True, but then all we have to do is build the sucker, travel back, and patch the holes that the hackers used in the first place. Pretty simple, really.
Well, first off you might try reading books written by Niven. Diskworld is by Pratchet. You're probably thinking of Ringworld.
Pick up a copy of "N-Space" or "Playgrounds of the Mind". I'm pretty sure there's a chronological list of Known Space stories in one of those books (I'd check my copy, but I don't have it right now).
I could see a "Bandwidth Economy" springing up because of this. Low-bandwidth users "selling" their excess bandwidth to the high-bandwidth users. Or maybe certain classes would require a certain amount of bandwidth, and so the students would have to purchase it along with their other class suplies (it'd be an interesting way to teach an economies class, with some hands-on experience).
For Sale: 2GB bandwdth. Like New! Hardly Used! Call 555-1212 with offer. NO PERSONAL CHECKS
My brother, many years ago, had a digital watch that went through the washer-dryer cycle, and heat-fried the circuit board. For some reason, the watch still worked, but would display strange characters instead of numbers. The really strange bit was that the characters were consistent for about 12 hours, then would change to something completely different. My brother would watch the seconds display until he could de-code the display, and then was able to use it until the next "change". It was actually funny when people would ask him what time it was, and he'd just show them his watch...:)
many years ago, I had a credit card sized calculator that I accidentally left in my pants pocket. Well, those pants went through the washer and dryer, but surprisingly, the calc still worked. The whle thing had warped in the heat of the dryer, so it was now a shallow bowl shapped, but it work just fine. Eventually, I think I stepped on it and cracked the circuit board, because it stopped working.
We may not be movie stars, but all the coders I know have sex at least semi-regularly, with people they don't have to pay.
Free sex? Remember, you get what you pay for.
Darker Geometry by Benford
on
Ask Larry Niven
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· Score: 2, Interesting
What is your opinion of "A Darker Geometry" by Benford & Martin? Was this book written with your permission, considering it explains a number of Known-Space mysteries?
Personally, it's one of the few books in my collection that I'm sorry I bought and read (I keep it only for completeness).
There, a "smart shelf" continuously queries tiny radio chips embedded in the packages it holds, and senses the silence when one is removed. The system may soon be programmed to alert security when several are taken at once, Greg Sage, a Tesco spokesman, said.
So, if I decide to buy several packs of blades at once, so I stock up for the fall of society, I'll be stopped and treated like a terrorist?
My uncle used the own a Pachinko store in Cincinnati in the early 80's, and still has part of his garage full of old machines. About a month ago, my brother and I drove down there and gabbed 10 machines (so far, 3 are in working condition, with 2 more needing some minor repairs). And, this weekend, my uncle is driving up with a truckload of more machines! WooHoo!
Drone2: Yeah, I just kept on filling out TPS reports, and before I knew it, the sun was coming up. I just need to fill out a couple more before I level up to Middle Management!
Drone1: Sweet!
Drone2: Yeah, I can't wait to use my new "Schedule Meeting" power.
Unfortunately, "Promotion" and "Raise" are rare-drops, and you need to do a lot of camping to get them.
I can see a system like this turning into location specific Spam.
Just imagine: you're walking down the street, when your handheld beeps to inform you that the local drug store is having a sale on panty liners (or condoms, or whatever). Now, if you're male, you might be a bit irked by this. Or what about the local porn shop having a sale on goatse.cx?
A system like that would make me get rid of any hand held I had, and I definately wouldn't pay for it.
Would have been nice to have on the Columbia mission.
No, it wouldn't. Even if the astronauts had found the problem before they re-entered the atmosphere, there wasn't anything they could have done about it. They weren't set up for extended space walks, and they didn't have the equipment to repair the tiles anyway. And, they weren't in the right orbit to make it to the space station.
It wouldn't have made much of a difference.
Cremains: good for coffee
on
A Word a Day
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· Score: 1
...while cremains (from the combining of the words cremate and remains) means exactly what you think.
Ah, so that's what that white, powder-like substance that people add to their coffee is called.
We do this with neighbor school districts. We also backup all buildings...
Isn't that kind of difficult. I mean, where do you find all the bricks to back up an entire building, especially every night!
Game developers shooting themselves in the foot?
on
Infinite Games?
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· Score: 3, Interesting
By developing this, wouldn't the game developers be shooting themselves in the foot? If the game industry is dependant on people buying newer and better games (and keeping the money flowing into their pockets), by developing a game that is "infinite" (different every time, with no end), wouldn't people just buy that one game, and stop buying others?
Slashdot Mirror
We've had a blimp deliver items around the office for years now... His name's Robert, and he likes McDonalds a little bit too much.
And, like the Hindenburg, he's full of flamible gas.
Imagine being able to check on the temparature of your fridge over the internet. Even install a web cam inside it.
That would be SO cool! I'd finally be able to get the PROOF of the existance of the little guy who turns on and off the light in my fridge!
True, but then all we have to do is build the sucker, travel back, and patch the holes that the hackers used in the first place. Pretty simple, really.
Lucifer's Hammer would be great on screen, and I'm sure they could sut out some of the sub-plots to get it into a 3hr movie.
:)
Another good one would be Footfall, but then, I want to see Michael (the Orion powered ship in the end of the book) on the big screen.
Well, first off you might try reading books written by Niven. Diskworld is by Pratchet. You're probably thinking of Ringworld.
Pick up a copy of "N-Space" or "Playgrounds of the Mind". I'm pretty sure there's a chronological list of Known Space stories in one of those books (I'd check my copy, but I don't have it right now).
I could see a "Bandwidth Economy" springing up because of this. Low-bandwidth users "selling" their excess bandwidth to the high-bandwidth users. Or maybe certain classes would require a certain amount of bandwidth, and so the students would have to purchase it along with their other class suplies (it'd be an interesting way to teach an economies class, with some hands-on experience).
For Sale: 2GB bandwdth. Like New! Hardly Used! Call 555-1212 with offer. NO PERSONAL CHECKS
My brother, many years ago, had a digital watch that went through the washer-dryer cycle, and heat-fried the circuit board. For some reason, the watch still worked, but would display strange characters instead of numbers. The really strange bit was that the characters were consistent for about 12 hours, then would change to something completely different. My brother would watch the seconds display until he could de-code the display, and then was able to use it until the next "change". It was actually funny when people would ask him what time it was, and he'd just show them his watch... :)
many years ago, I had a credit card sized calculator that I accidentally left in my pants pocket. Well, those pants went through the washer and dryer, but surprisingly, the calc still worked. The whle thing had warped in the heat of the dryer, so it was now a shallow bowl shapped, but it work just fine. Eventually, I think I stepped on it and cracked the circuit board, because it stopped working.
We may not be movie stars, but all the coders I know have sex at least semi-regularly, with people they don't have to pay.
Free sex? Remember, you get what you pay for.
What is your opinion of "A Darker Geometry" by Benford & Martin? Was this book written with your permission, considering it explains a number of Known-Space mysteries?
Personally, it's one of the few books in my collection that I'm sorry I bought and read (I keep it only for completeness).
There, a "smart shelf" continuously queries tiny radio chips embedded in the packages it holds, and senses the silence when one is removed. The system may soon be programmed to alert security when several are taken at once, Greg Sage, a Tesco spokesman, said.
So, if I decide to buy several packs of blades at once, so I stock up for the fall of society, I'll be stopped and treated like a terrorist?
Here, take this copy of "Grey's Sports Almanac 1950-2000"...
Nah. No point. Biff will screw everything up anyway.
Damn. I stand corrected. It was in columbus.
Time to reboot my head...it's starting to affect the data.
Um, no. You're thinking of Sandusky, OH (about 1.5-2hours North of here).
They weren't hacking into satalites to get free pay-per-view movies...they were waging war against SkyNet's grandparents!
Look at the bottom of the page.
My uncle used the own a Pachinko store in Cincinnati in the early 80's, and still has part of his garage full of old machines. About a month ago, my brother and I drove down there and gabbed 10 machines (so far, 3 are in working condition, with 2 more needing some minor repairs). And, this weekend, my uncle is driving up with a truckload of more machines! WooHoo!
I can see it now:
Drone1: Were you here all night?
Drone2: Yeah, I just kept on filling out TPS reports, and before I knew it, the sun was coming up. I just need to fill out a couple more before I level up to Middle Management!
Drone1: Sweet!
Drone2: Yeah, I can't wait to use my new "Schedule Meeting" power.
Unfortunately, "Promotion" and "Raise" are rare-drops, and you need to do a lot of camping to get them.
I can see a system like this turning into location specific Spam.
Just imagine: you're walking down the street, when your handheld beeps to inform you that the local drug store is having a sale on panty liners (or condoms, or whatever). Now, if you're male, you might be a bit irked by this. Or what about the local porn shop having a sale on goatse.cx?
A system like that would make me get rid of any hand held I had, and I definately wouldn't pay for it.
Duck and Cover!!!
On the other hand, I suppose if they get a little bit of english on the ball....
..they'd have to wipe it off. You have a very dirty mind!
pi = 3.14
Oh, thanks for clearing that up. Didn't they rule that pi=3?
Would have been nice to have on the Columbia mission.
No, it wouldn't. Even if the astronauts had found the problem before they re-entered the atmosphere, there wasn't anything they could have done about it. They weren't set up for extended space walks, and they didn't have the equipment to repair the tiles anyway. And, they weren't in the right orbit to make it to the space station.
It wouldn't have made much of a difference.
...while cremains (from the combining of the words cremate and remains) means exactly what you think.
Ah, so that's what that white, powder-like substance that people add to their coffee is called.
We do this with neighbor school districts. We also backup all buildings...
Isn't that kind of difficult. I mean, where do you find all the bricks to back up an entire building, especially every night!
By developing this, wouldn't the game developers be shooting themselves in the foot? If the game industry is dependant on people buying newer and better games (and keeping the money flowing into their pockets), by developing a game that is "infinite" (different every time, with no end), wouldn't people just buy that one game, and stop buying others?