I tried this, and everything changed! I'm fat! My beautiful wife is gone! My beautiful aircar is gone! All of my stuff is crammed into this stupid apartment!
I can't even find a link to the nearest spaceport on Google!
RAND hasa bit of an uneven history. I wouldn't even call the right wing so much as establishment/pol/mil/industrial complex wing. This is probably on honest report on the part of the person who made it, but it does smell odd from this distance.
Fundamentally, I think they're right on this (and privatizing schools:), the targets terrorists want to and may actually try to hit are pretty well known and not at all hard to find. Stuff in the middle of nowhere is pretty low on their list.
It's also pretty unlikely that the punks will get their hands on a launchable ICBM or suchlike.
That being said, I'm trying to think of why I would need GPS coords for cabinet offices or suchlike. It's a pretty limited use, I'm not sure it would be worth doing, especially with My Tax Dollars (I know, pennies, but it's the principle).
Obviously if you have a sensitive (NSA, Weather mountain, Federal Brocolli Pricing Board, etc) site, don't put GPS coords on your website. Duh.
People are posting things like "gee this is a great idea" and getting modded as a Troll, people are posting simple and obvious and funny jokes and being modded as Flamebait!
This CELLPHONE event sponsored by AT&T, Sprint, Cingular, etc... (Skytel? Orange in UK?)
Am I cynical, or does this just seem to be a way to get people to burn airtime? I mean, horrible sound quality (compared to dedicated microphones), fighting for a connection, it seems like this is even less useful than a bicycle with square wheels (in the real world, anyway).
I imagine in addition to ringtones you'll hear a lot of tinny voices yelling "Hello!? Hello?!"
Part of it is a definitional problem. People of the white-lab-coat bent hear "supernatural" and they think "irrational okie superstition that rejects all science."
On the other hand, a lot of other people hear "supernatural" and they think "super=above or beyond, natural=the physical world as currently understood, therefore supernatural = some part of the physical world we don't understand."
Which, currently, this appears to be.
I find it sad that everyone has to start the conversation with "I'm FAR AWAY from those wacky people!" instead of "I wonder how far apart we are" or the even better "I wonder what this is and how it works?"
Yes, there are rational and irrational people out there. Occasionally it's hard to tell which, however.
#1 - the critters who shot the thingy at Aeryn & John was ordered to "collect" them, IIRC. Which implies that they're not destroyed (maybe they're supposed to have some kind of transporter that takes the information and leaves the matter or some
other whizbang doodad). In short, though it may have been a bit plot-convenient, it was planned that way and not an afterthought for the miniseries.
#2 - I hope they manage to bring back both Farscape
and Firefly - I don't get the hostility between some of the fans (but I don't get the hostility between the fans of different groups of sweaty young men who run around with balls either). Andromeda drives me nuts but for the sake of the fanbase I hope it goes on (and gets better).
Firefly was particularly sad because you had great cast chemistry but the show didn't go on long enough to expose much of the story arc. And FOX screwed up the story order and caused a lot of people watching the "first" show to skip the second.
I second the earlier comment about reality shows. I
mean, I too wish I was an investor in some of these shows, but I have no interest in watching them. I'm not entertained by bickering emotional cripples and incompetent fools, I'm paid to work with them. I don't want to "relax" with them too.;)
That is SOOOOO retarded I'm almost considering ignoring D3. Already written a letter.
Oh, topic? Umm, well, for many of us, the choice is not PC vs. Console, it's PC and Console vs. PC.
Right now, the PC is superior for most things (not cost). Remember that you can use console-style controllers with a PC for games that seem to need them, like fighting games or 3d platformers.
I can't play a FPS with console controllers, I've tried. The closest I came was Bounty Hunter, and that was more of a platformer than a FPS in many ways. Without auto-aiming it was awful, even though auto-aim sometimes targeted innocents (oops! sorry!).
I don't understand the idea that RPGs are better on consoles. Given the complexity, I've always found the PC interface to be better. And the high-res detail capability.
I'd take that tour. If I could take it on a Ducati 999 with no speed limits (and obviously no insurance - kind of like diving with sharks). Maybe take a shot at Elena in 6th gear,:)
Oh, well. At least the world we live in is not entirely devoid yet of extraordinary individuals in extraordinary places.
Why is it great art guys are never great car guys?
on
The Star Wars Car
·
· Score: 1
Firstly, good job on the props, great to see something original, ignore all the whiners (except me!:).
Secondly, I hope this was a car he had and decided to do the work on rather than choosing this car for the project. The Del Sol has got to be the least likely candidate I can think of for this - the first thing that pops into my mind is an MR2 - at least it looks a little like an A-Wing. The Del Sol looks like a Del Sol with some plastic things glued on. Nice plastic things, but still.
The sad thing is that the same is true of so many project cars, from all the V6 firebird KITT copies to the "Slow and the Stupid" green FWD non-turbo "street racer". Always The Wrong Car!
Reminds me of when they built the Keaton Batmobile on a Chevelle chassis with a Mr. Goodwrench V8. You're making a movie, guys! Spend a few more bucks!
Is that producers and other hollywierd types always have to say they are doing something "new" when they're doing something old.
Improbably strong female characters who whoop ass on men with twice their body mass and three times their muscle mass. Hollywood staple.
Man's creation turning on him. Hollywood staple.
Maybe I'm too young to remember when hollywood was all strong men and week women. Fine. But I'm not THAT young.
At least they seem to be taking a different direction with space effects than average, but it's not unique. Soldier? Starship Troopers? As much as I hate to raise the curse by mentioning it, Wing Commander had machineguns in space, carriers, and semi-old-tech looking stuff in space. Sure, it was cheese, and discount cheese at that, but it had a little mythology and a sense of style (and really bad cat costumes).
From what I've seen (the promo), it looks like instead of BSG 2 we may have Wing Commander 2.
I'm sure the people involved are proud, and to an extent they have a right to be (from what I've seen). But the liberties they've taken with the original and the modern cliches they've followed are probably a bad combination. Time will tell.
IT Doesn't Matter, Doesn't Matter
on
Does IT Matter?
·
· Score: 1
As has been said here already in more roundabout ways, the author of the article is mainly correct and the reaction is mainly not about what the article was about. And irrelevant.
I think the gist of the article (IT is becoming a commodity, the advantage of "having IT" is disappearing BECAUSE it is becoming necessary to compete, etc) is correct.
But that doesn't mean that IT is threatened any more than automaking jobs are threatened when everybody has a car. It just means it's a little less sexy when it's not exclusive.
People still need good IT personnel, it's just that "everyone" has IT people now. Technology will continue to improve, adoption of new stuff will continue, but it's no longer the exclusive advantage of the "bleeding edge."
The reastion has been pretty funny, however, as leading IT industry figures who didn't read the article respond as if their jobs were on the line.:)
So, a druggie has some money,
he takes it to the store,
He buys himself some munchies,
The money's in the drawer.
YOU buy a little Davenport,
You get a little change,
You go down to the airport,
Now who would think that strange?
The man behind the Terahertz,
He sees a little light,
To me what really, really hurts,
You didn't even fight.
So off you go to LAX,
Or San Francisco Bay,
And when they ask you CASH OR CHECK,
We know just what you'll say!
Okay, okay, not my best, but hey, I'm suffering under the influences of a Solar Flare (excuse of the day #128 comes true!!!).
#1 - serious question - how many serious accounting packages are being worked on in the open-source world? It's exactly the kind of software hackers usually denigrate...
#2 - I think this is as much about poor planning (contract negotiations on the part of the developers, defining and/or selling and/or making a "will" for the software on the part of the owners) as it is about IP. And I'll bet somebody knows who owns it, they just haven't settled it yet.
#3 - How many abandoned Open Source apps are there? I mean, sure, you won't have the key problem, but still. The grass may be greener, but it isn't self-mowing, self-watering, and immortal!
Any idea that depends on universal agreement is born doomed to failure.
It would be nice to have an eBook standard. It might happen, but I expected the DVD standards war to be over two years ago and I was foolish to do so.
I guess the best we can hope for is an active community writing conversion software. Which of course means ripoffs. I don't know that it's a winnable battle. I hope so.
I'm sorry you have to put up with the opinions of those less enlightened than you. Perhaps if you never read anything, you won't be offended.
Your post reeks of the "engineer mindset" which is the same as the "politican mindset" and every other ivory-tower specialty: If you're not one of us, you're not worthy to be heard.
I have no desire to prevent anyone else from trying to do whatever they want to do with their own money. I wish the Rutans the best of luck, I just remember their Reno racer - years of design effort, very clever design, beaten before it hit the track by a 50-year-old air-cooled monstrosity.
I do not set requirements for any of these attempts, I do not claim to be qualified to do so, nor do I claim to be qualified to tell other people what opinions they may or may not state.
As I recall from the link, the Rutans claimed to be designing for more than just a 100% X-prize craft, which is where the cargo statement came in.
In any case, neither your nor my opinions really matter to the success of this or other X-Prize contenders. Best of luck to all of them, and may I recommend therapy for you?
Memorial day (observed) appears not to be the best time to be serious around here.
That being said, it's nice to see some progress on the X Prize, which is essentially a prize for the first successful civilian reusable space vehicle.
Personally I think the Rutans are going about this the wrong way, but they could still get the prize.
The pluses to the design are the high-altitude launch (elegant), and the low-speed entry (elegant).
The minuses as I see it are the relatively complex design, lack of cargo space, cost, unpowered landing. Oh, and the fact that it is very, very ugly.
A similar re-entry vehicle, but larger with powered maneuverability on re-entry, with a high-altitude balloon as a "first stage" would rock. And be cheaper. I'm not really sure how huge a balloon (hydrogen or helium) would have to be to drag something that big to the requisite altitude, especially if you intended to go beyond 100km. The second stage would be heavier, unless you had a new fuel or more efficient use of the fuel.
Slashdot Mirror
I tried this, and everything changed! I'm fat! My beautiful wife is gone! My beautiful aircar is gone! All of my stuff is crammed into this stupid apartment!
I can't even find a link to the nearest spaceport on Google!
How do I get back home?!?!?!?!?!
RAND hasa bit of an uneven history. I wouldn't even call the right wing so much as establishment/pol/mil/industrial complex wing. This is probably on honest report on the part of the person who made it, but it does smell odd from this distance.
:), the targets terrorists want to and may actually try to hit are pretty well known and not at all hard to find. Stuff in the middle of nowhere is pretty low on their list.
Fundamentally, I think they're right on this (and privatizing schools
It's also pretty unlikely that the punks will get their hands on a launchable ICBM or suchlike.
That being said, I'm trying to think of why I would need GPS coords for cabinet offices or suchlike. It's a pretty limited use, I'm not sure it would be worth doing, especially with My Tax Dollars (I know, pennies, but it's the principle).
Obviously if you have a sensitive (NSA, Weather mountain, Federal Brocolli Pricing Board, etc) site, don't put GPS coords on your website. Duh.
Apes evolved from... I knew I forgot something!
It's Rome all over again. This is the end, the end of everything. Civilization collapsing in on itself. Dogs and cats living together. Mass hysteria!
I'm trying hard to think of something more pathetic to do, but I can't.
At least they deserve a Guiness record for that, or something.
"and everyone's a little bit nervous to see what it's bringing."
Embrace, extend, ??, profit.
??=buy & close
What is it with the moderators today?!?!
People are posting things like "gee this is a great idea" and getting modded as a Troll, people are
posting simple and obvious and funny jokes and being modded as Flamebait!
?
"If you're not a criminal, you won't be able to hide."
If anyone ever asks you "what have you got to hide," reply "what are you looking for?"
As I understand it, as a rule, Germans obey rules. We're talking about America here, where, as a rule, :)
people don't obey rules. Know your customer.
This CELLPHONE event sponsored by AT&T, Sprint, Cingular, etc... (Skytel? Orange in UK?)
Am I cynical, or does this just seem to be a way to get people to burn airtime? I mean, horrible sound
quality (compared to dedicated microphones), fighting for a connection, it seems like this is
even less useful than a bicycle with square wheels (in the real world, anyway).
I imagine in addition to ringtones you'll hear a lot of tinny voices yelling "Hello!? Hello?!"
Part of it is a definitional problem. People of the white-lab-coat bent hear "supernatural" and they
think "irrational okie superstition that rejects all science."
On the other hand, a lot of other people hear "supernatural" and they think "super=above or
beyond, natural=the physical world as currently understood, therefore supernatural = some part of
the physical world we don't understand."
Which, currently, this appears to be.
I find it sad that everyone has to start the conversation with "I'm FAR AWAY from those wacky
people!" instead of "I wonder how far apart we are" or the even better "I wonder what this is and how
it works?"
Yes, there are rational and irrational people out there. Occasionally it's hard to tell which,
however.
Is it me or does 60x172mm seem to be about the right :)
size for a slightly bulky lightsaber?
Look at the history. War on poverty. War on Drugs.
Do we have less poverty? Less use of illicit drugs?
Different day, same crap.
This is why people think public research is a waste.
Let's spend gobs of money on making a primitive
proto-gear and call it a wheel except you can't turn
and you have to make a special road.
Someone surprise me with something usefule from this
research, it seems like a bit of a
looking-up-at-the-falling-Daisycutter dead end.
#1 - the critters who shot the thingy at Aeryn &
;)
John was ordered to "collect" them, IIRC. Which
implies that they're not destroyed (maybe they're
supposed to have some kind of transporter that
takes the information and leaves the matter or some
other whizbang doodad). In short, though it may
have been a bit plot-convenient, it was planned
that way and not an afterthought for the
miniseries.
#2 - I hope they manage to bring back both Farscape
and Firefly - I don't get the hostility between
some of the fans (but I don't get the hostility
between the fans of different groups of sweaty
young men who run around with balls either).
Andromeda drives me nuts but for the sake of the
fanbase I hope it goes on (and gets better).
Firefly was particularly sad because you had great
cast chemistry but the show didn't go on long
enough to expose much of the story arc. And FOX
screwed up the story order and caused a lot of
people watching the "first" show to skip the
second.
I second the earlier comment about reality shows. I
mean, I too wish I was an investor in some of
these shows, but I have no interest in watching
them. I'm not entertained by bickering emotional
cripples and incompetent fools, I'm paid to work
with them. I don't want to "relax" with them too.
Doom3 XBox will have a coop mode, PC won't.
That is SOOOOO retarded I'm almost considering ignoring D3. Already written a letter.
Oh, topic? Umm, well, for many of us, the choice is not PC vs. Console, it's PC and Console vs. PC.
Right now, the PC is superior for most things (not cost). Remember that you can use console-style controllers with a PC for games that seem to need them, like fighting games or 3d platformers.
I can't play a FPS with console controllers, I've tried. The closest I came was Bounty Hunter, and that was more of a platformer than a FPS in many ways. Without auto-aiming it was awful, even though auto-aim sometimes targeted innocents (oops! sorry!).
I don't understand the idea that RPGs are better on consoles. Given the complexity, I've always found the PC interface to be better. And the high-res detail capability.
I'd take that tour. If I could take it on a Ducati 999 with no speed limits (and obviously no insurance - kind of like diving with sharks). Maybe take a shot at Elena in 6th gear, :)
Oh, well. At least the world we live in is not entirely devoid yet of extraordinary individuals in extraordinary places.
Firstly, good job on the props, great to see something original, ignore all the whiners (except me! :).
Secondly, I hope this was a car he had and decided to do the work on rather than choosing this car for the project. The Del Sol has got to be the least likely candidate I can think of for this - the first thing that pops into my mind is an MR2 - at least it looks a little like an A-Wing. The Del Sol looks like a Del Sol with some plastic things glued on. Nice plastic things, but still.
The sad thing is that the same is true of so many project cars, from all the V6 firebird KITT copies to the "Slow and the Stupid" green FWD non-turbo "street racer". Always The Wrong Car!
Reminds me of when they built the Keaton Batmobile on a Chevelle chassis with a Mr. Goodwrench V8. You're making a movie, guys! Spend a few more bucks!
Is that producers and other hollywierd types always have to say they are doing something "new" when they're doing something old.
Improbably strong female characters who whoop ass on men with twice their body mass and three times their muscle mass. Hollywood staple.
Man's creation turning on him. Hollywood staple.
Maybe I'm too young to remember when hollywood was all strong men and week women. Fine. But I'm not THAT young.
At least they seem to be taking a different direction with space effects than average, but it's not unique. Soldier? Starship Troopers? As much as I hate to raise the curse by mentioning it, Wing Commander had machineguns in space, carriers, and semi-old-tech looking stuff in space. Sure, it was cheese, and discount cheese at that, but it had a little mythology and a sense of style (and really bad cat costumes).
From what I've seen (the promo), it looks like instead of BSG 2 we may have Wing Commander 2.
I'm sure the people involved are proud, and to an extent they have a right to be (from what I've seen). But the liberties they've taken with the original and the modern cliches they've followed are probably a bad combination. Time will tell.
As has been said here already in more roundabout ways, the author of the article is mainly correct and the reaction is mainly not about what the article was about. And irrelevant.
:)
I think the gist of the article (IT is becoming a commodity, the advantage of "having IT" is disappearing BECAUSE it is becoming necessary to compete, etc) is correct.
But that doesn't mean that IT is threatened any more than automaking jobs are threatened when everybody has a car. It just means it's a little less sexy when it's not exclusive.
People still need good IT personnel, it's just that "everyone" has IT people now. Technology will continue to improve, adoption of new stuff will continue, but it's no longer the exclusive advantage of the "bleeding edge."
The reastion has been pretty funny, however, as leading IT industry figures who didn't read the article respond as if their jobs were on the line.
So, a druggie has some money,
he takes it to the store,
He buys himself some munchies,
The money's in the drawer.
YOU buy a little Davenport,
You get a little change,
You go down to the airport,
Now who would think that strange?
The man behind the Terahertz,
He sees a little light,
To me what really, really hurts,
You didn't even fight.
So off you go to LAX,
Or San Francisco Bay,
And when they ask you CASH OR CHECK,
We know just what you'll say!
Okay, okay, not my best, but hey, I'm suffering under the influences of a Solar Flare (excuse of the day #128 comes true!!!).
So, a druggie has some money, he takes it to the store, He buys himself some munchies, The money's in the drawer. YOU buy a little Davenport, You get a little change, You go down to the airport, Now who would think that strange? The man behind the Terahertz, He sees a little light, To me what really, really hurts, You didn't even fight. So off you go to LAX, Or San Francisco Bay, And when they ask you CASH OR CHECK, We know just what you'll say! Okay, okay, not my best, but hey, I'm suffering under the influences of a Solar Flare (excuse of the day #128 comes true!!!).
#1 - serious question - how many serious accounting packages are being worked on in the open-source world? It's exactly the kind of software hackers usually denigrate...
:)
#2 - I think this is as much about poor planning (contract negotiations on the part of the developers, defining and/or selling and/or making a "will" for the software on the part of the owners) as it is about IP. And I'll bet somebody knows who owns it, they just haven't settled it yet.
#3 - How many abandoned Open Source apps are there? I mean, sure, you won't have the key problem, but still. The grass may be greener, but it isn't self-mowing, self-watering, and immortal!
Obligatory Criticism from Merovign.
1. Read replies to this post.
2. Think for a second.
3. Get used to Babel.
Any idea that depends on universal agreement is born doomed to failure.
It would be nice to have an eBook standard. It might happen, but I expected the DVD standards war to be over two years ago and I was foolish to do so.
I guess the best we can hope for is an active community writing conversion software. Which of course means ripoffs. I don't know that it's a winnable battle. I hope so.
You need practice at flaming. I wasn't impressed.
I'm sorry you have to put up with the opinions of those less enlightened than you. Perhaps if you never read anything, you won't be offended.
Your post reeks of the "engineer mindset" which is the same as the "politican mindset" and every other ivory-tower specialty: If you're not one of us, you're not worthy to be heard.
I have no desire to prevent anyone else from trying to do whatever they want to do with their own money. I wish the Rutans the best of luck, I just remember their Reno racer - years of design effort, very clever design, beaten before it hit the track by a 50-year-old air-cooled monstrosity.
I do not set requirements for any of these attempts, I do not claim to be qualified to do so, nor do I claim to be qualified to tell other people what opinions they may or may not state.
As I recall from the link, the Rutans claimed to be designing for more than just a 100% X-prize craft, which is where the cargo statement came in.
In any case, neither your nor my opinions really matter to the success of this or other X-Prize contenders. Best of luck to all of them, and may I recommend therapy for you?
Cheers,
Memorial day (observed) appears not to be the best time to be serious around here.
That being said, it's nice to see some progress on the X Prize, which is essentially a prize for the first successful civilian reusable space vehicle.
Personally I think the Rutans are going about this the wrong way, but they could still get the prize.
The pluses to the design are the high-altitude launch (elegant), and the low-speed entry (elegant).
The minuses as I see it are the relatively complex design, lack of cargo space, cost, unpowered landing. Oh, and the fact that it is very, very ugly.
A similar re-entry vehicle, but larger with powered maneuverability on re-entry, with a high-altitude balloon as a "first stage" would rock. And be cheaper. I'm not really sure how huge a balloon (hydrogen or helium) would have to be to drag something that big to the requisite altitude, especially if you intended to go beyond 100km. The second stage would be heavier, unless you had a new fuel or more efficient use of the fuel.