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User: GQuon

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  1. Sidenote on Telco Spams and Gets Huge Fine · · Score: 1

    My local trains had one regular cabin, one quiet cabin, and one office cabin.

    Well, they "re-districted" that and combined the office cabin and quiet cabin. Quiet office? Heh.

    They abandoned the concept.

  2. Re:Next Step: Take them over. on Over a Million Zombie PCs · · Score: 1

    Independence Day

    Or maybe from Shin seiki Evangelion (Neon Genesis Evangelion), Episode 13: Angel Invasion / Lilliputian Hitcher

  3. Bahnhof promoted DRM on Swedish TV on European Piracy Crackdowns · · Score: 1

    This is is a somewhat interesting development.

    See my journal entry: Swedish ISP, on national television, promotes DRM

    One of the employees of the Bahnhof ISP promoted DRM in his interview with Swedish television. It's like Alien vs. Predator. Whoever wins, the freeloaders or the overstepping lawyers, you lose.

  4. Re:What Effect? on Holy LEGO Blocks, Batman! · · Score: 1

    The site is still up. However, the trailer itself was on an ex-ftp server. It is no more.

  5. How about hardware? on Normalizing Music? · · Score: 1

    Many products do this in hardware. I have both wireless headphones and a MiniDisc player that does this. The MiniDisc player can be set to manual recording level, so it is fixed to one level, but the headphones can't be switched away from this automatic setting. So I don't use those headphones for classical music listening, for example.

    You might have a product that does this allready, that you could plug in between the computer, CD, player, etc and the amplifier/speakers.

  6. Re:Good and bad on Senators Clinton and Kerry Submit Open Voting Bill · · Score: 1

    If you can verify that the voter has a valid registration, what does it matter when the voter was registered?

    As somebody else said, that would be hard to do. To check the information, and also allow time for the registration to be challenged, would require some time.

    Also, to ensure valid registrations, I would think they would have to performed by state officials. And that would create even longer queues on election day.

    Why not go a step further from "motor voting" and do as my country: All adults are automatically registered as voters, without party affiliation. And a few weeks before the election we get a postcard with the address of our polling place and our number in the registration rolls. I guess it's because of the US fear of databases. :-/

  7. Re:Good and bad on Senators Clinton and Kerry Submit Open Voting Bill · · Score: 1

    As far as the vote goes, all you'd have to track is that the person voted, not the content of the vote.

    If you had "motor voting", yes. But if there was full registration on election day, you'd have to put the ballot aside untill it was confirmed -- making its secrecy less guaranteed.

  8. Because the terms will be extended on Software Patents In The European Union Continued... · · Score: 1

    Why not simply shorten the lifespan of patents to say 2 years?

    Because the lifespans are going to be extended with little debate, I think. (The patent lifespans were rather short from the beginning.)
    And because 2 years is a long time in the software field.
    And because you never know whenever some submarine patent is going to come up to bite you.

    I'm certainly for rewarding innovators -- yes even big corporations. The problem is that the patent and copyright system has been subverted in small pieces at a time. One extension after another, and one frivolous application after another.
    In my view this is more about creating byzantine and insane rules that keep lawyers at work, than it now is about encouraging innovation and publishing.

    I think one could also present an argument that this is hurting business, especially Small and Medium-sized Businesses. Just like the tax code and tort law needs a reality check now and then, so does intellectual property law. It's just a matter of showing people how it adversely affects them.

  9. Re:Wait a minute... on EU Software Patent Directive Adopted · · Score: 2, Insightful

    One click shopping, progress bars and help icons would be "technical effects" as defined by the EU patent office.

    Any fixing of the system should also remove any economic incentive to grant or deny patents.

  10. Corporate interests on EU Software Patent Directive Adopted · · Score: 1

    Corporate interests?
    People talk about the Council bowing to corporate interests, and some corporations want this, but from where I'm sitting this software patent thing would harm most of the companies in Europe as well.

    I say that the Stupid People of the World lobby won this one.

  11. The DoD should give games to people on Views on Violence in Video Games · · Score: 1

    You know how the US military uses first person shooters and squad command simulators to train fire engagement tactics?

    The states should provide those games to the people too, so that the popular militia is properly trained. Include it as an optional part of mandatory "concealed carrying" licence as well.

    Of course, real target shooting and basic physical fitnes should be encouraged as well.

    If there's ever an invasion from Canada, Mexio, China or outer space, you'll be a nation of geeks armed to the teeth with hours of expreience in infantry tactics. And suddenly missing a game save option.

  12. "secrecy" less democratically problematic. on Views on Violence in Video Games · · Score: 1

    -- to keep the "secrecy" less democratically problematic.

    I did preview. But apparently, I can't read.

  13. Re:Problem is Internal, not External on Views on Violence in Video Games · · Score: 1

    I agree with you, mostly. But "Art reflects culture" shouldn't be a catch-all response for "artists" that just want to exploit a market by being more extreme than the next guy.

  14. The claims lawyers cause violent crime on Views on Violence in Video Games · · Score: 1

    How do you get "adversely" influenced by any media?

    1: Not being able to seperate reality and fiction. Really rare. Even less rare to result in violence. Could media affect the timing of a violent act? Maybe. But i think it would happen anyway if the person is so "wrongheaded" by upbringing or biology, etc.

    2: Video games also have a message to the player. About what is appropriate to joke about, for example. What is good. What is bad. Maybe even about what kind of behaviour is acceptable. Of course, playing a criminal or terrorist doesn't mean that those who made the game think it's a cool thing to do in real life.
    I think this "message" influence is more common, but we're not as affected by it since we usually can think critically about it.
    As other media, games are part of what defines the society that you grow up with. Parents watch what their children are playing, reading, and gaming, and put it into context for their children. Maybe even censoring some of it.

    3: (This is the real doosie:)
    Lawyers and parents blaming games for violent behaviour in children/young adults is something reported in the media. Journalists tell stories of how a game was related to a violent act.

    People hear about this.

    As does those that want to go out and kill somebody.

    "Oh, If I get caught -- yeah, like that'll ever happen -- I can just blame it on video games and get less punishment. Perhaps even a lot of money. Neato."

    Perhaps these cases shouldn't be reported in the media. Or at least reported as little as possible to those below voting age -- to keep the "secrecy" less democratically.

    Can we sue the claims lawyers out of their houses when the next case happens?

  15. Re:If it is going back to parliment anyway... on EU Patents Won't Stay Dead · · Score: 2

    I think it's more a matter of the Parliament needing an absolute majority to strike it down once the Council has passed it.

  16. Re:Good and bad on Senators Clinton and Kerry Submit Open Voting Bill · · Score: 1

    Who says he hasn't allready voted in November. Mary Poppins, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Michael Jordan, Jeffrey Dahmer, Brett Favre, George Foreman and Maria Lopez were unfairly disenfranchised however: Man pleads guilty to filing bogus voter registrations

  17. Re:Good and bad on Senators Clinton and Kerry Submit Open Voting Bill · · Score: 1

    Election are on sundays in my country. But I didn't bring that up since there are some Christians in the USA who hold the Sabbath on Sunday about as strictly as Jews hold the Sabbath on Saturday. And on Friday, the Muslims have their holy day...

  18. Re:Good and bad on Senators Clinton and Kerry Submit Open Voting Bill · · Score: 2, Informative

    Felons are still citizens. Even when in jail. citizens have a right to vote.

    Those citizens who are felons serving a sentence generally don't have the right to vote. The prison guards have a right to vote though. You're only making sense if you were referring to them. (The guards are in the jail, but they aren't felons.)

    Now the military on the otherhand, they are government property (G.I.) so it would make more sense for them not to be able to vote while serving.

    "Government Issue" is a NICKNAME for soldiers. It's not a legal term, and it certainly isn't an establishment of slavery.

  19. Re:Good and bad on Senators Clinton and Kerry Submit Open Voting Bill · · Score: 1

    A felon is not an "it".

    I went a bit too gender neutral there. :-)

  20. That was me trying to be gender neutral. on Senators Clinton and Kerry Submit Open Voting Bill · · Score: 1

    dehumanize (...) hence the original poster saying "are we okay with giving a felon back its right to vote?".

    That was me trying to be gender neutral. You sexists, you. :-)

    A person is an "it" too. So is "a human".

    This PC nonsense would be hard to do in a language like mine, or in German, where the gender of a word does not necessarily have anything to do with sex.

  21. Unions and other groups too on Senators Clinton and Kerry Submit Open Voting Bill · · Score: 1

    Quite often, the unions make a common interest with their corporate employers. For example, protectionism and trade barriers that the US steel industry wanted, also benefited the unions.

  22. Good and bad on Senators Clinton and Kerry Submit Open Voting Bill · · Score: 4, Interesting

    "Paper records of electronic voting:" Good, as long as voters can't prove to somebody else who they voted for. That would facilitate vote buying.

    "Election-day registration": Need to read the bill. If volounteer (partisan) groups get to haphazardly register people at the polls, that's a bad thing. Registrations should be in order some weeks before the elections.

    "Election Day as a national holiday.": Good. Productivity could go down, but it could increase turn-out and the importance of the election in people's minds.

    "Restoration of voting rights for former felons": Not sure. Is a felon that has served its sentence entitled to the same rights as others?

    "the source and object code of all electronic voting machines to be open and readable by the public." Definately good. The many-eyeballs approach to security validation is perfect for this case, since it's an application with such a huge number of interested parties.

    Now, how about non-citizens voting and proof of identification? Anything on that?

  23. Re:If you don't get it, you don't get it on Babylon 5 Theatrical Movie Falls Through · · Score: 1

    I know I shouldn't feed you, but my request for your favourites was sincere.

    OK, so you think the Star Trek cartoon was bad. How about saying what you thought was GOOD?

  24. Re:It wouldn't be the same anyway... on Babylon 5 Theatrical Movie Falls Through · · Score: 1

    What do you mean, specifically?

  25. Re:So, he can save Enterprise now that he's not bu on Babylon 5 Theatrical Movie Falls Through · · Score: 1

    It's worse. He's now busy for the time they would be filming if they got new investment, and he has said yes to running a TV show in the fall of 2006.

    Nuts!

    The silver lining is that some actors who weren't available this time might be available later.