I was upset about Borders. I enjoyed their layout more than the Barnes and Nobles by me: better lit, nicer shelves, easier to navigate. As lame as it sounds, being able to see "over" the shelves makes finding what you want (sections and such) at lot easier and doesn't feel as claustrophobic. While the B&Ns by me have like 7' making it feel cramped.
I used to like going there to browse through the selections and such. It was one of the main places I'd go to for books.
While I use mom-and-pop shops for other stuff, Borders had a much nicer selection of the books I wanted in a decent environment. Plus their selection on IT books (programming / servers / etc) put the local mom-and-pop book stores to shame.
Depending on my mood, what I want, and the price... I bounce between local shops, somewhat local big-box chains, and online.
As for online, sometimes I really don't want the hassle of getting it shipped, potentially damaged, and having to send it back. I'd sometimes rather drive 30min each way and pick it up from a store if the price is around the same.
As for small shops, I've got a bunch near me, near my work, and near my parent's house. There's not enough to buy "everything" (like Computer stuff) but I can get books, home improvement stuff, and even large-electronics at local shops for decent prices. I might save a little money here-and-there if I went to Amazon instead but the local mom-and-pop shops are sometimes quite convenient and I'm helping the community.
It's nowhere near as bad as the many reviews make it out to be.
Yes, it has its issues and I don't agree with everything they did. And it's obvious they're trying to bring Tablet and PC together.
But I applaud trying something "different" Face it, the UI design for Windows hasn't changed much since the 3.1 days (or I perhaps the 95 days). Even OSX has had pretty much the same UI since it was released, and has a LOT in common with its old System X days.
And Windows 8 is actually fairly nice, ONCE you get used to it. That's the problem: you're getting used to something that's different that what you've known for the last 20+ years. The various reviews use previous OS's as a template to say "THIS is good design, and here's why" when really they're just stating UX concepts that were founded AROUND the interfaces that were popular and long-living.
The only real annoying things to me are: - Shutting Down / Rebooting is insanely stupid. Like 8 mouse clicks.
- The 3rd party metro apps go over-board with the scrolling text. To the point that you can't tell what a lot of those 3rd party "tiles" actually are. Most of the ones that come with Windows 8 are fine though: the title of the app or an icon is on the tile so you know what's what.
Will it last long? Probably not, enough people will not like getting used to it that I'm sure Microsoft will have to back-peddle in Windows 9 to a more classic UI.
I believe there are people that would just like an up to date laptop as a secondary pc and this inexpensive one will work great because at that price it really does not matter.
Exactly. Even as an IT professional, that's what I do. - A solid desktop for my main needs: gaming, programming, database-work, etc. Large screen, comfortable use, fast speeds. - A cheap portable laptop for when I need to do something mobile or I just need to do something casual while sitting on the couch.
Sure, if money AND space were an issue I'd consider just a solid / expensive laptop to fit both needs. But in my case, having both is quite fine.
Admittedly, when my laptop died my tablet filled "most" of the void left by the loss of my portable machine. But sometimes in IT you do need a portable rig.
The problem is, as some companies get you onto their 3-for-1 deals (TV+Internet+Phone) you often get some version of VOIP or something. Like Verizon pushes people that get their FIOS service to get their voice over fiber service, which means you are no longer using the old copper lines outside your house. So when your Verizon-box's battery dies after 8 hours... no phone for you. I think Comcast and the like offer their own types of stuff over their Coax lines.
Problems are: As we've seen with Sandy, the result is Cellphone coverage can get borked. Downed towers, cut communications, etc. AT&T was having mad problems in the aftermath, and I heard Verizon was having some too.
To ensure that a cellphone sitting in the vending machine for months or 1+years will still have a charge when you finally get it. If there's no power, then a dead cellphone is a waste.
Cellphones need to be activated before you can use them, even if it is just over another phone. Mass activations during a disaster might be hard to cope with.
You need power to get it from the vending machine, unless you want to crack it open. But then you run the risk of riot-type-stuff going on. OMG he smashed a vending machine, let's ALL do that.
In New Jersey, which last I heard is in its path, last year around Halloween we got nailed. A windy freak snow storm came out of nowhere.
Trees went down all over the place.
My house was without power for 6 days and 15 hours.
That was the first time in over 20 years of living there that we were without power for more than a couple of hours.
Trees went down all over the state. A couple went down on our property. The top part of a tree fell on the power lines in front of our house AND blocked the main road.
And really, prior to the storm they didn't make it sound like it was going to be too bad. Meanwhile LOTS of NJ were without power for days.
In their defense, last I heard they were saying the gusts would hit 75MpH in New Jersey. Which, considering how many of the trees still haven't shed their leaves yet, COULD be bad. Last Halloween, NJ got dragged over the coals by a freak snow storm. What made it so bad was the amount of leaves on the trees, causing things to fall ALL over the place.
But I'll believe it when I see it. When they call something "Franken-storm" while it's still days out, it's still a bit premature.
The car could be lighter back then, because they didn't need to throw in as much stuff as they do now. Much of the new weight comes from safety stuff: airbags, crumple zones, etc. But electronics get heavy. Before: the gas-pedal just pulled a thin cable that adjusted a valve. Now, all of that comes in the form of a big electronic box to calculate this-and-that.
The amount of "stuff" in cars today is a lot different than the amount of "stuff" in a car in the 1980s.
But with Fios, the weird thing is you often get even higher speeds than they advertise... and in general you actually get the speeds you SHOULD be getting. So long as the website/server you're accessing can handle it.
Comcast though: we hardly ever got that close to what they promised. And DSL... we were usually in the same boat as you: averaging 80% of their promised speeds.
But since we went to FIOS, I'm actually content with the speeds we're getting.
That's what I heard as well... but then last month or so they announced their "Quantum" FIOS service which offers packages up to 300MBit. So... I don't know if they reversed their decision (again) or are just opening up the pipes they already laid (and are still not laying more).
The UK has a hard enough time keeping them out, and they're an island with borderline Orwellian practices. Heck, they give the US a run for the money in terms of Big Brother.
Meanwhile, the US has them all here already and we have 2 countries that border us. Enough criminals want guns that, the worst case for them, they'd have to pay more for them to get smuggled in.
In China this would have just been a knife attack instead of a shooting.
Or a bomb. Or he just decided to drive his car into the huge line of people waiting for the movie to start outside... perhaps a rented Van or SUV.
The guy was psycho, he came in heavily armed with illegal weapons and gas grenades (perhaps tear gas, which is illegal for civilians).
So obviously he really wanted this to happen. Even if there were magically no guns in a 1000km radius, he'd just find another method. And to be honest, a bomb or a car or a car-bomb might have done even more damage.
Though, the whole "decade earlier" might have been nice. Delaying a discovery by a decade could mean a lot. Sure maybe not in the LONG run, but when you're talking about lifetimes... a decade could mean the difference between whether we'll get to witness something cool in our lifetime due to the original discovery. Like perhaps a new discovery as a result, a new theory, heck even perhaps a practical application related to the discovery.
I imagine "to them," the that the whole point of the DVR is to act as an easy-to-use recording device for when you're not available to watch their shows... or if you want to watch 2 shows on at the same time.
It's a semi-valid point. Time Shifting being the major thing, instead of just fast forwarding. BUT... in practice the fast-forward is almost essential. Maybe you only watched the first half and want to skip to the middle. Maybe there's a gross scene and you want to skip. Maybe you don't feel like watching 3 minutes of boring ads.
That being said, it would be a sad day if all DVRs no longer allowed fast-forwarding
Also, some people have no choice. For example, they're purchasing something using their computer at work. Some businesses really lag behind with OS and Browser because it requires a LOT of testing to make sure the upgrade doesn't break all of their internal stuff. So it's really not hard to find businesses that are still using Windows XP and IE 7... heck some are probably still on IE6.
MS Office isn't that bad anymore. There are cheaper official versions that come with most of what you want. The "Office Home and Student" version is usually around 100-120 USD not on sale. Which really isn't THAT bad considering how much some people wind up using MsWord + MsExcel.
Honestly, if there's a piece of software that's I feel is too expensive then I simply won't GET IT. I don't pirate at all; I'll either try to find a cheap or open alternative or skip it all-together. And if it's a game... if I want it I buy it. If I don't want it, or the review or "meh" then I skip it.
Would I like Photoshop? Sure. Would I use it enough to warrant the expense? No Is Gimp "good enough" for a free app? Sure
Why can't we have a long term positive male companion? Yes, it's nice to look at young women, but that isn't what Doctor Who is all about. Is it going to take a female doctor before we have can have a decent male companion that isn't a coward or dies every other episode?
(If it does require a female companion, can I vote for Emma Thompson?)
Well they have Rory, who's been a partner of Doctor + Amy for quite a number of episodes. IMDB says 22, so discounting the pilot and the odd "remember me" episodes that's about as much as Martha Jones.
Though perhaps that's who you meant about "dies every other episode" as he has died a number of times.
Is a system that could save millions of lives without infringing on our freedoms worth it? Yes. How could anyone think otherwise. These missile defense system can not feasibly be used offensively. If someone gets mad at us for wanting to be able to defend ourselves, isn't that their problem?
Meh, some people see it as re-started an arms race. We build a shield, they build a nuke that can bypass the shield, we make a better shield, they make a better missile, etc. The faster it builds up, the angrier and more nervous people get, until one or both sides start wondering if "the only reason they're continuing to match my pace is because they plan on attacking"
Things will never be 100% stagnant, both sides will always be doing "something" like better guidance/gps/etc. But the building and constant enhancing of the shield means everything speeds up and starts to produce paranoia + fear + whatever.
I believe the idea is for the pirate bay ones to fly them over international waters... IE take off near the coast or a boat/barge/etc and have it fly around the Atlantic for a while... then return.
As for idiots getting their hands on cheap mass-produced ones... well, if they're going to use them for harm anyway then I doubt violating air traffic rules over the countries/towns/etc are going to dissuade them.
I wonder how much it would cost to put that 20m round in position.
Well, if you're talking about cheap drones with 20mm guns shooter down cheap drones (and thus begins a cheap-drone-arms-race) then that's both neat and frightening.
Heck, it would probably start with.22's and go to 9's and 45's. Little mini dog fights.
Problem being, anything can be made or had... but the instant things start being massed produced it's harder. Anyone can probably make (or find someone to make) a little portable tank. Like a battle-bot the size of a dog, but it fires shells.
But if people start mass-producing these suckers, it's only a matter of time before idiots start using them to "protect their home." Next thing you know, dogs are being killed and people are being hurt/killed/etc.
Well, at lot of even home-grown ones can be 100% automated to fly a path pretty darn well. I think there was a story about one going super far (trans Atlantic?) made by some students on the cheap.
So you have it fly around a path, and either via timer or sensor... have it return to a specific landing place by the shore where someone can refuel it / maintain it, etc.
Eh, depends on the altitude. If we're talking thousands of feet (like 2000+) then I imagine it's going to take more than 1 shot to the a moving target.
But a better post would be.
Server in the sky via drone? $1,000 20mm round? $37 Hearing pirates around the globe scream CR@P in unison? Priceless
Nonsense. Maps are printed on paper and stumbling onto restaurants and tourist traps are part of the fun of traveling. I drove across the country 3 times without internet access (just a paper map) and somehow I made it each time. I drove from LA to SF on the PCH without internet access (or even a paper map) and it was a great experience. People were doing road trips long before smartphones came out.
OMG... but how did people travel across the US before Cellphones?!?!?
Seriously, yes... paper maps are fine. And there are plenty of paper guides for areas, restaurant reviews, hotel reviews, etc. I recall AAA (the service) being really cool to use back in the day... maps, guides, etc all along the route you plan on taking or the area you want to visit.
Though using an electronic device has it's advantages.
- Are you stuck / lost / trapped / hurt / etc? You'll have more luck being rescued with a cellphone than a CB now-a-days.
- Did you manage to get completely lost and turned around? Google maps on a smart phone can LITERALLY be a life saver. Just in case. It happens, if your spouse did a lousy job or you decided to let your kid help you out.
- Having trouble translating something using a pocket dictionary? There's an app for that; or at least a free website to translate the written text.
- A road under construction or something else requiring you to get off the planned route and get somewhere? Map website. I had to find a big-and-tall store on a trip once before I got to my destination. I don't recommend Yellow Pages + Map if you can avoid it.
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I was upset about Borders. I enjoyed their layout more than the Barnes and Nobles by me: better lit, nicer shelves, easier to navigate. As lame as it sounds, being able to see "over" the shelves makes finding what you want (sections and such) at lot easier and doesn't feel as claustrophobic. While the B&Ns by me have like 7' making it feel cramped.
I used to like going there to browse through the selections and such. It was one of the main places I'd go to for books.
While I use mom-and-pop shops for other stuff, Borders had a much nicer selection of the books I wanted in a decent environment. Plus their selection on IT books (programming / servers / etc) put the local mom-and-pop book stores to shame.
Depending on my mood, what I want, and the price... I bounce between local shops, somewhat local big-box chains, and online.
As for online, sometimes I really don't want the hassle of getting it shipped, potentially damaged, and having to send it back. I'd sometimes rather drive 30min each way and pick it up from a store if the price is around the same.
As for small shops, I've got a bunch near me, near my work, and near my parent's house. There's not enough to buy "everything" (like Computer stuff) but I can get books, home improvement stuff, and even large-electronics at local shops for decent prices. I might save a little money here-and-there if I went to Amazon instead but the local mom-and-pop shops are sometimes quite convenient and I'm helping the community.
It's nowhere near as bad as the many reviews make it out to be.
Yes, it has its issues and I don't agree with everything they did. And it's obvious they're trying to bring Tablet and PC together.
But I applaud trying something "different" Face it, the UI design for Windows hasn't changed much since the 3.1 days (or I perhaps the 95 days). Even OSX has had pretty much the same UI since it was released, and has a LOT in common with its old System X days.
And Windows 8 is actually fairly nice, ONCE you get used to it. That's the problem: you're getting used to something that's different that what you've known for the last 20+ years. The various reviews use previous OS's as a template to say "THIS is good design, and here's why" when really they're just stating UX concepts that were founded AROUND the interfaces that were popular and long-living.
The only real annoying things to me are:
- Shutting Down / Rebooting is insanely stupid. Like 8 mouse clicks.
- The 3rd party metro apps go over-board with the scrolling text. To the point that you can't tell what a lot of those 3rd party "tiles" actually are. Most of the ones that come with Windows 8 are fine though: the title of the app or an icon is on the tile so you know what's what.
Will it last long? Probably not, enough people will not like getting used to it that I'm sure Microsoft will have to back-peddle in Windows 9 to a more classic UI.
I believe there are people that would just like an up to date laptop as a secondary pc and this inexpensive one will work great because at that price it really does not matter.
Exactly. Even as an IT professional, that's what I do.
- A solid desktop for my main needs: gaming, programming, database-work, etc. Large screen, comfortable use, fast speeds.
- A cheap portable laptop for when I need to do something mobile or I just need to do something casual while sitting on the couch.
Sure, if money AND space were an issue I'd consider just a solid / expensive laptop to fit both needs. But in my case, having both is quite fine.
Admittedly, when my laptop died my tablet filled "most" of the void left by the loss of my portable machine. But sometimes in IT you do need a portable rig.
The problem is, as some companies get you onto their 3-for-1 deals (TV+Internet+Phone) you often get some version of VOIP or something. Like Verizon pushes people that get their FIOS service to get their voice over fiber service, which means you are no longer using the old copper lines outside your house. So when your Verizon-box's battery dies after 8 hours... no phone for you. I think Comcast and the like offer their own types of stuff over their Coax lines.
Problems are:
As we've seen with Sandy, the result is Cellphone coverage can get borked. Downed towers, cut communications, etc. AT&T was having mad problems in the aftermath, and I heard Verizon was having some too.
To ensure that a cellphone sitting in the vending machine for months or 1+years will still have a charge when you finally get it. If there's no power, then a dead cellphone is a waste.
Cellphones need to be activated before you can use them, even if it is just over another phone. Mass activations during a disaster might be hard to cope with.
You need power to get it from the vending machine, unless you want to crack it open. But then you run the risk of riot-type-stuff going on. OMG he smashed a vending machine, let's ALL do that.
In New Jersey, which last I heard is in its path, last year around Halloween we got nailed. A windy freak snow storm came out of nowhere.
Trees went down all over the place.
My house was without power for 6 days and 15 hours.
That was the first time in over 20 years of living there that we were without power for more than a couple of hours.
Trees went down all over the state. A couple went down on our property. The top part of a tree fell on the power lines in front of our house AND blocked the main road.
And really, prior to the storm they didn't make it sound like it was going to be too bad. Meanwhile LOTS of NJ were without power for days.
In their defense, last I heard they were saying the gusts would hit 75MpH in New Jersey. Which, considering how many of the trees still haven't shed their leaves yet, COULD be bad. Last Halloween, NJ got dragged over the coals by a freak snow storm. What made it so bad was the amount of leaves on the trees, causing things to fall ALL over the place.
But I'll believe it when I see it. When they call something "Franken-storm" while it's still days out, it's still a bit premature.
The car could be lighter back then, because they didn't need to throw in as much stuff as they do now. Much of the new weight comes from safety stuff: airbags, crumple zones, etc. But electronics get heavy. Before: the gas-pedal just pulled a thin cable that adjusted a valve. Now, all of that comes in the form of a big electronic box to calculate this-and-that.
The amount of "stuff" in cars today is a lot different than the amount of "stuff" in a car in the 1980s.
With Comcast... I doubt it.
But with Fios, the weird thing is you often get even higher speeds than they advertise... and in general you actually get the speeds you SHOULD be getting. So long as the website/server you're accessing can handle it.
Comcast though: we hardly ever got that close to what they promised. And DSL... we were usually in the same boat as you: averaging 80% of their promised speeds.
But since we went to FIOS, I'm actually content with the speeds we're getting.
That's what I heard as well... but then last month or so they announced their "Quantum" FIOS service which offers packages up to 300MBit. So... I don't know if they reversed their decision (again) or are just opening up the pipes they already laid (and are still not laying more).
Or Mexico. Or Canada.
The UK has a hard enough time keeping them out, and they're an island with borderline Orwellian practices. Heck, they give the US a run for the money in terms of Big Brother.
Meanwhile, the US has them all here already and we have 2 countries that border us. Enough criminals want guns that, the worst case for them, they'd have to pay more for them to get smuggled in.
In China this would have just been a knife attack instead of a shooting.
Or a bomb. Or he just decided to drive his car into the huge line of people waiting for the movie to start outside... perhaps a rented Van or SUV.
The guy was psycho, he came in heavily armed with illegal weapons and gas grenades (perhaps tear gas, which is illegal for civilians).
So obviously he really wanted this to happen. Even if there were magically no guns in a 1000km radius, he'd just find another method. And to be honest, a bomb or a car or a car-bomb might have done even more damage.
True on all accounts.
Though, the whole "decade earlier" might have been nice. Delaying a discovery by a decade could mean a lot. Sure maybe not in the LONG run, but when you're talking about lifetimes... a decade could mean the difference between whether we'll get to witness something cool in our lifetime due to the original discovery. Like perhaps a new discovery as a result, a new theory, heck even perhaps a practical application related to the discovery.
I imagine "to them," the that the whole point of the DVR is to act as an easy-to-use recording device for when you're not available to watch their shows... or if you want to watch 2 shows on at the same time.
It's a semi-valid point. Time Shifting being the major thing, instead of just fast forwarding. BUT... in practice the fast-forward is almost essential. Maybe you only watched the first half and want to skip to the middle. Maybe there's a gross scene and you want to skip. Maybe you don't feel like watching 3 minutes of boring ads.
That being said, it would be a sad day if all DVRs no longer allowed fast-forwarding
Agreed, IE8 is not that old.
Also, some people have no choice. For example, they're purchasing something using their computer at work. Some businesses really lag behind with OS and Browser because it requires a LOT of testing to make sure the upgrade doesn't break all of their internal stuff. So it's really not hard to find businesses that are still using Windows XP and IE 7... heck some are probably still on IE6.
MS Office isn't that bad anymore. There are cheaper official versions that come with most of what you want. The "Office Home and Student" version is usually around 100-120 USD not on sale. Which really isn't THAT bad considering how much some people wind up using MsWord + MsExcel.
Honestly, if there's a piece of software that's I feel is too expensive then I simply won't GET IT. I don't pirate at all; I'll either try to find a cheap or open alternative or skip it all-together. And if it's a game... if I want it I buy it. If I don't want it, or the review or "meh" then I skip it.
Would I like Photoshop? Sure.
Would I use it enough to warrant the expense? No
Is Gimp "good enough" for a free app? Sure
Nice Try Cobra Commander... I saw that episode back when I was a kid. You just want a number of WMDs up there to use as weapons against GI Joe.
Why can't we have a long term positive male companion? Yes, it's nice to look at young women, but that isn't what Doctor Who is all about. Is it going to take a female doctor before we have can have a decent male companion that isn't a coward or dies every other episode?
(If it does require a female companion, can I vote for Emma Thompson?)
Well they have Rory, who's been a partner of Doctor + Amy for quite a number of episodes. IMDB says 22, so discounting the pilot and the odd "remember me" episodes that's about as much as Martha Jones.
Though perhaps that's who you meant about "dies every other episode" as he has died a number of times.
Is a system that could save millions of lives without infringing on our freedoms worth it? Yes. How could anyone think otherwise. These missile defense system can not feasibly be used offensively. If someone gets mad at us for wanting to be able to defend ourselves, isn't that their problem?
Meh, some people see it as re-started an arms race. We build a shield, they build a nuke that can bypass the shield, we make a better shield, they make a better missile, etc. The faster it builds up, the angrier and more nervous people get, until one or both sides start wondering if "the only reason they're continuing to match my pace is because they plan on attacking"
Things will never be 100% stagnant, both sides will always be doing "something" like better guidance/gps/etc. But the building and constant enhancing of the shield means everything speeds up and starts to produce paranoia + fear + whatever.
At least that's how someone described it to me.
I believe the idea is for the pirate bay ones to fly them over international waters... IE take off near the coast or a boat/barge/etc and have it fly around the Atlantic for a while... then return.
As for idiots getting their hands on cheap mass-produced ones... well, if they're going to use them for harm anyway then I doubt violating air traffic rules over the countries/towns/etc are going to dissuade them.
I wonder how much it would cost to put that 20m round in position.
Well, if you're talking about cheap drones with 20mm guns shooter down cheap drones (and thus begins a cheap-drone-arms-race) then that's both neat and frightening.
Heck, it would probably start with .22's and go to 9's and 45's. Little mini dog fights.
Problem being, anything can be made or had... but the instant things start being massed produced it's harder. Anyone can probably make (or find someone to make) a little portable tank. Like a battle-bot the size of a dog, but it fires shells.
But if people start mass-producing these suckers, it's only a matter of time before idiots start using them to "protect their home." Next thing you know, dogs are being killed and people are being hurt/killed/etc.
Well, at lot of even home-grown ones can be 100% automated to fly a path pretty darn well. I think there was a story about one going super far (trans Atlantic?) made by some students on the cheap.
So you have it fly around a path, and either via timer or sensor... have it return to a specific landing place by the shore where someone can refuel it / maintain it, etc.
Eh, depends on the altitude. If we're talking thousands of feet (like 2000+) then I imagine it's going to take more than 1 shot to the a moving target.
But a better post would be.
Server in the sky via drone? $1,000
20mm round? $37
Hearing pirates around the globe scream CR@P in unison? Priceless
Nonsense. Maps are printed on paper and stumbling onto restaurants and tourist traps are part of the fun of traveling. I drove across the country 3 times without internet access (just a paper map) and somehow I made it each time. I drove from LA to SF on the PCH without internet access (or even a paper map) and it was a great experience. People were doing road trips long before smartphones came out.
OMG... but how did people travel across the US before Cellphones?!?!?
Seriously, yes... paper maps are fine. And there are plenty of paper guides for areas, restaurant reviews, hotel reviews, etc. I recall AAA (the service) being really cool to use back in the day... maps, guides, etc all along the route you plan on taking or the area you want to visit.
Though using an electronic device has it's advantages.
- Are you stuck / lost / trapped / hurt / etc? You'll have more luck being rescued with a cellphone than a CB now-a-days.
- Did you manage to get completely lost and turned around? Google maps on a smart phone can LITERALLY be a life saver. Just in case.
It happens, if your spouse did a lousy job or you decided to let your kid help you out.
- Having trouble translating something using a pocket dictionary? There's an app for that; or at least a free website to translate the written text.
- A road under construction or something else requiring you to get off the planned route and get somewhere? Map website.
I had to find a big-and-tall store on a trip once before I got to my destination. I don't recommend Yellow Pages + Map if you can avoid it.