Almost everyone can speak, read and write at least tolerable english
Even though your definitions of "everybody" and "tolerable" differ greatly with mine, at first glance, it appears that you're making a good point. But there are two huge problems with your post.
Firstly, while English is fairly widespread, it is by FAR not any sort of "universal" communications medium. It's my primary language (there's also the Spanish that I rarely get to use, so it languishes pitifully), but I know there are literally BILLIONS of people who don't speak a word of English, and hundreds of millions who have never been--and will never be--exposed to spoken or written English in their lifetimes.
Secondly, even if English were perceived as a solution to inter-cultural communications, the thought abhors me. As ignorant as many Americans are, and as difficult as it would be to get some Americans to consider using ANY other language, English should definitely not be the first choice as a unified "Official Planetary Language."
A worldwide movement to eliminate the use of other languages (or even let them fall to a state where they might meet the same fate as my Spanish skills) would signify an intolerable level of neglect toward so much of the diversity that makes our world interesting and colorful.
Sure, if you speak your native tongue throughout your day and type English when you browse Slashdot, English will continue to be a "secondary language." But you can't deny that if English were the language of choice in every public forum, atrophy would eventually overtake any attempts to retain fluency in one's other languages.
Language barriers can prove frustrating at times, but there are MUCH better ways to improve efficiency. Buy a pocket translator if you're hurting for ideas.
The anonymous coward thinks he's noticed a detail which has somehow escaped the other 50 or 60 posters replying to the parent, and he prattles into the din:
"It is about sellers, buyers."
1. With such an astute statement as this, the only point you seem to be able to relate is the fact that you're a jerk. Are you trying to say:
a)
"It is about sellers," and you're simply ADDRESSING me as "Buyers?" Feel free to call me "zedmelon;" this is an informal gathering.
b) "It is about sellers AND buyers," and you're just not completely clear on which conjunction to use, so you left it out but felt compelled to use a comma anyway?
...or the by far most likely
c) "It is about sellers, NOT buyers," and you're merely too stunted to flame me and process a coherent thought at the same time?
2. If I gamble on option (c), then I have to say you're right (at least up to the point where you challenged my post):
According to the article, it is the sellers' identities that could be compromised. However, when I made my original post, I was wondering to what EXTENT the privacy invasion would REACH. Though I didn't specifically state that buying--rather than selling--was the only way to draw Big Brother's attention, I can see how someone with impaired cognitive abilities might assume that I meant exclusively buying (rather than selling).
3. Even if I were to give you two things:
a) I didn't read the article.
b) the article, as you've been so kind to (sort of) point out, names "sellers" as the primary target of this YRO issue.
still, c) What makes you think that eBay would cave to law enforcement and flood them with any available information about sellers, only to remain steadfast in denying the same type of information pertaining to the parties on the other ends of those same transactions when requested by those same law enforcement investigators?
Even if I hadn't read the article before posting (and even if you HAD conveyed a complete thought), your flame sucks, because there's more to my question than "what if I buy a naughty book?"
Go flame someone else now. Maybe if you plan it out this time (be sure to have someone proofread it for you), you'll feel better.
We're talking about the USA here. As they have been so anxious to prove in the past, their word is worth nothing anyway.
What're y'all talkin' bout? Is this mor'a that stinkin' NAY-TOE malarkey 'bout peace 'n not goin' ta war 'n alla that?
Dubya h'ain't never signed no damn NAY-TOE 'greemunt. He ain't never even SEEN the durn thing. Why in TARnayshin you think he aughter hafta foller it anyhow?
States Parties to the Treaty undertake not to place in orbit around the earth any objects carrying nuclear weapons or any other kinds of weapons of mass destruction, instal such weapons on celestial bodies, or station such weapons in outer space in any other manner.
IANAL, but I'd say that this doesn't apply since the HSV only passes through space, rather than being actually stationed there.
Due to security regulations, we can't let the American media find out about project FALCON. If information were to leak, enemy countries could have teams working towards the same goal.
You're absolutely right. It probably *is* a good thing, IF it doesn't get abused.
The possibility of catching the guys on "The Homeboy Shopping Network" is a very good reason to have eBay readily cooperating with authorities; I'm just intimidated by how many potential methods of abuse this "feature" could attract.
That's exactly my point; I've never read either one, but it's only because curiosity has never reached "critical mass" to push procrastination out of the way.
If I had actually purchased a copy of either book, I would still be the same person I am today: a law-abiding geek with a "live-and-let-live" mentality regarding most anything.
A corallary to my original question could be stated, "is simple, innocent curiosity adequate grounds for my private financial information being freely granted to anyone with the spare time to ask for it?"
Incidentally, those titles were simply the first two examples that popped into my head. "The Satanic Verses" and "Ten Ways I Can Prove Smashing Pumpkins is The Crappiest Band Since The Offspring" are two titles that are also sure to earn me more fan points with other slashdotters.
I understand this from eBay's perspective to a point:
There is also the genuine anxiety surrounding the potential consequences of not following up on a perceived terrorist threat.
..but this part:
It also expands the category of information that law-enforcement figures can seek with a simple subpoena (no court review required) to include, among other things, IP addresses and credit card and bank account numbers.
Besides buying copies of "Mein Kampf" and "The Anarchist's Cookbook," what sort of flags could be construed as putting one's transactions over the limit?
Re:Looks like an interesting book.
on
Hacking the XBox
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· Score: 1
Good point.
Actually, I was hoping to make a more insightful statement like the one made by Oliver Wendell Jones, below (translation: I wish I was cool enough to say what HE said), but I'm too retarded.
That's why I need this mod. ;)
Re:Looks like an interesting book.
on
Hacking the XBox
·
· Score: 1
The only way someone doing this would be hurting the console manufacturer is by lowering the liklihood of buying more games.
If they truly need to sell more games just to stay "out of the red," they should probably fire the people in their sourcing departments... or raise the console price again.
I read that flyer, which allegedly dispells the assertion that IBM-contributed Linux contains SysV code. If that's not true, and SCO has zero case, why are they claiming they do? What is SCO's rationale for it?
Please tell me that it's a bit more than just a last-ditch attempt at saving a dying company.
And I suppose since you're so very concerned about our world's problems, that you're doing your part by scanning slashdot and reading all the articles whose headlines hint at possibly divulging solutions, right?
This particular article was a great place to start.
I just find all this techno-wankery that slashdot likes to promote is somewhat distasteful. I like to think that one day, Americans will wake up from their orgy of self-centered consumerism (of which this over-specced PC is just one example) and see the wider world out there.
You're right. Anyone reading or posting to this article is truly distasteful.
Its not about having a fast PC, its all about what you are like as a human being, relating to other human beings as equals.
Again, you're right. And I'm sure you're a fabulous human being to know, since you have such hardened principles that would never allow you to try to simultaneously mingle with and discredit a group of people.
Is it any wonder slashdot readers seem to have so much trouble getting laid, when they are all obessed with PC hardware and flight simulators ?
Well, as long as you're into treating us as equals, I'm sure you get laid several times daily, probably by condescending to your dozens dates like this.
Man, these things bother me too, but just like you, I have things to get done and obligations to fulfill. I've stopped in a suit and tie to help push a car out of an intersection, and I've waited an extra minute to help elderly women through the door at the mall, but I'm too selfish to volunteer at the soup kitchen. I love my comfort too much to join the Peace Core.
In between all the things I claim take up all my time, sometimes I like to relax. Just like you, one of the ways I'll do that is reading slashdot. I know I could do more, and I should. Right now, my son is asleep, my girlfriend is out with her friends, and I could be doing so much more with my time, but I'm watching the Man Show.
I hope you'll reconsider once you read this, but I doubt you'll ever see this post, because you're too philanthropic, and right now you're spending the money you were saving for next month's Internet access on the children.
}
Let this guy have his 13 monitors. No, it won't cure hunger or cancer, but it's still an accomplishment.
The D&B in Denver (south side) has battletech as well.
I'm not surprised to hear it's an old game; if it was a one-screen setup, it would be junk, but get in those pods, close the door, and you're right about immersion factor. With several friends it can be fun--almost worth the massive credits cost to your game card. With inter-cockpit coms, it would really be a blast.
I found the actual gameplay extremely frustrating, and the jackass attendant wouldn't show me how to get it out of beginner mode with its crappy unidirectional look/fire/run.
"Well, that's something you just don't do until you've played 20 times or so."
I didn't know I'd be shooting my own foot by telling him this had been my first game. *smacks forehead* He gave me the impression that the skill level was set in the same computer he used to put our names above our pods.
I wouldn't have played again except for advice from a veteran standing around waiting for his buddies. He gave us a few pointers and told me how to set the machine to let me walk and fire in separate directions.
There are about seven jillion controls inside the pods, and in expert mode, you have to worry about locational damage and keep track of things like coolant, oil pressure, losing this weapon or that system, conserving ammo, etc. You gotta make more cash than I do... Jeez.
Expert Man even said he'd be leaving it set on medium.
"I've only been playing 2 or 3 times a month lately, so I've been keeping it on intermediate."
So, how many sysadmins do you know that would be good riot cops?
That's a very valid statement; I stand corrected. This is one sysadmin that won't be working anywhere near riots.
Although if you offered
unlimited Mountain Dew and
dates with actual living girls, I'll bet you'd have plenty of volunteers from said sys admins.
;)
I was only thinking--as I'm sure was Michael's_A_Jerk--that getting Internet working (sooner than cooperative civilization) is frivolous, bordering on insulting, but there's no rule dictating the sysadmin has to wait until the military has the important stuff done.
Slashdot Mirror
Even though your definitions of "everybody" and "tolerable" differ greatly with mine, at first glance, it appears that you're making a good point. But there are two huge problems with your post.
Firstly, while English is fairly widespread, it is by FAR not any sort of "universal" communications medium. It's my primary language (there's also the Spanish that I rarely get to use, so it languishes pitifully), but I know there are literally BILLIONS of people who don't speak a word of English, and hundreds of millions who have never been--and will never be--exposed to spoken or written English in their lifetimes.
Secondly, even if English were perceived as a solution to inter-cultural communications, the thought abhors me. As ignorant as many Americans are, and as difficult as it would be to get some Americans to consider using ANY other language, English should definitely not be the first choice as a unified "Official Planetary Language."
A worldwide movement to eliminate the use of other languages (or even let them fall to a state where they might meet the same fate as my Spanish skills) would signify an intolerable level of neglect toward so much of the diversity that makes our world interesting and colorful.
Sure, if you speak your native tongue throughout your day and type English when you browse Slashdot, English will continue to be a "secondary language." But you can't deny that if English were the language of choice in every public forum, atrophy would eventually overtake any attempts to retain fluency in one's other languages.
Language barriers can prove frustrating at times, but there are MUCH better ways to improve efficiency. Buy a pocket translator if you're hurting for ideas.
Go flame someone else now. Maybe if you plan it out this time (be sure to have someone proofread it for you), you'll feel better.
You're completely right; this didn't deserve a +5.
In fact, your comment is funnier than mine, but I'll take that +5, because I didn't deserve the troll here, either.
I'll be the first to admit it deserved "overrated," but it certainly doesn't deserve "troll."
no one can hear you scream I was here before YOU were! I'm telling MOM!
We're talking about the USA here. As they have been so anxious to prove in the past, their word is worth nothing anyway.
What're y'all talkin' bout? Is this mor'a that stinkin' NAY-TOE malarkey 'bout peace 'n not goin' ta war 'n alla that?
Dubya h'ain't never signed no damn NAY-TOE 'greemunt. He ain't never even SEEN the durn thing. Why in TARnayshin you think he aughter hafta foller it anyhow?
Yew ig-no-raymiss.
IANAL, but I'd say that this doesn't apply since the HSV only passes through space, rather than being actually stationed there.
Due to security regulations, we can't let the American media find out about project FALCON. If information were to leak, enemy countries could have teams working towards the same goal.
Hey, who's that British guy?
You're absolutely right. It probably *is* a good thing, IF it doesn't get abused.
The possibility of catching the guys on "The Homeboy Shopping Network" is a very good reason to have eBay readily cooperating with authorities; I'm just intimidated by how many potential methods of abuse this "feature" could attract.
If I had actually purchased a copy of either book, I would still be the same person I am today: a law-abiding geek with a "live-and-let-live" mentality regarding most anything.
A corallary to my original question could be stated, "is simple, innocent curiosity adequate grounds for my private financial information being freely granted to anyone with the spare time to ask for it?"
Incidentally, those titles were simply the first two examples that popped into my head. "The Satanic Verses" and "Ten Ways I Can Prove Smashing Pumpkins is The Crappiest Band Since The Offspring" are two titles that are also sure to earn me more fan points with other slashdotters.
By the way, http://www.phataudio.org/ looks interesting. Slash me investigates more...
eBay itself goes further than this, employing six investigators who are charged with tracking down "suspicious people" and "suspicious behavior.
I guess I'd better not post any more "Stable version of Windows" auctions...
*sigh*
I understand this from eBay's perspective to a point:
There is also the genuine anxiety surrounding the potential consequences of not following up on a perceived terrorist threat.
..but this part:
It also expands the category of information that law-enforcement figures can seek with a simple subpoena (no court review required) to include, among other things, IP addresses and credit card and bank account numbers.
Besides buying copies of "Mein Kampf" and "The Anarchist's Cookbook," what sort of flags could be construed as putting one's transactions over the limit?
Actually, I was hoping to make a more insightful statement like the one made by Oliver Wendell Jones, below (translation: I wish I was cool enough to say what HE said), but I'm too retarded.
That's why I need this mod.
;)
If they truly need to sell more games just to stay "out of the red," they should probably fire the people in their sourcing departments... or raise the console price again.
Can I get some feedback on good / bad experiences others have had with modding? Where can I get the chip?
I've been waiting for this opportunity to uh... play games with my handicapped brother.
*ahem* yeah...
Yeah, that's better! And don't let me ever catch you...
HEY, take that *back*!!!
THAT'S my WIFE!!!!
Actually...
They're running demos of high-resource rendering demos people who buy this setup can run at Comdex 2004.
Suing over IP != genocide
You're right, but that's not what he was stating.
He was drawing a comparison between two groups of people which both found themselves occupying a position of sour limelight.
He didn't say that the reasons for begrudging SCO employees are similar to (or as justified as) those for despising concentration camp guards.
He didn't say that the motivation to work for SCO was comparable to swearing one's loyalty to Hitler.
He only pointed out a clear parallel between the SCO employees and Nazi guards.
Yes, those were tragic events in a tragic time, but don't read provocation into what was said; no one made any offen S ive statements until you did.
It's quite invigorating browsing interactive pr0n with the Xbox controls.
sweeeeeeeeeeet.
There have only been like 30 posts so far; betchya a dollar there's an admin there who reads /.
I have a question:
I read that flyer, which allegedly dispells the assertion that IBM-contributed Linux contains SysV code. If that's not true, and SCO has zero case, why are they claiming they do? What is SCO's rationale for it?
Please tell me that it's a bit more than just a last-ditch attempt at saving a dying company.
DumbHypocriticalGuy...
And I suppose since you're so very concerned about our world's problems, that you're doing your part by scanning slashdot and reading all the articles whose headlines hint at possibly divulging solutions, right?
This particular article was a great place to start.
I just find all this techno-wankery that slashdot likes to promote is somewhat distasteful. I like to think that one day, Americans will wake up from their orgy of self-centered consumerism (of which this over-specced PC is just one example) and see the wider world out there.
You're right. Anyone reading or posting to this article is truly distasteful.
Its not about having a fast PC, its all about what you are like as a human being, relating to other human beings as equals.
Again, you're right. And I'm sure you're a fabulous human being to know, since you have such hardened principles that would never allow you to try to simultaneously mingle with and discredit a group of people.
Is it any wonder slashdot readers seem to have so much trouble getting laid, when they are all obessed with PC hardware and flight simulators ?
Well, as long as you're into treating us as equals, I'm sure you get laid several times daily, probably by condescending to your dozens dates like this.
Man, these things bother me too, but just like you, I have things to get done and obligations to fulfill. I've stopped in a suit and tie to help push a car out of an intersection, and I've waited an extra minute to help elderly women through the door at the mall, but I'm too selfish to volunteer at the soup kitchen. I love my comfort too much to join the Peace Core.
In between all the things I claim take up all my time, sometimes I like to relax. Just like you, one of the ways I'll do that is reading slashdot. I know I could do more, and I should. Right now, my son is asleep, my girlfriend is out with her friends, and I could be doing so much more with my time, but I'm watching the Man Show.
I hope you'll reconsider once you read this, but I doubt you'll ever see this post, because you're too philanthropic, and right now you're spending the money you were saving for next month's Internet access on the children.
}
Let this guy have his 13 monitors. No, it won't cure hunger or cancer, but it's still an accomplishment.
The D&B in Denver (south side) has battletech as well.
I'm not surprised to hear it's an old game; if it was a one-screen setup, it would be junk, but get in those pods, close the door, and you're right about immersion factor. With several friends it can be fun--almost worth the massive credits cost to your game card. With inter-cockpit coms, it would really be a blast.
I found the actual gameplay extremely frustrating, and the jackass attendant wouldn't show me how to get it out of beginner mode with its crappy unidirectional look/fire/run.
I didn't know I'd be shooting my own foot by telling him this had been my first game. *smacks forehead* He gave me the impression that the skill level was set in the same computer he used to put our names above our pods.
I wouldn't have played again except for advice from a veteran standing around waiting for his buddies. He gave us a few pointers and told me how to set the machine to let me walk and fire in separate directions.
There are about seven jillion controls inside the pods, and in expert mode, you have to worry about locational damage and keep track of things like coolant, oil pressure, losing this weapon or that system, conserving ammo, etc. You gotta make more cash than I do... Jeez.
Expert Man even said he'd be leaving it set on medium.
touche'
So, how many sysadmins do you know that would be good riot cops?
That's a very valid statement; I stand corrected. This is one sysadmin that won't be working anywhere near riots.
Although if you offered
unlimited Mountain Dew and
dates with actual living girls,
I'll bet you'd have plenty of volunteers from said sys admins.
;)
I was only thinking--as I'm sure was Michael's_A_Jerk--that getting Internet working (sooner than cooperative civilization) is frivolous, bordering on insulting, but there's no rule dictating the sysadmin has to wait until the military has the important stuff done.
Point taken. You're right.