Well yes... the mouse is somewhat long in the tooth as it was invented about 40 years ago by some guy named Doug. And that's exactly my point. In some cases it may be essential for the input device to be fitted in various orifices to provide as WIDE a level of accessiblity to the largest number of users. Not everyone can type that fast, but some people are much more agile with their kegels than others. We can't forget that distinction among the population. I think if Microsoft's UI and input device division got together with the Xandria company, we could have many new and novel approaches to UI design and Microsoft would contiue to be the leader in innovation. It thanks you for your time sir.
...is that spammers need to work too. If the American economy is to improve, we need to make sure we're keeping all the opportunities WIDE open. To cast a wide net, so to speak.
Think about how the global economy would collapse if the spam industry were stamped out tomorrow. Originally, a lot of the spammers used to be in the telemarketing business. But the Do-Not-Call list damaged that industry, so they only had one place to go: spam. Most of the U.S. economy supports everyone else on the planet. If it weren't for the United States, who would buy all the stuff that all the other countries sell? India? Forget it. There would be no need for tech support, so India's growing economy would be destroyed if spammers were stopped. Japan? Their economic woes would grow exponentially when Americans stop buying SUVS because they aren't recieving "get a bigger penis now" spams. In fact, every nation on the planet would feel a great collapse in their economies if spam was reduced.
The Bush administration wisely chose the route of CAN-SPAM because it legitimizes spam as a marketing tool. Kind of the same way that multi-level marketing is legitimate too.
The only way to riches and success for every person on the planet is to encourage more spam! Think about it! Joe Smith in Utah gets a spam that says he doesn't need to be bald. He looks in the mirror and realizes that he doesn't want to be bald, so he buys into the natural Propecia from the whybebald.biz site. When he gets it in the mail and tries it, it works! Not that he's not bald anymore, but he FEELS less bald! So his confidence increases. This leads him to consider the herbal Viagra that he's been reading so much about in his e-mail. He gets that and... it works! He's able to finally get it up and give his old lady a good time again! Since he's riding high on top of the world, it's time for him to step out and buy a car that only men with large genitalia can own: A Hummer. We all know that term means...;) Sex sells! Profit margins are up for not just the herbal viagra and natural propecia industries, but the Hummer market sees a bulge in its bottom line and can afford to stop sending out the herbal viagra and natural propecia spam for a bit!
So there you have it. If we allow spam to increase, it will naturally decrease as it induces buyers to have the confidence to buy what they are told they need in order to be virile, normal Americans. The fact that we've seen a jump to 80% is good news, not bad news! If spammers were put out of work, we all know there would be more muggings because people would be out of work. Since the welfare system was dismantled, all of the previous benefactors have moved to doing spam work for the wise marketers of other products. Penis spam supports the auto and gun industries. Porn spam supports the pharmeceutical and insurance industries. Loan spam supports the big box stores like Best Buy, Walmart, CompUSA, etc... So that's all there is to it. Spam is good for the economy and if you anti-capitalism anti-free-market hippies knew what was good for you, you'd shut up and join the party.
This is simply proof that you have no idea what you are talking about in relation to Windows. I'm running my Windows ME server on the internet right now and it hasn't been patched since 2000. I don't have any kind of firewall on it. No anti-virus software. And this box has yet to be rooted. It's running as a web server, and using some third party stuff for e-mail. It's been working fine like this for the past five years and I expect it to work well for the next five. Sometimes it slows down and the hard drive cranks a lot, but I know that's because it's using the hardware to it's fullest capabilities and I'm getting my money's worth out of the hardware. To say that Microsoft OSes are insecure has yet to be proven to me. I mean q29eeq2u9a..dev qe92u9vo edaw,.2qe
TCP Active Open failure: could not connect
ejwqoejwioqwr0-9 3qw8r90Q# 99Q#
and that's all there is to it. This system is 100% stable and has a 99.999% uptime. SO there.
...that what drives innovation is new input and output devices. There is a limited set of software that can be made to add or enhance functionality of the existing input and outbput devices on a computer. For example, a plain old QWERTY keyboard can only do so much regardless of whether it connects with an AT, PS/2 or USB interface. You might be able to write software that will use the scroll lock LED as a network link/traffic indicator, but that's about it. I've also heard that there were some projects that utilized the numeric section of the KB in a chording mode so you could ostensible type with one hand and possibly get a little faster at it. But as you can see, a keyboard is a keyboard is a keyboard. The same goes for a mouse. There is only so much you can do with a mouse before you hit limitations no matter how unique your GUI is (Mac, Windows, *nix, it doesn't matter).
So the only answer to continue to drive innovation is new input and output devices. This is where Microsoft has got it right. They see the need for this and are constantly developing newer and more unique interfaces. They have their biometric login device that allows you to log in just by touching something. And now they have this new 3D sphere interface. What they need is a corresponding physical input device to take the most advantage of this new UI. Since they are so keen on the tactile approach, they should probably make an input device that is more convenient to what most of the users of their products are accustomed to interacting with.
I would suggest that they build a unit that can be placed on the lap for convenient reach. It should have a firm cylindrical projection that is easy to grab (probably about 6.5 inches in length and about 2 inches thick to fit the majority of the users hands) and two spheres placed on either side of the control rod. The placement of the two spheres on either side should accomodate left or right handed users who with to interact with the 3D Sphere UI. Just to make the make the spheres more tactile, they should use a surface that is somewhat riled. Possibly the entir e device could even be heated to approximately 98.6F so that touching it would be a little more intuitive.
Following up on their force feedback technology from the mid 90s, they could add the same kind of technology to this input device. A little jerking to and fro to represent more 3D features in this new UI might be helpful for most users. There could also be an automatic sensor in the control rod that can detect when a user's skin is getting a little dry and a plume of self contained moisturizing cream could be oozed out of the tip of the control rod and directed down the sides to the users hand(s) for instant skin relief.
Just a simple premise to prove that innovation in UIs is purely driven by the input and output hardware.:)
Well, I used to dislike RMS when I first started moving over to Linux. (I used to be a Windows dork and a Mac user before that) I read some of the things he said and they didn't make sense to me. I thought he sounded kind of extreme in some of his views and very annoying in others. Since I especialy hate politics, I really didn't like the idea of his bringing politics into computing. But, after I started getting a real understanding that companies want to control what I do with my machine and the software and data on it, I began to see his point. So my anti-RMS stance started to change. As did my jokes and jabs at him. Sure, it's fun to make a joke every so often and I'm sure RMS would agree. Chances are that the mod who modded you down didn't agree. For what it's worth, if I had mod points I'd mod you up with +1 Funny. Either way, I think Stallman is to computing kind of like Giovanni Pierluigi De Palestrina is to music. Not likely to be a houseold name at any point in time, but probably one of the more important people in computing of all time. And just like the musically inclined people who know who De Palestrina was, the people who understand and are aware of RMS and his position are less likely to want to joke about it.
If you really need to have the kind of accountability from your OS support vendor that you get from Microsoft for Windows, then you want RedHat. It's pricy, but it will give you the same kind of support. I guess it all depends on the environment where you work. Presonally, I really don't understand why people don't use more in-house people to do things with Linux. Many of us Linux users do a lot of very complex things with Linux at home and businesses could gain from that same kind of implementation at the workplace. Check out my linked JE below about OpenSSH. But there seems to be this wrongheaded thinking that you need to have something out-of-the-box even though you're going to wind up spending time customizing that. Seriously. How many companies will buy a product and use it as-is without having to configure it for their needs in some fashion or another. So if you're going to do that much anyway, why don't you just hunker down with your staff and build your own custom OS/App distribution? Hell, most IT departments worht their salt do this with Norton Ghost. And all the talk saying "linux is too complicated" is complete garbage as well. If you can take the time with Windows to sit down and install the OS, grab all the updates, add the 3rd party software + configuration and data and then make a Ghost image of that for further duplication, it doesn't take much more effort to use a distro like Debian the Unix Ghost clone g4u to do exactly the same thing.
Home schooling is worthless and private non-religious schools are not an option for many people. Get rid of the public schools and you will see a more abused and ill-educated populace than we've had in this country for over a century. Unless of course we all forget about those people who are working at McDonald's and Walmart and can't afford to send their kids to private schools since they don't really matter anyway. Right? Sorry, but the public schools are better than anything the private sector could ever offer even with all their warts. I know that I don't want my daughter going to the Walmart of private schools once that comes along. And I certainly don't want to be doing home schooling when I know that my own skills in math are pretty abysmal. We're all fucked anyway now that G.W. is in office again. He will make sure that Americans continue to get more ignorant every year he is in office. The only way a Republican run government can keep a hold on stupid people: Make them think that Christianity + the opposition of "evil" (read: gay rights and terrorism) makes you intelligent.
Here's the real truth: I trust a government run by a mix of liberals and conservatives with a heavier lean towards liberals more than I trust any conservative corporation. I don't trust a government overrun with "middle-of-the-road" politicians where the real balance leans towards the conservatives. Right now the government can't be trusted at all. It wasn't so bad during Clinton, but it could have been better. Probably the best president this country ever had was F.D.R. and he was shaped by the time he lived in. Sadly, the history books of this once decent nation will be twisted to paint G Dumbya with the same brush that F.D.R. EARNED by his great works. Personally, I've given up and I hope to make a plan to be out of this hell and in the E.U. within the next decade....if I can manage to afford it. In case you can't tell, I didn't vote for Bush.:) Gah! Politics suck ass.
Actually, the reason I've stopped thinking of myself as a geek is that I find most geeks and I don't relate to each other at all. I don't care about gaming much other than occasionally playing third person shooters. The most important thing to me is music and most geeks don't tend to have a background in music. I do. What always amazes me is when I ask a geek how they got into computers and they DON'T tell me it was because of music. I used to assume that most geeks were originally musicians. I don't think of geeks as losers either. Some of my best friends are geeks. They just don't happen to be into a lot of the same things I am so I assume that I'm not really a geek. remember the only reason to get into comptuers from my perspective is music. Everything else is just incidental.
From most of what I've read about him, he didn't actually write anything from scratch but mostly modified code that Microsoft bought from other people. (ie. Changing all references to QDOS in the OS code they bought that became MS-DOS) I'm sure he did some programming at some point, but I'll bet he hasn't done any real programming in decades now. I seriously doubt that he's using CMD or VBScript to do much at home these days. More than likely he's just using internally developed MSI packages to install the programs he wants to use at home. Those MSI packages were probably thrown together by a staffer at MS for him to preview some bleeding edge stuff. There is a big difference in starting from scratch and just modifying other people's work. Most of what I do at home is a mixture of starting from scratch and modifying, but I still say I'm not a geek. I only do this out of necessity. If I could afford to buy all the software I need to make music and edit video and images, I'd sooner buy than build.
I have to note that I'm speaking as "not a geek" but an artist who happens to use computers (mostly *nix but some WIndows, Mac and Atari here and there). I haven't seen any example of Bill Gates demonstrating much more technical ability than I have and I would not call myself a geek. I can look at source code and edit it when I run into problems compiling or don't like a certain behavior, but I'm not a programmer or a geek. I have a pretty good working knlowledg of the underside (ie. the Windows registry, AD, dns, dhcp, nfs, nis, kerberos, etc...) of most OSes and apps and how they work, but that still doesn't make me an OS "guru" or a geek. I'm just a guy who had to learn this stuff to accomplish what I do when I'm being a musician or working with images. I'm sure there are things that Bill knows much better than I do, but I'm sure there are things I know (technology-wise) better than he does. If I'm not a geek, then he can't be a geek. Now, I also know that he would beat the pants off of me in the business world because I don't know jack about business other than when I'm getting screwed by the more malicious businesses. So his strength lies mainly in business with just enough technical knowledge to get by. To the average person Bill Gates might be a geek. But to a geek, he is not a geek.
Ahhh but Gates is not a geek. He is a business man. A cunning business man at that. He knows little about technology other than what most salesmen know. He doesnt' have a deep understanding of the "how" of computing, mostly just the "why". Kind of like the recent article here on Slashdot about how your technological prowess won't help you as a consultant. It's your ability to give a client that "warm fuzzy" feeling that will get you farther in consulting. Mediocrity leads to popularity. Mastery leads to obscurity.
...desperate measures. This is akin to if Sony had decided to allow other companies (read competitors) to use the Betamax format in their own VCRs with no license fees. Someone please cue the album: Music to Sell Out By.
No. I think not. I *HAVE* a life in "meatspace" as you call it (I'm no geek. I'm an artist who happens to use computers). If I didn't have one, I'd be trolling like you all the time. You definitely don't have a life Rotund Bastard.
Screw Valve and Half-Life. I'm about to play Doom 3 with the new cooperative mode mod. I still don't see why there aren't more games that offer cooperative mode. For us non-gamers, it would be nice to make it through a game with a team of friends and actually finish it once in a while.
You're correct in a way. But I think there is still a difference between reasonable application of building codes and what the MPAA and RIAA are doing. The buildig codes are put in place to protect your best interests if the city is reasonable. I live in a fairly reasonable inner ring suburb. I have completely rewired my circa 1914 house to code. That's reasonable. But I have heard of some other cities nearby fining people because they didn't use a metered torque wrench on their water main. In that city, the city "just so happens" to have such a wrench with a city employee available for hire to correct the "violation". That's unreasonable. The later is more akin to what the MPAA and RIAA are doing. They are getting laws made to protect THEIR own best interests, not the artists and certainly not ours. They are fucking abusers of the law.
...you must be a criminal by the MPAA and RIAA's definitions.
At this point, I've accepted that there are things I do that may someday be considered a crime. I don't plan to stop:
-Record TV shows from my DirecTV reciever that I pay a monthly subscription fee for into my computer using a Hauppauge PVR250 card for archival purposes (to show friends and family when they come over) -Rip all CDs that I buy to the infinitely more convenient Ogg Vorbis format so that I can listen to my music anywhere -Stream any audio or video from my house to wherever I happen to be using a VPN connection and broadbad. This means I can listen to my music collection, watch my DVDs or even DirecTV as long as I have an internet connection -Build custom digital media devices that don't have the limitations that commercial products do
The way things are going, I'm sure these things will become illegal eventually. It's a wonder it's not illegal to use a hammer, nails, screwdriver, drywall, plaster and screws to build or modify your house any way you want to.
Now we're getting somewhere Mr. Rotund (implication that you are a fat lazy slob). I see that you must be using Windows 3.1 to operate your brain. That would explain the latency in your response. Six days. Not bad Mr. Rotund. That 16-bit single tasking brain of yours can work a little, even if it's wayyyy late. LOL!!!!111!!!! OMFG!!!11111!!!!!! I made a funny.
If there was a way for people who commit suicide to be punshied for their stupidity, I'd personally bring them back from the dead to do it. If there is one thing I can't stand it's people doing stupid things:
Smoking:stupid Screwing lots of people without a rubber:stupid Buying products from a company that is ruining small businesses and the American economy (Walmart):stupid Suicide:stupid Drunk Driving:stupid Supporting big business:stupid Supporting corrupt governments (Hello Mr. Cheney):stupid Claiming personal responsibility when you don't do your own surgery, dental and financial planning at home while still having a real life: stupid
That's just a small list of things that are irrefutably stupid. That's what I dislike the most: stupid actions. Those actions, in my worldview make those who commit them: STUPID.
Damn. I keep forgetting that after this past election, I've decided to stop caring about people. It's so hard to just say "fuck you" to the rest of humanity. But I must. It's apparent that they don't need compassion for the stupid things they do individually and should instead be left to suffer for their own wrong choices. Oh well... old habit die hard. Thanks for reminding me why I despise 51% of America.
Slashdot Mirror
Didn't Chevy invent those back in the 50s? What is this crossbar latch and what does it have to do with computery?
(Cackling: Eye of GNUt and hair of GNOME, give me root and get me home!)
Well yes... the mouse is somewhat long in the tooth as it was invented about 40 years ago by some guy named Doug. And that's exactly my point. In some cases it may be essential for the input device to be fitted in various orifices to provide as WIDE a level of accessiblity to the largest number of users. Not everyone can type that fast, but some people are much more agile with their kegels than others. We can't forget that distinction among the population. I think if Microsoft's UI and input device division got together with the Xandria company, we could have many new and novel approaches to UI design and Microsoft would contiue to be the leader in innovation. It thanks you for your time sir.
...is that spammers need to work too. If the American economy is to improve, we need to make sure we're keeping all the opportunities WIDE open. To cast a wide net, so to speak.
;) Sex sells! Profit margins are up for not just the herbal viagra and natural propecia industries, but the Hummer market sees a bulge in its bottom line and can afford to stop sending out the herbal viagra and natural propecia spam for a bit!
Think about how the global economy would collapse if the spam industry were stamped out tomorrow. Originally, a lot of the spammers used to be in the telemarketing business. But the Do-Not-Call list damaged that industry, so they only had one place to go: spam. Most of the U.S. economy supports everyone else on the planet. If it weren't for the United States, who would buy all the stuff that all the other countries sell? India? Forget it. There would be no need for tech support, so India's growing economy would be destroyed if spammers were stopped. Japan? Their economic woes would grow exponentially when Americans stop buying SUVS because they aren't recieving "get a bigger penis now" spams. In fact, every nation on the planet would feel a great collapse in their economies if spam was reduced.
The Bush administration wisely chose the route of CAN-SPAM because it legitimizes spam as a marketing tool. Kind of the same way that multi-level marketing is legitimate too.
The only way to riches and success for every person on the planet is to encourage more spam! Think about it! Joe Smith in Utah gets a spam that says he doesn't need to be bald. He looks in the mirror and realizes that he doesn't want to be bald, so he buys into the natural Propecia from the whybebald.biz site. When he gets it in the mail and tries it, it works! Not that he's not bald anymore, but he FEELS less bald! So his confidence increases. This leads him to consider the herbal Viagra that he's been reading so much about in his e-mail. He gets that and... it works! He's able to finally get it up and give his old lady a good time again! Since he's riding high on top of the world, it's time for him to step out and buy a car that only men with large genitalia can own: A Hummer. We all know that term means...
So there you have it. If we allow spam to increase, it will naturally decrease as it induces buyers to have the confidence to buy what they are told they need in order to be virile, normal Americans. The fact that we've seen a jump to 80% is good news, not bad news! If spammers were put out of work, we all know there would be more muggings because people would be out of work. Since the welfare system was dismantled, all of the previous benefactors have moved to doing spam work for the wise marketers of other products. Penis spam supports the auto and gun industries. Porn spam supports the pharmeceutical and insurance industries. Loan spam supports the big box stores like Best Buy, Walmart, CompUSA, etc... So that's all there is to it. Spam is good for the economy and if you anti-capitalism anti-free-market hippies knew what was good for you, you'd shut up and join the party.
This is simply proof that you have no idea what you are talking about in relation to Windows. I'm running my Windows ME server on the internet right now and it hasn't been patched since 2000. I don't have any kind of firewall on it. No anti-virus software. And this box has yet to be rooted. It's running as a web server, and using some third party stuff for e-mail. It's been working fine like this for the past five years and I expect it to work well for the next five. Sometimes it slows down and the hard drive cranks a lot, but I know that's because it's using the hardware to it's fullest capabilities and I'm getting my money's worth out of the hardware. To say that Microsoft OSes are insecure has yet to be proven to me. I mean q29eeq2u9a ..dev qe92u9vo edaw,.2qe
TCP Active Open failure: could not connect
ejwqoejwioqwr0-9 3qw8r90Q# 99Q#
and that's all there is to it. This system is 100% stable and has a 99.999% uptime. SO there.
...that what drives innovation is new input and output devices. There is a limited set of software that can be made to add or enhance functionality of the existing input and outbput devices on a computer. For example, a plain old QWERTY keyboard can only do so much regardless of whether it connects with an AT, PS/2 or USB interface. You might be able to write software that will use the scroll lock LED as a network link/traffic indicator, but that's about it. I've also heard that there were some projects that utilized the numeric section of the KB in a chording mode so you could ostensible type with one hand and possibly get a little faster at it. But as you can see, a keyboard is a keyboard is a keyboard. The same goes for a mouse. There is only so much you can do with a mouse before you hit limitations no matter how unique your GUI is (Mac, Windows, *nix, it doesn't matter).
:)
So the only answer to continue to drive innovation is new input and output devices. This is where Microsoft has got it right. They see the need for this and are constantly developing newer and more unique interfaces. They have their biometric login device that allows you to log in just by touching something. And now they have this new 3D sphere interface. What they need is a corresponding physical input device to take the most advantage of this new UI. Since they are so keen on the tactile approach, they should probably make an input device that is more convenient to what most of the users of their products are accustomed to interacting with.
I would suggest that they build a unit that can be placed on the lap for convenient reach. It should have a firm cylindrical projection that is easy to grab (probably about 6.5 inches in length and about 2 inches thick to fit the majority of the users hands) and two spheres placed on either side of the control rod. The placement of the two spheres on either side should accomodate left or right handed users who with to interact with the 3D Sphere UI. Just to make the make the spheres more tactile, they should use a surface that is somewhat riled. Possibly the entir e device could even be heated to approximately 98.6F so that touching it would be a little more intuitive.
Following up on their force feedback technology from the mid 90s, they could add the same kind of technology to this input device. A little jerking to and fro to represent more 3D features in this new UI might be helpful for most users. There could also be an automatic sensor in the control rod that can detect when a user's skin is getting a little dry and a plume of self contained moisturizing cream could be oozed out of the tip of the control rod and directed down the sides to the users hand(s) for instant skin relief.
Just a simple premise to prove that innovation in UIs is purely driven by the input and output hardware.
Well, I used to dislike RMS when I first started moving over to Linux. (I used to be a Windows dork and a Mac user before that) I read some of the things he said and they didn't make sense to me. I thought he sounded kind of extreme in some of his views and very annoying in others. Since I especialy hate politics, I really didn't like the idea of his bringing politics into computing. But, after I started getting a real understanding that companies want to control what I do with my machine and the software and data on it, I began to see his point. So my anti-RMS stance started to change. As did my jokes and jabs at him. Sure, it's fun to make a joke every so often and I'm sure RMS would agree. Chances are that the mod who modded you down didn't agree. For what it's worth, if I had mod points I'd mod you up with +1 Funny. Either way, I think Stallman is to computing kind of like Giovanni Pierluigi De Palestrina is to music. Not likely to be a houseold name at any point in time, but probably one of the more important people in computing of all time. And just like the musically inclined people who know who De Palestrina was, the people who understand and are aware of RMS and his position are less likely to want to joke about it.
If you really need to have the kind of accountability from your OS support vendor that you get from Microsoft for Windows, then you want RedHat. It's pricy, but it will give you the same kind of support. I guess it all depends on the environment where you work. Presonally, I really don't understand why people don't use more in-house people to do things with Linux. Many of us Linux users do a lot of very complex things with Linux at home and businesses could gain from that same kind of implementation at the workplace. Check out my linked JE below about OpenSSH. But there seems to be this wrongheaded thinking that you need to have something out-of-the-box even though you're going to wind up spending time customizing that. Seriously. How many companies will buy a product and use it as-is without having to configure it for their needs in some fashion or another. So if you're going to do that much anyway, why don't you just hunker down with your staff and build your own custom OS/App distribution? Hell, most IT departments worht their salt do this with Norton Ghost. And all the talk saying "linux is too complicated" is complete garbage as well. If you can take the time with Windows to sit down and install the OS, grab all the updates, add the 3rd party software + configuration and data and then make a Ghost image of that for further duplication, it doesn't take much more effort to use a distro like Debian the Unix Ghost clone g4u to do exactly the same thing.
"Does this OS make me look fat"? (Or is that "phat"?) ;P
Home schooling is worthless and private non-religious schools are not an option for many people. Get rid of the public schools and you will see a more abused and ill-educated populace than we've had in this country for over a century. Unless of course we all forget about those people who are working at McDonald's and Walmart and can't afford to send their kids to private schools since they don't really matter anyway. Right? Sorry, but the public schools are better than anything the private sector could ever offer even with all their warts. I know that I don't want my daughter going to the Walmart of private schools once that comes along. And I certainly don't want to be doing home schooling when I know that my own skills in math are pretty abysmal. We're all fucked anyway now that G.W. is in office again. He will make sure that Americans continue to get more ignorant every year he is in office. The only way a Republican run government can keep a hold on stupid people: Make them think that Christianity + the opposition of "evil" (read: gay rights and terrorism) makes you intelligent.
...if I can manage to afford it. In case you can't tell, I didn't vote for Bush. :) Gah! Politics suck ass.
Here's the real truth: I trust a government run by a mix of liberals and conservatives with a heavier lean towards liberals more than I trust any conservative corporation. I don't trust a government overrun with "middle-of-the-road" politicians where the real balance leans towards the conservatives. Right now the government can't be trusted at all. It wasn't so bad during Clinton, but it could have been better. Probably the best president this country ever had was F.D.R. and he was shaped by the time he lived in. Sadly, the history books of this once decent nation will be twisted to paint G Dumbya with the same brush that F.D.R. EARNED by his great works. Personally, I've given up and I hope to make a plan to be out of this hell and in the E.U. within the next decade.
Actually, the reason I've stopped thinking of myself as a geek is that I find most geeks and I don't relate to each other at all. I don't care about gaming much other than occasionally playing third person shooters. The most important thing to me is music and most geeks don't tend to have a background in music. I do. What always amazes me is when I ask a geek how they got into computers and they DON'T tell me it was because of music. I used to assume that most geeks were originally musicians. I don't think of geeks as losers either. Some of my best friends are geeks. They just don't happen to be into a lot of the same things I am so I assume that I'm not really a geek. remember the only reason to get into comptuers from my perspective is music. Everything else is just incidental.
From most of what I've read about him, he didn't actually write anything from scratch but mostly modified code that Microsoft bought from other people. (ie. Changing all references to QDOS in the OS code they bought that became MS-DOS) I'm sure he did some programming at some point, but I'll bet he hasn't done any real programming in decades now. I seriously doubt that he's using CMD or VBScript to do much at home these days. More than likely he's just using internally developed MSI packages to install the programs he wants to use at home. Those MSI packages were probably thrown together by a staffer at MS for him to preview some bleeding edge stuff. There is a big difference in starting from scratch and just modifying other people's work. Most of what I do at home is a mixture of starting from scratch and modifying, but I still say I'm not a geek. I only do this out of necessity. If I could afford to buy all the software I need to make music and edit video and images, I'd sooner buy than build.
I have to note that I'm speaking as "not a geek" but an artist who happens to use computers (mostly *nix but some WIndows, Mac and Atari here and there). I haven't seen any example of Bill Gates demonstrating much more technical ability than I have and I would not call myself a geek. I can look at source code and edit it when I run into problems compiling or don't like a certain behavior, but I'm not a programmer or a geek. I have a pretty good working knlowledg of the underside (ie. the Windows registry, AD, dns, dhcp, nfs, nis, kerberos, etc...) of most OSes and apps and how they work, but that still doesn't make me an OS "guru" or a geek. I'm just a guy who had to learn this stuff to accomplish what I do when I'm being a musician or working with images. I'm sure there are things that Bill knows much better than I do, but I'm sure there are things I know (technology-wise) better than he does. If I'm not a geek, then he can't be a geek. Now, I also know that he would beat the pants off of me in the business world because I don't know jack about business other than when I'm getting screwed by the more malicious businesses. So his strength lies mainly in business with just enough technical knowledge to get by. To the average person Bill Gates might be a geek. But to a geek, he is not a geek.
Ahhh but Gates is not a geek. He is a business man. A cunning business man at that. He knows little about technology other than what most salesmen know. He doesnt' have a deep understanding of the "how" of computing, mostly just the "why". Kind of like the recent article here on Slashdot about how your technological prowess won't help you as a consultant. It's your ability to give a client that "warm fuzzy" feeling that will get you farther in consulting. Mediocrity leads to popularity. Mastery leads to obscurity.
I've always said that you need to be nearly insane to become a successful business man. That's why I'm into music and computers.
When the hungries hit, the hungries hit!!! Quick! Everyone go to Hungary and hit someone!!!
Whheeee! Fun with trolling the trolls. Your ignorance is quite entertaining Mr. Penis Pudgepack.
Why yes. Thanks for asking. ;P
...desperate measures. This is akin to if Sony had decided to allow other companies (read competitors) to use the Betamax format in their own VCRs with no license fees. Someone please cue the album: Music to Sell Out By.
No. I think not. I *HAVE* a life in "meatspace" as you call it (I'm no geek. I'm an artist who happens to use computers). If I didn't have one, I'd be trolling like you all the time. You definitely don't have a life Rotund Bastard.
Screw Valve and Half-Life. I'm about to play Doom 3 with the new cooperative mode mod. I still don't see why there aren't more games that offer cooperative mode. For us non-gamers, it would be nice to make it through a game with a team of friends and actually finish it once in a while.
You're correct in a way. But I think there is still a difference between reasonable application of building codes and what the MPAA and RIAA are doing. The buildig codes are put in place to protect your best interests if the city is reasonable. I live in a fairly reasonable inner ring suburb. I have completely rewired my circa 1914 house to code. That's reasonable. But I have heard of some other cities nearby fining people because they didn't use a metered torque wrench on their water main. In that city, the city "just so happens" to have such a wrench with a city employee available for hire to correct the "violation". That's unreasonable. The later is more akin to what the MPAA and RIAA are doing. They are getting laws made to protect THEIR own best interests, not the artists and certainly not ours. They are fucking abusers of the law.
...you must be a criminal by the MPAA and RIAA's definitions.
At this point, I've accepted that there are things I do that may someday be considered a crime. I don't plan to stop:
-Record TV shows from my DirecTV reciever that I pay a monthly subscription fee for into my computer using a Hauppauge PVR250 card for archival purposes (to show friends and family when they come over)
-Rip all CDs that I buy to the infinitely more convenient Ogg Vorbis format so that I can listen to my music anywhere
-Stream any audio or video from my house to wherever I happen to be using a VPN connection and broadbad. This means I can listen to my music collection, watch my DVDs or even DirecTV as long as I have an internet connection
-Build custom digital media devices that don't have the limitations that commercial products do
The way things are going, I'm sure these things will become illegal eventually. It's a wonder it's not illegal to use a hammer, nails, screwdriver, drywall, plaster and screws to build or modify your house any way you want to.
Now we're getting somewhere Mr. Rotund (implication that you are a fat lazy slob). I see that you must be using Windows 3.1 to operate your brain. That would explain the latency in your response. Six days. Not bad Mr. Rotund. That 16-bit single tasking brain of yours can work a little, even if it's wayyyy late. LOL!!!!111!!!! OMFG!!!11111!!!!!! I made a funny.
Bleh.
If there was a way for people who commit suicide to be punshied for their stupidity, I'd personally bring them back from the dead to do it. If there is one thing I can't stand it's people doing stupid things:
Smoking:stupid
Screwing lots of people without a rubber:stupid
Buying products from a company that is ruining small businesses and the American economy (Walmart):stupid
Suicide:stupid
Drunk Driving:stupid
Supporting big business:stupid
Supporting corrupt governments (Hello Mr. Cheney):stupid
Claiming personal responsibility when you don't do your own surgery, dental and financial planning at home while still having a real life: stupid
That's just a small list of things that are irrefutably stupid. That's what I dislike the most: stupid actions. Those actions, in my worldview make those who commit them: STUPID.
Damn. I keep forgetting that after this past election, I've decided to stop caring about people. It's so hard to just say "fuck you" to the rest of humanity. But I must. It's apparent that they don't need compassion for the stupid things they do individually and should instead be left to suffer for their own wrong choices. Oh well... old habit die hard. Thanks for reminding me why I despise 51% of America.