Ha! Yeah that was pretty funny. Too bad NG got modded as flamebait for making a rather astute observation. Humor's in the eye of the beholder. If Linux zealots can't take the heat, maybe they should put down their stale BSOD jokes. (Or just go pick on Mac users, they like it.)
"Is it illegal to download MP3s of music that you already own? It shouldn't be, but it probably is. If it is illegal, then I should be able to get some of my old, worn-out original CDs replaced by the music company at nominal cost (like, say, $1 each or less). But I probably can't."
From what I understand (corrections invited) downloading the music isn't the illegal part (assuming you have the CD), but the providing of that file to download is the nasty issue.
I agree, with the cheap replacement bit. The RIAA can't seem to make up it's mind if you're buying plastic or licensing IP. Double Dipping?
"I can't think of a cheaper way to get a device that will play DivX/mov/whatever movies on my TV in the living room..."
It's a pity that the creation of DivX movies is legally questionable, specifically in the sense of ripping DVDs to attain them. The only reason I bring that up is that court case involving the company wanting to make DVD backup software. It's not looking good for that company. It's stupid, really. Jack Valenti thinks that making a backup of a DVD is the same as having a company replace your lawn mower if you run over it.
"It doesn't look like the old BSOD (a darker blue and smaller left-aligned text), but it's still blue and it still occurs when the system dies."
I think his point is that the system dying bit doesn't happen very often. I've had my laptop since early December, I still haven't seen a blue-screen on it. Not bad seeing as how I play games on it.
"I never quite understood the brouhaha over the cell-shading of the first one."
People tend to overweigh negatives. They saw the semi-realistic Link and were thinking "Whoah! This will be really dramatic! Maybe it'll be like Final Fantasy! Bitchin!" When they saw the cartoon version they tought "Brilliant. This'll be an adventure version of SpongeBob Squarepants."
In other words, they were more worried about losing the drama than about gaining fun. Me personally, I was excited about the cel shading after I saw the video of it. The screen shots didn't look particularly exciting. The potential was always there, though. I'm part-way through the game and I'm loving it!
"What, only Windows XP was used for the tests as well? Why not run tests also against Linux and BSD on the same hardware too? Your result will vary...
Testing just Windows is like test driving the Indy 500... driving a Pinto. You certainly won't be getting the full eXPerience."
Could be worse. He could have just tested Linux. How many extra FPS are you going to squeeze out of Tux Racer? Might as well test a speedboat in an olympic sized swimming pool. "I can drive nowhere, but I'm getting there real fast!"
Artists have a habit of calling any time-wasting activity "inspirational" and declaring that it improves their so-called "work".
Ignorant comments like that have made my life very difficult. I had one guy try to get me written up claiming that I was playing Quake at work. He didn't know the difference between Lightwave and Quake, even though Quake doesn't have a bunch of buttons labeled as tools surrounding the play area. That guy INSISTED on trying to get me fired even though I met all my deadlines and exceeded their expectations.
"It IS a measurement of distance. See the Kessel spice run entails going past a collection of blackholes and stars called the Maw."
Uh right. That's a weak explanation that spawns more questions than it answers. He was bragging about the speed of his ship, not his piloting skills. A better explanation is that Han made a non-sensical slip of the tongue. I once described my computer as having a 1.2 gigabyte processor. The other guy knew what I really meant and just shrugged it off. That type of human error never makes it to screenplays for some reason.
Besides, we all know that the 'hyperdrive' in Star Wars is barely faster than the speed of light. The reason they can cruise about the galaxy like driving on the interstate is because the Star Wars Galaxy is dramatically scaled down. It's about a 1/4th of a light-year across.
That is your opinion, don't be surprised when others disagree with you.
Actually, you should probably listen to him. *remembering some turmoil with Lik-Sang (did I get the name right?) and his modding site getting shut down with minimalistic reasons.
Modified xboxes are showing up in cars as mp3 players with a small 640x480 lcd screen. They can make nice divx players for home theater too. All this without vga out.
Can't say I've followed this topic a whole lot, but this is the first time I've heard of the mp3 dealie. Got a link or something? I'm genuinely curious as I'd like to have something like that in my car. As for divx players, NG's probably right in that it won't hold a lot of water. Divx has been associated with piracy. Fair use, yadda yadda yadda, impressions matter more than you think.
Are you giving legal advice on Slashdot? You seem to be giving legal case outcome predictions at a minimum....DVD copying and running Linux on a hacked xbox aren't the same thing.
I think what he's saying is that the court's not likely to see the consumer side of things here. Ignoring what he's saying is not doing you a lick of good. You don't have to agree with NG, but at least you should consider his point. You're dismissing him in the most frivilous ways. Just because you see things one way doesn't mean the courts will suddenly bow to your superior ways.
"Han Solo brags that he can make the Kessel run in less than 12 parsecs. This is another example of Bad Astronomy; like a light year, a parsec is a unit of distance, not time."
Maybe that's how far he had to travel to find somebody who cared.
Re:Now if it was just little faster...
on
Mozilla 1.4b Loosed
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· Score: 0, Offtopic
"Glad somebody said it. I'm surprised Opera's not more popular around here. "
I love it when moderators mod me as overrated when they don't like what I have to say.
Opera is not the mortal enemy of Mozilla. It's yet another choice for both Windows and Linux users to weaken IE's grasp on the net. It's also available on Linux PDAs. He's not saying Opera's better, he's saying Opera should be more appreciated.
"He's pushing Opera in a story about Mozilla."
Not exactly. He's pointing out that Mozilla's small update is not front-page news. I think he's even hinting at Slashdot's coverage of Mozilla as being rather propoganda-ish.
"I realy don't care anymore about its features. Its a fine browser as it is, however launching it on a Linux or Mac boxen takes long time -- compared to Opera or IE (on a Mac). I wish they could make Mozilla a little faster and lighter, than add features to it."
Glad somebody said it. I'm surprised Opera's not more popular around here. Opera's interface is much friendlier. Want to take a 'Tab' and make it in it's own window? Just drag it out. Want to magnify the page? (Not just resize the text) then use the pulldown in the upper right and pick a mag level. Want to change the order of the buttons? Drag them around. Opera's 'linked windows' makes porn browsing much much easier.
I'm not saying one's better than the other, but Opera deserves more press if Slashdot's going to announce every minor little bug that's fixed in Mozilla.
The technology to do that effect was invented before the movie camera was. They took an array of cameras and had a horse walk by them. They each took a picture in succession. When played back, the horse was walking, and the camera was following it.
So the technology wasn't invented or used by the Matrix first. Sorry.
"That Microsoft received less than a slap on the wrist isn't the issue here--they were found GUILTY."
I hate to tell you this, but the slap on the wrist they got is very much at issue. The reason they didn't get the breakup order is because it was found, IN COURT (since you're so fond of that) that MS did not illegally create a monopoly. They were guilty of illegally maintaining it, but not creating it. In other words, the market wanted them to be the leader. Once they got there, they wanted to stay on top. That's a slightly different story from the one that's commonly told around here.
Boy, that must hurt. I can see why you were trying to dodge the 'slap on the wrist' ruling. As Jim Carrey said, "It's devastating to my case!"
"But don't let the truth stop you from your kneejerk defense of ignorant behaviour."
"Or is it because of this? [playstation2-linux.com]"
I thought about that, then rejected it. You can't burn a PS2 disc to boot Linux off of. You also have to spend $200 for it and get rather limited functionality compared to a full-on distro. You have to hack the PS2 (sound familiar?) to get a free/useful Linux distro going.
The hard drive and Intel processor bit would have been a better arguement.:P
I still agree with NG, that was a publicity stunt, not some form of consumer protection. Pity his comment was modded overrated.
Slashdot Mirror
"Linux won't be very popular with the Martians. They only have 3 fingers."
Assuming that's a CLI joke, that's pretty funny!
"Then again I'm not a city so no wonder!"
Must... resist.... yo mama... joke....
"Actually.. that's pretty funny."
Ha! Yeah that was pretty funny. Too bad NG got modded as flamebait for making a rather astute observation. Humor's in the eye of the beholder. If Linux zealots can't take the heat, maybe they should put down their stale BSOD jokes. (Or just go pick on Mac users, they like it.)
"Is it illegal to download MP3s of music that you already own? It shouldn't be, but it probably is. If it is illegal, then I should be able to get some of my old, worn-out original CDs replaced by the music company at nominal cost (like, say, $1 each or less). But I probably can't."
From what I understand (corrections invited) downloading the music isn't the illegal part (assuming you have the CD), but the providing of that file to download is the nasty issue.
I agree, with the cheap replacement bit. The RIAA can't seem to make up it's mind if you're buying plastic or licensing IP. Double Dipping?
"I can't think of a cheaper way to get a device that will play DivX/mov/whatever movies on my TV in the living room..."
It's a pity that the creation of DivX movies is legally questionable, specifically in the sense of ripping DVDs to attain them. The only reason I bring that up is that court case involving the company wanting to make DVD backup software. It's not looking good for that company. It's stupid, really. Jack Valenti thinks that making a backup of a DVD is the same as having a company replace your lawn mower if you run over it.
"Plus making MS eat a little loss would feel good too. "
So you're willing to spend money to make MS lose money? Can't say I'm impressed. Personally I'd donate to the EFF.
"It doesn't look like the old BSOD (a darker blue and smaller left-aligned text), but it's still blue and it still occurs when the system dies."
I think his point is that the system dying bit doesn't happen very often. I've had my laptop since early December, I still haven't seen a blue-screen on it. Not bad seeing as how I play games on it.
"I never quite understood the brouhaha over the cell-shading of the first one."
People tend to overweigh negatives. They saw the semi-realistic Link and were thinking "Whoah! This will be really dramatic! Maybe it'll be like Final Fantasy! Bitchin!" When they saw the cartoon version they tought "Brilliant. This'll be an adventure version of SpongeBob Squarepants."
In other words, they were more worried about losing the drama than about gaining fun. Me personally, I was excited about the cel shading after I saw the video of it. The screen shots didn't look particularly exciting. The potential was always there, though. I'm part-way through the game and I'm loving it!
I think it's more likely that Lucas just didn't know what a Parsec is.
Never trust a book written by somebody else to clear up an inconsistency with a movie. I've seen many of fight over it.
"i dont think its the dvd player that makes it more... they sell it for more cause they can."
I remember reading that the launch PS2s were sold at a nasty loss. They cost nearly $500 to make. Ouch.
Could be worse. He could have just tested Linux. How many extra FPS are you going to squeeze out of Tux Racer? Might as well test a speedboat in an olympic sized swimming pool. "I can drive nowhere, but I'm getting there real fast!"
"But don't most integrated graphics chips these days have at least some sort of 3d acceleration?"
Sometimes the processor's faster than the graphics card. A lot of it really depends on what you're doing with it.
Ignorant comments like that have made my life very difficult. I had one guy try to get me written up claiming that I was playing Quake at work. He didn't know the difference between Lightwave and Quake, even though Quake doesn't have a bunch of buttons labeled as tools surrounding the play area. That guy INSISTED on trying to get me fired even though I met all my deadlines and exceeded their expectations.
You're name's not Dan, is it?
"It IS a measurement of distance. See the Kessel spice run entails going past a collection of blackholes and stars called the Maw."
Uh right. That's a weak explanation that spawns more questions than it answers. He was bragging about the speed of his ship, not his piloting skills. A better explanation is that Han made a non-sensical slip of the tongue. I once described my computer as having a 1.2 gigabyte processor. The other guy knew what I really meant and just shrugged it off. That type of human error never makes it to screenplays for some reason.
Besides, we all know that the 'hyperdrive' in Star Wars is barely faster than the speed of light. The reason they can cruise about the galaxy like driving on the interstate is because the Star Wars Galaxy is dramatically scaled down. It's about a 1/4th of a light-year across.
"You think people flocked to Windows because they could figure how to make it work ? You are beyond me."
So... tell us why Mac didn't rise to power during the 95 net boom?
Actually, you should probably listen to him. *remembering some turmoil with Lik-Sang (did I get the name right?) and his modding site getting shut down with minimalistic reasons.
Can't say I've followed this topic a whole lot, but this is the first time I've heard of the mp3 dealie. Got a link or something? I'm genuinely curious as I'd like to have something like that in my car. As for divx players, NG's probably right in that it won't hold a lot of water. Divx has been associated with piracy. Fair use, yadda yadda yadda, impressions matter more than you think.
I think what he's saying is that the court's not likely to see the consumer side of things here. Ignoring what he's saying is not doing you a lick of good. You don't have to agree with NG, but at least you should consider his point. You're dismissing him in the most frivilous ways. Just because you see things one way doesn't mean the courts will suddenly bow to your superior ways.
"Han Solo brags that he can make the Kessel run in less than 12 parsecs. This is another example of Bad Astronomy; like a light year, a parsec is a unit of distance, not time."
Maybe that's how far he had to travel to find somebody who cared.
"Glad somebody said it. I'm surprised Opera's not more popular around here. "
I love it when moderators mod me as overrated when they don't like what I have to say.
"It's like walking into Mac World and yelling:
"Windows RULEZ!"
Opera is not the mortal enemy of Mozilla. It's yet another choice for both Windows and Linux users to weaken IE's grasp on the net. It's also available on Linux PDAs. He's not saying Opera's better, he's saying Opera should be more appreciated.
"He's pushing Opera in a story about Mozilla."
Not exactly. He's pointing out that Mozilla's small update is not front-page news. I think he's even hinting at Slashdot's coverage of Mozilla as being rather propoganda-ish.
"Ah! I see it all now! Mozilla will free us from the Matrix. May the prophets light our path!"
Hehe not very often one can work the Matrix and DS9 into the same burn. Good one!
I'm willing to bet, though, that somebody with mod-points and an over-zealous attitude about Mozilla won't see the humor in it.
"I realy don't care anymore about its features. Its a fine browser as it is, however launching it on a Linux or Mac boxen takes long time -- compared to Opera or IE (on a Mac). I wish they could make Mozilla a little faster and lighter, than add features to it."
Glad somebody said it. I'm surprised Opera's not more popular around here. Opera's interface is much friendlier. Want to take a 'Tab' and make it in it's own window? Just drag it out. Want to magnify the page? (Not just resize the text) then use the pulldown in the upper right and pick a mag level. Want to change the order of the buttons? Drag them around. Opera's 'linked windows' makes porn browsing much much easier.
I'm not saying one's better than the other, but Opera deserves more press if Slashdot's going to announce every minor little bug that's fixed in Mozilla.
"Was Matrix the first to use Bullet Time?"
Nope. Lost in Space beat it by a year.
The technology to do that effect was invented before the movie camera was. They took an array of cameras and had a horse walk by them. They each took a picture in succession. When played back, the horse was walking, and the camera was following it.
So the technology wasn't invented or used by the Matrix first. Sorry.
"I mean seriously, why doesn't the people running it just paint "SUE ME!" on their asses and moon Redmond?"
Makes you wonder what the consquences of a Slashdot Mooning would be, doesn't it?
"That Microsoft received less than a slap on the wrist isn't the issue here--they were found GUILTY."
I hate to tell you this, but the slap on the wrist they got is very much at issue. The reason they didn't get the breakup order is because it was found, IN COURT (since you're so fond of that) that MS did not illegally create a monopoly. They were guilty of illegally maintaining it, but not creating it. In other words, the market wanted them to be the leader. Once they got there, they wanted to stay on top. That's a slightly different story from the one that's commonly told around here.
Boy, that must hurt. I can see why you were trying to dodge the 'slap on the wrist' ruling. As Jim Carrey said, "It's devastating to my case!"
"But don't let the truth stop you from your kneejerk defense of ignorant behaviour."
"Or is it because of this? [playstation2-linux.com]"
:P
I thought about that, then rejected it. You can't burn a PS2 disc to boot Linux off of. You also have to spend $200 for it and get rather limited functionality compared to a full-on distro. You have to hack the PS2 (sound familiar?) to get a free/useful Linux distro going.
The hard drive and Intel processor bit would have been a better arguement.
I still agree with NG, that was a publicity stunt, not some form of consumer protection. Pity his comment was modded overrated.