We had a client once who wanted keywords inserted dynamically into the metatags on his webpage based on query results because he read once that search engines index pages based on the tags. Nothing we could say would convince him what was wrong with that picture.
Is it even possible to index dynamic pages? They don't really exist until the page is generated. Perhaps the best thing to do for sites that want to be indexed is to make sure they have a plain, vanilla index.html page that contains relevant keywords?
Dana
Re:I usually find your articles interesting, but..
on
Planet Gattaca
·
· Score: 2
But that is a problem we have to face anyway. Lifespans have been rising, infact mortality rates dropping and genetic engineering can't be blamed for that. Better living conditions and better medicine are far greater contributors.
In fact, some folks are geneticly engineering cows that produce more milk, more productive strains of crops, etc. (Although that has raised an big set of health issues that probably my biggest concern about the whole 'Gattaca' issue)
I did, in fact, read it and I didn't think he did contribute. "The Sky Is Falling!" is not contribution.
Perhaps I was a little nasty (if so, I apologize Jon), but I wanted to point out that fear mongering and paranoia don't accomplish anything. Jon made that point in his 'Y2K Feature'.
I wasn't bashing him personally, just critizing are article that needed critisism.
Dana
I usually find your articles interesting, but...
on
Planet Gattaca
·
· Score: 3
This one is devoid of content, Jon! All you've said is that humans are studying genetics and that this is a bad, dangerous thing. You haven't told us why (except that it will raise some uncomfortable questions for religious people). You may vague references to Gattaca, but never once say *why* genetic engineering may be a problem.
Your journalism is even a little lacking, because you don't even mention any of the possible benefits: cures for cancer, the correction of genetic illnesses, etc. If you want to state a debate, offer points of view from both sides.
We can't debate with you if you haven't provided us any substance!!!
There are a couple of theories that suggest life may have got started in conditions similar to the volcanic vents at the bottom of our oceans and not the 'still, warm pond' than Darwin suggested and that the early Earth was pretty nasty and harsh when life got started.
As long as chemical reactions can take place, there is probably a chance for *some* sort of life (says the non-biologist who has merely read a book or two:) ).
Well, as it happens, I work for a web design company (as a database guy, mind you), and if we released a website that people couldn't access without a plugin, someone would probably be fired.
I woudln't consider myself a hot-head, I just believe in professionalism. The NFB can sue because blind people are denied access to some web services, linux,Beos and other users were all denied service just the same.
Hmmm...maybe I'll change 'incompetent' to 'not wide enough thinker'. Although I think there is a fine line between 'ignorance', 'fucking idiot' and incompetent:)
...they fired whatever company they hired to create their pages in the first place. I don't think it was an attack on the linux community in the first place, it was merely incompetance. No one should be *forced* to download a plugin to view your site, suggest it, sure, but offer a link to a page that doesn't have Flash (especially since Flash is usually used only on the entrance page anyway!)
And why would you want incompetent people to design your site?
Neat! I guess I was right when I guessed that Larry would say 'TMTOWTDI':) How does it work, though? If I create a derivitive work, do I get to pick which license it is under?
Is Perl itself GPLed, then? Doesn't Artistic License violed GPL on a couple of points?
IIRC one of the conditions of Alan accepting his job was that he could pretty much do whatever the heck he wanted. If he ever felt he was being used or abused, I doubt he would have trouble finding a job somewhere else with more acceptable conditions.
You're right, it will always be a worry, but the developers have to earn a living somehow.
I think one reason may be that Larry Wall (and the Perl community in general) don't seem to focus on the license. The FSF has an ethical/political agenda that their license encourages, so they have to advertise it. It also happens that licensing ends up being on of the points in the BSD flame wars.
If asked about the merits of Artistic License, Larry would probably just tell you that there's more than one way to do it:)
I think another problem with the mainstreaming of linux is that the '2nd Generation' of Linux users (if Corel, IBM and other companies have there way) are going to be the average, everyday computer user.
It's great that Linux is becoming more and more popular, but it also dilutes the hacker contingent. If Linux utterly replaced Windows and was running on 90% of all desktops, 80-90% of people using it probably won't care about the GPL and FSF (at least not on the deep jyhad level that we see now). How many typical corporate or home users are going to be miffed that you have to be 18 to download Corel Linux. It will seem like a minor deal. Instead of most of the linux community rising up and shouting at companies who aren't playing nice, it will be a small fringe group.
My big fear of linux popularity is that geek/hacker faction will be marginalized in there own OS!
Or maybe I'm just grim and pessimistic this morning...
I know some nurses who call motorcycles Donor-cycles.
But there are plenty of ways for the dumb (and the clumsy, unfortunately, I fall into that category) to off themselves and for every moron who becomes a Darwin Award Candidate, you get someone who crushes his penis in a toilet seat and sues for a million dollars.
It was a recent Stupid Lawsuit. A guy somehow managed to crush his penis in a toilet seat. He's suing for about $1.5 million for damages. His wife, by the way, is suing for $475000 for 'loss of her husband services' (that is how they phrased it in their statement).
If you can't use your genetalia responsibly, maybe you shouldn't have them:)
I believe I probably have a caffeine addiction, but if I managed to rack up $25k on my credit card in chocolate and coffee, I like to think I won't sue anyone. I like to think that I would say to myself, "Dana, you're a moron, you got yourself into this situation, it's your own stupid fault, now try to fix the problem."
Now that I think about it though, maybe this guy isn't so dumb. Maybe he realizes the legal system doesn't hold people accountable for their actions so if he can get out of debt in a lawsuit, why not? Perhaps it's the legal system that has allowed people to win stupid lawsuits that is most at fault here.
Given the latest JonKatz article, once the HGP is done, should we try to eliminate the genes for gambling and let stupid people try to come up with other reasons to sue people, or should we try to eliminate the genes for stupid people and let smart people only gamble online.
Clearly something needs to be done!
(One last shot...it's a good thing this guy wasn't gambling with his laptop in a Starbucks bathroom while drinking McDonald's coffee...he could be suing everybody!)
The major and extremely significant difference between prokaryotes and eukaryotes is that eukaryotes have a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles, while prokaryotes do not. The DNA of prokaryotes floats freely around the cell; the DNA of eukaryotes is held within its nucleus. The organelles of eukaryotes allow them to exhibit much higher levels of intracellular division of labor than is possible in prokaryotic cells
I pretty much cheer for everyone except the bacteria (except the good bacteria that helps us digest stuff). But now that I think about it, I like your definition better:)
Well, I'm sure IBM is in for the profit and benefit to the company, that's how businesses operate. However, they do give back. Their compiler is open source. You can compile it and modify it (I'm sure there are some restrictions, I haven't read their license, but they took great pains to get it recognized as an Open Source license, presumably by OSI). Also VisualAge is closed source, but they ported it to Linux after an online petition generated over a 1000 signatures. They took Apache, had their engineers work on it and gave the fixes and improvements back to the Apache group (although I believe they initially tried to by Apache from them, at least they can be taught:) )
They are a big, greedy corporation, but I think they understand how open source stuff can benefit them.
I do hope, however, the Sun will give credit where credit is due to the Blackdown team when release the production version (what we have right now is a release candidate).
Not to mention that Jikes (a bytecode compiler made by IBM) is Open Source. They're actually giving back to the community, rather than (apparently) stealing from it.
I *hope* Sun hasn't stolen Blackdown (has anyone got in touch with them? Have they made a statement?). It's entirely possible that Blackdown turned the code over to them and Sun completed it. Before we start burning Sparc boxes in effigy, we should get a little more information.
Actually, IBM did create SQL. It was originally designed for an experiment relational DBMS called System R.
To the A.C. in the other post Larry Ellison didn't come up with the idea for relational databases. It was a fellow named Ted Codd in 1970, quite a while before Oracle was founded. IBM developped several relational dbms-es in the 70s, so they didn't appear to think it was a silly idea.
Just happened to have my old databases textbook handy:)
Don't forget, some other key things out of IBM research:
Fortran
The compiler
Relational database theory (ie. the daddy for just about every dbms being used right now) & SQL
I read an article a few months ago which stated that IBM has issued more patents (whether that's good or bad is another question) than any other company for the last 5 or 6 years. They pumped as much money into IBM Research as is spent on venture capitaling in Silicon Valley in 1996.
One theory put forward by Richard Dawkins is that the 'junk' DNA is sort of like a parasite, it got attached to our DNA long, long ago and is just sort of hitching a ride along with the 'non-junk' DNA's reproductive cycle.
Slashdot Mirror
We had a client once who wanted keywords inserted dynamically into the metatags on his webpage based on query results because he read once that search engines index pages based on the tags. Nothing we could say would convince him what was wrong with that picture.
Is it even possible to index dynamic pages? They don't really exist until the page is generated. Perhaps the best thing to do for sites that want to be indexed is to make sure they have a plain, vanilla index.html page that contains relevant keywords?
Dana
But that is a problem we have to face anyway. Lifespans have been rising, infact mortality rates dropping and genetic engineering can't be blamed for that. Better living conditions and better medicine are far greater contributors.
In fact, some folks are geneticly engineering cows that produce more milk, more productive strains of crops, etc. (Although that has raised an big set of health issues that probably my biggest concern about the whole 'Gattaca' issue)
Dana
I did, in fact, read it and I didn't think he did contribute. "The Sky Is Falling!" is not contribution.
Perhaps I was a little nasty (if so, I apologize Jon), but I wanted to point out that fear mongering and paranoia don't accomplish anything. Jon made that point in his 'Y2K Feature'.
I wasn't bashing him personally, just critizing are article that needed critisism.
Dana
This one is devoid of content, Jon! All you've said is that humans are studying genetics and that this is a bad, dangerous thing. You haven't told us why (except that it will raise some uncomfortable questions for religious people). You may vague references to Gattaca, but never once say *why* genetic engineering may be a problem.
Your journalism is even a little lacking, because you don't even mention any of the possible benefits: cures for cancer, the correction of genetic illnesses, etc. If you want to state a debate, offer points of view from both sides.
We can't debate with you if you haven't provided us any substance!!!
Dana
They should be okay, unless they try to patent their unique, 'One Step Admission' process :)
Dana
There are a couple of theories that suggest life may have got started in conditions similar to the volcanic vents at the bottom of our oceans and not the 'still, warm pond' than Darwin suggested and that the early Earth was pretty nasty and harsh when life got started.
:) ).
As long as chemical reactions can take place, there is probably a chance for *some* sort of life (says the non-biologist who has merely read a book or two
Dana
Well, as it happens, I work for a web design company (as a database guy, mind you), and if we released a website that people couldn't access without a plugin, someone would probably be fired.
I woudln't consider myself a hot-head, I just believe in professionalism. The NFB can sue because blind people are denied access to some web services, linux,Beos and other users were all denied service just the same.
Dana
Hmmm...maybe I'll change 'incompetent' to 'not wide enough thinker'. Although I think there is a fine line between 'ignorance', 'fucking idiot' and incompetent :)
Dana
...they fired whatever company they hired to create their pages in the first place. I don't think it was an attack on the linux community in the first place, it was merely incompetance. No one should be *forced* to download a plugin to view your site, suggest it, sure, but offer a link to a page that doesn't have Flash (especially since Flash is usually used only on the entrance page anyway!)
And why would you want incompetent people to design your site?
Neat! I guess I was right when I guessed that Larry would say 'TMTOWTDI' :) How does it work, though? If I create a derivitive work, do I get to pick which license it is under?
:)
Is Perl itself GPLed, then? Doesn't Artistic License violed GPL on a couple of points?
You've made my head spin
Dana
If my room is typical of the geek room, the thing better be all terrain!!
(Side note: would a better geek gift be Lego Mindstorms so we can create our very own intelligent, robotic vacuum cleaner?)
Dana
IIRC one of the conditions of Alan accepting his job was that he could pretty much do whatever the heck he wanted. If he ever felt he was being used or abused, I doubt he would have trouble finding a job somewhere else with more acceptable conditions.
You're right, it will always be a worry, but the developers have to earn a living somehow.
Dana
I think one reason may be that Larry Wall (and the Perl community in general) don't seem to focus on the license. The FSF has an ethical/political agenda that their license encourages, so they have to advertise it. It also happens that licensing ends up being on of the points in the BSD flame wars.
:)
If asked about the merits of Artistic License, Larry would probably just tell you that there's more than one way to do it
Dana
Sort of a corollary to your statement...
I think another problem with the mainstreaming of linux is that the '2nd Generation' of Linux users (if Corel, IBM and other companies have there way) are going to be the average, everyday computer user.
It's great that Linux is becoming more and more popular, but it also dilutes the hacker contingent. If Linux utterly replaced Windows and was running on 90% of all desktops, 80-90% of people using it probably won't care about the GPL and FSF (at least not on the deep jyhad level that we see now). How many typical corporate or home users are going to be miffed that you have to be 18 to download Corel Linux. It will seem like a minor deal. Instead of most of the linux community rising up and shouting at companies who aren't playing nice, it will be a small fringe group.
My big fear of linux popularity is that geek/hacker faction will be marginalized in there own OS!
Or maybe I'm just grim and pessimistic this morning...
Dana
I know some nurses who call motorcycles Donor-cycles.
But there are plenty of ways for the dumb (and the clumsy, unfortunately, I fall into that category) to off themselves and for every moron who becomes a Darwin Award Candidate, you get someone who crushes his penis in a toilet seat and sues for a million dollars.
Dana
It was a recent Stupid Lawsuit. A guy somehow managed to crush his penis in a toilet seat. He's suing for about $1.5 million for damages. His wife, by the way, is suing for $475000 for 'loss of her husband services' (that is how they phrased it in their statement).
:)
If you can't use your genetalia responsibly, maybe you shouldn't have them
Dana
I believe I probably have a caffeine addiction, but if I managed to rack up $25k on my credit card in chocolate and coffee, I like to think I won't sue anyone. I like to think that I would say to myself, "Dana, you're a moron, you got yourself into this situation, it's your own stupid fault, now try to fix the problem."
Now that I think about it though, maybe this guy isn't so dumb. Maybe he realizes the legal system doesn't hold people accountable for their actions so if he can get out of debt in a lawsuit, why not? Perhaps it's the legal system that has allowed people to win stupid lawsuits that is most at fault here.
Dana
Given the latest JonKatz article, once the HGP is done, should we try to eliminate the genes for gambling and let stupid people try to come up with other reasons to sue people, or should we try to eliminate the genes for stupid people and let smart people only gamble online.
Clearly something needs to be done!
(One last shot...it's a good thing this guy wasn't gambling with his laptop in a Starbucks bathroom while drinking McDonald's coffee...he could be suing everybody!)
Dana
A biology site explains it better than I can:
:)
The major and extremely significant difference between prokaryotes and eukaryotes is that eukaryotes have a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles, while prokaryotes do not. The DNA of prokaryotes floats freely around the cell; the DNA of eukaryotes is held within its nucleus. The organelles of eukaryotes allow them to exhibit much higher levels of intracellular
division of labor than is possible in prokaryotic cells
I pretty much cheer for everyone except the bacteria (except the good bacteria that helps us digest stuff). But now that I think about it, I like your definition better
Dana
Well, I'm sure IBM is in for the profit and benefit to the company, that's how businesses operate. However, they do give back. Their compiler is open source. You can compile it and modify it (I'm sure there are some restrictions, I haven't read their license, but they took great pains to get it recognized as an Open Source license, presumably by OSI). Also VisualAge is closed source, but they ported it to Linux after an online petition generated over a 1000 signatures. They took Apache, had their engineers work on it and gave the fixes and improvements back to the Apache group (although I believe they initially tried to by Apache from them, at least they can be taught :) )
They are a big, greedy corporation, but I think they understand how open source stuff can benefit them.
I do hope, however, the Sun will give credit where credit is due to the Blackdown team when release the production version (what we have right now is a release candidate).
Dana
Not to mention that Jikes (a bytecode compiler made by IBM) is Open Source. They're actually giving back to the community, rather than (apparently) stealing from it.
I *hope* Sun hasn't stolen Blackdown (has anyone got in touch with them? Have they made a statement?). It's entirely possible that Blackdown turned the code over to them and Sun completed it. Before we start burning Sparc boxes in effigy, we should get a little more information.
Dana
It wasn't moderated to 0. Anonymous Coward posts always start at 0.
Actually, IBM did create SQL. It was originally designed for an experiment relational DBMS called System R.
:)
To the A.C. in the other post Larry Ellison didn't come up with the idea for relational databases. It was a fellow named Ted Codd in 1970, quite a while before Oracle was founded. IBM developped several relational dbms-es in the 70s, so they didn't appear to think it was a silly idea.
Just happened to have my old databases textbook handy
Dana
I read an article a few months ago which stated that IBM has issued more patents (whether that's good or bad is another question) than any other company for the last 5 or 6 years. They pumped as much money into IBM Research as is spent on venture capitaling in Silicon Valley in 1996.
Dana
One theory put forward by Richard Dawkins is that the 'junk' DNA is sort of like a parasite, it got attached to our DNA long, long ago and is just sort of hitching a ride along with the 'non-junk' DNA's reproductive cycle.
Dana