I just opened this post and did a search for "umbrella" as this was my first thought, too. In the UK it's very common since the IR35 legislation removed a lot of freelancer benefits. One company sets up large umbrella company and puts you on their payroll. You as a contractor get paid by them, and they do your accounts. Simples
I get tired if I drive for more than 4 hours straight. When you get tired, you make mistakes. I can't even imagine driving continously for 24 hours without making an error. Surely this is dangerous, both for pilot and anyone he might crashland on?
I'm not a Linux, MS or Apple fanboi. I used to be an iPhone owner, and when my contract was up I looked at what was out there and decided the Desire and Android was the best solution. I can opt to use the Android Market, or install from other sources, and the handset is a pleasure to use.
If you're saying I should have bought something more open then what would you suggest? My partner has a Pre, and whilst she likes it, it's a bit of a dead end platform. The N900? Sure, when Meego's mature, but at the moment it's a clunker as a daily carry phone.
If you're saying that I'm somehow saying Linux is better than Apple - I've had an iPhone for 18 months and whilst I loved it, I don't like the direction Apple is taking.
Sure, I could and did Jailbreak it, but I just got sick of fighting them to do what I wanted.
Plus the Desire is significantly cheaper over 2 years, and I figure Google have a vested interest in my handset talking to external services and third parties, whereas Apple just want me to pay them for everything via the app store.
My carrier doesn't have control over the vanilla OEM ROM running on my HTC Desire. It's a GSM device, the contents of which are nothing to do with them, thank you very much. All they need to do is register the SIM on the network, and everything else is my problem.
Android isn't fully open, but it's pretty darn good.
"The steep slide in BP's share price is bad news for UK pension funds - the vast majority of which will hold a stake in the company.
Defined benefit pension schemes are typically thought to have around 1.5% of their assets invested directly in BP, accounting for around 6% of all the money they hold in UK equities
But some funds may hold considerably more, for example a pension scheme that tries to replicate the performance of the FTSE 100 would have around 6% of its total assets invested in the company.
BP's share price has now fallen by around a third since the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded and sank on April 20, killing 11 workers.
It is difficult to put a figure on exactly how much this will have wiped off the value of pension schemes, but it is thought to be hundreds of millions of pounds, if not billions of pounds, once the impact on defined contribution schemes and personal pensions is also factored in.
Laith Khalaf, pensions analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "The poor performance of a big stock like BP can have a disproportionate impact on funds.
"There have also been other falls in the stock market as well. If the market had been doing well in recent months, it might not have been such a big issue."
David Paterson, head of corporate governance at the National Association of Pension Funds, said around 1.5% of a typical defined benefit pension scheme's assets would be held in BP shares.
But he said: "The vast majority of pension schemes will have diversified portfolios, so the impact of either good news or bad news is quite diluted when you adjust it for the size of the holding."
Another concern for pension schemes is whether BP's generous dividend will come under threat as a result of the oil spill.
Last year BP paid out £10 billion in dividends, accounting for £1 out of every £7 paid out in dividends by FTSE 100 companies.
The high yield has made the stock particularly popular with pension funds, as it means investors benefit from a strong annual income, as well as any long-term growth in the share price.
The group has not announced any plans to reduce its dividend, but there are fears that the growing cost of the disaster, which had reached 990 million US dollars (£682.3 million) by yesterday, excluding the impact on BP's share price, will force it to cut the pay-out.
There's already s solution that works, and they're not using that either. They could lay boom properly (i.e. not just for the TV cameras) but for some reason that isn't happening. See the DailyKOS "fishgrease" links above for a clear summary.
To add to this excellent point - the fallout from the inevitable financial cost to BP may be felt around the world in other ways. For example, a large portion of UK pension funds are invested in BP. Were the company to fail, this would be disasterous for investors which *aren't all greedy shareholders* - some will be pensioners who didn't choose where their pension was invested, and who find themselves without one in the midst of a recession. I'm not saying this is right or wrong - obviously BP should be severely punished (I'd go for the US government nationalising them, maybe?), just pointing out that the law of unintended consequences applies here and the fallout from this is going to be huge.
If by "best of both worlds" you mean as expensive and on long contract as iPhone, whilst not actually working properly or having a stable version of Android that supports some of the more advanced features like making calls and the GPU, then sure. It's an interesting experiment, but the Android-on-iPhone ROMs are for shits'n'giggles, not for serious use, and I'm sure their developers would be the first to admit it.
If you want an iPhone, buy one. If you want Android, get an Android handset.
Data point: when I last did serious corporate hardware support, *all* desktops came with whatever drives were cheaper that month. Optiplexes included. Rest of the hardware (i.e. anything with a driver) would be the same, but hard disks - IBM/Seagate/WD/Fujitsu etc.
Sometimes you'd have a bad batch and you'd find virtually every PC on a site would need a replacement drive within a 3 month period. I remember this happening with Dell back in about 2001, and they insisted on replacing them one at a time (sending out an engineer for each one)...
I think best option is probably an Ion chipset small box, and run XBMC natively booting off USB/SD card.
One of the nice things about my Xbox XBMC is that it works like an appliance - it does't need to be booted/shutdown like a conventional OS - you just turn it on and off. Yes, I know it boots, but you know what I mean - my kids can use it, turn it on/off with impunity etc.
It's the little things that count - the Xbox had IR control, a DVD drive, and didn't ever need a keyboard or mouse connected to work. It's going to be difficult to replace with something half as functional and easy to use...
5) They make themselves available as paid articles for the iPad, make them glossy enough, and actually make some money, whilst at the same time allowing Google limited access to to their headlines to act as a teaser to draw people in
Not saying it's right, not saying it'll work, just saying the timing is right
what's the average monthly spend on petrol?
what's it cost to charge a full electric car overnight?
If you look at monthly payments then the price of the car looks a lot more attractive.
XDA-developers.com, Modaco, etc. Some are leaked ROMs, some are extracted from other devices, many are cooked up by enthusiasts. There are Android "Kitchen" utilities that allow you to bake anything you want into your own custom ROM, too.
Apple aren't interested in integration: they want you consuming your media through them, they want you to use their services (Mobile Me? Yeah, that was *great*, wasn't it?) whereas Google have a vested interest in users being ultra-connected to any and all third party services.
Let me ask you: do you think we'll see a) a decrease or b) an increase in the number of ads on iPhone now there's a central mechanism for delivering them, and Apple take a cut?
App prices are one thing, but to use the iPhone I need iTunes. I need an iTunes account. If I want accessories that work I need Apple ones (put an ID chip in the video out cable? So that instead of a simple $5 cable I now need a $40 Apple version?). If I rent a movie, it expires if I've not watched it for a bit.
Apple's vision of the future is you slumped on the couch consuming music, tv and video on your iPad, and paying a small premium every single time.
Slashdot Mirror
I just opened this post and did a search for "umbrella" as this was my first thought, too. In the UK it's very common since the IR35 legislation removed a lot of freelancer benefits. One company sets up large umbrella company and puts you on their payroll. You as a contractor get paid by them, and they do your accounts. Simples
I get tired if I drive for more than 4 hours straight. When you get tired, you make mistakes. I can't even imagine driving continously for 24 hours without making an error. Surely this is dangerous, both for pilot and anyone he might crashland on?
I'm not a Linux, MS or Apple fanboi. I used to be an iPhone owner, and when my contract was up I looked at what was out there and decided the Desire and Android was the best solution. I can opt to use the Android Market, or install from other sources, and the handset is a pleasure to use.
If you're saying I should have bought something more open then what would you suggest? My partner has a Pre, and whilst she likes it, it's a bit of a dead end platform. The N900? Sure, when Meego's mature, but at the moment it's a clunker as a daily carry phone.
If you're saying that I'm somehow saying Linux is better than Apple - I've had an iPhone for 18 months and whilst I loved it, I don't like the direction Apple is taking.
Sure, I could and did Jailbreak it, but I just got sick of fighting them to do what I wanted.
Plus the Desire is significantly cheaper over 2 years, and I figure Google have a vested interest in my handset talking to external services and third parties, whereas Apple just want me to pay them for everything via the app store.
My carrier doesn't have control over the vanilla OEM ROM running on my HTC Desire. It's a GSM device, the contents of which are nothing to do with them, thank you very much. All they need to do is register the SIM on the network, and everything else is my problem.
Android isn't fully open, but it's pretty darn good.
I'm sure he'd just slap you for calling him "PhD'd"
have you tried googling it? (grin)
Nice when everything's so clear cut, isn't it? I don't think you get how big this is: and this is just a UK-centric viewpoint:
http://www.independent.co.uk/money/pensions/bp-share-price-slide-hits-uk-pension-funds-1989503.html
"The steep slide in BP's share price is bad news for UK pension funds - the vast majority of which will hold a stake in the company.
Defined benefit pension schemes are typically thought to have around 1.5% of their assets invested directly in BP, accounting for around 6% of all the money they hold in UK equities
But some funds may hold considerably more, for example a pension scheme that tries to replicate the performance of the FTSE 100 would have around 6% of its total assets invested in the company.
BP's share price has now fallen by around a third since the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded and sank on April 20, killing 11 workers.
It is difficult to put a figure on exactly how much this will have wiped off the value of pension schemes, but it is thought to be hundreds of millions of pounds, if not billions of pounds, once the impact on defined contribution schemes and personal pensions is also factored in.
Laith Khalaf, pensions analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "The poor performance of a big stock like BP can have a disproportionate impact on funds.
"There have also been other falls in the stock market as well. If the market had been doing well in recent months, it might not have been such a big issue."
David Paterson, head of corporate governance at the National Association of Pension Funds, said around 1.5% of a typical defined benefit pension scheme's assets would be held in BP shares.
But he said: "The vast majority of pension schemes will have diversified portfolios, so the impact of either good news or bad news is quite diluted when you adjust it for the size of the holding."
Another concern for pension schemes is whether BP's generous dividend will come under threat as a result of the oil spill.
Last year BP paid out £10 billion in dividends, accounting for £1 out of every £7 paid out in dividends by FTSE 100 companies.
The high yield has made the stock particularly popular with pension funds, as it means investors benefit from a strong annual income, as well as any long-term growth in the share price.
The group has not announced any plans to reduce its dividend, but there are fears that the growing cost of the disaster, which had reached 990 million US dollars (£682.3 million) by yesterday, excluding the impact on BP's share price, will force it to cut the pay-out.
There's already s solution that works, and they're not using that either. They could lay boom properly (i.e. not just for the TV cameras) but for some reason that isn't happening. See the DailyKOS "fishgrease" links above for a clear summary.
To add to this excellent point - the fallout from the inevitable financial cost to BP may be felt around the world in other ways. For example, a large portion of UK pension funds are invested in BP. Were the company to fail, this would be disasterous for investors which *aren't all greedy shareholders* - some will be pensioners who didn't choose where their pension was invested, and who find themselves without one in the midst of a recession. I'm not saying this is right or wrong - obviously BP should be severely punished (I'd go for the US government nationalising them, maybe?), just pointing out that the law of unintended consequences applies here and the fallout from this is going to be huge.
If by "best of both worlds" you mean as expensive and on long contract as iPhone, whilst not actually working properly or having a stable version of Android that supports some of the more advanced features like making calls and the GPU, then sure. It's an interesting experiment, but the Android-on-iPhone ROMs are for shits'n'giggles, not for serious use, and I'm sure their developers would be the first to admit it.
If you want an iPhone, buy one. If you want Android, get an Android handset.
Cool story, Bro.
So you're at step two of your signature?
The bandwidth's great. It's just the latency thats killing us back here
Data point: when I last did serious corporate hardware support, *all* desktops came with whatever drives were cheaper that month. Optiplexes included. Rest of the hardware (i.e. anything with a driver) would be the same, but hard disks - IBM/Seagate/WD/Fujitsu etc.
Sometimes you'd have a bad batch and you'd find virtually every PC on a site would need a replacement drive within a 3 month period. I remember this happening with Dell back in about 2001, and they insisted on replacing them one at a time (sending out an engineer for each one)...
I think best option is probably an Ion chipset small box, and run XBMC natively booting off USB/SD card. One of the nice things about my Xbox XBMC is that it works like an appliance - it does't need to be booted/shutdown like a conventional OS - you just turn it on and off. Yes, I know it boots, but you know what I mean - my kids can use it, turn it on/off with impunity etc.
It's the little things that count - the Xbox had IR control, a DVD drive, and didn't ever need a keyboard or mouse connected to work. It's going to be difficult to replace with something half as functional and easy to use...
Cool story, bro
5) They make themselves available as paid articles for the iPad, make them glossy enough, and actually make some money, whilst at the same time allowing Google limited access to to their headlines to act as a teaser to draw people in
Not saying it's right, not saying it'll work, just saying the timing is right
I am picturing a bomb droppiong towards its target, with "PC LOAD LETTER" chalked on the side of it
I've been using them for years on WinMo devices. There are some duds but there are some spectacular ones. Cyanogen for example.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=512
what's the average monthly spend on petrol? what's it cost to charge a full electric car overnight? If you look at monthly payments then the price of the car looks a lot more attractive.
XDA-developers.com, Modaco, etc. Some are leaked ROMs, some are extracted from other devices, many are cooked up by enthusiasts. There are Android "Kitchen" utilities that allow you to bake anything you want into your own custom ROM, too.
XDA-Developers.com. You can't freely download these, as it would allow you to debrand your device and the telecoms companies don't want that.
if a compatible release comes out, obviously.
Apple aren't interested in integration: they want you consuming your media through them, they want you to use their services (Mobile Me? Yeah, that was *great*, wasn't it?) whereas Google have a vested interest in users being ultra-connected to any and all third party services.
Let me ask you: do you think we'll see a) a decrease or b) an increase in the number of ads on iPhone now there's a central mechanism for delivering them, and Apple take a cut?
App prices are one thing, but to use the iPhone I need iTunes. I need an iTunes account. If I want accessories that work I need Apple ones (put an ID chip in the video out cable? So that instead of a simple $5 cable I now need a $40 Apple version?). If I rent a movie, it expires if I've not watched it for a bit.
Apple's vision of the future is you slumped on the couch consuming music, tv and video on your iPad, and paying a small premium every single time.