They could always go to the library and use a computer there. I see what you are saying, but it isn't like you are saying, hey you can't vote at all any more though.
Think about this. Let's say that in your office you can use pretty much what ever you want on your desktop, except you must run MS Office because for what ever reason they use features in it that OO doesn't support. If it wasn't for Crossover/wine/vm ware etc., then you would be stuck with windows even if 99.9% of the rest of your work would be better suited by another OS. Now imagine being able to run Office on any OS you want. Yes, you are still running MS office, but at least on application suite doesn't decide what OS you must run on your computer. You see wine, crossover office, etc. offer choice. I don't know how many times I have had a friend that has a dual boot machine or uses VM ware because some specific application will not run under linux and they wish they could switch all the way over. This adds choice and I don't see choice ever really being a bad thing.
The moon has a lot of Ore. We could mine the hell out of the darkside of the moon and it wouldn't cause environmental polution on earth. The chinese are already planning on doing this. That will be the first step, IMHO. One people see value in space and once we have things like a space ladder making it cheap and easy to get things into space, I wouldn't think Mars would be too big of a pipe dream evenentually.
I hadn't even contemplated EMP. An excelent catch.
Heh, thanks. Sorry, I know a lot of people in the military and most of thier eq is emp hardened to still be able to work after say an atomic blast. After hanging around them, you start to run scenarios in your head for almost every possible outcome. Like I said, I was nit picking and was all around being a bitch 8-P
ability to shoot when submerged in a vat of whipped cream?
hahahahaha, I guess in case you need to shoot some one in the middle of some kinky sex?
before I sank any of my money into a firm working on it.
I realize this is a very late reply and you may never see it, but I wanted to point something out. The HK that I own and even the AK47 (a semi-auto, haven't seen the receiver on a class 3) that you mentioned as well are both simply modified versions of a 1911 style pistol invented in 1911. Have there been refinements yes, but in a gigantic fashion, no. My HK is almost the smae base design as an old school Colt 1911. As far as I am aware these are the big break throughs and modifications. In the 80's Beretta figured out that if you alternate the stacking of bullets you can fit more in the clip which is why 9mm's used to be so popular. With a Beretta 92 you could stack 15 rounds in. Also, the safety mechanism is different. Some like it better some do not think it is as good. Either way, not a big change. The clips and base of the gun are carbine and not metal to reduce the weight of the gun. This does not effect how it fires only weight. I am sure there are a couple more I have missed, but in general the base design didn't need much tweaking. Now, I know that was a major knit pick, but enough of that.
I agree that it needs extensive testing before it will catch on (with out help of a lot of legislation forcing it early ex. New Jersy). If it is good, it likely will catch on. However, I some how doubt they will be able to reach the reliability levels of what exists right now. For instance, what if it gets dirty? Will it obscure the laser? Will really cold or hot temperatures effect the electronics? For the military, is it EMP hardened? Waterproof? Only time will tell how good it is an what acceptance it gets.
(although, in the design's defense, any semiautomatic weapon is a touchy, sickeningly complex machine
I would disagree. It is infact quite a simple piece of mechanics which is why it works so well. My HK has basicly 5 main parts. A slide, the barrel, the spring, the action (hammer), and the base of the gun (handle, trigger, etc). Yes, it is gas powered. Yes, it is more complex then a revovler. However, it is still a simple design, which is why it works.
At least you could still fire the rifle though if the grenade launcher goes out. The only real risk is that there was one malfunction where the fuse was set and the grenade didn't fire for some reason and two people were injured when it went off inside the launcher. Otherwise, it is looking pretty good so far.
Actually I think he was refering to the m14. The Marines at least did battle testing with the m14 a light version of the m16. The m16 was always tough as hell. The m14 (m4) took a while to work out a lot of the bugs. It jammed a lot if it got mud in it etc. That is why you hear stories about soldiers that would pick up an AK the first chance they got and use it until they ran outta ammo.
There is a difference though. It is not just about trouble shooting electronics. Yes, lets say they make the electronics in the gun really reliable. Now, let's also say you want to practice and shoot 100 rounds a week through your gun. A gun can have quite a bit of kick. So, let me put it this way. Did you drop your calculator 400 times a week and see if it would still work? Soder and electronics are only so strong. Not even to mention that target practice would likely be damn expensive using the new kind of ammo. In the future yes... not for a while though, at least not for me.
I think the camera is definitely a good idea. However, until this thing has been battle proven I wouldn't want one. However, a lot of guns now a days have tactical rails on them. Some one should come up with a camera that can slide on the bottom of HK's, Glock's, etc. Hell even the Walther P99 has tac rails. It wouldn't be a perfect solution, but if you really want to cover your ass, that would be a good way to do it and not sacrifice reliability.
Actually it would be much harder. You see, a rocket has heat and an exhaust path that can be followed and its movements are predictable. A person is not nessicarly predictable and does produce 10 times the heat of the surrounding environment. Using this for a long range assassination would be very hard and would need to be done manaully the way the current tracking system is designed (at least with my understanding of it) or another targeting system would have to be implemented as well.
It is not because the silencer slows the bullet down. It is because it aborbs sound. However, not only do you have to get a silencer, you have to get subsonic rounds. Yes, you can fire a regular round with a silencer and it will dampen the sound, but to have a true whisper only sound to it. The most common subsonic I have seen is 9mm, but it exists for about every thing.
But on the other hand, look at the Swiss. There is a reason they were "neutral" in both World Wars. No one wanted to invade a country that had a standing army of over 1 million people. Also, it can be noted that there is almost no crime in Switzerland likely because every male between 18 to (60 something I think) has a government issued fire arm. It can work as a deturrant and give the people safety when it is implemented in the correct way, but don't take my word on it, ask the CIA.
Excellent point and perhaps the quote was taken out of context in the article or I just read too much into it. However, it seemed to have an air of, "well, gee I didn't think of that".
Also, while not a scientific study, I have seen some pretty good arguements before this paper with data to back it up. I have seen companies get crushed and reamed over IP. So, at the same time, it isn't as if there weren't good arguements against it. Personally, I am for some kind of IP, but I think it has been taken way, way too far and last too long.
Reactions to the paper have been mixed. Robert Solow, the MIT economist who won a Nobel Prize in 1987 for his work on growth theory, wrote Boldrin and Levine a letter calling the paper "an eye-opener" and making suggestions for further refinements.
It is amazing,/. has been saying this for years, but some one with a Nobel Prize calls it an eye opener?
There is a difference between being controversial and spouting shit. He should provide some facts. Where did he see that Macs control less then one percent of the market. Aside from his crappy experiance with third party software, does he really have any valid points? Not really... Controversial can be good yes... but a steaming pile of shit is always just that
Microsoft imbedded the a key in the hardware. This key is used to check a hash on the software which indentifies itself as being an authorized peice of software and then says run me (the same way you can verify if a package/iso you downloaded is legit, but manditory). So, if they were to get a lin distrubution signed, it would then run on an unmodified copy of the X-box which would still prevent you from doing things like running pirated games.
it works fine for films, but if my machine runs at 24 fps and it chugs sligtly any thing under 24 and it turns into a full on slide show. I am assume it has something to do with the way it is presented. For instance, last time I checked standard ntsc on your TV was 29.97 fps (with "drop frames" I think). Most movies show at 25 or 24. However, if I am playing a game with 24 fps constant is runs really rough. Try firing up Q3 typing/com_maxfps 24 in the console and play. It will keep it from going over 24 fps.
Just a couple of things to add. For me at least, 30 to 40 fps is a minimum requirement. However, that is the lowest it should possibly go. If it gets below 30 fps it starts turning into a slide show.
ALso, aside from just the visual effects, more powerful hardware gives you better performance in game litterally. Example, the quake3 engine. In the quake 3 engine, you can jump much further with 150 fps then you can with 30 fps. The way it was coded if you were to jump, the game checks on a frame by frame basis to see where the jump is going. I think it was designed with a baseline of around 90 fps if I remember right. Which means that if you are going under that, your jumps will be shorter and over it, longer. Also, on Return to Castle Wolfenstein, if you fps ever drops below 30, then you rate of fire actually slows down. So, just FYI, fps can mean more then simply "how pretty" it looks.
You are a trolling ac, but I will answer any way. Open your cd/dvd drive on your computer. You see the second smaller circle in the middle? They have this "things" that are like cd's, just smaller. Guess where they go? Oh, and IIRC, they are small enough to fit on the bottom of a can of coke. The packaging might presents some issues, but still, you get the point. If there is a niche advertising market, technology will some how find a way to piss you off there.
Well, first of all the alpha isn't near as optimized as the end product will be. So, while there might not have been a buttload of mobs, it still gives you an idea. I saw it run on a 9700 pro at Qcon last year and in a couple of really large areas in the beginning cinematic it was chopping, but this was also at full detail. If you play at 1024x768 with most of the options on an have a GF 4 ti4200 like the
poster does, then I would think you would be okay the vast majority of the time.
Doom 3 will be playable with a GF4 ti4200 and you won't have to turn every thing off to get a decent frame rate, if by decent you mean at least 60 or above. A friend of mine got a hold of the leaked alpha and on a GF2 GTS it was running around some where at 15 fps with all options turned on at 1280x1024 (I think) on an unoptimized release of the program. So, yeah, of course you will go get more performance if you plop down some money, but you should be pretty good to go I would imagine.
Slashdot Mirror
so what language(s) do you recommend then as the "superior one(s)"?
They could always go to the library and use a computer there. I see what you are saying, but it isn't like you are saying, hey you can't vote at all any more though.
Think about this. Let's say that in your office you can use pretty much what ever you want on your desktop, except you must run MS Office because for what ever reason they use features in it that OO doesn't support. If it wasn't for Crossover/wine/vm ware etc., then you would be stuck with windows even if 99.9% of the rest of your work would be better suited by another OS. Now imagine being able to run Office on any OS you want. Yes, you are still running MS office, but at least on application suite doesn't decide what OS you must run on your computer. You see wine, crossover office, etc. offer choice. I don't know how many times I have had a friend that has a dual boot machine or uses VM ware because some specific application will not run under linux and they wish they could switch all the way over. This adds choice and I don't see choice ever really being a bad thing.
The moon has a lot of Ore. We could mine the hell out of the darkside of the moon and it wouldn't cause environmental polution on earth. The chinese are already planning on doing this. That will be the first step, IMHO. One people see value in space and once we have things like a space ladder making it cheap and easy to get things into space, I wouldn't think Mars would be too big of a pipe dream evenentually.
I hadn't even contemplated EMP. An excelent catch.
Heh, thanks. Sorry, I know a lot of people in the military and most of thier eq is emp hardened to still be able to work after say an atomic blast. After hanging around them, you start to run scenarios in your head for almost every possible outcome. Like I said, I was nit picking and was all around being a bitch 8-P
ability to shoot when submerged in a vat of whipped cream?
hahahahaha, I guess in case you need to shoot some one in the middle of some kinky sex?
before I sank any of my money into a firm working on it.
Exactly.
Been a pleasure.
I realize this is a very late reply and you may never see it, but I wanted to point something out. The HK that I own and even the AK47 (a semi-auto, haven't seen the receiver on a class 3) that you mentioned as well are both simply modified versions of a 1911 style pistol invented in 1911. Have there been refinements yes, but in a gigantic fashion, no. My HK is almost the smae base design as an old school Colt 1911. As far as I am aware these are the big break throughs and modifications. In the 80's Beretta figured out that if you alternate the stacking of bullets you can fit more in the clip which is why 9mm's used to be so popular. With a Beretta 92 you could stack 15 rounds in. Also, the safety mechanism is different. Some like it better some do not think it is as good. Either way, not a big change. The clips and base of the gun are carbine and not metal to reduce the weight of the gun. This does not effect how it fires only weight. I am sure there are a couple more I have missed, but in general the base design didn't need much tweaking. Now, I know that was a major knit pick, but enough of that.
I agree that it needs extensive testing before it will catch on (with out help of a lot of legislation forcing it early ex. New Jersy). If it is good, it likely will catch on. However, I some how doubt they will be able to reach the reliability levels of what exists right now. For instance, what if it gets dirty? Will it obscure the laser? Will really cold or hot temperatures effect the electronics? For the military, is it EMP hardened? Waterproof? Only time will tell how good it is an what acceptance it gets.
(although, in the design's defense, any semiautomatic weapon is a touchy, sickeningly complex machine
I would disagree. It is infact quite a simple piece of mechanics which is why it works so well. My HK has basicly 5 main parts. A slide, the barrel, the spring, the action (hammer), and the base of the gun (handle, trigger, etc). Yes, it is gas powered. Yes, it is more complex then a revovler. However, it is still a simple design, which is why it works.
At least you could still fire the rifle though if the grenade launcher goes out. The only real risk is that there was one malfunction where the fuse was set and the grenade didn't fire for some reason and two people were injured when it went off inside the launcher. Otherwise, it is looking pretty good so far.
Actually I think he was refering to the m14. The Marines at least did battle testing with the m14 a light version of the m16. The m16 was always tough as hell. The m14 (m4) took a while to work out a lot of the bugs. It jammed a lot if it got mud in it etc. That is why you hear stories about soldiers that would pick up an AK the first chance they got and use it until they ran outta ammo.
There is a difference though. It is not just about trouble shooting electronics. Yes, lets say they make the electronics in the gun really reliable. Now, let's also say you want to practice and shoot 100 rounds a week through your gun. A gun can have quite a bit of kick. So, let me put it this way. Did you drop your calculator 400 times a week and see if it would still work? Soder and electronics are only so strong. Not even to mention that target practice would likely be damn expensive using the new kind of ammo. In the future yes... not for a while though, at least not for me.
I think the camera is definitely a good idea. However, until this thing has been battle proven I wouldn't want one. However, a lot of guns now a days have tactical rails on them. Some one should come up with a camera that can slide on the bottom of HK's, Glock's, etc. Hell even the Walther P99 has tac rails. It wouldn't be a perfect solution, but if you really want to cover your ass, that would be a good way to do it and not sacrifice reliability.
Actually it would be much harder. You see, a rocket has heat and an exhaust path that can be followed and its movements are predictable. A person is not nessicarly predictable and does produce 10 times the heat of the surrounding environment. Using this for a long range assassination would be very hard and would need to be done manaully the way the current tracking system is designed (at least with my understanding of it) or another targeting system would have to be implemented as well.
It is not because the silencer slows the bullet down. It is because it aborbs sound. However, not only do you have to get a silencer, you have to get subsonic rounds. Yes, you can fire a regular round with a silencer and it will dampen the sound, but to have a true whisper only sound to it. The most common subsonic I have seen is 9mm, but it exists for about every thing.
But on the other hand, look at the Swiss. There is a reason they were "neutral" in both World Wars. No one wanted to invade a country that had a standing army of over 1 million people. Also, it can be noted that there is almost no crime in Switzerland likely because every male between 18 to (60 something I think) has a government issued fire arm. It can work as a deturrant and give the people safety when it is implemented in the correct way, but don't take my word on it, ask the CIA.
Excellent point and perhaps the quote was taken out of context in the article or I just read too much into it. However, it seemed to have an air of, "well, gee I didn't think of that".
Also, while not a scientific study, I have seen some pretty good arguements before this paper with data to back it up. I have seen companies get crushed and reamed over IP. So, at the same time, it isn't as if there weren't good arguements against it. Personally, I am for some kind of IP, but I think it has been taken way, way too far and last too long.
Reactions to the paper have been mixed. Robert Solow, the MIT economist who won a Nobel Prize in 1987 for his work on growth theory, wrote Boldrin and Levine a letter calling the paper "an eye-opener" and making suggestions for further refinements.
/. has been saying this for years, but some one with a Nobel Prize calls it an eye opener?
It is amazing,
There is a difference between being controversial and spouting shit. He should provide some facts. Where did he see that Macs control less then one percent of the market. Aside from his crappy experiance with third party software, does he really have any valid points? Not really... Controversial can be good yes... but a steaming pile of shit is always just that
Correct.
Microsoft imbedded the a key in the hardware. This key is used to check a hash on the software which indentifies itself as being an authorized peice of software and then says run me (the same way you can verify if a package/iso you downloaded is legit, but manditory). So, if they were to get a lin distrubution signed, it would then run on an unmodified copy of the X-box which would still prevent you from doing things like running pirated games.
Well you obviously haven't been to Engrish.Com if that still throws you for a loop. 8-P
P.S. Not trying to harp on or make fun of any one, but that stuff is seriously funny. Hell I can't even speak Japanese so they do better then I would.
it works fine for films, but if my machine runs at 24 fps and it chugs sligtly any thing under 24 and it turns into a full on slide show. I am assume it has something to do with the way it is presented. For instance, last time I checked standard ntsc on your TV was 29.97 fps (with "drop frames" I think). Most movies show at 25 or 24. However, if I am playing a game with 24 fps constant is runs really rough. Try firing up Q3 typing /com_maxfps 24 in the console and play. It will keep it from going over 24 fps.
Just a couple of things to add. For me at least, 30 to 40 fps is a minimum requirement. However, that is the lowest it should possibly go. If it gets below 30 fps it starts turning into a slide show.
ALso, aside from just the visual effects, more powerful hardware gives you better performance in game litterally. Example, the quake3 engine. In the quake 3 engine, you can jump much further with 150 fps then you can with 30 fps. The way it was coded if you were to jump, the game checks on a frame by frame basis to see where the jump is going. I think it was designed with a baseline of around 90 fps if I remember right. Which means that if you are going under that, your jumps will be shorter and over it, longer. Also, on Return to Castle Wolfenstein, if you fps ever drops below 30, then you rate of fire actually slows down. So, just FYI, fps can mean more then simply "how pretty" it looks.
I can see it now, "Tonight on PAX we will be shwoing the family friendly version of Dogma from 5:00 pm to 5:06pm."
You are a trolling ac, but I will answer any way. Open your cd/dvd drive on your computer. You see the second smaller circle in the middle? They have this "things" that are like cd's, just smaller. Guess where they go? Oh, and IIRC, they are small enough to fit on the bottom of a can of coke. The packaging might presents some issues, but still, you get the point. If there is a niche advertising market, technology will some how find a way to piss you off there.
Well, first of all the alpha isn't near as optimized as the end product will be. So, while there might not have been a buttload of mobs, it still gives you an idea. I saw it run on a 9700 pro at Qcon last year and in a couple of really large areas in the beginning cinematic it was chopping, but this was also at full detail. If you play at 1024x768 with most of the options on an have a GF 4 ti4200 like the poster does, then I would think you would be okay the vast majority of the time.
Doom 3 will be playable with a GF4 ti4200 and you won't have to turn every thing off to get a decent frame rate, if by decent you mean at least 60 or above. A friend of mine got a hold of the leaked alpha and on a GF2 GTS it was running around some where at 15 fps with all options turned on at 1280x1024 (I think) on an unoptimized release of the program. So, yeah, of course you will go get more performance if you plop down some money, but you should be pretty good to go I would imagine.