It's called advertising and support. Believe it or not all of that advertising stuff does work. That's why so much money gets spent on it. People that don't know a lot about computers but want to buy one will go with what they are familiar with. The advertising makes them familiar with the brands.
On the support side people look into what support they are going to be able to get. Is the company likely to be around for a few years? Can they call them if they get problems? The majority of people neither know, or want to know, much about computers. They just want it to work.
The bad points from this article are that the whole package has problems. The mouse mat doesn't work with the optical mouse and that you can't install or play some games without the system getting in the way. This is sloppy and complacent from a manufacturer point of view. It won't impact the majority of people looking to buy a Dell though. They'll just call Tech Support and get the problem fixed.
My initial thought was the same. "Isn't level flight the norm?". That article states that the plane was returned to level flight by the rat brain when forces were placed on it to make it deviate.
Seeing as you appear to have got it wrong last time, has it not occurred to you that perhaps you have got some learning to do??
Given that you knew nothing about his personal situation I find this comment incredible.
Re:When will they realize
on
Faster DNA Testing
·
· Score: 2, Interesting
Blatantly not-true. Not fully efficient, yes. Has to be combined with other measures, yes. May be insufficient, yes. May not be worth the price, yes. Does nothing, no
DNA just allows confirmation of identity. If the people committing the terrorist acts are not under suspicion then it does nothing. It is just a matter of context.
Your comments demonstrate why its so difficult to argue against the reduction in liberty and privacy that the authorities are attempting to implement in the western world. They present everything with the "it will prevent terrorism" tagline. "No it won't" comes the view from the opposition. Someone else then says "well, that's not strictly true" and the authorities can sit back and watch it all unfold. If they are lucky they also get "its true that it won't do anything unless all of these other authoritarian measures are invoked as well". They can then respond by proposing to implement them all in the name of safety and can point out that they didn't think of it first. The fact that they had the measures ready to roll was pure coincidence, they were just being prepared and it shows that they were in touch with public feeling.
DNA testing, in itself, is no defence against terrorism which I believe was what the OP meant.
What is more worrying is the system that they are intending to roll out using existing legislation. Combine this with earlier reports of a government WiFi system in such things and RFID type detectors in cars for road pricing and its gets worse.
If you're a normal law abiding citizen (oh, except we aren't citizens we are subjects but that's a different subject) then you don't have any problems. Doesn't it worry anyone though that the government will have a database of your entire movements that will be kept for 2 years? Here in the UK goverment agencies are in the business of reducing the burden to the taxpayer by selling information to other bodies, including private firms. This is the case with the electoral role and is proposed for the ID card system that they are trying to introduce. This database would be another marketable gem.
Bzzzzzt... thank you for playing but now you've found the secret catchphrase you are eliminated from the game.
It was only a matter of time before the death of Apple entered the discussion. It is afterall one of the more persistent computing predictions having been around since the rumors of Duke Nukem Forever.
Onto the point in the parent although the software installed is Linux and Open Source they've gone with a specific distro, Redhat, presumably in order to get support and updates etc. Doing this does seem to negate the point of going with Open Source to some extent. Remember that the underpinnings of OS X is Darwin and that is open source albeit not a GPL license.
My read on it is that the reason for refusing Apple's offer is that if they waver from a fully OSS solution they open up the prospect of Microsoft throwing enough incentives in the direction of the project, school, etc. to usurp the choice. This is as much a decision made to prevent Microsoft getting a foothold as an affirmation of OSS.
sounds like Apple's simply trying to cash-in quickly before their 'bubble' bursts. Don't get me wrong, the iPod is a great little device, but at some point the buzz + demand / supply will stabilize and the rest of the non-innovative companies will play copy & catch-up...
You forgot to add "and this will be the death of Apple". All companies try to captialise "buzz". The iPod has had a great deal of "buzz" for the past couple of years and Apple have done well to keeping pushing the device so as to differentiate the iPod from the competition. Its not as though other companies, even ones with good brands (Sony Walkman), haven't been trying to steal Apple's thunder over this period. So far Apple have succeeded at beating them off.
What a lot of people ignore when comparing the iPod with the other music players out there is the interface. Not the one the users use but the one that allows it to connect. This is the killer app that the iPod has, something that makes it more than just a portable music player. Look at the number of manufacturers that are offering iPod connectivity in their cars. The iPod will continue to grow, it may lose its buzz but, until someone comes along with something that can take its place, it will still provide a solid revenue stream for Apple.
Yeah and over in Europe we are all fools that let any old car on the road with requiring any certification or testing being carried out. This is the thing that pisses the rest of the world off about the USA more than anything. The arrogant assumption that the rest of the world is somehow backward.
Cars sold in Europe are rated for safety using the Euro NCAP system. If you check out the tables you'll see that in terms of crash protection the Smart MCC scores the same as a 2002 Jeep Cherokee. In terms of what it does to a pedestrian when it hits it the Smart is safer.
> Your fuel economy is best when your engine turns at the lowest rpm it can operate in your highest gear. Optimum power is basically irrelevant as far as fuel economy goes
As instructed by the manufacturer and observed from MPG returns my rotary engine is most efficient in the 3-4000 rpm range as opposed to lowest RPM in highest gear. This not the optimum power which is delivered at around 5500 rpm.
> So you believe that anyone with a high-performance car should be allowed to drive at whatever speed they like?
No I was just trying to point out that the world isn't as black and white as was made out by the OP. His statement that speeding was necessarily worse for the environment was simplistic at best. The world is more complex than that.
No problems with people being caught for speeding.
Typical speed on the outside lane of a UK motorway is in the region of 80-90 mph. Even though this is in excess of the speed limit you would have to be driving dangerously, tail-gating for example, to be pulled over and issued a ticket. Above 90 you are more likely to be pulled over, above 100 and you will be.
> just don't speed. it's not that hard. speeding causes an unnecessary amount of exhaust fumes, which costs lives. just don't, there is no excuse to speed.
An interesting comment. What is the definition of speeding? In the context of the thread it would be exceeding the posted limit. Applying your statement to this there is an implication that speed limits are set for environmental reasons as opposed to safety or political ones.
My car produces optimum power between 3-4000 rpms the speed that I am going is dependent on the gear I have selected (6 on offer). From a purely environmental point of view I should be travelling in that rev range in the highest gear possible. This would get the most distance for the least fuel burnt. However this is not practical as other factors, such as safety, come into place not to mention that its likely to break the odd speed limit. So instead of driving at the optimum environmental speed I have to follow speed limits and increase the pollution caused by the engine. What do you know, I've found a case that disproves your statement. Perhaps life isn't quite that simple.
What we need here is some of Steve Jobs's patented straight talk routine. Stand up and tell us that the DRM will work solely to limit the OS to Apple-branded systems, or whatever... but tell us something, rather than having rumors turn themselves over on slashdot.
I hate to be the one that has to break it to you, but slashdot isn't that important.
On a serious note the hardware will likely come with TCPA. It is also likely that Apple will provide an API to access the functionality. What this functionality is used for will likely be left to the application developers. In other words there is no way Apple are going to make sweeping statements about limits around the use of TCPA/DRM as most of it will be out of their control.
As an aside. As long as the contract surrounding DRM is reasonable, and does not break the law of the land, I'm happy to go along with it. Everyone is entitled to make profit out of their endeavours.
Apple has been making zero-button mice since they retired the 'hockey puck' mouse. What I want to know is can you assign Automator workflows to the button presses so that it squeaks and performs and action when you squeeze it.
No, I don't think so. If someone's going to rant all over someone else's work and call it crap, I think their comments bear scrutiny. If that means the OP looks stupid and is ridiculed, so be it. He should have investigated more.
Fair enough. Of the possible responses I just think that the one taken was the worst. In my mind its better to either ignore such a comment or deal with it coldly and informatively. Ranting back gives more legitimacy to the OP.
My original point still stands. How come the reply was modded as Insightful? It was at least as much flamebait as the OP.
It would provide a performance improvement even at similar speeds to the current G4 laptops. The reason for this? FSB speed. The G4 is still crippled by a slow FSB the G5 would be quicker at getting stuff too and from the CPU.
I was doing an installation of Mac OS 10.2 on a table in my house. I had an unsecured AP but a little way away through a couple of brick walls.
After the initial installation and reboot the machine ran software update and started to download the current set off updates.
It was only when I noticed that it was taking what seemed to be a long time over my 2Mbs connection that I looked at the wireless network it was connected to. It was listed as NETGEAR and wasn't the one in my house. Without explicitly checking I didn't know. The system found the first open AP it could and started to use it.
Once I found it I changed it to use mine and have since implemented security on my AP. As far as I can tell the NETGEAR AP is still open if I sit in that place in the house or in my back garden.
I have a Nokia 9300. Its smaller than the first Nokia mobile I used 9 years ago. The interface is tried and tested and it works as a combined Palm-top/Phone.
Texting with this phone is fine because of the qwerty keyboard. However you still find yourself using text shorthand to cram as much as possible into a message. Y pay 4 2 msg whn 1 cn do.
If the GPL'ed software doesn't pre-exist awarded patents its possible that they will be driven out anyway.
What smaller producer of GPL'ed software has the necessary resources to perform a patent search and pay the appropriate licence fees. It can't be too long before patent holding companies take a tilt at GPL'ed software in an attempt to have it banned from areas. They would much rather proprietary software do the job as its possible to get a licence fee from the vendor.
I have no objections to the ID cards per se. My objection is to the way that the act introducing them explictly places the database related to the cards outside the scope of the Data Protection Act. The government has a history of poor compliance with this act anyway, slow provision of information, partial retrievals etc. Giving them a place to stash information without any oversight is a terrible idea.
How is the parent insightful? It's nothing more than a collection of cliche ridden invective. The attitude behind the invective is one of the main problems Linux has. Linux is an operating system, its not a way of life, its not a great philisophical truth. This holier than thou attitude in defence of the indefencible does more harm than good.
jwz had a real world problem, he's no mug when it comes to linux, but was defeated by the fact that there is no simple solution to a simple problem. His solution was to switch platforms.
Disclaimer: I've been using Mac's since the late 80's. I've used them as my primary work computer for the last 10 years. In that time I've seen a transition from 68k to PPC and from Mac OS to OS X. The reason? It just works. Its the lesson that the Linux advocates such as the parent poster have to learn. In the end ideology isn't important, all that matters is does it work.
Slashdot Mirror
On the support side people look into what support they are going to be able to get. Is the company likely to be around for a few years? Can they call them if they get problems? The majority of people neither know, or want to know, much about computers. They just want it to work.
The bad points from this article are that the whole package has problems. The mouse mat doesn't work with the optical mouse and that you can't install or play some games without the system getting in the way. This is sloppy and complacent from a manufacturer point of view. It won't impact the majority of people looking to buy a Dell though. They'll just call Tech Support and get the problem fixed.
My initial thought was the same. "Isn't level flight the norm?". That article states that the plane was returned to level flight by the rat brain when forces were placed on it to make it deviate.
Given that you knew nothing about his personal situation I find this comment incredible.
DNA just allows confirmation of identity. If the people committing the terrorist acts are not under suspicion then it does nothing. It is just a matter of context.
Your comments demonstrate why its so difficult to argue against the reduction in liberty and privacy that the authorities are attempting to implement in the western world. They present everything with the "it will prevent terrorism" tagline. "No it won't" comes the view from the opposition. Someone else then says "well, that's not strictly true" and the authorities can sit back and watch it all unfold. If they are lucky they also get "its true that it won't do anything unless all of these other authoritarian measures are invoked as well". They can then respond by proposing to implement them all in the name of safety and can point out that they didn't think of it first. The fact that they had the measures ready to roll was pure coincidence, they were just being prepared and it shows that they were in touch with public feeling.
DNA testing, in itself, is no defence against terrorism which I believe was what the OP meant.
If you're a normal law abiding citizen (oh, except we aren't citizens we are subjects but that's a different subject) then you don't have any problems. Doesn't it worry anyone though that the government will have a database of your entire movements that will be kept for 2 years? Here in the UK goverment agencies are in the business of reducing the burden to the taxpayer by selling information to other bodies, including private firms. This is the case with the electoral role and is proposed for the ID card system that they are trying to introduce. This database would be another marketable gem.
What relevance does this have to what I posted? I'm interested.
It was only a matter of time before the death of Apple entered the discussion. It is afterall one of the more persistent computing predictions having been around since the rumors of Duke Nukem Forever.
Onto the point in the parent although the software installed is Linux and Open Source they've gone with a specific distro, Redhat, presumably in order to get support and updates etc. Doing this does seem to negate the point of going with Open Source to some extent. Remember that the underpinnings of OS X is Darwin and that is open source albeit not a GPL license.
My read on it is that the reason for refusing Apple's offer is that if they waver from a fully OSS solution they open up the prospect of Microsoft throwing enough incentives in the direction of the project, school, etc. to usurp the choice. This is as much a decision made to prevent Microsoft getting a foothold as an affirmation of OSS.
You forgot to add "and this will be the death of Apple". All companies try to captialise "buzz". The iPod has had a great deal of "buzz" for the past couple of years and Apple have done well to keeping pushing the device so as to differentiate the iPod from the competition. Its not as though other companies, even ones with good brands (Sony Walkman), haven't been trying to steal Apple's thunder over this period. So far Apple have succeeded at beating them off.
What a lot of people ignore when comparing the iPod with the other music players out there is the interface. Not the one the users use but the one that allows it to connect. This is the killer app that the iPod has, something that makes it more than just a portable music player. Look at the number of manufacturers that are offering iPod connectivity in their cars. The iPod will continue to grow, it may lose its buzz but, until someone comes along with something that can take its place, it will still provide a solid revenue stream for Apple.
No. I hate Windows, with a passion. It has been responsible for an awful lot of pain and is a prime example of the wastefulness of the IT industry.
Cars sold in Europe are rated for safety using the Euro NCAP system. If you check out the tables you'll see that in terms of crash protection the Smart MCC scores the same as a 2002 Jeep Cherokee. In terms of what it does to a pedestrian when it hits it the Smart is safer.
As instructed by the manufacturer and observed from MPG returns my rotary engine is most efficient in the 3-4000 rpm range as opposed to lowest RPM in highest gear. This not the optimum power which is delivered at around 5500 rpm.
No I was just trying to point out that the world isn't as black and white as was made out by the OP. His statement that speeding was necessarily worse for the environment was simplistic at best. The world is more complex than that.
No problems with people being caught for speeding.
Typical speed on the outside lane of a UK motorway is in the region of 80-90 mph. Even though this is in excess of the speed limit you would have to be driving dangerously, tail-gating for example, to be pulled over and issued a ticket. Above 90 you are more likely to be pulled over, above 100 and you will be.
An interesting comment. What is the definition of speeding? In the context of the thread it would be exceeding the posted limit. Applying your statement to this there is an implication that speed limits are set for environmental reasons as opposed to safety or political ones.
My car produces optimum power between 3-4000 rpms the speed that I am going is dependent on the gear I have selected (6 on offer). From a purely environmental point of view I should be travelling in that rev range in the highest gear possible. This would get the most distance for the least fuel burnt. However this is not practical as other factors, such as safety, come into place not to mention that its likely to break the odd speed limit. So instead of driving at the optimum environmental speed I have to follow speed limits and increase the pollution caused by the engine. What do you know, I've found a case that disproves your statement. Perhaps life isn't quite that simple.
I hate to be the one that has to break it to you, but slashdot isn't that important.
On a serious note the hardware will likely come with TCPA. It is also likely that Apple will provide an API to access the functionality. What this functionality is used for will likely be left to the application developers. In other words there is no way Apple are going to make sweeping statements about limits around the use of TCPA/DRM as most of it will be out of their control.
As an aside. As long as the contract surrounding DRM is reasonable, and does not break the law of the land, I'm happy to go along with it. Everyone is entitled to make profit out of their endeavours.
Apple has been making zero-button mice since they retired the 'hockey puck' mouse. What I want to know is can you assign Automator workflows to the button presses so that it squeaks and performs and action when you squeeze it.
Fair enough. Of the possible responses I just think that the one taken was the worst. In my mind its better to either ignore such a comment or deal with it coldly and informatively. Ranting back gives more legitimacy to the OP.
My original point still stands. How come the reply was modded as Insightful? It was at least as much flamebait as the OP.
Wouldn't it have been better to just have pointed out teh keyboard chart and explaining the reasons without having a go back at the parent?
It would provide a performance improvement even at similar speeds to the current G4 laptops. The reason for this? FSB speed. The G4 is still crippled by a slow FSB the G5 would be quicker at getting stuff too and from the CPU.
After the initial installation and reboot the machine ran software update and started to download the current set off updates.
It was only when I noticed that it was taking what seemed to be a long time over my 2Mbs connection that I looked at the wireless network it was connected to. It was listed as NETGEAR and wasn't the one in my house. Without explicitly checking I didn't know. The system found the first open AP it could and started to use it.
Once I found it I changed it to use mine and have since implemented security on my AP. As far as I can tell the NETGEAR AP is still open if I sit in that place in the house or in my back garden.
Texting with this phone is fine because of the qwerty keyboard. However you still find yourself using text shorthand to cram as much as possible into a message. Y pay 4 2 msg whn 1 cn do.
What smaller producer of GPL'ed software has the necessary resources to perform a patent search and pay the appropriate licence fees. It can't be too long before patent holding companies take a tilt at GPL'ed software in an attempt to have it banned from areas. They would much rather proprietary software do the job as its possible to get a licence fee from the vendor.
I have no objections to the ID cards per se. My objection is to the way that the act introducing them explictly places the database related to the cards outside the scope of the Data Protection Act. The government has a history of poor compliance with this act anyway, slow provision of information, partial retrievals etc. Giving them a place to stash information without any oversight is a terrible idea.
jwz had a real world problem, he's no mug when it comes to linux, but was defeated by the fact that there is no simple solution to a simple problem. His solution was to switch platforms.
Disclaimer: I've been using Mac's since the late 80's. I've used them as my primary work computer for the last 10 years. In that time I've seen a transition from 68k to PPC and from Mac OS to OS X. The reason? It just works. Its the lesson that the Linux advocates such as the parent poster have to learn. In the end ideology isn't important, all that matters is does it work.
~shrugs~ it had to be said