Current legislation is due to pass in NY concerning the downsizing of hospitals. We have a small, financially efficient, hospital in our little village that is due to be downsized... unless our legislators vote against the bill.
No vote means passing by default.
And it's over the Christmas holidays.
I suppose we'll all be driving 30 to 40 miles for the nearest hospital, or paying an extra $2k for an ambulance roll out.
That "someone" you refer to must be comprised of U.S. citizens. It's our job to do this, no one elses.
Unfortunately, the tools in which we can accomplish this are severely restricted. After all, a bipartisan system serves only to keep itself in power. As long as our choices are either:
a: punch to the face
or
b: a kick to the groin
we are left with little hope for positive change.
Our government is in the process of a self coup. And I'm terrified that our only options are to suck it up, or beat them to them to the punch.
Now, I realize that the story here is probably blown way out of proportion, but that says nothing to the fact that it is closer to truth than it was 20 years ago. Gone unchecked or unchallenged, it very well could be in our future.
It's time to get these fools out of our lives. And I mean all of them (Dem & Rep). No good can come from a career politician. By definition they live an elitist lifestyle that excludes them from the population that they "represent".
Mostly because I wound up with a lot of 12 unopened installs in a closed auction. I'd originally tried this with Acronis TI 8, but kept getting errors during the reinstall. With the mobo's I've used with this procedure, I've not had any problems.
I've been pointing out those refurb Netvistas on Tigerdirect like mad. $200, 2.4 GHz P4, 512 MB ram and a 40 GB HD. Throw Ubuntu on there and you're solid.
Can't use Linux (for whatever reason), a few extra dollars throws either a Win2k or XP Pro COA on the side for you.
Great option for startups, families with kids, etc...
And who can complain about a Netvista? (Especially the SFF Netvistas... love 'em to death.)
Hardware warranty on parts, one hour labor on parts replacement. Most business clients agree with my recomendations to purchase additional necessaries (i.e. on hand replacement of HD and DVD). In the event of HD failure, a replacement is on hand and the failed unit is then sent back for warranty replacement.
As I'm in a relatively small town, with a shop on Main St (literally), most of my business clients are within a 5 minute walk. And as such, if a business client needs me now. I place an "out of the shop for an hour" sign on the door and am at their disposal.
To answer the question above parent about undercutting Dell not being worth it:
It's funny. Everyone talks about how business need to evolve to make the required changes to compete. In my situation, it's actually very easy.
I don't sell computers. I sell a service. When a client comes in for a consultation with me, we sit down and map out their needs. I provide the client with a selection of hardware choices and include my recomendation. Once components have been selected, I provide the client with either Newegg or Tigerdirect ordering numbers (in the case of Newegg, I offer to setup a preliminary client account w/o financials, and fill their cart). The client actually orders their own parts and I assemble and provide a one year (hardware) service warranty on each assembled system.
My billing is very simple that way -- I don't handle inventory, so there's no taxable sales. I provide service only and charge flat rate service fees that are set as to complexity and provide scalable discount for quantity. i.e. Workstation builds are $150 a pop. More than three builds gives a 10% discount, five builds - 15%.
I sketched the initial idea and handed it to my accountant for refinement. I now have a very simple business model that is beginning (after two years) to show some real stability.
The majority of my PC business is walk in cleaning jobs and reinstalls for Mom and Dad. Occasionally I get to build cool stuff (high end gaming rigs and HTPC's), I've got 8 systems on the floor for closed LAN party gaming, a 12'x 10' chromakey green screen for novelty digital photo's, and now we're branching out to cover novelty karaoke recording and mobile garage band and gig recording on the weekends.
So, again, when asked how it's worth competing with Dell... because I don't try and rape each client for every last dollar they have. I offer advice and reasonable service charges.
Fortunately, my wife and I own our home. We have no children (or plans for them) and, generally value our friends, and peace of mind more than keeping up with the Jones family.
Also -- we try and incorporate our own personal interests into our business (I'm a musician, therefore: recording, she's an artist and photographer: so, greenscreen photography. We both like gaming - so, closed LAN parties on Saturday nights).
The last part sounds a bit preachy, sorry. But after the article yesterday on dwindling IT jobs in the country (and a few very solid reader comments about hardware support and instllation), I just felt verbiage heavy.
It's easy to compete, when you don't. Use the current market as an advantage and wipe away your inventory. If you don't have the pockets to compete with Walmart, Circuit City or CompUSA... don't. Use online sellers to your advantage and build off their lower prices.
Client's were installed with a very good NAS solution that backs up the single App run off the server.
Each workstation was finalized and then imaged with all necessary mapping configured. The final image is stored locally on a DVD in each station. The reinstall is held on a CF card run through the IDE slot. If failure occurs, booting off of the CF and reinstalling the image takes exactly 12 minutes -- that's 12 minutes from uh-oh to working again. The only necessary step afterwards is to update any system patches and virus/spy/adware definitions; which, of course, is SOP anyhow.
The client was trained in this procedure and, being computer literate, is very comfortable with the process.
Oh, and included with the estimate is a once a month service call where I check each system and burn a new image. So, as you can see, the client is never forced to update more than a months worth of patches or definitions.
Unless there is a hardware failure, I need not be called.
But that was a really good try. I especially like the "lining of pockets" part. Because we all know that Microsoft never provides redundant products with the explicit intent of increasing sales.
In fact... your tone seems familiar. Are you my MS partner rep?
Many small to medium size companies choose not to lease or buy "Big Brand"; meaning, you don't always get a new Windows COA on a piece of hardware.
I just finished a new business install w/ a dual xeon server and 6 workstations. My build estimate was substantially lower than Dell and landed the job. (Specifically, my server build was lower than Dell by nearly $800 for the same hardware -- neither of us providing Win2k3 SBS. The workstations, also beating Dell by nearly $200 per box, all used recycled Win 2k Pros -- COA's pulled from retail, not OEM, licenesed systems that the client provided from their last business).
End nut? New hardware that did not come packaged with new Windows.
Had the client been forced to buy new licenses for the workstations (and not recycle existing, valid, licenses), the cost would have been an extra $870 for OEM XP Pro's.
Now, the client has a rock solid workstation using an OS that is already proven with their OS/Software choice. And they are thrilled.
Any reason to move forward to XP (with another OS migration in the next 1-2 years)? No.
Would the migration to Vista have cost this client more if they had chosen big built OEM? Absolutely, especially when one considers the cost of the new equipment (Microsoft Tax included), and then a secondary migration to Vista a year down the road.
Remember, not everyone leases with a dollar buyout to ride the write off. There are many businesses that are working on a small(er) budget that will definately pay more for the transition.
Let me reiterate & clarify. Withhold your vote in the primaries; I did not say do not vote, nor did I say do not attend, I specifically said withhold. Go to your polling hall, sign in, enter your booth, vote in those elections in which you truly believe your vote -- and never, ever cast your support for a "choice of lesser evils".
If more people would withhold their vote in the primaries, it would fast become obvious how little the popular vote counts. Want to really piss lots of people off. Help prove that their government does not respect their opinion -- and a diminishing return of popular vote counts compared next to a static electoral votes would be a good first step there.
I am both saddened and amused when people shout about the importance of voting, and how so many Americans died for the honor, and so forth and so on; and still they continue to throw their voice away in a sea of pointless anonymity every time they enter the voting booth.
And for the intellectual elite out there, this works for you as well. All those times you make haughty statements about the great unwashed casting baseless votes for every conceivably wrong reason... here's your way out.
The largest problem is that far too many people do not get involved in community level politics -- where they can actually affect change. Work from your village, town, city level up. While P. Citizen Fuckyou carries no weight in national affairs, the same cannot be said for growing trends in community mindsets. Tightly integrated small to mid size communities begin to look very formidable when their are enough of them speaking together. If nothing else, you will have pulled enough people together so that you will not be standing completely alone if the shit does ever truly hit the fan.
On a brighter note, you may also find yourself with support if you decide to enter the local arena. And you should enter the local arena -- if for no other reason than to reasure The Keepers of Status Quo that you and others are unhappy. You'd be surprised how quickly incumbants take notice when a no-name Johnny come whoever, who carries no experience and very little pull, walks away with 20% of their district vote.
Actually, having worked in a pawn shop in my younger years, I feel forced to chime in here.
Most states have extremely strict laws regarding the pawn trade; and most pawn shops today are extremely careful concerning their business practices.
Pawn shops in Florida (as an example) are highly regulated and are required to work with both state and local authorities. Forms (including make, model and serial numbers) of merchandise are filled out in triplicate and provided to the local police. When make, model and serial are not applicable (as in the case of jewelry), exact measurements (in both carat and composition) of stones and and metals are recorded as is a precise description of said piece. All of the above are matched against local and state stolen item reports on a weekly to monthly basis. (I use Florida as my example, as that is the state in which I worked; I gladly tie that in with others, as the National Pawnbrokers Association allowed me the opportunity to meet and speak with pawnbrokers from all over the country -- 99% of which followed the same practices).
Often, in the case of theft, the Pawn Shop owner is the one that actually loses out in the case of stolen merchandise; as the property is then pulled into state custody as evidence and eventually returned to its owner.
The pawn trade itself is, by and large, nothing more than a lending mechanism for the lower (to lower-middle class) establishment. Afterall, please tell me a single bank that's going to loan Bob Whoever a c-note to cover his insurance payment while waiting for a drywall job to pay up. Granted, it charges a higher interest rate, but even that is regulated in most states.
I might suggest you take a look at the business models of both Cash America and Value Pawn as an example of how the industry has changed. Personally, I think the indy shop has more in the way of value for the lendee, but I mention them only to counter the "dark and stinky" shop notion that seems to surround the pawn industry.
So, if you want to cite a comparison between immoral activities (such as the active sale of pirated software and something else), why not point the finger at professional lobyists, criminal defense lawyers and/or telemarketing firms?
I've got several older systems* here in the shop that run DSL quite well. While most people think of DSL as a Live-only distro, that's not the case. Booting off of the Live disc gives you options to install onto HD's and CF's. The install is light, the default desktop is attractive and effecient and you've got plenty of options out of the box to play with.
Not to mention, there are more than enough package management options included that you won't feel left out when it comes to binaries.
All things considered, backup yer data, download DSL (tiny at 50 odd MB) and install it. If it's not what you want, it won't much matter as you've already run your first (very fast) install and you'll be playing with a blank box.
addendum - if this isn't a production box, you could always consider OpenStep or BeOS. =D
* PII's and 300-500 AMD's, all between 64 - 128 MB.
Jim Abbott, Ray Charles, John Updike, Stevie Wonder, Chuck Close, Andrea Bocelli, Matt Luke, Paul Longmore.
That covers a pretty wide sprectrum and is far from ever being complete.
No matter how you split it, your perect species will never happen. Proportionaly, there are more so called normal people who are closer to genetic throwbacks than those with a disablity. Simply stated: Idiocy is far worse a crime against the species than diabetes.
Damn Small now has nice options for apt, so it'll be somewhat familiar for package installation. Also, it absolutely flies... We're turning out systems as small as 166 MHz Pentiums w/ 96 MB of ram on 6 GB HD's -- and those all get DSL. Anything less that's donated usually winds up as parts.
You are, of course, taking for granted that everyone has cable/satellite.
The wife and I gave up on that bulk buy/low-content-return fee fest a couple of years ago. Doesn't mean we don't miss the odd show, just means we aren't willing to pay for all of that crap to watch the small handful of what we actually like.
This is a good "payed" option to that place which shall remain unamed. And I'm up for that because it (hopefully) shows content providers that the old smorgasborg system doesn't work. Why get excited over 350 channels of crap when you only watch 5?
My 8" IBM floppy drive still works fine. I've got to warm up the soldering iron from time to time... but it still works fine. Give me one reason why I should upgrade?
I think this is great, personally. I really can't wait to have a machine that triple boots into OSX/Linux/Windows. It'll make my job all the easier only carrying around a single laptop w/ the ability to demonstrate client solutions at 100% native hardware speeds -- and without losing the attention of said client when the inevitable mention of "virtual machine" or "hardware emulation" comes up.
Slashdot Mirror
We're here with you.
Current legislation is due to pass in NY concerning the downsizing of hospitals. We have a small, financially efficient, hospital in our little village that is due to be downsized... unless our legislators vote against the bill.
No vote means passing by default.
And it's over the Christmas holidays.
I suppose we'll all be driving 30 to 40 miles for the nearest hospital, or paying an extra $2k for an ambulance roll out.
Yay Democracy?
Actually... boycotting the unobtainable is pretty much an exercise in futility, if you think about it.
Guy: Hey there gorgeous, let's get it on!
Girl: Uhm. I don't think so.
Guy: Well if that's your attitude, I won't have sex with you!
Girl: Exactly.
Have you looked at Damn Small lately?
What exactly leads you to the conclusion that it is not a full OS and tools install?
Granted, you may wish to add an additional tool or so... but DSL is pretty damn complete.
Filters: One Line = None
Refresh, or if truly impatient (and on a slow connection), click one line link afterwards to expand.
That "someone" you refer to must be comprised of U.S. citizens. It's our job to do this, no one elses.
Unfortunately, the tools in which we can accomplish this are severely restricted. After all, a bipartisan system serves only to keep itself in power. As long as our choices are either:
a: punch to the face
or
b: a kick to the groin
we are left with little hope for positive change.
Our government is in the process of a self coup. And I'm terrified that our only options are to suck it up, or beat them to them to the punch.
Now, I realize that the story here is probably blown way out of proportion, but that says nothing to the fact that it is closer to truth than it was 20 years ago. Gone unchecked or unchallenged, it very well could be in our future.
It's time to get these fools out of our lives. And I mean all of them (Dem & Rep). No good can come from a career politician. By definition they live an elitist lifestyle that excludes them from the population that they "represent".
Ugh. What a way to suffer a hangover.
Ghost 9.
Mostly because I wound up with a lot of 12 unopened installs in a closed auction. I'd originally tried this with Acronis TI 8, but kept getting errors during the reinstall. With the mobo's I've used with this procedure, I've not had any problems.
hear hear.
If only we could institue mandatory civics classes for all citizens...
You're right on there.
I've been pointing out those refurb Netvistas on Tigerdirect like mad. $200, 2.4 GHz P4, 512 MB ram and a 40 GB HD. Throw Ubuntu on there and you're solid.
Can't use Linux (for whatever reason), a few extra dollars throws either a Win2k or XP Pro COA on the side for you.
Great option for startups, families with kids, etc...
And who can complain about a Netvista? (Especially the SFF Netvistas... love 'em to death.)
Hardware warranty on parts, one hour labor on parts replacement. Most business clients agree with my recomendations to purchase additional necessaries (i.e. on hand replacement of HD and DVD). In the event of HD failure, a replacement is on hand and the failed unit is then sent back for warranty replacement.
As I'm in a relatively small town, with a shop on Main St (literally), most of my business clients are within a 5 minute walk. And as such, if a business client needs me now. I place an "out of the shop for an hour" sign on the door and am at their disposal.
To answer the question above parent about undercutting Dell not being worth it:
It's funny. Everyone talks about how business need to evolve to make the required changes to compete. In my situation, it's actually very easy.
I don't sell computers. I sell a service. When a client comes in for a consultation with me, we sit down and map out their needs. I provide the client with a selection of hardware choices and include my recomendation. Once components have been selected, I provide the client with either Newegg or Tigerdirect ordering numbers (in the case of Newegg, I offer to setup a preliminary client account w/o financials, and fill their cart). The client actually orders their own parts and I assemble and provide a one year (hardware) service warranty on each assembled system.
My billing is very simple that way -- I don't handle inventory, so there's no taxable sales. I provide service only and charge flat rate service fees that are set as to complexity and provide scalable discount for quantity. i.e. Workstation builds are $150 a pop. More than three builds gives a 10% discount, five builds - 15%.
I sketched the initial idea and handed it to my accountant for refinement. I now have a very simple business model that is beginning (after two years) to show some real stability.
The majority of my PC business is walk in cleaning jobs and reinstalls for Mom and Dad. Occasionally I get to build cool stuff (high end gaming rigs and HTPC's), I've got 8 systems on the floor for closed LAN party gaming, a 12'x 10' chromakey green screen for novelty digital photo's, and now we're branching out to cover novelty karaoke recording and mobile garage band and gig recording on the weekends.
So, again, when asked how it's worth competing with Dell... because I don't try and rape each client for every last dollar they have. I offer advice and reasonable service charges.
Fortunately, my wife and I own our home. We have no children (or plans for them) and, generally value our friends, and peace of mind more than keeping up with the Jones family.
Also -- we try and incorporate our own personal interests into our business (I'm a musician, therefore: recording, she's an artist and photographer: so, greenscreen photography. We both like gaming - so, closed LAN parties on Saturday nights).
The last part sounds a bit preachy, sorry. But after the article yesterday on dwindling IT jobs in the country (and a few very solid reader comments about hardware support and instllation), I just felt verbiage heavy.
It's easy to compete, when you don't. Use the current market as an advantage and wipe away your inventory. If you don't have the pockets to compete with Walmart, Circuit City or CompUSA... don't. Use online sellers to your advantage and build off their lower prices.
Works for me.
Actually...
Client's were installed with a very good NAS solution that backs up the single App run off the server.
Each workstation was finalized and then imaged with all necessary mapping configured. The final image is stored locally on a DVD in each station. The reinstall is held on a CF card run through the IDE slot. If failure occurs, booting off of the CF and reinstalling the image takes exactly 12 minutes -- that's 12 minutes from uh-oh to working again. The only necessary step afterwards
is to update any system patches and virus/spy/adware definitions; which, of course, is SOP anyhow.
The client was trained in this procedure and, being computer literate, is very comfortable with the process.
Oh, and included with the estimate is a once a month service call where I check each system and burn a new image. So, as you can see, the client is never forced to update more than a months worth of patches or definitions.
Unless there is a hardware failure, I need not be called.
But that was a really good try. I especially like the "lining of pockets" part. Because we all know that Microsoft never provides redundant products with the explicit intent of increasing sales.
In fact... your tone seems familiar. Are you my MS partner rep?
Not exactly true.
Many small to medium size companies choose not to lease or buy "Big Brand"; meaning, you don't always get a new Windows COA on a piece of hardware.
I just finished a new business install w/ a dual xeon server and 6 workstations. My build estimate was substantially lower than Dell and landed the job. (Specifically, my server build was lower than Dell by nearly $800 for the same hardware -- neither of us providing Win2k3 SBS. The workstations, also beating Dell by nearly $200 per box, all used recycled Win 2k Pros -- COA's pulled from retail, not OEM, licenesed systems that the client provided from their last business).
End nut? New hardware that did not come packaged with new Windows.
Had the client been forced to buy new licenses for the workstations (and not recycle existing, valid, licenses), the cost would have been an extra $870 for OEM XP Pro's.
Now, the client has a rock solid workstation using an OS that is already proven with their OS/Software choice. And they are thrilled.
Any reason to move forward to XP (with another OS migration in the next 1-2 years)? No.
Would the migration to Vista have cost this client more if they had chosen big built OEM? Absolutely, especially when one considers the cost of the new equipment (Microsoft Tax included), and then a secondary migration to Vista a year down the road.
Remember, not everyone leases with a dollar buyout to ride the write off. There are many businesses that are working on a small(er) budget that will definately pay more for the transition.
The nitpicking line is now open... fire away.
Withhold your vote in primaries.
Let me reiterate & clarify. Withhold your vote in the primaries; I did not say do not vote, nor did I say do not attend, I specifically said withhold. Go to your polling hall, sign in, enter your booth, vote in those elections in which you truly believe your vote -- and never, ever cast your support for a "choice of lesser evils".
If more people would withhold their vote in the primaries, it would fast become obvious how little the popular vote counts. Want to really piss lots of people off. Help prove that their government does not respect their opinion -- and a diminishing return of popular vote counts compared next to a static electoral votes would be a good first step there.
I am both saddened and amused when people shout about the importance of voting, and how so many Americans died for the honor, and so forth and so on; and still they continue to throw their voice away in a sea of pointless anonymity every time they enter the voting booth.
And for the intellectual elite out there, this works for you as well. All those times you make haughty statements about the great unwashed casting baseless votes for every conceivably wrong reason... here's your way out.
The largest problem is that far too many people do not get involved in community level politics -- where they can actually affect change. Work from your village, town, city level up. While P. Citizen Fuckyou carries no weight in national affairs, the same cannot be said for growing trends in community mindsets. Tightly integrated small to mid size communities begin to look very formidable when their are enough of them speaking together. If nothing else, you will have pulled enough people together so that you will not be standing completely alone if the shit does ever truly hit the fan.
On a brighter note, you may also find yourself with support if you decide to enter the local arena. And you should enter the local arena -- if for no other reason than to reasure The Keepers of Status Quo that you and others are unhappy. You'd be surprised how quickly incumbants take notice when a no-name Johnny come whoever, who carries no experience and very little pull, walks away with 20% of their district vote.
Okay, enough ranting. It's Guinness time.
Actually, having worked in a pawn shop in my younger years, I feel forced to chime in here.
Most states have extremely strict laws regarding the pawn trade; and most pawn shops today are extremely careful concerning their business practices.
Pawn shops in Florida (as an example) are highly regulated and are required to work with both state and local authorities. Forms (including make, model and serial numbers) of merchandise are filled out in triplicate and provided to the local police. When make, model and serial are not applicable (as in the case of jewelry), exact measurements (in both carat and composition) of stones and and metals are recorded as is a precise description of said piece. All of the above are matched against local and state stolen item reports on a weekly to monthly basis. (I use Florida as my example, as that is the state in which I worked; I gladly tie that in with others, as the National Pawnbrokers Association allowed me the opportunity to meet and speak with pawnbrokers from all over the country -- 99% of which followed the same practices).
Often, in the case of theft, the Pawn Shop owner is the one that actually loses out in the case of stolen merchandise; as the property is then pulled into state custody as evidence and eventually returned to its owner.
The pawn trade itself is, by and large, nothing more than a lending mechanism for the lower (to lower-middle class) establishment. Afterall, please tell me a single bank that's going to loan Bob Whoever a c-note to cover his insurance payment while waiting for a drywall job to pay up. Granted, it charges a higher interest rate, but even that is regulated in most states.
I might suggest you take a look at the business models of both Cash America and Value Pawn as an example of how the industry has changed. Personally, I think the indy shop has more in the way of value for the lendee, but I mention them only to counter the "dark and stinky" shop notion that seems to surround the pawn industry.
So, if you want to cite a comparison between immoral activities (such as the active sale of pirated software and something else), why not point the finger at professional lobyists, criminal defense lawyers and/or telemarketing firms?
Either Puppy or DSL.
I'd probably go with DSL myself.
I've got several older systems* here in the shop that run DSL quite well. While most people think of DSL as a Live-only distro, that's not the case. Booting off of the Live disc gives you options to install onto HD's and CF's. The install is light, the default desktop is attractive and effecient and you've got plenty of options out of the box to play with.
Not to mention, there are more than enough package management options included that you won't feel left out when it comes to binaries.
All things considered, backup yer data, download DSL (tiny at 50 odd MB) and install it. If it's not what you want, it won't much matter as you've already run your first (very fast) install and you'll be playing with a blank box.
addendum - if this isn't a production box, you could always consider OpenStep or BeOS. =D
* PII's and 300-500 AMD's, all between 64 - 128 MB.
I'd love for that to be the truth, but it hasn't shaken the stranglehold that Office still holds on (most of) my Mac clients.
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?c108:1:./tem p/~c108Cy5DFG::
If I had any mod points, I'd toss a "+1" yer way.
Jim Abbott, Ray Charles, John Updike, Stevie Wonder, Chuck Close, Andrea Bocelli, Matt Luke, Paul Longmore.
That covers a pretty wide sprectrum and is far from ever being complete.
No matter how you split it, your perect species will never happen. Proportionaly, there are more so called normal people who are closer to genetic throwbacks than those with a disablity. Simply stated: Idiocy is far worse a crime against the species than diabetes.
I have a similar policy (on a much smaller scale than Free Geek) at my shop.
With your specs, I would seriously consider something on the lines of Damn Small Linux http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/ or Puppy Linux http://www.puppylinux.org/.
Damn Small now has nice options for apt, so it'll be somewhat familiar for package installation. Also, it absolutely flies... We're turning out systems as small as 166 MHz Pentiums w/ 96 MB of ram on 6 GB HD's -- and those all get DSL. Anything less that's donated usually winds up as parts.
Good luck.
Stephen Hawking
Idiot.
renaming "The Gimp".
;)
Just a thought.
You are, of course, taking for granted that everyone has cable/satellite.
The wife and I gave up on that bulk buy/low-content-return fee fest a couple of years ago. Doesn't mean we don't miss the odd show, just means we aren't willing to pay for all of that crap to watch the small handful of what we actually like.
This is a good "payed" option to that place which shall remain unamed. And I'm up for that because it (hopefully) shows content providers that the old smorgasborg system doesn't work. Why get excited over 350 channels of crap when you only watch 5?
Sorry, pre-coffee rant here. I'm off for my fix.
It's basically just another expense, like tuition or books or porn
Yes, that is what I read in your post.
Doesn't take much to guess what's on the next tab in firefox, now does it?
...and your trendy 5.25" floppies.
My 8" IBM floppy drive still works fine. I've got to warm up the soldering iron from time to time... but it still works fine. Give me one reason why I should upgrade?
77 track of 360 RPM goodness, baby!
Does it run Windows?
Oh god, we're losing ground here folks.
I think this is great, personally. I really can't wait to have a machine that triple boots into OSX/Linux/Windows. It'll make my job all the easier only carrying around a single laptop w/ the ability to demonstrate client solutions at 100% native hardware speeds -- and without losing the attention of said client when the inevitable mention of "virtual machine" or "hardware emulation" comes up.