How do I make a pledge? First, enter your pledge amount and select a reward. On the next page we'll ask you to log in or sign up with Kickstarter, and then we'll send you to Amazon Payments to complete your pledge with a major credit card.
When is my credit card charged? If this project is fully funded on June 01, 11:59pm EDT your credit card will be charged along with all the other backers of this project.
So my card is only charged if funding succeeds? Yes! That's part of what makes Kickstarter special. If a project isn't fully funded, no one pays anything.
If this project is funded, how do I get my reward? When your reward is ready, Maxwell Salzberg will contact you by email to request any info they'll need to deliver your reward (mailing address, t-shirt size, etc).
Umm, you *do* see that all of the $25+ levels have the phrase "Get all the above stuff, plus..." on it, which means that all of the levels build on each other...
Yes, I understand that. I worded that poorly -- I meant to say that introduction of new physical goodies stops beyond the $25 mark. At their levels, for $1000 you're still getting only a CD, stickers, and t-shirt that you'd get at the $25 level. Everything else is soft goods except at the $2K level.
1. Why does anybody need hundreds of thousands of dollars to develop software? You're using a computer right now as you read it. Start coding. What's the money thing all about?
Quality software takes time. Some people like being able to afford food, rent, and the overhead (however minimal) that it will cost to develop this concept. Keep in mind that if they raise $200K, that's still only $50K per developer assuming development only takes 1 year. And they'll have to make stickers, t-shirts, CDs, and so on and mail those out to people. As the majority gave at the $25 level (which includes a CD and t-shirt) at least half of that money is going into manufacturing, handling, and shipping the goods. That drops the per-developer take significantly.
Interesting the way their donations are structured:
Pledge $10 or more Get a CD, note, and a bunch of cool diaspora stickers
Pledge $25 or more Get a CD, note, and a bunch of cool diaspora stickers, and a awesome diaspora t-shirt!
Pledge $50 or more Get all the above stuff, plus 1 month free of our turnkey hosted service (when it becomes available), or free phone support for 1 month if you host your own.
Pledge $100 or more Get all the above stuff, plus 3 month free of our turnkey hosted service (when it becomes available), or free phone support for 3 months if you host your own.
Pledge $350 or more Get all the above stuff, plus 1 year free of our turnkey hosted service (when it becomes available), and free phone support for 1 year if you host your own.
Pledge $1,000 or more [5 only] Get all of the above stuff, plus access to the nightly build server for Diaspora, so you can check out our progress all summer!
Pledge $2,000 or more [4 only] Get everything above, plus we will send you a brand new computer fully configured so you can host your own Diaspora seed from right under your bed!
The actual physical goodies stop at $25, and every level after that is soft goods. When you have to send out a t-shirt at the $25 level and they're on the hook for international shipping costs, how much is actually left over for development?
I would have structured things a bit differently. Of course, this is with 20/20 hindsight with the knowledge that their project would get viral media coverage and the fundraising would exceed expectations.
Pledge $10 or more Get an official sponsor certificate from the developers [really a PDF over email, no mailing expenses]
Pledge $25 or more Get an official sponsor certificate, and a bunch of cool diaspora stickers
Pledge $50 or more Get all the above stuff, plus an awesome diaspora coffee mug!
Pledge $100 or more Get all the above stuff, plus a cool diaspora polo shirt!
Pledge $350 or more Get all the above stuff, plus a rocking diaspora laptop courier bag!
Pledge $1,000 or more [Something along the lines of what they did, but something tangible as well. I also would have upped the slots. Instead of 5 only, make it 50.]
Pledge $2,000 or more [Something along the lines of what they did, but something tangible other than the computer. I also would have upped the slots. Instead of 4 only, make it 20.]
Pledge $10,000 or more [Why not? Something special as a silver level sponsor.]
Pledge $25,000 or more [Something special as a gold level sponsor.]
Pledge $50,000 or more [Something special as a platinum level sponsor... possibly credit on the site?]
Pledge $100,000 or more [Hey, why stop now? Appeal to peoples' greed. 1% founders shares or something along those lines. This puts a $10M valuation on the company which is amazing for something that's 4 guys and an idea of cloning the 800lb market-leading gorilla.]
Either a customer's data is on a server, or it is not. If that machine fails, it doesn't matter if we are running Linux or Windoze or whatever, you still have to startup a spare machine and restore from backups. I just know that if we were running Windoze, we (I) would have to restore failing machines far more often than now, that's all.
Troll or not, you can have redundant filesystem storage (eg: a redundant pair of high-end SAN devices) where the failure of any one component or entire device will not cause any downtime. You're right though... it doesn't matter if you're running Lunix or Windows as your apps will keep on ticking.
Not only am I good at what I do (seriously, how many system administrators even take their time to compile custom kernels nowadays for maximum performance?), but a very close relative is also the CEO. I bet people here even use us for their hosting:)
Hopefully not, as a competent administrator knows that data integrity is far more important that a fractional improvement in performance.
but this must have triggered a hardware bug because the kernel worked fine on my work laptop
Exactly. A competent admin would have tested the config on identical hardware as what is running in production. That you consider a laptop to be sufficient testing demonstrates either a lack of funding for your "the CEO and I share DNA" company or that you suffer from a lack of training.
Sadly... it looks like my company is looking at going with Windoze for a few important servers because of a few outtages.
Had you properly designed your system for redundancy, you wouldn't have experienced those issues. Or if you weren't dicking around with kernels that should not be used in production, you similarly would not have experienced the outages. I take it you're going to be running the latest Windows Server alpha and beta releases from Microsoft in order to get maximum performance?
Privacy Settings > Applications and Websites > What your friends can share about you
Uncheck every box in that setting to prevent third party apps from getting any info. If I recall, you can only uncheck all of them if you have no apps yourself. I don't know if that excludes certain information, but it appears fairly comprehensive.
I heard from a friend of mine who works there that anyone at Facebook has full access to all data they have. They can check out your private messages, photos, chats, etc. In other words, do things for which you'd be fired immediately if you were at Google or Microsoft.
Of course, you're talking about "getting in touch". The GP said it's kind of suck for "staying in touch". I think you're both right unless your "staying in touch" consists of a lot of public communications between groups of friends.
That's why I created my new social networking site "Holocaust".
Pseudo-on-topic-rant: what's with the asterisk in "diaspora*"? Every time I read an article about it I want to scroll to the bottom of the page to see what the footnote says.
If you remove all apps, you can then remove the ability for apps to get any of your info. Unless, of course, they've modified that ability since I took those steps.
You would be charged with failing to secure your residence
In what country is it a crime to leave your front door unlocked? It certainly isn't in the United States.
I knew I should have clarified and said "if such a law existed" as it would be the most analogous to the situation. You're right though... I'm not aware of such a law either.
Slashdot Mirror
Successful troll is successful, I guess. Well done.
Sufficiently advanced incompetence is indistinguishable from trolling.
Sorry, you only get goodies if and when the project is funded and your credit card is successfully charged:
How do I make a pledge?
First, enter your pledge amount and select a reward. On the next page we'll ask you to log in or sign up with Kickstarter, and then we'll send you to Amazon Payments to complete your pledge with a major credit card.
When is my credit card charged?
If this project is fully funded on June 01, 11:59pm EDT your credit card will be charged along with all the other backers of this project.
So my card is only charged if funding succeeds?
Yes! That's part of what makes Kickstarter special. If a project isn't fully funded, no one pays anything.
If this project is funded, how do I get my reward?
When your reward is ready, Maxwell Salzberg will contact you by email to request any info they'll need to deliver your reward (mailing address, t-shirt size, etc).
Umm, you *do* see that all of the $25+ levels have the phrase "Get all the above stuff, plus ..." on it, which means that all of the levels build on each other...
Yes, I understand that. I worded that poorly -- I meant to say that introduction of new physical goodies stops beyond the $25 mark. At their levels, for $1000 you're still getting only a CD, stickers, and t-shirt that you'd get at the $25 level. Everything else is soft goods except at the $2K level.
Yeah, sure it does.
1. Why does anybody need hundreds of thousands of dollars to develop software? You're using a computer right now as you read it. Start coding. What's the money thing all about?
Quality software takes time. Some people like being able to afford food, rent, and the overhead (however minimal) that it will cost to develop this concept. Keep in mind that if they raise $200K, that's still only $50K per developer assuming development only takes 1 year. And they'll have to make stickers, t-shirts, CDs, and so on and mail those out to people. As the majority gave at the $25 level (which includes a CD and t-shirt) at least half of that money is going into manufacturing, handling, and shipping the goods. That drops the per-developer take significantly.
Your other points are quite valid.
Interesting the way their donations are structured:
Pledge $10 or more
Get a CD, note, and a bunch of cool diaspora stickers
Pledge $25 or more
Get a CD, note, and a bunch of cool diaspora stickers, and a awesome diaspora t-shirt!
Pledge $50 or more
Get all the above stuff, plus 1 month free of our turnkey hosted service (when it becomes available), or free phone support for 1 month if you host your own.
Pledge $100 or more
Get all the above stuff, plus 3 month free of our turnkey hosted service (when it becomes available), or free phone support for 3 months if you host your own.
Pledge $350 or more
Get all the above stuff, plus 1 year free of our turnkey hosted service (when it becomes available), and free phone support for 1 year if you host your own.
Pledge $1,000 or more [5 only]
Get all of the above stuff, plus access to the nightly build server for Diaspora, so you can check out our progress all summer!
Pledge $2,000 or more [4 only]
Get everything above, plus we will send you a brand new computer fully configured so you can host your own Diaspora seed from right under your bed!
The actual physical goodies stop at $25, and every level after that is soft goods. When you have to send out a t-shirt at the $25 level and they're on the hook for international shipping costs, how much is actually left over for development?
I would have structured things a bit differently. Of course, this is with 20/20 hindsight with the knowledge that their project would get viral media coverage and the fundraising would exceed expectations.
Pledge $10 or more
Get an official sponsor certificate from the developers [really a PDF over email, no mailing expenses]
Pledge $25 or more
Get an official sponsor certificate, and a bunch of cool diaspora stickers
Pledge $50 or more
Get all the above stuff, plus an awesome diaspora coffee mug!
Pledge $100 or more
Get all the above stuff, plus a cool diaspora polo shirt!
Pledge $350 or more
Get all the above stuff, plus a rocking diaspora laptop courier bag!
Pledge $1,000 or more
[Something along the lines of what they did, but something tangible as well. I also would have upped the slots. Instead of 5 only, make it 50.]
Pledge $2,000 or more
[Something along the lines of what they did, but something tangible other than the computer. I also would have upped the slots. Instead of 4 only, make it 20.]
Pledge $10,000 or more
[Why not? Something special as a silver level sponsor.]
Pledge $25,000 or more
[Something special as a gold level sponsor.]
Pledge $50,000 or more
[Something special as a platinum level sponsor... possibly credit on the site?]
Pledge $100,000 or more
[Hey, why stop now? Appeal to peoples' greed. 1% founders shares or something along those lines. This puts a $10M valuation on the company which is amazing for something that's 4 guys and an idea of cloning the 800lb market-leading gorilla.]
Girl power corrupts girly.
Either a customer's data is on a server, or it is not. If that machine fails, it doesn't matter if we are running Linux or Windoze or whatever, you still have to startup a spare machine and restore from backups. I just know that if we were running Windoze, we (I) would have to restore failing machines far more often than now, that's all.
Troll or not, you can have redundant filesystem storage (eg: a redundant pair of high-end SAN devices) where the failure of any one component or entire device will not cause any downtime. You're right though... it doesn't matter if you're running Lunix or Windows as your apps will keep on ticking.
Not only am I good at what I do (seriously, how many system administrators even take their time to compile custom kernels nowadays for maximum performance?), but a very close relative is also the CEO. I bet people here even use us for their hosting :)
Hopefully not, as a competent administrator knows that data integrity is far more important that a fractional improvement in performance.
but this must have triggered a hardware bug because the kernel worked fine on my work laptop
Exactly. A competent admin would have tested the config on identical hardware as what is running in production. That you consider a laptop to be sufficient testing demonstrates either a lack of funding for your "the CEO and I share DNA" company or that you suffer from a lack of training.
Sadly... it looks like my company is looking at going with Windoze for a few important servers because of a few outtages.
Had you properly designed your system for redundancy, you wouldn't have experienced those issues. Or if you weren't dicking around with kernels that should not be used in production, you similarly would not have experienced the outages. I take it you're going to be running the latest Windows Server alpha and beta releases from Microsoft in order to get maximum performance?
Single quotes are not necessarily exact, but may instead be used to show paraphrasing, condensation or for ironic quotation.
Due to the high humidity that summer's day, 'beads of water' formed on the cold glass.
firefox can't even play back theora html5 videos
This disappoints all three people who have Theora videos.
sqrt(-1), Whoosh
Well played. It's the all new iWhoosh.
Jobs' empire is falling down around him. All hail FOSS, Linux, Android, and no more closed-source.
It is, after all, the 10th anniversary of the year of Linux on the desktop.
Tell you what... You think this is a brilliant way to make money? Open your own bank.
Really? Have you done it? Can you point me to somebody who's done it?
I can point you to thousands of banks where it has been done. Not good enough?
One mistake does not an idiot make.
True, and the guy in the photo holding the sign "Get a brain, morans" is widely acknowledged as making one mistake. Nobody thinks less of him for it.
I don't feel the slightest guilt to making that mistake.
I'm glad to hear you're at peace with yourself, though I never expected my silly comment to spin into its own thread.
Because we all know one grammar mistake will cause instantaneous death. It's a mistake, get over it.
I thought it was special given your sentence was about being an idiot.
Privacy Settings > Applications and Websites > What your friends can share about you
Uncheck every box in that setting to prevent third party apps from getting any info. If I recall, you can only uncheck all of them if you have no apps yourself. I don't know if that excludes certain information, but it appears fairly comprehensive.
Nokia, Apple, and HTC are all suiing each other
And for those wondering, that word is pronounced "swee-ing".
Poppycock. How many metric asstons did you factor into your 'meticulous' calculations?
Are you saying this oil spill should be called gulfse?
I heard from a friend of mine who works there that anyone at Facebook has full access to all data they have. They can check out your private messages, photos, chats, etc. In other words, do things for which you'd be fired immediately if you were at Google or Microsoft.
And many others read from a purported Facebook employee that it's not quite so "open" as you suggest.
Of course, you're talking about "getting in touch". The GP said it's kind of suck for "staying in touch". I think you're both right unless your "staying in touch" consists of a lot of public communications between groups of friends.
That's why I created my new social networking site "Holocaust".
Pseudo-on-topic-rant: what's with the asterisk in "diaspora*"? Every time I read an article about it I want to scroll to the bottom of the page to see what the footnote says.
If you remove all apps, you can then remove the ability for apps to get any of your info. Unless, of course, they've modified that ability since I took those steps.
let natural selection run it's course.
"run it is course" indeed!
You would be charged with failing to secure your residence
In what country is it a crime to leave your front door unlocked? It certainly isn't in the United States.
I knew I should have clarified and said "if such a law existed" as it would be the most analogous to the situation. You're right though... I'm not aware of such a law either.