"Perhaps tougher penalties and larger fines for people who actually drive drunk would be a better idea."
Dude, do you not watch Cops? Practically everyone they pull over is driving under the influence on a suspended license.
About the only thing that will get repeat-offending DUIers off the streets is a prison sentence, instead of wrist-slapping them for the fifteenth time.
Personally, I think this NM bill sucks. But at least it acknowledges that license revocation is about as effective for stopping DUI as herbal supplements are for anatomy enlargement.
Well, I didn't list (c), because it was the "default" - just about everyone who says global warming is occurring also blames it on human activity. I wanted to contrast the common assumption, and so I mentioned other possibilities (hence the phrase, "quite possibly would be").
For that matter, (d) natural changes occurring as a result of other non-climatological cycles (solar activity, volcanic activity) could be to blame. Either of those could also nudge the system off the equilibrium point.
"I wonder if, when the climate goes bonkers, God forbid, all those who opposed efforts to check global warming will make amends by living in the worst climates?"
In other words, the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere may be unstable, meaning that a small perturbation can result in a huge change in state. That means, if global warming actually were occurring, that it quite possibly would be (a) not our fault, but something that has been happening over the past several hundred, thousand, or ten thousand years, and is accelerating as the state of the system moves away from an unstable equilibrium point; and (b) impossible to stop, no matter what we do.
"The Boston Globe reports that the Massachusetts state Revenue Department has launched a new technology offensive which strives to piece together all the stray bits of financial information about individual taxpayers that is contained in various public databases in order to catch tax cheats."
Which means that Massachusetts is leveraging federal law how exactly?
In all likelihood, Comcast-Disney would do everything it could to maintain the Disney brand. Probably the most you would see change about the Disney-branded resorts and films would be an increase in advertising for Comcast services. On the other hand, Comcast could benefit greatly for its own services from controlling Disney, if it plays its cards right. Disney not only owns its own brand of television products (mainly the Disney Channel), but it also owns ABC (along with a couple dozen affiliates), ESPN, and partnership in other cable channels like A&E, The History Channel, and Lifetime. Comcast and Disney already share an interest in E! Entertainment. Picking up other related brands like Miramax and Touchstone could strengthen Comcast as well.
None of these brands will change, just the controlling entity would. I seriously doubt that they would make efforts to blur the lines as AOL/TW did, because there would be no benefit to doing so, especially when, as you say, the "Disney" name carries such weight with families.
"In the older Superman TV shows, it was funny that he could stand there and deflect bullets, and yet he ducked when the shooter ran out of bullets and threw the gun at him."
That's because getting hit in the face with a gun hurts!
"METHOD FOR MINIMIZING PIRATING AND/OR UNAUTHORIZED COPYING AND/OR UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS OF/TO DATA ON/FROM DATA MEDIA INCLUDING COMPACT DISCS AND DIGITAL VERSATILE DISCS, AND SYSTEM AND DATA MEDIA FOR SAME, #6,684,199"
Then 321 Studios isn't violating the patent, because 321's software implements a method for "accessing data on digital versatile discs for media licensees and for fair use purposes".
321 certainly didn't implement a method of minimizing piracy, in any case;)
The reason a $10,000 diamond is valuable is because it cost $10,000. If it cost $100, you just bought your girl -- the love of your life -- a symbol worth less than an XBox.
But then, DeBeers has to hoard a huge amount of the diamonds they mine, to get the commodity price up close to the retail market value, or else they are just handing over all their potential profits to individual diamond retailers.
[businesses must] supply you with a product or a service even if you refuse consent for the collection, use or disclosure of your personal information unless the information is essential to the transaction.
This is likely more toothless than you would think - or at least, if this were U.S. law, it would be - because things like your SSN, date of birth, or mother's maiden name would be described by the service provider as "necessary" because they "need" to do a credit check on you.
Considering that nobody else in Cleveland is trying to attract the attention of high-tech companies to the area, this conference could be a Very Good Thing for northeast Ohio if it catches on.
Really, the worst thing Cleveland has going for it when it comes to attracting high-tech is the horrible weather. Freezing cold in winter, roasting like a sauna in summer. But the cost of living is tiny compared to SoCal - I'd say the average rent on a 2-bedroom in the first-ring suburbs is sub-$1000.
I knew this other guy who was playing a bit of Doom 2 against a friend down the hall in the dorms. The guy down the hall had the plasma gun, and was shooting across a wide open room at him. But this guy weaved in and out of all the shots without getting hit, popped the other guy twice with the berserker pack, and killed him that way.
Much swearing was heard from the other end of the hall:)
For all we know, they've released a trojan masquerading as the source code and are trying to sucker geeks and 14m2rZ into downloading it.
That would require actually making the executable from the source. And if somebody manages to pull that off, that's a good sign that you probably *shouldn't* try running it;)
...And in the movie Blade Runner. And in the game SimCity 2000. And in the Shadowrun RPG.
I really do wish that arcologies would catch on. The environmental impact of having the day commutes of tens of thousands of people reduced to a ride in an electric-powered mass transit shuttle - which people would have to use because there would be no room for cars inside the building - would be tremendous, especially when multiplied by a few hundred arcologies.
The only thing to consider is whether the fertile lands mentioned in the above article are reclaimable, or whether enough environmental damage has been done to them to make them no longer very fertile.
All I know is that the people who drive past my apartment with their cars about ready to rattle apart from all the extreme bass are dissipating enough power to run a small city.
"Raph Koster of SWG is now an expert in designing societies?"
I don't recall that being mentioned in the article at all.
The article was about the similarity in the methods of handling feedback between the SWG team and some agencies within the federal government. Raph Koster was not billed as anything more than a designer of SWG, and the article also had nothing to do with the current quality of SWG.
It's a shame you started your post by flaming Koster, because your second comment, about having a/.-style feedback system for the government, was interesting. Something of that nature would almost certainly be limited to particular agencies within the executive branch, and perhaps a few individual legislators. I say this because most legislators (or their advisors) understand that web opinion is largely skewed from what their actual constituency is, and they would rather represent either their constituency or whatever SIGs have paid them off.
Agencies like DoT, DoE, and a few others which don't have a lot of political controversy about them might benefit from such a system, though, if the focus is on soliciting good (as in free as in beer) ideas from the public, rather than seeking mass opinion.
And the reason that SUVs are marketed so much is because federal emissions and safety regulations which apply to cars don't apply to SUVs (they are considered to be "trucks").
People can drive their SUVs all they want (though I sure wish they would drive them with every ounce of care, if not more, than they put into driving smaller cars). But they should be regulated by the government the same as normal cars are, because that's what they nearly always get used for.
I was about to reference Wolfram in a conference paper I'm submitting tomorrow. Unfortunately, I hadn't heard the bit about Matthew Cook until today, and I find that I can't in good conscience reference a man who operates in complete opposition to the way academia is supposed to work.
Instead, I'll just go back to the primary literature and cite von Neumann.
BTW, mentioning Eric Weisstein's book conjures up the complete screw-job CRC gave him: they more-or-less stole the entirety of his work.
Well, the fact that you know how long your original subscription was for, and that you were warned about the autorenewal and the refund policy, will probably screw you over. But the part about being re-notified via e-mail is bogus, because e-mail has no verifiable paper trail (snail mail postmark will probably get you/them through small claims court, though).
Do you not watch The People's Court? The judge will toss that part of your suit in the round file. Well... possibly depending on your locality, anyway.
Well, I went to their website to check it out, but the first page used a Flash widget and the rest of their site was so horribly laid out that I couldn't figure out how to get to a FAQ or anything about the game.
Slashdot Mirror
...they're hardly being original!
"Perhaps tougher penalties and larger fines for people who actually drive drunk would be a better idea."
Dude, do you not watch Cops? Practically everyone they pull over is driving under the influence on a suspended license.
About the only thing that will get repeat-offending DUIers off the streets is a prison sentence, instead of wrist-slapping them for the fifteenth time.
Personally, I think this NM bill sucks. But at least it acknowledges that license revocation is about as effective for stopping DUI as herbal supplements are for anatomy enlargement.
Well, I didn't list (c), because it was the "default" - just about everyone who says global warming is occurring also blames it on human activity. I wanted to contrast the common assumption, and so I mentioned other possibilities (hence the phrase, "quite possibly would be").
For that matter, (d) natural changes occurring as a result of other non-climatological cycles (solar activity, volcanic activity) could be to blame. Either of those could also nudge the system off the equilibrium point.
"I wonder if, when the climate goes bonkers, God forbid, all those who opposed efforts to check global warming will make amends by living in the worst climates?"
I'm already doing my part - I live in Cleveland.
In other words, the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere may be unstable, meaning that a small perturbation can result in a huge change in state. That means, if global warming actually were occurring, that it quite possibly would be (a) not our fault, but something that has been happening over the past several hundred, thousand, or ten thousand years, and is accelerating as the state of the system moves away from an unstable equilibrium point; and (b) impossible to stop, no matter what we do.
"The Boston Globe reports that the Massachusetts state Revenue Department has launched a new technology offensive which strives to piece together all the stray bits of financial information about individual taxpayers that is contained in various public databases in order to catch tax cheats."
Which means that Massachusetts is leveraging federal law how exactly?
In all likelihood, Comcast-Disney would do everything it could to maintain the Disney brand. Probably the most you would see change about the Disney-branded resorts and films would be an increase in advertising for Comcast services. On the other hand, Comcast could benefit greatly for its own services from controlling Disney, if it plays its cards right. Disney not only owns its own brand of television products (mainly the Disney Channel), but it also owns ABC (along with a couple dozen affiliates), ESPN, and partnership in other cable channels like A&E, The History Channel, and Lifetime. Comcast and Disney already share an interest in E! Entertainment. Picking up other related brands like Miramax and Touchstone could strengthen Comcast as well.
None of these brands will change, just the controlling entity would. I seriously doubt that they would make efforts to blur the lines as AOL/TW did, because there would be no benefit to doing so, especially when, as you say, the "Disney" name carries such weight with families.
"In the older Superman TV shows, it was funny that he could stand there and deflect bullets, and yet he ducked when the shooter ran out of bullets and threw the gun at him."
That's because getting hit in the face with a gun hurts!
Then Canada is definitely doing something right.
:/
Why do you guys only send us hockey players and comedians? Why can't you send us some of your politicians, too?
"METHOD FOR MINIMIZING PIRATING AND/OR UNAUTHORIZED COPYING AND/OR UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS OF/TO DATA ON/FROM DATA MEDIA INCLUDING COMPACT DISCS AND DIGITAL VERSATILE DISCS, AND SYSTEM AND DATA MEDIA FOR SAME, #6,684,199"
;)
Then 321 Studios isn't violating the patent, because 321's software implements a method for "accessing data on digital versatile discs for media licensees and for fair use purposes".
321 certainly didn't implement a method of minimizing piracy, in any case
The reason a $10,000 diamond is valuable is because it cost $10,000. If it cost $100, you just bought your girl -- the love of your life -- a symbol worth less than an XBox.
But then, DeBeers has to hoard a huge amount of the diamonds they mine, to get the commodity price up close to the retail market value, or else they are just handing over all their potential profits to individual diamond retailers.
And so that's what they do.
[businesses must] supply you with a product or a service even if you refuse consent for the collection, use or disclosure of your personal information unless the information is essential to the transaction.
This is likely more toothless than you would think - or at least, if this were U.S. law, it would be - because things like your SSN, date of birth, or mother's maiden name would be described by the service provider as "necessary" because they "need" to do a credit check on you.
Considering that nobody else in Cleveland is trying to attract the attention of high-tech companies to the area, this conference could be a Very Good Thing for northeast Ohio if it catches on.
Really, the worst thing Cleveland has going for it when it comes to attracting high-tech is the horrible weather. Freezing cold in winter, roasting like a sauna in summer. But the cost of living is tiny compared to SoCal - I'd say the average rent on a 2-bedroom in the first-ring suburbs is sub-$1000.
Good to see that the advertising worked on you.
I knew this other guy who was playing a bit of Doom 2 against a friend down the hall in the dorms. The guy down the hall had the plasma gun, and was shooting across a wide open room at him. But this guy weaved in and out of all the shots without getting hit, popped the other guy twice with the berserker pack, and killed him that way.
:)
Much swearing was heard from the other end of the hall
For all we know, they've released a trojan masquerading as the source code and are trying to sucker geeks and 14m2rZ into downloading it.
;)
That would require actually making the executable from the source. And if somebody manages to pull that off, that's a good sign that you probably *shouldn't* try running it
...And in the movie Blade Runner. And in the game SimCity 2000. And in the Shadowrun RPG.
I really do wish that arcologies would catch on. The environmental impact of having the day commutes of tens of thousands of people reduced to a ride in an electric-powered mass transit shuttle - which people would have to use because there would be no room for cars inside the building - would be tremendous, especially when multiplied by a few hundred arcologies.
The only thing to consider is whether the fertile lands mentioned in the above article are reclaimable, or whether enough environmental damage has been done to them to make them no longer very fertile.
All I know is that the people who drive past my apartment with their cars about ready to rattle apart from all the extreme bass are dissipating enough power to run a small city.
Too bad he's stuck under the 9th Circuit. It probably won't be too much longer before their decisions get overturned by default.
"So Comcast offers to buy Disney for $66.6 billion dollars. Any one else find something strange about that particular number?"
Well, they suggested one million dollars first, but got laughed right out the front door.
"Raph Koster of SWG is now an expert in designing societies?"
/.-style feedback system for the government, was interesting. Something of that nature would almost certainly be limited to particular agencies within the executive branch, and perhaps a few individual legislators. I say this because most legislators (or their advisors) understand that web opinion is largely skewed from what their actual constituency is, and they would rather represent either their constituency or whatever SIGs have paid them off.
I don't recall that being mentioned in the article at all.
The article was about the similarity in the methods of handling feedback between the SWG team and some agencies within the federal government. Raph Koster was not billed as anything more than a designer of SWG, and the article also had nothing to do with the current quality of SWG.
It's a shame you started your post by flaming Koster, because your second comment, about having a
Agencies like DoT, DoE, and a few others which don't have a lot of political controversy about them might benefit from such a system, though, if the focus is on soliciting good (as in free as in beer) ideas from the public, rather than seeking mass opinion.
It's mainly status symbol, machismo, whatever
Or *marketing*.
And the reason that SUVs are marketed so much is because federal emissions and safety regulations which apply to cars don't apply to SUVs (they are considered to be "trucks").
People can drive their SUVs all they want (though I sure wish they would drive them with every ounce of care, if not more, than they put into driving smaller cars). But they should be regulated by the government the same as normal cars are, because that's what they nearly always get used for.
I was about to reference Wolfram in a conference paper I'm submitting tomorrow. Unfortunately, I hadn't heard the bit about Matthew Cook until today, and I find that I can't in good conscience reference a man who operates in complete opposition to the way academia is supposed to work.
Instead, I'll just go back to the primary literature and cite von Neumann.
BTW, mentioning Eric Weisstein's book conjures up the complete screw-job CRC gave him: they more-or-less stole the entirety of his work.
Well, the fact that you know how long your original subscription was for, and that you were warned about the autorenewal and the refund policy, will probably screw you over. But the part about being re-notified via e-mail is bogus, because e-mail has no verifiable paper trail (snail mail postmark will probably get you/them through small claims court, though).
+ ~$100 (your time and effort coming to court)
Do you not watch The People's Court? The judge will toss that part of your suit in the round file. Well... possibly depending on your locality, anyway.
Well, I went to their website to check it out, but the first page used a Flash widget and the rest of their site was so horribly laid out that I couldn't figure out how to get to a FAQ or anything about the game.
:/
Oh, well