The draft house has a large variety of events going on. For example, they sometimes have a 24-Hour Movie-a-thon kind of thing. So I think the wireless internet stuff is for those "other" times. Its not meant for when a weekend blockbuster is released.
Judging by the quaility of the site, and what I know about SXSW, I'm not buying it. I'm not sure I understand how anyone at SXSW would have acquired a copy, and I'm further uncertain why this guy was so cool he got to see it. If you look at the comments after the review, I understand why he threw this together. The people who read his site often are all applauding him. So he's riding on a cloud right now because he is "so cool." Ain't that cool.
And if by the 1,000,000th of a percent of a chance that I'm wrong, oh well. The guy still needs to learn to use a smaller font.
That probably isn't going to help matters. Each process needs a certain amount of memory space. No matter how nice it is, it will still require so much memory. The only thing nice will do is maybe cause a small increment in how after the programs get data swapped in and out. It would be very small since the data is going to have to be swapped in/out eventually anyway.
BTW, the command is "nice" or "renice" if its already running. Pretty tough to figure out.
Well, I consider Palm systems mostly as toys. They are not bad for what they are designed for but surfing the web is not really what they were intended for.
AvantGO is really not so much about "Web content" as it is just "content" in general. I don't think of it as downloading web pages. I think of it as more of downloading information. The fact that it comes from a Web Page doesn't matter. I don't care if my weather outlook, joke of the day, or new car shopping information came from www.weather.com, www.jokeoftheday.com, and www.edmunds.com. I just want the content, which is what I get with AvantGo.
"Well software engineering isn't that exact, and frankly custommer demand for a new product is horribly hard to predict...
I think you can broaden that to any level of engineering isn't that exact. Hardware is typically worse because of the huge manufacturing costs involved. At least with software its easier for the bean counters to push overhead costs into different buckets.
I'm extremely lost to what you're talking about. If you're talking about a standalone unit, then why do you bring up UNIX and PC upgradability?
Oh wait a second. You're saying, basically, create a sound card that uses ethernet instead of PCI/ISA. Man, if only infiniband was available now.
There are quite a few DSPs available that would do something along these lines. You have peaked my interested. You'd basically need a DSP w/ ethernet and then a small external amplifier. You could probably through a 1M SRAM on the board. Use DIP switches to set the IP address, etc, etc, etc. But in the end, you would basically use the PC (and I'm only thinking about XMMS) to decode the MP3s and instead of sending "audio content" to the sound system, it sends it out via ethernet. I wonder if ESD could be adapted to do that even. Hmmmmm....
Damn dude, I've been CRAWLING for a hardware project (I work for a test and measurement company, and I have all this nice equipment with nothing fun to do). Hmmmm.
Your C and D is going to have the same problems. In fact, D is probably going to be worse because long cable runs will most likely introduce crosstalk between each other. The only reason I would recommend D over C is that since the signal in the speaker wires is so much greater than the signal in C, it'll be harder to hear the noise introduced to it. However, make the speaker wires too long, and you might require your amplifier to drive harder. Option A is probably the worse idea since you're going to end up taking Digital Data, Convert it to Analog, then to Digital, and then back to Analog. Might as well use a record player while you're at it.;)
They slowly wear out from writes, but as long you don't use them for swap they should last ~10 years. Or just mount read-only, or upgrade every so often to whatever size costs $10 this year (and buy spares). You can master the CF card on a laptop with PCMCIA slots or with a USB CF reader.
These are all great suggestions, but I would strongly urge someone NOT to use CF with EXT2. It did not take long for me to wear out a SanDisk even though I had the drive mounting RO almost immediately after boot. The RO trick would only work if the system is completely configured and then installed on the FlashDrive. EXT2 has an uncanny ability of wearing out the cells very quickly.
I thought I could get away with running it EXT2-RW while I was getting some files in place. However, after two days (or about 16 hours) of working with the unit, I started getting massive errors. Eventually, the FlashDrive just gave out. Fortuantly when I put the next drive in, I was already set to go for RO until it came time to save a file. In retrospect, I wish I wouldn't have used EXT2, but I was cramped for time and didn't want to learn about ROMFS or anything else. (This was my senior design project, which was mostly an exercise in not sleeping for a week at a time.)
I think it would have been better to say TiVo's service cost is rising from $9.95/mo to $12.95/mo. It sounds far better than "increase by 30%." Its only another $3/mo, and that's only another $36/yr. I'm pretty sure most subscribers, myself included, can handle another $36.
I won't homebrew my own because I am not just paying $12.95/mo for TV Guide data. TiVo has a lot of power in its software to handle that data. It seems to me that if you want a peice of software to record TV shows automatically (based on what you like), track when shows move, allow you to watch a show while its still recording, continually record liveTV, and update itself (to fix bugs and add new features) without any intervention on your part what-so-ever, then have fun writing it. If you want to do that, fine. Stop wasting time by posting and go do it. I, on the other hand, bought TiVo and pay for its service because its extremely convenient. It only took me about 15 minutes to set it up. How long is your homebrew going to take? I get free software upgrades to an already excellent UI/system while I'm sleeping. Can you code in your sleep?
I don't personally don't watch TV on my computer, nor will I put a computer in my living room so that I can. You get a lot for $12.95/mo. Not just guide data. You get a system supported by a company well deserving of another $3/mo. (BTW, a company I now understand why sent out TiVo Window clings last month...)
Seriously... with Intel recently dumping RAMBUS (see slashdot article a few days ago)
Here is something to think about and something that the Slashdot community doesn't commonly consider (or so it seems)... Intel did not recently dump RAMBUS. Intel only recently announced its intentions toward RAMBUS. I work with Intel and the their largest customers closely. It was decided a long time ago that Intel was going with DDR, they just hadn't made public mention of it. That being the case, all you have to do is look at the test tools currently available for different computer busses. (To stay safe, I'll have to let you find them on your own. The web sites are there but I only know the ones that work with my company and I'm not about to reveal who that is.) Armed with that knowledge you can fairly easily deduce what features Brand Name computers will have 6-9 months down the road. (Now, keep in mind if the answer to your big question is ???? then you might not find out what that ???? until farther down the road.)
My point being, without divulging more information than I should, is DDR tools are very popular right now. RAMBUS tools are not. That should give you some clue what is down the road.
I believe it is because the iPaq employs a frontlight instead of a backlight. The LCD is front reflective and depends on incoming light. Typically VGA LCDs used in Laptops use a backlight and are washed out by incoming light. To combat the problem, they would need to make the backlight brigher than the incoming source (which would be interesting when you're dealing the with the sun), or use a frontlight LCD like the iPaq.
I really miss that game. When I first started working in the computer labs in college, I had to work the late night shifts. #acro got me through many late nights of bordem. After my 1st semester though, I didn't work those hours anymore and went drinking instead of played word games.;)
Yeah okay so those have the Vise installer, big deal. If you just copy the executable from one machine to another, they'll work just fine. In the case of Office, you just copy the folder that says "Copy this folder to the hard drive" from the CD. If you want the office shortcut bar and stuff, you might have to run an installer that'll put the necessary files in the System Folder. Another example is IE 5.0. Again, you just copy the folder to your hard drive and its "installed."
Most Mac Applications do not need to be installed. They are just copied to the hard drive. Office X includes a utility to repair (well replace) files that are suppose to go to into the system folder. That's what makes a Mac so nice to use. If you need to install a program, you copy it to the hard drive. If you need to install Extensions or Control Panels, just copy them to the System Folder, MacOS will figure it out.
Also the article says he did pull it off. He was not caught. This act was only witnessed. The slashdot summary is very incorrect.
If you read the article it says this as well. The problem with most of those full size devices is that they are rather bulky. The iPod is much smaller and easier to walk in and out of a store with since it is an mp3 player.
Re:And I Thought...
on
iWarez
·
· Score: 3, Informative
It wouldn't be so bad, but the Slashdot summary makes it sound like the CompUSA employee did something about it. The story clearly says that the employee was clueless and did nothing about it.
1) When they ate Rations on the last Enterprise I thought "Gee that seems impraticle." But after reading about the MRE's, it seems like its entirely possible.
2) These menus seem far more varied than that of the meals I remember eating in my college dorm. So maybe that's why people liked being in ROTC... (j/k)
I'd watch it more if it wasn't on at the same time as Friends. At least TiVO is smart enough to record Family Guy when Friends is a re-run, otherwise I would never see it.
It wouldn't have to be a platform in the platform shoe style. Nike made a shoe that had an extention on the toe only a while ago that was for running in place. Something along those lines would be what I was thinking. BUT, apparently talking about shoes with a pump that recharge electronics is completely offtopic to an article about a device you pump, with your foot, to charge electronics (as the article states, not the/. posting).
Re: how is this rated offtopic?
on
Foot-Powered Laptop
·
· Score: 1, Offtopic
"The StepCharger weighs 10.5 ounces and is roughly the size of a paperback book; it can be used to charge anything from satellite phones to digital cameras and video cameras, as well as laptops. "
I was just thinking such a device could possible adapted to fit on the bottom of your shoes. That way the activity of walking or running could be used to generate power instead of pumping standing still. Man, I must have hit a nerve with someone who's chips and dip ran out or something.
I work for a test and measurement company and we sell logic analyzer tools for both DDR and RAMBUS. I service at least 1 site of each of the major computer manufactuers and I can tell you none of them are even considering RAMBUS. In fact, I can't remember the last time someone asked me about it. The only thing I have consulted customers on is the future of DDR. If anyone was interested in RAMBUS, I'd at least be hearing murmurs. Keep in mind I am only looking at computer manufactuers, not the 3rd party Asian motherboard manufactuers. Who knows what they are doing.
Stuff like this really scares me. I have had my TiVO for a couple of months and I have to say it was truely the BEST $200 I have ever spent. I never watch Live TV anymore, nor do I worry about missing my favorite shows. I watch Enterprise friday nights when I come home from the bars, and ER saturday morning while I eat pancakes. What really scares me is if the studios win, I lose big time. In college I use to stay up late studying because I didn't want to miss a show (ER for example). You might argue that is a stupid reason, but screw that. I worked damn hard and if I wanted to enjoy 1 hour of TV so be it. The problem was, I hated having to enjoy it whenever the TV Guide said so. Now that I have an extremely active lifestyle, I still watch the same amount of TV, just when I want to.
Not to mention I don't even know where the heck my VCR is. I'm pretty sure it moved across the country with me, but I'm not certain.
BTW, I think its funny that Studios are getting upset about this. How many times have you heard "TiVO" in a show this programming season? I know Fox and NBC have plugged it a couple of times. I know Friends, Will & Grace, and Undeclared have plugged it. AND if you look in the girl's apartment on Friends, you'll see a Silver TiVO sitting next to their TV. Huh.
Slashdot Mirror
The draft house has a large variety of events going on. For example, they sometimes have a 24-Hour Movie-a-thon kind of thing. So I think the wireless internet stuff is for those "other" times. Its not meant for when a weekend blockbuster is released.
Judging by the quaility of the site, and what I know about SXSW, I'm not buying it. I'm not sure I understand how anyone at SXSW would have acquired a copy, and I'm further uncertain why this guy was so cool he got to see it. If you look at the comments after the review, I understand why he threw this together. The people who read his site often are all applauding him. So he's riding on a cloud right now because he is "so cool." Ain't that cool.
And if by the 1,000,000th of a percent of a chance that I'm wrong, oh well. The guy still needs to learn to use a smaller font.
That probably isn't going to help matters. Each process needs a certain amount of memory space. No matter how nice it is, it will still require so much memory. The only thing nice will do is maybe cause a small increment in how after the programs get data swapped in and out. It would be very small since the data is going to have to be swapped in/out eventually anyway.
BTW, the command is "nice" or "renice" if its already running. Pretty tough to figure out.
Well, I consider Palm systems mostly as toys. They are not bad for what they are designed for but surfing the web is not really what they were intended for.
AvantGO is really not so much about "Web content" as it is just "content" in general. I don't think of it as downloading web pages. I think of it as more of downloading information. The fact that it comes from a Web Page doesn't matter. I don't care if my weather outlook, joke of the day, or new car shopping information came from www.weather.com, www.jokeoftheday.com, and www.edmunds.com. I just want the content, which is what I get with AvantGo.
"Well software engineering isn't that exact, and frankly custommer demand for a new product is horribly hard to predict...
I think you can broaden that to any level of engineering isn't that exact. Hardware is typically worse because of the huge manufacturing costs involved. At least with software its easier for the bean counters to push overhead costs into different buckets.
Hey I can't email you... looks like your /var/spool file has exceeded quota...:
... Can't create output
----- Transcript of session follows -----
procmail: Quota exceeded while writing "/var/spool/mail/peter"
550
I'm extremely lost to what you're talking about. If you're talking about a standalone unit, then why do you bring up UNIX and PC upgradability?
Oh wait a second. You're saying, basically, create a sound card that uses ethernet instead of PCI/ISA. Man, if only infiniband was available now.
There are quite a few DSPs available that would do something along these lines. You have peaked my interested. You'd basically need a DSP w/ ethernet and then a small external amplifier. You could probably through a 1M SRAM on the board. Use DIP switches to set the IP address, etc, etc, etc. But in the end, you would basically use the PC (and I'm only thinking about XMMS) to decode the MP3s and instead of sending "audio content" to the sound system, it sends it out via ethernet. I wonder if ESD could be adapted to do that even. Hmmmmm....
Damn dude, I've been CRAWLING for a hardware project (I work for a test and measurement company, and I have all this nice equipment with nothing fun to do). Hmmmm.
Your C and D is going to have the same problems. In fact, D is probably going to be worse because long cable runs will most likely introduce crosstalk between each other. The only reason I would recommend D over C is that since the signal in the speaker wires is so much greater than the signal in C, it'll be harder to hear the noise introduced to it. However, make the speaker wires too long, and you might require your amplifier to drive harder. Option A is probably the worse idea since you're going to end up taking Digital Data, Convert it to Analog, then to Digital, and then back to Analog. Might as well use a record player while you're at it. ;)
They slowly wear out from writes, but as long you don't use them for swap they should last ~10 years. Or just mount read-only, or upgrade every so often to whatever size costs $10 this year (and buy spares). You can master the CF card on a laptop with PCMCIA slots or with a USB CF reader.
These are all great suggestions, but I would strongly urge someone NOT to use CF with EXT2. It did not take long for me to wear out a SanDisk even though I had the drive mounting RO almost immediately after boot. The RO trick would only work if the system is completely configured and then installed on the FlashDrive. EXT2 has an uncanny ability of wearing out the cells very quickly.
I thought I could get away with running it EXT2-RW while I was getting some files in place. However, after two days (or about 16 hours) of working with the unit, I started getting massive errors. Eventually, the FlashDrive just gave out. Fortuantly when I put the next drive in, I was already set to go for RO until it came time to save a file. In retrospect, I wish I wouldn't have used EXT2, but I was cramped for time and didn't want to learn about ROMFS or anything else. (This was my senior design project, which was mostly an exercise in not sleeping for a week at a time.)
I think it would have been better to say TiVo's service cost is rising from $9.95/mo to $12.95/mo. It sounds far better than "increase by 30%." Its only another $3/mo, and that's only another $36/yr. I'm pretty sure most subscribers, myself included, can handle another $36.
I won't homebrew my own because I am not just paying $12.95/mo for TV Guide data. TiVo has a lot of power in its software to handle that data. It seems to me that if you want a peice of software to record TV shows automatically (based on what you like), track when shows move, allow you to watch a show while its still recording, continually record liveTV, and update itself (to fix bugs and add new features) without any intervention on your part what-so-ever, then have fun writing it. If you want to do that, fine. Stop wasting time by posting and go do it. I, on the other hand, bought TiVo and pay for its service because its extremely convenient. It only took me about 15 minutes to set it up. How long is your homebrew going to take? I get free software upgrades to an already excellent UI/system while I'm sleeping. Can you code in your sleep?
I don't personally don't watch TV on my computer, nor will I put a computer in my living room so that I can. You get a lot for $12.95/mo. Not just guide data. You get a system supported by a company well deserving of another $3/mo. (BTW, a company I now understand why sent out TiVo Window clings last month...)
Seriously... with Intel recently dumping RAMBUS (see slashdot article a few days ago)
Here is something to think about and something that the Slashdot community doesn't commonly consider (or so it seems)... Intel did not recently dump RAMBUS. Intel only recently announced its intentions toward RAMBUS. I work with Intel and the their largest customers closely. It was decided a long time ago that Intel was going with DDR, they just hadn't made public mention of it. That being the case, all you have to do is look at the test tools currently available for different computer busses. (To stay safe, I'll have to let you find them on your own. The web sites are there but I only know the ones that work with my company and I'm not about to reveal who that is.) Armed with that knowledge you can fairly easily deduce what features Brand Name computers will have 6-9 months down the road. (Now, keep in mind if the answer to your big question is ???? then you might not find out what that ???? until farther down the road.)
My point being, without divulging more information than I should, is DDR tools are very popular right now. RAMBUS tools are not. That should give you some clue what is down the road.
I believe it is because the iPaq employs a frontlight instead of a backlight. The LCD is front reflective and depends on incoming light. Typically VGA LCDs used in Laptops use a backlight and are washed out by incoming light. To combat the problem, they would need to make the backlight brigher than the incoming source (which would be interesting when you're dealing the with the sun), or use a frontlight LCD like the iPaq.
I really miss that game. When I first started working in the computer labs in college, I had to work the late night shifts. #acro got me through many late nights of bordem. After my 1st semester though, I didn't work those hours anymore and went drinking instead of played word games. ;)
Yeah okay so those have the Vise installer, big deal. If you just copy the executable from one machine to another, they'll work just fine. In the case of Office, you just copy the folder that says "Copy this folder to the hard drive" from the CD. If you want the office shortcut bar and stuff, you might have to run an installer that'll put the necessary files in the System Folder. Another example is IE 5.0. Again, you just copy the folder to your hard drive and its "installed."
Most Mac Applications do not need to be installed. They are just copied to the hard drive. Office X includes a utility to repair (well replace) files that are suppose to go to into the system folder. That's what makes a Mac so nice to use. If you need to install a program, you copy it to the hard drive. If you need to install Extensions or Control Panels, just copy them to the System Folder, MacOS will figure it out.
Also the article says he did pull it off. He was not caught. This act was only witnessed. The slashdot summary is very incorrect.
If you read the article it says this as well. The problem with most of those full size devices is that they are rather bulky. The iPod is much smaller and easier to walk in and out of a store with since it is an mp3 player.
It wouldn't be so bad, but the Slashdot summary makes it sound like the CompUSA employee did something about it. The story clearly says that the employee was clueless and did nothing about it.
1) When they ate Rations on the last Enterprise I thought "Gee that seems impraticle." But after reading about the MRE's, it seems like its entirely possible.
2) These menus seem far more varied than that of the meals I remember eating in my college dorm. So maybe that's why people liked being in ROTC... (j/k)
I'd watch it more if it wasn't on at the same time as Friends. At least TiVO is smart enough to record Family Guy when Friends is a re-run, otherwise I would never see it.
It wouldn't have to be a platform in the platform shoe style. Nike made a shoe that had an extention on the toe only a while ago that was for running in place. Something along those lines would be what I was thinking. BUT, apparently talking about shoes with a pump that recharge electronics is completely offtopic to an article about a device you pump, with your foot, to charge electronics (as the article states, not the /. posting).
"The StepCharger weighs 10.5 ounces and is roughly the size of a paperback book; it can be used to charge anything from satellite phones to digital cameras and video cameras, as well as laptops. "
I was just thinking such a device could possible adapted to fit on the bottom of your shoes. That way the activity of walking or running could be used to generate power instead of pumping standing still. Man, I must have hit a nerve with someone who's chips and dip ran out or something.
This would be kind of neat for when I work out. I run on the treadmill first for 30-40 minutes. It'd be cool if that time recharged my mp3 player....
I work for a test and measurement company and we sell logic analyzer tools for both DDR and RAMBUS. I service at least 1 site of each of the major computer manufactuers and I can tell you none of them are even considering RAMBUS. In fact, I can't remember the last time someone asked me about it. The only thing I have consulted customers on is the future of DDR. If anyone was interested in RAMBUS, I'd at least be hearing murmurs. Keep in mind I am only looking at computer manufactuers, not the 3rd party Asian motherboard manufactuers. Who knows what they are doing.
Stuff like this really scares me. I have had my TiVO for a couple of months and I have to say it was truely the BEST $200 I have ever spent. I never watch Live TV anymore, nor do I worry about missing my favorite shows. I watch Enterprise friday nights when I come home from the bars, and ER saturday morning while I eat pancakes. What really scares me is if the studios win, I lose big time. In college I use to stay up late studying because I didn't want to miss a show (ER for example). You might argue that is a stupid reason, but screw that. I worked damn hard and if I wanted to enjoy 1 hour of TV so be it. The problem was, I hated having to enjoy it whenever the TV Guide said so. Now that I have an extremely active lifestyle, I still watch the same amount of TV, just when I want to.
Not to mention I don't even know where the heck my VCR is. I'm pretty sure it moved across the country with me, but I'm not certain.
BTW, I think its funny that Studios are getting upset about this. How many times have you heard "TiVO" in a show this programming season? I know Fox and NBC have plugged it a couple of times. I know Friends, Will & Grace, and Undeclared have plugged it. AND if you look in the girl's apartment on Friends, you'll see a Silver TiVO sitting next to their TV. Huh.
SWEET DUDE! Thanks for the link. Funny how I'd still like to know what I was doing after all these years!