1. I am concerned how could Snape not tell it and get away with Voldemort. He would be obviusly interested, and he would know Snape could do it. Some AC replied Moody set up a curse to prevent Snape from telling anyone - but I assume this is the curse anyone who entered Grimmauld Place suffered. It didn't seem to last much, but I guess it could have lasted enough to prevent Snape from telling others in the beginning of the book - or at least giving Voldemort a plausible excuse. But this is highly speculative I think.
I guess the question also follows that if Voldemort knew that Snape was spying for Dumbledore prior to the time of his first downfall, why did he trust Snape again? We know Voldemort thought that Snape killed Dumbledore, but was that enough?
2. That's a nice explanation, even if I am not sure if I could call the goblin greedy - he simply believed it belonged to the goblins as Bill explained.
Perhaps "greed" is the wrong word, but Griphook wanted to possess the sword for reasons that had nothing to do with need and valor. I am absolutely certain of this as Dumbledore was quite specific in his instructions to Snape: "Now, Severus, the sword! Do not forget that it must be taken under conditions of need and valor..." The suggestion here is that the sword can only be used or possessed by those that need it. Griphook didn't need the sword so it would not remain in his possession. That is why Neville was able to pull the sword from the Sorting Hat just when he needed it.
3. I am assuming the Elder Wand is indeed unbeatable. Of course, I might be wrong, and it might just be, as someone else suggested, just so powerful that it made his master virtually unbeatable. Then it would fit nicely with your argument.
It also follows that since Dumbledore beat Grindewald that the Elder Wand is not unbeatable, just extremely powerful. If it was then Dumbledore would not have won, would he?
4. Again, possible, but not really something we can be certain with the info provided.
I think that is the only possible conclusion, but we can only speculate.
If Snape could enter Grimmauld Place, then why didn't he told the Death Eaters where it was? Voldemort should be aware that wherever the Headquarter of the Order was, Snape knew it, and with Dumbledore's death Snape would become a secret keeper.
Isn't it obvious? Snape wasn't working for the Death Eaters, he was working for the Order and Dumbledore. This was a major plot of the book. I really do not understand why you are confused about this.
Not really a mistake but... how did Griffyndorf's sword got away from the goblins?
This was hinted to in the book in that Gryffindor's sword can only remain in the possession of one who's valor and need of the sword are true. One cannot simply possess the sword out of greed, which is how the goblin Griphook acquired it.
How could Dumbledore best Grindenwald if the latter had the Elder Wand? also, how did he not defeat Voldemort completely with the Elder Wand when they dueled?
Again, the answer was hinted at in the book if not a running theme throughout the series. Dumbledore admits to Harry that they were both skilled wizards, but that Dumbledore was perhaps a bit more skillful. That fact, taken together with the theme that runs throughout the books that it is not what skills or magical items you possess so much as what you do with them that is the key. I think that is your answer.
How did Dumbledore's painting know of the plan to take Harry off Private Drive, in order to counsel Snape?
I suspect someone in the Order other than Snape is in communication with the painting.
While The Deathly Hallows was enormously satisfying in that it answered just about every question that was ever raised over the course of the series, I found the ending to be...a bit abrupt and somewhat neglectful. I really would have liked just one more small chapter detailing a bit of the aftermath of Voldemort's downfall. What happened to the rest of the Death Eaters? Did Harry return to Hogwarts for one last year? Is he an auror? What do Ron, Hermione and Ginny do? What about Teddy? Did he come to live with Harry and Ginny, given that Harry was his godfather? It just felt like the book was more concerned with detailing the overthrow of Voldemort than winding down all of the relationships the reader built up with the various characters over the series. Yes, some of the answers come in the epilogue, but it was a bit lacking.
Order of the Phoenix was good, but perhaps the film is more notable for what was cut from the book than what made it into the movie. If the next two movies follow the same lines as Order of the Phoenix, a lot of fans are going to be deeply dissatisfied. Order of the Phoenix is the longest and most complex book in the series up to this point and yet it is the shortest of the Harry Potter movies.
It gets even more confusing...
on
PSP-Slim Hands On
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· Score: 2, Interesting
There will be a composite cable for the PSP, but it only supports video from the UMD or Memory Stick.
Maybe it's a Canadian thing but I have never once in my life seen a TV with composite input on the front. That's a little bizarre because by the time manufacturers were thinking about being able to easily plug stuff into the front everything was using component cables.
Pardon? My Toshiba has three sets of inputs -- two composite inputs in the back and one in the front. A friend's Sony TV is the same. I have come across many, many TVs here in Canada with composite inputs on the front and it makes plugging your video camera into the TV and boring the relatives that much easier. What might be confusing you is very often you have to flip open a front panel to find the inputs, but not always.
Yeah, I agree. I have bumped the hell out of my laptop on occasion while burning a DVD and not only did the disc not scratch but the burn completed successfully. Thanks to missing bumper pads, it seems even the slightest of bumps or a game disc that is the tiniest bit out of tolerance could cause a devastating scratch. Hell, the bumper pads can't cost more than a fraction of a penny so I don't see a significant savings here for the drive manufacturer. It just doesn't make sense why the drives are manufactured this way.
If you watched the TV clip from Dutch television you would know that the 360's optical drive is missing the bumper pads that surround the laser lens and protect discs from scratching by the lens assembly itself, a common safety feature that is present on every other optical drive ever made. Why Microsoft or the drive manufacturer's chose to omit this common optical drive design feature is a bit of a mystery to me, but it is not simply a problem with gamers moving the console while the drive is in operation (although that obviously has to be the cause in at least a few cases). 360 forums are filled with complaints from customers that have had to replace some games two or three times where they have done nothing adverse to the either the console or the discs.
Perhaps Microsoft has absolutely no control over the issue insofar as it is entirely the fault of the drive manufacturer, so we may want to give MS a bit of slack on the issue. Still, MS has to be aware of the problem and you would think that they would insist that all drives be manufactured with bumper pads.
The iPhone costs as much as PS3, but that won't phase the rabid early adopters. And as cool as the iPhone is, I just don't see the value when I can buy a low end laptop for the same price.
Just as the original iPod was outlandishly over-priced for my tastes, so too is the iPhone. Give it a few years and the price will drop and the design and UI will be perfected, just like the iPod.
Does the law require consent or awareness? There is a big difference between the two. If the law requires consent and you call a toll free number from or in Pennsylvania, does that mean you can tell the operator then that you don't consent to the call being recorded? If the law stipulates that parties must simply be made aware of the recording, then Kelly's mistake was surreptitiously recording the officer.
Another consideration is that a roadside does not constitute a public place, and by my interpretation of the law that is an essential element to the wiretapping offense. Namely, that an offense only occurs when there is an expectation of privacy. A roadside police stop doesn't conform to those requirements, in my opinion.
The article details that Army officials noted with pleasure how the pentagonal shape recalled the era of pentagonal shaped fortifications.
Anyway, if you read at least the first page of the article you would have learned that the Pentagon was originally sited close to Arlington National Cemetery on an oddly shaped tract of land bounded on five sides, thus necessitating the five-sided nature of the building. When members of Congress and other officials protested that the monolithic design would obscure the view of Washington from L'Enfant's tomb, the building was moved to its current location.
When I was about nine years old, my father and I were discussing the shape of the Pentagon and the reasons for the unique shape of the building. I concluded that perhaps the shape recalled the branches of the military of government that occupied the various wings of the building; Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Joint Chiefs/Secretary of Defense. That's what I thought, at least.
How is this confusing? Not enough sunlight may cause vitamin D deficiency, too much may cause cancer. Not enough food and you starve to death, too much and you grow obese and suffer related ailments.
BEFORE you even make a list, define a meal plan for each meal of the day and only buy enough to cover those meals. This will save you significant amounts of money as you won't be raiding the fridge to come up with dinner. I easily halved my food costs in this manner, but the downside is you eat a lot of the same meals, like spaghetti, so it can get monotonous.
A lot of stores, such as Safeway for example, include the unit price on their shelf tags. This is very convenient when comparing the cost among brands or serving sizes. The unit cost is usually expressed in dollars or cents per gram/mililitres on the bottom right of the shelf tag.
I think it's silly to suggest that people rush to the back of the store or not stop while shopping. Just stick to your list, compare unit pricing, watch for sales and relax. It's not a race. As an adult should be able to walk down the cereal aisle without having to put your hands over your eyes to resist buying the Fruity Pebbles. Just stick to your damn list like a big boy or girl.
It doesn't take a law degree to understand that almost nothing in this bill would pass constitutional muster. Besides, this is a private members bill meaning it was introduced entirely on the volition of the MP in question and without the support of cabinet or caucus. Without that support, it has zero chance of passing and amounts to nothing more than grandstanding for their constituents. It should also be noted that several private member bills along the same lines have been introduced in years past, all without success.
That doesn't mean we shouldn't be concerned or silent. Concerned Canadians should write their MP and the author of the bill, Joy Smith.
I addressed the question of Wii production shortages by positing that perhaps Nintendo is running into problems with the supply of the new GPU and CPU chips in the Wii (because they use different chips from those used in the Gamecube). Obviously, there could be other reasons such as a limited number of available manufacturing facilities.
I don't understand why you come back with a reply to my post with a litany on why gaming doesn't always have to be about performance, which I happen to agree with, when that wasn't my point to begin with. I understand that people want a Wii because it's simply fun to play, and it is. I have one myself and I play Wii Sports every night.
I understand shortages regarding the 360 and the PS3 because of the leading edge technologies, but the Wii is essentially a Gamecube with twice the power. I don't understand where the production bottle neck is considering that the Wii represents mature technologies, unless there are production issues with the "Broadway" and "Hollywood" graphics and CPU chips.
I know the DS has been in short supply at times, but not to the extent that the Wii has experienced. People are genuinely frustrated with Nintendo's seeming inability to produce enough Wiis to fill demand and I think it might hurt them in the long run.
The price of the basic PSP package dropped to C$200 ($170 US) at least two weeks ago. I guess the price reductions will hit other markets in due time.
C$200 should be the sweet spot. C$300 was far too expensive and C$150 is just not realistic until the end of the product cycle. With new versions of the Prince of Persia and God of War coming for the system I am thinking very seriously of picking one up this summer. The Gameboy Advance was priced at C$150 for quite while before it dropped to C$129 and then C$99, and the DS remains at C$150 (although I expect this will drop to C$129 by Christmas). $50 more isn't all that much.
Well, plagiarism today is heavily invested with morality surrounding intellectual honesty. That is laudable. But truly distinguishing plagiarism is a matter of intent. Did I mean to copy, was it accidental (a trick of memory), was it polygenesis[?]... Young people today are simply too far ahead of anything schools might do to curb their recycling efforts. Beyond simply selling used term papers online, Web sites such as StudentofFortune.com allow students to post specific questions and pay for answers.
The arguments from broadcasters and media conglomerates regarding the importance of "Canadian content" is nothing more than a smokescreen for "make them buy my shit or more of my shit." There is plenty of Canadian content on the Internet; possibly disproportionately so given that Canada is an extremely wired country. The problem for the broadcasters is that it isn't the property of Bell/Globemedia/whoever so they can't charge for it.
Actual advocates for Canadian content, such as Friends of Canadian Broadcasting, are really nothing more than cultural elistists who think "our stuff" should be valued more highly than "their stuff", meaning gauche and pedestrian American television and right wing radio. If it was up to these people we would all wear smoking jackets and sit around talking about feminist politics, Leonard Cohen and Margaret Atwood all day.
I love my country, but we often throw money at a problem rather than common sense. What I suspect will happen is that everyone will realize that not only is it technically impossible and politically unpopular, but likely unconstitutional to attempt to enforce Canadian content on the Internet. So, the government of the day will simply add a Canadian cultural tax to our Internet bills, spread the money around and call the problem solved. Which makes the fact that we just spent millions, even billions of dollars to connect schools and communities to a world wide network information network called the Internet look stupid. We could have simply sat the children down and turned on the CBC.
That's fine, but the school is the one responsible for making a determination of plagiarism, not a third party that then retains the material in contravention of copyright.
Is that so freaking hard? If so, then use one of the Wii friend code web sites out there. I agree, the system sucks from a usability stand point, but unless Nintendo finds their balls or you can get all the parent's groups, children's advocates and right and left wing game censorship nuts to simmer down, you're going to have to live with it.
God of War 1 and 2, Shadow of the Colossus and Psychonauts are listed as playable without problems, but you have to click on the "Next >" button at the bottom of the window to display the rest of the games in a given letter.
I don't really understand why Sony decided to remove the Emotion Engine this early in the consoles life cycle when backward compatibility would seem the most crucial to the console's success. Also, the expected savings, as I understand, amount to no more than $20 per unit. I would also be very curious to know if the European variant of the PS3 will be making its way to North America and Japan.
I know my law degree is in the mail, but even a layman can understand the following:
(1) No person shall, during any period prescribed by regulation, in association with a trade-mark or other mark, promote or otherwise direct public attention to their business, wares or services in a manner that misleads or is likely to mislead the public into believing that (a) the person's business, wares or services are approved, authorized or endorsed by an organizing committee, the COC or the CPC; or (b) a business association exists between the person's business and the Olympic Games, the Paralympic Games, an organizing committee, the COC or the CPC.
The law essentially says you cannot mislead the public with advertising or promotions that suggest your business is endorsed by or connected to the Olympic Games and/or one of the organizing committess.
The law goes on to say:
(2) In determining whether a person has acted contrary to subsection (1), the court shall take into account any evidence that the person has used, in any language, (a) a combination of expressions set out in Part 1 of Schedule 3; or (b) the combination of an expression set out in Part 1 of Schedule 3 with an expression set out in Part 2 of that Schedule.
So, the law does not prohibit a business from using the words "Vancouver", "winter" or "Whistler", only when they are used in combination with the following words and likely to cause to confusion with the Olympic trademarks and/or suggest an endorsement or relationship that does not exist:
The security certificate provisions and the anti-terrorism leglislation are two entirely separate pieces of leglislation passed into law decades apart from each other.
The security certificate legislation was passed in 1978 and forms part of Canada's immigration law. It was not passed specificially to deal with terrorism , but the five suspected terrorists that are held under those provisions are being held for various immigration related offenses such as entering the country with forged passports.
The Anti-Terrorism Act was passed in early 2001 and was an omnibus bill that amended a wide variety of pre-existing legislation. As I understand it, not all of the provisions in the Anti-Terrorism Act sunset after five years. The sections of law that specifically prohibited taking part in or financially aiding a terrorist group and the those that outlawed specific terrorist organizations remain in effect.
As for the controversial preventitive arrest and compulsory testimony measures in the law, there was an attempt to strike a balance between civil rights and public order. For example, it was automatic for a suspect arrested on suspicion of terrorist activity to have their detention reviewed by a judge within 24 hours of arrest. Also, witnesses that were compelled to testify before a judge on a terrorism related investigation could not be prosecuted for crimes based on their own testimony (which is a right that is already entrenched in our Charter). The law wasn't perfect, but it also wasn't the draconian beast it was made out to be. And there are many common sense provisions to the law that remain in effect.
The bill is still winding its way through parliament, if I am not mistaken.
As for underage pictures, the SCOC ruled several years ago that so long as the sex is consentual and video or pictures not transmitted or viewed by others, the act of recording underage sex is not illegal.
Slashdot Mirror
A mile long translucent worm or tunnel, Cydonia was built by ancient Martians and alien artifacts buried in the Martian soil.
No thanks to Richard Hoagland.
1. I am concerned how could Snape not tell it and get away with Voldemort. He would be obviusly interested, and he would know Snape could do it. Some AC replied Moody set up a curse to prevent Snape from telling anyone - but I assume this is the curse anyone who entered Grimmauld Place suffered. It didn't seem to last much, but I guess it could have lasted enough to prevent Snape from telling others in the beginning of the book - or at least giving Voldemort a plausible excuse. But this is highly speculative I think.
I guess the question also follows that if Voldemort knew that Snape was spying for Dumbledore prior to the time of his first downfall, why did he trust Snape again? We know Voldemort thought that Snape killed Dumbledore, but was that enough?
2. That's a nice explanation, even if I am not sure if I could call the goblin greedy - he simply believed it belonged to the goblins as Bill explained.
Perhaps "greed" is the wrong word, but Griphook wanted to possess the sword for reasons that had nothing to do with need and valor. I am absolutely certain of this as Dumbledore was quite specific in his instructions to Snape: "Now, Severus, the sword! Do not forget that it must be taken under conditions of need and valor..." The suggestion here is that the sword can only be used or possessed by those that need it. Griphook didn't need the sword so it would not remain in his possession. That is why Neville was able to pull the sword from the Sorting Hat just when he needed it.
3. I am assuming the Elder Wand is indeed unbeatable. Of course, I might be wrong, and it might just be, as someone else suggested, just so powerful that it made his master virtually unbeatable. Then it would fit nicely with your argument.
It also follows that since Dumbledore beat Grindewald that the Elder Wand is not unbeatable, just extremely powerful. If it was then Dumbledore would not have won, would he?
4. Again, possible, but not really something we can be certain with the info provided.
I think that is the only possible conclusion, but we can only speculate.
If Snape could enter Grimmauld Place, then why didn't he told the Death Eaters where it was? Voldemort should be aware that wherever the Headquarter of the Order was, Snape knew it, and with Dumbledore's death Snape would become a secret keeper.
Isn't it obvious? Snape wasn't working for the Death Eaters, he was working for the Order and Dumbledore. This was a major plot of the book. I really do not understand why you are confused about this.
Not really a mistake but... how did Griffyndorf's sword got away from the goblins?
This was hinted to in the book in that Gryffindor's sword can only remain in the possession of one who's valor and need of the sword are true. One cannot simply possess the sword out of greed, which is how the goblin Griphook acquired it.
How could Dumbledore best Grindenwald if the latter had the Elder Wand? also, how did he not defeat Voldemort completely with the Elder Wand when they dueled?
Again, the answer was hinted at in the book if not a running theme throughout the series. Dumbledore admits to Harry that they were both skilled wizards, but that Dumbledore was perhaps a bit more skillful. That fact, taken together with the theme that runs throughout the books that it is not what skills or magical items you possess so much as what you do with them that is the key. I think that is your answer.
How did Dumbledore's painting know of the plan to take Harry off Private Drive, in order to counsel Snape?
I suspect someone in the Order other than Snape is in communication with the painting.
While The Deathly Hallows was enormously satisfying in that it answered just about every question that was ever raised over the course of the series, I found the ending to be...a bit abrupt and somewhat neglectful. I really would have liked just one more small chapter detailing a bit of the aftermath of Voldemort's downfall. What happened to the rest of the Death Eaters? Did Harry return to Hogwarts for one last year? Is he an auror? What do Ron, Hermione and Ginny do? What about Teddy? Did he come to live with Harry and Ginny, given that Harry was his godfather? It just felt like the book was more concerned with detailing the overthrow of Voldemort than winding down all of the relationships the reader built up with the various characters over the series. Yes, some of the answers come in the epilogue, but it was a bit lacking.
Order of the Phoenix was good, but perhaps the film is more notable for what was cut from the book than what made it into the movie. If the next two movies follow the same lines as Order of the Phoenix, a lot of fans are going to be deeply dissatisfied. Order of the Phoenix is the longest and most complex book in the series up to this point and yet it is the shortest of the Harry Potter movies.
There will be a composite cable for the PSP, but it only supports video from the UMD or Memory Stick.
Maybe it's a Canadian thing but I have never once in my life seen a TV with composite input on the front. That's a little bizarre because by the time manufacturers were thinking about being able to easily plug stuff into the front everything was using component cables.
Pardon? My Toshiba has three sets of inputs -- two composite inputs in the back and one in the front. A friend's Sony TV is the same. I have come across many, many TVs here in Canada with composite inputs on the front and it makes plugging your video camera into the TV and boring the relatives that much easier. What might be confusing you is very often you have to flip open a front panel to find the inputs, but not always.
Yeah, I agree. I have bumped the hell out of my laptop on occasion while burning a DVD and not only did the disc not scratch but the burn completed successfully. Thanks to missing bumper pads, it seems even the slightest of bumps or a game disc that is the tiniest bit out of tolerance could cause a devastating scratch. Hell, the bumper pads can't cost more than a fraction of a penny so I don't see a significant savings here for the drive manufacturer. It just doesn't make sense why the drives are manufactured this way.
If you watched the TV clip from Dutch television you would know that the 360's optical drive is missing the bumper pads that surround the laser lens and protect discs from scratching by the lens assembly itself, a common safety feature that is present on every other optical drive ever made. Why Microsoft or the drive manufacturer's chose to omit this common optical drive design feature is a bit of a mystery to me, but it is not simply a problem with gamers moving the console while the drive is in operation (although that obviously has to be the cause in at least a few cases). 360 forums are filled with complaints from customers that have had to replace some games two or three times where they have done nothing adverse to the either the console or the discs.
Perhaps Microsoft has absolutely no control over the issue insofar as it is entirely the fault of the drive manufacturer, so we may want to give MS a bit of slack on the issue. Still, MS has to be aware of the problem and you would think that they would insist that all drives be manufactured with bumper pads.
The iPhone costs as much as PS3, but that won't phase the rabid early adopters. And as cool as the iPhone is, I just don't see the value when I can buy a low end laptop for the same price.
Just as the original iPod was outlandishly over-priced for my tastes, so too is the iPhone. Give it a few years and the price will drop and the design and UI will be perfected, just like the iPod.
Does the law require consent or awareness? There is a big difference between the two. If the law requires consent and you call a toll free number from or in Pennsylvania, does that mean you can tell the operator then that you don't consent to the call being recorded? If the law stipulates that parties must simply be made aware of the recording, then Kelly's mistake was surreptitiously recording the officer.
Another consideration is that a roadside does not constitute a public place, and by my interpretation of the law that is an essential element to the wiretapping offense. Namely, that an offense only occurs when there is an expectation of privacy. A roadside police stop doesn't conform to those requirements, in my opinion.
The article details that Army officials noted with pleasure how the pentagonal shape recalled the era of pentagonal shaped fortifications.
Anyway, if you read at least the first page of the article you would have learned that the Pentagon was originally sited close to Arlington National Cemetery on an oddly shaped tract of land bounded on five sides, thus necessitating the five-sided nature of the building. When members of Congress and other officials protested that the monolithic design would obscure the view of Washington from L'Enfant's tomb, the building was moved to its current location.
When I was about nine years old, my father and I were discussing the shape of the Pentagon and the reasons for the unique shape of the building. I concluded that perhaps the shape recalled the branches of the military of government that occupied the various wings of the building; Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Joint Chiefs/Secretary of Defense. That's what I thought, at least.
How is this confusing? Not enough sunlight may cause vitamin D deficiency, too much may cause cancer. Not enough food and you starve to death, too much and you grow obese and suffer related ailments.
Life is about balance.
BEFORE you even make a list, define a meal plan for each meal of the day and only buy enough to cover those meals. This will save you significant amounts of money as you won't be raiding the fridge to come up with dinner. I easily halved my food costs in this manner, but the downside is you eat a lot of the same meals, like spaghetti, so it can get monotonous.
A lot of stores, such as Safeway for example, include the unit price on their shelf tags. This is very convenient when comparing the cost among brands or serving sizes. The unit cost is usually expressed in dollars or cents per gram/mililitres on the bottom right of the shelf tag.
I think it's silly to suggest that people rush to the back of the store or not stop while shopping. Just stick to your list, compare unit pricing, watch for sales and relax. It's not a race. As an adult should be able to walk down the cereal aisle without having to put your hands over your eyes to resist buying the Fruity Pebbles. Just stick to your damn list like a big boy or girl.
It doesn't take a law degree to understand that almost nothing in this bill would pass constitutional muster. Besides, this is a private members bill meaning it was introduced entirely on the volition of the MP in question and without the support of cabinet or caucus. Without that support, it has zero chance of passing and amounts to nothing more than grandstanding for their constituents. It should also be noted that several private member bills along the same lines have been introduced in years past, all without success.
That doesn't mean we shouldn't be concerned or silent. Concerned Canadians should write their MP and the author of the bill, Joy Smith.
I addressed the question of Wii production shortages by positing that perhaps Nintendo is running into problems with the supply of the new GPU and CPU chips in the Wii (because they use different chips from those used in the Gamecube). Obviously, there could be other reasons such as a limited number of available manufacturing facilities.
I don't understand why you come back with a reply to my post with a litany on why gaming doesn't always have to be about performance, which I happen to agree with, when that wasn't my point to begin with. I understand that people want a Wii because it's simply fun to play, and it is. I have one myself and I play Wii Sports every night.
I understand shortages regarding the 360 and the PS3 because of the leading edge technologies, but the Wii is essentially a Gamecube with twice the power. I don't understand where the production bottle neck is considering that the Wii represents mature technologies, unless there are production issues with the "Broadway" and "Hollywood" graphics and CPU chips.
I know the DS has been in short supply at times, but not to the extent that the Wii has experienced. People are genuinely frustrated with Nintendo's seeming inability to produce enough Wiis to fill demand and I think it might hurt them in the long run.
The price of the basic PSP package dropped to C$200 ($170 US) at least two weeks ago. I guess the price reductions will hit other markets in due time.
C$200 should be the sweet spot. C$300 was far too expensive and C$150 is just not realistic until the end of the product cycle. With new versions of the Prince of Persia and God of War coming for the system I am thinking very seriously of picking one up this summer. The Gameboy Advance was priced at C$150 for quite while before it dropped to C$129 and then C$99, and the DS remains at C$150 (although I expect this will drop to C$129 by Christmas). $50 more isn't all that much.
Well, plagiarism today is heavily invested with morality surrounding intellectual honesty. That is laudable. But truly distinguishing plagiarism is a matter of intent. Did I mean to copy, was it accidental (a trick of memory), was it polygenesis[?] ... Young people today are simply too far ahead of anything schools might do to curb their recycling efforts. Beyond simply selling used term papers online, Web sites such as StudentofFortune.com allow students to post specific questions and pay for answers.
That's all I have to say about the subject.
The arguments from broadcasters and media conglomerates regarding the importance of "Canadian content" is nothing more than a smokescreen for "make them buy my shit or more of my shit." There is plenty of Canadian content on the Internet; possibly disproportionately so given that Canada is an extremely wired country. The problem for the broadcasters is that it isn't the property of Bell/Globemedia/whoever so they can't charge for it.
Actual advocates for Canadian content, such as Friends of Canadian Broadcasting, are really nothing more than cultural elistists who think "our stuff" should be valued more highly than "their stuff", meaning gauche and pedestrian American television and right wing radio. If it was up to these people we would all wear smoking jackets and sit around talking about feminist politics, Leonard Cohen and Margaret Atwood all day.
I love my country, but we often throw money at a problem rather than common sense. What I suspect will happen is that everyone will realize that not only is it technically impossible and politically unpopular, but likely unconstitutional to attempt to enforce Canadian content on the Internet. So, the government of the day will simply add a Canadian cultural tax to our Internet bills, spread the money around and call the problem solved. Which makes the fact that we just spent millions, even billions of dollars to connect schools and communities to a world wide network information network called the Internet look stupid. We could have simply sat the children down and turned on the CBC.
That's fine, but the school is the one responsible for making a determination of plagiarism, not a third party that then retains the material in contravention of copyright.
Is that so freaking hard? If so, then use one of the Wii friend code web sites out there. I agree, the system sucks from a usability stand point, but unless Nintendo finds their balls or you can get all the parent's groups, children's advocates and right and left wing game censorship nuts to simmer down, you're going to have to live with it.
God of War 1 and 2, Shadow of the Colossus and Psychonauts are listed as playable without problems, but you have to click on the "Next >" button at the bottom of the window to display the rest of the games in a given letter.
I don't really understand why Sony decided to remove the Emotion Engine this early in the consoles life cycle when backward compatibility would seem the most crucial to the console's success. Also, the expected savings, as I understand, amount to no more than $20 per unit. I would also be very curious to know if the European variant of the PS3 will be making its way to North America and Japan.
I know my law degree is in the mail, but even a layman can understand the following:
(1) No person shall, during any period prescribed by regulation, in association with a trade-mark or other mark, promote or otherwise direct public attention to their business, wares or services in a manner that misleads or is likely to mislead the public into believing that
(a) the person's business, wares or services are approved, authorized or endorsed by an organizing committee, the COC or the CPC; or
(b) a business association exists between the person's business and the Olympic Games, the Paralympic Games, an organizing committee, the COC or the CPC.
The law essentially says you cannot mislead the public with advertising or promotions that suggest your business is endorsed by or connected to the Olympic Games and/or one of the organizing committess.
The law goes on to say:
(2) In determining whether a person has acted contrary to subsection (1), the court shall take into account any evidence that the person has used, in any language,
(a) a combination of expressions set out in Part 1 of Schedule 3; or
(b) the combination of an expression set out in Part 1 of Schedule 3 with an expression set out in Part 2 of that Schedule.
So, the law does not prohibit a business from using the words "Vancouver", "winter" or "Whistler", only when they are used in combination with the following words and likely to cause to confusion with the Olympic trademarks and/or suggest an endorsement or relationship that does not exist:
1. Games
2. 2010
3. Twenty-ten
4. 21st
5. Twenty-first
6. XXIst
7. 10th
8. Tenth
9. Xth
10. Medals
That's pretty much it. Draconian? Not really. Overly broad? Perhaps.
The security certificate provisions and the anti-terrorism leglislation are two entirely separate pieces of leglislation passed into law decades apart from each other.
The security certificate legislation was passed in 1978 and forms part of Canada's immigration law. It was not passed specificially to deal with terrorism , but the five suspected terrorists that are held under those provisions are being held for various immigration related offenses such as entering the country with forged passports.
The Anti-Terrorism Act was passed in early 2001 and was an omnibus bill that amended a wide variety of pre-existing legislation. As I understand it, not all of the provisions in the Anti-Terrorism Act sunset after five years. The sections of law that specifically prohibited taking part in or financially aiding a terrorist group and the those that outlawed specific terrorist organizations remain in effect.
As for the controversial preventitive arrest and compulsory testimony measures in the law, there was an attempt to strike a balance between civil rights and public order. For example, it was automatic for a suspect arrested on suspicion of terrorist activity to have their detention reviewed by a judge within 24 hours of arrest. Also, witnesses that were compelled to testify before a judge on a terrorism related investigation could not be prosecuted for crimes based on their own testimony (which is a right that is already entrenched in our Charter). The law wasn't perfect, but it also wasn't the draconian beast it was made out to be. And there are many common sense provisions to the law that remain in effect.
The bill is still winding its way through parliament, if I am not mistaken.
As for underage pictures, the SCOC ruled several years ago that so long as the sex is consentual and video or pictures not transmitted or viewed by others, the act of recording underage sex is not illegal.