I think you missed the intent of the parent post, and the original Hiroshima analogy was rather appropriate...
It's not so much that AOL made the internet popular (as in a lot of people use it), it's that it made it 'popular' (as in the hip and trendy thing to do). This created a whole (and by now, several) internet-aware but still functionally illiterate people.
Specifically: "netspeak"
Now, if you're not typing in your native language, even some severe deviations in grammar and spelling are forgivable. Personally speaking, if I can understand what you're trying to say then that's good enough. This also applies to native speakers who make the occasional "topy" and spelling error (expecting everyone to run their text through spell and grammar check every time just isn't reasonable!)
However, since the internet became "popular" you have an entire culture of people who can't use punctuation like commas and periods, proper capitalization, can't (or won't?) use full words, (Though some "alternative spelings" are commonly acceptable - I can't see, for example, how "u" is a suitable replacement for "you"...), can't be bothered to proofread what they type (even a quick glance), and at worst can't even form coherent thoughts.
So it's not that there are more people are using the internet - that's a very good thing - it's that far too many of them can't understand why they get kicked out of chatrooms and forums for typing "hi a/s/l plz how r u k 10x lololol!!!1! u r gay ass i h4><0r j00"
=Smidge= "I really like it when a site calls it a 'Message Board' instead of 'Forum'. 'Forum' suggests some semblence of order, respect and maturity." -braedan51
Obviously, a more traditional method of diagnosis is still required.
What I didn't notice is if the 34% that weren't a success were shown to have cancer and did not, or shown to not have cancer and did.
Taking a "better safe than sorry" approach, if the scanner says you're positive for cancer, then go ahead and get a biopsy even if you're actually healthy. But if the device misses the cancer, then it really can't be relied upon.
Although 94% is pretty good. I wonder what the success rate of biopsy diagnosis is...
And am I the only one who thinks it's a bit odd that they can't get their results published in a medical journal? =Smidge=
Once upon a time, Microsoft did have a "Control Creation Edition" free for download. You could only compile *.ocx controls with it, but you could build and run regular EXE projects within the IDE.
Google around for it. I believe the last version was 'VB5CCE'.
I meant that the device didn't need external power to do it's thing: it uses energy from the flow itself. Yes, you still need to put that energy into the flow, but you don't need to put batteries in a Hilsch Tube to get it to work! =Smidge=
This also sounds like a good reason for telcos to:
A) Move their infastructure over to IP based networks. Switching becomes much less of a problem.
B) With the inclusion of A, perhaps a wireless P2P system could fill a nitch here. Some flavors of wireless networking can work reliably over 10-15 miles, right? What about satelites?
That could bring the infastructure cost per-subscriber down in rural areas quite a bit. =Smidge=
What does advertizing that your product will do X Y and Z, when it actually doesn't (and may never) ahve such features, have anything to do with innovation and exchanging ideas?
Most companies probably aren't al that keen to exchange ideas on new and innovative tech openly to begin with, since they probably want to be first to the market with it.
This is quite simply a case of false advertizing, intentional or not. Now, should a company be punished is something goes horribly wrong and they're unable to deliver their product? I don't think so... but they shouldn't make promises they don't plan on keeping either.
It would be wise for a company to not herald some innovative tech to the public until they're confident they can see it through. But it's not right to punish them if they botch it. (I'm sure pissing off the investors is already pretty bad for business).
Now, if they pass a law that makes the *individuals* of a corporation criminally responsible for fraudulent business practices, that's be nice. =Smidge=
If you want to use a string as a integer, a float, and a string all in the same line, you don't have to cast it.... Why can't C be that smart?
Having a pretty broad background in VisualBasic...
*puts on asbestos suit and goggles*...one of the major drawbacks to that is processing overhead. In VB, any variable you don't define is of type "Variant", which is 14 bytes plus the actual data. Ouch. Not to mention the work that has to be done to figure out what the data is and properly deal with it.
And, of course, making a typo in a variable name can make debugging a real headache. Because you don't have to cast your variables, anything you type is valid, and typos don't generate errors! (You'll always find "Option Explicit" in my VB modules!)
Having about a month's worth of self-taught PHP behind me, and actually being very comfortable and productive with it, I find that the no-cast variable system works very smoothly. It's a little wierd when it comes to arrays, but good naming conventions help there. It's nice to not have to stop and make a new variable declaration all the time - just code.
And let's not forget the true power of no-cast variables: obfuscation! He's using it as a flag! No wait.. it's a loop counter! NO! It's an array! AAAHH!!:) =Smidge=
Did I say it was efficient? No. Did I say it was magical? No. It's just neat.
Incidentally, it does use the "natural" motion of the molecules to seperate them. That's really about as close to the real "Maxwell's Demon" as I've ever seen. Granted, overall energy levels have to be pretty high for it to work, hence the inefficiencies. =Smidge=
I think the best example of this would be the Hilsch Tube.
BLow air in the middle, hot air blows out one end and cold air blows out the other. Temperature difference can be as much as a few hundred degrees C depending on the configuration used! (Still doesn't violate any laws of thermodynamics though... but it does 'sort' high and low energy molecules without ant "extra" energy) =Smidge=
If you're going through the trouble of sending something all the way to mars to do high-altitude whatever, it'd be cheaper and easier to send something that orbits the planet instead of trying to land something like this (much larger, much more fragile and probably heavier) on the surface, then unpack it, then try to get it to take off. Last I checked there aren't any airports on Mars.
If you want high-altitude air samples, you can make little lander things that will sample the air and send back the results after hitting the surface... assuming you can't get the info you need from satellite (And they can tease out a lot of crazy info with satellites!) =Smidge=
Not to be a wet blanket, but while Helios is really neat it's not terribly useful. Only 762 pounds of payload available, minus mandatory equipment. For the cost to build and operate the vehicle it clearly doesn't have any commercial potential. It might be cheaper than launching a satellite in some cases, if it can provide the same functionality, but that's about it.
The biggest problem is that it's still more or less a solar powered craft -- and solar energy just doesn't have the density to do anything useful and still be mobile.
Although... maybe something like this could make a reasonable alternative to those Broadband Broadcasting Balloons (say that three times fast!), since these craft can fly at higher altitudes and make roam to areas where they may be needed more.
He needs to be educated, disciplined and taught responsiblity
I agree completely with that. Unfortunately, it's quite possible that giving your kid a good whack upside the head is quite possibly illegal nowadays... regardless of the reason.
There is definately a line between dicipline and abuse, but seriously... sometimes they need a good whack to put them in their place. =Smidge=
Personally speaking, a degree is worthwhile if I get the satisfaction and personal experience I expect for the money I paid. It need not necessarily further my career goals.
Though granted, furthering one's career is generally the kind of satisfaction and personal experience most people are looking for, at least when it comes to education.:) =Smidge=
Well, if they ever get those hydrogen generating nuclear plants (Which I'd still like to see built on the Ceasar model, if it proves workable), then it would be a big improvement all around I would think. =Smidge=
What about those steam nuclear plants that use the waste products from other reactors as fuel? You're already making very high temperature steam, which you need for the hydrogen production, and you're actually using the waste that we are already generating and storing from the existing reactors!
And I can already imagine the price going up. Supposedly the hone companies already bill thie customers for stuff they don't even have, I can only imagine the further charges when they start arguing they have to maintain their switching systems as well.
Crooks, every last one of 'em. I hope that as soon as they all to to VoIP, someone figures out how to connect to it from a standard computer and bypass the local phone company completely! (And yes, I know there already exists a way for calling someone on your PC, but that still requires a third party company to do the IPSwitch network translation IIRC...) =Smidge=
What makes this such a problem issue is not whether or not you have the right to have the 'information' without paying, it's that you can't really claim a loss if it really didn't cost you anything persay. There's no way you can prove that someone who downloaded the movie would have gone to the theater to see it if it wasn't available online.
By the same logic, one would think they'd make it illegal to watch a (purchased/rented) movie at a friend's house if they could. Wouldn't that technically be "stealing"? You're watching it without paying, after all...
Most people don't consider that many people worked hard to produce something fairly significant (in scope) like a movie. They just want to be entertained. Going to the theater is part of the experience, and that's why M:R still nabbed over $350Mil even though there's bootlegs all over the place...
Unfortunately nobody in Hollywood (or most other places apparently) seems to understand that more people will pay for a good product than not, even if they can get it for free.
*Remembers the good-old days of self-published Shareware and Donationware* =Smidge=
I bought 2 chocolade bars yesterday, so it's okay that I steal one today?
Here's the only issue with that argument, and erally the biggest problem with "piracy" in general.
Each candy bar has to be manufactured seperately. Each one uses up x amount of resources (sugan, cocoa, milk, etc) and is therefore intrinsically worth a certain amount, since it takes time and money to produce a steady supply of these resources (manpower being a resource as well).
A movie, especially in a digital format (DivX, etc) is produced ONCE. Each copy uses up no extra resources (except maybe hard drive space). Every time you make a copy, nobody has to get back in front of the cameras, rebuild sets, spend hours in a makeup room, no more cars are thrown of bridges and nobody spends all night creating complex computer generated sequences.
Once the movie is made, there is no longer any resources required to duplicate and maintain it. Therefore, it has no intrinsic value.
How can you really "steal" something that, physically, has no intrinsic value?
That's the real issue here. =Smidge=
Re:If protecting against the weather is possible..
on
Broadband Barrage Balloons
·
· Score: 2, Insightful
A Bombardier Learjet 45 cruises at 43,000 feet. A Boeing 777 cruises at 35,000 feet. A 1999 Cessna Skyhawk SP cruises at 14,000 feet A Grumman AA5A (2 passenger) cruises at 8,500 feet.
These ballons would fly at under 5000 feet.
Now, look out your window. See any airplanes? It's not like the sky is thick with them. I live within 5 miles of a medium sized commercial airport (just a little too small for trans-atlantic/continental flights), and I barely ever hear an airccraft, let alone see one.
Now consider some fairly remote location that would benefit most form this kind of tech: Namely, places that wouldn't have the information infastructure that would normally be required to support a bust airfield.
I don't think it's a critical issue. Just mount a beacon light to them like you would with a tower or other tall structure, maybe even a radio beacon since visibility is always a concern. =Smidge=
Microwave crisping bags actually DO work. You can brown meat and toast bread with them just fine.
Steam rice and vegitables in pyrex or ceramic containers (nothing with a tight seal obviously).
Scrambled eggs cook completely and evenly, with no grease or fat, and come out amazingly fluffy. (cook one at a time, 1min 20sec each. I like to whip in a tablespoon of whole milk with mine)
Even bacon cooks OK if you can hang it, though admittedly it's not as good as a traditional frying pan. Extra fat drains off very well though.
Granted, you can't stir fry... or at least I've yet to figure out how... there must be a way! You can't bake stuff properly either. A toaster oven can handle most baking requirements for your average bachelor though.
BTW what's with all the pipes? Are you a plumber by day?;) =Smidge=
It really doesn't matter what value you place on human life, nor if you are a believer in "God's Grand Design" or a steadfast evolutionist or anything in between... Nature is nature.
If you can't have children because you are naturally unable to, then maybe you're not supposed to have kids at all.
There are lots of babies born that aren't wanted by their parents. If you want a kid and are unable to have one "the natural way", why not consider adoption? =Smidge=
Slashdot Mirror
I think you missed the intent of the parent post, and the original Hiroshima analogy was rather appropriate...
It's not so much that AOL made the internet popular (as in a lot of people use it), it's that it made it 'popular' (as in the hip and trendy thing to do). This created a whole (and by now, several) internet-aware but still functionally illiterate people.
Specifically: "netspeak"
Now, if you're not typing in your native language, even some severe deviations in grammar and spelling are forgivable. Personally speaking, if I can understand what you're trying to say then that's good enough. This also applies to native speakers who make the occasional "topy" and spelling error (expecting everyone to run their text through spell and grammar check every time just isn't reasonable!)
However, since the internet became "popular" you have an entire culture of people who can't use punctuation like commas and periods, proper capitalization, can't (or won't?) use full words, (Though some "alternative spelings" are commonly acceptable - I can't see, for example, how "u" is a suitable replacement for "you"...), can't be bothered to proofread what they type (even a quick glance), and at worst can't even form coherent thoughts.
So it's not that there are more people are using the internet - that's a very good thing - it's that far too many of them can't understand why they get kicked out of chatrooms and forums for typing "hi a/s/l plz how r u k 10x lololol!!!1! u r gay ass i h4><0r j00"
=Smidge=
"I really like it when a site calls it a 'Message Board' instead of 'Forum'. 'Forum' suggests some semblence of order, respect and maturity." -braedan51
Obviously, a more traditional method of diagnosis is still required.
What I didn't notice is if the 34% that weren't a success were shown to have cancer and did not, or shown to not have cancer and did.
Taking a "better safe than sorry" approach, if the scanner says you're positive for cancer, then go ahead and get a biopsy even if you're actually healthy. But if the device misses the cancer, then it really can't be relied upon.
Although 94% is pretty good. I wonder what the success rate of biopsy diagnosis is...
And am I the only one who thinks it's a bit odd that they can't get their results published in a medical journal?
=Smidge=
Once upon a time, Microsoft did have a "Control Creation Edition" free for download. You could only compile *.ocx controls with it, but you could build and run regular EXE projects within the IDE.
Google around for it. I believe the last version was 'VB5CCE'.
=Smidge=
Original quote: without any "extra" energy
:)
Note the careful location of the quotes
I meant that the device didn't need external power to do it's thing: it uses energy from the flow itself. Yes, you still need to put that energy into the flow, but you don't need to put batteries in a Hilsch Tube to get it to work!
=Smidge=
Seems everyone agrees on the reason :)
This also sounds like a good reason for telcos to:
A) Move their infastructure over to IP based networks. Switching becomes much less of a problem.
B) With the inclusion of A, perhaps a wireless P2P system could fill a nitch here. Some flavors of wireless networking can work reliably over 10-15 miles, right? What about satelites?
That could bring the infastructure cost per-subscriber down in rural areas quite a bit.
=Smidge=
Which begs the question... why is telephone service more expensive in rural areas?
(Seriously, I'd like to know...)
=Smidge=
What does advertizing that your product will do X Y and Z, when it actually doesn't (and may never) ahve such features, have anything to do with innovation and exchanging ideas?
Most companies probably aren't al that keen to exchange ideas on new and innovative tech openly to begin with, since they probably want to be first to the market with it.
This is quite simply a case of false advertizing, intentional or not. Now, should a company be punished is something goes horribly wrong and they're unable to deliver their product? I don't think so... but they shouldn't make promises they don't plan on keeping either.
It would be wise for a company to not herald some innovative tech to the public until they're confident they can see it through. But it's not right to punish them if they botch it. (I'm sure pissing off the investors is already pretty bad for business).
Now, if they pass a law that makes the *individuals* of a corporation criminally responsible for fraudulent business practices, that's be nice.
=Smidge=
If you want to use a string as a integer, a float, and a string all in the same line, you don't have to cast it. ... Why can't C be that smart?
...one of the major drawbacks to that is processing overhead. In VB, any variable you don't define is of type "Variant", which is 14 bytes plus the actual data. Ouch. Not to mention the work that has to be done to figure out what the data is and properly deal with it.
:)
Having a pretty broad background in VisualBasic...
*puts on asbestos suit and goggles*
And, of course, making a typo in a variable name can make debugging a real headache. Because you don't have to cast your variables, anything you type is valid, and typos don't generate errors! (You'll always find "Option Explicit" in my VB modules!)
Having about a month's worth of self-taught PHP behind me, and actually being very comfortable and productive with it, I find that the no-cast variable system works very smoothly. It's a little wierd when it comes to arrays, but good naming conventions help there. It's nice to not have to stop and make a new variable declaration all the time - just code.
And let's not forget the true power of no-cast variables: obfuscation! He's using it as a flag! No wait.. it's a loop counter! NO! It's an array! AAAHH!!
=Smidge=
Did I say it was efficient? No. Did I say it was magical? No. It's just neat.
Incidentally, it does use the "natural" motion of the molecules to seperate them. That's really about as close to the real "Maxwell's Demon" as I've ever seen. Granted, overall energy levels have to be pretty high for it to work, hence the inefficiencies.
=Smidge=
I think the best example of this would be the Hilsch Tube.
BLow air in the middle, hot air blows out one end and cold air blows out the other. Temperature difference can be as much as a few hundred degrees C depending on the configuration used! (Still doesn't violate any laws of thermodynamics though... but it does 'sort' high and low energy molecules without ant "extra" energy)
=Smidge=
If you're going through the trouble of sending something all the way to mars to do high-altitude whatever, it'd be cheaper and easier to send something that orbits the planet instead of trying to land something like this (much larger, much more fragile and probably heavier) on the surface, then unpack it, then try to get it to take off. Last I checked there aren't any airports on Mars.
If you want high-altitude air samples, you can make little lander things that will sample the air and send back the results after hitting the surface... assuming you can't get the info you need from satellite (And they can tease out a lot of crazy info with satellites!)
=Smidge=
Not to be a wet blanket, but while Helios is really neat it's not terribly useful. Only 762 pounds of payload available, minus mandatory equipment. For the cost to build and operate the vehicle it clearly doesn't have any commercial potential. It might be cheaper than launching a satellite in some cases, if it can provide the same functionality, but that's about it.
The biggest problem is that it's still more or less a solar powered craft -- and solar energy just doesn't have the density to do anything useful and still be mobile.
Although... maybe something like this could make a reasonable alternative to those Broadband Broadcasting Balloons (say that three times fast!), since these craft can fly at higher altitudes and make roam to areas where they may be needed more.
=Smidge=
I feel really bad for bob@aol.com
=Smidge=
He needs to be educated, disciplined and taught responsiblity
I agree completely with that. Unfortunately, it's quite possible that giving your kid a good whack upside the head is quite possibly illegal nowadays... regardless of the reason.
There is definately a line between dicipline and abuse, but seriously... sometimes they need a good whack to put them in their place.
=Smidge=
How about parents actually act like parents and take some responsibility for their kids?
Which do you think would be more like a responsible parent:
a) Reviewing the games/movies/etc your child wants, and deciding if that's the kind of thing you want him/her to have.
or
b) Letting a bunch of people you don't (and probably never will) know tell you wht they think your child should be exposed to?
=Smidge=
Personally speaking, a degree is worthwhile if I get the satisfaction and personal experience I expect for the money I paid. It need not necessarily further my career goals.
:)
Though granted, furthering one's career is generally the kind of satisfaction and personal experience most people are looking for, at least when it comes to education.
=Smidge=
Well, if they ever get those hydrogen generating nuclear plants (Which I'd still like to see built on the Ceasar model, if it proves workable), then it would be a big improvement all around I would think.
=Smidge=
What about those steam nuclear plants that use the waste products from other reactors as fuel? You're already making very high temperature steam, which you need for the hydrogen production, and you're actually using the waste that we are already generating and storing from the existing reactors!
Here's the Slashdot article and the actual article talking about it.
And I can already imagine the price going up. Supposedly the hone companies already bill thie customers for stuff they don't even have, I can only imagine the further charges when they start arguing they have to maintain their switching systems as well.
Crooks, every last one of 'em. I hope that as soon as they all to to VoIP, someone figures out how to connect to it from a standard computer and bypass the local phone company completely! (And yes, I know there already exists a way for calling someone on your PC, but that still requires a third party company to do the IPSwitch network translation IIRC...)
=Smidge=
Sounds a lot like Space Hulk. So much for that :P
=Smidge=
Exactly what the parent post said.
What makes this such a problem issue is not whether or not you have the right to have the 'information' without paying, it's that you can't really claim a loss if it really didn't cost you anything persay. There's no way you can prove that someone who downloaded the movie would have gone to the theater to see it if it wasn't available online.
By the same logic, one would think they'd make it illegal to watch a (purchased/rented) movie at a friend's house if they could. Wouldn't that technically be "stealing"? You're watching it without paying, after all...
Most people don't consider that many people worked hard to produce something fairly significant (in scope) like a movie. They just want to be entertained. Going to the theater is part of the experience, and that's why M:R still nabbed over $350Mil even though there's bootlegs all over the place...
Unfortunately nobody in Hollywood (or most other places apparently) seems to understand that more people will pay for a good product than not, even if they can get it for free.
*Remembers the good-old days of self-published Shareware and Donationware*
=Smidge=
I bought 2 chocolade bars yesterday, so it's okay that I steal one today?
Here's the only issue with that argument, and erally the biggest problem with "piracy" in general.
Each candy bar has to be manufactured seperately. Each one uses up x amount of resources (sugan, cocoa, milk, etc) and is therefore intrinsically worth a certain amount, since it takes time and money to produce a steady supply of these resources (manpower being a resource as well).
A movie, especially in a digital format (DivX, etc) is produced ONCE. Each copy uses up no extra resources (except maybe hard drive space). Every time you make a copy, nobody has to get back in front of the cameras, rebuild sets, spend hours in a makeup room, no more cars are thrown of bridges and nobody spends all night creating complex computer generated sequences.
Once the movie is made, there is no longer any resources required to duplicate and maintain it. Therefore, it has no intrinsic value.
How can you really "steal" something that, physically, has no intrinsic value?
That's the real issue here.
=Smidge=
A Bombardier Learjet 45 cruises at 43,000 feet.
A Boeing 777 cruises at 35,000 feet.
A 1999 Cessna Skyhawk SP cruises at 14,000 feet
A Grumman AA5A (2 passenger) cruises at 8,500 feet.
These ballons would fly at under 5000 feet.
Now, look out your window. See any airplanes? It's not like the sky is thick with them. I live within 5 miles of a medium sized commercial airport (just a little too small for trans-atlantic/continental flights), and I barely ever hear an airccraft, let alone see one.
Now consider some fairly remote location that would benefit most form this kind of tech: Namely, places that wouldn't have the information infastructure that would normally be required to support a bust airfield.
I don't think it's a critical issue. Just mount a beacon light to them like you would with a tower or other tall structure, maybe even a radio beacon since visibility is always a concern.
=Smidge=
Microwave crisping bags actually DO work. You can brown meat and toast bread with them just fine.
;)
Steam rice and vegitables in pyrex or ceramic containers (nothing with a tight seal obviously).
Scrambled eggs cook completely and evenly, with no grease or fat, and come out amazingly fluffy. (cook one at a time, 1min 20sec each. I like to whip in a tablespoon of whole milk with mine)
Even bacon cooks OK if you can hang it, though admittedly it's not as good as a traditional frying pan. Extra fat drains off very well though.
Granted, you can't stir fry... or at least I've yet to figure out how... there must be a way! You can't bake stuff properly either. A toaster oven can handle most baking requirements for your average bachelor though.
BTW what's with all the pipes? Are you a plumber by day?
=Smidge=
Not to troll here, but let's think about this.
It really doesn't matter what value you place on human life, nor if you are a believer in "God's Grand Design" or a steadfast evolutionist or anything in between... Nature is nature.
If you can't have children because you are naturally unable to, then maybe you're not supposed to have kids at all.
There are lots of babies born that aren't wanted by their parents. If you want a kid and are unable to have one "the natural way", why not consider adoption?
=Smidge=