How did Rush Limbaugh not make the list? I mean, he bashes Clinton for smoking weed back in college, yet at the same time, he's addicted to "Hillbilly Heroin".
Beg to differ, Slappy. I'd never heard of the DNRC before you mentioned it. And to satisfy Slashdot's "every post must mention Linux" requirement, I use dailystrips on my Linux box to download Dilbert et cetera for me.
Wow, I'm really impressed. I'd never considered using the DMCA, but I can't fault your logic. Considering that the dollar amount spent on anti-spam software is easily calculable, it's a no-brainer to show concrete monetary damages as a direct result of the spammers' circumvention tactics.
Better still, a lawsuit based on the DMCA will force the court to examine the law itself. The defendants will face a US$500,000 fine and (more importantly) five years in the pokey. With the paper trail so clearly documented (server logs, et cetera), the best legal manuever would be to argue that the DMCA itself is invalid/unconstitutional. We win either way.
Someone get spamhaus on the phone, I think we've got something here.
They don't know how to use a computer, yet they're the ones making the technological decisions. Furthermore, they're more afraid of looking dumb once than of wallowing in ignorance forever. Finally, who the hell's paying this $50 an hour to teach "Intro to Computers" to the CEO? Let me guess? The company?
Funny story, and by "funny", I mean not funny at all. A friend of mine (we'll call him Dude) was the IT guy for a company that made one of those usb-drive-on-a-keychain things. Bleeding edge tech, right? The CEO called Dude daily to have him "fix" his laptop. And by "fix", I mean "open a new Word doc", "click Send/Receive in Outlook", and "Open browser window". One day, after three months of this, the CEO called Dude and started screaming at him about "why doesn't my computer ever work and why can't you just fix it". Dude reported to the CEO's office and was greeted with more top-volume abuse in front of several staff members. When Dude pointed out that the CEO couldn't get online because hadn't plugged in the network cable (in a less-than-polite tone), he was immediately fired.
I don't actually expect that my company's CEO should know how to configure a Linux box, but he better have an understanding of why we support Linux and not AIX, and what would be involved in porting the software from *nix to Windows BEFORE he orders us to do so.
The MPAA filed suit against Universal Studios and its parent company Vivendi Entertainment today for film piracy. The details of the suit allege that Universal illegally copied the Universal film "Lord of the Rings: The Return of The King" and distributed it to members of the Acadamy of Motion Pictures as a promotional tool. The MPAA has repeatedly claimed that the distribution of promotional copies of Oscar-eligible feature films is a major source of piracy. "Distributing these films is morally equivalent to selling the ingredients for crystal meth.", said an MPAA spokesman, "The studios know the films will be copied illegally, and they don't care what happens as long as they get their Oscar votes."
In other news, the online humor magazine "The Onion" ceased production today. Editor-in-Chief Carol Kolb said "We just can't come up with anything weird enough anymore. Reality keeps beating us."
Beg to differ. Frys only redeeming attribute is that they've got everything. You can buy a SCSI cable AND a cd player AND the new Harry Potter book. The downside is that there's a 50/50 chance that cd player is broken, the staff not only don't know what a SCSI cable is but will lie to you to get rid of you ("Uh, scuzzy cables, uh, they're by the cds." "Really? Because I can see them right behind you.")
If you've been going to the Sunnyvale Fry's (aka Nerdstroms), you can save time, hassle, and even money. About 4 blocks away, there's a place called Action Computer that has every kind of cable you need, as well as hard drives, laptops, and all the usual PC hardware, frequently cheaper than Fry's. And here's the kicker: the staff know what they're doing. They are helpful, friendly, and also have a good return policy. And no, I don't work for them. I just give them a lot of my money every month.
Now, if you don't live in Silicon Valley, my point remains. In many cities, especially college towns, there's a grungy storefront in a strip mall with an unlikely name like Zero-Gee Electronics, or Servo Systems or something. That's the place to go for your hardware. They may not have an espresso bar, but they'll know what kind of fan you need for an Alienware case.
As a matter of fact, some helpful soul has posted a list of these places here
Last year on the way to Comic Con San Diego, the guy sitting next to me had a pre-release Sidekick. I asked him about it, as it was the coolest PDA I'd ever seen. He gave me a quick demo, and I spent the next 90 minutes pestering him with questions. I've been watching the product closely ever since, but still haven't traded in my VisorPhone. As long as my existing phone works, I'd need a pretty compelling reason to upgrade.
For those of you who bought the original Sidekick, I have a few questions:
Danger claim unlimited data for one year. What happens after one year? How much does data cost then? I don't want to suddenly find out that it costs me $2 to look up a map online.
How is coverage now? I've heard mixed reviews, including one poor sod who couldn't get coverage in downtown San Francisco. How is T-Mobile's coverage now? How is coverage outside urban areas? The last thing I want is a cell phone that doesn't work when I leave home.
One major reason I'd been holding off on the Sidekick is the lack of third-party applications (Vindigo kicks ass, yo). The Sidekick SDK was finally released in March. Has anyone used it? Is it any good? Are applications being developed and released? How about installation? How do you install apps if you can't sync with a PC?
You win. Uh, you might want to discuss it with Wil first. I think he covered this on his web site. Either way, I'm pretty sure he has a strong opinion on the subject.
I'll take it all as a compliment. I'm spending time on it because I'm polishing a perl script today. There are 10 minute stretches while I wait for it to get to the interesting part where I have nothing to do but watch a logfile tail, so today, I have the time.
As far as passion, I find myself in a strange situation. See, I'm not a Star Trek fan (gasp). I had a roommate who was really into it, so I know a lot about it, and I find the subculture itself fascinating. As far as the actual shows, I raise my voice in a heartfelt "Meh."
I, like so many others, originally went to WWDN to mock. After ten minutes of reading, I found that Wil was not a generic washed-up child actor, but an intelligent, articulate individual who really knows how to write. A few months later, I went to my first Star Trek convention where I got to meet him. Back in my DJ days, I met a lot of Rock Stars. I can honestly say that Wil Wheaton is one of the coolest, most down-to-earth celebrities I've ever met. It's between him and Dave Grohl for the top billing in my book. I wish more people in the public eye would take their cues from Wil Wheaton.
And no, I'm nerdy as all get out, but I'm no Ubergeek. I'm Just Another Perl Hacker. Wow, that was a pretty geeky reference. Maybe it's true...
Re:JUST a Geek? Try Ubergeek.
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Being a TV actor has nothing to do with being a geek (except maybe negatively). No, but being directly involved with the production of Star Trek adds geek points.
Coding and maintaining a website does not provide any geek status anymore.
Actually, it does. Sure, anyone with the desire can create a website, but writing the code yourself using php instead of Front Page puts you far ahead of 90% of the personal sites on the web. Keep in mind that 90% of humanity still see computers as scary boxes, and writing any sort of code as advanced wizardry.
being a blogger of any sort is a count against geekness Again, no. Sure, anyone who wants to can do a blog, but it's the wanting to that adds a few points. See above.
Free speech is good, but unrelated to geekness. Agree, Free Speech is not limited to geeks, but it has always been a major facet of geek culture.
Again, being on TV doesn't related to geekness
Agree in general, but guesting on and guest-hosting "The Screen Savers" implies a level of technological sophistication. Being on TSS and ST:TNG aren't like being on "Charles In Charge".
Let's try another comparison: Wheaton vs Shatner.
Both were on Star Trek. To avoid 30 responses about the relative importance of the actors to the Trek universe, let's just say both were on the show and call it even.
Both have websites and blogs. Wheaton codes his from scratch using php, does all the design and content himself, and plays a certain role in the daily maintainance of the server itself. Shatner pays someone. Geekvantage: Wheaton.
I'd assume that Shatner has a PC. I have no idea what it runs, but I'd guess Windows. Wheaton proudly runs Linux. Geekvantage: Wheaton.
Wheaton worked on the Video Toaster. Shatner worked on TJ Hooker. Maybe Wil didn't lead a Dev team, but Shatner's never done anything more technological than shout "Phasers on stun!" Geekvantage: Wheaton.
Wheaton posts on Slashdot. Unless Shatner lurks, I seriously doubt he's reading this. Geekvantage: Wheaton.
Wheaton hosted Arena and guest-hosted The Screen Savers. Shatner hosted Iron Chef. Geekvantage: Wheaton.
Wheaton plays D&D, Illuminati, Grand Theft Auto, and collects vintage Atari 2600 games. Shatner did William Shatner's Splat Attack. Shatner's involvement in gaming consists of doing voices for Star Trek games and cashing the check. Check out his filmography and search for "VG". Geekvantage: Wheaton.
Final Summation: Wheaton
OK, I'll grant you that Wil's no Linus Torvalds, Richard Stallman, or Steve Wozniak, but he's no newbie either. I'd stack him up next to Neal Stevenson or Bruce Sterling on geek points. And if you wanted to put someone on Crossfire to represent geek culture as a whole, who better?
Finally, here's Wil Wheaton's geek code, pulled off his web site. You be the judge.
You've totally lost me. I'm assuming you meant to say "cater TO the Furries", although "cater the Furries" evokes some bizzare and humorous mental images. Is there some connotation to the term "Ubergeek" that I'm unaware of?
JUST a Geek? Try Ubergeek.
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At this point, Mr. Wheaton has become THE Geek. He has some of the strongest geek credentials in the subculture. Let's do the list:
Crewmember on the USS Enterprise
Codes and maintains his own website
Uses Linux instead of Windows on his home machines
What more can you ask for? Seems to me that Wil Wheaton has become the shining star of Geek Culture, the Ubergeek. He's both articulate and telegenic, and has a deep understanding of technology's role in society. Should Wil Wheaton decide to run for office, I'd vote for him in a minute.
Retransmitting a TV signal within your office so it can be viewed on multiple TVs and monitors? Between the TOS of your cable provider, the MPAA, the RIAA, and the DMCA, I'm pretty sure that's illegal. Unless you want to get sued for a few billion dollars, I'd get with a lawyer first.
Funny you should mention Mr. Wheaton. When I saw that Tobey McGuire might not be able to do Spiderman 2 because of a back injury, I immediately thought of Wil.
Think about it:
Wil Wheaton is the only male cast member from ST:TNG who could still wear a lycra suit without a corset.
SOMEONE who posts on/. should get a chance to nail Kirsten Dunst. It's only fair.
And when you think about it, Wil has far stronger geek credibility than Tobey, especially now. Eventually, someone is going to realize that they can cash in on his cult following, and give him a leading role in a major film. Who knows? Are they casting Prince Namor: The Movie yet?
How is this movie underappreciated? The IMDB has it at 8/10. It was nominated for three Oscars, 4 Golden Globes, and a whole bunch more awards. OK, maybe it didn't win, but it did great, especially for a first feature. It's a stunning movie, but underappreciated?
[Where are] the cars that can drive themselves, and let me read a book on the way to work.
It's called "the bus". In some places, there's a variation called "the train" or "the subway". Amazing, for only a dollar or two, you can ride to a "station" close to your destination, and let someone else do the driving. There are also "seats" where you can sit down and do whatever you like to pass the time: read, doze, look out the window, chat with friends, whatever.
And as for your suggestion about an AI Lawyer, have you ever read ANY science fiction? Would you trust your life to MS Lawyer 1.0?
While I can't do anything about Mom's email problem ("It doesn't work") until I'm home for Festivus, I have cut down on external tech support (non-techie freinds). When they ask me to fix something, I simply ask what's in it for me? It's a quid pro quo situation like any other.
If you want me to help you move, I expect to be fed every few hours, and have continuous beverage service throughout. Help put up rain gutters? Same deal. Airport pickup? Dinner on the way back. Fix your computer? Whatchoo got? There's a social contract here, it's simply good manners to compensate people for their time and effort.
A freind of mine is the computer guru for a rural school district and community learning center. As such, he is beseiged with requests for extra-curricular tech support. Sometimes he accepts these requests, and when he does, it is simply understood that there will be a big jar of dried salmon (the local non-cash currency) for him as a thank you. To NOT offer at least a token thank you gift would be unthinkable.
When my music industry pals want tech support, they send cds, concert tickets, and other cool swag. When I help Suzie Homemaker, they send cookies. Now, if you'll excuse me, the "dancer" in the apartment next door can't figure out how to hook up her new printer.
It's a Cost of Living issue. $40K in Rdwood City, CA is like $26K in Tennessee. Worse, because of housing cost: $1000 a month gets you a crackerbox here, but $500 a month can get you a pretty nice place in Chattanooga. Oh, and you drive more here. A 20 mile commute is pretty good, and 60 is common. Multiply that by $2.25 a gallon for gas, and you'll find that $40K a year + SFBay = Top Ramen twice a week.
BTW, I hear you on the unemployment phone issue. I had to do that a few years back, and it sucked BIG rocks... for an $83 a week check.
OK, Let me spell it out for you. As a tester, you are responsible for far more than just playing the game a lot. It starts with writing a test plan, a complex document detailing all the game features and exactly how they'll be tested. How much damage does a direct hit with a rocket do? How much damage do you suffer from a rocket jump? How will you determine that that is what happens? Repeat this for every element of the game from simple movement to pull-down menus to the API for creating levels.
Next, each tester is given some very specific areas to test. Say you do weapons. You'll have to test the functionality of each weapon: standard, skinned, when used in adrenaline mode, how fast the weapon switch happens, and a thousand other things in a thousand combinations. Did I mention that you have to test this for every single supported platform? Let's do the list: Windows 98, NT, 2000, ME, XP, X-box, Gamecube, Playstation, Mac, and Linux.
Testing each area isn't a once-through, either. Suppose something doesn't work right (and it won't). You get to note the specific system configuration (OS, build number, video config, controller, and all game options), then try to replicate the bug so you can give a list of specific steps to take that will make the bug occur every single time. A bug report that says "I can't pick up the rocket launcher sometimes" is useless unless you can show the developer how to make it happen every time. Translated: repeat the same exact motions with minor variations until you home in on exactly what's wrong.
Let's keep in mind that you don't just "play the game". You exercise your specific area of game play several hours a day for several months. By the time the game ships, you'll never want to play it again.
Now let's address the business side: you're working for a software company post-boom. You are understaffed, under-funded, and all devlopment times are reduced. If you don't get everything finished by Halloween, your game won't be in the stores for Christmas. Trust me: October is going to be hell. You like playing videogames? Now do it 16 hours a day, 7 days a week for a month.
By the way, $40,000 is peanuts in Silicon Valley. Get ready to drive an hour from Redwood City to Fremont because that's the closest apartment under $1000 a month. Yeah, I know the map says 28 minutes. They're lying.
Finally. You shipped. The code went gold, the cds all went to press, and the game is in the store. No Thanksgiving for you, though. Every kid in America bought a copy of your game and is trying it out on their uniquely configured system. You get to replicate the hundreds of bug reports filed by pissed-off 13-year-olds (and boy will they be polite and well-thought-out. Think "My game doesn't work! You fags suck dick!" and other bon mots) so a patch can be available on the web site for Christmas morning.
Game testing is difficult, time-consuming, highly-skilled work, and the testers are sorely underpaid and have zero job security. If you think it's easy, I encourage you to try to get a job as a game tester. Assuming you can even land a gig, you'll run away screaming in a month.
Here's a thought: what happens with the pets? My cat roams around the house all day and all night, jumping up on counters, bookshelves, couches, etc. I foresee Mulder triggering automatic settings, accidentally turning the stereo on, then racing to the other end of the house, terrified at the noise.
Doesn't anyone remember DOG GONE MODERN, the Warner Brothers' cartoon where two dogs wander into the "Home of Tomorrow"?
Morover, if there's a biometic lock on the door, what kinds of easter eggs might the DoJ require in order to "combat terrorism"? Perhaps the doors automatically lock if anyone with an arrest warrant is detected on the premises? Chemical sensors alert the police if marijuana smoke is detected? Your health insurance provider is alerted if tobacco smoke is detected? If too much fatty food is prepared in the kitchen, another alert goes to your health insurance provider?
And here'a a thought about MS Toilet(tm): what's to stop them from building in a urinalysis kit and reporting the results to your employer, the police, or whoever else is interested? "Hi Bob, this is Fred at State Farm. I notice that since your 15-year-old daughter became pregnant, you've started drinking a lot. Now, I realize this is a trying time for you, but we're going to have to raise your rates in order to offset the added risk. By the way, we notice that your son has been flushing a lot of condoms in the past month, but we aren't detecting any estrogen in the urine passed around those flushes. Also, we detected several different DNA matches on the semen in those condoms. Would you like to see a list?"
I post on various boards under various names, but I'm not sure how many of my posts I want my employer to read. I'm pretty OK with a manager or potential manager noting my XP on perlmonks. I'm less sure about my slashdot postings, do I really want a manager to know how much I loathe irix? Would an anti-MS rant from 1999 scuttle my chances at a job writing Winamp plugins in 2005? Lastly, I'm damn sure I don't want any manager to see my ranting on marijuana legalization on likeimgonnatellyouwhere.com.
I'm also curious about how you'd put this on a resume. Add "And I post on perlmonks.com under the name camelfucker" to the contact section? Add your XP or Karma to qualifications? If I was an HR Manager and wasn't familiar with Slashcode and the sites that run it, it would be far too easy to think it was a high score. Seems to me that unless the board you reference is very specific to your profession, you should keep it to yourself.
Back in the day, I used visit Seattle a couple of times a month. I'd stay at a freind's house in Queen Anne. Every Saturday, we'd walk down to the Seattle Center (4 blocks), and catch the monorail to downtown. It was cheaper than driving, we didn't have to pay parking, and I always enjoyed the quasi-futuristic trip. Once my freind moved out to the suburbs, we still took the rail. We'd park at the Seattle Center (cheap!) and rail into downtown.
Unlike bus trips, it was ALWAYS enjoyable. I remember giving up my seat up front so a 6-year-old could get that fabulous view, and I'm a cynical prick. Another time, there was a rookie driver who had trouble lining the doors up with the platform at Westlake Center. The passengers guided him in ("Back!" "Forward a little!" "Now back!" "Got it!!! Yay!" Followed by applause.). It has ALWAYS been a fun trip. Compare that with any bus ride you've ever taken.
Simpsons references aside, I always felt that expanding the monorail would be a good idea. It would make it a working part of a larger mass-transit system, and give Seattle yet another mark of distiction.
Sadly, I'm in Silicon Valley, where mass transit is a bad joke. This benefits me not.
I started by sending letters to every business that sends me anything on a regular basis. Everyone: Visa, AT&T, Sysadmin Magazine, everyone. Here is a form letter you can download. Whenever I get a call, I immediately ask for the supervisor, get their full name, and request to be taken off the list. It's been a long battle, but the number of calls I get has dropped dramatically.
When Direct TV called to sell me a receiver, I took the next step, and called the company. They claimed that it was a reseller, and that they couldn't control it. I responded with "You mean you can't exercise any quality control over the people who actually sell your product? As in if one of them rips me off, I have no recourse?" The next step was to write them a letter telling them that I'll never subscribe to Direct TV because of their use of telemarketers, and their earlier statement that they can't control their resellers.
One wrinkle was that someone named Tania has given out my phone number as her own. I've had to deal with all those calls one at a time.
2) Fuck with them. I say "just a minute", and put the phone down. Every minute or two, I pick it up and ask if they're still there. The advantage here is that it wastes their time, and costs the company money. My record is 5 iterations. I figure I cost the company $0.42 (5 minutes wasted at $5 an hour), plus long distance. It's not much, but if everyone did this, we could significantly raise their operating cost.
When I'm feeling particulaly evil, I'll put the phone next to the speaker of my PC and let them listen to me playing Unreal, or whatever mp3 is on.
Oh good. See, I tend to spend a lot of money on music, usually more than I can afford. There's a reason the staff at my favorite record store know me by name. Now that I'm limited to only ten songs a month, I can only spend a maximum of $10 a month on music! Oh happy day! Me, I'm amazed that Warners can survive on such a small fraction of their former gross income, but I'm glad they're being honest about their real cost of doing business.
Slashdot Mirror
Better still, a lawsuit based on the DMCA will force the court to examine the law itself. The defendants will face a US$500,000 fine and (more importantly) five years in the pokey. With the paper trail so clearly documented (server logs, et cetera), the best legal manuever would be to argue that the DMCA itself is invalid/unconstitutional. We win either way.
Someone get spamhaus on the phone, I think we've got something here.
Funny story, and by "funny", I mean not funny at all. A friend of mine (we'll call him Dude) was the IT guy for a company that made one of those usb-drive-on-a-keychain things. Bleeding edge tech, right? The CEO called Dude daily to have him "fix" his laptop. And by "fix", I mean "open a new Word doc", "click Send/Receive in Outlook", and "Open browser window". One day, after three months of this, the CEO called Dude and started screaming at him about "why doesn't my computer ever work and why can't you just fix it". Dude reported to the CEO's office and was greeted with more top-volume abuse in front of several staff members. When Dude pointed out that the CEO couldn't get online because hadn't plugged in the network cable (in a less-than-polite tone), he was immediately fired.
I don't actually expect that my company's CEO should know how to configure a Linux box, but he better have an understanding of why we support Linux and not AIX, and what would be involved in porting the software from *nix to Windows BEFORE he orders us to do so.
The MPAA filed suit against Universal Studios and its parent company Vivendi Entertainment today for film piracy. The details of the suit allege that Universal illegally copied the Universal film "Lord of the Rings: The Return of The King" and distributed it to members of the Acadamy of Motion Pictures as a promotional tool. The MPAA has repeatedly claimed that the distribution of promotional copies of Oscar-eligible feature films is a major source of piracy. "Distributing these films is morally equivalent to selling the ingredients for crystal meth.", said an MPAA spokesman, "The studios know the films will be copied illegally, and they don't care what happens as long as they get their Oscar votes."
In other news, the online humor magazine "The Onion" ceased production today. Editor-in-Chief Carol Kolb said "We just can't come up with anything weird enough anymore. Reality keeps beating us."
If you've been going to the Sunnyvale Fry's (aka Nerdstroms), you can save time, hassle, and even money. About 4 blocks away, there's a place called Action Computer that has every kind of cable you need, as well as hard drives, laptops, and all the usual PC hardware, frequently cheaper than Fry's. And here's the kicker: the staff know what they're doing. They are helpful, friendly, and also have a good return policy. And no, I don't work for them. I just give them a lot of my money every month.
Now, if you don't live in Silicon Valley, my point remains. In many cities, especially college towns, there's a grungy storefront in a strip mall with an unlikely name like Zero-Gee Electronics, or Servo Systems or something. That's the place to go for your hardware. They may not have an espresso bar, but they'll know what kind of fan you need for an Alienware case.
As a matter of fact, some helpful soul has posted a list of these places here
For those of you who bought the original Sidekick, I have a few questions:
As far as passion, I find myself in a strange situation. See, I'm not a Star Trek fan (gasp). I had a roommate who was really into it, so I know a lot about it, and I find the subculture itself fascinating. As far as the actual shows, I raise my voice in a heartfelt "Meh."
I, like so many others, originally went to WWDN to mock. After ten minutes of reading, I found that Wil was not a generic washed-up child actor, but an intelligent, articulate individual who really knows how to write. A few months later, I went to my first Star Trek convention where I got to meet him. Back in my DJ days, I met a lot of Rock Stars. I can honestly say that Wil Wheaton is one of the coolest, most down-to-earth celebrities I've ever met. It's between him and Dave Grohl for the top billing in my book. I wish more people in the public eye would take their cues from Wil Wheaton.
And no, I'm nerdy as all get out, but I'm no Ubergeek. I'm Just Another Perl Hacker. Wow, that was a pretty geeky reference. Maybe it's true...
No, but being directly involved with the production of Star Trek adds geek points.
Coding and maintaining a website does not provide any geek status anymore.
Actually, it does. Sure, anyone with the desire can create a website, but writing the code yourself using php instead of Front Page puts you far ahead of 90% of the personal sites on the web. Keep in mind that 90% of humanity still see computers as scary boxes, and writing any sort of code as advanced wizardry.
being a blogger of any sort is a count against geekness
Again, no. Sure, anyone who wants to can do a blog, but it's the wanting to that adds a few points. See above.
Free speech is good, but unrelated to geekness.
Agree, Free Speech is not limited to geeks, but it has always been a major facet of geek culture.
Again, being on TV doesn't related to geekness
Agree in general, but guesting on and guest-hosting "The Screen Savers" implies a level of technological sophistication. Being on TSS and ST:TNG aren't like being on "Charles In Charge".
Let's try another comparison: Wheaton vs Shatner.
Both were on Star Trek. To avoid 30 responses about the relative importance of the actors to the Trek universe, let's just say both were on the show and call it even.
Both have websites and blogs. Wheaton codes his from scratch using php, does all the design and content himself, and plays a certain role in the daily maintainance of the server itself. Shatner pays someone. Geekvantage: Wheaton.
I'd assume that Shatner has a PC. I have no idea what it runs, but I'd guess Windows. Wheaton proudly runs Linux. Geekvantage: Wheaton.
Wheaton worked on the Video Toaster. Shatner worked on TJ Hooker. Maybe Wil didn't lead a Dev team, but Shatner's never done anything more technological than shout "Phasers on stun!" Geekvantage: Wheaton.
Wheaton posts on Slashdot. Unless Shatner lurks, I seriously doubt he's reading this. Geekvantage: Wheaton.
Wheaton hosted Arena and guest-hosted The Screen Savers. Shatner hosted Iron Chef. Geekvantage: Wheaton.
Wheaton plays D&D, Illuminati, Grand Theft Auto, and collects vintage Atari 2600 games. Shatner did William Shatner's Splat Attack. Shatner's involvement in gaming consists of doing voices for Star Trek games and cashing the check. Check out his filmography and search for "VG". Geekvantage: Wheaton.
Final Summation: Wheaton
OK, I'll grant you that Wil's no Linus Torvalds, Richard Stallman, or Steve Wozniak, but he's no newbie either. I'd stack him up next to Neal Stevenson or Bruce Sterling on geek points. And if you wanted to put someone on Crossfire to represent geek culture as a whole, who better?
Finally, here's Wil Wheaton's geek code, pulled off his web site. You be the judge.
You've totally lost me. I'm assuming you meant to say "cater TO the Furries", although "cater the Furries" evokes some bizzare and humorous mental images. Is there some connotation to the term "Ubergeek" that I'm unaware of?
- Crewmember on the USS Enterprise
- Codes and maintains his own website
- Uses Linux instead of Windows on his home machines
- Worked on the Video Toaster
- Obsessive blogger
- Posts on Slashdot
- Free Speech activist
- Frequent (but not frequent enough) guest and sometimes guest host of The Screen Savers
- Host of Arena on G4
- Gamer, both video and role-playing
What more can you ask for? Seems to me that Wil Wheaton has become the shining star of Geek Culture, the Ubergeek. He's both articulate and telegenic, and has a deep understanding of technology's role in society. Should Wil Wheaton decide to run for office, I'd vote for him in a minute.- Here's Mr. McGuire. And here's Mr. Wheaton. Fair resemblence, eh?
- Both actors are about 30, but can easily play 20.
- Wil Wheaton is the only male cast member from ST:TNG who could still wear a lycra suit without a corset.
- SOMEONE who posts on
/. should get a chance to nail Kirsten Dunst. It's only fair.
And when you think about it, Wil has far stronger geek credibility than Tobey, especially now. Eventually, someone is going to realize that they can cash in on his cult following, and give him a leading role in a major film. Who knows? Are they casting Prince Namor: The Movie yet?How is this movie underappreciated? The IMDB has it at 8/10. It was nominated for three Oscars, 4 Golden Globes, and a whole bunch more awards. OK, maybe it didn't win, but it did great, especially for a first feature. It's a stunning movie, but underappreciated?
It's called "the bus". In some places, there's a variation called "the train" or "the subway". Amazing, for only a dollar or two, you can ride to a "station" close to your destination, and let someone else do the driving. There are also "seats" where you can sit down and do whatever you like to pass the time: read, doze, look out the window, chat with friends, whatever.
And as for your suggestion about an AI Lawyer, have you ever read ANY science fiction? Would you trust your life to MS Lawyer 1.0?
If you want me to help you move, I expect to be fed every few hours, and have continuous beverage service throughout. Help put up rain gutters? Same deal. Airport pickup? Dinner on the way back. Fix your computer? Whatchoo got? There's a social contract here, it's simply good manners to compensate people for their time and effort.
A freind of mine is the computer guru for a rural school district and community learning center. As such, he is beseiged with requests for extra-curricular tech support. Sometimes he accepts these requests, and when he does, it is simply understood that there will be a big jar of dried salmon (the local non-cash currency) for him as a thank you. To NOT offer at least a token thank you gift would be unthinkable.
When my music industry pals want tech support, they send cds, concert tickets, and other cool swag. When I help Suzie Homemaker, they send cookies. Now, if you'll excuse me, the "dancer" in the apartment next door can't figure out how to hook up her new printer.
BTW, I hear you on the unemployment phone issue. I had to do that a few years back, and it sucked BIG rocks... for an $83 a week check.
Next, each tester is given some very specific areas to test. Say you do weapons. You'll have to test the functionality of each weapon: standard, skinned, when used in adrenaline mode, how fast the weapon switch happens, and a thousand other things in a thousand combinations. Did I mention that you have to test this for every single supported platform? Let's do the list: Windows 98, NT, 2000, ME, XP, X-box, Gamecube, Playstation, Mac, and Linux.
Testing each area isn't a once-through, either. Suppose something doesn't work right (and it won't). You get to note the specific system configuration (OS, build number, video config, controller, and all game options), then try to replicate the bug so you can give a list of specific steps to take that will make the bug occur every single time. A bug report that says "I can't pick up the rocket launcher sometimes" is useless unless you can show the developer how to make it happen every time. Translated: repeat the same exact motions with minor variations until you home in on exactly what's wrong.
Let's keep in mind that you don't just "play the game". You exercise your specific area of game play several hours a day for several months. By the time the game ships, you'll never want to play it again.
Now let's address the business side: you're working for a software company post-boom. You are understaffed, under-funded, and all devlopment times are reduced. If you don't get everything finished by Halloween, your game won't be in the stores for Christmas. Trust me: October is going to be hell. You like playing videogames? Now do it 16 hours a day, 7 days a week for a month.
By the way, $40,000 is peanuts in Silicon Valley. Get ready to drive an hour from Redwood City to Fremont because that's the closest apartment under $1000 a month. Yeah, I know the map says 28 minutes. They're lying.
Finally. You shipped. The code went gold, the cds all went to press, and the game is in the store. No Thanksgiving for you, though. Every kid in America bought a copy of your game and is trying it out on their uniquely configured system. You get to replicate the hundreds of bug reports filed by pissed-off 13-year-olds (and boy will they be polite and well-thought-out. Think "My game doesn't work! You fags suck dick!" and other bon mots) so a patch can be available on the web site for Christmas morning.
Game testing is difficult, time-consuming, highly-skilled work, and the testers are sorely underpaid and have zero job security. If you think it's easy, I encourage you to try to get a job as a game tester. Assuming you can even land a gig, you'll run away screaming in a month.
Doesn't anyone remember DOG GONE MODERN, the Warner Brothers' cartoon where two dogs wander into the "Home of Tomorrow"?
Morover, if there's a biometic lock on the door, what kinds of easter eggs might the DoJ require in order to "combat terrorism"? Perhaps the doors automatically lock if anyone with an arrest warrant is detected on the premises? Chemical sensors alert the police if marijuana smoke is detected? Your health insurance provider is alerted if tobacco smoke is detected? If too much fatty food is prepared in the kitchen, another alert goes to your health insurance provider?
And here'a a thought about MS Toilet(tm): what's to stop them from building in a urinalysis kit and reporting the results to your employer, the police, or whoever else is interested? "Hi Bob, this is Fred at State Farm. I notice that since your 15-year-old daughter became pregnant, you've started drinking a lot. Now, I realize this is a trying time for you, but we're going to have to raise your rates in order to offset the added risk. By the way, we notice that your son has been flushing a lot of condoms in the past month, but we aren't detecting any estrogen in the urine passed around those flushes. Also, we detected several different DNA matches on the semen in those condoms. Would you like to see a list?"
I'm also curious about how you'd put this on a resume. Add "And I post on perlmonks.com under the name camelfucker" to the contact section? Add your XP or Karma to qualifications? If I was an HR Manager and wasn't familiar with Slashcode and the sites that run it, it would be far too easy to think it was a high score. Seems to me that unless the board you reference is very specific to your profession, you should keep it to yourself.
Back in the day, I used visit Seattle a couple of times a month. I'd stay at a freind's house in Queen Anne. Every Saturday, we'd walk down to the Seattle Center (4 blocks), and catch the monorail to downtown. It was cheaper than driving, we didn't have to pay parking, and I always enjoyed the quasi-futuristic trip. Once my freind moved out to the suburbs, we still took the rail. We'd park at the Seattle Center (cheap!) and rail into downtown.
Unlike bus trips, it was ALWAYS enjoyable. I remember giving up my seat up front so a 6-year-old could get that fabulous view, and I'm a cynical prick. Another time, there was a rookie driver who had trouble lining the doors up with the platform at Westlake Center. The passengers guided him in ("Back!" "Forward a little!" "Now back!" "Got it!!! Yay!" Followed by applause.). It has ALWAYS been a fun trip. Compare that with any bus ride you've ever taken.
Simpsons references aside, I always felt that expanding the monorail would be a good idea. It would make it a working part of a larger mass-transit system, and give Seattle yet another mark of distiction.
Sadly, I'm in Silicon Valley, where mass transit is a bad joke. This benefits me not.
I started by sending letters to every business that sends me anything on a regular basis. Everyone: Visa, AT&T, Sysadmin Magazine, everyone. Here is a form letter you can download. Whenever I get a call, I immediately ask for the supervisor, get their full name, and request to be taken off the list. It's been a long battle, but the number of calls I get has dropped dramatically.
When Direct TV called to sell me a receiver, I took the next step, and called the company. They claimed that it was a reseller, and that they couldn't control it. I responded with "You mean you can't exercise any quality control over the people who actually sell your product? As in if one of them rips me off, I have no recourse?" The next step was to write them a letter telling them that I'll never subscribe to Direct TV because of their use of telemarketers, and their earlier statement that they can't control their resellers.
One wrinkle was that someone named Tania has given out my phone number as her own. I've had to deal with all those calls one at a time.
2) Fuck with them. I say "just a minute", and put the phone down. Every minute or two, I pick it up and ask if they're still there. The advantage here is that it wastes their time, and costs the company money. My record is 5 iterations. I figure I cost the company $0.42 (5 minutes wasted at $5 an hour), plus long distance. It's not much, but if everyone did this, we could significantly raise their operating cost.
When I'm feeling particulaly evil, I'll put the phone next to the speaker of my PC and let them listen to me playing Unreal, or whatever mp3 is on.