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User: gklinger

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Comments · 193

  1. Enter the pedant... on The World's Most Powerful Telescope Just Discovered 1,230 New Galaxies (yahoo.com) · · Score: 0

    I'm an old and obnoxious astronomer so I'm going to make the obligatory complaint about the oxymoronic term "radio telescope". "Tele" refers to the visual spectrum of light, not radio. The MeerKAT is, in fact, a radio interferometer.

    Please proceed to contradict and/or down vote this post. Your cooperation is assumed.

  2. If it walks like a duck... on Why Groupon Not As Rosy As It Appears · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I highly recommend reading an article titled Groupon is Effectively Insolvent in which the author draws a compelling parallel between Groupon and a Ponzi scheme.

  3. Re:$15+ a ticket + $5 popcorn + $4 pop = no way! on Episode I 3D Release Date Announced · · Score: 1

    That depends on where you live. See The Great Pop vs. Soda Controversy page for details. It's surprisingly interesting. To offset that OT comment I will now sheepishly admit that Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace is my favourite of all the Star Wars movies and yes, I will go see it again in 3D.

  4. So many questions... on Russian Simulated Mars Mission Close To 'Landing' · · Score: 3, Interesting

    If they are free to walk out at any time, why is the capsule locked? (No, seriously.) The other thing that jumps out at me is the duration of the trips but the relatively short amount of time (two days) spent on 'Mars'. Surely a mission to Mars would include more time on the planet? The time spent on the planet would be more intellectually stimulating than the spaceflight (one presumes) and might offer relief/reward from the journey to Mars and better prepare the crew psychologically for the return mission. I wonder why that wasn't factored in. The difficulty of simulating the on-planet experience perhaps?

    Bonus question: Would an actual mission to Mars pay astronauts more than $70,000 per year?

  5. Re:4 pages of FUD on Ars Thinks Google Takes a Step Backwards For Openness · · Score: 1

    Excellent ST:TNG reference. Well done, sir. I fear, however, it was too subtle for those with mod points.

  6. Let's go straight to profit, shall we? on Russian Team Prepares To Penetrate Lake Vostok · · Score: 4, Funny

    This will inevitably lead to a new brand of vodka advertised as being made with "14 million year old, subglacial, super-oxygenated water".

  7. Re:Description of hack? on Learning From Gawker's Failure · · Score: 5, Interesting

    While it leaves many (mostly technical) questions unanswered, I found the this article to be an interesting and informative description of what happened.

  8. What's to be learned? on Learning From Gawker's Failure · · Score: 1

    One lesson that comes to mind is that you shouldn't refer to your website's participants as "peasants".

  9. Re:From the Article: on The First Truly Honest Privacy Policy · · Score: 3, Insightful

    "If you are not paying for it, you're not the customer; you're the product being sold." - blue_beetle (quotation taken from here)

  10. Re:Finishing the story on Whitehat Hacker Moxie Marlinspike's Laptop, Cellphones Seized · · Score: 2, Funny

    I would gladly submit to detention and interrogation for five hours if I were guaranteed some ice cream and a blow job in return. Given that fact, much like liberty and safety, I probably don't deserve either.

  11. Oh joy. on Facebook Inbox Throws Blow At Google... No Flinch? · · Score: 1

    A solution I don't want to a problem I don't have from a company I don't trust. Great.

  12. The Cathedral and the Bazaar on Devs Grapple With 100+ Versions of Android · · Score: 2, Interesting

    In regards to the unending Android vs. iPhone debate, this story made me think of Eric S. Raymond's The Cathedral and the Bazaar. As a long time user and proponent of open systems I surprised myself when I realized that I while I'd rather my computers be bazaar, I prefer my phone to be a little more cathedral. I wonder how many others are comfortably embracing this dichotomy?

  13. Aha! on Russian Army Upgrades Its Inflatable Weapons · · Score: 2, Funny

    I thought the current estimates of Russian military spending were inflated.

  14. From the sublime to the ridiculous. on Star Wars Films In 3D Due In 2012 · · Score: 1

    It appears Lucas is trying to give the White Album a run for its money...

  15. Forget mpg. on 2 In 3 Misunderstand Gas Mileage; Here's Why · · Score: 4, Funny

    My car gets 40 rods to the hogshead and that's the way I likes it.

  16. Re:One possible explanation... on The Mystery of the Mega-Selling Floppy Disk · · Score: 1

    I don't know about sending you back a USB flash drive but Floppydisk.com offers a service to transfer the contents of floppy disks to CD (see here). Unfortunately the procedure is expensive, prohibitively so in my opinion ($55 USD for the recovery of 10 floppy disks). Luckily there is a more affordable alternative. The FC5025 is a device that adapts a standard 5.25" floppy disk drive mechanism to USB and comes with software for Windows XP, Mac OS X and Linux. It costs $55.25 USD. Given that you already have a 5.25" mechanism, which aren't easy to find these days, the FC5025 is an affordable solution to your problem.

  17. Re:One possible explanation... on The Mystery of the Mega-Selling Floppy Disk · · Score: 2, Informative

    My primary Amiga (a 1000) does not have a hard disk so floppies are necessary for everything, even to boot Kickstart. I could use a more capable Amiga but my usage is entirely a nostalgic pursuit so I eschew convenience for authenticity. As for WHDLoad, it's a fantastic program but there are some limitations. It's impractical to use WHDLoad on an unaccelerated Amiga without RAM expansion and mass storage which immediately disqualifies the majority of Amigas (my 1000 included) and there are no 'slaves' (WHDLoad's term for game install bundles) for the majority of Amiga games.

  18. One possible explanation... on The Mystery of the Mega-Selling Floppy Disk · · Score: 4, Informative

    I'm a classic computer enthusiast and I purchase 3.5" disks for use with my various Amiga computers. I know many others who do the same although it seems unlikely that our purchases add up to millions. Honestly, I wasn't sure what all the fuss regarding Sony's discontinuation of the 3.5" floppy was about because there are other manufacturers. One of the larger ones is ATHANA International, Inc. who still make and sell 3.5", 5.25" and even 8" floppy disks.

  19. Bloody luxury. on HDTV Has Ruined the LCD Market · · Score: 5, Funny

    My monitor has ONE BIG PIXEL. It ain't easy to use but I get by.

  20. Want to read Programming the Commodore 64? on Programming the Commodore 64: the Definitive Guide · · Score: 5, Informative

    Should anyone wish to download an electronic copy (PDF) of Programming the Commodore 64 by R. C. West they may do so from DLH's Commodore Archive. It's a community supported archive of Commodore-related printed materials (books, magazines, newsletters, manuals etc.) and it could use your support. Enjoy.

  21. Possible explanation for Bing's results... on Bing Gaining Market Share Faster · · Score: 1

    I would like to know what percentage of non-technical people use IE's integrated Bing search function to search for "Google" and then click on the first link which takes them to Google where they make their actual query. Laugh if you will but I have observed this behaviour on more than one occasion.

  22. Payback is a... on Microsoft Denies Windows 7 "Showstopper Bug" · · Score: 5, Funny
    Dear Microsoft,

    It sucks when people spread FUD, doesn't it?

  23. Re:Good luck with that. on Sony Pondering Game/Phone Hybrid · · Score: 1

    The more I think about this, the more I think you're right. I'll have to rent the movie tonight just to rewatch that scene which means this is going to eat away at me all day. I have got to stop coming to Slashdot.

  24. Re:Good luck with that. on Sony Pondering Game/Phone Hybrid · · Score: 1
    Perhaps you're correct although I did draw my quote from the actual screenplay as written by David Franzoni so I'm going to defer to him in this case.

    Say, how many times have you seen Gladiator?

  25. Good luck with that. on Sony Pondering Game/Phone Hybrid · · Score: 1

    "A people should know when they are conquered." -Maximus from the movie Gladiator