I also love the old Benzes, particularly the W116. I owned a 73 450SE (Which was my second car, purchased after the 57 Ford that I mentioned in the parent post), and I still own a 79 450SEL 6.9 (Grey market, originally imported from France by a lawyer who moved to Hollywood). The 6.9 is an absolute beast, and really amazing to drive. I test drove an E class around 2001, and it simply didn't compare to the 6.9. It didn't have the raw power, didn't drive as nice, and didn't ride nearly as smooth as the 6.9 (The hydro pneumatic suspension is awesome, I've never ridden in another car that drove that smooth). I still have the 6.9, but don't get it out very often. It's an awesome car though, with some seriously impressive engineering.
The W126 is also a beautiful car. I almost bought a 560SEC at one point, but found the above mentioned 6.9 and bought it instead.
My first car was a 57 Ford Custom 300 (Full size sedan). This was in 1995. The bumpers were massive and thick steel, and were bolted directly to the frame, nothing that a strong toddler could bend.
I was in an accident in it, a guy in a 1981 Toyota ran a red light and I t-boned him, going about 30mph. His frame was bent, axles were snapped, all side windows, the windshield, and rear window were broken. The frame damage snapped a few of his engine mounts, and also broke his radiator. His car was totaled. My car had the frame holding the headlight pushed back about half an inch, and scuffed the chrome bumper.
My observations were that I'd much rather be in an old tank like that in a minor accident. Anything major, and I'd rather be in a modern car with things like seatbelts, crumple zones and air bags.
My car's stereo does have a standard 3.5mm input, in addition to the ipod input. The 3.5mm plug does not charge the player, or allow me to control the player with the controls on the stereo.
I'm starting to think that our interviews here should literally be: give them a day's work and see how they do.
At my current job (Which required relocating out of state), I was basically given something like this. After the initial round of phone interviews, I signed an NDA, and was given a design specification for part of the product that I would be working on. I was told to ask whatever I needed clarification with, and to keep track of my hours so they could pay me when I was finished, regardless of whether I was hired or not. After I thought I was done, I submitted my project. They had a few revisions that they wanted, so they sent it back to me to see what I did with it, and presumably see how I handled needing to make changes.
Once they approved my work, I was flown on-site for the final interviews. During those, they asked about my project, why I had done things certain ways, and different ways that I had considered completing it. The project took me about 25 hours of work to complete. The day after the interview, I was offered the position.
In the end, the project that I had worked on was incorporated into the software that we released. From what I've heard, all new-hires go through this process, all with a different project to complete. It seems to work well for the company, we've got a very high retention rate.
What's keeping another company from using Apple's connector on their mp3 player? I would love to have a different brand of mp3 player that can interface with my car's stereo the way an ipod can.
Surely you can't patent the connector, it isn't doing anything unique. And the connector would not be covered by trademark or copyright. Would the DMCA cover it somehow?
No they're not. They're still made of steel. The steel is thinner than it used to be, and often has holes cut underneath the plastic cladding to save weight, but they're still made of steel.
I've personally experienced issues with my laptop BIOS. It works properly in Windows, but a lot of the ACPI functions just flat out don't work in Linux. This is due to a compiler that lets the code compile with errors (Mainly functions that don't return a value when they should). This allows the BIOS programmers to be lazy, and write half assed power functions that don't work properly.
You can fix a lot of these issues by following the instructions in one of the links below to decompile that portion of the BIOS, and recompile it using the Intel compiler. It isn't easy, and certainly isn't something an user should ever have to do. It did fix a lot of the power issues with my HP laptop though (Running hot, not booting on battery power unless a key was pressed, hibernation).
When you buy a reload for a mobile phone, you need to enter that number to link the purchase with your account. That is not necessary with a game installation.
And entering a 20 digit serial is a huge PITA. I've purchased games before that did not have the serial # printed on them. The store wouldn't take the game back since it was open (Which was the last time I bought anything from that store), and it took over a week to get the company to acknowledge that I hadn't stolen a copy of the game, and they forgot to print the serial number. When this happened, the internet was still pretty young, and I wasn't able to find a serial online.
Another time this is hugely inconvenient is when I go to install an old game that I haven't played in a while. I typically don't keep all of the packaging, and I end up having to search online for a key. It is often more convenient to just download a cracked version that doesn't require a key in the first place.
If you make good software, people will buy it. There's no need for ridiculous hoops to make your legitimate customers jump through.
They didn't just lose focus, they lost a lot of goodwill by working with MS.
Personally, I think their biggest mistake was not selling it to first world consumers. I know a lot of people who would have liked to buy one, but couldn't. This was a fatal mistake since their plan required being able to produce large enough amounts of these to be able to sell them cheaply, and they were turning away the people who were willing and able to buy at the time.
I wonder what her punishment would have been for being convicted of stealing 2-3 cds from WalMart. Certainly not a lifetime of debt and court cases spanning out over years.
Actually, Bozeman has around 40,000 people, and is the fifth largest city in the state. I know it still isn't much, but it's a far cry from 2,200 people.
If I'm stupid enough to update during the workday, why does XP need to ask every 15 minutes if I want to reboot ? Why is there no option for "NO! I'll do it myself -- when I want to." (there's only "now" and "later", the latter meaning "nag me again in a few minutes")
This happens frequently to me when IS pushes out updates. I'll have quite a few apps open, right in the middle of debugging something, and that stupid window will pop up a split second before I press the enter key for something. Since it defaults to "Reboot Now", my computer starts shutting down immediately right in the middle of what I'm doing, with no way of stopping it.
You can turn it off temporarily by stopping the "Automatic Updates" service. XP will quit nagging you to reboot, and the service will still start automatically the next time you start it up. I have no idea why MS didn't make "Reboot manually later" an option, but it's highly annoying.
What about their audio books? Honest question, I'm not trolling. I know that Audible still has DRM, and I'd assume that Apple's store has it also since Audible provides content for them.
My comment is now on your computer, as are many other people's comments. The notice at the bottom of the page says that the comment is mine. I don't want it on your computer, so now I can call your ISP and claim that you have some of my content on your computer. Two of the other people on here can do the same, and now you don't have the internet any more.
Yeah, that's a BS example, and wouldn't stand up in court. But it doesn't need to. All you need is three allegations, and you're done.
With an MSDN license, you get one key that is licensed to be installed multiple times. It's a development license basically, for people who are using Windows to develop on, and are frequently reinstalling the OS from scratch, on multiple machines to test with.
After it's been activated once, every time after that you cannot activate online. It forces you to call, and talk to someone. You cannot activate online, or automatically on the phone. You have to talk to a live person (Who speaks broken English), and explain to them why you're using your development license that was meant for multiple installations, multiple times.
It's a huge PITA, and absolutely ridiculous that MS is making people who paid for an MSDN subscription to jump through these hoops.
/Also has an MSDN subscription, and has gone through this multiple times
So why can I buy one from an overseas seller for less than $3, with free shipping? Are they taking a loss on each one?
Not only did the last charger I bought cost 1/10th the price of one bought from the Verizon store, but it's build quality actually felt better than the name brand one. So far, it's lasted longer also.
I would assume that the cost of moving an employee across the world is probably cheaper than recruiting and training a new employee who knows absolutely nothing about the work they'll be doing.
They'll get the best of both worlds. An employee who is already trained, and has an established work history, at the price of a overseas employee.
Slashdot Mirror
I also love the old Benzes, particularly the W116. I owned a 73 450SE (Which was my second car, purchased after the 57 Ford that I mentioned in the parent post), and I still own a 79 450SEL 6.9 (Grey market, originally imported from France by a lawyer who moved to Hollywood). The 6.9 is an absolute beast, and really amazing to drive. I test drove an E class around 2001, and it simply didn't compare to the 6.9. It didn't have the raw power, didn't drive as nice, and didn't ride nearly as smooth as the 6.9 (The hydro pneumatic suspension is awesome, I've never ridden in another car that drove that smooth). I still have the 6.9, but don't get it out very often. It's an awesome car though, with some seriously impressive engineering.
The W126 is also a beautiful car. I almost bought a 560SEC at one point, but found the above mentioned 6.9 and bought it instead.
My first car was a 57 Ford Custom 300 (Full size sedan). This was in 1995. The bumpers were massive and thick steel, and were bolted directly to the frame, nothing that a strong toddler could bend.
I was in an accident in it, a guy in a 1981 Toyota ran a red light and I t-boned him, going about 30mph. His frame was bent, axles were snapped, all side windows, the windshield, and rear window were broken. The frame damage snapped a few of his engine mounts, and also broke his radiator. His car was totaled. My car had the frame holding the headlight pushed back about half an inch, and scuffed the chrome bumper.
My observations were that I'd much rather be in an old tank like that in a minor accident. Anything major, and I'd rather be in a modern car with things like seatbelts, crumple zones and air bags.
That didn't stop this guy.
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=354_1248585712
My car's stereo does have a standard 3.5mm input, in addition to the ipod input. The 3.5mm plug does not charge the player, or allow me to control the player with the controls on the stereo.
The same way that every car doesn't have an 11 foot antenna for its radio, and every large truck doesn't have an 18 foot antenna for their cb radio...
I'm starting to think that our interviews here should literally be: give them a day's work and see how they do.
At my current job (Which required relocating out of state), I was basically given something like this. After the initial round of phone interviews, I signed an NDA, and was given a design specification for part of the product that I would be working on. I was told to ask whatever I needed clarification with, and to keep track of my hours so they could pay me when I was finished, regardless of whether I was hired or not. After I thought I was done, I submitted my project. They had a few revisions that they wanted, so they sent it back to me to see what I did with it, and presumably see how I handled needing to make changes.
Once they approved my work, I was flown on-site for the final interviews. During those, they asked about my project, why I had done things certain ways, and different ways that I had considered completing it. The project took me about 25 hours of work to complete. The day after the interview, I was offered the position.
In the end, the project that I had worked on was incorporated into the software that we released. From what I've heard, all new-hires go through this process, all with a different project to complete. It seems to work well for the company, we've got a very high retention rate.
What's keeping another company from using Apple's connector on their mp3 player? I would love to have a different brand of mp3 player that can interface with my car's stereo the way an ipod can.
Surely you can't patent the connector, it isn't doing anything unique. And the connector would not be covered by trademark or copyright. Would the DMCA cover it somehow?
No they're not. They're still made of steel. The steel is thinner than it used to be, and often has holes cut underneath the plastic cladding to save weight, but they're still made of steel.
In fact, the newer Toyota Tundras have had quite a few problems with their tailgates failing due to the thickness of steel used in them.
http://www.tundraheadquarters.com/blog/2007/11/12/tundra-tailgate-problems-toyota-internal-memo/
That reminds me of an old joke....
What do boobs and toy trains have in common? They're meant for the kids, but it's usually dad who winds up playing with them the most.
I've personally experienced issues with my laptop BIOS. It works properly in Windows, but a lot of the ACPI functions just flat out don't work in Linux. This is due to a compiler that lets the code compile with errors (Mainly functions that don't return a value when they should). This allows the BIOS programmers to be lazy, and write half assed power functions that don't work properly.
You can fix a lot of these issues by following the instructions in one of the links below to decompile that portion of the BIOS, and recompile it using the Intel compiler. It isn't easy, and certainly isn't something an user should ever have to do. It did fix a lot of the power issues with my HP laptop though (Running hot, not booting on battery power unless a key was pressed, hibernation).
See
http://www.osnews.com/thread?230516
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1036051
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux/+bug/272247?comments=all
In this instance, you can blame MS's poor compiler for Linux's poor battery life.
When you buy a reload for a mobile phone, you need to enter that number to link the purchase with your account. That is not necessary with a game installation.
And entering a 20 digit serial is a huge PITA. I've purchased games before that did not have the serial # printed on them. The store wouldn't take the game back since it was open (Which was the last time I bought anything from that store), and it took over a week to get the company to acknowledge that I hadn't stolen a copy of the game, and they forgot to print the serial number. When this happened, the internet was still pretty young, and I wasn't able to find a serial online.
Another time this is hugely inconvenient is when I go to install an old game that I haven't played in a while. I typically don't keep all of the packaging, and I end up having to search online for a key. It is often more convenient to just download a cracked version that doesn't require a key in the first place.
If you make good software, people will buy it. There's no need for ridiculous hoops to make your legitimate customers jump through.
They didn't just lose focus, they lost a lot of goodwill by working with MS.
Personally, I think their biggest mistake was not selling it to first world consumers. I know a lot of people who would have liked to buy one, but couldn't. This was a fatal mistake since their plan required being able to produce large enough amounts of these to be able to sell them cheaply, and they were turning away the people who were willing and able to buy at the time.
Roaming profiles would be my guess.
I wonder what her punishment would have been for being convicted of stealing 2-3 cds from WalMart. Certainly not a lifetime of debt and court cases spanning out over years.
Actually, Bozeman has around 40,000 people, and is the fifth largest city in the state. I know it still isn't much, but it's a far cry from 2,200 people.
Because it helps everyone else, including their paying customers?
Hold back the non-essential downloads for pirated copies, but let them have the security fixes.
If I'm stupid enough to update during the workday, why does XP need to ask every 15 minutes if I want to reboot ? Why is there no option for "NO! I'll do it myself -- when I want to." (there's only "now" and "later", the latter meaning "nag me again in a few minutes")
This happens frequently to me when IS pushes out updates. I'll have quite a few apps open, right in the middle of debugging something, and that stupid window will pop up a split second before I press the enter key for something. Since it defaults to "Reboot Now", my computer starts shutting down immediately right in the middle of what I'm doing, with no way of stopping it.
You can turn it off temporarily by stopping the "Automatic Updates" service. XP will quit nagging you to reboot, and the service will still start automatically the next time you start it up. I have no idea why MS didn't make "Reboot manually later" an option, but it's highly annoying.
Sounds like you want a DSLR.
What about their audio books? Honest question, I'm not trolling. I know that Audible still has DRM, and I'd assume that Apple's store has it also since Audible provides content for them.
Is very excessive and unprofessional illegal now?
My comment is now on your computer, as are many other people's comments. The notice at the bottom of the page says that the comment is mine. I don't want it on your computer, so now I can call your ISP and claim that you have some of my content on your computer. Two of the other people on here can do the same, and now you don't have the internet any more.
Yeah, that's a BS example, and wouldn't stand up in court. But it doesn't need to. All you need is three allegations, and you're done.
iRobot makes much, much more than Roombas.
With an MSDN license, you get one key that is licensed to be installed multiple times. It's a development license basically, for people who are using Windows to develop on, and are frequently reinstalling the OS from scratch, on multiple machines to test with.
/Also has an MSDN subscription, and has gone through this multiple times
After it's been activated once, every time after that you cannot activate online. It forces you to call, and talk to someone. You cannot activate online, or automatically on the phone. You have to talk to a live person (Who speaks broken English), and explain to them why you're using your development license that was meant for multiple installations, multiple times.
It's a huge PITA, and absolutely ridiculous that MS is making people who paid for an MSDN subscription to jump through these hoops.
So why can I buy one from an overseas seller for less than $3, with free shipping? Are they taking a loss on each one?
Not only did the last charger I bought cost 1/10th the price of one bought from the Verizon store, but it's build quality actually felt better than the name brand one. So far, it's lasted longer also.
I would assume that the cost of moving an employee across the world is probably cheaper than recruiting and training a new employee who knows absolutely nothing about the work they'll be doing.
They'll get the best of both worlds. An employee who is already trained, and has an established work history, at the price of a overseas employee.