Most people don't know what to do with 100Mbs anyways.
Start a business providing colocated servers, or space on your own servers? With the money you're saving on bandwidth costs, you can invest more money in smaller, cooler-running servers. Alternatively, you can start a business where you do a bittorent-style distributed server service - put a little box at everybody's house (or just use their box), and have it store stuff to be served off of that person's connection, for less than what Akamai charges.
Don't forget the latest 250 mb update to America's Army that 2.5 million other gamers are trying to get, all at the same time. It took me 2 hrs using a Bittorrent stream, the first time I've tried that technology. I ended up serving up 2gb worth of data by the next day, when I switched my Bittorrent upload off. Works for me, and I didn't have to create a stupid account to sit in a javascript-powered queue just to download.
I wonder how long before people start mirroring whole sites using Bittorrent? It'd be a cool idea, save lots of bandwidth, and it would add another layer of redundancy for file repositories (such as UMICH, AMUG, INFOMAC, etc.)
Re:Consider how they're built
on
Pre-Fab Homes?
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· Score: 1
Don't forget contractors who get parts delivered that they don't know how to install properly. I've lived in a recently remodeled house for the past two years, and I'm still reworking problems in the electrical system as I find them. They're not code violation problems (so far), but rather boneheaded things like recessed lights where they assembled and installed ALL the parts delivered for the kit, including the ones that were supposed to be ommitted for this type of install. Then there are the switches that you flip that aren't hooked up to anything.
Spammers are already using proxies to distribute spam site content without fear of getting shut down. Some proxies are zombies that actually host a copy of the site, some are versions hosted on free sites, others do a quick javascript redirect from a free site to a constantly rotating zombie. For anything distributed that we can do offensively (or defensively, as the case may be) spammers can respond using similar methods.
The only way to stop spam is to find the spammers, and apply physical "pursuasion" - repeatedly if necessary. They won't stop until the personal cost to them is MUCH greater than the potential reward (as is the case with all criminals.) Make no mistake, spammers are getting organized, and they're getting quite nasty...
Does it still apply if someone outside of Denmark reencodes non Region 2 DVDs into Region 2 DVDs? Wherever there is an inefficiency, whether natural (due to costs of raw materials) or unnatural (ie due to tarrifs or taxes) there is a business opportunity...
Actually AOL/Time Warner is the perfect example. AOL by itself is worth nothing close to what Time Warner thought it was worth when TW allowed itself to be bought out by AOL. In the same way, if Microsoft knew that next week it would no longer be able to sell software, they'd take what their stock is worth now, buy up a bunch of companies that would be able to sell whatever it is that they buy, and sidestep the whole loss of value thing.
Understand that it isn't AOL (the acquirer) that got the shaft - it was Time Warner (the acquiree).
AOL would have tanked no matter what they did - by buying Time Warner, they managed to "sell" before the AOL stock tanked, converting it into AOL/TW stock instead - stock that has some basis in reality (ie movie portfolio, real estate, television stations, book publishing houses, etc.) rather than totally dependent on subscriber numbers and investor hype.
As an investor with a well diversified portfolio, bad news about Microsoft doesn't bother me. I get dividends from Microsoft, Microsoft has plenty of other areas to crush, a drop in Microsoft probably means that one of the other companies that I hold shares in are probably doing better as a result (ie, Transmeta, Apple, Adobe, I would have said Redhat but I sold that last week...).
Investors with poorly diversified portfolios, or idiot fund managers with a very large percentage invested in MSFT have a lot more to worry about in my opinion.
In the long run does MS really have a chance when competing against free, well written, well understood software?
Depends on if Microsoft stays in the proprietary, locked down software industry. They're not idiots - if there's writing on the wall, they'll deploy their forces somewhere else and take over industries with hard assets, much like AOL converted it's dot-com purchasing power into a media empire with physical plant and assets (Time Warner.) For all I know Microsoft could be funneling some of that spare cash into a research project that produces a viable fusion reactor.
Never underestimate a company with somewhere around 40 billion dollars IN CASH.
Many doors are now designed so you can't open them without disabling the motor controls (unlatch the door from the drive chain/screw) - plus there's often no external handle on the door. This is a bigger deal in states like California, where an attached garage is considered part of the house - forcing a garage door is tantamount to breaking & entering the main residence.
I'm not worried about Google getting acquired. I'm worried about how linkspammers have manipulated the Google results and have pretty much made most search returns worthless.
Added to that are how those with money are buying completely unrelated keywords just to shove their ads in your face - the Adwords campaign was good for advertisers and customers because the results were super-targeted. Dumb-shit spammer-mentality is threatening that dual benefit by just buying the most popular words, regardless of whether they're related to the product/service or not.
Google is starting to mirror the WWW as a whole - jam packed with nothing but crap. (Don't get me started on those "amazon affilate" sites where every page is advertising something that's no longer available, swamping those sites that actually are selling the item in question...)
If I were Google, I'd torpedo those spamsites and make sure those results were useful again. Otherwise their stock (and their company) has a dismal future...
Not to mention the fact that no one has the need for something like an assault rifle unless they're a soldier in hostile territory.
Lots of people buy things because they WANT them, not necessarily because they NEED them. Most people don't NEED the latest computer/car/tv/stereo/kitchen stove, but they buy them because they want them, think they might want them in the future, because it's a great deal etc. I might not NEED a semi-auto rifle in.223 (I'm not a hunter), but darn it if it isn't fun to shoot (although expensive.) Same deal with my computer - I might not need a dual Athlon 2800+ with DVD, 210GB drive, but it sure makes my life a lot easier (although it eats up a lot of power, and makes a space heater superfluous in the winter.)
If you started restricting purchases to what people NEEDED, very few things would get sold in this country.
Ouch. So during New Years Eve in the future you get totally wasted for several days. On day 4, the house concludes that you're too incapacitated to really be you. As you sleep off the last of the alcohol in the house the gas jets come on...
A funny thing happened on the way to building the SSC...
Actually, it's what happens AFTER the SSC is completed in a parallel timeline that's the subject of one physicist's (fictional) novel of how the SSC came not to be in our timeline. The book is called Einstein's Bridge and is by John Cramer. I haven't read it myself, but Cramer's earlier book Twistor is pretty nifty. I suggest it for anyone who might be interested in what happened to our SSC - Cramer takes a lot of the factual happenings from that time period (1987-1997) and folds it into his storyline, giving a flavor of what happens when politics and high-energy physics collide...
Surf with Javascript off. Stops spammers of all stripes from trying to exploit your browser to cover their tracks. Check e-mail with a mail client that isn't stupid (ie, outlook), and allows you to toggle HTML rendering on/off so you can examine the underlying code (even better, get a client that only displays plain text.) Get a Mac to really screw up malware.
Unfortunately, the essential element, common sense, is what is tripping people up. Would your bank really contact you via e-mail to get your personal info? Would your bank call you up and ask for your personal info? They're your bank for chrissakes, they can get a complete profile on you just by asking the credit bureau!
Last note - the best way to prevent any failure in mental processes is to keep the mail from reaching the user in the first place. Spamassassin has done incredibly well by me ever since I trained the bayesian feature on a backlog of scam mails. I rarely get financial scam mails, instead now I have to fight soft-pedal scams that trip none of SAs hard-coded rules, but still score a bayes_99 score. Oh well...
Well, there is the final solution - whitelisting. Unfortunately, like the atomic bomb, it may render the the battlefield unfit for human consumption...
I'm sure there isn't anything in the letter of the law that says you have to be an asshat about dealing with independent bug reports. However, given the backers of and the intent behind the DMCA, being a jerk certainly fits with the spirit of the law...
In the Roads Must Roll, they travel underground on uni-wheeled scooters called tumblebugs. Seems to me that these vehicles would be great... so long as you don't commit them to traffic with SUVs driven by people talking on cellphones.
The contract Pixar signed with Disney basically said this:
Make 5 movies for us. We (Disney) will own all the franchise rights. Once your 5 movies are up, we'll let you out of the contract.
Pixar makes Toy Story. Disney makes millions. Pixar makes A Bugs Life. Disney makes millions. Pixar makes Toy Story 2, originally for direct to video, but its so good, Disney decides to put it in theatres.
Pixar asks, will Toy Story 2 count toward our 5 picture obligation? Disney says, hell no - it's not a new franchise. You still owe us three new films. Pixar makes Finding Nemo, Disney makes millions, etc.
At this point Pixar is asking, why are we busting our butts for the mouse and letting them rake in all the money? Disney has had it good... way too good.
This is just normal negotiations, now that Pixar is in a better position. Disney needs that cash flow (since they're doing a lousy job at generating decent stories in-house), but Pixar also benefits from the awesome distribution and promotion arm that Disney wields. I figure Disney will sign Pixar, but will shortly try and cut them loose if and when their own in-house 3d department makes good.
Too bad for Disney (I think laying off most of Feature Animation was a mistake), but that's what happens when the accountants and lawyers are running the asylum...
Supply and demand. Fileplanet can only afford so much bandwidth to free downloaders. Unfortunately for them, people like me, who hate being forced to turn on Javascript so they can push ads, and who don't want to wait for overloaded servers to queue up our downloads, can now use bittorrents for the more popular items.
I resorted to using a torrent to get the 2.0 patch for America's Army, and I'm a believer now. I downloaded the 200+ megs in about 2 hours, and left the connection on all night to help out other downloaders. By the next day, I had served out 2gb on my torrent connection for AA before shutting it down. I'd rather "pay" using my bandwidth to serve other people, and get very fast service and good d/l rate, than have to sacrifice my personal information just to feed some marketers. Sorry guys.
Big Blue vs. The Banna Republic Phone Company
on
IBM To Run VoIP On Linux
·
· Score: 4, Insightful
How is IBM going to handle irate state-owned telecos who are suddenly deprived of IBM monies? Will they grease the wheels with payola (less than they were paying for phone calls) or will Big Blue just tell them to go take a hike? Interested businesses want to know... is it safe for anyone to try and get around the monopolies now, or is it just safe for IBM?
Hell, here in the good old USA the "regulators" are already clamoring over the loss of all that free money that they've been siphoning out of our checkbooks. I can't imagine a state OWNED monopoly from doing any differently...
I've said it before, the feds should stop looking for super-uber-mega crackers. The biggest, most expensive, and most damaging ONGOING computer crime is spam. They're not idiots, and they're not harmless nuisances. They're quite capable, and have hired on many technically proficient guns to do their dirty work, cracking systems, running hordes of zombies, and trying to find exploits in every commercial and non-commercial system so they can send out ever more spam.
Get to work on eliminating spammers and much of our current crop of computer-related woes will just GO AWAY. The only people who would hate for this to happen are the spammers, the hired guns, and companies like Symantec...
And these same people instantly become raving idiots when they feel that police/fire/national guard isn't moving fast enough to protect them:
"What do you mean there's a 7-day waiting period? What do you mean you have to be licensed to buy a handgun? Can't you lend me yours? What do you mean that firearm transfers must go through the California Departement of Justice?"
I have no problems with people opting not to use or own firearms. However, I find it irresponsible to deny those who would learn about any technology, especially if learning proper safety procedures would mean saving lives. For example, every person who is firearms safety trained knows better than to point any gun, or gun-like object at anyone. Why? Because the immediate reaction of anyone who is armed to someone pointing a gun at them is to assume an immediate threat and react accordingly. Similarly, gun safety teaches you to treat EVERY firearm as loaded and potentially lethal, even if you believe it to be unloaded.
Those lessons alone would have probably saved no fewer than a dozen lives over the past decade or so.
"Oh, we should block all sites that teach how to reverse-engineer, since no legitimate consumer would ever need to know how to do that...", "Oh, we should block all texts on medicine since they might contain offensive imagery...", "Science is too dangerous to be taught, and too easily abused. Texts on chemicals and nuclear reactions should be limited to government approved individuals only..."
Control of information is nothing less than thought control.
I wonder how many times the mandatory deposit requirement has been enforced? Supposedly every item copyrighted in the US since 1978 should be on deposit at the LOC, and available to member libraries on request. How much money is allocated to storing and preserving these works?
Grandma nothing. This woman is a professional scam artist and thief. Phishing is just a new way for her to scam targets en masse. I'll bet you she was kiting checks long before most of us were born...
Slashdot Mirror
Most people don't know what to do with 100Mbs anyways.
Start a business providing colocated servers, or space on your own servers? With the money you're saving on bandwidth costs, you can invest more money in smaller, cooler-running servers. Alternatively, you can start a business where you do a bittorent-style distributed server service - put a little box at everybody's house (or just use their box), and have it store stuff to be served off of that person's connection, for less than what Akamai charges.
Don't forget the latest 250 mb update to America's Army that 2.5 million other gamers are trying to get, all at the same time. It took me 2 hrs using a Bittorrent stream, the first time I've tried that technology. I ended up serving up 2gb worth of data by the next day, when I switched my Bittorrent upload off. Works for me, and I didn't have to create a stupid account to sit in a javascript-powered queue just to download.
I wonder how long before people start mirroring whole sites using Bittorrent? It'd be a cool idea, save lots of bandwidth, and it would add another layer of redundancy for file repositories (such as UMICH, AMUG, INFOMAC, etc.)
Don't forget contractors who get parts delivered that they don't know how to install properly. I've lived in a recently remodeled house for the past two years, and I'm still reworking problems in the electrical system as I find them. They're not code violation problems (so far), but rather boneheaded things like recessed lights where they assembled and installed ALL the parts delivered for the kit, including the ones that were supposed to be ommitted for this type of install. Then there are the switches that you flip that aren't hooked up to anything.
Hey! I LIKE Lawrence Welk! We need more polka people! (this post is only half joking)
Spammers are already using proxies to distribute spam site content without fear of getting shut down. Some proxies are zombies that actually host a copy of the site, some are versions hosted on free sites, others do a quick javascript redirect from a free site to a constantly rotating zombie. For anything distributed that we can do offensively (or defensively, as the case may be) spammers can respond using similar methods.
The only way to stop spam is to find the spammers, and apply physical "pursuasion" - repeatedly if necessary. They won't stop until the personal cost to them is MUCH greater than the potential reward (as is the case with all criminals.) Make no mistake, spammers are getting organized, and they're getting quite nasty...
Does it still apply if someone outside of Denmark reencodes non Region 2 DVDs into Region 2 DVDs? Wherever there is an inefficiency, whether natural (due to costs of raw materials) or unnatural (ie due to tarrifs or taxes) there is a business opportunity...
Actually AOL/Time Warner is the perfect example. AOL by itself is worth nothing close to what Time Warner thought it was worth when TW allowed itself to be bought out by AOL. In the same way, if Microsoft knew that next week it would no longer be able to sell software, they'd take what their stock is worth now, buy up a bunch of companies that would be able to sell whatever it is that they buy, and sidestep the whole loss of value thing.
Understand that it isn't AOL (the acquirer) that got the shaft - it was Time Warner (the acquiree).
AOL would have tanked no matter what they did - by buying Time Warner, they managed to "sell" before the AOL stock tanked, converting it into AOL/TW stock instead - stock that has some basis in reality (ie movie portfolio, real estate, television stations, book publishing houses, etc.) rather than totally dependent on subscriber numbers and investor hype.
As an investor with a well diversified portfolio, bad news about Microsoft doesn't bother me. I get dividends from Microsoft, Microsoft has plenty of other areas to crush, a drop in Microsoft probably means that one of the other companies that I hold shares in are probably doing better as a result (ie, Transmeta, Apple, Adobe, I would have said Redhat but I sold that last week...).
Investors with poorly diversified portfolios, or idiot fund managers with a very large percentage invested in MSFT have a lot more to worry about in my opinion.
In the long run does MS really have a chance when competing against free, well written, well understood software?
Depends on if Microsoft stays in the proprietary, locked down software industry. They're not idiots - if there's writing on the wall, they'll deploy their forces somewhere else and take over industries with hard assets, much like AOL converted it's dot-com purchasing power into a media empire with physical plant and assets (Time Warner.) For all I know Microsoft could be funneling some of that spare cash into a research project that produces a viable fusion reactor.
Never underestimate a company with somewhere around 40 billion dollars IN CASH.
Since when is a garage door opener a lock?
Many doors are now designed so you can't open them without disabling the motor controls (unlatch the door from the drive chain/screw) - plus there's often no external handle on the door. This is a bigger deal in states like California, where an attached garage is considered part of the house - forcing a garage door is tantamount to breaking & entering the main residence.
I'm not worried about Google getting acquired. I'm worried about how linkspammers have manipulated the Google results and have pretty much made most search returns worthless.
Added to that are how those with money are buying completely unrelated keywords just to shove their ads in your face - the Adwords campaign was good for advertisers and customers because the results were super-targeted. Dumb-shit spammer-mentality is threatening that dual benefit by just buying the most popular words, regardless of whether they're related to the product/service or not.
Google is starting to mirror the WWW as a whole - jam packed with nothing but crap. (Don't get me started on those "amazon affilate" sites where every page is advertising something that's no longer available, swamping those sites that actually are selling the item in question...)
If I were Google, I'd torpedo those spamsites and make sure those results were useful again. Otherwise their stock (and their company) has a dismal future...
Not to mention the fact that no one has the need for something like an assault rifle unless they're a soldier in hostile territory.
.223 (I'm not a hunter), but darn it if it isn't fun to shoot (although expensive.) Same deal with my computer - I might not need a dual Athlon 2800+ with DVD, 210GB drive, but it sure makes my life a lot easier (although it eats up a lot of power, and makes a space heater superfluous in the winter.)
Lots of people buy things because they WANT them, not necessarily because they NEED them. Most people don't NEED the latest computer/car/tv/stereo/kitchen stove, but they buy them because they want them, think they might want them in the future, because it's a great deal etc. I might not NEED a semi-auto rifle in
If you started restricting purchases to what people NEEDED, very few things would get sold in this country.
Ouch. So during New Years Eve in the future you get totally wasted for several days. On day 4, the house concludes that you're too incapacitated to really be you. As you sleep off the last of the alcohol in the house the gas jets come on...
A funny thing happened on the way to building the SSC...
Actually, it's what happens AFTER the SSC is completed in a parallel timeline that's the subject of one physicist's (fictional) novel of how the SSC came not to be in our timeline. The book is called Einstein's Bridge and is by John Cramer. I haven't read it myself, but Cramer's earlier book Twistor is pretty nifty. I suggest it for anyone who might be interested in what happened to our SSC - Cramer takes a lot of the factual happenings from that time period (1987-1997) and folds it into his storyline, giving a flavor of what happens when politics and high-energy physics collide...
Surf with Javascript off. Stops spammers of all stripes from trying to exploit your browser to cover their tracks. Check e-mail with a mail client that isn't stupid (ie, outlook), and allows you to toggle HTML rendering on/off so you can examine the underlying code (even better, get a client that only displays plain text.) Get a Mac to really screw up malware.
Unfortunately, the essential element, common sense, is what is tripping people up. Would your bank really contact you via e-mail to get your personal info? Would your bank call you up and ask for your personal info? They're your bank for chrissakes, they can get a complete profile on you just by asking the credit bureau!
Last note - the best way to prevent any failure in mental processes is to keep the mail from reaching the user in the first place. Spamassassin has done incredibly well by me ever since I trained the bayesian feature on a backlog of scam mails. I rarely get financial scam mails, instead now I have to fight soft-pedal scams that trip none of SAs hard-coded rules, but still score a bayes_99 score. Oh well...
Well, there is the final solution - whitelisting. Unfortunately, like the atomic bomb, it may render the the battlefield unfit for human consumption...
I'm sure there isn't anything in the letter of the law that says you have to be an asshat about dealing with independent bug reports. However, given the backers of and the intent behind the DMCA, being a jerk certainly fits with the spirit of the law...
In the Roads Must Roll, they travel underground on uni-wheeled scooters called tumblebugs. Seems to me that these vehicles would be great... so long as you don't commit them to traffic with SUVs driven by people talking on cellphones.
The contract Pixar signed with Disney basically said this:
Make 5 movies for us. We (Disney) will own all the franchise rights. Once your 5 movies are up, we'll let you out of the contract.
Pixar makes Toy Story. Disney makes millions. Pixar makes A Bugs Life. Disney makes millions. Pixar makes Toy Story 2, originally for direct to video, but its so good, Disney decides to put it in theatres.
Pixar asks, will Toy Story 2 count toward our 5 picture obligation? Disney says, hell no - it's not a new franchise. You still owe us three new films. Pixar makes Finding Nemo, Disney makes millions, etc.
At this point Pixar is asking, why are we busting our butts for the mouse and letting them rake in all the money? Disney has had it good... way too good.
This is just normal negotiations, now that Pixar is in a better position. Disney needs that cash flow (since they're doing a lousy job at generating decent stories in-house), but Pixar also benefits from the awesome distribution and promotion arm that Disney wields. I figure Disney will sign Pixar, but will shortly try and cut them loose if and when their own in-house 3d department makes good.
Too bad for Disney (I think laying off most of Feature Animation was a mistake), but that's what happens when the accountants and lawyers are running the asylum...
Supply and demand. Fileplanet can only afford so much bandwidth to free downloaders. Unfortunately for them, people like me, who hate being forced to turn on Javascript so they can push ads, and who don't want to wait for overloaded servers to queue up our downloads, can now use bittorrents for the more popular items.
I resorted to using a torrent to get the 2.0 patch for America's Army, and I'm a believer now. I downloaded the 200+ megs in about 2 hours, and left the connection on all night to help out other downloaders. By the next day, I had served out 2gb on my torrent connection for AA before shutting it down. I'd rather "pay" using my bandwidth to serve other people, and get very fast service and good d/l rate, than have to sacrifice my personal information just to feed some marketers. Sorry guys.
How is IBM going to handle irate state-owned telecos who are suddenly deprived of IBM monies? Will they grease the wheels with payola (less than they were paying for phone calls) or will Big Blue just tell them to go take a hike? Interested businesses want to know... is it safe for anyone to try and get around the monopolies now, or is it just safe for IBM?
Hell, here in the good old USA the "regulators" are already clamoring over the loss of all that free money that they've been siphoning out of our checkbooks. I can't imagine a state OWNED monopoly from doing any differently...
I've said it before, the feds should stop looking for super-uber-mega crackers. The biggest, most expensive, and most damaging ONGOING computer crime is spam. They're not idiots, and they're not harmless nuisances. They're quite capable, and have hired on many technically proficient guns to do their dirty work, cracking systems, running hordes of zombies, and trying to find exploits in every commercial and non-commercial system so they can send out ever more spam.
Get to work on eliminating spammers and much of our current crop of computer-related woes will just GO AWAY. The only people who would hate for this to happen are the spammers, the hired guns, and companies like Symantec...
And these same people instantly become raving idiots when they feel that police/fire/national guard isn't moving fast enough to protect them:
"What do you mean there's a 7-day waiting period? What do you mean you have to be licensed to buy a handgun? Can't you lend me yours? What do you mean that firearm transfers must go through the California Departement of Justice?"
I have no problems with people opting not to use or own firearms. However, I find it irresponsible to deny those who would learn about any technology, especially if learning proper safety procedures would mean saving lives. For example, every person who is firearms safety trained knows better than to point any gun, or gun-like object at anyone. Why? Because the immediate reaction of anyone who is armed to someone pointing a gun at them is to assume an immediate threat and react accordingly. Similarly, gun safety teaches you to treat EVERY firearm as loaded and potentially lethal, even if you believe it to be unloaded.
Those lessons alone would have probably saved no fewer than a dozen lives over the past decade or so.
"Oh, we should block all sites that teach how to reverse-engineer, since no legitimate consumer would ever need to know how to do that...", "Oh, we should block all texts on medicine since they might contain offensive imagery...", "Science is too dangerous to be taught, and too easily abused. Texts on chemicals and nuclear reactions should be limited to government approved individuals only..."
Control of information is nothing less than thought control.
I wonder how many times the mandatory deposit requirement has been enforced? Supposedly every item copyrighted in the US since 1978 should be on deposit at the LOC, and available to member libraries on request. How much money is allocated to storing and preserving these works?
Grandma nothing. This woman is a professional scam artist and thief. Phishing is just a new way for her to scam targets en masse. I'll bet you she was kiting checks long before most of us were born...
If we used analog computers instead of digital, how would this be measured?
With one huge abacus?