Am I the only one that thinks that if a low power, hand held laser pointer over that far of a distance can bring down a jetliner, perhaps the problem is a bit bigger than this?
I mean, really..
The guy was a jerk for doing it. But if there is a serious vulnerability here, then deal with it. Next thing you know, they'll ban fingernail clippers on board cause they might be used as a weapon.
Young remembers begging Wal-Mart for relief. "They said, 'No way,' " says Young. "We said we'll increase the price"--even $3.49 would have helped tremendously--"and they said, 'If you do that, all the other products of yours we buy, we'll stop buying.' It was a clear threat." Hunn recalls things a little differently, if just as ominously: "They said, 'We want the $2.97 gallon of pickles. If you don't do it, we'll see if someone else might.' I knew our competitors were saying to Wal-Mart, 'We'll do the $2.97 gallons if you give us your other business.' " Wal-Mart's business was so indispensable to Vlasic, and the gallon so central to the Wal-Mart relationship, that decisions about the future of the gallon were made at the CEO level.
Why should I feel sorry for a company (Vlasic) that made a business decision. If they didn't, their competetors would. Isn't that the way it is suppose to work? Decide to do business with WalMart or not. But I find it hard to feel sorry for companies like this who suddenly find themselves with more sales than they know what to do with.
If you don't want to sell pickles for $2.97, don't.
I could not imagine calling the police and actually telling them that there is illegal material on my network. And even if I did, I would fully expect them to look at me as the main "person of interest."
There is no way I'd be that trusting. But that's just me.
...property and casualty insurers also saw investment earnings drop last year by $13 billion. Doug Heller of the watchdog Foundation for Taxpayer & Consumer Rights complains insurance companies now expect customers to make up for their investment decisions.
...
In the insurance industry game, it's heads we win; tails the consumer loses. When the stock market is doing well, the insurance industry reaps the benefits. When the stock market falls apart, the consumer pays the price.
It's easy to hate lawyers. But in this case, if you follow the money, it leads elsewhere.
Oh, the things that are not known for certain...:)
While there is some new-ish research that might indicate otherwise, my understanding is that the research and its findings are not being very well received.
Still very interesting.
-John
Re:Holy cow, that's fantastic!
on
D&D Is 30
·
· Score: 1
I was in an outlet bookstore, browsing around, when I overheard a customer ask the clerk about the latest Harry Potter book. My ears perked up and I hoped to get in on the conversation, since I read and enjoyed the books. The clerk looked at the customer and said "Because of my faith, I haven't read the book. I believe that it teaches people how to use magic." No joke.
I was absolutely floored. The customer made some non-committal small talk and then left. I set my books down and left shortly after that.
I wish he was right. I would have turned the clerk into a newt and flushed him.:-)
I do not think you are ignorant. I do not think you are a fool. As a matter of fact,
I've never studies economics or sociology, so forgive me if I'm an ignorant fool, but its always seemed to me that as long as we are not experiancing large amounts of disease, drought or other reduction in the availability of natural resources, that economic slowdown is more a result of psycology than anything else.
I must disagree to an extent. "Digging up evidence on criminals" is not vigilantism.
A vigilante (taken from Dictionary.com) is one who takes or advocates the taking of law enforcement into one's own hands.
This fellow saw a crime being committed, went through the trouble of doing some investigating and called the cops with the results of his digging. IMHO this is exactly the behavior everyone should be engaged in from time to time.
-John
Here are some links to manufacturer's recycling plans. They are not perfect. But, I imagine, these programs are better than throwing an old box in a ditch somewhere.
If the energy cost to pump and refine one gallon of gasoline were greater than the energy equivalent of one gallon of gasoline, gasoline production would be unsustainable.
In other words, it takes less than a gallon of gas to pump and refine a gallon of gas.
There is a reason for her voice sounding the way is does.
"Doctors earlier this year began treating Rehm for spasmodic dysphonia, a neurological condition in which the vocal cords constrict when they're not supposed to."
Not that you can't continue to hope somebody dies simply because you dislike the way they sound on the radio.
I used to work with an 25W Epilog CO2 laser. While watching a coworker, I saw him place a plastic part to be cut in the machine. What I did not see was that the part was placed incorrectly. He then closed the lid and pressed the start button. When he realized the part was incorrectly placed, he opened the lid and reached to save the part without hitting stop. Usually this would not be a problem. Unfortunately for him, he had bypassed the safety switch early that day and had not reset it. It burned a nice little line all the way down and through his index fingernail and into the cuticle before he realized his error.
While I have no doubt that it is possible to mark skin in decorative ways with this machine, I can assure you that it is not a painless process.:-)
I fear this will only accelerate the trend of removing violent and/or adult content from games and other entertainment carried by major retailers.
I was really looking forward to experiencing the dark side of RPG with Temple of Elemental Evil. Unfortunately, it looks like the brothel story line from the original PnP modules was removed. Apparently, it was removed in order to have Wal-Mart carry the game.
I am an adult. I enjoy content that is not appropriate for everyone. If Wal-Mart will not carry what I want, I will buy it where I can. I just wonder if Wal-Mart's influence will mean that the content will no longer even be produced.
I'm a bit lost on the numbers.
$20 mill for the project. 10 megawatts output. 30 years reactor life.
10 megawatts = 10,000 kilowatts
30 years = 30 * (365.25 days per year) * (24 hours per day) = 262980 hours
10,000 * 262980 = 2629800000 kilowatt hours
$20,000,000 / 2629800000 kilowatt hours = 0.007605141 $ per kilowatt hour.
The diagram in the article mentioned a price of $.11 per kilowatt hour IIRC. That's a bit of a mark up.
I must have missed something. Anyone care to offer some insight?
General entertainment writers working for television, radio and newspapers now have to cover the interactive entertainment sector, even if they have no familiarity with it at all. Writes who remain ignorant of any field they report on are not doing their job. If you do not gain some familiarity with your subject, you are being professionally negligent.
The argument is that just as any discerning person can make intelligent comments about books, television shows, movies and music, so an intelligent novice can evaluate computer software. This argument is demonstrably incorrect. The leading critics of any area are (at the very least) knowledgeable in that field. I will give little weight to a car review by Ebert or Roeper. I simply don't care about Click and Clack's last wine selection. Why this is worth discussion to Mr. Mandel escapes me. This should be obvious.
To begin with, perhaps the most basic error common in mass media coverage is to call recreational offerings for the PC video games.
I think I understand now. It seems that Mr. Mandel is being a bit self referential. He has no (or at least very little) understanding of what he is writing about.
Indeed, general entertainment columnists demonstrate little familiarity with the critical genre distinctions common in the computer gaming industry.
This is obvious and unsurprising. General entertainment columnist should not be expected to know the ins and outs of every entertainment medium. Of course, if they don't understand it, they simply should not write about it.
There's a particular tendency to assume that electronic entertainment turns teenagers into mindless zombies, and that once captured by its allure, these vulnerable victims are trapped for life.
Jeesh. I refuse to believe that anyone who make his or her living writing about the entertainment industry is actually this hopelessly moronic. Maybe I'm being too optimistic. Maybe Mr. Mandel can change my mind.
A classic example of these underlying assumptions occurred in an episode of... Touched by an Angel.
I would argue that this type of misrepresentation has less to do with fundamental misunderstandings and more to do with peddling an agenda.
It's not surprising that mass media largely covers only highly publicized AAA computer titles and miss the rest.... As a consequence, only major interactive entertainment companies such as Electronic Arts and Microsoft receive extensive mainstream coverage.... In general, the popular press appears to be much more interested in the business aspects of the gaming industry than its creative dimension. This is true of reviewers of any industry. It is relatively easy to a shallow industry reviewer. It is hard to be a top notch, respected critic. Do not go to a general media outlet expecting an insightful critique. This is how it is for most entertainment fields. Why should it be any different for the gaming industry? I don't believe that it should be.
In my mind, higher expertise is more necessary for virtual recreation because it's the only subject that's fully interactive; other entertainment media involve a more passive experience where the abilities of the reviewers involved don't determine how far they progress. This is simply sad. There is nothing special about gaming in terms of media reporting. A well trained expert in literature is going to give a more enlightening book report than one by your local sixth graders.
In the end, if you can't spot any difference between pieces by dedicated game reviewers and mass media entertainment writers, then those of us who fall in the first category are doing something very wrong.
Perhaps things are really as bad as Mr. Mandel indicates. If he is what passes for an expert game review writer, I do fear for the industry.
All these cool features, all these neat effects, all these promises... it's great stuff, but you need to keep in mind that it is designed to be "great stuff". The information given is intentionally positive and always glowing.
...the released title may be different, even dramatically different than what was previewed a couple years ago or even a month prior to release.
The writer may be correct in that the above practice does not strictly fit the definition of false advertising. I would argue that the practice of deliberately misleading your customers is, in spirit, very similar. Knowingly releasing inaccurate, overly optimistic marketing material seems to be more and more common.
I'm starting to view game developers with the same mistrust as I do all salesmen.
In our PnP group this weekend, the characters we have been playing with for the past year bit it. We made a mistake and ended up with a bunch more than we could handle. We are dead. We're not coming back. There is a real sense of loss associated with that.
Immediately after the incident, the group had a "so-now-what" discussion. While the DM seemed open to the idea of a roll back, the players were concerned with the precedence that would set. How would this safety net affect future play? It looks like we are going to start some new characters and try out the new 3.5 rules. My books are on the way from Amazon now.:)
I played DAoC from launch till ~3 months ago on a RP server. I lost interest/enjoyment when the leet horde invaded. I went from a hard core RP guild player to a quiet soloer as RP became less and less the norm.
I'm curious if a MMORPG (with the emphasis on RPG) would benefit from a very harsh character death policy? If character death was permanent (or at least a HUGE issue) would the leets bother coming? Would the RPG'ers tolerate such a policy?
I'd love to play a MMORPG again, but I just don't see one out there that isn't just a embellished MMOFPS in disguise.
"Eighty percent of those diagnosed with autism or a related disorder scored 32 or higher." != "If you score 32 or higher, you are eighty percent likely to be autistic."
Just a thought before you run out and take the test.
Slashdot Mirror
Am I the only one that thinks that if a low power, hand held laser pointer over that far of a distance can bring down a jetliner, perhaps the problem is a bit bigger than this?
I mean, really..
The guy was a jerk for doing it. But if there is a serious vulnerability here, then deal with it. Next thing you know, they'll ban fingernail clippers on board cause they might be used as a weapon.
John
Why should I feel sorry for a company (Vlasic) that made a business decision. If they didn't, their competetors would. Isn't that the way it is suppose to work? Decide to do business with WalMart or not. But I find it hard to feel sorry for companies like this who suddenly find themselves with more sales than they know what to do with.
If you don't want to sell pickles for $2.97, don't.
John
Wow. Just... wow.
I could not imagine calling the police and actually telling them that there is illegal material on my network. And even if I did, I would fully expect them to look at me as the main "person of interest."
There is no way I'd be that trusting. But that's just me.
John
-John
Oh, the things that are not known for certain... :)
While there is some new-ish research that might indicate otherwise, my understanding is that the research and its findings are not being very well received.
Still very interesting.
-John
I was in an outlet bookstore, browsing around, when I overheard a customer ask the clerk about the latest Harry Potter book. My ears perked up and I hoped to get in on the conversation, since I read and enjoyed the books. The clerk looked at the customer and said "Because of my faith, I haven't read the book. I believe that it teaches people how to use magic." No joke.
:-)
I was absolutely floored. The customer made some non-committal small talk and then left. I set my books down and left shortly after that.
I wish he was right. I would have turned the clerk into a newt and flushed him.
John
Drought
Disease
reduction in availability of natural resources.
I guess that by our shared criteria, we can rule out psycology.
John
I must disagree to an extent. "Digging up evidence on criminals" is not vigilantism.
A vigilante (taken from Dictionary.com) is one who takes or advocates the taking of law enforcement into one's own hands.
This fellow saw a crime being committed, went through the trouble of doing some investigating and called the cops with the results of his digging. IMHO this is exactly the behavior everyone should be engaged in from time to time.
-John
Here are some links to manufacturer's recycling plans. They are not perfect. But, I imagine, these programs are better than throwing an old box in a ditch somewhere.
Dell Recycling and Donations
Gateway Recycling (Large Business)
HP Recycling
John
Believe it or not, some "subjects" use "numbers" relate to "things."
In this case the "things" are molecules and the "subject" is thermodynamics.
Maybe this will help. I hope it's not too advanced for you.
John
If the rms (root mean square) of a gas is 10-20% greater than the escape velocity of a planet it will bleed off into space.
I don't know what the rms of water vapor is at Martian conditions, but I do know that the escape velocity is a bit lower than Earth's.
Would that mean that the concept of terraforming would be infeasible on Mars?
John
If the energy cost to pump and refine one gallon of gasoline were greater than the energy equivalent of one gallon of gasoline, gasoline production would be unsustainable.
In other words, it takes less than a gallon of gas to pump and refine a gallon of gas.
John
Can a person now use Photoshop as a QA test on how good their fake bills are?
If Photoshop accepts an scan of a fake bill, it is not a good fake. If Photoshop doesn't, it is. Just a thought.
John
There is a reason for her voice sounding the way is does.
"Doctors earlier this year began treating Rehm for spasmodic dysphonia, a neurological condition in which the vocal cords constrict when they're not supposed to."
Not that you can't continue to hope somebody dies simply because you dislike the way they sound on the radio.
John
I used to work with an 25W Epilog CO2 laser. While watching a coworker, I saw him place a plastic part to be cut in the machine. What I did not see was that the part was placed incorrectly. He then closed the lid and pressed the start button. When he realized the part was incorrectly placed, he opened the lid and reached to save the part without hitting stop. Usually this would not be a problem. Unfortunately for him, he had bypassed the safety switch early that day and had not reset it. It burned a nice little line all the way down and through his index fingernail and into the cuticle before he realized his error.
:-)
While I have no doubt that it is possible to mark skin in decorative ways with this machine, I can assure you that it is not a painless process.
John
I fear this will only accelerate the trend of removing violent and /or adult content from games and other entertainment carried by major retailers.
I was really looking forward to experiencing the dark side of RPG with Temple of Elemental Evil. Unfortunately, it looks like the brothel story line from the original PnP modules was removed. Apparently, it was removed in order to have Wal-Mart carry the game.
I am an adult. I enjoy content that is not appropriate for everyone. If Wal-Mart will not carry what I want, I will buy it where I can. I just wonder if Wal-Mart's influence will mean that the content will no longer even be produced.
John
I'm a bit lost on the numbers.
$20 mill for the project. 10 megawatts output. 30 years reactor life.
10 megawatts = 10,000 kilowatts
30 years = 30 * (365.25 days per year) * (24 hours per day) = 262980 hours
10,000 * 262980 = 2629800000 kilowatt hours
$20,000,000 / 2629800000 kilowatt hours = 0.007605141 $ per kilowatt hour.
The diagram in the article mentioned a price of $.11 per kilowatt hour IIRC. That's a bit of a mark up.
I must have missed something. Anyone care to offer some insight?
John
General entertainment writers working for television, radio and newspapers now have to cover the interactive entertainment sector, even if they have no familiarity with it at all.
... Touched by an Angel.
... As a consequence, only major interactive entertainment companies such as Electronic Arts and Microsoft receive extensive mainstream coverage. ... In general, the popular press appears to be much more interested in the business aspects of the gaming industry than its creative dimension.
Writes who remain ignorant of any field they report on are not doing their job. If you do not gain some familiarity with your subject, you are being professionally negligent.
The argument is that just as any discerning person can make intelligent comments about books, television shows, movies and music, so an intelligent novice can evaluate computer software.
This argument is demonstrably incorrect. The leading critics of any area are (at the very least) knowledgeable in that field. I will give little weight to a car review by Ebert or Roeper. I simply don't care about Click and Clack's last wine selection. Why this is worth discussion to Mr. Mandel escapes me. This should be obvious.
To begin with, perhaps the most basic error common in mass media coverage is to call recreational offerings for the PC video games.
I think I understand now. It seems that Mr. Mandel is being a bit self referential. He has no (or at least very little) understanding of what he is writing about.
Indeed, general entertainment columnists demonstrate little familiarity with the critical genre distinctions common in the computer gaming industry.
This is obvious and unsurprising. General entertainment columnist should not be expected to know the ins and outs of every entertainment medium. Of course, if they don't understand it, they simply should not write about it.
There's a particular tendency to assume that electronic entertainment turns teenagers into mindless zombies, and that once captured by its allure, these vulnerable victims are trapped for life.
Jeesh. I refuse to believe that anyone who make his or her living writing about the entertainment industry is actually this hopelessly moronic. Maybe I'm being too optimistic. Maybe Mr. Mandel can change my mind.
A classic example of these underlying assumptions occurred in an episode of
I would argue that this type of misrepresentation has less to do with fundamental misunderstandings and more to do with peddling an agenda.
It's not surprising that mass media largely covers only highly publicized AAA computer titles and miss the rest.
This is true of reviewers of any industry. It is relatively easy to a shallow industry reviewer. It is hard to be a top notch, respected critic. Do not go to a general media outlet expecting an insightful critique. This is how it is for most entertainment fields. Why should it be any different for the gaming industry? I don't believe that it should be.
In my mind, higher expertise is more necessary for virtual recreation because it's the only subject that's fully interactive; other entertainment media involve a more passive experience where the abilities of the reviewers involved don't determine how far they progress.
This is simply sad. There is nothing special about gaming in terms of media reporting. A well trained expert in literature is going to give a more enlightening book report than one by your local sixth graders.
In the end, if you can't spot any difference between pieces by dedicated game reviewers and mass media entertainment writers, then those of us who fall in the first category are doing something very wrong.
Perhaps things are really as bad as Mr. Mandel indicates. If he is what passes for an expert game review writer, I do fear for the industry.
John
It didn't mention my job being offshored. I don't see how it missed that.
From the article:
...the released title may be different, even dramatically different than what was previewed a couple years ago or even a month prior to release.
All these cool features, all these neat effects, all these promises... it's great stuff, but you need to keep in mind that it is designed to be "great stuff". The information given is intentionally positive and always glowing.
The writer may be correct in that the above practice does not strictly fit the definition of false advertising. I would argue that the practice of deliberately misleading your customers is, in spirit, very similar. Knowingly releasing inaccurate, overly optimistic marketing material seems to be more and more common.
I'm starting to view game developers with the same mistrust as I do all salesmen.
John
In our PnP group this weekend, the characters we have been playing with for the past year bit it. We made a mistake and ended up with a bunch more than we could handle. We are dead. We're not coming back. There is a real sense of loss associated with that.
:)
Immediately after the incident, the group had a "so-now-what" discussion. While the DM seemed open to the idea of a roll back, the players were concerned with the precedence that would set. How would this safety net affect future play? It looks like we are going to start some new characters and try out the new 3.5 rules. My books are on the way from Amazon now.
I played DAoC from launch till ~3 months ago on a RP server. I lost interest/enjoyment when the leet horde invaded. I went from a hard core RP guild player to a quiet soloer as RP became less and less the norm.
I'm curious if a MMORPG (with the emphasis on RPG) would benefit from a very harsh character death policy? If character death was permanent (or at least a HUGE issue) would the leets bother coming? Would the RPG'ers tolerate such a policy?
I'd love to play a MMORPG again, but I just don't see one out there that isn't just a embellished MMOFPS in disguise.
John
But,
"Eighty percent of those diagnosed with autism or a related disorder scored 32 or higher." != "If you score 32 or higher, you are eighty percent likely to be autistic."
Just a thought before you run out and take the test.
John