It would basically be a flash hard disk device that came with the motherboard. You could use a BIOS hook to boot it (as in my example), or you could treat it like any other disk in your system. As I mentioned, it would be pretty useful for OEMs and LAN administrators who could put tools there. (It could even be hidden from the primary OS during normal operation.)
Overall, I think it would be a cool option that wouldn't add too much to the cost of a motherboard and would save a lot of time and money in support costs if used well. I suppose you could use it for swap if you can't think of anything else.:)
I think we need to scrap DNS and start over from scratch.
Capitalism is all about supply and demand. One of the best ways to make a shitload of money is to control the supply of a given resource. The DNS system is ripe for this type of exploitation, since there are a finite number of good domains. Domain value is further increased by making.com a "premium" TLD, instead of one classification among many. The business community will do everything it can to avoid expanding the domain namespace to protect the value of their holdings.
If we try to upgrade or replace DNS, the established interests will shape the new system so they can continue controlling supply. Call me cynical, but this is how markets work. We can only expect more of the same in the future. The whole.tv scam is a perfect example of this.
Instead of trying to jam everything into the BIOS, a better approach would be to have a "backup OS" available in flash memory on the motherboard. You could have a hotkey that selects the backup OS bootstrap from the POST screen (press F5 to boot, etc). The flash device could then appear as a SCSI or IDE (or whatever) disk, which would allow quite a bit of flexibility for restoring, fixing or upgrading the "primary" OS on the hard disk. HP and such could put their diagnostic utilities there; savvy end users could install Leenooks or whatever; and LAN administrators could install software to automatically reload the primary OS from a network share if the end user screws everything up. Depending on the size of the flash device, it could also be a great place to put the entire factory default OS image. That way OEM tech support can say, "Just press F5, then select the 'Restore Computer' option."
You forgot to include your progressive improvements in housing (Silicon Valley rates, of course).
Phone Support: Small Cardboard Box
Desktop Support: Refrigerator Box
L2 Help Desk: Trunk of your BMW
LAN Consultant: One Room Apartment (no electricity or running water)
Enterprise Consultant: One Room Apartment with electricity, running water and cable modem! (Unfortunately, the cable modem runs at 2k/sec due to oversubscription.)
Well, now that everyone's been canned, you might be able to afford something a little roomier.:)
Seriously though, I think your strategy is definitely the way to go. It has worked for me too.
If you can manage to get away with using a Linux/*BSD/whatever running Samba for your file server, you may have some luck with some open source backup software...
dump/restore works great for a centralized backup solution. I've seen a lot of newbie admins run scared after reading the dump manpage, probably because of the dreadful dump level discussion.:)
If you want weekly full backups with daily incrementals, do:
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
For differential, do:
0 1 1 1 1 1 1
For daily full backups:
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
See, it's not that bad. Plus you can act all manly and tell people that you use dump. That's the best part.:)
What have I gotten myself into?:) We'll take these one at a time.
Refuting global warming
You provide evidence that global tropospheric temperatures are decreasing. However, these measurements are actually further evidence of global warming. If the greenhouse effect is trapping heat in the lower atmosphere, less heat makes it back into the upper atmosphere as measured by satellites. Check out this article from the NOAA, especially paragraph 3 (although the whole thing is pretty interesting). Also note the results of a NAS study that examines the data you referenced. They conclude that global surface warming is definitely real and that the satellite data does not invalidate these measurements.
Refuting importance of CO2 compared to H2O in global warming
Your source states that water vapor is a greenhouse gas and that it exists in much greater concentrations than CO2 in the atmosphere. Therefore, global warming should be closely related to an increase in atmospheric water vapor, with the effect of CO2 being negligible. However, if we grant that global surface temperatures are increasing, were are left wondering why atmospheric water vapor is increasing. This document from the WMO explains how CO2 emissions affect the climate by increasing the amount of water vapor in the air. Basically, the CO2 traps a bit of heat near the surface. The warmer air holds more water, and this additional water in turn leads to more warming. The "push" from the CO2 basically changes the planet's water distribution, with more water in the air and less elsewhere. You can consider the CO2 an indirect cause, but it definitely leads to warming. On a related note, here's an interesting article from NASA which suggests that an increasingly moist atmosphere may harm the ozone layer as well. Note the quote in paragraph 7.
Refuting rising sea levels
This article was by far the most entertaining source you provided. I love the part in paragraph 10 where Lord Bumpershoot (or whatever his name was) complains about convicts vandalizing his test equipment. According to your source, the sea level measurements in this area seem to be decreasing. However, consider the observations from the TOPEX/POSEIDON satellite, which uses a radar altimeter to map global sea levels. There appears to be a clear upward trend of about 3 mm/year. Judging from the data, it's apparent that the global mean sea level is increasing.
On a final note, I noticed from your previous posts that you seem to be a Bush supporter. It looks like the Bush administration has reversed its position on the existence of global warming. I'm totally shocked. Are you?:)
You know, it probably does. Imagine how many Windows licenses are floating around in those scrap piles. If we could harvest them somehow, then we could make some serious money.:)
Is it just me, or does this technology seem a little dangerous? What if there's a power surge or something? You could end up with last week's JonKatz article floating in your field of vision for the rest of your life...
Now every pair of eyeballs can be individually billed.
If that's successful, the MPAA will introduce legislation that requires you to pay per eyeball. "We don't want to overcharge one-eyed consumers," says the press release.
DirectX is designed to be as close to the bare metal as possible without being hardware specific. I don't see how Windows games could be faster under Linux emulation unless the NVidia Linux drivers are that much better. If I understand correctly, most of the driver code is the same so this shouldn't be the case.
I'm not trying to be a contrarian. I think it's cool that it works so well. It's just that unrealistic claims tend to detract from the achievement, in my opinion anyway.
More than anything, and more than actually demonstrating you believe that those that disagree with liberals should be executed, you HAVE shown typical liberal intolerance. And that is NOT a joke.
Sigh, it seems I'm wasting my time. Here you go again with broad generalizations that make you sound silly. The funny thing is that you don't even know if I'm actually a "liberal." You made another assumption and then proceeded to unleash your obnoxious rhetoric.
I would be interested to read studies that attempt to refute global warming or show that the sea level isn't rising. I think that would make for an interesting discussion. You provided nothing but assertions and I chose to challenge that.
My original post in reponse to your comment used a technique known as "irony." Maybe you didn't notice.:)
I'm hoping games like Doom III will encourage an emphasis on visual quality in addition to pure speed. Sharp output, rendering precision and good colors are routinely sacrificed, especially with ATI and NVidia cards. I don't want my zombies to have seams, and I'd also like crisp text at high resolutions in 2D apps. Along these lines, I'm hopeful that the new Matrox card will live up to the hype.
Slashdot Mirror
I already do something similar with SSL certificates for the people who use my web server. Screw Verisign. Fight the power, become your own CA! :)
Overall, I think it would be a cool option that wouldn't add too much to the cost of a motherboard and would save a lot of time and money in support costs if used well. I suppose you could use it for swap if you can't think of anything else. :)
Capitalism is all about supply and demand. One of the best ways to make a shitload of money is to control the supply of a given resource. The DNS system is ripe for this type of exploitation, since there are a finite number of good domains. Domain value is further increased by making .com a "premium" TLD, instead of one classification among many. The business community will do everything it can to avoid expanding the domain namespace to protect the value of their holdings.
If we try to upgrade or replace DNS, the established interests will shape the new system so they can continue controlling supply. Call me cynical, but this is how markets work. We can only expect more of the same in the future. The whole .tv scam is a perfect example of this.
It seems to me that lining up your shots is the easiest part of the game. Making those shots is where the skill is.
Instead of trying to jam everything into the BIOS, a better approach would be to have a "backup OS" available in flash memory on the motherboard. You could have a hotkey that selects the backup OS bootstrap from the POST screen (press F5 to boot, etc). The flash device could then appear as a SCSI or IDE (or whatever) disk, which would allow quite a bit of flexibility for restoring, fixing or upgrading the "primary" OS on the hard disk. HP and such could put their diagnostic utilities there; savvy end users could install Leenooks or whatever; and LAN administrators could install software to automatically reload the primary OS from a network share if the end user screws everything up. Depending on the size of the flash device, it could also be a great place to put the entire factory default OS image. That way OEM tech support can say, "Just press F5, then select the 'Restore Computer' option."
If you pirate the CD, then you won't have to worry about breaking the seal and agreeing to the license. :)
That's probably because Linux was developed on cheap, shitty hardware. ;)
Phone Support: Small Cardboard Box
Desktop Support: Refrigerator Box
L2 Help Desk: Trunk of your BMW
LAN Consultant: One Room Apartment (no electricity or running water)
Enterprise Consultant: One Room Apartment with electricity, running water and cable modem! (Unfortunately, the cable modem runs at 2k/sec due to oversubscription.)
Well, now that everyone's been canned, you might be able to afford something a little roomier. :)
Seriously though, I think your strategy is definitely the way to go. It has worked for me too.
dump/restore works great for a centralized backup solution. I've seen a lot of newbie admins run scared after reading the dump manpage, probably because of the dreadful dump level discussion. :)
If you want weekly full backups with daily incrementals, do:
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
For differential, do:
0 1 1 1 1 1 1
For daily full backups:
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
See, it's not that bad. Plus you can act all manly and tell people that you use dump. That's the best part. :)
They must think they're special, that the rules do not apply to them.
What are you doing posting to Slashdot at 10 AM on a weekday? Get back to work!
All of the weird stuff on the Matrix monitors sure looks like Perl to me. :)
From Cecil Adams.
Totally tubular, dude!
Ah, /.ers in the woods. Your post reminded me of this comic. :)
Refuting global warming
You provide evidence that global tropospheric temperatures are decreasing. However, these measurements are actually further evidence of global warming. If the greenhouse effect is trapping heat in the lower atmosphere, less heat makes it back into the upper atmosphere as measured by satellites. Check out this article from the NOAA, especially paragraph 3 (although the whole thing is pretty interesting). Also note the results of a NAS study that examines the data you referenced. They conclude that global surface warming is definitely real and that the satellite data does not invalidate these measurements.
Refuting importance of CO2 compared to H2O in global warming
Your source states that water vapor is a greenhouse gas and that it exists in much greater concentrations than CO2 in the atmosphere. Therefore, global warming should be closely related to an increase in atmospheric water vapor, with the effect of CO2 being negligible. However, if we grant that global surface temperatures are increasing, were are left wondering why atmospheric water vapor is increasing. This document from the WMO explains how CO2 emissions affect the climate by increasing the amount of water vapor in the air. Basically, the CO2 traps a bit of heat near the surface. The warmer air holds more water, and this additional water in turn leads to more warming. The "push" from the CO2 basically changes the planet's water distribution, with more water in the air and less elsewhere. You can consider the CO2 an indirect cause, but it definitely leads to warming. On a related note, here's an interesting article from NASA which suggests that an increasingly moist atmosphere may harm the ozone layer as well. Note the quote in paragraph 7.
Refuting rising sea levels
This article was by far the most entertaining source you provided. I love the part in paragraph 10 where Lord Bumpershoot (or whatever his name was) complains about convicts vandalizing his test equipment. According to your source, the sea level measurements in this area seem to be decreasing. However, consider the observations from the TOPEX/POSEIDON satellite, which uses a radar altimeter to map global sea levels. There appears to be a clear upward trend of about 3 mm/year. Judging from the data, it's apparent that the global mean sea level is increasing.
On a final note, I noticed from your previous posts that you seem to be a Bush supporter. It looks like the Bush administration has reversed its position on the existence of global warming. I'm totally shocked. Are you? :)
You know, it probably does. Imagine how many Windows licenses are floating around in those scrap piles. If we could harvest them somehow, then we could make some serious money. :)
Well, your boss could always look elsewhere...
Is it just me, or does this technology seem a little dangerous? What if there's a power surge or something? You could end up with last week's JonKatz article floating in your field of vision for the rest of your life...
If that's successful, the MPAA will introduce legislation that requires you to pay per eyeball. "We don't want to overcharge one-eyed consumers," says the press release.
Yeah, it took a couple of versions before MS-DOS got directories. :)
This is definitely shocking news. :)
I'm not trying to be a contrarian. I think it's cool that it works so well. It's just that unrealistic claims tend to detract from the achievement, in my opinion anyway.
Sigh, it seems I'm wasting my time. Here you go again with broad generalizations that make you sound silly. The funny thing is that you don't even know if I'm actually a "liberal." You made another assumption and then proceeded to unleash your obnoxious rhetoric.
I would be interested to read studies that attempt to refute global warming or show that the sea level isn't rising. I think that would make for an interesting discussion. You provided nothing but assertions and I chose to challenge that.
My original post in reponse to your comment used a technique known as "irony." Maybe you didn't notice. :)
I'm hoping games like Doom III will encourage an emphasis on visual quality in addition to pure speed. Sharp output, rendering precision and good colors are routinely sacrificed, especially with ATI and NVidia cards. I don't want my zombies to have seams, and I'd also like crisp text at high resolutions in 2D apps. Along these lines, I'm hopeful that the new Matrox card will live up to the hype.