fit through the hole that leads to the kbd port.
I must be renting a totally different set of DVDs than everyone else because all I've ever seen at the beginning of a disk is the FBI warning.
What are these movies with the commercials in the beginning?
This argument is similar to the one used by people who are against hunting. "You don't need to hunt! You can just go to the supermarket and buy food!"
I, myself, don't go hunting; but, damnit, I don't want any one restricting my methods of survival, be they hunting, farming or shopping. Here is another example...."You don't need to go to the farmers' market! Everything you could possibly need is in the supermarket!"
The lesson to be learned is that when someone tells you that you don't need DeCSS because there is a "licensed" player for Linux, you should point out that the big picture isn't about licensing; it's about having the freedom to watch something you *own* without getting anyone's special permission.
I'm going to hoard^H^H^H^H^H save them for mostly historical purposes, kind of like how I do with old CPUs. I've got one hooked up to my PC right now. I might give one to a family member if they want one. Since no one in my immediate family uses Windows, privacy issues are not a concern.
/. reader in Canada (TheTomCat) who posted here asking for one. If you stick the package in one of those 6.5" x 9.5" bubble envelopes, it comes out to 6 ounces. 1st class USPS is $1.43 to the US and $1.60 to Canada.
As of this morning, I've snail-mailed one up to a fellow
Because the CD's are in a Case Logic disc wallet in my truck. The jewel cases are in a tower next to my desk.
I've been to 5 different Radio Shacks and the experience varied. I guess since some employees think it's a "free" item, they figure there is no need to collect name/address info. Whether or not they take your name, they are supposed to scan the item at the register because (as an employee explained to me) it is nonetheless an inventory item. When the inventory level reaches a certain number, more are ordered automatically.
At the first Radio Shack, I (stupidly) gave them my name and address and they scanned in the scanner and catalog. However, my fiance was with me and they just gave her a scanner no questions asked and nothing got scanned. The next two stores asked for name/address and I gave them fake info. At the fourth store, the guy said, let's just scan this using our "dummy" account. At the last store, the kid just scanned in the cat and catalog but didn't request my name/address.
When it's all said and done, YMMV.
Since the scanner's output runs through your keyboard port, you can invert the case all by yourself by hitting caps lock. I wonder if windows users would have trouble reaching web pages if they scanned with their caps lock on then?
Take a look at my post where I show you the outputs of various scans and where the differences show up. The serial does appear to be portrayed in the ASCII output. The implication is that if you set up some type of cataloging system (like I did with my albums' jewel case barcodes and my mp3's) you can only use one particular scanner to do retrievals unless you take the time to strip out the (seemingly 5) ASCII output characters that are unique to each character.
This is only a little off-topic, but I've found a nifty application for the CueCat under BeOS. Using no special software other than an MP3 query tool, I can scan the barcode on the back of a jewel case and if I've got the album ripped onto my HD, the query tool (MP3 Flashlight) will seek out the songs, load them into my mp3 player (CL-Amp) and start playing.
.
.
.
.
All you have to do is store the scanner's output in the Comments attribute of the mp3 file (the Be filesystem allows indexable attributes to be associated with files). This can be done manually for albums you're already ripped, or automatically for albums you're about to rip (using a tool like RipENC).
If you have your jewel cases right next to you it's a cooler way of playing an album than simply double-clicking on a playlist.
After reading the thread topic about serial ID numbers in the CueCat's output, I decided to see it for myself.
Look at the scan outputs below. The top code is the output I got last night from doing a barcode scan of Motorhead's "1916" album. The bottom code was obtained just now from the same album, but using a different CueCat (I have 5, all from different stores).
.C3nZC3nZC3nYChPXDxzWCxnX.fHmc.C3r3DxD3DxT2E3f3
** ***
.C3nZC3nZC3nYChTWD3D6CxnX.fHmc.C3r3DxD3DxT2E3f3
The stars indicate differences in the scan outputs. Now, here is a comparison of the barcode output for Pulp's "Different Class" album using the same two scanners from above:
.C3nZC3nZC3nYChTWD3D6CxnX.fHmc.DhbYD3zXD3j1DNfZ
** ***
.C3nZC3nZC3nYChPXDxzWCxnX.fHmc.DhbYD3zXD3j1DNfZ
As you can see, the differences come up in the same 5 places each time. The last set of characters after the last dot seem to be unique to the album. So unless I go into the Comments attribute and delete out the part of the code where differences show up, I can only use one particular scanner to scan jewel cases and play albums. Worse yet, no one else who I share the mp3 with would be able to use their scanner if they happen to have the same jewel case.
As of this time (11:28PM EDT) I didn't see any text in Carpman's open source letter to Congress about DeCSS. So I emailed him a little "seed" information to help kick off some thoughts for contributions. Here's what I wrote:
/. and thought I'd contribute a little. I'm not really good at starting letters, but here is something that might fit nicely in the middle somewhere:
"Hi, I saw your link on
The overall significance of DeCSS is not that it provides a DVD player for an operating system that currently has no "official" DVD players. DeCSS is a celebration of the right to fair use of copywritten works that we have legally purchased for our own, private use. "
If you're too cheap to help fund the 2600 defense fund, this is the next best thing!
This is why I like Mail-It for BeOS. By default, all messages are shown as plain text, even the HTML tags are visible. If you really want to see a message as HTML formatted, then you can change the "view" to HTML.
To kick out the web bugs, just view the message as plain text and edit out any suspicious tags.
Hey, I noticed the BSD demon was used instead of that shiny, blue Apple logo. Since OS X is built upon BSD, does that mean Apple hardware stories will get the blue apple, while Apple software (specifically OS X) stories will from now on get the demon attached?
I have a big pile of Popular Mechanics magazines from 1990 to 1996 in my room. I always get a kick out of looking at all those funky concept car shapes that never came to be. A couple of them could have been viable in today's market filled with new Beetles and PT Cruisers.
FYI, Popular Mechanics had a feature article in 1994 on upcoming "information appliances" that would pervade our lives in just a couple years and allow us access to the "information superhighway" in just a couple years. These devices would come in the form of slimmed-down desktop computers (iPaq, iOpener), hand-held devices (Palm/Visor) and set-top boxes for the TV (TiVo, ReplayTV, WebTV).
Isn't Sally Ride still alive?
"Does this jacket remind anyone else of the jacket Marty McFly wore in Back to the Future 2? he puts it on, it resizes to fit him, he get's wet, it blows him dry... "
I'd like a pair of boxers that could do that.
Thanks for clearing that up :) Hey, someone mod this guy up!
Reminds me of my .sig...think about it for a moment.
I have some cursory knowledge of networking and I'm learning a little bit more all the time. Out of curiousity, are there any security concerns that one should be aware of if ICQ is listening on many different ports? Thanks :)
It's still a sign of the serious abuses of the copyright system.
It is my understanding that copyright does not mean that you "own" something. For instance, MSFT can't walk into my office and break my MS-Office CD because they hold the copyright. The doctrine of first sale states that I own the physical disc and the little bumps burned into it. I can microwave it, use it as a coaster, or do my job with it. Copyright law states that although I own it, MSFT has the right to say that I cannot share it with others. So, no, copyright does not give you the right to destroy.
Copyright was created to promote the creation of works. You are simply given distribution/copying rights (hence - copy*right*). The copyright laws were designed to promote the arts for the betterment of *society* by giving artists an incentive to create.
If you no longer distribute or support your art (such as games) and you use the copyright laws to prevent others from preserving the art, then you are harming society as a whole. I must emphasize that copyright is ultimately for the benefit of society, which will last much longer than any shortsighted individual or corporation.
I agree with one of the above posters that if copyright holders do not want their old progs. being distributed by others, then they should at least provide the progs. themselves.
In the end, I do not believe we should voluntarily burn another library of Alexandria for the temporary monetary gain of just a few individuals.
I don't think the RIAA would have to listen to the FCC in this case. The F *T* C, perhaps :-)
"Bookstores have been doing this for quite a while; often the markup is around 45% or so on hardcovers, so when you see the new bestseller for 50% off, chances are they're not making, but losing, money on it... "
Unless the books are what's known as "reviewer copies." These are surplus books that were originally intended to get distributed to media/book critics. Such books, when available, can be bought wholesale for 25 cents on the dollar. So, if they're sold at 50% off full retail, they could in fact be making a 100% profit.
I once knew someone who wanted to get Windows 95 just to have clouds as the background wallpaper.
I don't think we've spoken together since.