Did you ever think to yourself "Hey maybe I should call E* and find out her contact info so when I call Dell they don't think the laptop is stolen." Any company would have done the same thing. Tech support isn't going to call someone for you, to get information that you should have in the first place. If I need someone's phone number or address or whatever for tech support I ask that person.
Let me try to tell you a phone conversation I've had with Dell tech support as best I can remember it.
Them: Thanks for calling Dell blah blah blah name, blah blah, address, blah blah, serial number?
Me: Well I'm working on trying to figure out why this computer won't turn on. I swapped out the PSU, the RAM, the video card, everything except the motherboard, so I'm pretty sure the motherboard is shot.
Them: Oh? Well bring it to such and such place and they'll swap the motherboard, it's still covered under warranty.
Me: Thanks.
I've never once had a problem with tech support and I always know that the information I give them has to match what's on their records. And I would never expect them to call someone, ever. It's my job to give them the right information, not their job to look it up.
Pull one hard drive out of one of these systems and put it into another (seemingly identical) system that happens to have a completely different motherboard, and poof, blue screens of death all over the place.
That's because the windows install doesn't have the drivers required for the motherboards IDE controller so it can't load windows from the hard drive. That's a frequent annoyance for me when a motherboard dies on one of my customers. Easy way to fix it is re-install windows. The hard way I forgot by now but it's possible (a search on google might turn up something.) Anyway, out of all the vendors available, Dell's the only one I'd ever buy from (this is being typed on a Dell laptop too.) They're decently priced good systems with some good support. Compared to cheap E-Machines, expensive Gateway 2000s and crappy HP/Compaqs.
An optical mouse uses an LED to light up an area for an optical sensor to pick up hundreds of images and compare them to detect movement. A laser mouse just uses the laser. So, optical mice do not have lasers. You just listed 3 laser mice (if you notice, it doesn't say laser optical in the name.)
Umm come to FYE or Sam Goody and you'll see albums that came out 10 years ago still being sold for $18. It's almost impossible to find anything for under $10. And used record stores sell legit copies, not fake ones, and the record stores aren't going to change the price because everyone downloaded a certain album, how are they supposed to know anyone downloaded it? And if that affected the price at all, the first week the CD would be worth nothing cause millions of people would have already bought it and downloaded it.
The price of a CD in the store doesn't change if there are 6 million copies of a CD out or 60 million. It changes when the store figures hey, no one's gonna buy this crap. If the CD is good people will buy it.
I see. Therefore, counterfeiting is OK, sinceI would be increasing the supply of money by merely making a copy of it.
Except now you're giving the money to people, it isn't worth anything because it's fake money. Now if that money was made real then because there is a flood of new copied money coming into the market, it's not worth anything again.
If I steal a Rolex and then return it with a fake receipt, they are not out the Rolex. Therefore, I would not be stealing.
How'd you get moderated interesting? If you steal a rolex from the store and return it, the store is now out the money they just gave you for the rolex. If you steal it from someone, that person doesn't have the rolex anymore.
Sharing music is more like, if you download a bunch of pictures of a rolex and build one from scratch, should you be sued by the rolex for stealing? What if your computer builds the watch? What if your computer builds the watch and you give them out for free to all your friends?
I about flipped out when the neighbor 10 year old wanted my seven year old daughter to come over and play Grand Theft Auto. Yes, it's a parent problem, but the line has to be drawn somewhere. Luckily, my daughter knew that game wasn't appropriate.
Yeah your daughter's amazing, not playing GTA. If she understands the nature of the game, and she understands the stuff in the game is wrong, then what bad will come from her playing the game? My cousin was around 10 years old when GTA 3 came out. It was one of her favorite games. She also plays Doom 3 on X-Box and some other violent games. She is the least violent, nicest little girl. Now my other cousin, who has never seen a gun in her life, plays Mary Kate and Ashley video games, and doesn't watch any violent movies ever, is a very mean, violent, bad tempered girl.
Now with me and my sister, we're exactly alike. We're both polite, non violent, non confrontational people. Except I grew up playing video games, I love guns, and I watched lots of very violent and scary movies as a young kid. She was never into any of that. We both turned out the same, and if anything, she's more agressive than I am.
I've never met someone who I thought "Hey that guy's messed up and it wasn't bad parenting it was those damn video games and violent movies." Now maybe a combination of bad parenting and violent entertainment might do something, I haven't met anyone who that happened to. The most violent people I know didn't grow up around TV, movies or video games. Mostly they just went out, played sports, hung out with their friends, stuff like that.
'fraid so. But look at the bright side: your guy-friends will really be your friends and not just, you know, trying to get into your panties. A whole new era of spiritually satisfying platonic relationships is about to begin!
No, they'll still be trying to get into your panties. Do you really think a guy would stop just because he has a robot girlfriend? I know most wouldn't. I know some guys who can be actual friends rather than people trying to get into your pants but all the other guys are going to still try, it's just human nature to try and spread your seed.
It's very sad that people are so ignorant, but they really don't want to hear that all the problems are their fault so they blame it on whoever made the computer. And when they get a new one from somewhere else that has the same problems, they just ignore it and tell themselves "Buying a new computer was worth it, that old one was too slow!."
Yes! Please think of the children and have Osama bomb a more annoying character, such as Barney or the Teletubbies. Although bombing Disney wouldn't be too bad, they are quite the evil empire.
Or I can concentrate on driving while reciting a memorized patern in my head? I have a car that's stick, with my thumb I press out the memorized pattern (usually lol I'm driving which means "Stop sending me messages") and if I have to shift well I use the rest of my hand while holding the cell phone. I'm watching the road, I'm paying attention to what's going on. It's like pressing the button for your favorite radio station, or shifting into a certain gear. You're just repeating a memorized patter, you're not looking away, and you're concentrating on the road. I only look to read the messages when I'm stopped so what's the harm?
Umm ok, I drive my car while sending text messages to my friend's on AIM. I memorized the lettering on my cell phone's number pad, and it has predictive text. So to say hi I just hit 44. Or to say lol I'm busy driving I hit 565#*416#2879. I do this every so often when someone sends me a message on AIM and I'm out driving and it gets forwarded to my phone. I don't take my eyes off the road to answer the message, and I only read the messages when I'm stopped.
I just get tired of hearing these same criticisms of LCD's that we've heard for the last 10 years - "their colors suck", "they're not fast enough", "their black level is bad", "they're expensive". I mean, do you go around criticizing DVD-ROM drives because they cost more than CD-ROM drives and only read at 1X? This is 2005, man. We're past all that and have been for years.
Ummm are we really past all that? I remember the only good LCD screen I've ever bought cost me $1,500. It was a 20", forgot the company, was the best LCD they had in the store (going by the numbers, fastest LCD, highest resolutions, highest contrast ratio, all that good stuff.) I bought that last August. That was at Fry's, and the monitor still didn't come close to the picture quality, resolutions, or price of the $450 viewsonic they had on display. When they make a 21" LCD with the picture quality of a high end CRT, that only costs 25% more than the CRT, I'll buy it. Until then, I'll complain that LCDs are still worse than CRTs.
Why would you pay for something that has no useful function aside from disabling your car?
Because it's mandatory? I wouldn't mind paying an extra $600 for a new car if I know some potential drunk driver has to do the same. Plus there can also be situations where a court order requires you to install one (since you've been caught DWI.) And then there's installing it on someone elses car (like your childs car, or your own car if you know people are going to borrow it.) Then there are car services and taxi cab companies that can use them to be sure there drivers aren't driving drunk. There are so many situations where one of these devices is a good idea.
If we found intelligent life on another planet, and it had proof of evolution taking place on our planet, or it's planet, and could show exactly how it came to be.
"That proof is wrong, this is how it really happened! God just created all the stuff in 6 days, your proof is flawed in that it doesn't support our beliefs."
I think this "invention" is as good as the censorship card on cable TV, or that running shoes that power the TV. However the only "reactive invention" that I would like to see is a law punishing parents who cannot educate, manner, guide and monitor their children.
And I think you should have someone in your family killed by a drunk driver. I just want to make this entire post say F You to release some anger I've built up by reading your mindless post. This invention is great. If you're drunk, your car won't start. If this stops only 10% of the drunk drivers on the road, that's still 10% less drunk drivers on the road, and the invention did exactly what it was intended to do (stopped some drunk drivers.) Does it matter that you can circumvent this? No, because it still works even if it is only some of the time. It's not going to wipe out every single drunk driver out there, but it's better than nothing. And it's not a parenting device, I don't even know where the hell you got that from.
Now they need to install a monitoring system to kids underpants to track their toilet visits and we're done.
Yeah because that's the same thing. Monitoring if your kid spent the lunch money YOU GAVE THE CHILD, is exactly the same as monitoring if the kid is going to the bathroom. It sounds like a good idea. I know people that would spend their lunch money on cigarettes, or weed, rather than food. And there's no "Parents should be watching their own kids, not having someone else to do it!" argument here because the parents aren't allowed in the school. Now the parents will know that their kid used the lunch money for something else rather than just assuming.
Speaking for myself, and elves everywhere, this is great news. I can finally use my favorite OS without worrying about any attacks I'm opening myself to.
They make money cleaning spyware and viruses off computers. Why would they educate their users about them?
Because if a customer comes in every week and has to have their computer cleaned, they're eventually going to say "This guy's an idiot, my computer keeps breaking every week" and they're going to go buy a brand new computer from another store and when that store throws on AV software and spyware removal stuff the customer will just think they bought a better quality computer.
When the rest of the people realize their music no longer works they're going to start asking questions. This is when I get to tell them of the wonders of linux, "It doesn't care that you downloaded the song from someone else, it just plays!"
How do you apply for a credit card like that? You have to physically go somewhere and apply for one? And someone can't just steal some of your mail to pick up some statements? 4 bills and you've got 100 points.
Then of course, there's the issue of why they need to have this info in the first place. Just as you could argue if we didn't have nuclear weapons in the first place then there'd be no reason to worry about them being stolen, so you could argue that Lexis-Nexis - a company most of us have absolutely no contact with - should not have things like our social security numbers (which are for, you know, our individual social security payments, not anything else) to begin with.
So when you call up the bank and ask for a new card cause your old one was stolen, how exactly are they supposed to know that you are who you say you are? A social security number helps because the only other things are your name, address, relatives names, whatever. Unless you suggest we all use passwords to verify ourselves with banks? But then what if I want to sign up for a new credit card. I use your name and address, and since you don't have a credit card with this company, there's no password (and there will be different passwords for each company since if they're all the same then that's just like a SS#.) What's keeping someone who knows you well from getting a credit card under your name?
Well I have long held the opinion we spend far too much money particularly protecting politicians. I think we should spend less and if a few of them get knocked off they it will help to filter out the self serving interest bastards. They are supposed to be public servants, not divine personages and its not like they are irreplacable now is it.
Ok, so basically you want to create a society where politicians are not only afraid to do things that will piss off voters, they will now be afraid to do things that will piss off assassins? Can I please ask how that can be useful? Now any good changes that would have taken place will never happen because politicians will be too afraid to challenge the status quo.
Re:Why must a simple phone be so ugly?
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Just a Phone?
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· Score: 1
The people who care are the people who use it. It's not a house phone, the thing is used in public. And since most people care about what something they're using looks like, it's usually good to make something not look like crap.
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Did you ever think to yourself "Hey maybe I should call E* and find out her contact info so when I call Dell they don't think the laptop is stolen." Any company would have done the same thing. Tech support isn't going to call someone for you, to get information that you should have in the first place. If I need someone's phone number or address or whatever for tech support I ask that person.
Let me try to tell you a phone conversation I've had with Dell tech support as best I can remember it.
Them: Thanks for calling Dell blah blah blah name, blah blah, address, blah blah, serial number?
Me: blah blah Bob, I'm trying to fix Mary's computer blah [Mary's Address] blah blah 12345
Them: What's the problem you're having today?
Me: Well I'm working on trying to figure out why this computer won't turn on. I swapped out the PSU, the RAM, the video card, everything except the motherboard, so I'm pretty sure the motherboard is shot.
Them: Oh? Well bring it to such and such place and they'll swap the motherboard, it's still covered under warranty.
Me: Thanks.
I've never once had a problem with tech support and I always know that the information I give them has to match what's on their records. And I would never expect them to call someone, ever. It's my job to give them the right information, not their job to look it up.
Pull one hard drive out of one of these systems and put it into another (seemingly identical) system that happens to have a completely different motherboard, and poof, blue screens of death all over the place.
That's because the windows install doesn't have the drivers required for the motherboards IDE controller so it can't load windows from the hard drive. That's a frequent annoyance for me when a motherboard dies on one of my customers. Easy way to fix it is re-install windows. The hard way I forgot by now but it's possible (a search on google might turn up something.) Anyway, out of all the vendors available, Dell's the only one I'd ever buy from (this is being typed on a Dell laptop too.) They're decently priced good systems with some good support. Compared to cheap E-Machines, expensive Gateway 2000s and crappy HP/Compaqs.
An optical mouse uses an LED to light up an area for an optical sensor to pick up hundreds of images and compare them to detect movement. A laser mouse just uses the laser. So, optical mice do not have lasers. You just listed 3 laser mice (if you notice, it doesn't say laser optical in the name.)
Umm come to FYE or Sam Goody and you'll see albums that came out 10 years ago still being sold for $18. It's almost impossible to find anything for under $10. And used record stores sell legit copies, not fake ones, and the record stores aren't going to change the price because everyone downloaded a certain album, how are they supposed to know anyone downloaded it? And if that affected the price at all, the first week the CD would be worth nothing cause millions of people would have already bought it and downloaded it.
The price of a CD in the store doesn't change if there are 6 million copies of a CD out or 60 million. It changes when the store figures hey, no one's gonna buy this crap. If the CD is good people will buy it.
I see. Therefore, counterfeiting is OK, sinceI would be increasing the supply of money by merely making a copy of it.
Except now you're giving the money to people, it isn't worth anything because it's fake money. Now if that money was made real then because there is a flood of new copied money coming into the market, it's not worth anything again.
If I steal a Rolex and then return it with a fake receipt, they are not out the Rolex. Therefore, I would not be stealing.
How'd you get moderated interesting? If you steal a rolex from the store and return it, the store is now out the money they just gave you for the rolex. If you steal it from someone, that person doesn't have the rolex anymore.
Sharing music is more like, if you download a bunch of pictures of a rolex and build one from scratch, should you be sued by the rolex for stealing? What if your computer builds the watch? What if your computer builds the watch and you give them out for free to all your friends?
I about flipped out when the neighbor 10 year old wanted my seven year old daughter to come over and play Grand Theft Auto. Yes, it's a parent problem, but the line has to be drawn somewhere. Luckily, my daughter knew that game wasn't appropriate.
Yeah your daughter's amazing, not playing GTA. If she understands the nature of the game, and she understands the stuff in the game is wrong, then what bad will come from her playing the game? My cousin was around 10 years old when GTA 3 came out. It was one of her favorite games. She also plays Doom 3 on X-Box and some other violent games. She is the least violent, nicest little girl. Now my other cousin, who has never seen a gun in her life, plays Mary Kate and Ashley video games, and doesn't watch any violent movies ever, is a very mean, violent, bad tempered girl.
Now with me and my sister, we're exactly alike. We're both polite, non violent, non confrontational people. Except I grew up playing video games, I love guns, and I watched lots of very violent and scary movies as a young kid. She was never into any of that. We both turned out the same, and if anything, she's more agressive than I am.
I've never met someone who I thought "Hey that guy's messed up and it wasn't bad parenting it was those damn video games and violent movies." Now maybe a combination of bad parenting and violent entertainment might do something, I haven't met anyone who that happened to. The most violent people I know didn't grow up around TV, movies or video games. Mostly they just went out, played sports, hung out with their friends, stuff like that.
'fraid so. But look at the bright side: your guy-friends will really be your friends and not just, you know, trying to get into your panties. A whole new era of spiritually satisfying platonic relationships is about to begin!
No, they'll still be trying to get into your panties. Do you really think a guy would stop just because he has a robot girlfriend? I know most wouldn't. I know some guys who can be actual friends rather than people trying to get into your pants but all the other guys are going to still try, it's just human nature to try and spread your seed.
It's very sad that people are so ignorant, but they really don't want to hear that all the problems are their fault so they blame it on whoever made the computer. And when they get a new one from somewhere else that has the same problems, they just ignore it and tell themselves "Buying a new computer was worth it, that old one was too slow!."
Someone please think of the children!
Yes! Please think of the children and have Osama bomb a more annoying character, such as Barney or the Teletubbies. Although bombing Disney wouldn't be too bad, they are quite the evil empire.
Or I can concentrate on driving while reciting a memorized patern in my head? I have a car that's stick, with my thumb I press out the memorized pattern (usually lol I'm driving which means "Stop sending me messages") and if I have to shift well I use the rest of my hand while holding the cell phone. I'm watching the road, I'm paying attention to what's going on. It's like pressing the button for your favorite radio station, or shifting into a certain gear. You're just repeating a memorized patter, you're not looking away, and you're concentrating on the road. I only look to read the messages when I'm stopped so what's the harm?
Umm ok, I drive my car while sending text messages to my friend's on AIM. I memorized the lettering on my cell phone's number pad, and it has predictive text. So to say hi I just hit 44. Or to say lol I'm busy driving I hit 565#*416#2879. I do this every so often when someone sends me a message on AIM and I'm out driving and it gets forwarded to my phone. I don't take my eyes off the road to answer the message, and I only read the messages when I'm stopped.
I just get tired of hearing these same criticisms of LCD's that we've heard for the last 10 years - "their colors suck", "they're not fast enough", "their black level is bad", "they're expensive". I mean, do you go around criticizing DVD-ROM drives because they cost more than CD-ROM drives and only read at 1X? This is 2005, man. We're past all that and have been for years.
Ummm are we really past all that? I remember the only good LCD screen I've ever bought cost me $1,500. It was a 20", forgot the company, was the best LCD they had in the store (going by the numbers, fastest LCD, highest resolutions, highest contrast ratio, all that good stuff.) I bought that last August. That was at Fry's, and the monitor still didn't come close to the picture quality, resolutions, or price of the $450 viewsonic they had on display. When they make a 21" LCD with the picture quality of a high end CRT, that only costs 25% more than the CRT, I'll buy it. Until then, I'll complain that LCDs are still worse than CRTs.
Why would you pay for something that has no useful function aside from disabling your car?
Because it's mandatory? I wouldn't mind paying an extra $600 for a new car if I know some potential drunk driver has to do the same. Plus there can also be situations where a court order requires you to install one (since you've been caught DWI.) And then there's installing it on someone elses car (like your childs car, or your own car if you know people are going to borrow it.) Then there are car services and taxi cab companies that can use them to be sure there drivers aren't driving drunk. There are so many situations where one of these devices is a good idea.
If we found intelligent life on another planet, and it had proof of evolution taking place on our planet, or it's planet, and could show exactly how it came to be.
"That proof is wrong, this is how it really happened! God just created all the stuff in 6 days, your proof is flawed in that it doesn't support our beliefs."
I think this "invention" is as good as the censorship card on cable TV, or that running shoes that power the TV. However the only "reactive invention" that I would like to see is a law punishing parents who cannot educate, manner, guide and monitor their children.
And I think you should have someone in your family killed by a drunk driver. I just want to make this entire post say F You to release some anger I've built up by reading your mindless post. This invention is great. If you're drunk, your car won't start. If this stops only 10% of the drunk drivers on the road, that's still 10% less drunk drivers on the road, and the invention did exactly what it was intended to do (stopped some drunk drivers.) Does it matter that you can circumvent this? No, because it still works even if it is only some of the time. It's not going to wipe out every single drunk driver out there, but it's better than nothing. And it's not a parenting device, I don't even know where the hell you got that from.
Now they need to install a monitoring system to kids underpants to track their toilet visits and we're done.
Yeah because that's the same thing. Monitoring if your kid spent the lunch money YOU GAVE THE CHILD, is exactly the same as monitoring if the kid is going to the bathroom. It sounds like a good idea. I know people that would spend their lunch money on cigarettes, or weed, rather than food. And there's no "Parents should be watching their own kids, not having someone else to do it!" argument here because the parents aren't allowed in the school. Now the parents will know that their kid used the lunch money for something else rather than just assuming.
Speaking for myself, and elves everywhere, this is great news. I can finally use my favorite OS without worrying about any attacks I'm opening myself to.
They make money cleaning spyware and viruses off computers. Why would they educate their users about them?
Because if a customer comes in every week and has to have their computer cleaned, they're eventually going to say "This guy's an idiot, my computer keeps breaking every week" and they're going to go buy a brand new computer from another store and when that store throws on AV software and spyware removal stuff the customer will just think they bought a better quality computer.
When the rest of the people realize their music no longer works they're going to start asking questions. This is when I get to tell them of the wonders of linux, "It doesn't care that you downloaded the song from someone else, it just plays!"
How do you apply for a credit card like that? You have to physically go somewhere and apply for one? And someone can't just steal some of your mail to pick up some statements? 4 bills and you've got 100 points.
Then of course, there's the issue of why they need to have this info in the first place. Just as you could argue if we didn't have nuclear weapons in the first place then there'd be no reason to worry about them being stolen, so you could argue that Lexis-Nexis - a company most of us have absolutely no contact with - should not have things like our social security numbers (which are for, you know, our individual social security payments, not anything else) to begin with.
So when you call up the bank and ask for a new card cause your old one was stolen, how exactly are they supposed to know that you are who you say you are? A social security number helps because the only other things are your name, address, relatives names, whatever. Unless you suggest we all use passwords to verify ourselves with banks? But then what if I want to sign up for a new credit card. I use your name and address, and since you don't have a credit card with this company, there's no password (and there will be different passwords for each company since if they're all the same then that's just like a SS#.) What's keeping someone who knows you well from getting a credit card under your name?
Well I have long held the opinion we spend far too much money particularly protecting politicians. I think we should spend less and if a few of them get knocked off they it will help to filter out the self serving interest bastards. They are supposed to be public servants, not divine personages and its not like they are irreplacable now is it.
Ok, so basically you want to create a society where politicians are not only afraid to do things that will piss off voters, they will now be afraid to do things that will piss off assassins? Can I please ask how that can be useful? Now any good changes that would have taken place will never happen because politicians will be too afraid to challenge the status quo.
The people who care are the people who use it. It's not a house phone, the thing is used in public. And since most people care about what something they're using looks like, it's usually good to make something not look like crap.