Just like we can form the opinion that he's turning into (well, has been forever, I guess) an arrogant whiner.
I don't think that anyone said that we ought to gag RMS to make him shut up, we're just pointing out that he's actively digging his own grave 'o obscurity. Who wants to listen to a crackpot?
RMS seems like a really smart guy until he opens his mouth.
Then he starts sounding like that one guy we all knew (gnu?) in high school who seemed really smart about everything except any sort of social interaction. You know, the guy who could code really well and program mandlebradts into his TI-81, but to whom even the geeks wouldn't talk because he was such a pain in the ass?
Like that guy, Stallman needs to lighten up, maybe talk to some girls or something. I understand that he feels underappreciated for the work that GNU put in before Linux came on the scene, but that's still no excuse to act like a total smeghead.
However, those who frequent UF will remember that Illiad was saying that his lawyers would be meeting the enemy yesterday. In addition, unlike Segfault, this site is signed by UF's lawyer. I don't think lawyers do jokes, do they?
That's what I've been waiting for out of Katz: some sense of sarcasm in response to some of the self-important wannabe hackers you see around these here parts.
April fools nothing -- this is the sort of post you should have made months ago, Jon.
You know, I wonder what the bare minimum system reqs are in terms of hardware/internet connection for a Linux box running Apache and not much else to survive a good slashdotting....
READ MY WHOLE POST BEFORE YOU FLAME ME. Sorry, I just reread the first line and noticed that you'll get the wrong idea if you stop reading.
The Detective was probably correct, at least from a jury's point of view. You get 13 non-geek "peers" up there and the guy who did the rape takes a walk. Sad but true.
Reason: the jury would believe all the TV movies they'd ever seen and have the same point of view as the detective. Call it media poisoning of our judicial system -- that's why juries are out of date; you can't expect people to make good decisions about things they don't know/don't care about/are already biased about. Hell, look at the OJ trial.
Tetris in class an at meetings? Wow, with any luck, I can avoid ever having to do any actual work for the rest of my life. Better living through technology, indeed.
Maybe we can talk Palm into repositioning their keys into a better "gamepad" type layout...
Ah, but if you drop a class, it's generally too late to sign up for another one. Suddenly, you're three credits behind and looking at spending an extra semester in college just to squeeze it in.
If this happens too often (120-odd credits at 2-3-4 credit classes means that it'll probably happen more than once; it has for me) and you find yourself on the 'ol five year plan. I love college and everything, but I only know two people who are going to escape in the traditional four years. I think this might be a contributing factor.
Would you really want to watch a film where all of the people on that 25 foot screen in front of you were terribly ugly? Not I.
Besides, they did a good job with some of the geeks at the lab -- I'm thinking specifically of the slightly pudgy guy who was always wearing the loud t-shirts at Arecibo(sp?). Any movie where they have buttons that say "UNIX Party" pasted onto their monitors onscreen must have had some geek guidance.
You missed the point of the article you responded to. The author was suggesting that, while failing a class about MS programs is pitiful, Universities ought to be a bit more honest in course descriptions.
Not everyone takes college courses just so they can party for four/five years before they have to join the real world. I know several people who came back to school to learn skills to help them get ahead in life. I suspect that's what was up here; if you've never used a computer seriously before, even Word can be daunting (I've noticed that 99% of users never get over the fear that they'll somehow break their expensive computer).
The article never mentioned MSCE, by the way. That little detail seems to have appeared directly from your backside.
We have to remake good foreign films. Otherwise, we might have to invite your psycho directors to the award shows and break out of our comfortable "I'd like to thank my pet parakeet, Tiffy..." speeches.
Not a bad point about the catalogs. I've been in classes that ended up being nothing like what they're described as (usually to their detriment).
So, while I think it's a bit pathetic that these guys couldn't manage to learn how to use MS software, it would be nice to force the ivory tower to come clean about course content. I don't think it's out of line to ask for a refund if the class is not as advertised; you're the customer, after all.
I was temped to sue over a class, but not because it was tough (I just drop the tough ones) =)
It was nore that the class was always cancelled. I'm all for getting the occassional surprise Tuesday off on occassion, but this class was cancelled a *lot*. I think we ended up having class maybe four out of ten times. I found myself thinking, "Wait a second, I'm *paying* for this!".
I passed the class and everything, but I learned absoluted zilch. I complained to the school, but their attitude was pretty much "you got your credits, what more do you want from us?"
Yeah, I thought they wussed out a bit on some of the religious commentary, but I think that the contoversy it would have caused would have overshadowed the rest of the movie.
It's too bad you don't see too many films that honestly question the whole judeo-christian thing without either ending up with a "Touched by an Angel" ending or with "God is dead. Nya nya." I guess the studio execs worry about being boycotted by more than just the Southern Baptists (who at last count are now boycotting Disneyland, all major film companies, TV, sex, and all sources of information other than Rush Limbaugh).
Okay, I didn't state what I meant as clearly as I could have. If you look at what I wrote, you'll see that I was trying to communicate that people I have a high opinion of (those who I consider to be pretty bright) and who I talked to about the film seemed to like it.
That is, the only people I spoke with who didn't like it were a group who, in my opinion, don't have the collective IQ to tie their shoes. Their complaint: they didn't get it. Oddly, they all bought Titanic the first day it was out on video.
Personally, what I really loved about the film was the subtle use of effects in certain places, like when the camera seems to seamlessly pass through a pane of glass or the scene with the mirror. Flashy effects are great and everything, but the ones that most people didn't notice fascinated me.
Again, I'm not trying to speak for or even define "intelligent people".
Hey Katz, what's this about Contact being a disaster?
Among those enlightened people (aka, those who go to college or who could if they wanted to) I've talked to about the film, all seemed pretty unanimous in their support for the idea that Contact has to be one of the best movies we've ever seen. In an age where movies insist on dumbing down the plots to the point where any AOL user can understand them, I can't say enough how much I loved a film that had the gonads to be a bit confusing in order to be really, really cool.
Jon, if you mean that Contact was a flop at the box office, I might buy it (I don't have any idea what the numbers were -- I saw it about 5 times, but I could be the only one). I doubt it did very well; the average stupid person in the audience probably didn't get it; I was in a theatre opening night where a guy yelled "WEAK!" at the end, then asked his date "Carl who?".
If you meant that it was a bad film, I think it's time for you to write another "I am a geek! Really!" article. Most of the folks here on/. are bright enough that they got the significance of that really keen opening shot (the "universal pullback" with the radio sliding back in time). I imagine that a majority of geeks liked Contact.
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MAN! I didn't need to know this.
on
EDtv
·
· Score: 1
I shouldn't have read this review. Now I'm going to have to go into it with a pretty good idea that it sucks.
(I have no other option than to see it; my girlfriend is a big Mathew Maconowhatever fan...)
I'm so pissed off right now I can't even concentrate on this paper I'm supposed to be writing. Sure, it's not due 'till Monday, but it's got to be thirty frickin' pages long and I'm on (checking) page 2.
Illiad: Have those [deleted] mother[deleters] bring it on. Nobody messes with User Friendly; it's too damn keen. We'll see how seriously the/. effect can take down a voicemail/email system when a really popular site is threatened...
Seriously though, this sounds pretty MS. It's a little known fact that the "Gates-Borg" icon that Rob uses for MS stories is actually from a T-shirt that some guy in CA put together and was forced to stop making after threats from MS's lawyers. It's a clear-cut case of parody, but they know they can bully them around because most people can't afford the lawyers. I hate corporations with money to burn.
Is there a way to countersue against frivelous lawsuits such as this one and come away with punitive damages? If so, I'd like to see how a jury decides to punish a company that has $20 billion in cash on-hand....
I think they violated the spirit of the thing when they brought Kochanski onboard. I mean, the whole idea of the show is a bunch of guys trapped in deep space with no women or other reason not to behave like, well, guys. Now in season eight they ruin the basic idea even more by... [Deleted so as to not spoil it; you'll know what I mean when you see it]
Season VI was probably the best one, but they've been sliding downhill since then (although the beginning of the Season VII Ace Rimmer episode was so great it almost killed me). Ever since they started explaining major plot twists with more than just a line in passing...
Sorry to rain on your parade, but the rather annoying phenomenon of people using "hacker" where they ought to use "cracker" is here to stay.
Reason: It's been popularized, assimilated by the pop culture. Say "hacker" and 99% of people out there will think of someone who breaks into computers. Say "cracker" and they'll think you're trying to talk about white people.
My advice: Get used to it. It's not the end of the world if hacker means cracker. It's not going to change, so it's not worth getting excited over.
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I'd check that tape, Larry
on
Few Quickies
·
· Score: 2
Were I Larry Ellison, I think I'd triple-check the video tape that MS sent me -- make sure those icons don't hop around or vanish.
Anyone else notice how long this has taken? The MS video editing crew must be backed up these days.
Idealism in this case would be explaining why you think it ought to be called GNU/Linux, then asking reporters to please call it such.
Immature whining is refusing to answer questions unless they use the term GNU/Linux. RMS might just as well have yelled "You must respect my authoritah!" at the top of his lungs for all the effect his little tantrum had.
Remember: Just because someone does some cool things doesn't mean that they're not also capable of acting like a complete nimrod.
Slashdot Mirror
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Just like we can form the opinion that he's turning into (well, has been forever, I guess) an arrogant whiner.
I don't think that anyone said that we ought to gag RMS to make him shut up, we're just pointing out that he's actively digging his own grave 'o obscurity. Who wants to listen to a crackpot?
----
Then he starts sounding like that one guy we all knew (gnu?) in high school who seemed really smart about everything except any sort of social interaction. You know, the guy who could code really well and program mandlebradts into his TI-81, but to whom even the geeks wouldn't talk because he was such a pain in the ass?
Like that guy, Stallman needs to lighten up, maybe talk to some girls or something. I understand that he feels underappreciated for the work that GNU put in before Linux came on the scene, but that's still no excuse to act like a total smeghead.
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Academics.
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However, those who frequent UF will remember that Illiad was saying that his lawyers would be meeting the enemy yesterday. In addition, unlike Segfault, this site is signed by UF's lawyer. I don't think lawyers do jokes, do they?
----
April fools nothing -- this is the sort of post you should have made months ago, Jon.
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Guesses, anyone?
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The Detective was probably correct, at least from a jury's point of view. You get 13 non-geek "peers" up there and the guy who did the rape takes a walk. Sad but true.
Reason: the jury would believe all the TV movies they'd ever seen and have the same point of view as the detective. Call it media poisoning of our judicial system -- that's why juries are out of date; you can't expect people to make good decisions about things they don't know/don't care about/are already biased about. Hell, look at the OJ trial.
----
Maybe we can talk Palm into repositioning their keys into a better "gamepad" type layout...
----
If this happens too often (120-odd credits at 2-3-4 credit classes means that it'll probably happen more than once; it has for me) and you find yourself on the 'ol five year plan. I love college and everything, but I only know two people who are going to escape in the traditional four years. I think this might be a contributing factor.
----
Besides, they did a good job with some of the geeks at the lab -- I'm thinking specifically of the slightly pudgy guy who was always wearing the loud t-shirts at Arecibo(sp?). Any movie where they have buttons that say "UNIX Party" pasted onto their monitors onscreen must have had some geek guidance.
----
Not everyone takes college courses just so they can party for four/five years before they have to join the real world. I know several people who came back to school to learn skills to help them get ahead in life. I suspect that's what was up here; if you've never used a computer seriously before, even Word can be daunting (I've noticed that 99% of users never get over the fear that they'll somehow break their expensive computer).
The article never mentioned MSCE, by the way. That little detail seems to have appeared directly from your backside.
----
----
So, while I think it's a bit pathetic that these guys couldn't manage to learn how to use MS software, it would be nice to force the ivory tower to come clean about course content. I don't think it's out of line to ask for a refund if the class is not as advertised; you're the customer, after all.
----
----
It was nore that the class was always cancelled. I'm all for getting the occassional surprise Tuesday off on occassion, but this class was cancelled a *lot*. I think we ended up having class maybe four out of ten times. I found myself thinking, "Wait a second, I'm *paying* for this!".
I passed the class and everything, but I learned absoluted zilch. I complained to the school, but their attitude was pretty much "you got your credits, what more do you want from us?"
----
It's too bad you don't see too many films that honestly question the whole judeo-christian thing without either ending up with a "Touched by an Angel" ending or with "God is dead. Nya nya." I guess the studio execs worry about being boycotted by more than just the Southern Baptists (who at last count are now boycotting Disneyland, all major film companies, TV, sex, and all sources of information other than Rush Limbaugh).
----
That is, the only people I spoke with who didn't like it were a group who, in my opinion, don't have the collective IQ to tie their shoes. Their complaint: they didn't get it. Oddly, they all bought Titanic the first day it was out on video.
Personally, what I really loved about the film was the subtle use of effects in certain places, like when the camera seems to seamlessly pass through a pane of glass or the scene with the mirror. Flashy effects are great and everything, but the ones that most people didn't notice fascinated me.
Again, I'm not trying to speak for or even define "intelligent people".
----
Among those enlightened people (aka, those who go to college or who could if they wanted to) I've talked to about the film, all seemed pretty unanimous in their support for the idea that Contact has to be one of the best movies we've ever seen. In an age where movies insist on dumbing down the plots to the point where any AOL user can understand them, I can't say enough how much I loved a film that had the gonads to be a bit confusing in order to be really, really cool.
Jon, if you mean that Contact was a flop at the box office, I might buy it (I don't have any idea what the numbers were -- I saw it about 5 times, but I could be the only one). I doubt it did very well; the average stupid person in the audience probably didn't get it; I was in a theatre opening night where a guy yelled "WEAK!" at the end, then asked his date "Carl who?".
If you meant that it was a bad film, I think it's time for you to write another "I am a geek! Really!" article. Most of the folks here on /. are bright enough that they got the significance of that really keen opening shot (the "universal pullback" with the radio sliding back in time). I imagine that a majority of geeks liked Contact.
----
(I have no other option than to see it; my girlfriend is a big Mathew Maconowhatever fan...)
----
Illiad: Have those [deleted] mother[deleters] bring it on. Nobody messes with User Friendly; it's too damn keen. We'll see how seriously the /. effect can take down a voicemail/email system when a really popular site is threatened...
Seriously though, this sounds pretty MS. It's a little known fact that the "Gates-Borg" icon that Rob uses for MS stories is actually from a T-shirt that some guy in CA put together and was forced to stop making after threats from MS's lawyers. It's a clear-cut case of parody, but they know they can bully them around because most people can't afford the lawyers. I hate corporations with money to burn.
Is there a way to countersue against frivelous lawsuits such as this one and come away with punitive damages? If so, I'd like to see how a jury decides to punish a company that has $20 billion in cash on-hand....
----
they brought Kochanski onboard. I mean, the whole
idea of the show is a bunch of guys trapped in
deep space with no women or other reason not to
behave like, well, guys. Now in season eight they
ruin the basic idea even more by...
[Deleted so as to not spoil it; you'll know what I
mean when you see it]
Season VI was probably the best one, but they've
been sliding downhill since then (although the
beginning of the Season VII Ace Rimmer episode was
so great it almost killed me). Ever since they
started explaining major plot twists with more
than just a line in passing...
----
annoying phenomenon of people using "hacker" where
they ought to use "cracker" is here to stay.
Reason: It's been popularized, assimilated by the
pop culture. Say "hacker" and 99% of people out
there will think of someone who breaks into
computers. Say "cracker" and they'll think you're
trying to talk about white people.
My advice: Get used to it. It's not the end of the
world if hacker means cracker. It's not going to
change, so it's not worth getting excited over.
----
the video tape that MS sent me -- make sure those
icons don't hop around or vanish.
Anyone else notice how long this has taken? The MS
video editing crew must be backed up these days.
----
Immature whining is refusing to answer questions unless they use the term GNU/Linux. RMS might just as well have yelled "You must respect my authoritah!" at the top of his lungs for all the effect his little tantrum had.
Remember: Just because someone does some cool things doesn't mean that they're not also capable of acting like a complete nimrod.
----