Insert and Caps lock need to be moved out of the way, so that you can use them, but you dont accidentally change a mode while going for another key. The Windows button can be moved too. I keep hitting it when using windows and defocusing the window Im working in. They have no effect in KDE so its not a bother there.
Backspace and delete need to be side by side.
Minus and plus need to be given the same level, as shifting to get a plus is not logical compared to minus.
Two meters of this came in a tube that was 1.5 meters long.
On receipt I wound it round my fist and shoved it into a small bag.
I also love the way some tools and bike parts are packaged. I one bought an avid disk brake rotor and mech. They could have delivered the the parts by firing them out of a cannon and they would still work. But no, they packaged it in a plastic tray , in a box, inside bubble wrap, inside another box, inside a waterproof bag.
Financial planners (particularly Independent Financial Advisers in the UK) generally give substandard advice.
Financial professionals are mostly into selling insurance products. Alot of their training is is regulatory stuff (not relevant to you, they are the one being regulated), tax planning (students are not heavily taxed) and lastly on matching the customers needs to the products they are selling. If your needs actually match something that isnt a product they sell, they wont tell you about it.
I advise going to The Motley Fool (UK version is free, US one charges) and asking on the Living Below Your Means or Dealing With Debt boards for totally independent advice.
Heres what I would do.
Your aim is to come out the other side with as little debt as possible, paying as little interest as possible. Take the loan money, plus as much as I could borrow on zero interest credit cards, and stuff the money in a high interest bank account. Keep a very carefull eye on when the credit cards start charging interest, and pay them off from before they start charging. This is called Stoozing, look it up. Make sure you are going to be able to pay the cards off. If your money is running out, pay the cards off early, else you will end up in spiraling debt.
Then look at reducing your outgoings. Cut out cigarettes, learn how to sew and cook, find a cheap reliable bike, etc.
Dont invest in shares for the following reasons: They are volatile, it requires a 5 year investment in a difersified portfolio to be sure of being reasonably stable. There is the spread, as well as trading and management charges that tend to hit up front and you are immediatly in the red by about 2% on your investments. Dividends are currently paying about 4% (for a diversified high yeild portfolio) which is about the same as a high interst account.
Cnsider property if you are going to use it. Remember property has up front costs (legal fees, tax) and running costs (maintenence).
But most importantly of all, hit your relatives for as much lolly as you can. Thats how Buffet got rich.
What, you maen someone created an application that wasnt a Java code IDE/editor/debugger/trace tool?
Its 10 years later, and there are still no serious desktop applications written in Java. What is wrong with Java that causes all GUI apps to have the look, feel and performance of Jade Goodie?
In fact, forget the whole list. Theres been plenty of worse engineering disasters in "the rest of the world" including submarines sunk by a can of paint, catherdrals colapsing, cars that roll at 30mph, etc.
I think too many companies focus just on heuristic evaluation. That's basically paying a UI expert to tell you what to do and what not to do. A lot of companies won't even hire a usability expert, instead relying on their own engineers to "read a lot of books" and try to wing it.
This is bad.
But it is a start.
In an ideal world we'd all be at stage 5 or better. Unfortunatly, some of us are still at Stage 1 and spending 50% of our development time just fighting political battles simply to stop developers adding modes and non-standard interface features (like entering YES/NO into textfields rather than using a checkbox).
So my aim at the moment is is to get interface development out of the hands of one particular development group. Then I hope to start refactoring the interface and applying heuristic evaluation before I even consider getting any kind of useability testing or outside expertise going.
I'm even battling the interface testers, who have loads of regression tests for the current interface and dont want to have to start again. Testing mostly constists of checking a new feature is implemented, not whether its implemented well.
Michelson-Morley did a load of experiments around this issue, back when they thought there was an 'ether' pervading the universe and that light moved through the ether at a contant speed, and that the motion of the earth though space would mean different speeds of light in different directions.
We could do the same thing for sub-atomic particles, but theres no evidence of a directional bias from any experiments Ive heard of.
Its an award for the most Anglophone, USA-centric, flash ridden, over hyped websites that the judges can find in thier bookmarks from last years award nominations.
Truly, the rest of the world needs to have a line editor with proper macro support embedded into whatever language you want (which is always Rexx, but C should work).
My company have recently been rolling an ajax based front end to mainframe applications. Being able to deploy Apache anywhere without having to get a license has helped with testing and training.
I guess weve deployed over 40 Apache servers on everything from zSeries hardware to laptops. Some deployments are extremly ephemeral (usually for training or testing). To have to get a software license for each install would have slowed development, testing and training down to a crawl, and would have added a headcount just to manage the deployments.
Development also benefitted from open source tools, such as regina, firebug, cygwin, etc.
Access to the actual source has meant very little. Its the easy deployment that helped us.
Where we were restricted, it was often because a licensed tool was being used. E.g. VSS stopped mainframe-side developers from seeing the web-side code. Im not sure management are much aware that VSS may have slowed development unnecessarily.
And Im sure Ive seen data that shows putting text into newspaper-style columns reduces comprehension, but cant find a reference.
And people who quote this, possibly mythical, eyeball flyback effect seem to completely miss the effect that constant scrolling has on aquiring the next line in a text.
Windows, on the other hand, won't let you uninstall media player, won't let you uninstall IE
More to the point, it wont let OEMs uninstall it either. Dell, Sony, Lenovo, etc are not free to do business with Apple or Real without having parts of the Windows operating system stepping in and asserting Mediaplayer over the manufacturers preferred player when the user clicks on the wrong button.
The issue goes slightly than this, though, as Microsoft also apply other anti-competative pressures to stop OEMs from even contemplating installing iTunes on the non-WM version of Windows that the EU mandated.
While most of your comment is corporate-speak and obfusificates well, the phrase "dominate several emerging ecosystems" is actually technical language (borrowed from ecological science) and has a specific technical meaning. Also "through the channel" has a specific meaning (I.e. internal sales force, 3rd party resellers, retailers, etc).
Thats the problem with corporate speak, its a load of wooly posturing linking together technical phrases, and you need to be able to seperate the technical parts from the fluff.
Ive always wondered whether the weight of the cells and battery dont make it worth creating a clockwork charger based upon Mr Bayliss's fine radios. It'll be more robust too.
Cowon iAudio 5, 1Gb £130, Smaller then nano, removable battery, FM radio, voice recorder, no drivers, works as USB key, comes with beltloop jacket. Is a bit pricier than nano, but remember Apple are discounting to get folks locked into the iTunes store. 2Gb version cost £190. http://www.advancedmp3players.co.uk/shop/product_i nfo.php?cPath=1&products_id=540
Brand Potential is the Brand Rating - Dissaffected Users.
This implies that there are some Apple users out there who will not be buying Apple again after having a bad experience, or having a friend with a better device by another company.
Yes, but since then, people like me have been out and about showing Apple users that players exits that are:
Smaller. Dont attempt to lock users into Apples music format and the iTunes store. Have battery lives that match vendors claims. Dont cost $50 to replace the failing battery. Dont scratch. Have integrated FM radios. Allow music to be uploaded from any PC, without having install special software to do so.
All iPods have going for them is a nice interface and the ability to view a film on a really small screen. Alot of customers are starting to realise that these devices have been hyped in the media and dont live up to thier expectations.
Slashdot Mirror
How about a detachable number pad formed not unlike a pocket calculator? Then you can hold it in one hand and 'type' with the other.
I guess is may not even need a battery if you make it using rfid technology and use the powered keyboard as a base station.
Sort the rest of the keyboard out.
Insert and Caps lock need to be moved out of the way, so that you can use them, but you dont accidentally change a mode while going for another key. The Windows button can be moved too. I keep hitting it when using windows and defocusing the window Im working in. They have no effect in KDE so its not a bother there.
Backspace and delete need to be side by side.
Minus and plus need to be given the same level, as shifting to get a plus is not logical compared to minus.
Two meters of this came in a tube that was 1.5 meters long.
On receipt I wound it round my fist and shoved it into a small bag.
I also love the way some tools and bike parts are packaged. I one bought an avid disk brake rotor and mech. They could have delivered the the parts by firing them out of a cannon and they would still work. But no, they packaged it in a plastic tray , in a box, inside bubble wrap, inside another box, inside a waterproof bag.
Financial planners (particularly Independent Financial Advisers in the UK) generally give substandard advice.
Financial professionals are mostly into selling insurance products. Alot of their training is is regulatory stuff (not relevant to you, they are the one being regulated), tax planning (students are not heavily taxed) and lastly on matching the customers needs to the products they are selling. If your needs actually match something that isnt a product they sell, they wont tell you about it.
I advise going to The Motley Fool (UK version is free, US one charges) and asking on the Living Below Your Means or Dealing With Debt boards for totally independent advice.
Heres what I would do.
Your aim is to come out the other side with as little debt as possible, paying as little interest as possible.
Take the loan money, plus as much as I could borrow on zero interest credit cards, and stuff the money in a high interest bank account.
Keep a very carefull eye on when the credit cards start charging interest, and pay them off from before they start charging. This is called Stoozing, look it up.
Make sure you are going to be able to pay the cards off. If your money is running out, pay the cards off early, else you will end up in spiraling debt.
Then look at reducing your outgoings. Cut out cigarettes, learn how to sew and cook, find a cheap reliable bike, etc.
Dont invest in shares for the following reasons:
They are volatile, it requires a 5 year investment in a difersified portfolio to be sure of being reasonably stable.
There is the spread, as well as trading and management charges that tend to hit up front and you are immediatly in the red by about 2% on your investments.
Dividends are currently paying about 4% (for a diversified high yeild portfolio) which is about the same as a high interst account.
Cnsider property if you are going to use it. Remember property has up front costs (legal fees, tax) and running costs (maintenence).
But most importantly of all, hit your relatives for as much lolly as you can. Thats how Buffet got rich.
What, you maen someone created an application that wasnt a Java code IDE/editor/debugger/trace tool?
Its 10 years later, and there are still no serious desktop applications written in Java. What is wrong with Java that causes all GUI apps to have the look, feel and performance of Jade Goodie?
Indeed, I spotted several 'designs' that were just retreads of older designs, existing products with an iPod redesign, or just plain stupid.
Several airilon chairs, windup torches, a plate, a bowl.
And I bet most of them will look rubbish when not in a nicely lit studio, particularly industrial stuff with an iPod finish.
Dont't tell me I'm still on that fecking OS?
In fact, forget the whole list. Theres been plenty of worse engineering disasters in "the rest of the world" including submarines sunk by a can of paint, catherdrals colapsing, cars that roll at 30mph, etc.
I think too many companies focus just on heuristic evaluation. That's basically paying a UI expert to tell you what to do and what not to do. A lot of companies won't even hire a usability expert, instead relying on their own engineers to "read a lot of books" and try to wing it.
This is bad.
But it is a start.
In an ideal world we'd all be at stage 5 or better. Unfortunatly, some of us are still at Stage 1 and spending 50% of our development time just fighting political battles simply to stop developers adding modes and non-standard interface features (like entering YES/NO into textfields rather than using a checkbox).
So my aim at the moment is is to get interface development out of the hands of one particular development group. Then I hope to start refactoring the interface and applying heuristic evaluation before I even consider getting any kind of useability testing or outside expertise going.
I'm even battling the interface testers, who have loads of regression tests for the current interface and dont want to have to start again. Testing mostly constists of checking a new feature is implemented, not whether its implemented well.
Michelson-Morley did a load of experiments around this issue, back when they thought there was an 'ether' pervading the universe and that light moved through the ether at a contant speed, and that the motion of the earth though space would mean different speeds of light in different directions.
We could do the same thing for sub-atomic particles, but theres no evidence of a directional bias from any experiments Ive heard of.
Only by morons who are happy to spend the rest of thier lives using the same inadequate tools whilst wondering why they never get promotion.
It plainly obvious that poor tools compromise the finished result, and that no amount of craftmans skill will completely overcome the deficit.
It retards that insisted on keeping the old tools and designs that helped destroy manufacturing in the UK.
And its happening again in IT as they all keep on trucking with poor interfaces, old fashioned development methods and MS specific development tools.
It doesnt matter what OS thay are installing, the average Jo is going to stuff it up one way or the other.
In linux, they will not be able to use some hardware cos the installer did not detect it correctly.
In windows they may fail to set up virus checking correctly, and eventually spyware or worse will get them.
In both they will happily log into ebay from a phishing email.
I say: Shoot them all and let god sort them out.
Its an award for the most Anglophone, USA-centric, flash ridden, over hyped websites that the judges can find in thier bookmarks from last years award nominations.
Bah, ISPF Edit is better.
It goes like this
emacs notepad xedit jedit vim Kate ISPF Edit
Truly, the rest of the world needs to have a line editor with proper macro support embedded into whatever language you want (which is always Rexx, but C should work).
Actually, I would recommend slashdotters stay away from Linux entirely.
This is because the world needs fewer Whiney Distro Fanboys.
My company have recently been rolling an ajax based front end to mainframe applications. Being able to deploy Apache anywhere without having to get a license has helped with testing and training.
I guess weve deployed over 40 Apache servers on everything from zSeries hardware to laptops. Some deployments are extremly ephemeral (usually for training or testing). To have to get a software license for each install would have slowed development, testing and training down to a crawl, and would have added a headcount just to manage the deployments.
Development also benefitted from open source tools, such as regina, firebug, cygwin, etc.
Access to the actual source has meant very little. Its the easy deployment that helped us.
Where we were restricted, it was often because a licensed tool was being used. E.g. VSS stopped mainframe-side developers from seeing the web-side code. Im not sure management are much aware that VSS may have slowed development unnecessarily.
Possibly true for dense print, but looking at some books on my desk we have
And Im sure Ive seen data that shows putting text into newspaper-style columns reduces comprehension, but cant find a reference.
And people who quote this, possibly mythical, eyeball flyback effect seem to completely miss the effect that constant scrolling has on aquiring the next line in a text.
So were just waiting for UT2007 then?
More to the point, it wont let OEMs uninstall it either. Dell, Sony, Lenovo, etc are not free to do business with Apple or Real without having parts of the Windows operating system stepping in and asserting Mediaplayer over the manufacturers preferred player when the user clicks on the wrong button.
The issue goes slightly than this, though, as Microsoft also apply other anti-competative pressures to stop OEMs from even contemplating installing iTunes on the non-WM version of Windows that the EU mandated.
While most of your comment is corporate-speak and obfusificates well, the phrase "dominate several emerging ecosystems" is actually technical language (borrowed from ecological science) and has a specific technical meaning. Also "through the channel" has a specific meaning (I.e. internal sales force, 3rd party resellers, retailers, etc).
Thats the problem with corporate speak, its a load of wooly posturing linking together technical phrases, and you need to be able to seperate the technical parts from the fluff.
Ive always wondered whether the weight of the cells and battery dont make it worth creating a clockwork charger based upon Mr Bayliss's fine radios. It'll be more robust too.
Apple Shuffle £69, 1Gb, no featuresi nfo.php?products_id=477p lenano
i nfo.php?cPath=1&products_id=465
i nfo.php?cPath=1&products_id=540
i nfo.php?products_id=626
i nfo.php?cPath=1&products_id=1035
http://www.advancedmp3players.co.uk/shop/product_
Apple Nano £109, 1Gb, MP3/AAC and not much else. (2Gb £139, 4Gb £179).
http://www.apple-shop.co.uk/ipod/?src=gg-ld-qu-ap
Cowon, 1Gb, £119, more codecs, replacable battery, no drivers to install, no fucking about with iTunes to load music onto it,
http://www.advancedmp3players.co.uk/shop/product_
Cowon iAudio 5, 1Gb £130, Smaller then nano, removable battery, FM radio, voice recorder, no drivers, works as USB key, comes with beltloop jacket. Is a bit pricier than nano, but remember Apple are discounting to get folks locked into the iTunes store. 2Gb version cost £190.
http://www.advancedmp3players.co.uk/shop/product_
Orb 1Gb£55, Cross between a USb stick and an MP3 player,
http://www.advancedmp3players.co.uk/shop/product_
Samsung 2Gb £109. Looks like Samsung have managed to beat up the flash suppliers too, their prices are similar, and they can get hold of 4Gb parts too.
http://www.advancedmp3players.co.uk/shop/product_
Brand Potential is the Brand Rating - Dissaffected Users.
This implies that there are some Apple users out there who will not be buying Apple again after having a bad experience, or having a friend with a better device by another company.
Yes, but since then, people like me have been out and about showing Apple users that players exits that are:
Smaller.
Dont attempt to lock users into Apples music format and the iTunes store.
Have battery lives that match vendors claims.
Dont cost $50 to replace the failing battery.
Dont scratch.
Have integrated FM radios.
Allow music to be uploaded from any PC, without having install special software to do so.
All iPods have going for them is a nice interface and the ability to view a film on a really small screen. Alot of customers are starting to realise that these devices have been hyped in the media and dont live up to thier expectations.
Apparently, they've taken away some of the game and replaced it with screen furniture.