Gabe Newell of Valve Software (Makers of the Half-Life series, Portal, Counter-Strike, etc.) has said in an interview that they have spoken to Apple several times about getting their games on the Mac platform. Apparently, each time they're approached by Apple, Valve tells Apple what they'd like Apple to do, and each time Apple doesn't do it. Apple wouldn't say no to having games developed for the Mac or iPhone, but I just can't see them trying to cater to game developers. They've never done it before, despite ample opportunity.
If the no-fly list weren't a joke (and sadly, it is) then I would hope that people dressed like pilots get more scrutiny than other people. People dressed in a uniform are often given no scrutiny in places where plainclothes would get questions. If people dressed as pilots can get through security without any fuss, then you can rest assured that someone who wants to do harm will dress as a pilot.
So... you're most worried about Microsoft, and not say... Nazi Germany? Stalinist Russia? The Apartheid? Rockefeller's control of the oil industry? Or are they okay because they're problems that have already been solved in real life?
I not really angry, you just have some interesting priorities.
People running SETI@home have asked and asked about versions with various processor optimizations, or versions that use GPUs, which are very much suited to lots of parallel operations. The SETI@home team answer is that they won't release versions that use specific optimizations for specific hardware because they're worried about the integrity of the results - They want people to be running as nearly the same client as possible.
Given that it's very easy to double-check a given piece of data if there's any question about it, it always made me angry that the SETI team seemed to prefer laziness to getting far more out of their clients. I'm glad the Folding@Home team isn't making the same mistake.
What you're describing is a situation that is functionally no different from a representative government, only you're voting with money instead of ballots.
I'm proud of these guys. Sure, it took 'em ten years, but they've made an OS from scratch that runs applications made for another OS. It's not an easy task. Just ask the GNU guys, or the Linux guys, or the Wine guys, or the ReactOS guys.
Even if you don't see the utility of having a DOS clone, there are those who do, and I'll bet they're happy.
Netzero offers a free service for people willing to be connected to dialup less than 10 hours a month. I find it very useful for checking my email when I'm on the road.
I've been reading The Old New Thing for a few months now. It's a blog written by a guy at Microsoft (I don't know what department), and among the things he writes about is why windows sometimes works in unexpected ways.
Yeah, Windows has lots of bugs. But some of those bugs can't be fixed, because certain major programs rely on those bugs. When you fix the bugs, you break the programs. Almost every bug fix windows gets these days is accompanied by a program breaking. MS has to try and decide whether enough users are affected by the bug to make the fix worthwhile.
MS has been pussyfooting it about breaking programs in the past, and I'm glad MS finally bit the bullet with SP2 and broke all those programs in the name of security. It was high time. Of course, it means I have to keep a second PC around for some older games, but hey, that's life.
The people editing these video aren't trying to sell them as unaltered works, or even trying to take away the prestige of the movie houses or directors. They're simply playing to a market that makes them some money. Saying that if a video has offensive content, "then you shouldn't watch it" is exactly what this company is doing. They're allowing people not to watch the parts they don't want. I say bravo to them.
Slashdot Mirror
> The humanities, at least the way I teach them...
News flash: Humanities teacher thinks more students should take Humanities courses. Details at 11.
The UK has a different connotation for anti-social than does the US, and in UK law, the term has very specific meanings.
The color wheel isn't audible on DLP displays because it's drowned out by the large fan needed to cool the lamp.
Raymond Chen (well known Microsoft blogger) linked to Joel on Software today about Why the MS Office file formats are so complicated
Gabe Newell of Valve Software (Makers of the Half-Life series, Portal, Counter-Strike, etc.) has said in an interview that they have spoken to Apple several times about getting their games on the Mac platform. Apparently, each time they're approached by Apple, Valve tells Apple what they'd like Apple to do, and each time Apple doesn't do it. Apple wouldn't say no to having games developed for the Mac or iPhone, but I just can't see them trying to cater to game developers. They've never done it before, despite ample opportunity.
If the no-fly list weren't a joke (and sadly, it is) then I would hope that people dressed like pilots get more scrutiny than other people. People dressed in a uniform are often given no scrutiny in places where plainclothes would get questions. If people dressed as pilots can get through security without any fuss, then you can rest assured that someone who wants to do harm will dress as a pilot.
The number one export of Japan continues to be "Crazy Sh*t".
So... you're most worried about Microsoft, and not say... Nazi Germany? Stalinist Russia? The Apartheid? Rockefeller's control of the oil industry? Or are they okay because they're problems that have already been solved in real life? I not really angry, you just have some interesting priorities.
Will Wright! Please pee on us!
Notebook drives currently cost as little as about $50:80GB, or $6.50:GB, which is a good size for a mobile device, and almost the largest available.
Your math is off by a factor of ten. $50 for 80GB is a whopping $0.63 per GB. Let's see SSD touch that by 2010.
...and as of right now, Google Maps still works.
You mentioned that you are a console gamer, but pretty much all my best experiences are on PC games. To that extent, my favorites are:
1) Grim Fandango
2) Half Life
3) Half Life 2
4) Psychonauts
5) ZZT
Oh, I didn't know that. That's what I get for not looking at SETI@home for a long time. BOINC client you say? I'll have to check that out.
People running SETI@home have asked and asked about versions with various processor optimizations, or versions that use GPUs, which are very much suited to lots of parallel operations. The SETI@home team answer is that they won't release versions that use specific optimizations for specific hardware because they're worried about the integrity of the results - They want people to be running as nearly the same client as possible. Given that it's very easy to double-check a given piece of data if there's any question about it, it always made me angry that the SETI team seemed to prefer laziness to getting far more out of their clients. I'm glad the Folding@Home team isn't making the same mistake.
What you're describing is a situation that is functionally no different from a representative government, only you're voting with money instead of ballots.
I'm proud of these guys. Sure, it took 'em ten years, but they've made an OS from scratch that runs applications made for another OS. It's not an easy task. Just ask the GNU guys, or the Linux guys, or the Wine guys, or the ReactOS guys. Even if you don't see the utility of having a DOS clone, there are those who do, and I'll bet they're happy.
Netzero offers a free service for people willing to be connected to dialup less than 10 hours a month. I find it very useful for checking my email when I'm on the road.
I've been reading The Old New Thing for a few months now. It's a blog written by a guy at Microsoft (I don't know what department), and among the things he writes about is why windows sometimes works in unexpected ways.
Yeah, Windows has lots of bugs. But some of those bugs can't be fixed, because certain major programs rely on those bugs . When you fix the bugs, you break the programs. Almost every bug fix windows gets these days is accompanied by a program breaking. MS has to try and decide whether enough users are affected by the bug to make the fix worthwhile.
MS has been pussyfooting it about breaking programs in the past, and I'm glad MS finally bit the bullet with SP2 and broke all those programs in the name of security. It was high time. Of course, it means I have to keep a second PC around for some older games, but hey, that's life.
Installed on my computer right now are:
Avast! Antivirus
OpenOffice
Ad-Aware
Audacity
Azureus
CDex
ExplorerXP
FeedReader
Gaim
Mozilla
Spybot S&D
Tweak UI
TightVNC
OpenSSL
MP3Gain
PowerMenu
All of those programs are truly free with no spyware or nag screens.
When I'm looking for new programs, I go to:
TinyApps.org
Pricelessware
SourceForge
In that order.
The people editing these video aren't trying to sell them as unaltered works, or even trying to take away the prestige of the movie houses or directors. They're simply playing to a market that makes them some money. Saying that if a video has offensive content, "then you shouldn't watch it" is exactly what this company is doing. They're allowing people not to watch the parts they don't want. I say bravo to them.