Suuuuure...no violence against humans. But criminy...how many of you had nightmares of being eaten by a blocky aligator like in "Pitfall"? I shudder to rehash those memories!
Or of being a frog and trying to hop across the street. I'm afraid to cross highways now for fear of being squashed. Wait...now that I think about it...there were scary aligators in that too.
Remember back in the day when there was the Mac OS and DOS? Then Windows came out...not as elegant but had the features. Since MS-DOS was already entrenched in the market, having this new Windows was easy to push on everyone.
Enter 2003. Microsoft will look at all the features of open source and take what they like. They'll toot their horns about how it is compatible with Apache for serving this up, compatible with Linux for doing that, etc etc. Yet down the road...funny...things don't run as well with the Longhorn/Linux mix poor Company A has running in their back room. "Well, yes...Longhorn is compatible with this, but we find it runs much better with Windows Server 2005" Mr. MS Rep says. And the same will go with a myriad of other products and services...
Funny you mention that. I hear they're teaming up with Sony for a "tape backup" system that will also be portable. I think they're gonna call it a "Walk Man" or "Walkman" or something funky like that.
Geeze, just think about it. I don't know the laws in the surrounding (ok, nearby) nations, but think of the black market for these now. An easy 500% price increase to anyone selling one. Remember when blue jeans were going for $500 or so in the USSR? So will this create a nasty black market for a simple, innocent device or will it force the legislators to review the law?
And then that all leads up to the question "how do you sell the goods used?" I mean, I buy a my Altima for $20K. You buy it for $30K. The exact same car, same options, same dealer even. So now we both go to sell it in three years. What happens? Do I get to sell mine for $23K since you and others are selling your $30K car for $25K? Or do you go "son of a bitch, this sucks" as you realize you have to sell your $30K car for $15K because that's where mine is at? People already buy cars at different prices but if there was THAT big of a difference, it could make eBay (or any other used merchandise venue) a very interesting place to shop.
We already know corporate spying is rather widespread. And what do they look for? Well anything really, but client lists, contracts, bids, past sales, etc are prime targets. Of course this will be used for targeted pricing. It already is.
The thing that makes me wonder though, when they say "targeted pricing", do they mean blatantly open about giving me price A and John Doe gets it for price B? It's done behind the scenes already. Sure there'll be a "suggested price" price most companies go "oh, you're from Chili's, so you get this price" and such. Hell, the rental car industry has such a slew of different prices, based on if you're renting it for pleasure, if it's a corporate rental, if your car is in the shop, if it's an insurance rental, and so on. I dunno...this just seems like a no-brainer to me and doesn't surprise me at all.
Ergh...have you checked out the requirements to use the GSIS service? IE on Windows. That's it. Talk about restrictions. I find it kind of ironic too since this is supposedly using a Java applet. Why bother with the applet if you're going to be so restrictive?
I guess my question would be "is there anything out there for Macs?"
Seriously, people seem to think upgrades should be free or available to anything and everything. It's almost reminding me of all the hubub about the other updates too. You get 300 new features and you're shocked you may have to pay for them?
Back to the main point though...You buy a Maxima. It has it's list of features. Then the new one comes out with new features (better speakers? better seat adjustments? better cup holders?). We don't expect Nissan to say "bring your car in and we'll 'upgrade' to all the new features for free". You can buy the new Maxima. You can buy a better stereo and install it. You can be happy with the features that came with your car. Your 2001 Maxima is still better than the 2002 Sonatas that are out there.
Yeah...we have all this hubub about all the overseas outsourcing, but I think we should hire him. Awww yeah. Let's get the Angry Russian on those spammers. I wonder how much he charges...
"hrmm, what would be even more interesting is if I got served a notice of copyright enfringement by 'sharing' this commercial"
Hm...that actually brings up an interesting point. At first I was going to be a smartass and say "well you could always say you were helping spread the word...you were actually trying to help them" Then I thought people could be really odd and attach the commercial to all their illegally traded movies. Such a strange world we live in...
At first I was going to scream "holy shitballs! That rocks!" But then I decided to read a bit more on it.
They say you just lend us the right to be your digital distributor: to get your music to legitimate music services like Apple iTunes, Listen.com, and more
So...does anyone have any idea how many CDs CD Baby has actually put up on iTunes? They say they will be your digital distributor...but just how successful are they in that role?
Although online retailer BuyMusic.com will offer a catalog of more than 300,000 songs from the five major record labels, users of the service will not necessarily have the freedom afforded customers of Apple Inc.'s iTunes service to transfer the music purchased to multiple computers and portable devices, or to burn it to compact discs.
Ok...so they state right there that "pay for it and use it only here". And they compare directly with iTunes Music Service. Anyone who reads this will go "umm...it's a no-brainer".
Jobs secured uniform licensing deals from all the record companies that allow all iTunes songs to be burned onto CD an unlimited amount of times, save for a restriction for making multiple CDs with the exact song lists. All songs on iTunes can also be transferred to up to three different computers and to the iPod, a portable digital music player.
Oh look...just eight paragraphs down and they mention it again. Do they REALLY expect people to jump up and down with this?
Don't get me wrong...competition is good. But this really isn't competition in my eyes.
I agree...times sure have a changed. But then again, the Prez could get shot just for walking down the street. And sheesh...you Halloween isn't fun anymore 'cause of all the wackos out there. Remember walking around with a couple of your friends, alone, at night, taking candy from strangers? The age of innocence is gone.
I don't find it very encouraging that the government doesn't promise to read anything we have to say anymore. Isn't it their job to listen to what the public has to say to make informed decisions for the good of the country? What are we paying them for?
Silly silly person. What do you think this is? A government by the people, for the people?
Apple has been getting bold. And I love it. I still wonder about it all though. Safari rocks. Of course MS gets scared and stops making IE for Mac. FinalCut Pro kicks ass. Now Adobe wants to stop making Premier for the Mac. Apple has Keynote to compete with PowerPoint. And PDF creation with OS X is damn simple.
Apple is taking on all the big boys...something you just don't see these days. It's very exciting. And let's all be honest. Why do Mac users buy MS Office? Because it's good? Nope. So they can open up.doc files made on a PC. Go Apple!
It's been a very good year indeed. The interesting thing to note is how different Apple's products and services are now as to how they were a few years ago when the only thing you could read about Apple was how beleaguered they were and close to death.
For example...Apple then:
They sold computers. Sure they sold the OS and a few other things (monitors, other software, etc), but that was it.
Apple now:
Computers. And laptops which are definitely helping them gain some market share again. And MORE software such as Safari (even though it's free...who would have guessed they'd do something like that?), Keynote (you brave bastards), FinalCut Pro (do I really need to talk about their high-end software?), everything in their iLife bundle.
Better yet...the iPod. Shnikeys! They're making some good money off that. It's new hardware that's not a computer. And good money.
iTunes Music Service...for something that only serves 3% (who knows what the real number is...it changes daily) of the market, they're doing DAMN good with that. Imagine when it comes out for the PC.
It's funny to compare the Apple of today to the one of yesterday. Worlds apart.
That's what I find so interesting about this whole thing. The RIAA is hell-bent on bringing down the P2P world. "File sharing is bad! Die scum! We're losing money, so you should be fined and jailed!" Yet their statistics are gawd-awful wrong and distorted. Even more interestingly though, is the fact that there is so muc more than just MP3 files that are being traded. Did we all forget about pr0n, pictures, software, and even a legitimate file here and there? There's a lot of software switching hands, yet it's the RIAA that's screaming the loudest. Is it because the computing industry understands a bit more about business models in today's economy and the recording industry is just fighting to stay alive with their old monopoly? Hm...stuff to ponder...
Think about it. We're obviously all aware of the dot-com bubble and bust. Everything was built up and then it all blew up. No news there. And because of that, we've got a glut of "programmers" here that are used to making six digits for figuring out how to use the blink tag in the right spots. There's going to be a downturn and eventually an upturn. But it will not get back to the level it was at before it all went to hell in a handbasket. We're all too wise to let that happen again.
By the same token...it's history. It's part of the history of the world to have the "new world order" in terms of industrialization and such. So this really shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone either. We've got overpaid programmers, let's find cheaper ones. Just as we look for cheaper ways to manufacture, we can do the same here with programming.
It's a mix. We eventually will have an upturn as we recover from the frenzy that happened a couple years ago, but we will also use this globalized market to search for a global workforce.
I'm going to have to agree with the EU's stance that there should be similar objectives put in place by the US and Asia. I think there should be more countries involved also, but these were the two that were mentioned. In a similar stance, think about having just Iowa and Kansas (random states chosen) with strict anti-spam measures. Fine...spammers will move to VA and PA. Same will happen all over the world.
We DO need a worldwide organization to help curtail this. Isn't this the global economy nowadays? Let's treat it like one.
I would like to see however, someone being proactive. Yay EU! Pity Asia may wait and see. Pity the US may wait and see. If we all act at once, it may send the signal we're serious about this and not just testing the waters and not truly committed to ridding ourselves of this global economy drain.
It's not too late at all. First, consider how the different search engines changed in popularity over the years. Lycos was big for a while, Alta Vista...no need to list them. I remember getting an email from a friend..."Google has over a million pages indexed!". That was the big news, then I started using it. As have many others. Times can change. And they will. Just because Google is number one now doesn't mean they'll stay entrenched in that spot. It's not like buying software for your computer and then not wanting to switch because you'll have to buy new stuff. Plus, you can always TRY another search engine, and if it's better, then you switch and tell your friends.
This is also interesting because of how all the different engines depend on each other in one way or another for their rankings.
Think about how many web developers, designers, consultants, etc are all bragging about their search engine placement capabilities. Obviously it's the next thing to make money on. The big boys want to make sure they're in there as more and more people are relying on search engines for business.
The Vaio (and only the Vaio, mind you *sarcastic grin*) also has a problem when you've got it plugged into the wall and are using it while bathing. They're having to recall all their laptops because someone might get shocked if all these events occur in unison:
Computer is plugged in and turned on
Bathtub is full of water
You are in bathtub full of water
Laptop that is plugged in falls into water
Mac OS X 10.3, aka Panther, will not be a 64-bit operating system, despite running on a 64-bit processor. Instead, the next major release of the Mac operating system will be a hybrid, much like version 10.2.7
Well there ya go. Obvious testament that the beleaguered company is doomed to fail. The nerve!
I wonder how long it will take for someone to be serious about how Apple is failing because of this. Bets anyone?
Oh come on...this better not come as a surprise. Has the media really warped everyone's minds enough to have us all believe the only people that play games are geeks? Since the dawn of time, games were fun. My parents used to play the Atari 2600 (Mmm...remember Yar's Revenge?) with me all the time. And they are far from being geeks. And my grandmother was addicted to Burger Time on Intellivision.
I think the perception is that when you walk by the computer cluster at school, you see the kids playing Netrek and go "games are for geeks" and then you step outside and see the "jocks" playing football. What you DON'T see is everyone grabbing a beer and blowing each other up at Halo or Twisted Metal. In fact, I can think of more metal-heads and punks playing games than geeks...
Slashdot Mirror
Suuuuure...no violence against humans. But criminy...how many of you had nightmares of being eaten by a blocky aligator like in "Pitfall"? I shudder to rehash those memories!
Or of being a frog and trying to hop across the street. I'm afraid to cross highways now for fear of being squashed. Wait...now that I think about it...there were scary aligators in that too.
Remember back in the day when there was the Mac OS and DOS? Then Windows came out...not as elegant but had the features. Since MS-DOS was already entrenched in the market, having this new Windows was easy to push on everyone.
Enter 2003. Microsoft will look at all the features of open source and take what they like. They'll toot their horns about how it is compatible with Apache for serving this up, compatible with Linux for doing that, etc etc. Yet down the road...funny...things don't run as well with the Longhorn/Linux mix poor Company A has running in their back room. "Well, yes...Longhorn is compatible with this, but we find it runs much better with Windows Server 2005" Mr. MS Rep says. And the same will go with a myriad of other products and services...
Funny you mention that. I hear they're teaming up with Sony for a "tape backup" system that will also be portable. I think they're gonna call it a "Walk Man" or "Walkman" or something funky like that.
Geeze, just think about it. I don't know the laws in the surrounding (ok, nearby) nations, but think of the black market for these now. An easy 500% price increase to anyone selling one. Remember when blue jeans were going for $500 or so in the USSR? So will this create a nasty black market for a simple, innocent device or will it force the legislators to review the law?
And then that all leads up to the question "how do you sell the goods used?" I mean, I buy a my Altima for $20K. You buy it for $30K. The exact same car, same options, same dealer even. So now we both go to sell it in three years. What happens? Do I get to sell mine for $23K since you and others are selling your $30K car for $25K? Or do you go "son of a bitch, this sucks" as you realize you have to sell your $30K car for $15K because that's where mine is at? People already buy cars at different prices but if there was THAT big of a difference, it could make eBay (or any other used merchandise venue) a very interesting place to shop.
We already know corporate spying is rather widespread. And what do they look for? Well anything really, but client lists, contracts, bids, past sales, etc are prime targets. Of course this will be used for targeted pricing. It already is.
The thing that makes me wonder though, when they say "targeted pricing", do they mean blatantly open about giving me price A and John Doe gets it for price B? It's done behind the scenes already. Sure there'll be a "suggested price" price most companies go "oh, you're from Chili's, so you get this price" and such. Hell, the rental car industry has such a slew of different prices, based on if you're renting it for pleasure, if it's a corporate rental, if your car is in the shop, if it's an insurance rental, and so on. I dunno...this just seems like a no-brainer to me and doesn't surprise me at all.
Ergh...have you checked out the requirements to use the GSIS service? IE on Windows. That's it. Talk about restrictions. I find it kind of ironic too since this is supposedly using a Java applet. Why bother with the applet if you're going to be so restrictive?
I guess my question would be "is there anything out there for Macs?"
Seriously, people seem to think upgrades should be free or available to anything and everything. It's almost reminding me of all the hubub about the other updates too. You get 300 new features and you're shocked you may have to pay for them?
Back to the main point though...You buy a Maxima. It has it's list of features. Then the new one comes out with new features (better speakers? better seat adjustments? better cup holders?). We don't expect Nissan to say "bring your car in and we'll 'upgrade' to all the new features for free". You can buy the new Maxima. You can buy a better stereo and install it. You can be happy with the features that came with your car. Your 2001 Maxima is still better than the 2002 Sonatas that are out there.
Yeah...we have all this hubub about all the overseas outsourcing, but I think we should hire him. Awww yeah. Let's get the Angry Russian on those spammers. I wonder how much he charges...
"hrmm, what would be even more interesting is if I got served a notice of copyright enfringement by 'sharing' this commercial"
Hm...that actually brings up an interesting point. At first I was going to be a smartass and say "well you could always say you were helping spread the word...you were actually trying to help them" Then I thought people could be really odd and attach the commercial to all their illegally traded movies. Such a strange world we live in...
You no the ironic thing about all this? You just KNOW someone will copy these commercials and throw them up on Kazaa and such.
At first I was going to scream "holy shitballs! That rocks!" But then I decided to read a bit more on it.
They say you just lend us the right to be your digital distributor: to get your music to legitimate music services like Apple iTunes, Listen.com, and more
So...does anyone have any idea how many CDs CD Baby has actually put up on iTunes? They say they will be your digital distributor...but just how successful are they in that role?
Although online retailer BuyMusic.com will offer a catalog of more than 300,000 songs from the five major record labels, users of the service will not necessarily have the freedom afforded customers of Apple Inc.'s iTunes service to transfer the music purchased to multiple computers and portable devices, or to burn it to compact discs.
Ok...so they state right there that "pay for it and use it only here". And they compare directly with iTunes Music Service. Anyone who reads this will go "umm...it's a no-brainer".
Jobs secured uniform licensing deals from all the record companies that allow all iTunes songs to be burned onto CD an unlimited amount of times, save for a restriction for making multiple CDs with the exact song lists. All songs on iTunes can also be transferred to up to three different computers and to the iPod, a portable digital music player.
Oh look...just eight paragraphs down and they mention it again. Do they REALLY expect people to jump up and down with this?
Don't get me wrong...competition is good. But this really isn't competition in my eyes.
Do I dare ask when the Linux version will come out? I'm surprised I haven't heard anybody ask yet. What's with you people?
Then again, I'd hate to have SCO sue me just because I'm wearing a damn watch. Man it sucks being a geeks sometimes.
I agree...times sure have a changed. But then again, the Prez could get shot just for walking down the street. And sheesh...you Halloween isn't fun anymore 'cause of all the wackos out there. Remember walking around with a couple of your friends, alone, at night, taking candy from strangers? The age of innocence is gone.
I don't find it very encouraging that the government doesn't promise to read anything we have to say anymore. Isn't it their job to listen to what the public has to say to make informed decisions for the good of the country? What are we paying them for?
Silly silly person. What do you think this is? A government by the people, for the people?
Apple has been getting bold. And I love it. I still wonder about it all though. Safari rocks. Of course MS gets scared and stops making IE for Mac. FinalCut Pro kicks ass. Now Adobe wants to stop making Premier for the Mac. Apple has Keynote to compete with PowerPoint. And PDF creation with OS X is damn simple.
.doc files made on a PC. Go Apple!
Apple is taking on all the big boys...something you just don't see these days. It's very exciting. And let's all be honest. Why do Mac users buy MS Office? Because it's good? Nope. So they can open up
It's been a very good year indeed. The interesting thing to note is how different Apple's products and services are now as to how they were a few years ago when the only thing you could read about Apple was how beleaguered they were and close to death.
For example...Apple then:
They sold computers. Sure they sold the OS and a few other things (monitors, other software, etc), but that was it.
Apple now:
Computers. And laptops which are definitely helping them gain some market share again. And MORE software such as Safari (even though it's free...who would have guessed they'd do something like that?), Keynote (you brave bastards), FinalCut Pro (do I really need to talk about their high-end software?), everything in their iLife bundle.
Better yet...the iPod. Shnikeys! They're making some good money off that. It's new hardware that's not a computer. And good money.
iTunes Music Service...for something that only serves 3% (who knows what the real number is...it changes daily) of the market, they're doing DAMN good with that. Imagine when it comes out for the PC.
It's funny to compare the Apple of today to the one of yesterday. Worlds apart.
That's what I find so interesting about this whole thing. The RIAA is hell-bent on bringing down the P2P world. "File sharing is bad! Die scum! We're losing money, so you should be fined and jailed!" Yet their statistics are gawd-awful wrong and distorted. Even more interestingly though, is the fact that there is so muc more than just MP3 files that are being traded. Did we all forget about pr0n, pictures, software, and even a legitimate file here and there? There's a lot of software switching hands, yet it's the RIAA that's screaming the loudest. Is it because the computing industry understands a bit more about business models in today's economy and the recording industry is just fighting to stay alive with their old monopoly? Hm...stuff to ponder...
Think about it. We're obviously all aware of the dot-com bubble and bust. Everything was built up and then it all blew up. No news there. And because of that, we've got a glut of "programmers" here that are used to making six digits for figuring out how to use the blink tag in the right spots. There's going to be a downturn and eventually an upturn. But it will not get back to the level it was at before it all went to hell in a handbasket. We're all too wise to let that happen again.
By the same token...it's history. It's part of the history of the world to have the "new world order" in terms of industrialization and such. So this really shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone either. We've got overpaid programmers, let's find cheaper ones. Just as we look for cheaper ways to manufacture, we can do the same here with programming.
It's a mix. We eventually will have an upturn as we recover from the frenzy that happened a couple years ago, but we will also use this globalized market to search for a global workforce.
I'm going to have to agree with the EU's stance that there should be similar objectives put in place by the US and Asia. I think there should be more countries involved also, but these were the two that were mentioned. In a similar stance, think about having just Iowa and Kansas (random states chosen) with strict anti-spam measures. Fine...spammers will move to VA and PA. Same will happen all over the world.
We DO need a worldwide organization to help curtail this. Isn't this the global economy nowadays? Let's treat it like one.
I would like to see however, someone being proactive. Yay EU! Pity Asia may wait and see. Pity the US may wait and see. If we all act at once, it may send the signal we're serious about this and not just testing the waters and not truly committed to ridding ourselves of this global economy drain.
It's not too late at all. First, consider how the different search engines changed in popularity over the years. Lycos was big for a while, Alta Vista...no need to list them. I remember getting an email from a friend..."Google has over a million pages indexed!". That was the big news, then I started using it. As have many others. Times can change. And they will. Just because Google is number one now doesn't mean they'll stay entrenched in that spot. It's not like buying software for your computer and then not wanting to switch because you'll have to buy new stuff. Plus, you can always TRY another search engine, and if it's better, then you switch and tell your friends.
This is also interesting because of how all the different engines depend on each other in one way or another for their rankings.
Think about how many web developers, designers, consultants, etc are all bragging about their search engine placement capabilities. Obviously it's the next thing to make money on. The big boys want to make sure they're in there as more and more people are relying on search engines for business.
The Vaio (and only the Vaio, mind you *sarcastic grin*) also has a problem when you've got it plugged into the wall and are using it while bathing. They're having to recall all their laptops because someone might get shocked if all these events occur in unison:
Computer is plugged in and turned on
Bathtub is full of water
You are in bathtub full of water
Laptop that is plugged in falls into water
Damn them for shipping out unsafe products.
Mac OS X 10.3, aka Panther, will not be a 64-bit operating system, despite running on a 64-bit processor. Instead, the next major release of the Mac operating system will be a hybrid, much like version 10.2.7
Well there ya go. Obvious testament that the beleaguered company is doomed to fail. The nerve!
I wonder how long it will take for someone to be serious about how Apple is failing because of this. Bets anyone?
Oh come on...this better not come as a surprise. Has the media really warped everyone's minds enough to have us all believe the only people that play games are geeks? Since the dawn of time, games were fun. My parents used to play the Atari 2600 (Mmm...remember Yar's Revenge?) with me all the time. And they are far from being geeks. And my grandmother was addicted to Burger Time on Intellivision.
I think the perception is that when you walk by the computer cluster at school, you see the kids playing Netrek and go "games are for geeks" and then you step outside and see the "jocks" playing football. What you DON'T see is everyone grabbing a beer and blowing each other up at Halo or Twisted Metal. In fact, I can think of more metal-heads and punks playing games than geeks...