This has been going on for a long time...
on
The Leased Life?
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· Score: 3
Our society has changed from lots of time and not as many goods (money) to lots of money, and no time. It is also driven by instant gratification. Do you remember the last toy you got? Think back to when you got it, or even when you first heard about it. You really wanted it, didn't you? Now think about how much you use it now.
Think about your job. How long have you been there? Can you imagine working for the same company for 20-50 years?
We have microwaves, fast food, and the internet. Is there anything you can't get within 24 hours given enough money?
Now here's the crux of the matter: People get tired of the same old things. Unless a product or offering changes occasionally, then we don't want it after awhile. So businesses have devised a model where we pay for a non-existant product (called a service) and when we don't want it, we stop paying them. We don't have to keep up with the maintenance of ANY object within our home, our time is too precious. We buy something called 'bandwidth', but it doesn't exist! The instant we use it it's gone; if you don't use it, it's gone. [lament on] Oh, if only bandwidth were like electricity, we only pay for what we use! [lament off]. We drive up to, into, and through an oil change place. It isn't worth the five dollars to us to spend 20 minutes on it instead of the ten the oil place offers.
In the end, a person owns very little, or nothing at all. In fact, a person makes money by what they know (another non-existant thing), and they spend money on things which also don't really exist.
So, in a sense, we've been giving businesses nothing for years as employees, and now they are taking it out of our hide!
-Adam
A crow was sitting on a fence post, doing nothing. Noticed by a passing rabbit, the rabbit inquired of the crow, "That looks comfortable. Mind if I sit and do nothing as well?" The crow accepted, and the rabbit sat at the base of the post. Just as the rabbit settled, a fox jumped out of the bush and gobbled him down before he knew what hit him. Moral of the story: You must be very high up before you can sit and do nothing.
We (and our future generations) will laugh at the statement, "...paving the way for a computer that could run all day on a single battery." just as much as we laugh at, "640k ought to be enough for anybody." now...;-)
I can't wait.
-Adam
There's so much bad in the best of us and so much good in the worst of us that it doesn't behoove any of us to talk about the rest of us.
The article may mean little to us, but to those who are not familiar with BSDs, seeing these names all together in one article by a respectable source means a lot to upper level management. It is difficult for many people to switch to a free OS when all their lives they've had to pay through the nose for a good OS.
-Adam
Trust is a trick that dogs play. They don't want you to know how delicious they are.
...why not offer your work in both formats and find out which way is better for you?
Most publishers buy exclusive rights to a book before they will publish it. Aside from publishing rights, it can also include movie and magazine rights. They usually either buy the rights for a period of time (10 years, plus option to renew) or forever. They will preclude your independant publishing of the novel in any medium, including internet.
If you want to publish in both formats, you'll either need to find a publisher which already does this, or publish it yourself in both formats (quite an expensive venture, and often not as much real world exposure).
-Adam
It's pretty funny, actually. It all started when I thought that inflammable was the opposite of flammable...
Re:Yeah, I'm thinking about getting rid of ACs
on
Privacy vs. Anonymity
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· Score: 2
Well for stories where anonymous input is needed, they could have an 'allow AC posts on this story' switch.
As far as throw away accounts, I don't think that would really be an issue. Sure, there are die-hard trolls that would go through the process of adding an account just to add a comment, but most people adding useless banter to a discussion would be turned off by it.
I read at a 2-4 level most of the time (except when meta-moderating) so I don't even see most of the troll and useless posts. But I think slashdot could improve some of its content by following a slightly more exclusive system. Number one, we wouldn't be wasting moderation points on a lot of drift, and could really moderate up those that deserve it instead of moderating down those that abuse the system.
But, this makes slashdot more exclusive rather than inclusive, and I really don't know CmdrTaco's aim for slashdot.
-Adam
And don't even ask my my opinion on the so called "HellMouth stories".
Re:Yeah, I'm thinking about getting rid of ACs
on
Privacy vs. Anonymity
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· Score: 2
The only good reason I know of to have AC is that it allows people to say things without most of the fear of legal repercussions. We've had lots of good inside info about companies which we could not have gotten otherwise.
How about we make it harder for you:
Registered users only can post ACs. Their AC post starts out at 1 degree lower than a regular post would (my normal is +1, so my ACs would be 1. Many users would have 0 AC posts) A user could not post AC posts until they have been a user for at least a week and/or they have a karma 5 points above the default karma given to new users.
This would take care of the majority of the crud that appears in many of these channels. The opportunity to post anonymously would become a priveledge, not a right (as it is now). This is restrictive, but I haven't seen any good AC posts which couldn't have been made using the above system.
-Adam
Campaign to regulate Abusive Chatterbox(AC) comments on Slashdot!
So, what part of my statement makes you think that I don't know what a militia is? The statement I made is a fact. Were you to leave out the first 4 words of the second amendment, you completely change the meaning of the amendment. I don't know what you were thinking when you read my statement, but it looks like you tried to see some sort of hidden meaning. There is no hidden meaning in my statement, no doublespeak, nor writing between the lines. Take it or leave it, it is a true statement.
-Adam
Marriage is love. Love is blind. Marriage is an institution. Therefore, marriage is an institution for the blind.
If you really want to know what I think about the modern usage of the second amendment, go here. But this thread is completely off topic. Please send flames directly to me.
Obviously a lot of people have internet access, but I imagine that many, like me, never go to a campaign website, nor have I seen any banner ads related to the upcoming vote. I know, however, that when we get closer, I'm going to be looking up that information so as to be better informed.
What percentage of the voting public do you believe will be affected by online/internet campaigning?
Do the current candidates 'get it' as far as how to use the internet, or are they relying on others to portray them. Ronald Reagan knew how to use the modern media of the time to his benefit, ushering in a new/different way of campaigning. Is this medium going to become as important as TV was in the 80s?
-Adam
Don't leave out the "A well regulated Militia" part, or else you'll change the entire subject of the second amendment...
Then the issue isn't really that people are trading music, it's about some INDIVIDUAL who somehow obtained a copy of a not-yet-released album, and then used Napster to distribute it?
That can't be the issue, because in that case Napster isn't to blame, it's the person who originally put the copy out.
I've read enough about the issue that I consider myself well-informed. I understand that the unreleased album is the straw that broke the camel's back, but after reading all this one should also understand that that isn't their focus. If it were they could easily and quickly stop it. Instead they've chosen the shotgun to shoot the rabbit.
-Adam
The church is near but the road is icy; the bar is far away but I will walk carefully. -- Russian Proverb
But it really ISN'T an issue of a copy of a copy of a copy! Every person talking in this forum knows someone who knows a person with a metallica CD. At MOST you'll have a second generation copy of a CD, which is the same quality as MOST of the metallica MP3s that are being traded on Napster. You would be lying were you to say that someone in wyoming couldn't get just as good a copy via a friend as they can get via napster.
The fact that you don't have to track down your friend for the tape and time to copy it is really moot. If you are a fan of their music, you'll buy a CD because the MP3 won't be good enough for you. If you are a casual listener, then yes, you are stealing. But you wouldn't listen to the song if it weren't on Napster, and the fact that it is in your MP3 library and you listen to it will make you want a good copy of it.
But then, this is the same argument software pirates make about pirating software: it doesn't really impact the company's profits.
I don't agree with software or music piracy, but I disagree with the methods used by BOTH sides in this 'battle'. Generally both sides take such an extremist viewpoint that one or the other ends up winning, and the end is really as bad as the beginning because the winner runs it too far into the endzone. You either end up going overboard with restrictions or you end up going overboard with liberties.
Metallica is using statistics to lie about the extent of the piracy. Napster is using the 'service provider is not responsible' lie to make it seem like they hold NO responsability for the actions of their users. The Users are using the lies that they will either buy the CD, or have it already. These all contain a good portion of truth, but they are being blatantly exagerated.
The music industry is facing another paradigm shift, and this is just one of the tiny pre-battles which are going to draw the real battle lines. Like many shifts before (shows-> pressed records-> recordable tapes-> pressed & recordable CDs-> computer manipulated and transferred, compressed digital) this one is going to be fought tooth and nail until it brings both the music industry AND the users kicking and screaming into another quiet period of peace and profit.
-Adam
Sin has many tools, but a lie is the handle which fits them all.
Part of the bootleg taping issue is that the MP3s are often NOT CD or perfect copies. The fans which download this stuff, most of which are on 56k lines still, are getting cassette quality crud because it downloads faster. Someone has sold metallica a boatload of crud, Lars believes that everyone on Napster are making/getting perfect copies.
Metallica: Whoever you have chosen as you technology advisor, get a second and third opinion.
-Adam
As a computer, I find your faith in technology amusing.
Bill and other major shareholders (steering) will be forced to place all their stock into one company (of each's individual choice) while regular shareholders will have their stock split equally between the companies.
-Adam
The paperless office will come right after the paperless toilet.
The main focus of the 'industry' (nearly every industry) is to take current technologies, and make them work together to augment human decisions and work. I know it sounds like a buzz-sentence (and it is a sentence, a life sentence!) but the fact remains: every business problem can be solved by one proprietary/expensive solution, or by the merger of 2-5 seperate less expensive solutions.
The real programmer isn't necessarily knowledgeable in all these technologies, but is good at
Problem solving Learning (quickly) Grasping large-system concepts quickly Discussing the solution with others at their level
Once you have the basic concepts of programming down, the speed with which you implement the system is often more important that the speed the final system runs at. You may find yourself writing a VB client which interfaces with a Perl cgi module which then communicates with an ecommerce DB. The next day you have to talk with the marketing manager about the best way to keep in touch with sales reps on the internet. After that its off to manufacturing where they need to change their maintenance and reports DB interface.
You have to know of new technologies so that when you have a problem to solve you know about the tools that are available. A guru C programmer knows of a few other languages and can apply them, but every problem looks like a nail to be fixed with their C hammer. This isn't bad, but in most cases a person who goes to the hardware store every week and peruses the tools available without expending a lot of time in any particular tool will do better and end up with a more easily maintained finished product.
-Adam
Education is what you get from reading the fine print. Experience is what you get from not reading it.
You aren't going to find a pre-built unit for this, your best bet is to find someone who knows what they are doing to build one for you.
Assuming you are going to be getting you main power from the AC line, get a low-amperage step-up transformer. It will convert your 120VAC to 240VAC. Using a rectifier and filtering will get you about 300VDC at no load. If you load it correctly you'll end up with about 260-270 VDC, which should be well within spec for your piezo elements.
If you need this to be battery operated, or you need the above to be exactly 265VDC, then you need to get into switching power supplies. At that point, unless you know what you are doing, you should get someone else to design it for you. High voltage power supplies are something of an art, since insulators don't act like you expect them to. It's kindof like trying to charm rattlesnakes...
When one becomes an MCSE, Microsoft inducts them into the MCSE group, and sends them 'useful' information about Microsoft's products. This is to 'keep the MCSE up to date on microsoft technologies' but in reality is a sales channel. So, MS trains an MCSE, and a manager hires the MCSE because MS has certified the MCSE. Now MS has a salesperson^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^HMCSE working for the manager. MS sends the MCSE info about current technologies and two things happen:
1) Every problem looks like a nail to the MCSE to be solved with the Microsoft Hammer(TM). 2) MCSE recommends product upgrades and new products in the guise of making things run more smoothly.
Now, this is a good model to use, because it works. Does Red Hat want to increase its market share? Keep in frequent contact with your certificatees!
-Adam
Q: How many IBM CPU's does it take to execute a job? A: Four: three to hold it down and one to rip its header off. -Stephen Samuel
I'm curious if . . . it would be possible to do . . . with video the same thing that stereo speakers have done for sound.
The two reasons why you can use two speakers to simulate sound from points other than the speakers are 1) A speaker in each ear, so you can manipulate the data going to each ear and 2) The sound moves, and by exploiting the delay involved in the sound going from the speaker to your ear, you can create these effects.
You can do the same with displays by: 1) Having a display for each eye (which is currently the best bid on stereo vision) through head displays, or other eye type filters (LCD shutters, polarized lenses, etc) 2) Moving the display or display surface. If you move an LCD display in and out then you can simulate having infinite planes of display. (I've thought about this in quite a bit of depth. The main issue here is reliability of a large mechanical system including wear, sound and vibration issues)
If you could cause the speed of light to slow down to about the speed of sound, then it is theoretically feasable that one could sit in a mirrored room and generate 3D holograms without special headgear. Einstein! Where are you!? (Said like, "Scooby-doo, where are you?")
-Adam
Logic is a systematic method of coming to the wrong conclusion with confidence.
There is absolutely NO reason for you to have used this exploit on an ACTIVE thread!! Yes, you've shown there's an exploit, but honestly the moderator's points are going to used up moderating down automatic +1 posts (score:2). I don't know how many moderator points are passed out to people, but I suppose it is possible that their use in dumbing down your autoresponses could affect the moderating of the next few stories, as well as anger those who lose Karma because of this.
I would strongly suggest that you disable the web page so it doesn't occur anymore on this thread. Start a new story and direct people there who want to know about this 'exploit'.
-Adam
"Responsibility is the price every man must pay for freedom" - Plato
DO NOT follow the links on the SLASHDOT SECURITY HOLE. It posts a message to this thread under your name (if you are logged in) which is then moderated down by conscientious moderators, which causes you to lose Karma.
Of course, if you WANT to lose Karma, keep clicking on retry...
-Adam
Posted by Adam, who thinks some moderators will moderate this down just to watch others lose Karma...
First of all, this should really be labelled 2.5D, not 3D, since it is layered.
It was only a matter of time until people started coming out with displays such as this. Layering 10 transparent LCDs would be good also.
The problems is the bandwidth needed to drive such a beast. Imagine 10 layers (not very many at all) and 1024x768x24 at 60Hz. This means you need a graphics card capable of handling over 12Gb/s of data. In comparison, my 1600x1200 monitor only needs 46Mb/s of bandwidth.
But then, bandwidth is a widespread problem that is getting more attention than other problems. Imagine an HDTV receiver that gets 10 channels synchronized to a 10 layer monitor... 2.5D movies, anyone?
-Adam
Q: How many IBM CPU's does it take to execute a job? A: Four; three to hold it down, and one to rip its head off.
I can't imagine that it would ever become popular enough within the Linux/UNIX community
The Linux/UNIX community is changing, just as the internet community changed in the early nineties. In one breath someone here says, "We need to make Linux easier to use and spread its acceptance." and in the next you hear, "I don't want to deal with people who can't use a computer, stay off Linux and use Windows!" In the next breath you hear about a static "Linux/UNIX community" which would never let a program in which would have as many problems as outlook.
Well, the "Linux/UNIX community" is dynamic, very dynamic. You can't read the newsgroups without seeing how many 'newbies' are trying out Linux, and how many others are trying to get Linux/UNIX into homes of windows users.
I'm not discounting SoftwareJanitor, there is a lot of truth in that posting, but I know that the blanket statement "it would [never] become popular enough within the Linux/UNIX community..." is not accurate, since the Linux/UNIX community won't the be same tomorrow as it is today and everyone here seems to want it to be different.
If one wants to advocate an operating system then one needs to help people understand that you just need to be a computer user to use it, you don't need to join some sort of community or exclusive club. The more you talk about 'the community', the more you alienate those who don't understand that it's not exclusive.
A lot of people indicate that Linux is so difficult to use that the average John Doe can't use it. They indicate that Windows is more intuitive.
This is not true.
I won't argue that Linux is easy to use, but I will argue that Windows has a learning curve. Linux still has a larger curve (longer time to learn) but they are in the same territory.
A few major reasons why Linux isn't being picked up like windows is:
Lack of teaching
Lack of face to face support
Lack of bundling
Lack of vender support
Lack of business support
The majority of people learning to use a computer still learn to do so in school. There is NOT a computer in every home, nor does John Doe have a desire to fiddle with the computer unless they are bound for geekdom (in which case this post doesn't apply).
Schools use systems and programs which the student is most likely to encounter in their career. These are systems businesses use. Businesses won't give the accountant/secretary/marketing/field service people Linux without training and support. Right now training and support for Linux is less than optimal, AND the boss who selects the systems -bing!- went through business school suckling on Windows. They are unlikely to choose something they are unfamiliar with especially if they know windows will do what they need to do. Also they know that they'll have to train ALL the employees under them if they choose a different system.
So, while I agree that the user interface needs a lot of work to make Linux easier to adopt, I believe there are other things which the Linux community can (and should) focus on which will bring a more rapid adoption than simply focusing on the user experience. Perhaps my point could be more easily summarized this way: Microsoft developed an 'improved' user experience AND they 'effectively' marketed their product to schools/businesses. Ask yourself: Would they have gone further with just the improved UI (and not the marketing/strategy), or just the marketing/strategy (and not the improved UI)?
I would say that their success hinges almost entirely on their successful thrust into their market despite their UI.
-Adam
With computers, every morning is the dawn of a new error.
Based on the story, time of day, phase of the moon and the cost of tea in China, the signal-to-noise ratio in the comments fluctuates wildly.
I'm really bothered by this statement. I mean, all this time we could have been calculating the S/N ratio based on information easily gathered from the internet, and we haven't been doing it? Just think of the time we could save if the title of the story had a little "39% S/N" next to it!!
-Adam
A flea and a fly in a flue Were imprisoned, so what could they do? Said the flea, "Let us fly!" Said the fly, "Let us flee!" So they flew off through a flaw in the flue.
It really depends on how much support your product needs, and how you choose to support it. The most accurate and easy way to determine the proper ratio is to look at the numbers you are having now.
Say you have 1 person doing the majority of support calls, and you have 1000 people using your software. Find out how long the average call is, how many calls they field a day, etc, etc. Find out how happy customers are with your support (postcard survey, etc). If there are frequently asked questions, put in a voice mail system which answers a few of them (and put it in the manual next revision!)
Once you know the load 1000 users takes, it is not too difficult to extend the staff as sales grow. Look at other options and issues as well. If you routinely get questions which are the same (say 5-10 of them) then it is worthwhile sending a note to current users of these items (of course, this only applies to known customers and depends on your product and sales channel)
The bottom line is that it is difficult for you to really judge how easy your product is to use without case studies or real use. Because of this your only option is to gather the numbers and use them to support your case with your superior. There really is no generic ratio that you could/should depend on (ie, a stupid business mistake - base your operation on what 'everyone else is doing' without proper study)
I started following the diet loosely (watching my intake, mostly, cutting back to about 1000 callories a day) and went from 170# to 160# in under two weeks. I've been hovering right around this weight no matter what I eat or don't eat, so I'm going to have to go for it again. I'll end up doing about 1300 to 1600 calories instead, the 1000 was great to start off with, but I couldn't keep it up and remain healthy. (Plus I have finals this week, and family vacation next week. Not gonna diet until after that!)
Slashdot Mirror
Our society has changed from lots of time and not as many goods (money) to lots of money, and no time. It is also driven by instant gratification. Do you remember the last toy you got? Think back to when you got it, or even when you first heard about it. You really wanted it, didn't you? Now think about how much you use it now.
Think about your job. How long have you been there? Can you imagine working for the same company for 20-50 years?
We have microwaves, fast food, and the internet. Is there anything you can't get within 24 hours given enough money?
Now here's the crux of the matter: People get tired of the same old things. Unless a product or offering changes occasionally, then we don't want it after awhile. So businesses have devised a model where we pay for a non-existant product (called a service) and when we don't want it, we stop paying them. We don't have to keep up with the maintenance of ANY object within our home, our time is too precious. We buy something called 'bandwidth', but it doesn't exist! The instant we use it it's gone; if you don't use it, it's gone. [lament on] Oh, if only bandwidth were like electricity, we only pay for what we use! [lament off]. We drive up to, into, and through an oil change place. It isn't worth the five dollars to us to spend 20 minutes on it instead of the ten the oil place offers.
In the end, a person owns very little, or nothing at all. In fact, a person makes money by what they know (another non-existant thing), and they spend money on things which also don't really exist.
So, in a sense, we've been giving businesses nothing for years as employees, and now they are taking it out of our hide!
-Adam
A crow was sitting on a fence post, doing nothing.
Noticed by a passing rabbit, the rabbit inquired of the crow,
"That looks comfortable. Mind if I sit and do nothing as well?"
The crow accepted, and the rabbit sat at the base of the post.
Just as the rabbit settled, a fox jumped out of the bush
and gobbled him down before he knew what hit him.
Moral of the story: You must be very high up
before you can sit and do nothing.
We (and our future generations) will laugh at the statement, "...paving the way for a computer that could run all day on a single battery." just as much as we laugh at, "640k ought to be enough for anybody." now... ;-)
I can't wait.
-Adam
There's so much bad in the best of us
and so much good in the worst of us
that it doesn't behoove any of us
to talk about the rest of us.
The article may mean little to us, but to those who are not familiar with BSDs, seeing these names all together in one article by a respectable source means a lot to upper level management. It is difficult for many people to switch to a free OS when all their lives they've had to pay through the nose for a good OS.
-Adam
Trust is a trick that dogs play. They don't want you to know how delicious they are.
...why not offer your work in both formats and find out which way is better for you?
Most publishers buy exclusive rights to a book before they will publish it. Aside from publishing rights, it can also include movie and magazine rights. They usually either buy the rights for a period of time (10 years, plus option to renew) or forever. They will preclude your independant publishing of the novel in any medium, including internet.
If you want to publish in both formats, you'll either need to find a publisher which already does this, or publish it yourself in both formats (quite an expensive venture, and often not as much real world exposure).
-Adam
It's pretty funny, actually. It all started when I thought that inflammable was the opposite of flammable...
Well for stories where anonymous input is needed, they could have an 'allow AC posts on this story' switch.
As far as throw away accounts, I don't think that would really be an issue. Sure, there are die-hard trolls that would go through the process of adding an account just to add a comment, but most people adding useless banter to a discussion would be turned off by it.
I read at a 2-4 level most of the time (except when meta-moderating) so I don't even see most of the troll and useless posts. But I think slashdot could improve some of its content by following a slightly more exclusive system. Number one, we wouldn't be wasting moderation points on a lot of drift, and could really moderate up those that deserve it instead of moderating down those that abuse the system.
But, this makes slashdot more exclusive rather than inclusive, and I really don't know CmdrTaco's aim for slashdot.
-Adam
And don't even ask my my opinion on the so called "HellMouth stories".
The only good reason I know of to have AC is that it allows people to say things without most of the fear of legal repercussions. We've had lots of good inside info about companies which we could not have gotten otherwise.
How about we make it harder for you:
Registered users only can post ACs. Their AC post starts out at 1 degree lower than a regular post would (my normal is +1, so my ACs would be 1. Many users would have 0 AC posts) A user could not post AC posts until they have been a user for at least a week and/or they have a karma 5 points above the default karma given to new users.
This would take care of the majority of the crud that appears in many of these channels. The opportunity to post anonymously would become a priveledge, not a right (as it is now). This is restrictive, but I haven't seen any good AC posts which couldn't have been made using the above system.
-Adam
Campaign to regulate Abusive Chatterbox(AC) comments on Slashdot!
So, what part of my statement makes you think that I don't know what a militia is? The statement I made is a fact. Were you to leave out the first 4 words of the second amendment, you completely change the meaning of the amendment. I don't know what you were thinking when you read my statement, but it looks like you tried to see some sort of hidden meaning. There is no hidden meaning in my statement, no doublespeak, nor writing between the lines. Take it or leave it, it is a true statement.
-Adam
Marriage is love.
Love is blind.
Marriage is an institution.
Therefore, marriage is an institution for the blind.
If you really want to know what I think about the modern usage of the second amendment, go here. But this thread is completely off topic. Please send flames directly to me.
Obviously a lot of people have internet access, but I imagine that many, like me, never go to a campaign website, nor have I seen any banner ads related to the upcoming vote. I know, however, that when we get closer, I'm going to be looking up that information so as to be better informed.
What percentage of the voting public do you believe will be affected by online/internet campaigning?
Do the current candidates 'get it' as far as how to use the internet, or are they relying on others to portray them. Ronald Reagan knew how to use the modern media of the time to his benefit, ushering in a new/different way of campaigning. Is this medium going to become as important as TV was in the 80s?
-Adam
Don't leave out the "A well regulated Militia" part, or else you'll change the entire subject of the second amendment...
Then the issue isn't really that people are trading music, it's about some INDIVIDUAL who somehow obtained a copy of a not-yet-released album, and then used Napster to distribute it?
That can't be the issue, because in that case Napster isn't to blame, it's the person who originally put the copy out.
I've read enough about the issue that I consider myself well-informed. I understand that the unreleased album is the straw that broke the camel's back, but after reading all this one should also understand that that isn't their focus. If it were they could easily and quickly stop it. Instead they've chosen the shotgun to shoot the rabbit.
-Adam
The church is near but the road is icy;
the bar is far away but I will walk carefully.
-- Russian Proverb
But it really ISN'T an issue of a copy of a copy of a copy! Every person talking in this forum knows someone who knows a person with a metallica CD. At MOST you'll have a second generation copy of a CD, which is the same quality as MOST of the metallica MP3s that are being traded on Napster. You would be lying were you to say that someone in wyoming couldn't get just as good a copy via a friend as they can get via napster.
The fact that you don't have to track down your friend for the tape and time to copy it is really moot. If you are a fan of their music, you'll buy a CD because the MP3 won't be good enough for you. If you are a casual listener, then yes, you are stealing. But you wouldn't listen to the song if it weren't on Napster, and the fact that it is in your MP3 library and you listen to it will make you want a good copy of it.
But then, this is the same argument software pirates make about pirating software: it doesn't really impact the company's profits.
I don't agree with software or music piracy, but I disagree with the methods used by BOTH sides in this 'battle'. Generally both sides take such an extremist viewpoint that one or the other ends up winning, and the end is really as bad as the beginning because the winner runs it too far into the endzone. You either end up going overboard with restrictions or you end up going overboard with liberties.
Metallica is using statistics to lie about the extent of the piracy. Napster is using the 'service provider is not responsible' lie to make it seem like they hold NO responsability for the actions of their users. The Users are using the lies that they will either buy the CD, or have it already. These all contain a good portion of truth, but they are being blatantly exagerated.
The music industry is facing another paradigm shift, and this is just one of the tiny pre-battles which are going to draw the real battle lines. Like many shifts before (shows-> pressed records-> recordable tapes-> pressed & recordable CDs-> computer manipulated and transferred, compressed digital) this one is going to be fought tooth and nail until it brings both the music industry AND the users kicking and screaming into another quiet period of peace and profit.
-Adam
Sin has many tools, but a lie is the handle which fits them all.
Part of the bootleg taping issue is that the MP3s are often NOT CD or perfect copies. The fans which download this stuff, most of which are on 56k lines still, are getting cassette quality crud because it downloads faster. Someone has sold metallica a boatload of crud, Lars believes that everyone on Napster are making/getting perfect copies.
Metallica: Whoever you have chosen as you technology advisor, get a second and third opinion.
-Adam
As a computer, I find your faith in technology amusing.
Bill and other major shareholders (steering) will be forced to place all their stock into one company (of each's individual choice) while regular shareholders will have their stock split equally between the companies.
-Adam
The paperless office will come right after the paperless toilet.
The main focus of the 'industry' (nearly every industry) is to take current technologies, and make them work together to augment human decisions and work. I know it sounds like a buzz-sentence (and it is a sentence, a life sentence!) but the fact remains: every business problem can be solved by one proprietary/expensive solution, or by the merger of 2-5 seperate less expensive solutions.
The real programmer isn't necessarily knowledgeable in all these technologies, but is good at
Problem solving
Learning (quickly)
Grasping large-system concepts quickly
Discussing the solution with others at their level
Once you have the basic concepts of programming down, the speed with which you implement the system is often more important that the speed the final system runs at. You may find yourself writing a VB client which interfaces with a Perl cgi module which then communicates with an ecommerce DB. The next day you have to talk with the marketing manager about the best way to keep in touch with sales reps on the internet. After that its off to manufacturing where they need to change their maintenance and reports DB interface.
You have to know of new technologies so that when you have a problem to solve you know about the tools that are available. A guru C programmer knows of a few other languages and can apply them, but every problem looks like a nail to be fixed with their C hammer. This isn't bad, but in most cases a person who goes to the hardware store every week and peruses the tools available without expending a lot of time in any particular tool will do better and end up with a more easily maintained finished product.
-Adam
Education is what you get from reading the fine print.
Experience is what you get from not reading it.
You aren't going to find a pre-built unit for this, your best bet is to find someone who knows what they are doing to build one for you.
Assuming you are going to be getting you main power from the AC line, get a low-amperage step-up transformer. It will convert your 120VAC to 240VAC. Using a rectifier and filtering will get you about 300VDC at no load. If you load it correctly you'll end up with about 260-270 VDC, which should be well within spec for your piezo elements.
If you need this to be battery operated, or you need the above to be exactly 265VDC, then you need to get into switching power supplies. At that point, unless you know what you are doing, you should get someone else to design it for you. High voltage power supplies are something of an art, since insulators don't act like you expect them to. It's kindof like trying to charm rattlesnakes...
-Adam
All power corrupts - but we need electricity!
When one becomes an MCSE, Microsoft inducts them into the MCSE group, and sends them 'useful' information about Microsoft's products. This is to 'keep the MCSE up to date on microsoft technologies' but in reality is a sales channel. So, MS trains an MCSE, and a manager hires the MCSE because MS has certified the MCSE. Now MS has a salesperson^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^HMCSE working for the manager. MS sends the MCSE info about current technologies and two things happen:
1) Every problem looks like a nail to the MCSE to be solved with the Microsoft Hammer(TM).
2) MCSE recommends product upgrades and new products in the guise of making things run more smoothly.
Now, this is a good model to use, because it works. Does Red Hat want to increase its market share? Keep in frequent contact with your certificatees!
-Adam
Q: How many IBM CPU's does it take to execute a job?
A: Four: three to hold it down and one to rip its header off.
-Stephen Samuel
I'm curious if . . . it would be possible to do . . . with video the same thing that stereo speakers have done for sound.
The two reasons why you can use two speakers to simulate sound from points other than the speakers are
1) A speaker in each ear, so you can manipulate the data going to each ear and
2) The sound moves, and by exploiting the delay involved in the sound going from the speaker to your ear, you can create these effects.
You can do the same with displays by:
1) Having a display for each eye (which is currently the best bid on stereo vision) through head displays, or other eye type filters (LCD shutters, polarized lenses, etc)
2) Moving the display or display surface. If you move an LCD display in and out then you can simulate having infinite planes of display. (I've thought about this in quite a bit of depth. The main issue here is reliability of a large mechanical system including wear, sound and vibration issues)
If you could cause the speed of light to slow down to about the speed of sound, then it is theoretically feasable that one could sit in a mirrored room and generate 3D holograms without special headgear. Einstein! Where are you!? (Said like, "Scooby-doo, where are you?")
-Adam
Logic is a systematic method of coming to the wrong conclusion with confidence.
There is absolutely NO reason for you to have used this exploit on an ACTIVE thread!! Yes, you've shown there's an exploit, but honestly the moderator's points are going to used up moderating down automatic +1 posts (score:2). I don't know how many moderator points are passed out to people, but I suppose it is possible that their use in dumbing down your autoresponses could affect the moderating of the next few stories, as well as anger those who lose Karma because of this.
I would strongly suggest that you disable the web page so it doesn't occur anymore on this thread. Start a new story and direct people there who want to know about this 'exploit'.
-Adam
"Responsibility is the price every man must pay for freedom" - Plato
DO NOT follow the links on the SLASHDOT SECURITY HOLE. It posts a message to this thread under your name (if you are logged in) which is then moderated down by conscientious moderators, which causes you to lose Karma.
Of course, if you WANT to lose Karma, keep clicking on retry...
-Adam
Posted by Adam, who thinks some moderators will moderate this down just to watch others lose Karma...
First of all, this should really be labelled 2.5D, not 3D, since it is layered.
It was only a matter of time until people started coming out with displays such as this. Layering 10 transparent LCDs would be good also.
The problems is the bandwidth needed to drive such a beast. Imagine 10 layers (not very many at all) and 1024x768x24 at 60Hz. This means you need a graphics card capable of handling over 12Gb/s of data. In comparison, my 1600x1200 monitor only needs 46Mb/s of bandwidth.
But then, bandwidth is a widespread problem that is getting more attention than other problems. Imagine an HDTV receiver that gets 10 channels synchronized to a 10 layer monitor... 2.5D movies, anyone?
-Adam
Q: How many IBM CPU's does it take to execute a job?
A: Four; three to hold it down, and one to rip its head off.
Unfortunately, it's only 800 x 600 x 2 so far
And on their site:
© 1999 - 2000 Deep Video Imaging Ltd. All Rights Reserved. View Legal Information.
This site is best viewed with a screen resolution of 1024 x 768
-Adam
Join the army, meet interesting people, kill them.
This is the problem:
I can't imagine that it would ever become popular enough within the Linux/UNIX community
The Linux/UNIX community is changing, just as the internet community changed in the early nineties. In one breath someone here says, "We need to make Linux easier to use and spread its acceptance." and in the next you hear, "I don't want to deal with people who can't use a computer, stay off Linux and use Windows!" In the next breath you hear about a static "Linux/UNIX community" which would never let a program in which would have as many problems as outlook.
Well, the "Linux/UNIX community" is dynamic, very dynamic. You can't read the newsgroups without seeing how many 'newbies' are trying out Linux, and how many others are trying to get Linux/UNIX into homes of windows users.
I'm not discounting SoftwareJanitor, there is a lot of truth in that posting, but I know that the blanket statement "it would [never] become popular enough within the Linux/UNIX community..." is not accurate, since the Linux/UNIX community won't the be same tomorrow as it is today and everyone here seems to want it to be different.
If one wants to advocate an operating system then one needs to help people understand that you just need to be a computer user to use it, you don't need to join some sort of community or exclusive club. The more you talk about 'the community', the more you alienate those who don't understand that it's not exclusive.
-Adam
This is not true.
I won't argue that Linux is easy to use, but I will argue that Windows has a learning curve. Linux still has a larger curve (longer time to learn) but they are in the same territory.
A few major reasons why Linux isn't being picked up like windows is:
- Lack of teaching
- Lack of face to face support
- Lack of bundling
- Lack of vender support
- Lack of business support
The majority of people learning to use a computer still learn to do so in school. There is NOT a computer in every home, nor does John Doe have a desire to fiddle with the computer unless they are bound for geekdom (in which case this post doesn't apply).Schools use systems and programs which the student is most likely to encounter in their career. These are systems businesses use. Businesses won't give the accountant/secretary/marketing/field service people Linux without training and support. Right now training and support for Linux is less than optimal, AND the boss who selects the systems -bing!- went through business school suckling on Windows. They are unlikely to choose something they are unfamiliar with especially if they know windows will do what they need to do. Also they know that they'll have to train ALL the employees under them if they choose a different system.
So, while I agree that the user interface needs a lot of work to make Linux easier to adopt, I believe there are other things which the Linux community can (and should) focus on which will bring a more rapid adoption than simply focusing on the user experience. Perhaps my point could be more easily summarized this way: Microsoft developed an 'improved' user experience AND they 'effectively' marketed their product to schools/businesses. Ask yourself: Would they have gone further with just the improved UI (and not the marketing/strategy), or just the marketing/strategy (and not the improved UI)?
I would say that their success hinges almost entirely on their successful thrust into their market despite their UI.
-Adam
With computers, every morning is the dawn of a new error.
Based on the story, time of day, phase of the moon and the cost of tea in China, the signal-to-noise ratio in the comments fluctuates wildly.
I'm really bothered by this statement. I mean, all this time we could have been calculating the S/N ratio based on information easily gathered from the internet, and we haven't been doing it? Just think of the time we could save if the title of the story had a little "39% S/N" next to it!!
-Adam
A flea and a fly in a flue
Were imprisoned, so what could they do?
Said the flea, "Let us fly!"
Said the fly, "Let us flee!"
So they flew off through a flaw in the flue.
It really depends on how much support your product needs, and how you choose to support it. The most accurate and easy way to determine the proper ratio is to look at the numbers you are having now.
Say you have 1 person doing the majority of support calls, and you have 1000 people using your software. Find out how long the average call is, how many calls they field a day, etc, etc. Find out how happy customers are with your support (postcard survey, etc). If there are frequently asked questions, put in a voice mail system which answers a few of them (and put it in the manual next revision!)
Once you know the load 1000 users takes, it is not too difficult to extend the staff as sales grow. Look at other options and issues as well. If you routinely get questions which are the same (say 5-10 of them) then it is worthwhile sending a note to current users of these items (of course, this only applies to known customers and depends on your product and sales channel)
The bottom line is that it is difficult for you to really judge how easy your product is to use without case studies or real use. Because of this your only option is to gather the numbers and use them to support your case with your superior. There really is no generic ratio that you could/should depend on (ie, a stupid business mistake - base your operation on what 'everyone else is doing' without proper study)
-Adam
Data which is not backed up does not exist.
I started following the diet loosely (watching my intake, mostly, cutting back to about 1000 callories a day) and went from 170# to 160# in under two weeks. I've been hovering right around this weight no matter what I eat or don't eat, so I'm going to have to go for it again. I'll end up doing about 1300 to 1600 calories instead, the 1000 was great to start off with, but I couldn't keep it up and remain healthy. (Plus I have finals this week, and family vacation next week. Not gonna diet until after that!)
-Adam
Weight control is just mind over platter.