Now, the question becomes whether you can extract 1/3 of the value of the PC in parts.
Question is only valid for the components that don't require TCPA to function at all.
What--TCPA required in individual components? I thought this was just a motherboard thing so we couldnt' run Linux and pirate CDs?
Guess again, Sunshine.
Wanna upgrade your monitor?
Sure. But don't bother trying to find a local source for that Lucky Goldstar monitor you found on that Korean website.
Only [Dell/Gateway/Microsoft/Walmart/Cosco/YouNameIt] monitors (rebranded LG monitors at three times the price, natch) will work, though.
Man, this is freakin' fantastic! Hardware compatability (no--hardware functionality--this keeps getting better!) will be strictly at the whim of the vendor.
Five years from now, "obsolete" won't mean "still does what it did when you bought it, but there's shinier stuff on the shelf this week"
"Obsolete" will mean: Vendor support for this version of hardware has ended:
Due to privacy/security/safety/regulatory/end-of-lifecycl e (take your pick or add your own)... concerns, the following models and versions of [product] have been removed from the list of supported hardware.
[Company] holds in the highest regard your rights as a consumer to maintain control and possession of products that you own. However, please note that the following functionality must, by law, be disabled for non-supported hardware:
Connection to any other hardware, including network devices.
Connection to any wireless network to which any other hardware is connected.
Installation or execution of any licensed software.
Playback, Recording, erasure, or transfer of any media.
...
This protects the rights of all consumers to access shared resources without risk to security/privacy/.... caused by unregulated or "rogue" devices or persons.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and direct you to our new line of supported products, avaliable at....
DMCA already means you'd be insane to risk hacking your hardware to get it working again.
And recycling laws will mean the hardware has to go back to a licensed recycler
So, don't try to sell it to a guy what knows a guy what can get it workin' again...
It should have been encrypted. Then it would have been safe. If only if only they would have encrypted it.
Encrypted? By whom? Not by me, that's for sure. Who controls the decryption? Again not somebody who answers to me.
Encryption is not a magic incantation that protects secrecy. Encrypting some data produces some other data, which in itself is useless--you have to reverse the process to get the original data back. Encryption happens to be a special sort of process can only be reversed under certain conditions (when the correct keys are present).
You don't need a technical understanding of the latest encryption technology to understand this. It's common freaking sense. Somebody has spied on you. They promise to keep the results of their spying a secret. Therefore, your rights have not been violated.
Seriously--does anybody buy this? Are we that stupid?
Oh, yeah--this message has been encrypted, so it's safe. See?
Rapelcgrq? Ol jubz? Abg ol zr, gung\'f sbe fher. Jub pbagebyf gur qrpelcgvba? Ntnva abg fbzrobql jub nafjref gb zr.
Rapelcgvba vf abg n zntvp vapnagngvba gung cebgrpgf frperpl. Rapelcgvat fbzr qngn cebqhprf fbzr bgure qngn, juvpu va vgfrys vf hfryrff--lbh unir gb erirefr gur cebprff gb trg gur bevtvany qngn onpx. Rapelcgvba unccraf gb or n fcrpvny fbeg bs cebprff pna bayl or erirefrq haqre pregnva pbaqvgvbaf (jura gur pbeerpg xrlf ner cerfrag).
Lbh qba\'g arrq n grpuavpny haqrefgnaqvat bs gur yngrfg rapelcgvba grpuabybtl gb haqrefgnaq guvf. Vg\'f pbzzba sernxvat frafr. Fbzrobql unf fcvrq ba lbh. Gurl cebzvfr gb xrrc gur erfhygf bs gurve fclvat n frperg. Gurersber, lbhe evtugf unir abg orra ivbyngrq.
Frevbhfyl--qbrf nalobql ohl guvf? Ner jr gung fghcvq?
Bu, lrnu--guvf zrffntr unf orra rapelcgrq, fb vg\'f fnsr. Frr?
Encrypted?
By whom? Not by me, that's for sure.
Who controls the decryption? Again not somebody who answers to me.
Encryption is not a magic incantation that protects secrecy.
Encrypting some data produces some other data, which in itself is useless--you have to reverse the process to get the original data back.
Encryption happens to be a special sort of process can only be reversed under certain conditions (when the correct keys are present).
You don't need a technical understanding of the latest encryption technology to understand this. It's common freaking sense.
Somebody has spied on you. They promise to keep the results of their spying a secret. Therefore, your rights have not been violated.
Seriously--does anybody buy this? Are we that stupid?
Oh, yeah--this message has been encrypted, so it's safe. See?
Rapelcgrq?
Ol jubz? Abg ol zr, gung\'f sbe fher.
Jub pbagebyf gur qrpelcgvba? Ntnva abg fbzrobql jub nafjref gb zr.
Rapelcgvba vf abg n zntvp vapnagngvba gung cebgrpgf frperpl.
Rapelcgvat fbzr qngn cebqhprf fbzr bgure qngn, juvpu va vgfrys vf hfryrff--lbh unir gb erirefr gur cebprff gb trg gur bevtvany qngn onpx.
Rapelcgvba unccraf gb or n fcrpvny fbeg bs cebprff pna bayl or erirefrq haqre pregnva pbaqvgvbaf (jura gur pbeerpg xrlf ner cerfrag).
Lbh qba\'g arrq n grpuavpny haqrefgnaqvat bs gur yngrfg rapelcgvba grpuabybtl gb haqrefgnaq guvf. Vg\'f pbzzba sernxvat frafr.
Fbzrobql unf fcvrq ba lbh. Gurl cebzvfr gb xrrc gur erfhygf bs gurve fclvat n frperg. Gurersber, lbhe evtugf unir abg orra ivbyngrq.
Frevbhfyl--qbrf nalobql ohl guvf? Ner jr gung fghcvq?
Bu, lrnu--guvf zrffntr unf orra rapelcgrq, fb vg\'f fnsr. Frr?
Those that understand that there is a threat to personal freedom by the simple building of enormous cross-referenced databases already know about echelon. The TFH crowd warned us about the "no such agency" and later about "echelon", both of which were later confirmed, and whose existence has now passed into the realm of common knowledge.
So the response of those people who understand the threat is to say to the rest of the good subjects of King George "See, I told ya so."
And the rest of the good subjects response is consistently "You're a nutball. If this has been going on for years and I didn't notice, why should I care now?"
The period of this political cycle (liberty-repression-liberty...) in this country seems to be about 50-75 years. We're just starting into the hardcore authoritarian portion of the cycle. Next comes overt McCarthyism. Take the "flag burning amendment" as a marker for our official entry into that one.
Enjoy the ride, folks, and, remember--it's going to get a lot worse before it gets better. The good news is that this is nothing new, and this, too shall pass.
If you want a job, join the union. Get paid to sleep at work.
If you like to work, you don't need the union.
Every union screws its members far worse than management does. Union leadership will sometimes even admit this, but quickly follow with "but if we weren't here, management would screw 'em even worse."
From what I've seen (auto industry), it's kinda hard to believe.
tend to 1. Redifine buzzwords 2. Point out the new inconsistencies in semantics 3. Concluding that there is a fundamental flaw in the open source model
In large corporations, HR doesn't give a crap about the facts; they want the documentation that protects the corporation from lawsuits. Legal protection is HR's sole contribution to the effort. Once that's satisfied, they'll let someone else (engineering department, IT department, etc.) worry about whether the person can actually do the job.
In smaller companies (what's the limit now?--less than 25 folks?), significantly less restrictive employment reuglations apply. There's usually not an "HR" department because it's not necessary. Folks making hiring decisions can use more practical criteria, if they choose.
If anyone beyond HR actually looks at the piece of paper, they'll be looking it as a promise. Whatever you present--degree, certification, license, etc. sets expectations.
If you don't fulfill the expectations that your piece of paper sets, there's going to be disappointment. Once you're in, nobody cares if you satisfied the hiring requirements. Once you're in, nobody cares that the job is not what was advertised. In a technical field, once you show up, you just do the job. If you fail that, you can usually milk it for a year or two, by which time you'll have more experience to put on your resume (another piece of paper), and get hired by the next sucker. And, yeah, I know lots of guys that play that game, too.
Authorities
That computer is a hacking tool. Hacking is illegal.
Hacker
No, you're confusing "hacking" with criminal acts. "Hacking" just means that I'm using my computer in a manner not consistent with its original design to solve a problem in an imaginative manner.
Authorities
Couldn't have said it better myself.
Look, sir--some laws are just unenforcable, and we know that everybody's been breaking them for a long time. Hell, I used to, too. That's over now, but we're not locking people up for it yet. The people in the TCPA did the best they could to protect their rights and preserve as much of yours as they could tolerate. After that, legislatures simply let the technology define the rights.
The law has changed: What you're doing falls outside the scope of the TCP System. You could have bought an approved computer. The courts understand that there's really only one reason you didn't. know there's only one reason you didn't. We don't have to prove you did anything else illegal--the presence of the unlicensed computer is a crime, now.
You have a good job. A decent house that you're going to own in twelve more years, good credit, the respect of your peers, and peace of mind. You eat dinner with your kids and your wife. And what's your misery? Your kids are a couple of smart-mouth little shitheads? Great. Think about it. Don't be stupid. That's your worst problem? It's just a computer, fer chrissake. Just pay the fine; it's not going to break you.
Nothing else in the house I should know about, is there? Sign here. It says this computer you're giving me is the only illegal item in your possession. I'll sign as witness. See, it says "under penalty of perjury", and you signed it. I trust you. Look, sir, I'm trying to help you out here. You seem to be a decent guy and folks like you really don't belong in jail. I'll be in the neighborhood following up in about a week--you can ask me any questions then. County dump's public property, by the way. Can't say what came from who or when in there. Yeah--next Saturday. We'll be doing this side of the street in the afternoon.
One more thing--After I leave, I go to Best Buy or Wal-Mart and get yourself a legal computer, register it, and start using it. Use the number on the bottom of the form.
No, seriously. Go buy a decent computer. You're going to need one, and it's not going to put your Visa over the limit. Look, your hard drives get yanked & scanned into the database. Whatever you were using your computer for before---if don't start doing it on a licensed computer, the court assumes--Yeah, you got it.
Terrified hacker
Sorry. Here's the computer. Where do I sign? Can I pay the fine with Visa? No, I don't mind a 3% fee; that's what--only another fifteen bucks?
Three Years Later...
The fully engaged citizen act: Federally mandated taxpayer subsidized minimum internet access for everyone. Partially or fully subsidized (check your tax return to see if you qualify) computers for everyone. They're not very powerful, but they're enough to vote, file your taxes, and pay your fines.
And we really, really expect you to take advantage of this program. Why wouldn't you? It's basically free, and the only way you can vote, renew your drivers' license, apply for an apartment, sign up for electric service. Give all that up? Why? No, seriously, why? Sure, you can opt out of the program, but we'd really like to know why. I'll wait until you get it filled out. Can we go inside an sit down?
No, you misunderstand the word. Privacy is what's violated when the neighbors peek at your daughter in the shower.
A pattern of secretive behaviour, on the other hand, is evidence of a crime. No, of course, not you. You've done nothing wrong at all.
No, you don't qualify for the subsidy. But, hey, lemme see what I can do. Just sign up today, and I'll see you get the latest model--it'll
Your mother should have taught you something: Not just in the context of linux, but within any community, respect requires that you recognize that the rest of the community is NOT here to hold your hand. They never will be. You can learn electrical engineering from the electricians (yes, the tradesmen will teach you if you behave correctly), learn linux from developers, learn how to shoot a.45 from an retired Marine.
Any of these people you hope to learn from (they're called "experts", by the way) are going to expect some degree of respect from you. For starters, this means that you DON't waste their time, you do your homework, and you show that you've contributed some effort towards your own understanding of things.
OK, you've done all this, and they're still picking on you? Poor baby. Your mother really didn't do a very good job, did she? Remember all those mean kids that picked on you in grade school? They did not abruptly become kind, generous, patient and accomodating when they graduated. They're still out there and they're still acting like assholes. You're going to meet them from time to time. Suck it up.
Which GUI should I use? Gee, I don't know. Which distro should I use? Also, can anybody tell me what's the best religion? I don't want to get that one wrong, either.
EULAs are genarally abusive to the customer. They can usually be summed up in 3 statements: 1. It's not our fault if something goes wrong. Don't bother suing us. 2. If you do something we don't like we may choose, to sue you. We get to pick the jurisdiction. You'd do better to settle. Trust us on this. 3. We get to change the rules whenever we want.
The publisher does NOT want the customer to read or understand the EULA.
Identify: Find a problem, task that needs done, etc.
Delegate: Not necessarily to the party responsible; but to the party from you can get results. Perfect example--staff is incompetent, so you hire a contractor to do the job.
Motivate: Motivate the people to whom you've delegated to solve the problem. Ask nicely, stroke an ego, intimidate, bribe, promise the next huge job to the contractor if he'll only take care of this one little... Do whatever you have to do to get them to make it THEIR problem, then it's no longer YOUR problem.
This method works for *ALL* problems. It worked for this problem. What's the problem?
I've seen a lot of these competitions, and taken part in a couple. In most cases, the organizers of the competition have a management, not engineering mindset. These folks typically do NOT like the unexpected, especially in contests they're organizing.
If you participate in these competitions, you learn some really important things about engineering: As an engineer, you must listen to your Client and determine:
What the Client he says he wants.
What the Client really wants.
What the Client needs.
What the Client is willing and able to pay for.
What you actually (can) deliver.
Typically, at the start, no two of the above are the same. You have to make all of them equal and convince the Client it was his idea the whole time. You can do this before quoting the job, or you can do it via change orders after the job has begun.
But skipping directly from "What they say they want" to "What you actually deliver" does not get you paid. It's a shortcut that just pisses off the Client. And if you're really stupid, it embarrasses the Client.
If the above sounds unfair, it's not. This is the way it is. Get used to it.
'course if broadband was offered for $50.00/mo, I'd buy it. Hear that, Verizon, with your crappy 21.6k dialup speeds?!! Dollars right here waitin' for ya--come & get it!
These folks used to make an important contribution to the process. Distribution & Marketing. They're no longer necessary--this is something we can now do for ourselves at an individual creator or user level.
If competition in this arena (making [files, movies, music, etc] available for sharing) becomes illegal, then *AA gets direct legal protection for their business model. If you want to distribute, you have to pay them. Just like in the good old days.
Shifting the burden of proof starts with the argument "With the law as it stands, it's impossible for us to prove a violation. Therefore, the standard for guilt should be lowered. Making the nature of the file an element of the defense rather than an element of the crime preserves the presumption of innocence. We've simply changed the definition of guilt."
"Guilty", BTW, is the other half of "shifting the burden". Moving it from civil to criminal court. Then, *AA doesn't have to pay for the lawyers; they just have to keep up those rental fees for the senators.
My Dad was a physician. Everybody assumed that I would be one too--take over the practice when he retired. Dad always told me "Do whatever you want to do in life. But do it well. Son, I don't care if you're a ditch-digger. But if you choose that path, you better be the best damned ditch-digger around." Dad also taught me that if you're working hard, you're doing good. Worst thing you can say about a someone is "That boy don't like to work."
Wound up being an engineer. Turns out, I'd always been an engineer; just didn't know it. Folks tell me I'm pretty good at it, too.
So, as I sit here waiting for something to break (should't be long...)..
IT hiring is done by people. People are*ist. Racist Sexist Ideologist Nationalist Ageist... To anybody who believes that human beings are or ever will be otherwise: "You're deluding yourself."
Slashdot Mirror
Someone else must think "Hmm...recipe for fusion?" when they hear this song.
Anyone....?
Anyone...?
Bueller?
Now, the question becomes whether you can extract 1/3 of the value of the PC in parts.
Question is only valid for the components that don't require TCPA to function at all.
What--TCPA required in individual components? I thought this was just a motherboard thing so we couldnt' run Linux and pirate CDs?
Guess again, Sunshine.
Wanna upgrade your monitor?
Sure. But don't bother trying to find a local source for that Lucky Goldstar monitor you found on that Korean website.
Only [Dell/Gateway/Microsoft/Walmart/Cosco/YouNameIt] monitors (rebranded LG monitors at three times the price, natch) will work, though.
Man, this is freakin' fantastic! Hardware compatability (no--hardware functionality--this keeps getting better!) will be strictly at the whim of the vendor.
Five years from now, "obsolete" won't mean "still does what it did when you bought it, but there's shinier stuff on the shelf this week"
"Obsolete" will mean: Vendor support for this version of hardware has ended:
DMCA already means you'd be insane to risk hacking your hardware to get it working again.
And recycling laws will mean the hardware has to go back to a licensed recycler
So, don't try to sell it to a guy what knows a guy what can get it workin' again...
It should have been encrypted. Then it would have been safe. If only if only they would have encrypted it.
Encrypted?
By whom? Not by me, that's for sure.
Who controls the decryption? Again not somebody who answers to me.
Encryption is not a magic incantation that protects secrecy.
Encrypting some data produces some other data, which in itself is useless--you have to reverse the process to get the original data back.
Encryption happens to be a special sort of process can only be reversed under certain conditions (when the correct keys are present).
You don't need a technical understanding of the latest encryption technology to understand this. It's common freaking sense.
Somebody has spied on you. They promise to keep the results of their spying a secret. Therefore, your rights have not been violated.
Seriously--does anybody buy this? Are we that stupid?
Oh, yeah--this message has been encrypted, so it's safe. See?
Rapelcgrq?
Ol jubz? Abg ol zr, gung\'f sbe fher.
Jub pbagebyf gur qrpelcgvba? Ntnva abg fbzrobql jub nafjref gb zr.
Rapelcgvba vf abg n zntvp vapnagngvba gung cebgrpgf frperpl.
Rapelcgvat fbzr qngn cebqhprf fbzr bgure qngn, juvpu va vgfrys vf hfryrff--lbh unir gb erirefr gur cebprff gb trg gur bevtvany qngn onpx.
Rapelcgvba unccraf gb or n fcrpvny fbeg bs cebprff pna bayl or erirefrq haqre pregnva pbaqvgvbaf (jura gur pbeerpg xrlf ner cerfrag).
Lbh qba\'g arrq n grpuavpny haqrefgnaqvat bs gur yngrfg rapelcgvba grpuabybtl gb haqrefgnaq guvf. Vg\'f pbzzba sernxvat frafr.
Fbzrobql unf fcvrq ba lbh. Gurl cebzvfr gb xrrc gur erfhygf bs gurve fclvat n frperg. Gurersber, lbhe evtugf unir abg orra ivbyngrq.
Frevbhfyl--qbrf nalobql ohl guvf? Ner jr gung fghcvq?
Bu, lrnu--guvf zrffntr unf orra rapelcgrq, fb vg\'f fnsr. Frr?
Encrypted? By whom? Not by me, that's for sure. Who controls the decryption? Again not somebody who answers to me. Encryption is not a magic incantation that protects secrecy. Encrypting some data produces some other data, which in itself is useless--you have to reverse the process to get the original data back. Encryption happens to be a special sort of process can only be reversed under certain conditions (when the correct keys are present). You don't need a technical understanding of the latest encryption technology to understand this. It's common freaking sense. Somebody has spied on you. They promise to keep the results of their spying a secret. Therefore, your rights have not been violated. Seriously--does anybody buy this? Are we that stupid? Oh, yeah--this message has been encrypted, so it's safe. See? Rapelcgrq? Ol jubz? Abg ol zr, gung\'f sbe fher. Jub pbagebyf gur qrpelcgvba? Ntnva abg fbzrobql jub nafjref gb zr. Rapelcgvba vf abg n zntvp vapnagngvba gung cebgrpgf frperpl. Rapelcgvat fbzr qngn cebqhprf fbzr bgure qngn, juvpu va vgfrys vf hfryrff--lbh unir gb erirefr gur cebprff gb trg gur bevtvany qngn onpx. Rapelcgvba unccraf gb or n fcrpvny fbeg bs cebprff pna bayl or erirefrq haqre pregnva pbaqvgvbaf (jura gur pbeerpg xrlf ner cerfrag). Lbh qba\'g arrq n grpuavpny haqrefgnaqvat bs gur yngrfg rapelcgvba grpuabybtl gb haqrefgnaq guvf. Vg\'f pbzzba sernxvat frafr. Fbzrobql unf fcvrq ba lbh. Gurl cebzvfr gb xrrc gur erfhygf bs gurve fclvat n frperg. Gurersber, lbhe evtugf unir abg orra ivbyngrq. Frevbhfyl--qbrf nalobql ohl guvf? Ner jr gung fghcvq? Bu, lrnu--guvf zrffntr unf orra rapelcgrq, fb vg\'f fnsr. Frr?
Nooo!
But ya fook one goat...
Actually, it's a shitty analogy, but it does get your attention for long enough to look at the real argument:
Those that understand that there is a threat to personal freedom by the simple building of enormous cross-referenced databases already know about echelon. The TFH crowd warned us about the "no such agency" and later about "echelon", both of which were later confirmed, and whose existence has now passed into the realm of common knowledge.
So the response of those people who understand the threat is to say to the rest of the good subjects of King George "See, I told ya so."
And the rest of the good subjects response is consistently "You're a nutball. If this has been going on for years and I didn't notice, why should I care now?"
The period of this political cycle (liberty-repression-liberty...) in this country seems to be about 50-75 years. We're just starting into the hardcore authoritarian portion of the cycle. Next comes overt McCarthyism. Take the "flag burning amendment" as a marker for our official entry into that one.
Enjoy the ride, folks, and, remember--it's going to get a lot worse before it gets better. The good news is that this is nothing new, and this, too shall pass.
What country before ever existed a century & half without a rebellion? & what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon & pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots & tyrants. It is its natural manure.
According to Jefferson, we're about 30 years overdue. I say we're not quite ready yet, but I think I'll see it in my lifetime.
If you want a job, join the union.
Get paid to sleep at work.
If you like to work, you don't need the union.
Every union screws its members far worse than management does. Union leadership will sometimes even admit this, but quickly follow with "but if we weren't here, management would screw 'em even worse."
From what I've seen (auto industry), it's kinda hard to believe.
Then prosecute per political discretion.
Is this surprising to anyone?
tend to
1. Redifine buzzwords
2. Point out the new inconsistencies in semantics
3. Concluding that there is a fundamental flaw in the open source model
Is this the best they've got?
In large corporations, HR doesn't give a crap about the facts; they want the documentation that protects the corporation from lawsuits. Legal protection is HR's sole contribution to the effort. Once that's satisfied, they'll let someone else (engineering department, IT department, etc.) worry about whether the person can actually do the job.
In smaller companies (what's the limit now?--less than 25 folks?), significantly less restrictive employment reuglations apply. There's usually not an "HR" department because it's not necessary. Folks making hiring decisions can use more practical criteria, if they choose.
If anyone beyond HR actually looks at the piece of paper, they'll be looking it as a promise. Whatever you present--degree, certification, license, etc. sets expectations.
If you don't fulfill the expectations that your piece of paper sets, there's going to be disappointment.
Once you're in, nobody cares if you satisfied the hiring requirements.
Once you're in, nobody cares that the job is not what was advertised.
In a technical field, once you show up, you just do the job. If you fail that, you can usually milk it for a year or two, by which time you'll have more experience to put on your resume (another piece of paper), and get hired by the next sucker.
And, yeah, I know lots of guys that play that game, too.
Authorities
That computer is a hacking tool. Hacking is illegal.
Hacker
No, you're confusing "hacking" with criminal acts. "Hacking" just means that I'm using my computer in a manner not consistent with its original design to solve a problem in an imaginative manner.
Authorities
Couldn't have said it better myself.
Look, sir--some laws are just unenforcable, and we know that everybody's been breaking them for a long time. Hell, I used to, too. That's over now, but we're not locking people up for it yet. The people in the TCPA did the best they could to protect their rights and preserve as much of yours as they could tolerate. After that, legislatures simply let the technology define the rights.
The law has changed: What you're doing falls outside the scope of the TCP System. You could have bought an approved computer. The courts understand that there's really only one reason you didn't. know there's only one reason you didn't. We don't have to prove you did anything else illegal--the presence of the unlicensed computer is a crime, now.
You have a good job. A decent house that you're going to own in twelve more years, good credit, the respect of your peers, and peace of mind. You eat dinner with your kids and your wife. And what's your misery? Your kids are a couple of smart-mouth little shitheads? Great. Think about it. Don't be stupid. That's your worst problem? It's just a computer, fer chrissake. Just pay the fine; it's not going to break you.
Nothing else in the house I should know about, is there? Sign here. It says this computer you're giving me is the only illegal item in your possession. I'll sign as witness. See, it says "under penalty of perjury", and you signed it. I trust you. Look, sir, I'm trying to help you out here. You seem to be a decent guy and folks like you really don't belong in jail. I'll be in the neighborhood following up in about a week--you can ask me any questions then. County dump's public property, by the way. Can't say what came from who or when in there. Yeah--next Saturday. We'll be doing this side of the street in the afternoon.
One more thing--After I leave, I go to Best Buy or Wal-Mart and get yourself a legal computer, register it, and start using it. Use the number on the bottom of the form.
No, seriously. Go buy a decent computer. You're going to need one, and it's not going to put your Visa over the limit. Look, your hard drives get yanked & scanned into the database. Whatever you were using your computer for before---if don't start doing it on a licensed computer, the court assumes--Yeah, you got it.
Terrified hacker
Sorry. Here's the computer. Where do I sign? Can I pay the fine with Visa? No, I don't mind a 3% fee; that's what--only another fifteen bucks?
Three Years Later...
The fully engaged citizen act: Federally mandated taxpayer subsidized minimum internet access for everyone. Partially or fully subsidized (check your tax return to see if you qualify) computers for everyone. They're not very powerful, but they're enough to vote, file your taxes, and pay your fines.
And we really, really expect you to take advantage of this program. Why wouldn't you? It's basically free, and the only way you can vote, renew your drivers' license, apply for an apartment, sign up for electric service. Give all that up? Why? No, seriously, why? Sure, you can opt out of the program, but we'd really like to know why. I'll wait until you get it filled out. Can we go inside an sit down?
No, you misunderstand the word. Privacy is what's violated when the neighbors peek at your daughter in the shower.
A pattern of secretive behaviour, on the other hand, is evidence of a crime. No, of course, not you. You've done nothing wrong at all.
No, you don't qualify for the subsidy. But, hey, lemme see what I can do. Just sign up today, and I'll see you get the latest model--it'll
Brought to you by the department of redundancy department.
Maybe you're not asking the right questions
.45 from an retired Marine.
Your mother should have taught you something: Not just in the context of linux, but within any community, respect requires that you recognize that the rest of the community is NOT here to hold your hand. They never will be. You can learn electrical engineering from the electricians (yes, the tradesmen will teach you if you behave correctly), learn linux from developers, learn how to shoot a
Any of these people you hope to learn from (they're called "experts", by the way) are going to expect some degree of respect from you. For starters, this means that you DON't waste their time, you do your homework, and you show that you've contributed some effort towards your own understanding of things.
OK, you've done all this, and they're still picking on you? Poor baby. Your mother really didn't do a very good job, did she?
Remember all those mean kids that picked on you in grade school? They did not abruptly become kind, generous, patient and accomodating when they graduated. They're still out there and they're still acting like assholes. You're going to meet them from time to time.
Suck it up.
Which GUI should I use? Gee, I don't know. Which distro should I use? Also, can anybody tell me what's the best religion? I don't want to get that one wrong, either.
EULAs are genarally abusive to the customer.
They can usually be summed up in 3 statements:
1. It's not our fault if something goes wrong. Don't bother suing us.
2. If you do something we don't like we may choose, to sue you. We get to pick the jurisdiction. You'd do better to settle. Trust us on this.
3. We get to change the rules whenever we want.
The publisher does NOT want the customer to read or understand the EULA.
Say hello to civil and criminal liability.
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Identify:
Find a problem, task that needs done, etc.
Delegate:
Not necessarily to the party responsible; but to the party from you can get results.
Perfect example--staff is incompetent, so you hire a contractor to do the job.
Motivate:
Motivate the people to whom you've delegated to solve the problem.
Ask nicely, stroke an ego, intimidate, bribe, promise the next huge job to the contractor if he'll only take care of this one little...
Do whatever you have to do to get them to make it THEIR problem, then it's no longer YOUR problem.
This method works for *ALL* problems.
It worked for this problem.
What's the problem?
Rats, Bats, and Vats
In most cases, the organizers of the competition have a management, not engineering mindset.
These folks typically do NOT like the unexpected, especially in contests they're organizing.
If you participate in these competitions, you learn some really important things about engineering:
As an engineer, you must listen to your Client and determine:
What the Client he says he wants.
What the Client really wants.
What the Client needs.
What the Client is willing and able to pay for.
What you actually (can) deliver.
Typically, at the start, no two of the above are the same. You have to make all of them equal and convince the Client it was his idea the whole time. You can do this before quoting the job, or you can do it via change orders after the job has begun.
But skipping directly from "What they say they want" to "What you actually deliver" does not get you paid. It's a shortcut that just pisses off the Client. And if you're really stupid, it embarrasses the Client.
If the above sounds unfair, it's not. This is the way it is. Get used to it.
Then burn, baby, burn.
'course if broadband was offered for $50.00/mo, I'd buy it.
Hear that, Verizon, with your crappy 21.6k dialup speeds?!!
Dollars right here waitin' for ya--come & get it!
wtf--can't have a > in the headline?
Yes.
Marutukku, pronounced rubberhose.. (or is it rubberhose, pronounced maru tukku? I forget...)
Any politically active programmers out there want to take a crack at maintaining it?
These folks used to make an important contribution to the process.
Distribution & Marketing.
They're no longer necessary--this is something we can now do for ourselves at an individual creator or user level.
If competition in this arena (making [files, movies, music, etc] available for sharing) becomes illegal, then *AA gets direct legal protection for their business model.
If you want to distribute, you have to pay them. Just like in the good old days.
Shifting the burden of proof starts with the argument "With the law as it stands, it's impossible for us to prove a violation. Therefore, the standard for guilt should be lowered. Making the nature of the file an element of the defense rather than an element of the crime preserves the presumption of innocence. We've simply changed the definition of guilt."
"Guilty", BTW, is the other half of "shifting the burden". Moving it from civil to criminal court. Then, *AA doesn't have to pay for the lawyers; they just have to keep up those rental fees for the senators.
It's a good plan if they can get it to stick.
My Dad was a physician.
Everybody assumed that I would be one too--take over the practice when he retired.
Dad always told me "Do whatever you want to do in life. But do it well. Son, I don't care if you're a ditch-digger. But if you choose that path, you better be the best damned ditch-digger around." Dad also taught me that if you're working hard, you're doing good. Worst thing you can say about a someone is "That boy don't like to work."
Wound up being an engineer. Turns out, I'd always been an engineer; just didn't know it.
Folks tell me I'm pretty good at it, too.
So, as I sit here waiting for something to break (should't be long...)..
IT hiring is done by people. ...
People are*ist.
Racist
Sexist
Ideologist
Nationalist
Ageist
To anybody who believes that human beings are or ever will be otherwise: "You're deluding yourself."
NO
KILL
I
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