You are absolutely correct, few people recognize that iPad is taking on the Kindle, and on screen contrast, which is a weakness of current e-ink. I bought a Kindle 2 last year myself, only to return it on that issue alone. It was also painfully slow at everything else - the web browsing capability was painfully bad. However, one big thing Kindle has in it's favor is (now global) whispernet. Being able to buy books anywhere. Free Wifi isn't exactly pervasive - but it's around. However, I'm not enough of a book reader to keep it for that alone. Amazon probably will have the offering advantage as far as number of e-book offered (at first).
Apple could have beat Kindle handily if they went with a Pixel-Qi dual purpose screen. With the energy savings needed -- some people still prefer the e-ink over LCD for longterm read and/or battery. Maybe an OLED screen for sheer contrast. If they had a formfactor like Alway's Innovating notebook (bottom half is just a keyboard and big battery, top half is everything else plus another battery): http://netbook-review.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/always-innovating-touch-book.jpg
I believe they would have blasted some serious competition, including netbooks.
As it is, I have to wait and see how this product works out. I don't think it is as bad as everyone says. I just had to introduce my 45 y/o uncle to computers for the first time - his experience is limited to ATMs and the like. He always dictated emails to some hapless family member and doesn't even know how to get into his account, let alone browse the web. I would have given him an Apple, but his budget dictate something with Windows 7 (as cheap as possible). It's plain painful. I can't blame W7, OS X can be also bad for a complete neophyte (sans the malware) -- but a netbook with a "kiddy" iPhone OS would have been superb. (Many Linux Netbooks run such a system). Put in the settings once and forget about it. Press big, shiny icons to do what you want to do. Who is going to be running CAD or photoshop on that powerlevel anyway?
But I think Apple had been too protective of their notebook line to let that happen. A shame.
I have to agree with you. E-paper excited me at first, I got a second generation Kindle... only to be disappointed by the low contrast of black on light-brown-gray whatever. I don't like LCDs all that much for reading, but until they can get the e-ink background white (or reasonably close), count me out.
Solution: Ignore the phone while driving and call back when at your destination.
Quicker Solution: Answer, say "Hold on for a second", ignore phone until you are safely pulled over somewhere.
Really, answering the phone is always in your power - and missing a phone call is not the end of the world. Driving the car is the driver's responsibility as well. We can't have excuses on either one, the buck needs to stop at the person with the power to make those decisions.
North American car owners prefer automatics because you can't eat a cheeseburger and talk on the phone while applying makeup & reading the newspaper if you're driving stick.
I think most of those who prefer manual is only due the macho perception, of racing and the like - that's what it boils down too.
Automatics are still the exception in Germany, but my uncle tried an automatic out 15 years ago (he never drove an automatic until he was 40) and he loves the convenience of it. He knows stick perfectly well, but the other upside to driving automatics is that the used cars can be slightly cheaper if they are auto, as every one there wants a stick.
I drove both extensively. If you're drive a lot in the metro areas, the coolness of stick gets old fast.
According to Consumer Reports AND The Tappet Brothers (Tom and Ray Magliozzi) it's bad for the engine to "warm up" your car by letting it run idle in park. It's also a waste of time and gasoline.
I never let my car idle more than a minute if it's warmed up, and others mentioned the fogging up issue...
But my mpg increased like 20% this winter if I let my car idle 5 minutes (vs the 30 seconds I did before). I usually only take short trips ( 45 minutes, usually 15 or less) but I have to wonder if it's all that bad for the engine...
And I'm not surprised that this happens - it was just a question of time before items were starting to behave on their own.
In that aspect, this is no different than a coffee machine programmed to brew at 8:00am every morning.
When items really start behaving on their own, in what we recognize as true AI, I hope it's to the benefit of mankind - and not some budding evil genius like this artist looks to be:)
You may not use the PayPal service for activities that:
violate any law, statute, ORDINANCE or REGULATION
Yeah, I have a paypal account. Another rule is that you may not use it for any item that is prohibited by ebay because it's an ebay company - even if it's perfectly legal and the transaction outside ebay.
I didn't sell such an item, but someone I did some small transaction with told Paypal that the item he recieved was against ebay regulations. My account was frozen, eventually the money from that transaction was taken (given back to the unscrupulous buyer) and I was also out of the item. Paypal didn't care.
Again, a bank can't do this simply play with transactions like that, because, say, it's a tatoo parlor and they're against such a thing. It's not Paypal's job to "enforce" the law by themselves either.
Take your hypothesis and flush it, because it's crap.
Unless of course they raise the cap on SS by like 10%. In which case it's fine.
Social Security isn't in any great risk.
Where do you get this total bullshit? The former Comptroller General, David Walker, has been warning for years now that Social Security and Medicare will start eating us alive.
Until people stop using Paypal, or some sort of oversight or audit is performed, it will continue to happen.
The Government has to step up and declare Paypal a bank. Banks can't take or freeze your money simply because they don't like what you do (which Paypal often does) - only the government can do that if you are in breach of laws.
Now that the Government found their balls to stand up to China for once, maybe it can do the same with corporations.
It was the first virtual world which I could see as real, which I didn't have to pretend otherwise because all previous efforts has give-aways that it was fake. It looked goood (and if you sat through the credits, the masses of names hint towards the work needed to make this so) and that's why it's so successful and a breakthrough, imo.
The desktop computer is on its way out for everyone but typists and coders. When your wristwatch automatically interfaces with any number of large screens at your office or home, not to mention printers and fax machines, who is going to be worrying about the size of their watch display? We have the technology to do that now... and that's just one of many possible evolutions of UI. The possibilities are quite astounding.
The desktop has been "dying" forever. You know who likes desktops? People who want to input into their computers worth a damn. The miniature keyboards and screens on other devices aren't efficient enough for serious all day use.
Do you: -want to type up a report on a phone? -want to do CAD drawings on anything but a desktop? -want to design anything on anything but a desktop? -want to use mathematica on a phone?
I'm sure, with time, there will be apps that do all these things on phones, but just shittier. I have tried various voice-to-text things, it's not there yet, but even at 100%, you're not going to replace a keyboard, if nothing but the simple reason of driving everyone around you nuts. But also because editing with voice sucks and is slower. The only thing going to replace a keyboard is mind control... possibly eye control.
(BTW I would include most notebooks in the same category as desktops because: their alphabetical keyboards are about the same size, the screens are equivalent or even bigger than many early desktops and still 50-75% of the size of normal ones today. Basically, a notebook managed to maintain the size of all the actual user interface parts of a desktop and shrink everything else, in terms of power being almost a desktop equivalent. Also because there is no fundamental difference is the usage of the two other than portability -- a phone or watch have other forms for different functions.)
It's cheaper to buy a pizza in a pizza shop than have it delivered. You're paying for convenience.
If they were deliverying DVDs to your front doorstep, you might have a point. Delivery pizzas has a cost to the business - assuming its their own car - car itself, car insurance (more expensive for businesses than personal use), gas, wages. Convenience costs there because they have costs providing it to you.
Here, the costs are minimal. Convenience itself shouldn't add to the cost of a product, it should be a way to get people to a) consume more of it or b) outdo your competitor. Cost of "convenience" is at play with food/drinks at ballparks, airports, movie theaters, and convention centers where they gouge you for every little thing. It may not be the vendors themselves since they have high costs operating there but then it's the venue itself. It doesn't make me want to go there all that much. In fact, I avoid those spots.
Now, $3.99 for 5 movies should be nothing to bitch about for 5 movies. I assume your OP didn't read the summary correctly, that's cheaper than redbox. Of course, I assume Avatar and the like won't be included...
Monster? Ha! A cheap fabrication for those who don't know better.
Ever since I switched to triple platinum-plated (no cheap gold here!) Pear Anjou cables, the colors on my monitor have been much deeper, richer and more vibrant, truly life-like! That's because they have a proprietary hybrid geometry, and the platinum plating provides ultra-low electrical reactance and the underlying copper is fully annealed 99.999% pure oxygen free. Not that cheap copper you get everyplace. All this combines to allow for new levels of digital accuracy.
We had those here (Japan) for 5 years now, they're quite popular in rural areas or for shopping but otherwise everyone takes the train.
In Germany, I'm sure many people would love to have something that they could take on and off the train, to make the medium-distance trips from station to destination. Traditional bikes are already a hassle and few carriages allow something like that.
Folding bikes are often crap, scooters are too big, an electric folding bike might be popular here. Of course, getting everything down to size...
Cars are a hassle and expensive to maintain and park. There just needs to be something that complements trains, not to replace them or anything.
As for the states, the only real bicycling culture are in the biggest cities. Mass Transit is nearly non-existent outside of that or just more hassle than it's worth. It's better to buy a $2300 car than this for 99.999% of cases.
Perhaps, one good thing about it being standardized is that if I send to someone on that service, I also know if's a bit more secure. (Although, if you're telling secrets to another human, there really isn't any hope of it staying one...)
Probably will take Yahoo only another 15 years to catch up. Wish all other services with even a small chance of transmitting private data would do the same. Even if they charged for it (i.e. a premium account).
Your signature is apt in this situation. But people, by and large, barely care if the clothes they wear are made by child slave labor as long as they don't have to look at them and deal with it. Google's reputation win will soonbe forgotten.
Slashdot Mirror
You are absolutely correct, few people recognize that iPad is taking on the Kindle, and on screen contrast, which is a weakness of current e-ink. I bought a Kindle 2 last year myself, only to return it on that issue alone. It was also painfully slow at everything else - the web browsing capability was painfully bad. However, one big thing Kindle has in it's favor is (now global) whispernet. Being able to buy books anywhere. Free Wifi isn't exactly pervasive - but it's around. However, I'm not enough of a book reader to keep it for that alone. Amazon probably will have the offering advantage as far as number of e-book offered (at first).
Apple could have beat Kindle handily if they went with a Pixel-Qi dual purpose screen. With the energy savings needed -- some people still prefer the e-ink over LCD for longterm read and/or battery. Maybe an OLED screen for sheer contrast. If they had a formfactor like Alway's Innovating notebook (bottom half is just a keyboard and big battery, top half is everything else plus another battery):
http://netbook-review.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/always-innovating-touch-book.jpg
I believe they would have blasted some serious competition, including netbooks.
As it is, I have to wait and see how this product works out. I don't think it is as bad as everyone says. I just had to introduce my 45 y/o uncle to computers for the first time - his experience is limited to ATMs and the like. He always dictated emails to some hapless family member and doesn't even know how to get into his account, let alone browse the web. I would have given him an Apple, but his budget dictate something with Windows 7 (as cheap as possible). It's plain painful. I can't blame W7, OS X can be also bad for a complete neophyte (sans the malware) -- but a netbook with a "kiddy" iPhone OS would have been superb. (Many Linux Netbooks run such a system). Put in the settings once and forget about it. Press big, shiny icons to do what you want to do. Who is going to be running CAD or photoshop on that powerlevel anyway?
But I think Apple had been too protective of their notebook line to let that happen. A shame.
I have to agree with you. E-paper excited me at first, I got a second generation Kindle... only to be disappointed by the low contrast of black on light-brown-gray whatever. I don't like LCDs all that much for reading, but until they can get the e-ink background white (or reasonably close), count me out.
You're just shooting yourself in the foot otherwise.
Insecure huh?
Is that why my browser kept asking if it looked fat maximized in my widescreen monitor.
In France, by a guy named Caselli, called a Pantelegraph:
http://www.telephonecollecting.org/caselli.htm
Solution: Ignore the phone while driving and call back when at your destination.
Quicker Solution: Answer, say "Hold on for a second", ignore phone until you are safely pulled over somewhere.
Really, answering the phone is always in your power - and missing a phone call is not the end of the world. Driving the car is the driver's responsibility as well. We can't have excuses on either one, the buck needs to stop at the person with the power to make those decisions.
I think most of those who prefer manual is only due the macho perception, of racing and the like - that's what it boils down too.
Automatics are still the exception in Germany, but my uncle tried an automatic out 15 years ago (he never drove an automatic until he was 40) and he loves the convenience of it. He knows stick perfectly well, but the other upside to driving automatics is that the used cars can be slightly cheaper if they are auto, as every one there wants a stick.
I drove both extensively. If you're drive a lot in the metro areas, the coolness of stick gets old fast.
I never let my car idle more than a minute if it's warmed up, and others mentioned the fogging up issue...
But my mpg increased like 20% this winter if I let my car idle 5 minutes (vs the 30 seconds I did before). I usually only take short trips ( 45 minutes, usually 15 or less) but I have to wonder if it's all that bad for the engine...
In that aspect, this is no different than a coffee machine programmed to brew at 8:00am every morning.
When items really start behaving on their own, in what we recognize as true AI, I hope it's to the benefit of mankind - and not some budding evil genius like this artist looks to be:)
Yeah, I have a paypal account. Another rule is that you may not use it for any item that is prohibited by ebay because it's an ebay company - even if it's perfectly legal and the transaction outside ebay.
I didn't sell such an item, but someone I did some small transaction with told Paypal that the item he recieved was against ebay regulations. My account was frozen, eventually the money from that transaction was taken (given back to the unscrupulous buyer) and I was also out of the item. Paypal didn't care.
Again, a bank can't do this simply play with transactions like that, because, say, it's a tatoo parlor and they're against such a thing. It's not Paypal's job to "enforce" the law by themselves either.
Take your hypothesis and flush it, because it's crap.
Where do you get this total bullshit? The former Comptroller General, David Walker, has been warning for years now that Social Security and Medicare will start eating us alive.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OS2fI2p9iVs
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_M._Walker_(U.S._Comptroller_General)
The Government has to step up and declare Paypal a bank. Banks can't take or freeze your money simply because they don't like what you do (which Paypal often does) - only the government can do that if you are in breach of laws.
Now that the Government found their balls to stand up to China for once, maybe it can do the same with corporations.
I already read many times that no one can track down the quote:
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Talk:Benito_Mussolini
It was the first virtual world which I could see as real, which I didn't have to pretend otherwise because all previous efforts has give-aways that it was fake. It looked goood (and if you sat through the credits, the masses of names hint towards the work needed to make this so) and that's why it's so successful and a breakthrough, imo.
I think for a tablet with detachable keyboard there might be, like this one from Always Innovating:
http://news.cnet.com/i/bto/20090302/AI-front_610x405.png
but I don't see one just for a tablet.... the form factor always seems like one of those "neat-o" ideas until you actually try to make use of it.
The desktop has been "dying" forever. You know who likes desktops? People who want to input into their computers worth a damn. The miniature keyboards and screens on other devices aren't efficient enough for serious all day use.
Do you:
-want to type up a report on a phone?
-want to do CAD drawings on anything but a desktop?
-want to design anything on anything but a desktop?
-want to use mathematica on a phone?
I'm sure, with time, there will be apps that do all these things on phones, but just shittier. I have tried various voice-to-text things, it's not there yet, but even at 100%, you're not going to replace a keyboard, if nothing but the simple reason of driving everyone around you nuts. But also because editing with voice sucks and is slower. The only thing going to replace a keyboard is mind control... possibly eye control.
(BTW I would include most notebooks in the same category as desktops because: their alphabetical keyboards are about the same size, the screens are equivalent or even bigger than many early desktops and still 50-75% of the size of normal ones today. Basically, a notebook managed to maintain the size of all the actual user interface parts of a desktop and shrink everything else, in terms of power being almost a desktop equivalent. Also because there is no fundamental difference is the usage of the two other than portability -- a phone or watch have other forms for different functions.)
If they were deliverying DVDs to your front doorstep, you might have a point. Delivery pizzas has a cost to the business - assuming its their own car - car itself, car insurance (more expensive for businesses than personal use), gas, wages. Convenience costs there because they have costs providing it to you.
Here, the costs are minimal. Convenience itself shouldn't add to the cost of a product, it should be a way to get people to a) consume more of it or b) outdo your competitor. Cost of "convenience" is at play with food/drinks at ballparks, airports, movie theaters, and convention centers where they gouge you for every little thing. It may not be the vendors themselves since they have high costs operating there but then it's the venue itself. It doesn't make me want to go there all that much. In fact, I avoid those spots.
Now, $3.99 for 5 movies should be nothing to bitch about for 5 movies. I assume your OP didn't read the summary correctly, that's cheaper than redbox. Of course, I assume Avatar and the like won't be included...
Alex Jones makes a great living off the paranoid.
Monster? Ha! A cheap fabrication for those who don't know better.
Ever since I switched to triple platinum-plated (no cheap gold here!) Pear Anjou cables, the colors on my monitor have been much deeper, richer and more vibrant, truly life-like! That's because they have a proprietary hybrid geometry, and the platinum plating provides ultra-low electrical reactance and the underlying copper is fully annealed 99.999% pure oxygen free. Not that cheap copper you get everyplace. All this combines to allow for new levels of digital accuracy.
In Germany, I'm sure many people would love to have something that they could take on and off the train, to make the medium-distance trips from station to destination. Traditional bikes are already a hassle and few carriages allow something like that.
Folding bikes are often crap, scooters are too big, an electric folding bike might be popular here. Of course, getting everything down to size...
Cars are a hassle and expensive to maintain and park. There just needs to be something that complements trains, not to replace them or anything.
As for the states, the only real bicycling culture are in the biggest cities. Mass Transit is nearly non-existent outside of that or just more hassle than it's worth. It's better to buy a $2300 car than this for 99.999% of cases.
Ever heard of the 14th amendment? Made after the civil war...
Perhaps, one good thing about it being standardized is that if I send to someone on that service, I also know if's a bit more secure. (Although, if you're telling secrets to another human, there really isn't any hope of it staying one...)
Probably will take Yahoo only another 15 years to catch up. Wish all other services with even a small chance of transmitting private data would do the same. Even if they charged for it (i.e. a premium account).
Did you kill the other three off or was it natural causes?
Your signature is apt in this situation. But people, by and large, barely care if the clothes they wear are made by child slave labor as long as they don't have to look at them and deal with it. Google's reputation win will soonbe forgotten.