Less physchologically, the problem with the growth of this form of entertainment, no matter "who" you are, is that it involves so little exercise.
I'm not saying gaming precludes exercise, I know several fit gamers. But, like watching TV, gaming involves very little physical activity. (Unlike TV, at least it exercises the mind.) So it needs to be balanced with some form of physical activity.
As a society, possibly because of all the predators out there, we no longer kick our kids out of the house to play. As responsible parents, we need to ensure that even our geeky children spend some time moving their bodies. That is the danger with letting gaming, even when it includes socializing at LAN parties or in front of the XBox, become a primary activity.
A friend and I were recently talking about Jaywalking, when Leno interviews people on the street and discovers that most of them couldn't tell you who the Vice President is or where Iraq is.
So whenever people complain about voter turnout, I think, thank goodness! We have enough idiots in this country without them skewing the vote. Unfortunately, politicians are getting more and more skilled at alarming these idiots into allowing them to make these sorts of laws, whether it's Democrats ensuring tax-cut payments for non tax-payers, or Republicans getting "Patriot" laws to protect us from "terrorists" by letting them lock them away without a lawyer or a hearing.
I fear the downfall of America will be our poor education system.
Actually I think it's much simpler than that. I ran into this problem when my mom was shopping for a new computer a couple years ago. I tried to convince her that a mac would be much easier to use and less prone to problems (I have owned both macs and PCs), but she just didn't like them.
Basically, her reason was, she had a mac at work in the office (she's a teacher, so she doesn't use it regularly), and she just couldn't get used to the different way to close windows or open programs. Simple things like where to click threw her off. (I don't think she even knows what a file extension is.)
And she definitely is not the experimental type. She is constantly asking me questions about how to do things, where if she only looked through the menus she could find. I take her as a case study in what too many years on PCs can do to a non-technical person. She's scared to try anything. Too bad I can't convince her to switch. Maybe when I get a new powerbook (in a couple years).
I find enough ways to waste time at work as it is without having a good one available. While periodic breaks for personal interests enable me to provide at least a few hours each day of productivity at my mind-numbing job, most of these breaks are not interesting enough to keep my attention for long, and I will get back to work, somewhat recharged, and in the end productive.
But being able to play games at work would make me completely useless. I can easily pour three hours into a game and not notice the time passing. The good thing about most workplace distactions is, they don't last long.
However, it's a lawyer's job to represent their client, no matter what stretches in the law they have to make to do so, if the stretch can be made, then they should use it.
By the opposite happening at the other end and reasonable judge or jury, this provides the necessary synthesis to provide justice.
Then again, juries seem to be more interested in letting people rip money off of big, bad companies than making common sense decisions.
One of the best books I've read. Kind of slow, but lots of detail. Jared Diamond is extensive and broad in supporting his hypothesis. It gives you a firm appreciation for the factors that affected human history and and a long perspective on the future.
Apple should have had a Windows version ready for release within a month. By the end of the year there will probably be two or three services which copy this model, and Apple will have lost it's chance to collect from the other 95% of computer users.
I know technically it is a lot more complicated, since they do not have control of the OS, but it would have been worth the effort. This service will not help them sell iPods, only Macs. For many people a Mac is too expensive. Or they may not be in the market for a new computer yet--they just bought their Dell last year.
Releasing the store with Windows support, while maintaining the AAC format and restriction to iPods, could have meant millions of iPod sales to current PC users. Sad to see such an obvious lost opportunity.
So. You can't play CDs in your tape recorder. As for being able to play them in other clients, mpeg-4 (AAC) is an open standard that clients could build a plug-=in for (and probably will, it is supposedly better). As for not being able to stream it - duh!
This service may do well because the majority of people who d/l mp3s just want to get the music they want without paying $18 for a whole CD, and since most people have a conscience, they would be willing to pay a reasonable price for it. Yeah, it's only for macs, but then how would Apple make money--they want to attract more people to the platform. If it takes off, they may make a Windows store, too, I hope. (I'm not a mac owner.)
I didn't say anything about being idle. I just think an informed citizenry is better able to exercise their authority. If we want to go to war, we should be fully aware of its consequences.
Re:Too bad it's still around.. at all!
on
4l-j4z333ra 0wn3d
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· Score: 1
Every time I read a post like this, it makes me worry that this great nation of mine is dying.
But there is still hope. We overcame secession, slavery, limited suffrage, segregation, monopolies, and McCarthyism. Let us hope we can beat stupidity and fascism as well.
if it was hacked it was probably by some "good Americans" who were just protecting our nation from freedom of the press. After all, the first amendment was written to ensure our unfettered access to porn, not information.
Yeah, I know, it isn't an American company - but our principles should be universal.
Our media has done a sorry job so far of covering this war. Since it will be along time until we have a war on American soil, how else are we Americans going to learn the devastation that it brings. (And don't tell me 9-11 was war on our soil. That was a horrible catastrophe, but nothing like a war.)
The amazing thing about this laser is the adaptive optics required to keep the beam focused on the target long enough to burn through the casing and ignite the propellant or warhead, while compensating for aircraft vibration and atmospheric distortion. I imagine this is the reason they chose an aircraft as a weapons platform. The air is thinner, less turbulent, and has less moisture than at the surface. It's also mobile, and can monitor a larger area from altitude.
An abvious next step would be putting this on ships, to replace Phalanx as a defense against incoming missles.
Slashdot Mirror
Less physchologically, the problem with the growth of this form of entertainment, no matter "who" you are, is that it involves so little exercise.
I'm not saying gaming precludes exercise, I know several fit gamers. But, like watching TV, gaming involves very little physical activity. (Unlike TV, at least it exercises the mind.) So it needs to be balanced with some form of physical activity.
As a society, possibly because of all the predators out there, we no longer kick our kids out of the house to play. As responsible parents, we need to ensure that even our geeky children spend some time moving their bodies. That is the danger with letting gaming, even when it includes socializing at LAN parties or in front of the XBox, become a primary activity.
A friend and I were recently talking about Jaywalking, when Leno interviews people on the street and discovers that most of them couldn't tell you who the Vice President is or where Iraq is.
So whenever people complain about voter turnout, I think, thank goodness! We have enough idiots in this country without them skewing the vote. Unfortunately, politicians are getting more and more skilled at alarming these idiots into allowing them to make these sorts of laws, whether it's Democrats ensuring tax-cut payments for non tax-payers, or Republicans getting "Patriot" laws to protect us from "terrorists" by letting them lock them away without a lawyer or a hearing.
I fear the downfall of America will be our poor education system.
Since I was curious, and to foster an educated comparison:
Toshiba: 2.8 GHz Pentium 4, 512 KB L2, 800 MHz Bus, 512 MB PC2100 RAM, 60GB HD, 1440x900 display, GeForceFX Go 5200 32 MB, 2 PC Card slots, Ethernet 100, IEEE 1394, 802.11a/b, 4 USB 2.0, 2 Infrared, 1 SD Card, 16.4x11.5x1.8", 9.9 lbs, 2 hr battery.
Powerbook: 1 GHz G4, 256K L2, 1MB L3, 167 MHz bus, 512 MB PC2700 RAM, 60GB HD, 1440x900 GeForce 440 Go 64MB, 1 PC Card, Ethernet 1000, 802.11g, 2 USB 1.1, IEEE 1394a, IEEE 1394b, Bluetooth, 15.4x10.2x1.0", 6.8 lbs, 4.5 hr battery.
I tried to put the specs in column format, but the filter kept rejecting it for too many "junk" characters.
key word "planned"
Actually I think it's much simpler than that. I ran into this problem when my mom was shopping for a new computer a couple years ago. I tried to convince her that a mac would be much easier to use and less prone to problems (I have owned both macs and PCs), but she just didn't like them.
Basically, her reason was, she had a mac at work in the office (she's a teacher, so she doesn't use it regularly), and she just couldn't get used to the different way to close windows or open programs. Simple things like where to click threw her off. (I don't think she even knows what a file extension is.)
And she definitely is not the experimental type. She is constantly asking me questions about how to do things, where if she only looked through the menus she could find. I take her as a case study in what too many years on PCs can do to a non-technical person. She's scared to try anything. Too bad I can't convince her to switch. Maybe when I get a new powerbook (in a couple years).
After the initial onslaught of hypocritcal geeks, most posts to waxy.org were supportive. Those who made fun of the kid were quickly flamed away.
He'll be back with a new series once he's spent all his money from this one.
I find enough ways to waste time at work as it is without having a good one available. While periodic breaks for personal interests enable me to provide at least a few hours each day of productivity at my mind-numbing job, most of these breaks are not interesting enough to keep my attention for long, and I will get back to work, somewhat recharged, and in the end productive.
But being able to play games at work would make me completely useless. I can easily pour three hours into a game and not notice the time passing. The good thing about most workplace distactions is, they don't last long.
However, it's a lawyer's job to represent their client, no matter what stretches in the law they have to make to do so, if the stretch can be made, then they should use it. By the opposite happening at the other end and reasonable judge or jury, this provides the necessary synthesis to provide justice. Then again, juries seem to be more interested in letting people rip money off of big, bad companies than making common sense decisions.
One of the best books I've read. Kind of slow, but lots of detail. Jared Diamond is extensive and broad in supporting his hypothesis. It gives you a firm appreciation for the factors that affected human history and and a long perspective on the future.
Apple should have had a Windows version ready for release within a month. By the end of the year there will probably be two or three services which copy this model, and Apple will have lost it's chance to collect from the other 95% of computer users.
I know technically it is a lot more complicated, since they do not have control of the OS, but it would have been worth the effort. This service will not help them sell iPods, only Macs. For many people a Mac is too expensive. Or they may not be in the market for a new computer yet--they just bought their Dell last year.
Releasing the store with Windows support, while maintaining the AAC format and restriction to iPods, could have meant millions of iPod sales to current PC users. Sad to see such an obvious lost opportunity.
And you didn't expect this the first day?
How long have you been reading slashdot?
So. You can't play CDs in your tape recorder. As for being able to play them in other clients, mpeg-4 (AAC) is an open standard that clients could build a plug-=in for (and probably will, it is supposedly better). As for not being able to stream it - duh! This service may do well because the majority of people who d/l mp3s just want to get the music they want without paying $18 for a whole CD, and since most people have a conscience, they would be willing to pay a reasonable price for it. Yeah, it's only for macs, but then how would Apple make money--they want to attract more people to the platform. If it takes off, they may make a Windows store, too, I hope. (I'm not a mac owner.)
I didn't say anything about being idle. I just think an informed citizenry is better able to exercise their authority. If we want to go to war, we should be fully aware of its consequences.
But there is still hope. We overcame secession, slavery, limited suffrage, segregation, monopolies, and McCarthyism. Let us hope we can beat stupidity and fascism as well.
Yeah, I know, it isn't an American company - but our principles should be universal.
Our media has done a sorry job so far of covering this war. Since it will be along time until we have a war on American soil, how else are we Americans going to learn the devastation that it brings. (And don't tell me 9-11 was war on our soil. That was a horrible catastrophe, but nothing like a war.)
I really hope this wasn't our Government's doing.
The amazing thing about this laser is the adaptive optics required to keep the beam focused on the target long enough to burn through the casing and ignite the propellant or warhead, while compensating for aircraft vibration and atmospheric distortion. I imagine this is the reason they chose an aircraft as a weapons platform. The air is thinner, less turbulent, and has less moisture than at the surface. It's also mobile, and can monitor a larger area from altitude. An abvious next step would be putting this on ships, to replace Phalanx as a defense against incoming missles.