Well, if you want to compare experience, I was configuring email back in the 80's using Eudora and have implemented TCP/IP applications at the socket level, so I don't think I'm hindered by a lack of understanding. In fact, configuring a POP server is so trivial that pretty much anyone can do it, IF they are given the chance.
The "guessing & trying" WAS the problem. And it wasn't just me who ran into the problem, I've seen posts from others complaining about the same issue.
When I tried to configure Thunderbird I could see it guessing at POP & SMTP server names that were clearly wrong, and when it had finished, there was no way for me to enter the correct names. As I recall, I had to interrupt the process as the right moment and then it was possible to enter server configuration, but if I let it complete, I was screwed. It would have been much easier to just edit a text configuration file by hand.
When I switched computers a few years ago I had to change email clients and switched to Thunderbird. Configuration was excruciating. Mercifully I've blocked out the details but one thing I remember is that Thunderbird WOULD NOT let me just enter the configuration... I could enter the server and then it had to guess at what the rest of the parameters were, and I had to stop the process at the right moment, or else I was screwed. I spent a ton of time crawling thru the settings and there didn't seem to be any way to just enter what I wanted.
I built a new machine last year and spent about half an hour screwing around with Thunderbird and then gave up and installed MS LiveMail (or whatever it's called... the equivalent of Outlook Express). Entered the configuration, connected, done, in a minute or so.
Welcome to the Internet. People have a bad experience with a product, they write a review. The reviewer didn't write a "this sucks" review, he wrote a clear description of the problem, which it sounds like the developer ignored. Did you ever stop to think why that particular review got rated up? Maybe, just maybe, other people had the same problem?
How much description do you want? The guy gave two specific setups in which the app hung at startup, one of which (putting it into airplane mode) would be trivial to test. The developer does NOT say "I tried what the reviewer said and it worked fine, I'd need to talk to him to get details to reproduce the problem". He just says that of course his app doesn't connect to the Internet and the user must be paranoid. To me, it sounds like the user did as good a job as an end user can do of analyzing a problem, and now it's up to the developer to act on the information.
Riiiiiiiiiggggggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhtt,the Chinese are way ahead. After all, they have rovers on Mars, orbiters at Mercury & Saturn, a probe heading to Pluto. and two probes entering interstellar space.
That's the way the legal system works in the US. Each side has an advocate whose goal is not to "find the truth" but rather to advocate their side. The idea is that the truth comes out in the clash of two strong advocates. It makes sense, because the idea that you are going to have disinterested investigators arrive at the truth is difficult to implement. After all, pretty much everybody has an axe to grind... may as well take advantage of that.
Thinking about it a bit more... they could have events in the MMO with two outcomes (bridge collapse, or the survivors work hard & manage to keep it propped up). They couldn't film two entire episodes & only show one, but they could probably have 5 minutes of the same scenes and just change the dialog... either "amazing how everyone in SF pulled together when they really needed to" or "Well, I guess the collapse was inevitable". If they work it right, it wouldn't be too much trouble but they could make the MMO players feel like they've actually had an impact on the universe.
Let's see... all we know for sure is that LulzSec has claimed responsibility for a bunch of high profile computer attacks, and that the official announcement from the UK police says that they've arrested a 19 year old man, and that "The arrest follows an investigation into network intrusions and Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks against a number of international business and intelligence agencies by what is believed to be the same hacking group.". And that "The PCeU was assisted by officers from Essex Police and have been working in co-operation with the FBI."
You don't have to be Sherlock Holmes to connect the dots.
I assume the "events in the MMO" would be scripted events... the character witnessing the Golden Gate Bridge collapsing, or some such. It wouldn't be a spontaneous, player created event, and would be just as scripted as the TV show.
The distributed DB part is interesting, but the Bitcoin site says that the "right" result for transactions wins because lots of people compute the answer and vote, and that a user tried to commit fraud with a single computer doesn't have a chance. But this seems like a great place to use a botnet to pick whatever result you want. Am I missing something? Or is this a pretty massive hole?
If you've ever dealt with a hospital, you'll know that everything NHS cites is true. I've sat with patients and had doctors and nurses come in and ask ME questions about medications, reactions, etc. Or in a few cases I've had to point out that "Doctor so & so was just in here and ordered this 5 minutes ago, are you sure you want to ALSO order that same thing and give the patient a double dose?".
I don't know if the current electronic records system is actually an improvement, but they need to do something to improve the situation. In the meantime, if you ever have to go into a hospital, you better have someone sitting in your room with you, monitoring what's going on.
You're trying to apply logic, this is Slashdot. If it's not an X-Files conspiracy involving the CIA, the FBI, and the Trilateral Commission people aren't interested.
Well, we do have a bunch of smart guys working on space flight, e.g. John Carmack. They just don't happen to work for the government.
Don't get me wrong, I grew up on science fiction, I do believe humans will someday walk on other worlds, and it drives me nuts that if I could just raise enough money and overcome some phobias I could fly to the ISS. But no one, and I mean NO ONE, has come up with a rationale as to why it has to happen now, when the USA is already in the hole. Sure, research is good... but we could be researching maglev trains, or advanced robotics, or deep sea exploration,.... Preservation of humanity? For a fraction of the cost of establishing a Mars base that probably wouldn't survive if a catastrophe hit earth, we could have isolated self-sufficient habitats scattered around the earth. National prestige and competition? That one isn't even a rationale, it's just chest beating.
And it's not like the USA is doing nothing... we have probes all over the solar system. I know people "want it all, and want it now" but sometimes that just isn't a good idea.
Ok... suppose the USA never ever launches another manned space mission. 10 years from now the Chinese have the equivalent of the ISS and 25-30 years from now they land on the moon. Remind me of how this will be a disaster for the USA?
The USA has landers on Mars, is orbiting Mercury, is putting up telescopes that can probe back to the very origin of the universe, has 2 probes venturing outside the solar system, has private companies starting up space tourism... and yet, somehow, it's not enough, because the Chinese have launched a couple of guys into earth orbit.
Suppose the position was reversed. The Chinese landed on the moon in the 1960's, currently had probes and landers all over the solar system, had been partners with the Russians for years on a space station, and the USA was just starting to launch the Gemini program. Would you feel like the USA was forging ahead? I doubt it. This is just the usual angst of being able to see all of the weaknesses and delays in the USA program, and only hearing the trumpeted successes of the Chinese program.
Slashdot Mirror
Show me the law that says that you have to direct your customers to your competitor.
Irridiculous!
Well, if you want to compare experience, I was configuring email back in the 80's using Eudora and have implemented TCP/IP applications at the socket level, so I don't think I'm hindered by a lack of understanding. In fact, configuring a POP server is so trivial that pretty much anyone can do it, IF they are given the chance.
The "guessing & trying" WAS the problem. And it wasn't just me who ran into the problem, I've seen posts from others complaining about the same issue.
When I tried to configure Thunderbird I could see it guessing at POP & SMTP server names that were clearly wrong, and when it had finished, there was no way for me to enter the correct names. As I recall, I had to interrupt the process as the right moment and then it was possible to enter server configuration, but if I let it complete, I was screwed. It would have been much easier to just edit a text configuration file by hand.
When I switched computers a few years ago I had to change email clients and switched to Thunderbird. Configuration was excruciating. Mercifully I've blocked out the details but one thing I remember is that Thunderbird WOULD NOT let me just enter the configuration... I could enter the server and then it had to guess at what the rest of the parameters were, and I had to stop the process at the right moment, or else I was screwed. I spent a ton of time crawling thru the settings and there didn't seem to be any way to just enter what I wanted.
I built a new machine last year and spent about half an hour screwing around with Thunderbird and then gave up and installed MS LiveMail (or whatever it's called... the equivalent of Outlook Express). Entered the configuration, connected, done, in a minute or so.
Welcome to the Internet. People have a bad experience with a product, they write a review. The reviewer didn't write a "this sucks" review, he wrote a clear description of the problem, which it sounds like the developer ignored. Did you ever stop to think why that particular review got rated up? Maybe, just maybe, other people had the same problem?
Any questions?
How much description do you want? The guy gave two specific setups in which the app hung at startup, one of which (putting it into airplane mode) would be trivial to test. The developer does NOT say "I tried what the reviewer said and it worked fine, I'd need to talk to him to get details to reproduce the problem". He just says that of course his app doesn't connect to the Internet and the user must be paranoid. To me, it sounds like the user did as good a job as an end user can do of analyzing a problem, and now it's up to the developer to act on the information.
Riiiiiiiiiggggggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhtt,the Chinese are way ahead. After all, they have rovers on Mars, orbiters at Mercury & Saturn, a probe heading to Pluto. and two probes entering interstellar space.
Oh wait, whups,sorry about that
Probably the same wonder and excitement as wearing clothing that isn't government approved in France.
That's the way the legal system works in the US. Each side has an advocate whose goal is not to "find the truth" but rather to advocate their side. The idea is that the truth comes out in the clash of two strong advocates. It makes sense, because the idea that you are going to have disinterested investigators arrive at the truth is difficult to implement. After all, pretty much everybody has an axe to grind... may as well take advantage of that.
The question I ask of you is this: Do digital Robin Hoods deserve leniency if their intentions appear to be sufficiently instructive?
No.
Thinking about it a bit more... they could have events in the MMO with two outcomes (bridge collapse, or the survivors work hard & manage to keep it propped up). They couldn't film two entire episodes & only show one, but they could probably have 5 minutes of the same scenes and just change the dialog... either "amazing how everyone in SF pulled together when they really needed to" or "Well, I guess the collapse was inevitable". If they work it right, it wouldn't be too much trouble but they could make the MMO players feel like they've actually had an impact on the universe.
Let's see... all we know for sure is that LulzSec has claimed responsibility for a bunch of high profile computer attacks, and that the official announcement from the UK police says that they've arrested a 19 year old man, and that "The arrest follows an investigation into network intrusions and Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks against a number of international business and intelligence agencies by what is believed to be the same hacking group.". And that "The PCeU was assisted by officers from Essex Police and have been working in co-operation with the FBI."
You don't have to be Sherlock Holmes to connect the dots.
I assume the "events in the MMO" would be scripted events... the character witnessing the Golden Gate Bridge collapsing, or some such. It wouldn't be a spontaneous, player created event, and would be just as scripted as the TV show.
The distributed DB part is interesting, but the Bitcoin site says that the "right" result for transactions wins because lots of people compute the answer and vote, and that a user tried to commit fraud with a single computer doesn't have a chance. But this seems like a great place to use a botnet to pick whatever result you want. Am I missing something? Or is this a pretty massive hole?
Well that, and 200 years of experience, and an international monetary system. Whereas Bitcoin is backed by... uh...
If you've ever dealt with a hospital, you'll know that everything NHS cites is true. I've sat with patients and had doctors and nurses come in and ask ME questions about medications, reactions, etc. Or in a few cases I've had to point out that "Doctor so & so was just in here and ordered this 5 minutes ago, are you sure you want to ALSO order that same thing and give the patient a double dose?".
I don't know if the current electronic records system is actually an improvement, but they need to do something to improve the situation. In the meantime, if you ever have to go into a hospital, you better have someone sitting in your room with you, monitoring what's going on.
Better yet, we could give the rich another tax break on the assumption that they will take the extra money and put up a few weather satellites.
Duh... hasn't said he ISN'T dead... late at night.
You're trying to apply logic, this is Slashdot. If it's not an X-Files conspiracy involving the CIA, the FBI, and the Trilateral Commission people aren't interested.
Use what lies between your ears. Al Queda has said he's dead. I think they would know.
Perhaps. Doesn't have anything to do with killing a mass murderer and head of a terrorist organization, though.
Well, we do have a bunch of smart guys working on space flight, e.g. John Carmack. They just don't happen to work for the government.
Don't get me wrong, I grew up on science fiction, I do believe humans will someday walk on other worlds, and it drives me nuts that if I could just raise enough money and overcome some phobias I could fly to the ISS. But no one, and I mean NO ONE, has come up with a rationale as to why it has to happen now, when the USA is already in the hole. Sure, research is good... but we could be researching maglev trains, or advanced robotics, or deep sea exploration, .... Preservation of humanity? For a fraction of the cost of establishing a Mars base that probably wouldn't survive if a catastrophe hit earth, we could have isolated self-sufficient habitats scattered around the earth. National prestige and competition? That one isn't even a rationale, it's just chest beating.
And it's not like the USA is doing nothing... we have probes all over the solar system. I know people "want it all, and want it now" but sometimes that just isn't a good idea.
Ok... suppose the USA never ever launches another manned space mission. 10 years from now the Chinese have the equivalent of the ISS and 25-30 years from now they land on the moon. Remind me of how this will be a disaster for the USA?
The USA has landers on Mars, is orbiting Mercury, is putting up telescopes that can probe back to the very origin of the universe, has 2 probes venturing outside the solar system, has private companies starting up space tourism... and yet, somehow, it's not enough, because the Chinese have launched a couple of guys into earth orbit.
Suppose the position was reversed. The Chinese landed on the moon in the 1960's, currently had probes and landers all over the solar system, had been partners with the Russians for years on a space station, and the USA was just starting to launch the Gemini program. Would you feel like the USA was forging ahead? I doubt it. This is just the usual angst of being able to see all of the weaknesses and delays in the USA program, and only hearing the trumpeted successes of the Chinese program.