It's just funny, Microsoft's claims that '3rd party software is to blame' and 'Windows is fine' is finally holding water.
It has always been true, just not helpful. Sony's rootkit is not functionally different from Hacker Defender or any other '3rd party' rootkit. A product which works in the lab, but not in the field is still a failure.
While there are tons of Euro-weenies that complain that we don't switch because of our stubbornness, they had a 50 year headstart
Australia switched between 1972 and 1980, one industry at a time, while about a third of all other metric countries changed over between 1960 and 1980. It wasn't that difficult.
I love Wikipedia and would be very happy if it found a way to be both open and reliable.
Then accept it as an aggregator of potentially useful information that still needs to be verified, rather than authoritative source. Many of us don't believe everything we read in newspapers, and cross reference the parts which may be contentious.
With Wikipedia it's as easy as selecting a phrase, right clicking and selecting "Search web for ". Anyone who is unwilling to cross check information is either negligent or spoiling for a fight.
Hey, I've almost talked myself into going back! Coming from Western Australia where you can drive for half a day and not see the scenery change, Guatemala was just astonishing. We rode those hired bikes up into a volcano one day (Fuego), then to an immense market (Chichicastenango) where there were thousands of vendors cooking and selling an amazing variety of food. Then the lake, of course, and Antigua has great Spanish-colonial architecture. Then there's Flores, near Tikal where the lake is slowly drowning the town...
Envious you got the good stuff. I'd love to check out local coffees in central and south america.
If you're US based, it's easy to get there and phenomenally cheap to stay. We hired motorbikes in Antigua and rode to Lake Atitlan. The coffee growers there spread the berries on the side of the road to dry, and often have small roasters going in stalls off to the side. There's an amazing variety of smells and flavours. The lake is pretty special too.
Check out the Panasonic FZ 30, terrific camera for the money.
Yeah, I'll second that, Lumix cameras are solid, well designed and take the sharpest pics out there. Actually, I'd say the single worst aspect of the FZ30 is the one Sony is hyping as a positive - the EVF. Electronic viewfinders suck for manual focus and in low light.
You don't have to go that far - some of the best coffee in the world is grown in your own backyard. Costa Rica does great coffee, but Guatemala is my favorite. It's not just that the taste is good, it's that it hasn't been homogenised. You can get coffee in two neighboring cafes and they'll taste different.
First time I was in Antigua (Guatemala), I just about lived on the coffee from the local cafe and their pineapple and papaya pies.
Because computers are apparently more important than FOOD and MEDICINE now.
My computer lets me do things that earn money. With money, I buy FOOD and MEDICINE, not just now, but whenever I need them. Maybe other people can do the same, then they will not be hungry and sick. If those people are not hungry and sick, we will stop having to send aid money to their countries. If we don't have to keep ending donations to their countries, we will be able to spend the money on large clue-by-fours to sort out people who don't understand that a sustainable income is always better than charity.
I did most of my firefighting in underground mining and industrial teams. Mirrors are sometimes used, but then you need to be both close to the mirror and close to the line of sight. When you're wearing BA or BG equipment, or when the hazard is unpredictable (ie, rocks spalling because of the heat), something like this beats mirrors hands down.
even if you could the person who was going to shoot at you could just move.
The best use of these things will be for rescuing people, not killing them. Being able to throw one of these around a potentially dangerous corner or through windows to see if there are injured or unconcious people inside could be invaluable.
You see how hard it's being pushed? There's obviously been a lot of market research done here. Excel, OOo, Windows and almost all other software have multitudes of usability issues of similar severity, but this is the one the astroturfers have chosen hammer as their cause celebre.
It's easy to see why too. Appealing to testoterone fuelled performance envy is pretty much a no-brainer for the marketers. Being able to say "My spreadsheet's faster than yours" is worth every cent to a demographic that's legendary for being both competitive and insecure.
Marketing people don't like diluted messages, so chosing one thing and hitting it hard is one of the classic techniques of negative marketing. You see it all the time in politics, and it's been a feature of Microsoft's FUD campaigns - look at the classic TCO "studies", for example.
That's not to say there's necessarily anything wrong with campaigns like this, but it is sneaky, I do like to know whan I'm being manipulated.
Yes, exactly. A perfect example of a shill attempting to subvert a discussion. The key things to notice are;
The way the shill has completely ignored the point of the post and focused on the FUD.
How the shill is attempting to draw us into an ever more esoteric discussion of their competitors "flaw".
The insistent tone of the post designed to provoke an irritated and perhaps ill-considered response.
These techniques are being used in an effort to stifle discussion. It's very effective too - have a look at how much effort is being put into discussing an almost irrelevant issue.
Slashdot Mirror
One could argue that Sony violated the DMCA when they circumvented the normal function of Windows.
They didn't. They just made it slow, vulnerable and crash-prone.
unless you think chaucer is particularly accessible.
I trow Chaucer is sooth bet. The Slashdot janglers art sooth ful nyce.
It's just funny, Microsoft's claims that '3rd party software is to blame' and 'Windows is fine' is finally holding water.
It has always been true, just not helpful. Sony's rootkit is not functionally different from Hacker Defender or any other '3rd party' rootkit. A product which works in the lab, but not in the field is still a failure.
remember trying to get those first couple of computers to talk to each other when you were a kid?
Yeah, I nearly broke my back carrying all those punchcards.
Network protocols, Transport layers? Hah! I WAS the transport layer.
Bill? Is that you?
but one day it will be too far and we won't have even realised
Then why will it have been too far?
get experimented on barberously!
They gave you a bad haircut? The bastards!
While there are tons of Euro-weenies that complain that we don't switch because of our stubbornness, they had a 50 year headstart
Australia switched between 1972 and 1980, one industry at a time, while about a third of all other metric countries changed over between 1960 and 1980. It wasn't that difficult.
Man, we need more Niven fans with mod points.
Offer them rishathra.
You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
Oh yeah? Just wait and see what he does at Halloween...
I love Wikipedia and would be very happy if it found a way to be both open and reliable.
Then accept it as an aggregator of potentially useful information that still needs to be verified, rather than authoritative source. Many of us don't believe everything we read in newspapers, and cross reference the parts which may be contentious.
With Wikipedia it's as easy as selecting a phrase, right clicking and selecting "Search web for ". Anyone who is unwilling to cross check information is either negligent or spoiling for a fight.
Jaseparlo works for Microsoft, you insensitive clod!
You talked me into it
Hey, I've almost talked myself into going back! Coming from Western Australia where you can drive for half a day and not see the scenery change, Guatemala was just astonishing. We rode those hired bikes up into a volcano one day (Fuego), then to an immense market (Chichicastenango) where there were thousands of vendors cooking and selling an amazing variety of food. Then the lake, of course, and Antigua has great Spanish-colonial architecture. Then there's Flores, near Tikal where the lake is slowly drowning the town...
Oh damn. Now I have itchy feet again.
Envious you got the good stuff. I'd love to check out local coffees in central and south america.
If you're US based, it's easy to get there and phenomenally cheap to stay. We hired motorbikes in Antigua and rode to Lake Atitlan. The coffee growers there spread the berries on the side of the road to dry, and often have small roasters going in stalls off to the side. There's an amazing variety of smells and flavours. The lake is pretty special too.
Check out the Panasonic FZ 30, terrific camera for the money.
Yeah, I'll second that, Lumix cameras are solid, well designed and take the sharpest pics out there. Actually, I'd say the single worst aspect of the FZ30 is the one Sony is hyping as a positive - the EVF. Electronic viewfinders suck for manual focus and in low light.
Got to hit Europe for coffee.
You don't have to go that far - some of the best coffee in the world is grown in your own backyard. Costa Rica does great coffee, but Guatemala is my favorite. It's not just that the taste is good, it's that it hasn't been homogenised. You can get coffee in two neighboring cafes and they'll taste different.
First time I was in Antigua (Guatemala), I just about lived on the coffee from the local cafe and their pineapple and papaya pies.
would the state in question be the Gas state?
No, I think he's talking about New Jersey.
Because computers are apparently more important than FOOD and MEDICINE now.
My computer lets me do things that earn money. With money, I buy FOOD and MEDICINE, not just now, but whenever I need them. Maybe other people can do the same, then they will not be hungry and sick. If those people are not hungry and sick, we will stop having to send aid money to their countries. If we don't have to keep ending donations to their countries, we will be able to spend the money on large clue-by-fours to sort out people who don't understand that a sustainable income is always better than charity.
but then you could just use a mirror
I did most of my firefighting in underground mining and industrial teams. Mirrors are sometimes used, but then you need to be both close to the mirror and close to the line of sight. When you're wearing BA or BG equipment, or when the hazard is unpredictable (ie, rocks spalling because of the heat), something like this beats mirrors hands down.
but I think the mechanics might get difficult with not gravity to hold you together.
Some of us are developing "handles" to alleviate that problem.
even if you could the person who was going to shoot at you could just move.
The best use of these things will be for rescuing people, not killing them. Being able to throw one of these around a potentially dangerous corner or through windows to see if there are injured or unconcious people inside could be invaluable.
Is this a good quality in a human being?
Perhaps not, but it would be very human behaviour for a god. Isn't that the point of Jesus?
how do I get some of this sweet cash?
Edelman Public Relations. Just ask Steve Barkto, Bill Diamond, Robert Scoble, Michelle Bradley etc.
You see how hard it's being pushed? There's obviously been a lot of market research done here. Excel, OOo, Windows and almost all other software have multitudes of usability issues of similar severity, but this is the one the astroturfers have chosen hammer as their cause celebre.
It's easy to see why too. Appealing to testoterone fuelled performance envy is pretty much a no-brainer for the marketers. Being able to say "My spreadsheet's faster than yours" is worth every cent to a demographic that's legendary for being both competitive and insecure.
Marketing people don't like diluted messages, so chosing one thing and hitting it hard is one of the classic techniques of negative marketing. You see it all the time in politics, and it's been a feature of Microsoft's FUD campaigns - look at the classic TCO "studies", for example.
That's not to say there's necessarily anything wrong with campaigns like this, but it is sneaky, I do like to know whan I'm being manipulated.
Thanks for that, AC - well done.