It takes you 11 hours to fly between Pittsburgh and Boston? You know, you don't have to connect through Denver...
You know, I wish it were true, that I didn't have to connect anywhere. This is how they getcha into buying a higher-priced ticket.
Also, my time measurement was for door to door, and with normal delays. An actual direct flight is only like an hour and a half. But, when you consider these factors:
Pittsburgh's airport is nowhere near Pittsburgh
It is designed as a mall, complete with Victoria's Secret, the Gap, Godiva, and other mall-like things
Checkin line for the cheap flights is like downloading your favorite distro at 1200 baud
Cheap flights are always connecting somewhere, and have a layover
Leaving Boston's Logan Airport is a challenge, and a fight to the death
...then it is actually far worse. I've had shorter flights before, too, but the norm is a hassle, uncomfortable, and demeaning.
Besides, I get to see the countryside, do some wardriving, and discuss many things with my SO. No security theatre, plenty of cargo area, far cheaper. Cruising through the amber waves of grain, and purple mountain's majesty -- *that* is part of the American Dream that I was taught, not this Orwellian nonsense.
After 911, instead of taking a plane, I use my Subaru. Frequently, I make the trip from Pittsburgh to Boston.
It costs less than a plane ticket
Takes less time than a plane, door to door
I can use electronic devices at all times
I can smoke whatever I want
I can stop and go look at things (or pee on them)
the seats are (slightly) more comfortable
Usually my SO and I share the driving time, which makes it less of a burden. Plus, when we get to Boston we don't need to rent a car, just a place to put it =_)
(Also, I'd like to say that the Pittsburgh airport is a comedic joke, and so is USAirways.)
No, you don't want a rotary-styled dialpad. Imagine typing SMS messages on a non 10-key-styled keyboard. YOu have to actually look at the keypad as you type. I bought a Nokia 3650, which sports this 'feature'. It is very difficult to type SMS messages in rush-hour traffic with a manual transmission, when you have to look at the keypad as you type. I don't recommend this!
Combining and iPod, Newton and cell phone is an interesting idea, but we have seen that there is some consumer resistance to combining gadgets. Unless Apple can really come up with a new and exciting way to 'do' the cell phone, I don't expect Jobs will entertain the notion.
I doubt that an iPhone would compete with an iPod. I too want to see bits of the Newton restored to a (modern) product we can actually buy and use. I am so unpleased with modern handhelds and cellphones, that 'I want to believe' that Apple will make a useful product in this arena, where they are conspicuously absent.
If it is a good phone, I'll get in line. I have been extremely disappointed with modern cell phones. It seems like phone manufacturers (and the seriously evil Verizon) are on crack, don't understand what mobile phones are for, what they should do, and how sensemaking such a device can be.
What I want to know is:
Does it work as a phone (without an annoying interface)?
Can I run programs on it (without having to buy them only from Apple)?
Can I develop for it (without having to pony up for a dev license)?
Nevermind syncing features, like Bluetooth or ir. I would expect Apple to want to give that to their users.
So far, I have found few phones as functional as my (old) Nokia 3650, and it's broken. Is an iPhone a phone for me?
So I went looking for which cities have the highest Ph.Ds per-capita, and found just about every City claiming this. Anyone got a link? (I'm in Pittsburgh, which claims the same thing.)
This is a great idea -- why have a for-profit company running a free wireless network? It doesn't happen (often). Here in Pittsburgh, a non-pennsylvanian company earned the contract to run the city's 'free (for 2 hours)' wireless network (for profit). Free wireless networks don't come from for-profit companies, unless they realize that the service enhances their business. This is the kicker. People don't want to pay for 'net. People use the net, and you could makes things easier for them. And me!
If you think about it, 802.11B/G hardware is extremely cheap. Compare ~$30 for used WRT-54G on EBay with a $5000+ Starbucks/Cisco installation. Yes, you're right that B/G may be inappropriate for a municipal wireless network, but for as cheap as some of this equipment is, you can use it to your advantage anyway. There's an easy way to take control of you bandwidth, even if it takes a bit of financing to do it. Once it is there, there's no monthly service charge for your circuit, and you can do what you will. Compare that with a Verizon T1.
THis sure makes me happy. I mean -- the House must have solved all of the other problems of our society overnight, to be back at banning things. Hooray for the do-gooders, our problems are solved!
this system could possibly yield better voter turnout...if someone who wanted to vote republican lives in a traditionally "blue" state, they might not have voted knowing their vote wouldn't matter. if everyone's vote counted the same in the entire country, however, that person would be more likely to go to the polls.
What about those of us living in 'blue' states, who want to vote 'green'? Our votes already don't matter. Something drastic needs to happen before any of these current shenanighans are going to end.
Personally, I think voting should be MANDATORY for all citizens, but I don't think that will happen either.
While I agree with the premise that we don't have any reliable way of predicting what our goals will become past the singularity, does anyone have any guesses?
These are not end users, these are condo administrators, who feel the need to butt-in on people's private lives. These are generally the same people that prevent ham radio operators from erecting antennas. Besides, it is up to the end user to understand what they're doing when they use any kind of transmitter -- not the people they buy their houses from, their neighbors, the police, or anyone else.
I'd like to see more posts on Slashdot -- discussions distilled down into their component topics, some useful information, and a rehashed go at it again. I hope to see more of these.
On the Tesla, I'd like to see more of those as well. Especially discussion on turbine/electric hybrids. Why are we still using rubegoldberg-styled piston-based engines, with so many moving parts? I would like to see something effective and efficient for my morning commute.
I bought a laptop last year, for personal use. One of the reasons I bought it, was that it came with a valid license for WinXP, which I expected to use on the thing. The laptop still has it's Windows XP certificate of authenticity sticker, with the product key printed on it. Is this WGA something I have to worry about? At what point does Microsoft decide that my purchased copy of XP (with the laptop I bought) is invalid or pirated? I think/. had an article last week about the Certificate of Authenticity is no longer a valid proof of purchase. What IS? Will my laptop stop working, and eat all my data?
If I hadn't broken my Centos X setup trying to upgrade my ATI drivers, I wouldn't be worrying about these things!
The datacenter that I spend a lot of time in for work uses these biometric hand scanners.
Eeeew, hand scanner! One of my colos had those installed. I asked them nicely, and they gave me a proximity card instead. With people spending so much time fixing machines, there's no telling what these people do -- pick their nose, scratch their ass, do whatever icky things you can imagine in the can, and then put their nasty greasy hands on those things. Look more closely at the flickr image (or please post a higher res version!) -- you'll notice slime from other people's hands on the scanner. Are you sure you want to touch that?
I must also say that compared to the other options out there (Windows on Compaq/HP, Novel voodoo, AIX, and others), Sun is a fun world to live in. But, having been a Sun Solaris administrator, I generally pkgadd all of my favorite GNU tools anyway, so why not go totally GNU? BSD also makes a good option, as someone else mentioned, but I have a hard time with the machine being pretty barebones, like Solaris or BSD. I want stuff to work.
Yes, and they still make their money. I am a netflix subscriber, and I love their service! A while ago, I had selected all sorts of movies I hadn't seen and was interested in. I rated over 1000 movies that I had seen, and chose about 300 that I hadn't (and should, like those featuring Elvis, John Wayne, Marx bros, etc.). Like the teaser says, these DVDs come in the mail every so often. If I still want to watch the movie, I do. Otherwise, it sits on the mail table until I just send it back, and wait for the next movie.
So, an interesting observation -- quite right in my case. Of course, my SO and I split the 3-movies-at-a-time thing, where I get to choose one, and my SO gets to choose two. I'm mostly not interested in the ones she chooses, and vice-versa. So, if she doesn't watch her movies, I just send 'em back too, and hope something more interesting arives.
I understand that a portion of SGI employees went to Network Appliance, where I am sure they have found a new home. Too bad for SGI, they had some great (way too expensive) ideas. Unfortunately, kinda like Sun, they have long since outlived their usefulness. Buy a bunch of cheap 1Us, and use GNU/Linux.
The Radio Shack etching kits include a Sharpie brand marker to be used as a resist for the etching process. You're supposed to draw your traces on the copper side, and apply chemicals to get your design. Interesting concept, but I think my non-surgeon hands would make more of a scribble than a good design.
Interesting, I had done a bit of searching on this topic a while ago, but wasn't able to come up with much regarding fractal antennas. I understand that printing the antennas will give you a more precise shape, and had wondered what neat and useful antennas could be printed in this way -- mostly for WiFi stuff, of course!
What are you using for the design? How are you printing these? Do you have any patterns or guidelines you can share with us?
I am currently investigating the best way to handle Ethernet port management for an organization with over 75,000 Ethernet ports spread out over 700+ sites.
Uh, go wireless? There are a number of wireless options.
(The company I work for has a neat solution, but I am not allowed to talk about it(!!))
Interesting move. I can see that the advertisement is quite harmless (read: I don't give a shit what color their ads/devices are). I wonder what products are going to cost more to cover this move? What other advertising misfires will we be subjected to? I've already writen off Sony products, though I have been enjoying my PS2 (still!).
Slashdot Mirror
It might be in your clients best interests to convert to LAMP/Linux, etc.
The 'L' in 'LAMP' stands for Linux, (GNU/)Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP.
You know, I wish it were true, that I didn't have to connect anywhere. This is how they getcha into buying a higher-priced ticket.
Also, my time measurement was for door to door, and with normal delays. An actual direct flight is only like an hour and a half. But, when you consider these factors:
Besides, I get to see the countryside, do some wardriving, and discuss many things with my SO. No security theatre, plenty of cargo area, far cheaper. Cruising through the amber waves of grain, and purple mountain's majesty -- *that* is part of the American Dream that I was taught, not this Orwellian nonsense.
- It costs less than a plane ticket
- Takes less time than a plane, door to door
- I can use electronic devices at all times
- I can smoke whatever I want
- I can stop and go look at things (or pee on them)
- the seats are (slightly) more comfortable
Usually my SO and I share the driving time, which makes it less of a burden. Plus, when we get to Boston we don't need to rent a car, just a place to put it =_)(Also, I'd like to say that the Pittsburgh airport is a comedic joke, and so is USAirways.)
No, you don't want a rotary-styled dialpad. Imagine typing SMS messages on a non 10-key-styled keyboard. YOu have to actually look at the keypad as you type. I bought a Nokia 3650, which sports this 'feature'. It is very difficult to type SMS messages in rush-hour traffic with a manual transmission, when you have to look at the keypad as you type. I don't recommend this!
Oh, and please use your turn signal!
Combining and iPod, Newton and cell phone is an interesting idea, but we have seen that there is some consumer resistance to combining gadgets. Unless Apple can really come up with a new and exciting way to 'do' the cell phone, I don't expect Jobs will entertain the notion.
I doubt that an iPhone would compete with an iPod. I too want to see bits of the Newton restored to a (modern) product we can actually buy and use. I am so unpleased with modern handhelds and cellphones, that 'I want to believe' that Apple will make a useful product in this arena, where they are conspicuously absent.
Nevermind syncing features, like Bluetooth or ir. I would expect Apple to want to give that to their users.
So far, I have found few phones as functional as my (old) Nokia 3650, and it's broken. Is an iPhone a phone for me?
So I went looking for which cities have the highest Ph.Ds per-capita, and found just about every City claiming this. Anyone got a link? (I'm in Pittsburgh, which claims the same thing.)
This is a great idea -- why have a for-profit company running a free wireless network? It doesn't happen (often). Here in Pittsburgh, a non-pennsylvanian company earned the contract to run the city's 'free (for 2 hours)' wireless network (for profit). Free wireless networks don't come from for-profit companies, unless they realize that the service enhances their business. This is the kicker. People don't want to pay for 'net. People use the net, and you could makes things easier for them. And me!
If you think about it, 802.11B/G hardware is extremely cheap. Compare ~$30 for used WRT-54G on EBay with a $5000+ Starbucks/Cisco installation. Yes, you're right that B/G may be inappropriate for a municipal wireless network, but for as cheap as some of this equipment is, you can use it to your advantage anyway. There's an easy way to take control of you bandwidth, even if it takes a bit of financing to do it. Once it is there, there's no monthly service charge for your circuit, and you can do what you will. Compare that with a Verizon T1.
THis sure makes me happy. I mean -- the House must have solved all of the other problems of our society overnight, to be back at banning things. Hooray for the do-gooders, our problems are solved!
I know this is Apple we're talkin about here... but where the hell is the second button still?
Second button? Where's the third button? How am I supposed to friggin' paste?!@
this system could possibly yield better voter turnout...if someone who wanted to vote republican lives in a traditionally "blue" state, they might not have voted knowing their vote wouldn't matter. if everyone's vote counted the same in the entire country, however, that person would be more likely to go to the polls.
What about those of us living in 'blue' states, who want to vote 'green'? Our votes already don't matter. Something drastic needs to happen before any of these current shenanighans are going to end.
Personally, I think voting should be MANDATORY for all citizens, but I don't think that will happen either.
What is this thing (tilts head), pensions?
While I agree with the premise that we don't have any reliable way of predicting what our goals will become past the singularity, does anyone have any guesses?
Get us off this planet. Quickly.
These are not end users, these are condo administrators, who feel the need to butt-in on people's private lives. These are generally the same people that prevent ham radio operators from erecting antennas. Besides, it is up to the end user to understand what they're doing when they use any kind of transmitter -- not the people they buy their houses from, their neighbors, the police, or anyone else.
I'd like to see more posts on Slashdot -- discussions distilled down into their component topics, some useful information, and a rehashed go at it again. I hope to see more of these.
On the Tesla, I'd like to see more of those as well. Especially discussion on turbine/electric hybrids. Why are we still using rubegoldberg-styled piston-based engines, with so many moving parts? I would like to see something effective and efficient for my morning commute.
I bought a laptop last year, for personal use. One of the reasons I bought it, was that it came with a valid license for WinXP, which I expected to use on the thing. The laptop still has it's Windows XP certificate of authenticity sticker, with the product key printed on it. Is this WGA something I have to worry about? At what point does Microsoft decide that my purchased copy of XP (with the laptop I bought) is invalid or pirated? I think /. had an article last week about the Certificate of Authenticity is no longer a valid proof of purchase. What IS? Will my laptop stop working, and eat all my data?
If I hadn't broken my Centos X setup trying to upgrade my ATI drivers, I wouldn't be worrying about these things!
The datacenter that I spend a lot of time in for work uses these biometric hand scanners.
Eeeew, hand scanner! One of my colos had those installed. I asked them nicely, and they gave me a proximity card instead. With people spending so much time fixing machines, there's no telling what these people do -- pick their nose, scratch their ass, do whatever icky things you can imagine in the can, and then put their nasty greasy hands on those things. Look more closely at the flickr image (or please post a higher res version!) -- you'll notice slime from other people's hands on the scanner. Are you sure you want to touch that?
Agreed, to a reasonable extent.
I must also say that compared to the other options out there (Windows on Compaq/HP, Novel voodoo, AIX, and others), Sun is a fun world to live in. But, having been a Sun Solaris administrator, I generally pkgadd all of my favorite GNU tools anyway, so why not go totally GNU? BSD also makes a good option, as someone else mentioned, but I have a hard time with the machine being pretty barebones, like Solaris or BSD. I want stuff to work.
Yes, and they still make their money. I am a netflix subscriber, and I love their service! A while ago, I had selected all sorts of movies I hadn't seen and was interested in. I rated over 1000 movies that I had seen, and chose about 300 that I hadn't (and should, like those featuring Elvis, John Wayne, Marx bros, etc.). Like the teaser says, these DVDs come in the mail every so often. If I still want to watch the movie, I do. Otherwise, it sits on the mail table until I just send it back, and wait for the next movie.
So, an interesting observation -- quite right in my case. Of course, my SO and I split the 3-movies-at-a-time thing, where I get to choose one, and my SO gets to choose two. I'm mostly not interested in the ones she chooses, and vice-versa. So, if she doesn't watch her movies, I just send 'em back too, and hope something more interesting arives.
I understand that a portion of SGI employees went to Network Appliance, where I am sure they have found a new home. Too bad for SGI, they had some great (way too expensive) ideas. Unfortunately, kinda like Sun, they have long since outlived their usefulness. Buy a bunch of cheap 1Us, and use GNU/Linux.
The Radio Shack etching kits include a Sharpie brand marker to be used as a resist for the etching process. You're supposed to draw your traces on the copper side, and apply chemicals to get your design. Interesting concept, but I think my non-surgeon hands would make more of a scribble than a good design.
Interesting, I had done a bit of searching on this topic a while ago, but wasn't able to come up with much regarding fractal antennas. I understand that printing the antennas will give you a more precise shape, and had wondered what neat and useful antennas could be printed in this way -- mostly for WiFi stuff, of course! What are you using for the design? How are you printing these? Do you have any patterns or guidelines you can share with us?
I am currently investigating the best way to handle Ethernet port management for an organization with over 75,000 Ethernet ports spread out over 700+ sites.
Uh, go wireless? There are a number of wireless options.
(The company I work for has a neat solution, but I am not allowed to talk about it(!!))
Interesting move. I can see that the advertisement is quite harmless (read: I don't give a shit what color their ads/devices are). I wonder what products are going to cost more to cover this move? What other advertising misfires will we be subjected to? I've already writen off Sony products, though I have been enjoying my PS2 (still!).