What are people doing with 802.11 and PDAs? I'd love to get a modern PDA + 802.11, but ideas about what to do with it escape me. Anybody have inspirations for me?
Heh I bought a PocketPC the year they started coming out, and by far the most useful thing I've done with it is synch it up with AvantGo so I have something to read during my morning dump. (hey, it's still considered work!) PLEASE give me something better I can do with it!
"Hmmm, help clean up the environment by collecting golden arches? You mean cleaning environment by removing McDonald restaurant? Sounds like feasible solution. "
Ever look at a McD's wrapper and notice the phrase "Please put litter in it's place"? Doesn't that mean you should throw it anywhere but in a trashcan? It ceases to be litter once you throw it away. Maybe that is what the game is about.
"I can just see it -- I fry myself inserting the Ethernet cable in the card. Instructions read: before inserting, go to your power panel, can shut off the circuit breaker for your computer and then... "
I don't see why this is a troll. I got shocked by plugging a phone line into a modem once years ago. Felt pretty stupid.
"Reminds me of the BBS days. Usually a few hours after the SysOp leaves on vacation, the BBS is guaranteed to go down. "
My boss went on a trip to Europe for a month. A few months previously, she had two racks full of servers managing our needs. It all ran like clockwork. Of course, this one-month trip included a 2 week stint where she couldn't be reached. The day after she was completely out of contact, *poof*. I shit you not, there was a *poof*. Something on the motherboard let all it's smoke out. Of course, it was the mail server. Not only did I get to learn how to build a mail server, I also learned that RAID drives don't like hopping cards!
"I think you meant to say that hacking the XBOX is a waste of your time."
Let me make sure this is clear: Hacking the XBOX is a waste of E-V-E-R-Y-B-O-D-Y'S time.
"As long as MS wants to sell these things cheaper than the cost of manufacture, people will want to buy it to potentially replace low end PCs, can't say I blame them."
Except you're not getting interesting hardware for a cheaper price here. Sorry, nothing of value here, especially when there's no software to drive them. Beef up the RAM and give it a VGA-Out, then maybe you got something here.
"I bet MS appreciates your attempt to slow the hacking of the XBOX, however little it may help."
I don't care of MS appreciates it or not. Nothing I'm talking about has anything to do with benefitting MS. It has to do with not horsing around with them so they enter the battle, especially when the cause to hack the XBOX is so weak. If it goes to court, 'fair use' will not hold up as long as there's no reason to hack the XBOX. All MS has to say is "They want to pirate games". What will the defense be? "Uh, no, we want a seriously inferior machine to run Linux on."
Pay attention to what's going on in the world today (like the DVD copying software that's in court now, about to lose...) and then tell me that hacking the XBOX is a good idea. Hell yeah I want them to slow down or even stop. It's bad enough we have Disney buying senators.
"Most of Microsoft's "innovation" has been copied from Apple, but changed enough to hopefully avoid a lawsuit (After the first one anyway)."
No argument there.
"As for why Windows is on top, it has almost nothing to do with their UI. Millions of people flocked to it because they thought they needed a computer, and the only ones they could get were Dells, Microns, Compaqs, etc and those ONLY came with Windows."
Heh. And what exactly caused them to flock? Seriously, computers were around long before Windows 95, why would they suddenly become popular when it came out? Hmmmm.....
"The thing I hear the most about Linux desktops is that they're not more like Windows desktops. Once people learn the one, they think everything else should work like it. My roommates can't even use my iBook because it has no Start Button."
Fair point, to a degree. However, it does make one wonder how intuitive Mac really is. It's been a while since I've used one, but I fell into that same trap too. Took me a bit of clicking around to find an app to start. Linux and KDE, on the other hand, provided a handy dandy start-esque button to click as opposed to this really teeny weeny Apple icon. I was up and running with it pretty quick. (too bad there were too many indescript apps that all began with K, but that's a seperate topic...)
I'll concede that there's some truth to the 'familiarity factor'. However, my original point still stands: Windows 95 definitely did something right in the UI field.
"you have to write a case study to do that? isn't that like general knowledge?"
Don't underestimate the power of PowerPoint presentations. When you dumb down a scenario with logically flowing pictures, you can convince people that a business is viable. I'm not being sarcastic here, I've seen it happen. It's sort of like the psychology behind statistics.
"I have to admit, though, that the most amusing thing about this idea is that people will actually call me names over it. "
Ironically, I get a flamebait moderation. Thanks for illustrating my point!
Why's the idea of the SW universe being a micro-universe like in MiB such a terrible one? Why do people have to get shitty with me about it? If that was really the case, wouldn't that make for deeper sci-fi than we're generally exposed to? It certainly makes the nature of the force more interesting.
"I've already said this above but Longhorn does not use openGL to accelate it's GUI--it uses DirectX 9."
I don't understand what that has to do with what I said. Clarfify?
Re:Meanwhile, a LEGAL and FUNCTIONAL PC
on
Hacking the XBox
·
· Score: 1
"The Xbox is actually a much better machine than those computers found in Wal-Mart. Hell, even the graphics card itself is faster than most of the CPUs inside the Wal-Mart computers. "
The graphics card in the XBOX is 100% useless unless it's playing XBOX games. So why hack it? Who's going to write an unpublished game that'll wow you graphics-wise? PC games will never work on it, not enough RAM.
So besides getting MS on the side of DMCA style legislation, what exactly is being accomplished?
I hear ya buddy. The XBOX has proven that MS can't create a monopoly without support of the consumer. Kinda deflates a lot of the "but the findings of fact say..." crap that flies around here. (To be fair, the final judgement should have done that, but suddenly everybody involved got selective about what to quote.)
Re:The Most Interesting Quote...
on
Hacking the XBox
·
· Score: 1
"Could this really happen? How would Microsoft deny having a monopoly if they went this route? "
I have a better question: How could MS actually pull that off?
The answer? They can't. They can make a line of PC's that runs only Windows, and that'd be perfectly fair. They can't make every PC Windows only unless they got both AMD and Intel into it. If that ever happened, MS wouldn't be the one to be mad at. Intel and AMD both would have some s'plainin to do.
Re:You expect them to compete fairly?
on
Hacking the XBox
·
· Score: 1
"Of course they're losing money for every unit sold. In some countries this is called "dumping" which is illegal."
It's more complicated than that. If it weren't, Sony would have been 'spanked' for both the PS1 and 2.
"Damn, some good points, who the hell would put it as offtopic?!"
I would. Hardware does not a good system make, it's the games. For example, the PS2 has a nasty little bottleneck which causes most of the games to appear blurry. Yet, it's still popular. Either people like blurry graphics or they like the games that are on it.
"Hacking the XBox can hardly be called "a worthless waste of time."
If this were about unique hardware like the PS2 or the GameCube, I'd agree with you. However, the XBOX is a PC. There's no value in tinkering here, worse there's no killer app that justifies 'fair use' of it. The only one that immediately pops into mind is a DivX movie player. Doh, we're treading into pirate waters here, doubtful the court'll support that.
Until there's that must have app that the XBOX runs best, every attempt to hack the XBOX makes the DMCA feel even more important to corporations and even potentially in the eyes of the law. It's not worth tinkering with. Pissing off Microsoft and strengthening the need for the DMCA is a waste of time. Sorry. Civilization will not come crashing down if the XBOX isn't hacked.
Re:I hate to break this to you
on
Glade 2 Tutorial
·
· Score: 2, Insightful
"Windows isn't intuitive, but because it's so popular, people have had to learn how to get work done and consistent interfaces across Microsoft applications helps this."
That's debatable. Microsoft provided a visual metaphor that people could associate with. From there, it was easy for people to grasp on to. For example, 'folder' makes more sense than 'directory'.
Though I agree with you that Linux is too hard and it needs a 'truely intuitive' desktop, I don't think you give enough credit to MS for the work they did on the Windows UI. Millions of people wouldn't have flocked to it if they couldn't figure out how to make it work. Windows wasn't always on top.
"More to the point, if you're in a galaxy far away, a long long time ago, why use a standard based on the distance from Earth to a nearby star? "
Heh or why would C3PO describe them as 'human beings'?
In all seriousness, human terms doesn't bother me so much. If you imagine the movie's being translated to you from an alien language, then it all sorta makes sense. The dialog in that movie wouldn't have the same impact if they had to use alienesque terms. "I traveled 140 bwiddlethorms in 32 secrons!"
What I find amusing about topics like this is that fanatics will get into nitpicks like that, but won't get into conversations that make the universe seem weaker.
A huge huge discrepency in all three of the original movies involves the speed of light and how fast ships travel in relation to it. Most of the rebuttals are like "It's space jargon" or "if you read this book, then it rationalizes it completely." or "Uh he really didn't mean that." etc. Well there's a much simpler explanation that doesn't require reading a dull book. The Star Wars galaxy is very small. Small, as in "The Galaxy is on Orion's Belt" small. Scale everything down like that, and suddenly the speed of light is better than warp-drive. You can travel inter-stellar with a disabled hyperdrive to go visit your back-stabbing buddy. You can even survive a fall out of a moving vehicle or a 30-foot drop to the ground while tied together with a group of people without breaking bones!
I've had a difficult time getting people who'd be interested (aka fanatics) in this idea, mainly because they don't like the idea that the Empire couldn't possibly take on the Federation from Star Trek. I shit you not, they are overly sensitive to situations like that. Suddenly, making sense is no longer important if Captain Picard wouldn't even be able to see Darth Vader!
I have to admit, though, that the most amusing thing about this idea is that people will actually call me names over it.
"So what you're saying is that we have a very short period of time to see this second moon before millions of voices suddenly cry out in terror and are suddenly silenced? "
Ugh don't remind me. That wasn't very realistic. We all know that millions of voices would cry out "What the fuck is that?!"
Slashdot Mirror
When did Jack in the Box expand to Mars?
What are people doing with 802.11 and PDAs? I'd love to get a modern PDA + 802.11, but ideas about what to do with it escape me. Anybody have inspirations for me?
Heh I bought a PocketPC the year they started coming out, and by far the most useful thing I've done with it is synch it up with AvantGo so I have something to read during my morning dump. (hey, it's still considered work!) PLEASE give me something better I can do with it!
"Hmmm, help clean up the environment by collecting golden arches? You mean cleaning environment by removing McDonald restaurant? Sounds like feasible solution. "
Ever look at a McD's wrapper and notice the phrase "Please put litter in it's place"? Doesn't that mean you should throw it anywhere but in a trashcan? It ceases to be litter once you throw it away. Maybe that is what the game is about.
"I can just see it -- I fry myself inserting the Ethernet cable in the card. Instructions read: before inserting, go to your power panel, can shut off the circuit breaker for your computer and then... "
I don't see why this is a troll. I got shocked by plugging a phone line into a modem once years ago. Felt pretty stupid.
"i tend to spend the weekend getting blowjobs from hookers behind the circleK, somehow i figured other people did the same thing "
I wish my group of friends had thought of that.
But what is it?
"Reminds me of the BBS days. Usually a few hours after the SysOp leaves on vacation, the BBS is guaranteed to go down. "
My boss went on a trip to Europe for a month. A few months previously, she had two racks full of servers managing our needs. It all ran like clockwork. Of course, this one-month trip included a 2 week stint where she couldn't be reached. The day after she was completely out of contact, *poof*. I shit you not, there was a *poof*. Something on the motherboard let all it's smoke out. Of course, it was the mail server. Not only did I get to learn how to build a mail server, I also learned that RAID drives don't like hopping cards!
I now appreciate leaving as early as 6.
"I think you meant to say that hacking the XBOX is a waste of your time."
Let me make sure this is clear: Hacking the XBOX is a waste of E-V-E-R-Y-B-O-D-Y'S time.
"As long as MS wants to sell these things cheaper than the cost of manufacture, people will want to buy it to potentially replace low end PCs, can't say I blame them."
Except you're not getting interesting hardware for a cheaper price here. Sorry, nothing of value here, especially when there's no software to drive them. Beef up the RAM and give it a VGA-Out, then maybe you got something here.
"I bet MS appreciates your attempt to slow the hacking of the XBOX, however little it may help."
I don't care of MS appreciates it or not. Nothing I'm talking about has anything to do with benefitting MS. It has to do with not horsing around with them so they enter the battle, especially when the cause to hack the XBOX is so weak. If it goes to court, 'fair use' will not hold up as long as there's no reason to hack the XBOX. All MS has to say is "They want to pirate games". What will the defense be? "Uh, no, we want a seriously inferior machine to run Linux on."
Pay attention to what's going on in the world today (like the DVD copying software that's in court now, about to lose...) and then tell me that hacking the XBOX is a good idea. Hell yeah I want them to slow down or even stop. It's bad enough we have Disney buying senators.
"Most of Microsoft's "innovation" has been copied from Apple, but changed enough to hopefully avoid a lawsuit (After the first one anyway)."
No argument there.
"As for why Windows is on top, it has almost nothing to do with their UI. Millions of people flocked to it because they thought they needed a computer, and the only ones they could get were Dells, Microns, Compaqs, etc and those ONLY came with Windows."
Heh. And what exactly caused them to flock? Seriously, computers were around long before Windows 95, why would they suddenly become popular when it came out? Hmmmm.....
"The thing I hear the most about Linux desktops is that they're not more like Windows desktops. Once people learn the one, they think everything else should work like it. My roommates can't even use my iBook because it has no Start Button."
Fair point, to a degree. However, it does make one wonder how intuitive Mac really is. It's been a while since I've used one, but I fell into that same trap too. Took me a bit of clicking around to find an app to start. Linux and KDE, on the other hand, provided a handy dandy start-esque button to click as opposed to this really teeny weeny Apple icon. I was up and running with it pretty quick. (too bad there were too many indescript apps that all began with K, but that's a seperate topic...)
I'll concede that there's some truth to the 'familiarity factor'. However, my original point still stands: Windows 95 definitely did something right in the UI field.
"You were replying to a topic that was talking about a openGL-accelerated desktop with Longhorn as an answer."
Um, no, that's not what I was saying. Notice I used the word 'copy' in my original post.
"you have to write a case study to do that? isn't that like general knowledge?"
Don't underestimate the power of PowerPoint presentations. When you dumb down a scenario with logically flowing pictures, you can convince people that a business is viable. I'm not being sarcastic here, I've seen it happen. It's sort of like the psychology behind statistics.
"I have to admit, though, that the most amusing thing about this idea is that people will actually call me names over it. "
Ironically, I get a flamebait moderation. Thanks for illustrating my point!
Why's the idea of the SW universe being a micro-universe like in MiB such a terrible one? Why do people have to get shitty with me about it? If that was really the case, wouldn't that make for deeper sci-fi than we're generally exposed to? It certainly makes the nature of the force more interesting.
"I've already said this above but Longhorn does not use openGL to accelate it's GUI--it uses DirectX 9."
I don't understand what that has to do with what I said. Clarfify?
"The Xbox is actually a much better machine than those computers found in Wal-Mart. Hell, even the graphics card itself is faster than most of the CPUs inside the Wal-Mart computers. "
The graphics card in the XBOX is 100% useless unless it's playing XBOX games. So why hack it? Who's going to write an unpublished game that'll wow you graphics-wise? PC games will never work on it, not enough RAM.
So besides getting MS on the side of DMCA style legislation, what exactly is being accomplished?
" And you call yourself a geek: zappydonks, I say to you, megalazappydonks! "
Shut the frell up, shazbot breath! Fudu you!
"i REEEEAALLLY wish i knew step 3 "
I hear ya buddy. The XBOX has proven that MS can't create a monopoly without support of the consumer. Kinda deflates a lot of the "but the findings of fact say..." crap that flies around here. (To be fair, the final judgement should have done that, but suddenly everybody involved got selective about what to quote.)
"Could this really happen? How would Microsoft deny having a monopoly if they went this route? "
I have a better question: How could MS actually pull that off?
The answer? They can't. They can make a line of PC's that runs only Windows, and that'd be perfectly fair. They can't make every PC Windows only unless they got both AMD and Intel into it. If that ever happened, MS wouldn't be the one to be mad at. Intel and AMD both would have some s'plainin to do.
"Of course they're losing money for every unit sold. In some countries this is called "dumping" which is illegal."
It's more complicated than that. If it weren't, Sony would have been 'spanked' for both the PS1 and 2.
"Damn, some good points, who the hell would put it as offtopic?!"
I would. Hardware does not a good system make, it's the games. For example, the PS2 has a nasty little bottleneck which causes most of the games to appear blurry. Yet, it's still popular. Either people like blurry graphics or they like the games that are on it.
"Hacking the XBox can hardly be called "a worthless waste of time."
If this were about unique hardware like the PS2 or the GameCube, I'd agree with you. However, the XBOX is a PC. There's no value in tinkering here, worse there's no killer app that justifies 'fair use' of it. The only one that immediately pops into mind is a DivX movie player. Doh, we're treading into pirate waters here, doubtful the court'll support that.
Until there's that must have app that the XBOX runs best, every attempt to hack the XBOX makes the DMCA feel even more important to corporations and even potentially in the eyes of the law. It's not worth tinkering with. Pissing off Microsoft and strengthening the need for the DMCA is a waste of time. Sorry. Civilization will not come crashing down if the XBOX isn't hacked.
"Windows isn't intuitive, but because it's so popular, people have had to learn how to get work done and consistent interfaces across Microsoft applications helps this."
That's debatable. Microsoft provided a visual metaphor that people could associate with. From there, it was easy for people to grasp on to. For example, 'folder' makes more sense than 'directory'.
Though I agree with you that Linux is too hard and it needs a 'truely intuitive' desktop, I don't think you give enough credit to MS for the work they did on the Windows UI. Millions of people wouldn't have flocked to it if they couldn't figure out how to make it work. Windows wasn't always on top.
"But when are they going to write an OpenGL-accelerated desktop?"
After Longhorn's released and there's something to copy off of.
"More to the point, if you're in a galaxy far away, a long long time ago, why use a standard based on the distance from Earth to a nearby star? "
Heh or why would C3PO describe them as 'human beings'?
In all seriousness, human terms doesn't bother me so much. If you imagine the movie's being translated to you from an alien language, then it all sorta makes sense. The dialog in that movie wouldn't have the same impact if they had to use alienesque terms. "I traveled 140 bwiddlethorms in 32 secrons!"
What I find amusing about topics like this is that fanatics will get into nitpicks like that, but won't get into conversations that make the universe seem weaker.
A huge huge discrepency in all three of the original movies involves the speed of light and how fast ships travel in relation to it. Most of the rebuttals are like "It's space jargon" or "if you read this book, then it rationalizes it completely." or "Uh he really didn't mean that." etc. Well there's a much simpler explanation that doesn't require reading a dull book. The Star Wars galaxy is very small. Small, as in "The Galaxy is on Orion's Belt" small. Scale everything down like that, and suddenly the speed of light is better than warp-drive. You can travel inter-stellar with a disabled hyperdrive to go visit your back-stabbing buddy. You can even survive a fall out of a moving vehicle or a 30-foot drop to the ground while tied together with a group of people without breaking bones!
I've had a difficult time getting people who'd be interested (aka fanatics) in this idea, mainly because they don't like the idea that the Empire couldn't possibly take on the Federation from Star Trek. I shit you not, they are overly sensitive to situations like that. Suddenly, making sense is no longer important if Captain Picard wouldn't even be able to see Darth Vader!
I have to admit, though, that the most amusing thing about this idea is that people will actually call me names over it.
"So what you're saying is that we have a very short period of time to see this second moon before millions of voices suddenly cry out in terror and are suddenly silenced? "
Ugh don't remind me. That wasn't very realistic. We all know that millions of voices would cry out "What the fuck is that?!"