Exactly. Who has time to watch all that TV? If you do, you need to find a hobby, or get a second job. TV's okay for killing an hour, maybe two. Beyond that, it's just junk.
The article mentions running compression on existing saved video streams (to save disk space, I imagine), and to do it concurrently with other operations, such as recording and displaying video.
Is it overkill? Possibly. But the article implies that the processor runs pretty hot, which I imagine means it's likely getting used.
A "full fledged CAD" package is either AutoCAD ($2500) or Microstation (used to be about $3000, not sure now). Or Revit, which is both buggy and expensive ($2000-ish, but a per-year license rental arrangement).
An architect friend swears by Sketchup. He's been using it for several years, and preferred it to the new Revit from Autodesk.
I know this is Slashdot, and OSS is the best thing in the world, but programs that charge sometimes really are worth it. I used to use Strata StudioPro. The productivity increase between it and the other 3D programs at the time (mid- late-1990s) was ridiculously high. (As it happened, Strata was at least half the price of the Autodesk tools.) Based on my friend's recommendation, I'd not hesitate to at least try the software. If your business is in design mockups, it's well worth the $500.
All of the G5s are dual-processor. They're not chumps by any stretch of the imagination, not to mention the superior video, storage and expantion options. Also, if you're a pro-app user, you won't have a Universal binary for a while yet.
(Also, I imagine the iMac is faster, but probably not "4x" faster in real-world use.)
As always, if you need a new machine, you buy a new machine, and accept that your machine will be bypassed in just a few months. Unfortunate, sure, but that's technology. If you're really, really worried about getting "screwed", always buy one or two generations behind through the used and refurbished market. That's what I do. I'm still happy with my current 667mhz Powerbook that I bought at a significant discount from the new prices.
I'm still using a 667 (non-DVI) Powerbook. It's utterly adequate. I'd like one of the new MacBooks myself, but I'll probably just pick up one of the older Powerbooks instead, from people eager to dump them for the new hotness.
Invalid comparison. The Powerbook Duo implied dual-mobile and -desktop usage. This new "Duo" implies a dual-core processor.
That said, the Powerbook Duo was a brilliant machine. A bit spendy, but nothing compared when it was new. IBM had a similar setup, but it came later than the Duos IIRC, and the IBM setup more or less wanted you to use the laptop's screen. The Duo Dock allowed multiple monitors through Nubus cards in the Dock.
All extended warranties are over-priced, as a general rule. They wouldn't exist if they weren't profitable. So, on average, you would be better off in the "long run" to not buy the AppleCare.
However, in my case, downtime is much more expensive than an extra $350. The folks at MacResQ do a good job of fast repairs, but they can get spendy if you have more than one problem. Average turn-around time for AppleCare repairs is 3 days. My brother got his box on Monday, he shipped out Tuesday, and got it back on Thursday with a new mobo and upper and lower case.
Speed is essential, and AppleCare is pretty darn fast. May be faster if you have an Apple Store.
Really? You base this "high probability" on what, exactly?
As I understand it, the "probability" is pretty low, which is why life is believed to be rare. Well, believed to be rare by those who haven't already decided that extra-terrestrial life is a given because otherwise "it would be a big waste of space."
By "competent developers" I assume you mean "people who have to answer to nobody". Making Web pages that only work well in modern browsers is a side effect of clients who ask for it. Sometimes you can educate them differently. Often you cannot. And nobody is willing to pay to develop an alternative site for people who visit the site from a phone.
I'm sensitive to the issue, really. I browse regularly from a Palm, both over WiFi and GPRS. I would really appreciate more work in this area. (See Google for a great example of How To Do It Well.) But there will be many, many sites that will flat out fail on a phone or Palm/Treo for a while yet.
As a user who only occasionally delves into either KDE or Gnome, I can say that both are fucking hard to use. It doesn't help that each distro has a different version of a "system control panel".
Windows is sort of the control, as most people are familiar with it. Mac OS X is probably fairly considered the leader in innovation and ease of use. Lessons from each can be taken. Ubiquity, in the case of Windows--have a start button and task bar. Fine. Fullness of completion, in the case of Mac OSX--implementation of features should be complete all the way to the logical end for a user. An example of this would be dragging files to a CD-R/RW drive. The files should be sent to a CD burning staging area, and the condition of the staging area clearly indicated.
The problem with either of these is that the "scratching of the developer's itch" method of Free software development makes for poor planning. All the dreams may come to eventual fruition, but in the meantime, there'll be a lot of conflict, re-invention of the wheel, and duplication of effort.
This sounds more like a pump-job for venture capital financing than a distinguished advocacy of a new paradigm. The thing about Web2.0 is that you don't need people to "buy into" Web2.0. If it's so damn great, your Web2.0 application will sell itself. See LiveJournal, Blogger, Flikr, MySpace and others for examples.
So you won't hire people who believe in a deity, then? They do believe in an invisible Sky Daddy, you know. Sound like whackjobs--best limit your hires to secular humanists only.
Wow, you make it sound like Darwinian evolution has to resort to riot tactics to keep its place in line. "Follow me, guys, and bring your pitchforks, WE'RE STORMING THE CASTLE!"
Wow. Learn ID alongside Darwinian evolution, and suddenly you're in danger of being unable to think rationally.
Whether you agree or disagree with ID being taught, your wild-eyed devotion to Darwinian evolution as a key lodestone for critical thinking is positively magikcal.
AFAIK, ESPN comes on most basic cable packages. You can still watch your sports, and to hell with the rest of the channels.
My main point is that downloading TV shows is a pain, either legally or illegally. Legally, you'll be so wrapped up in restrictions and such it's hardly worth it. Illegally, you have to dip into some of the worst parts of the Internet and figure out what 14 year old boys thing is an "easy, logical naming scheme".
I'd buy a $200 box that would download TV shows at $1 each, so long as 1) I can burn a copy to take with me on my laptop, and 2) I have access to nearly all TV shows, going back to "I Love Lucy".
It's hard to have a favorite TV show if you don't watch TV until it comes out on DVD. I just recently saw the 1st season of "24". It was good, I enjoyed it. And it was nothing to see it two years after it aired. My balls didn't shrivel up or anything.
Or $20/mo for Netflix. You're behind on the "hip" TV shows by a season or two, but in return you don't have to fiddle with stuff. Can you operate a mailbox? Can you operate your DVD player? You're golden.
I tried downloading stuff from torrents, and you know what? It's annoying. It takes time, only 50% of the time can you make a hard-copy that you can play on your good TV without jumping through ridiculous hoops, and it requires keeping up with the latest and greatest P2P clients. None of these are attractive to anybody with more important things to do. People such as those who are gainfully employed and have high disposable income.
"On demand" purchasing of TV shows is only worthwhile when you can purchase "on demand" ANY show, not just CBS or NBC. Short of that, I'll just watch the TV shows that are worth collecting as an entire season on DVDs from Netflix, as well as pretty much any movie I want.
Nothing wrong with sticking with 5.4 for a while, waiting for a point release in 6. It's less of an issue with FBSD than with some software packages, but still not a bad idea. 5.4 is a good release, and you can migrate to 6 easily enough.
Slashdot Mirror
Exactly. Who has time to watch all that TV? If you do, you need to find a hobby, or get a second job. TV's okay for killing an hour, maybe two. Beyond that, it's just junk.
Is it overkill? Possibly. But the article implies that the processor runs pretty hot, which I imagine means it's likely getting used.
A "full fledged CAD" package is either AutoCAD ($2500) or Microstation (used to be about $3000, not sure now). Or Revit, which is both buggy and expensive ($2000-ish, but a per-year license rental arrangement).
Screw the settlement. If you don't like Netflix, drop it. Bunch of fucking whiners.
I know this is Slashdot, and OSS is the best thing in the world, but programs that charge sometimes really are worth it. I used to use Strata StudioPro. The productivity increase between it and the other 3D programs at the time (mid- late-1990s) was ridiculously high. (As it happened, Strata was at least half the price of the Autodesk tools.) Based on my friend's recommendation, I'd not hesitate to at least try the software. If your business is in design mockups, it's well worth the $500.
(Also, I imagine the iMac is faster, but probably not "4x" faster in real-world use.)
As always, if you need a new machine, you buy a new machine, and accept that your machine will be bypassed in just a few months. Unfortunate, sure, but that's technology. If you're really, really worried about getting "screwed", always buy one or two generations behind through the used and refurbished market. That's what I do. I'm still happy with my current 667mhz Powerbook that I bought at a significant discount from the new prices.
I'm still using a 667 (non-DVI) Powerbook. It's utterly adequate. I'd like one of the new MacBooks myself, but I'll probably just pick up one of the older Powerbooks instead, from people eager to dump them for the new hotness.
That said, the Powerbook Duo was a brilliant machine. A bit spendy, but nothing compared when it was new. IBM had a similar setup, but it came later than the Duos IIRC, and the IBM setup more or less wanted you to use the laptop's screen. The Duo Dock allowed multiple monitors through Nubus cards in the Dock.
However, in my case, downtime is much more expensive than an extra $350. The folks at MacResQ do a good job of fast repairs, but they can get spendy if you have more than one problem. Average turn-around time for AppleCare repairs is 3 days. My brother got his box on Monday, he shipped out Tuesday, and got it back on Thursday with a new mobo and upper and lower case.
Speed is essential, and AppleCare is pretty darn fast. May be faster if you have an Apple Store.
Tidal pools imply a satellite of significant size. So you've just limited the formation of life to a world with a large satellite.
As I understand it, the "probability" is pretty low, which is why life is believed to be rare. Well, believed to be rare by those who haven't already decided that extra-terrestrial life is a given because otherwise "it would be a big waste of space."
I'm sensitive to the issue, really. I browse regularly from a Palm, both over WiFi and GPRS. I would really appreciate more work in this area. (See Google for a great example of How To Do It Well.) But there will be many, many sites that will flat out fail on a phone or Palm/Treo for a while yet.
Windows is sort of the control, as most people are familiar with it. Mac OS X is probably fairly considered the leader in innovation and ease of use. Lessons from each can be taken. Ubiquity, in the case of Windows--have a start button and task bar. Fine. Fullness of completion, in the case of Mac OSX--implementation of features should be complete all the way to the logical end for a user. An example of this would be dragging files to a CD-R/RW drive. The files should be sent to a CD burning staging area, and the condition of the staging area clearly indicated.
The problem with either of these is that the "scratching of the developer's itch" method of Free software development makes for poor planning. All the dreams may come to eventual fruition, but in the meantime, there'll be a lot of conflict, re-invention of the wheel, and duplication of effort.
This sounds more like a pump-job for venture capital financing than a distinguished advocacy of a new paradigm. The thing about Web2.0 is that you don't need people to "buy into" Web2.0. If it's so damn great, your Web2.0 application will sell itself. See LiveJournal, Blogger, Flikr, MySpace and others for examples.
For people who believe themselves to be scientific and reasonable, you people sure are shrill and over-emotional.
Also, peppered moths do not rest on tree trunks. This is one of the many repeated canards of evolution.
So you won't hire people who believe in a deity, then? They do believe in an invisible Sky Daddy, you know. Sound like whackjobs--best limit your hires to secular humanists only.
I'm glad your time is so worthless you feel free to waste it.
Overreact much?
Whether you agree or disagree with ID being taught, your wild-eyed devotion to Darwinian evolution as a key lodestone for critical thinking is positively magikcal.
What hyper-sensitive twaddle.
Know what I'd like? No more "Loading..." screens. Fuck stackability, how about letting me play the damn game promptly?
AFAIK, ESPN comes on most basic cable packages. You can still watch your sports, and to hell with the rest of the channels.
My main point is that downloading TV shows is a pain, either legally or illegally. Legally, you'll be so wrapped up in restrictions and such it's hardly worth it. Illegally, you have to dip into some of the worst parts of the Internet and figure out what 14 year old boys thing is an "easy, logical naming scheme".
I'd buy a $200 box that would download TV shows at $1 each, so long as 1) I can burn a copy to take with me on my laptop, and 2) I have access to nearly all TV shows, going back to "I Love Lucy".
It's hard to have a favorite TV show if you don't watch TV until it comes out on DVD. I just recently saw the 1st season of "24". It was good, I enjoyed it. And it was nothing to see it two years after it aired. My balls didn't shrivel up or anything.
I tried downloading stuff from torrents, and you know what? It's annoying. It takes time, only 50% of the time can you make a hard-copy that you can play on your good TV without jumping through ridiculous hoops, and it requires keeping up with the latest and greatest P2P clients. None of these are attractive to anybody with more important things to do. People such as those who are gainfully employed and have high disposable income.
"On demand" purchasing of TV shows is only worthwhile when you can purchase "on demand" ANY show, not just CBS or NBC. Short of that, I'll just watch the TV shows that are worth collecting as an entire season on DVDs from Netflix, as well as pretty much any movie I want.
Nothing wrong with sticking with 5.4 for a while, waiting for a point release in 6. It's less of an issue with FBSD than with some software packages, but still not a bad idea. 5.4 is a good release, and you can migrate to 6 easily enough.