The reason they don't know how long it'll take is likely due to licensing agreements, patent royalties, and other little issues encumbering the code, on top of the normal burocracy.
Inevitibly, in large organizations with large projects, some manager attempts to (and often succeeds in) shortcutting the development time by licensing or purchasing some outside code or technology. I would be surprised if Sun's implementation of Java was completely developed in house and/or completely owned without exception by Sun. They have to vet all the code and modules to be certian that they have the right to release Java. I doubt they'll release the unencumbered parts before it's all ready.
Further, there are likely to be patent and legal encumberances to the code which may prevent immediate release. It could even be that people along the line have said, "I'll patent this technique later, for right now it's a trade secret." There may yet be code in there which they can capitalize off of by patenting, while allowing for usage within java without charge.
And, of course, they have to make sure the company lawyers and accountants are satisfied with whatever terms they release it under. They may even wait until the SCO thing blows over if they really want to use the GPL (Unlikely).
So don't hold your breath. The ideal outcome would make one able to compile it for platforms which it does not yet run on natively and stable.
So are you saying that only businesses should be allowed to exchange email?
No, I'm saying that only business class internet connections are expected to be fully open and unblocked. Residential customers get what they pay for.
When I wanted to overcome a similar problem myself (my ISP was free, but wouldn't forward email which had my domain's address instead of the ISPs) I simply made a port forwarder on my work machine which allowed me to use my work's SMTP server - the connection appeared to come from my work machine, so it was allowed through.
In this case he should use his ISPs SMTP server. If he can't, then he should get an ISP which allows him to do so.
In the end, MAPS is just a service some people subscribe to. Your ISP is just a business. Either or both may make it difficult to do what you are trying to do, but the reality is that you can switch services to someone who can meet your needs, since they are obviously not being met by your current providers.
Whining on slashdot is only going to get you a tiny bit of sympathy along with a heaping of ill will and "wake up, idiot!" postings.
The real problem is that the email system was designed so completely open that spam cannot be stopped.
You may have an earthlink static IP, but it's still within the earthlink netblock, and since the vast majority of earthlink users use the earthlink SMTP server, and do not keep their own PCs clean of zombie relays, then it is perfectly reasonable to block smtp transactions from that netblock.
Or are you saying that the 0.1% of internet users who want (not need or require, but want) to send email from their own SMTP server without spending the time to use an ISP that allows such usage and avoids being blocked should dictate how others should set up their spam filters?
Sorry, but this is just a speck of dust on the windshield. Certianly not worth the time to find a better solution, even for a low paid tech.
Please don't bother suggesting that I ask my provider to give me a static IP outside the affected block -- they won't, not without upgrading to a MUCH more expensive package which gives me no benefit for a small-traffic server like this.
Then you are stuck between a rock and a hard place. You are using a residential class line for business class use. MAPS is right to block residential lines because of all the zombie relay servers that virus writers are including in their payloads now.
Either pay for a business class connection, or use the SMTP server your provider gives you.
It's not the "open internet" that you'd like to see. Live within the limitations this simple, dumb network provides.
Besides, do you honestly expect MAPS to whitelist a dynamic IP? MAPS is not the problem, PEBKAC.
1) Stop by the dealership to get the problem diagnosed by the computer. This costs nothing.
You have a good (or under used) dealership. Ford charges $65 where I'm at.
2) Once the official cause of the diagnostic code is determined, request they fax you an explanation of exactly what needs to be done.
Have you tried this before? Again, it's probably very dependant on the dealership. Further, the codes don't tell you what part is bad, they only tell you the symptoms. You have a procedure for each code to track down the part that's causing it. With just the codes you're getting a good guess, but you could replace 4-5 parts before getting the right one. Some codes are very specific (oxygen sensors, for instance) but some, such as the EGR Flow Insufficient could be one of three parts in a simple implementation, or many parts on a complex system.
Here's the best tip I've received:
When you buy a car from a dealership, insist that they include a manufacturer's service manual with the vehicle. This includes all the troubleshooting processes, good diagrams, etc. Then you can either fix it yourself, diagnose it yourself, or loan it to your mechanic when they fix your car.
It doesn't matter whether it's an improvement or not. Every car manufactured after 1996 has it, and none that I've run across still have the old paper clip or blinking MIL indicator to read the codes.
As long as you stick to pre-1996 vehicles, you'll never want for an OBD-II reader.
I have an OBD-II scanner. It's about $100 or so, hooks up to my laptop, and the software is free and the codes in the software are frequently updated. I've never had a code in my car that's undocumented.
The interface is simple, there are now only 5 protocols and interfaces that need to be supported by any given ISO compliant scan tool (ISO9141, PWM, VPW, Keyword, and CAN). These protocols and interfaces are available for a huge fee from ISO and other standards organizations.
There is enough information online and in various electronics magazines to interface without getting the standards, but the real problem is that there are only so many well-defined codes. Every car supports those. But each new model the manufacturers add more codes that are manufacturer, and sometimes even model, specific.
The vast majority of the codes are available, what this legislation does is make it so that when a new code is defined for a specific make/model/year, then it's instantly published. Even now you have to wait a year or 5 before the codes come out because warranties take care of the vast majority of work. Its the heavy use customers, and the shady dealerships that make it necessary to have the codes as soon as the model is available, but the dealerships and manufacturer have every incentive to not provide the information in a timely manner.
This legislation is to codify what, how, and when to release this information, whereas now the auto industry has tried to avoid regulation by volunteering incomplete and late information.
There is one open hardware project to support one of the protocols, and some open software to support the hardware, but it still leaves out 1/2 of the vehicles, and doesn't cover more than one car.
I've been working on making a completely open, compliant hardware and software product to comply with all the current standards and allow easy updating of codes. I have access to the standards, hardware, and only lack time and money. Hopefully within the next two years we'll see $20 code scanners with online code lookup (hardware is actually fairly easy) but assuming we don't, email me about the interest and I may move this from the back burner. I still have two projects in the pipeline that have to be finished, but I could have something before the end of the summer if there is significant interest. It would have to be fully open hardware/firmware/software.
Since the obvious ( headphones!!! ), for whatever reason, is not applicable, there are a few ways sound travels from one cubicle to another and a few good ways to make it not travel so well.
Your cubicle is a big speaker cabinet that's pointed at the ceiling. Anyone within a few cubicles will get the reflections from the ceiling.
* Place sound deadening ceiling tiles above your cubicle (and out 8-10 feet). Cover them with loosely attached cloth (so it drapes several inches below ceiling height). This will reduce the largest portion of sound reflection.
Cubicle surfaces are attached to neighbor cubicles. Sounds from within the cubicle can be transmitted directly to the cubicle and reproduced at other points as the sound travels through the system.
* Place the speakers on sound deadening material and then on top of a rubber pad. Surface your entire cubicle with sound deadening material. Place loosely attached cloth around the cubicle (the heavier weight the cloth, the better)
Sound, by its very nature, travels through the air very well. All the previous measures only prevent reflections and transmissions through and from solid surfaces. Now you need to prevent the sound from traveling through the air to your neighbors.
* Extend your cubicle walls to the ceiling, or at least place several layers of cloth, preferebaly with sound deadening materil inbetween, from the top of your cubicle to the ceiling. Install a door of some kind. Put cones around your speakers to direct the sound energy towards you - you shouldn't be sending sound pollution to places you aren't at, so place the cones to prevent the sound from going all over the cubicle.
Of course, some sound is still getting through, and, let's face it, Primus isn't intended to be played at low volumes. I recommend installing a concrete block on top of a rubber pad/shock system inside your cubicle. On top of that pad you'll need double walls with sound insulation between them, and, of course, a similar door and ceiling.
But you'll probably have a better time (easier, cheaper, faster) buying wireless headphones or convincing your employer to allow you to telecommute.
For my part, I just find this hilarious when the worst part of your job is you can't listen to Primus at your preferred volume.
You must really be suffering, but remember that you need to choose your battles wisely. You may win this one, but the next one might be more important, and you might not have any more room to move.
I use Eclipse and Scintilla, but neither of them for Python, and I don't realy use them all that much for regular development anyway.
But it's about as useful a recommendation as you'll get from other slashdot readers for your particular question anyway, so I thought I'd throw it at you.
Good luck, let us know how you make out. I've been wanting to get into Python for awhile, but have no real need to fulfill with it, and no time to dabble.
What I really want is an end to end programming solution which includes being able to program in a high level language which is not portable, but (to re-define portable) actually runs without change on many platforms keeping the local look and feel. End to end means I need to be able to develop the GUI/interface (with custom widgets) easily, the code behind it needs to be built and tested easily, and an installer that will install on any platform without change, or at minimum a single install configuration which will build installers for many platforms.
But Linux is not stable enough to be a good target (many distros, kernel changes, kde/gnome/etc, multiple platforms), and even the BSDs have many of the issues that Linux has. One of the banes of open source programming (release early, release often) is the fact that it changes significantly and frequently.
I believe that's one reason why interpreted languages are so popular among the OS advocates. All you have to target is the features available in the language, but those features must necessarily be limited. Only Java includes the language with built in GUI tools, and look at the mess it's become. The others require a seperate toolkit (QT, TK, etc) which means you have to target at least two different languages with two different versions.
Bleah.
Fantastic flexibility with constant maintenance, or little to no maintenance with limited flexibility? You decide...
"Hey, where are you going with the goggles, man?"
"Boss told me to check for videocams in the theatre."
"Dude - fair warning, Paul Reuben is in there. I wouldn't go if I were you."
"Who? Look, I just do what the boss says. See ya in a few." ...
"!" ...
"You got a fork suitable for removing eyes around here?"
Hope WB is able to handle the 'problems' of this technology.
Buying used means:
* The original owner didn't find the story satisfying enough to keep
* The original owner sold it to buy a newer game
* The original owner's younger brother needed ca$h fa$t and those rich nigerian people with slight banking problems won't put out to a 12 year old
In either of the first two cases, the game publisher's shouldn't continue the series - it was good for a few weeks/months of game play, but wasn't a classic, or is not good for group play.
GRSecurity:
* Fixes the problems in Linux that normally make Linux hard to secure
* Is very kernel version specific (ie, maintenance intensive)
* Easy to use
* Roughly equivilant to, or slightly better than, many other existing hardening 'patches'
The author backs some of this up by saying: "Though grsecurity is licensed under the GPL, I am the sole developer and originator of ideas for the project. Though it would be possible for others to handle maintenance of the project, the quality won't be held to the same standards and will not progress with the same goals I have set for the project."
So - it's either badly designed or grossly incomplete. Or both.
If it is maintenance intensive then the system needs a redesign from the bottom up, or deeper - draw up new specifications keeping in mind the limitations of the system you are modifying.
If it's grossly incomplete then there is little loss to the community. It may have been a great personal loss, but you should never, ever do what this devloper did - float a loan for someone else which they could not personally handle. You don't have to be a business wizard in order to feed yourself.
From Michael Gerber's book "E-Myth Revisited":
Poor businesspeople work "in" the business - they're technicians who daily make the product or service. The business can't succeed without the individual, who may be a genius at providing a product or service but spends every day firefighting.
Brilliant company owners work "on" the business. They build systems, processes, and techniques so the business runs smoothly. These awsome managers don't just solve problems, they invent solutions that eliminate problems forever, or that automatically deal with the issue when it comes up again.(emphasis mine)
If this project requires constant maintenance, or cannot survive without this particular programmer, then it is firmly in the 'poor firefighting technician' category.
Poor guy. I hope he gets on his feet and succesfully finds something that fulfills his need to create. This obviously is not the kind of work he's cut out for, though, and I hope, for his sake, that he chooses not to allow further sponsership of his work on this project.
His problem, then, is not that he was caught, but that he was caught too late. He argues that the university should have warned him of the consequences earlier.
* CAUTION: Coffee is hot, do not store between legs while driving.
* DO NOT stop chainsaw with HANDS.
* DO NOT TOUCH SERVER
And new to this category:
* IF YOU CHEAT THROUGH SCHOOL, WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO PULL THE RUG OUT FROM UNDER YOU AT ANY TIME, INCLUDING AFTER YOU'VE PAID US 4 YEARS TO PLAY ALONG WITH YOUR LITTLE SCAM( but just before we hand you your diploma).
1. Place art here.
2. Place an ambiguously worded article on Slashdot to avoid the usual front page story slashdotting.
3. Know that someone will find your hidden stash (we are geeks) and post the location of aforementioned art within the comments, and it will safely be disseminated without a typical slashdotting.
4....
5. Profit!
"Oooh, Aston Martin! Argh! Geek! But it is an Astin Martin... but that geek! Ugh... I wonder if I can unbundle this comingled product - Where's an antitrust lawyer when you need one?"
It's called Targetted Advertising, bub, and I'd modify IOS to add a tagline advertisement to each and every email and web page. Probably add a comment to zip files whizzing past, add my own copyright (or the GPL) to source code files... Hey, who needs a level 3 router when you can route at level 7 baby! Now we're cookin' with gas!
These databases can be thought of as a small protection against spamming and other obnoxious behavior. I've worked on video rental systems with information (remember- they have either your SSN or your CC#) many years back. Even the managers cannot delete these records.
This is to cut down on multiple accounts (ie, I rent 5 movies, never return them, and instead of paying up I simply try to open a new account) as well as other issues surrounding liability (my son was never listed as a supplemental customer on my account! How could he have rented $150 worth of video games!) and so on.
However, I believe that a reasonable time frame should be established to purge or refresh old information, just as businesses are required to keep account statements back 7 years.
One of the most efficient ways to utilize solar energy is to grow willow trees (grow fast, easy to harvest) and then turn them into energy (variety of methods). Many of these energy products can be consumed at will with no loss over time.
Of course it's still land intensive, but any solar energy scheme is going to require a lot of light, which translates into a lot of land.
I always think back to the one science fiction book I read some time ago where the sun was dark because the civilization had sourrounded it with an orbit of mini-planets in a shell. Complete conversion of all the available solar energy...
Look up willow tree biomass for more info. The university of michigan studies has shown it to be a viable self-sustaining resource for quite a lot of energy.
Back in the bad 'ol days the only thing a hobbyist could easily get ahold of was a PIC or a motorola. But motorolas were expensive, require more support parts, and not as easily obtained. Plus PIC had a nifty flash chip that didn't require a UV eraser. Lastly, they were available cheaply via digikey, and the assembler and full IDE were free. Parallax had a lot to do with their success in the hobbyist market with the basic stamp and then moving you to a PIC if you needed more power.
Fast forward to today.
Now everyone and their dog have flash, and many are just now realizing the gains to be had in the real market when the hobbyist market is courted, especially the younger hobbyists.
PIC - 8 bit, lots or peripherals, good peer support (piclist), some limited free C compilers (SDCC, many for pay with up to 1k words free)
AVR - 8 bit, fewer peripherals per part, but good enough, good peer support (avrfreaks), GCC
MSP430 - TI's offering, no free IDE, GCC, support is going up
Renesas - Higher end (a little distanced from hobbyists) but is coming down
The AVR and MSP430 have frequent free seminar events with a free dev board and cheap/free/discounted tools. Check online.
Atmel (AVR) also carry ARM processors (16/32 bit), Renesas has some awsome 16 bit processors, Microchip (PIC) is coming out with a pseudo 16 bit processor/DSP (DSPic) which should be interesting.
Pic one, do a lot with it, but then branch out and do some projects with the others. You won't know low power until you use TI. You won't know product breadth/peripheral availability until you use PIC. AVR has greater speed in some cases, and often more code and memory space. Renesas is used very widely in Asia (used to be mitsubishi).
Don't learn one and believe it will do everything you need.
Because it's required in all messages, is always displayed in every mailreader, and the instant someone's relay starts messing with the subject line you know it was intentional.
If you make Yet Another Header then you'll get all sorts of excuses (I didn't know how to use it, etc) and relay operators may well 'accidently' filter out that header, etc. Further, no email program now would recognize the new header - it wouldn't be displayed, categorized, etc. All the end user is away of is sender, receipient, subject, body and (maybe) date. Most people don't upgrade their email programs unless prompted to do so by others.
In other words, it would require effort on the part of the end user to benefit from this law, and there are too many variables. This is simple and easy - very hard for a spammer to get out of.
Slashdot Mirror
You need to familiarize yourself with the comic strip search feature. Don't be shy, you know you've always wanted a strip search.
"Ode to spam"
"Second Ode to spam"
-Adam
The reason they don't know how long it'll take is likely due to licensing agreements, patent royalties, and other little issues encumbering the code, on top of the normal burocracy.
Inevitibly, in large organizations with large projects, some manager attempts to (and often succeeds in) shortcutting the development time by licensing or purchasing some outside code or technology. I would be surprised if Sun's implementation of Java was completely developed in house and/or completely owned without exception by Sun. They have to vet all the code and modules to be certian that they have the right to release Java. I doubt they'll release the unencumbered parts before it's all ready.
Further, there are likely to be patent and legal encumberances to the code which may prevent immediate release. It could even be that people along the line have said, "I'll patent this technique later, for right now it's a trade secret." There may yet be code in there which they can capitalize off of by patenting, while allowing for usage within java without charge.
And, of course, they have to make sure the company lawyers and accountants are satisfied with whatever terms they release it under. They may even wait until the SCO thing blows over if they really want to use the GPL (Unlikely).
So don't hold your breath. The ideal outcome would make one able to compile it for platforms which it does not yet run on natively and stable.
-Adam
So are you saying that only businesses should be allowed to exchange email?
No, I'm saying that only business class internet connections are expected to be fully open and unblocked. Residential customers get what they pay for.
When I wanted to overcome a similar problem myself (my ISP was free, but wouldn't forward email which had my domain's address instead of the ISPs) I simply made a port forwarder on my work machine which allowed me to use my work's SMTP server - the connection appeared to come from my work machine, so it was allowed through.
In this case he should use his ISPs SMTP server. If he can't, then he should get an ISP which allows him to do so.
In the end, MAPS is just a service some people subscribe to. Your ISP is just a business. Either or both may make it difficult to do what you are trying to do, but the reality is that you can switch services to someone who can meet your needs, since they are obviously not being met by your current providers.
Whining on slashdot is only going to get you a tiny bit of sympathy along with a heaping of ill will and "wake up, idiot!" postings.
Consider your audience.
-Adam
The real problem is that the email system was designed so completely open that spam cannot be stopped.
You may have an earthlink static IP, but it's still within the earthlink netblock, and since the vast majority of earthlink users use the earthlink SMTP server, and do not keep their own PCs clean of zombie relays, then it is perfectly reasonable to block smtp transactions from that netblock.
Or are you saying that the 0.1% of internet users who want (not need or require, but want) to send email from their own SMTP server without spending the time to use an ISP that allows such usage and avoids being blocked should dictate how others should set up their spam filters?
Sorry, but this is just a speck of dust on the windshield. Certianly not worth the time to find a better solution, even for a low paid tech.
-Adam
Please don't bother suggesting that I ask my provider to give me a static IP outside the affected block -- they won't, not without upgrading to a MUCH more expensive package which gives me no benefit for a small-traffic server like this.
Then you are stuck between a rock and a hard place. You are using a residential class line for business class use. MAPS is right to block residential lines because of all the zombie relay servers that virus writers are including in their payloads now.
Either pay for a business class connection, or use the SMTP server your provider gives you.
It's not the "open internet" that you'd like to see. Live within the limitations this simple, dumb network provides.
Besides, do you honestly expect MAPS to whitelist a dynamic IP? MAPS is not the problem, PEBKAC.
-Adam
1) Stop by the dealership to get the problem diagnosed by the computer. This costs nothing.
You have a good (or under used) dealership. Ford charges $65 where I'm at.
2) Once the official cause of the diagnostic code is determined, request they fax you an explanation of exactly what needs to be done.
Have you tried this before? Again, it's probably very dependant on the dealership. Further, the codes don't tell you what part is bad, they only tell you the symptoms. You have a procedure for each code to track down the part that's causing it. With just the codes you're getting a good guess, but you could replace 4-5 parts before getting the right one. Some codes are very specific (oxygen sensors, for instance) but some, such as the EGR Flow Insufficient could be one of three parts in a simple implementation, or many parts on a complex system.
Here's the best tip I've received:
When you buy a car from a dealership, insist that they include a manufacturer's service manual with the vehicle. This includes all the troubleshooting processes, good diagrams, etc. Then you can either fix it yourself, diagnose it yourself, or loan it to your mechanic when they fix your car.
-Adam
is OBD-II an improvement over the paper clip?
It doesn't matter whether it's an improvement or not. Every car manufactured after 1996 has it, and none that I've run across still have the old paper clip or blinking MIL indicator to read the codes.
As long as you stick to pre-1996 vehicles, you'll never want for an OBD-II reader.
-Adam
I have an OBD-II scanner. It's about $100 or so, hooks up to my laptop, and the software is free and the codes in the software are frequently updated. I've never had a code in my car that's undocumented.
The interface is simple, there are now only 5 protocols and interfaces that need to be supported by any given ISO compliant scan tool (ISO9141, PWM, VPW, Keyword, and CAN). These protocols and interfaces are available for a huge fee from ISO and other standards organizations.
There is enough information online and in various electronics magazines to interface without getting the standards, but the real problem is that there are only so many well-defined codes. Every car supports those. But each new model the manufacturers add more codes that are manufacturer, and sometimes even model, specific.
The vast majority of the codes are available, what this legislation does is make it so that when a new code is defined for a specific make/model/year, then it's instantly published. Even now you have to wait a year or 5 before the codes come out because warranties take care of the vast majority of work. Its the heavy use customers, and the shady dealerships that make it necessary to have the codes as soon as the model is available, but the dealerships and manufacturer have every incentive to not provide the information in a timely manner.
This legislation is to codify what, how, and when to release this information, whereas now the auto industry has tried to avoid regulation by volunteering incomplete and late information.
There is one open hardware project to support one of the protocols, and some open software to support the hardware, but it still leaves out 1/2 of the vehicles, and doesn't cover more than one car.
I've been working on making a completely open, compliant hardware and software product to comply with all the current standards and allow easy updating of codes. I have access to the standards, hardware, and only lack time and money. Hopefully within the next two years we'll see $20 code scanners with online code lookup (hardware is actually fairly easy) but assuming we don't, email me about the interest and I may move this from the back burner. I still have two projects in the pipeline that have to be finished, but I could have something before the end of the summer if there is significant interest. It would have to be fully open hardware/firmware/software.
-Adam
Since the obvious ( headphones!!! ), for whatever reason, is not applicable, there are a few ways sound travels from one cubicle to another and a few good ways to make it not travel so well.
Your cubicle is a big speaker cabinet that's pointed at the ceiling. Anyone within a few cubicles will get the reflections from the ceiling.
* Place sound deadening ceiling tiles above your cubicle (and out 8-10 feet). Cover them with loosely attached cloth (so it drapes several inches below ceiling height). This will reduce the largest portion of sound reflection.
Cubicle surfaces are attached to neighbor cubicles. Sounds from within the cubicle can be transmitted directly to the cubicle and reproduced at other points as the sound travels through the system.
* Place the speakers on sound deadening material and then on top of a rubber pad. Surface your entire cubicle with sound deadening material. Place loosely attached cloth around the cubicle (the heavier weight the cloth, the better)
Sound, by its very nature, travels through the air very well. All the previous measures only prevent reflections and transmissions through and from solid surfaces. Now you need to prevent the sound from traveling through the air to your neighbors.
* Extend your cubicle walls to the ceiling, or at least place several layers of cloth, preferebaly with sound deadening materil inbetween, from the top of your cubicle to the ceiling. Install a door of some kind. Put cones around your speakers to direct the sound energy towards you - you shouldn't be sending sound pollution to places you aren't at, so place the cones to prevent the sound from going all over the cubicle.
Of course, some sound is still getting through, and, let's face it, Primus isn't intended to be played at low volumes. I recommend installing a concrete block on top of a rubber pad/shock system inside your cubicle. On top of that pad you'll need double walls with sound insulation between them, and, of course, a similar door and ceiling.
But you'll probably have a better time (easier, cheaper, faster) buying wireless headphones or convincing your employer to allow you to telecommute.
For my part, I just find this hilarious when the worst part of your job is you can't listen to Primus at your preferred volume.
You must really be suffering, but remember that you need to choose your battles wisely. You may win this one, but the next one might be more important, and you might not have any more room to move.
-Adam
I use Eclipse and Scintilla, but neither of them for Python, and I don't realy use them all that much for regular development anyway.
But it's about as useful a recommendation as you'll get from other slashdot readers for your particular question anyway, so I thought I'd throw it at you.
Good luck, let us know how you make out. I've been wanting to get into Python for awhile, but have no real need to fulfill with it, and no time to dabble.
What I really want is an end to end programming solution which includes being able to program in a high level language which is not portable, but (to re-define portable) actually runs without change on many platforms keeping the local look and feel. End to end means I need to be able to develop the GUI/interface (with custom widgets) easily, the code behind it needs to be built and tested easily, and an installer that will install on any platform without change, or at minimum a single install configuration which will build installers for many platforms.
But Linux is not stable enough to be a good target (many distros, kernel changes, kde/gnome/etc, multiple platforms), and even the BSDs have many of the issues that Linux has. One of the banes of open source programming (release early, release often) is the fact that it changes significantly and frequently.
I believe that's one reason why interpreted languages are so popular among the OS advocates. All you have to target is the features available in the language, but those features must necessarily be limited. Only Java includes the language with built in GUI tools, and look at the mess it's become. The others require a seperate toolkit (QT, TK, etc) which means you have to target at least two different languages with two different versions.
Bleah.
Fantastic flexibility with constant maintenance, or little to no maintenance with limited flexibility? You decide...
-Adam
Since Emacs is an OS, why don't they port quake to it, and then make a boot CD out of that? Quake under Emacs should only be a 2-3 line script anyway.
-Adam
"Hey, where are you going with the goggles, man?"
...
...
"Boss told me to check for videocams in the theatre."
"Dude - fair warning, Paul Reuben is in there. I wouldn't go if I were you."
"Who? Look, I just do what the boss says. See ya in a few."
"!"
"You got a fork suitable for removing eyes around here?"
Hope WB is able to handle the 'problems' of this technology.
-Adam
Buying used means:
* The original owner didn't find the story satisfying enough to keep
* The original owner sold it to buy a newer game
* The original owner's younger brother needed ca$h fa$t and those rich nigerian people with slight banking problems won't put out to a 12 year old
In either of the first two cases, the game publisher's shouldn't continue the series - it was good for a few weeks/months of game play, but wasn't a classic, or is not good for group play.
-Adam
So far my understanding is that
GRSecurity:
* Fixes the problems in Linux that normally make Linux hard to secure
* Is very kernel version specific (ie, maintenance intensive)
* Easy to use
* Roughly equivilant to, or slightly better than, many other existing hardening 'patches'
The author backs some of this up by saying: "Though grsecurity is licensed under the GPL, I am the sole developer and originator of ideas for the project. Though it would be possible for others to handle maintenance of the project, the quality won't be held to the same standards and will not progress with the same goals I have set for the project."
So - it's either badly designed or grossly incomplete. Or both.
If it is maintenance intensive then the system needs a redesign from the bottom up, or deeper - draw up new specifications keeping in mind the limitations of the system you are modifying.
If it's grossly incomplete then there is little loss to the community. It may have been a great personal loss, but you should never, ever do what this devloper did - float a loan for someone else which they could not personally handle. You don't have to be a business wizard in order to feed yourself.
From Michael Gerber's book "E-Myth Revisited":
Poor businesspeople work "in" the business - they're technicians who daily make the product or service. The business can't succeed without the individual, who may be a genius at providing a product or service but spends every day firefighting.
Brilliant company owners work "on" the business. They build systems, processes, and techniques so the business runs smoothly. These awsome managers don't just solve problems, they invent solutions that eliminate problems forever, or that automatically deal with the issue when it comes up again.(emphasis mine)
If this project requires constant maintenance, or cannot survive without this particular programmer, then it is firmly in the 'poor firefighting technician' category.
Poor guy. I hope he gets on his feet and succesfully finds something that fulfills his need to create. This obviously is not the kind of work he's cut out for, though, and I hope, for his sake, that he chooses not to allow further sponsership of his work on this project.
-Adam
His problem, then, is not that he was caught, but that he was caught too late. He argues that the university should have warned him of the consequences earlier.
* CAUTION: Coffee is hot, do not store between legs while driving.
* DO NOT stop chainsaw with HANDS.
* DO NOT TOUCH SERVER
And new to this category:
* IF YOU CHEAT THROUGH SCHOOL, WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO PULL THE RUG OUT FROM UNDER YOU AT ANY TIME, INCLUDING AFTER YOU'VE PAID US 4 YEARS TO PLAY ALONG WITH YOUR LITTLE SCAM( but just before we hand you your diploma).
-Adam
1. Place art here. ...
2. Place an ambiguously worded article on Slashdot to avoid the usual front page story slashdotting.
3. Know that someone will find your hidden stash (we are geeks) and post the location of aforementioned art within the comments, and it will safely be disseminated without a typical slashdotting.
4.
5. Profit!
-Adam
Now one of the guys has been charged with a federal crime...
If you absolutely, positively must be raided today - illegally enter a restricted area.
I mean, come on, you know they're motion sensors - what did you think would happen?
-Adam
Way to give the ladies a headache, dude...
"Oooh, Aston Martin! Argh! Geek! But it is an Astin Martin... but that geek! Ugh... I wonder if I can unbundle this comingled product - Where's an antitrust lawyer when you need one?"
-Adam
HEY!
It's called Targetted Advertising, bub, and I'd modify IOS to add a tagline advertisement to each and every email and web page. Probably add a comment to zip files whizzing past, add my own copyright (or the GPL) to source code files... Hey, who needs a level 3 router when you can route at level 7 baby! Now we're cookin' with gas!
-Adam
These databases can be thought of as a small protection against spamming and other obnoxious behavior. I've worked on video rental systems with information (remember- they have either your SSN or your CC#) many years back. Even the managers cannot delete these records.
This is to cut down on multiple accounts (ie, I rent 5 movies, never return them, and instead of paying up I simply try to open a new account) as well as other issues surrounding liability (my son was never listed as a supplemental customer on my account! How could he have rented $150 worth of video games!) and so on.
However, I believe that a reasonable time frame should be established to purge or refresh old information, just as businesses are required to keep account statements back 7 years.
-Adam
You can't solve a people problem with technology
It's called a BFG9000.
-Adam
One of the most efficient ways to utilize solar energy is to grow willow trees (grow fast, easy to harvest) and then turn them into energy (variety of methods). Many of these energy products can be consumed at will with no loss over time.
Of course it's still land intensive, but any solar energy scheme is going to require a lot of light, which translates into a lot of land.
I always think back to the one science fiction book I read some time ago where the sun was dark because the civilization had sourrounded it with an orbit of mini-planets in a shell. Complete conversion of all the available solar energy...
Look up willow tree biomass for more info. The university of michigan studies has shown it to be a viable self-sustaining resource for quite a lot of energy.
-Adam
Back in the bad 'ol days the only thing a hobbyist could easily get ahold of was a PIC or a motorola. But motorolas were expensive, require more support parts, and not as easily obtained. Plus PIC had a nifty flash chip that didn't require a UV eraser. Lastly, they were available cheaply via digikey, and the assembler and full IDE were free. Parallax had a lot to do with their success in the hobbyist market with the basic stamp and then moving you to a PIC if you needed more power.
Fast forward to today.
Now everyone and their dog have flash, and many are just now realizing the gains to be had in the real market when the hobbyist market is courted, especially the younger hobbyists.
PIC - 8 bit, lots or peripherals, good peer support (piclist), some limited free C compilers (SDCC, many for pay with up to 1k words free)
AVR - 8 bit, fewer peripherals per part, but good enough, good peer support (avrfreaks), GCC
MSP430 - TI's offering, no free IDE, GCC, support is going up
Renesas - Higher end (a little distanced from hobbyists) but is coming down
The AVR and MSP430 have frequent free seminar events with a free dev board and cheap/free/discounted tools. Check online.
Atmel (AVR) also carry ARM processors (16/32 bit), Renesas has some awsome 16 bit processors, Microchip (PIC) is coming out with a pseudo 16 bit processor/DSP (DSPic) which should be interesting.
Pic one, do a lot with it, but then branch out and do some projects with the others. You won't know low power until you use TI. You won't know product breadth/peripheral availability until you use PIC. AVR has greater speed in some cases, and often more code and memory space. Renesas is used very widely in Asia (used to be mitsubishi).
Don't learn one and believe it will do everything you need.
-Adam
Why the Subject field???
Because it's required in all messages, is always displayed in every mailreader, and the instant someone's relay starts messing with the subject line you know it was intentional.
If you make Yet Another Header then you'll get all sorts of excuses (I didn't know how to use it, etc) and relay operators may well 'accidently' filter out that header, etc. Further, no email program now would recognize the new header - it wouldn't be displayed, categorized, etc. All the end user is away of is sender, receipient, subject, body and (maybe) date. Most people don't upgrade their email programs unless prompted to do so by others.
In other words, it would require effort on the part of the end user to benefit from this law, and there are too many variables. This is simple and easy - very hard for a spammer to get out of.
-Adam
The internet for the first 10 years I used it represented a truly free society.
What, slow with blinking text?
-Adam