Sorry to disagree but I bet that you work in a place where users needs are *very* basic. I have supported multinationals to small (less than 100) user companies.
In my experience the "average" office worker uses a lot more functionality than you give them credit for. In no way is a buying, purchase ledger, marketing or any other department in a modern business going to get by with Open Office o Star Office.
I had to face facts, that although I may not rate M$ server/client operating systems. They have the Office productivity and desktop peripheral business market sown up. Not because they are evil and cunning, but that nothing comes close.
By having a multitude of features you are not just providing for users who need it, but provisioning for people who may use it once they discover the facilities.
Regards,
Hao
I remember when I had the Atari 2600 and how much better the stick was when you yanked off the rubber grip.
Bought about half a dozen in a junk shop and used the stick through my Sinclair Spectrum days, Sega Megadrive and during my Commodore Amiga. As I say, best stick ever!!!
Made a fabulous plunger that left marks on skin if you decided to stick it on another person:)
Po
Not too sure about the lack of strong woman angle. Take Rumiko Takahashi (best selling anime/manga creater in Japan), all her stories involve *very* strong female characters.....
There is also Sailor Moon, Gunsmith Cats, Bubblegum Crisis/Crash etc etc.
I think that Miyazaki is successful as he knows how to craft a great movie. From his personal contributions in the story, artwork and even music!! If you ever get a chance to watch an interview he has given, you get a real sense of pride and joy in his work.
I remember watching a program where he was talking about his failing health. It was after Princess, that his eyesight was getting so poor that added to pains in his drawing hand that he thought that this would be his last movie. He genuinely seemed saddened by this.......and the water colours that he paints are just amazing....
Po
Out of all the Miyazaki movies that I have seen, nothing compares to the beauty of "Laputa". The whole thing was simply inspired.....
Then again, Porco Rosso was amazing....
Po
When I was younger (about 4 years ago), I used to be a very good coder which was not good considering I was meant to be a Civil Engineer.
Finished with a terrible degree but the offer from my lecturers to do a pHD/MPhil in theoretical mathematics/engineering. Recognising that I could program like it was going out of fashion.
Now in my current job of IT Consultant I have managed to completely forget how to program:( Though I did play with VBScripts the other day.
Lesson: Dont let is slip, it aint like riding a bike!
Possibly because it is my name?
Sounds slightly more sensible than yours I might add.....
Yes I have some very expensive toys.
Would I take out my Fujistu-Siemens Celsius laptop on an underground train? No chance.
Would I take it out in a pub? I dont think so.
However, take something comparable to a MP3 player in size, ease of theft, ease of selling on.......such as a mobile phone. See how many are stolen a year.
At the moment I use the Sony MZ-N1, heard of it?
I bet you haven't. It is a Minidisc recorder that links to a computer. 32x transfer speed, has LP2/4 mode (5 hours on a 80min disc), 110 hour battery life, best yet it can play back ATRAC3/MP3/WMA/WAV files. Oh and it has a really good backlit LCD remote......
Po
Having been through *loads* of portable music devices from the original Sony Walkman, portable CD players, portbale DATs, Minidisc (still my favourite), and various MP3 style devices, I find that I cant decide about the iPod.
Part of the charm of the iPod is its looks. People who buy overpriced Apple products are not purely about its functionality. The look, styling and subsequent "pose" value are part of it.
The idea of having portable music is that you can slip the device into a pocket or bag and forget about it. Having to pull it out, fiddle and return it is a hassle. It is also a security risk, pulling out a $300 device in a public place is just asking for trouble.
I, for one, would never purchase one unless it had a remote control on the earphone cord. I cannot seem to find any photos or information about the device which says that it comes with such a feature. No point in having a player that you *must* dig out and show the World......or is that partly what its all about with the iPod?
Can anyone help me out with this one?
Po
You have a point, however at LAN parties I often take the side of my case off to show my "install". Its sort of like "popping the hood" at a cruise or car show......
Quite sad really I know.
Po
Dan is into magnets and LED flashlights.
Nuff said.
Po
Re:This is excellent news
on
KDE 2.2.2
·
· Score: 1
I am in a similar situation to yourself.
Currently, on my travels, I have a Dell P2-300 with 128Mb. I found that Win2000 run better, was more stable and was *smaller*?!?! than most distros. I resorted to using Windowmaker, I could not stand the slowness of KDE and Gnome.
That was until I used Mandrake 8.0. Now its quite good in fact and even my GF likes it:) I believe that this distro is optimised for i686 architecture....
Its strange but as Linux distro matures it seems to be developing a bloat that seems to associated with M$ stuff......
600Mhz is really not that shabby. Its the Matrox card that is no good for gaming. DirectX performance is passable, but Matrox's OpenGL performance is abysmal.
I keep my G400 for the dual monitor support, but for gaming I use Nvidia stuff. If you can get used to the fuzzier graphics then you will a heck of a speed bump:) Upgrade!
You will love it:)
The only spanner in the works is that I *think* that all the Puzzle Bobbles (Bust A Move) after 2 were on other hardware, but I am not sure:( I play 1/2 and so can confirm those. Oh you can also take screenshots and record.wav files with NeoRageX too!
If you are interested, then check out Kazuyas Page (http://www.neogeoforlife.com/) which has as much information about owning and emulating as you can stand:) Amazing site....
The way I see it is that China has *never* been Marxist, Communist, Socialist, Leninist etc. It has been ruled, and will be, over by an Emperor without portfolio.
Criticise the "Middle Country" for all its crimes against humanity, but dont beat it with false accusations of a socialist idealism.
For NeoGeo game emulation on PC dont use MAME. Instead head on over to http://www.neoragex.nu/ for NeoRageX. This dedicated emulator hasnt been updated in well over a year but can almost anything. Best yet it is so well written that I can 60FPS in Win2K on a P2-300 laptop!!! Thats for *any* game.
Apart from the performance it also has save/game restore, colour/sound bit depth adjustment, edge enchancement, and scanline adjustment all on-the-fly. It evens supports DirectX input devices:)
Kids these days are treating IT like a proper profession (damn) and so you are getting all sorts. Loathe as I am to say it, visit any University and you will find CS departments full of normal well adjusted sorts.
Guys with long hair, black T-shirs and trainers are rapidly becoming the exception rather than the norm. Though I did catch a kid looking like Marilyn Manson and wearing a cloak the other day....
I've heard all those arguments about how people at work are not friends but are just associtates etc etc. However even if everyone in your company were to think like this, the mere fact that you spend so much time with each other inevitably means that friendships *will* happen.
You are in each other's company more than hours a day. You will talk. You will have things in common. You will make friends. Simple.
Personally I have made superb life-long friends in the workplace. Even though we know longer work together we are still tight and hang out regularly, these include people from management/contractors/peers/other departments etc.
Work doesnt have to be any different. If you buy into all that "competitor" crap then you are just being naive. Its just like at school. You have mates, sometimes you are better at something, sometimes they best you. But you are still friends. *If* someone uses a "friendship" to stiff you then thats just their personality and not because they are a work colleague. They aren't worth knowing....
Oliver Reed died during filming of Gladiator and apparantly they used some sort of pioneering CGI to finish his scences. Quite interesting as it was considered to be his finest role in years, so is this an indicator of how good Bruce's new movie could be?
Or will it be more like that dreadful Pepsi add a few years back with Bogart, Marilyn and Einstein??
Hate to break it to you Blonde, but most of the gubbins of the X-Box are part of the onboard chipset. Probably all you can take from it are the slow DVD, small HD and any fans that aren't screwed down:(
Still nice idea though. More interestingly it *cant* be that long till someone figures out how to access the OS via some sort of boot device (CD, USB memory key etc) and start to hack at it.
Sorry but I read that as "the sales guy said that they had piles".
Ouch:P
Po
A *real* driving simulator.
on
XBox Released
·
· Score: 1
The problem with the Gran Turismo series is that it is *not* a driving simulator. It is merely an arcade racer with some realistic elements in it. Even the designer Kazunori Yamauchi says that.
Dont get me wrong I love playing the game but it is so different from a real-life experience it is untrue. Things like damage represenatation (apart from the token gesture of tyres), unrealistic driving lines, and being able to "catch-up" after crashes is pure fantasy. Hurtle into a corner at full speed and "bounce" of the car holding the proper line is a favourite trick I observe.
For myself and a lot of true gamers, the best simulation will always be Sega's Ferrari 355 Challenge. This game was not too popular in the arcades as it was *too* difficult, ie. realistic. Having only one car that modelled so accurately turned off a lot of people, have a minor scrape and you were lucky to finish anywhere decent. Crash and you were nearly guaranteed last place. I have a friend who races Ferraris in Macau and he says that the feel was perfect.
Slashdot Mirror
Oh I totally agree, I was just theorising that you serviced users with basic needs. If thats what fits the bill then thats great!
I bet your bosses love you for saving them loadsa cash, me? I am left to deal with massive site licence costs *sigh* but its what they need....
All the best,
Po
Sorry to disagree but I bet that you work in a place where users needs are *very* basic. I have supported multinationals to small (less than 100) user companies. In my experience the "average" office worker uses a lot more functionality than you give them credit for. In no way is a buying, purchase ledger, marketing or any other department in a modern business going to get by with Open Office o Star Office. I had to face facts, that although I may not rate M$ server/client operating systems. They have the Office productivity and desktop peripheral business market sown up. Not because they are evil and cunning, but that nothing comes close. By having a multitude of features you are not just providing for users who need it, but provisioning for people who may use it once they discover the facilities. Regards, Hao
Really it was just Rocky on bikes, sorta like 8-mile, but it was great fun to watch :)
Costner with a tache?!?!
I remember when I had the Atari 2600 and how much better the stick was when you yanked off the rubber grip. Bought about half a dozen in a junk shop and used the stick through my Sinclair Spectrum days, Sega Megadrive and during my Commodore Amiga. As I say, best stick ever!!! Made a fabulous plunger that left marks on skin if you decided to stick it on another person :)
Po
Errr.....most new UK tellies have multiple Scarts. Usually only one is RGB enabled and the rest have composite video.
Nearly all have S-Video connectors too, if not at the back then usually under some flap at the front....
Though I agree, PAL is the best!
Po
Not too sure about the lack of strong woman angle. Take Rumiko Takahashi (best selling anime/manga creater in Japan), all her stories involve *very* strong female characters..... There is also Sailor Moon, Gunsmith Cats, Bubblegum Crisis/Crash etc etc. I think that Miyazaki is successful as he knows how to craft a great movie. From his personal contributions in the story, artwork and even music!! If you ever get a chance to watch an interview he has given, you get a real sense of pride and joy in his work. I remember watching a program where he was talking about his failing health. It was after Princess, that his eyesight was getting so poor that added to pains in his drawing hand that he thought that this would be his last movie. He genuinely seemed saddened by this.......and the water colours that he paints are just amazing.... Po
Out of all the Miyazaki movies that I have seen, nothing compares to the beauty of "Laputa". The whole thing was simply inspired..... Then again, Porco Rosso was amazing.... Po
This is *so* true.
:( Though I did play with VBScripts the other day.
When I was younger (about 4 years ago), I used to be a very good coder which was not good considering I was meant to be a Civil Engineer.
Finished with a terrible degree but the offer from my lecturers to do a pHD/MPhil in theoretical mathematics/engineering. Recognising that I could program like it was going out of fashion.
Now in my current job of IT Consultant I have managed to completely forget how to program
Lesson: Dont let is slip, it aint like riding a bike!
Po
Possibly because it is my name? Sounds slightly more sensible than yours I might add..... Yes I have some very expensive toys. Would I take out my Fujistu-Siemens Celsius laptop on an underground train? No chance. Would I take it out in a pub? I dont think so. However, take something comparable to a MP3 player in size, ease of theft, ease of selling on.......such as a mobile phone. See how many are stolen a year. At the moment I use the Sony MZ-N1, heard of it? I bet you haven't. It is a Minidisc recorder that links to a computer. 32x transfer speed, has LP2/4 mode (5 hours on a 80min disc), 110 hour battery life, best yet it can play back ATRAC3/MP3/WMA/WAV files. Oh and it has a really good backlit LCD remote...... Po
Having been through *loads* of portable music devices from the original Sony Walkman, portable CD players, portbale DATs, Minidisc (still my favourite), and various MP3 style devices, I find that I cant decide about the iPod. Part of the charm of the iPod is its looks. People who buy overpriced Apple products are not purely about its functionality. The look, styling and subsequent "pose" value are part of it. The idea of having portable music is that you can slip the device into a pocket or bag and forget about it. Having to pull it out, fiddle and return it is a hassle. It is also a security risk, pulling out a $300 device in a public place is just asking for trouble. I, for one, would never purchase one unless it had a remote control on the earphone cord. I cannot seem to find any photos or information about the device which says that it comes with such a feature. No point in having a player that you *must* dig out and show the World......or is that partly what its all about with the iPod? Can anyone help me out with this one? Po
You have a point, however at LAN parties I often take the side of my case off to show my "install". Its sort of like "popping the hood" at a cruise or car show...... Quite sad really I know. Po
Dan is into magnets and LED flashlights. Nuff said. Po
I am in a similar situation to yourself.
:) I believe that this distro is optimised for i686 architecture....
Currently, on my travels, I have a Dell P2-300 with 128Mb. I found that Win2000 run better, was more stable and was *smaller*?!?! than most distros. I resorted to using Windowmaker, I could not stand the slowness of KDE and Gnome.
That was until I used Mandrake 8.0. Now its quite good in fact and even my GF likes it
Its strange but as Linux distro matures it seems to be developing a bloat that seems to associated with M$ stuff......
Regards,
Po
600Mhz is really not that shabby. Its the Matrox card that is no good for gaming. DirectX performance is passable, but Matrox's OpenGL performance is abysmal.
:) Upgrade!
I keep my G400 for the dual monitor support, but for gaming I use Nvidia stuff. If you can get used to the fuzzier graphics then you will a heck of a speed bump
Po
Hey Pop,
:)
:( I play 1/2 and so can confirm those. Oh you can also take screenshots and record .wav files with NeoRageX too!
:) Amazing site....
You will love it
The only spanner in the works is that I *think* that all the Puzzle Bobbles (Bust A Move) after 2 were on other hardware, but I am not sure
If you are interested, then check out Kazuyas Page (http://www.neogeoforlife.com/) which has as much information about owning and emulating as you can stand
Regards,
Po
>Free Speech != the ability to say anything you want. It is the ability to express yourself in a way that does not infringe on the rights of others.
Couldnt have said it better myself.
Regards,
Po
Agreed.
The way I see it is that China has *never* been Marxist, Communist, Socialist, Leninist etc. It has been ruled, and will be, over by an Emperor without portfolio.
Criticise the "Middle Country" for all its crimes against humanity, but dont beat it with false accusations of a socialist idealism.
Po
For NeoGeo game emulation on PC dont use MAME. Instead head on over to http://www.neoragex.nu/ for NeoRageX. This dedicated emulator hasnt been updated in well over a year but can almost anything. Best yet it is so well written that I can 60FPS in Win2K on a P2-300 laptop!!! Thats for *any* game.
:)
Apart from the performance it also has save/game restore, colour/sound bit depth adjustment, edge enchancement, and scanline adjustment all on-the-fly. It evens supports DirectX input devices
Regards,
Po
Nah, that old image is dying fast Boa.
Kids these days are treating IT like a proper profession (damn) and so you are getting all sorts. Loathe as I am to say it, visit any University and you will find CS departments full of normal well adjusted sorts.
Guys with long hair, black T-shirs and trainers are rapidly becoming the exception rather than the norm. Though I did catch a kid looking like Marilyn Manson and wearing a cloak the other day....
Po
Yup we all know how difficult it is for the IT folk in these times. Another problem is how much cool geek stuff costs......
:)
But help is at hand!
AfroTech - Ghetto Hardware (http://www.andrew.cmu.edu/~hsakr/) have many cheap/free mods for the slimmer wallets this Xmas season
Po
I've heard all those arguments about how people at work are not friends but are just associtates etc etc. However even if everyone in your company were to think like this, the mere fact that you spend so much time with each other inevitably means that friendships *will* happen.
:)
You are in each other's company more than hours a day. You will talk. You will have things in common. You will make friends. Simple.
Personally I have made superb life-long friends in the workplace. Even though we know longer work together we are still tight and hang out regularly, these include people from management/contractors/peers/other departments etc.
Work doesnt have to be any different. If you buy into all that "competitor" crap then you are just being naive. Its just like at school. You have mates, sometimes you are better at something, sometimes they best you. But you are still friends. *If* someone uses a "friendship" to stiff you then thats just their personality and not because they are a work colleague. They aren't worth knowing....
Get over it, people are people
Regards,
Po
Oliver Reed died during filming of Gladiator and apparantly they used some sort of pioneering CGI to finish his scences. Quite interesting as it was considered to be his finest role in years, so is this an indicator of how good Bruce's new movie could be?
Or will it be more like that dreadful Pepsi add a few years back with Bogart, Marilyn and Einstein??
Po
Hate to break it to you Blonde, but most of the gubbins of the X-Box are part of the onboard chipset. Probably all you can take from it are the slow DVD, small HD and any fans that aren't screwed down :(
Still nice idea though. More interestingly it *cant* be that long till someone figures out how to access the OS via some sort of boot device (CD, USB memory key etc) and start to hack at it.
Regards,
Po
Sorry but I read that as "the sales guy said that they had piles".
:P
Ouch
Po
The problem with the Gran Turismo series is that it is *not* a driving simulator. It is merely an arcade racer with some realistic elements in it. Even the designer Kazunori Yamauchi says that.
Dont get me wrong I love playing the game but it is so different from a real-life experience it is untrue. Things like damage represenatation (apart from the token gesture of tyres), unrealistic driving lines, and being able to "catch-up" after crashes is pure fantasy. Hurtle into a corner at full speed and "bounce" of the car holding the proper line is a favourite trick I observe.
For myself and a lot of true gamers, the best simulation will always be Sega's Ferrari 355 Challenge. This game was not too popular in the arcades as it was *too* difficult, ie. realistic. Having only one car that modelled so accurately turned off a lot of people, have a minor scrape and you were lucky to finish anywhere decent. Crash and you were nearly guaranteed last place. I have a friend who races Ferraris in Macau and he says that the feel was perfect.
Regards,
Po