Now honestly, apart from college students (and most of them probably prefer Ramen noodles), who actually eats spam regularly? Don't they realize that people might hear the term, see their can on the grocery store shelf and think "oh, so that's what it was named for... wonder what it tastes like?"
I think the last thing I want to do after receiving spam about a farm girl fucking a horse with a 31 inch cock is to go and eat an unknown meat product.
An algorithm is just a subset of a process, specifically, relating to computers. My point, in case you missed it, is this: what's the difference between doing a series of actions on a computer (algorithm) and doing a series of actions with chemicals (process)? Why should one be fundamentally unpatentable using his system whereas the other one is?
I just finished reading the book Idoru by William Gibson. What an utter piece of cybertrash. While reading it, I thought I was learning impaired because the story was presented in such a disjointed fashion and the characters are all very one-dimensional. The writing was horrible! I've since started re-reading the novel Gai-Jin by James Clavell and oh, what a relief! Quality writing *does* exist out there and, no -- I'm not learning impaired.;-)
I previously read Snow Crash by Stephenson and found the book to be very juvenile. There were some neat concepts in there, but the writing style is more appropriate for a thirteen year old boy. The characters were also relatively one-dimensional.
Maybe I've been spoiled by too much quality writing.:)
Addendum: After faxing in my information to the New York fax number stated, I sat back and hoped that I would get a runner-up prize. After all, it took me several weeks of effort to solve the puzzle and surely there were other more learned people who would have recognized the script system used and been able to decode it in a day or two. I feared that my signed copy of the book would never materialize and, instead, that I would be notified that I was correct submission number one hundred and thanks for playing.
Much to my surprise, I received a phone call from Neal Stephenson a day or two later congratulating me on being the first to solve the puzzle. We talked over the telephone for ten or twenty minutes and I recounted my story of how I went about solving it. He encouraged me to write up the story, the results of which you are presently reading. Three days later, I received a signed copy of the book as promised.
I would like to encourage everyone to at least attempt to solve the puzzle, if only to learn more about the ingenious writing system created by Wilkins. While you may not get a signed copy of the book, the learning experience will certainly be worth the effort.
I realize that the regulations are different, but perhaps they should be more similar. I understand the need for companies to protect products, but algorithms are not products. They are very abstract high level things and it would benefit technological progress and humanity in general if they were free.
So if I come up with an algorithm to turn lead into gold, I wouldn't be able to get a patent on it with your system? What about an algorithm which successfully creates a sentient Artificial Intelligence program? Not patentable?
Why, back in my day I had to dial out by stripping the wires and alternately shorting them out to simulate the pulse dialing. And don't get me started on file transfers... we had to upload, both ways! Man, you had it easy.
This is no different than saying "Ok, Microsoft -- either you release a patch to fix IIS, or we're releasing the bug report with sample exploit code next week."
It's not blackmail, it's rather a fairly aggressive means of negotiation.:)
What a dickhead. Okay, you go and stick your single Apache server and then have CNN broadcast the website URL. What?!? Your server can't handle that traffic load either?? Better check your assumptions, pal. Apache isn't the greatest either. Why not go out and get yourself a Zeus web server instead?
Just start at 000-000-0000 and work your way upwards. Have an email server which accepts any email address and forwards it to a bot. So you'd get an email for 000-000-0000@stop-phoning-me.org with the link which you'd then request via an http call. Easy peasy!
Of course, if they implement a "type in the number in the graphic" stuff, that would be more difficult.
Okay, so don't switch then. If Outlook meets all your needs, then use Outlook. If there's a more compelling reason to use Mozilla -- be it ideological... or logical:) -- then use Mozilla.
I used to be in the "they're evil, shun the products" camp. I have since made the switch to the "use it, it has the benefits I want" camp. Some benefits, of course, are non-tangible and will vary from user to user.
I hear the next book they publish will be O'Reilly Hacks in a Nutshell, to be followed shortly afterwards by O'Reilly Hacks Examples in a Nutshell, which uses 80% of the content from the first book.
Slashdot Mirror
Yes, the cans of SPAM from 1937 are still edible and are served in the cafeteria.
I think the last thing I want to do after receiving spam about a farm girl fucking a horse with a 31 inch cock is to go and eat an unknown meat product.
Alive? Maybe. Well fed? You gotta be kidding!
An algorithm is just a subset of a process, specifically, relating to computers. My point, in case you missed it, is this: what's the difference between doing a series of actions on a computer (algorithm) and doing a series of actions with chemicals (process)? Why should one be fundamentally unpatentable using his system whereas the other one is?
I just finished reading the book Idoru by William Gibson. What an utter piece of cybertrash. While reading it, I thought I was learning impaired because the story was presented in such a disjointed fashion and the characters are all very one-dimensional. The writing was horrible! I've since started re-reading the novel Gai-Jin by James Clavell and oh, what a relief! Quality writing *does* exist out there and, no -- I'm not learning impaired. ;-)
:)
I previously read Snow Crash by Stephenson and found the book to be very juvenile. There were some neat concepts in there, but the writing style is more appropriate for a thirteen year old boy. The characters were also relatively one-dimensional.
Maybe I've been spoiled by too much quality writing.
Page 5 (cont.)
Addendum: After faxing in my information to the New York fax number stated, I sat back and hoped that I would get a runner-up prize. After all, it took me several weeks of effort to solve the puzzle and surely there were other more learned people who would have recognized the script system used and been able to decode it in a day or two. I feared that my signed copy of the book would never materialize and, instead, that I would be notified that I was correct submission number one hundred and thanks for playing.
Much to my surprise, I received a phone call from Neal Stephenson a day or two later congratulating me on being the first to solve the puzzle. We talked over the telephone for ten or twenty minutes and I recounted my story of how I went about solving it. He encouraged me to write up the story, the results of which you are presently reading. Three days later, I received a signed copy of the book as promised.
I would like to encourage everyone to at least attempt to solve the puzzle, if only to learn more about the ingenious writing system created by Wilkins. While you may not get a signed copy of the book, the learning experience will certainly be worth the effort.
And we can see how well this encryption and obfuscation works for protecting video games from being cracked. :)
I realize that the regulations are different, but perhaps they should be more similar. I understand the need for companies to protect products, but algorithms are not products. They are very abstract high level things and it would benefit technological progress and humanity in general if they were free.
So if I come up with an algorithm to turn lead into gold, I wouldn't be able to get a patent on it with your system? What about an algorithm which successfully creates a sentient Artificial Intelligence program? Not patentable?
Why, back in my day I had to dial out by stripping the wires and alternately shorting them out to simulate the pulse dialing. And don't get me started on file transfers... we had to upload, both ways! Man, you had it easy.
If you *insist* on American style humor, here it is:
This is no different than saying "Ok, Microsoft -- either you release a patch to fix IIS, or we're releasing the bug report with sample exploit code next week."
:)
It's not blackmail, it's rather a fairly aggressive means of negotiation.
Sounds like they need Zeus web server. Runs all of eBay's traffic just fine, better than Apache ever could.
What a dickhead. Okay, you go and stick your single Apache server and then have CNN broadcast the website URL. What?!? Your server can't handle that traffic load either?? Better check your assumptions, pal. Apache isn't the greatest either. Why not go out and get yourself a Zeus web server instead?
Just start at 000-000-0000 and work your way upwards. Have an email server which accepts any email address and forwards it to a bot. So you'd get an email for 000-000-0000@stop-phoning-me.org with the link which you'd then request via an http call. Easy peasy!
Of course, if they implement a "type in the number in the graphic" stuff, that would be more difficult.
Clearly service packs don't follow the Star Trek rule.
Okay, so don't switch then. If Outlook meets all your needs, then use Outlook. If there's a more compelling reason to use Mozilla -- be it ideological ... or logical :) -- then use Mozilla.
I used to be in the "they're evil, shun the products" camp. I have since made the switch to the "use it, it has the benefits I want" camp. Some benefits, of course, are non-tangible and will vary from user to user.
I hear the next book they publish will be O'Reilly Hacks in a Nutshell, to be followed shortly afterwards by O'Reilly Hacks Examples in a Nutshell, which uses 80% of the content from the first book.
I think you're looking for ChickTorrent. (or was that the pr0n version?)
Imagine a Beowolf cluster of these!
Don't make me break out my calculus stick on you!
Good catch on the future fees!
or if a desperate wife was trying to "convince" her husband to come home and stop playing with Panther....
I think his wife wanted him to come home and play with her panther [nudge, nudge, wink, wink].
For those who don't have time to deciper the mega uni-paragraph which is the parent post, here's a convenient summary:
"If there is a mistake...well, you should have used the 'Preview' button!"
... but would SCO sue for infringement? -1; Offtopic :)
What's the proper word to describe the sound of a collective pants-shitting at Apple?