It's not anger-- more like pragmatism. I'm not convinced that any Washington types would listen. But I have plenty of friends and family members who regularly ask for my advice on tech purchases. Many bought their first Apple products at my suggestion. I'm not telling them to patronize MS or Google instead... just to apply pressure, hold off on purchases until Apple gets out in front of this. No, Apple wasn't the first or worst offender, but this is my bit of leverage.
Who cares, really? Normally, I should be excited by this set of announcements, but I'm not now. Why? Because Apple is complicit in the largest expansion of government surveillance power in my lifetime... that we know of, at least. (That is, unless you believe their technicality-laden denial with wording nearly identical to several other of the named companies.) Every desktop, laptop, tablet, smartphone, and personal music player currently in my household is an Apple product, but until we get this sorted out, I'm not buying any more of their gear. And I'm recommending that family and friends do the same.
Hatch didn't join the U.S. Senate until 1977, well after the booster contract was awarded. It was his predecessor, Frank Moss, whose cozy relationship with then-NASA administrator James Fletcher (another well-connected Utah man) was widely suspected as a factor contributing to Thiokol's win.
Not quite, but you're on the right track. The three leading contenders (Lockheed, Thiokol, and United Technologies) all proposed segmented booster designs. Lockheed's were to be shipped by barge, in a vertical position, as opposed to the horizontal rail shipping used by Thiokol. (Not sure about UT.)
A fourth contender, Aerojet, proposed a single, monolithic booster, to be built at a new facility in South Florida and shipped up the intracoastal waterway by barge. But the additional cost of the new facility made that proposal less competitive, where the others assumed use of existing facilities.
[You're right; there's not much hard info about this online. I'm relying here on Malcolm McConnell's Challenger: A Major Malfunction (1988), which in turn relied heavily on Rogers Commission testimony.]
* We were introduced to Luke's future foster parents (in Lucas' trademark ham-handed way) in Ep II. So when Anakin/Darth visited, why would he have them barbequed?
Those loose ends have already been tied up; it was all just a big misunderstanding. Haven't you seen Troops?
Anyway if you had looked at the pictures, the speakers are easily accessed through a removable floor panel.
If nothing else, the output grates certainly don't weigh a ton. Just remove one, and send your buddy crawling down the horn with a flashlight and screwdriver to replace the blown cone. Oh, and promise him that you won't fire the system up while he's down there.;-)
- which stands in stark contrast to one in three hairdressers, plumbers[....] Of course, it should be noted that by and large IT professionals earn more money then most other jobs - which I suppose is once again a warning of money != happiness.
FWIW, a competent plumber can make very good money; I've known a few who out-earned me in my software day job.
Incidentally, my job often includes snaking network cables under raised flooring or above dropped ceilings. I'm not sure whether inhaling asbestos particles is better or worse than occasionally getting fresh sewage on myself.
In most states ex-cons who have served their time are not allowed to vote. I would think that would be unconstitutional as well, but the courts don't agree with me.
There are actually only 10 U.S. states in which convicted felons permanently lose their voting rights, and six more in which they lose them but may later petition to have them restored. (More info here and here.)
I agree that it should be unconstitutional, just like poll taxes and similar measures devised to exempt from voting rights such persons as the states saw fit to exempt. (I'm borrowing a little euphamistic language from the U.S. Constitution, here.)
I have a Fujitsu P1120, with the 800MHz TM5800 Crusoe. It won't blind anyone with its speed, but I make up for a lot of that because the touch screen makes navigating easier than the eraser-mouse or other laptops' touchpads. (That cinched the choice of the 1120 over the Sharp MM10.)
I've heard that Crusoe processors tend to do well on relatively compact computing tasks, like CPU-heavy numerical analysis in which a relatively small bit of code is run repeatedly-- a bit that's small enough to fit into the instruction translation cache. One interesting thing that I've noticed is that, compared to most applications, OpenOffice seems to run quite nicely on my P1120. Perhaps that's because the JVM (or its most frequently used subset) is small enough to stay in the translation cache? I'm just guessing, here... more informed insight is welcome.
The extended battery really does last almost 9 hours if you're not using WiFi-- e.g., on a flight. I still had 48% battery remaining after constant use on a 5-hour Orlando-to-LA flight last summer. My WiFi use is mostly at home, and it's still decent-- though I haven't tried to measure it. (Interestingly enough, the biggest battery hog seems to be the tiny DLink USB Bluetooth adapter that I use to sync my cell phone!)
On the other hand, I effectively lose some of my performance on airplanes, due to everyone around me saying, "What the heck is that thing? Aww, how cute..." Then they realize that their Dell laptop's extended battery is almost as big as my whole rig.:-)
FWIW, my P1120 doesn't appear to have a fan or a vent. And I can actually place it on my lap for a while; it gets warm, but not too hot.
Obligatory Linux content: I haven't tried loading Linux on it yet, because as far as I can tell, there is no available touch screen calibration utility. (The screen itself reportedly shows up as a generic USB pointing device.) Anyone know of a solution for this?
Actually hardened conservative capitalists like myself [...] Competition and Capitalism at it's finest, if you ask me..
What you describe is democratic capitalism-- i.e., a market system based largely on what works the best, and in which everyone can have a shot at building something better. When someone is successful at that, the natural rules of the market evolve-- based on the new paradigm of what works the best.
What we have in the U.S. is inching closer to plutocratic capitalism, in which the golden rule is, "He who has the gold makes the rules."
Since SCO has been unable to succeed using the former model, they're attempting to rewrite rules by brute force. They're not likely to succeed, primarily because they don't have enough gold.
Keep in mind that if calls are recorded "for quality assurance purposes," it's possible that some unscrupulous employees might have access to those recordings. I forsee a web site or two devoted to funny recordings of people having irate "conversations" with automated call centers. So if you're tempted to try beating this system, at least make sure CallerID is blocked first.:-)
...and erected in the Apollo/Saturn V Center at KSC, next to the aesthetically refurbished Saturn V rocket stages. It's about as much of it as you'd expect to assemble for an indoor display; at least that much is protected from rusting into oblivion.
FWIW, I don't know who paid to have the Saturn V stack at KSC refurbished, but I think it's owned by the Smithsonian and on indefinite loan to KSC. I'd bet that the costs of restoring the Huntsville rocket could be covered by tourists coming to see it in a similar facility.
When robots are capable of assembling and maintaining a fully functional and habitable environment for us on the moon or mars, that's the time to start packing our suitcases.
When we have robots capable of doing all of that, they will seriously question whether it'd be worth their while to invite us up for a visit in the first place.
Excellent clarification. FWIW, I thought the two equalateral (i.e., stable and orbital) Lagrange points were L4 and L5. Perhaps Buzz' op-ed piece should've been titled, "Fly me to L[45]".:-)
I am sure there will be legal battles about who can claim ownership of the lagrange points similar to the legal battles of Antarctica.
Keep in mind that there can be more than one spacecraft at or near the L points-- i.e., orbiting about the point. While still stable, it takes slightly less energy to break out of that orbit than to break away from the L point itself. (Both, of course, require much less energy to escape than from lunar or Earth orbit.)
I have a Compaq TabletPC with the current 1GHz Crusoe and while functional, it isn't that fast. [...] Even doing normal daily business tasks I couldn't see using one as my main PC.
Perhaps not, but the Crusoe 5800 series wasn't really meant for that. It was meant for low power PC applications, where battery life is more important than performance. Last spring, I treated myself to a new Fujitsu Lifebook P1120, a very small and thin notebook with an 800 MHz Crusoe and an 8.9" touchscreen. It's a sweet machine, for what it's for. Yes, it's godawful slow when bringing up OpenOffice.org, but so is my main PC. See my review.
I haven't loaded Linux on it yet, but these people have. This page is worth a read, just for the travel-related stuff that they've crammed into their laptop. Anyone know where one can get a "Don't panic!" decal?
I agree with the DNC List, but the judge is probably right that it should have come out of the FCC.
The FCC regulates the nation's communications infrastructure. The FTC regulates, in part, how trade is conducted. If overuse of the telephone network's bandwidth were the primary problem created by telemarketing, it might make more sense for the do-not-call list to be in the FCC's domain. But that isn't the problem, so it makes perfect sense to give it to the FTC.
Regardless, as others have said, it's Congress choice, whether it makes sense or not. The only party who appears to be overstepping his authority here is the OK judge.
Besides, as we all know, the FCC is a captive agency-- i.e., it primarily serves the interests of the industry that uses public resources (airwaves, et al.) that the agency was ostensibly created to regulate in the public interest. So, assuming that you want to actually do something in the public interest, it's best not to give the job to the FCC.
Rep. Lampson's congressional district includes Johnson Space Center, which would benefit greatly from an expansion of manned spaceflight.
View A: Rep. Lampson is looking out for the economic interests of his district, in part by supporting the manned space program, which employs thousands in that district.
View B: Rep. Lampson represents the views of thousands in his district who believe in the manned space program, who were inspired by it when choosing their fields of study, and who have dedicated their careers to it.
Both are true views, but like any single view, neither tells the whole story by itself.
You are aware, Congress, that you can't legislate the advace of technology right?
Yeah, silly President Kennedy; what was he thinking? He should've waited until the technology to get to the moon spontaneously became available, and only then requested funding from Congress for the actual mission.
Slashdot Mirror
Oh, and I expect these companies to do what any company would do: Consider the consequences for their shareholders. Thus my tack.
True, of course. Time for the EFF to update their Who Has Your Back list?
As far as I can tell, the gov't offered immunity from prosecution for those who signed on. But they couldn't promise immunity from consumer boycotts.
It's not anger-- more like pragmatism. I'm not convinced that any Washington types would listen. But I have plenty of friends and family members who regularly ask for my advice on tech purchases. Many bought their first Apple products at my suggestion. I'm not telling them to patronize MS or Google instead... just to apply pressure, hold off on purchases until Apple gets out in front of this. No, Apple wasn't the first or worst offender, but this is my bit of leverage.
Who cares, really? Normally, I should be excited by this set of announcements, but I'm not now. Why? Because Apple is complicit in the largest expansion of government surveillance power in my lifetime... that we know of, at least. (That is, unless you believe their technicality-laden denial with wording nearly identical to several other of the named companies.) Every desktop, laptop, tablet, smartphone, and personal music player currently in my household is an Apple product, but until we get this sorted out, I'm not buying any more of their gear. And I'm recommending that family and friends do the same.
If you give a prospective employer your password, you're proving that you can't be trusted. Mike Loukides said it well.
Hatch didn't join the U.S. Senate until 1977, well after the booster contract was awarded. It was his predecessor, Frank Moss, whose cozy relationship with then-NASA administrator James Fletcher (another well-connected Utah man) was widely suspected as a factor contributing to Thiokol's win.
Not quite, but you're on the right track. The three leading contenders (Lockheed, Thiokol, and United Technologies) all proposed segmented booster designs. Lockheed's were to be shipped by barge, in a vertical position, as opposed to the horizontal rail shipping used by Thiokol. (Not sure about UT.)
A fourth contender, Aerojet, proposed a single, monolithic booster, to be built at a new facility in South Florida and shipped up the intracoastal waterway by barge. But the additional cost of the new facility made that proposal less competitive, where the others assumed use of existing facilities.
[You're right; there's not much hard info about this online. I'm relying here on Malcolm McConnell's Challenger: A Major Malfunction (1988), which in turn relied heavily on Rogers Commission testimony.]
Those loose ends have already been tied up; it was all just a big misunderstanding. Haven't you seen Troops?
If nothing else, the output grates certainly don't weigh a ton. Just remove one, and send your buddy crawling down the horn with a flashlight and screwdriver to replace the blown cone. Oh, and promise him that you won't fire the system up while he's down there. ;-)
That being said, this will likely make life better for people with severe spinal injuries or others with limited use of their hands. Kudos to Opera.
FWIW, a competent plumber can make very good money; I've known a few who out-earned me in my software day job.
Incidentally, my job often includes snaking network cables under raised flooring or above dropped ceilings. I'm not sure whether inhaling asbestos particles is better or worse than occasionally getting fresh sewage on myself.
There are actually only 10 U.S. states in which convicted felons permanently lose their voting rights, and six more in which they lose them but may later petition to have them restored. (More info here and here.)
I agree that it should be unconstitutional, just like poll taxes and similar measures devised to exempt from voting rights such persons as the states saw fit to exempt. (I'm borrowing a little euphamistic language from the U.S. Constitution, here.)
I've heard that Crusoe processors tend to do well on relatively compact computing tasks, like CPU-heavy numerical analysis in which a relatively small bit of code is run repeatedly-- a bit that's small enough to fit into the instruction translation cache. One interesting thing that I've noticed is that, compared to most applications, OpenOffice seems to run quite nicely on my P1120. Perhaps that's because the JVM (or its most frequently used subset) is small enough to stay in the translation cache? I'm just guessing, here... more informed insight is welcome.
The extended battery really does last almost 9 hours if you're not using WiFi-- e.g., on a flight. I still had 48% battery remaining after constant use on a 5-hour Orlando-to-LA flight last summer. My WiFi use is mostly at home, and it's still decent-- though I haven't tried to measure it. (Interestingly enough, the biggest battery hog seems to be the tiny DLink USB Bluetooth adapter that I use to sync my cell phone!)
On the other hand, I effectively lose some of my performance on airplanes, due to everyone around me saying, "What the heck is that thing? Aww, how cute..." Then they realize that their Dell laptop's extended battery is almost as big as my whole rig. :-)
FWIW, my P1120 doesn't appear to have a fan or a vent. And I can actually place it on my lap for a while; it gets warm, but not too hot.
Obligatory Linux content: I haven't tried loading Linux on it yet, because as far as I can tell, there is no available touch screen calibration utility. (The screen itself reportedly shows up as a generic USB pointing device.) Anyone know of a solution for this?
Oh yeah? Well just think how the how the Hubble Space Telescope feels.
What you describe is democratic capitalism-- i.e., a market system based largely on what works the best, and in which everyone can have a shot at building something better. When someone is successful at that, the natural rules of the market evolve-- based on the new paradigm of what works the best.
What we have in the U.S. is inching closer to plutocratic capitalism, in which the golden rule is, "He who has the gold makes the rules."
Since SCO has been unable to succeed using the former model, they're attempting to rewrite rules by brute force. They're not likely to succeed, primarily because they don't have enough gold.
Keep in mind that if calls are recorded "for quality assurance purposes," it's possible that some unscrupulous employees might have access to those recordings. I forsee a web site or two devoted to funny recordings of people having irate "conversations" with automated call centers. So if you're tempted to try beating this system, at least make sure CallerID is blocked first. :-)
FWIW, I don't know who paid to have the Saturn V stack at KSC refurbished, but I think it's owned by the Smithsonian and on indefinite loan to KSC. I'd bet that the costs of restoring the Huntsville rocket could be covered by tourists coming to see it in a similar facility.
When we have robots capable of doing all of that, they will seriously question whether it'd be worth their while to invite us up for a visit in the first place.
Excellent clarification. FWIW, I thought the two equalateral (i.e., stable and orbital) Lagrange points were L4 and L5. Perhaps Buzz' op-ed piece should've been titled, "Fly me to L[45]". :-)
Keep in mind that there can be more than one spacecraft at or near the L points-- i.e., orbiting about the point. While still stable, it takes slightly less energy to break out of that orbit than to break away from the L point itself. (Both, of course, require much less energy to escape than from lunar or Earth orbit.)
Perhaps not, but the Crusoe 5800 series wasn't really meant for that. It was meant for low power PC applications, where battery life is more important than performance. Last spring, I treated myself to a new Fujitsu Lifebook P1120, a very small and thin notebook with an 800 MHz Crusoe and an 8.9" touchscreen. It's a sweet machine, for what it's for. Yes, it's godawful slow when bringing up OpenOffice.org, but so is my main PC. See my review.
I haven't loaded Linux on it yet, but these people have. This page is worth a read, just for the travel-related stuff that they've crammed into their laptop. Anyone know where one can get a "Don't panic!" decal?
The FCC regulates the nation's communications infrastructure. The FTC regulates, in part, how trade is conducted. If overuse of the telephone network's bandwidth were the primary problem created by telemarketing, it might make more sense for the do-not-call list to be in the FCC's domain. But that isn't the problem, so it makes perfect sense to give it to the FTC.
Regardless, as others have said, it's Congress choice, whether it makes sense or not. The only party who appears to be overstepping his authority here is the OK judge.
Besides, as we all know, the FCC is a captive agency-- i.e., it primarily serves the interests of the industry that uses public resources (airwaves, et al.) that the agency was ostensibly created to regulate in the public interest. So, assuming that you want to actually do something in the public interest, it's best not to give the job to the FCC.
View A: Rep. Lampson is looking out for the economic interests of his district, in part by supporting the manned space program, which employs thousands in that district.
View B: Rep. Lampson represents the views of thousands in his district who believe in the manned space program, who were inspired by it when choosing their fields of study, and who have dedicated their careers to it.
Both are true views, but like any single view, neither tells the whole story by itself.
Yeah, silly President Kennedy; what was he thinking? He should've waited until the technology to get to the moon spontaneously became available, and only then requested funding from Congress for the actual mission.