Slashdot Mirror


User: EmbeddedJanitor

EmbeddedJanitor's activity in the archive.

Stories
0
Comments
3,748
First seen
Last seen
Profile
(view on slashdot.org)

Comments · 3,748

  1. It's a matter of spin on Did Amazon Induce Vista's Premature Birth? · · Score: 1
    Sure he'll rinse and repeat, but who's to know?

    If he's left behind a mess then all he has to do to spin it his way is this: "Gee it looks like those guys at MS are really struggling since I left. That just shows how good I am."

  2. Gross mis-management on Did Amazon Induce Vista's Premature Birth? · · Score: 3, Interesting
    Yes, you would expect a bit more oversight on such a critical project with such a huge budget.

    Even if the manager does not jump ship, he might get killed in a plane crash etc.

    The cool thing for a ship-jumping manager is that he gets away clean. Even if he leaves a mess behind he can always twist it: "Now that I've left, everything has fallen apart. Look at how good I am! Hand me another million share options".

  3. CrockFS on Did Amazon Induce Vista's Premature Birth? · · Score: 1

    WinFS has been the "new great feature" promised in every release since the early 1990s (ie for well over ten years now). Talk is cheap, delivering something that works well is hard, which is why WinFS always gets ripped out.

  4. You miss the point on Did Amazon Induce Vista's Premature Birth? · · Score: 5, Insightful
    People have very short memories. They see the fanfare and forget the 5 year death march.

    I've seen this effect before. A manager in a company I worked for was angling for a position in a different business unit in the company. He wanted to show focus, leadership etc so he whitewashed the problems in the project he was directing and pushed for a premature release. He forced design choices that looked OK in the short term (from outside) and ignored the longterm consequences. He got the new job and a big write-up about how he had managed this project so well. Of course the project was flawed, but he did not have to clean up the mess anfd the product got canned a few months later.

    Release decisions etc should not be made by exiting managers. They shopuld be made by the new management team that has to keep things going.

  5. Translation 2 on Gates Explains Microsoft's Need for Yahoo · · Score: 1
    We're sinking and Yahoo is sinking. If we get together we can sing uplifting songs while we sink together.

  6. Ballmer is Google obsessed on Gates Explains Microsoft's Need for Yahoo · · Score: 3, Informative
    Vista cost $5bn, Yahoo could cost $40+bn. That has to say something about where MS's current management priorities lie. They are Google obsessed.

    If you're competition focussed, and not customer focussed, then don't expect your business to grow. MS has a lot of momentum, so it won't die overnight.

    They've puled the Vista SP1 and that's not getting much of Ballmer's energy. Nope he's off buying Danger and trying for Yahoo to try make a fight with Google.

    Google must be pissing themselves. Both Yahoo and MS are sinking in service space and there is no reason to think that they will be more productive together than as they currently are, while Google is growing.

  7. Or a different DRAM design on Cold Reboot Attacks on Disk Encryption · · Score: 1

    It would be relatively easy for DRAM to be augmented with internal circuitry that nukes the ram cells if they have not been placed in slef-refresh mode.

  8. But what's the point? on Ohloh Tracks Open Source Developers · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Making OSS dev is hardly a competition sport, so why do this? Kudos is one thing, but that should come from the community, not from some database.

    Some people will get a shiny glory and some will feel annoyed bbecause their projects/contributions have not been tracked.

  9. The purpose is fear on Airport Security Prize Announced · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The main purpose behind the security is to keep the population frightened and annoyed. A frightened populaton is easier to control. To claim the prize you need to demonstrate its effectiveness at keeping the population under control too.

  10. This is /. on Smart Rubber Promises Self-Mending Products · · Score: 5, Funny

    You've been misinformed. You don't need a condom for masturbation.

  11. Not necessarily on Smart Rubber Promises Self-Mending Products · · Score: 3, Insightful
    A diamond only has C bonds.

    It isn't just the number of bonds but the strength of those bonds.

  12. Yes it is part kid on WizKid Robot Debuts At New York Museum · · Score: 1
    It hangs around trying to get your attention and annoys you until you respond. If it could spill juice and barf then it would be closer.

    Remember this is junk science reporting from Science Daily so don't take it too seriously. These are the same folk that tried to say that the "walks on water" robot works the same wy as a water strider - which it does not.

  13. That's the easy bit on Google Funds Work for Photoshop on Linux · · Score: 1

    Unlearning 20 years of finger memory is hard to do, especially if you still use Windows and Linux. It's a bit like having exactly the same keyboard layout except for having the S and D keys swapped around.

  14. Remember Peter Arnett on CNN Fires Producer Over Personal Blog · · Score: 4, Insightful
    CNN and other organisations need to toe the line otherwise they get poor responsiveness from the Pentagon, Whitehouse etc. That's why people like Peter Arnett (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Arnett) get fired for doing good investigation.

    The media know that if they don't keep their reporters in line they will get screwed over. Instead of having their field staff embedded with frontline fighters to send back sexy footage they'll get embedded with the people washing trucks at the transport park. Instead of getting geed feedback from WHitehouse/Pentagon/whatever press officers they'll get delayed responses.

    The media know they must keep their noses clean to stay in the game and that's why they'll repremand or fire anyone that looks like a loose cannon and will upset theri relationships with these organisations.

    In the words of the Clash: "You have the right to free speach, unless you actually try it."

  15. Wind up flashlights are great on Gravity Lamp Grabs Green Prize · · Score: 1

    Mainly because the batterioes can't go flat when the kids play with them or the switch is bumped on in your backpack etc etc. A quick wind for ten seconds and you have light for a minute. Wind for a couple of minutes and you have light for 15 minutes or more.

  16. Re:This is trying not to be flamebait. on Google Funds Work for Photoshop on Linux · · Score: 1
    I don't think this is flaming at all.

    Easy-to-use is largely a perception issue and depends on what you've used before, just like the vi vs emacs thing. For example something I readlly, really hate on OSX is that home and end keys take you to the start/end of the whole doc, not just the line.

    Photoshop is the industry leader and a lot of effort has been put into usability. GIMP might even be better once you've learnt it(I won't argue about something I don't know much about), but it is a huge effort to transition to it or start using it. If you're working at $100/hour and know photoshop then it costs you a few k to ramp up on GIMP. May as well just buy Windows and Photoshop and save the trauma.

    Where OpenOffice is great is that it is easy to get into if you're an MS Office user. You can attend community college courses on word processing etc and use those skills. There is no such skills portability for people trained on photoshop.

  17. This is not a troll: GIMP is hard for newbies on Google Funds Work for Photoshop on Linux · · Score: 5, Insightful
    Parent is largely right.

    The GIMP might be very powerful and feature packed, but the learning curve to get into it is cliff shaped. That makes for a vey significant barrier for newbies.

    Most people don't want to do hugely complex photoshopping, just remove red eye from phots and a few other simple effects.

    I've tried to use GIMP a few times, without using the manuals, but after a few minutes of getting nowhere I've fired up a Windows box and used photoshop (also without a manual).

    Perhaps this exercise will give the GIMP people a bit of motivation to make the software more newbie-friendly.

    We're getting to the stage where Linux is almost simple to use. "It was hard to write, so it should be hard to use" no longer cuts it.

  18. I don't like the "you should..." bits on SFLC's Legal Guide On Free Software · · Score: 2, Insightful
    I mostly agree with parent in that you still need to understand what you read. If you have a company or lots of money riding on it, then get independent legal advice. An overview of various licenses to describe the options/variants is quite handy.

    What I object to is the "you should ..." bits which indicate that the authors are suggesting courses of action. I'd rather just have the lawyers unwind the legalese and make it human readable and let me make the decisions as to what I should and should not do. This makes it feel like the authors have an agenda that they are pushing.

  19. That's as logical as God on Theory Posits Early Stars Powered By Dark Matter · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    To paraphrase: "We can't think of any other alternatives so this one must be true!". Gee that's a scientific approach!

  20. Guess what! on Theory Posits Early Stars Powered By Dark Matter · · Score: 1

    ... and where did the dark matter come from? Well it was created from normal matter by running time backwards.

  21. New Zealand has had this for 5 years on UK Report Slams EULAs · · Score: 1
    The NZ Consumer Guarantees Act has applied to software since 2003. http://www.consumeraffairs.govt.nz/businessinfo/cga/goods.html

    If you buy software, or a system, and it does not do what you may reasonably expect then you get your money back.

  22. Who cares? on Scientology Given Direct Access To eBay Database · · Score: 4, Insightful
    If someone is drinking the Scientology Kool Aid, then does it really matter whether or not they get discounted second hand equipment? If Scientology has their hooks into you they will get your money one way or another.

    What they're really trying to control is the purchase of scientology collectables by non-scientologists.

  23. Wake up and look at the exchange rate on Satellite Spotters Make Government Uneasy · · Score: 1
    A few years ago the USD had parity with the Euro. Now the USD is worth less than a Loon.

    If you don't read the signs then I don't feel sory for you when the shit hits the fan.

  24. Don't the people control the government? on Lawmakers Debate Patent Immunity For Banks · · Score: 1
    To stop the runaway borrowing requires that the voters be prepared to tighten their belts and vote in politicains with tighter controls. Of course that will be painful for a nation that loves to spend **now**.

    Debt-backed money is still money. What is difference is that there is no corresponding creation of value which leads to inflation. The impact of inflation can be pushed out by further debt, but eventually it must bite. Basically this means spending now and leaving future generations with the bills.

  25. And who would vote for that? on Lawmakers Debate Patent Immunity For Banks · · Score: 2, Insightful
    It is far easier for a politican to print more money and leave the problem for the next generation, even if in doing so the problem gets worse.

    The biggest problem is that nobody wants to stop the party.